Here we are in November 2008 and it's hard to believe that it has already been 7 months since our precious youngest daughter was diagnosed with leukemia and our world came crashing down. On the one hand the time has gone by so fast. But on the other hand, some of the days have been a lifetime.
Avery is doing incredibly well at this point and we are so incredibly thankful for her progress. She is in the Maintenance phase of her treatment. This phase is the last phase of her treatment, but she has 22 months to go on this one. Even though she doesn't have to go to the cancer clinic weekly any more, she does still receive multiple chemos on a regular basis. She gets an i.v. chemo once a month, chemo through spinal tap once every three months, oral chemo daily, another oral chemo once a week, and an anti-biotic three days a week. So, while it's a lot easier than Delayed Intensification, it's certainly isn't a walk in the park.
She takes it all so well - better than I could ever expect to handle something like this. She smiles a lot and is so brave and strong. I don't quite know what to make of her sometimes, she is amazing. Avery grew an inch in less than 2 months, and now she's grown another centimeter in the last 2 weeks! I guess it's all that organic milk she sucks down!?
A lot has been going on lately. We participated in the CHOC Disneyland fundraiser walk on October 18th to help raise money for Children's Hospital of Orange County, where Avery is being treated. It was an awesome experience (a little rushed, but awesome). We had about 51 team members, and our own little stroller brigade out that day. We raised about $4,100 for CHOC and can't wait to do it again next year. A couple of weeks after that we participated in the Buddy Walk for the Orange County Down Syndrome Association in support of our friends, John & Kristin Clark. That was a fun and well organized event. It was a completely different vibe than the CHOC walk and it was really cool getting to sit in the Angels dugout!
The kids have all been busy, with school, surfing, Girl Scouts, church, friends, and just being kids. And what great kids they are, seriously. They are so sweet and thoughtful (yes, they have their moments and their rooms are often quite messy, but they are genuinely good kids). I'm so proud of them and can't believe that I will not have any kids in elementary school next year. Wow!
We had a raffle fundraiser in October, that ended with us awarding a beautiful .5 carat diamond heart necklace to Dennis Nelson of Huntington Beach. Huge thanks to Trans & Lisa Baca of Princess Bride Diamonds at Bella Terra in Huntington Beach. We also had a big fundraiser yard sale - and a big thanks to everyone who donated stuff to sell, came by and shopped, brought us food, and helped pack stuff up - we couldn't have done it without you! We don't currently have any other fundraisers in the works - not that we couldn't use them. I'm just too busy to do it right now. Maybe after the first of the year we will start on the next big thing? We have been so incredibly blessed by the many gifts and donations people have made during this difficult time. Even though we haven't always had the time to send out a note, please know that every single gift and donation has been truly and greatly appreciated. You guys rock!
I hope you all have a happy, safe and healthy Thanksgiving, surrounded by lots and lots of people you love and plenty of good food. We miss you. Much love from Pam.
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