Day 31

January 31st. Last day of the month already! Just another day today, nothing too special. Was going to go on the bike again this morning but had an hour nap outside instead. It's been a big week and it finally caught up with me. After my gym session it was off home with my OTs Kate and Alice, who share my therapy now. There wasn't much to look at because the unit is fully accessible. Back to Hampstead for lunch then as my physio was at 2:30pm instead today I pushed around a bit aimlessly until I saw Patricia, so I did another row of knitting! Patricia said I've done 10 rows now! In physio I had a push in the rugby chair again and then did a few stretches lying on my belly then ended with a bit of a shoulder massage as I've had a little trouble with it lately.

Tonight I went home for a few hours again and heard word I never thought I'd hear out of Luke's mouth... 'want to watch Twilight?'...! So we watched Twilight and ordered Dominos for the first time in 4 and a bit months, I missed my lava cakes they're amazing, definitely make up for the pizza being so bad!

Day 30

January 30th. I was up early again to go on the FES bike and this time rode 3.78 miles! Then it was off to gym for a part-workout, I did heavier 'heavy' weights today, I remember it was 30kg for the push outs and pull backs, and I did the lat pull downs as well. In my normal OT timeslot I had a combined session with physio - bed mobility (physio) and dressing (OT). Which essentially means I rolled and moved my legs and flailed around on a plinth until I got a pair of pants on! Didn't help I got handed the wrong leg of the pants so by the time I had them half on I couldn't be bothered changing it! Met up with Luke for lunch and then had the first meeting with a carer agency, the first step towards eventual overnight leave.

Once the meeting was over it was time for physio circuit. I went and got in the standing frame again! I lasted about half an hour standing, and managed to play a game of Wii bowling against Megan while I was up. I lost by a mile... she did have a slight advantage being all able-bodied though!

In bed early tonight, my brain was too busy ticking over last night to get much sleep! And just so you know I was wearing shorts in the standing frame! Megan referenced Hamish and Andy wisdom in saying it looks like I'm doing 'pants-off Friday' but as my socks clearly show it's only Thursday!

Day 29

January 29th. Finally a day of therapies, went on the FES bike this morning and rode 3.66 miles. Then i did a full gym workout and went into the manual chair in OT. Physio was good again, we worked on transfers. There's so much to think about at once, lock elbows, curve shoulders, head down, lean right forward, stick bottom out, push with the legs... I usually forget either the head or the legs! 

After the therapies were all over I got to go home again and enjoy a few hours with Luke just relaxing. And I completed the whole day with a mullet! I didn't get anyone to put my hair up again this morning so I had the effect of last night hanging out the bottom! 

Day 28

January 28th. Another big day! I headed in to the Royal Adelaide Hospital this morning for a bone scan on my legs. A week ago I was having a bit of pain on my left thigh (opposite leg to the broken femur!) so the docs sent me just to check that there wasn't any bone growing that shouldn't be. I went in for the first scan at 11am-ish but had to wait 2 hours for the second lot of delayed scans. I had a lovely volunteer come in with me, and Luke came in to have lunch with me. We went back for the next round of scans which all went smoothly. It was a long day out, we didn't get back til just after 3pm, and Luke came back with us.

I wanted to feel like I actually did something today seeing as I missed all my therapies, so I went to physio at 3:30pm because on Tuesday and Thursday they hold 'circuit' or an open time slot where you can do a bit of extra physio work. I started off with a few stretches after Megan got me on the plinth (bed thing) and then I did a few rolls and sitting up/lying down. Then all of a sudden Megan brought a big contraption over... I know what that is... it's the standing frame! Luke was hanging around Hampstead waiting for me to finish but I gave him a quick call because this was another first he could see! By the time he walked in, there I was... standing! I was surprised at how well my blood pressure held up/that I didn't get dizzy or faint, especially seeing as I didn't have my abdominal binder on which usually helps. I got to give Luke a hug standing up for the first time in 4 and a bit months which was amazing, even though there was part of the frame between us! It felt so good standing up... I'd forgotten how tall I was!! (The frame adds an inch or two though!)

Day 27

January 27th. Short post but packed with good news! Public holiday today (unfortunately) means no therapies. It did mean I got to have lunch with my parents, grandparents and Kylie and Kale. It was a belated celebration for mum, hence the cake! After lunch Mum and Dad helped me sort out my room and I played around with my legs a bit. I was in the electric wheelchair so taking the foot plates out to the side my legs dangle and I can move them... turns out I can move my left one heaps! My right leg I can kick out from the knee with relative ease til it's almost straight, and now I can do the same thing with my left leg! It's not as strong and can't last as long as the right but it still does it!

It must be the day for my left side today, you'll never guess what's moving now... MY LEFT THUMB!! I was talking to Patricia, and she asked about my left little finger. Just to check, I tried my other fingers and got to my thumb and it flickered! I made Patricia watch intently that it was only my thumb not my wrist making it move, and sure enough it was moving! I even double checked when I was on the phone to my parents letting them know and I apologise again for swearing (!) because it moved even more! It's only a tiny bit but who knows what it has started!

Day 26

January 26th. Happy Australia Day! Today in Pinnaroo, as happens every year, there was the breakfast and Citizen of the Year ceremony. It was extra special this year because my mum was awarded Citizen of the Year! It's been a long time coming,  Mum has done so much for the community including ambulance, the netball club, the primary school, and so much more! Unfortunately only one of us 3 girls could get there,  Joanna is still in France and obviously I'm not quite up to it yet but Kylie was able to be there representing us, and Mum got the biggest shock seeing her there!

As planned Mum and Dad came to Adelaide once the excitement was over to watch the women's basketball today, and Kylie too. My cousin Laura plays for the Lighting and was amazing in organising us to sit courtside to watch the game. Laura has come in to see me a few times and has pampered me by doing my nails each time! It was a good game, unfortunately they lost by a couple points but it was close.

I went out in the manual chair which felt good but was tiring, same with Luke going with just his walking stick, so we came back to Hampstead and had a big rest.

Check back tomorrow for the photos!

Day 25

January 25th. Just a little recap of today's events, this morning my cousins Felicity, Tristen and their mum Raelene came around to visit me! They came over from Victoria for their grandpa's birthday, I'm glad they came by! It was great to catch up. At lunch I went around to see Luke and we decided to head to Marion for something different... Not doing that again any time soon! I never realised just how uneven the floors are. We didn't last long before we came back home. Tonight we have just been relaxing, watching a bit of a movie, and then spending the last hour, potentially an hour and a half, waiting for a taxi back to Hampstead! Really looking forward to watching my cousin Laura play basketball for Adelaide Lightning tomorrow with Luke,  my parents and my sister.

Day 24

January 24th. I've learnt that chocolate does solve everything! Started off this morning with a neuro psychology test just to check out my working memory and if my brain still works. Passed with flying colours as far as I know! That took a few hours so I missed gym but made it in time for OT. Tried out the 4WD chair today,  went across the grass to start with then bumped my way over some rocks in the mobility garden. The chair had a cool scissor lift function that made the seat go way up into the sky!

Over lunch I just felt a bit down for no real reason. I was going to head down to physio super early because I was at a loss for something to do,  and happened to run into Patricia. I said I was feeling a bit down so she asked if I would like a piece of chocolate. Well I can't say no to chocolate! Turns out Patricia's stash had disappeared, she blamed her grandson David! So we went to the kiosk and Patricia bought a block of chocolate, which we started as soon as Patricia went back in and asked the volunteer to open it for us! Just the kindness Patricia showed me was enough to make me smile, and she was satisfied when she saw one! We made our way to physio, only a couple minutes late! My session started with going from sitting on the edge of the plinth to lying and I only needed a tiny bit of help getting my ankle on the bed. Next I rolled, all by myself, without my legs being crossed! I used what leg movement I do have to help me roll by bringing my knee over. Then I got from lying on my side up onto my elbow to sit up for the first and second time!  I used the trick Luke told me, rather than getting straight up on my side, to go more on my belly and use both arms to push up, and it worked! I had a really great session full of achievements, and at times I could see Patricia on the bars doing an amazing job of walking after having a few bad days herself. She sent one of her physios over to tell me the chocolate must have worked, and I somewhat yelled to her, absolutely it did! Luke was there waiting as I finished and I excitedly told him my achievements for the day. I must apologise to Patricia as I skipped out on my knitting lesson today as Luke and I made a last minute decision to come home for a few hours! Luke cooked me up some honey soy chicken wings for dinner!

Here's the chair in full scissor lift function

Day 23

January 23rd. Another massive day! Was up early for hydrotherapy,  which was great! I was a little scared of getting back in the pool but as soon as I was in I had no idea what I was worried about! I started off with some sculling on my back then had Megan zig zag me down the pool and I tried somewhat successfully to keep my body straight, showing I've got some ab muscles going on! Next I was just going to sit up in the pool, and I ended up standing up!! It was a great feeling to stand up straight with just the water and a couple hands supporting me. I did a bit of moving my legs in the water too. My session was over before I knew it.

I went back to bed until lunch as it was pretty exhausting in the pool, and Luke came in to have lunch with me again. After lunch I went to physio and ended up having another go on the FES bike.  We upped the current a little bit because I could bear the sensation, and is more beneficial as it provides a stronger contraction. I did my best to do intervals of actively pushing and pulling my legs with the cycling motion and managed to do it for 20 or so seconds every minute or two. Today I did 2.51 miles but had to cut it short because I had to go for an xray.

This afternoon Luke and I had a meeting with most of my therapists and team members about planning for overnight leave. It won't be happening straight away, but it's to get everything in place for when I am ready. After that finished Luke and I went home for a few hours, I think I call it home for now! It was really good to just relax and spend some time together. After another big day I'm very ready for a big sleep!

I'm cheating and using an old photo for today, I wasn't able to get a photo in the pool today as Luke wasn't there! This is from the first time I went in the pool with my old physio Gurpreet, she was great too!

Day 22

January 22nd. Another big day today! Started getting ready at normal time of 7:30 but was at a bit of a loss of what to do for the free half hour I would've had so I went back to bed for it!  Got up and went to physio to get on the FES bike again, I did 3.06 miles today. After that it was straight to gym,  where I did my machine weights at a new weight - 25kg for the pull back and push outs and 19kg for the lat pull down. I didn't have to find anything to do for the next free half hour I had because I had a quick visit from Uncle Bruce, Trish and the kids and Beki. It was great... They brought me chocolate as requested! Ended up resting over lunch as I was feeling a bit worse for wear after a big morning and day before, and Luke came in towards the end of lunch to join me and then waited for me while I did physio.

Physio was again a great session, I did a few more rolls by myself, and did my leg exercises again... and there was so much movement in my left leg! I am able to lift my heel off the bed with a foam roll under my knee which was even a lot more than yesterday! I left physio on a high.

Spent a bit more time with Luke before he headed home for a rest. I had a lovely visit from Joan and Graham, and they brought us Boost Juice so it was lucky they came just before Luke left! After that I caught up with Patricia for my knitting lesson! I was ambitious today and did a whole 3 rows!! We were both clapping at the end, it might not sound much but it was a big feat! Now that I've had dinner I'm just outside catching the last few rays of sunshine before I head to bed. Tomorrow I am going into the pool for hydrotherapy for the second time!

The bad thing about knitting,  aside from dropping stitches is dropping the ball of wool and needing a nurse to pick it up!

Day 21

January 21st. D-day today! Luke was discharged this morning! And no I didn't cry! We finished packing his stuff this morning, then I went to gym and did almost a full workout. Once I'd finished there I came back and saw Luke off in a taxi with all his stuff and he went to settle in and also did a bit of a grocery shop. In OT today I got in my manual chair thinking I'd just go in it for the hour, so I went for a big push around outside and up a few ramps. I decided to stay in it until physio to save a transfer but I ended up staying in it all day! Had a great physio session as well, my normal physio person wasn't here today so I had Michelle, I like her! I started off doing leg exercises for the first time now that my leg is moving enough, the right leg did really well and there was a tiny bit in the left but not a lot. Next up we did rolling, pretty self explanatory but it's where I start on my back and swing my arms and use the momentum to roll onto my side. I've done one or two rolls to the right by myself, but today I did 5 rolls each side all by myself! At this stage I have a leg crossed over to help me out so the next step is crossing it myself or doing without! After physio I had a cruisy afternoon, and just before dinner I went to see Patricia. She was in bed exhausted after being home for the day. She had my knitting sitting on her chair and I managed to pick it up to do the next row! I didn't just do one row though,  I did two! I'd almost call it exhilarating, the excitement both Patricia and I have when I finish a row would make you smile from ear to ear. At 6pm I caught a taxi to the unit where Luke cooked me a beautiful chicken parmi for dinner! I spent a few hours just relaxing with him before coming back to Hampstead. Now it's time for a well deserved rest after pushing around all day! Good night!

Day 20

January 20th. We had another day out today in the end! Both Luke and I had appointments at the RAH, mine was a 4 month check up with my spinal surgeon. That's right,  4 months yesterday. It didn't even click when I wrote the date last night, it was overtaken by the news of my left leg moving! We thought we would be waiting hours with how many people were there but it was 'only' a 45 minute wait. All is going well, they're looking to do a repeat MRI to see how the swelling is going. Luke came into my appointment and was called out to go to his so it was all around pretty timely! Luke's appointment was almost pointless, they were confused as to why he was back after 2 weeks not 6!

We stayed and had lunch in the city, it was very busy in Rundle Mall but it was great to get out again. By the time we got back my therapies were past but I went down to physio and spent 15 minutes on the arm cycle and cycled 3km. Later this afternoon we made a quick trip to our new home to take a few of Luke's things so he doesn't have to take as much tomorrow because yes, he is discharged tomorrow! It's a little sad but exciting that we are moving onto the next phase. He'll be here every day anyway! I'm all set for a good week ahead, a new phase with a new motivation.

Here are some of Luke's packed bags! :-) / :-(

Day 19

January 19th. Really good news today!!! I can move my left leg a bit!!

I had another sleep in today, thought I might as well take advantage of the weekend! As I was lying in bed waiting to get up, I lifted my right knee a bit, or a lot actually! Then I tried my left leg as I always do and this time I wasn't sure if it was a little bit me actually doing something or just spasm still. Continued to get ready and get up for the day as usual. Luke and I headed to Rundle Mall today, which was an experience in itself. Firstly, how the heck was millions of dollars spent on the apparent 'upgrade'? In my opinion, like many others, it's boring, tasteless, lacking shade and was not worth getting rid of those vendors for. And again, some people don't seem to realise, I can't make my wheelchair any skinnier than it is in order to fit in the little gap you've left me. Or I can't pull up as quick as a walking person when you choose to stop in the middle of the walkway. And its not easy to navigate around you when you're too busy staring at your phone to realise there's a big wheelchair right next to you. Anyway! Back to the important stuff. We went to the R. M. Williams shop to have a look and after Luke looked at boots we saw a pretty sandal for me to try. So Luke pulled off my sock and shoe from my left foot and started to put the sandal on. Instinctively I tried to push my foot into it. And it pushed out a bit. We both noticed it. As Luke was holding my foot loosely we discovered I could push and pull my foot a little bit. It didn't last long as my muscles fatigued quickly. That didn't stop us from almost having a crying in joy session in the R. M. Williams shop! We headed out with smiles on our faces, went straight to Wendy's to get celebratory hot dogs and ice cream, and called my parents with the good news.

Next up we went to Lorna Jane, hoping that I could meet the girl who has served Luke every time he's gone shopping for me. We didn't see her unfortunately. But as we were there I couldn't not go shopping for myself! Looking at the tank tops we found a very suitable one - 'Stronger than yesterday' it said. Then we found one that almost made us crack up laughing but it wasn't in my size... 'run with your heart (not your legs)'...!!! Luke did an amazing job today because he walked unassisted the whole time at Rundle Mall, I'm very proud of him!

It was a wonderful day out, finished off with a visit from Kylie (one of my sisters) and Kale, who bought us in Red Rooster for dinner!

Day 18

January 18th. Well didn't I get spoilt today! After a movie night with Luke last night I had a big sleep in this morning! This afternoon Luke and I headed to Tea Tree Plaza just to get out for the day. We had a late lunch at 42nd Street Cafe, and then started looking around the shops. We've been talking about me getting my hair cut and maybe coloured for a few weeks now, and today Luke just said, 'let's find a hair dresser'. I was a bit apprehensive thinking about the fact I'm in this big electric wheelchair... who is going to want to do my hair? We couldn't see any hairdressers for a few minutes so I went up to the concierge and asked. Yep there's 6! So I picked the one that sounded cool, C Salon. Found it, rolled up to the counter and asked, 'would you guys cut and colour my hair?', to which I got an enthusiastic Yep and was shown straight through! I was helped mainly by 3 amazing people, firstly Santino, who coloured and washed my hair (and even smiled for a photo!), along with Tavar who helped me pick the colour, and lastly Salma, who cut and blow dried my hair. Santino was great and really put me at ease because inside I was still freaking out about how the whole hair-washing-thing would work! But it turns out they get people in wheelchairs all the time, and they have a movable basin that's just held in place by another person while your hair gets washed! I have no idea if this is something all hairdressers have or only some, but it helped me along to stop thinking that I'm the only woman (or man!) that is in a wheelchair who wants to have their hair done! Santino even took an interest when Luke mentioned to me to get a photo for the blog, and asked how to get to it, so I hope you're reading this Santino! All round the staff were great, and apart from talking about the accident and our injuries for a bit, I almost didn't feel like I was in a wheelchair for most of those two hours, because the wheelchair didn't make anything different to any other hair appointment. 

To finish off our little outing, we were sitting outside waiting for the taxi when luke pulled out one more surprise for me. A little purple Michael Hill box. And in that box was a gorgeous pair of emerald earrings! Today Luke spent the day treating me like a princess and truly helping me feel that, despite the fact that I am in a wheelchair (be it permanent or by some chance temporary) I am still beautiful. I am still the same person I was before. And I am truly blessed to have the man that I do!

Day 17

January 17. Today was an interesting day! Started off as normal, saw Luke, went to gym and did half my workout seeing as I've had a few days off. After that I went to OT, got transferred into the manual chair, and went to the kitchen to make cookies. Well. I got the ingredients out, and then broke down a bit! If you read yesterday's post, you'll remember Vicky talked about having to say good bye to certain things... whoa hold up, I'm not saying good bye to baking, I love it! She also talked with me about doing things in your own time, and I felt it boiling up for the last couple days, but its not quite my time to get back into baking. It's also about doing certain things again , but in a different way. It'll help when I have my own kitchen, with all the tools I need including my baby, my mixer! The only person that can say I'm ready to do something again is me.

This all wasn't helped by hearing how if I want overnight leave at this stage, I'll still need a hospital bed and a few other things. But that falls under what Luke and I talked about last night, rather than just getting upset about things, like I always do and did with this, we talk about it, and file it under the category 'these are the reasons why the next few months might be shit, but it won't last forever'.

I had lunch time to settle down, and at the end of lunch I got a wonderful surprise... I was sitting in Luke's room looking at my hands, and thinking if there was any way to build up the 'pudgy bit' where my thumb joins the palm of my left hand. Because I can move my right fingers and thumb a little bit the muscle has begun to build back up, but not on my left hand. So, for the first time in a while, I tried to move my fingers,  starting with my thumb. Nothing. First finger. Nothing. Middle finger.  Nothing. Ring finger. Nothing. Little finger... WAIT DID THAT JUST MOVE??!! It moved! My left pinky moved a while back, but it disappeared... and it's back!

So I was off to physio already on a pretty good high and I get there and it took a second before I realised what song was playing...

It's a new dawn,

It's a new day,

It's a new life,

For me,

And I'm feeling good

I didn't know my life had turned into a movie complete with soundtrack! So that kick started my physio session in which I went on the FES bike, functional electrical simulation bike. Megan, my physio, started placing electrode pads on my thighs and hamstrings, and asked me to guess where the other ones go. 'My calves?' Nope it was my butt! Just had to lean forward enough they could just slip in there. Now this bike is a weird experience! It sends currents through your muscles so they are actually contracting rather than passively moving. I was on it for just over 20 minutes and travelled 2.66 miles with just over 40mA of current going through my legs! People with no sensation can have it ramped up a bit more because they just can't feel it but because I could feel something that was as high as I could go. It's a weird feeling, kind of like pins and needles but at the same time not at all! Just so you know my arms didn't do anything, I just put them on the handles for the photo for looks!

After physio I had a quick chat to Naomi, the psychologist and then went and got season one of Push Girls from Kate, my OT, onto my tablet (the iPad kind of thing not a pill!). I've watched the first episode already and it's really interesting. There's 3 paraplegics and one quadriplegic, but they're sassy, sexy women in LA, who say, 'if you can't stand up, stand out!'

Luke had appointments at the RAH, one yesterday and one today, both with good news that he's going well, except one bone in his face isn't healing as well but they're going to leave it for a few more weeks and see how it goes again soon. 

AND MORE EXCITING NEWS!! I CAN MOVE MY LEFT ANKLE A BIT!! Here's hoping it's like the right and only gets bigger and stronger.

Day 16

January 16th. The last 2 days have been a struggle physically, today was better physically, but mentally and emotionally, not such a great day! Was all set to head to gym but before that I called past Luke and couldn't quite hold it together any more. I'm not afraid to share this because, as I'm sure you already realise, it's not all rainbows and lollipops along this journey. The thing I find important is not letting it take over and never end. Might not be the same day all the time, sometimes it'll take a couple days, although thankfully today I was able to talk through it.

The first person I talked to was Luke, and as usual he knew, or at least did a pretty good job of pretending to know, exactly what to say! He could see it on my face as I went into his room. It wasn't long until he was standing beside me holding me. I know I'll never give up but the thoughts are still there of 'I just don't know if I can do this'. Luke consoled me while I had my cry, and wasn't short of reassurance. We went to leave Luke's room and Vicky, the ParaQuad SA lady here at Hampstead, was going past and stopped to say hi and I just asked her, 'do you get sick of sitting down?' This launched an hour and a half conversation about everything. She was 19 and suffered a medical condition that paralysed her, making her a paraplegic. Talking to Vicky was a great help.

After a bit of a rest I went to see Naomi, my psychologist, just to talk a little more. By this stage I was in a more confused state, not really sure what to think. That was followed by an xray and a quick trip to physio to somewhat make up for my missed session. Then tonight Luke and I sat outside after it had dropped maybe a degree or two! We just talked it through a little more, and it really helped settle me. Luke still sees the same strong, courageous, annoying(!), loving woman he first met. And neither of us is going to give up on the other.

Luke got these bracelets made up a couple months ago when he went on a trip to the RAH. It's a new life for us. We're still going to do the things we planned, but as Vicky said this morning there are some thing you eventually have to say goodbye to, for her one was walking her dog along the beach, sand between her toes. It took her 3 years before she went back to the beach to go along the sidewalk this time. Luke and I are living a new life now. We may have to change the way we do some things and even say good bye to others. I've decided its a new, but better, life... because we are still here living it.

Day 15

January 15th. Had a better day today! Stayed in bed a while longer this morning so missed gym but was in time for OT. I practiced make up today! My OT Kate has been excited since the start about doing make up with me because she's never had a young woman as a patient before! Started off with the BB cream my Auntie Kaye gave me when she gave me a foot pamper. Used a combination of back of the hand/thumb and a couple fingertips,  especially around the eyes. Then came eyeliner! Holding the pencil between my first and second fingers like I do now when I write, I managed to draw a pretty straight line over the top eyelid and even lined the inside of my bottom eyelids. Next was the eyeshadow. I used my 'tea pinky', my little finger that constantly pokes up like I'm having high tea! I tried to be tricky and use a light shade on the inside, a medium shade in the middle and a darker shade on the outside...but they were all neutral browns so you can't see it that well, and I didn't get much on there. At least I managed not to poke myself in the eye!

Physio I took pretty easy because of the heat and not feeling well, so mainly got my leg stretches. My right leg is getting stronger and stronger, I can hold my ankle up, and now I can not only kick out a bit, which means I've got quad muscles, but I can kick it back a tiny bit too which means hamstrings! I'm trying not to get over excited but this may well mean I could at least have a usable leg to assist with transferring and (sshhhh...) could lead to standing on one leg and one day walking... but that's still a long way off.

This afternoon we braved the heat and Luke and I looked at the house we are planning to move into after leaving Hampstead,  and for Luke that's on Tuesday! It is fully accessible for me to eventually have overnight leave. It's the perfect transition house for us.

Day 14

January 14th. Happy 3 month anniversary Hampstead and us! 3 months ago, on Luke's birthday, we made the big move here. When we came here Luke could only sit at a max of 60 degrees because of his hip and pelvis, and was on a liquid diet because of the facial reconstruction. I was in bed for all but a few minutes of the day because my body couldn't handle sitting up to begin with.

Today was a pretty quiet day, I did my gym session then ended up back in bed for a bit not feeling too well. Sorry for the lack of any post really today, but here's what is in my room, call it my inspiration wall! Quotes from my family, drawings from my cousin and a few photos, it picks me up in the mornings when I wake up.

Day 13

January 13th. Wow today was hot! I'm assuming it reached just over 40 degrees,  I couldn't tell you exactly because I never watch the news! Back to a busy day today, up early and off to gym after calling past Luke to say good morning, we got outside for a few minutes while the weather was nice and not too hot. This morning in gym was a 'heavy' morning, I'm switching between doing heavy weights/low reps and mild weights/high reps. My workout includes 3 machine exercises (pull backs/push outs/lat pull downs) and 4 exercises with weights strapped around my wrists.

In OT we just played a couple games to get my hands working, a peg game and Scrabble. We weren't scoring but I definitely won with my 'Z' on a double letter score!

Before physio started I arranged with Patricia that we would turn up early so I could do another row! I dropped the stitches a few times but managed to pick them up with a little help from experienced hands! I had a bit of a workout in physio today, was puffing a bit! The photo for today is me on the hand cycle machine. It doubles as a automatic bike (if thats the right word... it does the pedaling for you) but my legs werent doing anything today, they were just strapped in for comfort. I was hand-cycling for 15 minutes and 'travelled' 3.3km! We are planning to set up a regular time each day soon so I can go down and do it out of my physio time.

Day 12

January 12th. Just a short post today, I'm knackered and ready for some sleep! After a lazy morning (another sleep in!) It was a busy afternoon. My parents came in which was great, they brought Boost juices in for Luke and I, 'gym junkie' for him and 'all berry bang' for me if you ever want to bring us one! Not long after we came to Hampstead, I can't even remember who thought of it, we thought Boost juices would be a great way for (*correction!) Luke to get something in him because at that stage he was on a liquid diet, as well as me to be drinking more but also get some sort of food into me considering I wasn't eating much. Mum and Dad also bring me in boxes of water because the tap water here is rancid, I don't know how people drink it or any Adelaide water for that matter! Mum and Dad left for an hour so I could have a bit of a rest before the next visitors arrived... Uncle Bruce, Trish, Trish's mum Sandra and the kids, Sydney,  George and Dallas! They're in Adelaide for the week on holiday,  so came around for a visit. Today's picture is Dallas while and after doing somersaults on the grass! It was great to catch up with them all, Luke came out halfway through as he'd been asleep all afternoon not feeling the flashiest.

We ended the night with Luke, Mum, Dad and I enjoying a Chinese meal that Mum and Dad picked up while they were out. It was very filling as Chinese always is so we have leftovers for lunch tomorrow!

Again sorry for the short post, my body is ready to shut down for the night!

Day 11

January 11th. I was reading through my friend Sammy's blog a few days ago, and came across THIS post. Considering it had the number 11 in it I thought I'd save it for the 11th, and conveniently there's not much to report today! So thanks for the general nomination Sammy, and everyone go check out her blog, http://samiati.com/

Here are the rules:

1. Acknowledge your nominating blogger (tick!)
2. Provide 11 random facts about yourself.
3. Answer your nominating Blogger 11 questions that they provided for you.
4. Pick 11 Bloggers to nominate for this award.
5. Post 11 questions of your own for those 11 Bloggers to answer for you.

~Eleven things you may or may not know about me~

1. My name is Elise Sarah Summerton, and will soon be Elise Sarah Kennedy...

2. I've already got my wedding dress!

3. I love oysters Kilpatrick, but they've gotta be done right! I don't know how to describe what right is, I just know that Tony at the Comfort Inn Manhattan in Enfield does the best ones!

4. Luke proposed to me after he'd asked me in no uncertain terms to 'clean the house and make sure all the washing is done' before he got home! 

5. My childhood obsession was Hilary Duff. I had all her albums, most of her movies on DVD, I even did my year 6 or 7 free choice project on her!

6. My bed-friend since I was in ICU right up til now is my teddy Kingston, see the picture! Luke and I got him when we stayed the night in a big fancy suite in the Langham Hotel in Melbourne last July. I've only spent a few nights without him, he didn't miss a single night with me while I was in the Royal Adelaide Hospital.

7. Secondary to the Hilary Duff obsession I borrowed a copy of A Cinderella Story from a friend years ago,  had it for about 3 months and I think it was 38 times I watched the movie.

8. I still remember the day at the local footy and netball my sister and I played a game, not sure what kind of game looking back (!), where we would crawl in the boot of the car with a little torch, then swap over. Until she properly shut me in there and I don't know how but she forgot about me and I screamed and cried until a man heard me and rescued me!

9. Luke was actually my boss when I met him!

10. I'm very fussy with food, you'll be lucky to see me eat many other pizzas than a meatlovers, no salami of course!

11. I love a good foot massage! 

Answers to Sammy's questions

1. If you had one day with Luke, what would you do?

Before - if we met in Pinnaroo I'd definitely take him to the playground, maybe have a picnic. Now - might still do the picnic but also (by said time) maybe I'll have found or even written a kids book to familiarise him with wheelchairs somehow...

2. The tagline of my blog is Love Life Luke. Please unpack each of these and tell me what they mean to you.

Love - what our relationships,  friendships, families are built around. It's precious,  and when you truly find it in a partner, never let it go.
Life - very, very precious. You, literally,  don't know what is around the corner that could easily take life away.
Luke - the best thing that's happened to me! My Luke I mean!

3. If you were colour blind and could only see three colours for the rest of your life, but got to choose, what would they be and why?

Blue, it's my favorite colour! Would also mean I can see the colour of the sky and the ocean and Luke's eyes.
Yellow, so many warnings and caution signs and such are yellow, I'd want to know what to look out for.
Green, so much of landscapes are green, trees, grass, I'd hate to miss out on it.

4. I’m coming for dinner. What are we having?
At the moment, spaghetti bolognase or burritos! Theyre the two main things I've practiced cooking as a part of rehab.

5. What was your greatest childhood fear and how did you overcome it? Or does it still haunt you?
The biggest fear I can think of is of spiders! And there's no big triumph story, they still scare me no matter how small. 

6. Halloween – yay or nay. Discuss.
Not in Australia,  its a very American thing... I dont even know what the point is apart from dressing up and bugging neighbours for candy...

7. What is your heritage… by percentage?

Not sure, mostly English, I'll have to get back to you on that one.

8. What is the furtherest you would travel in a day to see a good friend?
Probably as far as Pinnaroo to Adelaide, about 250kms!

9. How far have you been from home?
On family holidays, Brisbane or Perth or Alice Springs, whichever is furthest!

10. Hendrik just walked in and asked me “mau mimi?” – what do you think it means? Be creative. No google translate (good luck with that anyway!).

What's for dinner? ??!

11. You have won a holiday house in any destination of choice. Where is your house and why?

Somewhere that's warm all year round, neither of us handle the cold that well anymore... can't think of anywhere specific.

Eleven bloggers to ‘nominate’
This is a bit different, except for the last 'nominee' the others are people I've looked at as inspiration or to see how their stories played out if they've got similar injuries to me. Go google them.

1. Jordan Bone - http://jordansbeautifullife.wordpress.com

2. Rachelle Friedman Chapman, the 'paralyzed bride'

3. Beau Vernon - http://beauvernon.com

4. Push Girls, tv show, I've watched a few clips but am yet to watch the whole show.

5. - 10. Anyone with a spinal cord injury at any level

11. My only nomination - you! Whether you already have one or start a blog, or simply answer the questions in a comment or message to me.

My questions

1. What is one thing you dream of doing before it's too late? 

2. If you or one of your family members had to use a wheelchair, what's one modification you think your house would need?

3. What is one of the happiest moments of your life? 

4. What's your biggest pet hate? 

5. What's your dream holiday destination? 

6. Say YOU had to be in a wheelchair, what colour would yours be?!

7. If you could tell your parents what to name you when you were born, what name would you choose? (Must be a different name to yours now!)

8. If you were stuck on a desert island with one person of your choosing,  who would it be and why? Dead or alive, celebrity or someone you know.

9. What do you think is the hardest thing about being in a wheelchair?

10. If you could go back in time and meet one person who would it be and why?

11. If you could ask me one question, what would it be?

Like I said, even if you don't have a blog, feel free to answer in the comments, even if its only to answer question 11. I promise to answer every question asked!

Day 10

January 10th. Sorry for the late post, Luke and I had a 4 hour nap this afternoon/early evening! Changes in medications are knocking us both around. This morning I did most of my usual gym workout, but in the manual chair for the first time! It felt like a completely different workout because I'm so used to being supported by a big electric chair! My occupational therapist, Kate, started measuring me up and scripting my own wheelchair today, so if it's all processed hopefully I will have it in about 6 weeks, not sure exactly on the time frame. The most exciting part of physio today was the few minutes before our sessions started... I'll tell you why in a minute!

Meet Patricia. Formally known as Margaret Patricia Rose Bloom! Her father wanted her to be named Margaret and her mother wanted Patricia, and she was born on the day of Princess Margaret Rose's christening. Patricia has a son Guy, who is father to Isabella, a 2-almost-12 year old, and is expecting on Valentines Day. Patricia also has a daughter Victoria, who is mother to Ben, 25, and Chloe, 23, and another daughter Joanna, who is mother to Claire, 24, and David, 22. Isabella affectionately calls Patricia Gam-mamma! Patricia's husband, known to Isabella as Dam-pa, passed away Easter time last year. She described to me as beginning to get her life back on track and going well, taking friends to appointments and such when it came to August 13th. Joanna was due to come around, because it couldnt be the Tuesday, Patricia had to see the dentist and Wednesday she had to get her glasses checked. As we all usually do, Patricia stood up a bit too quickly in a rush to get to the bathroom, and slipped in her bedroom, breaking her neck. Patricia spent 3 weeks in Flinders Hospital until on September 3rd she came out to Hampstead. Patricia and I have physio at the same time, so I've been lucky enough to see her start walking again! We always say hello and one day Patricia showed me that she'd started knitting again! As it was her left side that was paralyzed holding the knitting needles was a tab difficult but she managed it! Each day Patricia told me she had finished another row or two on the scarf she had started.

A couple days ago Patricia said she'd help me to knit as well, and today as we greeted each other she said, 'I've got your knitting for you!' Patricia had cast on 15 stitches for me. Now I'm not going to lie, I extremely doubted I could do it. But I wasn't about to give up before starting! I have attempted knitting before so I had some idea of the technique. As I tried to hold the needles I was getting instantly frustrated, but I stopped myself, I can do this. I slipped the needle in the first stitch and felt like I'd already won. Wrapping the wool around took a while but I did it, and slipped the needle around... and there you go I had done a stitch! I was concentrating so much I missed most people saying hello because I was too busy knitting! Next stitch done, and another, and another. I even managed to pick up a couple stitches that slipped! Soon enough I had 3 stitches to go, then 2, then I was on the last one... And I did it! I finished my first row! I finished a row of knitting!  You couldn't contain Patricia's and my excitement! I did it! We are going to start going to physio a few minutes early and I will probably catch up tomorrow to do another row!

A few words pf wisdom from Patricia as we were talking, she finds no other way than to be positive. In the opinion of her daughter,  Joanna, sleep is an essential part of recovery. It's happened, the only thing to do is deal with it. And lastly,  the saddest words in the world are 'if only', our vision is 20/20 in hindsight.

Day 9

January 9th. Again another quiet day, we made chicken burgers for lunch though! Still more rolling and balancing practice in physio for me. Today I'll give you a bit more of an update on where Luke is at, he'll write a piece one day soon about his early days.

The last few days Luke has been up walking on crutches! He is allowed to weight bear 10kg through his right foot, although I'm not sure how he's supposed to measure that! About 5 weeks ago Luke had surgery on his foot to insert a few screws and metal plates, graft a bone from his ankle to his big toe because the bones had been completely shattered and his big toe was about 10mm shorter than it was supposed to be. 2 weeks ago Luke noticed the wound was opening up and it was soon discovered he had an infection. He was started on antibiotics, 6 hourly, through a Jelco, the little drip needle that goes into a vein so they can inject the fluid in. The antibiotics have been stopped today so things are looking better at the moment. Yesterday he was hypnotized to try alleviate some of the pain... and it worked! Luke thought it was a bit of hocus-pocus but a little of his leg and face pain went away! Just don't tell Luke's doctors he wasn't wearing his CAM boot while walking!!

Day 8

January 8th. Quiet day and just a short post today, both Luke and I were pretty tired due to medications. I did a half session in gym, practiced some more writing in OT and practiced balancing while sitting in physio. I did have my two friends from high school, Steph and Lauren, visit this afternoon and they brought cupcakes for me!

Today I had the rest of my Christmas present from Luke turn up... 3 beautiful bracelets! Somehow a picture of the first bracelet popped up on my Facebook news feed and I fell in love, mostly because of the saying on the bracelet, 'Time is what you make of it'. As I scrolled through the page for 'Emilie Maree Jewellery & Accessories' every bracelet was amazing,  but two stood out the most - a simple white one, and a brown leather bracelet with the saying 'Where there's a will there's a way'. These two sayings almost made me cry, they meant a lot to my current situation. In the next breath I told Luke I knew what I wanted for Christmas! This is a bit of a promo for the page, which you can find at https://www.facebook.com/Emiliemareeaccessories. Emilie is a great woman, she is super promt with replying to comments and messages, her products are fabulous, and she is prompt with postage as well! Please check out her page, like it and maybe even purchase something! If you do, be sure to mention you were referred by me, Elise S! (There may be a special reward for me if a certain number of people purchase so make sure you do!) I promise you won't regret purchasing, the photos do not do these bracelets justice!

Day 7

January 7th. Not a big one today, just reporting on today's events... Luke and I made a big breakfast in OT, for lunch! I managed to do most of the prep myself, even cracking the eggs!!!! I was quite proud of myself, fluked it most of the time but got 99% of the egg in the bowl and only a couple tiny bits of shell! Luke helped to cook it all up and like a good wife-to-be I started the dishes!

I'm sure the only reason I'm practicing cooking is so we get a decent lunch. So far we've made burritos, spaghetti bolognase and steak and chips! I doubt I'll do much cooking once we are out of here... well if our lives are anything like before I never cooked! I'm lucky enough to have a man that loves cooking, is OCD with cleaning so I would always do it wrong if I attempted it, and the only thing he wouldn't do is put clothes in a washing machine! I doubt he'll let me get out of it now that ive started though!

In physio today I managed to slide my butt sideways across the plinth (the reasonably hard physio bed) just a tiny bit. It may only be a few millimetres but taking the weight through my arms and moving is the start of learning to transfer! I've talked about goals with Luke for me and for us, and one of the ultimate goals is being able to transfer so we don't have to use a lifter to get me from chair to bed etc.

Luke is going well but the antibiotics are knocking him about a bit so he's finding it hard to stay awake after each dose (at 6am, midday, 6pm and midnight). The wound is beginning to look a bit better though so here's hoping that infection is going away!

Yes, in the background is a washing machine which I will be learning how to use again if Luke has anything to do with it!

Day 6

January 6th. Big day today! I attempted, and kicked butt, at writing in OT! Started by writing 'my name is Elise' and signing my name, then wrote Luke a little love note.

Not such a big moment but the next photo Luke had to take of me attempting not so successfully putting on a jumper... he seemed to think it was funny!

The last photo is a really big moment... my first time on the tilt table in physio! The tilt table is designed obviously to tilt and stand you up. Today we got to about 60 degrees. After about 45 degrees some weight begins to bear through the legs, so I felt some weight resting on my feet. The biggest thing about "standing up" is the same as it was when I first was going from lying in a bed for a month to sitting up in the special bed at the RAH which the back sits up and the feet go down, and then in the wheelchair.  Blood pressure. The body is so used to easily pumping blood around as you lie down, when the upper body comes up and the legs go down, blood pressure can plummet. Luckily today this wasn't a problem! I did have my binder on though, it's like a corset that helps with keeping blood pressure up. I was feeling fine the whole way up, as they inched me about 10 degrees at a time. My blood pressure only dropped a bit right at the end. If I can build up tolerance to standing,  I can look into standing wheelchairs!

Day 5

January 5th. Today was a pretty dreary day started with sunshine but that turned into cloudy and raining within seconds! We just spent the day relaxing, and will be ordering in pizza again for dinner!

As the wind was picking up this morning, Luke said, "well, it's a day.". To which I replied,  "yes, yes it is". And coincidentally as the sun started disappearing he continued by saying, "it's a day and we're still alive. It's a good day". Today's photo isn't too exciting but I took it once the sun began to come out from hiding. While it was hidden there was wind, rain and it was pretty cold! I wonder where I'd be if I didnt have Luke's jumpers to keep warm..! This is all a bit cliche but true. You can start off with a sunny morning, only to have it turn into pretty miserable weather in a matter of minutes. It may not apply every day, but today at least, it'll end up being a pretty nice afternoon once the rain goes away. I'm hoping you get my metaphor but I'll explain nonetheless!

We were living a pretty good life before the accident, beautiful house, about to buy a new car, comfortable with where we were. Then came the 'change of weather'. I don't remember much but there were a few weeks of uncertainty,  the first week especially.  I couldn't move much, couldn't talk, we didn't know  if this would be what it would be like forever. But eventually came the few rays of sunshine.  The first for me was when Luke was wheeled down to my room in ICU. This is my second memory post-accident, the first being becoming alert in the MRI not knowing what the hell was going on. The second I saw him and touched his hand I knew we'd be okay. They're some of the only memories I have of the first maybe 4 or 5 days until the breathing tube came out. Then came the first time I talked, being able to have a 'courtyard date' with Luke,  moving out of ICU, moving my pinkie for the first time, feeding myself a piece of bread, brushing my teeth, getting the feeding and oxygen tubes off! And that was in the first few weeks! Coming out to Hampstead, beginning to sit in a wheelchair,  finally getting rid of my pinless halo, and beginning therapies, the clouds began to disappear bit by bit. Trust me, there are bad days where from morning til night it's 'thunderstorms, cyclones', disasters everywhere when it seems like the sun has packed its bags for good. But somehow... I lie, I know how... with Luke right by my side reminding me of all the things I can and will do, as well as the support of my family and everyone around,  the sun starts to peek its rays out from behind the clouds, slowly revealing itself.

(That was a longer explanation than I intended!) I might be sitting down now with a bit less function in my hands, but there is so much potential ahead yet. I will always have Luke by my side, and we are still going to live the lives we planned, or even, better ones. It's a good day.

Day 4

January 4th. My first weekend blog! There are no therapies on the weekends, so we have the weekend to do as we please! Today we had another trip out to Tea Tree Plaza, we've been there a few times now, once with my parents. This time for lunch we went with a good ol' Wendy's hot dog but we've previously been to Coffee Break (which was average,  the food was very overpriced) and 42nd Street cafe, which was great. They were very accommodating with moving around chairs, we even had a lovely couple switch tables to make it easier for us! We have also discovered that most shops just aren't made for wheelchairs. Narrow aisles, tables in the middle of walkways, things too high on the shelves... and last but not least, some very rude and inconsiderate people! Sometimes its due to being too busy looking at a phone, or something we noticed even before the accident - people standing in the middle of the walkways!

Yesterday I asked you to name the first paralympic sport you think of. Thank you to those that answered! The most popular was basketball! Just a fun fact, my gym instructor was a part of the 1996 men's gold medal team for wheelchair basketball! Other sports you guys thought of included swimming, athletics/track/marathon, horse riding and ice hockey for the winter Olympics! Check out the full list here - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paralympic_sports

Only one person got the sport I've been thinking about (well done Trevor!)... rowing! I did rowing in high school, somehow managing the early mornings (I still don't know how!) but I loved it. I always planned on doing it again one day,  and I still can! Adaptive rowing has been a part of the summer paralympics since 2008 in Beijing. There are 3 categories in which adaptive rowers are classified -

LTA - Legs, Trunk, Arms 

Use of at least one leg, trunk and arms. Also for those with visual andintellectual impairments. Rowed with standard boats and sliding seats.

TA - Trunk and Arms 

Only use of trunk muscles. Boat has fixed seat.

AS - Arms and Shoulders 

Limited trunk control. Boat has fixed seat and rower is strapped at upper chest level to only allow shoulder and arm movements.

Thanks Wikipedia! At this stage I would be classed in the AS category. If you want to see what it looks like check out this video of the women's single sculls from 2008 - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p8XYhNkFs8I
I have motivation to build my strength not only for everyday use, pushing the manual chair,  and eventually transferring,  but now also for the prospect of rowing again one day!

Today's picture is a Christmas present Luke and I got from my friend Michelle.  I loved them the second we unwrapped them! I'm yet to put our photos in them, but will do so soon. As I am about to write this,  I picture a scene from the movie 'A Cinderella Story' (I watched it way too many times during my Hilary Duff obsession phase!)... anything is possible if you just believe.

Day 3

January 3rd. Today was just another day, but with one little achievement... I made it up the big 'kiosk' ramp! The photo does not do it justice, it is a monster of a ramp. I've made it halfway a couple times but today I conquered the whold thing!

At the end of physio I tried out the rugby chair for 5 minutes! It was hard work, the backrest was lower so seeing as I have very minimal ab muscles it was hard to sit. The wheels are angled on sports chairs for extra stability and it also makes steering easier.

My right leg is getting stronger, I can fully tap my foot now! And the major muscle that's working in my leg so far is the adductors, inside of my thigh, and I'm able to pull my leg inwards. It's hard to explain and a photo wouldn't be the most flattering(!) so try picture this... when I lie on my back, with my legs bent, feet together and knees falling out to the sides, my right leg naturally starts at maybe 30 degrees to the bed... but I can pull my knee up towards the middle about another 30 degrees! A little more and I might get it all the way up! It's not the most useful thing to be able to do, but until other muscles pick up their game it's pretty cool!

Here's a question to get you involved... when you think paralympics, what's your first sport you think of? And no you can't say rugby because I mentioned it! Although I must look up if that is actually in the paralympics or not! Think of a sport before you look at other comments (assuming people do comment!), then don't not answer just because someone else said it, and I'll tell you which sport I've been thinking about tomorrow! Please comment with your answer,  it only takes a second!

Day 2

January 2nd. Wow. Did not expect that much of a response to my little blog! Over 300 views in 5 hours last night... not sure how accurate Blogger's stats are and how many are legit views, but... wow! Let's start this post with 2 things - firstly, thank you for your support. It is overwhelming! And secondly, I want you all to know, I can't claim credit for starting this. In the taxi back from Henley Beach yesterday Luke said, 'you know, you should start that photo a day thing again...', and that's why I love him!

We had a great day out yesterday, lunch at Caffè Primo and a walk to Henley Square (yes, we still call it a walk!). The beach looked so inviting even if it was a bit overcast and muggy. Today was so cold compared to the last few days! All rugged up I had a normal day of therapies. My day usually looks like this:
7:30 am - get woken up and begin the 'morning routine'
9:00 am - finally finished getting ready and go say good morning to Luke
10:00 am - go to gym session (weights and arm exercises)
11:30 am - occupational therapy (OT) session
12:30 pm - time to see what crappy food is for lunch!
1:30 pm - physio session,  this is usually my favourite therapy
2:30 pm - finished therapies for the day! If Luke's not busy we hang out and pass the time!
5:30 pm - "tea" time.  I say it like that because a) 5:30pm is afternoon tea time and b) you'd be like that too if you saw some of the stuff they serve up as food!
7:30 pm - sometime around this time I get into bed

But today in physio I put my shoes on! I've done it once before, this time was a little less shaky than the first time though. *edit: after uploading the link to Facebook I notice my left shoe isn't on properly.. it was on before I took the photo!

The other photo is Luke with our friend Ashton. Ashton and his mum, Tam, have been great to us! Tam is like another mother to us now! Ashton has taken up wearing a onesie around Hampstead lately, he surprised us as a pink unicorn before Christmas, and was a giraffe today!

Day 1

January 1st. Well we welcomed in the new year in a very different way... in wheelchairs. And not by choice! If you don't know already, my fiance, Luke, and I were travelling home to the farm on September 19, 2013 when our lives were turned upside down. A lady was driving on our side of the road as we came to a corner and hit us head on. Luke sustained a broken hip, pelvis, both feet and a whole lot of facial fractures which required 18 metal plates in his face, a few in his hip and now a couple in his right foot too. I broke my femur, but that hasn't even been thought about because I also had my neck broken at the C5/C6 level, which basically means my arms and wrists work fine, but my fingers and everything below my chest has been paralyzed.

I'm lucky because in the last 3 and a half months I have regained some movement in my right side - fingers, toes and a little in my leg! My left side hasn't caught on yet though! Luke is doing as well as can be, he is battling an infection in his foot as well as a massive amount of continual pain but he is still my rock as usual!

This is my second attempt at a Project 365, the first try didn't go very well! This one is a lot more meaningful though. We are going to have an amazing year, despite the big hiccup. We are going to live the lives we planned, and 2014 will hold many big things... soon getting out of hospital and beginning our lives again, but also... a wedding! You're going to have to wait until September 20 for that one though!

I hope by doing this, you will be able to see that yeah, this is sucky, but no matter how upset/angry/much we think and wish it shouldn't have happened it is not going to change the fact. We can only stay strong together and make the most of the situation we are in. We can only take the little or even big victories, hold them dear when the times get rough, and keep pushing through to the next beautiful day. I hope that by doing this you can be grateful for every thing in your life, don't take it for granted that you can walk, talk, pick something up, feed yourself, cough or even sneeze properly! All of those things I couldn't do at some point and when I could, by gosh it was like man walked on the moon! All except for the walking of course,  but maybe one day that will happen again. No one knows, only time will tell, but even if I don't,  I'm still alive with an amazing family and community around me,  but more so the love of my life is still with me and together we can do anything.