We Have Our New Van

I am home for just a couple of days in between covering the RNC convention and the DNC convention.
When the cabbie dropped me off Friday afternoon, there was a silver van in our parking spot!

The busyness of the last week in Tampa left me in a state of blur as far as home goes, so I was kind of surprised to see it there, even though I was the one who parked it there exactly the previous Friday.

Gosh.
Typing it out like that makes me realize we need to go somewhere today, so it is driven more than once in a couple of weeks!

Here's the story of the van coming to it's new home.

This very nice man came to pick me up at our place. His name is Charlie Brown!! This made me happy, because my dad's name is Charlie Brown.  So, in the middle of our political discussion, he agreed to being photographed.

He drove me from home to Ride-A-Way in Beltsville, Maryland - about an hour away.

There were a couple of service doggies waiting in the waiting area and they were so calm and sweet.  I love seeing service dogs because dogs generally make me happy, but you know, you're not supposed to pet service dogs, so it also kind of makes me sad. But these dogs were "off duty," so I was allowed to pet them. Random aside, I know.
One of the ladies in the office pulled up my paperwork, and one of the guys went to get our van!

They pulled it out front and showed me how the door and ramp were fixed to automatically deploy.  They also put a mat down over the carpet in the back. This is helpful for two reasons: 1. It will be easier for Michael to roll on than carpet. 2. It will be easier to clean than carpet.

Then, Randy, the Ride-A-Way General Manager informed me that they did all of the repairs AND serviced the van for us COMPLETELY FOR FREE!!

You guys, this blessing just keeps getting better!

That's me (standing on the ramp, otherwise I'm way shorter than everyone else) with Tammy and Randy.

Ride-A-Way just happened to be having lunch there that day, so they invited me to join them.
After the van presentation at Walter Reed a couple of weeks ago, I was already impressed with how these people work together to get adapted vehicles to our wounded warriors, but I got to see all of them in action and it was awesome!

This is the shop where they work on the vehicles.
This truck is for a quadruple amputee named John Peck.

It was so nice to meet him, and his mom, and see Tammy in action!
Pretty soon, I was on the road home. I didn't plan well, though, and I was heading home without a GPS, and an almost-dead phone.
Oops.
So, yeah - those things plus the fact that I felt like I was driving a giant silver school bus - were a little crazy.

Michael had the dogs out in the courtyard when I got home.
He was so ready to check everything out.
Here he is on his inaugural roll-in:

Princess walked up the ramp like she had done this a million times before. I guess she kind of has, because she was around for Michael's old van - which was a full-sized van and had a lift, not a ramp.
But Brokaw... he was not feeling the ramp!

He only wanted to enter through one of the front doors. He doesn't like walking on metal. I have no idea why. He is just quirky like that. Like, when we are walking him, he refuses to walk on a street grate or a manhole cover. And once he was in the van, he did not want to walk down the ramp to get out!

I had to drag him down the ramp.
After I got Michael all tied down, we went for a little drive.  Around our apartment complex.
I felt like I was in Driver's Ed. Mini-van driver's ed.  I tried braking suddenly and turning quickly - to see how Michael was able to hold himself up.
He did pretty good.
Because Michael doesn't have any control of his abdominal muscles, he has a hard time holding himself up, unless he is holding on.
So - we ghetto-rigged a way for him to stay upright while riding in his wheelchair.
Don't laugh.

Yes, that's a backpack.
No, it's not a back to school thing.
It's a hold-his-shoulders upright kind of thing.
And it worked just great!
That very night, we took our new van out for date night.

We went to Macaroni Grill. And I wore a dress. And heels! People. You don't realize how big of a deal this was! Because we have this van, I am able to be a woman again. I able to wear a dress without having to hike it up and show my world to the world if you know what I mean. I'm able to wear heels because I don't have to lift my husband into an SUV.

This was just the FIRST of many dates we are going to have because of this amazing van. Thank you again to everyone involved in sharing this gift with us. A special thank you to Ride-A-Way Beltsville for hooking us up with some awesome, free service!

New Series: Our (Kind Of) Accessible Apartment

One question I get a lot is what kind of modifications have we made to our home to make it wheelchair accessible.

The answer: Not much. Our apartment is not very different from the apartment next door.  Our apartment is also far from "fully accessible."  But it works for us, right now, at this point in our lives.

Over the next several weeks, I'll give you a tour of our place, and the little things we've done to make it kind of accessible.

This is where we live:

It's a two bedroom apartment. We are on the first floor, obviously.  

Our building doesn't have an elevator. But, even if it did, I would still prefer to live on the first floor. Mainly because if there is a fire, I'd prefer for my husband to get out alive, and without an escape plan that would involve me rolling him down steps, then rolling his wheelchair down steps. I'm thinking that would not end well.  Plus, I've lived on higher floors before and the whole up and down the stairs with groceries thing is not great.

First up: the floor

The most obvious difference between our apartment and the apartment next door is the floor. We filled out a form in the office called a "request for a reasonable modification." It's an ADA form. Then, we had the maintenance guys pull up the carpet, then THANK GOD some good friends came and helped us chip up all the glue on the floor, and glue down these linoleum tiles one-by-one. They are one square foot each, and our place is 1200 square feet!! Our friend Joe measured and cut all of the squares that were on the corners and edges. We got these tiles at Home Depot for 33 cents a square. We've been here two years, and I'd say it's held up very well.

Insider secret: We didn't do the floors in the closets.

One other thing we had the apartment complex do to make our place accessible was to replace all of the doorknobs with handles.

This is the inside of our front door. You can see the handle instead of a knob.  We hung a rope on the doorknob. Actually, I believe it's technically a "bed ladder." Michael uses this to open the front door. He pulls up to it, pulls the rope up to his mouth, holds it with his teeth, pushes the door handle down, and pulls, backing up.  It's definitely not a graceful process, but it works, and he can get out independently.  On the way in, it's easier. He just jiggles the handle down, and pushes forward and his feet push the door open.

Side note: You can see the dog leashes hanging there. Note the chain collars. This is brilliant! For these collars, all you have to do is loop the chain through the circle, then put it around the dogs' necks. So, you never have to pinch anything. This makes it possible for Michael to walk the dogs independently. Hallelujah!

Side note #2: If you are going to be living with a wheelchair in your house, you're going to have to give up having/liking/wanting clean walls. Because it's not going to happen. Even if you use 4 magic erasers every Saturday. Trust me. By Monday, they're smudgy again. I suggest just not looking down, then magic erasing shortly before your mother comes to visit.

My plan is to take you through our home and show you more of these little things. If you'd like to share tips and things you do in your home along the way, please do! You can e-mail me pictures to danabrownritter@gmail.com. Or, feel free to share them on our Facebook page.

Paralysis Tip#1: Find a Good Sports Bottle

We often run into obstacles with paralysis. One of mine is getting enough water. Paralysis affects the body's circulatory system and the function of the bladder and bowels. Recommended water intake is higher than average for most paralyzed folks. This is a challenge when it's difficult to pick up a cup in the first place or sit up in bed.

I used to have a sport bottle with a long, flexible straw. We got the bottle from somebody at Miami General Hospital when I was recovering. It served me for almost 15 years! Unfortunately, it didn't have a handle and leaked if turned sideways.

Dana bought two Camelbak sport bottles just before we got married that fit the bill. These bottles have a thumb-sized plastic loop on top that is easy to grab. Their fold-down nozzle seals the bottle when closed and have a rubber cap that opens when squeezed.

A Wounded Soldier's Story

 

Click here to read the story from Sunday's Washington Post

In Sunday's Washington Post, we read the story of another couple facing the challenges of disability. He was a lieutenant in the Army serving in Afghanistan when he was blown up by an IED. They barely knew each other before he was deployed overseas. When she saw him next he had lost both legs.

Rebecca and Dan have been through ongoing rehab along with special dinners honoring wounded and fallen soldiers. They also face the challenges of everyday life. Both are making plans for their futures.

As we meet and hear the stories of other couples with a disabled spouse we realize two things. One is we aren't alone. So many others are going through the things we are. The other is we have opportunities to really help others. Despite anything we may feel, our lives --ups and downs-- are out there so people can grow.

Anticipating My New Wheelchairs

For the summer we've been waiting for my new wheelchairs. If you're following our blog, you'll know we were going to get new chairs for the bathroom and everyday use. We have been through so many frustrations and tears fighting to get these necessary items. It has been one disappointment after another.

A quick summary:

My current everyday chair has been less reliable for a while. The batteries do not last long enough. The manufacturer closed up shop, so I determined it would be best to go with something with support. I picked out my chair to replace it, but they got caught up in negotiations with insurance. Then the chair I ordered was no longer compatible for my new wheels, so we started over.

We got a bathroom chair, but it is an engineering mess. Too long, awkward, and plain wrong. The supply company left us dangling despite their replacement guarantee. I finally got with the right person at the manufacturer, explained my experience with the chair, and she got it authorized for return. I picked out one that should work now.

Back to present day:

We are getting delivery Monday! I'm nervous about getting used to new wheelchairs, but they look reliable and more practical. I look forward to getting out more. I look forward to less frustration in day-to-day life.

We Have Two Microwaves

Because we're cool like that. And because we both need to be able to get to them!

I'm going to expand on this, because originally I just posted the pics and that was it. But a Facebook conversation made me realize how much I really LIKE that we have two microwaves.

Originally, we bought the second microwave so Michael could get to it. He loves some hot tea! Plus, he needs to be able to heat up his lunch or whatever. He rocks some popcorn and ramen noodles in this sucker! He's also made DINNER in there. Who knew you can microwave pork chops!!

But, it wasn't long after we had the second microwave that I realized it has great benefits!! We often have dueling microwaves going, heating up two bowls of oatmeal at a time, or two plates of leftovers at a time. It saves a lot of time, and allows two people to have two hot meals ready to eat at the same time.

I'd go as far as recommending this for ANYONE. Even if you can all reach the microwave. It's a cool timesaver and microwaves are not expensive at all anymore. So yeah, get that second microwave!

I just thought about something... I sure do hope dueling microwaves doesn't turn my little apartment galley kitchen into some sort of radiation chamber... oh well, I'll worry about that later.

Project 365: Gratitude

I'm borrowing a page out of the Kolette Hall playbook. I followed along last year on her blog as she took a picture each day of something she was grateful for. I do not know Kolette or her husband Jason personally, but we are internet friends, and Kolette has already been a shoulder for me to lean on because we are in somewhat similar situations. I enjoyed and was encouraged by her journey in 2009. So, I'm attempting to do the same this year. I'd like to share my pictures here, as I try this year to focus on just how much I do have to be thankful for.

January 1: I am thankful for the bottle of champagne that symbolizes our New Year's turning around. We saved the cork to keep as an "altar" to remember that turning point.

January 2: I am thankful for Skype. And for the conversation I was able to have early in the morning with my dear friend Ann, who is in Thailand. Her friendship is exceedingly special to me and her smile and voice are always an encouragement.

January 3: My couch cushions. I have never been so thankful for my couch cushions! I made breakfast burritos yesterday morning, and because of those two back couch cushions, we were able to enjoy breakfast in bed together.