Ms. Dakota Delight
Jack had his chemotherapy today. His counts are awesome again 3480 ANC. Chemo was long, long, did I say long? Nurse Sara had a medical procedure done this week, so a different nurse did all the chemo's today. She did a great job, but when you are weighing, blood pressure-ing, blood drawing, medicine ordering, medicine giving,and charting...several kids within a short period of time things can get a bit confusing. She just took her time and made sure everything was correct, which is definately the way to go, for her and us. We arrived shortly after 10am and left shortly before 4pm. Jack watched a couple of movies and did a cool car puzzle for a while. I visited with the other moms.
When Jack was getting hooked up to his line, he had his shirt off as usual. Today there was an older woman who was getting her treatment across and over a couple of chairs from us. She was concerned that Jack was cold. She kept on asking people around her if they thought he would be cold. Then she would glance at me to make sure I heard her. After the nurse was done hooking Jack up and drawing his blood I picked up his shirt to put on him. He said he didn't want it on, I could hear the gasp from the woman, I just looked at Jack and smiled, then told him that he might cause this little lady to have a coronary if he didn't put his shirt on. She had a sigh of relief when she saw he was completely clothed again. She had 3 blankets over her and a coat on also, she was sure he was as cold as she was. Alot of the chemo meds make you feel cold, but Jack's haven't seemed to affect his body temp at all.
Right before we left a woman sat down by us and she was full of delight. She was alot of fun to visit with. She had an accent from the Dakota's and just brightened our afternoon. I told her that she was a bundle of sunshine, then tears started to well up in her eyes. I don't know if she was happy or sad that I said that, but then she quickly changed the subject. She had a cantankerous port. In order to draw her blood she would have to lay back with her feet above her head, lean her head to the side and cough or breath real heavy. The nurse told her that she had a "positional port" it mattered what position her body was in to get the blood to draw. Once Jack's port wouldn't draw and he had to raise both of his arms and breath real hard, then came the blood. Very interesting...
When Jack was getting hooked up to his line, he had his shirt off as usual. Today there was an older woman who was getting her treatment across and over a couple of chairs from us. She was concerned that Jack was cold. She kept on asking people around her if they thought he would be cold. Then she would glance at me to make sure I heard her. After the nurse was done hooking Jack up and drawing his blood I picked up his shirt to put on him. He said he didn't want it on, I could hear the gasp from the woman, I just looked at Jack and smiled, then told him that he might cause this little lady to have a coronary if he didn't put his shirt on. She had a sigh of relief when she saw he was completely clothed again. She had 3 blankets over her and a coat on also, she was sure he was as cold as she was. Alot of the chemo meds make you feel cold, but Jack's haven't seemed to affect his body temp at all.
Right before we left a woman sat down by us and she was full of delight. She was alot of fun to visit with. She had an accent from the Dakota's and just brightened our afternoon. I told her that she was a bundle of sunshine, then tears started to well up in her eyes. I don't know if she was happy or sad that I said that, but then she quickly changed the subject. She had a cantankerous port. In order to draw her blood she would have to lay back with her feet above her head, lean her head to the side and cough or breath real heavy. The nurse told her that she had a "positional port" it mattered what position her body was in to get the blood to draw. Once Jack's port wouldn't draw and he had to raise both of his arms and breath real hard, then came the blood. Very interesting...
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I met some of your friends at Red Robin last week and they were talking about reading this blog. They didn't realize I was the Julie Adams that wrote on here, but I set them straight!
I like two things about these blogs. One - let me tell you about that girl's eyes welling up with tears. Sometimes in life we get so down on ourselves and life seems like a whirlwind. When a kind word comes our way it knocks us to our knees and just makes us realize someone sees something in us. Yesterday I did a Mother's Day story at Philpott's. No big deal, just an interview. Evelyn gave me a huge thing of flowers. She thought it was just a simple thank you, but to me it meant the world. I almost began to cry, but pushed it away. And today at a heart luncheon all of these people kept praising me for this or that. When I look in the mirror I do not see the woman they see so it meant so much to me. After all of this praise I still came home to my empty apartment and was just me. I think kind words from strangers or anyone just make us feel so special because we often put ourselves down too much to feel special.
And next, that verse in James. Weird how I never noticed it. That is soooo great. I am such a gossip at times. We all are as women in a sense. My mouth has gotten me in trouble more times than I can remember in 24 years. My mother kept this verse in her Bible: Set a guard over my mouth oh Lord, keep watch over the door of my lips." My dad gave it to me when she died and it made me laugh because he knew how much I needed it!
I hope we get together soon. I am going to visit Grandmommy in Snyder for Mother's Day tomorrow and inspect her hail damage. You tell Jack he better help you cook up something yummy for me. I will be back Friday night so let's set it up soon.