It All Fit...and Farewell to Rising Star, Kiwi, CCS and PIP...

This has been a remarkable week...  We are all so exhausted, both physically and emotionally.  Satish is finally resting after successfully shipping all our stuff this morning.  We had this ongoing challenge about whether things would fit and he kept reassuring me that it would.  I had a hard time believing it, but my gosh it was amazing how much they were able to pack into the wooden carton.  We are spending about $4,000 to ship 200 cubic feet of goods.  It was the perfect amount of space for all our belongings - clothes, shoes, legos, trains tracks, books, camping stove, new IKEA coach, pots and pans, knives and even our wine glasses all fit!  I am just so curious if it all makes it there in one piece.  If it does, I am truly amazed!

We can't believe it all fit so perfectly!

Farewell to the Cottage at Rising Star Montessori

Today was also Manav's last day at preschool.  I must say I am not that surprised that Manav is quite aware of everything that is happening, but I am impressed with how well he's handling it.  He keeps telling his teachers and therapists that he's going to be sad to leave because he's going to miss everyone.  But he follows it up by saying, but don't worry I'll come back and visit.  I can tell he had a hard time saying bye to Mama and Papa when they visited, and he was a bit shy and uncomfortable with all this attention on him during the farewell ceremony. We took bindhis and rakhis for his class and brought each of his teachers a plant asking them to always remember their sunshing - the name they have for Manav. 

Ms. Katrina, the principle was there and I must say I have just loved Manav's experience at this school.  They took him in and integrated him into the classroom in such a wonderful way that challenged Manav, but also helped him grow tremendously.  The transition to school was not easy, but Manav did it and he has truly thrived as a result.  We will miss all of his fabulous teachers...

Manav's Last Day with Kiwi and CCS

Manav had his final day riding Kiwi and it was so wonderful!  He was so proud of himself and enjoyed every minute of it.  Hippotherapy is another activity that has given Manav such pride and confidence.  He's trotting on kiwi where before he was so fearful of it, and now you can tell he loves it!  Manav brought an apple to give to Kiwi on her final day.  The woman who directs Xenophone started Hippotherapy programs in two other Asian countries and she has been encouraging about finding something in Nepal too.  Satish thinks maybe the military there...

The joy of riding Kiwi, one last time...

Final Playdate with Kitty and Kelsey

Manav's OT and PT from CCS have been amazing.  I learned so much about Manav just based on what they helped me learn about my own child.  They are sensitive, respectful and just tons of fun for Manav.  Manav has been at CCS ever since her was 7 months!  This place has been a place where we all have been able to grow so significantly.  We will all miss them so much!!

A picnic in the park with Kitty and Kelsey

Bye-bye PIP...

As soon as I stepped into the doors of PIP I cried...this was the place it all started.  What seemed like a nightmare ended up being the best thing in my life.  I met some amazing moms who have become my support system and women I have the utmost love and respect for.  But Karen and MaryBeth are a gift to so many families like ours.  They helped me understand Manav's CP, and accept him for the wonderful person that he is.  His love for music, silly jokes and wit were qualities they first recognized in him. They told me early on about how bright he is and how he is such an amazing little guy.  I just feel so fortunate to have had this experience...  I will definitely remain in touch with folks at PIP.

Manav riding his favorite roller coaster at PIP - Marybeth and Karen, our life savers :)

Feeling Really Overwhelmed

I'm really starting to feel overwhelmed.  I am sitting here writing even though I know I should be sorting, packing boxes and suitcases.  I'm feeling like I'm being pulled in so many directions and don't have enough time nor the energy to do it all.  Everyone wants to try and see us, plan dinners, etc. and I feel so bad that I can't indulge in being with them.  I'm too distracted and have too many things to do that it's hard for me to enjoy my time with visitng with others one last time.  I am also really disappointed that I haven't had time to blog and document this experience like I've wanted to.  So much has happened that I haven't been able to write about.  I'm just going to start recapping what's happened so far...

Our trip to the NW
We had a great time visiting everyone up in the Northwest in early September.  I realized that the trip started off pretty easy, and then progressively got harder and harder.  Finally the drive to the airport was when that yucky feeling in my gut hit and I knew that it was because we were leaving.  Even Manav could pick up on it and asked me, "Mama, are you feeling sad?" I said "yeah, Bubba I am sad..."  and he responds "Don't worry I'm gonna miss everyone too..."  Such a sensitive and perceptive little guy.

The Patel household is going through some tough growing pains and I hope they will be ok in the next couple of years...  It was hard to see them struggling so much, and that made it even harder to say good bye.  It was very interesting to see Manav instigating conflict with his Niki Dada.  I can tell he feels very comfortable with him and knows that Nikhil is his brother, not a friend.  Shefali, Sandi and company hosted a lovely Thanksgiving dinner for us since we'll be missing the festivities this year.  We had a turkey, ham, and all the trimmings.  It was so special and we all agreed that the food tasted much better in the middle of summer than on Thanksgiving itself!

We then made our way to Portland to visit Bhanu, Mark and Baby Rohin.  What a cutie pie Rohin is - such a lovely, charming little guy.  Manav played so well with him and it didn't instigate conflict.  In fact you could tell that Rohin wanted everything Manav had and Manav was struggling with hanging onto the toys.  We introduced Bhanu and Mark to some our friends in Portland - two very distinct couples that hopefully they will stay connected to.

We made our way back to Oly to visit Sukeshina, Joe and Suluv which was also very nice.  Sukeshina is a very affectionate person and I just want her and Suluv to be happy.  I am really proud of all her hard work in finishing nursing school.  Joe has played a really big role in making that happen for her.  Suluv is such a wonderful big brother and takes such good care of Manav.  It was so nice to see them together.

We then went to Sandi and Kate's place for a couple of nights and Manav had a blast playing the drums and we just indulged in good heart-to-hearts.  They are so fond of him and he really adores them too!  I can tell from the way he hugs them.  We went to a party and Manav invited everyone to his birthday party in Nepal.  He sat next to the most attractive woman there and chatted it up with her the entire time.  She was loving it and so was he!

Then we made our final stop in Bellevue to visit Neha's mom and dad.  It was so nice to see them and they treated us to CanAm Pizza and auntie made her amazing crab curry.  You could tell that we all indulged in lots of rice and curry.  Uncle so laboriously shelled the crab for me, it was so sweet :)  We took tons of fun pictures together and it was so nice and relaxing.  Leaving there place the next morning is when I started feeling that yucky feeling in my gut.  From that point on it's been a daily dose of the yuck in my gut...

 Yummy Thanksgiving dinner in September!

 The lovely pies that Helen made herself with our initials on top!

 They truly are brothers and love each other so much...

 The Patels, minus Maya who was taking the picture

 Visiting waterfalls right outside of Portland

 Baby Rohin and Manav - they loved playing in the dirt and picking tomatoes from the garden

 Manav and Mark showing us how much they love each other - this much!!

 Suluv and Manav smothering each other with love :)

 Sandi Masi who taught him how to jam on his drums to the Love Shack!

  Manav being "cool" with his Nani-ma and Nana-ji!

Only 2 weeks left...

I can't believe so much has happened in the past month.  Work has been really busy and we also went to the Northwest to visit family for the "last" time making it challenging to carve out the time to sit and write.  So here it is...a month full of lots of activity!

Open House Moving Sale



Some of our precious belongings that we sold and gave away to friends and neighbors...

  We held an open house and invited all our friends and neighbors to come and take some of our little treasures as a token to remember the Joshis.  It was a huge success and everyone walked away with something to add to there collection :)  Our goal was to sell our big ticket items before our trip to the Northwest on Sep. 1st and the mission was accomplished!  We met some new friends, like our Sri Lankan neighbor who bought our blender and rice cooker, and reconnected with old freinds, like Christine who I haven't seen in over 6 years ever since I left NYC!  It was a very special day that didn't feel too hectic and busy.  We were able to spend quality time with everyone who attended which was exactly what we were hoping for.  Lina and Ayaan came and stayed until the end and it was the first time we witnessed a very zealous Manav, truly instigating a fight with Ayaan.  They sounded like a domestic couple, with Manav yelling at Ayaan to be the patient while they played doctor, while she insisted that she would be the nurse.  They argued and yelled for nearly 30 minutes until Manav said that Ayaan was not his friend anymore and that he did not want her to come to Nepal to visit him.  That made me really sad to hear, even though I know he doesn't mean it.  I realized then that he is going to miss his best friend terribly.  Manav and Ayaan have always had a very special friendship, kissing and hugging each other from a very young age.  They have similar demeanors and are kind, sensitive, silly, bright kids.  When I asked Manav who he would like to give his goldfish Rop and Shawn to - he immediately said Ayaan.  I hope their friendship is sustained and continues, regardless of the distance.

Final Swim Lesson & Casting for New AFO Braces

Manav's last day with Dylan - his favorite swim instructor.  Dylan worked so hard and was so patient to make sure Manav was comfortable in the pool.  He grew to love the water and had a little fan club there waiting for him every week.  I hope we can find a pool in Nepal so that he can continue swimming.

 

Manav had a visit with TD at CRIS to cast his feet and legs for a third pair of AFO braces.  Manav's braces prevent him from hyperextending his legs which otherwise would add alot of strain to his knees.  Even though we think that many times Manav is walking better without his braces, the braces are a way to prevent damage to his joints (ie. ankles and knees).  He did great and I was impressed with his ability to sit still while TD kept him engaged with a rubber glove of his own.  She called it arts and crafts for his feet :)  We picked out a fun denim design with flames for the velcro straps.  I think he's going to love them! 

It's 12:30 at night and I'm fading...  I'll try and post again later this week on our family trip to the NW and Satish's final day at work today.  In summary, we are all starting to get that nauseous feeling in our guts, a visceral sensation to let us know that this move is rapidly approaching...