The last couple of weeks Madelyn was more tired than usual, had a low grade fever off and on, (99 maybe a 100), complained of being cold a few times and was a little more tearful. Now looking back it makes since but at the time it just seemed like she was fighting off some virus or bug. The night before Halloween and again Halloween morning she had a 101 temp. We decided since the fever is getting higher and she didn’t quite seem like herself that we would go ahead and take her in. We were thinking maybe she needed some meds to get her over the hump. At the doctor office they did a throat swab for strep but they noticed her pale hands and lips so they ran her hemoglobin’s. They also palpated her belly and noticed a slightly enlarged liver and spleen. No strep but her hemoglobin was a 4. It would be an understatement to say shit hit the fan pretty quick after that. They brought in Dr. Isreal to help explain things and they called Steph (Dr. Galdes) who is our family friend but also Madelyn’s main pediatrician who wasn’t in the office that day. Steph called me while I was still in the office. She helped keep me calm while they were waiting for some more tests, calling DeVos and doing their doctors stuff. At this point I knew things were bad and we would probably need to be in GR for a night or so but we were still hoping it was some sort of inflammatory blood thing, that I have forgotten the name of. I called Brad from the doctors office. He was traveling home from WI that day. I was hoping I could catch him in O’hare before he boarded his flight to TC. I wanted him to change his flight to GR. I got him right after the doors closed. He thought I was just calling to tell him she had was fine or needed a round of antibiotics. So I freaked him out just in time for them to tell him to turn off his phone. Dr. Isreal gave me his cell phone number and between him and Stef they sent me home to pack our things and drop off Parker with a family friend until Bumpa and Julie could get up to TC. I was then going to pick up Brad from the airport and drive to GR. Dr. Isreal called me and asked me to take her temperature again. She didn’t have a fever at their office. It was 100.5. He didn’t feel comfortable with us traveling that far with her having a fever. I’m guessing he was thinking worst case of Leukemia and her having an infection or virus. So he sent us to the TC ER to get more test run then maybe antibiotics before we went to DeVos. Stef came to sit with us. Then Brad finally landed and Ubered over. After 3.5 hours later and an excruciating “putting the IV in” a doc finally mentioned the word Leukemia. We won’t fret over his horrible delivery or bedside manor. They arranged to take us via ambulance to the mediflght plane and flew Madelyn and I to GR.  Brad and Bumpa drove to GR, in our first snow ice storm of the season.