Halloween!… Day 717 31OCT10

Today was a great day with all the kids. Jamie, Christian, and Miss Allie arrived early this afternoon to spend Halloween with us. We had a great dinner and then the kids headed out in search of sugar while we tended the farm. They all did pretty well in their search and I am sure the supply will not dwindle anytime soon. A few pictures for your enjoyment :)

Joshua on steroids....

 Christian letting his hair down.

 Jarrod - "Alas poor Urich..."

 The Gandy Gang

Pre-game… Day 716 30OCT10

Joshua had a pretty good day today. He came close to losing his cool a coupe of time but we managed to talk him down. We spent a good portion of the day outside doing a different chores. The weather is still warm and we had a nice breeze for most of the time. This evening we headed of for a little pre-game practice by attending a Halloween party at Holly and Tobi's house. They are friends of ours from the Children's Cancer Center. It was a great party and the boys had fun running around and playing. We headed home when Joshua said he was getting tired and settled in to watch a little hockey. Nobody made it to the end of the game but me so I guess they were all pretty tuckered out ;)

Shop time… Day 715 29OCT10

Joshua managed to keep the lava from erupting today. He didn't have the best day with his teacher though. Renee said he shut off after only 25 minutes of school and his teacher could not get him to re-engage. The steroids definitely cause him to lose focus pretty quickly but we think there may be more at work in this.

When I got home tonight we boys got to spend a little time together out in the shop. My dad got me a new grill for my birthday and we needed to get it out of its cardboard coffin and into useable shape. Jarrod helped with the heavy lifting and assembly while Joshua took care of all the little bits making sure they were sorted and ready when I needed them. We had a good time working together and the new grill is ready for us to break in this weekend. I can already smell the food cooking…

Volcano… Day 714 28OCT10

It appears that this round of steroids is not going to one we will want to repeat anytime soon. Joshua had a pretty bad eruption this afternoon while I was at work and apparently almost knocked his bedroom door out of the frame when he shut it. He was better but still perched on the edge this evening when I got home. His reaction to steroids each cycle is impossible to predict and has never been consistent. We are hoping that it does not get worse over time as he continues to put the evil kid pills into his system. The cough is improving but still stubbornly hanging around. So life around the house today was a little volatile. Joshua struggled to get any school work done and like most steroids weeks he gets more antsy as the week draws to an end. Thank goodness tomorrow is the end of this cycle and in a few days he will be back to the normal, sweet child we have the rest of the time.

Until then… Fire proof suits might be a good idea…

Hockey night… Day 713 27OCT10

 Joshua didn't have his best school day this morning. The steroids won out and he just wouldn't focus. He played wirh LEGO's instead of doing math and has promised to make it up. Jarrod and Renee played with LEGO's as well and Jarrod built a cool trebuchet that converts into a catapult.

The highlight of the day was our evening out at the hockey game. We were given tickets to go see the Lightning take on the Penguins and we even got to take Renee's parents as well. The game was awesome! A nail biter and we were all hoarse afterwards from all the screaming and yelling. Both the boys had a great time and it was a nice way to wrap up our days together. One of our friends had told us about a picture of Joshua that was hanging in the wall at the hockey rink so during the break between periods Renee and Joshua went and found it. It is  shot from the Lightning Christmas party last year that we spent with Joshua's favorite player Steven Stamkos.

Better day… Day 712 26OCT10

Joshua had a much better day than yesterday. In the morning he went over to pa's house and got a little sailing in. It was great weather to have the pram out and he had a fun time. While he was doing that Jarrod was at Busch Gardens with his big buddy Clayton and they were having a great time riding all of the coasters. Renee was, unfortunately, back in the dentist's chair trying to figure out if she had a cracked root or not. Thankfully not. The rest of the afternoon Joshua got to spend alone with Renee until I returned from work and Busch Garden's closed so Jarrod would come home. So both the boys had a great day and got a chance to make up a little bit for yesterday being so messed up and unpleasant.

Rough day… Day 711 25OCT10

Joshua had a pretty rough day at clinic. His port was acting up and they could not get it to flush or get any blood return. He got poked by one nurse and then another and another. Finally they decided to send him for a dye study to see if they could figure out what was going on. His port finally decided to function correctly and the dye study came back clear. He got his pentam treatment earlier but had to wait on his vincristine for a while. So all told Renee and the boys spent the better part of the day trapped at the hospital. Needless to say they were pretty wiped out by the time they made it home. I talked to Joshua from work this evening and he related all the trials and tribulations of his day to me. He said his port had three different holes in it and that he was going to leave the bandaid on for the night. He also told me it was the only time he had cried when they were accessing his port and that he had not had a very good day. Amazing how brave he can be at eight when things like that are happening to him. So for tomorrow we will hope for a much less difficult day than this one turned in to.

Carving time… Day 710 24OCT10

Joshua and Jarrod have been waiting for today since this time last year. Today was the carving of the pumpkins for Halloween. Joshua started off doing his first while Jarrod finished up some school work. I got him set up on the back porch and he went to town on his pumpkin. According to him his favorite part is cleaning out the stuff from the inside. He did a great job carving it all by himself. Jarrod was up next and together we designed his pumpkin from scratch. He cut it out and has decided to name it Dag-gum which we all thought was pretty funny. The weather was perfect for carving pumpkins and we all enjoyed the time outside.

 This is Jarrod's.

This is Joshua's.

 After dinner the boys and I decided to take advantage of the temps and get in our inaugural golf course walk for autumn. We kept it relatively short so we could get back to watch the finish of the Lightning game. Unfortunately they lost, but we still had fun watching. Tomorrow is back to clinic and the start of a new school and work week for all of us.

Family day… Day 709 23OCT10

Today was a great day in a lot of different ways:

1) The weather was quite nice.

2) Jamie and Allie came over to spend the day.

3) My dad came over for lunch and a visit and brought a big bag of great veggies with him.

4) Jarrod went with me and my dad to pick out a new grill. It was my birthday present from dad. We can't wait to get it fired up :)

5)The weather late this evening was so nice the boys and I decided to take a walk together.

Jamie and my dad arrived within a short time of each other and we had a fun day together. Allie is, as always, too cute for words and is a joy to have around. I made a nice salad with the veggies dad brought over for our lunch before we went grill shopping. Our previous grill succumbed to old age and the Florida climate several years back and we have been grill-less ever since. We found a really neat model and got it ordered. It should arrive this coming week and after we get it built the grilling will begin in earnest. One of the things we all enjoyed about our summer trips up to Michigan was grilling out almost every night when the weather was nice. After my dad headed for home we spent a relaxing afternoon with Jamie and the kids. It has been really wonderful to have Jamie and Allie over these past two weekends while Christian has been deployed. He is set to return this coming Thursday. After dinner and a bath for Allie they headed home and we settled down for the rest of the evening. Joshua is still coughing but he has felt fine or the last two days. Now if we could just get rid of the lingering cough we would be much happier.

Banks suck… Day 708 22OCT10

One of the "presents" I received for my birthday yesterday was a letter from Bank of America to let us know that our number finally came up. We have a court date set for 23NOV for them to take our house away. That should put our eviction notice right around Christmas or a little after. I have talked to everyone I could find at BOA for the last two years trying to sort out our options, trying to get a modification, trying to get a short sale agreement,  trying to find anyone who would listen, all to no avail. Unfortunately banks don't care what the reasons are only what their bottom line says. So now we are faced with another loss, our home. They are certainly worse things to lose and we will find a way to persevere and move forward. If anyone knows of a place we could rent let us know :) My biggest worry is how it will affect Joshua and Jarrod. This is the house they have grown up in and it will be a huge change for them to process. Joshua already has had to deal with so much in his short little life and I am concerned that he will think that this is somehow his "fault" the same way kids in a divorce think that they caused it to happen. Nothing is further from the truth but "truth" to an eight year old is something entirely different.


Joshua is still coughing a bunch but is feeling okay. His temperature is staying normal so we are firmly on concerned/watchful but not ready to cross the line to worried. He got to spend the day as the only kid at home since Jarrod went on a field trip to Busch Gardens with his Virtual School class. Jarrod took Pa with him as a chaperone and he had a great time. He took this picture from, as he excitedly put it, inches away from the bengal tiger. He was very proud of the picture.

Tomorrow my dad is coming over in the morning and I think we will also see Miss Allie and Jamie which will definitely brighten up our weekend.

Happy Birthday… Day 707 21OCT10

As of today I have spent 4 and a half decades roaming around this rock we call home. For over half that time I have been lucky enough to be the father of four very special young men. I got to start my birthday with two of them and finish the day with the other two. Joshua and Jarrod got up this morning to have breakfast with me and help me welcome in a new notch in my belt. I had to leave for work soon after that so I really enjoyed the time we had together. When I made it home I discovered that Joshua had gone over to grandma's house and made a huge plate of yummy cupcakes for me including a set of candles the he and Jarrod lit so I could get in my birthday wish. I hope it comes true :)

Christian sent me an email from where he is deployed right now and later in the evening Brandon called to talk. It is the little things that become more and more special as time passes by and today was filled with just such things. All together they added up to a wonderful birthday.

 Joshua is still a little under the weather but is showing signs of improvement. Jarrod scooted off to bed early this evening because he is getting up extra early tomorrow to go on a special field trip and Renee is still recovering from her root canal and is hopefully on the mend.

A little better… Day 706 20OCT10

Joshua is a little better today. He still has some kind of sinus thing and some coughing but it seems to not be getting any worse with no jumps in temperature. We have been canceling things left and right though, just in case and to keep him from spreading anything to other cancer kids. We put off meeting with his teacher because she also works with Emma who is going through a tough chemo cycle. We will not be gong to the CCC tomorrow night to keep him from getting anybody there sick. All of this may sound a bit extreme but we figure better safe than sorry when it comes to everybody's health. So the boys stayed here today and did school work and got a little playtime in outside. Jarrod took a nice long bike ride on the golf course before dinner and then we got to hang out for a bit before bedtime came around. I have no doubt that Joshua will be feeling much better tomorrow and be out of this by the weekend.

P.S - Please say a prayer for our little friend Ezra and his family, they really need it.

Still wrestling… Day 705 19OCT10

Joshua is still wrestling with something. His fever broke late last night but he woke up with congestion and a little cough. His temperature has been high but not yet made it to 100. He and Jarrod were supposed to attend a luncheon at the Children's Cancer Center to honor all the kids whose artwork got chosen to be a part of the 2011 CCC calendar. Jarrod and Joshua both got selected and are sharing a month on the calendar. We didn't want to risk exposing any of the other kids to whatever Joshua might be  fighting off. So instead I went to work and the boys stayed home and did school work until it was time for Renee to go visit the dentist. Unfortunately she went to get a root canal and came home feeling rather under the weather as you can imagine. I made it home after dinner and got to spend some time with the boys and give her a chance to hot the bed and rest up. Tomorrow is school with Joshua's teacher and then a normal day at home. We are both hoping that he will begin to overtake whatever he is fighting off and start to fell a whole bunch better.

Crazy numbers… Day 704 18OCT10

Joshua left early for clinic and came back with some crazy numbers. His ANC is over 6000. He woke up complaining of a sore throat and was running at 100.3 at his high water mark this evening. We are not sure if he is fighting something off or just exactly what is going on. He came home and did very well in school, matter of fact he was getting ahead on his homework when I called to check on him this afternoon. So even though he wasn't feeling up to snuff he still managed to have a good day. So for tonight we will keep an eye on his temperature and hope that by morning time he is feeling a lot better. Gotta love the roller coaster that cancer brings ;)

Invasion of the children… Day 703 17OCT10

We had a full house today. At one point we had Jamie, Allie, Taylor, Avery, Grandma, Pa, DJ, Jarrod, Joshua, Bella, and spike all here together. We even had Christian on video conference form the Turks and Caicos where he is deployed for the next two weeks. The morning started out rather serenely with me making belgian waffles for breakfast and everybody just enjoying a lazy Sunday morning. Then Jamie and Allie arrived which brightened things up even more. Allie was so much fun to have around today. She is growing in leaps and bounds and watching her is a never ending joy. She had us all laughing at bath time with her animated antics in the water. There is an infectious quality to the laughter and joy of a small child and it filled our house tonight. Although we had a chaotic kind of afternoon it was the best kind of afternoon I can imagine and we look forward to many more to come.

Guess who is in charge… Day 702 16OCT10

Joshua and Jarrod left early this morning to go spend the day  with Jamie and Allie which left Renee and I a day all to ourselves. I did some running around while she was dropping the kids of and then we spent a nice and very quiet afternoon and evening together. We even managed to go out and have a nice dinner date with some gift cards we had saved for a special occasion. The boys had a great time, obviously, with Jamie and Allie and were supposed to spend the night. However while we were watching the hockey game a call came in from Jamie. Joshua was having a rough time and really wanted to come home so Renee trudged off after the boys. He said he wasn't feeling good when she got there to pick them up so that may have made it a little worse. I expect he will be all right in the morning. All in all though it was a great day and we all got to relax and enjoy some special time.

Parent's night out… Day 701 15OCT10

Joshua went to see the dentist this morning for the first time since he was diagnosed. We have had to be very careful about his teeth due to the possibility of any infection in his gums causing problems. He had to take a big slug of antibiotic an hour before he went to charge up his defenses. The report from the dentist was okay, a few problems here and there but nothing that he can't fix for Joshua. 

The rest of the early afternoon was spent on school work. Later in the afternoon we all met over at my dad's house to visit for a while before we were supposed to be at the CCC to drop off the boys for our parent's night out.

 We dropped them of with the great volunteers and met up with Ania and Lucas to go out and have dinner. We went to the Columbia Cafe down on the water right next to the Lightning's home stadium and had a wonderful time sitting outside on the terrace. The food was good and the company great. Not one of us left the least bit hungry and I am sure we will all sleep well tonight. 

When we got back to the CCC to pick the kids up we found out that Wojtek had been really missing his parent's and several times had started crying and being very unhappy. We were told by several people that Joshua stuck right by him and helped him get through it each time and that he was a great friend. We also heard that Jarrod was a great big help with all of the little kids and several volunteers related how wonderful he was to have there tonight. We are both very proud of our two young men and how they behaved tonight.  A big thanks to the CCC and all the volunteers for watching our kids while we went out to have a fun evening.

IVIG kind of day… Day 700 14OCT10

To celebrate reaching his 700th day Joshua got accessed and spent most of the first half of his day getting another IVIG transfusion. He did great and had no reactions or issues, he even did good into the evening when he usually gets really tired. When I got home he was outside playing and was showing no signs of being fatigued. We had a new nurse today which worked out okay and Joshua seemed to like her. It is always a little scary when we have to deal with someone new who does not know Joshua's routines and how he likes to handle things. Joshua has gotten quite good at letting medical people know how he wants to do certain things and handles it all quite well.

So we can put another IVIG treatment behind us until next month when he will be due again. We are hoping that his counts will start to level off as the transfusions continue. Tomorrow the boys have  another school day on tap and then a fun evening for all of us at the Children's Cancer Center.

Good day for school… Day 699 13OCT10

Joshua had a really good day with his teacher. Renee said he did really well on all his work and had it all finished by the time she left. Jarrod went over to help Pa take some more aluminum stuff up to the recycling center and got a chance to see the other side of the plant where they grind cars and stuff up into little bits. When I got home the boys were playing out in front of the house in their Halloween costumes. Kind of an odd site when one gets home. After a bite of dinner we all settled in to watch the Lightning take on Montreal. They won in overtime which made Joshua very happy so he went to bed with a smile on his face. Tomorrow morning he has another IVIG transfusion so it will be an early start and a rather long day for him.

Traveling about… Day 698 12OCT10

Joshua and Jarrod spent the day traveling about. He started this morning with a trip to Pa's while Renee went to visit the dentist. Afterwards they got a bite of lunch and then headed to the Children's Cancer Center to meet with Leanne and then do tutoring. Joshua did pretty good in tutoring and managed to get several pages of his homework completed. I met the family at the CCC and from there we journeyed up to spend the evening with our friend George and his birds. We had some pizza and a really nice visit. The boys really enjoy feeding the birds different kinds of nuts and the odd pizza crust. After leaving Renee dropped me off to pick up my car and we headed for home. It was a busy day for all but we had a good bit of fun as well.

On hold, again… Day 697 11OCT10

Joshua went to clinic this morning and much to our surprise his counts his ANC came back at 462. Which means he is on chemo hold yet again for at least the rest of the week. There doesn't seem to be any real cause other than, we speculate, his IVIG being stopped for a bit earlier this year. So now, for the week, we go on germ patrol and keep and eye on his temperature. Normal procedure for us unfortunately. After clinic he came home to spend some time with his teacher and worked very hard for almost two hours with her. He did really well and got a lot accomplished. The rest of the day the boys wiled away outside playing and just being boys. I managed to get home early enough to spend some time with them before bedtime which was fun. Tomorrow is back to relative normal with school work in the morning and tutoring at the CCC in the afternoon.

10/10/10… Day 696 10OCT10

Today is one of those once in a century dates, 10/10/10. Pretty neat. We get two more in the next two years before we have to wait quite a bit for it to come around again.

Joshua had a fun day especially since Miss Allie and her mom came over for the day. Allie is walking like nobodies business and she is a treat to have around. We really enjoyed having them here today. Here is a little video of our darling grand daughter.

We got the house and yard decorated for Halloween which made Jarrod very happy. He loves Halloween and has been itching to get all our stuff down and start getting ready for the big night. I managed to get our cars washed for the first time in many months mostly just to prove that there was still paint under all the dust:) The boys played outside until they were forced to retreat into the house because of the impending darkness. Tomorrow Joshua goes to clinic and I begin another much busier semester at school which means I will not be able to be at home as much as I have been. I am sure that the boys will help Renee out around the house and we will just have to enjoy the time we have together that much more.

FezGram… Day 695 09OCT10

Joshua received a special FezGram today from the Shriner's Hospital for Children. They were thanking him for donating a large box of soda can tabs to their wheel chair program. We got to take a great private tour of the hospital with Don our tour guide. Our wonderful volunteer, Addy, from the clinic set it up for us. The hospital is really amazing and it was a treat to be able to see all of it. The whole place is decorated in an underwater theme and we felt right at home amidst the turtles, dolphins, manatees, and other creatures of the ocean. After our visit we headed to the Children's Cancer Center to meet Jarrod's new big buddy. You all remember Jake who was his buddy last year, well now it is time for Jarrod to break in a new second year med student. This year it is Clayton who we had a chance to get to know over lunch. He is a nice young man who grew up in Seminole and is hoping to become a pediatrician. I am sure that he and Jarrod will have lots of fun over the next year. There was a great turn out of students and we got a chance to visit with some of our close friends as well. By the time we made it back to the house we were all a little beat so we each found a way to kick back for a bit. Renee made a great dinner of stuffed shells and her parents came over to help us eat them. 

The highlight of the evening was the first Lightning hockey game of the season, and they won! Joshua and Jarrod are excited that hockey is back, so are we, and as soon as they started scoring Joshua ran into his room to put on his Lightning shirt. Looks like he is going to be their good luck charm again this season :)

Recycled… Day 694 08OCT10

Not much to report today. Joshua and Jarrod did school work like normal this morning and spent the rest of the day playing outside. We did take a trip up to the recycling place to get rid of a bunch of aluminum cans we had been saving. The boys enjoyed looking at all the piles of metal laying about everywhere and helping to unload all the cans. We are not going to retire on what we sold them for but every little bit helps :) Our evening was quiet and we just enjoyed hanging out together. Tomorrow we have a few things to do in Tampa so there should be something interesting to report.

Go Bucs… Day 693 07OCT10

Joshua got a special gift today from Miss Laura that Renee picked up when she was in town today.

We boys spent most of the day together, Renee had a bunch of things to get done. We did school work both inside and outside along with several rounds of play. After Renee got back we rested a little before getting ready to go to family night at the CCC. Everybody is doing okay right now and beside a nice visit we had a yummy dinner from the Columbia restaurant. The kids played while we talked about issues facing the kids as they return to school. The path to getting a cancer kids needs met in school is rather curvy and at times obscured by weeds. All of us have questions and it helps to get them out where they can be discussed. It was a good meeting but we were all pretty tired by the time we made it back home so after quick showers the boys headed of to sleep.

Still sore… Day 692 06OCT10

Joshua was still complaining of back pain today although not constantly. He took some tylenol to help with the pain and it seemed to work. He spent the morning with his teacher. They worked for two hours straight and he did very well staying focused almost the whole time. After she left we ran a few errands in Sun City including finding some cool Halloween costumes for the kids for super cheap. The rest of the afternoon we did odd projects around the house and played around outside. We are hoping that Joshua's back begins to feel better, it is worrying him that he doesn't know why it hurts. Sad how many things he worries about...

A little sore… Day 691 05OCT10

Just another normal pre-fall day here at our little house. The boys did their school work this morning followed by a nice stint outside in the lovely weather. We got the hammock out for a bit and almost everybody logged some H time before lunch. After lunch we headed in to see Ms. Leanne at the Children's Cancer Center. The traffic was not as bad as it can be which at least made for a pleasant ride to and from. We had a good meeting and then returned home for supper and a little relaxing time before everybody headed of to bed. Joshua was having some back pain today so we out him on the heating pad for a while and it seemed to help relieve some of his pain. Not sure if it was due to the spinal last week or chemo or maybe even bowling this weekend.  Unfortunately aches and pains are a part of his little life and something he deals with quite often. We will see how he does tomorrow.

Clinic and school… Day 690 04OCT10

Joshua headed off this morning for clinic to get his counts checked while Jarrod and I headed off to get pet supplies and stuff from Sam's. His counts are really good (thanks steroids) with his ANC well over 3000. So for now things are perking right along. He made it home in time to get his lunch finished before his teacher showed up to spend some time with him. He did very well today and got his work done without any problems at all. Must be the weather. Afterwards we all spent some time outside enjoying the nice breeze and cooler temperatures of the day. I had to leave to go to a meeting so Renee and the boys had  a quiet evening at home without me. Luckily I am of the rest of the week and can make up for it rather quickly. 

Little fish… Day 689 03OCT10

We spent most of the morning just relaxing around the house. The weather was once again rather nice and I got a chance to sit outside to eat lunch without melting. The kids were in and out the house and enjoying the fact that it is cool enough to stay outside if they choose. After lunch we hopped in the car to head over to the Cavanaugh's house for a play date and dinner. We had a great time! The kids played together and we all had fun watching them just be kids. Madison is doing good and she was, as always, terribly charming. Jarrod managed to take a little spill and whack his head on the ground but other than a goose egg he is doing just fine. Dinner was delicious and afterwards we watched the kids swim like little fish and talked. The boys would have stayed in the pool until their gills were fully developed but we had to get going so everyone would be rested for school tomorrow. Big thanks to the Cavanaugh clan for a wonderful and fun evening.

Strike… Day 688 02OCT10

It was Preston's birthday party today and we all got to go bowling. Thank goodness Preston got a day pass from the hospital to atend although he had to go back right after his party was over. 

Jarrod did particularly well bowling and broke his all time highest score. Needless to say he was pretty stoked. The party was a lot of fun, we always love hanging out with Tiffany and Nate. Ania and Lucas where there as well with Wojtek.  There were kids everywhere and it was a blast just watching them bowl. I, like always, bowled okay but Renee, again like always, was pretty much mopping the floor with me. She bowls great no matter what and I am totally okay with that :) It was only the second time that Ania and Lucas had ever bowled but they were picking it up quickly. 

After the party we had planned to run a bunch of errands but both boys were pretty tuckered out so we headed for home instead. After a bit of rest we all headed out into the very pleasant early evening to get some yard work done. The whole family pitched in and we made short work of it all. As a reward we all sat down to watch a movie right after dinner with home made buttered popcorn. It was a fun family time and an end to a nice day. 

Autumn's coming!… Day 687 01OCT10

It is starting to feel like Autumn will make an appearance pretty soon and the sooner the better if you ask me. 

Joshua had school this morning with his teacher and he did much better than last time. Jarod came in to work with me and I dropped him of at my dad's house for the afternoon. He got some yard work done and then took a dip in the pool next door. I am glad that he gets to spend time with his grandpa and they have a great time together. They also baked my favorite this afternoon, pecan pie. I have been promised a large slab when I next return.

Renee and her mom made a great big batch of perogies while we were gone and we all had them for dinner. She stuffed them with potatoes, cheese, broccoli, and kielbasa. Yummmm…. I have been surrounded by great eats the last few days! How lucky can you get. Today is also Joshua's last dose of steroids for this round. He did pretty good this time and didn't suffer from insomnia like many cycles before this one. It is fascinating how he responds so differently to the same medications.

Tomorrow we have a birthday party to attend and things to do around here. I am hoping for pleasant weather so I can get caught up on stuff outside.