DEC. 24, 2008

Melissa went to the doctor on Dec. 16Th. They did an M.R.I most of the blood in her head is gone. The tumors in her brain are about 1/3 smaller. In three months she has to get a MRI of her brain and spine. She is hoping to substitute teach at her school in Sandy starting on January 7Th if she gets doctor release to work and drive. She has been doing really well. Thank you for all your prayers. She wouldn't be where she is today it it wasn't for Heavenly Father. We are planning to go to Mesa on Christmas day. Everyone is going except Mandy and Jordan. We will be back Sunday December 28Th. Thank you for all you do. We love you. Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.

-Farmers-

December 14th 2008, Sunday

Melissa is doing GREAT. She only goes to Physical therapy once a week, but we do it at home. She has a cold right now. Hopefully we can get her over it soon. We go in Tuesday the 16Th for a brain scan, to see how much of the blood is gone. Also we hope the doctor has a treatment for Melissa. Please keep her in your prayers. Thank you for all your prayers and fasting for Melissa. We appreciate all everyone does.

-Farmers-

Sunday Dec. 7th

Thank you everyone for your prayers and fasting. We are only going to update the blog once a week. Melissa is doing great. She only goes to therapy once a week. She works on things at home. She has an appointment on Tuesday, December 16Th for an MRI and to go to her doctors. Her magnesium level went lower, so she has to take more magnesium. She goes in once a week to get it checked. Please keep her in your prayers. Thank you for all you do.

-Farmers-

December 2, 2008

We haven't written anything for a while. SORRY!!!! Melissa is doing GREAT. She is improving every day. She doesn't think she is, but she is. She got her magnesium checked today. We hope it is up. She isn't using the walker at all. She hasn't had to have a nap for five days. On Dec. 16Th she is going to have an MRI to check the blood in her brain. We are going to fast and pray for her on Dec. 7Th (fast Sunday). We would like anyone that would like to fast and pray with us to do so. Thank you for all your prayers.

November 26, 2008 Wednesday

Melissa did alot yesterday. She did therapy at home until 10 AM, went to P.T. for an hour and O.T. for an hour in richfield, went to lunch with mom, Went shopping at maurices and walmart, had a short nap, did more therapy at home and tied edges of 2 blankets for primary childrens hospital.
Today she did therapy at home all morning, did laundry, went to lunch with friends (thank you laci and Rachelle), helped make cookies, played board games with micklane and mckenzie, and visite with family. Every one is home

Nov. 24th 2008 Monday

Melissa did P.T. and O.T. with mom for one and a half hours today. She walked on the treadmill and rode stationary bike. She helped with laundry. She tied a blanket for Primary Children's Hospital, and helped with dinner and dishes. She had a busy day.

-Farmers-

Sunday November 23, 2008

Melissa went to church, ate dinner,helped with dishes, and now she is putting up with Micklane and McKenzie.

-FARMERS-

November 22 2008

Melissa got up, did her therapy, bathed, got ready, and went to Wal Mart to get her Dad a Birthday present. She went to Lunch with the for family for Dad's B-day. She helped with the laundry and dishes. She also put up with Micklane.

-Farmer-

November 21 2008

Melissa rode stationary bike and walked on the treadmill for ten minutes each. We went shopping to get a few things. We went to the High School Play, Fiddler on the Roof. It was good. She enjoyed it. Every day Melissa is doing something for her dad to get him in the Christmas spirit. He said Thanksgiving needs to be over before Christmas starts. She loves giving him a hard time.

Thursday November, 20th

Melissa went to the Jazz game last night. She had a great time. Thank you Mike and Susan. She went to the doctor, they put her on some time released magnesium and an allergy pill. She has to get her blood tested every two weeks. Today she went to P.T. and T.T. in Richfield. She went to Wal Mart after and got material to make tie blankets for Primary Children's Hospital for Christmas. She had a nap, did O.T. at home, and worked on the computer.

Thank you all.

-Farmer-

Jazz Game

Last night the family went to the Jazz game and had a great time. Below are some pictures of Melissa at the game. She had so much fun and had to get her Korver jersey. :)

11/18/08

Melissa went to p.t. in richfield today. She did O.T. at home by herself. She is doing so well. She only has P.T. once a week in Richfield. She works really hard at home. Mom can see a difference, but melissa doesn't think she is improving as fast as she wants to. She is really excited about tomorrow and the jazz gam. Thank you Susan and Mike.


-micklane

11-17-08

Melissa did O.T. and P.T. with mom for one and a half hours today. She rode the stationary bike and walked on the tredmill. She has an appointment on Wed. with a doctor in Salt Lake to help monitor her magnesium in take. She is going to a Jazz game with Uncle Mike and Aunt Susan on Wed. The whole Farmer family is going too.
So don't worry when there is nothing on the blog until Thursday night. Please keep her in your prayers. Thanks for all you do.

-Farmers-

November 16, 2008

Yesterday Melissa, Michelle, Mom, Aunt Lana went up to Provo to Karissa's Baby shower. It was really nice. Melissa didn't take a nap all day. She went shopping at Wal Mart in Richfield, watched a movie, had ice cream and then coughed until midnight.

Sunday, she went to all three meetings, ate turkey dinner, helped with dinner dishes. Everyone was home for the week end except Megan. She had tests on Saturday.

-Farmers-

11-14-08

Melissa walked on the treadmill and rode the stationary bike at home. Mom helped her with P.T. for a half hour. O.T. for a half hour also and she worked on O.T. all by herself. She dusted her room and vacuumed the living room. She is going to her friends wedding, tonight with Mom and Dad.

11-13-08

Melissa really worked hard today. She did P.T. and O.T. and hour each in Richfield, came home, did two hours of therapy at the house and had a nap. She got a blood test today for magnesium. It is lower this week. The doctor wants her to go to an internist that can monitor her magnesium in take and level. The doctor will call us tomorrow on when we have to go to that appointment.

Please remember in your prayers. Thank you for all you do.

-Farmer-

11-12-08

Claudia took Melissa grocery shopping at Lin's, Albertsons, and Wal Mart. Melissa was worn out. She did really well. We came home, put all the groceries away and fixed lunch. Melissa had a two hour nap. She did O.T. on her own, read the Reaper and worked on the computer. She helped with laundry.

Thank you all for your prayers.

-Farmers-

November 11, 2008

Sorry we missed yesterday Claudia is loosing her mind. Melissa was quite tired yesterday. We still went to Wal Mart and got a lot of walking in. She did reading with mom, OT on her own, and worked on the computer. She had a long nap.

Today she went to PT in Richfield. They really worked hard. She loved it. The occupational Therapist took her to Lins to grocery shop. She did really well. Thank you again for all your prayers.

-Farmer-

11/9/08

Melissa went to all three meetings today. She is worn out tonight. She said all she does is eat and sleep. Aunt Lana brought her over a chocolate cake and a loaf of bread and jelly. Thanks Lana!!!!

Thanks again for all everyone has done for us!!!!

-Farmers-

11/8/08

Melissa rode the stationary bike and went walking at K mart for physical therapy.
She sweeped the Entry Way and dusted the piano and folded some laundry.
She worked on the computer and did some word searches for a long time.

Thanks for all of your prayers.


/Farmers

Update For November 7

Today for physical therapy she went to walmart and walked the isles. She did word searches and read with Mom. She did her O.T. by herself today. Thats about it. Thanks.

/Micklane

Update For November 6, 2008

Melissay went to physical therapy. She went to the hospital and got her blood tested fro magnesium today. Her magnesium is still low. We have to go get it tested in one week again. She worked on the computer and did occupational therapy in the afternoon. Thank you everyone that comes by to visit. She loves visitors. Thank you again for all your prayers and thoughtfulness.

/Farmers

11/5

Melissa did therapy with mom, worked on the computer, and read all morning. In the afternoon she had a nap, had O.T. at 3 pm at the house, went to the Bank with Mom, ate dinner and now watching tv. ( the jazz game) She is really working hard. She is stiff today from working so hard yesterday.

- McKenzie -

November 4, 2008

Melissa went to physical therapy and occupational therapy in Richfield today. She will have physical therapy two times a week and occupational therapy once or twice a week. She did really well today. Mckenzie works with melissa after school on the computer. Mckenzie is helping her a lot. Melissa made her bills out today. For being dizzy, having a headache all the time, and having blurred vision, she is doing quite well.

/micklane

update for 11/3/08

We got home on Saturday evening. She had a good day Sunday. She has been eating really well since she got home. We took her up to the doctor in Salt Lake today. She still has low Magnesium. The doctor wants to get it up. She has to take three magnesium pills with each meal each being 400 mg. The blood in her brain should be gone in two to three months. She starts therapy tomorrow in Richfield. Thanks!

-Micklane

Last night Megan, Jordan and I along with Megan's friend Emily went to see Melissa. She was doing very well last night. We think the blood transfusion helped her a lot. The plan is that she will be released on Saturday after her therapy. Let us all pray that will happen :)

Update for 11/29

Tonight Melissa is going to have to have a blood transfusion because her red blood cell count is low.

My mom wants to thanks EVERYONE who has come to visit her. There are to many to name. She also wanted me to thank all of you for your prayers.

GREAT NEWS!

My mom called me this afternoon and told me some great news. Melissa is going to be released on Friday or Saturday. This is such great news. She is so amazing and this is nothing short of a miracle. Once again, thanks to everyone who has kept her and my family in your prayers. We appreciate all of you.

-Mandy

A short update:

Yesterday she did really well with all 3 of her therapies but was pretty tired after. She keeps improving everyday.

Today Megan brought up a Gingerbread Haunted House kit to see if Melissa, MicKlane, and McKenzie wanted to help put it together. Melissa helped for a little bit but the smell made her a little sick so they finished it out in the hall. But it turned out really cute!

It was a lot of fun having so much family up this weekend.

We went to church at the hospital this morning. It was only a 1/2 hour long sacrament meeting but it was fun to be able to take Melissa. She also had all three therapies today and she took 300 steps with a walker in physical therapy. She is working really hard.

We've had a few people ask where she's at so they can come visit. Here's the information. She's in the new hospital (Intermountain Medical Center) on State St. and 5300 S. She is in the patient tower on lever 12. Her room number 1224. Visiting hours are from 8am-8pm.

Sorry I'm slow getting this up.

Yesterday Melissa did another three hours of therapy. She did a really good job but she was really tired when it was all over.

Kassie from school came by last night and brought her a gift. She works at such a great school. Melissa says that she really misses her students.

There's not a lot to update but we're going to take some pictures later today so I'll post again later.

Today at rehad Melissa did occupational therapy, physical therapy and speech therapy for an hour each. She will be doing that everyday. She walked about 60ft with a walker today. She was pretty tired by the time it was all over. They are going to give her a swallow test using an x-ray machine, if she passes she will be able to drink and eat soft food.

Her principal and the school secretary came by today. They have really treated her well there. It really brightened her day. My mom said she smiled when a little while they were there. She has been stressing out today because she keeps saying she needs to go to parent teacher conferences this week. We have to keep reminding her that we are sure they will be taken care of.

She's still not quite herself. But she is starting to look a lot better. We'll post some pictures of her tomorrow.

Ralph & Katherine Brown sent her a blanket and Bishop & Gay Bishoff sent her a teddy bear. She loves them both. My mom's side of the family made her cards for family night on Monday and we're going to read them to her tomorrow. Megan came up tonight to do her nails and they look really cute.

Again, thank you all for your thoughts and prayers.

We'll write more tomorrow.

-Michelle

I am not up at the hospital right now but my mom called me and said that Melissa is doing really well today and they moved her to the rehab floor. This is great news. My mom said she is very awake today. Macie, Jordan and I will be going up for a few hours tonight to see her. I can't wait.

Thanks to everyone for everything :) If any of you would like to visit her. You can email me @ mandyfarmer23@gmail.com or call or text me and I can give you her room number.

-Mandy

Megan came up today and sat with my mom from 8:00 to 12:30. Thanks for coming Meg.

The peg placement went well. Although, Melissa has been very sleepy today. The doctor was concerned about that so he ordered another CT scan and her ventricles were actually smaller but the blood is still there.

My mom says she feels like it's a roller coaster ride because yesterday was such a good day and today has been a little rough. Somedays are up and some down. I guess that's just how it goes.

We are hoping that she will be transferred out of ICU and up to the Rehab floor within the week.

Thanks to everyone for their prayers again. We know they have helped so much.

Rachelle and Zanette Sorenson dropped by to see Melissa today and brought her some socks and some flowers. They are so pretty! Starr and Bernell Hofheins came by today too.

Melissa's platelet count went from a 60 yesterday to a 29 today. She is going to have another transfusion tomorrow morning. Her white blood cell count is at 12.6 which is now too high. Normal is 10.5. They are running tests to see why it has gone so high.

Tomorrow they are going to do surgery to put a peg tube into Melissa's stomach. This is just a more permanant feeding tube. They think she will probably be going home with a feeding tube so this is necessary. They are going to give her platelets at 6AM and do the procedure at 8AM. Just pray that all goes well.

Thanks again for all your loving notes and prayers. We are truly blessed to have such amazing family and friends.

Dear MicKlane,

Melissa would like you to know that she only misses you a little... definately not as much as you think. Ha ha!

Love Michelle

Valene King came by to visit today and brought Melissa a really cute bag with some presents in it. Anyone who knows Melissa, knows she loves purses! She's going to love it!

Melissa's platelet count was low today so she had to have another transfusion. But her white blood cells are up to 9.2 so that is a lot better. She also had occupational therapy for about an hour today. She was really tired while they were doing it but they got her out of her bed and into a chair and had sponge her teeth off. They also had her try to focus on things throughout the room at different angles and say what color they were.

She was pretty sleepy today but tonight she has been quite alert. She keeps moving her bed and adjusting it on her own. She just picks a random button and presses until we tell her to stop.

She can have one ice chip at a time if the nurse gives it to her. She hasn't been able to have anything until now.

Megan came up and spent about five hours keep my mom and Melissa company today. She brought Melissa a new hat.

Just so everyone knows, I am back to work at school so I may not get updates posted until after work. But I will make sure to post every night to keep you all updated.

This past week there has been a few people that have come by to see Melissa. She has had a lot that we haven't mentioned on the blog yet.

Aunt Ruby and her children Keith and Jacque came by to visit.

Melissa's Bishop, Bishop Bell and his wife stopped to say hello on Friday night.

Krista, another 2nd grade teacher from Melissa's school, came by and gave her a gift and some cards from her class. Once again Melissa loved the cards. Many of the students said that they missed her teaching P.E.

Some great news today that we got when we got back from church is. . . HER WHITE BLOOD CELL COUNT is a 7 and we don't have to wear masks anymore. That is great news.

They came in and did a little bit more thearapy today. They had her brush her teeth and sit in a chair for a little while.

Thanks to everyone who came by to visit. We appreciate it. :)

They have been getting her out of bed and into a chair for breathing treatments. This morning she was in the chair for about an hour and she was pretty exhausted when she was done. When Jordan, MicKlane, McKenzie and I arrived she was sitting in the chair again. We read her all of the cards from her class and she loved them. She would comment on a few of the students cards, she is still only whispering. She has been more alert since we have been here. Dad, MicKlane and McKenzie left a little while ago to get home. Michelle, Jordan and I will be staying with her until Sunday night and then my mom will come back up. Thank you to everyone who is praying for Melissa. Our family really appreciates everything :)

Here are a few of the cards from the class. I hope you enjoy!


This card is so cute. You can probably see the bat hanging from the tree. The bat is saying "I hope you get well soon!!!!!!!!!!!"


Is was is very fun. It says "Ther is a Peanut on every Peg" and sure enough there is a little peanut on every page!


This one is probably my favorite. A little girl in her class wanted to make a card for her and she cut her pants to make the girl on the cards pants. Melissa's aid said that the little girl said her mom did it to her pants already and so she thought it was okay.


THis one says, "Dear Miss Farmer. I hope you get well soon! And this leter is'nt just from me it is all so fron the ohl (whole) class."


I just thought that this one was cute. It says, "I hope you FELL better." On the right side of the card there are snowmen, snowflakes, reindeer's and candy canes.

Melissa's white blood cell count was a little higher today. If she keeps improving we may not have to wear masks in her room in a couple day. That will be soooo nice!

Her eyes responded to light better today. Yesterday one side was not responding as quickly as the other. They are both responded well today.

She talked a little more today, although it's still only a whisper. If you ask how she is doing she whispers, "good."

She had a line that was in her artery that they could draw blood from instead of having to poke her everytime. It also kept her blood pressure. The line went bad today so they are going to have to replace it.

She is improving although she is still a pretty sick girl!

Craig Friant stopped by to visit again today. Also, my friend Nate was up from St. George and came by and visited tonight for a while. Melissa's aid, Aleisha Powell and a friend came by today and dropped off a picture of her class and some letters from her students. They were both so sweet. It was fun to visit with them and talk about Melissa and her work. Her student's really love her. It's been good to visit with everyone who has come by. Thanks again for all your prayers!

Today two new therapists came in and helped her start to move. They helped her sit up and she was answering questions. Then they helped her stand up and with some help she made some small steps which is great. Her wonderful friends from school came in with some cards and a picture of her class. MicKlane, McKenzie and I came up today to spend some time with her. When I went into the room she was watching a TV show. I asked her what she was watching and she said, "What I Like About You." And that is what she was watching, so that is great.

-Mandy-

If you want to leave a message for Melissa on the blog, we will read it to her.

If you don't know how to make a comment, all you have to do is click on comment after a post and you can type in your message. You may have to create a user name and password for it to post. If you have any trouble, you can also just e-mail it me at michellekfarmer@hotmail.com .

They did another CT scan tonight and everything still looks that same. We hope it stays that way. She is still pretty sleepy and hasn't talked much. They said that she is probably just exhausted.

Today the doctor came in and said that her white blood cell count was a little higher and that even though she has been pretty out of it again today, he thinks she is still doing better than yesterday.

The had to give her another platelet transfusion today and her lungs look about the same as they did yesterday.

They are going to start getting her to sit up on the edge of the bed and start moving a little bit more.

The doctor also said that if all goes well, she will be able to walk and basically take care of herself by Christmas time.

Megan, Macie, Mandy & Jordan came up last night. Melissa talked quite a bit while they were here. She talked about the Jazz and which basketball players she liked. She, like every other girl in Utah, thinks that Kyle Korver is hot. Ha ha!

One of my friends that I met when I moved up here came by to visit. Cara, thanks for coming to entertain me for a little while!

Also, Melissa Landreth and Bess Christensen stopped by to visit my mom. It was good to have some visitors!

Thanks to everyone who continues to keep Melissa in their prayers! We love you!

Sorry I haven't updated all day. I had to go out to my classroom today to get things ready for next week.

But here's what's new... She has been pretty out of it today. She has been sleeping a lot. She wasn't able to pass the swallow test again.

They did another CT scan this morning and it looked like the ventricles have stayed the same since they took the shunt out. That's good news. We hope it stays that way.

Also, her lungs have been pretty cloudy lately so they have been giving her breathing treatment. They are still doing the treatments and today they looked less cloudy. They want them clear so she is less likely to get infections.

Thanks to Vern and Judy Farmer for stopping by last night to visit. Thanks to Aunt Julia (Camp) for coming up and taking my mom to lunch. Also, thanks to Craig Friant for coming by today as well. Macie said she is going to come up tonight for a while too. We appreciate everyone coming to check on her! You're great!

Melissa paints her toe nails every week. So last night I asked if she wanted me to bring some nail polish and paint her toes. She said that she thought that would be good so we painted them tonight. Everytime I asked her what color she wanted them painted she told me a different color but we finally decided to paint them red with white flowers. They turned out pretty cute!

They took the shunt out... without sedating or numbing her at all! I think that is so crazy! They stapled the hole shut. She is pretty worn out. They gave her some pain medication and now they're just going to let her sleep for a bit.

They said that they will do a couple CT scans over the next couple of days to monitor the fluid in her brain. If the pressure goes back up, they will have to do surgery to put in a permanent shunt that drains into her abdomen. We really hope that this isn’t necessary. She’s not really in any condition to have surgery right now. Her white blood cell count and her platelet count are still really low which leaves her very prone to infection. We still have to wear masks and sanitize our hands before we are even allowed in her room. The other thing they mentioned was that by having the fluid drain into her abdomen, it may provide a source for the cancer to spread to her abdomen. So we really hope it won’t come to that.

They just came in and said that they are going to take the shunt out later today. Tommorrow they will do another CT scan to see if she was able to absorb the spinal fluid on her own. They said they need to give her the chance to have it out.

She pulled out her feeding tube again. She really doesn't like it. We have no idea how she did it. Her hands are tied to the bed and my mom and I went to get something to eat. When we came back the nurse said she had pulled it out. She's a magician!

They also came in and did the swallow test again and she still wasn't able to do it. She just couldn't quite get enough force behind her cough.

She has got a lot secretions in her lungs and they come in every four hours or so and put this vest on her that vibrates her whole body. It supposed to loosen up those secretions so that she can cough them up. If she doesn't cough them up, they worry she will get an infection. But she has been coughing a little better today.

Apparently Melissa is getting a little bored. She pulled her feeding tube out this morning. Now she is asking every five minutes if we will untie her arms and take tubes and monitors off. I can't blame her... this place isn't too exciting!

Melissa seems to be more herself. She apologizes for everything, even when it's not her fault and she says thank you a lot. She even a sweetheart when she's sick.

She has been asking for a drink about every five minutes and we have to keep reminding her that she can't have a drink until she passes the smallowing test. She asked a few minutes ago and we reminded her and she said, "That is so stupid." Then a few minutes later she said, "Michelle.. I'll pay you if you'll get me a drink." Ha ha... She must think that I am easier to buy than my mom. It made me laugh.

They said that test came back for her arteries and everything looked fine! YAY!

Here's the final update for the night:

They just put the feeding tube in and did an x-ray to see if it was put in the right place... so we're just waiting to here back about that.

Also, earlier today they did x-ray of her neck to make sure she doesn't have any blockage in her arteries. She has been complaining that her neck hurts so they just want to be sure. They haven't got the results from that back yet.

Also they have clamped the tube that is draining the fluid from her brain and they are leaving it clamped until tomorrow morning. Then they will do a CT scan to see if she is able to drain and absorb the fluid on her own. If she is doing well, they will take the shunt out.

We have to make sure her hands are tied to the bed all the time now because she is always trying to pull the tubes and IV's out.

Someone from her school dropped off a bunch of cards from students at her school and they are sooooo cute. They say they are from Mrs. Steiner's class. We have had a lot of fun reading them. Melissa is going to love reading those when she is able to. I thought you might all enjoy reading a few: (I'm typing them exactly the way they are written because I think the mistakes are so cute.)

"Get well soon Ms. Farmer. I hope you get out of the hospital soon. How are you? I hope your good. I wish you get well soon really. I like your name. It sounds cute. I super super super like your name. I hear that you are the greatst ever. And I think too. I miss you."

"I howp you git well befor it starts to snow so you dowt haf to wac thr the snow. git well soon. (** This one also had a hand drawn flowers that popped up when you open it. SOOOO CUTE!)

"Get well soon. your my friend. I hope you come back I really miss you and I hope you like this card and I think your eyes are so pritty and I think every thing about you is grate and I really want you to come back."

I was just reading some of them out loud to my mom and Melissa said, "Michelle, who wrote that?" I told her the name of the student and she said that she knew the student wasn't in her class but she knew that Mrs. Steiner taught 3rd grade. I went through and read her each card and she even cracked a little smile. THANKS MRS. STEINER'S CLASS. That was so fun!

They just came in to do the swallow test and she wasn't able to do it. She choked on it and they had to use suction to get it out. They said they will have to put a feeding tube in today sometime.

Also, thank to Uncle Bruce and Aunt Judy for stopping by. I was out running errands so I'm glad my mom had some company while I was gone. Thanks!

So here's the update so far today:

When my mom and I got here this morning she was in getting a CT scan on her head. They said that it looks like the ventricles (sp?) are smaller but the blood is still there. They are hoping that they will be able to take the tube out of her head tomorrow. They keep clipping the tube that drains the fluid from her brain off and they watch to see if she is able to drain and absorb the fluid like she is supposed to. They also did an X-ray on her chest to fix the placement of the pick that goes to her heart. They have been giving her all of her medicine through that pick. It's now in the right place.

She is still having trouble coughing. She just can't seem to suck in enough air to get a good cough. They keep suctioning her throat but hopefully she will start coughing and swallowing on her own soon.

She has also been talking more today... although none of it really makes sense. She is pretty confused. They say that it is pretty normal for her to be saying some strange things at this point. Today she said one of her students names and when I asked her about it she said, "It's one of my kids... tell her to be quiet." I said, "She talks a lot in class huh?" and she nodded. She was moving her hand back and forth and when I asked what she was doing she said, "Passing out the paper.. it has words to help with their writing." She's been talking a lot about school today.

One of the PA's came in this morning and I finally just asked her what I should tell Melissa's principal about her coming back to work. She said that it would be quite a ways down the road before they could even look at whether she would be able to go back to work or not. She said to let her principal know that she should probably find a long-term replacement. So I called her school to let them know. Everyone at her school has been so nice to help her out. Her aide is teaching her class this week and then starting Tuesday they have a teacher that retired last year coming in to take over her class as a long-term sub. Melissa has loved the people she worked with at her school over the past couple months and loved her job. She has worked so hard at it. Even when she was at home, she was always doing school stuff. Her principal raved about her teaching and said that she was doing such a good job. We hope that she can recover and get back to the job that she loved so much.

They are trying wake her up enough that she will be able to swallow. She have been feeding her through an IV but they want her to be able to start swallowing water and ice chips on her own. They are going to come in and test her this afternoon. She keeps asking for a drink so we hope she is able to do that. If she doesn't pass, they will be putting a feeding tube down her throat. So we've got our fingers crossed that she passes.

Thanks to Marsha for coming by to visit today!

Well here is an update...

She is a little bit more alert today. She opens her eyes a little bit and whispers a little too. She's not totally there but it is an improvement.

She has been coughing up a lot of stuff (they have a better word for it but I won't spell it right, so you get the idea) They have had to suction her throat a lot but she is also getting better about clearing it on her own.

The doctor is worried about blood clot right now so they checked her legs today and they are going to check her lungs later on.

They haven't made any decisions on what they want to do for treatment next because they want to see how she comes out of this. We'll let you know when we know.

THANKS TO EVERYONE THAT FASTED FOR MELISSA TODAY! We love you all and appreciate your support. You're great!

-Michelle

Marsha,

She is at the new hospital on 5300 S and State. Call me and I can tell you where to go in the hospital to find us. I think you have my number. If not, let me know.

-Michelle

THANK YOU!

Me and my family just want to say thank you to all of our family and friends who have called and come by. There are so many people who care so much about Melissa and we are so thankful for your prayers and kind words. We feel all of your support and couldn't ask for better family and friends. We love you all.

We are having a special fast that we started tonight so anyone that would like to join is more than welcome.

I also wanted to write down everyone who has come by to visit so Melissa can read this when she wakes up. I keep forgetting to take pictures of everyone but here are a few:

Uncle Vern & Aunt Judy
Uncle Bernell & Aunt Starr
Our cousin Katrina
One of my best friend from high school, Janie
One of Melissa's best friends, Beau (in the picture above)
Another one of Melissa's friends Sarah LaRue, her mom, and Leah (in the other picture above)

I can't say thank you enough!

-Michelle

Not a lot has changed today but my parents just got a chance to talk to the doctor that has been treating her chemo. He said he look at the MRI and the tumor in her brain is active again (which is what the CT scan showed as well) and it is bleeding and keeping the spinal fluid from draining. All of that contributed to the swelling in her brain. This was all stuff that we already figured was happening but wanted to have him look at the MRI to make sure. I guess MRI's give a better picture than a CT scan. It wasn't really any new information but at least we are now sure about what went wrong. Sorry it's not much of an update but that's about all we know right now.

They just took the trake (I have no idea how to spell that) out of her throat and she is doing a pretty good job of breathing on her own now. So that's good news!

-Michelle

They did an MRI late last night but they haven't really told us the results. Sounds like we are going to have to wait until Monday. But they did say that chemo did not work for the tumor in her spine so they will be talking about other alternatives to that as well. She has the maximum amount of radiation and chemo they will let her have so we will see what else they can do. It's a little discouraging but my dad gave her a really good blessing yesterday. I'm so grateful that he was able to that.. it's been a great comfort.

-Michelle

10/11/08 - Update

Friday morning Michelle wasn't able to wake up Melissa. She wouldn't respond at all so Michelle had to call 911. The paramedics came and she was taken to the ER close to their house. They did a CT Scan and found that her tumor in her brain was blocking the fluid that flows through the 4th Ventricle and that was causing pressure on the brain. It also looked like the tumor was bleeding inside the brain. Because of the Chemo she has been having she had very very LOW platelet count. She was at 1,000 when she came in and the normal person is 100,000. Platelets are in the blood and make the blood clot. The EMS poked her arm to get a line and she bled for over an hour. With such a low platelet count nobody would perform the surgery that she need because they feared she wouldn't stop bleeding. They gave her a couple platelet transfusions and was then moved to the Neuro ICU where they took another platelet count and it was high enough to have surgery. They did a surgery where they now have tubes in her head to drain the fluid that was causing the pressure. During the surgery they put a breathing tube in and today they are hoping to remove it and have her breathe on her own again. She has not regained consciousness yet but we are hoping that she will today.

All I ask at this time is for all of you to pray for her and my family that she will wake up soon and be able to talk to us again. We will try really hard to keep you posted on her condition.

She is such a wonderful person, she is perfect. I love her so much and know that everything is going to be okay.

-Mandy-

Her life in a nut shell :)

As many of you may know, my sister Melissa has been through a whole lot. If you aren't aware, I will quickly tell you about her. In the 8th grade she was having a lot of back pain and they found a tumor in her back and she had it surgically removed. Then when she was a Junior in high school they found another tumor in her brain. She went through months of radiation and lost a lot of weight and all of her hair. This past month she went in for her regular check up and we got more bad news. She now has a tumor in her back. She is currently going through Chemotherapy. This means that she will be sick for the next few months and will loose her hair within the first three weeks.

My sister is AMAZING. How many of us could be as strong as she is after going through all of this. I personally don't think I could. She is so strong and has been a great example to me. She just graduated college last weekend. She has had many interviews for teaching jobs.