All Together Again

This morning we added a new twist to our routine.  Instead of either Jim or I running down to get some breakfast in the Cafe, Jackie decided to come with us.  He is required to eat his breakfast in his room, but wanted to go with us to check out the Cafe.  He ended up getting some additional breakfast items for himself. We came back up to the room and all had breakfast together.  Jackie continues to need some assistance while eating but it was still awesome to be enjoying the meal together.

The rest of the day we were to follow an hourly schedule that Erin, PT and Paula, OT, put together for us.  It was designed for the weekend and included only two, 1 hour rest periods each day.  The goal was to keep Jackie active so his body would be better prepared for therapy on Monday.  Paula and Erin would be proud.  It wasn’t easy but Jackie followed the schedule all day.

He only had one therapy season and that was recreational therapy.  We went up to the fifth floor gym and Jackie played an old fashioned pinball machine.  It had two large circles that you push down to control the flippers. I didn’t realize this before today, but Jackie had never played on an actual pinball machine.  Even though the game had lots of lights and sounds, he had a really great session and hopes to play it again soon.

When we got back to the room, they were cleaning so we decided to sit on the second floor terrace.  It was a beautiful day.  Jackie was getting very tired and the noises from the street were starting to bother him. We went back up to the room and got him back in bed for a well deserved nap.  He slept so soundly we eventually had to wake him up to stay within our schedule.

After lunch Nana and John brought Jovie back for one final visit.  She was getting very accustomed to the room by now and constantly kept a watchful eye on Jackie.  We had arranged for very good friends of ours to pick up Jovie and take her back home.  They arrived and visited for a while.  It was great to see them!  We all visited in Jackie’s room until Lindsay and Florent arrived.  Jackie had been waiting for their visit.  It is one of the few things he remembered was going to happen today.  My little family unit was all together again.  I wanted it to last forever, but reality sunk in and it was time for Jovie to head back home.  Nana and John, our friends and Jovie all left around  the same time.  We plan to bring Jovie back for at least one more visit while we are at Magee.

Jackie took the second of his one hour naps and once again we had to wake him for dinner.  Lindsay and Florent made a Starbucks run and brought Jackie back a Strawberry Smoothie which he enjoyed with his meal.  We ended up ordering out for the first time and took the food to the sixth floor terrace.  Even though Jackie was finished with his meal, he enjoyed sampling some of ours.  For a while we had the huge sixth floor terrace to ourselves.  It was perfect.  Jackie was getting tired fast so we finished eating quickly and headed back down to his room and got him ready for bed.  Once he was settled in we all talked and laughed for a while.  Two of Jackie’s high school buddies who are currently in the service sent video messages to him.  They touched him deeply and helped to rekindle his will and determination to keep working hard.

We are blessed in so many ways.  Thanks to all of our friends and family who have been here for us every step of the way.  You have no idea how much your support means to us.