Tomorrow is the the final Dr's. visit for a couple of weeks. Jake will be getting an IV push of some chemo treatment as well as some blood drawn for testing. After tomorrow, we will be starting the next phase of treatment. Consolidation is the title of this next phase. The purpose of this phase is to kill off any of the leukemia cells that may be hiding. The medications that he will be receiving will likely be the same as the ones he has been taking for the last couple of months. The biggest difference will be the schedule of these meds. They will be adjusting the doses of these so that he receives some of the meds for 1-5 day stints a couple of times throughout this stage. This stage typically lasts 1-3 months.
In talking with the doctor last week, it sounds like they are going to want to have Jake go through another phase of induction in the fall. This will likely come just after school starts for him. We have not talked about this with him yet, mainly because I am not sure we truly understand what that will entail for him.
Because of the changes coming up in his treatment, the Dr is expecting his immunity to take a dip again. To help make sure we don't miss our chance, we are all going to Elich Gardens. For those of you out in MN, it is the equivalent of Valley Fair. The library that the boys go to had an incentive plan where if a child read 12 hours, they could submit a completed form to receive a ticket for free admission. Since we may not be healthy enough to get their later this year, we felt it was best to sneak our trip in now.
We'll try and post some stats from tomorrow.
Monday, July 14, 2008
Friday, July 11, 2008
Join Us
We have been so fortunate in all of the friends, family and even strangers who have rallied around our family and prayed for our Jacob. We would like you to join us today in extending that prayer for a special boy named Dominic.
Our good friend Kathy McShane has been sharing with us about 6 year old Dominic who has been walking the battle lines with leukemia for a lot longer then we have. Today (12:30 California time) Dominic will be having a bone marrow transplant. Please pray that God will be with the medical team, Dominic, the donor and the families of all. Also, please pray that this will be starting point of God's healing in his little body.
Thank you for sharing your love and prayers to help cover this little guy as well!
Our good friend Kathy McShane has been sharing with us about 6 year old Dominic who has been walking the battle lines with leukemia for a lot longer then we have. Today (12:30 California time) Dominic will be having a bone marrow transplant. Please pray that God will be with the medical team, Dominic, the donor and the families of all. Also, please pray that this will be starting point of God's healing in his little body.
Thank you for sharing your love and prayers to help cover this little guy as well!
Monday, July 7, 2008
Monday, June 30, 2008
Yeah for Valium and Go God!!!
So - in case anyone is keeping score
Philippians's - 1
Worry - 0
The visit with Doctor Odom (again!) went just amazingly well. Thank you so much for those of you who were and are praying for us.
Before we left the house Jacob took his Valium and we applied his emla (numbing) cream to both his port and the site where they will preform the tap. He is now healing so fast that I could not see the puncture from last week. This is really good news but it does make it harder to try and numb the right spot. That is probably why I tried to squeeze as much as possible under the tegaderm band aid to make sure we would have as little pain as possible. Of course, the side effect of that is once there is pressure on his back (ie. sitting in the car for the drive) the pressure made it kinda explode everywhere. Thank goodness for the travel bag and extra clothes that Brian put in the car.
Jacob was a total stud! Because of the emla explosion - Jacob's back was not as totally numb as we had hoped for and he did have some pain with the spinal tap. Even with the pain he stayed perfectly calm and in the perfect posture for the Dr to make the puncture. I know all the adults reading this understand how hard that would be for any of us - let alone for an 8 year old.
Joshua also deserves some all star recognition. As a child who craves the lime light he totally got that this morning was about his brother. He was soft spoken (yes, Joshua!) thoughtful and really focused on his brother. Josh prayed over our celebration pancakes at Ihop and it was so sweat as he thanked God for "giving Jacob a good day at the clinic and treatment to make him better".
Our lives are falling back towards "normal" patterns and I am so thankful for every window we get to see God in our lives. To know that He is, and that He is active and available is the normal we want to stay in.
Philippians's - 1
Worry - 0
The visit with Doctor Odom (again!) went just amazingly well. Thank you so much for those of you who were and are praying for us.
Before we left the house Jacob took his Valium and we applied his emla (numbing) cream to both his port and the site where they will preform the tap. He is now healing so fast that I could not see the puncture from last week. This is really good news but it does make it harder to try and numb the right spot. That is probably why I tried to squeeze as much as possible under the tegaderm band aid to make sure we would have as little pain as possible. Of course, the side effect of that is once there is pressure on his back (ie. sitting in the car for the drive) the pressure made it kinda explode everywhere. Thank goodness for the travel bag and extra clothes that Brian put in the car.
Jacob was a total stud! Because of the emla explosion - Jacob's back was not as totally numb as we had hoped for and he did have some pain with the spinal tap. Even with the pain he stayed perfectly calm and in the perfect posture for the Dr to make the puncture. I know all the adults reading this understand how hard that would be for any of us - let alone for an 8 year old.
Joshua also deserves some all star recognition. As a child who craves the lime light he totally got that this morning was about his brother. He was soft spoken (yes, Joshua!) thoughtful and really focused on his brother. Josh prayed over our celebration pancakes at Ihop and it was so sweat as he thanked God for "giving Jacob a good day at the clinic and treatment to make him better".
Our lives are falling back towards "normal" patterns and I am so thankful for every window we get to see God in our lives. To know that He is, and that He is active and available is the normal we want to stay in.
anxious
I am feeling a little anxious this morning - it is my turn to take Jake in for his spinal tap.
Brian had only encouraging things to say after the last visit - about how good Jacob did - but I guess I am worried about how good I will do. Needles and I have a long history including but not limited to me passing out. It has been a long time since having a blood draw put me on the floor - but needless to say my goal would be to help and support Jake today, not to have to be taken from the room.
Did I mention Joshua will be coming with us? Again, I am asking why Valium was not prescribed for all family members involved? I have these horrible images of him being silly (as he is wont to do on occasion) as the Dr is placing the tap. It looks a little like an episode of the 3 Stooges visit the Dr - only Jake is the one who ends up on the receiving end of all the ouches.
The other thought circling through my brain this morning (in the voice of Jim Ladd) is the verse in Philippians that says "worry about nothing - pray about everything. I am much more practiced in worry - but today I will choose to pray. For anyone out there who will be speaking to Jesus today - please add our names to that conversation.
Brian had only encouraging things to say after the last visit - about how good Jacob did - but I guess I am worried about how good I will do. Needles and I have a long history including but not limited to me passing out. It has been a long time since having a blood draw put me on the floor - but needless to say my goal would be to help and support Jake today, not to have to be taken from the room.
Did I mention Joshua will be coming with us? Again, I am asking why Valium was not prescribed for all family members involved? I have these horrible images of him being silly (as he is wont to do on occasion) as the Dr is placing the tap. It looks a little like an episode of the 3 Stooges visit the Dr - only Jake is the one who ends up on the receiving end of all the ouches.
The other thought circling through my brain this morning (in the voice of Jim Ladd) is the verse in Philippians that says "worry about nothing - pray about everything. I am much more practiced in worry - but today I will choose to pray. For anyone out there who will be speaking to Jesus today - please add our names to that conversation.
Sunday, June 29, 2008
Birthday Weekend
This weekend, we celebrated Jake's 8th Birthday party (pictures to come soon).
We were blessed to share it with some good friends at the pool in our complex. All of the kids seemed to have a great time swimming and playing with each other. Jake confessed to us later that he had an awesome time.
It was a day that most kids look forward to every year. For Jake, this was an especially exciting day. When we started on this journey in mid-May, none of us knew what to expect. Within a few days of starting his treatment and being told all of the things that he would be unable to do for a period of time, Jake was concerned that he would be unable to have a birthday party. As he started making good progress with his treatment, his concern moved towards whether or not his hair would all be gone by his birthday.
I think back to Birthday's that I have had in the past and it is impossible to think of any of them where my wishes were anywhere near Jake's were. Mine were filled with desires for baseball gloves, games, and good times. Never in wildest dreams would my wishes have been to not lose all my hair or to even be healthy enough to have a party.
Jake has been forced to grow-up much faster than anyone deserves. Although his party was for his 8th birthday, he has lived through more pain and stress than any child should ever have to endure. His treatment and his bodies response to the treatment has been better than anyone could have ever expected, but that does not make it any easier to walk with him though this.
I look forward to celebrating more birthdays with Jake, as well as celebrating a very special "birth"day - the day that the doctors determine that he has been cured of his leukemia and he can begin living his life with no longer having to be concerned about the future, but getting to look back at what he has come through.
It may be a number of years before the impact of all of this will be absorbed by Jake, but when it all sinks in for him he is going to have some incredible memories of family and friends.
Happy Birthday Jake!!!!!
We were blessed to share it with some good friends at the pool in our complex. All of the kids seemed to have a great time swimming and playing with each other. Jake confessed to us later that he had an awesome time.
It was a day that most kids look forward to every year. For Jake, this was an especially exciting day. When we started on this journey in mid-May, none of us knew what to expect. Within a few days of starting his treatment and being told all of the things that he would be unable to do for a period of time, Jake was concerned that he would be unable to have a birthday party. As he started making good progress with his treatment, his concern moved towards whether or not his hair would all be gone by his birthday.
I think back to Birthday's that I have had in the past and it is impossible to think of any of them where my wishes were anywhere near Jake's were. Mine were filled with desires for baseball gloves, games, and good times. Never in wildest dreams would my wishes have been to not lose all my hair or to even be healthy enough to have a party.
Jake has been forced to grow-up much faster than anyone deserves. Although his party was for his 8th birthday, he has lived through more pain and stress than any child should ever have to endure. His treatment and his bodies response to the treatment has been better than anyone could have ever expected, but that does not make it any easier to walk with him though this.
I look forward to celebrating more birthdays with Jake, as well as celebrating a very special "birth"day - the day that the doctors determine that he has been cured of his leukemia and he can begin living his life with no longer having to be concerned about the future, but getting to look back at what he has come through.
It may be a number of years before the impact of all of this will be absorbed by Jake, but when it all sinks in for him he is going to have some incredible memories of family and friends.
Happy Birthday Jake!!!!!
Monday, June 23, 2008
Long Weekend
This last weekend was both long in time as well as long overdue for the Carlson Family.
We had 2 of our closest friends from MN, Mike and Tiffany Krueger, drive out from MN to spend a couple of days with us. It was incredibly relaxing for us to have them in town. We quickly realized how much we truly do miss them.
On Thursday night, we all took in a Rockies game.
As you can see, it took a lot out of the boys as they caught a snooze as we rode the light rail home.
On Saturday we headed out to Estes Park to spend some time hiking and sharing the scenery with our visitors. We hiked up to Alberta Falls and got a chance to get some fresh air.
Sunday, our friends drove back home to MN. It was sad to see them go, but we will be seeing them again in August when we take our trip to MN for our summer vacation.
Sunday and Monday were filled with recovery. Jake did awesome on the hike on Saturday, but his feet and legs took a beating and he was ready for some time to relax and give those muscles a little break. We did some swimming late Monday afternoon and he swam like a fish. It is great to see him not only getting out and doing things, but doing seeing him do things at a level that he was accustomed to a couple of months ago.
Today we also received a gift from the Minnesota Twins called a "Smile Box". The box contained a hand-written card from the Twins along with a number of Twins items: A hat, a Delmon Young autographed baseball, some Twins player magnets, a bobblehead doll, a couple of books on the history of the Twins, and a Joe Mauer fishing lure. Jake talked at great length about all of the fish that he plans on catching with this lure.
Thanks to Rick and Diane for taking the time to get this for Jake.
It still amazes me at the lengths that friends and family have gone to in order to help Jacob know that there are people out there who are thinking about him and praying for him.
As we continue to save all of the emails and all of the cards and all of the blog postings/comments, we look forward to the day when Jake can finally look back at everything he has been through and he will have an amazing story to tell. At 7, it's difficult to truly understand all that he is having to deal with and the seriousness of his illness. He is being forced to grow up a little quicker in certain areas right now. With a birthday coming up next week, it is encouraging to start to see the almost 8 year old in him start to come out and to watch him slowly start to become that "kid" that he was a few months ago.
I have said it many times - Jake, you truly are MY Hero!!!!
We had 2 of our closest friends from MN, Mike and Tiffany Krueger, drive out from MN to spend a couple of days with us. It was incredibly relaxing for us to have them in town. We quickly realized how much we truly do miss them.
On Thursday night, we all took in a Rockies game.
As you can see, it took a lot out of the boys as they caught a snooze as we rode the light rail home.
On Saturday we headed out to Estes Park to spend some time hiking and sharing the scenery with our visitors. We hiked up to Alberta Falls and got a chance to get some fresh air.
Sunday, our friends drove back home to MN. It was sad to see them go, but we will be seeing them again in August when we take our trip to MN for our summer vacation.
Sunday and Monday were filled with recovery. Jake did awesome on the hike on Saturday, but his feet and legs took a beating and he was ready for some time to relax and give those muscles a little break. We did some swimming late Monday afternoon and he swam like a fish. It is great to see him not only getting out and doing things, but doing seeing him do things at a level that he was accustomed to a couple of months ago.
Today we also received a gift from the Minnesota Twins called a "Smile Box". The box contained a hand-written card from the Twins along with a number of Twins items: A hat, a Delmon Young autographed baseball, some Twins player magnets, a bobblehead doll, a couple of books on the history of the Twins, and a Joe Mauer fishing lure. Jake talked at great length about all of the fish that he plans on catching with this lure.
Thanks to Rick and Diane for taking the time to get this for Jake.
It still amazes me at the lengths that friends and family have gone to in order to help Jacob know that there are people out there who are thinking about him and praying for him.
As we continue to save all of the emails and all of the cards and all of the blog postings/comments, we look forward to the day when Jake can finally look back at everything he has been through and he will have an amazing story to tell. At 7, it's difficult to truly understand all that he is having to deal with and the seriousness of his illness. He is being forced to grow up a little quicker in certain areas right now. With a birthday coming up next week, it is encouraging to start to see the almost 8 year old in him start to come out and to watch him slowly start to become that "kid" that he was a few months ago.
I have said it many times - Jake, you truly are MY Hero!!!!
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