My 2nd Birthday! Day Zero has finally arrived :)

Today was GO DAY for me. I've been waiting for this moment for a long time now. The actual transplant process was pretty uneventful. It only took about 45 minutes to transfuse me. It had a really weird smell, though, like canned spaghettios, which is fine with me. Better than cooked broccoli, boiled eggs or nursing homes. My parents came down and brought me an awesome Spongebob Squarepants balloon hooked to a Meerkat stuffed animal...very random and funny! I love surprises :) I couldn't hold my breakfast down this morning, but I managed to do fine for the rest of the day. My parents went and got fresh pizza for dinner and it was SCRUMPTIOUS. It was nice having them both here all day with me...I didn't expect that, really. Boredom can kick in really fast in a hospital room, believe it or not, but we chatted and surfed the net together and all that good stuff.

I'm so happy that the process is done and over with, but nervous about possible side effects that could pop up in the next week and a half. I was thinking today about how this whole time I was focused on the units and if they would find enough for me. Then I started pondering on why this beautiful opportunity even exists. One unit came from a male baby in Orange County, California and the other came from a female baby in France. It amazes me that, in such a joyful moment, both parents thought beyond themselves and chose to give the possibility of life to someone else. How beautiful is that? I'm a total stranger who means nothing to them, but they are giving me the opportunity to save my life through an act of love that had nothing to do with me. It is amazing, that in those moments that should be completely theirs, people find a way to think of others. I am blessed that they unknowingly gave me the opportunity to prolong my life. This option was pretty much it for me. If they didn't find cord blood matches, then I was stuck with a half match which most definitely would have more complications. And I don't like complications. So, considering everything, life is good.