Grow cells, grow.

Phoebe received her chemo on Saturday and she has been doing very well. Still happy and still a bundle of energy. She is mine and so I am biased, but she really is adorable and just so lovely. She is an absolute joy. She is speaking very well now and spends her days chatting away, never forgetting to say thank-you - even if it is to an ultrasound technician. The best and my most favourite Phoebe thing, however, are the hugs that she gives. She stretches her arms out wide, says "hug", and wraps her little arms tight around me. And then she pats - she pats my back every time as if to say "it's okay, Mama".

Every little thing gonna be all right.

We heard from Philadelphia. The t-cells are now in the lab at the University of Pennsilvania, under the watchful eyes of brilliant doctors and researchers and they will have preliminary results on the 14th of January. We should know on the 14th if Phoebe is eligible for the treatment in Philadelphia.

For now, we wait. We wait and enjoy this time with sweet Phoebe and Mae. We are hoping to be discharged from the hospital tomorrow. This was originally planned for today, but the doctors decided to send us off with an MRI, lumbar puncture with chemotherapy and a bone marrow aspiration. It is sometimes easier to coordinate these things while in patient and they need to be done, so we postponed Phoebe's return home.

The MRI is to look at and measure the mass, check in on Phoebe's kidneys, and determine if the stent (that is in her ureter and possibly the cause of the recent infecion) can be removed. The bone marrow aspiration will check for disease and together with the results of the MRI, will determine how effective the treatment has been so far.

We are hoping for change and progress. We know that the chemo that Phoebe has received up until now is not designed to cure her, but it is expected to continue to reduce the mass and I believe that it will act as a stepping stone to our next phase of treatment.

We are moving forward.

We are also wonderfully supported by friends, family, neighbours, strangers, teachers, and our community. On the weekend, many wonderful people worked to make Phoebe's bottle drive a success. A shout out to all of you who took time out of your weekend to sort, return, drop off, and help us to take a few more steps forward. Over 15,000 bottles were dropped off to the Eastview Beer Store in Ottawa, which really is quite amazing. To the employees of this store for their incredible patience, staff at the Pelican Grill and Lieutenants Pump for donating bottles, and everyone who helped to make this day a success. Thank-you.

We are looking forward ... full of hope that these steps will lead us to where we need to be. That these steps will lead us towards Phoebe's cure.

Go Phoebe go. Grow cells, grow.