Tuesday, March 22, 2011

Hanging in there

Going into this third planned hospital chemo stay was different than the others: Julia's feeling great, her weight is up, and she's not having any issues. This chemo may knock her a few steps down the ladder, but seeing how far up she climbed this last month, a few rungs backward ain't nothin'.

I got Julia all settled in on Monday and then passed the torch to Mandy on Tuesday afternoon and she'll hang out the rest of the week. That was the plan and that part worked out ok. Finn getting Strep throat, however, certainly threatens to sabotage our carefully orchestrated week.

Julia chose to try the tuna sandwich at the hospital on Monday for lunch. She loved it and got it again for supper. Then for breakfast, she was going to order it again, but I asked her to take a break for a meal. She graciously agreed and instead started her day with a cheeseburger.

Julia got a lovely surprise on Monday when her hospital buddy Carina and her mom stopped in for a visit. I was particularly touched because they didn't have anything they needed to be at Children's for, except to stop in and visit because they knew Julia was scheduled to be arriving. They got an art project gift for Julia that she then spent a lot of time in the play room working on. When finished she had a pair of personally decorated flip-flops. With the completed project secured to her feet, quite a few people noticed them on the walk back to her room. And it gave Julia a great idea for Finn's upcoming birthday.




At the end of the week, while Julia is getting settled back in at home, we'll be traveling to Wisconsin Rapids for a final goodbye to Mandy's grandma who passed away this week. 77 years seems like a long time to kids and even to some of us who act the part, but aren't quite kids anymore, but anyone who knew Delores Jagodzinski would have been very happy with many more years to be with her. She'll be missed.

To end, let me pass on a rumor I've heard here and there at the hospital. They say, if you listen closely and happen to be walking past the play room on the 8th floor of Minneapolis Children's Hospital while Julia is in there, you might be fortunate enough to hear her singing a certain song. Parts of it cause her to smirk every time. But be careful! If she sees you, she'll certainly stop singing.