Update from Pat

Pat has worked so hard in the pool that he has worn a hole in his swimming trunks.  He says that it is for ventilation, but we think it is for easier gas propulsion. His therapist requested some smaller ones, his are so baggy, she can't tell if he is bending his knees or if the suit just makes it look that way.  Who would have thought he would wear out his swimming trunks faster than his shoes.  :)

Happy February

We are so grateful that there is sun out now!  But it sure makes lots of mud for Pat to walk through.  :)

We just finished our evaluation appointment with his new physical therapist.  We both like her, she seems very knowledgeable and very interested in helping Pat to be involved with his therapy.  Our next appointment is on Friday morning, in the pool.  So that will be fun for him.  I think he is really excited to show off what he can do.  It makes me smile to see her showing him the same exercises and stretches that I have been trying to get him to do for a long time.  Maybe he will listen to her because while I knew it was a good idea, I just didn't have the scientific reasoning behind why it helps his specific conditions. 

He is finding the increase in his medication a little more difficult expected.  He gets tired a lot more quickly and isn't able to do quite as much on his own as he was before while at the pool.  On the plus side, his calf muscles have almost doubled in size this month, and he is a lot more flexible.  We go to the doctor again next week, he may increase the dosage again, I guess we won't know until then.  Evenually, Pat may move to a Baclofen pump which is much more effective because he would get small doses of Baclofen intrathecally injects at a steady rate instead of taking the medication orally.  He doesn't think he wants to do that, but it sounds like it may be our best option.  He may be more willing once he starts to feel some relief from the pain he is in.

One other item of note, I have a job interview with the State of Idaho in the morning.  I have applied for quite a few things with them, and can see that several different departments are reviewing my application/test scores, but so far only one call.  State run agencies seem to move so slowly when it comes to hiring.  I think their idea of testing is pretty smart though, it is a great way to weed out the serious contenders from the people who try to make themselves look better than they really are.  I think that even if I am offered the position tomorrow, I will decline it though because it doesn't pay enough to make it worthwhile to commute from Emmett.  I am hoping to hear something from a training specialist position, but since it is open for applications until the end of the month, it might be a while still. 

Update on us

Pat got a call from his aunt and was sad to hear that his Grandmother has suffered a heart attack and a clot in her neck on it's way to her brain.  Thankfully they caught it in time.  She has been in the hospital for the last few days for monitoring but seems to be doing better now.  Please keep her in your prayers.

Also, Pat had an appointment with a specialist who works specifically with spasticity due to traumatic brain injuries.  We were afraid that he would tell us that what we have been doing was all wrong, but were pleasantly surprised to find out that he wants to just increase his medication and get him into "real" physical therapy and pool therapy.  I am glad to have a break, because it gets tiring trying to play the dual roles sometimes, but I don't really expect that they will try anything too different than what we have been doing.  Only time will tell.

In other news, Daniel has submitted his papers and we are all anxiously awaiting his mission call.  Everyone has their own idea of where he will go, but he really thinks he will be called to China.  There seems to be a family trend with getting called to places with C in the name.  Chile, Columbia, Colorado, California, etc.  Maybe he will go to Canada (laugh, laugh).  Or Connecticut or the Congo...

But we saved the very best for last!  We got an offer on our house and the closing is scheduled for February 1st.  We have all of our fingers and toes and anything else we can think of crossed that it will go smoothly and we will be able to move out soon. 

Seems like when it rains it pours around here.  :)

Pat's reward

For those of you who are wondering, Pat chose an MP3 player for his substitute reward when his tablet "expired".  Daniel helped him load it up with lots of music and he can lately often be found by following the music to wherever he is.  He loves to sing at the top of his lungs, and has already worn out one set of ear plugs.  But he sure looks happy!

Missing: One laptop, very suspicious circumnstances

Some of you may know about a little mystery that we have.  When we made our first trip to Idaho with the rental truck, there was some debate about what to do with my laptop.  My decision was to leave it in the storage unit because it is outdated and I knew that without wireless internet, we wouldn't be using it much.  Pretty simple, right? 

Well the problem is that everyone who had anything to do with it has a different memory of how we stored it, etc.  And none of those memories really match.  To make a long story short, we have made several unsuccessful fishing expeditions in the storage unit, and we still can't find it. 

We thought we got lucky this last time when I opened up a taped box and found the case.  Sadly, when I opened the case, it was empty.  So we really don't have a clue what happened to it.  But now that we finally broke down and bought a new laptop, we are sure to find it, right?  At any rate, Pat will really love his new computer.  :)

Bonus clip

Pat insisted that I share this video with you because he just loves the way my head jerks back.  BTW, it really, really hurt.  He has a wicked fast throw.

As I watch these videos, I am so proud of him and can't help but think of a few experiences that we have had in the pool that made me think this day would never come.

The first is our anniversary two years ago.  We were at the pool with his physical therapist and he was working on standing up by himself in the water for a whole minute without falling over.  At one point during the session, he took two or three steps by himself.  And I started to cry because I was so amazed that he could do it.

The second isn't quite so positive.  It was about a month and a half ago and it also ended in tears, but not the happy kind.  Pat was on the side of the pool and I told him that we wouldn't be getting out of the pool until he managed to walk the 5 steps from the side of the pool over to me by himself.  I didn't really care if he managed to walk the steps by himself or not, I just wanted him to show some initiative and prove that he could at least try to do something for/by himself.  After about 25 minutes of frustration on my part, and anger on his part that I was being so mean, he attempted a few steps.  But at that point, he only made it 2 1/2 steps before he face-planted.  I remember being so upset and frustrated and thinking that maybe he would never walk.

I never would have thought he would be walking by himself for 60-100 walks across the pool in this short time.  And it makes me really wonder what we will accomplish in the next month and a half!

Pat's walk at the end of the swimming session

Notice the thumbs up at the end of the walk.

He is doing very well and I am amazed every time I watch one of these videos or watch him splashing away like a fish in the water.  You would never guess it but when we moved here, he was terrified of the water.  I practically had to threaten to throw him in head first to get him into the pool.  But the other day, he told me how much he loves swimming.  Guess he has come a long way.