Thursday, July 4, 2013

Before and After... A New Life (part 2)

The title comes from me feeling like our life is now and forever more set into two categories.. before the accident and after. It is still surreal how easily one moment in time can truly just change everything.

In my last post, I gave some of the details of the injuries we survived. Three of us are mostly back to normal. Abbie is a little different. Abbie suffered an  atlanto-occipital dislocation injury. It is also know as an internal decapitation. OUCH!! Wikipedia says this: This is generally fatal, since it generally involves nerve damage or severing the spinal cord. Thankfully Abbie's accident was not fatal and did not severe any part of the spinal cord.

Here are a few pictures, in order, of Abbie...
Before the accident 




My poor baby!! This was at the scene I believe. 
Abbie is wearing a non invasive halo. Thank God they didn't have to put the screws in her skull
Riding a therapeutic bike at the Children's Center.
Whiskey the dog came for a visit.       



















This next photo is when Abbie was getting out of the halo into some new hardware. The man you see pictured, Jonathan, is amazing. He helped Abbie with love and kindness, even when she was cranky! He came to see her numerous times while she was at the Children's Center, fixing her brace, trying his best to make her comfortable. He is simply a gift from God.

Abbie and Jonathan, the OU orthotist
The new brace. She looks happier here than she has in months!

Dressing up as Dr. Who for a friend's birthday party. She sure was excited. She still has her brace on here, and looks larger than life :) But in reality she has lost close to 10 lbs throughout the whole ordeal. 



YES!! Yes, this is Abbie with NO BRACE!! PRAISE THE GOOD LORD. 12 weeks later, the brace is off. Her neck is healing. She has been set free, with only a few restrictions. 



Abbie's amazing recovery is not over. She still has far to go, but the miracle God has performed through her is just evident. Look at her long giraffe neck :) You can't see the scar because it is in the back of her neck. It's about 5" inches long (that's what brothers are for... measuring the scar! HA!)

Sometimes it's hard in our lives to stop and really think about the things we have to be thankful for. I challenge you to do that today, right now. Because truly, in the matter of moments, your whole life can change.. for the better or worse.. and maybe a little bit of both at the same time. I, for one, am so grateful that I had God with me throughout this whole process. And the best part is... He will continue to be with me forever!!






Wednesday, July 3, 2013

Before and After...... A New Life (part 1)

I have never liked reading someone's blog and hearing how they are so sorry for not posting. Well, I now understand. It has been awhile for me, and truthfully I have no idea who even reads these posts :)

On March 15, 2013, my daughter, Abbie; my son, Philip; and our exchange student, Eva and I were all so pumped for Spring Break to start. We were all ready at about 4:30 to FINALLY get on the road and head to Chicago. The plan was to just drive until Philip and I were too tired to drive, get a hotel and then finish the ride in the morning. We were on our way to see John, my oldest, at college and to see my brother and sister in law, Kevin and Glazia. I think I told every one I knew we were going. I had posted on Facebook, even spent time counted down the time. Now, just in case you don't know, I grew up just outside of Chicago. We weren't just going to Chicago (which is awesome on it's own), but in my heart and mind... we were going HOME.

So we jumped in the roomy mini van, and headed out. Bought some gas just up the road then got on the turnpike. Listening to music, eating snacks........ I am sure you know where this is going.... Approximately 34 miles from home... we were REARENDED by a semi. WHAT!?!?! Yes, yes we really were. No joke!!
This is a real true picture of my mini van after the accident.



We survived ONLY by the grace of God.

I really have been somewhat busy these last 3+ months. Philip suffered a severe concussion and 18 staples in his head. Thankfully he is doing great. Eva broke a bone in her foot, dislocated and fractured her elbow. She has since gone home to Denmark (oh we miss her!!) but the doctor declared her a healed "perfect" patient before she left. I am still sore and have a swollen right leg (it's about 4 inches bigger than my left.. no joke!). Abbie, however, has not been as fortunate. Well, she is so fortunate. She is indeed a walking miracle!! I'll post more about her and her recovery tomorrow......

So, if you missed me... now you know what has been happening........

The weird thing is... we are on summer vacation and I am feeling like it is time to go back to school. I know I know, I sound crazy! HA!! But I have been out since March 15th, so it is somewhat understandable. I just hope and pray I can be somewhat productive between now and when school starts... maybe tomorrow.. after my nap :) HA!