We are so blessed by the people in our lives who are still praying for our Mighty Warrior, and so appreciate those of you who ask about him regularly.

“How’s Ryder?” seems like such a simple question, and yet I always find myself stumbling over the right words to choose.  See, all things considered, Ryder is awesome.  He’s active, and happy, and hasn’t missed a beat in school.  But I fear that if I simply say “He’s great!” people who don’t interact with him on a regular basis may assume that he’s physically back to normal.  The truth is, we’ve come a long way, but we still have a really long way to go.

We’ve really kicked up Ryder’s “workouts” over the last couple of weeks.  He has been practicing bearing weight on his right arm in an effort to gain enough strength in his shoulder to pull it back up into place.

Practicing rocking and crawling

Apparently, that hard work is paying off!  We haven’t seen our occupational therapist in two weeks (which gives him a little more perspective on any changes), and today he felt like Ryder’s posture was better.  He explained that Ryder is carrying his arm in a slightly more natural position, which means he’s gained some tone back into the shoulder.  YAY!!!  This is a tiny difference, totally invisible to most people.  But to us, it’s a big deal!  It means we’re on the right track, and our hard work hasn’t gone to waste.

Your prayers are so precious to us… thank you for your love, support, and encouragement!  We are continually humbled by the faithfulness of God, and are excited to see what’s next.