I find it sort of funny, or at least ironic, that all of us (you out there as well as me and Mark) are feeling such joy and relief after Monday’s meeting. It’s almost as if we think, “Oh thank God, that’s over with,” when in reality, whatever was inside Austin’s body last week is still there today. […]
We have reached consensus and we feel good. We will adopt the “watch-and-wait” approach as advocated by our UH team over the “find-out-at-all-costs” approach as advocated by St Jude’s. Here’s the low-down: First, and perhaps most importantly, this shadow has been on Austin’s kidney for the past two years. I know many of you are […]
We have our meeting scheduled with the team of four doctors for this coming Monday afternoon. We hope to get some real answers about how to get some real answers about what lurks inside our little Austin’s body. We feel we simply need more diagnostic information before we can make a decision about how to proceed. […]
From the mouth of my outrageously smart, not-yet six-year-old when I told him about our latest predicament with Austin: “But Mom, the real question is, How are we going to know what’s inside of him?” Exactly, Braedan honey, exactly. I know a lot of you have questions too, so I will do my best here […]
There are many reasons why I write this blog everyday. A lot of it has to do with needing a place to process my own feelings, an outlet for expressing my fears and hopes and all the good and bad that comes along with childhood cancer. I often write to pass along information to all of you, my friends and family and […]
Back and forth, and back and forth, and back and forth. This is a terrible position for parents to be placed in. This is a terrible decision to have to make on behalf of our child. What’s the right answer? What will cause the least damage, to mind and to body and to spirit? What will […]
My mom has my Caring Today article sitting out on her counter to proudly show to anyone who walks through her door (we moms are all the same, aren’t we?). She must have read it yet again the other day because she commented on how she too interacts with Austin “with a great deal more […]
The mystery of Austin’s kidney continues with no easy resolution in sight. Yesterday’s ultrasound revealed that this shadow, this mass, actually appears to be filled with fluid. Now at first glance that seems like good news because Wilms’ tumors are solid tumors. But of course, there are things to worry about that we had never heard of […]
I think it’s sort of funny how much you all appreciated seeing my “human side” in that last post! I certainly have never meant to paint a picture of us as gliding right through this crisis (or these crises) without rearing our own sometimes ugly heads. We have handled it all very well, I’ll give […]
Last Wednesday, before went to the hospital, Austin had a crying fit over something inconsequential, like what color spoon I gave him for his yogurt or whether his pants legs appropriately covered his boots. A few hours later, he sat in my arms as two nurses inserted an IV line into his hand and barely […]