June 14, 2010
We’re laying low. It’s too hot to do anything but swim, but the pools are mostly too crowded for us… enter, the Whitler’s with their backyard pool! We swam at their house today and had a great time. Thanks so much, guys… you’re always there when we need you.
Tanner is feeling fine. She was really fine after one day of the antibiotics. The fact that she has been able to beat this so quickly makes me believe her neutraphils are on the way up… we hope! We need them to recover in time to get to Vacation Bible School next week. Tanner will be totally devastated if she can’t go. She handled missing her show on Friday really well, but it all burst from the seams on Saturday and Sunday. Like all her pent up frustration just came out at once. Ugghhhh.
We snuck out to the neighborhood pool on Sunday morning when most were at church and got to swim with Madelynn. Madelynn is a little 4-year-old girl in our neighborhood that also has ALL. It was great for the girls to be together and for me to get to commiserate with Madelynn’s parents. There was some considerable mutual steroid-cursing going on, for sure. In a couple of weeks, Madelynn and Lily and their families will be coming to our house for a cookout and some fun. I’m looking forward to it.
Other than that, wracking my brain for fun, germ-free activities that don’t put us outdoors in the heat of the day. It’s really quite challenging. More swimming at the Whitler’s on Wednesday. Then, clinic again on Thursday.
Time to have a talk with Tanner’s neutraphils… I don’t think they understand how much is at stake.
Love,
Beth
Beth,
I have been following your family’s journey quietly almost since the beginning of Tanner’s diagnosis. I had a friend that was a PE teacher at Moore (he’s moved schools now) who had told me about Tanner and I happened upon your blog shortly after. As you’ve typed, I have recognized names along the way (at least one of Tanner’s nurses went to college with me–we weren’t close friends, but knew each other), working at Jan Williams was my first “real” job back in high school…it is a small world!
At any rate, I’ve decided that I needed to come out of “lurking” and comment because your family has been on my heart a lot in the last few weeks. I think of you often and say a prayer for wisdom and guidance for both you and your husband and for the doctors working with Tanner, but that has been even more so lately…so…here I am. 🙂
I have little to say that people haven’t already told you I am sure:
Your strength–all of you–is simply amazing to me. It is so obvious that you love your familiy well and people around you love you well, too. What a precious gift! I am so glad you have families that have pools in their back yards and friends in the neighborhood that are going through the same thing to walk this journey with…I stand amazed in your honesty and your willingness to share your journey with others.
I guess I just wanted to take some time to let you know that people you don’t even know are praying for Tanner, Jake, John and you. I am so glad that Tanner will be able to participate in another summer camp at Jan Williams…and we’ll be praying for all the right numbers so Tanner can go to VBS next week! My church’s is in a few weeks and I know how fun that is for all the kiddos.
Oh, and I wanted to offer an idea for a fun activity in the house where it is cool and not nasty hot! (This weather is ridiculous.) 🙂 When I was little, I LOVED finger painting with pudding. My mom would give me a big cookie sheet and dump some pudding on there…the beauty is you can lick your fingers when you are finished and it cleans up easy in the sink! Just like playing with shaving cream, only yummy. And the even better part is you can get whatever flavor you want! ha!
Thanks for being willing to share your journey with us…it has been an honor to walk “alongside” and pray from afar! I’ll keep it up!
Karyn
Oh, how I love the Whitlers!