Days +106-107: a houseful of kids

Well, Mina Brigitta's funk only lasted a day. She woke up in a seemingly good mood on Monday morning, and she had a lot of fun with Amber while Keri worked on a paper. Today we had a house full of people, as Teri's sister-in-law Lisa was here with her kids Bailey and Jack and mother Linda. They were visiting Lisa's grandfather in Sacramento, and drove the three hours into San Francisco just to see Mina Brigitta. Bailey is ten and Jack is probably six by now, and they've been praying for Mina Brigitta and sending really nice drawings and care packages for months now, so they were looking forward to seeing her in person. They remember her from her visits to Washington, too. Melissa also came over with her daughter Bliss, who is four. So there was a houseful of kids.

Keri said Mina Brigitta was in one of her solemn moods, but she had a good time playing with the kids. She was so tired tonight she went to bed at 7:30. She seems to take a day to recover from days like this, so she'll probably be tired tomorrow, which is unfortunate because she has a clinic appointment first thing in the morning. But she needs and likes the interaction with other kids, and it was so nice of Lisa and Linda to drive all this way to see our girl.

Mina Brigitta definitely has some new bumps on her legs. We thought they may be going away, but instead they seem to have become a little more prominent over the last few days. They're not red, and you have to look at the right angle to see them, but you can feel them when you rub your hand over them. We'll see what they say tomorrow, but it may be the first sign of chronic GVHD. The bumps themselves are of no consequence; the worry is what they might portend. Her gut seems to be holding steady, though. Her poops have mostly been fine, and she's continued to have an appetite. We're really hoping the c. diff. is gone, because the gancyclovir she's getting now for the CMV causes her blood counts to drop, which makes her more vulnerable to infection.