ohmygoshohmygoshohmygosh

JUSTIN IS GOING HOME!!!!

Our family is meeting tomorrow with social worker to work it out, and then he is out of there!


as of right now, they believe he will not need 24 hour care. He does have to do therapy-3 days a week and it will be the majority of day-but he can be home alone!! Our parents will have to check in with him during the day and make sure he has easy things to eat etc,

he has re-learned how to do the microwave, so he will make stuff for himself.

He still has his walker and has a long road ahead of him to just recoup the use of his walking skills - His sensory ability is still a bit lower and he still does not have all his right side back, but he is improving.

He has at least a year in front of him....we will not know how bad or how good he is doing for a while. he cannot walk with a cane because his balance is so bad-but he does good with the walker. His right side is still very limited, and he cannot write well.

JUSTIN IS GOING HOME!!!

Update on brother and just life

We had such a nice visit today. First off, mom and dad came up yesterday early to meet with some of the team of caregivers taking care of Justin. He was given the diagnosis of severe brain trauma. This was hard to swallow. To look at him in his bed, he looks physically normal and fine. But we are looking at 4 more weeks in the hospital and then more time in a rehabilitation center for an unspecified amount of time.

So what does this diagnosis mean for Justin? He may never drive again. He cannot rodeo. He should not ride horses again. It is iffy about working. He may not fully recover. That is the reality of this.

He has no memory of the time leading up to the accident. His long term memory is still in tact, although he does struggle sometimes getting the right words out. He does still also struggle with recognition of things he knew before the accident.

His short term memory is also intact, but he does forget things easily. Like he forgot that I was there last weekend and it took him a few minutes of thinking before he remembered it.

We had fun today. I spent quite a while down there and he was so happy to see me. I first talked to him this morning on the phone and as the day progressed he kept asking mom "when is Jessica going to be here?" It made me feel good. We talked and joked and had a good time altogether. He is still slow and sometimes hard to understand, but there are moments that the old Justin shines through for that brief second-and it is wonderful.

He is still having trouble with the right side of his body, and he cannot write anything-including his name. 20 years old and he cannot walk without the aid of a walker and has to wear depends. Really fair huh?

So that is it. Some good , some bad. But all to be expected with the extent of his brain injury.

I just love him. No matter what happens or how much he does or does not recover...he is my baby brother. And I am so glad that he is close to me so I can see him.

A few more Christmas things

This is the most beautiful picture....I wish they sold the picture by itself, but you can get it in the calendar too...

sock blockers - size medium for making socks

awesome sewing book