We Made It to Costa Rica!

We arrived in San Jose yesterday afternoon. It is a naturally beautiful city, lush and green, with a third-world look to it (crowded and dirty). After getting into our "apartotel" and sleeping for a while, we had an excellent dinner at the hotel. Afterward, we went to the pool where others, who are here for stem cell therapy, hang out in the evenings.

First, we met an adorable young couple from Flagstaff, AZ, Mark and Celeste, who are here for Mark's spinal cord injury. He was in an accident six years ago, three weeks after they got married. He was paralyzed from the chest down and has been in a wheelchair since then. They have been here for two weeks and both have amazing spirits.

Robert and Julie are another couple here, from Gainesville, TX. They have been married a long time and Julie has MS. Their story is very similar to ours. Julie has been fighting MS since the early 90's. They have three daughters, 21, 18, 17. Robert told a funny story last night about a stranger staring at Julie in a store and she told them, "All I can say is, don't lie about your weight when you go bungee jumping." In another similar incident she told someone, "Check your parachute when you go skydiving." Love that sense of humor!

On a more serious note, most of you in Las Cruces are aware that I witnessed a very traumatic event on Thursday afternoon. Directly in front of my car, only a few feet away, an elderly couple was killed instantly by a speeding truck. I was also in fear for my own life, since their car was knocked airborne and landed very close to me. This has greatly heightened our emotions and desire to get the most out of life and these treatments for Steve. We know, more than ever, that we are supposed to be here. We are looking forward to new friendships with people who have also experienced this insidious and isolating disease. Now, our plans are to kick MS's butt!!