LP ALL CLEAR

The lumbar puncture came back as all clear.  We are very pleased with the results.  Now we can sit back and enjoy the arrival of this big boy!

Jenn

Results

Jeremy and Avery made it back late last night from Memphis, luckily no Emmett had arrived yet.  The trip was short but drawn out and they were both happy to be home.  We didn't expect to get results yesterday, but they put an appt on their schedule to discuss with our Dr late yesterday afternoon.  Panicked, I listened over speaker phone as Dr Armstrong explained to us the preliminary results of the MRI.  All 3 spots appear to have decreased in size.  Now what that means we aren't exactly sure.  Are they all tumors still responding to radiation?  Are they damage from radiation now healing itself?  Is it necrosis?  Bottom line is they don't know, but they are more comfortable going 3 months before scanning her again based on these results.  The final report will be out next week along with the LP results.  Please pray those are clear as well.

For now that means we get to spend the next 2 months pretending cancer doesn't exist before the scanxiety kicks in again. A very welcome escape considering the pressure this last month has put on us.  Nothing like waiting for the other shoe to drop.

  Awesome job to all the prayer warriors out there!  You all really rocked it this time!  Keep em coming....this time let's add "2 pushes, early delivery, fast labor,  and sleeps through the night" your list...just saying if you have extra time.  We are ready for Emmett Joseph to make his debut!

Jenn

MRI Friday

I just dropped Jeremy and Avery off at the airport.  I am sick to my stomach and the test isn't even until Friday morning.  We are hoping to have results on Monday as we all know what happens on Friday afternoons at a hospital...nothing.  Avery will have her thyroid levels checked today and new braces fit for her ankles.  Other than that - today will be a lot of sitting around with Daddy. Not that Avery minds - plenty to do at St Jude if you are feeling well and can be around a few germs.  We are curious to see what her ANC has done over the last 4 weeks without any type of issue to mess with it.  I think we may have finally kicked the UTI cycle. 

I really don't know what to expect. Obviously the worst is always a possibility.  In my head I'm hoping for no change, and a "let's watch these spots" type response.  In my heart, we are believing we can get the all the clear - tumor gone, weird spots gone, no cells present in CSF...go home and see you in 3 months.  So for all of our prayer warriors out there....get to work!

Oh and it would be nice if Emmett would stay put the next 2 days.  After that, fair game.  My cankles are bigger than my thighs at this point -- its not pretty people.

Jenn

Happy Birthday Jude!

It's hard to believe that an entire year has gone by since we said hello and goodbye to our little baby boy. Yesterday was a tough day for us as a family, but we put on our smiles and made the day what we wanted it to be....a celebration of an amazing little life that we will one day be a huge part of.  For now, we talk about him and picture him in Heaven with Mia (the dog) and hold on to the fact that one day we will be together again. 

In celebration of Jude's 1st Birthday, we decided he would have liked to eat at the T Rex Restaurant, so off we went to enjoy the overly priced, poor tasting food they had to offer.  Avery absolutely loved the place, although was petrified by the large T Rex in the front of the restaurant.  Luckily we were seated by the plant eaters for dinner and she thoroughly enjoyed that. 

After dinner, we sang him Happy Birthday and enjoyed some birthday cake before flipping through his pictures and saying goodnight.  Each year we plan to celebrate the same way and move that much closer to being together as a family again. 

Jenn

New Windows!

Saturday was a fantastic day...or so I've heard...Turns out I came down with a bug and spent the day in bed while Jeremy and Avery hung out with our friends and neighbors and the amazing crew from Window World.  As you can see, the windows look amazing and we've already enjoyed cleaning them as a family! 

The afternoon was a hot one for sure, but the food and fun was great for all.  Hopefully our friends and neighbors were able to check out their good work and ask some questions while spending some time with Avery.  She of course, had a blast hanging out with everyone and is very excited about her new "Avery" shirt the ladies of Window World brought for her. 

We are so excited to have them in and to hopefully see a reduction in our next electric bill!  I can't believe how bright the kitchen and front room are now with the new windows.  Needless to say we are so happy and very grateful to have had the Crew of Window World at our house this weekend. 

As far as an update on Avery...we are finished with the latest round of antibiotics for her UTI, however we have moved on to constipation.  The drugs we have her on for bladder spasm control are terrible for making kids constipated.  So far we haven't been able to get a good enough routine down to keep her comfortable so we are of course back to the fight of not eating.  Her weight has dropped since we left St Jude 4 months ago from 31 lbs down to 26 lbs.  She is looking a bit thin, so we are diligently working to get her systems regulated and her terrible eating habits back to only sort of terrible.  So far the Colace, Gummy Fiber chews, Malox and pumpkin bread are not cutting it.  As a result, this 3 year old is not nearly as pleasant as she normally is.  Hoping this week we can get it figured out. 

Jeremy and Avery fly back to Memphis on August 19th for her next MRI.  We'll see what the results are and go from there.  Please pray for radiation non sense and no tumors or necrosis.

Jenn