Purple Day 2012

Purple Day 2012

Today (March 26) is Purple Day. A special day dedicated to promoting awareness about epilepsy, by wearing purple, and trying to spread the word about the devastating effects of epilepsy.  We're sure most of you didn't know a thing about purple day, or even that purple is the color that represents epilepsy.  Not long ago, neither did we.

We have not seen any more seizures, which makes us even more unsure if what we saw back in February was a seizure at all, or if so, if it was just a bit of a blip in the healing process.

Developmentally, Will's progress has been very slow, but he is still doing well.  We aren't really hearing many words from him anymore, and his overall communication skills are pretty bad.  He can do a few signs and make a few sounds so we know what he wants, but that's about it.  We can't explain this but we pray that it will turn around and he'll keep progressing.  Thank God for his smile and pleasant demeanor - he is such a happy, giggly little boy and he is always full of hugs and sloppy kisses.  We hope that we'll find out more at his 6 month post-surgery appointment in early May.

We met earlier this month with the local Board of Mental Retardation and Developmental Disabilities to discuss possible preschool arrangements for Will next year.  He is likely going to be enrolled in an inclusion program that will include both typical and special needs children.  We think that this will be good for Will, even though it will be hard to send our baby off 5 days a week!  It is extremely hard to face the reality that Will is going to have to go to a special preschool because of his developmental delays, but we know that this is going to be the best thing for him.  We have accepted the fact that Will is always going to have special needs, but we still hold out hope that someday he will need less help than he does now.

It's hard keep our minds from racing as we mentally fast forward and try to foresee all of the things that might happen to our little boy and his older brother as they go through life.  Unique challenges await them tomorrow, in 5 years, and in 5 decades...all we can do is continue to work with Will, cherish the happy moments (there are plenty of them!), and try to prepare our entire family for the uncertain future that lies before us.  And...we can be thankful that he is not having seizures!