Day 12

Day 12 . It's important to keep the positives in sight and to concentrate on the daily blessings... so I am starting today's blog entry with the positives! WILLIAM WALKED TODAY! Yep, that's right. Sir. William took about 15 steps today! He is also getting up on a regular basis and is now able to stand for about 30-40 seconds while we change sheets, give hugs and/or sponge baths. Another obstacle that we have overcome, he is now able to drink about 5ml of PediaSure. His throat is still extremely tender but, at least he is drinking something. The last thing we want is for his intestines to get atrophy. Okay, now on to some of the medical facts, William's white blood cells are down to 100 and his total ANC is 0. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Absolute_neutrophil_count) We have moved William into a more secluded and sterile room in the PICU. His little body is still positive about 2 liters of fluid so the Dr. has placed him on a steady IV drip of diuretic. Some of you have asked why the Dr.'s don't just drain the excess fluid called Ascites (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ascites) well it is because his body will go into shock. So basically right now the medical team is trying to find a combination of drugs that will "play well" with the chemo treatment and help eliminate the excess fluid buildup. We do not want the fluids to get any worse because they are already pushing on his lungs and heart and anymore pressure would create havoc. What is causing the fluid? Well, basically his lymph nodes are not working the way they should and his lipid (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lipid) count is low too so. William's tummy is now 72 cm and his poor scrotum....well, let's just say that my little man is not comfortable. William's Cub Master (Brian) from Cub Scouts came by today to drop off some items for us. Let me just say that Pack 190 is awesome and I am overwhelmed with the gifts and donations that we received. JC (Brian's wife) made an amazing poster/collage/get well soon card! The love and effort that went into this made us all cry! Thank you JC! I also want to thank everyone that donated towards the funds that we received. I want to give a special thank you to the Webelos boys in Den 2. Thank you so much guys for making the awesome poster! William has it hanging right next to his bed! Thank you for all the love and support! Please keep the prayers coming!