Overwhelmed with Gratitude!

Well, a week and a half later I never thought Clint and I would be together in our own house again. This has been the craziest week of my life. I have never been so scared, but I have definitely seen miracles take place. Though Clint has a while to recover I know where he could have been and I tell him everyday "we can handle this you are not dead or brain dead, so we can deal with broken bones..." I have truly seen the hand of the Lord in my life, he has blessed me to be calm and to have faith that Clint would be alright. He has blessed Clint and I with family, friends and acquaintances that have helped us during this time. I can't even begin to count how many people sent e-mails, letters, and texts. All those who called to check up on us and offered to help or those who came to visit Clint and I at the hospital, sent flowers and brought goodies. I am so grateful for all those who have helped with my kids and who have brought in delicious dinners. I'm so grateful for friends and family that set up the charity account and the relief that came when many of you which I still don't know, have donated so generously. Thank you so much, I am overwhelmed at the amount of support given to our little family! I could not do this without you! I wish I could do something for all of you, but for now I just want you to know how much we appreciate you all!

Cody, Clint's Brother, who was with me at the hospital the whole time wrote a little story to sum up our experience, it helps to put things in perspective.

Our Time

It was a late morning in early March when a shocking phone call interrupted an otherwise typical Wednesday. The shaky voice on the other end cried, "He's been in a car wreck. They've life-flighted him to St. Bens, he's on a ventilator."

A forty-five minute drive passed in thirty minutes, but the time seemed endless. The car carried silence and my mind was numb. No negative thoughts, but no positive ones either. Upon arrival at the hospital the usual familiar faces provided comfort and support. Finally the call came, "Two family members, and two elders are allowed to enter the room" (What a great day to be an elder!)

I'll never forget what I saw and what I felt as we entered that room and laid our hands on his head. Whether through faith, or prayer, or priesthood power......it just wasn't His time.

The first day and night were long, the unknown seemed endless. All we could do was wait as he lay there sedated, strapped down to his bed. The care was good and support group innumerable. For someone who had a hard time remembering people, he sure was not forgotten. Countless visitors shared a tear, a good memory, and heartfelt embrace.

The second day brought the best and the worst. The worst came as I watched a young expecting wife take his hand, attempting to comfort him as he grieved for his two kids. He struggled as he was continuously reminded that his kids were fine, his job was secure, his wife coping, and ultimately, his truck totaled. The best incrementally came as miraculous good news. Upon passing scan after scan, and test after test, he was surprisingly released from the ICU.

The following days all blurred into one, but the highlights I'll never forget. He's my brother, and brothers don't just shake hands, brothers gotta hug.....and we did. The breaks and pains that would eventually surface are minor compared to what could have been. There is no logical human understanding that can explain it. Oh the mercy of God for another chance! For another moment in time to help heal lost friends and estranged family.

It must not have been His time.....but ours.

I love you all!

Update #2...the road to recovery!

We as a family would like to start by thanking everyone for all the love an support that has been given to Clint and Patrice.

As we said on our last post Clint went into surgery Saturday morning to repair the fracture on his Tibia. The doctors originally believed that the repair would require plates and several screws. They were surprised that they only needed a few screws to repair the break. Even though it only took a few screws Clint won't be able to put any pressure on his leg for two months. He will be in a full leg brace the entire two months, and will have to use a wheel chair until his shoulder is better healed up. On that note as far as the doctors can tell his shoulder injury is believed to be a severe separation. Luckily his leg and shoulder injury are on his left side. This is a blessing to know that he will eventually be able to throw a football, and play tennis again. I don't know if we mentioned anything about it last time, but since he came into the hospital they noticed some irregularities with his heart beat. The doctor even asked Patrice if Clint had a pace maker. They have met with a cardiologist and done all kinds of tests, but nothing has been determined yet. They will go back in next week so Clint can receive more tests, as well as get the staples out of his head and the stitches out of his leg. Also his back continues to be a concern, and is causing him the most pain at this time. There is no plan for surgery and the doctors believe that it should eventually heal on its own.

The best news is that late this afternoon Clint's doctors cleared him to go HOME!!! Hopefully it is not premature. Even though he is home Clint is still in a lot of pain, he will be spending most of his time in bed getting rested and recovered. Once he feels well enough to get out of bed he will have mobility issues. He will be dealing with a full leg cast, in a wheel chair and a bum shoulder in a house with nine stairs to every exterior door. Clint knows it will be a long road to recovery, but he is surprisingly optimistic, occasionally even cracking a joke.

Patrice has been so amazing though this whole situation. She was finally able to get a good night's rest after seeing Clint's progress Saturday. Today she is back to her up-beat and positive self. All she can say is "I'm so glad he is still alive." She was also able to see her OBGYN, who reassured her that the baby is doing fine and that she has nothing to worry about there.

Again we would like to express our deep gratitude to those people who have so selflessly stepped up to help them in this time of need. From watching kids, to cleaning their house, to donating money, every little thing is so appreciated. We also recognize the hand of the Lord during this crisis. All the prayers and fasting have been answered, and his recovery up until this point has been nothing less than miraculous.

Love, Pedersen and Knudsen Family

Clint's Update

As most of you know Clint was involved in a car accident. As a family we want to give an update on Clint's condition. We will make an effort to make additional blog posts to keep everyone informed of Clint's situation.

Wednesday morning Patrice was running late and wasn't going to make it on time to pick up Bode from Pre-school. Clint works close to the Pre-school so Patrice called him to see if he could swing by and pick him up. Shortly after Patrice received a call from Bode's pre-school teacher to see if anyone was on their way. Patrice was instantly alarmed and drove to Bode's pre-school going the route that Clint would've taken. She came upon a tragic accident only to discover that the mangled truck was Clint's. Clint's truck collided with a cement truck at a very notorious intersection. As she pulled up the paramedics were loading Clint on a stretcher and putting him into the "Life Flight" He was then flown to the Ogden Regional hospital. Once Clint arrived at the hospital the paramedics and doctors realized that his head trauma was so serious that he needed to be put into a drug induced coma. Due to the coma they also had to insert a breathing tube as well as many other tubes. This was a precaution that helps to slow the swelling and bleeding in the brain.

From the time he entered the hospital until Thursday we received very little news. We fasted and prayed that the bleeding and the swelling would subside. The doctors informed us that he had sustained other injuries in the accident, but as a precaution they chose not to treat them until he was stabilized. Thursday afternoon our prayers were answered, the neurologist informed us that there had been no additional swelling and the bleeding had stopped and would heal on its own. Late Thursday we were also encouraged to see Clint would squeeze hands and blink to communicate.

This morning brought more good news, the breathing tube came out and slowly he began talking. Also another CT scan was done and the neurologist predicted that he would have a full mental recovery. He was also then able to communicate to the doctors that he was in a great deal of pain. At this point the doctors were finally able to address the other injuries sustained in the accident. They determined that he has broken his back (fracturing three vertebrae), as well as vertically fracturing his tibia (shin bone), along with some kind of injury to his shoulder that has yet to be determined. Tomorrow morning Clint will go into surgery to receive plates and screws to repair the damage on the fractured tibia.

Many have asked what they could do and how they could help. So we decided tonight to set up an account in Clint’s name to help offset some of their expenses. As you may or may not know Patrice is expecting their 3rd child this July 2010. Like many young couples in this stage of life money is tight and this accident has been a major concern financially for Patrice and Clint. A donation of any amount would help ease their burden that they are baring at this time. We are grateful to know at this point that his mind should recover fully. Patrice has already expressed the feelings of comfort she has felt from your support and many prayers offered in their behalf. If you would like to help and make a donation you may do so by one of the following ways:

Go by any America First Credit Union and tell them you want to donate to Clint Pedersen, acct. # 9040270.

Or if you have an America First C.U. account, you can make a direct transfer from your account to his Clint Pedersen acct. #9040270.

Or you can mail a donation to: Clint Pedersen, Acct. #9040270
America First Credit Union
P.O. Box 9199
Ogden, UT 84409

Thank you again for all the concerns, prayers and support.

With much love the Pedersen and Knudsen Families

I'm just not the type that loves Princess Shirts but when she begs and begs I guess it's cool!

School Bus

We went on a field trip to the Tree house Museum and I don't think Bode cared about anything except for riding the School Bus!!! He was ecstatic!!!

Valentines at Preschool

I got a note from Bodes teacher that explained that each kid was to bring 13 valentines to the Valentine Party next week, I was really excited! It brought back a flood of memories going to the store to pick out the best valentines, staying up late the night before the school Valentines party making the most creative and cool box we could think of, I pretty much just remember my Dad constructing the box by himself, I secretly think he loved it. Oddly, enough I can't remember any of my boxes I can only remember some of my brothers, the toilet to be exact, you put a valentine in and flushed it down. Anyway, I remember being really careful about which conversation heart I put in each valentine, making sure the "be mine" or the "hug me" were in the right envelope. Those were some good times.
So I took Bode to the store to get him some Valentines. It was fun as we searched for the box he really wanted. By the way they have made Valentines a lot more convenient these days, instead of buying the cards and candy a lot of them come with tattoos, pencils and erasers, so you just have to buy the box. Smart huh. Anyway he picked out dinosaur valentines, even though Clint tried to convince him that the sport valentines were cooler, he knew what he wanted, I love him! We got them all ready, made some special flowers for his teacher and off to the Valentine Party. The kids had a blast, and I am amazed at how there are such special teachers out there, So patient and kind!

Bode listening to Ms. Leesa teach about shapes.

Bode and Braylie, our cute neighbor, showing off his flowers for his teacher.

Very Creative!

Sometimes I don't really know where this kid comes from he puts together the most creative things to wear!