Counting down the days...

We are all counting down the days until Reid can move home.  Yes, Friday, February 15th is the big day!

I've started bringing things home from Candlewood.  It's amazing how much stuff we managed to drag down there.  When I go back on Thursday I have to bring the ice chest so we can clear out the refrigerator and freezer Friday morning.  I've been saving grocery bags so I can pack up the leftover groceries, cleaning supplies, and medical supplies.  I'm hoping everything will fit in the back of the Escape along with out clothes.

We no longer have to hook Reid up to the IV's.  He'll only be going to the hospital on Wednesdays now for a blood draw, doctor's appointment, and a three hour infusion.  He's drinking and taking enough magnesium orally now.  I'm not exactly sure why he needs the magnesium, but I know it has something to do with the anti-rejection medication he takes.

He's still very fatigued, but he no longer uses a wheelchair at the hospital.  He's able to walk from the parking garage and around the building and that's quite a bit of walking.  He sometimes has to sit and rest, but he makes it.

He's lost 27 pounds and to me looks skinny, but he's pleased with his new weight.  However, I don't think he'd recommend this diet to anyone.  His beard is growing back, but it's growing in white. We're not sure if that's a temporary thing or permanent.

I snapped this picture before I left for home on Monday.  (That's all the stuff I was bringing home piled on the couch beside Reid.)  He's been through a lot, but is still smiling 95% of the time.

I'm working on getting the house spic and span before he gets home.  The dog needs to be bathed and groomed, but the one cat attacks her whenever she's groomed so I can't have it done until we move back home and I'm here 24/7 to protect the poor dog. 

Meanwhile, I'm trying to trap a raccoon with a humane trap, but the raccoon is smarter than me.  He's driven off my one outside cat who is apparently terrified of raccoons.  He quickly eats and then jumps the fence.  I really need to catch this raccoon and relocate him to one of the FEMA lots.  He'll be a lot happier near the creek.  He's a smart one.  He figured out how to get the food without triggering the trap.  I read online to tie a can of cat food to the back of the trap so I'm giving that a try.  I hope one of these nights I can catch him.  I try and bring in the cats' food as soon as they're done so he can't get any, but I'm afraid he's managed to steal some a couple of times recently.  Wish me luck.

Tomorrow I head back down to Candlewood for the last night and then bring Reid home Friday morning.  We're going to have hamburgers this weekend and he asked me to buy lettuce and tomatoes.  The doctor told him that he can now have fresh produce at home, but he still can't have it at a restaurant.  We just have to make sure and wash it very, very well.  (I'm actually going to soak it in bleach and water like we did when we lived overseas.  That's my idea...not the doctor's.)  And the hamburger no longer has to be well done.  It can be medium-well.  Right now that all sounds real good to him!