Meeting with the School/Doctors

The team of doctors/therapists met with the school and Jenny and Matthew yesterday. The meeting went very well. Without too much detail, the school was willing to accomodate every request the doctors put forth for Isabella's return. She will begin attending on September 8th. Prior to that, she will have someone coming to help her at home. Also, she will have a full-time aid at first. She will be seated in the front of the classroom and away from any distractions. Of course she will not be granted permission to participate in outdoor recess or P.E., so she will have accomodations needed there as well. Academically, they will work with her to determine the best course of action for her, testing strategies, etc. Jenny was very pleased with the meeting and just kept saying how great the school was for being so willing. I am, once again, beside myself with awe in a God who works out details even to the most minute aspect...
You can pray for Isabella that she will continue to develop her cognitive skills, making bridges between questions and answers.
She will begin outpatient therapy soon. Dayton Children's Hospital (where she was initially after the accident) will do physical therapy once a week and speech therapy twice a week. She will also be getting speech/occupational therapy at her school.
Tomorrow Isabella comes home. They will have a special "graduation" for her before she leaves. I wish so much I could be there. My heart is once again torn and aching, but also overwhelmed with grateful emotions that she is coming home.... Praise God for this huge step in development. He is forever moving us forward. If you haven't already recognized Him, acknowledged Him, or praised Him for how He works in your life, do so today. Nothing is more important...
Thank you for praying for the Laird family. I, as writer of this blog, am praying for you, each reader, that you would be somehow touched by this blog and spurred on toward knowing God more...

A new day for Aleacia

Today Aleacia went to school. Jenny said that she was a bit uneasy but did just fine. I know that returning to life as she once knew it will help her tremendously. Please pray for her and her transition. Pray for her not to be scared or lonely without her sister there.

Great News to Share...Homecoming Day

Isabella has been granted a release date from the hospital THIS THURSDAY. She will be leaving just a few days prior to when the expected. They are running several evaluations the remainder of this week and packing in as much in-house therapy as they can. She will be able to return home 7 weeks to date after the car accident. I know my sister, Matthew, and her sisters will be so glad to have her home and that much of the emotional healing that still needs to occur will begin to slowly happen...
As I know you will certainly be, Jenny has once again asked me to add that while visitors will be welcome, please be respectful of their time together as a family for a while until normal life has somewhat returned.
Thank you for the prayers! They have been granted and Bella is coming home! I can hardly sit here and write without jumping out of my chair. It has been a really long 7 weeks for us all, doubtless also for the Laird family.
Rejoice today for the Lord is good!

Another small victory...

I spoke with my mother a few minutes ago. Jenny wanted to share with you that the bone in her mouth that was sticking out from her jaw and causing her much discomfort (the same one they were going to file down after her screws came out) did an unexpected thing last night. It broke off! She was putting wax on it to keep it from cutting her when it just came loose. She was able to pull it out of her mouth and says it is very sharp, thin, and much resembling a shark tooth! We will see what her surgeon says next time she is evaluated about the course of action now that it is no longer an issue! She was so thrilled to be able to have one less issue to manage! Thank God for even small victories... Together they will encompass larger ones and longer gains!

How to say thank you

Now that the initial chaos, confusion, and shock of the accident is settling around Matthew, Jenny and her family, they are beginning to reflect in awe of those many who have given so generously of themselves in so many ways. While they would love to be able to thank in person so many of you, it just isn't possible. They do, however, want to be sure that you, the readers of this blog, are aware of just how much you have impacted five lives.
Praying, interceding, faithfully remembering the Laird family and laying them before the throne of God each day throughout this time is an act of servanthood for which they are overwhelmingly moved. Please accept their sincere and heartfelt thank you. Your prayers have been heard and answered.
For those of you who have given of yourselves in so many other ways, they also would like to offer thanksgiving. You have put aside yourselves and allowed God to use your finances, hands of service and feet of doing to minister to this family. Thank you for allowing God to use you in this way to care for the Laird family.
Eternally grateful,
Jenny, Matthew, Isabella, Aleacia and Sophia Laird

An update for the Laird family

I talked to Jenny this afternoon and got a good update on the family. Jenny still has her screws in her mouth and has even noticed the interior gums/tissue of her mouth (on the left side) "settling" and even growing over the screws in her mouth. She is beginning to be able to feel the plates in her mouth and face. She is able to walk a bit with a walker although without putting pressure on her left leg. She is still dealing with a lot of pain in her knee and moving it in the way she should. It is still very swollen and hard. She can straighten her leg almost 95 percent, but bending it is another story...
They have a meeting on Tuesday with the school to discuss Isabella. They found out the name of Isabella's teacher, and they are thankful because they have heard great things about her and the entire third grade program. Aleacia will be going on the 26th for the start of school. You can pray specifically for her that she will not be nervous and scared to be going without her sister.
They have done extensive evaluations on Isabella this past week. On a cognitive level, she is below average. They do, however, expect that after this year she will be caught up and need no further help (PRAISE THE LORD!) She is in the 5th percentile for children her age physically (balance, bilateral coordination, skipping, running, hopping, etc.), so she has some gaining to do there as well. She is having to relearn how to focus on a task as she is very easily distracted.
We are looking forward to the day when she will be able to be home and with her family permanently. I know all five of them are longing for normal life once again. Please continue to pray for God's strength beyond measure and peace beyond understanding to descend upon them throughout the rest of this ordeal.

A Great Weekend for the Laird Family

Jenny and her family were able to enjoy some much needed family (all five of them!) time this weekend. The hospital released Isabella for a home visit on Saturday. She was able to be there for a few hours and depending on that would be possibly granted the chance to be there again on Sunday. She spent a few hours there on Saturday and then most of the day there on Sunday. They were able to celebrate Isabella and Aleacia's birthdays (tomorrow) with immediate family, complete with pinata and a bit of back to school shopping! Isabella showed no signs of being overwhelmed and seemed to immerse herself right away back into life as she once knew it... Matthew did say that tonight in the car ride on the way back to the hospital, he noticed that she was very sad. He asked what was wrong. She was wondering if that was the last time she would get to go Grandma's house. The hospital feels so much like home to her...
I know that when I ask you to please understand the reasoning behind not announcing ahead of schedule Isabella's home visit, you will. Due to unknown factors in Isabella's situation and the plain and simple fact that Matthew, Jenny and the girls haven't been alone together (all five of them outside of a hospital setting) for several weeks, the visit was strictly immediate family. I spoke with my sister last night after Bella left, and she was so emotional. She kept telling me how wonderful it was just to be together again. This time, so rare now, was and is so extremely important to Jenny, the girls and Matthew and rightly so. Thank you for understanding. There will be a day soon when Isabella will come home and life can slowly begin again. Until then, please be in prayer for the physical healing of the family and also the emotional healing of all involved...
My family would also like to offer a genuine heartfelt thank you to Katina and those at Emmanuel Promise Church who helped to organize the fundraiser for the Laird family this past weekend. Thank you for being the hands and feet of God in a tangible way. I doubt you realize the impact you have had on my family. Thank you again for being so giving of your resources and time.
Jenny also wanted me to note before I go that Melissa is getting her cast off her leg on Thursday and the pins out of her foot.

On a more personal note, I wanted to take a few lines and divulge my heart to you. I have talked about how in awe I am of God, His saving and healing power, His hand of mercy in this situation, and His provision for my family through so many of you. I also wanted you to know that I thank Him every day for those of you who are still faithfully interceding on behalf of my sister and her family. I know that it has been over a month now and the ball is not rolling quite as quickly as before. I recognize that if you are still reading this blog, you must care and deeply. With greatest respect, please continue to uplift my sister and her family. I love them so very much. It is hard to be away from them, especially now, and knowing that there are so many of you praying and helping when I can't tangibly really makes a difference for me. Thank you again.

"But as for me, I will watch expectantly for the Lord; I will wait for the God of my salvation. My God will hear me. Do not rejoice over me, O my enemy. Though I fall, I will rise." Micah 7:7-8