Discharged to Home!

Thomas was discharged home after only two nights in the hospital! 

It seems like Day #11 is Thomas's nadir in his new chemotherapy regimen. During Cycle #5, Thomas developed a fever of 100.0 on Day #11, but he did not reach the milestone 100.4, so he was not admitted. On Day #11 of Cycle #6, Tom's fever went to 101.1, so we had a different outcome. At least now we have more info and can know what to expect in future!

He was discharged on Day #13 of his chemo cycle when his immune system markers started improving.

We had so much to be grateful for during our stay.

• We have excellent hospital care! We don't live hours away from a cancer hospital, or even in some jungle or dessert or savannah where it's so remote that cancer wouldn't even be diagnosed before death, let alone treated.
• Who are we to complain? So very many of kids with neuroblastoma spend weeks and months and most of a couple of years in-patient at the hospital, while this is only our second brief stay. So many other children here are experiencing more terrible suffering at this very moment.
• The hospital kitchen made good food and the staff was very kind. It's so easy to mock hospital food, but I'm no great shakes in the kitchen: How would I figure out how to cook for thousands of people and get them their food delivered many floors away still hot and not all rubbery and terrible? Good job, cooks.
• All of Thomas's nurses were kind and excellent. The night nurses got bonus points for being stealthy like ninjas.
• We had so much entertainment, in large part to all our friends who have gifted toys to Thomas, and also a charity that allowed the hospital to give Thomas some toys during his stay.
• I got to listen to many talks from the 20 hours of content given by worldwide neuroblastoma experts who gave an online conference on November 6-7. I did not know how I was going to listen to those talks while at home with six kids! 
• (1) I have a husband and (2) he even managed to get the kids to a hockey game, ice skating class, youth orchestra, and the parish carnival in my absence!
• I know our loved ones were praying for us.
• Every challenging experience like this makes the heart grow fonder for the every day life. Tomorrow I get to prepare food for others, do laundry, pick up our belongings off the carpet, plan school, sleep in a bed instead of a chair . . . .

Playing "I Spy" ("with my HUGE eye," as Thomas said every time) . . . 

Coloring his map . . . 

Digging in Cheerios and crayons with new trucks!

Watching the sweet bird in a nest outside our window as she would fend off a swarm of four gentleman callers by pecking them in the face!

Location of bird nest in pipe

See the bird beak sticking out of the hole?

We played lots of Dino Dig and Go Fish!

We colored pictures together side by side, many upon many . . .

Making sticker pictures together . . . 

Thomas was bouncing with energy by Saturday. All my kids have been climbers extraordinaire since toddlerhood and it turns out that being attached from port to IV pole does not slow a kid down, much to the heart-racing panic of his mother!

We arrived home to a WELCOME sign from the family followed by delivery dinner eaten out by the fire pit together.

Joseph even put a welcome sign on the door promising "Hair Brushing Story Time" because numerous nights per week, I try to read him a chapter story (currently Swiss Family Robinson) while he brushes my hair.