Abby update - January 8

Well, Gordon was the one taking the difficult step forward today. He went back to work for the first time since the accident on October 3. He said his co-workers really went out of their way to ease the transition back for him--we'll see how long it is before they stop spoiling him!! We have truly valued the chance to be together as a family through these several months--I know we needed the strength and reassurance that we could give to each other, as well as the opportunity to be there for both Abby and Frank. We've all been very grateful for the way that Texas Parks and Wildlife has treated us.

Abby did her fair share of steps today as well--walking with me in the beautiful sunshine this morning and then with our physical therapist outside again in the afternoon. The PTs all agree that Hoots Holler and our rugged acreage offer some unique and wonderful opportunities for physical therapy, but they've also asked us to consider another treatment option. The owner of the company providing our "at-home" services thinks that Abby might greatly benefit from an intensive "day program" at St. David's Hospital in Austin. It would mean a daily commute for us to Austin, where Abby would get 4-5 hours of therapy a day. The two choices (home therapy vs. day program) seem to offer quite divergent advantages in our view--a choice between a very comforting and familiar environment and schedule versus maximizing therapy hours and resources. Tomorrow we will visit the program at St. David's, and we would appreciate your prayers about the choice we will be making. As a scientist, I wish the definitive research paper existed on what would be the best choice for us, but, as with all things biological, there are divergent findings and much individual variation, so we may just have to go with our "gut..."

Abby will also get her first visit from the Wimberley ISD teacher assigned to her tomorrow (and a speech therapist visit), so it will be a busy day. So, we'd better all get our rest...

Thank you for your prayers--
Lee Ann, Gordon, Abby, & Frank