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Today is our second day off school because of the snow. We got about 8 inches of snow (most of it fell yesterday evening and last night). It was a mess! I’ve been home with the kids both days. Brad ventured to work both mornings. He said the roads were pretty bad this morning…accidents all over the place.

Some sad and scary news…I got a call yesterday…Floyd, my stepdad (he’s really just like a father to me), had a heart attack yesterday down in Mississippi. (He’s actually in the exact same down where Brad and I stopped on the way to and from New Orleans this Christmas.) He was down there with a friend of his and was having difficulty breathing. He went to an urgent care place where they did an EKG and blood work. They immediately sent him to the hospital via ambulance. We found out that he has to have bypass surgery (open-heart surgery), probably tomorrow. They won’t let him come home, so he has to have the surgery down in Mississippi. His kids are heading down as soon as they can get there. We’ve had so much snow here, so the road aren’t great. South of here there was a terrible ice storm. Highways are bad…my sister and I are going to try to get down there in a day or two. - Please keep him in your prayers. We’ll keep you posted about his condition.

It is hard to believe it, but a year ago today, Allyson was diagnosed with leukemia.  I can remember that at this very moment, we were in surgery recovery waiting for Dr. Rob to come talk to us about what he found.  By this time, we knew in our hearts that the news was not going to be good.  We had no reason to still be in the hospital if the news was good.

I can hardly think about that day and type this without getting emotional.  Such a difficult year it has been for all of us…what a resilient little girl Allyson is.  What a true blessing she is to the world!   Thank you to all who have touched our lives this year in so many ways.  We appreciate and love you all more than you know (even those of you whom we’ve never met!).

Please continue to pray for our family and for Allyson’s treatment.  We still have a long road ahead of us.

What a nice surprise!  We received a package for Benjamin all the way from Korea from his foster mother, Mrs. Hong.  She sent several “souvenirs” from Korea as well as two books on how to write English words into hangul, the Korean alphabet.  The gifts were so awesome!  She also sent a beautiful Christmas card and a nice note stating she prays daily for Benjamin’s growth and for Allyson and her treatment.  (They are able to follow our blog/website in Korea.)

A note for Mrs. Hong:

Thank you so much for the card and gifts.  We will keep them for Benjamin and let him use them now and in the years to come.  We especially love the Korean books!  He is doing very well.  You would be proud.  He and Allyson love each other very much.  We appreciate your prayers for Allyson.  Please continue to pray for our family.   We are happy you continue to watch Benjamin’s development on our website.  Please send our regards to your family. Bless you.  (I hope your daughter is able to translate!)

Benjamin turned 2 today.

Today you get a play-by-play.

Well, we are at the doctor getting Ally’s new IVIg treatment. They started the drip very slowly and turned it up every 15 minutes. Ally went in the next room to work with the art therapist (one of Ally’s favorite things to do while we’re here is work with Ms. Tasha!). Tasha had to step out for a moment, so I went to sit with Ally. I noticed her face started to turn red (one of the signs she’s reacting to the meds). When Tasha came back, I asked if she thought Ally was red (I thought maybe I was imagining it). Indeed she was turning red. We called the nurse by intercom to come look at Ally. In the minute it took for the nurse to get to us, Ally turned completely red, began coughing and coughing (sign of closing airway), began gagging, and eventually threw up several times. They had to immediately turn off the IVIg drip and to get fluids going. She had two nurses and a doc working with her. (Brad was sitting with her on the floor while she was getting sick. We were all crammed into this tiny space in the art therapy room…I couldn’t even get through the door.) She got an immediate dose of Zofran (anti-nausea meds) and a dose of hydrocortisone (to open her airway). It took a few minutes for the meds to work, but they finally did and she began to relax (more than I can say for Brad and I!).

We had to sit with her for about thirty minutes until the nurse came in to hook up the IVIg again. Right now, the drip is going at a very slow rate. We’ll see how it goes. I’ll update in a bit.

A few hours later…Ally’s treatment is finished.  Thank God!  The nurse was able to turn up the drip to 20ml an hour but no higher.  Dr. Rob didn’t want the meds to go in any faster than that.  She seemed to tolerate the medication just fine after the episode.  (Brad and I both agree that “the episode” - the “severe reaction” - was the most afraid we’d been throughout this whole treatment.  She looked so awful and just couldn’t breathe.  We knew she was in good hands though.)

We are home now.  Ally is just fine - thank God.  She’s watching a show and having some crackers.  The doc said she might be tired and feel a little “yucky” through tomorrow.  Let’s pray she has a good night tonight so she is rested for tomorrow.