Willem received a fluffy toy from his grandmother, my mom, the other day and Erin was just looking at it and noticed that it didn't have any stuffing in it and asked, jokingly, if it was supposed to be road kill. The nurse said that it was a chew toy and that he had seen them at Petsmart. It has a squeaky tail. My mother bought my son a raccoon chew toy with a squeaky tail!
We all had a good laugh at my mother's expense but it became less funny and more ingenious upon hearing her explanation: It was soft; not bulky; and cute. Having heard her say that I realized that I had witnessed the nurse use the chew toy as a soft support between Willem's bare shoulder and the hard plastic ventilator joints and tubes.
Thank you, mother, for the laughter and for just being you. Love you.
Willem -- only days before he was stricken with HLH -- leisurely walking, straw in mouth, not a care in the world. A healthy 9 year old boy.
Mr. and Mrs. Radosevich
ReplyDeleteHello. I wish I could introduce myself under other circumstances... My name is Shannon Kemperman and I will be Willem's 4th grade teacher. Mr. Shaw has informed the staff about Willem and passed on the Blog. Please know that he is in our thoughts and prayers. I would love to drop off a care package for him. Could you please send me a quick e-mail as to when would be a good time to drop it off? Again, please know that we are thinking of ALL of you right now and are pulling for Team Willem!
God Bless,
Shannon Kemperman
skemperm@fhps.us