Hello everyone!
I hope you are all doing well! David is doing even better now than the last time I gave an update. 

Diagnosis
As many of you know, David was taken to the hospital after being discovered unconscious on his bedroom floor on Monday, August 24th. He was diagnosed with a stroke – he had a clot and a hemorrhage (brain bleed), which affected the right side of his body.

Where is he at?
David was discharged from St. Mary's in the middle of September - he was moved over to Mapleton! He is now receiving therapy and care there.

Triumphs
I had the care conference with his team about a week ago now, where they talked about  his therapy and progression. Much of this information was extremely positive and provided a phenomenal outlook. His receptive language, or ability to understand what others are saying, is exceptional. His expressive language, or the ability to communicate his needs and feelings, is not great, but it has been improving. He has let a few newer words slip during conversations with me and his mom, Opal. They include: either, Winnebago, Vikings,  and Seattle. During therapy, he used to give up a lot more, due to frustration; however, he has improved his willingness to work through that frustration and difficulty to reach progress. He is able to self-propel his own wheelchair - he is even taking himself to therapy! He has gotten a bit too confident with his ability to transfer himself from seat to seat, as he had a bit of a fall. It wasn't anything too serious and he is still in good spirits. The doctors have been noting that he has good instincts for moving himself - he is able to sit up, lay down, and move from sitting to standing completely independent, but he has a few onlookers as he is doing so.  In therapy, he has been working on getting his right side to start moving again. He has been getting more and more movement and strength in his right leg - to the point where he is walking in parallel bars, with a bit of assistance. 

Struggles
As far as struggles go, the main one for now is his right arm. The ball is not sitting in the socket, just because his muscles can no longer hold the ball in that socket, due to inactivity and the weight of his arm. He is wearing a sling, per doctor's orders - but he doesn't like it too much, so he needs a few reminders from visitors to keep that sling on! Another thing we have been working on is his weight and eating - he is on a completely solid food diet now! He has increased his weight about three pounds since he has been in Mapleton, which is great - but he is sitting at a meek 174 pounds. Overall, he is doing great things and these struggles are common after having a stroke.

His Children
Morgan is working hard doing student teaching - she is looking forward to MEA break. However, dreading it at the same time, since she has her second, and final, big exam to take to get her teaching license! (EEK!) Conor has still been working hard at Seneca, finishing up corn pack. When he isn't at Seneca, he has been doing a lot of farming stuff - like picking beans and corn. As you can imagine, he is a busy guy!

How to Help
Continue praying for David and his recovery as well as his family and nursing staff. If praying is not your thing, keep us all in your thoughts as this is a difficult time for all of us. Pray for a continued path of improvement! 

Thank You
Thank you to everyone who has spoken to, helped, supported, thought about, or prayed for us in the past month. We appreciate the love and support that we have been shown and hope you continue to give your love and support. 

-Morgan