Firefighters and Ice Cream

So, the firefighters who saved Needlenoggin's life, and were so careful in their care of him that his nerve pathways weren't destroyed, told him that once he could climb the stairs on their parade-rig fire-engine, they'd take him and Rorysaurus out to ice cream at Fenton's Creamery (recently featured in Pixar's movie, Up.

Well, stairs when your legs don't work is sort of an unfair challenge, but he was determined to do it (and I was for him, on the days he wasn't too determined about anything) and we kept working with the Slone guys and working out at home, because he really, really wants to impress those firefighters.

So, on September 2nd, a week from the year anniversary of his release from the hospital, they came to pick him up at our apartment. We wheeled him out to the sidewalk, and he went up the stairs, crutch in hand, to see the fire guys.






Click here to read the Oakland Tribune article or here to see the KTVU video.




Very good ice cream in HUGE portions was consumed:


The firemen didn't forget Rorysaurus, though, don't you worry. :) This was a few days after her 4th birthday party, remember, and they brought her a brand-new two-wheeler.


She was very grateful, let me tell you::


She goes about riding around in our neighborhood with it now (when it isn't raining, that is):


Back to Needlenoggin, though. He presented the firemen with a check for $5000, in order that they might help the next family they ran across who needed a Random Act of Kindness. Lo, an behold, a few weeks later, an Oakland man with two young daughters was shot and paralyzed trying to save a man he didn't know. Random Acts used some of Needlenoggin's money to send toys to his girls and help the family out.

Thanks to all of you reading this, and know I'll update about the BORP ride soon. :)

Happy birthday, Rorysaurus!

well, Rorysaurus made it through this year! It hasn't been easy for her, at all, and I felt very bad for her that we were moving her out-of-state right as she'd found some stability. She was super excited to have Batman at her birthday (although she was a little afraid of his size this year).



However, even Batman got upstaged near the end of the party. It was cake time, and Tuffy came out bearing one of the two Batman cakes I'd baked.


Then, behind him, bringing out the other cake, came my little brother:


With one crutch, he came out, set down the cake, and sat down. It was a lot of work for him, but he loves to show off. :) How is this possible, you might ask?

Well, remember my mentioning the Slone brothers, the chiropractors? They'd sent him home with a little box that zapped one side of his body or the other with electricity while he did some neurologically strenuous exercises. Basically this current widens his neuro-pathways, and lets him move his lower body better than he normally could, which lets him build more muscle than he usually could, which increases blood flow to the areas, which widens the pathways permanently. :)

Anyway, hard to believe that during last year's party he was undergoing his second spinal surgery because fluid was collecting in his back and we thought he was going to lose the use of his hands. Crazy.