Saturday, April 25th

Hello to everyone. Clay had a busy day. He was resting during the 6:00 and 8:00 visits. He was awake and ready to go after his dressing change. When we came in at 11:00 he was sitting up in his chair with his legs wrapped. This is done for circulation and support when he is sitting up or exercising. We visited with him for just a moment and then the physical therapist arrived and asked him if he was ready to take a walk. He was not ready but Mom and I convinced him that it was in his best interest. He walked to the end of the ICU and then set between Deidra and I on the bench for few moments. There was a recliner type chair and when Clay stood up and started the return trip he planted his feet and forced air over his trach and said a forceful, "chair." This does not happen very often and Mom and I were both surprised to hear it. When we arrived back at his room there was the rocking chair sitting outside and Clay stopped again and pointed at it. We understood this and moved it in and let him spend the rest of the visit in Dad's lap while Mom fanned and read a story. He spent the majority of the afternoon sitting upright in his chair. At the 5:00 visit Robert, his nurse today, said he was not wanting to go back to bed. We offered to hold him again in transit from chair to bed. This seemed to work and we helped lay him back in bed about 5:45 knowing he would quickly go to sleep. Wrong. At the last visit of the day Clay was really wound up. He was in good spirits and very active. Deidra held his orange ball over his feet and he would kick with alternating legs until he ran out of breath. He would catch his breath and start over. He swatted it with his hands and seemed as alert and active as he has been in a while. We are not sure what to attribute this to, but it did our hearts good to catch a glimpse of the old Clay spirit. If you guys have not noticed, this is Dad typing tonight. I received another treat today. I have not seen Clay's facial features in 4 weeks due to the bandages and my work/boys school schedule. It was good to see Clay's face today. All in all it was an encouraging day. Thank you to everyone for your prayers and wisdom. I hope everyone has a good Sunday. Good Night.