We got released today with no issues and are happy to be back home. Before leaving, Hannah got a flu injection to help protect her this year against the flu virus. Our entire family now has been vaccinated and it just shows who the wimps are!!
Hannah is on Neupogen shots again so that her levels don't go too low. She is also on two anti-nausea meds for this week, instead of the normal one. She did really well this round, with minimal bouts of nausea and no vomitting, although the ringing in her ears is already back. It did go away last time after this medicine, took a couple of weeks.
It was a very difficult admission for us this time, regardless. The floor was packed with patients, we had to move rooms once due to issues and Hannah also received the wrong dose of medicine two days in a row before it was caught.
You didn't read this incorrectly, she was overdosed, again! I won't go into a lot of technical detail here, but she was given 10 times the amount of diuretic medicine on Wednesday and Thursday with her chemo infusion. The nurse noticed it after the dosage was written differently (correctly) when it came up from pharmacy on Friday. It wasn't an easily identifiable mistake, and even though I check each dosage myself, it was very complicated to figure out and even harder to notice. It wasn't like the medicine bag said 10 grams and the dose should have been 5 grams.
We knew when the attending walked into our room on Friday night at 7pm that something had to be wrong. They don't just visit. Fortunately, all of her levels checked out, and it did not adversely affect her because some of the side effects of overdose of this medicine are quite serious. Thank goodness it wasn't the chemo, or we would be in a different situation. Doesn't leave you with the best of feeling.
But, Round 7 is complete, and we are looking toward the future. Hannah is going to school tomorrow although not that excited about it (it goes without saying that she would rather be home with Grandma baking cookies all day). I hope she can stay for the day, but we'll see. We go back to clinic on Thursday to check levels again.
Thanks to all for the cans that have been dropped off. The first thing Hannah did when we arrived home today was run over and check the bins for cans, and wow, there were lots!
xoxo Kim
The girls carved pumpkins last night, although no one touched the "inside yucky stuff" except mom. They were hard at work and look how great they came out! I have to take a picture without the flash so you can see how nice they look all lit up.
Another busy weekend since Hannah is feeling good and her energy level is pretty good. Saturday was Rally Day at the 4H. Here is Hannah with her purple team and Hannah on Finessa. All riders were split up into teams who then competed against each other in fun. I was a bit apprehensive with her platelet count down, but everything was fun and safe. I ran alongside Hannah during the day to be sure her horse didn't get any ideas about running off. Having said that, a few girls did actually get thrown from their horses. No-one was hurt, thank goodness, but it's still scarey to see. That's the thing about horseback riding, you can be a very good rider and still get thrown if the horse decides (which is why I'm always on the sidelines wringing my hands until each lesson is over). 
Colby and I spent the rest of the day traveling west to her basketball game, while Dave and Hannah came home, took a trip to the library to pick out new books with Mrs. Baker, hit some tennis balls and hung out with Riley. 
Grandma and Grandpa went home today and we want to say HAPPY BIRTHDAY to Grandpa. We celebrated with him last night, here are a few pictures from the celebration. My parents have been so incredibly supportive and important to us in this, we couldn't have done it without both of you! We hope the next time we see them is in Indiana, rather than here again for another round of chemo.
So we are stocked for candy now, and Hannah is taking a rest, or at least trying in this very noisy room. We'll leave you this picture of Hannah getting her chemo, still smiling.
She held up well, but was very tired from some of the medicines they had given her earlier. I wasn't sure if she would make it through, but she rallied! It will be interesting to see how it all comes together (I hear Dan Rather will be in it also from his earlier interview). I will post it here if I can do that. I will also post Hannah's song-again, barring any technical difficulties. Here is a link to their website, if you are interested in seeing all they do. Click HERE
Hannah was able to deliver the gifts she bought today to Childlife. They were so happy to receive everything. This is a picture of Jan from Childlife receiving the goods. Since we brought them directly to Childlife, they are able to use them specifically for the hemotology/oncology pedicatric patients that are either in clinic or inpatient. Hannah is going to ask them to break out the Mousetrap game we brought tomorrow!
She did very well, and still has some money left over. She got so many things like play dough, markers, glue, many games, batteries, blocks, books, dvds, and so much more! We are going to ask them next time for some of their specific requests to ensure we're providing exactly what they need. We went with Grandma, and she and Colby had a great time searching for what they liked. She can't wait to hand them over to Jan and Faye tomorrow! 