The Ramp

For months we have been anticipating the arrival of Rae's wheelchair. One of the biggest projects we have to tackle is the new deck, wheelchair ramp, and driveway extension to accommodate her wheelchair and help me get her in and out of the house easily (our house is almost two feet off the ground and trying to pull her chair up the stairs is a giant pain in the back). Months ago I thrusted myself into planning and fund raising. I didn't write about it much because I was also in the middle of some pretty dark thoughts and heavy emotions (the fog has lifted a bit and I'm coping a little better).

My biggest fund raiser was the garage sale! I posted it on Facebook, craigslist, and our local newspaper. Items were generously donated by friends, family, co-workers, and complete strangers. I can not THANK YOU enough!!! As an added bonus it also made me deal with my own hoarding demons (I so needed to declutter). The day of the sale several friends selflessly gave time out of their Saturday to help us manage the chaos...and it was chaotic! Again I can never THANK YOU ALL enough!!!

Seriously, before the sale my house looked like an episode of hoarders!

Dining Room 1

Dining Room 2

This was my foyer.

Living Room 

Spare Bedroom

That was just what we had stored and sorted inside my house. This is what we had outside...

A large bike trailer jammed packed with goodies!

Then I made banana bread...lots and lots of banana bread. One of the components at our garage sale was a small bake sale. We had cookies, homemade pies, and lots of banana bread.

There were four versions of banana bread.
I stayed up until about midnight the night before the sale making them.

I also created a donation page on YouCaring.com which allowed out of state family and friends to donate. But, I didn't give it as much attention as I did the Facebook Event so it didn't fair as well.

Originally, I had hoped to have the ramp completed by June. As I have said before, "Man plans and God laughs." It is now August and we are finally making progress towards building the ramp. I'm so excited!

I removed the stepping stones yesterday. 

This is a pretty big undertaking...at least to me it is. We are going to have to do some of the work in stages and the final stage will be my favorite part. I plan on cutting out large flowers made of ply wood, painting them bright beautiful colors, and hanging them on the rails of Rae's ramp. Just because we need to build a ramp onto our home, doesn't mean it can't be whimsical and fun. Besides, it is for an almost three year old little girl who looked like this after the first yard sale (we had two) was finished...

(Psst...I still have more stuff...anyone interested in a hot tub?)

Getting Ready for Wheels

I'm a planner (I think I have admitted this to you before). I consider myself something akin to a lookout. Kind of like that guy in the crow's nest of a ship making sure the path is clear & alerting the crew to potential dangers ahead or a military scout boldly going ahead of everyone else to make sure danger isn't lying in wait. Getting ready for Rae's wheelchair has not been an exception to my obsession with planning or plotting our next move. As a result, in the last two weeks we have made some pretty decent strides in achieving our goals.

Step One:

Get a state id card for Rae. After four tries, we finally got a halfway decent picture of Rae. By the time we did it was with great relief that I was able to sit her back in her stroller. Holding 30 pounds up in the air for a picture and trying to stay out of it at the same time is no easy task. I can't blame her frown though...we waited for an hour before our number was called and she was over it.

Check

Step Two:

Get a disability parking permit issued for Rae. I actually had the paperwork for this back in December, but misplaced my lockbox key and couldn't get to the required paperwork in order to obtain an id. Of course it was in the most obvious place and I overlooked it three or four times. Duh!

Check

Step Three:

Order Rae's tilt and space wheelchair...the only decision I had to make was selecting a color. It will take three to four months for the wheelchair to be built and delivered. I'll wait until the wheelchair has arrived before I unveil the color I selected (gotta keep something a surprise).

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Step Four:

Organize fund raising events where all proceeds go towards the purchase of materials to build a wheelchair ramp. We are having a yard sale on March 23 (unless it rains and then it will be on April 6) and I set up a YouCaring.com account.

Wheelchair Ramp for Rae

Double Check

Step Five:

Work with Mom and sketch out plans for the ramps design. Yup, she is just that talented. In fact, she even designed floor plans for a house (the architect the drew up the official plans wanted to keep a copy...she said no). Both of my parents are pretty darn awesome when it comes to designing and creating solutions. I guess that's where I get it from.

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Step Six:

Pick dates for ramp construction. This is tentatively scheduled for two weekends in May. I will be serving light breakfast fare and lunch to my volunteers. It is the least I can do for the men coming to swing hammers, set posts & lay shingles (slight roof extension is needed to protect Rae for the torrential Florida downpours), and pour an extension for our driveway.

Check

Step Seven:

Price materials, pull permits, and...

Okay, you got me...we're not quite at 100%, but we're chugging along and I know we couldn't do it without the help of family, friends, and a few kind strangers.

Thank you!