Naomi's 12th Birthday and Charly's 2nd Chemo

Today was our first return to Primary Children's since our discharge Monday. It was also Naomi's 12th birthday. It is only because of our friends and family we were able to pull of both.

Naomi already had planned a party where a Mary Kay lady showed the girls how to take care of their skin and properly apply makeup. Naomi was accommodating about reducing her guest list slightly. Kristen, our Mary Kay specialist, and Ashly helped Grandma Moore juggle 6 tweenage girls. By all accounts, the party was a great success.





Charly and Grandma work on crafts in mom's room while Naomi's birthday party goes on in the family room.

Meanwhile, Sean and I took Charlotte for an appointment at 8:30am at PCMC for chemo and another spinal tap (also called a lumbar puncture or "LP"). Chemo went relatively quickly. We were done by 10. Then we brought her downstairs to the Rapid Treatment Unit. They put her out for her LP with general anesthesia, and they were done within 15 minutes. Charlotte quickly regained consciousness and woke up happy and high as a kite. She chattered on and on, making the nurses giggle. Since she once again skipped breakfast, she chowed down a bag of Cheetos in 2 minutes flat. Then she got a bag of Goldfish. Her platlettes were low, so the clinic doctor decided it would be best if she received a transfusion before going home. We went back upstairs to the Oncology clinic for the transfusion. Since it was now going on 11:30, they allowed her to order a tray from the hospital kitchen.



The past few days Charlotte hasn't been eating much. Her jaw has been very painful for her, and she has been reluctant to eat. They said the jaw pain is a known side affect of the chemo. However, they also said that the steroids she is on was going to affect her appetite, and she would be eating more than a grown man. Today was the first we have seen the promised "carb craving". When ordering her lunch, she requested a taco, a baked potato, and rice. Mom thought that was a little much, so we just got a taco. After she finished the taco, she was still hungry and ate a bag of Doritos.

We arrived home only a half-hour late for the party. Grandma Moore gratefully left the tweens to spend time with Charlotte. Mitch and Deb stopped back here on their way home from California to Virginia. They came at the perfect time. Sadly, they head home tomorrow morning.

Chemo will continue every Friday this month, ending with another spinal tap and bone marrow sample taken at the end of the month. How her numbers look at this point will tell us where we go next.

For those who are inquiring about school, it definitely looks as if Charlotte will be home schooled for the entire 1st grade year. Her ability to fight off infection is compromised by the cancer, and the chemo makes it worse. Until her body has a fighting chance, she will stay home. I am hoping everything goes great, and she will be ready to go back in time for 2nd grade. We'll just play it by ear.

Now, I must go. Charlotte is demanding green beans to go with her Chicken Alfredo.



Our first chemo appointment after leaving the hospital. I dressed her bear to match her. 2 minutes later, the outfit was removed. Charlotte was disgusted because "Happy is a boy, MOM!"