Our girl has got wheels, and she is PROUD and HAPPY!
It has been awesome to see her be so happy to be wheeling around this past week.
When the wheelchair company came a couple of months ago to fit Tessa for her wheelchair, they left a demo chair for us to practice with for a couple of weeks. She was definitely excited to be driving around a little, but she was also quite frustrated about not being able to drive it well. It's not easy teaching a one-year-old how to drive!
So it was our expectation that there would be some frustration and a bit of a learning curve when Tessa got her own chair. But she surprised us all by taking right off, navigating the reverse and all the turns around the house by herself. She was a pro within minutes!
The wheelchair guy made all the necessary adjustments to customize her chair, and as soon as he left Tessa took off towards the kitchen. Her first stop was a total surprise to me- the junk drawer. Of course! What 2-year-old doesn't want to dig around in a treasure chest like that?!
It was so endearing to watch her for the next 20 minutes, taking out items and examining each one and opening and closing the drawer a million times. She's been watching all of us open that junk drawer (which is the MOTHER of all junk drawers) multiple times a day but was stuck watching from her view from the floor. I love that her new independence is enabling her to satisfy her curiosities!
Tessa's chair is small and when the chair is in normal position, she is eye-level with other kids her age. But she can also push a button and raise the chair to counter height. As you can imagine, she LOVES this button. I've found her several times this week carrying things around that she has gotten from high places that even the other kids can't reach!
She asks to be in her wheelchair as soon as she wakes up and then just takes off, exploring and figuring out how to do new things like....
Coloring on her wheelchair tray with Merin
Getting crayons from the art supply box
Giving little rides to her older sister
And getting drinks on her own
We have some changes to make so that life is more wheelchair accessible for Tessa. The big ones are a new house and new van. Yikes! But I'm thankful that although we live in a two-story house, our downstairs is completely accessible for Tessa's chair. We will move in a couple of years to a one-story house, but for now it's perfect for Tessa to access almost everything she needs independently at this age.
God has provided so much for us and we are deeply thankful for this precious beautiful daughter He has given us. Life with her is adventurous and sweet!
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| This picture was unposed. Just her sheer joy caught on camera! |
It has been awesome to see her be so happy to be wheeling around this past week.
When the wheelchair company came a couple of months ago to fit Tessa for her wheelchair, they left a demo chair for us to practice with for a couple of weeks. She was definitely excited to be driving around a little, but she was also quite frustrated about not being able to drive it well. It's not easy teaching a one-year-old how to drive!
So it was our expectation that there would be some frustration and a bit of a learning curve when Tessa got her own chair. But she surprised us all by taking right off, navigating the reverse and all the turns around the house by herself. She was a pro within minutes!
The wheelchair guy made all the necessary adjustments to customize her chair, and as soon as he left Tessa took off towards the kitchen. Her first stop was a total surprise to me- the junk drawer. Of course! What 2-year-old doesn't want to dig around in a treasure chest like that?!
It was so endearing to watch her for the next 20 minutes, taking out items and examining each one and opening and closing the drawer a million times. She's been watching all of us open that junk drawer (which is the MOTHER of all junk drawers) multiple times a day but was stuck watching from her view from the floor. I love that her new independence is enabling her to satisfy her curiosities!
Tessa's chair is small and when the chair is in normal position, she is eye-level with other kids her age. But she can also push a button and raise the chair to counter height. As you can imagine, she LOVES this button. I've found her several times this week carrying things around that she has gotten from high places that even the other kids can't reach!
She asks to be in her wheelchair as soon as she wakes up and then just takes off, exploring and figuring out how to do new things like....
Coloring on her wheelchair tray with Merin
Giving little rides to her older sister
And getting drinks on her own
We have some changes to make so that life is more wheelchair accessible for Tessa. The big ones are a new house and new van. Yikes! But I'm thankful that although we live in a two-story house, our downstairs is completely accessible for Tessa's chair. We will move in a couple of years to a one-story house, but for now it's perfect for Tessa to access almost everything she needs independently at this age.
God has provided so much for us and we are deeply thankful for this precious beautiful daughter He has given us. Life with her is adventurous and sweet!
That is amazing! Awesome, Tessa!
ReplyDeleteThat is super awesome. Thank you for being her parents.
ReplyDeleteYou never cease to amaze me, Meagan. I have grown to love you and your family so much over the years, through our precious D and your blog. Thank you for choosing YES, choosing LOVE. I wish I were there to huge Tessa myself right now! Have a merry, merry Christmas!
ReplyDeleteAwesome! I love that she wanted to explore the junk drawer too, she knew there was treasures in there!
ReplyDeleteAwesome!
ReplyDelete