[feebebe23]

I have been a lurker for some time now and unfortunatly my first post is not a good one.....

Some friends of ours were in a very bad auto accident....

mom-bilateral broken legs

8 yo girl-disembowled by seatbelt-2 surgeries so far-fractured spine (no paralysis) head trauma-no long term brain injury

4yo boy-paralyzed from the neck down-multiple surgeries-brain swelling-on a vent-unsure extent of brain injury at this time

We as a community have been collecting funds for this family and have set up an account at the bank for them....as I am sure money (and of course prayer) is needed by this family.

My questions to any PICU nurses out there is what might be an appropriate gift to send to these children....I thought gameboy for the 8yo as she will most likely be spending lots of time in the hospital both as a patient....and with her little brother as a visiter. But I am at a loss for what I might send to the boy. Games and toys seem inappropriate considering his condition. Any ideas out there?

We (the softball moms) have also discussed maid service for when they get home, meals, ect....but I hate to send the daughter something and not the son....

Thank you all in advance for suggestions...

[Emmanuel Goldstein]

How horrible

My prayers are with this family. And I think the idea of 'maid' service is excellent.

For the little boy, how about a disc music player? I don't work PICU, but have worked with brain-injured patients, and music therapy was used quite extensively.

[Sassybottom]

I just got chills reading your post ... how incredibly sad. What an incredibly heartbreaking story I think a good gift for the kids would be something that would remind them of how special and loved they are - i.e., a huge card with multiple signatures and get well wishes, a visit from a local mascot or someone these kids look up to, maybe a visit from the students in the child's class.Something that shows these kids that they are loved would probably what they need.

[earle58]

along the lines of what emmanuel suggested, how about audiotapes?
children this age, love stories.

my heartfelt prayers going out to this family.

leslie

[Spidey's mom]

Originally Posted by earle58

along the lines of what emmanuel suggested, how about audiotapes?
children this age, love stories.

my heartfelt prayers going out to this family.

leslie

My thoughts exactly - my kids loved books on tape. Especially adventures . .. . like "Adventures In Odyssey".

My prayers are offered also for this family.

steph

[bakpakr]

Such a sad story. My heart goes out for them. My prayers are with the family and all the know them for a speedy recovery.

I am not a PICU Nurse, not even a Nurse YET but, The Gameboy sounds great and along the lines of the disk music player how about an MP3 player.

[Preemienurse23]

The gameboy for the girl sounds like a good idea. As for the boy I wouldn't get something that could possibly "walk off" or get lost, like an MP3. Maybe a small radio/cd player, the music and audio books are excellent. And with that, friends and family could record messages to let him listen to.

[marilynmom]

I work in the PICU with children like this all the time.

I know some of the children's favorite toys are GameBoys, music CDs, portable dvd players so they can watch movies, audiobooks for some kids are good, just anything to keep their minds off things.

[feebebe23]

Thank you for all the suggestions.....I didn't even think of the cd player with music and books on tape. THATS why I posted here !! I knew you guys would have great ideas.

Here is a link for anyone who is interested

Henderson Daily News Online

I would never think to solocit monetary gifts from people online. However, my heart is breaking for this family. There is info on that website about a bank account that has been opened for them. So if you feel moved to help please don't hesitate. And please don't be offened by my suggestion.....I know this is not a forum for soliciting.

Thank you to anyone who has taken a moment to say a prayer for this family.

[Quickbeam]

Can I make a suggestion? If you do get electronics for either child, it would pay to have them engraved in some permanent way. I worked in pediatrics for over 10 years and stuff walks despite everyone's best intentions. Most jewelry stores can engrave it for you or ask an auto/trophy/detailing shop.