The Awesome Power of Peers

Lincoln had his first "playdate" since the surgery.  Perhaps "playdate" isn't the correct word, it rings of toddler hood.  So Lincoln had his first pal over since the surgery.  Remember Joseph?  We kept it short for obvious reasons (over stimulation, fatigue, etc...).  Eva also had a friend over.  The kids spent most of their time swimming but then decided to play an impromptu game of kickball (not to worry! it was a very soft ball).  What was so wonderful to see was that when it was Lincoln's time to roll/pitch the ball - he did it.  When he needed to pick the ball up, he used his left arm as an assist to stabilize the ball so his right could scoop it up.  It was wonderful to see.  Do you think WE see anything like that when he's with us?  NO WAY, which is very understandable; but get him with peers and he works like crazy to join in the fun.  This is so normal and so amazingly WONDERFUL.

It's also interesting to watch how he's made accommodation's in daily life.  He uses his mouth to hold the seat belt while his right hand connects it.  I saw him using his teeth to take the lid off of a yogurt container while he held it with his right hand.  He has a lot of trouble putting shirts on, but gets dressed the rest of the way independently. He hasn't yet complained about losing the use of his hand and arm.  He did mention yesterday that he wanted to get his hand back so he could play the Wii and his DS.  And one day, on one of our walks, he did mention that he's a "normal kid" now because he no longer has epilepsy.   I was so torn with so many different emotions at this statement, that I just replied, "Well don't be too normal, because that would be really boring."  

We're coming up on Month 2 without a seizure, it's still too soon for me to celebrate completely.