Yesterday afternoon Mac had his chest and abdomen drained of fluid. They left a drainage tube in his chest so it can continue to drain today. Unfortunately, the abdomen is filling up again. His breathing is easier because his lungs are clear. Today they are waiting to see what happens. They may have to drain his abdomen again tomorrow. The GI doctor thinks alot of this can be explained by C Diff. We're still waiting for results from the nephrologist because it could be kidney issues. He is still having fever. The early results of the fluid studies do not show bacteria. It's good to keep ruling things out, but it's also frustrating to not know what's going on. Please pray that God guides the doctors through this puzzle to bring Mac comfort, relief and healing. More later...

We are in the ICU (they call it a step down room. I guess there are some rooms that are for worse cases; we're just sort of bad.) Mac is on more monitors and they are trying to help with his breathing. He's still running fever. The CT scan showed tons of fluid build up in his abdomen and between his lung and chest wall. They gave him more lasix over night to start getting rid of some. (Mo was on the night shift last night and they were up most of the time. But in this game, being nocturnal comes with the program.) This afternoon he's going to get the rest of it drained by an interventional radiologist. He will be sedated. They will study the fluid - that may contain some answers. This will also relieve a lot of his discomfort and he will hopefully feel some relief with his breathing. They didn't see any major fungus issue which is good. The other organs are still having various issues, but they are maintaining the balance with IV fluids of all combinations as needed. Like I said earlier, it's very complicated and we just have to trust the doctors here.

I guess my gut feeling is that alot of these things will eventually correct themselves if the real problem is taken out of the equation. The ICU doctor for this week is from Baton Rouge (she grew up in NO) and works here 1 week/month. She recognized Mac's Lafreniere soccer tshirt right away.

Please keep praying as I know you all are. Will update again soon.

Today we are being moved to the ICU for closer monitoring of Mac's situation. They are doing a CT scan this morning and looking for more clues. He's continuing to get fever and his breathing is labored. We will update when we get results.

Thanks to everyone for the prayers and messages. We are still battling something. With all the medicine Mac is on, he's still getting fever and this has the doctors puzzled. Are they missing something or is it just that the medicines need more time to do the job? Unfortunately it's a tricky game b/c different organs need different things and there's a fine line to keep the balance. It's all very complicated and we're trying to keep a handle on it but the bottom line is we have to trust the doctors here. Mac is an incredible trooper. Our nurse today has been here for 19 years and said 'not too many things amaze me, but your son amazes me'. He's feeling miserable and we're just ready for this to subside so he can feel some relief.

Please keep praying. We need to find the source of the fever so it will go away! And then we can begin to recover from this.

We’ve been hesitant to update the blog because we keep thinking each day Mac’s going to get better so we can write something positive. Unfortunately, these past few days haven’t really been positive. We came in 11 days ago for a pain in his side which they said was probably just constipation. He quickly developed hematuria and fever. Now we have an infection in his gall bladder and possible issues with his liver and kidneys. He's retaining fluid. He also has pneumonia in his right lung. He’s still positive for C Diff. He’s on 5 different antibiotics along with the rest of his medicine. Right now they’re throwing all the antibiotics at him to wipe out anything they suspect. It’s been quite a rollercoaster and we are scared and exhausted. He is still such an amazing patient - when he’s miserable he’s just really quiet. The nurses have told us many times how great a kid he is and how they all want to get him back home soon.

Annie is with us and since today is her birthday, the nurses gave her balloons and a tshirt and necklace, and Katherine (the child life specialist) took her to do a craft while we talked to the doctor. She’s been a nice distraction to have around.

The deacon from St. Mary’s Catholic Church nearby came to see us tonight and spent some time with us. It’s hard to understand and watch a child suffering. So tonight I’m asking again for more prayers for Mac to get through this big hurdle. We are very thankful to you all for taking time out of your busy schedules to think of us.

It’s Saturday night and it’s been great for us to all be to together. On Thursday when Peter, Annie & Mo got to St. Jude, I was sitting in the main lobby reading and waiting for them so Mo let Peter and Annie out of the van. They ended up sneaking up on me and surprising me, causing quite the commotion downstairs! The security guard ran to get them toys and coloring books and they ran up to Mac’s room to see him and Ana who stayed one more night with me!

We’ve made some more progress with Mac. It’s been a roller coaster because it seems there were always 2 different problems going on. Something viral definitely played a part, but the last result is that Mac has contracted C-Diff which is a bacteria in his intestines (we actually all have it present in our intestines, it's just when it gets out of control that it's a problem.) It’s very common in hospitals and nursing homes because people with low immune systems are very susceptible, as well as people who are on antibiotics. It really got a handle on him and his recovery will be one day at a time. He’s eating a little, but not because he has an appetite. He’s still feeling bad, but his fever seems to be subsiding. It was crazy this week as we’ve gone through several different possibilities and had to rule each of them out.

It has been good for him having Peter here to play games with and Annie to entertain him and be his nurse. And P&A have had a good time because if you aren’t actually sick, St. Jude can be a fun place. They have met our favorite nurses, visited the the gift shop several times and they love the cafeteria (or food court as Peter calls it - it really is nice.) I told them they couldn't leave Memphis until Mac gets discharged and they agreed - we're all in this together. Peter wants his buddy to feel better and Annie just hates to see him sick!

Thanks for checking in with us. Now we need double the prayers - first for recovery from this setback and second for recovery from the big thing!! But I know there are lots of you out there and we'll be heard if we just pray enough! I hope you are all having a good weekend.

It's Wednesday afternoon and we're still in the hospital. When we're inpatient, the days feel like weeks! We got here Friday in the middle of the night b/c Mac was having pain in his side and a fever. Because the medicine he's taking is so hard on kidneys, we were suspicious of something in that area. He progressed to having other symptoms and lots of tests were run. The current thought of the day is that he has a viral infection. But when your immune system is being suppressed, it's hard to fight things. I think we have turned a corner and are taking small steps toward recovery. He's eaten a tiny bit for the first time since Friday. He's still exhausted and feels uncomfortable, but he's not in pain. And he's still running a low grade fever which will hopefully go away soon! This has been a huge reality check for me; as much as we can't wait to get home, it's also scary to expose him to the real world. What other people can fight off with a little tylenol lands us in the hospital for a week. But I feel confident our team here won't let us go until they know he can handle it.

We are looking forward to having the rest of the crew come see us this weekend. Because of our situation here, they are planning on staying with Gail and visiting as much as we can during the day. My sister Ana is going back home for now, I couldn't have gotten through these last weeks without her!

This week has been a bit of a disappointing set back. But I'm sure he'll bounce back as only an 11 year old boy can and get back on task of getting his bone marrow jump started!! Please continue to pray as I know you all are!!! Thanks as always!