from the middle of chaos

we are still getting ready to move on wednesday. although we're not ready, josh has been spending everyday working on the building with lei and randi. today, mom spent the day at our house packing and a lawn guy came to mow the lawn one last time. it feels good to be making progress!

so much to write...

ah, where to start? so very much is going on.
well, first, on the therapy front, i'm still making improvements. i have started pool therapy and already i'm able to kick my legs, which i couldn't do, even when we started. it's kind of a funny kick. we have a video which i'll have josh post later. in ot, i have started being able to write on my own. in the past, josh had to hold my hand steady and help me push down. at the end of this month, i have a follow-up with my freeman therapists. i can't wait!
now on to personal news. we got to go to josh's family reunion in nm at the beginning of august (see pictures). almost immediately after that,we visited josh's grandparents in austin and then went to jenny's graduation from unt in denton. she got her doctorate in psychology! now i can call her "doc". can and will. at the end of august, my mother-in-law with whom we have been living, moved to tx to begin a new teaching job. so far, she likes it and it's going well. now for something really bizarre! before the reunion, josh's brother told us he and his girlfriend were expecting. they're having a boy, which will be our first nephew. we are excited and already planning lots of fun aunt and uncle things. here's where the story gets weird. when we got back from jenny's graduation, maybe a month later, my brother and sister-in-law told us they were having a baby! here i am, almost 30, never being an aunt, and suddenly not one, but two babies! i'm very happy for joel and abby and leighton and randi! there's more in the dramatic change of our lives. our friends jill, adam, cory and chris, as well as the bands brutally frank and the itch just held a benefit show for me about two weeks ago. it was more successful than i think anyone expected and we really need the money because at the beginning of oct. we're moving to the apt. next door to lei and randi, which we planned to move into after we got married. it's not finished yet, and we don't have enough money still, but we have almost enough to make it liveable. everyone is pulling together and working hard to get it ready and i really appreciate all the hard work!
i think that's all, but i'm probably forgetting something big. i will continue to post blogs when i can. gen

tuesday morning

it doesn't seem like a month could have gone by since my last blog!i've been working out 3x a week and walking 3x a week. already it's getting easier and feeling more natural! josh will post the latest video of me walking tonight. we're getting ready for sedalia this week. there's so much to do, but it'll be nice to get away for awhile. i'll try to update the blog more often this month!
gen

jenny- i'm all out of quotes! :(

monday - after a long break!

well, i'mfinally back online...our computer has been broken for awhile. it's really weird typing again. i'm very slow and keep making mistakes! i don't know if anyone still reads this, but i hope someone does because i have a lot of news. first of all, our new camera broke just after we put the youtube link on here. we just bought it for christmas, so the warranty covered it, but we missed some huge progress in therapy! my ot let us borrow her camera, so as soon as i get the videos i'll post them. first of all, my ot arranged for me to get a lap tray for my wheelchair. i have really been struggling with feeding myself, but the laptray puts the food in just the right place, so i've been eating dinner every night! it's really nice not to wait for josh to feed me, and i know it's nice for him to be able to eat without feeding me! also, i think the original goal of the treadmill therapy was for it to carry over to the floor. just before the camera broke, we started using the lite gait on the floor. from the very first time, my legs remembered the feel of the treadmill and moved forward on their own! the last time i did it, i walked about 500 feet! we have a really good video of that (on jana's camera). however, around that time, we also got some bad news. my therapy at freeman ran out. it ended the last week in march. we have been building our own gym in the basement of the building on the square, so although i was sad about therapy ending, i felt pretty confident and optimistic. the one thing i was worried about doing at home was the lite gait. the last day, we tried walking just with the platform walker. i was supporting all of my own weight for the first time in months. none of us were sure if it would work. after a few wimpy steps, my legs remembered and started moving just as if i was in the lite gait! since then, we have been doing it at home with our own platform walker. also, a little bit before the end of therapy, the computer broke, so, the last couple months i've had a lot of ups and downs. now i will have to catch up on all my emails, which should take awhile. josh will be posting new videos on youtube today. the link is just to the left of this blog. i think that's all, but if i forgot anything, i'll put it in the next blog.

gen

jenny- (i've been saving this one for quite awhile) coco... that chimp's all right. hi-five.

monday afternoon

we added a new link... videos!!! look just to the left of this post.
-gen and josh

tuesday evening

it's been awhile since i've posted an update. i meant to write earlier, but didn't really use the computer much during the holidays. we had a great christmas and new year's! lots of family, friends and food! a little while before christmas, i made a number of improvements. in speech, i figured out how to say s, although it takes so much air that i can't do it all the time. in ot, i had a goal to sign all my christmas cards and i met my goal. josh still had to help me move my hand out though. if he doesn't, i end up writing g-e-n right on top of each other! in pt,i had the most exciting progress! we've been doing the lightgait, a thing that lifts my body weight off my feet by lifting me with a harness. we've been doing it on a treadmill, they've been moving my legs for me for about 5 minutes, then letting me try on my own. i have actually been advancing my legs on my own for 5 or 6 steps! we're hoping that eventually i will be strong enough to do that supporting my own weight. it sure does give me hope to see all this progress!

jenny - just because jerry seinfeld is has-been, don't make little jerry seinfeld a never-was!