Jake's Journey - The First 75 Days

Yesterday was a huge milestone and extremely full of emotion. Both Todd and I were on the brink of tears most of the day and I lost that battle more than once. Jake was so excited to be leaving the hospital and got to have a going away party in the morning complete with cinnamon rolls. He had one last round of therapy, lunch, and then we just waited for the discharge paperwork. While it was great to be leaving, it was with some mixed emotions. It may sound strange that we'll miss the hospital, but in a way we will. We've spent a lot of time with his therapists, nurses, and doctors and it will be strange not seeing them every day. Jake also made some friends with other kids on the floor who he is already missing.

Once again, Jake blew us away. His goal has always been to walk out of the hospital and he did just that. For those of you that have been to Children's, you know it's not a short walk. Our room was at the far end of the 6th floor and he made it down the hall, into the elevator and all the way through the lobby with just two short breaks.

As soon as we got home he walked into the house and wanted to go upstairs to see his bedroom. With the help of some very generous friends who gave their time and talent, we got to surprise him with a room redone in a music theme. I had brought home a lot of his Rush stuff the night before so it was there to greet him as well. Right after that he wanted to go down the basement to see his drums. He sat down and played a little then back up the stairs and outside to see some of the neighbor kids who had started gathering when they saw we were home. The kid's stamina was amazing, and probably the result of a lot of adrenaline. We ended the day with some good quality family time and everyone asleep under one roof. Can't ask for more than that. 

I put together a video highlighting the past 75 days, it really helps us keep things in perspective http://youtu.be/aOthihf9914. We'll continue to use the blog to keep everyone updated on Jake's progress as we start this next phase of his recovery. Posts will likely be every 3 or 4 days instead of every other day. Thank you again for all of your prayers and support.