11/05/2009
by Michael Wells It’s early Thursday morning or late Wednesday night whichever you prefer. Brady my Baby Bear is finally sleeping. He having a bit of a rough time; his temp hit 102.4 and this got me a bit nervous. I came so close to yelling at the nurses to stop watching the blankety-blankety Yankee game and take care of my son. When the doctor finally arrived, I told him I don’t want Brady in any pain and he told me he wanted to wait to see how the Tylenol he gave him worked before adding any additional drugs. All the time Brady is crying and I’m about to go a little nuts. I’m at my wits end not being able to calm Brady down as he’s crying and pointing across the room to our little food cabinet. I try a bottle of milk – no success, I try water – no success, I then try saltine crackers and to my utter amazement Brady quiets down. He sits in his crib eating 3 packages of saltine crackers mixed in with a few sips of water from my bottle of Poland Spring not his baby bottle. Next he starts pointing to the cabinet again and this time it’s dried fruit. I bring him this big jar of dried fruit that Jennifer and Stephen gave me over the weekend and Brady digs right in and starts eating. First a dried apricot next a dried mango and finally a dried pineapple, I know he would still be eating had I not taken the jar away. We topped this adventure off with a couple of lapses (walking) around the ward and Brady is finally sleeping soundly with a temperature of 99.0. Now it’s after 1:00am and I can’t sleep maybe I should have some crackers? Instead I’ve posted some new photos I think everyone will enjoy. So, until next time; Please keep Brady in your thoughts, prayers, hugs and think of him the next time you’re enjoying a saltine cracker. Good Night!!!At the fear of sounding repetitive; Brady had a rough day. His white blood count is now down to 0.4 which I am told is a good sign. My Baby Bear is fighting off gram-cocci in chains infection or Streptococcus. Today he has had diarrhea, temperatures running from 102 to 99. He has received transfusions of both platelets and whole blood and a bunch of antibiotics. He has lost his appetite; his beautiful blond hair is falling out in clumps and he is teething. To say the least; Brady had a day he would most probably never want to repeat. Sherrie is spending the night at the hospital and I just spoke with her and thank goodness Brady is sleeping. Please let him sleep through the night. Sherrie looked tired when I left and she needs to get some rest. I hope she is in bed already. I am going to make this a short entry because I too am bushed. So, until next time; Please keep Brady in your thoughts, prayers and hugs…
“8 Years Later—Still No Cure for Pediatric Cancer” is a series of posts revisiting the journal kept by Sherrie and Michael Wells during the cancer diagnosis and treatment of their son, Brady Michael. Hopefully these entires will provide an understanding of the journey families face when dealing with these horrific diseases and of the important work the Hugs for Brady Foundation does.