Phew!

I'm sure I've used that title before, but man am I tired. It has been a whirlwind these last three days. Aurelia and Madison are adopting to life at home again, and for the most part that's going smoothly. Aurelia does her best to be good natured even as we turn screws in her jaw every day, disinfect and slather up her ears in ointment. Madison is coming around to once again be the girl we knew in April and May, but this is the first time I've seen her adaptation slowed somewhat by jealousy. Her needs have visibly intensified for the first time since this odyssey began.

Our poor cat Ulysses had a serious infection on his hindquarters. Due to stress, we hope, he started rubbing his ass along the rug while we were gone. He rubbed his skin raw. He was a bloody, swollen, infected mess. Now he's still swollen, but he's shaved, bathed three times a day (which he loves), and instead of bloody he's all covered in a sheen of ointment. Yes, that's right, I get to rub ointment all over my cat's privates, including his butt. Be jealous. In the pity category, he is a cone head kitty for a few weeks and has to stomach the indignity of being given two different medicines throughout the day. That's a fun time for everyone, let me assure you.

It has been an interesting time for me and Jillian as caretakers during this week long hospital respite. Aurelia's care schedule is so complicated and covers so many medicines with changing dosages each day that we had to make up medicine and care charts, different ones for each day, so that we can be sure she comes off her pain medication comfortably. It's been challenging to balance those needs (which are frequent), Uly's needs (less frequent), and Madison's increasing needs (less frequent still, but more than ever before), with our needs to catch up with and take care of everything here at the house from our recent stay away.

Now that we are on the second half of the week and moving toward our next stay at CHOP things are beginning to shift into planning mode for our time gone. We think we'll have Madison stay here at the house with my in-laws to reduce the burden of travel on her. We are also thinking about how we'll handle Ulysses and the other household issues that my in-laws would have to take care of while we're gone; we are appreciative of their help, but we certainly don't want to abuse their good will!

As the pace quickens I hope we don't forget anything. We'll see!