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Janet, A Success Story. July 9. #TSJ Video, Speed Walking

Janet’s day was pretty routine for the first half. She reported to me that she “did everything and it was all good”. Her pendant alarm rang as soon as I got to Connect so I went straight to her room where she was getting up from her nap and needed to go to the bathroom. Without her AFO and shoes on it’s not possible for her to walk on her own so she needs help and is really good at asking for it now. Once dressed, Janet walked well all the way to the patio where we stayed through dinner as the A/C was too cold inside. I will admit I turned the A/C on at our house today for the first time, as by 11 o’clock this morning it was over 28 degrees inside and that’s too warm even for me.

I thought with the heat I’d be able to convince Janet to go for a swim in the lake but she wasn’t having anything to do with that. It was all I could do just to get her feet in the water. It’s a start.
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We spent a lot of time planning things tonight. One thing I try to involve Janet in each week is the meal planning at home. She helps decide what the dinners will be and helps create a shopping list with me. Doing that could be a chore but thankfully Janet seems to enjoy begin involved in the decision making and appreciates each meal more when it happens as she had some input into it. We also try to plan some of our activities for when she is home and I think tomorrow evening we are finally going to get to try Menchie’s Frozen Yogurt. MMMM.

You haven’t gotten to see Janet walk for a while so I thought I’d give you a quick peak. Last night she flat out refused to go get her meds without me, tonight she never even asked me, she just got up and walked away. This is her making the return trip in record time.


Impressive huh? For reference, that walk really took just under three minutes.

Janet asked to go to bed a little early tonight so we’d have more time to read Are You There God, It’s Me Margaret. We did and she laughed a lot and continues to really enjoy it which is maybe why she remembers it so well. Each night before I read I ask her to tell me what happened the previous night and since we started this book she’s been bang on.

Praying for a good night of sleep and an energetic Thursday.

Janet, A Success Story. July 6. #TSJ Good Friend

This morning was the opposite of Saturday as we both slept in rather than getting up early to watch tennis. Janet had a shower and is manoeuvring around the bathroom much better than when we first attempted showers here. I can remember practically carrying her in some cases, now I’m just a bit of a support.

It was just after ten by the time we were out making breakfast and we put our recorded version of the Gentlemen’s Championship of Wimbledon on. We let it play while we made and ate breakfast then Janet had her weekly Skype session with Mary/Gaga then we focused on the tennis. Janet impressed me over and over with her increasing knowledge of the game as well as her understanding of what was happening moment to moment. Her best comment came in the third set when she observed that Roger Federer was making most of his first serves and Novak Djokovic wasn’t. Brilliant.

I wasn’t planning on sitting through the entire match but Janet was really enjoying it and it was an amazing battle so we only sped through a small portion of it with Championship Point coming just as Kiko arrived for a visit. Janet initiated this get together as she had some questions coming out of Tim’s message at Trinity last week and thought Kiko would be a good person to talk to. She’s right, they enjoyed a nice afternoon together chatting away and sipping wine with Janet feeling really happy about it all afterwards and Kiko saying to me how impressed she was with Janet’s memory and social skills. There has been a very steady improvement in those areas the last little while and Janet is always at her best when she’s with people she cares about.

Sunday afternoon with a good friend.

Sunday afternoon with a good friend.


After a very brief nap to recoup a little we enjoyed a Chinese food dinner then made the sad trip back to Connect. The wheelchair was not used at all after breakfast today except for when I went to pick up dinner. Janet walked well, mostly with assistance today as I wanted her moving at a quicker pace and she did a great job on the steps multiple times.

Praying for a long night of healing sleep and an energetic Monday. Thanking Jesus for blessing us with amazing people in our lives.

Janet, A Success Story. July 5. #TSJ Final Saturday

As expected, 5:45am came quickly and Janet, even in the fog of sleep knew it was time to get up and watch Genie Bouchard play for the Ladies Championship at Wimbledon. Sadly Genie lost, happily there’s lots more tennis to come this year. We never made it to the Futures event at all today as Janet’s wheelchair developed a problem that took the rest of the morning to temporarily resolve and that put us way behind schedule.

Janet did some good walking and stair climbing throughout the day and a lot in the morning because she didn’t have a wheelchair for most of it. That was a good lesson in how much Janet still needs the wheelchair as it’s fine to think she doesn’t when you have it but it’s a whole other ball game when you don’t. Janet’s best walking came at church as she walked down and then up the aisle unassisted and got a standing ovation from our friend Carol. She was standing and waiting to greet us when we got to our seats but that still counts in my book.

Tonight we watched the movie The Butler and really enjoyed it. Janet was impressed with how much history the lead character lived through and she remembered a lot of it, mostly from the mid seventies on. When asked to name the date and her meds tonight Janet got it all correct with no prompting at all! She even thought that was pretty good.

Praying for a rejuvenating sleep and a productive Sunday.

PS. This will be the last blog update from a Friday or Saturday as I’m finding it too time consuming to do this when Janet is home. My plan is to stop the daily updates as soon as Janet is home full time so this is a way of weaning y’all off. Of course any earth shattering developments will be posted promptly no matter the day.

Janet, A Success Story. July 4. #TSJ Tennis Babe

Early this morning Janet “woke up” repeatedly asking me for my “ticket”. She was very much in a dream yet appeared to be awake. It was a little unnerving and when she did snap out of it all she could explain was we were all heading “home” from somewhere. Not as fun as the cruise dream but certainly Janet was deeper into this one.

After breakfast we went to visit John for a bit as we hadn’t seen him for a few weeks. Janet was able to tell him some wedding and travel stories and we all talked soccer and tennis. Janet was pleased we went as she believes John is always happy to see us. Who isn’t?

Since Janet has been enjoying tennis on TV so much I decided to take her to see some live. There is a Futures tournament on here now and never having seen live professional tennis before we decided to check it out.

Intently watching the action.

Intently watching the action.


It was a lot of fun and we both were impressed by the intensity of the players. You see it on TV but feel it when you’re there. The semi finals are tomorrow and we may go back as we will be on a tennis high after Genie Bouchard wins Wimbledon.

I allowed Janet to walk around the house as she pleased today in line with what Tez said yesterday and she did well. There was no leaning on anything and she tackled the open areas with reasonable confidence. She did an awesome job on the steps to and from the garage, hardly using me at all. Overall, a good day.

Praying for a restful night of sleep and a fun Saturday.

Janet, A Success Story. July 3. #TSJ

I got my phone call from Janet much earlier than typical today as she very excitedly called me right after Genie Bouchard won her semi final match at Wimbledon. Janet watched the last half of the match during her breakfast and was super excited Genie won, so much so that we are getting up early Saturday to watch the Championship live. Janet is liking both the game of tennis (“it’s played in a nice warm, clean place”) and the person that Genie seems to be (“a nice and intelligent good looking person”).

Another thing that got Janet all excited today was getting to come home for the weekend. Garrett commented that Janet really took the initiative in regards to her exercise routine this morning by walking up to him on a couple of occasions and asking if she could do something. According to Janet she was motivated by not only wanting to get them done but by the prospect of coming home. Whatever works.

Tez was in the building today and offered a few tips on walking. I’ve been nagging Janet to stop hanging onto walls and furniture while walking freestyle and Tez says not to worry about that as long as Janet isn’t leaning onto things for support. If it’s for security purposes its fine. I asked him about Janet walking barefoot for a few steps and he thought that wasn’t the greatest idea but if Janet wants to do so using her cane and carefully stepping out with her right foot so it lands flat on the floor, fine. We brought the cane home in case she wants to try. The motivation for this is to refrain from using the wheelchair as much as possible including first thing in the morning and when going to the bathroom after having gotten into bed at night or after a nap. Sounds like it may be a little too soon to really go after.

Janet was a big help at dinner time tonight, preparing a veggie stir fry by herself except for getting the very heavy frying pan out and turning on the cooktop. I could have sat back and drank wine while she cooked. Maybe tomorrow.

Praying for a long night of reenergizing sleep and a productive Friday.

Janet, A Success Story. June 29. #TSJ Relaxing

For once I felt totally OK in not having anything planned for the day and allowing the goal to be relaxation and it worked well. After quite a busy Friday and Saturday Janet had a relaxing and enjoyable Sunday which of course made it really difficult to take her back to Connect tonight.

Janet had a great Skype chat with her mom this morning and as I listened in from a distance I noticed Janet needing a minimum of cueing in answering questions and she stayed on topic really well. She performed equally well as we chatted with Scott and Nora from Chicago this afternoon. Janet was thrilled to discuss the wedding and family with someone else and loved seeing and talking to two awesome people. She even thinks its cool there is technology that allows us to do such things. We are blessed.

Slowly I am gaining confidence in my ability to back off and let Janet walk around the house on her own. She did that a lot today with varying degrees of success but never a hint of falling. I’m trying to give her space in hopes she’ll feel more free and her confidence will increase. So far I’d say its working as each time she reached her target area there was a big smile on her face and I don’t even have to ask her to walk anymore, she knows to do it and even said tonight that she “makes herself” do it. Love it!

Our relaxing day ended at Connect with Janet accepting she needs to get back to “work”. The fact she will now be coming home for weekends on Thursdays helped just a little too. Praying for a fun, progressive and productive week.

Janet, A Success Story. June 28. #TSJ Wine Tour

Not much rest for the ever active Janet. After a late night, Janet was up at a normal time this morning and we were off to do some wine touring with our Wine Club. The only thing I had to help Janet with during breakfast was opening the peanut butter jar and I give her top marks for remembering its now kept in the fridge.

The Wine Club met at Tantalus Vineyards for a very informative tasting given by their Operations Manager, Jane. Janet went in thinking she wouldn’t know anything or learn anything but she drank all four tastings and agreed it was a fun experience and a beautiful facility.

Our next stop was CedarCreek Estate Winery where Candice led us through a good tour during which I tried to help with the few fun facts that I remembered from my days of working there. Thirteen of us sat down for lunch after the tour and enjoyed the great food, beautiful scenery and fun fellowship.
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A great way to end the season for our club and although Janet felt overwhelmed at the gatherings sometimes, she is looking forward to reconvening in September for the social aspect of it all.

Wine Shots!

Wine Shots!

Arriving back home, it was supposed to be nap time but Janet really wanted to finish watching Genie Bouchard’s match at Wimbledon. She won and Janet happily agreed to attempt a nap. There certainly was no snoring to be heard but maybe a few minutes of sleep before leaving for church. Janet was seeming a little tired as we arrived so I held her hand as we walked all the way in. I’m trying to get Janet to focus on placing each heel down first when she steps and as long as I remind she can do it.

Janet really liked Tim’s message tonight and told him so after the service. Its really special when Janet “gets” what a speaker is talking about and I’m impressed by how she can communicate her feelings and thoughts about things sometimes. Its reminiscent of the former Janet.

All the wine tasting, touring and socializing combined with the very short nap made for a tired Janet tonight. It’s the good tired of completing an active day where there may not have been a lot of physical exercise but there sure was a cognitive workout. Praying for a rejuvenating sleep and a positive tomorrow.

Janet, A Success Story. June 27. #TSJ Staff BBQ

To try and compare this to what will be a typical Friday at home for Janet wouldn’t be fair as we had a lot to do in preparation for the BBQ we were hosting this evening. Janet started her day with a shower which was no where near as easy as that awesome bathroom we had in Ottawa. We bypassed filling the tub up this time though and had Janet stand pretty much the whole time. It was faster but not any warmer as we couldn’t leave the water on as it would spray everywhere. If anyone has a spare 45 grand we could make our bathroom like the Ottawa one. Anyone?

Today was Mary/Gaga’s birthday and Janet remembered all on her own and called her mom just as her and Keith were heading to Toronto for a Blue Jays game. Janet’s memory continues to improve as does her cooking skills. She was a big help in prepping all the food for this evening and even did a good job vacuuming. Those activities took us right up to nap time save for a brief walk in the sun which was well deserved.

Janet didn’t sleep at all after trying for an hour so I got her up so she could set a few things out before people arrived. First on the scene were Brian and his daughter Olivia who Janet took an immediate interest in. Surprise surprise. Olivia didn’t take to Janet as quickly as she took to the bins of Barbie stuff Janet suggested we bring out. Good call.

Janet right at home

Janet right at home


The evening was very enjoyable as we got to wait on some of the staff that have worked so hard with Janet the last year and a half. Janet has a hard time keeping up with the conversation in group settings but was happy to sit back and listen. We are blessed to be able to host good people in our home.

Praying for a night of deep and reenergizing sleep.

Janet, A Success Story. June 26. #TSJ Early Weekend

When Janet called me after lunch today I could sense right away where she was steering the conversation to. Yesterday she repeatedly asked if she could come home early for the weekend since its going to be such a busy one. I made her the usual deal of getting all her therapies done by lunchtime then we’d talk. She couldn’t tell me fast enough that she’d done just that then asked again if she could come home. How could I say no and why would I?

Janet agreed to a nap before I picked her up though and she was just getting up when I arrived. We are having some of the Connect staff over for a BBQ tomorrow so there was work to be done as soon as we got home and getting dinner was first up. Pizzas are a good project for Janet to help with and she loves eating them so that was dinner tonight. We are developing a good routine around pizza making. Janet, in her wheelchair, is able to get a lot of the ingredients and turn the oven on and she’s awesome and putting the sauces on before building the actual pizzas. It used to be that half of her toppings would end up anywhere but on her pizza. Not so now, she is creating masterpieces.

For the BBQ Janet was pretty insistent on having a dessert and wanted to make a carrot cake, her favourite. My baking past is not pretty so I was a reluctant participant in our effort tonight but I must say the end result looks pretty good and the icing is awesome. Janet broke eggs and mixed things together for the cake really well then decided to chat with Laurel for a bit while I figured out the icing. After catching up a little on our So You Think You Can Dance watching, Janet iced the carrot cake before going to bed.

Because of all the kitchen work, Janet was in her wheelchair more than I would’ve liked tonight but that is the best way for her to be able to help. She did stand to ice the cake and had to walk up the two steps from the garage when we got home today as I’ve taken away the wheelchair ramp. There is a grab bar on her left side and using that she effortlessly got up both steps. High five! I may not put the ramp back if going down the steps is just as good.

Praying for a night of reenergizing sleep and a fun Friday.

Janet, A Success Story. June 22. #TSJ Home sweet home?

Janet proved her trooper status again today, getting up in time for a farewell breakfast with Heather, Cam and Gina, Leslie and Gavin. The goodbyes didn’t produce as much tear water as I thought they might and we made it to the airport in plenty of time to start the long journey home.

I can’t say enough about how impressed I am with Janet’s stamina for flying and for the help we got along the way. Dare I say the Westjet ground crew in Toronto were even “too helpful” today. I had to almost argue with them to stop them from giving Janet a ride on their golf cart to our connecting flight. We had lots of time, she needed a bathroom break and we wanted to get some food. I know its fun riding a golf cart and all but.

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Courtney’s car was parked at our house so that gave us the chance to go home for sushi before the dreaded trip back to Connect for Janet. The weather here is gorgeous so we ate outside and reminisced about the last few days. We all agree that it was a great trip and the best wedding we’ve been to.

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Chelsea made Janet’s arrival at Connect pleasant by coming outside as soon as she saw us and giving Janet a big hug. Janet was too tired to really chat and was sleeping by 10:15. No surprise there as that’s 1:15 her body time.

Praying for a safe and on time honeymoon flight for Heather and Allan Monday and for lots of energy for Janet as she transitions back to “work”.