Lets get physical!

Today I thought I would talk to you guys a bit more about my disability and about what I have to do to keep my strength  mobility up.  Now, of course everyone has to exercises to stay fit and healthy, but for me exercising is even more important.  Having Cerebral Palsy means that my muscle are tighter than normal.  How tight your muscles are determines how much mobility you have.  I have lots of mobility but my muscles are still tight, so i still have to keep exercising and stay strong.  People were worried when I got my wheelchair that I would stop walking, but it hasn't held me back.  I still love to walk.  Actually, my physio told me sometimes  I had the choice to exercise or walk, I should walk because it will improve my endurance while standing.  I was pretty happy about that!   Anyway, I have been going to weekly physio sessions ever since I was three years old.  It all started at the Children's Hospital.  We had to move to Calgary when I was little for a year and a half  so I could have surgery to lengthen the ligaments in my legs.  Luckily, my aunt and cousin lived in town, so we got to stay with them.  After I got out of surgery, I spent a lot of time exercising in the Children's Hospital with my physio therapist in the pool.  The heat in the pool really relaxes my muscles so its really great for doing stretcthes and stuff.  The Children's also set me up with wheelchairs and walkers and leg braces and these leg straps that wrap around my legs.  They kept my toes from pointing in all the time.  Oh man, they were a hassle! I quit wearing them.  Anyway, when we moved back home, a year late, we started physio sessions at the local hospital in Invermere.  Around that time i was really getting good at my walking.  I could take 100 steps by then.  That day was pretty exciting!!  I was learning how to move a manual wheelchair with two hands.  My left hand doesn't cooperate well.  I call it my boy hand because it doesn'tcooperate. Lefty.  Anyway, a few years later, we stopped going to the hospital and started going to the Invermere physio clinic.  I've worked with lots of great people there.  They make physio a very happy place to come to.   .  Going to this physio clinic doesn't feel like going to doctors office.   It's a welcoming experience that I always look forward to. . .  Even thought they twist me up like a pretzel and make sweat on a tiring Monday afternoon, we all know it's worth it...  it helps me every STEP of the way.                                                                                                                                                                                                                        

Rick Hansen Relay

 After months and months of planning and organizing, the Rick Hansen Relay finally occurred in our little town of Invermere on Friday April 13,2012.   It was a very inspiring, emotional and overwhelming day.  I am still trying to wrap my head around it all so bear with me while I try to explain what went on and how I felt on that magical day.  I think I told you that I had the privilege of being a medal bearer on that day.  So, the first thing we had to do Friday was to go to a briefing.  We got our uniforms, which are awesome Nike yellow ones that I plan to wear the jacket of every day until the end of Rick's Journey.  We got a briefing of what our day would be like and also got to get to know everyone and hear their stories of why they got chosen.  They were pretty inspiring people who have been through circumstances from massive strokes to surviving childhood leukemia.  Then there were people who have done a lot around the valley, such as some of my school classmates who are active members of the leadership program at school.  It was a pretty tough crowd to beat!  They're  all very inspiring people and it was an honour to be running with them.  After we heard all the instructions of the relay and got to know each other  a bit, we met our partner who would be  handing us the medal in the relay.  My partner was  a girl from school, and who I've known all my school years wit, so it was pretty special to be  getting the medal from her.  So, after the meeting we got in  a bus that escorted all the difference makers to where they would be  running.  While we were riding, we got to watch a bunch of different movie  clips on Rick Hansen and some of the inspiring things he did other than his run, such as wheelchair bungee jumping.  We also watched a message from him to us saying that we were all chosen for this because we have done something to make the world a better place.  A lot of people thought that Rick Hansen was actually coming to town.  That's not entirely true, part of his team is.  he won't be there but it is still very inspiring.  Rick is probably one of the best examples of someone who has tried to make this world a more inclusive place.  When he did his run the first time, he was raising money for spinal cord injuries, but on  this second time around, it was to make  everyone realize about all the different people we have in our world that we should celebrate.  He didn't want to do the run himself this time.  He wanted nominated difference makers to do it with him, so that we can celebrate all the strides that people have made that have made this world better.  Invermere nominated difference makers that make this town better.  Anyway, i was the last one off the bus.  my stop was at a store called Rainbow Donkey.  That's where I got the medal from my friend, Ciona.  We were pretty excited to see each other.  The journey meant a lot to us both.  She passed me the medal, and we gave each other a big high five, got our picture together, and I was off.  I walked my route with my mom!  I loved walking  I felt very proud.   I got to walk with my mom, witch was special.  We were both quite emotional with being proud of Rick and being part of this inspirring event and everything.  We we running behind a truck that had loud Shaina Twain music playing, so focusing on the music helped us keep our cool a bit.  I  had a huge fan club.  Family and friends, and Nat's friends were all cheering me on.  It was another moment that I felt very lucky to have so many people that care about me.  I was chosen as the last difference maker, which meant I got to go on stage.  I got represented by the Mayor and the host of the event.  They said a few words about who I was and then guess what?  The mayor read a quote from this blog.  It was the one I wrote about being disabled.  I was shocked!  Thank you Gerry Taft!  Its great to know who is reading this.  I got to place the medal in a case  as a symbol of it being passed on to a new generation of difference makers.  All the difference makers got to keep a replica of the medal.  it's very beautiful and a great keepsake.   It has been cool showing mine to all my friends.    Later there was a local choir that the medal barriers got to sing O Canada with. Then there was a big cake for dessert celebrating Rick Hansen and all the difference makers.  I got to make the first cut in the cake.   That was cool!  The rest of the day there was just different disabled displays on like wheelchairs for able bodied kids to try and wheel themselves in.  One of my friends from skiing is coming up with a program  for disabled kids to go rowing.  in a row boat the seats usually move, so it would be hard for a disabled person to balance.  This row boat  has a special  fixed seat so it doesn't move.  the disabled student sits in that and the instructor sits in the back teaching them how to row.  It looks like fun and the man that is running it is really keen on giving me  a chance to try it so I will be interested to go for a ride!  Anyway, I hope I expained myself well enough!  That was just an awesome,awesome day! Rick Hansen, you are my forever hero!

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A super ski Season!

Last Monday was the last ski day for the Special O ski program that I go with and do different sports.  Remember how I used to write the reports every day?  Well I haven't written one in a while, but the instructors wanted me to write something  for a ski season wrap up.  It was an amazing ski season!  We had awesome volunteers who came out every Sunday to help us out!  I love to ski!  How strange; snow is one of my biggest barriers, being in a wheelchair, yet at Panorama I have so fun in the snow.  ha ha.  Anyway, here is what I wrote to wrap up of the season.
April 9th was sadly the last ski day of the season for the Special O program.  This program gets the Special O kids out of the  house with special  friends and have fun!  This report should not just be about Monday, but about the amazing ski season this year in general.  Most importantly it should outline the highlights of our super ski season and thank all the volunteers and others that made these ski days so much fun and memorable.  Here are the main highlights of this years season.
The weather was beautiful for skiing!  We really lucked out.  It was never too too cold.  Kate's best friend Grace came out to ski three times this season, twice with her sleek sit ski known as the "Ferrari."  All the volunteers were quite impressed with it and liked how it moved on the hill.  It's so special for the two girls to get to ski together, especially on the last day of the season and on Kate's birthday!  Grace, we love having you as a visitor to our program and our hill and hope you can come out some more next year  This year was a huge year for skiing firsts!  We now have three sit skis for our program so three skiers could come down the hill together.  It's like we have our own sit ski race team!  A fun thing for everyone this year was going over jumps!  It scared everyone, except maybe Jared!  All in all though, everyone loved it!  The biggest jump we took was kind of nerve racking so one person led the way, it might have been Jared, to show us all how it was done.  We had a new skier join us on the last day from Saskatoon, Aaleah.  It was her second time skiing with us so she was just getting used to the sit ski with volunteer Matt and was really getting good at her turns.  Everyone improved in their own little ways throughout the season.  We  have so many people to thank this year!  Thank you to the incredible volunteers who gave up their  Sundays to give the kids a great day on the hill.  You were always so willing and eager to try new things and always had a smile on your faces.  Thank you to Lustes for making the best hot chocolate in town and giving it to us for free every Sunday afternoon.  Thanks to Panorama for hosting this program.   We love coming to ski on your hill!  Thank you to Parents who made sure themselves and their kids were part of our program.  it was great  you made it out as much as you could.  And, finally, for the big finale, thank you to the DeRuyter family who started it all.  You all have amazing spirits and this program wouldn't be half of what it is without you guys.  Thank you to everyone for a great ski season and we hope to see you in May again to start up the swim program!  See ya there!