Jonathan Cooper Update

We have had such a great week this week! Jonathan has accomplished a great deal and we continue to praise the Lord for these blessing in his life. Jonathan started out the week riding his bike around the block as early as he could get Mom out with him on Monday morning. Jonathan rode down the alley, past our street, up the next block, and back around to the alley and into the garage. He never once stopped pedaling. His little legs were shaking by the time we got back home, but he enjoyed getting to ride his bike. Jonathan worked in the office during therapy later on that day because as soon as he was finished there, he was going to Upward Basketball camp at our church and he didn't want to be too tired. So he worked on the exercise ball and then worked on his balance. He had significantly improved on his balance exercises from last week since we had been working on them at home and he did a fabulous job. She also watched him walk by himself, without his walker or her holding is security belt. We have been instructed to allow him to do some walking on his own, staying very close by, of course, so that he remains safe. She was a little concerned about some swelling in his feet, so we are trying to have him prop his feet up a few times a day to see if that helps. She also said that his braces need to be adjusted again and it is possible that he will need a new pair before he can be completely out of them. After therapy we went to basketball camp. Jonathan amazed us again by balancing perfectly while dribbling the ball, walking while dribbling the ball and never losing his balance while catching bounce passes and chest passes from everyone. He was able to stand and attempt to shoot some baskets, never losing his balance, although he was unable to get the ball to reach the backboard. We were so pleased and he was very proud to be there. We were able to make it the last 2 hours of camp. Our good friends, Coach Walk and Coach Doug are such a blessing to us and do so much to encourage Jonathan and make him feel a special part of camp. All the kids have been so sweet and encouraging as well. God is so good. As if that wasn't enough of a workout for the day, after dinner, guess what? Jonathan wanted to go ride his bike again! So we went the same route and he did the same thing; he never stopped pedaling until he was back in the garage. Needless to say, he slept very well that night! On Tuesday, Jonathan worked out in the gym. He set a new record of walking 15 minutes on the treadmill at his fastest pace every, 1.5. His side stepping and backward stepping are getting better as well, although we still only do 2 minutes with each of those. His therapist and I discussed the possibility of dropping therapy to 2 times a week in the near future. After that, we went to basketball camp again, this time at the very beginning. Jonathan jumped right in and did as many of the warm up exercises as everyone else did. He continued to work again on his dribbling, walking/dribbling, passing and shooting. Today, our major accomplishment was making a basket. Standing on his own, just pushing the ball up with his arms was not enough. But when Mom holds on, Jonathan can bend his knees and push the ball up with his whole body and get it to the basket. Jonathan made 11 baskets today! Talk about a proud moment! It was awesome! We stayed about 2 hours again that day. This morning, we started out the day by going swimming, since we can't do that in the afternoons this week. Jonathan spent a lot of time swimming off the steps and toward Mom in the middle of the pool. His breath control was great. Today, we spent the entire afternoon at camp. Jonathan worked on all the same things and was able to make another 10 baskets; 5 of them were made so his Daddy could see him. During the first semester of school last year, we kept Coach Walk's baby girl during the day. All our kids love to take care of babies, and they all love baby Juliana. We got to see baby Juliana at camp today. Jonathan got to hold her and play with her and then pushed her around the gym, in her stroller, at least 15 times. He was so proud to be able to "take care of her" again and she seemed happy to see him. Overall, we have had a great week.
Thank you so much for your continued prayers for Jonathan. We are so thrilled to be able to share how God continues to heal and accomplish wonderful things in his life. Keep praying for more strength in Jonathan's legs. Pray for greater balance with each passing day. Pray for strength in his ankles and for patience as we continue to wear the braces. Pray about our insurance coverage, should we have to get a new pair of braces. As with everything, I don't think they are cheap. Pray that we will be able to meet our goal of walking independently by July 4. Pray for a continued good attitude and determination to work hard each day. Jonathan blesses us so much by his hard work. Very seldom will you ever hear him complain. He is our hero. For the Lord is good, His mercy is everlasting, and His truth endureth to all generations.