teamMarius

Hello to all Marius Fans!

It has been way too long since we've sent an update on Marius and his life so we'd like to catch everyone up now. He is doing fantastic in all arenas and we are so thrilled for him and his progress.

First and foremost, he started school full time and is a full-fledged 3rd grader at MacArthur Elementary School. We had him stay back a grade due to the 1/2 grade missed after the fire and because of the language barrier. We felt the best place to put him was back one year to take advantage of the gaps that may exist due to his accident. We have had a tremendous experience. I've been in meetings where 8 to 10 reps from the school district have been there to coordinate every aspect of his learning. We have developed plans which have been put in place and will follow him throughout his education so they will have as much leeway as possible to get him all the help he needs. His favorite is a "sweet" little laptop that he uses to type all of his assignments on. It is "wireless" and can print out his work from the printer in his classroom. It can speak to him the words he has typed and comes with little earplugs and speakers that he can use when it is necessary. He thinks he it is pretty cool and we are thrilled he's thrilled. The district has bent over backword to make sure he has all that they can offer to make his learning experience successful and positive. We are so grateful to them for all they have done to help him and us! He will probably need some tutoring most likely as he makes the transition from reading to writing in english but we're hopeful it won't take us too long to get him up to speed entirely in English.

He enjoys school and as a friend mentioned as he walked to school today -- "he just seems to have such a spring in his step." He is happy and Dave mentioned we need to take pictures of him and have a "day in the life of Marius" on the website. He walks to school (okay it is across the street) but it is still great to see him walk to the cross walk with Madison, Jeremy and Elena and fit in so naturally. I've walked to school with him to talk with his teacher and he really is quite the celebrity. Everywhere we go, no matter the grade, all you hear is Hi Marius, Hi Marius until you get to your destination. Once he just held his hand up and laughed to me that it was easier that way because he didn't have to go up and down and up and down. We still have moments when walking home the other day he said quite matter of factly: Some little kids look and me and I know they think I look weird but it's okay. As much as that pierced my heart, it was wonderful to hear that he could handle that and would be fine in the long run. He seems to accept that there will always be differences and though they cause twinges of heartache, he is ready and up for the challenge.

He started Karate lessons at a local gym and seems to really like it. It is fun to hear him shout "Kiyaaah". He is quite a natural and is constantly showing us how he is able to stretch more and more since he came to America. We love that. He has his own little outfit (I know, it is called a gee but I don't know how to spell that) and that has brought him so much joy to get in and out of that. We'll have to put a pause in that for his upcoming surgery as both his hand and his foot will be affected, but we'll squeeze in what we can as soon as he figures out what he can do and can't do in the next few weeks.

His other great love is magic. Dave's brother Joe is quite the magician and had shown the children some magic tricks. Marius was instantly captivated and the next week Joe gave him his own magic trick with cards. He loved to show us how that worked! He received an online order of tricks for his birthday from Jake but we're waiting for their arrival still. He came home from San Diego with four really cool new tricks. It's difficult because you have to get tricks that he can do w/o fingers. These were perfect! He uses his teeth to do the invisible ball trick and it is the cutest thing ever! We'll include those in our "Day in the Life" because it is priceless. Perhaps Dave can upload a video with the whole trick because you will be amazed! Dave is nickname king and several weeks ago before this magic stuff happened he had given Marius a new nickname: Mariushka. Now that Marius is our resident magician it has expanded to Mariushka El Maravilloso. It's always said with enough theatrical vibrado that Marius' smile always ignites. We're getting him a box for all of his tricks and he insists on a lock! A real magician if I ever saw one.....

The best news is that he will be heading to Shriners Hospital again on February 17th to have his next surgery. We went to the hospital on January 22nd and met with the hand surgeon and they have mapped out what the next few months will hold there. They will take his right toe and put it on his right hand at this next surgery and then in a couple of months they will take the 2nd toe from the left foot and make the finger for the right hand. We'll see how that goes and then proceed to do some more work on his face, probably his nose and the scarring on his face. Then as Marius makes decisions on how his hand is working, we will assess what he wants to do regarding the other hand. So if you will keep him in your prayers, we would love that. We have been told that there is a definite chance (10% according to the specialist who does the transfer) that the could lose the toe. His biggest concern was circulation-- Not blood flow into the toe/thumb but back out. So we could use all the help you can offer on that front.

We wanted to let you know about one last but significant happening. We have received the capacity to accept donations on Marius' behalf through a 501(3)(c) corporation. It is the California Burn Foundation and in the next few weeks there will be a button linking their website to ours where if you want to donate and receive a tax write-off, you can! And the good news is that 90% of those funds go to Marius! So if you or someone you know is looking for a wonderful charity, we hope you'll consider this. Please contact me (480.610.0909) or Lynne Woodward (619.861.1974) with any questions you might have on how this works and we would be happy to point you in the right direction.

Thanks for everything each of you do. We are sure most of you are aware of the 15 minute "documentary" done on Marius and his brother Ionut but if not, head to the website and click on the link and you'll will get to see the entire program. It was fantastic. We'll be in touch soon after the surgery, letting you know how it went.

Warmly,

Kristin Free