So sorry that I didn't get to post last night. I had a terrible night with Taylor.....she is refusing to go to bed and acting out like crazy. Last night she kicked, spit, hit and screamed for close to an hour. She refuses to let herself go to sleep and has gotten so overtired. She has not been to sleep before 9:30 this week. So....again tonight a very quick post. We are in bed watching TV until 7:00 and then it is lights out....she has just got to get some rest.

Her counts went up a tiny bit today. It looks like she is going to slowly start coming up. I am hoping for a miracle.......out of her by Sunday!!! All I can do is hope!!!

She is feeling ok....threw up dinner tonight but I think it is because she is so tired. So.....off to try to get her to bed.

Love,
Kristen

Quick post as I am trying to get Taylor to bed at a normal time tonight. Not much to report for today. Her counts are still at zero so we are still waiting........

Our friend Elijah returned today to start Bone Marrow Transplant (posted a picture of him with Taylor). Elijah will be the first Downs Syndrome child to receive a Bone Marrow Transplant at Phoenix Children's Hospital. As you can imagine, his parents are extremely stressed and scared. Please add Elijah to your prayers. He has 6 days of chemo and then he will start transplant. We pray for a safe, speedy transplant for Elijah.

Still trying to figure out how to balance things since Savannah is no longer able to visit. At least before, Taylor and I would see her for an hour or two a week. Now, I will only see her on the weekends and Taylor won't see her until we go home. We miss her so much already!!

That's all for tonight....have a great week.

Love,
Kristen

Hello again - I forgot to mention in my post earlier that another of Taylor's good friends, Kate, will be coming back into the hospital for another round of chemo on Tuesday. Taylor and I have become great friends with Holly and Kate. We are glad we will get to see you guys but so wish we could be meeting at the park instead of PCH!!! So, I do ask that all of you continue to pray for our dear friend, Kate....she is an amazing child!! Her Mom and I have had many good talks about "our crazy new lives!!!".

Please also pray for Aleeya. She is in her final round of chemotherapy. She has spiked a fever, so please pray that it is just a simple fever and nothing more!! We love you Aleeya and Athena.

Love,
Kristen

Hello all - hope you had a great weekend. I got back to the hospital this afternoon and Taylor is doing well. She is feeling good and enjoyed time with Grandma and Daddy this weekend. She has gotten another rash. We are not sure what this is from. I am hoping it is another side effect rash from the chemotherapy and not a viral rash??? She hasn't gotten a fever yet so we will see how the rash is tomorrow. Her blood levels have been at zero for 6 days....6 very long days but she is tolerating it well. I am thinking another couple weeks for this round????

I traveled up to Flagstaff on Saturday for Dawson's funeral. It was easily one of the hardest days of my life. His celebration of life was beautiful, inspirational, and sad. It was so amazing to see how many people were touched by Dawson. After hearing many stories, I truly understand how he got the nickname "Awesome Dawson!!" My heart continues to break for the Merrick family. I want to thank the Merrick's for allowing me to be part of their journey......I am just so devastated at how it ended.

Before going up on Saturday, I tried explaining to Taylor what had happened to Dawson. Obviously, she doesn't really understand (being only 3 1/2) but when I called her on Saturday to check in, she asked me "Mommy, did you see Dawson flying in the clouds?" I thought that was perfect......yes, Dawson is flying in the clouds and I truly believe he is going to watch over Taylor and help her get better. Taylor asking me this was very hard......

I really want to thank Mark for helping me through Saturday. I am so glad you were there.....

There is much more that I could say about Dawson but it is just so hard. Not only do I feel so much sadness for his family, but it really hits hard because of Taylor......please pray for Taylor and Dawson's family.

Love,
Kristen

Today was actually a good day for Taylor. She is at Day 3 of being at zero but seemed to feel well today. She and Aleeya played all day and had a good time. We continue to wait......she usually stays at zero for about 13 days so we have awhile ahead of us.

We did receive some disappointing news today. Phoenix Children Hospital will be closing to all children under the age of 12 at 5:00am on Saturday due to the upcoming respiratory/flu season. So....Savannah will not be able to visit any longer. We have decided to have her spend the day at the hospital with Taylor and I tomorrow because after that she probably won't see Taylor for 2 -3 weeks. I am so sad that my babies won't be able to see each other. I have tried explaining it to Taylor but she doesn't understand.

I will be enjoying watching Taylor and Savannah spend time together and then will be going home for the weekend. I am driving up to Flagstaff for Dawson Merrick's funeral on Saturday. I probably won't post again until I get back on Sunday night (unless there is a need.)

Have a great weekend.

Love,
Kristen

What a long day today was!!! Taylor had to get platelets...she was dangerously low. She actually needed them yesterday but they held off because the hospital did not have the exact match but because she was even lower today, they had to go ahead and transfuse with platelets that were not an exact match. The risk of not transfusing was that she could spontaneously start bleeding or have a bleed that would not stop. She also has bruises from head to toe and this is from her platelets being so low. So.....we went ahead and gave her the platelets that were not an exact match and things went well. There was a higher chance of reaction with these platelets but she was given Benadrly and Tylenol. All that matters was that she did fine. It is just scary knowing what could happen. She will most likely need a RBC transfusion tomorrow. Her blood counts are officially at zero today and you can tell. She is just cranky and not feeling well. She is in bed now watching a movie but probably won't go to sleep before 11:00 because she napped during her transfusion......it is going to be a long night!!!

Now we wait.....I am thinking we probably have about 3 more weeks this round!!! My cousin stopped by today and I ran to the store and it was pure heaven breathing fresh air!!! The days creep by in this place. Luckily the nurses are all so great and help pass the time.

Hope you are all doing well. Thank you for your continued prayers and support.

Love,
Kristen

Hello all - Today started as a great day for Taylor and ended with her not feeling very well. She didn't fall asleep until 10:30 last night but slept pretty well. She woke up very happy and enjoyed visits from Aunt Betty, Keryn, and Aunt Kerri. She loved all of the attention. She and Aleeya played for a couple of hours and then Taylor hit a wall. Her counts are at zero today and it caught up with her this afternoon. She fell asleep for about 45 minutes and woke up to Grandma and Savannah visiting. She tried really hard to play with Savannah but ended up laying in bed most of the visit. She didn't have much of an appetite tonight and is sound asleep already. She told me tonight that her belly, head, and legs all hurt. I think she if really feeling the effects of the chemo. She was supposed to get a platelet transfusion today but they didn't have the right type of platelets available so it will happen tomorrow instead.

Hopefully she will feel a little better tomorrow.....

Love,
Kristen

Quick post as it is has been a hectic day. Taylor was scheduled for her MRI for today at 9:30. At 4:30 she finally was taken down and the preliminary results show that there is NO evidence that the leukemia has spread to the brain. YEAH...best news ever. Finally we are getting good news!!!

We have had a long day and she is really nauseated from the anesthesia....will post more tomorrow.

Thanks,
Kristen

Hello all - I am back at the hospital with Taylor. She has had a great couple of days. She is feeling well, eating, and the rash is gone in her eyes. The doctors have decided to go ahead and do the CT scan on Taylor's brain tomorrow morning. Her left eye continues to be a tiny bit droopy and they want be safe and make sure the leukemia has not traveled to her brain. As you can imagine, I have had no sleep worrying about this. I talked to Taylor's RN last night and she helped to calm me down. They have all assured me that they really don't think it has moved to the brain, but just want to be sure. I am still beside myself with worry. Hopefully we will know something definitive tomorrow. Please pray for no leukemia in the brain.

Right now we are still waiting for Taylor's blood levels to get to zero. Today will be her last day of "freedom." Tomorrow she will be confined to her room for the duration of this visit. I am thinking this round is going to be extra long. Taylor hasn't even hit zero and she usually stays at zero for about 2 weeks. Then it takes about 1 1/2 weeks for her to go back up.....! We are already on Day 12 of this round.....it is going to be a long one!!

Many of you have emailed or texted about visiting Taylor. Yes, she is open to visitors again. Because respiratory and flu season are starting, they have asked us to be extra careful regarding exposure to Taylor. So.....for those of our friends at work (Takeda), the doctors are concerned about you being exposed to so many germs in the doctors offices. Moving forward, if you are planning to visit Taylor, you must change your work clothes and shoes before coming to see her. I know this sounds silly but there are so many germs on your clothes and shoes from the doctor offices. For our many friends that work at CBI, they have also asked for the same paramenters. If you could please change out of the clothes and shoes you wore to school before you come visit Taylor. I know this must sound absolutely crazy to all of you......and we are sorry for any inconvenience this causes you if you visit. We are just trying to be extra careful and keep Taylor infection free. If it makes any of you feel better, Sean and Savannah have to change before coming to see Taylor also. As in the first 2 rounds, we are not having any children visit Taylor.....too risky. We really do want to continue having you all visit and again apologize for the "craziness." We thank you in advance for sticking to the recommendations of Taylor's oncologists.

Finally, I am still so very sad about our friends Donn, Audra, and Delaney Merrick. We continue to pray for all of you. Dawson is missed every moment of every day.

Have a great week.
Love,
Kristen

Tonight my post has nothing to do with Taylor. Tonight it is with a very heavy heart that I ask for prayers for Dawson Merrick and his family. Dawson passed away today. Please pray for his family. Dawson fought a long hard battle with leukemia and continues to be an inspiration to my family.

Our thoughts and prayers go out to Donn, Audra,and Delaney.....we are so sorry for your loss.

Love,
Kristen

TGIF- hope you all had a great week. I wanted to provide a quick update regarding Taylor. Her eyes are much better and she was able to get out of her room and play today. She didn't have to wear sunglasses today and was able to tolerate light. The rash is still in her eyes but SO much better. The remaining problem is that her left eye is still not opening quite as much as her right eye. The doctors have decided to wait until Monday to do the CAT scan. I am trying to only think positive thoughts and hope it is still the rash affecting her and not anything else.......hoping, hoping, hoping!!!!

Taylor did have a better day....she is feeling better and that is all that matters!!!

I am off to my house for the weekend. Will post more when I get back.

Have a great weekend.
Love,
Kristen

Quick post - just received word that our friend Dawson Merrick is critical right now. Please place your prayers into over drive for Dawson. He and his family need all of our prayers and support.

Thanks,
Kristen

Hello all - what a long couple of days we have had but I finally think I can say that Taylor's eyes are getting better. They are still red and bother her but she has been able to go without her sunglasses for a few hours today. She had much more energy and played alot with her roommate. The only concern at this point is her left eye is not opening up as much as her right eye. I have noticed the difference for a couple of days but it was more pronounced today. They are considering doing a CAT scan tomorrow to make sure the leukemia hasn't affected her optic nerve. They don't think this is the problem but if it is not better tomorrow, we will move forward with the CAT. They think more than likely the rash is more settled in her left eye and it is harder for her to open....please pray that is the problem. I almost fell off my chair today when they mentioned the optic nerve and leukemia.....can this week get any worse????? I feel better tonight because her eyes are getting better......

I did the radiothon today and was much more emotional that I thought I would be. I spent most of the night thinking about all the things I wanted to say and didn't get any of them out. I think that each day is so busy with Taylor that I don't give myself much time to truly think about the severity of Taylor's situation. Today as I was in the cafeteria surrounded by the volunteers, it hit me that WOW this is truly my "new" life. More importantly, it hit me that again that my daughter has leukemia.......why Taylor? I ask myself this every day....why not me????? Anyway, today was really hard. I am glad that I did the radiothon and thank everyone who was able to donate to the hospital....thank you.

Taylor and Aleeya are having a great time playing in the room right now....I will post an adorable picture of them rocking in the chair together. Because she didn't get to bed until 10:30 last night, it is time to try to get her to bed....I need peace!!!

I wanted to quickly thank my cousin, Kerri. She showed up in the cafeteria today at 4:00 to watch the radiothon. During the interview when I started getting upset, she jumped over and held my hand and provided much needed support. Thank you Kerri....I love you!!!

Thank you all for your thoughts and prayers this week and always!!

Love,
Kristen

Hello all - wanted to quickly post as Taylor is taking a nap. After a long night (for me, Taylor slept all night, I could not sleep a wink!!) Taylor woke up feeling a little better. Her eyes are better but not normal. We are still on the 2nd floor and have not been moved to isolation. Taylor has always gotten a rash from one of her chemotherapy medications and they really think that this rash has hit her really hard this round. Normally Taylor gets the rash a few weeks after the chemo is done. This time she got the rash on Day 1 and it has been much worse. They now think the rash has moved into her eyes and that is what is causing her eyes to be so red and painful. As I mentioned, her eyes are better but still affected. She still can not tolerate any light so we either stay in her dark room or she wears sunglasses. Her nose is still running but it has not gotten worse. She is definitely not feeling great today but better than yesterday. She still wants me to either hold her or rock her all the time. She did get a small burst of energy and ran around the hall for a little bit. So.....we again wait and hope the rash goes away!!!!

Until the rash in her eyes is gone, we will not be having any outside visitors. It is just to risky to Taylor. Thank you all for your thoughts and prayers. Yesterday was so scary for me and so hard for Taylor because she felt so bad. Hoping tomorrow will be better. Taylor's counts are dropping each day and we will most likely be confined to the room by Friday...so much fun!!!

As long as Taylor is doing ok, I will still be going down to the cafeteria tomorrow at 4:20 for the radiothon. Please listen in if you can. It will be on KTAR (AM in Arizona) or you can listen in at www.ktar.com.

On a side note, please pray for our friends Dawson and Kate. Dawson received a 2nd round of bone marrow yesterday and is still in ICU. Kate is having a MRI today to determine if the chemo has helped her brain tumor. They desperately need our prayers.

Thanks,
Kristen

Well, I am not sure where to start. So much has happened in the last 24 hours. It all started last night while Taylor was getting her blood transfusion. During a transfusion, they check blood pressures every hour to make sure all is ok. Taylor had 3 really low pressures that were a little concerning. Then, her last bp came back up and she seemed fine. She slept pretty well but woke up feeling really sick. She threw up first thing this AM and started rubbing her eyes constantly. With in about an hour of waking, her eyes were extremely red, swollen, and the skin around her eyes was red and blotchy. She was screaming that her eyes hurt and didn't want any lights on. She also had a runny nose. She has been getting eye drops every 4 hours since last Wednesday because of one of the side effects of the chemo that she received is conjunctivitis. So.....they weren't really sure what was going on. Her eyes looked terrible and she was very uncomfortable. They gave her a dose of Benadrly around 11:00 to see if this would help. It did not. As the day continued her eyes got worse as did her runny nose. She would NOT let me put her down or let me out of her sight. We found a rocking chair and I rocked her for about 2 hours while she covered her face with a blanket. Around 3:30, they decided to give her a dose of Claritin (by mouth) to rule out possible allergies. She threw the medicine right up. So.....they got her a dose of Claritin in pill form and we crushed it and she took it in some yogurt. She kept that down but it really didn't seem to help.

They gave her another dose of Benadryl at 6:30 and it knocked her out. Her previous rash has now come back and is covering her face and body. At least she is sleeping.

The plan now in the morning is to move her to the 3rd floor into an isolation room. She will receive a nasal swab to test for 9 different viruses. She and I will stay in isolation until the virus test either grows something or doesn't grow something. If it does, she will be given the necessary treatment and if it doesn't show anything, we will hopefully be moved back to the 2nd floor (we would stay in isolation either way for a couple of days). Her eyes are really painful to even look at....you can just tell how much pain she is in. She can't even watch TV because the light hurts her too much.

The doctor has asked for no visitors until we get this all figured out. Because her body can't fight off any infections, we have to be extra careful right now. Unfortunately, Sean, Savannah, or Grandma are not even going to be able to visit until this is figured out.

So...please pray...this is very scary and she is not doing very well.

I will post more as I get more information. Thanks to Sheri for sending out a message to everyone today.

Love,
Kristen

IMPORTANT MESSAGE

Hi, it's Sheri. Kristen asked me to let everyone know that Taylor is NOT allowed to have ANY visitors until further notice. She will update us as to why in the next day or two. She didn't give me any details but just asked that I please post a "no visitors" update. Thanks!

Quick update....Taylor had a very "clingy" day and won't let me have a moment to do anything. She is currently getting a blood transfusion which should help her. She was really out of sorts today and just didn't feel great. Her rash continues to be annoying and itchy.

She did eat today...yeah!! We also changed rooms. Taylor and her roommate, Aleeya, are back in the "suite"....the big room on the floor...yeah, they were both happy about that.

No time now, will post more tomorrow...she wants me to lay with her....

Love,
Kristen

Hello all - Happy Sunday. I hope you had a great weekend. After a quick 24 hour break, I am back with Taylor. She seems to be feeling better tonight and actually ate an entire bagel for me. I brought it from home and wanted it "dry" but ate all of it. Her rash is much worse and is bothering her. She is itchy all over. She got Benadryl tonight for it but it doesn't seem to be working. They are checking right now to see what else she can have. She is covered in this chemo rash from head to toe. She even has it on her eyelids!! Poor baby!! Tomorrow is her last dose of chemo for this round...thank goodness!! Now the waiting begins....when will she get to zero, will she get a fever, will she get an infection, will she get mouth sores, etc. This stinks!!! All we can do is pray for an easy round.

I wanted to let all of you know that I have been asked to share Taylor's story during a live radio feed from the cafeteria at PCH on Thursday. Below, please find the information that I have received on the event:

• It is the ninth year for this radiothon fundraiser at Phoenix Children’s Hospital. There’s no better way to let our community know what a special place Phoenix Children’s is than through the eyes and experiences of our patients and families.
• Radiothon will broadcast live on KTAR’s 92.3 FM, 620 am, and stream live on their website at www.ktar.com
• I am scheduled at 4:20 pm on Thursday, September 17th.

If you are able and interested, please listen in. The radiothon will go all day on the 16th and 17th.

That's all for tonight...need to get her something else for the itching!!

Have a great week.

Love,

Kristen

Hello all - quick post as I am home for the night and going to try to relax before I go back tomorrow. Taylor ended up sleeping all night (except for being woken up every 4 hours for vitals!). She seemed to feel a little better this morning and said she was hungry. She at 2 bites of pancakes and refused any more. I finally got a Gogurt in her but that was all. She ate another Gogurt at lunch but would not eat anything else.

I talked with one of her doctors this morning and asked for a slight change in her Zofran (nausea medication). During the past 2 rounds it was given every 4 hours around the clock. For some reason this round, it is only give as one large dose, one time/day. I was thinking that maybe it isn't working as well this way because she is so nauseated. So....the Zofran is being changed back to the way it was. I hope this might make a difference and she might possibly eat a little better.

She enjoyed a visit from her good friend Maggie Siegel. Maggie is another leukemia patient that has come into our live....they are an amazing family and have helped us so much. Maggie is done with treatment and doing well. Maggie's mom, Leslie, has been great to me and helps me get through this horrible ordeal!!! I will post a picture of Taylor and Maggie riding in the wagon.

Grandma and Savannah came down and Grandma is staying with Taylor tonight. I enjoyed a couple of hours with Savannah and came home to a huge dose of reality. I signed Taylor up for the Make a Wish program and I received a letter today saying that Taylor has been accepted and will become a Wish Child. While this is great and Taylor will get an amazing wish granted, this is very bittersweet to me. This only reminds me that Taylor has a life threatening illness.....WOW!!! I don't mean this to sound ungrateful, I just never thought I would be participating in Make A Wish for my child. I am pretty sure that Taylor will "wish" for a trip to Disneyland and I am so excited that this might happen. I just "wish" that we were going to Disneyland for "other" reasons. This is just so hard.....

Going to try to catch up on mindless TV....will post again tomorrow night when I get back to PCH.

Quick side note....Toby - I read your post, please stop by the next time you are down visiting Leo....would love to meet you.

Thanks,
Kristen

TGIF - hope you have all had a great week. Last night didn't end very well. Taylor got very agitated and threw up a couple of times. She finally feel asleep around 11:00 and ended up sleeping fairly well. One of the chemotherapy drugs that she received can cause very bad conjunctivitis (pink eye) so she has to take eye drops preventatively. The only disadvantage of this is that the eye drops are given every 4 hours (2 drops in each eye) so she has to be woken up for them. Luckily they are timed with her vital signs so they do it all at the same time. Never the less, she hates getting them (I don't blame her!!).

She woke up early today and ate a good breakfast. She hasn't eaten well since we have gotten back to the hospital so I was very excited. Unfortunately, she has refused to take another bite of food since breakfast. The doses of her chemo are much larger and stronger than the previous rounds and they seem to be hitting her really hard. She complained of a headache so I tried giving her Tylenol around 6:00 pm and she started throwing up. She feel asleep at 6:30 and is still sleeping. I pray that she will sleep through the night...she is very tired. Her chemo rash has spread down to her legs and she looks fairly red. Almost all of her eye lashes have fallen out and her hair is almost all gone....she truly looks like a cancer patient.

I had another dose of reality tonight.....there was a "code" on the other side of Taylor's floor and the RN said that it doesn't look as if the child will make it.....WOW...that is alot to take in. It really reminds me how scary all of this is.

I have had the opportunity to make another new friend on Taylor's floor. A little boy named Leo Weber was admitted to PCH a couple of weeks ago with Stage 4 Lymphoma. He goes to the JCC for preschool and a bunch of our friends at the preschool know his family. I found them and his mom and I have become fast friends. Please add Leo and his family to your prayers.

Taylor did have one bit of happiness today. Her BFF at PCH, Aleeya, is back and we are now all roommates again. This is Aleeya's last round of treatment. Please pray for a good round for Aleeya.

Have a great weekend.

Love,
Kristen and Taylor

Only time for a quick post tonight. I was not able to get Taylor to bed until 1:30am last night....it was such a long day. She ended up vomiting quite a bit and had a terrible stomach ache. She woke up at 6:00am screaming that her stomach hurt and vomited all over me and her. She feel back asleep until about 9:30 and then had an OK day. She has already had 3 doses of her chemotherapy and will have her next dose at 10:00 tonight. Her face has a rash all over it and the rash is starting to move to her arm...this is most likely a side effect from the chemo. I just wasn't expecting it to start so soon! Her favorite day RN took care of her today so that made her day. She had to have her dressing changed and did very well with it.

Her roommate from last night moved out (yeah) of the room today and we are now in with a very sweet girl who is a year younger that Taylor....they are getting along very well. Her favorite night RN is taking care of her so she is doing everything she can to stay awake to see her!!! She is VERY tired and complaining that her stomach hurts again.....so much fun!!

The hardest part of today was her asking me over and over again "when can we go home....I don't want to stay here." I hate telling her that we will be here for weeks and weeks!!!

Have to run....she is looking extremely pale....think she might throw up!!

More tomorrow...

Love,
Kristen

Hello all - I never thought that I would be happy to be back in the hospital watching chemotherapy drip into Taylor, but I am!! Yes, she was admitted today and we have started Round 3 of her treatment. She had her 3rd bone marrow aspiration in 3 weeks today and her "blast" cells had recovered enough that she was able to start treatment.

We have had a really long day today. Her bone marrow aspiration was at 1:30. We got admitted to PCH around 5:30 and came up to her room. The roommate situation is less than ideal but we will hopefully change rooms tomorrow. Her roommate is a 15 year old boy who watches TV with the volume full blast. For some reason (they don't tell me for confidentiality reasons), Taylor is not allowed to use the bathroom in the room because he is using it. So....we have a bedside commode!! She is less than happy about that and hates using it. I am praying we do actually get moved tomorrow.

She has been throwing up for about 3 hours. The medication they gave her today for the bone marrow aspiration really made her sick this time. I also had them give her pain medication because her back always hurts so bad....that could be making her sick also. Welcome back!!! I finally have her settled down and she is watching TV (she has been awake since 6:30 am with no nap!!). So...it has been a really long day!!!

Her chemotherapy will go for 5 days this round. Most patients have a harder time with this round of treatment, but every child responds differently. Hopefully Taylor will do OK. She is already asking me "when do we get to go home???"

That is all for tonight....I am exhausted. Thank you all so much for your prayers these last 3 weeks. Please continue to pray that this round is not to terrible for Taylor.

Love,
Kristen

Hello all - yesterday was the start of Children's Cancer Month. Please see the astonishing statistics below:

Each school day, 46 children are diagnosed with cancer.
One in 330 children will develop cancer by age 20.
Each year in the U.S. over 12,600 children are diagnosed with cancer.
Although the 5 year survival rate is steadily increasing, one quarter of children diagnosed with cancer will die 5 years from the time of diagnosis.
Cancer remains the number one disease killer of America's children - more than Cystic Fibrosis, Muscular Dystrophy, Asthma and AIDS combined.
80% of children have metastatic disease at time of diagnosis as compared to only 20% of adults.
There are currently more than 270,000 childhood cancer survivors in the U.S.
Late effects of childhood cancer treatment are common in survivors, and approximately one-third are moderate to severe.

Please continue to pray for Taylor. Also, please pray for our good friends, Alleya Guerreva, Dawson Merrick, Elijah Rubio, and Kate Mackrae.

Love,

Kristen

Hello all - I wish that this post came with better news but wanted to clarify some information from yesterday. After talking to Taylor's clinic RN, I wanted to clarify the drop in her immature cells from greater than 8 to less than 6. Even though the numbers decreased, it is still a major set back. Because her immature cells are not maturing, it is pushing her entire treatment regimen back. What this means is that, there is a great opportunity for new leukemia cells to start producing while we are "waiting." The goal of treatment is to hit the leukemia cells extremely hard with very little time to recover. We are now 2 weeks behind and still don't know when Round 3 will start. Her next bone marrow aspiration is scheduled for next Wednesday at 1:30. If her "blast" cells are below 5, we will be admitted for Round 3. So.....even if we do get back to less than 5 percent it is not the ideal treatment time period.

I know this post is probably not what everyone wanted to hear because I think the majority of our friends are just focusing on the fact that Taylor went from 8 percent to less than 6 percent. Yes, she did drop but the time frame that she is dropping in is very concerning. I guess all we can do is continue to pray.....

Thank you for your support. Again, I wanted to thank all of friends (especially Tom Margie and Jessica Lilley) for their amazing dedication and hard work on the golf tournament.......we have amazing friends!!!

Love,
Kristen