Tuesday, January 15, 2013

Progress and Blessings

The holidays were so fun, but so busy! I was terrible at keeping up the blog and I really hope to do better! Sam is doing so well. She has progressed so much in the last several weeks. Sam is now able to feel all the way down into her hips. She also has some feeling on the tops of her toes. Her core strength has increased greatly. I hadn't seen her for a few weeks and when I did at Christmas I couldn't believe how much straighter she could sit in her chair. She is also able to bend over and sit back up independently. She can even roll her self over in bed! She is gaining a lot of strength and is able to do more and more each day. A friend at work asked me how Sam was. I was giving her an update and she said, "I remember not that long ago and you were excited because she had scratched her own face. And now she is doing so much more!" She really has come so far in only a few months.
Sam finally got her own wheelchair the end of December. The wheelchair is made specifically for her body so it took a long time to get it delivered. It is really nice and I think will really allow her more independence. She continues to attend therapy at the U and in Payson. My parents are looking into a place called Neuroworx to continue her therapy. They have a lot of really specialized equipment and it seems like it could be a really good thing for Sam.
Sam's attitude continues to be great. She occasionally has a rough moment, but she really tries to get over it quickly. Her friends help with her attitude so much! They include her in everything and visit her almost every day. I am so thankful for the wonderful friends she has. I just appreciate them so much! Sam started going back to school this week. She will be going three times a week in the morning before therapy. My mom said that her first day went well. I think it  will be great for her to be independent for those few hours. We are thankful to all of the school staff who are working to make things go smoothly for Sam.
We are so thankful for everyone's continued love and support. It seems that whenever there is a need then someone steps in to help. We are so blessed to have so many wonderful people in our lives.
Sam and Kaitlin got to see Justin Bieber in concert! It was so fun dropping them off and seeing how excited they were. The staff at Energy Solutions Arena were so helpful in exchanging their seats. We bought the tickets before the accident and so they were obviously not wheelchair accessible. They were actually clear up in the nose bleeds! But, they were greatly upgraded and ended up in the lower bowl on row 26!
I am so grateful for a loving Heavenly Father that continues to be with Sam continually. Every day there is some tender mercy in her behalf. Two examples come to mind that happened when I was with Sam. The day of the concert I prayed that things would go smoothly. I knew it would embarrass Sam if it was a big hassle and I just wanted her to have fun without any bumps in the road. And although kind of silly I also prayed they would get good seats. Well, everything went so easily and they got great seats. I was so happy! I know in the eternal sense the concert doesn't matter at all, but Heavenly Father blessed Sam so that she could have a fun day and have something to be excited about. Another example is from Christmas Eve. Sam had some really cute new boots to wear to our party. I was doing her hair and my mom was trying to get her boots on. She could NOT get them on. So, she had my dad try and he couldn't either. Sam was getting frustrated and I felt terrible. I said a quick prayer that they would go on. A few minutes later they went on! Again, such a simple thing, but it was important to Sam and Heavenly Father blessed her. These are two such simple examples, but she really is blessed so much continually.

Monday, January 7, 2013

Happy New Years!

My how time flies at this time of year. Christmas is such a great time. All the family was home for Christmas morning. Sam scored some pretty nice stuff from Santa, Mom and Dad. Sam continues to be very active despite my attempts to circumvent her fun. She went out with her friends to dinner and to see the lights in Spanish Fork. I was called when transfers were needed. It will be wonderful when she can get in and out of a car by herself. She will have much more freedom to go with her friends without a tag-a-long. I was so happy to be working on New Years Eve. Sam had a party downstairs at our home and Kaitlin had one upstairs. Sam was happy to be down in the dungeon again. She had to check where all her stuff was just to make sure Kaitlin didn't steal anything. Sam's friends continue to be a great support. We love them very much for not forgetting Sam in their daily lives. Many late hours have been used up watching movies.  Sam has recently acquired an electric recliner. It makes me happy to see her out of her bed. Just sitting in bed makes you tired. The chair supports her nicely and is better for her skin's health. A couple of days ago Sam and Kaitlin attended the Justin Beiber concert. They said it was awesome, but couldn't hear very well for a little while. The folks at Energy Solutions took good care of them.  Therapy continues to go well. Other than listening to Sam sing every song on the radio for a couple hours, I don't really mind the drive. I am going to check out a new therapy place called Neuroworx. The are a group of therapist that have all the latest equipment to help Sam's rehab.  They are in South Jordan so our drive would be an hour less per day.  The UofU has been great but I like to keep her options open. We hope the New Year brings much joy to everyone's family. We continue to ask for your prayers in behalf of Sam and all those others struggling as she does. We love you all and pray the Lord's blessings be upon you and your families. Love ya!