It has been a long time (around 6 months) since my last update.  A lot has happened in that time, but I probably can't remember all the details.  I will start with my health issues.

In December I had surgery on my throat where the doctors inserted an implant in my throat to push the paralyzed cord to the middle so the good one could touch it easier.  I actually had the nurse take photos of the surgery.  I have a surgical consultation in a couple weeks  about straightening my eye.  I made the mistake of going on YouTube to view the surgery and it is nasty-see strabismus surgery.  I also have a Botox injection into my bladder in the next couple weeks.  This injection lasts for about six months and should allow my bladder to hold more and not spontaneously contract.  I started at least 8 months of dental appointments a few weeks ago to repair all the damage to my teeth.  I am fresh off a root canal a couple days ago.  Overall I was improving until around the end of January, and then I think I started regressing somewhat.  I am still not sure why, but I think I am losing some overall sensation and my hands are becoming weaker.  I have an appointment with my neurologist.  An MRI is in my future to take a look to see what is going on.  I still have trouble with being extremely fatigued at times.  Also, when significantly changing positions I nearly pass out or actually do.  I am having difficulty regulating my body temperature as well.  Mentally I have ups and downs, but actually more extreme swings now than when I came home from the hospital.  These swings are really not outward signs of emotion, but rather intrinsic.  I see a neuropsychologist and he indicates that I am depressed.  However, if you were to ask most of my friends they would say he was wrong. I think I am coming to grips with how limiting my situation is regardless of how much I push the limits, and that gets to me sometimes.

The family is doing quite well.  I am always amazed at how much Carrie does for me and the kids.  She basically has three kids instead of two and does the work of both parents.  I do what I can and be present.  However, I am spending a lot more time with the kids and I enjoy that immensely.  Throughout the winter and spring my parents and aunt and uncle (Roy & Harriet) have stayed at the house several times.  They have done a lot of work around the house that I physically can't do which obviously helps us out.  

I have been attempting some new activities.  In January I went to Winter Park Colorado, right before I had to go back to Craig Hospital.  I went skiing at the National Center for Disabled Sports.  It was a very fun experience with great instructors.  I have a 4 wheeler (quad/atv) that I have adapted so I can ride it.  It is a work in progress but it works well.  However, it takes a lot out of me to ride it.  I have a handcycle that I ride occasionally, but I need help getting in and out of it.  I have only used it and handful of times.  I also got a Racing chair that I have not used yet.  I just got the specialized gloves required to use it.  The chair takes a lot of technique to do and a long time to become proficient.  However, I have the time.  I finally made it back to the pool to attempt swimming.  I am better than I was at Craig, but I have a long way to go.  Keep in mind that with all of these activities, they are done in short amounts of time.  I do one of the above activities for an hour or two then spend the rest of the day or two recovering from it. 

The foundation, Freedom on Wings of Sport, is officially up and running.  I have a board of 5 people that do all of the work for now.  I can only do so much, so I help provide the ideas, and my name/story.  Our last fundraiser was the Aquathon put on by Mike Shaffer.  We also had T-shirts printed up.  I was thinking about offering them up for sale/direct donation to the foundation through this site.  Hopefully we will have a foundation specific website that will have blog similar to these updates.

That is about it for now.  I will try to update the site more often in the future.  I will also let it be know when the new website is created.

Thanks,
Tony