Wheelchair Clinic

Sadie had her first experience with the CRS (Child Rehabilitative Services) Wheelchair Clinic today...and it went really well.

It has been established that Sadie needs something more sturdy, more supportive, more big than the current stroller we use now to take her places. All this weight gain since getting her tube has really made her TOO HEAVY to carry. We use the stroller all the time. So, after our appointment with "the gatekeeper" at CRS, we got a referral and an appointment at the wheelchair clinic to get her measured and to pick out what we want.

I asked other moms to see what they liked. And I talked to Sadie's Physical Therapist, who said she'd attend the appointment with us. And I went in knowing that it needed to be light enough to lift and be able to fold up small enough to fit in the back of my little VW Golf hatchback.

It came down to a choice between 2:

This is the Kid Kart. And it's cool because it has nice big tires (for off-roading!!) and the actual seat comes out and can be turned to face out or to face backward. I really like that about it. It folds up pretty small, but it folds up in two pieces; the base and the seat, so it's a little clunky and inconvenient. I like how there is a platform for her feet to rest, which gives her that input in her feet. It also provides a lot of support through her trunk and her head to prevent slumping. However, it looks really "wheelchairy" which I'm not sure I'm ready for yet. I also felt like, when we were pushing her around in it, that she was just out there. She wasn't very protected. It felt like she was sitting really high and kind of just floating out in space. It was a little awkward.

Then there was this wheelchair, which was really the only other choice.

This is the Convaid Cruiser C-sport. There were a few of these for us to try. The red one is actually their floor model and is there for trying. However, it's a size 14 and we thought it seemed a little big (it looks huge, I know). The blue one belonged to a customer and was waiting for pickup, but we thought it was a 12, so we tried Sadie in it...turns out it was also a 14. They ended up finding us a 12, but it was almost too small. It was determined that she needs a 13...but they don't make a 13!!

We ended up ordering this wheelchair because it feels more like a stroller, like what we already use, it's just a bigger version. It completely supports her and doesn't have her out in space. We also ordered the size 14, even though it's a little big because we thought she would grow out of the size 12 probably by the time we got it!!

Oh, and we picked teal.

So, we're pretty excited and I wish it didn't take so long because the stroller we have is really insufficient and I hate using it. They say it takes 6-12 weeks for insurance to approve it, but they order it anyway, so once insurance approves it we'll just be able to go pick it up, it's not like then we'll have to wait for them to order it. I'm hoping we'll have it in time to visit Grammy in Oregon for Christmas!!