Kelsey :: Child with Spina Bifida

I remember it like it was yesterday... The doctor walked in to the examination room and blurted out, your child has Hydrocephalus and possible Spina Bifida. These are three words I had never heard before, and three words I would never forget. I had no idea that they would become part of my daily vocubulary, along with phrases like, neurogenic bladder, VP shunt, kyphosis, and so many other medical terms. That day was in February 1993.

Fast forward nearly 19 years later. Many other words have entered my vocabulary... Wonderful and loving daughter, hard-working student, wheelchair athlete, caregiver to a sweet service dog named Emelia.

Reflecting on the last 19 years of my life, my daughter, Kelsey, has brought me joy beyond measure. While I didn't have the same experiences as I did with my other child, it didn't diminish the excitement of seeing her walk for the first time using a walker, playing her first wheelchair basketball game, winning her first wheelchair racing medal, and becoming a National Powerlifting Champion. Who knew that on that cold February day in 1993, I would ever have been where I am now?



As my daughter prepares for college, we both reflect on her struggles with school, learning self-care, laughing at mishaps while traveling, and all the wonderful experiences she has had, and is yet to have.



I worry about her as she goes off on her own; will people take advantage of her situation, will her mild learning disabilities get in the way of her career aspirations, will she find love? Whatever life throws at her, I know that she will always have the support of her family and friends, and she will succeed, in her own way.



Check out their website at http://www.travelinwheels.com/

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