I wrote the body of this post Tuesday, when we got the phone call, but wanted to add some pictures. But didn’t get around to adding them and publishing it. So now it’s Thursday and we’ve had the clinic visit with the Bone Marrow Transplant team and they gave us enough information and a schedule for the week to make your head spin!! Read the original post, then I’ll add a bit at the end of what we learned today and a photo of the schedule for the next 8 days!!
Although we have had 2 clinic appointments with Andrew since I posted last, we haven’t had much to update. His blood counts are stable, even increasing slightly and he’s stayed healthy; in spite of Mark getting a cough, runny nose, and fever that lingered for 2 solid weeks. I tested Mark for Covid twice. Both negative. Thank heavens.
Four weeks ago, Tim’s blood was sent off to Vancouver for testing and we finally got the results this morning. Last Wednesday we asked the doctor, “Can we more forward with planning or scheduling before we get that lab report?” Simply put, no. So when the doctor called himself to give us the good news that Tim’s results were all favorable, we were so relieved. I’m not sure I would be able to handle another month of waiting for the same test to be performed on the other donor matched siblings. All the waiting has been grating on my last nerve!
Once we have an appointment with the Bone Marrow Transplant team, we will have a better feel for the timing of when this will all take place. That appointment will be Thursday afternoon.
And a quick baby update: I had a growth ultrasound today and Baby Girl looked great. She scored 8/8 on her biophysical profile. She measured about the 83rd percentile for her gestational age, so we might actually get a chubby baby. Time will tell. I am scheduled to be induced on Monday, August 30. I’ll be exactly 38 weeks, which is routine for diabetic moms. I’m feeling bulky and awkward and am having waaay more contractions than any woman who's not in labor should feel.
And big kid update: School begins on Monday! All the kids are disappointed that summer is ending, and I love having all my kids home. We have so much fun together. But they are excited to see their friends again and meet new teachers. While Andrew is in the hospital, and for the time leading up to that, we will need to be very careful to keep everyone in the household healthy. My kids will all be wearing masks at school, and we will likely limit our gatherings to very small groups. It should be easier to do, because of Covid, but it will still be an adjustment after the feeling of freedom we’ve enjoyed being vaccinated and mostly mask-free this summer.
Thursday update: I spoke with the bone marrow l transplant coordinator on the phone yesterday and told her we wanted to get all of the pre-transplant to-do checklist done ASAP in hopes of getting Andrew admitted before this baby arrives. When she handed us this schedule, I was shocked!! She really delivered! We will have appointments and busy days every day between now and next Friday, but if you look closely, he will be admitted one week from tomorrow. That is amazingly fast, as anyone in the medical world can attest. And if you look closely at the schedule picture, you’ll read at the bottom that next Friday Andrew will be admitted to the hospital for a minimum of 4 weeks.
