Look whats new!

I have received a letter from SWEP this week

that is the government department who have to approve 

my wheel chair application.

The good news is the chair has been approved,

BUT

the bad news is that I have to find $13000,

and the wait is at least 9 months!

I think it will probably be even longer, they are so far behind.

I have been waiting for continence stuff  since August 1st, 

it is now November 17, usually I only wait 2-3 weeks, 

if they are that far behind with simple things, 

I guess something as complex as a power chair, is going to take forever.

Oh well, disability teaches you to be patient.

To keep me occupied, and help fund the chair,

I have decided to sell my felt food.

This is the new offering --

"Afternoon tea for two".

in a shinny spotted box, you will find - 

a selection of yummy jam biscuits,

heart sugar cookies, 

two large donuts with sprinkles,

and of course two tea bags, these ones are orange

and green tea.

As usual everything is made by hand,

and is safe for little ones.

My two testers are Bella and Sekoya, 

I am assured they love playing with my food.

It can be washed carefully, 

and it is practically indestructible, 

unless you feed it to the dog!!

If anyone is interested in any of my food,

you can reach me [hopefully],

at this address ----

anneandmidnight@hotmail.com

if you look further back in my blog,

you will find more of my food.

Enjoy!

Better sit down!

On Thursday I learned that my chair is going to cost round 

$22,500!

That is certainly a lot of money!

I will need to find at least $12,500 maybe more, 

because wheel chair parts have a habit
of suddenly costing more.
At this stage I have no idea where all the money
is going to come from.
At least it is slightly less than I was expecting,
that is because I can't have all the modifications I was wanting.
Now comes the hard part;  
We all know that the chair will make my life easier
and more comfortable,
BUT,
the physio has to make S.W.E.P. believe it too.
Then when they eventually agree that it is necessary,
we wait, usually for about 12 months!!
Nothing is easy or straight forward.
I guess I can hope, that one day I will have
a beautiful purple chair!!

  

Something very nice has happened, 

it makes you realise how caring people can be.

Because I am getting older,

my wheel chair needs are changing.

Sounds easy, just go to the shop and say --

"I'd like to trade-in my old chair for a new model, please".

No such luck, first you must find a physio or OT who will help you choose the chair, best suited to your needs. 

I'm lucky, this time Moira Family Services, 

who look after my day to day care are helping me.

As this is my third chair,

I am fairly knowledgeable about what I need.

Judy [physio] will fine tune my list of requirements, and probably suggest things I had not thought of.

Because I can spend up to 12 hours in my chair, 

it must fit me perfectly,

you try sitting in the one place for 12 hours and see how you feel!

If you can take your eyes off my beautiful skinny boy for a second,

you might notice that I am slumped down in my chair, and my chest harness is nearly choking me!!!!

I must have been tired when this picture was taken because I usually sit straighter,-- stops me getting  back ache.

Once we choose the correct chair, the real fun starts!!!

Our chairs come from the government, sounds good,

we are allotted $6000 for the base and $2000 for any modifications that might be needed.

That's the problem, 

 I have about $15,000 of modifications on my old chair!!!!!!

I have to find that money myself, it is a big problem.

Here comes the wonderful part ------

Nicole, in our little supermarket clearance centre in Bentleigh 

has offered to have a sausage sizzle to help raise money for me.

She, and her husband Luke, are trying to get other shopkeepers to help them.

I cannot believe how wonderful people can be.

The last seven days have been awful, 

this is such a lovely thing to happen.

I am very tired now, so I shall write more about their plans tomorrow.