Ava Walks and Walks and Walks...

AVA WALKS AND WALKS AND WALKS………..

Over the past few weeks Ava has made great strides….literally! After Thanksgiving break we noticed an increase in the amount of steps Ava was taking and she is now to the point where I can officially say AVA IS WALKING. Several people have seen her and asked why I never put an update on caring bridge. My response to this was that I needed to wait until she was walking without falling every other step. Once again, Ava has beaten the odds. While it is an amazing thing that she is walking we still don’t know how much she is able to see. We are also unsure as to how much damage was done that is contributing to her lack of balance and coordination. At times she will walk into objects and at other times it appears as if she is just aimlessly walking around and not really focusing on anything. She continues to receive physical therapy three times a week, occupational therapy four times a week, vision therapy once a week and speech therapy twice a week.

As promised I wanted to give everyone an update on Ava’s appointment with the Neurosurgeon. A few weeks ago I mentioned that Ava now has a sixth nerve palsy in her right eye which was diagnosed by her opthamologist. Usually this is caused from increased intracranial pressure in the brain. After much discussion, the Opthamologist and Neurosurgeon have decided that on December 14th Ava will be re-evaluated. If she still has the 6th nerve palsy she will need to have an intracranial pressure monitor placed in her head and receive monitoring in the ICU for one to two days. If the pressure is increased she will require a shunt. Something that she will have long term. She is also going in for an MRI of her spine. She has complaints of pain in her lower back and we need to rule out a few things. I am not a doctor so I don’t even want to attempt to explain all of this. I am asking all of you to please say an extra prayer for her this weekend. While she is a strong little girl she doesn’t deserve any of this.

With that said, I am asking that all of you PLEASE send a letter to District Attorney Susan Reed asking her that this case be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law. Our first trial date is set for January 19th. I will follow up with details. It is an open trial so if you are able to come and show your support for Ava our family would truly appreciate it. The address for Susan Reed is: 300 Dolorosa, Suite 5072, San Antonio, Texas 78205. Please address the letter to the attention of District Attorney Susan Reed. Email is not sufficient, we need written letters. Thank you all in advance. I would hate to see this happen to another innocent child or family.
Until next time….stay safe!

Love,
Traci

Thanksgiving

THANKSGIVING
Thanksgiving, in my mind, is a time to reflect on what we have to be thankful for. Growing up my brother always said that Thanksgiving was/is his favorite holiday. His reasons valid- to have time to spend with those you care about, no concerns about gift giving or receiving, a time to reflect on what matters most in life. It wasn’t until this year that I really have gained an appreciation for his feelings.
This past April my life changed forever. There are many days that my heart aches but just as many days if not more that I hear myself say ‘Wow, I have so much to be thankful for’. I want to take this special time of year to say THANK YOU. To all of my family – for your heartfelt dedication over the past 7 months, for listening to me when I just needed to cry, for being my strength when I felt I had none. Please know that although I may not say it often enough I love you all very much and am wishing you all that Happiest of Thanksgivings.
To my dear friends, thank you for your unconditional love and support. I think of you all as my family. You have been my pillars of strength during one of the most difficult, if not most difficult time of my life. You have made my family your own and for that I am eternally grateful. I hope to be the same kind of friend to each and every one of you.
To the city of San Antonio and those people around the world who have been praying for our family, especially Ava….thank you. I really do believe that all of the prayers have allowed our family to find strength during such a horrific time.
To all of the staff at University Hospital, Christus Santa Rosa and Rehab Associates…..thank you for saving my little girls life. Without your expertise I am certain we would not be where we are today. You all have a special place in my heart.
To Ava’s special friend Rosie….thank you for the countless hours of play therapy/OT you have done with Ava. Thank you for helping to give Ava some sense of “normalcy” to her life. There is a reason she lights up when she sees you because she realizes what an amazing person you are.
To Lilianna, for your beautiful pictures that have helped capture every moment of Ava’s recovery. Thank you for sharing your amazing gift with our family.
To my husband and children……THANK YOU FOR BEING SURVIVORS! I love you all more than words can describe.
With the last part said, I wanted to give a quick update on Ava’s recovery. A few weeks ago Ava had to go in for another cat scan. Unfortunately we were told that she has a new bleed in her head. We have also learned that she has a 6th nerve palsy in her right eye. A few nights ago she went in for more testing…MRI/MRA/MRV. The good news is that the MRV and MRA appear normal. The MRI confirmed the new bleed and also showed a mass effect. This basically means there is some pressure/swelling on her brain that needs to be evaluated. Ava will see a neurosurgeon early next week. Please say an extra prayer that all goes well. I will keep you posted.
HAPPY THANKSGIVING!
May you take this time to reflect on what you are thankful for. Don’t let time pass you by!
Love,
Traci

All for Ava Party Pictures

Enjoy these beautiful slideshows of Ava, her family, friends and countless supporters at the All for Ava Party! It was an amazing day!

http://www.liliannastoryslideshow.com/avabirthdaygirl/

http://www.liliannastoryslideshow.com/ava%27sbirthdaycelebration/

Coming out of the fog

Over the past 5 1/2 months I have felt like I have been living my life in a fog. Saturday, October 17th,the fog lifted for the first time and the sun shined brightly. It was the first time in 5 ½ months that I have seen a constant smile on my children’s faces. Saturday was a celebration of the ongoing recovery of our entire family and we were so happy to have all of you to share this special day with. Ava received so many special gifts and cards and I wanted to take this time to thank everyone for their thoughtfulness.

There were several people that were instrumental in making Saturday a success. Please know that I love each and every one of you and I will never forget the efforts you all put into making this day so special. Thank you to all of our family members and friends (far and near) that were able to come to the party. For those of you that were unable to attend, thank you for your continued love and support. It is with ALL of your help that we are able to keep fighting. Believe me there are certainly days that are more difficult than others.

As I have mentioned in the past, we are in the process of forming a charitable organization for pediatric head trauma and disorders. We feel we have been so blessed with the support we have received throughout this entire process. By forming the organization we hope to be able to provide for others in the future. The name of the organization is “Ava’s Wish”. I will continue to keep you updated on the progress of the organization.

The San Antonio Rock-n-Roll marathon is just around the corner. It will be held November 15th. We have been forming an “All for Ava” team which is so exciting. I will be placing an order for shirts within the next few days. The shirts will be a dri-mesh material. I anticipate the cost to be between $20.00 - $25.00. They will be pink for the women and gray for the men. If you are interested in purchasing one, please send an email with your name, phone number and size to lopeztraci@yahoo.com. I look forward to seeing everyone at the raceJ

Lopez Journal

Even if you can’t make it to the All for Ava party on Saturday, October 17th, you can still be a part of this memorable day. We will be compiling a journal for the Lopez family, which will include all of your heartfelt notes, thoughts and prayers. For those of you who are out of town or unable to make it, please send your notes to Kerri Thompson @ kerrithompsonaz@hotmail.com with a subject: Lopez Journal. We will have a table set up at the party for guests to write in the journal, as well. This journal will provide strength and comfort to the Lopez family as they continue to heal and recover. Thanks for your continued love and support.

Happy Birthday My Sweet Miracle!

SEPTEMBER 28, 2009

Today is such a special day…..today is Ava’s 2nd birthday. After being told the late hours of April 23rd that there was a strong possibility that Ava would not make it I have to say that today is monumental. Birthdays come and go yet today I don’t want the celebration to end. I feel like Ava has been given a second chance at life and we as parents have been given a second chance to love this little girl with every inch of air we breathe. Today I don’t want to think about the negative that surrounds this situation. I want to focus on the lasting impression Ava has made on so many people’s lives. I want to focus on the fact that I have three beautiful children, an amazing husband and wonderful family and friends. I want to embrace today with everything I have because I can.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY MY SWEET MIRACLE!

Ava's progress and party details

With summer coming to an end and the start of another school year I thought I would give an update on the progress Ava has made. It has been a little over four months since the accident occurred. If anyone were to have told me that Ava would be functioning at the level she is today I would have never believed them. Ava continues to receive PT and OT 5 days a week. She had been receiving speech therapy at an outpatient facility but will soon start to receive speech therapy at home. Vision therapy will be starting this week. Over the past few weeks Ava has mastered crawling. She is also pulling herself to a standing position in her crib and often will try to stand if someone is there to hold her hands. While she is still not walking and will most likely not for quite some time her desire to do so remains strong. I see it on a daily basis thru her frustration, anger and tears. As a parent this breaks me apart. If there was some way that I could walk for her I would . I see a now 22 month old that doesn’t quite understand why it is that she can no longer walk and why she has difficulty seeing to do it. She is certainly not old enough to understand although I’m not sure that an older child would really understand the severity of what has happened either. All that we can do at this point is remain positive for Ava and believe that just as everything else has come back so to will be her ability to walk. Ava is now wearing an AFO which is a brace on her leg that helps with some of the overextension problems (causing accumulation of fluid around the knee) she is having . She has had improvement with her left sided weakness but it still remains as does her facial weakness. She continues to wear a patch on her left eye to help correct the vision in her right eye. We saw the opthamologist a week ago and she said that Ava’s vision continues to improve. We have been able to decrease the length she wears the patch from 4 hours a day to 3. The doctor also said that her right visual field continues to improve and that her left visual field (which had been completely out since the accident) is starting to show signs of improvement. People ask me every day if Ava will ever see like she did prior to April 23rd and I answer by saying that I don’t know and unfortunately we may not have the answer to this question for quite some time. It is obvious that she has a deficit but she continues to fight for her vision just as she has with every other part of her body. Did I mention how amazing I think she is?????Ava continues to use the kid walk on a daily basis. Jack and Isa have been instrumental in her “walking therapy.” They use ice cream as an incentive to get her to walk. They like it, she likes it, everyone is happy.

On a lighter note, Manny and I have decided to run in the San Antonio Rock and Roll marathon/ ½ marathon on November 15th. We are forming an “All for Ava” team if anyone is interested. We have already had several people tell us that they would love to join us. We plan to wear “All for Ava” shirts in her honor. We are also in the process of forming a charitable organization in her name and will send you the details as soon as they are available. Lastly, our family would like to thank you all for your continued prayers and support. We feel like you all have such an important place in our lives…..to help guide the recovery of our daughter. Words will never be able to describe how much that means to us. Thank you for your strength…..we could not be where we are today without each and every one of you.

Love,
Traci

Please join us in celebrating Ava’s recovery: October 17, 2009
Rogers Ranch/Crosstimber Community Center
3:00 p.m.- 7:00 p.m.
WEAR PINKJ
More details to come