What a week!

 What a week it has been! I am not always sure how to put things into words and to share how special these days and weeks are. At times I wish I could go back 20 years to that scared mom who was worried that motherhood of a medically fragile child would end too soon and be filled with nothing but disappointment and heartbreak. And while we have certainly had our fair share of scary, hard times, we are also blessed with such a beautiful life that I never could have imagined. 

Alex continues to thrive in every way and just this week was asked to serve two positions within DBU Esports. The first is as the captain of one of the teams. The second is as the Outreach Director for all of DBU Esports. It is so fun to watch him find his way and be recognized for his gifts. He is such a gift as a son. And I could not be more proud of him!

Maddy and I headed to Florida this week for a short visit with my mom and Jenn and then to compete at the World Equestrian Center in Ocala. While we always have fun with our barn family at horse shows, this one was the most fun we have ever had. There was a small group of us attending with Stable Strides as it was the first time the WEC had Equestrians with Disabilities classes at one of their shows. The grounds are absolutely amazing. The stalls and arenas are top notch and everyone was so accepting and kind of our group. Maddy and Newman had an exceptional show, but it was the camaraderie between our team and competitors that really made a difference. I am not sure we have ever had a show where we laughed more in the warmups and just enjoyed ourselves this much. The horse world is small and the EWD horse world smaller yet. So we often compete against the same teams at all of the main shows. Because there were not a lot of EWD competitors at this show we were able to spend so much time together enjoying friendship and fellowship. We had a pizza party with our biggest competitors and we spent so much time chatting and laughing in the warmups. It was overall just a fun time and filled our souls. Maddy cannot wait to go back to this show next year. It is officially our favorite horse show. And competing with her best boy made it even better!

Maddy and Skye

Maddy and Mimi

Newmie

What better place to relax then in your horse's stall

Heading to show

Newman thinks everything is food including her helmet

Jesus is always with us

This team prayed together before each class

Taking out Newmie's tail

Bathtime with Caroline

Amy and Maddy said their favorite part was shopping

Scratches for the best boy

Maddy and Dyann are always cutting up

Maddy and Patrick practicing

Amy and Maddy spent the whole week side by side

English day

Mandy is so amazing with Maddy

Team Stable Strides

Family Pics- Wade is Maddy's show dad

Forrest, Patrick and Maddy with Corbett

An amazing week

In not as great news...when I say Maddy is tough, I mean it. The kid literally NEVER complains. I can usually tell if she isn't feeling great, but she very rarely tells me unless I really push. She just doesn't want her medical issues to slow her down or keep her from doing what she loves. Since about November she had been complaining about her back hurting when riding western. Our barn family has teased her that she just wants to get out of riding Western since she loves English. But I always assured her I believed her because she just isn't one to make excuses. Still I was a bit shocked when we received her MRI report on her spine shortly before we left for Florida showing a compression fracture in her thoracic spine and degeneration in three discs. Luckily, we have the most incredible medical team and Mandy is equally as amazing. Her doctors agreed to allow her to continue riding as long as she could tolerate the pain and Mandy, Maddy, and I worked together to keep her as comfortable as possible. We have seen our PMR doctor and neurologist and spoken to our endocrinologist and Mito specialist. Everyone is in agreement that the cause is a combination of her severe hypermobility along side osteoporosis. The doctors are all discussing what if any treatment is needed and more importantly how to move forward preventing more spinal fractures. Our neurologist also wants to consult with a neurosurgeon just to be sure we are taking everything into consideration. In the mean time, Maddy continues to push herself and ride and is laughing about having a broken back complete with giving Bruce a hard time if he dares to complain about anything hurting. She really has had a good attitude and has only made one small comment otherwise when she said "see I told your my back was hurting when I did Western." 

I would ask for prayers for a good plan for Maddy and continued good health for Alex.

Thank you for loving our family.

Ali