2 Years

Can you believe it has been two years since we found out Max was sick. 2 Years ago, yesterday. Things have definitely started to normalize as I barely even thought about the anniversary. It is a bit sad that it will forever be linked with Max's birthday. If that wasn't the case, it is possible that I would have missed it all together. But, I suspect I will always look at 2 days after his birthday with a bit of sadness and trepidation.

2 years. It feels like just yesterday and yet it feels like a lifetime ago. So much has happened. Max has grown so much. He isn't a toddler anymore. He is a boy. A fun, funny, frustrating at time, interesting boy who gets much joy out of life and is, for the most part, really nice to be around. We are so lucky. I almost never forget how lucky we are.

Max's birthday was pretty much a non event this year. I worked last week and was just too tired to do much. We made such a big deal out of last years. What a difference. I am sure Max wishes it had been a bigger deal, but it was nice for it to be mellow. We tried not to overdo for him. He still sees the FedEx or UPS truck and assumes it has something for him. Every package must be for him, and he often expresses his deep displeasure when it contains items for other people. I remember asking someone how you got through something like this without ending up with a very spoiled child and she told me to worry about it later. I guess we have actually done pretty well, considering. He is pretty good about sharing and is polite to most people (the big exception often being me and Josh, but I guess that is fairly normal). He is a good kid.

2 Years and the only signs now are a couple of scars from his port, four from bone marrow biopsies that probably only I notice, and a child who insists on wearing the ankle "bracelet" from the hospital. Oh, and two kids who are amazingly comfortable around medical personnel. We are so lucky.

CBC - 07/07/2008

Can you believe it has been two months. Amazingly enough, I didn't even worry over these two months. Max has looked and seemed so good, that I have been pretty relaxed. I have seen no petikia, he barely has a bruise on him, and he has been running all over the place, and he has had great color and energy. Today, a friend took Lauren so that Max and I could go in on our own. We had a lovely day. We took the train in, then walked up to the North End for pizza and pastry. Max decided on gelato instead, which he enjoyed in the heat by the fountains. It was a hot day, but it bothered me more than him. Then we walked up to the aquarium to see the seals. We took the T over to the hospital because he was tired of walking by then. It meant three trains. He was thrilled.

Dr. Ebb took one look at the lab results and was thrilled. His platelets were down a bit from last time, but still close to 200, and his white count and hematocrit were at all time highs. He looked him over and confirmed what I had been seeing, that he looks great. The only issue we had was that Max didn't want to leave the hospital. He wanted to play more. He played Ant in the Pants while I checked us out and made an appt for early September. Then, we took the T to the train and headed home. A very tired boy fell asleep on the train. A very tired mom did not, but was happy to see him napping.

Here are the numbers.

WBC: 7.8
HCT: 37.5
HGB: 13.7
PLT: 198

Oh, I don't have the ANC yet. Our appointment went so quickly that they were not in by the time we were done. Dr. Ebb said he would call me with them some time today. I will update when I get them.