This is more like it

This weekend we took another large step in the direction of normalcy. Sherry and I spent the night on the coast in Florence. This was our first "overnighter" since she came home in February of 2006 and it felt like old times. It was only our fourth trip out of the Eugene area. On Saturday morning my sister and Jeff picked us up at home and off we went. The weather on the drive over was a bit wet, but once on the coast we lucked out and had pretty nice weather the rest of the time. Once in Florence we ate at Mo's (a little over rated as far as we are concerned.) After that we checked into our rooms at the Riverhouse hotel overlooking the Siuslaw river. It was only a short walk from our room to Florence's "Old Town" section and it's spendy shops. Sherry found a bamboo cutting board that "was just the right size" at Kitchen Klutter, so we bought it. Sherry did a wonderful job of getting around. She still needs some reminders to be aware of her surroundings and of the terrain. Her stamina was great, we walked and shopped for a long time. We bought a stuffed monkey (that we promptly named Florence) for Brittney and a pirate book for Chelsea. After shopping, the four of us decided to have dinner at the Bridgewater Inn. Sherry had a New York steak and I had a crab salad. After dinner and several glasses of wine (me, not Sherry) we went back to our rooms for the night.

The next morning found us shopping again and heading for the Driftwood Shores for a late breakfast. We had a great view of the ocean as we ate and saw a few people trying to fly kites, horses trotting by, and people just generally doing what they do while at the beach. We gave some thought to walking down into the sand ourselves, but the cold and the wind convinced us to wait until next time. Then it was a stop at the local fish market so I could pick up some crab and smoked salmon and then we headed home again.

It's hard for me to describe how great it felt to get away for a night. We used to make these kinds of trips often before Sherry became ill. The fact that Sherry's illness has changed our life dramatically is unavoidable. But this trip was special. More than once I found myself thinking
" this is more like it, this is the life we used to enjoy." Sitting back and knocking down a few a drinks and laughing and joking with my sister and Jeff, it was great.

I need to thank my mother for taking the girls for the night. Also, thank you to Kim and Jeff for taking their weekend and making it so special for us. We love all of you and appreciate you so much. Thank you.

Enough for now,

I love my wife....tomorrow we move forward,

Dean

WE LOVE THE DUCKS ANYWAY!!

It was a pretty uneventful weekend at the Jackson home. Sherry spent alot of time, as she does these days, cleaning and organizing around the house. We cleaned the fridge, shampooed part of the carpets and watched the Ducks lose to Florida in the NCAA tourney. We had made a deal with both Chelsea and Brittney last week that if they had a good week in school they could get their ears pierced this weekend. They came through with flying colors. My sister Kim came and got them on Sunday and took them to VRC to get it done. I honestly thought at least one of them would chicken out, but they both did it. I was so proud of them.

I am taking most of the coming week off and planning to spend some quality time with the girls, taking in a movie, doing some shopping, eating out etc. I am also hoping to hook up with some friends of mine, something I don't get the chance to do as often as I would like. I will also get to go with Sherry to all of her therapy sessions this week. She is doing so well and working so hard. She got a little discouraged this weekend, as she sometimes does. I am looking forward to next weekend when Sherry and I will get away together and go to the coast with my sister and Jeff. This will be our first overnight journey since Sherry came home in February of 2006. I think she is ready.

Well enough for now,

I love my wife....tomorrow we move forward.

Dean

Update

We had a very good weekend. Brittney was baptised on Sunday at our church, a decision that she herself made several months ago. We are very proud of her. My sister and mother and Sherry's mother and step father were in attendance. After services we were off to Pappy's Pizza to celebrate. Sherry walked from the car to the building by herself. She was able to stop for cars to pass and step up onto the curb without assistance. I am really trying to work with her to be aware of where her feet are and to pay attention to the terrain when she is walking. There is still work to do in this area. On the way out she would have fallen off the curb without a reminder that it was there. But she is getting better about this, always telling me that she is "using her eyes."

After pizza we walked over to Winco and did some shopping. On the way out we ran into one of Sherry's former supervisors , Tana. Sherry was very excited to see her once she realized who it was. She told Tana to watch out, that she was coming back to the courthouse for another visit soon.

At home Sherry continues to work very hard with Kathleen on her in-home therapy program. She is always running amuck and organizing things around the house. On most Mondays Sherry and Kathleen drive to Vally River Mall and walk the circuit two times which I guess equals two miles. I am in the process of buying some adaptive computer equipment for Sherry. Soon she will have an oversized keyboard, a bigger monitor (okay, okay...maybe I wanted that also :) and a trackball. I am hoping that with the help of these items and some practice Sherry will be able to write some simple emails soon. So, keep an eye on your in-box, you may be hearing from her in the future!

enough for now,

I love my wife...tomorrow we move forward,

Dean

Pool anyone?

What a wonderful weekend it was. On Saturday Sherry worked around the house, cleaning and organizing all day long. I no longer worry when I come into the living room and she is nowhere to be found. She is perfectly capable of going anywhere in the house and poking around any cupboard or closet. She rarely drops anything and needs only occasional help figuring things out. It is a real joy to watch her. She wants so much to be busy and sometimes gets impatient with me if I want to "chill out" at times on the weekend.

There was a special moment on Sunday that put a smile on my face. Usually when we get to church on Sunday morning I help Sherry get out of the car and we walk hand in hand to the front door of the building. Then I lead her to our usual seats in the front row. This Sunday she got out of the car herself and walked to the door unassisted. I got distracted when we got inside and before I knew it she had taken off toward our seats. I just stood back and watched her as she made her way to the front without me, stopping to get hugs and shake hands and socialize. She made it to our seats and sat down without any help at all. I know it doesn't seem like much, but again, it is another little thing to add to the list of things that she can do independently.

After church two of Sherry's old friends came to the house and picked us up and we went to the tavern that Sherry managed when we first met about ten years ago. The girls were on a mission, they were going to take Sherry to play pool for the first time since she became ill in 2005. I was just along for the ride (oh yeah, and a beer or two.) With Sherry's eye issues, playing pool was challenging, as we thought it would be. She did her best and Pat and Max were very patient with her. Sherry had a great time and it was a good first attempt at playing pool again. Like everything else, I would expect Sherry to do even better next time.

It was great weekend.

enough for now

I love my wife..... tomorrow we move forward

Dean