Month: July 2015

This morning Madison had a fantastic visit with Aunt Janine and Suzanne. On our way home we found out some very exciting news. Madison was selected out of over 250 applicants to be in the 2016 Different if Beautiful calendar by The Happy Soul Project!

She will be doing her photo shoot in Toronto in the next few months and will be given a month in the calendar for her pictures and will have a bio at the back of the calendar.  The Happy Soul Project is sending Madison her “What Makes you Different is what Makes you Beautiful” shirt in the mail as well as her Kick it Cape.

Kick-It-Capes are for anyone facing something that requires extra courage to take on superhero qualities and face their own struggles. Madison will have on her Kick it Cape in the calendar.

Happy Soul Project is all about inspiring others to look at life a wee bit differently, believing in all abilities and celebrating the beauty in the uniqueness of all people..this is what the different is beautiful calendar celebrates and we can’t wait to share it with you to continue spreading awareness about this important message. Once the calendar is published we will provide information on how to purchase one. I believe that all proceeds from the calendar this year go to supporting the production of more Kick it Capes for little ones fighting their own battles. Thanks Happy Soul Project! 

Guest Post by: Dada (AKA James)

Mama had the day off and went to the spa with Nana Gregoire.  It was Daddy Daughter Day today. We started the day with a trip to Canadian Tire to buy materials for Madison’s home made air conditioner. Tonight is the test if it works or not.

This afternoon Madison went to March of Dimes for her last class until the end of August. Madison and Ben did their usual obstacle course of activities to end off a great session. Lots of walking, side stepping, climbing and balancing.  And of course playing with the balls.

Dada clearly needs to work on pony tails from the hair in these pictures.

Mama and Nana came home well rested and relaxed. Madison missed Mama lots today but we had a great day.

Today Madison had a day off. It was a hot night last night, no one slept and she had bad leg cramps so we let her sleep in and skipped gym class. We decided to do no physio or activity today. She spent the day reading her books, playing in the basement and going for a stroll in her stroller. It was a super laid back day which we all needed.

With the weather being so hot, Madison has been hanging out in the basement to keep cool. Today we discovered that the chalkboard coffee table is the perfect height for her. She held on and walked all around it and loved drawing with chalk on it. She had a few spills so Dada ended up padding the floor around the table with mats.

Madison also went shopping today to pick up her new backpack for the new program she is starting at the end of August. We were not surprised that she picked the monkey one.

Madison spent her afternoon with Ben at March of Dimes. They are both working so hard and improving each class. Their confidence with independent standing has grown so much! Thursday will be the last class for a few weeks.

Madison had a great time at Conductive Education today with her buddy Ben. They worked on reaching up high while standing to get bean bags, walking with ropes and other activities that were made to be a little more challenging then usual. They both listened really well and participated so nicely together. They even gave kisses to each other at the end for a job well done. 

Madison had a wonderful day with all 4 of her Grandparents…and a day off physio…nothing but family fun today!

She started her day by taking her Nana and Papa Gregoire out for breakfast and then down to Bluffers Park to watch the ducks. A man and his wife that were feeding the ducks gave Madison some bread to feed them as well and she was over the moon excited seeing them eat the bread and watching the ducks chase each other.

Madison spent her night with Grandma and Grandpa Ambos playing at the house and then going out for a nice dinner. Her dinner ended with special ice cream that was covered with dry ice. It was cool to see, but judging by her pictures she didn’t seem a fan of it.

Madison’s physio of the day was wall standing. She loves the feeling of standing without help from us, just some help from the wall. Today we started trying to get her to bend her knees to crouch down to the ground and then stand up again leaning on the wall. She was very scared but still tried. We will try and do this daily to build her confidence and leg strength.

Madison also spent some time with Nana today while Mama got some errands done. They read lots of books. I think that’s their favourite thing to do together.

Madison started her day with a play at Pam and Medfords.  She loves playing with their kitchen sink water and outdoor hose! Then she was off to March of Dimes for C.E. with her buddy Ben.

Highlights at C.E. today were wall standing, playing catch with a ball, rope walking and cruising in and out of furniture. She also did some good stretching today too. 

After C.E. Madison and Mama went on a date to Memories of Japan for a yummy late lunch/early dinner. Madison was pretty good with the chop sticks.

After some shopping she ventured over to Papa and Nana ‘ s house to head down to the Jazz Fest in the Beaches. She loved the live music, Tiny Tom donuts and chocolate chip cookie from Moo Milk Bar. She danced to the music with Papa, waved and blew kisses at strangers and put money in the firefighter boot for their charity. She was pretty impressed with her new bubble machine too…thanks Papa! It was a fun, but busy day!

Madison had a great time at the zoo this morning with her buddy Charlotte! They saw the monkeys,  ostraches, lions, giraffes and had a nice visit with each other.

After a quick nap Madison was off to C.E. at March of Dimes with her buddy Ben. They worked hard together walking between ropes, wall standing, walking with the ladder and crawling up and down the ramp.

Madison was back at My Gym today and did several activities that really pushed her level of comfort. I was so proud of her that she tried different activities that she didn’t want to do at first, and then after trying she wanted to do them over and over again.

Madison spent her afternoon with her good buddy Ruby. Madison was very lucky to receive gifts from Ruby from her recent trip to Taiwan. They coloured together, had some yummy cookies and went for a swim. It was a great afternoon visiting and was so great hearing about Ruby and Sara’s trip.