Day 17 - Delayed Intensification

So first things first, I found out today that they hired a locum starting sometime January 2008, so at least this is a solution to some extent. BUT we still need those 2 permanent oncologists, so keep praying and passing on the message!!

This morning went to the hospital and they informed us that there is some kind of bug "growing" in the sample sent to the lab. They don't know for sure yet what kind of bug, but in the meantime wanted to admit her for the night to observe her. She hasn't been herself lately and we need to make sure that it is just side-effects from the drugs she is taking and not actually as a result of some kind of infection. So tonight Bianca and Terence are staying at the hospital.

It was a long day that dragged on and on and on. Doing nothing is actually quite exhausting. We had to wait until after 17:00 to get a room. Lucky that they recently dedicated a nice big room for the oncology kids coming for day stays and this room has 2 beds and some entertainment so it wasn't too bad. The room is great. Lots of us feel that this is a very positive change that they are making at Ward 18.

So eventually we moved into room 14.

Bianca had a tearful start to the day and one moment she was happy, then sad again and so on. At one point she said to me "I'm not having a good day".

Bianca getting her wiggle put in.

Thank goodness for Kate, the play specialist, she always manages to get some kind of laugh from Bianca. She is absolutely wonderful with the kids!

We saw some more puppies from the SPCA. The cutest puppies! After seeing some puppies the other day, Bianca wanted to get a present for them and so we bought two toys and some treats. Well, they absolutely loved the present, as much as a doggy could like treats and toys. They were so playful. Bianca's face lit up and she was so excited when she saw them and that was a bit of a highlight of her day.

We also saw Nick from More FM at the hospital today. They were taking some photos of some of the kids for an initiative that they are putting together. Bianca was initially a bit grumpy but they managed to get a few nice shots of her.

Recently we realised that it just wasn't practical with only one car and had to look for a second-hand car so that we are not stranded at home each time somebody uses the car and with Bianca being sick, we need to be able to go to the hospital at short notice. So this morning we went to collect the car. The guy at the car place gave Bianca two huge balloons and this cheered her up. So now we have a green car and a black car.

Bianca decided that the green car should be called "Trees" and the black car "Banana". I asked her why the black car is called "banana" and she said "because bananas go black when they get old". So this afternoon Bianca insisted her dad brings her Honey O's (a type of breakfast cereal) and I said that he would first come to the hospital and then get the car to go and get her some Honey O's and she added "with banana" and I said "Oh, so you want some banana as well" (she doesn't really eat banana) and of course I then realised she meant the black car.

Meet "Trees".

Terence went to the Movember party for a short while tonight, but couldn't stay very long as I had Caitlyn with me as well as Bianca. Sanna had a course on tonight and so dropped Caitlyn off on her way to the course. I forgot how challenging and exhausting it can be to have a baby with me at the hospital. It took her a really long time to eventually fall asleep and she was quite fussy. Bianca did not want any noise in her room so I ended up walking up and down the corridor with Caitlyn trying to get her to sleep. He really enjoyed the party (the little bit that he was there) and I think he will definitely participate again next year. A BIG thank you to those of you who sponsored him!!!

Well, it was a long day today and tomorrow morning I will go back to the hospital to take over from Terence. Thank goodness for Sanna, she is a lifesaver and the best decision we made in a long long time.

Medicines today:

• Dexamethasone - 3.5 tablets in the morning, 4 tablets at night
• Co-trimoxazole - 6.25 ml in the morning, 6.25 ml at night
• Fluconozole - 10ml at night
• Gentimycin IV antibiotics