Facebook update from Help Anton

Today in an attempt to get you all caught up we are again going to flashback to October 27 which was DISCHARGE DAY. Day +219. After we met the Vikings players it was time to head back to The Ronald McDonald House. When a patient gets discharged for the first time after they receive a bone marrow transplant it is a HUGE deal. The staff all gets together and sings them a goodbye song and makes a big deal out of their discharge. Somehow when Anton got discharged the first time after transplant they didn't do the goodbye song. But for this discharge they made up for it for sure. As we were getting ready to leave the staff lined the hall in their funny glasses, noisemakers in hand and sang the best goodbye song ever! Anton LOVED it and talked about it for the rest of the night. Between meeting the Vikings, the discharge song, and October birthdays at RMH discharge day was such a great day, exhausting but great! I wish I could paint a picture with my words so you would all understand how amazing the staff at The University of Minnesota Masonic Children's Hospital is. We spent over 100 days in the hospital and it could have been one of the worst experiences of our lives but it wasn't because the staff always went above and beyond to care for us. The doctors not only checked on Anton but also asked how I was doing, and actually wanted to know. They took time to listen to my concerns and didn't laugh in my face when I tried to convince them Anton had the measles (he didn't really but I sure thought he did). They never rushed out of our room but enjoyed spending time with Anton. When he obsessively drank water all day long they spoon fed him as much as he wanted, when he learned to drink out of a cup they celebrated with him, and they loved staying to hear Anton "read" his Pete the Cat books. One of the doctors even wore his minions shirt so that he could match Anton. We love all of our doctors here and are so thankful for the care Anton has received from them! The nurses and NST's here are also amazing. They spent so much time with Anton listening to him speak in his British accent and even talking back in theirs. They read him bedtime stories and enjoyed listening to Anton read them stories. They were so good about asking what they could and couldn't do with Anton and were always wanting to learn the best way to care for him. They sang Frozen songs with him, and had glow stick parties whenever he felt up to it. We LOVE them all so much! I will never forget how many doctors and nurses came to check on us when Anton was transferred to the PICU. They truly care about their patients and their families and it shows. Anton's PT made therapy so fun I'm pretty sure Anton just thought he was playing with her. My favorite thing he has learned from her so far is his British accent (okay standing on his own is really my favorite but his accent is a close second). She always was able to push him to do more than he thought he could and he has made some great progress since working with her. Megan from Integrated Therapy was so great at teaching Anton how to calm himself down during hard times. For a few weeks Anton would freak out anytime doctors or nurses walked in the room. Megan and Amy (from child life) worked with Anton to make it a more fun experience and taught him how to control his emotions a little better. Amy from child life was always checking on us and trying to find ways to make our stay more fun for Anton and as easy as it could be on me. She was always reminding me of the things they had planned for the parents as well as the kids. Child Life helped our stay go as smoothly as possible! There is a lady who brings brand new books to the patients on the BMT floor once a week, they get to keep the books which is so neat. Anton loved the day she would bring books. She also would stay and read to him quite a bit which he also loved. We have well over 100 new books thanks to the book lady! I could write a whole post on Anton's best friend Kendall. Kendall always took time to talk to Anton when we were walking around the halls and over time Anton decided Kendall was his very best friend. They would chart together and do very important charge nurse work like organize the pens :) I will never forget the night Anton was transferred to the PICU. He had thrown up in bed while laying down, I sat him up and he started throwing up blood, and blood was pouring out of his nose. The nurse, charge nurse (Kendall), and doctor rushed in the room and began working on getting Anton stabilized. Once everything was more under control Anton got tired and wanted to go to sleep. He looked up at Kendall and said "Kendall will you read me a bedtime story?" Kendall was already here about 20 minutes past when he should have gone home but he sat down and read Anton a bedtime story. It was the sweetest thing ever! If you ask Anton what he wants to be when he grows up he says "a charge nurse like my best friend Kendall!" Kendall has made such a huge impact on Anton's life, I love to see how happy Anton is when he is hanging out with Kendall. . The staff here keeps everything as light hearted and as fun as they can. I love that they never forget that this is a children's hospital, yes, crazy hard things are going on here but they give these kiddos a chance to laugh and have fun amidst the craziness of the BMT process. Being in the hospital for over three months could have been one of the worst and most lonely experiences of our lives but thanks to the staff it was actually pretty fun! I am so thankful for this hospital and the care Anton has received here. I am posting pictures from the start of our admission, July 17th, to our discharge day, October 27th! - November 06, 2015 at 12:25PM http://ift.tt/1r2lUi4