During this week, there were no “bad” days or days void of news. Definitely, a positive week for Laura! In general, she is doing many of the same things with a basic increase in attentiveness and overall alertness. She has done a few specific actions that haven’t gone unnoticed. Laura is desperately trying to communicate, we believe. She has increased her incidents of vocalizations (still moaning type noises), but coordinating those noises with significant lip movements. The other day, we noticed Laura lifting her right arm from the elbow, upwards toward her face. This movement was the first witnessed of this magnitude and surely must be a sign for future progress.

After enduring through this process for nine long months, we would like to extend our warmest and deepest expressions of gratitude to all of you. We have been thoroughly blessed by your love and commitment to our life struggle. Unfortunately, these email messages are the only reasonable way to display our appreciation. This road has been long and appears to have only begun. Please, continue loving, continue praying, and continue following our living miracle. As we grow and mature in our faith walk, the rewards will surely materialize.

Short message today on maintaining proper perspective and fixing your eyes outward upon God! When our lives are seemingly running well, do we give God the glory? Oftentimes, we forget the true source of our abilities and successes. We distance ourselves from Him and lose the all important, eternal perspective. Then, when challenges of all kinds arrive, what do we do? Frequently, we quickly seek Him out and may even blame or challenge Him. Our responsibility is not to forget about God during good times and run to Him to rescue us when needed. That is a selfish relationship, in which your expectation to be rewarded is unrealistic at best. After all, if eternity is an important focus for your earthly life, we pose this question to you: What will ultimately provide you more of an opportunity to prepare for eternal life and develop character, calm waters or rough seas?

YOU HAVE ALWAYS PUT A WALL OF PROTECTION AROUND HIM AND HIS HOME AND HIS PROPERTY. YOU HAVE MADE HIM PROSPER IN EVERYTHING HE DOES. LOOK HOW RICH HE IS! BUT REACH OUT AND TAKE EVERYTHING HE HAS, AND HE WILL SURELY CURSE YOU TO YOUR FACE! (Job 1: 10-11)

We love you,
Jeff and Laura Laughlin

In an understatement, it was a highly up and down week for Laura. The good news is the down part of the week was at the beginning and she has had solid therapy days as the week has drawn to a close. Laura has developed an obsession for moving her head and strengthening her neck muscles. We received confirmation from a doctor that these movements are spontaneous, not just a twitch or involuntary action. It is somewhat annoying to deal with (constantly picking her head up), but incredible to witness at the same time. It is very difficult to describe, but it appears as though she is trying to get up out of her chair. It’s not only her head that draws forward, but simultaneously she shrugs her shoulders, moves her arms, and more. It really looks like a concerted and determined effort to get up and overcome her temporary disabilities. She still is not talking or distinctly communicating. Pray specifically for and believe for communication and continued positive progress for our living miracle. She needs you more than ever!

We believe that you were made aware of Laura’s new neurologist from Washington University. He came highly recommended and has impressive credentials and a passion for this field of brain injury. For those who enjoy the medical news on Laura and doing their own research, Laura will be tapered into a few new medications over the next month. These meds are designed to aid in overall stimulation and the recovery process. The first drug, Bromocriptine, simulates the neurotransmitter dopamine. Please, no emails asking what that means! Laura will be highly monitored throughout this change. Pray for specific and direct responses and an increase in Laura’s overall state.

God revealed a great lesson to us recently. It further displayed and confirmed the true blessing of our situation. It centered on the topic of relationships and difficulties. How do we know when our relationships have worth and our friendships are real? Honestly, we cannot ever know unless real challenges threaten to compromise that very relationship. Superficial relationships are a dime a dozen and easy to acquire. Isn’t it easy to simply have a good time? With God, isn’t it easy to give Him praise and thanks when our lives are running smooth? Deeply loving relationships are forged, with God and with people, during dark days. How fulfilling are your relationships? You don’t have to wait for difficult circumstances, go find someone that already has them! God’s grace and mercy will then overwhelm!

COMMIT YOUR WAY TO THE LORD; TRUST ALSO IN HIM AND HE WILL BRING IT TO PASS. (Psalm 37:5)

We love you,
Jeff and Laura Laughlin.

Laura maintained her current level to maybe slight progress. The staff continues to work vigorously towards improving Laura’s ability to communicate. While it is important to move forward with physical therapy and keep her body limber, the top priority and number one goal is consistent and unquestionable communication in some form (eye blinking, head turning, etc.). Once this level would be reached, all other improvements become more of a likely possibility. We promised to keep you updated on Laura’s progress and that will continue. These updates will now be available to you on a once a week basis. Expect now only a couple emails per week. One to update you on new happenings and one to update you on Laura’s progress! As always, if there were urgent news, we would definitely report that immediately. Nothing is wrong, of course, but as we are in this for the long haul, there simply isn’t as much news to report.

Laura had her visit this past Tuesday with the neurologist from Washington University. It was a successful visit and we found out a great deal of valuable information. The big picture is that, we are on the right track with Laura’s treatment and with where she is located at this point. She will remain at St. John’s Skilled Nursing, at least for the meantime. The doctor did suggest to us a plan for treatment. At this point, we have some thinking and talking to do before making a decision. As this decision is made, further information will become available. Pray that we make solid and wise decisions, because they are not easy ones to make. Seek God and He will make our path known!

A simple message today on being thankful and acknowledging your blessings and the source of both. Life is full of difficulties and challenges, no question. There are so many areas that we desire positive results; our relationships, families, careers, emotions, spiritual development, physical health, and more. While all of our lives are different and we may be struggling with some of these areas, aren’t we graciously blessed in abundance? Unfortunately or fortunately (depending on your perspective), this life is not where we set our sights. We look to the example of God himself. The person He loved the most, His only begotten Son, was allowed to suffer and endure extreme difficulty throughout His lifetime. Even through this, He maintained a perfect sinless nature and impeccable character. What was the ultimate result? Complete victory and the availability of salvation for the entire human race! Can’t we take a minute and marvel at the grace and mercy of our Lord. Be thankful!

I WILL PRAISE YOU, O LORD, WITH MY WHOLE HEART; I WILL SHOW FORTH ALL YOUR MARVELOUS WORKS AND WONDERFUL DEEDS. (Psalm 9:1)

We love you,
Jeff and Laura Laughlin