Yesterday was the beginning of a good week.

It began with a benefit BBQ which was held at Leesburg United Methodist Church ... but it wasn't just the Methodists who showed up. ☺ The volunteers decorated tables, prepared "to-go" boxes, served tables, manned the money box, and cleaned up. And the volunteers in the kitchen got to wear specially made "GoFightWin!" aprons.  And on top of all that, it was a very successful fundraiser!! Those people in Leesburg sure do love my sister...and that makes me feel very good.

Those are the take-out boxes

But wait! There's more good news!

This morning, I received the following e-mail from Lisa (Get ready to be excited!)

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Mom is ENGRAFTING!! Her counts went up to 1.1 today and the doctors said the official word.

AND . . .

She is going to start taking her medicines orally rather than intravenously which is a step toward getting the release to go home. Dr. Langston said she might get to go home on Wednesday!!!!

Her mouth still hurts, but the swelling has gone down and the pain is a little less.

Keep sending positive thoughts.

GFW,

~Lisa

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To all of you who check this blog and pray for Laura and have fundraising BBQ's, and do practical things to help her like bringing meals and checking on her house and running errands and sending cards and cooking for her and just plain loving Laura:
our family (Clif, Emily, Lisa, Robert, Mary Celeste, and I -- along with our extended family) says:
THANK YOU!!! What a GREAT BIG BLESSING you are to all of us.

Thank you for your continued prayers.
We love you.

More specifics from Lisa:

Well, even though mom's birthday was a really hard day (maybe the worst day she's had), today she is much better. Her White Blood Count went up from 0.3 to 0.5. And when Dr. Langston came in today she said "I feel pretty confident that this is an indication that engraftment is starting." Although they can't say 100% that the new cells are engrafting, those words were really encouraging.

There is, however, something that is a bit of a concern. She has a case of mucositis in her mouth. It's not anything they are extremely concerned about, however, it is the source of a lot of pain and the lack of appetite for mom. They are taking her off one of her medicines that is suppressing her immune system, so the hope is that it will alleviate the pain and get rid of the infection.

We also were told by our nurse today that if engraftment really is taking place and we continue to see her WBC go up, there is a big possiblity of her getting to go home at the end of the week!!!!! (home meaning the house in Atlanta)

We still have a long road ahead of us, but she's taking it one step at a time and right now she is on the right path. :)

Also, some people are asking what exactly engraftment means. The definition as given by Emory: "Engraftment is a term the doctors use to describe the point when the stem cells start doing their job and blood cell counts start to come up." Hopefully that helps.

I received a text message this morning from Lisa telling me that Laura's WBC is now at .5!!!! Doctors still are not ready to say engraftment is taking place, but it's a very good sign.

Laura is still in pain, but I KNOW she's feeling better than yesterday because (1) she was on Facebook this morning and (2) she forwarded me a photo from the barbeque that her church is having for her. Yesterday, she didn't even really want to talk on the phone. How active she is on the phone or the computer is a sign of how she feels...at least, that's my theory.

I have received a few photos of what's happening at the barbeque (will post photos of that later). Looks like so much fun. And, I saw some ladies in the kitchen gettin' ready to serve and they were wearing some very cute aprons! (GFW!)

Yesterday was a pretty tough day, but today is better and I think THAT is a sign that her new year has begun!

Happy birthday to you!

♥

Happy birthday to you!

♥ 

Happy birthday, dear Laura!
♥
 
Happy birthday to you!


So far this morning, it's been a pretty rough birthday. She aches all over and she's been vomitting. She's taking a nap right now and we're hoping she wakes up feeling better!

THIS JUST IN!

Laura's platelet count went up! The doctors have not confirmed that it absolutely means that engraftment is taking place, but they did say it's a good sign.

Her body JUST  might give her a very good birthday present tomorrow!!

Prayn'. Prayin'. Prayin'!

Being in the hospital has many drawbacks... Being in the hospital with cancer and mouthsores, and backaches, and stomach issues is even LESS fun.

But, one of the perks for Laura is the view she gets from her window. Check out the sunsets!

The past couple of days have definitely been better than Saturday and Sunday. She is, however, feeling weak and shaky and her white blood count is the lowest it's ever been. That's expected, though.

But...her spirits are good and she sounds good when I talk to her.

Don't know yet exactly when she'll be able to go home from the hospital, but they're aiming for next week.

Thank you for your continued prayers for recovery and complete healing.

You people are SUMPTHIN' else!!  ♥

Laura woke up this morning with a bad back ache. They don't know what's causing it, but they have given her something to ease the pain.

She doesn't like the idea of loading up on medicine, but has decided that when she feels really bad, she's gonna take it anyway.

She sounded pretty good when I spoke with her this morning, but I know she's not feeling great.

But! Check out her pillowcase... Her church had it made for her and they all signed it. 

And, the pillowcase isn't all her church has done for her! They're gonna have a benefit barbeque for her. She told me yesterday that another church in town has already sold 122 tickets. That's not even the tickets sold at the church she goes to...  People really are so good. Thank y'all!

Continuing to pray that the worst is over and it's gonna get easier and easier as the days go by.