Day #99

Jennifer didn't get her botox injections today after all. Since the dr was sick on Friday he had to try to catch up on all his patients & didn't make it to Jennifer today. Jennifer also has been sick today. She threw up after lunch. They aren't sure if she has a bug or if it is medication related. Her hip was bothering her yesterday afternoon & last night so they gave her Percoset (sp?) for pain. She had told David she felt dizzy not long before she threw up. Hopefully it was the medication. As for her hip hurting her again, they did x-rays on it again & said everything looked ok. They think it may be more like muscle soreness in her hip/bottom area from Friday's physical therapy. They had her ride a bicycle for 15 minutes.

I enjoyed my weekend with Jennifer. Once again, it was very difficult to leave. I worked my way up to actually saying bye by mentioning every so often something about me having to leave soon such as "I need to start getting my stuff packed up so I don't forget anything" and "Bad weather is coming. I'll have to leave pretty soon to try to miss it." She still got a little upset & cried a little when I finally had to leave & actually said "bye", but nothing like the goodbyes of the last time I was there. I; however, cried off & on all the way home in my car! Not only because of having to leave her, but also because of thinking about everything she's been through & how far she's come & how far she still has to go.

She doesn't remember much of anything that has happened since the accident. David showed her a picture of their car & asked if she remembered seeing that picture before & she said "no". She also doesn't remember being in the other hospital. She thought the rehab hospital is the only one she'd been in. I'm glad she doesn't remember any of the bad stuff. God has taken those memories from her.

I told her about some of our family members who have traveled to see her. I told her our cousin, Missy, who lives in KY has visited her twice. Her eyes got real big & she said "Really?" I told her that Aunt Sissy & Uncle Mike from Tulsa had actually spent the night at the hospital with her one night. Again, her eyes got big & she asked "Really?" I let her know that they are planning on coming back to visit sometime soon along with our Uncle Pat from AR. I then told her Uncle Mike & Aunt Lula from TX had visited her also. I got the same response. She seemed pleased & surprised at the same time.

I told her again about all the love & support she has from all over the country & the world. I told her there are prayers being sent out for her from all over & how many lives she is touching, more lives than she could have ever imagined.

She still has some bruises under her fingernails from when they used to pinch them to see if she would respond. When I was painting her nails for her, I asked her if she knew how she got the bruises under her nails. She said "no". I told her how they used to pinch her fingertips so hard they'd leave bruises & how she'd didn't feel it. She looked surprised. I said "But you'd feel it now, wouldn't you?" She said "yes".

She can pucker up & give kisses. This is something she couldn't do the last time I was there. I kept trying to get her to do this last time, but she couldn't. She gave me several kisses this time. Mom said when Jennifer found out I was coming, she started practicing saying my name by saying "I love Lynn". She told me many, many times "I love you". She heard it just as many times, if not more, from me also.

She smiled & laughed a lot while I was there. She loved telling all the nurses I was "40" when I'm not! She thought it was really funny! It made my heart smile to see that. She's always had a beautiful smile, but I think it's even more beautiful now! I am truly blessed to have her as a sister.

When she told the nurses "no" the other day about wanting to get in her wheelchair, she also told them she wanted to "stay in bed". The nurses told her when she goes home David won't let her stay in bed all the time. She said "yes". They asked her "who's going to take care of those babies". She smiled & said "David". They asked her "who's going to cook?" She smiled again & said "David". They asked her "who's going to clean?" Same response. They said "well, who's going to work?" Same response. By now, we're all laughing & Jennifer said "David do it all!". I told David about it (he wasn't there at that time) & he said "I don't think so!"

Please continue to pray for her recovery, strength, & encouragement. She is well on her way to being the Jennifer we all know & love again, but still has a ways to go! She's getting closer...she was pretty ornery a few times while I was there. She picked on both me & David quite a bit. Please continue to pray for strength & encouragement for David as he continues to juggle time with Jennifer, time with the boys, & school. And don't forget those precious little boys! They need prayers too!

Love,
Lynn