The Metzlers: Ally's Checkup in Philly

Jay and I both felt it was time that we head out to Philly with Ally to have her checked out by her doctor and surgeon, Dr. Scott Kozin, at the Philadelphia Shriners Hospital for Children (http://www.twolittlemonkeys.org/). This was not because we felt that Ally was doing poorly or that her progress had slowed, we just wanted to check in with everyone out there and see what they could tell us about how they felt Ally was doing.

The trip itself was fantastic. Ally had some major alone time with both Jay and I as we left J.J. home with a babysitter and she seemed to truly enjoy the attention. She was very well-behaved and fun the entire trip. We were smart enough to bring her scooter along with us so she was able to scoot all around the airport and Philly. She loves her scooter and is exceptionally good at riding it. Plus, it's nice for Jay and I as we are able to walk together, without a stroller, and watch Ally have a blast riding around. We arrived in Philly and went right to the hotel room. Ally does not remember ever staying in a hotel so she was super excited about the whole thing and immediately asked if we could live there forever.

We stayed on the University of Pennsylvania's campus (Jay's alma mater) which is gorgeous and vibrant. So we headed out from the hotel to find some dinner and get some fresh air. We found a cute little pizza joint and Ally quickly made friends with the server and a sweet man eating dinner there. He had his own three year old daughter so was able to keep Ally entertained with all sorts of fun games and conversations. He was laughing so hard we finally had to ask Ally to stay quiet so that he could eat his dinner, though he didn't seem to mind. We came back to the hotel and got ready for bed. Ally slept great and we all woke up excited to see our friends at the Philly Shriners.

It was so great to see all of our friends at the hospital. Ally has no recollection of the hospital or any of the staff, so it was fun to watch her meet all of the folks who have known her for these past couple of years. They have all been so supportive and genuinely interested in not only her development, but also in our entire family. We were eventually seen by Dr. Kozin, his staff and then Sarah, a physical therapist.

Dr. Kozin was very pleased with Ally's progress. He thought she had great range and function. He does not think she will ever be able to run "normally", with both arms swinging simultaneously and he said she may never have great behind-the-back function. He also told us that he did not anticipate any further gains, basically what you see is what you get. We were disheartened by this and I think without actually saying it, Jay and I have both decided to just ignore that! We are still working with her on running and her function and truly believe she will continue to improve. We will be impeded by the fact that nerve regeneration ends around the age of three, but we believe she certainly has decent nerve input - it's just a matter of training her muscles to do things that (although they should) do not come naturally. For instance, to get her to reach behind her back - which we have been able to do! - we have to constantly remind her to bend her elbow first. This motor planning does not come naturally for her, instead she just leads with her hand and keeps her arm flexed. But I think with repetition, she can be "taught" to bend her elbow and reach behind herself!

Anyways, she did beautifully at the appointment and her love of doctors is still intact. We went straight from Shriners to the airport. Ally had a blast on the ride home, chatting with all sorts of people. She basically just walked up and down the isle making conversation with folks. "I like your watch." "I have a necklace at home too! But it's pink." And her all-time favorite thing to tell people - "I just had a birthday!" "Oh really, when?" "August."

Here are some photos from the trip...