Wed. morning 12/24
Dear Friends and Family,
I'm writing this quickly before going to the hospital.

As you know, we are taking this journey "one day at a time".  Tuesday was a
different kind of day.

Sara took a trip to Santa Rosa for the day.  Susan and Denny arrived at 7:30 
a.m.  Denny had to go to work.  Susan spent the day with Stan and Brian.  Brian
started the day his usual talkative, sweet self.  The LP (lumbar puncture) went
beautifully again.  He amazes the doctors everytime they do this-5th time.
They call him "a star".

After the LP, Stan went to Happy House to shower and make some phone calls.  He
returned with a yummy Chinese lunch for us.  Brian slept from 10:30 to 1:30.
Then we took a walk to see S.F. and the Golden Gate Bridge.  Brian woke up vey
lethargic.  He would not talk all day.  Shrugged his shoulders when asked 
questions.  He was in discomfort, but no longer could put words to it and tell
us specifically what was wrong.  He never ate or drank anything all day.  Stan
and I were concerned by this sudden change, but drs. and nurses assured us that
this behavior is actually more normal than what we have been seeing before.

Brian had heavy doses of chemo all day.  He watched tv and videos and slept
almost all day.  He had to take several pills and that is difficult for a child
his age.  Each pill was an upsetting event.

Denny came after work and relieved Susan and Stan so they could go to the
cafeteria to eat.  Susan brought Denny the leftovers.  Denny tried to read
books with Brian, but he was not interested.  Sara and Steven returned from
Santa Rosa about 8:00.  Brian was very happy to see his brother.  Steven
managed to work the magic that had failed us all day.  Brian smiled and played
with Steven.  He even let Steven read him a book.  I got some good photos of
the 2 of them.

Sara spent last night with Brian while Stan and Steven slept at Happy House.
Denny and Susan left about 10:00 p.m.

Christmas day could very well be a repeat of Tuesday, with Brian feeling very
low.  He has another LP on Christmas day.  So we've decided to make today
Christmas day.  His chemo today is lighter and we hope he'll be feeling better.
Sara, David, Denny and I will be going over this morning for a little
celebration.

Some good news.  If Brian's blood count stays above 500 (it was 800 on Tues.),
he has no fever, and he feels good---then he can GO HOME on Friday.  They
expect that he will only be home a brief time before he gets a fever or his
blood count goes down, but even if it is only a day, he will learn that he
really will be going home sometime.  Dr. Shannon predicted New Year's day to be
his lowest point.  The side effects of these 2 weeks of chemo manifest
themselves the most the 2 weeks after chemo stops.  Jan. 5th will be an
evaluation day to rerun all the initial tests.  If all is going well, he will
begin the third week of chemo on Jan. 9th.

Merry Christmas to you all.  May the blessings of Jesus' love give each of us
reassurance that he is with us all the time.

Love,
Susan