TUESDAY 02/28: MATCHMAKER, MATCHMAKER.....MAKE ME A MATCH! "Fiddler on the Roof" Mom's brother, Ken, Mayor of Buffalo, TX rode his Harley to Methodist to have his blood tested. Sister Carol, Ph.d., had her blood tested in San Antonio. Neither proved to be a match for Sally and in fact nor for one another. Mother Dorothy has reassured that all three have the same father! On the brighter side, the internation bone marrow registry identified 200 matches for Mom!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Very exciting news. Mom says: " Can you imagine 200 Sallys running around on the planet!?!?" Her counts are strong and steady and all the doctors are very impressed. Looks like we'll be home soon to get ready for the next round. Stay tuned........

SATURDAY/SUNDAY 02/26: So wonderful to visit with daughter Sarah from Austin, who also happens to be the mother of our perfect grandchild. Sarah and Susan drove from Houston to Beaumont to celebrate Mother's 95th birthday this weekend. It is sunny and beautiful here today in Houston and I long to be outside. Looks like I will be soon! My energy has soared by 50% in the last 24 hours, yeah! yeah!

SATURDAY, FEB. 25: (Dr Bob reporting)

All quiet on the Methodist Hospital front but lots of good news. The numbers are great. White blood cell count is way up (thank you Nupragen) and platelets too. Bottom line - home Monday or Tuesday, MAYBE, resting up for the main event - transplant.

Some nausea/upchuck this afternoon. Maybe reaction to sudden abundance of new white blood cells (thank you for that technical explanation Dr. Bob). However, one little shot and she's off to dreamland, breathing loudly at present (snoring!). Anyway, the docs are very pleased with the situation. Said she has done perfectly all the way along, couldn't be better. We credit this to lots of help, please keep praying.

Today was house prep day for her return. Cleaning people did the air conditioning unit and ductwork, cleaned all carpeting and favorite couch. Area rugs and draperies will be returned from their cleaning on Tuesday. At our house it takes a major life event to get all this done!

And by the way, eleven cards and letters today. She was thrilled, a real boost to her feel-good. Thank you so much, you folks are wonderful.

Bob
(p.s. pictures tomorrow, Susan will be back from Beaumont where she, sister Sarah and Aunts Carol and Jane are having a "girls weekend" with Sally's mom, Dorothy, celebrating her 95th birthday)

FRIDAY

FEB. 24

NOON

Cowgirls Rule

Go Texan Day at Houston's Methodist Hospital brings together one of the world's largest collection of "Dudes" (as in dude ranch). Sally's WWW cowgirl costumes fit right in since most of the doctors could pass as Vets today (the nurses say every day??)......... Bob

"Sally sez" the Med Center has to keep up with the rest of the City on the eve of the world's largest rodeo. U.T. alums say we 'Horns bleed orange. This may be so because my blood has so many chemicals in it no telling what color it is.

I love your cards and letters, emails and comments on this blog. Thank you. More tomorrow.... Sally

Thursday, 02/23: Another good day, Mom slept really well last night and has had a good day. She is continuing tofocus on flying the plane as Ken has coached and it is coming along beautifully. It looks as though the sun has finally come out in Houston and this also reflects our spirits today. Hopefully by this time next week Mom will be back at their house and in her own bed, always a good feeling! Off to watch more Olympics!

Wednesday, 02/21/2006: My brother Ken, the Mayor of Buffalo, rode his Harley to the New Orleans Mardi Gras with his best friend Gary. Upon their return I was honored with a half dozen "Aunt Sally's" pralines! Nothing like a Louisiana sugar fix to get me through my day. For you medical afficionadas, my blood count continues to go in the right direction, albeit ever so slowly. On the really bright side, I formed a new friendship yesterday with a woman my age, size, athletic prowess and personality type that experienced AML a year ago. She had the stem cell transplant and looks marvelous as well as leads a very active life. She really lifted my spirits!

TUESDAY, FEB. 21, 10:00 AM:
Blogger(s) screwed up yesterday and failed to post Monday's comments. Not a big loss since Sally felt generally lousy as a result of (a) mucho antibiotics (b) lack of sleep due to a nightly recurring sinus headache, trips to the bathroom and nurses working their magic, (c) low grade fevers, (d) 3 weeks in the hospital. However, you know Sally - "tomorrow will be a better day".

Today is "tomorrow" and she was right, "tomorrow" is a better day. After a great night's sleep due to meds for headache and other sleep beneficial chemicals, Sally is feeling great this morning. Our nurse-buddy RACHEL and Dr. LAWRENCE FOOTE shared the good news that the white cell count is double what it was yesterday. Dr. Foote also cautioned that going from 2.0 to 4.0 is "like doubling your money when you only have a penny." But it could be the start of the trend we want to see.

Dr. Foote is Houston's best physician/communicator. He shares complete information in a manner that always makes you feel good. For the past three days he was on a trip with his daughter to look at small liberal arts colleges in North Carolina. Next they will go to New England, etc. He told us about their arts programs, study abroad programs, campus life today and current euphemisms such as "hooking up" - means that a couple is having sex. See what all you can learn on a blogsite.

More later today. Bob

SUNDAY 02/19/06: "Bald is Beautiful"! However I prefer a turban. It serves two functions, the first being it keeps your head warm and second, when it coordinates with other attire, why not??

SATURDAY, FEB.18:

Our buddies, Evelyn, Lea and Norma, ganging up on Sally. This crew is wonderful as are the other staff members in the rotation. Nurses work three 12 hour days plus 4 hours on a fourth day. Twelve hours of tending to sick folks and smiling at the doctor is a real challenge. Whenever you next talk to a practising hospital nurse BE NICE!

Sally is now having full benefit of the dark side of the chemical brew. Hair, headache, fever, metallic taste, lack of appetite, etc. Forewarned we have been but its still no fun when the real world arrives. The "good" news is that the doctors are pleased with the progress. All the numbers are on track. Maybe go home for a while the end of next week.

Sally sez "FATIGUE is the word of the day"

Tune in tomorrow - Sally will have a new look.

FRIDAY, FEB. 17: Happy Friday to all. Everything continues to go well in Methodist 891. Sally started her day with the treadmill workout, perhaps slightly less vigorously, then got a new, pixie haircut, had some Hagendaas and a really nice afternoon visit with (UT) college roommate, Diane Lister and husband John (Bob's A&M classmate).

Things get quiet on the weekend at the hospital so we will enjoy a less hectic few days. It's amazing how busy the days are with medical related activities, meals Bob and Susan bring Sally from the main cafeteria downstairs, afternoon coffee and/or previously mentioned Hagendaas, going through all the wonderful cards you are sending, phone calls, pole stroll trips across the room to the bathroom, daily housekeeper visit and so on. Definitely not boring. With Sally that's no surprise......
End

THURSDAY 02/16: My room at Methodist hospital is decorated with cards, photos and artwork from wonderful friends. These two works of art were done by my two beautiful nieces Emma and Ellie Keller of Richmond, VA. Now for the saga of service with a smile, a la the grilled cheese sandwich. One of the effects of chemotherapy is dulled taste buds and a lousy appetite. It is important to eat and therefore time is spent trying to figure out what tastes good enough to indulge in. The other day, after much thought and contemplation, I ordered a grilled cheese sandwich from food service. By the way, all food is ordered here off a menu and not just delivered on a tray at certain hours. With dreams of melted cheese and the flavor of butter I eagerly ordered my sandwich. Alas, what arrived was two pieces of cold bread with a slice of American cheese in the middle. No big deal, I consumed the other stuff and that was that. Well, when the patient liason arrived to ask if I had any complaints, I had to think hard as this is a very nice place with a wonderful, caring staff. After thought, I casually mentioned the disappointment over the grilled cheese sandwich. Before I knew it, the nutritionist visited the room offering coupons for the cafeteria and the head of food services personally came calling to find out what the problem was with the grilled cheese sandwich. After profusely apologizing, she insisted on giving me a $10 gift certificate good at any facility at Methodist, including Starbucks! Lesson learned, these folks take quality of service very seriously and aim to please!

WEDNESDAY AGAIN - Susan here......see below for Mom's post. Mom is holding a teddy bear from Susan (there's a skiing story behind this :-)) and Dad has decorated the rooms with all the wonderful cards she has received from you guys. Pictures of the beautiful artwork received from nieces Emma and Ellie will be forthcoming! Stay tuned for tomorrow.

WEDNESDAY, FEB. 15: 9:00 AM

Sally says,

Thank you, Thank you.
I am so very greatful for the cards, emails and phone calls from wonderful caring friends and extended family.

So far I have not had the opportunity to be bored. Other than no energy I feel OK, and I am so glad that is the only effect from the chemotherapy.

Please know that your prayers and positive thoughts are making a difference.

Thank you.


Bob sez... sorry to miss the blog update yesterday. I was too busy with Valentine - all the caregivers here in the leukemia unit were recognized with candy and THANK YOU valentines. These folks have been wonderful.

Sally is doing great. All criteria are exactly where they are wanted to be. Every morning when the doctors come by she is down the hall on the treadmill. They are amazed. So am I, thank God

MONDAY 02/13/2006 - Hi all, here's Mom today watching dvd's and feeling much better today, despite the lack of energy. Notice the smile, the positive attitude continues :-) Due to low energy, we will turning off the phone at 6 p.m. every night for the time being. Although we are past the peaks and into the valley for the next few weeks I think Mom is handling this like a superstar. The chemotherapy is done and they tell us that now the side effects, infections, etc... set in. It is another beautiful day here in Houston and it is great having the sunlight stream through the windows you can see in the photo.

SATURDAY afternoon......Mom is sleeping at the moment (due to Benadryl, otherwise she says she never naps during the day :-))) She is still in good spirits and exercises in the mornings. The weekends are pretty quiet at the hospital so we are just reading magazines and books and looking forward to more Olympics this afternoon and evening. The nurses come in frequently and are very friendly and professional. More later...... Susan

FRIDAY 02/10/2006: Susan here...Happy Birthday Baby Jack!!!!! Although Mom and I won't be there today, we are throwing him a birthday party here in the hospital room and are there in spirit! Jack turns 1 today. This photo of Mom on the treadmill was taken yesterday morning. She exercises every morning after the wonderful French Market coffee brewed in her personal coffee pot Dad installed! Tonight we are looking forward to the Olympics in Italy and hoping Bode Miller wins when he races.

THURS. FEB 9: (delayed until 9;40 am on Friday due to *%#& computer).

Thursday was a quiet day. Sally continued to feel great and reveled in the stack of cards and letters that arrived. Thanks to all for sending.

Highlight was at the end of the day when the nurse brought in Bag#7 of 7. Yea.

FRIDAY AM, FEB.10: The computer problem referenced above involves trying to get photos inserted into this message. Previously we were able to include photos easily but not last night nor today so far. Susan will try again later.

When I got here this morning just after 7:00 Sally was down the hall on the treadmill walking as fast as it will run. Dr. Lea came by to say hello. He heads the "infectious disease team" that responds when a transplant patient has a fever/infection. Chances are good we will need his services in the next week so he comes by just to keep tabs on how it's going. He was amazed at when he saw Sally pounding and puffing away. He proclaimed that in 30 years of practising infectious disease medicine she was the first leukemia TP patient he had ever seen on a treadmill! Sally's WWW friends will be interested to know that Dr. Lea was Camp Stewart camp doctor for many years while his son was a camper and knows Marsha, et al, well.

When bag # 7 finishes later today or tomorrow, we will begin a waiting period to let the stuff do it's work. After about a week we start over again with the chemo, leading eventually to the transplant. As golfers say, "drive for show, putt for dough". We are still in the "drive for show" stage but Sally has hit the ball 300 yards right down the middle of the fairway!

Cheers. End.

WED. FEB 8: Home, sweet home? Day 6 of first round of chemo, one more day to go. Then we see what the results are.

As mentioned before, they are attempting to wipe out leukemia cells and white blood cells so that the stem cells that will be transplanted will be received into a hospitable environment. If there are any white blood cells remaining they will attack the transplanted stem cells, which means this whole process was a waste of time. Ditto for any leukemia cells we may have missed.

So, after a week of observation (rest) we will do all this over again followed by another week of observation. Then, maybe, we will go home for a couple of weeks so Sally can catch up on washing, ironing, and wax the floors. You know I'm just kidding. Right? Anyway, we then come back here for the main event with all fingers and toes crossed,the transplant. More than you wanted to know.....

Sally has felt great today. One hour on the treadmill here on the floor - as fast as it will run!

Keep those cards and letters coming. They are great and really brighten her day. End.

MORE TUESDAY - Susan here....Mom has received some pole decorations! She has a beautiful and special rosary from friend Carolyn Watson and some Valentines love bears from Dad. Here she can be seen talking on the cell phone with a good book in her hand. Keep the calls coming! Today was round 5 of chemotherapy and so far so good. We will be back on the air tomorrow!

Tuesday - Sally here. As the song goes we are here becasue we are here because we are here.............So I am dancing with a pole. The red fuzzy robe and pink slippers keep tangling on the tubes. Fun?????

Even more photos! Susan here again- This is a photo I personally love (partially because I am in it :-))) Mom fully intends for us to run another marathon when she is past this "life interruption". This was taken here in her hospital room (note she is in style with turquoise courderoy Talbots pj's) Her spirits have been exceptional and she spends time every morning on the treadmill - no joking! Today was spent receiving more chemo and visiting with friends and family on the telephone. Two chaplains came by with guitars and performed for us. It was wonderful! True to form, Mom even drank a large vanilla McDonald's milkshake today. She's watching movies every night on her new laptop computer.
SEEKING DONOR: AML patient (see above photo), model gorgeous is seeking a stem cell donor. The following qualifications are preferred: BOSTON MARATHON RUNNER
STRONG SWIMMER
BACK BOWL BLACK DIAMOND SKIER
HARVARD GRADUATE
FLUENT FRENCH SPEAKER
FINE WINE AND CHOCOLATE LOVER


See y'all tomorrow..........

More photos! Hi all, Susan here. Dad and I are still learning the "blog" thing so bear with us! This photo was Saturday (or day4) of Grandmother Dorothy (Sally's mom) who turns 95 this month. She is showing mother her support by lifting Mom's new handweights. Mom and I thought pink hand weights were a great way to stay in peak shape.

ONLY ONE MORE MONDAY, FEB.6:

This proves she is still beautiful and well loved. Surrounding her are son Mark, Mother Dorothy, and your bloggers Susan and Dr. Bob.

STILL MORE FEB. 5: This ain't all fun and games as you can see but the good stuff ( the stuff that hangs from the roll-around pole ) is yet to come.

Sally asks that all 'Horns and Longhorn sympathizers to please note the color of her PJs.

MORE MONDAY - FEB. 5: Sally in her new SRO (single room occupancy) quarters. Unfortunately the roll-around pole is not visible.

MONDAY, Feb. 6: Finally we can provide some visual proof Sally is "in hospital". Here she goes out the door early last Wednesday, February 1.

1. Sally chose this date to begin treatment because Dr. Lawrence Foote ( a teasip ) said she would be in the hospital "for a month" and February is the shortest month.

SUNDAY, Feb. 5: Wow! It looks like Dinah is in the lead for the pole decorating contest but there have been hints that more ideas are on the way. One of my Aggie buddies called to ask if it might be alright for him to suggest something along the lines of an exotic dancer he once saw using a pole for a prop. Definitely out - no, no, NO. Methodist Hospital does not allow pole dancing on the premises. (Ask your husband, boyfriend, son).

Sally started today with French Market ( New Orleans ) coffee in bed along with the New York Times and the Houston Chronicle, courtesy of yours truly. Picture this - 5:00 AM, Bob on his touring bike with headlights/tail light/helmet lights blazing to keep from getting run over. On board is a thermos of coffee, a mug, bottle of fresh, hand squeezed orange juice and two huge Sunday newspapers. Upon arrival at her room, she is asleep with a smile on her face, no doubt dreaming of her forthcoming coffee and newspapers in bed. This IS a true story.

After a couple of hours struggling with the above situation, she strolled her pole down the hall to the treadmill and "walked" for an hour for exercise before room service brought her breakfast ( in bed ). How was your morning?

The weekend doctor said she is doing great-keep it up-looks like she may handle the chemo real well. Appearance, attitude, energy level, all normal tonight (Sunday night) after 57 hours of chemo medicines. At Super Bowl kickoff time she was on the recumbent bike that sits next to the treadmill, pedaling away.

I may get in trouble for this but here's her direct phone line (713) 441- 1556. Please limit calls to a few minutes if she will let you. Also please do not be offended if Susan or I answer and say she cannot talk just then. There may be times when she will quickly say I've gotta go and hang up (Review all those symptoms I described in Friday's message).

She also can receive email at: sallyshipman@hotmail.com

I know, I know, I promised pictures. Later. Christmas present digital cameras and accompanying software are a challenge to some of us, not to mention the interface with my computer which is mainly still a mystery to me. To put this in proper perspective, please understand that this entire message was created using only two fingers.

Good night and keep praying.

Bob

SATURDAY, FEB. 4: Short message today. Chemo treatment began yesterday and has continued without interruption to present (Saturday 4:55 PM). Treatment consists of 3 chemicals hanging from her roll-around pole*, each with a tube leading to a semi-permanent "port" surgically installed in her chest. From the port a tube is fed into her chest cavity to her heart's aorta. From there the poisons and other chems. are distributed into her blood stream system. This is supposed to produce the results described in yesterday's posting.

Well anyway, this all got started yesterday and so far today none of the dire consequences have materialized. She says "I told you so". (I try to keep her fully informed of all the bad possibilities). She also says I can make a beautiful blue sky completely overcast within 5 minutes.

Sally is feeling fine/normal today and is enjoying a visit with her mother. Ms. Dorothy, who will be 96 this month, sometimes has trouble with: "dates, did I eat breakfast, where is my wallet-glasses-house key- etc." but she has had no problem being on top of Sally's situation. So, we are happy that Susan brought her over from home in Beaumont for the weekend. Our son Mark showed up with a new laptop loaded with custom software and DVD capability and maybe a dozen movies. Where were all these people when I broke my leg?

*We need to decorate Sally's roll-around pole. Please send your suggestions for doing this. I will post them, let Sally pick one and announce the winner. The winner gets an all expense paid trip to Methodist Hospital to visit (unless you live out of town).

Bob

FRIDAY, FEB. 3: Hello and thanks for tuning in. Sally is occupied with IVs, nurses, pills, paperwork .. well you get the idea, so daughter Susan or I (Bob) will be posting updates on what is going on and how it's going.

Sally entered Methodist Hospital Wednesday morning, Feb. 1. Armed with books, mags, family photos and pajamas of wild colors, we walked over since the hospital is literally two blocks from our home, in the Texas Medical Center. After two days of forms, blood tests, and being advised that she will feel terrible for the next three weeks, chemotherapy began this morning. The chemo will continue for the next seven days, 24 hours per day. Side effects may include loss of appetite (first time ever for Sally), extreme fatigue, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, skin rash (face, chest, arms, back) and sores in the mouth and throat. And she may get to use her new wig.

Bad stuff - not a lot of fun.

Please understand the following. The chemo destroys all her white blood cells ( along with the leukemia cells ) with the result that she will have absolutely no ability to resist germs leading to infection. Serious business. This means that we will work hard to limit exposure to sources of infection which includes people, flowers, fruit, certain foods, basically anything from "the outside world". So, no visitors for a while.

I'll talk about phone calls to her room a little later but let's just see how it goes for now. I will return calls at night from our home phone which has voice mail, (713) 520-8221.

She loves the cards she has received. They are a real bright spot and I know she will continue to appreciate them. Best address is our home, 1905 Swift, Houston 77030.

We will also monitor her email as time allows, sally_shipman@hud.gov. Since it's a federal government email service, please respect taxpayer dollars.

We appreciate your prayers and especially the warm friendship with which you have blessed Sally.

Bob Shipman
"As we grow older, it's not the things we did that we regret, it's those things we didn't do"