My Dad

My dad is 76 years old.  He decided to cut down this tree. Unfortunately, it did not go well. The last month has been chaos.  At first we believed that dad would be okay, with a few broken ribs to show for his time.  Then his spine injury started acting up and he was quickly moved to a Boise hospital.

He has since undergone surgery and a lot of physical therapy.  He has lost almost all muscle control from his waist down, and is slowly regaining some.  We have no idea how much control he will regain, or if he will be able to live independently, but he continues to make small, steady improvements. The hardest part of this process is the unknown.  Spinal injuries are all different, so we still don't know what the future will hold.

My sister and I drove up to my dad's home in Burns with five of our kids, to pick up a few things.  On the way we found a real, live phone booth!  The phone didn't work but there was the added bonus of an active wasp nest! We also bought some gas station fudge, in exchange for using the facilities. The fudge, and the needed facilities were worth it.

We collected dad's treasures, including this interesting piece of petrified wood.  We also forgot his hearing aid batteries. Thankfully, we were able to buy those locally.

On the way back we stopped at a gas station, in dire need of the facilities, again.  These guys entertained themselves, while other members of our party waited in line for said facilities.

We continue to hope and pray for my dad.  The improvement hasn't been great, but it has been steady.  He will soon be headed to a skilled nursing facility to continue his physical therapy.  He's hoping for a short stay.