Celebrating 1 Week @ Home!

It's hard to believe that dad has been home a week today! It's flown by really, with all that we have been learning in caring for dad. We are all getting pretty comfortable with his care, some things are easier than others to do, but overall - dad's thinks we are "certified" to care for him. He only met one therapist today - his speech therapist came for an evaluation to determine what her schedule will be with dad. We are to meet his Physical therapist Wednesday and Occupational therapist Thursday or Friday.  Pam & I got him up this morning for breakfast and he ate really good - he is really eating so much better than he did at rehab- it's still not a lot, but much better.  I think he is getting stronger because of mom's good cookin!

Today dad got to sit in his recliner - my sister Pam, who has been with him since Sunday evening, says he is very happy about that. We are also researching about either renting or leasing (or purchasing) a wheelchair accessible van for us to use until dad is able to transfer from chair to a vehicle without so much assistance. We do have someone who is allowing us to borrow their van right now, but we don't want to inconvenience anyone or run into conflicts with their schedule. If anyone has any information regarding this or knows of someone with a van like this that they are not using, we would love to have that contact information. Please call me on my cell (283-4438) if you have some info regarding this.

Hope you all have a safe and happy new years eve! My brother Timmy is coming in this evening to relieve Pam at 7 and will spend New Years Eve with dad and mom. Then tomorrow my other 2 brothers have back to back shifts, Dave in the morning and Tommy at night. Our brother Tommy is preparing to leave for China on Friday for his job. Please keep him in your prayers - he will be there a month and it is going to be very hard for him to be gone from dad and his own family.

Thanks to everyone who is volunteering to help us with meals, errands, visits, etc. It means so much - we always knew we had a big family - but lately it seems a whole lot bigger!!!

Quiet Sunday

Hey folks - not much to report today. . . dad had a pretty quiet day. He did have some visitors from church that he enjoyed seeing and then the rest of the day was spent with family. Mom said dad was bit of a chatter box today - a bit confusing at times.

Tomorrow is a big day - we expect the three therapists to visit to evaluate him for his therapy plans. We are really praying for great people who can make a difference in dad's recovery - he certainly is "itching" to be able to get out of that bed without our help. With dad's determination and your prayers - I know he will accomplish that some day. I was inspired by this scripture today. . .“I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.”- John 16:33

I know that beccause Jesus lives in my dad's heart - he too will overcome this obstacle that he now faces - thanks for believing that with us!

Another Good Day at Home

Hey everyone - just getting around to posting after a full day here at mom & dads. We have had a great day with dad. He has been in pretty good spirits all day. He ate well at every meal. We did a little bit of therapy together - we worked on leg lifts & pushes. He was pushing well with that left leg - I was really pleased. He enjoyed some company, one of mom's sister's - Aunt Patty- came from Baltimore to see him with her daughter Shelly and that was good for him. My gang was here most of the day too - so of course, there is never a dull moment! Dad's vitals are doing good - his blood levels came back good from the doctors office - so there will be no change in his coumadin for now. After dinner tonight - he sat up in his wheel chair and watched the WVU basketball game with us for a good while - they are all still out there cheering them on thru the overttime. I think he is pretty worn out because he really didn't nap much today. So we are hoping for a peaceful night for him. Thanks for checking in - keep Dad in your prayers. He said today - "I hate to wish time away, but I sure am looking forward to warmer weather and seeing if my body might work better when its not so cold out." We keep encouraging dad that this is only a temporary season for him as his body and mind heal - and that he will get better. He said - "if I could just do a couple of things for my grandkids or kids, that would make me feel better." So we are going to try to find some tasks for him to do to make him feel productive around here. We love you all!

Busy Day at the Kisners

Dad had a busy day today.  He had 2 visits from home health - one nurse to draw blood for his weekly blood levels test and one who assisted mom with bathing & grooming dad and checking vitals.  He also had about 7 visitors this morning & afternoon.  He enjoyed everyone of them!  He enjoyed a great meal that mom cooked of one of his favorites and even enjoyed some cognitive therapy at the kitchen table practicing writing his name and his childrens and grandchildren.  He stayed up til about 10pm and now he and mama are sleeping soundly while me and Lexy are watching the Disney channel in their room.  He seems to be pretty good medically speaking - no pain lately - but then again, he hasn't had a really good work out since Monday before he left.  We are really looking forward to physical therapy starting next week because I think he misses it!  Thanks for checking in - we love you all!  

The Miracle Men of 2007

Dad was having a very "sad" day today and then his "buddy" Donald Greenwalt and his family (our friends from The Living Room) came to visit him and it really cheered him up. We call Donald and Dad our miracle men of 2007 - first dad survived this awful stroke on Oct. 16th, then Nov. 6th Donald went to the ER with blood pressure that was over 240 - and would be told by doctors that the masses that had literally grown from his abdomen to his heart would probably take his life - well, it ended up Donald did not have cancer afterall - he has a rare disease that is treatable - he survived and beat all the slim odds the doctors had given him for survival! These 2 guys are truly God's miracles! Dad really likes Donald (he calls him Donnie) and his wife Patty and their 5 children. He loves to give them a hard time every Sunday in the Cafe. God does answer our prayers and just like Donald has received the wonderful news that his sickness can be cured - we are believing that dad will be healed too.

Thanks to all of you who have stopped in to visit. You are really encouraging to dad. He is very anxious to start therapy again - I think he actually misses it. I think he is worried that if he doesn't get started soon - he will not get better. His therapists should begin coming Monday. He will have a home health nurse tomorrow come to draw blood for his "coumadin" check - (they have to check his blood - to make sure it is not thinning too much - it has to be just right in order to prevent a clot and yet not bleed out again).

Other than the emotional aspect of today, Dad's vitals remain good and he is resting well. He does still have a good bit of confusion about various things. But that is to be expected. Thanks for your daily support and prayers - we need all we can get!

Settling In

There has been so much excitement with bringing dad home Christmas eve, then celebrating Christmas with him yesterday. . . today was our first real settling in day. We are trying to get dad on a routine - and get our schedules figured out for assisting mom around the clock - and today, Panhandle Home Health arrived to do the initial assessment to get everything started. Dad was a little emotional today - he is just looking around seeing so many memories on the walls and realizing he is home and I think it is hard for him to be home and not be the way he used to be. So I guess as good as it is for him to be home with us - it is also a time of sadness for him too as he realizes his limitations. This whole journey is very emotional and we just try to take things one day at a time. We are still praying and believing for dad to be able to regain mobility and some independence with his daily activities, please pray with us that dad will continue to get better and improve in his physical strength and cognitive abilities to return to the life he once knew. He does have a lot of work ahead. . . but we are asking God to just take control of this whole situation and work in dad's life!

The Most Amazing Christmas!

We had the most amazing Christmas with dad! He rested so well last night and woke up around 4:30am. We were able to get him into his wheelchair in the morning and evening for mealtimes and the rest of the day he sat in the upright position in his bed just enjoying his big family! We tried to take shifts visiting because each one of us packs a powerful punch with our children and in 3 siblings case, grandchildren. He did very well, even at some high traffic times. He smilled and even laughed more today than I have seen him since his stroke. Being home for Christmas definitely agreed with dad - and us! His blood pressure is very good and he seems to be tolerating the move well. We are expecting home health to call tomorrow to set up a home evaluation to assess his needs. Today he said to us "I need you guys to find a specialist to help fix my back and my legs. . ." We told him he would be having 3 specialists coming to the house to help him and he was very happy about that. Hope you all had a wonderful Christmas! Happy Birthday Jesus - we love you!