The Honeymoon Phase

This was the calmest week we've had in months.  The only time we really had to deal with medical issues was Annie's hospital appointment Thursday and she found that to be pretty, well, fun-ish.  Since it was mid-day, the hospital was kind of quiet.  The sun was shining off the fountain out front and, again, Annie found the whole thing lovely.  Going to the relatively empty transfusion area she was greeted by a flock of nurses who remembered her from five years ago.  All that fawning feels good.  They gave her a present from the toy room.

Then it was time for the poke and Annie dreamily said, "Wow, I didn't feel a thing." (Since it was the arm that was blue for five weeks from the blood infiltration, we had left it alone so I'm guessing her veins had healed nicely.)  They wrapped her arm/IV in a tape color she hadn't seen before. "The blue matches your eyes," said nurse Ginger.  Then, while waiting for the blood test results, we walked to the Farmer's Market (!) they have on the hospital grounds.  Annie selected some peaches and we settled in for lunch on a walkway with beautiful views of the mountains.

When I called for the test results we learned she didn't need a hemoglobin transfusion and that the doctor would see us early (huh, we used to wait upwards of four hour...not kidding).  After the uneventful check-up it was off for the platelet transfusion (remember this hospital has a set value where they transfuse versus waiting for a bleeding event).  They combined the platelets with IV fluid so the rate was 200 versus 80 and the transfusion was done in only 20 minutes.

Next appointment in two weeks (no news is good news until then).  While I know this is the calm before the storm, we're soaking up every drop of it!