Moving Day

 

Graham Update Day 36 (7/14/14)

 

Today was a very big day for Graham.  It marks the end of his treatment at Children's Medical Center and the beginning of his rehab at Our Children's House at Baylor.  His transport was definitely a happier occasion than his last ride in an ambulance, and upon arriving at Our Children's House he met a whole new host of people, and showed off some great new tricks.

 

We started off the day by loading up Graham's stuff in a wagon and taking it all down to the car.  We then took Graham back up to the ICU for the first time since he left.  We had a wonderful surprise on our way  - Dr. Braga, Graham's brain surgeon, came in on his day off to say goodbye to Graham.  I remember the first time that Graham saw Dr. Braga with his own eyes: It was less than a week after moving to the neuro floor from the ICU, and Dr. Braga walked in Graham's room for rounds with his team, and Graham gave the biggest smile that he'd given up until that point in time.  Today was no different.  Graham doesn't understand yet everything that has happened and is happening, but it's as though he feels just how important Dr. Braga is. 

 

Once at the ICU, He gave hugs and said goodbye to a lot of people that took such great care of him, and then we headed back down to the room to wait for his 10:00 transport.  We got a wonderful surprise - two of our favorite ICU nurses came to say goodbye to Graham.  Graham gave them both hugs, but when it came time to hug the nurse who loved him from his first day, and took the time to meticulously clean his face and speed up his surgery - Graham wouldn't let go.  It reminded me of the time a couple weeks ago when Graham saw doctor Braga - he acts like he can feel how much his ICU nurse and his brain surgeon have done for him.

 

 

 

Then it was time for transport.  Some EMTs came up with a gurney and Graham climbed on up.  They fastened him in and secured him, then moved him down to the ambulance with Lindsey on board and myself driving right behind.  Graham seemed to think it was cool - they even put on "Finding Nemo" for him to watch along the way.  It was definitely a better circumstance than the last time Graham rode in an ambulance 36 days ago.  The only real hiccup was the sun - Graham is still not opening his right eye much at all, and the pupil in his left eye is not very reactive.  It responds a little bit to light, but for the most part is wide open all the time, allowing copious amounts of light in.  So to combat the bright sun in the sky we used a very advanced medical technique which is clinically called "put a towel over his head."  So that advanced medicine is what you see in the pictures below.

 

We arrived at Our Children's House a bit before 11:00 this morning.  We then had about 4 hours of meeting people, evaluations, paperwork, and even a little nap for Graham.  Everyone was very nice and seemed to be very good at what they do, but it will be very hard for them to top the performance of his Physical, Occupational, and Speech Therapists back at Children's. 

 

They certainly didn't waste any time in challenging Graham.  He walked down an entire flight of stairs, had his flexibility tested, walked backwards, walked sideways, and more.  One of the things that surprised Lindsey and me the most was the control he showed with his legs - he was able to walk on a straight line, one foot in front of the other.  So yeah, Graham can pass a field sobriety test, as long as he has a physical therapist to hold on to his little therapy belt.

 

 

 

 

So we begin a new chapter.  There is a lot of emotion as we move from an emphasis on saving his life and stabilizing him medically to a focus on relearning the things that have escaped him in the last 36 days.  But we are so grateful for Graham and his progress, and for the blessing that it is for Graham to be where he is.  When we met his doctor this afternoon she was VERY amazed that Graham has come so far, so fast.  Just more proof of the power of fasting and prayer.  Thank you all for praying for our son - it's working.  Please continue to pray for him with us that he will continue to progress towards a full recovery in his therapy. 

 

#Prayers4Graham