Wow! What a month! I’ve been meaning to write this update for some time, but each day Charbel was doing something new so I kept putting it off so I could include bigger and more exciting news, and I sure got what I wanted!

December has been an amazing month in terms of progress! Last month we were seeing the early signs of understanding and an increase in Charbel’s ability to interact with the world around him. This month, Charbel has made progress in leaps and bounds, all with a smile on his face and a willingness to accept any challenge.

The beginning of the month started off with Charbel using his right hand to give thumbs up signs and to shake hands. Gradually, he started to wave, give high-five’s and even to arm wrestle and play thumb wars! The left hand (and entire left side of the body) are still slower to move and react, but Charbel is working on a daily basis to strengthen both sides of his body and the improvement has been steady over the past month – he even started doing crunches while lying on his massage table – way to work the six pack!

Charbel stayed overnight at home for the first time on December 8th. We were all very happy and a little anxious to have him home, but it went well, and he has stayed overnight a total 7 times this month! Mom brought him home on Christmas Eve to stay for one night, but the next night, Charb didn’t want to go back to the hospital, and so he ended up staying the night of the 24th, 25th and 26! We had a great time with him. He also stayed over night on Friday, Saturday and Sunday the next weekend (New Years).

The most exciting news of the month has been the increase in Charbel’s ability to communicate with us. By mid November Charbel was able to signal ‘yes’ and ‘no’ by giving a thumbs up sign, or by blinking his eyes twice. Both of these methods, although a start, were somewhat difficult to interpret at times. A couple of weeks ago, Mom taught Charbel to shake his head for ‘no’ and nod for ‘yes’. Since then, he has been using this method to answer any and all questions we ask him – and so we established a clear and effective way to communicate.

But that wasn’t enough for Charb – he wanted to go all the way…

On Christmas Eve, mom heard Charbel say “mom” in the hospital. She was surprised and very excited to tell us, but we didn’t hear anything more that day. On Christmas Day, Charb was moving his lips and whispering words like “mama” and “baba” but without making a sound. Yesterday, we were all shocked when Charbel was not only mouthing words, but also making sounds! HE WAS TALKING!

Charb can now talk in full sentences! The day after he started talking, he counted to 10, said the entire alphabet, and told us how to spell his name! He also told mom that he wanted to eat a sandwich, and said “Hi” to his grandfather on the phone. His voice is getting stronger every day, and his ability to communicate and hold a ‘normal’ conversation is increasing with time!

Charb had many friends and family visiting him over the holidays, and we know this made a huge impact on him. On December 20th, around 20 of his friends from high school dropped by to wish Charb a Merry Christmas and hang out with him for the afternoon. Those that hadn't seen him in a while were amazed at his progress and how great he is looking! Charb was looking forward to their visit for several weeks and was very happy to see those familiar faces and hear funny stories about their crazy times at KES. Many, many other people dropped by around Christmas and New Years to see Charbel and all of their visits and gifts are greatly appreciated by all of us...Keep up the prayers and kind thoughts, they are working!

All this progress and in only a month – and what a month for such a wonderful miracle! Charb gave us, and all his friends and family, the best Christmas we could have ever imagined!

Rachel