School "shopping" and House "hunting"...

We are in Sunny Orange County California now and it is glorious here!  We have looked at several High Schools and many houses.  Olivia really likes the new Yorba Linda High School.  What's not to like!  We're going this evening for a tour and open house.

We have found a house that we really love.  It is beautiful beyond belief and it we get it, I'll post pictures.  It is rental property and two other families have an application in, but we have faith!

Today I drove Bob to work so Olivia and I would have the car for the day.  We chose to spend the afternoon in Newport Beach.  No words are necessary!

EXCITING NEWS!!!!!

We're moving.....to Sunny California!

We're excited. One thing I must say however, is that there is no way I will ever find another orthopedic like Dr. Mendelow. I hope he has a good recommendation for us, or we may be travelling across the country to see him, when necessary.

Details are forthcoming.....stay tuned.

She was thinking!

Whenever Olivia gets her haircut, she always forgets to remind them that she has scoliosis (a suggestion from one of the therapists at the center. Well, tonight we both went for haircuts. I was finished first (I'm easy, I just let it dry naturally), so I went to watch Kathy finish flat ironing Olivia's hair. I noticed she was sitting very straight. I asked her if she remembered to remind Kathy of her scoliosis and she said no, she didn't need to. She sat down in the chair, aligned her spine and was sitting perfectly straight. She was thinking! Her hair looks beautiful and it's perfectly even. She's sleeping or I'd take a picture. I will tomorrow if I remember.

She's been good...

...with her exercises lately! Yes, I'll say it again, Olivia is doing her exercises. I think she is finally realizing how critical they are and how much better she feels when she does them.

We were in Dr. Mendelows office last week with my sister and niece who is having some back problems. My sister came in from Cleveland to bring my niece to see him, as she wanted a second opinion. Everything worked out better than expected, and she is thrilled that she came. He really is an incredible Orthopedic and everyone in his office was extremely helpful. A special thanks to Wright and Filippis as well for making everything happen so fast, so my sister and niece could get back while it stopped snowing!

Anyhow, when we were at his office, he asked Olivia how she was doing and if she was doing her exercises everyday. I was proud of her for not lying, but.....He gave her a look that spoke a thousand words and she's been at it since. I hope it keeps up.

The new Schroth therapists are all trained and will begin to practice here shortly. They're just waiting for all the equipment to be installed. I am planning on taking her once a week to work with them, providing our insurance will cover the visits. I don't see any reason why they won't.

I did have a small scare today. Olivia called me at work and told me she felt a "snap" in her and that she could only turn in one direction. I told her to go to the office, do some stretches and align her spine. She did and she was fine. Thank God!

Finally! An Update!

We finally made it to the orthopedic today. I had to change the appointment a couple of times due to conflicts. Here's the news:

First of all, the doctor seemed to be quite impressed by what Olivia is able to do to her spine following the Schroth exercises. He was very positive and seemed to think that it was a very good choice for us to go.

Now for her x-ray results, which I will compare with her last x-ray which was 4/19/09:

T5 -11 4/19/09...31% 11/4/09...35%

T4-L3 4/19/09...44% 11/4/09...54%

L3-S1 4/19/09...27% 11/4/09...21%

Spine Alignment:

4/19/09... -46.5cm (off center)
11/4/09... -12 cm (off center)!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! What a huge improvement!

While looking at the change in the curves, he was a bit baffled at the increase in the lower TH curve, considering the dramatic improvement in her posture and spine alignment. He *thinks* that this may not be a progression in the curve, but due to the fact that her spine is so much more aligned, it may be a compensation of sorts. This is not something that he seemed at all concerned about, and was actually encouraged by the results.

He clearly told us that surgery is not something that he would consider, especially at this time. He feels that with what Olivia has been taught, and seeing how well she is able to easily correct her spine, she has an excellent chance of not progressing. She has not grown at all since April, which is also a huge plus. She will go back in eight months for another x-ray, and he commented that he would like to follow her for the next twenty years.

Now, for some very exciting news! We were informed that two PT's from Providence are going to The Scoliosis Rehab Center in Stevens Point, WI to be trained in Schroth. Dr. Manuel Rigo from Barcelona, Spain will be there training the therapists. Once trained they will be practicing Schroth at the PT center on the Novi Providence Campus. I couldn't be more thrilled!

Olivia was strongly encouraged to do her exercises five times a week for 30 minutes. It's been somewhat of a stuggle, but I really feel that she sees the importance of it. I'll keep encouraging her (nagging doesn't work, I need to encourage!).

I truly feel so blessed to have Dr. Mendelow as Olivia's orthopedic, and to have learned and had the opportunity to experience the Schroth Method of Physical Therapy.

Where is time going?

It's been over a month since I've posted on this blog. I know I promised pictures, but haven't posted any. I'm sorry!

Life is crazy sometimes. Crazy busy! Olivia is the manager of the 8th grade football team, along with one other girl. She is at practice everyday afterschool until 5:00 and on Wednesdays, which is game day, she doesn't get home until 7:30. She's having a blast. Thank goodness this only runs through October.

She is not doing that great with her exercises. I have to nag her everyday. It's making me really upset. I encourage her the best I can. The irony of the whole thing is that she feels so much better when she does them. It's just getting her started. I think she's becoming a bit too comfortable in the therapy room. We put a futon in there and she's been sleeping in there for nearly two weeks now. I have to put an end to that.

She's going to see Dr. Mendelow on November 4th. I can't remember why, but I had to change her appointment, which was originally the third week in October, I believe. I am not expecting as good as a report as I truly feel we could be getting. We'll see.

I will try my best not to stay away from her for so long!

Happy October to all! October is my favorite month! And...Happy Birthday to Scott. He turned 20 today. I can hardly believe it!

It's been awhile...

....I know! It has been an extremely busy summer. The first day of school was yesterday, so hopefully we can get into a better, normal routine!

Olivia goes to see Dr. Mendelow the end of October, when she will have x-rays taken. She's doing okay (I wish I could say great) with her exercises. I put her on a daily after school schedule, so hopefully she will stick to it. I knew this would be a struggle, but I will not give up.