Going Okay

I took Tanner to his weekly doctor's appointment this morning and Dr. Albritton said that everything looks really good and that he is doing great.

Since they've reduced the steroids (and since Tanner has started getting more rest and taking better care of himself) he hasn't been having any problems with nausea or stomach acid and he looks so much better.

Last week he went out with a group of teenagers from Cooks.  They were supposed to go to Frightfest at Six Flags but since it started raining, they went to downtown Fort Worth and saw a movie and went out for ice cream. 

He said he had a good time but I think the majority of teenagers were younger than him.  He's at this point where he's younger than all the patients going through treatment for Multiple Myeloma in Arkansas but older than most of the kids having treatment at Cooks.

I go back and forth about whether or not we should move him to an adult practice.  They just have his treatment down so well at Cooks, I hate to disrupt the "system".  I guess we'll give it a while longer this year and then it will probably be best to move to a doctor that treats adults.  He's usually always the oldest teenager at his appointments every week and I'm sure the closer he gets to 19, the more he'll be ready to move away from the Pediatric practice.

Dr. Albritton asked him today to consider "designing" a website for their practice targeted at teenagers.  I think it's something he should consider and that we should look further into.  He's always been good at computers and this would give him something productive and helpful to focus on for a while.

I stood in the doorway and watched as they pushed his chemo meds today and I had one of those surreal moments when it hit me again that my baby has cancer.  This flush and tingle spreads throughout my body.  I ask myself how this could have happened and I know that all the other parents sitting in that waiting room must have those moments all the time too.

He's going to spend some time with his grandfather in Abilene and is leaving Thursday.  It will be good for them to spend some time together.

Anyway, I've been awake since 2:00 a.m. and am pretty tired and drained so I think I will wrap it up for this entry.