Only 2 more days and we are outta here!!! This is a great facility, don’t get me wrong, but we just don’t want to live here anymore! 🙂

Today was an okay day for Jacob. It started off good. He ate a good breakfast and had a couple good therapy sessions, but late morning came and that was the end of that. He went to therapy and was playing a monster truck video game which is controlled by a hand bike and got sick. Who knows what caused it. His nose has been runny and he’s a gagger. Maybe it was because of the mask he has to wear when he’s out of his room. First, it smells fruity on the inside (he does not like that) and second, he said he feels like he’s suffocating with it on. Maybe just a combination of things. He said he felt much better once he threw up, but of course he was afraid to eat too much as the day went on. He had several other therapies throughout the rest of the day. None of them were too exciting because he needs to stay in his room most of the time for fear of getting sick.

Tonight they had the volunteer group with the dogs come by. Jacob got to see 6 different dogs tonight. He even got to see Sasha. The little one that he absolutely adored over at DeVos Hospital. He was excited to see her again. He told me that he thought she recognized him. 🙂 Good way to end the day!

Tomorrow morning at 10:00, we have to head back over to DeVos Hospital for Jacob to get his blood counts rechecked. Please be praying for him as you all are aware of his fear of needles. Please also pray that his counts are up for two reasons…1) so that they can resume chemo on Monday. For every week they push it back, that’s one more week we’ll be down here. 2) So Jacob can have an enjoyable weekend with family and not have to worry about wearing a mask the whole time or having to be in isolation. And just so we know that his immune system is good. We don’t want him to have to go through a transfusion tomorrow.

Gonna pick up Caleb tomorrow so he can spend our very last night here with us. It should be fun! Thanks again for all your prayers! God is good!!!

Remember, don’t take anyone special in your life or your life in general for granted, because all that can change in an instant.

P.S. Happy Birthday to Ken, the love of my life! I love you!!!

Today was pretty rough! Jacob had chemo again today. It was just outpatient, so you’d think that would be quick and easy. Should’ve been, but wasn’t. We got to the hospital at 1:30 and didn’t get out till after 6:00. They first put numbing cream over his port before they put the needles in and had to wait for that to work. Then they couldn’t draw any blood from either one of his ports (double pokes and major crying there), so they had to inject some medicine to unclog the ports and had to wait another hour. They were finally able to get some blood out after practically making him stand on his head to get it out (exaggeration!). Poor Jacob was a wreck! We had to wait awhile longer to get his bloodwork back and then do his chemo treatment. Removing the needles from his port were almost as traumatic as putting them in.

His bloodcounts came back pretty low, which I guess is to be expected. His white blood cell count was very low, so he needs to go back Thursday to have more blood drawn. If his counts are still low, then they will postpone his chemo next week to the following week.

He did farely well tonight. Somewhat nauseas, but took some meds for that and felt better. Just extremely tired and was asleep by 9:00. Hopefully he’ll sleep a little better tonight. He woke up with a couple bloody noses last night and didn’t sleep much after that.

Please pray that Jacob’s white blood cell count will rise tremendously by Thursday. We need that to rise because right now he’s considered high risk for infection and that could interfere with him enjoying the weekend with his Dad and family. Also, please pray that Thursday will go a little easier with the blood draw and that his ports won’t give them any problems. And above all else, for his healing! It was an extremely rough day for the both of us. It’s so hard watching your child cry in pain and hearing him say how much he hates his life right now and that he wishes he was home. It’s heartbreaking!!! I’m still trusting God! That’s all I can do is to put my trust in Him! He’s my only HOPE!!!!

oday didn’t start off the best. I woke up this morning tired and cranky and kind of had a melt-down in my head. I couldn’t have one out loud because that probably wouldn’t have been good for Jacob to see. Soon after, Jacob woke up and he had a melt-down…a real one. I knew how he felt, so all I could do was console him. I don’t know what it was or why. Maybe just a combination of things. First of all, neither one of us are morning people. Second, we just don’t sleep well here. And third, we’re just sick of living in a hospital. Oh well! It’s out of our control, so we just try to roll with the punches.

Jacob had 3 hours of therapy today. He’s been working on strengthening still and also stairs. He was very proud of himself with how well he did with that. I always get so many compliments at both places from doctors, nurses, therapists and so many others about what a nice boy he is, how polite he is and how smart he is. Things I already know, but love to hear anyway.

He got done with therapy for the day at 3:00. My sister Liz and the kids came for a visit and also to take Caleb back with them. My parents came soon after. We had a great time and then my Dad took us all out to dinner. We were able to get out on the town again. I always hate when our time out and about come to an end. I enjoyed having my Caleb here with me and sad he had to leave. Earlier today, my distant cousin Lynn, along with her sister, and Lynn’s daughter Kariann came for a visit. We had a nice visit. I love to have company! Hint! Hint! 🙂

Jacob and I love all of your letters and messages. Wish we could answer them all, but there’s just not enough hours in the day. They mean so much to us! God has really shown us how so many people care whether they’re family, friends or complete strangers.

Please continue to pray for Jacob and his healing of this cancer. Also for his legs that he will regain his strength. We’re also asking that you will pray for Jacob as he goes in for another chemo treatment tomorrow at 1:30. This will be an outpatient appt. It will take a few hours including time for bloodwork and such. Please pray that the side effects will be minimal to none. Thanks again for taking the time to pray for him and think of him through this difficult time.

Well, today was even better yet. I could tell he felt better right when he woke up this morning. Although he did end up throwing up late morning, but felt better afterwards. He still didn’t eat much today, but still more than yesterday. Hopefully it just keeps getting better everyday. The physical therapist even said that he seemed stronger. I love hearing good news at this point!

Jacob had 4 houra of therapy again today. Lots of strengthening. He also played Wii Fit, pool and Uno. He loves the occupational therapy! It doesn’t seem like work.

Later this afternoon, my sister Liz brought Caleb to see us along with 2 of her kids Abbie and Jared. The kids had a good time. This evening, my Aunt Gaye and Uncle Marty, cousin Chris and his wife Theresa came for a visit. We had a nice visit. The best part is is that Caleb is staying here at MFB with Jacob and I for the weekend. Jacobs schedule is usually pretty light on the weekend, so I decided that we should have a sleepover for a couple of nights. I think all 3 of us could use some bonding time. Just wish Ken was here with us. At least we’ll be able to see him next week. We’ve been snuggling on our cots, eating popcorn and watching a movie. Just so thankful I have both my boys here with me. Actually, as I’m sitting here writing this, Jacob’s kneeling behind me and massaging my shoulders. Boy I have such great kids!

Please continue to pray for Jacob and the strengthening of his hips and legs. That he would also be able to walk soon without assistance. That part is very frustrating for him. Thanks again for all your prayers. I could never thank you all enough!

Jacob still recovering from the last couple days. He didn’t want to eat breakfast this morning because he was afraid of getting sick, but I strongly encouraged him to eat something to give his body fuel. So he did – just a little bit though. Better than nothing! Well, they were having trouble with his port. He had a double port put in and were having trouble drawing blood from one. I was afraid that they were going to have to go back in, but they messed with it enough and got it to work. It’s not perfect, but it works. We got discharged at about 2:30 and had to head back to Mary Free Bed to continue on with physical therapy. We just pulled into the parking garage and Jacob got sick. Thankfully we got the door open so he didn’t get sick in the van. I feel bad for the person who was parked beside us. I got him inside and once he layed down he felt fine. I even got him to eat some fruit earlier this evening. At least he’s still taking his vitamins, so that should help. Hopefully tomorrow is a better day!