Picc Line Up Close

There isn't much that's not "close and personal" about a picc line since it goes through your vein to your heart. It is an amazing little device for chemo. The doctor made a joke when he pulled it out that "mom would want to keep it for her scrap book." (I must be transparent! But I am not going to put it in a book. I will put it in a box of the treasures from his time with cancer.) LOL!

We were really glad when the results came back Cancer Free because the entire week before Corban had had a rash all around his arm near the picc line. It is slowly healing now, but as Mr. Blue Eyes reports it is still a little itchy. We are very happy not to have to be FLUSHING it out everyday with Heparin. WOO HOO!  I am mostly just enjoying watching him be a little more cancer free every day. He has been really low on energy today, but his energy waxes and wanes.
Tonight we talked to him about how blessed he is to have come through this cancer free in the end. At nine, I am not sure he can really understand how precious and fragile life is. Blessed for sure.... It is a huge blessing that he is young with a strong body and spirit.

Past and Present Pictures

Mr. Blue Eyes will remain on the antibiotic for the next six months. He will take it every weekend four times. We see the doctor on October 29th. He said we will have to check to see if Corban will need all of his booster shots again, because chemo can wipe them out.
 It is almost scary not going in to see the doctor next week. YIKES!   Although we will be going to see the dermatologist in the next couple weeks so she can look at his scar on his side. Interesting stats: Corban weighed 86 pounds when he started chemo. He now weighs 94 pounds. He has a little more girth to him from the steroids. For that matter, so do I, but it is from stress not steroids. LOL!
   Last night was nice for Mr. Blue Eyes; we celebrated kid style. He got to have a friend over and his brothers had friends over (after we checked to make sure that no friends we invited were sick).  They played and played, had tacos, and then watched a movie.
These pictures were taken in front of the hospital by the fountain almost exactly two month apart. It seems like much longer than that. Maybe because so much has happened since then. WOW!  He is amazing and strong!
 

 

Lower than a Snake' s Belly

One Exhausted Mom: I think for myself, I am still in shock that the cancer is gone. I wish today that knowledge had brought me more comfort. I feel like we fought a battle and won, but somehow, the war is not over. I have felt like I have had to hold it together — to fight, to not stop looking up, so as to not completely loose it. (Though I have lost it on many occasions.) I am no longer holding it together. I am officially going down, tears, fears and all!!! That roller coaster ride I was on has officially crashed.
I have been in a completely different mode of life. I have been a nurse, a counselor, a mom and companion to my Mr. Blue Eyes, along with taking care of everyone else in the family. I have had very little time to process these events, I have mostly had to just push through. I have been living at a heightened level for months now. It has been the hardest thing I have ever had to do. I did not have a choice whether I could do it or not, I just did it. To be completely honest, this stinks. I hurt everywhere. My heart is raw. The let down from living this way is immense, and I am sure it is just going to take longer than I thought to find our new normal. I wish I were jumping up and down, but the fact is that I have a kid with a compromised immune system, and I am scared to death of his reentry into the world. It makes me feel sick to think about it. Cancer is gone, but not the unease of knowing it could come back. There is a lot to adjust to. I also feel guilty after seeing all the other moms at the hospital taking care of the cancer-ridden kids, and mine is going to be OK and theirs are not yet. Fourteen percent of them will not even make it. That breaks my heart. This is a war that must be won. I will never stop fighting for it.

Someone dear to me said that I seem so strong from what she has read on the blog. I assured her I am not. Anyone with this battle ahead would do what I did. I am just a normal mom that tried to help my son fight in his battle with cancer. I have recorded it for him, for my family and friends, and for any mom out there who may be in my shoes. (Follow the link to a post I wrote mid-journey that I just got brave enough to publish.)   So to be real with her, and anyone else who is reading this, I am not going to hide the extent and cost of this journey, and how I feel on this dark night. This has been unbelievably hard. I am just a normal person falling apart, or as my Aunt says, feeling "LOWER THAN A SNAKES BELLY."  I'm not sure how this will go, but I will feel it, grieve it, and eventually I will get myself together again.  So this will be my quote to hold onto tonight. I am sure in the morning a new day will look brighter.

BLESSED

 

Cancer free = Blessed.
 Could not be any happier!
  So thankful for answered prayers.
It feels a little surreal at this point and I keep tearing up.
Thank you for all your prayers, support, and love. 
For the next year we will see the doctor every month and have blood draws. We will be in his care until he is 18.  Mr. Blue Eyes will likely have more Pet Scans over this next year also. His blood counts are low so we are going to hold off on going back to school. He needs to build his immune system back up.
We will continue to update this blog for the next five years, which will bring us to October of  2018 when Mr.Blue Eyes is 14 years old.

 We feel so blessed to have this amazing doctor! We prayed to get a doctor like Dr.Armenian, and we will forever be grateful for his knowledge, humor, and abundance that he brings to his practice. He hugged us today to congratulate us. I could have just burst into tears and soaked his nice white coat.
He cured our Mr. Blue Eyes! Forever grateful!

Pet Scan

 

 

 

Up at 4:30 a.m. for the Pet Scan.  He was a trooper.  

We are all gearing up for the scan tomorrow.  Holding our breath,crossing our fingers and toes!!! (We really hold our breath when we look at this picture up close seeing all the FLAMING HOT CHEETOS and residue in Mr. Blue Eyes Teeth from gorging on them.)  Mr. Blue Eyes comments that "he does not want to do it and the part of that that he does not want to do is the whole thing.  I just wish they could just tell without it."  I wish they could to but until then 
Mr.Blue Eyes is going Radioactive
tomorrow.

Notes from Mom.  Tomorrow is the day we have been waiting for that tells us what kind of work the chemo has done.  The odds are good so we are hope full.   I tend to be of the mind set that if it is not gone we will fight harder and longer.  We know more about what it means to go through treatment. I am not afraid anymore to fight.  I hope with all my heart he will not have to do this again however  I will do anything for my Mr. Blue Eyes.   This experience has changed me.  Mostly for the better though I have never been through anything harder.  I will advocate for children's cancers and never forget how this experience has touched our hearts so closely. 
 I wrote in one of the first post and later found it quoted in a talk.  I read it over and over again.: 
Orson F. Whitney said: “No pain that we suffer, no trial that we experience is wasted. … All that we suffer and all that we endure, especially when we endure it patiently, builds up our characters, purifies our hearts, expands our souls, and makes us more tender and charitable. … It is through sorrow and suffering, toil and tribulation, that we gain the education that we come here to acquire.”⁵

Recently a nine-year-old boy was diagnosed with a rare bone cancer. The doctor explained the diagnosis and the treatment, which included months of chemotherapy and major surgery. He said it would be a very difficult time for the boy and his family but then added, “People ask me, ‘Will I be the same after this is over?’ I tell them, ‘No, you won’t be the same. You will be so much stronger. You will be awesome!’”

Mr. Blue Eyes will be stronger,  stronger in spirit and as his body recovers that will be stronger too. God is forever my strength, prayer continues to be my rock.  So glad God has this in his hands.  We trust that Mr.Blue Eyes will live the life God intended.

Top Ten and a little nervous

When I spoke with Mr. Blue Eyes about the upcoming scan on Friday at 6 a.m. he said. "I am excited about finding out if I don't have cancer. I am not excited about the scan. I don't like that I have to have a special diet before I go." Mr. Blue Eye says he is a little bit nervous.

When we were talking the other night, he said that he is going to keep his head bald.
Top Ten Reasons Mr. Blue Eyes Is Thinking of Staying Bald.
1. It is easy to take care of.
2. It is easy to shampoo.
3. It does not itch.
4. All we do to make it look really good is shave my 5 hairs with shaving cream and dads razor.
5. Everyone likes to touch my head, and I like that it feels good when they do.
6. I especially like that you rub my head, Mom.
7. It helps me not feel so hot.
8. I like that blankets feel cozy when I rub them one my head.
9. Everyone says I have a good shaped head.
10. Bald really is Beautiful.  LOL!

Tapatio

This made Mr. Blue Eyes' day on Friday.
 Look what a dear friend dropped off. That is truly a reflection of him — especially since he has been in treatment. He is saving the poster for his college dorm room.
It has been amazing to see moments and glimmers of hope for our NEW NORMAL. Mr.Blue Eyes went outside and kicked a soccer ball; he played with his sister and fought with her; he wrestled with his brothers.  We have not seen any of this since treatment started. Then at night he crashed into stomach pain and became an emotional mess. It got so bad I called the on-call doctor at City of Hope. We drugged him up, and he was OK.
One day at a time is how we have to roll. It is a bigger adjustment to trying to get to the NEW NORMAL than I ever thought it could be. 

Listen to your heart...

Little sister got to come to chemo today, and so did our Meema, the kids' great aunt who is visiting from

Washington. She is wonderful!

Today was a blood draw and check up. Next Friday is the BIG DAY. Mr. Blue Eyes gets his Pet SCAN that day. He is doing well enough, back down to a 2.2 on the white blood cell count. It is low, but holding.  Our doctor said that we will likely make it though this without a blood transfusion. Awesome!
We had nurse Kim today. She is great with Mr. Blue Eyes! He loves to help peel the tape from the pick line that has to be changed weekly. She is so patient with him and lets him peel it all off! Little sister was lively and talkative, as always. She told the strangers in the elevator  that she had ponies, and she told the nurses that she had gotten a bite on her leg. They asked how she got it, and she said with a little spunk, "from a pidder" (spider). I asked Mr. Blue Eyes how he liked taking little sister. He said it was "OK and not OK." He thinks she is a little crazy sometimes.
The doctor came out to the waiting room to get us. He was looking for Mr. Blue Eyes in the fish tank, and being very humorous in the waiting room. Mr. Blue Eyes grinned and  turned pink. Then we went into the exam room to check on the little trooper. He checked out OK, even his heart. Then little sister got to have her little heart listen to by both Doctor Armanian and Corban, then the doctor gave her a prize. I am sure if anyone listened to our doctor's heart it would be full of kindness, knowledge, goodness, and of course some belly laughs. His heart and all the nurses have truly made this experience more positive and bearable. God could not have blessed us more in this area.     

 

We were in and out in an hour. WOW! It was so nice and really fun to have Meema with us...

Taking care of the soul

This is the quote that is in the rose garden area of the hospital. It is the one I attempted to quote some time ago on this blog. I love it! I did not even notice that there was a garden there. I have been so in the "getting my boy to chemo" mode that i did not notice it. That is very unlike me.
Today was the first time in months that my soul has felt lighter. We went to the doctor and had no chemo and possibly never will again. This has been one of the longest summers of my life. Mr. Blue Eyes has said it has sure been a longgggggg summer vacation for me. I marvel that he can still call it a vacation. WOW!

Last night we officially finished the last component of chemo; the Prednisone is over!
WHOOOO HOOOOOO!
He is so happy and so is his Mom. Mr. Blue Eyes is acting a little more human today, but is still low on energy. He did not need any nausea meds until tonight. He did get a very strange hacky cough that lasted just a day, but he seems to be fine now. He jumped in our bed to sleep and put his cozy hat on because he said his head was cold. This morning he got to hang out with his uncle and play the game LIFE. Then, this afternoon, the veins of life left us just hanging out with our feet up letting the day go by. We watched some Harry Potter and embraced a day of being low key.  

 

Awareness

I have had little awareness of CHILDREN'S CANCERS until I started the journey with Mr. Blue Eyes.  September is Childhood Cancer Awareness Month. Its ribbon is Gold.
So today I share to bring awareness.
This link is important to read. 
It is alarming, but enlightening for all of us.
Mr. Blue Eyes' ribbon color is lime green. I did not even know before he got lymphoma. In fact, I only thought pink ribbons existed. There are many. We are rocking the
lime GREEN (press the green to see more)

 

Mr. Blue Eyes is getting by today, low energy, still feeling a lot of stomach pain. We are still on the meds to help get him through. He did play Phase 10 with his dad and brothers today!

ANYTHING

Anything for YOU...

This is a harder post to actually get out there, because it echoes the sentiments of the heart. Not just any heart, but the heart of the mother of a very special nine-year-old, Mr. Blue Eyes who is fighting the battle with cancer. This journey has been hard, heartbreaking, and, at times, unbearable. I have wanted to hide from the world for fear I will just cry and fall apart. I have lost sleep. I have fought depression and anxiety. I have, on some days, felt I would lose my mind and all my strength.
God is aware of us and all that we need, just keep looking up. I am....(at least most of the time).

One of the many reasons I am keeping a blog of this experience is for you, the mother reading this who has found out that your child has cancer. First of all, I am sorry that you are here. But know that you are not alone. You will get through this. You will find you are stronger and braver than you ever thought you were.  Why?  Because you have to be. You have a little person depending on you for their hope, recovery, and strength.  You can do this...

I would never have thought this experience could give me gifts, but it has:

~I know now more than ever that God has always been there. My rock, my strength.

~I have been given a greater capacity to love. I love my kids more today than I did yesterday. Life is fragile; it must be cherished. Is it perfect? NO! But being aware of how we love is important. It is important to love..... to stretch.... to not give up on those we love....

~Time with my Mr. Blue Eyes. Time together everyday and night. He has been sleeping in our bed and is rarely far from my side. I have been given a gift of time; time I will never get back. We are very close, and I cherish that, in this hard time, he is my gift. To know him is to love him. It makes me smile to see his tender heart, funny sense of humor, acceptance of life, and his strength.

~I have come to see just how much people love me and my family. A good friend said to me, "I will do anything for you." With tears welling in my eyes, I said quietly, "I will need anything." It has been hard to accept help, kindness, and Anything. However, we have needed it. It has helped. It is amazing to truly feel the love of others. I cannot say that before this happened I had any idea how loved I was. I had no idea that my family was loved this much by others. It is in these times that we see the true depth of another's soul — the very best of them. My people in particular have been, well... Amazing.

~I have felt the power and strength of being prayed for and fasted for. I have been comforted, strengthened and lifted.

~I have come to not hate the word "cancer." I used to, because it stole my dad from me when he was only 30. Now that I have a cute little nine-year-old with it, I cannot hate it, that would give it more power.  I just wish it to leave my little guy's body. I hope that someday no one will ever have to hurt from it again or be in this situation. Hate is gone, and healing is the only way.

~Family, what would I do without them? I am thankful for their planned trips here just to help, for their constantly checking on us, texting, and leaving comments on the blog. I have thought everyday, "I will do this on my own." Guess what... I can't!

~I have learned that to grow is to be refined in a the fires of life. I am still in them, but I see the growth...

~It is humbling to realize that motherhood presents us with a chance to see what we would do for our children. The answer for me is, "Anything." I am more of the person I would like to be because I have had to set aside my needs for Corban and for my other children — talk about perspective and realizing what is most important. WOW! That has been a gift. Motherhood has always been a gift that just keeps giving. This experience has only made that gift more powerful.

~I have spent a good part of my life learning to give back: to donate quilts, school supplies, etc. http://mormon.org/values/humanitarian-aid.  I have sometimes wondered if it really made a difference.  WELL it does... I have seen the hospital care for our son with these special toys and blankets, even birthday gifts the day he had testing done on his birthday. It made all the difference. Why? Because when you're down, you need lifting. You need love. I once heard a saying that went something like this: "It is important to keep the soul happy, or there would be no point of treatment." What we do and how we give back matters.  I will be an advocate for children's cancer forever now. I will give with more conviction, knowing that it does matter. We can make a difference.

~I am in awe of those who have forged the path before me, for those who have loved through, endured, and even lost to cancer. They have created things like beads of courage, programs for families who have need of support, etc. We are not alone!

My advice on what to do: take breaks; you're going to need them. Pray and fill yourself with good, spiritually uplifting music and reading material. I am still learning the art of this. When I actually get out, I usually turn to a puddle of tears as I drive. You cannot be low around your little warrior, so I have really crashed when I have gotten out.  Accept all the help anyone offers. Basically Anything! (I know this is hard, but you will see you need it.) Let people love you and pray for your family. Talk about it, so it does not eat your soul. Be positive, especially to your little one.
                                                                               NEVER LOSE HOPE!!!!!

Throwing up

He woke up and got moving around and became sick quickly. Straight for the bathroom for a personal look into the toilet bowl and some expelling. I might note that while he made it until morning without throwing up the dog threw up four time through out the night. What a nice dog to feel so bad for his owner that he will barf allllllll over the place.  So nice! LOL!  The dog I just through out to the house and cleaned the mess.  For Mr. Blue Eyes we loaded the drugs on, and he has been a couch potato most of the day. He is not hungry and not wanting to eat or drink. This is normal for him at this stage. We see the Doctor next week, and then the big scan is on Friday the 27th. We are anxious to get that done for sure!

This is a picture of him in June before this all began. 

The DRUG line up.....

This is a picture of Mr. Blue Eyes when he was four. I thought it was fitting for the drug line up. The first time I read it, I felt like the picture looooks.  

The CHEMO drugs: Cyclophosphamide (Cytoxan), Doxorubicin (Adriamycin), Vincristine (Oncovin): destroy cancer cells by interfering with the cell growth cycle. These three will be given together three times, twenty-one days apart. Then there will be seven weeks straight of Vincristine. Every Thursday has been our day. It is called "nine weeks" of chemo, however, it is really seven weeks of chemo.

Other Meds:
Prednisone: an anti-inflammatory drug that may be used to fight many of the body's negative responses to chemotherapy. Taken for the first 28 days, then 14 days off, and then 5 days on again.This can alter your moods and it did do this to him a bit.  We called it getting on his Mr. Cranky Paints.(it made him defiant, moody and more emotional) The doctor warned us and said "good luck with that" with a smile on his face.
Zofran (ondansetron): helps with vomiting and nausea during chemo.
Clotrimazole: 10 mg.
Lorazepam (Ativan): helps with vomiting and nausea during chemo. (We found this also helps with anxiety. We love it for him.)
Sulfameth-trimeth antibiotic: We use it every weekend.
Heparin to flush his to lines from the picc. We do this everyday.
Famotidine (Pepcid): to help the stomach while taking Prednisone.
Biotene: mouth wash twice a day
Clotrimazole: antifungal medicine to help treat fungal infections. Given three times a day as a Troche.
The Transderm Scopolamine Patch for nausea. We did this one for the last two big chemos, and it made a huge difference.

BiG DaY

Mr. Blue Eyes is short one parent this week because his dad had business out of town. We were lucky enough to have the company of Todd's sister Wendy, who lives in Alaska and just happened to be in Cali this week for a wedding. She extended her trip to help us. HUGE HELP! She came with an adorable shirt and hat for Mr. Blue Eyes and his big day. She has been so great, taking care of everything at home with the kids. 

 

 

During the middle of the day the staff came in singing and waving a Shaker and gave Corban a metal around his neck with a pillowcase filled with prizes. It was the end-of-treatment celebration! I could have cried when they left. The doctor even took a picture of Mr. Blue Eyes and me. Then I snapped one of them. Seriously, they are just amazing. 

 

  We are home after 12 hours, and Corban has hovered over the bucket, but has not gone into full-on hurling. We are just wiped out and tired!
Mr. Blue Eyes had his last chemo today. It makes my eyes well with tears to type this.
  WOW!
Did it go fast? NO
not for mom.
Feeling blessed and feeling the prayers? YES
Is Mr. Blue Eyes excited? UH UH!

Today the Doc told Mr. Blue Eyes he was going to call the pharmacy to get him a special chemo off the back shelf. He was pretending to talk to them on the phone. He went on and on making him squirm and laugh. Mr. Blue Eyes could not tell if he was kidding or not.
Then during his exam, Mr. Blue Eyes told the doctor that he had stayed up really late. The doctor asked what he was doing????? "Watching some shows," replied Mr. Blue Eyes. He had a sheepish grin, not wanting to tell him what he watched. "What show?????" the Doc asked. Mr. Blue Eyes tells me not to tell him. The doctor guesses one, which was wrong, and then says, "was it 'My Little Pony'?" He goes on to say he likes that show, and that he is a Brony, and that there are Brony conventions for men who like My Little Pony. I have to say, I can never tell if he is serious, and I am gullible. So I googled it. LOOOKY HERE there really is! So the word is out: he is a cool doc and a Brony.
So are all my boys because baby sister likes My Little Pony. LOL!

 Before the chemo started, all Corban's anti nausea meds were loaded into the IV chemo, and then came a ton of hydration. This is essential so that you do not have damage to the kidneys from the chemo. Corban watched shows and played on the Ipad. I snuggled in the bed with him, and we watched the Dragon Pearl.  I dosed off a little. He felt fine until about 6:00, and then the pains in his stomach started. Soon he grabbed for the bowl and was hovering over it. We got more meds on board and headed home.... What a long day, but we liked it better than an overnight in the hospital!

Chemo was a go

Just a quick update from the hospital room. Chemo was a "go" today. Mr. Blue Eyes' numbers looked great, and his white blood cell count was up. We are hanging out getting him hydrated enough to hopefully head home by 7:00 tonight.

Beads of COURAGE

I have been wanting to document this amazing necklace of beads that Corban has earned on his journey with lymphoma at the City of Hope. It is a program called Beads of Courage beadsofcourage.org. It is an arts-in-medicine program designed to support children with cancer or other serious illnesses and their families.
The beads are different for each child, and they tell a unique story of courage.

With each procedure or milestone in his treatment Corban adds to his necklace. Each bead symbolizes the hard things he has had to do and reminds him that he can do hard things. 

The Life specialist at the hospital also gave his two brothers sibling necklaces. Mr. Blue Eyes is in charge of giving them their beads as he feels they are making efforts, supporting him, and working on themselves. It has been a great way to have the boys sit and talk with each other about the process of growing and learning. Tonight for our family night Mr. Blue eyes gave his brothers some special beads. 

Healing

 

Today we are documenting the healing of the ulceration. It looks so much better than it did in May. This week has been a more difficult chemo again. It was harder for the first couple days this time. Corban just does not feel well. I have tried to manage the discomfort with medicine as best I can. It is so hard to watch him suffer. It breaks me! I wish I had a magic wand. I don't, so I pray. Today he seems to be doing better. He has completely lost his appetite, which is really strange since he has always been my foodie, even before he was on the steroids. He has not lost the silly boy though. He has a suction tube (from the plastic sleeve that he puts over his pick line to shower) sucked onto his tongue in this picture. 

Big Brother Goes to Chemo with Mr. Blue Eyes

Big Brother with Mr. Blue Eyes heading into the City of Hope.

Mr.Blue Eyes with the
Best Doctor in the WORLD
DR. ARMENIAN

Check up with the Doctor and chemo with sweet Nurse Lisa.

Today was the second-to-last chemo! WOOOHOOO!  Big brother got to miss a little bit of school to come with us. He thought it was awesome! He loved hanging with his brother and sitting on my lap and taking funny photos of the two of us with the Ipad while we waited. We got Lisa and Georgie as our nurses today; they are great!  Overall, things are looking good. Corban's WBC count is 2.4. His ANC is 1.1. These are low, but hopefully they will hang in there for next week's chemo.

We also got a good fill of laughs with the Doc. He told Mr. Blue Eyes to lay off the beans, and the rest we cannot share because it revolved around regular boy topics in the bathroom. The Doctor had difficulty listening to the lungs because Mr.Blue Eyes was busting up with laughter on the table.  It is not a mystery as to why anyone laughs with this fun doc. He works with a really lovely nurse practitioner named Debbie, who we get to see almost every week. She keeps the doc in line and helps him runs the show.  Behind the scenes, there is an assistant, Cathy, that I got to meet today. Every time I call with a question, I always get her. We have talked a fair bit, especially in the beginning when I was still in the FREAKING OUT STAGE. I am sure I must seem a bit more rational and sensible now (well, maybe! LOL). She has always been so nice and reassuring to me.  She came over to the building just to meet us. I am not sure how they pack so many kind and genuine people into that hospital, but it is great for all who are treated there.
 In contrast, yesterday I went to the DMV to have my license renewed. It had expired back in June (yikes).  Well, I got a lady who was working on her crossword puzzle. She was taking my photo for the mug shot on the license. She had to do it two times. She was not friendly at all; she was rather curt and did not once look me in the eye. For that matter, she did not even tell me when she was going to take the picture, let alone when to smile so I could try to make myself not look like a sad convict. However, she did cross off three words while I stood there. I have thought of the contrast from yesterday to today.  People looked into our eyes today and cared. It matters that people care!!!! It matters when we don't look up from our crossword puzzles to see people standing in front of us. It matters, because every day we can take the time to touch those around us.

I love these sayings...
"Be the difference you want to see in the world." Gandhi
"Nobody cares how much you know, until they know how much you care." Theodore Roosevelt

PAPA CORN

 

Yesterday an elderly friend of ours (a great-grandpa type) was admitted to the City of Hope. He has T-Cell lymphoma. We have seen him at family gatherings through my husband's side. He is Todd's aunt's father-in-law. His body is weak. When I asked Mr. Blue Eyes how he was on the 1(good) to 10(bad) scale yesterday he said his body was a 6 and his heart had gone from a 2 to 4 because this sweet Grandpa guy has cancer.  I was touched that at his young age he has compassion for others struggles. 
We are praying for him daily. Hopefully he can get strong enough soon to start fighting against the cancer.
I took the boys over to see him with a card they had written in. We all masked up and put gloves on to protect him. He was sound asleep, so we just wished him well.... He is in good hands — God's and the City of Hope's. It just does not get better than that.

Mr.Blue Eyes turns into a Jr. Secret Agent

Today Mr. Blue Eyes had a really nice gentleman from our awesome church (The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints -www.lds.org ) come over. He is a special agent and shared a fun morning with Mr. Blue Eyes, who saw all the cool gear and got to try some of it on. Then they went for a little drive and Mr. Blue Eyes got to test out the sirens in the undercover car. They also went to the fire station to check out a truck —  a nine-old  boys dream day!

The Corban Camero!

 

I asked Mr. Blue Eyes what this post should be called, and he said, "The Corban Canoro." Then I asked, "Do you mean Camero?"   He said " UH HUH!" He got to go in his uncle's hot rod this weekend that was visiting from out of town. To quote him,
"It's and awesome car!"
He was Ache all weekend but still the sweet kiddo.   We let him in the pool for 5 min with his arm in the air and in a plastic sleeve that he wears to shower.  He loved that and hated to get out.  I felt the good that could come outweighed the risk.  I looked over at one point and he had his arm straight up in the air and the rest of his entire body under the water.  He looked like a broken shark!  After that I just held the large shark and we jumped around the pool together.  I would of photographed that but I was to busy trying to not let the shark submerge his entire self.

He really handles all of this better than I think I would. I have tried to make a habit of asking him on the scale of one to 10 how is body is and how is heart is.  He usually says his heart is a 2(mostly Happy) and his body is a 6 (not great but not horrible.)
It has helped me gage how he is emotionally and physically.  He is a hard to tell sometimes.  Probably his manhood coming out early.  LOL! 

Flushing in the BOX

On Wednesday this week, Mr. Blue Eyes went off the Prednisone, which he has been on since the first day of chemo. Being off this steroid and having chemo really whooped Mr. Blue Eyes' little keister. He laid on the coach all day Friday and didn't do school. He was my true little couch potato. Saturday and Sunday have been full of the aches and not feeling good. His feet are hurting, and he is walking like a duck. I cannot tell if he is being a dramatic nine year old or if he is truly turning into a duck. Hopefully he will have more energy tomorrow and we can tell for sure.
We have had family in town for the long weekend, which has been fun, and he loves all the extra lovin'.  Tonight we flushed his picc line while he was in a box, and he said, "It was fun and we should do it like this everyday." 

"Every day may not be good, but there is something good in every day."

"Today YOU are YOU, that is truer than true. There is no one alive who is YOUER than YOU."
—Dr. Seuss

WE LOVE YOU Mr.Blue Eyes!!!