Our life is beginning to look alot more normal as the days go by. Stephen continues to get stronger. He is attending rehabilitation on Monday Wednesday and Friday's and seems to be handeling it fairly well. He has had trouble with blood pressure remaining stable while he is exercising, and he is exhausted when finished, but he comes right home, takes a shower and goes right into church. He works until around 4:00 pm - and then most nights he is back at work by 6:30 - so his schedule is pretty much the same as it was before the heart attack.

I've taken on most of the household chores and work. I've mastered the snowblower! Hey, that is a fun toy. I thought Steve was working hard when he was plowing us out, but now I know that he was having the time of his life! Emptying the trash is not as fun as blowing snow- but it's not terrible - especially when the neighbor comes over to take the trash can out to the curb for me! I've cleaned the carpets and moved furniture all by myself! The gutters still need cleaned out - Steve's heart attack was in October while the leaves were still falling. The first month home we only took care of Steve - now that I can get to the eaves - they are full of ice. We have icicles hanging over the garage. I keep knocking them off, but they come back. I hear the weather will get up to 45 degrees this weekend - I will try my hand at climbing ladders and getting those leaves out of there. Actually it sounds like a great adventure!

I will have to take a picture of Steve here shortly so you can see how much weight he has lost - over 35 pounds and still loosing. I guess he has another 10 pounds to go before he has met his goal. Already his clothing hangs on him. Actually, he doesn't look very groomed when he puts on a sweater and it just hangs on him - and his pants hang down to his knees! We did purchase a new belt so the belt could hold the pants up at least. We don't want to purchase any new clothes until he has met his target weight. So, until then, he doesn't look very professional. It makes me laugh (but not so that he can hear!)

I have been very impressed that Steve does not complain about eating salad anymore. He never complains about the salt shaker being removed from the table. He even seems grateful for a popcicle since he can't eat ice cream at night. I was afraid that I would have to be the food police, but he actually is taking responsibility for his own eating. And, we are not eating out as much. It is so difficult to be on this kind of diet and eat out. I thought it would save us money, but fresh fruit, vegetables, high fiber breads, low-fat meats, shellfish, fresh salmon and tuna are very expensive - our grocery bill has more than doubled. What I would give for a warm homemade tollhouse chocolate chip cookie! Now that is a long-lost dream. Funny thing, I haven't lost any weight and I eat the same thing Steve does. He must have been sneaking food when I wasn't looking before! Ha.