Well, we have reached the end of Mollie's second week of school, her first on steroids. She has done great! Each day, she was smiling and happy when I picked her up. She has had a tough time waking up in the morning and she has been ready for bed by 7:30 PM, but she has handled all of it very well.
Mollie had school pictures yesterday-- not sure how those are going to turn out since she has big circles under her eyes.
Today she was off to the Y with Bella. She will get her last dose of steroids for this pulse tonight so tomorrow she should start feeling better and more energetic.
Off to enjoy the rest of the weekend...
8.21.2009
8.19.2009
Steroids, Day 2
It's been interesting.
I know that Mollie behaves differently around me, especially when she's on steroids. She's clingy and needy ("But I just want you, mama.") and very emotional. She did NOT want to go to school this morning, but we really thought she should go. I never want her to use cancer as an excuse to get out of doing something she doesn't want to do, but it is so hard to tell whether she's looking for an excuse or she's really not feeling well.
So, the morning was rough. She didn't want to get up, didn't want to eat breakfast, didn't want to get on the bus. But, I convinced her that she could make it through half the day, wrote a note to her teacher, and she agreed to go. I picked her up shortly after lunch and Mrs. S (her teacher) told me that she had had a great day!
At home, there were a lot of ups and downs; Lucy was really annoying her (very unusual since they usually get along great). She said she was feeling gloomy like Eeyore. Around 2 she took a long nap and went to bed at 7:30 tonight. No doubt she was tired.
We're going to try the same thing again tomorrow, except I'll let her stay at school a little longer because tomorrow the art teacher comes and Mollie LOVES art. Mrs. S said she'll call if she thinks Mollie needs to go home earlier.
I'm hoping for a good day; she does very well with structured, organized activities, as long as she gets enough time for rest.
This picture is from the last time she was on steroids, but I haven't busted out the camera this week so it will have to do.
I know that Mollie behaves differently around me, especially when she's on steroids. She's clingy and needy ("But I just want you, mama.") and very emotional. She did NOT want to go to school this morning, but we really thought she should go. I never want her to use cancer as an excuse to get out of doing something she doesn't want to do, but it is so hard to tell whether she's looking for an excuse or she's really not feeling well.
So, the morning was rough. She didn't want to get up, didn't want to eat breakfast, didn't want to get on the bus. But, I convinced her that she could make it through half the day, wrote a note to her teacher, and she agreed to go. I picked her up shortly after lunch and Mrs. S (her teacher) told me that she had had a great day!
At home, there were a lot of ups and downs; Lucy was really annoying her (very unusual since they usually get along great). She said she was feeling gloomy like Eeyore. Around 2 she took a long nap and went to bed at 7:30 tonight. No doubt she was tired.
We're going to try the same thing again tomorrow, except I'll let her stay at school a little longer because tomorrow the art teacher comes and Mollie LOVES art. Mrs. S said she'll call if she thinks Mollie needs to go home earlier.
I'm hoping for a good day; she does very well with structured, organized activities, as long as she gets enough time for rest.
This picture is from the last time she was on steroids, but I haven't busted out the camera this week so it will have to do.
8.18.2009
Clinic Update
I was surprised at the numbers: ANC = 1900. Perfect! Mollie will stay on her 100% chemo dose and will start back on Septra (the preventive antibiotic she takes every Friday, Saturday, and Sunday). She will have her counts re-checked in 2 weeks to make sure the Septra is not suppressing her counts too much. If it is, they will switch to a new drug, pentamidine. So, we'll just wait and see.
Mollie had a rough time at clinic today. Lots of tears. We had to hold down her arms and legs so the nurse could access her port without hurting her. I even had to drag her in to see Nicki for her weight and height measurement. She did finally calm down and was downright pleasant, even giving Beth a hug before we left!
She's already had her first dose of steroids for this pulse. We are planning on sending her to school tomorrow (barring any problems); it will be interesting to see how she does at school the rest of this week.
To quote another cancer mama, "The great thing about cancer is the spontaneity it provides to your life." Thanks for putting that into words, DMM.
Mollie had a rough time at clinic today. Lots of tears. We had to hold down her arms and legs so the nurse could access her port without hurting her. I even had to drag her in to see Nicki for her weight and height measurement. She did finally calm down and was downright pleasant, even giving Beth a hug before we left!
She's already had her first dose of steroids for this pulse. We are planning on sending her to school tomorrow (barring any problems); it will be interesting to see how she does at school the rest of this week.
To quote another cancer mama, "The great thing about cancer is the spontaneity it provides to your life." Thanks for putting that into words, DMM.
8.17.2009
The Weekend
Well, after consulting with 2 oncologists and the school nurse, principal, and Mollie's teacher, we decided to send Mollie to school today. So, she's off.
We had a lovely weekend, even though Matt was out of town. Friday night we did a little impromptu school clothes shopping; Mollie has outgrown everything and we had to supplement the big batch of hand-me-downs from our neighbors (thanks, Michelle). Then we went over to Shane's for "girls night" and had a nice time chatting & eating delicious snacks.
On Saturday, we woke up early and headed to the pool/waterpark at the Y. Mollie and Lucy both had a fabulous time swimming, and the weather cooperated. After dinner we all snuggled up on the sofa and watched Shark Tale (Lucy couldn't sit still so we finally just put her to bed).
Sunday, we went to Mass, ran some errands, went to the pool with Isabella, and then had a quiet evening.
Tomorrow (Tues.), Mollie goes for her monthly IV vincristine in the clinic and then begins her 5-day steroid pulse. I'm also a little anxious to get her counts. I hope they are good (we're shooting for the range of ANC =1000-2000); if they are low, we'll definitely be keeping her home from school until they come up again.
We had a lovely weekend, even though Matt was out of town. Friday night we did a little impromptu school clothes shopping; Mollie has outgrown everything and we had to supplement the big batch of hand-me-downs from our neighbors (thanks, Michelle). Then we went over to Shane's for "girls night" and had a nice time chatting & eating delicious snacks.
On Saturday, we woke up early and headed to the pool/waterpark at the Y. Mollie and Lucy both had a fabulous time swimming, and the weather cooperated. After dinner we all snuggled up on the sofa and watched Shark Tale (Lucy couldn't sit still so we finally just put her to bed).
Sunday, we went to Mass, ran some errands, went to the pool with Isabella, and then had a quiet evening.
Tomorrow (Tues.), Mollie goes for her monthly IV vincristine in the clinic and then begins her 5-day steroid pulse. I'm also a little anxious to get her counts. I hope they are good (we're shooting for the range of ANC =1000-2000); if they are low, we'll definitely be keeping her home from school until they come up again.
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