Welcome to Bryce's Web Page. It has been provided to keep our family and friends updated about Bryce. Bryce was diagnosed March 11, 2004 with ALL, Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia. He is currently in the maintenance phase of treatment which will last until Jun 24, 2007! He is following protocol CCG-1991 augmented. On June 17, 2007, Bryce finished a week early due to an infection. He had his port removed in October and now is 7 months off treatment. We continue to pray that he stays in remission forever.
Please be sure to sign Bryce's guestbook and click on the quick link to give him a "hug" too.
Normal Blood levels WBC: 4.0-12.0 hemoglobin: 11.5-14.5 platelets: 150,000-450,000 ANC: the magic # that needs to be 1,000 to be among the crowds, norm starts at 1,500.
I just really like this quote: Take a lesson from the grass. No matter how many times it's cut or trampled on, it rises again and continues. So get back up, my friend, get back up and rise again.
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Journal
Monday, January 21, 2008 1:03 PM CST
Hello out there. What another 5 months has past? Where does the time go.........
I don't even know where to start at. There are probably a million "Summers Stories" I can tell, crazy things, sad things, etc..but my mind being its usual jumbled mess will just start with Bryce.
As you know he officially ended chemo a week early, on June 17th, 2007. He had been really sick, pretty much the majority of May and June with a stomach bug, then ear infection, tummy issues from all the antibiotics, then pneumocystic carinii pneumonia. He perked up for the second half of summer and we were all going back to school when I last wrote.
The boys both changed schools this year so they are coming with me. Yeah, fun for me! I never realized how nice it was to have my kids at a different school. Yes, it is much easier to keep up with them, spy on them, etc.. but geez, during football season I woke up with them and went to sleep with them..day in..day out. Things are better now that football is over, at least for another month or so.
On the health front, Bryce did not have the port in his chest taken out until late October. The oncs. continued to give him a few more doses of IVIG to help boost his immune system. It is very slowly rising (his IgG levels). He has managed to catch every gunky germ that has gone around the school. So far he has had 2-3 colds, a stomach bug, and then over Christmas break, the day before we leave NJ, a 103.5 fever that lasted for 4 days straight with a few cold symptoms. After a flu test, strep test, and mono test, it ended up being viral. At Bryce's last appt. his counts looked great. He has a few small swollen lymph nodes left over from the viral infection, but otherwise looked great.
Vance is doing well. He's managed to qualify for the district's Gifted and Talented Program and goes to a different school for it all day on Tuesdays. Bryce is reading up a storm. He has the most Accelerated Reader points( a reading program where they read book and take computer tests on comprehension to earn points) in the whole Kindergarten. Vance has also learned to play chess and poker and now wants to become a professional poker player for his adult profession. No one can seem to beat Vance at poker. He has won about $30 off of Papa and Rodney. The thing is, he bets on anything and wins no matter what.
Wrestle Mania continues to be the focus of the boys' household entertainment. Bryce got this wrestling toy arena with the WWE figurines. They got a Wii and play "Smackdown" every chance they get. We have several Wii injuries. Bryce has been hit in the face twice and smashed his hand on the hope chest that holds the TV, and Vance has been hit in the stomach. I have Wii elbow from bowling (my old dislocation injury must be flaring up!). Rodney is the only one in one piece.
The house is still being built, but is coming along. We anticipate apartment life to end in mid-March, which couldn't come any sooner! For about 3 months no one lived above us, then low and behold, the floor smashers moved in. Five people in a 2 bedroom apt. Mom, dad, and 3 sasquatch (is that how you spell it?). Not that they're hairy or anything, but OH MY GOD, what in God's name are you doing up there??????????? I have literally taken off my shoes and flung them repeatedly at the ceiling to see if they get the point that jumping across the room, plunging off of the refrigerator or whatever it is they do up there is so darn LOUD!!!!!!!! The thing is, only 1 kid is little and he looks like he is in about 3rd grade. The rest are high school kids.
One day I saw mom outside and she was all, "I'm, sorry. I hope we're not too loud upstairs. We're used to being in a house." I could of said Oh no, it's not too loud, but I did tell her that yeah, sometimes we can hear them jumping around. Oh well........ Now when the boys want to play the Wii and scream at 7am I'm like, "Sure, go for it."
Over Christmas break we went to NJ to visit. We brought the boys to NYC for the first time along with the other 2 million people who thought that would be a nice day to go as well. Due to a 4 hr. line at the Empire State Building,and another 2-3 to skate at Rockefeller, we just went to FAO SChwarz instead and spent about an hour and a half in there. They got to jump on the floor piano like in the movie "Big" and roam the store. We did a lot of walking a got to see some of the sites. The boys still talk about that trip.
We also went skiing. Well, Rodney and Vance skied, and Bryce and I went tubing. Vance liked skiing so much that just he and Rodney went the other day for Vance's birthday. He didn't want a party, he just wanted to go skiing. While on a ski lift they passed a tree that people had thrown pairs of underwear and bras on for a practical joke. Vance was all "Ewwh, somebody's dirty underwear are on that tree." Rodney then asked him, what the other things were. Vance says, "bras". Rodney asks him how he knows what it is called and he goes, "Mom, wears one!" Great....I better shut the door when I get dressed now.
I will leave you with some photos from Christmas and the months leading up. Since July Bryce has also had his 6th b-day and has grown a cm. at each appt., except for this last one.
SUMMERS MOMENT: From one of our future leaders of America......
In the background the television is on as usual. Primary election campaigning is in full swing. A white haired republican is proclaiming how he will be the best choice for president. "John McCain for president" is blurred on signs in the background. Vance stops only for a brief glance at the commercial before making the following statement.....
Hey, look! Ric Flair is running for president! Hey Bryce, Rick Flair is going to be president...
God help us all.
*******To those who have no unearthly idea who Ric Flair is, he is an old time wrestler who is now popular again. I remember him being on TV when I was younger.
FIRST DAY OF SCHOOL
Practicing some baseball
Bryce the Soccer Star
Vance playing hard
Enjoying the State Fair
The day Bryce got his port out
Bryce the crazy pirate
Thanksgiving Indian
Moon shoes for my birthday
Merry Christmas
Hope we don't fall in!
In NYC
The piano at FAO Schwarz
Sitting with the stuffed animals at FAO Schwarz
At Rockefeller Center
Our snowman
What a ride!
Have a great week!
Love, Tina, Rodney, Vance and the "One and Only" Bryce
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Welcome to Bryce's Web Page. It has been provided to keep our family and friends updated about Bryce. Bryce was diagnosed March 11, 2004 with ALL, Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia. He is currently in the maintenance phase of treatment which will last until Jun 24, 2007! He is following protocol CCG-1991 augmented. 
