The sun came out this afternoon and Janet responded accordingly. Still not at her brightest but much better than this morning.

Connie did her Speech session in Janet’s room with her. Not sure how it went but there was a cup of thickened Summer Berry tea on the bedside table so we know a swallowing was attempted.

Nancy arrived at 3:30 to find Janet snoozing but by a little after four they were off to the beach and for a walk around the area. Janet drove her wheelchair for part of that walk and when I arrived at five had just opened a present from Nancy as they sat in the “sun window” of Janet’s room. Janet seemed relaxed and awake so we took her out to the dining area to have her dinner. She was not quite as interested in what was going on around her as she has been. Maybe she’s getting used to it or maybe the company she had with her were just too much fun. We called Mary/Gaga during this time and Janet listened and looked at the phone occasionally but again she wasn’t as engaged as previous calls. She later grabbed my phone off the table when I wasn’t looking and started examining it. A good example of purposeful movement. There were also a couple of moments where Janet got a little emotional. Not sure if it was pain or a heightened awareness. There was no attempt to speak this time but once she came very close to all out crying. Somehow I think that would be a good thing if it happened.

After dinner it was time to get ready for bed. I took my time tonight to ensure Janet got a good stretch and I’m happy with the results. Janet did a good job brushing her teeth tonight and made it easy for me to leave with some nice smiles and kisses.

Thank you Nancy for the very enjoyable dinner tonight. You are a good friend and I know Janet enjoys having you around.

Tomorrow morning is going to be interesting as Janet has all her therapy sessions pretty much one right after the other. Nancy will be guiding her to all of them and assisting when possible. I look forward to hearing how it all goes and pray that Janet stays awake for all of them.

Praying for a restful night and immediate healing of Janet’s right arm and her legs.

Kind of a dull morning here in Kelowna. Windy and cloudy and I think Janet was feeling it. I arrived at 8:30, which was really hard for me to do, she was sleeping still so I guess I didn’t miss anything. She was dressed and fed so I waited till 8:45 before waking her and getting her ready for physio.

In the workout room I gave Janet some free weights again and she did bicep curls with 3, 4 and 5 pound weights. Moira wanted to use the tilt table this morning but I talked her out of it so she stood Janet up using the Standing Frame. I didn’t see any of it but Moira told me after that Janet stood nice and straight for twenty minutes, feet flat and legs mostly straight. She tried getting Janet to bat at a balloon while standing but Janet wasn’t going to let go of the frame to play a silly game. All in all it was a decent session.

I had gone to get my haircut while Janet was at physio and when I returned she was asleep in her chair in the dining area. Moira thought Janet had Speech at 10:30 but that’s tomorrow. I sat with Janet until she woke up which was about 11:10 then got her ready for OT. Jessica has decided there is no benefit to be had from wearing a splint anymore so Janet’s right arm will be free from now on. She will get a contraption that will help relax her palm better than the rolled up facecloth we are using now. Jessica will also assess Janet’s sleeping position and says there are special pillows that can be used to prevent her from curling up too much. She tried some hair and teeth brushing with Janet but no real success there. There was some good purposeful movement from Janet when they were playing with bean bags and stuff. A decent OT session.

Janet still seemed a little out of it after OT so I put her to bed with her lunch feed started and headed home. Connie will get her for their Speech session at 2:30 and Nancy will visit at 3:30. I will return at 5 for the dinner feed and goodnight stretch etc.

Praying for a brighter afternoon.

When I got back to take Janet to Speech she was wide awake and looking good. I told her so and in true Janet style she turned her head away from me and made mouth movements that clearly indicated she was saying “no I don’t”. She was smiling when she said it so I’m confident it wasn’t a depressed lack of confidence reaction just more her usual embarrassed response to receiving a compliment. She smiled even bigger when I called her on it.

I stretched her a little and off we went to see Connie. First up was the cranberry flavored goo and Janet did not like it at all. She took about twenty seconds to swallow it. We tried it again and she got a teeny bit down in about ten seconds. Connie had thickened some Summer Berry herbal tea and we tried that. A better reaction and slightly faster swallow. Connie put some honey in the tea and although Janet didn’t take very much of it she did swallow the fastest of the session but still greater than five seconds. We are wondering if the thrush on her tongue affects her taste sensation negatively. Question for the doc. The rest of the session was spent doing a variety of things, blowing bubbles, drawing circles, matching playing cards and pointing to pictures. Janet seemed bored after the bubble blowing and didn’t do very well with any of the other things. This is my last time attending Speech with Janet as I want her try working without an audience.

As we headed outside Nancy messaged her arrival and she joined us for a walk to the beach and around the neighborhood. She then shared stories and pictures from her daughter’s wedding last month with Janet resting in bed and having her dinner. Janet smiled lots and laughed at a picture of Nancy’s husband Jim, but who doesn’t. Hi Jim. Janet was able to point to Nancy’s daughter Gillian in a group photo. Something to tell Connie. Brenda visited with Janet tonight as well and started the next Anne book with her. Brenda arrived with Nancy in the room and Janet was all smiles and enjoying the attention she was getting. If this was happening a few weeks ago I think it would have bothered her more than anything. Thanks for being there for Janet you guys, today was further proof she is benefiting from your visits.

After getting Janet ready for bed I headed out into the 7pm darkness leaving her with congratulations on a good day and a bit of a warning that tomorrow will be just as busy. Praying for a restful night, healing in her legs and right arm and restoration of her ability to talk.

You can sure tell it’s Monday. The rehab unit was buzzing with people moving about all morning long. Janet was sort of awake when I came in but took till about 8:30 to really come to. We did some mouth care and chatted then I started stretching her in preparation for her physio appointment. The stretch went well and the physio appointment went even better. She was awake the whole time which really helps. I gave her the two pound weight again while we waited and she did a set of ten curls that seemed way too easy so I tried the three pounder on her, no problem, at four pounds I could see she was making an effort so we didn’t go for five. Next time. I left the room after Moira met Janet and was ready to start. I figured it is best Janet has this time to focus on the task at hand and not worry about an audience. I came back with fifteen minutes left in the session and there was another physio, Rob, working with Moira and an assistant. They were getting Janet to stand more on her own than ever before. Her left arm was on a table so she could support herself that way, Rob had her hips and Moira her back. You could tell Janet was really working to stay up and everyone was please with her performance.

That physio session took a lot out of her and Janet had a nice thirty minute nap afterwards. I kept her in her wheelchair out in the dining area as I knew this would not be a long nap. When she woke up we went to her room and got her splint and headed over to OT with her driving. Jessica is Janet’s OT now and since this was day one with her it was just a familiarization session focusing on Janet’s right arm. Jessica will have a chat with Dr. McCann tomorrow about Botoxing that right arm and will talk to the splint guy about reshaping or making a knew one for Janet as the current model is no longer effective. Future sessions will be on personal care, dressing, wheelchair operation and Jessica is now involved in the potential move home.

I got Janet into bed after OT with instructions to have a good sleep and be ready for Speech at 2:30. Praying for an awake afternoon.