The Shannon Family

Nick is great this week. Clinic was uneventful on Monday, which is good. For some reason Nicholas does not like the blood pressure machine. Everytime the nurse wrapped it around his arm, he would scream. He was worked up right before they accessed his port and squirmed a bit, but the clinic nurses are wonderful and accessed it on the first try. His blood counts came back great and he will go to school tomorrow. Colby came with us on Monday and he was great. He tells us how he is scared when they access Nick's port, so he stayed in the playroom and played PS games. Nick had another shot, screamed and then was over it. We keep going forward and continue to hope he will not have an allergic reaction to these shots. (we have been told that around 40% of kids have an allergic reaction at any point). Just some background, the shot is a protein blocker and blocks the growth of leukemic cells. It is very effective and has increased the survival rate tremendously. There is always a backup plan if an allergic reaction happens, but we are trying to make it through this phase. We hope everyone enjoys the boys portrait. We did not plan on this, but I was taking Thomas for his 6 month pictures and the boys insisted on being part of it. I was a little freaked out, bringing Nick to Target and worrying about all the germs. I kept the purell in my hand the whole time and Greg whisked them away to the car as soon as we were finished. I am sure I looked like a basket case by the end.... the pictures show how awesome they are.

The Shannon Family - We keep Nick busy

What a week for Nick. We definitely keep him going when he is feeling well. As you read, he went to school on Wednesday and had a blast. On Friday, he had a playdate with Michael. They took a tour of the new Franklin Fire Station. Nick and Mike were able to sit in the fire truck, slide down the pole and chill in their leather seats. He really enjoyed his time and even sung to the firefighters... 'fire, fire, fire....hear the people shout, where are the fireman to put the fire out.....' From there, they were invited to check out the new tumbles gym opening in Franklin next week. We try as hard as we can to include Colby in the extra events Nick is able to do. I decided to take Colby out of school for the half day, so the boys could play together. I was so glad to make that decision.... Colby had a wonderful time and received the extra attention he does not always get. We did not end the day there, we brought Michael home with us and the Love Family came over for dinner. Nick was definitely tired by the end of the day, but he had so much fun..... how can you stop him. Yesterday we headed over to Auntie Lisa's for a going away party for cousin Rachel. Nick chilled all day in her study watching TV and barking his orders again. I think he just needed a day to re-cooperate and relax. Everyone else enjoyed the day ice skating and eating yummy food. Tomorrow we will go to clinic and hope for another great week.