Ariana's Wheelchair Eval.

Yesterday, Jake and I took all the kids down to United Seating and Mobility (an affiliate of CRS) for Ariana's wheelchair evaluation. Unlike Bella's prosthesis evaluation, Ari is a shoo-in for qualifying for a wheelchair (not something I'm really all that grateful for), so this time it was our turn to do the evaluating. It was time to select Ari's wheelchair for preschool (and I can't believe it's time for my baby to go to school already!). We chose the Zippy pediatric wheelchair, which was the best option for support on the sides, capacity to grow with her, durability, and height to reach a table. It is much heavier, bulkier, and harder to fold up than the Kid Karts (which are basically large strollers), but we couldn't sacrifice her comfort and posture for convenience. The Zippy will be customized to her size (unlike the one in the picture which is much larger), and it will be pink, of course! As was to be expected, Ari was very excited about her new tool (overjoyed, in fact), Gabe was jealous and wanted one of his own, and Bella took every opportunity to use the wheelchairs to help her get into trouble. Ari even used her left hand to push the wheel of her chair, propelling her foward, all without anyone showing her how to do it! All the kids thought that this place was an amusement park, and they cried when we had to leave. While we were in the waiting room, we met some people from Gilbert with a 3 year-old daughter with CP who had a lot in common with Ari developmentally (also chose the Zippy in pink). We got their phone number, and I really hope to set up a playdate for Ari and the little girl we met -- finally, a friend for *Ari* to play with!

Ari in a Zippy wheelchair -- just like hers, except too big and purple instead of pink.The kids having a wheelchair race in random wheelchairs that didn't make the cut. They were having a great time, and it was fun then, but something about this photo kind of makes my heart sink.