Tuesday, May 31st, 2005: Tracy has another good night's sleep. Tonight will be her last night in the Clinitron bed. Hill Rom will pick up the bed tomorrow and Tracy will be back in her own bed tomorrow evening. The bed of sand has successfully healed Tracy's pressure sore and she no longer needs it. We are looking forward to getting Tracy back in her own bed. This morning, Jenny and Mom showered Tracy, shampooed her hair, and got her ready for 12 noon Physical Therapy with Humayun. During PT, Humayun, Mom and Jenny got Tracy on the tilt table and up she went, this time to 50 degrees for 21 minutes. Humayun put her right knee cast on to ensure stabilization of her right knee. Tracy seemed very relaxed in this position and was even able to relax both arms down by her side. This is a huge success and a marked improvement since last week. We will increase her duration tomorrow, as we work our way back to Tracy's presurgery stamina. She is getting stronger every day. This afternoon, Tracy had Speech Therapy with Karman. Today, Karman worked on Tracy's tongue movement. She used a tongue stick that looks a lot like a little paddle. One side is rough and the other smooth. She had Tracy open her mouth and stroked her tongue five times for ten repetitions. Then Karman put honey on the roof of Tracy's mouth with the tongue stick. The goal was for Tracy to lift her tongue to the roof of her mouth and get the honey. Tracy did this several times. Karman then had Tracy try to say the "ta" sound. Tracy tried very hard. We will continue to work on this some more. Karman then had Tracy blow in a kazoo/whistle. Tracy did a good job puckering her lips around the whistle with Karman's assistance. Then she had Tracy blow into the whistle. Tracy did blow into the whistle several times. Next, Karman had Tracy put her lips around a smaller whistle. Tracy did a good job puckering her lips around the smaller whistle with Karman's help. Yesterday, Tracy had two very good friends visit her today from Seattle. Mariesa and Mara, two friends from the Gonzaga in Florence program. They both lived in the same dorm as Tracy: Grazia. Mariesa is teaching first grade with Marie and they had their students write letters, poems, and draw pictures for Tracy. Mariesa made a scrapbook collection with all of these precious works of love! They are little love notes to Tracy. Mariesa read them to her and she seemed to enjoy them a lot! We are so blessed to have met so many wonderful friend of Tracy's. She continues to bring so many wonderful people together. God definitely has a plan for Tracy. Thank you to Mariesa's parents for the beautiful medal of the Blessed Virgin Mary from Italy. Tracy always loved visiting Ephesus where the Blessed Mother was born and also Medjugorje, where the Blessed Mother appeared several times in a vision. This is a very special gift. Tracy's tone was a little better today. Humayun said that today was the first day since Tracy had her surgery that she appeared to be more relaxed. The plan is to increase her Baclofen to 1750 micrograms per day this Thursday when we take Tracy to get her pump refilled. She is currently at 1400 micrograms per day and has been at this level since January. Last Friday, Mom, Dad and Jenny took Tracy for her 11:30 AM appointment with Dr. Tosi, Orthopedic Surgeon at Children's National Medical Center. She recommended surgery on her adductor tendons, right hamstring lengthening, and botox to her feet. She also wants to do alcohol blocks to her adductors, her right and possibly left hamstrings. So, this was a lot to tackle today and God must have known that we needed a LONG weekend to ponder it all. We are planning to rebuild her endurance from the last surgery before putting her through any more at this time. The good news is her urine tested negative for a Urinary Tract Infection. Over the next several weeks, we plan to resume Tracy's intensive therapy regimen on the mat in her therapy corner. The goal will be to spend the next several weeks rebuilding Tracy's stamina to get her ready for out patient therapy. At this time, we will begin making the transition to outpatient therapy at Georgetown Medical Center. We are looking forward to Tracy starting a new swallowing program that Mom has been researching: VitalStim. You can read more about this new and exciting program at www.vitalstim.com.\ Tracy is enjoying spending time with Sasha. She is such a great friend. We are looking forward to a fun summer with Tiffany, Rick, and Sasha here with us. Tiffany will begin her internship at the Veteran's Administration next Monday. She is making preparations to begin her master's project. It looks like she will not be able to do her focus group with the Defense and Veterans Brain Injury Program, however, the Northern Virginia Brain Injury Services is excited to work with her. She plans to effectively evaluate the current website of Brain Injury Services, Inc., a non-profit that supports survivors of brain injuries and their families with “individualized, community-based services through comprehensive case management, education, and advocacy.” She is planning on conducting two focus groups, one consisting of caregivers and one made up of survivors. She is looking forward to working with them this summer! Have a great week!

Monday, May 30th, 2005: Tracy slept well again last night. This morning, Jenny and Mom bathed Tracy and got her ready for the day. Tracy does not have any therapy today, but you can bet that Dad will give her a good workout on the mat. Dad spent a long time stretching Tracy on the mat. Tracy seemed a lot more relaxed today and was able to relax her arms and help Dad with her stretching. Jenny spent some time giving Tracy a manicure. She does such a good job keeping Tracy beautiful! Of course we know that Tracy is a natural beauty (she must take after her MOM: LOL) Tracy had two very good friends visit her today from Seattle. Mariesa and Mara, two friends from the Gonzaga in Florence program. They both lived in the same dorm as Tracy: Grazia. Mariesa is teaching first grade with Marie and they had their students write letters, poems, and draw pictures for Tracy. Mariesa made a scrapbook collection with all of these precious works of love! They are little love notes to Tracy. Mariesa read them to her and she seemed to enjoy them a lot! We are so blessed to have met so many wonderful friend of Tracy's. She continues to bring so many wonderful people together. God definitely has a plan for Tracy. Thank you to Mariesa's parents for the beautiful medal of the Blessed Virgin Mary from Italy. Tracy always loved visiting Ephesus where the Blessed Mother was born and also Medjugorje, where the Blessed Mother appeared several times in a vision. This is a very special gift. This afternoon, everyone hung out on the balcony for a while. The weather was nice but a little too cloudy and cool for the pool. Then we put Tracy on the loveseat and all watched one of Tracy's favorite movies: Top Gun! Tracy seemed to enjoy being part of the group on the couch. We can't wait until she can eat some popcorn and drink a beer with us! This evening, Emil is coming over to give Tracy a massage. We hope that will help to modify Tracy's tone. The plan is to increase her Baclofen to 1750 micrograms per day next Thursday when we take Tracy to get her pump refilled. She is currently at 1400 micrograms per day and has been at this level since January. Dad took another quick ride on his Harley again today. It sure helps to clear ones head, so he says. Mom said that she will ride with Dad when Tracy starts talking. Last Friday, Mom, Dad and Jenny took Tracy for her 11:30 AM appointment with Dr. Tosi, Orthopedic Surgeon at Children's National Medical Center. She recommended surgery on her adductor tendons, right hamstring lengthening, and botox to her feet. She also wants to do alcohol blocks to her adductors, her right and possibly left hamstrings. So, this was a lot to tackle today and God must have known that we needed a LONG weekend to ponder it all. We are planning to rebuild her endurance from the last surgery before putting her through any more at this time. The good news is her urine tested negative for a Urinary Tract Infection. Last Wednesday, we went to see the Plastic Surgeon, Dr. Buescher, at NNMC in Bethesda and she was REALLY pleased with Tracy's wound! She said that it looked "dynamite"! Well, I have to admit, it really does look dynamite. She said that Tracy can shower, get in the POOL (just in time for the grand opening Saturday), sit on the edge of the mat for no more than 20 minutes to 40 and then 60 minutes as tolerated over the next 4 weeks. She also said that Tracy can go back to her own low air loss alternating pressure mattress at the end of the month and say "adios" to the Clinitron. Mom, Jenny and Dad are ready since their backs are about to give out. It looks like Tracy is on target to return to outpatient therapy by the end of June! We will return to Dr. Buescher in a month for a follow-up appointment. We'll have to wait a few more weeks to get Tracy in her jogger! Over the next several weeks, we plan to resume Tracy's intensive therapy regimen on the mat in her therapy corner. The goal will be to spend the next several weeks rebuilding Tracy's stamina to get her ready for out patient therapy. At this time, we will begin making the transition to outpatient therapy at Georgetown Medical Center. We are looking forward to Tracy starting a new swallowing program that Mom has been researching: VitalStim. You can read more about this new and exciting program at www.vitalstim.com.\ Tracy is enjoying spending time with Sasha. She is such a great friend. We are looking forward to a fun summer with Tiffany, Rick, and Sasha here with us. Tiffany will begin her internship at the Veteran's Administration next Monday.She is making preparations to begin her master's project. It looks like she will not be able to do her focus group with the Defense and Veterans Brain Injury Program, however, the Northern Virginia Brain Injury Services is excited to work with her. She plans to effectively evaluate the current website of Brain Injury Services, Inc., a non-profit that supports survivors of brain injuries and their families with “individualized, community-based services through comprehensive case management, education, and advocacy.” She is planning on conducting two focus groups, one consisting of caregivers and one made up of survivors. She is looking forward to working with them this summer! Have a great week and God Bless America!

Sunday, May 29th, 2005: Tracy had another good night's sleep last night. This morning, Dad and Mom bathed Tracy and got her ready for 12 noon Mass. Mom, Dad and Tracy attended Mass at Our Lady of Lourdes Church on 23rd Street. It was nice to be back. We skipped Starbuck's because Tracy was not very happy in her chair. Evidently, she had enough, so we headed for home. Dad spent a long time stretching Tracy while Mom went for a run. Tracy wore her right knee cast for two hours and seemed to tolerate it well. She wore her purple neoprene splints for an hour but seemed a little too tight to wear them much longer. The plan is to increase her Baclofen to 1750 micrograms per day next Thursday when we take Tracy to get her pump refilled. She is currently at 1400 micrograms per day and has been at this level since January. This afternoon, Mom hung out with Tracy while Dad took a short ride on his Harley. It was a nice day, midseventies with low humidity. There were plenty of people at the pool. It still seemed a little on the cool side for the pool. This evening, they plan to watch the Memorial Day concert on television. It is being broadcasted live from our Nation's Capital. Last Friday, Mom, Dad and Jenny took Tracy for her 11:30 AM appointment with Dr. Tosi, Orthopedic Surgeon at Children's National Medical Center. She recommended surgery on her adductor tendons, right hamstring lengthening, and botox to her feet. She also wants to do alcohol blocks to her adductors, her right and possibly left hamstrings. So, this was a lot to tackle today and God must have known that we needed a LONG weekend to ponder it all. We are planning to rebuild her endurance from the last surgery before putting her through any more at this time. The good news is her urine tested negative for a Urinary Tract Infection. Last Wednesday, we went to see the Plastic Surgeon, Dr. Buescher, at NNMC in Bethesda and she was REALLY pleased with Tracy's wound! She said that it looked "dynamite"! Well, I have to admit, it really does look dynamite. She said that Tracy can shower, get in the POOL (just in time for the grand opening Saturday), sit on the edge of the mat for no more than 20 minutes to 40 and then 60 minutes as tolerated over the next 4 weeks. She also said that Tracy can go back to her own low air loss alternating pressure mattress at the end of the month and say "adios" to the Clinitron. Mom, Jenny and Dad are ready since their backs are about to give out. It looks like Tracy is on target to return to outpatient therapy by the end of June! We will return to Dr. Buescher in a month for a follow-up appointment. We'll have to wait a few more weeks to get Tracy in her jogger! Over the next several weeks, we plan to resume Tracy's intensive therapy regimen on the mat in her therapy corner. The goal will be to spend the next several weeks rebuilding Tracy's stamina to get her ready for out patient therapy. At this time, we will begin making the transition to outpatient therapy at Georgetown Medical Center. We are looking forward to Tracy starting a new swallowing program that Mom has been researching: VitalStim. You can read more about this new and exciting program at www.vitalstim.com.\ Tracy is enjoying spending time with Sasha. She is such a great friend. We are looking forward to a fun summer with Tiffany, Rick, and Sasha here. Tiffany is making preparations to begin her master's project. It looks like she will not be able to do her focus group with the Defense and Veterans Brain Injury Program, however, the Northern Virginia Brain Injury Services is excited to work with her. She plans to effectively evaluate the current website of Brain Injury Services, Inc., a non-profit that supports survivors of brain injuries and their families with “individualized, community-based services through comprehensive case management, education, and advocacy.” She is planning on conducting two focus groups, one consisting of caregivers and one made up of survivors. She is looking forward to working with them this summer! Have a great weekend and Happy Memorial Day! God bless our soldiers and sailors!!

Friday, May 27th, 2005: Tracy had another good night's sleep last night! This morning, Jenny and Mom bathed Tracy and got her ready for her 11:30 AM appointment with Dr. Tosi, Orthopedic Surgeon at Children's National Medical Center. She recommended surgery on her adductor tendons, right hamstring lengthening, and botox to her feet. She also wants to do alcohol blocks to her adductors, her right and possibly left hamstrings. So, this was a lot to tackle today and God must have known that we needed a LONG weekend to ponder it all. We are planning to rebuild her endurance from the last surgery before putting her through any more at this time. The good news is her urine tested negative for a Urinary Tract Infection. Tracy did not have any therapy today. Mom, Dad and Sasha got Tracy prone (on her tummy) on the peanut ball for about 15 minutes. Tracy really seemed to enjoy this position and relaxed. She was on her knees and tolerated weight bearing for the duration. Tracy was also doing a great job picking her head up off the ball. We will continue to get her prone over the weekend. Her spine looked really straight in this position. Wednesday, we went to see the Plastic Surgeon, Dr. Buescher, at NNMC in Bethesda and she was REALLY pleased with Tracy's wound! She said that it looked "dynamite"! Well, I have to admit, it really does look dynamite. She said that Tracy can shower, get in the POOL (just in time for the grand opening Saturday), sit on the edge of the mat for no more than 20 minutes to 40 and then 60 minutes as tolerated over the next 4 weeks. She also said that Tracy can go back to her own low air loss alternating pressure mattress at the end of the month and say "adios" to the Clinitron. Mom, Jenny and Dad are ready since their backs are about to give out. It looks like Tracy is on target to return to outpatient therapy by the end of June! We will return to Dr. Buescher in a month for a follow-up appointment. We'll have to wait a few more weeks to get Tracy in her jogger! Yesterday afternoon, Karman, Tracy's Speech Therapist, came by for Tracy's session. Mom, Liz and Jenny got Tracy in her chair and hooked up her laptop to the switch. This time, Mom set up Tracy's photo slide show from her travels in Europe in Powerpoint. Liz put on Tracy's neoprene splint to give her right hand some extra support and then Mom placed her right hand by the switch. The switch is a button that Tracy can activate with her head, thumb, etc. to advance her slide show. Tracy did a REALLY good job hitting the switch with her index finger and thumb and advancing the slide show. She also did a good job focusing on her pictures. We will work on this more each day. Over the next several weeks, we plan to resume Tracy's intensive therapy regimen on the mat in her therapy corner. The goal will be to spend the next several weeks rebuilding Tracy's stamina to get her ready for out patient therapy. At this time, we will begin making the transition to outpatient therapy at Georgetown Medical Center. We are looking forward to Tracy starting a new swallowing program that Mom has been researching: VitalStim. You can read more about this new and exciting program at www.vitalstim.com.\ Tracy is enjoying spending time with Sasha. She is such a great friend. We are looking forward to a fun summer with Tiffany, Rick, and Sasha here. Tiffany is making preparations to begin her master's project. It looks like she will not be able to do her focus group with the Defense and Veterans Brain Injury Program, however, the Northern Virginia Brain Injury Services is excited to work with her. She plans to effectively evaluate the current website of Brain Injury Services, Inc., a non-profit that supports survivors of brain injuries and their families with “individualized, community-based services through comprehensive case management, education, and advocacy.” She is planning on conducting two focus groups, one consisting of caregivers and one made up of survivors. She is looking forward to working with them this summer! We are looking forward to the grand opening of our pool here at Crystal Plaza on May 28th. After more than 8 months of construction and jack hammering, we are more than glad to see the completion of an accessible pool for Tracy. Keep your fingers crossed that the weather cooperates. Have a great weekend and Happy Memorial Day! God bless our soldiers and sailors!!

Thursday, May 26th, 2005: Tracy slept well again last night. Mom actually had a good night's sleep too! Emil has magic healing hands! Mom and Jenny bathed Tracy this morning and got her ready for her 1 PM Physical Therapy session with Humayun. Today, Humayun, Mom and Jenny got Tracy on the tilt table and up she went, this time to 40 degrees for 20 minutes. She had her cast on her right knee and tolerated this angle really well. She even relaxed both arms down by her side with a little help and mostly verbal cues. Even though her tone was high, Humayun was very pleased with her participation. We kept her knee cast on for one hour because of her increased tone. Tracy has been wearing her resting hand splints every night for a minimum of 7 hours. We have not been as consistent with her day time wrist cock up splints because her tone has been high. We will return to the neurologist next Thursday and see about increasing her Baclofen from 1400 to 1750 micrograms per day. We went to see the Plastic Surgeon, Dr. Buescher, yesterday, at NNMC in Bethesda and she was REALLY pleased with Tracy's wound! She said that it looked "dynamite"! Well, I have to admit, it really does look dynamite. She said that Tracy can shower, get in the POOL (just in time for the grand opening Saturday), sit on the edge of the mat for no more than 20 minutes to 40 and then 60 minutes as tolerated over the next 4 weeks. She also said that Tracy can go back to her own low air loss alternating pressure mattress at the end of the month and say "adios" to the Clinitron. Mom, Jenny and Dad are ready since their backs are about to give out. It looks like Tracy is on target to return to outpatient therapy by the end of June! We will return to Dr. Buescher in a month for a follow-up appointment. We'll have to wait a few more weeks to get Tracy in her jogger! This afternoon, Karman, Tracy's Speech Therapist, came by for Tracy's session. Mom, Liz and Jenny got Tracy in her chair and hooked up her laptop to the switch. This time, Mom set up Tracy's photo slide show from her travels in Europe in Powerpoint. Liz put on Tracy's neoprene splint to give her right hand some extra support and then Mom placed her right hand by the switch. The switch is a button that Tracy can activate with her head, thumb, etc. to advance her slide show. Tracy did a REALLY good job hitting the switch with her index finger and thumb and advancing the slide show. She also did a good job focusing on her pictures. We will work on this more each day. This evening, Nichole, Tracy's volunteer, came by to see Tracy. Mom tried to get her webpage up on her laptop but the server was down. So, Nichole caught Tracy up on the fashion trends in Instyle magazine. Sasha had already braided Tracy's hair and put on some makeup before Nichole came. She did a really good job and Tracy really enjoyed her makeover. What girl wouldn't! Over the next several weeks, we plan to resume Tracy's intensive therapy regimen on the mat in her therapy corner. The goal will be to spend the next several weeks rebuilding Tracy's stamina to get her ready for out patient therapy. At this time, we will begin making the transition to outpatient therapy at Georgetown Medical Center. We are looking forward to Tracy starting a new swallowing program that Mom has been researching: VitalStim. You can read more about this new and exciting program at www.vitalstim.com.\ Tracy is enjoying spending time with Sasha. She is such a great friend. We are looking forward to a fun summer with Tiffany, Rick, and Sasha here. Tiffany is making preparations to begin her master's project. It looks like she will not be able to do her focus group with the Defense and Veterans Brain Injury Program, however, the Northern Virginia Brain Injury Services is excited to work with her. She plans to effectively evaluate the current website of Brain Injury Services, Inc., a non-profit that supports survivors of brain injuries and their families with “individualized, community-based services through comprehensive case management, education, and advocacy.” She is planning on conducting two focus groups, one consisting of caregivers and one made up of survivors. She is looking forward to working with them this summer! We are looking forward to the grand opening of our pool here at Crystal Plaza on May 28th. After more than 8 months of construction and jack hammering, we are more than glad to see the completion of an accessible pool for Tracy. Keep your fingers crossed that the weather cooperates. Have a great weekend and Happy Memorial Day! God bless our soldiers and sailors!

Wednesday, May 24th, 2005: Tracy had another great night's sleep last night! Mom didn't sleep at all last night. She was dragging all day today, but a Tai massage by Emil put her back together. Mom and Jenny bathed Tracy this morning and got her ready for her 10:15 AM appointment with plastic surgeon, Dr. Buescher, at National Naval Medical Center. Tiffany and Sasha came to Mom and Jenny's rescue. Tiff drove the van and Sasha accompanied Mom, Jenny and Tracy to her appointment. It was drizzling and dreary, but everything is really GREEN! Dr. Buescher was REALLY pleased with Tracy's wound! She said that it looked "dynamite"! Well, I have to admit, it really does look dynamite. She said that Tracy can shower, get in the POOL (just in time for the grand opening Saturday), sit on the edge of the mat for no more than 20 minutes to 40 and then 60 minutes as tolerated over the next 4 weeks. She also said that Tracy can go back to her own low air loss alternating pressure mattress at the end of the month and say "adios" to the Clinitron. Mom, Jenny and Dad are ready since their backs are about to give out. It looks like Tracy is on target to return to outpatient therapy by the end of June! We will return to Dr. Buescher in a month for a follow-up appointment. We'll have to wait a few more weeks to get Tracy in her jogger! This evening, Emil gave Tracy a much-needed massage. She really relaxed and enjoyed it. She has been very tight during this recuperation phase and we hope that once she gets back to her own bed she will loosen up a little. We will also discuss increasing the Baclofen when we return for a refill next week. Over the next several weeks, we plan to resume Tracy's intensive therapy regimen on the mat in her therapy corner. The goal will be to spend the next several weeks rebuilding Tracy's stamina to get her ready for out patient therapy. At this time, we will begin making the transition to outpatient therapy at Georgetown Medical Center. We are looking forward to Tracy starting a new swallowing program that Mom has been researching: VitalStim. You can read more about this new and exciting program at www.vitalstim.com.\ Tracy is enjoying spending time with Sasha. She is such a great friend. We are looking forward to a fun summer with Tiffany, Rick, and Sasha here. Tiffany is making preparations to begin her master's project. It looks like she will not be able to do her focus group with the Defense and Veterans Brain Injury Program, however, the Northern Virginia Brain Injury Services is excited to work with her. She plans to effectively evaluate the current website of Brain Injury Services, Inc., a non-profit that supports survivors of brain injuries and their families with “individualized, community-based services through comprehensive case management, education, and advocacy.” She is looking forward to working with them this summer! We are looking forward to the grand opening of our pool here at Crystal Plaza on May 28th. After more than 8 months of construction and jack hammering, we are more than glad to see the completion of an accessible pool for Tracy. Have a great week!

Tuesday, May 24th, 2005: Tracy slept really well last night. In fact, she slept from about 6 PM to 6 AM. She needed to make up for lost time. Mom and Jenny bathed Tracy, shampooed her hair, and got her ready for her 12 noon Physical Therapy session with Humayun. Humayun spent a short time stretching and ranging Tracy on the mat and then it was time for the tilt table! Humayun, Mom and Jenny got Tracy transferred to her tilt table and up she went to 36 degrees for 20 minutes, 5 minutes longer than yesterday. Tracy did a great job tolerating this angle. It was her second time back up since her surgery one month ago! She was completely relaxed and did not sweat or grind her teeth. She tolerated her knee cast for an hour. After PT, we let Tracy stretch out on the mat for a while. We let Tracy rest until she had Speech Therapy at 4 PM with Karman. We did not want to tire her out like we did yesterday before her Speech session. Karman came by for Tracy's Speech Therapy session. Tracy was sitting up in her wheel chair with her table top in place. Mom put her lap top on the table top tray. Mom hooked up Tracy's yes/no program and Karman attached her switch by her left cheek on her head rest. Tracy did a good job answering Yes question using her switch, which is hooked up to a program on her computer. When Tracy hits the Yes switch, a green smiley face comes on the lap top screen and voices cheer and say "YES"! Karman held up eating utensils such as a bowl. plate, fork, knife, spoon, ice cream scoop, etc. Tracy did a good job focusing on the objects and validated Karman's question: "Is this a spoon?" by hitting the switch with her left cheek. By the end of the session, Tracy got a little sleepy. The dreary weather made everyone feel a little tired today. This evening, Michelle, Tracy's new case manager from Brain Injury Services, came by to introduce herself and to meet Tracy. We look forward to working with her and are very appreciative of her support and expertise. Over the next several weeks, we plan to resume Tracy's intensive therapy regimen on the mat in her therapy corner. The goal will be to spend the next several weeks rebuilding Tracy's stamina to get her ready for out patient therapy. At this time, we will begin making the transition to outpatient therapy at Georgetown Medical Center. We are looking forward to Tracy starting a new swallowing program that Mom has been researching: VitalStim. You can read more about this new and exciting program at www.vitalstim.com.\ Tracy is enjoying spending time with Sasha. She is such a great friend. We are looking forward to a fun summer with Tiffany, Rick, and Sasha here. Tiffany is making preparations to begin her master's project. It looks like she will not be able to do her focus group with the Defense and Veterans Brain Injury Program, however, the Northern Virginia Brain Injury Services is excited to work with her. She plans to effectively evaluate the current website of Brain Injury Services, Inc., a non-profit that supports survivors of brain injuries and their families with “individualized, community-based services through comprehensive case management, education, and advocacy.” She is looking forward to working with them this summer! We are looking forward to the grand opening of our pool here at Crystal Plaza on May 28th. After more than 8 months of construction and jack hammering, we are more than glad to see the completion of an accessible pool for Tracy. Have a great week!

Monday, May 23rd, 2005: Tracy was up from 3 AM to 5 AM this morning. She was apparently upset about something, because she was grinding her teeth. Dad gave her some Extra Strength Tylenol and after a while, it seemed to help some. Mom and Jenny bathed Tracy and got her ready for her 12 noon Physical Therapy session with Humayun. Humayun spent a short time stretching and ranging Tracy in the bed and then it was off to the tilt table! Humayun, Mom and Jenny got Tracy transferred to her tilt table and up she went to 35 degrees for 15 minutes. Tracy did a great job tolerating this angle. It was her first time back up since her surgery one month ago! She was completely relaxed and did not sweat or grind her teeth. She tolerated her knee cast for an hour and a half before fussing. We'll try going a little longer tomorrow. After PT, we let Tracy stretch out on the mat for a while. She relaxed with her wrist cock up splints on for about two hours. Liz came by in the afternoon and Mom, Jenny, and Liz got Tracy seated on the edge of the mat. She did a good job with head and neck control and tolerated 35 minutes. She got a little nauseous at the end and was really tired for her next session, Speech Therapy. Karman came by for Tracy's Speech Therapy session. Tracy was sitting up in her wheel chair with her table top in place. Liz and Mom put her lap top on the table top tray. Mom hooked up Tracy's yes/no program and Karman attached her switch by her left cheek on her head rest. Tracy did a good job answering Yes question using her switch. Karman held up colors cards and Tracy did a good job focusing. She was pretty sleepy, and nodded out before the session was over. We will let her rest more before her session tomorrow so she will be more rested. Mamaw and Papaw left today to return to Independence, Louisiana. They had a good visit and we already miss them. They made it safely back to Independence. The temperature there is already in the nineties. I am sure they miss the cool weather here in northern Virginia. Over the next several weeks, we plan to resume Tracy's intensive therapy regimen on the mat in her therapy corner. The goal will be to spend the next several weeks rebuilding Tracy's stamina to get her ready for out patient therapy. At this time, we will begin making the transition to outpatient therapy at Georgetown Medical Center. We are looking forward to Tracy starting a new swallowing program that Mom has been researching: VitalStim. You can read more about this new and exciting program at www.vitalstim.com.\ Tracy is enjoying spending time with Sasha. She is such a great friend. We are looking forward to a fun summer! Tiffany is making preparations to begin her master's project. It looks like she will not be able to do her focus group with the Defense and Veterans Brain Injury Program, however, the Northern Virginia Brain Injury Services is excited to work with her. She plans to effectively evaluate the current website of Brain Injury Services, Inc., a non-profit that supports survivors of brain injuries and their families with “individualized, community-based services through comprehensive case management, education, and advocacy.” She is looking forward to working with them this summer! We are looking forward to the grand opening of our pool here at Crystal Plaza on May 28th. After more than 8 months of construction and jack hammering, we are more than glad to see the completion of an accessible pool for Tracy. Have a great week!

Sunday, May 22nd, 2005: Tracy had another good night's sleep last night. Mom and Dad bathed Tracy and got her ready for a 12:30 appointment at the Northern Virginia Therapeutic Riding Program in Fairfax, Virginia. Mom, Dad, Tiffany and Tracy drove into the country to a very pretty ranch set back in the woods. They had several horses who are trained to work with children and adults with special needs. Mom and Dad talked to the therapeutic riding program director, Breanna. She discussed Tracy's therapy goals and we decided that Tracy might be ready to ride in the fall session. She enjoyed seeing the horses and helped to feed some carrots to Chet, a beautiful brown horse. Chet really likes candy canes. Tracy helped to feed a little candy cane to Chet. Mamaw and Papaw are enjoying their visit with us. The weather has been beautiful, with temperatures in the 70s and low humidity. They relaxed at the apartment while we went to Tracy's riding appointment. Yesterday, Mom and Dad took Mamaw and Papaw to see the World War II Memorial downtown DC. Dad gave everyone the 50 cent car tour of the major sites, including the Pentagon, the White House, the Smithsonian, the Capital, the Washington, Lincoln, and Jefferson monuments, and the Women's monument at Arlington National Cemetary. This afternoon, Mom and Dad put Tracy in her hammock chair swing on the balcony. This is the first time we have been able to get Tracy in her swing. She really relaxed and seemed to enjoy it out on the balcony. Then we got Tracy on the therapy mat and stretched her shoulders, arms, legs, and hips. Mom and Dad got Tracy seated on the edge of the mat and Tracy did a good job with head and trunk control. It has been one month since Tracy has be able to sit on the edge of the mat with assistance. She tolerated about 12 minutes and most likely would have tolerated more, but Mom and Dad are gradually resuming her weight bearing program. Her wound is healing well, and does not seem to be causing her any discomfort. Over the next several weeks, we plan to resume Tracy's intensive therapy regimen on the mat in her therapy corner. The goal will be to spend the next several weeks rebuilding Tracy's stamina to get her ready for out patient therapy. At this time, we will begin making the transition to outpatient therapy at Georgetown Medical Center. We are looking forward to Tracy starting a new swallowing program that Mom has been researching: VitalStim. You can read more about this new and exciting program at www.vitalstim.com. Tiffany is making preparations to begin her master's project. It looks like she will not be able to do her focus group with the Defense and Veterans Brain Injury Program, however, the Northern Virginia Brain Injury Services is excited to work with her. She plans to effectively evaluate the current website of Brain Injury Services, Inc. A non-profit that supports survivors of brain injuries and their families with “individualized, community-based services through comprehensive case management, education, and advocacy.” She is looking forward to working with them this summer! We are looking forward to the grand opening of our pool here at Crystal Plaza on May 28th. After more than 8 months of construction and jack hammering, we are more than glad to see the completion of an accessible pool for Tracy. Have a great week!

Saturday, May 21st, 2005: Tracy slept well again last night. Mom and Dad bathed Tracy and shampooed her hair. Mom and Dad got Tracy in her chair at 12:00 noon and brought her out to her therapy mat for some stretching. She was out of her bed for 4 hours and seemed to really enjoy it. She tolerated being up very well. Mamaw and Papaw are enjoying their visit with us. Today, Rick and Tiffany stayed with Tracy while Mom and Dad took Mamaw and Papaw to see the World War II Memorial downtown DC. The weather had cleared up and it was a beautiful day with temperatures in the 70s and low humidity. Dad gave everyone the 50 cent car tour of the major sites, including the Pentagon, the White House, the Smithsonian, the Capital, the Washington, Lincoln, and Jefferson monuments, and the Women's monument at Arlington National Cemetary. Dad put Tracy's cast on her right knee for one hour today. She tolerated it very well. We will increase her wear time to two hours tomorrow. Tracy's wound is healing very well. We are hoping that in a few weeks, Tracy will be ready to resume her active therapy schedule. At this time, we will begin making the transition to outpatient therapy at Georgetown Medical Center. We are looking forward to Tracy starting a new swallowing program that Mom has been researching: VitalStim. You can read more about this new and exciting program at www.vitalstim.com. Thank you to all of our good friends at the Wing of the Aerospace Medicine Association for the adorable card from Kansas City! Mom's ears were ringing all last week, while the annual conference was going on. You certainly made Mom's and Tracy's day! We miss you all very much and are so blessed to have such a wonderful aerospace family! We are looking forward to the grand opening of our pool here at Crystal Plaza on May 28th. After more than 8 months of construction and jack hammering, we are more than glad to see the completion of an accessible pool for Tracy. Have a great weekend!

Friday, May 20th, 2005: Tracy had another good night's sleep last night. Mom and Jenny bathed Tracy and got her ready for her day with Mamaw and Papaw. Mom and Jenny got Tracy in her chair at 9:30 and brought her out to her therapy mat for some stretching. She was out of her bed for 3 hours and seemed to really enjoy it. It has been over three weeks since she has been on her therapy mat. She tolerated being up very well. Emil was able to give Tracy a great massage this afternoon on the mat for the first time in three weeks. Tracy really enjoyed this. Also, our great friend Gloria visited today. Mom mailed Flat Stanley back to Ryan's school yesterday. Everyone was very sad to see him go. We are sure that Ryan has missed him alot and is glad that he is on his way back to his school. Tracy sent Ryan a Washington Nationals baseball cap with Flat Stanley. We hope he likes it. Mom also sent some new clothes for Flat Stanley. They sure look good on him! Mamaw and Papaw made it safely to Virginia yesterday. They had a restful day with Tracy, Mom, Jenny, Tiffany and Sasha. This evening Jenny stayed with Tracy and the rest of us went to dinner at Legal Seafood. The food and company was great. We are hoping that in a few weeks, Tracy will be ready to resume her active therapy schedule. At this time, we will begin making the transition to outpatient therapy at Georgetown Medical Center. We are looking forward to Tracy starting a new swallowing program that Mom has been researching: VitalStim. You can read more about this new and exciting program at www.vitalstim.com.Thank you to all of our good friends at the Wing of the Aerospace Medicine Association for the adorable card from Kansas City! Mom's ears were ringing all last week, while the annual conference was going on. You certainly made Mom's and Tracy's day! We miss you all very much and are so blessed to have such a wonderful aerospace family! Mom was going through some papers and found the CD she was looking for that was sent last Christmas from Billie Cruz, Mom's dental hygienist at Dr. Goff's office. It is a beautiful CD filled with inspirational songs of praise. She has already played it many times for Tracy and she seems to really relax to it! Thank you Billie! We are looking forward to the grand opening of our pool here at Crystal Plaza on May 28th. After more than 8 months of construction and jack hammering, we are more than glad to see the completion of an accessible pool for Tracy. Have a great weekend!

Thursday, May 19th, 2005: Tracy had another good night's sleep last night. Mom and Jenny bathed Tracy and got her ready for therapy. Mom and Jenny got Tracy in her chair at noon and brought her out to her therapy mat for Physical Therapy. Humayun was so surprised to see Tracy on the mat! Today is the first day that Tracy will have therapy out of her bed. She seemed to really enjoy being out of her bed and her room. It has been over three weeks since she has been on her therapy mat. She tolerated being up very well. We got her back in her chair again this afternoon for Speech Therapy. Mom mailed Flat Stanley back to Ryan's school this morning. Everyone was very sad to see him go. We are sure that Ryan has missed him alot and is glad that he is on his way back to his school. Tracy sent Ryan a Washington Nationals baseball cap with Flat Stanley. We hope he likes it. Mom also sent some new clothes for Flat Stanley. They sure look good on him! During Physical Therapy, Humayun and Mom put Tracy's cast on her right knee. Tracy was a little tight but we were able to get her cast on for an hour during therapy. We will work back up to her previous schedule, a little at a time. Humayun and Mom worked on continuous passive stretching on Tracy's extremities. She did a good job for her first day of therapy on the mat. This afternoon, Karman came by for Tracy's Speech Therapy session. She was surprised to see Tracy in the chair for her session. Karman worked with Tracy's switch and her Yes program on her laptop. She velcroed her switch to the left side of her headrest. Tracy did a good job hitting her Yes switch three times. Karman asked her if she was glad to be out of her bed and she hit the switch "Yes." Mamaw and Papaw made it safely to Virginia this afternoon. Their luggage did not arrive with them but was delivered to the apartment later this evening. Everyone was happy to see them, especially Tracy. Rick and Sasha joined us for dinner. Mom and Dad grilled ribeyes and baked potatoes. It was really good. We are hoping that in a few weeks, Tracy will be ready to resume her active therapy schedule. At this time, we will begin making the transition to outpatient therapy at Georgetown Medical Center. We are looking forward to Tracy starting a new swallowing program that Mom has been researching: VitalStim. You can read more about this new and exciting program at www.vitalstim.com. Thank you to all of our good friends at the Wing of the Aerospace Medicine Association for the adorable card from Kansas City! Mom's ears were ringing all last week, while the annual conference was going on. You certainly made Mom's and Tracy's day! We miss you all very much and are so blessed to have such a wonderful aerospace family! Mom was going through some papers and found the CD she was looking for that was sent last Christmas from Billie Cruz, Mom's dental hygienist at Dr. Goff's office. It is a beautiful CD filled with inspirational songs of praise. She has already played it many times for Tracy and she seems to really relax to it! Thank you Billie! We are looking forward to the grand opening of our pool here at Crystal Plaza on May 28th. After more than 8 months of construction and jack hammering, we are more than glad to see the completion of an accessible pool for Tracy. Have a great week!

Wednesday, May 18th, 2005: Tracy slept well again last night. Mom and Jenny bathed Tracy and shampooed her hair this morning. She did not have any therapy today. Mom and Jenny got Tracy in her chair at 10 AM until 11:15 AM. She seemed to really enjoy being out of her bed. She tolerated being up very well. We plan to get her back in her chair again this afternoon. Flat Stanley went with Tiffany, Rick and Sasha last evening to their kickball game on the National Mall in DC. They rode the metro to the Smithsonian stop and then posed with the team for some great pictures. He wore his new jeans and Harley Davidson leather jacket and baseball cap! They got some great pictures with the Capital and the Washington monument in the background. We are really going to miss him. He has to leave us tomorrow on his way back to Ryan in Florida! There are only a few more weeks of school and then Ryan and Flat will be off for the summer! Wow! What fun they will have. Hope they are safe in their adventures and travels this summer, and remember to wear a helmet. This afternoon, Mom, Jenny and Sasha took Tracy out on the balcony in her chair. It was a pretty Spring afternoon and the sun finally came out. Mom fed Tracy some Cold Stone Creamery frozen yogurt and Tracy had about 6 or 7 spoonsful. We are hoping that in a few weeks, Tracy will be ready to resume her active therapy schedule. At this time, we will begin making the transition to outpatient therapy at Georgetown Medical Center. We are looking forward to Tracy starting a new swallowing program that Mom has been researching: VitalStim. You can read more about this new and exciting program at www.vitalstim.com. We are so excited that Mamaw and Papaw are coming to visit us tomorrow. It has been too long and we are looking forward to their visit. Thank you to all of our good friends at the Wing of the Aerospace Medicine Association for the adorable card from Kansas City! Mom's ears were ringing all last week, while the annual conference was going on. You certainly made Mom's and Tracy's day! We miss you all very much and are so blessed to have such a wonderful aerospace family! Mom was going through some papers and found the CD she was looking for that was sent last Christmas from Billie Cruz, Mom's dental hygienist at Dr. Goff's office. It is a beautiful CD filled with inspirational songs of praise. She has already played it many times for Tracy and she seems to really relax to it! Thank you Billie! We are looking forward to the grand opening of our pool here at Crystal Plaza on May 28th. After more than 8 months of construction and jack hammering, we are more than glad to see the completion of an accessible pool for Tracy. Have a great week!

Tuesday, May 17th, 2005: 28 Months Since Tracy's Cardiac Arrest!: Tracy had another good night's sleep last night. Mom and Jenny bathed Tracy and got her ready for Physical Therapy with Humayun at noon. Tracy seems happy to have Tiffany home from school. She is also lucky to have her best friend Sasha living with us for a while. Mom is thrilled to have all her girls together! What a summer we have in store for us! During Physical Therapy, Humayun and Mom did some continuous passive stretching of Tracy's extremities. Tracy seems to have more tone when she is in the Clinitron bed. The humming noises, the vibrating sand, and the additional heat seem to be too much stimulation at time, resulting in Tracy's increased tone. Humayun is able to get Tracy stretched out so it doesn't appear to be permanent. We are looking forward to getting Tracy out of the Clinitron soon and back into her own low air loss, alternating pressure mattress. Just a few more weeks should do the trick! This afternoon, Karman came by for Tracy's Speech Therapy session. Mom decided to leave the room and let Karman work one on one with Tracy. She let Karman work with her tongue inside her mouth. Tracy lifted her tongue to the roof of her mouth more times today than yesterday! Karman was again very pleased with Tracy's participation today. Flat Stanley rested up today in preparation for his big kick ball game this evening with Tiffany, Sasha, and Rick. He is hoping to make MVP. Tiffany and Sasha are taking Stanley on the metro rail this evening to the Smithsonian where they will meet Rick for their kick ball game. Then, Tiffany, Sasha and Rick will give Flat a tour of the National Mall. They should all have a great time! We are sad to say goodbye to Flat Stanley. He has to leave us tomorrow on his way back to Ryan in Florida! There are only a few more weeks of school and then Ryan and Flat will be off for the summer! Wow! What fun they will have. Hope they are safe in their adventures and travels this summer, and remember to wear a helmet and always jump feet first first time when going off the diving board into the pool. This evening, Mom and Dad took Tracy out on the balcony in her wheelchair for about 45 minutes. It was time for Tracy to get out of the bed and into the chair. Mom thinks Tracy is really sick of being in her bed. It has been three weeks from today that Tracy had her surgery. She tolerated being up in the chair well and seemed to really enjoy being out on the balcony. We are hoping that in a few weeks, Tracy will be ready to resume her active therapy schedule. At this time, we will begin making the transition to outpatient therapy at Georgetown Medical Center. We are looking forward to Tracy starting a new swallowing program that Mom has been researching: VitalStim. You can read more about this new and exciting program at www.vitalstim.com. We are so excited that Mamaw and Papaw are coming to visit us next week! It has been too long and we can't wait to see them. Thank you to all of our good friends at the Wing of the Aerospace Medicine Association for the adorable card from Kansas City! Mom's ears were ringing all last week, while the annual conference was going on. You certainly made Mom's and Tracy's day! We miss you all very much and are so blessed to have such a wonderful aerospace family! Tiffany, Mom and Sasha went for a walk/run on the Mt. Vernon Trail today. It was a nice day for running, not too hot and humid yet. We are looking forward to the grand opening of our pool here at Crystal Plaza on May 28th. After more than 8 months of construction and jack hammering, we are more than glad to see the completion of an accessible pool for Tracy. Have a great week!

Monday, May 16th, 2005: Tracy slept well last night. Mom and Jenny bathed Tracy and got her ready for Physical Therapy with Humayun at noon. Tracy seems happy to have Tiffany home from school. She is also lucky to have her best friend Sasha living with us for a while. Mom is thrilled to have all her girls together! What a summer we have in store for us! During Physical Therapy, Humayun and Mom did some continuous passive stretching of Tracy's extremities. Tracy seems to have more tone when she is in the Clinitron bed. The humming noises, the vibrating sand, and the additional heat seem to be too much stimulation at time, resulting in Tracy's increased tone. Humayun is able to get Tracy stretched out so it doesn't appear to be permanent. We are looking forward to getting Tracy out of the Clinitron soon and back into her own low air loss, alternating pressure mattress. Just a few more weeks should do the trick! This afternoon, Karman came by for Tracy's Speech Therapy session. Mom decided to leave the room and let Karman work one on one with Tracy. She let Karman work with her tongue inside her mouth. Tracy lifted her tongue to the roof of her mouth three times! Karman was very pleased with Tracy's participation today. Gloria and her girls Samantha and Katherine came to visit us today. Samantha roller bladed with Flat Stanley this afternoon. We made sure that Flat wore his helmet and gloves! After that, Flat Stanley met some friends and went sailing on the Potomac. He rode in a bright yellow hummer, rode an angel fish, and rode a mechanical bull. As you can see, Flat Stanley has been really enjoying his stay in northern Virginia. He is really excited that Tiffany is home and can't wait to catch her up on all his adventures. Emil is coming by to give Tracy a massage this evening. He is also giving Tiffany a much-deserved and needed massage! Thank you to all of our good friends at the Wing of Aerospace Medicine for the adorable card from Kansas City! Mom's ears were ringing all last week, while the annual conference was going on. You certainly made Mom's and Tracy's day! We miss you all very much and are so blessed to have such a wonderful aerospace family! We are hoping that in a few weeks, Tracy will be ready to resume her active therapy schedule. At this time, we will begin making the transition to outpatient therapy at Georgetown Medical Center. We are looking forward to Tracy starting a new swallowing program that Mom has been researching: VitalStim. You can read more about this new and exciting program at www.vitalstim.com. We are so excited that Mamaw and Papaw are coming to visit us next week! It has been too long and we can't wait to see them. Tiffany and Rick arrived safely last night and Tiffany has been cleaning out her closets to make room for the five boxes of stuff that she shipped from Baton Rouge last Saturday. Can you believe they arrived already today. Thank you Rick for getting Tiffany and all her stuff back in one piece (well almost, minus the tire!). Rick is joining us all for dinner this evening. Dad is making, you guessed it, his famous salmon steaks for dinner! We love them. Have a great week!

Sunday, May 15th, 2005: 28 Months Since Tracy's Injury: Tracy was awake last night from 1:30 to 4:00 AM. Mom, Dad and Tracy slept in this morning until almost 10:00 other than multiple wake ups during the night and to give Tracy her morning medications and feeding. It was a pretty dreary day, and a good one to sleep in. No one made it to church this morning since Tracy is still on strict bed rest. It is taking all the patience that Mom and Dad can muster to not take Tracy out of the bed and on the mat. Of course, who better to obey doctor's orders than a doctor and a nurse! It will be a year in one week since the wound opened to the surface. We are learning, once again, how to be very patient. This morning, Mom and Dad bathed Tracy and got her ready for the day. Tracy spent the day resting and snoozing in her bed. Dad spent some time stretching and ranging Tracy in her bed. Flat Stanley spent the day hanging around the house and catching up on his reading. He posed for some pictures too. Flat Stanley has been enjoying his stay in northern Virginia. He is really excited that Tiffany is coming home and can't wait to catch her up on all his adventures. He met her several months ago in Palm Beach with Guy, Dawn and Sophia while on vacation. We are hoping that in a few weeks, Tracy will be ready to resume her active therapy schedule. At this time, we will begin making the transition to outpatient therapy at Georgetown Medical Center. We are looking forward to Tracy starting a new swallowing program that Mom has been researching: VitalStim. You can read more about this new and exciting program at www.vitalstim.com. We are so excited that Mamaw and Papaw are coming to visit us next week! It has been too long and we can't wait to see them. Tiffany and Rick left cousins Guy, Dawn and Sophia's bright and early this morning and within twenty minutes they got a flat tire. The irony is that just three days ago, Tiffany took her Honda in for the 60,000 mile service and bought four new tires! So, the tire lasted three days! Can you blelieve that? It took them two and half hours and they were back on the road heading north. We can't wait for them to get here. God bless and have a wonderful week!

Saturday, May 14th, 2005: Tracy slept well again last night. This morning, Mom bathed Tracy and got her ready for the day. Sasha arrived last evening and we are so happy she is able to spend some time with us. Sasha and Tracy hung out together this morning while Mom made Cajun turkey and provolone cheese omelettes. They came out just like you see on the cover of Bon Appetite! This is a miracle since Mom hasn't made an omellete in about as long a time as she has read Bon Appetite! Later in the afternoon, Mom and Sasha went for a run. They ended up in Old Town, Alexandria, about 4 miles away from home. It was a beautiful day and a perfect day for running. On the return trip, the weather got really bad with thunder and lightning and they made it back two minutes before the skies opened up. It even hailed! Whew! That was a close call. Flat Stanley spent the day with Dad and Tracy listening to the new Dave Matthew's Band CD Stand Up. Mom was afraid to take him on the run today because he was suffering from shin splints from his PRT yesterday. He has to run a mile and do push ups and sit-ups. He is trying to qualify for the Navy Seal Program. Mom took a picture of Flat Stanley in his Navy uniform. He is such a handsome devil. We will put his pictures up on the website on a link Sunday. Dad spent some time stretching Tracy this afternoon. Flat Stanley gave him a hand. Tracy will have to spend the rest of the week in bed on complete bed rest while her wound continues to heal. Dr. Buescher is being very conservative to make sure that her wound heals completely. It will be a year in one week since the wound opened to the surface. We are learning, once again, how to be very patient. We are hoping that in a few weeks, Tracy will be ready to resume her active therapy schedule. At this time, we will begin making the transition to outpatient therapy at Georgetown Medical Center. We are looking forward to Tracy starting a new swallowing program that Mom has been researching: VitalStim. You can read more about this new and exciting program at www.vitalstim.com. We are so excited that Mamaw and Papaw are coming to visit us next week! It has been too long and we can't wait to see them. Tiffany is FINISHED with her classes and has made it to cousins Guy, Dawn and Sophia's. She spent the day driving from Baton Rouge to Marietta, Georgia and should make it the rest of the way tomorrow evening. Rick is helping her drive. He is such a big help. Mom is so excited to have Tiffany home. It will be very therapeutic for Tracy to have her sister and best friend living with her! God bless and have a wonderful weekend.

Friday, May 13th, 2005: Happy Friday the 13th!: Tracy had another good night's sleep last night! She was so glad to have Dad home. This morning, Mom and Jenny bathed Tracy and got her ready for her appointment at National Naval Medical Center at 11:00. Dr. Buescher removed Tracy's stitches. She was very pleased with the way Tracy's wound healed, however, she does not want Tracy out of the bed just yet. She wants to be sure that her surgical site is totally healed. We will go back to see Dr. Buescher in two weeks. Until then, she will continue Speech and Physical Therapies in her bed. While we were at Bethesda, Dr. Humphries changed out Tracy's G-tube. She now has a spanking new one. Flat Stanley accompanied Tracy to National Naval Medical Center. He does not have a military ID, so we had to stop at the security office to have one made for him. He is such a handsome devil. We really think he has some potential to be a doctor some day. He assisted Drs. Buescher and Humphries with the procedures. He sure looks good in scrubs. He posed for photo opps with the doctors. (We will upload his pictures soon.) When we returned, Flat Stanley went with Dad to the Pentagon. He couldn't believe that it actually has five sides. He saw a lot of people dressed in uniform. Flat Stanley liked the navy one with the gold stars the best! We are hoping that in a few weeks, Tracy will be ready to resume her active therapy schedule. At this time, we will begin making the transition to outpatient therapy at Georgetown Medical Center. We are looking forward to Tracy starting a new swallowing program that Mom has been researching: VitalStim. You can read more about this new and exciting program at www.vitalstim.com. We are so excited that Mamaw and Papaw are coming to visit us next week! It has been too long and we can't wait to see them. Tiffany is FINISHED with her classes and is packing up all her stuff and driving back to DC/VA this weekend. Rick made it safely to New Orleans and is going to ride with Tiff back up north. They plan to drive through Marietta and will spend Saturday night with cousins Guy, Dawn and Sophia Lillian. We can't wait for them to get here. Sasha is coming this evening to stay with us for a while. It is going to be a full house this summer. Mom is so excited. It will be very therapeutic for Tracy to have her sister and best friend living with her! God bless and have a wonderful weekend.

Thursday, May 12th, 2005: Tracy slept much better last night after a little Tylenol with Codeine. Dad returns from Kansas City this evening. We miss him a lot. Liz has been such a huge help. Mom would not have been able to do it without her. Mom treated Liz to a massage today. Emil has such healing hands. He worked on Tracy a little too and plans to return tomorrow to work on her some more. Jenny and Mom bathed Tracy this morning and got her dressed. She had an early appointment at the neurologist's office to get her Baclofen pump refilled. Flat Stanley accompanied Tracy to her pump refill appointment in Alexandria. Flat Stanley was so supportive! He is seriously thinking about becoming a doctor. He didn't even faint when Joy took out the needle to refill Tracy's pump and he even helped Joy by putting on Tracy's bandaid. Later, Flat Stanley posed with Humayun and Karman, Tracy's Physical and Speech Therapists. He is so photogenic! After further investigation, Mom found out that Flat Stanley was the pilot who flew into the secured airspace over the White House yesterday. It appears that while Mom was under the dryer at the beauty salon, Flat Stanley was not where she left him in the heated massage chair. Instead, Flat Stanley was trying out his pilot skills in a Cessna that he rented at the executive airport in Falls Church! Maybe tomorrow, Flat Stanley will go to the Pentagon. Who knows, the Navy might recruit him for the flight program. Tracy's wound continues to heal, and is looking better each day. Dr. Buescher gave Mom the OK to pull the drain so she did. Tracy looked so relieved when it was out. Tomorrow, Dr. Buescher will take out Tracy's stitches. We are hoping that in a few weeks, Tracy will be ready to resume her active therapy schedule. At this time, we will begin making the transition to outpatient therapy at Georgetown Medical Center. We are looking forward to Tracy starting a new swallowing program that Mom has been researching: VitalStim. You can read more about this new and exciting program at www.vitalstim.com. We are so excited that Mamaw and Papaw are coming to visit us next week! It has been too long and we can't wait to see them. Tiffany is getting excited about finishing up this semester and coming home. She defended her professional project to her committee and passed with flying colors. We are all very proud of her. She turned in her blog research paper. Tiffany took her last final exam today. Her professional project is very exciting and is an opportunity to make a real difference to the many sailors and soldiers who have suffered a traumatic brain injury as a result of the war. She will be analyzing the Defense and Veteran's Brain Injury Center's website, and developing an action plan for improvement. She and Rick are planning to drive her car back home this weekend with all of her stuff packed to the roof. We look forward to their return Sunday. God bless and have a wonderful weekend.

Wednesday, May 11th, 2005: Tracy has a special visitor that came in the mail yesterday. His name is Flat Stanley! He belongs to Ryan Weissmark, Cousin Sophia's cousin! Stanley is from the story Flat Stanley by Jeff Brown. As the story goes, Stanley gets flat when a bulletin board falls on him. He had many adventures being flat. One thing that he can do is fold himself up in an envelope and mail himself to visit friends in far away places. We are going to take Stanley on Tracy's adventures this week in DC, Virginia, and Maryland! We are sure he will enjoy his visit and we hope you enjoy hearing about them too! Tracy is working with her switch in Speech Therapy with Karman and would love to hear what all of her friends are doing during the summer. Send her an audiotape or videotape of your travels and adventures. (See Contact Us link above).Tracy had a pretty rough night last night. She was awake from 2 to 4 AM, and seemed to be experiencing some discomfort. Mom gave her some Extra Strength Tylenol and she and Liz spent some time stretching her arms, legs and hips. It took her a few hours to settle down. She was even grinding her teeth. Dad is still in Kansas City at the Aerospace Medical Assn. annual conference. He returns Thursday evening. We miss him a lot. Liz is staying with Mom and Tracy. We are having a lot of fun! Jenny and Mom bathed Tracy this morning and got her dressed. She did not have any therapy today, so Jenny took advantage of the free time and gave Tracy a spa facial. Tracy really seemed to enjoy it too! Mom had a hair appointment at 3 PM at Capelli salon in Falls Church. She took Flat Stanley with her. Flat Stanley realized what a crazy driver Mom is, and was so glad he had his seat belt fastened securely. He seemed to enjoy the ride through Crystal City. They drove right past the Pentagon! Flat Stanley couldn't believe how big it was! They couldn't get very close, but he was able to get a pretty good view. He was even able to see the Washington monument through the rear view mirror. That's the same view that Dad likes of DC! At the salon, Flat Stanley got to sit in the heated massage chair while Mom got her hair done. Dario even gave Flat Stanley a new cut, a spiked flat top! Flat Stanley looks so cool! He even posed for a picture with Dario! While he was getting his Extreme Stanley makeover, one of the other clients recognized Flat Stanley, and said "Hey, that's Flat Stanley"! Tracy's wound continues to heal, and is looking better each day. The drain is still in place and draining a small amount. It will be pulled and the stitches removed on Friday, May 13th by Dr. Buescher (oh, not Friday the 13th!). We are hoping that in a few weeks, Tracy will be ready to resume her active therapy schedule. At this time, we will begin making the transition to outpatient therapy at Georgetown Medical Center. We are looking forward to Tracy starting a new swallowing program that Mom has been researching: VitalStim. You can read more about this new and exciting program at www.vitalstim.com. Tiffany is getting excited about finishing up this semester and coming home. She defended her professional project to her committee and passed with flying colors. We are all very proud of her. She turned in her blog research paper. She is studying hard for her research final and then will be packing it up! Her professional project is very exciting and is an opportunity to make a real difference to the many sailors and soldiers who have suffered a traumatic brain injury as a result of the war. She will be analyzing the Defense and Veteran's Brain Injury Center's website, and developing an action plan for improvement. She and Rick are planning to drive her car back home next weekend with all of her stuff packed to the roof. We look forward to their return around May 15th! God bless and have a wonderful week.

Tuesday, May 10th, 2005! Tracy has a special visitor that came in the mail today. His name is Flat Stanley! He belongs to Ryan Weissmark, Cousin Sophia's cousin! Stanley is from the story Flat Stanley by Jeff Brown. As the story goes, Stanley gets flat when a bulletin board falls on him. He had many adventures being flat. One thing that he can do is fold himself up in an envelope and mail himself to visit friends in far away places. We are going to take Stanley on Tracy's adventures this week in DC, Virginia, and Maryland! We are sure he will enjoy his visit and we hope you enjoy hearing about them too! Tracy slept much better last night. Dad is still in Kansas City at the Aerospace Medical Assn. annual conference. We miss him a lot. Liz is staying with Mom and Tracy. She is such a wonderful friend and is more like part of the family. Liz, Jenny and Mom bathed Tracy this morning and got her ready for her therapy today. Her schedule is a repeat performance of yesterday, with Physical Therapy at noon and Speech Therapy at 4 PM. Tracy had Physical Therapy today with Humayun. She was much more relaxed than last evening, and Humayun was really able to stretch her hips and legs. We are all getting anxious and ready for Tracy to get her stitches and drain out so we can resume her usual therapy schedule which is a lot more exciting than this one. Tracy is really tired of being in her bed! The good news is that the air conditioning is back on! Yay! Mom is a lot happier and Tracy is a lot cooler. Her bed puts out a lot of heat. Gloria came by to visit Tracy today. She is such a sweet person and we all had a good visit. During Speech Therapy, Karman worked with Tracy's laptop and her switches. Today, she worked on just the Yes switch, asking Tracy Yes questions. She held up eating utensils such as a fork, knife and spoon; an ince cream scoop, a cup, and Tracy's huge Goofy coffee mug! She asked Tracy: "Is this a fork/" describing it's characteristics and purpose. Tracy focused well on Karman, and really tried hard to raise and lower her chin to activate the Yes switch. She was able to successfully activate it more times today than yesterday. She was a little sleepy today, and even though her room is a lot cooler with the air conditioning on, the whirring sound of the fan and the humming sound of the bed puts everyone to sleep, especially Tracy. Liz and Mom fed Tracy some frozen yogurt from Coldstone Creamery. Tracy had a few spoonsful, but it seemed that the cold was aggrivating her. Nichole came by to spend some time with Tracy. She read some of her guestbook entries and looked at Tracy's slide show of her Europe pictures that Dad put in a power point presentation. Tracy's wound continues to heal, and is looking better each day. The drain is still in place and draining a small amount. It will be pulled and the stitches removed on Friday, May 13th by Dr. Buescher (oh, not Friday the 13th!). We are hoping that in a few weeks, Tracy will be ready to resume her active therapy schedule. At this time, we will begin making the transition to outpatient therapy at Georgetown Medical Center. We are looking forward to Tracy starting a new swallowing program that Mom has been researching: VitalStim. You can read more about this new and exciting program at www.vitalstim.com. Tiffany is getting excited about finishing up this semester and coming home. She defended her professional project to her committee and passed with flying colors. We are all very proud of her. She is working hard on her 5,000 -page paper, which is going to be more like 7,500 (the limit). She has one final exam this week and then she is done with her course work until Fall. Whew, I don't envy her. Her professional project is very exciting and is an opportunity to make a real difference to the many sailors and soldiers who have suffered a traumatic brain injury as a result of the war. She will be analyzing the Defense and Veteran's Brain Injury Center's website, and developing an action plan for improvement. She and Rick are planning to drive her car back home next weekend with all of her stuff packed to the roof. We look forward to their return around May 15th! God bless and have a wonderful week.

Monday, May 9th, 2005: Happy Birthday Uncle Mike! Tracy was up several times last night. She must have missed Dad! He is in Kansas City at the Aerospace Medical Assn. annual conference. We miss him a lot. Liz is staying with Mom and Tracy. She is such a wonderful friend and is more like part of the family. Liz and Mary (her daughter) gave Tracy an adorable shirt with fish on it. It looks so cute on Tracy. Liz is making her famous linguine with scallops for dinner! Mom, Liz and Jenny gave Tracy a bath and washed her hair in the basin. We are really getting to be pros at this. We can always retire and move to the country! Tracy had Physical Therapy today with Humayun. She was much more relaxed than last evening, and Humayun was really able to stretch her hips and legs. We are all getting anxious and ready for Tracy to get her stitches and drain out so we can resume her usual therapy schedule which is a lot more exciting than this one. Tracy is really tired of being in her bed! The good news is that the air conditioning is back on! Yay! Mom is a lot happier and Tracy is a lot cooler. Her bed puts out a lot of heat. During Speech Therapy, Karman worked with Tracy's laptop and her switches. Today, she worked on just the Yes switch, asking Tracy Yes questions. Tracy focused well on Karman, and really tried hard to raise and lower her chin to activate the Yes switch. She was able to successfully activate it several times. It is awkward in the bed and will be a lot better once we can set up the system in her wheel chair. Emil came by and gave Tracy a massage today. She relaxed and really seemed to enjoy it. She snoozed through part of her massage, which was good for Emil because her was able to really work her muscles with her so relaxed. Liz and Mom fed Tracy some pureed bananas and she ate about 2 ozs. We tried a little nectar consistency apple juice but she did not seem to like it. Tracy's wound continues to heal, and is looking better each day. The drain is still in place and draining a small amount. It will be pulled and the stitches removed on Friday, May 13th by Dr. Buescher (oh, not Friday the 13th!). We are hoping that in a few weeks, Tracy will be ready to resume her active therapy schedule. At this time, we will begin making the transition to outpatient therapy at Georgetown Medical Center. We are looking forward to Tracy starting a new swallowing program that Mom has been researching: VitalStim. You can read more about this new and exciting program at www.vitalstim.com.Tiffany is getting excited about finishing up this semester and coming home. She defended her professional project to her committee and passed with flying colors. We are all very proud of her. She is working hard on her 5,000 -page paper, which is going to be more like 7,500 (the limit). She has one final exam this week and then she is done with her course work until Fall. Whew, I don't envy her. Her professional project is very exciting and is an opportunity to make a real difference to the many sailors and soldiers who have suffered a traumatic brain injury as a result of the war. She will be analyzing the Defense and Veteran's Brain Injury Center's website, and developing an action plan for improvement. She and Rick are planning to drive her car back home next weekend with all of her stuff packed to the roof. We look forward to their return around May 15th! God bless and have a wonderful week.

Saturday, May 7th, 2005: Tracy had another good night's sleep! This morning, Mom and Dad gave Tracy a bath and got her ready for the day! The mornings are still cool here but the sun finally came out and it warmed up to the mid seventies! Mom went for a long run to the Key Bridge and back on the Mt. Vernon Trail. It felt sooooo good to run! She even ordered some new running shoes for Mother's Day! Tracy's wound continues to heal, and is looking better each day. The drain is still in place and draining a small amount. It will be pulled and the stitches removed on Friday, May 13th by Dr. Buescher (oh, not Friday the 13th!). Dad stretched Tracy this morning. The Hill-Rom technician came out to change the microfiber mesh sheet on Tracy's bed. SO, Mom and Dad had to move Tracy to her wheel chair while he worked on the bed. Tracy seemed pretty comfortable sitting in her chair. We did not let her sit for long, since she is not to have any pressure on her wound. Yesterday, the rehab technician from Mid-Atlantic came out to make some modifications to Tracy's wheel chair. He changed her head rest to one that has side wings to which we can attach her switched when she is healed and back in the chair. Then Karman can work on Tracy using her head control to activate the switches to advance her power point slide show, and eventually use them for communication. He also brought new foot rests and a leg strap to help Tracy to keep her right leg down. The technician also shortened the seat pan and cushion so that it fits Tracy's torso better and also added a wider pommel to help with her sitting posture. This evening, Tracy listened to one of her new books on CD that the Davidsons gave her for her birthday. It is called Northanger Abbey by Jane Austin. We are hoping that in a few weeks, Tracy will be ready to resume her active therapy schedule. At this time, we will begin making the transition to outpatient therapy at Georgetown Medical Center. We are looking forward to Tracy starting a new swallowing program that Mom has been researching: VitalStim. You can read more about this new and exciting program at www.vitalstim.com. Rick came over this evening to visit. He and Dad helped Sasha move some of her stuff out of Tas' apartment. She only has one more week working with Tas. We are really looking forward to having her hang out with us this summer. It will really be fun to have Sasha, Tiff, and Rick around to do some fun things around the city this summer. Tiffany is getting excited about finishing up this semester and coming home. She defended her professional project to her committee and passed with flying colors. We are all very proud of her. She is working hard on her 5,000 page paper and has a final exam to study for. Whew, I don't envy her. Her professional project is very exciting and is an opportunity to make a real difference to the many sailors and soldiers who have suffered a traumatic brain injury as a result of the war. She will be analyzing the Defense and Veteran's Brain Injury Center's website, and developing an action plan for improvement. She and Rick are planning to drive her car back home next weekend with all of her stuff packed to the roof. We look forward to their return around May 15th! God bless and have a wonderful weekend and a wonderful Mother's Day!

Friday, May 6th, 2005: Tracy had a good night's sleep! This morning, Mom and Jenny gave Tracy a bath and got her ready for therapy. She had Physical, Occupational and Speech Therapies today. First, Jenny spent some time massaging Tracy with warm scented lotion and stretching and ranging her. It is still cool here in Northern Virginia, with morning temperatures in the mid 40's! It didn't warm up above the mid 50's and the sun never came out. Tracy's wound continues to heal, and is looking better each day. The drain is still in place and draining a small amount. It will be pulled and the stitches removed on Friday, May 13th by Dr. Buescher. Tracy had Physical Therapy with Humayun at noon. He spent some time stretching Tracy's legs and hips. He does not think that Tracy is losing ground, even though she is unable to wear her knee cast while her wound is healing. He is being conservative with Tracy to let her heal well this week. He plans to push her more once her stitches are out and the wound is healed. Regina followed Humayun with Tracy's Occupational Therapy session. Today was Regina's last day of therapy with Tracy. We are very sad to see her go, and wish her luck and many blessings in her new job. She is excellent and Tracy really works hard with Regina. Today, Regina spent some time stretching Tracy's upper extremities. She focused on Tracy's neck, shoulders and arms. Then she put a wash cloth in Tracy's right hand and had her touching her face. Tracy tried really hard and moved her thumb a little. We will work on this some more. Finally, Karman, Tracy's Speech Therapist, worked with Tracy using her computer with her pictures in a Power Point presentation slide show from Europe. Tracy had to move her chin down to hit the switch to advance the slide. She did it a couple of times and then she got really sleepy. We are hoping that in a few weeks, Tracy will be ready to resume her active therapy schedule. At this time, we will begin making the transition to outpatient therapy at Georgetown Medical Center. We are looking forward to Tracy starting a new swallowing program that Mom has been researching: VitalStim. You can read more about this new and exciting program at www.vitalstim.com. Tiffany is getting excited about finishing up this semester and coming home. She defended her professional project to her committee and passed with flying colors. We are all very proud of her. She only has a paper to write and a final exam next week. Whew, I don't envy her. Her professional project is very exciting and is an opportunity to make a real difference to the many sailors and soldiers who have suffered a traumatic brain injury as a result of the war. She will be analyzing the Defense and Veteran's Brain Injury Center's website, and developing an action plan for improvement. She and Rick are planning to drive her car back home next weekend with all of her stuff packed to the roof. We look forward to their return around May 15th! God bless and have a wonderful weekend and a wonderful Mother's Day!

Thursday, May 5th, 2005: Feliz Cinco De Mayo! We found Tracy's old files and want to share her last AP English Essay from Gulf Breeze High School. This will give you some insight into how special she is and why she will come back to us. Here it is. BLESSED and Euthanasia: Filling God's Shoes. Tracy had a good night's sleep! This morning, Mom and Jenny gave Tracy a bath and got her ready for therapy. She had Physical and Occupational Therapies today. First, Jenny spent some time massaging Tracy with warm scented lotion and stretching and ranging her, while Mom donned her running shoes and hit the Mt. Vernon Trail for a run. It is still cool here in Northern Virginia, with morning temperatures in the mid to upper 30's! It warmed up to the sixties and the sun did finally come out. Tracy's wound continues to heal, and is looking better each day. The drain is still in place and draining a small amount. It will be pulled and the stitches removed on Friday, May 13th by Dr. Buescher. Jenny spent some time polishing Tracy's fingers and toes today! She takes such good care of Tracy. Tomorrow, she will give Tracy a facial! Tracy had Physical Therapy with Humayun at noon. He spent some time stretching Tracy's legs and hips. Her right knee measured 42 degrees. He does not think that Tracy is losing ground, even though she is unable to wear her knee cast while her wound is healing. He is being conservative with Tracy to let her heal well this week. He plans to push her more once her stitches are out and the wound is healed. Regina followed Humayun with Tracy's Occupational Therapy session. Tomorrow is Regina's last day of therapy with Tracy. We are very sad to see her go, and wish her luck and many blessings in her new job. She is excellent and Tracy really works hard with Regina. Today, Regina spent some time stretching Tracy's upper extremities. She focused on Tracy's neck, shoulders and arms. Then she put some castinetts on Tracy's fingers and had her work at making music. Tracy tried really hard and moved her thumb a little. We will work on this some more. This evening, Emil came and gave Tracy a much needed massage. She really was relaxed and seemed to enjoy it. Mom read Tracy's essays: Blessed and Euthanasia: Filling God's Shoes. Tracy works hard every day to overcome the ravages of severe brain injury.  Her essays give us all valuable insight into Tracy's undying spirit and love of life, a perpetual reminder that "life is good" despite the circumstances. We are hoping that in a few weeks, Tracy will be ready to resume her active therapy schedule. At this time, we will begin making the transition to outpatient therapy at Georgetown Medical Center. We are looking forward to Tracy starting a new swallowing program that Mom has been researching: VitalStim. You can read more about this new and exciting program at www.vitalstim.com. Tiffany is getting excited about finishing up this semester and coming home. She defended her professional project to her committee yesterday and passed with flying colors. We are all very proud of her. She finished her last class today and only has a paper to write and a final exam next week. Whew, I don't envy her. Her professional project is very exciting and is an opportunity to make a real difference to the many sailors and soldiers who have suffered a traumatic brain injury as a result of the war. She will be analyzing the Defense and Veteran's Brain Injury Center's website, and developing and action plan for improvement. We look forward to her return around May 15th! God bless and have a wonderful week.

Wednesday, May 4th, 2005: We found Tracy's old files and want to share her last AP English Essay from Gulf Breeze High School. This will give you some insight into how special she is and why she will come back to us. Here it is. BLESSED. Tracy slept a little better last night. She is still waking up, coughing, and vocalizing when she needs Mom. This morning, Mom and Jenny gave Tracy a bath and shampooed her hair the old fashion way, over a basin, since Tracy can not get out of bed. Then, Jenny spent some time massaging Tracy with warm scented lotion and stretching and ranging her. She seemed more comfortable today, and did not require any Tylenol. Her wound continues to heal, and is looking better each day. The drain is still in place and draining a small amount. It will be pulled and the stitches removed on Friday, May 13th by Dr. Buescher. Jenny spent some time giving Tracy a pedicure and manicure today. Tomorrow, she will give Tracy a facial! Tracy had Speech Therapy with Karman this afternoon. She spent some time massaging Tracy's facial muscles. She was pretty sleepy. Karman is coming again on Friday and plans to work with Tracy's switches. We hope she will be more awake then. The hum of the bed and the whir of the fan in her room would put anyone to sleep! This evening, Nichole, Tracy's friend and volunteer came over and read some of Judy Blume's Superfudge to her. She also massaged some of the Jasmine Vanilla smoothing lotion on her hands and arms. It is always great for her to visit Tracy! Rick, Sasha, and Tas came to visit us this evening and we all had pizza and salad. Tas has a little less than a week left at Georgetown and then leaves for New York to spend the summer with family. We will miss her! We are excited that Sasha will be spending the summer here in DC! We are hoping that in a few weeks, Tracy will be ready to resume her active therapy schedule. At this time, we will begin making the transition to outpatient therapy at Georgetown Medical Center. We are looking forward to Tracy starting a new swallowing program that Mom has been researching: VitalStim. You can read more about this new and exciting program at www.vitalstim.com. Rick came by Sunday and brought Tracy some beautiful flowers! He is so sweet and thoughtful! Tiffany is getting excited about finishing up this semester and coming home. She defended her professional project to her committee today and passed with flying colors. We are all very proud of her. She has another paper to write, another group presentation, and an exam next week. Whew, I don't envy her. Her professional project is very exciting and is an opportunity to make a real difference to the many sailors and soldiers who have suffered a traumatic brain injury as a result of the war. She will be analyzing the Defense and Veteran's Brain Injury Program's website, and making recommendations for improvement. We look forward to her return around May 15th! God bless and have a wonderful week.

Tuesday, May 3rd, 2005: We found Tracy's old files and want to share her last AP English Essay from Gulf Breeze High School. This will give you some insight into how special she is and why she will come back to us. Here it is. BLESSED Tracy was up several times last night. She would wake up coughing and then vocalize, one time she even called MOM! This morning, Mom and Jenny gave Tracy a bath. Then, Jenny spent some time massaging Tracy with warm scented lotion and stretching and ranging her. She seemed more comfortable today, and did not require any Tylenol. Her wound continues to heal, and is looking better each day. The drain is still in place and draining a small amount. It will be pulled and the stitched removed on May 12th by Dr. Buescher. Mom got in a short run before Tracy's therapy sessions. She hit the Mt. Vernon Trail and headed to the Alexandria marina. It was a beautiful crisp day and the sun was out. Not quite Florida, but Mom was sure happy to see the sun! Tracy had Occupational Therapy with Regina this morning. Regina worked with Tracy's neck, shoulders and arms while she was in her bed. Regina spent time stretching Tracy's neck and shoulders. She was very pleased with Tracy's range in her arms and shoulders. She also had Tracy focus on the butterfly which hangs above her bed. Tracy was a little sleepy at times but did a good job following commands. Regina also spent some time stretching Tracy's neck to the right, especially since she favors holding her head to the left. She wants Jenny to stretch her neck to the right atleast once every 30 minutes. After Occupational Therapy, Tracy had Physical Therapy with Humayun. He spent some time completing the necessary paperwork to resume Tracy's plan of care. This includes Mom giving him an updated medication list. The only new medications that Tracy is taking are antibiotics which protect her from getting another UTI and also any new infections while the drain is still in. Next, Humayun and Mom spent some time stretching Tracy's hips, legs and feet. Humayun went easy on Tracy today since it was her first day of therapy since her surgery. This afternoon, Liz and her daughter Mary came by to visit Tracy. It was really good to see them. We are hoping that in a few weeks, Tracy will be ready to resume her active therapy schedule. At this time, we will begin making the transition to outpatient therapy at Georgetown Medical Center. We are looking forward to Tracy starting a new swallowing program that Mom has been researching: VitalStim. You can read more about this new and exciting program at www.vitalstim.com. Rick came by Sunday and brought Tracy some beautiful flowers! He is so sweet and thoughtful! Tiffany is getting excited about finishing up this semester and coming home. We are all looking forward to her being home with us this summer. She is getting ready to defend her professional project to her committee on Wednesday. Wish her luck! We are all very proud of her. She has several more papers to write, another group presentation, and an exam next week. Whew, I don't envy her. Her professional project is very exciting and is an opportunity to make a real difference to the many sailors and soldiers who have suffered a traumatic brain injury as a result of the war. She will be analyzing the Defense and Veteran's Brain Injury Program's website, and making recommendations for improvement. We look forward to her return around May 15th! God bless and have a wonderful week.

Monday, May 2nd, 2005: Tracy slept well last night and was glad to be at home in her own bed in her own room. Mom and Dad were glad to be home too. This morning, Mom and Jenny gave Tracy a bath. Then, Jenny spent some time massaging Tracy with warm scented lotion and stretching and ranging her. Tracy seemed a little uncomfortable, but nothing that two Extra Strength Tylenol couldn't handle! Tracy does not have therapy today. It seems that every time Tracy is away or in the hospital we have to start the process over, with forms to complete and new orders to obtain. Humayun (PT) will be back tomorrow and Karman returns Wednesday (ST). You are not going to believe this but once again, we are looking for an Occupational Therapist. SO, if you know anyone who is licensed in the state of Virginia and neuro specialized, please send them our way. This afternoon, Mom went downstairs to the underground mall and got a pedicure. It was just what the doctor ordered. This evening, Dad and Mom stretched and ranged Tracy again. Since she did not have any official therapy today, it was necessary for them to make sure that she stays flexible during her two weeks on complete bed rest. Once these two weeks are over, Dr. Buescher will take out the drain and stitches and Tracy will be ready to resume her therapy schedule. At this time, we will begin making the transition to outpatient therapy at Georgetown Medical Center. We are looking forward to Tracy starting a new swallowing program that Mom has been researching: VitalStim. You can read more about this new and exciting program at www.vitalstim.com. Rick came by yesterday and brought Tracy some beautiful flowers! He is so sweet and thoughtful! Tiffany is getting excited about finishing up this semester and coming home. We are all looking forward to her being home with us this summer. She is getting ready to defend her professional project on Wednesday. Wish her luck! We are all very proud of her. She has several more papers to write, another group presentation, and an exam next week. Whew, I don't envy her. Her professional project is very exciting and is an opportunity to make a real difference to the many sailors and soldiers who have suffered a traumatic brain injury as a result of the war. She will be analyzing the Defense and Veteran's Brain Injury Program's website, and making recommendations for improvement. We look forward to her return around May 15th! God bless and have a wonderful week.

Sunday, May 1st, 2005: Dad spent the night with Tracy for a fifth night. Tracy settled down after Mom left and had a good night's sleep. This morning, Dr. Buescher came by and discharged Tracy to home. Woohoo! Everyone was excited, especially Tracy. Mom gave Tracy a bath and Dad packed up the van and they were on their way around noon. This afternoon, Tracy rested in her bed. She seems a little uncomfortable, but rested with some Extra Strength Tylenol. We hope she settles down and has a good night's sleep. She definitely needs her rest. This evening, Rick came over to visit and we all had Chinese food together. He brought Tracy some beautiful flowers! He is so sweet and thoughtful! Emil came by to give Mom and Dad a massage. He also spent some time with Tracy but she didn't seem to want to be bothered. So, we are letting her chill! Now that she has surgically closed the wound, we will have to be very careful that it is able to heal completely over the next three weeks. She will need to be on complete bed rest for another two weeks. She can still have therapy but it will need to be in her bed. No sitting in her chair and no lying on her therapy mat until it is healed. Tiffany is working hard too, and has a lot of work to do over her final two weeks of classes. Her master's proposal defense is scheduled for May 4th! Wish her luck! It is definitely taking shape. She will have to tell you more about her master's project. It is very exciting and is an opportunity to make a difference to the many visitors who use the Defense and Veterans Brain Injury Center's website. We are really looking forward to her return on May 15th for the summer. God bless and have a wonderful week.