September 6, 2010
Happy Labor Day!!!
We have had an amazing time at home the last month! So sorry for not posting sooner, but honestly, we have been super busy between starting school, going to clinic and PT at TCH, and volunteering at the school and the Junior League.
Okay, I can officially say it - we managed to stay at home for a week with Grant having an ANC of 0 and he did not spike a fever. So, we did not ever have to go back to the hospital after the last round!!!! Grant’s temp did hover around 99 and 100.5, but he never hit the 101 mark!!! YEAH!!!
During that week, Claire started kindergarten at St. Martha's. Ms. Sessions is her teacher and she LOVES her. I will post some of the pictures from the 1st week of school. The kids look so cute in their plaid!! Grant missed the 1st two weeks of school because of being in the hospital and then recovering, but was finally able to attend the 3rd week. He got up early, put on his uniform and marched himself (with a walker in hand) into his class. He was so excited to be there. The teachers said he did really well and even sent his walker home since he did not seem to need it. I was so proud of him. He had no accidents and he was able to play on the playground. I can't tell you the fear David and I felt letting him go, but he did sooooo well. We could not have been prouder. He has told us about his friends Seth, Blake and Hope. He was only able to attend for three days since there MAY have been a student across the hall that had chicken pox. We had to keep him home Wednesday and Friday, so I look forward to him being able to attend on a more consistent basis and make some more friends.
He has started PT at Texas Children's on Tuesdays and Thursdays and loves that too. His therapist, Meredith, is quite good and we are excited to have her on Grant's team. So now, when he is inpatient, he will see Danielle and when we are outpatient, he will see Meredith, but all of his PT will be through the hospital. I know it is a long drive, but honestly, I am used to it and I really want him to be with the best - and they are! Meredith conducted a test and Grant scored a bit better on a few things than I would have thought. Meredith has high expectations for Grant and we are thrilled to get moving on our "homework." We hope by the spring that Grant will be running around with much less aid from us when walking and jumping.
Well, Grant will start his 2nd to last round of hospital chemo (high dose Methotrexate) tomorrow!!! He should be in the hospital all this week and then recovering next week. We don't expect his counts to drop much with this round - especially since Dr. Dreyer is reducing his dose for the oral drugs. Last time he took them, his counts stayed too low, so per protocol, they have to adjust it. They want his ANC (ability to fight infection) to be between 500 and 1500 and his was at 160. So, hopefully, this month will go better. Again, our last round of high dose hospital chemo(Etoposide) will be Oct. 7 and then we will start the oral drugs for 14 months in November. We can't wait!!!
On the SPORTS Front….
David and I took the kids to Waco to see the Sam Houston Bearkats take on the Baylor Bears this weekend. Well, poor Sam. It was a beating. But at least Grant’s favorite college team won and he was able to see it. Even though I was pretty upset about he loss, it was fun!
David and I wanted to thank a few Houston sports figures and programs for showing a true interest in the kids at Texas Children’s. Of course at the top of the list should be Craig Biggio. He and his wife do so much for the kids that we cant even begin to thank them. On behalf of all Sunshine Kids parents’, we think the world of the Biggio’s. Also, The Houston Dynamo players are ALWAYS willing and excited to spend their down time up on the 9th floor with the kids. We love them and the kids are always sooooooo thrilled to see them. And a few of the Houston Astros have been great too – especially Michael Bourne and Bud Norris. Love these guys!!! None of the parents expect any sports figures to show up and honestly, we don’t want them to unless they feel the calling to do so. But we have to share a story about Albert Pujols that is just amazing. Talk about a GREAT GUY! It is a shame that more of our children’s hometown heroes don’t feel the same about our kids as he does.
There is a patient on the floor that has cancer and because of his treatment, has lost his vision. He is a HUGE fan of baseball and was supposed to go to the game last week just to feel the excitement of being there. But he got sick and had to be admitted to the hospital, therefore, he missed the game. Albert Pujols heard about this and after having a bad game against our Astros, he showed up at the hospital, alone, at 11:00 p.m. and gave this boy the bat with which he hit his 400th home run. It is a moment that child will never forget! Mr. Pujols is an amazing player, but more that that, an amazing person. He managed to do this very discreetly and received no publicity.
Posted by Melanie McTaggart
August 15, 2010
Grant's Daddy here again. Grant was discharged on Friday evening. Before we left the hospital Dr Dreyer gave us the news that the PCR test, performed at MD Anderson, showed no signs of Philadelphia chromosome. So, the results of all leukemia related testing were great. Also, Grant had a brain MRI on Wednesday which showed that the white matter changes to his brain had improved since has last MRI about 8 months ago. This is a good sign that once the chemotherapy is finished, his neurologic... Continue reading...
Posted by Melanie McTaggart
August 10, 2010
Grant's Daddy here. We checked Grant in yesterday at 7am for his 3rd to last hospital chemo. As usual he couldnt eat or drink anything after midnight because of the anesthesia. He had to wait until noon before it was his turn in the O. R. and he was a very big boy and didnt complain at all about it. Melanie's dad came up to visit him while he waited which was a treat for Grant. They did a spinal tap and bone marrow aspiration yesterday. At around 4pm Dr Dreyer informed Melanie that the M... Continue reading...
Posted by Melanie McTaggart
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About Me
I am the proud mom and Claire and Grant. I am so blessed to have them in my life!
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September 6, 2010
Happy Labor Day!!!
We have had an amazing time at home the last month! So sorry for not posting sooner, but honestly, we have been super busy between starting school, going to clinic and PT at TCH, and volunteering at the school and the Junior League.
Okay, I can officially say it - we managed to stay at home for a week with Grant having an ANC of 0 and he did not spike a fever. So, we did not ever have to go back to the hospital after the last round!!!! Grant’s temp did hover around 99 and 100.5, but he never hit the 101 mark!!! YEAH!!!
During that week, Claire started kindergarten at St. Martha's. Ms. Sessions is her teacher and she LOVES her. I will post some of the pictures from the 1st week of school. The kids look so cute in their plaid!! Grant missed the 1st two weeks of school because of being in the hospital and then recovering, but was finally able to attend the 3rd week. He got up early, put on his uniform and marched himself (with a walker in hand) into his class. He was so excited to be there. The teachers said he did really well and even sent his walker home since he did not seem to need it. I was so proud of him. He had no accidents and he was able to play on the playground. I can't tell you the fear David and I felt letting him go, but he did sooooo well. We could not have been prouder. He has told us about his friends Seth, Blake and Hope. He was only able to attend for three days since there MAY have been a student across the hall that had chicken pox. We had to keep him home Wednesday and Friday, so I look forward to him being able to attend on a more consistent basis and make some more friends.
He has started PT at Texas Children's on Tuesdays and Thursdays and loves that too. His therapist, Meredith, is quite good and we are excited to have her on Grant's team. So now, when he is inpatient, he will see Danielle and when we are outpatient, he will see Meredith, but all of his PT will be through the hospital. I know it is a long drive, but honestly, I am used to it and I really want him to be with the best - and they are! Meredith conducted a test and Grant scored a bit better on a few things than I would have thought. Meredith has high expectations for Grant and we are thrilled to get moving on our "homework." We hope by the spring that Grant will be running around with much less aid from us when walking and jumping.
Well, Grant will start his 2nd to last round of hospital chemo (high dose Methotrexate) tomorrow!!! He should be in the hospital all this week and then recovering next week. We don't expect his counts to drop much with this round - especially since Dr. Dreyer is reducing his dose for the oral drugs. Last time he took them, his counts stayed too low, so per protocol, they have to adjust it. They want his ANC (ability to fight infection) to be between 500 and 1500 and his was at 160. So, hopefully, this month will go better. Again, our last round of high dose hospital chemo(Etoposide) will be Oct. 7 and then we will start the oral drugs for 14 months in November. We can't wait!!!
On the SPORTS Front….
David and I took the kids to Waco to see the Sam Houston Bearkats take on the Baylor Bears this weekend. Well, poor Sam. It was a beating. But at least Grant’s favorite college team won and he was able to see it. Even though I was pretty upset about he loss, it was fun!
David and I wanted to thank a few Houston sports figures and programs for showing a true interest in the kids at Texas Children’s. Of course at the top of the list should be Craig Biggio. He and his wife do so much for the kids that we cant even begin to thank them. On behalf of all Sunshine Kids parents’, we think the world of the Biggio’s. Also, The Houston Dynamo players are ALWAYS willing and excited to spend their down time up on the 9th floor with the kids. We love them and the kids are always sooooooo thrilled to see them. And a few of the Houston Astros have been great too – especially Michael Bourne and Bud Norris. Love these guys!!! None of the parents expect any sports figures to show up and honestly, we don’t want them to unless they feel the calling to do so. But we have to share a story about Albert Pujols that is just amazing. Talk about a GREAT GUY! It is a shame that more of our children’s hometown heroes don’t feel the same about our kids as he does.
There is a patient on the floor that has cancer and because of his treatment, has lost his vision. He is a HUGE fan of baseball and was supposed to go to the game last week just to feel the excitement of being there. But he got sick and had to be admitted to the hospital, therefore, he missed the game. Albert Pujols heard about this and after having a bad game against our Astros, he showed up at the hospital, alone, at 11:00 p.m. and gave this boy the bat with which he hit his 400th home run. It is a moment that child will never forget! Mr. Pujols is an amazing player, but more that that, an amazing person. He managed to do this very discreetly and received no publicity.
Posted by Melanie McTaggart
August 15, 2010
Grant's Daddy here again. Grant was discharged on Friday evening. Before we left the hospital Dr Dreyer gave us the news that the PCR test, performed at MD Anderson, showed no signs of Philadelphia chromosome. So, the results of all leukemia related testing were great. Also, Grant had a brain MRI on Wednesday which showed that the white matter changes to his brain had improved since has last MRI about 8 months ago. This is a good sign that once the chemotherapy is finished, his neurologic... Continue reading...
Posted by Melanie McTaggart
August 10, 2010
Grant's Daddy here. We checked Grant in yesterday at 7am for his 3rd to last hospital chemo. As usual he couldnt eat or drink anything after midnight because of the anesthesia. He had to wait until noon before it was his turn in the O. R. and he was a very big boy and didnt complain at all about it. Melanie's dad came up to visit him while he waited which was a treat for Grant. They did a spinal tap and bone marrow aspiration yesterday. At around 4pm Dr Dreyer informed Melanie that the M... Continue reading...
Posted by Melanie McTaggart
August 10, 2010
Grant's Daddy here. We checked Grant in this morning for the third to last round of hospital chemo. His ANC was over 800 so he was good to go. As usual, he couldn't eat or drink anything after midnight because of the anesthesia for his bone marrow aspiration and spinal tap. He had to wait until noon before it was his turn in the O.R.. He was a very big boy and didn't complain at all about the wait. Melanie's Dad came up to see him which was a treat for Grant. Dr Dreyer notified Melanie a... Continue reading...
Posted by Melanie McTaggart
August 5, 2010
Before I begin on the "Grant news", I would like start with some exciting “Claire news!!!”
Claire lost her 1st tooth today!!! To say she was excited is an understatement. This morning, at clinic, it became very clear that her tooth was coming out, and she wanted me to pull it out right then and there. Well, I chickened out. So, nurse Kelly came to my rescue. She appeared with gauze and pulled it out before Claire knew what was happening. She sat there smiling as blood filled the front part... Continue reading...
Posted by Melanie McTaggart
July 16, 2010
We are just about to leave the hospital. Grant handled this round of chemo very well and cleared his chemo perfectly. We expect his counts to drop some, but nothing too drastic. We hope to have a great three weeks at home before we check back on on Aug. 9. I'll update more when we get home. Thank you for the prayers! I am off to pack the car!!! Continue reading...
Posted by Melanie McTaggart
July 12, 2010
After a wonderful weekend celebrating Grant's 4th birthday, we are checked back in. Grant received his spinal tap this morning and is now waiting to start his Methotrexate. This drug will run for 24 straight hours and then we will hope it clears his system in a timely fashion. We should be out of here sometime on Thursday if all goes as planned.
If you have not checked out the new pictures of Grant at the bottom of the home page, you must do so. I can't believe that Grant has now had his pic... Continue reading...
Posted by Melanie McTaggart
July 10, 2010
Grant's Daddy here. Today is Grant's 4th birthday! He is very excited about it. Needless to say its better than his third birthday which was spent getting chemotherapy in the hospital. Last night was a great night. Grant, Claire, Melanie and I were able to go on to the field at Minute Maid Park for batting practice. John Mozeliak, the St Louis Cardinals general manager, set it up for us and showed us around. John "Mo" is Tom Walsh's first cousin. Thanks goes out to Tom for really helpin... Continue reading...
Posted by Melanie McTaggart
July 9, 2010
ve had such a great time at home the last couple of weeks. Claire and Grant went to see “Toy Story 3” last week, which they loved! Grant is a HUGE fan of the "Evil Dr. Pork chop." I had a few of the characters from when I was a kid and have given them to Grant to play with. He and Claire have spent the past week playing with them and having a ball.
I hope you all had a wonderful 4th of July weekend. We sure did! I think this was the best 4th we have ever had. On Friday, July 2nd, Claire an... Continue reading...
Posted by Melanie McTaggart
June 27, 2010
We are getting out!!! Grant needs platelets, so they will give them those and then we are running out of here. We will celebrate David's birthday tomorrow and go in to clinic on Wednesday to check his counts and get a possible transfusion. So, he has made it through another round of Etoposide. We only have two more rounds of Methotrexate and two more rounds of Etoposide and then we will be in Maintenance. Only four months till then! I can't wait!!! Have a great week and if I don't get a chance... Continue reading...
Posted by Melanie McTaggart
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