With no home!

Wow,
When last I wrote, we were ready for closing on our home in Port and almost closing on our new home in Thiensville. NOW.... There was a bank/bank management company/oversight error and the people buying our home were unable to close. We had already moved completely out of our home and allowed them to move in.

Now, we have gone by 2 1/2 weeks with someone in our home, while Molly, Adeline, and I stay at our crazy generous friends and family! I have been out to the Port house 2 times to complete jobs that the "new" appraisal has turned up, and both the family moving in, and my family are playing the waiting game! What a load of crap!!

We can't thank the Bauers, B-Sieg, McCormicks, and Segebrechts enough for letting us bum around in what I call the "away-cation." Similar to the "Hometel"...the "away-cation" is a period in our life that I would love to be done with. Hopefully, this week, the buyers bank or whatever is holding things up will take care if business and we can get on with our lives. Pretty sure Molly and I have the baggy eyes and for sure I have the disheveled look of someone who is not quite taking care of their appearance. Adeline is dealing okay, she just thinks its fun to see all these new places, beds, and friends every night, like a constant sleep over. Less sleep for mom and dad, however.

Girls soccer has been going well and I continue to work on the Homestead Hockey schedule. Hopefully, my next blog will be written from my new home!!!

What's New

A lot is new!

Sold the home in Port Washington and we are heading to Thiensville...much much closer to school and the rink. We are very sad about moving from our friends and beautiful city of Port Washington. However, we are very excited to be moving so close to our friends in MTSD and cut down on gas, and increase our family time together.

All is well on the "cancer" front. I am 100% donor marrow, which means...so far so great!

Adeline is crazy busy but so much fun

We thank our friends and family who have put us up until all the cosings are final...Sloma, Debbie, Paul and the kids, Grandma and Grandpa in GB, and B. Sieg (Siegel)!!

Added a picture that is awesome! Makes me thankful for my donor, whoever and wherever you may be!!

I hope everyone is happy and healthy!
Tony Navarre

Quick Update

Hope all is well with everyone. As it has been so long since my last update, I am going with a general info update.

Health update:
Things are amazing normal at the moment. I have been getting to school everyday and pick Adeline up from the day care almost everyday. Taking all of my medications, slowly weening from my anti-rejection medicine, and feeling pretty good. I have avoided the flu bug, although my sinuses are making a mean comeback. Those headaches...you know the ones where the back of your eyes hurt...are a pain in the...head, but they are deal-able.

Hockey:
The season is incredibly busy, but going very very well. We had some struggles at the beginning of the season, but we have slowly started to put some things together. The goal for each game now is to match or improve our intensity from the game before. Combine that with fewer and fewer mistakes and we will be a tough team come playoff time. Coach Craig keeps me on my toes, reminding me of all the things I forget to tell him. It has been great getting to know Coach B. My fantastic (and one year older as of yesterday) wife led me to a Green Bay native and he has fit right in with the Homestead staff. JV has had a solid run as well, competing at a high level with all the teams they are matched up against. Coach Jake and Spartz are keeping those guys working at a high level. The whole staff has been great and fun to work with.

Do I dare bring up the game the Packers had against the 49ers? No, it just makes me angry. The NHL is coming back...although it has been a crazy disappointment that they had a lockout at all. Brewers will start soon enough and I'll have something else to whine about.

Finally, congrats to all of my friends who have taken the leap into parenthood for the first time, or once again! Deckers, Bergers, Olsen's, Kurth's and a few others who may or may not have let the cat out of the bag (literally)! Don't want to spoil any surprises. GOOD LUCK!!

Hope all is healthy and happy!!
Tony

A BIG Day!

Tomorrow I have all of my testing:

Bone Marrow Biopsy
Bone Density
Pulmonary Function Test
Blood
CT Scan of Chest and Head
Meeting with Dr.
Plenty of others that I'm sure I'm missing at the moment

I am very excited.  Can't wait, actually.  It's a huge milestone.  Pray for negative for the biopsy-That's a positive! 

Hockey has started.  Going well.  We haven't had an official game yet but we had a monster scrimmage with Green Bay Notre Dame, Whitefish Bay/Nicolet/Shorewood, Cedarburg, Marquette and Fondulac.  My coaching staff has really come together: Todd Butkovich-A Green Bay Southwest alum who Molly knows from high school, David Craig-old buddy of mine and former high school hockey teammate, Jake Waraksa-Wausau West alum and back again to help the HHS program is Chris Spartz.  Looking forward to a fun and hopefully successful season.

Please pray for good things again tomorrow.  Leukemia sucks but you guys/gals don't!

Hope everyone is healthy and happy,

Tony Navarre

Update: Latest Appointment

Hello all:
I hope that everyone is healthy and doing well. My last appointment went very well. I have been lucky that Froedtert has scheduled my appointments in chunks, or right as my lunch at school starts. I have been able to get to Froedtert for my tests and check ups without having to take any time off at school. My last set of blood tests came back with a few results coming back better than my last test. That was reassuring. It is great to get good news. Dr. Palmer was running late so I did not get to see her, but I will at my next appointment. We have talked the last few appointments about beginning the weening process again with my prograf (anti-rejection). I am looking forward to finding out my prograf level at my next appointment, and finding out when my year eval is going to be. I cannot believe we are almost at a year already. In some ways it feels like I am still hearing that I have Leukemia for the first time, and in others, it seems like forever ago. So many things have happened, and really it has all been the same. When you spend so much time in the hospital, you don't really see all the things that you care about....but you also feel so busy. Tests, exams, meetings, staying active, resting, sleeping, but missing all of the things that you care about. Thinking about it makes me even more happy to be back doing the things that I love to do. From the small things like being able to go out to eat with the family, or spend time outside...it was amazing. Molly, Adeline, and I had the chance to go to a small party at a friends house to watch fireworks. Just being out with the family, seeing friends was hard to express. Traveling up to Green Bay or Eau Claire to see family, or meet some friends in Madison...there aren't words to explain how great those things felt. Got back to a Packer game thanks to my friend Cal and his Dad...who gave me his ticket to the season opener for the Packers. While at the game, getting to meet and hang out with two other cancer survivors...wonderful. It is strange to have such a great connection to someone who I have only met once. I got back to coaching...officially...with the boys soccer team starting in August. Unfortunately, the boys had a rough loss in regionals, but they worked hard and improved through-out the season. With also having the head hockey job as well, it was such a great start at getting back to the things I love to do. I cannot believe that the hockey season is almost here. Try-outs on November 5th...wow. Teaching and being back in the classroom has been amazing as well. The saying that, you don't know how much you love something until it is gone applies well. I knew that I loved my job, but didn't realize how much I would miss the kids. Even the hard times, when they are stressful, or mad, or tired, just feels great to be back in the classroom. Days have been really busy, and by the time Saturday is over, I am tired...but it is a good tired. Molly continues to be saint-like...although, at times, I am pretty sure she liked it better when I couldn't talk :) The "cancer card" doesn't work on her anymore either...I mean come on!! Some of the things I missed have still weighed on me pretty hard...the things I missed with Adeline, some of my very good friends weddings, I still feel like I have missed some important things. However, I think the fact that I am still here is so important, as one of those friends recently had his first child!! Congrats to Nick and Rachelle...amazing you guys!! Crazy enough, I have three friends left to go...Clark, Thane, Brent....good luck gentleman! I cannot wait to meet all the awesome kiddos. I was cleared to start doing some more activities, such as hitting the golf ball and running around on the soccer field. I know that school is going to continue to be great, and I am excited for my first birthday on December 3rd. This situation has been so great, I get to have two birthdays now.

In more disappointing news, I am sending a ton of prayers to my friend, mentor, neighbor, and an amazing person Chuck. This man is one of the most genuine, caring, and amazing people I have ever met. I know that anyone who has had a class with him at the University of Wisconsin at Eau Claire knows this. For all those who prayed for me and for anyone that was sending thoughts my way, please make the effort to say a prayer, think good thoughts...and even more, hug a person that you may take for granted. I love you Chuck, I am thinking about you and praying for you.

I know that there may not be a real pattern to this blog. More of all the thoughts I have had over the last 2-4 weeks. There are probably a million small mistakes as Molly isn't close by to tell me that what I am writing is hard to understand and that my sentences run on and on and on and on......

Thank you Molly, thank you Adeline, thank you friends and family, as we move forward, I hope that I can continue with good news and follow that with an amazing report from my one year appointment. Wear some pink for breast cancer, orange for Leukemia, find your color...hopefully you aren't impacted directly by cancer. I hope that everyone is happy and healthy...Tony

Sorry

Sorry it has been so long. Being back at school...yes back to work...has been great, but so busy.

Health report: Things have been going smoothly. I will have my year exam soon. I cannot believe it has almost been a year since my transplant. My blood tests keep coming back positive and I have been feeling good. Still taking quite a few medications and I have not started weening from my anti rejection drugs, but that is all in the plan. My doctor told me that she wants to take the weening slower this time, as I had GVHD when we weened the last time.

School report: Things have been going very well at school. I have had a couple of meetings and really enjoy the new schedule. My team teaching partner and I are having fun teaching math. Boys soccer has been fun, although we are not getting the good results that we need. Hockey does not start until November 5th. It has been great getting into that though. So much fun being busy and being surrounded by friends. Going back to work has been incredible.

Life report: Adeline has been doing well, no more episodes and she seems to be very energetic and happy. Molly has been busy with work also but really likes the kids she is working with this year. Was able to go to a Packer game, and although they lost, I had an amazing time! Got to see a bunch of friends from college. How about those Brewers! Pretty darn exciting.

Hope everything is going well with everyone else, I will try to keep up with my blog a little better. Enjoy the weekend, go Brewers, go Packers, go Highlanders.

Already the Summer

Things have been very busy. A few weeks ago I got some great news.

First, my doctor got the results back from the biopsy and there was no sign of Leukemia. The genetics test also came back negative (which is a good thing). I have been feeling better every day and have even played hockey a couple of times. I don't have the scoring touch yet, but played well enough and wasn't terrible on the ice. I have been going down weekly on medications...I am almost finished with my anti-fungal, I am very low on anti-rejection, I am down 1600mg of magnesium, and continue to drop the amount of steroids I am on. My weight is holding at 200 (yes 200, its all muscle). The humidity is horrible, but that gives me more of a reason to spend time at the hockey rink or in AC.

Second, speaking of hockey, I got the job as Homestead High Schools Head Hockey coach. I am very excited about that and looking forward to getting everything going.

Adeline has been doing well also, she has started two "toddler" classes. The first is creative dance...she definitely needs some work on following directions. They said pick up the bunny, she picked up the dots the bunnies were on, they said sit on the carpet square, she took the carpet square and put it on her head, other kids were sitting still, she was trying to find a way into the storage room. She is pretty energetic. She needs some practice sitting as well. The other class is Teddy Tumblers, which is essentially playing in a padded room. She is very outgoing, took the bubbles, and tried to turn on the radio...I think the other two year olds are a little scared of her. She may be a little aggressive with hugs and giving love.

Summer has been going great. I had the opportunity to hang out with two of my friends in Madison, Happy Birthday Thane, and my friend Clark. I have a wedding I get to go to in July, I have been playing hockey on Sunday nights, and just feel great about this summer.

Hope everyone is happy, healthy, and enjoying the weather!!
Tony Navarre

Been a While

Good morning everyone! Hope all is well. Figured it was overdue for an update, and since Adeline is matching shoes with Bert on Sesame Street, I'd get this out of the way.

Medical update: My big 180 day appointment is coming up on Tuesday after Memorial Day. This appointment is all the important information once again...PFT's (Pulmonary Function Test..Lungs), Bone Marrow Biopsy, Meeting with Doc, Blood...and possibly a few others...those are the biggies. For the most part, I have been feeling well. There was some mix ups with my medications, which was taking a bit of a toll on my liver...but it seems like things have gotten straightened out. I was still taking a treatment dose of an anti fungal, this just needed to be a prophylactic dose. I also got a prescription from the pharmacy and by computer error, the dose was 5mg instead of . 5 which is a rather large mistake. Finally, I was on a very, very high dose of prednisone(steroids) and that was not making things any easier. I think we have finally got all the meds back to normal, which is much easier on my stomach and liver. Also, I did have a little bit of GVHD in my gut. The great thing about this is that the doc says this will actually make my chances of relapse less likely! What a strange thing...but great!

Adeline update: Well, things have been a little weird with the little girl. She had a couple more seizures, which were scary because they still are not positive why they are happening. Not related to seizures.  So.. Rotavirus? Just who she is? She is back on the anti-seizure med (overall she is pretty good at taking the meds). We have also started her on a Gluten Free diet, see if that helps with things. Bummer for her, she loved the Hotcakes from Mc D's...oh well.

Sports update: Haven't been able to talk much sports. Pretty depressing in the pro ranks at the moment. Brewers are playing terrible, and the Penguins totally lost it in the Playoffs...against the Flyers no less. Terrible. On the bright side, I always have the Packers to look forward too...really liked their draft and feel they made a lot of moves to improve their abysmal defense. I understand they were 15-1, but anyone who says they didn't need defense was out of their minds.  However, the Packers already have their first trophy of the year with Double D winning the Mirrorball trophy! The HHS Girls soccer team has been up and down. Very very talented, but when they make a mistake, it usually results in a goal...they head into playoffs this coming week. It has been awesome getting back into the swing of coaching...and the gals are so much fun, not only to coach, but they are so much fun to be around. All the teams were such a huge part in getting me back to good health and they have made it so easy to come back.

Hope this finds everyone else doing well, have a great Memorial weekend and enjoy good weather!!

Vote for Driver!!

Get on the Phones! Vote for Donald Driver for Dancing with the Stars!!!! 800-868-3403

Also vote on ABC.com, we can't let a latin soap star, opera singer, or TV personality beat DD!!

Packer Nation, get after it.

Day 137

Things are by no means perfect, and I have a long way yet to go, but I do feel pretty good. My doctor officially took me off the anti-rejection drugs today, we will see how that affects things. I am still on quite a few pills, and need to continue to drink lots of fluids, but it was a good appointment. My doc said I was still doing better than someone in my position should be. I just hope to keep on improving and working hard at staying healthy!

Thanks Everyone!!!!
Tony Navarre

Appointment tomorrow

I have got appointments tomorrow. They start at about 11 and then....you never really know how long you are going to be there. Going to bring my kindle and try to finish up the 5th book in Game of Thrones series. Hoping to hear more good news, more flexibility, and more info on how my counts and bloodwork look.

HHS Girls still unbeaten with a nice win against Port Washington tonight. I don't even want to think about the Penguins and their game 4 tomorrow. Draft for the Packers coming up, on the heels of Megatron saying if the Lions stay healthy, they will win the Superbowl. I'll believe that when I see it. Brewers with an excellent come from behind walk-off win tonight against a solid Dodgers team. Kottaras coming through huge with a 2 RBI hit to win the game in the ninth! Good luck to Alex a playoffs are going on for the Youngstown Phantoms.

Thanks for meeting us for dinner Uncle Ryan!

More to come tomorrow, Hope everyone is doing well. So a great little saying that can go with anyone fighting cancer, but specifically for Leukemia...

For Every Fight Won
For Each Battle Lost
For Those Still Fighting...
I Proudly Wear Orange

Love you all,
Tony Navarre

Other sites to check out:
Be The Match
Let Fish Walk
SO IMPORTANT!!

April Fools?

I guess when I said that I was going to do a blog the the next day, that was an April Fools Joke. HAHA, very funny.

In doctoral news, I have continued to get good news. I am ahead of the game as far as how I am doing. "For how bad I was when I was first there, I am doing better than expected." I feel very good, with the exception of occasional headaches and some rashing around my arms, legs, face and stomach, I am doing very well. After my "toe collision" in indoor soccer, I had some drainage (gross) and some bleeding, so I got the "Why don't you take a few weeks off from indoor...." from my doctor. Believe me, if she says not to do something, I will not! Number one, I never want to be where I was at ever again! Number two, my toe was killing me and it gave me an excuse. Number three, Molly heard, and if I ever tried to do something Palmer said no to, I would be in deep! Finally, if it means I can play more into the Spring and Summer, I will wait. Some other good signs...I have a few nicks and cuts that I have gotten putting in the car seat, scratch from Adeline, and the toe, and they all seem to be healing like a normally healing person. That is good, prior to me being diagnosed, I would get a cut like that, or hurt myself and it would take FOREVER to heal. So, there is all the news on the doctor front. If you want to quit now and skip all the silly sports and life stories beyond this, I would not blame you.

Homestead Girls soccer playing well. Some very close games and some very fun practices. Very fun group of ladies with a lot of talent. BREWERS are BACK!!! Love watching the games...especially seeing as how last year I was unconscious for opening day. Makes things more fun...you know...being able to see and hear the games. :) Pittsburgh Penguins playing unreal...#5 Philly plays at #4 Penguins in what could be a ridiculous 1st round of NHL playoffs. The Packers are getting close to draft time and we can see who the 2013 Super Bowl Champs will Draft.

Finally, the family is doing very well, Adeline was stuck with a fever for a few days, but came out of it alright. Mols is back to work and loving it, although, spring break is nice. We are getting back to old habits: meeting at parks, having dinner with friends when things are not crowded, and taking bike rides and playing cards. Very steadily, life is returning to normal. Also, wanted to say if anyone is really more concerned than my bi weekly blogs, I am now on Twitter @navarre17 wink wink!

Thanks to everyone! Hope you are all healthy and happy!
Tony

Gotta Get Caught Up

Well, there will be a good long blog coming up tomorrow. It has been a few weeks, so there is a lot to report. All is well and I hope everyone is enjoying the nice weather. Also, finally got my Tweet set up. @navarre17 I figure, its time to get with it...Johnny H convinced me facebook was ok, may as well make the jump on my own here :)

Tony Navarre

FOX 6

Not very important....But if you want to see my ugly mug on TV, FOX 6 is doing a little piece about Leukemia and getting on the marrow register tonight at around 9:30. I hope it goes ok, we really wanted to focus on people getting on the registry.


Wow, Tom Pipines and the whole crew did a great job. FOX 6
Thank you.

Some Great Strides!

Well, I keep waiting for the other shoe to drop, for me to get sick, get a fever, a cold...something. Not going to happen. I have felt great. Each week I gain a little more freedom. I was told that I could go without the mask unless I am in a crowd. I can go to girls soccer try-outs, see friends and family, and even PLAY...yes PLAY in an indoor soccer game. Soooooo, first things first.... Monday and Tuesday I was able to go to girls soccer try outs. SO awesome. I am still very "photosensitive" and have to be careful how long I am outside. But holy moley!! I am OUTSIDE!!! It was great to see the girls and regain another part of my life before cancer. Tuesday night, I went to indoor soccer. I was able to work it out with a friend from summer soccer, Ted, and wow. I was a little clumsy, slow, and tired, but I made it through the entire game (picking up an assist on the first goal). Now today, I am so sore, but finally its my muscles sore from working and not from laying down, or being in the hospital or a lumbar puncture or biopsy! This is the best "sore" I have felt in a long time. I will never again complain with muscle aches and joint pain...it is so incredible to be able to have those feelings at all. Not that I love the pain or anything, but because it was athletic induced pain, it is certainly more gratifying. Wednesday, I had my doctors appointment. I was told that as long as I am careful, I can go mask free. Although, any sick people or crowds, and I have to re-wear. The most important thing I can do now, is wash and anti-bacterialize my hands whenever there is contact with: dirt, dogs, people, etc. Being the loser that I am, I walk around with a full bottle of antibaterial stuff, and with the sun, I am all bundled up in the nice Wisconsin Spring. There are worse things to have to do! The doctor also told me, that barring any major concerns, she sees no problem with me returning to Homestead in August. Can the news get any freakin' better?

Thanks to everyone I can say that it feels like things are falling into place. Life is returning to normal. I still have to be cautious and careful about the above mentioned items. My lifestyle will always be different, more careful. Even though life threw a major curve-gyro-dodge-ball, it may not have been a homer or a triple, but as a family we certainly landed on second base...with no outs and a good hitter on deck. I know I have grown as a person, and I hope for more positive outcomes in the future. Molly and I will definitely try to pay it forward. We think we have a good cause, being able to donate cord blood for free in Wisconsin...currently not available. Telling the story, if anyone else is suffering from this. Mostly, being better people all the time.

Hope this finds everyone healthy and happy! Especially, new to the world, Finley Brett H. Congrats Robin and Neil on the birth of your first son! TO NEW BEGINNINGS!!

Tony

What a week...What a weekend!!

So, the good news is, during the appointment on Friday, Molly and I were told that I am at 100% donor marrow. Today is officially day 100 as well.

Great quotes from the doctor:
"You are ahead of the game."
"With how bad your lungs were, you are better than I would have thought."
"You are over the first hurdle."

Great words from our excellent doctor! It feels very weird that today is day 100, almost 1 year to the date that I was diagnosed. What a long and crazy road it has been. I am looking forward to getting things back to normal. I am feeling good, I have not had any fevers, and have been able to spend a few days with Adeline without completely exhausting myself. My dad always said he wanted me to have a child just like I was....well, Adeline certainly has the energy, she likes to eat, and hasn't been sleeping great. Although she whines a lot and that is more Molly. HAHAHA Kidding.

Things have been going very well. Getting ready for the Brewers season to start and the girls soccer season starts soon as well. Hope everyone is great!
Tony

And the Verdict is.....

I got a call from my Transplant doctor today! They do not know the percentage yet, but there is no evidence of leukemia in the marrow! YEA!!!! This is the longest I have gone disease free! Fanastic news, if it were a Friday, I would tell everyone to go out and have a celebration!!! Just like this fine group of young people! Hope everyone is as healthy as I feel right now!!

The "BIG" one

Well, the date is set, the first major milestone post transplant. My 100 day workup. I have brought this up in past blog reports (is that what we're calling it). They are all scheduled, and thankfully, although it will be a long day, all of my appointments are going to be on Tuesday. I have a couple of follow up appointments to get all of the results, but having all the tests in one day is fantastic!! My schedule looks like this: 7am CT scan, 8am PFT (Pulmonary Function Test), 9am Labs (lots and lots of my life force), and 10am the big marrow biopsy and meeting with Dr. Palmer. WOW, that is going to be one heck of a day. As far as my body goes....take it easy, just a cancer update....I am feeling pretty darn good. I am continuing to have minor rashing, some good headaches, and a lack of sleep. However, that being the only real issues, I am pumped. I feel better each day, more like I feel more normal each day. Just looking to get things back to normal. I know that girls soccer try-outs start soon, and I really hope to be a part of that. I am still on many restrictions...I can only see a few people at a time (Molly and Adeline), I can visit the rink, but if people start coming in, I must leave. I was able to stop into school, but only for a short visit. I can only be around people who know they are healthy and have not been exposed to illnesses. The further away from transplant I get, as long as I stay healthy, the more freedom I will get. Speaking of getting things back to normal, an important date for me is coming up fairly quickly. I received the phone call from Aurora that I had leukemia on March 16th, 2011. It has been almost on year.
My weekend was fantastic. Lots of hockey on the internet and the championship game on TV. Congrats to EC Memorial for getting to state, congrats to GB Notre Dame for winning their first state hockey championship. Molly and Adeline were able to catch a play date in Sheboygan with Isla and Lauren, and then some breakfast with Bob and Michele before coming home to begin the clean-up process. I got to "sleep" in, mostly, just rolled around with weird dreams until I made myself a scrumptious Strawberry and Spinach smoothie. Molly, Adeline, and I got some much needed cleaning done on the house. Although, due to my restrictions, I don't really do much "cleaning." I do more sorting. I am not allowed to go into the basement because of the "dangers" of possible fungus or mold. Darn lungs. We have our laundry downstairs, which means water...etc etc...so, I get to fold. I like folding laundry about as much as I like running for fun. They are about even on the scale, the only thing worse than folding is probably matching socks. This is basically what I end up with every time I try to put all the socks together. We finished all the socks on Sunday. Thankfully Molly helped, although Adeline thought the purpose was to just throw socks around from one place to another. She was not helpful. We also attempted to clean out the guest bedroom, which was dusty, so I had to steer clear of there as well. We did get some things put away and some other items ready for the garage sale in Eau Claire. My dad and sister are going to be able to take the garage sale items back to Eau Claire, when they bring back our computer, which died, and was brought back to life...thank you Neil!! SOOOOOO....on to the week ahead. I am ready for a great 100 day workup. I am so thankful to everyone who has helped get me here. Hopefully, turning a major corner this week! Home stretch...?

GREAT BE THE MATCH VIDEO

Hope this finds everyone healthy and happy!
Tony Navarre

Been a While

Wow, since February 22! Sorry it has been so long...but it seems like no news is good news. I have not had any issues. I am still being very careful, keeping my mask on whenever I am not at the house, and trying to make sure I am eating better. I take my temperature at least 2 times a day and have not had a fever. My rash seems to come and go, but it has never been very bad. In fact, if there is some redness or bumps, I usually can put the creme that my doctor prescribed and it is gone by the next day. My transplant doc said that this could be some form of graft vs. host, which would be okay, because that would mean that there is also graft vs. disease. My next appointment is tomorrow, Tuesday, the 28th. During that appointment, I will schedule my 100 day appointment...WOW, it has gone so fast. My 100 day appointment will be a little more extensive because of the lung issues I have had, but not too bad. It sounds like another lung function test, a full CT scan, a bone marrow biopsy, and lots and lots of blood. Not sure if I have to do the heart function tests again, but that is something that I will find out tomorrow. So, for now, it is continued spinach smoothies...yum yum, trying to get some exercise in everyday, and staying away from germs and sick people. :)

In sports news:
It was a rough ending to a great season for the Homestead Highlanders. They were taken down by Brookfield in the sectional semi-final game. It was a great season guys, each year Homestead has improved and maybe next year will be their turn! Congrats to my alma mater Eau Claire Memorial for once again making it to the state tournament. They will face Brookfield on Thursday. I am really looking forward to the NFL draft. The RG III situation makes it a little more fun to watch and the Pack could be drafting a Badger in the first round. They may also get some extra picks because of the signing of Jermichael Finley. With that signing, the Packers can put the franchise tag on Matt Flynn and possibly get a bunch of draft picks for a guy who is going to be an unrestricted free agent on March 13th. Nice move Packers. That is the way to stay ahead in the game...look at the Patriots, they seem to do pretty well gaining picks and maintaining a team (Matt Cassel move). I really like this move and I hope that it works out. At the same time, Brewers season is getting ready to go. Pitchers and catchers have reported and Ryan Braun will not be suspended for 50 game...HUGE! I think Braun handled himself very well and that he represented Milwaukee well.

Finally, speaking of representing well, congrats to Eau Claire Natives, Justin Vernon and Michael Noyce for winning, not one, but two Grammy's this year in Bon Iver! Unreal! However, I think they have a bigger accomplishment. When you can get on Saturday Night Live, and be made fun of on Saturday Night Live by Justin Timberlake, you know you have made it big! Well done!

Hope this finds everyone healthy and happy.
Tony

Good News

I got a call from Froedtert this afternoon that the swab from yesterday came back negative for all three viruses they tested for (including RSV).

Also, Molly and I want to say a huge THANK YOU to the Homestead Community once again for the fundraiser that they are putting on tomorrow night at the HHS vs. Germantown basketball game. We have said over and over again how blessed we feel to have you all in our lives, and we mean it. Thank you, thank you, thank you for all you have done.

Hope everyone is happy and healthy.