Had A Great Checkup With The Surgeon

After a few great (normal) weeks, it was time to get back into the treatment mode today. 

We had a great follow up with Jack's surgeon today. Well, Jack got a brief rectal exam, which he labeled as "pretty weird", so I'm not sure that it was great in his mind. 

But, here is what we learned today...

At the moment, Jack is free of tumors. (Not to say that he is cured, just whatever was in him was either killed by chemo, or removed during surgery.) The surgeon took qute a good look inside and around him, and is very confident he didn't miss anything. 

The tumor that was removed, was indeed the "two" masses that were originally detected by CAT scans. It turned out that the two were connected by tissue, and were in a shape of a dumbbell or a peanut, if you will. That was what was removed during surgery. 

Pathology confirmed that the tumor was neuroblastoma, and it was responding positively to chemo. 

Size of the tumor was about 12cm in length, so around 3-4 inches, and about a golf ball size on each end. 

We are now clear for the "last" round of chemo, which will probably be starting next week. 

I say "last" in quotes, because he will be receiving one more dose after this, but that dose is a part of the second phase of his treatment, and not a part of the chemotherapy phase. (That is a part of the Autologous stem cell transplant, I'll write more about that as it nears.)

For now we are very happy with where things are, and are ready to wrap up this first phase, and go on to the next. 

Here is a little pic of the top of his head. This white fuzz hair came after his regular brown hair fell out. Also, a little patch of brown is still visible, the little tornado where his hair starts growing I think.

I'm grateful for:

- treatment going as planned,

- Jack being a good sport during "the exam" (he was laughing with the surgeon after it...)

- playing a board game (one of the Christmas gifts) as a family yesterday, (Though I'm not grateful I lost to Sarah, twice!)

- carrying Jack to his bed on New Year's Eve. (He won't let me carry him around anymore, partly because he is 7 now, and partly because of the ports in his chest, so I appreciate holding him like in the old days, when he was a little guy.)

A Quick Holiday Update

We had a fantastic Christmas, boys got lots of fun presents and are still enjoying them. As a matter of fact, even Sarah joins in on the Nerf wars in the basement. Two on two team deathmatch baby!

And, thankfully, boys slept in until 8:30 in the morning, rather than getting up at the crack of dawn to see what Santa brought. 

Jack is doing well, although he's had a runny nose for the past couple of days, we'll see if it turns into anything to worry about. 

We'll see more cousins this weekend, then off for a surgery follow up on Jan. 2nd. I think the surgeon wants to check on Jack's healing progress, and maybe he'll give us an idea of when to get ready for the fifth cycle of chemo. 

Otherwise, things are pretty normal around here. 

Time to lock and load, so here are a few things I'm thankful for:

- playing board games and Nerf wars all together,

- the weather, seriously, can it get any better for December?

- a great Christmas with family and happy kids. 

Merry Christmas

Getting Ready For Christmas

Well, Jack got a very special letter from Santa today, which informed him he was on the nice list. Santa also said he's watching Chase which made Jack very happy and giddy. 

We will be traveling this holiday season, and I'm very happy to be doing just that. Jack spent his birthday and Chases birthday at the hospital and didn't get to see any cousins for Thanksgiving, so we're all happy to be on the road and visit with family. 

He is doing really well, and with a break from chemo it has really been pretty normal around here. 

Sarah's coworkers took Jack and Chase shopping today, and boys apparently didn't want any toys, just some gift cards to online app stores. (They're such nerds :) (I like to tease them about their love of computer games, but rest assured, I get pretty excited when Chase asks me to set up a game server for him and his friends.)

Here is Jack toiling over a letter for a pen pal. It took him (us) an hour to get it written. But at least his handwriting is readable. 

Today I'm grateful for:

- being able to travel and visit cousins,

- a "free" lunch today,

- our thoughtful and caring coworkers,

- my parents who provide me with awesome jokes for the boys

Union Bank's Magic Moment

A while back, one of Tibor's co-workers nominated Jack for a Magical Moment sponsored by Union Bank. We were one of the lucky 10 chosen to receive a special wish. With Jack being such a trooper throughout all this treatments and surgeries, we thought a special bedroom makeover would be just perfect. With his love for rockets and space, we settled on a space theme. Our home has been a bit of a zoo the last few weeks with painters, carpet people and designers coming up with something super special for his room.
Today was the day for everyone (including the news crew) to present us with some special gifts.
Here's the link to watch the clip that was played on tonight news:

http://www.klkntv.com/category/190066/klkn-channel-8-video?&clipId=9648906&autostart=true

We would like to give special thanks to everyone who donated their time and talent to make sure Jack has a super cool bedroom.

Mike from Mural Mural Graphics:  oh my... the mural he painted on Jack's wall is magnificent! His talent is amazing.
Dan and Carl: Thank you so much for painting the basement and for Diamond Vogal for donating the paint. (pst... the fart machine you guys gave him is the best, he loves playing pranks on everyone! Must be a boy thing.)
All the gals at Design Works: All the decor you picked out for Jack's room looks beautiful and works so well together. Chase likes to write surprise messages on his dry erase board for Jack to see later. Most of them are in good taste. :)
TG Construction: Thanks for the carpet in Jack's room and the basement. Working with Carpetland was wonderful, who knew all the options for carpet.
Lori, Tibor's co-worker: Thank you so much for thinking of our Jack.  It warms our hearts knowing how many people read the blog and have such big hearts.
Union Bank: Without your generosity, none of this would have been possible. Thank you for reaching out and showing your support and warmheartedness to our community.

Thank you again, you all have a special place in our hearts.

Recovering From The Surgery

Just a quick update...

For the first few days after the surgery, Jack was pretty sore and had a hard time walking. 

Last night, we got him out of the house for a little walk at Toys 'R Us, which gave him great exercise. 

By today he was even running around the basement. 

So, the recovery is going well. 

We Are Back Home

Well, that was quick...

We are back home already, and Jack feels and acts much better. 

He was quite a bear today, even telling his doctor to leave the room and leave him alone. 

But, now he is back to his nice self. 

I can not believe that yesterday he was in a two hour surgery, and tonight he is home, on the couch, playing on the iPad.

Obviously, I'm very grateful he is home and in good spirits,

I am grateful for his surgeon, who is an artist with his blades, and 

Spending quality time with Chase, watching Trailer Park Boys.