Trinity

The Team Save Janet Report is Out! #TSJ #trinitykelowna #skype #oloffs #kaltire

Janet awoke refreshed and ready for the day this morning. She seemed to really enjoy breakfast with Cam and Gina and had a good Skype chat with Mary/Gaga right after that. Her answers to questions were not always correct but she was enthusiastic during the entire call.

I thought about doing some moving related chores with Janet before lunch until I noticed a tire looking pretty flat on our car. Thankfully it wasn’t raining like it did yesterday so we were able to go out, pump a little air into it and drive over to Kal Tire and have it fixed. For FREE, and in half an hour! While we waited we walked over to Rona to check out paint samples for the new house. That was a good test of the porter wheelchair and I’ve determined that I like the idea of having two chairs but this one is not ideal for Janet. It’s too high and the foot rests are too far apart.

After a quick lunch and a look at Cam’s new car it was nap time which resulted in about an hours rest time but no sleeping. It was enough rest to give Janet a big enough boost to enjoy the rest of the day which started with the service at Trinity. Janet got really excited about a book Wayne referenced in his message called Not a Fan, by Kyle Idleman and we are going to start reading it right away. We haven’t been reading anything lately except emails and such so it will be nice to get into a book again. From church we went straight to Sandi and Henrik’s for a nice meal and good conversation. We hadn’t seen them in a while and it was really nice to reconnect. Janet managed to sit in a real chair the whole time we were there and her porter chair proved inadequate in wet gravel and for bringing into the house after getting wet. You don’t know until you try.

It was pretty late when we got home but Janet still had energy, so over a cup of tea I got her nails painted for the first real football game of the season. Seattle vs Carolina. We’ll be watching over breakfast with jerseys on. Go ‘hawks!

Thanking Jesus for everything we’ve been blessed with, especially family and friends. Praying for complete healing.

The Team Save Janet Report is Out! #TSJ #house4sale #realestate #trinitykelowna #Godatwork

It was another one of those restless nights for Janet Friday and when she woke around eight o’clock Saturday morning I could tell she wasn’t really awake despite her saying she was ready to get up. Minutes later she was snoring away and did so until 9:30. Once up she was very bright and had a good conversation with her mom on Skype after breakfast. I laced her fruit and yogurt with some Peg 3350 to help with the BM situation and it was very successful. Janet agreed that was a much better way to take the Peg than drinking it.

Getting up late made the wait for our realtor to arrive more bearable and Janet was noticeably excited when Les drove up a little ahead of schedule. The offer he brought with him was from the family that took a long second look at our house yesterday and we quickly came to an agreement with only the usual subjects. Janet was beaming as we accepted the offer and gave a big fist shake and a YES as Les left to get the documents to the other realtor. Now the work to find somewhere to live gets serious.

After lunch Janet and I went out into the yard to work as I had to cut the lawn to be ready for a showing tomorrow and Janet really wanted to help. Yes, we will still show the house even with the accepted offer as its not a done deal until the money’s in the bank. Janet cut back some flowers that had finished blooming while I cut the grass in the front then moved to the back with me and pulled a bunch of weeds. She didn’t think she helped much but every little bit helps. It is better if I can work alongside her though so maybe we’ll do some of that tomorrow. While we were working in the back we got a surprise visit from Jim and Nancy’s daughter Laura and her husband David. They presented us with a massive box of awesome cherries. It’s good to know people in the business. Thanks you guys!

Today is the 50th wedding anniversary of our neighbors Barb and Gary. Their six children and families are gathered here from around the country and Janet and I were able to join the celebration after a quick costume change. It was nice to finally meet the entire family and to see Barb even happier than usual. We couldn’t stay long but we did reassure Barb that when we move she’ll be one of the first to know our new address so she can keep delivering her delicious homemade bread.

Janet I enjoyed the worship experience at Trinity tonight and feel blessed to be part of that faith community. On the way home we did a drive by of a couple potential places to live, one a complete no go and the other a very exciting possibility but it has to get on the market first. Are you listening Brian? Sushi and a movie made up the rest of the night, don’t bother watching The Big Wedding, and I managed to get Janet into bed at a decent hour and the early indications are this should be a better nights sleep for her.

That was quite a day, not a lot of physical activity but a lot of mental exercise and Janet powered through it quite well. Every activity she engages in I see a real effort to do well and her desire to contribute was emphasized numerous times today. We have a busy bunch of weeks ahead of us and I think Janet will navigate them very well.

Trusting God that He is at work in our lives and has a plan, and praying for rest, healing and continued improvement for Janet.

Mother’s Day. An emotional day for Janet. #TSJ

Mother’s Day. Janet and I don’t usually make much of Hallmark holidays but I sensed this one would be special for Janet and it was. As we were finishing breakfast I read, or at least attempted to read a poem written by Laurel and emailed to Janet this morning. Laurel really should know how difficult it is for me to read sappy things like that and when Janet started crying five words in, that was the end of me too. It seriously took me twenty minutes to read fourteen verses to her in between the watery eyes and running noses. I tried to laugh through it to get Janet to laugh but no. Tears tears and more tears. And that was just the start of our day.

The service at Trinity was of course designed to honor moms and following a very entertaining take on Queen’s Bohemian Rhapsody, the message was delivered via a table discussion with four next gen members of our church. They told stories of what it was like growing up in their homes and some of the comments resonated deeply with Janet and brought more tears. The comments that really hit her were about values and practices that Janet always fought hard for as a mom and to hear them validated by a group of young people was very powerful. She was still in tears long after the service ended and it took a visit from Kiko and Joel to cheer her up.

At home the Skype marathon began with Cam who we have not been able to connect with for a while. Janet was surprised that he remembered it was Mother’s Day. Heather was next followed by a voice call to my mom. Determined to avoid a nap Janet agreed to go for a swim and a hot tub. Knowing the Rehab pool is 36C I brought ours up to 32C hoping Janet would be comfortable. I think there’s something wrong with my thermometer because that 32C felt more like 52C but Janet of course loved it. I quickly learned that I need some different exercises for our pool as its only three feet deep in the shallow end and slopes dramatically to the deep end so there’s not enough water to work with in one end and too much in the other. Janet did manage to float on her back all by herself for five seconds today even recovering twice in that time when her face dipped below the surface. Next time the water will be cooler and I’ll have a better routine for her.

The hot tub’s 38.7C felt cooler to me than the pool I think because its supposed to be hot where I’ve always liked the pool to be refreshing. Once again I got a really good stretch on both Janet’s legs in the hot tub and set her up nice for a long lounging session this evening in her wheelchair. That came after a Skype chat with Laurel who apologized for the tears this morning then a voice call to a surprised Mary/Gaga.

Dinner was take out from our go to sushi place where Brian and his family were having dinner when we got there to pick ours up. Brian went out to see Janet and she identified him as Gary. When I got back to the car she told me Jimmy came to say hi to her. Oh well.

Janet was determined to watch The Voice with me tonight and I could see her fighting to stay awake for it all. She managed barely and was asleep before I finished our goodnight prayer. Today was an emotional day for Janet. It was also one of those days where you look back and think it was really busy but it seems like you didn’t do much. What we did do was great though. We are proud of our family, blessed by our friends and our church and grateful for the progress Janet is making. Praying for a healing and restful night providing lots of strength for tomorrow.

No Smiling. Chef Janet helps again. #TSJ

While bathed in the morning sun I woke Janet up around 8:30 this morning so we didn’t have to rush through breakfast before going to church. It has been well over a week since Janet’s last BM and with no action overnight I decided I’d really try and get her more physically active today in hopes that would get her going. With that in mind I had her do as much of her morning routine herself as possible. That included a few standing attempts with her pulling up or pushing down her pants. She excelled at that again today. As Janet finished her breakfast she turned to me and asked, “if it’s OK with you I’d like to go to the bathroom?” How could I say no? That turned into her most successful bathroom trip in over a week and I gave her a standing ovation. Not even sure if I gave my kids one back in the day so Janet’s pretty special.

The morning success paved the way for a positive and enjoyable Sunday. There was singing and laughing at Trinity with Tim’s talk being on sex and Janet thinking that was pretty funny. I finally got her to sign her passport renewal form so after church we went to the dreaded mall to get some pictures taken. It wasn’t that hard for Janet not to smile for the camera but it was super hard for her to control her blinking. Thank goodness for digital cameras. She did a great job and took the best passport picture I’ve ever seen. We stayed there for lunch then went home for a really good stretch and a nap. I got both of Janet’s legs the straightest I can remember after working them for a good twenty minutes. The left leg especially still seems quite tight but once you get it going a bit it loosens right up. Janet didn’t argue about her nap today but did say that she doesn’t sleep during her naps or snore. I told her I would record some video of her sleeping and snoring during this nap if she would believe me then. She agreed, fell asleep for two hours but only snored a couple times so no video. Next time, and it’ll get Keeked.

Janet was such a big help with dinner yesterday I wanted to make something today she could help out with as well. Cinco de Mayo is coming up and we were discussing what to do for it and decided to warm up for it by making enchiladas. Janet chopped an onion, opened cans, poured, stirred and scooped and was very willing to help in anyway she could. Cooking this way is actually becoming fun and I hope we can keep it that way. You can see her scooping with a smile on her face on Keek, @larrylatour.

After dinner we watched a little basketball and halftime came just at the right time for a quick stretch. This one wasn’t as good as Janet was getting tired so I took it easy on her wanting our evening to be fun. She had a little problem with the Dilantin tonight in that I neglected to get her to drink a lot of water after taking the pills. I thought since we were sitting watching TV she’d sip on her Fresca enough to get them all the way down. Wasn’t the case and she started complaining her throat hurt. Turned out to be nothing more Fresca and a little ice cream couldn’t cure then it was a bowl of popcorn and The Voice before bed. Janet actually called her own bedtime tonight. The Voice ended about 9:40 and she started wheeling away mumbling something that turned out to mean she was ready for sleep.

Praying that Janet has a restful night that brings lots more healing to her legs and right arm and provides her with energy and strength for tomorrow.

Happy Easter! An emotional day indeed. #TSJ #Heisrisen

This morning was what Easter Sunday ought to be, in my mind anyways. Bright, sunny, full of excitement with an air of celebration. I had to wake Janet up so we could start our day on time and with a big smile she told me she was ready. With Laurel’s help we had breakfast done and were all dressed ready for church ahead of schedule. I was anxious to get there knowing it would be packed and there is really only the one seat that’s best for Janet. We were first in line at the door leading to that seat and a short while later were all settled in. I had to ask Janet one more time if she was excited to be a part of the service and seeing herself on the side screens. She played it down and I wonder if we were asking her too often about that. I wanted her to be happy about it and understand the potential for touching a lot of people and I think she gets that and just wanted to not think about it. The team at Trinity did an outstanding job with this weekend’s services and Janet showed no signs of nodding off today at all. The music kept her clapping or singing throughout and when it came time for Wayne’s message she was as tuned in as I’ve ever noticed her. Our video was the last of the three to be shared during the message and as soon as it started Janet broke down. She cried throughout which made me cry and I’m still not sure why she was crying. My best guess is the release of a lot of pent up emotion over the whole thing and perhaps some worry as to how it would be received. Those were things I was certainly feeling so I can only hope she was feeling the same as that would be cool if she was able to think ahead like that. I showed her the video again at home and she watched it through without tears then when I asked her what she thought she said “it makes me want to cry”, so she did. One comment she managed this time was she felt she “did bad”. Totally not so. See for yourself here. Her feeling like that makes no sense for the first time she saw the video as she was crying before she was even on the screen. It was easy to calm her as I could remind her of the dozens of people that stopped and thanked us for sharing our story today. Most of them people we don’t know at all. One gentleman who had been at the service prior to the one we went to had tears in his eyes as he told me how our story had touched him. Janet agreed that we hope people are inspired by the video to understand how quickly life can change and to honor the commitments they have made to others.

Before Laurel and Raj set off on their drive back to Calgary we enjoyed a quick lunch in the sun with them at Red Robin.

Raj, Laurel, Janet, Larry

Raj, Laurel, Janet, Larry


That was a great way to decompress from the day so far and enjoy a last chat until the next time we see them. Laurel will be back at the beginning of May with Heather to do some wedding dress shopping and Janet is excited about that. Knowing they would see each other soon there were no tears at the parking lot goodbye. A first I believe!

A little bit in denial about the need for a nap, Janet was sleeping by 2:30 and I had to wake her at five so we could enjoy dinner together before heading back to Connect. Once the cobwebs cleared she was able to help me make a salad but I’m going to have to get her doing some bicep curls in the gym again as I sense she’s a little weaker than she ought to be. We watched and really enjoyed The Voice during dinner. Janet couldn’t pick a clear favorite contestant but Blake Shelton remains her obvious favorite coach as she laughed out loud to a few of his antics. The ride back to Connect was pleasant as I got Janet singing a little bit but I was kind of dreading leaving her there tonight. This weekend at home was a good one and I sense a little more awareness from Janet and even though her speech is still too quiet there were a number of times she came up with comments and answers that really impressed me. The only breakdowns she had were when she was simply too tired to do anything else, the video reaction exempted. She didn’t protest but I don’t think she was all that excited to go back tonight either. I reassured us both by reminding her she’s there to get better and she agreed.

Praying for rest and healing tonight and thanking the risen Christ for all we have been blessed with.

Let’s Get This Party Started! Silly Janet. #TSJ

Janet awoke with a nice smile this morning and got through the morning routine nicely, eating some fruit and yogurt by nine ish. We had all agreed to have pancakes with sausages and bacon this morning as this was our only morning with Raj and Laurel where we could take our time with breakfast. I’d forgotten how long it takes to make all that stuff and thought I could shower while Janet was eating her yogurt then whip everything up. Not quite. It was 10:15 by the time the rest of us could join Janet but it was all good and fun.

Laurel was a big help to me this morning as she went through the last of Janet’s clothes with her and filled another garbage bag for donation and created another pile of try on before deciding stuff. That’s pretty much it for purging the main floor and there’s just a little bit left downstairs which of course means the garage is a disaster area but that was the plan all along and I’m sure I can deal with that over a couple of days sometime.

It was another beautiful Spring day here so Raj, Laurel, Janet and Nash went for a walk to the beach while I did a little yard work and cleaned the inside of the car which hadn’t been done since the end of last summer. We all sat outside for a while when they got back and had a nice Skype chat with Heather. That lead into a well timed late lunch which set up nap time for Janet in preparation for going out for dinner tonight. I had to work pretty hard to get her calmed down enough to sleep which she did for forty five minutes only. Not sure what woke her that first time but the next three times in one and a half hours was Nash barking for no legitimate reason. Even Janet was upset the last couple of times.

Despite the inconsistent sleep Janet had lots of energy and was quite bright as we headed off to The Minstrel Cafe for dinner and some live music. We sat at the same table as when we were there for Jon and Lisa’s wedding a little while ago and Janet seemed quite happy the whole time. She had done really well drinking her water today so wine was allowed with dinner and apparently not enough of it for Janet as she tried to get more out of the empty carafe.

20130330-234521.jpg
Janet had a nice long play time with Nash when we got home and did a good job getting his treat then letting him outside by herself with only a little coaching along the way. Sleep came fast to her tonight after a pretty busy and fun day.

Praying for lots of energy tomorrow as we get to celebrate the Resurrection and through video be a part of the message at Trinity. I pray that Janet’s declaration of hope will inspire others.

Lights, Camera,… Janet’s first video shoot. #TSJ

A showered and smiling Janet greeted me as I walked into Connect this morning. She knew we were going out to do something and guessed it was watch basketball. A good guess as that was in the plan for later but first up was a video shoot for the Easter service at Trinity. Lorne said she was off to a good start, drinking her water before and after breakfast but had a little cry during her shower. She said she forgot to ask about the bath so I reminded her to try that next time.

We arrived at Trinity and Jody, Kiko and Rebecca were just finishing setting up for the shoot. The idea behind this is for Janet and I to give about a ninety second glimpse at our story so far as Wayne teaches on three “walls” or “barriers” we can all hit in life. There are two other video stories in the sermon, one on Finances, one on Grief and then ours on Health. The underlying theme in each is the fact that there is still hope.

The first part of the shoot was for some cut away shots so no talking needed and that was a nice way to ease into things. All Janet had to do was sit under the lights and look cute.

20130323-000346.jpg

After a quick location change it was time for the talking bits. Thankfully for me Kiko set up a TelePrompTer which made my part much easier. Janet had trouble reading it though so I fed her the lines one at a time until she could say each one on her own. She wasn’t as loud as I had hoped but Jody said he could work with it and may add subtitles for the sake of clarity. The whole shoot was done in an hour and a half and Jody will now work his magic to make it all look and sound good.

20130323-001117.jpg

Janet had fun doing the video today and held her energy very well. As with all stars the groupies are always hovering nearby. Twyla and Wendy came out to see Janet in between shots and with a little prompting Janet remembered their names. She was genuinely pleased to see them and that added to the positive experience this was. I’m a little surprised at how well Janet is talking about what happened to her and I don’t think it’s because she doesn’t get it. I’m hoping by talking about it she’ll gain confidence to keep working hard at getting better.

Stars also hang out in restaurants so rather than go home for lunch we headed back to Original Joe’s, this time with Kiko and Rebecca. Janet enjoyed that as well and was very ready for a nap when we got home. Because nap time was later than normal, dinner was a little late. I had wanted her to help make pizzas but to save time I did most of it while she drank her water and watched basketball. Janet did build her own pizza after I had all the toppings ready and this was probably her best one yet. Looked better than mine!

Janet kept insisting she didn’t want to get ready for bed as the clock ticked past nine so I let her stay up to watch the end of the basketball game. That made it after ten before the lights went out so hopefully she doesn’t sleep too long tomorrow and we can get a few things done in the morning. Praying for rest and healing and for lots of energy tomorrow.

Sleep? #TSJ

I spent the first part of today watching Janet sleep as I had done most of the night and despite the ticking clock I had no intention of waking her. I was surprised how well she slept last night. She only woke up briefly a few times, once trying to grab the bedrail but of course she was grabbing me. I was awake a ton of times as I was in “mother mode” concerned all night that she was OK. I helped her turn onto her side a couple of times and other than that she had a peaceful nights sleep.

I was all set to make her eggs for breakfast, it would be a first as Janet didn’t like eggs before so I was kind of looking forward to it, but she chose fruit and yogurt instead and very excitedly accepted an offer to have her first toast and peanut butter. She even drank a glass of orange juice, something she never liked before. We got the warm clothes on and raced off to church. A nice surprise in today’s service was a brief wedding ceremony. A young couple with a story of overcoming addictions and bouncing around foster homes were married during the service as they had no means of getting married themselves and no family support and no real friends to witness the marriage. All 1,200 congregants acted as witnesses as the church rallied to support them in their new lives. Janet loved seeing the bride walk right past her at the start and then walk by again with her husband at the end. She even had a little tear in her eye when Wayne announced them as husband and wife. It was a nice moment and a solid demonstration of our faith community coming alongside people needing love, guidance and support. No mention from Janet that things were too long today. I think she enjoyed the whole thing.

Lunch was a bit of a rush as we had a two o’clock appointment to view a condo in a very interesting building. Joel and Kiko joined us as they live nearby and have been curious to see inside the place too. We all really liked it and I will investigate further to see if we should put in an offer. Janet liked it so much that when we were chatting with the realtor in the suite, she nodded off. I asked her if she felt so much at home she could sleep and she said yes. The place is called Invue and if any of you know anyone that owns a place there I’d love to talk to them.

We had a nice Skype chat with Andrew before dinner with Janet talking fairly well but still getting her words mixed up a little. She was surprised it was dinner time already but still ate it all including ice cream and the last Christmas brownie in the house. I carried a very full Janet out to the car for the drive back to Connect and once there got her settled in to bed where I’m sure she will sleep well without me. I gave Bob the weekend food report and was able to see that Janet’s vitals have been tracking really well the last while. I miss seeing those taken everyday but her numbers are in a good range so there is no need for that anymore.

Praying for rest and healing and thanking Jesus for the community we get to be a part of.