Road Trip!

Last week we got to do the coolest thing – we piled into the Nissan and drove to San Diego to visit my sister and her people. We haven’t gone anywhere as a family for three years! Tate’s 2018 Leukemia diagnosis brought regular life to an abrupt stop, and I cannot tell you how good it felt to do something so normal. The last time we tried to go somewhere was right around the COVID lock down, and the time before that Tate spiked a fever and ended up in the ER instead. This trip meant a lot.

It’s already so hot in the Phoenix area that we weren’t prepared for chilly San Diego weather. As soon as we got there Tate realized his head was going to be too cold, and my sister pulled out the warmest, most hilarious hat for him to wear. Tate spent the weekend in a bright orange, faux fur-lined hunting cap that she and Ron bought at a gas station somewhere in Idaho. This will never not be funny.

We got home Monday afternoon, and Tate’s chemotherapy appointment was Tuesday at 6:15am. He had a lumbar puncture with a dose of intrathecal Methotrexate and his usual monthly dose of Vincristine. I am proud to say that Tate made it through the back-to-back events without issue; he’s tired, but he didn’t fall apart. His blood work was really good, but he lost weight since his last appointment despite being on appetite stimulants. He was trying to explain to the doctor that he doesn’t like how the appetite stimulants make him feel because they increase his hunger, which is ideal, but once he starts eating he eats too much and then his stomach hurts. So to avoid the pain that comes with eating, he is fighting the effects of the appetite stimulants. Basically he would rather feel extra hungry than extra full. He’s being stubborn in the weirdest way. The doctor was part exasperated, part incredulous, part how do we even approach a problem like this? In the end, Tate committed to eating three scheduled meals per day whether he wants to or not, and the doctor set us up with a nutritionist. That poor nutritionist. She has no idea what she’s up against here. If Tate can’t (or won’t) keep his weight up, he agreed to increase the appetite stimulant dose after his next appointment.

Things are steady here, which is great. Tate ate a decent breakfast and a big lunch lunch, and he has plans to play games with his brother online tonight after dinner, so that ought to cheer him up. Nothing makes Tate feel better than hanging out with Scott.