Craig is so popular, but then I always knew that!

I have been amazed and blessed at the amount of people who have written me e-mails, facebook messages, commented on this blog, called me, and visited the hospital. Craig is a very well-liked guy. He has wonderful parents who raised him well and all through his life he has impacted people. I have even received messages from some of his elementary school friends letting me know they are praying for him. Every time we go into see him, I tell him all the people who have called, written or stopped by. So thank you, from both of us. It was a great encouragement to have a friend from PNG (who is teaching in Seoul) come and stay with me at the hospital for a few days until my mom arrived. Craig and I visited him in November, and they hit it off well. My mom is here now, and that is also a huge encouragement. I think I even managed to get some sleep last night and I felt more comfortable taking a little nap this afternoon because I knew she was here and was awake in case something happened. She has been a great help with double checking things with the Koreans translating and sitting with me when I hear updates (whether good or bad). She makes sitting here in the hospital passing time a little more bearable. I am so thankful she is able to be here. We have had several visitors from church come by, as well as people from Korean churches in the area who heard from friends, and they have come by to pray with us and to see if we need anything. I even received a call from an Anglican bishop last night who said he would have an Anglican priest call me later (as the priest speaks better English). I am fortunate to have made some very good Korean friends in my co-workers this year, and some of them stop by every day and they make sure we have eaten, gotten some rest and taken a shower. They are also always willing to drive us back to our apartment and then pick us up again. Someone from Craig's school comes every night to stay in case we need any Korean translating and they try to make sure we are never alone at the hospital without a Korean. It is not easy sitting here all day waiting to visit and wishing that I could do something to make Craig better, but it is nice to have the love and support of so many people around the world and we have you to thank for that.

Love,
Kristin for Craig too

Please Pray for Tomorrow's Brain Scan

We spoke with the doctor today and while the news was not exactly as encouraging as we were hoping it we would be, there was some good news. It is sometimes difficult when we speak to the doctor as everything is done through another Korean translating, and there always seems to be much more Korean spoken, than English relayed. There does not seem to be much bleeding coming out of his chest anymore – so that is very good. His lung should be healed in 1-2 weeks once the bleeding is completely stopped. His ribs will take several months to heal, but he can be moved before they are completely healed. A HUGE praise is that neither of his arms or legs had any broken bones as a result of the accident (as far as we can tell). My husband is a strong man! He is breathing on his own about 50% of the time, and he is hooked up to a machine that helps out the other 50%. His right ear was torn when he was hit, and they have repaired it with stitches, but there is a chance of hearing loss (although this can be fixed with a hearing aid). His ear will still be able to hold up his glasses though – I was sure to check. :)

He is currently being given medicine to help reduce the swelling in the brain, as this is still the doctor's major concern. His brain stem is fine – which is a praise, and the doctor said if part of his brain had to be hurt, it is better that it is the right side (which it is), as any left side damage would be much more serious. The doctor says there is a lot of damage to the right side of the brain and this is a big cause for concern. PLEASE PRAY extra hard tomorrow morning (Tuesday- Korean time), tomorrow night (Monday- Canada/US time) as Craig will go in for another brain scan. Please pray that God will work a miracle as Craig sleeps tonight and that God will heal my husband's brain, even just a little bit tonight so that when we get the scans back tomorrow there is a little bit of progress. I am confident that God can do this. Thank you.

Love,
Kristin for Craig too

I have an amazing husband!

I feel so blessed to be married to such a strong man. He looked good this morning too. I had to sign a form today for them to give him some medicine as they couldn't locate a vein in his arm, so they had to go through the clavicle vein. There is a 1% chance of side effects, but we were told later the procedure was a success. :) When we went to visit him he looked really good. Just as handsome as ever. :) He looked like they had washed him, as some of the iodine on his skin was gone, and he looked like he had a nice shave. He is blinking more with his left eye, and his right eye is starting to look really good. It is open a little more, and the black colour is going away and it is not swollen at all. His blood pressure was down today and that was excellent. One of the numbers they are tracking on his monitor is oxygen level and I was told that 95 was really good. Yesterday it was at 92 and today it was up to 96. :) He still has a fever, so they are working on bringing that down. It is not because of infection but just because his brain is still healing. I did tell the nurse that he sweats a lot (even when he is healthy), and I have told Craig that they have probably never had a patient that sweats as much as him. :) So it has been an encouraging morning so far, and I think later we will be going to talk to a doctor. Thank you again for your continued prayers, we need them.

Love,
Kristin for Craig too

Mom Is Here!!!

Good news today, my mom is here!! Big Yay!! It was very good to see her, and she has given me hugs from all of you that have sent them this way. Thank you!

We got just back from visiting Craig, and he looked good today. He was moving his feet a little and his head, and I think I saw his eye blink. The nurses said that he is doing great. A doctor went to check on him this morning, even though it was not a scheduled check, and he also said Craig is going great. So he is getting lots of great care, and that is good news!!

His breathing continues to improve as when he was first admitted to the ICU his breaths were very laboured and small. He seems to be breathing at a more normal pace and they don't seem as laboured. This is also good news.

It has been a more encouraging morning, and I have yet to cry today. Yay! :) We are making small steps to recovery. Thank you for your continued prayers.

Love,
Kristin for Craig too

Paper Crane Progress

We have passed the 200 mark with the paper cranes. The Korean girls that have been staying with me are pros. It is a tradition in Korean culture, that when you are in middle school you make 100 paper cranes and put them in the locker, of the boy you like. :) So they have all had a lot of practice folding cranes. :)

Brief Hospital Tour

Brief Hospital Tour from ryanmortinson on Vimeo.

New Brain Scan

Craig went in for a brain scan this morning, which is a good thing. I was able to talk with the doctor when I went to visit him at 11:30am. The bleeding in his brain has stopped, and it looks better than it did when he came in. The doctor was very concerned about the central part of his brain when he first came in, and that is doing well. That part of the brain controls 8 things in the body, and Craig's is currently in control of all 8. Yay! The right side of his brain (the frontal lobe) is where he was hit and is damaged. There is also some damage to the left side of his brain. The right side is in charge of thinking, memory and behaviour, so this is a concern. Please pray that God will heal this so I can have my husband back, and that he will remember me and act like "Craig" when he wakes up.

His temperature seemed to be good today, he was not very sweaty and his skin felt normal to the touch. There was a doctor when I went to visit this morning who looked at his right eye (it is closed and very bruised), but the doctor said that only the skin is bruised and that his eyeball is okay. Yay! They will know more later once he wakes up, but that is good news for now.

Everyday and every visit is a little more positive change. It's sometimes hard as I don't feel like he is getting better very quickly, but it has only been about 72 hours since he first came into the hospital and he has improved a lot since then. I just have to remember daily, hourly and every minute that the One who put Craig together in the first place is the One who is holding him together now. It's going to be okay.

My mom is coming in tomorrow (BIG yay!), and one of Craig's Korean co-teachers offered to pick her up from the airport. Mom is flying in on Asiana Airlines, and this Korean girl used to be a flight attendant with Asiana Airlines and said she would call her friend to make sure they take care of my mom. God is good! My dad will fly in next Sunday, and my brother will come next Monday. It will be nice to have family close by, and I think Craig will appreciate it as well. Although, I have been blessed to see a new side of Korean culture, and my co-teachers and Craig's co-teachers have continued to be an encouragement to me.

Thank you again for your prayers, and please continue to pray for us.

Love,
Kristin for Craig too