Delayed Intensification, Part 2

We're on week 2 of this phase of treatment. The week began with Aidan's regular appointment on Wednesday - blood tests, then waiting for the results, then seeing the doctor for a checkup. This time, Aidan got the first of his 4 injections after the visit with the doctor. We opted not to keep Aidan's port accessed this week because of the new swim spa we had delivered on Tuesday.

The plan for the swim spa was hatched early in the summer. I was worried about keeping the kids, especially Aidan, entertained all summer while we weren't able to go to many public places or see a lot of people. Plus our hot tub was leaking like a sieve, despite many repair attempts, and John's joints are wearing out from running. Also, Spokane summers last about 2.7895 days, so an outdoor pool isn't something we're ready to commit to.

The swim spa was delivered on Tuesday, while the other kids were at their first day of school. Unfortunately it took most of the day to install. By the time it was filled with water, we were eating dinner. There was no way for it to heat up before bedtime, so the kids were diving into the 56-degree swimming water and then jumping into the 74-degree hot tub to warm up. Pretty funny what kids will do if they really want to.

This morning after the kids left for school Aidan swam by himself while I showered and cleaned the house. Then we got ready to go the hospital for his injection. Getting ready consists of putting numbing cream on Aidan's port and putting a tegaderm over it, and taking Zofran to head off the nausea that the chemo will cause. 

The injection was a little bit more complicated than last week because we didn't leave Aidan accessed so the tubing wasn't already in place. But it still didn't take long to access his port and do the injection. Aidan wanted to eat lunch at Costco afterward. His blood counts are good enough that I felt comfortable taking him, so we went shopping and grabbed food at the food court to eat at home. (I'm not chancing the germs from eating on those tables.) While we were at Costco, an older woman approached Aidan and asked him if he's a cancer patient. I was so nervous that he'd get mad or embarrassed, but he nodded. She told him that she's a cancer survivor. She showed him her full head of hair and told him that his hair will come back and that he'll get through it. I was so touched that I gave her a hug and then she told us her story and asked about his treatment. While we were talking another woman, closer to my age, walked by and whispered to Aidan that she's a survivor as well and wished him luck. Aidan is such a private person and easily shuts down. I was pleasantly surprised with how well he reacted to the attention. He texted John from Costco to tell him about it.

In the checkout line, a little boy ahead of us couldn't stop staring at Aidan. He was too young to know better, and I tried to convince Aidan to let me explain his bald head, but he was too upset by it.