Yeah!

Day 3 in the hospital has been a good one. Tate has not had a fever today at all, and his ANC is up to 9. The doctor said he can go home when he has not had a fever for 48 hours and his ANC is 200 and climbing. There is no accurate way to predict how long it will take for his ANC to increase to the required number.

Tate has been awake much of the day, playing games on his phone and exploring Reddit. He got a new high score on Tetris today, and I heard him laugh softly a few times while looking at his phone. This is a marked improvement from yesterday when we sat in a dark room all day because his headache was too bad to turn on any lights.

Tate has some abdominal pain the doctor wants to explore further. He ordered tests to assess Tate’s pancreas function, but we do not have the results yet. We expect an update on this during rounds tomorrow morning.

The doctors feel the last course of steroids Tate was prescribed is what caused his cortisol levels to drop, and they anticipate his body will rebound and begin to produce enough cortisol with time. In the meantime, he has been given several doses of hydrocortisone. Currently there is not a looming concern that his adrenal system is in danger, but he will be tested in the future to make sure of it.

Phoenix Children’s Hospital’s main campus is thoughtfully designed. I always appreciate the colors, the art, and the effort put into making it a welcoming place for children and adults.

From Tate’s room we can see the HOPE sign on the roof of the ambulatory building. It lights up at night and constantly changes from red to yellow to green to blue to purple. In the first few nights after Tate’s diagnosis I looked at this sign often, feeling broken, watching one color fade into the next. I love this sign. It is a literal beacon of hope calling out to frightened, anxious parents whose children’s futures are suddenly unclear and patients with life-changing diagnoses.

Scott has been visiting Tate as often as his schedule allows. He stayed the night at the hospital last night and stopped by after work today. Scott drew a picture to help cheer up the room.

A big thank you to Jennifer and Keirsten for delivering us delicious lunches!

Tate is enjoying the pictures people have been sending to his digital picture frame. There are a lot of smiling faces and cute dogs! Scott has made the weirdest contributions (of course).