In October of last year Carter underwent a fairly new and controversial procedure in the spina bifida world, Selective Percutaneous Myofascial Lengthening (SPML). Much research is being done with this procedure as it relates to people with CP. But Carter has spina bifida. Could this procedure produce the amazing results the CP community is seeing? Although much was unknown, we (and our insurance) were willing to give this a try to help correct a knee contracture that was a direct result of his year of bed rest, wound flap surgery and failed tendon release. SPML is done to release the tightening or spasticity of a muscle. The best way I can describe it is to liken it to a meat tenderizer. Small incisions are made so the doctor can access the myofascial (the place where the muscle and tendon overlap). Once inside, hundreds of micro incisions are made in the myofascial, much the way you would tenderize a tough steak. In addition, Carter would have an alcohol nerve block done to help reduce the amount of constant knee pain he felt. As I said earlier, there is much success with this procedure in the CP community but very few people with spina bifida have tried it. After a lot of ...
Search Results for: wheelchair travel
The New Disability Plan at Disney Parks
People keep asking me what I think of the new changes to the guest assistance card at the Disney Parks. I first reported about it when the new disability access pass was just a rumor for Traveling Mom and watched as the uproar among the special needs community commenced. It's been ugly. People are upset about these new changes. I just don't happen to be one of them. I guess people consider me a leader in the spina bifida world or disability travel world and maybe that is why I keep getting asked why I am not up in arms over it. Mostly it is because I was one of the people who asked for change. Remember our trip last Spring when Disney World hosted us for a week? And all I saw was abuse after abuse of the wheelchair system? Yeah. That. That is why I am not upset. Look. Disney has to do something. I don't know that I think this new plan has it right. But I don't know that any plan will have it exactly right at this point. This is what they have told us the new plan will look like: Frequently Asked Questions About the Changes to Disney’s Guest Assistance Pass How will the new Disney program work? The Disability Access Service Card will offer Guests a return time for an ...
Camping at Snow Mountain Ranch
This summer was sort of lame in that we didn't get to travel too much due to Carter healing from the surgery he had in May. That is OK. We still had a great summer with tons of family time AND we still were able to go on our annual trip camping at Snow Mountain Ranch. I love this camping trip. Each year we go with 9-10 families to Snow Mountain Ranch right outside of Winter Park, Colorado. Of course, we stay in a lodge, Indian Peaks to be exact, in a wheelchair accessible room. What? It's camping! There is no TV for goodness sake. We have to bring our iPad's and stream our home cable apps over their wi-fi just to watch Iron Chef! That's as primitive as I get people. What's great about camping at Snow Mountain Ranch though is that our friends that do choose to rough it in a tent have that option in the Hopi Campground area, or you can rent a yurt, or a cabin. Really, there are a ton of options for where to lay your head at night so it works out perfectly for a large group of diverse families. But I love staying at Indian Peaks because right outside our room is this: To the right of that is a huge playground for the kids. During the day, all the families ...
Our Caribbean Cruise on the Celebrity Constellation Review
This past spring break my family and I took a 4 night Western Caribbean cruise docking in both Key West and Cozumel.Celebrity Cruises had a reputation for being very wheelchair friendly and we choose The Constellation for 3 reasons-accessibility, dates, and we got a kicking deal booking last minute. The Constellation was built in 1991 and while its age is showing a bit, we thoroughly enjoyed our time on board. We had two balcony staterooms, cabins 6107, which is handicapped accessible and 6108. I wrote about the wheelchair accessibility of Celebrity Constellation on Traveling Mom if you want to check that out as well. Here are the Top 5 Things We Loved About Celebrity Cruises Constellation Ocean Liners In order for us to do a Celebrity Constellation review the PR department was kind enough to arrange a special dinner for my birthday at Ocean Liners, their premier pay French restaurant. The restaurant is beautiful and any foodie would be in heaven here. My family was treated to all the special menu offerings but the highlights were the flambéed lobster and the dark chocolate soufflé. If cruising on board with kids I suggest sending the kids to one of the many activities ...
Dallas Fort Worth Itinerary | I Left My Heart In Texas
Last November, Connor and I took off for a fabulous 3 day weekend for a Dallas Fort Worth itinerary. I wanted to wait and tell y'all about it because I had such a wonderful time that I didn't want this story to get lost in the holiday noise. If you have yet to visit the Dallas/Fort Worth area I hope that as you are planning your 2013 adventures, a trip to this area of TX lands on your map after this post. Fortunately a lot of friends attended this same trip with us, so for some of the details I will link you over to their posts. Our trip started off at the Omni in Dallas for the Family Travel Conference. I was really impressed with all the cool little features in the Omni rooms. During the conference, Connor snuck off down the street to the Old Red Museum. He loved it. We visited the Dallas Zoo one night for dinner. The food was lovely and we got some cool closeups of the elephants and the penguins. But the real star of the that trip was actually the Galleria Mall where Connor had a ball playing like a little kid. While we loved Dallas, Fort Worth is really the area that stole our heart. Really, we have met with plenty of CVB's (Convention and Visitors Bureaus) in our ...