One of the highlights of this year was brought by Santa Clause or should I say one of his helpers.
Jewel woke up to a red Rifton trike with a huge gold bow just sitting in our living room on Christmas morning.
"Wow Bikey", was all that Jewel could say. She just could not believe it, for a bike has been on her list for at least four years. I think she may have given up on this bike ever arriving.
She needed all the attachments to be able to ride; a new hip adductor, new back rest, extra head and neck support, side panels for the upper body, chest harness.
We found a wonderful physical therapist who was willing to order the extra parts for no charge and we got a 25% discount due to the order being made by a certified therapist who owns a clinic. You see there is help all around, you just have to look, knock and keep asking until you find the person who is willing to help. Thank you Heather- you are an angel! <3
Sevenhundredtwentydollars and a few weeks later.... the box arrived with all the parts to keep Jewel in the bike.
Our lovely office lady has allowed us to keep the bike in the electric room, so I do not have to carry it up 37 stairs, thank you Leslie :)
Our friends who are professional bikers gave Jewel a real bike team jearsy to wear on her bike- thanks Heather and Jeremy! It does make her go fast!
With a lot of trial and error we have figured out how to put her in her "bikey" correctly. She tends to slip and loose her posture if you don't get it just right. We take her out, no matter the effort, until we get her in just perfectly. This will ensure a good ride, keeping form and posture a priority.
The seat was leaving broozes on Jewel's butt even with a diaper on for padding. My good friend Liz suggested a gel seat cover and it has been the most affordable solution! Liz was Santa's helper, since her son out grew the Rifton trike they gave it to Jewel. Liz you are an angel and absolutely Rock. This bike has revolutionized our lives. Jewel can ride on it for an hour now, though she has had to work up to this. She was wearing her SPIO thereputic gloves, which we sent back for a larger size and we can't wait for them to arrive. It takes two of us to put Jewel in her "bikey" as she calls it. After she is secure, we hunch over her and work on stretching out her arms to get them to the handle bars. Since we have been doing this her arms are a lot looser. It takes thirty minutes of bike riding, consistent arm stretching to see her body changing, especially her arms getting softer. It is well worth the effort. Now Jewel is getting more outdoor time, she gets to see the dogs that come out for their walks. We tried to take Grace out with us and have decided that it is safer with her at home. She is too excitable and tends to pull at me almost pulling us down, bikey and all.
We push Jewel on the grass and in the outer perimeters of the tennis courts when no one is playing. One day she was fussing and crying and I was frustrated because I could not understand her, when out from the other court a gentle man appeared on roller blades. He wore a smile as his silver hair blew in the wind, with out a word he put his skull candy head phones over Jewel's ears and instantly her upside down smile turned right side up. She was smiling and happy, he rode behind her on his rollerblades as she was attached to his ipod. The magic he brought to our day was music. So I saved up to get her request; "cherry red" skull candy headphones and she uses her sister's ipod and with the help of the store manager of the local sports authority, we purchased a red head band to keep on the head phones!
Serendipity
The other day Jewel said, "I love you", and I said, "I love you too", and she said, "Bikey".
"I love Bikey" and so do we.
Here is the Rifton page for viewing the trike;
http://www.rifton.com/products/mobility/adaptivetricycles/
