Month: April 2013

Kicking In. A relaxing day as the Botox takes effect. #TSJ

A sleep in Saturday for sure as Janet opened her eyes at 7:30 then happily went back to sleep until 9:30. That set the pace for a relaxing day hanging out at home. She chose her traditional breakfast which we enjoyed together with no idea what we would do next. Fortunately Janet asked to watch TV while I went to shower and while searching for something to watch I noticed an NBA playoff game about to start. I thought they started Sunday so we scrambled to the computer to fill out our brackets in Raju’s annual Pool. We got our picks in just in time and Janet enjoyed the process making some good choices in winners but I think she has too many series going the full seven games. Anyways it’s something she enjoys doing and we had basketball on in the background all day.

The only scheduled event of the day was a Skype chat with Leslie that went well despite some technical challenges. Heather checked in with us later on and it was good for Janet to catch up with both of them. I’ve had to resurrect my role as physio therapist while Janet is at home so we can maximize the potential of the Botox and when I stretched her legs this afternoon I noticed an improvement right away. It was even more noticeable tonight as I was able to get her left leg down to almost where we used to be able to get it in the 4B days. Janet is not too happy that we are doing this stretching stuff at home but she was OK with lounging with her legs up in her wheelchair. Her standing for transfers was quite good today as well and I sense a little confidence coming back there. That increase in confidence saved her from a total meltdown after seeing some pictures of herself from her KGH days. I had just shown her photos from Raju and Laurel’s wedding and at the end of those there were a few unflattering pictures of Janet and she got a little upset but kind of accepted that she’s come a long way. She asked me to turn them off which I did and she was on the verge of really crying about it but held it off. A nice improvement.

Since the day started late, nap time was late too but Janet did have a brief one that allowed her to do a good job making a salad to go with dinner tonight and she really enjoyed watching The Voice together especially since I made popcorn for us. All in all it was a very relaxing day at home just making things up as we went along. One highlight for me came as we were doing the nightly rundown of the day and as I mentioned the first couple of things we did Janet chimed in with “and we picked our teams”. Love my sports junkie and nice to see a little short term memory action.

Praying for a restful night that brings lots of energy and awareness for tomorrow.

Anniversary. We celebrate ten years together. #TSJ

April 19, 2003. Lynn Valley United Church

April 19, 2003. Lynn Valley United Church


Today I am happy to say is the tenth anniversary of Janet and I being married. At our age, ten is not a huge number for married years but boy has a lot happened over that time. All seven of “our” kids are “grown up” and are out on their own, we moved to Kelowna and have been through career changes and life changes and have developed a network of friends and supporters unlike anything either of us has ever had. I am blessed to be married to Janet and we are blessed with family and friends that we love dearly.

The day together got off to a bit of a rough start as I delayed my arrival so that Janet could do her routine things, including a nap and be rested and ready for our dinner date tonight leading into the weekend at home. Janet was in bed when I got to Connect but wasn’t sleeping and after the surprise of seeing me wore off she started crying as she had been waiting for me all afternoon. I told her last night I’d see her towards the end of her nap and we would get ready to go out to dinner. She remembered the going out for dinner part well as she refused lunch but forgot about the arriving after nap time part. It’s nice to be wanted but that wasn’t the way I wanted to start the weekend. After lots of talking while laying down with her she fell asleep for an hour and awoke refreshed and determined to go out. I had brought some fancier clothes to try on her for dining out but the pants that barely fit her a month ago no longer do so back to the usual pants we went with a slightly dressier shirt than normal.

Dinner was at Bouchons, a French bistro in downtown Kelowna. I had showed Janet the menus from there and one other restaurant that we both really like and she chose Bouchons and a great choice it was. Very good service, beautifully presented and prepared food, a good wine list and a really cute room that is bright and lively without being loud. Janet really enjoyed her dinner, even commenting on it later on her own, something that never happens. I’m sure it was the food but it could have been the wine too. Janet actually had two glasses tonight as the baked pear tartlet she started with commanded a lovely Sauternes to accompany it. A great start and it was pretty funny watching her drink the Sauternes and a glass of Viognier during the main course. Just before the mains arrived I presented Janet with an anniversary ring. Something I would not have gotten away with prior to the aneurysm. I guess I shouldn’t be surprised that she knew how to put it on and on the correct finger too. There is a video of the presentation on Keek.

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Janet chose ice cream at home for dessert in typical Janet style and we enjoyed that while I showed her our wedding pictures from ten years ago. There were lots of laughs, a few surprises and some memories kicking in as we scrolled through them all. We both have to laugh at the fact there isn’t one photo of just the two of us on that day. Silly us.

Janet went to bed, full and happy and looking forward to a relaxing day tomorrow.

The intent of this blog has never been to shine a light on myself at all and I don’t want you to read this next story in that way. I include it so that we all may remember the power of words and the importance of taking action.

As Janet and I were leaving Bouchons we spent a few minutes having the hostess take our picture and after that we went outside so I had room to put Janet’s coat on. While doing that a gentleman who had been at the table next to us came out of the restaurant saying he wanted to thank me. My first response to him was “for what?” but I knew by the look on his face what he was going to say next. He went on to praise me for my care and love of Janet and how inspired he was to see us together. I’m never sure how to respond to compliments like that so I reiterated by commitment to Janet and thanked him. I truly thank him for leaving his table, coming outside to shake my hand and “thank me”. Kind words delivered that way have enormous power. Janet almost cried after he left saying “that was really nice” and I am touched thinking about it now. Something prompted him to take the risk and come out and talk to us and by obeying that prompt he made two people very happy. It has been my prayer since very early on in this journey that Janet’s situation be used to inspire others. That prayer has been answered many times and I pray it is many more. If you get a chance to say a kind word to someone, anyone, do it.

Thanking God for everything.

Chiming In. Janet talks a good story. #TSJ

Janet had been to the gym and was pretty much ready to go to the pool as I arrived at Connect this morning. I asked her what we were about to do and she couldn’t come up with the answer on her own but Jess said she got it during her morning routine. As we drove to KGH I sensed Janet’s energy level being a little low but she said she was fine.

The pool session went well with some good kicking and good standing. The “walking” was not as good this time and I really think one reason it was so good on Monday was Janet was in the water for an hour so was nice and warm and loose. Pool man Jim is away on vacation so I asked his relief, Jess (yes another one) if there were any people doing one hour sessions and could Janet join them. Turns out there is one person going for an hour at noon on Monday’s with the second half being just him in the water. Janet will join in starting Monday and we’ll go back to back sessions on Thursdays at noon as well. I’m excited about this as I think the pool is helping Janet a lot. I just hope pool lady Jess is on the ball and we can actually do this.

The City finally opened up the parking at Strathcona Beach to the public after holding it exclusively for Interior Health employees all winter. We parked there today so we could walk from swimming to singing. Stephani had Janet doing some cool things today including playing a hand chime which I thought had an amazing tone. Very pure and fun to make. Janet seemed to really enjoy that and I saw the concentration on her face as she tried chiming in on beat. You can see a little video of her playing by following me on Keek or Twitter, @larrylatour. She also played a shaker for one song. Her singing wasn’t the loudest ever but you could tell she was enjoying it all. Because of the change in the swimming schedule we’ll have to find another time for Stephani to do her thing but will try and fit it in somewhere as I think there is some benefit for Janet with more to come over time.

We decided to go home for a quick lunch which never turns out to be that quick. You’d think soup and a hot dog would be fast to make and eat and I guess a little over an hour from start to finish isn’t bad but it was 3:30 by the time Janet was done. That meant no nap as I wanted her back at Connect for a stretch before dinner. When she caught on to that idea she protested loudly and vigorously to the point of crying and being quite negative about it all. She thought she was spinning a good story in her favour but all she came up with was “I don’t like any of it”. I put the outburst down to her being tired and she slept a little as we drove back to Connect. To help her settle in I had her put away her laundry and help make the bed then Curtis came in with her dinner time meds. We had a good chat and Janet seemed to start to catch her second wind. Garrett joined us for a few minutes and got Janet laughing. When they left I asked her if she wanted to do dinner then gym or gym then dinner. She said dinner first so off we went. Janet made a sharp left out of her room and I reminded her the kitchen is right. She asked why I mentioned the kitchen so I told her she said she wanted to do dinner first. She sternly told me “no, I’m going to the gym now” and off she wheeled. I went down and told Curtis and he caught up to her and put her through a good workout.

Janet returned all smiley and bright and hungry, finishing off dinner with an orange in the living room with Chris and me followed by some jelly beans that were happily shared around. I was very impressed with how long Janet lasted today without a nap or her noontime dose of Ritalin. Today was the first day without that and she tolerated it with no problems that I saw but one day, especially today, is not a fair test. I’m not going to promote the lack of a nap either but it’s nice to know she can push through if needed. Bedtime came at a more reasonable 8:45 with no complaints from Janet at all.

Praying for a good night of rest with lots of energy for tomorrow and a continued building of Janet’s strength.

Pimped Up. Janet gets a new wheelchair. #TSJ

Now that Janet’s had her legs Botoxed her visits to the gym are even more important than before and are more frequent too. Tez coached the Connect staff through Janet’s routine for the next month and it amounts to almost constant hamstring stretching. Ideally four visits a day to the gym, a couple of which will just be twenty minute leg stretches but still a trip to the gym. Today, Janet put up the usual verbal argument against going but went calmly each time and performed well. I think the increased activity is showing results already as her standing transfers were two hundred percent better today than they were on the weekend. She seems physically stronger and mentally more confident as well.

Brian walked me and the staff through the features of Janet’s new wheelchair this afternoon with the most notable improvement other than the color being the “lounging” function. As you can see here,

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Janet can sit with her legs up in this chair which allows for a hamstring stretch while she’s chilling watching TV or something. When I first put her in that mode tonight she said it felt “stupid”. She accepted it soon enough and spent over an hour that way before going to the gym with Garrett and Kari before bed. That workout ended up being more thorough than I expected but Janet wasn’t complaining at all. She couldn’t really complain to me at first anyways as I hid on her when I heard her coming back. Garrett was asking her family type questions and Janet was responding nice and loud and clear. I stood behind her as Garrett ran her through a lot of who’s who type questions and Janet did her best to find the right answers. She for sure knows everyone but has a hard time pulling the names out without some cues. When given the family picture she did very well at pointing to and naming most everyone in it and knew that Ashley is the one missing from the photo. That made me feel a little better about her vision but not as much as her next move. I stayed hidden behind her until Garrett and Kari left then Janet started looking for me and when she turned her head way to the left she “saw you out of the corner of my eye”. Nice to hear she can do that.

I had a lot to do today and didn’t get to Connect until three. Janet was resting when I got there and I started getting her up just before four. She had two gym sessions between then and bedtime, which is getting later and later it seems, but my time with her was still limited today. I can say that it was a good day for her with lots of activity, definite physical improvements, a funky new wheelchair and lots of laughs. Tomorrow is very busy so I am praying for a restful night that renews her strength and energy.

Botox. Janet puts up with the pain. #TSJ

Brian was kind enough to drive Janet in from Connect for her appointment with Dr. McCann at KGH today. I met them there and we had time for a walk in the sunshine before seeing the doctor. Janet said some things looked familiar to her but not the beach that we spent so much time at last year. She was still happy to be there today though and agreed it was a beautiful day.

Our visit with Dr. McCann was really good, Brian sat in with us and Dr. McCann allowed me to ask a lot of questions while he was preparing to stab Janet. He was surprised to learn that he had prescribed a low dose of Baclofen for Janet way back in the 4B days but doesn’t want to change it now so we can accurately monitor the effect of the Botox. Makes sense. He feels it’s a good time to try and wean Janet off the Ritalin and ordered her noontime dose discontinued for the next month and we’ll see how Janet manages. I think she’ll be fine. My concerns about the Dilantin were supported with the caveat that until Janet has gone seizure free for six months you shouldn’t take her off the drug. He said someone may do it after three months but I think that’s too risky and will keep hoping we can see the neurologist soon for his opinion. Dr. McCann concurred with my concern about the side effects and agreed Dr. Adams would know more.

Janet was understandably tense as she lay waiting for the “little pokes” from the Botox needles and she squeezed my hand as tight as ever as Dr. McCann used four needles on each leg. She recovered quickly and was laughing with us on the way out as Dr. McCann suggested she would soon be able to kick him as payback for what he’d done. We should start seeing results in a couple of weeks with the peak effect occurring in about a month. Dr. McCann will see Janet then to assess the situation.

I gave Janet the option of going out for lunch or going home, she chose home as she was just too drained to do anything else. Once there she had a good little play time with Nash then helped make thin crust pizzas for lunch. She spread the sauce on both and put all the toppings on including slicing the grape tomatoes with the most precision yet. She’s still a little weak on the cheese grating part so I’ll have to do some research on how to help her with that. Janet continues to gain confidence in the kitchen.

There was no argument at all about nap time today. I just wish it could have happened sooner as it wasn’t until after 2:30 that she could lay down and she had to be up just after four for a Skype chat with her mom then get back to Connect for dinner. The sleep did her well and the Skype chat went well with Janet giving surprisingly good answers to a few questions. We were impressed to learn that Keith has bought an iPad and look forward to an improved Skype experience and other cool things in the near future.

Curtis had Janet’s dinner waiting for her when we got to Connect and she devoured it then very obediently went to the gym with him after digesting for a little while. Curtis spent over an hour with her and ran her through every routine possible including standing at the stripper pole. On the second attempt he let go of Janet completely to show her she was doing it all on her own. She smiled. Hopefully this is the start of an improved attitude towards the gym and I made sure to point out that her standing transfers to the toilet were not good at home today but quite good after her workout in the gym. For once she didn’t roll her eyes or snicker. Starting to believe maybe?

After enjoying the last of her Easter chocolate we tried making a little video using an app I learned about today called Keek. It let’s you shoot thirtyfive second videos on your phone and Tweet them instantly from the app. I will be using this to do any breaking news stories on Janet and or a fun highlight of the day type of thing. I couldn’t get Janet to say all her lines for tonight’s installment so I posted it with her laughing for about fifteen seconds as that’s what she did everytime it was her turn to talk. It was a great way to end a very positive day. If you want to see the video and all the future ones please follow me on Twitter @larrylatour. You’ll also need the Keek app which you can get here.

Thanking Jesus for a productive and positive day and for the good people that are on Janet’s team. Praying for lots of rest tonight and maximum effect from the Botox.

Walkies. Good day in the pool. #TSJ

No sleeping in today as we were up to get ready for swimming at KGH. We arrived in plenty of time and Janet was excited to get into the water. I think mostly because it’s so warm but she does enjoy floating around and trying to swim. I put her through the usual routine waiting for Tez to show up and coach us from his perspective. He thought we were in for an hour and turned up just as we were getting out. Thankfully he knows pool man Jim and asked if Janet could go in with the next group and it was an easy yes. Back in the water I showed Tez what I normally have Janet do and since she was all warmed up she performed rather well. Tez was happy with her kicking abilities (as a starting point) and was also impressed with her standing exercises. One new approach he showed us was to use a block so Janet’s right foot is on it with her left foot on the pool floor. This forces her to use her right leg to stand up. I felt the difference immediately. On a whim Tez asked how Janet’s walking in the water was. I hadn’t even thought to try before so took her over to the parallel bars to see what she could do. Janet actually was able to take a step but she seemed really awkward using the bars so I brought her out into the middle of the pool, stood in front of her and held her left hand and boom, she took multiple “steps”. It was very exciting and she had a huge smile on her face. I could still see doubt in her eyes but also some determination and focus. She was really thinking the moves through and managed to “walk” half the length of the pool. Huge high five! These are not her first “steps” as she did “walk” with Moira using the ceiling lift in Rehab but this is the most she’s “walked” on her own. All I did was balance her.

The back to back sessions in the pool were great and I kind of wish we had an hour each time as the thirty minutes just go by too fast. Janet worked up a good appetite for lunch at home and also was very tired afterwards and had a good long nap this afternoon. We got back to Connect in time for dinner which Janet ate heartily as well then went to the gym with Bob for some leg stretching. Bob said she did well especially with the exercises she’s to do on her own. Janet asked to watch TV when she got back and we caught the last forty five minutes of Willy Wonka which Janet enjoyed but she laughed out loud a number of times during the movie Big which came on after that. I didn’t let her stay up too late but it was ten o’clock by the time I turned her lights out and she wasn’t all that tired.

As impressed as I am with Janet in the pool I am a little concerned about her lack of power in standing to transfer from her wheelchair to the toilet or couch. She seems to have forgotten how to do it. Sometimes she can get some decent lift from her legs and other times there’s nothing there at all. She is getting upset by it now too so I’ll ask Dr. McCann about it tomorrow in hopes he has an answer. All in all it was an exciting day with Janet and she was feeling pretty happy as we said goodnight. Praying for lots of rest tonight and a productive day tomorrow.

Day Off. Janet shuts it down for a day. #TSJ

We planned on a sleep in today but Janet was awake at seven. Thankfully she agreed to go back to sleep and we got up at 8:30. Not exactly what I had in mind but this isn’t my show. Her morning routine went well and the first course of breakfast was served while I got myself ready for the day. I then had Janet help make us some pancakes. She was very enthusiastic about it and happily mixed the dry ingredients together then stirred things up after I added the wet ones. Her pouring aim is a little off and I’ve noticed what may be a change in her vision. There seems to be more neglect slightly right of centre than I’ve noticed before but if I can get Janet to physically turn her head she seems to be fine. Three pancakes later a full Janet was happy to watch a little TV while I cleaned up then by noon she was asking for a rest time. Yes, asking. She didn’t seem overly tired or anything, I was happy with the energy she showed on her standing transfers to the toilet but she was kind of quiet this morning and didn’t want to make any decisions about what to do today. I lay down with her for a bit then let her sleep until 2:30.

Janet helped make herself some KD for a late lunch, then enjoyed a brief visit from Kiko as she dropped off what would be our dinner tonight. Lamb curry. Kiko is such a good friend I offered her Nash as compensation for all she’s done for us. She declined however and Janet says we have to keep him, “because he’s ours”. Maybe after a few more rude awakenings she’ll change her mind.

It had been a while since we were able to connect with Andrew so today’s Skype chat with him was welcomed. It’s still hard for Janet to initiate a conversation once past the greeting stage but she is getting more and more responsive to questions and comments even if she doesn’t make total sense all the time. That pattern continued through a chat with Laurel and Janet is truly excited to have her and Heather coming out to visit in three weeks.

The sun came out this afternoon and so did we. Janet enjoyed driving Nash around the neighbourhood and continues to keep good control of him, especially as we cross busy streets. Janet wasn’t sure about the lamb part of the curry dinner but liked it after the second bite and ate a huge plate of it. She must have been full as I really had to talk her into having some ice cream before bed.

Janet crashed pretty hard tonight and I didn’t expect that at all. Her energy level never really matched that of the last few days but she seemed happy throughout and managed to help quite a bit in the kitchen and enjoyed getting out into the sun. In fact she wanted the sun so bad she actually wheeled over to a window where it was streaming in and just sat there for a few minutes soaking it up. That’s my Janet.

Praying for a solid night of rest that provides lots of energy for swimming tomorrow morning.

UNLEASHING THE K.I.S.S. MARRIAGE – “IF YOU HAD ONE WISH”

My friend Heidi’s excellent take on wishes vs expectations.

hmclaughlin's avatarHeidi McLaughlin's Blog

Girl Dressed as a Fairy for a Birthday Party
If I had one wish that would get answered with the snap of a finger, it would be “to help restore marriages so that everyone can enjoy the pleasure and intimacy in the way God designed marriages to be.” It breaks my heart to see spouses angry, unhappy, resentful and turning to the searing pain of divorce.

If you had one wish for YOUR marriage to make it the way you envisioned it to be, what would that be? But let’s take it one step further, because marriages need more than a wish and a swish of a magical wand. A wish can sometimes look like this: Wishing you spouse would stop leaving socks on the floor, start putting down the toilet seat, stop playing so much golf, stop working so much, start helping with the children at bath time. Wishing something supernaturally would fall from the sky to change…

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Cheap Date. Home for the weekend. #TSJ

Knowing I have the whole weekend with Janet I took my time going out to Connect today, making sure the house was in order before bringing Janet into it. I tried again to time my arrival with the last part of her nap time but like before, she was waiting in the living room with a “I didn’t think you were coming today because it’s so late”. I laughed with her then she told me she was having a good day so far but was unsure of what to do the rest of the day. My suggestion of a short nap was rejected immediately. Lorne reported that Janet had a good morning that included a workout with Karl in the gym. He said he was impressed with her Shuttle session. Hearing that good report I ran a couple of scenarios past Janet as to what we could do before going home and after a lengthy discussion she chose to have a little rest, then pizza dinner, then a little leg stretch in the gym, then home.

The little rest turned into over an hour and a half sleep leading right into the pizza dinner which Janet dove into the second it was placed in front of her. When she was done I took her for the usual bio break and noticed that she wasn’t standing very well during the transfer. She acknowledged it too and couldn’t say why. I tried a few more afterwards with her and felt she was lacking some energy so I called off the gym, packed her up and took her home.

Being home a little earlier than planned gave us time to watch a movie. I wasn’t confident Janet would last through it but she insisted she would. After finishing her first piece of pizza at dinner she took a rather long pause. I asked her if she was going to keep eating and she said “how can I when I have no more?”. There were two other pieces on her plate, both way over on the right and when I turned her head she laughed and started eating one of them. With that in mind I wanted to do a little vision test before we watched the movie. I asked her to read what she saw on the TV screen. It was a still frame of the order screen for the movie we selected. She read the upper left portion no problem but said she couldn’t see the right side of the screen. I went up with my hand and she saw that fine after I made her physically turn her head. Prior to that cue she was still looking off to the left even though I was saying look right. Satisfied that she could see the whole screen I started the movie. We watched Life of Pi and Janet made it through easily, enjoying parts of it, finding some of it “upsetting” and overall feeling happy that she watched it. There were times when I could sense she was emotionally into it, a first I think. I repeatedly asked her during the movie if she wanted to have a snack and or a pop, a family tradition, but each time she declined. Cheap date but not quite as much fun.

There was no argument about going to bed after the movie and I’m praying for a restful night that gives Janet lots of energy and strength for tomorrow. I’m not sure what she’ll need the energy and strength for as we have absolutely nothing planned and when Janet heard that she smiled big and said “good”.

Brain Gain. Janet smartening up. #TSJ

Garrett had Janet in the gym when I arrived at Connect this morning and they were just finishing a session on the Shuttle when I snuck up behind Janet. Garrett saw me and started asking Janet where she was going today and who with. She knew about swimming and she knew she was going with me, her “boyfriend”. I managed to stay out of her line of sight until she sat up on the Shuttle and I did the cover her eyes, guess who? trick. She knew it was me right away and had a good laugh saying “we were just talking about you”. Garrett said Janet’s legs were quite stiff this morning so we were hoping for some help from the nice warm pool to loosen things up.

During the drive to KGH Janet said she was sort of excited about swimming and sort of not. Once in the water I’d say she was quite happy to be there. We had a good session today although different from the previous visits. Janet seems to have widely varying conditions of flexibility and control over her legs. Today her kicking while on her back was not that strong but kicking while on her tummy was quite impressive. The standing exercises went well and I was able to try quite a few reps without holding onto her at all. I just kept her from falling backwards, something which she tended to do today a lot, but not so much on Monday. Tez will join us at the pool Monday morning and give us some pointers on how to get the best value out of our time there.

After getting dressed we stopped by the OT department and had a nice chat with Jess, Janet’s former OT. Janet spoke nice and loud and clear to Jess who was impressed with how good Janet looks and sounds. On the rehab unit we said hi to nurse Amy and head nurse Erica who had an encouraging chat with Janet. Dr. McCann was there too and I “warned” him about our appointment on Tuesday. He’s ready.

On our way home Janet helped me with a little grocery shopping at Save On where we also picked up some lunch that we enjoyed in the sunshine at home. I didn’t press Janet to have a nap today as by the time we were done lunch it was three o’clock and she was actually doing pretty good so we decided to have a little Skype chat with Heather before making our way back to Connect. We had some stops to make along the way and I explained all of them to Janet before we left the driveway. Surprisingly she got a couple of them right as we made our way to each one but once we hit the “open” road she closed her eyes for a little siesta.

Back at Connect there was only time for a quick bio break before a salmon dinner. Janet said she didn’t like the salmon and I thought it might be because she had lunch so late but I tried it and it was very salty and fishy so I gave her my lasagna which she ate a little of along with her vegetables and lots of cantaloupe for dessert. I convinced her to go to the gym with Sousanne after dinner for a little leg stretch as it would be good for her and good for Sousanne who hasn’t worked with Janet much. Both were pleased with the results and Janet and I read some Slow Dance before getting an early start towards bed tonight as the lack of a nap caught up to Janet. She actually remained very bright right through saying goodnight even though she was tired. Her cognitive abilities have increased dramatically this week and I pray it continues. One good example from today is her reading an invitation she received to the Connect Spring Fling Brunch. Janet read me the card in its entirety except for the times listed on it, then chose to attend the event. You are supposed to rsvp through Christi who has a desk in the main lobby. I wrote “Janet will attend” on the card and sent Janet off to place it on Christi’s desk. I followed way behind Janet so she didn’t know I was there and I smiled the whole time as she wheeled confidently to the lobby, carefully put the card on top of Christi’s answering machine, spun around and came all the way back to her room. She only hit one wall and that was the last door she went through before her room. High five!

Praying for rest and healing tonight and a strong day tomorrow.