Vote For Melinda

Everyone please vote for my cousin Melinda in the America's Favorite Mom competition. She is a finalist out of thousands of nominations and was live from Kuwait via satellite on the Today Show this morning. If she is in the top 5 she will be on TV again Sunday night and they will have another voting round for the overall winner.

If you google "Melinda Gintilas" you will find plenty of news stories about her.

Click here to vote:
http://www.nbc.com/Americas_Favorite_Mom/vote/

You can read more about her inspirational story here:
http://americasfavoritemom.com/mothers-day-2008/mom/Melinda-G-1695

You can vote up to 10 times, but only vote for Melinda today.

Surgical Puberty

Spoke with Jay yesterday for awhile. He's in good spirits. He can talk through clenched teeth since his jaw is still wired. He shed a little more light on the accident. His friends said that after the impact he was in and out of consciousness and his head was tilted back. There were no external lacerations to his throat, but everything inside had been crushed and he was basically choking on blood. The cab was a van, and his friend in the row behind him had a broken neck and was in the floorboard. The driver had tried to get out of the vehicle but had a broken hip and tailbone so just collapsed outside. The only person conscious in the car - his friend in the front seat - happened to be able to reach Jay's head and tilt it so he could breath until the paramedics got there. They had to use the jaws of life to get them out.

His voice box was in 7 different pieces which they had to reconstruct. Pretty amazing that his voice still sounds like Jay, but it is deeper. His jaw will also be wider. He said it was a surgical puberty. His collarbone and ribs are broken on the left side, so he has to write and do stuff with his right arm, which is broken. Lisa has been taking really good care of him, props Lisa! He has a couple of bones broken in his neck too. They didn't stitch up the trach incision or anything, just told him to bandage it, so it was just open for awhile. He said its starting to heal but he used to have to cover it while he talked. He didn't try smoking through it.

Jay Released

Jay had his trach tube taken out today, and was given the all clear to be released. He will be flying home tomorrow.

He is now available via text, and said he should be back online soon to catch up on emails.

I will probably be heading to Florida soon.

Jay Headed Home

Jay has been in rehab and is recovering quite a bit. His neck brace was removed today and he should be headed home this week. Very good news.

Jay Updates

Jay had surgery on his jaw for a total of 5 hours today. The surgery was successful and the jaw will be wired shut for a few weeks. He is expected to leave the ICU in a couple of days, although at this time it is unknown whether he will remain in the same hospital or be moved to a military facility. Also we don't know how long the total time in the hospital may end up being, as he currently has both a trach tube and a feeding tube. He remains coherent, breathing on his own, communicating via pen and paper, and all of his vital signs are excellent.

One passenger was thrown from the vehicle in the accident, and he is on crutches but has been released from the hospital. One passenger has a broken neck and is in a halo, but should be released soon. The condition of the taxi driver is unknown. The girl that hit them was driving a big truck and had a .17 BAC.



Get better Jay!

Jay Off Ventilator

Jay came out of surgery yesterday and everything was put back in place successfully, the doctors are no longer concerned with his ability to speak. There may be some concern with the air passageway, although he was taken off the ventilator this morning and is breathing on his own.

Jay in ICU

My good friend Jay Neese and two friends were headed home last night in a taxi and were hit by a drunk driver.

Jay is in stable condition in ICU with several broken bones including his jaw which is broken in 3 places. He had surgery today on his throat and at this time it is not known whether he will be able to speak again.

Please keep Jay in your prayers. I will try to keep updates posted here.

Kids & Puppies

Yesterday night we had a little gathering at the house to cook out and tell stories and play Scene It. JG stopped by and also wrote about it on his blog (www.papaschingonas.blogspot.com) Toland also had fun playing hide and seek with the girls:




Also my cousin Mark and his wife Reina stopped by to visit for a little while tonight. They brought their puppy who is not even a pound and makes Jack look huge. I forgot what breed he is, I believe its a mix between a fur slipper and a feather duster:

Family Time

Here are some videos of hanging out with the family this past weekend:

Nate & Brittany Are Married

Here are some pics & videos from Nate & Brittany's wedding this weekend.

Wedding Slideshow:


Nate getting ready:


Brittany getting ready:




Taking pics before the wedding:



Wedding ceremony:






Pictures after the wedding:


Nate & Brittany dancing:


Mother/Son dance:


Cutting the cake:




Dancing:


Bouquet Toss:


Garter Toss:


The big send off: