All Dressed Up - Nowhere to Go

Actually... lots of places we'd like to go, but we can't right now. Abbey put this outfit on yesterday when we got home from the clinic and she looked so cute. I so wanted to take her out and share her cuteness, but know we will be homebound for a while now. Then I thought "all my blogger friends can see her :)" so here she is.... Our brave little warrior, continuing to truck on and beat this disease. We love this girl so much!!

Yesterday we went to the clinic, but not for chemo :). They looked at her blood to see where her numbers were and how she's handling the last treatment in the last phase. Her ANC which is the infection fighting part of her WBC is low. It is at 800, which means she is borderline neutrapenic and pretty succeptible to infection right now. So, we won't be taking her out of the house again until her next treatment day, which is next Thursday. Her other numbers looked really good so we are praying that her ANC is on it's way up and will be way up by next Thursday. The higher it is when she starts the next phase, the better.

She also had her echocardiogram and that went well. She was very patient and laid still while the tech did it. I was super proud of her. We are waiting for the doctor to call us today with the results, but feel confident that her heart is doing good. At this point they weren't expecting to see anything wrong, but just want to check it before starting the next round of chemo.

Jacob and I are both fighting off colds right now, which really stinks since she is borderline neutrapenic. We are washing our hands like crazy and wiping down the house continually. This is the first cold that's been in our house all winter, so we are doing everything we can so Abbey doesn't get it. I am the biggest baby when I have a cold! I always tell Jim that I'd rather break my arm then not be able to breathe out of my nose when I sleep. I know it's a little extreme, but I am miserable with a cold. Some of Abbey's "toughness" needs to rub off on me!

The last thing I want to share is how we have seen God's hand in many little things lately. A few days ago I was feeling down and discouraged as I looked ahead to these next two months, and that same day I got two things in the mail from friends with amazing encouragement and a phone call from another friend. God knew I needed that on that exact day and for that I was thankful. I love to love people by words of encouragement and that is also how I feel loved. Thank you so much friends (you know who you are :) for your words. Not only was I encouraged, but also was reminded of how intimately involved God is in this situation.

I also have been praying for some time now that God would show us how we could use this situation in others lives for His glory. As I washed dishes the other day and sang my heart out to some of my favorite Christian songs, I had this idea that I really felt like is from God. The night Abbey was diagnosed we laid in our room the whole night, just looking at our sweet baby sleep and having so many fears, questions and unknowns. It was a night that everyone of you parents can imagine and it was the hardest night of our lives. I so wished that I could talk to another mom that's been there. Another mom who has been shocked by those same words and who has been on this journey, with a healthy child in the end. Down the road, when this chapter of our lives is over, I'd so love to be that mom that they call when there is a new diagnosis, for that new mom and family, to talk to. I want to be available, no matter what time of day or night it is, to head to Rainbow 2, to hug that mom, pray with her and listen and tell them our story. Our doctors and nurses have been amazing since day one, but there were so many things that we had no idea what to expect and would have loved to talk to a mom whose been down this same road. So, although we still are on this journey and have a ways to go, I was so excited about what the future holds and how God is going to use our situation for years to come. I also was thinking that Abbey will have to be healthy and cancer free for me to be able to do this :) So, I think God was also reassuring me that we will get there!!!

Thank You Maddie

I have to tell you about this sweet girl named Maddie that our family just had the honor of meeting last night.  She is 11 years old, in the 5th grade and she has a heart for children with cancer.  She has grown her hair out three times, so she could donate it to 'locks of love' and after doing that she told her mom that she wanted to do something more.... something bigger for someone battling this disease.  

A little background on how we met Maddie.  My sister, Stacey is a dance teacher at Center Stage Dance Studio and teaches Maddie.  When Maddie heard about Abbey, she started thinking of a way she could help our family.  She rounded up some of her friends and on Valentines Day evening, Maddie and her friends (and her parents) spent the evening at the dance studio and told parents from the studio that they could drop their kids off there for the night to be babysat.  Maddie and her friends spent the night babysitting for free and at the end of the night they asked parents for donations for our family.  

We were so amazed by the generous amount of money that they raised for us and are so thankful that a young girl would have such a generous heart to do this for us.  We are also so thankful that so many people made donations for us.  Maddie and her mom, along with my sister came to our house last night to present us with the gift.  It was so nice to meet her and for the kids to get to spend a little time with her.  The kids colored this picture for her earlier in the day and were excited to give it to her when she got here.  

Over these last 4 1/2 months, we have had several groups of people do fund raisers or donations for us which I want to mention in this post also.  We never got the privledge of meeting many of them, but their generosity also was very appreciated and we are grateful for each person, both kid and adult that has helped us in this way.  From cheerleading squads, to groups in high schools, to police departments, to a hair salon, to people that we don't even know from across the country, we have seen an amazing outpouring of love for us with donations and we are thankful.  

We have had many people ask us about our insurance and what will be coming out of our pocket for Abbey's 2 1/2 year treatments.  We are very grateful that Jim has wonderful insurance through his job and almost everything is covered in full.  We do have to pay a co-pay for medications and getting to and from the hospital, and also if we go through the ER, there's a co-pay, but other than that all the other procedures and treatments are covered.  The money that we have been given has been mostly put aside, but some used so far for co-pays and travel expenses.  We are also looking into the possibility of getting a high tech air/surface purifier for our home.  With the money that one high school group gave us a while back, we got the ducts cleaned in our home. Thank you Maddie for your generosity and everyone else who has blessed us in this way!  We pray that God will bless you all richly as you've blessed us :)  

Interim Maintenance Complete!!!

We are done with Interim Maintenance!!!  Thursday was the last treatment for this phase and it feels incredibly good to be able to check another phase off.  And even better than that, Abbey is feeling great!  She has breezed through this phase and the doctors said they were very happy with the little side effects that she had this phase. They also were pleasantly surprised by how high her numbers were Thursday.  They said that by this point, kids numbers usually bottom out, but her ANC was right around 1900, which is great :)!!  

We have a two week break from chemo (I thought it was 16 days, but it's 14) and then we begin Delayed Intensification.  We have to go back this Thursday to check her numbers and make sure she is handling the chemos from Thursday o.k. and also for an echocardiogram (it's an ultrasound of her heart).  It is standard procedure at this point because one of the chemos that she's on during Delayed Intensification has been known in the past (like 15-20 years ago) when given in high doses to weaken the heart. Our nurse explained that she will be getting a much smaller dose of that then they used to give a long time ago and that it is rare to effect her heart, but they watch it to be on the safe side. 

Our doctor and nurse also sat down with us to go over what to expect for the next phase.   After this break, we have a rough two months ahead.  She will be on steroids for the first week of the phase, then will be off a week and then on one more week.  We have such horrible memories of the last time she was on them so we are nervous for those few weeks.  They build up in her body so by the end of the second week she is on them she will really be feeling the effects of them.  There are also weeks during this phase where she will be getting chemo 4 days in a row.  She will be on oral chemos daily and we will be at the clinic a good amount.  They also told us that hospital admissions are more common in this phase because her numbers will be pretty low due to all the chemo.  If she would get a fever and her neutraphils  are below 750, they would need to admit her.  We have never been admitted back to the hospital since she was diagnosed, but the nurse wanted to prepare us that it isn't uncommon.  The doctor explained to us that this is their last chance before maintenance to hit her bone marrow hard to make sure no leukemia cells are hanging around.

Please hang in there with us these next two months.  We have been so encouraged by many of you who are checking in to see how Abbey is doing and we need you guys right now.  After long exhausting days we always love reading comments and e-mails from you guys and we know we have many of those days ahead.  Please continue to pray for Abbey's full healing and for her body to handle this next phase better than expected.  In about 2 1/2 months, life will start to get back to a little bit of normal for us, but it will get worse before it gets better.  We continue to keep our eyes up and focus on the One who loves Abbey even more than we do.  We have seen His hand in this since day one and know He will continue to carry us to the end.   

Day 41

Sorry for the lack of posts lately...  Abbey has been feeling good since her fever last week.  She bounced back quickly from it.  We even took her out one night to Toys R Us for her to pick out a toy and to a small italian restaurant for dinner.  It was the very first time we've taken her in public (except for the hospital) and it was sooo nice to go out as a family and be "normal" for a night.  Since she was feeling good, and will be starting a tough phase next we thought this was a good time to do something special as a family outside of the house.  There was hardly anyone at Toys R Us so it was a great night to go.  When we got to the restaurant, I pulled out my clorox wipes and wiped down our table and her chair really good before we sat down.  People in the restaurant looked at me funny until Abbey took her hat off, then they understood what I was doing.  I'm sure we will get used to having her out (once she is in maintenance we will be able to be out more with her), but we will have to get used to the second looks.  Of course, people were very kind to us and we know people who are looking are just feeling sad to see a little girl who is sick.  

Tomorrow we are heading back to the clinic for the 41st day of this phase and the last day of interim maintenance.  We are happy to check off another phase, but are getting nervous to get into the next phase.  I know I've mentioned it before, but the next phase is called delayed intensification and it will be a very intense 2 months.  After tomorrow, she will have a 16 day break with no chemo.  Then the two tough months will begin.  After we make it through delayed intensification, we will be in the maintenance phase (yeah!).  We are getting close to the end of these first tough six months.  Please pray for us as we keep on keeping on.  Thanks!!

Abbey Update

Just wanted to do a super quick post to let you know Abbey is feeling much better.  She woke up with no fever and is seeming much more like herself.  She has been pretty active today and although not eating much, she says her stomach isn't bothering her.  We didn't have to take her back to the hospital since she seemed to come out of this on her own and so far nothing has grown in her blood culture.  Thanks for checking in on her :)  Have a great weekend.

ER for fever :(

Last night (or I guess it was considered this morning) at 3 a.m. Abbey woke up with a fever.  We had to take her to the emergency room because anytime her fever is over 100.4, they have to treat it as if it's a bacterial infection in her blood and give her antibiotics through her port as soon as possible.  Since the clinic is only open during regular business hours, anytime there is a problem after hours we go through the ER and the ER doctors stay closely in touch with our oncologist to tell him what her numbers are like and to decide what to do.  

Last night she was seeming "off" to me and laid on the couch much of the night before bedtime.  She was feeling warm, but her temp did not get to 100.4 by the time I put her to bed.  She woke up crying at 3 and she was very warm to the touch and her fever was over 100.4.  I called the doctor immediately and they sent us to the ER.  We were there until 7a.m. where they checked her blood and gave her the antibiotic.  We are home today and watching her closely to see if her fever comes back and how she does with the one dose of antibiotics.  She has no appetite today, but is playing and seeming better than last night.  She is saying that her legs hurt and wouldn't walk this morning, but as the day goes on, she isn't wanting to be held as much.  If her fever comes back, we will be going to the clinic first thing tomorrow morning for a second dose of antibiotics. If she seems to be on the up and up, we won't have to go back tomorrow.  So far her blood culture is not growing anything (good news) and they will continue to watch it for the next few days.  Please pray for her little body to get over whatever is going on and for this not to be a bacterial infection in her blood.  It's so sad when she's feeling sick and is hard to see the effects of the chemo.  We will let you know how she's doing if and when anything changes.  Thank you!

Music

The first song that plays when you open our blog is Abbey's favorite song right now so we thought it was only appropriate to put in on our blog.  Many nights after dinner, we pump music in our kitchen and dance around, sing and play pretend instruments.  Abbey (like her mommy) likes to hear the same few songs over and over and lately she keeps asking for this one :)  Pretty appropriate since we really never want to go back to just o.k.....  We are committed to being passionate followers of our God and our desire is for His love and grace to shine through us every day of our lives, no matter what our circumstances.  Enjoy :)

All Is Well

All is well here in the Colbert home.  Yesterday, Abbey's treatment went as planned.  Her numbers looked great so her body continues to handle the chemos in this phase well.  We had to be at the clinic at 8:30 so it was an early morning for us.  Her sedation time was at 10 so we usually have to get there around an hour and a half before then so there is time to access her and see what her numbers look like (and then walk across the hospital to sedation).  I talked with the sedation doctor about the last time and the hard time she had coming out of it.  This time was much better.  I think they gave her too much medicine last time because this time they didn't have to give her that much and when the procedure was over she came out of it quickly and happy.  I cannot tell you the relief that it is to see her open her eyes and for me to get to hold her after it's over.  Although we've done this more times than I can even remember at this point, it never gets easy and I am always so thankful when it's over.

We then went back to the clinic for her to get her methotrexate and vincristine.  We got the best room in the clinic with a great view so that helped time go fast while we were there.  The Cancer Center is on the 6th floor and our room was right under where the helicopters land so we got to see a helicopter come in.  There is also a lot of construction going on at the hospital so we got to see lots of tractors and workers working.  Probably doesn't sound too exciting, but when were sitting there watching Abbey get her chemo, it's nice to have distractions for all of us so we can think about and talk about other things.  

Abbey has been feeling good since we've been home.  We have been giving her zofran (anti-nausea medicine) every six hours and it seems to be keeping her belly calm.  A dear friend of mine from church came to clean our house today so as I was doing school with the kids, my house was being cleaned.  It was a huge blessing (thank you Tina :)!!  After we were done with our school day, we went outside for a walk.  It was warm (well, not really.....a whopping 50 some degrees :)  and nice to get some fresh air.  Spring cannot come soon enough!  We are very much looking forward to being able to spend time outside.  We don't have to go back to the clinic until next Thursday, then she will get her last treatment of this phase.  We then have a 16 day break before starting Delayed Intensification.  

Our brave little fighter is doing great.  Thanks for praying for her!  We are truly blessed :)   

Update

Just wanted to do a quick (or not so quick... sorry) update on things going on here.  Abbey continues to feel good. She is amazing us as she seems to be breezing through this phase so far.  We have had no issues this past week.  She is eating good, sleeping good, playing a lot and happy.  We go back Monday for the next treatment in this phase. They again will increase her methotrexate so the chance of sores and sickness will again increase.  She will also get vincristine and a dose of chemo in her spine (she will be under sedation for her spinal).  It is always hard to see her go under sedation and have to leave her while they do the procedure so pray that all goes well.  Last time she was put under sedation she had a really hard time coming out of it.  She couldn't open her eyes or even hold up her head for a long time and she was very weak for a while.  That had never happened before, so it was scary to see.  Please pray for her to come out of sedation quickly and feeling good.  We have two more treatments this phase and then will have a couple week break before starting Delayed Intensification.     

We have two weeks of homeschooling under our belts and it is going great.  I am loving it more than I thought I would and it is truly a joy to watch them learn new things each day.  Jacob is reading more and more each day and is soaking so much up.  Abbey is even starting to be able to sound some short words out.  They really are like sponges and absorb so much so quickly.  It has been really neat to watch.  Abbey is keeping up better than I thought she would.  It is a kindergarten curriculum so I thought a lot of it would be too much for her, but she is enjoying it and wanting to do most of it with Jacob and I.  I still am trying to get on a good schedule with our school day, but with time I think that will come.  Everyday has been a little different with what times we do what, but we are getting it all in at some point during our school days.  

Last night Jim, myself and Jacob went to church.  It was wonderful to be back with our church family!  We so love that place and have missed being there more than I even realized.  I had to hold back tears as we sang and as I looked around and saw so many people that mean so much to us.  After church, the three of us went out to dinner.  It is weird to be out and nice at the same time.  I often go over a week without even stepping foot outside (usually only on clinic days) so when I'm constantly home, going places is a little foreign at this point.  It was good though and I enjoyed my time with just Jim and Jacob so much.  

Jacob has grown up so much these last four months.  Last night at dinner, Jim and I looked at each other several times and just smiled at things he was saying and doing.  Every time the waiter would come and ask us a question like "how is everything", "can I get you anything", "do you need a box" Jacob would politely answer along with us.  He sat and talked with us much of the time and just seems so much older to us lately.  We know God is using this situation in his life and love seeing the little man that he is becoming.  He colored his kids menu really carefully and when we got home he was so excited to give it to Abbey.  He is a compassionate little guy and cares about his sister very much.   

Micah is good.  He had an ear infection last week, which came out of no where.  He had no cold or anything else going on, but just had a few really rough nights where he was up a lot and crying.  I finally took him to the doctor after the third rough night and she said he had an ear infection.  He's been on antibiotics for a few days now and is feeling much better.  He's been sleeping better than ever since he's feeling better and has slept 13 hours straight the last two nights.  Can I get a whooo hooo!  It has been wonderful!

We continue to be amazed at the peace that we have as we go through this time.  We have clung to God and each other and still sometimes have to remind ourselves what we are really going through.  I love my family with an unstopping love and am just so thankful for the life that God has given me.  It's not easy to watch my child battle cancer or something I would ever wish upon us, but I am thankful for where I am as a person and where we are as a family.  I feel confident that God is going to heal Abbey and God is forming me into a better wife and mommy in the meantime.  

One more thing... please continue to pray for little Abby Riggs (see button on right).  She is at a very critical time in her treatment and is having a lot of very concerning things going on with her body right now.  Jim and I have been praying for this little one so much lately and our hearts are so heavy right now for her parents.  When we compare our situation to hers, we have said many times that we have had an easy road compared to what they've gone through. Their faith is strong and we have learned many things through them.  Riggs family, we are praying like crazy for you and your sweet Abby.  

I will let you know Monday evening at some point how Abbey's treatment goes.  Please pray for high numbers and for her to handle the three chemos that she's getting well.  We feel covered in prayer and it means so much to us that you continue to walk this road with us.  There is something so comforting to us about seeing how many of you think about us enough to check in everyday and read how we're doing.  Thank you!  

  

 

Western Reserve - Grace Church

*Click on postcard above to enlarge picture and words*

We have talked in the past about how much we love our church and although I know many of you live out of state, we wanted to invite those of you who do live in this area to come check us out.  It is located in Macedonia and there is some super exciting stuff going on there lately.  This Saturday evening we are launching our Saturday 5:30 p.m. service and are also opening a new cafe!  

In the next four weeks, we will be in a series called "She is..." This series is "for women, and the men that pursue them."  That's all of us :)  right?!  Our Pastor, Jason Haymaker will talk on what God thinks about us women. 

Jim and I are so excited about this new day and time because Jim is a Police Officer and works many Sundays.  He works 5 weekends in a row and then has two off.  He loves his job and everyday does exactly what he wanted to do his whole life, but at times the changing shifts and rotating days off can be hard for family life.  It's also hard that for years he has worked many Sunday mornings and can't be at church.  Since Abbey got sick, his police department has been amazing in giving him dayshift for now (usually he would be rotating days and afternoon shift) because day shift is wonderful.  He is home by 3:30 pm which you can't beat, but rarely can go to church. Also, since Abbey has been sick we haven't been going since we can't take her and haven't been ready to leave her yet.

So, all that said, we will be starting to go to church every Saturday night which we are so excited about.  My sister Stacey, along with some others at our church are going to take turns coming over to sit with Abbey on Saturday nights so we can go.  We are praying that by summertime, we will be able to take Abbey with us :)  I can't wait to walk in that building again as a family!  I think it will be so neat for everyone to get to see this little girl that they have been praying so hard for and see how God is changing us all through this process.  Our church family has been amazing to us and I don't think they will ever know how much they have meant to us as we've gone through this difficult time.  

Click Here for the info. about our church.  Times, place, details about this series, etc....  If you don't have a home church, we really encourage you to check us out.  We promise, you will feel welcomed and at home the second you walk in the doors and you will love this place.  We feel blessed to be a part of this amazing group of people and would love for you to join us :)  

If you have any question, please feel free to e-mail us at jsjacolbert@sbcglobal.net  

Hope to see you there :)!

Abbey

I checked out our site meter last night to see about how many people are checking in with us daily and was excited to see that we had over 600 people stop in to check on us and our Abbey just yesterday.  Thank you so much for stopping in.  We feel blessed beyond words to have many people, both close friends and strangers praying for us and our Abbey and following our journey.  I truly feel that God has used our blog for me to get to know many of you and your situations and for your encouragement to keep us going.  Whenever we get a new follower, I always check out your blog and have enjoyed seeing who you are and getting to know some about your families.  We have some amazing people praying for us.  We love you guys!  

I was thinking yesterday how much fun it is to see videos of people because with a picture you can see what a person looks like, but with a video you can see a little of their heart and personality.  I shot these videos of Abbey yesterday and thought they'd be cute to share.  You can get to know our brave little girl and hear her voice and see her smile in these. (remember to pause the blog music before playing) 

I have done this in the past, but since we have many new readers, wanted to do it again.  Tell us who you are.  Let us know how you found us and maybe where you're from and something about you.  God has used many of your stories to encourage our hearts and keep us going.  

Below is a quote that a friend of mine just gave me.  It has been an encouragement to me today and I wanted to share it with you too.  We have seen God's hand since day one in this situation with Abbey and although hard, we know God has a plan and purpose.  We trust Him and will continue to look up as we go on in this journey. Thank you for being a part of it with us.

There is nothing--no circumstance, no trouble, no testing--that can ever touch me until, first of all it has gone past God and past Christ, right through to me. If it has come that far, it has come with a great purpose, which I may not understand at the moment. But as I refuse to become panicky, as I lift up my eyes to him and accept it as coming from the throne of God for some great purpose of blessing to my own heart, no sorrow will ever disturb me, no trial will ever disarm me, no circumstance will cause me to fret--for I shall rest in the Lord of what my joy is --That is the rest of victory. ~~Alan Redpath, quoted by Elizabeth George.

Tuesday

Things here continue to be good.  Abbey is seeming to 'breeze' through this phase with minimal side effects.  We stopped her anti-nausea medicine a few days ago and she hasn't complained of any stomach issues.  We will go back next Monday for her next treatment in this phase.  She has two more treatments this phase, then we will be into our last phase before the two year Maintenance phase. Next Monday when we go, she will get three chemos instead of the regular two that she has had each time this phase.  Day 31 they always do a spinal tap and give a dose of methotrexate in her spine.  Her methotrexate through her port will also be increased and she will get the vincristine.  Day 41 will be her last day of chemos this phase, then she has a couple week break before starting Delayed Intensification, which is a very intense phase.  We are enjoying these days of her feeling good as we know we have two rough months ahead.  

I am going to be vulnerable for a minute here.  Sunday was a very hard day for me.  For some reason, Sundays always seem to be my hardest day, but this Sunday was especially difficult to get through.  I so miss going to Church.  It has been four months since Abbey was first diagnosed and we have in a sense lived in a bubble since then. Before this, the kids and I spent most of our time at home, but Sunday was always our day to get out of the house and go to church as a family.  Even when Jim worked on Sundays, I would always go to church with the kids.  I miss being able to do normal things; go to the store or out to Chick Fil A for lunch.  It is hard to explain because we still can get out some and do these things without Abbey (we have several wonderful people that are willing to come sit with her or all the kids if we want), but I don't want to do things without her.  It's hard for me to do "family things" without all of us.  I miss Abbey being well.  We also have to be very careful not to take Micah out of the house much because he has really never been sick his whole life and we know the second we take him in a public setting he will be a magnet for sickness.  We just do not want to bring anything into the house because you know how it is when one kids is sick, they all get sick.  Since Jacob is a little older, has built up some immunities and is pretty mindful about washing his hands, he has gotten out a little more.  He has gone to some friends houses and has done a few things at church, which he has needed.  He has rough days here and there and there's days where I think he just needs to see some faces other than ours. 

Back to Sunday.  The main reason why Sunday was an especially rough day was because of a little girl named Tuesday Fiona Whitt.  She was a little over 2 years old and was diagnosed with cancer in July 2008.  On January 30th, her battle with this awful disease ended and she went home to be with her Heavenly Father where she will have no more pain and suffering.  From reading their blog it seemed like her tumors were shrinking and things were overall going well in her treatment.  About a week ago, a CT scan showed that her cancer had doubled in size in a very short time and the cancer was no longer chemo sensitive and horribly aggressive.  She died a few days later.  I have been sick since I heard about their story and my heart is broken for this family as they have to stay here and continue on in this life without their precious little girl.  I know this is so hard to read.  It hurts to write these words and scares me so much to be reminded of this horrible disease that we are up against. Below is the button to their blog if you'd like to leave this family a comment.  Please pray for the Whitts as they have a road ahead that no parent can be prepared to walk.

Serious Life Magazine

We wanted you to know about this publication we're a part of called Serious.Life Magazine.  They just published the February issue today, and we are in their Featured Blog Directory. 

 

The magazine includes a lot of great content from bloggers you’ll appreciate, as well as great features, photos and other content.  The magazine is owned and published by a family who have seven kids, three adopted and one who has Leukemia (www.riggsfamilyblog.com).   Their daughter, Abby, has A.L.L. just like our Abbey.  Her badge is on the right side of our blog.  

The magazine gives away a bunch of ads to charities and ministries.  Besides great articles on interesting people, there is a lot about family, adoption, personal finance, spiritual life, humor… all sorts of “life” topics.  And most importantly, this is a God-centered publication.  

 

Again, the subscription is free, and we know you’ll enjoy the magazine, so take a minute to check it out and sign up to get future issues. www.seriouslifemagazine.com

So Far, So Good

Yesterday was our clinic day and everything went smoothly.  Abbey woke up happy and was in a pretty good mood the whole day.  She isn't much of a morning person so clinic days can start off rough when we have to wake her really early.  I have to put emla cream on her port two hours before we get to the clinic so when we have early appointments (sometimes we have to be there as early as 8a.m.) then I am waking her two hours before that.  Emla cream is a cream (we call it 'magic cream') that numbs the skin over her port so when they access her, it doesn't hurt her. Her port is in her chest and she has gotten very used to them accessing it.  She holds her shirt up when they put the needle in and take it out and even helps with flushing her tubes with saline.  A lot is done through her port.  They always draw her blood through it to check her numbers and administer much of her chemo through it.  It is a very scary thing at first, but we have all gotten used to it.  I usually read her a book while her nurse is putting the needle in and have gotten very good at distracting her. Since her port is completely under her skin, when she doesn't have a needle in she is able to get baths and do everything like normal so it doesn't interfere with everyday life.  

So back to yesterday, we didn't have to be there until 10:30 so it was an easy morning and we were able to take our time getting out the door.  Her numbers looked great so she got her 2 chemos like planned.  We ate snacks, read lots of books and watched Dora to make the time go by.  They increased her methotrexate (so we are currently giving her anti-nausea medicine every 6 hours to try to prevent nausea and vomiting) and also gave her the vincristine.  We will be watching her mouth for sores and hopefully are on top of her stomach getting sick, but so far she has been feeling pretty good and acting normal.  If we can get through these next couple days with no fever, upset stomach or sores, we will be very relieved and thankful!  We'll keep you posted on our little patient :)

    

 

Smiles, School & Snow

Abbey has been feeling pretty good.  She is eating like a champ, sleeping great at night and pooping everyday!  All things that could be affected by her chemo.  We are thankful for how well she has been doing this phase and feel blessed so far that her side effects have been minimal up to this point. Tomorrow we are heading back to the clinic for her treatment.  They will increase her methotrexate so the possibility of sores, nausea, vomiting and the other side effects increase.  This is a 41 day cycle and tomorrow is day 21.  Please continue to pray for her body to handle the medications well and for her to have a good week.      

  

Homeschooling has been going really good.  We are finally getting into a groove and figuring out what works and what doesn't.  My biggest challenge so far has been getting a schedule in place that works with getting all the lessons in for the day and taking care of Micah.  Abbey has been doing almost all of the school day with us, which is great to be able to spend that time with both her and Jacob and not have to worry about keeping her 'busy' while I'm teaching Jacob.  It is such a joy to watch them learn each day and to spend this time with them.  Our days have been more structured, which is a welcomed change since we almost never leave the house.    

The video is of Jacob reciting his Bible verse from last week - Romans 3:23.  They will learn one every week.  This week the verse starts with the letter 'A' and every week following will start with the next letter of the alphabet.  Isn't it great hearing little ones hide God's word in their hearts!  (pause the blog music before pressing play)

Snow, snow, snow!!  We have gotten about 10 inches of snow since yesterday.  Soon after Jim got home from work, he was outside 'cleaning up' our driveway and sidewalks.  I am so thankful for a hard working husband who takes care of us in so many ways.  

And, speaking of Jim... He has been amazing as we've gone through this huge trial in our lives and is the calm when I feel like the storm is too hard to weather.  He is very even keeled, which helps so much as my emotions can go from being o.k. to a deep low.  We will never know why God chose us to bear this burden, but I do know that He gave Jim and I each other to lean on.  We believe that God is going to heal our daughter and as we continue on in this journey, He is teaching us what it means to fully trust Him, love each other and cherish our children. 

Abbey's Back

We had a few rough days, but Abbey is feeling much better.  We had to go back to the clinic on Thursday, but they decided not to give her the second dose of antibiotics because her fever came down quickly and she started feeling better.  As of yesterday, the doctors were pretty confident that it wasn't a bacterial infection in her blood and as of today nothing has grown in the culture.  She has been eating a little better (not great, but that's to be expected from her chemo), but some at each meal.  She spent about an hour "reading" her Curious George books on the couch today and snuggling with her pink blanket.  She is definitely our book lover and snuggler! 

Wednesday night on our  way home from the hospital Jim and I were talking about how one of the hardest things for us with Abbey's sickness is how things can change so quickly from second to second.  We have been sailing along pretty good lately with everything being 'normal' (except for the bone marrow scare) and then all of a sudden, she gets sick with a fever and we are rushing back to the hospital.  Those are the times when fears and uncertainty rush into our heads and we need to continually (every second) keep giving her back to God.  It is hard for a fever not to turn into a life and death situation in my mind and I just have to keep focusing on what I know to be true about my God.  He is not caught off guard by these things and He is in control. Wednesday night while holding Abbey tight in that hospital room, I had to guard my mind and focus on Him and not on her sickness.  We are thanking Him tonight that she is home and feeling much better and thanking Him for this precious gift that He has given us :)  

I only have a minute, but I just wanted to put up a quick post to ask you to pray.  Abbey started feeling sick around dinner time last night (Tuesday night) and was complaining that her belly was hurting most of the night.  She wouldn't eat and hardly wanted to pick her head off her pillow.  This afternoon she came down with a fever.  We had to take her to the hospital for them to check her blood and examine her.  She got a dose of antibiotics and we have to go back again tomorrow for her to get a second dose.  They are treating it like it's a bacterial infection in her blood, but we won't know for sure if it is that or a virus for a few days as they are watching her blood in a culture.  They were possibly going to keep us overnight, but the doctor felt o.k. with sending us home by what they saw in her blood tonight.  Please pray that it ends up not being a bacterial infection and that her fever would clear up quickly.  Also, she has eaten next to nothing for over 24 hours, so please pray that her belly would start to feel normal and that she would get her appetite back and start to feel like herself again quickly. Thank you and we'll let you know how she's doing tomorrow. 

Basement Bouncing (& oh yeah.... more chemo)

You'd never know by looking at the pictures that Abbey had two doses of chemo today.  

The methotrexate was increased from her last treatment and we were to expect nausea and her feeling pretty lousy for the rest of the day.  Loss of appetite and constipation are also to be expected in this phase (along with the possible sores that I told you about earlier).  She got through today like a champ. Her numbers again looked great (they were down some from her last treatment, but that was to be expected and normal) and she had a lot of energy this afternoon.  When we got home, she ate a good lunch and pooped right after!!!!..... (doesn't take much to excite us these days :) and was ready to play!  Her and Jacob had this great idea for the basement, which I'll tell you about in a minute.

This past weekend we had some special visitors.  Jim's sister Andrea and her husband Jeff came from Indiana to visit for a couple days.  It was a nice treat for all of us and the kids had a blast spending time with them (we enjoyed it very much too!).  Thanks so much for coming!  Hope we can do it more often :)  

So, back to today.... When we have visitors our basement becomes our 'guest room' since all our bedrooms are full of us.  We had the air mattress set up downstairs for them and still hadn't taken it down today.  Soon after lunch we went in the basement to play and the kids started jumping on it, then had this idea to prop one end on the couch to make it like a slide.  They laughed, jumped and slid for a long time (until dinner) and we more than enjoyed watching them have fun.  Chemo days can be so draining, so it filled our hearts with so much joy to see her like this... especially after sitting in a hospital all morning watching chemo drip through a line in her little chest.  Kids are amazingly resilient and God is amazingly awesome!  We are thanking Him for these blessings today.

I also wanted to say thank you to so many who made comments about homeschooling and have been an encouragement to us as we embark on this new adventure.  I have spent a lot of time this week familiarizing myself with the curriculum and am starting tomorrow.  I am very excited to see all that God has in store for us in this area.  So, thank you for your comments. 

Another thing that has been on my heart so much lately is all the others that we have "met" through our blog who are in similar situation with having a sick child.  Our eyes have been opened to a whole new world since Abbey was diagnosed and we have gone to many of your blogs who also have a child with cancer or other life threatening illnesses.  Our hearts break with yours as we read your stories and our hearts also connect with you.  I have cried over your pictures and stories of your children and have also prayed for each one of you.  If any of you would like your blog, facebook group, caring bridge page, etc.. put on our blog, please leave a comment and we will be sure to add it under 'please pray for our friends'.  I know I often feel helpless in Abbey's situation, but one thing I can do is to tell and show others how good our God is and how He is carrying us through this and also ask others to pray for our baby.  I know I have some amazing prayer warriors on here and some truly wonderful people who are following.  Also, it's a great way to connect to others in similar situations, so if you'd like your story to be added in that section, please let us know.  I truly believe that God is at work through many little ones around the country through their illnesses and these situations are ALL in His hands.  

Monday we will head back to the clinic for Abbey's second treatment in interim maintenance.  She seems to be handling the chemo that she got last Friday pretty well and we've only noticed a couple side effects.  As long as her neutraphils are above 750, they will increase her methotrexate and she will get another dose of vincristine.  

The last few days she has been complaining of some leg pain.  Bone pain and joint pain are normal side effects.  She told me this morning that her medicine is making her legs  hurt. It is so sad how she can connect the medicine to making her feel yucky and having pain and it is so hard for a three year old to understand that she has to get sick to feel better.  In the past, there have been times when I feel sick about giving her medication when I know it is just going to make her feel horrible.  Next phase she will be back on the steroids and those of you who have been following our story know that those we're the worst part of her treatment so far.  She had more side effects then I can remember when she was on those and my heart breaks for the time that we have to give her them again.  

For now, we will focus on getting through this phase and enjoying her good days where she is playful and happy.  The other night when she was brushing her teeth, her mouth was bleeding, but I haven't seen any sores.  We are praying that she doesn't get the sores this early in the phase because as the phase goes on she will get more and more of the medication and the side effects will get worse.  Since her numbers had such a hard time recovering from the last phase, I am concerned that her body is extra sensitive to some of the chemos.  We will see Monday when they look at her blood how her body is handling what she got last week and if her bone marrow is able to recover from being knocked down.  

On an exciting note, we have decided to start homeschooling Jacob.  He was in preschool this year, but we decided a couple weeks ago to take him out and start doing a kindergarten curriculum with him for the rest of this year.  We then will decide if we will send him to kindergarten next year, or if I will continue to homeschool.  It was something that's always been in the back of our minds, but since Abbey was diagnosed so many things have changed and God is using this situation to change our hearts and minds about many things.  There were many reasons why this decision just 'made sense' and since we've finalized our decision on it, we have such a peace.  Isn't that the best feeling ever when you have a hard decision to make and when you finally decide on something, you know it was the right choice because God gives you that peace in your heart?!  I started the reading with both him and Abbey a week ago and it has been great.  Since we are always home and rarely leave the house (unless we're at the hospital) it is giving us some structure to our days and has been good for all of us.  I am going to continue to let Abbey do as much as she wants for now... we know it can't hurt and at this point she is very eager to learn and do whatever Jacob is doing :)  I am still in the process of getting all the other subjects organized and figuring it all out and we will start the rest next week.  Do any of you homeschool?  I'd love to hear some of your personal experiences with it.  My sister-in-law Alicia homeschools her kids.  They have 5 kids, and she is currently homeschooling the oldest three.  She was very helpful to me in picking the curriculum (thanks Alicia!) and she has been very happy with the program that she uses so we feel good about what we've picked.  She is a great mom and they have great kids so we are excited to see what the future holds in 'Colbert Elementary School'.  

Thank you guys for following our story and for continuing to pray for our Abbey and family.  We are so thankful to know that people are praying all over the country.  I love looking at the site meter on our page and to see so many states represented that are a part of this with us.  Thank you also for praying for all these others that we know that are fighting cancer.  God is using each one and we know each situation is a perfect part of His plan.    

Praying Continually....

*****Update at bottom*****

I Thessalonians 5:16 - 18

Be joyful always; pray continually; give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus.

I don't think I've ever in my life, until these last few months (since Abbey was diagnosed) prayed continually throughout my days.  My thoughts are a continual conversation with God.  From the time I wake up to the time I lay my weary head on my pillow, I am continually praying over so many things.  You probably noticed the new "button" on the side of our page that says 'Praying for Abby.'  A couple days ago, a dear friend of mine e-mailed me this sweet family's blog.  After the kids were in bed that evening, Jim and I spent hours reading their story and praying for their Abby and our Abbey. Abby Riggs just turned 4 years old and also has leukemia.  They are at a very critical time in her treatment right now and their story will most definitely encourage your heart and bring you closer to the one who made these two sweet girls.  Here is their blog so you can read up on their story  www.riggsfamilyblog.com and pray for them (you can also just click on the button on the side of our page).  Michelle Riggs put a link to our blog under 'pray for our friends' and we know many new readers have come from their site to follow our journey.  Thank you so much for taking the time to read and for praying for our girl too.  It truly is amazing how God is using these Abb(e)y's to touch many lives.  I could never have imagined, when we started this blog a couple years ago just to update our out of town family and friends on what goes on in our lives here in Ohio, how He would use it to bind us to so many people around the country.  He has a plan in all things and uses the least expected things for His glory.... even blogs. 

In this post, I wanted to mention a couple other people that God has put in our lives in different ways that are also fighting cancer.  Please pray for Bella, a little girl who also has leukemia.  She was diagnosed a couple weeks after Abbey.  Ava and Leah are two little girls, right around the same ages as our Abbey.  They both also have cancer and undergo their treatments often right next door to us each week in the clinic.  Josh is a two year old boy that is also fighting cancer right now.  I went to school with his mom and was connected with them soon after Abbey's diagnosis.  Also, please pray for Divine.  She has a rare form of breast cancer and she is an amazing girl.  Lastly, Dan who is a very dear friend of ours from college is currently fighting lymphoma.  His wife, Laura is one of my very best friends so please pray for their journey and that God would continue to heal his body.  I have to get permission to put links to their blogs on our page, so be looking for them soon... Until then, as you pray for our Abbey, please pray for these others that are being affected by cancer.  It is amazing the whole new world that God has opened up to us these last three months.  I truly couldn't tell you one person that I knew battling cancer, and now I know many.  I am so amazed though and thankful to see how people come together in times like these to pray, help, encourage, love and support each other.  Let's encourage these others (be looking for the links hopefully today).

Also, if you know how to make a button for your blog, can you let me know in the comment section....  I would love to make one for our blog so others can put it on their sites.  Thanks :)

***Update***

Thank you so much MckMama for referring me to Jennisa to make a button for our blog :)  Jennisa has a great website that you can visit if you need help with anything on your blog.   She is 'for hire' and is very reasonable.  Her website is www.onceuponablog.org  if you'd like to take a look.  Isn't the button beautiful that she made for us?!  Please feel free (we would be honored and very grateful) to put our button on your blog.  That way your friends and family could click on our "Praying For Abbey" button and be directly linked to our blog so they can follow her progress and pray for our baby girl too.  Copy the code below the button and paste it on your blog.  If you need any help with it, let us know in the comment section and we will walk you through it.  Also, look on the right side down a little bit at the websites that I added under "please pray for our friends".  They are some of the families links that I mentioned above.