We hope this Wednesday is finding you all well, healthy and enjoying some much needed sunshine! I can promise you that after being born and raised his entire puppy life in New Mexico, my parent's dog, Dodger, absolutely did not appreciate the snow storm! 😅

As promised, I wanted to provide updates as soon as they were available. Just four months after diagnosis, Mom has officially been admitted into Allina Hospice Care. 

On Saturday we had a lengthy and thorough appointment (about 5 hours total), with an intake nurse wherein Mom and Dad were able to share their journey with ALS, discuss the rapid symptom decline, get a physical check up and we all learned a lot more about Allina's Hospice care services, her care team and the comfort measures we can expect. Mom and Dad felt very comfortable moving forward with this provider. 

Some of the offerings she will receive in the immediate include:

• Home health aid assistance twice a week
• Weekly check up's with a Registered Nurse
• Massage Therapy 
• Music Therapy 
• Bi-weekly visits with a Chaplin
• Social Worker support
• Volunteer support 
• Equipment and supply support 

She will also be supported with comfort medications as her physical symptoms continue to worsen. 

As mentioned in the last entry, Mom isn't leaving us right away. Tomorrow we may have a cure for ALS, but as of today, ALS is an incurable and untreatable illness that has ravished our mother and devastated my parent's lives. Mom is  prioritizing comfort over intervention at this time and we are focused on quality of moments over quantity. We as her family, respect her wishes and I personally, feel it is a deep  honor to bear witness to and be a part of this stage of her life.

We love her completely with the whole of our breaking hearts and we stand by her side in this choice.  

We will not be keeping Mom's appointment with the ALS clinic on April 11th. We cannot express how incredible Dr. Walk, his care team and the University of Minnesota have been to Mom and Dad and how much of a positive impact they made on our lives. The decision to end care at the clinic is based in Mom's rapid progression of symptoms and her intention to live her remaining days in peace; not in therapy, undergoing treatments or dealing with long appointment days. We are forever grateful to the U's ALS clinic. 

So grateful in fact, Mom has every intention of donating her tissues to the U, for their continued research and efforts in learning more about and one day, finding a cure for ALS. 

Like the sunshine after the snowstorm, it's time to move into some brighter topics! Mom has found a favorite sunny spot in their new house and Mom and Dad are settling in.  However, the garage is FULL of unopened boxes and once the weather warms up a bit we will be reaching out and asking for your help in assisting them with their unpacking efforts. 

At this time however, the house is put together enough and Mom and Dad would love to connect with their MN friends and family! Please feel free to send a text or reach out to Dad, Lauren or myself to plan a time to visit or to help out with giving Dad a little respite! 

We only ask that if you are experiencing any type of cold or respiratory illness that you please stay distant until you are healthy or opt for a facetime call instead. ALS directly affects lungs and breathing and Mom's pulmonary function is already compromised. We appreciate your diligence in helping us keep her healthy.

I will continue to update, but for now, I am going to bask in the afternoon sunshine, eat a yummy dinner and take advantage of every beautiful moment offered to me. Life is short and sometimes changes quickly in unexpected ways, give your loved ones a little tighter hug tonight. 

We love you. We appreciate your support more than you know. 

Lindsay + Lauren