April 16, 2008:
Chris and I feel so blessed to live in such an incredible community! We have been presented with the HOPE grant! It was a great day! Thank you to everyone that was involved!

July 28,2008:

Here Chris is sitting up tall and proud! Great job babe! It was a great day! If you click on the links below you can also watch video of Chris moving ahead!

October, 2008 - Decemeber, 2008:

Chris is doing AWESOME! He has had so much progress since we last updated you! In November, Chris noticed that his left wrist was twitching and looking like it was going to work, so we waited for a day to see if it would do the same the next day and it did!! A little twitch is a start to something bigger! Also, in the middle of November, Chris was admitted into the hospital for a UTI and at the same time saw his Neuro Surgeon and they did some x-rays on his neck because he was complaining of some pain.  They found two broken or fractured screws in his neck but wanted to wait about 4 weeks to do a repeat xray just to monitor and make sure nothing has changed.  When Chris's Neuro Serg, Dr. Theodore, saw him, he was so excited to see all of Christopher's movement!! He ask Chris to close his eyes and to concentrate on moving his fingers, on his left hand and Chris said ok but I don't know if they are going to move and the doctor said just close your eyes and really concentrate and so he did and they moved!!! Dr. T was thrilled, he sat down and just stared at Chris and said, "WOW, you sure have amazed all of us!!" 

Since November, Chris has been really focused on getting his wrist and fingers to start moving! His wrist is showing so much more progress and both his index finger and middle finger move, almost like chopsticks!!  Chris also has been able to do pull downs of over 20 pounds and his sitting balance is GREAT! He just keeps getting better and better. I am so proud of Christopher! He continues to keep his head up and just keeps working hard!

 His goals for the next upcoming months are, to be able to be doing his own transfers in and out of bed and to be able to be independent in the next 6 months! I know he can do it! Once he gets to that point he is going to try to walk! He can do it! Give him 6 more months and I bet we get to post some new pics and video of Chris trying to walk again! It just takes complete faith in God, time, determination, and will and Chris has them all!  GO CHRISTOPHER!

Thank you to everyone who has been by our side! WE LOVE YOU ALL! We can't wait for the next great update... it is so exciting to watch all Christopher's MIRACLES HAPPEN! 

March, 2009 - June, 2009:

WOW it has been a while since we have updated everyone on the status of Christopher's progress.  Life has us really busy lately.  Well, since March, 2009 Chris has started PT at Harper Physical Therapy and WOW he has had some really amazing improvements so far.  He should be doing his own transfer's any day now.  His sitting balance just improves daily and he has an amazing attitude about it all! He continues to inspire others to keep going that have been newly injured.  He is just such an inspiration to us all! It is pretty exciting to just continue to watch Chris improve. 

Other news, Chris has had severe right shoulder pain since the accident and we have always been convinced that something was definitely wrong with his shoulder, but convincing the doctor's of the same has been a little hard to do, but finally, finally Chris has an appointment to see an Orthopedic Surgeon, May 20th.  They feel that Chris has a torn rotator cuff and has some extreme tears in his right shoulder muscle and has had them for a very long time, possibly since the accident occurred. It looks as though the shoulder tried to heal on it's own and there is quite a bit of scar tissue and there is still significant amount of healing that needs to be done, but without the shoulder in the proper position the shoulder is not going to heal right.  Having surgery on his right shoulder will allow for Chris to have more range of motion with his shoulder and the shoulder will heal properly! It is great news that we have found the problem with Chris's right shoulder, but having surgery again is a step we are not to thrilled about.  Chris is just excited to be relieved of pain and after surgery, to be able to have the same function in his right arm that he now has in his left! GOD IS GOOD! 

TENDON TRANSFER SURGERY! Chris will also being talking with his Orthopedic Surgeon about tendon transfer surgery.  With this surgery Chris should be able to get back some finger function.  They transfer tendons from working tendons to non-working tendons to allow function of areas that are not currently working.  So with this surgery, Chris could possibly get back his thumb and his index finger! WOW this would be incredible! Finger function is so crucial and for Chris to be able to use his fingers would be amazing! :) Just to be able to write a letter or pick up a Dr. Pepper he would be so excited! Everyone say some prayers!

Chris and I were not prepared for this big change in our life a year and a half ago and we still had plans, goals and dreams that we had not yet accomplished. One of our dreams was to always have more children.  We have decided not to let this injury hold us back from our dreams, that we had before the accident.  We are going to try to have another baby!  As many people might not know, it is very hard for a spinal cord injured man to have children. However, we have a great faith in our Mighty God and we know that if it is in our plan to continue growing our family, it will happen.  Wish us luck!!

As the days go by, we strive to be the best we can be and serve our Mighty God.  We give thanks and feel so blessed to still be able to wake up every morning and have each other to share our life with.  Shelby is a true blessing to us and what an incredible thing for me to get to watch everyday, Shelby and her daddy spending time together and loving each other so much.  Chris is such a great dad, even with the challenges he has to face everyday, he guides her, teaches her and gives her so much love.  She asks her daddy questions about bugs, and frogs and how to fish and Chris loves to hear her say, " I learned that from my daddy." WOW amazing. Even though Chris can't run with her on the beach or teach her how to ride a bike, he can still do so much.  He taught her how to fly a kite the other day and they race in the house, Shelby on her tricycle and Chris in his wheelchair, it is so cute. He gives her big hugs with his left arm and can even pin her down when they are snuggling in bed and he gives her so many kisses.  The love they share is so precious and everyday I see why God kept the king of both of our hearts here with us, to share his inspiring wisdom and continue to make memories that we will cherish forever and ever.  

Shelby loves you Daddy and I love you babe with all my heart!

July, 2009- September, 2009

Hi everyone, it seems we update everyone about every three months.  A lot has happened within the past few months.  First, I just want to say that Chris has been still attending therapy and is getting stronger in a lot of areas.  He continues to amaze me.  Our spirits have been up and down the past few months, I don't know if it is because we are coming up on the two year mark and we have had some reality set in or if we are just simply overwhelmed at times.  Everyday, we just try and stay focused on our blessings in our life and that helps us get through. 

Shelby has started preschool two days a week and loves it! Her teachers can't believe how smart she is! Shelby has been the most amazing little girl through all of this, she keeps us in line, that is for sure.  She loves her daddy and mommy so much and she prays every night and she always asks God to help her daddy walk again.  She always tells me that her daddy will walk someday. She has grown up so fast because of this but she is such a caring, loving, sweet little girl and she is OK with her daddy the way he is. She loves animals, and is the most compassionate little girl ever.  She wants to be a pony doctor when she grows up! 

I have been doing OK, things have been a little hard for me, but I remember that I can do this.  I am strong and I love my family more than anything in the whole world.  To be able to watch our little Shelby and Chris have so much fun together is all I need.  To be able to see Shelby's face light up when she sees her daddy, roll through the door or when she begs him to play with her in the backyard, it is just so precious.  When Shelby started preschool, Chris and Papa went to pick her up one day and Shelby was so excited! She ran over to her daddy and jumped up on his lap and introduced him to all her friends, it's just her daddy and she loves him so much.  I have my rough days, especially when I am trying to get everything done at once.  Our days can be so overwhelming, but those are the days I just pray harder.   I am thankful to have family and friends that call to check on us.  Thank you mom and Ted for always being there, I love you. 

Chris just got out of the hospital, Sept. 23, 2009.  He had been in for about two weeks for a very bad MRSA UTI and he also had a bladder surgery.  He did have some serious complications after the surgery and had to have the doctor come in and do another surgical type procedure right in his hospital room.  Chris started to hemorrhage really bad.  It was very scary.  After about a week of irrigating his bladder the bleeding finally stopped.  I did my research, because that is all I do when it comes to my babe, and I found out that he had what was called clot retention after a bladder surgery.  Basically, his bladder filled up with blood and then formed a lot of clots, the clots were not allowing him to urinate, which in turn caused him to have extreme high blood pressure, which could lead to stroke or death, this is called Autonomic Dysreflexia.  When AD happens, the doctors and nurses have about 20 minutes to bring his blood pressure down, or he could have potentially life threatening problems. When all this was taking place in Chris's hospital room, I couldn't watch another scary thing happen.  I walked out of the room and let the doctors handle everything.  The doctors and nurses kept coming out and telling me it was OK for me to come in and I said, no I am just going to stand out here.  Praying is all I could think about doing at that moment.   Finally, after about an hour of this, things seemed stabilized so, I went back into the room and Chris was shaking and still bleeding but it seemed they had it under control.  I just went and sat down and started to cry.  Chris is so strong, he is so brave, I just can't believe how this man could endure all he has and still be so brave.  After it was all over, Chris was cracking jokes and calling the doctor, Dr. Macgyver.  Chris never seems to amaze me, here I am crying and so upset and he is laying in a hospital bed after nearly bleeding out and having a stroke and he's cracking jokes.  What a guy!  

Since Chris's release from the hospital he has been on antibiotics to try and get rid of the MRSA infection in his bladder.  These certain antibiotics make him very sick to his stomach.  His bladder surgery was a success after all the bleeding stopped.  WOW, that was an experience.  He goes back to see the doctor at the beginning of October for a check up.  I know Chris will kick this MRSA in his bladder he is strong, obviously.  The other day I ask him if he was a cat with nine lives.  I said you've used up three lives so far, so you have six more to go. LOL! He thought that was funny.  Currently, he is just trying to rest and get better.  Yesterday, September 29, 2009 he was in his chair, the whole day, for the first time in about three weeks, that is a good sign.

We are just trying to live our life day to day, or even minute by minute.  We will get through this as we have overcome so much more! God is right by our side and he has us in his arms, this we know for sure, that is probably the only thing we know for sure.  Chris and I have great plans for our future and we will share them with all of you over the holidays! Thank you to everyone that has been by our side through this and who continues to pray for our family! The prayers are the most important, God hears us! Thank you Lord for our blessings and for keeping our family strong.  God Bless!