Intermission

As my chemo intermission draws to a close, it is time to update everyone on what is to come. As you know, I spent the first two weeks of December going through the prepping for and then harvesting of my stem cells. This was not a particularly pleasant procedure. The daily high dose neupogen shots left my bones aching and me sweating so badly at night that I needed to change my clothes at least two or three times per night and put a towel down on the bed after each sweat. The harvesting required me to be hooked up to a machine (via a temporary catheter in my neck) that circulated my blood and filtered out my stem cells over a three hour period. This process, which was repeated over four days, left me tired to the core for over a week.

For now and hopefully forever, thankfully and most likely, I will not be needing those stem cells. They have been preserved in liquid nitrogen where they shall remain should I ever need them. But because my doctor is so pleased at my progress, I will NOT be undergoing an autologous stem cell transplant. The doctor says that for now there is no need for it. That the risks from the transplants and the fact that patients like me seem do equally well following both transplant and continued chemo made it a no brainer. Transplant risks include permanent damage to my heart, thyroid, testicles (both in terms of reproduction and in terms of production of testosterone), and an increased risk of secondary malignancies in the future (the testicles piece sold me on the chemo regimen). Had the disease not been totally gone, we would have gone ahead with the transplant. But because I am lymphoma free, it's time for four more chemo influsions which begin next Tuesday. I am not looking forward to this, but we are now halfway through this, and there is an end in sight.

So after this incredible intermission which brought us Sophia and the return of my hair in places that I didn't even know were supposed to have hair, it's time for a little more chemo. So here goes nothing. Come mid-March this will be behind us...

In more exciting news, Sophia had her first bath on Sunday. She is so cute.

Merry Christmas!

Today Sophia, Jacqui and I packed up the Yudell family truckster and headed south to Miami for a few days of fun in the sun on the beach. No matter that tomorrow's weather forecast is for rain, Jacqui and I are just happy to be on our first, albeit brief, vacation in a year. And tonight, despite the bad weather, the three of us are heading to the Jets/Dolphins game for some Monday Night Football. Sophia is sure to be the youngest Jets fan in attendance.

It has been quite a four months for us, and we are so happy just to be alone, hanging out, and enjoying one another without IVs, chemo, or blood draws. There is now an end in sight to this whole wacky world of de-lypmhomatization (more on what's to come in a blog later this week), and this "intermission", which brought us Sophia and some much needed recovery time, has been a wonderful time. I know that I'll be bald again in a few weeks, weakened from chemo in mind and body. But I also now know that my body recovers quickly, that I am lymphoma free, and that the future is bright and long.

Sophia Meets Grandpa

Last night, after her first flight of her young life, Sophia got to meet her Grandpa and the two have been inseparable since. My dad, who is recovering from surgery and has not had much of an appetite these last few weeks, was inspired to recovery today by his beautiful grand daughter and began eating and talking about food like his old self.

Sophia Can Fly

Later today (with the approval of our pediatrician for those of you who may still be living in the dark ages) Jacqui, Sophia, and I are heading down to Florida to visit our families for a few days and then to spend a few days in Miami Beach teaching Sophia how to swim and maybe how to go clubbing on South Beach.

We are excited for the warm weather, to introduce Sophia to her Grandpa, and to see the rest of the wacky gang of grandparents who, rather than holding Sophia one at a time, might try to hold her at the same time--one an arm, one her head, one a leg, and one a tush. I've been scouring the internet for a service than can clone a first grandchild to satisfy first grandchild crazy grandparents.

Sophia Loves...

Today is Sophia's three week birthday. It is hard to believe that it has just been three weeks. She is such an incredible presence in our lives, and it is hard to believe that she was never here. She is changing every day, makes us smile more broadly morning, noon, and night, and her cuteness is so infectious that I've bought myself my own terry-cloth frog towel that I have taken to wearing around the house in an attempt to just look cute (which is hard for a post-chemo, mostly hairless 38-year-old). Below is a collection of some photos of Sophia's family and friends who have visited over the past few weeks.


Sophia loves her big brother Otis.

And Sophia loves her Grandma.

Sophia loves her Bubbe and Papa Z.

Sophia loves her Aunt Andrea.

And Sophia loves her Uncle Bill.


Sophia loves her Uncle Paul and Aunt Bette (especially when they changed her diaper).

Sophia loves her Uncle Kelvin.


And Sophia loves her Aunties Ivy and Marci.

Sophia love her Cousin Dara and friend Julie.



And Sophia loves her Aunt Lisa.


And today Sophia got a special surprise visit from her Uncle Alvan. Lucky Sophia!

Finally, this weekend Sophia is so excited to meet her Grandpa whom she loves so very much. Yay!

Sophia is a NY Jets Fan

Our Little Nugget

Been great just posting photos of Sophia to the blog as we are a bit tired and my brain is not much for writing these last two weeks. Looking forward to catching up on some sleep and sharing my thoughts about fatherhood. But not tonight. Tonight just some more Sophia photos...

Sophia and Her Family

Colds

On Tuesday night I came down with a bad cold and began hosing myself down with Howard Hughes-like rigor. Tonight I am finally feeling better.

Today Jacqui came down with the same bad cold and has been dressed in a Howard Hughes-designed space suit-like outfit that has a velcro patch over her nipples so she can nurse Sophia without infecting her with the cold.

So far Sophia is doing fine and spends her day laughing at her mama's silly looking space suit-like outfit.

Just When You Thought it Was Safe to Go Back into the Water

It is Tuesday afternoon and I am sitting in the pheresis center at Penn having stem cells sucked out of me by a machine that hums like a car engine via a catheter that was just placed into my neck. The procedure itself is painless, but for the next few days I’ll be walking around with some tubing hanging out of my jugular looking like 50% of Frankenstein. Does anyone have a turtleneck I can borrow? Below is a photo of the catheter that went in my neck.


To prep me for this procedure, for the last 5 days Jacqui has been giving me shots (in the arm) of a drug called Neupogen that stimulates the over-production of stem cells in my marrow to the point that they are free flowing in my blood stream. Once harvested, the stem cells will be preserved for the transplant, which is now scheduled for January 2. Happy New Year Michael!

While this all stinks, we are in the final stage of delymphomatization, and by the end of January this “speed bump of life” will be behind us. Despite the hair loss, neutropenic fevers, puke-o-meter, long hospital stays, and just generally feeling like poop, this has all been worth it. My lymphoma is gone. How cool is that? And all I can think about is holding my beautiful little Sophia, my hair curly and long, my arms strong, and my mind clear and chemo-free.

Namesake

It wasn’t easy choosing Sophia’s name, but we couldn’t be happier with how it seems to suit her. The nickname Lester was fun while it lasted, but since birth we’ve moved on to more fitting nicknames like Sweet Sophia or Squirmin’ Merman (when we change her she squirms like crazy and sings like Ethel Merman). By the time of the official baby naming I’m sure we’ll have an even longer list of nicknames to share with you. In the meantime, I want to explain a little bit about where Sophia’s name came from and why it is very special.

It is common in the Jewish faith to name babies in memory of a family member that is deceased. Sophia is named after my mother who died from a brain tumor when I was only 9 years old. My mother’s name was Sandra Terry Rick (her hebrew name was Sarah Tovah) but she went by Terry. So in her memory, we’ve named our daughter Sophia Teri Rick Yudell (hebrew name is Sarah Tovah as well). Since my mother didn’t have a connection to the name Sandra, we selected a different “S” name that we thought was prettier and more fitting. Sophia means wisdom in Latin and therefore is an even greater tribute to my mother.


My mother was a woman who believed in bettering her community and herself through education, activism and compassion. She was intellectual, strong and incredibly devoted to progressive causes, feminist issues in particular. My mother’s most favorite cause, however, was her role as a mother to a little girl. She gave her all to this job and always provided me with boundless love, tenderness, strength and respect. In a short time she raised me to be the best person that I can be—someone who gives more than she takes and appreciates the value in wisdom.



Pretty much every day since September 1985, I have looked forward to one day having a daughter of my own to carry my mother’s name and live by these same values. Sometimes when I watch Sophia sleeping in my arms, I think about how 30 years ago my mother felt the same love, responsibility and wonderment when she gazed on her newborn.



Last year Michael, my parents and I established a scholarship in memory of my mother at Sharon High School (in my hometown). The scholarship is given to a graduating senior who has exhibited both academic excellence, and, most importantly, an engagement in and commitment to social and community issues. If any of you out there are thinking about a baby gift for Sophia, please consider donating to the Terry Rick Memorial Scholarship. We believe that this is a special way to honor our little girl and her extraordinary namesake.

Please send checks made out to the:

Terry Rick Memorial Scholarship
2126 Brandywine Street
Philadelphia, PA 19130

November 30th

When we were in the hospital waiting for Sophia to come, I checked online to see who she would share her birthday with. November 30th turned out to be quite a day of birthdays: the great American writer Mark Twain, the British satirist Jonathan Swift, British Prime Minister Winston Churchill, the artist Gordon Parks, the politician Shirley Chisholm, American Bandstand host and the guy who stores his head in a freezer in between television appearances Dick Clark, leader of the hippies Abbie Hoffman, author David Mamet, crooked lipped 80s rocker Billy Idol, and, of course, American Idol champ and the number one reason why I barely watch television... Clay Aiken.

It seemed a great day to be born. My child would share his or her birthday with my favorite author (Twain) and other great American and British artists and politicians. But as the day wore on and it seemed like Jacqui's stubborn cervix might hold things up for a day, I went online again to check December 1. The three most interesting birthday's on the 1st were comedians Richard Pryor and Woody Allen and smaltzy actress and singer Bette Midler. Judging on birthdays on that day alone, December 1st seemed not such a great day to be born. Though Allen and Pryor were great comedians, one had a penchant for hookers and cocaine, and the other for his daughter. And would the cosmic influence of sharing a birthday with Midler steer our child into a career as a two-bit lounge singer? I immediately called for the doctor and demanded a C-section so the baby would be born on the 30th.

I take it as a good birthday influence that Sophia has already begun to pen her first novel, a satirical examination of today's baby industry, written in saliva and spit up on the walls of her bassinet. Anybody know a good agent?

Sophia on the Town

Tonight, bundled all up, baby Sophia and I headed out for a night on the town. Wanting to give Jacq a few moments alone to sleep without distraction, Sophia and I went to a dinner at school to introduce her to the Drexel community who all welcomed her with open arms (although per doctor's order nobody in crowds is allowed to touch her without "scrubbing in" for these first few weeks of her life).

It was so much fun taking her out--first bundling her up, then carrying her in the car seat to the car, schlepping the giant car seat from the car 4 blocks to the dinner, hanging out, and then reversing course. I imagine my biceps will get back into shape post-chemo even without going to the gym with all this wacky paraphernalia. But it just felt great having her out with me, father and child on their first of many adventures. Some day I'll tell her about the first time I took her someplace and how incredible that made me feel, and she'll probably just look at me like I am crazy and head out for her own version of a night on the town which most certainly won't include me.

On our way home it started to snow lightly, which marked a beautiful end to our special night out.

Sophia

Sophia was a bit fussy today, skipping two feedings then eating, then skipping two feedings again before slurping down an entire dairy's worth of milk. Otherwise, mother and daughter are doing well, and are both napping as I write this.

Movie Day With Sophia

This afternoon Sophia and I watched The Empire Strikes Back. I know that I have introduced Sophia to the ways of The Force out of cinematic order, but she is already hooked and is insisting that we start from the beginning of the Star Wars series tomorrow. I am afraid to disappoint her and tell her just how bad the three prequels are so I'll just let her judge for herself.

Today was a good day here despite some Sophia pukage. Her puk-o-meter is now at two, and we are trying to manage Jacqui's effusive milk flow into Sophia a little better. Because Jacqui had pyloric stenosis--an overgrowth of the pyloric valve which connects the stomach and the small intestine, a condition which causes projectile vomiting and requires surgery at 3 weeks--we are watching Sophia closely. The condition can be heritable, but we are hoping that this is just a passing gasiness, something she may have inherited from her daddy.

Meanwhile, I had an ultrasound of my spleen today to confirm that I am indeed lymphoma free. Everything looked good, and on Thursday I start a series of procedures which gear me up for the autologous transplant that will begin on January 2.

Baby Naming Postponed

It has been a whirlwind. And an amazing one at that.

Sophia, Jacq, and I are at home now with Otis, and our family had a nice night just being on the couch.

We have decided to postpone the baby naming for either a few weeks or a few months. My father had a small procedure last week, and can't travel comfortably for a few weeks. And for a guy who wanted to be a grandfather just about more than anyone on this planet, we couldn't go ahead without him. We will keep you updated once we have a new date.

BUT... we will be hanging out at home this Saturday and will be welcoming friends and family who want to come by during the day to meet Sophia (or just stop by to admire my shiny head). So we hope to see at least some of you this Saturday and all of you once we have a date for the baby naming.

Sophia Comes Home!!!

Today we left the hospital, and it is so good to be home. Sophia loves her new house, her big brother Otis, and Jacqui's fresh milk which has now come in in abundance. The photos below mark Sophia's trip home. Enjoy!

Quick Update

Sorry no pictures today, but I am home for just a few minutes and I forgot the camera cable in the hospital.

Sophia and Jacq are doing great. After a few days of having a rough time nursing, Sophia and mom finally seem to be in sync, and the kid is drinking to her little heart's content.

We leave the hospital tomorrow, and are all excited to be at home. Jacqui is healing quickly, but is still weak from the c-section. We'll move our bedroom downstairs for a few days until climbing the stairs is again easy for her. Otis is especially excited to meet Sophia, and tore up three plastic bags and ate a hairbrush to tell me so.

We are so appreciative of all the calls, emails, and visits in the hospital. We can't wait for all of you to meet Sophia soon.

Beautiful Sophia

Blessings

At my marrow biopsy last week I had instructed my nurse practitioner NOT to call me, under ANY circumstances, with the results of the marrow test. I wanted to be able to spend the weekend with the baby not worrying about what may or may not lay in my marrow. I just wanted to be free, and not think about lymphoma, and just focus on Sophia and Jacqui.

So much for that plan.

About 10 minutes ago, still sticking to the rules, Lisa (the incredible nurse practitioner who Jacqui and I love so much) sent an email both congratulating us on the baby and adding to our incredible happiness by telling me that my marrow was lymphoma free. Because the marrow needed to be negative to proceed with the autologous stem cell transplant, and because having my marrow lymphoma free is a great sign of things to come, we are thrilled beyond belief and thank my incredible team at Penn who is making me well so that I can enjoy a long life with my lovely wife and our shiny new beautiful daughter who has brought us great blessings in her first hours of life.

And now for a bonus photo of mother and child...

More Sophia

Sophia Teri Rick Yudell

Our beautiful daughter, Sophia Teri, was born at 9:39pm weighing in at 7lbs,11oz. Mother, baby, and daddy are all doing well. Jacqui was a real trooper, bearing a rough day of induced labor and a C-section without a complaint and a smile on her face for most of the day.

We are exhausted and appreciate all of the love and support you have all shown us these past days and months. So let's all give a warm welcome to baby Sophia, and welcome her into our family which includes all of you out there.

All of our love,
Sophia, Jacqui, Michael, and Otis