our |perfect| storm

I just wanted to quick say Thank You to all of you. There were so many of you who messaged me, offered to take Brody off our hands, invited us for dinner, delivered flowers, etc. Seriously, I'm brought to tears just thinking about it. You guys broke our funk this weekend. THANK YOU.

This will be a bit unusual for me. Back to back blog posts but I kind of feel this one is necessary. I want to share with you my reason for this blog. Its pretty simple. I just want to help people. Having been dealt the unfortunate card of TBI and trauma to our lives I want to let people in on our reality. Our reality with a TBI may differ from others but I think we can all relate in the fact that there are times that it just simply sucks. And it's ok to express that. Im not putting blame on Troy or shaming him in any way. What I am saying is that our situation is not exactly ideal. There is no one that would agree with me more than Troy himself. Our lives can be messy and that probably holds true for any person or family, TBI or not. But, I'm here to express how I feel and my experiences in hopes that others feel open to share their stories as well. Sometimes we need people in our lives to journey with; whether we have known then ten years or ten minutes. Having a relatable ...

I have been finding myself lately wondering what life would be like if October 11, 2014 never happened. If I could erase that day, I would. In fact, I'd like to erase that day and the six months following it. What crap. That brain injury robbed us of ever having a "normal" life. It's so unfair. I've been struggling lately. For the longest time I have really held it together. When it comes to my emotions or feelings in regards to Troy and life after a severe head injury I tend to push those deep down to the pits where I hope they go to die. It seems that when I finally fill up that pit, it all comes rushing to the surface accompanied with uncontrollable emotion. A few weeks ago I sat quietly in bed, trying to organize my thoughts before having a very well, thought through conversation about where we are in life and what things I've really been struggling with.  When I just started crying, uncontrollably. I don't typically talk through my struggles with Troy...

Have I told you yet, how much head injuries suck? They do.  I don't live the brain injury but I live with the brain injury. And honestly, sometimes I wonder what's worse. It's tough and I hate that these things happen daily and families need to live this. It's hard everyday and what is  worse is that is usually gets worse before it gets better. Troy and I have really tried our best to journey with people who are entering the brain injury world. We have made many trips to Spectrums Neuro floor, introduced ourselves to strangers and really tried our best to love on as many people who get to join the "Brain Injury Club",  A few days after Troys accident I had a couple come to visit. I had never seen or heard of them before this. I actually told the nurse they were at the wrong room :) Both of them, along with their son had been in an accident and all suffered severe head injuries. They came and just offered to help me on my journey whenever I was ready...

Good morning! So a little update on us. We have been incredibly BUSY. Is it just this time of year? It always seems that spring comes and all of the sudden the "to-do" lists triple. Hey, I can't complain. I've been so impatient waiting for this sun! Troy is just finishing up a project for work that has taken a pretty good toll on his attitude. He has been pretty hard to live with these last few weeks (This will not be news to him). He handles stress very differently now and the control he has over his emotions are... well, minimal. Most days he comes home and just completely loses it. It's really hard to have to handle that everyday when he comes home. I'll be honest, it's draining because those emotions then flood into home life. Troy is known to have unrealistic goals which, at times has been good for him. It's helped him get this far recovering from a brain injury. However, when it comes to work, it's hard to tell him to just take a breath...

Earlier this week I received a phone call from Mary Free Bed, reminding me I had to schedule an appointment for Troy. I couldn't help but think, where has the last year gone? Our physician, Dr. Vandenberg has been on a six month sebatical and plans to return beginning of the year just in time for our annual check up. It's quite amazing the relationship we have created with Dr. Vandenberg. We have been through a lot with him. He has stuck with us through our every struggle in this journey. There were times where I wanted to drop kick him but he has really done so much in getting Troy to where he is today. For that, we are so grateful!  As many of you know, Dr. Vandenberg didn't ever promise us Troy would go back as a journeyman electrican. In fact, he let us know many times that it may never happen. (That was one of those times drop kicking him sounded real good) Today, Troy has been working as a journeyman electrician for several months already. Even running the job at t...

Psalm 23  A Psalm of David. The  Lord  is my shepherd; I shall not want. He makes me lie down in green pastures. He leads me beside still waters. He restores my soul. He leads me in paths of righteousness for his name's sake. Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me. You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies; you anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows.  This verse has gotten me through the most challenging days of my life. I find myself reciting it here and there when the tough days come. What a huge burden it lifts from my heart when I am once again reminded of Gods grace and abundance of love He carries for me.  I came to this verse again tonight after a surprisingly tough recertification in my CPR training course. Note: I've taken this course many times, done actual CPR many times and yet tonight just brought it all back. As I sat in th...