Talked to Brenda late this afternoon. It was great to hear her in such good spirits. Yesterday they met with the nutritionist to get information on the kidney diet. Brenda said the nutritionist is a very nice lady from Kingman with young children, so she works only part-time. She was very thorough in her explanations and made the information easy to understand. Bob had a nice time joking around with her. Brenda was thrilled to discover it will be easier than she thought to plan menus, and Bob can even have that banana he's been wanting so bad. (just a half tho', and when he specifically asked about pickles, the nutritionist joked "once a year") They came home from the appointment relieved and encouraged that the diet will be something they can easily live with. The nutritionist sent them home with information on how much sodium, potassium, etc. Bob was allowed each day, and menu ideas. She encouraged them to call her at any time if they have questions.


Over the weekend, B & B went to Hastings for coffee and picked some movies to rent. They had a nice time watching them at home. On Monday, Bob had some time alone to work in his garage. Brenda was closeby inside, in case he needed anything. He really wants to get back to doing things himself. He's made remarkable progress and still astounds the therapists with his skills. His vision is continuing to improve, but it does prevent him from doing everything on his own. He's still doing the treadmill each day and is up to 6 minutes. Some of the other exercises he was doing since he's been out of rehab are so easy now, Brenda isn't sure if they are needed.


Bob and Brenda are impressing the OT, Todd, with their homework skills. When he sees how diligently they work on the assignments, he gives them something more challenging. They are on the look-out for more puzzles (50-60 pieces) since Bob is enjoying doing them. Another project they will be doing (at home) is re-arranging the office space to accommodate an easel. Bob would like to start painting/drawing again, and the OT encouraged him to do so. He said Bob would recover his skills much faster if he got back to painting - it would be good for the connections in his brain.

We are so thankful for a great appointment with the nutritionist. It makes all the difference when the person helping you is encouraging, knowledgeable and easy to understand. The information she provided will take alot of stress off Brenda, as she will know which foods to shop for, and be able to plan their meals.