Pics from 8/3/08 (For you Kim)

Kaley & Caroline came to meet Brooke!
Aunt Kimmie with Lindsay!
The girls hanging out on my neighbors porch swing.
Brooke's first Limo ride...(of course we put her inside)
Sisters hanging out on the limo
Sisters hanging out IN the limo
Brooke decided she could sleep while we went to get ice cream at Brusters.
Kimmie with both girls...
Lindsay bonding with Kaley about being the "Big Sister"
My fave pic of Lindsay running up and down the stairs after her ice cream.

This was the night before I had the aneurysm. Hard to believe the next day completely changed our lives...Thankfully I'm finally getting the opportunity to post these pics!

Emotional Day Today

Mike and I decided to attend Mass together today. We go to St. Peter Chanel in Roswell and our new sanctuary just opened 8/15 while I was in ICU. The photo of the four of us on Brooke's Birth Announcement was at the altar in our old sanctuary where I mentioned in a previous post that we thought it might be our last time there and I had to have a photo of us in that spot. Ha! Little did I know, right? It's so weird to go back and read that now since it was just a week before our lives really got interesting. I still can't imagine how Mike got through my aneurysm drama or what I would have done if the roles had been reversed.

Anyway, our priest came to see me at Emory several times and I remembered to ask him how the new church opening went the week after it happened. I also was bummed out because we had missed Brooke's Baptism date which was supposed to be 8/17. She would have most likely been the first baby Baptized in the new church. We now have it rescheduled for the 11th of next month...her three month birthday. Good Lord willing (or my mother-in-law willing) we'll squeeze her into the family Baptism gown on that day!!

At any rate, I'm all over the place here. Mike and I had an emotional experience at church today. I lost it right before the sign of peace and all the people I shook hands with were wondering why I was crying at this point in the Mass. The choir sang Amazing Grace during communion and that didn't help things at all for me. The new sanctuary was so overwhelming and beautiful Mike and I both cried as we walked around and looked after most everyone else left. One of the deacons that we haven't seen in a while came up to us and prayed over us and even he was having trouble staying composed. I just felt so happy to finally see the church and to be there and Thank Heaven I made it. I have been looking forward to getting back there since ICU when Father and I talked about it. So all in all I was an emotional mess. Once Mike lost it a little bit I was even worse. I'm so glad we went with no babies today since the girls are both with family we made it a time for us as a couple and then went and had lunch afterword.
I even got Mike to agree to a vow renewal in four years (when we hit our 10 year wedding anniversary) he was so moved! (By the way Mike, I have it on tape!)
Neither of us can imagine how awesome Brooke's Baptism is going to be in three weeks~
It was an emotional day but I needed it and I think WE needed it together!

Aunt KK gets some Baby time

KK was having Lindsay withdrawl too! Mike took her over to visit Lindsay one day at Aunt Agatha and Uncle Paul's house when I was napping!
Brooke got her Aunt KK time too. Lindsay is KK's "Doodle Bug" and Brooke has been dubbed "Snuggle Bug"
Here is a pic of Brooke from yesterday hanging out in the recliner.

Flashback to July 15, 2008

Homecoming Day for Brooke-I had these set up to put on the blog and never got to do it. I felt the need to finish off the cycle of Brooke's hosptial days and her homecoming day so here it is... Aunt Patti got Brooke dressed and ready so we could take photos
Daddy tried to get some good shots in the homecoming outfit
Thanks Missy for finding this outfit and sweet booties for her
This is one of my fave shots of me and Brooke
I was amazed at how tiny she looked in the car seat!
Check out that pose...she still is so funny with her poses
YAY Aunt Patti is helping us get discharged and home!
Momma and baby girl heading out finally!
We checked in on Donna at work on the way out the door

Proud new parents...again!

We stopped at the daycare on the way home and let everyone come check Brooke out in the car.
They were awesome to put up a sign announcing Lindsay was a big sis even though she wasn't still attending school at the time! They've been phenominal to us throughout everything too.
I wanted to take this photo but Brooke wasn't in the mood...

I AM A SURVIVOR

I found this on the internet in some of my searches of survivor stories. I guess you could say I'm still amazed that I lived through what happened and I'm still searching for the answers to some of my questions. This poem really got to me and I had to share it with all of you that are praying for me and my family. Thanks!

S lowly I wake, no memories of hours past.
U nbelievable circumstances, I did outlast.
R ecovering and healing both lie ahead.
V ictim, not I, but survivor, not dead.
I mpossible to grasp or want to know,
V ery scared and hopeful, both high and low.
O ut of this illness, this tragedy, this pain,
R eal strength, real courage, and real love will remain.

- written by H. Karp another subarachnoid aneurysm survivor

Visitors/Update

Here are just a couple of pics...above is my neighbor Megan (Known as "MY MEGAN" to Lindsay). Below is Carol who has been taking such good care of all of us while she's been here!
Things have been going right along over here in rehab land. Mike is doing well with his recovery. I got to go to his post op appointment with him yesterday and finally meet the surgeon who worked on him. As we were leaving I had my first little kid ask his mom loudly "WHY IS THAT LADY WEARING A HELMET MA?" It was funny. Mike and I were laughing as we walked out and saw the mom in the "SHHH..." crisis mode! I should have turned around and told him I was heading home on my skateboard and where was HIS helmet?

Mike is moving a little slower in the evenings but he's hanging in there. The night before last he over did it a bit with little Miss Brooke who was wanting to be rocked ALL evening. We're getting Brooke again tonight so we'll see how Daddy feels tomorrow. We're still sharing her with her Aunt and Uncle who have more than made room in their lives for my and Mike's recovery. Lindsay is still doing well at camp grandparents and going to her other Aunt and Uncles on the weekends. It feels at times like I'm never going to have everyone that is supposed to be under my roof back together but I'm refusing to let those thoughts invade me. Everyone is doing what they can to get well and live life and that's the focus.

My outpatient rehab is going well. The PT girl has been really working my legs. I can almost squat down and stand back up without holding onto something to support my weight. I've been doing wall squats, lunges and treadmill walking primarily. Occupational therapy has been working more with my upper body strength. Needless to say I come home from those classes wiped! I'm noticing changes in myself just since I've gotten home almost two weeks ago. I couldn't have picked anything up off the floor two weeks ago unless I did it with my toes (which I call the pregnant way and I was skilled!) Now, I can bend down and pick up shoes or socks off the floor without squatting as long as I keep my head up and my chin sort of pointing up. The purpose is not to let my head go below my heart to avoid a pressure or headache feeling. Things are definitely improving.

My hair is growing like crazy. It's so funny how coarse it feels and the top is really getting thick again. Mike even keeps telling me how much he likes the silver that is definitely visible. He tells me I should keep it and stop coloring it but I think he just knows how much I pay every six weeks to cover that silver up and is looking for a way to get me to not go back to that. LOL! My hairdresser has NEVER seen me with short hair (certainly not this short) and is so excited to try out every short hairstyle on me as it's growing back out. I'm thinking that will be sort of fun as long as I can eventually cover the gray again. Unfortunately, I can't do that until I have no scar/scab tissue left showing on my scalp. That will be a good while from now since we know I've got to have one more surgery to replace the skull flap eventually. (Which also means another partial shave...UGH) You all will be sick of my hair posts before this is all over I'm sure. Sorry. At least hair grows back, right?!

Ok, so this is getting long winded and I'm being told I need to take a break...gotta run!

Birth Announcement

Thank you Christi King!! They look awesome! You are so incredible to do this for us!