Paul's Update - 07/30/07

Dear Friends:

What an awesome start to another week. Paul started out Sunday by getting up and dressing himself. He put on his own shirt, socks & shoes. Dad said he didn't want to do his pants so Dad helped him with that. He also shaved himself and bushed his own teeth. We didn't go to breakfast since Bill & Ronda were still out of town. I left about 9:30 to go and pick up Joanne at the nursing home and we went straight to the church. Dad, Gradis & Paul were late to Sunday school because Paul WALKED all the way to church! It isn't that far ... about 350ft and it is down hill but it is still a lot of walking for Paul. He is getting very strong. He was very alert during the service and sat in the pew with Dad & Me. It is hard to imagine that only a few months ago he still had mostly a stare on his face ... now he pays attention to people and speaks to them when they say hello. After church Dad planned for Paul to walk home. He gave him an option to ride with me but Paul said "no". As I was driving away from the parking lot I noticed that Paul had stopped in the middle of the lot so I stopped the car and asked him if he wanted a ride. He nodded his head "yes" so I unlocked the door and he opened the back door and sat down by himself. I guess he was tired from all that walking!! The afternoon was mostly quiet and it rained for several hours. When it rains the Satellite TV doesn't work so we turned off the TV and everyone took a nap!! It was a great day for that!! LOL For dinner I made a roast with potatoes and carrots. Paul continued his hunger streak and ate all of his dinner within about 20 minutes. This doesn't seem like much but he had been taking almost 40 minutes on average to eat his dinner lately. After dinner Dad had taken Paul to the bathroom and on the way back out he went past his chair in the living room. He was heading to the laundry room. We told him he couldn't go outside since it had been raining and everything was wet. When I asked him if he knew he couldn't go outside he shook his head "yes" but kept walking. He went straight toward the garage door. As he neared the door the cat food container was in the way of his walker. He stopped for a second and looked at it then he maneuvered his walker sideways and then WALKED SIDEWAYS to avoid the container. He got to the door, opened it and he walked down the steps to the garage. Dad was holding him from behind but he managed the steps really well. Once he was at the bottom of the steps he walked straight to the driver side door on our car and opened it. Then he let go of the walker and positioned himself to get into the car. He sat down in the driver seat all by himself. He was very proud of himself!! Dad asked him if he wanted to drive and he nodded "yes" but when Dad asked him "do you remember how to drive?" he shook his head "no". This is the second time in a week that he has gone to the car (or truck) and wanted to get in the driver seat! We can't tell if he wants to go somewhere but he seems to know what he is doing!

Monday was another incredible day. After dressing himself and getting breakfast Dad got Paul ready to go to the gym. When it was time to go Dad told him to head for the front door so they could get in the van. Paul shook his head "No" and headed for the garage again. He walked straight to our car and stood next to the passenger door on the driver side. I asked him if he wanted to take the car to the gym and he nodded his head "yes". So Dad opened the car door and Paul got into the BACK seat! He and Dora got to be chauffeured to the gym!! Dad said Paul had a great workout again. This was gym day ... tomorrow will be pool day! He did leg presses of 185lbs and leg extensions of 50lbs. Dad said he complains about doing it but he still DOES it!! He also did arm exercises ... something called triceps presses and did about 50lbs of weight on that. Dad also has him doing a bench press but they are only doing 40lbs with that since his arms are not very strong yet. He does really well with the arm machine where he has to pull the weights from over his head down to his lap. It stretches his arms when he extends above his head. He did the row machine that simulates a rowing action. This strengthens his back muscles. He also did arm curls and this was the first time he has done them by himself. He is only doing 10lbs with these weights. Once they are done with the machines Paul works out on the bicycle for about 10 minutes. This equates to about 1.2 miles. Dad said he peddles more constant which is an improvement from when he first started doing the cycle. Dad decided to join the gym for a year since they have been going so often and it has been so good for them both! I went out and did errands while they were gone and when they got home Paul was able to walk himself up the steps in the garage by himself. He walked into the laundry room, kitchen and dining room but when it was time to head for the living room he turned and headed towards our bedroom. We have a king size water bed and Paul went to the end of it ... turned around and SAT DOWN on our bed!! He was very proud of himself! Dad asked him if he wanted to lay down for a bit and he nodded "yes" so Dad told him to scoot himself up onto the bed. He lifted his feet up onto the bed and pushed himself to the head of the bed ... all by himself! He laid in there and watched TV for a couple hours before Dad finally got him to come into the living room and eat lunch. It is so wonderful seeing him make his own decisions ... and be able to accomplish things for himself. It seems like all the exercise (and maybe the new medicine) is waking him up and making aware of the things he would like to do. After dinner Carolyn, Billy, Alysa & Chris came by for a visit. It was nice having them over. Paul really enjoys talking with Billy. Even when he won't talk to us ... he seems to be willing to talk to Billy! Paul went to bed a little early (10pm) but he was really tired! He has been so active and alert over the last few weeks. We are amazed and grateful that he is doing so well.

Have a great day! Lynne & Carl