HOME! Finally!

Wow! Does it feel good to be home. The week-end couldn't have gone better. Jim eased back into our new life at home as if he'd never been gone. Of course, life will not be the same as before due to Jim's memory and other changes. But, God will provide a new path for us and with time, we will find our way.

Sunday morning, Jim wanted to go to church to say hello to all his old friends. I knew it would be too much to attend the full hour but we did stop by and he gave lots of hugs to many dear friends.

As I sit here on Monday morning and look around to my house, I am visibly reminded of what 6 months of absence can do to a neglected home. Many things need to be done. Also, I have a ton of paperwork to get processed for Jim. Please pray that my mind will clear and I can focus on one thing at a time.

Jim will start speech therapy in Fort Wayne and many DR appts are ahead, here and in Indy.

We will find our way.

Although I have said this many times, please know I continue to ask God, My Father, to bless each of you for your faithfulness in praying for us and helping us thru this time.

We will probably discontinue the blog sometime soon. If you have any questions you'd like to ask or have anything on your heart for Jim or my family, feel free to write here or you can write me at maleysue@yahoo.com. Also, I have my personal blog for writing and sometimes update on Jim at (mariesue.blogspot.com)

God Bless and love to all,
Sue

Hi Everyone,

I'm sorry I am just updating on Jim's Dr. visit but it's been a busy week and week-end.

We went to see Dr Young on Thursday and he advised us to continue the aspen brace on Jim's neck for another month. Healing is there but not complete. On August 13Th we will obtain a new ct scan to see if completed. If not, surgery may be in the works.

Jim had a great weekend for the most part. Kelli, Shannan and I took him to the Indy Canal and ate lunch overlooking the water. He liked it but did not like the walking. I then took him to Lenscrafter to get his lost glasses replaced. Another miracle thru the hands of generous people. Lenscrafter gave him new glasses and lens for free. I was so overwhelmed with their generosity and willingness to help. Obviously, with neither of us working, this helped a lot.

Jim and I have been given so many wonderful blessings, monetarily and otherwise, at just the right time of need. God is good and so are his people. In the beginning of Jim's accident. Several of you, whom I may never know your names, generously sent funds to help defray living expense cost. I wish I could tell you all how touched I have been by this but if you are one of these kind donaters, please accept our deepest thanks. Others of you have helped in many meaningful ways, again, at just the right time, whether by food, cards, words of encouragement, cleaning my house, mowing the lawn, painting....everything.

May you all be blessed in a mighty way by God the Father.

We are coming to an end of hospital life for now, going home is ahead. So many things have to be addressed my head is spinning, including trying to make a living or finding community or VA funds to help out.

Carving out a new life for Jim, I and our family will be a challenge but God has been so faithful, why should I doubt he will work it out.

As you pray for us, please give praise for all he has done and maybe add an extra prayer for strength for me.

Love to all,
Sue

At last. Home!

The long awaited time is here. Six months and four days of hospitals, rehab and much answered prayer. Jim will be coming home to stay on July 23rd!

We can hardly believe it's going to happen. Much preparation for his homecoming will need to take place in the next week. The kids and I will do all we can to make it a smooth transition. I'm a little nervous, but very happy.

To God be the glory for all He has done. I am asking any of you who have faithfully traveled these last six months with us through this blog or otherwise, to consider writing and speaking your heart if God has used this journey to impact you or someone you know in any way. There are so many encouraging events that have taken place that I know it would encourage many others to have hope in difficult or impossible situations or maybe renew their hope in a faithful God.

You have all been arms of hope for our family. I pray I will someday be able to write down the many ways you were used to answer prayer or get us through a difficult day. When I look back to the beginning of this blog and see all of your responses to our prayer request I am so humbled.

Please join us in celebrating Jim's return home by thanking God for his mercies.

Tomorrow we go to Ft Wayne for a consult on Jim's broken neck. We will find out if it has healed or not.

I will update you then.

Blessings,
Sue

Success and a good time!

Jim went home for the first time on Saturday, in almost 6 months! This day has been a desire and a goal for such a long time it was almost surreal when we walked in the door. My dear husband was all smiles as he went through every room in our house as the memories flooded back. Home...something we all, or most, are privileged to go to everyday, but easy to take for granted when gone.

I quietly whispered thanksgiving as I heard him voice recognition of all that was once so familiar. Leaving the house and going to the back yard, he was in awe of how his plants and trees had grown taller since last year. Looking around to our neighbors, he remembered work he had done the year before on a neighbors house. He wanted to go over to say hello. Our surprised neighbor gave him a big hug and announced he would have more work waiting when he returned. Jim loved the idea.

The rest of the day was filled with family; kids, grand kids, my mom and sister. A good time was had by all.

The dreaded time to leave arrived and we said our goodbyes. Andy, our son, took us back to Indy on time and a very tired Jim seemed full and satisfied with his day. A new day of therapy would start early the next day.

God is so good, all the time.

I just wanted to share this moment with all of you faithful friends, family and prayer warriors.

Sue

It's been a good week for the most part. A few bumps in the road. Jim had his first outing Saturday. We went to Kelli's house in Indy and then just road around and listened to music for awhile. He seemed to enjoy it somewhat but is focused on home.

Saturday we will take him home,to Fort Wayne, for the first time in 6 months. We have a 10 hour pass. He is very happy to be going but not thrilled we have to go back. The kids will come to the house to visit and it will be a low key visit.

Again, please pray all will go well. So much depends on this for future visits.

He has surpassed his goals in therapy and continues to improve. God is so good.

May you all be richly blessed for your kindness to all of us.

Sue

Another week

Well, we have been at Hook for 5 days. It has been an adjustment but everyone has been good to us. Therapy has been stepped up and Jim is busy most of the day. But the weekend is very quiet in comparison, and pretty boring for him. Although, Sunday was fun for him. Steve Korn, an old friend of ours, now living in Arizona, and his sister Linda and his mom, visited with Jim and I. (Hi Helen!. Thank you for all your support) Also, our son Andrew and his family came a little later. Jim loves seeing all of them. He REALLY enjoyed that.

Jim entertained all. It was good to see him laugh.

There are two thing you could all pray for this week. One, Jim should be getting a cat scan of his neck by the end of the week. If it is not healed, surgery may be his last hope. The other is, it is possible he will have his first pass to go out with me on the week-end. This is exciting, but a little scary, too.

I will let you know how it all goes. (Hello to all at the VA, Parkview and St Joe)

Blessings,
Sue

Final move before home!

The move is complete! Our new home is :

Hook Rehabilitation
Community Hospital East
1500 N. Ritter
Indianapolis, Indiana 46219
Room 1444
Jims Phone # 317-355-8444


Jim's nurse, Laura, from the Va hospital delivered Jim to Hook Rehab about 10:30 yesterday. The move went well but unfortunately, it went downhill a little, from there. There were some changes in his routine, as would be expected, and it was upsetting to him. He thought he might just leave, but, of course, that wasn't going to happen. After he calmed down, the rest of the day was quiet and I stayed the night. I left him this morning so he could start his therapy and he seemed OK. Change is hard.

WE hope this is his last stop before returning home in a few weeks. Please continue to pray for his recovery and cooperation with the Dr's.

What a journey this has been. We have been blessed with so many people who have helped and encouraged Jim.

The staff at the VA were nothing short of tremendous. Our hats are off to them and we will be forever grateful. They gave Jim a going away party with cake and ice cream and we took pictures. I will have my guys post them in the near future.

May God have all the glory for what He has done.

Blessings,
Sue

Progress and moving on!

Hi everyone,



Just a little update. Jim is having a great week. Wednesday the staff took him to the Indian Museum downtown. For those who don't know, Jim is an artist and loves to paint Indians.

They said he really enjoyed his time there and was showing them the different artist. He has begun to paint, again and has his easel and paints in his room.



Yesterday, he got the long awaited feeding tube out. The only outward sign left of his injury is his neck brace.



The VA staff have all been wonderful with Jim. They go above and beyond their duties and treat him as family. My family and I will never be able to thank them enough for their kindness and compassion. Laura, Tasha, Sandi, Dottie, Vicki Sherri, Mary, Carla, Craig, Dana, Leigh Ann, Jenny, Jackie, Audrey, Ramona and everyone else I may have missed, Thank you! Also, Dr. Buschbacher and Carlos. You have all been so helpful during the darkest of times. We consider them friends. But, it is time for Jim to move on. Wednesday, the 27th, he will enter Hook Rehab in Indy for, what we hope, will be his last stop before returning home. As I have mentioned before, Jim does not do change well. He is still focused on going home so I am a little nervous about his reaction to this change.



Again, I want to thank all of you who sent Jim a birthday card. They continue to pour in. (Pete and Pam, we did receive yours on Wednesday, thank you!) (Steve Korn, we look forward to your visit to Indy!) We read each on to Jim and taped them all to his window.



Please keep our son Jason and his wife Lynnette in your prayers. They are in Russia picking up their new baby girl! God's gift to us in the midst of all of this. Jim and I have been blessed with the most wonderful children anyone could ask for. Kelli, Jason, Andrew, Anna and Joe are loving, supportive and kind. Their spouses, Lynnette, April and Mike have been generous and supportive of the time and energy this has taken from their own families. I want to publicly thank each of them for their love.



That's all for now. God Bless. Have a great day!

Sue

Family Time...

today as mentioned in a previous post was dad's birthday as well as father's day. we had a large group of us (kids and grandkids) at the hospital enjoying the time with dad. he was in good spirits and obviously enjoyed the time with us.

we were able to sit outside most of the afternoon and have food and cake while dad took it all in. there was a time that we were all sitting around and dad was expressing what he felt about each of us in his own words. it was cool to see that even when he didn't have the right words to use, he sure knew what he wanted to say. all of the non-verbal communication is there and we were tracking with him most of the time. there was one point in the time, however, that he turned a bit more serious. he made sure loud and clear that he wants to go home to fort wayne. we couldn't do anything but say that we know it is frustrating and that time will come.

dad's progress is slow but steady. please pray that his progress keeps ahead of the frustration for dad. the better he gets, the more frustrated he gets.

thanks for all of your encouraging words and prayers. we really appreciate and enjoy all of your comments.

check out the new pictures. we had a nice time, kelli was there the day before so unfortunately she wasn't in the picture with the kids.

Happy Fathers Day

The week went by fast in some respect. Jim had his first outing. He was taken to a restaurant by staff. This was a big step and allowed them to see how he would react to the outside world and all its confusion. He did very well. Although it has caused a slight problem. He no longer cares to be inside the hospital. Depression and frustration encompass each visit I have with him. Going out has made him more aware of missing home and a normal life. Bottom line, he wants to go home.

To complicate this problem further, he had a visit from Hook Rehab, evaluating him for further rehab at their facility here in INdy. The plan is for him to leave the VA the end of the month and go on to there. He, in no way, wants this to happen. Home is his only target. Please pray with us during this change, especially for wisdom to make the right decisions.

Sunday is his birthday as well as Fathers Day. The kids will be coming to celebrate. On a funny note, Jim was very surprised to learn how old he will be! 66 was not what he was thinking.

I hope all of you fathers enjoy your day and count your blessings for the joy of having the gift of children. Praise God for our heavenly Father.

Sue

HOORAY!

THE MUCH HATED HALO CAME OFF THIS WEEK END! HOORAY! Jim and I came in from outside on Friday afternoon and the nurse happily announced the Dr was on his way to remove the vest and halo. Jim's neck has mostly healed and he was well enough to go to a neck brace.

It was a great time of celebration. The whole nursing staff gathered around as we watched the Dr disassemble the barbaric contraption. Don't get me wrong, I am very thankful for it, but until you see one up close you have no idea how awful they are. We held our breath(as did Jim) as he slowly unscrewed the bolts from his head and loosened the screws on vest. When the last screw popped, Jim looked at the Dr with the most grateful eyes and said, "Oh, thank you, thank you."

There is only one drawback. The Dr warned that the brace must stay in place a month because the healing is not complete, and ....may not be complete. If it doesn't completely hear, Jim will be facing a neck surgery. He said this is no small surgery. I am also a little concerned with the fact that the neck brack is held on with only velcro. Jim could easily remove it if he gets the notion.

But we will celebrate the moment and praise God.

Jim is one happy person. He is now sporting a hat and regular shirts and a new beard. He truly is looking like his old self.

It is a new turn in the road of recovery and I am so thankful.

I will keep you posted.

Sue

Thank you all for your support on my time away. I had a restful time and was encouraged as I spent good friend time with Merrie and her family. It did rain or was cloudy the majority of the time I was there but it was a blessing for them, they needed the rain.



Jim did pretty good the first two days I was gone but unfortunately the rest of the week was hard on him. He is very focused on going home and is pretty sad and lonely. It's so hard to get him to understand that his need to stay and continue to improve outweighs his need to go home. The kids and I are struggling with this as we see his sadness. His birthday is June 17th and I had high hopes to take him out for a day but the Dr. doesn't feel this is a good idea. We will try to do what we can at the hospital but have to balance it with not over stimulating him.



If any of you feel led, would you consider sending him a birthday card or maybe a phone call that weekend. It's hard to make him believe he hasn't been forgotten.

VA Hospital

1481 W 10th StreetIndianapolis IN 46202

Patient: Jim Maley Rm C-4146

Phone: 317-988-3590

On an up note, the Dr. said today, he continues to improve but feels he may benefit from another facility here in Indy to continue rehab. I should be very happy but I know this will make Jim unhappy. I keep telling myself that it is in Gods hands and he will guide us. But my heart wants to take him home. Please continue to pray for guidance and wisdom.



I want you all to know I read all your comments and they lift me up. May all praise and glory go to Him who has given us so much and many miracles.



Sue

Greetings from sunny(rainy) Florida! I am on a prescribed, mandated time away. Jim's Dr. suggested(made me) I take a few days away to reflect on all that has transpired the past 4 months. I am staying with my dear friend Merrie and have not done a thing all day.



It's been great, but different. My hardest part was telling Jim I was going on vacation while he was in the hospital. But he did very well with the information. (Could he possibly be tired of me?) He is going forward in his therapy and improving some each day. He is rather bored and restless. The halo is still in place and is healing slowly.

Thank you all for hanging in in there with us. As the days get longer, we are so dependent on your prayers for strength and patience. The road ahead is long and uncertain.

But....Praise Him for all he has done and continues to do.


Sue

constant progress..

I was able to spend a little time with dad today. It was a pleasant time. He was excited to see me and gave me a big kiss (while my head got crushed by his halo ;) )

he was really working hard to tell me some things --- specifically that he things his house is too big and needs to downsize and that he wants to make sure that his disability is coming in every month to take care of mom. You need to understand that it takes a lot of work to piece together what he is saying and come up with a complete thought --- once i repeated back to him what i thought he wanted to say, he emphatically said "yes" and was very pleased.

we are told that the doctor will re-evaluate him in about 3-4 weeks and see where he stands. the halo is still on and very aggravating, but he's dealing with it. they are working hard to get him as much therapy as possible.

please pray that dad will participate in the therapy so he can continue to improve. he really does like company, so if you are in Indy, he'd love to show you around and introduce you to his nurses.

Realized another week has gone by so thought I should drop you all a line. Dad is moving along. He has difficult days and good days but being the strong man that he is, gets through them. The VA hospital has been wonderful to dad. They are very attentive to his needs and are always looking for a better way to get him to the next step.

This week dads visiting hours were cut to how often mom and the family saw dad in order to move him past the fixation of going home so that he could focus on his therapy. Although this has been hard on mom to only see dad 1 hr a day, and the kids 2 hrs at a time on the weekends, the process seems to be working for dad. He is now partcipating in his therapy again and handles us coming and going in a calmer manner. We know this is temporary and will do what it takes for him to get better.

During the times we are not visiting the hosptial has activities planned all day to keep dad busy and more occupied with getting better, we are thankful for all the staff that take care him. Continue to pray for the healing of his brain and neck injuries.

Kelli :o)

Halo

We were advised yesterday that the halo must stay for another 4 weeks. Dads neck is healing very slowly, it is starting to fuse but has not healed.

Please pray for healing of his neck so that it can come off earlier.

Also pray for the healing of dad's brain that he can move on to the next process it has been a very frustrating week for him.

Kelli

Wow, this week just flew by. Our apologies for no updates this week. We will make sure that we write more often.

Dad took a swallow test on Monday and is now eating a pureed diet. The only thing the feeding tube is used for is medications. Dad is enjoying his ability to eat (except for today, he told the nurse it was horrible..ha) and he gets all the ice cream he wants. I brought a gallon of his favorite of which he can scoop in the kitchen at anytime. Dad has always loved ice cream and would live off it if we let him.

We had the family meeting with the hospital on Friday. They took a CT scan of his neck and will compare it on monday with the scan from Parkview. This will determine when the halo comes off and the next steps to his broken neck recovery.

At this point, the recovery period here at the VA hospital is 3-5 weeks. In all, it's just a take each day as it comes and see what tomorrow brings. Dad continues to improve each day and it's up to him how long the treatment will last. We will continue to keep you posted.

The week has had it's ups and downs. There has been a few hours of aggitation per day but in all it's been a good week. Dad really misses the visitors he used to get though. Please see the mailing address and phone number below, we encourage you to write and call so that he knows he's not forgotten. I would like to plaster his walls with drawings from the kids that would like to send pictures to grandpa and cards from his family and friends. The hospital told us to make his room feel as comfortable as possible, I would love to see it full of love from everyone he knows. He really needs to feel the love right now.

VA Hospital
1481 W 10th Street
Indianapolis IN 46202

Patient: Jim Maley Rm C-4146

Phone: 317-988-3590

Keep in mind that if you call that Dad's conversations do not always make sense. He will do his best to talk to you, therapy advised that if you grasp what he is talking about to repeat back to him so his mind can work on putting it into perspective.

If you want to come to Indy and visit dad my house is always open and you are welcome to spend the night. You can call me at 317-578-4525. I know that Dad would love seeing anyone that can come.

Kelli :o)

Just keeps getting better

Dad moved to the VA Hospital on Thursday, April 26. Mom says that he had the best day yet on Friday. Dad took the move very well, we worried about set backs but there have been none. The staff at the VA Hospital are very attentive to dad's needs and continually teaches him independence. He told us this weekend that he like that they let him do things. He has already charmed the nurses with his humor and has started drawing again. He gets frustrated but know with time he will only get better. We are all excited about his progress.

Today they are going to do another swallow test so hopefully he will be getting some real food soon. The halo is due for review on May 3 so we should have so up and coming news on the removal of that.

If you are able to come to Indy and see dad he is missing the company. Andy and Anna and thier entire families came down over the weekend and Joe has been here since last Thursday, he really enjoyed this. Things will be quiet during the week as everyone goes back to work so feel free to come and see him when you can.

Thank you for your continued dedication of prayers. Continue to pray for dad's healing and that he will have patience in the recovery.

Have a great day!! Kelli :o)

changes again.....

the last time we posted, we were planning on the move to Minneapolis. mom had her mind set and was going along with the plan. well, change is the name of the game when it comes to the VA. the VA decided that dad is too far along in the recovery to send him to Minneapolis. they then proceeded to tell us that there was no room for him in the Indianapolis facility --- where he belonged. after some really hard work on kelli's behalf, the VA has agreed to open up a room and move dad down to Indianapolis. this is a rehab facility for brain trauma patients. needless to say, it will be nice to have dad closer to home so we can help with the recovery process. this move will take place tomorrow (april 26th) at 10:00 a.m. please pray for an uneventful ride down there.

mom will be temporarily moving in with kelli since she lives in fishers. i believe that all things happen for a reason....including the closing of the Minnesota door and the opening of the indy door. also, kelli just moved back from arizona a little over a year ago and i am convinced that God brought her here for this whole process with dad.

dad's recovery steps are daily. he has passed all of the milestones that the therapists put in place. he is very determined to get home. we have to continually tell him that we will go home at some point, but not yet.

please pray for the following: 1) the move will go smoothly without much of a setback to dad -- each move has been a little bit difficult. 2) mom will continue to have strength through the process -- it has been very tiring to say the least 3) wisdom in planning future housing arrangements

finally, if you happen to find yourself in the indy area, feel free to stop by the VA hospital and visit with dad. he always likes company (I'm sure mom wouldn't mind it either :) )

thanks for partnering with us in the rehab process.

Another Move!

I am beginning to feel like a gypsy. Just as we are settling into our new room at Parkview we get the news we will be moving. Due to Jim's VA status, it would be in his best interest to go to Minneapolis, Minnesota VA Brain Trauma Center to continue his rehab program. This may happen as soon as next week, or at the latest, the following. There are a lot of logistics that will have to be worked out in this move, including, how to transport Jim. It's possible he will go by air and I will drive. Needless to say, many details to plan for, in a short amount of time. His length of stay is undetermined at this time.

So far, his time on the rehab floor at Parkview has been good, but not uneventful. He's had some rough days but is improving each day. He talks constantly and this is not Jim. But it is great to hear. He is also interested in his art again which is another answered prayer. He seems to know most people who have come to visit if he's had an ongoing relationship with them. I would encourage you to come visit if you like, before he goes.He does enjoy visitors. But, please check with the nurse before you go in to see if he is doing ok. They do ask for no more then 2-3 at a time. He is in room 1403.

This move will be a strain on our kids. Being 10 hours away from their dad while he is so ill will not be easy. I, also, will miss their help and comfort. I know that God has been faithful through this whole journey and will continue to be.

We will keep you posted as soon as we know more.

I pray you all enjoy this wonderful weather and your families this week-end.

Sue