Triumphant Return!!

Monday (8/24) Ben went in for regular labs. His platelet count was not high enough for them to remove the catheter in preparation for his return home. That was the last “to-do” left to get “to-done” before heading for Alaska. Not having been smart enough to purchase flight trip insurance when we purchased our tickets we got the opportunity to pay some exorbitant fees to Alaska Airlines when we changed flights for home. The cost of an entire new ticket and a few hours later, Ben and Cari are finally home in Alaska!

Since it was kind of a last minute change we decided to keep it a surprise for the kids. Cari and Ben arrived in Anchorage yesterday just in time to go and pick up the girls on their first day of school (or at the end of her first week for Elizabeth). Nathan and Grandma successfully navigated their way to and from the airport. Cari decided to go get the kids from their classrooms. Megan looked and just stood there because – (her words) she thought it was just a dream. Sammy took a minute and then was surprised. Elizabeth lost her mind and has not let Ben out of her sight since they arrived home.

We are extremely excited that this part of the adventure is over. Now we wait. . . .Hopefully all of these pokes, prods, stabs, and sticks have done what they were intended to do and we will not see any more signs of ATRT.

Ben let Cari out of his sight for a while and ran around the house with his siblings. All of them are glad to have him and mom home. I don’t think Ben or Cari are too disappointed either. Cari is now milking the “I don’t know where you have put anything, you’ll have to . . .”. I can’t imagine that anything has really changed in six months and one day have they?

Ben and Cari's contact information is now (hopefully for a long, long time):
7640 Jason Place, Anchorage AK 99502
(907) 243-0039

Long Day

Today was a very long day and I am exhausted....so why is Ben sitting at the table coloring when it is nearly 11 oclock at night?



We started the day off by heading to the hospital for a blood test. After the test they called and said that his platelets were less than 5. So we needed to go back to the hospital so they could give him platelets. Before giving him platelets they gave him some medication so that he wouldn't have an allergic reaction....no such luck. The transfusion had barely started when hives broke out on his arms. They had to stop the infusion and give him some different medicine to stop the allergic reaction. Apparently the more often you get blood products the more like you are to react to them. Ben still needed to get platelets but they couldn't give them the ones that caused the reaction. We had to wait for new platelets. Fortunately no reaction this time. We left the hospital at about 6pm. If I had slept last night... I guess the good news is that his reaction was mild and they were able to give him the platelets he needed! Now if he would just go to sleep!

plane tickets

Ben is at the hospital today recieving the last of his stem cells today. Hooray for final treatment! We are so excited! They said we can leave on the 28th, barring any illness. We wasted no time buying our tickets. We can't wait to go home!

The Last of the Chemo!

Benjamin checks in to the hospital tomorrow morning to begin his last round of chemotherapy. Hooray!!!!! It feels so good to be finishing up treatment and looking forward to heading home.

After Daddy and the siblings left on Wednesday, Ben and I were a bit sad....but it didn't last too long because we got and impromptu visit from Aunt Hopie!



Oh what fun we had!!!! We loved, laughed, shopped, and ate the yummiest cupcakes ever with our friend Carolyn. How blessed we are to have such wonderful friends and family!



We also had a visit from Ben's future wife. My friend Emily and her family were in town for a wedding and we got to visit with them both Friday and Saturday evening. Apparently all of the pictures ended up on Emily's camera so....
Again, what wonderful family and friends we are blessed with!

Better Than Ponies

You can imagine how tickled Ben was when his daddy showed up at his doctor appointment last week. As good as ponies are...daddy is better. Now just imagine the betrayal and sadness as Daddy and Ben's siblings drove away on Wednesday. Ben just loves being with them. Soon...hopefully by the end of the month...Ben will be able to go home. Ben only has only one more chemo/stem cell treatment left. Then we wait for him to get sick and then recover. There are a few tests that need to be run and his blood counts need to be good before Ben can leave. Ben may not be able to see the light...but Mommy can!