drum roll please .....

TA DA! saylor cathed herself by herself, completly by herself ... for REAL!

so we thought this day was far away perhaps a year or so ... at the soonest 6 months. we were told to teach her to cath herself one step at a time. so first we had her pull her own catheter out each time we cathed. only two weeks ago we started having her insert the catheter herself after we scrub every one involved down so its sanitary and lube her clean cath for her, set her up with a cup or at the toilet etc... just the other day i contemplated sort of adding another step. then i started to feel like no ... she isnt ready yet to juggle things physically the multiple objects that contribute to the madness. then today happened ...

well first let me say that there was a precurssor milestone to this one. saylor went to a school friends house today, by herself. meaning not one of my friends with a child who is her friend. not someone that she is very used to and is helping me out, meaning her friend and she went over there and i did not stay with her. never really done before. big step for both of us. she did fantastic. i had cathed her right before she went and she was only gone 2 hours so it wasnt quiet time to cath when we arrived home. however i did want her to wash her hands. she can do this on her own! lol. so i sent her to her room to wash up. i guess she thought this meant it was also time to cath. while i was studying in the kitched she quietly took it upon herself to go ahead and cath. then she came into the kitchen and announced loud and proud .... I JUST CATHED MYSELF, i replied loud and confused .... WHAT? so i went into her bathroom with her and sure enough she had washed her hands, gotten a clean cath out of her bucket, put a little lube on a clean paper towell, lubed the cath, inserted it and drained her pee into her pee cup, then pulled it out and proudly left the pee cup full for evidence. i tell you people i am ASTOUNDED! should i be though .... i have always known what a smart cookie she is yet i am baffled by her undertaking of this huge responsibility without even a suggestion from her 'rents!

she never ceases to AMAZE me ... who is this queen of queens in my home? who is this angel? i dare say i dont even understand the magnitude of the gift i have been given. her docs will be in shock that this quickly after surgery and at the age of only 5 she responsibly and sanitarily took this under her own doing. i feel overdrived with a natural high!