Today I Am Grateful...

--That we live a mere three miles away from one of the best hospitals in the area.  People from all over Northern Virginia come to Fairfax Inova for treatment and ofttimes getting here is a huge burden.  While Spencer may end up at Children's Hospital in DC, especially if he needs a bone marrow transplant, for now I am exceptionally grateful to not have a long commute to the hospital.  Additionally, his high school (and most of his school friends) are less than a mile away and church friends are 3-4 miles away, so I feel the proximity has definitely helped them to be able to stay connected better.   

--That we have good friends with kids similar ages to Emma, Adam, and Ellie who live five doors away from us.  The Tapps are only here in the area for 18 months, but their proximity to us and ability to help with the kids at a moment's notice is a true God-send. 

--That my sister, AnnaLisa, lives nearby.  Having someone that knows my kids' routines and the ins and the outs with our house is a big blessing to us. 

About Spencer today:
The chemo is starting to make his  blood counts drop, so he is getting pretty tired.

He likely will receive another blood transfusion today.  That will help with the fatigue.

He is still in good spirits and loves all the visits, but I think we need to work on keeping visits shorter (15-20 minutes) and making sure that there aren't too many visitors at the same time.   Someone was going to look for an online calendar or something that we could use to try to stagger the visits. 

He is a little congested, which has clogged up his ears.  Don't be surprised when you visit if he has to say, "Speak up Sonny!"   

Glen and I are going to let my sister stay with him for a couple hours today, so we can sneak out to church together.  The priest quorum will bring the sacrament to him. 

Still praying that we will find an in-family bone marrow match.  The blood tests are on Tuesday.