On Hold...

Hello All!

We pray everyone had a Blessed and safe Christmas! We had a wonderful Christmas and I will post a pic or two of Elijah enjoying all of his toys soon.

Here's a pic of my little bald baby and his twin! His daddy vowed to go bald as well-and will stay that way until his "little buddy's" hair grows back.

We were to be admitted for his 2nd cycle of treatment Friday but unfortunately blood tests revealed that he is Neutropenic-meaning he has an abnormally low white blood cell count. He has more than likely been exposed to a virus of some sort that his body must clear before the next round of chemotherapy. With a low white blood cell count he is unable to fight off infection of any kind but thankfully, he is not exhibiting any additional symptoms such as fever, cough or cold so we are hopeful it is just something very minor that will clear in the next few days. We can carry these viruses and pass them to each other and never know it thus why I must limit his exposure to others.

We will go back to the oncology clinic Tuesday morning for testing to verify that the virus is gone and his white blood cell count elevated. If all is well, we will be admitted immediately.

Thank you for the continued support, love and prayers. We especially thank those that sent Elijah gifts, cards, and messages for Christmas. It truly brings our hearts joy to know how loved and adored he is.

All our love-

Quick Update-

We've made it through the first week. The first few days were spent managing nausea and vomiting, the past week has been spent trying to get a handle on other side effects taking over Elijah's little body. Pain management, appetite and alleviating constipation may be a consistent issue and is proving to be difficult and heartbreaking.

Elijah has never seen snow before so Nana & I took him outside this morning to enjoy.

Have a wonderful weekend!

Chemo Begins

Hello All,

We hope your week is going well.

There were no complications with Elijah's surgery to place the portocath Friday and we were admitted that evening. Here he is giving us a glimpse into his future as "Dr. Cutie-Pie Williams" shortly after we were admitted.

Elijah will be receiving 3 different chemo therapy drugs throughout the next 4 months. Although he receives 2 of the drugs once per week- every week, he must be admitted inpatient for 3 days and 2 nights every 3 weeks due to the severity of the side effects of one of the drugs (cysplatin). This drug was administered over several hours beginning at midnight on Friday. We were elated when more than 8 hours passed with no side effects. Unfortunately that elation was short lived as sickness abruptly awoke him from a restful nap after an exhausting day of charming the nurses and befriending several fellow pediatric oncology patients.

Saturday afternoon through Sunday morning were spent trying to manage Elijah's nausea and vomiting. By Sunday afternoon he was back to ruling the hallways and conquering the hearts of every nurse on the floor. The other 2 drugs were administered Sunday evening with no complications.

We would have been home Sunday night but his oncologist ordered a CT scan for Monday morning to make certain none of the "bad cells" formed into a tumor over the 6 weeks between surgery and this first chemo treatment. By Monday evening we were on our way back home. Other than an extreme loss of appetite and another bout of vomiting on the way home from the hospital, he seems to be doing well. God has Blessed Elijah with an amazing resilience and immeasurable strength.

Thank you all for fortifying his strength through your love and prayers.

~Dawn

Thanksgiving...Still continues

Good Morning all!

I pray our family and friends had safe and undisturbed travels this Thanksgiving. Randall, Elijah and I spent the holiday with Randall's family in Alabama. Elijah had a ball dancing, singing, and playing with his little cousin Amber, aunt, uncle and "Me-ma". He is back to 100% and is doing very well. Here's a pic of Elijah having fun in the leaves in his Nana's backyard the week before Thanksgiving.

Before the holiday we had our final pre-treatment appointment with pediatric oncology. The treatment begins first with surgery to implant the Port-O-Cath this Friday morning then chemo begins that evening. The regimen will be as follows:

Day 1-admitted to hospital, IV hydration then given the worst of the 3 chemo drugs

side effects are monitored and controlled for 48 hours.

Day 3-2 other chemo drugs are given then released from hospital.

Week 2-1 outpatient visit for 1 chemo drug

Week 3-1 outpatient visit for 1 chemo drug

Week 4(Day 21)-Cycle begins again with 3 day/2 night hospital stay...

Elijah will undergo 4 cycles of treatment-meaning he will have a total of 4 hospital stays, and a visit to the hospital for 1 weekly chemo drug treatment every week from Dec. 5 through the first week of March.

Our prayers continue to be Elijah's full recovery and healing. We ask that our friends and family pray that his body withstands the effects of chemotherapy treatment. These drugs are labeled poisons-even by the oncologists due to not only the short term side effects but long term permanent effects. Some of those are:

Nerve Damage

Hearing loss

Renal failure

Growth

Cardiovascular

Respiratory

Thyroid

Secondary Cancers

Chemotherapy drugs are effective at killing cancer cells, but they also damage normal cells, which can cause side effects. Drugs used in cancer chemotherapy attack cells that are actively dividing to produce new cells. These drugs are useful because cancer cells reproduce more quickly than normal cells.

Chemotherapy also causes a drop in white and red blood cells. The side effects caused by low blood cell counts will likely be at their worst when the White Blood Count, Red Blood Count, and platelets are at their lowest levels. Because of this Elijah will have very limited contact (no contact if you haven't had a flu shot) with others during the duration of Chemotherapy. Although he will be on antibiotics to lessen the possibility of infection for the duration of therapy, a low white blood count means an inability to fight infection so even the common cold could be life threatening for him.

Thank you all for your concern about my health and the well being of Elijah's little brother due on Valentines day. We are both doing well. We are prayerful that "baby brother" will stay put for a few more months :p I'm sure he will - when I ask his big brother where his little brother is, he simply lifts my shirt and gives my belly a kiss with a big "mmmm-waaahhh" sound!

Happy (late) Thanksgiving wishes to you all. We love you dearly.

~Dawn

3 weeks Post Op

Our dearest Family & Friends...

I hope this message finds everyone doing well, feeling great and ready for the Thanksgiving holiday.
It's been about 3 weeks since surgery and Elijah is doing well. He is still challenged physically by a few things but is almost back to 100%! His appetite is great, he's sleeping fairly well, and he even enjoyed a play date this weekend with his buddy Alison.

He recently had the picc line removed and will only need one more blood test this week to make sure his little body is free from infection. He will then be monitored for a few more weeks to make certain he is able to withstand the effects of chemotherapy.
Please don't forget I will be making a scrapbook for Elijah of all of your wonderful comments on this blog so please leave a message. Simply go to "comments", write your comment (don't forget to sign your name), then click "anonymous" to post without having to create an account.
Our sincerest gratitude for all of your prayers-please keep them going,

~Dawn

The Great Escape

We are finally home!!!!

Elijah was able to have the Pic line inserted for antibiotic therapy at home. Due to the infection in the blood he has been under strict monitoring and since his fevers continue to spike, a CT Scan was ordered to rule out the spread of infection to his heart. Although the scan showed some fluid collection where the right lobe of the liver was, the overall results from the scan were favorable and we were released around 6:30 pm.

Elijah still has some pain - the source we can't seem to identify. But his appetite is up, as are his spirits, and we are so grateful to have him home.

He has more testing (renal, audiology, lab) on Friday. Once those results are known we will have a plan of action for chemo and followup therapy.

Thank you for your prayers, support, and love.
Dawn~

Day 12-Quick Update

The glimmer of light that began to shine at the end of the tunnel quickly disappeared this morning. At 6am we were informed that a pic line would need to be inserted for IV therapy at home. The protocol for the type of blood infection Elijah has calls for 14 days of IV antibiotic therapy. Thankfully, we can receive the therapy at home with the assistance of a Home Health Nurse.
Since this is a minor surgery done under sedation, Elijah had to go without food for at least 6 hours prior to surgery. By 1:30 in the afternoon we still had not been taken to surgery. After requests to Elijahs nurse and finally a call to his surgeon,we were disappointed to find out surgery had been scheduled for tomorrow morning at 8am.
Since the plan changes as often as the person that delivers the message, I will not committ to us being home tomorrow, although I will admit to being hopeful.

I pray I will be posting a "Welcome Home Elijah" message tomorrow.

Day 10...and counting

We hope you all are having a great Sunday.

Elijah has had a difficult few days but we are so fortunate to have found the source of his pain. Lab results revealed a bacterial infection in his blood which causes, among other things, a slow down in bowel activity. Gas & bowel was building with no way of escape. While they determine the strain of bacteria, he was started on vancomycin, an antibiotic that eradicates all strains. About 8 hours after the first dose, he began to feel better. Unfortunately his pain was still not under control Friday evening and he missed his 15 seconds of fame when 2 of the Nashville Predators dressed as Tigger & Pooh, and the local News came to his room to 'trick or treat' on halloween.

After 9 days, he & I finally felt the warmth of the sun! We went on a little field trip to the beautiful coy pond. Here he is on Saturday with Daddy, eating more of the crackers than he fed to the fish.

Today he was feeling well enough to go to the Play room. His legs are still a bit wobbly but he played hard enough to take a 3 hour nap afterwards. He then woke to a visitor-one of his favorite friends Alison who sang, danced and fed him corn pops! Her mommy and I will be having a little chit-chat about the corn pops later :)

Although we struggle to keep his temperature under 102, we do expect to go home in the next day or 2. Due to the infection, surgery for the port-o-cath and chemotherapy treatments will be pushed back at least 2 weeks.

As always-your concern for Elijah is treasured and your thoughts and prayers are appreciated.

8 Days Post-Op

Good Morning Family & Friends,

We are still in the hospital. After undergoing a series of tests (ultrasound, xray, urine, blood) we are still unsure of what is causing Elijah's pain. We do know that b/c of his immobility, gas remains trapped in his little body and because of the morphine, he continues to be constipated. The results from the tests for infection should be back later this afternoon. Postoperative testing of the liver, kidneys, and lungs are good.

This morning they have once again discontinued the Morphine, increased the Oxycodone, and added gas relief and enema. Our hope before days end is to at least get him sitting upright with minimal pain and to sleep more than 10 minutes without a pain spasm.

Please pray for Elijah's pain relief so he can move forward with the healing process and prepare his body for chemo therapy. Also pray for patience as we continue to rely on the surgical teams' assumptions - trained to rule on the side of medicine and disregard maternal instinct.

I am gathering all of your emails and blog posts in a scrap book for Elijah so please continue your wonderful and thoughtful messages.

All of my love and sincere appreciation,
Dawn

Still in the Hospital-Quick Update

Elijah was not able to be discharged from the hospital today. We found that the great physical strides he made yesterday were due to the increase in pain management medications from the previous day. Although his oral meds were increased in dose and frequency, he was taken off all intravenous medications to prepare him for home - this caused a dramatic increase in pain which in turn decreased his appetite and ability to be physically active. This change in drug type and administration has set his recovery back quite a bit.

We hope to be home tomorrow or Friday.