Some of you know most of the following from our Facebook update but I will repeat for those who aren’t on FB and add new information (I temporarily lost use of this website yesterday. Thus, the delay in a full update):

Maggie was admitted through the ER Wednesday and confirmed to have her third round of C-Diff, a bacterial infection of the gut that is, in one word, nasty. It’s caused by weakened gut immunity brought about by antibiotic use and chemo and the presence of a bad bacteria. She had a double whammy of this last week due to her UTI treatment and her second Folfiri chemo infusion. She was “seriously” dehydrated – her heart rate was near 170 in the clinic at Bellevue, so our family doctor sent us on our way to UMMC. She was moved to 3C at Baston  (the children’s cancer floor) for fluids and treatment for C-Diff – vancomycin (oral) and flagyl (IV). This morning, Thursday, her blood work shows a complete turnaround from the dehydration without any kidney problems. She’s continuing to rest here with IV fluids and meds. She’s not eaten since Tuesday when she had part of a protein shake and an orange. So, we’re praying for her system to calm down enough to allow for intake. She also needs to sleep!

We have had a bit of good news on the creature comfort front and restoration of “the way it should be”. I shared this on Facebook and I’ll repeat due to the immense joy it brought to us (a slight exaggeration for dramatic effect).

This silver lining moment brought to you by blue antimicrobial vinyl and nursing management at Batson.

#1 – The long-awaited sleeper sofas arrived 10 days ahead of schedule, and I’m here to lay down the inaugural layer of germs, which won’t matter because of the antimicrobial finish on these beauties. It really was a magical moment to see the old, red chairs get wheeled out and the new sofa wheeled in its place. Someone, I won’t say who (may or may not be a nurse), suggested it would be fun to hurl “big red” out the window. I think a silent salute would be more fitting as they have served as well through countless admissions. The photo above is of the newest addition to room C364. 

#2 – We mentioned a month or so back that Maggie had “aged out” of admission to the Children’s ER per a new policy even though she is an active patient at the Children’s Cancer Clinic. This was more than an inconvenience. It has potential ramifications related to properly accessing ports and close adherence to protocols established at the CCC. Well, the right people were made aware of the situation due to non protocol handling of Maggie’s IV access. We’ve been informed that Maggie will now be admitted to Children’s ER. We are tremendously thankful for this development.

Due to these two blessings, I almost feel the need to jot a thank you note, ala Jimmy Fallon: (cue the music):

Thank you, C-Diff, for placing not one but two silver linings in the midst of…………. (and I’ll stop there for those of weak stomach)

We do have to look for humor and good in unlikely places, don’t we? The best news today is that Maggie’s counts indicating serious dehydration have completely turned around and she continues to slowly improve. This should not delay her scheduled chemo infusion Monday, as far as we know right now.

Another bright spot: the return of Leaf by Leaf website to full working order. My tech people are amazing and did a great job restoring my access to what is undoubtedly a seriously neglected (as far as the inner workings) site. I haven’t thought enough of updating plugins, cleaning caches, etc. because of my time updating our loyal followers and cleaning real things. But I’ll stick with my priorities and keep good techies around. Thank you for your prayers. I’ll continue to update as our girl improves.