tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30022499724638581042024-03-05T08:04:20.179-07:00Brandon's Fight For SightThis is our journey in Brandon's Fight For Sight. I wanted to create this blog so that our friends, family and community may share with us our exciting journey towards something many people take for granted - eye sight!!Unknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger56125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3002249972463858104.post-39836742068290443072009-07-25T19:47:00.002-06:002009-07-25T20:07:35.187-06:00Brandon turns 9It's hard to believe Brandon is 9 today. This time last year was such a hectic and exciting time for us as we prepared to go to China. Brandon is doing quite well with his sight. A couple of weeks ago we were driving by a school and Brandon asked if that was his school. It was exciting because no one had mentioned we were driving by a school. It wasn't his school but it was A school. He can tell us the color of the vehicles that we drive by or park by. He rarely has a bad day which is great because those were horrible. I would feel so bad for him <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_0" class="blsp-spelling-corrected">every time</span> he bumped into a wall or tripped over something. He can play hide & seek with his little brother now (and actually find him!) Oh and he's doing absolutely incredible with his video games. He loves to race motorcycles on the game AND HE CAN BEAT IT! We are just so proud of him and his accomplishments that he's made. Awhile after we got back from China, I was a bit discouraged because I wasn't sure if the things he was seeing was new or if he could see them before treatment. I was afraid that I wasn't the best person to judge his sight. His eye Dr. wasn't being straight with us because he didn't want people to think the stem cell therapy actually helped. He encouraged us before we went to China then afterwards his attitude had changed. I believe the Dr. had received some <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_1" class="blsp-spelling-corrected">heckling</span> from fellow Dr's. We have not been back to see him since. I would like to see where Brandon is at on his sight but if the Dr. cannot give him an <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_2" class="blsp-spelling-corrected">accurate</span> examination, I refuse to take him back. I'm currently looking for another Dr so hopefully we'll have an update soon. Brandon is looking forward to starting school on August 16<span id="SPELLING_ERROR_3" class="blsp-spelling-error">th</span>. I'm sure once it starts he won't be so excited but that's normal.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3002249972463858104.post-23119596551965374332009-05-15T03:51:00.003-06:002009-05-15T04:12:28.826-06:00A New Blog<span style="font-size:85%;"><span style="font-family:verdana;color:#000099;"><strong>First of all let me say that Brandon is still doing well. He gets out of school in 13 days. Everyday he marks it off on the calendar that way we won't forget :) Like he'll forget when school gets out. I've decided to change the dynamics of this blog. Instead of telling everyone the same old "Brandon's doing great". I've decided that since we're past the whole China experience, I'll focus on our family in general. Of course if there's anything new to report, I'll make sure I post it on here. So without further notice, welcome to "our family blog".</strong></span> </span>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3002249972463858104.post-71359616888246079942009-04-29T04:46:00.002-06:002009-04-29T05:01:34.662-06:00Spring is in the AirI just realized how long it's been since I updated <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">Brandon's</span> Blog. I always thought that once we returned from China that I would keep it current and update regularly. Guess I was fooling myself. Brandon is great. Not visually but over all he's doing quite well. I would say visually we haven't seen much changes (if any) since the last update. I am disappointed in that aspect because I thought we would continue to see improvements for a year after being in China. However his bad days are less frequent than before. Before treatment he would have days where he couldn't see anything. He still has those days but it happens less often than before. He's still experiencing severe headache's and for that I'm a bit concerned. He has suffered from headaches for most of his life and they don't seem to be slowing down. We are thinking about taking him back to the neurologist but we know what he'll say. They want to check his cranial pressure by placing these bolt like things under his scalp in order to monitor the pressure for 48 hours. We really don't want to put Brandon through that but our options are limited. I'm sure we'll make a decision in the next few weeks. Other than that, Brandon is growing really fast. I think he's going through a growth spurt. He's looking forward to school being out next month and for his birthday in July. It's hard to believe he's going to be 9. Time really has been slipping by us. It still doesn't seem like it's been 8 months since we were in China. 8 MONTHS. Still doesn't seem possible.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3002249972463858104.post-84574812599679298142009-01-21T02:33:00.003-07:002009-04-29T04:46:04.577-06:00Happy New Year!I can't believe it's 2009 already!! 2008 was filled with excitement, disappointment, pride, heartache, and above all....hope. I can't believe that in one year we discovered that there was hope for Brandon in China, raised the money AND spent 6 weeks in a Chinese hospital. Through it all, Brandon was such a trooper and for that, I am very proud to be called his mother.<br /><br />First Christmas "AC" (After China). Brandon loved Christmas this year. He enjoyed looking at all the Christmas decorations and even helped decorate. (He was even disappointed when it was time to box everything up for the year). For Christmas he received....TOYS TOYS AND MORE TOYS! He got a new <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">XBox</span> and some other video games. He also got a glow in the dark drawing board. The list is endless and for the moment my mind is blank but he received several items to help stimulate his vision. Oh and he received a stack of books.......IN PRINT!! A couple of weeks before Christmas he received a CCTV which has been a wonderful aid. He can look at his books without straining with the CCTV.<br /><br />New Year.... Now that that chapter in our life is over, we look towards the future with great <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">optimism</span>. We will always be grateful for everyone who helped Brandon. Now as we focus ahead towards a new life, we know that it can only get better for our family. Brandon has been thriving and we are so happy. Did the treatment make a huge difference? Maybe not a huge difference but it did help Brandon. He will never have perfect vision and we have accepted that. Over the next few years, we'll be able to understand more about what he can see and how we can help to make his life a productive one. He is able to navigate for the most part without a cane. In fact he does not use one outside of school. He is able to see steps where before he could not. For us that is a great improvement because it further helps him to navigate in his surroundings. The sky is the limit for him.<br /><br />What's Next....We are currently trying to decide what is best for our family now. We are looking at relocating so John will be able to work closer to home without being gone for weeks at a time. We'll keep you informed on our decision!! Happy New Year!!Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3002249972463858104.post-46812557454126098162008-11-21T18:20:00.002-07:002008-11-21T18:31:27.388-07:00Brandon's update on Channel 13 NewsThis past month has been CRAZY!! However we did manage to meet with Jennifer Brown from Channel 13 news to do an update. As always, she did a wonderful job! Here's the link: <a href="http://www.krdo.com/Global/story.asp?S=9378995">http://www.krdo.com/Global/story.asp?S=9378995</a><br /><br />On another positive note, Brandon received a scholarship which will pay 90% for a CCTV. Our cost is $200. The new CCTV will allow Brandon to see printed books by zooming into the images. Hopefully his new learning tool will be in by Christmas!Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3002249972463858104.post-1411798818238354552008-10-04T18:32:00.009-06:002008-10-13T20:38:24.544-06:00Horses, Bulls & Rodeo Clowns<div align="left"><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;color:#000066;"><strong>Brandon & Nick with a fellow Kansan, LJ Geist. LJ is originally from Scott City, Kansas - like Brandon. He was the rodeo clown for the event. What a coincidence!! He's parents, who know Brandon's dad & his parents, were in town for the rodeo also. They had no idea the rodeo was being put on for Brandon!!</strong></span> </div><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjW9ZwiwXnCITJ0bpGVFQS7CXDUyFvDcLQ_skaIyJp2cwN9zP6Y56d2DaCKAfB2Pp3df916cP2VF1At3xteSoz43heLFVAsAP9V01l8s53o4fYJXu9BMoKatQK_BomfbXKKZkQbxnRWWzc6/s1600-h/035.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5253461843561162146" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 505px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 364px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" height="322" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjW9ZwiwXnCITJ0bpGVFQS7CXDUyFvDcLQ_skaIyJp2cwN9zP6Y56d2DaCKAfB2Pp3df916cP2VF1At3xteSoz43heLFVAsAP9V01l8s53o4fYJXu9BMoKatQK_BomfbXKKZkQbxnRWWzc6/s400/035.JPG" width="474" border="0" /></a><br /><div align="left"><strong><span style="font-size:100%;">We took Brandon to a rodeo that was put together in his honor. The weather tried to hold up but at the end, it began to sprinkle. Brandon got to see a bull for the first time. He said "oohh that's big.....can I ride it?" He did get to ride a horse which made his day.</span></strong> </div><br /><br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5253462673395768130" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 491px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 326px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" height="314" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_5WFyczovstsYHDg-NR21JNVUXEZqvxgwRV7shB5oELcHrP8MpzW2Pm2TmiOjrecuoOJIpe0POcT5yKLpVBqfU8BXpPugs9iXWKCskY5uYElbpf2eaQdBSu6D7Zzy3ceUk57raP51yVeo/s400/051.JPG" width="479" border="0" /><br /><p></p><p align="center"><span style="font-size:100%;color:#000066;"><strong>Brandon got to ride a horse!! Thanks for the ride Cody!!</strong></span></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3002249972463858104.post-43963212512037785262008-09-28T13:37:00.016-06:002008-09-28T16:17:53.730-06:00A Beautiful Sunday in SeptemberToday John & I took the boys to Jill's Country Cafe to see Jill for the first time since coming home. At the silent auction, a lady had donated a jumper (day rental). Jill ended up with the winning bid so she decided to get the rental when Brandon returned from China. So here was the jumper, set up on the side of Jill's resturant for all the kids to come play one. The boys had a great time! After a little while, we were informed that our breakfast was ready. So the boys gave up the the jumper for bacon & eggs (although I'm sure if they had it their way they would've forgone the breakfast). After they ate, they decided it was time to hit the swings & slide which is located on the other side of the resturant. It was nice to just hang out with the boys & have "fun time". We went back into Jill's to tell everyone bye & Jill talked the boys into jumping some more - like they needed encouraged!! On the way home, the boys confiscated our cell phones so they could play with them. A little while later John & I heard Nick saying "Hello!". We turned around to find that Brandon had called Nick on the cell phone & they were talking to each other!! Good thing we have cell to cell free calls!! We've got a fly family reunion in our living room. Everytime I go in to watch TV, I feel like a carcass.<br /><br /><div><div><div><div><div><div align="center"><span style="font-size:180%;color:#006600;"><strong><span style="color:#000000;">Photo's:</span> </strong></span></div><div><br /></div><div align="center"><span style="font-size:180%;"><span style="font-size:130%;color:#006600;"><strong>1st - Brandon & Nick enjoying some "jump time".</strong></span> </span></div><div align="center"><br /></div><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5251185994290936930" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; CURSOR: hand; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmVYIGP2ZhI2J6q8dE64N0_wuRWlwMpqiOc7SVR3yD3upEkASxwxdos120SOzcP6aTahRUR76Vy39m_TslpZCau3GRPY0Fx7rgpB0Ekx3ve5rIc8_H7D2Bjf-vfLPA0J2k5dezpzUt17Ir/s400/009.JPG" border="0" /><br /><br /><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4taKSq-24MXPZx3u-2Yw7TfYI-1M_sy8__rdGlW2vPo2i7ilOT5Zg3NAYjUXwTZ3twVBahXlNS56UEPqOMMQnlw_OvNRpesu6aHaXuwxA1wpfgrjfSpG7rFnY327UyNgb1vJchRvJn65e/s1600-h/011.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5251186564160274818" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4taKSq-24MXPZx3u-2Yw7TfYI-1M_sy8__rdGlW2vPo2i7ilOT5Zg3NAYjUXwTZ3twVBahXlNS56UEPqOMMQnlw_OvNRpesu6aHaXuwxA1wpfgrjfSpG7rFnY327UyNgb1vJchRvJn65e/s400/011.JPG" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><span style="font-size:180%;"><strong>2nd - "Peak-a-boo Nick, I see you!!"</strong></span><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><div align="center"><span style="font-size:130%;"><span style="color:#cc0000;"><strong></strong></span></span></div><br /><br /><br /><div align="center"><span style="font-size:130%;"><span style="color:#cc0000;"><strong></strong></span></span></div><div align="center"><span style="font-size:130%;"><span style="color:#cc0000;"><strong>3rd - John & Brandon ~ Jill's in the background taking a customer's order. Thanks for breakfast Jill, it was great!!</strong></span> </span></div><br /><br /><br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5251188260421639858" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; CURSOR: hand; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJwn6E9YHgsBr2HBdQkqJoMsVy9SZEXU_svRASTEbVMNIAv4s9Rx10aZY1T_QHaZRGr9lHu8Q2wEJm4QHGVsDRlzaqSD3CEjABgmuBMkiL96CLf6JkD7tsdxJHyHQZohO0L_-wffoZ7OeU/s400/019.JPG" border="0" /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwQPdhnfSCGVsc5zWeKptKqagY3j_Dz3ahQNr8qnZJtD8RWOISRQ9Fcw67-R9kdKDceoDr-WVkSmUFCLF1ZIraUBG063oL95PtrayQ9ZOWsEm-87H1EkX4LBslEx1MLmYpLo-XCPI7JXRL/s1600-h/045.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5251189289420310610" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwQPdhnfSCGVsc5zWeKptKqagY3j_Dz3ahQNr8qnZJtD8RWOISRQ9Fcw67-R9kdKDceoDr-WVkSmUFCLF1ZIraUBG063oL95PtrayQ9ZOWsEm-87H1EkX4LBslEx1MLmYpLo-XCPI7JXRL/s400/045.JPG" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><div></div><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><div><span style="font-size:180%;color:#6600cc;">4</span><span style="font-size:180%;color:#6600cc;">th & 5th - This is what I found when I turned around in the vehicle. The boys talking to each other - on the cell phones.</span> </div><br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5251190258287047138" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; CURSOR: hand; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3jPd4x4yTS_VtYAMzX0m8h5aLBVYL8X9n4OYnV4Kz2RvtiXHYijSHNMyiX6UEfllUrThes6pOzooXu8c3xmx5G2t0YmW0T65e5fqKAILbw3tX8I7pRK8pIRnTic8SXzX2SrdCdPK02ouT/s400/047.JPG" border="0" /><br /><br /><br /><div align="center"><span style="font-size:130%;"><strong>6th, 7th, 8th -</strong> </span><br /><span style="font-size:130%;"><span style="font-size:100%;">Brandon & Nick having a great time on the slide. Dad had to catch them because they would gain so much momentum, they would sail off the slide & land on their bums!! Nick learned that<strong> </strong>after the first go around.</span> </span><br /><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhAvcHyWdRh4bCnd9cn23DHF0pB6so2TxHQrQoO3SHHlg1hbpvHH2gnTDbkLdQSzfxWD8ya3NpKB5IR1liJCY5lul8VY6PlVgG86Lu-pR-ptcQFfCrs_RJCoZ81N5SXcclUGMxI6cPPzm-_/s1600-h/028.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5251191397478366082" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhAvcHyWdRh4bCnd9cn23DHF0pB6so2TxHQrQoO3SHHlg1hbpvHH2gnTDbkLdQSzfxWD8ya3NpKB5IR1liJCY5lul8VY6PlVgG86Lu-pR-ptcQFfCrs_RJCoZ81N5SXcclUGMxI6cPPzm-_/s400/028.JPG" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /></div><br /><div><span style="font-size:180%;color:#00cccc;"><strong>"Catch Me </strong></span><span style="font-size:180%;"><span style="color:#00cccc;"><strong>Dad!!"</strong></span> </span><br /><span style="font-size:180%;color:#ff0000;"><strong>"WooHoooo!!</strong></span></div><br /><div><br /></div><br /><div><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5251192482473035058" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; CURSOR: hand; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzC4i0iMr7C_taGgVmeDK8kbGs3Lw8aiQlnwgrrJk77uQxEPDLYm3Ed0rtGFYAe2kwb8G2sRrMrxPusIMRuA2E4WZYV3hzqEAEtyrQUsdXDa4M3kn7PFtQNOERwTxpndbye8pjM8PAlO06/s400/031.JPG" border="0" /></div><br /><div><br /></div><br /><div><strong><span style="color:#000099;"></span></strong></div><div><strong><span style="color:#000099;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQ7KV9t9fKQnxRcf31boly3SgPhNEe-CrvcZItwymBbF_ZOHhQvlxe_OCKg436t-2MwycpaA5u5wVn2czOu3A6NMATD-OVxm5gqWEVwCy-FVIfYk9tMm_Qn1UlZj2JDiwxdKbxr9YDDeru/s1600-h/034.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5251193311262754514" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQ7KV9t9fKQnxRcf31boly3SgPhNEe-CrvcZItwymBbF_ZOHhQvlxe_OCKg436t-2MwycpaA5u5wVn2czOu3A6NMATD-OVxm5gqWEVwCy-FVIfYk9tMm_Qn1UlZj2JDiwxdKbxr9YDDeru/s400/034.JPG" border="0" /></a></span></strong></div><br /><div><strong><span style="color:#000099;">Nick: "ONE MORE TIME PLEEEEAASEE!!"</span></strong></div><br /><div><strong><span style="color:#000099;">Dad: "Okay...one more time."</span></strong></div><br /><div><strong><span style="color:#000099;">Nick: Catch me!!</span></strong></div><br /><div><br /></div><br /><div><br /><br /><br /><span style="font-size:180%;color:#000000;"><strong>9th - Nick & Brandon on their 2nd trip to the jumper</strong></span></div><br /><div><br /></div><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5251194928352614290" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; CURSOR: hand; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjEopQyC3H9MxNUvceARNC-zYRWVxtllq2tevF_4RHsdMFl-5X8PQRw9GqcO22zpKYYjF7BFJtgjT1SNu6SDkHHHDnYGnOwResSofAjzrSSrdfFXSRGeQ4JI71ZGb9U_DoY3nD3IaVYWz81/s400/014.JPG" border="0" /><br /><div><br /><span style="font-size:130%;color:#009900;"><strong></strong></span></div><div><span style="font-size:130%;color:#009900;"><strong></strong></span></div><div><span style="font-size:130%;color:#009900;"><strong></strong></span></div><div><span style="font-size:130%;color:#009900;"><strong><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhq6Z-ukY_EcaoAct2SEkS4BnkS7TjUZDBfnXT3shBfTMeYYCgWA5CQuW45TVXeQfPOtxa9ta6FLi1HZONwVxhbSUTowFx1ayFSvFOLw0FJdWiSlKKjZsXhLjTwfwBW0awS0G2P_BkjwmO4/s1600-h/061.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5251195774022612418" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; CURSOR: hand" height="287" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhq6Z-ukY_EcaoAct2SEkS4BnkS7TjUZDBfnXT3shBfTMeYYCgWA5CQuW45TVXeQfPOtxa9ta6FLi1HZONwVxhbSUTowFx1ayFSvFOLw0FJdWiSlKKjZsXhLjTwfwBW0awS0G2P_BkjwmO4/s400/061.JPG" width="466" border="0" /></a></strong></span></div><div><span style="font-size:130%;color:#009900;"><strong></strong></span></div><div><span style="font-size:130%;color:#009900;"><strong>10th - Brandon hanging out in the living room - still playing with my cell phone. That explains why I always have a dead battery!!</strong></span></div><br /><div><br /></div><br /><div></div></div></div></div></div></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3002249972463858104.post-85379055401266722862008-09-25T15:24:00.007-06:002008-09-25T16:39:23.798-06:00Adjusting to Home Life<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTRueZC6ulkh0aoyhGzm8BfxPdepgFZjWaCo7rTWz7GHQMFVTinw9WoxzukLJIfYEQy4hb9ZRNzLBRRRbUtkDYynQl9se2HZtSxIcbJKtc-2CBdDG0rH2HpLgFu-W1Nl2GibLeZeLP5A45/s1600-h/243.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5250090002292370066" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 463px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 334px" height="291" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTRueZC6ulkh0aoyhGzm8BfxPdepgFZjWaCo7rTWz7GHQMFVTinw9WoxzukLJIfYEQy4hb9ZRNzLBRRRbUtkDYynQl9se2HZtSxIcbJKtc-2CBdDG0rH2HpLgFu-W1Nl2GibLeZeLP5A45/s400/243.JPG" width="410" border="0" /></a>We have been home 10 days and to be quite honest, it has been the best 10 days of my life!! Brandon's first eye Dr. appointment was on Monday. We had channel 13 news crew with us so they can update everyone on how Brandon's doing. Unfortunately it appears our Dr. has changed his opinion of stem cell therapy in China. He made a speech about how it couldn't possibly work but yet he said Brandon is "testing" better during the exam. He knew as well as everyone in the room that Brandon saw more during that exam than he did during the last one. So we took the Dr's speech like we do with every other critic - with a grain of salt. Everyone who has seen Brandon since returning has noticed changes in how he gets around and how he's noticing more of his surroundings. I didn't expect the Dr. to saw "It's a miracle!" however I did expect him to be honest about his findings. At the end, h<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8Srb4MErG9TsbcITyxb3kdVDg7NRnctidpXZuAHd1UTOodBbOfGbUELQuVgdu8iWzFiR4D1-MiU_aos5uukHPu4DoP3FK9FP7vPGU013bhPuTQ8qgyj9n0ge3YkSOdUuhhpGyKdNChquN/s1600-h/250.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5250090703382775570" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; WIDTH: 485px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 338px" height="312" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8Srb4MErG9TsbcITyxb3kdVDg7NRnctidpXZuAHd1UTOodBbOfGbUELQuVgdu8iWzFiR4D1-MiU_aos5uukHPu4DoP3FK9FP7vPGU013bhPuTQ8qgyj9n0ge3YkSOdUuhhpGyKdNChquN/s400/250.JPG" width="471" border="0" /></a>e made a statement that made me understand why he wasn't being straight with us. He told us that he had been telling his other patients not to go to China & he didn't want the news story to say that he saw improvements with Brandon because everyone would be calling him asking why they shouldn't try it. I understand how hard it is to grasp the fact that this treatment could possibly help when every other medical professional has said "IMPOSSIBLE". I get that - really. But we went over there knowing that this may not help. We understood the risks and we accepted whatever the outcome. Never did we imagine that Brandon would come home seeing the alphabet in print. Anyway Brandon had another appointment with the school's eye Dr on Wednesday. The first Dr. had promised to call the 2<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">nd</span> Dr to let him know of his findings however when we got to Wednesday's appointment, we learned that the 1st Dr. had not called Dr #2. I was quite upset because we were promised that he would call him. I'm wondering if a Doctor change is in order. Not because he doesn't believe in stem cell therapy - that's his opinion. But because we paid $81.00 Monday for a speech on how it can't possibly work & an assessment that was calculated because he was concerned of what his other patients would say. Then he decided not to call the school's Dr. after he said he would. Anyway <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdus0tarHUV4f9NSfiBGdjROgk_i33E5XNvcoGUvfmX1dD2h6WpyuJpE18tQP6u3OjrmyhC2k5xPRnohUFc342oaOACSyTurBd1h-k1Sf7nN6hVOhivfvKbb0iz8aJu1XJMYBPZot1TRjc/s1600-h/245.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5250091304660344354" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 509px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 310px" height="284" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdus0tarHUV4f9NSfiBGdjROgk_i33E5XNvcoGUvfmX1dD2h6WpyuJpE18tQP6u3OjrmyhC2k5xPRnohUFc342oaOACSyTurBd1h-k1Sf7nN6hVOhivfvKbb0iz8aJu1XJMYBPZot1TRjc/s400/245.JPG" width="509" border="0" /></a>Dr. #2 said that adding print to Brandon's lessons would benefit him and to allow him to view things in his comfort zone (4 inches away). Brandon has been used to seeing things up close and we had originally been told to make him use his sight by making him look at objects further away. The 2<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">nd</span> Dr.'s <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">input</span> was very helpful & I'm happy with his assessment. He wasn't there to see how far Brandon can see but to help us on how Brandon should be taught. He said that there is a program available to help students obtain equipment that can help with their education. We are in need of a CCTV and that's what we're going to ask for. They won't pay for all of it but they may pay for most of the total cost. Anything to help Brandon better himself! Anyway channel 13 will come visit Brandon at his school Tuesday morning so Brandon's excited about that. He has a secret crush on Jennifer (the morning news anchor). It's cute really because he's always asking when he can talk to her. Then when he sees her, he doesn't say too much. They should be airing his story either next week <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">or</span> the following week - I'll keep everyone posted! I apologize for not answering <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4">every one's</span> emails this week - I'm down with a cold that refuses to go away. Hopefully in the next day or two, I can finish the emails. Sorry Jamie for not getting those pictures off to you yet - I promise I will soon! Tell Spencer "Hi" for me - I miss him! <strong><span style="color:#000099;">Photo's: 1st - Brandon's greatest love (besides music) is swimming. 2nd - Nick & I enjoying the day together. 3rd - Brandon playing in the water. Grandpa Preston had to work hard to get him out!!</span> </strong>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3002249972463858104.post-4801789304162819822008-09-19T10:25:00.016-06:002008-09-25T20:41:55.317-06:00Getting Settled InWe've been home for 3 1/2 days now and it hardly seems possible. At times it feels like we've just gotten here but then at other times, China seems like a distant memory.<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjInT4UaPQgoiyBEfEuR3lXVcGh9dvRbIWzwjZbN1xttPU9c81H1PZaRl8VB9YLs5AQCGvkNT5-Whuymwo-lkxNotS7DK4CH0SeEomiEYL2uhhC2mNv9ytUdsDlJTfJx3GCoLdZxZpx_EuN/s1600-h/057.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5247774473468385522" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 459px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 372px" height="331" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjInT4UaPQgoiyBEfEuR3lXVcGh9dvRbIWzwjZbN1xttPU9c81H1PZaRl8VB9YLs5AQCGvkNT5-Whuymwo-lkxNotS7DK4CH0SeEomiEYL2uhhC2mNv9ytUdsDlJTfJx3GCoLdZxZpx_EuN/s400/057.JPG" width="459" border="0" /></a> I just can't get over how different China is compared to the US. It really does feel like another world when you're over there. Anyway after being plagued with internet problems, I just now got it to work again. I have wonderful updates to report but first....our trip home. Jack took us to the airport and helped get our luggage checked in. Unfortunately 2 suitcases were overweight :( one was 70 lbs & the other was 56 lbs. I ended up having to pay 60 USD for it. After that was taken care of, we went through security and had just settled in the waiting room for our flight when 2 cops with rifles came up to me and said that I needed to come with them. All I could think of was "Oh my God, what's going on? I'm going to jail & I don't even know why! I'm never going home!!" Yeah I know, over dramatic but that would've been just my luck! Anyway Brandon and I were escorted back t<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjwycJkQ7BIleWHXEDyKtPUN1VZwUK1mGqJr3_h0EooYyPDItf9Da8cKcJ4xSbQJQ9tvkP51bptxmGEgSC1WXW70itp8byf5m8B9trFo32kGDea6e2T6jJxVQGsQ21LQ2fDYJmQmSr6FXap/s1600-h/062.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5247775214929390034" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjwycJkQ7BIleWHXEDyKtPUN1VZwUK1mGqJr3_h0EooYyPDItf9Da8cKcJ4xSbQJQ9tvkP51bptxmGEgSC1WXW70itp8byf5m8B9trFo32kGDea6e2T6jJxVQGsQ21LQ2fDYJmQmSr6FXap/s400/062.JPG" border="0" /></a>hrough security where they had one of my suitcases on the table. They said that they wanted to search it. So I opened it up & they took my DVD's. All they wanted was to look through my DVD collection!! Once they realized that my DVD's didn't contain anything horrible, they allowed me to zip everything back up & I was free to go back through security to the waiting room. Finally after what seemed like a decade, we were able to board. 30 minutes after the plane was suppose to leave, we were still at the terminal. I began to smell smoke which wasn't the most comforting smell when you're about to be 37,000 feet up in the air. I was trying to decide whether to demand an explaination or to jump sail when the plane started to back out to the runway. I seriously doubt if I had ever been more afraid than I was at that mome<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-WvLmTOz2B6qM23cwtCFtLHEzRF4NuxsqPhbwGpIcoghl6IrDk37Lo-ANWqQB93GCxs6g7qq8HSuTUEzCHuzFeP8t_YYBt5F0QgAOqeTwb9O-1YEY4J-T2aLq2OqdeH5eTOXK28sGPSSs/s1600-h/073.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5247775953384214658" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; CURSOR: hand" height="330" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-WvLmTOz2B6qM23cwtCFtLHEzRF4NuxsqPhbwGpIcoghl6IrDk37Lo-ANWqQB93GCxs6g7qq8HSuTUEzCHuzFeP8t_YYBt5F0QgAOqeTwb9O-1YEY4J-T2aLq2OqdeH5eTOXK28sGPSSs/s400/073.JPG" width="462" border="0" /></a>nt. But obviously all went well. We landed in Seoul, Korea where we had a short 2 hours to wait for our connecting flight. It was nice to finally board because I knew that the next time our feet hit the ground, it would be in America. The plane we were on was really nice however Brandon & I was next to the window & an Asian guy had the aisle seat. Knowing that we were trapped for 11 1/2 hours made us want to go to the bathroom even more. Each seat had a mini TV so I was able to watch movies while Brandon slept. We had stayed up most of the night Sunday night in hopes that we would be able to sleep on the plane from Seoul, Korea to Los Angeles. Brandon sleep most of the trip but I was only able to sleep for an hour and a half. We crossed the pacific ocean at night so we didn't have much of a view until <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhB-bH5etxS85hImYrqYJlKHPc1h0MGar-zC5PnljhZ5rdWDipNRK2Uaw39Up4kBXSQhxAK77cdJLmdd-wKUKSRMakwr64XuA3YIVza-Q8U6EVGarAH-nkpLvLO-FVHIwR6Pa1WLj8ToR8l/s1600-h/074.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5247776738068219538" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhB-bH5etxS85hImYrqYJlKHPc1h0MGar-zC5PnljhZ5rdWDipNRK2Uaw39Up4kBXSQhxAK77cdJLmdd-wKUKSRMakwr64XuA3YIVza-Q8U6EVGarAH-nkpLvLO-FVHIwR6Pa1WLj8ToR8l/s400/074.JPG" border="0" /></a>morning. I opened the shade just as the light was starting to show over the horizon. It was absolutely beautiful! As dawn broke, they brought out breakfast. They asked Brandon & I what we wanted for breakfast - omlette or pumpkin porridge. Brandon had been begging for eggs the whole time we were in China so I said omlette. I cut up Brandon's omlette and gave him the first bite. He started gagging & spit it out saying that it was "so gross". Curiousity got the best of me so I gave it a try. It was fish! A salmon & egg omlette! How could anyone eat something so disgusting?! I mean I like salmon but not chopped up in eggs for breakfast! Poor Brandon was so hungry! We also had fruit & bread so I gave him everything from my plate that he would eat. Luckily we only had a few more hours before we would hav<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOplH_FRKVBZJFxYUFKuq9ycAQdMxIX9whyphenhyphenCiXGHnB6xk95hUEOuF2ZytU-2hEk-mHXA8uD74w_g2zWCuR0rQXjCty0-TGE78_HEG7uSlhHdvBoAn0ixI1viYHOb9jxp8KrGslnXr6Dq0c/s1600-h/076.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5247778648916639730" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOplH_FRKVBZJFxYUFKuq9ycAQdMxIX9whyphenhyphenCiXGHnB6xk95hUEOuF2ZytU-2hEk-mHXA8uD74w_g2zWCuR0rQXjCty0-TGE78_HEG7uSlhHdvBoAn0ixI1viYHOb9jxp8KrGslnXr6Dq0c/s400/076.JPG" border="0" /></a>e American food. After breakfast, Brandon wanted to look outside - something he had never asked to do. So I sat him on my lap and we looked out the window. Suddenly Brandon said "Ohh what's that?" After narrowing down the options, I discovered he was looking at the wing of the plane! I couldn't believe it! I started crying which I'm sure the other passengers thought was odd but I didn't care. That was one thing we were hoping for. For Brandon to see the wing of the plane on the way home. I was so excited! I wanted to start making phone calls to tell everyone but of course we were still up in the air so I had to wait. We finally landed in LA at 3:40 pm (Moutain time). We were greeted by an American who could speak English!! I know that statment sounds odd but trust me. After not being able to communicate very well for 5 weeks, it feel so great to have an English<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjquxNcljB1RxzVRamkJTxEunLkljZPYtdYvb0opxcdgOR3_QJukWCy524XFk8LKFdp09t_4t9oiN5cVM7uXgaamPEG0vfaid_xBb8y7J_EU4nBHmY7XnmDlvtSQiZqeA1zR0nPa9SsqFrP/s1600-h/084.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5247779851127805874" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; WIDTH: 452px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 359px" height="342" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjquxNcljB1RxzVRamkJTxEunLkljZPYtdYvb0opxcdgOR3_QJukWCy524XFk8LKFdp09t_4t9oiN5cVM7uXgaamPEG0vfaid_xBb8y7J_EU4nBHmY7XnmDlvtSQiZqeA1zR0nPa9SsqFrP/s400/084.JPG" width="444" border="0" /></a> speaking American greet you at the plane exit. She helped us get our luggage through customs to the next drop off and made sure we got to the United terminal. We tried to get on an earily flight but we just didn't made it in time. So we went to Route 66 for lunch. Our first real American food in 38 days. Brandon had chicken tenders & fries and I had a hamburger with fries. Add two cokes and the total came to $38.00 USD. The bill was a bit surprising but it was worth every penny! I didn't think it tasted the best & I started to get concerned. Maybe my taste buds were ruined!! I had heard horror stories of people coming back from China and not liking the foods that they used to eat. But it was refreshing to be eating something that was familiar. After a 5 hour stay in LA, we boarded the last plane. Destination: HOME!! That plane ride was only 2 hours but it seemed a lot longe<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEghISE0a3bayUFeaATvLpLplFFNRBx1-VvAwBZ2zxkLRLeCW3FsmGz0-zNapvGtAFzj2FabEJLRpMQQOMyd6M_M1XMxFURT9mCmyXQLUNQn3WKu4szkdSWJ3WhsAwvIVVd4zLJc11-1eTDN/s1600-h/090.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5247780559111246690" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEghISE0a3bayUFeaATvLpLplFFNRBx1-VvAwBZ2zxkLRLeCW3FsmGz0-zNapvGtAFzj2FabEJLRpMQQOMyd6M_M1XMxFURT9mCmyXQLUNQn3WKu4szkdSWJ3WhsAwvIVVd4zLJc11-1eTDN/s400/090.JPG" border="0" /></a>r. When I saw the lights of Colorado Springs, I knew that our journey had finally ended. After flying over 6,000 miles, we had made it.... we were home. John & Nick greeted us at the airport. I swear Nick had grown 6 inches in 2 weeks! I was so happy to see them again! After getting our suitcases into the Tahoe, I insisted on going to Taco Bell. Not because I was hungry but because I had thought of nothing else since arriving in China. I promised Brandon & myself that we would go to Taco Bell as soon as we left the airport. So at midnight we pulled into the Taco Bell drive thru and ordered a burrito for myself & cinnamon twists for Brandon. I took one bite and my original thoughts of having ruined taste buds came back. It didn't taste anything like I remembered. John ordered a burrito as well and thankfully he agreed that it didn't taste too good. By 2 am, I was sound asleep in my own bed. Oh how good it felt to pull the covers up to my chin and go to sleep in my comfy bed. Tuesday<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUrkjuQgWNq2WumNOBg8qblkFn3fjgWMsbqQbGbAebrExMK5AIUNyKuuBdFnrOK7gqKrasbbM9L__SkRcnjVJ6DMwBIaZA6ERfYK2v1bbNQLKRLoI_2XrV7WiA_3kYuIhggOvgbCOQSnl1/s1600-h/115.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5247782696442732930" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; CURSOR: hand" height="319" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUrkjuQgWNq2WumNOBg8qblkFn3fjgWMsbqQbGbAebrExMK5AIUNyKuuBdFnrOK7gqKrasbbM9L__SkRcnjVJ6DMwBIaZA6ERfYK2v1bbNQLKRLoI_2XrV7WiA_3kYuIhggOvgbCOQSnl1/s400/115.JPG" width="456" border="0" /></a> morning I woke up at 7 AM :( After 5 hours of sleep, I could sleep no longer. Suffering from extreme jet lag, Tuesday seemed to blur into Wednesday. Brandon saw the neurologist Tuesday morning and he put all of our concerns to rest. He didn't see much of the brain damage that the Dr's had seem in China. He did say that the cranial pressure is somewhat concerning and that we may want to have his tested. We have decided to wait and see how his headaches are. If he continues to suffer from them, we'll have him tested. Anyway as we were talking to the Dr, Brandon got down and started playing with the toys in the toy bin. As much as John & I tried to concentrate on what the Dr was saying, all of our attention was focused on Brandon playing like a normal child. Over the past two days we have noticed subtle changes with Brandon. He spent Tuesday & Wednesday outside play<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiooLJEWgYRb9qoFqc-essAUkHuQMU7qw6YjI22YBjhhtd7utYNOLec6sDXpy1Kx-YouPZ3IaV-cM2l19Ik6k3VSn0DyuWrv4JPax0yM_6TEfo8MWeEzWzbhoQljr1YRBQyItyoKmHMT_0x/s1600-h/121.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5247786137749781154" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; CURSOR: hand" height="307" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiooLJEWgYRb9qoFqc-essAUkHuQMU7qw6YjI22YBjhhtd7utYNOLec6sDXpy1Kx-YouPZ3IaV-cM2l19Ik6k3VSn0DyuWrv4JPax0yM_6TEfo8MWeEzWzbhoQljr1YRBQyItyoKmHMT_0x/s400/121.JPG" width="469" border="0" /></a>ing with Nick. Something he had never done much of. I caught them outside in the driveway loading rocks into their dump trucks. How cool was that?! Brandon had never done that before! On Thursday Brandon started 3rd grade. We talked to the principal who is an amazing guy. Mr Tutt has been behind us from the very beginning so for him to see the changes in Brandon himself was great. Brandon showed off his new tricks - showing Mr. Tutt how good he is at the flash cards. By the time we finished talking to Mr. Tutt, it was time for lunch. So Brandon, Mr. Tutt, John & I walked to the cafateria. Brandon walked ahead of us (without his cane). As we walked past the vehicles in the parking lot, Brandon said "Ohh what's that?" I asked him "You tell me, what is that?" He said "a motorcycle". Of course he was right. Mr. Tutt laughed. As we were about to step down on the curb, I held my breath. I was really hoping he would see the step. He looked down and took the step like he had been doing it all of his life. again Mr. Tutt was impressed. On the way back from lunch, Brandon came up to the step, turned around, and said "Be ca<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiP6sfiW94qfPqb8iu5no4vHY1PR_jaKEKC8VuRVJN_gCSVs5slqkpU4rtCSA698jRjAfaLfCKMyuJeU3hTqYBjvn6swY7Ml0Fc7i2TuHE4YpUR_mrDjVT6Q5iiYIUI8j7qoCBc0DHC5lYg/s1600-h/137.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5247787695535232706" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; CURSOR: hand" height="311" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiP6sfiW94qfPqb8iu5no4vHY1PR_jaKEKC8VuRVJN_gCSVs5slqkpU4rtCSA698jRjAfaLfCKMyuJeU3hTqYBjvn6swY7Ml0Fc7i2TuHE4YpUR_mrDjVT6Q5iiYIUI8j7qoCBc0DHC5lYg/s400/137.JPG" width="436" border="0" /></a>reful Mom, there's a step coming". How amazing is that?! We see the eye Dr. Monday morning. I'm excited to see what he has to say. I'll keep everyone posted! I just want to say Thank You to all who has stood by us during this journey. It has been amazing! <span style="color:#000099;">Photo's: <strong>1st - The Qingdao, China Airport.</strong> 2nd - Our last view of the Qingdao Aiport. Adios China!! <strong>3rd - Seoul, Korea has several little islands around the shoreline. How beautiful is that! I actually thought we were going to land on water because we barely cleared the beach before we touched down. </strong>4th - Incheon Internation Airport in Seoul, Korea <strong>5th - Brandon hanging out in the airport in Seoul before we boarded the plane to America.</strong> 6th - Dawn breaks over the Pacific Ocean. What an amazing sight!! <strong>7th - Breakfast! Our salmon & egg omlette</strong> 8th - Brandon smiling after seeing the wing of the airplane FOR THE FIRST TIME!! <strong>9th - Flying over Los Angeles, California prior to landing at LAX. What a view!!</strong> 10th - The LA Roadhouse Route 66. Our first American meal in 38 days!! </span>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3002249972463858104.post-47467200410227883182008-09-17T17:54:00.002-06:002008-09-17T18:02:00.321-06:00We're Home!!Hi everyone, sorry it took me so long to update. When I got home, I went to hook up my laptop to the internet and found that my old settings didn't work. Since I was / am experiencing severe jet lag, I just left it alone until now. Anyway we landed in Colorado Springs at 10:58 pm Monday night (12:58 Tuesday afternoon China's time). We had a very long & uneventful flight home. Well not quite uneventful. As we were about to hit the California coast, Brandon looked out of the window & saw the airplane wing....for the first time. He said "ohh what's that?" After narrowing it down, I realized he was looking at the wing. I was so excited!! I will post pictures of our return trip and go into details tonight. I just wanted to let everyone know that we're home safe & sound - and very glad to be here!!Unknownnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3002249972463858104.post-74092358565724081212008-09-14T21:56:00.002-06:002008-09-14T22:02:11.062-06:00Saying Goodbye to ChinaWell the time has come to say goodbye. I never thought this day would come but finally our time here is over. We are so excited to be heading home!! We leave the hospital in less than an hour so I wanted to update the blog before I packed my computer away. We cannot wait to see everyone when we get home!! Brandon is unpatiently waiting - he's worse than I am!! So goodbye for now - I'll update the blog as soon as I get home to let everyone know we arrived safely. Talk to you soon......from home!!Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3002249972463858104.post-2330521705712863312008-09-14T06:34:00.009-06:002008-09-14T12:36:32.973-06:00Last Night in China<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLazKCTuJ4xH7cV-LMUwr5nmRFzGorm9c6xA4787utci660Xjl9dC9LlfFtbhMBwunEKaMFM1cv3kBBtV-F9H5_s6RbVI_KxR0XfOI9n5YVcy8t_BNvXNyHNYmeKlNvb5jUf0ZCI2oaBXf/s1600-h/011.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5245860861530532722" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLazKCTuJ4xH7cV-LMUwr5nmRFzGorm9c6xA4787utci660Xjl9dC9LlfFtbhMBwunEKaMFM1cv3kBBtV-F9H5_s6RbVI_KxR0XfOI9n5YVcy8t_BNvXNyHNYmeKlNvb5jUf0ZCI2oaBXf/s400/011.JPG" border="0" /></a>Our last full day here has come to an end. All day today I felt a little off. I was sad in a way to leave all these wonderful people (Adele, patients & some staff) but I know that I <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">should've</span> been happy. It was just a weird feeling. Our life for the last 37 days has been full of adventure, boredom, happiness, tears, laughter, disgust, frustration.....but we have never regretted coming here. People ask "Are you glad you came?" Absolutely! We came here and did what we set out to do.... Improve Brandon's sight. We are also leaving here with newly formed friend<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhEVZEXdxHb-OgzGPWMVbMo_co3bDXIo2rsuDu7TeWXA87xlildv4m4K2L2GQNJqFgU4o6lAAWOzUTqVlE9kqHjFw0Lb64i3eM9rJmSodslNL20xO7UBx2k9Gum7rxlKl5GnNdptED-ZAUt/s1600-h/017.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5245894239620235074" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhEVZEXdxHb-OgzGPWMVbMo_co3bDXIo2rsuDu7TeWXA87xlildv4m4K2L2GQNJqFgU4o6lAAWOzUTqVlE9kqHjFw0Lb64i3eM9rJmSodslNL20xO7UBx2k9Gum7rxlKl5GnNdptED-ZAUt/s400/017.JPG" border="0" /></a>ships from all over the world which is an added bonus. All the patients & families here have one thing in common - stem cell therapy. It's that common bond that has made us almost like family here. It doesn't matter where you're from or what your social background is, we all came here with hope for a brighter future. We leave tomorrow with not only that but ever lasting bonds with others here with the same dream. It's hard to say goodbye to some of them because in reality, we may never see each other again. I think that's why it's so bitter sweet for us. Brandon asked if we could take Adele home with us. I certainly wish <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhiEzoMQ3gmsxt2BXh55rBnKGyFE58IrjxMjZQB0mZ2u-eyKCrbD68c7rJMZdxDyeBQVynv1Fz9R0ZUYhQjiBmyri1U0QO0uGitAUeyaHdUVstUcJg2r7psuyk14Lg7MlqrTuzgKbxDyBQG/s1600-h/021.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5245894804134256146" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhiEzoMQ3gmsxt2BXh55rBnKGyFE58IrjxMjZQB0mZ2u-eyKCrbD68c7rJMZdxDyeBQVynv1Fz9R0ZUYhQjiBmyri1U0QO0uGitAUeyaHdUVstUcJg2r7psuyk14Lg7MlqrTuzgKbxDyBQG/s400/021.JPG" border="0" /></a>we could. She's an amazing girl with a bright future. I just hope her future doesn't include staying here. We are hoping to return next year for another round of treatments & hopefully we'll see her again. Today Adele went with us to the RT Mart for the final time. I had to stock up on some candy that I've become hopelessly addicted to. We also stopped at Brandon's favorite place....<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">KFC</span>. It was nice to get out after being coped up in the hospital for the last few days. I regret not going to some places that I had planned on going but that's <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">ok</span>. We saw more than I expected and we did have quite an adv<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDeFvno-Tru3kMzXInt8emVV8XWL9oM9602PZoBQ4SWdmh4N47BpLSqC9N_x6CTT57iOX79Ca-bPi4h_k4XOtgQlSklftKTyxsl1alZ11eW1VpKX-r3pCUkF2aRuulKs2lvdpXYH0_mDeA/s1600-h/025.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5245895515413029234" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDeFvno-Tru3kMzXInt8emVV8XWL9oM9602PZoBQ4SWdmh4N47BpLSqC9N_x6CTT57iOX79Ca-bPi4h_k4XOtgQlSklftKTyxsl1alZ11eW1VpKX-r3pCUkF2aRuulKs2lvdpXYH0_mDeA/s400/025.JPG" border="0" /></a><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">enture</span>.<span style="color:#000099;"> Photo's: 1st - Brandon & Adele outside of <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4">KFC</span> & the RT Ma</span><span style="color:#000099;">rt. 2<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_5">nd</span> - Brandon's home away from home - <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_6">KFC</span>. 3rd - We went to this market today about 30 minute drive from the hospital. On the surface all looked nice however they have these narrow alley ways that are littered with trash & packed full of people. They were cooking in the alley so this horrible stench from the street vendors was hard to ignore. One vendor was selling meat on a stick that looked similar to a hot dog but I guarantee it wasn't a hot dog! Brandon said "<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_7">ohh</span> what's that?" Through clenched teeth (because of the smell) all I could say is "Keep moving!!" Like the meat didn't smell like any meat I have ever had or seen. I wish I had taken a picture of it but all I could think of was to get out of the area as quickly as possible. 4<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_8">th</span> - Another view of the market. Pictures 3 & 4 were taken in the neat area of the market. </span>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3002249972463858104.post-22237710387325388772008-09-13T03:27:00.007-06:002008-09-14T12:38:19.494-06:00Going Away Party - Leaving China in 42 Hours!!<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiKgDoNBm69HJaRiW0WnLpklmRXH4erylj_RbmednNaJdXkhwNwBNyWePTGSP9euvZXpjFAy3eO1COVXUZ8EryKiQtRoFEJwbtqywJ5apbFiPJRzKcBUeMLsFiC8KZ0x_sTTKthiW288uaY/s1600-h/004.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5245440114954193426" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 446px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 310px" height="309" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiKgDoNBm69HJaRiW0WnLpklmRXH4erylj_RbmednNaJdXkhwNwBNyWePTGSP9euvZXpjFAy3eO1COVXUZ8EryKiQtRoFEJwbtqywJ5apbFiPJRzKcBUeMLsFiC8KZ0x_sTTKthiW288uaY/s400/004.JPG" width="448" border="0" /></a>Yesterday Dr. Bing gave Brandon a set of flash cards that had various pictures on them. Car, ship, plane, helicopter, watermelon, corn, green pepper, apple, tomato, potato, water gun, rattle, cup, bowl...well you get the point. Anyway there is 48 different pictures and within 4 hours (including breaks), Brandon was able to tell us what each one was - 2 feet away - except tomato & apple (They look identical with the exception of the stem). I brought the Dr back in last night during Brandon's "lying down time" to show him what Brandon could do. After going through them with him, Dr. Bing grabbed my shoulders & hugged me then tried to hug Brandon but he wasn't going for any of that. He told Brandon "Thank you for making my day... this is very good news". I thought he was going to cry but he did keep his composure. He said that Brandon has a very good chance of improving more over the next several months. Many people have told me that the Dr's are just in it for the money. This may be true for some Dr's but not Dr. Bing. He is an amazing Dr who truly cares about what he's doing. He WANTS to help people, he WANTS to see people improve - and we can't thank him enough for everything he has done. Last night we were informed that the Dr. visiting from another city lets his patients up after 4 hours of lying down. So instead of the normal 6 hours, Brandon was allowed up after 4 hours. He was hap<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh11G6pgb18_TwybnVrZU2y6pK1WQE3fG4Mhpbl8MroI7L0wQtyIVr-QSyf-ILxVxknRDb5h-b8T5yBHAHEbuyFLjoVcoYDKguZLJ9dhaqS402RNfKg-Pn1SmJ_kOtHzpYw6F7QyXSV66pm/s1600-h/125.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5245444166535409410" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; CURSOR: hand" height="294" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh11G6pgb18_TwybnVrZU2y6pK1WQE3fG4Mhpbl8MroI7L0wQtyIVr-QSyf-ILxVxknRDb5h-b8T5yBHAHEbuyFLjoVcoYDKguZLJ9dhaqS402RNfKg-Pn1SmJ_kOtHzpYw6F7QyXSV66pm/s400/125.JPG" width="428" border="0" /></a><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">py</span> about that. Especially since there was a party going on out in the lobby. An hour after it started, Brandon & I were able to go out and take part in the festivities. We took pictures, talked to other patients & ate. They had the coffee tables COVERED with fruit, cake, <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">moon</span> pies, & juice. Brandon ate watermelon & cake to celebrate his last treatment. We retired early since he is suppose to take it easy for 48 hours after treatment. Around 11pm, Brandon started suffering a headache. I gave him Tylenol but it wasn't helping. I went to the Dr's office across the hall & asked Dr. Bing for medicine. The last time Brandon had a headache, they gave him a capsule which we <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">dissolved</span> in water. 5 minutes later, the Dr. came back with a capsule. Today he has been taking it easy & right now he's in bed with another headache. I think he partied too much last night instead of resting. Another day is about to end - 2 days left!! We stayed up late last night & slept until nearly 2pm today. Hopefully it will help in readjusting to US time when we get home.........<strong><span style="font-family:times new roman;">IN 2 DAYS</span></strong>!!! <span style="color:#000099;">Photo's: 1st - Brandon enjoying the party in the lobby. See all the food on the table? They had a bowl of limes....not sure what they were for. 2<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">nd</span> - Brandon is <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4">flirtin</span>' with the nurses & making his remaining time here count!! </span>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3002249972463858104.post-30706029335254616692008-09-12T01:25:00.017-06:002008-09-12T08:29:45.218-06:00Final Treament Is Complete!! 3 Days Until We're Home!!<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOV20ryTtypdUcdFJRPLcY_O-BIDPvadBdx5No2ptD3TbKw172EAyfgiML1WrlCzAwfxjDSPgr1deZ7hTcR9b_yf01AKqqaf8XqASqF4ltresIbT9J7-o0jwwc58lBia_DXRmlIy4Z97a_/s1600-h/003.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5245033296168442194" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOV20ryTtypdUcdFJRPLcY_O-BIDPvadBdx5No2ptD3TbKw172EAyfgiML1WrlCzAwfxjDSPgr1deZ7hTcR9b_yf01AKqqaf8XqASqF4ltresIbT9J7-o0jwwc58lBia_DXRmlIy4Z97a_/s400/003.JPG" border="0" /></a>Last night 15 of us (patients & their families) went to the <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0"><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0"><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">Sunkin</span></span></span> <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1"><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1"><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">Hua</span></span></span> <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2"><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2"><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">Kun</span></span></span> Hotel - aka the International Buffet - for dinner. It was actually better than the last time we went. (well except for the duck heads & tongue from some animal - not sure what type of animal donated their tongue for the menu). It was pretty funny because I sat in front of a patient who likes to be <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">adventurous</span> when it comes to food. As I sat there eating with Brandon, I tried my best to avoid looking a the other <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3"><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">patient's</span></span> plate of sea shells & tendons. They did teach me how to use chop sticks so "Thank You" - you know who you are!! The reason I use the terms "they, the patient, or them" is because not everyone likes to be acknowledged on <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4"><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4">som</span></span><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5v_WCsq1AFnRTC-KV9W-T0mLzWIqEKCMYBywLL4sfw2ntpka5GDCSZEcEVMjU9S7WvD1TDQoNG7EYg4byDJCBpz8NDVtI5WpILxBx5QMdbArCZ2WcnmZFppX-L_Tn4JOupbVT4jZL6vOc/s1600-h/014.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5245034671305445906" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5v_WCsq1AFnRTC-KV9W-T0mLzWIqEKCMYBywLL4sfw2ntpka5GDCSZEcEVMjU9S7WvD1TDQoNG7EYg4byDJCBpz8NDVtI5WpILxBx5QMdbArCZ2WcnmZFppX-L_Tn4JOupbVT4jZL6vOc/s400/014.JPG" border="0" /></a><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_5"><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_5">eone</span></span> <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_6"><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_6">else's</span></span> website. So if I haven't asked their permission - I don't mention names. Today was Brandon's final treatment!! YEAH!! He is currently beginning his 2<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_7"><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_7">nd</span></span> hour of lying in bed - 4 hours to go! The Dr. met us in the elevator as we were coming back up to the room & said that everything was fine. In fact his <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_8"><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_8">intracranial</span></span> pressure was at the lowest we had seen it before - 70 which is a normal!! I'm not sure why we have seen the pressure drop from high to normal but we're happy. It certainly makes recovery go a lot smoother with less complications. Brandon is so happy that this was the last <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_9">treatmen</span><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsL6bHkCTsP_wsxMGuTqPYSuMx0xHOYqeFIawAYt091umOfbut8Y960MB5ni3w3XeKWkG3arZ9qY0zlI1jqgUWP1uXSgISgIf5Z1Tk6bjghjnEd9lDli5VKubrEyNSzLcrkc_T6LsJs7GA/s1600-h/049.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5245035124500177762" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsL6bHkCTsP_wsxMGuTqPYSuMx0xHOYqeFIawAYt091umOfbut8Y960MB5ni3w3XeKWkG3arZ9qY0zlI1jqgUWP1uXSgISgIf5Z1Tk6bjghjnEd9lDli5VKubrEyNSzLcrkc_T6LsJs7GA/s400/049.JPG" border="0" /></a>t. He has gotten tired of feeling like a pin <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_9">cushion</span> - being poked & prodded. But he has said that his eyes are working better so he's glad he came to China. I think we are all happy to have had the opportunity to come here. I may have complained a lot but not once have I ever regretted coming here. I'm adding several pictures that I took last night & today since this was the last treatment. During the previous treatments, I've sorta slacked in the picture taking department. I have just been informed that the staff is throwing us a party tonight at 6:00 pm. Apparently since there are three families that are leaving Monday & Tuesday, they want to have a going away party. That's very nice of them - it will also give B<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgeV7DI8uOy1rO66XLRRoPo4efRk8M7Kmh1jmwwQakTkMBTHNo_xm7RWRnld7ErIcZhqbKa_VQzXiTu00KET2JkgMQllgK_GCJBDTucLsZp6uoLQyDgvagcEvcqSdzVUNEAoJCUZFZ4Yjbr/s1600-h/056.JPG"><span style="color:#000099;"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5245035598875208594" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgeV7DI8uOy1rO66XLRRoPo4efRk8M7Kmh1jmwwQakTkMBTHNo_xm7RWRnld7ErIcZhqbKa_VQzXiTu00KET2JkgMQllgK_GCJBDTucLsZp6uoLQyDgvagcEvcqSdzVUNEAoJCUZFZ4Yjbr/s400/056.JPG" border="0" /></span></a><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_10">randon</span> & I something to do to pass the time. I have asked them if I can wheel Brandon out into the lobby for the party since he's unable to get up until 9:00 pm (providing he is feeling well). They said that we could probably do that. Well we are almost packed up. Tonight I will pack most of our clothes up & leave only the clothes we'll need for this weekend & Monday. I'm done doing laundry in China! The clothes don't dry for a few days & by the time they do dry, they smell funky. When we get home, I'll be washing ALL the clothes up so we can hopefully get the smell of China out<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9t1lRLe5gZY-rXE_82GNn96QUErD9smdhWQteeH8MYcRBjJ7BoojC7hyr64wh1VX68faoFMm6E-Q6kyc7yNT0VdQNZkYqXx1ZaHbI1Pwa5uOiVwL1EevSmxhIgxagrv0vaFEUZ8Lp10ba/s1600-h/062.JPG"><span style="color:#000099;"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5245036228665492866" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9t1lRLe5gZY-rXE_82GNn96QUErD9smdhWQteeH8MYcRBjJ7BoojC7hyr64wh1VX68faoFMm6E-Q6kyc7yNT0VdQNZkYqXx1ZaHbI1Pwa5uOiVwL1EevSmxhIgxagrv0vaFEUZ8Lp10ba/s400/062.JPG" border="0" /></span></a> of them. So we're down to wearing our cleanest dirty clothes until we get home! <span style="color:#000099;">Photo's: 1st - Some of the other patients & families linger after dinner. I had forgotten the card that shows the hospital name & address in Chinese back in the room so I had to wait & catch a cab back to the hospital with another family. This was the first time I had ever forgotten the card - thankfully <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_11">ther</span></span><span style="color:#000099;">e was still other people that DID have theirs or Brandon & I would never had gotten back to the hospital! 2<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_10"><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_12">nd</span></span> - Brandon standing in the lobby of the <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_11"><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_13">Sunkin</span></span> <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_12"><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_14">Hua</span></span> <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_13"><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_15">Kun</span></span> Hotel last night after dinner. It's a really nice hotel!! 3rd - Brandon <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_16">tod</span><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKJ0kOVbt9CiuTvM4B5Dn5MRHzJUJOEZ00TNDydAHB0JzHoBef4WE-udWFV-s24X1uqsAXPYyC6TYIk8I43rYPeyTG6AOUta9c-Msn89nKxjUMGi8zYyIaNN3Mi4t4-2MYVh2IJGI7IKGn/s1600-h/067.JPG"><span style="color:#000099;"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5245036820013067186" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKJ0kOVbt9CiuTvM4B5Dn5MRHzJUJOEZ00TNDydAHB0JzHoBef4WE-udWFV-s24X1uqsAXPYyC6TYIk8I43rYPeyTG6AOUta9c-Msn89nKxjUMGi8zYyIaNN3Mi4t4-2MYVh2IJGI7IKGn/s400/067.JPG" border="0" /></span></a><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_17">ay</span> making faces as we wait for them to take him downstairs. He was being silly! 4<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_14"><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_18">th</span></span> - 2:15 pm China's time - Brandon is <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_15">whisked</span> away by a nurse an the <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_16">interpreter</span> Wendy. Time for treatment!! 5<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_19">th</span> - Brandon is being loaded on the elevator to be taken down to the 4<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_20">th</span> floor where the spinal treatments are done on kids. The adults ha</span><span style="color:#000099;"><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_21">ve</span> their spinal treatments on the 9<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_22">th</span> floor. 6<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_23">th</span> - Brandon waves to the camera as we go down the hall on the 4<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_24">th</span> floor. OR room here we come!! 7<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_25">th</span> - At 2:25 Brandon is fast asleep after he receives a dose of medicine to put him to sleep. They put two different <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9aBtt7pu2_TnGj7AJd7VPvP96cYTWhKDJmE1sb3M0hkc8SH8mdPmw78CZVKLGRysvyE4WRj_bDjc5-0b3FKeSOgYXdTbQo3GrEcTjiq1733dNQeVv5RexUdlxyNIfVpdkF_mCM8cF4rA0/s1600-h/074.JPG"><span style="color:#000099;"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5245037448529080546" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9aBtt7pu2_TnGj7AJd7VPvP96cYTWhKDJmE1sb3M0hkc8SH8mdPmw78CZVKLGRysvyE4WRj_bDjc5-0b3FKeSOgYXdTbQo3GrEcTjiq1733dNQeVv5RexUdlxyNIfVpdkF_mCM8cF4rA0/s400/074.JPG" border="0" /></span></a><span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_26">medicines</span> into his IV using a syringe. It only takes a minute or so for him to go to sleep. After he is fast asleep, they move him into the <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_27">gurney</span> used for treatment. 8<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_28">th</span> - Brandon is on the <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_29">gurney</span> & is whisked away to the operating room. That's the last time I see him before the treatment starts. I am sent to the waiting room to do just that - wait. 35 minutes seem like hours when your child is in the operating room. Only when he is awake do I get an <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_30">upd</span></span><span style="color:#000099;">ate & that's to tell me that I can see him again - back in the same room that he received the medicine to put him to sleep. 9<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_31">th</span> - The Operating Room. When you first walk in, <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjlLaJKm12LFG1oMApnLrdkgbAe9OtsVEzMFFBqFvqz-9tzh5pyVT4wCrls990G67AdIVsXwqLWZBKJWffJVTu9ocMPVu9kyxHhYxPYsEI3bISF5iitfVyczwKeEHbAduus-a60YSxFUunG/s1600-h/078.JPG"><span style="color:#000099;"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5245038019892909298" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjlLaJKm12LFG1oMApnLrdkgbAe9OtsVEzMFFBqFvqz-9tzh5pyVT4wCrls990G67AdIVsXwqLWZBKJWffJVTu9ocMPVu9kyxHhYxPYsEI3bISF5iitfVyczwKeEHbAduus-a60YSxFUunG/s400/078.JPG" border="0" /></span></a>they ask to to wait there - do not cross over the line <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_32">because</span> you can contaminate to OR. However nurses & Dr's can cross over the line & go back (apparently there's a difference). So they take Brandon to the line & give him the medicine to put him to sleep. I have to lean over the line just to hold Brandon's hand as he falls asleep. 10<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_33">th</span> - The dreaded waiting room. Actually this is a really nice waiting room</span><span style="color:#000099;">. The families of patients who receive stem cell treatments wait in this private room while the Chinese families all have to wait in a little room filled with hard me<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdMk-n2L6r0Fod8QMDo_RK_ODItJFUMKLiUxRiX5bJDbVCh00mL2ZzdnVVhctbblDFudCrJpjfCrHcSqgS4WKLeMU5MCdITlCajD0XnttjRkN0GiXsequKwSwxdcLe59xbkxGtXwVQNGJi/s1600-h/080.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5245039342211965474" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdMk-n2L6r0Fod8QMDo_RK_ODItJFUMKLiUxRiX5bJDbVCh00mL2ZzdnVVhctbblDFudCrJpjfCrHcSqgS4WKLeMU5MCdITlCajD0XnttjRkN0GiXsequKwSwxdcLe59xbkxGtXwVQNGJi/s400/080.JPG" border="0" /></a><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_34">tal</span> chairs across from the operating room. They just recently granted us use of this room so the families can be more comfortable. More often than not, I sit at the table & try to read a book. It's hard though since all I can do is worry about how Brandon is. I'm so glad this is over with!! The waiting room is actually a meeting room where Dr's go to converge. They have a big flat panel TV, a projector & a computer in the room. I can understand why they would hesitate to let us use the room to wait. In the background on the wall is a Chinese saying. From what I understand, it means to always think of the patient with understanding & to give <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbaxPTEGyH37Was6wnfaS6y02XOzkpTNnJOssFvoJdrnWddaucPlrl-j1QjvDTmOYbY0JT_D7GHODmOIYzp4NRLm6iubeMynVp1ba6VrczBaflijnVWeB0-bmpy5fJ-g4cBRf3_GQc9KqK/s1600-h/084.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5245039995727840658" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbaxPTEGyH37Was6wnfaS6y02XOzkpTNnJOssFvoJdrnWddaucPlrl-j1QjvDTmOYbY0JT_D7GHODmOIYzp4NRLm6iubeMynVp1ba6VrczBaflijnVWeB0-bmpy5fJ-g4cBRf3_GQc9KqK/s400/084.JPG" border="0" /></a>the best care possible. 11<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_35">th</span> - At exactly 3:00 pm Brandon is back in the room just inside of the operating room after receiving his last spinal stem cell treatment. He is fully awake and in a great mood! The shelf in the background holds several pairs of sandals. When people go past the line, they have to put on </span><span style="color:#000099;">the sandals (I guess so you don't contaminate the floor?) Right next door to the OR is the door that you enter to go into the waiting room. As soon as you walk into the hallway leading to the waiting room, there is the same type of shelf with sandals. They usually have plastic bags that they have<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_lg2EwRVlEwbPdnin1Nm7QUdDFL7gmwIpFnSl6jQrMsR9Ks8ebScPZY_MCkyS5LoF9eccfsZNvlyZqVUDsqqZCuFXMfQXlOAJkoFXJRGH2YKKUQ3oyblu2YlnK3RLBGwJURggZ2_Tc4XK/s1600-h/088.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5245040518869850962" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_lg2EwRVlEwbPdnin1Nm7QUdDFL7gmwIpFnSl6jQrMsR9Ks8ebScPZY_MCkyS5LoF9eccfsZNvlyZqVUDsqqZCuFXMfQXlOAJkoFXJRGH2YKKUQ3oyblu2YlnK3RLBGwJURggZ2_Tc4XK/s400/088.JPG" border="0" /></a> you place over your feet. Today I wasn't quite so lucky. With no bags, I was forced to use the sandals. They're comfortable but I'm sure many people have used those same pair since washing them.</span> <span style="color:#000099;">I have a problem using sandals that are community property & where someone <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_36">else's</span> sweaty feet have been. But if it means sitting in a comfortable waiting room instead of the common waiting room, then I'll get over my phobia -Afterall this was the last time!!<br /></span><div></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3002249972463858104.post-71205971511177663682008-09-11T01:44:00.005-06:002008-09-11T02:48:52.887-06:007th Anniversary of the World Trade Center Attack<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWVz1GtUFl9NtgZhH-Y-GXP-qkYTuHZ-VcImP-jNhkOIxPInPoq7yY-D9TJqdvnqoglv1lHYd864YW6PKJfDEwG10RJA1yElW0DGG2sa1588JkhBgNe1pteRcxr3DlwRwLOA3GsqZLGvL6/s1600-h/011.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5244667229969970578" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 432px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 298px" height="332" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWVz1GtUFl9NtgZhH-Y-GXP-qkYTuHZ-VcImP-jNhkOIxPInPoq7yY-D9TJqdvnqoglv1lHYd864YW6PKJfDEwG10RJA1yElW0DGG2sa1588JkhBgNe1pteRcxr3DlwRwLOA3GsqZLGvL6/s400/011.JPG" width="462" border="0" /></a>As we remember what our country went through 7 years ago today, I can't help but be thankful for being an American. I remember after the attack, you couldn't find a single American flag in stores - they had all be purchased and proudly displayed uniting our country during a difficult time. Today as we went to <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0"><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">Jimo</span></span>, I noticed that very few China flags are displayed. They do have small ones but they don't have many large (flag pole) sized - not like America. I hope our children will understand how lucky they are to have been born in the USA. It was very bittersweet going into town. Today's journey marked our last outing here in China. I have fallen in love with <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1"><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">Jimo</span></span> but I believe a person could go bankrupt in there if they really tried hard enough. It's not the shopping I love but the people in those little booths. They work hard every day to sell the goods that they make just to feed their families. They are so friendly and kind and try so hard to please you. They just make you appreciate your life even more. Brandon was even a bit sad when we left <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2"><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">Jimo</span></span> for the last time. We stopped at <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3"><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">KFC</span></span> (Brandon's favorite place) before coming back to the hospital. B<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0IfA3ht9GkB1f2nC8MKTVhtgezKuClKYqJZWwC0DRrcOI7pbpjDXwUgnSja5aarSw6JArRY-5btasMct2MQqX6D6iDapjKdpOoV5xgjCiyJnZSDkSjXHxjFsBOL8eYrQBqAqeM8DjVXr5/s1600-h/001.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5244671418617769890" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0IfA3ht9GkB1f2nC8MKTVhtgezKuClKYqJZWwC0DRrcOI7pbpjDXwUgnSja5aarSw6JArRY-5btasMct2MQqX6D6iDapjKdpOoV5xgjCiyJnZSDkSjXHxjFsBOL8eYrQBqAqeM8DjVXr5/s400/001.JPG" border="0" /></a><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4"><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4">randon</span></span> asked if we could go to <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_5"><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_5">KFC</span></span> when we got home. I told him that I doubt if we would ever eat <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_6"><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_6">KFC</span></span> again. 4 days until we come home!! We are so excited!!! Brandon will have his last treatment tomorrow so hopefully the next couple of days will go by fast. He has learned all of his alphabet & numbers 1-9 (the numbers he learned today!!). I'm so proud of him! <span style="color:#000099;">Photo's: 1st - Brandon and I in from of a fountain in the courtyard behind <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_7"><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_7">Jimo</span></span>. <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_8"><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_8">Jimo</span></span> is a <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_9">shopaholics</span> dream! 2<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_10"><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_9">nd</span></span> - Brandon at the nurse's station last night. He asked if he could wear her hat - funny huh! </span>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3002249972463858104.post-57949399662301585832008-09-10T00:04:00.005-06:002008-09-10T00:34:05.288-06:00A - Z and 5 DAYS LEFT!!Brandon has done it! He has learned the whole alphabet in exactly one week <strong>IN PRINT</strong>! X & Y were a bit tough but he counts the "legs" to determine whether it is an X or a Y. Today we woke up & got him fed before the 6 hour cut off (no food or water 6 hours prior to treatment). Then he went back to sleep. The Dr's came in soon afterwards but didn't want to wake him up. They said to let him sleep so they left. LESS THAN 2 minutes later, 2 nurses came in to put his IV in. I asked them to come back later since the Dr's said to let him sleep. They said "no, now". So at 9:15 am this morning, they did his IV. 45 minutes later, the interpreter came in and said that the treatment has been cancelled today because the flight was cancelled. The stem cells are flown in the day of the treatment in insure that they are as "fresh" as they can be. They said that the treatment will be done on Friday instead. Of course I was a bit concerned because we head home on Monday & from what we have always been told, you must wait 5 days after treatment to leave. I told them that we ARE LEAVING on Monday - regardless. They said that since his last spinal was fine that this one should be noneventful as well therefore it would be ok to leave on Monday as scheduled. We are so ready to go home that nothing is going to keep us here!! I told John that we'd run away if they attempt to keep us longer. With that being said, I told them to take his IV out and Friday's IV won't be given until closer to treatment time. It is crazy to give a kid an IV 6 hours before treatment. Especially since they don't start using the IV until an hour prior to treatment. Brandon being tortured today could've been prevented if they hadn't been in a rush. I had promised Brandon that this was the last IV & I unintentionally lied to him. Last night I couldn't help myself. I started packing. I tried to limit myself & pack only the stuff I wouldn't need here. It made Brandon & I feel so good to begin the process of packing. It made the impending trip home seem a bit closer. Brandon & I have gotten so used to being by ourselves. We aren't trying to be standoffish to the other patients, we're just so homesick and don't feel like hanging out in the lobby. Yesterday I took Brandon to KFC and that's the only time we stepped out of our room the entire day. Today we went to the nurses station to get the IV out and that's been it. John has been telling me to put a DVD in & watch a movie to make the time go by faster. I can't even get myself to do that. I have turned the TV on twice since John left 10 days ago. He convinced me to try a movie twice but each time, I didn't watch it. I feel completely different since everyone left on the 1st. The only thing on our minds is the prospect of being home soon. All Brandon talks about is leaving China & going home. In the middle of the night, I hear him talking in his sleep. Usually he just says "I wanna go home". We wander through the process of getting up each day, eating meals, listening to music just to end the silence, practicing letters and chatting with family back home. And of course staring at the clock, begging time to move faster. Now I know what the other patients feel like the last week they're here. It really does go on forever!!Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3002249972463858104.post-80666401420744524022008-09-08T04:21:00.004-06:002008-09-08T08:23:44.048-06:00We left Home Exactly 1 Month Ago Today - 1 Week Left!!<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihPUE8ypMXAgLcbTA8VmVj5BGQD68Etw7DDKKgIMbChwr6EulThtIL2NaXXeHZvt-vVsS_mJNMmESrWDt_aruRjILWCKFSxZIwkaoNLv1HZ7xl0kLBqOLZ5yCu_HvIJDAeY5f8MZOT7nDr/s1600-h/003.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5243652202821063634" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihPUE8ypMXAgLcbTA8VmVj5BGQD68Etw7DDKKgIMbChwr6EulThtIL2NaXXeHZvt-vVsS_mJNMmESrWDt_aruRjILWCKFSxZIwkaoNLv1HZ7xl0kLBqOLZ5yCu_HvIJDAeY5f8MZOT7nDr/s400/003.JPG" border="0" /></a>Today was another lazy day. We saw the Dr's at 9:00 am and then we had the rest of the day off. Adele came to see us at noon which was really nice. We have missed her & we're going to miss her after we leave!! She brought us something that is similar to a waffle cone except it was rolled up & had little seeds in it. It was actually pretty good. After she left, Brandon wanted to go to the RT Mart and buy some chips & raisins. So off to the market we went. We bought more cucumbers for him & I found a block of imported Land O'Lakes American cheese. I was happy!! We left America exactly one month ago today. It really doesn't seem that long ago but then in a way it does. We have gotten used to China and all of their funky ways but I wouldn't want to live here. We come home a week from today. Brandon is so excited to be on our last week here. He woke up this morning & instantly remembered that today marked the 1 week until D-Day. <span style="color:#000099;">Photo: Brandon talks to his Dad on Skype. He can tell me where John's nose, eyes & mouth are on the online video.</span> <span style="color:#000099;">Although Skype has been great, we can't wait to see everyone in person!!</span>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3002249972463858104.post-74938766304427984332008-09-07T00:50:00.011-06:002008-09-09T08:25:11.689-06:00Lazy Day - 8 days to go!<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6iNHXfFBR-mX102wvG0AA5pp746QdAtGvQ1uFGimnZJJw1suJ8JMdjAUwCtg1VZuvqGvq481x15iSKTvIA6evEp1aotKh0z29ed_4InR-ms9Y9MRSR2vc04G0FE2X4AoVj5_o-bTY6FJm/s1600-h/023.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5243182475561380610" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; WIDTH: 413px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 318px" height="288" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6iNHXfFBR-mX102wvG0AA5pp746QdAtGvQ1uFGimnZJJw1suJ8JMdjAUwCtg1VZuvqGvq481x15iSKTvIA6evEp1aotKh0z29ed_4InR-ms9Y9MRSR2vc04G0FE2X4AoVj5_o-bTY6FJm/s400/023.JPG" width="400" border="0" /></a>It's Sunday afternoon here and we're being lazy today. On the weekends nothing really goes on around here. Brandon & I slept until 12:30 - something that we haven't done since we got here. It was nice to actually sleep in and pretend that we're back home :) Yesterday we got up early & went into town with several other patients. We started our day at a Temple downtown. It wasn't quite as peaceful as the one in the <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0"><span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">mountain</span></span> nor was it as scenic but it was nice to see. Next we stopped at the boardwalk. Almost everyone else wanted to eat C<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8jUrmUA7ow_COHvtrTPG5SP6OnOG0jH0ThmPyVaQgz3ypK9KBUMafpi6ORG6x54k0CZma9JDTtJh1IPyxDWJvPexP0UipDQKWB-nYSEJPeZq-RVrm9EqlLXPUColFKdGfdCm_JEg3p6GP/s1600-h/069.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5243188668418996226" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8jUrmUA7ow_COHvtrTPG5SP6OnOG0jH0ThmPyVaQgz3ypK9KBUMafpi6ORG6x54k0CZma9JDTtJh1IPyxDWJvPexP0UipDQKWB-nYSEJPeZq-RVrm9EqlLXPUColFKdGfdCm_JEg3p6GP/s400/069.JPG" border="0" /></a><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1"><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">hinese</span></span> food. But Brandon & I couldn't stomach the thought of <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2"><span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">eating</span></span> it so we skipped it & went to the beach. Brandon was able to play in the water <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3"><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">whi</span></span>ch he loved. I took off his clothes & left him in his boxers since we still had more stops to make. At first I wasn't sure if it was <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4"><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4">ok</span></span> but then I noticed that most of the other kids were completely naked. He played with another little boy who could speak some English. We kept getting surrounded by people wanting to take pictures of Brandon. I bought a bottle of water so I could wash the sand off of <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_5"><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_5">Brandon's</span></span> feet & legs. As we sat down to get him cleaned up, I noticed a circle had been formed around us of <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_6">peo</span><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidwJ15s6DdgiihoHexgyAZOLpv-1yaJZlUpkctaTcc717TMnUxIl1L3SqWKe1UpS4Qi-ynFPj55ghkZ_00QCw8nB0C_gDfBFuiWpo8AKw0T48_nayw02I1gKF811YtnqIRyGl-TkuUM-c7/s1600-h/080.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5243190190333169074" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; CURSOR: hand" height="197" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidwJ15s6DdgiihoHexgyAZOLpv-1yaJZlUpkctaTcc717TMnUxIl1L3SqWKe1UpS4Qi-ynFPj55ghkZ_00QCw8nB0C_gDfBFuiWpo8AKw0T48_nayw02I1gKF811YtnqIRyGl-TkuUM-c7/s400/080.JPG" width="350" border="0" /></a><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_7">ple</span> wanting to see him. It was a bit Awhile later we walked down the boardwalk & took photo's. It was nice to watch the Navy ships off in the dist<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_6"><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_8">ance</span></span>. Brandon enjoyed looking at the water from the boardwalk (about 6 ft below). Later we went to <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_7"><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_9">Jimo</span></span> and to a DVD store. The DVD store is so funny. We walk in & ask them that we want to see the English movies. They tell you to be quiet as they lead to to the back. Suddenly this shelf starts to move <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_8"><span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_10">reveiling</span></span> a secret room full of movies. I'm assuming they are copies which would explain the secrecy. After stopping at <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_9"><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_11">KFC</span></span> for dinner, we arrived back to the <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYXdqPEMwq9SG6Dpt9GThvo5cGdur6S9GsvapRWc3Q_xzQz9kv4DIX-wTH-2kN7X5K9hcS_tja5dI6jjj241RzhG3eFIydLwkDzZcRZYGvOpDWitpXrMr2-e7NbWM5Qs8es3vheHs1cjp2/s1600-h/029.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5243183945250686162" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYXdqPEMwq9SG6Dpt9GThvo5cGdur6S9GsvapRWc3Q_xzQz9kv4DIX-wTH-2kN7X5K9hcS_tja5dI6jjj241RzhG3eFIydLwkDzZcRZYGvOpDWitpXrMr2-e7NbWM5Qs8es3vheHs1cjp2/s400/029.JPG" border="0" /></a>"house" at 7:30 completely exhausted but grateful that we were able to do something that made the day go by quickly. <span style="color:#000099;">Photo's: 1st - Brandon & I at the Temple. There was a long walkway that lead to different buildings, each containing a gold <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_10">Buddha</span> with gifts of fruit and other things around it. People would buy <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_12">incense</span> and light several at a time in front of the Buddha. They would then hold the <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_13">incense</span> up to their forehead as they prayed. After prayer, they would throw the <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_14">incense</span> into a metal "thingy" as shown in photo #5. 2<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_15">nd</span> - Brandon & I in front of the huge bell. While there, the bell began to ring and we saw several monks head toward a large building that had another gold bud</span><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0SzvhZw0Oew9waqzj7gQe7jUdLXKuEYAoowv_2z369lq2X8-XfcHhYV0yKIKe9WkLTAh9VOHCTneevsgnlIagCyDBe4wr0DsBfS883CxixPYJa0HeQQLxZpvHyXvZlZfxvts4T_Z4cYXW/s1600-h/044.JPG"><span style="color:#000099;"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5243186682450250546" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0SzvhZw0Oew9waqzj7gQe7jUdLXKuEYAoowv_2z369lq2X8-XfcHhYV0yKIKe9WkLTAh9VOHCTneevsgnlIagCyDBe4wr0DsBfS883CxixPYJa0HeQQLxZpvHyXvZlZfxvts4T_Z4cYXW/s400/044.JPG" border="0" /></span></a><span style="color:#000099;"><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_16">dha</span> in it. From what I understood, it was time for prayer. Anyway inside of the bell house is a 3ft long log suspended in air by chains and covered in decorations. They <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_17">strike</span> the bell with the swinging log which of course causes the bell to ring. 3rd - Brandon & I in front of the oddest little building. It is seven stories high but each floor is extremely small. I didn't see any signs that gave an indication as to what it was. I thought it was an interesting building though. 4<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_18">th</span> - In front of each building, there is a metal box that people place <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_19">incense</span> in after praying over them (like the person in the background). It was really smoky around the boxes!! On the left 0<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_20">ur</span> favorite driver looks on. 5<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_21">th</span> - When the bell rang, the monks went into this building which is the largest building there at the Temple. We saw several banners announcing the 2008 Olympics which I thought was o</span><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjv5xjBWGu_N0Kss8zjxW2yrnm9tcKs6XzwLypT3mHKX9WW6K657KEeljqywXZd7cqoBNmKqxOo97BvCHB82FEDCxozLLgpJ1XKzbYxaS1GuZ0ii8iLDilqgru3NynJffXxNJ_SVqC1RgYz/s1600-h/022.JPG"><span style="color:#000099;"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5243172939769406578" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjv5xjBWGu_N0Kss8zjxW2yrnm9tcKs6XzwLypT3mHKX9WW6K657KEeljqywXZd7cqoBNmKqxOo97BvCHB82FEDCxozLLgpJ1XKzbYxaS1GuZ0ii8iLDilqgru3NynJffXxNJ_SVqC1RgYz/s400/022.JPG" border="0" /></span></a><span style="color:#000099;">dd at a Buddhist Temple. 6<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_22">th</span> - One of the golden <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_23">buddha's</span> which is found in every building. I didn't realize that we weren't suppose to take photo's of the <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_24">buddha's</span> until the driver pointed out a sign saying so....oops! 6<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_25">th</span> - Brandon at the beach. He had such a good time playing in the water. He <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_26">accidentally</span> got some water in his mouth & he said "<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_27">EWW</span> that's nasty water!!" I had to </span><span style="color:#000099;">explain to him that it was salt water and that lots of fish live in there.</span> <span style="color:#000099;">In the background there was several Navy ships just hanging around. Also above Brandon's left shoulder, there was a man in a row boat just floating <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_28">arou</span><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtRcGMX-LFBqohug3JZdAwldEUDWYfaevGdJFjvq_I_T3jyBIn5TRncCKGa-obnDprZwNMR3wpVCSfjEmDT4a9eN1VXXmuyCGaYUm5TuCMOyl6cyJJ-JcObAjVvH-2BADLgWuSZ79Ll5CD/s1600-h/129.JPG"><span style="color:#000099;"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5243276214827068514" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtRcGMX-LFBqohug3JZdAwldEUDWYfaevGdJFjvq_I_T3jyBIn5TRncCKGa-obnDprZwNMR3wpVCSfjEmDT4a9eN1VXXmuyCGaYUm5TuCMOyl6cyJJ-JcObAjVvH-2BADLgWuSZ79Ll5CD/s400/129.JPG" border="0" /></span></a><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_29">nd</span> us. He would come up as close to the shoreline as possible then go back out. I never did see the purpose of it but he seemed to be having a good time. Brandon got a little sunburned out there. Every few minutes someone would come by and take his picture. Can you see the island in the background??</span>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3002249972463858104.post-23857883494140346822008-09-05T07:56:00.005-06:002008-09-05T10:31:46.660-06:00Last IV Stem Cell Treatment! One Spinal Treatment To Go!<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEho4FsUZqMY46mkBj1qf4srXa-z4-j43D-HOwOBgO3aJVmDleISTRurOIn3tYSpNCIIWpWfvDyzTr0tnSRx6UHtvk-_m_JGfG7E7bXBNpbPlfouOWOzYV2NDRvKWn9k-oupzDw09nyMFtQK/s1600-h/004.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5242561181775733282" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEho4FsUZqMY46mkBj1qf4srXa-z4-j43D-HOwOBgO3aJVmDleISTRurOIn3tYSpNCIIWpWfvDyzTr0tnSRx6UHtvk-_m_JGfG7E7bXBNpbPlfouOWOzYV2NDRvKWn9k-oupzDw09nyMFtQK/s400/004.JPG" border="0" /></a>Brandon had an IV stem cell treatment today. Everything went well & he's doing great. He's very hyper today - jumping around and running up and down the corridor. This morning at 8 am the nurses came knocking on the door wanting to start the IV. I asked them to please come back later since he still had 6 hours before the treatment started. There was no sense in waking him up so early just to torture him. 10 MINUTES later they came back. I told them "No, LATER". So they came back at 10 am. I gave in and woke Brandon up. At 2 pm we went to the IV room and started treatment. I noticed that the stem cells weren't really yellow like usual. I asked the nurse why it was so pale in color. They told me that they would have a Dr. come in and talk to me about it. About 30 minutes after treatment, the Dr came in and explained to me that when they are culturing the stem cells, they try to remove as many red blood cells as possible but they are not always able to. So the more yellow the stem cell bag, the more red blood cells. Apparently you do not want it to be so yellow. So we learned something new today. Brandon is up to the letter R. I'm sure if I pushed him, he could've gotten through the whole alphabet by now however today I had a hard time getting him to sit still. We worked on letters for about 20 minutes & then he was done with it. Maybe this weekend will be calmer for him. If not then I know on Wednesday when he's laying down for 6 hours, he won't be able to run from it!! Tomorrow Brandon will get his wish. He wants to go to the beach and see the water. So we're going to spend the day out. After awhile the walls start closing in on you & you begin to feel like a caged animal. We went for a walk tonight but Brandon didn't like it (he just hates to walk). He kept begging me to get a taxi to take him back to the hospital :) 10 days until we come home!!Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3002249972463858104.post-51502791803335394092008-09-03T03:35:00.009-06:002008-09-03T11:03:13.337-06:00Countdown begins - 12 days until we come home!!<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-Ld62xIiRcqSERn-18euQG8iKbZDCmqCKFHqkEfAhsfHA8szsX4o8YTgT3uCDT6YYe2CVsU4JRZntaqWG3z0_maIwK6WqEfzJnWrNcj9ChMsTmn88S6MUsE8mxHPP_ddbslaj2rHOg4xH/s1600-h/014.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5241732015101349794" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; CURSOR: hand" height="344" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-Ld62xIiRcqSERn-18euQG8iKbZDCmqCKFHqkEfAhsfHA8szsX4o8YTgT3uCDT6YYe2CVsU4JRZntaqWG3z0_maIwK6WqEfzJnWrNcj9ChMsTmn88S6MUsE8mxHPP_ddbslaj2rHOg4xH/s400/014.JPG" width="449" border="0" /></a>Today I reviewed A - L with Brandon hoping that he would remember them from yesterday. He did!! He gets the capital letters "J" & "I" confused but that's because he doesn't look for the curl at the bottom of J before telling me what it is. So we worked on that for awhile. We are now at the letter "Q" so he's learned 5 more letters today. I keep reviewing through the first 17 letters of the alphabet with him so he won't forget. Also we discovered he can see the letters at 28 point if he gets up close to the letters. That is truly amazing since you can get large print books at 28 point - even up to 48 point. Guess what this means..... We reached our goal. Brandon WILL be able to read large print (once he learns how to rea<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-IpOsorKtlHT9NfsGmMDCR-Y7CAJUcyOOU3M8cvYokeoSKhTNqm7R9kasZYWVId_RjMyWE4e6UDwQjWusf3DnrMQVung-DRSXkerIghkG6LABozRrLv-h2uvK7FtozBrExGiqTGYvVI2e/s1600-h/010.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5241731349982563378" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; CURSOR: hand" height="339" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-IpOsorKtlHT9NfsGmMDCR-Y7CAJUcyOOU3M8cvYokeoSKhTNqm7R9kasZYWVId_RjMyWE4e6UDwQjWusf3DnrMQVung-DRSXkerIghkG6LABozRrLv-h2uvK7FtozBrExGiqTGYvVI2e/s400/010.JPG" width="440" border="0" /></a>d actual words instead of braille). Brandon has a chance to improve even more over the course of a year so we're not done! I truly believe the stem cell treatment will exceed our goal of large print. We are so happy & words cannot express how grateful we are that our community helped Brandon. We know that we couldn't have gotten here without the support from friends, family & people we have never met. From the bottom of our hearts.....Thank you. Thank you for giving Brandon this new life. The sky is the limit for him! <span style="color:#000099;">Photo's: Brandon is working on his letters! The first photo shows a 100 pt capital "D". The 2nd shows a 300 pt capital "C". Both of which he can see really well at the distance that he's at from the computer - YEAH BRANDON!!</span>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3002249972463858104.post-68755456281369427232008-09-01T23:53:00.006-06:002008-09-02T08:27:58.876-06:00Wanna hear some Good news or Great news??They're home!! John, Mom, Courtney & Nick arrived a few hours ago. They are tired but safe & happy to be home. They immediately started in on the laundry to try & get the stench of China off their clothes. Brandon & I will probably have to throw our clothes away - don't think the smell will ever come off them! The dog ate our remote from our television. Several <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">souvenirs</span> that we had bought for our family & friends back home broke. I really think the airlines took a hammer to their suitcases because I had packaged everything up as good as I possibly could. Oh well lesson #7,098,547,362 - never buy breakables & put them in the checked baggage. Now for some exciting news. Today Brandon & I were looking on the computer at pictures when he started pointing at each person & telling me who they are. He knew what we looked like before but only if he got in our faces & then on some days he couldn't tell John & I apart. Anyway these pictures showed each person several feet away from the camera. I was pretty excited about that so I decided to start working on flash cards. Since I don't have flash cards, I started typing letters on Microsoft Word using 300 pt. (just to start teaching Brandon the letters). I started with the letter A and finished with the letter L. Brandon quickly learned those letters & could tell me what each one was. I started to wonder if maybe he was taught this in school so I threw in the letter N and he said "ooh what's that one?" I know for a fact that he didn't know this before nor was he able to see the letters before treatment. Over the next few days I'll slowly introduce more of the alphabet to him. I brought the Dr. in so he could see it. The Dr. was so excited and said "I can't wait until the next spinal!" He said that he would ask his wife & see if they had any flash card of animals so we could work with Brandon on that. We are so happy to see results like this. After getting the MRI results we really weren't sure what if any results we would get from it. But now we're back on track - we're getting results & it will only continue to get better!! We miss our friends & family - the ones we left back home & the ones who just left us yesterday. But now we have renewed energy & we know that we can make it though the next 13 days. We probably won't eat another chicken or pizza for the rest of our lives but my son has more sight and that's all that matters!Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3002249972463858104.post-74205264320942777982008-09-01T03:41:00.004-06:002008-09-01T03:53:49.962-06:00They're Off<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitEEIXxvMhLBRbXgcOPdLY6JA76LbY4Rze_BAyhMf1xKdFkRh9S2vGGJZV4PQvnESLPkW8F2Drg4XXvoyr3yq6w0gxEpPWwGpSkwgchcsK7ZwxSrxe4Wz6BV2pFmlK0JmMRmp56v31Jz0B/s1600-h/DSC07516.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5240988158804216898" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitEEIXxvMhLBRbXgcOPdLY6JA76LbY4Rze_BAyhMf1xKdFkRh9S2vGGJZV4PQvnESLPkW8F2Drg4XXvoyr3yq6w0gxEpPWwGpSkwgchcsK7ZwxSrxe4Wz6BV2pFmlK0JmMRmp56v31Jz0B/s400/DSC07516.JPG" border="0" /></a>Well John, Mom, Courtney & Nick left Qingdao at 2:50 pm China's time (12:50 am Mountain Time - 1:50 am Central Time). Currently they are in Seoul, Korea awaiting their plane for LA. It was so hard to say goodbye to them. They have been here through the good times & the bad times. Now it's just Brandon & I. Brandon is taking it hard. He cried for quite awhile after they left the hospital. He had a spinal stem cell treatment today 50 minutes after everyone had left to go to the airport. Everything went fine and right now he's lying flat in bed. He's not too happy since he's unable to eat for another hour & 15 minutes. So far this was the best spinal he's had. He didn't have any allergic reactions & so far no signs of headache, backache, or fever. His cranial pressure was also down to 200 - YEAHH!! Still a little high but better than before! That could be why Brandon's feeling good right now compared to last time. We'll keep you posted on how Brandon's doing & also when John, Mom & the kids arrive home.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3002249972463858104.post-63926313923316040012008-09-01T01:27:00.006-06:002008-09-01T03:41:18.055-06:00Saturday's trip<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvjc8i-uYloU5OQk2t5Q1glZLWc5ghNNKxi2feejrs-UNCLwVwscpew_222yJ-5Ch7XbIWsPmPIXHpH2_4P8eLpZxvW92oEWCDoFpWGKw_n5kezxqDJJCJ2EecfmI86tljqiflcPHT_ZiA/s1600-h/156.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5240964082285054002" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvjc8i-uYloU5OQk2t5Q1glZLWc5ghNNKxi2feejrs-UNCLwVwscpew_222yJ-5Ch7XbIWsPmPIXHpH2_4P8eLpZxvW92oEWCDoFpWGKw_n5kezxqDJJCJ2EecfmI86tljqiflcPHT_ZiA/s400/156.JPG" border="0" /></a>As our last trip outside of the hospital as a family, we chose to go to the mountains. Seems fitting since we live so close to Pike's Peak. We had our favorite driver stop at <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">KFC</span> so we could have lunch on our way up there. Now usually our driver takes it easy on us. He's our favorite driver because he doesn't try to kill us just to get ahead of another vehicle. However I believe he was having an off day because we all held on for dear life! As we headed up the side of the mountain, the ocean was directly below us on t<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPlQyQ8GJ-Fu2Yc_AKxyryeNlbis2nZAQXnH_HvcS7lmrX4n1wbIWRYq_aJbqa1H1uBc8sH5NVrgmbIPoF6vc-tJSqmbTluPs91CYmc5Ve5pQvyED8aBaW2fsMWrMJJ59eIW-qka79646l/s1600-h/149.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5240963725855389618" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPlQyQ8GJ-Fu2Yc_AKxyryeNlbis2nZAQXnH_HvcS7lmrX4n1wbIWRYq_aJbqa1H1uBc8sH5NVrgmbIPoF6vc-tJSqmbTluPs91CYmc5Ve5pQvyED8aBaW2fsMWrMJJ59eIW-qka79646l/s400/149.JPG" border="0" /></a>he right side. There was a 2 1/2 ft high barrier to "prevent" cars from falling off the road into the ocean however I don't think it would've been much help if we had hit it. Anyway as mentioned previously speed limits are a mere suggestion around here & these people like to see who can be the fastest. As we sped up the side of that mountain on a narrow 2 lane road, all I could think of was what would we die from - the accident itself or drowning in <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisz8n2fS_VopjOGl1Ij8nvBLUUua3lA6FN9e1HsDAlV5fSa2zOM_ym-mgCvdAThYCvl5gaXQukFACmENJ2wjLk4UQfIeF-_93A3_-eK5YJXoPmVc8I2zFj-mqJdUuLt1ihdm7mcWjPOVxu/s1600-h/130.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5240963375382135842" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisz8n2fS_VopjOGl1Ij8nvBLUUua3lA6FN9e1HsDAlV5fSa2zOM_ym-mgCvdAThYCvl5gaXQukFACmENJ2wjLk4UQfIeF-_93A3_-eK5YJXoPmVc8I2zFj-mqJdUuLt1ihdm7mcWjPOVxu/s400/130.JPG" border="0" /></a>the sea. We finally arrived to our destination - an old <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">Buddist</span> Temple. A tourist guide offered to explain it's history for 30 <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">RMB's</span>. I figured it would be nice to learn about the temple so we agreed to hire him to take us around. We soon realized that his English really isn't that great and we didn't learn to much from him however just being there was an amazing experience. The grounds consisted of several old buildings and from what little we did learn from the tourist guide, the King lived in one building while his many wives lived in one across the courtyard. It was so peaceful &<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEij1zJAw80ORYQha1LsF5ca9hcmrx0HsicN7baVrIVPTJbKAcuvfFx6A-kQJRbHKlCDe706BQXGC39i7leLXucm0vvoAA3uoZi_y7Lp2Nhww_8Ll8ROX-anrI0Jas9Q9H9ne63vx8djVSHA/s1600-h/112.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5240962590543004754" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEij1zJAw80ORYQha1LsF5ca9hcmrx0HsicN7baVrIVPTJbKAcuvfFx6A-kQJRbHKlCDe706BQXGC39i7leLXucm0vvoAA3uoZi_y7Lp2Nhww_8Ll8ROX-anrI0Jas9Q9H9ne63vx8djVSHA/s400/112.JPG" border="0" /></a> I'm happy that we were able to see it. When we left the Temple, the ocean was right across the road. As we headed towards the sea, we became surrounded by souvenir vendor's. The driver tried to keep them away from us but they were relentless. Unfortunately we weren't able to enjoy the view because the vendor's kept sticking things in front of our faces so we headed to the van as quickly as we could. They were still trying to sell us stuff as we were loading into the van! The driver was so funny though - he yelled at them <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiInb6J0xPYHCUQ0SH509L1f8rFA2j4Fj0u60wXJf9BvFFsEEG3xfdJMlIofrK7d2cwEzz65G_bMwyR0q4TjxgRCJ7LVvYSgnvsXVrqKePtk0wHxNxzPy8pk4SVqSy1y8Tf1zno74uqsRid/s1600-h/075.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5240961049114351490" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiInb6J0xPYHCUQ0SH509L1f8rFA2j4Fj0u60wXJf9BvFFsEEG3xfdJMlIofrK7d2cwEzz65G_bMwyR0q4TjxgRCJ7LVvYSgnvsXVrqKePtk0wHxNxzPy8pk4SVqSy1y8Tf1zno74uqsRid/s400/075.JPG" border="0" /></a>to get away but since they didn't he got in the van and floored it. All we could do was hold onto the kids and the handles. Since wearing seat belts are not required here, the seat belts are all covered by seat covers. Nick hit the floor a couple of times because the driver would slam on his breaks & we couldn't grab him fast enough. After leaving the Temple, we headed back though the mountain. Another van tried to pass us and our driver sped up. I told him "No rush!" and he just laughed. On the way to the Temple, I had notic<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1FVToJgYAjPdreuRjz9S6Y4TzBQ2rX-3evCNC4PdK8E12R7w66aKJFytAkLnFwI4MrLTq_auXaO9Zy6ZzOQjfF3cN2EyKN3BvYVbSOiJ9YB2IznFDGMrEyie1wQioTtmxeVv9iOmydeh2/s1600-h/085.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5240961531432564930" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1FVToJgYAjPdreuRjz9S6Y4TzBQ2rX-3evCNC4PdK8E12R7w66aKJFytAkLnFwI4MrLTq_auXaO9Zy6ZzOQjfF3cN2EyKN3BvYVbSOiJ9YB2IznFDGMrEyie1wQioTtmxeVv9iOmydeh2/s400/085.JPG" border="0" /></a>ed a nice beach that had relatively no people <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">th</span>ere so on the way back, we asked the driver to pull over so we could let the kids play for awhile. We took our shoes off & played on the beach for awhile. Brandon loved it! He would laugh every time a wave hit his legs. I'm so glad Brandon had a great time. I mean the hospital isn't bad but it does get boring and it almost becomes necessary to just get out. In the last 3 weeks we were out 3 times as a family. With the whole family here, it made this trip a lot more bearable. We were able to experience this together and we're grateful. THANK YOU RONNIE for making this possible. Withou<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0o5zrvwx9SAt28e1sW8V62P34XZ02m9rL01LW_a8593Pah2a0xmdLvdqsl9-BMoyqqs_Ab8PC2vsg9oc3Xqsz-awZ-CGMzFl_968wEQF0QOxMGhaHlOHaG_hdKeI6ajxIzmBDzUg_SQgR/s1600-h/049.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5240960266946867426" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0o5zrvwx9SAt28e1sW8V62P34XZ02m9rL01LW_a8593Pah2a0xmdLvdqsl9-BMoyqqs_Ab8PC2vsg9oc3Xqsz-awZ-CGMzFl_968wEQF0QOxMGhaHlOHaG_hdKeI6ajxIzmBDzUg_SQgR/s400/049.JPG" border="0" /></a>t your help, half of us would've had to stay home. We are so happy that we were able to be together for as long as we were. <span style="color:#000099;">Photo's: 1st - Brandon playing on the beach. 2nd - All of us enjoying the time together on the beach - Worry free!! 3rd - Courtney playing in the water. 4th - A nice quiet walk through the grounds at the Temple (you could almost imagine what it must've been like back in the day) 5th - John at the Buddist Temple 6th - More of the grounds at the Temple. You walk through this door and that's the view you get - breathtaking! 7th - We stopped at a landmark on our way to the Temple to see a waterfall. Acr</span><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJaxENQeSp9wUrswOQGn_bcAj4z7i92smZtZmm42mPsfqipXICFk6oxzN4U8feR-pC7viwn6x07ReGwqY0t2TK8VsYhoFvhwGf0k264mhCmgC4Gky18O3z-tav4H9CQqrDrlZiVA6xYdKl/s1600-h/039.JPG"><span style="color:#000099;"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5240957600364323218" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJaxENQeSp9wUrswOQGn_bcAj4z7i92smZtZmm42mPsfqipXICFk6oxzN4U8feR-pC7viwn6x07ReGwqY0t2TK8VsYhoFvhwGf0k264mhCmgC4Gky18O3z-tav4H9CQqrDrlZiVA6xYdKl/s400/039.JPG" border="0" /></span></a><span style="color:#000099;">oss the street there is an amazing view of the sea and these huge rocks. 8th - Only John, Nick & I chose to get out of the van to see the waterfall & pose in front of the giant seashell - wonder what it says behind the seashell??</span>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3002249972463858104.post-23178300082447126142008-08-30T07:43:00.013-06:002008-08-30T11:19:27.279-06:00Friday's Adventure<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGZ-ikGTK-86yVUVq9nJtNXCfIFxrDRFFhWS1DQOogSY0eV1NKgA9wOlFiui62hHpjebJM7rtSpuZm0jSF4LUV5aRuG3Fw3p4FeeTIPglz-JLFPAms9rpT855Vyb3DXs1mF4Y46xeq-uuR/s1600-h/301.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5240310063527242482" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGZ-ikGTK-86yVUVq9nJtNXCfIFxrDRFFhWS1DQOogSY0eV1NKgA9wOlFiui62hHpjebJM7rtSpuZm0jSF4LUV5aRuG3Fw3p4FeeTIPglz-JLFPAms9rpT855Vyb3DXs1mF4Y46xeq-uuR/s400/301.JPG" border="0" /></a>On Friday we bailed ourselves out of the hospital and went into the city. It was absolutely the best day we have had since arriving here in China. First we went to the Polar Ocean World and saw a dolphin show. We got to see a walrus doing sit ups! It was very entertaining and very inexpensive to go see. In fact there is no way you can see a show & polar animals in the US for what we paid here in China. After we went there, we stopped at McDonald's since Brandon was about to starve (At least he thought he was!). We then went to Fusion Bay where we saw the May 4<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0"><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0"><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">th</span></span></span> Monument. There's a story behind the <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">mon</span><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzn9crFXxv9xgLMS6PvjYa_wHpye30L8lIh1-vtz38NP3UXVkFi2CTa_qD8PoYHDziuQIuTuOKt7kazPzsVPd88goxIkOunSX6U40DE64f3TcUN_ycwBbTbe9Vj8AHw-GDdDd28cC2hQm0/s1600-h/257.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5240309536759953330" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzn9crFXxv9xgLMS6PvjYa_wHpye30L8lIh1-vtz38NP3UXVkFi2CTa_qD8PoYHDziuQIuTuOKt7kazPzsVPd88goxIkOunSX6U40DE64f3TcUN_ycwBbTbe9Vj8AHw-GDdDd28cC2hQm0/s400/257.JPG" border="0" /></a><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">ument</span> which I will explain later this week. We left the May 4<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1"><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1"><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">th</span></span></span> and hit the zoo. Our poor driver, <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2"><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4">Su</span></span> <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3"><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_5">Xu</span></span> <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4"><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_6">Huz</span></span>, was exhausted by then but not us! Brandon was able to feed the birds at the zoo which he loved! I haven't seen him laugh so hard or enjoy himself as much as he did then. Brandon was able to see the monkeys from about 8 feet away. One thing we never thought we would ever see in a zoo was.....dogs! They had an exhibit with Pomerania's, <span style="color:#000000;">Chihuahua's</span>, & <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2"><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_5"><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_7">Cocker</span></span></span> Spaniels. We saw chickens, rabbits, hamsters & turkeys. It was kinda funny to see such common <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3"><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_6">animals</span></span> back home on exhibit here. We did get to see come odd <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_8">creatu</span><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6q6gt5cNaD08uqBlZ44lvs3HNYA7AmftkSrnjPGYl628Ro_XMpQb6_u70NsKK6hVbAxeUri-a5anTqm3ohyhgC2v_6B0TuqEtKT4AFIzZNzshhjKjEWXuJV29xoev5wtuQEFnVj-989XQ/s1600-h/203.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5240308220626879698" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6q6gt5cNaD08uqBlZ44lvs3HNYA7AmftkSrnjPGYl628Ro_XMpQb6_u70NsKK6hVbAxeUri-a5anTqm3ohyhgC2v_6B0TuqEtKT4AFIzZNzshhjKjEWXuJV29xoev5wtuQEFnVj-989XQ/s400/203.JPG" border="0" /></a>res that we had never seen before. John & Courtney were also able to hold a snake. They asked if I wanted to hold it & I said "OH NO!" I was too close just by taking the pictures! We saw the elderly Chinese guy sitting on a stool just staring at what appeared to be a <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4">piece</span> of cardboard. I went over to see what he was looking at & saw that he was painting a picture of the entrance into one of the exhibits. Not once did he look up at us but continued to stare at the entrance and every once in awhile he would lift the paint brush onto the canvass for a couple of strokes before he would stop to stare again. He was actually pretty good at it. I quickly took a picture of him before he lost his train of thought. We real<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijmpU_NxapAvWDx4wGppUg2OqlnXocMqmnc6rnQ5uXFcLHM-KAUDGUZ9n8IuIzUlWZSb9ji2657TO-TOfqPFK_N-kwdMBguTPSfA3fndZ9x-zdX57gMLaMljnNiAEAUTEFdvI9dBw6GP8k/s1600-h/228.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5240308988524090514" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijmpU_NxapAvWDx4wGppUg2OqlnXocMqmnc6rnQ5uXFcLHM-KAUDGUZ9n8IuIzUlWZSb9ji2657TO-TOfqPFK_N-kwdMBguTPSfA3fndZ9x-zdX57gMLaMljnNiAEAUTEFdvI9dBw6GP8k/s400/228.JPG" border="0" /></a><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_9">ly</span> didn't see much of the zoo. I think we were pretty wore out by then so we called it good and went back to the van. Our next stop was for dinner. We ate at a place downtown called Lisa's. Absolutely the best food we have had since arriving here! We invited the driver to eat with us since he has always been so kind to us. We ate t-bone steak, mashed potatoes, gravy, salad, <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_7"><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_10">penne</span></span> with chicken breast & spinach sauce. You would never believe what Nick wanted.......pizza. After having pizza shoved down his throat for the past 3 weeks, he chose to have pizza for dinner. So we ordered him a small pizza. Included with the steak was soup & salad. We started off with <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh72_pxETRYyD1X58D8AUsNixeCzNS9KIdd5fVwo9vBMZIl7f9a9HYl45weOFrmBykE4qWVN5sc2hUNoTRS6IoFGxmZNwnwyX-v-XvyhgOWW6RnMe3AmPb3MLORfWW3qFUqsRqbIck29HOl/s1600-h/186.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5240307849510087186" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh72_pxETRYyD1X58D8AUsNixeCzNS9KIdd5fVwo9vBMZIl7f9a9HYl45weOFrmBykE4qWVN5sc2hUNoTRS6IoFGxmZNwnwyX-v-XvyhgOWW6RnMe3AmPb3MLORfWW3qFUqsRqbIck29HOl/s400/186.JPG" border="0" /></a>salad which was okay. Not the best but it was good compared to what we've eaten here. Then they brought out the soup. Once I found out there was beans in it, I gave mine to the driver and chose to eat the <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_8"><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_11">penne</span></span> with chicken (which was amazing). Mom, John & Courtney all said that was the best soup they had ever had. We were getting pretty full by then and for a little while thought that maybe we didn't order the steak. But then they started bringing out these large plates. On each plate was a huge t-bone steak, mashed potatoes sitting on a slice of tomato, broccoli, corn on the cob, fries, & gravy. We left there extremely happy (and a few pounds heavier). Would you believe it was less that $9.00 US<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfT2d82TXarw2FKUlN_lg2cYNY1vmaOAAXdJqNPt63FRyDtWi5ybhmKK2GGr_Uo9Rl4sqjIXkJ9ZWDbO_xwt-q8k3P0I06CDVkeSp5fg1oG-tMQxG4bg2KXAfLPOtCnOKvxT6L9wTTlzuG/s1600-h/145.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5240307307732755602" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfT2d82TXarw2FKUlN_lg2cYNY1vmaOAAXdJqNPt63FRyDtWi5ybhmKK2GGr_Uo9Rl4sqjIXkJ9ZWDbO_xwt-q8k3P0I06CDVkeSp5fg1oG-tMQxG4bg2KXAfLPOtCnOKvxT6L9wTTlzuG/s400/145.JPG" border="0" /></a>D per person?? I told Brandon that next weekend we would go back there just so we could have one more good meal (kinda divide up the time so we'll have something to look forward to this week!) After dinner we headed back to the hospital but we still had one more errand to make. Once we got to the hospital; Jolynn, John & I took Adele (the Chinese girl who is majoring in English at a nearby University) to the RT Mart. First let me explain Adele. She came to Qingdao from her hometown (about an 8 hour train ride from here) to study English. She met Jolynn (a parent of a child<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEje4aLZyk9zsT9wZRTWb6fef23qUmxsRiadqwOhfpwaUbnySErcPGGaEFnHeF6WMl-WfRKLkVJVIb9bvneRJdqWvZQO5Mr7DGOi9bw4STSyocZ_8-gFcWLNK36E4cnV3qVAca7_3RxcZOqi/s1600-h/098.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5240306863956745522" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEje4aLZyk9zsT9wZRTWb6fef23qUmxsRiadqwOhfpwaUbnySErcPGGaEFnHeF6WMl-WfRKLkVJVIb9bvneRJdqWvZQO5Mr7DGOi9bw4STSyocZ_8-gFcWLNK36E4cnV3qVAca7_3RxcZOqi/s400/098.JPG" border="0" /></a> being treated here) at the RT Mart. Adele asked Jolynn if she could come here and talk to her & other people so she could learn more English. Th <div>at was a month ago & she hasn't let us down yet. She comes here & helps us with whatever we need. We take her places so we can have a translator present. She has been wonderful to us. The night before the <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_12">Watring</span> family headed home, we were all out in the lobby talking about Adele. Someone mentioned that she had a rusty old bike that was held together by shoe strings. The peddles had broken away & all the was left were the pegs. She had once had a basket on it but that too had broken. Anyway someone mentioned that we should all pitch in & buy her a <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_13">bicyc</span><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh44UoHkLDWnw3zTN9tucwlis0DUBOXzeKsPim_H2eN2Lc_vaqDAbXl8-ZZ3Exw-KyLGJQ34_cjH0KQlJqhD7jb0Qbpa6xIPYMiEZlBW9bwBfZ8VjydD658LlVMjJqo8J2Ck8DYcu4FM2jO/s1600-h/311.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5240310847986172178" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh44UoHkLDWnw3zTN9tucwlis0DUBOXzeKsPim_H2eN2Lc_vaqDAbXl8-ZZ3Exw-KyLGJQ34_cjH0KQlJqhD7jb0Qbpa6xIPYMiEZlBW9bwBfZ8VjydD658LlVMjJqo8J2Ck8DYcu4FM2jO/s400/311.JPG" border="0" /></a><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_14">le</span>. <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_15">Afterall</span>, she has helped us out so much and she does use her bike to come visit us - it was the least we could do. So a few of us pitched in 100 <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_16">RMB's</span> each (which is $14.00 <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_17">USD</span>) to go towards a new bike. We were unable to buy the bike before the <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_18">Watrings</span> left however we decided to do it before Jolynn left. So we take Adele to the RT Mart on the pretense that I wanted to buy a bicycle for my daughter since they are so cheap here. We found the bicycles and we started asking Adele which bike would she pick out. She looked around and asked a few questions about how tall Courtney is and how big is my suitcase. She finally found a bike that s<img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5240311336389862706" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIPmCaOINWFiH-911GJIpAT8J6AapGA_aeiXac72vQcQ0gqijY2rrZM9GfotIF8K5OpLKP2YRUzHeGx3h8Os_PzLIxPP9-krZ5oyDLEpj0rq2v5ISSm8PYh_lneHqcHwQUprP9oJCHiv2Z/s400/315.JPG" border="0" />he liked. It was actually ugly in my opinion but it's a good, common brand of bike here. It actually folds up for storage. So we purchase the bike & bought a basket & a lock for it. Jolynn & I got out our cameras and asked Adele to model the bike for us. She was hesitant but she did it anyway. We snapped a few pictures before telling her that the bike wasn't for Courtney & that it was for her. She was completely speechless. In her eyes we could tell that she really wanted the bike but like the perfect person she is, she was hesitant to accept it. We told her that we had already bought the bike & we couldn't take it home so she ha<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWSel1idLXAz3QxY087T_LuNbAY7_2mZ9cwBi0LJ97JR59nHb0-80ruN7O9zQAR1CV98UQfIH6inePFVrGY37CGnR6j5nZWYlxWn-fmKrKKftsvK1OxqJ_vhcGftLALDzvAcSbC6Kolmse/s1600-h/326.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5240327405338319138" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWSel1idLXAz3QxY087T_LuNbAY7_2mZ9cwBi0LJ97JR59nHb0-80ruN7O9zQAR1CV98UQfIH6inePFVrGY37CGnR6j5nZWYlxWn-fmKrKKftsvK1OxqJ_vhcGftLALDzvAcSbC6Kolmse/s400/326.JPG" border="0" /></a>d no choice but to accept the gift. We told her that several families had pitched in to buy the bike for her. It was a gift from us to her for all that she has done to help us. She was <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_19">ecstatic</span>! I couldn't believe that an inexpensive bike like that would make someone so happy. She said that she has never had a bike so nice before & she felt very lucky. She now has a new prized possession to remember us by after we have all left. It was the perfect ending to a perfect day.... <span style="color:#000099;">Photo's: 1st - Brandon feeding the birds at the zoo. He really had a lot of funny playing with the birds! 2<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_20">nd</span> - The flags on the left side is where the audience was able to watch the sailing part of <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_21">th</span></span><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNHlB3XygR2A06JzvuvecSn3ge2Pvdwsf4wSadpeZMgUDo-PbuOfoG4GF9DYQmpPv6Du2UOgDYKUENzCg5hDerG-lVE1ec3wY7p6ZviQYFycz6giUqH4T5lzTEFiipyPFESdmVxOqZlphB/s1600-h/DSC07217.JPG"><span style="color:#000099;"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5240338189519698514" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNHlB3XygR2A06JzvuvecSn3ge2Pvdwsf4wSadpeZMgUDo-PbuOfoG4GF9DYQmpPv6Du2UOgDYKUENzCg5hDerG-lVE1ec3wY7p6ZviQYFycz6giUqH4T5lzTEFiipyPFESdmVxOqZlphB/s400/DSC07217.JPG" border="0" /></span></a><span style="color:#000099;">e Olympics. To the right of that is a lighthouse. 3rd - Brandon at Fusion Bay 4<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_22">th</span> - All of us at the May 4<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_23">th</span> Monument. 5<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_24">th</span>- Courtney at Fusion Bay 6<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_25">th</span> - All of us in front of Polar Ocean World. 7<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_26">th</span> - The dolphin show at Polar Ocean World. It was</span> <span style="color:#000099;">amazing to see the dolphins jump so high & do the stunts that they are trained to do. John really enjoyed the show. 8<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_27">th</span> - John holding a snake at the zoo. 9<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_28">th</span> - Courtney holding a snake at the zoo (Yikes- Count me out!!) 10<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_29">th</span> - An elderly Chinese guy painting at the zoo while our</span> <span style="color:#000099;">driver watches him. 11<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_30">th</span> - Adele & her new bicycle at the RT Mart. She is so proud! </span></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3002249972463858104.post-54546212550816214802008-08-27T05:39:00.004-06:002008-08-27T07:48:41.989-06:009:31 pm - 19 days to go!!<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWkHn4xtqPJB5R1C7L_DkqhCDBkzlAjFeNUiwXhmPSgCGjaJGoKalZDInU2IIyk4OMraxKhyphenhyphen9g1PIJ2yiDhkWX1AMP4zp11enb9h-1vbGbj13n2ZJYUonsVnj4QNB8GFn3th21u6Ezy30S/s1600-h/010.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5239190929054252370" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWkHn4xtqPJB5R1C7L_DkqhCDBkzlAjFeNUiwXhmPSgCGjaJGoKalZDInU2IIyk4OMraxKhyphenhyphen9g1PIJ2yiDhkWX1AMP4zp11enb9h-1vbGbj13n2ZJYUonsVnj4QNB8GFn3th21u6Ezy30S/s400/010.JPG" border="0" /></a> Brandon had stem cell treatment #4 today. This one was easy since it was done through an IV. He was allowed to eat & drink up until treatment time. They had to do the IV in his foot which prevented him from walking for awhile. He was suppose to keep the IV until tomorrow but I convinced the Dr that there was no way he could go 24 hours without standing. He was doing really well so we were confident that they wouldn't need it later. After Brandon had the treatment, we were kicked out of our room for an hour while they waxed our floor. They woke us up early this morning to tell us to pick our stuff up off the floor & prepare to move our stuff outside in the <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhl5vza9T9bpEXexAprT6mBQr1CktMXS2_aBP8k9RV603rNfqUx2DHyJZIWE30G70FM6xaWj7LEFPklMF4FE6Q97G9taZG7-0vAul_lbH_oHmVIiD46VaSguywvFSMAPMCPBkyY9tkCAP2U/s1600-h/020.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5239191326576042146" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhl5vza9T9bpEXexAprT6mBQr1CktMXS2_aBP8k9RV603rNfqUx2DHyJZIWE30G70FM6xaWj7LEFPklMF4FE6Q97G9taZG7-0vAul_lbH_oHmVIiD46VaSguywvFSMAPMCPBkyY9tkCAP2U/s400/020.JPG" border="0" /></a>hallway. It was a difficult day since several people had treatments today then to come back & find out that they have been evicted for awhile.... Everyone's opinion was that they should've done this on a non treatment day (Monday, Wednesday & Fridays are stem cell days). Last night when I saw the schedule, I noticed a change in his treatment. They had scheduled his treatment via IV instead of spinal. Since spinals are more effective, I was a bit upset. I told Kirshner that since treatment #2 was called off (but counted towards his total number of treatments) I di<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXOF1BHCkIyRJU1zFkAK77qfTxiplpTcsfGzMLKWmN-HBf1OIocQaz-8RKF32ncx-Wf-66rrjI293j5eR0CVktJMdLROYXV9vRTckBPEsmPcxiGvJ3QiHgD84I9rSci4-oIDPXp4A4weLZ/s1600-h/023.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5239191800346454930" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXOF1BHCkIyRJU1zFkAK77qfTxiplpTcsfGzMLKWmN-HBf1OIocQaz-8RKF32ncx-Wf-66rrjI293j5eR0CVktJMdLROYXV9vRTckBPEsmPcxiGvJ3QiHgD84I9rSci4-oIDPXp4A4weLZ/s400/023.JPG" border="0" /></a>dn't want him to have IV's. She said that it was too late to change this treatment but she would work something out. Then this morning when the Dr's came, they said that the spinal treatments were too risky for Brandon so they would only do IV's. That really left me concerned since they had said that the last spinal went fine & that he would have the rest of the treatments through his spine. After asking them a few questions, I told them that Kirshner had told me differently. They said they would speak to Kirshner & get back with us. This afternoon the Dr came in and said that there was some type of confusion this morning & they redid his schedule. NOW he will have a spinal on Monday the 1st. An IV on Friday, September 5th & a <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-0piUjgC7wEu8PC2nxzm7VaMUH9c2tSZg_C5-9wDAJ9Y0A5q1bTFk9HD06cWJeEVRHByCuo1dAKpg6VQzJQiPkU3D_pn02uFyb9R4aCyvsLhj-CpzP79Z6_4orv3v4Mu1UuuhqgYGoLIZ/s1600-h/025.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5239192349805920738" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-0piUjgC7wEu8PC2nxzm7VaMUH9c2tSZg_C5-9wDAJ9Y0A5q1bTFk9HD06cWJeEVRHByCuo1dAKpg6VQzJQiPkU3D_pn02uFyb9R4aCyvsLhj-CpzP79Z6_4orv3v4Mu1UuuhqgYGoLIZ/s400/025.JPG" border="0" /></a>spinal on Wednesday, September 10th. Although he gets another IV, he does get an extra treatment. Well not an extra one but they will redo the one that was cancelled last week. We are extremely happy with the new schedule and we will be home the 15th. So now we're counting down the days - 19 days to go until we come home (and find a new refrigerator - apparently ours has died since we've been here) We got 2 new people in this week. They are adults - no playmates for Brandon but the new people are really nice so that will help make the time go by faster. The family that we really got close to will be leaving in the morning. We are extremely sad to see them go but happy for them. They saw wonderful improvements & <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj01WGu8Lr2iGpPOB6JkjSOPGhAGfxvI110uuaPsQAzQMNSOybwAvcmNHw81LHe5MrHQZ4lfp6Uz1m4oIOf5SSTu2ALCQUImZX9K1M-dLu81WfgTHpkqqLYmQMSRa30FTpK0bPSiG1X2LlH/s1600-h/002.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5239192797066752914" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj01WGu8Lr2iGpPOB6JkjSOPGhAGfxvI110uuaPsQAzQMNSOybwAvcmNHw81LHe5MrHQZ4lfp6Uz1m4oIOf5SSTu2ALCQUImZX9K1M-dLu81WfgTHpkqqLYmQMSRa30FTpK0bPSiG1X2LlH/s400/002.JPG" border="0" /></a>we're excited that their child has a new life now with sight. <span style="color:#000099;">Photo's: 1st - Stem Cells AKA "Yellow Gold" as it's called around here. 2nd - Brandon hanging out in the IV room while he receives the Yellow Gold. 3rd - Everyone's stuff out in the hallway. What a bad day to wax the floors!! 4th - Brandon hanging out in the day room while we wait to take control of our room again. 5th - What a wonderful view of Qingdao from the 8th floor kitchen window! I love to go in there just to look out of the window. A few of those buildings are lit up at night with lights that change colors and run up & down the sides of the buildings. Very pretty!</span>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0