We finally have some good news!!!! Michelle's WBC (White Blood Count) is up quite a bit, up to 1.2 (4.5-6.0 is normal), and her ANC is up to 500 (1500-4000 is normal). An ANC of 500 is a very magical number for us. It means that she is no longer under the same quarentine restrictions she has been. If it is still 500 or higher next week, she will get to start school!!! We are still going to restrict sick people for good, and lots of people in general for a while. The last thing we need is a flood of people coming in and then having her get sick. I know you all understand. Thanks.

On another note, I have started teaching Michelle. She loves the fact I am her teacher. I bought some supplies from a teacher supply store in Folsom and her kindergarten teacher gave me some materials, so I am muddling along. My biggest challenge is keeping Ian happy while I am teaching Michelle.

What else is new you ask? We have decide to change the location of her transplant center from UCSF to Children's Hospital of Wisconsin. There is a dr there who specializes in Aplastic Anemia patients and bone marrow transplants of them. We are still hoping we won't have to go down that road, but are paving the way just in case.

Depending on how her blood counts continue to do, we have tentaively scheduled another round of ATG starting September 12. They will start her on prednisone one week prior to that to try and prevent another bout of serum sickness. She will be in the PICU for 6 days and then on the main floor for some period of time. However, if her counts continue to improve before then, we will hold off on that. So as I said, it is tentative, not set in stone.

Lastly, some of you have been wondering about what is going on with Jon's job. Bottom line is, we don't know. Agilent is going to spin off the group of which he is a part. He doesn't know what his roll in the new company will be but hopeful there will be a place for him.

Michelle goes back tomorrow for a platelet transfusion and then next week for another dr's visit.

Suzanne