Summer 2018 Part 3 Shad's travels

Shad had a summer to remember!  In May he went with the Peninsular Florida District of the Assembly of God's youth department to an outreach that is held yearly in Miami.  Ironically I went on the first outreach held back in the 80's.  I was college aged!  He is only 14 years old.  He rode with another youth group and when I dropped him off, my stomach dropped everyone was old and so much bigger.  He was the youngest to go but he was so ready to do it! 

They stayed in a church's gym and did many outreaches in conjunction with the Assembly of God churches in the area.  He literally went from sun up to way after dark and he loved it!  They gave out food daily, did skits, sang and invited folks to local churches where the folks can find spiritual and practical help all year long.  

Just a few days after he got home from Miami we headed out for NY and Canada!  Then the Monday after we got back from our trip he headed out for a week of camp with our church kids.  The picture below is of him after he got back.  He was telling us all about camp then he crashed!!!

 Then the next week he headed for El Salvador with the Pen Fl District youth.  If watching him leave for Miami was hard..... watching him leave for El Salvador was much harder!!!  Again he was the youngest not traveling with family and so little looking,  They left at an ungodly hour of 4 am so Steve and I got a hotel room right by the airport so we could sleep then take him and go back to sleep.  The night before we walked around Disney Springs and took him to a Red Lobster.   We just found out that he needed to take 250 small toys & candy  the day before he left.  Thankfully my friend who runs a thrift store had more than that for him of clean unused toys.  He was so happy! 

We had fun packing those!!!!

Leaving from Orlando.  Yes I almost cried!  There was some confusion at the gate, I'd been watching some bags and I thought he had headed through security without saying goodbye!

They worked with King's Castle which is an Assembly of God program that works with all the local churches.  It provides camp for the locals and respite time for missionaries.  Shad met some missionaries who had had to flee Venezuela because of the issues going on there.
He dressed as a clown, did skits, handed out toys, went to local schools (all still in session - they have a different schedule than we do)  they were able to reach out to the red light district and to many brothels where there were prostitutes as young or younger than they were.  They were able to share with them about ministries that could help them get away and find safety.  It was a very eye opening experience for Shad that was sobering, seeing such great need.

Going on a mission trip may not changed the whole world but it can change the person who goes on it.  It can make hearts more tender and giving.  It can help a teen realize how much they have and to be thankful for it.  And hopefully it will teach that person to be open handed to do for others whether it is at home or abroad   On this trip Shad got baptized in the Pacific Ocean.  That was an experience for him.  He had always wanted to be baptized in the ocean.  This was very meaningful to him.   

Shad had a fantastic summer and now he will be starting back homeschool early.  He is a year ahead and hopes to finish 10th grade by December, then he can apply to do dual enrollment with our local college.  .  

Summer 2018 Part 2 NY and Canada

This was our 11th year of going up to NY for Sam's annual eye check up.  In 2007 Sam had corneal implants or the Boston Kpro put in his eyes in placed of his rejected corneas.  He was born with Peter's Anomaly an eye condition that affects primarily the corneas.  He had received corneal transplants when he was an infant in 2004 but they failed and his corneas had clouded up again.  Our original doctors in Miami felt it was not a good idea to do further transplants and hesitantly told us of Dr James Aquevella who perfected the artificial cornea.  We are so glad we chose the Kpro for Sam.  It has worked wonderfully in his good eye.  He had some issues in his left eye but we were expecting that it might not work.

So once again we  drove up and I have to admit I was dreading the trip this year.  Usually I don't feel like that till we are on the way home but this year I started with it.  Some of the dread I think comes from going to Rochester NY where we had to deal with the memories of Selah's accident.  It's hard to even look at the Erie Canal for me.  But I fight those feelings.  So off we headed....









Our first stop was Rochester to visit Dr A.  Sam had a wonderful report and cooperated in all his testing so he did not need to stay and go into surgery for an exam under anesthesia.  His cornea looked great.  His pressures were perfect.  We got to give all the staff a hug and thank our beloved Dr A again!

Then we had an extra two days to spend in Niagara Falls!  We stayed on the Canadian side for the first time.

Yes it was cold for us Florida people!

This never gets old!

Funny bird

Outside our hotel

We did something new and went to Ft George north of the Falls.  It was an absolutely beautiful day.

Steve an his camera

My happy girl

After we NF we went about 5 hours north to Sturgeon Bay a national camp ground.  For years we had talked about doing this and thought we should do it this year since we still have Steve with us for the summer.  The hardest part of the trip was the traffic around Toronto.  It made NYC look like a parking lot.  I've been all over the world in some crazy places and I've never seen such aggressive traffic.  During the ride I wanted to cry it was so bad but I didn't want to be a wuss or distract Steve who was driving.  We had no idea how bad the traffic was going to be.  Since then we learned that the Toronto area is considered North America's worst traffic spot!  I can attest to that!!!!



We were glad to get to our quiet campground!








Our cabin.  I hate to admit it but it was not very comfortable.  We have done cabin camping in Florida and were a bit spoiled.

Shad and his camera

We also went further north to Gundry Lake park  it was breath taking.

 Yes we got matching shirts!

Sam loving on daddy for giving his snacks

We also went to Killbear Provincial Park

It was interesting but a bit difficult for me with the little kids.  The bugs were horrible and remember I am a Florida girl and I know bugs LOL  We felt like we could not hardly have the little kids out.  We literally parked right next to the door and then rushed the kids out.  We drove them around to all the parks but didn't really take them out of the van.  One day there a good breeze and we were able to be out more.  I didn't even walk much because i was getting eaten up.  Those bugs sneered at our bug spray!  It didn't faze them a bit.  

With cabin camping I cooked and cleaned and did it over again the next day.  It was not much of a vacation for me.   But everyone else had a good time.  My husband doesn't seem to attract bugs as bad as I do so he took really long walks.  .  Of course the boys didn't mind much.  They did some fun things including kayaking on the bay during a tornado warning!  (we did not know about the warning!!!!)  Steve called me from the bay and said that water was coming over his kayak and he was about a mile out.....  Good Lord I was worried.  Thankfully they made it back and then we learned of the weather advisory!  It got much worse and we lost power for hours!   Steve had downloaded the classic movie The Shining on his computer so we watched that while the storm howled LOL!!!!!!

One night we were so cold we turned down our window unit and immediately mosquitoes began flooding our cabin!   We had kept the unit on because we needed some fresh air and the windows didn't have screens in them.  So we were up for an hour killing mosquitoes.  Poor Sarah got bit up so badly and she scratched the dickens out of herself.   She still has slight scars from them.

Despite it all both Sam and Sarah seemed quite happy except for the bugs.  They liked the smallness of the cabin and like riding in the van places.  They both did so good.  They are easy going when it comes to traveling.   

I'm really glad despite the difficulties and challenges that we went up into Canada.  It was interesting and some spots were so beautiful.  Next year we are planning for Jon to fly up with Sam for a quick doctor visit and then the fam is going to the beach for a week!!!!!!!!  THAT is my kind of vacation!  I have to admit we don't do many relaxing vacations.  We really want our kids to see the world.  It changes a person to get out of their environment and go new places   Growing up I had little opportunity to do anything or go anywhere so vacations have always been important to me.  We have always tried to do interesting things with the kids.

Next Blog will feature Shad and all his travels this summer.  He has been a busy young man!!

Summer 2018 Part 1 Haiti

I'm back!  As always I say I'm going to do  better about blogging.....we will see!  The summer is almost over but what a summer it's been for our family!

As you may remember, Steve was scheduled to go on a mission trip to Haiti. Some of his team came and stayed a couple of nights with us then set off from our house headed for Haiti.  I watched them go with a little lump in my throat....I had NO IDEA what was to come LOL
The first night they all met at Southeastern University and spent the night.  Then they left around 2 am for Orlando International Airport.  Around 4:00 am I get a call from Steve.  He is at the TSA checkpoint and is not being allowed to board the plane!  At first I thought he was kidding around but I realized from his voice he was serious.  It seemed that his passport had gone through the washing machine a few years ago and was fraying even more so he was stopped.  He had used his passport twice since it got washed but this time it seemed it was not going to happen.  The staff did say he could go to Miami and try and get a one day passport.  I encouraged him to do it so he got a ride back to Lakeland  and I met him there with all the paperwork he would need later that morning.  We got him a new passport picture and then I took him back to the Orlando Airport to catch an evening flight to Miami.  The ride home for me was"an adventure" I hate driving the interstate and driving in the rain at dusk...yep we had all the above plus major road construction! 

He had quite the adventure in Miami.  He "ubered" for the first time to get to his hotel.  Thankfully  through a friend, we found one on the same block as the passport office.  It was a luxury hotel so he felt like a king for the night.  He had to be in line by 6 am the next morning at the passport office.  I was so worried that we missed a paper or something.  It's very hard to prove you need a one day passport. When he got to the passport office there were a couple of people ahead of him in line and when the office opened at 8 am all those folks got turned away for various reasons.  Steve was sick on his stomach.  He was given 30 seconds (literally) to state his case.  He had just been talking to someone in line about us having gone to Cuba, so he tells the person he needs his passport to go to Cuba!!!!  He corrected himself and they all laughed because they could tell how nervous he was!!!   Anyhow it all went well and he picked up his passport that afternoon.  (It reminded me of Ukraine-we had to get a one day passport for the girls)  He got another great night in the hotel then left for Haiti early the next morning. 

BTW a one day passport just means it's issued in just one day. 

There was a disturbance out in the Gulf so the airplane trip was very bumpy going over and coming back.  Evidently the Haitians on board prayed- out loud- loudly.  He wasn't sure what was going on.  But he makes it to Haiti safe and sound.  But you know that is not the end of the story...Oh no not for a Clanton! 

A couple of days later I get a 5am call from him.  He said he was very sick.   At first I wasn't too worried about it but he got worse as the day went on.  The ministry where he was volunteering had a hospital so he ended up getting admitted to it!  Thankfully after a few bags of IV fluids he was fine.  they think he just got dehydrated.  He loved the whole trip and is already planning on going back next spring to shoot a full video for them. 





Ok I LOVE this picture of him!


the children coming in for school

Steve's team and some of the kids

Looking towards the Dominica Republic

Steve also worked some on a video while he was there and shot some roll that was used in a a fund raiser for the orphanage.  I can't seem to save and share it but I'll try and post it.  

Most of the time he volunteered in the area with the special needs kids.  

This experience has helped him clarify some things.  He hopes to use his videography skills for missions.  He has been thinking along these lines for awhile but this has has shown him what he could actually do.

His goal for now is to graduate from college in December.  He has been accepted into the Master's program to purse the degree of Human Services.  He is hoping he will get a GA (graduate's assistant ) position to help pay for his degree.  Please pray that the right door will be opened for him.  

Mother's Day 2018

Hello from the Clanton family!

I am still fighting with this new MAC....I absolutely hate it with my whole heart.  It's such a pain in so many ways.  Tonight, with help, I figured out how to put pictures on my blog.  Not at all easy if you are wondering...way too many steps for me.

We've been busy as usual around here!

All four of the younger ones just went to a new dentist who specializes in kids with special needs.  It took me years to get in with this dentist and I am thrilled.  We were in a practice that would not even see Selah and really resented me making them see Sam and Sarah.  I got a little crazy with a dentist once LOL . If you ever read that I"m in jail- please take it seriously-it'll probably be true!!!!

Sam Sarah and Selah had perfect teeth!  No cavities or much build up.  This dentist just blessed us so much by actually telling us "thank you" for giving them such good care.  I was almost in tears.  As a parent of special needs kids, there are so many things you do that no one really sees or thinks about.  Brushing teeth is one of those things.  It's a pain, neither Sam or Sarah can spit so it's alot of work to really clean their teeth.  The nurses work on Selah's mouth care continuously because having a trach, she keeps her mouth slightly open all the time which is awful for her teeth  and gums!   But to have a doctor pat you on the back like he did, made it all worth while.  He told us some horror stories of special needs kids he had seen over the years and that makes him appreciate the ones who do what has to be done daily to avoid issues.  Jon and I along with her nurse felt very encouraged by the kind words of that man.

Having to do all of their personal care is taxing now as they are getting older and bigger.  It's challenging to be out with them and have to change a diaper.  We have to brush their teeth, give them baths, change diapers, dress them, feed them....   when I get physically tired, I always push through because I think "what if our roles were reversed?",   I'd want good care by a cheerful person.   With our nurses and our respite care worker - they are the same- they care about the kids and want to do the best for them.  

Sam and Sarah have started horse therapy.  Their teacher is a Physical Therapist which is wonderful.  Sarah is going twice a week and Sam goes once a week.  We are concentrating on Sarah in the hopes that it will help her to walk.  

Let me see if I can explain why hippo therapy is so important for a child with gross motor skill delays....    Sarah can "walk" .  I can hold her hands and she will move her feet but they tend to cross and turn.  She can also hold a walker and do the same.   Some time ago I felt that that kind of therapy - trying to teach her to walk- was really just reinforcing terrible walking habits that did not lead her to really walking.  Oh I went along with therapy because I didn't really know what else to do.  I hoped it would help but she never really progressed past a certain point.  I had thought of hippo therapy but did not have any contacts or way to get it paid for because our insurance would not cover it.  Then the little ones became eligible for the Gardiner Scholarship (a Florida based scholarship for homeschooled kids with handicaps)   It covers their therapy.  

Now to try and explain why this type of therapy is different....  basically a horse's movement mimics the way humans walk.  So by Sarah sitting on a horse as it walk, that horse is moving Sarah in the exact way she is supposed to move to walk correctly.  It's causing her to react neurologically and physically in a way that using a walker absolutely never ever would.   Especially since she is blind, she can "feel" it even though she can not see it.  

Sarah is very unique.  She has absolutely no cerebral palsy or brain damage.  Sam has both yet he can walk.  Sarah just has a low IQ and is blind.  That's it...no chromosomal  abnormalities either unlike Sam.  Most professionals are stunned that Sarah can not walk but all attributed it to her first five years of being in an orphanage.  We don't know how she was treated in the baby house but she was in an adult mental institution when we got to her and was kept tied to a bed by three little leather straps.....  Nothing was being done to help her learn and she missed many important milestone times of brain development.  

Sam on the other hand has CP, brain damage and chromosomal abnormalities and yet he can walk.  But he had therapy from the beginning and a family working hard with him.    We are hoping that Sarah will catch up.  She loves physical activity.  She absolutely loves being on the horse, she smiles almost the whole time.  

This will also be good for Sam in many ways.  Although he walks, this will give him more confidence plus it's supervised PE (physical education) . It will address his poor posture and tone.  Also he will learn how to follow directions and so many other things.  

Ive recently heard of a new therapy place in our area for OT and Speech.  We are also on the wait list for ABA therapy (Applied Behavior Therapy).  I'm always looking for things to enrich their lives.

That smile!

She looks like a little horsewoman!

They love the movement but not the horse.  Neither of them really care about touching the horse except for the signal "to go" .  My kids are anti animal LOL  Both of them despise the new rescue kitten.  The kitten loves everyone and wants to go to Sarah all the time.  Sarah flinches and pulls away.  The kitten is so tiny we have to really watch it around the kids, we are afraid one of them will accidentally hurt it.  We try and keep it in Shad's room but that kitten has a set of lungs on it!  It cries and cries.  

Sleepy Sarah

This is how my big girl sleeps on my lap :)

Last week was SIX years home for the girls!

This picture was taken at Tampa International Airport on 5/9/12

Sarah was wearing a size 12 months and weighed 19 pounds at 5.5 years old

This picture was taken in our living room on 5/9/18

Sarah is wearing a size 12 girls and weighs 70 pounds!  

6 years made a big difference!!

(Yes she got a hair cut today!!!)

Mother's Day 2018

I feel so blessed!

I love this bunch

My Life.... I love them!

Next week Steve leaves for Haiti!  Please pray for him and his team.  Thank you all for your gifts to him!  We were shocked this past Sunday by a large gift given to both of the boys for their mission trips from a reader in Orlando!  THANK YOU!  They were amazed & encouraged.  

Steve is also taking a ton of supplies for the orphanage with him . We have to work on his luggage tomorrow and see how we will fit it all in.  I'm lucky I have a friend who is a Crazy coupon lady!  she gets me great deals for my various projects.  This time we focused on vitamins, toothpaste, band aids and bar soap.  It is a great feeling for me to get things together for the children.  

As a mom-it makes me extremely nervous for him to fly to another country without us!  But I know this experience will be defining for him and also for Shad when he goes to Miami for a week and El Salvador for a week this summer.    But it's hard for Mama!

Sam enjoying his lunch!

We've had alot of concerns about Sam this whole year.  It started in January when he got a light case of the flu.  Since he had had his flu shot- he didn't get really sick but with in a few days his bowels shut down.  That ended up in two trips to the hospital and a stay plus several trips to the doctor.  He also had a very serious issue with his immune system.   Despite our best efforts, he has continued to have some issues.   

He also struggles a few times a year with extreme bouts of sadness.  During those times he will bit his hands and arms.  He went through a terrible time of it back in April.  It follows a predictable pattern-there is no rhyme or reason why it happens or what causes him to come out of it.  

A few weeks ago he began coming out of it and we were relieved.  Then he went into such a lethargic stage that I was convinced that he was dying.  He had absolutely no other symptoms- and i called our pediatrician several times to let him know what was going on.  It was so scary.  He was still eating and drinking but almost like a robot.  Nothing made him happy or even sad!  He'd just sit beside one of us without interacting.  

I tell you what on Mother's Day I woke up with him in my bed, I was afraid for him to be alone, and I could have cried.  I took a shower and had to hold in my tears because i was so concerned about him.  But there was NO symptoms we could point to....  his bloodwork was perfect, just a few weeks ago cardiology had cleared him and said they no longer needed to follow him, he had just had a multi organ ultrasound study and everything was perfect.... The only thing was he still was not 100% normal in his bowel movements but it wasn't terrible just not normal since he got sick in January.  Our pediatrician had put him back on a stool softener and a vegetable based laxative but there were occasions I had to give him enemas.  Sam eats a very healthy diet and loves vegetables- any type of bean is his friend so he's never had this issue before!  

Anyhow we all got ready for church.  I asked for Sam to be mentioned in prayer.  My husband prayed for Sam with the other requests of our parishioners.  But as the prayer ended a friend of mine spoke up and said that she felt we should have special prayer for Sam.  The church came around Sam and prayed for him.  And with God as my witness, Sam began to act more like himself from that point on....    We went out to eat and he was interacting with us.  It's Tuesday night and he is in bed but these last few days have been wonderful.  He's back 90% to the old Sam!  We are all paying alot of attention to him and he has his big brother home so I know that helps but I truly believe God heard the prayers for him and gave me a Mother's Day present by helping Sam to reconnect more with us, his toys and to find joy again.  Please keep him in your prayers!  

Parenting our little ones has its challenges that just break our hearts at times.  Before my little ones, I knew that "this world was not my home- I'm only passing by" but now the Hope of Heaven has so much more meaning to me as we face challenges along with our children.    I am honored that God has given them to us by birth and adoption to be with them through their lives and to see that they are cared for and loved.  

I wish I could be some positive idiot that never worried about the future but it is scary to me.  I pray alot.  We have things set up as best we could and I'm thankful that we were able to have some things in place for them.  But there is only so much we can do now for the future for them.  There is just alot of having to trust God for their futures....and for our older boys' futures too.  Don't you wish you could protect your kids from everything and make all the important decisions for them?  It doesn't quite work out that way....

Well I will try and continue to learn this $#@%&!! MAC!  I dread dealing with it!