Thursday, Feb. 11

Wow! What a full day we've had today~
James, Elizabeth and Seth came in last night and crashed with us at The Kimball. We stayed up and visited for a while but we were all pretty bushed. Grace slept with me in the double bed, Seth slept on the couch cushions in the bedroom and James and Elizabeth slept on the pull out in the living room. Gwen had her own little bed with her.

In the morning we all went to Jamba Juice together and then up to the hospital to see Dad.

Will and Jenni met us there. Dan was about the same as yesterday but when the Dr. came in and did the suction test again Dan was noticeably bothered. So, today he showed more awareness of his condition. Also, his eyes looked a little clearer. He still doesn't focus on anything but they seemed to be opened a bit more and clearer. That gave us all some hope. We took turns going in to visit Dan and I think everyone was glad to see him. We didn't meet with the team to discuss options because we were hopeful that maybe he was making some progress. The Dr. said we should give Dan a "couple more days" to see if he continues making progress. We tried to keep the kids all informed about the change of plans for the day but nothing is for sure...

Paunie, Larry, Cornell and Marlene all got to visit Dan today. Seth was there when they came and after they left, Elder Morgan from the Second Quorum of Seventies came through and visited with Seth for a few minutes, asked some questions about Dan and then left. I wasn't there at the time because I had to go to a nearby WalMart and get a "Leave of Absence" packet. I had to fill out several pages, have the Dr. fill out part and then the hospital faxed it to my store where they will process it for me. It was kind of my friends in the Pharmacy to think of me and let me know what I needed to do. I am really blessed to work with the good people that I work with.

The Kimball had to move us from our room that I'd had with them since I'd come. They thought that maybe they would have a "studio" for us but they couldn't be sure. I checked out this morning and they said to check back with them. We put our things in the ski closet and left for the day. Then after getting the Leave papers I went by The Kimball again and they gave me a key to another room. I got our things and went to the room. When I walked in all I could say was, "Oh my goodness!"
"Oh, my goodness". They had given us the suite. It's really nice a big with a large bedroom, one double bed, two singles and a pull out in the living room. There is more of a kitchen and living room with lots of room for family. It is sooo nice!!





Some of us noticed that today when we entered Dan's room and said his name, he would shift his eyes quickly toward the voice and then they went back to the other side. It happened enough that we were pretty sure he was aware of us there and tried to respond.

There were several of us at the hospital when the Neurologist came in to visit with us. He said he was thinking that Dan's condition should improve and maybe within a couple of weeks he would be fully awake and maybe even able to function at the same level that he was at before he began failing. It's certainly worth the wait. I think everyone agrees with us about him having a "quality life" rather than laying in a bed somewhere for a long time. None of us think that would work for Dan. The Drs. are aware of our desires for him along that line. But, he did show some improvements today and we are excited to see if it continues this way.

After that we headed back to The Kimball. The kids stopped and got some pizzas and pop for us for dinner so we had a nice dinner and a good visit with the kids tonight. I told them that Dad always had a way of getting us all together. I also think it did him some good to hear the kids voices.

So, like Gracie and I say each morning, "Today is going to be a good day." and that's exactly what it was.

Thanks your for all your prayers and love.