Some physicians use fancy equipment, monitors, statistics and imaging devices to measure the health of their patients. As a parent with platinum level hospital miles from Grover’s various adventures, I have devised my own system. It allows me to gain perspective in relation to time and simultaneously serves as a barometer of Grover’s physical and emotional condition.

Here’s the best part – it is free to any male. One could even say it saves money, although the financial impact will not allow for early retirement.  I do not claim to have invented this device, as many before me have used it for a variety of purposes – but never with such great altruistic insight and scientific research.

The “Hospital Beard” is the product of 4 years of dedicated study, but is not yet accepted by the medical community or the FDA. Its detractors interpret it as a sign of hygienic  laziness, lack in pride of one’s appearance or an excuse to avoid shaving.  The aesthetic analysis is understandable, as this is certainly not an accessory that would land me on any “most beautiful” list. And there is an underlying truth behind the notion of not shaving due to a dislike of the ritualistic act. The “HB” is, however, much more than that.  As with many great inventions, it was stumbled upon because of its correctly attributed negative qualities, but has since become a constant through all of GT’s medical adventures.

Clinically speaking, Grover is very sensory driven. He uses his hands to learn, communicate and comfort himself (keep your minds out of the gutter J). At any given time, he is apt to reach for the nearest eyelash on any friend/caregiver during times of happiness, fatigue or discomfort. When he feels uncertainty about any situation – the presence of an eyelash, the sister-hair to the whisker, provides him with the feeling of safety. He has developed this association over time.

In times of heightened need for consolation, the HB comes out for the same reason. It’s his closer. His go-to move. His ringer.

It’s the equivalent of Jimmy Chitwood cleaning his Billy Berule with Kenny Butler’s Woobie. (Try andsort that out)

Grover feels the rough texture of whiskers, and is comforted by the coarseness against the palm of his hand.  It helps him to take his mind away from any concurrent aches, pains or pokes. In times of happiness, a 3 day shadow is every bit as entertaining for him as a 5 hour Elmo marathon. If the HB could be packaged and sold, we would be looking at the most effective feet tickling device on the market.  Suffice to say, it is a multi-faceted device, able to be cross-promoted within a number of market segments.

I was reminded of the importance of the HB today when I debated on removing it before going to Church. My appearance with the beard is sub-standard. It looks like 1 part laziness, 1 part adolescent and 2 parts hobo. Feeling pulled in two directions, I opted to let GT decide for me. When I offered the HB to him this morning, he immediately rubbed it as though it were Aladdin’s lamp.  But instead of his wish coming true – getting to go home and chase his cat – mine did, as I saw the first real smile from him since his surgery on Wednesday.

It’s no cure, and I question the merits of my own superstition. But for me, it’s a reminder of what he has to go through, how long it takes, and how wacky and far out some of the best methods of helping to ease the discomfort of a child can be. I’m sure everyone out there has their own “Hospital Beard”, its just a shame that mine makes me look like Jack Nicholson at the end of “The Shining”.

Big surprise for us tonight, an earlier than expected smile came from the brave patient! He convinced us that the oxygen mask was unnecessary and that drinking ice cold water from a cup would be good ideas. Turns out – he was right! All it took was an unobstructed face and some liquid. He gave a great big smile and threw out his favorite word immediately after.

The word “Hi” shot out of his mouth just like it would at home. Good to see the little guy coming back out. I can’t imagine what is going through his head half of the time up here, but I am eternally thankful that it doesn’t stay with him for long!

Even though we wish we didn’t know what to expect…it is good to know in advance how difficult “the day after” is on our Super Grover T.  He fully knows where he is, and is realizing that he is confined to a bed, moderately uncomfortable and connected to a number of blinking/beeping machines that distract him from my world-class singing and continuous stream of Elmo videos.

The doctors have monitored all of his important vitals, stats and levels throughout the night – and the prognosis continues to be very positive! He still looks VERY good, and despite the above mentioned distractions, we can tell that Grover will be back to normal in no time at all!

He definiteply got some rest last night, which is good b/c it will come at a premium for him as today goes along. We are blessed with an incredible nurse and support staff. We hope that none of you will need the services here at Medical City – but if you do, let us know and we will give you a few “preferred” names!

Thanks again to everyone for the kind words, visits, calls, emails, prayers, notes and well wishes. It continues to lift us up and inspire us. We are very grateful!

From all we have heard so far, Grover’s procedure was a great success! The little guy was a champ like always and seems to be on the road to recovery. We know the next 2 days will be pretty difficult, mainly consisting of in vein efforts to keep him calm – if memory serves, 4 year olds do not typically like to be forced to stay still AND in bed with wires attached unnaturally to their bodies.

The good news is, he looks VERY good, all of his statistics and labs are coming back in an ideal range, and the doctors all seem pleased with what he is showing them!

Thanks again to everybody for their prayers and words of encouragement. Times like this help us realize how blessed we are to have such a great group of family and friends.

Grover’s surgery is scheduled for first thing tomorrow morning. He will be receiving a new valve to replace the one that is not functioning effectively.  It has been very difficult for us to come to grips with another stay in the hospital, but know that the grace of God, the prayers of our family and friends, our medical team’s expertise and Grover’s fighting spirit prevail and our lives will return to normal very quickly.

We will be updating his site regularly, and hope that you will check in from time to time to see his progress. Who knows, as he gets better, you might even be treated to the sequel of Grover’s first full-length feature film – An Evening with Grover T, which was shot in 2009 during a less eventful stay at Children’s.

Anyone who has been in the same room as Grover can attest to the love, laughs and happiness that surround him. While the next few days will be very tough, we know that our little super hero will again prevail in the end – and he will be back to his old tricks in no time at all.

Thank you for joining us on this journey. It means the world to us all.

God Bless,

Super Grover T. and family

For those of you who missed Grover’s first video, SGT Studios has agreed to re-release it for a limited engagement:

We recently learned that Grover is going to need a valve replacement very soon. We knew this would happen at some point, but did not think it would be this soon.  Grover had a procedure done today in preparation for the valve replacement procedure, and did very well.

We will keep all of our friends posted as the surgery draws closer, but ask that you keep him in your prayers.

In other news, we all had an amazing Easter! Here are a few pictures of the fun we all had!

I have been incredibly busy lately, to the point that my kids seem different by the time a new weekend rolls around. I’ve had a smile on my face all day, as I was able to spend almost every waking minute with Grover and Avery from Friday afternoon until they went to bed Sunday night. I needed it. It was a reminder of why Jennifer and I do all the things we do, but more importantly it reminded me what is most important in life.

Grover continues to inspire me with his love of life, ability to make everybody around him happy and true spirit. Here are a few pictures from the weekend, ones that I will cherish forever.

“Some of the kids we work with even learn how to work a microwave”

Is this the kind of optimism you would want to hear from a person whose job is to motivate and inspire your child? Grover’s first physical therapist said this to us during our first session. Keep in mind he was only 2 months old at the time.  Suffice to say, we were not inspired by the long-term outlook. This might have played a part in her very short tenure as Grover’s PT.

I thought about that conversation again as I watched my wife lead a cooking class for the Down Syndrome Guild of Dallas’ Young Adults group. I watched as these aspiring chefs made a number of complex dishes from scratch. We’re talking crepes, sauces and fillings. They took many individual ingredients and turned them in to amazing dishes. If that is not enough, I watched one of the students masterfully (and effortlessly) cook 4 dishes at once on a stovetop. Another student mastered a very complicated food processor and to create an amazing crepe filling.

Even though this was a class where my wife and I were “the teachers”, we were the ones who received the education.  Mastering a skill or a process is something we can all do. But to do this with pure joy and happiness in your heart is what everyone needs to learn.

I remember being worried about whether or not the students would have fun during this class, or want to pay attention.  This concern quickly vanished, as I watched 14 faces light up while they learned of the menu they would be preparing.

I should not be surprised by this. Grover teaches me lessons every day about what it truly means to be happy. While spending a Saturday afternoon cooking with my new group of friends, I felt overwhelmed by the joy and love in their hearts and minds. They poured this in to everything they did. And the amazing thing is that they did this effortlessly. Naturally. The only way they know how.  With happiness, joy and love in their hearts.

In retrospect, I am glad that we were inadvertently challenged to inspire our son to achieve more than basic mastery of a microwave.  Our goal as parents has never been  to motivate our son based on a need to prove others wrong. We are motivated by the idea of giving everybody the opportunity to find  what they love to do. Because when you find something you truly love, you do it often and you do it well. This is actually an easy task when the thing you love most in life is friendship, good food and happiness.

I hope you enjoy the video.

DSG Cooking Class – Young Adults

We are having a wonderful holiday season! Its been great to see all of our friends, and we hope there is more to come. Here are a few pictures of our adventures from the past few days – hope you enjoy!

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We are still recovering from a wonderful holiday season! Here are a few of our pictures – notice nobody was sick, nor requiring the attention of a physician. This was a true Christmas miracle!


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