Alyssa's Birthday!

Last week we celebrated Alyssa's Birthday. Here are some photos of her special day.

* Alyssa and Josh checking out her new iPod.

* And 'Raymond' - the new addition to the family.

* Shelley made Alyssa this gorgeous set of drawers (which she absolutely loves). Thank-you Shelley.

All Alyssa wanted to do was to go out to a restaurant - here she is enjoying some dessert.

* As chocolate is not an option for her at the moment, gummy bears were chosen to stand guard around the cake (we've learnt gummy bears and frosting don't really go together). "Superstar" was the theme.

* Me and my gorgeous girl.

Alyssa has also managed to go to school for a couple of hours over the last 2 weeks. We did a powerpoint presentation for her class and friends so they could understand where she has been, and why she looks a little different now. This was a very positive experience for everyone involved, and her classmates asked some fantastic questions. I think they were quite in awe of her having had so many surgeries, and having so many medications to take each day.

* Alyssa with her class

* Her classmates presented her with this 'Certificate of Bravery'

Now for an update on her treatments. She started on her fifth round of Chemotherapy last week (this one apparently is a gentler form of chemo, and will be daily for six months). Also, her blood pressure has become very high again over the last 3 days. Another trip to the hospital yesterday saw another increase in her medications. She's taking a while to adjust to these newest medications, but I'm sure that will settle down soon.

Over the last month we've been able to keep her levels somewhat stable through diet and medication, so she's been able to have a few weeks respite from the Haemodialysis. As this is just temporary, and as we are trying to give Alyssa some normality in her life, we have decided to do Peritoneal Dialysis at home each evening until the transplant. This will mean another surgery to insert the lines into her tummy which should happen over the next few weeks.

Thanks so much for checking in,
We'll keep you posted,
Luv, Tereesa & Alyssa.