Sorry I haven't updated in so long. We have been busy and sometimes its hard to find the time to sit and write down all that's going on. I few quick updates:
Halloween is almost here all the kids have their costumes and it is hard to think about Jo not being as involved as previous years. Last year he decided to go trick or treating at the last minute. I imagine this year he would have stayed at home and handed out candy, he was always so happy to see the little kids all dressed up. He would give away half the candy to cute little guy or gal if he could. We will keep him involved! My sister also connected with great family who makes custom wristbands and makes the available on Amazon. Picture below, if you're interested please grab one, a potion of the proceeds go to Jo's recovery. I ran out of jowitz wristbands a long time ago and I know so may people have asked for more. This wristband is a little more robust and should hold up better, and it is definitely the easiest way to get one. http://a.co/5Vo31eV Jojobinks you are amazing in every way. Your smile is just as infectious as ever, and we see it more every day. We know you are in there fighting so hard to get back to yourself. You are the bravest person I know and we are so proud of your progress! Keep resting and fighting God is with you and he is healing you, we will wait patiently. Love you to the moon and back sweet angel, YOU'VE GOT THIS!
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A quick update on Jo. He is extremely stable and relaxed. He is physically stronger everyday and can now sit up for more than 25 minutes! It is not easy, and it obviously drains him but he never gives up! Each day he grows a little stronger, and he is working his way back to us, thank God. The past few days Jo has been less animated and engaging than in the past, we believe he may be a little sad about his current state. We can only imagine what it must be like to will your mind to make your body perform the simplest tasks. It must be extremely frustrating and depressing at times, it's not hard to understand why he has good days and bad. He still blesses us with his smile many times a day, it is truly amazing, This Thursday my family and I were able to attend Jo's benefit marking both the most exciting and humbling event we have ever been part of. So many people took time out of their lives to help us we cannot begin to express our gratitude. Every detail was covered, and the spirit of love could not have been stronger. We hugged and laughed more people than we could count, it was such a special night. There were so many contributions it was overwhelming. One thing that stuck out most to me and my family is how love carried the night, and despite the circumstances of our need for help, our friends and family were all in great spirits. All we heard was encouragement and words of faith and hope for Jo's full recovery. His story has touched many lives and as parents hearing that provides a sense of comfort despite our challenges. We did not spend a night hearing "I'm sorry" instead we heard "Jo's got this, and we love you". We can't tell you how important that is to us, our sense of hope is strong, but with your support our faith never waivers. One day at a time is our new family mantra. A few notes of special thanks to the "Team Witzman" for organizing, planning, and directing this amazing event. Pennie, Val, Brenda, Wendy, and Manette, along with their amazing families, made us feel so special. We still don't know how you did it, but we could never thank you enough. We know you were not alone, please pass along our deepest gratitude to everyone involved, but wanted to thank you each personally for your time and dedication to our family, we love you all so much! The final miracle of the night was an amazing gift from the Santiago family. As the event wound down we were asked to meet with their family to talk about another donation. We were completely shocked and humbled by their offer of a mobility van for Jo. It changes our life immediately and all at once provides our family a chance for reasonable normalcy for Jo. Not only can we get to appointments on our own schedule but in addition we can take Jo out for a stroll through the mall, a park, or to the store. We've said many times before, our family is not complete without Jo with us, this amazing gift allows that to happen now. We are still in shock that we are so blessed. God bless your family for this amazing gift, someday we hope to pass it on to the next family in need. I've talked many times about the angels on earth who've carried us through this journey. Never have they been more on display than this event. I've copied the text from what would have been my thank you speech, if not for my inability to get through the first sentence. Wendy read it to the group on my behalf. We've never felt more love and we are deeply touched to be so loved by so many. We are blessed...
I always thought hearing that was more of a cliché, I have never been more wrong. I often watched 60 minutes or Dateline and thought how could these families impacted by so much by tragedy and despair still say ... we are blessed. They would even say they were "lucky". It just doesn't fit the narrative, yet they would say it with such conviction it just baffled me, until tragedy struck our family, it suddenly made perfect sense. Prior to this tragedy, I always told people that we were alone in Seattle, no other family nearby, and despite our challenges we just made it work. At times we were drained, and I'll admit to feeling sorry for myself on more than one occasion. It is an easy trap to fall into when life gets difficult, it can paralyze you if you let it. I realize now what's kept us moving forward is love. Our ability to get up each day, accept our normal, and keep moving forward is all about love. The amazing love our family shares combined with overwhelming love that you see here tonight is the key to our strength. It lifts us up when we are down and makes the impossible seem possible. It provides us with hope and the faith that tomorrow will be better than today, and we are blessed to have so many people helping that become true. On my desk is a quote that has never had more meaning than it does today. "You never know how strong you are, until being strong is the only choice you have" Please accept our sincere thanks for the unconditional love you have shown our family. Your thoughts and prayers have restored our boy and continue to help him heal each and every day. We are strong because we are blessed, we are lucky, because we have so much love and support from so many. Please use our story of hope and faith to remind you of what is truly important in life. The next time you feel stressed, slighted, cheated, wronged, or overwhelmed, remember that you are loved, LET IT GO. Remember what is most important in life, those that you love and those who love you. Make every moment count, treasure it. You never know what lies ahead, embrace those moments with your loved ones, slow down and enjoy it. Someday soon Jo will be able to thank you all himself, for now please accept our sincere thanks, and know that we love you all very much. Words could never express how blessed, lucky, and loved we are. Today was one of those days. Not like anything I've had before this tragedy but something I've become sadly accustomed to the past 5 months. Life moves slowly, painfully so, and we yearn so much for what we used to have. It doesn't mean we will never get it back, in fact we have faith we will, but in silent moments of reflection the pain is difficult to measure.
Jo is rock solid. The past few weeks have been by far his best since being discharged. He is so obviously aware of his surroundings and is so engaging it takes our breath away. If you walk in the room he turns, looks in your eyes, and shows his amazing strength on resolve. He is so engaged it makes it hard to leave the room at times, thankfully we have been blessed with amazing nurses who clearly care for Jo deeply. Leaving him in their care is extremely comforting and necessary to keep the rest of our life going. If you've browsed around the site you've probably noticed something about Jo. If you knew him personally pictures don't really do it justice...THAT SMILE. I've heard people talk about smiles that light up a room, with Jo the light was blinding. His smile so genuine and innocent it felt like he was touching your heart. I'm happy to report, that smile remains, his connection even stronger than before. Jo is in there, fighting his way back, his smile easing our pain and giving us the strength to remain patient. Lately he smiles often, and it has become easier to get that smile out of him. At those moments, for however brief, he is peaceful, happy, and so close to us. I cannot describe in words the way his smile makes me feel, nor the numerous times he brought me back from the depths of desperation with that smile. It's like he knows when I need it most, when I am down, when I am dwelling on the past, feeling like it isn't fair, impatient, desperate for progress, and blind to how far we have come. He shows me that dimple and darkness I so often fight disappears, it is just he and I sharing a moment of pure love, I cannot hold back my tears, every time. One thing hasn't changed, Jo loves to laugh at dad. I'd do anything to make him smile, fortunately I don't have to do much to make him smile. Yesterday I told him, "Jo I am learned Dr. and I am here to take care of you. I will make sure your mom doesn't do anything wrong". He smiled ear to ear, it was amazing. There is nothing I miss more than laughing with my boy. If you thought his smile was intoxicating you should hear him laugh, please God please let me hear that again soon. I'm sure many of you can relate to those feelings that crop up with "facebook memories" or likewise on Google pictures. For some reason I can't hesitate to click "view more". I really should have learned by now that in my sometimes fragile state this is not a good idea. Unlike my super hero wife I still can't look at pictures of Jo without issues. Videos are even worse, hearing his voice makes me crumble. Today I clicked on google pictures and stumbled upon a video that brought me to my knees. It was Jo scoring a touchdown in his flag football league. He was a stud player and nothing brought me more joy as his dad than watching him play. He played like he lives, free and fast, graceful and powerful, and with an emphatic joy that was contagious. I broke down for an hour after that, it was one of those days. It just hurt so bad. Please God please, I need to see that again someday, however far away, please give us that joy again. Jojobinks you and your mom are my heroes. I have never seen such strength, and never felt so much love. We are so excited by your progress and so anxious for more. Please keep lending your strength to be patient, we will never give up hope, and we have faith we will get you back as you were. It is God's will, and you will be a testimony to his love. We love you to the moon and back sweet angel, YOU'VE GOT THIS. I apologize for not writing sooner, Jo is doing fine, no setbacks to speak of, he is his usual strong and steady warrior. He is amazing. I can't describe the pain I've felt lately. Seeing my son in bed day after day just has a way of slowly crushing your spirit. I pray often, cry even more, and try to match the strength my son has shown me the past 5 months. My wife is amazing, but at times are eyes meet and the desperation shows. It is rare that tears don't well in our eyes when talking about Jo, it just hurts so much. Jo continues to show progress in his recovery. He shows amazing strength and determination with PT and has increased his ability to sit up to over 15 minutes. He is clearly uncomfortable at first, but he fights through, stabilizes, and amazes us each time. It can be difficult at times to recognize the substantial improvements Jo has made when you see him every day. Anyone who visited Jo just a few months ago would tell you his progress is astounding, but as parents it is painfully slow. I still have a hard time looking at his pictures. My daughter was watching some of his youtube videos the other day and heard his voice from across the room, instead of lifting me up it brought me to tears. Summer has gone and fall is beautiful in the PacWest. Jo loved this time of year as well, he is the only kid his age I've seen genuinely in awe of the beauty of nature. He would look at a tree with changing leaves and tell his mom "isn't it pretty", not common for a 12 year old boy. Jo is so special, just like all of our children, without him we are simply not whole. In our house we laugh, have fun, and are often happy despite our situation. God gives us strength enough to make sure the rest of our family doesn't mope around and wallow in our thoughts of better days. What is most obviously missing from our life is true JOY. You know, those rare moments that you stop, look at your family and life, and reflect on how lucky you are and smile. There is always a lingering feeling of helplessness that takes constant restraint to overcome. On a light note Jo has been smiling more. It is magic to see, and it lifts us up so high when he smiles. His favorite thing to smile about is anyone making fun of his dad, some things never change. I am also guaranteed a smile when I dab. That's right dab! You see I'm not good at it, neither is mom, and it's easy to see why he finds it funny. Before this tragedy he would have laughed out loud to see us try that, I pray someday soon we will hear the laugh that comes with that intoxicating smile. I'm back at work and have never felt more humble. I can't say how many people have hugged me back to life. I've done my fair share of turning handshakes into hugs, please accept my apology and don't report me, but a handshake just doesn't feel right. The amazing support around me and my family is still surrounding us and doing even more to make our lives better and Jo's recovery more attainable. I will post a flyer for an upcoming fundraiser benefit for Jo in this blog. If you can find the time to swing by and say hi we would be so touched. So many have already done so much, we could never explain how special that makes us feel. Please keep praying for Jo and our family. The deep sadness comes in waves, and for my wife and I the past few days have been especially hard. We dream of Jo talking, walking, and playing and don't ever want to wake up. When we do it is hard to get up and begin the day. With the support of our friends, family, and God's love we power through the bad days with hope and faith in the future. We could not do it with each of you, thank you does not begin to express our gratitude. Jojobinks keep being strong and healing. You are a miracle, every day you come one step closer to us. Life without you is unbearable at times but we will be patient and be right here waiting. We love you to the moon and back sweet angel. YOU'VE GOT THIS!! Hi Everyone, thank so much for the prayers and comments about Jo's progress. He really is getting better every day, and we are confident the love and support he receives and God's healing hands make all the difference. Following Sunday's great day with Jo his buddies and family we had a very tough yesterday. JO IS FINE, but yesterday was a day we relied heavily on our faith in God and friends to make it through.
I'm pretty sure most of you know that Jo is currently fed via feeding tube as he heals. The tube (G Tube) is directly into his stomach and we administer formula and meds multiple times a day through the tube. It is both very common, and safe, and complications are rare. Yesterday Mom noticed that the tube seemed to be out of position, definitely different than in the past. It should always be flush against the skin and in this case it was protruding a couple milometers. The site was generally clean but looked a little irritated. Mom and dad have been trained to look at it, take it in and out, and what signs to look for of potential issues. Slightly protruding and redness in the area means we need to investigate what's going on. Cutting to the chase, it would need to be reset in place by a doctor. Jo was generally comfortable but if we did any investigating of the area or tube Jo would be in obvious pain. Now comes the tricky part. Jo is uncomfortable, he may have an issue, and we have to get him to a Dr. ASAP. Call 911. Not an emergency but the fire trucks and ambulance arrive. The local hospital is under construction (awesome, ugh). Back to Mary Bridge Children's we go, 26 miles away, in the back of an ambulance. Back to Jo in the car, right after a feed, with no meds to help calm him down (we use the G tube to administer meds). Jo gets there, and off course gets car sick. We go into the ER and the Dr. looks and says no problem, we will reset and send you on your way. They attempt to do so and, we have a problem. Jo is in pain during normal insertion which should not be the case. It should be simple in and out, with little to no discomfort and since Jo is hurting something else is wrong. Xray with dye to determine where is the fluid going if not the stomach? Xray shows it is still in the stomach (great news) but it is out of position and that is what is causing the pain. A radiologist team will have to re-insert during passive radiation to make sure it is placed properly. While all of this sounds scary and crazy, and it feels that way to Mom and Dad, it is not life threatening or anything to panic about. Worst case scenario would have been surgery again, and we have determined that is not necessary (phew). We have no been at the hospital 3 hours. At least 2 hours of which have been just sitting and waiting. Wait for the Dr., wait for the xray, what for the radiology team, wait for the Dr. again, wait for the surgeon to review, wait for the room for the procedure, wait for another review....just brutal. Jo is comfortable the entire time, no issues, he is a champ. Dad has to leave Mom because kids are getting home from school. Mom is solo now playing the waiting game. 5 hours later they are done with placement, determine the cause was poor placement when re-inserted earlier in the week. As soon as the Dr. looks at Jo again he can be discharged. 60 minutes no Dr. Nurse has everything ready to go, just need that review, 90 minutes later still no Dr. One more wrinkle in this; we have no transportation ability for Jo, either in his chair, or lying down like this time, we are completely reliant on state run transportation services. He would have to take an ambulance home...If we had the right vehicle it would have been in the chair to the hospital, and home when we were done. We arrived at the hospital at 1pm we were finally discharged at 715pm. The staff reached out to the cabulance company, transportation should be enroute. 815pm nothing. 9 pm, nothing. According to the staff there was a "miscommunication" and they have only now called, they should be here soon. 1015pm Jo is in the ambulance headed home. Brutal, just brutal. I spared the details of the phone calls and discussions with hospital staff about the ridiculousness of the process. This is still the hospital that saved Jo's life, the experience was horrible, but Jo is now home and resting, in no pain, and doing great! The most difficult part of this entire experience is reliving the helpless feeling we get at times caring for Jo. We can handle so many things, but the moment something goes wrong we have to get help, and that process can be just as stressful as the issue itself. We prayed alot yesterday, it was the only comfort I could find. Jojobinks we are so sorry you had such a tough day. Everything is fine now, you are home, resting, and improving. Don't ever fear because God is with you, and we are by your side. You never stop amazing us with your strength and resolve. Rest and recover, we love you to the moon and back sweet angel, YOU'VE GOT THIS!! I apologize for not keeping everyone up to date but let me start by saying Jo is doing great! He seems to improve a little bit everyday, and it gets hard to keep up with postings in the midst of school starting and life in general.
Jo should be starting 8th grade this year, obviously this is a bitter sweet time for us. It is great to see Jo making progress but equally painful to see life move on around him so rapidly while his recovery moves so slowly. He should be at school watching his younger sister in 7th grade. Secretly Bella was really looking forward to having her big brother with her at school, it breaks our hearts that he can't be there right now. One day at a time... Jo is so alert and happy when his friends visit it is just amazing how engaged he is. FULL EYE contact, smiling, almost laughing! Jo loves his buddies so much, he loves hearing them laugh and giggle, he wants so badly to make them laugh again, soon we hope! Jo had his first in home physical therapy appointment and he did great! For the first time in 4 months Jo sat straight up in bed! Dad supported his back and mom his legs as he sat on the end of the bed. What amazed us both was his strength. We had grown used to thinking Jo was still to early in recovery to support his own body weight. We both felt he would be to "loose" to sit up straight, we were definitely wrong! Jo held himself straight up with minimal assistance and his head and neck needed no support at all. He smiled and turned his head left to right, it brought us both to tears to see such progress! It also immediately reminded us we have to keep pushing Jo and believe in his healing. God is working miracles and we need to let Jo show us! Our goal is to do this at least 2 times a day gradually increasing the total time sitting up. Small steps but very encouraging! Jo is also communicating via blinking more. He can respond "yes" with one blink and "no" with 2. It is so powerful to include Jo with discussions about his care, comfort, preferences, and just to know that he is in there fighting his way back. He regularly watches Netflix (mostly walking dead marathon). It is so powerful to watch him engage in something as simple as watching TV, it is such a wonderful sense of "normalness". Jo performs miracles every day! We continue to argue over everything that insurance provides and/or doesn't provide. Just the other day we realized that over 90% of initial requests have started with a denial only to be approved weeks later. They delay hoping you'll forget or give up, whilst leaving the patient without what they need; playing this stupid approval process game. If you run out of something and they have yet to approve the next shipment, you're left with no options but to purchase what is needed now. It is a horrible cycle, it can be maddening to say nothing of the cost. Jo should not be receiving his first PT appointment 4 months later, but here we are. The amazing people caught "in the system" understand how it works and can do nothing but empathize. We keep fighting, keep pushing, and despite the challenges we have done better than most, thanks to the amazing support of our friends and family. Thank you all! Jojobinks we love you so much and are so happy to see how strong you are. Mom and dad are right here waiting patiently for more miracles. We are going to push you and give you every opportunity to show us how amazing you are! Be patient with us and help us understand what works and what doesn't, we will not let you down. Rest with God and let his healing hands continue to perform miracles. 1000's of people are praying for you and know that you are coming back to us, day by day. We love you to the moon and back sweet angel, YOU'VE GOT THIS. Jo has been an all-star the past few weeks, each day he shows more progress. In fact, he does so well at times it makes me nervous about posting, then I realize God is in control, he is working his way back.
Jo is showing cognitive progress!
I'll spare the post from detailed rants about insurance. The real health care crisis is less about coverage and more about a system designed to send any family, covered or not, into an abyss of debt. We are the luckiest family I know, we have amazing support and I am blessed with great coverage from my employer. Even with that you see what a game is played with these providers. Drs. and insurance companies in constant debate about what is "needed" and what is wanted. An endless stream of letters of "medical necessity" clearly designed to slow the process and delay benefits. Every initial claim is denied, then reviewed, then approved or denied again because they need more info and yet another "medical review". Then ultimately approving what was clearly a necessity from day one, at least 30-45 days after it was needed. In the middle of it all are amazing nurses, Drs, and parents all trying desperately to do the right thing for their loved ones. It is absolutely exhausting to keep up, but I am motivated by getting Jo everything he needs regardless of denials and bureaucracy. I am 100% certain, as I've learned this lesson with my autistic son previously, the insurance company is counting on your weakness, banking on you forgetting, capitalizing on your frustration, and drawing every request out as long as possible, assuming you will give up, they've got the wrong family is they expect that. Enough negativity, we cannot thank you all enough for the support, we are blessed, and Jo is doing better everyday. He has already defied every prediction about his future, and he and God are just getting started! Jojobinks, keep smiling for us it lifts us so high we can'T help but cry. You are coming back completely and the Lord is with you. We will be patiently waiting with you, God is giving us strength to rely on his plan. We love you to the moon and back sweet angel, YOU'VE GOT THIS!!! Jo continues to rest and heal at home and continues to show more cognitive behavior each day. He is awake and alert more of the day, and rests at night. He is getting a little better every day.
Not much change between my last post and today. Jo had one Dr. Appt. that was cancelled AFTER we traveled all the way to the appointment. Very frustrating as getting him places is extremely stressful and hard on Jo. He always suffered from minor bouts of motion sickness in the car. He was one of those kids who couldn't read or play a video game when we were driving or he felt nauseous. Well, with our new normal that hasn't changed and Jo has yet to make it through a trip to the Dr. without getting sick. The motion of the vans we use to get him around is more pronounced and bouncier than a normal car. He gets motion sickness far quicker, and it is hard to blame him, it is definitely bumpy! Jo has nothing planned this week but wanted to make a short update to let everyone know he is doing fine! Thank you all so much for your prayers and thoughts, we are blessed to have so many angels in our life. Jojobinks you are amazing and continue to get better with each day. You have made so much progress in your healing it is obvious that God's with you healing you as only he can. Don't be scared rest with him and we will be here patiently waiting. We are filed with hope and faith that in time we will look back on this miracle together. We love you to the moon and back sweet angel, you've got this! Jo has been doing great since my last post. Part of the new normal is my inability to update as much as I'd like to. I promise to get better at keeping everyone updated we have had a busy few weeks.
Jo rests and heals each day with minimal discomfort. He opens both eyes WIDE and has shown alot of neurological positive signs the past couple weeks.
Jo has had several Dr. Appts over the past couple weeks and it is the most difficult thing to handle from a care perspective. It is the process of moving him from the bed, to the chair, to the van, and then doing it all over again after a 20 minute appointment. Jo struggles with motion sickness and is just super uncomfortable the entire time. The drives are extremely stressful to us too since we hate for Jo to be under stress and we have little control of his care during the drives back and forth. We appreciate the prayers for Jo and us for our appointments, it is very difficult on all of us. We have had many visitors the past few weeks and both of my sisters have been in town as well. We are blessed to have Jo surrounded by his cousins and his amazing Aunts. He has so much love around him. In addition we are constantly lifted up by our friends. I can honestly say that without the support we have received we could not have made it through this trial. God has provided, and surrounded us with angels. Every time we feel down or struggle someone is there to lift us up. It is God's work when we receive texts or phone calls at these moments of despair, and the timing is always perfect. When the overall gravity of the situation hits us, or doubt tries to find its way in, angels surround us and we are safe. Jo is resting with God and we are surrounded by angels, who could ask for more? We have unwavering faith that Jo is coming back to us completely. We will not lose our hope. We know it will take time, it will be very hard, it will drain us at times, but we will not lose faith. God has already performed countless miracles and Jo is only getting started! His testimony to God's love is still being written, and his plan is only known to him. Our job is to be there, love Jo with all our hearts and praise God, and that is what we will do. We are blessed. Jojobinks you are so amazing! Everyday you push through the pain and stay strong. You are getting better and we can see it. Be patient with Mom and Dad as we learn how to trust the process and be patient ourselves. We cannot rush God's plan, and he will not let you fall. Smile more for us would you? Mama wants to see those dimples! We love you to the moon and back sweet angel, you've got this! Jo continues to be comfortable at home and we love the ability to see him as often as we like. Seeing him in his room peaceful is very bitter sweet. While Jo is in the bed, our Jo, the pulse of our family, the symbol of our summers, the spirit of joy is still absent at times, and it hurts.
Staying positive, Jo's reactions and neurological performance continues to be encouraging. He is awake during the day other than periodic naps and surprisingly "alert". Jo shifts his gaze when people enter the room, he would turn his head but he's not quite there yet. He moves his eyes to look at people and when you talk to him it is like he is trying to talk back with his eye contact. He definitely seems aware of familiar faces and enjoys visits. At times I think he gets sad when he is frustrated with his inability to move normally. He so badly wants to get up, it is painfully obvious and extremely difficult to cope with at times. We keep our faith in God and I often pray for strength at Jo's bedside. Jo in this state is so bitter sweet, he is here with us, he knows we are there with him, he is extremely stable, he is comfortable, but his inner battle is evident and it can be so difficult to watch. The branches of neurons regrow and attach at their own rate with God's touch, at what time we do not know, but we keep the faith. Dad was the first to hear the devastating diagnosis when Jo had his last brain bleed setback. It is a day I will never forget, a day etched into my memory for obvious reasons. I remember it most in times of despair because his future was so bleak from a clinical standpoint. Would he ever come home? Would he need a ventilator to live? Would he ever wake up? The Dr.'s unwillingness to answer those questions directly made it clear that they felt very little hope of getting our Jo back. Now just 2 months later Jo and the Lord continue to beat the odds everyday. He is home comfortable with us, he breaths easy with no help, he is clearly awake, alert, and aware f his surroundings. He is already a testimony to God's strength and powers, a symbol of God's love. He is a miracle many times over, and we will not lose hope, this is just the beginning. There was a time we reported even the slightest movement in Jo's right arm with great joy. Now he curls his body, stretches out, moves his ENTIRE body to get comfortable. We spent weeks helping him open his right eye with our fingers just a crack, and followed his pupil with anxious anxiety. Now Jo opens both eyes WIDE, makes direct eye contact, follows you with BOTH eyes, and is obviously engaged with his visitors. Nothing else can explain this type of improvement other than God's will. He remains by Jo's side and will restore him in time; patience, faith, and hope is all we need. Jo's journey continues and what a testimony it will be! Our house is full with joy despite an incredibly trying time for our family. The love and support of our friends and family carries us. We are truly blessed. Jo's nursing schedule is coming together quickly and we shouldn't be surprised that EVERY nurse we've met prays for Jo and has strong faith in God. They have seen with their own eyes the miracles of the Lord and they know they will see it again. With just a glance and eye contact you will fall in love with Jo, he has a gift, and one look and he's got you! Jo's story resonates with many people and we know his journey has already saved countless kids who no longer need convincing to wear a helmet. We are all blessed. We love having people visit our home, we love the sounds of Joy, and we love you all so much for the support! We are blessed... Jojobinks you are making progress everyday. We know you are fighting to come back to us, do not let your heart be troubled, the Lord is with you and he will not let you fall. Soon we will have you back whole, day by day, miracle by miracle, you are being restored. No one will be able to explain how it is possible, only those with faith will see what is possible with God's love. We will be here waiting and borrowing your strength to stay patient. Your journey is still a long one, but in time you will come back to us, we know it. We love you to the moon and back sweet angel, YOU'VE GOT THIS! |