Alli update 10-22-2008

Here we are mid yawn hoping we'll stay awake long enough to update you all with minimal typos. Please forgive any stumbling of words.
Alli coughed pretty badly all through the night again last night. She also bumped her head on the headboard, and you can imagine the serenade that followed. She slept in pretty late this morning(I must admit I laid back down myself for a bit after seeing hubby off to work). Right away, I thought this might be an interesting day for us. Alli started something I had not noticed since the accident. She is walking oddly today, almost robotically. It's like her knees kick back with each step. I studied her all day and every single time she walked, she walked this way. She's also tumbled down quite a few times today. Not sure at this point what that's all about or what it might mean. Hopefully some answers will come on Mon. when we go back to the neurosurgeon.
For those of you who love Alli's "personality" so, you'll be happy to know that the fall did not take away the "concentration hummmmm". I must say it moved me to tears the first time she did it after the accident. It just reinforced to me that my sweet girl was still inside there.
We have noticed that Alli is dealing with some fear issues. She's constantly telling her sisters, "you might get hurt" and constantly warning people "be careful with my head & my side". She developed a fear of going into rooms alone, and when quetioned says, "It's scary to be by myself." The doctors say all of this is expected and should get better over time.
And now, I'm off to help "aisle 2" with some math woes before bed. Pray for us, with Alli's recovery, with maintaining our home, with progress on the ginhouse, with finances in my being out of work for so long, with time management, with homeschooling, with sleep schedules, with socialization, and I guess, with everything. This time is hard, but it is also sweet. We haven't had this kind of family time in a very long time. I'll miss that when things return to its normal fast pace. My family is so precious, and it's at times like these, I'm reminded how truly Blessed we are.