strong and courageous: truckee

Wednesday, February 20, 2008

truckee

We had a great Presidents Day visiting good friends and playing in the snow.

Isaiah's liver has been stressed and has been functioning at 20 times normal. We've been concerned, of course. He had a special appointment Tuesday with several tests. Things seem to have calmed down a bit, thankfully. Please pray for his body as it continues to process all the chemotherapy.

6 comments:

Jen said...: LOVE AND PRAYERS FOR YOUR FAMILY
WITH WARMTH,
MIKE, JENNIFER, JERROD, JACK, LUKE, AND NEW BABY GENEVIEVE; February 21, 2008 at 9:03 PM
Anonymous said...: We love you and continue to hold you all up in prayer. What a beautiful day in the snow!
Love,
Don & LaDona; February 21, 2008 at 9:18 PM
Michelle Coder said...: Isn't the snow great! Looks like we're going to get more this weekend.

Love and prayers, Isaiah! I'm glad things are calming down.

Love, Michelle; February 23, 2008 at 8:58 AM
Auntie Angie said...: HEy family, I am thinking about you guys. Great pictures! I miss you Isaiah and Sienna, Ethan sends kisses and hugs.Sienna, I love that picture of you...I think you have a couple teeth missing though! just Kidding =) I am praying for you little buddy, keep strong- you are doing great! Hope to see you all soon. luv, Angie; February 23, 2008 at 4:50 PM
Unknown said...: Isaiah,

We continue to pray for you and are so thankful for the wisdom God continues to give you as you walk this journey. I'm praying for your dad (and mom) too, so that gives us s special connection!

Stephen; February 23, 2008 at 5:05 PM
Unknown said...: That's my lil' cuz. I pray each night that his body will respond well.

Keep the faith, he's my cousin so his liver must be pretty good. ;); February 27, 2008 at 1:52 PM

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update on isaiah's progress

We're received quite a few questions recently about Isaiah's treatment. Here's a quick update:

Is he in remission?

Yes. He's officially been in remission since the 17th day after diagnosis, early June 2007.

Is he still on chemo?

Yes.

Mercaptopurin (chemo) daily, orally, with a 3 hour fast.

Methotrexate (chemo) weekly, orally.

Bactrim (antibiotic) daily, orally.

Dexamethasone (steroid) every 8 weeks, orally.

Vincristine (chemo) every 2 weeks, intraveinously.

Methotrexate (chemo) every 12 weeks, in the spinal fluid with a "spinal tap".

Currently he is at the clinic at Sutter Memorial every two weeks for a blood check, etc.

When's he done with treatment?

The protocol for boys with Acute Lymphocytic Leukemia is 36 months beginning after the initial 60 day treatment. We anticipate he'll be done with chemo at the end of July 2010.

Merry Christmas Friends!

Thank you to all of you who have sent us pictures and updates! It's great to see your faces once again. We've not been able to put something together this year (yet!), so here's a quick update for those who visit us here:

Carmen: doing a great job teaching our kids at home this year, running, hiked Half Dome, lovingly and consistently caring for all of us (and lots of others).

Sienna: super-creative and always nurturing, loves studying at home, played soccer, raised chickens and looking forward to horse-riding lessons in '09. See pictures of her 8th birthday here.

Isaiah: 08 highlights include playing t-ball, learning to swim, riding his bike, a trip to Disneyland, trip to Alabama, and lots of playing.

Nathan: ran a 25K trail run at Stinson Beach, loved our family vacation in San Diego, and is so grateful for our staff, church community, and the ongoing adventure of leading/serving Emmaus. Nate blogs very infrequently here; you can access his pod/vodcasts here.

2008!

There are many ways you can continue to pray for Isaiah. He has some exciting goals ahead in 2008!
Here is the list:

1)Get Strong! He does physical therapy at home 3-5 times per week and at the office 2 times per month.
2)Play Ball! He is working hard to get ready for T-Ball season. Pray he will play and that his compression fractures will heal.
3)Learn at Home! He is working on Kindergarten school work at home. Many factors make school work a challenge. Pray for a healthy brain and a desire to learn.

even more thank yous to...

the students of Amber Bobst's 2nd grade class from Eastside Christian School in Belleview, WA for the cards
all those who have contributed to our gas and groceries fund...you're keeping us going!
all the Emmaus families who have brought dinner to us in recent weeks
the Harrington family for the picnic package
Anne for the book and CD
The Hoke family for the birthday bird
Goebel, Linville, Nutti, and Ferrara families for the great gift certificate
Doris for the pint of ice cream
Emmaus for being the Church and supporting us in countless ways...for the gifts for Isaiah and Sienna...we're so thankful to be sharing life and discovering Jesus with you.
Betsy for the care package for the kids
Diane for the one-prize-a-day gift
Glenda for the beautiful superman quilt
Mrs. Liden for the SuperIsaiah cape and blanket
The Keaton Raphael Memorial Fund
everyone who is praying
friends and family for the financial support
Shirli and the Needle Arts Group for the blankets and hats
Susanna for the cleaning supplies
Susan, Laura, Sandie for nutritional help
Bob and Elaine for the motorhome
The Arena for the Batman blanket
Anne for the quilt
The Arena and The Ridge for supporting Carmen
Sunrise Church for the prayer quilt
Ms. Della Roca's 4th graders at St. Mary's for the beautiful cards
Josh and Lisa for the superman blanket