May-day, May-day........we have a Kinley!

Today was Kinley’s 12^th birthday.  12.  Wow……….next stop teenageville.  Well I’m happy to report she had a fantastic day complete with presents, well wishing phone calls from family and friends, and of course cupcake treats with classmates at school.  I definitely had a lot going through my mind today as I took it all in.  This  birthday also marks an anniversary for me in this journey as a special needs dad.  Ten years ago today was the last birthday she had where she could walk.  In fact at that time she hadn’t started showing any symptoms at all so you could say it was her last “normal” birthday.  Oh how I wish I had burned those birthday images much more clearly into my brain with photographs and videos but it never entered my mind that day in 2002 that things would never be like that again.  Today though I also thought about how grateful I am that she is healthy, continues to grow, and shows no signs of her disease progressing. 

Also today as if the number 12 wasn’t enough to try and get my arms around we also took Kinley to a transition meeting at the middle school she will be attending next year.  Middle school is something that we have always viewed with some worry and trepidation where Kinley is concerned.  Will she continue to make new friends?  Will her typical peers start to ignore her because she is "different"?  Will she encounter a bully for the first time?  I have to say that after meeting the staff today at Sierra Middle School I have a sense of calm and peace that Kinley will be just fine there and in fact continue to thrive.  During the meeting I noticed how Kinley interacted with these new adults that she had just met.  She was confident, personable, respectful, and also gave them a glimpse of her goofy sense of humor.  I am so proud of her for the young lady she is becoming.

Happy 12^th birthday Kinley!