The M&M Story

#1 (after peeing in the little potty) M: Can I name it, daddy? D: Your pee? M: Yes. D: Whatever, dude. M: It's name is Goopy! Can I pour Goopy in the big toilet? D: Absolutely. M: Can I flush Goopy now? D: Knock yourself out. M: Bye, bye, Goopy! Byyyyyye! #2 M: Daddy, do you ever poop on the wall? D: Um, no. M: Are you sure? D: Pretty sure, yes. M: You've NEVER pooped on the wall??? (shakes his head as if he can't believe it) Never EVER???

Okay, so I start the next phase of treatment on Tuesday. This week I've gone through screening, which basically means having my blood taken a few times and being quizzed on my aches, pains, and number of visits to the potty I make per day. Tuesday I'll go in at noonish and have my blood taken again, then get a shot of Benadryl, then half an hour later, start an infusion of Rapamycin (Rapamycin has been manufactured in several forms--this particular form is known as CCI-779). It's an mTOR inhibitor. mTOR stands for "mammalian target of Rapamycin," which seems redundant, but what the hey. It has something to do with cell growth and reproduction, and some kinases and proteins and whatnot. It confuses me, and I'm a medical editor. Anyway, the infusion of CCI-779 takes about an hour, and then I'm done for the week (except for a quick blood draw on Wednesday). CCI-779 is a clinical trial drug, so we're not sure just what it will do, but if we don't have

Two things to consider: 1. In Story , Robert McKee's screenwriting philosophy book, he says the hero of the story must be kept from his goal at all costs until the end of the movie. Just as he thinks he's within reach, it must be yanked away again. Otherwise, it's a boring, boring story. 2. Frequently, the three-year-old that goes to sleep for a nap is not the same three-year-old that wakes up two hours later. The toddler of 7:00 am to 1:00 pm is a cooperative, motivated, happy child. The toddler of 3:00 pm to 7:00 pm is a crazy, crazy person. All that to say, potty training did not go as well this afternoon as it went this morning. He woke up with dry underwear and received hugs, kisses, and a chocolate chip. But we went outside to play and soiled a couple pair of underwear within 15 minutes. Now, there is a difference between one's outside potty habits and one's inside potty habits, so we take heart that there has not been an INSIDE accident all day. But still, it

Naptime Originally uploaded by Maynor . You probably have not have had time yet to read the entry below, but I just checked on him, and this is what I found. He didn't get very far nto his stack of books. Of course, 1001 is a lot of Things to Spot Long Ago. I can see how one might fall asleep in the middle of that book, especially after a long morning of potty breaks. No word yet on dry vs. wet soccer equipment undies.

Several more visits to the loo today. I actually got teary-eyed during one of his colon moments*, and not just from the smell. The little dude's growing up. He did have one accident this morning, but it was his first time out of the house today, and it was drizzling rain at the zoo. And really, who among us hasn't been tempted during a drizzle in August? It's wet, it's warm.... It's rest time now, so he's reading books in bed, in UNDERWEAR. Little briefs with soccer balls and cleats all over them. So this is a big test. But he did #3 (1 + 2) before his rest, so we're crossing our fingers.... *my (hilarious) wife's favorite euphemism. It's even more icky than the real word, don't you think?

After months of stops and starts, today might be the day. We've been to the potty five times in a row, including both pee and poop. Two poops in fact. We've never pooped on the potty before now. This is big, folks. Real big.

"I love to work, work, work. That's my favorite stuff to do."