Back home in time for some heat

Steve got home last evening from the hospital. He's fatigued, and (so am I  BTW), but doing much better than a week ago. The plan is to continue with daily outpatient IV antibiotics through Sunday.
He's almost done needing stuff pumped into him -- yippee!

There is no describing the elation and relief we feel. I can finally stop holding my breath and come up for some fresh air. And for Steve, well, he's not sappy, as you know, but now that he's finally over this trauma, it feels like the first day of the rest of his life.

His blood counts are rising but he will probably need some blood during the next week. He's received about 30 units of red blood cells and 50 units of platelets since all this started last November. Thank you, thank you blood donors. Without you, this aggressive treatment would never be possible. You are the unsung heroes of leukemia treatment.

We are looking forward to mowing the knee-high lawn. And yesterday I bought myself a present -- a beautiful ornamental Japanese maple tree (shrub), that I will plant today in the perennial garden. It is a reminder of the beautiful sublime gardens we saw last summer in Japan -- a place we want to visit again. And the sake is much better there than here.

For now, we are enjoying this blissful morning in Maine and planning some camping trips to places in Maine. Chuck Lakin is retrofitting the mini van with a bed and a kitchen. We also bought a special tent made to fit over the back of the Honda Odyssey van that we just bought. Our plan is to drive across the country in the fall, something I have never done before. This trip is dubbed 'Gina's Odyssey.'