Day 43

Well, we are much overdue for an update, and boy does there continue to be much to share! Spoiler alert - Jesus is real and He is near. Hopefully you already knew that, but if you needed a reminder, Shirley surely is a miraculous reminder!

I last left you with the news that Shirley had quickly begun to progress in her healing and she exited the hospital on Wednesday, April 24th. From there she went into Community North's rehabilitation hospital, where she put in some serious work. She needed to continue to rebuild her physical strength after remaining still for nearly 4 weeks, and also continue the work on her cognitive skills. 

Her grit and determination to get better, to get out of there, and to get home were very evident. We can giggle about it now, but she was constantly setting off alarms as she regained strength in mobility and would try to make herself comfortable moving around from bed to chair or anywhere else in her room. As Shirley got comfortable in her new temporary residence, Jordan and Xander headed back to Virginia. Janna, Henrik, and Nevaeh arrived shortly after for a two week stay. Some grandkid lovin' was the perfect medicine while staying at the rehab hospital. 

At the end of last week, Jordan's phone rang, and it said "Mom" on the caller ID. We both looked at each other and said "For real?!" Jordan answered his FaceTime and there was Shirley snuggled up with Janna on the other end. What a sweet sight. Every new (seemingly ordinary) little thing brings a fresh set of emotions that I don't think we expected to process. Seeing Shirley be able to call us from her phone when she wants, and have our regular conversations on day to day life is such a gift.

AND on Tuesday, May 7th, Shirley got to go home! Praise the Lord! Shirley has no recollection of details the day of her stroke or the days that followed. There is about a 3 1/2 week gap in her memory, which we all agree is the Lord's mercy. She and Ross have begun to go through the details of all she has been through, read through all your messages, read through her journal here, and process all that happened and what God has done. She will continue on with some PT in her healing journey. The work is definitely not done. Some adjustments will be made to their home and things will be a little different, but Shirley remains determined to regain all her strength, mobility, and cognitive skills back to their fullness and we sure do believe she can do it!

Thank you for walking with us through this storm. Thank you for praying so faithfully and believing so greatly for her healing. Thank you for caring in real and tangible ways that we have seen and felt. We are forever grateful for the community that stepped up in so many ways to surround us when we were in some of the darkest moments. Thank you to the family who helped us share in the hospital shifts. Thank you to the friends who came to sit with Ross and Jordan all those weeks. Thank you for relieving financial stress that allowed Ross to stay by Shirley's side and will help pay those bills as they start coming in. Thank you for home cooked meals and gift cards to grab food on the go. We are grateful. Every bit of it mattered and was needed. Thank you.

And to Shirley, whenever you get around to reading this, you are gonna hate some of the pictures Jordan took of you over the past month and a half. He didn't follow any of the photo rules we ladies request for angles or to have a kid standing in front of us. Feel free to give him a hard time. We are so grateful you can give him a hard time. We are so grateful you are here. You truly are a walking and talking miracle. We love you.

Jesus is real,

Kara (Jordan, Janna, Rossy Baby)

***The meal train and GoFundMe are still up and running for now as Ross and Shirley adjust to being back home together now and Shirley continues in her medical recovery through therapy and other needs.***