Love that Dirty Water

For those who haven't known us for so long, Boston is the town where Amy and I met and fell in love (it was the trips back home with Amy that caused me to fall in love with The Bershires) back in the 80's. We always love visiting this city, which remains comfortable to us. Last week, though, we weren't really able to enjoy the trip. Today is a different story. We arrived late afternoon and were pleased to find cousin Lily and her boyfriend Byron visiting with Tim. Lily had just returned from a trip across the US of A and was eager to catch up with Tim. A great visit. We are again fortunate to have a family member nearby to fill in the gaps when we can't be out here. Lily is a student at Mass College of Art in town, and she'll be here from now on. John and JP stopped by as well to put a nice finish on another good day at Spaulding. We got a chance to meet Tim's roommate Brandon, from Needham. He's 27 and was in a car accident on July 19 - he's about a week behind Tim. He was with his sister Karen and her husband Paul. All very nice, and gave us a chance to return some of the assistance we have received by offering guidance, etc.

The first thing we did was confirm the news we heard about movement, and it was something special to see Tim move that thigh - just a little now, but enough that the therapists can "work it" and develop it. Tims legs were wrapped (to keep his blood pressure up), so we couldn't see that toe wiggle - Tim confirms that it's the big toe on his left foot. He is pumped and is now envisioning other parts of his body moving at his direction.

PT today was back on the board that stands Tim up straight and allows the PT's to put weight on his legs and feet, to get them back in use. While in that position, Tim repeatedly fired his thigh muscles. OT was an activity to build dexterity - moving and stacking cones on a table surface. He also held and did some exercises with 2 pound weights to build strength in all parts of his arms.

A highlight of the day was a shower for Tim - he is wheeled into a shower in a special chair and really enjoyed it. Hair washed, he looks great - I'll shave him tomorrow. His scar from surgery is almost healed and practically invisible.

We wound down the day with a glass of wine at the Beacon Hill Bistro on Charles Street, just two blocks from the beautiful and comfortable apartment that has been made available to us by a wonderful friend (thank you :-) ) while Jancy enjoyed some sort of tofu concoction purchased at Whole Foods Market. Sunday is rest day at Spaulding, so we're looking forward to nothing much at all with Tim.