Susan again. First, thanks to all of you who wished me a happy birthday via card, email, or Starbucks! I actually did have a great day with my best childhood friend Jill who came to visit NYC for the first time. Of course I also spent much of the day with Dan. The nurses even brought ME a balloon and cup cake...Red Velvet, which you should try if you haven't. They even sang to me...they are the best!

Dan's progress is slow but steady after an exhausting week. To say he's been a trooper is like saying Michael Phelps is a decent swimmer. Everyone involved here at Sloan is hoping for his white blood cell count to appear in the next few days, which would provide some major relief on many fronts. For now he is very sleepy, although each day we go walking a little bit further and more frequently around the floor. He's been receiving multiple platelet and blood transfusions every day since his own bone marrow is still wiped out, but again, all of this is to be expected due to the extremely high doses of chemotherapy he received.

I always loved "The Tortise and the Hare" story when I was a kid...and I always rooted for that tortise...and no matter what the story's edition he always won.