Yes, you read that right. We are wavering. Not about chemo. We feel certain and confident in our decision to stop. But about the kidney. I was wrong when I said last week that there was nothing we could do to push Austin’s chance of survival up over 50%. There is something we could do: […]
I want to echo the words my mom expressed in her comment yesterday: Thank you all so much for your thoughtful consideration of our situation and for caring about us all so deeply. It is powerful and moving to know you’re out there rooting for us, hoping for us, feeling worried and saddened and relieved […]
As we’ve been leaning this way and that over the past few days, swaying back and forth, we’ve acknowledged, with a degree of defeat, that there is no one thing that’s going to suddenly appear that will make this decision any easier. But we were wrong. This afternoon, as I sat in a reclining chair […]
People keep telling me to go with my gut but all day long my gut’s been telling me to stop and then tonight, it switched over and said continue. Here’s some more info, in response to some of your questions and comments (thank you for those) and to help me further flesh this thing out: […]
Back and forth, back and forth we go, completely certain that one choice is right until a half hour later when suddenly the polar opposite seems the wisest option. After twenty-four hours of research and discussions and lots of mulling, plus a quick meeting with our oncologist, we’ve narrowed down our decision to two options: […]
Austin had another GFR today, the kidney function test we’ve been using to dose-adjust his chemo. As you may remember, his last results were a pretty dismal 34. If it dips below 15, he will begin thrice-weekly hemo-dialysis. This will necessitate another surgery, almost immediately, to place a dialysis catheter in his right sub-clavicle vein. […]
On July 31, 2007, our very first night on the pediatric oncology floor, our pediatrician came to visit with me and Mark to help prepare us for what lay ahead. He described the journey we were about to embark on as a marathon, one we had not trained for (except that we’d been training since […]
It’s been raining today. Cold, windy rain. As I walked each boy into his respective school this morning, the other parents and I all grumbled good-naturedly to each other: “Yuck,” “Cold,” “Gotta love springtime in Cleveland.” And then I got in the car and caught a snippet on NPR about the documentary Music by Prudence. This […]
Here is the latest video from Kelly Corrigan: the thank you note that moms really want and really deserve from their children on Mother’s Day. Of course, few of us will ever hear such words pass our kids’ lips (or at least not until they have children of their own!), but we can at least […]