Almost there!!

Well hi there! I’m back!! So if you read the post before this one, you will notice that I was talking about how nervous I was about getting a fever or infection while my counts were at zero, well weird and funny part about this story is that that night while I was writing that post I didn’t feel too good. Mother took my temperature and sure enough I was running a fever. Who would have known! As soon as I saw the high numbers on the thermometer, I busted out in tears. After every single round of chemo, I have had to deal with fevers and infections. At first, I thought it was because I wasn’t being careful (i.e. wearing my mask, avoiding crowed areas, etc.) But this time around, I told my mom I was going to lock myself in the apartment and avoid any human interaction. But yeah, did it work? Noooo… It made me very sad because no matter how much I took care of myself, there was nothing I could do to avoid this from happening. Doctors say that they would be more concerned if I didn’t have fevers so I guess I should stop making fevers such a big deal.

I don’t think I was sad about having a fever, but upset because it was the weekend before Thanksgiving and I didn’t want to be stuck in the hospital during such a wonderful holiday. My family had already made plans to come up on Thanksgiving Day and together cook a delicious meal. I refused to call my family and tell them to cancel their trip. I prayed to God and asked him to give me this one opportunity to spend with my family. It was the perfect day to be thankful for all the wonderful miracles He had performed in my life and I all wanted was to share those moments with my family.

After being admitted to the hospital Sunday night (before Thanksgiving), my fever slowly began to drop. Blood cultures were taken to look for any signs of infection and blood pressure was monitored every two hours. Results came in really soon which showed no sign of infection. Thank you Jesus! One less thing to worry about! My counts were at zero during this time and the doctors won’t let me leave the hospital until my counts go above 500. It’s just a precaution the hospital takes. Blood counts can come in very slowly or very fast; it really just depends on your body. It usually takes me about five to six days to get above 500 once I’m at zero, so at this point I had zero hopes of getting out before Thanksgiving Day. Before I had time to get all boohoo sad about the situation, a miracle happened. My counts had jumped from 0 to 100 to 500 in less than three days!!! Wednesday morning, my doctor, Kim, came in and told me that I was a very lucky girl because I would be going home that evening. Best news ever! I knew God understood how special this holiday was for me and that there was no way he was going to allow me to miss it. This is one of the many miracles God has performed in my life.

After spending a wonderful Thanksgiving dinner with my family, I finally got the opportunity to relax and enjoy quality time with my loved ones. Everyone in my family is doing great! My dad is staying busy with work like always. My dad likes to stay occupied, so when he comes it’s very hard for him to sit still. He’s one hard workingman that never stops. Gotta love him! My mom...geez so much to say, well she's constantly working hard to take care of me. Since the day I was diagnosed, she has not let me sleep in my own room. Every day, she cooks for me my favorite meals and gives me awesome back rubs. Not a day goes by without her telling me how much I mean to her. Her love for me is indescribable. My brother is also keeping busy with work in and out of state. He finally bought the $500 iPhone he’s always wanted. He waited 2 years for Sprint to start selling them and now that he finally has it I’m not sure he’s all woohoo about it! Lol…My sister invited her husband, Omar, to come and of course also brought the baby, Demetrio. I haven’t seen my brother-in-law in almost 6 months, so it was really nice getting to see him.

Spending time with my sister is always the best. She’s the best at making me feel close to home. When she comes, she gets here with so much energy and a list of plans. She also brings me cute clothes and shoes which gets me in the mood to look cute and go out ;) We didn’t get to go shopping like we usually do because it was really cold, but we DID go on a date to Olive Garden on Sunday night. She knew I had been craving Chicken Scampi for a very long time, so being the big and wonderful sister she is, she satisfied my cravings by taking me out for dinner…We had a fun night! Love you sis!

Time with baby Demetrio is priceless. He is almost 9 months now! It’s unbelievable how fast they grow and it makes me sad to think that I’ve missed out on almost 8 months of his precious little life. One day when he grows up he will hear my story and I will make sure that he knows that HE was the one who kept me going every day during my battle. Although he is not here with me, I look at his pictures every morning and remind myself that I have a little handsome young man who can’t wait for his Aunt Ellie to come home and spoil him. He’s my life!

So anyway back to treatment, I go in for my last round of chemo on WEDNESDAY! Can you believe that? After 7 long months of treatment and 3 hard rounds of chemo, I’m down to the last one! If all goes well and in Jesus name it will, I can finally say I’ll be home in less than a month! The day seemed like it would never get here, but of course it did. I will be keeping you guys updated!! Please keep me in your prayers~ After chemo, unfortunately my fight is still not over. I have lost several pounds and my body is extremely weak. With several months of good eating habits and fitness, then, I will be able to say I’m done and back to normal. Best wishes to everyone and God Bless each and every one of you.