Ma-Ma! Quick "Day -8" Update

Well, today is Day -8, meaning 8 more days until Gracie gets her new cells. :)

This is uncle Mack. I completely forgot to fill you all in on the speech, occupational, and physical therapy stuff! First off, how great is it that Sarah gets to learn and do all of these therapies that promote child development! She's having fun learning, and it'll be great for future babies! :)

In PT Gracie is learning to stand flat on her feet (she likes her tippy-toes), get up on her knees, and also go from a laying down to a sitting position on her own. She hasn't mastered all of these, but Sarah said she has really made progress.

When I left Minnesota, Gracie was almost clapping on her own. Now she can clap on command. She definitely understands what "no" means, and she has started to smile and shake her head "no" with a big grin on her face when mommy says no... Charming her mother to get her way. I have no idea where she learns these things. :) She's now learning to wave hello and bye bye. :)

Tonight when I was on the phone with Sarah, I heard Gracie yapping in the background as usual. :) Then I heard a very clear and intentional "Ma-Ma!" It was absolutely at the top of my list of the cutest things I've ever heard. Sarah said she's been saying that for a few days. Charmer that Gracie is, she says "ma-ma" all night until 3 AM because she doesn't want to go to sleep. Saying "ma-ma" makes mommy weak in the knees, so I have a feeling Gracie can do whatever she wants. :) Next we're working on some version of dada. :)

As far as how Gracie is doing, it sounds like she's doing great. I believe today is day 2 on Busulfan. She's tolerating it well, but she has lost some of her appetite. Also, clearly her sleep patterns are out of whack. I guess when you are in a room and don't go outside, the concepts of night and day sort of lose meaning. :) Weird, eh? She gets and infusion of Busulfan 4 times per day (every 6 hours), that sort of dictates her internal clock and rhythm.

Oh, Sarah also got to go outside for a bit today, which is great news. Sounds like Gracie did fine while mommy walked down to a coffee shop on the corner. Sarah said the weather is amazing right now, and she enjoyed getting out for a bit.

On the whole, Sarah sounded in much better spirits today. That is a relief for Uncle Mack. Gracie and Jimmy also sound like all is going well for now.

As always, thanks for checking up on Gracie. Gracie's whole family is so appreciative and lucky to have such a wonderful support group and community. Thanks for all of your prayers, comments and messages in the guestbook. Oh, and Sarah loved that her nurses from Shands signed the guestbook. She sais that she left your email addresses in Lake City on accident, and she's glad that you guys found her. :) Thanks again!