Peyton-isms

“Can I get some candy from the washing machine?” (vending machine)
“Is that the mean medicine?” (it tastes nasty)
“This is my evil laugh!” (followed by appropriately evil cackle)
“I ate it ALLLLL gone!” (as a reason for seconds or thirds)
“Again?” (any way to get a smile, laugh or chuckle out of someone is better the next time around)
“Can you smell me?” (mmmm….I’ll leave you to guess what she’s done when she asks that one.)
“Is it going to hurt?” (whenever we have to try something new)
“One, two, three…pinch!” (her countdown to giving us pretend pokes)
“I just pretend!” (apparently not understanding the definition of the word, it’s her excuse for doing anything that gets her in trouble….example, throwing a shoe at ones heads and saying “I just pretend!”)
“Pj-j’s” (what she calls her jammies…which she changes no less than 3 times a night)
“Circle soup and circle spagetti” (two of her steroid staples, chicken noodle o’s and spagettio’s….actually, her names aren’t as silly as the real names)

Peyton in July

Peyton today

Good times!! Steroid Sally is doing fantastic! 19 days completed out of 21 and we’ve had no major emotional breakdowns, where they were multiple times daily the last go round. She’s got the super round cheeks and belly now, and walks like a woman in her third trimester. We’re still doing our trips to Cracker Barrel, I’m thinking about ordering her one of those aprons with her name on it and having all the servers sign it! These trips to Cracker Barrel are hard on me, with the no bread-no carbs-no pasta-no fun diet. After a week, Pete and I are doing well on it, and I already feel thinner, lighter, taller, stronger and faster, and maybe just a hint of the ability to fly….ahhh, diets are so good for the soul.

On Friday last week she got her last dose of Doxorubicin for this round, and she started getting random little mouth sores in her mouth over the weekend. Nothing too severe, but they were painful for her and the special leukemic mouthwash they prescribed her worked like a charm. They told me that the Dox is a med that builds up and builds up in the system, so now that she’s on the steroids it’s sort of helping to boost up her counts, but as soon as she stops taking them on Thursday, her counts will come down. We go into the clinic on Thursday for a finger stick to see what her counts are and see if she’s in need of any blood or platelets before she starts the next cycle on Monday. She has to make certain blood counts to start, but once they start they don’t stop for anything less than a serious infection.

We have felt so blessed this round of chemo, because even though there have been a few teary outbursts and many middle of the night feedings, it has been so much better than we’d braced ourselves for. She’s been happy and cheerful and for the most part, herself. Thank God for that prayer answered.

Tomorrow, Peyton will go with her Grandma for the day as I am going on a field trip with Nathaniel’s class. We are both excited about that, it’ll be the first time it’s worked out that his field trip wasn’t on a clinic day. His 9th birthday is coming up on the 23rd, and it’s just a bit staggering to realize how tall he’s getting and how much he’s becoming a little man. A goofy one with 9 year old common sense, but we’re raising a little man nonetheless.

Saturday was an especially fun day for me and the older two kids, as we got Grandma to take Peyton and because Pete had to work, we had most of the day to ourselves. We went to see a movie together, we picked up friends and had lunch and then went to the park to play. It was so much fun, and great for the kids to get in some time. This coming weekend, both kids are taking off with their Big Buddies to go to the Lowry Park Zoo for the day. I don’t know what Pete, Peyton and I are going to do, but it may involve Cracker Barrel so I don’t hold my breath for anything too exciting.

Special prayer alert!!
Stacey Chubb is a new friend of mine I’ve met through Peyton’s illness. She’s a fantastic person with a huge heart and I am just so thrilled that God brought her into my life. Her son Kyle was diagnosed with ALL leukemia when he was 11 and he has been in remission for a year. He was treated at All Children’s Hospital and the same oncology group we work with. Stacey told me this morning that things are just not right with Kyle, he’s tired, his coloring is wrong (when you have a cancer child, you notice even the slightest bit of pale on your child) and that his platelet levels have been off. These are not necessarily bad things, but these are not the kinds of things you want to hear. He goes to the clinic on Tuesday next week for more tests, and my heart is just filled with prayer that it will not be a case of Kyle relapsing. I know that it is at the center of Stacey’s worst fears for Kyle, but she has strong faith in God’s plan for Kyle and that His will for Kyle will be done. Please keep Kyle Chubb and family in prayers as they wait for the tests, the results and whatever the future may hold.

Thank you all for your prayers, your encouragement and love. We are just constantly reminded of how much support we have behind us all along the way and it’s humbling and empowering at the same time. We just pray that your lives are blessed the way you’ve blessed ours.

f.r.o.G….fully relying on God

—Anissa

ps….one word….hint is “fun with flexibility”