Wednesday night was a special night...I tucked Norma in as usual for either her five minute nap or her lengthy rest; but last night I tucked her into our own bed in our own bedroom and WOW, WHAT A TREAT! Praise God. Praise the Lord and again thanks for all the prayers. She was discharged from the hospital at UIC Medical Center at approximately 5:00 p.m. after going through various assessments, discharge paperwork, pharmaceutical explanations on the medicine she’s required to take while she's home. We’re also trying to set up a plan of care for her while she's at our home, and also going to rehab probably five days a week for three to six hours a day for cognitive improvement. We've not yet established that plan, but that's what took us so long to get out of Shawshank! (Please see the photos that we took that hopefully you'll enjoy).

As I drove Norma over the Eisenhower to start our trek homeward at approximately 5:30 p.m, with Norma’s sister Nancy and Ginger following as they had offered to follow us back home to help out and get her settled, I noticed that it was a parking lot. Again the condo comes to the rescue. Thanks again Mary and John! We decided to take Norma back to the condo one more time so we could clean up the condo, wash all the sheets and towels, and put it in order for the next visitor. We also grabbed a bucket of chicken and partied hardy until 8:30, giving us a chance to have dinner in a relaxed setting and saving us from sitting in traffic for two hours bumper-to-bumper. We also got a chance to watch some American Idol and that was fun, and Norma had a chance to lie down and get some additional, much-needed rest. At 8:30 we got in our cars and Norma was tired so I suggested to Nancy and Ginger that they go home because I was pretty confident that Norma would go right to bed once we got there - and I was correct. We visited with my Mom briefly and Scooter, our little 17½ year old Maltese who was eating like a pig but doing somewhat better, even though we know his age will eventually catch up with him. The fact that he’s still here is a blessing, and I know that many of you being animal lovers have been praying for him as well and it's worked. So, thanks again.

Thursday 2/28/2008

Today (Thursday), we got up and kept our 8:30 a.m. appointment with our good friend, Sue Mudry for haircuts. I was impressed that Norma set the alarm for 6:30 Thursday morning to keep her appointment with Sue Mudry our good, lifelong friend. She got a little tired getting ready, but she was able to shower and do everything by herself. We got in the car at about 8:30 and arrived about 15 minutes late, but Sue was there with open arms. Our good friend, Mike Mudry also stayed home from work so he could give her a squeeze and we all gave each other a mutual hug, and again - another one of those warm blankets. It's always an emotional time to see a friend healing and it's also an emotional time with most friends when you really need them. Sue did a great job on gussying up Norma. This is the first time I can actually recall where Norma decided to have her hair cut, at least in the front, a little bit shorter than mine. There's always a first for everything. I think she looks great and her hair's growing in more each day. Hopefully, it won't be long before she'll be able to go out dancing!

We had a nice visit, got our business done, and then we got a request to stop at Starbuck's on the way home. Norma got some hot chocolate, peppermint flavored, and the rest of us got our coffees and we were ready to go. So that's the current update and I will continue to keep you informed. We appreciate the prayers on the cognitive side, and for everyone else.

I also wanted to mention that our good friend, Dan Dolan, Jr. called me this morning because he had heard about Norma and his wife, Dawn, had suffered a seizure about the same time as Norma did and she also was hospitalized. She has the same kind of short-term cognitive issues that Norma has. Things happen for a reason but I want to ask that you all please pray for Dan and Dawn Dolan as well. I thought a good fix for this being on the positive side would be for the Dolan and the Ireland boys to go out to celebrate while Norma and Dawn head off to cognitive rehab together.  That might be a very efficient way to get through this. In fact, Dan and I would probably vote to have them stay for six to eight hours instead of three hours, so we could do our appropriate good job on the celebrating part. But sanity must prevail. We must be careful and be responsible (as much as that's hard for us to do). Anyhow, thanks for the love and take care.