Baby Steps

We've had a milestone in the Davis Family this past week.

Mark was going crazy with nothing to do to occupy his time and energy. So when his brother Alan called and asked if he wanted to go on a trip to Texas and back, Mark jumped at the opportunity. Alan is a truck driver.

Mark's been invited in the past, but it just hasn't worked out with his therapies and such. And of course, we've been a little skeptical about being separated since the seizure. Okay...more than a little skeptical. More like A LOT freaked out about it. But after much contemplation, worry and what-if scenario's, we decided it would be okay for him to go. There was a checking and re-checking of his bag to make sure he got all of his meds. There was a checking to make sure he got his phone charger. There was a checking to make sure I had some Valium on hand in case I had a nervous break down. Okay...not really. But I did consider it. I was actually still at work when he left, so we had to do our goodbye over the phone. I felt like I was giving away my first born. It was difficult, to say the least.

He left at about 5 p.m. I knew I was going to worry about him being able to get enough sleep. He doesn't have the best sleeping habits when he's home in his own bed, much less in the sleeper of a semi rolling down the highway. Since sleep deprivation is a huge seizure trigger, this was my biggest concern. At 9:00 he called and said he was tired and going to bed. So instead of laying awake all night worrying about whether or not he was sleeping, I took something to knock me out, slept hard, and paced the next morning until I got the call that he was okay and slept great. Whew!

After that, I was pretty much okay. I did think about him ALL day for the next couple of days, but that's not really any different than any other day. The girls kept asking when Daddy was going to be home. Madison asked me if he took his seizure medicine with him. They love him so much. It was really good to see him last night when I finally got home from work. He was crashed in the bed, but I went in and hugged and kissed him anyway.

This morning when we got up, Mark was kind of emotional. He was reflecting on his blessings and how truly lucky he is to have a wonderful family. He missed us greatly and said he doesn't ever want to be gone that long again. I'm sure he'll change his mind in the next few weeks...especially the next time he's really bored or the girls are really noisy. But it's nice to see that he appreciates the love he has in his life. And it's nice to know that we can handle these "firsts". Baby steps....baby steps....

Blessing of the Week: peanut patties