Bone Marrow Transplant - Day 17

Day 17 of 100 - as written by AJ's mom
It is hard to believe that we are already on day 17.

AJ is feeling OK, although his counts have dropped some this is to be expected. Neut~.68 and WBC 1.3. They gave him platelets when he was in clinic on Monday and gave him Tuesday off. He will go back to clinic on Wednesday. He is on an every other day schedule right now, which is better than everyday which they told us to expect.
So we will update every other day, if I can keep up. We are back to work and Fall sports have begun for the other boys. Your prayers are appreciated for strength, since we can't get more hours in a day :). It is all a balancing act, but God is able.
Thank you for your thoughts and prayers!

Bone marrow Transplant - Day 14

Day 14 0f 100 - As written by AJ's mom
AJ is feeling good today. His Neutorphil and WBC counts are still rising, a slight drop in his platlets and Hemoglobin, but the doctors are not concerned. We have tomorrow off from clinic.

He still needs to avoid crowds so we can't get to church, but will try and watch it online and catch up on some of Pastor Chris' sermons. We miss you guys at STBC.
Thanks to all who have followed us and are praying for us. Your prayers are being felt and God is sustaining us daily. Thanks to those of you who have brought food, purchased calendars, dropped off donations of paper goods and hand sanitizer, liquid soaps and clorox wipes. We are going through a lot of these supplies, just trying to keep things clean and sanitized.
Prayer request:

~good health for the rest of the family (Daniel has a sinus infection)

Bone Marrow Transplant - Day 13

Day 13 of 100 - As written by AJ's mom

God is so good! He is our great physician~ Our first clinic visit went well, AJ's counts are on the rise and he is showing early signs of engrafting! We have been given today off from clinic, since he is feeling good and showing no ill side effects right now from the meds and transplant. You can't believe the smiles he had since he is home with us. His laughter is like music to our ears. The boys are happy to have him home too!
Our caregivers will begin to come in this weekend.
Prayer request:
~Safe travels for our first caregiver coming in from Memphis Tn
~Safe travels for my sister who is returning home this weekend after being here helping me for 2 weeks.
~Focus for Aubrey and I while we work and leave AJ home with caregivers (we have both been home these first 2 days)
~Wisdom to know how to respond quickly when needed, if something should arise
~And rest and peace that surpasses all understanding
Thank you all so much for your prayers, we are grateful!

Bone Marrow Transplant - Day 11

Day 11~ (as written by AJ,s mom)
AJ came home today! Two weeks early, we are so happy to have him home. He is hungry and wants lots of different foods, but his taste buds were affected by the chemo so food just doesn't taste the same. Food for him is like a medicine right now, he needs to eat to survive.

We have daily out-patient appointments for at least the next 30 days. WBC 1.1 and neutrophil (abs) .79 still on the rise. He came home with a lot of prescriptions. We are praying for good results from his lab work tomorrow.

Bone Marrow Transplant - Day 10

Day 10~ (As written by AJ's mom)
AJ counts are improving everyday, WBC .8 and neutrophil .60. They are sending him home tomorrow. I am very concerned about keeping him infection free, but the same God that is sending him home 2 weeks early will protect him.

We will return Vanderbilt every day for at least 30 days to have his counts checked.

Thank you for your prayers, cards and well wishes!

Bone Marrow Transplant - Day 9

Day 9 of 100~  (as written by AJ's mom)
AJ's counts are rising WBC .7 and his neutrophil count today was .47. The doctors said that his counts will go up and down before they begin to rise steadily. It appears that he could be grafting but it is really 7 days to early to tell. We believe in miracles and we will continue to pray that they will rise.
As of today they plan to send him home on Wednesday if there are no fevers. Almost 2 weeks early....Praise God, he is our great Physician!!

He is ready to come home. He told me today that if they did not discharge him by Thursday he was breaking out of there, LOL. I believe him. Once home he has to go to the out patient clinic everyday for 30 days. This is to monitor his counts and his blood levels, and to catch any infections early if they should arise.

Don't forget to order your 2011 calendar....all proceeds go to help the Smith Family with medical bills!
AJ Fundraiser Calendar

Bone Marrow Transplant - Day 8

Day 8 of 100~ (As written by AJ's mom)
AJ is feeling good he went outside for the first time in three weeks to get some air and feel the heat. He requested a home cook meal, I took it to him and he ate 2 plates. Good appetite! Saturday counts were WBC .1 and neutrophil (abs) .03 and today they are WBC .03 and neut are not recorded yet.

The doctors are talking about keeping him at least 4 more days and then considering sending him home. Provided he does not have a temperature, since a temperatures kill blood cells. He now has a light at the end of the tunnel to look forward to.

Jonathan is getting stronger each day he is returning to school tomorrow.

We are so blessed to have you all in our lives at this time. We covet your continued prayers!

Bone Marrow Transplant - Day 5

AJ Journal as written by AJ's mother.
Day 5 - AJ is feeling very good and really wants to come home. His numbers are going in the right direction: WBC .2 and Neutrophil .03 we are almost there. They will monitor his numbers the next few days to see if they have bottomed out.

Jonathan did not have any pain medicine this morning, I am praying he will not need it at all today.

We are praying for fever free days and no graft vs host disease now. Thank you all for your prayers and support!

Bone Marrow Transplant - Day 4

Day 4~ AJ is feeling good and ready to come home. He has not been released yet but he is ready! His numbers are WBC .3 and Neutrophil (ABS) .12 we are almost there. He has not had a temperature since Monday and the doctors are pleased with his response to the meds they are giving him. Once his counts reach zero we are looking for them to rise, which will mean the marrow is grafting.

Our prayer now is that he will be protected from all infections and viruses, until his body can protect itself.
AJ had his dad cut all his hair off, now the buzz cut that he had left is starting to fall out. Aubrey (dad) cut all his hair off to join AJ in this journey, check out their pictures. AJ is not happy about the hair. I reminded him that it was a small price to pay for a cure...he agreed! Plus it is only hair it will grow back.

Tomorrow is the first day of school for Daniel, Jonathan and I. Jonathan is not able to go back yet, still recovering and in some pain. We are praying that he will be ready to go back on Monday! I thank God for my sister who is here standing in the gap, please pray for her strength.

Thank you all for your support, prayers and well wishes

Bone Marrow Transplant - Day 3

Day 3~ As posted by AJ's mother

AJ was not feeling his best yesterday, he was running a low grade temp, which they are keeping an eye on. His counts this morning are: WBC .5 and Neutrophil ABS .27

So we are almost at the bottom ready to go up. I'm going to the hospital early to talk with the doctors, I will update later this evening.
 
Thank you so much for your prayers, dinners and donations!

My Neighbors Fight with Sickle Cell Disease

I have some wonderful neighbors that have a very serious medical issue they are dealing with. I will post updates from their website as they post them. The Smith Family has gone through this process all of AJ's life.....I have created a calendar as a fundraising item to help the Smith Family with all the upcoming medicals they will endure. Please click on the Fundraising link to the right if you would like to help.
AJ was born 19 years ago with Sickle Cell Disease, it has caused many limitations for him. No organized sports, pain crisis, lots of medications, and blood transfusions. With many more.
After being hospitalized in March, his doctor discovered that AJ had 2 brothers and suggested we have the boys tested to look for a match for a bone marrow transplant.
As it turns out, Daniel was a half match and Jonathan was a perfect match for the transplant. AJ and Jonathan made the decision to go forward with the procedure, after much discussion and prayer among themselves. Our journey began on Thursday July 22. This is going to be a 12-18 month journey. Everyone wants to know what we need...right now we need your prayers, we don't know what our physical needs will be. Please stay tuned to this site to see how you can be a part of this miraculous journey that God has given us. Jeremiah 30:17 "I will restore you to health and heal your wounds," declares the Lord...

The bone marrow harvest was done on Friday, Aug. 6th and was a success. Jonathan is recovering and today is what they consider day zero for AJ. It is the day that starts the marrow transplant for him and we have a 100 day critical period. So AJ was up riding the stationary bike getting in his daily exercise. I will post pictures when I can. We have been at the hospital since 6 am (current time 3:40 pm) and up since 3:30 am.

It has been a long day, I am exhausted and ready to crash. Waiting for Jonathan to get his discharge papers so we can go home and recover :). Thanks to everyone for your prayers and thoughts. AJ's counts are going to continue to drop and the chemo is clearing his marrow out of his bones to make way for his new marrow from his brother Jonathan. Continue praying, this is when the real challenges begin. He is being protected now only by antibiotics, until the new marrow grafts into his bones.

As of Sunday Jonathan is recovering well, moving around with very little help, what a strong, courageous child. His name means "gift from God". He has given a gift to his oldest brother.

Today is what we call Day 1 in the transplant community. It is the first day of 100 days after transplant. These days are so critical for us. I check AJ's labs every morning, we were told what to look at specifically, his WBC (white blood cells) and his absolute neutrophil counts. These both will drop to zero, then AJ's body will no longer be able to protect itself from any infection virus, etc. This morning they were 1.7 & 1.36. Once they reach zero, then we have a window of 14-28 days where we need to see them begin to come back up again. This will mean that the marrow is grafting and growing in AJ's body. He is having headaches from his blood pressure being too high, this is common, his body is rejecting Jonathan's marrow (also expected). On day one, three, six and eleven, they will be giving AJ a medicine to try and prevent graft vs host disease. This is where his marrow is fighting the new marrow. This is when the real fight begins, the doctor said these next three weeks will be turbulent. Your prayers, cards and well wishes will be appreciated. School begins on Thursday and that includes all the back to school activities that go along with that for Daniel and Jonathan. I will return to work also, until AJ is released from the hospital.

Today, which we consider - Day 2~ AJ said he slept OK last night, he has developed hives from some of the medicine they are giving him and it makes him itchy. He is tired which is from the chemo, the doctors said it will take about two weeks for the chemo to leave his body. AJ is doing better that expected! The doctors mentioned that he may come home sooner than we thought. His counts are dropping the neutorphil is at .67 and WBC is 1.0 So we are waiting for the grafting to take place after his counts get to zero. We are headed in the right direction, so far. We thank God for being a great physician! Jonathan is resting well, moved around a little too much yesterday. We will keep him quiet today.

Quilting

I have put the dolls aside to try my hand at thread painting on fabric. I have been inspired by Terry White's book called Thread Painting Made Easy. Her samples just look beautiful and I am amazed by them. I have had this book for a while, and have put off given it a try myself. The snowy cold weather here in Nashville, TN has kept me couped up inside and I figured that this would be a perfect opportunity for me to give this a try.

So here are my first attempts at it. Both pieces will eventually be purses. I have to say that they I think that they are coming out good. This process is not to be rushed. You definitely have to take your time with the sewing when doing this. The first one I have done is a large yellow flower on a hand dyed green background. I am now going to add beads on it to glam it up. I did the sewing in two sittings as it took some time and my hand got tired from controlling the fabric.

My second one is just at the beginning stages. There isn't as much sewing on this one. There will be more background quilting on this one. The flower pieces are cut out of a white fabric and ironed onto the blue background with wonder under. Even though there isn't as much sewing on this one you still have to control your outline stitches around the flowers. I am excited to see what the end result will be!