One Month to Go!

We finally got a date defined yesterday when we got a call from our immunologist at Sick Kid's. He had received an email from Dr. Aiuti stating that the vector has pretty much finished getting approval and that there is only a small portion of the process needed to complete with the vector for Parker. As a result, we should be ready to travel to Milan at the end of February.

One month to go. We have a month to get ready for the biggest trip we will ever have to go on. When we got the call yesterday, my wife had answered the phone and quickly passed it off to me, assuming that medical information would be the topic of conversation and I am normally the one that deals with that. Although the conversation dealt with something completely unrelated to start, and I was in the process of saying good bye, I was quickly informed that there was another reason for the phone call. My parents were over at the time and everyone sat there trying to figure out what we were discussing, since I was more interested in getting information from our immunologist than celebrating.

When I finally got off the phone and told my wife and parents of the conversation I had just had they were extremely excited to say the least. We now had confirmation that we were going. I quickly ran to the computer to write a message letting everyone know of the news. Then, I called Nana and Grand-dad and asked them if they had checked the website lately. Of course, Nana proceeded to check the site under the impression that I had uploaded some more images of Parker. With my wife listening in, we knew Nana had read the message because she instantly started to cry. See, that's what Nana does when she is happy.

One month to go. There is a lot to do in the next month and my wife's anxiety about not knowing when we are going has switched to we have so much to do and we only have a month to do it. Can we bring Lysol wipes to Italy? Should I bring some Tide? How many suitcases are we allowed to bring? These are some of the questions I have heard in the past 24 hours. As I had mentioned before, my mother is from Italy and her cousin's cousin lives in Milan. So, we will make sure that my wife has contact with this person to find out what name brand products you can buy in Milan.

One month to go. One more month we have to keep the little monkey healthy before we get on to the plane. One month left of injections of PEG-ADA. We are unsure if there is anything else the doctors in Canada have to do before we leave for Italy. Will Parker need to have a topping up of his IgG before he leaves? This will give him extra protection on the flight over. Will they need to run any tests on Parker before leaving for Italy?

One month to go. When we get there Parker will be going through quite a bit. He will have a battery of tests done. An MRI, a CT scan, blood work, and x-rays. He will have to go through a lot. They will insert a line into his blood stream so that it is easier to give him medication and chemotherapy drugs (Bulsulfan). I worry if he will spend every waking moment trying to rip it out. He is curious you know. A month and a half of being in isolation with limited space and room to play. This is what Parker should be ready to expect. I wish I could tell Parker that everything he is going to go through in a month is to save his life so he knows that we are not trying to hurt him.

One month to go. We will be hopping on a plane and leaving our family and friends to go to Italy for close to half a year. The people that we are used to seeing everyday will be thousands of miles away. Daily visits from Nana and Grand-dad will be a thing of the past and will have to be put on hold until we return. Rides on Gaga's shoulders will have to wait. The sounds of Parker yelling "Nananananana" will have to become silent for a while. Nonna will have to wait a while before she can sing to Parker again.

One month to go. That is when we will be one month closer to returning home with our healthy little boy. One month closer to playing with his cousins, going swimming at Nonna and Nonno's. A month closer to being able to take Parker to the mall and the park. A month closer to being able to let Parker run around and kick a soccer ball on the grass behind our home. One month closer to returning from the most important trip we will ever have to go on.