"Reaching for the Stars"

July 17, 2009

Good morning everyone,

Just a short little post to let you know that I have spoken to Dar everyday this week by speaker cell phone.

I am told she has been nothing less than a “little princess” and “Chatty Kathy” all week.

I have spoken to some of her therapists and they tell me that Dar’s strike definitely appears to be over. Dar has been “on her game” in all of her therapy sessions.

The staff is quite pleased that they have finally gotten to see the Dar we all love so much.

I must back up a little bit and tell you that at the same time we learned of the strike, Dr. Margolin also removed Dar from “Reglan”, a medication to assist in the digestion of her food in the stomach. This may have played a roll in Dar’s attitude and personality also. I tend to believe Dar was just on “strike”. The most common side affect of the medication is sleepiness and “lethargic”. There can be some worse affects in some instances; needless to say I was glad it was removed.

When I spoke with AnnMarie yesterday I learned that Dar had a “tummy” ache. This might indicate she is not getting rid of all her residual food. They will look into this further today and speak with Dr. Margolin. I will voice my concerns about the “Reglan” should they decide to put Dar back on it. I would prefer they find something else if possible.

As I am told Dar’s tummy ache did not have any affect on her personality to a great degree. What is important here is that the staff was able to ask the appropriate questions and Dar was able to give answers that led to them finding out her stomach hurt. That is a huge step in the right direction.

Dar had great sessions with the staff and I was able to speak with her in the early evening. Our good friend Tammy was gracious enough to go to Dar’s room and put Dar on speakerphone.

Dar has grabbed more stars in the last few days when it comes to her speaking. Words are much clearer and distinct. She can put together a slightly longer phrase before needing another breath this is very exciting.

We talked about the progress on the new shower that should be finished tomorrow morning or at the latest by the afternoon. It is absolutely gorgeous. I am so pleased to thank all of the guys that have worked so hard to make this come together so quickly.

Maybe this is a good time to once again thank the guys from Custom Tile of Oroville, Kendal and Chris, Bill Fox, from Fox Enterprises, Steve, from Custom Tile, John Starr, owner of Better Builders Inc, Mark and Mark, carpenters, and still to do his electrical project, Bill Sharp/Cheryl Sharp, Sharp Electric Inc, and Steve, electrician. Thank you to all of you, you have made “our” lives much better for the future.

Back to my phone call to Dar, each time I call or Tammy calls Dar is fabulous, looking forward to coming home, working hard in all of her classes and is so very happy and perky. This is such a change from a week ago. I can’t wait to see her tomorrow.

Thank you again to those of you that have “given” to Dar’s shower make over. We so appreciate your spirit. Thank you so much.

Well, I hope I have put a smile on your face this morning and I will post again as soon as I have more information. Mav and I are headed down in the morning and we wish all of you a super weekend.

Love you all,

Dar/Danny