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Getting Blood and Platelets Today
By Margot | October 19, 2009
We are in the hospital all day today getting blood and platelets. Sam’s platelets were at 4 today. Yeeks! They called us right back after the blood check and “Come back now!”  I didn’t have it together for homework so we are playing chess and Blokus and Sam is currently watching the Pink Panther. We will go up to the City of Hope on Thurday for the stem cell rescue on Friday. Our insurance approved it there instead of here in San Diego so we will drive the three hours up on Thursday for the required doctor’s check and then do the stem cell infusion on Friday. It’s an out-patient procedure so we may bring the whole gang. Not sure yet. We’ll have to see if City of Hope is shut down for siblings like San Diego in which case we may not all go.Â
We had a great weekend.  On  Saturday we had soccer (Sam’s team got creamed but he was happy to play) and Andy’s team is still undefeated – he scored a goal) and went to the park in the afternoon and out to pizza. Sunday the boys and I went to see The South Pacific. Our friend Mac was in it and it was really well done. Charlie even sat through the whole thing which is pretty long for a three year-old. He said halfway through, “Mom, does this movie only have persons in it?” It was kind of funny. Sam and Andy acted like they were too cool for it. Andy actually said, “Mom, we’re not really play kind of guys, we’re sports guys.” Ack.   Gotta work on that.  Maureen came over for dinner last night and we had a good time with her. She helped Sam finish his ad poster that he had to make.   He had to make an ad for a health product so he thought of a vitamin dispenser like a Pez dispenser with Sports team themes.  He called it a VEZ. I thought it was really creative.  He drew them all freehand. His artistic abilbity blows both Neil and me away because neither of us can figure out where he got it.   Don’t tell his teacher but he got the idea from the Bud Light commercial that comes on during football games for “the grueler” – the grill that’s a cooler.
Andy lost his first tooth. He woke up yesterday morning and we were talking and all of the sudden he said, “Wait a minute!” and ran to the bathroom where I heard a huge inhalation of breath. He came out and said, “Mom my tooth fell out last night but I ‘must have swallowed it or lost it.” We looked everywhere around his bed for it but didn’t find it so he wrote the tooth fairy a letter: “Dear Tooth Fairy, my first tooth fell out but I lost it.”   No signature or anything.  He woke me up in the middle of the night and said. Mom, I’m just going to the bathroom. “Hey, did I tell you, the tooth fairy left me some money? Yeah, my pillow was hot so I flipped it over to get to the cool side and there it was, money from the tooth fairy!” He’s been waiting for a tooth to fall out since he was about four so he is very excited. It was the first thing he told Heather in the office this morning and his teacher when he walked in his classroom. Now he gets to put his name on the tooth list in his classroom. He’s doing really well in school – smart as a whip.
All of the boys are so excited for Halloween. Hopefully with the stem cell infusion this Friday, Sam will have started engrafting by Halloween and have good counts.  Diane at CHOP said he should have another GCSF shot shortly after the stem cell infusion.
That’s about all the news I have to report.  Forgot to report that we ran into (almost literally coming out of the elevator) our favorite nurse Lauren at CHOP when we were there. It was great to see you, Lauren.  I’ll report more when we are up at City of Hope. Our third hospital this month.  LDH was 572 today – normal.Â
Margot
Topics: Progress Reports | 5 Comments »
October 21st, 2009 at 4:38 am
Looking for the drug from Japan. Blog Post (Special Request) is on home page of http://www.scientistsolutions.com site
Hang in there. Love, Marcia
October 21st, 2009 at 12:18 pm
Hope you got a patent before posting his brilliant VEZ idea! Go TeamSam!
October 21st, 2009 at 5:15 pm
I love that VEZ idea. Could he maybe work up a prototype that might get Wyatt to eat some vegetables from a candy dispenser?? He would make millions!
So glad to hear that Sam is at school and playing soccer. I know how much it means to him (and you guys) to see him doing the everyday normal things.
October 21st, 2009 at 10:26 pm
Just checking in on Team Sam and am glad to see that all is well. Hope the blood and platelets tanked Sam up and the stem cell infusion on Friday is quick and painless. We’re always thinking of you guys and sending good thoughts, hopeful prayers, and positive energy. Love the LDH number — normal is wonderful!!
Keep up the good work Team Sam!
Love, Sarah Bartosz (and the rest of the I Back Jack team)
October 26th, 2009 at 5:23 pm
Love the VEZ idea ! Very creative Sam!!
Keep the good news coming… soccer, lost tooth, the theatre, and of course, Halloween ! What an exciting weekend for the three boys!
Hope everything went well up North! 😉
Love to all and Happy Halloween to our favorite goblins in PB !!!!
Love, the Kuhn’s