The passport pic

Last Saturday Mac’s ANC was 188 and we got to go home! On Monday we went back for labs and a meeting with the doctors. We talked with them about doing the flexible sigmoidoscopy (a smaller version on a colonoscopy). They suggested we do that either now or after treatment to see if that reveals why there is blood in the poop. We decided that the risks did not outweigh the benefits. We’ll just see how it goes and if the problem persists, it will be an option for later. Mac has been handling all the chemo so well that we don’t want to risk an infection right before cycle 4. So when we were there on Monday the doctor said that his ANC should be above 1000 by Monday the 10th so that is when we would come back. Well after we left, she called back with his lab results and said, “I don’t know what you are feeding him! His ANC is 2560!”. How cool! (and a proud nursing moment) I was just hoping she wasn’t going to make us come back sooner than Monday! She said that they were going to give us a week at home! YAY!

The time at home goes sooo fast. We always come home and think, we didn’t leave the house this messy did we? haha We only half unpack so its like half living at home, half living out of hospital bins. We went to do more labs on Friday (which were all good) and then we went to the post office to get Mac a passport for our trip we won to Punta Cana. When we got there, we were shocked to find out there was a one month waiting list for a passport appointment! Then the lady said, well we had a couple of cancellations for next Thursday! What?! After my initial shock wore off, I explained a little bit of our situation and she told us to wait to see if she could squeeze us in. She was crazy busy but fit us in and I was so grateful! She took this picture of Mac and at the end when we paid, she said that she wouldn’t charge us for the pic. I got tears in my eyes. What a kind gesture from a stranger that had already done us a favor. She quietly said that she had a sick child a long time ago. Her kindness was so humbling and encouraging.

Its been a fun time at home even though Mac went to sleep at 2:30am yesterday. (I guess I mean today, but you know what I mean) He climbed the stairs for the first time and he does “oh no”. I’ll try to take a pic but we say “oh no” and he puts his hands on the sides of his head and drops his jaw! I wish he could cruise around like this at the hospital! I also can’t wait for him to be able to play with other kids! Any time we are around little kids he goes crazy and reaches out for them!

So we go back Monday and he will have the works that day: bone marrow aspirate, lumbar puncture, spinal chemo, EKG, ECHO and he starts his 6 days of IV chemo. I’m not looking forward to the no nursing for Mac before propofol. Babies just can’t understand why they can’t eat. Hopefully we will be out of the hospital before Mac’s 1st birthday which is March 18th.

Ok I have a favor to ask! Eventually I am going to make Mac a photo book of this whole journey. I want to make a page or two of all of his Team Mac supporters that are wearing “Team Mac” wristbands. If this is you and your family would you take a picture of you wearing your wristbands and send it to me?! Faces would be great but if you just want it to be your wrists, then just tell me the names so I can put them under the picture in the book! Thank you so much! Mac will love seeing all the people that sport these around thinking of him! You can email them to me at brittnyrogers@gmail.com or text them to me at 7209361010

Thank you!