For Christmas this year we celebrated Christmas after New Year’s Eve. It was actually Ukrainian New Year’s Eve, and Ukrainian New Year’s Day Weekend!  We opened Christmas presents, for Christmas presents this time, I got jeans from Luke,  Joel and Ashley got me the jacket from that fashion show I was in! I was so surprised and excited to get it. It was the kid’s Christmas exchange and kids gave Christmas presents to the parents.  I gave my mom a heated pad for Christmas.  Joel and Ashley got mom a cooking pot and paint by number family picture and Luke got mom lots of shower gels and body lotions.  We got my dad a razor, house coat and some clothes for Christmas and his birthday presents. I got my sister in law Ashley some hand lotion and bubble bath from me and a Winners gift card from Luke.  Luke got some pants and Joel got some pants too.  It was a very wintery snowy and cold Christmas party! It was worth the wait! After Christmas presents we had appetizers made by Joel and Ashley which were fabulous it was a Christmas tree dip and spinach dip with bread and crackers!  We played the game of small gifts with dice and oven mitts. I got butterfly socks, money and lip balm from the game.  For a craft we made gnomes out of yarn! Ashley helped me with my gnome, which was a fun craft to do! It was a full afternoon of Christmas activities everyone enjoyed!   It was a wonderful snowy and cold  Saturday to celebrate Christmas!

On Thursday evening we went to karaoke night at the Retro with Rose Club. I got to sing Barbie with Marisa , Mama Mia with Anna and Brett Young’s song In Case You Didn’t Know. It was a super duper fun evening. I got to play a golf game and alligator game at the Retro! It was lots of fun, good company and lots of fun making new memories with our friends from Rose Club! I would love to go back if Rose Club would go again!

Friday afternoon I coloured a congratulations card a wintery snowflake and wintery mittens card that was yellow, red, and orange mittens. Some blue snowflakes and some red cherries. I made it for my friend Emily her husband Tyrell  and their daughter Brielle, as they welcomed a brand – new baby boy to their family named Thomas William!  After I made the congratulations card, I made a wedding card for the next weekend! On Saturday afternoon I went to the movie.  It was called “Anyone But You” with some girlfriends and I really enjoyed the movie! Then on Saturday evening I wrote in the two cards that I coloured. So my mom could mail Emily and Tyrell’s card out! A couple of weeks after, Emily sent me a picture of the congratulations card and baby Thomas laying beside the card!

We had birthday bash for January birthdays with Rose Club on the following weekend on Friday evening. We danced and got to hit the piñata! It was a fun evening with our friends from Rose Club!

On Saturday afternoon I went to my friend Karlina and Isaac’s wedding ceremony at the Century Meadows Baptist Church! The newlyweds invited us for wedding cake cutting and tea afterwards but I didn’t stay for it though! Later on into the evening my mom and I went to the Days Inn for the wedding reception and the wedding dance in the evening.  It was wonderful to have my friend Danielle and her husband Nathaniel at our table. My friend Rachel and her husband were at our table too, so it was lovely to see some old high school friends!  My friend Karlina gave homemade soap for everyone to take home and she made the centerpieces for the tables, some were trees and flowers that were very nice. She’s very crafty!  I absolutely loved her wedding dress, she looked so pretty in her wedding dress on her wedding day! There were speeches from the wedding party, the couple’s parents, and some friends.  They even had the shoe game for the couple and then we got to dance finally! A huge congratulations to the newlyweds! It was a super duper special afternoon and a lovely evening celebration of those love birds!  All the best in your marriage!  I was honoured and really thankful that I was invited and I was able to go,  and celebrate their special day, their wedding day!

After I got home from the wedding reception and wedding dance on Saturday night, I saw that my friend Sarah and her husband Jordan had a baby girl named Blakely Rae. She has two big brothers Jackson and Charlie. So On Friday afternoon I coloured a congratulations card for Sarah and her family, a flowery card, then I coloured another congratulations card for my friend Shyla and her husband Andrew, and their little boy because they had another beautiful baby boy, that they named Bennett Andrew which was born in December!  I got some new cards from my Auntie Gail, I found a congratulations card that had some birds and tulips that I coloured blue, I could imagine the background of card was a golden yellow mantle with a sunset  that says congratulations!

The first weekend in February I took my friend Maryann to the Anne of Green Gables ballet for her birthday present on Saturday evening as it was her birthday on February 1st! The ballet was at the Jeanne and Peter Lougheed Performing Arts Centre by the college! This was a ballet and not a play as there was no talking, but lots of dancing and great costumes!  Now, I have started reading the Anne of Green Gables books! Which I’m really enjoying!

On Sunday afternoon my mom, my dad and I coloured valentines cards with my brother Joel and sister in law Ashley! I made lots of valentines cards for my Centra Cam friends, Auntie Gail, Auntie Donna, Grandpa Raymond, Sandy and Grandma Sharon! Like Joel said It was like a factory of colouring valentines card, putting the cards in colourful envelopes and getting ready for Valentine’s Day!  Then, Joel and mom made dinner together  which was homemade alfredo sauce, homemade pasta with a vegetable salad. For dessert we had homemade avocado chocolate pudding!  Then we played a new card game, called Seven! It was an awesome day!

I made more valentines cards for my parents, my senior Sharon and a birthday/ Valentine’s card for my friend Theresa on Friday afternoon.  So on Saturday afternoon I did my Valentine’s Day’s errands, I went shopping to Safeway for some Valentine’s chocolates, yellow roses that means friendship with a Valentine’s balloons and delivered them. My senior Sharon gave me homemade chocolate covered Pretzels with an M&M which were delicious and very yummy and a beautiful Valentine’s Day card!

We celebrated Family Day the Sunday before the holiday Monday so my mom and I tried out our craft on Sunday afternoon – abstract drawing with water colour or markers on the weekend before! Kinda cool craft! We did face masks too!

Before I went to Centra Cam on Valentine’s Day, which was Wednesday my grandpa Raymond dropped off a Valentine’s Day card which was a wonderful surprise! For the Valentine’s Day party at Centra Cam, in the morning I did some valentines crafts like take away the black foam and then it’s a colourful heart and played Hello Kitty bingo. In the afternoon it was a Valentine’s Day dance,  more crafts like decorating a foam heart with stickers, and some people were playing Hello Kitty bingo again!  I got to bring Valentine’s Day cards for my friends! It was a good day to have a Valentine’s Day party at Centra Cam and then I went bowling on Wednesday evening.  We celebrated Valentine’s Day and our friend Theresa’s 55th birthday on Thursday evening with an evening out with our friends from Rose Club, and Theresa!   We went to the Disney’s Little Mermaid play which was a fabulous show at the Jeanne and Peter Lougheed center.  It was a fabulous play, there were fancy costumes that were very sparkly, really colourful and very mermaid costume styles!  It was very nice and very accessible for my wheelchair and for my roommates. I got to take pictures with the cast after the show!  We all absolutely loved the show!

For Family Day Weekend we celebrated a day early with my uncle Wayne, my auntie Gail from Lloydminster, grandpa Raymond and Sandy. My uncle Patrick came for a while too. We made abstract drawings and then used water colours and markers. It was a super duper fun craft.

I hope your enjoying a really weird winter everyone! Let’s see what’s March brings maybe an early spring! See you soon!

Kelsey: What happened to Luke?

Sheila Luke’s Mom: He came to me and said he got a mosquito bite. However, it was February, so that wasn’t possible.

Kelsey: Where was the bite?

Sheila: It was on his wrist.

Kelsey: What happened next? 

Sheila: It started to get very red, and the redness was spreading. Luke developed a fever. We called Health Link and they said to go to the ER.

Kelsey: What happened at the ER?

Sheila: The Dr. figured it was a spider bite. He drew a line along where the red started, so he could see if it was spreading. Luke was put on antibiotics. We were eventually sent home.

Kelsey: What happened at home?

Sheila: We were told to soak his wrist in warm water to draw out the toxins. A plug of puss eventually came out about the size of a pencil eraser. Luke was left with a hole in his wrist, that eventually closed in.

Kelsey: Where did he get the spider bite from?

Sheila: I have no idea! Maybe it came from fruit from the grocery store, or maybe it was just a regular spider that came into the house in the fall. I actually don’t even know if he got it at home. Kind of creepy
anyway!

Kelsey: Are spider bites dangerous?

Sheila: They can be, depending on the kind of spider and how you react to the bite. Some people might be allergic too.

Kelsey: Does Luke have a scar?

Sheila: Not really any more.

Kelsey: How long ago did this happen?

Sheila: It happened in 2009.

Kelsey: Do you know of anyone else who has been bitten by a spider?

Sheila: I may have been as a kid. We were picking raspberries and something bit me on the butt! I developed a severe fever and had to spend the night in the hospital. They were afraid I might have seizures.

On Saturday evening Maryann and I went to see the prairie states and Jess Moskaluke at the Jean and and Peter Lougheed Centre which was a really good Christmas concert. We had a super duper special evening.

On Sunday morning Maryann and I surprised our friend Mary and her baby Joshua junior and went to watch Alayna play hockey as she had a hockey tournament in town. I went shopping to the mall and did some errands for my mom she had some Christmas cards that needed to get out, so we dropped them off at my friends Mary and Joshua’s house, and my friend Melissa parent’s house.

On Thursday we had our last day of Centra Cam and our Christmas party. In the morning we had Christmas songs bingo and then everyone had turkey dinner and I got berry cheesecake. In the afternoon was gift exchange and Christmas songs for everyone. My Christmas present was fuzzy socks. Then a Christmas dance to end our Christmas party. You got to bring a guest so I brought my Grandpa Ray.

On Friday evening we had our roommate’s Christmas exchange. I got a box, bath salts, bath bombs, mug, Mickey Mouse PJs and some pairs of fuzzy socks!

On Christmas Eve, we had ribs, salad with corn bread. We dropped off Christmas cards to our friends houses and looked at Christmas lights. We watched some Christmas movies Elf, and Home Alone.

My friend Donnelle sent me a picture of the girls with their Christmas bracelets. I gave her and her sister in laws Melanie, & Maria and niece Zoey bracelets for Christmas.

On Christmas Day, I helped to make stuffing, and then Luke and I opened the Christmas presents from our parents and our grandparents…. we’re going to do sibling’s Christmas gift exchange with Joel and Ashley in January. I got some clothes, day planner, cross stitch, wooden Christmas things to paint and bath bombs… some tattoos and resin art, bath towel and a diamond art. Luke got pens, pad of paper and a razor. We had our Christmas lunch and then in the afternoon we painted some wooden pictures of gingerbread house and snowman. Then my brother Luke went back to Edmonton as he had to work on Boxing Day. My parents and I went to watch Brian Dumont sing Christmas songs in his front yard and I saw Elsye and David! After we got home, My mom, dad and I watched home alone 2!

For Boxing Day my mom and I went shopping in the morning as I needed a Christmas present for my auntie Gail and I got some sweaters. Then later in the afternoon dad, mom and I coloured some wooden 3D Christmas trees with grandpa and Sandy, that they gave me for a Christmas present! It’s was a very relaxing Christmas! Just home with mom, dad, myself and Luke. I can’t wait until January to celebrate Christmas with the whole family and dad’s birthday.

On Wednesday evening Joel , Ashley and Coco got to open Christmas presents from our parents and grandparents. They got a day planner, book and an fire blanket and Coco got an Christmas sweater . Ashley and Joel got pot and pans set for Christmas too. * stay turned for January’s blog for the kids Christmas exchange, dad’s birthday celebration and kid’s Christmas presents to the parents! *

On Thursday afternoon my parents and I had a late Christmas dinner, a turkey and ham lunch with my grandpa, uncle Patrick, auntie Gail, and Sandy! Then my auntie Gail and I exchanged Christmas presents, I got a new Red sweater, new Christmas Pjs, Pictures On canvas and Stain Glass Sun Cather ( that you colour or paint), a colouring book and some bath bombs. I got really spoiled! My auntie Gail loved her sweater/jacket for Christmas and it’s fitting her perfectly, she also got an Christmas picture card from me too. My Uncle Patrick got Christmas presents from grandpa and Sandy some new socks! Too bad that my cousins Eric and Ian or uncle Wayne didn’t come and Luke had to work too, but we missed them! It was really good visit with them! Then my parents and I got home to visit with my dad’s uncle rod from Saskatoon. He gave us some chocolates and an Amazon gift card. In the evening we went back to grandpa’s house and Joel, Ashley and Coco came over for leftover Turkey and Ham dinner! We watched the Big Bang Theory and visited them until 8:00 pm and then we took me back home to go to bed. It was a very busy and full afternoon and evening visiting with the family!

On Friday morning my grandpa and my dad started on the backsplash finally in my parent’s kitchen. Janelle and I watched How The Grinch who Stole Christmas on Friday evening. It was a good Christmas movie!

On Saturday morning my grandpa and my parents worked on the grout. It’s looking so good, very nice and very white! My mom loves her new kitchen! On Saturday afternoon my house and team three went to Wonka at the movie theatre, which was a really good movie and it was really good to be with friends. I would give it ten stars, and I would highly recommend this movie! Then on Saturday evening Janelle and I watched Willy Wonka and Charlie’s Chocolate Factory ! Which was really good too!

Happy New Year Everyone! Thanks for reading my blog. See you next time!

Courtney- Our traditions are new since having kids. We take Santa/Christmas photos every year, we do sugar cookie decorating, and we make handmade handprint ornaments every year to see how much the kids grow. One tradition that I have carried on from my childhood is making chocolate covered pretzels with my family and giving them away to important people in our lives.

Cathie – Our tradition is to purchase an ornament that represents a first, or something that happened during the year so our Christmas tree tells a story. When we lose a member of our family, we buy an ornament that represents something they enjoyed/loved. Your Great Gramma Josie has cooking tools and your Great Grampa Peter had a tool belt on our tree.

Darby – A tradition from my mom’s side of the family: we will always have eggs Benedict on Christmas morning with mimosas!

Kat-We do Lefsa and sugar cookies

Margaret – We follow the Swedish tradition and have our turkey dinner Christmas Eve. The grandkids decorate A ginger bread houses every year at Christmas.

Amber , Cole and Amelia’s – Christmas traditions We don’t have too many but 1 we do have is my hubby & I and Amelia all have a movie night in the living room on Christmas eve, in our jammies & watch the grinch

Skyler, Morgan and Sutton do Christmas jammies on Christmas Eve but that’s about it!

Every year at Christmas my family does family pictures on Christmas cards and sends out some Christmas letters! I also got my friends Christmas cards and pictures, decorated Christmas cards with Christmas stickers !

My friend Courtney showed me pictures of Marley in her birthday outfit from her birthday presents that I bought her. A white long-sleeved shirt and blue jeans.

My friend Jessica and her husband Brandon had a baby boy in September so I colored them a congratulations card. She sent me a picture of the congratulations card and I saw her newborn Zayn he’s in the picture and sitting in his chair!

On Sunday afternoon we made Christmas cards and a birthday card for Grandma Sharon with Auntie Gail!

On Saturday afternoon We celebrated Janelle’s 25th birthday and we went to the Trolls movie. We took our friend Theresa to celebrate her birthday. Then we had Chocolate caramel sauce cheesecake and we opened up her birthday presents which were a moon light, two toys, some new sweaters, and two end tables for our living room. Happy birthday Janelle!

On Sunday afternoon my mom and I decorated her house for Christmas. My mom made some moccasins for Becca and Tyler’s baby boy Luka , so my dad and I dropped them off at their house.

On Friday evening we went to Midnight Madness downtown and I started Christmas shopping.

Saturday afternoon we did most of my Christmas shopping for the roommates and wrapped, bagged, and put them under the Christmas tree.

On Sunday afternoon my friend Kathleen, her husband Davin and their baby Evelyn came for tea at my parents house, and stayed probably 2 and 1/2 hours! Kathleen brought homemade delicious sourdough bread, chocolate chip cookies and we absolutely loved them! My mom made her baby girl homemade moccasins that fit her perfectly!

Here’s to a winter wonderland….. I wonder when it’s going to Snow?

Kelsey: When did you notice that you were getting hard of hearing?

Grandpa: I noticed my hearing deteriorating when I was about 65 years old slowly and has progressively been getting worse.

Kelsey: What did the hearing test involve?

Grandpa: I was in a sound proof room and the audiologist was outside the room operating a machine that would give different tones and would tell the audiologist when I could hear them.

Kelsey: Can you hear better in one ear than the other?

Grandpa: Yes I can hear much better in my right hear than my left ear. But with the hearing in my left they are both equal.

Kelsey: What do you think caused your hearing loss?

Grandpa: The reason the left usually deteriorates is because men generally drive in there vehicles with the window down. And by operating power tools without hearing protection.

Kelsey: Do you wear hearing protection when you are working with tools?

Grandpa: Well for many years I didn’t wear hearing protection however I now wear hearing protection.

Kelsey: Are you happy with your hearing aids?

Grandpa: I’m very happy with my hearing aids I certainly know when I’m not wearing them. The new style of the hear aids today are very discreet not many people notice that I’m wearing one.

Kelsey: Do you use them all the time?

Grandpa: Yes I wear them all the time.

Kelsey: Does anyone else in your family have hearing aids?

Grandpa: My mother your great grand mother wore hearing aids.

Kelsey: Tell me about yourself, where were you raised?

Grandpa: Well I’m 72 years old. I had various jobs through my working years. I took a carpenter’s course in Saskatoon and NAIT in Edmonton in the early 70s and built many homes throughout Saskatchewan and Alberta. In 2000 I move to Kitchener Ontario and was a supervisor for the Region of Waterloo.

Kelsey: How many siblings do you have?

Grandpa: I have 6 sisters and 4 brothers and I’m the oldest.

Kelsey: What was your childhood like?

Grandpa: I was raised on a farm in Saskatchewan near Unity. When I started school in 1957 there was no means of transportation, it was with horse and buggy. We got a school bus in 1963. We got power installed in our house in 1964. We heated our house with wood and coal. We had to carry water to the house from the well by pail. We had kerosene lamps for lights at night. We had a kerosene refrigerator and in the winter we use a grain bin as freezer.

Kelsey: What jobs have you had?

Grandpa: I have had various jobs through my working years primarily worked as a carpenter and I also operated heavy equipment and did some truck driving.

Kelsey: Who is your favourite granddaughter?

Grandpa: This a loaded question as I only have one so that would be you Kelsey.

On my parents anniversary we went walking in the valley! It was a nice fall day good for a walk.

We went to the beading workshop at the library on Thursday evening. We learned a bit of the indigenous people’s lifestyle. It was for orange shirt day and we made orange shirt pins! It was neat to learn about indigenous people’s lifestyle and how to do their beadwork.

On Friday evening was birthday bash for September birthdays. It was a mix with country music and pop music playlists.

On Saturday afternoon I got my nails done and I got some pumpkins and red nail polish! I’m set for the fall season!

On Friday evening mom and I went to Bear Grease! It was all indigenous people acting so they changed some of the songs, and it was a very interesting play!

For thanksgiving Sunday we went to Joel and Ashley’s house for smoked turkey dinner! It’s good to be together with the whole family for thanksgiving!

On Monday morning, I coloured some birthday cards and matching envelopes for my friend Mary’s daughter Alayna’s birthday and my friend Teresa’s mom’s birthday. In the afternoon we bought Alayna’s birthday presents which was friendship bracelets kit and an homemade resin bowl. Mary said that Alayna absolutely loved her birthday card, the friendship bracelets and the homemade resin bowl!

On Wednesday afternoon we learned about drum yoga and someone named Jessica showed us how to do drum yoga. It was interesting and relaxing.

On Friday afternoon I finally finished my cross stitch hummingbird and roses.

On Saturday afternoon we decorated the house for Halloween. Unfortunately everything falls off the windows so we decorated our kitchen table for Halloween!

On Thursday evening was the charity action for Camrose Association for Community Living. It was jeans and plaid shirts themed. We got to raise money for Kandu camp kids a camp that I loved going to every summer. Their was a silent auction online for everyone to bid on items around the dinner table.

On Friday evening we went to the Halloween haunted house at the CRE! Scary Halloween decorations and everything else was making me jump, I probably jumped ten times! It was good to get into the Halloween spirit!

On Saturday afternoon Skyler , Courtney, her baby girl Marley and I went out for coffee at Starbucks. It was Marley’s 1st birthday a few weeks ago so I got her a pink sweater, white shirt and blue jeans which everyone loved and I coloured her a birthday card! We talked for two hours!

On Tuesday evening we carved some pumpkins 🎃 how do you like them? It was really fun and we listened to Halloween playlist of Halloween songs! I did a bat and a witches hat.

Cherilyn: How long have you had Cerebral Palsy?
Kelsey: I have had cerebral palsy since I was a baby. When I was 13 days old my heart stopped. It was stopped for 20-30 minutes, and that is why I have cerebral palsy.

Cherilyn: How Does Cerebral Palsy Affect Your Daily Life?
Kelsey: My muscles are tight, making my daily activities difficult, so I need help getting ready for my day. The tight muscles also affect my speech, so some people have a hard time understanding me. The tight muscles also cause me to aspirate when I eat, so I’m mostly tube fed. Cerebral Palsy also affects balance, so I can’t really sit on a chair without support, and I can’t walk on my own. I use a power wheelchair.

Cherilyn: Is Cerebral Palsy Painful?
Kelsey: When I was little I didn’t have pain, but as I get older I find my tight muscles are painful. When I sit in my wheelchair for long periods of time my back hurts. I go to the chiropractor and for massages frequently. It took awhile to figure out why I was having pain. We thought maybe my hip was out, but it’s just tight muscles.

Cherilyn: Can you walk?
Kelsey: I can walk in my walker.

Cherilyn: Tell me why you wear braces on your feet.
Kelsey: If I didn’t wear braces on my feet my muscles would shrink in my ankles, causing my feet to point. This would make it impossible to wear shoes.

Cherilyn: What kind of exercises do you do?
Kelsey: I have hip stretches. They really help with my back pain.

Cherilyn: What barriers do you face? Things that are hard in the community?
Kelsey: Sometimes people park too close to my wheelchair van, and then I can’t get in or out. This is very annoying! I can’t get into most stores downtown. I can’t go to anyone’s house unless someone carries me – everyone seems to have stairs.

Cherilyn: Do You Work?
Kelsey: Yes, I work at centra cam. Part of my job is doing school presentations to grade 5 students. I also volunteer at the fire hall, shredding paper.

Cherilyn: What Has Been Your Biggest Challenge as an Adult Living With Cerebral Palsy?
Kelsey: Back pain has been my biggest challenge.

Cherilyn: In What Ways Have You Worked to Overcome these Challenges?
Kelsey: A Phyisio Therapist at the Glenrose gave me stretches to do, and we do them every night. It has made a huge difference.

Cherilyn: Who or What Has Been Your Biggest Support?
Kelsey: Family and friends have been my biggest support.

Cherilyn: Have You Been Involved in Any Support Groups or Organizations?
Kelsey: There is a CP group in Edmonton and Calgary, but that’s too far away. I am involved with Special Olympics. That’s a fun group. I go swimming, bowling and play bocce ball.

Cherilyn: What Are Your Hobbies or Things You Like to Do for Fun?
Kelsey: In my spare time at home I colour and do word searches. I also like to go to concerts. I go to BVJ every year, and sometimes other concerts, if we can get tickets.

Cherilyn: What Advice Would You Give to Others About Making the Most of Living With Cerebral Palsy?
Kelsey: Be positive, look on the bright side and have a good attitude.

On Saturday afternoon we got some pictures frames for three wedding pictures and my certificate of nine years of service at Centra Cam.

At Centra Cam for * fun in the park we had Rock and Roll Band’s*week! We had blow up drums, guitars, keyboard, rock star glasses and wings! I played the drums on Monday and on Wednesday afternoon I played the guitar. It was pretty much every day we got to play with the Rock and Roll band.

On Tuesday afternoon my friend Amanda and I went for nails. I got bees and ladybugs with an French manicure.

On Saturday afternoon my Auntie Gail * my dad’s sister * came down from Lloydminster for the day. We made Resin bowls from an birthday present, that I got from my friend Kelsey and her family. It was really fun to make. After that we took my Auntie Gail shopping to Winners and Rickis!

On Sunday afternoon my mom, me and my dad coloured a picture of the butterflies and the flowers that my auntie Gail gave me on Saturday.

On Monday My friend Courtney showed me her baby girl Marley in the outfit that I bought her! She looks so absolutely adorable in her outfit. I absolutely loved the pictures that she sent me!

On Wednesday we had a BBQ and an wind up party for the fun in the park activities with Centra Cam. There was outdoor activities which was outdoor games! I played connect four and pin the badge on the cowboy. Their was a blow up gorilla! It was outside until it started to rain! Everything was pretty much finished once it started to rain so it turned out to be perfect timing!

On Sunday we had two appointments and I got my new braces! I got a design of butterflies. This time I decided to get some yellow belts . Then while the guy was working on my braces, we went to Kingsway mall because we had spare time between the two appointments! I got two shirts/ jackets that are blue and pink.

On Saturday afternoon we went to the block party downtown Camrose. It was just like Jaywalkers without the rides. I got an butterfly tattoo and I got a face painting on my arm which was a rainbow. I played bean bag toss! It was very fun event in our community! It was a warm and sunny day!

On Sunday afternoon mom, dad and I went to the Camrose museum for their country fair .
Their was an table set up in an tent with Centra Cam’s art and crafts that was made by the clients and some pictures of the clients. I held one of the roses that we made from the garden party and the BBQ. There was outdoor games like bean bag toss and connect four. We played together. Later on my dad put up my picture frame on the wall, that has the certificate for nine years of service at Centra Cam inside of the picture fame .

On Friday evening I was in the Rock the Runway Fashion show at the casino. It was very fun to be in the fashion show and we could watch some of it as well. It was an awesome experience and I enjoyed every minute of it. Thank you Twig for the amazing clothes I got to model.

On Saturday evening we took family pictures and had a family dinner! After that we sat around the fire table in our backyard, and we talked about the coming up holidays! We might have Thanksgiving at Joel and Ashley’s house and Joel might smoke a turkey. We might have Christmas on dad’s birthday weekend so Joel and Ashley could go to Saskatchewan for Christmas .

This summer I finished two word searches books. I just started a new one.

On Friday evening we had Rose Club Karaoke Night . I sang ” What Makes You Beautiful” by One Direction and “Take Your Time ” by Sam Hunt.

Kelsey: Why did you have to get back surgery?

Cheryl: In July 2020 unfortunately, an MRI revealed a spinal Thoracic 11-12 benign tumor.

Kelsey: Did you try out physical therapy first before you had surgery on your back?

Cheryl: I was having a cortisone treatment for pain issues to lumbar spine. A new loss of balance, numbness and tingling to the front of my legs with difficulty sitting triggered an MRI.

Kelsey: What was your recovery time after your surgery on your back?   

Cheryl: I had a resection of the intradural extramedullary cystic tumor as the mass was impeding on my spinal cord. I had a surgical consult within a week with surgery booked on August 20th.  Surgical time was longer with 5 days hospitalization.

Kelsey: How did your family react when you had the news that you needed surgery on your back?

Cheryl: After my doctor’s appointment as a nurse, I knew what I was in for.  I went for a drive and cried my eyes out as I realized my life just changed.  I shared news with Steve though I kept silence with my girls until I had more details. When we shared the diagnoses with the girls, we cried as a family though I assured them I was going to be ok.

Kelsey: How long was recovery for your back? What did your day look like?

Cheryl: Post op care was a focus of cerebral spinal leak prevention, pain control, bladder function and mobility. These days were intense though my focus was equally intense as I was determined to regain complete presurgery function.

Kelsey: Did you have to take time off work, how long were you off for your back Surgery?

Cheryl:  After U of A Hospital discharge I was off work for 5 months. These months were spent with recovery of the surgical implications of this type of surgery. I did very well though spent lots of time sleeping, regaining strength and emotional contemplation.

Kelsey: So, explain how much pain were you in? How is your back pain now?

Cheryl: Unfortunately, I have a history of lumbar back issues. At the time of diagnoses, I was dealing with lumbar spine pain only to reveal a thoracic issue. As spinal compression symptoms increased, I was very nervous as goal was to prevent permanent function loss.  Thankfully surgical interventions were given.

Kelsey: How is your back pain now?  

Cheryl: 2 years anniversary has come and I’m doing very well.  I still have lumbar issues though I have minimal complications from my thoracic tumor removal. MRI’s will be done for monitoring. Blessed beyond words.

Kelsey: Did your daily life change because you had a bad back? Did your doctors give you some stretches for you back after your surgery?

Cheryl: I still have lumbar issues that are chronic. I’m mindful of prevention strategies of an active lifestyle and healthy living for life.

Kelsey: Would you recommend this back surgery to anyone else who has back problems or issues?

Cheryl: Spinal issues are a top Dr. complaint.  One needs to mindful of good spinal care for as we age degeneration is a health factor.  Emergency back surgeries happen. I’m so grateful at a time of COVID pandemic that I was able to access surgery. Forever blessed. 

Here is some information I found on the internet about intradural extramedullary cystic tumors if you would like to learn more:

https://www.aans.org/Patients/Neurosurgical-Conditions-and-Treatments/Spinal-Tumors

If anyone has something I can interview them on please message me!