Bad Mama

Jack fell off my bed this morning.  I was turned around for literally 5 seconds before I heard a crack (his head hitting my nightstand) and a thud (him hitting the thankfully carpeted floor).  He is OK.  Dr. McCain's office gave me a checklist of things to watch for today.  I'm only posting this because if it could happen to me, it can happen to you.  Right before I turned around I heard that little voice in my head saying "you might not want to do this".  That voice has served me well, especially in college.  Next time I'll be sure to listen up.

On a better note, Sam is back to work today.  He spent the week resting up and visiting doctors for follow up tests.  His next round of chemo is scheduled for Monday and Tuesday of next week.  On Wednesday we'll be traveling up to Shands in Gainesville to get things started for Sam's stem cell transplant.  The whole transplant process seems a bit daunting, but it's always nice to have a reason to visit Gainesville in the fall. 

Goin' Into Labor Chicken Casserole

For my beautiful sorority sister Lauren (officially 1 day past her due date).  I ate this casserole the night my water broke.  It's worth a shot.

Goin' Into Labor Chicken Casserole

3 cups steamed broccoli, chopped
6 cup shredded chicken, cooked
2   (10 3/4 -ounce) cans condensed cream of mushroom soup
1 cup mayonnaise
1 cup sour cream
1 cup grated sharp cheddar cheese
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
1 1/2 teaspoons curry powder
salt and pepper, to taste
1/2 cup dry white wine
1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
1/2 cup soft bread crumbs
2 tablespoon butter, melted

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Spray 13x9 casserole dish with nonstick cooking spray and layer broccoli on bottom.  Top with shredded chicken.  In a medium bowl, combine the soup, mayonnaise, sour cream, cheddar cheese, lemon juice, curry powder, salt and pepper to taste, and wine.  Whisk together to make a sauce.  Pour the sauce over the broccoli and chicken.  Mix well with a spatula.
Pat down evenly and smooth with a spatula.  In a small mixing bowl, stir together the Parmesan cheese, bread crumbs and butter and sprinkle over the top.
Bake for about 30-45 minutes.

I don't have a picture of the casserole, but I do have one of Lauren.  Isn't she cute?  Love you twin.  You're going to be such a great mama.

Sam is Home

Sam was finally released from the hospital late this afternoon.  Jack was so excited to see his dad!  

Happy Game Day!

Sam's feeling better today.  For real this time.  I brought him a gator shirt from home to help make him feel a little more normal.  His doctors are concerned with his kidneys since some numbers came back "squirelly" so, of course, they're keeping him around for more tests.  They also told him that now would be a great time to go find a farm animal and an altar.

Happy game day Gator Nation!  And congratulations to Daniel and Molly who will be tying the knot later today.  We still can't believe we have to miss it.

  

*Friday Update*

Well, I suppose I spoke too soon.  Sam's temperature spiked up to 102 late this morning, followed by another terrible headache and more vomiting.  They took more blood cultures, and hopefully we'll have some answers this weekend.  His doctor said if all goes well the earliest he will be released is Sunday.  I'll keep you posted.

Doing Better

Sam has been taken out of isolation and most of the iv medicine has been stopped.  He looks so much better, and even had a few spoons of chicken noodle soup last night, though berry flavored Ensure still makes up a large part of his diet.  The doctors have mentioned a release date as early as Saturday. Thank you everyone for your emails, posts, messages and phone calls.  It means so much to hear from friends and family when you're confined to your hospital bed.

Sam's in the hospital

Sam was admitted into Indian River Medical Center early Tuesday morning.  He was vomiting and had a debilitating headache.  He was diagnosed with viral meningitis and shingles after a ct scan, some blood work and a spinal tap.  The doctors currently have him in an isolation room.  He is doing much better today.  Yesterday was terrible.  I've never seen my husband so sick.  For all you AGRs out there he likens it to the hangover from Founders' Day at Touchdown Terrace.  Times ten.  Don't worry about Jack and me.  We are healthy and doing well.  Just waiting for Sam to get better and come home.       

Jack's First Haircut

Sam sat for his first round of new treatment on Wednesday.  He's getting a gemcitabine, rituximab, oxaliplatin combination (GROC) that's administered in Dr. McGarry's office over the course of 9 hours.  This type of chemo involves less drugs but a higher dose of chemicals.  His large B-cell Hodgkin's lymphoma has transformed into a T-cell non-Hodgkin's lymphoma so hopefully this treatment will be more effective.  It was a very long day, but everything went well.  Sam has decided to work through it this time, taking off a couple days to recoup in between treatments.  He ended up getting that sales job, but in the end, decided to turn it down to focus on getting better.  It was definitely a huge disappointment, but we have faith that something else will come along.

Here's a little clip from Jack's first haircut.  Hope everyone has a great week.

    

Happy Game Day!

Go Gators!

Chemo- Take II

The results of Sam's final ct scan came back, and, unfortunately, were not what we were hoping for.  The cancer is still there, and some of the tumors have grown.  The chemo appears to have stopped working after the first few rounds.  We met with his doctor over at Moffitt yesterday where she explained what she thinks happened, how his type of lymphoma is a bit more complex than they initially thought, and laid out several new treatment options.  He'll be starting a new type of chemo soon which will be administered every 2 weeks, and will be more potent than the first one.  They hope to have him in remission after just two rounds, but will let him complete up to four rounds before switching gears to a new treatment.  Once he's in remission he'll then undergo an autologous stem cell transplant.

Obviously, this is not what we were wanting to hear, but we're thankful to still have so many treatment options.  All of this also coincides with a new job opportunity for Sam within Helena, which may have to be put on hold for a few months.  We'll continue to pray about it, and would like to thank everyone for being so incredibly supportive.

On a happier note, Jack is doing great!  At his recent 6 month check up he measured average in weight and was off the charts in length.  He's also almost crawling, and we've added avocados and roasted butternut squash to our list of favorite foods.