He was awake, alert, calm, and happy when I arrived at the hospital. He said that he had a good night and slept well. He wanted to get his bathing done before the visitors came (which we knew were coming). He needed to do as much as he could with bathing and dressing himself because that is one requirement from his occupational therapist. He had to lift his upper body up off the bed quite a few times (he has a trapeze bar above him to pull himself up) even with pain shooting through his left leg. He was determined to do it--and succeeded! :) He was also able to get in and out of his bed without hardly any assistance! There were some frustrations that were freely expressed by him today, but it's okay. It is going to be a very long road to full recovery, but he has this drive and determination (maybe it's stubbornness) to work hard.
His visitors consisted of a friend of ours from Vermont and the former Surgeon General of the Air Force (who he was traveling with), our state Governor--Governor Douglas and the Governor of South Dakota, a fellow Vermont Army National Guardsman who we did not even know was here at the hospital in the ward next to where Jake is, and members of a local VFW. It was wonderful to see so many Vermonters. :)
About 5:30 this evening, he told me that he was tired, was going to close his eyes for a bit, and wanted me to go and get my dinner. He slept until he woke with me giving him a kiss goodbye on his forehead--almost 3 hours without any help from sleeping medications. It was a peaceful, restful sleep. He did dream, but it seemed to be good dreams because when I looked over at him, he had a really big smile on his face. :) What a beautiful sight to see!
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