walking

The Team Save Janet Report is Out! #TSJ #workout

Renovation Day 58. Another work from home day for Randy. I spent the day at Trinity helping the team there. Apparently Christmas is coming soon and there’s a set to be built.

Janet once again was cozied up in bed when I got to Connect and once again she never made it to the gym during the day shift. This time it was because they went on a field trip. Aberdeen Hall Prep School invited the residents to a special Christmas concert put on by the pre school kids. Janet was right back in her natural environment and the kids recognized that and gave her lots of attention. She said it was a lot of fun and even Wes sang a little. At the end of the concert the children gave out arts and crafts pieces they had made to whoever they chose. Guess who got the most? JanetPreSchoolBling

Clearly happy with that experience Janet was reasonably accepting of having to do her exercises tonight and started with the bike again. Singing and smiling she pedalled her way to a new personal best of 2.5 miles in thirty minutes at level 2.5. High five!

After dinner Janet surprisingly chose to do sling walking over the Shuttle. We discussed with Jess and Curtis the pros and cons of the sling walking with me expressing concern over Janet’s fear of the thing. We decided to give it one more try but while Janet and I were waiting for Curtis to finish instructing Wes I had Janet try and walk along the parallel bars like Willie was doing yesterday. She did very well and with Curtis and I assisting she made it down and back twice, getting better at the technique the more she did it. Curtis held her hand in front of her to discourage Janet from using it as a crutch and I braced her right knee as it tends to flex outwards when weight is put through it. Janet is on the list to be fitted for an AFO which will support her in that way and we hope it can be made soon as that will give Janet more confidence and ability to use her right leg. Fitting will take place at KGH as soon as the doctors get their paperwork in order.

Walking pretty much exhausted Janet so we spent a nice quiet evening catching up on emails and watching X Factor. Praying for a night of deep and healing sleep and a willingness to work hard tomorrow.

The Team Save Janet Report is Out! #TSJ #Babysteps

Renovation Day 50. Wow, 50?, really? Crazy. Randy installed almost all of the kitchen drawers today as well as the shelves for the remaining two closets. That means Janet will come home tomorrow after lunch to help load stuff into those spaces. I installed some towel bars, a new smoke alarm and started installing the dining room light.

As reported earlier Janet took her first steps using a cane today and we are still very excited about that. Here’s the video I shot this afternoon with her walking in the hallway assisted by Tez and Jess.


These are baby steps for sure and more of a confidence booster than anything else. Janet fully realizes and accepts how well she did today and that is the biggest win in my mind.

By the time we had settled down from all that excitement it was after four and Janet was feeling pretty tired so she went for a little pre dinner nap. That enabled her to get in a decent bike ride after dinner starting out at level two but asking for the pedalling to be made easier ten minutes in so I dropped it back down to 1.5 respecting how much the walking had taken out of her. Curtis informed me later that Jess had Janet on the bike yesterday starting at level three then dropping to two and Janet tolerated that well. As long as she’s not too tired I’ll get her going like that as well. She can handle it.

To be productive before watching The Voice Janet wanted to do some reading so we downloaded a book to the iPad in hopes she could read off of that easier. I had her read the opening quote in the book and she read seven lines with only two prompts from me along the way so I think this will work well. We chose the book Open by Andre Agassi and are enjoying it so far.

Janet stayed very alert throughout the reading and also for The Voice. Our contestants are both safe again and Janet is starting to remember some names from the show. Our bedtime chat included some serious thinking on Janet’s part triggered by her physical success today. She asked why she got sick and repeatedly mentioned she doesn’t want to be a waste. Instead of the old very emotional statements like that these were stated quite seriously with a hint of emotion. We had a really good talk in which I was able to reaffirm the many positives that have come in the last eighteen months. I sense a real turning point in Janet’s recovery and look forward to what she will accomplish in the near future.

Janet and I send our prayers and love to Heidi and her family today as they grieve the passing of her mother. Heidi and Jack are key members of Team Save Janet and inspiring examples of how to live out a life of faith and love.

Thanking our Lord and Saviour for all He provides and praying for complete healing.

The Team Save Janet Report is Out! #TSJ #walking

Renovation Day 36. Great change in the house today as the flooring install has begun. The crew were late arriving after their truck broke down but they managed to get more done than I anticipated and expect to be completely finished Friday. Randy spent the day building drawers and shelves out if his home and I continued changing out plugs and switches. Probably more of the same tomorrow.

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A sleepy looking Janet was waiting for me in the living room at Connect when I finally rolled in. She was not interested in a nap and started to perk up as we discussed her day and how we’d spend the rest of it. The first smile came when I asked her about singing with John. She lit right up and said “that was fun” and John was pleased with the lyrics I had printed off for them. Janet said she sang pretty well and they both enjoyed the new material.

Talking about singing got Janet in a good enough mood to go for a bike ride during which she sang along to Carly Simon’s, Your So Vain, impressing Bob who was in the gym working with Willie. I elected to keep the degree of difficulty the same on the bike today since Janet seemed a little too tired to be pushed. She tied her distance record today but did it in a faster time and I had her try the balance board again after her ride. There was the initial reluctance to do it but once on the board Janet actually insisted I let go of her so she could try on her own. I was unable to totally let go but did to the point where she was in complete control. After a few good shifts of weight I think she started thinking about it too much and she stalled.

In the Standing Frame after dinner Janet was able to put weight through her right leg and kept it there at east each time I checked. She didn’t argue with me about doing any of her exercises today and that made for a more fun time together. In fact I would say Janet was rather cooperative today. I hope it continues. We read some Not a Fan in preparation for SHElife tomorrow and Janet grasped some good talking points from what we read. The day caught up to her as we relaxed with the last of the leftover Halloween candy. Janet barely made it through The Voice however both of our contestants made it through to the top ten.

Praying for a restful and healing night and more control of her right leg.

The Team Save Janet Report is Out! #TSJ #walking

Renovation Day 31. Just a little shopping for me today as there were lots of Janet things going on. Randy and Dave were both busy all day and it looks to me like we’re close to finishing the painting and the kitchen appears close to where Randy can start building doors and drawers.

I met Janet and the gang at the pool this morning and found Janet to be in a good mood albeit not too excited to go swimming. After the cold water the last couple of weeks I can’t blame her for the loss of enthusiasm and am glad she still is willing to go. Thankfully the water was noticeably warmer today and Janet was comfortable after five minutes or so. Walking in this pool is still really challenging as her right leg just stiffens right up from the cold. Swimming on the other hand is spectacular as Janet realizes she can generate some warmth by moving around. During one length, she was swimming so fast on her back I actually couldn’t keep up to her and she shot past a group of people like a torpedo. She was smiling all the way too.

We visited our local Urban Fare for lunch after swimming and Janet polished off a massive and very tasty wrap before we stopped by the house to let the dog out and give Janet a peak. I wheeled her in with her eyes shut hoping to get her to the very yellow bedroom before she opened them but she couldn’t resist and opened them in the kitchen. She was very happy with what she saw, even the bedroom, saying “it’s so nice and bright and cheery”. That’s a great critique on a dull and almost snowy day so my color fears have been put to rest.

As soon as we got back to Connect we met with Tez at the parallel bars. Janet has tried various routines on this apparatus before and was quite vocal about not doing it again but we assured her this time would be different. And it was. A lot of what’s holding Janet back from standing and walking is a lack of confidence and a fear of falling. Tez put her in a sling that allows her to walk and fall safely. Kind of like a Jolly Jumper with less seat. Janet was really nervous at first but by the end of the session walked the length of the parallel bars pretty much on her own. Tez allowed her to fall a few times to prove she couldn’t really fall and I think Janet started to believe it a little. The plan over the next while is to focus on getting weight through her right leg in hopes it will relearn to do what it’s supposed to do. Tez is hopeful that using the leg as it normally would, i.e. walking, will facilitate that relearning. This is a big move forward and if Janet agrees to work hard at this and if her brain can rewire her right leg some more this could be a turning point in her physical recovery.

Wes was very proud that he ate more than Janet at dinner tonight as Janet was still full from lunch. She worked some of that off with a bike ride before watching The Voice to round out the day. This was the first results show and both of our picks survived. Praying for a restful and healing night that provides lots of energy and a positive attitude for tomorrow.

The Team Save Janet Report is Out! #TSJ #TheVoiceIsBack #Connect #Swimming

Monday, not a favourite day of Janet’s as she knows its back to Connect and the gym and all that fun stuff. The morning was good, Janet slept well and woke up on Connect time, eight o’clock, as opposed to her more usual at home time of nine’ish. We had a nice relaxed morning together that included a little packing before going to the KGH pool.

Swimming went well with Janet doing lots of laps on her back, some on her tummy, and lots of “walking”. That part is still mostly hopping and her right leg was more buoyant than I’ve seen it before. Janet did get a good rhythm going for a little bit and some push down with that leg as long as I stood on her left foot to keep her from moving it too soon. On her own she was hopping like crazy. Janet complained to me a number of times that when she tries to use her right leg the left one moves too. Its great that she is aware of that and doesn’t seem too upset by it. On our way out of the pool we went via the Rehab nurses station where Janet received an enthusiastic welcome from Nicole and Emma along with a bunch of others. For once she seemed to really lap up the attention and smiled and laughed a lot. She blew Nicole’s mind by remembering her name but as I suspected Janet actually read her name off of her name tag. We’ll let Nicole think she remembered for now. The biggest smiles and true remembering came when we saw RJ. Janet even gave him a nice hug. I realized later that of all the nurses, RJ worked with Janet the longest as he was with her most of the time on 4B then followed her to Rehab not long after Janet transferred there. All that attention was a good confidence builder for Janet and made her feel good as it did the nurses to see how well she’s come along thanks in part to them.

After a quick lunch at home and a little more packing it was time to go do some errands before returning to Connect. The day had gone so fast that if it wasn’t for Barb and Gary coming over to say so long to Janet I would’ve forgot this was Janet’s last visit to this house. There was no big production as we left and Janet didn’t want a picture, too messy inside and too cold outside. So that was it and before she knew it we were back at Connect. The day had taken a toll on Janet and even though dinner was being served as we arrived, she asked to lay down for a bit. I practically had to force ably get her up at six o’clock but once up she ate a good dinner and chatted well with me and some of her fellow residents. With her being so tired I gave her the night off from the gym and she really appreciated that. There were some things to put away in her room, some parenting to do and the premier of The Voice to watch and Janet really wanted to watch that. Its fun to watch her watch the show and see her react to things she never would have reacted to even a month ago. She is much more in tune with things now.

Part of the no gym deal was an early to bed night so by 9:40 I was saying goodnight and praying for a deep and restful sleep for Janet and lots of energy for tomorrow.

The Team Save Janet Report is Out! #TSJ #Connect #swimming

Our first night of “camping” went quite well and Janet awoke at a decent time feeling like she slept reasonably. She says she never heard any of the thunder last night but I sure did. We eased through the morning reading and planning out the week ahead before getting ready for swimming at KGH.

Janet’s pool sessions today were solid but not outstanding and she continues to show the most enjoyment in just swimming around. Something she’s getting very good at. Her right leg was in a very floaty mood today which caused Janet to hop a lot as opposed to walking. Her willingness to try hasn’t diminished and I can tell she’s getting stronger, I just hope her control of that leg increases a lot and soon.

In a good mood and not showing signs of tiring, Janet had lunch then helped me with some packing. She found the packing to be fun and challenging and sad at the end because she knew we were then heading back to Connect. I think part of her resistance this time was knowing there’s lots going on at home and not wanting to miss out. We also went back to Connect earlier than usual today to try and give Janet more time to settle back in in the hope she’ll sleep better and have lots of energy for Tuesday. After an initial little meltdown and a good effort on the Shuttle Janet had a pretty good evening. We even got in a nice little after dinner walk followed by some really straight Standing Frame work. As I said goodnight to Janet she told me she’d be showering in the morning and having to do her exercises all over again. She wasn’t happy about those things but I’m glad she can see ahead to the fact she’ll be doing them.

Praying for lots of energy tomorrow.

The Team Save Janet Report is Out! #TSJ #Blizzard #Shopping #Standing

Instead of snoring away, Janet was grinning at me as I snuck into her room this afternoon. She just doesn’t seem to be able to nap anymore even though she sometimes asks for one. It seems as though she is much better able to function through the rest of the day than previous so there’s no need to force a nap but quiet time does have a clear benefit.

I gave Janet a choice of shopping or gym to start our time together and she chose gym. No real shock there as lately she’s been quite determined to get the “bad things over with” rather than face doing them later. I like the attitude and with Curtis watching Janet did a good job on the Shuttle today. She seemed a little stronger than the last two days with me and also had a good little standing on her own session before “walking” over to the table mat for some stretching. As Janet finished her standing session I sensed she wanted to walk a bit and she didn’t hesitate when I asked her. The first few steps were very small and slow with me holding her up. Curtis then started assisting with her right leg and that allowed for a fairly steady pace with Janet feeling more confident. There isn’t much communication to her right leg and we noticed the majority of the effort to move it is coming from her hips. Its awesome she wants to try and walk and she even acknowledged the need to get stronger. Confidence and a lack thereof is a big part of her challenge now along with command of the right leg. Time will tell.

We had time to do forty five minutes in the Standing Frame before dinner and Janet got nice and straight without pain again and never complained about doing it at all. The more she is in charge of her exercises the better I think. We joined in on the communal dinner tonight and enjoyed some lively conversation. Kieran is a noisy and fun addition to the house.

Pants weather has arrived for Janet and that’s why the option to go shopping today. I also needed something to do with her anticipating an early gym visit leaving us with too cold an evening to walk. I wanted her to have some nicer pants to wear rather than her old stretchy things all the time and I needed some storage bins for the house. Felt like a good reason to check out the new Target store. We were both underwhelmed but Janet found a pair of pants so all was not lost. She did much better at the Gap scoring three pair and we ended the night with a Smores Blizzard. Good but nothing beats Skor.

Today was a lot of fun with Janet and I look forward to more of the same tomorrow. Praying for an increase in strength and command of her right leg.

The Team Save Janet Report is Out! #tsj #home #Connect #Swimming #KGH

Another good nights’ sleep for Janet and a good start to the day this morning. She knew it was Monday and that we’d being going back to Connect later, she knew there was something else, just couldn’t get the word swimming out. We got to the pool in plenty of time and the first session was alright with Janet’s right leg doing its own thing instead of what she was trying to get it to do. Her walking was not as strong as last week partly because of that right leg or maybe totally because of it. Some days she just seems to be overly buoyant and today was one of them. Janet tried really hard to get her feet down to the pool floor from floating on her back but had a heck of a time today as they just wanted to stay near the surface. Tez joined us for session two and was happy with Janet’s sense of balance and her ability to swim. What he observed from her walking challenges confirmed the need to really go hard at making that right leg stronger. He reinforced that with Janet and will do the same with the Connect staff.

As we were leaving KGH I had Janet drive by what I thought was the room she described to me a week ago or so. No bells went off though and she didn’t even really remember telling me about a room before. I will have to strike sooner next time she does something like that.

Janet built herself a nice sandwich for lunch once we got home then agreed to try and have a nap. I should have bet her as she of course didn’t think she’d sleep but she did for a little bit and helped me start making dinner before having a late Skype chat with Andrew.

The return to Connect was smoother than I expected and Janet cooperated nicely in going on the Shuttle and into the Standing Frame. This was not her greatest Shuttle performance ever but considering the time of day I’ll take it. She tolerated the Standing Frame very well and we enjoyed some interesting conversation with Kieran, a new resident from North Vancouver who’s mom’s name is Janet so he calls Janet mom. He’s twenty four and very positive and Janet liked him as soon as they met. Janet stayed up a little late because of the Kieran conversation but that was a fun way to end a good day. Praying for rest that brings lots of energy and strength for tomorrow’s activities.

The Team Save Janet Report is Out! #TSJ #purging #trinitykelowna #toast

After a pretty good nights’ sleep Janet got up fairly early for a Saturday and we enjoyed a pleasant breakfast time making sure we were all fueled up before tackling the day. Janet continues to gain confidence in her abilities and scared me a little this morning when she tried getting up from the table to walk to the other end of the kitchen and make herself some toast. I had left her sitting in a dining chair eating breakfast while I showered and by the time I got back she had spun around in it and was clearly trying to stand up. She was frustrated to realize she couldn’t do it but I love the attitude in initially thinking she could. One day.

We had a nice Skype chat with Mary/Gaga on our new computer then headed downstairs for more purging. Today was to be a final sweep of Laurel and Heathers’ old room and we didn’t quite get it finished as we had no idea there was that much stuff in there. A lot of it is garage sale material and in fact we sold their desks and dressers today just after cleaning them out. Good timing.

Courtney came by for a visit and joined us for a late lunch. It was nice to catch up with her and really nice to have her go through her stuff and lessen some of the clutter. Janet and I stopped work in time to do a drive by of a couple houses on the way to church. One looked promising but we decided against the neighborhood, the other was the one that’s not listed yet and we keep trying to catch the owner at home. No luck. The church was happy to receive some of the spoils of our purging today and we enjoyed the worship experience and being able to visit some of the Team Save Janet crew.

It was dinner and a movie at home night following church and we are 0 for 2 in recent movie choices. Don’t bother with I Give it a Year. We usually do well with British comedies and there were a few very funny moments but not worth recommending. Janet stayed awake the whole time so it couldn’t have been that bad I guess. We started getting ready for bed as soon as the movie ended and Janet was sleeping before prayer time. Praying for a full night of sleep that provides lots of energy for tomorrow.

The Team Save Janet Report is Out! #TSJ #swimming #walking #house4sale #standingframe

Janet felt her quality of sleep Sunday night was “terrible” but I think it was actually pretty good. She woke up a few times but seemed to go back to sleep quickly each time and when it came to getting up for real she was very bright. Knew my name, what day it was and most of what we were doing today.

Our morning went by at a nice pace and before we knew it we were driving to KGH for swimming. Janet had a strong day today and in her first session she swam on her back continuously for a good five minutes. I didn’t suggest in anyway that she do that, she just started, got a big smile on her face and kept going. Since she’s doing so well standing on her own out of water I was curious to see what she could do in the water. She surprised me by easily standing without using her arm to stabilize herself and she was able to “walk” for about fifteen feet with me well out of reach. Her walking was more like hopping as she was unable to get her right foot down to the bottom of the pool unless it was well behind her. She seemed pleased to be able to do this but is very aware and a little upset that her right leg doesn’t function the way she wants it to. The second session was not as exciting as the water was much deeper so the focus had to be on swimming and Janet was getting tired. She did manage some excellent rolls from back to tummy while swimming and felt pretty good about it too. As we were waiting for the change room, Moira came over to say that her daughter had seen Janet in Hope last weekend. We stopped for gas and a pee break on our way back from Nanaimo and Emma was doing similar. She had done a bring your kid to work thing with Moira way back when and remembered Janet. I told Janet she is pretty memorable but she wasn’t buying it.

We had to be out of our house this afternoon from two till five as the home inspection was taking place so after swimming we just had time to stop at the store and race home to get Nash before the inspector arrived. He was early of course so I got to meet him and Janet got to meet the buyer’s realtor as he came by to get the key for the inspector. They both seem to be very nice and if anything bothersome is found I’m sure we can work with them to resolve it.

Janet knew she had work to do at Connect so right after a late lunch she wanted to get to the gym to get it over with. Her Shuttle session was alright as I could tell she was getting tired not having had a nap. The Standing Frame was well tolerated and she even went over her target of forty five minutes without getting upset. After dinner we took Nash for a nice long walk and Janet faded rapidly after that, going to bed just before nine. She worked hard today, impressing me in the pool, willingly doing some of her workout routine and pushing through a busy day without a nap. Praying for a long night of deep sleep for Janet that gives her lots of energy for tomorrow’s activities.