Cold snap… Day 1116 07DEC11

The day started of pretty normal with the boys getting started on school and me heading in to work for a bit. I got home in the early afternoon just as it was beginning to rain and things fell off from there. We have now got winds gusting around outside with rain and it is much colder than it was earlier today. All of us are still a little tired from all the stuff we did yesterday so this evening was pretty relaxed with a little Doctor Who on the tele and not much else. Tomorrow should dawn colder still and it may finally feel like we are getting close to Christmas :) In the meantime we will stay warm and toasty inside and rest while we have the chance.

Pretty busy day… Day 1115 06DEC11

Our day started with a trip to the clinic to get Joshua's lab done. His counts came back really good with his ANC at 3450 and everything else in the black. 

As soon as we got done with the doctor we headed for home to change and run off to help Renee's dad get his boat out of the water and lifted onto the new trailer he got for it. Joshua helmed the boat for the trip from the dock to the yard where we pulled the boat. We got it finished but it was a long hot and physically exhausting afternoon.

We came home got showered and changed and then jumped back in the car to head into Tampa for the St. Josephs Clinic Christmas party. The boy's have been looking forward to this one and we all had a nice evening visiting with friends and enjoying the food and music. 

After the party broke up we headed over to my Dad's house for a quick visit and so the boys could get his Christmas decorations out of the attic. That taken care of we headed for home so we could all fall into a deep sleep as so as our heads touched the pillows. 

Whew… I got tired all over again just recounting all of that :)

IVIG for December… Day 1114 05DEC11

 Joshua got up early to get ready for Caroline. She got here and got him started like always without a fuss or any problems. She really is a wonderful nurse and we are lucky that we can continue to get her for all of his transfusions. The day passed slowly with Joshua mostly resting on the couch while hooked up to the pump. I left for work before he got finished but Renee said he did fine and had no ill effects. The boys headed over to stay with Renee's parents until I got off of work and could pick them up. They were watching the Bolts game when I called and had a fun evening hanging out with grandma and pa. It was straight home and off to bed since we have a busy day tomorrow and have to get up early and head off for clinic to get Joshua's counts checked.

I received a few pictures from Lisa of Jarrod getting his award from the Mayor of Tampa so I thought I would share :)

Christmas tree… Day 1113 04DEC11

Joshua was feeling much better this morning with no ill effects from yesterday thank goodness. After lunch the boys and Renee decided it was time to clean the house up, re-arrange the furniture and get Christmas down from the attic. So we did. As soon as all the boxes were down and assembled the boys got to work on getting the tree up. They split the lights between Jarrod doing the upper branches and Joshua doing the lower ones. Next it was up to the boys to get the decorations out and hung on the tree. They did a fantastic job and worked well together to get the job finished. Now we have a pretty Christmas tree in the living room to enjoy for the rest of the month. Hard to believe that Christmas is once again right around the corner, this past year seems to have evaporated right under my nose.

In the morning Caroline will be here early to give Joshua his monthly IVIG transfusion, what a way to start a week...

Wojtek's Birthday… Day 1112 03DEC11

Today was Wojtek's Birthday so right before lunch we loaded up and headed over to his house for a party. Ania prepared a bunch of yummy polish food and we spent the afternoon eating, playing games and generally having a great time. Renee had to leave around 3:30 to go to work but the boys and I stayed until dark. It was a wonderful day with our good friends!

On the way home Joshua started to get sick to his stomach and ended up falling asleep in the car about half way home. We got him in from the car and he still wasn't feeling well. Not long after that his stomach decided it no longer wanted to hold its contents anymore, I got him cleaned up and he curled up on the couch and promptly fell back to sleep. He stayed that way through the entire hockey game and didn't wake up until I moved him to his bed. He felt much better and was hungry when he woke up so we hopped into the kitchen and got his some food to help fill him back up. I really think that he played too hard, ate too little, and didn't get enough water throughout the afternoon. Nonetheless we will keep an eye on him throughout the night just to make sure. 

Pretty normal for 1111… Day 1111 02DEC11

Well it works out that today is day 1111 and since there are no Mayan legends associated with Joshua's diagnosis date the day passed without incident. The boys spent the morning engrossed in school work, Joshua got 11 lessons done before I left for work! Jarrod was rocking along as well. 

Later in the afternoon both boys headed over to Renee's parents to hang out for the evening as we were both working. They were going to spend the night but Renee got out earlier than she had anticipated and swung by to pick up the boys on her way home. I had to work extra late so by the time I dragged in the house was dark and quiet. 

We have a full weekend ahead of us with a birthday party for Wojtek tomorrow and a Christmas gathering with Yan and his family on Sunday. Should be fun and I am sure the weekend will whiz by before we know it.

Christmas gathering… Day 1110 01DEC11

We all got up early to start our day, I had to head off for a morning class and Jarrod had a doctors appointment. The rest of the day flew by until it was evening time and we all met up at the Children's Cancer Center for our annual Christmas gathering. There were a lot of people in attendance and we got to spend a great evening with a bunch of our friends talking, eating, and watching the kids have a great time running around and playing. We got home after ten and shuffled the boys off to bed for a night of rest. It was a great way to start off our Christmas celebrating :)