Celebrate!

Life had been bombarding us lately.  Nothing bad, just trying to keep up with it all.  It can be a bit much at times.  (Normal life for any parent, right?)

November 4th marked the 26 month of our daughter's chemotherapy treatments for leukemia.  You can read about the last treatment here.

I thought I would share a few pictures of the journey.  It's been amazing looking back and seeing all she has gone through.  It's easy to forget sometimes how much she has endured.

The beginning.... 2 weeks before diagnosis.

The start of realizing something was really wrong. 2 days before.

Initial blood draw.

Admitted to hospital.  2 units of blood and 1 unit of platelets needed.

Port implant.

Hair loss.

Struggles

And triumphs.

Giggles and grins,

And days that just weren't the best.

Lumbar Punctures,

 And medicines.

Art and Physical Therapy.

Fundraisers.

Breakdowns in grocery stores.

Hot flashes.

Long days.

Getting done what needs to be done.

Wishes made and realized.

And embracing all that has happened.

Since our daughter's chemotherapy came to an end the first week of November, we felt a need to celebrate.  And that's exactly what we did!  Lots of friends from the area where we live helped us congratulate Madi on all she has endured and accomplished.

The Grandparents were even able make the long drive to attend.

She has been through more in two years than most people go through in a lifetime.  She's a stronger and better person for it all.  I can't wait to see what she and our other kids do in their lives because of what they were exposed to during this phase.

As a mother, I'm learning a new type of worry.  Don't get me wrong, there's a lot of relief right now.  However, I'm also concerned every time she takes a nap in the middle of the day wondering if the treatments didn't work.

Tomorrow we go in for a final lumbar puncture and bone marrow biopsy.  Please, please, PLEASE - take a moment to say a prayer for our little one!  While I know we would be able to go through all of this again, it's NOT something we want to do.  I'm very selfish in wanting my kids to now be able to live normal lives and not lives consumed by appointments, medicines, worries or illness.

Thanks for all the kind words of encouragement up to this point.  You will never know how much even the smallest of acts has helped over time.

I'll let you all know the results of tomorrows tests as soon as we know!

Madi Made A Wish

A little over two years ago, our third child was diagnosed with ALL (acute lymphoblastic leukemia).  It's been quite the journey.  If you would like to read more about this, feel free to visit Madi's Milestones.

As we near the end of this chapter in Madi's life, it seemed really appropriate to have Make-A-Wish contact us to find out what Madi's wish would be.  Is it any surprise a 7 year old girl wanted to make a trip to Disney World?!

This trip was definitely magical for our whole family.  That's right - the whole family, all 7 of us, got to go to Florida for a week.  Amazing!  Everything was taken care of for us.

We got a limo ride to and from the airport.  A first for all of us.

We then maneuvered through the St. Louis airport.  Kevin in the front, since he is very familiar with traveling in and out of this airport, and me in the back corralling little ones.  Not sure how many times on this trip I said 'eyes in front' to keep the kids from running into people.

Anxiously waiting for our plane to arrive.

Three of the five kids had flown in the past, but that was six or more years ago.  They will definitely remember this trip!

When we arrived in Orlando, there was a vehicle waiting for us to use the whole week we were staying.  So generous!

From the airport, we made our way to the village at Give Kids The World.  This place was amazing!  Here we are in front of our villa.  Our family of 7 was very comfortable in the space.

During our stay, we were able to visit Disney World and Universal Studios.  Both parks were a lot of fun for our family!  Disney's Magic Kingdom was definitely a favorite for our family, though.

While Magic Kingdom was a favorite, Universal Studios and Islands of Adventure had the bigger rides to appeal to the older kids' adventurous side.

Lots of fun was had in both places, though.  Madi had special passes at all the parks that essentially worked like unlimited Fast Passes.  Very little waiting at either park with the passes and the smaller amount of visitors for the time of year.  (I can't imagine going during the summer months!)  We made sure to enjoy the perks.  If we go back, it won't ever be the same.  They definitely spoiled us!

There were a couple of hot days during our trip.  Lots of ice cream was consumed that week.

We even had a few meltdowns and 'moments'.

And we were all completely worn out by the end of each day.

Life got back to normal very quickly.  School the next day, church that evening, and treatment for Madi on Thursday.  Here's Mr. Tom playing a game with Madi during her appointment.  He spends time with any of the kids and helps keep them on track with their school work.  He and Madi worked on math before getting out the game.

Our weekend was full, too, with pre-teen Bible study Friday night, Tough Mudder on Saturday (for Kevin) and then church on Sunday.  I'm really not sure how all you that have kids in sports do it all!  I still don't feel fully recovered or caught up.

The memories from our trip are amazing!  Such perfect timing for our family, too.  Madi will soon be done with her treatments for leukemia and this was a great way to start the celebration.  She and the rest of the kids deserved to have this magical time for all they have been through.

Thanks for all your prayers on our family's behalf.  Please keep them coming!  Madi may only have one treatment left, but she will forever have to be monitored in life to make sure this nasty illness never comes back.