The transplant is COMPLETE

This calendar says Life is all about how you handle Plan B.

She woke up today to her "NEW" birthday.  When you get your transplant they call it your new birthday.  The nurse told her that she can now drag her birthday on for a week.  Kelsey brought up a cake last night to help her celebrate it.  She also made another cake for a PA that told her that it was his birthday also.  After awhile we will have a party with the nurses that are up on the floor. 

It was very interesting how they transplant her cells.  They first have to pre-medicate her so she won't get sick during the transplant.  They give her something in her iv that has sugar in it to make her go to the bathroom.  After all that they bring in a warmer to warm up her cells.  The stem cells arrive and they take them out of their container and warm them up.  The nurse then puts them in her iv just like a blood transfusion.  They put 3 bags in and they were about done in a hour with the whole process.

Before all this happened the nurse told her that they check her vitals every 5 minutes and she might have to oxygen.  Her eyes kept getting bigger and bigger and she started to get more nervous.  She told me that she was terrified that she would have to go back to ICU.  The nurse came in and talked to her and told her that she has been doing this for 14 years and she has never seen anyone go to ICU.  She did wonderful all through it and her oxygen level never dropped below 100%.

I have included some pictures of the process and also a Christmas present that she got in February.  I bought the calendar in October sometime not knowing what she was going to have to go through.  Also some pictures of Bryan's graduation.

I am so relieved that this day has finally come.  They say now her numbers will bottom out in the next few days and then we have to just wait for her numbers to come back up usually around day 10 or 12 from today.  Such a good day!

Bryan's Graduation ( I don't know how to flip the pictures so you will have to just turn your head)

Bryan and Kirk

Bryan & my Parents

Alyssa's new birthday cake.  Don't you love her hair!

This is how her stem cells came.

This is the warmer that they put the stem cells in before giving them to her.

Nurse Michelle giving her back her stem cells.