Happy Easter From Our Home to Yours

We had a wonderful, wonderful Easter.  It is a lovely Spring day here in Oregon, and we have spent the day outside enjoying the sunshine, great food, and our wonderful family.

My husband is doing extremely well since his stroke on Wednesday. His stroke was an extremely unusual one. He lives a healthy and well balanced life so it was quite unusual to have this happen especially the way that it did in just one one of the four spinal arteries at the back of the neck and one of the even rarer occurrences where the blockage occurred in the in left vertebral artery, encased in the spine and not in any of the others.

It is a permanent blockage of unknown cause, with no known treatment at this time.The blockage is permanent as is the damage to the brain cells that artery fed. But we are hopeful that there will be collateral improvement in all ways as the ability of the body, mind, and spirit to heal itself has been proven over and over again in our lives.

Because of this unusual kind of stroke, he has no dietary or medical restrictions as it was neither caused by high blood pressure,  nor by high cholesterol, and not influenced by diabetes, smoking, or any of the usual risk factors.

Things happen, we deal with them, and we continue on.  We expect the speech to slowly improve as well as the slight weakness on the right side. Meanwhile he is medically released to resume normal home and work activities.  It is one of those unusual events that is so atypical, that the doctors have not been able to determine a cause, nor any treatment, or even any preventive actions for this kind of stroke. None of the usual risk factors created it, and none of the usual precautions would alter another one from potentially happening again. We just think positively, and hope for the best.

He had a significant number of  hospital tests, including all of the usual medical ones (CT scans, MIR, Echo-cardiogram, multiple blood screens etc. etc, as well as physical, occupational, and speech testing and suggestions for therapy at the hospital and was released to continue to practice on his own.

So, we have physical, social, home, and outside activities in place (by ourselves)  that increase the use of the muscles that need strengthening, with lots of talking both in person, and on the phone to increase articulation etc.

He is doing amazingly well and we feel very, very fortunate to have had such a good outcome from what might have been a devastating event.

We are grateful for so many blessings this holiday season, and hope that all of you know just how much all of your kind messages, positive prayers, thoughts, and energies meant to us.

 
Fabric Egg Directions:  I saw this darling fabric egg idea found at a local antique/craft store. To create your own, just layer several pieces of batting between front and back fabrics, sew on the outside around the edges, leaving an opening to insert more fiberfill fluff inside, make a double fabric rosette or yo-you and a wrap around band, add button trim, coffee or tea dye the entire completed egg. You can also dye the layered fabric and pieces before creating egg, but its easier to me to just dye then dry the whole egg. So cute and easy!

Happy Easter and Many Blessings from our Home to Yours!

Michele Bilyeu blogs With Heart and Hands as she shares a quilting journey through her life in Salem, Oregon and Douglas, Alaska. Sewing, quilting, and wildcrafting, with small format art quilts, prayer flags, and comfort quilts for a variety of charitable programs. And best of all, sharing thousands of links to Free Quilt and Quilt Block Patterns and encouraging others to join her and make and donate quilts to charitable causes.   Help us change the world, one little quilt, art quilt, and prayer flag at a time!