Wedding, Standing, Boating, Golfing

A couple weeks ago I was excited to find out that I had been invited to Lindsay's cousin's wedding in Mankato. It was the second wedding I have ever been to; the first was my sister's.  It was a great day and I had a lot of fun.  The only downside was that Lindsay was a bridesmaid so I was unable to see her most of the day.  All in all I had a great time.  Thanks McConkey's!

First time in a tie in over a year!

In a previous post I had shared that I was standing at 55 degrees with a goal of reaching the full 90 degrees.  To much surprise I was able to get to 90 degrees the second time I was in the standing frame! It felt great to be back to my 6 foot frame.  I towered over Lindsay and Nicole. It was the first time Lindsay had seen me standing next to her.  She was extremely happy to stand next to me.

Towering and Lindsay is on her tippy toes.

Last week I overcame one of my biggest fears I have since the injury...  I went down a dock and got onto a pontoon.  I had not been near a dock since my accident and it brought back a few nightmarish memories.  It only took me seconds to get on the boat but it felt much longer to me.  It felt incredible to have the wind blowing against my face as we cruised around the lake.  I even helped Lindsay and her dad do some fishing (I  love to fish) so it was great to be back out there.  Unfortunately, I was a little rusty and no fish were caught.  This was just another step to show that I can do almost anything.  Thank you Jon and Jeff for your help!

On Tuesday it was the 2nd Annual Brendan Loney Golf Classic and we had perfect weather.  We seriously could not have asked for a better day.  It was unbelievable for me to witness all of the love and support my family and I received.  Many of you know I was unable to attend last year but I had heard about how amazing the event was.  The day surpassed all of my expectations and I had a blast! I was able to get inside most of the golfer's heads on holes 1 and 10.  I can't thank all of you enough for your hard work and donations.  Thank you! 

Gustie Boys

Maple Grove Boys

The Lindsa(e)ys

Heckling the players

Grandpa Loney

Stay tuned for some big news next week. We are also leaving for Las Vegas next Sunday!

Changes

First off, I would like to apologize for the absence of my blogging.  I have been pretty busy the last couple of weeks.  I am so happy that I am able to enjoy this summer, I am in a much better place this summer than last summer! 

We finally were able to get the FES Bike up and running after many failed attempts at home.  For all those who don't know, the FES bike is a great way for me to workout.  It improves my cardiovascular, strengthens my muscles, improves circulation and keeps my skin healthy.  Each time that I ride the bike, I usually go about 5.6 miles in 30 minutes and I try to ride the bike as much as I can depending on what I have going on that day.  The bike consists of 12 electrode pads attached to me and they stimulate my leg muscles to push.
(Here is a video of me riding the FES Bike)

FES Bike Video

Last week one of my best friends turned 21 so I made it a priority to celebrate with him in Uptown.  This was my first time ever going out to Uptown.  Once we got to Uptown, Lindsay and I parked in the parking lot behind Cowboy Slims, we had a couple blocks to get to Williams.  As we passed some bars we noticed that not all of them were accessible, one being "Drink".  I remember thinking to myself, "bastards!"  So then we got to Williams and to my relief it was accessible.  Once more people arrived downtown everyone decided they wanted to go to "Drink".  Once we got to the bar, to my surprise, they had a hidden V.I.P. elevator that we all rode in to get out to the patio.   Ahh the perks of being in a chair!!!  We had a great time.

As of a couple of days ago I took off another piece of my power chair!  I got rid of my head rest.   This enables me to wear backwards hats.  For all those who know me, I live with my hats on backwards.  The next stop for me is to buy more hats :)   On a serious note, without the neck rest my neck and shoulder muscles are used a lot more and it is going to take a short while for the fatigue to go away. 

Here is a recent picture of me in a backwards hat from the front and back.

I'm still considering getting a tattoo and I would like your opinion on what to get.  I have two ideas in mind they are 1)  Never give up on forearm and 2) Where there is no struggle, there is no strength.  But I am open to suggestions.

Thank you very much.  Hope everyone is having a great summer and staying cool on days like today!