CHAMPS in Ottawa!

Last weekend we went to Ottawa for Gavin's 3rd CHAMP seminar. It was a highly anticipated trip because Gavin knew for several weeks that we were taking the train! It was our first time on the VIA train and it was a success! I wish we could take the train everywhere, instead of driving. It is so much easier with the little ones, not having to keep them confined to their car seats for several hours. Janelle and Gabby were with us and it was lots of fun!


The train ride was 4 hours and the kids were amazing. It helped that Janelle had lots of tricks up her sleeve to keep them entertained. And little Eden slept most of the way and didn't make a peep.



At one point they even put a blanket over the table and then looked at books in their fort!


It was a great weekend. My favourite part is always seeing all the kids playing together. I love how everyone is instant friends, whether they haven't seen each other for a year or it is their first time meeting. We always meet some awesome parents too!

This year Janelle and I were asked to do a little interview together for the "Matching Mothers" program. They asked us some questions about how we met, how we feel about coming to the seminars and how far we have come since finding out about our babies' limb differences. Miss Eden even got to make a cameo in the interview! She kept crying when I tried to leave her in her stroller and then we would have to start the interview over so finally, they just said I could hold her. After the interview they wanted some shots of the kids playing together. There were multiple hugs, which eventually ended in tears, since Gavin's hugs tend to involve tackling Gabby to the ground. We are working on that...

I think the most fun was when the amputees took over the hotel's swimming pool! Ha! I love to see the looks on other people's faces when kids start jumping in the pool with their swim legs on and swimming around like nobody's business! :)

We have been working on getting Gavin to wear his "mighty machine arm" more frequently so it helped for him to see other kids with their prosthetics on. (Although I still don't think he really cared). But he is doing well with it when we can get him to leave it on. (Tough love!)

I didn't get many pictures because my camera was acting up. But I love how proud he is in this one! He was showing me how he can hold the bus with his mighty machine arm. I am so proud of our little CHAMP and I can't believe how big he is getting!!

It was great for him and Gabby to spend the whole weekend together. They were inseperable and so cute together! Janelle got them these Sammy's Friend's T-shirts and wrote on them with fabric markers. Gavin's says "Gabby's arm buddy" on the back and Gabby's says "Gavin's arm buddy". Then she wrote on the left sleeve "God made me this way". I love them! Sorry this is the only picture I have but trust me, they are super cute!


If you are interested in your own Sammy's Friends shirt, you can purchase one here!