Day +133

School is out and we are now in summer mode. So far the days have been packed with summer activities for all three boys.
Last weeks clinic visit went well. Dale's labs are still stable. Last week Friday, the five of us (Wade, Danny, Derek, Dale and I) played 9 holes at Dominquez. We had a friendly family tournament. Actually, it was a dry run to see if Dale would be able to finish 9 holes on his own and carry his own bag. He started to get tired around the 5th hole so we helped him with his bag. He golfed very well. Derek came in first tying with Wade, Danny second,Dale third and I came in last. I was actually more tired than Dale. Today was the first day of FOR golf at Dominquez. Dale joined Derek and friends Cory and Grant in the summer tour escorted by our dear friend and distant cousin Eric. I watched them tee off on the 1st hole and I watched them finish on the 9th. Dale was still going strong and carrying his own bag. Eric probably had his hands full but they all claimed to have a great time. After golf, Dale and Eric went swimming. Derek went off to basketball camp for the afternoon. Dale was not able to participate in the North High School basketball camp this year. He looks forward to participating again next year. Dale , along with Danny and Derek, have really become interested in the show "Planet Earth" on Animal Planet. They watch it Wednesday nights plus they watch the DVD series that Auntie Millie gave them. Tomorrow Dale goes back to UCLA for his next IVIG dose. Thank you for your continued prayers. Grace and Peace to you all....

Day + 124

Dale is doing well and keeping busy. His labs continue to remain stable. The last ANC was 2300. Bili - 0.6, AST - 36, ALT - 17 . Scr 0.8 and cyclosporine - 227. No adjusments in meds was made this week. We are now seeing the doctor every other week instead of every week. Labs are still drawn every week. On Father's Day, Wade, Danny, Derek and Dale sang "Above All" at church. Derek was the main singer. Wade played his guitar, Danny played drums and Wade, Danny and Dale sang back ground for Derek. They did a great job. I was very proud and Wade really enjoyed singing with the boys. It was their first performance all together and hopefully not their last. Rev. Derek mentioned what a miracle it was to have Dale back at church singing with his dad and brothers.(Praise God!) After they sang, Dale went right home since he is still not allowed to be in a room full of people. Later that day, Dale went to watch Derek play baseball in Anaheim and then we ended up at Grandma June's house for Father's Day dinner. We are in the last week of school. It has been hard even for Dale to stay focused as summer vacation approaches. Last week Dale was able to attend the 3rd and 4th grade school picnics. He was in a 3rd/4th grade combo class this year so their class was allowed to participate in both. He had a great time and couldn't stop talking about it. We also had a chance to spend some time at Derek's 5th grade picnic as well. Today was Dale's second golf lesson. He is determined to perfect his swing. We are still taking our daily walks with Eski and reading the newpaper. Have a great week. Blessings to you all....

Day + 118

Dale had a good week. His labs continue to remain stable. The cyclosporine level is finally down to 247. Although the level is therapeutic now they lowered the dose again in hopes to slowly wean him off his meds. The blood pressure was better this week. He never started back up on his blood pressure medication. One of the side effects of cyclosporine is high blood pressure so now that the level is lower so is his blood pressure. He was also told he could go to his class picnic and the last day of school. This bit of news made Dale very happy. Last week our dear Auntie Millie came to visit from Hawaii. We all enjoyed her company. Dale and Auntie Millie baked a very delicious red velvet cake with butter cream frosting all made from scratch. The recipe was sent to us in the mail by our pen pal Percy the penguin. ( Thank you Percy for the recipe!) The day after eating this heavenly dessert, we went to Torrance Beach to walk off some calories. We were entertained by a pod of dolphins playing in the waves. Auntie Millie was a good sport. She even sat through the Sansei baseball awards ceremony and Dale's first "professional" golf lesson. (not just a lesson from mom and dad) Dale thoroughly enjoyed his lesson . Now the ball actually goes where it suppose to. I sit and listen hoping to catch a few tips for myself. Auntie Millie also pointed out to us that Dale keeps our family on schedule. Dale knows exactly who needs to be where and at what time. If we need a reminder, we tell Dale . That way, we know it will get done. Dale also prays every night and he asks God to bless those who pray for him. Dale's faith and spirt through this journey has been and continues to be strong. Thank you all for your continued prayers and support.

Day + 110

Dale is doing well. His surgery sites are healing nicely. He is back to wearing shoes and running around and he is not holding his left arm over his incision site any more so I'm guessing it doesn't hurt as much. Last Friday's UCLA clinic went fairly well. However,Dale's blood pressure was 135/104. He has been off his blood pressure medicine for about 3 weeks now. He was suppose to get another dose of IVIG (immune globulin). This usually raises his blood pressure after the infusion because of the volume of fluids given so in order to give it, they had to lower his pressure. So they gave him nifedipine 10mg sublingually and it dropped his pressure to 88/40 in about 5 minutes. I'm not sure what was worse, the high blood pressure or the sudden low blood pressure. I questioned the dose before they gave it to him but they said it would be ok. Dale just kind of slept through it all after given iv benadryl. His pressure improved after the infusion of IVI
G (105/54) . He was not really bothered by it . It certainly raised my blood pressure. His labs were stable. It was almost the same as the week before. The cyclosporine level is now 296. Although therapeutic, it is on the higher side so they lowered the dose again. On Sunday, Dale played his first and last baseball game for this season with his team the "Twins". He was warmly welcomed by his teammates and had a great time. They won and he came home with a big smile. After not having done much over the last two weeks, Dale was pretty sore the next day but he claimed it was "a good sore." Eating is still not a top priority for Dale and lately not for Derek either after having a new set of braces put on last Friday. Danny, on the other hand, is still eating us out of house and home. Auntie Millie is coming to visit again from Hawaii this Friday and hopefully she can get Dale to eat a little bit more. Dale has not been able to turn down her sweet encouragement and her yummy desserts. We plan to get back into golf and tennis soon. Dale , Eski and I continue to take our daily walks and read the paper together. Have a great week. Thank you for your continued support and prayers.