Where does time go?

 Where do the days, weeks, and months go? I cannot believe it will be May this week. And Alex is two weeks away from finishing his Junior year at DBU!!!

Alex is having another amazing semester. He continues to grow and thrive. The difference in his maturity, organization, time management, and the quality of his work is leaps and bounds from that first year. I love to have a front row seat to watching him truly become the man God created him to be. I am so glad for God's perfect plan that led us to visit DBU and that he knew it was the right place for him. He is surrounded, by professors, friends and faculty that draw him closer to God and remind him of who he is. As a Mom seeing him loved well and nurtured in his faith is more than I could have asked for. I am so grateful for all the incredible professors and mentors who truly see Alex and look beyond his medical challenges to help him achieve goals and work towards a life that we once only prayed he would live long enough to see. He met with the coach of the Esports team last week and was asked to be a captain of his team and also be the Community outreach director for the entire program. He is so excited to take on these new roles and to continue as the in game commentator for the Esports matches he isn't playing in. He is also in the process of setting up an internship at Cook Children's over the summer where he will shadow his Pain Management doctor and ensure that that is the direction he hopes to pursue one day. He couldn't imagine completing his internship anywhere other than the hospital that has poured so much into him and saved his life countless times over the past 15 years.  Medically he continues to be stable.

My Maddy moo continues to keep working hard and living life no matter what she has going on. She is managing her back pain well and her PMR doctor has decided she does not want to brace her. I had to giggle because she said exactly the same thing as PT used to say all the time when she was little. There is a very fine line between keeping her joints stable and still making her "work" to build muscle. The fear is that by bracing her back she won't have to use as much core muscles to stabilize and that could lead to further issues down the line. And so we continue to manage the pain and let her guide the path with A LOT of input from me. She NEVER complains and will push herself through all pain until she physically can't do any more. 

Right after we returned from our last show, Mandy left for her yearly vacation. Last year, Maddy really struggled when Mandy was gone and after one half lesson where she was in tears and having major anxiety she asked to not ride again until Mandy came back. Mandy and I chatted before she left and we made the decision that if Maddy showed any signs of anxiety we would just take a break until she returned. She has come so far and we did not want to take any steps backwards. Well, what a difference a year makes she has had 4 lessons with 4 different coaches (2 she had never met before) and she has done great in all 4 lessons and even jumped in three of them. I am so proud of her for pushing through fear and doing what she loves. I am SO grateful for Mandy, Keeya and our SSF team, other coaches, and volunteers who love Maddy, who understand her and know how to support her in every circumstance. What a blessing this Barn family has been to us.

Maddy is also hard at work in her dance classes. She has three dances for her Spring Performance. Her ballet solo which will feature her and Alex! And a ballet and tap number with her class. She is also dancing the part of the dove in our church musical. We are just about finished with our school curriculum for this year and have already picked out curriculum for next year so we are ready to start our summer complete with all the horse shows and family time we can manage. 

Thank you to those of you who continue to faithfully pray for our family.

Ali