To the Third Graders at St. Peter's

Elliot is now 4 years old! He is doing amazingly, no doubt because of all the love and prayers said on his behalf.

He's riding a bicycle now, and that is a big deal. For 1.5 years, his been working with a therapist to gain the strength and balance to pedal. They started on a big wheel, and she'd sit on a wheeled stool facing Elliot with her hands on his feet. And in this way she would pedal his feet as he pushed her stool around the halls of Children's Hospital. Then, they moved on to velcro straps around his feet. Finally, one day Elliot grabbed a big wheel at home and said, "DOn't push me. I want to do it myself." And in few slow painful pedals, he'd moved! We couldn't believe it!

It's funny how blessings come. When Elliot started at a new school this fall, I was disappointed because they had a huge yard with no playground equipment. I tried to get together with the school leadership to apply for money for this. They seemed discouraged by the hard work required (they should take a page from Elliot's book!), and so it didn't happen. In their yard, all that's available are tons of trikes and a couple of swings. But guess what: I'm sure the extra daily practice with these bikes made all the difference with Elliot. And he might not have made these moves with the play equipment I thought so necessary.

Moving onto the taller bike was scary for El. It's a longer way to fall, and that's scary for a child with balance issues! But here he is on his Thomas bike, and let me tell you: If you're on the sidewalk when he's ridin, better get out the way. The boy is now quite fast. And is he proud! He smiles the whole way, laughs when the wind is in his hair...He stops when their is a crack in the sidewalk that he knows will knock him down. Stops at the street intersections...

The bike is great for him. Not only does he develop strength and balance, he has to use his eyes to coordinate his movements. Elliot's eyes have been trouble for some time. They cross when he tries to lock them in front of him, and they also wander up and down. All of this can confuse the brain, and so, over time, it will learn to ignore what one of the eyes is seeing, resulting in partial blindness. Next week, we will have Elliot's second surgery on these tiny eye muscles to help them work more accurately. Like always, we are hopeful that this small step could mean big growth for this amazing champion of a boy.

We have never forgotten you, and are happy you haven't forgotten us. Before you become 4th graders, we promise to make a visit.

I hope your year is going well for you.

With love,

Emmy (on Elliot's behalf)