Nothing to Say

I feel like I should post but I don't have anything to say. I guess that is somewhat good. At least we haven't had anything bad happen. Kenyon's blood counts continue to trend upwards. Overall, the doctors continue to be pleased with his progress. The biggest thing right now is to adjust the meds until they get everything to the right levels - and hopefully control the nausea at the same time. I am regularly asked - how is Kenyon? Well, he feels pretty lousy but really he is doing ok. We have good moments and not so good. I think that is just how it will be for a while.

Elise called me last night with the big news that she lost her first tooth. I wish I had pictures to share. She was determined to not have a tooth dangling in her mouth like Teague. She must have been working pretty hard on it. The tooth fairy is working overtime in California.

Our Basement is Finished!!

Hip Hip Hooray! Our basement is finished. (There are a couple minor details of having a lighting fixture installed and paint touch up). I wanted to give a huge shout out to our good friend Chris Morley of Morlove Construction who pulled it all together and made it run so smoothly. It turned out great. My little sales pitch - if you want to buy/sell, build or remodel then it would be worth your while to call Chris. He does great work. It will be a nice space for Kenyon to use but it will be even more fun to use when he is all better.


We are so grateful for all the help. We had a few neighbors moving my dumb appliances out of the kitchen and down those cement steps to the basement. The Relief Society Pres (my good friend) laid the tile. It is beautiful. Her husband picked out my paint colors and tile. Thank you!! That was seriously stressing me out. Several other neighbors used the shop-vac to get it all clean at a couple different stages. And yet another neighbor suited up in full protective gear to paint the basement. It was quite a project. And then of course more neighbors and my parents helped me clean. It is beautiful and we are again - so grateful!

Do you like the lounge chair? It is actually quite comfy and it works until we get something else. I am anxious to use it out in the backyard. :)

No Big Updates

There isn't much to say. Kenyon feels pretty tired and lousy most of the time. Some days are better than others. Sometimes it is just moments here or there. But generally he is doing well. His biggest complaints are all those darn pills and nausea. He can't stand them.

We had a nice visit with our kids. Teague only spent a moment with us but Gavin and Elise made the house pretty exciting for a few days. Unfortunately, Gavin wasn't willing to be in a picture with Kenyon. The kids did a great job washing hands and generally keep their distance. They mostly played out on the neighbors water slides for two full days (thanks!!). They were really excited to head to California. Lots more fun. Thanks to my parents for being up to another road trip and a couple more weeks have hard work!

Happy 24th! Ours was pretty boring but Kenyon did put on his face mask and we sat on our front porch and watched the neighbors light fireworks.

Our New Baby

No, we haven't had the baby yet. That would be bad. But we do have something that requires constant, careful care. It wakes me every couple hours - not with cute baby cries but an annoying beeping sound. Yes - we have an infusion pump. It is driving me NUTS! We have it so that Kenyon can get some extra fluids in his system each night. Unfortunately, it requires as much attention as a baby. But, I shouldn't complain. It is helping Kenyon.

We saw the doctor and he said that Kenyon is going to have tough out the nausea. The doctor called it "engraftment blues." It is just part of getting better. He is making progress and the doctors are pleased. Hopefully in a week or so his stomach will settle down.

The kids are home- Hooray! Our neighbors found that out pretty fast. The kids said hi to Kenyon and then took off to find their friends. They have missed their friends. It has been fun to be with the kids but it is very evident why they have been gone. It is quite the juggle to attend to the kids and their friends and Kenyon. All the friends want to come in and it is a little tricky to keep everyone out. I feel bad but that is what we have to do.

The kids have not been able to stop calling me "Grandma." You can tell they have been saying that name A LOT! We are so grateful for all that Grandma and Grandpa are doing to keep the kids happy and busy.

"I Feel Like I'm on Chemo."

That is our quote of the day. Needless to say it was a pretty bad day. Luckily, we go into the clinic tomorrow and hopefully they can figure out a way to help him. He is so nauseated and can't keep anything down. Yesterday was quite good so it was kind of a surprise that today went like it did.

On a different note - A friend of our owns a carpet cleaning company (ContraCare) and he had his guys come clean my carpets today. They did a fabulous job. I had several areas where the carpet was loose and they stretched it. The carpets look so much better. So if you are looking for a good company - call ContraCare. Thanks Austin!

Home After 30 Days?

Are we surprised? I told the PA today that Kenyon has always excelled at everything so, of course, he was a star patient. This is really the very earliest a patient could be released. We checked out of the hospital today at about 2 p.m. It felt so strange to pack up all his stuff and walk out of that hospital. Our neighbors had decorated the garage door and house with signs and balloons. We will head back up there to Huntsman a couple times a week but hopefully we can avoid any more hospital stays. Although it is not all that unusual to find yourself back up there with a fever or some other illness.

Kenyon is definitely tough but not all better. It will take a long time to build an immune system that is strong enough for him to be exposed to illness. Now that we are home, we just have to be as careful as we can.

A Home Health Nurse came today and taught me how flush his ports on his central line. I also learned how to run the infusion pump so that we can hook up a little extra fluids for him at night. There are also a lot of meds to keep track of but I think we will manage.

Kenyon has made himself at home tonight on the couch with some BYU vs REAL soccer. That is enough to make him pretty happy.

One last look at the contruction view outside Kenyon's window.

Homeward Bound

Well, the good news (I guess) is that Kenyon is on schedule to come home tomorrow?! I am happy. I hate being alone at home but oh my gosh. I am pretty much freaking out. I was really planning on having all week to finish some things. Some things are out of my hands - like the basement. There is nothing I can do about that. I am also pretty nervous because of what it requires from me. I have loved the nurses and aides and all they do for Kenyon. But for Kenyon's morale - it will be good for him to come home. And the kids will come home this weekend for a few days. Wow!

Slowly Rising

The blood count numbers are slowly creeping up. There are lots of different counts but the one that determines when Kenyon can come home is called the ANC (Absolute Neutrophil Count). Don't ask me what it means. All I know is that when it reaches 500 or more for 3 days then he will be looking good to come home (a healthy adult has about 1500). Today he was at 400. So it is possible that he could be home this week. In fact, we expect it to fit 500 tomorrow.

The hitch to coming home is that he needs to be able to keep down 1/3 of his calories. Kenyon has been so blessed but the nausea is really making him miserable. Not much sounds good to him. He also really hates swallowing pills. Tonight while I was there, they brought in 4 cups of pills - about 20. Torture! After he got a good dose of benadryl, he was able to get them down but then he ready to sleep. Hopefully we can get his stomach to settle down. (Although I must say I am a little scared to have him home - excited but nervous).

We are so grateful for the many prayers said on our behalf. We feel strengthened and know that this is going as well as it is because the Lord answers prayers. Prayers are heard and answered!

I try to get thank yous out but I am behind. I had a bunch of wonderful help on Saturday from some great women in my ward. A little embarrassing to me but truly helpful. Tonight I had a delicious plate of dinner in my fridge when I got home from the hospital. I really appreciate everything.

Gavin has been heard singing all over my old neighborhood and the greater Seattle area - his songs are mostly just phrases from songs he loves but doesn't know all the words to and they are sung in his highest pitch. They include: "Hail to the Prophet" (from Praise to the Man), "Heavenly Father, are you really there?" (from A Child's Prayer), and "Popular" (from Wicked). He knows how to make his presence known.

Bring on the Drugs!!

Thanks to Jenni - I found out that the Angel Moroni statue was being placed on our temple this morning. We piled in the car at 7:15 am. By noon we finally saw the Angel Moroni placed on the temple. It was a long wait (and I left twice), but it was worth it. It was a windy morning so it looked like they might have some problems. We are so excited to have that temple right there on the hill.

Medical Marijuana is coming Kenyon's way. Lucky guy! :) Actually it isn't quite that but something like that. I had to leave before he got a dose. They are hoping it will settle his stomach, relax him and give him the munchies. We'll see. He needs something to work because the constant queasiness is driving him crazy. On a good note, we are seeing small but positive numbers on his blood counts. The goal count we are looking for (ANC) is 500. He is at 100. There is hope we will get there.

Just Waiting....

There really isn't anything to say today. We just wait. The blood counts will come up but they take their time. Despite the fact that Kenyon is STIR CRAZY, it is good that they come up slow.

I should say THANK YOU to all out there who are doing so much to help us or pray for us. Today I had my basement vacuumed, light bulbs changed, microwaves installed, sprinkers worked on, a delicious lunch, and a nice visit with Kenyon's sister and her husband. I don't really love being so dang needy but I am so grateful to have so much willing help. I really appreciate it.

I may have mentioned that Kenyon recently made a purchase off an infomercial (it happens in a drugged out, tired, extremely bored moment). The nurses have told me that they can take his credit card away if it is a problem. :) So his purchase arrived in the mail yesterday. The Forearm Forklift.


Kenyon told me that he bought them so that I could move the old dishwasher to the basement. Yeah, right! He is convinced that I will be able to move anything. He wants me to at least try it out on the couch. Only a couple of problems - 1) I probably shouldn't be lifting much due to the very prego stage and 2) It takes two people.

But, if any of you want to try them out - please do. And you might just get to use them to move the dishwasher to the basement.

Best TV Watching

How cool was Wimbledon this year? Please tell me that you did in fact watch the greatest match of tennis ever played. Due to rain delay and church, I had to watch this match later but it was so worth it. I wanted Federer to win but really - did it matter. They both played awesome. If you missed it, find a way to watch it. I have it saved on my DVR. Someday, I will actually go to Wimbledon and watch a match. (One day I took 5 month old Teague on a little adventure to Wimbledon. Unfortunately, no one was playing tennis that day.)

I know that is why you all come to the blog. You want to hear about tennis. But, I will tell you a little update on Kenyon. He had his very last dose of chemo yesterday. We hope he never faces that again. He has felt pretty miserable the last couple of days. No fun to be so sick and trapped. We hope that the upcoming days bring an increase in the blood counts and a decrease in the sickness and maybe even a few of the meds. We'll see.

Day 10 Update

We are officially at day 10 but really it is day 19 in the hospital and with all these numbers I don't even know what the real date is. So confusing!

Kenyon is ready to get out but not really. He is just sick of being stuck in that place but we must wait. There isn't much to tell except that he is really tired and still dealing with the upset stomach. I think cereal is about the only thing that he consistently likes. But whatever works. He was pretty happy with his spaghetti o's tonight.

The nurses and doctors are so pleased and a little surprised. One nurse told us last night that he is her first patient to not have a fever or mouth sores at this point. Hallelujah for that! That is definitely a result of many prayers on his behalf. The nurse was telling us that there are patients with mouth sores so bad that they are in the icu because they can't breathe. Yikes.

I have been grateful for Wimbledon and Olympic Trials. They are fun to watch. I am also trying to learn how to do a little digitial scrapbooking.

My parents are incredible. I am sure they are exhausted but they are keeping our kids happy, entertained and on top of everything. They hardly have time or interest to talk to me but that is ok. I am glad they are so well taken care of. I just get a little lonely without anyone around.

Hey Good Lookin'

Today I shaved Kenyon's head. The hair was coming out in big chunks and all over everything so it was finally time. I was kind of scared but it turned out good. The BMT unit has special clippers so that I couldn't cut him (that would be bad). I think we might keep him bald for a while. I like it! The doctor said that maybe by day 100 he would like he had a short buzz.

Kenyon got a couple bags of blood today and he was feeling quite a bit better than yesterday. We love the good days!

The update from Seattle is that the kids have been busy collecting slugs and playing tennis. We used to love salting the slugs on our way to school. Kind of cruel, I guess but we thought it was cool. My sister Jen was the only one we could dare to lick one. Did you know that if you lick a slug, your tongue goes numb? Good fun fact to know.

I talked to the doctor today about donating the baby's umbilical cord blood. It is getting a little easier in Utah. I was so happy to find out that they just set up that option at St. Marks where I will deliver. The only hitch is that you have to deliver in the day time when they have someone on staff. It is such an easy way to save someone's life. At the BMT unit today, a patient received a bone marrow transplant from umbilical cord blood. There was no other match available from the national registry. And, the doctor told me that umbilical cord blood is a great safe option and it doesn't require a perfect match to have success. So for any you giving birth - -check with your hospitals and get it set up!

The sprinkler is getting fixed. Thanks for the offers of help!

Swimming Lessons

Just a few shots from swimming lessons. We loved swimming lessons. Too bad they had to end. The kids learned a lot this year. I wish I could capture the shots a little better.

A Wonderul Break

I am not sure I love the picture but I did love the afternoon lunch and dinner break today. My friends/former rooommates, Juliann and Leah, met me at the Gateway for lunch and Ben's Cookies. Leah was in town from Boston for a family reunion and it was super sweet of her to break away for a few minutes to be with us. I have always been so blessed to have such amazing, talented, good and thoughtful friends. I am also blessed to have wonderful family. My grandma and sister took me to dinner. Hooray for Rumbis and good company.

Once again, the blood counts continue to drop. Today Kenyon got more platelets. He slept a good amount of the day and if he was awake he felt like going back to sleep. That is normal - the blood counts should drop and you should be tired when that happens.

I think tomorrow we will bust out the clippers and do a little buzzing. It makes me a little nervous but it is coming out anyway.

On another note - any of you poor souls who have had to load or unload my dishwasher, you know what a piece of junk that it was. You had to thoroughly wash the dishes before you put them in and then after washing them it was never clear if they were really clean. Sometimes they were dirtier. All that has changed! I got a new dishwasher and it is fabulous. The instructions say that no rinsing is needed. I love that. Too bad there aren't any dishes to wash right now.

Goin' Bald

Things continue to go well. However, Kenyon did make a purchase off an infomerical - the Forearm Forklift. He thinks that will make it easier for me to move the dishwasher and range down to the basement. It will probably make it easier for someone but I doubt (hope) it will be me doing it. :)

He has also found time and energy to get a little work in the last couple days. Of course the minute he responded to an email then everyone got the word that he was online and they took advantage of the time he was willing to give.

His first few bits of hair started falling out. It has taken so long that I started to wonder if it would really happen.

Mouth sores have not hit yet - hooray. That would be so great to avoid those but we are not in the clear yet. They could still come. He had a dose of methotrexate today and one more to come - that is the cause of the mouth sores.

On a pregnancy note- this baby girl must have picked up Elise's love of gymnastics. She is constantly on the move.