Praise God for these quiet days at home.  Jeremy continues to be fever free and is eating better each day.

We had our clinic appointment yesterday.  Labs were drawn and we were told today that Jeremy’s CMV status is positive again, so we have to double up on the ganciclovir.  We’ll be giving it to him morning and evening, with his IV fluids in-between while he sleeps, so that he can be hep-locked throughout the day.

He’ll also need a platelet transfusion sometime soon.  Because of the holidays, getting him a transfusion is going to be tricky.  We’re trying to get in to clinic tomorrow for the transfusion.  There are patients pending who may cancel, so there’s a chance we might be able to squeeze in the schedule.  If we can’t get in to clinic, we will need to be admitted into the hospital again, but hopefully not overnight.  If we are able to get in to clinic, we’re going to try and get him the gcsf through his central line, so he won’t need to be poked with a needle.  Otherwise, he will get gcsf tomorrow at home and it will need to be an injection.  We’re praying that we can get into clinic so home can be a safe place for Jeremy, where he would never need to get poked with a needle.

Aside from physical recovery, we are also praying for Jeremy’s mental and emotional healing.  He’s been waking up from his naps in a panic and will almost always immediately start crying.  Where he used have lots of patience when problem solving with his toys, he is now easily frustrated.  He’s become very sensitive, but it’s hard to blame him considering he’s been in and will continue to be in such a sensitive situation.  It’s been difficult to see him in cry in his moments of panic or frustration.  There must be complicated and confusing emotions that he’s experiencing and it breaks our hearts to see him cry because he doesn’t have the ability to fully express and cope.

Outside of that, Jeremy has been enjoying home.  He has all the freedom he wants to run around and play.  He’s got low platelets, so we have to be a little more careful about his running, but thankfully he’s not that clumsy and still very surefooted, considering that he was mostly confined to a bed for the last 5 weeks.  He’s still laughing and singing and negotiating and it’s a joy to have him home.

Praise God:

• His presence continues to be a source of comfort and grace
• Jeremy is fever free
• Jeremy is eating
• Jeremy is doing well overall

Please pray:

• that God would continue to use this situation for His glory
• that we would be obedient to God’s plans for this situation
• that we would continue to cast our worries and fears on the Lord, that we would fix our eyes on Him
• that we would continue to be reminded of God’s greatness and provision, that we would wait on Him, and that we would not allow fear to creep in
• that we would rejoice in the moments that God gives us
• that God would provide full and complete healing and total health for Jeremy, that the bone marrow transplant would be Jeremy’s final cure
• that Jeremy would not develop any late effects from the chemotherapy and drugs used to treat him, especially any second cancers
• that Jeremy would not have any brain, liver, lung, kidney, pancreatic, heart, or any other type of organ damage as a result of the chemo and antibiotics
• that God would protect Jeremy from any scrapes or bumps as his new marrow is not producing enough platelets yet to avoid transfusions
• that Jeremy would not experience any spontaneous bleeding from his nose, central line, or anywhere else on his body
• that the CMV would be eliminated from his system, that the CMV would not infect Jeremy’s lungs or cause any issues with his eyes
• that Jeremy would not encounter infections for fevers while he is home
• for Jeremy’s mental and emotional healing from the traumas he’s endured for the last 5 months and whatever he will have to face in the future
• that Jeremy will be able to get in to clinic tomorrow so he won’t need to be admitted to the hospital and would be able to receive the gcsf through his central line
• that Alice and I would not get sick in order to care for our family
• that Matty would nurse easily and sleep well
• that Jeremy would maintain the desire to pray
• that God would give us the proper balance in caring for Jeremy and Matty

Please pray for the bone marrow transplant:

• that the donor cells would engraft, that Jeremy’s body would not reject the transplant
• that Jeremy would not encounter any graft vs. host disease, acute or chronic, especially anything severe or fatal
• that Jeremy would experience the maximum graft vs. leukemia effect, that cells produced by the new marrow would attack any cancerous cells
• that God would protect Jeremy’s skin, kidneys, liver, stomach, and intestines from both the donor cells and the medications used to treat and prevent gvhd
• that the mismatched blood type would not cause any issues for Jeremy

Please pray for our family and neighbors:

• for our neighbors in the bmt and oncology unit who are also enduring trials of their own, that they would find their comfort in Christ
• for our parents and families – that they would have rest and place their trust in Jesus and receive His comfort
• that we would be witnesses of God’s love and grace to our neighbors and the medical staff