October 5 - A Beautiful Day for an Outing (Reintegration #2)

Sunday was General Conference! John, Brad, Caleb and Alexis all came into town so we could spend this weekend together. We had tickets to go to Temple Square in Salt Lake City to watch the talks live.  (Shortly after the accident, while AJ was in the post surgery care unit, John told AJ that we had been given tickets by our Stake President to attend conference, if AJ was feeling up to it.  From that point forward, AJ made it his goal to be able attend.  He worked hard at it and made it a reality!)  Our assigned seats were in the balcony but as we were looking for the way to the balcony, an usher told us that we could sit in the Plaza level! Wheelchair BONUS!

Pertaining to AJ's Recovery, two important facts stood out to me:

1. Preparedness = Success - We couldn't just hurry out the door like we are used to doing. There was a lot of preparation that had to be done, including bringing 'emergency' supplies and planning in extra time for parking and getting through the crowd.  I was thankful for a wise therapist who allotted plenty of time for our activity!

2. Independence is Freedom - It was so great to get outside to just enjoy being in the beautiful weather and being out in public. The therapist added an extra hour to our trip so we could explore Temple Square -- and we did!  AJ led the way, going wherever he wanted to. (It was helpful that the area is very wheelchair friendly, too.)  We even ran into a couple of friends from Richland!  That kind of independence and freedom is priceless.  We returned to rehab feeling refreshed and renewed!

A few pics for fun:

AJ's seat cushion is not long enough to keep his legs stable, so Brad gave up his dress belt so AJ could use it to strap his legs.  The issue: Brads' pants are about 2 inches too big! (As you can see by his 'clown pants' pose. :) )

                       My questionable attempt at photo bombing.                      The handsome Hunt Boys less 1 :)!          

                        (Pretty sure they gave it to me - haha!)