December 2nd

It was another action packed week for Ashley.

Coming off of the Notre Dame weekend we hosted Thanksgiving and went down to Indianapolis to watch her alma mater, Bishop Dwenger play in the high school state championship game.

Ashley had a shortened work week as far as scheduled therapy goes. She worked hard and we made sure to pick up the pace with at home exercises. As we mentioned in the last update Ashley initiated and followed through on every step during a walk from our family room to her temporary bedroom. We have not replicated that long of a walk, but Ashley is being more consistent in not only picking up her feet, but also moving them forward to complete the step.

It is fair to say that walking has taken the lead among Ashley’s recovery categories of Walk, Talk and Eat. On the talking front we have begun exercising the muscles on Ashley’s sides along her rib cage. She is getting good and making sounds on request and then we apply light pressure to her sides to increase her exhaling as she ‘speaks’. This is in an effort to revitalize the muscles that contact against our lungs as we speak pushing air past our vocal cords.

Ashley is also improving her balances when she is sitting. At therapy they will lightly push her backward from a seated position and Ashley can use her trunk to pull herself back to a seated position.

Thanksgiving break meant that some of Ashley's friends were home from school. Sam and Holly dropped by for a quick game of Old Maid.

On Thursday we hosted Thanksgiving and had over 25 family members in our home. We had a wonderful day and Ashley’s perpetual smile was an indication that in spite of the challenges we are facing we have a lot to be thankful for. At the top of the list is the prayerful support we have received from family and friends.

On Saturday Bishop Dwenger played for the state title in football at the new Lucas Oil Stadium (home of the Colts) in Indianapolis. What a facility! Dwenger lead at the half, 7-3 over Indianapolis Cathedral, but the sole score in the second half of this defensive struggle went to Cathedral. The final score was 10-7. Although we were hoping for a win, we were proud that Dwenger played a good game. We certainly enjoyed being in the new stadium.

We had an opportunity to go through Circle Center Mall downtown much to the delight of Ashley. We even bumped into some Dwenger fans.

Ashley is back to a full week of therapy and on Monday she did not show the signs of fatigue she had following the Notre Dame weekend. She must have paced herself this time.

We are looking forward to seeing many of the people that have been supporting us through our journey this Saturday at the Spaghetti Dinner Benefit St. Vincent’s Church is sponsoring. We get such a boost in our moral when we see the heartfelt love and concern that so many extraordinary people have brought to our lives. God bless you all!