Day +53.....Baby D is feeling better!

Hello all!! I am overjoyed to tell you that we have a very smiley.....and close to healthy 6 1/2 month old! These past few days, he has been a different boy. We are hoping and praying that this change is here to stay!! It's almost like he did a complete turn around in one day. He is smiling, he has a different cry, and.....he is throwing temper tantrums!! YAYAYAY!! I know that may sound like something strange to be excited about, but we are!! It's normal! And normal is what we want :) There is no denying that this little guy is spoiled.....but what else could we do?! He gets frustrated when you are not holding him, and he wants his own way......he is a normal, selfish baby :) And this baby is now showing his tough side. He has found that he has muscles and is starting to use them. He now loves to arch his back, and is kicking a lot more often and is trying to move in any way he can. Well, now when he is in his car seat, and does not want to be in there, he tries to arch his back and holds his breath.....it's actually quite funny! I would never think that I would be happy to see my child throw a fit....BUT I AM!! Of course we will be working on these things as the days go on, but we are excited to see the changes. HE HAS BEEN SO SMILEY and has even started to laugh again.....I almost started crying the first time he laughed again! We are excited to see the daily changes in Baby D and it has made life in Tucson so much more fun!! He even slept for 6 hours straight last night.....we will see what happens tonight (it may be too good to be true). He is working on his neck muscles again also. He is still a little bobble head, but is slowly gaining back control. The crying fits have subsided and are hopefully a thing of the past! He has gone 3+ weeks WITHOUT blood and platelets transfusions--he has gone 4+ weeks WITHOUT throwing up--and he is on his way to being a perfectly healthy boy!! We are sooooooooooooooooooooooo excited to see what the results of his grafting tests are next week! D is also starting to grow back some of his hair-eyebrows-and eyelashes! I thought his face was dirty the other day and I was trying to wipe his eyebrows, only to find out that the "dirt" WAS his eyebrows! HA! He is growing back DARK BLACK eyebrows and eyelashes! Who would have known? The chemo and some of the anti-rejection meds he is on can make his hair grow back darker, so we will see what grows in the next few months!

To think that 5 months ago, the doctors told us that he had a 20% chance of surviving this aggressive disease.....WOW....God is AMAZING!! Look at him now.....look at what God has done in his little body! We are blessed beyond measure and are so excited to continue on this road to recovery. We are now getting to the point where we can go to clinic every other day. Today was a day off....so nice!! I still have to give him his morning meds at home, but it is much better than hanging out in clinic! He is still on a lot of meds and most of them are through IV. Eventually, they will all go to oral meds, but we are still a month or two away from that. Dr. G says that if all continues to go well, then we may be able to go home-home (to Surprise) by the end of the month!!! What a great Thanksgiving this could be!! We all have so much to be thankful for......and I will NEVER take life for granted....NEVER AGAIN!!

Well, I better get off to finish the rest of our nightly routine. Bath time, and then dressing change....and then hopefully bedtime!! My favorite!!

Please pray that Dylan's body continues to heal from the inside out, and that his counts continue to go up. Please pray that Erik and I can stay strong over this next month until we finally get to be together as a family again. WE ARE SOOOOO EXCITED TO GO HOME!! We will still have to come to Tucson 2x a week....but that is OK with me! :)