SO, this is the funniest thing. I had mom on the phone and she wanted to talk to Tristan. I would put the ear piece next to his ear and he would grab my hand and pull it around to look at it.
Enjoy
Thursday, July 31, 2008
Lenny and Me
Lesa and I just returned from the rehab center and what a wonderful morning it was. When we got to Len's room he said"Oh good" and went into one of his business discussions. Lesa was able to sit in on one of his "discussions" for the first time and listen along with me. He is making more complete sentences now and was very alert. About 10:00 am his physical therapist arrived and got Len up and walking. His walker is in the room so she suggested that I could take him around the "block" when I am there so he gets even more exercise. Good idea. He seems to think better on his feet and really enjoys the walks. We went outside on the patio where he sat in one of the patio chairs and continued his business discussion with Amy(the therapist) sitting with his legs crossed in a very Len pose.
By the way, most afternoons now Len and I just lay on his bed and cuddle. It is a wonderful feeling to have Len put his arm around me once more. It is feeling more normal everyday.
Love and Aloha,
Sue
Lesa, Len and Amy
Len and Amy in deep discussion
Wednesday, July 30, 2008
A picture is worth a thousand words.......
And if that was not enough... rumor has it that Dad was up with a walker today and
walked all around the second floor in the morning & they plan to send him out again
this afternoon. Sue said he was Soooooooooooooo proud of himself!!!!!
walked all around the second floor in the morning & they plan to send him out again
this afternoon. Sue said he was Soooooooooooooo proud of himself!!!!!
S
Tuesday, July 29, 2008
Fun with my son!
So today Tristan and I went outside to play because it was not too hot.
We had so much fun! Enjoy some of our photo's!
Randy Pausch "Last Lecture"
Last night I was hanging out with my family and I happened to stumble across the show Primetime on CBS. The focus of the program was about a 47 year old man, Randy Pausch, who was dieing of pancreatic cancer. Many of you may have already heard his story, but if you have not you should Google his name and spend 11 minutes watching his "Last Lecture". It seems very appropriate for what we have going on in our life right now.
My dad has always taught me to live each day to the fullest and have no regrets. I live each day with this in mind. I can honestly say that if we would have lost my dad on that day in late June that I would have known that I told him everything that I needed to tell him. The great news is that we did not loose him! We may have a few "brick walls" along the way but he is still here and I thank God for that many times a day.
Here is to a man that did not have the opportunity to grow old with his family...
And here is to a man that I look forward to spending many more days with!
I love you dad!
P.S. ... are you a Tigger or an Eeyore?
My dad has always taught me to live each day to the fullest and have no regrets. I live each day with this in mind. I can honestly say that if we would have lost my dad on that day in late June that I would have known that I told him everything that I needed to tell him. The great news is that we did not loose him! We may have a few "brick walls" along the way but he is still here and I thank God for that many times a day.
Here is to a man that did not have the opportunity to grow old with his family...
And here is to a man that I look forward to spending many more days with!
I love you dad!
P.S. ... are you a Tigger or an Eeyore?
Monday, July 28, 2008
California Update (boy it is nice to say that!)
Hello all,
Dad continues to make (what I think are) huge steps forward! They removed the central line today & that marks the last of ALL the crap Dad had stuck in him! He was asleep when I got there today ~
4:30PM, they are trying to keep him awake so he stays on a schedule (sleeps at night).
He woke up & I asked him what time dinner was, he looked at the clock & said
10 til 5 (that's what the time was). Then it was time to get up to go to dinner. He almost put
both shoes on himself with only a little help. He was ready to go & told us so, He
almost stood up by himself to get in the chair, we only helped with some balance,
but he did all the work. He started pulling himself with his feet, but stopped right
outside the door to look at the room number. He read it out loud, got a number wrong
& told himself "No!", then read it correctly. Once again he ate all his dinner. He
spent a lot of time trying to read the menu. He gets tired after he eats & want to
go to bed. I asked the "coach" (there is a coach watching him 24-7) if he slept much
last night & Dad & the coach answered almost at the same time, both saying
"....about an hour....." The man is amazing! I know my dad knows who I am, but
you would have a hard time proving it. Which brings me to your homework assignment.
For those in the group without medical training.... look up the word Aphasia .......
4:30PM, they are trying to keep him awake so he stays on a schedule (sleeps at night).
He woke up & I asked him what time dinner was, he looked at the clock & said
10 til 5 (that's what the time was). Then it was time to get up to go to dinner. He almost put
both shoes on himself with only a little help. He was ready to go & told us so, He
almost stood up by himself to get in the chair, we only helped with some balance,
but he did all the work. He started pulling himself with his feet, but stopped right
outside the door to look at the room number. He read it out loud, got a number wrong
& told himself "No!", then read it correctly. Once again he ate all his dinner. He
spent a lot of time trying to read the menu. He gets tired after he eats & want to
go to bed. I asked the "coach" (there is a coach watching him 24-7) if he slept much
last night & Dad & the coach answered almost at the same time, both saying
"....about an hour....." The man is amazing! I know my dad knows who I am, but
you would have a hard time proving it. Which brings me to your homework assignment.
For those in the group without medical training.... look up the word Aphasia .......
Welcome to the group my brother Mark! You can catch up with previous posts here http://www.tristanjacoby.blogspot.com/
Steve
An amazing story from my mom...
I love the picture of the three of you..I am so happy dad is home
and getting not only the therapy he needs but good ole USA nursing care.
An irony...about 30+years ago when dad and Vince ( my addition to the
story... Bragging about my Dad! Coates & Welter Instrument Corp.
Mr. Coates co-founded the Coates & Welter Instrument Corp. in 1970.
There, he collaborated with Leonard Welter in designing the world's
first field emission scanning electron microscope (SEM) got the IR
100 award (now called the R&D 100) for the Quick Scan we sat at the
table at the awards ceremony with a gentleman who got an award
for a new type of jet...you guessed it Bill Lear...and the new baby
Learjet who guessed after all these years they would come
..Keep up the good work..I know you are relieved to have him home
and getting the care he needs. Having family and friends around
makes a load of difference in ones recovery..Keep up the good work...
I love you all MOM xxxoooxxx
and getting not only the therapy he needs but good ole USA nursing care.
An irony...about 30+years ago when dad and Vince ( my addition to the
story... Bragging about my Dad! Coates & Welter Instrument Corp.
Mr. Coates co-founded the Coates & Welter Instrument Corp. in 1970.
There, he collaborated with Leonard Welter in designing the world's
first field emission scanning electron microscope (SEM) got the IR
100 award (now called the R&D 100) for the Quick Scan we sat at the
table at the awards ceremony with a gentleman who got an award
for a new type of jet...you guessed it Bill Lear...and the new baby
Learjet who guessed after all these years they would come
..Keep up the good work..I know you are relieved to have him home
and getting the care he needs. Having family and friends around
makes a load of difference in ones recovery..Keep up the good work...
I love you all MOM xxxoooxxx
Monday Morning in California
It is Monday morning and I am finally coming up for air after traveling home, seeing Len every day and catching up on my sleep. Stephen has been keeping you updated so I don't need to go into any detail about Len's progress. Needless to say, we are thrilled with how things are going here at Santa Clara Valley Medical Center and I continue to enjoy all your emails and positive thoughts. Lesa(daughter) brought her speakers for her ipod and art for the walls so now Len has music playing all day in his room. Gail put together a photo album so Len can look at photos of the family when ever he wants. He is kept very busy with rehabilitation in the mornings and saves the afternoons for all of us and taking naps. I know he is thrilled to be kept so busy as he has never been an idle man. He talks to us all the time, not always making complete sense but everyday is a little more coherent. I know he is telling us what business needs to be done. It is so joyful to hear him talking. His quote of the day yesterday was"Today is for Today'" and a little later he said"and tomorrow....we'll see".
Some of you have ask how our trip home was so here is a little of what we experienced on July 23.
I showed up at the Galliera Hospital about 10:00 am and took up my post in the waiting room looking up every few minuets to see if the flight team had arrived yet. I had been told that they would be at bedside about 10:30. I even checked in Len's room(not visiting hours) to make sure he was still there and they hadn't left without me. I had brought my few belongings including Len's brief case with our laptop and left them in the hallway. I finally looked up and there they were walking towards Len's room and my heart gave a leap. I jumped up walked up to them and said"I am sure glad to see you". They then entered Len's room and I watched from the hallway as the flight team was briefed by the Italian staff through the one nurse who could speak English as they all stood over Len's bed. My eyes teared up because I knew we were finally going home and Len would be in a better place. That all passed quickly as the team came out of the room with Len and we headed out of the hospital for the last time. He was loaded in the ambulance and we were all off to the airport. We had to wait at a checkpoint outside the airport to get our passports cleared and then we were next to the plane. The team jumped out and began to prepare the plane to load Len. I was snapping pictures and looking around. I looked back at the ambulance and there was Len pulling the blankets off and trying to get out of the bed. I said "oh, people, hello, Len is trying to get up" and one of the team ran back to be with Len. I know Len just wanted to get the heck out of there. He was finally loaded in the plane and I found my seat in the back of the plane and we took off right on time at 12 noon. It was thrilling but also sad as I left all those wonderful new friends behind.
I actually enjoyed the flight and the stops were interesting. The team was outstanding and always gave their full attention to Len. We are very grateful to them.
We arrived in San Jose and as we touched down one of the team said "Welcome Home". I swallowed hard and thanked them all for getting us here safe.
Once at the hospital here we were greeted with not only Stephen but Michelle and a few other people who oriented us and got Len settled into his room. I went from no assistance in Italy to an entire hospital team working with Len 24 hrs a day. I am a little overwhelmed. I thank this staff everyday for their concern and caring.
Enjoy the photos.
Love and Aloha,
Sue
First Class for Len
My cozy seat in the back of the plane
Refueling in Sioux Falls
Some of you have ask how our trip home was so here is a little of what we experienced on July 23.
I showed up at the Galliera Hospital about 10:00 am and took up my post in the waiting room looking up every few minuets to see if the flight team had arrived yet. I had been told that they would be at bedside about 10:30. I even checked in Len's room(not visiting hours) to make sure he was still there and they hadn't left without me. I had brought my few belongings including Len's brief case with our laptop and left them in the hallway. I finally looked up and there they were walking towards Len's room and my heart gave a leap. I jumped up walked up to them and said"I am sure glad to see you". They then entered Len's room and I watched from the hallway as the flight team was briefed by the Italian staff through the one nurse who could speak English as they all stood over Len's bed. My eyes teared up because I knew we were finally going home and Len would be in a better place. That all passed quickly as the team came out of the room with Len and we headed out of the hospital for the last time. He was loaded in the ambulance and we were all off to the airport. We had to wait at a checkpoint outside the airport to get our passports cleared and then we were next to the plane. The team jumped out and began to prepare the plane to load Len. I was snapping pictures and looking around. I looked back at the ambulance and there was Len pulling the blankets off and trying to get out of the bed. I said "oh, people, hello, Len is trying to get up" and one of the team ran back to be with Len. I know Len just wanted to get the heck out of there. He was finally loaded in the plane and I found my seat in the back of the plane and we took off right on time at 12 noon. It was thrilling but also sad as I left all those wonderful new friends behind.
I actually enjoyed the flight and the stops were interesting. The team was outstanding and always gave their full attention to Len. We are very grateful to them.
We arrived in San Jose and as we touched down one of the team said "Welcome Home". I swallowed hard and thanked them all for getting us here safe.
Once at the hospital here we were greeted with not only Stephen but Michelle and a few other people who oriented us and got Len settled into his room. I went from no assistance in Italy to an entire hospital team working with Len 24 hrs a day. I am a little overwhelmed. I thank this staff everyday for their concern and caring.
Enjoy the photos.
Love and Aloha,
Sue
First Class for Len
My cozy seat in the back of the plane
Refueling in Sioux Falls
Sunday, July 27, 2008
Summer fun with friends.
The Niederer's came over this weekend and it sure was nice to see them. I have not seen them since dad's accident and it is amazing how many people don't appreciate their friends. We had lots of time to catch up on stories old and new. Most of those stories were shared between time in the pool and some quality shopping time!
OK, there is a story behind the next few shots. Tierra (age3), decided to crawl out of the pool with the floaty on. This had to be one of the cutest things I have seen. Enjoy!
THANK GOD FOR FRIENDS!
OK, there is a story behind the next few shots. Tierra (age3), decided to crawl out of the pool with the floaty on. This had to be one of the cutest things I have seen. Enjoy!
THANK GOD FOR FRIENDS!
A Sunday Visit and "The Welter Boys"
We went to see dad today (no therapy on Sundays, so he was not too tired
when we saw him). Carrie & Colin went in, Colin first & Dad said, "well hello
there". Then I went & got Gail & Carrie & Dad looked right at Carrie & said,
"well, hello Carrie".... brought a tear to my eye to say the least! I was told
he ate his breakfast & lunch by himself & that if he gets more fluids down
himself, they may get rid of the central line soon. He then finished two full
glasses of OJ without spilling a drop (that is why he has the towel in the
picture). Colin gave him a kiss as we were leaving, very cute, but we didn't
get a picture of that, but here is one of the boys. This picture does not do
Dad justice, he looks GREAT! Patti went down to take Dad to church this
afternoon, they have a service at the facility.
Saturday, July 26, 2008
I got photo tagged...
OK, this is very funny. So, I am trying to catch up on Angee's blog because it has been some time since I read it. I see that she got "tagged". I am thinking to myself... self, I am surprised Angee did not tag me. lol. then I get to the bottom of the blog and I see I did get tagged. So here we go!
Here is the concept. Take a picture of the following item's as they appear in your house currently. DO NOT PICK UP!
1) The Fridge- Tex just went shopping last night!
2) Our Closet- Me on the left, Tex on the right.
3) Our Toilet- Love the black, can't see it if it is dirty...but we keep it clean!
4) My favorite wall- Tristan's room with baseball pictures above the crib.
5) What my kids are doing right now - playing happily of course.
6) A self portrait - me laughing because Tex is standing behind me telling me what a dork I am.
7) Kitchen Sink - Clean dishes on the left, dirty on the right.
8) My favorite Shoe- Hawaiian Locals of course : )
9) The Laundry Room- Tex has this thing with laying out his clothes rather than drying them because he thinks they shrink every time! I love it because he does his own laundry!
10) My dream vacation-Anywhere with my family!
I am tagging Patti, M, Rachel, Shelly, & Tiffany. Have fun!
Here is the concept. Take a picture of the following item's as they appear in your house currently. DO NOT PICK UP!
1) The Fridge- Tex just went shopping last night!
2) Our Closet- Me on the left, Tex on the right.
3) Our Toilet- Love the black, can't see it if it is dirty...but we keep it clean!
4) My favorite wall- Tristan's room with baseball pictures above the crib.
5) What my kids are doing right now - playing happily of course.
6) A self portrait - me laughing because Tex is standing behind me telling me what a dork I am.
7) Kitchen Sink - Clean dishes on the left, dirty on the right.
8) My favorite Shoe- Hawaiian Locals of course : )
9) The Laundry Room- Tex has this thing with laying out his clothes rather than drying them because he thinks they shrink every time! I love it because he does his own laundry!
10) My dream vacation-Anywhere with my family!I am tagging Patti, M, Rachel, Shelly, & Tiffany. Have fun!
7/25/08
ok, let me go get my beer first!
yes, I did go get it!
Amazing things happen in a short period of time!
Dad was put on a therapy schedule today & I have no idea how that went.... but I can only imagine!!!!
They removed the catheter and tracheotomy today. So he was a chatty fool! Obviously it was inhibiting his ability to make sounds when trying to speak. He says a lot more now, not always making sense and not always what we may want to hear, but if you could not hear him & were only watching from afar, you would think wow, he has some very important matters to discuss! In the first twenty minutes I saw dad today, I watched him grab a dinner roll, cut it in half, butter it & eat it all by himself. Then he grabbed a full glass of juice with his right hand (I said, oh boy, he's gonna dump that!). He moved it from his shaky right hand, to his less shaky left hand, drank 1/3 of it & didn't spill a drop!
An awesome 20 minutes!!!!
Then the next 1.5 hrs he was in bed & in between sleeping & looking around. He gets these looks like "what the heck have I gotten myself into" & then other looks are just into space , but that is ok, because "WE" only focus on the good things & let the rest roll off like water on a ducks back (am I convincing???) Not always easy, but that is "OUR" job, to focus on the good & ignore the bad!
I am glad I went to get my beer, because I didn't really feel like typing, but the beer helped! Time for another!
If you are wondering what you can do from afar....... send some pictures, put them in an album so he can flip thru them. Put words to them, who, what , where. I do not know all of our extended family, so this will help me as well!
Good night all!
Steve
yes, I did go get it!
Amazing things happen in a short period of time!
Dad was put on a therapy schedule today & I have no idea how that went.... but I can only imagine!!!!
They removed the catheter and tracheotomy today. So he was a chatty fool! Obviously it was inhibiting his ability to make sounds when trying to speak. He says a lot more now, not always making sense and not always what we may want to hear, but if you could not hear him & were only watching from afar, you would think wow, he has some very important matters to discuss! In the first twenty minutes I saw dad today, I watched him grab a dinner roll, cut it in half, butter it & eat it all by himself. Then he grabbed a full glass of juice with his right hand (I said, oh boy, he's gonna dump that!). He moved it from his shaky right hand, to his less shaky left hand, drank 1/3 of it & didn't spill a drop!
An awesome 20 minutes!!!!
Then the next 1.5 hrs he was in bed & in between sleeping & looking around. He gets these looks like "what the heck have I gotten myself into" & then other looks are just into space , but that is ok, because "WE" only focus on the good things & let the rest roll off like water on a ducks back (am I convincing???) Not always easy, but that is "OUR" job, to focus on the good & ignore the bad!
I am glad I went to get my beer, because I didn't really feel like typing, but the beer helped! Time for another!
If you are wondering what you can do from afar....... send some pictures, put them in an album so he can flip thru them. Put words to them, who, what , where. I do not know all of our extended family, so this will help me as well!
Good night all!
Steve
Thursday, July 24, 2008
Quick Update
We got to the hospital this morning & they were
starting to do an overall evaluation of Dads
condition from a rehab point of view. There
were team members from the speech, physical,
occupational therapy groups as well as a Dr
or two. Each member introduced themselves
to Dad & he shook their hand (with his right)
and said nice to meet you or hello to each one.
Oh, BTW They removed the trach that he came
with & put in a smaller one. He impressed
all of the therapy people with his strength.
The first thing he did when he saw me was
give me the "hang loose" sign. Then with
dads help, they sat him up, put him in a
wheel chair & he helped roll with his hands
& pull with his feet right out the door
to an out door patio. He was happy to
get up out of bed! He spent the next 2
hours trying to UN-buckle the seat belt
& get out of the chair! The speech therapy
member evaluated his ability to eat & swallow.
He did well, but was coughing a bit & she was
not sure if it was from the food
or just a cough. While feeding dad some
apple sauce, he burped & immediately said
"excuse me"! When we took him back to his
room, he was helping get himself into bed &
told the nurse "ok, let go", he wanted to
do it himself.
That is about half of all the good things
that took place this morning, but I have
to get to work as my boss is a slave driver!
Dad smiled when I said that.
Gotta run,
S
Meridian Shock....Shocked
Well, as most of you now our friends son baseball team was playing in the regional tournament. Opening ceremonies were Wednesday and they had two games on Thursday and two games on Friday. Tex and I were able to make the Thursday games. They won their first game Wednesday and here are some pictures of one of Blake's at bats!
Blake's second game was delayed to a 14 inning game prior to their game, that is 7 extra innings. The teams were tied for 7 innings until one finally scored to win. this put Blake's team behind by almost 2 hours. Blake was the starting pitcher. Unfortunately the game was postponed until Friday morning with a score of 9 - 5, the opposing team. This is were the score stayed.
We were not able to attend on Friday but Blake's team won the first game and lost the second, leaving them with a record of 2 and 2 and not making it to the finals on Saturday.
Blake on deck.
1st pitch
2nd pitch
3rd pitch
4th pitch, the catcher missed the ball and the runner on 3rd stole home. Unfortunately he was out to end the inning.
Blake's second game was delayed to a 14 inning game prior to their game, that is 7 extra innings. The teams were tied for 7 innings until one finally scored to win. this put Blake's team behind by almost 2 hours. Blake was the starting pitcher. Unfortunately the game was postponed until Friday morning with a score of 9 - 5, the opposing team. This is were the score stayed.
the dugout
We were not able to attend on Friday but Blake's team won the first game and lost the second, leaving them with a record of 2 and 2 and not making it to the finals on Saturday.
Great Season Meridian Shock!
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