Next Step

I've started this post several times last, but brain was way too foggy to put a sentence together last night so I'm trying again this morning. It looks like the big news from Tuesday was that we will be making the next step of our journey to rehab at BRI on Thursday. The BRI admit nurse came for an assessment & visit with Mom about the transition.

BRI is the rehab institute affiliated with Baptist Hospital in Little Rock. I've been visiting church members in BRI for years & the results with patients are amazing! We are praying for the same results for Daddy. This next step of the journey will be a difficult one for many reasons.

While Daddy is in rehab, Mom will not stay with him. This will be the first time ever that he has been in the hospital when she hasn't stayed overnight with him...or ALL the time for a matter of fact. So that will be a huge adjustment for both of them. Also, his therapy will be very intense which will be exhausting as well as frustrating at times. Pastor Rick just keeps reminding us that we are running a marathon not a sprint & to think about where we were Friday. I need to constantly be reminded of both those things! Not very many people can run a marathon without points of frustration, but they set their eyes on the finish line & continue to push through the pain, frustration & fatigue.

We have already seen some frustration with him trying to speak to tell us. We get frustrated since we can't understand and even more so for him! We just keep reminding him that it will just take some time, but he will be able to talk again. He had speech yesterday & his therapist was working with him on making different mouth shapes which he did. He also had PT twice yesterday. He sat assisted on the side of bed in the morning using his right hand to help support himself. Then for PT in the afternoon, his therapist & his nurse actually stood him up on a walker 3 or 4 times to begin that reconnection from his leg to his brain that there's work to be done.

I know I keep repeating myself in saying how much we appreciate everyone, as I've also said words cannot begin to express our gratitude. Thank you for the visits, calls & offers to help with anything.

We are very thankful for every victory...big & small! Please continue to pray for his recovery as well as Mom (Grant & I also) for peace & endurance through this journey. We are taking one day at a time & asking the Lord to let us not miss the lesson in each day. He is in control & we trust Him completely! Thank you to each & every one of you who is praying, calling & offering help. Part of God's faithfulness has been the incredible support system He has surrounded us with. What a blessing!!!

WOW!!!

Dr. Roy Buckelew, one of our favorite college professors, used to say, "WOW" when he was awed by God's grace & how He was working in people's lives. Today, "WOW" seems the only adequate way to express how we feel about our day. The day began as the past few, except for the rainy drive to the hospital.

Daddy had a very full day today. His day consisted of...
•Physical therapy
•Another hyperbaric chamber treatment (time where he gets 400% oxygen to stimulate the stroke sight)
•Physical therapy...sat with help on the side of the bed for a couple of minutes
•Swallow study
•Multiple doctor's visits & a few other guests

Now here's the exciting parts...
I got another smile this am when I arrived at the hospital while talking to Daddy & holding his hand. We are seeing some small, small movements on the right side. We will take it! Mom spent some time outside during lunch while Daddy was at his chamber treatment. My cousin, Lauren & her sweet baby, Austin, came to visit with us for a while. Thank you Lauren! While we were outside, Sandra came by with some goodies, which have already been enjoyed ;-) Thank you Sandra! We ended up cutting our time outside short bc we saw the doctor pull into the parking lot & we didn't want to miss him making rounds.

All of the excitement started when one of our former music minister's from Magnolia came to see us. We had a wonderful visit w/ Ken & he had just prayed for us when Daddy started to wake up. Ken went to the end of the bed & started talking to him. Daddy smiled at him!!!! We were so excited that he recognized someone he hasn't seen in several years. WOW!!!!

He enjoyed his first meal in several days...mashed potatoes & applesauce. He ate all of his potatoes & at least half the applesauce. While he was eating, we had some friends call to say that they were dropping off some goodies so I went to meet them at the elevator. While I was there, another couple showed up. We stood in the lobby & visited for a while then I told them we could walk down towards the room to so that they could at least hug Mom, but not go in the room. I walked in to tell Mom they were & that she could step out for a minute. Well, what I didn't know was that while I had my back to Daddy, he raised his left & motioned for everyone to come into the room. They came in & as they all said hello he gave Olan the biggest grin! As everyone spoke to him he made grins & smirks when teased! We were absolutely thrilled to have seen such expression of emotion to others. We all prayed & were so thankful for the progress he was making. WOW!!!!

Not long after they left, Dr. Murphy was making rounds. He came in & said that he was thrilled with the fact that Daddy was looking him in the eyes & that he was doing so well. He just couldn't believe it! WOW!!!!

Then within about 15 minutes, Dr. Thomas came in making his rounds. He was equally impressed & pleased with the progress that Daddy is making. We even asked if we were too excited about everything that happened throughout the afternoon & he said absolutely not!!! WOW!!!

All of those were God moments! God has been totally faithful in giving us the grace, patience & peace these past days. Not to say that we haven't had our fair share of tears, anxiety & frustration. We have! We have somewhat taken turns though so that we are able to hold each other up when one is weak. We know that the strength & endurance that we have experienced the past days is from God & Him alone bc He is faithful all the time & the sweet prayers of all of you. I've said it before, but will continue to say that our words are completely inadequate in expressing our appreciation for your calls, texts, visits, goodies & above all, prayers! Please continue to remember our family in your prayers in the days and weeks to come. We are running a marathon, not a sprint so we will be on this journey for a while. We are not guaranteed anything except that God is good, all the time!!! All glory to Him & Him alone.

P.S. Please excuse any missing words or typos...remember I'm sleep deprived!

Miracles

It seems all too often these days that my plans for the day are not what actually happen...and if you know me very well I like a plan to work! Hello, my name is Laurie & I have control issues. There, now that's out of the way & you understand where I'm coming from.

Mom & Grant (my brother) stayed at the hospital last night with Daddy. I went home to spend time with my family which was much needed. Mom wanted me to go to church & come to the hospital later. I thought that was a good idea also so that was the plan. Well,
Mom had text me a few times & I just knew that I needed to go. Pastor Rick always says "if you have to ask yourself whether to go or not, then go." So I came on to the hospital.

Mom didn't know I was coming so she was surprised! I went over to talk to Daddy. I was holding his hand talking to him when he smiled at me! I about jumped straight off the ground! What a miracle from where we were Friday! I'm glad that I'm here since some special friends of Mom's from Magnolia showed up about 20 after I got here she was able to go out & visit with them while I stayed with Daddy.

He is resting pretty well & still very sleepy so we are trying to stay quiet. The speech pathologist came in yesterday & worked him some. He ate some applesauce for her & drank some water. He will have a swallow study on Monday to get some pictures making sure everything is going down properly. He wasn't too interested in eating this am, but it will happen. He helped bathe himself which was a really good thing!

We are able to see God's hand on everything all day long! God is faithful & we know He will give us the grace & strength to endure the days of this journey. As I reminded Mom this morning, we are not promised tomorrow so we take one day at a time & praise God for all the miracles along the way!

The Next Day

Yesterday is a day that I would like to quickly forget, but will never likely happen. My dad was scheduled for a routine

heart cath & a couple of stents. He's had these procedures done a couple of dozen times...yes, that many! Everything was as usual until the doctor was getting to place the second stent. A piece of plague broke off from his artery & traveling to his brain...resulting in a massive stroke! His doctor's words were "a big, big stroke!" We were told that death was imminent & there was no hope. God immediately put people in the consultation room with us before Daniel could even arrive from just a few miles up the interstate. People were praying & God was working!

As the day continued & more people came to love, hug & encourage us God continue to cover us with His grace & mercy! I'm saying that I wasn't breathing into a papersack...bc I was! But God was there! Every time the doctor returned he said that things better & not as bad as first expected. He was finally physically stable & moved to a room. We were warned that there was certain damage, but we would not know the extent until he began to awake from the drugs used during the procedures and the stress of the stroke. We were prepared for the worst. Waiting, waiting & waiting is the name of the game at the hospital though.

Dr. Thomas, the neurologist, finally came by the room this afternoon to give us the results from all the reports of the tests. He said his stroke was in the front lobe of the brain. Strokes in this area of the brain cause extreme drowsiness & sleepiness for several days so Dr. Thomas said rest is the best thing for him right now. He didn't even wake him to examine him. He wants him to rest as much as possible!

The wonderful miracle is that Dr. Thomas says frontal lobe injuries are the easiest to recover from & he said that he should regain his speech & movement over time with therapy!!! We have a very long road before us, but God is in the business of working miracles.

We are praising God for His love, grace & mercy! Thank you to everyone for their countless prayers, calls, texts & fb messages. We are trying to respond to everyone, but please understand if it's not immediate. Words cannot begin to express our gratitude for you interceding to the throne for our family!

A Great Friday

This afternoon, AK & I went to have her fitted for her flower girl dress for Jill & Brandon's wedding in April. She was completely facinated to go to the "dress store." She sat at the desk waiting on our consultant just like a grown-up...even the lady commmetted about how well behaved she was. Trust me, it was her being in pure awe...not her typical behavior in a store. She's not bad, but she just has lots of energy! Ha!


While she was trying on the dress she looked up at me & said, "I'm going to look like Stacy!" She attended our her first wedding a few weeks ago for our student minister, Clay, & his wonderful bride, Stacy! She has been in awe ever since of weddings, pretty princess dresses, and ultimately Miss America! Ha!


Once she came out of the dressing room & saw herself in the mirrors, her real personality came out! She started twirling & singing..."I'm going to be the flower girl! I'm going to be the flower girl!".


Her real dress will be an eggplant with an ivory sash! I can't to see the real one on her!!

Shawn was hanging out @ Nana & Grandpa's while did the girly dress thing so when we got back to place she decided she wanted to spend the night with them tonight...so that meant that I was able to have a date night with my special boy!

We have all been craving Chinese food so we ate China Buffet then headed to Hastings or coffee & Shawn picked out a book for his Valentine's Day gift! Then a quick trip to Wally World.

Now we are on the couch together...Shawn has his book & I'm blogging!!


I would say close to a perfect afternoon...only better if I had had a date with my man in there somewhere!!! Maybe soon!

Laurie

Winter Wonderland

WOW!!! We were predicted to get a few inches of snow...well, the weather guys finally nailed it on the head this time! We got at least 6 inches! It's crazy!


It started snowing exactly when they said it would Sunday afternoon & immediatly began to stick. It didn't stop snowing until late last night. It was absolutely beautiful & I've loved looking out of front window watching the snow come down.


We've been in & out enjoying the all the white stuff.


It's a lot of work to get a 3 year old dressed & ready to go out. That alone will wear you out, but worth every minute.





Anna Kate & daddy worked on a snowman...well, daddy did most of the work & AK would come over & supervise the work.


Shawn had a rolling down the hill snowball fight with some neighborhood boys & had a blast.


He also decided to build his own snowman & attempt to make a Guiness Book of World Records with the smallest snowman...surprisingly there's not one!


He also combined 2 great loves...


Snow & Sonic Cherry Coke!!! Ha!

All in all it's been a great 2 days...snow, family, chili, red beans & rice, and of course, Sonic!!! Out of school again tomorrow so we will see what a new day holds. We will just try to focus on enjoying it now & not think about the fact that we will have to go longer in June :-(

Happy Snow Day everyone!
Laurie

A Christmas Miracle

Well.....it actually happened & it was a success!!!!!!!!


We got a picture with BOTH children on Santa'a lap!!!!! Anna Kate has been some kinda serious about Santa this year & NOT in a good way!

Anytime someone will ask her if Santa is coming to see her, she ducks her head & shakes it in a very emphatic "No!" Then they look at me like I'm the evil, wicked step-mother from Cinderella! So then I explain how we really aren't a fan of the "fat man" as Grandpa affectionately calls him...by her choice NOT anyone else's persuasion!!!!

Shawn & my dad have tried relentlessly to persuade her to reconsider, but she is a red-head & boy is she is stubborn!!!! Finally one a day a couple a couple of weeks ago, she informed someone who asked "the" question that "Santa could take her presents to Nana & Grandpa's house then they would bring them to her!" I was shocked!!! She had seriously been very quietly contemplating this entire strange fat man coming into our house while we sleep matter, and she had figured out a way to have her cake & eat it too!

All of that to say, Shawn's choir from church sang at the courthouse last night at the annual Christmas celebration & guess who happened to be there...Santa & Mrs. Claus were perche in the gazebo greeting visitors throughout the evening. AK decided she wanted to go take a peek from the side over the railing. Then I heard the words that almost made me drop her from arms right then & there out of pure shock...."I want to take a picture with Santa!"

I went back to Daniel & we assessed the situation which was that the line was all the way down one sidewalk, around the corner of the hot chocolate & cookie house and down another sidewalk to the street!!!! Now was not the time for an indecisive 3 year old to be calling the shots. I had watched the line & knew that people had been in lime for anywhere from 30 minutes to an hour without even reaching Santa.

We decided that we would walk around to look at all the displays & lights then regroup (have pix on camera for another time). Well, the entire time AK talked about taking a picture with Santa, taking a picture with Santa, and on & on! So what's a Daddy to do except get in line knowing that he's about to spend an hour of his life wasted standing in line to see Santa & have his little girl run in terror.

We had not planned very well & didn't eat before we went. We had no idea that this was the happening place to be in town! So as people were beginning to unravel due to fatigue & lack of nuritionment I took the kids to drive thru "Old Mac Donald's" as it's known at our house, well because it's Benton & that is the closest place to downtown :-p

We went back to have a picnic in the car as AK says to wait for news to approach the target. Daniel text that he had rounded the corner which was our cue to move. Then that he was getting close to the steps so we took off. Thankfully she was still saying, "I want to take a picture w/ Santa."

We only had to wait maybe 5 minutes with Daniel in line which I am very grateful to my husband for! The little boy in front of us seemed to have similar feelings about the fat man as AK & didn't want any part of the experience so I stood in front of AK so she wouldn't see him crying & thrashing about to give her any ideas. Finally, it was our turn...Shawn jumped right up on his lap since he has never had a fear of anyone or anything dressed up! I picked AK up & sat her on Santa's lap and....she smiled!!!!!! She looked up at him & began telling him what she wanted for Christmas! We were taking pictures like nobody's business!!!!

Daniel & I were both I'm shock...think I still am! Ha!

So for not blogging for a few, ok several months, I thought this was a pretty good story to come back with!

Merry Christmas everyone!!!!!!