We're back

We just got back from a great mini- vacation in the North Georgia Blue Ridge mountains. We stayed at a cozy log cabin isolated from everything (4 wd required). Mollie had fun roasting marshmallows, drinking hot chocolate, and lounging by the fire.

Last week, Mollie did great at school. She has just jumped right back in like she never missed a day. She seemed concerned about her hair at first, but doesn't say much about it any more. She's more interested in talking about who likes High School Musical and who she played with at school. About the cancer, clinic, and all that other stuff: she says she doesn't really talk about it because the other kids wouldn't understand. She's right about that!

Clinic Update

Mollie is doing great! This morning started off a little rough with Mollie having a mini-meltdown about what she was going to wear and some spilled milk (in the car) on the way to clinic.

But things improved when we got to clinic. It wasn't crowded, and Mollie didn't fuss about her finger prick. I don't know whether it was the 2 packages of Oreos she ate in the clinic or the snow (yes, snow!) outside, but both girls were in a great mood.

Mollie's counts are great... ANC = 2200 and platelets and RBCs in the normal range. The plan is to continue the drugs she's on now and go back in 2 weeks for chemo and an echocardiogram (the check for any negative effects of the chemo on her heart function).

Hurray!

Weekend happenings

Well, Mollie fought off the cold and had a nice weekend. We went bowling on Saturday and the highlight for Mollie was buying a Hershey bar out of the vending machine. Unfortunately, Lucy ended up with a fever and cough so she's been a cranky bug most of the weekend.

Mollie and Lucy both slept over at our friends' house Sat. night so Matt and I had an enjoyable evening eating burritos, watching some Netflix, and then we got to sleep. And even sleep IN! Today, we went up to a children's museum, EdVenture, in Columbia, SC with Michelle and Isabella. The museum was pretty neat; Mollie's favorite part was the kid sized grocery market. She spent a lot of time in there shopping, checking out, and restocking the shelves. Isabella liked the African drums in the Timbuktu exhibit. Both girls had a great time jumping in the stomach of Eddie, the worlds largest child.

Tomorrow morning we are off to clinic to get Mollie's counts. We're hoping for a good ANC, but I won't be surprised if it's a little low since she's been fighting off that cold. Then later this week we will celebrate Lucy's birthday! She has been such a little trooper, going to almost all of Mollie's clinic and hospital visits!

Please send your good thoughts and prayers to our friends Katie and Molly.

"Normal" day

Mollie's cough/cold did not get worse and she really wanted to go to school today, so she went. She had another good day and has been asking tons of questions about Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. because they had a birthday party for him at school.

It hovered around freezing all day today so we didn't spend any time outside, but we did a few errands this afternoon. Some kids in the store noticed Mollie's hair and were asking their mom about it. Mollie was totally ignoring it; I thought she didn't even hear until she whispered, "I think a big kid saw my head and didn't even touch it." She is okay with the hair situation, but always glances longingly at the hair bows in the store. Her hair is growing back, but it's going to be a while before she can wear hair bows.

Coughing *Updated with photos*

Five minutes (literally) after my post last night, Mollie came downstairs with a cough! It sounded like she had a hairball. No fever... but she wanted me to sleep with her because she was kind of freaked out (me too). I slept in her room and she hardly coughed the rest of the night (and I have a crook in my neck from being squished between Mollie and the wall). I kept her home from school, and so far the cough is just an a occasional cough. Let's hope it stays that way!











We went to a little park up in N. Augusta today and the girls had a great time playing . Mollie had fun throwing rocks into the little creek and scaring the tadpoles, and Lucy tried to eat sand!



















We came home to find a package of pirate goodies from my aunt and uncle so Mollie spent the evening searching for "treasure" around the house. And we had an 80's dance party before bed!

So far.... so good.

Mollie has been having a great week! Really. Getting her up and moving in the morning has not been bad at all. She is really into fashion and make-up so she gets her outfits and accessories all picked out the night before. She's been happy when she gets to school and happy when she gets home. In fact, she's been more energetic and happier than she's been in a while.

Next week she'll get her counts checked and then she has another two weeks before more IV chemo. A few kids in her class have sniffles and/or coughs so I'm praying that we all stay healthy. We're really promoting the hand sanitizer!!

School Day

Mollie had a great day at school! She stayed the whole day, ate well, napped, and was happy when I picked her up. What she said about the experience "Well.... I was kind of conscious about my hair when I got there, but in the little while I got un-conscious." Tomorrow she is supposed to bring in an item item that begins with the letter M and she thinks she might just bring in herself.

Her hair is coming back in and it is so soft. I can't stop rubbing her head!

It was a good way to begin the week.