8/14 - Sam's Journey - Day 246

It has been a month since I posted the video, and the subtle (mostly) messages that a blog entry was sorely lacking have been received. Naturally, after a summer that started off smooth sailing with a lot of necessary rest after the crazy year we had, the last part has been insanely busy, and has succumbed to Murphy's Law. (Clarification: Sam is fine.) For pretty much the entire month of July and August thus far, we've been dealing with doctor visits, birthdays, out of town visitors, phone calls, meetings, roofers, A/C problems, baby rabbit infestations, 

seriously, me trying to get into my car the other day

chimney removal, floods, bugs, insurance, incorrect bills, broken down cars, school starting, locusts, boils. Oh, wait. Scratch those last two. I got confused for a minute. I did want to wait until a couple of things happened so I had something more official to report to you. So here we go...

Overall, Sam is doing well. He continues to progress in almost all areas. He finally got his let brace adjusted, and he did not have any injuries related to the knee hyperextension. He keeps moving forward with physical and cognitive goals, although he may have hit a small bump in the road. In speech they have tried a variety of different things to develop swallowing and suction, and there really isn't as much progress as they'd like to see, so he will have an ENT appointment to see if there's something going on in there physiologically. That's certainly not great news, especially because these things are related to eating and singing. But as you've probably already guessed, we are not giving up on finding a solution to what's going on. And, if it is physiological, the potential of fixing it is almost easier than having to recreate those brain connections. Adding to the stress is the fact that we have to wait until September 23rd. (Sam & Sarah's birthday.) I'm asking that you keep this situation in your prayers as we move forward.

One of the two big things to which I referred earlier was a big meeting to discuss plans about how to handle Sam and school. I am pleased to let you know that Sam is officially enrolled in Plano again. (Maybe I'll stop getting those calls from Dallas about the STAAR exam now.)  We are still making a lot of decisions, but the meeting was incredible. We are grateful to the massive amount of staff that was there to support Sam. In fact, there were so many people there, we had to move from the conference room because we didn't fit. We are waiting on some evaluations and a few other things, but we should have a plan shortly. We're trying to work out everything while he is still in rehab. Sam's goal for school is clear, however. He wants to graduate with his sister and his friends on time in 2018. If anyone can do it, it is this kid, and we will do everything we can to help him achieve that, for as long as he's not compromising his recovery. 

The second thing I wanted to talk about was his follow up visit with the neurosurgeon. His last visit was in March right before he started his current outpatient rehab program. I was in the middle of a delightful inservice about the new teacher evaluation system, and I was texting with Jim to see how it was going. He texted, ''Lots of people coming in to look at him." When I asked why and he didn't respond, I kind of flipped out a little bit. When he finally replied (which, in his defense was about 3 minutes later) he wrote, "They're all marveling at the progress he's made." The MRI was showing nothing new, and the doctor said that if something was going to show up, it would have by now. We also talked about him possibly coming off the Keppra (the anti-seizure drug) since he was put on it preventively in the first place. It looks like that might be happening sooner rather than later, so that's some good news!

Hopefully, that holds you for awhile, because school is starting, and I expect to have no life again until about Thanksgiving break. I will write as I have updates, but I'm guessing the updates will but much more brief. Thanks for your continued thoughts and prayers for Sam & his recovery. I would also ask you to lift up:

• for all of us as we work through all of the things going on at Casa Loeffler. It's been crazy, and we'd like not to be!
• for Aaron as he heads back to Colorado this week--provided we can get his car started!
• for Aaron, the little boy who suffered a brain injury on Christmas evening. Tomorrow (Monday) he has a neurosurgeon appointment and CT and they are hoping that the fluid has gone down so he does not need shunts. Prayers for good test results and continued healing would be appreciated
• for Ben, the boy who was hit by a car while riding his bike and suffered a TBI - continued prayers for healing, and prayers of thanksgiving for really awesome progress! He is starting the 7th grade and is doing really well! (Way to go, Ben!)
• for Tyler, they young man who suffered a TBI in a car accident prior to Sam's accident, and for his mom. He continues to face many challenges in his recovery. Please pray for him that he can find the right treatment, and that his mom can get the support he needs. 
• for a co-worker and his wife who just had their sixth child.
• for all teachers as we start off another school year.

Finally, a few recent pictures of Sam.

Sam after the marathon meeting with his principal