and a few more tidbits!

We are still doing the gluten free diet.  It is working great for JET, he has lost some weight and it shows.  Me, I can't see any difference but I am sticking to it, amazingly.  Not at all like me but something is telling me to keep going, so I am.  Besides, it wouldn't be nice to eat a big old slice of fresh hot bread and butter in front of him, now would it?

Here is my gluten free brunch.  JET's portion was a lot bigger and he had 6 pieces of bacon and he is still losing weight. Huh!

A little bit blurry but as I ate it I can't go back and retake it!

Yesterday I was helping JET in the workshop, he needed to put some of that squirty foam stuff in a can around something to stop air leaks and I, in my infinite wisdom, thought I could do it better than him. Well, I paid for my delusions of grandeur big time. I did not heed the warnings on the can to wear gloves and I got it all over my fingers.  It's nasty horrible stuff and no solvent known to man seems to get it off.  You have to pick it off, a teeny bit at a time.  I am still picking today.


If you have been watching Game of Thrones you will have seen the people whose skin looks like it is turning to rock, that's what mine looked like yesterday, now it just looks like my skin is flaking off. Rest assured I will not be rushing to use that stuff again!

   

A busy old time!

This week we have hardly stopped running.  Not literally, of course, as neither of us can run, but it has been a tad hectic to say the least.

A week past Friday I took our van in to get the tyres checked as we had a vibration.  Good old Walmart had replaced one a couple of weeks earlier and we had developed a wobble.  They checked them all for balance etc. and said they were all fine then gave me the bad news that it looked like the tie rod ends had gone as when it was up on the ramps the front wheels could be moved side to side. Not good! even I knew that.

They recommended a place that fixed them and did realignment.  So I made an appointment for the following Monday which was last Monday. So we were kind of grounded for the weekend as we only have one vehicle and they advised us not to go out of town in it. (A bit difficult as we live 35 miles out of town).  Didn't want to push our luck having made it home so we stayed put until I took it in on Monday.  That took up most of Monday. Also got the rear brake pads replaced as they were needing doing.

Tuesday we went to Kansas City for a cousins reunion as one was flying in for a visit and wanted everyone to meet up.  That was a lovely day but a long one.

Wednesday I had to go to town and pick up Maggie from the vet's kennels as it was too long to leave her unattended the previous day so we dropped her off there on our way out. I also picked up some groceries.

Thursday was the day to go to the cemeteries and take flowers, another good half a day of being out.

Yesterday we got to stay home, all day, yeah!

In fact we have another three days at home before we start running again.

Tuesday back to the cemeteries to pick up the potted flowers as they will not survive the dry heat and replace them with nice silk ones.  We will enjoy the potted plants at home and will be reminded of our loved ones so it's a win win situation.

Wednesday, drop off the dogs at the kennels then on to Columbia for an EMG on my husband to see if the nerve damage has changed one way or another. An overnight stay in Columbia as he has another appointment with the neurologist on Thursday then back home to pick up the dogs from the vet's kennels.

Meanwhile, if it dries out I have to get on with some mowing, the grass is so tall with all the rain but the ground is too wet for the riding mower right now.  Hoping the wind dries it all out today and I can mow tomorrow and Monday.

Trying to do a bit of crafting in between everything else and JET has been working on the dust collection system in the workshop.

We try and grab a bit of time everyday just to sit outside and relax and let the dogs run around and we have been able to do that too.

So, a busy but productive and enjoyable time, we are not quite over the hill yet!

We are plodding on here

Weatherwise it has been wonderful for May so far.  We just had three good days of rain and the temperatures have been in the 60's during the day and 40's at night.  The quilt came back out!

Healthwise, JET had the chemo, no significant improvement yet.  He also saw his other neurologist at the University hospital.  He ran more blood tests on him and has scheduled another EMG.  Some of the bloodwork came back with elevated muscle enzyme levels, still waiting on the other results.

We have been trying to cut out gluten and carbs from our diet as his VA neurologist said it helps reduce inflammation.  We have done this now for 2 weeks.  Again, no significant improvement in either he or I.  I was hoping it would help with the arthritis but so far it hasn't.  We will continue to try it though.  JET has lost a little weight doing it and I think I may have too but my scales at home are not very accurate so not sure on that.

We have been working on the dust collection system.  I have helped with running wires.  We had to do it twice as the pipe we bought the first time to run the cables through was too narrow and we snagged the wire a lot.  A costly error but we bought bigger pipe and new wire and now it is done correctly.

JET is now wiring in all the outlets and he doesn't need my help for that.

No mowing for a few days because of the rain, maybe back to it tomorrow.  Last time out I felt quite ill afterwards, I think the pollen and heat got to me, I left it too late in the day to start.

Hoping to get out early tomorrow am if it has dried out some.

We attended the Celebration of Life of our friend and neighbour on Saturday.  It was a good celebration but also very sad.

Done a little crafting but will blog on that in my other blog.

How the week has gone!

We had two trips to the VA hospital in Columbia this week and two trips to town to take the dogs to the boarding kennels and back in  between.  Slip a few shopping sessions in there and a fair bit of mowing, all in all a busy week.

Also some very sad news.  Our good friend and neighbour Keith died yesterday. We knew it was imminent but it always comes as a shock to lose someone.

He was one of a kind.  A generous, caring and kind man who befriended us when we moved out here over 11 years ago and had looked out for us ever since.

We will miss him.

The chemo session for JET went OK, it is always a long day, we left at 6.30am and didn't get home until after 8pm.  A long day. I try and get as much shopping done while he is in there so we can come straight home afterwards.  I think the doctor upped the steroids in the mix this time as he was actually feeling quite good yesterday but today he is not so wippy.  A few more days though he should feel OK for a few months.  The problem is when he feels better he tries to do way too much and he probably does more harm than good.  His neurologist tells him to rest after being up and about for an hour but does he listen...........Nah!!!

Mowed this morning but not doing a lot else today other than cooking, washing and try to get a bit of sewing done.

Risk versus actuality

We saw JET's neurologist yesterday and had a long chat with him.  We discussed the risk of the JC virus reactivating because of the treatment and the consequences of stopping the treatment.  To him it was a no brainer.  There is a risk but he thought not too likely of the JC virus developing but if he stopped the treatment his body would kill itself.

So on that bright note we are back to Columbia tomorrow for him to get another round of the chemo and he will remain on the oral immuno suppressants also.

He hasn't been too well this past couple of weeks, when the antibodies come back they do so rapidly and start attacking his body so it will be good for him to get the treatment to kill off those antibodies again for a few months.

It will be a quiet few days after that as the chemo usually leaves him feeling pretty ill for a few days then he starts to buck up again.

I have been trying to keep the mowing going and mowed this morning before going to take the dogs to the boarding kennels for a couple of nights so we don't have to worry about taking Maggie in the van in the heat and leaving Boris alone for a long time.  It's pretty nice weather right now so mowing is actually  enjoyable.

It's always an all day job at the hospital when he gets the chemo so we will pick up the dogs Friday morning.

In town I also mailed off a package and did some grocery shopping.

I am pretty tired myself now and ready for bed so calling it quits for the day.