We knew the next few weeks were going to be a gruelling time for Stevie and we had been told all of the side effects that she might get, each was worse than the last, but, we were lucky and apart from a very sore mouth and throat, which nearly every one gets, this was treated with morphine for a few days, Stevie had very few side effects. 2 weeks had passed and she was doing so well that I was allowed to be another of her visitors and managed to spend some time with her in the isolation room. I was so excited and so was she, we spent our time together playing with her new parchment kit and talking about silly mundane things, but the time we spent together will be a memory I'll always cherish.

Fairly soon she was allowed to come home, she still had to be monitored daily by the unit, all her food had to be sterile and she was still taking an enormous amount of drugs daily. The responsibility on my sisters shoulders must have been immense, it was all down to her now not the hospital.

Then a couple of months ago Stevie was allowed to reduce her antibiotic intake which caused her to break out in shingles and yet another hospital stay was required. The family were at panic stations again, just when we thought everything was going well, another set back! But the shingles were controlled by very high dose antibiotics and she was soon allowed home.

The scabs were fading and her life returned once again to that of school and play, until, she did the most stupid thing imaginable... she ran into a road and was hit by a car. Life really did seem so unfair, she'd suffered so much WHY did this have to happen? We were so angry with her, she'd been through so much, that to have nearly lost her through a senseless road accident was too much for us to get to grips with.

Her wrist was broken and needed plaster but her thigh bone was badly shattered and needed pins to help it mend, yet another operation was needed. All went well and she had to start on physio to help the leg heal and regain strength. This has been the only time that she has really complained, she hated the physio and cried with the pain.

A few weeks on and she was walking well and a couple of months later back at school, sometimes we wonder "what will be next?" but you can't live your life like that, we just have to take each day as it comes and worry about anything when and if it happens.

The last couple of years has shown just how much courage one little girl can show, and it has taught me that "what if" is actually worse than reality. We'd spent 2 years dreading relapse and thinking about the consequences, but in reality, it happened, we dealt with it and the horror of the transplant was worse in our minds than the reality.

Through out the transplant I tried to be strong for my sister and Mum, and only think positive things but there were times I was low. Thanks to the love and unending support from the friends on the Papercrafts list @ egroups Parch-Paperlace @ Egroups and the Parchcraft list @ Bestway Imaging I coped. My friends there are some of the most wonderful people I've ever had the luck to meet. Stevie has received so many cards and well wishes from all over the world, but I am the lucky one from these friendships, I have received that that is priceless, true friends.


Yes, Stevie has a long way to go, and there is still the spectre of AML haunting us but one day at a time is all we can do.