She goes cool on an outing

Since Taylor's sever illness last fall.....we've been so very careful and we rarely take her out any longer.
But her sisters feel (and rightly so) that Taylor fought so hard and so valiantly to live, that she should DO SOME THINGS!
So on a recent outing, Taylor was so happy to just be doing something!
And her little sister, Jayda decided to share her sunglasses to let Taylor "be cool"

How fun is it to see Taylor, looking cool and out doing something.
And she loved it!
She reminds us that each moment is a gift and we should enjoy it all the time.
Taylor certainly enjoys her life and her sisters help.
Go enjoy your life...and help others enjoy theirs!

Featured Article in The Arrow

Taylor once again brings inspiration to others.  Does that surprise you?  You CAN be an inspiration to others, no matter what obstacles YOU personally face!  Taylor has brought so much to our lives....and we hope to yours.

Our daughter, Taylor, was born with “special needs”.  When she was first born, the pediatrician told us there “may” be something wrong and it appeared that she had “low muscle tone”. 

How could that be?  We were both only 24 years old.  My husband, David, was a health freak, not eating sugar, caffeine or alcohol and going to the gym 5 days a week.  I followed every step of the doctor’s advice.  I ate what I was supposed to, didn’t touch what I wasn’t supposed to and here we were, being told our baby could have challenges.

After exhaustive tests, we discovered that Taylor had a rare (only 60 known cases in the world) chromosome disorder and no one knew her future.

So we were thrust into a world we barely knew existed.  Taylor was constantly sick and in the hospital with pneumonia.  And when she wasn’t sick, she was in every physical and occupational therapy program available. 

Two happy go lucky college sweethearts who never faced a serious challenge now were forced to be ferocious advocates for their daughter,  questioning every medical “expert” and their latest attempt to help Taylor.  We were constantly told that we were doing the wrong thing, told our daughter could die and “did we really want that to happen?”  Most times, when we felt Taylor didn’t need something, we were right.  The few times the doctors did things we didn’t think she needed, she got very ill.

We were talked into a $15,000 wheelchair that Taylor was unable to use and we donated it shortly after purchasing it. We were convinced to give her a vaccine which landed her in the hospital for two weeks.

But through all the trials, tears and frustrations, we learned a lot about life and changed our views on a lot of things.

When Taylor was four, we started a charity called Bids for Kids. This was to benefit the Children’s Therapy Department at Mary Bridge Children’s hospital in Tacoma Washington.  This event has led to the raising of over $1 million dollars.  Even though we moved away in 2000, this event is still carried on by amazing group of women now The Jean Cunningham Orthopedic Guild. 

Over the years we have had the support of many friends and family. My best friend from college also a Pi Phi (Marylou Hill Ferry) has been with us along our journey.  Many of my sorority sisters live in different states but I continue to keep in touch and keep them informed of Taylor’s health.

Over the years our path has been made by Taylor, she shows us the way and we meet people because of her. She has been our teacher and it’s amazing the things you can learn from a child who can not walk or speak. But if you are ever so lucky to meet her or any child with special needs you will soon find out what I mean.

We moved our family to California, although our business remains in Washington, for Taylor’s health and found that the best thing for her was dry air and sunshine (and it wasn’t too bad for the rest of the family either).

We learned that there are many families in similar or worse circumstances all over the country.  And there are many people and organizations that do wonderful things for this population.

I learned that I can administer shots, medicines, tube feedings and all the other techniques for taking care of Taylor that were completely foreign to me when she was born.

Taylor has taught us tremendous perspective.  So much that we found that my husband had a hidden talent, author!  He’s written a book called “Gaining Perspective, Lessons I’m learning from Taylor” (available on Amazon and for Kindle!)

And we learned most of all, to trust our instincts when it comes to raising a daughter with special needs.  There is no handbook and each parent must forge their own path.  And to every parent that is given one of these very special people, you DO have the strength and the knowledge to do what’s right.  People often say we’re amazing for what we do with Taylor.  We do simply what needs to be done, and if faced with a similar situation, you could too.

Happiness comes in strange places!
Taylor hasn't been sleeping well the last few months.  Maybe it's because of all her new medications?
Maybe it's because the hospital bed she needs to sleep in isn't as comfortable as her old bed?
But maybe, just maybe, it's her renewed lease on life!
She came very close to the edge in September.  And she knew it.
When she gets up now, she's "talking".....not with words, but with her happy sounds.
And she's laughing and smiling.
When Leslie or I go to check on her at 1, 3, 4 etc...how can you get upset by a smiling, laughing bubbly girl?
She instantly makes ME happy when I see how happy she is.
Are you being happy when you can't sleep?  Maybe you should be because you're experiencing life!  Are you making other happy by your actions?  If you couldn't sleep would you complain to everyone about it, or would you make the most of your time awake?
Once again, Taylor is teaching us lessons about enjoying life!

Happiness is around the corner

Taylor continually teaches me how to live.  She has been very ill and most of her Doctors wrote her off this past September. 
But she never gave up.
We brought her home and she continued to fight....where most of us would have quite.
She never gave up.
Maybe it's because she doesn't know what the odds were.
But she never gave up.
Maybe it's because she doesn't CARE what the odds are.
She never gives up.
And after fighting for her life the past 6 months, we threw her a party. 
Because she never gave up.
She takes joy in the smallest things, she enjoys life;s simply pleasures.  And as much as we all know we're supposed to do this, and throw ourselves into our celebrations and relly understand how special it is to be here enjoying our lives, how many of us do this?
Do YOU never give up?
Please learn from Taylor that the "experts" aren't always right.  If YOU believe something can occur, do your best to make it happen.

NEVER give up!

Graduation Dreams

I was reminded last night, of what opportunities are out there for SO many people, and yet, most squander those chances.
My 17 year old daughter, Tatum, graduated from high school last night.  Quite an event, and I couldn't be prouder that she graduated in white (top 10% of the graduating class) and was ranked 38 out of 620 students!  She is attending SDSU in the fall after mulling many choices. 
I watched as the 600+ students spoke of the future, their plans and their dreams, I was reminded that NONE of these options were open to Taylor because of her disabilities.
And I'm saddened to think of how many of these kids will jump on the treadmill of gaining money to buy useless things we're all told we need.
My hope is that all these kids will each realize their passion and pursue it with vigor.  

Graduating class of 2011....you have many years in front of you....and all the attributes and TIME you need to achieve what you want.  Don't settle for meaningless pursuits.......remember the inspiration your felt on graduation night!

www.taylorsperspective.com

Don't forget to include others

Taylor was surrounded by 1000's of cheerleaders at her little sisters cheer competition in Anaheim.
And although there were literally 1000's of girls and two or three parents with each child, no one said hello to Taylor!
Now in their defense, they were all there for a competition....focus, drive etc.
But how many people have you passed by today that would have really enjoyed a hearty "hello"?
Did you make their day?  Or did you only focus on yourself?

Don't forget, it doesn't take much to be nice to those around us and make them feel welcome!

What have you done to let someone assist you?

Taylor is soooo limited in her mobility, there's certainly not a lot she can do for herself.
But she does whatever she can to help me get her ready for her day.....she leans forward to let me brush her hair, she lays back to allow me to feed her.....happily relaxes as I dress her in the morning.
No complaints.....just happy for the assistance!
Did you seek counsel for a project that was troubling you?  Or did you spurn advice that was freely offered out of pride?
There's a lot people can do to help....LET THEM!

Hope your day leads you to Gain Perspective!