Journal History

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Monday, August 28, 2006 4:47 PM CDT

6 years. Tomorrow will be Aidan's 6 year anniversary since his diagnosis of leukemia. Tomorrow, as Aidan excitedly starts 2nd grade we will offer prayers of praise and thanksgiving to our Lord for the way He carried us through the three hardest years of our lives....the hardest, but full of so many blessings. 6 years. It seems like yesterday.

Thursday, May 18, 2006

If you have a few minutes please visit the web page of another Aidan, 4 year old Aidan Zaugg (www.whynotaidan.com). He was recently diagnosed with Diffused Pontine Brainstem Glioma, and the statistics are grim. We believe, however, that a miracle will happen for Aidan. Miracles happen every day...Why not Aidan?

The Zauggs are friends of ours. Our oldest boys are both in 4th grade at the same school. They've known each other since kindergarten, have played baseball together, have been classmates. We have watched Aidan Z. grow up. We are praying for his miracle. Please join us in storming the gates of heaven in prayer.

www.whynotaidan.com

Monday, December 12, 2005 9:22 PM CST

Aidan had his 7 year old well check today and the doctor was very pleased with how he looks and his new found confidence. His counts aren't great - low side of normal for white count, neutrophils, hemaglobin, and hematocrit, but still inside the normal range. Even though he hasn't shown any signs of illness, the doc wasn't concerend about the dip because tis the season for the crud. He did get a flu shot, which we originally thought we would skip this year, but Dr. Endo thought he should have one in light of the fact that he has had pneumonia 3 times. She thought it would be best not to take any chances of him getting sick and it developing into something worse. I had to agree, so Aidan endured the shot like a trooper, but not without tears. Can you blame him? These things hurt! He got over it fast, though, and was ready to return to school and his friends for the rest of the day.

If you knew this shy child even last year, you wouldn't recognize him now. He is the picture of health, self-confidence, and silliness! An example of the second adjective - Aidan went to the front of our church during the first service on Sunday and read into the microphone a large part of the script we were given for the lighting of the third candle on the advent wreath - the love candle. He had no fear,and spoke clearly and loudly. It was wonderful to see. God is sooooo good!

Andrew also did a lovely job on Sunday. As his dad said, he didn't just get up there and read the words, he told the story with feeling. He is growing up so fast. I see so many signs of maturity in him. Although this is what we all want for our children, it's also a bit sad because he will never be little again. Thankfully Andrew still likes to snuggle when we read at night and will let me pick him up and hug him a lot. Yes - I pick up this big tall 4th grader - he has to jump to help me out, though!

We are all doing well, appreciative of all of the gifts God has given us, especially our health. We hope you are, too. Merry Christmas!

Thursday, October 27, 2005 4:42 PM CDT

Two years ago today we celebrated the end of Aidan's chemotherapy! Praise God! Today Aidan is a healthy, happy first grader with no signs of what he went through for three long years. He has had no side effects from the drugs and seems to have no emotional side effects either. He talks about what he went through every so often, but not a lot. We thank God for his health, and for the blessings that have come to us from this trial.

Andrew is also doing well. He is enjoying school and the challenges that fourth grade brings, like lots of homework and higher expectations in the classroom. What was originally supposed to be a 4/5 combo class was changed to a straight fourth grade class after 15 new fourth graders registered at Badger Mt. over the summer. Andrew likes his teacher a great deal, and we are really pleased, too.

Both boys are involved in chess club after school, and will be playing basketball this winter. Mike will coach Andrew's team. They are also active in our church's midweek program where I teach Aidan's Bible study. I'm participating in BSF again this year where we are studying Genesis. It is excellent, and I am thankful to be able to be a part of that.

Life is good in the Goodwin household. We hope all is well with you.

Wednesday August 10, 2005

As we near the 5 year mark I find myself once again contemplating all we have been through and marveling at the way the Lord has blessed us through this journey. His faithfulness, grace, mercy, and love will never cease to amaze me. We are ever so thankful for the life and health of our children, Andrew and Aidan.

The boys are gearing up for another school year - first grade for Aidan, fourth grade for Andrew. They are both so excited. Aidan picked out his lunch box and school supplies today. This was a first for him, and he felt great happiness in doing this. Andrew needed new supplies, too, but his excitement comes from the anticipation of being part of a 4/5 combination class this year. It should be the challenge he has long needed in school.

Mike and I are doing well. I am looking forward to the old and new opportunities I will have now that both boys are in school al day. Bible Study Fellowship starts in Sept., and I am looking forward to volunteering at our local homeless shelter, too. I will also be working in the boys' classrooms regularly as well as going to the gym every day!!!! I will be a mentor mom for our MOPS group, too. I'm sure I will be busy, but I will miss my boys. We have enjoyed eachother's company so much this summer.

Mike is working on finishing his Master's thesis, and continues to look for other job opportunities. He is still with Boise, but would like to try something new if the opportunity arises. He had two golf trips this summer and enjoyed both immensley.

That's about it for now. I'm sure it will be awhile before another update, but I'll be sure to put the Christmas letter on here!

Grace and peace to you.

Saturday, December 11, 2004 9:15 PM CST

The Goodwin Christmas Letter Circa 3004

Archaeologists dug up our house this past year. You remember it was buried in the great Mt. St. Helens and Mt. Adams simultaneous explosion early in the 21st century. Old men with beards jumped up and down with excitement - it was quite a sight. We watched with equal excitement. All those things we had forgotten…

And what lucky finds there were! Some gorgeous pictures of the boys - they were still in elementary school then - Andrew in 3rd grade, just finding the new realms that books and sports and music open to us all - and Aidan in kindergarten, those scary days of life without an ever- present mom, discovering the world away from home with all its marvels. The archaeologists found his medal from the Relay for Life and spent hours poring over it to try to figure out its meaning. Wow - how fast they grew up. We had so much fun playing ball in the backyard, or watching them play little league or swimming. They found Aidan's first glove in the back yard, wonderfully preserved. It looked like it would fit his hand now for a game of catch. And Andrew's soccer ball, sans air, squished into a bowl so that those learned men mistook it for a hat. As we watched we all exchanged silly grins with one another. Imagine! Who'd wear a soccer ball on his head?

As they worked north they found the treasures from inside the house. We already mentioned the pictures, didn't we? First they came across Elizabeth's Bible, dog-eared and yet still new. Then came Mike's computer, used to churn out papers for his schooling, and by the boys for their games. The archaeologists scoffed at Mike's sophomoric attempts at humor in holiday letters that they found on the hard drive when they got it running. "He's not near the genius that Milton Berle was, is he?" they asked rhetorically. Mike made their trenches collapse that night, but all was forgotten the next day when they got to the garage. It looked to us like the garage of a young family at the time, but to them it must've seemed a haphazard mess. Andrew's big bike that he had really mastered that summer, and Aidan's first bike. By some miracle they found the boys' scooter in there, too. It's a miracle it wasn't in the driveway, where it usually rested. More baseball mitts and bats in the garage, and hockey nets, and the lawn chairs that were used most every day during the summer about the same time as the nets and mitts and bats. They found numerous tennis balls in the gutters and spent hours pondering their meaning, which reminded us of the hours Elizabeth and Mike spent wondering where all the tennis balls went. Both bouts of thinking were fruitless. But still…those were wonderful, wonderful days. We hope they were wonderful days for you as well.

Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year from the Goodwins

Tuesday, October 26, 2004 4:07 PM CDT

Today is the one year anniversary of Aidan's last chemo. I can't believe this day is here already. It truly seems like yesterday. And yet, it seems so long ago. We are so grateful for all of your love, support, encouragement, and prayers over the last 4 years. You have eased our burden a great deal, and we will always be thankful for you.

For the most part our lives have returned to normal. We still think about what we have been through, but cancer doesn't consume our thoughts and prayers as it did during our journey. Aidan is a healthy, happy kindergartner with NORMAL COUNTS! He will only go to the doctor every 3 months now for check-ups. We are all happy about that, although we will miss seeing Dr. Endo so often. She has become such an important part of our lives. Still, it is good to move on.

Is this an experience I would ever wish on someone else? No way, but at the same time I can honestly say it has been a blessing for us all. We know what is important in life - a close relationship with God and love for eachother, friends, family, and time together. These are the things that matter. We have all changed through this journey, hopefully in only the most positive ways. We will now do our best to give back by encouraging others who are riding the same rollercoaster we recently got off, by raising awareness of childhood cancer and it's causes, and by raising money for a cure.

Thank you once again for loving us through this. We are eternally grateful.

Elizabeth, Mike, Andrew, and Aidan

Saturday, October 2, 2004 9:42 PM CDT

Dear Friends,
Wow! It has been an entire month since my last update. No news is good news, I guess! Life is busy and NORMAL! We love it. It has been almost a year since Aidan went off treatment. A whole year. I can hardly believe it. It has flown by. I'm sure my updates will get even more infrequent, but I'm not sure I am ready to stop doing them yet. I am definitely not ready to stop visiting the sites of the other children who are going through treatment, or who have gone on to heaven. I feel a burden (a good one) to keep encouraging their parents as they walk a very tough road. Please go to www.sharethelove.org if you would like to leave an encouraging word for one of these parents as well.

Aidan is loving kindergarten. PE, recess, and library are his favorite parts of the day (go figure!), and he is enjoying his old and new friends at school. He is growing up so fast! Aidan loves to play cribbage with his dad and me, and is so good at knowing which cards to put into the crib that he has skunked us both several times. He can count his own points and is reminding us that he has quite the head for math like his brother.

Andrew has been loving fall ball. He was part of a triple play today! Next week is the last week. We will all miss it, but LOGOS starts at church this week (for both boys), and chess club at school next week, so he will be plenty busy. Andrew loves school, especially learning cursive and math. It is great to see him come home from school with such a big smile on his face.

I am LOVING Bible Study Fellowship. We are starting in the book of Acts, and never have I dug so deep into what God is saying to me in each scripture without relying on the study notes at the bottom of the page. One of the rules of BSF is that you get what you can out of the text without the notes (until after the discussion group and lecture - then you can look all you want). I love the challenge, and wish there was more time for my discussion group to talk about the text.

I start teaching third grade at LOGOS next week, and Deacon training (for church) starts in a few weeks. Busy, busy, busy! But all good.

Mike is busy with work and school. He did manage to play golf a couple of times this month. We should know how the sale of Boise Cascade to a new owner is going to affect his salary, benefits, etc. in a few weeks. We are both anxious to know about any changes, but thankful that he still has a job.

That's about it for now. Aidan goes to see Dr. Endo in two weeks. I'll at least update his counts then, and should know what our doctor-visit-schedule will look like for the second year off treatment after that visit.

Until then, thank you for your love and encouragement and prayers over the last 4 years.

Elizabeth

Wednesday, September 1, 2004 7:05 PM CDT

It was with great counts - all in the normal range - and a joyful heart that I sent Aidan off for his first day of kindergarten this morning. Back when our "cancer journey" began, four years ago this week, Mike and I talked about how Aidan would start school with a title many people never have, that of a Cancer Survivor. It seemed then like that day would never come, yet here it is! A happier and more excited kindergartner would have been tough to find. God is so good!

Aidan's teacher is the same kindergarten teacher Andrew had 3 years ago, Mrs. Connors. Both of the boys were excited about that. It gave Aidan comfort to know that he would have Andrew's old teacher. Andrew was excited to tell Aidan about all the things he remembered from his kindergarten year. He doesn't remember that this was the year he showed us (through tantrums and anger) how hard Aidan's diagnosis had been on him, prompting us to get counseling for him... or at least he doesn't talk about it anymore. Neither of the boys remember all the time Aidan spent in the hospital that year with pneumonia and the 9 weeks spent in virtual quarrentine for LOW counts. Both boys only talk about the good things. For that I am thankful. I don't want them to forget all we have been through, but I am glad they choose to focus on all the blessings that came from it.

Andrew is loving third grade, especially learning cursive and doing the "Super Sixty" math timed tests. He has a great teacher, and has a class with lots of really nice kids. He has started fall Little League for six weeks, which he loves as well. Baseball brings him so much happiness.

Mike is back in school, and seems to be enjoying his class. Boise sold the paper mill, but it appears as though most of the employees will stay on with the same benefits and salary. Mike hasn't heard all the details yet, but should know more soon.

As for me, I am looking forward to the start of Bible Study Fellowship and getting back to the gym. I'll also volunteer at school when the teachers need me. I am glad to be through this 4 year anniversary of Aidan's diagnosis. As it has the past few years, I find myself feeling a little meloncholy when it is getting close, but I also find myself thanking God for all the wonderful things that have come our way because of the journey we have taken. Again I say, God is good.

Thanks for checking in on us and continuing to lift Aidan up in prayer for remission forever.

Elizabeth

Wednesday, August 18, 2004

Only one more week until school starts for the boys. I can't believe it! The summer has just flown by. The last couple of weeks haven't been as busy as the first part of the summer, but that has been very nice.

Tomorrow is the last day of swimming lessons for the summer. Andrew is at a level where he isn't really learning to swim, but is refining his strokes. He has a beautiful crawl stroke and back crawl stroke. He has really gotten the hang of resting breast stroke and is working hard on his racing breast stroke. A big part of his lesson time is treading water for stamina and swimming laps while the instructor watches and gives tips for improvement.

Aidan is in the third level. He can do the elementary backstroke all by himself, and has learned the crawl stroke. It's still choppy, but he sure can move across the pool! He will learn the breathing technique for the crawl stroke in the next level. He is loving swimming, just as Andrew always has.

Aidan will continue swim lessons in the fall, and maybe Andrew, too. I really want to keep Aidan swimming continuously this summer because our summer vacation next year is to Schlitterbahn Water Park in Texas. Andrew picked this for his "wish trip". We will also visit Sea World while we are there. We are all looking forward to this trip!

On Monday the boys and I are going with friends to a water park in Pendleton, OR, which is about an hour away. It is a beautiful park with slides just the right size for both of the boys, lots of water toys, a zero-depth entry to the pool, and lots of lifeguards (even in the water) so Mom can use the slides without worrying about the boys while they wait! We've only been one other time this summer, but will go more often next year, I'm sure (especially if the TriCities don't build one).

My 20 year class reunion was last weekend. It was lots of fun connecting with old friends, although some of them STILL hadn't changed (cliques). Everyone looked great, and some had really changed (from party king to pastor, etc.) I had a great time, especially at the family picnic on Sunday.

With the start of school next week for all three of my boys (Mike starts on Tuesday), life will again get busy for me. Bible Study Fellowship starts in a few weeks; my Monday night Discipleship group is going strong; Sunday School starts soon; MOPS starts in two weeks; I'll be volunteering in two classrooms this year and would like to be more involved in PTO. On top of that, I can't wait to get back to the gym! Walking through the summer has been nice, but I miss the weights and the classes. Busy, busy, busy. I can't wait!

I'll update again after Aidan's next check-up early in Sept. and will tell you how we are all doing.

If you get a chance, read the scripture at the top of the page. It really resonated with me; I think you'll see why when you read it.

Grace, love, peace, and hope that comes from the Lord Jesus Christ be with you all.

Elizabeth

Sunday, July 18, 2004 9:47 PM CDT

Dear Friends,
This one is going to be quick. Aidan saw his oncologist in Portland on Friday. His lymphocytes were good so he will be getting his Kindergarten immunizations done this week. Dr. Stork wanted these done before we repeat counts in three weeks so that if Aidan is relapsing he will be immunized before starting treatment again. Yep. You read that right. Aidan's white count has been showing a downward trend, and has dropped quite a bit since last month. Dr. Stork said that a virus could be the cause, but since Aidan hasn't shown any symptoms of anything like this recently, we need to talk about relapse as a possibility. She was very insistent about getting the immunizations now, but also said she didn't want to alarm me - relapse might not be causing this drop. Easier said than done. Although I had decided I wasn't going to worry since there is nothing I can do about this, worry still creeps in. I have a pit in the bottom of my stomach. I'll update in three weeks when we get some news. Until that time, please keep us in your prayers. No matter what the news, of one thing I am sure, the Lord of Hope will be with us through it all.

Elizabeth

Saturday, June 19, 2004 7:27 PM CDT

I promise, new pictures soon! We got some great ones last weekend on Bainbridge Island, on the ferryboat to Seattle, and at the Mariner's game. We actually saw a winning game! It was Little League Day so Andrew and some of his teammates got to parade the warning track before the game (family members, too). They wore their uniforms and posed with the Mariner Moose. Aidan got put up on the big screen for a brief moment. We had a fabulous time there and on the island where we roasted marshmallows and made s'mores. Aidan thinks he only threw about half of the rocks from the beach into Puget Sound. He left the other half for his cousin Katherine, who will be visiting Great-Grandpa's house soon. My parents and my best friend, Paula, joined us for this great weekend.

After leaving the island, we drove to Portland to see Mike's folks and sister and my brother, briefly. It wasn't a long enough visit. Hopefully next trip, which will be in July for Aidan's check-up at Doernbecher's Children's hospital, will give us more time for visiting. I also went to a retirement party for one of my dear friends with whom I used to teach. She was my mentor my first year of teaching, and was in the room next to mine for the 6 years I taught (before moving to Richland and becoming a mom). It was great to see so many people I hadn't seen in a loooooong time.

We are loving summer - put the pool out today, have enjoyed the slip-n-slide lots already. Andrew has baseball camp starting on Monday, and Aidan might go to VBS with a friend at a church up the road (we will miss most of ours). I just love having both boys home.

Aidan saw Dr. Endo last Wed. for a routine check. His counts are great, ANC of 2500. He did give me reason to catch my breath though. Apparantely he had told my mom on the island that his legs hurt. He did this two nights in a row. She didn't tell me right away - knew I would worry- but did tell Mike. Like I said, I did catch my breath, but then I was okay. Once again, God's peace filled me. I KNOW that Aidan will be okay, whether here on earth or in heaven. I just know it. And I know that God promised to be with me always and that He keeps His promises. So, I am not worried. I am at peace. We will just keep checking his counts, listening to his complaints, and watch for any changes while living life to the fullest.

Until next time, thank you for your prayers and friendship. You mean the world to us.
Love,
Elizabeth

Friday, May 28, 2004

Just a quick note to let you know that all is well. Aidan's platelets were back to normal (350,000) on Monday. I was greatly relieved. I can't wait for the days when little things like that don't worry me. I'm sure they will come, but it doesn't appear it will be anytime soon. Still, I know that no matter what, God is with us through it all. Thanks for all of your prayers and encouragement. I'll try to write a longer update this weekend with news about the end of Andrew's baseball season and our summer plans!

Tues., May 11, 2004

Wow! I can't believe it has been a month since I last updated. It is good news, though, because it means that life has been very normal for us. I don't find myself thinking of Aidan's leukemia very much, just passing thoughts here an there, unless someone else brings it up or we have a doctor's appt. to go to. It feels good.

Having said that, though, I will tell you about today's check-up. Aidan looks and feels great. Most of his counts are good (ANC of 3700), but his platelets were only 127,000 yesterday. That is still good; they clot well after 100,000; transfusions don't usually happen until they fall to 20,000. The reason I even thought about it is that they are much lower than they have been the entire time on treatment. All through treatment they were between 350,000 and 500,000. They dropped to 240,000 off treatment and have held there until yesterday. He does have a cold, and they did have more trouble than usual getting the draw yesterday, so that might be the reason for the drop. We will repeat counts in 1 - 2 weeks just to check. Other than that, Aidan is doing well. He has lots of energy, and is loving T-ball. Both preschool and t-ball end in 2 weeks, though, so it will be time to start thinking about summer activities.

Andrew is doing awesome. His baseball team has 5 wins, 4 losses. They are playing really well this year. 2 of those losses were heartbreakers - close games all the way. Andrew is really showing his stuff at first base. Several innings he has been involved in all three outs. He is tall, so he can reach up and catch high balls, and he has a great lunge which allows him to scoop up a ball and keep one foot on first. AWESOME! He has also played 2nd, 3rd, and pitcher, but 1st is his best position. He is also hitting well this season. It is soooooo fun to watch him play. He gets such happiness from the game of baseball. Alas, his season ends in 2 weeks also. Next year when he is in Minor A it will be a longer season (more nights of the week, too).

Mike is through with school for the year. He has 2 more classes to take next year and his thesis to write, then he will have his Masters in Engineering Mgt. He has enjoyed it, but is glad for the summer break. Mike and 11 buddies are going to Couer d' lane Idaho to golf this weekend. Most of these guys have know each other since junior high, some since elementary school. They are flying in from all over. It should be a great weekend for them.

I am still busy at helping in both of the kids classes at school, which I love. I have also joined the Mission committee at church. I'll also help with VBS this summer. Next week I will sign up for Bible Study Fellowship for next year; I'm really excited about that. I will also be active in LOGOS next year (our mid-week program for elem. aged kids). Lastly, on Mother's Day I spoke at all three church services to answer the question "How is Jesus real to you today?" Our pastor is doing a sermon series on the Holy Spirit. One of the roles of the Spirit is to make Jesus real to us today, make him our contemporary, so the pastor has asked some people to share. It was a good experience for me. I am not really comfortable in front of a large crowd, but I really believe God spoke through me that day. I'd written something down before speaking, but when I got up in front of everyone I didn't need my notes, nor did I say everything in them. Some of the things I said I hadn't ever thought of saying before. It was truly the Lord speaking through me. It was an amazing experience, another step in my journey of faith. Maybe next time I'll write down what I said.

That's about it for now. Once again, thank you for your continued prayers for our family. Please remember those still fighting the battle against this disease. Please remember our servicemen and women in Iraq whether or not you believe they should be there.

Love,
Elizabeth

Wednesday, April 14, 2004 9:48 PM CDT

We had a wonderful Easter. Hope you did, too. We went to an Easter Program at church on Saturday (Andrew sang; Aidan chose not to), followed by an egg hunt put on by the youth. Sunday we went to church and returned home for an egg hunt and a look at our "Resurrection Eggs". If you've never seen these, they are a wonderful way for keeping the focus of Easter on the true story - Christ's death and resurrection. I got mine at Walmart, but have also seen them at Christian bookstores. Each egg has something in it that pertains to the story of Passion week - the donkey, the cup, nails, etc. You end by opening the final egg which is empty signifying the empty tomb. It was really neat to do this with the kids this year. We always talk about it, but this was really fun for them - more than just talking. As for the Easter Bunny, he came, but Andrew has it figured out - he's growing up. About an hour after I admitted to him that he was right - Mom and Dad are the Easter Bunny - he figured out Santa Claus, too. Ahhh. He's growing up:(

Monday night brought a "win" for the Cubs! Andrew's team won 12 - 6 in 6 innings. Andrew had three RBI's, scored twice, made several outs at first (I lost track, but the kids fielding and throwing to him, especially his friend, Robert, did an awesome job), and had a great slide into third after tagging up at second. He was called out, which caused quite an uproar in the Cubs dugout. The kids were livid; Andrew really was safe, but the umpires are parent volunteers and do the very best they can. Still, it took all season to win last year, so the kids (and parents) were flying high on Monday night!

Aidan's first game was last night, but after only one inning, they got rained out. Aidan played pitcher (no pitching - this is t-ball), and fielded very well. He ran up on the ball, and then threw it to first base. He hit a line drive right to the pitcher, but was called out because he threw the bat (the father of the child hit by the bat was not happy that Aidan got called out - he believed it to be an accident because of the wet bat - the other child is fine; didn't seem to notice what happened). Aidan was quite upset over the whole thing, and took a while to settle down. It's a good thing the game was only one inning. I don't think he would have gone back into the field to finish the game after that. We cheered him up, though, and he is ready for next week's game.

I'm off to the Women of Faith Conference this weekend with some girlfriends, so Mike is the PIC (Parent In Charge). He gets to take Aidan for his T-ball pictures at 8:30 in the morning on Saturday, and Andrew to his game that afternoon. I'm sure they will have a great guys weekend. He's such a great dad and husband. I'm very blessed.

I'll update again next week sometime. Thanks for checking in and keeping us in your prayers!

Love,

Elizabeth

Thursday, April 1, 2004

Life in the no-chemo-zone is great! Aidan visited the doctor on Thursday, and she was so happy to see him looking so healthy and energetic. He has gained 4 pounds since finishing chemo, and has grown over an inch and a half. Aidan's counts are also good, although his hemaglobin and hematocrit are still in the low range. It will be awhile before he stabilizes completely, but with an ANC of 2700, he is doing well! T-ball starts next week, which we are all excited about. My littlest baseball-lover is so ready for his season to begin.

My other young baseball-lover has had his first game. On Monday night Andrew's Cubs took on the Devilrays. Although the Cubs lost 12 - 6, the kids felt really good about how they played. They were making plays like never before. The Devilrays were just stronger at bat that Andrew's team (no wonder since one of the kid's dad is a former Major Leaguer with a batting cage in his back yard - they practice there at least once a week!) It was an exciting game, and everyone finished with a smile on his face. Andrew played first and third, and made a few outs. He hit well, one screaming line drive between shortstop and third base. Ahhhh! We love baseball season!

Mike is almost finished with school for the year. He is gone two nights a week, and the other nights he is sooooo busy with homework. It has been a busy semester for him, but he tends to like doing schoolwork.

I just finished a 15 week course at church called ALPHA. It clarified a few fuzzy areas for me, and helped me grow deeeper in my faith in the Lord. Now I am praying about what to do on Wednesday mornings next year. There has been some talk about starting a regular Wed. morning women's ALPHA course that I could help lead, but I also have thought about starting Bible Study Fellowship, an intense, four-year study of the scriptures. It is also on Wed. morning. The Christ Care Group which I have been a part of for 8 years also meets on Wed. mornings. Guidance, please Lord!

Spring vacation is this coming week. We will spend a few days in central Oregon with family and friends. When we get back, we will resume our life of church, school, and baseball, basebal, baseball. I will also be attending the Women of Faith Conference in Spokane this month. I will try to update in a few weeks.

As always, your faithful prayers and words of encouragement mean the world to us.

Elizabeth

Friday, March 5, 2004 5:16 PM CST

All is well in windy Richland, WA. Aidan is loving being back at school. Andrew and Aidan are anxiously awaiting the start of baseball season.

In the meantime we are keeping busy with LOGOS, Bible studies, school, Sunday School, homework, planning Andrew's birthday party, and playing with friends. It is nice to be able to play outside again without bundling up so much. We are also loving the longer days.

There really isn't much to report here! I guess that is good news because it means that life is good! Life is normal!

I'll update again in a week or two!

Elizabeth

Friday, February 27, 2004 9:23 PM CST

Today was Aidan's first day back at preschool. No one else in his class came down with the chicken pox, so he was able to go back. He was sooooo glad. It wasn't too bad being home, though, because Andrew was home all last week with a virus. Awful as it was for Andrew, it did help distract Aidan from his stay-at-home status.

We went to my folks last week for my dad's seventieth birthday. We had a great time. My oldest and dearest friend, Paula, was there (she's really more like a sister). My Aunt Clarice (mom's sister) came down from Bellingham, and her daughter (my cousin) joined us from Corvallis, OR. My Aunt Karen and Uncle Ralph (dad's youngest brother) were there, too. The only ones missing were my brother and his family; they were all too sick to come. That was a big bummer because we don't get to see them often enough, but overall, it was a great celebration. I always enjoy seeing my aunts, uncles, and cousins.

We returned Sunday afternoon in time for Andrew to attend Family Communion at church Sunday night. This is a time for the pastor to meet with families over a meal and explain to the children what communion means . There were 5 other families there, including Taylor's and Jenna's families (two of Andrew's best friends). After the lesson, we all went into the sanctuary where a table was set up in front with chairs around it. There were candles lit and soft music playing. Each family, when ready, sat at the table and received communion. We then joined hands with the pastor and prayed. It was very special and meaningful, both receiving communion for the first time with Andrew, and watching the other families with their children.

Tomorrow Andrew gets to go with Taylor, to see the News Boys (Christian band) in Spokane! He is soooo excited! Taylor's brother, Brayden, has been sick all week, so he is staying home with his grandma. The Vickermans had purchased a ticket for him, so they invited Andrew to go. He loves the News Boys. This will be his first concert. I told him I hadn't been to one until I was in high school. Lucky kid!

Aidan has his last soccer game tomorrow, then has a few weeks off from sports until t-ball starts. Andrew's last game is tomorrow, too, but Mike and I decided he could go to the concert instead since opportunities like that don't come all that often. Baseball for him starts in two weeks.

Andrew's school conference is this week, so I will try to update after that. Thank you so much for your prayers and encouragement over the last 3 1/2 years.

Elizabeth

Tuesday, February 17, 2004

Now Andrew has the bug, only worse than Aidan had it. He has a fever and has been running for the bathroom all day, either to vomit or to use it for it's intended purpose. He'll be home from school tomorrow for sure. He has taken several naps on the couch today and will be in bed early tonight. Your prayers are appreciated!

Monday, February 16, 2004


Well, Aidan wasn't able to go to his last day of preschool (for awhile) last Friday afterall. He threw up Thursday morning, and was pale and ran a low fever the rest of the day. He seemed okay Friday morning, but I kept him home to be sure. We didn't see anymore signs of illness until Sunday night when he threw up all over his bed in the middle of the night. No fever, though. Then Monday morning he had "other problems" associated with a tummy virus. Couldn't even make it into the bathroom for that. He seems better tonight, but time will tell if this is going to turn into anything more. I sure hope he's done with whatever it is. I hate laundry as it is, and I've had several extra loads to do today from our adventures; not to mention the fact that he hasn't exactly enjoyed all of this either.

We did have a great weekend in the meantime. Mike's sister, Nikki and our nephew Michael were here (Uncle Steve is in Germany for a few more days). They boys love their cousin and wish they could live next door. We celebrated Michael's ninth birthday with pizza and chocolate cake. All the boys (Mike included) loved that. We also went to see the movie 'Miracle'. It was FABULOUS! We all loved it, found ourselves sitting on the edge of our seats, g



ritting our teeth, clenching our fists, even though we all knew the outcome. I'd see it again it was so good.

Both of the boys had a soccer game this weekend. Aidan had a great time running around smiling, touching the ball if it came to him, but not going after it at all! Andrew, on the other hand, scored 3 goals. For one he had to 'bend it like Beckam'. It was awesome. He was so excited that his aunt and cousin were there to witness it.

That's about all on this end. Between church, school, soccer, and life we are busy as usual. Just wait until baseball season (starting in 3 1/2 weeks).

Elizabeth

Monday, Feb. 9, 2004

7:00pm

This really stinks. After Friday, when the VISIG ceases to be effective, Aidan will have to stay home from preschool until the pox run their course. If no one else comes down with them, that will only be two weeks, but if someone else gets them, we will have to start counting 21 days out from then and wait to see if they are the last ones to get it. You know, this really ticks me off - I thought this was supposed to be the easy year in terms of illness. Yes, I knew that Aidan's immune system wasn't going to be back to normal in an instant, but I still didn't expect this. I thought this would be a more normal year than we have had in a long time.


3:00 pm

Ahhh. I think I spoke too soon. Another one of Aidan's classmates has the chicken pox. He broke out Friday night after being in school with Aidan Friday morning. Aidan is "covered" by the VISIG until this coming Friday (although he could still get them), then the question is whether or not to continue with normal activities like school, church, etc., or stay home for a few weeks. We haven't yet received a definitive answer from our doctors, so I'll have to keep you posted. "The POX" are going around Andrew's school, too. Andrew has been immunized, but could still get a light case. Oh, the possibilities for contracting this lovely childhood illness are endless. I think I will just keep praying and try to think positive thoughts! It's much better than worrying! "...Whatever will be, will be."


Saturday, Feb. 7, 2004

Aidan's counts yesterday were great! ANC of 5000. The lab tech said, "All of his counts are in normal range!" That was great to hear.

Both of the boys had a soccer game today, the first for both. They had a great time, and each scored 2 goals. Aidan tried to hide his grin, but couldn't. Andrew just put his arms up and said, "YES!" Peter and Erica saw Andrew's game and thouroughly enjoyed watching all of the kids. It was great fun!

Thursday, Feb. 5, 2004

We made it past day 14 since exposure to chicken pox without any bumps. I think we are really in the clear, although a friend did tell me she got it on day 21. I'll still check, but I'm not worried anymore.

Aidan and Andrew have their first indoor soccer games this weekend. Mike's folks will be here for Andrew's. We are looking forward to seeing them.

Little League registration for Andrew is Saturday. We are all excited about the new season. It doesn't start until the end of March, though. Andrew will play for the cubs again. It will be fun to watch how the team does this year. A year of growth and practice can do a lot!

Aidan will play T-ball again throught the YMCA but that doesn't start until April. He loves to play ball with his buddies.

We are all doing very well. Enjoying life and all it has to offer. Hope you are too! I'll update with counts on Friday or Saturday!

Love,
Elizabeth

Sunday, February 1, 2004 11:27 PM CST

No chicken pox yet. It's been 12 days since exposure, so hopefully we are in the clear. We still check Aidan daily - "Let me see your tummy, Aidan.""No spots Mom!" We'll continue this for another week; then we can let our guard down. This incident served as a reminder that Aidan's health still isn't what it should be, and that we need to watch him closely for a few more months. We check his counts again in a week; I'm sure they will be good. He's been feeling good and has been very active.

Mike's gall bladder surgery went well last Monday. He was able to come home that night, and stayed home from work last week. He'll return tomorrow which he is ready for. He's still not 100

Saturday, January 24, 2004 8:13 PM CST

Boy, have the last few days been interesting (to say the least). On Wednesday, Andrew came home from church with dark circles under his eyes and a fever of 101. He ADMITTED to being tired, and was asleep by 7:45. He slept until 7:45 the next morning, and awoke without a fever, but I decided to keep him home just to be sure it was really gone. All the while I was wondering if we would be going to Seattle for Mariner Fan Fest on Friday or not.

THEN... (Still Thursday) I received a disturbing call from the director of Aidan's preschool. Apparently a classmate of his had been in school with chicken pox on Wednesday. At first we both thought he had been exposed both Monday and Wednesday. It wasn't until later that my neighbor reminded me that Monday was a holiday. This is important because Aidan needed to get VISIG within 96 hours of exposure. We thought at first we were driving to Portland that day to get the meds. Since he wasn't exposed until Wed., we could wait for it to be drop shipped by UPS to arrive on Friday in Richland. Aidan was told to stay home from school Friday and go to the pharmacy on the way to the doctor's office (noon appt.) to pick up the VISIG unless we heard differently. No one called, so that's what we did, only to discover upon arrival that it hadn't been delivered yet. Go home, they said; we will call when it get's here. Home we went. We had literally just taken off our seatbelts when the doctor's office called to tell us to come back. The medicine was here and would be delivered to them. Come back. We did! Now, this stuff is as thick as geletin. You should have seen the nurse pushing that plunger down on the syringe to get it into Aidan's skinny left cheek. Dr. Endo was doing the same thing on the right cheek. I was holding Aidan down while he screamed bloody murder. Right after, though, he calmed down, sat up, and played soccer in the doctor's office while we waited for the 30 minute watch period to end. We hightailed it home, picked up Mike and Andrew, and headed to Seattle (another story, another time).

Now, what's the big deal about chicken pox? Aidan's immune system is still compromised, so he wouldn't be able to fight them like a normal kid. The danger for him isn't even the secondary infection from scratching them. The danger is spreading to the internal organs and brain, pneumonia, etc., causing lots of damage or even death. If he comes down with them anyway, he will be in patient on IV antibiotics and antiviral meds until they crust over. Obviously, my prayer would be that he won't get them at all.

As for school, he is protected by the VISIG for 3 weeks, then we will have to see what happens. Some of his other classmates haven't been immunized (Aidan was, but it didn't take), so if they get the pox, Aidan can't risk a second exposure and he will be out until they run their course at school.

Sorry for the long story, but I wanted to get all the facts in as I know them. Please keep Aidan in your prayers this week. If he gets the pox it will be within the next week.

Elizabeth

Thursday, January 15, 2004 8:59 PM CST

Sorry I didn't update on Monday after getting counts rechecked. We've been busy now that school is back in session. Yes, finally, the kids are back in school. All that snow and ice kept them home all but one day last week, and believe me, we were all ready for the return to school. Just as we are all ready for the snow to go away! It has been fun, but we have had enough. It is slowly melting, but when you have almost 2 feet on the ground (3 in places) it takes a long time to go away.

As for Aidan, his counts were good. ANC of 1700 (platelet count which had dropped A LOT was back to normal, too). I was glad to see that. His cough lingered for 10 days, and was especially bad at night. He was so tired that he fell asleep in a chair in our family room by 6:00 every night last week. He had absolutely no appetite and not much energy. My cancer radar was working overtime on that one. This is the first time he has been sick off therapy, and believe me, I can see why people say that the end of treatment can be hard. I'm back to normal now that I've seen better counts (although they could be higher still).
I sure hope this gets easier with each normal childhood illness. I'd hate to think I would worry like that every time he's sick for the rest of his young life.

Andrew was thrilled to be back in school. He really missed his friends. With Aidan sick, he didn't see as much of them as he would have liked. Andrew starts indoor soccer on Saturday (as does Aidan) throught the YMCA. He is also busy with LOGOS at church on Wednesdays. This is as slow as life is going to get until baseball season starts. Then it will be crazy, crazy, crazy.

Today the Mariner Caravan was in town, so Mike and I took the boys to hear 2 of the players answer questions and sign autographs. We have done this in year's past, too. Next week we will be heading to Seattle for Mariner Fan Fest. The kids get to go down on the field at Safeco and meet some of the players and try out some pitching, etc. The boys don't know yet; they will be thrilled. We are going to surprise them by picking Andrew up at school next Friday then heading over the pass, weather permitting. After all the snow and ice in the past weeks, we should be okay next weekend.

When we return from Seattle, Mike goes under the knife for gall bladder surgery (on the 26th). We hope they will be able to do it laproscopically (sp?) because the recovery time is expected to be 3 days. Otherwise it will be a 6 week turn around. My parents are coming to town to help out with the kids for a few days during this time. It will be nice to have them here. As an added bonus they will be delivering our computer to us - we left it at the MAC shop in Portland over Christmas to have some work done. We are currently using Mike's laptop. I forgot to print up my address book and the web pages I have bookmarked before we took it in, so I will be REALLY glad to have it back.

Lastly, we have a new member of the family. Last Friday the boys and I made a visit to the Humane Society to pick out our new kitten, Penny. She is a short-haired, black tabby kitten, full of energy, and with a purr that works in overdrive. We love her!

That's all on our end. Thanks for checking in and signing the guestbook!


Elizabeth

Monday, January 5, 2004

Ahhhh, power. Electrical power, that is. It's a good thing to have, and you don't really realize how much you love it until it is gone! At 4:30 this morning, on the coldest morning in Richland history (17 degrees below 0 - it's 4 degress above 0 right now at 2:00), we lost power. It wasn't restored until 1:00 pm. We are so happy we have a gas fireplace. We aren't able to close off the room it is in, but we did spend the morning in the family room in front of the fire! School was canceled for Andrew because the school also had no power, so he spent most of the morning at our neighbor's house while I took Aidan to get his counts checked and then to the doctor. His lungs are clear; no ear infections are present; his count are reasonable with an ANC of 1100 and not much change in white count, hemaglobin, hematocrit, and platelet count since Dec. 26 when they were last checked. Dr. Endo sent us home with a refill for Aidan's nebulizer to help him at night when the coughing and wheezing seems to be the worst and instructions to call if his temp goes higher. We will also recheck counts in a week. Hopefully this is the tail end of a bad cold and his counts will be even better. As for the rest of the week, more snow expected tonight and tomorrow and not much increase in temperature. Let's hope the heat stays on! Until next week (most likely), thanks for checking in!



Sunday, January 4, 2004

The snow came on Saturday, but not as much as predicted earlier, just about an inch. More is predicted on Tuesday and Wednesday. It was very cold today - 15 degrees for our high. It's supposed to dip to 4 degrees tonight. I can only imagine what our heat and natural gas bills will be next month! Aidan is keeping plenty warm, unfortunately, as his fever persists. He has had it since last Wed. night, only now it is here all day long with a cough instead of just late afternoon and evening. We are off to the doctor tomorrow. Andrew is doing great - loving the snow and going sledding with friends. Today he and a friend got turned around, though, and ran into a tree. Andrew bonked his head pretty good, but is doing alright. He was hurt some, but mostly embarrassed. He is excited to tell his story when he returns to school. I am sure it will be a whopper! I'll update tomorrow night about Aidan's fever.


Thursday, Jan. 1, 2004

I can't believe how much snow we have! It literally snowed all day today. With the snow from earlier in the week, we now have 10-12 inches of snow in our yard with gusts to 2 feet in places! We have never had a snow like this. The boys love it, and hate it. It is too windy to be out in it for too long, and too dry for snowmen and snowballs, but fun to climb in the gusts and on the piles of snow from all the attempts at shoveling the driveway! Alas, Aidan isn't able to enjoy it as much as we'd like - he has a fever of 101, and threw up this afternoon. Maybe tomorrow. This isn't showing any signs of stopping. In fact, it is supposed to snow 4 more inches tonight, and all day on Saturday. I'll keep you posted!


Monday, December 29, 2003

SNOW! SNOW! SNOW! The boys were very excited to wake up to lots of snow this morning. There was some snow left when we returned from our Christmas in Portland on Sunday, but it quickly melted in the sun yesterday. This white stuff looks like it might hang around for a little while, long enough to build a snowman and make snow angels. (NOTE: I just heard that more snow is expected for the next two days, then a very cold weekend, and five more days of snow. The last time it snowed like this Aidan was so sick from his chemo during Delayed Intensification that he didn't want to get off the couch. This will be his first big snow to really enjoy. I'll keep you posted.)

We had a wonderful time with Mike's family over the Christmas holidays. We haven't had a Goodwin Christmas for 2 years, so it was nice to be with Peter and Erica on that special day. The boys were happy to receive the gifts they had asked for, and some surprises, too. We really toned down the gift giving this year to just a few things, and were pleasantly surprised that the boys didn't seem to notice that it was any different from last year. We plan to do the same again next year. One thing that Peter and Erica have started with the grandchildren is making a donation to a charity of their choice in the grandchild's name. Andrew has chosen Make-A-Wish, and Aidan hasn't quite decided yet. I think it is a wonderful thing to start while the kids are young.

We also saw my family on Christmas Eve morning. The boys were so excited to re-gift the beets and spinach from Grandpa last Christmas right back to him this year. They almost couldn't contain themselves when he was beginning to open the package. It was a riot. I wonder if he will be able to fool them next year! They managed to pull it off this Christmas, much to my surprise.

Aidan's appt. at Doernbecher on Friday went very well. It was soooo quiet! We were in and out in 45 minutes! We met Dr. Stork; Aidan liked her immediately. He wasn't shy, just started answering her questions and then hopped right up on the table for his exam. She said that since he had such favorable odds at diagnosis, that his chances of relapsing during the first year off treatment are slim. If he were to relapse (still not likely) it would probably happen later down the road. We don't have to see her again until July, and will see Dr. Endo every six weeks in the meantime for a check-up and counts. Speaking of counts, Aidan's were good, ANC of 2100. The nurse drew the blood on the floor and had the results back to us in 5 minutes! Normally this would not happen, as the hospital likes us to go to the lab so they can bill us more! Luckily for us, the lab was closed on Friday!

Other than that, we are going to enjoy this second week of winter vacation before starting the hustle and bustle of real life - school for all three boys, LOGOS, church, indoor soccer for both young boys, and all that life brings with kids.

We wish you the most joyous of blessings in the upcoming year.
Elizabeth

Friday, December 19, 2003 3:36 PM CST

"It's the most wonderful time of the year..." I love this time of year. The lights, the decorations, the smiling faces, Christmas Carols. I know for a lot of people it isn't very fun, all the busyness, shopping, hustle and bustle, but as for me, I love it. As is my style, my Christmas shopping was done long ago, and perhaps that's why I am able to enjoy it so much. I know that I am the type of person who would just be a bundle of nerves if I still had shopping to do. Now Mike, he is the classis last minute shopper and that doesn't seem to bother him. I think he enjoys waiting until the last minute!

The boys are excited about Christmas, too. They love the lights, especially Aidan. Andrew is still busy trying to figure out the whole Santa thing. Next year ought to be interesting. One new thing the boys and I are doing this year is taking a few minutes each morning to do an advent activity that focuses on the birth of Christ. We then start our day in prayer. If I forget, they remind me. I think it is a practice I'd like to continue with them throughout the year if I can find the right devotional book to use. I'm sure there are a lot of them out there. I want to find one that is meaningful, but short. Our minutes are few before Andrew goes off to school each morning.

Speaking of Andrew, he had his last swimming lesson of the session yesterday. He has been going once a week since September and what a difference it has made. He moved up a level, and is now in the second-from-top class. He will take lessons again in the summer and next fall. We are skipping the winter-spring session since it will run into Little League Season. He does want to play Indoor Soccer through the YMCA in January and February. I think we are going to sign him up.

Aidan is doing great. He has his next post-treatment follow-up on the 26th in Portland. We are looking forward to meeting his new doctor since we just saw the nurse practitioner last time. Aidan's hair is getting fuller each day, but his sensitive skin is quite dry and itchy these dry, winter days. Poor kid. I think he'll be plagued by that all his life.

That's it for now. I will update again after our next doctors appointment. Until then, may you be richly blessed by the peace that passes all understanding this season.

Elizabeth

Thursday, December 11, 2003 9:24 AM CST

The Goodwin Christmas Letter circa 2003
Greetings to you and yours in this Holiday Season. We hope that the year has brought lots of good cheer. In lieu of the standard blurb, this year the Goodwins offer you the challenge of the Xmas letter in multiple choice quiz format.
1. The highlight of the year for the Goodwins was a Make-a-Wish trip in May granted to Aidan by
A) George Steinbrenner B) George W. Bush
C) Make-a-Wish D) his fairy godmother
2. This enjoyable, memorable family vacation took the Goodwins to
A) Disneyland B) Mars
C) Virginia D) Antarctica
3. The highlight of the trip was
A) The boys' first plane trip B) Meeting Mickey and Minnie
C) Taking cuts in the ride queues D) all of the above
4. Mike and Elizabeth enjoyed watching Andrew play Little League last spring because
A) he enjoyed it so much B) the brawls were exciting
C) the manager was Lou Piniella D) spitting seeds is encouraged
5. Even though Aidan won't play Little League for a few years, his swing reminds some people of
A) Ted Williams B) Paul Bunyan
C) his grandma D) Ichiro Suzuki
6. Every summer evening the boys drag Mike out into the backyard to
A) Bat tennis balls out of the yard B) Practice ice dancing
C) Enjoy the 100 degree heat D) Check out the babes
7. Andrew is enjoying his school year in
A) Kindergarten B) Second Grade
C) Richland High D) spite of his homework
8. In his first organized YMCA basketball game this fall Andrew
A) Dunked on Shaq B) Camped in the key
C) Wasn't sure what to do D) held out for more chocolate
9. In his second organized YMCA basketball game Andrew
A) led his team to victory B) scored half the team's points
C) had several assists D) all of the above
10. In addition to being a full-time supermom, Elizabeth moolights at
A) The Artsy-Fartsy Studio B) Bath and Body Works
C) The Walla Walla State Pen D) The Hall of Justice
11. Elizabeth and the boys are very active in
A) their church B) 4H C) the Libertarian Party D) Amway
12. Mike continues to work at:
A) the paper mill B) humor
C) Bath and Body Works D) ESPN
13. Mike attends school once or twice a week to pursue a Masters Degree in
A) creative writing B) engineering management
C) order to erase his undergrad record D) Monty Python's Flying Circus
14. Aidan enjoys his thrice weekly mornings at
A) Oprah's B) preschool
C) medical school D) his law firm
15. Aidan ended 38 months for treatment of his leukemia in October. He celebrated by
A) Dunking on Shaq B) lounging backstage w/ the Stones
C) climbing el Capitan w/o ropes D) eating a Hershey bar
16. Elizabeth and Mike celebrated the end of Aidan's treatment by
A) sleeping through the night B) having 12 hour massages C) throwing a bash D) dancing in the streets
17. You can reach us at
A) our home phone number
B) thegoodwinfour@aol.com
C) www.caringbridge.org/wa/aidangoodwin (see guestbook)
D) all of the above
18. We hope you A) have a peaceful holiday season, and B) have a great New Year!


Love,
Elizabeth, Mike, Andrew, and Aidan

Friday, November 28, 2003 2:37 PM CST

Dear friends,
I hope you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving. We were at my parents' home in Vancouver with my brother and his family and family friends. The boys had a great time with their cousin, Katherine. They played well all afternoon and evening without any conflicts, just lots of laughter and fun. We played games, talked, laughed, and reflected on the many blessings in our lives. It was a wonderful day.

The day prior Aidan had his first appt. at his new clinic. It went very well. The people were all very friendly, and Aidan did very well. He even did great with all of the waiting. I don't know if it was because it was the day before Thankskgiving or not, but we had to wait quite awhile before seeing the nurse practitioner, over an hour and a half. We then had to go downstairs to have labs drawn, and when we got there, the lab was closed for 1/2 an hour for lunch, so more waiting. Aidan did great with it all, even his hand poke for blood. Mike and I decided we would just have to be prepared for waiting longer here because it is a bigger clinic. At Group Health we could count on a little waiting if we weren't the first appt. of the day, but nothing over a half an hour. When we had a visit at Doernbecher during Delayed Intensification we had lots of waiting that we had forgotten about. Another thing that is different is not having contact with our doctors 24/7, 365 days a year. We were spoiled. I know our care at Doernbecher's will be as good, just different in procedures, etc. It was so nice to be able to combine a doctor visit with a family visit. Definately a perk. We will come back the day after Christmas for our next appt. and will talk then about doing some of the follow-up with our local pediatrician. Oh, one more thing, Aidan's ANC was 5000!!! It hasn't been that high since before diagnosis! He is doing great.

Tonight we will celebrate Aidan and Mike's birthdays early with both of our families at my parents' home. There will be 16 of us! It should be lots of fun. We are so fortunate to have families on both sides who enjoy each other's company. We are truly blessed.

Lastly, just a little bragging about Andrew. His conference at school was great. We didn't here anything that surprised us, just good things from his wonderful teacher. And, last weekend's basketball game was a winner. Andrew scored 14 points, had 6 rebounds, several blocked shots, and 2 assists - his best game yet. He's loving it!

Until next time, may you find Peace during this busy, busy holiday season.

Elizabeth

Monday, November 17, 2003 5:51 PM CST

Sorry for the long time between updates. We have been busy! Aidan's party was a great success. We rented a bounce house, a HUGE fire truck slide, and hired a great clown who makes balloon animals, swords, etc. 90 of the 140 people invited were able to attend, 30 of them children, including all of the boys' cousins, grandparents, uncles (minus Uncle Dave who is on a carrier near San Diego), and aunts. Aidan's pediatrician attended, much to the delight of many of the kids who are patients of hers. I can't begin to explain how much fun it was! It was a great way to thank everyone who has helped us along the way, and to celebrate the end of a long three years of treatment. Aidan had a fever two of the three days prior to the party, but was in fine shape on the day of the bash. Thank you, thank you to all who helped us celebrate!

On the Doernbecher's front, we are all set for Aidan's first off treatment appointment at his new clinic. We will meet with the nurse practitioner the day before Thanksgiving, and Aidan's new doctor, who is the in-patient doc that week, will poke her head in for a brief meeting that day as well. It is so different to be scheduling appointments with nurse practitioners and to find that our doctor only does clinic days a few days a week. We are so used to seeing our docs every time and to having 24/7 access to them 365 days of the year. I wonder if the reason it is different is because it is a bigger group of ped/oncologists and/or because it is at a teaching hospital. I don't know if we will come into frequent contact with residents or not. I guess we will learn more about that next week. It is nice to be going to the hospital in Portland (OR) so near to our parents' homes. It is an easier drive since we avoid the mountains, and we will get to see more of our family.

I'll put a few pics from the party on later tonight when I have time.

That's all for now,
Elizabeth

Sunday, November 2, 2003 1:51 PM CST

One week off chemo and life is good! Some interesting occurances, though, in terms of this journey - On Tuesday night I asked Aidan and Andrew if they wanted to flush the rest of Aidan's chemo down the toilet (the last 8 methotrexate tablets). Aidan started to cry and said, "No! No! I want the rest of my chemo!" I explained to him that he didn't need it any more, but he insisted that we not get rid of it. I suggested that we put it in the cupboard for awhile, and that seemed to satisfy him. I was surprised by his reaction, but Mike wasn't. Mike can read Aidan like a book; he says Aidan is a lot like he was as a child.

Incident two - Last night we were putting the electric blanket back on the bed (it's snowing here-the cold weather has arrived). There was a brownish spot on the blanket; Aidan asked what it was. When I told him it was Betadine, he asked, "What's betadine?" This from the child who one year ago could tell us exactly what steps we needed to take to clean his central line site. He has forgotten already. I asked if he wanted to see a picture of it. He did, so we looked at a picture in the book, "The Amazing Hannah" instead of one of him. She has a double lumen catheter, but he got the idea. He still doesn't remember his line. You can bet Andrew does, though. He even remembers when Aidan used to squirm so much at the beginning that we had to wrap him in his blanket so tightly that his arms wouldn't move just to get through a dressing change. I found it interesting, and I think it's good that Aidan doesn't remember the worst of it. I do hope the both of the boys grow up to be especially compassionate people because of what we have been through as a family, and know how truly blessed they are.

This is a busy week for us as we plan for the party next Saturday (see details in previous journal entry), in addition to all of our other activities. I'm helping at preschool Monday morning, going to Andrew's 2nd grade Pow Wow Monday afternoon (culmination of Native American unit),finalizing transfer of follow-up care to Doernbecher's Children's Hospital in Portland on Monday, MOPS on Tuesday, Christmas play practice for Andrew Tuesday night (the first practice), Christ Care and LOGOS on Wednesday,swimming lessons and dinner with Mike's sister and family (from Alaska) on Thursday (fun!), family arriving on Friday, Party on Saturday, family dinner at our house Sat. night (17 people), church Sunday, work meeting Sunday night. Wow! I hope I survive and am able to pull off everything I still need to do for the party Saturday in the midst of all this activity! Crazy week!

Thank you once again for all of your prayers and good wishes these past three years. Please continue to pray for life-long remission for Aidan and for us to feel God's presence in our lives on a daily basis. He is so faithful!

Love to all,
Elizabeth

Monday, October 27, 2003 9:31 AM CST

Roses are red
Violets are blue
After 2224 pills
Aidan is through

(Sung to the tune of the Lumberjack song [Monty Python])
Written by Mike Goodwin

Chorus:
He's been through a lot but he's OK
Please come to celebrate his ending day

He's had the shots, He took the pills
He's had a transfusion or two
We're glad his hair has come back red
We tired of the Buhner 'do

(chorus)

We tracked his counts, And drove the pass
Faster than a speeding comet
Except the times we had to stop
To clean up Aidan's vomit

(chorus)

He lived on fries, And chicken fingers
Red meat's never passed his lips
If we want him to get a square meal
We better go to Zip's

(chorus)

He had a wish, We took a plane
And went to Disneyland
We hope someday that he'll recall
A shake of Mickey's hand

(chorus)

We're proud of him, And Andrew, too
So proud we'd like to holler
But if this had kept up we'd need a loan
Since for each poke he got a dollar

(chorus)

Please come November 8, 2003, 1:30 - 3:30, First Presbyterian Church of Kennewick 2000 West Kennewick Avenue.
Please RSVP to Elizabeth (yea or nay) by 11/3 thegoodwinfour@aol.com

Please no gifts. Contributions to Make-A-Wish will be accepted if you so desire.

Wednesday, October 22, 2003

No more steroids!!!! Aidan threw his beloved puppy into the air and cheered, "YIPPEEEEE!!!" when I told him that he is now through with steroids. He understood that this medicine didn't always make him feel good. Now only 5 more nights of pills to go! We can't wait!


Saturday, October 18, 2003



Mike and I said that there were just three small steps to be taken until the end of active treatment - 1. the last IV poke for Vincristine 2. completion of the last round of steroids 3. swallowing the last pill. Well, the first of those three steps was taken yesterday. Aidan had his last hand poke. He was very brave; he held his hand soooo still, and he looked at Nurse Jennifer and said, "Please get it in one poke." Well, she did. It went through some scar tissue, though, so there were tears, but Aidan was still holding his hand still the whole time. He amazes me.

When we first arrived at the hospital and went to his room, we found 3 balloons anchored by a Hershey's chocolate bar (Aidan's favorite) on his bed. The message on one of the balloons read, "Congratulations on your last treatment, Aidan. Love, Your pediatric nurses". I admit it...I cried. But those were the only tears of the day. I was just too excited to cry. I just wanted to scream "YAHOOOOOO!!!!!!!"

As you know, I have had many moments of uncertainty as we faced the end of active treatment. Lots of worries about the future. Right now, though, I can honestly say that all I feel is excitement. I've felt that way all week. I feel such incredible peace about the whole thing. The peace that can only come from the Lord God. Now, I am not saying that I won't feel anxious in the months to come, but right now I am not letting my worries take over. I just feel peaceful relief.

Aidan seems to be working through the end of this, too. He was very excited about the last hand poke, as you can well imagine. He has been asking lots of questions, though, about which of his friends will get chemo next. He seems to think that since his turn is over, someone else should start. I remind him that Robert is the only good friend he knows who has gone through chemo, and that we hope that none of his friends ever has to get it. The only thing he had to say about that was that Robert should be invited to his end-of-chemo party since he had chemo, too. I assured him that Robert would be there.

Now, for other news. Group Health has decided to close the clinic. The last of our team of three who have taken care of us these past three years, Dr. Herzog, may have a clinic for off-treatment patients one day a week, but won't know yet for a few days. As for us, because of our insurance, we will be changing to either Children's Hospital in Seattle, or Doernbecher's Children's Hospital in Portland for follow-up care. We need to find out more about the Survivor's Clinics at Doernbechers; Children's in Seattle has an excellent one. We do know that we would be seeing excellent doctors at both facilities, but going to Portland for check-ups would be nicer since we have so much family in that area. We will keep you posted.

Now, wish us luck and keep us in your prayers as we take step 2 of our "end-of-treatment journey"...surviving the last round of steroids!

Elizabeth

Saturday, October 11, 2003 12:29 AM CDT

Some statistics for you as we near the end of Aidan's treatment (statistics are for total treatment time, and all numbers are approximate). Keep in mind that Aidan's years on treatment have been easy compared to many other children. All of the numbers below would have to be greatly increased for many families. That is why we continue to hope, pray, and raise money to find a cure...a cure that is less traumatic both physically and mentally.

*$15,000.00 on medical costs, food, and gas (no hotel charges - Thanks Mom and Dad)
*1155 days
*2090 pills
*390 dressing changes before Broviac removal
*217 days of steroids (Dexamethasone)
*100 days quarentined due to low counts
*44 doses Vincristine (14 by hand IV since Broviac removal)
*30 finger pokes since Broviac removal
*30 trips over the mountains
*23 rounds intrathecal methotrexate (spinals)
*15 x-rays
*10 counseling sessions for Andrew
*8 transfusions
*8 doses ARA-C
*5 hospitals
*4 weeks with and ANC of 0
*3 bouts of pneumonia
*3 doses Doxorubicin (Mike called it "the red death")
*2 midnight trips to the ER
*1 dose Cyclophosphamide
*1 wish trip (Thanks Make-a-Wish)
*1 ambulance ride
*countless favors from family and friends (Thanks everyone)
*countless dollars for pokes, toys from the poke box, and gifts from family, friends and strangers
* countless worries, tears, tums, and rolaids
*countless blessings and answered prayers

For those "in the know" here are Aidan's counts on the day of diagnosis:
WBC - 3.5
Hgb - 4.7
Hct - 14.3
Pltct - 36,000
Neutrophils - 0

I'll update with his latest counts after we get them on Thursday. Then on Friday, Aidan gets his last dose of Vincristine (via his last "hand poke"), and starts his last 5 days of steroids. I will be so happy to say good-bye to life in "The DexamethaZone".

Thanks for your continuous prayers and support over the last 1140 days. Only 15 days to go.

Love,
Elizabeth

Thursday, October 2, 2003 4:47 PM CDT

Good afternoon from sunny, warm Richland! It is another beautiful day, about 80 degrees again today. It is hard to believe it is almost fall when it is so warm outside! Aidan's pumpkins are turning orange, though, so I know it will be cooling off soon (planted at preschool last spring, then transplanted by Aidan and his dad).

Aidan is doing very well. He loves preschool and Mrs. Guidotti. He goes three days a week, and has only missed once due to illness. His counts are great this week, ANC of 2600, so he remains at 75% dosing. Only 24 days to go!!!!
It took 2 pokes to get Aidan's counts today, but he wasn't unhappy about it because it meant 2 dollars for him which gave him enough to buy the toy he has been saving for!


Andrew also loves school. He comes home bubbling over with happiness almost every day with all of the things that have happened at school. He is still taking swimming lessons once a week, and started LOGOS yesterday. LOGOS is our midweek program at church for elementary aged children. His best buddy Taylor now attends our church and is going, too. They are both thrilled to see each other twice a week at church since they go to different schools. Andrew wants to play YMCA basketball this year, so we will sign up for that next week as long as it doesn't interfere with swimming or LOGOS. At home Andrew is reading the Chronicles of Narnia by CS Lewis. We have had some great talks about salvation and forgiveness as we look closely at the symbolism in the books. It warms my heart each time, and I know the Lord takes great joy in what he is seeing in Andrew.

I joined a fitness club for women and am enjoying the classes I take there. Aidan goes to the nursery on Tuesdays and Thursdays while I exercise and likes it there. I also go while he is at preschool two other days. I have been getting up at 5:30am to walk with friends for the last 2 years, but am loving going the club instead. It is so dark at 5:30! I am also working muscles I forgot I had!

My Christ Care group is meeting again on Wednesday mornings. We have been together for 7 1/2 years, so it is always wonderful to get back together after a summer off. They have supported us in so many ways through this whole journey. I am ever grateful for them.

Mike is off to school tonight, so it's just the boys and I. They miss daddy on school nights, but we try to make it a fun night for the 3 of us with games or a movie.

That's it for now. Thanks again for your continued prayers.
Grace and Peace,
Elizabeth

Sunday, Sept. 21, 2003

Ahhh...steroids. Once again they are taking a toll on young Aidan. He took an hour nap yesterday and was still in bed by 7:30 last night. For a child who doesn't nap anymore, who doesn't usually go to be until 8:30, it was a definite sign of entering "The Dexamethazone". Today Aidan napped for 2 hours after sleeping in (for him) until after 7 this morning. Another side effect - he cried for 30 minutes before Andrew left for his sleep-over last night, and then for 15 more minutes after. We just couldn't console him. I had to carry Aidan out of church this morning because he was so weepy when his buddy didn't want to sit by him during the service. It took 15 minutes to calm him down enough to return to the service. It is so hard to watch your child be so upset over things that normally wouldn't bother him to such an extent when off steroids, and then to not be able to console him. This is only day 3; I wonder what tomorrow will bring.

Thursday, Sept. 18, 2003

Sorry for the delay in updates. As usual, we have been very busy. Aidan started preschool last week and is loving it! His grandma got to be one of the helpers on the first day; he thought that was really special! His teacher is Mrs. Guidotti who took such good care of Andrew at school when Aidan was in the hospital the first 4 weeks of this ordeal. We are all thrilled that Aidan will be in her class when he ends treatment. It feels like we are coming full circle.

Andrew is still loving 2nd grade. He has a great teacher and lots of friends in his class. He talks about recess the most, though; typical kid! Andrew is taking swimming lessons once a week, and will start our church's after-school program in two weeks. It runs from Oct. - Mar. on Wednesday afternoons. This year his best buddy Taylor and good friend Jenna will be joining him, so he is very excited! Speaking of Taylor, Andrew is going to have his first sleep over at Taylor's house on Saturday! You should have seen the grin on his face when I told him about the invitation! He will go to the opening night of the Americans (local hockey team), then back to Taylor's for the night. I will bring him home after church on Sunday. I am really excited for him.

Mike and I had a wonderful and much needed vacation in San Francisco last week! It was so nice to have that time together. We had done a lot of the touristy things when we were there on our honeymoon 13 years ago, so we skipped some of those. We did go down to Fisherman's Wharf and Golden Gate Park, though. We walked A LOT! We also had great dinners every night - Thai food, Indian food, "garlic food" from The Stinking Rose (menu says, "We season our garlic with food!"). We went to a movie, and just enjoyed each other's company without interuption. It was awesome! Thanks Mom and Dad for taking care of the boys. They had a great time too!

With the return to school, we also have the return of sniffles. Both of the boys have a cold, but Aidan's counts are good. His white count is up from the cold, so his ANC is higher than usual at 2700. I haven't heard yet about any change in chemo dosing. Tomorrow he goes in for his Vincristine and starts steroids. They really took a toll on his little body last time. It is very hard to watch. Please pray that this time he will be pain free. (Friday, Sept. 19 - All went well with the IV today. Aidan asked Nurse Sue to "please get it in one poke" and she did! Aidan is an old pro at that now. Now lets hope for a pain free 5 days.)

One other little bit of news about our clinic. No decision has been made about keeping it open or closing it yet, but whoever makes the decision has been waffling back and forth. Our beloved Lynn decided that she couldn't wait around to see what would happen and has taken a job at Group Health's Seattle hospital. I am really happy for her, but so sad to see her go. She has held our hand through this for 3 years. It will be strange not to talk to her every other week. She did give me her email, and will give me her new address and phone when she gets them, but we will miss her. If the clinic stays open, it just won't be the same to go there without her around. Dr. Herzog, on the other hand, says he won't leave until they pry his cold, dead hands off the door. If you know him, you will be able to appreciate that!

That's all the news for now. Thank you so much for your prayers. They mean so much, and have helped us through the ups and downs of the past three years.

Only 6 weeks to go until the next phase...Survivorship!!!

Elizabeth

Friday, September 5, 2003 6:31 PM CDT

Life continues to be busy at our house. Andrew started school last Wed., and he loves it! He has a wonderful teacher and comes home smiling each day. I hope he will always love school. Aidan had his preschool orientation today and starts on Monday. He was excited to see lots of his old friends at school today. He, too, has a wonderful teacher.

We spent Labor Day weekend at Camp Wooten at the base of the Blue Mountains. It was family camp for our church. What a great time we had. We had a cabin all to ourselves, but right next to us were our good friends the Vickermans and th Blacks. Both have boys the same ages as ours (and one darling little 2 year old named Gracie), so you can imagine the fun they had. We hiked, swam, rode bikes and scooters, played lots of baseball, sang around the campfire, and laughed. Each night after the kids were asleep the 6 adults played games and talked at the picnic table outside our group of cabins. We had church on Sunday morning at the campfire area. There is just something about worshipping the Lord while looking around at the beauty of His creation. The sun was shining; the sky was blue; the hill on one side was a beautiful brown, and the other was forested. It was inspiring. We had a wonderful weekend. We are planning on returning next year.

Now it is time for Mike and I to take a vacation without the boys! On Sunday we will leave for San Francisco! Mike has a conference there, and we were able to get a ticket for me with our frequent flyer miles. This makes it virtually an expense free trip (the exception being my spa day and shopping trips!!!!). We are both really looking forward to this trip. We need a little time away together. My mom and dad will be here to take care of the boys, so Andrew and Aidan will be spoiled, too. We return late Thursday night.

As for Mr. Aidan, his counts are good this week. His ANC is 1734, so he his staying at 75hemo. I will be surprised if he ever gets back to 100 Only 7 weeks to go!!!

Grace and Peace,
Elizabeth

Sat., Aug. 30, 2003

Steroid week has been a tough one this time. I don't know when Aidan has slept so much, or felt so yucky. He has had many periods of weepiness, and has had a few nasty screaming tantrums over silly little things. He has had a stomach ache most of the time, and the leg pain from Monday's Vincristine has also been bad. Yesterday we had to run an errand at the mall, and Aidan sat down in the middle of one of the stores and cried because his legs were hurting. I will be so glad when this is all over. He has had moments of activity and cheerfulness, too, but they don't last very long. Only 2 more rounds of steroids and Vincristine to go. Hallelujah!


Tues., Aug. 26, 2003

As usual, we have been busy since I last wrote. These last weeks have been full of play dates with friends, school shopping, going to the fair, school shopping, trips to the movies, and school shopping! I think Andrew is all set for the first day of second grade tomorrow! He is so excited to be starting. Aidan and I will miss him these first few days until we establish our own routine again.

Last Friday we went to stay with Mike's sister, Nikki, and her family for the weekend. Mike's oldest sister, Philippa and her family were visiting from Alaska. Brother Dave and his wife, Shawna also made the trek to Portland for the weekend. It is the first time in a long time we have all been together. We had a blast. The 5 cousinns (all boys, ranging in age from 4 1/2 - 12 1/2) had a great time playing together. We had dinner and play time at Peter and Erica's house on Friday night, and all went to the tennis courts and playground on Saturday. Phil, Chris, and the boys had to leave on Saturday, and Peter and Erica had previous plans, but the other family members gathered again on Saturday night for dinner and games. We played Cranium, and died laughing. It was so much fun. Truly, everyone gets along great and enjoys the company of all members of the family. We are so blessed. We hope to be together again in November for Aidan's end-of-chemo party, although Dave might be gone on Navy business. It was wonderful.

We went to see my folks on Sunday for lunch before heading north to Redmond for Aidan's last spinal. We stayed at our home-away-from-home, the Silver Cloud Inn, on Sunday night (great swimming pool!), and were at the hospital on Monday morning for our 10:00 appt. Aidan did really well, although he was quite weepy coming out of the anesthesia. It was so nice to be able to end with Lynn, our wonderful peds oncology nurse, and Dr. Herzog. I didn't get emotional like I thought I might until I had to say good-bye to Lynn. I held it together, but was quite teary eyed. She has been our lifeline the past three years. I know we will see her again, but maybe not in her role as a peds oncology nurse. Group Health is getting out of the hospital business. The campus has been sold, and the peds-oncology dept. might not remain open. If it does, it will be for out-patient clinic treatment only, which would be okay for us, but really sad. We received such personal care there. 2 doctors, one nurse in the clinic (Lynn), and the same nurses on the pediatric floor all three years. We had contact with our doctors 24/7, 365 days a year. Not an intern or resident, our doctors. We talked to Lynn at least twice a month, more often once a week (or Tina when Lynn was on vacation). They took care of our whole family. It would be sad to see it shut down. We will know more next month. We might have to go to Children's Hospital for our follow up care. I know it would be okay, and that the people who go there love it, but we would miss our small clinic and the people who have loved us for the past three years.

Anyway, I have rambled. Our trip home from Redmond was uneventful except for the "vomit-stop" on the side of the highway (which included cleaning the carseat, changing clothes, cleaning the floor of the car, cleaning the Gameboy, etc.). It seems that Aidan needs a little more time to be still after his spinals that other kids. When he was getting IVIG he had that bed time after the spinal (like, all day), but when it is just the spinal, we leave so much sooner. He just can't take it. Thank goodness it was the last one.

Aidan's counts were good, ANC of 1400, and his spinal fluid was completely clear! Now if we can just get through this steroid burst, we will be almost home-free!

Thanks for continuing to pray for us all as we approach the end of treatment.

Love,
Elizabeth

Friday, August 1, 2003 5:23 PM CDT

Oh, what a week it has been! On Sunday our nephew Michael arrived for a week of Science Camp at WSU with Andrew. Michael is 8, and both the boys adore him. Andrew and Michael would leave each morning at 8:00 and return each evening at about 5:00 full of excitement about the experiments they had conducted over the course of the day. They learned about momentum, simple machines, flight, properties of matter, robotics, and many more things. Everything was hands on, and the camp culminated in a show for the parents. Each child had made a robot that raced and did battle with other robots. They also made race cars powered by wind (balloons), which they raced for us. These were the highligts of the week for these two boys. It was Michael's first time away from home for so long, so we kept him busy in the evenings swimming, playing soccer, going to Chuck E. Cheese, and a Dust Devil's baseball game. All three boys, Aidan included, are exhausted today. Michael's mom, my dear sister-in-law, Nikki, came yesterday to take Michael home today. We had a lovely visit; I wish we could see more of her (hint! hint!). All in all, it was a great week.

Aidan finished steroids on Tuesday. He was a very tired and whiny boy for a few days. He never sleeps well in the "dexamethazone". He always gets tummy aches when on steroids, but this time was particulary bad at night. He also had the achy bones from the Vincristine again this time. I am so glad that he only needs these meds three more times.

Near the end of the month we go to Redmond for Aidan's last spinal. I can't believe we have reached that point in treatment. We were supposed to go on the 22nd, but will go the 25th instead because not only will Mike's sister Philippa and her family be visiting from Alaska on the 22nd, our beloved Lynn (pediatric oncology nurse) was going to be gone on the 22nd. It means so much to us that she be with Aidan on his last spinal day, so we asked if we could reschedule for the 25th. I hope I can hold it together that day! I am so emotional these days thinking about the end of treatment. Excited, worried, sad (that we had to go through it in the first place), mad about both the financial and psychological cost to our family...my emotions are all over the place. I know there are all too many of you out there who know perfectly well what I mean. Three years of this life. Young as he is, even Aidan is starting to show that he knows this isn't normal, although it is all he has ever known. Not everyone has to go to the hospital every 28 days. Not everyone has to get "pokes". Not everyone has to take yucky medicine. I hope he forgets the worst, and remembers the good things. Kids seem to be able to do that more easily than adults, that's for sure.

Once again, we can't thank you enough for your prayers and encouragement these past 3 years. As the scripture at the top says, He has heard your prayers. Thank you dear friends.

Elizabeth

Friday, July 25, 2003

Busy, busy, busy. That would describe our week last week. The boys were swimming twice a day and loving it. Both kids passed to the next level of swimming; Aidan got over his fear of going under water and now is diving for pennies, floating on his back, and putting his face in the water to kick across the pool. We can't keep him above water! Andrew is the diving board king, diving, doing cannonballs, and any other jumps he can create. It is so fun to watch the boys enjoy the water.

We also had VBS last week. Son Country Harvest Fair was the theme. We studied the fruits of the spirit. I helped teach Aidan's class of 11 four year old boys and 3 four year old girls. It was an active bunch. Andrew's second grade class had 17 kids in it, and it still wasn't the largest class. All told there were 138 kids participating in VBS last week which culminated with a family picinic, a show for the parents, and family "fair" games. It was lots of fun, but we were all exhausted by weeks end.

We still managed to get enough energy to go boating with our good friends the Vickerman's on Saturday, though. We spent the afternoon on the Snake River playing in the water, innertubing, and attempting to get up on my ski. The last time I skied was when I was pregnant with Aidan. I was in much better shape then and found it much easier. It was fun to try again, though. I'm sure it will go better next time. It was a comedy of errors last Saturday. The kids had a great time playing water baseball and riding on the tube behind the boat. Andrew and Taylor went several times, always giving the signal to go FASTER! Young daredevils they are!

On Monday of this week the boys went on a road trip with Mike to Portland. He had some work to do there, so the kids spent the day in Vancouver with my parents while I enjoyed an unexpected and much appreciated day off. They left at 6:30am and returned at 9:30pm. They swam and played and had a great time. I read, and shopped, and saw a movie, and had a great time! Thanks Mike, Mom, and Dad.

Tuesday we braved the heat (105 degrees) to go to a Dust Devils baseball game (single A). Our good friends the Baumans joined us, and we actually saw a winning game. It was a fun way to spend the evening.

Wednesday the boys had soccer games in the heat (103 degrees). We drank lots of water, and got the kids to sit in the shade when they could. The field was in full sun. Aidan played at 6:00, but it had cooled down to about 99 degrees by the time Andrew played at 7:15. The heat didn't seem to bother them in the least, and we have become quite used to it, too. It was pleasant in the shade.

Yesterday we got Aidan's counts. They are good with an ANC of 2300. He will stay at 75hemo for the next two weeks until we get them checked again.

Today we go to Kadlec at noon for Vincristine. Should be a quick stay, for which I am grateful. **Today's stay was quick. Only 90 minutes. The IV process was great - one poke. Aidan was easily distracted again and only cried out once. He is so good at this now.

Thanks for keeping us in your prayers and thoughts as we finish up our journey. We appreciate you so much.

Sunday, July 6, 2003 10:34 PM CDT

I hope you all had as wonderful a time on the 4th of July as we did. We just got back today from 5 days in Sun River, Oregon with my lovely sister-in-law, Nikki, her husband, Steve, and our nephew, Michael. We had such a good time. Micheael is 8, and he and Andrew get along great. They "swam" in the hot-tub every day, had a water fight with the dads, rode their bikes all over the place (10 miles one day), learned to play the card game "spoons", swam at the pool, ate s'mores like champions, and laughed and were loud and enjoyed being together. Aidan joined in when he felt like it, but he was also content to be without the big boys at times. He did remarkably well for being away from home on steroids; he only had a few little tantrums and was sleepy the first few days. As usual, salty foods were what he wanted to eat, but we did manage to get a few fruits and vegetables into him, too. Thanks for a fun time, Nadigs; you're the best!!!

Now that we are home we return to the routine of swimming lessons, park days, and soccer. We will also add in VBS next week in the evenings. The boys love the activities, but I am also looking forward to the end of swimming lessons and a whole week without any planned activities except soccer before Michael comes to visit for a week of science camp with Andrew at the end of the month (they can't wait to be together again).

That's it for now. I will update at the end of the week with Aidan's counts. Thanks for "praying without ceasing" for Aidan's continued remission and the emotional health of our family as we live with this stress. It has been a long three years (almost), and we so appreciate your support and encouragement.

Love,
Elizabeth

Saturday, June 28, 2003 11:33 AM CDT

Good morning all. The sun is shining; Mike is golfing, and the boys are itching to go outside to play in the pool (we are supposed to reach 100 degrees today). Therefore, this will be a quick update.

All went well yesterday for Aidan. His IV was put in quickly, one poke, and he was out of the hospital in 90 minutes. It is so nice to have such a quick appointment. The IVIG really helped him, but we are all glad he doesn't need it anymore. Also,if they measured him correctly, Aidan has grown almost an inch in a month. Maybe that's why his knees and ankles were bothering him, not the Vincristine. Who knows?

Aidan's counts were high, ANC of 4872. His white count was 5800! That is in normal range, something we have only seen when Aidan has an infection of some sort. I hope he isn't coming down with something; it sure doesn't seem that way. The oncologist still decided, though, to keep him at 75osing. I am not sure why, but when I asked our lovely nurse, Lynn, to double-check, the answer was the same - 75 Aidan started steroids yesterday, too. Yeehaw! 5 days of fun on the way!

Andrew and Aidan finished their first session of swimming lessons for the summer. They both did well. Andrew showed lots of growth. They will have one more session after the 4th.

Both boys had their first soccer game of the season last Wed. What fun to watch. They play back to back, so it is fun to see the difference in play when the older kids take the field. We have a great coach (same one for both boys), and he does such a good job of making this fun and a learning experience. It's great to see this big, tall man get down on his knees so he can look eye-to-eye with a child while he teaches them something about the game of soccer. We are fortunate to have him as a coach.

I met with my VBS team last week to start planning. I will be helping in Aidan's class this year. It is going to be such a fun group of kids and teachers. We were the last ones in the church Thursday night (talking, planning, and more talking) and had to be asked to leave! VBS is in 2 weeks. The focus is the fruits of the spirit. We are all looking forward to it.

So much for a short update! I will update next week some time.

Elizabeth

Friday, June 20, 2003 10:44 AM CDT

Just a quick update today. Aidan's counts are good with an ANC of 2094. He will remain at 75% of his regular dose of chemo. We go to our local hospital next Friday for his Vincristine. Our total time there should only be about an hour or so now that he doesn't need the IVIG. The Vincristine has been causing Aidan some bone pain about 4 or 5 days after getting it. We would appreciate your prayers about this.

We are well into summer now with late bed times, swimming lessons, soccer, and park trips. It is so nice to have Andrew home.

I will update on Friday after Aidan's chemo.
Elizabeth

Saturday, June 14, 2003 11:17 AM CDT

As expected, Andrew's report card was wonderful. His teacher had lots of nice things to say about him, and his grades showed how smart we have always known he is. A few weeks ago his teacher administered the Flynt-Cooter reading inventory, and told me Andrew is reading "well into the seventh grade level." We were both surprised and pleased. It is going to be a challenge to find him books that are at his reading level with content appropriate for a 7 year old. Andrew's teacher for next year is Mrs. Jagelski. He was so excited because his friend Robert was in her class last year and got to bring home worms from school! Andrew's good friend (our neighbor) Nicole, is also in his class as are two of his teammates from baseball this year. It looks like second grade will be fun for Andrew.

Aidan is doing well. He is excited to have his brother home for the summer. Both the boys will be starting swimming lessons on Monday. Last summers water activities meant dressing changes for Aidan's Broviac catheter every day. It will be so nice for everyone to be free of that this summer.

That's about it for now. I will do a quick update on Wed. when we get counts again.

Happy Father's Day to all the dads out there.
Elizabeth

NEW PHOTO of Andrew in his baseball uniform in photo album.

Saturday, June 7, 2003 12:13 AM CDT

For those of you who didn't see the update on Monday about
Aidan's immunoglobulin level, you can find it by going to te "History" part of the page.

As for today, Aidan's counts are great, ANC of 1500. He is back to his old self after being hit hard with fatigue during his steroid burst. I seem to be noticing the fatigue more and more during steroids. He napped 6 days in a row, even falling asleeep in the chuch nursery last Sunday (on the floor) while several small children played around him. He is back to normal now.

Andrew's baseball team won their first game last Saturday. Everyone hit well, fielded well, and played awesome. It was fun to watch. His last game was Tuesday and his grandparents were here to watch. They didn't win that one, but Andrew showed them how much he has improved this year.

The visit with my mom and dad was great. Dad took Aidan mini golfing 2 days while Andrew was in school. He also did lots of work in the yard for me, trimming my shrubs and cleaning the sand out of the sandbox (some darn cat used it to relieve himself while we were out of town - I had forgotten to put the lid on the box.). Mom and I planted all my annuals (I'm a little late this year). It was so much more fun, and lots faster, with her help. Thanks Mom and Dad.

Now, are you sitting down Mom? I can't believe I am saying this, but, something about this visit made me realize how much I miss my family. I am ready to move home. Mike has been ready for awhile, but I haven't until now. I love Richland - my church, my friends, SUNSHINE - but I miss my family more. I guess Mike and I have some talking to do, and he has some job hunting to do. A lot will depend on good insurance for Aidan, but I am ready for him to start looking around. I have been blessed with wonderful parents, parents-in-law, numerous brothers and sisters (in blood and in law), and I am ready to be living closer to them.

I will try to update again on Friday after Andrew comes home from his last day of school with his awesome report card!!!!

Until then...

Thursday, May 29, 2003

Monday 6/2 Good news! Aidan's immunoglobulin levels are in the high-normal range. We are done with IVIG! Now our chemo Friday's will only take about 2 hours as opposed to 6 - 8 hours! Also, that means his last spinal will be done in the clinic with our wonderful RN Lynn instead of on the peds. floor (we love those nurses, too, but hate the long time it takes to get the IVIG). YEAH!


ONLY ONE MORE SPINAL TO GO! We are really on the downhill slide now. One more spinal, 5 more IV's for Vincristine, and countless pills, but we are almost there. I can't believe it. It has been such a long journey, but it has gone so fast at the same time. Our oncology nurse, Lynn, and I were looking at a picture of Aidan that is on the clinic bulletin board from a month before he was diagnosed. He really looked like a baby, and now he is a little boy. So much time has gone by...and yet it is so little time when you consider the big picture of life.

Our trip to Seattle went well. Mike's mom stayed here with Andrew (THANK YOU ERICA!) Aidan did a great job during his IV. Thanks for your prayers. He wasn't happy about getting poked, but he held very still, and was fairly easily distracted by looking at pictures from his wish trip. Once again, THANKS MAKE-A-WISH! Since he would need Benedryl before his IVIG anyway, we sedated him with Benadryl and Fentinal this time instead of Versed and Fentinal. Worked like a charm. He was very relaxed, but not totally asleep, and he didn't come out of it with the same "drug hang-over headache" that usually causes him tantrums. He held very still for the spinal, and made his doctor and his parents proud. Once Aidan returned to the room, he ate a bag of cheeto's and proceeded to sleep the rest of the time we were there. We were on the road by 3:00 and home by 6:20. His counts are okay, ANC of 844.

While we were there, several of the nurses and our doctor looked at Aidan's x-rays from the emergency room here in Richland. They were all impressed by the quality of the x-ray and said that Kadlec must have excellent equipment. The diagnosis of pneumonia was confirmed, but not full blown pneumonia, just "walking" pneumonia. If it had gone untreated it would have been bad. Our oncology team is very pleased with the quality of care we receive here in Richland. We are so fortunate.

The most difficult thing today was saying good-bye to one of our oncologists. Although Dr. Louie is not our primary doctor on paper, he and Dr. Herzog work as a team, discussing all their patients and making decisions together. Dr. Louie did just as many, if not more, of Aidan's intrathecal treatments as Dr. Herzog. He has answered so many of our questions, calmed many fears, and truly cared for our whole family. Starting in July Dr. Louie will be heading up the pediatric oncology department at Mary Bridge Children's Hospital in Tacoma. We are very happy for him, but will miss seeing him when we return for check-ups. The boys will miss his magic tricks, and we will miss his positive attitude and his easy-going, quiet way of taking care of us all. Thank you for everything you have done for us, Dr. Louie. We will miss you.

As for our schedule, we will go on as though the delay in chemo didn't happen. Aidan is on steroids now (what fun), and will be again in 3 weeks instead of four. We don't move ahead a week or make up any missed days. We just stay on the original schedule. I think we will update counts again at the end of next week after Aidan goes off Augmentin. I will update then.

Thank-you, thank-you, thank-you for your many prayers. Please continue to pray for Aidan to stay in remission forever, and for my nerves as we move towords the day when he stops treatment.

Love,
Elizabeth

Well, a little more excitement for the day. Just as I was about to add this to the web page I heard a gushing sound from down the hall. Yep. You guessed it. Aidan was throwing up all over the bathroom floor. This has happened before after a spinal, but not in awhile.

Wednesday, May 28, 2003 11:01 AM CDT

We are off to Seattle today to get the chemo that Aidan missed last Friday due to fever. I'll update on how it went when we return tomorrow night. Please pray that the IV process goes smoothly.

Love,
Elizabeth

Friday, May 23, 2003 7:15 PM CDT

Mini update from Sat./Sun. at the bottom.


Ahhhhh! The best laid plans... We left for Seattle on a few minutes earlier than planned on Thursday morning, feeling proud of ourselves for being so organized. Andrew was well rested, but Aidan had had a rough night of coughing, so we knew he was tired and would nap on the way. He did. We stopped on Mercer Island at McDonalds for a quick lunch only to be very surprised when our very chipper Aidan threw up all over the floor while we were ordering our food. Not very appetizing. I took him to the car and helped him change clothes, checked his temperature (he didn't have one), and then we went back inside to get him some Sprite. We thought he must be carsick. Wrong! All during batting practice and the first three innings of the Mariner's game he just slept on Mike. He also was starting to feel warm. When he said he wanted to go back to the car, I decided he must really feel crummy. I carried him back to the car and Mike and Andrew stayed at the game. When I checked his temp, it was 102. I immediately called the clinic and was instructed to give him Tylenol and monitor him closely. If his temp went higher or he just started looking worse, bring him to the ER. If he felt better after his nap, we could wait it out. He did feel better after we got to the hotel, but his temp never stayed down for long. Tylenol, temp down, then back up as the Tylenol wore off. He coughed most of the night, but by morning the temp was gone. We went to the hospital at 8:30 as scheduled. A chest x-ray was taken and pneumonia was diagnosed. We were told we might be admitted for 3 nights of IV antibiotics. Thankfully, though, our doc keeps old x-rays. What they thought was pneumonia, wasn't. This small shadow had appeared in his right lung since day one. No crackles were heard when listening to his chest, and he looked good. Our doc said it is probably an upper respitory virus. His fever hasn't been back all day, but, alas, because of the fever the night before, our chemo wasn't given. Looks like we will be traveling over the mountains again next week. At least some of our favorite nurses will be there again. Ahhh...the best laid plans! Aidan's counts are good, ANC of 2500. We will resume daily chemo when he has been fever free (without the help of tylenol) for 24 hours.

Please continue to pray for the family of Caitlin Ford who went to be with our Lord on Monday after a courageous battle with leukemia. She was only 13 years old.

Thanks for your continued prayers and support.
Elizabeth

Within 20 minutes of writing the above update, Aidan complained of not feeling well. I took his temp. It was 101.4. So much for fever free all day.

SATURDAY EVENING: The fever persists. The tylenol didn't even take it down much today. It hasn't gone over 102, but we have switched to Motrin for the night, hoping to break the fever. If it goes any higher or doesn't go down with the Motrin we will be calling our oncologist. We are so lucky to have doctors who are on call for us 24/7, 365 days of the year.

SUNDAY MORNING: The excitement never ends. Aidan had a fever of 104.5 at 1 am Sunday so my wonderful husband volunteered to take him to the emergency room after talking to our oncologist. He had a chest xray and pneumonia was diagnosed. The xray looks totally different from the one we had on Friday. The cloudiness is in a different spot from the one some had been concerned about in Seattle. He is home now and on Augmentin. He still has a fever - 101.4. Much better than last night. I'll keep you posted.

MONDAY MORNING: Almost 12 hours without a fever now. Please pray that it lasts!

Tuesday, May 20, 2003 1:22 PM CDT

***Asking for prayers for the family and friends of 13 year old Caitlin Ford who passed away from AML on Monday after a bone marrow transplant, relapse, and a stem cell transplant. She had great faith in the Lord and is surely dancing in heaven today. She will be greatly missed by those who love her.



Wow! What a trip! We returned late Friday night from a wonderful Make-A-Wish trip to Disneyland and Knotts Beryy Farm. Highlights of the trip were meeting Mickey and Minnie Mouse in private, Splash Mountain (Andrew and Mike got soaked), the Matterhorn, Big Thunder Mountain Railroad, meeting Goofy and friends at Goofy's Kitchen, Mullholland Drive Roller Coaster at CA Adventures, Grizzly Rapids at CA Adventures (We all got soaked), the ESPN Zone in downtown Disney (games, games, games), meeting Snoopy in private and riding lots of rides at Knotts Berry Farm. It was busy and relaxing at the same time. We didn't have to wait in any lines thanks to a special pass given to us by both Disney and Knotts Berry Farm. I know that one of the ideas behind a wish trip is to forget all the worries of treatment, and that goal was met... we forgot to give Aidan his meds the first two nights we were there! We just weren't thinking about that part of our life. We were just having fun. Thanks Make-A-Wish.

Relay for Life was held the Sat. and Sun. after our return. We were exhausted, but we participated just the same. Aidan, Peter, and Robert walked the Survivor's lap to a cheering crowd. Well, actually Peter and Robert walked. Aidan was so tired and overwhelmed that I carried him. Our team raised almost $3000.00 dollars this year for the American Cancer Society. We will be out there again next year, although I hope the weather is better. It rained and blew the whole time. The only sunshine we saw was on the final lap around the track Sunday morning. It was still fun.

We are off to Seattle on Thursday to take in a Mariner's game before Aidan's spinal on Friday. His second to last spinal tap. Hallelujah! I'll update on his counts and all when we return.

Love,
Elizabeth

Saturday, May 10, 2003 11:28 PM CDT

DISNEYLAND, HERE WE COME!!!!! We had Aidan's Make-A-Wish (MAW) dinner tonight at Pizza Hut (his choice; all pizza and pop donated by Pizza Hut) with 15 of our dear friends (4 families) and were give many of the details of our trip. We leave bright and early Monday morning (7 am) and arrive in Orange County at 1 pm. A van has been rented for us to use while we are there. The plan for the first afternoon is just to settle in at Disney's newest hotel and maybe visit the ESPN Zone. Dinner reservations have been made for us at Goofy's Diner. Tuesday is our first big day at Disney. We check in in the morning and have a guide to assist us whenever we need at Disney. Aidan has a special appointment with Mickey Mouse at 11 am this day. Our MAW volunteer hinted at other surprises as well. On Wed. it is back to Disney or to CA. Adventures. Thursday we have passes at Knottsberry Farm, and Friday is a free until we leave at 5:45 pm. We have been given money for meals, souveniers, snacks, etc. We have been given a camera to use, and the film developing is free. Each of the boys received a back pack full of snacks, juice, and games for the trip from MAW. We will have special buttons waiting for us at the hotel which will identify us as MAW recipients so we will receive special treatment from the characters and getting on rides. We are to where them wherever we go. We are overwhelmed by the whole deal. Make-A-Wish is truly a phenomenal organization. We will be sure to take lots of pictures and get them into Aidan's photo album just as soon as we can. We return at midnight on Friday and have Relay for Life the next day. I probably won't update until after the relay, so check back on Sunday the 18th or Monday the 19th for the scoop on our trip.

Until next week,
Elizabeth

Wednesday, May 7, 2003 5:49 PM CDT

It's almost time for our trip, and we are all SOOOOOOOOOO excited. Aidan asks every day, "Is it May 12th yet?" He is headed to California with great counts which makes going far away all that much easier.

Aidan's ANC was 2700 today, so he is going back up to 75hemo. At first our nurse said to keep at the same dosing. I said,"50?? I thought you'd be bumping us up for sure." She was surprised to hear that we were at 50 She consulted Aidan's doc and discovered that he has been at 50ince March 19. For some reason the doctor hadn't double checked 2 weeks ago when his counts were so good. I hadn't talked to anyone that day, either. The substitute clinic RN had just left a message on my machine with Aidan's counts and instructions to keep doing what we were doing. At any rate, we are moving back up toward full dose chemo slowly but surely.

Saturday night is Aidan's Make-A-Wish send off dinner. We will get our plane tickets and details about our trip then. We almost can't contain ourselves we are so excited. I will update on Sunday with details before we go, then update again after the Relay (which is the day after we return).

Love,
Elizabeth

Thursday, May 1, 2003 7:39 PM CDT

Good day one and all. Thanks for your messages of encouragement and promises of prayer during this difficult time. It means more than you can know.

We got home from Grandma's memorial service this afternoon. What a wonderful trip it was. What a celebration of her life and of what is yet to come for her! It is the end of her life on earth and the beginning of eternal life with her Lord. Something to celebrate indeed.

It was so much fun seeing most of my cousins (we missed you Susan and know that you wished you could have been there). I wish we all lived closer and could get together more often. We did a lot of talking and laughing and, of course, some crying, too. We all mumbled something about a family reunion soon, and hope that it happens soon.

Aidan did alright. By yesterday, the day of the service, he was quite whiny and tired, but he still did alright. His daddy and brother took good care of him. He ate a lot, 10 pieces of bacon for breakfast this morning. Maybe he should go on the Atkins diet, but then that would mean no chips, which he also ate a lot of.

Monday's treatment went smoothly. Aidan's IV was in quicker than ever. Only one poke, and a fast one at that. Thanks Cory! The oncology nurse was ready and waiting when the IV was in, and the IVIG was on the floor within ten minutes of that. We were in and out of the hospital in 5 1/2 hours. A new record! We even made it to Andrew's game on time. Alas, the Cubs lost again, but they are getting so much better. Andrew loves playing catcher, and got on base all three times he was up to bat. Way to go Andrew!

That's the news for now. Thanks again for all of your prayers. Rest assured ... "it is well with my soul".

Love,
Elizabeth

Saturday, April 26, 2003

Grandma went to be with our Lord last night. "...Well done, good and faithful servant....enter into the joy of your Lord." Matthew 25:21
She was sleeping peacefully when she drew her last breath. I find great peace and comfort in knowing that this is what she wanted, that she led a full life, that she is now reunited with my grandpa, and mostly, that she is in the prescence of God. Just like when Aidan was first diagnosed, I have "the peace that passes all understanding", and many of you know that this peace can only come from Jesus. I am so grateful for all of your prayers. The funeral will be on Wed. and Aidan will be 2 1/2 days into steroids then, so please pray that he seems unaffected by them this time. I don't care if he eats like an elephant, but I don't know how I'll handle the moodiness. I will update next Friday.

Elizabeth




Wed. April 23, 2003

Quick update. My grandma is not doing well. My mom left to see her today and Grandma is basically in a coma, although it hasn't been said by a medical doctor. Since Mom has been there, Grandma has only fluttered her eyes, nothing else. My uncle and aunt from Maryland have flown out. Grandma isn't in any pain and she is ready to be reunited with my Grandpa in the presence of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. It is what she wants and it is what we want for her. Please pray that it happens soon and that she continues to be without pain until the end of her life here on earth. Please pray for our family as we grieve.

Aidan's chemo is scheduled for Monday in Richland, but if need be we will do it in Seattle and then go on to Bellingham (where my Grandma lives). I'll keep you posted.

Thank you for your faithful prayers and encouragement to us during these past 2 1/2 years. You are a blessing to us.

Elizabeth

Friday, April 25, 2003
Grandma remains in a semi-comatose state. My mom hasn't had a conversation with her since arriving on Wed. Grandma isn't in any pain. It seems to be a waiting game which is hard on everyone. Thank you for your prayers.

Sunday, April 20, 2003 9:42 AM CDT

HE IS RISEN!

Friday, April 11, 2003 10:35 PM CDT

Good news for the Goodwin family. Mike's brother, Dave, is on his way home from the Persian Gulf. The USS Abraham Lincoln has been relieved by the USS Nimitz and will be home in about a month. We are all thrilled that he is safe, but continue to pray for the other men and women who are serving in Iraq.

Aidan had a "poke" today, and he did really well. No crying, just a quick, "Ouch!" His counts are good. ANC is 1298 so we remain at 50% of the normal chemo dose for the time being. We will check counts again on the 25th and have Vinc and IVIG on Monday the 28th. Fridays are our usual chemo day, but Dr. Endo will be out of town on the 25th. We have been given permission to bump our day to the 28th this month so we can do it here instead of driving to Redmond. Much easier! My folks will be here to help out since Mike will be working 12 hour days until the end of April while his projects are going in at the mill.

The boys and I had a great time in Vancouver this week. We stayed with my folks who were taking care of my niece for a few days (my brother and his wife were in Vegas for a quick vacation). It was so fun to get to spend that time with Katherine. She and the boys had a great time.

We also got to see Mike's parents. They came over for dinner on Tuesday which was wonderful. Mike's sister Nicola, her husband, Steve, and their son, Michael, were at my folks for dinner, too. On Wed. we went to the Portland zoo with Nikki and Michael. Michael is one year older than Andrew so it is always lots of fun when the boys get together. I love spending time with Nikki, too, so it was lots of fun.

Now that we are back we are gearing up for Relay for Life. It is being held the Sat. after we return from Aidan's wish trip to Disneyland. If you would like to sponsor us just send a check made out to the American Cancer Society to our home address listed below. Aidan, our friend 7 year old friend Robert, and Mike's dad Peter will walk the survivor's lap together again this year. We are really looking forward to it. If you have never been a part of the relay, you should find out when it is being held in your town. It is a great event for a great cause.

That's all the news for now. Thanks again for your loving support.
Elizabeth

Saturday, April 5, 2003 9:45 PM PST

Wow! What a day! We started our day off at 5:45 am with two very excited boys running down the hall. Andrew and Aidan were rarin' to go, ready for a day of baseball and birthday celebration. Mike and I were groaning and making dire threats if the boys didn't go read quietly for at least 30 minutes. They did, although Aidan wasn't very quiet about it. When the clock struck 6:15 they hopped up and declared that it was time to go downstairs. Andrew was greeted by the sight of a new bike for his 7th birthday. He was thrilled. He has been needing to jump up to a 20" bike for some time, and this one was given the seal of approval, right down to the cool hand brakes. He spent a lot of time just sitting on it in the family room this morning.

At 10:20 we were off to Andrew's baseball jamboree. I'd like to say it was a beautiful day for it, but the wind was blowing like mad, and the spectator's were all glad they had remembered to bring blankets to sit on because most used them to wrap up in instead. Aidan kept warm by chasing a new buddy of his, the 4 year old brother of one of Andrew's classmates and teammates. Andrew was warm from excitement! The cubs played well, and Andrew hit well, but they fell to the Angels 2 - 0 in 1 1/2 innings (45 minute games for the jamboree). Aidan and I left before the second game because the sky opened up and poured, but it stopped in time to play the Devil Rays. Alas, the Cubs fell 1 - 0 in that game. Andrew, once again, was still a happy ball player when he returned home. He had a great time doing what he loves.

Mike and Andrew returned home at 2:00, and at 2:30 we were off to the bowling alley for a great birthday party for my sweet Andrew. There were 10 kids there, and all had lots of fun. We had 3 lanes with the bumpers up in the gutters, so there were lots of successful bowlers, lots of spares and a few strikes. Happy, happy kids. I'd highly reccomend a bowling party for a 7th birthday party. We all had a wonderful time.

After the party ended at 5:00 we let Andrew choose a restaraunt for dinner. He chose Mexican, so off we went. We were home by 6:30, and Aidan was asleep by 7:15. Andrew was down for the count at 7:30. I'm amazed they made it that long. It was a busy day we'll always remember fondly.
I'll post some pictures from the jamboree and the party tomorrow.

What does the rest of our spring break week look like? Church and a birthday party tomorrow; baseball practice for Andrew Monday; visit to Vancouver Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday (without Mike - he has school on Wednesday); Aidan's first t-ball practice on Thursday evening; meeting with friends at the park on Friday; another birthday party on Saturday and baseball practice for Andrew as well; church on Sunday and hopefully a relaxing afternoon before starting the usual school routine on Monday the 14th.

We will check Aidan's labs on Friday the 11th, so I will update again then.

Once again, thank you for your love, prayers, support, and encouragement. You have made this journey into a journey full of blessings.

God's grace be with you,
Elizabeth

Friday, March 28, 2003 8:38 PM CST with a quick update from Monday, March 31 at the bottom

Well, another "hospital day" down, only 7 more to go! Aidan did fairly well today with his IV. The nurses got it on the second poke. They ran into scar tissue on the first, something that is going to be more of an issue the longer we do this. Aidan wasn't happy about the whole thing, but he held his hand very still, and calmed down during part of the first poke, and between the first and second, a new milestone for him. Usually he is screaming the whole time. He didn't threaten to spank anyone today, as he did last month, but he made his feelings known loud and clear! Part of me wants to laugh when he is yelling, and part of me wants to cry. I can't wait until we are done with this. The Vinc and IVIG went in without a hitch, and we now begin 5 days of steroids. What fun!

Andrew had a great afternoon with his friend Alex. These two have such similar interests that they have a great time whenever they play together. Today it was Revolutionary War, knights, and pirates. They each have a great imagination, so it is lots of fun for both of them.

Andrew is still loving baseball practice, and looking forward to his first Little League Game on Monday. He is very excited. He is doing well in practice, showing improvement in his fielding skills already. I am doing my duty by working in the consession stand. I decided to get it over with early. Every parent has to work there once, and parents also prep the field, umpire, keep score, and clean up after the games. We got out of those duties since Mike is one of the asst. coaches, but I am sure we will be helping with field prep and clean up from time to time.

Mike's brother, Dave, was in the news again, this time the Everett Herald. The link is http://www.heraldnet.com/stories/03/3/23/Lincoln23i.cfm .
If that is the link for the picture only, just click on "stories" below the pic to read the article. Dave answered an email from Andrew last week, and it sounds like he is doing well. Andrew was thrilled to hear from him and to get a picture of his Uncle's plane landing on the deck.

Once again, thanks for all of your support, encouragement, and prayers over the last 2 1/2 years.
Elizabeth

** Monday, March 31, 2003
Andrew had his first game today and he did great! He played catcher for 3 innings and batted twice. Both times he got a single and scored. His team lost 9 - 8 in the final inning, but Andrew came home happy because he had fun. It was great to see him out there working hard and cheering for his team.

Aidan...well, Aidan is steroid boy right now. Mr. Whine. Mike and I are sure his voice rises two octaves when he is on steroids. He has spent a fair amount of time on the couch with the usual tummy ache, and he is really puffy this time. We have jumped up a shirt size for a few days and are only wearing elastic waste pants (under the belly). Tomorrow is the last day of the dexamethasone for this month and we are all happy about that.

Andrew's jamboree and birthday party are both on Saturday, so I will update again Sat. evening or Sunday.

Monday, March 24, 2003 11:49 AM CST

As I sit here in a quiet house looking out at the beautiful blue sky, feeling the warmth of the sun on my shoulder, I am consumed by worry over the war in Iraq. I clearly remember the Gulf War and the emotions I felt, but they were not as intense as what I feel now. It is so different when you know that someone you love is in the middle of it all. Mike's little brother, Lt. Commander David Goodwin is flying a Navy Prowler (airplane that jams radar) from the decks of the USS Abraham Lincoln. He is still safe, but we know that he was fired upon the first night of the war. He was quoted in the Seattle PI as saying it looked as if the Iraqi's were using surface-to-surface missiles and aiming them at the planes. The rockets reached as high as his plane. (go to http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/local/113818_aboard2.shtml to read the article and see a picture. Dave is on the far left in the photo.) None of us is sleeping very well. Andrew continues to pray for his Uncle Dave every night. We pray for all the people in this battle, of all nationalities. We pray for the Iraqi people. We pray for peace. We ask for your prayers, too.

Everything else in our life seems somewhat trivial right now, but here's the latest:

Aidan started back on chemo last Wed. at 50% of his regular dosing. The cold and cough are finally all gone, and he seems to be doing well. We recheck counts again on Wed. and go to our local hospital for IVIG and Vincristine on Friday. He also starts the dreaded steroids that day. Bring on the potato chips!

Andrew has been loving baseball practice. I missed his Saturday practice because I was working, but when he got home shortly after me I was amazed by his appearance. He was sweaty all the way down to his underwear. His baseball pants were brown and green (formerly white) all they way up to his thighs. His socks (also formerly white) were brown, and his hair was matted to his head! He worked hard and had a great time. I think I should invest in some Clorox stock this season! It's going to be my best friend! Andrew's first game is on the 31st with a jamboree on April 5th, his seventh birthday. Between the jamboree and his party, we will be pretty busy that day.

That's it for now. Thanks for your prayers and words of encouragement. You have made this journey so much easier for us all.

Love,
Elizabeth

Wed. March 27, 2003
Aidan's counts were good today, ANC 1500. He will remain at 50% chemo until we check counts again. Friday is hospital day. I'll update again this weekend about how it went.

Monday, March 17, 2003 6:18 PM CST

Happy St. Patrick's Day! The luck of the Irish is with us this day as Aidan's counts seem to be on the upswing. His ANC is 680, not high enough to restart chemo, but higher than last Friday. His hemaglobin and hematocrit are holding steady, and his platelets are awesome. We will restart chemo on Wed. at 50% of the regular dose and will recheck counts next week before Vincristine and IVIG.

We had a doctor's appt. today to recheck Aidan's ears which looked great. He seems to be in good health, although that runny nose and cough seem to be hanging around a little. Aidan's spirits are good, and he is being quite the little stinker to his brother, a good sign.

Yesterday we rode our bikes to the park. Aidan rode 2.1 miles and Andrew rode the whole 3.5 miles. It was a beautiful sunny day, something we seem to be enjoying a lot of lately.

Andrew had his first Little League practice last Friday. His team, the Cubs, is made of mostly first graders who are new to Little League. Some are new to baseball. It should be a fun season of learning skills and making friends.

That's it for now. I'll update again next week.

Grace and Peace,
Elizabeth

Wednesday, March 12, 2003 10:24 PM CST

Well, it looks like Aidan will be avoiding crowds for a few days. His ANC went from over 4000 to only 420 in just 2 weeks! I was so surprised. He has been looking and feeling good, a little tired, but still active. He went to preschool this morning (before we checked counts) and one of the parent helpers told me that Aidan was more talkative and animated than she has ever seen him. His hemaglobin and hematocrit are down, too, so we are hoping that they bounce back fast so we can avoid a transfusion. His platelets are good. No chemo for the time being, and we recheck counts again on Monday. I'll update again then.

In other news, Andrew starts little league practice on Friday. He is a member of the CUBS ball team coached by our good friend Bob Bauman. The Bauman's son Robert is in 2nd grade at Andrew's school, and he is a non-hodgkins lymphoma survivor. His mom Stephanie is the friend with whom I have started a support group and a Relay For Life team. They are wonderful friends, definitely one of the good things that have come from this whole journey. We are excited at the prospect of spending so much time with them this spring watching the boys play ball. Andrew knows at least two other kids on his team from school, and I'm sure that after practice on Friday he will come home with the news that he already knows many of his other teammates. He is very excited to get started. Let the games begin!


Lastly, Andrew prays every night, "Thank you God that we are not at war yet." And tonight he prayed with thanks for our country and all the countries of the world, "even the ones who hate America." My prayers these days echo those of my loving baby.

Grace and Peace be with you all.
Elizabeth

Saturday, March 8, 2003 10:40 AM CST

Good morning one and all. It looks like a beautiful day ahead for us in Richland. The sun is out, and the wind has finally died down. We can now go outside and retrieve all that has been blown into our yard and others over the past few days. Andrew has been saying, "March sure is acting like a lion right now!" He just learned the saying "March comes in like a lion, and goes out like a lamb." It is proving to be a true statement, so far.


We have had an interesting week. Aidan has had the worst cough. He has coughed so hard on several occasions that he threw up. He has had difficulty catching his breath sometimes, and has had some coughing fits that have lasted over an hour-and-a-half. On Wed. morning he had a bloody nose and coughed up dry blood. Needless to say, we went to see Dr. Endo. Aidan was put on antibiotics for a raging ear infection (maybe that's why his counts were so high last Friday), and we were told to start the breathing treatments again as needed for the wheezy cough. It has all helped and Aidan, although still coughing some, seems to be on the mend. The wind hasn't helped, blowing all that dust around, but hopefully we will have a reprieve for awhile.

Thank you for remembering us in your prayers so faithfully. I would ask that you also pray for all the other children out there fighting the battle against cancer. There are so many children who haven't had the relatively easy time that Aidan has had. Many children who have been told there isn't a cure at this time for what they are fighting. Many children who are dying from the side effects of the chemo like low blood counts causing an inability to fight infections. Many parents who are suffering the death of their children. Please pray for them. I often find myself sitting right here in front of my computer screen praying for the children as I check in on their websites. I ask that even though you don't know their names, you would remember them in prayer, too. God knows who they are. Consider "adopting" one of these children by going to
www.ChubbyChica.com and click on "Caringbridge". You will then see a screen full of names of children who need encouragement and support. All you need to do is chose a child, fill in the form at the bottom of the list, and then be committed to checking in on them from time to time and leaving an encouraging word in the guestbook. More than one person can adopt a child. It doesn't take a lot of time, and it means the world to the families going through this battle. Thanks for considering this.


I'll update again on Wed. or Thurs. with Aidan's counts.

Love,
Elizabeth

Saturday, March 1, 2003 2:45 PM CST

One more spinal tap complete; only 2 more to go! I can't believe I am even writing that. It seems like yesterday we were just beginning this journey. Now we only have eight months to go! Our official end date is Oct. 27, 2003 - just 41 days before Aidan's fifth birthday. A cancer survivor at age 5. Imagine that. Of course, after living through the last 2 and a half years of this, I now know that it isn't just the patient who is a survivor, it is the whole family. We will never be able to thank all of you enough for all of the prayers, support, love, and encouragement you have sent our way. I can only promise that we will "pay it forward".

As for our trip to Redmond on Thursday...it was okay. The IV placement was not quite the piece of cake we had hoped for. Aidan's veins kept rolling around and the nurses couldn't get an IV started. Patti and Amy felt really bad about poking him, and finally just said, "No more." Of course, maybe the real reason they quit trying was because at one point Aidan yelled, "YOU STOP OR I'LL SPANK YOUR BOTTOM!!!" (Gee, I wonder where he has heard that before...Andrew?) One of our docs, Dr. Louie, ended up putting in a butterfly IV (a smaller needle, I think), in hopes that it would last out the day (it did). After that 40 minutes of fun, the day went well. Aidan's counts are awesome. His ANC is over 4000 (has it ever been that high during this whole ordeal?).
The IVIG went well, with only a slight fever as a side effect. It went down quickly with tylenol. We were on the road by 4:30, and home by 8:00, just before Andrew went to bed. All in all, not a bad trip.

Andrew stayed home this time and was spoiled by his grandmother, Erica. She played lots of Monopoly, and took him out for ice cream and soda. She stayed up late on Thursday night working hard on a slip cover for one of our family room chairs. It looks wonderful! The next trip she will make the cover for the other chair. Thank-you Erica!

Andrew had a patriotic program at school on Thursday with all of the first-grade classes. They sang patriotic songs, and each class did a reader's theater about a different subject. The one Andrew's class did was about the Pledge of Allegiance. Andrew had a small part to say into the microphone all by himself. He was awesome! He spoke clearly, and loudly, and looked so comfortable. He looked at the audience (a large audience of about 150 people) as he spoke. We were so proud of him.

Lastly, as I mentioned briefly on Wed., Mike's brother, Dave, has shipped out for the Persian Gulf where he will join the Abraham Lincoln. He will live and fly off the ship for an undetermined length of time. The Lincoln has been in the gulf since July, and we aren't sure wether it will soon be relieved, or not, or if Dave would be able to return with it anyway since he hasn't been on board the entire time. Please keep him in your prayers along with the other servicemen and women all over the world. Please pray for guidance and wisdom for our leaders and peace for our world.

It's a beautiful sunny day here, so we are headed outside to ride bikes to the park. I hope you are enjoying your day as well. Until next week,

Elizabeth

Tuesday, Feb. 25, 2003

Just a quick note asking for prayers for Mike's little brother, Dave, who has just received 12 hours to prepare to go to the Persian Gulf. He is a Navy pilot and will be living and flying off the Abraham Lincoln. He just returned from Turkey in Dec. and was hoping he wouldn't need to return until May. This was a surprise to all. Your prayers are appreciated for Dave and all of our service men and women serving in the armed forces.



Wednesday, Feb.19, 2003

We checked Aidan's counts again today, and they have bounced back up. His ANC is 2442, so he is back on full dose chemo. We are all set to go to Redmond next Friday for his spinal, vinc, and IVIG.

Aidan is doing fairly well; he has had a bad cold for a few days, and missed preschool today. Yesterday he was so tired that he fell asleep on the couch after having been up for only a half an hour. He then spent the entire morning on the couch. He looked better in the afternoon, but still wasn't very active. Believe me, I was glad to see his good counts today. After yesterday I was a bit worried about what was going on.

This journey has been interesting, to say the least. Just when you think all is going so well, you get reminded (by low counts, infection, illness...) that you are still in a very real battle. I had just been commenting to my mom about how life has almost seemed normal this winter when we got word of last weeks low counts. Guess I should learn not to take anything for granted.

Andrew was home from school today, too. He woke up at 3:30am and threw up his dinner. He doesn't have a fever, and hasn't thrown up since, but is still a bit pale. He has only eaten a little lunch today, which for him is very unusual. I still haven't decided if I should send him back tomorrow.

Thanks again for continuing to pray for us and encourage us. Please pray for all the kids who are fighting the battle along side us, and for the families of those whose lives have been taken by cancer.

Until next Saturday,
Elizabeth




Take a look at the new link below to see Aidan's smile quilt.

Wed. Feb. 12, 2003

Dear Friends,
It looks like we may be headed to Disney land in May. Our Make-A-Wish coordinator called last week to let us know that is probably what we would be doing. We are excited. Disneyworld would have been great, too, but at least this way we don't lose as much time on travel. Also, Mike and Andrew are really looking forward to going to the ESPN zone. Mike went there when he was in CA for the Rose Bowl, and told Andrew all about it. We had better bring lots of quarters for the games!

My folks came for a visit this week, so the boys have been getting spoiled with lots of game playing, reading, and extra loves. What lucky kids! Mom and Dad went to preschool with Aidan today, and Mom will go with me to Andrew's class tomorrow while Aidan and his Grandpa have a special morning together.

We got counts this week (another great finger poke for Aidan), but unfortunately they are down. The first semi lousy counts this winter. His ANC is 510 so we are on half dose chemo and will recheck counts again next Wed. The good thing is that Aidan is feeling great and has lots of neutrophils (infection fighters), just a lower overall white count. His hemaglobin and hematocrit are down a bit, too. Hopefully he will bounce right back.

Aidan has become quite the bike rider this week. I bribed him with a quarter (the kid loves money) to try riding his bike. Well low and behold that was all it took. We can hardly get him off it now! We are so fortunate that the Vincristine hasn't caused him any problems with his legs and feet as it has other kids.

Andrew signed up for Little League last Saturday. He is very excited. Baseball is his first love. He will have games on Mondays and Saturdays with at least one practice a week. We might be busy every night of the week between Andrew's baseball and Aidan's T-ball. Welcome to the world of 2 kids playing sports. Welcome to the days of living out of the car! We wouldn't miss it for the world!

Mike continues to be very busy with school and work. He has lots of homework this semester, and lots of projects at work. Hopefully as the weather gets better he will be able to have some fun golfing, too.

This Friday we are having a nice romantic dinner at the pizza parlor with 7 adults and 8 kids! We hope you have something equally exciting planned! Happy Valentine's Day!

Until next Wednesday,
Elizabeth

Wednesday, January 29, 2003 at 08:54 PM (CST)

Counts are in and they are good. Aidan's ANC is 2210 which surprised me because he had a bit of a bug last week. Nothing too serious, just "the runs". I did lots of laundry since he had trouble making to the bathroom a few times. It only lasted 2 days, though, and no other symptoms seemed to accompany it. I guess we have been lucky this winter.

Friday is our chemo day here in Richland. Aidan will get Vincristine, IVIG and start on those lovely steroids again. He is doing quite well with the finger pokes now, no screaming, minimal crying, and even sits by himself in the chair. Lets pray for the same results with the IV on Friday.

Andrew read a Bible verse in front of 70 children and adults at LOGOS tonight. He did such a good job; he read clearly and was loud enough for all to hear. I was really proud of him. He was proud, too.

Other than this news, everything else is status quo. We are making slow progress on painting the inside of the house. I am now in the process of choosing colors for the upstairs as the downstairs is done. I don't know when it will get done, though. I want to do something very different in the master bedroom, which means different bedding, etc. Might have to wait awhile awhile on that.

We meet with the Make-A-Wish volunteers on Sunday afternoon, so I will update Monday about our visit and about Aidan's chemo day. Until then, thank you for you prayers and support.

Love,
Elizabeth

Sunday, January 05, 2003 at 10:07 PM (CST)

Life continues to go smoothly here in Richland. Andrew and Aidan have both been very happy to be back at school and back in a routine. Me too!

We got Aidan's counts on Wed. His ANC is 952, still high enough to remain on full dose chemo. We will check again in 2 weeks before he has his Vincristine and IVIG. His spirits are good, and he is constantly on the go. We are very thankful for that.

We were contacted by Make-A-Wish this week about Aidan's wish. The WA/ALASKA chapter has a new policy about travel for children under 5 -- no travel out of the region. We were given the option of letting Aidan choose something besides a Disney trip (which he has talked about for the last 6 months) or waiting until he turns 5, which happens about 1 1/2 months after he completes treatment. He talked for a few minutes about a Mariner's game, but then looked me in the eye and said, "I think I'll wait until I'm five." So our trip will be put off until next December. It will be something to look forward to for all of us.

Andrew is doing very well. He is enjoying school and our church's LOGOS program. When given the opportunity to add more activities to his life he politely declines. He is content with just being busy one day after school. I am glad he feels this way. Mike and I have tried really hard to resist the pressures of signing Andrew up for too many activities. We want him to just be a kid. A busy life will come all to soon (like this spring when Little League starts -- LOGOS will be done for the year by then).

The parent support group a friend and I are facilitating is starting next Thursday at the Tri-Cities Cancer Center. We are excited about it, and hope we are able to help other parents who are in the same boat as us. We really have no idea how many people will show up, but even if it is just one, it will be worth it. I'll keep you posted on how it goes.

Mike started school again this week. His two classes are going to keep him very busy this semester on top of work. He enjoys school, though, so it is worth it.

That's it for now. Thank you for your faithful prayers and encouragement.

Love,
Elizabeth

Sunday, December 29, 2002 at 12:55 PM (CST)

Happy New Year (almost)! We returned on Friday from a wonderful holiday with our families, tired but happy. It was so much fun to see our nephews from Alaska and Vancouver. They have grown so much in the last year. The boys adore their older cousins. Brother Dave was late returning from Turkey, so the whole fam wasn't together on the 21st, but we did get to see him on the 24th. We just hope he doesn't have to return to the Middle East any time soon.

Christmas Eve we were with my Dad's side of the family in Olympia. 17 adults and 5 kids. It was great fun when Santa rang the doorbell to leave presents for the kids. Everyone heard reindeer hooves on the roof, and Andrew even saw Santa's sleigh flying away in the night! Such excitement!

Christmas Day was spent at my parent's home with my dearest friend Paula, my brother Scott, his wife Katrina, her sister Terry, and my niece Katherine. The kids were spoiled, and had lots of fun playing games of Monopoly, Kings in the Corners, and being followed by their little cousin. The both love Katherine, but especially Andrew. He was so wonderful with her.

We returned on Friday in time to check Aidan's counts (he did really well with the poke - only a few tears before, then none once the poke was done. He was intent on watching the blood again). They are holding steady after the flu. ANC is 969. It took him awhile to fully recover from that. We noticed his appetite returning on Christmas. His next big day is this Friday. He will get his Vincristine and IVIG through an IV in his hand again here at Kadlec Medical Center in Richland.

Mike is off to Pasadena this week to see his beloved Cougs play in the Rose Bowl. Hopefully they will win this time. They didn't when he attended 5 years ago. I am sure he will have a great time regardless.

Thanks again for all of your prayers and concern for our family. Many blessings to you all in 2003.

Love,
Elizabeth

PS: Some of you will be receiving New Year's Letters instead of Christmas letters. I am still working on them this year. Sorry for the delay!

Friday, Dec. 20, 2002

Aidan is on the mend. His nasal swab tested positive for influenza, type 3. He no longer needs to take the Zithromax since it is viral, not bacterial. He is feeling much better, and hasn't had a fever since yesterday. The cough is still present, but better, so we will continue with the Albuteril with the nebulizer for now. We went to see Dr. Endo (pediatrician) this morning for a recheck and she did find our first mouth sore. It doesn't seem to be bothering Aidan much. His appetite is beginning to return, and he is eating salty foods as usual. Our oncologists have instructed us to restart full dose chemo tonight, and to recheck counts next Friday to see if he is tolerating it okay. I will let you know how the rest of the week went then.

Have a very Merry Christmas. Enjoy the time with your loved ones, and focus on the greatest gift of the season, Jesus Christ.

Love,
Elizabeth



Wednesday, Dec. 18, 2002

Welcome back to the world of Zithromax and nebulizer treatments. Aidan started hacking last Friday, and other than Sunday, it seems he hasn't stopped since. Yesterday he developed a fever to go along with it, 104 at it's highest, and he hardly slept a wink last night (me either). He woke several times choking on all the phlegm that his tummy was rejecting. His breathing was rapid and shallow. Not a fun night. Needless to say, we went to the doc this morning, and after a chest x-ray and an exam, we are back on antibiotics and the nebulizer. We will check back in the with the doc on Friday, and she will check in with the oncologists in the meantime. His ANC is still okay at 1044, but it is down from 2 weeks ago. We aren't sure if it is because of what is going on with his little body, or if it is because he had returned to 100% chemo last week. Dr. Endo is playing it safe, and has prescribed the meds just to be sure. I will let you know on Friday how he is doing.

In the meantime, please pray for my Grandma. She has been in the hospital twice in the last two weeks, and appears to be fading. She is 92 years old, and ready to go to heaven, but if it is her time, I would like it to be peaceful and pain-free. She is my last living grandparent, and I will miss her, but receive great comfort in the fact that we will meet again some day, and that she will be reunited with my grandpa in heaven.

I'll update again on Friday. Thanks for your prayers and support.
Love,
Elizabeth

December 9, 2002 3:52 Pacific Standard Time

Our trip to Redmond went well. Aidan's IV access went much better than last time, although he still screeched and cried. He held his hand still for the nurse, and settled down right after. Another improvement from last time is that he didn't keep his hand covered by a blanket all day as he did last month. He could look at it without complaining, and even got out of bed to walk upstairs to the clinic to pick a prize out of the poke box. All in all, it was a definite improvement. His counts remain good, ANC of 1800, and his spinal fluid was clear.

The steroids seem to be throwing Aidan for a loop this time. He was quite manic on Saturday, almost unbearably "high". On Sunday he "crashed" into the lows and ate like a horse. He had 6 bowls of cereal for breakfast before 10:30 am. He usually doesn't even eat one whole bowl by that time of the day. He continued to eat all day long. Mike and I thought that might be why he was complaining so much of stomach aches during the night last night, but he has hardly eaten today and is still complaining of stomach aches. Aidan did go to preschool, but was quite tired by the end. He came home and napped by noon, then spent a few more hours on the couch. One more day of steroids then we can get back to "normal".

We had a lovely visit with Mike's folks this weekend. Erica came to stay with Andrew while we went to the hospital, and Peter came over on the train Friday night. They stayed until Sunday, and helped us decorate the Christmas tree. The boys loved having them here, and we are all looking forward to being together at Christmas. We will be with Mike's family part of the time, and rumor has it that brother Dave might even be home from Turkey by then (he's serving as a Navy pilot, and wasn't expected home until the end of January). I don't think we have all been together since Andrew was 3 months old. It will be wonderful. We have such a good time together.

I guess that's all the news for now. We will be checking counts again in a week and a half. I will update then.

Love,
Elizabeth

**Thursday, Dec. 12, 2002
Guess I forgot to update about the big birthday bash we had for Aidan on the first (Still no pictures, either. I know. I am so bad about updating those pictures!) The party was great fun. 9 kids and a little chaos! Everyone had fun, especially with the "Pin the tail on the Dog" game (It was a dog party after all). Lots of laughter and fun. Aidan doesn't like to have lots of attention focused on him, so he decided not to have the birthday song; instead, every child had a candle and we all said "Happy Birthday" in unison. Aidan was pleased with that. All in all, a fun party.

Sunday, December 01, 2002 at 12:30 PM (CST)

Dear Friends,
I hope you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving. My parents came here for the holiday and we had a very nice visit. The boys especially love it when Grandpa and Grandma come to stay. There were several marathon sessions of Monopoly and lots of card games were played. It was wonderful. We have so much to be thankful for.

Although Aidan's birthday isn't until next Saturday, we are having 7 of his friends over today for a party. We decided to celebrate early in case he isn't feeling well next weekend (intrathecal methotrexate, IVIG, and Vincristine next Friday in Redmond). Both boys are looking forward to the party. They made cupcakes with their dad yesterday while I was at work, and are helping pick up the house this morning to get ready for our guests. I will try to get some pictures of the party on here for all of you. I know that I am terrible about updating them!

Andrew was home from school all week while the teachers did conferences at school. It was so nice to spend time with him. We had two mornings to ourselves while Aidan was at preschool. I think he needed that time with his mom. He seems to be having some of the same issues he was having last year at this time. The stress of our daily lives is enough, but when you add the holidays and my working on top of it, it just seems to overload him. He doesn't want to talk to the counselor at this time, but knows it is an option if needed. It sure helped last winter. Andrew's teacher has seen some recent changes in his listening skills at school, too..a definite indication that he is under stress. He is such a sensitive child; he senses our stress and internalizes his worries. This has been very hard on him. All in all, though, Mrs. Wyse had nice things to say about Andrew. He is very bright, and she is working hard to challenge him. She told us how gentle and caring Andrew is toward other children in his class who are having struggles of their own. We are very proud of our boy.

Mikes folks are coming to take care of Andrew at the end of the week when we go to Redmond for Aidan's treatment. He didn't want to go because we are staying in a hotel without a pool this time! He is excited at the prospect of getting spoiled by his grandparents! They are so wonderful to all of us. We are truly blessed.

I will update after we return from Redmond. Until then, thank you for your continuing prayers for our family.

Love,
Elizabeth

Wednesday, November 20, 2002 at 08:52 PM (CST)

Dear Friends,
Counts are in, and they are good. Aidan's ANC is 2808. For the time being he will remain at 75% chemo. We will re-evaluate when we go to Redmond for spinal, vinc, and IVIG early in December. We have also decided to continue treatment without a new line for now. He is somewhat used to the finger pokes. We want to try another IV (without all the lab visits in the days prior) before we make a firm decision about a new line. Mike will be with Aidan when he gets his IV next time which may make a difference, too. He often does better with Mike for things like that.

Both the boys are enjoying school. Andrew's conference is next Monday. Mike and I are anxious to hear what his teacher has to say. We expect to hear lots of positive things.

This is Apple Cup weekend, so you know what the boys will be doing on Saturday! GO COUGS! Mike is hoping for a win so he can go see his beloved Cougs play in the Rose Bowl once again.

Until next week,
Elizabeth

Sunday, Nov. 17, 2002

Just a quick note to let you know that all is well. We will be getting counts this Wed. afternoon and will update again then. Aidan is doing well. He came through the last round of steroids just fine, eating like a horse, very tired and very cranky and clingy, though. They really seem to wipe him out these days.

Andrew is headed back to the portable tomorrow. He is very excited about that, as is his teacher! He is loving his Wed. afternoons at our church LOGOS program, and is also enjoying memorizing verses for Sunday School, a new interest for him.

Please keep a friend in your prayers. She was carjacked at gunpoint last Wed. when leaving work. She is physically fine, and the suspects were apprehended quickly, but she is understandably shaken by the whole thing. Also please pray for the Charlton family, another Caring Bridge family, who lost their son Robert this morning after a long battle with leukemia. He was ten.

Until later this week,
Elizabeth




Friday, November 8, 2002

Wow! What a difference a few days can make. On Wed., after Aidan's very successful finger poke I thought I should log on and tell you all how great he did. He cried at the initial poke, then stopped crying, pushed away the book I was reading to him, and watched the blood drip into the collection tube. He chatted with the lab tech about what color he thought his puppy's blood was, and wished that he had rainbow blood, each drop a different color. (ANC 3300 - back to 75% chemo).

Thursday morning the lab called. Dr. Endo had ordered additional tests and the lab techs hadn't drawn enough for these tests, too. We returned to the lab for a try at an IV blood draw. I put the EMLA cream on Aidan's hands an hour before the trip, thinking how great it would be. Not quite. Aidan was not at all thrilled to see the needle, claimed he could feel us touching the top of his hand, and screamed and pulled away when the needle went in. A vein wasn't ever accessed, and we resorted to another finger poke.

Thursday late afternoon we recieved another call from the lab. Once again, they hadn't drawn enough blood for the new tests, even though I heard the tech call back and ask how much he needed to get. Could we possibly come back Friday morning? I said yes, and back we went this morning. Today Aidan was crying before we even heard his name called. He cried and screamed. They did an IV draw in his arm to be sure we got enough and to make it go faster. It wasn't fun for anyone, not even the folks in the waiting room who gave us many looks of sympathy on the way out.

At 1:00 we headed to hospital with EMLA on Aidan's hands, hoping it would go better, but of course, now Aidan new what it meant. He wouldn't give his hand willingly to the nurse, but between the two of us and another nurse, the needle was put in and we all watched the vein just disappear. They both tried to find it, but gave up and tried another, only to watch the vein disappear again. This time, blindly, they found it, but by then Aidan was so upset he was sweating profusely and the tape wouldn't stick. We took turns holding the needle in until we could get his hand dry enough to tape the IV in place. He then proceeded to keep it covered with his blanky the rest of the stay. He didn't even want to see it. The rest of the stay went well. Vincristine was given by one of the adult oncology nurses, and the IVIG didn't cause any side effects this time.


Now Mike and I have to decide if we want to keep doing it this way, or have another Broviac put in. Pray for God's guidance and wisdom please. We want to do what's best for Aidan. There are pros and cons to both methods. We will talk to our doctors and other parents in our shoes before making a final decision.

Now, on to other things. Andrew is still in the gym for school. I don't know when he will be back in the portable, but am thrilled at the response we got to our letter. He doesn't seem to mind being in the gym, but it does make it hard to have PE classes when the PE teacher thinks it is too cold to go outside (they go out for recess, though). Andrew is reading very well. He has been reading the Magic Tree House books to us at night and is doing quite well. They are at a perfect level for him and hold his interest, especially the historical ones. Mike and I just finished reading a biography of George Washington to Andrew, which he loved. The PBS show Liberty's Kids has sparked his interest in American History which his history-buff-dad just loves!

Good news on the insurance front. Our oncologists will be covered at 85% instead of the expected 65%. Because this will be billed through the Blue Cross district on the west side of the state, not the east side, our docs are covered. They are listed on the preferred provider list for the west side Blue Cross. Several financial advisors at Group Health and both Blue Cross offices have documented all the phone calls made to check on this and are ready to go to bat for us if we have any problems. We are so thankful for all of the work they did to help us. We will still be paying quite a bit more for Aidan's health care next year than the past two years, but it is better than we thought it would be. And the out of pocket cap for hospital stays is $1300.00, not $2600.00 as it would have been if not using a preferred provider.

That's about it for this week. Counts again in two weeks unless Aidan's health changes dramatically. I'll probably check in before then, but if things get busy, look for an update in two weeks for sure.

Thanks for your continued prayers and support.

Elizabeth

Thursday, October 31, 2002 at 01:52 PM (CST)

HAPPY HALLOWEEN! It is a beautiful fall day here in the Tri-Cities. Sunny and bright, but very cold. It is expected to be 14 degrees tonight, so we will be bundling up quite a bit for our evening of trick-or-treating. We start with a parade of costumes in the neighborhood park. The kids are excited.

Aidan is doing great. No counts this week, so I will update on that next Friday after IVIG, our first without Aidan's line. Please pray that it goes well, and that Aidan doesn't have any side effects this time.

School is going well for Andrew. He is still having class in the gym as repairs are still underway in the portables. Mike and I wrote a letter with the help of some other parents stating our concerns about how the mold and other conditions in the portables were affecting our children's health. We asked specifically that the carpet be checked for mold or for toxicity in the carpet glue. Well, they actually did this and lo and behold, mold was found. Now all of the portables are getting new carpet and new windows as well. The new windows will sweat less. Air quality tests will be done before the children return to the portables, and will be continued after throughout the year. You can bet that I will be following up on that. The absentee rate in Andrew's class since they moved to the gym has dropped dramatically. It will be monitored closely once the kids return to the portables for the remainder of the year. I am pleased with the response to our letter, but still am frustrated by the lack of communication from the school district. I found out about the mold in the carpets only after I made the effort to ask what was happening with the carpet tests. The district isn't volunteering much information on it's own, perhaps because they are up for a bond vote next week. It needs to pass, so they don't want any negative publicity. I think that telling what they did in response to our concerns would be good publicity. I don't think I will ever understand where they are coming from, and I used to teach and was raised in a family of educators.

Now that I've rambled on, let me close by thanking you for your prayers and support. Less than one year to go...361 days to be precise!

Love,
Elizabeth

Friday, October 25, 2002 at 12:19 PM (CDT)

Dear Friends,
We have loved the last two weeks without a line. Taking care of it had become second nature, but it was time consuming as well. I can't begin to express how free we feel each night as we give Aidan a bath but don't need to follow it with a dressing change. He loves it too. We loved the line for what it did for us as far as not having any pokes for blood or chemo, but boy was it a lot of work. I really don't want Aidan to have another, but if it will be easier for him, we will have another put in.

He had his first finger poke for blood counts yesterday (ANC 1596 - we continue on 50% chemo). It wasn't fun. We had to wait 35 minutes at the lab until it was our turn. Then, Aidan cried the whole time. I had to hold his hand hard so the lab tech could finish getting the blood. Not fun for anyone. We will only be doing this every two weeks as long as he remains healthy, but I already dread the next one. I hope the IV for his chemo and IVIG in two weeks goes better than yesterday. He will have EMLA for his hand, so he shouldn't feel the poke, but the idea of it may be enough to send him into a crying fit. I'll let you know.

Our other big drama right now involves Andrew's school. The kids in his class have been getting sick a lot this year with high fevers, fatigue, and no appetite. No one in the families have been getting sick. We thought we had the answer last week when mold was discovered in one of the portables, but research of the kind of mold found in Andrew's class, and the amount, doesn't indicate that these symptoms are the ones we would be seeing. The children are having class in the gym while the mold is cleaned up, but we are asking for more testing since learning that a new carpet was put in over the summer. We want to be sure that the carpet glue is not causing the kids to get sick. The absentee rate in Andrew's class is double that of the school average, and ever since moving to the gym, they have had 3 days in a row with no absences. This hasn't happened since the second week of school. 2 - 3 absences has been the norm for his class, 4 and 5 kids gone some days. The school district hasn't been very happy about some of the questions we are asking, but we will keep pushing for answers. There is a large group of parents who are concerned. I'll keep you posted on this, too.

The boys are excited for Halloween. We went to the pumpkin patch last weekend with our good friends, the Baumans, and had a wonderful time. Aidan can't wait to "get the gooey stuff" out of his pumpkin. We will probably do that on Sunday. I will post some Halloween pictures of Batman and the Firefighter and his fire dog next weekend!

Thanks for your continuing prayers and support.

Elizabeth

Sunday, Oct. 13, 2002 at 3:30 pm PST

We are home! Aidan was discharged at 10:30 this morning, and very happy to be leaving, although he was a bit disappointed that he hadn't seen Lynn, our clinic RN. She is only there Mon. - Fri. He got a good night sleep, but did have his first reaction to the IVIG last night. I wasn't there (it was my turn to sleep at the hotel), but Mike said that Aidan started shaking all over, then his heart rate spiked, his respirtation rate spiked, and his temerature spiked. The nurse gave him more Benedryl and Tylenol, and that seemed to work over time. Mike told himself that he wouldn't go to sleep until Aidan's heart rate came down under 100 again, which was 3 1/2 hours later at midnight. Aidan doesn't seem to remember any of it, and is fine, now.

On the way home I told Aidan that he didn't have a line anymore. He was upset at first, but then excited that he would be able to go swimming without a shirt like his big brother Andrew. We haven't yet decided whether or not to replace the line. We are going to try it without for the next two months. We will get counts in 2 weeks by going to the lab for a finger poke instead of me drawing through his line and dropping it off. Aidan will get an IV in four weeks for his IVIG and vincristine at Kadlec in Richland. He wasn't thrilled about the IV in his hand yesterday, but maybe if it is only once a month it will be okay. I, for one, sure wouldn't mind not having a line to care for. It gets old having to flush and do dressing changes every other day. We will see how it goes. If it doesn't go well, he will have a new line put in when we go to Redmond in December for his spinal, IVIG and vincristine, before our insurance change.

Thanks once again for all of your prayers and encouragement. You are wonderful friends.

Love,
Elizabeth

October 11 and 12, 2002

Saturday am update at bottom of page.



PRAY! PRAY! PRAY! We went in for Aidan's vincrisitne and IVIG this morning and discovered that his line is leaking. The dye study revealed a small hole in his line right where it goes into the vein under his skin. There is a kink there, so it isn't leaking all of the time. Pray that it wasn't leaking when he got his Vincristine or there may be tissue damage. Pray that all goes well during the removal of his line. It will probably need to be surgically removed because of where the hole is and the fear of tearing the surrounding tissue or breaking the line. Pray that Mike can get everything squared away at work so that he can join us now instead of tomorrow (it's annual shut down time, and he is swamped with projects). Pray for Andrew. He is worried. Give thanks that my mom and dad are here. We are at home now packing and will leave for Redmond shortly. I'll update as soon as I can.

Love,
Elizabeth



We made it safely to Redmond only to find that Aidan had some swelling in his upper right chest area where the hole in the line is thought to be. He also had a fever which is probably related to the croup like cough he had on Thursday night, but blood was drawn for a blood culture just to be sure it isn't infection related. The fever and swelling are both gone this morning, but Aidan is still feeling some discomfort where the swelling was. We are waiting for the surgeon this morning to determine when the line will be pulled and if it will be done surgically or just pulled out. If there is tissue damage from Vincristine, then the tissue will have to be taken out, too. We just don't know yet. Aidan is doing okay. He is a little out of sorts since being here isn't the norm, but was cheered by a visit last night from our good friends the Baumans. They were in town for Robert's post treatment scans. It was great to have unexpected visitors. We didn't get much sleep last night, but hopefully tonight will be better. I will update later this afternoon when we know more. Thanks for your prayers and encouragement. Your support makes all the difference.

Love,
Elizabeth

Wednesday, October 02, 2002 at 11:24 PM (CDT)

After 5 days off chemo Aidan's counts rebounded nicely. His ANC is 1428 and his hemaglobin and hematocrit are back to his "normal" levels, too. We started chemo again tonight at 50% the normal dose and will climb back up to 100% (hopefully) slowly over the coming weeks. Thank you so much for your prayers and encouragement. You'll never know how much they mean to us all.

Thanks to my mom we survived the short quarentine without going crazy. She read last Friday's update and decided her baby needed her mom. She was right. Thanks, Mom.

Everything else is going great. We are off to the WSU Coug homecoming football game on Saturday with lots of friends. Should be a fun game, although cold. We are really looking forward to it, especially since we had been wondering if Aidan would be able to go. The boys are really excited to cheer on their Dad's beloved Cougs as they play USC. GO COUGS!!!

Andrew started LOGOS today. It is a mid-week program for elementary aged children at our church. The four components are recreation, Bible study, worship, and family time (dinner). It is a great program. The kids learn a lot, have a great time, and form strong relationships with lots of adult church members they might not otherwise come into regular contact with. I am one of the table parents for family time, but am at a table different from Andrew. I love getting to know the kids and having the opportunity to watch Andrew interact with people of all ages. Aidan and his daddy spend the evenings together which is special for them, too.

Next Friday (October 11) is Vincristine and IVIG day. I'll update then.

Love,
Elizabeth

Friday, Sept. 27, 2002 at 5:05pm PST

Friday Update: The good news is that the Cathflo worked. Aidan's line is drawing blood again. The bad news is that the blood counts stink. Aidan is fighting his second cold this month and it shows in his counts. ANC is 407, hemaglobin is 8.8, hematocrit is 26.8. No chemo this week. No preschool this week. No friends over this week. Mom's gonna go crazy this week! It is only September. What is the deal?! We didn't expect this until winter. Please excuse me for a minute while I go sit in a corner and scream and pull my hair out. I AM SICK OF THIS! People say, and I agree, "Look at all the good things that have come from this." It's true. A lot of great things have happened, but I'd still rather not have experienced this life of cancer at all. Whew. I don't usually vent like this on Aidan's page, but man, today, I think I need to. Thanks for "listening".

Please pray that Aidan's counts go back up and that this cold gets better and not worse. I'll update again next Wed. unless anything else happens in the meantime.

Love,
E


Thursday, Sept. 26, 2002
No counts yet today. Aidan's line is blocked. I could push in the saline this morning, but couldn't draw back the blood. I tried a few things the clinic suggested, but still couldn't get it to draw. We are now waiting overnight to see if it clears up on its own. If I can't draw again tomorrow, we go to Option Care (our home health care agency) to put in Cathclear, sit for an hour, and try again. If no blood, then ??? I'll update tomorrow night about what happened.

On the insurance front, we aren't going with the Cobra because we would have to pay close to $700 dollars a month so the whole family would be insured under a Cobra or the company plan. We will go with the company plan and just pay 35% of all office visits to Seattle. All our labs, home health care supplies, and office visits here will be through our local pediatrician who is a preferred provider. Unfortunatly, though, we will now be paying 15% of all lab fees (as opposed to nothing under Group Health), 30% of all chemo drugs (as opposed to a $10 copay under Group Health), and a $20 copay for all office visits (as opposed to $10 under Group Health). The money we pay for our clinic visits and any hospital stays has a maximum out of pocket expediture of $2600.00, but that doesn't include lab fees, prescriptions, and office copays. We figure we will be lucky if we spend less that $5000.00 next year on Aidan's treatment. I know it is a lower amount than some families have spent, but it is still quite a large amount of money, especially since more will be coming out of Mike's check to pay for the insurance in the first place. It stinks. I am going to work on Saturday's to help out; we are applying for aid from Leukemia and Lymphoma Society to help with the chemo costs, and we will go from there. It will hit hardest in the early months of the year when Aidan is typically at the doctor's office the most (or in the hospital for pneumonia --we are hoping that won't happen again). Anyway, I guess this is just another reality of having a kid with cancer.

I'll update again tomorrow evening to let you know what's happening with Aidan's line. Until then,
Elizabeth

Thursday, September 19, 2002 at 08:07 PM (CDT)

Counts are in and they are good again. ANC is 1136 so we remain at 100% chemo again this week. The IVIG has really seemed to make a difference in Aidan's ability to fight colds (he had one last week) and keep his immune system plugging along; thus, the consistently good counts. Speaking of IVIG...Aidan's gamma globulin levels are in and he is higher than before we started IVIG, but still at the low end of normal. We will continue IVIG once a month for the duration of his treatment. It is an expensive venture ($600 a pop), so we are thankful for good insurance (for the time being, anyway).

Andrew has been home all week with a fever and no appetite. He ate an average of one bowl of rice for 3 days in a row; for those of you who know my growing boy personally, this is a great indication that he just wasn't feeling well. Today his appetite is back, and he hasn't had a fever all day. Back to school tomorrow. He is ready, and so am I!

On the other hand, Aidan, who was on steroids, ate 5/6 of a Totino's pizza for a snack on Tuesday. He then proceeded to eat dinner an hour later. Since he had grown on our last clinic visit they upped his chemo doses, including steroids. Boy did it make a difference. He ate with gusto, and woke up Monday and Tuesday morning at 4:30am wanting to eat. Luckily we convinced him that he could be satisfied with a glass of juice or water until it was time to get up for the day. I wonder if he will be so easily convinced the next time.

We have big plans for the weekend - a Mariner's game thanks to Candlelighters Childhood Cancer Organization. They sent us 4 tickets. Andrew and Mike have been to lots of games in Safeco Field, including the playoffs last fall. It will be Aidan's first Mariner's game, and my first time seeing them at Safeco. We are all excited. I hope they win. They sure have been stinking up the joint lately. We still love them, though. Just ask Andrew about any player, and he will talk your ear off.

Until next week, God's blessings to you all.
Elizabeth

Saturday, September 14, 2002 at 10:18 AM (CDT)

Good news about our visit to the clinic. Aidan's counts went up instead of taking the expected dip. ANC was 1309. Also, the redness around his line site finally begain to go away this week. By the time we got to the hospital, it looked great. It has come out a bit, but not so much that we have to pull it. It is still drawing blood and doing it's job. We are thrilled. We would like to make it through the rest of treatment with this original catheter. Thanks for all of your prayers over the last few weeks.

Aidan did well with his spinal as usual, and came out of the sedation cranky and hungry, as usual. The doctor was late to the appointment - there was a lady giving birth on the highway onramp. Aidan was hungry when we got to the hospital at 8:30, and then he had to wait another hour and a half for the doctor. He was not happy about that. I told him he could eat after he got his medicine, so he hopped off his bed, and starting walking to the treatment room to get his medicine. He didn't know that he needed the doctor to get it. He didn't like waiting.

The IVIG went great again, no side effects. They were also able to run it at a faster rate since Aidan hasn't had side effects during the last five times he received it. We got out of the hospital at 3:00 and were home by 6:45. Both boys slept most of the way (me too).

As for the insurance stuff, we are still gathering info to make our decision about what to do next year. We only have four more clinic visits (the rest are through our local pediatrician for Vincristine), so we may decide to just pay 35% to see our oncologists for those four visits. We are also talking about getting a COBRA for the next year until we finish treatment. We really want to finish with our doctors. Things are done so differently at Children's in Seattle than at Group Health. We prefer the Group Health way and have had excellent care. We don't want to change now. Please pray for wisdom in making the right decision for Aidan.

That's about it for now. Thanks for checking in and for praying for us and encouraging us each step of the way.


Love,
Elizabeth

Thursday, September 05, 2002 at 06:43 PM (CDT)

As expected, Aidan's counts are down some this week. ANC is 840...still okay for being out and about and high enough to continue on 100% chemo. It will probably be lower next week, so we will check counts again on Thursday even though we head to Redmond for our short stay appt. next Friday the 13th. Our nurse thought we should check counts ahead of time just so we know how low we are when we do the spinal chemo. The good news is that Aidan's hemaglobin and hematocrit are back to where they should be so he won't need a transfusion any time soon (knock on wood). As for his line, well, it's still red at the sight, quite irritated, and our nurse thinks it's very possible that it has worked it's way loose. She thinks that it's probably going in and out a bit and that's causing the irritation. If she's right, it will need to be removed. I'll keep you posted.

Aidan had his preschool orientation yesterday. He loved it. No separation worries like last year. I walked in with him and we explored his new classroom (same preschool as last year, new room and new teacher). Once he knew where the trucks and blocks were, he said I could go to the parent meeting. None of his old friends were there yet, so I was surprised. I thought I'd be hanging around until at least one of them showed up, but he was ready for me to go.

Andrew continues to love first grade and his new teacher. I met with her yesterday to tell her about Aidan's leukemia and how it has affected Andrew. I wanted to be sure she knew what happened last year when the worrying got to be too much for Andrew so she could watch for the same behaviors or other signs of trouble. His counseling helped so much last winter, and we want to start it up again if Andrew needs it this year. His teacher is wonderful; Andrew is definitely in the right place.

I'm off for the weekend with some girlfriends. We are going shopping, out to dinner, to the movies, and to a day spa to be pampered. Thanks Mike and boys for a weekend off. I'm ready!

Until next week (probably Friday night or Sat.),
Elizabeth

Thursday, August 29, 2002 at 06:08 PM (CDT)

Two years ago today I took Aidan to see our family doctor because he woke up with a fat lip in addition to the fever he had been fighting for a few days. He hadn't fallen or hit his lip on anything so I was perplexed. I called the doctor who ordered a blood test. The results of that test changed our lives forever. "Probably leukemia," he said. "You need to see a pediatrician in the Tri-Cities who will admit you to the hospital." I was told later that when he got the news he cried and prayed.

Mike was out of town in International Falls, MN, a rare occurance. I thank God that my mom was here. She decided that with Aidan not feeling well and Mike out of town she should come to help take care of Andrew. She said something just told her she needed to help. She found one of my friends to watch Andrew (thanks Lisa) and came to the hospital to be with me.

My dear friends Kirsten and Cheri contacted my church for me then came to the hospital for moral support. I'll never forget seeing Kirsten at the door. I was able to let go and cry.

I couldn't get a message to Mike right then, so I left one at his hotel. He got it just in time to catch the last flight out of International Falls. He made it home before our ambulance ride to Seattle. My dad flew over and followed the ambulance with Mike.

Mike's parents were about to begin a mountain bike vacation in Canada when they got the message. They met us at Children's Hospital where we were sent first. With Mike's dad being a doctor it helped us so much to have him there listening as the doctors told us what to expect, as well as to have the moral support of two people we love.

We weren't thrilled when we heard that we were to be transfered to Group Health's hospital in Redmond because of insurance. Boy, did that turn into a blessing. We got there at 9:00 at night and were greeted by our pediatric oncologist. The first three weeks in the hospital we saw one of the two oncologists every day; not an intern or a fellow but our doctor. The support of our nursing staff was amazing.

My life-long best friend Paula, whom I have known for 35 years, came to the hospital every day after work and stayed until after Aidan's bed time each night. I would have been lost without her. She took my laundry home and returned with it the next night, brought me books and magazines to read, and a sweatshirt when it got cold. She played with and read to Aidan so I could have a break, and held my hand when I cried. Paula, you were a lifesaver. I thank God for you.

In so many ways things fell into place for us. I am so thankful to God that he was watching over us and supporting us as we were going through this life changing moment. I felt an amazing peace. When our family doctor called to tell me that his Bible study group had prayed for Aidan I remember telling him that I new it would be okay. Aidan would be okay no matter what because he would be with Jesus or he would be with us. My mom heard me and it set off a round of tears for her, but I truly felt that way. God's peace surrounded me.

It has been a long two years, but not without many blessings. We are so thankful to our family and friends, both old and new, who have supported us on our journey. Aidan's treatment hasn't been without problems, but they have been few. We are so thankful.

Now, on to this weeks update. Aidan's ANC is still good, 1012. His hemaglobin and hematicrit aren't great, but they didn't go down either. His line is pretty much the same so we watch it carefully. Any sign of fever or increased redness an we call the doctor no matter the time of day. One of our oncologists is available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. They are wonderful! Aidan has been tired this week, and pale, but still in good spirits. He is excited to start preschool next week. Lets hope he gets to go! He remains on 100% chemo since his ANC is still good, but the doc said he will probably drop again next week. We check on Thursday. I'll keep you posted.

Andrew started school yesterday. The bus picks him up at 8:25 and drops him off at 3:35. It is a long day, but he loves it. He was tired yesterday, and really tired today, but loves school and his teacher. He has lots of friends in his class, and loves eating lunch at school. The big excitement for tomorrow is buying hot lunch! Oh to be six again! Aidan and I miss him during the day, and watch the clock all afternoon in anticipation of his arrival home.

Mike has started class at WSU working towards a Masters in Engineering Management. Both classes are internet only, which has advantages and disadvantages. He is happy to be in school again, though.

One prayer request, other than Aidan's counts staying steady and his line staying clear - Mike's company decided to drop HMO's for next year. This means we are losing Group Health. We want to stay with the same pediatrician and oncologists. Please pray that this all works out. We already know that no matter what our co-pays for office visits and prescriptions are going to double (oh joy) but we don't want to have to pay even more to see the doctors we love so much.

That's it for now. Thank you again for all of your prayers, support, encouragement, etc. over the last two years. You are amazing friends.

Love,
Elizabeth

Thursday, August 22, 2002

WOW! A whole week on 100% chemo and counts are still good. ANC is 1512 this week. One thing we are watching closely, though, is Aidan's red count. His hemoblobin and hematocrit are both down this week. If it continues to go down we will be headed for a transfusion. He has also had some redness and puss around his line site. It as gotten better since we started using Bactroban cream on it 3 times a day, but last night we noticed redness about 3/4 inches above the site and a hardness underneath the skin. The redness may be from the tape removal, and the hardness from feeling the cuff that is under his skin holding the line in place. It did warrent a call to the clinic, though, and the return call was made by our oncologist, not our nurse. This shows us that they are concerned enough to want to stay on top of this, too. Keep praying that it is nothing. If the line is infected it can be treated with antibiotics. If the cuff is infected, the line comes out immediately. We will keep you posted.

Other than that, we survived steroid week. Aidan was"nothing will make me happy boy" for a few days, and ate a lot on the last day, but we are done for another 23 days. Everyone is happy about that.

We went to the Benton-Franklin County Fair today. Mike came home from work early, so we could go for the afternoon. I think the boys could have stayed on the rides for hours. They loved them! Our neighbors were there, too, so the boys each had a good friend to ride with , which they liked. We also walked through the animal barns, which Aidan loved. All Andrew wanted to do was go back to rides. He was pretty good about it, though. Minimal whining.

That's about it for now. I'll update again next Thursday, unless we find out anything more about Aidan's line before then. Thanks in advance for your prayers.

Love,
Elizabeth

Sunday, August 11, 2002 at 06:23 PM (CDT)

We returned yesterday from a wonderful 9 day vacation in Sun River, OR. We had a blast! The first three days we were joined by our good friends Lance, Kirsten, Taylor, and Brayden Vickerman. The Vickerman boys are the same age as our boys. We swam, rode bikes, went to the park, toured the lava cave, had ice cream in the village (thanks for the treat, Grandpa), and played sitck ball. The boys have so much fun together, and so do the adults. Mike and I got crushed in Pictionary, so a rematch is in order soon! We tried to let the 4 kids sleep in the same room; needless to say, it didn't last long either night. The big boys stayed together, and the little guys ended up with their mom and dad.

After our friends left, we enjoyed time as a family. We did many of the same things, but just the 4 of us. Andrew got really good on his bike and was riding on long bike rides with ease by the end of the week (training wheels still on, just not touching the ground). Mike got to play some golf with a friend, and I did a little shopping. The boys were in the hot tub every night. It was a much needed vacation.

The last three days we were joined by Mike's folks. They came down for a tennis clinic at the Inn at the 7th Mt. They were gone all day, but we had the pleasure of their company in the evenings. As usual, it wasn't enough time with them, but hopefully we will be together soon. The boys love to be with Peter and Erica.

We didn't check counts this week since we were away. We will get them again on Thursday. Friday is our hospital day for IVIG and Vincristine. We start the dreaded steroids again, too. I'll update again on Friday or Saturday.

Thanks for checking in on us. Please sign the guestbook to let us know you've been here.

Love,
Elizabeth

Friday, August 02, 2002 at 08:43 AM (CDT)

Good Morning! A quick update, as we are leaving on vacation this morning and there is still much to do! Aidan's counts are still good, ANC 2442. He will stay on 75 % chemo for the time being and we will check counts again in 2 weeks. He is feeling good, and is being a little stinker these days, pushing everyone's buttons. He has seen a lot of the time out stair in our house this past week. I guess that is good. If he weren't feeling well he'd be on the couch resting instead. (I'm trying to see the silver lining in his behavior.)

Andrew had his last soccer game last night. He has had so much fun this summer and has already asked when soccer starts again. He could play this fall, but I think we are going to avoid fall activities this year. He will probably be very tired the first weeks of school since he isn't used to a full day of school. In October he will start LOGOS, our afterschool program at church for elementary aged kids. He is really excited about that.

We are off to Sun River, OR. for a few days with our friends the Vickermans. The boys are very excited. All four boys get along so well. We will do a lot of biking, walking, swimming, and golfing. It will be lots of fun. We are staying on a few days after the Vickermans leave, and will spend some time alone as a family, and then with Mike's folks at the end of the week. We all need a little time away and have really been looking forward to it.

Until next week,
Elizabeth

Saturday, July 22, 2002 at 10:00 AM

The news this week is good. Aidan's ANC is up, 2800. He will remain at 75% since the reason for his good counts is probably the steroids. He'll most likely drop to his usual levels next week.

We made it through the steroids, although Aidan was pretty whiny this time. He sat on my lap most of Monday and kept saying, "I want you Mommy." I just kept reminding him that he was as close to me as he could get. He was very tired this time, too, and had a stomach ache most of the time, partly from steroids, partly from being constipated from the Vincristine. We got through it and are enjoying the break until next month.

We are done with swimming lessons for the summer, and can you believe I didn't take one picture. What a terrible mom! 6 weeks of swimming for Andrew, and 4 weeks for Aidan and not one picture to show for it. Oh well. There is always next year!

We are off to the boat races today. The hydroplanes are in town for the Columbia Cup. Mike got free tickets from one of the vendors he works with. We are meeting our good friends, the Vickermans, at the river. The kids have a great time together as do the adults. Should be fun. Andrew went last year with Taylor, but this is the first year for the rest of the Goodwins. It's only supposed to be 89 degrees today (quite a break from the 100 degree weather we have been having), so I think we'll spend most of the afternoon at the races.

Hope you are all enjoying your summer. Thanks for continuing to check in on us and encourage us. This has been a long journey, and we still have a long way to go. I am growing quite tired of the whole thing, and am feeling a bit down these days thinking of how much time we still have to live with this. Maybe it is because we are coming up on an anniversary (2 years at the end of August), or maybe it is because Aidan hasn't been sick in awhile and I have time to focus on all we have been through. I don't know, but your words of encouragement help. I appreciate you all.

Until next week,
Elizabeth

Friday, July 12, 2002 at 09:18 AM (CDT)

Good morning to you all from hot and sunny Richland. The mercury hit 105 yesterday and it is expected to be warmer today. I guess summer is finally here!

We are all doing well. Aidan is back to 50% chemo as his ANC dropped to 1020 last week and 612 yesterday. We were at 75% for about 5 weeks, which seems like a long time to us. Aidan showed the usual signs (for him) of a higher dose during those weeks - a rash on his cheeks and hair all over his pillow and car seat. Maybe now the shedding will stop. He is feeling good, though, and enjoying summer activities like swimming lessons, Andrew's soccer practices and games, and playing with friends at the park.

Andrew continues to do well in swimming. He has one session left for this summer. Soccer has been great fun, although it was a little hot at the game last night (103 degrees at our 7:15 game). He drank lots of water and Gatorade and squirted himself with a squirt bottle to keep cool. Andrew played goalie last night for the first time and did well. He made 3 saves and didn't let any balls get by him. He felt good about that.

We had a wonderful time in Portland last week. We took the kids to the zoo on the 4th with Erica. It was perfect; not a lot of people, but lots of the animal trainers were out to answer questions. I took the boys on the zoo train, which they loved. That night Mike and I went down to the Waterfront Blues Festival while Peter and Erica took care of the boys. We ran into some good friends, heard good music, and ate good food. A nice break.

On Friday the boys went to the Children's Museum with Mike and his mom while I shopped. Then Mike and I got to go out again on Friday night. Mike's folks sure spoiled us by taking the kids so much.

On Saturday Mike golfed with my dad and brother while my mom and I took the kids to the park with my sister-in-law and niece. They had a great time with their cousin. After the golfers returned we all went to the club to go swimming in the outdoor pool. We all had lots of fun. Andrew loved the waterslide. I can see that now we will have to take him to the waterslides here in town. It was a great weekend.

Vacation Bible School and swimming lessons will be out main activities next week. We are looking forward to VBS, especially Aidan as it will be his first time. I was glad that our docs said he could still attend with his ANC at 612. They said since he will be in a small class and it isn't cold and flu season it should be okay. I talked to the teacher and she'll tell me if anyone comes in with the sniffles. She'll have Aidan wash his hands a lot, too.

Until next week, enjoy the summer heat.
Love,
Elizabeth

Friday, June 28, 2002 at 10:47 PM (CDT)

Another steroid week completed (big sigh of relief). I don't know if it was the higher dose of steroids and vincristine, or the spinal chemo he had last Friday, but Aidan had a hard 5 days. It has been awhile since all he has wanted to do is sit with mom or sleep. Unfortunately the steroids greatly interupt Aidan's regular sleep patterns, so he was awake several times a night and woke up early complaining of hunger for 3 of the 5 days. This only added to the fatigue, which is finally beginning to disappear. 3 weeks until the next round.

Aidan's counts were good this week, ANC 2124. He remains at 75% as he probably is higher than usual because of the steroids. We expect a slight drop in counts next week, but hope they hold so he can return to 100% for the first time in a long time.

Andrew finished his first session of swimming lessons yesterday. He had a great time, and showed lots of improvement. He will continue for two more sessions (4 more weeks). Aidan will also take lessons next session. He seems pretty excited, but I will be surprised if he gets his face wet. He loves to be in the pool, but hates getting his face wet. Following in Andrew's footsteps, I guess. He'll get there in his own time, just like his brother did.

Andrew had his first soccer game on Thursday. He scored the first goal for his team which was pretty exciting. He is learning a lot about how to play the game and having a great time with his friends. They got crushed in their first game, but were still smiling at the end. That's the way it should be.

We are going to visit Mike's folks for the 4th of July. We are really looking forward to it. The Blues Festival is going on at the waterfront, so we hope to take the boys down to hear some great music while we are there. We will also see my parents, and hopefully my brother, sister-in-law, and beautiful little niece, Katherine. We haven't seen her since Christmas, and she is apparently doing quite well, growing like a weed. We can't wait to see her.

When we get back it will be time to get ready for Vacation Bible School. Aidan is old enough to go this year, and a friend of mine is teaching his class. I am helping with Andrew's class this year, a large group of energetic six-year-old boys with a few quiet little girls mixed in. Should be lots of fun. We always get a lot of kids from the neighborhood who come, too. This is our year to have VBS at night, so there are adult classes and lots of working moms and dads who can help, too. It makes it fun for all.

I won't update again until we get back from Portland, so until then, Happy Independence Day.

Love,
Elizabeth

Sunday, June 23, 2002 at 02:30 PM (CDT)

Still on 75% of regular chemo dosage. Aidan's counts went back down some, ANC 1195, still good, but not good enough for 100%. He does get a little higher dose of steroids this time, though, and his Vincristine increased, too, because he has grown another 3/4 of an inch in the last 12 weeks.

Our trip to Redmond went well. Aidan's spinal went great, probably because he was so doped up on Versed and Fentanyl, too much perhaps. Boy did he have a MAJOR tantrum when he came out of it. The floor nurse said it was like having a hangover coming off such a high amount of narcotic. Aidan always has a little tantrum coming out of it, but this was a big one. He head-butted Mike right in the nose. Mike thought Aidan was going to break it. Next time they will either use a smaller amount of drugs, or give him something else when he is coming out of it to make him feel better. We will probably have this all down pat by the time we finish! 6 more spinals to go over the next 16 months of treatment. We will all be glad to be done with that.

Andrew stayed here with my folks this time. He hadn't see them in over 2 months since they'd been traveling in Europe. The spoiled him the whole time we were gone, dinners out, golf, playing games, etc. It was good for him. He seems to be going through another emotional patch these days.
He misses school and his teacher, as well as dealing with the stress of having a brother with cancer, even though Aidan is doing well. It has been rough on Andrew, my sensitive little boy.

Andrew is playing soccer on a team through the YMCA again this summer. Same coach and most of the same team members. Lots of nice people and an emphasis on fun and learning the game, not on winning. We are all enjoying the experience.

Until next Thursday, or Friday, thanks again for your prayers and encouragement.

Love,
Elizabeth

Friday, June 14, 2002 at 09:48 PM (CDT)

Well, I never thought I'd be saying this, but Aidan's counts are so good again this week (ANC 2250) that he might actually get bumped back up to 100% of his daily chemo next week. We go to Redmond next Friday for Vinc, IVIG, and a spinal, and will discuss it with the docs then. I can't remember the last time we were 100%, certainly not in 2002. Amazing.

A big day today for Andrew...the last day of Kindergarten. He got to meet his first grade teacher, and see who will be in his class next year. His good buddy Alex Hall is going to be in his class, as well as 6 others he had in Kindergaten this year. Andrew's teacher, Mrs. Wyse, has been a teacher on special assignment for the past year, teaching remedial 4th and 5th grade, as well as training other teachers in use of the new math program. She taught overseas for a few years, and did her student teaching in the Kennewick school district in Kindergarten. She was part of a Master's in Teaching program, but I don't know what her original degree is in. I hear she is very structured, and really emphasizes literacy, although she is a math specialist for the district. Andrew is excited about the prospect of having a teacher who loves math like he does.

Swimming lessons and park days start next week, our usual summer routine. We are looking forward to it, especially swimming as it was nearly 100 degrees here today. The kids had fun with the sprinkler and the slip -n- slide today, but the pool is better.

I'll update when we get back next weekend. Until then,
Elizabeth

Friday, June 07, 2002 at 08:20 PM (CDT)

A quick note today to let you know that Aidan came through his first week back at 75% with flying colors. His ANC yesterday was 1800. We are really pleased. We will stay at this level (we hope) for awhile, and if all goes well, move to 100%.

Aidan is doing well with potty training. Yeah! We are happy because as far as everything else in life...well, lets just say that he is VERY three and a half these days. Everything is a battle. He loves to push his brother's buttons, as well as tease his friends mercilessly. It has been tough. We have had some interesting days lately.

Andrew has one more week of school. It is a busy week, with lots of end of the year activities. He is also going with Mike, Uncle Chris, and cousin Alex to a Mariner's game on Monday night. He is very excited.

That's all the news for now. I'll update again next week. Don't forget to sign the guestbook!

Love,
Elizabeth

Friday, May 31, 2002 at 10:30 AM (CDT)

Drum roll please.....Aidan is back up to a 75% dose of chemo! His ANC has been fairly steady for long enough that our oncologist has decided to bump him up again. Yesterday's ANC was 1960. Of course he always gets a little boost from the steroids, but he hasn't been falling off too quickly after either.

Another big step for Aidan - we have finally started potty training. He really didn't want make the move, but we forced him. Now he looks at me and says, "I'm so proud of myself Mommy!" Mike and I are proud of him, too. It has gone pretty smoothly, some days better than others, as expected. We just want to have it mastered to some degree before the next round of steroids.

We had a great Memorial Day weekend. Mike and I went out with two other couples on Sunday night, dinner and bowling. It was great. Then on Monday we barbequed with 3 other families. The kids had a great time playing on the slip-and-slide.

Andrew has only 2 weeks of school left. I can't believe my baby is almost through with Kindergarten! Next year he will be at school all day. I am going to miss him, and so will Aidan. Everyday at noon, Aidan starts asking if the bus is here bringing Andrew home. It will be quite an adjustment for him after a summer of spending all day with Andrew. Today he sent Andrew off to school with the usual hug and kiss, and an "I love you Andrew!" I love it when my boys talk like that!

I will update again next Thursday or Friday. Hopefully counts will be good, again, after a week of higher dose chemo!

Don't forget to sign the guestbook!
Love,
Elizabeth

Friday, May 24, 2002 7:15PM PST

I know! I know! I promised Relay photos by last Sunday and I still haven't done that. It has been a crazy week, but Mike is home for 3 days and will help me get it done!

Aidan's hospital day was today. IV Vincristine at the doctor's office, then IV Gamma Globulin at the hospital. Our wonderful nurse, Jennifer, made sure to tell the pharmacy that we didn't want to wait for 3 hours for the Gamma Globulin to come up this time. Lo and behold, it only took an hour! We were in at 12:30 and out at 5:30. No side effects to speak of, just major gagging and choking when the Benedryl was pushed into Aidan's line too fast. He seems to need it done REALLY slowly. This happened once in Redmond, too. Next time they will put it on a pump and take 20 minutes to infuse it rather than a slow IV push over 5 minutes. At any rate, we are home, and Aidan ran to the back yard the instant we got here.

Andrew had 2 coach pitch games this week to end the season. We have a few weeks off until soccer starts. We will enjoy the break. He and his dad went golfing today and had a great time. Andrew hit one within inches of the hole. He was pretty proud of himself.

Mike and I are doing well. Hoping to get home to Vancouver/Portland area in the next few weeks to see our families. We love living here, but miss our families. It would be nice if they would move to the warm, dry side of the state (hint, hint), but they keep bugging us to move back. If it didn't rain so often, we would, but we love the desert climate here in our part of the state.

One last thing, it appears that the State Department of Health is still looking into a possible cluster here in the Tri-Cities. 2 is the expected number of leukemia cases in a year. The calendar year 2001 had 6. They are watching to see what happens this year before they do a full fledged investigation. Our pediatrician made a good point, though, that things don't always happen in calendar years. If you look at August 2001 through August 2002, we have 8 leukemia cases (so far). She is alarmed enough that she is going to talk to an epidemiologist at Children's in Seattle about notifying the CDC. We don't think Aidan wouldn't be included in part of the investigation because he was diagnosed August of 2000, but we are still interested in the outcome. I will keep you posted.

Thanks again for checking in on us. Please sign the guestbook so we know you have been here!

Love,
Elizabeth for the Goodwins

Friday, May 10, 2002 at 08:55 PM (CDT)

Counts are high this week, ANC over 2000. Aidan will remain on a 50% dose of chemo since we know when his counts are high, they are never high for long. Also, he has another lovely cold. He was awake twice last night coughing, and woke up at 5:30 this morning to cough up a bunch of phlegm that had drained into his stomach while he slept. Lovely! I just hope we get through this cold with high enough counts to go to the Relay next Friday without any worries.

Speaking of Relay, thanks for all of the donations you have sent. Our team has raised almost $4000 dollars, so far, and several members haven't turned in their contributions yet. There was an article about us in the paper yesterday with a cute picture of Aidan, telling about our team, and about our desire to start a support group for families affected by pediatric cancer. It was fairly well done, and was well received by those we have spoken to since it came out.

Today was a great day in Andrew's class at school. All the moms were invited to a tea, where we were serenaded and entertained. All of the reading groups performed a play, and each child had written an original poem for his/her mother. A great time was had by all.

That's it for us this week. I probably won't update until Saturday next week because then I can give you all the news about the Relay.

Until then,
Elizabeth


5/16/00
ANC 861, good enough to walk the Relay tomorrow night. Our team has raised over $5000.00 so far! We are thrilled; so much goes to research, without which our children wouldn't be here. I'll update on Saturday night to let you know about the Relay and to add pictures from the event. Keep us in your prayers!

Also, please pray for a 7 year old boy named Trevin, another Tri-City child dx with ALL last week.

Friday, May 03, 2002 at 09:04 PM (CDT)

A quick update this week. Aidan's ANC remains good at 962. He will continue on a 50% dose of his daily chemo for the time being. He came through the steroids okay, and was actually almost manic for the first few days. It wasn't until Tuesday that he turned into the whining, overly sensitive boy that we usually see on steroids. He ate a ton, 5/6 of a medium pizza for lunch one day. Amazing!

Andrew is doing great. He has become quite the scooter rider. He and his friend, Nicole, race up and down the sidewalk at top speed. Now if we could just get him to be as gutsy on his bike. Oh well, the training wheels won't stay on forever.

We are enjoying the beautiful spring days, spending lots of time outside. The wind can be quite cold at times, but it is still warm enough for shorts. I love this time of year.

That's it until next week. Thanks for checking in on us.

Love,
Elizabeth

Friday, May 03, 2002 at 09:04 PM (CDT)

A quick update this week. Aidan's ANC remains good at 962. He will continue on a 50% dose of his daily chemo for the time being. He came through the steroids okay, and was actually almost manic for the first few days. It wasn't until Tuesday that he turned into the whining, overly sensitive boy that we usually see on steroids. He ate a ton, 5/6 of a medium pizza for lunch one day. Amazing!

Andrew is doing great. He has become quite the scooter rider. He and his friend, Nicole, race up and down the sidewalk at top speed. Now if we could just get him to be as gutsy on his bike. Oh well, the training wheels won't stay on forever.

We are enjoying the beautiful spring days, spending lots of time outside. The wind can be quite cold at times, but it is still warm enough for shorts. I love this time of year.

That's it until next week. Thanks for checking in on us.

Love,
Elizabeth

Friday, April 26, 2002 at 08:42 PM (CDT)

Ah, another day of treatment done, another day closer to the end. Aidan did really well with all of his stuff today. He started the day with Cefzil, an antibiotic for his ear infection, and a dose of Dexamethasone, his steroid. Then it was off to Dr. Endo at 8:20 for IV Vincristine. Then we went across the street to the hospital for his IV Gamma Globulin (which we didn't start until 12:00 noon!). He was given Tylenol and IV Benadryl first, in anticipation of headaches and nausea, then got the Gamma Globulin over a slow drip. It only took 3 and 1/2 hours instead of the anticipated 6 hours. This was good since we started 3 hours late! He had more Tylenol before coming home to another dose of Benadryl. He will get those two drugs every 4 and 6 hours respectively for the next 24 hours. We still have a dose of Cefzil, Dexamethasone, and our Mercaptopurine and Methotrexate to do before bed time. Phew! That sure is a lot of medication going into one small body over the course of one day. Hopefully the Gamma Globulin will be worth it, and Aidan won't be sick quite as often as he has been this year. We know the chemo is worth it since it is keeping the leukemia at bay, forever we pray.

Since we have been home today we haven't seen any of the side effects we were told to expect. Aidan is doing very well, although tired. The nurses said that if Aidan is going to get sick, it will be in the next 24 hours and usually happens after the families get home from the hospital. I hope we can be the lucky ones who avoid it.

Andrew had another great coach-pitch baseball game on Tuesday. He hit an in the park grand slam home run. He was thrilled. He sure loves baseball and has dreams of being a major leaguer some day.

Mike is almost done with school for the semester. He has done really well, scoring high enough on his first tests that he doesn't have to take the final. He has studied hard, and is looking forward to the next course.

My spare time continues to be spent at the kid's schools, church, and preparing for the Relay for Life. I am looking forward to that event, seeing Aidan and his grandfather Peter walking that survivor's lap together with the other amazing children on our team. I will be sure to post pictures of this after it's all over.

Until next week, thanks for your prayers and support.

Elizabeth

PS: Counts were good yesterday - ANC 966

Wednesday, April 17, 2002 at 10:28 PM (CDT)

An early update this week as we checked Aidan's counts on Tuesday. His ANC is 5400, high because his white count is high -- he is fighting something, we just don't know what. Aidan had a fever Sat. night and Sun. morning, but seemed to be doing better Mon. morning. By the evening time, the fever was back, and that has been the pattern ever since. He threw up in the middle of the night on Monday, so we took him to see Dr. Endo on Tuesday. He doesn't have an ear infection (yet) and his lungs sound clear. He'd had a touch of diarrhea, so she wanted a stool sample. Well, of course, ever since she asked for it, the little bugger hasn't pooped at all. He isn't eating much and goes between being happy and playing, to resting on the floor or couch and complaining of being tired. Tonight his fever is the highest it has been this week (103) so we are calling Dr. Endo in the morn, as well as our oncologists. They weren't worried at the beginning of the week; said it was probably just your run-of-the-mill virus and the gamma globulin he is scheduled to get next Friday would help stop these frequent bugs, but I am calling again because both Mike and I are really gun-shy now when it comes to Aidan's fevers.

Andrew had a great coach-pitch game on Tuesday. He pasted the ball into center field both times he was at bat. He played right field one inning and did a good job of backing up the first baseman. The second inning he was on first base himself and got a few outs. He even caught the ball a few times. He had a great time, even though it was FREEZING outside. Next week our game is earlier, so hopefully it won't be as cold.

That's it for now. I will update again when we know more about what is going on with Aidan.

Love,
Elizabeth


***UPDATE***
Friday, April 19, 2002
On Wednesday night Aidan's fever went up to 104.5, so we called our oncologist. Dr. Louie told us that we could give him Motrin to bring the fever down (a no-no during earlier treatment). He said if the fever didn't go away to call Dr. Endo in the morning. The fever went away, but returned by morning, although much lower. We decided to go see Dr. Endo. The result was that the fluid in his ear that she had seen on Tuesday had developed into an ear infection. She also suspects a sinus infection; kids with low immunoglobulin levels are much more likely to get them. He will be on antibiotics for 10 days to clear it up. Last night Aidan had a restful night for the first time in several days. We will repeat counts next Thursday, and go into Kadlec Medical Center on Friday for our IV gamma globulin and Vincristine. I will update Friday night to let you know how it went.

Until then, love to all.
Elizabeth

Friday, April 12, 2002 at 11:17 AM (CDT)

Good morning one and all. We are enjoying a beautiful day here in Richland. Our week has been great -- lots of sunshine and outside play time. Aidan's counts are good (ANC 1403), so he remains at a 50% dose of chemo. For those concerned about his dosage, it isn't bad to be at 50%. It just shows that the chemo is working. 100% was just too much for his little body. We might try 75% next week, but if his counts drop too much from that, we will return to 50%. The only thing we don't want is to be off chemo completely, but when counts are down below 500, that's what we have to do until he recovers.

Andrew's birthday party on Sunday was great. He had a wonderful time with his friends and family. Coach-pitch baseball started this week and is keeping him just busy enough. He loves it, and so do we. Andrew's team is made up of 10 of his old friends, with 2 new friends joining in. He has a great coach, and there is lots of parental involvement. Most of Andrew's friends have siblings Aidan's age, so he gets to play with them during practice and games. It is fun for us all.

My niece, Katherine, is continuing to do well after her surgery last week. Thanks again for your prayers.

Until next week,

Elizabeth

Thursday, April 04, 2002 at 02:51 PM (CST)

Happy Spring to you all. It is beautiful here, sunny and 73 degrees. Andrew has been on spring break all week, so we have been enjoying the sunshine and meeting our friends at the park. The boys have been playing kickball with their friends, riding scooters and bikes, and playing baseball. It has been wonderful.

Aidan is doing well. He has been off steroids for 2 days now, but is still puffy and eating a lot. His spirits are good, and he started feeling better on Tuesday (the spinals always seem to make him feel crummy longer than when he just has Vincristine). Aidan's counts were good today, ANC 1989, so he will probably stay on a 50% dose of chemo this week.

We got the results of Aidan's blood tests from last Friday and his globulin level was lower than normal, as expected. What this means is that he will now have IV gamma globulin on the Fridays when he gets his vincristine and/or intrathecal methotrexate. There are potential side-effects, so he will be in patient at the hospital on those days for 6 or more hours. The insurance company was talking about having him do this at our home health care office, but I think I persuaded them that this would be difficult for us. Can you imagine entertaining a 3 year old for over 6 hours in a curtained area so small that the only things in it are a chair/bed for him, and a folding chair for me? I still haven't heard the final word on this, though, so pray for the best outcome, please. As far as I know, he will have the gamma globulin for the rest of his reatment time, 19 months. It will hopefully keep him from getting as sick as he did this winter.

Tomorrow is Andrew's 6th birthday. I can't believe my baby is 6 years old. We will have a family celebration tomorrow, and a party on Sunday with lots of Andrew's friends. He is so excited. Coach-pitch baseball starts next week, and that is something he is looking forward to, also. We have a busy spring ahead of us.

Thanks to those of you who prayed for my niece, Katherine. Her surgery went well, and she seems to be recovering nicely. She should be going home tomorrow or Saturday.

That's it for this week. I'll update again next Thursday or Friday. Love to you all,
Elizabeth

Friday, March 29, 2002 at 07:16 PM (CST)

19 months down; 19 months to go. Yes, we are halfway through with treatment today. We are on the downhill slide. We couldn't be happier. We celebrated in Redmond last night by swimming in the hotel pool, ordering pizza, and then going out for ice cream at Bellevue Square Mall. The boys had a great time. They loved the elevator and escalator almost as much as the ice cream, but the highlight of the day was the swimming. It is nice to have fun things to do on a trip that we don't always look forward to making.

Aidan's clinic appointment today wasn't very fun. The doctor had to wait for the surgeon to be done on another patient before he could come upstairs for Aidan's appointment. Thus, he was 45 minutes late, and Aidan wasn't very happy by then. He was hungry...no food before spinals and it was 10:55 before they started his. He was so uncooperative that the nurse gave him the maximum amount of narcotic he could have in an attempt to get him to relax. Didn't work. Aidan fought it the whole way. We had to hold him down the entire time, which made him madder than ever. Not a fun time for anyone. He cried for almost an hour after the procedure, complaining about anything he could think of at the moment. Poor guy. It was a rough day. He slept the whole way home, and woke up in better spirits. Now we just have to get through the next few days. Saturday and Sunday seem to be the worst days after spinals, and then we just have to deal with the side effects of the steroids until about Wednesday.

One thing that was done today is that blood was drawn to test to see if Aidan needs Gamma Globulin once a month to boost his immune system. We will know in a few days. It would mean 6 hours in the hospital once a month, coinciding with his monthly IV vincristine. It is given by IV, also, not as a shot as I originally thought. The 6 hours are necessary because of potential side effects. It would be out-patient, though, so less costly for us. Just time consuming, but if it keeps Aidan healthy, then it is worth it. This winter has been terrible for us in terms of health, and we would like to avoid that in the coming months and into next winter.

As for Andrew, it is spring break this week and he will be meeting friends at the park all week. He is also excited about his 6th birthday (April 5) party on the 7th. I can't believe he is going to be 6. My sweet little baby!

We are gearing up for the Relay for Life. Our team, Kids For A Cure, has 5 pediatric cancer survivors on it, and 3 adult cancer survivors. We are meeting next weekend to make more plans for the event, and are getting excited for the fun and celebration. If you would like to sponsor our team, you can send a check to our home address made out to the American Cancer Society by May 10. If you are a family affected by childhood cancer and would like us to walk in honor or memory of your child, just email me with the child's name, age, and diagnosis. We will add his or her name to the sash that Aidan will wear on the survivor's lap.


As always, thanks for all of your support, encouragement, and prayers. We appreciate you all.

Love,
Elizabeth

Thursday, March 21, 2002 at 08:01 PM (CST)

Aidan's counts are good this week, ANC of 1000. He will continue on 50% chemo for the time being. Aidan is at a birthday party tonight, and will return to preschool next week.

We go to Redmond next week for Intrathecal Methotrexate, IV Vincristine, and check up. Sure hope the pass is open! The mts. have seen lots of new snow this week, and the pass has been closed periodically for avalanche control.

Our fundraiser at the Artsy Fartsy Studio was a big success. There were about 60 people there and we are almost at our fundraising goal. Our closing date is March 31, and a few people are going in this weekend to paint some pottery. It was lots of fun. Aidan and Andrew loved painting, and can't wait to get their pottery back; it is being fired in the kiln this week.

For those of you out there who believe in prayer, please pray for my niece Katherine, who is having surgery sometime in the next 10 days. Also, please keep Andrew in your prayers. He is having a tough time dealing with his brother's cancer.

Thanks again for all of your support.

Love,
Elizabeth

Thursday, March 14, 2002

Aidan is feeling much better this week. The antibiotics seemed to kick in quickly and the runny nose and fever disappeared. Aidan's ANC has taken a nose dive, though, to 450, which means we are semi-quarentined again. We are only hanging out with the healthy members of society! Aidan will miss going to church and preschool again this week, but at least he is feeling good. He did go to preschool on Tuesday of this week, before we knew his counts were down, and had a great time. Only 4 kids were there, though, because everyone else was sick.

Andrew has been home all week, and we have been having a great time getting together with friends and playing outside at the park and in the sandbox. The weather has been beautiful off and on, and we are enjoying it. Mike and I met with Andrew's teacher today and heard wonderful things about him, as expected. We couldn't be happier about how he is doing in Kindergarten.

On Monday night our Relay for Life team, Kids for a Cure, is hosting a fundraiser at a local "paint your own pottery" studio. Those attending can paint a plate, mug, etc. then leave it at the studio to be fired and pick it up at a later time. A portion of the money made will be donated to our Relay team to benefit the American Cancer Society. It should be lots of fun. I will let you know how it went next week.

Until then, thanks for checking in on us.

Love,
Elizabeth

Thursday, February 28, 2002 at 08:33 PM (CST)

Once again, it has been a week of sickness at the Goodwin house. First Andrew, home from school on Monday and Tuesday with a fever, cough, and runny nose. Then Aidan, with the same symptoms. His fever didn't start until yesterday, and continues today, although Tylenol is helping. His counts were high today, 3600 ANC, which is good. Now if we could get over this lousy cold. It would be so nice to go back to music class and preschool next week. It has been so long. We will see how Aidan is feeling on Monday and Tuesday. He gets his Vincristine tomorrow and starts the dreaded steroids again, too. 5 days of fun!

Mike and I had a wonderful weekend in Idaho with our good friends the Vickermans and the Hoffs. The kids stayed at home with grandparents and had a great time, too. Thanks mom and dad! We sure needed the time away.

The next big event for us is a fundraiser for our Relay for Life team, Kids For A Cure. It benefits the American Cancer Society and is being held at the Artsy Fartsy studio, a "you paint it, we fire it" studio. I think it will be a fun event.

Until next week, please keep Aidan in your prayers. The last thing we want is for this cold to settle into his chest as it has the last two times. We would really like to avoid another hospital stay.

Thanks for all of your support.
Elizabeth

Thursday, Feb. 21, 2002BR>

Aidan restarted chemo last Friday at 50% dosage. His ANC was just over 1000, holding steady from when we returned from the hospital. We thought we would be pretty much in the clear, but then a little bug hit the Goodwin boys. Aidan threw up several times on Sunday night, and Andrew on Monday. Both boys missed school on Tues., and Andrew on Wed. as well. Andrew still isn't 100% better, but much better than earlier in the week. Aidan seemed to come through it easier than Andrew, thank goodness, though his counts are down a bit again from fighting the virus. ANC 550 today. He remains on 50% chemo, but may not be able to go to preschool again next week since we are still in the midst of cold and flu season. Chest x-rays today showed clear lungs... no more pneumonia! Great news for a family who has had a very long winter.

We had a wonderful visit with Mike's folks on Sunday and Monday. We made plans for Aidan and his grandfather, Peter, to walk the survivor's lap together at this year's Relay for Life. It will be quite an event for our family.

Mike and I are off for a night this weekend while my parents take care of the boys. Mom has been here all week, and Dad came yesterday. It has been so much easier for me to take care of my sick boys while they are here. We are so fortunate to have such great support from both of our families.

Until next week, thanks and love to you,
Elizabeth

Monday February 11, 2002 9:11 PM CST

We've hit another little bump in the path of treatment. Aidan is in the hospital again with pneumonia. He spike a fever of 105 Sunday afternoon, so it was off to the emergency room we went. After swabs for RSV and strep, blood taken from his arm for a culture (not from the line in case it was a source of infection), an x-ray, and lots of fluids, he was admitted. It only took about 5 hours. What a fun day. Aidan's main concern was that he was in a hospital room without a TV. He was quite happy to go back upstairs to peds. since he new he would have a TV there. Ah, the joys of childhood.

Andrew is doing well, now that Grandma is here to help. He was quite upset that Aidan had to be in the hospital again. Torn between worry and feeling left out because everyone asks about Aidan. My sensitive guy. I hope he stays that way forever.

Mike and I are hanging in there. We will just be happy when winter is over.

I'll update again when Aidan is home.

Love,
Elizabeth

Thursday February 7, 2002 7:20 PM CST

Well, I thought that I would be singing the Hallelujah Chorus so loud that everyone in the state would hear me, but instead I'm singing the Blues. Aidan's counts are way up (ANC 2600), but he has a cold and fever (103). No chemo tonight. We will wait and see what happens tomorrow before the docs decide if he can start up again tomorrow. We had great plans of playing with friends tomorrow, but will have to put them off until the fever goes away. I don't know how much more of this staying at home stuff we can take. Aidan has asked every day, several times a day, if his counts are up and he can go to a friend's house. He misses his friends a great deal. I only hope this is short lived and he can go back to music and preschool next week. AAARRRRGGGHHHH!

Andrew is sick of this too. His routine has been disrupted because of all of this, too. No friends over to play, no mom to help at school, and all this talk about counts, counts, counts. Now it will be fever, fever, fever. He hates it. We have been advised to be careful what we say when he's around, even when we aren't speaking directly to him but to other adults, because it is causing Andrew great worry and jealousy. So we are asking all of our friends out there to understand if we cut you off if you ask about Aidan in Andrew's presence. We are just trying to take care of Andrew's emotional needs, too.

Thanks for keeping us in your prayers. We really don't know what we would do without all of you.

Love,
Elizabeth


***UPDATE*** Friday, Feb. 8 -- the fever persists. No chemo this weekend. If Aidan still has a fever on Monday, we are off to the doctor's office. If he is fever free, we need to check counts again as they are expected to be down again. The rollercoaster continues. More on Monday!

Thursday, Jan. 31, 2002

The saga continues...we are stuck at home for another week. Aidan's counts are down, down, down (ANC 294) thanks to the antibiotics (see previous journal entry for explanation). We are off all oral chemo, but will still go to see Dr. Endo tomorrow for IV Vincristine and to start another 5 day burst of steroids. Not only do we get to experience the joys of steroids, but we get to do it without the distractions of preschool, church, and music class. Should be fun!

I listened to a teleconference on Tues. put on by Cancer Care and The Leukemia and Lymphoma Society. The topic was Childhood Cancer Survivors. One of the speakers was Nancy Keene, author of many books including "Childhood Leukemia" and "Childhood Cancer Survivors". She is also the mother of a 10 year survivor, now age 13. The other speaker was Dr. Debra Friedman, Director of ACCESS Long-Term Follow-Up Program, Division of Hematology/Oncology, Children's Hospital and Regional Medical Center, Seattle, WA. It was eye-opening to learn the importance of knowing not only the drugs Aidan takes during his treatment, but also the total dosages at the end in order to determine which late effects he should be tested for throughout the remainder of his life. We will need to check his liver function, bone density, and check for learning disabilities to name a few. We will also need to really educate him about what he has been through and the importance of a healthy lifestyle. He is at higher risk for secondary cancers. He will be monitored closely when he first goes off treatment, and then will be checked at least yearly for many potential late effects of the chemo. We will be dealing with this for the rest of his life. Overwhelming.

Anyway...the rest of us are doing well. Mike is enjoying school, as is Andrew. I am keeping busy working on the American Cancer Society's Relay for Life. I'll let you know more about that later.

Until next Thursday, thanks for your continuing prayers and support. We would never get through this without such wonderful family and friends.

Love,
Elizabeth

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Sunday January 20, 2002 12:34 AM CST

We are home! Aidan was discharged yesterday afternoon. We will be administering IV antibiotics every 8 hours for the next 12 days. The home health care nurse came over last night to make sure we new what we were doing for the 9:30 dose, and thank goodness she was here. Aidan's line was blocked. We could only push in the saline if we really forced it, and weren't able to draw back any blood. She tried to loosen up any potential clots with heparin, but that didn't work. We repostitioned him...no luck. So she called Dr. Endo, who called the oncologist, who sent us to the hospital again to get TPA put in his line to disolve any clots (same drug used on heart attack patients and stroke victims). Mike got to go this time, since I had done the middle of the night thing on Wed. Thank goodness the TPA worked. It doesn't in all cases and a new line must be put in. Mike and Aidan returned home at 2:00 am and slept until almost 10:00 this morning. We are happy to be home, and thankful for all of your prayers and support. We will keep you updated on the repeat blood culture and on Aidan's progress.

Love,
Elizabeth

Saturday January 19, 2002 2:24 PM CST

Thanks for all of the phone calls, emails, and visits while Aidan has been in the hospital. We really appreciate all of you.


Aidan is doing very well, although yesterday he told me that he doesn't want to stay in the hospital forever. And today when Andrew and I left to go to his friend Alex's house Aidan cried because he wanted to go as well. The good news is that he gets to go home either tonight or tomorrow, depending on how fast we can arrange for an IV pump to have at home. He will be on IV antibiotics for the next 8 days, either with the pump every 8 hours, or with a fanny pack that has a continuous drip. We are hoping for the pump so he won't have to carry something around all the time. We think he might take to the other better.


Some of you already know that there was a possibility that the blood culture had a contaminant in it that caused the positive reaction for staph, but we know now that this wasn't the case. The second culture came back positive too, so he really does have a staph infection. Now we will wait about 2 weeks and repeat the culture to see if it is in his line, but no one thinks this will be the case. Please keep praying that this is true, because we would really like to avoid a trip to Redmond and another hospital stay to get a new line.


We are all hanging in there, glad to be coming home today or tomorrow. Andrew has had lots of fun with his friends the past few days; thank you for inviting him to play -- it has helped a lot. Now that he understands that the leukemia isn't back, but that it is just another infection in Aidan's blood that we are fighting, he is feeling better about the whole situation. He was pretty frightened at first.


I will update again as soon as Aidan is home. Thanks again for checking in on us.

Love,
Elizabeth

Thursday January 17, 2002 9:43 PM CST

What a week it has been! Another bump in the road. On Sunday Aidan developed a fever of 103. He had had a cold, but the fever took us by surprise. His counts were good so the oncologist told us what to watch for, and that we could stay home, but to discontinue chemo. Monday morning he awoke with no fever and stayed that way until after his nap when the fever returned. Even with tylenol it only went down to 101, so Mike and I decided he should go in to the pediatrician on Tuesday. His cough sounded much worse, and he was throwing up mucus from all the drainage. On Tues., no fever again, only it lasted all day. I took him to the doctor anyway and an ear infection was found. Dr. Endo (our local ped.) wanted us to recheck counts and decided to start a blood culture, too, just to be sure that nothing else was going on. Thank goodness she did. At 12:45 in the morning on Thursday she phoned that the culture tested positive for staph infection. We were to pack for at least a 5 day stay, and come to the hospital immediately to start IV antibiotics. His counts from Tuesday had been lower than we had seen in a long time, including the red count. He was close to transfusion level. I packed, hauled Aidan to the hospital, and tried to get some sleep. Aidan was surprisingly cheery through all of this, until x-ray time this morning. He was tired and scared. It wasn't fun, but worth it. The xray showed the infection in his lungs, which means that the staph probably started there, and not in his central line. We have to wait a few weeks to confirm this, but are hopeful that it didn't start in the line. We would hate to have to take it out and put in another. Surgery and a hospital stay in Redmond would be required. Anyway, to make a short story long, Aidan is at Kadlec Medical Center in Richland, room 316, probably until Monday. He made it through his first day in a good mood, and we all hope it will continue. Mike is staying with him tonight so that I can get some sleep. I'll go back tomorrow. It is so nice to be able to take care of this at home, so much easier on all of us.
Thanks for your prayers thus far; we appreciate them, and are thankful for our wonderful friends and family. I will update again when we have more news.

Love,
Elizabeth

Friday, January 4, 2002 (CST)

Just a quick update. We had a wonderful Christmas in Portland/Vancouver seeing friends and family. As always, though, our visit was too short. We all had a cold the entire visit, which wasn't fun, and Aidan and Mike are still sick, or have possibly picked up another cold virus. At any rate, neither one of them feels great.

We were in Redmond today for a spinal, IV vincristine, and a check up. Aidan measured in at 40 inches tall (w/o shoes), 36 pounds. Andrew was 49 inches tall (w/o shoes), 58 pounds. Aidan's counts are great, ANC of almost 5000, so he is back on 100% dosage of his daily chemo again. He is also on steroids for the next five days. Oh joy. Only 22 months more of this scene.

School resumes on Monday for Andrew. He is more than ready to be back into his regular routine, although he did enjoy having his dad home for 12 days straight! We all did. Aidan goes back to preschool on Tuesday if he is feeling well (intrathecal methotrexate from today combined with steroids and a cold... he might wait until next week).

We will update you again next week. Thanks for checking in and signing the guest book.

Happy New Year!
The Goodwins

Friday, Dec. 7, 2001, 2:38 pm PST

HAPPY 3rd BIRTHDAY, AIDAN!

A wonderful week it has been. We celebrated Aidan's birthday last Sunday with a party with 4 of his good friends, Brayden, Alyssa, Jeffrey, and Meghan. The kids had a great time playing, eating cupcakes, and racing around the house. Aidan got a little overwhelmed when everyone was singing Happy Birthday to him, and ran from the table. He soon returned of his own will and blew out his candles. For those of you who were at Andrew's third birthday party, this will sound familiar as he reacted similarly to all the attention. We continued our celebration after the friends party with a small family party. Aidan thought that was great. All in all, a fun day.

Aidan's counts are good this week, ANC of 2100. He had chemo with Dr. Endo today and starts steroids for the next five days, too. He also had a three year well child check. He weighed 34 pounds (50th percentile) and was 39 1/4 inches tall (85th percentile). Not as big as his brother has ever been, but that's okay. He is tough and is holding his own more and more each day (which means we have been having lots of timeouts at our house!)

We have a busy weekend planned. Andrew is going to the Nutcracker on Sat. with a good friend from church. We watched a video of a New York Ballet performance so he would know a bit of the story before going. He really enjoyed it and is looking forward to tomorrow. On Sunday we will go to the all church potluck and children's Christmas performance. The older children put on a play and the younger kids do the traditional Christmas pageant. Andrew is Joseph this year, and is he ever excited. He gets to be up in front of everyone for a long time (quite a change from that 3rd birthday party so long ago). We are all looking forward to this. In the midst of Andrew's activities, Mike will be putting up the lights... his favorite activity, and we will be trying to do some cleaning in preparation for guests next weekend. A busy time of year for us all.

Our love to you all. May you find Joy in the midst of your busy lives, as we have found in ours.

Love,
Elizabeth

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Friday, Nov. 16, 2001 (CST)

After 5 days on steroids, Aidan's counts are really high again. ANC is almost 3000. He is staying on 75% chemo for the time being because the docs think his counts are high only because of the steroids. The next time we get counts (Nov. 29) they will probably be down from that, but still good.

We all survived this month's burst of steroids, but it wasn't fun. Aidan had much more typical steroid behavior... whiny, upset over little things, poor sleep, lots of salty food (pretzels and goldfish crackers at 7:30 in the morning?) He has already returned to normal, though, thank heaven. He has enjoyed having Andrew home from school the past 2 days (parent-teacher conferences), and is excited to be going to visit his grandparents, cousins, etc. next week.

Andrew has missed being at school, but is enjoying having the time to play at home with some of his preschool friends who went on to other elementary schools this year. His teacher said so many nice things about him during our conference. Basically, he is already where he needs to be by the end of the year (and beyond) in math, and close in reading skills. We knew he was smart, but it is always nice to hear from someone else. He has a good teacher who is doing her best to help him continue on in his learning at his level, not an easy task with so many other kids at various stages in their learning. (I "speak" from experience.)

I won't update again until we get counts again in 2 weeks, so in the meantime, have a wonderful Thanksgiving, and know that we are thankful to have all of you in our lives.



Love,
Elizabeth, Mike, Andrew, and Aidan


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Friday, Nov. 2, 2001

Counts are back up and Aidan is on a 75% dose of chemo again. He goes in to see Dr. Endo next Friday for his monthly dose of Vincristine and starts a 5 day burst of steroids again. We are not dreading it like we used to because the last two times the steroids didn't seem to affect his mood much. Perhaps it is because his counts were so high to start with, unlike the many times in the past. Who knows? We will just hope it continues to be that way.

The boys had a great time trick-or-treating on Wednesday. It was so windy I thought Aidan might blow away, but that didn't stop his zeal for his first time out on Halloween. He raced from door to door, walked into people's houses to get his treats, and gave an enthusiastic thank you before rushing off to the next home. He had no trouble keeping up with his brother and the other big kids until the end, when he started to tire out a bit. It was a fun night for us all.

Andrew and I went with our good friends Sandy, Elizabeth, Heather, Eric, and Jenna to see Monsters, Inc. tonight. What a fun movie, scary at times, though. This is the first whole movie Andrew has seen in the theatre, and he enjoyed most of it, but was scared, too. I think we will wait awhile before we try another movie outing. I won't be surprised if he comes down for some comfort and reassurance in the middle of the night tonight.

Tomorrow I am attending an all day planning and training session for the 2002 Relay for Life. I am excited about being there from the beginning and have lots of ideas to share. I am going to try to put together a team of parents of children with cancer (and their friends) along with a fellow parent and new friend, Stephanie Bauman. Unfortunately, I don't think we will have any trouble finding parents whose children have had this horrible disease as we are hearing of more and more children being diagnosed in our area all the time. We want to raise money to find ways to fight cancer in a less toxic manner even if we can't wipe it out all together.

An interesting development... the State Dept of Health is looking into the possibility of a cluster of kids in the Richland area diagnosed with leukemia, either ALL or AML. The process is lengthy but I plan to follow it closely to make sure that this is thoroughly investigated. The whole idea of a cluster makes me uneasy because it suggests an environmental cause that other children (including my own children and their friends) are being exposed to even now. Part of me hopes these 9 cases are a fluke, totally unrelated, but part of me wants desperatley to find a reason for the disease and treatment my son has had to endure. I will keep you posted.

Until next time, I wish you all His peace.

Elizabeth

Friday, October 12, 2001 at 08:31 PM (CDT)

Another successful trip over the mountains for treatment has been completed. A short trip, but we are always glad to be home. Aidan's counts are still great (ANC 2400) even with a cold and on a 100% dose of chemo. He had IV vincristine today, and intrathecal methotrexate (spinal). We also started the dreaded steroids for a 5 days.
Sure hope he tolerates them as well this month as he did the last. The spinal was tough this time. Aidan has never indicated that he is feeling any pain before, but today he had to be held firmly and said, "Owie, owie" several times. I surely hope that was a one-time deal. He did cheer up rather quickly, though, when presented with the idea of choosing something out of the prize box. It has never been much of a big deal to him before, but I guess he is growing up and learning about these things.


Speaking of growing, Aidan has grown over an inch in the last 12 weeks and gained a pound. He now stands at 38 1/2 inches tall and weighs almost 35 pounds. This means a higher dose of steroids and all other meds, but just a small change.

Andrew accompanied us on this trip since he didn't have school today. He had a great time swimming in the hotel pool this morning and looking for pics of his good friend, Robert, on the bulletin board at the hospital ped/onc clinic. Robert is in first grade at Andrew's school and played on his coach pitch team this year. He received treatment for non-hodgkins lymphoma at Group Health the year before Aidan started going there. He is a nice, smart boy, and one of Andrew's newest and favorite friends.

That's it for now. I'll update in another week when we get counts again.

Love,
Elizabeth and crew

Thursday, October 04, 2001 at 09:51 PM (CDT)

After a week on a full dose of chemo, Aidan's counts remain high (ANC 2196)! This is awesome news. He has had a cold as well, but it hasn't seemed to have affected his counts. Thanks for your prayers Wed. morning Christ Care group!

We just had a nice, unexpected visit from my parents. The boys love to seen them and are looking forward to seeing Mike's folks in a few weeks in Portland. I was able to go into Andrew's classroom while mom and dad were here to take care of Aidan. He has a wonderful kindergarten teacher. I can see why he comes home from school so excited and happy. We feel very fortunate.

We are off to Redmond next Thurs. for our trip to the hospital for a spinal. Although the chemo part is no fun, we all look forward to seeing some of our favorite people, Drs. Herzog and Louie and the best nurse around, Lynn. They take such good care of all of us, and Aidan LOVES them. We start the dreaded steroids again at that time, too, probably a higher dose since Aidan has grown so much, yet we still are anxious for the day to come
so we can see the people who have done so much for us. We'll update you when we return.

Until then, thanks again for your support, love, and prayers. We appreciate you all.

Elizabeth, Mike, Andrew, and Aidan

Thursday, September 27, 2001 at 06:27 PM (CDT)

Just a short update today to let you know that Aidan's counts are still high. He may even be bumped back up to a full dose of chemo soon. He came through his monthly dose of steroids last week with a cheerful attitude and minimal eating. That's never happened before. We were pleasantly surprised. Aidan loves going to preschool once a week, and is becoming quite the backyard baseball player.

Andrew still loves Kindergarten and is making lots of new friends. Coach pitch baseball is keeping him busy as well. The last game is Oct. 9, and Mike and I are ready for that! It's been fun, but I think we will skip fall sports next year.

Many thanks for your continuing prayers and encouragement. That's what keeps us going.

Sunday, September 16, 2001 at 03:18 PM (CDT)

In the midst of all the despair and turmoil in our country right now, we have had some good news. Aidan's counts have been so good since eliminating one dose of Bactrim that he moved up to a 75% dose of his daily and weekly chemo. This is wonderful news for us; we can't remember the last time he was on anything but a 50% dose, or nothing at all, due to low counts. We are heading into cold and flu season (Andrew has his first Kindergarten cold), but are optimistic about what fall and winter will be like for Aidan.

More good news. The steroids (started last Friday) don't seem to be affecting his mood as much as they usually do. Most months, by the 3rd day (today) Aidan is pretty cranky. He is in excellent spirits today, and has been all weekend. He happily went to the church nursery this morning, rare when on steroids. He had a wonderful time playing with his friends. I hope this is a new trend!

The rest of us are doing well, too, thankful that our family and friends are all okay, and are safely home from various parts of the world. In the midst of our happiness, we feel heavy hearted about the events of last week, and are praying for for those who have lost loved ones, especially for the children who lost a parent. May God watch over them and bring them peace and comfort.

Love to you all,
Elizabeth, Mike, Andrew, and Aidan

Friday, September 07, 2001 at 09:16 AM (CDT)

So sorry it has been so long since we have updated all of you on Aidan's progress. I am sure most of you assumed that meant everything is going well. That is true. Aidan's counts remain good. Funny how removing one of his three weekly doses of antibiotics has had such a positive effect. (The antibiotic can cause lower counts.) Our doctors are even talking about trying to bump Aidan back up to a 75% dose of his daily chemo if he continues to tolerate it this well. Such a different story from the beginning of the summer when we thought we'd be learning all about a new drug to replace the one he's on now. Thanks for your prayers. They have been answered.

Our final vacation for the summer was a trip to Lake Wallowa with our good friends the Vickermans. We had a wonderful time biking, riding the go-carts, playing at the beach, hiking, golfing, and enjoying each other's company. The Vickerman boys are the same age as our two, and they have a great time together. We are looking forward to a return trip next year.

Andrew has started Kindergarten and is loving it. He rides the bus each day and is gone for 3 1/2 hours. Aidan and I miss him, but he is having such a good time. His buddy, Alex, from preschool is in his class, and he rides the bus with his good friends Nicole and Jenna. A happier child could not be found.

Aidan started preschool on Tuesday with his friends Alyssa, Brayden, and Meghan. He loved it. He will go once a week for just over 2 hours to the wonderful school Andrew attended last year. It is a coop, so I will be there about once a month to help. This will give me the opportunity to volunteer in Andrew's class a few times a month, too. We are praying that Aidan's counts stay good through the winter so he can go to school as often as possible. We anticipate that he will miss class a fair amount due to colds, etc., but feel that any time he can be there is worth it.

Thanks for your ongoing support and prayers. We are so blessed to have friends such as you.

Love,
Elizabeth, Mike, Andrew, and Aidan

Friday, August 17, 2001 at 08:46 PM (CDT)

Hello All,
Aidan continues to progress. As you know, the barometer of his health is his blood counts, and we wait impatiently each Friday (usually) to hear what the lab has to report. (I mean the test is usually Friday - we always wait impatiently, but that's a genetic thing and we can't help it) (sorry, I digress as usual - Elizabeth never does...right to the point, she is...). This week the counts are good, and we will stay the course with half-dosages (or is it half-doses?) of the daily pill. Cutting the thing in half is a bit like splitting an atom with an axe, but we are glad he can handle it because it means things are going more according to plan.
We are back home in the dry-cities after a great week at Seaside with Elizabeth's family. The weather was perfect - a high overcast most of the day with cool temps. It was a nice change from the 100+ around here. E's folks rented a nice place right on the beach, and the boys spent a couple hours/day playing in the sand. They built some sand castles and then, being boys, had to destroy them with whatever means was at hand (or foot). We dug to China once or twice. The house was within walking distance of the downtown area, so we all hoofed to the Carousel (which Aidan loved), mini-golf, or bumper cars. It was a great trip. We managed to squeeze in a couple visits with my folks and met my sister and her family there (though Andrew and his cousin Michael left my mom's house in the same shape that Sherman left Atlanta).
With all that action it is nice to be home to relax. Though relax is a relative term - Aidan had vincristine today and started the 5-day steroid routine, and the combo ususally throws him for a bit of a loop. It doesn't make him physically sick (at least, not yet) but he never feels good. His voice gets softer and the pitch goes up; two obvious signs that he would rather have chocolate than steroids. Hmmm, that gives me an idea...
We'll spend the next week or so preparing for the start of school, K for Andrew and pre-school for Aidan. Out of the summer and into the fall...
We're coming up on the 1 year anniversary of Aidan's diagnosis, which is beyond weird. It almost seems as if it has been a 12-month out-of-body experience. The things we been through always happen to someone else, and when it does happen to you it seems reality is an oasis in the desert that you can see but never reach. (Quite possibly because it isn't there - now there's a deep thought!)
As we reflect upon our experiences since last year at this time, we appreciate the support from our friends and family even more. Many people made sacrifices for us that we can never repay; gave us gifts that are too valuable to price; and supported us with a shoulder or a word and often both. We cannot thank all of you enough.
Love, Mike, Andrew, Aidan and Elizabeth

Thursday, August 02, 2001 at 09:54 PM (CDT)

Good news today. Aidan's counts stayed up in spite of his cold. Thanks for your prayers. His ANC is 1104. We are very pleased. He is being kept on 50% dose of 6MP for the time being, in hopes that he may be able to continue taking this after all. We are still waiting to hear back from the Children's Cancer Group regarding the blood sample we sent in 2 weeks ago. I really don't know when we will hear back.

Tonight was Andrew's last soccer game of the season. It was hot, no shade to be had, but the kids ran hard anyway. Nothing stops them. Andrew has had such positive experiences with athletics this year. I am sure this will continue when he starts coach-pitch baseball this fall. We will then take a break from sports until next spring.

We are looking forward to our trip to the OR coast with my family in a week. We will probably wait until after the trip to update again unless something drastic happens.

A special prayer request for our friend Morgan tonight (5 years old). She is back in the hospital in Redmond with low counts (ANC 20) and a fever. She is almost through with her second Delayed Intensification phase and will be into Maintenance soon. Please pray that her fever will go away and her counts come up so she can go home.

As always, thanks for your friendship, encouragement, and prayers.

Love,
Elizabeth, Mike, Andrew, and Aidan

"Dwell in possiblity." Emily Dickinson


NEW PHOTOS ADDED AUGUST 2, 2001

Monday, July 23, 2001 at 07:51 PM (CDT)

Dear family and friends,
Thanks for your many prayers for Aidan. His counts recovered last Tuesday (ANC 1500), the quickest recovery he has ever had. He was immediately put back on chemo, 50% dose of 6MP, and by Friday was back down to an ANC of 750. After only 3 days on chemo. This is getting quite frustrating. He is still on a 50% daily dose, and we will get counts again this Thursday. The docs think he will be up a bit because he will just be coming off 5 days of steroids, but he has never really jumped up as much as other kids do from those lovely things.

Anyway, our trip to Redmond went well. Aidan did super during his spinal treatment (spinal fluid out, chemo in), talked about the video he was watching during part of the procedure. He was quite happy to see Lynn, our wonderful RN, and Dr. Louie. He did miss seeing Dr. Herzog. As for info about changes in meds, we will have to wait until we get reccomendations back from the researcher at the Children's Cancer Group in Kansas City who is studying the effect of 6MP on kids who don't seem to be able to tolerate it. Dr. Louie did change Aidan's Bactrim from 3 days a week to 2 days a week (antibiotic) because it can cause lower counts. Hopefully it will help, too. Aidan looked great to everyone; the last time they saw him he had no hair. He has also put on a pound and a half. (Andrew didn't gain any weight, but has grown another 3/4 of an inch in the last 12 weeks. 47 1/2 inches tall in his socks!)

The rest of our trip was awesome. We visited the Pacific Science Center, the Woodland Park Zoo, and rode the ferry boat between Bainbridge Island and Seattle 6 times! We stayed on Bainbridge in my grandpa's old house, and roasted hotdogs and marshmallows on the beach one night. The boys loved the beach. It was a much needed vacation.

I'll update you as I get more info about counts and meds. In the meantime, Aidan is complaining, for the first time, about not feeling well from chemo. He is also quite cranky from those steroids. Please continue to keep him in your prayers.

With love and thanks to you all,
Elizabeth, Mike, Andrew, and Aidan

Sunday, July 15, 2001 at 12:37 PM (CDT)

I didn't expect to be updating this until after our trip to Seattle, but counts are down again. ANC of 493, so Aidan is off chemo, AGAIN. The docs believe that Aidan can't even tolerate a 50% dose of his daily Mercaptopurine (6MP), so now they are looking at other options, which we will learn more about next week when we go for Aidan's 12 week spinal treatment. One drug they are considering as a replacement is Thioguanine, but this may have some unpleasant side effects. We are asking for information from any of you parents out there whose children have been on this drug long term. Please let us know your experiences, good and bad, so we can be prepared and know what questions to ask next week.

In spite of the low counts, Aidan's spirits are good. We just had a wonderful visit from Mike's folks. It was great having them here for a few days; Andrew and Aidan had so much fun playing games, reading books, and just being with these people we love so much. We are blessed.

We will update you again when we get back next Sunday. Until then, please keep us in your prayers, and please sign in at the guestbook to let us know you've been here. Any new Knock-Knock jokes you can leave for Andrew would be greatly appreciated, too, as we are tiring of the ones we're hearing over and over and over each day!

Love,
Elizabeth, Mike, Andrew, and Aidan


"...Do not grieve, for the joy of the Lord is your strength." Nehemiah 8:10

Saturday, July 07, 2001 at 11:43 PM (CDT)

Just a quick note this time to let you know that Aidan's counts this week were good. ANC of 702. That's down from last week because his total white blood count is down, but the neutrophils are up (subset of white count which fight infections). Aidan will continue on 50% chemo for the time being. He seems to tolerate it well.

We had a great 4th of July. First we went to a backyard BBQ with lots of good friend we've met through preschool. The boys had a great time swimming in the pool and playing with their buddies. Mike and I had fun watching them. Andrew and Aidan jumped off the side of the pool over and over. We had to drag them out when it was time to go to the next party at our neighbor's across the street. Again, a fun time was had by all visiting with good friends. The boys spent a lot of time playing tag and wrestling with the neighborhood bunch. We are truly blessed to have so many good friends here in the Tri-Cities.

We are about to head into the last week of Andrew's swimming lessons, and are looking forward to a visit from Mike's folks at the end of the week. Then next week it's on to Bainbridge Island for a little R&R and Redmond for Aidan's 12 week spinal. If we don't update you in the meantime, assume all is well, and look for a report sometime during the last week in July (and new photos).

Thank you, as always, for your prayers and encouragement.

Love,
Elizabeth, Mike, Andrew, and Aidan

Thursday, June 28, 2001 at 09:55 PM (CDT)

Counts are in today, and they remain good. ANC of 1046. Most kids coming off of steroids have a higher ANC, but Aidan just doesn't seem to go up as high for some reason. Probably because the chemo that accompanies it (Vincristine) hits him hard. Because of this, the docs have decided to keep him on 50% dosage for the next week, at least. I am not sure if we will ever reach even 75% for any of the remaining maintenance period.

Aidan is doing very well. We think we are through the chicken pox scare. Thanks for your prayers. He is very talkative, and quite musical. He loves to sing "Take Me Out to the Ball Game", and root for the Mariners. Or when he really wants to bug his brother, which is often, he will sing "for it's root, root, root for the Cubs..." or any other team he can think of at the time. Drives Andrew crazy. Ah, a burst of normal life! And then reality - Aidan asked me to order him some "heparin and sausage pizza" instead of pepperoni and sausage. And the other morning he was flying an airplane all over the house and told me he was going to see Dr. Herzog, Dr. Louie, and Lynn (our wonderful ped-onc nurse). Not many kids want to go visit their doctors; Aidan actually misses his docs and nurses because they are such an important part of his life, and have been for most of what he remembers. We are blessed that he has received such excellent care through Group Health.

As for Andrew, he played his first soccer game tonight. He had a great time, and played very well. He got to throw the ball in, kick off, and even passed the ball to some of his teammates during the game, a hard thing to do when you are 5 years old. We are very proud of him. He got knocked in the mouth during the game and has a semi - fat lip, but got right back in the game after a hug from mom. Andrew has 2 more weeks of swimming lessons, something he wanted to do. We only had him signed up for 2 sessions, but when he finally got interested enough to ask for me, we decided to continue for 1 more session. It is so fun to watch him doing things he was so afraid to do last summer.

Mike will be home for a few days next week for the 4th. It will be nice to be together for a few extra days. We went out last weekend to celebrate our anniversary (11 years), and will go out again with our neighbors this weekend. The boys love having a sitter, and we are lucky to have a great one.

We are still trying to work out the glitch with the photos, but there is one in the photo album now - large, though. We are still learning all of the ins and outs of this stuff, so keep checking in. We will get it right eventually.

Thanks again for your prayers and encouragement. We love you.

Elizabeth, Mike, Andrew, and Aidan

Wednesday, June 20, 2001 at 09:06 AM (CDT)

After 12 days off chemo Aidan's counts finally went up enough to start again. His ANC, for those of you in the know, is 1496; but the docs have started him back at 50% of the usual dosage with hopes of bumping up to 75% next week when we get counts again. He will probably remain at 75% for the remainder of his treatment (ending in Nov. of 2003). We go see Dr. Endo (our local pediatrician) this Friday morning for iv chemo and start a 5 day burst of steroids again (oh joy!).

Aidan looks great, and is feeling good. He is quite active, running through the library at a very fast pace yesterday, prompting an early departure and smiles of understanding from many of the other mothers there.

Andrew is doing very well in swimming lessons. He loves diving for rings at the bottom of the pool (shallow end). Last night was his first soccer practice. What fun. He has a great coach and lots of friends on his team. We are fortunate that his first sporting experiences have been so positive.

One prayer request, for those of you who believe, please pray that neither child gets the chicken pox. They both played with a friend during the most contagious time, and could end up with a mild case even though they've had the immunization. This could be trouble for Aidan, resulting in a stay in the hospital. We are hoping and praying that this doesn't happen.

I am learning how to use the new digital camera and will be trying to load some new pictures on this page tonight or tomorrow, so check back in a few days to see more of Aidan's beautiful head of wavy, red hair!

Love,
Elizabeth, Mike, Andrew, and Aidan

NOTE: I UPLOADED A PHOTO OF AIDAN, BUT FOR SOME REASON IT LOADED IN QUITE A LARGE SIZE. I AM STILL TRYING TO FIGURE OUT WHY THAT HAPPENED AND WILL ADD MORE PHOTOS WHEN I GET MY ANSWER. THIS IS ALL NEW TO ME, SO YOUR PATIENCE IS APPRECIATED! E

Thursday, June 07, 2001 at 05:28 PM (CDT)

Dear family and friends,
The roller coaster ride continues. Aidan's counts are down again this week. The all-important ANC is 338 and this time no cold or infection that seems to be causing it. The doctors had been watching Aidan to see if he would tolerate full dose chemo while on maintenance, and now think that he probably won't. He is off chemo totally for the next week (counts again next Thursday), and we have been told to be careful about having him around lots of people for the next few days. They expect him to recover quickly while he is off chemo as he has done in the past. Then we will probably be on 50 - 75% dosage the rest of the time. All in all, though, Aidan is doing great. He looks good, lots of red hair and pink cheeks. He is quite active, climbing everything in site, causing his mother a bit of anxiety at times. We are very happy and thankful for his good progress.

Andrew is through with T-ball and will be starting soccer in 2 weeks. Most of his team members went to preschool with Andrew last year, so he is very excited to start. He is taking swimming lessons in the meantime, and is putting his face in the water every chance he gets, something we never thought we would see!

We have been meeting our friends at the park a few days a week (Andrew and Aidan's preschool buddies), and playing kick ball and tag and all those fun games the kids never get tired of playing. The weather is almost always warm and sunny (It always rains in Vancouver! [inside joke to Grandpa from Andrew]).

Mike has been golfing some and working a lot. He and Andrew have been to the driving range a few times, too.

Thank you for your prayers and good thoughts. We don't know what we would do without you.

Love,
Elizabeth, Mike, Andrew, and Aidan

Friday, May 25, 2001 at 10:57 PM (CDT)

We did it. The Relay for Life for the American Cancer Society was last weekend, and we put a team together and walked for Aidan. It was a great feeling. Andrew was very excited. He couldn't wait to walk, and wanted to find Aidan's luminary as soon as we got to the track. Aidan walked the survivor's lap all by himself. His special shirt was a little big, but he didn't care. He was the youngest one walking, and boy did he look great! We plan on participating again next year. (see photo album)

We are all doing well. Aidan's counts remain good, and his energy level is HIGH! His beautiful red hair grows thicker every day, which we are all happy about.

Andrew finished pre-school this week, and is chomping at the bit for kindergarten to start. He is going to play soccer this summer, and will take swimming lessons as well.

Mike and I remain busy with the boys and their activities, and working in the yard and around the house. Mike has found some time to golf, too.

Thanks for your continuing prayers and good wishes.

Love,
Mike, Elizabeth, Andrew, and Aidan

Thursday, May 10, 2001 at 03:45 PM (CDT)

Hello all,
We have reached a milestone in Aidan's treatment. He started maintenance last week, April 30, 2001. What this means for us is fewer trips over the mountains for spinal treatment (only once every 12 weeks). He will be on daily oral chemo, Fridays being the heaviest day, and have chemo through his line once a month at our local pediatrician's office. Steroids for 5 days every 28 days. This is so liveable and we are quite relieved to have reached this point. This is what life will be like intil about a month before Aidan turns 5.

We still check Aidan's counts weekly, and today they were quite good in spite of the bad cold he has. Often when he has a cold his counts drop and he has to go on 50% chemo or none at all until he recovers. But Aidan's body is doing what it should this time around.

The rest of the family is doing well, too. I'm a bit emotional now that I have time to think about what we have been through instead of preparing for the next trip to Seattle. Everyone else is great. Andrew is preparing for summer vacation and trips to the park. He is in the middle of t-ball and loving it. Mike is busy at work, but hopes to get in some golf soon.

Mike and I are both preparing for the Relay for Life next weekend. We put together a team, "Aidan's Answer", and are excited about our first year of involvement. Aidan will walk the survivor's lap this year. It is sure to be an emotional time for our family.

Thanks for all of your prayers and good wishes.

Love,
Elizabeth

PS: We will have photos soon. The digital camera has been ordered!

Wednesday, April 25, 2001 at 11:36 PM (CDT)

Dear family and friends,
We are about to reach a milestone in Aidan's treatment...Maintenance. On Monday, April 30, we begin this phase that will take us to the end of Aidan's treatment for ALL. I can't believe we have made it this far. Thank you again for all of your prayers and support. The next two and a half years will be long, but the treatment should be relatively easy. A spinal treatment every 12 weeks, IV chemo every 4 weeks, and oral chemo daily. Aidan will still have low counts from time to time, whenever he gets a cold or some such infection, but it will be minor compared to what he experienced during other phases of treatment (which wasn't nearly as awful as what some families face). We are so thankful he has done so well.

It has been fun to watch Aidan doing all the things he didn't do last summer, like run after his brother, climb on the jungle gym, slide down the slide. He looks like every other 2 year old (with a little less hair). He is quite spirited, and can have some pretty amazing tantrums, but that is par for the course for most kids his age.

Andrew is playing T-ball and loving it. This is his first year so we are really enjoying the practices, the games, the laughter! I am sure this is just the beginning of a life that revolves around our kids' activities. Bring it on! Andrew loves pre-school, and will miss it this summer, although he is already asking when Kindergarten starts. He is ready.

We will try to keep this up to date, and will add photos as soon as we get our digital camera (soon)!

Thank you again. You all mean so much to us.

Mike, Elizabeth, Andrew, and Aidan

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