This weekend, Brigid was able to get back on the potters wheel! All of the pieces she made this weekend at SunTide studios were great, and she loved being able to continue one of her favorite hobbies!

Overall, Brigid has continued to do well in all of her therapy sessions, and is working hard at everything she does.

Sorry for the lack of updates, it has been a very busy month in the Cooleen house.

On Monday, December 23rd, Brigid moved back home!! Just in time for Christmas! We got to do some holiday baking (one of B’s favorite things), and some other fun holiday activities!

Brigid is still getting her therapy at home, and she is continuing to work hard. She also works on her standing at the kitchen counter.

This is a big week for Brigid!

On Thursday Brigid will move to our Grandparent’s house in Topsham, Maine! This will be until our house is ready for her. It is currently in the process of becoming wheelchair accessible. It will be nice to be so close to home!

Since last week, B has just kept talking! On Monday, when dad asked her if she wanted some brown sugar on her oatmeal, instead of nodding her head, she said “sure”. When asked if she was excited to go to Grandma and Grandpa’s, she said “I guess so”, and when she was asked what kind of tea she was drinking she responded “lemon”. She has also answered other questions as well. Also, in speech therapy today, she was reading some sentences out loud! It is amazing how fast the speaking is starting to click! It is wonderful to hear Brigid’s voice again! 

Also, in physical therapy, Brigid has made some movements with her right leg and right arm! 

She also got to go on a bike ride the other day!

On Monday, Brigid got to do some therapy in the pool! This was her first time getting in the pool, and it was a new way to work on movement and walking.

Also, today Brigid said “hi”!! Twice!! This is the first word that she has said so far! Very exciting!!

Brigid has make a few impressive improvements recently! She has started to make some sounds on command. She can repeat people if they say the sounds “eee” or “ahh”. It is nice to hear some of Brigid’s voice again, and it is a great step on the way to being able to speak again. 

Also, in the last week or so, Brigid has started to eat some meals to go along with her tube feeding. The food must be puréed, so it is easy to chew and swallow, but it is great that she can finally have some real food!

Also, Brigid is beginning to prepare to come home, which is very exciting!! Hopefully she will be home in a month or so!

On Thursday (October 17th), Brigid moved from Spaulding in Boston to a different rehab facility in New Hampshire called Crotched Mountain. 

Also, today in physical therapy Brigid worked on standing on her own! 

Today Brigid got to go to Jack’s first home game, Tufts vs. Bowdoin!! It was nice to get out and see Jack play, and the weather was perfect for game day ! 

Brigid has had an eventful week filled with a couple of fun outings. Last Thursday she got to go on a trip to the Boston Aquarium, where we got to see some penguins, seals,  turtles, and various other kinds of sea life! Today, Brigid got to go apple-picking! It was a perfect, beautiful fall day for a fun fall activity. Later this week in OT, Brigid will be making some apple pie with the apples she picked!

Today Brigid had her first recreational therapy session! She very much enjoyed her bike ride!

Hello Everyone,

Sorry for not updating the site more frequently.

Today was a very busy day for Brigid! In PT this morning she was working on standing up! She was very successful, and stood up about 8 times. Assistance is obviously needed, but she is getting stronger, and can pull herself up mostly by herself. She used her left arm to grab onto a chair or a table to help support herself, since her right side is still weak. It was great to see Brigid on her feet!! She also got a visit from her cousins, Caleigh and Cameron! It was a nice twin get together, filled with nail painting and other fun! Overall, Brigid has been making great improvement, and we are all very impressed with her determination and strength. Here are some photos from the day:

Over the past few weeks, Brigid’s been improving quicker than ever. Many new things have come, such as putting on her own lotion, straightening out her head, looking side to side, waving, and many more encouraging things. Brig has also been challenging her parents in Connect Four and card games like UNO, along with memory matching games and puzzles on her iPad. The Yes/No buttons have been working well for her, as she’s able to answer with them to communicate. PT is working with her on sitting and leaning left and right, rolling on to her side, as well as having her close to a standing position on a turn table, while working with her there. She’s also been doing more painting and drawing, and even some play dough making. B’s working so hard and it’s totally paying off! We can’t wait to see what amazing things she’ll do next 🙂

Brigid’s inner artist is showing once again. In her spare time she painted a wonderful flower with water colors! Brigid is continuing to do very well in all of her therapy sessions. Movement on her left side is getting better and better, and she continues to give out fist bumps and high fives to visitors as they leave. She has made some small movements with her right side, and is working to improve that side as well. 

Brigid is settling in nicely at Spaulding Rehabilitation in Charlestown, MA. She is receiving Speech, Occupational and Physical Therapies. Please keep the prayers and well wishes coming!!! Cards and notes are always welcome and can be sent directly to the Cooleens home. Stay Strong, Brigid and know we are all behind you 100% of the way!!!

Today, Brigid decided that she’d be sitting long enough and, with assistance, stood up. She bared weight on both feet and did this a few times. We can’t imagine how good that must have felt for her! She’s doing well and the therapy has been constantly encouraging B to do more and more. Keep it up Brig, you’re doing awesome!

Brigid has continued to improve daily. This past week, she has started to make small movements on her right side, which she could previously not move at all. She has been able to make slight movements with her right arm, leg, and has even wiggled her toes while getting her toenails painted. B has been doing a great job in physical therapy. This week while sitting on a bench, she was able to bend over, pick an object up off the floor, and sit back up mostly by herself. She was also able to sit on the bench and kick a ball back and forth with Dad. Overall, it has been a great week for Brigid, and we all look forward to what she will do next.

Brigid was successfully moved down to Salem, MA today to continue with and enhance her rehab. This change of scenery had to have been great for B and hopefully it motivates her to do even more while she’s down there!

Sunday was Brigid and Katie’s 18th birthday! B stayed awake most of the day for the birthday festivities. She was able to enjoy some pudding pie and a little bit of chocolate ganache! B had many visitors, which put some smiles on her face and, with a little assistance, she helped to unwrap most of her gifts!

Recovery is going pretty well for miss Brig, as she was pretty awake today and noticeably in less pain. She’s headed in the right direction and will be headed to Salem, MA on Monday to start rehab. More PT only means more and more progress that we’ve all been hoping and praying for. On the right track and always staying positive with the best smile!

Brig has had a busy past few days. Monday, when the sun finally decided to come out again, she got a surprise visitor who hasn’t seen her in a while. Her dog Eddie made an appearance outside in the courtyard with B.

Today, Brigid got the previously removed piece of her skull put back in, which is so exciting! Surgery went well and she’s doing well in her recovery. A little painful, but we all know how “Brigid Strong” she is. 🙂

Brigid wanted to make sure her family knew she was thinking of them today, and even though she was a little too tired to write “Jack”, we know he was on her mind on his birthday. She’s continuing with her amazing work and was able to snack on another popsicle today as well.

Brigid never seems to let a day go by where she doesn’t do something new to impress everyone 🙂 Today, she played a tic tac toe match and, of course, came out with a victory! She wanted to show off her win by drawing a line right through her three-in-a-row to brag about it to all of us.

Brig had some more movement during physical therapy today. She moved her arm side to side, along with wrist rotations and slight movement in the neck. She completed a few more words as well, but were a little harder to make out. The big move today was holding a cherry popsicle in her hand and bringing it all the way to her mouth for a taste! Very exciting to see and hear about and I’m sure B was super excited for taste as well!

Today, Brigid decided one letter wasn’t showing off enough and decided to write her entire name during physical therapy. When asked if she wanted to write anything else, she did have one question. It was very exciting to see how much she’s improving, even within just a day. Keeping up all the hard work!

Today was a great day. Not only was Brigid able to follow commands, but when asked to scribble with a marker on some paper during physical therapy, it was incredible to see what she did!