So far so Good

So far Peyton seems to be doing fairly well.  She is finally eating like normal again and her upset tummy stuff seems to be over.  Peyton still has no sight in her left eye, but hopefully her retina is re-attaching as we speak.  We see her Pediatric Oncologist in Wichita tomorrow and we will be doing some blood work to see if it is safe for her to return to preschool.  Peyton REALLY wants to go back to school, and her friends REALLY miss her.  As for the near future, Peyton has an examination under anethesia(EUA) in Wichita on the 21st of this month and we main gain some more knowledge about possible sight at that time.  We return to Philadelphia on Feb 16th for another EUA with Dr. Shields.  We are anxious to get some kind of idea as to what the possibilites are of her retina re-attaching.  There is a surgery that can be done to reattach retinas, but Peyton could NOT have this procedure for at least two years.  (The doctors say it is not wise to open up her eye just in case there were cancer seeds that are undetectable-they could spread to the rest of her body.)  However, we are staying positive and praying hard that her retina will heal on its own.  If it doesn't, well...we still have our little girl that we love so much, and that's what's most important!  Peyton is tough as nails and smarter than any child I've ever seen at this age.  If anyone can survive this, she sure can. 

Thanks to all of you!

Rich

Glad to be Back!

We were greeted at the airport today by Grandpa Gillaspie and two surprise visitors, Marlin and Jan Penner.  Peyton was excited to see that Marlin and Jan had brought her a very special flower arrangement and some other goodies.  As most of you probably know, Peyton LOVES flowers.  It was very nice to be welcomed home this way, and share this special day with some special people.  We cannot explain how happy we are to be home with our little girl.. 

Now, we will have some blood work done here to check her white blood cell counts and we will also see the specialist in Wichita in 6 weeks for an extensive exam.  No more Philadelphia for at least 3 more months.  Thank you to all those who are following our story and to those who have supported us throughout all of this.  We could not do this without all of you!

Please continue to pray that Peyton does gain some sight in the near future.  But for now, we are just happy to say the tumor is completely dead.

God Bless!

Rich     

Updates from Philly

Peyton had her finally chemo today and everything went very well.  She was in recovery for 6 hours again today and handled it like a little trooper.  She has slept most of the day.  Below is a picture of her in recovery with a foam halo ring one of nurses gave to her.

We also found out that we do not have to come back to Philly for 3 Months because her follow up appointment can be done at home with Dr. Varenhorst in six weeks.

Dr. Shields believes that she can detect light and some movement in her left eye which is a blessing but, we continue to hope and pray that Peyton's retina reattaches and some (or all)  of her vision is restored.

Tomorrow, we have another lazy day.  We will let Peyton have sometime to recuperate and then fly home on Sunday. 

I will post some more pictures of her experience in Philly when we return home.

Many thanks for your prayers.

With love,

                                                                    Ang, Rich and Peyton 

P.S.  There is a comment box below each post if you would like to leave Peyton a message.  You are able to post comments without having a google account.

A WOOHOO from Philly

Peyton had her examination under anesthesia today.  We got some Excellent news.  The tumor in her eye is completely dead and it looks like all of the seeds are dead.  Her retina seems to be flatting, but has not reattached and the fluid in the eye is decreasing. We are praying, now that the tumor is dead, the retina will begin to shown signs of healing and reattaching. 

As a precautionary measure, Peyton will have the third round of Chemo on Friday.  Dr. Shields just wants to make sure to give the tumor an extra punch. 

We continue to ask for you prayers for Peyton during her chemo session on Friday and continued prayers that her vision is restored. 

With love,

Ang, Rich,  and Peyton


Here are a few pictures of Peyton we can thought you all may enjoy.  As you can see, she has an absolutely amazing spirit and life is always a party with her.


Raking Leave



 





Peyton fishing with her Daddy!

 



Halloween 2010 - Thumbelina







Halloween 2010 - Butterfly

 

Update

Peyton's white blood cell count came back even lower.  The doctors would like another count before we head to Philly.  So on Monday she gets poked once more.  The doctors are rush ordering the results so we should know by Monday afternoon.

Peyton has been in great spirits and health which is a positive.  She is a little upset that school and other outings have been taken away from her until the blood counts start to rise. 

She has been a great helper getting all things ready for the trip.  Mom had a clutter breakdown yesterday at least two rooms are clutter free for now.  As for today, there will be packing and playtime. 

Thank you for your continuing prayers for safe travel and Peyton's health and vision.  We will keep you updated as time permits from Philly.

With love,

Ang, Rich and Peyton

The Good and The Bad

We got Peyton's blood work back and the white blood cell count is low.  She will have to get another test done on Thursday, and we are praying for the counts to increase.

We also went to see Dr. Varenhorst.  His first response was "That is just beautiful."  He believes that the fluid in her eye is decreasing and the tumor is beginning to crumble.  He was also able to see all her eye structure.  Before the tumor was so large that you could not see much.

We are heading back to Philly for the third round.  She will have another examination under anesthesia with Dr. Shields and hopefully a final round of chemo.

Thanks again for all of your support and prayers.

With love,

Ang, Rich and Peyton