Friday..April 30th..

Hunter was up most of the night, but it wasn't because he was sick, it was because he was hooked on a DVD Series that was given to him by a friend. Hunter did wake up with some muscle pain still so they started him back on his medications to help with the pain. He also got a little rash on his legs and arms but they said that this too can sometimes happens. Hunters counts today were GREAT! The doctors said his bone marrow was working extra hard with his stem cells yesterday and it was obvious by his counts. His WBC (white blood counts) went from .200 to 1.5 and his ANC went from 100 to 1,200. What we want to see now is his counts stabilize or of course get better for at least three days. After three days they will start to take him off of some of his medications to see how his counts do on their own. They know he is going to need blood and platelet transfusions and are not worried about that. They just want to see how all the other numbers do. Hunter did pretty well today, is eating a little more each time, his mouth and throat sores are almost better and is improving everyday.

Hunter was given the alright to have visitors come and visit him...YEAH!! They do have to wear a mask and gloves when they go into his room but that is standard protocol anyway. They do ask that you be over the age of 15 and I'm not sure how many visitors they will let in at one time. It really depends on the nurse and how strict she is. So, if you have some free time I'm sure Hunter would LOVE to see you!!

Thank you for your SUPPORT, LOVE and PRAYERS.....
WE are Truly Blessed...
The Herrick Family

Thursday..April 29th..

Today was another day filled with some ups and downs, as they all seem to have lately. Although this one seemed to have a few more ups than downs, which is a great thing. Hunter went the second night in a row without having the chills, so it looks like the pre-med of steroids are working. His counts also went up this morning which was a "wonderful" thing. His WBC (white blood counts) went to .200 and better yet his ANC went from 0 to 100 and his Mono Cites went to 36% which is a really great sign that the Stem Cells are starting to work! YEAH!! I know that a lot of these probably don't make sense to a lot of you but it's all great signs that the Stem Cells are starting to work and his counts are coming up. Hunter was in a lot of pain today though, his bones were hurting him, especially in his lower backs. His back was absolutely killing him to the point where he couldn't move. They gave him some Tylenol and Morphine through-out the day to help with the pain. It really seemed to help him and the doctor said that this can happen for a day or two due to the fact that it is probably the Stem Cells taking hold to the bone marrow. So in a way this is a good thing but unfortunately it has to cause Hunter so much pain. Hunters mouth and throat soars seem to be getting better and causing him less pain. Today for the first time in almost a week Hunter actually ate a little bit of "real" food. He didn't eat a ton but a little at a time is better than nothing. Hunter is taking a lot of small steps to the road to recovery.

Thank You Everyone For Your Continued LOVE, SUPPORT and PRAYERS...
The Herrick Family

Wednesday..28th of April..

Today was a day of ups and downs for Hunter. The doctors tried giving him a steroid as a pre-med to see if this would stop the chills at night and it must have helped because no chills. Hunters WBC (White Blood Counts) went down a little today, but as we were told the other day when it's this low it's kind of a guess of exactly how many cells are there because there are so few. Hunter did have to get a platelet transfusion today due to counts being so low. He still has a weak stomach and can't really eat much or keep things down. Hunter wants to eat and "likes" the idea of eating but when it comes down to it he just can't do it. He was able to eat a little bit of his favorite bread that dad brought to him.

The doctors are telling us that he is doing great and right where he is suppose to be. They say in the next few days his counts should be coming up. So that's what we will be praying for...

Thank you for your continued support,
Love the The Herrick Family

Tuesday..April 27th..

Hunter woke up again last night with the chills about 2:30 a.m. so he had to get Demeral again to calm them down. He still did not get a fever which was a true blessing, and one less thing for him to fight off. We got his counts about 4:30 a.m. and his red blood cell were a little low so he had to get another blood transfusion about 6 a.m. His WBC (white blood counts) remained the same, which is better than dropping. I am hoping to see those rise tomorrow or real soon. As those rise it means that the Stem Cells are taking ahold to his bone marrow and re-producing different blood cells, which is what we want to see. Hunters mouth and throat soars are a little better today, the treatments 4x's a day really seem to be helping.

Hunter still isn't eating, although he seemed like he was in a little better mood today. He had some what of a busy day with his music lessons and then we played a card game with one of the ladies Jessica that works here. It really seemed to break up the day and went fast, which is always a good thing.

All of our LOVE and PRAYERS to ALL..
The Herrick Family

Monday..

Today seemed like a long but quiet day. Hunter had woke up in the middle of the night, about 3 a.m. with a extreme case of the chills. It is one of the side effects of one of the medications that he is on, so he had to get some Demeral to relax and calm down. At that point I was really worried that a fever might follow but so far we have been blessed and that hasn't happen. Today when the results of Hunters counts came in his WBC (White Blood Cells) had gone up from the previous day. When I talked to the doctor she was pretty positive that this means the the Stem Cells have started to take ahold of the bone marrow and that's why they increased. We were told that it wouldn't be until around May 1st till we started to see this, so this is a GREAT thing. Although we will know more tomorrow when we get his counts back to see if they are "still" increasing or what they are doing. Hunter had to get another unit of blood today because his heart rate was a little high and this could be because of his low red blood cells. He also had to start a treatments for his mouth and throat soars. This is done by a nurse that comes in 4x's a day and does a special treatment to help heal these area's quicker. He got 3 treatments today and said that it really does make a difference. There are so MANY things that seem to happen or come up in the coarse of a day. Little things that aren't a big deal and yet little things that turn into a big deal. Day in a day out I watch Hunter go through what he does and there is one thing I know for sure and that is he is ONE AMAZING YOUNG MAN....

Thank you for ALL Blessing us with your friendship, love and support..

The Herrick Family

TWO Week Mark..

Today was a little rough for Hunter all the way around. He has some mouth sores, throat soars which hurt when he swallows pills etc, VERY anxious, and all around just not feeling too well. He is still not eating, and his stomach is bothering him most of the time. We did manage to get through the day without having a nose bleed which was a very positive thing! He did not need blood transfusion from his nose bleed last night either. His counts are low, and the doctors say that a fever could occur, so they are keeping a close eye on that. No fever today so far and we are praying for a good night...

These past two week have been full of ups, downs and many different emotions but we have run across some amazing doctors, nurses, pca's and all around people. Everyone here is amazing and there here to help in any way that they can, if its coming to the room and playing cards, teaching Hunter how to play the Ukulel (music lessons) or simply just talking to different people to make the time pass. The time is long, but this hospital is truly amazing and tries to make the experience as pleasant as it possibly can. There are always people who touch your life more than they'll ever know...

Thank YOU to ALL of the INDIVIDUALS who have come into our lives and blessed us in one way or another...
Love and Prayers,
The Herrick Family

Saturday the 24th..

Hunter wasn't feeling that great today and did end up getting a blood transfusion due to his bloody nose that he got last night. He was up almost most of the night not feeling to great, which left him not feeling that get today either. They started him on TPN last night also which is basically liquid nutrients and fats. He is basically not eating and when he does it doesn't stay there too long. The idea of eating sounds good to him but not the foods that he is able to eat, but even if he was able to eat what he wanted to it wouldn't be a good idea because he is not keeping things down.

Unfortunately he had yet another bloody nose tonight. It lasted well over an hour and again had to get a unit of platelets. The main problem was that the blood wouldn't clot to stop. We will see how his Red Blood Counts are tomorrow to see if he needs another blood transfusion. Hunter's counts are going down each day and this shouldn't be any different tomorrow or the up coming days. We just have to wait for the Stem Cells to kick in. This is and will be the hardest part for him...

Thank you for all of your continued thoughts and prayers....
The Herrick Family

Friday the 23rd..

Hunter had a pretty good day today. He was able to eat, although his diet is pretty limited due to low counts. Hunter had another extremely bad bloody nose tonight around 9:30 p.m. lasting for a little over an hour. They were finally able to get it to stop although he lost a lot of blood. He had to have a platelet transfusion tonight due to the fact that his blood wouldn't clot. It will be interesting to see if he will need a blood transfusion tomorrow as well. They draw blood each day at 4 a.m.. His counts are continuing to drop each day as we expected.

Thank You Again For All the Continued Support..

The Herrick Family

Thursday, April 22nd..Cont..

After Hunter had a rough morning/mid afternoon it turned around for the better. He was able to eat a little and keep it down. He would eat small portions of things throughout the day. This was such a great thing to see after watching him get so extremely sick the day before. I'm sure that the 2 units of blood and 1 unit of platelets helped but it was great to see. His counts are going down, but they are treating him so wonderful here. They are truly on everything as it happens which is comforting for his mommy to see. Tonight and tomorrow is a new day and I'll keep everyone posted if there is any change.

We are so blessed to have so many people that care not only about Hunter but our entire FAMILY...

OUR Love and Prayers to All..
The Herrick Family

Rough One Again..

Vomiting continued till late last night. Nurses had to wake him a lot because his blood pressure was too low. Blood transfusion at 4am (2 units), and Hunter blew his nose at around 10 am and it began to bleed and would not stop. They had to give him platelets at 12:30 to help with clotting but still has packing in his nose as of 1:30 pm. They are going to take packing out when platelets are done. When that is done he wants to try to eat a bagel and praying it wont come back up.

Thanks for all the well wishes and prayers..

The Herrick Family

Day By Day

Today seemed to be a tougher day for Hunter. His appetite is decreasing, he seemed to get a lot sicker and just over all was not feeling that great. I'm not sure if this is the start of the down fall or just a bad day for him? As we have done from the beginning we will take it day by day, hour by hour and even minute by minute as we have no choice. Things can and have changed that quickly. So, tomorrow is a new day and we will see how he is feeling then and how his night goes.

Love to All, and THANK YOU for all of your continued support, love and prayers.

The Herrick Family

Seven Days of Chemo and Stem Cells COMPLETE..

Hunters seven days of chemo ended on Sunday. He had nausea and vomiting thru the entire time of the Chemo. There were times of ups and downs during those seven days. This was something that they were expecting and warned us about. Monday was a day of rest and he felt a little better and was able to eat the dinner that Joe made for him. He had crab cakes which is one of his favorites..

Stem cell infusion started today and is over. The whole procedure took about 15 to 20 minutes. He said it was a really weird feeling and his stomach was feeling a little odd. Hunter is feeling better now and they will keep a close eye on him all day till he goes to sleep. He did wake up with a stuffed up nose and his throat was hurting a little so we are hoping and praying that doesn't turn into anything. His counts are going down each and everyday, as they should. We then hope to see his stem cells kick in and bring them back up. We are hoping and praying that he will be able to go through this with out much of a fever or any other complications that could arise. We will keep you posted as the days pass..

Thank You for the continued Prayers and Thoughts,

The Herrick family.

Five Days Into City Of Hope

Hunter is ending his fifth day of his journey. He has now had two of his three Chemo's and has been doing pretty well. He has had his ups and downs and there has been times when he hasn't been feeling too well but that's what they expected. He will start his third Chemo on Saturday and that will be for two days. On Tuesday he will begin his stem cell infusion if all goes as planned.

Thank you to all the visitors who have come to see Hunter. It really breaks up his day and helps take his mind off of things.

Thank you again for all of the love, support and prayers.

The Herrick Family

City of Hope Stem Cell/ Bone Marrow transplant

Hunter checked into City of Hope last night and began chemo this morning at 6am. This is a five day course of chemo that is extremely tough and will completely destroy his bone marrow. He has never had any of these chemos and we don't know how he will react to them. They will do six blood draws every half hour and fly them to a special lab in Virginia and have the results back before tomorrow and will adjust the doses if needed. Day eight he will rest and day nine he will be given his stem cells that were harvested back in November. Then we wait and watch for his stem cell to re-enter his bone and create a whole new bone marrow, approximately on May 1st we hope to see the first blood cells being created by the new marrow. He will have many blood and platelet transfusions to keep him going. It will take a couple weeks for his counts to recover and they believe he will be released after 30 days. That is what we are hoping for although it could be up to 45 days.

He can have visitors over 18 years old for this week, no one sick may visit and mask and gloves must be worn. After a week or so no one may visit until his count recover some where after the May 1st. However, Jeanna may get visitors in the family area during that time.

More update to come and hope you can visit him soon.

Thanks for all the thoughts and prayers,

The Herricks

HAPPY Easter..

Happy Easter to all of our friends and family. We hope that it brings you laughter, love and simple memories that will last a lifetime.

We had our last test today, yes on Easter Sunday. It was a bone scan so it was a long one, but Hunter is finally done with all of his tests and scans. We have a doctors appointment on Monday and then meet with City of Hope on Thursday. We are praying that all tests come out in "all" the ways that they should so that Hunter can stay on schedule and go for his Stem Cell Replacement on Sunday. We will keep everyone updated as the week progresses...

Love and Prayers To All,
The Herrick Family