Jasmine turned seven on June 8th, 2010. She had really come a long way from the first time that we had met her. 
Every day she was doing something that she hadn't done the day before. With Jasmine, it was always slow but steady progress. The doctors told me from the beginning that she would be a pleasant child, but would not be able to accomplish much. I am so glad that she proved them wrong. I am amazed at her determination to do things, and her love for life and all the people around her. By the time Jasmine started second grade, her room was finished and she was officially a little princess. Her room was painted a lilac color with white and lilac flowered curtains to match. She had her state of the art bed which could do everything but move across the room by itself, a therapy swing with a therapy mat, a bumpy bed to lounge on that I made out of big chunks of foam, a huge flat screen television on her wall, and enough room to play soccer in her kid walk! 
Every week she was surprising us by eating more and more and drinking all of her drink. I was determined to have her feeding tube removed, but there were just times when she wasn't interested in eating or drinking. It was becoming more and more frustrating, because I thought that maybe she would always need it, and maybe wasn't capable of eating on her own. We took a visit to her gastroenterologist and I told him my concerns. He suggested just feeding her for the next four or five weeks by mouth and seeing how she did. If she lost a significant amount of weight, then we would know that she wasn't ready. It was a very scary concept, to not use her feeding tube when that was the way I had been making sure she got what she needed, but I was willing to give it a try. The next few weeks went by pretty well. There were times in the morning that Jasmine wasn't very interested in breakfast, so I just gave her what she would take. She almost always did well in school, so I never worried about that. The hardest part was trying to get her to get enough liquids in her for the day so she would stay hydrated. I counted every calorie and made myself a nervous wreck, trying to make sure she met her quota every day. We didn't use the feeding tube from a couple of days before Thanksgiving until her next visit in January. They weighed her and she had actually gained a half a pound! The doctor surprised me by telling me we could take her tube out right then! I surprised him right back and told him I thought it was too soon. I wanted to make sure that when she was sick, she was still able to get her medicine and liquids without the help of her feeding tube. So, we left with her tube still in tact, and made an appointment for the middle of March to see if she was still maintaining her weight. After all Jasmine had been through, I wanted to be sure that this was the right thing to do. I realized that I really had learned to have patience!
Jasmine turned seven on June 8th, 2010. She had really come a long way from the first time that we had met her. 
Every day she was doing something that she hadn't done the day before. With Jasmine, it was always slow but steady progress. The doctors told me from the beginning that she would be a pleasant child, but would not be able to accomplish much. I am so glad that she proved them wrong. I am amazed at her determination to do things, and her love for life and all the people around her. By the time Jasmine started second grade, her room was finished and she was officially a little princess. Her room was painted a lilac color with white and lilac flowered curtains to match. She had her state of the art bed which could do everything but move across the room by itself, a therapy swing with a therapy mat, a bumpy bed to lounge on that I made out of big chunks of foam, a huge flat screen television on her wall, and enough room to play soccer in her kid walk! 
Every week she was surprising us by eating more and more and drinking all of her drink. I was determined to have her feeding tube removed, but there were just times when she wasn't interested in eating or drinking. It was becoming more and more frustrating, because I thought that maybe she would always need it, and maybe wasn't capable of eating on her own. We took a visit to her gastroenterologist and I told him my concerns. He suggested just feeding her for the next four or five weeks by mouth and seeing how she did. If she lost a significant amount of weight, then we would know that she wasn't ready. It was a very scary concept, to not use her feeding tube when that was the way I had been making sure she got what she needed, but I was willing to give it a try. The next few weeks went by pretty well. There were times in the morning that Jasmine wasn't very interested in breakfast, so I just gave her what she would take. She almost always did well in school, so I never worried about that. The hardest part was trying to get her to get enough liquids in her for the day so she would stay hydrated. I counted every calorie and made myself a nervous wreck, trying to make sure she met her quota every day. We didn't use the feeding tube from a couple of days before Thanksgiving until her next visit in January. They weighed her and she had actually gained a half a pound! The doctor surprised me by telling me we could take her tube out right then! I surprised him right back and told him I thought it was too soon. I wanted to make sure that when she was sick, she was still able to get her medicine and liquids without the help of her feeding tube. So, we left with her tube still in tact, and made an appointment for the middle of March to see if she was still maintaining her weight. After all Jasmine had been through, I wanted to be sure that this was the right thing to do. I realized that I really had learned to have patience!