Summer was not complete without a visit from Jett's other Grandpa and Grandma, Ray and Charlene. My parents arrived on my birthday and spoiled me like crazy, which, by the way, does not get old no matter how old you are or how many kids you have.
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| Here they are sporting their Jett shirts and new eyewear. Just so you know, my mom did NOT want her picture taken…so I'll make sure that I make the picture extra large on this blog. |
Its always nice to still be a kid every once in awhile. They took us out to dinner, took me shopping, cleaned my house, and spent their days here cuddling Jett and a new cat…yup, a new cat.
Now, I need to preface this story. If any of you know my mom well, you know that she is a huge animal lover. That is my nice way of saying that she is a "cat lady". In her neighborhood back home, I am certain that all of the stray cats meet together and discuss which house to go beg from. For some strange reason, all of the cats end up at my mom's house. She has gone to many lengths to ensure the comfort of these dirty, ratty, stray cats (one of which is missing both ears) such as canned cat food, their own cat house that sits on the porch, and a warm room and bed for one cat to give birth in. In all honesty, I admire what my mom does. She doesn't like to see any animal suffer and that love has been instilled in me. However, I do enjoy poking fun at my mom whenever I can.
So fast forward to their trip out to Omaha, Nebraska. My parents had only been in town for a total of four hours and OUT OF NOWHERE a flipping black cat showed up at our house. Seriously, do cats have phones? This cat knew that my mom would feed and take care of it and did not back down. Just imagine the most annoying "nails down the chalkboard" cat meow that you can and that would describe the sound that this cat made. Kusaba would freak out every time the cat came clawing and meowing at our door, which was not okay with us. My mom tried to convince me that we needed a cat. "Well can't you just let it stay on the other side of the fence and just feed it every day?" No…no, I can't.
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| Mr. Black Cat took a special liking to my Dad |
So to make a long story somewhat short, my mom wanted to take the cat home with her back to Utah. She was willing to pay for the cat to fly home, but when I called the airlines, they informed me that no animals were allowed to fly due to intense heat conditions. Well, crap. My parents ended up taking Mr. Black Cat to the Omaha Humane Society...but my mom made sure first that the cat would not be euthanized if it wasn't adopted. I wouldn't be surprised if she has called back to make sure that they're holding true to their promise.
My parents were able to come to a couple of Jett's physical therapy appointments. The pictures below are of Jett's feet being measured for braces. Braces are custom-made to provide ankle stability. We had these braces made and ready to go by the time my parents were here. Cody and I decided that they look like wakeboard bindings. What do you think?
Jett was NOT a fan of his first time in a stander. I won't post the pissed off pictures, but just know that he was NOT happy! I ended up singing to him (in my awful voice) and that seemed to do the trick. He tolerated everything after that.
The purpose of a stander is not to make Jett do things that we know he cannot. There are many great benefits for putting him in this ginormous contraption. First off, it's good for him to be upright every once in awhile. Our bodies are not meant to lay horizontal all of the time. For those who lay flat most of the time are at greater risk of pneumonia and other complications. Putting Jett in a stander allows all of the gunk to get out of his lungs and lets everything move downward. Another great benefit of a stander is that it allows the muscles around Jett's joints to be strengthened. The braces support Jett's ankles and allow him to stand using his own body weight. I'm glad my parents were there with me! Cody was super busy with clinics at school and wasn't able to come. There are a lot of different things that I've had to experience as a special needs mom and I'm incredibly grateful that I have an amazing support system.
Jett loved cuddling with his Grandma!
I gave up cooking the week that my parents were here and we were able to try some fun Omaha restaurants. One of our favorites was Wheatfields in Old Market. Jett did AMAZING in his wheelchair while we ate some yummy food. Sorry for the blurry phone pics, but I caught a rare, and very cute smile, from Jett.
My dad ordered a BRICK of lasagna. No big deal.
I ordered a Cobb Salad and pretty much ate all the goodies on top. Does anyone else do that?
Annndddd....we can't forget about Kusaba. He was WORN out by the time my parents left, but still was alert enough to protect all of his tennis balls.
Thanks for coming to visit MOM and DAD!
