count your many blessings

Being as it is way too late for me to admit that I am up, I was going to forgo my blog update tonight. (didn't want the lecture from mom!)  BUT I am sitting here with honey on my face (a suggestion from mom) and can't go to sleep until it dries, which left me with the option to fold more laundry (and risk getting honey on my nice clean clothes....too dangerous) or blog. Sohere I am.  

Yesterday I was going through some of the changes Chris has seen lately and started out the conversation by saying that we haven't seen a lot of progress lately.  As a proceeded to chronicle all of the recent advances, I realized that we have actually seen a lot of progress and that I needed to count my many blessings a little more frequently so I could see that.  So here they are.

• He got his snarl back. (what would he be without his snarl, right?)
  
• His grip can actually cause discomfort now.  When was the last time that I was excited to have someone hurt my hand?
  
• He can flex his right pectoral muscle.  
• He can point with his right hand.  
  
• He has gained more independent finger movement.  Each finger can move just a little more on its own. Yeah!
  
• He can touch his individual fingers to his thumb

See?  That is a pretty long list and here we were thinking it wasn't much.  And it goes to show that the myth that stroke victims stop improving at 6 months is just that,  a myth.    This next Monday is Chris' birthday and I have been thinking a lot lately about what a special day it is because I am really just tickled pink that he is still here with me, alive and kicking.  (kicking= stubborn enough to not give into painting the kitchen granny smith green)  Within a week of Chris' stroke a friend of a friend's husband had a stroke also, but she is now a widow.  Yep.  

And next time you start feeling a little tempest tossed, count them one by one. 

Side note: Totally random pictures, but what is a blog post without a picture, eh?