Travis is "ONE BAD MAMBO JAMBO"!!!

How about this smile that

I get to see everyday? :)

It's really cool to be around a

modern day miracle. 

I thank God every single day for

saving Trav's life and I pray with

all of my heart for what his purpose

in life now is and that we reach it. 

Life is really tough for this guy

and to be honest, I'm amazed

that he smiles as much as he does...

Travis is very self-driven and of course

that is a large part of the success in

his recovery.  One afternoon I found

him at the kitchen table writing out

his daily devotional from Jesus Calling.

He had come up with this idea on

his own so he could be working

on his handwriting.  I'll never forget

the first time we handed him a pencil

after he had come out of his coma

to see if he could write us something.

It was all scribble :(

This guy is re-learning everything. 

He always had the neatest handwriting

for a guy.  He still has quite a ways

to go with his handwriting...

but I see his old style coming through :)

I told him that I was going to

take another picture because I had

never seen him concentrate or study that

hard...especially when he was MY student!!!

His message is wide spread literally!!!

My dear and beautiful and amazing bestie

who now lives Down Under shared

his video one Sunday when she was in

charge of children's church. 

When people do things like this,

it DOES give us purpose for what has

happened to Travis and that comforts us greatly.

  Who knows?

Maybe one little Australian life

will be changed forever from Kimberly

sharing this?  Or just maybe one little

Aussie in that room that morning will

remember Trav's story and make

the right decision when he or she is older.

Thank you, Kimberly, for supporting my

Travis and my family from day one...

I love you and your heart so much. 

Right before Thanksgiving, Travis became

obsessed (TBI result where he becomes

extremely fixated on things)

with having another swallow study.

His last swallow study was a disaster as there

were no signs of improvement.  I don't even

think he could get the stuff OUT of his mouth. 

With Thanksgiving approaching, Travis

realized how desperately he wanted to eat

Grandmother's cooking:(

He was always a terribly picky eater

like me, but also a big kid!

I used to hide the rolls from him...

I swear he'd eat like 15!!!;)

He decided he wanted just a little

bit of Grandmother's mashed potatoes

and maybe some mac & cheese. 

It broke our hearts:( especially

as he begged each of us to take him

for a swallow study even up until

the day before Thanksgiving. 

Lynna decided after Thanksgiving to get

the process in motion...the doctor's

referral, insurance, appointment time, etc.

The date for the DREADED

swallow study was set for

December 20th ~ Lynna's birthday.

We prayed.  We prayed.  We prayed.

We asked everyone to pray. 

We teared up at the thought of this test.

While we HOPED for at least some

improvement due to the work Travis

has done with Baylor Speech on his

swallowing, you just never know.

It's such a slow, daunting, difficult

process.  An expert doctor at Scott & White

told Travis IF he ever ate or spoke again,

he was looking at ten years down the

road for that to even begin and it

would never be the same as it was before. 

I joined Lynna and Travis that morning

for moral support.  Tearfully, Lynna

and I both pulled aside the two

speech therapists (whom we had never

met nor had they met Travis)

AND the doctor aside and pleaded

with them to find something...

anything...positive to say during the test.

About one minute into the test,

Travis started choking.  I had to step out...

I could hardly stand it and just knew

this was going to be bad, bad, bad. 

The sweet technician came out

to comfort me and told me that it

was a good think he was coughing...

that's what we would do if we had

something trying to go down the wrong

way!  YES!  She was right...his

coughing meant it was stopping

the stuff from going to his lungs:)

This sweet girl continued to physically

comfort me the rest of the test as I

had to stand back because of the x-ray.

Lynna didn't care about the x-ray...

she was 51 that day!  ha;)

The test continued on and it was

unbelievable to watch it all

on screen from where I was standing.

The therapists and the doctor

DID see improvement.  It was minimal...

but they didn't have to make it up!

They saw POSITIVES!!!!!!!!

As we listened to them discuss

and throw ideas at each other and go

back and forth, we could NOT believe

the decision they finally came to...

that Travis COULD try some

of Grandmother's mashed potatoes!!! 

This was the best birthday and

Christmas present Lynna could

EVER have imagined.  Me, too!!!

The tears flowed and flowed. 

I swear I think we were in SHOCK.

I had hoped for slight improvement

but never dreamed that this would

even be an option!!!  His guidelines

for his "pleasure feeding" are very strict:

only 10 half teaspoons of mashed potatoes

with 10 to 12 swallows for each bite

and only once a day.  PLUS he must

make sure that every last bit

is cleared from his mouth after

eating (through washing) AND if

fever, runny nose, or any achy feelings

hit to stop immediately.  He could

aspirate SO very easily...and be

in the hospital with pneumonia

in no time.  "Pleasure feeding"

is for a patient to be able to taste

again AND the swallowing is

awesome therapy.  God drew near

to us that day.  He met us at

that swallow study and provided

just the therapists we needed

that very day.  They even gave us their

cell phone numbers for during the holidays

since they were so worried over

allowing Travis to do this!!!

They were ALL precious......................

and God answered our prayers that day.

Plain and simple!!!

"...let us draw near to God with a sincere

heart in full assurance of faith."  Hebrews 10:22

What a birthday present!!!!!!!!

(Funny aside...right before the picture below,

Travis had leaned against that table and the

huge arrangement started to fall.  It was

like slow motion everyone trying

to catch it!  We were dying!!!

We are CONSTANTLY laughing

and having fun when we are

together no matter what through

ALL of this!!!  It's the only way to go!)

"You also join in helping us through your

prayers, so that thanks may be given by

many persons on our behalf for the favor

bestowed on us through the prayers of many."

2 Corinthians 1:11

I try to conduct speech therapy with

Travis as many days of the week

as possible.  It's become quite the joke

since I try to use all the correct lingo...

aveloeur ridge, supraglottic swallow,

 mendelson technique, etc.  

I basically just try to copy everything

I watched his therapist at Baylor do. 

We figure something is better

than nothing.  I love it...

mostly because I love HIM so much:)

We didn't even really celebrate Lynna's

birthday that night.  We were too celebrated

out by that evening!!!  PLUS somebody

was ready for his mashed potatoes. 

Without even asking Grandmother made

some and she and PaPa brought them over.

It was amazing to watch Lynna feed

these to him.  He did GREAT!!!

It wasn't as much of an AHHHH-haaaaaaa

moment as I had planned with this being

his first taste of real food in two

and a half years.  It's hard work for him

to swallow and I think that his taste

buds aren't quite the same just yet. 

You couldn't have gotten his million

dollar smile to disappear for anything though!

"I have heard your prayer;

I have seen your tears. 

Behold I will heal you."

2 Kings 20:5

Mike Cleveland...an AMAZING man

that Lynna went to high school with

came over that night to visit.  He brought

gifts for all of them.  He's truly a

Godly man and we love him dearly. 

Josh Carson is another Godly man who

worked at Sr. Care while Travis was there

and sometimes fills in helping care

for Travis at home.  He's awesome

and he even attends the church

that Travis likes to attend! 

While we still didn't have Travis join us

at the table for Christmas lunch,

we did feel much better since he

was having some mashed potatoes!

Everyone ate while Lynna and I hung

with him and then we ate. 

It was perfect...for now! 

One week later, I took Travis

for his follow up appointment with the

therapists who performed the swallow

study.  AGAIN...I was blown away, when

after I told her how well he had done,

she said, "Let's add some other things

for your taste!"  Again it's under

very, VERY strict precautions but

Travis can now have some pureed foods...

even like pudding or applesauce. 

Still no liquids other than water

because apparently the liquids went

straight to his lungs.  WHO knew the

brain controlled ALL of this...

the swallowing AND where it goes!

We just couldn't believe it!!!

FINALLY some progress...

finally some positives!!!

"I tell you the truth, if you have faith

as small as the mustard seed, you can say

this to the mountain, "Move from

here to there, " and it will move. 

Nothing will be impossible for you."

Matthew 17:20

I especially heart my one-on-one time

with this miracle of a nephew...

I love him so!!!

Another prayer was answered that very

day when one of his best friends from

high school who is in college in

Arkansas and really has no ties left

in Waco came and stayed two nights

with Travis and hung out with him!!!:)

I'll never forget how Will drove straight

through from Arkansas the minute he

heard of Trav's accident that July day:(

He's a true friend and we wish he

still lived here!!!  Travis is so lonely

and misses his friends something awful.

Even better Dustin was in from

Nashville and he and Will took Travis to

Austin to the IMAX to see The Hobbit.

Travis had been begging people on

Facebook to take him:(  Troy took

him on Christmas Eve day to see

The Hobbit at a regular theater in Waco

which was so sweet...

But this was the IMAX and with friends!

My heart still literally aches over what has

happened to Travis.  Sometimes I just watch

him and his struggles and remember the Travis
before and it just breaks my heart all over
again.  And again.  I hate it so much.
Of course my gratitude for the miracle that
he is outweighs my heart ache,
but you just don't want someone you
love SO MUCH to have to struggle
or suffer or hurt.  You just don't.

I function best when I see glimpses
of the "good"...glimpes of God's plan. 
I see it quite often in my own three
children.  Their little lives have truly
been affected by all of this.  They are
growing up with this.  The amazing
thing is that they are and hopefully
will ALWAYS be better for this. 
THAT is awesome to me!!!!!!!!

Walker recently had an assignment in
Language Arts to write about how
he makes a difference.
  This was easy for my Walker D! 
I absolutely loved what HE chose to write... 


Travis depends A LOT on Facebook
for his communication with the outside
world as well as for something to occupy him.
  It's truly a Godsend that he has it. 
On that same note, Travis does have
a brain injury ~ just as soon as we forget
that ~ a post on Facebook
is quick to remind us of the fact;(
Before the accident, you could probably
have said that Travis was rather open
and certainly didn't mind expressing himself
openly and honestly.  As a result of the
brain injury, he does not have much
of a filter AT ALL.  So, you combine
these two factors and you just
never know what he's going to say!!!
Monitoring his Facebook is sometimes
a full-time job for me! ;)  ha!

Sometimes though I can hardly blame
the guy for things he says and posts...
like I've said, he's got a tough
and VERY frustrating life and can't
vocalize it.  BUT more often than not,
his Facebook is AWESOME and
very inspiring!!!  Travis has always
been a writer and he is so eloquent
with his words and vocabulary.
We could probably make a book
just out of his Facebook posts,
but this one just might be my
favorite one of all.......

I absolutely LOVE this one!!!
It's hilarious.......and
it's soooooooooooooooo true!

I fully believe that God chose Travis
for a reason.  He's a leader
and he DOES have the type of
personality and presence that makes
 people want to follow him.
Most people, under these tough
circumstances, WOULD give up...
but not Travis. 

"No temptation has overtaken you that

is not common to man. God is faithful, and

he will not let you be tempted beyond

your ability, but with the temptation

he will also provide the way of escape,

that you may be able to endure it."

I Corinthians 10:13

I couldn't agree more with our
Superman on this one...
God probably did choose him
because he's "one bad mamba jamba"!!!
I look forward to and have no doubts
that God WILL continue to
heal and use Travis in so many
and mighty ways!!!

"And after you have suffered a little while,
the God of all grace,
who has called you to his eternal glory in Christ,
will himself restore, confirm,
strengthen, and establish you."
1 Peter 5:10