April 30, 2006 - Late Evening

The picture is from Easter weekend. (Still making friends, the puppy belonged to people that happened to hike through the rock climbing area). Mandy has been working really hard in her therapies. Her most recent monthly update was on Friday and it was mostly good news. She continues to make progress on all fronts. Her cognition, speech, reading and daily living skills continue to improve, although her physical therapy still continues to be a challenge. Her foot continues to challenge her efforts on that front. She complains about the pain (sometimes loudly) quite a bit and it is swollen and red in the mornings. They are considering some alternative therapies at this point (acupuncture, botox injections to the muscle/tendon) and we're keeping out fingers crossed that we see a break-through on this front soon. We really believe that independent movement will help her congition even further. We don't have a "go-home" date at this point, but we're optimistic about her daily cognitive improvements.

And from Christine and her Thursday with Amanda, "Today was AMAZING!!!! That has been Amanda’s favorite word lately, and it describes her well:)

Her case worker and therapists are changing her schedule daily so she doesn’t see PT coming, in hopes that without time to prepare, she won't have time to psych herself out of it. Another change is that for a couple of weeks, no friends/family will join her for PT. This is a test to see if she does better without us to complain to. She was sad when I left the room, but mainly because she thought I would leave for the day. I promised I would wait in the lobby so she was cool with that. Sarah said she did well, having been reminded not to curse, etc. Throughout the day, each therapist reminded her of how PT is to help, not injure or intentionally hurt her. Repetition is good for people with TBI.

Kelly, Amanda’s speech therapist, walked us out to the car when we were ready to go to the doctor. As soon as the door closed, Mandy said, “She is so cute, but I’m glad she’s not going with us.” Of course, I asked why not. “Because now it’s just us”, she replied. Usually we have a nurse do the driving, but today I took her alone. We had great conversation in the car, with Mandy helping me find the next turn, etc. Dr. Gilliland looked at her left eye & found 2 more eyelashes growing in the wrong direction. Those came out easily & should give her some relief! Otherwise, her vision is 20/20, with the scarred area fading nicely!

I had a small gift today. It’s a small orange tabby cat with his paws curled so that he can hang from a flowerpot. I was thinking he could hang from the pot that the rosebush is in. She smiled so big when I handed her the cat, and told me over & over “I LOVE him! He is ____ cute! He’s a little Maurice! He is just so cute!” That cat got a million kisses. He hung from her shirt, from the cookbook she was reading, from anywhere in my car she could find to hang him. This was a gift that I thought would be very small & maybe go uncared about. She said he will be in her room so she can see him more! Too cute, & so “Amanda”. You just never know what will make her smile!

In Education Therapy, Keri asked Mandy if she would like to do some puzzles with words again, like yesterday. Her reply came with no hesitation & a HUGE smile, “Yes, I would. Can I really?” It was crossword puzzles, but with a list of words only, no questions. She just had to figure out how to fit the words correctly into the puzzle. If she got stuck, she would make up her own word that would fit in the space she needed to fill. When her therapist tried to help, Mandy got mad and told her to leave the _____ words alone. For the most part, she did these very well, and very quickly once she got rolling:)

Sorry to be so lengthy, but I just don’t want any of you to miss anything! Today was, by far, the best day I have spent with Amanda since her TBI. She giggled a few times, smiled A LOT, made so many “Mandy” comments & gestures, made everybody around her laugh, played UNO like a champ, made smart remarks to those who gave her the bad cards, looked adorable, & so on!!!!"

April 17, 2006 - Late Evening

Mandy had quite the Easter weekend with lots of progress and good stuff all around. Kurt and Mandy had a nice weekend planned at Mineral Wells (a state park in Texas). Although Mandy is not able to spend the night away from CNS yet, we were able to drive her there and back on both Friday and Saturday. In addition to the traditional camping crew, Ron and Brenda flew in to visit and see how much progress the princess has made in the past three and a half months.

There was no skipping any therapy though – the Princess worked her butt off in therapy on Good Friday before heading out to join Kurt at the park. Per our request, her PT folks really pushed her and she let them know how very unhappy she was about much of it. Although she still uses a wheelchair to get from place to place, she is practicing walking. With cheerleading from Renee C. and Brenda she did the most walking she’s done yet in a single day (per her therapists). She walked around the outside and the inside of the building twice during her PT and then once again both inside and outside at the end of the day. She uses a long pole and a PT walks next to her helping to support her and ensure that she’s balanced and won’t fall. (Safety first!) Her left foot is still a challenge; it swells up and turns red so it’s kept in a brace when she’s walking. It truly does look painful to walk on, but she must walk on it on her road back to independence. And true to form, she lets everyone in the near vicinity know how very much doing that hurts her in language that would school a sailor. Luckily, that seems to be pretty much the case with a few of the other PT patients.

After an intensive day of therapy, she headed out to Mineral Wells to catch up with Kurt and the rest of the camping crew. On Friday we settled her into a chair at one of the campsites and she seemed to really enjoy sitting outside, seeing her camping friends and working on the ever present word searches. On Saturday, she caught a piggy back ride from her big brother down the rocky trail to the rock climbing site. She had a prime view of all climbers sweating it out in the sun, while she sat in the shade with a puzzle book in true princess fashion.

Sunday was a recuperative day back at home spent with the puzzle books, music, going to lunch and welcoming Kurt back home. Today (Monday), she was back at therapy with a vengeance. She used the treadmill for the first time (like a champ, she went 10 minutes), the slant box for another 10 minutes (it’s a box where her feet are pushed up at an angle, toes up and is used to stretch out that short tendon in the “bad foot” as we call it), and a trip around the center. She also really enjoyed doing solitaire on the computer after finishing her lunch.

Per Brenda and Ron, her cognitive and speech abilities are leaps and bounds ahead of where she was in January. She is able to participate in most conversations and make herself understood (particularly when she doesn’t like something!). She forgets the right words sometimes and will find new combinations of words that can sound quite poetic. (For example, the forgotten word “menu” is transformed into “flaming document”). Or should even those words fail her, she’ll be the creative girl we know her to be and just make up a new word on the spot. But you can generally follow her about 75% of the time now as opposed to the reverse percentage a few months ago. Although she doesn’t really understand being teased yet, she’s capable of teasing you at times. (She enjoyed showing Ron the contents of her mouth at dinner before giggling to herself a few times). For those that are fans of the pig noises and monkey call; you’ll be happy to know that she has fully regained the ability to do both. At our request, she was making us all grin in the car on the way to Mineral Springs with numerous renditions of both. She’s also begun taking a real interest in things going on around her more frequently. When in the car, she’ll ask questions about what road she’s on or where you’re at and even (on occasion) compliment the driver or make comments about other drivers. Of course, like all of us, she has her “up” moments and “down” moments. When she is “up” she is on her game and fully alert and interactive and when she’s “down” she’s very tired and has difficulty finding the words she wants or being as helpful or pleasant as she normally is. (It’s just a bit more pronounced because of her head injury.)

As a final note, Mandy was telling us this weekend that she had wanted to write and send out cards for the Easter holiday but felt it was a little too late. We assured her that everyone would love to hear from her no matter when it was received, but she didn’t seem too convinced. So instead, on her behalf, we wish everyone a very happy Easter and hope that the Easter bunny was good to each and every one of you. Mandy sends you her love.

April 11, 2005 - Early Afternoon

From Christine and her Sunday with Amanda: "Today’s plan was to have Mandy spend the day at our house, cooking together & hanging out like we used to. Kurt would join us for dinner later, just like he used to do. Gene & I got an early start today, arriving at the apt. at 8am, Mandy had already showered & dressed for the day! Kurt met us there to be sure we had everything & go over last minute instructions, before he headed back home for the day. It was a special day for us…Amanda and Kurt have not been to our house since last October.

We stopped at our salon to take care of business, the half way mark! Next stop was Mandy’s mom’s house, right on the way to our place. As we turned into the neighborhood, Amanda recognized it & started giving Gene directions. Her mom moved into this house in Nov. 2004, so we weren’t sure if Mandy would recall. As we passed the flowerbed, she said, “Oh, Christine & I planted those flowers”. Awesome memory! We had a short, but sweet visit with Aunt Judy & Aunt Jane, in town from Indiana helping out Mom & Grandma as Mom recovers from knee surgery.

As we made our way to our house, Mandy did mention that she had been here (at this intersection) before. She picked out our house on the street on the 2nd guess. The 1st she chose was 2 doors down & the same floor plan, very similar. Mandy has on new shoes today that seem to be very supportive & helpful. The wheelchair was parked at the front door & she walked to every place in the house she wished to go from that point on! We walked around the whole house, pointing out items that used to be at her mom’s! Amanda recognized every single item, and there are many of them! I guess my house would be empty, if not for Sandy! Lunch went well. Gene had corn on the cob, which he shared with Amanda. “You’re a pig with that corn”, she told him as he was chomping down!

The ankle stretching went amazingly well with no complaining at all! This is something we need to do twice daily.

My mom stopped by & brought Mandy some flowers. Mandy said “Thank you for the flowers. Those are amazing!” Others stopped to visit after we went out for a short walk. The Rives family, from a few doors down, have 2 very large dogs; Delyla, an English Mastiff, and Tabby, a Blonde Lab. They are both well over 100lbs., very gentle, sweet dogs. Needless to say, Mandy enjoyed their company & told them how good they are as they gave her big, wet kisses! Abby, a young girl, brought a fresh cut rose for Mandy, which she was thrilled about. This brought a huge smile! Pat from next door visited as well. Mandy was so cordial to all who came to see her. She has always loved to be around people, socializing & smiling!

Of course, there was some down time for Mandy to sit & do her newest hobby...the word finds! This is also a good time to prop her left foot up on a pillow, as it seems to give her some relief to have it elevated. During these resting periods, she gave the cats treats & got lots of lovin’ from them all. During dinner, was the only time we got the “f’ word as she said (about Robin) “Look at him. He is so f-ing cute!”

When Kurt arrived, she was reading the blog, but honestly, not much of it. It didn’t keep her attention for too long today. Maybe she’ll catch up another time. Then he stretched her ankle again, this time with lots of complaining. Now I’m thinking maybe I wasn’t pushing it hard enough!

We assembled lasagna together, Mandy reading the recipe (it’s my recipe, but I forget a lot so I typed it up a long time ago) & giving me instructions. Even though the recipe has “measurements”, Mandy didn’t need a measuring tool, just like old times:) Sean, my brother, joined us for dinner. We had great conversation with great company. Can’t think of a better way to spend a Sunday than with family, friends, & good food!!"

April 10, 2006 - Morning

From TAnn, a recount of her Friday with the princess,"As is my usual privilege, I arrive at CNS at 7:10 to an already awake Amanda who was up and in the shower. She was excited because she knew she would have a new outfit to wear. When Lester, Paula and I were shopping last week, I found the cutest outfit and I knew would look adorable on her: Texas Longhorn warm-up! They had shorts also and those had to be part of the outfit though it is not appropriate to wear them to CNS but she will not be there forever and I knew she would eventually use the shorts.

She was dressed and got her hair dry and she had breakfast. Not a really great one this time but enough for her little body. Then it was make-up time. I had a Citrine ring that I knew would match the outfit and so she had that to wear all day. She boarded the bus at 8:30 which is the time they have scheduled for her so she arrives at CNS by 9:00 AM to begin her day in therapy.

Speech therapy was first. She began the session with Amy who complimented her highly on the progress she is making. They went through the usual list of "20 Questions" and for the most part she responded immediately with all the correct answers. What I have come to realize is that when she is tired she doesn't get all of the answers as well, but then we are all that way it seems.

Then Amy read sentences and asked Amanda to "fill in the blank" with the appropriate work. Some of those were difficult but when given a choice, she usually responds with the correct answer. Amy is easy going and seems to work well with Amanda and we all appreciate that. About half way through the session Amy had another commitment and Kelly came in to finish the hour. Amanda had no problem with the change and we went to the computer room. Again I am amazed that when given 8 numbers to put in order after viewing them on the screen, Amanda proceeded to get 90% of them correct. As with last week though, the alphabet is a bit more difficult for her

Next we had the highlight of the day. We are of to PT and Amanda was given the pole and we took a very long walk much to her displeasure. Though I do my best to distract her as much as possible as she struggles with the injured foot, it was not an easy task this time. LOL, Sarah (as well as TAnn) were called many things other than nice people. That is what we do when we are in distress and it is perfectly understandable.

Sarah said she was accustomed to that kind of talk though from residents for they see the therapist as the enemy so to speak and Amanda is kinder than some I've hear at CNS. We walked the "loop" in the building twice with Amanda stating that she needed to sit down each time we passed an office and she saw a chair. "I need to sit in that chair," she would say, and we would both ignore her request though it is very difficult for me.

Then Sarah walked us outside and we took a short stroll around the parking island and Amanda said she didn't want to be in the sun. She told us that when she went outside she wore a hat and didn't get the sun on her face. We reassured her that it would only be for a short time. She then walked down and up the ramp outside of the building that is perhaps 30' all the time Amanda was saying she could not do it but YEA! She did.

Sarah had her to lie on the mat when we returned to the building she stretched Amanda's left foot. Seems the tendon is shortened because of the length of time it has not been used. Her foot really gives her a lot of pain and it seems that part of the session is even more difficult that walking. Kurt and Christine have watched Sarah as she did the stretching and both of them have been doing the exercise at the apartment. Hopefully this will help her progress faster and she will soon be able to put weight on that foot and walk.

Occupational therapy was spent trying to locate hidden objects in pictures. Amanda located some things that were not listed and she did well at that exercise. When asked what she was going to do this weekend, she said, "Lori K--e called and we are working." (So, Lori ~ you are thought of without any prompting from anyone.)

Her therapist was visiting from CNS' home office in Bakersfield, California and was unaware that Amanda was to begin preparing her own lunch in the microwave. We proceeded there after I asked about this and she checked the "Amanda Book" and noted that from now on she will be in charge of preparing her own meal if anything has to be heated. Shannon and Terri (from Brinker) came for lunch and they had a great time with Amanda joining the conversation and telling the girls some stories about her work. They were not sure what all was completely accurate but enjoyed the lunch hour. The jacket she was wearing had a hood and at one point she amused us all by placing the hood over her head because the cafeteria was too loud. I got a cute photo of her as she turned to smile at me.

At 1:00 - 2:00 PM we went to counseling and it was great. Kay had the blog on her laptop and Amanda was extremely interested in reading the last postings. Amanda read some of the messages that have been posted and delighted in going back to November and December and told Kay that one of the photos of she and Kurt was made in Italy. Kurt told me they had never been there but ~ whatever.. Kay wanted to talk of a lot of different issues but Amanda only had eyes for the blog so Kay asked Amada to turn off the computer and they discussed other things.

Throughout the day people would talk of Amanda's "UT outfit" and she would tell them that she went to UT two years but graduated from UTA (University of Texas at Arlington) but Kurt graduated from UP. She enjoyed the razzing she got from the Texas Aggies (they are great rivals) and always said that UT was the best school.

It gives me great joy to see her laugh and enjoy the comments. Unlike the vivacious little sprite that she was prior to October 21st, and possibly because of her pain, she doesn't seem to laugh very often. She is getting there though ~~~

Back to her apartment at CNS and we sat outside for a while and I got a photo of Amanda standing by the wall outside of her apartment ~~ and that is awesome; just to see her able to stand alone thrills all of us.

Kurt arrived and soon after did the foot stretching and though Amanda protests vehemently, she counts to 30 with him then says, "now stop it" and he does but the foot needs to be held for the 30 seconds. There is a rest and the exercise is repeated 4 more times. As I said earlier, progress is slow but we are all grateful for the way our Princess has fought first to survive and now to return to health. "

April 9, 2006 - Early Morning

We have a piture of Amanda reading the blog. (She's keeping up with the posts and all of the comments left by her at-home cheerleaders - )

We also have a recap from Leslie of her Thursday visit with Mandy. "I met Mandy and Christine at CNS about 2:20 pm. When I arrived in the lobby, there sat Mandy in a chair and Christine on the couch. As soon as Mandy saw me, she stood up all by herself and said, “Hi, Leslie, it’s so good to see you,” and then gave me a big hug. I was so thrilled!!! She stood all by herself and remembered my name! We then put Mandy into her wheelchair, making her remember to buckle up, and then got into Christine’s Explorer and drove Mandy to see her OBGYN for her annual checkup at Medical City in Dallas.

As we drove down Hillcrest, Mandy pointed out Brinker, where she works. Once we arrived at Medical City, TAnn met us, as she just happens to work in the same building and on the same floor where Mandy had her appointment. (Wow, is that a big place or what?! Now I know why they use the word “City”.) Anyway, the staff at the doctor’s office was so nice and accommodating. They even gave Mandy a pair of scrubs to wear home and she looked so cute in them. She had to have the standard blood test drawn out of her arm, which she didn’t like at all, but she was very lady-like with her words and apologized if she was rude (which she wasn’t). Then when the doctor and nurse finished, she thanked them profusely and told them she had a nice time. Once we finished there, we told TAnn we would see her later at the apartment, and we were off to Valley View Mall to do a little shopping.

Turns out Bath & Bodyworks was Mandy’s favorite store, as she wanted to go back a second time, but we convinced her once was enough, we had other stores to visit. Next was a bookstore and when Mandy saw all the word puzzle books, she just ooed and awed and commented on how pretty they were. When Christine announced to Mandy that she would buy her one, Mandy replied with, “Really, oh thank you, that’s so nice of you, I love you.” (The one Mandy liked the most contained 596 pages, but at the rate she works at those books, she’ll be finished and needing a new one in no time). After cruising the mall for about an hour, we decided it was time to leave and find a restaurant and eat dinner.

Once we were in the car, Mandy was working on her word puzzle. She finished one from the time we left the mall until the time we got to the restaurant (she’s extremely fast). We ate dinner at the Salt Grass, just off of I635W. Once we got settled into the restaurant, Mandy decided she needed her book, so Christine retrieved it from the car and Mandy worked on it until her dinner arrived. When asked what she wanted to drink with dinner, Mandy replied that she wanted a certain glass of wine (the name she used escapes me), but we told her that we were not going to have drinks that night, just some iced tea. She was fine with that. Mandy ordered a chicken salad, but Christine wound up having to remove the chicken, because Mandy was taking too big of bites and then spitting them out into paper napkins. Mandy kept apologizing for doing that and Christine told her to stop taking such big bites, chew and swallow what she had in her mouth first before taking the next bite. Mandy would reply with, “Okay, I can do that, thank you.” Christine also ordered her some potato soup and once removing the big chunks of potatoes, Mandy ate the soup without spitting any out. Yea, Mandy!

After dinner, we drove her back to her apartment and got there about 7:30. TAnn was there waiting to tuck Mandy into bed. When it came time for Christine to do a little therapy on that left ankle, Mandy was not too happy about that! Christine told her she had to do it 4 times to the count of 30. She kept telling Christine she didn’t want to because it hurt, but what was so cute and funny was when Mandy would say, “No, stop, it hurts,” Christine would start counting aloud to 30 and Mandy would join in counting aloud, also, so we all joined in counting. It was really so cute, guess you had to be there. We got tickled by it. Then she would go back to working on her word puzzle. Anyway, it was so nice being together again with both Christine and Amanda. It was almost like old times.

Amanda can carry on quite the conversation with you, just like she used to. I gave her a kiss and hug goodnight and told her to give her babies a kiss for me because I love them, too, and she smiled so big that the cute little dimple in her upper cheek showed and she said, “Oh, thank you, that’s so nice, I will give them a kiss for you.” Well, that just thrilled me, again! I was just so amazed at how much progress she has made since I saw her about a month earlier at her house on a Saturday."

April 8, 2006 - Early Morning

From Christine, a recap of her Thursday visit. "Mandy's PT was "stepped up" a lot this week, and not by her request! She walked in Education & in PT today, plus pedaling the bike while reading a magazine. She did hand presses while answering questions in OT. Multi-tasking is now a big part of her life at CNS! Other therapists are seeing this "sweet side" of Mandy, that only Sarah got to see before! Sarah walked by just grinning, listening to the sounds of "You are so mean" and "I do not want to do this" aimed at someone else for a change. This increase in PT will help her tremendously (we hope & pray) in reaching her goal of walking again with no outside support. She is working harder now than ever before & thoroughly enjoys praise for it!

Eating still seems to be a challenge for our little one. Anything that has to be chewed a lot, such as meat, ends up getting spit into a napkin. Sometimes I think it could be because she takes too big a bite, other times the food is just too dry. She is getting good nutrition through the meals that Kurt prepares for her. Most lunches include a salad of raw veggies sprayed with fresh lemon or dressing, soup, & fresh fruit. Plus she drinks "Boost" drinks a few times daily.

Hey bloggers! Amanda tells me that a friends of hers has a tattoo of a zebra on her butt...Anybody going to admit to this? She's pretty sure it's Renee M. Is she correct Renee?"

April 3, 2006 - Mid-Morning

The following update is from TAnn's visits with Amanda last week. "My sister, Paula, and her husband Lester were visiting from St. Louis and we visited Amanda on Tuesday night, March 28th. They have known Kurt since he was in his early teens and Amanda since she was 17 so they go back quite a while. Since flowers were prohibited when Amanda was in ICU, they wanted to give her something and we shopped and found a red warm-up that was perfect. Paula put it in a gift bag with the tissue out the top and we went into the apartment at CNS.

Amanda immediately recognized them though she hasn't seen them for several years and told Paula she was beautiful and told Lester he looked great. I though we'd chat for a while but LOL, Amanda immediately said: "I want what is in that bag!" So much for conversation ~~ she took the red outfit and held it up against herself and said, "This will look so cute on me. Thank you." Carefully she examined it and noted that there were 5 snaps on the sleeves and that it was just right. She even looked at photos of Leslie and Phil and their children and seemed to remember them despite the many years since she had seen them. We had a great visit and they waited as I assisted Amanda with her nightly ritual of preparing for bed and I read to her for a while.

Friday 3/31/6 -I arrived at CNS about 7:10 and she was sleepy that morning and kept saying "just cover me up" but finally was up and about and we did the usual, i.e., shower, get dressed and she blows her hair dry. I brought a shell that Paula had given me that has "Calvin Kline Jeans" on the front in tiny studs. She was ever so pleased with the way she looked after we got it all put together. I know she loves pretty jewelry so I took my garnet ring, bracelet, necklace and earrings. Noticing I had my camera, she said, "Don't you want to take my picture now?" Naturally I did ~ that was why I had the camera.

She had an "on call" Speech Therapist interestingly enough named Paula who gave us a lot of information about Amanda's progress. She was impressed when she saw the past records and told me she had increased 5% since last Friday in respond to the "20 Questions" they ask her in every session. I remember when she struggled to say her name correctly and Friday she answered 90% of them with a bit of prompting and 85% of them with no help at all. Just two weeks ago she was at 68% so she is really remembering a lot of things much easier. Paula read her questions and she was asked to respond by giving a single world. These were a bit tough for her but she got 77% of those correct. In my opinion, some of the questions are confusing and can be answered with several different words. Example: when she was given the word "hot" she replied correctly with "cold" but when the therapist said "Mother" Amanda replied with "children" that was not acceptable as they wanted her to say "Father". But I think the therapist cut her a bit of slack on that one for she said that certainly "children" could go with "mother."

Next she read sentences and Amanda was to fill in the blank. Her completion rate was 95% with no help at all and with a bit of a hint she got 100%! Amanda was extremely interested in how she was doing and after each different exercise, she would say: "How did I do?" I was told that it's a good sign when she is "working at her own rehabilitation without a lot of prompting." So we are much encouraged.

When given colors to identify, she named them 100% correct. We commend her each time she shows progress and rejoice in all her accomplishments. Things we do so easily are a struggle for her and we know she is doing her very best. I am amazed at how cooperative she is in all her sessions. The only challenge is in PT where they are working on her left foot and she lets us know how painful it is all of the time.

Off to the computer room and she repeated the exercise of being given several numbers and then must go to another screen and recall them in the correct order. She had been doing 8 and the therapist started her with 8 but that was a bit much so they went back to 4 numbers, BINGO! That she did with ease. They tried 5 numbers, 6 numbers and by working up to the larger amount, she would read the numbers aloud then go to the next screen, say the numbers in order as they had been shown on the previous screen and put them in order. As I said last week, I would not be able to do as well as she can and I haven't had a TBI. And with this activity, Amanda wanted to know how she was doing. These are all very positive signs.

The difficulty is in explaining the concept of the activity. Word search - she knows immediately what to do and even finds words that are not listed so she adds other words she finds and puts them in alphabetical order. When she gets to the computer she immediately wants to "get at it" and they must hold her hands or she will go after the keyboard and begin typing or move the mouse and she had much rather be "in action" than listening to instructions. And aren't we all like that? But once she understands what she is to do, she eagerly begins and is diligent at trying to focus and complete the activity. She is aware that she is being timed at each task and races through whatever she has to do. Probably her scores would be a bit better if she could slow down but she has always been a fast worker and it is not her nature to sit idle.

Occupational therapy began with Sandra telling her that we would spend at least 30 minutes helping her recall her home address and telephone. You can imagine Sandra's amazement when Amanda wrote her address, city, state and zip correctly the first time. She got the first 3 digits of the phone number correct, didn't get the next three plus the remaining 4 numbers right. However, the good thing is that she told Sandra, "I'm not real sure of the phone number and I don't think that is right." Sandra had to scramble for something else to challenge her with for the time had been allocated to work on her home address. She was given a very colorful plastic puzzle and asked to put it in order and all of the parts were to make perfect cubes. She didn't get them all correct the first time and Sandra would take off the ones that did not fit and Amanda would try all of the pieces until she got them perfect. She completed this test in a much shorter time than before and will no help from Sandra. Yea!

Sandra asked if Amanda would like to heat her own lunch in the microwave next week and Amanda was excited to try that. We took a tour of the employee lunch area for that is the place the microwaves are on a lower level and in the wheelchair Amanda cannot reach the higher facilities in the resident lunchroom. When she saw the microwave, she started punching buttons and was ready to begin. Sandra laughed and told her that would be the activity for next week and would continue for the remainder of her time at CNS. Up to this point one of the RA's will warm the lunch for her but no more..

Terri and Kelly B (from Brinker) came for lunch on Friday and had a delightful visit. I took a photo of the three of them and we really appreciate their love and care for Our Princess Amanda. The three of them talked of times at Brinker and they gave her the latest news and told her how much they miss her. All of this made her smile and she even laughed a bit and it is so very good to hear her laugh. They talked of when Amanda would go to Terri and tell her that contracts were not right and Terry would say that she didn't have as much experience as Amanda. She really got into the conversation and did very well. We were sitting there in a "lull" and suddenly, Amanda said, "6830 LBJ Freeway" (if I remember the address correctly) Terri and Kelly just gasped for that is the correct address of the office where Amanda has spent so many years.more progress!

After lunch Keri, her Educational Therapist, took her back to PT where she had Amanda in stand for 45 minutes as they did their work. Staff had felt it would be to Amanda's benefit to do more PT so there is a "standing lift" and she transfers to that piece of equipment. Her feet are put in the Velcro straps to give her stability, and a lever is used to take her to a standing position. She really expressed her dislike for the contraption and LOL, watched the way they used the lever to lift her. Yep, you know what she did: reached back to release the bar and let herself down. But Keri had work for her to do and as long as she was involved in the word search, fill in the blank, number exercises, etc., she was fine in the standing position. But let her mind be idle for even a little bit and she would reach back to let herself down.

She is awesome with figures and seems to enjoy any activity that involves numbers. All the therapists are aware of this and everyone tries to include them in each session.

The day ended and we returned to her apartment and as it was such a lovely day in Texas, we sat out on the patio for a while and she had her afternoon snack of fruit and 2 glasses of water. I had my DVD player and we put on a couple of things but she is happier when she is doing something rather than just watching. So I got my laptop and we went back to "Bejeweled." She did better than last week and seems to get the concept of matching the colors so the jewels will collapse. Many times she got several lines to collapse and when that happens this booming voice says "Excellent" or "Incredible." Amanda is very pleased when she hears how well she does and seemingly does not tire of the challenge to get the jewels to collapse.

Kurt made dinner and when he left Amanda was NOT happy! She wants to go home with him and LOL, I told Kurt we know she is getting better for she is getting a bit contrary. LOL. Usually she is ready to select her sleeping clothes and get ready for bed and read or ask me to read to her. Not Friday! I told her it was bedtime and Kurt would be there first thing Saturday morning to take her home and she said, "No, I'm going home now." We discussed this for a while and she decided to go to bed fully dressed. She said, "I don't like you very much. You can go home now." I asked if I could take her shoes off and she said, "No, I sleep in them." Another discussion. "No, I sleep in them all the time, just ask Kurt." Those things let us know she still needs a bit of therapy to help her understand things but overall she is really doing great.

I told her I'd just sit by her and read for a while and she read People and I had another book. In about 30 minutes I asked if she was ready to go to bed and we proceeded with the usual bedtime ritual. I tucked her in and left for Plano but it is always difficult to leave her if she is not really asleep."

April 2, 2006 - Early Morning

We have a picture of Mandy with Frank a few weeks ago in her kitchen. We also have the following excerpt from Christine's summary of her day with Mandy on Thursday. "Today we had an appointment with the cardiologist, which took the place of most therapy, unfortunately. We waited quite a while to be seen by the doctor, you know, in the back room (aka, second waiting area). Mandy & I went to the restroom. She said, "I figure if we left the room, the doctor would probably show up." The good news is, her heart is fine & doc doesn't need to see her for a year." [Blogger note: For those who don't know, Amanda has always had a heart murmur that requires monitoring. This is not a new complication; it's just her normal annual check-up.]

"We were late getting back to CNS for lunch, but Gene waited for us there. Sarah grabbed Mandy as soon as she finished eating & had her "walking" very well! She was so busy listening to Gene talking about old times & silly things she has done, I think she forgot about the pain! When we got back to the apartment, the 4 of us played UNO again, including Amy, Mandy's roommate. Mandy won most of the games & took great pleasure in making Gene "pick 2" or "pick 4".

And then! For the first time since October 2005, Kurt & Amanda, Gene & I, had dinner together! We went to Chili's, of course! Our thinking was that it would be a familiar place, and very "normal" to Mandy. Kurt showed Mandy a picture of a big chocolate dessert that he was considering. While us girls were away in the bathroom, Kurt ordered it. He informed her when we got back, and she smiled really big & asked "the chocolate one?" Her expression was priceless & so adorable. She was so happy about the dessert! While Kurt & I were putting the wheelchair & other things in the back of his car, Gene & Mandy were already inside talking. Mandy said "Thank you for dinner. It was f&#$%ing amazing!"

April 1, 2006 - Late Afternoon

We normally don't update on the weekends, but we had a wonderful happening. Mandy walked up the stairs in her house completely unaided. We knew she had it in her, she just needed to do it in her own time. We suspected that our girl may have been doing some coasting in her PT; but it seems that she's upped the ante on her own. When Brenda spoke with her this afternoon and told Amanda that she'd love to see her up and walking when she comes to see her in 2 weeks, Amanda answered with a resounding,"I'm gonna do it! Count on it!". We're going to hold her to it. :-)

And as long as we're updating, Renee was kind enough to share her past Wednesday with us: "I am the Renee (I didn't realize Mandy knew so many) from college roommate days @ UT in Austin. I've lived in Maine for a little over 10 years now and every time I go home to visit my parents in Denton, I call or email Mandy & Kurt to see if we can hook up for a visit. Inevitably she is getting ready for a trip, on a trip or just returned and unpacking from a trip. We manage to connect every couple of years or so. My last visit was October, she was getting ready for a trip and we weren't able to hook up. But I did get to see her last Monday and I think she is doing great.

When I arrived at CNS, I was introduced to Wayne, her case worker. He said that Mandy was just arriving on the bus. She was one of the last ones to be helped off so he told me to go on the bus and talk to her. She saw me through the window and waved! I really thought she recognized me, but didn't want to set myself up for disappointment. I went on the bus and said hi and introduced myself to her. Later I discovered that wouldn't be necessary as she only missed my name one time. She went to ST and I waited for her in the lunch room. I did go to PT with her and met Sara. They truly do have a love/hate relationship. On the way to the hot/cold buckets of water, Sara did her orientation questions with her, she asked Mandy who I was and Mandy said Renee. She said how do you know her. Mandy said we were roommates in college. When Sara asked where, Mandy didn't hesitate with UT Austin. She wasn't sure where I live now, but that's okay. We proceeded to the desensitizing of the foot. Mandy truly does not like the cold water and Sara is very patient yet forceful with her making her complete all of the tasks at hand. She walked the long hallway (with Sara's assistance) that leads to OT. In OT Mandy blazed through every exercise they presented her and told me when Berlin was away from the table "this is boring" I asked if there was anything they did in there that challenged her and she just shook her head and rolled her eyes. Next was lunch and she ate everything that was given to her and drank plenty of water and juice. Last was ED where she read a story and answered questions about it, did pretty good on that; she did figure out that some of the answers were in other questions further down on the page. She is very observant. She did 3 pages of math problems with very few mistakes. She really likes to read and write, I was amazed at her penmanship - it is perfect, and I didn't see anything misspelled.

Tuesday I met her at the apartment when she got off of the bus. I asked her how she was and she said with a big smile, I'm doing really good today! Her makeup was on and she looked beautiful, she was very gracious when I told her that. She led me into the apartment unlocking and opening the door, introduced me to her RA and got comfortable on the couch. We talked some. I asked her if she remembered her 1st trip to Alaska, she said yes. I asked her who she went with, she said my friend Renee and her dad. I asked her if I was that friend, she turned to look at me and said yes. Shortly after that, Kurt arrived and then Christine. We all visited. I thought we had lost Mandy completely to her word search book, but she would make comments on our conversation from time to time. Multi-tasking at its finest. The 4 of us went grocery shopping (Christine commented on that earlier!). When we returned to the apartment Christine & I helped Kurt put groceries away while he prepared supper. Shortly after Chrisitne left, TAnn arrived with her sister & brother-in-law. Mandy couldn't wait to get into the gift bag they brought for her. I left so they could visit and leave a little room for her roommate Amy.
I spent a couple of hours with her on Wednesday before Kevin & Joyce took her to a doctor's appointment. She had her first day in the pool - didn't like that at all! But Sara kept on her to work that foot. She had an abbreviated OT, lunch and on her way to the doctor. She got herself up into the Suburban and we said bye. That was the tough part. It was great to see in person how good Mandy's doing. I also think Kurt, Christine and TAnn are doing an amazing job taking care of her. She really thrives on the companionship, it is a wonderful thing to know you are loved and she certainly is."