Boys and their toys
We attended a brith this morning at a relatively early hour for Gilly. He was pleased to be there, cane and all. This was the first time he went anywhere with his new prop. He finds it a more secure way to travel.
The sun emerged through the clouds just as we parked in our driveway, so I decided it is high time to trim the overgrown hedges. The city gives us a warning whenever our shrubs grow too close to the fire hydrant on our lawn. My plan was to beat them to the punch. I asked Gilly to start up the hedge trimmer or just show me how to work it. He agreed, but suggested we wait an hour for the rain drops to evaporate. I was busy in the laundry room when the phone rang. It was Sema and George, checking in as always. I wondered where Gilly had disappeared to, because his chair was vacant. I took advantage of the rare opportinity to sit in Gilly's throne and spoke for a while. Moments later I went to look for Gilly to pass him the phone and much to my surprise, there he was, trimming away.
“I thought you said we should wait 'til it dries up. I'm supposed to do that,” I declared. “Why bother?” he asked playfully. He spoke to his parents for a bit, hung up and continued where he left off. I watched him and was thrilled to note that he was managing with ease. I offered, “Let me know if you want me to take over. For now, I’ll rake the branches that fall.” “You’ll find it too heavy to lift,” he predicted, “so I’ll finish.” He cut all the hedges across the front lawn and when done, packed it in for the day. I asked if I could do hedges along the side of the house. “I’ll do it myself tomorrow,” he decided. He is very proud when it comes to his power tools! I think that as long as I’m there to ensure he is maneuvering the equipment in a coordinated manner, he’s better off taking the reigns. It makes him feel terrific, gives him a genuine purpose for using his muscles and it’s great exercise. Besides, I have enough jobs to do, so I’m not really looking for more.
The effort sucked his energy dry. He rested for the remainder of the day. “I’m weak,” he admitted. I assured him that it is because he exerted himself and he’s not used to it. He sat in his chair all afternoon and accepted pretty much every offer of food I made. I cannot complain about his appetite anymore. He seems to be doing all the right things, and ever so slowly, there is some improvement in energy level, vision (at certain points in the day) and coordination. Baby steps…
The sun emerged through the clouds just as we parked in our driveway, so I decided it is high time to trim the overgrown hedges. The city gives us a warning whenever our shrubs grow too close to the fire hydrant on our lawn. My plan was to beat them to the punch. I asked Gilly to start up the hedge trimmer or just show me how to work it. He agreed, but suggested we wait an hour for the rain drops to evaporate. I was busy in the laundry room when the phone rang. It was Sema and George, checking in as always. I wondered where Gilly had disappeared to, because his chair was vacant. I took advantage of the rare opportinity to sit in Gilly's throne and spoke for a while. Moments later I went to look for Gilly to pass him the phone and much to my surprise, there he was, trimming away.
“I thought you said we should wait 'til it dries up. I'm supposed to do that,” I declared. “Why bother?” he asked playfully. He spoke to his parents for a bit, hung up and continued where he left off. I watched him and was thrilled to note that he was managing with ease. I offered, “Let me know if you want me to take over. For now, I’ll rake the branches that fall.” “You’ll find it too heavy to lift,” he predicted, “so I’ll finish.” He cut all the hedges across the front lawn and when done, packed it in for the day. I asked if I could do hedges along the side of the house. “I’ll do it myself tomorrow,” he decided. He is very proud when it comes to his power tools! I think that as long as I’m there to ensure he is maneuvering the equipment in a coordinated manner, he’s better off taking the reigns. It makes him feel terrific, gives him a genuine purpose for using his muscles and it’s great exercise. Besides, I have enough jobs to do, so I’m not really looking for more.
The effort sucked his energy dry. He rested for the remainder of the day. “I’m weak,” he admitted. I assured him that it is because he exerted himself and he’s not used to it. He sat in his chair all afternoon and accepted pretty much every offer of food I made. I cannot complain about his appetite anymore. He seems to be doing all the right things, and ever so slowly, there is some improvement in energy level, vision (at certain points in the day) and coordination. Baby steps…
posted by Gilly at 5:32 PM
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