5th bag of Stem Cells

We are so happy it's Tuesday. Yesterday was a yuk day for us... just one of those days you're glad is over.

I debated with myself on whether or not I should write that. But from the beginning, we've taken the position that we would be open about what we're going through. And how honest would we be if we ignored the hard days??

Psalm 5: 1-3 Give ear to my words, O Lord, consider my meditaion. Give heed to the voice of my cry, my King and my God. For to You I will pray. My voice You shall hear in the morning, O Lord. In the morning I will direct it to You, and I will look up.

Frank got his stem cells. Yeah. The kids came to share the 5 minute infusion with us, and then headed out for some fun. They went to the water park here in Little Rock with one of Zach's friends and his mom. They had a great day and were completely wiped out when they got home.

Frank had more energy last night. He slept less and ate more. Or was that me? He got a good laugh at me because I told him to fix his own dinner! He looked at me with his sad eyes but I told him it was because I wanted to take good care of him. He has barely gotten out of the chair for the last few days so while he was up and walking around, I wanted to take advantage of it and get him to do something. It's good for him to be active and makes him feel better in the end. He watched a movie and snuggled with the kids a little before going to bed.

We're at the hospital now. His labs are starting to drop, but not too much.

WBC 1.07 (neutrapenic)

Platelets 39

We're ready to leave for the day! Wow, we got in and out of here fast today...... love to all... Peg

Transplant Day

We woke up to snow this morning! It was so pretty. Our unit is in the back, so we opened up the blinds, watched the news from bed and watched it snow into the woods behind us. Refreshing.

We are overwhelmed with emotion today, no particular one ~ a potpourri really. Frank is thoughtful and reserve this morning, and sweet as can be.

His counts are coming down faster than we had expected. He'll be neutropenic tomorrow. That means he'll have to wear a mask, no going out in public, no fresh fruit or salad, etc.

White count: 2.30

Platlets 82

Potassium 3.3 (he went home with infusor)

His stem cells ran a little late, but they are in! The whole process takes about 5 minutes. 6.01 million in 54ml. That's a packed house! Standing room only.

We actually took a vidoe of it. But it was too big to upload. I tried! Dina is our APN. We adore her. We've known her for 5 years. She is precious and we are happy she is with us. She did Frank's 3rd tranplant as well.

We are thankful that the Lord has brought us to this point without complication. We are thankful for you and your faithfulness to pray for us. Love from frank and peg

Well, he did it!

It's 1:00 and the cells have been in for about 20 minutes. They're monitoring his vitals and giving him fluid. We'll be here for about 2 hours just to make sure he doens't have a reaction.
He got 6 million cells. He's the "6 million stem cell man".

We prayed over these cells with our APN, and the tech that delivered the cells. We thanked God for his faithfulness, the wisdom given to the doctors, and the wonder of the cells that will grow to be the blood that sustains his life. We are thankful for his health, for how well he's done and for the opportunity we have to just have this transplant.

Psalm 100
Make a joyful shout to the Lord, all you lands! Serve the Lord with gladness, come before His presence with singing.
Know that the Lord, He is God. It is He who has made us, and not we ourselves. We are His people and the sheep of His pasture.
Enter into His gates with thanksgiving, and into His courts with praise. Be thankful to HIm, and bless His name.
For the Lord is good, His mercy is everlasting. And His truth endures to all generations.

Congratulations to newlyweds Keith and Lori !
May God continue to richly bless you both.
Sincerely Frank & Peggy

Little Rock update...In reflection upon this past week all I can say is praise be to God!
Good health reports, lots of quality time with my family (mom, dad, Peggy, and the kids), the opportunities to help others in need (I actually stopped having tunnel vision and did something for others), and the time in prayer getting mentally ready for the challenge that begins today are all the reasons that I am thankful.

The treatment lasted for about 1.5 hours today. I still feel fine for now. Stem cells to be delivered at 9:00am in the morning.

Tuesday will be the beginning of all the fun.
Frank

Happy Sunday to everyone.

Friday's transplant went very well. The nurse walked in with the - might I say - very little bag of stem cells. 5.5 million cells in that tiny little bag Frank is holding in the picture above. The infusion was over in 4 minutes! The nurse said that all he's been through got us up to this point, and it would be over in 5 minutes. She was right.

Frank has been sleeping more and more. The change has been gradual, but you can see the chemicals slowly doing their thing. He did some walking Friday and Saturday, but not today. His tummy is upset and he's fighting off the nausea as best he can.

The kids are here in Little Rock now. We met mom in Forrest City for the switch. It was great to hug and kiss on them! Frank's parents are coming tomorrow to help me with them and visit with us. I'm looking forward to a great week.

Thanks for all for your continued prayer and encouragement of us. Frank and I pray that each one of you are just as encouraged and growing in faith as you've seen YOUR prayers answered. We are in awe of the mystery of the body of Christ, and power of prayer. Our God is an awesome God.

We are praying that God would protect Frank from infection, have minimal side effects and no complications that would slow down this process.

Because of His great love for us,
Peggy