Sticks hurt... Day 413 30DEC09

Joshua began is day with a round of school work with me while Renee was out doing some stuff with her dad. He did really well and I enjoyed having him read to me this morning. His reading is getting better all the time which is a great thing.

After lunch he left to go on a bike ride up to the park with Jarrod and D.J. . Not long after they left I got a call from Jarrod, Joshua had fallen off his bike and landed on a stick and he wanted us to come up to the park. So Renee and I rushed out the door and drove up to the park to assess the damage and begin triage. He has a pretty nasty scrape on his back and his right arm got a little scraped up as well. Jarrod took great care of him until we got there and never left his side. He is such an awesome big brother.

So we bundled Joshua into the car and trundled on home. After a shower, lots of TLC from both of us, and a little first aid Joshua was feeling better. His back is going to be sore tomorrow for sure but it was a minor abrasion. Thank goodness his platelets are way up or it could have been rather messy. Just a normal kid riding his bike kind of accident, we just respond with every thing short of a medivac helo:)

Slumber not... Day 412 29DEC09

Joshua started off today with more school work as he claws his way towards being caught up. Lately he has been much more interested in Indiana Jones Lego on the Xbox than anything else. He is still making progress though and I am sure he will get finished up and back on schedule.

Joshua was re-tested on Monday to see if he still needs the IVIG treatments every month. We got the results to day and he will need to continue the IVIG doses for at least another couple of months. His levels have improved but they still need to climb quite a bit higher before they discontinue the treatments so we have that to look forward to for a little while longer. The worst part is the amount of time it takes to get the infusion done, it pretty much chews up an entire day, plus the potential of really bad side effects from the meds. Not many silver linings in our world.

This evening we headed over to Jim and Sally's for an evening of food and fun. Taylor and Avery were there and they had a big slumber party planned with all of the kids. Unfortunately Joshua was not having his best night and he decided that he wanted to come home rather than stay the night. It was a classic combo of chemo and being overly tired, a rather volatile cocktail. So we came home and got him ready for bed. Hopefully things will seem a little brighter to him in the morning.

Winter Wonderland... Day 411 28DEC09

Joshua had clinic this morning to check his counts which came back really good. His ANC was 3410 thanks to last weeks prednisone dosing, the only really good part about steroids. The rest of this numbers were in the green as well. That means, we hope, smooth sailing until next year.

He came home and spent some time getting caught up on school work. He fell behind a little in December due to being in the hospital , etc... Not a big deal, I am confident he will be back on track before the week is out.

This evening we got a chance to go see the Wild Wonderland at Lowry Park Zoo thanks to tickets that were donated by Cox Radio. It was a lot of fun and we had a really great time. There were real reindeer and penguins to see as well as stingrays to pet. Several of the rides were running and the boys went on them over and over. The rides included a roller coaster that we practically had to drag them away from. It was a wonderful cold night which made the hot chocolate taste even better and walking around was refreshing and brisk. We all got bundled up and stayed for three hours. There were lights everywhere and it was like walking through a wild winter wonderland. Now I know how they got the title...

We finished the evening by getting home in time to watch the last part of the Lightning game which they won handsomely. Joshua was thrilled, he was pretty worried because he had not worn his shirt today. But despite this they won anyway:)

Brothers... Day 410 27DEC09

After all is said and done Joshua and Jarrod love each other. Sure they squabble and bicker over toys/food/candy/window seats/friends/pecking order/chain of command/the last pack of Kool-Aid/etc... But there are plenty of moments where Renee and I smile and watch fondly as they help each other or do something together.

Today was another non-eventful day just the way we like it. Renee and Jarrod went to church this morning, Joshua played with Taylor and Avery, and I puttered about the house. For our afternoon entertainment we hosted 3 more kids besides our own for a grand total of 5. They were great and everybody played nice and had fun. Jarrod's friend D.J. stayed for sushi Sunday before he went home. It is great that Jarrod now has someone to hang out with in our neighborhood.

Tomorrow is back to the clinic for counts and then back home for school work. We are expecting Joshua's numbers to have stayed in the green as we slide into next year. It would make for a smooth transition into 2010.

Playtime and hockey... Day 409 26DEC09

After the massive energy expenditure of yesterday we throttled way back for today. The kids played outside for a good bit and enjoyed the warm spell we had going. Jarrod got a long bike ride in with D.J. from across the way. They really seem to have hit it off and spent most of the day together. Joshua had a few post steroid meltdowns but all in all he was fine today. He seems to be prone to depression fits by the end of a steroids week and little things can throw him into a tailspin. Renee and I spent the day watching for impending issues between siblings and practicing our Wii putt putt skills.

Tonight Joshua went to spend the night with Taylor and Avery over at Renee's parents while we went to the hockey game. Jarrod invited D.J. to go and it was his first hockey experience. They both had a great time and to make the evening even better the Lightning managed to pull off a big win over Atlanta. I am pretty sure that their voices will be hoarse tomorrow :)

Christmas 2009... Day 408 25DEC09

Today was the big day! The boys made it to 7:00 a.m. before they bounded into our room and shouted out "Merry Christmas!" You could have powered a medium sized town with the energy they were beaming out. SO we got out of bed, made some coffee (for Dad's health) and set them to opening presents. Our tree was pretty well under penned with presents this year and that would not have been the case without the caring and generosity of a lot of people some of whom we may never meet. Our heartfelt thanks and wishes for a Merry Christmas to all the special people who cared enough to help our children have a wonderful day.

Joshua finally let the reins out a little on the monster inside this morning, a combination of excess energy and lack of sleep. Nothing that required triage but a few close calls. Jamie, Christian, and Allie arived right after lunch to spend some time with us. This is our granddaughters first Christmas and she was having a fine time getting spoiled by everybody.

We headed over to Renee's parents for dinner and more family time. The meal was wonderful and I am sure that I am up at least 5 pounds in the last two days. The house was full of kids and the noise and excitement was wonderful. It was great to be at home for Christmas this year and to be able to spend it with all of our loved ones. Big change from last Christmas :)

Want to know how great that is? Just ask Allie.

Twas the night before Christmas... Day 407 24DEC09

It is the night before Christmas and finally all is quiet through the house only Renee and myself are stirring. The boys are safely bundled in their beds hopefully until after 5:00 a.m. The stockings are hung with care, there are presents under the tree. Christmas is upon us at last.

We spent the afternoon over at my parents house celebrating Christmas Eve. We had a wonderful dinner and spent some time with them as well as Christian, Jamie, and Allie. It is Allie's first Christmas eve and we welcome her to our family traditions.

Joshua has been doing okay today, he has been a little tired but has managed to keep the steroid monster at bay all week so far. We are very proud of him for exercising such control. He was pretty wiped out by the time we got back home tonight and went to bed right after he put cookies out for Santa and we read the Night Before Christmas from the book I got over 40 years ago. Renee and I both have our fingers crossed that the boy's will sleep at least until the sun gets back to this side of the planet but we have our doubts.

After the boys were asleep Hobie decided to add himself to the presents under the tree. Who wouldn't want a big black stuffed furry rug.