Getting out a little

I am shying away from taking pictures of Joni and putting them on the blog only because I know the of the personal consequences that could follow. It is safer for me to post and focus on pictures of Brooke. She continues to warm our hearts with every visit or picture that we see. Being a grandparent is really cool.

Progress continues to be slow and steady. This weekend Joni and I went for a ride to run some errands and stop in and see Kelli and Jordan's newly decorated nursery. Kelli and Jordan are having a baby boy in July and have begun the room and wardrobe preparations. (It's all a blur to me) Joni said as long as she did not need to get out of the truck, except for Kelli's she was willing. We were out for a few hours and she felt fine. We have noticed additional improvement in the facial paralysis, as additional movement comes back ever so slowly. The double vision from her right eye continues to be our biggest issue these days. We go back to see the doctor for the first time since the operation on February 26th. We joke that if you have an ingrown toenail surgery they want to see you for a followup in a week, you have brain surgery and they tell you to come back in two months.

All in all, we are still on track. Strength continues to improve and we feel encouraged with the progress we see. Obviously there are the times when the feeling is; enough of this, its time for it to be over!! But again and again we are reminded that we are not the ones setting the time frame here.

Thanks for the love and support of all.

Clay

This is one of my favorite pictures of my granddaughter Brooke. She is saying that she loves her grandma "THISSSSSSS MUCH" and grandpa isn't bad either. :)

One month down

Rob continues to send us great E-Mails each week and has taken a ton of pictures while on his mission. This is one he has recently sent us of him and his new companion. (J.K...:) Rob has always been able to connect with the young kids no matter where he is. He has been working hard and having the time of his life in New Jersey. He is an inspiration to our entire family and we feel grateful for his good service.

I have not posted for a while due to the mother board in my home computer is on the fritz. I guess you can say that the mother of the house and the computer mother board are both still down. Joni has made good progress during this last week. The feeling and control of her lower lip is starting to return and continues to improve. She has started to do a little walking on the treadmill and we are hoping that she can build up her strength over time. She still has days that she get dizzy fairly easily, but I think that is to be expected. The surgery was four weeks ago today. They say it is a 2 to 3 month recovery so we feel like we are still on track.

Thanks for helping lift Joni's spirits as you can imagine the cabin fever that is setting in. We appreciate all the thoughts and prayers.

Clay

Step by step

Brooke came over this weekend to watch the super bowl with her grandma and grandpa. She was actually rooting for the Broncos because her Dad is a big fan, until I broke the news to her that they were not playing. (Sorry Lane) It was great to have all the kids over this Sunday to support their Mom, eat to much food and yell and scream at the the TV.

Joni's strength continues to improve slowly and she is able to read some during the day between naps. The tape that was put on the surgery location to close her up came off the other day and all looks good and progressing well. The facial paralysis and double vision continue to be the biggest issues with occasional head aches. We have noticed continued improvement in her ability to use her lower lip. She still says that it fells like her face is falling off. I have noticed that her sense of humor has begun to return, which is a good thing when she gets around to reading everything that I have put into the blog. She is home during the days so fell free to call or stop by and give her a hug.