Post by Jackie on Nov 5, 2004 8:23:29 GMT -5
Ok folks...whether you want it or not...giving you the latest on Emily. For those of you who are new here...my daughter Emily who is 24 has gone 700 miles away to work and live with a woman who is a disability advocate and her oncologist hubby. Emily has a job position titled HOUSE MANAGER...and she takes daily care of a four story Georgian Revival home...in a town near Houston....quite huge...LOL. She is also responsible for the pets...answering the phones...dealing with deliveries and repairmen.....and she LOVES her new life.
This is a post I got from her sister who lives in Austin and where Emily spent this last weekend. She had a long call from Emily's employer Norine who was worried that an email she had sent to Katie on Emilys transitioning back to work from vacations had somehow sent the wrong message. This is soooo positive I had to share it with you all. I love the perspective Norine has on disabilities in general. (btw...'Kim' is Emilys case manager there and Em adores her)
I just thought I would post this for those of you who are wondering if your child will live in their room in your house forever...LOL....or if they will have a life of their own.
Jackie...lonesome mom to Emily
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(the post)
............She was worried that we were upset about the email she sent about Emily transitioning back into work, and she just wanted to let me know how great Emily was doing.
She told me that Emily is a young person learning to take responsibility for herself, and it's something she's never really had to do before. She said Emily is making tremendous progress, and she think her lack of organization comes from being a young adult, NOT a young adult with a disability. She said Emily is really trying and she is very pleased with her work. She can walk up the stairs without holding on to the rail anymore, and she like to show off to Norine by doing so. They also race up the stairs and laugh the whole way to the 4th floor!
Norine also stressed that she and David are her employers and Kim is responsible for Emily's outside activities. She has many friends from the gym, and there is a person named Lisa who lives 4 houses down that Emily is very close to. Lisa takes her to the movies and to the gym. She also brought over a huge box of books for Em and wants to help her with her reading. Norine also said that she is developing a group of friends in bowling and her team is Team Shrek. She said Em takes a cab to bowling on Saturdays, but Norine usually tries to get back from her morning bike ride before Em leaves to make sure she gets in the cab ok... but last Sat she had a bike wreck and was taken via ambulance to the hospital with a concussion. They didn't get back until hours later and she went straight to bed. She said she came down later in the day and Emily hadn't even known she was there... Norine was EXTREMELY pleased the Em took the cab by herself and just went on with her day. She knows that friends are important, and the problem with the girl in Katy is that it is 1.5 hours away and she and David just don't have the time to transport Emily there.
In the winter David and Norine start a walking routine in the evenings, and Emily will join them for the first ½ mile and then David and Norine will do another 2 miles on their own. They are going to teach her how to walk Lucy, how to put the leash on her, etc. Norine thinks this will be good for all of them.
Regarding trips home - she and David just feel that FAMILY is extremely important to Emily - and the trips are NOT to give David and Norine time alone - they just think it is important since she has no family there that she has time to connect. She and David BOTH feel like she should continue her monthly trips.
She also mentioned that we should ask Emily about the funny story about Lucy sleeping under her bed!
Norine was VERY positive about the whole thing and wanted to make sure that we all understood how pleased she is with Emily being there and working for her. She also said that if Emily ever complains about her work that we should stress how GOOD it is that she can communicate that to us since we all complain about work at one time or another - it's very NORMAL for people to feel that way about their job. I told her that I was afraid that she may think complaining would get her sent home - and Norine assured me that was NOT the case! They really enjoy her and like having her around.
Anyways, just thought I would share some of what we discussed.
Katie
This is a post I got from her sister who lives in Austin and where Emily spent this last weekend. She had a long call from Emily's employer Norine who was worried that an email she had sent to Katie on Emilys transitioning back to work from vacations had somehow sent the wrong message. This is soooo positive I had to share it with you all. I love the perspective Norine has on disabilities in general. (btw...'Kim' is Emilys case manager there and Em adores her)
I just thought I would post this for those of you who are wondering if your child will live in their room in your house forever...LOL....or if they will have a life of their own.
Jackie...lonesome mom to Emily
********************************************
(the post)
............She was worried that we were upset about the email she sent about Emily transitioning back into work, and she just wanted to let me know how great Emily was doing.
She told me that Emily is a young person learning to take responsibility for herself, and it's something she's never really had to do before. She said Emily is making tremendous progress, and she think her lack of organization comes from being a young adult, NOT a young adult with a disability. She said Emily is really trying and she is very pleased with her work. She can walk up the stairs without holding on to the rail anymore, and she like to show off to Norine by doing so. They also race up the stairs and laugh the whole way to the 4th floor!
Norine also stressed that she and David are her employers and Kim is responsible for Emily's outside activities. She has many friends from the gym, and there is a person named Lisa who lives 4 houses down that Emily is very close to. Lisa takes her to the movies and to the gym. She also brought over a huge box of books for Em and wants to help her with her reading. Norine also said that she is developing a group of friends in bowling and her team is Team Shrek. She said Em takes a cab to bowling on Saturdays, but Norine usually tries to get back from her morning bike ride before Em leaves to make sure she gets in the cab ok... but last Sat she had a bike wreck and was taken via ambulance to the hospital with a concussion. They didn't get back until hours later and she went straight to bed. She said she came down later in the day and Emily hadn't even known she was there... Norine was EXTREMELY pleased the Em took the cab by herself and just went on with her day. She knows that friends are important, and the problem with the girl in Katy is that it is 1.5 hours away and she and David just don't have the time to transport Emily there.
In the winter David and Norine start a walking routine in the evenings, and Emily will join them for the first ½ mile and then David and Norine will do another 2 miles on their own. They are going to teach her how to walk Lucy, how to put the leash on her, etc. Norine thinks this will be good for all of them.
Regarding trips home - she and David just feel that FAMILY is extremely important to Emily - and the trips are NOT to give David and Norine time alone - they just think it is important since she has no family there that she has time to connect. She and David BOTH feel like she should continue her monthly trips.
She also mentioned that we should ask Emily about the funny story about Lucy sleeping under her bed!
Norine was VERY positive about the whole thing and wanted to make sure that we all understood how pleased she is with Emily being there and working for her. She also said that if Emily ever complains about her work that we should stress how GOOD it is that she can communicate that to us since we all complain about work at one time or another - it's very NORMAL for people to feel that way about their job. I told her that I was afraid that she may think complaining would get her sent home - and Norine assured me that was NOT the case! They really enjoy her and like having her around.
Anyways, just thought I would share some of what we discussed.
Katie