What needs to be done:

Whole House

• Carpets need to be shampooed and cleaned
• Windows could use a cleaning
• Dusting

Jason has specifically requested that his and Cas’s room be left exactly as it is until he can get home to go through everything

Kitchen

• I’m sure there are dishes that need doing
• Food needs to be sorted through, and expired items thrown out
• Counters cleaned
• Floor mopped

Living Room

• General Cleaning
• Slip covers for couches need to be washed

Handyman – If anyone has the time, skills, and inclination, there are a number of handyman things that could be done, including:

• Misc. damaged trim, banisters, etc.  It is of special importance that the bannister to the upstairs is sturdy, as Noah will be maintaining his room on the second floor, so he will be using it quite a bit in his efforts to get up and down the stairs
• Paint?  I know the interior could use a fresh coat of paint, if someone wanted to take this on, it might really help make the house feel fresh and welcoming.
• Wheelchair ramp– we need to figure out a good way to get Noah in and out of the house– maybe the best way to do this would be to make some space in the garage, remove the stairs from the house into the garage, and replace them with a ramp– that way we won’t have to worry about snow and ice.  I’m sure someone handier than I might have some good insight here.

I’m sure I’ve missed some things that could be cleaned or fixed– if you see something that looks like it could use some help (outside of the master suite), feel free to fix it up!

Thank you, everyone, for your outpouring of love and support, your response has been overwhelming and has been very helpful through this ordeal, and your thoughts and prayers have helped Jason and the kids more than you will ever know.

I wanted to give everyone an update from Denver.  The best news is that Dante was discharged on Friday.  He returned home with his grandparents on Saturday.  They arrived home to many gifts and a good amount of snow.  As with Amada I am happy to see him recovering so well but sad to see him go home without us.  We miss him he is such a strong little boy who, like his brother and Mom, lights up the room with his great smile.  Roger and Terry are such great grandparents to him and this tragedy has brought us all much closer.  We are all working on a plan to ensure that his Mom’s wishes for him will be carried out in the best possible ways.                           Amada is continuing to get better as well she got to spend several days with her friends at school before the break.  Gramma and Grampa are having a good go of it trying to keep up with her.  With the physical stuff healing very well she is moving on to the real work of grieving.  It is difficult to explain the relationship her and Cas had.  They pushed one another to grow and both respected that ability the other had to do that.  Cas  was a Mentor to Amada in the truest sense of the word.  She inspired her to be all the good things that she was born to be and I have no doubt that Cas is the foundation for the strong native woman Amada will become.

Noah, David and I are preparing for our Christmas here in Denver.  We find ourselves surrounded by new friends and old friends who amaze us with their generous spirits.  My sister Rachel is back up here helping in her special way.  She has been such a rock for us her sincerity and humor are a unique gift.  Noah adores her ( she has even taught him how to cheat at uno).   Noah continues to improve.  He is facing the situation with true courage.  He recently corrected the doctors diagnosis by telling them “  Really I have a 50/50 chance of recovering”  to which the doctors looked quite concerned and asked him how he came to that conclusion?  Noah said “ Either I’ll walk or I won’t  that’s 50/50”

His physical therapy is pretty intense and takes up most of the day.  He is working hard  to learn how to  independently do everything he did before.  He is an inspiration to everyone who is working with him and I have never been prouder of my son!

David and Noah are also good support for each other.  They have been having epic wii battles.  Whoa…  while I was just sitting here Noah got mad and frustrated while dressing and moved both his legs and both his feet.  I got his physical therapist and he was moving both legs and feet on cue.  Please let’s keep the prayers strong for my boy!!!!!!!

I miss Cas so much.  I am trying my best to live the life she wanted me to live and take care of the vision she had for each of our children and for the youth in general.  She is the best thing that ever happened to me.

Thanks to my friend Ashley we got to go behind the scenes at the Denver zoo on Thursday.  In October Cas and I and the Kids had all gone there as a family and had a great time.  So it was a little hard on both of us to go back there.  But as it got dark and they put on their amazing  Christmas light display.  We rode around and it was heavenly( I am using that word literally)  It’s hard to explain but we all felt Cas’  presence and it is always a peaceful feeling.

We continue to be blown away by the love and support shown for our family,  from the staff and admin at Childrens to the Durango Community and the kids’ schools,  we are honored and humbled by the grace we are living under.

Thank you all from the depth of our being,

Jason, Alicia, David, Noah, Amada and dante

Family sweat day

]]> http://cassandrayazziehotchkiss.com/great-photo-of-jason-cas/feed/ 1 http://cassandrayazziehotchkiss.com/noah-dante/ http://cassandrayazziehotchkiss.com/noah-dante/#comments Sun, 13 Dec 2009 02:06:39 +0000 Becky Hotchkiss http://cassandrayazziehotchkiss.com/?p=140 Great news everyone! Dante will be coming home to the Durango area with his grandparents on Wednesday!!! And Noah is working very hard with his physical therapist, see the picture that Jason sent today below.

Article about Cass.

Thank you for sharing, Mari.

Dante is out of Intensive care!  If you could see the difference between him one week ago and today you would have a hard time denying the power of prayer.  He is going to be fine.   He isn’t talking too much yet but that is really his character.  We still have a tough road ahead explaining to him about his mom.  He was so happy to be coming to live with us and you could really feel his little heart being made whole again with him reuniting with his mom and brother in our family.   I am working with Roger and Terry as best as I know how to see that his mom’s wishes for him are carried out.  That he grows to know his culture and people.  That he can experience the amazing and powerful impact his mom had through her friends and mentors.  That he knows the power that honest and sincere prayer carries with it and that he has that in his little toolbox for life.

Noah is our hero.  I have received several emails from the first people to arrive on the scene and the EMTS who have all expressed this.  He had dialed 911 and kept his siblings calm until help arrived at which point he was able to give them all of our information.  After several weeks Noah has not regained feeling in his legs.  The doctors have classified his injury as complete.  Statistically people with complete spinal chord injuries have a 3% chance of regaining function below the point of injury.  There is no easy way to tell this to a boy whose dream was to play professional soccer.  He is an athletic kid a rad snowboarder, rock climber, mountain biker, kayaker an all around Durango kid.  Best of all Noah is a hard worker.  That being said we’ll take 3%.  In reality there was a much smaller chance of him becoming a professional soccer player yet he was willing to work hard to achieve that goal.  We’ll take 3% and pile on top of it all of our prayers and community support and we will work hard to achieve that goal.  More than ever I am realizing that the treasures in life are in the hard work more than the results or in the words of that incredible songstress Miley Cyrus “ It’s the climb”(Amada’s favorite).

I want to note here as well that Roger, Terry, my kids’ Mom Kimberly and Dante’s Father Chad have all been heroic themselves.  In the mess of relationships that a blended family brings everyone has been supportive and kind to one another which is something that Cas was always so good at fostering.

As  for myself,  I have always felt as if I was living between two worlds and that has just been amplified.   This aspect of my character has always been something I have struggled with and like most things in life has its good parts and bad parts.   I am obviously devastated by losing my best friend and wife, the consequences of which become more and more real everyday.  At the same time I have never had such strong glimpses of heaven on earth, of Cas leading me and being part of all of the creation around me in the wind and the snow, this is also becoming more and more real to me each day.   I hope I can find the words someday to express my thankfulness when I consider the gifts that she gave to me.  As well as the thankfulness for the thoughts and prayers of all of those who have reached out to us in thought and prayer.  From my oldest friends, the Kashatus’,  the Cate School Community, our many Church Families,  our Native American church Family,  Indian Country as a whole( who knows and understands these tragedies all too well).  I have never been a rich man but we have been incredibly blessed with friends and family.  Bless all of you.

According to Carol, Dante has been waking regularly and even last night tried to get out of bed, which is a great sign. The doctors have removed his breathing tube and there are improvements everyday.

Today, the doctors talked with Noah, explaining that in their opinion, he will not regain the use of his legs. This is hard news to hear. More than ever, Noah needs everyone’s prayers and love. He’s a strong, determined young man, and if it there is even a slight chance that he will be able to walk again, he’ll be the one to do it. I guess what I’m saying is that we need lots of love and support for Noah.

One challenge that Jason is facing that we would like to ask for your help with, is attempting to find a van equipped with a ramp, or a van he could convert to a ramp van. If anyone has any ideas about where to look to find something affordable, we would love to hear from you. So far, the vans that Sam and I have been looking at online are at least $12,000., which may be tough to come up with under the circumstances.

Thank you to EVERYONE who has left messages of support, have sent the kids uplifting cards and gifts, or have donated to the family. Not even the smallest word of encouragement has gone unnoticed or unappreciated, and your support will go a long way towards the healing of this family.

The day started out magnificently when I stopped by Dante’s room only to receive a grin and a wave – such joy and tears. They removed his breathing tube this afternoon, so he is on minimal life support – a total miracle which you would know if you had seen him two weeks ago. He smiled at Jason tonight when we visited and was engrossed in his favorite movie, the Polar Express, as we chatted with his ecstatic dad and grandparents. A giant in the world of baby steps.

Noah is slowly regaining his confidence and mobility – no movement in his legs but a suggestion of some feeling. It is HARD work and he is scared, but every day gets a little less painful and he gets a little braver. His conversations with the doctors and nurses sound like something off of a hospital show – he learns quickly and doesn’t forget a thing, asking why today’s “procedure” is different than yesterday’s “procedure”??? I can see him problem solving whether it is the position of his body pillows or how to maneuver into the chair. He is patient with my yoga breathing teaching and mind over matter suggestions – willing to try anything. My family will smile to know that the first solid thing we actually got him to eat today was watermelon – my dad’s favorite.

Miss Amada spent the day on the town with her sister, Alicia, and her dad. They went to the Aquarium and the mall. Alicia was an amazing big sister – great at transfer assistance and able to put the wheelchair in the car by herself. We are all excited to get home, but so sad to leave our guys. We will spend some time at the hospital in the morning and hopefully be on the road by 9:00 so that we can get home by dark. I am so looking forward to the warmth and magic of our new little home – healing and hard work ahead, one day at a time.

Love to you all,
Carol

This afternoon, one of the assistant coaches of the Fort Lewis men’s soccer team brought by a jersey for each of the kids signed by the entire team. Fort Lewis is ranked #1 nationally in the second division and will be playing in the finals on Sunday – I think it will be broadcast on CBS College Live. Yesterday, about half of the Riverdance dancers came through the hospital and gave the kids a poster signed by the entire company. There has also been a pretty steady stream of very well behaved volunteer dogs that come in and sit with the kids. And Ronald MacDonald House continues to provide comfortable, loving accommodations and a delicious turkey dinner. Several of the kids’ friends and teachers from school have come from Durango to visit and wonderful handmade cards from school friends fill the children’s rooms. One little 12 year old girl, Missy, a classmate of Noah’s, bravely walked into Noah’s room this evening and announced “I just just came to tell you, Noah, that we all miss you very much.”

Amada has been navigating with her new wheelchair and is ready to be discharged tomorrow. Her broken arm and leg are on opposite sides, so she will be on wheels for a while. My husband, Sam, has been at home getting our house ready for her to get around easily, and Amada and I have been practicing transfers and wheelchair logistics with the physical therapists. Amada is a little anxious about getting back into a car and being so far from her parents and brothers, but we will hang around until Monday and then get her comfortable at home until everyone else can come home.

Dante has made the most miraculous progress. He has periods of wakefulness and clearly responds to his gramma’s questions and requests. The MRI shows very limited brain damage in his lateral vision and possibly some learning problems, but no pervasive issues- if you could have seen him a week ago, you too would believe in miracles. They are hoping to remove the breathing tubes in the next day or two and have increased independence and wakefulness.

Noah is still struggling with a lot of back pain, but has extended periods of peacefulness. With the help of a back brace, he was able to sit up in a wheelchair and actually get out of the room for a ride around the floor. It was exhausting, but brought many tears of joy from family and nursing staff alike. He has been so brave and strong and it has been a very rough few days. I am so proud of my little knight. Did I mention before that it was Noah who called 911 from the accident?

It helps us all to have Rachel and her sweet family up here to help – Rachel is just finishing her nursing education and is not only going to be an incredible nurse, but gives us all such strength and wisdom as we pull together. It will be so good to have Sam and Becky waiting for us in Durango, though as you can imagine, it is hard to leave Jason and Noah and Dante. I am praying that they will all be home soon.

Jason is hanging in there with such love and courage that it astounds and sustains us all. I know that it is your love and prayers that are helping him through each day. As a mother and grandmother, I cannot thank you enough.

Thanks for listening – my nightly emails brings some closure to the day and helps me focus on the baby steps that keep us moving forward. Please keep the prayers, love, and communication coming. It really means a lot to all of us.

Love, Carol