Joy and sorrow are constant companions on this journey.  Today was bittersweet.  It was wonderful to have the exuberance of Lydia's brothers and cousins with her at Holland Bloorview, cheering her on in her therapy; and yet maybe their presence made it more difficult for Lydia, because all day long, she just asked"Can we please go home now?"  Sometimes she cried and protested being there. Other times, she just whispered that she didn't want to be there.  It is hard for her siblings and cousins to see her cry.  Their compassion leads them to want to comfort her and stop the crying.  Sometimes she cries all the harder at their tenderness.
There was laughter today, and some fun times too.  (We had just hoped for more of these, and very little of the sorrow.)  In OT, her therapist quickly changed plans to include all of us in a game of Go Fish. They are working on improving Lydia's short term memory, so it was a good challenge for Lydia to remember when it got to her turn, to ask her cousin if she had any fours!  (She did remember, and got the pair, to Josie's chagrin!)  We laughed when we played on the playground together today too. 
We pray that tomorrow is a better day for Lydia, and that she is more at peace at Holland Bloorview.  Perhaps with fewer cherished reminders of home with her, she will be more content.
At day's end, we return to a verse we have recited many times:
Romans 15:13  May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace, as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the  power of the Holy Spirit.