It has been a while since I’ve posted a blog entry; sometime I think it’s a story that no one really wants to hear, let alone repeat.  But until this horrible disease is cured I will continue to shout to the roofs tops about the havoc pediatric cancer causes.  Brady was returned to Bristol-Myers Squibb Children’s Hospital (BMSC) for his next round of chemotherapy on December 1, 2009 and we had the pleasure of staying in the hospital through the Holiday Season.  I hope you will find the following journal entries of interest and as a reminder of just how blessed you are to share this time of the year with healthy children.

SUNDAY, DECEMBER 20, 2009 2:24 AM, EST

Weird thoughts at 2:00am – Funny how a snow storm effects people; super markets are busy with people stocking up on bread, milk and eggs.  I wonder where and why that started.  My wonderful Mother-in-law (Janice) (like so many people) gets a little panicky and really doesn’t like to drive in “it”, even though she drives a Lincoln Navigator SUV – the Sherman tank of SUV’s.  Here at the hospital, the nurses are all concerned about getting snowed in on the job because they cannot leave without their replacements showing up.  And for me it’s just another day.  I have never been a person who gets bothered too much by the weather.  It’s very pretty looking from our window as the snow continues to fall.  Bright, white and blizzard-like conditions are very cool to watch from the inside.

Tonight Brady was in a rather demanding mood.  He would not go to sleep for what seemed forever, finally around 10:00pm, out he went.  This was after almost 3 hours of walking around and around the pediatric hematology/oncology unit.  As I have mentioned, it takes approximately 63 steps to complete 1 lap and I think tonight we walked enough to ravel any merry-go-round.  Brady perched a high in his “mail cart” much like Don Quixote on his horse Rocinante and I his trustee manservant Sancho Panza chasing behind.  Around and around we traveled, Brady’s only interest was which “neighbor” would stop by to chat with him or if one of the nurses wanted to bite one of his feet or tickle him as he receives non-stop compliments about how adorable he is.  This is all going on as he sits with a very somber look as if he knows something you don’t.  Seriously it was a sight to behold and one I will cherish for a life time. 

Brady is without a doubt a very special child.  I am truly blessed to have him in my life and I plan to do everything possible to keep it this way.  Sherrie phoned me around 11:30pm to chat; she is very scared (about Brady) and I share her fear as I have never feared before.  Tuesday we will have a phone conference with the doctors from Sloan-Kettering to get a third opinion regarding bone marrow transplantation.  I think it’s fairly safe to say Sherrie and I are leaning towards including stem cell transplantation as part of Brady’s regiment, it’s becoming a choice of where and whether or not to include full body radiation.  We will BEAT this beast or should I say Brady will!  The conclusion of our story can have NO other ending.  For unlike the Man of La Mancha Brady’s windmills are real and must be destroyed. 

I have no idea where or why I am attempting to use The Man of La Mancha as a pseudo metaphorical comparison to Brady’s condition.  Like I said; “Weird thoughts at 2:00am”.  So, before I go further off the deep end l will call it a night.  Until next time; please keep Brady in your thoughts, prayers and hugs…