Kaley Visits Home for First Time in 9 Months
Monday, June 9th, 2008
As a birthday present to me, Kaley and my parents have been working hard for over a month to get Kaley to come home for a visit. This happened last Saturday. My parents and I got fully trained on how to transfer Kaley in and out of a car last week. We also brought in some non-comfy-clothes (that is, not pajamas) for Kaley to wear for her big trip. The aides made sure Kaley got a good shower with her hair washed the evening before. My parents arrived before I did and with the aides help got her dressed in the shirt, skirt, and sandals I brought from home. They brushed her hair through and got it pulled up in a nice pony tail with ribbons. They even gave her a splash of her favorite body spray, making her smell a little more like Kaley. They said she broke into a big smile several times in the hour leading up to when I arrived.
The trip home took a lot out of Kaley. I imagine the excitement and anticipation, along with sitting in car seat for the first time in nearly a year drained her. She said she did not remember much when we got home, the fountains in the lobby or even inside our condo. See seemed pretty tired, so we got her into bed and she fell asleep instantly. I crawled in with her for an hour and let her rest on her own for another hour. Even Toni came up for a visit during our nap.
After the 2 hour nap, we got her up again and gave her more ambien. Now she recognized things! Kaley helped me blow out the candles and she even sang “Happy Birthday” to me! She didn’t get all the words, nor were they all clear, but they were all perfectly in key. Earlier in the week, she had wrapped a gift for me and had signed a card for me that my mother had selected for her. The picture above is after I read the card and how much Kaley had written there (all without ambien to boot). She had a couple of tastes of cheese cake. After a couple more hours, Kaley looked like she was tiring out again. She said she wasn’t, but when we asked if she was just saying that because she didn’t want to leave, she smiled sheepishly and agreed that was the case.
All and all it was a wonderful success and the first of many more trips home (and to other places). It is a 2 person job to drive her somewhere (1 person to drive, and 1 person to manage her (just in case)). We already have plans for going to a Twins game before the year is over (probably innings 3 - 6 only). Kaley certainly remembers her trip home. We have asked her about it many times, and while she hasn’t vocalized about the trip home, she certainly has indicated that she had a wonderful time.
Checkout more photos from the trip home here.