Life...

Today, Ben had another appointment in Iowa City for his low platelet count. Unfortunately the count is at 37000 today, so the doctor proposed we adjust the dosage of his bone marrow med and see if that does anything to help the count. He will have to have more blood work done in two weeks to see if the higher dosage is going to make any difference. Not the news we wanted to hear today. Nick had to take Ben to the appointment by himself since I am still stuck in bed or on the couch. I was able to be on the phone when the doctor gave us the bad news. It was hard to hear, but not as devastating as having Ben call me after that to tell me how frustrated and upset he was and to ask if I was crying... I know that all moms think this, but my kids are absolutely amazing... They both have had to deal with way too much in their short 12 years. Ben just keeps getting mentally stronger and he and Conner are both learning some pretty important life lessons right now!

In other news, Nana and Gramps had to leave us tonight to go back home. They stayed extra days to help out since my surgery didn't exactly go as smoothly as we had hoped. I definitely have a lot more pain and I grossly underestimated the emotional toll it would take. I am able to walk around and do more as the sharp pain fades into a swollen soreness that I anticipate will be with me for a while. We are so grateful to Nana and Gramps for spending these 5 days with us so that Nick could be with me and our kids could have some attention! Nick and I and the boys needed you, and you went above and beyond, so thank you!!! Also, thank you to Mama, Papa, Peg, Brian, and Nana and Gramps for the meals for our family. We appreciate the kind words, thoughts, and prayers offered up for us by everyone. These are trying times (as they say) and we feel blessed to have so much support around us! Nick is one extraordinary man. He has been very understanding and patient. He is juggling at least 30 different things and he is making all of us laugh and feel more optimistic through all of it. The nights are hard, as I cannot sleep, and I find myself feeling hopeless, but as I keep telling Ben, we will handle all of this. It might seem too hard, but every sleepless night is followed by a morning that we get back up, we dust ourselves off, and we try again...