May. 10, 2007 - A Sad Time

I remember where I was when I found out the Challenger had blown up.

Fourth Grade - lunch room. A teacher walks up to the teacher's table and says something in a low, hurried voice. Murmurs run round the table and tears start to mingle with shocked expressions. Later the whole school takes a break from the Three R's and watches the news.

My grandfather had an "I remember where I was when..." story about Pearl Harbor. My parents, about the assination of JFK. There's a country song that asks of the listener, "Where were you when the world stopped turning that September day?" It's been nearly six years and they still play it on the radio. It will be 60 years and I will still know my answer to that question.

I had called my husband at work just to say hi. He told me that a plane had crashed into the World Trade Center in New York. I remember thinking how awful that was for those people - on the plane and in the building. We didn't have cable so I decided to listen to the radio to get more details. Through the static, the events unfolded to my ears. Hijacking... terrorists... intentional crash... two planes...

That week we were taking care of our neighbor's house and feeding their dog while they were on vacation.  I scooped up my 21-month-old daughter and went. To feed the dog and to watch their television. I watched the replays of the planes crashing and the coverage of the damage done to the Pentagon from yet another plane. I watched LIVE! as the towers came down.  I could not stop my tears.  And I couldn't explain them to my worried daughter.

The next day my husband and I met with the Pediatric Hematologist to discuss how we were going to keep my baby's platelet count at a safe level during my pregnancy. Just down the hall, children undergoing chemotherapy sat with their parents watching the continuous new coverage on the televisions.


September 17, 2001
Letter # 3 - God Bless America

Dear Friends and Family,

I report to you this week with a heavy heart. The tragic events of September 11th have left us all with a variety of emotions we are still trying to sort through. The joy that we feel as we anticipate the new addition to our family is overshadowed by the grief of so many suffering the loss of loved ones. It's hard for us to imagine bringing a child into these uncertain times in our country's history. But we believe that God's grace is sufficient for whatever hardships we must face.  We rally our strength from His storehouses and try to prepare for whatever lies ahead.

Little children are like a renewal of hope in the midst of despair. The jets from the nearby Marine Corps Air Station have been training non-stop since the attacks. By their presence and the harsh reality of moment by moment news updates, we are constantly reminded of the seriousness of the situation. But our precious daughter is oblivious to what is going on. She runs to the door and triumphantly announces, "airplane, momma" when the jets fly over. When our faces are serious as we contemplate the latest information, she is quick to offer a hug and her beautiful smile before she returns to laugher-filled play. With all that is happening, I can still find joy in watching a toddler excitedly chase a cat or in hearing of a new birth. In doing so, I am reminded that this too shall pass. God willing, I will tell the story of September 11th to my grandchildren; the way our country met the challenge under the direction of great leadership and how difficult times slowly got better. I hope you will all join us in praying for God's mercy on America and wisdom for our leaders, especially President Bush. 

I reached the halfway point in my pregnancy on September 6th... it's going by so quickly. At my last doctor's appointment on September 12th, I was 130 1/2 pounds, brining my total weight gain to 14 1/2 pounds (2 1/2 pounds above my pre-pregnancy weight). On August 22nd, Russ and I took time out from our vacation in Myrtle Beach to drive to Charleston for a very in-depth ultrasound. The ultrasound was scheduled to take an hour but our little one was so cooperative that we were done in 20 minutes! According to the doctor, everything looked beautiful. The blood flow through the heart was perfect, the placenta was without defect, the brain and spinal cord looked just as they should and we saw five fingers on each hand and five toes on each foot.  It truly was an incredible experience. And... Victoria will have a baby brother!!  We were a bit nervous about having a boy because we are so used to taking care of a girl, but we really couldn't be happier.

After that doctor visit and ultrasound, I scheduled a consultation appointment with the Pediatric Hematologist who would be overseeing my treatments.  He explained the procedure to us and scheduled my first transfusion for Tuesday, September 18th. Basically, these treatments will be an all-day adventure. I arrive at MUSC at 9am each Tuesday, at which time they order the immunoglobulin from the pharmacy. It could take the pharmacy up to two hours to get it ready and they cannot start to prepare it until I walk in the door. Once the immunoglobulin arrives from the pharmacy, they will begin to transfuse it by IV, which takes about four hours. Before each transfusion they will give me Benedryl and Tylenol to counteract common side-effects like allergic reaction and headache. Since the immunoglobulin is a blood product, there is the extremly remote chance that I will be exposed to infected blood that slipped through the screening process. There is also a small chance that my body will not handle the immunoglobulin, making this course of treatment unusable. Please pray for my safety and the safety of our son during the next 18 weeks.

God Bless you all and God Bless America!

....up next - treatment begins