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Sunday, September 29, 2013

NicStats

Nicholas had his 2 year old doctor's visit on Friday.  He is:
32 lbs (95%)
37 in (98%)

Not happy from the get-go......
Said "no" approximately 432 times during the 10 minute appointment....
Getting a pep talk from Cristina on all the things the doctor will look at.....

On a separate note, I received an email on Friday from a woman named Heather Von St. James.  Her daughter was 3 1/2 months old when she was diagnosed with Mesothelioma, a disease caused by asbestos exposure, which she was unknowingly exposed to as a child.  In honor of national Mesothelioma day last week, and as an inspiration to others, I've posted a link to her story here!




Friday, September 27, 2013

Friday, September 20, 2013

Nicholas is 2!

We celebrated Nicholas' 2nd birthday last weekend when family was in town for the walk!  There were lots of balloons, sugar, and presents!  His actual birthday is tomorrow, 9/21, but he "turned" two a month or so ago, when he started saying "no no no," having tantrums, and having an opinion on everything....
Same banner from last year, just a new number!
Cake by Susie Cakes, featuring Nicholas' favorite big red vehicle

Here's a great idea....wrapping paper as a table runner!  It actually covered most of the table, was attractive, and cheap!

I made Nic this festive fire truck shirt using freezer paper, sponge brushes, and fabric paint.  Super easy!
Watching all these weird adults singing to him :)

Check out the top right corner of the cake....Prior to blowing out the candle, Nicholas tried to take a chunk of cake with his hand.  I am sure he thought it wasn't real, after all, he's never seen such a thing!
Nicholas' big birthday gift from Grandy (who also happens to own a mini for grown-ups!).  He was in awe.  And even when it's just sitting in our garage, N loves to just open and close the doors and get in and out!
Nicholas gives baby Jamie a ride.....



Nicholas would also like to send a shout out to Miss Hannah Martin, whose birthday is 5 days after his.  Let's hear it for the two year olds!  :)

Thursday, September 19, 2013

Light the Night Recap: Part 2

The Light the Night Walk started with a VIP reception in the Giants' dugout that Jonathan and I were invited to attend.  It was VERY cool to be there.  
In the bullpen!
With the World Series trophies
Bullpen "stance"
the walk route took us along the warning track inside AT&T ballpark....pretty cool!

After the reception, we headed back to our tent, where our team was gathering.....
the team tent!

Nic getting a little pep talk prior to going on stage for mama's speech....
the team!
Thank you to all of our supporters who very generously donated to the LLS.  We've raised almost $5500 (a top ten team!) and sincerely, every penny counts.  One of the newest treatments to the Hodgkins game is a drug called Brentuximaub--a therapy I received prior and post-transplant--and some of the research/trials prior to its approval the were funded by the LLS.  Because of donations like yours, I was able to participate in this walk!  THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU!!

Wednesday, September 18, 2013

Light the Night Recap: Part 1

After months of anticipation, last night was the Light the Night Walk!  As the Honored Hero, I had to give a 3 minute speech right before all the walkers headed off.  Jonathan and Nicholas joined me on stage.  My speech is below!

Hi everyone!  I am Caitlin Mullinix and this is my husband, Jonathan, and our son, Nicholas.  Nicholas will turn 2 years old this weekend.  And I am so lucky to be here to celebrate, because he was only 4 weeks old when I was diagnosed with Hodgkins Lymphoma. 

I went from pregnant and glowing to tremendously ill quite quickly.  The early days at home with Nicholas were full of the typical baby-related challenges, as we had expected.  But things didn’t get easier as the days passed.  I experienced what I thought were post-partum symptoms and possible complications from my c-section….fevers, night sweats, shortness of breath.  And boy, was I tired.  But I had a newborn, and I figured, “so this is what everyone is talking about!”  

After several visits with my OB, my symptoms eventually landed me in the emergency room.  A battery of tests ensued, which revealed an enormous mass in my chest. No wonder it was so hard to breathe when baby Nicholas rested on my chest.  The mass was biopsied immediately, but the procedure was too stressful for my already strained system.  I wasn’t breathing well during biopsy, so I was placed on a ventilator and stayed in the ICU for a week. 

Doctors began chemo immediately – my first treatment actually took place when I was asleep under the power of the ventilator.   When I woke up, reality sunk in.  I had cancer. What a frightening word.  Cancer is something that happens to other people, not to me.  I was only 32.  I had a new baby that needed me.  I had to return to work.  I had plans.  This was not my plan.  But, everyone emphasized that this was a good cancer to get.  It was highly treatable.  I’d be free of it in a short period of time and would be able to move on with my plans.  

For the next 6 months, I underwent the standard chemotherapy treatment for my disease.  Maternity leave from work became disability leave.  Family and friends came from all parts of the world to take care of me, and my husband, and baby Nicholas.  The switch from doing the caring to being cared for was emotionally very difficult.  I was supposed to be the nurturing one.  For nine months, I had been “becoming” a mom.  Now, I was back in the arms of my own mom.   

After six months of standard chemotherapy, it became clear that my disease was unusually aggressive.  It turns out that my Hodgkin’s wasn’t the easy kind to get rid of.  During the next six months, my excellent team of physicians attempted three more chemo regimens in an effort to reduce the amount of disease in my body, but nothing proved to be “the cure.” 

Finally, in October of last year, I had a stem cell transplant at UCSF.  My younger sister was a perfect match and donated her stem cells to me.  I am so happy to say that the transplant was successful.  Approximately 6 months after the transplant, the graft started working and her healthy cells starting killing the wicked Lymphoma ones in my body.  By the beginning of the summer, scans revealed that all those previous areas of disease that had been so resistant to chemo were now gone!    

This last year since transplant has been one of recovery.  I was in the hospital for a month during the transplant, and after being released, I was under house arrest for a few months.  My immune system was as fresh as a newborn’s and the exposure to germs in the outside world was just too risky.   I have experienced a range of side effects from the transplant and medications and graft-vs-host disease.  Also, there were two little diseased nodes in my lung that my sister's cells just couldn't get to that were surgically removed two weeks ago.  Which means that today, as I speak with you, I am officially cancer-free.  I am finally seeing a light at the end of this long, crooked tunnel.  So, this weekend we are not only celebrating Nicholas' big day but also my remission! 

Facing cancer opened my family’s eyes to the fact that it can really happen to anyone—even when you are 32.  When you are healthy, cancer is just something that you hear about, read about, and see in movies.  But when you yourself get sick, you find out that cancer actually all around.  Although I may be in remission, our fear of cancer will never fade away.  Until there is a cure, there will always be uncertainty that the cancer will return.  For everyone who may be touched by blood cancers, the research enabled by events like Light the Night is essential to eliminating this uncertainty.  The funds we've raised will hopefully mean that a cure will quickly be a reality.   
Thank you to the LLS and all of its generous supporters for the help in finding therapies that saved my life.  Because of you, I am here to celebrate.

Monday, September 16, 2013

The Beginning of the Birthday Week....

We went to dinner at Benihana on Saturday night to start a week-long celebration of Nicholas' 2nd birthday.  He had lots of fun, especially because he could spend half of the meal under/circling the table, and it was so noisy and busy in there that nobody gives a hoot!


Nicholas was not a fan of the Japanese birthday song.  After receiving his special sundae,
the song began and he cried.

Wednesday, September 11, 2013

So long, farewell......

....those stupid nodes can go to hell!

My surgery has come and gone, the nodes were removed from my lung tissue, and I kind of sort of see a very dim light at the end of this crooked tunnel.  This surgery was pretty major and went very well.  Recovery has been painful, but each day gets better.  I was in the hospital a little longer than anticipated due to low oxygen saturation levels, which was fine with me because I got one more day of toddler-free rest.  The nodes preliminarily indicate Hodgkins disease, which is fine (not good, not bad), because they are gone now.  That means that I am totally, 100% disease-free at the moment.  I'll have another scan in 6-8 weeks and until then I think I might try to craft a Halloween costume for Nic :)

Tuesday, September 3, 2013

Back to life

We're back home from paradise.  We were all sad to leave Uncle Brendan and Uncle David's exquisite condo and the stunning blue waters that surround Kona.




But we're back to reality.  Summer has arrived in SF and Nicholas is out at the park with Cristina and his new share-care buddy, Carson.  Jonathan's at his new job (his first day on his own!).  And tomorrow I go to UCSF for surgery....a thoracic surgeon will remove the two nodules that have been occupying my left lung for several months.  It's a two hour procedure and then I'll be in the hospital for a couple/few days.

By the way, the Light the Night walk is two weeks from today!  If you'd like to join us, please don't forget to sign up for the team here.  No fundraising is required, but we are more than halfway to our goal of $5000 thanks to the very generous donations of our many supporters.  Thank you thank you thank you! :)