10 months

Lots has happened the past few weeks!! Lots of big things, good things. I just haven't had the time to write, things have been so busy!

 Well, Britt is officially back to school! YAYAAAAA!!!! He absolutely loves it. And we are so glad that he is able to go. It is just for the first half of the day, but we will take it! He is taking about 3 classes i think, and he has little aids (mostly his friends) that help him in class and around the hallways. It is so so so important for him to be back in that normal setting and environment, going to class, doing homework, hanging out with his friends. Personally i think that is some of the most important therapy he needs right now, is to just do normal things, like he used to. Britt, my mom and I all went shopping over the summer to find him so school clothes, and it was always so much fun every time we would go. I remember last year was the first time he had ever let me start helping him shop and pick out things. And i remember thinking…FINALLY, I HAVE A PURPOSE IN LIFE! (to make my brother look cute) hahahah. We had picked out so many cute things, but he never really got to wear any of them because he got in the accident so early in the school year. So being able to do that again this year, was so great. It took us almost 10 times as long in the dressing room, trying stuff on, but it was well worth it. So me and my mom have had fun dressing him up each day for school. Such a handsome boy. He has also invested in a fanny pack…its camo. And the thing doesn't come off of him i swear. But you are going to die when i tell you the things he keeps in there. We got it for him to put his phone and wallet in so he doesn't misplace them but, it became a storage unit for a bunch of random items he has gathered. 

1. about 10 packs of buffalo wild wings wet wipes.
2. a zip tie (because "you just never know" is what he says)
3. 2 Altoid cans, 1 with a strand of his best friend Ally's hair. And the other he uses as a wallet and keeps his money in it.
4. I can't remember what else is in there but its seriously hilarious.

Before school started my mom was super frantic about him getting from class to class safely, and she said "britt can i please just come in between classes to help you walk in the halls, i can come early so no one see's me."

and he replied, "Mom, I don't want you sneaking around like a big ol armadillo." I don't know why, but we laughed at that for dayssssssss.

My dad and the rest of my brothers have this funny inside joke about stir fry and fried rice, and they say it in the funniest voice…"you like stir fry, you like flied lice?" over and over and over and over and over, literally 100 times a day. And it never stops being funny.

I was working on some homework with him the other night, and it had to do with fractions…I'm not kidding you, HE KNEW MORE THAN ME!!hahaha. Im never going to hear the end of that. He also has improved so much with his hand writing. It is looking better everyday. Im so proud of him and the hard work and effort he puts in. Working with Bonnie has really paid off for him, we are so grateful for her and the time she has spent tutoring him.

here is a video of his first day back to school!!

We went on a family vacation a few weeks ago! Well, kinda. We made it a family vacation i guess. We rode down to California to watch our family friends and neighbors play in the Little League Western Regional Tournament in San Bernardino for a day, and then we went to a Dodgers vs Nationals game, and the beach the next day then headed home. It was such a fun trip, even though it was quick. We had a lot of fun at the games, britt loves those little boys so so much, and i think they love him the same. When we were at the Dodgers game, it blew my mind to meet all the people who we ran into who knew Britton and his story. I mean, we were in California for crying out loud?! And we probably ran into 10 complete strangers who we had never known before, telling us how much they loved him and looked up to him! How awesome is that?! I still can't wrap my head around how many amazing people there are int his world we live, and how many of those people have shown such love and support for my sweet brother. All of us kids had to beg my dad to take us to the beach the next day before we headed home, and we finally convinced him to. It was a lot of fun. Britt built a sand castle with my mom, just like he always does when we are at the beach, and me and the little boys played in the ocean.  I think Britt was a little bit bummed he couldn't run around and swim, but he definitely made the most of it and still had a good attitude. I couldn't help but remember the last time we had all been at the beach as a family, about 3 years ago. Me and britt floated clear out so far that we thought we were never getting back hahaha, and i could just picture him running around chasing ledger and throwing him into the waves. I miss that, but I'm extremely grateful for what we still have. Even though things are much different. 

Here is a video link to our California trip:) https://vimeo.com/136136413

He got his results back from the MRI on his skull. He had to have it because the incisions where they cut are decaying and almost eroding, for reasons i don't really know (I'm not good with medical terms), but they had to go in and do an MRI to see if it had gotten worse, in the case they would have to re-open the skull and put it back together. Talk about a nightmare. We didn't want that. Luckily the results showed that it hadn't gotten much worse, but it still wasn't getting better. So there isn't much they can do about it now, we just have to sit back and wait, and watch, and wait some more. We are praying that everything in the skull rejuvenates and can be built back up with time. 

He is still going to therapy, and speech a few times a week. The speech therapist is so awesome, and has even been coming over to out house for an hour or so a week to get in extra work!! 

I walked in my moms room the other night and saw britton doing pushups by himself. He didn't know i was in the room so i just spied for awhile. But he probably did 50 or so, it was over the span of like 10 minutes, but he just kept at it. Sometimes falling down, but always getting back up. I know how badly he wants to get better, and get back to where he was or at least to a place where he feels comfortable with his body. Seriously, i don't know how that boy does it. 

My dad and Britt have been practicing driving a lot lately. Britton would do it every night if he could. That is his number one goal i think, is to be able to drive within the year. He misses it a lot i think. My dad said he is getting a lot better and coming a long way with it, so that is exciting. 

Britt still continues to get letters and packages in the mail from all the people who follow him and love him. It is amazing to see such thoughtful words and gifts still coming in, even after all these months. WE could never repay you for the love you have shown him, and continue to show. He got a shirt and letter from Eric Weddle and his wife this past week and about died. He loved it so much and couldn't believe that they knew about him and were following his story so closely. That made his day for sure. 

It has been a pretty rough week for me, considering i have moved up to provo for school. It's weird that the time has finally come for me to pick back up again where i left off in November. I guess it has just been really emotional and confusing for me lately, because I didn't want to leave Britt or my family after being glued to each other for 10 straight months. Leaving scared me, because i don't not want to be there if something were to ever happen or go wrong. I didn't want to leave my mom to take care of Britt all day and still attend to the Ledger and Greyson the way they need to be, while my dad is at work. Her job is hard. So  hard. Everyday i look at that woman and wonder how on earth she does it all, and how we got so lucky to have her as our mom. Britt is a full time job, I'm not saying that in a mean or disrespectful way, but he is. He has so many things that my mom has to tend to throughout the day, he can't really be left alone, and he can't do a whole lot for himself. She would bend over backwards to give him the world and do anything for him, she does that for all of us. And somehow she manages to cook, keep the house clean, and do all the millions of other things moms do at the same time. She is one in a million I tell you, and i don't think we tell her that enough. mom, if you are reading this. You are the greatest in the whole wide world. Incredible. Beautiful. Powerful. Inspiring. You are everything. What scared me most about leaving was probably just not being able to be there for Britt everyday. Im going to miss waking up to him sneakily crawling in to my room to scare me, or our late night chats after he has been crying for hours. Im going to miss hearing his voice the minute i walk through the door, and the big hugs he gives me before he leaves. I mean, i know I'm only 3.5 hours up the street but, those are things I'm going to miss everyday. Im worried that i won't be there when he needs someone to talk to or a shoulder to cry on. I told him he better call me whenever he needs to talk, and FaceTime me so i can see his cute face at least for a couple minutes a day. I find videos on my phone every day that he recorded, so those should keep me from going crazy until I'm able to go home every couple of weeks. Here are a couple i found the other day! What a character…

                                       

                                       

We are so thankful for you, and your prayers for Britt, keep em comin!! He still needs them real bad. 

Here is a video of our trip to park city, from my last post!! It's pretty short, if you wanna click the link and watch it:) https://vimeo.com/134588823