Wednesday, March 14, 2007

afternoon adventure..

What a beautiful day it was! Andy, Jim's therapist, worked Jim hard yesterday. Connie, occupational therapy and Toni, speech therapy did, as well.

As I entered the room, Jim was resting on the mat. The energy he is expending to complete the simplest of task that you and I take for granted every day is enormous.

I have gone back to work in the mornings and look forward to rushing to the hospital each afternoon to see the latest progress. Yesterday, Andy had a surprise for Jim. It had been 55 days since Jim had been outside of the hospital walls. I had asked, and been given permission, to take him out into the fresh air.

As Andy got Jim back on his feet to complete the final stage of his therapy for the day, I could hear groans coming from his newly capped trach. This, also, was a new milestone. Capping the trach means Jim is breathing completely on his own. It also allows, with the help of a passover device, him to talk if he can. Speech therapy has worked diligently on getting him to form a word. As I sat and watched Andy get him in position for the parallel bars, I suddenly heard a familiar voice saying, "Oh, boy." I turned to look at my sons, Andy and Joe and new instantly, they heard it too. Praise God! All of the therapy staff responded. Yeah! It is the beginning of, hopefully, more to come.

With Andy encouraging Jim to complete his work, with the promise of a surprise adventure to come, Jim painstakingly walked the few necessary steps on the bars, then stepped up one step on the stairs.

Work completed, and back in his wheelchair, we headed for the elevator and down to the main floor of the hospital. I could tell from Jim's expression he realized something was different. When we reached the main door and wheeled him through it, the biggest smile came to his face!
God gave us a beautiful sunny, warm day to enjoy. We walked to the court yard and sat, just enjoying being alive. Of course I can't speak for my husband(nor would he want me to) but I believe with all my heart, he was thankful for the moment and breath!

Thank you Lord.

Sue

20 comments:

Anonymous said...

Dear Sue,

What wonderful news! We will continue praying and thanking God.

Thanks for taking time to share this progress! Hearing Jim's voice and seeing his smile must have made your day.

Have a great day and take care of yourself, too!

Love, Rosa

Anonymous said...

Great news. Just to hear a sound from him has to be the best sound you have heard. We will continue to pray for all of you. When I read back through where you were Jim has really come a long way. I know before you said baby steps but when you put it all together it is a large step. Thank you for keeping us updated. Pete & Pam

Anonymous said...

What a sweet, sweet sound that must have been to your ears, and a smile for your eyes to see as well. Thank you for sharing it with us!

Love, The Hansen's

Anonymous said...

PRAISE GOD FROM WHOM ALL BLESSINGS FLOW! WHAT A WONDERFUL STORY TO
WAKE UP TO THIS MORNING :)
thank you so much for sharing it with us...His mercies are new every day!
love you
helen & steve

Anonymous said...

from the Stiers

all our thoughts prayers and best wishes for Jim and family

i cant tell you how glad i was to read you got to take Jim out in the fresh air and spend some time out of the hosp...may God continue to keep His hand on all of you.

Mark Donell and the boys

Anonymous said...

We are sharing tears of joy with you! Thank you for sharing all that God is doing in your lives. We continue to pray for Jim and all of you each day. We pray that your mornings at work will be adundantly productive. We are so thankful to the Hansen family for allowing you the time and for their wonderful attitude throughout all of this. We miss seeing you, Sue! Take care of yourself too! We pray Jim's therapy will continue to make great gains.
With love and thankfulness,
Ron and Minda

Anonymous said...

Isn't God an awesome God!! Keep praising the Lord. He is good.
Praying for you all daily, Suzy V

Anonymous said...

Hello,
Everyone see I told you he would come along a little at a time. I am sure it was great. Everything
will be ok, Maybe not as soon as we want it to be but someday. I hope to have both Jim & Reene back.
All take care we Love You .
Bill & Norene

Anonymous said...

Praise Him, Praise Him,
Praise Him !!!
Thank God for His Gifts and thank you for sharing today's information. Go Jim, Go Jim !!!
I am humbled.

The Gallagher Family

Sarah said...

I'm so glad Jim got to enjoy the sunshine and that you got to hear him speak and see him smile. Today was a milestone.

Praying for you guys, Sue.

Paula said...

Okay, that last post wasn't Sarah, it was Paula. I think I must've been logged in under my daughter's gmail.

I posted a call for prayer for you guys on my blog and thought I'd pray on the keyboard here:

Father,
We thank you for the milestones of today--speaking, smiling, moving feet as directed. Those are all huge steps and right now we just want to bask in the glory of those miracles. We give you the praise. We know that you are with Jim and His family and that you are working in ways we cannot yet see. We place Jim's progress into Your hands once again and thank you for being the God who never leaves of forsakes us.

In Jesus' name

Anonymous said...

Wonderful!!! Hearing Jim speak is great news!! God is Almighty!!

John & Tara (and kids) ;)

brianandcourt said...

This is great! What a blessing!

Admin said...

I am a visitor to your blog, having learned of Jim's situation from Paula Moldenhauer. I just wanted to let you know that our family will be lifting you all up in prayer. I am amazed at what God has already done in Jim's body. What an amazing God we serve!

You are being prayed for in Ohio!

Anonymous said...

Dear Sue and family,
We are all so happy to hear of Jim's progress. Thank you for this excellent vehicle we can follow. We pray for you all daily.
Mark and Becky Clough

Anonymous said...

I'm praying for the day that Jim walks out of the hospital and can enjoy the fresh air again and be able to decide on his own when he is ready to come in. He is such a pleasure to care for and your family is very supportive. Just what Jim needs. Not only are we helping Jim recover but having you by his side everyday im sure gives him strength also.
I will continue praying for his recovery and the day that all of you can have him home with you where he belongs.

Anonymous said...

It's amazing seeing something so many take for granted through his eyes. Thank you for sharing that wonderful news!

Shena

Anonymous said...

This is great news! I've been checking in regularly to see how Jim is doing, and I'm so excited for you all. Think about how far he has come since this happened - it's a miracle of faith and love, and also solid evidence of what a tough, stubborn old bird he is! :)

Best regards to you all,
Susie Perl

Vicki said...

I just heard via Paula's blog that prayer is needed, so count on this blogger to speak regularly to our Heavenly Father on your family's behalf. So very thankful for every bit of progress...may the Holy Spirit pour on the power!

In Christ alone,
Vicki

Anonymous said...

Hi to JIm and Family,


You are in our thoughts and prayers. Tori wants to come see you Sue when we get back from vacay'. She is a good reader of people and Y'all are special.
May the Peace of Christ lift your wings !

The Gallagher's