Thursday, April 29, 2010
Changes ahead!
The complete Jack Morton Foundation site is almost complete! And it rocks! Check it out on the permanent link to the right. As soon as everything is finished, I will no longer be hosting Jack's Fight, but Laurie's great posts will continue in the Blog section of the foundation website. However, I'm still here until everything is a go-go! So check it out! Tell us what you think!
Update from Laurie, April 29, 2010
We made it through night 3 of chemo! Jack got sick one time last night, but I don't think it had anything to do with the chemo, but more with the mouthcare that he has to do 3 times a day. I just think he didn't like it at the moment so that was that! He has been full of energy. We have a roommate this time that is a 16 year old boy, Corey, and Jack will not leave him alone! He plays with him all day and Corey is being so great with Jack. It's nice to be stuck in this little room with a family you can actually relate and talk to. We have one more night of chemo and then he will be done!
Update from Laurie, April 28, 2010
NOTE: This update was actually posted yesterday by Laurie...So her reference to "last night" was really night before last. Sorry for lagging behind!!
Jack had a great night last night after completing his second day of chemo. He didn't get sick and that's great for everyone! He has been eating great today and we were able to go and play in the playroom this morning. Hopefully he will be up this afternoon and we will go and play again. I am trying to get him to take a little nap so we can play later, but he is acting as if he just ate a ton of sugar and bouncing off the walls so a nap might not happen this afternoon! Tonight is the last night of having to do both chemo's and then Thursday night will only be one of them. We probably won't be able to go home until Saturday since we started so late on Monday night and he needs to complete all his fluids before we go home.
Hopefully tonight goes as well as the past 2 nights...halfway there and then round 3 will be done.
Jack had a great night last night after completing his second day of chemo. He didn't get sick and that's great for everyone! He has been eating great today and we were able to go and play in the playroom this morning. Hopefully he will be up this afternoon and we will go and play again. I am trying to get him to take a little nap so we can play later, but he is acting as if he just ate a ton of sugar and bouncing off the walls so a nap might not happen this afternoon! Tonight is the last night of having to do both chemo's and then Thursday night will only be one of them. We probably won't be able to go home until Saturday since we started so late on Monday night and he needs to complete all his fluids before we go home.
Hopefully tonight goes as well as the past 2 nights...halfway there and then round 3 will be done.
Tuesday, April 27, 2010
Update from Laurie, April 27, 2010
We are done with the first night of chemo...only 3 more to go! Jack did pretty good last night. He started his first chemo at 9 and his second at 10:15. I finally got him to go to sleep around 10:30 but he was up every hour on the hour to go to the bathroom so he didn't sleep all that great. He started to get a little sick to his stomach around 4:30 this morning, but nothing bad. They gave him an additional medication for his stomach and he is feeling better now. He wanted cereal, a waffle, and a banana for breakfast so that is what we ordered! He ate about half of everything so that's good. We don't want our little guy to lose much weight while he is here so hopefully he will keep it all down this afternoon. He starts up again tonight at 9 PM with chemo so we will see how this all goes!
Monday, April 26, 2010
Update from Laurie, April 26, 2010
Good news! We have been informed that when they tested Jack's bone marrow, it came up negative for Neuroblastoma! There is a little side note though...when they did a biopsy of it, there were traces of Neuroblastoma cells, but they said that if they weren't seeing any in the liquid, then we should be pleased with the results. They are saying that there is a limited amount left in his marrow so we are thrilled. We will be talking with the Dr later (hopefully today) about the results of the MIGB scan (bone scan) so let's hope we get 3 good results from 3 different tests!
Today will be the beginning of cycle 3 of chemo and we had to check in at the hospital for this round. We have been here all day and he will not start his chemo until tonight. He needs to have a lot of fluids before he starts so they are assuming he will get his first dose at 7 PM. They have told us that one of the types of chemo that he is getting is pretty hard on his stomach so to expect him to be sick this time. Of course he will get a lot of anti-nausea medication, but we are not looking forward to having him be sick this week. It will be great if he surprises everyone once again and goes through this week without being too sick! He will hopefully be done by Thursday night and be able to go home Friday...I will continue to update as we get going
The move went pretty good this weekend, but we are not done getting everything unpacked and put away. Jack is very excited to be at the new house with lots of room to run and play and since that is pretty much going to be his playground for the next year, we are happy that he is happy.
Today will be the beginning of cycle 3 of chemo and we had to check in at the hospital for this round. We have been here all day and he will not start his chemo until tonight. He needs to have a lot of fluids before he starts so they are assuming he will get his first dose at 7 PM. They have told us that one of the types of chemo that he is getting is pretty hard on his stomach so to expect him to be sick this time. Of course he will get a lot of anti-nausea medication, but we are not looking forward to having him be sick this week. It will be great if he surprises everyone once again and goes through this week without being too sick! He will hopefully be done by Thursday night and be able to go home Friday...I will continue to update as we get going
The move went pretty good this weekend, but we are not done getting everything unpacked and put away. Jack is very excited to be at the new house with lots of room to run and play and since that is pretty much going to be his playground for the next year, we are happy that he is happy.
Friday, April 23, 2010
P4L Bootcamp for Jack is TOMORROW!!
Free movie passes will be given away!!
In lieu of payment for the bootcamp, Gigi is accepting donations for The Jack Morton Fund...100% of the proceeds collected will be given directly to Jack's Fund to be used for Jack's continuing care. Used ink jet cartridges and old cell phones will also be collected to be recycled...the more cartridges and the more cell phones collected translates to more donations to Jack's Fund!
So come on out and sweat it off for a great cause!!
A big Thank You to Giber Becera of Performance 4 Life and SPR for his offer to host tomorrow's Bootcamp for Jack! Questions?? Contact Gigi at coretrainingu@gmail.com
Thursday, April 22, 2010
Amazing Update from Laurie!! April 22, 2010
Jack wanted pizza for dinner, so that is what we are having. That and ice cream...perfect.
We will keep you all updated tomorrow when we know more...
Update from Laurie, April 21, 2010
Well Jack finished his MIGB, CT scan, and his bone marrow aspiration about a hour ago and we are already home and he is running around playing his Nintendo DS and trying to program his IPod. Soooo....everything is pretty much normal tonight! He did really well during the tests. He came out of it well and asked for something to drink and a Popsicle right away. After that he said, "let's get outta here"...so we did!
We will hopefully hear about the scans on Friday and if the bone marrow got to the lab in time, we will hear about that as well. If not, we will hear the results of the marrow on Monday. I guess it's another one of the "hurry up and wait" ordeals.
We will let you know as soon as we hear of anything!
We are finally moving this weekend and Jack is so very excited! Nana is coming in town Friday to help us out for the week so that will be great.
Thank you all for your thoughts and prayers....keep them coming...
We will hopefully hear about the scans on Friday and if the bone marrow got to the lab in time, we will hear about that as well. If not, we will hear the results of the marrow on Monday. I guess it's another one of the "hurry up and wait" ordeals.
We will let you know as soon as we hear of anything!
We are finally moving this weekend and Jack is so very excited! Nana is coming in town Friday to help us out for the week so that will be great.
Thank you all for your thoughts and prayers....keep them coming...
Wednesday, April 21, 2010
Newsflash!! Offer from Scentsy and Darla Edwards!!
We received this comment to the "What would YOU do" challenge from last Friday from Darla Edwards, an independent consultant for Scentsy...
"I am going to set up a fundraiser in Jacks name tonight and everyone that orders under his fundraiser I will donate 15% of all sales up to $1000.00 if sale go beyond that I will donate 20% of all sales. So anyone that needs a gift for mothers day, birthday, ect. send them my way. Also part of our sales go to the Spiegel Burn Foundation. Please let me know if I can volunteer in any other way. Let's help Jack get better. You're in my prayers."
Click HERE to order!
A click-thru link will also be posted permanently on the right side of the blog.
Thank you to Darla!!
Click HERE to order!
A click-thru link will also be posted permanently on the right side of the blog.
Thank you to Darla!!
Update from Laurie, April 20, 2010
Today was a great day for both of our boys! Jack went in this morning with Zac to have his stem cells harvested. When he got there, his number went up to over 130 and his ANC was 10,000! He did great today while they were there. He took a little nap and watched a few movies with Zac. His platelets were low (which they told us would probably happen after having the stem cells taken from him) so he had to get some before he left the hospital. I picked them up and he was in a great mood and looked wonderful. Jack and Zac went over to the park and Zac ran and pushed him around the lake and then off they went to the playground. While they were gone, I got a call from the hospital and they told me that they needed 5 million cells per kg of weight for it to be a succesful draw...they took 23.8 million cells per kg of weight from Jack today so he did wonderful! He gave more than 5 times what they needed so we are clear to move on to the next step. We are going in tomorrow at 2 for his MIBG scan and to have his bone marrow tested. We will not know the results until Friday night so say a prayer for him!
Braden had his appointment with the cardiologist this morning and I took him to that. He had an EKG done and after reviewing it and listening to his heart, they said that they think that the holes are closing since it is a higher pitch noise that they can hear. He will stay on the medication he is on now but they had to up the dose since he is gaining so much weight (he is over 13 lbs now!). He has to go back in a month and have an xray and an echo. If those look good, they will take him off the medication because they think they may just close on their own. If his scans don't look as well as they want them to, then they will add another medication to help his body close the holes. So, all is good! It sounds as if he is doing great...finally, a good day of great news!
Braden had his appointment with the cardiologist this morning and I took him to that. He had an EKG done and after reviewing it and listening to his heart, they said that they think that the holes are closing since it is a higher pitch noise that they can hear. He will stay on the medication he is on now but they had to up the dose since he is gaining so much weight (he is over 13 lbs now!). He has to go back in a month and have an xray and an echo. If those look good, they will take him off the medication because they think they may just close on their own. If his scans don't look as well as they want them to, then they will add another medication to help his body close the holes. So, all is good! It sounds as if he is doing great...finally, a good day of great news!
Tuesday, April 20, 2010
GREAT Update from Laurie, April 19, 2010
Jack had a Dr's appt today to check his blood levels. We got a call tonight to say that his ANC level (immunity) was over 6,000 and that is always great to hear! Other than his ANC level, he was being tested to see if he was ready for stem cell harvesting. The magic number he was supposed to be at in order to harvest his cells, was 10. He was over 80! They told us that he is an amazing boy and these numbers are just great. His body is recovering so well after each treatment and we just hope and pray it continues to be that way.
Since his number was so high for his stem cell count, he will be going in at 7 AM tomorrow to have his cells harvested. This is going to be an outpatient treatment and he should not have any sort of a bad reaction or down time. He will also be getting an dye injection for his MIBG scan on Wednesday. He will also be getting his bone marrow pulled on Wednesday to see how it looks. We only pray the results are as good as our little Jack seems to feel because he acts as if he is the healthiest little boy.
Braden has his cardiologist appt tomorrow as well so we will let you know how that goes. We are expecting everything to be pretty much the same, but since he is doing so well with eating and sleeping and he isn't showing any signs of heart failure, we feel as if we are already ahead of the game. He is also a strong little boy...and a big boy too!
We will update tomorrow night after we get through another day...
Go Jack and Big Baby B!!! You guys can do this!!!
Since his number was so high for his stem cell count, he will be going in at 7 AM tomorrow to have his cells harvested. This is going to be an outpatient treatment and he should not have any sort of a bad reaction or down time. He will also be getting an dye injection for his MIBG scan on Wednesday. He will also be getting his bone marrow pulled on Wednesday to see how it looks. We only pray the results are as good as our little Jack seems to feel because he acts as if he is the healthiest little boy.
Braden has his cardiologist appt tomorrow as well so we will let you know how that goes. We are expecting everything to be pretty much the same, but since he is doing so well with eating and sleeping and he isn't showing any signs of heart failure, we feel as if we are already ahead of the game. He is also a strong little boy...and a big boy too!
We will update tomorrow night after we get through another day...
Go Jack and Big Baby B!!! You guys can do this!!!
Sunday, April 18, 2010
Come on out and sweat it off for a great cause!
Thanks to Gigi (Giber)!!
P4L Bootcamp for Jack promo video/commercial
Friday, April 16, 2010
In a heartbeat, everything about your life can change.
In a heartbeat, YOU can change a life! Even the smallest things can have big impacts! We've got the weekend ahead of us, and what if we all stopped a minute to think. What can you do to impact others this weekend? Will you help an elderly person load their groceries into their trunk? Will you drop your change from your fast food order into a donation bucket for Ronald McDonald Houses? Will you pay it forward at Starbucks and purchase the order for the car waiting in line behind you? Will you donate gently used clothing to Goodwill or to a crisis shelter? Will you volunteer your time in some way?
Let's have some fun with this. Come Monday, report back. What did you do?
Thursday, April 15, 2010
Update from Laurie, April 14, 2010
We confirmed today that Jack goes in next week on the 21st to be rescanned to see how well the chemo is working. We are hoping and praying that there is less cancer in his body than there was before, but the Dr said he would be happy as long as it hasn't spread and if it just stayed the same. I am sure Zac and I will be a bundle of nerves for a few days until we get the results...in a way I feel like was are starting over at the beginning with the "hurry up and wait" deal. Let's all just pray that our little man is beating all of this faster than "normal."
Little brother Braden isn't really little anymore! He weighed in at 12 lb 9 oz at his 8 week appointment today. He is such a little chunk and we love it! He is a great eater but wasn't too thrilled at all when they gave him shots today. Funny because Jack never cried when he was little with shots...it's like he didn't even notice the pain. Braden on the other hand, screamed to high heaven...
Jack has a Dr appointment tomorrow to check his levels and then we should be good until next week when he gets scanned...
Little brother Braden isn't really little anymore! He weighed in at 12 lb 9 oz at his 8 week appointment today. He is such a little chunk and we love it! He is a great eater but wasn't too thrilled at all when they gave him shots today. Funny because Jack never cried when he was little with shots...it's like he didn't even notice the pain. Braden on the other hand, screamed to high heaven...
Jack has a Dr appointment tomorrow to check his levels and then we should be good until next week when he gets scanned...
Wednesday, April 14, 2010
Announcement!!
Giber Becerra, a valley area fitness trainer and founder of Performance for Life, has recently announced that he will dedicate the proceeds from one of his weekly fitness bootcamps to Jack and The Jack Morton Foundation. Join him April 24 at 7:30 am at Cesar Chavez Park in Phoenix and sweat it off for Jack!
Giber attended the Shave-Off on Saturday after finding out about it on Facebook, and said that he felt so touched by Jack's story that he just had to help out in any way that he could. See below the promo video he put together for his upcoming bootcamp! It is amazing what total strangers are doing for Jack. So stop asking yourself if one person can really make a difference, YES they can!!
P4L Bootcamp for Jack Morton Foundation
Giber attended the Shave-Off on Saturday after finding out about it on Facebook, and said that he felt so touched by Jack's story that he just had to help out in any way that he could. See below the promo video he put together for his upcoming bootcamp! It is amazing what total strangers are doing for Jack. So stop asking yourself if one person can really make a difference, YES they can!!
P4L Bootcamp for Jack Morton Foundation
Tuesday, April 13, 2010
Update from Laurie, April 13, 2010
Jack had a Dr's appointment yesterday and all went well. He ended up having to get blood and platelets, but we weren't too surprise at that. He also had to get an xray of his chest and an ekg in preparation for the harvesting of his stem cells in a week or two. He did well with both the xray and the ekg...he is becoming an expert with all the test that he has to take. They said that the tumor is not pressing against his trachea like it was before, so that's good news (hopefully it's shrinking!!)! He will be getting a few scans next week as well as another bone marrow aspiration to see what everything else looks like. We will let everyone know of the exact date when we figure it out so we can get some extra prayers going for those days! As usual, Jack is running around the house right now, playing Cars on the Wii and yelling "chica, chica!"
Monday, April 12, 2010
Update from Laurie, April 11, 2010
Jack completed his 2nd round of chemo on Friday and he was able to handle it so well! He didn't get sick the last 2 days and that is always good news to us. We start the 3rd round at the end of the month so lets hope that we have the same great response as we did this time.
Yesterday was the shave-off for Jack and I can't even begin to explain how great it was. We want to thank everyone who came out to support our family while we are going through this hard time. It was so great to see some old friends as well as meet people who can relate to what we are going through. This event has left us speechless and we want to thank those who pulled it all together. We can't even begin to explain how much this meant to us. Please continue to pray for Jack as well as for our little Braden as we travel through this journey.
We love you all so much,
Zac, Laurie, Jack and Braden
Yesterday was the shave-off for Jack and I can't even begin to explain how great it was. We want to thank everyone who came out to support our family while we are going through this hard time. It was so great to see some old friends as well as meet people who can relate to what we are going through. This event has left us speechless and we want to thank those who pulled it all together. We can't even begin to explain how much this meant to us. Please continue to pray for Jack as well as for our little Braden as we travel through this journey.
We love you all so much,
Zac, Laurie, Jack and Braden
Sunday, April 11, 2010
Thank You
The list of people to thank for their generous input to the Shave-Off is a mile long. I'm afraid that if I started naming names, I would surely leave someone out by accident...but that is simply because the number of people who helped was enormous. To say that the shave-off was a success would be a gross understatement. It was epic! The support that total strangers showed Jack and Laurie and Zac was amazing. There is so much good in this world!! Toddlers, boys, women (yes, women!!) and men all sat down on those stools and bravely got their bald on so that they could match Jack! I've never seen so many beautiful fuzzy heads in one place!
A few thank you's...
A special thank you to Adrian Wilson and Steve Breaston...two of the nicest, most genuine men around. Not only did they brave the almost 90 degree heat to shave nearly 100 heads in the Arizona sun, they did it because they wanted to. They are truly kind people. Because they volunteered their time for us, our little event grew to something beyone our imagination. And for that, we thank them.
To the brave Shavers!! Thank you for publicly showing your support for Jack and for all of those who are touched by cancer.
To Loco!! Thank you for letting us have our event at your amazing place. Thank you all for everything you gave, everything you did.
To everyone who is Loco for Jack!! Thank you for your support. Every single penny you gave will go directly toward Jack's continuing care. We totally sold out of all 200 t shirts we ordered, and could have easily sold an additional 200 more.
To all who helped in the planning and publicizing that helped to make this event such an amazing success!! You all know who you are, and our graititude is endless. Thank YOU (every single one of you) for everything you did. The flyers you designed, the Facebook event you created and invited thousands to, the donations you gathered, the amazing raffle items you donated, the raffle buckets you decorated, the t-shirt selling you did, the hair sweeping up you did, the heads you shaved, the planning you did, the decorating you did, the last minute errand running you did...the list goes on and on. Without every single one of you, we could not have had such a great thing happen.
Some fabulous friends of Laurie and Zac's have set up the official Jack Morton Foundation. Please click here to view the new website. And for all of their hard work in setting it up, thank you.
We are working on getting photos from yesterday up, so check back for an update soon!
A few thank you's...
A special thank you to Adrian Wilson and Steve Breaston...two of the nicest, most genuine men around. Not only did they brave the almost 90 degree heat to shave nearly 100 heads in the Arizona sun, they did it because they wanted to. They are truly kind people. Because they volunteered their time for us, our little event grew to something beyone our imagination. And for that, we thank them.
To the brave Shavers!! Thank you for publicly showing your support for Jack and for all of those who are touched by cancer.
To Loco!! Thank you for letting us have our event at your amazing place. Thank you all for everything you gave, everything you did.
To everyone who is Loco for Jack!! Thank you for your support. Every single penny you gave will go directly toward Jack's continuing care. We totally sold out of all 200 t shirts we ordered, and could have easily sold an additional 200 more.
To all who helped in the planning and publicizing that helped to make this event such an amazing success!! You all know who you are, and our graititude is endless. Thank YOU (every single one of you) for everything you did. The flyers you designed, the Facebook event you created and invited thousands to, the donations you gathered, the amazing raffle items you donated, the raffle buckets you decorated, the t-shirt selling you did, the hair sweeping up you did, the heads you shaved, the planning you did, the decorating you did, the last minute errand running you did...the list goes on and on. Without every single one of you, we could not have had such a great thing happen.
Some fabulous friends of Laurie and Zac's have set up the official Jack Morton Foundation. Please click here to view the new website. And for all of their hard work in setting it up, thank you.
We are working on getting photos from yesterday up, so check back for an update soon!
Update from Laurie, April 8, 2010
Today was a great day for Jack...we have completed day 4 of chemo and he didn't get sick at all today! He was in a great mood today and played as if all was normal. He spend some time with the nurses today as I went to meet another mom in ICU who has a daughter has been diagnosed with neuroblastoma as well. It is nice to talk to someone else who is feeling the same thing that we are feeling. Please keep sweet McKenna and her parents in your prayers...
We have one more day to get through and then we will be heading to the shave off on Saturday. So excited to see everyone there!
Jack will be getting scanned on the 20th or the 21st too see what progress he is making so keep those dates in mind and pray that there has been a positive change...
We have one more day to get through and then we will be heading to the shave off on Saturday. So excited to see everyone there!
Jack will be getting scanned on the 20th or the 21st too see what progress he is making so keep those dates in mind and pray that there has been a positive change...
Friday, April 9, 2010
Extra - Read All About It!!
Interview with Adrian Wilson on KTAR
KMLE Country 108
AZ Central
USA Today
Sports Overdose.com
Sports News Daily
Revenge of the Birds.com
Just a small sampling of the news that has hit today!! WOW!!!
REMINDER!!
Just a reminder to everyone. The Shave-Off for Jack at Loco Patron Scottsdale is TOMORROW from 2 - 6!! We have celebrity barbers, exciting raffles and surprises! T-shirts available, as well! Come on out and join us for food, fun, and clippers!
A special reminder from Laurie and Zac! If Jack is able to attend, we kindly ask that all hugs and kisses be given through smiles and encouraging words. Due to Jack's low immunity, we cannot risk him being exposed to any germs at this time. We wish with all of our hearts that he could hug and kiss you all, but its just not possible at this time.
A special reminder from Laurie and Zac! If Jack is able to attend, we kindly ask that all hugs and kisses be given through smiles and encouraging words. Due to Jack's low immunity, we cannot risk him being exposed to any germs at this time. We wish with all of our hearts that he could hug and kiss you all, but its just not possible at this time.
Thursday, April 8, 2010
Update from Laurie, April 7
Today was a busy day for us...Jack got sick this morning right as we pulled into the hospital, but within seconds he was back to his old self again. They say that the car causes motion sickness and we figured he would get sick to his stomach while going through chemo. He did great today at the clinic for his 3rd day of chemo. We had a meeting today with the Dr's to figure out his treatment plan and our little Jack has a tough road ahead of him, but we are still confident that he will pull through this like no other. We know there will be tough times and we are obviously dreading them, but we can only take it a day at a time and as of today...he is doing great. We are so proud of our little man. After we got home, he got sick again but instead of being upset about it, he actually told me that he was sorry for getting it on my shirt and asked if I wanted to change real quick. Funny how he thinks of everyone else while he is going through this.
We are so looking forward to this weekend and the shave-off at Loco on Saturday. We cannot wait to see some friends that we haven't seen in awhile and be able to support Jack's journey together. I am sure that we will be overwhelmed and I am sure I will be a bit of a mess that day, but I cannot wait. We are hoping that Jack will be able to come with us for a little bit, but we will not know until Friday if that will happen or not. If he can, we just have to make sure that he stays germ free while we are there. While we wish that he could be hugged and held and loved by all our friends and family, but that cannot happen right now. We hope that everyone understands that while he has the energy and strength of a "normal" 2 year old, his immune system disagrees. We have to keep him healthy and in our arms while we are there and I know that everyone will understand that.
We want to say thank you again to everyone who has pulled together this event for Saturday. You all know who you are and we are so very grateful. Hopefully we can do an event like this next year and raise some money for another family who is going through this. We love you all and thank you so very much...
We are so looking forward to this weekend and the shave-off at Loco on Saturday. We cannot wait to see some friends that we haven't seen in awhile and be able to support Jack's journey together. I am sure that we will be overwhelmed and I am sure I will be a bit of a mess that day, but I cannot wait. We are hoping that Jack will be able to come with us for a little bit, but we will not know until Friday if that will happen or not. If he can, we just have to make sure that he stays germ free while we are there. While we wish that he could be hugged and held and loved by all our friends and family, but that cannot happen right now. We hope that everyone understands that while he has the energy and strength of a "normal" 2 year old, his immune system disagrees. We have to keep him healthy and in our arms while we are there and I know that everyone will understand that.
We want to say thank you again to everyone who has pulled together this event for Saturday. You all know who you are and we are so very grateful. Hopefully we can do an event like this next year and raise some money for another family who is going through this. We love you all and thank you so very much...
Wednesday, April 7, 2010
Hi all, Stacey here. Last night after Laurie and Jack got home from the hospital clinic, Jack asked me to go outside and bwow bubbles with him. I cannot believe how full of life and energy he is. It amazes me that children can be so resilient.
And of course I get to stay with this little lump of yummy goodness all day long. Braden is still doing quite well and continues to eat well and gain weight. His condition is apparent when feeding him, as he seems to have a hard time mastering the swallow and breathe technique, but he's obviously getting by just fine judging the size of this little moose....
And of course I get to stay with this little lump of yummy goodness all day long. Braden is still doing quite well and continues to eat well and gain weight. His condition is apparent when feeding him, as he seems to have a hard time mastering the swallow and breathe technique, but he's obviously getting by just fine judging the size of this little moose....
Update from Laurie, April 6, 2010
Day 2 has come and gone and Jack has done so well! He is still full of energy and hasn't been sick this time around. We are so happy that he is acting "normal" but wonder what he will be like when he is better...he will have so much energy that we are not sure we will be able to keep up with him! He spent some time today playing with another little girl around the same age as him and that was so cute! We will post some pictures later after we download them. We really don't have too much to say since he is acting so great and responding so well! He will be doing a round of scans in the next couple of weeks to see how his body is reacting to the chemo so hopefully we will have a better idea of what is going on in his little body.
On to day 3...
On to day 3...
Tuesday, April 6, 2010
Update from Laurie, April 5, 2010
Today was the 1st day of the second round of chemo and Jack did wonderful. He was in high spirits all day and as always..full of energy. This was our first time doing chemo as outpatient and even though it was a long day at the clinic, it was so great to be able to bring him home at night. When his last iv was done, he yelled "we're outta here!" and as usual he told everyone that he was leaving to go and see his baby brother. I have no clue where he gets this energy from because I am totally drained after being there for almost 8 hours, but I am so happy he has it!
On to day 2...
On to day 2...
Monday, April 5, 2010
First-hand update!
I arrived yesterday morning in Arizona to help out Laurie and Zac while Jack receives round 2 of his chemo treatments this week.
Seriously folks, chemo is not what they are shooting into Jack's veins. It's some type of super-powered energy hyper-freak out juice. For sure. To say that Jack is a ball of energy is a slight understatement. He never stops running around. He even hates to take time to pee! He just runs and talks and plays and pretty much goes bonkers all day long. His noise is music to our ears! It's just got to be a great sign. Laurie said that Jack's doctor came in mid-way through the treatment today and did another double take. He asked Laurie if the drip had even started yet, and she said that he was already done with his first medicine and was getting ready to receive his second. She said that the doctor smiled and shook his head, and told Laurie that, "He's so strong. He's one special kid." Yeah, tell us something we don't already know! But it is so comforting hearing things like this from his doctor.
While Laurie and Jack were at the clinic today, I stayed here at the house taking care of Braden. Braden is a little champ, I tell you. His heart condition makes him fall asleep during feedings, but he still sucks down his entire bottle and is gaining weight at the rate of about a pound a week. Which is great news.
Watching Braden smile and blow bubbles and watching Jack run around the house a mile a minute, it's difficult to even imagine that both of them are sick. But we take small victories as positive signs that all is well.
Seriously folks, chemo is not what they are shooting into Jack's veins. It's some type of super-powered energy hyper-freak out juice. For sure. To say that Jack is a ball of energy is a slight understatement. He never stops running around. He even hates to take time to pee! He just runs and talks and plays and pretty much goes bonkers all day long. His noise is music to our ears! It's just got to be a great sign. Laurie said that Jack's doctor came in mid-way through the treatment today and did another double take. He asked Laurie if the drip had even started yet, and she said that he was already done with his first medicine and was getting ready to receive his second. She said that the doctor smiled and shook his head, and told Laurie that, "He's so strong. He's one special kid." Yeah, tell us something we don't already know! But it is so comforting hearing things like this from his doctor.
While Laurie and Jack were at the clinic today, I stayed here at the house taking care of Braden. Braden is a little champ, I tell you. His heart condition makes him fall asleep during feedings, but he still sucks down his entire bottle and is gaining weight at the rate of about a pound a week. Which is great news.
Watching Braden smile and blow bubbles and watching Jack run around the house a mile a minute, it's difficult to even imagine that both of them are sick. But we take small victories as positive signs that all is well.
Saturday, April 3, 2010
Update from Laurie, April 2, 2010
After over a month of having my sister Nikki here to help with every little thing that we needed, she had to go home to Idaho today! Jack was a bit upset that she had to leave and kept asking her not to go as she tried to convince him that she could just fit him in her carry on and take him with her. We have been very lucky and we are very grateful for all the help we have had over the past month, but we want to say a special thank you to Nikki for all that she did for us. She instantly became Braden's second mommy and was up for anything that we needed. Jack loves having her around and I know he is looking forward to having her come back for the shave off next weekend. Thank you Nikki...we love you so very much! Now if only her and Shawn could move closer.......
My other sister, Stacey, comes in town Sunday morning to visit and help us as Jack begins his second round of chemo on Monday morning. My brother-in-law, Scott, will arrive on Wednesday as well so we are really looking forward to having them here! We will be in the clinic at PCH all week, but so happy that we get to go home at night. I pray that Jack makes it through this round as well as he did his last. As long as his levels are good, which the Dr's think that they will be, he will be making his bald headed appearance at the shave off on Saturday. He will only be able to be there for a short time...enough time to shave off some hair and see some friends that he hasn't seen in awhile.
Please keep your prayers coming...we are just at the beginning of this long road and we will take all the prayers and well wishes you can give!
My other sister, Stacey, comes in town Sunday morning to visit and help us as Jack begins his second round of chemo on Monday morning. My brother-in-law, Scott, will arrive on Wednesday as well so we are really looking forward to having them here! We will be in the clinic at PCH all week, but so happy that we get to go home at night. I pray that Jack makes it through this round as well as he did his last. As long as his levels are good, which the Dr's think that they will be, he will be making his bald headed appearance at the shave off on Saturday. He will only be able to be there for a short time...enough time to shave off some hair and see some friends that he hasn't seen in awhile.
Please keep your prayers coming...we are just at the beginning of this long road and we will take all the prayers and well wishes you can give!
Friday, April 2, 2010
"Yeah-Yeah-Yeah"
And now, the world premier video of Jack Morton and his back up singer, Aunt Nikki, singing their chart-topping hit, "Yeah-Yeah-Yeah". Please forgive the cell video quality, this is a bootlegged copy...
As you can clearly (well, not so clearly) see, Jack is feeling great! And isn't he just stylin' in his new slick 'do?? I especially love the outfit he chose to perform in. Pants are totally overrated.
I will be hopping on a plane Sunday morning and I am so excited to see the little rock star in person. And to meetPorky Pig Braden for the first time! I will be overloading the blog with pictures and updates, as I'll be there first hand!
Monday is the start of round two of Jack's chemotherapy, but as you all remember it's going to be outpatient!! Woo Hoo!! This hopefully means lots of demand performances in the kitchen, as seen above. I can only hope and pray that he breezes through this treatment as well as he did the first round. Jackers - you truly are a rock star!!
Oh, and say a quick pretty please prayer. Laurie may have found a great house for them to move to that's much closer to the hospitals and both of the boys' doctors. It will be such a relief to get out of their tiny temporary condo and back into a real house with room to play and a grassy backyard.
As you can clearly (well, not so clearly) see, Jack is feeling great! And isn't he just stylin' in his new slick 'do?? I especially love the outfit he chose to perform in. Pants are totally overrated.
I will be hopping on a plane Sunday morning and I am so excited to see the little rock star in person. And to meet
Monday is the start of round two of Jack's chemotherapy, but as you all remember it's going to be outpatient!! Woo Hoo!! This hopefully means lots of demand performances in the kitchen, as seen above. I can only hope and pray that he breezes through this treatment as well as he did the first round. Jackers - you truly are a rock star!!
Oh, and say a quick pretty please prayer. Laurie may have found a great house for them to move to that's much closer to the hospitals and both of the boys' doctors. It will be such a relief to get out of their tiny temporary condo and back into a real house with room to play and a grassy backyard.
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