Hello , and welcome back to Billy's Page . No it's not my Birthday today *wink* , It's My Dad's Birthday , he passed away in 1972 ( age 41 ), and would have been 72 today .
We were to be admitted to ACH yesterday for another round of chemotherapy , but we were sent home because Billy's blood counts are far too low to begin chemo . His blood counts will be checked again on Wed. at which time we should be admitted ( fingers crossed ) . This puts Billy back a week in the protocol , which was a 48 week treatment of chemotherapy .
Billy did very well at his physical therapy session yesterday . His therapist is concentrating on getting Billy to bend his knee more , and getting him to lift his knee from the horizontal position . Billy is really getting around well on his crutches ; he moves alot faster than with the walker .

Good day to you ! I hope this entry finds you all in good spirits . Billy has been doing very well in his recovery thus far . He has been involved in taking his FCAT ( Florida Comprehensive Assessment Tests ) the past couple days , and has one more tomorrow *wink* . These tests will decide how well schools teach the attending children . The schools will be graded on how well their students score on these tests , which in turn decides the funding the school will receive . I'm not too fond of this process , but what to do *wink* .
Billy received a package today from D. Gowland at Osceola Magnet School ( Vero Bch.,Florida ). The box contained and autographed baseball from Ken Griffy Jr., a hat from the LA Dodgers , a T- shirt from Osceola Magnet School , and an Angel ornament ! Thank you ALL so very much ! Thanks to Barry ! and Vikki & the gang at A.F. too ! What a Great Surprise !

Billy will be having his blood counts checked again on Thursday when he is re-admitted to ACH for his next round of chemotherapy . This is a 3 day session , and will require Billy to stay at ACH until at least Sunday (fingers crossed ). I will enter his room # as usual when he is admitted for those of you who like to call Billy when he is in the Hospital .

Billy was admitted today at 11:00 am . He is in good spirits , and feeling well . He had an electro-cardiogram , and an echo-cardiogram this afternoon . He has these procedures done every couple months because the chemotherapy can effect the heart muscle . They also want to take a look at his port and it's connection to his artery . All seems well . Billy should be in the Hospital until at least Monday .

Hello everyone ! Billy was feeling the effects of the chemotherapy just about all day today . He did try to eat , but would give it all back a short time later *wink* . He had another physical therapy session this afternoon in which he concentrated on the bending of his knee . He is progressing well , but can be a bit more enthusiastic *wink* .
The Son of one of the nurses that visits Billy will be coming tomorrow to see him . They have a date to play (battle) in one of the trading card games ! Billy is really into that stuff , and really amazes everyone with what he's learned about it . I have no Idea what they are talking about , but they sure enjoy the game's !

We're home ! Billy was released this morning , and is resting in his own bed ! He is very weak from this round of chemotherapy and is really not feeling very well . Alicia and I took advantage of the 80 degrees and sunshine to catch up on some much needed yard work , we're both beat ! We are expecting some thunder storms this evening which should help us out a bit to settle all the ground we tore up ! We're getting ready for some spring planting outside to brighten things up a bit , if you know what I mean *wink* .

Touch and go last night *wink* . Billy had a bit of a fever last night , but it never got above 101 . It peaked at 100.6 , and this morning it was all but gone . He really needs some time at home before his next chemotherapy session .

Let me talk a bit about Billy's Forum (below) . I hope you all will take part in this forum , a way of getting to know each other . You've all been following Billy's progress for the past 6 months , and you probably don't know the person who was here before you . Feel free to add your comments to the forum , other's can reply directly to you , and you to them , via this forum . I'm sure there are alot of you out there with alot on your minds , perhaps going through the very same thing as we are and would very much like to talk about it ; go right ahead . I will continue to monitor it , and add my comments when warranted .

Here is a photo I took today of Billy . He is on his way to the Hospital to have his blood counts checked . As you can see , Billy is looking pretty good although he is a bit under the weather . He seems to have a bit of a cold , and sore throat . The sore on his foot has not yet healed and is giving him some trouble . His blood just doesn't clot as quickly as if it would without the chemotherapy . We have to be very careful because of this because Billy is prone to infection when his counts are as low as they are . Billy's fever has been hovering around 99 - 100 for the past couple days , and his energy level has been not quite as high as we'd hope for it to be . He understands that he will be back in the Hospital sooner than expected if his condition should get worse . He is scheduled to be re-admitted for the next round of chemo next week , so every day at home is very important .
Billy finished his testing ( school ) yesterday , and was told by his teacher that he is doing quite well , and we're glad *wink* .

Well , we were hoping Billy could have lucked out this round *wink* . Billy's fever spiked at 102.4 this evening and he was admitted tonight at 9:00 . It is so great to be only 2 miles away from ACH , they were all waiting for us when we arrived . Billy was put in isolation because of his fever and the fact that he has a terrible cough . They started Billy on fluids and anti-biotics . Alicia and I are also feeling a bit of the flu , Alicia went to her Dr. today and has an upper respiratory infection , which will probably lead to an attack ( exacerbation ) to her MS ; lets hope not *wink* .

Well , I guess you can say that this is the worst Billy has felt since this Journey has begun . His fever is still around 100-102 , his cough has not gotten any better either . Billy received platelets and a blood transfusion this afternoon as well ; he looks so weak and pale i had a tough time staying with him all day , I really hate to see him like this . The look in his eyes at times is like no other , and all I can do is hold his frail hand and tell him it'll all be over soon enough and you'll feel alot better ; " I know Dad , I know ", is what he'd say . I hate this helpless feeling , and I don't wish it on anyone .

Hello All *wink* . I have been very sick the past few days , as is Alicia and Billy . Billy is still in the Hospital with a very bad sinus infection , and a fever of 102 + - . Alicia has been tagged with the very same as Billy . She has an upper res. infection , and is on anti-biotics as well . Everyone at the Hospital is very upset because this all could have been prevented . Billy's room mate during last weeks chemotherapy session had a very bad cough , and we brought it to the attention of the Hospital staff , but Billy wasn't moved . He came home for 3 days and was right back sick as all ---heck . Yes , Alicia and I are upset over this episode ( can you tell ). Billy is due to start another round of chemo next week , but it looks as though he'll be pushed back another week now . Tomorrow is Alicia's Birthday , I stopped and picked up a card for Billy to give to her ; he was so glad I did and cried a bit because he thought I'd forget because I was so sick *wink* . I assured him that I would NEVER forget , and he felt much better .

Welcome back to Billy's page . Well , we are all on anti-biotics now . Billy has a bacterial infection ( strep ), and is on high fluids as well as nutrient's to keep his strength up . He hasn't really eaten anything by mouth in a few days , which is why he's being fed this way . His weight is also down to about 55 lbs . He was 78 lbs when he became ill . It is getting harder and harder to see him like this , and I have been kept away because of my being sick as well which makes everything much more difficult . Alicia has been spending every night at the Hospital ( a week today ), and she is not feeling all that well either . She comes home for a couple hours a day , if she can get away , to also take care of herself . Billy's Mom , my Wife , is such a loving , and caring Mother ; The likes of which I have never ever seen before , I am so very proud of her , and Love her Dearly .

Billy was released today at 2 pm . He is still very weak , but in good spirits . We are all gonna sleep well tonight I hope , *wink* ! Billy will be on anti-biotics for the next 2 weeks , and will probably not resume his chemotherapy until then . This illness has pretty much used up his resistance , and he'll have to get his strength back and his counts back up before his body ( and mind ) can handle the next round of chemo .

Hello to All of Billy's Friends . Billy is doing alot better than he was during the past couple weeks . He has been visited the past 2 days by our local Police Officer in charge of the D.A.R.E. program , which has to do with the "say no to drugs" program . This is a course in studies for 5th graders that is needed for graduation to the 6th grade . Billy has taken to it very well , and will be tested next week as to what he has learned . This is a very good program in which children are taught about peer pressure , drugs , alcohol , and smoking . Billy also attended physical therapy again today . He still has limited use of his leg , but he is getting stronger . The past few set backs didn't help any either *wink*.

Ama and Apa left for North Carolina yesterday ; they are going to see Billy's Uncle ( their Son ) Fernando , who is heading out to the War zone next week , He is in the Marines .

This just in : Billy will be re-admitted to ACH tomorrow morning at 10:30 to resume his chemotherapy , We just received word from his Dr. We really thought he would be able to recover some after this illness he just had , but I guess the Dr's thought otherwise *wink* . They are really taking no chances with Billy's cancer , and since his counts are at 1500 it is ok to resume . Oh well , now to tell Billy .

Hello everyone . Billy is on his 3rd day of 5 , in this round of chemotherapy . He is holding up well , and eating good . Before I left the Hospital tonight he asked me to say "Hi" to all his Friends on the Net ! So..............."Hello from Billy" ! Every thing is pretty much back to normal as far as Alicia and I being sick as well . Billy should be in the Hospital until at least Wednesday , and it looks as though he will be back in the Hospital for his 11th Birthday , the 18th of April . Providing he isn't hospitalized with a fever after this round .

Yes , Billy is home ! He was released this morning , and is resting in his own bed . He is feeling fairly well and is not suffering any ill effects as of yet from this round of chemotherapy . Billy was surprised to come home to a package from Alicia's Uncle Meliton ( Chicago ). He had taped the Super bowl game and sent Billy a copy ! Billy was soooooooooooooooo Happy ! Now he can relive the Dream over and over again ! Billy was also given a large Bucaneers pillow by the people from Child Life at the Hospital . Thank you !