Happy Veteran’s Day and THANKS to all who have served our country! We had Travis’s blood counts checked today at the lab and he is OK to begin Round 5 of Chemo starting tomorrow. The ANC has to be above 1000 and we barely cleared the bar at 1005. So, we are going to get this thing going. If all goes well, hopefully Travis will be home by Friday but we will take everything one day at a time.
Thanks,
Lynne and Tony
Team Curiosity!
Congratulations to Team Curiosity for their impressive win at Saturday’s First Lego League (FLL) Qualifying Tournament where they faced off against some of the brightest kids/teams in San Diego County. Tyler joined the team with Blake, Blas and Klaus to compete this fall and they are being coached by Klaus’ mom, Liana. The theme for this year’s competition is “Nature’s Fury” so the team had to solve problems with the Robot and do a Research Project related to this main topic. The team took first place in the Robot Missions portion of the tournament for achieving the highest mission score after completing three rounds of competition (they actually had the first and second highest scores). They were also crowned the overall Tournament Champions based on their success in the Core Values, Research Project (Emergency Preparedness Kit) and Robot Programming portions of the competition. With the win, the team qualifies to compete at the big Legoland tournament in December where they will face off against the best of the best.
Champions!
For those who are not familiar with FLL:
The best way to summarize FIRST LEGO League is to say that it is a robotics program for 9 to 16 year olds, which is designed to get children excited about science and technology — and teach them valuable employment and life skills. In FLL, the children do the work! And the work is programming an autonomous robot (using the LEGO® MINDSTORMS® robot set) to score points on a thematic playing surface, creating an innovative solution to a problem as part of their project, all while being guided by the FLL Core Values. These three elements – the Robot Game, Project, and FLL Core Values – make up what we call our yearly Challenge.
The FLL Core Values are the cornerstones of the FLL program. They are among the fundamental elements that distinguish FLL from other programs of its kind. By embracing the Core Values, participants learn that friendly competition and mutual gain are not separate goals, and that helping one another is the foundation of teamwork.
We are a team.
We do the work to find solutions with guidance from our coaches and mentors.
We know our coaches and mentors don’t have all the answers; we learn together.
We honor the spirit of friendly competition.
What we discover is more important than what we win.
We share our experiences with others.
We display Gracious Professionalism® and Coopertition® in everything we do.
We have FUN!
Way to go Team Curiosity and good luck at Legoland!
Thanks,
Tony and Lynne
It’s like Déjà Vu all over again with Travis’ counts still low so Chemo will not start on Friday. However this time, they are on the way back up so we are hopeful we will be cleared on Monday for a Tuesday start. It may not seem like a big deal to start a few days later here or there but we have been hoping to be done with Chemo before Christmas so that we are enjoying the holidays and starting out the new year on a positive note. So at this point, every day counts. The bottom line is that we will do what is best for Travis even if that means we are in the hospital during the holidays but it doesn’t hurt to have some goals.
On the bright side, at least we get to enjoy this weekend which is our silver lining!
Thanks,
Tony and Lynne
We had our appointment yesterday to have lab work done and see if Travis’ counts came back up yet. But wouldn’t you know, they actually went down a little further from last Friday. So, no chemo will start today and we will have to check again on Thursday for a possible Friday start. Apparently there is a cumulative effect that occurs over the continued rounds of chemo which can cause these later rounds to be delayed a little longer each time. Who knew? For all of you planners out there like us, you just have to learn to roll with it! We are trying…
The doctors and nurses recommended that we keep Travis out of school for now with all the nasty bugs going around. With his counts low, things could get complicated and it is just not worth the risk of a set back like that. So, we will continue on our home schooling adventure with Mrs. Mills’ help. She is so good about supporting us and so organized with the work which helps us try to keep up with the class. Travis really misses everyone but this is for the best right now. We will keep you posted!
Thanks,
Lynne and Tony
Happy Halloween! We are not sure if it is a Trick or a Treat but Travis’ counts were too low yesterday to start Round 5 of chemo today. It is kind of a bummer because once you get all geared up to start and plans in place to cover the weekend, it is a little disappointing to have to wave everything off and reset for next week. Based on both Rounds 4 and 5 being delayed a week, we are now anticipating that Round 6 will be delayed also which will start running up close to Christmas time. We were really hoping that all of the chemo would be done before then and that we could just enjoy coasting into the holidays. But as with everything else, we just have to take things as they come!
We had to leave the house at 7am for our pre-check in appointment yesterday so we showed up wearing our Halloween costumes. Travis was a Zombie Doctor and Lynne was a Cappuccino from Starbucks. Everyone loved the costumes and they even had Travis be a distraction for a couple of the kids in the clinic! After doing the blood work and meeting with the doctor, it was determined that Travis’ counts were too low to start chemo today. What we have seen is that the week immediately after chemo, the counts are still good but they start to drop to the lowest point in the second week sometimes to where a blood transfusion is required for the hemoglobin. We start giving the GCSF shots on the day after chemo ends to help boost his white blood counts and those shots last for about 10-14 days which bring his white blood counts back up usually higher than normal. Once we stop the GCSF, then the white blood counts start to drop again before settling on the normal level. Unfortunately, this drop and settling is happening right around the time we are supposed to start the next round which causes the delay. Not that we have been able to predict a pattern but at least this has been what we have seen after these last two rounds. So, we have lab work appointments set up for Monday and Thursday next week and as soon as his counts are good, we are going to get started versus waiting until next Friday. At least this way we can keep moving forward instead of being in a holding pattern for a week. Did we mention that we are ready to get things over with?
We left the hospital and went to Tony’s work for a Halloween party and potluck lunch. They had the offices decorated and people signed up to give out candy for Trick or Treaters. They had a Costume Contest for the employees with $200 for first place, $100 for second and $50 for third so it was fun to see all of the creativity. Tony was dressed as a Visually Challenged Soccer Referee. He said that as much as he questions the Referee calls in soccer, he should probably walk in their shoes for at least one day. Since there are people from around the world who work with Tony, the potlucks are always interesting and we are able to experience different tastes from their culture.
We left after lunch and went home to rest a bit before the evening since we had been up since early morning. We had our friends Shannon and Jonathon stop by for a little bit with their girls Spenser (4), Reed (2) and Collyn (7 months) so the boys went Trick or Treating with them in the neighborhood. Since Tyler (14) and Travis (almost 11) are starting to move from the Trick or Treating phase into the Stay at Home and Scare People phase, it is fun to see the girls just starting to learn what Halloween is all about. Well, our last visitors of the night were Sarah and Ellyse, along with Alden, Liz and their family and then it was time to close up shop. Lights Out!
Thanks,
Lynne and Tony
First to Fight Softball Team!
Congratulations to the First to Fight Softball Team, made up mainly of Marines and Sailors from San Diego, for winning the ASA Sin City Class “D” World Series Championship in Las Vegas! One of the Marines on the team, Master Sergeant Kirk Hood, is the father of one of Travis’ friends (Christian) on his soccer team. The team has done a lot for Travis over the months and they decided they would wear their Grey Wrist Bands, which symbolize Brain Cancer, for the tournament in honor of Travis. Wow! You guys are awesome and congratulations on the big win! There is something special about having a group of Warriors supporting our Travis the Warrior.
ASA Class “D” World Series Champions!
Thanks,
Tony and Lynne
We want to THANK our cousin, Jeannette, and the entire Wagner family (Bill, Sierra, Paige, and Ashley) for hosting their “Travis the Warrior 5K Walk” in Iowa this past Saturday morning! It is incredible that everyone braved the brisk Iowa Fall morning to come out and support Travis. Words just don’t seem to express what having your support for our family means to us. We can’t thank you and all of the Walkers enough!!!
Love,
Lynne, Tony, Tyler and Travis
Travis’ school is on their two week Fall Break now and you would think that would mean some R &R (rest and relaxation), right? Well, that is partly true! We had his lab appointment on Monday and everything looked good so we are out of quarantine and ready to go. Then on Tuesday, Travis slept in a little and we went to the movies with Malcom to see Gravity followed by soccer practice later that afternoon. On Wednesday, we had a Kidney Test (GFR Study-Glomerular Filtration Rate) where they inject a radioactive material and monitor his blood every hour for 4 hours to see how the chemotherapy is affecting his kidneys. Since the appointment was at 8am down at UCSD Nuclear Medicine facility, Travis had to get up at 6:30am which was a challenge (trust us). We should find out the results next week at our Round 5 Pre-Check In appointment with the doctor. On Thursday, we had his monthly Hearing Test down at Rady’s to see how the chemotherapy is affecting his hearing. Again, with a 7:45am appointment, getting up at 6:30am was a challenge! We mentioned that the test a month ago revealed that some of his high frequency hearing has been affected and the testing this month shows that everything is still the same which is a good thing (no additional hearing loss). On the bright side, we keep telling Travis that when he gets older and has babies, he will be able to tune out their loud, high pitched crying. Silver lining! On the way home, we picked up Walter and had him over for a few hours so the boys could work on their Rainbow Looms. Who knew you could do so much with colored rubber bands? We finished the day by going out to soccer practice while Tyler had a Halloween party at his school. So on Friday, with no appointments, Travis slept in until 9am. Whew! No more challenges please! Even though his actual Birthday was more than a month ago, today we have Tyler’s B-Day party where we are taking some friends to a movie, Captain Phillips, and then out for pizza and cake. What a fun afternoon! Then tomorrow we have a soccer game to go to and we are looking forward to that “Rest” part of the R & R on Sunday.
We want to wish our cousin, Jeannette, and the entire Wagner family all the best as they put on their “Travis the Warrior 5K Walk” in Iowa tomorrow morning! We know you, and all the walkers, can do it and we will be with you all in spirit even though we can’t be there in person. We are praying that everything runs smoothly and the weather is good for the event. We can’t thank you all enough!!!
All and all, it’s been a good week!
Love,
Lynne, Tony, Tyler and Travis
With Travis feeling pretty good this weekend, we were able to make it out to our soccer game on Saturday. The boys lost a close one in the last few minutes 1-0 but it was great to have Travis out there. Then on Sunday, we made it to church in the morning and had our Faith and Works meeting in the afternoon. We always like to get together with our F & W family and are looking forward to our project in November. Today, Travis slept in until 9:15am and the only reason he got up then was that he was hungry. It must have been the Marinol acting but at least he was rested and woke up wanting to eat something! We had labs done around 11am and everything is looking good. So for the near future, we are good to go!
Thanks,
Tony and Lynne
Now after 3 blood transfusions, we understand why Dracula is hooked on the red stuff. OK, not really! But we can see that a little bit of blood makes all the difference. It is amazing how if you don’t have the proper level of red blood cells carrying oxygen through your body, you can feel so tired and lethargic, kind of like the early stages of altitude sickness. After receiving his transfusion on Monday, Travis has been feeling good with lots of energy and pep in his step. Kind of like Superman! He has been working hard on his school work before fall break and doing arts & crafts for fun in between.
We had a joint appointment with his neuro-surgeon and neuro-oncologist on Wednesday down at the hospital. It was sort of a routine check and both doctors said Travis is doing great. In fact, the good news is that even though we need to continue to battle it out on the oncology side, we do not need to see the neuro-surgeon again for another year. Yeah!
Lately, we have adjusted to letting Travis sleep until he is ready to get up since the rest is really needed when he is fighting through the chemo. His wake up time has varied from before 7am to 9:30am just depending on how he is feeling that particular day. Today, we had our 7:30am lab work appointment down at the hospital that meant getting on the road at 6:45am to be on time which turned out to be a bit of a challenge. But, when all else fails, we send Cicso in and it is amazing what our “therapy” dog can accomplish. We weren’t sure what to expect with the blood counts but Travis’ ANC went from 0 on Monday back up to 750 today. His ANC is supposed to be above 1000 to have chemo and above 1500 to be in the normal range so we still need to be careful but he is on the upward trajectory. Although his platelets dropped slightly from 54 to 50, it was not enough to do a platelet transfusion which is good if the body is able to handle things on its own. His hemoglobin is fine after having the transfusion on Monday and went from 7.9 to 9.8. So, we were able to get out of there without anything more than labs. Yeah! If you noticed, that was our 3rd time down at Rady’s this week, but who’s counting, right?
Thanks so much to the Hussey, Nielson and Lehrer families for your thoughtfulness! Thanks to Mrs. Mills’ Class and your special prescription of “Laughter, Laughter and More Laughter” (aka the Joke Book) created by the kids! Thanks to Shoshana, Ella and their Girl Scout Troop for all of your creative cards! Also, thanks to all of the people from the Secret Angel Stitchers! We love receiving your beautiful Angels and your prayers!
We really appreciate you all thinking of Travis and our family in such special ways!
Thanks,
Lynne and Tony
Travis the Warrior --- Kickin' Cancer! 