Me as a 'Sister Wife'!

When all of us "stroke wives" were in the depths of grief, problem solving, mastering the juggling act of so many roles, I joked that what we each really needed was a "sister wife". I'm sure the idea came from my adoration, commitment, and obsession with HBO's "Big Love" series.

We each needed someone who loved our stroke-survivor husband as much as we did, was willing to stay "knee-deep" in the trenches of this post-stroke life, and be a support system, shoulder to cry on, and another adult brain in-the-room to help make decisions for us stroke-wives.

I received this mug in the mail today from one of my fellow stroke-wives... It's like a trophy or an award!

So... "I'd like to thank the academy".... of aphasia, apraxia, epilepsy, neurology, ... To all of 'the therapies'.... you know who you are ;-) ...

And to my stroke wife sisters... *tear* ... I don't know where I would be without you, both mentally and physically, if I had not had you to share AND CONTINUE TO SHARE this unique, forever altering journey.

LOVE YOU 'sisters'!

In recovery :-)

DOING GREAT! In recovery room & following verbal commands. (Morgan: you are going to be a photographer!... wait, you already are!)

Foreclosure/Auction: 18339 Dayton Pl N

Hello there, wonderful neighbors:
 
This is Julie Bacon at 18339 Dayton Pl N.  Some of you know us and our story: my husband, Wayne, had a stroke on April 1, 2008 when Morgan, our daughter was only 3 weeks old.  We'd only lived in the neighborhood for 9 or 10 months, and although we hadn't met any of you, many of you stepped forward and were extremely supportive and helped us tremendously during the past 3 difficult years.  You cleaned up our yard, weeded our garden, took our trash bins in and out, brought us dinner, had us over for dinner, babysat my daughter, responded to my multiple desperate concerns about where Wayne was because he wasn't answering the phone while I was 'stuck' at work downtown.  You took care of our beautiful (and now deceased) golden retriever Tucker, you came over and checked that we were okay every time an ambulance showed up... THANK YOU!!!
 
I truly believe I could not have come out of the past three years as "intact" as I am if I had not had your support and help.  And with that, I am sad to say that our attempts at keeping the house and staying in the neighborhood have not been successful.  The loan modification was approved by the investor on Monday but was denied Wednesday by the Closing Dept. based on a few factors (which to me feels like they were just listing a few reasons for them to not push this through the last bit of red-tape).
 
The house is set to be auctioned on March 11th.  I think I am finally going to "let go" and move onto the next part of our journey. I am looking into a few last options, but really it's to minimize the effect on my credit than to attempt to "save the house".
 
I wanted to let you know this and give you a heads-up that this will be occurring.  Maybe someone wants some investment property in the neighborhood... I don't know--it just felt right to contact everyone and let you know, as well as extend our deepest gratitude for the friendships, support, and assistance you have given us these very difficult 3 years.
 
Although we will miss this neighborhood terribly, I have my head high, my eyes looking forward, and am excited to see where we'll rent a house in the next month and see what else the future holds for us... we can only move forward. :)
 
Thank you again.

Sincerely,
Julie Bacon
 
www.thebaconfamilyfund.org
TheBaconFamilyFund.Blogspot.com
julieannbacon@hotmail.com

UPDATE #2: Cranioplasty is scheduled: March 6th

Date: Friday, March 6, 2009, 4:12 PM

Update: I went back to see Wayne at about 1 PM in the Recovery Room area and he was groggy from the anesthesia but looked really good. He was extubated (breathing tube out of his throat) and I'll say it again... he was looking really great!

The original plan communicated by the surgeon was to have him moved to an ICU floor for 'close watching' until tomorrow (Saturday) morning. At that time the plan was to move him to an acute care floor, where patients move when they are more stable.

So, what actually happened was, while I was in the Recovery Room talking to the nurse, he said that Wayne was moving to the 6th floor in the Norm Maleng building which in an acute care floor. I said, "Really? They said he'd go to ICU." And the nurse confirmed that he was doing so well that he was being moved straight to the acute care floor. YAY!!!

I have gone in to see him twice at 2:00 and at 3:00 and he is just looking so great! Three friends have also seen him now and they are AMAZED! They said they couldn't believe how great he looked.

I'll send another update when I can. Morgan is napping right now, so "all is good". ;)

Sincerely,
Julie Bacon

UPDATE: Cranioplasty is scheduled: March 6th

Date: Fri, 6 Mar 2009 10:55:50 -0800

So, Wayne was taken back at 7:40 from the admitting room.

And now I just got an update that "they are closing". So that seems to be GREAT news that it's done seemingly "early" (and the fact that no one came out to tell me of any complicatoins during the surgery).

Soooo... YAY!!!!

I was also told that it will be anywhere from 30 minutes to one hour before I get to go back to see him. But, Dr. Kim, our surgeon, will be coming to talk to me shortly and telling me more about the surgery, how it went, etc., etc.

I will be in touch more in a bit (or when I can). I met some great ladies in the waiting room, so they have been talking with me to pass the time, telling me their story, and me telling ours. Right now one of the gals is walking around with Morgan so I can type this.

Also, I'd like to say THANK YOU TO ALL OF YOU for all of the positive energy you have been sending us, your hopes and dreams for us, helping us to succeed with the hurdles we've encountered this year, and for your continued support and love.

Sincerely,
Julie Bacon