rough stuff.

Yesterday was definitely one of the low points of our journey. Mike is officially limited to a liquid diet only. The pain (from the burn sores inside his mouth) and dryness (from left salivary gland fatality) make the texture of most foods unbearable and chewing out of the question. And did I forget to mention that his taste buds are toast as well? We are told they will return, but for now the stuff that goes into Mike's mouth feels more like sawdust than food. With our new Vita-Mix Pro blender I set out to create pureed foods to delight Mike's palette. That is not what happened... Almost any kind of texture (except something that resembles a creamy vanilla malt) is highly distasteful. The rub came when Nutrition Nazi Karen wanted Mike to get the nutrients he needs to rebuild his healthy cells. NNK created a liquid beverage of some fresh vegetables from the garden in chicken broth. I thought it was delicious. Mike thought it was unbearable. After some tears and some gagging (both from Mike), at the end of the day we decided that clear broths and fruit smoothies (with protein powder) will be his main staples. My massage therapist did some research and brought us shitake and reishi mushrooms, and dried sea weed. I slowly cooked them in a chicken broth stock and came up with a broth that Mike absolutely loved and that he even found comforting. (His many tours in Okinawa instilled a love for these flavors - and fortunately all three items are used to prevent & fight cancer in Japan.) Tonight I am cooking fresh vegetables I bought at the Farmers Market and picked from my garden, and feeding him the broth that I cook them in. He will probably be as tiny as a little Japanese man at the end of this month. Please pray for all the nutrients Mike needs to heal and recover, and for no weight loss.