2010 In A Nutshell

I apologize it's taken so long to get this posted.  I'm not going to give my list of excuses other than it's better late than never.  Also if you wish to not listen to the music on my blog you can turn the volume down on your computer or you can scroll all the way down to the bottom of this page to push pause on my music player.

Well another year is coming to a close and it was certainly a year to remember.  Every year I sit down and write an annual Christmas letter that reflects on the highlights of the past year and this year it was so long, I figured I would try something different.   I decided to post it on my blog in order to save the trees.

As many of you know, Korbin was diagnosed with a disease called Legg-Calve-Perthes Disease in May of 2009 (there are links further down my blog that further explain this disease).  This is unrelated to his Type 1 Diabetes and his diagnosis came as quite a shock with the restrictions that are involved with the disease.  After much research we started the year off by switching specialists and found a wonderful doctor at Shriners Hospital in Salt Lake City, Utah.  It was then that we knew Korbin was in for a challenging year.  His condition required a major surgery called a varus osteotomy that was performed in February, 2010.  This was not a cure for the disease, but merely a containment method to keep the head of his femur bone in his hip socket.  

He was in a wheelchair unable to bear any weight on his leg for 8 weeks and in May he was cleared to start walking again.  It took him 4 weeks to relearn how to walk and the rest of this summer doing physical therapy to gain the strength that he had lost.  Korbin worked extremely hard as he fought to gain back his independence and took to bike riding more than ever, seeing as how this was a sport that is non-impact. 

In July, he celebrated his 8^th birthday and after another doctors appointment we were told that there was a small amount of re-growth to the head of his femur.  This was great news to hear because it meant that his bone was no longer in the fragmentation phase and that it was no longer going to breaking down.   Korbin started 3^rd grade in August and in October at his next follow up appointment, we were told that he was cleared to full activities!  This was such an emotional moment for us because it has been heart wrenching to tell our child that he can no longer run, jump or participate in sports.  After hearing the news he immediately wanted to sign up to try and participate in wrestling.  Both Brad and I knew absolutely nothing about wrestling and we didn’t realize what an aggressive contact sport it was.  As parents of a child that was not allowed to run or jump for 1 year and a ½ to then watching our son go head to head with these kids in wrestling was definitely intense!  But we couldn’t be more proud of him.  He worked hard, practiced hard, and gave it his all in his tournaments.

Korbin was unable to finish the entire wrestling season because he underwent his second surgery on December 2^nd to have the hardware removed that was used to contain the femur from the previous varus osteotomy surgery.  It wasn’t long before Korbin was up and walking around.

Kaitlyn was always by his side.  The love she has for her brother is unconditional.









After one short week he was ready to go back to school, especially to show off his exciting show-n-tell he had just taken out of his leg. He is now anticipating Christmas just like any other little boy would.  He is looking forward to finally being able to participate in baseball again as well as to sign up for a second session of wrestling.  We couldn’t be more proud of his amazing attitude, optimism and strength.  We learn from him every single day and are grateful to have him in our lives. 

Then of course we have our little Miss Kaitlyn.  What an amazing three year old girl!  With all that has been happening with Korbin this year people might not realize he has a little sister, but she is just as much apart of everything as anyone else, especially how involved she is with her older brother.  

She is so full of life, imagination, adventure, expression but most of all attitude.  She is also a complete Daddy’s girl and she melts Brad's heart as she runs with a bounding leap into his arms everyday as he gets home from work.  She is the epitome of sweet when she looks at us with those big blue eyes.  She can use those eyes to tell us all that she knows without speaking a single word and then be the life of the party with non-stop conversation.   At the same time she can be our little sneaky and devious troublemaker, but she is a dead give away when she looks at you with a guilty look and rats herself out by saying, "I didn't do anything."   She is such a girly girl but at the same time she is our loveable tomboy.  All last winter she couldn’t wait to go camping again.  So this summer we spent almost every other weekend camping at local areas and she was in absolute heaven as she got down and dirty by making her mud pies and other dirt creations.   Over the summer she also had the opportunity to try ballet and we couldn’t believe the natural talent she has for dance.  It was wonderful to see her find something that she loved and to see how much she enjoyed it.  It’s amazing to see the transformation of our little girl playing in the dirt to getting all dolled up to do ballet.  

Kaitlyn has been so attentive and understanding towards her brother and all that he has been through.  Sure they have their moments like any siblings do, but they truly have an amazing bond that we are so grateful to see.  They have shared many special moments together and we hope their relationship only continues to grow.  We can’t wait to see how she grows and what adventures she brings to our lives this upcoming year.

Brad is, of course the most hard working, loving, supportive husband and father and I feel completely blessed to have him in my life.  He is my rock and I couldn’t get through anything without him.  We have been blessed that he is still working for a great company and it has provided us with the stability we need to take care of our family.  We are truly grateful for that.  He is getting more disappointed with the abundance of gray hair that is coming in but I feel it is a very sexy trait and I find him even more distinguished.....he’s cursing me as we speak for writing this.  Ha Ha!

I am still in school, but I am finally feeling like I’m making headway with a year left to finish with my Bachelors in Community Health Education.  I switched majors last year due to the waitlists for nursing programs and I truly feel this was the path I was meant to take.  I have enjoyed every class so far and when I am done I will be a certified health education specialist and will continue to pursue diabetes education as my career goal.  I am also excited to have recently gotten an internship position at the Health Department working for the health promotion office in tobacco prevention programs.  Although this semester will be busy, I am excited for new challenges and what the future might have in store for me.

As a family, we have had some awesome camping adventures around Northern and Southern Utah and feel that we have now become camping poor during the summer months.  We wouldn’t have it any other way.  We know our kids are growing up fast and we are making as many wonderful memories as possible. 

Korbin went to his last year at diabetes clubhouse as well as he graduated from diabetes family camp.  This means he will be going by himself next summer for an entire week!  I’m not sure Brad and I are quite ready to let him go but we are excited for him to have these wonderful experiences.  He is also looking forward to trying the winter camps in February where he can learn to snowboard. 

We also had the amazing experience of participating in this year’s Walk to cure diabetes for the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation.  Korbin named his team, Korbin’s Crew for a Cure and over the course of the summer was able to raise $2800, not to mention he was extremely proud to have a story published about him in the newspaper!!  

What was even more amazing was during our fundraiser yard sale we were approached by a member of a motorcycle club called the Templar Knights and they took an interest in Korbin’s cause.  They wanted to do a fundraising event in his name for diabetes and we chose to raise money for the Foundation for Children and Youth with Diabetes (FCYD) camp that we go to every year.  This helps sponsor families that can’t afford to come to camp and they held this event on December 18^th.  

This was such a great event and we were honored that they held it in Korbin’s name and wanted to participate in such a great cause.  Korbin prepared and gave a wonderful speech at the event and we were so proud of him.

Well as I said, this year has brought us many challenges and we have had our moments of tears, anger, and sadness, but we have also had our moments of milestones, happiness, and ultimately we have come out with our relationship being stronger than ever.

We are learning to take life as it comes and to live and love life to its fullest.  In our moments of despair we focus on the positive and we have noticed such a difference not only for us but with our kids as well.  They fuel our life with optimism and strength.  We simply live for them and can’t imagine life without them. 

We also want to extend a special thank you to all of our wonderful friends and family that have given us their unconditional love and support.  We truly feel blessed to have all of you in and apart of our lives. We hope that everyone has a wonderful Christmas and a very Happy New Year!  We are crossing our fingers that this year will be uneventful in order to have a boring Christmas letter next year. 

Love to all and thank you for taking the time to read about the moments of this past year.       Goodbye 2010!  With all our love - Brad, Jessica, Korbin & Kaitlyn

Stay Tuned for the Steele annual Christmas letter being posted soon!

Well Christmas cards are finally mailed out and what do I do....I put a link to my blog stating that I will have our annual Christmas letter available to read here.  Well.....I'm still working on it and I encourage you to stay patient and keep checking back in order to read the "real" thing ;)

Life just hasn't seemed to slow down enough to complete the little tasks but rest assured they will get done eventually.  I mean that's all that really matters, right?

Happy Holidays and I will be posting very soon!

Korbin's Cause

What is it about Summer?  From the day after Christmas I am counting down the days until its arrival.  I anticipate the smell of the fresh cut grass and the smell of chlorine.  I always seem to overload myself and the kids with activities in order to feel as though we are getting the most out of every summer day.  And although I try so hard to savor every moment of the summers warmth, smell and feel - before I know it, I blink and its over.

I can't complain too much because we feel we've made great accomplishments this summer - Korbin has made tremendous strides with his perthes disease.  He has been such a hard worker this summer and although I often got "mom, do I have to go.....SIGH" with EVERY physical therapy appointment we had to go to, I think he has now realized how much his hard work has paid off.  


At the end of July we had another follow-up appointment with his orthopedic surgeon and it was good news all around.  First, the place that they cut his femur bone and the bracket that they put in place is healing so well that he is able to try running to his comfort level.  It has been over a year since he has been allowed to run, so if you can imagine, he IS thrilled and is working hard to develop a run as normal as possible.  Second, we were thrilled to hear that Korbin has now entered the rebuilding phase of the disease!  Although the signs were very small, they were still there, which means the head of the femur bone is no longer collapsing.  The doctor did explain that it can take anywhere from 2-5 years for the head of his femur bone to grow back and it is up to his body to decide how much of it will grow and the shape that it will grow back to.....but that is neither here nor there....what matters at THIS moment is our little boy is walking and running again because of all of HIS hard work and we are happy, positive and living life right NOW and we will tackle one thing at a time.

In fact this year has really impacted Korbin in such a positive way.  He has more interest than ever as to why diseases happen and how he wishes there was something he could do to stop them.  Korbin has mentioned many times "mom, I don't want diabetes anymore," which of course hits me where it hurts but on his own idea, he decided that he wanted to take part in the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation's Walk to Cure Diabetes this year in an effort to raise money for a cure.  As parents, we couldn't be prouder!  So away we went this summer sending out campaign letters, blowing up facebook with fundraiser reminders, and going around to businesses we know in order to start Korbin on the path towards his goal of raising $2000.  So far we have raised $1475 towards his team, which he named "Korbin's Crew for a Cure!"  Did I mention I was proud!...It won't be the last.

Well the walk is on September 25th, 2010, 8:30am at the Scera Park in Orem.  With there only being a few weeks left to fundraise, we are definitely trying now more than ever to hit Korbin's goal.......SO what better way to get a community together than to have a HUGE FUNDRAISER YARD SALE!!


On September 18th in Springville, UTAH our family is having a HUGE YARD SALE from 8AM til 2PM and we invite ALL of you interested in donating to ATTEND!!! If you are able and willing to donate any furniture or clothing items (must be in good repair and clean) towards the sale then PLEASE message me! You can donate financially via their JDRF website attached to this NOTE. 



http://walk.jdrf.org/index.cfm?fuseaction=extranet.personalpage&confirmID=87695180


Now what makes this Yard Sale even more exciting is that my amazingly talented friend - KatieJo Patton Welch will be offering an amazing photography service called "I AM" Photography and at an amazing price during the Yard Sale.  Don't miss out on this opportunity!!  Click on this link to go to her blog to learn more  and you can email her for any further questions on her service. 


   KWelchDesign Photography: KORBIN's CAUSE   




Here are some examples of My handsome Korbin and beautiful Kaitlyn!  We feel blessed to have received this inspiring service.

And Life Goes On...

All I can say is "Wow, what a crazy ride!"  I have to admit that these last couple of months have been tough but they have gone by fast and with my school finals coming to an end, signs of Spring, and Korbin starting to walk without assistance....I can FINALLY see a light at the end of the tunnel!

For those of you that haven't already heard, Korbin had his follow-up appointment on April 12 and his x-rays showed that the surgery is healing well enough for Korbin to start walking again!  To be honest we didn't really know what to expect, especially after being in a wheelchair for almost eight weeks.  Our hope was for him to just get up and go but like everything else it didn't come without challenges.  Korbin is re-learning to walk all over again and it has been a very slow and difficult process thus far.

At first, the okay to start walking was a day Korbin was looking forward to but it quickly turned to disappointment after he learned that it was harder than he thought it would be.  The therapist started him out on a walker and for the first week he was only comfortable to take a few steps at a time.  Any other time you would catch him crawling on his hands and knees to get him where he wanted to go.  Brad and I have found that each day needs to consist of constant support, encouragement, and even a little tough love to keep him motivated.

Korbin is still going to school in his wheelchair until he is able to walk strongly without assistance by request of his therapist.  Brad and I have been feeling like the wheelchair is going to haunt us forever!  Korbin has not only taken several chunks out of our walls but just got busted at school by tipping flat on his back by doing a wheelie...that's our boy!

Okay, now for an emotional moment.  This whole ordeal has been nothing but hard to watch and what took me by surprise was how heartbreaking it has been watching him struggle to gain his independence back.  It is so difficult to watch my child limp, hobble and stumble under the weight of his own body.  It is gut wrenching to wipe his tears at the end of the day because his feet hurt so badly he can't stand up anymore.  It is extremely hard to hold back my own tears when I look at his defeated face and tell him not to give up.  I wish nothing more than to take his place because I realize that I honestly can't imagine what he is going through physically.

It wasn't until the past two days that Korbin's determination has kicked in and he has decided that he is not giving up or giving in to this stupid disease.  He has ditched the walker and is committed to walking on his own.  He is still struggling to turn his foot in when he walks but he is making leaps and bounds!  And although I have known this all along I just have to say that at the end of the day I sit back watching his progress and realize that I have one AMAZING little boy!  He has so many forces against him and although he has had his moments of tears and defeat, he doesn't give up!  He finds the positive in everything and continues to push through his challenges each and everyday.  He truly is my hero and I am continuing to learn so much from him.

Although Korbin has more challenges to face with perthes disease, we have started to barrel through some pretty big hurdles.  Brad and I are SO proud to have Korbin as our son!  He brings new meaning to the words TOUGH, STRONG, OPTIMISM, and DETERMINATION. Keep it up buddy!  We LOVE you sooo much and one day mommy and daddy promise this challenge WILL all be over!