It's Been Two Years!!!

 My goodness…times flies when you’re having fun! I can’t believe how long it’s been since the last update.

Once it was time for Florida to come, we became extremely busy, preparing for the trip, fitting in doctor’s appointments and juggling three baseball teams between both boys. I guess you can say, we’ve been a bit busy but who isn’t!

So…here it goes. Our Make a Wish trip to Walt Disney World in Florida was absolutely more than we could have ever wished for. They took care of every detail making it the most satisfying and gratifying trip ever! We hit the Magic Kingdom, Epcot, Animal Kingdom, Hollywood Studios, Downtown Disney, Sea World, Universal Studios, Adventure Island, and Wet n Wild. All in one week, with sometimes two theme parks in one day! We were given VIP passes and were always escorted to the front of the lines so no waiting was ever involved. We even got up close and personal with dolphins and were able to feed them. The boys never stopped and always wanted to go go go! (And that we did)!

The village we stayed in was called Give Kids the World, it was a theme park in it’s self with restaurants, shows and parties that we really didn’t have time to take advantage of. Every morning a staff member would deliver a special gift to Jordan and when we first arrived our refrigerator was stocked with food and drinks. I could just go on and on about it. That alone was a very magical and whimsical place that made every child feel so special. Mainly this facility is ran by volunteers…again no way to describe all the little details and how truly wonderful this village was!

Weather was perfect…boy’s first plane ride was great and we even had a black stretch hummer limo pick us up and bring us home from the airport! I really wish I could describe the whole trip down to every detail, it was one made with a lifetime of memories! Thanks to the Make a Wish Foundation…truly a phenomenal organization!

Unfortunately, Jordan started to get sick with sore throat and stuffy nose on plane ride home that did end up with a fever and landed us almost immediately in the hospital. Yes…I know this was the last place we wanted to be after being gone on vacation and so exhausted. Once Jordan recovered, I got sick and took even longer than him to recuperate. But hey, we didn’t get sick on the trip and that’s what we were afraid of. So thank the good Lord for answered prayers!

Since then, Jordan has still been doing his regularly scheduled chemo along with chemo pills every night. The leukemia is in remission and I confess it will stay that way…in Jesus Name!!! School is going great for him and he is still very much involved in baseball. His hair is curlier then ever and the weight is coming on slowly but surely. I can’t believe today marks the 2 anniversary since he was diagnosed! We estimate that he has about 2 more years left of chemo therapy to go.

Still, there’s not a day that goes by that I’m not thanking God for his healing power that he has on Jordan’s body. We feel so fortunate that his life was spared. I admit…there’s always that fear in the back of my head that hinders me from having that complete peace I long for, but that’s when I start to remind myself of God’s promises.

When people ask, I always say when Jordan does good, we do good.

So…Shawn, Tristen, Jordan and myself continue to conquer on and fight the good fight. We really do know how truly blessed we are and may you all never take the precious life that God has given you for granted!

Psalms 91…this entire passage I have loved and stood on these past 2 years, let it minister to your hearts as well and may it carry you through whatever trials you may be enduring today…

No News is Good News!

Hello to all! Well… you know what they say, “no news is good news”!

It has been quite some time since an update and Jordan; I’m pleased to say is doing pretty well. School is good, baseball is good, and spirits are good! He turned 11 in January and is thriving in all areas…we couldn’t be happier!

The weekend of Jordan’s birthday, he filled in as an extra player on Tristen’s baseball team and really did well. Jordan was a little apprehensive at first because the boys are older and he’s used to playing with kids on his own travel ball team, but he had nothing to worry about and held his own! It was a great way to spend his birthday…playing baseball! We wouldn’t have it any other way!

He still undergoes the same treatment and we are fast approaching the 2 year mark of Jordan being on chemo therapy with 2 ½ more years left to go. We continually make trips to Kaiser for blood work and chemo (at times it seems grueling) but really, we do appreciate life as we do so. Not to mention, the doctors and nurses are really our extended family now.

Next month is our make a wish trip to Walt Disney World, we are so excited and was just told by our make a wish finder, “That we are going to have the time of our lives!”

Jordan has been home from school all week battling fevers, a sore throat and a chest cold. We barely avoided a hospital stay, but because we remain in faith and trust God to carry us through every circumstance, we have been able to stay home! This is always our main priority! Today, he seems to be on the mend. I sure hope he’s taking a turn for the better, all though, we forget he’s not your average child, with the normal immune system. So patience is a virtue with us these days.

If I had to request the focus a prayer at this time, it would be that Jordan is strong and healthy, with no bugs, flu’s or viruses that would keep us home from making our trip to Florida next month. The last thing we need is to miss such an exciting trip to Walt Disney World.

May God be continuing to watch over your families, keeping them healthy and whole!

Hello 2011!!!

Happy New Year friends! The holidays have come and gone…again! We all are doing great and Jordan is doing pretty well himself.

Jordan is still doing the normal chemo, along with continuous blood work at the doctor’s office. He was just in the hospital a couple of weeks ago for his spinal tap along with some chemo meds, which he tolerated well.

That day I was making a picture diary of Jordan’s typical day at the hospital to share with his classmates and I thought I would share a few with you.

I included our last picture of a very long day at the pediatric oncology ward, that I had a nurse take when we were finally walking out of those doors…the smile on Jordan’s made me realize what a trooper Jordan really is and how he has adapted to the life of a child diagnosed with cancer.

His weight is at an all time high at a whopping 74lbs! His hair is growing rapidly after loosing it for the second time caused by the radiation to his brain. The guessing game between Shawn and I is…will it come back curly like the first time it grew in after loosing it from the chemo or will it be straight like it originally was?? Jordan wants it to be curly…I prefer it to be long and straight! (I still try to hold on to any of the old Jordan that brings me back to how he was before the “cancer” days).

Christmas and New Years were much better than last year. Last year during this time we were still undergoing the aggressive chemo therapy that put a damper on our holidays. This year, Christmas was spent with family and lots of festive activities such as ice skating, a Christmas play, movies, games, and plenty of fighting with Tristen while on Christmas break!

To make things exciting over the break…the week before Christmas Jordan ate a bite of See’s Candy that he thought did not have peanuts in it, but the piece of candy did and Jordan started with an allergic reaction to where his throat began to close up. To make a very long story short, we had to call 911 and he had to go to the emergency room in the ambulance…as if we aren’t at Kaiser enough! (And this was the week we weren’t even due there)! Thankfully, the bite he ate had very little peanuts in it. I can’t imagine the reaction had it been larger! And for the record, we always inspect the piece with him before he eats it but this time he felt confident on his own that it had no peanuts and did not check with us. Again…God has his back! He recovered with flying colors but I must say it was a very scary moment for the entire family!

As if the peanut reaction wasn’t enough excitement for the holidays…the week after Christmas the boys were playing baseball in the front yard and Jordan threw a baseball into my back expedition window shattering it to pieces!! It was just what we wanted…especially with all the rain!! NOT! There’s never a dull moment with us!

New Years was good...no mishaps! Last New Years Eve Jordan was super sick in the hospital from heavy chemo, so this year we were able to make our annual trip to our family’s cabin out in the desert and the boys and their cousins rode quads and bikes till their hearts content despite freezing weather!!

School starts back today. Prayers will continue for both boys to be protected from any germs and bugs that would land Jordan in the hospital and baseball resumes for both of them! I can’t even look at Jordan without saying, “THANK YOU JESUS”! He is our walking miracle! I’m so thankful 2010 did us well and now we enter 2011 with the same hope, faith and expectations that God will provide, protect and continue his miraculous healing upon Jordan!

In March we will go to Walt Disney World in Florida for Jordan’s “Make a Wish Trip” that we are very excited for! Jordan will be turning 11 on January 15th…this marks another milestone! So thank you all for your continued support and prayers as Jordan continues his journey filled with high hopes and dreams that will be a testimony for all!

May God richly bless you and your families in 2011!