Making it through! Joel and Lizzy playing Bananagram.

Well here we are at the end of her second round with the Ara(stinkin)C, as lovingly termed by Joel Brown. This drug is not a favorite for either Joel or Elizabeth.

For the ones who follow our blog and do not know Joel Brown let me introduce you to him. You always hear when God closes one window he opens another; Joel Brown and his family are the other window. Here is some background:

Elizabeth and I were in our room at the hospital during her 33 day Induction Phase and in walks a young boy and his mother. Joel and Elizabeth have gone to Mason K-8, they are in the same grade, 8Th, they played a lot of the same sports and have mutual friends but the two had never been in any class or been on the same team at school. THEY HAD NEVER MET UNTIL THAT DAY AT THE HOSPITAL. See Joel was diagnosed with ALL, the same leukemia Elizabeth was diagnosed with however Joel was diagnosed 4.5 months earlier. He and his mom, Laura, came to meet us and give us their support. We have since become fast friends. Our families are so similar that I sometimes feel that I am looking into a mirror and seeing our reflection.

Joel and Elizabeth are now enrolled in the same class, it is called the class of Survival and Character and they both are passing with flying colors. I am so thankful to God for opening this window, even though it means a lot of pain and sadness at times. Pain for Joel and Elizabeth and sadness for the parents having to watch their kids struggle with the drugs they are given to help fight this cancer.

Joel was a rapid responder and Elizabeth was a slow responder in the Induction Phase which means they should be ending their protocol at about the same time. I think I feel a huge community celebration coming on in about 2/2.5 years.

Elizabeth finished out the week on a much better note than which she started on. The emeisix (vomiting) is under control thank God for this. Because of your prayers she is not having any of the other side effects so please continue to pray that she does not start; we still have another week with this drug.

Elizabeth's counts are still high. Her ANC is 2300, a great number, her Platelets are 144,000, another great number, her WBC, white blood cell, is low at 2.3, and her hemoglobin is going down and is low at 11. This is the one that carries her oxygen though out her blood stream. She made need blood and platelets by the end of next week. This weekend is a good weekend to visit and she would love to see you.

Thank you all for your continued support for Elizabeth, our family, the fundraisers for research for cures, and for Elizabeth's medical account. Your prayers, love, and support are something that we could not do without.

Many blessings,
Christine