It has been a while since I have posted an update, so I think it is time. A lot has happened since my last update. Michelle had surgery for kidney stones and I had surgery for a broken shoulder. Broken shoulder? Yes. I fell and broke my right shoulder. It has been an ordeal, but I am on the mend. Surgery went well and I am now in physical therapy. It has been a rough road, but I am headed in the right direction. I was off work recovering but am now back on light-duty.

We went to Boston for the annual Kleefstra Conference. It was a good conference. Idefine.org have done a great job of bringing together the Kleefstra community. We have joined several research studies, some with Liam and I having to give blood and tissue samples. Whatever we can do to help find a cure for Kleefstra we are all for it!

We also had doctors appointments for Liam in Boston at the Kleefstra Clinic. The appointments went well. Liam is doing great.

Liam has come a long way in the last year or so. He continues to amaze us all with what he learns to do. He can spell probably 100 words on his talker, some of which I have trouble spelling. You show him how to spell something once and he has it down. You don’t have to tell him again. He is spelling words that 4th and 5th graders would be learning. He can also write these words. He can write all of the alphabet and knows his numbers from 1 to 100. He can write them in sequence.

Liam spends a lot of his time with his iPad. He likes to watch videos on YouTube, mostly with santa and toys, but he also watches people playing video games so he can figure out how to play them on his Nintendo Switch. He calls Grandma a lot with FaceTime. They spend hours at a time talking to each other. Liam uses his talker and reminds Grandma what she needs to do that day. He won’t talk to anybody else on FaceTime. Only Grandma. He hangs up on me when I call him. And he doesn’t like anyboy to interrupt him and try to talk to Grandma.

School starts back next week. I think Liam has enjoyed having his daddy at home so much lately, but it is time to get back to the proper routine. Therapy is going well. Liam really enjoys horse therapy and speech has been going very well. Liam has some new words he can say thanks to speech therapy. He is also learning to tie his shoes and do other fun things in occupational therapy.

Kleefstra Awareness day is coming soon – September 17th. Will be here before we know it! We have new shirts available with an all-new design. Shirts can be purchased from runwithliamcreations.com (will be updated with the new design shortly) or you can message me for more details. All proceeds from the sale of shirts go toward Liam’s annual trip to NAPA for intensive therapy. NAPA provides 3 weeks of intensive therapy in speech, occupational therapy and physical therapy. Liam has learned a lot from his trips to NAPA. But the trip is expensive. Your help is greatly appreciated.

We are still trying to find a way to purchase a building to make a therapy room for Liam. We currently have his therapy equipment set up in what should be our kitchen. We applied for a grant to help pay for the building and to finish it out, but we have been told they are backed up and our application will not be reviewed for another year. We also applied for Make-A-Wish, but we have not heard back from them as of yet.

I would like to thank everybody who has supported Liam on his journey. We greatly appreciate the help and support.