Hair

My hair is growing back! As of Wednesday I stopped shaving my head because Biz is done with chemotherapy and she and Deb are home. A summary of Biz's chemo experience was captured in the words of a friend who said, "for such a tiny, little girl I don't think I've met anyone tougher."
Deb and Biz arrived home on Tuesday, earlier than expected (while we were in the middle of house cleaning). Biz and I made a brief return trip to Children's Hospital on Thursday for an infusion of platelettes, but aside from that everything seems to be going according to plan. We'll all be glad when Lydia gets home from her missions trip and we can be together again as a family (and maybe get some vacation time).
My hair's off to Biz, to Deb, and to anyone else who reads this and has gone through such an experience. To the rest, I say: Grow close to Jesus Christ. Your time of testing will come, and you want to be as prepared as possible. You need a reservoir of trust in his love, sovereignty, wisdom, and goodness. These are not things you want to learn in the process, and everyone will go through such times.
Thanks to everyone who has kept up with the blog and prayed, to all those who sent hats and other items of encouragement, to all those who cooked meals for me and the other kids, and to all those who filled in where I was unable. The Lord used you in answer to our prayers for strength and comfort.

Biz is done...sort of

Biz has officially completed her final round of chemotherapy!!! She and Deb met with the Dr. Johnson today and Dr. Johnson said Biz could continue if she wanted to, but there's no evidence that 6 rounds are better than 4 and the typical trimodal treatment process (surgery, radiation, chemotherapy) includes 2 to 4 rounds of chemo. She also said Biz's input was important, and Biz's input was "I'm done." So we're done. Sort of. We still have to wait for her blood cell count to come up. And, she'll need another biopsy, a kidney test, a hearing test, an MRI, and a CT scan--among other things. These will all be done after a week or two and then we'll settle into the routine of regular check-ups and scans. But that's small stuff, comparatively speaking. For tonight, Deb and Biz are thinking of something they can do to celebrate.
Praise the Lord.

Where's that finish line?

All of me wants to have typed "Biz is done with chemo" on Sunday, but we've had an anticlimactic end--we hope--with the lingering prospects. Oh well, we'll celebrate eventually, and we'll find out more in a couple of days. In the meantime, Biz and Deb are at the Silverstein's house in Seattle and Biz feels well. She and Deb met with an eye surgeon today about some reconstructive issues and they were really encouraged. Nobody wants more hospital time, least of all Biz, but we're glad to hear about the options. We'll see where things head from here. Needless to say, even post-chemo is not simple--but it's better. Thank you, Lord, for care and strength and guidance and perseverence.

Another who needs the Lord

Children's Hospital is both the most wonderful and the most terrible place to be--wonderful because of the care one receives and terrible because of the sad struggles that many families are facing. Deb called and asked us to pray for Sherrice and her little baby, Felix. Deb and Biz met them during Biz's second round of chemo. While the hematology/oncology wing is being upgraded, patients must share a room. Biz shared one with Felix, a 4 month old whose liver had stopped working. At the time they met, Felix was crying constantly from pain and his stomach was distended. Today (6 weeks later) he's in ICU on life support. The doctors cannot figure out what's happening. Sherrice just had a meeting with the doctors to "discuss her options." Without a miracle, Felix doesn't look like he's going to make it.
Sherrice, a mother of two, is 19 years old and alone in this. She has no husband to help shoulder the load. Please pray that she would have a relationship with the Living God through Jesus Christ. He can save her and he can help her. He can also save Felix, because what is needed is a miracle. It's times like this that we're reminded that we are dependent upon the Lord. Doctors are wonderful, but they are not God. Sherrice and Felix, like Biz and the rest of the Daniels, need the Lord.

Final Round?

Some rather disconcerting news, about which we seek your prayers: today Deb and Biz met with a nurse practitioner because Dr. Johnson was away on vacation. The nurse practitioner was under the impression, because of an earlier conversation with Dr. Johnson, that there will be yet another round of chemo after this one.
Obviously, this is not what Biz (or any of us) wants. As it says in Proverbs 13:12, "Hope deferred makes the heart sick, but a longing fulfilled is a tree of life." The longing is to be done with it all. On the other hand, we want to be certain that Biz receives all the treatment that she needs. Better one more round now than many later. Please pray for our and the doctor's wisdom in this matter. Our greatest wish is that it be just a misunderstanding on the NP's part.
So, Biz has begun round 4 (hopefully the last) and needs your prayers. Please pray for (actually against) her nausea and any other harmful effects. So far she's doing great--all tests have been excellent. She's also been very upbeat, if not a little too active. The Lord is good, so he's good to Biz. We'll wait and see what's in his plan.