Soooooooo sorry that it's been so long since the last update. Logan is well and continuing to make progress. He had his first follow-up visit back at TIRR this past week. We were able to see many of the therapists, nurses, and techs who worked with Logan while he was there and most of them started the conversation with, "Oh, my God!". They were excited about how much Logan had improved since we left a couple of months ago. Although Logan didn't remember his time at TIRR, he enjoyed the visit and all the attention he got from the staff. We've always told him how crucial the staff at TIRR was to his recovery. We will be seeing a doctor in September about scheduling the tendon lengthening procedure so Logan can move forward with walking. The therapists that he has been working with in Sulphur have been helping him in many ways; he has begun to walk with a one handed walker (I don't know what it's called) and he is moving his left foot forward with minimal assistance. It's a huge improvement over what he was doing when he first came home. He's also getting help with reading and many other things having to do with cognition. We had been doubtful about his ability to walk due to the lack of movement on the left side, but with some movement coming back in the left leg and with some help from this surgical procedure, it looks like he might just pull it off. At the very least, he could stand and transfer from one thing to another with much greater ease if his foot is flat on the ground. We are also considering going back to TIRR in the near future (after the tendon surgery) for a few weeks of rehab. At that time it would be possible to remove the peg tube, reduce considerably the number of medications that he is on, and work on some other things as well. While I'm sure that he won't be thrilled about having to go back into a hospital setting, he is very determined to walk, so I think he'll go along with the plan. It would be good to get him on his feet and moving more since he is eating everything we put in front of him (he's probably gained about 15 pounds, which he needed) since coming home. His short term memory is still very poor; I'm not really sure how much improvement to expect in the future.  Well, that's about it for now and I'll try not to take so long before the next one.                                                                                                                                                       

                                                                        This is for the OT Logan had at TIRR who we didn't get to see when we went this week---the one thing that he remembered about TIRR was something about, "Jang-a-lang-a-lang". He still cracks up when we say that. I wish he could have seen you, maybe when we go back.                                                                                                      

                  I know it's been a while, but we're still here. Logan is doing fine and continues to go to outpatient therapy three times a week. He doesn't mind going as much as he used to since one of his therapists began bribing him with food (it appears to be working). He is standing with much less assistance and walking between parallel bars with help moving his left foot forward. While the improvements are smaller and more subtle than when we first got home, he is doing a little better from week to week. We will be going to Houston for a checkup in a couple of weeks; Logan has improved a great deal since they saw him last. We will discuss with his doctor how best to procede with the problems concerning his left foot. Any concerns we had about him regaining his speech have been put to rest as he talks all the time now. More later.

               Logan has begun to go to outpatient therapy three times a week as of last Friday. He sees the occupational, physical, and speech therapist at each visit, which lasts for three hours. Having all three therapies in a row is a challenge for him; at TIRR, they were spread out over the course of the day. I'm sure it's a challenge for the therapists as well, trying to keep him focused for the entire time. We had his peg tube changed out this week and are still using it for giving medications. It seems that he is trying to make up for not eating regular food for nine months or so by eating everything that is put in front of him. I'll have to remember to ask about weighing him the next time he goes to therapy; I'll be surprised if he hasn't put on some weight. We're really thankful that he has been well and fever-free since we got home. Work has been started on a shower for Logan which will make things easier for us and more enjoyable for him. Bathrooms are a huge deal when you're using a wheelchair, and ours were totally unaccessible. About a week ago, Logan asked to see the website and many of the posts were read to him. He was very moved by all the comments and prayers that were offered up for him during the past eleven months. I'll have to help him post a comment of his own, although I will not be responsible for the content of said post. While his vision is good, he has difficulty getting both eyes to work together in order to read. This causes him to lose his place easily and returning to the left for the next line of text is also something that will take a lot of time and work. It is very frustrating for him, so we can only work on those exercises for short periods of time. His short term memory still isn't good, but seems to be getting a little better. Cognitively, some days are better than others (I find that true for myself as well). The tone in his left foot and ankle which makes his foot point down and turn inward continues to be a challenge when standing or using a rolling walker. We are weighing the options for addressing the problem which include tendon lengthening and splints. That's about it for now; thanks for your continued support and prayers.

                            It's been hectic around here, so I've not posted an update for a while. Logan continues to make improvements; he can transfer himself will only minimal assistance from the bed to the chair and back, and we've stopped the tube feeds. We drove to Baton Rouge yesterday to purchase a Toyota van that has an access chair that comes out of the van to allow us to put Logan in the seat and takes him back into the van. This enables him to ride in a regular car seat instead of the wheelchair. We'll probably start outpatient therapy soon now that we have good transportation; we've been doing the home visit thing up until now. We are in the process of making changes to one of our bathrooms (probably the biggest problem we've had since coming home), so that Logan can use the shower. We're still figuring things out as we go and equipment is a huge deal (the right equipment, I should say).

         Things are still going well and Logan's appetite continues to improve (maybe a little too much). He's talking all the time and hasn't lost his sarcastic sense of humor; the jury is still out on whether that's a good thing or not. He is cooperative with the therapists for the most part, but still hates the wheelchair. We're trying to find one that he doesn't mind sitting in for longer periods of time. He had a doctor's appointment today; he's going to the same doctor that he had when he was at Dubuis. He was impressed with Logan's progress and suggested we take him back to Dubuis for a visit. We are in the process of finding a vehicle to replace the "dinosaur" we bought to get him home from Houston. We need something that is easy to use and comfortable for Logan. He has been eating enough to skip a lot of the tube feeds, so maybe we can get some sleep in the near future. We are starting to make him do more for himself, which at times is met with a considerable amount of resistance. He got a little outdone with me the other day and announced that he "wanted to go to a hotel"; I was thinking of going to one myself to get some rest. Amy has been coming over in the mornings to help out (thank God). That's about it for now; I'll try to update more frequently when possible.

                    Logan has had a couple of sessions with his new occupational and physical therapists over the past few days. The speech pathologist will come on Monday. He's doing great; he has begun to bend and kick out his left leg and raise his left arm when asked. He was able to pull himself up from the wheelchair into a rolling walker with not much help and take some steps, still with a lot of assisstance. Unlike at TIRR, he has been very cooperative with the therapists; evidently, being at home has made all the difference. We are still trying to get a workable routine going; just keeping him fed is a full time job since his most frequent words of late are, "I'm hungry". He's eating well and seems happy. Here's hoping.

             We arrived at home around 1:30 yesterday afternoon to a welcoming committee of family and friends. Thanks to all of you, especially Amy, for making time to welcome Logan home and providing us with all the food and goodies. Today was the best day that he's had since the injury happened. He was in a great mood all day and we did more laughing and talking than we've done in a long time. He and Emily (our resident nurse) spent a good bit of time together which allowed me to get things organized around the house (well, sort of). It will take a while to get a schedule figured out that suits Logan and us; tube feedings require getting up at night, but we're working on eliminating at least one of them as he continues to eat regular foods more. Logan had his evaluation with a physical therapist and she will begin seeing him three times a week. It's going to be difficult for us to keep him as active as he was at TIRR, but we are going to do everything we can. We're looking forward to another good day tommorrow.

                             The cars are packed and we are set to leave as soon as they will let us drive away. We spent the day making last minute arrangements and getting prescriptions filled. Logan had visitors today; Cade and Jeremy drove over in the morning. Thanks to you both. It will be a long ride for Logan and we'll be glad when we've gotten him home. The chair he's riding home in is the less comfortable of the two chairs we're taking hime with us, but it's the only one that he can use in the van. We are packing a sufficient amount of junk food in order to keep him occupied during the drive; he's been eating cookies, candy, ice cream and cheetos on a regular basis lately. We'll worry about a balanced diet later. It's going to be a challenging week ahead trying to get into a routine that works for us at home, but it's time to jump in and get started. We are all tired of hospitals and hotels. Thanks to all who have helped to get Logan where he is now, especially, our friends at TIRR.

                           We're continuing to make arrangements to go home; if for any reason we would be unable to leave on the 22nd, I will not be the one to break the news to Logan. The other day when I told him that we had seven days left, he said, "How about seven minutes"?  His appetite seems to be coming back lately and he is actually asking for specific foods. Tuesday, Logan's speech pathologist brought him a hamburger, gave it to him, and let him go. He picked it up and tore into it. Although he probably only took five or six bites of it before he had enough, it was a good start. Yesterday, he asked for "junk food", so I got him a candy bar and he ate almost all of it. Last night, I asked him if he wanted some ice cream and he said, "Actually, I'd like some chicken", and a few minutes later that was followed by ,"I want Chinese food". At this rate, he will be in need of a gym membership before long. He had a CT scan yesterday and has an appointment with the neurosurgeon today; depending on the scan, he may make an adjustment to Logan's shunt. We're hoping that the next few days are uneventful as the countdown continues.

                 Everything is going well as we continue to prepare for Logan's discharge from TIRR(still June 22nd). They're pushing him hard in therapy to get him as strong as possible before we go home. When we look back at where he was just a couple of weeks ago, it's pretty amazing how quickly he has bounced back. He has been able to support his weight on his legs and walk (with a great deal of assistance) down the hall. They have a frame with wheels that he stands in which is sort of like a really tall walker. We usually have at least one person holding his hands on the frame and the therapist helping him slide the left leg forward. The right leg will step forward with some prompting, but there still isn't much movement on the left side. It's good weight bearing exercise which strengthens his legs and torso. The more control he can get over his muscles, the easier it will be for tranfers and any other activity. Even though it will be difficult to leave TIRR with all the staff that we've had to rely on for all these months, we are all ready to go home, at least for a while. Nine days and counting.