Update: Monday, 12/19/11

Forrest is coming home. If all the last pieces come together… this Wednesday. He'll be coming home for 4-8 weeks until his next and last surgery in DC. It may not be the situation we were all hoping for but it will be home for Christmas. Mom is juggling the medications he is getting and the capable NRH staff, Docs and nurses are helping us get organized. Rae has organized a Forrestmobile to move 44 and his wheel chair around. Rae is working on the nursing and PT Staff to help us at home.

We are urgently looking for LPNs (licensed practical nurses) or RNs (registered nurses) to help us for the next 4-6 weeks while Forrest is at home. They need to be happy positive individuals, have experience, reliable transportation and ideally live not too far from The Plains. (Apparently we are considered to be too "rural" for most nurses!) Valerie Lee has graciously offered to be the point person for us, so please email her at Valerie@theleeclinic.com if you have a lead for us!

Austin and Maylin are working feverishly to put things together for the move. There is a lot of work to be done to move Team 44 from DC to Brightwood. Austin will still be working on his consulting job at the National Zoo Seal and Sea Lion construction project and will be spending half the week or as much time as possible with Forrest at the farm. Maylin will continue to do all things for Team 44, she will now be doing most of it at Brightwood until we move back to DC for the surgery for a while.

Jimmy Emmett and crew have been working tirelessly to ready the Man Cave for Forrest. Jimmy is downstairs painting as I write to make sure things are ready for our boy. It is very impressive and we will make sure we post some pictures as soon as the long awaited Forrest arrives.

Dad and the crew at VEI have been working on making sure we have all of the tools we need to take care of Forrest. His new electric bed has arrived at Brightwood and is the Ferrari of beds, way cool!

Forrest is trying so hard is and making slow but steady progress. We are excited to have him coming home and think it will do wonders for his spirit which continues fighting to soar no matter what obstacles are thrown at him. Forrest this year has faced more struggles and challenges than any twenty of us have in most of our lives. He has never given up even though he wakes up every morning to pain and the knowledge of what he has lost and how far he has to go to try to get back to where he was at any point this year. We thank all of you for staying with him and us through this struggle to have our boy back. So, Home for the Holidays, we can’t wait to have both our boys and our family back to Brightwood.

Dad and Team 44

Gio and Shayna drove to Brightwood to decorate our tree and Forrest's mancave with Caroline before coming to visit Forrest

Sundance must have said something funny

Forrest raising his arm for a thumbs up with Peyton and Sarah!