Looking 4 Prayers of Encouragement & Healing

Hey family and friends, I am sending out a special request tonight that you flood heaven with lots and lots of prayers for dad tonight and tomorrow.  He is going thru a very frustrating, sad and confusing stage of his illness and he really needs our encouragement and strength.  Our family also wants to partner with all of you this week to concentrate on praying specifically for dad's healing and strength.  He is feeling like he can't do anything and that he has done something to 'get himself into this mess'.  He is so worried about his future and just doesn't understand why he can't get better. Most everyone of you at some time or another has been encouraged by our dad - he always has a positive word to say or a way of looking for the glass that's half full - now he needs your encouragement and strength to believe for something significant in his rehab this week to give him the motivation and belief that he can and will conquer this giant in front of him.   We have a "family consult" at 11am tomorrow with dad's doctor and therapists.  We are praying to hear some good news on dad's future and we are believing for even greater things to come out of his rehab this week.  If you have time, slip up to see dad this week or give him a phone call or send him a card - these are all powerful ways to encourage dad and remind him of how special is to all of us!

Lots of Memories

Hello everyone. . . just got home from seeing dad and picking up mom. Dad had a quiet day in rehab - he slept a good part of the day mom said after his therapy. He just had speech and some bedside physical therapy today. He is still having a good bit of confusion and trouble piecing things together - tonight he was asking me to let the county commission know about him and that he wouldn't make it to the meeting and he also wanted me to contact our legislators whom he is close with to let them know. He just has so many memories floating around his mind and I just don't think he knows what is current and what is past, but he does remember it all. He even was thinking about his own grandmother tonight.

He is also thinking about his progress a lot. At one point he said to me - "when we have this meeting with my doctors on Monday - please ask them how I got to be like this - because if it is something I am doing - I want to know so I can stop." I explained to him again what happened to him and that we just have to be patient as God works his miracle throughout his body. He said he just wants to get home and see all of his kids. . . his grandkids. He misses everyone so much.

Thanks to those of you who are making the hike up to see him - it means so much to all of us and especially to him. Please be praying for our meeting Monday - we so hope to pass along some encouraging news about dad and his future.

Stronger every day

Dad gets stronger every day is what the doctor said last night during his evening exam. Dad was still a little on the quiet side, but he looked really good. Rehab is full of ups and downs and it certainly does not happen on dad's or my preferred pace - fast! (ha ha) We are learning so much about patience and celebrating little things. Mom worries that he is not eating enough - she says he eats like a bird, but I told her - at least he is eating. She just wants him to regain his strength - and I know that even though she is strong - she just wants dad to get better sooner than later. We all want that - but we all have to be reminded - each of us that it is a blessing that dad is even with us - that he among only 25% of hemorrhagic stroke victims that survive. . . the fact that he survived this severe of a stroke and then the pulmonary embolism scare and then a bad gall bladder - well, he looks pretty good at this point!

Please feel free to visit him this weekend - that would really encourage him and lift his spirits. With the weather this week, its been a very scarce group of friends and family who have made it up - you know dad - he's a people person and I think he's needing his "peeps". Saturdays he only does a half day of therapy usually from 2 to 3:30 and Sundays he is off. Friday (today) he is done at 3:30.

We love you all and appreciate all your love and support and prayers!

7 Weeks into Our Journey

It's hard to believe that 7 Weeks ago, we were just one day into this journey with our dad. It's like a roller coaster ride with no foreseeable ending. Some days we crest a hill and feel the excitement when we see some improvement - then we feel the let down as we come down the hill on days like this week - when Dad has been experiencing so much confusion and difficulty with his speech. Even his therapists have noticed it this week. We are not sure why, and it may be normal, but we are going to ask his doctor about it. On a positive note, Pam said he was sitting up so straight and holding himself so well at lunch time. It's hard to explain, but just sitting in his wheel chair is hard work for dad - it wears him out. He did seem to enjoy watching Rudolf with Lexy last night, but was very tired and quiet while we were there visiting.

Pam was able to safely get mom up to rehab this morning before most of the snow arrived, but mom may end up staying tonight if the roads get too bad for Rob & I to travel to get her. Mom got word yesterday that our family meeting with dad's medical team is Monday at 11am. We are excited about the opportunity to learn first hand how dad is doing and what the plan is for him.

Thanks for checking in and thanks for keeping our family, especially dad and mom, in your prayers.

There's Good & Bad in Rehab

What we have come to discover is that there is good and bad in rehab. And that even the bad doesn't mean it's bad - did I loose you? Well what we mean is - every day we see something good happening, albeit some days its in very small doses, others in bigger doses. While some days, it just feels lousy. Yesterday dad said rehab was just plain lousy. He even told mom after the morning therapy that he was done with that stuff - they work him too hard and he just wanted to go home. Well, by the time the afternoon therapy rolled around - he was like butter in their hands. He really likes the team of professionals working with him downstairs and he will try to do everything they ask him to. He got sick when he took nighttime meds last night and then woke up again at 1am and was sick again - that's when he made his 1:03 am call to me. He was sooo confused and upset. But like always, we talked and he calmed down and his nurse said she would help him thru it. His room mate went home yesterday - so maybe he was thinking he needed out of there too! I told him today at lunch time that even though therapy is hard - every time he works at it - he is one step closer to coming home with us. We have been told they will meet with us early next week for an evaluation of dad's progress - just waiting on a date/time. So for now, we are just learning to take the good with the bad and that overall - no matter how each day develops - we are blessed beyond measure to have this amazing father who has survived something that could have been so much worse and we know that with prayer, patience and love - our dad will conquer the most difficult challenge of his life!

Quiet Weekend

Hey everyone - just a short post to catch up from missing Sunday - sorry bout that. It was a busy day. Dad had a quiet Sunday to cap off his weekend. He spent the day resting as some family and friends did stop by to visit him - my oldest son Robby went up after our 9am service at church to spend the day with him and when I arrived at 4pm to pick him up and visit - I could tell he and pappy had been dishin' about football all day. Dad didn't want to let go of Robby 's hand when we took him to the dining room to eat. Dad was having a little trouble communicating yesterday - his voice was just barely audible when I was there and he was a little frustrated as he was getting his thoughts and words mixed up. But it was a rainy dreary day yesterday and maybe it just was one of those days. We all have them. After his therapy this morning and afternoon - I will check in with him and let you all know how his day goes. Hope you will continue to believe with our family that Dad will be strong enough and well enough to come home at Christmas and continue therapy from there. It would be the best gift we could receive!

Another Hard Day at Work

Dad had a good day - just minimal nausea. He did a half day of therapy and mom said he did very well. They put him in the wheel-chair at the parallel bars and they stood him up several times. He can only bear weight on the right side so he does have to have the aide of the therapists quite a bit during this exercise. Mom said he also was working on the leg machine to strengthen those muscles. He was really tired and soft spoken when Lexy and I arrived after the Christmas parade. He liked seeing Lexy in her parade costume - he really lit up. He watched the first half of the WVU game with us, but was so tired and upset about the game that he decided he would just go to bed. And with the way that game turned out - I am glad we left when we did - he will be so disappointed when he hears about it. Oh well, as much as we wanted WVU to win. . .seeing dad home at Christmas time will still be the best gift our family could ever receive - even better than a National Championship!