April 8, 2010

So, here’s how you have fun at the Vanderbilt Children’s Hospital Oncology Clinic:

1) Have counts high enough to still go to school, but not high enough to raise your chemo level (her neutraphils were at 1,100, down 200 from 2 weeks ago, so she’ll stay at 75% for now)

2) Make friends with the music therapist who is holding a music session in the infusion room. Get her to play your favorite Miley Cyrus and Taylor Swift songs on the guitar so you can have a solo that makes everyone in the room clap. Tell her some other songs you like so you can plan to sing again next time.

3) Participate in a study that helps other people and get money from the doctor so you can buy ice cream downstairs.

4) Discover they are having a “medical play” clinic downstairs in the lobby and color your own “patient” doll which you can then give shots, access her port, set up an IV drip and generally use all your medical knowledge you have gained in your more than 50 visits to the hospital.

5) Get to see Dr. Mixan and Nurse Cari – our favorites

It was, hands down, the most fun we have had at Clinic. It is a testament to Vanderbilt Children’s that it is possible for a place that holds so much sorrow for so many is also the place that holds so much hope and light. We are forever grateful to have this community treasure so close by.

We’ve been on Spring Break all week and having a great time! We’ve been swimming twice, eaten out some, played in the yard and in the cul-de-sac a bunch, had playdates and now, E. (John’s Mom) is here! Tomorrow, we are hosting our church playgroup at our house and having a visit with Allison, the play therapist, in the afternoon. We’re hoping to get to the zoo this weekend to round out our super fun week.

Got some really fun news recently that Tanner is going to be one of the faces of this year’s local Light the Night, which is the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society’s big fundraiser. Tanner’s picture and story are on the invitation being sent to corporations to invite them to a kickoff breakfast. She is also going to be featured in the Country Faces Cancer campaign where country celebrities, like Blake Shelton and Nan Kelley, host walk teams for Light the Night. Tanner will have her picture taken with all the celebs who sign on and be in the TV public service announcements. She will LOVE this! My girl loves her some attention and loves anything to do with music.

So, we’re hanging and enjoying the week off. With her counts down to 1,100, we might rein ourselves in a bit to try to protect her, but overall, the doctor feels good about where she is. During maintenance, the goal is for her counts to be between 1,000 and 1,500, so she is right where she should be, although I’d always prefer to be on the high side, rather than the low.

Hope you’ve been enjoying the beautiful weather, like we have.

Love,
Beth