BBBBBB's

It’s a “B” post today! “Busy” couple of weeks, “Back” to school, “Blood” counts are looking good, “Bounced” back to Scottish Rite, celebrating our transplant “Birthday”, and the sweet “Blessings” of health & happiness continue to abound!

8/15/11 Back to School!

Sydney and JT started back to school on August 15th. I have two high-schoolers now, can’t believe it. They are handling the transition very well. Me, not so much. I have been so focused on the kids for the last couple of years that I’m finding it hard to figure out what to do now. As with everything I do…I need to remember to have patience as I enter this next phase in life. My dining room has become a dumping ground for medical papers, school work, old bills, and anything else I can pile in there so I think it will be a good place to start. Clear out the mess and clear out the mind so to speak! I also have a stack of insurance “issues” to resolve. That has always been a thorn in my side and I’ve said it before and will tell you again – when you or a loved one has a major health problem, stay organized and on top of the insurance. You, your medical team and your wallet will be glad you did!

We had our one-year post transplant clinic visit on August 17th. There is nothing else they can do for us from a transplant perspective and we have been officially moved back to the care of our Hematology team at Scottish Rite for continued follow-up. It was a sad and bitter sweet day. I cried when I hugged Dr. Chang and said goodbye. How on earth do you thank someone for saving your childs life? I have nothing to give except my eternal gratitude for what he and his team did for my family the past two years.

JT will begin his immunizations starting next month with our family Pediatrician. We will continue clinic visits with CHOA and monitor his blood counts over the next year. And at the two year mark, JT will then start Survivor Clinic! Speaking of blood counts, for those of you who are interested…our one year counts look like this: White Blood is 1.86 – still low but holding steady. Red Blood is 4.67 – normal! Platelets 121 – still low but rising steadily! ANC .95 – still low but holding steady. And the one I especially love, his hemoglobin is 13.5 – first time being normal since his diagnosis in May 2009!

We celebrated JT & Sydney’s Transplant Birthday one Wednesday the 24th. It was so much fun surprising them in the morning because both had forgot the actual date. Big breakfast before school, birthday gifts, and a dinner celebration that evening at O’Charleys! The only thing missing was Dad in Wisconsin :(  He is coming home this weekend so we will continue the birthday celebration when he returns for a week.

God has blessed us over and over again these past few years. So many things could have gone a different path. The people we have met, the friends we have made, the patience, courage, strength and most of all the hope God has given us have been truly a gift from Him. Thank you for continuing to follow my blog and for all your prayers and encouraging words. I pray as you are reading this, you are experiencing the same gifts from Him in your lives!

xo - Sabrina