Sunday, January 18 ... CURIOUS about GEORGE!

Dad had a great weekend full of family and fun. On Friday, Dad's sister, Jimmie, and Dad's nephew, Kevin, and his wife, Lucy, who live in Georgetown, came to visit along with their two little boys. Clayton, their three-year old, loves Curious George, and now we know why ... he's exactly like him! During their two-hour visit, Clayton never stopped entertaining us as he tried out every gadget, button, and light switch in the room, as well as all of Dad's "accessories".
Then, before we all left for the evening, "Uncle George" even let Clayton take him for a spin in his wheelchair up and down the hallway, and no one was allowed to help push, even though Aunt Jimmie did try to help steer! We thought Dad would be the one eager to see us all leave, but I think it was more like the nursing staff (ha!). Dad even made Kevin promise to come back and see him Saturday morning before they headed back home, which they did, and when they arrived, Kevin said Dad already had visitors ... Ricky and Donnie Luker. Since Dad had a roomful, Mom decided to stay home and do a few things around the house, and then my sister, Terri, called and said that she and Emily were also headed to Katy. Terri told Mom that she would sit with Dad and Mom could have the afternoon off too, so Mom and Emily went and ran errands, got their nails done, and then came home and made a home-cooked meal and took it to KRH so they could all eat with Dad. Dad seemed pretty worn out and was in a little pain, so they left early so he could get some rest and relaxation. Mom called the nurses' station when she woke up this morning to check on Dad, and Ida, one of the Certified Nursing Aides, said he had a restless night and a rough start to the morning, but seemed better after he ate and Ida helped him bathe and get dressed. Mom thought that he might like to get out in the beautiful sunshine and weather we were having this morning, so she asked for a "hall pass," and Dave & I took them out to lunch at El Jarrito for some fajitas. And, we had a pleasant surprise; when we put a plate with some chips and salsa in front of Dad, he moved his right arm forward in an attempt to pick up a chip! It wasn't totally successful, but it was so cool, because we could tell it was an automatic reflex, so that brain signal to his hand and arm is definitely starting to work ... yippee!! While we were eating, Dad asked if we had time to run him by the house to see Brady, and of course, we couldn't say no. Brady was happy to see his ball-throwing master in the back yard with him again, and some of the neighbors ... Steve, Stephanie & Mike ... were happy to see Dad in the yard too! On the way back to KRH, Dad asked us to stop and buy Ida some flowers for always being so sweet and helping him with his personal needs. While we were at it, we also picked up some cookies for all of Dad's nurses to share because the entire staff is so caring and wonderful! Oh, and if you haven't guessed, Dad's discharge date was extended for an additional week to this Friday, January 23. We thank all of you for your continued prayers for God's favor; they are working and Dad is reaping big benefits from the best therapy team in town!!