The Story of Dax Wilder

1,095 days with Dax.

First I want to address this: How is my baby three years old already?

Dax celebrated his big day at Union Station. We had a day filled with sunshine (and strong winds, so we opted for something indoor). Dax’s playlist played in the car all afternoon. We watched an Under the Sea movie at the Planetarium and saw all of the Super Bowl decor. Dax liked the movement of the colors in the movie, but I think riding in the car was the most fun for him. Dax had many friends and family reach out to wish him a happy birthday – Dax had a yard sign, a basement filled with balloons, an announcement in the Kansas City Star, and a sweet tribute from Magnetic Me.

And at 4:55 PM, I was able to hold my sweet Dax in my arms. I can’t describe the peace and calmness I feel when I have my arms wrapped around him. It’s hard to describe how time feels, there’s always a mixture of emotions approaching his birthday; there’s excitement to celebrate a miraculous milestone, but at the same time, I want time to slow down, no amount of time will ever be enough. Dax goes through so much each day and his strength and fight to be with us earth side is incredible. He is a true miracle. I am so grateful that his life has surpassed over 1,000 days and his life has been filled with many memories, travel, love, and happiness. I feared that his life would be spent in and out of the hospital – and so far, it has been just the opposite. He is so loved.

Feel free to watch the entire interview, but I want you to specifically go to 10:22; when Brene talks about protecting the flame.

I know every family has different traditions, children are raised in different cultures and religions, accessibility varies… but I think as parents we all have similar wishes for our kids: we want our children to be kind, help others, and not change/conform to what society wants them to be. We always say that Dax is our wildflower, he’s going to grow into who he is supposed to be, without interference. I think this is a simple reminder to just be you and the right people will be in your life.

And Dax is kind, loving, he is helping others, and he’s making an impact. We connected with team members at Magnetic Me, and they were so touched by Dax’s story and our book, that they made a donation in his name to the NICU Dax spent time in.

We wish everyone a happy spring! We’re looking forward to warmer weather.

Happy New Year!

Once again, another season has passed since the last post. 2023 was quite the year. We are forever grateful that Dax has been riding a continuous wave and we’ve had minimal changes in his plan to keep him comfortable and happy. He has continued to grow and will soon be three years old. We’ve added three wonderful providers to Dax’s team of doctors and they are dedicated to following him.

This post will consist of mainly photos; that’s the easiest way to recap the last few months! We’ve been on lots of walks, to the park, zoo, and aquarium. And most importantly, Dax met Santa! We were even a little adventurous this holiday season and took the kids to Enchant Christmas to see all of the lights – we all survived the cold and it was most definitely worth it. Going to Enchant was a magical experience!

Our blog has reached 32 countries now, and has 44.8K views. Tyson ran a marathon for Dax, I became a published author, and Dax ended the year with a best friend; his little brother, Bodie. We’ll see what 2024 brings. Happy New Year!

Closing out the summer.

A whole season has passed since my last post. A lot has changed over here! We started off the summer with a new addition; Dax got a puppy! An English Bulldog named Frankie; he’s added a lot of chaos to the household! Ozzie’s still adjusting to another dog being in the picture, but they are very slowly becoming friends.

Over the summer, we ventured out to the park, the Farmer’s Market, and the pool. Dax still loves being outside and feeling the warm sunshine – and he really liked the cool splashes of water in the pool!

We’ve learned that Dax enjoys riding in the car – he instantly starts babbling once he’s buckled up in his car seat. He also likes the song “Takin’ it Back” by Meghan Trainor – he lights up when he hears it! Dax is also really fond of fish – we visited Sea Life at Crown Center for Father’s Day and Dax turned and looked at just about every fish tank we stopped at.

Tyson also put together a swing set for Dax! Dax has a ball rocking in the recliner, so we thought a swing would be perfect for him! Dax continues to progress on his path – he enjoys his home therapy visits with his PT, Miss Katie, she always thinks outside the box for him. We have a great team of doctors; including a wonderful dietician; we found a food blend that really agrees with Dax, he’s had quite the growth spurt! Dax is such a big boy and we are so so so proud of him. We recently celebrated his 2.5 birthday with sparklers on the back patio.

Not only did Dax get a puppy, but he also got a baby brother, too! We welcomed a healthy baby boy into the world on July 28 – Bodie Wirth. Dax has adjusted well to his new role – he’s the BEST big brother! We’ve kept the journey of adding another little bundle of joy to our family close to our hearts and will continue to do so as this online space is “Dax’s Story”. We are so grateful to be blessed with two perfect boys.

We hope you all have a great holiday weekend!

We can FINALLY share the big news…

I wrote a book! I’m officially a published author. I’ve kept the idea of writing a children’s book very close to my heart; I signed the contract with a self-publishing company based in Canada in July 2021, so to say that I’m excited to make this announcement is an understatement!

Since having Dax, I have found a real love for writing; it’s been very therapeutic for me. As a mother to a child with special needs, it felt like my mission to spread Dax’s story. Even though we’ve had great success with the blog, reaching 29 countries, I wanted something more.

I wanted our followers of the blog, and our friends and family to have something tangible; to have this story in their hands and feel inspired to live with gratitude; life is so much better when you shift your perspective! It really warms my heart to know that Dax’s cousins will have this book in their hands and feel even more connected to him.

I remember talking to Tyson and telling him that I wanted to write a children’s book one day based on our first trip with Dax. Tyson looked at me and said something along the lines of: “You’re already halfway there, books are based on experiences and we just lived it!” After that conversation, I started researching how to self-publish a book. 20 months later, I did it! My book is available globally! I really do believe that Dax’s Big Adventure! is here today because of my husband; he’s my biggest supporter and truly believes in me.

Writing a book has been one of my biggest accomplishments (aside from being Dax’s mom). I have spent hundreds of hours on this project and I’ve enjoyed each step in making this book come to life. Communication with my project manager and illustrator was primarily through email; each illustration needed a very detailed description so the illustrator could picture the same scene as me (34 illustrations = lots and lots of writing!).

Even though Dax’s Big Adventure! is listed as children’s book, I really do believe readers of all ages will enjoy it! I consider it more of a “family book”; I share some life lessons and a glimpse of my postpartum experience in hopes to help other new moms feel that they aren’t alone.

Dax was on my lap as I wrote my first manuscript. And there are no words to describe how grateful I am that he’s still with us and we can read our book together.

I hope you love this book just as much as we do, I’m really proud of it!

Find Dax’s Big Adventure! online at:

Amazon

Barnes and Noble

Walmart

In the process of writing a book, I’ve learned that printing errors can happen! If you receive a defective copy of the book, please contact the retailer and they should replace it for you!

Dax turns 2!

Dax is officially a 2 year old! And we celebrated big!

As you all know, Dax enjoys being outside and he absolutely loves warm weather. So it only made sense to travel to the Sunshine State for Dax’s extra special day. Once we got settled in our VRBO, we took Dax to the beach to get his toes in the Gulf… As soon as we parked the car and started walking on the ramp to the sand, Dax instantly started cooing and babbling – he was so excited to be at the beach! We dipped his toes in the water and he instantly pulled his feet up – he recognized the cold water! We were so happy to check another thing off that Dax has experienced – the ocean.

On his birthday, we spent the entire afternoon outside. We walked along the water at Harbor Walk Village, had lunch on a rooftop so Dax could enjoy looking at the sky while he ate, and we ended our day watching the sunset as the clocked turned to 4:55 PM. It’s truly amazing seeing Dax connect with Mother Nature – the human body is incredible. Dax could feel the warm sunshine on his face and he cooed nonstop while we sat on the beach and listened to the waves roll in. He is definitely in his element here in Florida.

We’re so proud of Dax and the progress he’s made – he’s stable, he’s happy, he’s comfortable, and he is SO LOVED. We’ve made many memories over this past year and we’ve enjoyed seeing Dax’s personality develop. We’ll continue to embrace each day with our sweet boy. We’re so grateful to be his parents.