Still here.....but it's ok....

Yep, we' re still here. Noah's counts are very low; his neutrophils are at 0.1 and they need to be at 0.75 to be able to return to Vancouver for treatment. Normal range is 1.5 - 5.6. This means we need to be careful not to come in contact with anyone who is sick, because he just has nothing to fight off an infection.

Which is why I spent the evening in emerg with Miranda tonight. She came home from school today with a rash on both of her legs and I thought I should find out if it is contagious or not, just in case Noah could get it. Thankfully it seems to be a contact dermatitis, but we had to sit at the hospital until 10:30 to find out. Poor girl, she was so tired... So, if you saw our van at the hospital tonight and are worried it was Noah, he is just fine, thanks!

Miranda is so sweet. I said to her as we were leaving, "Thanks for putting up with me dragging you to the hospital when you feeling fine. Sorry about that." Her response? "It was just 2 1/2 hours, better than Noah getting sick and having to spend WEEKS in the hospital! 2 1/2 hours isn't very much." My goodness, my kids are way too awesome!!!! Thank you Lord for these kids!

Noah has actually had a fun week- before we knew how low his counts were, he actually spent an afternoon at school. He played intramurals, stayed while the class opened up the eggs that didn't hatch in kindergarten this year. (He wore a mask, but it wasn't necessary, really- they weren't diseased. The chicks in the eggs were fully formed, ready to hatch, but because of the humidity in the incubator, the shells became too hard to break through, so the chicks died when they couldn't hatch. Sad, eh?) He had a great time and was really tired afterward, but felt it was totally worth it.

Initially, I was disappointed when we couldn't go back to Vancouver this week, because it means we can't be here for the Relay for Life, and because it pushes back the date he can return to school, etc. But I realized that I have to stop thinking about that, and just enjoy the time at home with my husband and my girls and not worry about that stuff. If he needs to be homeschooled for all of grade 6, it is NOT a big deal. It doesn't matter. He will be fine and we just need to stop worrying about that. It also takes away from my time with the girls, and that is not fair to them. So, I am going to enjoy every minute I have here. Noah is already doing that; what a good example he is to me! Ultimately, it isn't in my hands, anyway. I think I already wrote about that in an earlier blog - the quote from Jesus about how worrying does no good at all, won't add an hour to your life, or an inch to your stature- now I just have to remember it applies to everything, lol!

If you're in Smithers tomorrow, the Noah's Ark of Hope Relay for Life team is having a garage sale at 4501 Alfred Crescent, please support the team in raising money for Cancer research! Thank you, and please keep praying for us, that our time at home is restful and good and that Noah will not get sick while he is here. Many many thanks for all of you and your support....