What a FUN day! We have had this day planned for a long time but had to cancel because Bennett was in the hospital and than his counts were to low around Christmas. We were so thankful to be able to go and truly enjoyed the day.

We went to Chuckie Cheese and a Glow in the Dark miniature golf place. It was pretty cool! Below are some pics.

We are praying Bennett’s counts are good. We kinda chanced it today without knowing what his counts are; only from a week ago. Of course, we used hand sanitizer all day. He has felt good considering so we believe his counts should be o.k.

We go tomorrow to our local hospital to have them checked. We are praying that his ANC is high enough to have another week of being able to be out in public places. Especially because this Sunday we have a special church service to attend. Also, a higher ANC will help fight off any infection he could get. He still has a cough and hoping it just stays a cough or goes away soon.

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“I will mention the loving kindnesses of the Lord and the praises of the Lord, according to all that the Lord has bestowed on us.” Isaiah 63:7

11 months ago today our journey began. Some days we are thankful that God chose Bennett for this journey as we have learned so much, have met so many great people, and hopefully have brought more people closer to their Savior. We just ask that God will continue Bennett’s miracle that he will forever be healed.

I found this poem on another cancer patients website and added/deleted from it. Even though it maybe sad, it describes the life of a parent with a child that has cancer.

I HOPE ….

I hope you never have to hear the words,

“You need to take your child to the hospital immediately.”

I hope you never have to hear the words,

“your child has cancer.”

I hope you never have to see your child undergo chemotherapy or radiation, have a port surgically inserted into your child’s chest, and be connected to IV poles.

Look at you with fear in their eyes and say,

“Don’t worry Mom, I’ll be O.K.

I hope you don’t ever have to sleep by your child just watching them breathe each breath.

I hope you never have to see your child vomit every meal they eat,

I hope you never have to watch the chemotherapy take away your child’s identity, as they:

lose their hair, become a skeleton, swell up from steroids and are too weak to play

and they look at you with hope in their eyes and say,

“It’s going to be O.K., Mom.”

I hope you never have to keep emla cream, nausea/pain meds or a thermometer in your purse.

I hope you never have to worry of how other kids will look at your child with no hair or a mask on their face.

I hope you never have to go to the clinic where your child sits in a row of recliner chairs, getting new blood or more chemo so they can continue to live.

I hope you never have to stay in the hospital for days, weeks at a time, where there is no privacy, sleeping on a slab, with your face under the covers, where you cry in muffled silence.

I hope you never have to watch a family wandering aimlessly through the hospital, minutes after their child’s body has been removed.

I hope you never wake up in a sweat and look over at your child, they comfort you by smiling and say, “I’m going to be O.K. Mom”.

I hope you never have to cry out to God in prayer asking him for a miracle to heal your baby.

I hope your life never becomes a whirl of Doctors, blood tests, chemotherapy, spinals taps and bone marrow biopsies.

I hope your never have to live in fear that any of these tests at anytime could result in hearing the dreaded words that the cancer has returned.

I hope you never have to experience any of these things…

Because……only then….. will you truly understand………………

May God continue to give us the strength through Bennett’s journey; Thank you for being a part of it. May you be blessed with God’s love and appreciate his gifts. May you never have to know how the six letter word can change your life forever.

Bennett is doing pretty good. He still has his cough but his nose is doing better. He is taking vitamin C pills and also cough medicine. He has to be careful of what over the counter meds he takes. He can’t have anything that is a fever or pain reducer and most have some in it.

He could of slept in this morning but he went to the gym before Hamilton’s future Rangers practice at 7:30 a.m. and shot around for about 30 minutes and than he coached a team during his practice.

We went to the Benton Invitational Tourney today for the high school basketball games and will go back tonight for more.  So, he has had his day full of ball!  Looking forward to the day that Bennett #35 will be on the court!

Thank you for your love, prayers and support!

“Pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, patience, gentleness.” 1 Timothy 6:11

Bennett went to school today and seemed to be feeling pretty good. He said in P.E.; they played basketball and he really enjoyed it. I picked him up from lunch today from school. I did this last Friday too, I’m thinking I may have a lunch date every Friday now. When I got home from work, him and Hamilton were playing basketball outside in the 35 degree weather. I was glad to see that he was out and felt like playing but thought it might be a bit cold.

Bennett got his report card today for the 2nd semester. He made all A’s and 2 B’s. He made the honor roll.   Yeah! We are so proud of him for keeping up with his school work and making good grades.  This year has sure built up his confidence and he feels really good about school.

We went to the high school basketball game tonight. He hung out with his friends.

Sounds like it’s going to be a very cold weekend, maybe some snow?

“This is the day which the Lord hath made; we will rejoice and be glad in it.” Psalm 118:24

Bennett is doing pretty good. He had a  bad headache tonight. He did take some tylenol and it went away.  He went to school today and than went to the Jr. high basketball game tonight at West Frankfort.  We won both games!

He has a cough and his nose is a little runny.  Sure hope he doesn’t get a cold and it turn into an infection.

His next blood test is Tuesday since the holiday on Monday. This is to check his counts to see what his ANC is and other counts.  He does not have any treatments next week. We are looking forward to the weekend and being off school/work on Monday!

“Nothing in all creation is hidden from God’s sight.  Everything is uncovered and laid bare before the eyes of him to whom we must give an account.”  Psalm 51:10-12

Bennett went to school today. Yesterday he called me and ask me to bring him some tylenol to school because he had a real bad headache. Today, he hasn’t mention of having one. He was asleep in bed when I got home from work. He got up around 8 finally and ate a little supper.  We ended up watching a movie together.  He was going to go to the high school games tonight but he said he didn’t feel like going. He must be tired if he passed up a chance to go to a ballgame. I am praying that the rest/sleep gives him the strength his needs.

We lost one of our 9west buddies today. Please pray for Jessica’s parents, Brad & Teresa, Jessica was given her angels wings and joined Jesus. What a long battle Jessica fought and she won. She is free of cancer. She has battled this horrible disease for 4 of her precious 7 years.

Bennett has had some tough, scary times and moments like this makes me appreciate every minute we have with him. And with Sid and Hamilton. You just never know when God will decide to take one of his children.

He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.” Revelation 21:4

“For my Father’s will is that everyone who looks to the Son and believes in him shall have eternal life, and I will raise him up at the last day.” John 6: 40

Hallelujah!  We are still ecstatic today over Bennett’s counts. You know, the Dr. said last time that she thought there would be a chance that Bennett would not get this last treatment because of his counts being too low. After talking to other cancer patients, we really believe the ear infection Bennett had around Christmas dropped his counts. I first thought it was the leukemia and than the chemo which was very emotional. Others have said that their counts lowered too when having a fever/infection.

Bennett is doing good. He is happy and in a good mood. I have seen more smiles in the last few days! Bennett went to school today and he lifted weights in P.E. Just a week ago, he couldn’t do this because he was too weak/tired. God is Amazing!

Yesterday while we were at the hospital, we saw our friend Jessica. Please continue to pray for her and her family. The Dr. told her parents that she only has about a week to live.

We also saw our friend Ryan and his Mom. He also needs our prayers too as he has been in the hospital for couple weeks for stomach pain. Ryan is 14 and lives in Paxton, IL. We are looking so forward to the day that Bennett and Ryan are healthy and can do something fun together!

We have met some awesome kids and parents at SLCH. It sure breaks our heart when they are sick and not doing well.

Thank you for your comments, prayers, and checking on Bennett. We believe in the power of prayer and God’s will is to continue to heal Bennett!

Hallelujah! Bennett’s ANC today was 1,950! Our prayers were answered! Hopefully this is a big enough boost to keep him going for awhile! A week ago his ANC was 1,122. When his ANC goes up, we always think his bone marrow must be spitting out a bunch of white blood cells! His hemoglobin today was 9.8 from 10.4. Platelets were 161 from 170 one week ago. I was surprised his hemoglobin wasn’t closer to the normal range which starts at 12.5. His face has had a real good color to it.

More good news, Bennett weighed 119! He gained 9 pounds in 2 weeks. You can really tell his eating has increased. He has been really eating healthy. He loves yogurt, bananas and milk! He still looks thin but not as skinny.

His nurse gave him the same amount of dosage of the methotrexate that he had last time which is 160 mg.   He has had this same amount each time and he only missed one dosage of it through this phase.  He also received an iv push of vincristine.

Today marked the last day of his 5th treatment phase called Interim Maintenance II which started on Nov 20th!   One more down!  We feel like we are getting closer to the end of the marathon! Hallelujah!

“After this I heard what sounded like a roar of a great multitude in heaven shouting , “Hallelujah!” Salvation and glory and power belong to our God” Revelation 19: 1

Bennett has had a good day. I noticed yesterday that he had a good color to his cheeks. This might of been from the sun he got duck hunting but he just looks really good. I will be surprised if he will need any blood transfusions.

Bennett has been receiving muscle cramps in his hands, arms and legs frequently. He says it is like getting a bad muscle cramp. He has had these for several months but lately it seems that he gets them at least once a day. (sometimes more). We have mentioned it to the Dr. before and it probably is a side effect from the vincristine. He is supposed to tell her if it gets unbearable and than she will lower the dose.  Bennett says he can handle the pain.

We are very curious of what his ANC will be tomorrow. It will really help him if his ANC is over 1,000. His ANC has to be at least 500 and platelets 50 for treatment. His treatment tomorrow consists of an iv push of vincristine and an iv drip of methotrexate. We would like his ANC to be higher if possible so if the treatment takes it down, it still would be high enough to attend school, be in public places for the next couple of weeks. After tomorrow, he starts a new phase but not for 2 weeks. So, it could be a great break for him! We are praying for a high ANC!

I just read Jessica Chapman caring bridge site. She is the 7 year old that has ALL too that we met at SLCH. The Dr’s have only given her about a month to live. Jessica has told her parents that she doesn’t think she can stand the pain for many more days. This is so sad, frustrating, and scary. Please pray for strength and comfort for Jessica. And all cancer fighters especially the kids.

“If one member suffers, all suffer together with it; if one member is honored, all rejoice together with it.” 1 Corinthians 12:26

Bennett went duck hunting this morning with Bob and friends. They hunted from sunrise to early afternoon. He was so glad he got to go as the last trips were canceled because it was way too cold and than he got sick. Bennett got 2 1/2 ducks, he had help with the other 1/2. He had a great time; It was a beautiful sunny day! Thanks for taking him Bob!

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