Tuesday, December 30, 2008

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~UPDATE~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Anna is feeling much better today than she has in the past few days. Anna's labs are great! I'm glad we waited until she was feeling better to get them done. I think I overreacted, but it's hard not to with her. Everyone is on the mend, thank goodness. Just in time for me and the girls to go back to school!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~UPDATE~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Christmas came on went so fast this year. Possibly because I have been dealing with a lot of sickness floating around our house since Thanksgiving. Off and on, at least two people at a time in our household have been down with something. Anna is always the first to get it, which I thought was weird especially since she isn't immune suppressed anymore. Then it's me (is it because we share the same liver?), Alex is next. Jason had something for a few days only and Mary had nothing more than the sniffles. We had a day here in Chicago where it was 62 degrees! Couldn't believe it, but I thought great, open all the windows, do some major cleaning, wash all bedding and get these germs out of here! Guess not though, Anna spiked a high temperatures last night, and she is feeling very crummy. I automatically thought it was the flu because it has hit us for the last few years at the same time of the year, even with us all getting the flu shot. The flu is the worst, it sucks when we all get it and I'm the one, no matter how crappy I feel, to take care of everyone. So I start mentally preparing myself for every to be sick. After thinking about it for a while I wonder if maybe it might not be the flu. This is a fragile time for Anna with stopping the immune suppression, I started worrying that maybe it's rejection. I found myself praying for the flu at that point. I called Children's and they just want me to watch her and gets labs done in a few days. This is hard for me to accept, no one else is feeling bad (except Alex has an ear infection and a lingering cough). If we get labs done Anna's numbers will most likely be elevated as with any other normal "healthy" person who has a fever. It would make them want to jump to conclusions and may buy her a bed at hotel Children's Memorial Hospital and an early biopsy (she already has one scheduled for late January). So, we are watching. I find myself looking at the whites of her eyes for a tinge of yellow, I can't even tell you how long it has been since I have done this, it was a habit for the longest time, but she has never had rejection so I don't think of it often at all anymore until now, knowing she isn't on the medication that transplant patients take to avoid rejection, usually for their whole life. I knew this was the kind of thing that I was risking with this study. Please pray that this is just a virus for Anna.

In other news, other than sickness, which by the way I'm sorry for boring you with, everything else is normal. I can't wait for school to start again. The kids are getting cabin fever even with all the new stuff they got for Christmas. I need to find ways of entertaining them without going broke! I need to keep busy or I'll drive myself crazy with them, and also the nervousness I have about starting my externship January 12th! I am excited, but so nervous. It's been so long since I've worked, and while this is for class, it's going to be more like job training. That means drawing blood of complete strangers and trying to gain their trust as a student phlebotomist. You have to wear a student badge, and I'm wondering how many times I'll be turned down. I can't take it personally though, I know I have turned down students in the past while Anna was inpatient. I just couldn't trust a student "practicing" on my baby. I know it will make me feel bad, and then I'll know how it felt to all the students I turned away in the past, but it will still really suck. I just can't wait to get past my clinicals and get a badge when I am hired on, that doesn't say student. Wish me luck!


By the way, HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Stay safe!!!!!!!

Thursday, December 25, 2008

Merry Christmas (an update in pictures!)

Making cookies with Noah! (Noah's bug brother Brandon too, but he doesn't like his picture taken!) Getting ready for Santa's arrival!

Christmas is here! Santa came!



Cats love Chirstmas too! What a day, I'm tired. Crap, it's only 9 am!

Merry Christmas, hope every had a wonderful day!

Saturday, December 06, 2008

Go Elf Yourself!

So, just in case I don't post till after Christmas, GO ELF YOURSELF!!!!!!!!!

Seriously, it's a lot of fun!




Send your own ElfYourself eCards

Wednesday, December 03, 2008

Anna is done with her medicine! The medication that helped her body accept her liver. The medicine we were told in the begining of all of this, that she would need to be on for the rest of her life. She doesn't have to take it anymore! The withdrawal study has gone smoothly, Anna is in perfect health, and her body has agreed to let her liver make itself at home!

Anna took her last dose of Prograf today!

Of course I took pictures to document this special occasion! As you can see, Anna wasn't nearly as thrilled as I was, plus she is not a morning person!