My Friend JC Kid

JC thinks Hug and I are going to name our firstborn after him. Well, maybe he doesn't really think that, but he talks about how we are going to all the time. Funny thing is, I would totally do it.

I just like the name, and he's great with kids, and he's been Hub's brother for as long as they've known each other, and his parents have filled in all the gaps where Hug's parents lacked. Why the heck not? If JC were confirmed Catholic, he'd be our kid's godfather anyway. I'm thinking he needs to go get Confirmed just so he can have the title Godfather.

Anyway, that's not what I'm here to write about. I'm just rambling because my throat hurts and I'm trying to do talk much, and I miss talking.



JC is doing great! Better than I expected. Better than his therapists expected. I asked if he was doing better than he expected, and he said he was trying not to have expectations, but he was very happy with the progress.

His wounds are now all stitched up. He walked six laps around the hospital yesterday and up and down two flights of stairs. He's decided to ditch the cane he was using to walk. One of his wounds has some bacteria in it, so he's still on strong antibiotics, but not IV antibiotics anymore, so that's good news. The oral antibiotics upset his stomach, though, so that's not so good, but he says its tolerable. JC is a sugar-a-holic, so everyone who visits him has been sending sweet treats, which he shares with the nurses, doctors, and nursing students, who love him and have been taking really good care of him. He has not been discharged from the hospital yet - they're expecting him to be on out-patient status by early next week - but his mom did convince the doctors to let her check him out for a night Saturday, so JC is extremely excited at the prospect of Freedom, if only for a night! JC wiggled his right foot, just a bit, which was HUGELY exciting for both him and his dad. The doctors think that will improve a little, but then plateau, and are still estimating six months for full rehab of that foot, based on the muscle damage and nerve trauma.

JC commented that by the time Hug gets home, we'll hardly be able to tell there's anything wrong with him at all, and Hug will tease him, saying its time to go back to Iraq. He's probably right. I told JC if I knew he was going to be doing this well in his physical therapy, I probably wouldn't have freaked out like I did. He laughed. When I shared that with his mom, she laughed, too, and admitted his progress is surprising even her.

So...its a great day. I will not complain about my cold because a sore throat and congestion is nothing compared to having two bullets tear up your leg muscles and then choosing to push yourself to walk just one week later with zero painkillers, but plenty of stubborness and determination.