Jack did great his last 2 days of the first part of this round.  He ended up having to get blood yesterday…the first time he has needed a transfusion since transplant.  Zac came in from Tucson and we were able to all spend some time together before I left to have a night at home while Zac stayed with Jack last night.  They did well and they had a good night sleep so that’s always a good thing.

When I got home, Braden suprised me by walking!!  He has been taking more and more steps by himself every day and he is becoming so independent.  I know, funny to say about a 10 month old, but his personality is coming out more and more each day.

Zac and Jack came home this morning around 11:30 and everything is back to normal again for the next few days.  Jack is so happy to be home and so happy to see everyone.  Even though is supposed to be tired from this part of treatment, he has been nonstop since he got home.

Tonight we are having a calm night at home.  We are getting ready to put Jack to bed for the night and I have a funny feeling we might be asleep before midnight!  We do know that this past year is a year that we will never forget.  This year has been a year full of so many different emotions that it is even hard to explain.  We have been so thankful for our family, so excited for our new addition, in total shock over Jack’s diagnoses, sad and fearful for what he had to go through, terrified, happy for good news, exhausted from everything, overwhelmed…the list goes on and on.  2010 has brought so much.  We will never forget, but yet we never want to relive.  2011 will bring us more good than bad.  We know this.  11 is our number.

We thank you all for your support over this last year.  We have made new friends, discovered old ones, learned to  cherished the friendships that we already had, and become closer with family that we haven’t seen in years or that we have never met.  Thank you so much.  Without your constant love, we would have a harder time with all that we have been through.

So here’s to 2011…the best year yet.

We have about 38 hours left of Jack’s infusion…not like we are counting or anything!  Jack had another great day and he is getting ready to fall asleep now as he watches Toy Story which is ending in a few and then we will read some books before he goes to bed.  He also asked if I could sing to him, but for those of you who know what a wonderful singer I am…I think I just might whisper a song or two instead of trying to carry a tune!

We didn’t get a great night of sleep again last night, but it had nothing to do with Jack and how he is feeling, but more to do with the fact that we have to share rooms here at the hospital.  I am sure you can imagine how that can be a bit stressful at times!

Nana came this morning with coffee and another vanilla scone for Jack and he was so happy to have Nana here.  We played in the room for a bit and then ventured off to the play room.  After it closed, we came back for lunch in the room with some more play time before Nana had to head back to the house. 

The rest of the day was pretty uneventful, but that’s good!  We will try and get some rest tonight and then Daddy comes back from Tucson tomorrow night so I might head home to get the house ready for Jack to come home for the weekend and try to get a few hours of straight sleep myself. 

If all goes well tomorrow, we will update you when we get home on Friday!

Jack is about 34 hours in to his 96 hour infusion and he is doing really well.  He had a very busy day today…my dad came this morning to visit and bring Jack his favorite treat, a vanilla scone from Starbucks.  We had to go down this morning for a chest x-ray which was a follow up from stem cell transplant for his 100 day checkup.  He did great!  We came back up and I talked with his BMT nurse who told me that Jack’s vitamin D level was a little low so he has to go on a supplement for that starting Friday.  She said it was nothing to be concerned about and most people have a low level of vitamin D, but since he is a transplant patient, they want to make sure they give him all he needs.  She also said that all the blood tests they took 2 weeks ago came back great and everything is in normal range.  Great news!  She also called a little bit later and told me that the x-ray looked great and all is well.  We have a meeting with the BMT team for his follow up in a couple of weeks so we will get more info then on how they think he is doing….

After all of that my Aunt Theresa, Uncle Jim and 2 of my cousins, Kevin and Marie stopped over to visit for awhile.  They came in from Atlanta for Christmas and we were only able to see them for 1 day before we checked back in so it was great to see them.  We haven’t been able to spend the holidays with them for a few years, but they have been so supportive all the way from Atlanta so it was great for Jack to get to know them in person.  Jack had a ball with Kevin and loved having them here with us. 

Jack is feeling good, a little tired, but good.  He has been eating really well and putting up with being stuck in the hospital like a champ.  Tomorrow will be more of the same thing…playing, resting, eating, and riding the scooter all around the floor like a wild man.  He will probably start to feel pretty tired and worn down by the end of the week, so we will be getting lots of rest this weekend so he is as strong as he can be for next week when we check back in again.

Hopefully we will be able to get some rest tonight because we didn’t get much last night!

One more thing…for some odd reason, this website sent out emails of posts to people who signed up for updates from about a month ago.  No clue why, but I saw that it sent out 7 different updates!  Sorry about that!

It is about 7:30 PM and Jack is fast asleep after our first day of round 2 of immunotherapy.  We got here at 7 this morning and got all checked in and sent up to our room.  Jack was able to get out and play before he started his infusion so that was good.  This round we are in for two separate stays…we will be here until Friday morning while he gets a 96 hour infusion of something called interleukin.  He has handled this really well so far and has complained of being bored because not a lot is going on!  We have been up and out of the room for a good part of the day taking walks, playing in the playroom and riding a scooter around and around and around the floor.  They say that this infusion could make him feel like he has the flu, but  hopefully he won’t feel any of that at all. 

We go home Friday and then check back in on Monday for another 5 days where he will get the antibody treatment again like he did in round 1 as well as another infusion of what he is getting this week.  We will take this one week at a time and see how things go. 

So, not much to report today but that’s really good!  He is happy and everyone keeps stopping us and telling us how wonderful he looks and how much he has grown since he was first diagnosed.  So many nurses have said that unless I was standing with him, they wouldn’t have known it was Jack because of how much he has changed.  He has also added a little bit of weight so that makes a difference as well. 

We have talked about Jack’s friend, Ben, on this blog a few times…we were roommates with him and his parents when Jack was first diagnosed and his mom really helped me realize that I could stay strong and get Jack through this treatment because she is such a strong woman.  Ben stopped treatment for his cancer about 6 months ago and has been doing great.  They just found out, right after Ben’s 4th birthday, that he has relapsed.  This news hit Zac and I pretty hard because we just saw them about a month ago and Ben was so healthy and happy.  Please keep Ben and his family in your thoughts and prayers.  They have not figured out his treatment plan yet, but they will know more this week.  If you would like to follow Ben, his CaringBridge site is: http://www.caringbridge.org/visit/benpurcell

We haven’t written in a few days but I am sure you can imagine how busy we have been and it has been a little difficult to write after our computer was invaded by a million viruses!  We have been without or computer for about a week not so it is a little difficult to post…but…

Merry Christmas!!  This Christmas was extra special (as you would imagine) because we are all together and we are all healthy and happy.  This past year has flown by so fast that it is hard to believe that it is even over.  We started a few new family  traditions this year that Jack loved so much.  He is starting to understand what Christmas is all about and was so very excited for the day to actually get here. 

My sister and her husband, as well as their two kids, came out this year so that was fun.  We have not spent a Christmas morning together is so long so it made it extra special.  The kids opened all their gifts and I can say that Santa was extra giving this year!  We spent the evening with the rest of my family that lives here in town and it was great.  The boys played football…the girls were busy talking and cooking.  My aunt and uncle were trapped in Atlanta because their flight was canceled so they were not able to make it out until today.  I have not seen them in a few years, but they have been so supportive since Jack was diagnosed.  We were able to go over to my Grandmas today after they arrived and it was so great to visit with them.  I wish we had more time to chat, but since we have to check in tomorrow for Jacks’ 2nd round of immunotherapy, we had to cut it short. 

We check in tomorrow at 7 AM until Friday afternoon for the first part of the 2nd round.  This part of his treatment is supposed to give him flu like symptoms, but we will see how Jack handles it.  We get to come home on Friday and then we check in again on Monday for the antibody treatment that will last another 5 days.  We are not looking forward to this at all, but when we get through this, it will be another round under the belt and another round closer to being done. 

This week has been a wonderful week of enjoying the boys and enjoying spending quality time with them.  We are so very blessed to have such wonderful kids that are so perfect.  There is not a second of the day that passes when I don’t look at them and think of how lucky we are.  It is difficult, but we are trying to live each day to the fullest and love every moment because you never know what could happen next.  I talked to my Uncle today that lives in Michigan and he told me what in inspiration Jack is to so many people.  I could hear it in his voice that he believes, along with Zac and I, that Jack is destined to do something to change this world.  There is a plan for this little boy and we cannot wait to see what it is.  I wish we could fast forward to next Christmas…no more treatment, no more broviac in his chest, no more medications, no more restrictions…but I also want to remember every moment that we are going through so we can remind Jack of all that he has accomplished.  We will remind him that at 3 years old, he has changed the lives of so many.  That he has given me a greater love of life.  That he has given a new meaning to being a “big brother” or a “Daddy’s boy”.  That he has taken on a great challenge and he has won. This boy will have a wonderful memeory book and we cannot wait until the day comes when we can share that with him.

Thank you for all your thoughts and prayers.  Please keep Jack in mind for his first session of round 2.  He is a strong boy, but please know that your support carries us through…thank you so much for that.