A Quarter To Spare

No, this blog is not dead. Nor are we, for that matter. We are, however, pathetic and inconsistent bloggers.... As the saying goes, though: No news is good news and that is our situation indeed.

This week was Scan Week. Yep, it's already been 3 months since Andrew's last set of tests. Tuesday was a CT scan, Wednesday and Thursday were MiBG scans, and Thursday was also a bone marrow biopsy. And we threw in a blood chemistry and urinalysis for kicks.

We do not have all results back yet, but so far, the CT and MiBG reports are negative for Neuroblastoma and his blood work looks decent (setting aside his perpetually low hemoglobin). We will not get bone marrow results or the urinalysis until next week, but--in light of everything else--we're fairly convinced that they will be fine, too. Andrew looks to be remaining NED. Next scans October.

In the meantime, we have also had a development: Texas Children's Cancer Center finally called to let us know that they have Andrew's vaccine ready. We will be traveling to Houston in late August for the infusion. In fact, the way things have worked out, we are going to piggyback that stop in Houston onto the end of our family vacation with Cynthia's family. So, a week vacation on the beach followed by a return trip via Houston for some ultra-sophisticated T-cells. That seems balanced. We also look forward to the opportunity to see my family in Houston and get a nice, though short, visit in.

As for summer, well, it's been quite...summer-y: Lots of playing, swimming, lounging, frozen treats, etc. Lucia went to camp and came home filthy and exhausted each day, while bearing "gifts" of mudballs. Andrew also went to camp/school to help him catch up a bit on his fine motor skills. He seems to have enjoyed it and we have quite a bit of art to prove it. Perhaps most importantly, Lucia and Andrew have had this summer simply to play together, something that eluded them last summer. Most days, Cynthia and I would come home from work to see the two of them exploring together in the backyard or working out the details of some elaborate game or putting Cowboy through dog school or whatever. It's quite an endearing sight and it more than makes up for the times when they are bickering and needling and irritating one another.... It also lets us know how close they truly are and serves to remind us how lonely they probably were last summer, without each other most of the time. As a reminder, this time last year was Day +31 (out of 40, with a side car of another 2 weeks shortly thereafter) of Andrew's transplant; Lucia missed her little brother.

This summer does not resemble that at all. In fact, here is a taste of our day today:









Yes, that's right: A backyard sprinkler followed by an afternoon at the beach. Must be summertime.... We hope you are enjoying your summer days as much as we are.

Paul