I know it has been a long time since i updated this. All is well. We have been home for a week and loving it. I still feel like i have to rush and get back to the hospital. But sooo sooo happy we dont. Jason's hair is growing back so good. I keep trying to buy him pants but he has grown so much i have had to take the clothes back twice since he cant go with me to try them on.

Tonight the adults are going out and the kids are staying at grandma's house. I am kinda nervous but 2008 has been a long year and i am ending this right!

The new dog is fitting in well. He likes to jump on you and chew on everything but he is still a puppy.

We have had a nice week being here. My sister and brother have both made it in from out of town. So all the Twilley's have been enjoying each other.

We went to the doctor yesterday and Jasons counts were 609. Slow to rise but will get there. Jan 6th at 9:30 is his last bone marrow test. If it comes back clean then we go Jan 19th to take out the boviac. Oh and then life slowly resumes. He still cant go to school this year cause it is now flu season so i will be working from home to be with him.
This year has been hard but we made it. HE MADE IT!

41 days later

And still here.
All is well and Jason looks great. He got blood today. But we still have no counts.
I hope we are home by Christmas.
Jason was able to brush his hair yesterday for the first time in months. He was excited. He looks so cute.

Austin bailed on the dance last week and came and hung out with Jason at the hospital. Guess he isnt quite ready for that scene. Which is fine with me.

We got a new dog. Buster. He was given to us by one of Shawn's customers. He is cute except that he likes to hop the fence and run the neighborhood. Jason said he is a cat in a dog suit.
We got some training ahead of us there.

Everyone cross your fingers we get to come home soon.....

WOW. Didnt realize it had been so long since i updated the site. Jason is doing great. His dad was able to come out and visit this round. That really made him happy.
Jason is doing great in school, I only have to ask him once to do his homework and some days he asks for it before i am even ready to start. He got straight A's in school. Hard to believe a kid fighting cancer can be so great. But thats my Jason.

His counts are still at zero but we are hoping to be out of here by next weekend and be DONE~!!!
This round has gone really well. I would say once of the easiest so far. Long though. We have been here since Nov 5th. Ready to leave.

Austin is going to the 6th grade school dance tonight. My guy is growing up so fast. I feel like i have missing out on so much of his life since i am never home. But we are all going to be a family again soon.
Shawn has done a great job keeping the house running. And keeping his business going and keeping me going. I couldnt ask for a better man to be in my life.

We might get another dog today. Shadow needs a friend and Shawn did some work for a lady who found a stray. He is cute. They call him Boy so we need to come up with a name....

Just a quick update to let everyone know that Jason is doing great. He has been eating like crazy and keeping me laughing. He is so funny sometimes.
His dad gets here tomorrow for a week so he is excited about that. It will be a nice break for me to go to the office and get all my x-mas decorations up at home.
Hopefully jason will be home by mid Dec and we can enjoy x-mas as a family. On Thanksgiving Shawn and Austin were in Prescott and it was just me and Jason. I was laying here fighting back tears cause i missed my family. But it will be all worth it in the end!

Tomorrow is jasons last day of chemo but we celebrated today. I made cupcakes, brownies, bought ballons and made a poster. All the nurses and families signed it. He is doing so good. We are so lucky.
Shawn and i are going to Sedona this weekend to get away for a minute. I cant wait. We need the break.
Austin will be staying with uncle Scott horseback riding, shooting guns, riding 4 wheelers, doing stuff he should be doing. It will be a good distraction for him

Doing great. Today starts the last 48hrs of chemo and then Jason is done. He has done so well. I am the luckiest mom out there to have the kids i do. Austin is being so great through all of this. I get to go home tonight and spend time with him while Shawn picks up his shift. Wednesdays are the new nights for him and Jason. The playroom gave us a Wii so he is playing that. It looks like alot of fun.

On not such a good note there have been 5 new AML kids diagnosed in the past 5 weeks. That is totally crazy. The poor kids around here are going through so much.
Hospice came and took another teenage boy home yesterday. They were never able to diagnose the type of cancer he had but he has been in such pain since he came this summer. I hope he goes peacefully.

I will keep everyone updated!

Jason is doing great. Thursday and Friday he was sick throwing up and high fevers. But he bounced back. He is eating good again and we are back to doing lots of homework. He got all A's and 1 B this semester. The only reason he got a B was because they dont do much writing so she didnt feel like she could give him an A in that class. Pretty dang good with a kid that has cancer. He is so awesome.

Well the last few days have been crazy. Jason and I went to the store the other day for milk and got more than we bargined for. He had a seizure in the check out lane. We took an ambulance to PCH and have been here since still trying to figure out what went wrong. We were supposed to come back anyway the next day to start chemo so that wasnt so bad. But they wont start chemo without knowing what caused it along with the high fevers and vomitting he has been going through. He is good today and doing homework. We go down for more scans. We have already had a CT Scan of the head, an MRI, and another spinal tap. Good news is he is still cancer free. We really want to start this last round of chemo and hope to be home before x-mas. Everyone keep praying for us.

i'm back in

We have been home since Thursday and it has been nice. Friday Jason was able to pass out candy and play with his friends. It was nice seeing him being a kid again. Saturday we all layed around and watched movies. Then Sunday my family was here. I can tell he gets tired easy but he is staying strong. At 11pm i have to tell him to go to bed. Needless to say it is 11:20 am and he is still sleeping. I am so proud of him. He is so wonderful.
We go back to clinic on Friday and have labs drawn. If his counts arent at 750 or higher then he cant check back in for round 5. I want them high so we can start round 5 and be home or x-mas but then again i love it when he is home. I miss my family being all together.

Sorry i havent updated everyone for a while. Jason is doing great. He might come home tomorrow. That will wrap up round 4. He is doing great. This one was a hard one but he still did better than most.
One more left and he nailed this baby. I am so proud of how strong he is. He is the most amazing child i have ever met.
My Uncle John is in town so he is going to be with us this weekend. Jason has never met him so it will be nice for them to spend time together.

An update on our favorite little boy Brady. He is doing great. He went to his fundraiser on Sunday. He has an amazing family. We pray for him all the time.

Austin is still doing good. They have a bowl game this weekend for football. They ended the season 5 and 3. Not so bad.

Jason is doing better. He still doesnt feel good but at least he is up and talking and his dad said they watched a movie and played video games.
The fundraiser went really well on Sunday. The weather was perfect and we had a great turn out. Everyone had fun.
Thanks to everyone for their support.

What a difference a day makes

100% turn around
His fevers have broke. He is still out of it most of the day since they put him on a continous morphine drip. He can also push the button for more if he is in pain. He does pretty good about no pushing it unless he has to get up for the bathroom. Which is constanly. We have a toilet by the bed since he has to go so much.

Last night was another long night. His heart rate was being monitored and kept coming back at 250. Which for him should be around 110. So at 3 am there were about 5 nurses, the house doctor and the EKG tech were here testing him. Came down to 138. He is on a portable heart monitor right now and is fine.

So needless to say he didnt rest again. He is out right now. Still talking in his sleep but at least he is doing better.

His dad will be here tomorrow. I could really use the break. I am beat

BAD DAYS

Jason is doing horrible He has had high fevers since Tuesday at 8am. Anywhere from 103-105 He has a bacterial infection in his blood Throwing up and pooping everywhere
We went for a CT scan and they saw spotting on the brain so now we have to do an MRI
We are also going to do more CT scans of his stomach and chest to make sure all is well there
He is miserable. And we haven't slept. We rest for an hour then he gets sick again.
Doctor said this is all par for the course but it is really wearing on both of us
He is hallucinating and taking about nothing relevant at all. I feel so bad for him

He is a trooper though
We will get through this

Sitting waiting

Jasons counts are at zero and we are just waiting patiently for them to go up. Maybe we can break the norm and get out of here early with no issues.
He got platelets last night and started to have the same reaction as last time. He started to get chills and a fever. They slowed them down and then he was fine. He cant get them transfused to fast or he gets sick.
He is getting blood today so i asked they do that slow as well to make sure things go good. My mom is staying tonight and i dont want her to have to deal with anything in case he got sick.

It is fall break so Austin is going to hang out with us during the day. That will be good for them both. We took Austin to the Cardinals game yesterday thanks to our friend Art and had a blast. We all work our own different team jerseys.

Jason is doing really well in school. He tested at the top of his class and what they tested on was stuff he learned last qtr of last year when he was sick. He is a smart kid.

Austin is keeping his grades up too. Shawn has really been great picking up where i have left off since i am not there. I couldnt do all of this with out him.

I want to say thanks to everyone for all that you do. I may not say it enough but we are blessed to have everyones love and support.

All is well

Nothing new to report
We are done with the chemo for round 4. It is just the waiting game now
We just got a new roommate. A 4 mth old boy named Brady who was diagnosed with AML. I hope we can be of some support

Random Photos!

0 baby

We got the results back from Jason's bone barrow and we are at 0% for Leukemia.
All this hard work and time has paid off.
We are so happy. Still not through the woods though. We started round 4 of chemo yesterday
The actual treatment is for 6 days but they say we will be here at least 50 days.
Keep the prayers up!

All is well

Jason is doing great. We have been enjoying our time at home. Went and saw Austins game Saturday night and that was fun. It was nice to see all of Jasons friends come up and say hi and for him to see his brother play. He probably wont make any other games since these last few rounds last a long time.

Last night the local fire department came over and visited with the boys and gave them some stuff and they went around the block in the truck. He loved it.
They are also going to the fundraiser in Oct so that is really special.

We look forward to seeing you all there!

test from yesterday

Still at 1% for Leukemia cells in bone marrow
Which is what it was last time before they got more detailed results from the fiche
Have to wait til Monday for that
But no new growth so that is great

GOING HOME

Jason gets to go home today. We are just waiting for the cleaning people to get the house all done so i can take him out of this place.

We are going to Austins game tomorrow so i am excited Jason will be able to see 2 before it is all over

still waiting

Still waiting for his counts to come back up
We are scheduled for readmission on Sept 24th for round 4
And we could be here for 1-2 months on that stay. WOWZERS

Nothing new to report

We are doing good. Just waiting to go home. They said maybe by the weekend.

SAVE THE DATE FOR OCT 12TH AT 3PM

We are having a carnival type fundraiser for Jason in at the green belt in our neighborhood.
Bounce Houses, food, games, prizes, cake walk

$40 for a family 4 pack
that includes food, drink, games

$12 per individual
that includes food, drink, games

Back to ourselves

Jason made it through the rough night.
I was worried but he is a tough guy and is good to go.
We did x-rays and he was such a trooper as he was sitting in the wheelchair waiting his turn and throwing up, and also throwing up while standing getting his x-rays
Luckly nothing showed up and we didnt need to do cat scans either.

He has been good ever since.

I was able to go to Austins football game thanks to Grandma Grace for watching Jason. I love football season. We are waiting for Jason to get out so he can go to a game.

Tomorrow Shawn and I are going to spend a day with Austin. I cant wait. I miss him so much.

Long Night

Jason got Platelets last night around 10pm and had a BAD reaction
103.8 fever, his whole body was shaking and his teeth chattering
he was cold but burning up
eyes and body all red

throwing up
had to give him oxygen

He is resting now and they are going to try and give him platelets again in about 20 min.

They are also going to schedule x-rays and cat scans to make sure everything is ok
his butt hurts really bad and he was sitting on a donut all day yesterday and crying in pain today when he went to the bathroom. he might be getting sores inside his rearend from the lining being thinned out from chemo

we are really tired and trying to rest

Many updates

I didnt get a chance to update anyone about what happened last week when he had the storms.
There was a really bad storm here in Phx Thursday night and our room started leaking again. Our roommate had to move out cause water was dripping on their bed.
The PICU flooded and their were frogs hopping around. We lost power about 5 times. Quite the night.

So updates since the nose bleed.
Jason had to have a blood transfusion, and platelets.
They had to pack his nose and the stuff slowing dissolves. Maybe he will learn to keep his fingers away from his nose. Now he snores while sleeping.....

Today he is not feeling good and they have antibiotics ready incase he spikes a fever. His body aches and his butt hurts. Dont know why but he is getting morphine and another platelet transfusion to stay on top of things.

Austin has his first football game Saturday. I cant wait to see him. Shawn and Erin are going to California so he wont be able to make it. But we will all be rooting for him.

Thanks to my family for stepping up and giving me a break a few nights a week. It is nice to see Austin and Shawn. Although the house is a mess cause we are remodeling since the breakin.

Bloody nose

I am spending the night with Jason tonight. We've had a two hour long battle with a bloody nose. It kept dripping and dripping with no avail. We tried toilet paper, a nose pincher, ice bags, rags and even went the holistic route with some tea bags to constrict the blood vessels. The nurses evern stood there for a good 20 minutes or so pinching his nose. They have it packed with some powdery stuff to soak it up and help form a clot. He is very uncomfortable but he's a real trooper. He's going to have to sleep with it over night and give it a chance to clot. He will probably have to have some platelets tomorrow.

Night all!

Laura

Good days

He has handled chemo really well this round. He got sick once and that is it. But now is when his counts start dropping and we need to watch for fevers and infections again. When we checked in last week his counts were over 6000 and we are around 1700 now. So on the roll down hill....
He is getting a blood transfusion right now so he is sleeping. We havent been getting good sleep cause our roommate is a sick little baby boy who is having a hard time and cries alot. I feel so bad for them. They are the nicest family.


We also started last weekand his teacher comes on Thursdays but i have to help during the week. Man i am not a teacher. But we will make this year a good one.

Good days

He has handled chemo really well this round. He got sick once and that is it. But now is when his counts start dropping

Lunch Break

I am so glad I got to see Jason on my lunch break today. It was a much needed break from my rough day at work. Jason is putting on a lot more weight which made me very happy to see. Please try and visit him as much as you can. I wish I could more...

Jason not only has to deal with his own pain, but he also has to deal with the pain of the other children he shares the room with. This poor little baby boy who is only 22 months old had a brain tumor and now they found three more. He was throwing up blood all day and had black diarrhea in his diaper. His breathing was so loud and his lungs were so full of fluid. It was so hard to be in there listening to him. Poor Kim and Jason have to see it on a daily basis.

Please pray for Jason and that little boy. Pray for all of those poor little kids who have to suffer. They are all angels.

If you have a few extra dollars, please send a donation to the Phoenix Children's Hospital. Those children really need it.

http://www.phoenixchildrens.com/ways-of-giving/

Laura

hi people
bye
jason

Back for round 3

Yesterday Aug 20th we checked in for round 3 of chemo. Had another spinal tap and started with treatment at 11am. He is so strong he isnt even feeling the morphine for numbing the pain. So he was crying of couse, then forgot about the pain latter. Decided he was hungry and ate a cheeseburger, fries, and 5 rice krispies treats. Then it all came back up.

Then the hospital had no rooms available and we sat in the clinic until 4pm. They kicked us out and we had to come over and sit in a treatment room until 7pm. Finally we got our room, and it is the big one with the stationary bike. So i am happy cause now i can work out again while sitting in here.

And the best news of all is Jason is down to .04% leukemia cells in his body. That is amazing considering we started at 95%.
I couldnt be happier and have nothing but great things to say about his doctors.

Austin is doing good in school this year and has started football. Shawn is coaching again they are having good bonding time together since i will be here with Jason. I cant believe how big Austin is getting. WOW! It is weird to watch him turn into a man.

Well bye for now. And feel free to come and visit or call us anytime.

OUCH

Today was a hard day. We had to go in for the bone marrow test. And all the morphine and other meds they gave him didnt make one bit of difference. He was awake and screaming and crying the whole time. Man this is so hard to see your baby laying there reaching out and crying for you and there is nothing you can do.
But the good news is that he is down to 1%Leukemia so we are going forward with round 3 as planned starting Wed.

His school teacher also came by last night and loaded us up with homework so we will be doing that as well to keep him on track for 4th grade..

Thanks again to everyone for all you do

Great Day

Yesterday was a great day having Jason home. We watched movies, played games. My mom and newphews came over and he had some friends over last night while his dad Shawn and brother Austin were at football practice. It felt like a normal life again. Which is where we are headed.

Gonna try for another good day today. Maybe get out to spend some of his gift cards everyone has gotten him.

HOME

I wanted to thank everyone for coming out to the First Annual Golf Tournament for Jason. It was a huge success. We raised about 1/3 of what his medical bills will be. We had a great time. Channel 3 News broadcasted the weather live from there and we were able to get Jason to call into the show and be on TV.


Yesterday we came home. We go back in on Friday for bone marrow testing at the clinic then we dont have to check back in for round 3 until Aug 20th.
It was so nice to see him this morning when i woke up.

Dont ever take your children for granted. They are the most precious things in life.

What a difference a day makes

Jason is doing alot better from Tuesday. I stayed with him last night so his dad could go and see the Cardinals pre season game. He was tired most of the day cause he was getting blood. Then all his counsins came out to visit and he woke up. He finally ate a little bit and watched some TV.

Today his counts are at 60 and 45% monocytes. That means his is on his way back to recovery.
Nothing has grown so no infections for fungus.

We should be home by early next week. Then on the 13th he has a bone barrow test.
They have him scheduled to come back on the 20th for round 3.

He unfortunatly wont be home for the golf tournament tomorrow but we will have his pictures posted at every hole and on TV.

WE LOVE YOU JASON!!!!

Getting better

I went and saw Jason last night and he didnt look good. He was in pain and upset to his stomach. I was so sad all i wanted to do was cry. But i talked to him this morning and he sounds alot better. I wil be staying with him again tonight.

We dont have the results of the blood cultures yet but the doctors are pretty sure he has an infection of some sort. Please pray it is nothing and it will pass.

Thanks again to everyone for the help with the golf tournament this weekend. We are totally full and even added more that were open. That is over 145 people.

Our friends and family have really come through for Jason. I appreciate it all.
If you notice there is another posting from Nadine Greathouse. She is running in the PF Changs race to help find a cure. The proceeds will go to help all children not just Jason. I know we have been getting donations for Jason but please keep in mind there are alot of sick kids out there that still need the love and hope of finding a cure someday.

Fevers, sickness

Well Brian stayed with Jason last night and he came down with another fever and is throwing up this morning. The fever is only 101.5 so not that bad right now. Everyone pray that it goes down and doesnt get worse.

I was with him yesterday and he was doing great. I finally beat him at monopoly. YEAH!!!!

But today is another day and we will make it.

UGH!!!!

Well Jason is doing good. He is staying happy and we play monopoly all the time. For some reason i can never win.

We are excited about the golf tournament this weekend. We have all the slots full.
Thanks everyone for all your support.

But on a another note. We got broken into on Thursday at home and they cleaned us out. They took TV's, XB0X, PS3, PS2, all the games, and even my brand new vaccum. And many more items. I am gonna crack if anything else happens to us.

Austin started school today. He is in 6th grade. I was sad that Jason wasnt able to go and started to cry.

Now is the hard part

Jason had a fever last night of 103 and he and his dad are super tired. He had a rough night but the fever broke.

I made homemade cinnamon rolls over the weekend so that is his latest craving.
If it gets him to eat than great
So i need to go get those today for him
He is taking pills too increase his appetite.
Along with everything else. I still cant believe how amazing he is

My mom is bothering me .the end


this is from jason clark

OK now my turn. Jason thinks i am bothering him cause i keep making him get up and do stuff.
I tickle him, i kiss him, i make him eat, i guess that makes me a bad mom :(

But he is the best kid in the world so i will keep bothering him.

Round 2

We have been back at the hospital with the second round of chemo since last Wed and Jason is doing great. He has only gotten sick once. They say the second round is easy so so far so good.
He seems a little depressed this time and i cant figure out why.I havent been staying over night with him, his dad has so i know i miss him very much. Maybe he misses me :)
I will keep updating as more happens. Keep visting him to keep his spirits up.

Visit from cousins

AJ, Gavin, Chase and I got to visit Jason last night at their house and had some yummy home cooking from Kim and Shawn. It was good to see him home again. He got to play Monopoly with the "adults" and then played again with the boys. He's really happy Austin is coming home so he'll have his big brother to hang out with.

Glad to see you Jason and we love you!

~Laura~

A New Room

Well many may have known that Kim and I repainted Jason's room. We did it back in June. It turned out so good. I just love it. Make we want to repaint my own boys room. I am so glad I was able to help out in giving him a new room to come home to.



We were not able to see him when he came home. Lincoln had Feringitis 4th of July weekend so we stayed home so not to pass it along. We are glad that Jason was able to come home and hope to see him soon. I hope he liked his room. I have not talked to Kim since he has been home. We love ya Jason.

HOME

We finally were able to come home Friday afternoon and have been busy ever since. Jason had his friend Austin stay over night and they played well into Saturday. But Friday night was a little rough at first. Jason was crying saying he wanted to go back to the hospital cause then i was there laying next to him and he didnt have to be alone. He didnt like me sleeping in my room. So i layed with him for a few minutes. And he has slept in my room the other couple of nights. Austin got home yesterday so that should help.

We check back in on Wed so i will keep everyone posted

Friday we are hoping is the big day. We get a break
I will let everyone know as things progress. But we are just happy to maybe get out of here.

Friday we are hoping is the big day. We get a break

I will let everyone know as things progress. But we are just happy to maybe get out of here.

Going home...

Well, Jason was supposed to be able to go home for a week on June 28th, but his blood counts were too low and they had to keep him in the hospital. He had then started complaining about more stomach cramps and come to find out, he had Appendicitis as well, and immediately they had to do surgery to remove his appendix.

His counts continue to go up and down, but they are allowing us to bring him home on Friday, July 11th. He'll have 5 days at home and then he returns back on Wednesday, July 16th to start his second round of chemo.

He is considered in remission for now because he has only 4% leukemia cells out of 95%. Under 5% is considered remission. Lets hope it will stay that way.

Please keep him in your daily prayers!

Still here....

His counts are at 5 today
So of course not leaving soon, but i did talk to the doctor and he will be able to go home at least for a couple of days before we start round 2.
He is not hooked up right now and only needs to be a few hours a day for antibiotics. AND GUESS WHAT!!!!! Tonight at 8pm after visiting hours he can out on a mask and leave the room and walk around the floor. He hasnt left the room for almost a month. So i am excited. I told him we need to find a ball and go bowling

Cancel the party

Well Jasons counts keep going down and he is at zero today. So not coming home anytime soon. He is sleeping right now because they are gaving him Platlets.

We are moving back downstairs to the second floor in his old room today with his old roommate so that is a plus at least. But his roommate is sick so we cant even open the curtain and talk to him.

One nurse said today that if Jasons counts dont come up fast enough he might not even go home and would start his second round of chemo next week. I pray that doesnt happen. That would make for 2 months here with no break. His heart was broken. He looked so sad when she said that. So we will be clarifing that with the doctor.

Will keep everyone posted.

Homeward Bound

Jason is coming home Monday pending no fevers or infections. They unhooked him from BOB today. He only needs hooked up when he gets antibiotics. Which is only twice a day for a couple hours
He is so happy!!!
He wants fast food so bad but we have to pass on that. Daddy Shawn will have to make a burger taste like McDonalds

We might even be able to take him to the circius on Wed

He will be home Monday until Monday June 30th
Then they will do another bone marrow and see how much we got
Everyone pray your hearts out this week they come back good

Austin and his dad are leaving for Iowa on Tuesday for two weeks
So that will be a nice well deserved break for both of them

Keep everyone posted

Coming home

Well Jason is doing good says the big doc so hopefully he will be home by next weekend. I am sure he cant wait to sleep in his own bed and not have the cords attached to him. He named his machine "Bob" and that will be nice to be free of him as well.

Jason is getting sick of being in the hospital as he was asking his dad all sorts of questions last night. Like why is he there so long, why does he have to take so much medicine, what can happen to him. He is a smart kid and you have to be straight but it is hard having to worry about your child going through this and what can happen. He should be swimming in the backyard with his friends and running around playing football. But he is strong and will battle through this. We are all learning patience.

But it is hard looking at his room empty and not seeing him around the house
So i hope the count down is on for him to get home

Good moods

Nothing really to update except Jason is still happy as ever. He loves his soft new head. We shaved him on Sunday. And through out all the time he has been there he has gotten so much stuff i had to take 2 trips to the car to bring stuff home and he still has alot there.

Thanks everyone for everything

Happy 9th Birthday!!

Happy 9th Birthday Jason!

Jason had a great turnout for his 9th birthday on Saturday. That tiny little room was crammed with friends and family. Jason made out on gifts and has plenty to keep him occupied. Now we just need a big suitcase to haul it all in from room to room as they continue to transfer him around the hospital. We love you Jason and hope you got everything you wanted! :)

Moved again

Well Jason has a cough now so he got moved to a private room just in case he is coming down with something. Cant have him getting his roommate sick. Tomorrow is his birthday so i hope he isnt ill. He still looks good though.
He has moved about 5 times so far. So i need to start taking some stuff home so there isnt so much to move each time.

I joined a group called Hope Kids that offers alot of things for familys like ours. We are going to take Austin to the circus in the next couple of weeks. And they have tickets to Firebird for some drag races along with pit passes. Jason wont be well enough to attend but it will keep Austin happy.

Right on track

Talked to the head doctor today and Jason is right on track
He is doing good and they havent seen any leukemia cells for 2 days.
Also got the results back from Austin's blood work. He is NOT a match for bone marrow. So they will test Brian and I. But still hoping dont need to go that way. But wont know for sure for a while.

Will keep everyone updated

To Jason. From Shadow

Hey Buddy!

Here are some pictures of me. I thought the first picture was a particularly handsome shot of me. I like this little dog bed. The big human thinks it’s for toys but Katie and I just take them all out and then I can relax in it! The third shot is Katie and I taking our afternoon nap. This couch is soooooo comfortable. I hope you have a dog gone great day!

Love you more than al the bones in the world
Shadow

Keep on movin' and dont stop

We are continueing to move down the path of healing. Jason is doing good. He isnt able to eat without pain so we have moved on to the IV nutrition. It is hard to have him in pain while eating. His b-day is Saturday and he wants churros and pizza from Costco. That will be interesting to see how he handles that when we are lucky to get a bowl of cereal down him. But he is making a valient effort.
We are still lucky to have a steady stream of visitors so he is keeping busy.
And he has mastered Connect 4!

Hit rock bottom

Todays Jasons counts finally hit zero. There is no where to go but up from here. He is doing good. Still laughing and joking but having a hard time eating. He gets a stabbing pain when he tries to eat. The docs load him up with Morphine and then he is good. He wants me to tell everyone he just spit a lugie. Gotta love boys.
We got him doing some math work to keep his mind busy. And anything else we can think of. Daddy Shawn got him a PSP and he is loving that. Better watch out Austin you might have some competition.

Weekly Messages of Love

Be strong baby boy, GOD has his arms around you and you will be safe. GOD bless this family
Jeanne

And now for Jason, my sweet little grandson, I hope you can feel all the love that people have for you. My ward is fasting for you tomorrow, and I know there are tons of people everywhere praying for you and I know Heavenly Father will give you the strength that you need to get better. Hang in there, buddy, and your Meema's going to be there in a couple weeks for your birthday. I can't wait to see you!
Love, Meema

My love and prayers goes out to you all. I know everything will work out with enough faith. Let Jason know what a strong boy he truly is now. If you ever need anything give me a call.
Erin Alegria

Hi Jason. My wife works with your aunt Daphne. I'm sorry to hear about you getting sick. I hope that you are playing lots of video games and meeting new friends. I pray for your speedy recovery.
Luke

Jason its uncle Jared remember me Robert and I got you a full size poster of Hanna Montana and a picture of a Phoenix on fire rising from the ashes. You are a champion and you to will rise like the Phoenix you have a royal blood line that goes all the way back to our Creator don't forget you are loved and we are all watching after you and praying that we get to be around your sweet presence daily . YOU RoCK
Uncle Jared

Hi Jason. It is Ronny. Hope you feel better soon.
Ronny

If anyone in this world has the strength and attitude to endure something so difficult its Jason. He's gone through a lot in his young life and he's never let anything drag him down, he always stays positive and lets things roll off his back. Jason and Austin have been my boys since the day they were born and they're still my world...I think we can all learn from Jason through this experience. No matter what life brings you unexpectedly, do what you can and don't let it defeat you. Be strong and always smile and you'll always make it through. He's my youngest nephew, but definitely a hero in my eyes.
Aunt Nana

This is to let Jolly Jason, my nickname for him, know that his Aunt Daphne and his Cousin Gabriel love him very much.
He needs to hurry up and get out of the hospital so me and him and his Mom can go to Big Lots together!
Aunt Daphne

We’re thinking of you and the family and please don’t hesitate to let us know how we can help!
Leigha Cline

Uncle Jared and Uncle Robert

So yesterday Robert and Jared went to visit. Of course they had to stop at the store first. They picked up a few goodies for Jason. One which I think Austin will enjoy just as much as Jason. All I have to say is Hannah Montana. Need I say more. That is right folks. They got Jason a poster of Hannah Montana. If that cute little face does not make time fly and make you feel all good inside I don't know what will!! Along with Hannah they got him some magazines I think it was an X-Box. Boys and their toys. He also got a poster of a Phoenix coming out of fire. Symbolic? I think so. The favored goodie that Jason was just so excited about was a point laser. The kind teachers use. Jason was so excited about this. How fun!!! Point the laser at the nurses as the walk by. Out the window at birds. You can do anything with that and keep busy for a while. It is like a little kid and a flashlight! So he was pretty happy. Jared took some photos on his phone. They were blurry but I will post anyways. It shows how happy he is. Jared said he was talkative and playful. Always a good sign. Let's hope he feels like this through most of his treatments. Will make them go so much faster when you are happy and comfortable!!

Great Day

Wednesday-
Another good day for Jason. He is eating like his old self again and is smiling like he alwasys does. Today he gets a roommate. Lets hope we all get along and it makes being stuck in this room for the next 10 days fly by. His friends are still coming by everyday and keeping him busy. We love him so much and thank everyone for all their love and support.

Today was a good day....

Jason had a good day today. He was back to himself this afternoon and was laughing and playing so we are all happy about that. His chemo is administered around 11pm so by noon the next day it has worn off and he gets back to his old self again. Austin had a hard day yesterday. We think it might be his nerves. He threw up about 6 times. Poor guy. He is suffering along with everyone else. Please say a prayer for everyone to have strength and health along this long hard journey.

Many Visitors

We went to visit Jason this weekend. He seems in good spirits. He got tired real quick after we had got there. So we didn't stay long. Aunt Shannon and Uncle Grant flew in after they had heard the news. So they were here for a few days. We all went to visit. It was nice to be able to see Jason. Since I was at girls camp I was not able to until I got home. I wanted to make sure I got to see him before he was to tired and weak from chemo. Plus everyone was healthy in the house.

Austin and Brian had just bought a new video game for the X-box and were excited to take it to him and play. Kim had won concert tickets and lunch for her office off the radio station. Instead she asked if they would bring lunch and feed all the nurses. So the DJ came and brought lunch and talked with Jason for a few minutes. The DJ then left and came back with an extra X-box and gave it to Jason. How nice! He didn't even know Kim or Jason.

I talked to Kim this morning for a few minutes. He is doing well. He had another blood transfusion yesterday and it went fine. He is in good spirits still. I had asked her if he knew what was going on in detail. She said he heard the word "cancer" for the first time yesterday. His reactions was, "I have cancer?" Kim answered yes and Jason says, "Oh okay." So he is being so strong and I know he will continue to be.

Jason's Battle with Leukemia

Thursday morning, May 28, 2008, Jason woke up with bad cramps in his stomach. He rushed to the bathroom and began throwing up blood. So much blood that his mom decided to rush him to the emergency room. As they were walking into the hospital, Jason passed out. A hospital employee rushed out and brought him in. They proceeded to give him x-rays and tests to see what was wrong.

Then he was rushed into an ambulance to the Phoenix Children's Hospital. When he got there, they had to give him a blood transfusion because he had lost so much blood.

After further tests were performed on his blood, it was revealed that Jason was inflicted with Acute Myelogenous Leukemia also known as AML. Out of the people diagnosed with this disease, only 10-12% are children. Luckily we live in a day and age where these things are treatable, but not with ease. Tomorrow morning he will have his first surgury to insert tubes into his main arteries so that his chemo can be administered through the lines instead of having to be injected with needles multiple times. After his surgury, he will be given his first dose of chemo.

Please everyone, keep him and his family in your prayers. They will need them. It is such a tragedy to see such a sweet innocent child have to suffer through something like this. So everyone, please hug your children today. They are precious gifts from God.