Hi Everyone,

There is a sales newsletter called the Monday morning quarterback. It’s an overview of opportunities in the business arena. Well it’s not Monday morning but Corey continues to look for opportunities to advance her progress. She had a few new firsts we can share.

Traveling for a weekend is an adventure. We have a two page check list for Corey’s supplies and clothing. We have to strategically plan our packing, travel departure/arrival times to coordinate with administering medication, balance the activities planned for the weekend while considering Corey’s fatigue threshold; and then we have to reverse the process to come home.

Corey had a rough start to the day Friday. She didn’t sleep well Thursday and we were caught in almost two hours of traffic on the NJ Tpk. We had to give her medications while sitting in traffic which in turn caused her to get car sick. Once we arrived at the hotel she was exhausted. Fortunately, the rental hospital bed arrived and was waiting for her. She fell asleep, soundly resting for the big day.

Saturday morning we were up early. Corey and I went down to the hotel restaurant for breakfast. She woke up hungry. Unfortunately she did not do well with the oatmeal or eggs we ordered. The chef did puree chicken noodle soup that we could add to mashed potatoes and that was a successful dish. It’s a very scary experience for both Corey and I when she chokes on food. She is learning to swallow and is eating well but once in awhile depending on a number of factors (food consistency, flavor, portion size and/or her own fatigue level) she sometimes has difficulty swallowing. She does not know how to clear her throat by coughing (a normal response to choking). We have taught her to call out “HA” in short bursts. That will force the air to clear any obstruction. She has decided to convert this simple sound to a loud long growl…which sounds like a dinosaur roaring. She growls and then laughs; someday you must try growling in a public restaurant. It’s comical to watch the other patrons try to figure out the origin of the noise that is clashing with the piped in music.

Before her morning nap we joined the bride in the bridal suite to watch the bridal party as they had their hair done and makeup applied. It was fun to be apart of the preparation for the big day.

The rest of the day was amazing. Kerri and Brendan had a warm sunny day. It didn’t seem like the middle of March but we expected nothing less with my mom and nana in charge of the weather. Mass was beautiful and officiated by an Irish priest (with a Gaelic accent no less!) In lieu of communion, Corey received a special blessing.

There was time between mass and the reception for Corey to rest before she hit the dance floor. For those of you who may not know, we come from a large family. Mom and Dad had 8 kids, we then added 30 grandkids, and they have begun to add 13 great-grand babies with 3 more due between April-September! Our family photo (which didn’t include everyone) was taken on the main staircase. The photographer had to shoot us vertically instead of horizontally!

Corey had a great time night. During the cocktail hour, she wanted to eat some of the appetizers. The closest soft food I could find was Tortellini. I was very nervous especially after our failed breakfast attempt. I asked Corey if she remembered how to chew. She said yes, but I pressed her further by showing me. She opened her mouth and pointed to her molars. I cut the smallest possible size of the pasta as an experiment. She chewed for a long time and then opened her mouth and said “AH” to show me she not only chewed it, she was able to swallow it. It took about 40 minutes but she ate one Tortellini without choking! When she said “AH” it reminded me of her defying gravity video on you-tube.

The reception was a blast! She sang to almost every song the DJ played. Many of the guests were shocked to see her sing and mime the lyrics. At one point, she kicked her foot and her shoe flew off. One person commented that reading about Corey in this carepage and seeing her in person is entirely different. Seeing her “in action” is much better! We were amazed; Miss Party Pants stayed from 6:30-10:00. There were so many good pictures we couldn’t decide which to post, so we posted almost all of them. Check out the gallery.

Sunday was a very long day. The travel home was a little easier but both Corey and I were wiped out by the time our nurse arrived at midnight. We both had a little jetlag that hung over into today. That didn’t stop Corey from eating one scrambled egg with cheese, taking two laps around the island in the kitchen in her PT session and cooking a pork tenderloin dinner with zucchini crisps for the church.

I’m convinced this little quarterback is going to make it to the Super Bowl of recovery…and WIN! xoxo