Hot Dog

Hey Everyone,

As November comes to an end and December starts, we look forward to finishing our last 37 days here.  We pray that nothing goes wrong in the next bit of time, and we can get home as quickly as possible.  I miss home and miss having my babies with me.  I know I say this every time, but it gets harder everyday.   The closer to the end of this we get, the more my heart aches for them.

We did get to have Cael over the weekend...well from Thursday to Saturday.  It was great to have him here and it made me feel somewhat normal again.  "Normal" as in a mother again.  

Elaine also came out on Saturday.  She came with a surprise for me.  Anyone who knows me well, knows how much I love Christmas and decorations and trees.  I love decorating my house, putting up the tree and blaring Christmas music.  And since we are here, none of that will happen.  But my thoughtful sister brought my decorations and a small tree for us to decorate.  It was so nice and I love having it here.  Thanks again Elaine!!

Today, Andrea came to visit and we hung out at the apartment for awhile.  Then Andrea and I went shopping at Chinook Centre.  I did very well walking the whole mall without taking a break.  And it's a big mall!!  That is a big achievement for me.  It was a great day and I'm glad she came to see me.

Well, we go back to the clinic on Thursday, so we will really try to write that evening...so until then....

Love Sarah

ps - Kurt wrote a post today as well, keep scrolling down

The Christmas Tree

Andrea and I

 (and my big fake smile, as Kurt says)
(I know its not fake -K)

Slidey

Hello,

Well, we are a little late for the Monday post but here it is.  Last night Sarah and I went to my Sisters house for some soup so we didn't get back to the apartment until late and writing a blog while rushed never works out good.  

Yesterday we went to the clinic for the standard blood work and fluid top up.  They drew the blood and decided Sarah needed more fluid.  She has been drinking very well lately, drinking between one and two litres each day.  The last blood work had the doctor a little bit concerned about Sarah's kidney and liver, so on our Monday appointment the doc said we would have to wait for those blood results to come back and if they weren't good Sarah may have to be admitted into the hospital so she could receive fluid daily and then they could keep an eye on her kidney and liver more closely.  They also talked about doing a stomach scope to see what is causing Sarah's stomach discomfort.  About five minutes after they scared us with that, the blood results came in and they said they were fine.  They gave Sarah the two bags of fluid through her new PIC line and sent us on our way.  I think all of the fluid helps her kidney and liver perform better or something.  The amount of time the doctor and nurses spend with us now has decreased so I can no longer ask them question after question.  I think most of Sarah's blood numbers were fine, except her platelet count which was down to 44.  It has been dropping slowly over the last few weeks, but the doctor and nurse both said  it had to do with the cyclosporin medication.  I think they are planning on weaning Sarah off of the cyclosporin in the next few weeks, so we will see what that brings.  

Sarah's eating is slowly improving, this past week she decided to try caesar salad which she enjoyed.  She also enjoys raw cucumbers with ranch dip.  Andrea described what Sarah is eating as slidey foods.  The majority of what she drinks is iced tea.  This week she needs to work on her protein intake.

This past week has been pretty busy, on Wednesday we went to Red Deer to see Linden and on Thursday Cael came to visit us.  Seeing our little boys is so nice but it just makes me miss them even more.  They are both doing well and are growing so fast, I can't wait to see them again.  Cael stayed with us at the apartment from Thursday until Saturday, it was nice for both of us to feel like a parent again.  I think Sarah and I both liked having him here and having something to keep us busy during the day.  It was hard to see the little guy go, but it shouldn't be much longer until we get to see him again.  Elaine came on Saturday to spend the day with her sister and I guess me.  She even helped me work on the puzzle for a little bit.  Today (Tuesday) Sarah's cousin/friend Andrea is here, right now they are at a mall doing a little shopping.  

The next appointment is on Thursday where they will again do blood work.   See you then

K

ps.  Sarah said she would write something as well so hopefully tonight.

Cael loves standing.

Cael and Elaine

I think he likes her!

Cael and his Daddy

Hurtin' Albertan's

G'day,

Well, I can't write much.  My right arm is very sore, due to the PICC line I got today.  We decided it was for the best.  I want to write everything that went on over the last three days, but between my arm and Kurt's red sore eye that he can barely open, we can't. So here are some pictures and we will write again on Monday.  

Thanks for understanding,

Sarah  

p.s - we also have Cael for the weekend too

3 Hrs

Hello,

Its Monday and as promised here is a blog post...

Today Sarah and I woke up, and after some breakfast we went over to the clinic to meet with the doctor.  They took Sarah's vitals and determined that she would need fluids.  They started the IV (this time on the first try!) and then shortly after that the doc came in.  The doctor recommended that Sarah have a pic line put in, she will still need blood samples weekly and she will more than likely need fluid once or twice a week.  We talked about it a little bit and decided in the long run it would be easier to have the pic put in, it will mean a lot less pokes as well as less time waiting to have blood drawn.  Last week Sarah did really well with her fluid intake, drinking almost 2 liters on most days.   Despite all her drinking she still needed fluid, I was told this is common at this stage of the transplant.

The doctor also asked about Sarah's eating, which she had to confess to them wasn't very good.  She is continuously losing weight, and she is now at the point where she absolutely needs to gain weight.  The doctor threatened Sarah, telling her that she may have to be admitted if she didn't start gaining weight.  So with this in mind Sarah is determined to gain weight.  When we got back to the apartment I set an alarm for every three hours, at the alarm she was to eat something.  She did really good with that today, even if it was only one cup of food, she ate something.  We will continue this three hour routine for the week and see how that goes.  With how well Sarah stuck to the drinking I am confident that she will do well with the eating this week.

Sarah's GVHD rash has shown up again, this time it is on her legs.  The doctor said to continue with the topical steroid cream, but it didn't sounds like it was anything to really worry about.  Once the graft versus host symptoms disappear they will wean her off of the cyclosporin.  The cyclosporin is the medicine they use to control how fast the new cells engraft, so when there is a bit of GVH they increase the cyclosporin levels in order to slow things down.  This is at least my understanding of this, I could be wrong...

Tomorrow should be a pretty quiet day, some grocery shopping, laundry, and maybe a stroll around some mall.  Sarah's next appointment is on Thursday, this is when the pic line will go in, as well as some more fluids.  See you then!

K

How Sweet the Sound

Hello Everyone,

Thanks for being so patient with us.  I know we have not written in awhile, but not a whole lot has happened.  When I say that I realize that to us it seems like nothing has been going on, but for all of you, you must feel like you have no idea what is going on, and perhaps a bit out of the loop.  Just remember, no news is good news.

My spirits haven't been very high lately, I don't know if it's the weather, but I am definitely tearing up more often these days.  I miss home, I miss my boys so much, and I miss my family and friends.  I haven't seen Linden in a very long time, so Kurt and I are going to sneak away this week and go and see him.  Cael came for a surprise visit, which was very unexpected.  I asked Kurt if Graeme and Selina were going to bring Cael, since they were coming out, and he said no.  So it was a very nice and welcomed surprise.  I got to rock my baby to sleep for his nap this morning, while humming Amazing Grace to him.  It took a little while, but once he settled, he just snuggled and slowly drifted off to sleep.  I didn't want to let him go.  It brought me back to when he was a tiny baby and I did the same thing in the rocking chair in his bedroom to get him to sleep. Such an amazing feeling.  I have now pushed my fears away about my boys not knowing who I am.  They know, and will always know.

I am now counting down, instead of up.  When we hit 50 days, I started the count down to home.  We have 47 days LEFT!!  Still a high number, but each day it gets smaller and I something huge to look forward to.

Well, we will try to write more often, I promise, so until next time.....

I love you all and we'll see you soon!!

Sarah 

Our Snowy View

This picture is beautiful.  

Smiley Child

Cael and I

Is November almost over?

Hello Everyone,

First of all sorry it has been so long without a blog post.  I have heard from a few people that they are wondering what is going on.  I think we will try to write a blog post twice a week, we were thinking Monday and Thursday.  Its just been very easy for us to not write something because quite often we don't think we have anything to write, but there is always something to share.

This week has been pretty boring, we have spent a lot of time watching Dexter, hockey, and the food channel.  We have both welcomed back teenage sleep habits, staying up late and sleeping in.  Its kind of nice but we are gonna be snapped back to reality pretty quick I think.  Yesterday Graeme and Selina (my brother and sister) texted me and asked us if we had plans for the night.  I said no, and they asked if they could come for a night, yep, and with that they were on the road.  They arrived at about 6, but they were knocking on the door on the floor below us, Selina called and asked what we were doing, it didn't take her long to figure out they were on the wrong floor.  I opened our door to wait for them to come out of the elevator, and when they did I saw that they had brought Cael along.  I started to tear up a bit but didn't want to ruin the surprise for Sarah so I kept my mouth shut, Sarah was just as happy to see him as I was.  It was funny because we were watching Dexter and he has a baby, and Sarah and I just finished talking about how seeing that baby made both of us miss our baby.  I had no clue that Cael would be coming with them so to see him again was wonderful.  I also think our boys have amazing healing powers for Sarah, so seeing them often is great.  I think this week we might sneak down to Red Deer for a day to see Linden, as long as no one tells the Dr.  Cael, Selina, and Graeme stayed until 2:00 today (Sunday) and then they were on their way back home.  It was so great for Sarah to see family again, It was a short visit but any time spent with loved ones and Cael is warmly welcomed.  He was on his best behaviour, we even went to Earls last night and he was fantastic.

Sarah has been doing really good with her drinking this week.  I think she drank over two litres everyday since Tuesday so that is good news.  Her eating isn't going quite as well, but her focus this week was on her drinking.  Next week we might have to focus more on eating.  She is still eating soft foods like yogurt, shakes, puddings and so on.  Each morning she tries to eat a little bit of cereal which for the most part is fine.  Her CVC line is still out and it looks like the stitches are healing nicely, the nurse practitioner put an extra stitch in for Sarah that way the scar would be smaller, that was nice of her!  On Thursday Sarah went in to receive two units of hemoglobin, as they were low.  Because Sarah no longer has the CVC they had to start an IV line, this took four tries before it worked, so Sarah continues to hate needles.  I was explained that the hemoglobin is usually the last thing that will come up on its own, so there might be a few more of those.  On Friday night Sarah woke up with a pain in her chest, she said it hurt to breath deeply so on Saturday we met with Dr Daley and he checked her over.  He said it was probably her liver which might have been a little irritated.  They drew blood from the vein, the old fashioned way, thankfully they were able to get blood on the first poke.  She was prescribed some codeine and we were told to come back today and have a look at the blood work.  Last night Sarah slept fine and was in no pain or discomfort.  We went to see the Dr and he said the lab results looked fine, but they will have another look at it at Sarah's appointment tomorrow.  They gave us the print out of the lab results and the platelets went down to 77, he explained that at about this time some of the blood numbers dip a bit, but they should go back up.  So up to this point there is no PIC line or CVC line, but we will see what happens with that.  When they tried to start an IV it took a lot of pokes, and if its like that every time Sarah might have to reconsider a PIC, just to cut down the amount of pokes.  Over the last week or two they have raised the amount of cyclosporin Sarah takes to try and cut down the GVHD, this and the steroid cream has been doing a good job.  Sarah just has a little bit of rash on her neck and that is about it.  Eventually they will try to ween Sarah off of the cyclosporin so there is a chance the rash would come back at that point.  Tomorrow we go back for another appointment so we will see what that brings.

K

CVC Trouble

Hey Everyone,

I am sure you all remember my CVC line from the picture.  It is the tube that is coming out of my chest that they used to give me all my meds, it is also used to draw blood every time.  This issue with my CVC thing started about 3 weeks ago.  I had a skin reaction to the dressing  that was on my CVC line.  So they changed the dressing to a duoderm, which is supposed help the skin.  I had this dressing on for about 3 days and then I noticed it was pussing, and the skin was irritated at the top.  So we went to the clinic and got it looked at.  The nurse explained to us that that is how a duoderm bandage works.  She ended up putting another piece on the top of it and said it would be fine.

The next week when I needed the dressing changed again the nurse noticed the skin was still "angry", as they say.  She decided to clean it with just saline solution and put another duoderm bandage.  Well, that was last Thursday, and by Friday my CVC site was looking red and very sore.  I spent the weekend with Brenda and the girls.  On Saturday it was still very sore and started getting a little more inflamed and irritated right at the site of the CVC and  very red and bumpy all around.  On Sunday morning I knew something was wrong because there was way more puss and it was green.

So, I waited for Kurt to come home and then I called the on-call bone marrow doctor and he said to come to Unit 57 as soon as possible.  The nurses looked at it and drew blood for cultures to see if there is an infection or not.  After they cleaned the whole site and let it out to the air, they said it was probably a reaction from the duoderm dressings and once it got more air and it would get better.  So they put a light dressing on it and we were out of there.

Then Monday comes around, and the clinic calls and asks us to come in so that they can look at it.  We were there at 12:30.  I got 1 liter of fluid and then they looked at my CVC site AGAIN!!  They didn't like how it looked so they took a swab of it and then tried a new dressing,one that really hurt to wear.  I was uncomfortable the rest of the day and during the night.  They also put me on an antibiotic.

We went to the clinic today for our regular appointment and the first thing they wanted to see was the CVC site.  A nurse opened the dressing and said " Yup, that's got to come out".  So we waited for the doctor for quite awhile.  During that time I got another liter of fluid.  Once Dr. Shafey came, she agreed that the CVC needed to come out.  I was a bit nervous, I was scared that it would hurt, that I would have a ton of pokes again and I might need to get a PIC line in my arm.  A PIC line is what I had earlier in my treatment, it is similar to a CVC but it is in my arm instead.  They ended up giving me an Ativan so I would calm down a bit.

So, yeah, it's out now.  I no longer have some foreign plastic hanging out of my chest.  Very nice feeling, except the stitches that still hurt a bit.  But what I ask of all of you is prayer that I can drink and eat enough in a day to keep a PIC line out...lots and lots of prayer.

Thanks everyone, I love you all...

Sarah

Weekend Update

Hiyo,

Sorry we didn't write on Friday, things got busy and then we were both away from the apartment for the whole weekend.  We went to the clinic in the morning and then Kurt left for Edmonton around 1:30.  I wanted to go with him so bad, but I wasn't allowed.  Brenda and her girls were coming for the weekend to hang out with me.  I was excited for that.  Brenda got here at about 3:30 and we hung out at the apartment for awhile.  I decided that I would go to Brenda's aunts house and stay there with them.  It would be a nice break form the apartment and a change of scenery.

Once we got packed up and on the road, we were at her aunt's house.  After supper and movies for everyone, we were all tucked into bed.  In the morning we went to get breakfast and came home again.  We had a very lazy day, watching movies and hanging out.  In the evening we drove out to my auntie Jane's.  We took many wrong turns, and showed up 45 mins late.  Hannah fell asleep on the way there and stayed asleep till we got home later that evening.  We got home late so we all went to bed as soon as we got home.

Brenda dropped me off today at 11:00 and I waited for Kurt to come home.  I love when I get visitors, but it's always sad to see them go.  I had a great time with Brenda and her girls, I miss all of them like crazy.  And although it was nice to have a little break from Kurt and the apartment, I was glad to be home and was super Happy to see Kurt again.

I love you all and will write again soon...I think.

Sarah

Nyah, Sarah and Hannah

Hello everyone,

Well first off sorry that it has been awhile since our last post, but we were both somewhat busy on Friday so we didn't get around to it.  We went to the hospital at 9:00 on Friday and Sarah received 2 litres of fluid again.  She did improve how much she drank throughout the week but I guess it still wasn't enough.  The nurse suggested some protein powder so we will see if that will help.  We were also given the results of her blood work.  It was quite positive, most of her numbers were in the normal range!  The one number that was low was her hemoglobin, she goes in again on Tuesday so they will have another look at it.  The other concern is her GVHD (graft vs host) rash, it had spread over the week.  At the appointment they looked at it and decided that she would just continue using the steroid cream.  If it gets much worse she would go on an oral steroid (prednisone), this steroid causes some side effects and in Sarah's case it was diabetes so we don't want her on that if we can avoid it.  We don't think it has spread anymore so for now no "roids".  Sarah is still eating limited amounts of food.  Some of the things she eats are yogurt, milkshakes, cereal, and the odd fruit cup.  She has been trying some other things as well but so far nothing else has worked.

On Friday after the appointment I drove to Red Deer to spend the afternoon with Linden.  After being stuck in traffic for an hour, and forced to detour, I was back on the QE2 and on my way.  I arrived just in time for the afternoon walk.  It was a little chilly out but it was nice walking with all the kids.  Linden is learning all kinds of tricks on his tricycle, some of them even scared me.  Halfway through the walk he insisted that I carry him, he seems to be a lot more clingy these days, but that is understandable.  After supper I put him to bed and got back on the highway.  Saturday morning I had breakfast with Cael and his  grandparents, then I went to visit his girlfriend Annemieke.  I spent the afternoon with Cael, he's getting so big and strong.  He is almost sitting up on his own and even "army crawled" a little bit.  Saturday evening was my brother Graeme's engagement party which was very nice.  I think just about everyone at the party held Cael at some point, he is so calm and such a good boy, we are all thankful that he is so easy.  This morning I woke up said my good byes and drove back to Calgary, Sarah was waiting for me with a smile and hug, it was nice to get away, but it is also good to be back where I belong.

K

Blurry Linden

Cael watching HNIC, Maple Leafs lost.

Stashtastic

Hey there,

Just a quick picture post.  Karen and Richard came for the day so I thought I would put some pictures up.

K

Richard and I are growing the movember moustache.

Posing with a stash is fun

Having no shirt on with a moustache just feels right.

Sarah couldn't resist the moustache.

Karen, Sarah, and Richard

Sarah laughing

Sparks

 Hey y'all,

Well we are sorry we didn't write yesterday.  I think we forgot or maybe were to tired.  We are not on strike, don't worry (Greame).  It is hard to write everyday because sometimes there is really nothing to write about.  Our days can be pretty boring.  We did go to the clinic on Monday, but I'll let Kurt write about that because he is better at explaining that.

I am super homesick these days, I miss my family and friends so much.  My heart longs for my babies and breaks because we are still here for a month and a half.  I just want this time to fly by and I want to be home with my kids and husband and be a normal family again, but I also know I am not strong enough yet and that I still need to be here to recover.  I am a mom and as a mom I want to be with my kids NOW, O feel like I am missing out on them.  I just pray that God gives me the patience I need to finish this and get better so I can be with my boys for a very long time.

We have had lots of visitors.  Braedan and Marianne came on Saturday and stayed the night.  It was nice to see them and to catch up on things.  I miss them and miss Sunday dinners at Mama and Pup's house.  Alana was here on Saturday for a while as well as a bit on Sunday.  Then today Jen, my best friend, came and stayed for the whole day.  It was great to see her and hang out like old times.  I love when close friends come to visit, but am sad to see them leave.  It's always hard to say goodbye.

So, we are at day 41, so close to half way.  I can't believe we have been gone this long.  And looking back it has gone by fast.  I can only hope that the next half goes back even quicker so I can get back to all of you and back to somewhat of a normal life!!

Love you all, and we will talk soon.

Sarah





Hello,

Well, I guess my duty is to report on the clinic visit.  We went to the clinic yesterday; when we arrived I turned around and went right back to the apartment to get Sarah's red card.  The red card has all of her personal and health care information on it.  I think they should make it bigger, that way Sarah would maybe remember it.  We settled in and they hooked up the IV, turns out Sarah needed more IV fluid, so she received two litres again on Monday.  The doctor also had a look at a rash that Sarah had started to notice on Saturday.  Neither Sarah and I thought it was anything because it started on her neck.  We both thought that a graft versus host rash would start on her hands.  The rash right now is on her neck, arms, legs, and back.  She was prescribed a steroid cream and it seems to be working well.  The rash doesn't look like much and it is just a little itchy.  I don't know for sure but it does seem like its getting a little better.  Sarah is eating a little better and drinking a little better, each day she has to get a little better.  This is something that will take time.  I have to remind her to eat and drink throughout the day.  This week her goal was to drink more fluids.  She should be drinking between one and two litres per day.  We have another appointment at the clinic on Friday morning , so Sarah might write a blog post then.

K

Braedan and Annika enjoying the view.

Marianne and Sarah.

Alana and Sarah.

Jen and Sarah, outside!

2 Pics

Melanie, Oma, Sarah, Margaret, Lauren, Jane (left to right).  They stopped by this morning for a visit.

Went to Bowness Park again this afternoon for a walk.  This is my lovely wife walking along some river.  Twas another nice day!

Magnesium

Having something to do in the morning is kind of nice.  We woke up shortly after eight showered, made some coffee and headed over to the BMT clinic.  Sarah got in her bed and they asked her for her red card, which she forgot again.  So I had to make the run back to the apartment and grab it for her.  When I got back to the clinic she was getting weighed, she was the same as Monday, thats good!  They drew some blood and decided that she needed some more fluid as she was dehydrated.  They do what they call a postural to determine this.  They take her vitals when she is laying down, then they make her stand up for two minutes and they take her vitals again.  If her blood pressure or heart rate changes they know they have to give her more fluid.  In Sarah's case her heart rate goes up, this means her heart is working too hard.   On Monday she received 2 litres of fluid, today she received just 1 litre.  As the litre of fluid was going in the nurse went through a teaching of what we should watch out for now, which included fevers, a rash, and diarrhoea.  If any of these occur we are to contact the clinic immediately and more than likely head to the clinic.  These symptoms could indicate graft versus host disease so if they are present we must go in.  I understand that if this should happen they will increase the cyclosporin levels  in order to slow things down.  I hope we don't have to find out.

It was about 11:00 when that bag of fluid finished running, the nurse told us we were free to head back to the apartment, so we were on our way.  When we got back to the apartment Sarah just sat down when my phone rang.  Turns out Sarah's magnesium was low, so we had to pack up and go back to the clinic.  The magnesium ran for about forty five minutes, and then we were on our way back to the apartment.  Shortly after that Sarah's Oma, Aunt Margaret, and cousin Lauren arrived.  We had some tea and cookies and caught up on things. They stuck around until 5 and then were on their way to Janes for dinner.  I didn't take any pictures but I will tomorrow when they are back.

We have to go back to the hospital on Monday so there might be a blog post up then, maybe sooner though, wait and see!

K

Thanks eh

Hello everyone,

Today is a a day of thankfulness.  The sun is shining and it was a beautiful afternoon.  Kurt and I went to a nearby park and went for a walk.  It was so pretty by the water and the trees, I looked at my husband and thanked God for him, he has been amazing through this whole thing.  God could not have provided me with a better partner, one that supports and comforts me.

This got me thinking about how thankful I am to everyone who has helped us through this journey we are on.  It is true, that God only gives you as much as you can handle, but I believe we would only be able to handle this with the help of all of you.  From looking after my children, to writing a comment on our blog, you all have helped us through this.

First off, Thank you to my sister Elaine.  This wouldn't be happening if it wasn't for you.  You have given me something so special.  You have given me life.  Thank you doesn't seem like enough.  I am forever thankful for you and your stem cells!

Thank you Karen for watching Linden, my little man.  You have taken on a big task and you are doing amazing.  I thank God for you and your family every day.  I know he is happy and doing well there and getting as much love as you give your own kids.

Thank you Mama for everything!  Mostly thank you for watching Cael for 3 months, but you have been such a blessing to our family.  I feel like we've grown so much closer and I am so happy for that.  We could ask you for anything and you would do your best to help.  I know my baby boy is in the best hands ever and you two will have a very close bond forever.

Thanks you to our Families.  You have given us so much love and support.  I know how much you love us  by the way you show you care.  The e-mails, the phone calls, the help taking care of the house and the kids.  I know help is only a phone call away.  I love all of you so much and miss you like crazy.

Thank you to our friends.  All of your comments, cards, gift cards and thoughtful gifts have made this so much easier.  We know how great our friendships are and how great God is for providing us with such awesome friends.  I can't wait to get home and see you all again.

Thanks you everyone for the endless amount of prayers for us.  I feel God working in me and I feel his closeness everyday.  There are days when I am not in the best moods and don't pray, but I know I have an army of people who are praying for me.  Please keep it up and keep praying for me.  The hardest part of this transplant is over, but I still have a long way to go.  Lots of recovery to go through.  And your thoughts and prayers keep me going.  So thank you again.




Enjoy the little things, for one day you may look back and realize they were the big things.  ~Robert Brault


Sarah




Hey Y'all,


It was a beautiful day here today, here are some picture from our walk at Bowness park.  It was really nice to get out and enjoy the sun.


To worry is to put today's sunshine behind tomorrows clouds ~ Kurt


K

I told Sarah to pose by this tree, and then I said "All look here"

I told Sarah to do something, this is what she came up with.

And then she Laughed!  This picture should make you smile.

In front of the river....

Boost

 Hey everyone,

Well I woke up late this morning becuase I didn't set my alarm because I took a sleeping pill and fell asleep with the light on.  Oh well, I had a good sleep and woke up just in time to get dressed and wake up Kurt so we could head to the clinic.  When we got there they took my blood and gave me some fluids.  We talked to the nurse and doctor.  Dr. Shafey informed me that I was where I am supposed to be and I am doing "average."   That's good enough for me as long as I am not doing worse than others at this point.  It can only get better right?  They gave me a second bag of fluid and then we were allowed to leave at about 1:00.  I have to go back on Thursday to get more fluids and have some blood drawn again.  So I will be going to the clinic twice a week for awhile.  I am still not eating well, everything tastes like cardboard and so tasteless, however the boosts are going down.  They said it could still be a couple of weeks till my tastebuds come back which is so crappy!  I am also feeling pretty homesick, I miss my house, my kids, my family, and my friends.  I have moments of the days where I feel sad, but I get out of it pretty quick and remind myself that this is temporary and something that I need to do.

Well not much else to write about.  We will write again on Thursday after the appoinment.  I love you all and miss you like crazy.  Thanks for writing the comments they keep me going and it makes me feel good to know there are so many people tooting and praying for me.  Thanks again and keep it up.

Lots of Love,
Sarah