Well I haven't posted much during our break, I have been spending time with the children. We have worked in the gardens in the yard as much as possible. It has been fun and now my back aches and my knee is swollen! (I knelt on a brick) Josh has even gone to the Y to shoot baskets by himself a few times. (it is 3 blocks away and we pick him up when he is done cause he is tired) He is definately not as strong as he used to be but he is doing good. He has been going to school and riding his bike and having fun. That is why I should not feel the way I do. I am so worried about this week. Let me give you the schedule and then I will talk about it.
We have 3 doctors apointments on Wednesday. We have the hearing test and I do expect him to have hearing loss. He now panics if he is in a small place and people are loud. I think that the sound echoes and it is frightening to him. We also have a follow up with the radiation oncologist to see how he is doing. The other appointment is one I am not sure about. When all this started the orthopedic doctor he was seeing wanted him in braces to help his walking till they could do the spine surgery. The insurance denied it cause of his prognosis. Unknown to us the doctors appealed it and now they have approved the braces. We will get them on Wednesday. I am just not sure if this is too much to ask him to deal with. He wants them because they come with custom fit scetures(boy I spelled that wrong) sneakers. We decided to get them and see how it goes. He still gets tired easily so I just don't know.
That brings us to Thursday! We go into the hospital at 9:30 and they start an IV with his port so that they can use contrast during his MRI at 10:00 Then we go to the clinic and start chemo. They will give him chemo and fluids through the IV overnight and then we are supposed to go home on Friday late in the afternoon. Other parents I have talked to say if you are throwing up or have diarhea or are not eating you do not get out. We will have to see. This is the first MRI since treatment started so we are nervous to see what it says. Also, the treatment so far has been very hard on Joshua and it was supposed to be the easy part. It takes all I have to make him do this and see it slowly drain him. Even though he has been doing great, that is relative. He is different and I know that we are making it happen. It is hard to be on this road and feel like we have no choice. Now, I know that I have a bad attitude, don't worry we are positive and upbeat with Joshua. It is just that I can't shake this dread. We are doing our best to be prepared and ready to handle this. I have tried to get my projects done so I can focus on Joshua. We have had lots of fun during this down time and I think he is ready for this. Please keep us in your prayers and we will hope for the best. I know that we could not get through this without all the wonderful support. We love the cards and letters and it means the world to us that so many people care about Josh and our family. Thank you so much.
With all my whining I do not want to end this post without saying that we know that Heavenly Father knows our struggles and wants to help. We feel that he is with us and Jesus Christ stands beside Joshua. This trial must happen but he doesn't leave us alone and we will get through it. Joshua is a warrior and we are fighting with him. God Bless you all, I know he has blessed us.
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6 comments:
I can empathize a lot with hating what you have to have your child do and feeling helpless about making him do it. It is hard. Having had chemo myself, I know it is a roller coaster. Up and down. I think it was harder for my parents to watch me, sometimes, even though I am an adult, than it was for me to go through it. It sounds to me like you are doing everything you can and doing a pretty good job. Take care. God bless you and Joshua.
We are praying for you all. Extra hard this week especially! We love you Josh. You can do this. You may not want to, and you probably hate every second of it, but you can get through it.
We love you!
Hi to the Jones Family!! I know I haven't posted comments before but I want you all to know that I've been following the blog and getting updates from Mom throughout your journey. I've been thinking about you and praying for you all!!! I think you are doing a great job of getting through this as a family and supporting each other. I can't know what you're going through, but I love you and my prayers are with you. The occupational therapist in me wants to encourage you with the braces :) I know it might take Josh a little while to adjust, but it might actually make it easier for him to walk after a short while. I love you all! And I miss you loads! --"Cousin" Chrissy
josh will have to give grandpa the tips on getting ice cream and popsicles in the hospital! a day never goes by when the boys don't pray for joshua, and i think they have the greatest faith i've ever seen! hang in there this week, we are only a phone call away.
Yesterday, Joseph, Daniel, & Ammon fasted for Joshua (Michael and I did too;). It is wonderful to see their faith in action. The boys were so little when they knew Joshua, but they feel close to him in spirit and want him to know that they really care about him. We love each of you. Thank you for keeping us posted. Please know that we are continuing to pray for Joshua and his awesome family.
We're with ya. Glad to hear that you all enjoyed the break. Gardening does the soul good. Plus it's great fun for the kids. I always think of all the prophet and thier wives who say that working in the yard with your kids is one of the best ways to teach responsiblilty.
We'll be thinking of you all this week. I have not doubt this is hard, but Ruth you handle all this amazingly. Know that we are thinking of you too. This is a heavy burden you are asked to carry as a mother. Tell Josh and other kids we love em.
Your forever family
Tamee and Keith and kids
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