May 13, Day +17

Mark stayed with Hunter last night, and bright and early this morning we got the call that they had come to get Hunter for his PICC line.  We were shocked.  Since he wasn't on the schedule Friday, we figured they would work us in sometime later in the day.  We hurried up to the hospital, and by the time we arrived Hunter was back in his room with a PICC in his left arm.  Hunter was beaming he was so happy.  The doctor had to balloon out some scar tissue from his first central line that was put in before we began chemo, but was able to successfully insert the catheter in its place.  What an answer to prayers!

Hunter's left arm is quite sore.  Since Friday he's had two failed PICC attempts, at least 4 blood draws, and IV all weekend, and now his current PICC line all in one arm.  His right arm and hand are still a little bit swollen, but not anything like it was.  However, none of that is bothering him right now, because we're getting out of here tomorrow!  

 Shortly after, Mark packed up and headed back home.  It was such a blessing to have him here for the past 17 days.  His calming presence and steady attitude were just what we needed for a very scary couple of weeks.  I know that Chase is going to be ready to see him walk in the door at the dealership, Erin ready to get a hug from her dad, and four little boys ready to spend the night at G-Daddy's house.  Thanks Mark, for your strength and leading this family!  Before he left, he made sure the RV was clean from top to bottom.  Hunter learned how to be a good husband and father from one of the best.

 Hunter's tastebuds are way off, and not much sounds good.  One of the things he would love to eat is fresh fruit.  Most fruits and veggies are off limits because they could have harmful bacteria, but today he got to eat a banana.  I had to wash and remove the peel for him, but he was so happy to get to eat fruit!

   Also today we got delivered this beauty of a pill box and his discharge meds.  We look at the list and think, "Yay, only two new prescriptions."  I'm sure most are totally overwhelmed.  We also met with home health to go over how to administer his daily IV.  We've done those before too.  It will be a lot of responsibility for Jana and I to take over his care, but we are ready to move on to the next phase of our recovery.  We will miss and always remember the smiling faces of several of the people on our bmt floor who walked Hunter through some very tough days.  

Today they drew blood for two very import tests.  One is to determine the DNA makeup of his new blood.  Please pray with us that the test comes back with donor cells that will fight and kill bacteria.  The other test is to check the function of his white blood cells.  Before, he would have failed this test miserably.  It will be a huge relief to hear that he can finally take care of infection!  Both of these take several days, so we will have lots of time to talk to God about them!  We, along with our doctors,  feel certain that we have strong donor cells building in Hunter, but it will be a big celebration when we hear what the Lord had done for Hunter.