Friday, August 31, 2007

The Plan

Okay here's the plan. Dr. Zain has decided not to repeat the last chemo, but to instead place Pat in a clinical trial. Please try not to be alarmed by the term "clinical trial". Every treatment ever used was at one time a clinical trial. We are fortunate that they are in the last phases of this trial, meaning they are to the point where they are seeing results without toxicity. The trial won't begin for 3 weeks, so if Pat can get some heart strength back and cut back on his antibotics he may be able to go home for a few days. At first he wasn't to sure about going home, but now he is very motivated. I believe it may give him that little extra mental push he needs to get through this next "adventure". I know his dogs will be thrilled to see him. They like me, but they worship Pat. Tomorrow is Brock's first soccer game at LMU, I am looking forward to an afternoon of enjoying soccer. Pat will be able to follow the game on his computer. Again, your continued prayers for Pat's recovery are priceless. If you have a moment and are cruising your computer, check out the website www.cureemily.com. Longtime and dear family friends have a precious granddaughter with a very serious condition. The website is so inspiring and uplifting, the world truly is filled with wonderful and caring people. Have a great day and here's to brighter days ahead!!!
Love,
Jules

Wednesday, August 29, 2007

Ouch

When I said "can they throw us a frickin' bone", I didn't mean hit us in the gut with it. Unfortunately we didn't get great news yesterday. Pat's leukemia is still hanging around. He will have to start another round of chemo on Friday.....he's thrilled. According to his Dr. this chemo needs more than one round to be effective. He also needs to work on building his heart strength back up. Chemo quite often causes some heart damage. He is on meds to remedy this situation and hopefully it will clear up quickly. Our goal now is to keep him positive, get him up and moving out of bed and to try and get him to eat a bit. I have faith and an inner peace that tells me we will conquer this, but the road will be long...very long. This is a marathon, not a sprint. Life continues on, Chloe will be starting school on Tuesday and works at The Golden Spoon, Brock is loving college life and soccer at LMU and Brady is working at the shop and attending Cal State Fullerton. Our kids are our rock, we are so very proud of what great people they have turned out to be. Keep us in your prayers, have faith they will be answered. You are all so important in Pat's recovery, you don't even know what comfort you bring to us. Have a blessed day and be thankful for all you have.
Love,
Jules

Monday, August 27, 2007

Another Day....

I'm baaaack! Sorry it's been a while since my last blog. Our weekend was a bit challenging though. Pat bought himself a ticket to the ICU when his heart rate went up to 200 beats per minute. He has what is called a atrial flutter...why not? we haven't had that yet, bring it on. It was caused by some breathing treatments he was receiving. Of course like always, when faced with a challenge he takes it on and battles through it. They think he'll be move out of ICU sometime tomorrow. Thank goodness, watching a heart monitor for hours at a time was almost enough to put me on a heart monitor. Not to mention that he also has hives and can't stop itching. No news on his remission, hopefully tomorrow. Even after all this he still looks great, and is so ready to get on with the transplant. I pray so much for him to receive a bit of good news...he's earned it. Your blogs are so amazing and inspiring, thank you from the bottom of my heart. We have prayers coming from all over the country...people we've never met have embraced our family, that's our silver lining. I know when we are through this tunnel that we will be of comfort to another family as you have all been to us. Good night and God Bless you all, may tomorrow bring us welcome news. Or in my mom's sake "pleasant news". (inside joke)
Love,
Jules

Thursday, August 23, 2007

Hanging In There

Well another day and Pat continues to battle on. He seems to be feeling a little better everyday. The nausea is not as often or severe and he is able to eat a little bit here and there. The plan as of right now is to do a bone marrow biopsy tomorrow to see if there has been any response. We should know by Monday or Tuesday. Our ultimate prayer is for full remission, but any response would be welcome. As I have been putting it, "throw us a frickin' bone!" Pat would love some good news to keep his spirits up and his fight strong. All your comments are so fun and uplifting to read. Mason you are so right, Brady does deserve a big kiss, I'll give hm one when he gets home!!!! All our children are inspired by Pat's courage and positive attitude....and I by theirs. A shout out to my sisters for doing what sisters do...listening to me when I need to vent and when I need to cry. I have made a friend here at the hospital. Her son is 19 and waiting for his 2nd transplant. She is such a gift to me because no one, no matter how much they want to, can understand this journey unless they've been in the center of it. I know I need not ask for your prayers and well wishes but I will. Please pray for remission and brighter days ahead for my best friend and husband,your dad, your uncle, your brother, your son, your son-in-law, your brother in-law, your friend and last but not least the father of my children. We are so blessed to have such a strong circle of support around us....love to you all.
Love,
Julie

Tuesday, August 21, 2007

A Better Day

What a difference a day makes. Pat is feeling much better today. He was able to eat breakfast and read all his new blogs on the website. And..just when I didn't know if I could face another long day of watching helplessly as Pat continues this fight..you all came to my rescue. I read our blogs and balled like a baby. Mom and Dad, you always have been there for me, and of course now is no different.Pat's family has been such a source of strength. What a blessing it is to have so many people rooting on Pat as well as the kids and I. To all of the employees at AHAB, you are amazing, not many people love their boss the way you love Pat. Please believe me when I say he is truly touched. Right now all we can do is wait and pray. Pray for no more leukemia cells!!!! Thank you doesn't seem adequate, but it's all I have. Have a blessed day.
Love,
Julie

Monday, August 20, 2007

Rough Patch

We've hit a bit of a rough patch the last couple of days. The chemo treatment has made Pat very sick to his stomach. The nurses are doing everything they can to keep him as comfortable as possible, which basically means knocking him out...whatever works. The good news is the treatment is over. Now the long agonizing wait to see if it has done it's job. I hope and pray with every ounce of my being that he his in remission. It sure was great to have Brady do a "guest blog", it's therapeutic to be able to put our feelings to words. Our emotions are on such a rollercoaster...sadness, anger , fear of what we know and fear of the unknown. It would be easy to say why us? but why should it be anyone? No one deserves this. Not Pat, not the 20 something young man across the hall, not the mother whos children school age children sit outside her room and play on the computer to pass the hours. But we all have it and we will deal with it and we will kick it's butt! Thank you for your continued prayers...remission, strength and courage are on our wish list today. I read today, "there would be no majestic mountains without deep valleys", isn't that the truth?
Love,
Julie

Saturday, August 18, 2007

One more day...

For a nice change of pace from Jules' award winning writing, I, Brady Smith, am here to fill you in on the happenings in room 5217. We have now completed day four of this five day chemo treatment, and can't help but feel positive that this is pushing my dad closer to a remission. Over the past couple of days he has felt great, and it has been a nice relief to see him enjoy some food and the company of friends and family. We all know that this is a long road that we must travel with him, and we must take each day one at a time. Nobody knows this more than him, and each day is one step closer to remission, and one step closer to the bone marrow transplant. I wish people could see how hard he is fighting this thing without even the smallest of complaints. I am blown away by the courage that he is equipped with and know that even if we hit a couple more speed bumps along the way, he will just blow right over them as if he were driving in the big green machine sports mobile. This man is fighting just go get out of this hospital room so he can get back to doing things that all of us see as so ordinary and mundane. It really puts everything into perspective. All I know is I cannot wait until he kicks this disease and we can continue to enjoy life with all of our family and friends. There is no doubt in my mind that we will get there, we just have to take it one day at a time. Thank you all for your get well cards and messages that you have been leaving on this site. He looks forward to reading them everyday. Most of all, thank you all for your prayers and good thoughts, we can see and feel them working, so keep it up!!

God Bless,
Brady Patrick Smith

Friday, August 17, 2007

Day Three

Pat has just finished day 3 of this round and he's doing great. Right now he's enjoying a turkey sandwich from home and watching the Angel game. If there were not tests to say otherwise you couldn't convince me that this man is battling a serious disease. His strength and perseverance is unstoppable and so inspiring. Last week he was unable to make it from his to bed to the restroom and today he has done 2 laps around his unit, and just informed me he wants to walk some more. The power of prayer, love and the human spirit is immeasurable and we have all of you to thank. Heroes don't just hit home runs and make blockbuster movies.....they walk these halls and the halls of every hospital. Doctors, nurses, family members and most of all the patients who know all to well how precious life truly is. Pray for Pat's continued recovery and remission and treasure your own good health.
Love,
Julie

Wednesday, August 15, 2007

Wednesday August 15th

Hello again. Pat has started his new medication today. It's a series of five IV treatments. We are praying that this will push him into remission long enough to get him to transplant. Please send your prayers with the hope of remission and strength for Pat as he endures this round. Today was bittersweet for me. Brady and I dropped Brock off at Loyola Marymount so he could embark on the next stage in his life. We are so proud of him and know he'll do everything in his power to keep up his schoolwork and his commitment to the soccer team, all while dealing with Pat's situation. I got a good cry in when we left the school, it felt good. Little diversions here and there are helpful. Thank you to everyone for your comments, Pat looks forward to reading them everyday. Pat just finished his first treatment and is sitting up enjoying a frozen yogurt. At the risk of sounding like a broken record.....thank you to everyone for your prayers and concern for Pat, myself and our children. Here's to a good tomorrow.
Love, Julie

Sunday, August 12, 2007

Sunday, August 12, 2007

Hi to all our family and friends. A special thank you to Erin and Travis for creating this website to keep you all better informed. We truly appreciate every one's concern for Pat and our family, sometimes it is just so difficult to talk personally to each and every one of you. The great news is we have a 6 out of 6 match for Pat's transplant....thank you Maribeth. Our goal right now is to get Pat's leukemia into remission so he can go into the transplant as healthy as possible. He will be starting a new round of medication this week and our hopes are this will get it done so we can get the transplant process started. He has started to feel a little stronger and even asked for McDonald's fries and a coke today. The strength and courage Pat has shown make me so proud of the husband, father, brother and son that he is. Our home is not the same without him here right now, but we know we will get through this. Our children have amazed us, their ability to stay so positive has been the source of my strength. I know without the support of Pat's family, my family and all our friends I would have a hard time putting one foot in front of the other, for that I am eternally grateful. Please continue to keep us in your thoughts and prayers, they mean the world to us. Remission is our goal!!! Until next time....good health to you and all those you hold dear. Love, Julie

Update

Hi Everyone -

We created this website to keep all our family and friends updated on Pat. We hope that this will be a great way for everyone to stay informed and to show our love, prayers and support for him. You can also leave messages for him to read. Pass on the website address: http://www.updateonpatsmith.blogspot.com/!

Love,

Julie, Brady, Brock and Chloe