Maggie left the hospital for a short field trip today. She had a great time. We went to Ronald McDonald House (RMH), where Maggie will live for the next two months or so.

RMH is amazing. Everyone there is extremely friendly, there is dinner cooked by the community every evening, and we have access to a private room with a kitchenette and laundry area. All are essential because Maggie can’t share those services with others.

Today was also the first day since chemo that Maggie didn’t get platelets. That’s great because the need for platelets is probably the limiting factor for discharge. Her need for platelets needs to drop to consistently every other day or better before she can leave the unit over night.

Maggie was downright bored this morning – I think our car trip off the ward yesterday made her realize how boring her room is. She is still needing daily platelets and on a bunch of IV medications, but she is doing really well and gaining more and more stamina each day. We took another wagon ride around the hospital this afternoon (car was unavailable). She really wanted to bring Elmo with her, so I stupidly let her, and she was so excited to hold him for the first 5 minutes of the ride. And then of course she threw him overboard in the dirty hospital hallway and I refused to give him back. And then she spent the next hour of the wagon ride trying to get to Elmo through a series of crying and/or trying to throw herself overboard. We miraculously made it all the way to Duke South where I reminisced about medical school by getting lost in the basement, just like I did every day of medical school. And Maggie got tired right as we made it to the Davison building and made me carry her all the way back to Duke North while pulling a wagon. But we snuck outside for 8 seconds to take a picture on the West Campus quad! (Note that I don’t actually have to wear a mask outside of 5200. But if I take off my mask, Maggie takes off her mask. So I wear a mask too)

Today was a special day in the hospital because they let us leave the unit! Except for her brief visits to the PICU, Maggie has been confined to a tiny hospital room, or the hallway outside her room. She was SO EXCITED to ride in a car around other parts of the hospital today. First we went to the fish tank, then we went to the children’s clinic building (after hours so no one was around). She was so excited that she hopped out of her car and walked (holding my hands) around the lobby. She lasted about 20 minutes on our adventure with full excitement before she got tired Then we explored some of the newer parts of Duke that I’ve never seen before by ‘car.’ I graduated from med school here less than 10 years ago and I can’t recognize most of the Duke medical complex. Then we tried to watch a helicopter take off, but there was no action and Maggie needed a rest, so we wheeled back to 5200. I’m already hoping we get to do it again tomorrow!

My partner in crime is finally old enough to run against Donald Trump in 2020! I’m thinking Rose/Obama (Michelle of course).

Also, Maggie had a great day today. She’s eating and drinking well, walking and playing. Her central line repair-number-2 worked, which means she’s off her IV and is allowed to use both hands again. Phew.

Who else would make a good running mate?

The Rose house has been a buzz lately with the recent visit from the Tooth Fairy. Aside from cold hard cash, you’ll never guess what else the fairy left behind. That’s right, a custom smelted Rose family challenge coin, designed by famed challenge coin engineer Steven Gangstead. Kaya was very excited. Laney’s FOMO was in high gear, and she was very distressed when after a full night of attempting to remain awake, she missed the tooth fairy.

Also, Maggie’s ANC was 1300 today, which is well over the 500 needed for one of the three consecutive >500 ANC days that make up the criterion for successful engraftment.

This was Laney’s third try at getting a haircut. The first two attempts were at my adult barber. She was terrified both times. So we went for the Disney experience to pierce the seal.

(Edit by Tracy: BCAN stands for “Bladder Cancer Advocacy Network” and raises money for bladder cancer research and is a great support resource for patients. And we “ran” a 5K to do our part…you know, just in case my full-time job trying to cure bladder cancer isn’t enough)

I’m super glad we went to Red Rocks. (Thank you for the recommendation Stephanie and Dylan.) We almost didn’t go but decided to check it out at the last minute because we needed a place to camp for the night.

Wow, it’s incredibly beautiful. Probably the next best landscape after Yosemite. Plus, the Red Rocks campground is the nicest campground I’ve ever been to. Its main function: housing rock climbers between ascents. Great vibe there. Very laid back.

I took this picture without getting up from the bench where we ate dinner: