More amazing news from Bonnie!!

October 7, 2005-- from Suzanne Melvin (aka Susi Asmar)

That Bonnie considers me her “good luck charm” is nothing short of an honor. I left Minneapolis this morning, and called Bonnie from the apartment to say good-bye before I left, when she gave me the incredible news that she would be able to go “home” (apartment) either today or tomorrow. Her parents arrived last night, and it took all of my control not to spill the good news that her numbers were so good, she’d be out any day.

I spent a week with Bonnie, who being a competitive type of girl, was I think slightly pleased that if she at least had to be in hospital so long, she might as well break all records and earn the inauspicious title of “longest to engraft”. Read: longest stay, and no doubt, most beloved patient.

Turns out, the cord taking charge in her body is the boy from the first transplant. I told her, go figure, boys have a funny way of taking longer, and maybe he even needed some coaxing from cord #3 (a girl, who woke him up).

Being one of Bonnie’s oldest (not in age, thank you) friends, we found it quite amusing to occupy our time by googling our old classmates from grade school. Good thing we were only 12 and 13, since it turns out, we had crushes on a few of the same boys. Any older, our friendship may not have lasted 26 years!

Going home this weekend is a big change from last weekend, where Bonnie struggled with high, spiked fevers and headaches. Having been given a hall pass and wanting to get out, we had been roaming the halls of both 4B and 4A (pediatric unit). Turns out there were a few cases of meningitis in the pediatric unit, so the doctors wanted to rule out immediately any chance of Bonnie having gotten it. Trying to avoid any further misery, they decided to do the lumbar puncture (spinal tap) using a more modern approach involving x-rays, etc. The whole point was to avoid being poked twice, but the doctors hit bone the first puncture and had to go down three vertebrae and try again. 12 CC’s of nice clear spinal fluid was later confirmed through tests that there were no signs of meningitis.

When she was feeling better, we roamed the hall (now just 4B), Bonnie dragging her friend, the pole, while I read the latest gossip from smutty magazines like People. Turns out Bonnie is so well informed on Hollywood gossip, I couldn’t wait to call my friends at night and relay some of this information.

Bonnie requested I photograph her tummy, which she proudly refers to as her FOURTH pregnancy, and post it on the blog…

Mike and the girls (who have been sick, and Devon is was just treated for strep throat) are coming out this Wednesday, and no doubt, will celebrate appropriately.

Please keep sending your notes, as those really get her through some days, and your radiant energy to her cells, which she continues to talk to every night. I now know that “culture day” at the hospital has nothing to do with The Arts.

GO BONNIE!! Xoxoxo

-Suzanne Melvin aka Susi Asmar

Gib's note: To see large-sized versions of the photos click here, or on any of the photos on the right margin of this page.