Greetings to all you precious souls as Rupert would say. Go Rupert! If you have no idea who he is, he's one of the last 6 contestants on "Survivor". In real life, I'm routing for Mom and she's doing pretty good with her trials and challenges. I'm going to break down her progress in 4 areas: Occupational Therapy, Speech Therapy, Physical Therapy and medications Occupational Therapy: There is continued improvement with her left arm gaining more movement and dexterity with the fingers...

Some good news comes your way. Mom's left arm and hand are showing signs of improvement with her bending the elbow and movement of the fingers along with them starting to stretch out more. She still has very limited use and movement, but now uses the left hand to hold her tooth brush to get the paste on. Though Mom sees this as such a baby step, it's huge to us not having seen her use the arm since Nov 16th, and knowing the extensive damage it has endured. Mom welcomes your calls and ...

Mom is getting acclimated with her new accomodations and personnel. She certainly isn't content which is good in that it motivates her to work hard to eventually come home. With the brain injury, there is still apparent confusion, high anxiety levels and frustrations Mom continues to deal with daily. Her speech is more consistant though slow and slurred. Formulating sentences does take more cognitive thought in organizing the words into speech and more noticable at times than others. The...

There is a new website to link to for Mom. It is www.connieskeele.com I failed to clarify times for calling Mom regarding the weekends. She has therapy Saturday mornings so anytime between 1pm - 8pm would be fine. Sundays during the day is fine being a day of rest for her. On behalf of Mom, again, thank you to all.

These updates will soon become extinct at the rate of Mom's improvement and current capability to communicate by phone. That's right! Mom now has her own phone(cell). If you would like to call her, get a hold of a family member who would be glad to give her number out to you. It would inappropriate to do so here via this medium. We ask that you only call between 6pm-8pm so as to not risk waking her during a nap or make unneccessary calls when she is in rehab. Mom's strength and speech...

Thanks to Shea and Amy (I think), Mom's room looks a little more "homey" and not so institutionalized. Today, Mom and I read through some of the Sunday paper and of course tackled the NY Times crossword puzzle. After an hour, I think we only had four for sure. Mom's looking forward to some of the meals to meet new people for some companionship. I think she misses some of the nurses on 2N, especially Eddie. Things in the hopper.....phone for Mom, link to another website sharing about...

Good news to share on many fronts. First, the cat scan on Mom's neck showed the vertabrae has healed and the neck brace doesn't have to be on all the time, but only during certain rehab sessions and in the wheel chair sitting up. As she gains strength in the neck area, she'll be able to take it off completely. I'm sure she would like to have a small bonfire. Second, Mom is on a regular diet for the most part. She just has to make sure that she chews thoroughly and clears her mouth and ...

There have been some inquiries about visiting Mom again. We are hestitate about giving the green light on this but know that the contact is good for Mom from a mental and emotional standpoint. We have to emphasize that your health be such not to risk putting Mom in danger. A cold for her could be a huge thing and potentially harmful to her well being. If you can wait another week or so, it would be in Mom's best interest. One idea is to make a video or cassette tape and to give it to a ...

Saturday morning, Mom had scrambled eggs, juice and coffee. This statement alone is amazing in that she ever got to this point.. She appears to be more relaxed and cognitive of her reality. She certainly isn't accepting of it which is fine with us. She takes more initiative in talking and her sentences are more complete and understandable. Her speech and pronounciation is progress also. Signs of her quick wit are popping up more frequently. I received a report from her occupationa...

Some more good news came today as Mom demonstrated she can swallow moisture and a little soft food like applesauce. They will proceed slowly with this, but Mom has got to be estatic for she can now have some cool and moisten water in what must feel like the a desert.....her mouth and throat. This will be good for Mom's spirits as she continues to see progress in her capabilities. When being told the good news, Mom asked that yogurt be a consideration besides applesauce. She has been de...

Chapter 4, "Made to last forever" It's bad enough to lose a loved one, and death is not a subject we generally feel comfortable talking about though it's the one certain thing we can count on in this life. Since it has a tremedous impact on others left behind, you would think that the subject would be more prevelent. Why is it not?.....our own uncertainty or lack of conviction? "Thy Kingdom come, Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven" ..... "for Thine is the Kingdom FOREVER". ...

Since Thursday, Mom has shown an obvious improvement in her speech and capability for understanding conversation going on around her. Her medication had been changed and that which she received in ICU has pretty much worn off. She spoke 4-6 word sentences coherently and fluently. Mom has yet to prove she can swallow without any risk of aspiration occuring. Can you imagine how dry her mouth feels? Remember when Esau gave up his inheritance for a meal? Mom is pretty much there. After clip...

I and the family are very appreciative for all your kind words, support and reaching out. It has been four months. Those that do not have access to the internet of course want to know the latest. It can be tough to respond with upbeat comments, but still be realistic. One recent email comment to me was, "She has a lot of courage and grit". Some ask how we are doing. Often the response is, "just fine, thanks for asking". Other times it is, "We have our moments now and then". Your pr...

Mom's rehab classes have increased from 2 to 4 a day. Her speech has improved some but still difficult to make out most of what she is trying to communicate. X-rays were taken of her neck where the 2nd vertabrae shows signs of healing but not completely yet. The neck brace will have to remain until then. She has been sitting up more and standing with assistance during rehab. Please continue to pray for the pneumonia, infections and Mom's attitude remaining positive and patient as she ...

Mom is back in a rehab center! They placed her there Thursday in a single room with a view outside. She seems to be a little more oriented and comfortable. She is still coughing up some fluid from the lungs but managing. Shea and I put up her collage of pictures and the Valentine heart for her to view. The nurses and doctor are glad to see her back looking forward to getting her back to where she was and beyond. Mom's speech has diminished and may come back with rehab but no one knows ...