Three Down, Three Up

It seems like some weeks have their ups and downs. This week had three each, but I'm thankful it is done.

As we knew, I had three nights without caregivers this past week, Sunday, Tuesday, and Wednesday. It is unusual to have open nights during the week, but my primary night nurse was off for his annual hunting week. Open nights isn't anything new, but it keeps getting harder for my parents as the decades accumulate.

It is hard to watch mom brush my teeth as the few minutes of standing on her already painful legs makes it unbearable. Dad was also still dealing with coughing and not feeling well and having little sleep wouldn't help the situation.

Thankfully, all my day hours were covered and my intern caregiver volunteered to help with my

bedtime cares two evenings. That allowed dad to go to bed earlier and made less for mom to do. I'm very thankful for the caregivers God has provided and all that they do. When my bedtime needs were finished, I could play games on my computer or watch a movie with mom to help stay awake and pass the time until dad got up. These were the three down times, but that wasn't all that happened.

I started biking in summer 2015. In the more than eight years since starting, I have pedaled more than 2100 miles. It took a long time to figure out good settings for my legs, but early last year seems to put everything where it needs to be. However, we still never know what my legs will do.

This week, I got on the bike four times and set new personal records during three of the sessions. My previous record was a little over 11 minutes, but my legs went for more than 14, 12, and 13 minutes. Everything seemed the same as it always does, but for some reason my lower half was more energetic. In total, I officially burned 1.1 calories over the four bike rides. It doesn't quite allow a lick of ice cream, but it's getting close. After Friday's time of 13 minutes, I even felt tired like I had actually exercised.

Living the quad life is indeed full of unexpected times. I am thankful for what God has provided for my family and will look to Him in both good times and bad.