One Rough Week for One Little Girl

1/30/13: 11:00 PM

Poor Annakate. She can't seem to catch much of a break as of late. A couple of weekends ago, she started complaining about her ear. By Monday (Martin Luther King Jr Day), it had nearly swollen shut. A trip to the doctor concluded that she had a very nasty ear infection. So the antibiotics began. Probably not the way she wished to spend her day off from school.

Tuesday . . . still sick.

Wednesday . . . better. The antibiotics were starting to work, and she was feeling like her old self again.  She went to school. She had her teeth cleaned. She went to church. It was there while playing a game (actually racing to a seat) in class that she tripped over another child's foot and faceplanted into a wooden arm rest on a couch. Off to the ER we went.

 

My poor little thing bit through her lip and lacerated the inside of her right cheek. Dr. Stout was kind enough to stitch her up and send her home with a pretty numb lip. I'm not going to lie, it was sort of nice to be in the ER for the things that you are supposed to be in the ER for. It was the type of trip I had always imagined parents everywhere making.  One of those trips due to the accidents of childhood. Don't get me wrong, I don't want my children to have to make ER visits, but if they do, I want it to be for reasons like this not because of bacterial infections or blood infections often associated with cancer.

Thursday was rough.

 

Friday was rough. Finally, I took Annakate back to the doctor. We were due for a follow-up anyway. Annakate hadn't consumed any food or water (except for a couple of ounces) for a day and a half. She refused to take her antibiotic or Tylenol. She wouldn't drink through a straw because she wouldn't close her lips around it. She was super miserable. The nurse gave her a stern talk about the importance of drinking and the concerns of dehydration. The doctor put her on a different antibiotic that she only had to take once a day and for only a few days, and he also gave her some mouth-numbing mouth wash.

Saturday was rough.

Sunday was better. She woke up feeling pretty great. She managed to eat and eat and drink. She went to church. She was on the up and up.

Due to the severe storm and power outage in Ashmore, Annakate didn't have school today. Well, what would you know?  She woke up with a fever and a sore throat. I gave her a couple of Tylenol, and the fever did subside and she resumed normal activity, but my goodness . . . .Really? 

Just pray with us that she gets better and stays better. I am hoping that we can put the last couple of weeks behind us.

Davis has been doing great. He has been complaining a bit of leg pain, and I know that worries him. He has also been sweating a lot a night, and I think that worries him too.  I think he just uses way too many covers. He asked me tonight when I was tucking him in, "Mom, do you think I am relapsing?"  I reassured him that he isn't. I told him that we don't see enough of the signs. I told him he could talk to the doctor about it in a couple of weeks at his next appointment. She can check him out. I think that the fear of relapse will always weigh on his mind to some degree. He is a thinker and a worrier, and I think it is hard for him just to put his total trust in God. He's human, and he's eleven. And he has had to grow up and carry the burdens that most adults struggle to do gracefully. I can't even imagine the weight that all of this places on him. 

I am so thankful that God has had His hand on Davis. So far, he has managed to be fever-free for months now. With all of the sickness around and even in our own home at times, I am amazed that Davis remains so healthy. I don't doubt that it is a God thing.

Please pray for both my babies. Annakate for her health, and Davis for peace of mind. I know he is worried about relapse. I think he thinks that being this healthy for so long is too good to be true. It seems like he is holding his breath or waiting for the other shoe to drop or something. Davis has also been very grouchy and combative lately.  He hasn't been getting adequate sleep, which contributes to his bad attitude, but he's old enough to exert self-control. I definitely pray for an end to this sour attitude.

We hope this finds you and your family happy and healthy. May God richly bless you always.

We will keep you posted.

Playing Catch-Up

1.20.13:  7:00 PM

I promised Hawaii stories. . . Hawaii was beautiful.  Davis's wish was to go to Pearl Harbor. It was wonderful. The history was amazing. There was much better explained through the museums than any textbook I have read. Davis was treated like royalty. He was able to pick out any souvenir that he wanted from the store. Herb, a World War II veteran, was our tour guide. We received front row treatment in the theater, and we were the first to get on and off the water shuttle to the Arizona Memorial. There was such a peaceful reverence on the memorial. Terribly saddening.

 

 

After spending quite a bit of time going through the museums, we toured the Arizona Memorial, we toured the USS Missouri,the retired battleship.  Davis had seen the movie Battleship and thought it would be cool to tour it. Personally, I didn't find the ship all that interesting, but the history was amazing. The Missouri (The Mighty Mo) was the ship that Japan surrendered on in World War II.

 

We snorkeled. Well, I snorkeled. The weather was a bit ominous. It was raining on and off and the gusty winds made the water incredibly choppy. Kyle, who gets major motion sickness, decided it was best if he stay on land. So Davis, Annakate, and I headed out to sea. The first stop was to view the green sea turtles. Davis did a great job. He kept his head under for so long looking around and taking pictures that I kept tapping him on the shoulder in an effort to keep him with the group. We were called in after twenty minutes or so. I couldn't understand why were were being rushed, and then the guide, Steve, explained. There were Alaskan Humpback whales nearby. It is the accepted Hawaiian water policy that people are out of the water when whales are nearby. Our catamaran ran parallel to the two giants for some time. One turned south and swam right under our boat!  The water was a little over 40 feet deep, so the whale was incredibly visible. It was definitely a highlight of the snorkeling trip!  We eventually returned to snorkeling. Well, I returned to snorkeling. Davis was too cold to get back in the water despite the wetsuit, and Annakate couldn't find the courage to get into the water. She is afraid of fish - even afraid to look at fish. She remained on the boat with Steve. 

 

 

We swam with dolphins one day. It was pretty neat. The interaction was limited, but it was still quite an experience. We even swam with a walphin. It is a half-killer whale, half-dolphin creature.

 

 

On our days when there was not a tour scheduled, we found plenty to do. We climbed to the top of Diamond Head, a volcanic cone. Boy was it a hike!  Kyle and Davis sprinted ahead, and Annakate, Marylee (Kyle's mom) and I stayed together. We eventually reached this 100-step steep staircase. Marylee waited at the bottom and Annakate yelled to me from twenty steps in, "Come on, Mom!" I had no choice but to follow her. Oh my goodness, talk about a burn. Those 100 steps were about 40 too many. But the hike was worth the work. The view was amazing.

We did a lot of other wonderful things too. We went to a luau. We meandered through markets. We ate and ate. I think we ate ice cream every single day. We managed to spend every day that we didn't have something planned at Waikiki beach. It was amazing. Davis and Annakate are such beach babies. They find all kinds of things to do: build sand castles, collect rocks, look for shark teeth, paddle board, tube, swim, jump waves, etc.

 

 

 

I can't thank Make-A-Wish enough. We made such fantastic memories on this trip. His ANC (immune system) was over 4000!  The doctors are wanting him to hover around 1000.  All of his other counts looked good. The reason why his ANC is so high is because a couple of months ago, his team reduced his chemo by half. He had spent several weeks with an ANC below 500 making him neutropenic. He even had transfusions in October. The culprit, they believed, was that the chemo had built up in his system and his body couldn't keep up. Now that his body has made a count recovery, they will slowly start increasing his chemo meds one at a time.

His check-up went well. He continues to keep on keeping on.  He even managed to have a slumber party after his chemo on Friday. He just loves spending time with his friends. They are quite a hoot when they are all together.

We are back into a routine and busy as usual. Absolutely no complaints. We have been being very cautious with germs. The flu is rampant. Annakate fell ill this weekend. I am not sure if it is cold or flu, but it appears to be more cold-like than flu-like (no aching). Nevertheless, she has been quarantined to our bedroom and bathroom allowing Davis free reign of the rest of the house. This has been our procedure for the last year and a half.  If the illness gets serious (stomach flu, shingles, etc), we send Davis to Grandma and Grandpa's, but a cold keeps him at home with us. Kyle usually tends to the healthy child and I usually tend to the sick child. Some may see that as unfair, but I don't think so. If my babies are sick, I want to be there with them. Besides, since I work with children every day, I figure I have the stronger immune system.  I am glad we have a system that works. 

We aren't due to head back to Children's for another month. I thank God every day for the hand of protection he puts on my children. And even though the ringing of the bell is so far away, there is much comfort in the progress we have made. Please continue to pray for Davis's complete recovery and healing. I don't ever want to indulge in a false sense of security just because he looks well, and I don't want to ever forget about how difficult the journey has been. We cannot appreciate how far we have come or how much God has blessed us if we forget.

We will keep you posted.

Aloha, Hawaii. . .Mahalo Make-A-Wish

 

1.10.2013:  5:00 PM

Happy New Year!! 

We spent the first seven days of this year in Hawaii on Davis's Make-A-Wish wish. It was amazing. I have so much to share.

But I am going to have to fill you in later. After nearly ten hours in an airplane, two hours in a car, unpacking, multiple loads of laundry, and two work days of catch-up and teaching under my belt, I am spent.

I just really wanted to thank Lauren and the Illinois chapter of Make-A-Wish for making this trip possible. We understand the importance of family more than ever, and thank you so much for providing this opportunity to enjoy one another.

I made a "thank you" movie for Lauren, our Make-A-Wish coordinator. I thought I would share it. Stories to come, I promise.

 

 

I had to upload it from Youtube because it wouldn't download direct for some reason. Apologize for the junk that comes up at the end of the video.

Seriously, happy new year! Hug your loved ones - especially your children - a little tighter this year, and tell them that you love them every chance you get.

We will keep you posted.