A Bum Wheel

My week has consisted of being stretched out on a sofa with restricted movement, slipping in and out of a painkiller haze. So thankful for a husband who has taken 'extra wonderful' care of me, for my family and friends that have stepped in to be of assistance when needed.  It's been rough.

I had hoped to never have to endure another knee surgery, but this past week I had my sixth knee surgery.  Five scopes and an ACL reconstruction (attributed largely to my love of sports). This go round I had some meniscus tears to repair, along with some clean up to get done.  That was the plan until they got in there and saw the complete madness that has been going on since my last surgery.  It was a lot worse than originally expected and required a bit more to address. There were issues that will definitely affect the stability of my knee going forward and the things I'll be able to comfortably do.  I have a follow-up appointment to discuss a lot of those points, but for now...it's quite a challenge.

I'm thankful for mobility and use of my limbs. Praying for a swift and speedy recovery.  Also believing for a plan that allows me to remain active and maintain the quality and fulfillment of activities I enjoy.

Sharing & Caring

Writing..Sharing..Speaking and Connecting...several things I'm extremely passionate about.  If I had to add a fifth, it would be 'Serving'....let's just add that because that is the essence of who I am.

I've enjoyed speaking on behalf of the many organizations we love and who have loved and supported us over these last two years (Faith and Family Church, ASK, Connor's Heroes Foundation, Starlight Foundation, Make A Wish Foundation, Give Kids the World, Children's Miracle Network ,Children's Hospital of Richmond) and the Miss Chesterfield Organization.

I love sharing our story, the goodness of God and the collective beauty of the human spirit.  As a result, I believe it has become a part of my mission and assignment to educate and bring awareness, participation and partnership to Organizations that are making a tremendous difference in the lives of others.

I've had the pleasure of partnering on several occasions over the last year with Children's Miracle Network and Children's Hospital of Richmond to speak with/to their local and national partners in an effort to allow these partners to 'see' and 'hear' the difference they are making.  As a result other avenues and opportunities have been birthed or opened up.  The Foundation contacted me last week to share they are launching a new group starting with #TeamBolton.

an excerpt from that message...

"This spring, we will initiate a new group within our Foundation and we’d like to begin with you. Families with Heart will be a group of involved, passionate and motivated patient families who want to continue to be involved and support our efforts to help CHoR through event participation, story-telling and at times, speaking opportunities"

I was truly humbled to receive this.  Don't ever underestimate the 'Power of One'...how far reaching one voice, one experience, or one decision can make or the impact/imprint it can have.

Ambassador.Champion.Advocate.Spokesperson.Supporter...stay tuned for more!

Illness & Revelation

 It's been so beautiful to witness Mireya living and enjoying life.  There are days I'm overcome with emotion at some of the simplest discoveries.

We had the opportunity to hang out with some awesome families from clinic a few weeks ago to attend the Circus.  The kids were looking forward to a special tour that was lined up for the afternoon, a dinner and then back to the Coliseum to enjoy the Circus.

The tour was amazing.  We had the opportunity to spend one on one time with the head Clown in Charge, some of the featured animal acts and enjoy the allure and fabulosity of all things circus.  It was really special to watch Asia, the elephant paint a lovely photo for the Connor's Heroes kids, but even more exciting to watch her gleefully gulp down her favorite treat (a whole loaf of bread).

We walked over to Gibson's Grill to enjoy the lovely fare they had set up for us.  It was so funny to see the kids go for the high chairs (bar stools) at the bar and order an assortment of juices and sodas.  The food was very tasty.  Midway through dinner Mireya was dragging.  She mentioned that her head and stomach were hurting.  I felt her head and she seemed to be fairly warm.  Hmmm...I've been out of the 'on edge over fever' for quite a while, so I did not have my thermometer on hand and surprisingly neither did any of the other Moms.  I became concerned the more I watched her demeanor and activity change, but she absolutely did not want to leave the 'Greatest Show on Earth'.  I decided to contact the First Aid area of the Coliseum to see if I could get here temperature taken. Low and behold a very nice Firefighter arrived within minutes to our location registering a 101.6 fever.  After calling Peds Hemoc, we were instructed to bring Mireya to the Pediatric ER to be looked at and for counts.  We decided to allow Jalen and Kinley to stay with the group and enjoy the show because ER visits are always so long.  Mireya decided she wanted Daddy to stay with her in the ER. So thankful for technology which allowed me to return to the Coliseum, keep track of Mireya's status while Jalen and Makinley enjoyed the remainder of the show.  Long after the Circus was over we were still in the ER making sure Mireya received the care and medications she needed for what appeared to be a viral infection.  The greatest feeling was receiving her counts and seeing that they were right where they needed to be.  Her white count was even elevated a bit, showing us that her bone marrow and body were doing exactly what they should when fighting against illness.  Jalen was quite anxious when we arrived because he thought he was going to have to 'do something' again to help his sister.  After hearing those counts, I looked at Jalen and gave him a 'high five' and a big hug...those SUPER cells are working beautifully.  It was a long late night, we didn't get home until close to 1am.

Through what 'appeared' to be a setback, God showed us beautiful counts, a body on it's job and fighting for wellness.  We're thankful this was something that could be easily addressed and happy for the revelation in the midst of it all.  This is definitely a win for #TeamBolton.

Birthday Blessings

Back in December I received a message from a dear friend sharing how a local baker had heard our story and wanted to be a blessing to each of the children for their birthday.  I was so touched that someone would be moved to do something so amazing for us.

Today is my sweet little Makinley's birthday.  I was contacted last week by Michelle Wilson of Michelle's Cakery Bakery for a run down on all things Kinley.  At that moment it consisted of purple and princesses (specifically Snow White).  Just seconds earlier, it was Ariel, wait maybe Aurora.  I had no idea what to expect, but was blown away when Michelle and her Mom arrived with this beautiful cake, balloons galore and two beautiful purple gift bags.  Tears rimmed my eyes and I just wanted to boo hoo big time. It felt like Publisher's Clearinghouse had just arrived and I was a major winner!  The true prize was the 'priceless' smile on Makinley's face when she saw this beautiful creation.  On top of it all Michelle pulled together a princess gift pack for Makinely, purchased everything we needed to complete a celebration (purple plasticware, plates, cups and a tablecloth) AND she made the most adorable purple heart shaped cake pops for Kinley to take to her preschool class.  We elected to have a early celebration with my niece and nephew to take advantage of the day out of school yesterday.

 Today we had second celebration full of birthday love with her class and family.  At preschool, the kids actually make a cake during class to enjoy with the birthday boy or girl.  There was major sugar overload going on this morning, so we decided to send the cake pops home with her classmates.  They were so excited.  Makinley has been celebrating all day long....we enjoyed cupcakes and another round of sweets and gifts this afternoon.

Preschool Cake Creation

I can't believe how quickly time has flown and I'm extremely thankful for Michelle Wilson. She has an amazing story which started with making cakes for her own child who has major allergies, only able to eat a few key ingredients.  That grew into making cakes and sweets for other children with allergies and eventually a full scale business was born (your gifts will make room for you).  I love her heart and desire to share her gifts with others.  This was really special for us. Please visit http://www.michellescakerybakery.net and consider Michelle's Cakery Bakery for your next event.  The cake and pops were delicious!

If you know of a family affected by childhood illness that does not reside in the Tri-City Area or Metro Area, visit Icing Smiles.  This is wonderful organization (with a host of licensed Bakers across the United States) making a difference in the lives of children affected by illness, one cake and smile at a time.

Happy Birthday Makinley!  I'll never forget when Daddy and I discussed having you.  I thought we were good (just having had your brother and sister), but Daddy wanted just one more.  I told him I loved him enough to go there and suddenly we were there and then you were born. I'll never forget you coming into the world, sounding off like a little kitty cat with that sweet little cry.  I remember thanking Daddy not long ago for lobbying for one more. I told him had he not been persistent in the campaign, we would be missing out on the total joy of you.  Love you so much sweet girl!

School Days

Mireya has had exceptional progress over the last week with counts.  Her counts last month were the best we've seen in two years.  Last week her counts were even better than those charted last month.  The Head of Hemoc (Pediatric Hematology and Oncology) had to take a pause when those numbers popped up on the screen.  Simply amazing!  She was released to start school last week with some restrictions, but we are so happy she can finally go to school.  She has been looking forward to it since the beginning of the year.

I worked with her teacher(s) and the school Administration to ensure we have everything in place.  We scheduled a tour and visit with her classmates to help prepare Mireya for the big day.  Meeting her classmates for the first time was a precious occasion.  There was one little girl, who has sent Mireya pictures almost weekly of the two of them playing together.  She was overcome with emotion when she finally got to see Mireya for the first time.  She sweetly grabbed Mireya's hand and took her around the classroom to show her all the different stations and neat things.  It was so beautiful to witness.  The kids were super excited to see her...she was a total ROCKSTAR!  Mireya is a bit more reserved and observant and it was a little overwhelming at first having so many people approach and demand your attention, but by the time it was over, she was on top of the world.  The kids reminded her to take her Monkey home, because it would no longer occupy her seat.

 In the words of Mireya, her first day was 'fabulous'!  It was a bittersweet experiencing my "First Day of Kindergarten' as a Mom six months later, but my tears were those of joy. By the end of the week transportation had been arranged for her and she is enjoying riding a much less crowded bus to school. Because Mireya is only allowed at this time to return to school half days, she will continue Homebound a few days a week to complete her Math and Geography tracks.

Continue to keep us in your prayers, we're thankful and grateful to reach this milestone and so happy for the continued progress for Mireya medically.

Super Bowl Fun & Feature

We had a great time Sunday with family, enjoying a delicious assortment of foods and watching the Super Bowl.  I don't necessarily have 'a team', there are a number of talented athletes I enjoy watching, but overall I like good football.  My B'more family was doing it big (I was born in Baltimore), so I was definitely rooting for my hometown team.  One of the highlights of the game for me was the Halftime Pepsi Show Countdown. Pepsi presented a Fan Kickoff Challenge several weeks ago for the highly anticipated Halftime Show by Beyonce which included a mini reunion with Destiny's Child members Kelly Rowland and Michelle Williams.

Paris asked us to help her with the pics which were a combination of about 15 specific photos with a nighttime backdrop. Paris has a lot of personal goals and aspirations. She's not a 'in the box' or corner kind of kid. She is a creative, and gifted spirit that can do just about anything she puts her mind to.  Paris is focused on school right now and she's doing great academically.  We encourage her to pursue her dreams and follow her heart or at least create the road map to take the necessary steps to get there. There is nothing to big or out of reach (it's all attainable). It requires hard work, dedication and commitment, but we all believe in her.  She's done a few things recently to step outside of her comfort zone and I'm super proud of her.  I'm happy that she followed through with submitting her photos.  There were over 100,000 pictures submitted.  Three of hers were selected as potential finalists. That is a great feat! In the end one of them was chosen, but you have to admit that jumping shot is 'off the charts' good.

This is only the beginning. To see the full countdown piece click here Pepsi Super Bowl Halftime Commercial...I promise you if you blink you'll miss it, but according to this tag, Superbowl ads cost $8 Million per minute, so Pepsi paid about $4500 per frame shown...'you go girl'.  Great things are in your future.  Continue to apply your self and keep reaching for the stars.

Freedom

These last few weeks have been so 'freeing' for Mireya  Being able to ditch the mask was major, getting her line removed was icing on the cake. She is living life in an entirely new way.  Enjoying every moment with freedom and without limitations.  She is transforming right before our eyes and it's a beautiful things to witness.

Mireya has asked to go outside every day.  She walked with me to the bus stop with Jalen for the first time since school started.  I've seen rolling down a grassy hill, but when it snowed, Mireya's excitement had her rolling over and over and over and over down the hills squealing with delight. (To view, click here Reya's Snow Fun) She never would have done that with the line in. She's been laughing more, smiling more, I catch her just grinning for no reason.  She told us she is so happy her line is out.  The girls took a bath 'full of water and bubbles', for the first time in two years. Those bubbles lasted forever, the excitement of sharing that moment together could have last all night, but after more than an hour, I made those shriveled toes exit the tub...stage left.  We take so much for granted. There truly are no words for the pure happiness of small things being rediscovered.

Thank you Lord for you grace.  Thank each of you for your prayers over these last two years, they have carried us through and these are the days we believed our hope and faith would bring us to.  We're so thankful.