We spent 12 hours at Sloan today. I took Ro over there this morning to finish up his stem cell harvest. We are finally finished, and they got more than enough—thank the Lord. I don’t think I could have handled one more day of him being hooked up, and I know he couldn’t have either.
We did a stem cell collection at Phoenix Children’s, and many of you have asked why we are doing another one here. We are basically doing it for “insurance.” IF Ronan’s neuroblastoma comes back—which we pray it doesn’t—Sloan believes that having his stem cells collected before a relapse will increase our chances of killing this awful disease. If they were to try to harvest them after a relapse, they don’t think the stem cells would be as strong. They will stay here at Sloan, frozen, and hopefully we will never need them. We are taking every precaution as parents; we have no choice.
It was a good day, though. I had a visit from a friend who just happened to be in the city for the day—a friend who was my very best childhood friend and whom I have not really seen or talked to since I was 13. She was so sweet to come by the hospital to see me. It’s so funny how life works out. As soon as she walked in, it was like, hello childhood! She looked exactly the same—except even more beautiful, if that is even possible. I am so glad I got to see her and hope to spend more time with her when she comes back from her trip. Thanks, Jen, for coming by.
My friend from AZ, Danielle (DD), is in NYC too! Yay for that! She is staying with her brother in the city for a few nights and then heading to spend Christmas with her family. She came by the hospital and hung out with us for a few hours. I always love having her around. So I had two nice treats today from two lovely ladies. I feel so lucky 🙂
We don’t have anything major going on tomorrow. Ronan will go to the clinic for platelets, and then Thursday we have his CT scan. I am anxious and nervous all at the same time. Please pray extra hard for him. We are hoping the tumor in his abdomen has shrunk even more after three more cycles of chemo. I will keep you updated as best as I can. We go in very early on Thursday morning.
I am taking a night off from my run tonight, and all three boys are going to stay with Mimi and Papa. I am going to enjoy a night out with Woody and some friends. A night out together is very much needed.
Ronan’s spirits have been great. He is such a little trooper. I am the luckiest mommy alive.
Enjoy the rest of your day <3 It’s the simplest things that are the sweetest!!
xoxo
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