HUGS ~ Corbie

OT, PT, and ST

Birth - 3

Early Head Start

Gym and Swim at YMCA

Massage & ROM

Sensory Integration- Brushing & Joint compression
Animal interactions- he loves our 2 dogs, 3 cats & the fish
Botox
Baclofen, Robinul, Nexium, Vitamin
Mic-Key button - For water & medications only
Spoiled with love, every moment of every day
Lots of baby games - patty cake, itsy bitsy spider, wheels on the bus etc.

Corbin's Story begins Sunday May 22 2005 around 9am. Corbin and I were sleeping on the couch due to him waking in the middle of the night and head butting daddy in the face. Silly baby. We got up like normal and while he was toddling around I was going potty. I was sitting there thinking, I sure hope it will be a nice day so we can all go to the park. I could hear a noise coming from Corbin so I just ran without finishing trying to pull my pants up as I ran. I got to him and seen him struggling. He was chocking on something. I did a finger swoop. I could feel something but couldn't get it out so I hit him on the back that still didn't work so I tried my finger again, still nothing so I picked him up over my left arm slapping his back. Nothing was working so I called 911. I was so scared, I was screaming. Jumping up and down. He started to pass out and then turned blue. The great 911 operator was trying to calm me down, I placed him on the floor as she instructed but only for a second because I heard the fire truck outside so I ran with Corbin's limp body outside. Later finding out he had died in my arms. I was totally freaking out. The fire truck had passed my house & had to turn around. As soon as the firefighter jumped out of the truck I threw Corbin to him (take him please I said) I hung up with the operator and called Bill (daddy) at work screaming Corbin is chocking he's dead please come home NOW. Hung up with him ran to the neighbors to see if they would watch the two older boys they weren't home so I screamed to the boys, stay there DON'T move (which they didn't). Corbin was without O2 for about 7 minutes. He choked on our dogs broken off toe nail & then aspirated it into his left lung, both lungs collapsed & his heart stopped. He's a very strong boy, he was only on the ventilator for one day & the chest tube were in for only two days.

Corbin was also a preemie, he was a 33 weeker. His lung weren't developed completely so he was on a ventilator (only for 1 & 1/2 days), he couldn't keep his own temperature regulated & he was having trouble learning to suck on the bottle. He spent only 8 days in the NICU though, because we forced them to let him come home. By then he was only having trouble with the eating, the nurses didn't have 45 min's to feed him 2 oz but I did (I'm a stay-home-mommy). They made me stay in a room over night to prove to them I could take care of him (not to mention he's our third child).

It will be the 1 year anniversary in 19 days. There has been so many ups & downs in this journey, The downs are very tough to get thru, I still cry almost everyday, I have very bad flash back & I so very deeply miss the little boy Corbie was becoming. Also all I ever wanted was just one more child so my husband & I could raise a child together (he worked out of town when our older boys where little) but on the flip side the ups are so AMAZING, we were told Corbin would be in a persistent vegetative state, Corbie eats all his calories by mouth, he smiles, he laughs (my ticklish boy), he's socially engaging, he recognizes familiar people, he can sit independently for many seconds, he can stand & walk when held up, he's learning to crawl in his crawler, he can get toys to his mouth (if his arms are positioned right), he's starting to pick toys up off his wheelchair tray (or getting mashed potatoes everywhere by grabbing the spoon from the bowl-stinker) & he also gives the best HUGS anyone could every get.