Happy Easter...

I hope everyone had a nice Easter. All my family that lives nearby came to our house today. It is the first time we have all been together in ages. Michael was so excited about having a "party" but unfortunately this was one of his worst days since starting chemo. He started throwing up before he was even out of bed. We gave him some anti-nausea medicine and his stomach settled down a bit.

He was finally able to get up and see what the Easter Bunny brought him. Michael got a dump truck shaped Easter basket full of candy (of which he hasn't eaten one piece), an egg shaped doodle board, a stuffed lamb and a stuffed bunny. Then he searched for hidden eggs (in the house since the ground is still covered with snow). In those, he found a couple of little Lego sets, some Bob the Builder toys, some marshmallow candies and a couple of dollars. And from Mommy and Daddy he got two new Thomas the Train engines. Michael also went to visit Jeff's Mom yesterday and got an Easter basket and some presents from her.

After checking out his Easter treats, Michael was sick again. We sat in his room together and both took a little nap (or at least I did). We've had some pretty restless and sleepless nights for the last week and a half. Hopefully after next week's treatment, things will get better. They say this first 10 weeks is the hardest.

My Dad came out around 11am to visit with Jenny for a while before dinner. Then just before 1pm my sister, brother-in-law and their family came. And finally Brian and one of his roommates, Matt, arrived. (Here is my Dad with the youngest member of our family, his great-grandson, Aiden). While we were eating dinner, Michael started not feeling well again. He didn't touch anything on his plate and then asked to lay down. We took his temperature and he had a low grade fever like the last couple of Sundays. So I took him to his room and put in a movie for him. He laid down on his bed and quickly fell asleep. He slept for a couple of hours and woke up while everyone was leaving. Before the other kids left (my niece's kids) we hid some candy filled eggs I had bought and had an Easter egg hunt.

After everyone was gone, Michael was really out of sorts. We tried again to get him to eat with no success. He laid down on the couch and almost immediately was sick to his stomach. So, we gave him some more Zofran. Then, he and I sat in his rocking chair and watched the "Little Mermaid". After about an hour, the anti-nausea medicine started working and he had a couple of popsicles. And finally, he asked for a bagel with cream cheese "clumped up on it". He ate half the bagel and most of a banana. And that's about all he's eaten for the day. And yesterday wasn't much better. He is getting very thin. I don't think he has lost much weight but he has gotten taller so he is definitely thinner. Jeff and I agreed tonight that his hair is getting a little thinner.

Michael said tonight that he had a nice Easter but I wish it could have been better for him. He did enjoy his time with his big sister as always (here they are enjoying a book together). And he got to talk to both his Aunt Denise and Aunt Debbie (Jeff's sisters) on the phone tonight. I will let you know how he feels in the next couple of days. Keep Michael in his thoughts and prayers, JoAnne