Hamilton Challenger Baseball banquet

Cassie and her friend Katie at the Hamilton Challenger Baseball banquet

Cassie receiving her trophey!! Way to go girl

Compare these two pictures for Cassie's Foot

The Left Foot one year ago, the new left foot one year after Orthopedic Surgery

Did I ever post pictures of Cassie's Foot Post Orthopedic Surgery

Here are four pictures of Cassie's left foot. Much straighter and much flatter. The difficult issue of muscle tone still prevails. Cassie's big toe always curls up and her foot still wants to roll out. She can correct it when she thinks hard about it. The need for AFO is still one hunderd percent present due to the tendency for the weak foot to want to do its usual thing. The Foot slides easily into her AFO and looks very beautiful. Heading off to see two doctors next week, Orthopedic surgeon and physiatrist at the one year mark post surgery. Also looking for new exercise opportunites. Could not find funding for a bike as we make too much money now that Chris and I both work full time. Found the best bike at Brant Cycle in Burlington. It is a three wheel trike and Cassie has done so well learning to ride. Love the work out the left wrist and hand gets when biking. I am so thrilled with my daughters progress. I am so thrilled with my older daughter Julia as she is the best big sister teaching her little sister to ride a bike and letting her tag along all the time!! Julia you rock!!

Johnny Cash and Patsy Cline Tribute Band and Diner at Carmens Easter Seals Event

We had the privilege of receiving tickets to an event at Carmens in Hamilton Featuring a Johnny Cash and Patsy Cline tribute Band. The Event was a Silent Aution Fundraiser for the Easter Seals of Ontario. The Easter Seals is dedicated to helping children with physical disabilities achieve their full individual potential and future independence. We have been able to go to numerous Easter Seal events in the past and this event was another highlight in Cassie's life. The girls loved the tantalizing cuisine at Carmens. Julia loved the tapestries that adorned the ceiling. The concert was an Authentic "Man in Black Show" and a masterful creation of the unique style of the country singer Patsy Cline. The girls had trouble staying in their seats and danced together at the back of the banquet hall. It was a wonderful event and a great start to our March break 2011.

Julia took pictures of the tapestry!!

The girls dancing at the back of the hall!!

Chris and Cassie at the diner table. Delicious Food!!

Julia and I, Julia looks so grown up at almost 13 years of age. I am so proud of my girls!

Gait Analysis (Movement Lab at McMaster Children's hospital

Our nine-year old daughter looks like other young girl her age. Her walking abilities are so good right now a lot of people don’t even realize she was born with cerebral palsy. Cassie can run playfully at recess with the other children, walk to the park or walk her horse around the barn at her therapeutic riding club. Our daughter frequently requires an assessment of her gait or moving abilities. Gait assessments have been done before and after each procedure that Cassie has trailed. Every parents dream for their disabled child is to have them walk, thus promoting independence, accessibility and living a productive life.
The efforts to improve our daughters walking abilities; have been tireless for us as parents and successful thanks to a large team of health care specialists at Mcmaster Children’s hospital. Born with a brain injury our daughter got her first pair of leg braces by six months of age. For the first three years of her young life Cassie scooted around on her bottom, using one hand and a foot to propel herself forward, she never crawled and had extreme difficulty pulling her self up or balancing. So began the exhausting journey to rehabilitate our daughter.
The Mcmaster team consisted of physiotherapists, occupational therapists at Chedoke Developmental Rehabilitation Program, a developmental pediatrician, an orthopedic specialist, a physiatrist, an extremely talent orthotist and lastly two average parents, hard working middle class, with dreams for their daughter that she will walk as best she can. The last nine years of treatments have consisted of extensive physiotherapy, conductive education, gait training on a tread mill, new braces made every 10-12 months for nine years, serial casting procedures, botox treatments and repeated gait analysis done through Mcmasters Movement Lab. Many of the treatments remain uncovered by OHIP, causing financial hardship for parents, extended benefit struggles and fund raising efforts. The gait analysis done in the movement lab is an OHIP covered desperately needed service and this article will outline why it is so valuable.
The Movement lab is an essential service needed to improve children’s walking abilities. Located at Mcmasters Innovation Park this lab examines closely the gait of children and adults with walking problems. A movement assessment allows doctors, therapists and orthotists to look closely at how our daughter’s muscles and joint’s work when she is moving. This information helps her team make decisions about exercises, braces and surgery. It also shows the team how movement changes over time due to her growth or treatments she has undergone. The full assessment includes a collection of EMG and/or Kinematic and Kinetic info and a video. The test takes only about one and a half hours for the patient however the analysis takes many hours and is essential and useful when examining the complex walking patterns of children.
The use of the Gail Analysis guided our daughter’s orthopedic specialist decision to perform a much-needed orthopedic surgery on her left foot. Six months later our daughter walks without the aide of a wheelchair, walker or even a cane. Our nine- year old daughter is begging her dad to sign up for soccer with her best friends in Ancaster. The tireless hours invested and the specialized team approach has yielded wonderful results. The possibilities for our child are enormous. There are still promising improvements in gait analysis technology on the horizon. Our daughter needs this essential Movement lab until she reaches full height. New procedures are still being developed and planned for children with cerebral palsy or other forms of movement disorders. The Proper use of Gait analysis yields better results for patients. We are still using the Gait analysis for indications for various types of orthotics for our child. We are pursuing a new sport orthotic for our daughter and you can bet Cassie will play soccer in the near future thanks to the medical professionals at Mcmaster Children’s hospital and the Much needed Movement Laboratory!!

Cassie walking her dog Charlie, My favorite place Port Maitland Pier