Getting throuh this

Emily was hydrated enough to start the methotrexate at 11pm last night. She doens't need to be awake to start the chemo, it just hangs in a bag on the IV pole, and drips for 24 hours. She will be complete tonight at 11 and they will take the first reading of her level, which will be very high.

Emily is feeling the effects of the chemo more this round, both physically and emotionally. She has thrown up on the prior two high dose methotrexate treatments, but much closer to the end of their infusion, this time she had already thrown up 3 times before dinner. They are on top of it, and giving her all the medication they can to help make it better. At least at 11 she will start saline hydration and will feel better by morning. She is also more "down" than we've seen her in a while.

Our really frustruating news is we lost the private room. grrrrrrr. Tracy and I were probably the most upset, because that means we lost our day bed and are back to having to sleep in a chair. We are in the exact same room as last stay. They made it sound like we were going to have the private room the whole time, but I think back at what a Dr. told me on the third day of this whole ordeal, "nothing is %100 in the hospital", and once again that phrase rings true. Since it's chemo, a chemo ceritified nurse needs to care for her, and they were short staffed for Emily to have a chemo nurse on a non-cancer floor, and a bed opened up on 1-North, so we're back "home".

Tonight my Mom came and sat with Emily while Tracy, Haley and I went to dinner at our friends the Smith's. I have been friends with Mike and Lyn since high school and it was great to get together. They live right near the hosptial so getting over there was easy and quick. Mike is a cancer survivor too, which has been very inspirational to us through Emily's illness. Seeing first hand that cancer can have a happy ending makes up for a lot we have seen and been through.