Journal History

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Tuesday, November 6, 2007 2:41 PM CST

Today marks 7 years since Jack's diagnosis. It has been a journey full of so many blessings. Without the love, support and mainly prayers from each of you who visit here we would not have made it through. Jack is my miracle. Jack is hope to so many who face this disease each day. We pray every day that each child with neuroblastoma will be healed and that their families can experience the joy that we have.

Thank you so much for being angels on earth.
Much love,
Beth, Mike, Gus and Jack

Tuesday, October 2, 2007 9:42 AM CDT

Hello and Happy Fall!
We are heading to Memphis tommorrow for Jack's visit. He will be having a CT scan on Thursday and if all is well, which I fully expect it will be, our next sceduled visit will be in a YEAR! It is hard to believe. It has been almost 7 years since this whole journey began. Time passes and we get farther and farther away from our days in treatment yet it is still a part of our lives each day and I know it always will be.

Gus had surgery on his elbow at Vanderbilt 5 weeks ago and is doing pretty well. He fell on it about 10 days ago and that set him back last week but today he is doing well. I never imagined the amount of pain he would be in. It has been unreal. He is contiuning to work hard at physical therapy. We go back to Vanderbilt next Monday and I anxious to see what they have to say.

I'll update on Jack's visit when we get back.
Much love to you all,
Beth

Tuesday, August 7, 2007 9:55 PM CDT

Just a quick update:
We will be going back to Memphis on October 4th for Jack's visit. He will only have a CT scan this time. It is very wild to get our schedule from them and to have only one day of appointments. If all is well, then our next visit back will be in a YEAR!!

Now for Gus:
As of today, Gus will be having surgery on his elbow next Friday August 17th. I am really concerned about this and have not fully come to peace about this. I will be praying for God to guide us in our decsions regarding this surgery and the surgeon. This damage to his elbow can have some debilitaing lifelong effects so this surgery is really important.

By the way God, if your listening, I'd really like for this to be the last our our medical issues with Jack and Gus if you don't mind.

Also, please join me in prayer for the family of my dear friend Tameria. For those who have followed Jack since the beginning, you will remember that Tameria's daughter Olivia passed away in 2001 from a brain tumor. Last weekend, Tameria's nephew Chanston, age 16 was killed in a car accident. This family is in so much pain and your prayers would be so helpful.

Thanks for reading,
Beth

Friday, July 20, 2007 1:59 PM CDT

Hello,
I just wanted to post a quick update to let everyone know Jack continues to do very well. We are so thankful for his continued good health. We continue to be very much a part of the neuroblastoma community and we pray each day for all families affected by this horrible disease. A new little boy was just diagnosed here in Chattanooga. In talking to his mom it took me back to the beginning for us. We were so scared as I know they are. We must never stop trying until a cure is found!

On another note, things are rarely dull around here. Some of you who have been reading for a while may remember that in 2002 Gus was diagnosed with a disease called Legg Calve Perthes which is basically an avascular necrosis in the hip. Over the past few years Gus has worked so hard to overcome his limitations due to this. I have always been so proud of his determination and spirit. This summer he has been working out at D1 to get ready for the football season. He has done great and is running so much better. About 4 weeks ago however, his elbow began to hurt. After a few visits to the doctor, he had an MRI on Tuesday. We just found out yesterday that it appears that he has an avascular necrosis going on in his elbow. I cannot imagine how rare this is to have this happen in two joints. Our current orthopedic doctor is referring us someone else. I have also set up a consultation appointment with another doctor. I am really concerned with what is going on and why this has happened again. Gus is in a good deal of pain, but he handles it so well. He is really limited as to what he can do right now. The most upsetting part is of course that we do not believe he will be permitted to play football. He is very upset about this and I can’t say I blame him.
Hopefully we’ll know a little more in a few weeks.

Thanks for reading.
Beth

Thursday, April 12, 2007 9:59 PM CDT

Hello Everyone,
I know this update is long over due and I am sorry I haven’t posted sooner. We have been really busy lately. We went to Memphis last week and the news couldn’t have been better. Jack had a PET scan this time in addition to MRI, CT and MIBG scans. There was no activity at all on the PET and MIBG and the MRI and CT’s showed no growth. In fact the radiologist that read these scans (who is reported to be excellent) says that there never has been any growth in the residual tumor in his spine. PRAISE GOD!
So our plan now is to return to Memphis in 6 months for an MRI and labs and if all is good, they are moving us to yearly visits! AMAZING! While we are so happy with this plan it is going to be very hard to not go to the hospital but once a year. We will have to go for a social visit at least one other time during the year.

I want to say thank you to US 101 and to the Country Giant in Cookeville for the wonderful jobs they did on the Country Cares for St .Jude Kids Radiothons. We feel so blessed to be a part of the events each year. To know that we can do something to give back just a small amount of the incredible gift we have been given is so special to us. Country Giant-you are AWESOME!! We love you. They raised a record breaking amount of money and we could not be more grateful. Gator and Stykman you are the best!!

Tickets are now on sale for the St. Jude Dream House. Tickets are available at First Volunteer Bank, www.stjude.org. This house is beautiful and was built by our long time dear friend, Karl Sodergren. You can find more information about the Dream House at www.chattanooganewhomes.com or www.wrcbtv.com. Open Houses start the first weekend in May and we hope to be out there quite a bit. In addition to the house the are some fabulous prizes, including a new car! The odds of winning a prize are 1 in 5! Channel 3 came out today to do an interview with us and should be featured next Tuesday on the 6:00 news. Get your tickets today!!

OK, that’s just about where the good news ends. A month ago my world was rocked with the news that my best friend Patti has breast cancer. Patti and I met in Sister Mary Reginald’s 1st grade class at St. Jude School (ironic, I know). After undergoing surgery, she has started chemotherapy. Even though I am very optimistic that she will make a full recovery, I just hate that she has to go through this. Patti is a great mom to three small children and I know she would appreciate your prayers for strength and healing. In addition to Patti, another dear family we are friends with has had cancer invade their lives as well. Anne Lee’s (she signs our guestbook often) husband Ron has been diagnosed as well. They have two children and would also appreciate your prayers as well. I know I have mentioned this before but it is worth saying again, I HATE CANCER!! I struggle each day to make sense of all this. All these families we know whose lives are forever changed with the word cancer. I can’t understand it and I know that it is not our to understand. That it is God’s divine plan in place. I just hope HE has a lot of time for me when I get there because I have a lot of questions!

Live everyday out loud and recognize and be thankful for all the blessings in your lives.

Much love,
Beth

Wednesday, January 3, 2007 8:17 AM CST

Hello everyone,
Happy New Year!! May each of you and your families experience many happy blessings in 2007!

I have some fun news I wanted to share with you all. St. Jude is gearing up to build a DREAM HOME in Chattanooga. This is the first one here in Chattanooga. In the past the closest ones have been in the north Georgia area. For those not familiar with Dream Home, it is a house that is built through the generosity of many incredible people. Tickets are sold to win this amazing house. Wouldn’t that make an incredible 2007!!

What makes this Dream Home so special to us is that the builder of this house is a very dear and special friend to us. It is Karl Sodergren (www.chattanooganewhomes.com). Karl, Mike and I have been friends for a LONG time. We are so excited about this project and to have such a close personal connection. If you or anyone you know is in the home building business and would like to get involved, please let us know. The kick-off party, Sticks n’ Bricks in January 18th. We would love to have as many of Jack’s supporters as we can to work on or contribute in any way. The house will actually be in Ooltewah, but I cannot remember the name of the subdivision.

Please keep checking back for more information!! Channel 12 and WUSY 101 will be doing the advertising (THANK YOU) so stay tuned there as well!

Another date to mark on your calendar is the WUSY 101 Country Cares St. Jude Radiothon. It is scheduled for March 2. I think we are going to have “Jack” t-shirts made to wear that day. Let me know if you are interested in volunteering to answer phones at the station. It is BIG fun!

We are so thankful for all the many blessings in our lives, which includes each of you who continue to visit here. We are so incredibly blessed by the gift of Jack’s continued good health. We continue to pray and support others members of our neuroblastoma family who continue to fight and those familes whose precious children are dancing in the streets of heaven. We hope that you will join us. In my previous update I list several of these families and their websites. To this I would like to add www.caringbridge.org/ga/sarahw Sarah has just relapsed and we pray especially hard for them right now.

For those of you who followed Christi Thomas and her very amazing battle with NB, her legacy continues to help others. Copy and paste this article to read all about FU-NB 2006!

http://www.advertiser-tribune.com/News/articles.asp?articleID=5702

Keeping praying for a CURE!!
Love to all,
Beth

Saturday, November 18, 2006 7:23 AM CST

Good Morning..
Just a quick note to let everyone know we did make it home safely Thursday night. Then yesterday morning Jack and I left at 7:30am to head to Huntsville for a field trip to the Space Center. Today, Gus has 2 footbal games, then we are going to Murfreesboro for the McCallie state final football game. There are no signs of things slowing down anytime soon!! Needless to say I am exhausted but glad to be here!

I just wanted to thank everyone again for all the guestbook entries. You will never know how much reading those messages means to us. Just knowing how many people are praying and thinking about you is a very awesome feeling.

I wanted to give you a few more sites of kids who are pretty special to me. I know there familes would love to hear words of encouragement from you as well.

www.caringbridge.org/ga/jakemiller
(has been battling NB for a long tme and has recently gone back into treatment)

www.caringbridge.org
then type in:
CrossKubik
LillieBoyte
Hope4Noah
AustinBickford

and on Care Pages,
www.carepages.com
type in:
samfarris (this has been corrected from how it was listed here previously)

maddiessickbug

I have few more, and I will post those later. Too many kids with NB. It just makes me sad.

Much love,
Beth

Wednesday, November 15, 2006 5:24 PM CST

All Clear!!

Sorry I haven't updated all day. I got tired of lugging this computer around so I did not have it at the hospital, but we were really busy all day. Bottom line is the MIBG scan was 100 negative!! He also had a neurological exam and it was good as well. Our doctor could not be here today so we really don't know when they will want us back, but I guess it will be in six months. Jack is getting some new hearing aids in the morning. They are using a new type which works a little better for the type of hearing loss he has. After that he has a photo shoot to update the picture on the St. Jude website. http://www.stjude.org/search/0,2616,582_3161_10078,00.html

We should be on the road to home by about 10:30 or 11:00.

Thank you so much for all the guestbook entries and prayers. It is so comforting to know so many people are still praying for us.

Can't wait to get back!
Much love,
Beth

Tuesday, November 14, 2006 6:45 AM CST

4:30pm update: Well, they always keep things interesting around here. This afternoon we were back in our room at the Grizzly House and I got a message from our nurse practioner that she needed to talk to me. Of course I immediately feared the worst and began to feel nauseous. We went to the hospital right away and she called me back to the room. I asked her if she needed Jack also and she said no. I just about lost it and she assured me it wasn't bad news, and it isn't. But....the CT scan again looks like the tumor is larger, however, the MRI looks the same. The MRI is the better test so she feels like everything is OK. The MIBG test which is tomorrow morning is the best indicator of any disease. They also want Jack to have a neurological evaluation with Dr. Morris like we did last February. I know everything is OK, but I can't help but be worried. Going to Dr. Barfield's house tonight will be good. I just wish there was a way to get this residual tumor out of there! Of course, in the grande scheme of things I am just so thankful to have him. I have been with several new families and my heart just pours out to them. I know what their road ahead is like and I pray so hard that they will be back here in six years like we are meeting new families giving them they hope that we do. I feel like I could really write a lot on this subject right now so before I go too far I'll end here for now. Please just keep praying for these precious children and their families.





10:30am update: We are back in our room at The Grizzly House and Jack has been slowly recovering from his "wobble head". It has been so long since he has gotten any IV sedation that I completely forgot how entertaining it was when he woke up. He is funny even when he is not "drunk", so this is even better. By the way he loves you, in fact he loves everybody!! Later today he'll get the injection of MIBG for the scan tomorrow, then his IV will come out. Tonight we are going over to Dr. Barfield's house for dinner. We are looking forward to seeing them. I just went to the gift shop a little while ago and they have some wonderful new items for Christmas shopping. Check out www.stjude.org (the hope catalog)and if there is anything you want I can bring it back to Chattanooga and save some shipping cost. Jack wants to go check out the vending machine, so we'll update later tonight.



Good (early) Morning!!
Jack and I arrived here at 6:30am and we are waiting for him to be called back for his MRI. He will be sedated this time so he gets to go right back to sleep. He is a little bit anxious this morning because he had such a hard time with the MRI last time. He is also looking very forward to getting the IV out because it is hurting his hand a little. I'll update later when we are through.

Monday, November 13, 2006 7:16 AM CST

4:30pm update: Nurse Lee is the BOMB! One try and the IV was in. He has to leave it in until tomorrow afternoon. Then once he gets his MIBG injection it can come out. He is fine though even though he has played Mr. Pitiful and got me to cave in on a new Webkins in the gift shop. (what a surprise) We really have had a good day catching up with some old friends and meeting some new ones. Later I'll post some webpages of some kids with NB that are currently in treatment. I know their families would appreciate your prayers as well. Logan is on her way up and we are going to go to see a movie and to dinner. Jack is looking forward to seeing her.

Cindy is having a rough day so say some special prayers that God will comfort her and bring her some peace in these very sad days.

9:15 am update: Well, we've hit our first (and only, I hope) glitch. They were trying to get Jack's IV in and they had problems as usual. Then they finally did get it and it blew. He was a lot better at doing all this stuff when he was younger. They will have to try again later which he is NOT happy about. There is one nurse who always seems to have good luck with Jack so I am going to go try and find her.


Good Morning!

Jack and I got to Memphis safely last night. Our first stop was the medicine room over at the hospital to pick up a copy of our schedule. There were three nurses in there who remembered Jack when we first came here six years ago. Ron remembered how he used to wrestle with Jack and Gus and how he could pick each of them up with one arm. Not so anymore!! They just couldn't believe how tall he is now. It was great to see them! Next we checked into our room at the Grizzly House, then headed over to the Target House to visit with a family I had met on line. Their son, Sam Farris, has been recently diagnosed with NB. Sam is 10 years old and very funny. I am so glad glad we got to meet in person. Sam just had surgery to remove his tumor and the same surgeon did Jack's surgery.
Sam's webpage is www.carepages.org, then type in samfarris. I know that Jack provides a lot of hope and inspiration to families who are just starting on this journey. Since we know that good stories are harder to come by, I am always so glad to meet a new family we can help.

This morning Jack will have a CT scan and a hearing aid evaluation. Later, Logan ( a friend of Lana Beth's) is coming up from Ole Miss to see us. We are excited to see her. It will be good for her to be able to spend sometime with someone who loves LB and much as she does.

I'll write more later. They now have wi-fi in all the buildings ao I can have my computer with me during the day. This is so ccol. I would have loved to be able to make frequent updates throughout the day when we were going through treatment. Thank you so much for checking on us and for your prayers. I know that all will be good!
Love,
Beth

Friday, November 10, 2006 9:11 PM CST

Jack and I will be leaving for Memphis on Sunday. Jack will have scans Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday. We should be home Wednesday night late. Mike can’t go with us this time. Most of you know I said I’d never go alone again because we ways seem to get bad news when I do. Dr. Furman actually said we could wait until after Christmas to come, but I just can’t wait that long. I feel like I just need to get this over. I know all is well, but I just like getting that reassurance. It is so hard to believe it has been 6 years since this all began. It doesn't feel like it has been that long. It has been quite a ride of ups and downs. Our lives have been forever changed not only by our experience, but by the incredible people we have met along the way.

Tonight has been especially hard. We all miss Lana Beth so much. Friday night was my time to hang out with her while everyone else went to the football game. I really enjoyed getting to hang out with her doing “girl stuff”. I miss my blue fingernails. Please continue to keep the Webster’s in your prayers. I cannot imagine the pain they feel right now.

I’ll update from Memphis as I can.

Much love,
Beth

Friday, November 3, 2006 5:43 AM CST

This morning around 1:55 a.m. Lana Beth earned her angel wings. I can't even begin to express my pain and sorrow right now. She fought so hard until the very end. I was laying with her earlier while Jim and Cindy tried to get some rest. Not long after I layed down with her changes let us know that time was very near. She was surrounded by her very loving family when she took her first flight as God's newest angel. Please continue to pray for the Webster's. You can leave messages in Lana's guestbook.
I can't type anymore right now.

Tuesday, October 31, 2006 5:40 AM CST

We did not go to Memphis this week as originally planned. We stayed here to be with Jim, Cindy, Alan, Cole and Lana Beth. Please continue to pray for them.
www.caringbridge.org/ga/lbw

Wednesday, October 11, 2006 7:05 AM CDT

Hello and Happy Fall!
I thought I'd post a quick update for those of you who continue to check on Jack. He is doing great. We will be going to Memphis on October 30th for his scans. I always get a bit nervous around this time, but I am sure all will be good.

Jack is not the least bit happy about being at St. Jude on Halloween. However, I do not feel sorry for him at all, because Halloween is huge at St.Jude and I know he will have a good time. We were planning to actually go there this weekend for "Survivors Day". I was really looking forward to it, but with football games for Gus, baseball for Jack, and a host of other "normal" activities we decided not to go.

Please continue to pray for my very special friend, Lana Beth. You can read all about her journey at www.caringbridge.org/ga/lbw. Things are very difficult for her and her family right now.

Thanks for reading and believing in miracles.
Beth

Wednesday, June 28, 2006 5:57 AM CDT

Hello and Happy Summer!

I am happy to report all is well in our home. Jack and Gus are doing great. Our summer has been filled with many lazy days at the beach and pool. There were so many summers where swimming wasn't an option so we are having a good time.

We are not scheduled to return to Memphis until the end of October. In fact, we have to be there on Halloween which Jack is not happy about. However, Halloween at St. Jude is incredible, so I know he will have a great time.

Please continue to remember, pray for, and support those families who are bravely fighting childhood cancer. There are so many.

Much love,
Beth, Mike, Gus and Jack

Thursday, April 27, 2006 8:16 PM CDT

We are home and everything is good!!!

After all scans were completed and reviewed the word is STABLE. This is great news. I am exhausted and very happy. Our next appointment will be in 6 months. I'll write more when my brain isn't so foggy,

Thanks for all your prayers,
Much love,
Beth

Wednesday, April 26, 2006 5:26 PM CDT

Hello from Memphis!

We arrived here last night and had a wonderful dinner with Dr. Barfield and family. Jack and Dr. Barfield are planning to write a book togther. They both are very passionate about this so I am excited to see where this leads.

Jack had a MRI of his spine today. It was VERY long. He was on the table for almost 3 hours. They had only given him valium so he wasn't completely knocked out. They said he did great and did not move at all. I doubt I could have done it. The good part is that they obviously were being extremely thorough so we should have a clear picture of what is going on. From what I gather, Jack's case really has really been an attention getter. (go figure) Many doctors have been involved and some feel very passionate that there was no new growth, while others were just as passionate that there was. I just pray these scans are good!

They put an IV in and he has to keep it until after his CT scan tomorrow, but at least he only had to be stuck one time! Tomorrow will be an MIBG scan and CT scan. After that we will meet with Dr. Furman. Just please pray all is well.

Hopefeully we will be headed home in the afternoon.

I'll update soon,
Beth

Friday, April 21, 2006 11:37 AM CDT

Hello!

Tomorrow, April 22, Jack turns 8! Happy Birthday, Jack! I love you and I am so proud of you!


Birthdays are such an incredible milestone for us and we are so thankful for each of them. We leave on Tuesday to go back to Memphis to repeat his scans. Please say a little prayer that all is well and that they can definetly say that there is no growth in the residual tumor. I feel good about everything so I am not really worried, but just hearing that everything is fine will certainly relieve this huge weight I have been carrying for the past three months.

While we are there we plan to visit with Noah and his family. Noah is the little boy from Trenton who also has neuroblastoma. Amazingly, Noah's disease is stage 3 which is not very common with neuroblastoma. Normally most kids are already stage 4 by the time they diagnosed. Please keep him in your prayers. I am going to be helping his mom set up a Caring Bridge page for him while I am there.

We are spending lots of time at the baseball field these days with both Gus and Jack playing. Gus truly loves every minute of it and gives 110ercent effort. Jack is just out there for the uniform! No, seriously, Jack does enjoy it and he has a great coach who has been such a good influence on him. Thanks Coach Jimmy!

Lana Beth is going to also be having scans next week here in Chattanooga. These results will help the doctors determine what her next step should be. Please pary for good results, that there is no progression of disease.

I'll update as soon as I hear anything.

Much love to all,
Beth

Sunday, March 19, 2006 4:33 PM CST

**New pictures!! Thanks to Dodd Hartness for resizing them so they aren't monster sized!**

Hello everyone,
Thank you so much for continuing to visit here. You'll never know how much it means to us that you visit during our good times and our bad.

Jack is doing well. I am a nervous wreck and anxiously awaiting our return visit to Memphis in April. I watch him like a hawk and every little thing worries me. Last week he kept telling me he didn't feel well. Nothing really hurt, he just said he felt bad. His appetite decreased and a few other things were going on. I was very upset, but it has all passed and he is fine now.

It is with great sadness I tell you about yet another child in our area just diagnosed with neuroblastoma. His name is Noah and he is 4 years old. Originally they thought he had Wilm's Tumor, but when they took him into surgery at T.C. Thompson they found that the tumor was quite extensive and attached to his adrenal gland. They were not able to remove it. They confirmed yesterday that it is indeed neuroblastoma. Myself and two other St. Jude moms, Kelley Heard and Kelley Hartness have all been able to talk with them. They are actually related the Heard's whose son Cody lost his battle to neuroblastoma about a year before Jack was diagnosed. Noah's family has made the decision that Noah belongs at St. Jude and they will hopefully leaving for Memphis in the next day or so. He is currently recovering from surgery and as soon as he is able, they will go. This family really needs your prayers and support. They have another son who is almost 3 years old and a baby girl who is only 3 weeks old. The dad owns his own business and is not able to be away. They know the power of prayer and would appreciate your prayers.

This past Thursday and Friday, Jack, Gus and I were in Cookeville, Tn. at the Country Giant 94.7 St. Jude Radiothon. We had a great time and I just want to thank the wonderful people from that area who called in and donated. It was our biggest year yet, $92,616.00. THANK YOU to Gator and Stykman who truly love Jack and Gus and to all the staff at the Country Giant, you guys are AWESOME!!

Please remember to keep Lana Beth in your prayers as they continue to battle this beast. Her webpage once again is:
www.caringbridge.org/ga/lbw. Another little girl who I have known for a long time is Christi Thomas. Christi and Lana Beth remind me a lot of each other and they are both at a similar place in their fight against NB. Christi's story can be found at www.christithomas.com.

Thank you again for love and support,
Beth, Mike, Gus and Jack

Monday, February 27, 2006 6:39 AM CST

Good Morning!
Just a quickie update. Dr. Furman and the "Memphis Consensus" all decided that maybe nothing was actually growing after all. They just weren't all convinced, so we are scheduled to return to Memphis for scans in late April, right after Jack's 8th birthday!! I feel good about this, but I will have MANY questions when I get there!

Don't forget about the US 101 Radiothon this Thursday, March 2nd. We need lots of volunteers that day to help out so if you have any time from 6 am to 10 pm that you can answer phones, process orders, count money, etc. please let me know. I'll be there all day and Jack and I will be on air from 7pm to 10pm.

Please remember the Ransom family as they learn how to live without their precious daughter. And for the Webster family. Lana Beth continues her fight each day.(www.caringbridge.org/ga/lbw)
I love you all!
Beth

Wednesday, February 22, 2006 9:18 AM CST

I HATE THIS DISEASE!!!

I hate how neuroblastoma creeps in silently, undetected until it invades so much of a child's body. I hate how it can be so unresponsive to treatment. I hate how it can hide and lurk and wrap it's self around vital organs. I hate how just when you think you have defeated the beast it comes rushing back in. I hate that when researchers come up with new treatment options that it takes years to get them approved. I hate how for the last 5 years this disease has invaded my life, my family, and the lives of so many others.

What NB has given me however, it cannot take away. It has given me a chance to get to know some of the most incredible people God has placed on the earth. It has given strength, courage, and determination. It has given me smiles in the small miracles. It has given me faith and hope. This it cannot take away from any of us.

This week, a precious child, Emily Ransom, who was diagnosed just a few months ago, earned her angel wings. While I was not personally close with this family, we share a bond in this disease and I read their web page each day and along with many others prayed for her healing. Please join in praying for peace and comfort for her family and friends.

Next week, March 2, is the Country Cares US 101 Radiothon. Jack and I will be on air from 7pm to 10pm telling our story of hope. Please tell your friends and family to listen to US 101 that day. You will cry, you will laugh, and you will hold your own children a little tighter that night when you kiss them good night. If you are not already a Partner in HOPE I urge you to do so. Jack and I would love to hear from you.

Last night Dr. Furman met with the whole team at St. Jude and he was going to be presenting Jack's case. I hope to hear from them today. If there are any changes in our plan, I will let you know, but as of now we are planning on repeating his scans in a few weeks.

Much love,
Beth

Thursday, February 16, 2006 0:10 AM CST

Hey there,
Just a quick update. Dr. Furman believes that surgery is not needed at this time. (thank you God) He wants to re-scan him in about 6 weeks. There was no new growth within his spinal column, the new growth was along the rib. All of the lab work indicates that everything is normal. This may just be something that grows as Jack grows. Hopefully the upcomming scans will be stable.

This has just been such an awakining that this horrible disease is ever knocking on our back door.

For now we smile and thank God each and everyday for Jack's health and for all of you.

Much love,
Beth

Monday, February 13, 2006 2:22 PM CST

Hello,
Mike just spoke to Dr. Furman and we don't have much news. He looked over the scans with Dr. Kraisin, who is the doctor that handled Jack's radiation, and collectively they feel "less concerned" than they did on Thursday. Dr. Furman has not consulted with a neurosurgeon because he feels that a neurosurgeon will want to go in after it and it is just a huge surgery we have to really be careful in that decsion. Does any of this make sense??? Bottom line is, Dr. Furman will be consulting with a few more docs over the next few days and he will get back with us. So no plan as of now. I do like the words "less concerned" though.

Thanks to all of you who continue to follow Jack along this journey. Even though we are in a wonderful place and very thankful for the life that God has given us, we are constantly aware that the "beast" (aka;neuroblastoma) is never far away.

There are so many children right now in this fight. First is my dear, precious friend Lana Beth.(www.caringbridge.org/ga/lbw) PLEASE PRAY FOR THEM.
There are two other local little girls currently fighting their battles, Emily Ransom and Madison Hight. (www.caringbridge.org/visit/emilyransom and www.carepages.org, then type in: maddiessickbug) Keep them in your prayers as well.

I'll update as soon as I know more,
Much love,
Beth

Thursday, February 9, 2006 3:23 PM CST

Hi,
Jack and I are still in Memphis and we are waiting to get into MRI. I'll just cut to the chase and lay it out there. Jack has always had some residual tumor along his spine. For the past three years it has just sat there and not changed. It has now changed and has grown. We DO NOT think that it is a malignant neuroblastoma tumor. His MIBG scan is negative, but the CT scan definetly shows growth. They called in a neurologist who examined Jack and found no neurological problems. They are getting us in for an MRI this afternoon and once that is done there will be a meeting with many specialists to determine what should be done. Surgery will be risky, but if this tumor grows and compresses his spinal cord, the damage could be bad.

I had to end there because the hospital called and needed Jack to MRI right away. It is now Friday afternoon and we are home so I'll pick up where I left off.

The MRI confirmed growth of the tumor. The area that grew is the part which is not in the spinal column. That is good. Early next week a whole team of doctors and surgeons will meet to discuss Jack's case. There has always been a question as to whether or not this needed to be removed surgically. The risks of the surgery have always far outweighed the benefits. That may or may not have changed with this deveopment. So we wait to hear what they have to say. Jack said to me last night, "Can't they just cut me open and get this thing out so we don't have to deal with this anymore?" I wish it were that simple, baby.

I'll let you all know something when I do!

Beth

Wednesday, February 8, 2006 9:01 AM CST

Good Morning!
jack and I are here in Memphis. We checked in to the Grizzlies House last night. I feel a bit guilty because they are running very short on rooms and they put us in one of the suites. It has a separate living area with a refrigerator and a microwave. Very nice, but a lot of room for just the two of us. I had forgotten to make our reservations in advance, so that is why I feel guilty. After getting settled in we had dinner with Dr. Barfield and his family. It was great catching up with them. We are so lucky to have them , not only as our doctor, but as our friends.

Today Jack will have a CT scan, MIBG injection, speech consult, and an audiology appointment and various other appointments. So we should be pretty busy all day.

I'll update as I hear the good news!
Beth

Thursday, January 26, 2006 7:19 AM CST

Hmmmmm....This is Jack. I've never actually gotten to write on my own journal. This is cool. Hey, I'm about to go to Memphis for my check up. Check back here later and I'll tell you how it went.

Sunday, August 7, 2005 9:07 AM CDT

Ok, I am going to try this one more time!!

First the good news. We just returned from Memphis this week and Jack's scans looked good! At first we had a bit of a scare because the radiologist reading the CT scan indicated that she felt there were changes in that spot on his spine. However, after re-evaluating it and the MIBG scan it was confirmed that all is good. Our plan as of now is to reurn in 6 more months.

Only going to St. Jude every 6 months has given me an even greater appreciation of the hospital and the people who work there. Each time we go it is like looking at it with a new set of eyes and I continue to be in awe of what a truly amazing place it is. Last Wednesday was the start of the St. Jude to Peoria Run. Runners raise money for the PRIVILEDGE (yes, this is how they describe it) to run from Memphis, TN to Peoria, IL in the blazing heat. Talking to some the runners and hearing how commited they are to St. Jude even though they may or may not have had a family memeber who was a patient was so moving. As they met some of the children you could see the commitment to finding a cure in their faces. Marlo Thomas was there and addressed the runners as they prepared to begin. It was very moving as she spoke about her fathers dream, and now her dream, that no child should die in the dawn of life.
And for those of you who are wondering, yes, Marlo still looks good!

It has been a busy summer for The White family. Our luck for bad weather did not let us down during our trip to the Outer Banks in N.C. in June. Feeling a little cheated on our beach vacation we booked a trip to Destin in July. That was the weekend of Hurricane Dennis. Oh well, maybe next year! The rest of the summer has been filled with summer camps and hanging out with friends. We have had some fun days hanging out with the Fitzgerald's and Webster's on their boats. I have gotten boat fever and I looking to have a boat of our own by next spring.

The fall looks to be busy as ever as school gets back in session and football season has started. Yes, in a momentary lapse of insanity, both Gus and Jack are playing football. I think I really went along with it because I knew it all hinged on what Dr. Pearce said about Gus' hip. We saw him on Thursday and much to my surprise he said it would be fine. Now there was no way to get out of it!! Practice has started and Gus absolutely loves it. He really is giving 110 am really proud of him. Jack is doing great to, but doesn't exactly have the drive that Gus does. I am thinking golf may be the sport for Jack! Not that golfers aren't great atheletes, but generally running isn't required.

Mike and I are doing fine. We continued to be blessed with Mike's job at BCBST and the wonderful people he works with. I am still working on my business with Stampin' Up and I attended the national convention in Salt Lake City a few weeks ago.

I know it has been a long time since I updated and I am sorry about that for those of you who continue to check on us and keep us in your prayers. I think I really have a hard time updating because we are doing so well. As you may expect I am always in constant contact with the world of childhood cancer. There are so many families intrenched in this battle. So many families hurting, scared, and exhausted. So many families I have met along the way whose children have earned their angel wings and I learn of more and more each day. There is such a thing as survivors guilt and I guess I am experiencing some of it. I don't know why Jack has survived. I don't know why so many of the mother's I know visit their childrens graves each week and I don't. I ask so often, are we leading the lives that God has so generously given us? The line between life and death is so very thin. Upon our return from Memphis I got the newsletter from the Ronald McDonald House in Memhpis. In each issue they list the names of the children who have passed away since the previous issue. I was quite shocked and saddened to see the name of a little boy who was there when we were. You see, I had just seen them in January. They were also back for their 6 month check up and all had been going well. But unlike us, they found that his tumor had returned. They began radiation treatments and they went home for a quick weekend trip. It was on that visit home he earned his angel wings. Within 2 weeks of my seeing them that families lives were devastated. Please, and I know I have said this before, don't let ANY day go by that you do not live to its fullest and thank God for each and every day with your loved ones.

As I talk about other families there is one special family who I hold very dear to me. Please keep Jim and Cindy Webster in your prayers. Pray that God will lead them in the right direction and help them clearly see the decisions they must make regarding Lana Beth's care. Currently they are considering a transplant option at St. Jude. Dr. Barfield is currently working with them and St. Jude has begun the process to find a donor from the National Bone Marrow Registry. If you are not already on it (and if you are reading this I am sure you are!) please get on this list and encourage all you know to do so also. The transplant is experimental and very new in children with neuroblastoma. They are nearing the end of options available to them so I ask again that you pray for them.

On a positive note, while we were in Memphis we were joined by the Patton's, Eric, Tameria and their new precious baby daughter, Scarlett. They returned from China with Scarlett in April and she is beautiful and doing great. I really am going to try to get a picture of her added here. They are doing great, and while they will always have great sorrow for loss of Olivia, Scarlett is such a joy and blessing and the baby sister I know Olivia picked especially for her parents.

May God bless each of you and your families,
love,
Beth

Friday, July 8, 2005 9:30 AM CDT

Oh no! I just sat here for two hours and wrote a VERY long update. Somehow when I tried to correct a spelling error before adding it to the page I lost it. I don't have time to re-do it now, but I promise I will in the next few days so please check back soon.
Beth

Saturday, January 1, 2005 6:10 AM CST

Happy New Year!!

Can you believe it is 2005???? I can't. This year will mark many milestone for our family. Gus will turn 10 this year, Jack will turn 7 and Mike and I will both turn...well, let's just say we'll be saying good bye to our 30's. While those are great milestones to celebrate the biggest one this year will mark Jack's survival 5 years post diagnosis. Truly a miracle. Sometimes I still can't believe it. As I look back on what Jack and our family has been through it seems so surreal. I look at Jack and I see a wonderful, normal, healthy six year old little boy. How could he have been through so much and not have physical signs? Then I see his zest for life, his tenacity, his ability to win someone over with a simple smile. It is then that I see the boy that God wanted him to become.

(I have to finish this entry later)

Wednesday, October 6, 2004

I am sorry I haven't updated sooner. Jack and I got back from Memphis and two days later I left for New York to be with Cindy and Lana Beth for the first week of her second round of antibody therapy. More about that in a minute.

Jack's visit was good! The reports still show "spots" (actually called tumors on the reports but I don't like to use that nasty word)in netween his vertabrae at T7 and T8 and extending into his spinal column. There is also a "spot" on his chest wall. These have remain virtually unchanged in over a year. The concensus is that the "spots" are dead or begnin. However, we must continue to watch closely. They have set our return visit for the end of January. So the news is great and we are so thankful.

As I said earlier I just returned from New York. Please remember to keep Lana Beth in your prayers. Her website is www.CaringBridge.org/ga/lbw.
The antibody treatment is very painful. It is horrible to endure and to watch. Even though they do the best they can to try to control the pain with medication, it is still horrible and most of the children scream in pain. I thankful that we did not go through this with Jack, however I pray that this will lead to curing this nasty disease once and for all.

Check back in November. As we approach our 4 year anniversary of diagnosis I will be writing about how our lives have been impacted by our experiences over the past four years.

As always, May God bless each of you who visit here and those you love,
Beth

Thursday, July 29, 2004 6:40 AM CDT

Hello to all our friends!

Jack is doing great. We have had a good summer and we are not ready for school to start back so soon. Gus is scheduled to get his cast off this Friday. If he does we are going to be swimming a lot next week so pray it doesn't rain. Our next trip to Memphis is September 20th.

Many of you know about my dear little friend Lana Beth who also has neuroblastoma. I am now keeping a Caring Bridge page for her. She is currently in relapse treatment and as a favor to her family I am keeping this for them right now. Please keep her in your prayers and check out her page at: www.caringbridge.org/ga/lbw

Much love to you all,
Beth

Thursday, June 3, 2004 3:15 PM CDT

Hello!!

We just got the good news that his scans are all stable!! Hooray!! Now we can breathe again. We won't be coming back for another 4 months.

Jack does have a virus though. (It always happens when we come here) He has been running a fever and has a rash so we have been staying in the room most of the time. We hope to get to a Memphis Redbirds game tonight if he is feeling better.

Saturday is "Survivor Day" here at St. Jude. We are so excited to be able to take part in this day. I don't know why Jack has survived and so many of the others we started with have not. I know that we all must continue to work and pray that someday all the children here will be survivors.

Good Bless each of you!!
Beth

Sunday, May 30, 2004 7:16 AM CDT

Good Morning!

Ahhh....summertime. The Gus and Jack are out of school. We have a few trips planned but other than that we plan to have a lazy summer at the swimming pool. Since Jack got his "buddy" (central line) out this fall this will be the first summer he can swim.

Oh but wait, let's back up to the last day of school. The phone rings. It is the school secretary. Gus is hurt, please come. As I run in the gym I see Gus on the floor. I expect that he has hurt his hip and all will be well after I tend to him. "No, it is his arm", they say. They remove the cloth covering his arm and Mom just about passes out. Yes, Gus has fratured his forearm. Two weeks before the cast can be put on, 6 to 8 weeks in a cast, and another two weeks after that in a splint. The way I see it we should be finished with all this the week after school starts back.

To tell you the truth I don't know if I should laugh or cry. I have done a little of both.

We are going to Memphis tommorrow. Jack will have his routine scans all this week. I will try to update as I can. I am not going to take my computer, but there are some available at The Grizzly House where we are staying. Please pray all is well. There have been so many kids I know relapse lately.

I pray all of you are doing well. Thanks you for continuing to check on us and keeping us in your prayers.

Much love,
Beth

Tuesday, April 20, 2004 12:28 AM CDT

JACK WILL BE 6 ON THURSDAY, APRILL 22!!!

I can't believe it!!

His e-mail address is: scooterjack422@aol.com if you would like to send him a birthday greeting!!

Thanks,
Beth

Thursday, April 1, 2004 1:35 PM CST

Hello to all who still come to check on us.

We are doing great. Jack is busy playing baseball. His team, The Mudcats, won the pre-season tournament and are so far undefeated. He is having a wonderful time. We worked it out so that the Gus can play also. His team is the Sea Dogs. He is playing catcher and he has a designated runner. It has been great and he is so excited to be able to participate. Gus' last x-rays showed just a very small amount of new bone growth. We will re-check at the end of the summer. I really debeated whether or not I should let him play baseball, but he really isn't running and it is his passion.

St. Jude is gearing up for the 2004 Dream House which will be given away in June. (I think) So start watching for a chance to win that beautiful home. Wouldn't that be great to win?

I have two special friends who are once again facing the beast we call neuroblastoma. These are two increbily beautiful little girls, Lana Beth and Emma Grace. Please keep them both in your prayers. Relapse is so hard but their faith is strong and with the help of our prayers I know they can once again be cancer free.

I guess you realized I never figured out that picture thing!! I have tried and tried. I'll keep working til I get it though.

HAPPY SPRING!

Much love to you all,
Beth

Wednesday, March 3, 2004 9:10 AM CST

Good Morning!

I just wanted to thank everyone who tuned in last week to the US 101 Country Cares St. Jude Radio-thon. We raised $313,000!!! Incredible. It was a great day. It is also a very emotional day. I went back and read my journals from when this all started. Sometimes it seems like such a blur. Like I certainly couldn't have lived through all that. Jack has no idea what he has accomplished in such a short life. Sometimes I wish he understood the magnatude of it all, but on second thought, he is bad enough now. If he really understood it all he would be impossible to live with! :)

Jack is doing great. He is working with a speech teacher to help him with the speech problems he has developed as a result of his hearing loss. He refuses to wear his hearing aids, but I am praying that he will start to wear them as he gets older. I think we are all loosing our hearing from the radio and TV being so loud.

Gus has another appointment with the orthopedic doctor next week. Please pray that we see some good bone growth. As baseball season approaches he is really having a hard time realizing that another season is going to come and he won't be able to play.

If you are in the Cookeville area Thursday or Friday, make sure to tune into 94.7 the Country Giant for their Country Cares Radio-thon. I'll be hanging out with them on Thursday
and some on Friday afternoon. These guys do an awesome job up there and I am looking forward to being a part of it.

I am really working hard on getting those new pictures posted. I thought I had it all figured out. I am going to try to find someone to help me today. So check back soon for some new pics!

Love to you all,
Beth, Mike, Jack and Gus

Monday, February 23, 2004 9:56 AM CST

Hello!

I pray all is well with those who visit here. I just wanted to let you know that I am scheduled to be on the air at 4pm tomorrow for the St. Jude US 101 Radio-Thon. I am not sure how long I will be on, but at least until 7 pm. So please listen and call in.

Thanks,
Beth

Saturday, February 14, 2004 7:30 AM CST

I'm sorry!!!! I know I should have updated way before now.

Jack's MIBG scan showed "stable disease". He still continues to have the spot near his spine that lights up. I told the doctors I really didn't like the term "stable disease" and until they could tell me "NO DISEASE" they were going to have to change the terminology. Well, knowing that I always try to re-invent the wheel, we agreeed on "stable images". So, correction, we have "stable images". Sounds much better don't you think? :)

So, the good news is that Jack is doing great. We do not have to go back to Memphis until the first of June for a check up. Also, on June 5, we have been invited to attend the "Survivor's Day" celebration. This is our first and I pray there are many more to come.

St. Jude has recently added video of Jack's story from the Discovery Health Channel show to their website. I'll post the address at the end of this message. And speaking of St. Jude, we are getting ready for the US-101 radiothon on Feb. 24. They have asked me to be a part of the radio-thon once again. I think I will be on in the mid-day time slot, but I'll confirm that later. I have heard some of the new patient stories they will be playing this year and they are wonderful. From completely heart wrenching (Molly's story) to incredibly inspirational. Please tune in if you can.

The web address is: http://www.stjude.org/solid-tumor-parents/0,3898,835_4604_9977,00.html



Love you all, Happy Valentine's Day
Beth

Thursday, January 29, 2004 1:47 PM CST

Jack's MIBG scan is finished and he did great!! He had to lay still for about two hours and he just did awesome. They let him watch the countdown timer on the clock so he got plenty of math practice in. (I wrote this especially for his teacher, Mrs. Behler) I know that he does not have to have another scan tomorrow. I am back in the room packing up so we can come home. Mike is at the hospital still trying to get the results of the scan. I am assuming all was good, but I don't know for sure. The waiting is so hard. It just really gets to me. I go through phases were I handle it better, but this isn't one of them.

I better go so I am ready when they get back.
Thank you for all your prayers.
Beth

Wednesday, January 28, 2004 3:49 PM CST

Hi, it has been a long rough day, but we have good news so far. There was no change on Jack's MRI. (Thank you God)Jack had to have an IV put in and it was not easy. It required three different sticks from three different people. Jack was great through it all though. He continues to amaze me how strong and brave he is. At one point I think I was crying as hard as he was. We went ahead and had them pull it out today and we are praying that he will be able to lie still for his MIBG scan tommorrow so he won't have to go through this again. Of course it was a pretty lucrative day for Jack. Mike wound up giving him $40.00 because he was so good for all he went through. Anyway, we are tired but relieved. In just a few minutes we are going to a private screening of a new video which will be on the St. Jude website featuring Jack. It has a lot of the footage from the Discovery Channel Show and some new pictures so we are anxious to see it. The Grizzley House where we are staying now is awesome. They have really done a great job and it is so nice that there are only St. Jude families staying here.

I heard a statistic today that is unbelieveable. In the past few months there have been about 700 new patients. Please keep these families and children in your prayers. I know that they are getting the best care they can get but they need your prayers.

Hopefully we will head home tomorrow night. I'll update with any new info.
Love from Memphis,
Mike, Beth, and Jack

Tuesday, January 27, 2004 11:20 AM CST

We're off! Mike, Jack and I will be leaving soon for Memphis. Jack is scheduled for an MRI at 7:00am on Wednesday, then his MIBG scans on Thursday and Friday. All of our scan times are early so hopefully there won't be much waiting around. I will post results as soon as I can. I doubt that I will know anything until Thursday but hopefully we will hear something tommorrow. Pray that we don't run into any bad weather. I hear it is snowing in Nashville right now.

Much love and peace to all who continue to follow us on this journey.

Beth

Thursday, January 22, 2004 8:27 AM CST

Hello to all.

Mike, Jack and I will be leaving for Memphis Tuesday morning and expect to return by Friday. Please send up those extra prayers that all scans are good. This will be the first time that Jack has to have an IV put in since he does not have his central line anymore and he is already upset about it. I am sure the anticipation will be much worse than it actually is. As always I will post reults as I get them.

Also, just wanted to tell you that the tickets for the St. Jude Dream Home are on sale at the north Georgia branches of Rossville Bank and Gateway Bank. The house is valued at over $300,000 so get your tickets soon.

Check in back in next week for the GREAT results!!

Love to you all,
Beth

Monday, December 29, 2003 7:36 AM CST

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!

Christmas was wonderful at our home and I pray it was the same with you. This was our fourth Christmas since Jack's diagnosis and the first that we have had true peace. Jack and Gus had a great time and we were able to enjoy the day with family and friends.

Health wise everyone is doing really well. Jack did get his central line removed in October and we don't miss it at all. When we go back to Memphis in January I am sure it will be quite traumatic because it will be the first time he will have to get "stuck". Hopefully they will just put in an IV line so he'll only have to go through it once. I of course get very nervous everytime he has any ache or pain. I haven't gotten to the point where I believe he could possible have anything "normal".

Gus is hanging in there. His leg continues to hurt and he still limps quite a bit. The last time we were at his doctor the x-ray did show a little bit of new bone growth. We will go back in February and we hope to see more improvement. He has REALLY gotten into football (he follows all the stats and drives me crazy with it). It is pitiful to see him out there hobbling around trying to play, but he never gives up. Gus played Santa Claus the their school play this year. He did a great job and it was really a boost for him.

Mike and I are fine. We just celebrated our 10 year wedding anniversary. We can hardly believe it has been 10 years since that beautiful warm day in Key West where we were surrounded by family and friends to say, "I do". Now you know where our e-mail address comes from. KeyWest12@aol, we got married in Key West in December. Corny, I know, but I had to think of something.

Please keep Eric and Tameria Patton (Olivia's Mom and Dad) in your prayers. It has been a little over two years since Olivia passed away and even though their hearts ache everyday they have managed to be able to go on and are in the process of trying to adopt a baby girl from China. I am so excited for them. Eric and Tameria are incredible parents and this new little girl will have a very wonderful family.

We want to wish each of you a very happy, HEALTHY, and prosperous New Year. We love you all and there is no way we could have come this far without you. We will be returning to Memphis the end of January. Closer to the time I will let you know the exact dates.

May God bless you and your families,
Mike, Beth, Gus, Jack, and Precious

Friday, December 19, 2003 6:31 AM CST

Hello,
I know there are some of you still checking on us frequently and I have driven you crazy since I have not posted anything in such a long time. I just wanted to say to check back soon. I don't have much time now, but I will be posting an update over the weekend. Bottom line is we are all doing great. Jack is fantastic and truly our Christmas miracle.

Please check back, Much love, Beth

Friday, October 31, 2003 6:07 AM CST

Happy Halloween!!

We are home!! Yesterday went great and right after Jack's MIBG scan which was stable, they removed his central line (buddy). It went amazingly well. Jack didn't make a sound. He is so proud of himself. We got to keep his line and he went around the hospital before we left showing it to everyone. We are just bursting with happiness. I can not describe to you what it feel like to hug my child after almost three years with that line. Just awesome!!

I have much more I want to say, but no time right now. So check back soon.

We have pumpkins to carve and costumes to get ready.

Praise God.
Love,
Beth

Wednesday, October 29, 2003 2:22 PM CST

Drum Roll please...............................

The results of the MRI are in and there have been no changes since August!!! (Actually longer really, but we are counting since being off treatment completely) This is great news. Tommorrow will be his MIBG scan and they have ordered it to be read STAT and if all is good there they are going to try to pull his central line while he is still sedated. I really feel like I am in shock. I have dreamed of the day that they would take his line out and I can't believe it may happen tommorrow. They will put us on a schedule to repeat scans every 3 months. Just 8 days shy of three years when this whole journey began. We know it is not over yet and that this horrible monster could come back at anytime, but we are so incredibly thankful for this time. I just wish it was the same for all the children here.

Jack wants to play the computer now, so I have to run. Hopefully we will be coming home tommorrow night.

Thank you for all your love and prayers.
The White Family

Monday, October 27, 2003 6:30 AM CST

Good Morning!!

On the road again.....Just can't wait to get on the road again.....

We will leave for Memphis in the morning. Jack is scheduled for an MRI at 1:00 tommorrow. It should be a lovely morning as he will not be able to have anything to eat or drink prior to his test. And when Jack can't eat..nobody eats. So 6 hours in the car with him should be a lot of fun. Anyone want to go??

I am really looking forward to seeing what is going on. It has been a long time since I knew exactly what all his counts were. Jack is actually excited about going too!

Well, I'll update as I can. KEEP THOSE PRAYERS GOING!

Much Love,
Beth

Tuesday, September 30, 2003 2:35 PM CDT

Hello!!

Just in case anyone is checking in, I thought I'd let you know what is going on in the White family. We are doing great. Jack loves school and is so eager to go each morning. He is gaining weight and actually starting to look like part of this family. He has always been the only skinny one!! Gus loves school also and we are seeing some slight improvement in his leg. He doesn't seems to have as much pain anymore. Me? I am really enjoying seeing my two boys trotting off to school just like normal children should. Do I miss Jack during the day? Sure I do, but I know he is in a wonderful place with a teacher who loves him as much as I do. Plus, I can go visit anytime I want.
Mike is fine. Driving me crazy as always, but you gotta love him!

Our schedule with St. Jude has changed. (what a surprise!) So I am not sure of the dates we are going yet. Part of me never wants to go back, yet I am anxious to go to make sure all is well. As soon as I know I will post it.

I love you all. Thank you for taking your time to keep up and pray for Jack.

Beth

Friday, August 22, 2003 7:18 AM CDT

Good Morning!

We arrived home late last night. We didn't get the final word on everything until right before we left so I didn't have time to fill you in. The news is good. All his scans have remained stable. No changes seen at all. His bone marrow looks good. There are decreased platelet pre-cursors, but we expected that. They were actually looking to make sure he didn't have any signs of leukemia and he didn't. So...............Now what? Well, Dr. Furman has decided that the best thing for Jack is to take a break from it all and to give his body a couple of months to build back up. He wants us to come back in November for an MRI and MIBG scan and from there we will decide what to do further. While I am very glad that Jack can do this, it is also a little like making an addict (me) quit cold turkey. I have to admit I am having somewhat of a hard time with this. He doesn't even want us to have rountine lab work. After almost three years of knowing what my childs counts are to stopping will be strange. He still has one spot that may be active, or it may not be. Going to the doctor is what I do. I feel it is who I have become. I welcome the break though and just like anything it will be a period of adjustment. It is sort of like what I was taught growing up Catholic, what I envision pergatory or limbo to be. You are really glad you are not in Hell, but you aren't in Heaven either. Stuck in the middle, a waiting game. So wait we will and we will enjoy this time. Both children in school full time and no doctor visits. Lunch anyone???

So with all that it mind I have also decided to take a break from adding new entries to this web page. If something changes I will of course post a message, but as of now there will be no new messages until before we go back the first of November. Now I know you all are heartbroken, (LOL) so if you just don't think you can make it without my dose of wit and wisdom (or rather to know how Jack is doing) please feel free to e-mail me and I will fill you in.

I can not tell you how much each of you mean to me. I could not have traveled this road without the love, support, and prayers from each and every one of you. You are so precious. We are so thankful that our Lord, God Almighty, has brought us to this place. That He has seen us through the storm and is allowing us this peace. Please continue to pray that Jack will remain stable and that there be no re-occurance. Praise Him and thank Him everyday for all of His many blessings in your life.

We love you,
Beth, Mike, Gus, Jack and Precious

Wednesday, August 20, 2003 6:57 AM CDT

Good Morning.

No news yet. Jack had the bone marrow aspiration test yesterday and has his MRI this morning. Hopefully we will hear something this afternoon. His counts did go up though which is good. We are all doing fine. Ready to come home!!
Beth

Monday, August 18, 2003 5:57 AM CDT

Good Morning!!

I really can't believe that I am getting ready to take Jack to his first day of kindergarten. I am so excited. This is such a huge day for us. A day I never thought I would see. God has blessed us in so many ways and I am especially thankful for today. Jack is actually nervous about going. We are leaving for St. Jude right after school and last night he asked me if we could just go to the hospital instead of school. I am glad he is so comfortable at the hospital and he thinks of it as a "safe" place, but I am sad because he really has a different view on the world. Please pray that all goes well for us this week. I will update as soon as we know anything.

Also, there is a young girl who is a freshman at GPS this year who we just found out has relapsed. She and her mom were the first people we met in the world of childhood cancer. They were at the clinic here in Chattanooga the first day we went there and they hugged us and told us it would be OK and about their sucess story. I have not asked permission to give her name, however God knows who she is. They left for Memphis yesterday and I will check on them when we get there. Please keep this family in your prayers as well.

May the love of God be with you this day and always,
Beth

Monday, August 11, 2003 6:26 PM CDT

Just one more day of summer vacation!!!!! Yeah!!
No, actually I am sad that school starts on Wednesday. The summer has flown by so fast. I am glad for Gus because we haven't been able to do much this summer so getting back to school will be good for him. I must say though that we have played alot of board games. Aggravation has been our top favorite. If you haven't played this classic game in a long time it is a great family game. So Gus goes to school Wednesday and God willing Jack will attend his first day at CSLA on Monday. Right after school, however, we will be leaving for Memphis. No matter what might happen there I will be happy that he made it to kindergarten. Jack's counts are remaining pretty low and his white blood count just isn't coming up. They have added a bone marrow aspiration to our previously scheduled scans. They want to make sure he doesn't have disease in his marrow. I am a little (OK, alot) worried. Mike will go with me and Gus will stay here. We should be back by Friday. Mike tells me not to worry so much. How is it that men don't worry at all??? Anyway, I'm off to plan our "Last Day of Summer" activites. Keep us in your prayers as we pray for all who visit here.
Much love,
Beth

Wednesday, July 30, 2003 5:49 AM CDT

Hello to all our faithful friends who check for updates daily!!

No real new news (which is good). Jack was supposed to start another round of chemo (topotecan) this week, but his platelets are really low so we are unable to start until they come up. He required a transfusion of both blood and platelets on Monday this week and we will check him again on Thursday. Our goal with the oral chemo was for him not to need transfusions and to have as much of a "normal" life as possible. Since that isn't working I don't know what we are going to do. I am expecting them to alter his dose of chemo and see how that works. We are scheduled to be in Memphis on August 20th for scans.

Jack's first day of kindergarten will be August 18th. we are so excited!! It is a milestone that is a huge for us. Please keep those prayers going that all will be good with his scans so that he can go for more than just one day!

Gus is doing OK. He has been so happy to off the crutches, but in doing more he is having a lot of pain. He is such a trooper though and doesn't complain much but I can see it on his face when he hurts.

There are a few children that we have met along this journey I like to call HELL that really need some prayers. Joey Falzone, who we met at CHOP, has a very serious lung infection and is on a ventilator fighting day by day for his life. Joey is 6 years old. Lance, a boy from our Neuroblastoma list, is dying a very slow and painful death and his family asks for prayers for his passing so that his pain and suffering can be ended.

Sorry to leave you on a down note, but I know what wonderful prayer people we have out there and these families really need you.

WE LOVE YOU ALL AND SO DOES GOD!!

Beth

Wednesday, July 16, 2003 6:18 AM CDT

Happy Wednesday!

Someone wrote in a post on our Neuroblastoma site yesterday that "normal" was only a setting on the washing machine. I have to say I agree. But things are pretty "normal" around here for us. Jacks counts on Monday were stable. He did get both blood and platelets last week. We have to check him again tomorrow to make sure he won't need anything for the weekend.

I took Gus to the doctor yesterday and his x-rays look HORRIBLE. Even my untrained eye could see that there was a big problem. HOWEVER, this is good. It seems that his body is in the process of absorbing the dead bone which will make way for the new bone to grow. Believe it or not, Dr. Pearce said he does not have to be on crutches anymore except for during times he is in pain. This is good news because we did not want him to have to
go back to school on crutches.

So, we proceed as "normal" and enjoy life to its fullest!!

A sidenote: DO NOT purchase the Rugrats Go Wild Soundtrack CD for your children. We bought it after seeing the movie and one song in particular has very inappropriate lyrics. I am very upset by this, but mostly saddened that this is what our children are being exposed to even when we think we are buying things that should be appropriate.

Love to you all,
Beth

Tuesday, July 8, 2003 8:25 AM CDT

Good Morning!!

Sorry for the long delay in updating. All is good here. I had a great trip to Chicago and met many other wonderful parents fighting this same damn disease. It was very empowering to be all together. The doctors that presented were wonderful and hopefully some good contacts were made.

Jack is doing good even though we had a bit of a scare on the 4th. For some reason we could not get Jack to wake up. He slept until almost noon at which point I made him wake up. Within 20 minutes he was back alseep. I woke him up again and he fell back to sleep again. For those of you who know Jack personally this is exteremly out of the ordinary. I took him to the ER to have his counts checked. All was fine (for him) and after sleeping on the way home from the hospital he has been a live wire ever since. We are not sure if it was a reaction to the Topotecan that he is on now or just pure exhaustion. Mike said he is like a nuclear sub and every five years just has to go in to have his core recharged. I guess that was it!

Gus is doing OK. He is still having a lot of pain with his leg and I am really worried that it isn't healing. He just doesn't seem any better. We will be going back to Dr. Pearce on the 15th and I will be very surprised if he lets Gus walk on his own.

Louise, the girl from France, left last week. We were sad top see her go. It was nice to have a "daughter" around the house. She had a great time here and hopes to be able to come back next summer. We hope too!!

Other than that we are looking forward to a peaceful end to the summer. Next weekend Jack is to the ring bearer in Mike's 2nd cousins wedding. Look for details to follow. I am sure there will be a story to tell.

May God's love and mercy shine upon you today and forever,
Much love,
Beth

Thursday, June 26, 2003 9:31 PM CDT

Hi...this is dad reporting. Beth is in Chicago at the neuroblastoma conference & since I was the parent in Memphis I will give the report (my first) !

Jack's counts are good & stable. His energy level is through the roof. We had 2 tests this week, an MRI and a 24 hour MIBG. Basically the report from his primary oncologist went something like this:

The radiologist reported the MRI was very stable with perhaps what might be interpreted to some degree as improvement. In his 20 years in oncology he said he had never seen the radiology experts use the phrase "possible maturity", which means that we might be dealing with the more defined and benevolent (i.e. non-malignant) version of neuroblastoma, known as ganglioneuroma. There is no way to tell without biopsy and even if we did biopsy I, being the dad, have learned over the past 2 & 1/2 years that whatever we found ...be it neuroblastoma or ganglioneuroma or a mix (because we might withdrawal a biased sample)that the decision on how to approach it would more than likely be the very same, so why risk the consequences of a biopsy. The MIBG scan was still hot meaning the MIBG still has an affinity for this area & reflects that by lighting up on imaging....this result would also be possible for both neuroblastoma and/or ganglioneuroma. The MIBG did appear to have decreased in its intensity to some degree from the last scan, however it is a very ill-defined image and not a lot of detail can be interpreted, (it either lights up or it doesn't). Bottom line...something is there that shouldn't be but it looks better than it did !!! Good news is what it sounds like to me !! Thanks for your interest, love & prayers....Jack's dad.

Wednesday, June 25, 2003 6:39 AM CDT

Good Morning.

Mike and Jack had a very long day day yesterday, but they survived. They left here around 7:00 am and didn't get finished at the hospital until after 7:00 pm. He had his MRI yesterday and will have his MIBG scan today. If he doesn't require a 2nd MIBG scan tomorrow, they may be home late tonight. They will be exhausted I'm sure!!

I do not know any results as of yet!!

On Saturday, St. Jude will be giving away the Dream Home during a live telethon which is on Channel 12, I believe from 1:00pm to 3:00 pm. Jack will be drawing the winning ticket! Can you imagine spending just $100.00, helping St. Jude and winning a brand new house in Windstone? There are still tickets available so if you haven't gotten yours you should do so right away!!

I'll update with results as soon as I hear from Mike. I'll probably just add them as a P.S. to this page so if you check back later, make sure to scroll down to the bottom to check for new info.

God loves you and so do I!!
Have a GREAT day,
Love, Beth

Monday, June 23, 2003 6:35 AM CDT

Hello from back at home.

First, all of Damon's MRI's came back negative so far. They are going to repeat one more just to make sure but all seems to be clear. Thank you for your prayers!

Mike and Jack will be leaving tommorrow morning for Memphis to repeat scans. I am going to a Neuroblastoma conference in Chicago on Thursday. I hate not going to Memphis with Jack. It will drive me crazy while they are gone, but it is really important that I go to this conference as well. Please pray for their safe travel and for clean scans. If all looks good we will continue our course of the oral chemo. Jack seems to have handled this second course really well. I will be taking him in the morning to have his counts checked, but after 2 1/2 years of doing this, I can tell if he is low just about as well as the lab can and I think he is doing well.

We had a great time on vacation and have really enjoyed having Louise with us. The washer and dryer are calling my name so I must go. I'll update as I can with any results on Jack. Thank you for all of your prayers once again. I know that it is only through the love and grace of our Lord God that we have come this far. We praise Him and love Him.

Beth

Friday, June 20, 2003 8:54 AM CDT

Hi, we are still in Myrtle Beach, but I have an urgent prayer request. Mike's newphew, Damon, has been complaining of shoulder pain. Doctors ordered an x-ray, then immediately sent him for an MRI. We do not have any results as of yet, however the doctor did mention different types of tumors when talking with Damon's mom, Wendy. I do not have any more information than that right now. We are very scared and ask that you join with us in prayer that the results come back with good news.

Thank you,
Love,
Beth, Mike, Gus, Jack

Thursday, June 12, 2003 6:25 AM CDT

Good Morning!

All is well around the White household and I pray that all is well with your families as well. Louise arrived from France last Friday and we have been busy showing her around town and life with an American family. Someone said to us that we were anything but "typical" but I feel we are all a bit dysfunctional aren't we? We are getting along great and have really enjoyed learning about French customs as well. On Saturday we are heading to the beach for a week.
Jack is doing well, counts are remaining low, but high enough that we don't have to be isolated. It is just that his platelets are so low and he is an active little boy and the bruises on his legs are many. I tell people I don't beat him, really, but there are times I think about it though! :)
Gus is really tired of his crutches and I have been catching him without them more and more. I guess the pain is very minimal now so he doesn't think he needs them.

As soon as we return home from the beach, Mike and Jack are going to Memphis for more scans to see how these first two rounds of chemo have effected him. I am going to a Neuroblastoma conference in Chicago and Gus and Louise will be here. I kills me not to go to Memphis with Jack, however, this conference is important too and I know Daddy will take good care of him.

Everyone is still sleeping and I am going to go take advantage of my quiet time.

Be good. We love you,
Beth

Saturday, May 31, 2003 7:08 AM CDT

I can't believe how long it has been since I posted. Isn't that GREAT!! It actually means that all is well and there isn't much going on here. Jack needed both a blood and platlet transfusions last week but his counts were good this week. He starts back on two weeks of chemo on Monday. (yuck) Gus is doing good. Getiing a bit tired of the crutches but all in all is doing well. I am so glad school is out. It has been great having both boys at home. Give me a few weeks and I'm sure I'll be yearning for that first day of school, but right now we are enjoying it. Next Friday we have a girl from France coming to stay with us for a few weeks. Her name is Louise. She is 13 years old and we are really excited. She will be here to help me with the boys and to experience life with an American family. Do you think she knows what she has gotten herself into with this family??? Hopefully it won't be a tour of American hospitals! We are planning to go to the beach in June and really looking forward to it.

I am so very thankful for this time we are having but I remind you that not all St. Jude families are doing the same. Many of our friends are having difficult times. Please keep these families in your prayers.

May God keep you and bless you.
We love you,
Beth, Mike, Gus, Jack and Miss Precious

Thursday, May 22, 2003 2:35 PM CDT

Hello,
This weeks things are going well. I had a truly awesome weekend last weekend at Via de Cristo. This is a 3 day intensive study on Christian living. Some other denominations call it Tres Dias. It was great and exactly what I needed. They host this three times a year, so if there is anyone who is looking to experience a closer walk with our Lord I'd be happy to tell you about the next weekend in October.

I was pulled right back into "mommy mode" on Monday with a call from school that Gus had a stomach virus. Then Jack started running a slight fever and I was really worried that we would be in the hospital later that night, but it returned to normal. We had Jack's counts checked Tuesday and he is a little low so we are going back tomorrow. I won't be surprised if he needs platlets because he had a nose bleed today.

Tommorrow night is Jack's "graduation" from pre-school. I can hardly believe it. I remember sitting at Gus' crying not only because I was proud of him, but I never thought I would be going to Jack's. It will truly be a blessed night.

Gus is managing well on his crutches and in true Gus fashion, he doesn't complain. I am not really sure what we are going to be doing with our time this summer, but I have to admit I wouldn't mind being a little bored.

I pray that each of you have a wonderful, SUNNY, happy weekend.

God loves you and so do I.
Beth

Thursday, May 15, 2003 12:09 AM CDT

Hello,
I just have a minute before I have to be off again, but I just wanted to give you a quick update. As usual there is never a dull moment at the White house. Gus' x-rays on Tuesday revealed a fracture of his femer. We are not sure when he did this, but I know it started hurting worse on Easter Sunday. He must be completely non-weight bearing for the next 8 WEEKS!!!! This means on crutches or in a wheelchair. He is totally upset about spending the summer like this and frankly so am I. Of course Dr. Pearce said, "Oh, but he can still go swimming which will be great for him." Great. Jack can do everything but go swimming. I think I'm about about to rip my eyelashes out!

Oh well, as with all our trials and tribulations, this we will overcome.

I am off for what I hope is a truly wonderful spirtual weekend. Check on Mike and the boys. I hate to leave them now, but I know they are in good hands.

Love, Beth

Tuesday, May 13, 2003 11:13 AM CDT

Hello!

Happy Belated Mother's Day! I hope you all had as wonderful of a day as I did. Mike surprised me with breakfast in bed (along with Jack, Gus and Precious)and then to lunch at Sushi Nabe where Gus and actually ate food without ketchup!! I was so excited.

The first week of chemo went great. Jack is being such a trooper about taking it. He has even reminded me a few times that he needs to take it if I have forgotten. He takes it this week then has a rest for two weeks. We'll check his counts this afternoon to see how it is effecting him.

Gus has been having a LOT of pain with his hip so we are going to the Ortho doc this afternoon also. Gus has also started seeing the orthodontist and we have been having weekly appointments there. I have read all current magazines if anyone needs to know anything. :)

Mike's 38th B-Day is tommorrow! I am going on a church retreat weekend, leaving Thursday and returning Sunday. Mike is taking both Gus and Jack on an Indian Guides camping trip. (Please pray for them!!)

Have a great weekend,
Love,
Beth

Tuesday, May 6, 2003 6:54 AM CDT

Good Morning.

Is this rain ever going to stop?? What a change from the wonderful weekend we spent at the beach! I chose the sunshine theme today hoping it will bring back the sun.

I just wanted to let you know that we are back and day 1 of chemo went well. He hates the taste but he did very well. For those with boys in the 5 to 10 age group you will inderstand this, but each time he takes his med he gets to draw a Yu Gi Oh card out of a bag. Since these are the hottest thing around right now it seems to be working.

Well, I am going to get out the canoe and take Jack to school.:)
Be good, we love you,
The White Family

Friday, May 2, 2003 10:28 AM CDT

Good Morning,
I have to admit I feel a little bit guilty this morning. (Just a little) Mike had a business meeting in Ft. Lauderdale and I have tagged along. My dear friend Kelley has the boys and we are enjoying a few days in the sun. Actually, Mike is working and I am being lazy. He was out the door by 7:00 am and I was still in bed at 10:30am. Our hotel is beautiful, right on the beach and it is just a wonderful break for us.

Our trip to Memphis went fine. Jack is scheduled to start his chemo this Monday. He will be taking a chemo called VP-16 by mouth two times a day for two weeks, then off for two weeks, then VP-16 two more weeks, then rest two weeks. Next will be a chemo called topotecan which he will take once a day for 5 days, two days off then 5 more days. He will repeat this entire cycle three times which should be a total of 12 months of therapy. He hardest part is going to be getting him to take this medicine. I know it probably tastes horrible. In one respect I am totally overwhelmed by thinking about another year of treatment, but on the other hand, if all goes well, we will end treatment after this so it is nice to see an end point. Hopefully he will tolerate this medicine well and it will not cause low counts or many side effects. He is really mad about having to take more medicine. He was in a horrible mood on Wednesday just hearing about it. But, we've made it this far (2 1/2 years) and God will see us through the next step.

We love you!!

Beth and Mike

Thursday, April 24, 2003 3:07 PM CDT

Wow!!

Thank you for all the wonderful birthday wishes for Jack. He had a great day and is very rpoud to be 5!

Jack and I are leaving for Memphis on Monday to sign consent forms to start his new chemo.

I'll keep you posted as always!!

Love,
Beth

Tuesday, April 22, 2003 7:53 AM CDT

HAPPY BIRTHDAY JACK!!

It is hard to believe that my "baby" turns 5 today. I can remember so well the feeling that we would never see this day. I am so very thankful that we are here today celebrating. Jack, his best friend Jonathon, and I are headed out for a fun filled day. Jack gets to choose if he wants to go to the Aquarium or the Discovery Museum, then anywhere he wants for lunch, then with the rest of the family, it is off to Chuck E. Cheeses, then cake, ice cream and presents at home this evening. Mom will be worn out but that smile on his face is worth every minute of it.

Have a blessed day,
A very happy and proud Mom,
Beth

Thursday, April 17, 2003 2:09 PM CDT

When I created this page I never knew what an impact it would have on me and those who read it. Being able to come here to express my thoughts and feelings has been extremely therapuetic for me and I pray that reading it has changed your life in positive ways. Unfortunately, for those of you on this journey with us, not all entries can be positive and uplifting. This is one of them.

First of all Jack is fine. His 5th birthday is on Tuesday and it is a day I never thought I would see. We are overjoyed and so very thankful that we are able to celebrate this day. Along the way I have made many very good friends and I have shared their stories with you. This week I have found out that two of our friends have had progession of their neuroblastoma. Kaitlyn, 8 years old and in the second grade, and Joey 5 years old. Kaitlyn has been battling neuroblastoma for the past 5 years. Just when things looked great and that she was going to be accepted on a very promising trial, they found new bone lesions and that she is not eligible for the treatment. because Kaitlyn has had so much treatment, options are running out. Joey, has had 2 MIBG treatmens, just like Jack, and things were looking great for them too. Joey was on a feeding tube for 2 years and has just had it taken out. His last scans reveal new spots on his spine. These families are really need of your prayers. They have some very hard decisions to make and only through the love and grace of God will they be able to. Please pray for them.

I didn't want to put this all together, but I wanted to let you all know about Kaitlyn and Joey. Gus is participating once again in the St. Jude Math-a-Thon at his school. If anyone would like to help us in the fight to eleminate this horrible disease you can pledge an amount for each completed math problem. There are about 225 problems. You can e-mail your pledge amount or contact Mike or I directly.

Easter, the time of rebirth and hope and newness of life. Please do not take one single second of it for granted. Love, laugh, live and give thanks and praise to our Lord God Almighty.

Beth

Monday, April 14, 2003 10:42 AM CDT

Hello!

We made it home safely Saturday night. I just doesn't matter where you go, home always looks good when you get there!!

I am very happy to report that we just got back from the clinic this morning and Jack's platelets were up to 45,000, his white count was 3.7 and his hemoglobin was 11.2. This is really good for him and it shows his marrow is on the road to recovery!! Hurray. I haven't talked to Memphis yet but I expect they will be pleased. I still don't know what our next step will be, but it seems that our week in the sun did some good.

Be good, love to you all,
Beth

Monday, April 7, 2003 8:46 PM CDT

Hi,
We are good. Having fun in the sun in Orlando. Jack wants to know when we are going to ride the roller coasters!! He really scares me!!!!

Love you all,
Beth

Wednesday, April 2, 2003 6:04 PM CST

Hi!
Sorry I didn't update yesterday. Mike and Jack did not come home from Memphis until last night and I wanted to make sure they were home before I said anymore. Dr. Furman ordered a bone marrow biopsy that was done yesterday. This is mainly because his platelets are still so low and they just wanted to make sure all was OK with it. I am happy to say that the initial results of his bone marrow test is negative for cancer. We will get the definitive results on Friday. As far as his other scans, all looks basically unchanged which further supports the theory that the spots that can be seen on MIBG scan and MRI are ganglioneuroma. This is a good thing. Ganglioneuroma are neuroblastoma cells which have matured and are no longer maliginant. They also did a chest x-ray and there may possibly be some damage to his left lung from the radiation or it may be a virus. They will watch this. Even if it is what is called radiation pneumotitus it should not cause any problems.

Gus and Jack are yelling and screaming right now acting like typical 7 and 4 year old brothers, which is a good thing, but I am feeling very STRESSED!!!! So I better go before I lock them in a closet!!!

Bottom line is Jack is still doing good. We are very thankful. After we get back from Orlando we will be in contact with Dr. Furman to try a plan the next step.

Love to you all,
Beth

Monday, March 31, 2003 7:41 AM CST

Good Morning.

Well, I feel very strange this morning. Gus is off to school and Mike and Jack left for Memphis early this morning. Gus got upset about me leaving again so we decided for Mike just to go by himself. Please pray today for their safe return. I have to admit I feel a bit lost. Jack will be having an MRI today and probably then a brief visit with the doctor. Since his platelet count is still so low I don't expect that we will be making any decisions about further treatment right now. I am taking the boys to Orlando next week and I assume that we will be going back to Memphis sometime after that.

I pray that I will be updating this site tommorrow with wonderful news!!

Love to you all,
Beth

Friday, March 28, 2003 5:50 PM CST

We're home!

Jack and just got home and we are tired!! Or at least I am.
Jack is feeling a little better. He was pretty sick yesterday and we were at the hospital all day. He was dehydrated and they hooked him up to fluids which he stayed on until this morning. He had a 2nd MIBG scan this morning. I don't know any results yet. We will be going back EARLY Monday morning for an MRI and to meet with Dr. Furman.

As always, I love you all, thank you for checking in on us.
Beth

Thursday, March 27, 2003 5:58 AM CST

It is very early in the morning and Jack has had a rough night. We were at the hospital all day yesterday getting his blood and platelets. He flirted with a fever off and on throughout the day. When we were finished he wanted to go out to the mall. We then decided to go to Red Lobster for crab legs. Jack loves them and he seemed to be feeling much better. Well, big mistake. About two minutes after getting our food Jack started to vomit. Through out the night he has run a fever and been vomitting. We are getting ready to head on over to the hospital. I am sure they will want to do blood cultures and start him on fluids. His ANC was up to 1100 yesterday so they should not need to keep us. I am not sure what this will do to the MIBG test we have scheduled today or our plans of coming home, but I'll let you know.

I'm going to hold my little one,
Beth

Wednesday, March 26, 2003 7:25 AM CST

Hello to all!

All went well yesterday with Jack's PET/CT scan. I don't know any results though. Jack's hemoglobin and platlets are pretty low so we are headed to the hospital this morning to get a transfusion of both blood and platelets. I also think he is coming down with the allergy "crud" that has gotten to all of us. He woke up this morning with his "shroat and mouth hurting". He also feels like he may have a low grade fever, but I haven't taken his temp yet. If he does, there is a good possiblity we will end up having to be inpatient in the hospital because his ANC is also pretty low. He certainly isn't his normal high energy self.

Last night we had dinner with a friend we met the last time we were here. Karina, who is 3 years old and was diagnosed with a brain tumor called ATRT, and her mom Marci. Also with us was another couple and their 2 year old daughter Emma Grace who was diagnosed with neuroblastoma in October 02. Karina just finished her 6 weeks of radiation and gets to go home for a few weeks until her return in April to begin 4 months of chemo.

Well, enough from the front lines of this war.

Love, Beth and Jack

Monday, March 24, 2003 7:17 PM CST

Good Evening.

Jack and I arrived safely in Memphis a little while ago.We are settled in the hotel and plan to have a quiet night. Jack has a PET/CT scan tommorrow. Hopefully all will go well and we will come home on Thursday night, then on Sunday night Mike will drive back with us. We have to be here on Monday for an MRI and to meet with the doctors.

I'll keep everyone posted. Keep us in your prayers this week. We are praying for NEGATIVE scans!!!

Love to you all,
Beth and Jack

Wednesday, March 19, 2003 6:24 AM CST

Good Morning!

I pray that this update finds each of you in good health and much happiness.

We are scheduled to go back to Memphis next Monday to repeat all scans. Just Jack and I will be going as Gus really needs Mike to be here with him. If anyone is just dying to go to Memphis you are welcome to come with us. Of course there may not be much room in the car because of all the towels for the Ronald McDonald House. We exceeded my goal by a lot. After 60 something towels I just quit counting. Thank you again so much. I know they will be really happy to get to get these.

I wanted to say a special thank you to the people at the Country Giant 94.7 in Cookeville. I had a great time up there last Friday and they did an awesome job raising over $54,000 for St. Jude. Thank you to Stykman, Gator, and Phillip for letting me tell our story and for your dedication to helping the families of childhood cancer.

Anxiously waiting for the warm sunny days of spring,
May God shine his light in each of you,
Love,
Beth
P.S. I wrote this update before I checked the guestbook and I just read the message from the guys at The Country Giant. Watch the movie on their website if you can. It is great. Thanks again to all of you and I will be there next year!!

Tuesday, March 11, 2003 4:01 PM CST

I realize it has been a while since I wrote an update so I thought I would just check in and say HI! Jack is doing great, going to school and having a great time. His platelets remain low (not low enough to need any right now) but enough to make him bruise easier.

THANK YOU SO MUCH for all of you who have sent towels for the Ronald McDonald House. I have a MOUNTAIN of them in my garage. I am going to get them counted this weekend so I'll let you know. I have received many donations from our friends at Blue Cross and RLC. You are awesome people.
I am really in the dog house with the manager at the Ronald McDonald House because I was supposed to do a call in interview for their Radiothon and I forgot to call!! I e-mailed her my apology but I haven't heard back from her. I think she is making me squirm. (Love you Sherri) Certainly she can't stay mad at me with such a great donation. (can she?) :)

Speaking of radiothons, I am off to Cookeville on Friday to help out with the St. Jude Radiothon there. So if you are up that way make sure to tune in.

There is a little boy in Gus' class at CSLA who is really in need of some prayers for healing. I don't want to give out his name as I have not asked his parents permission, but God knows who he is.

Also, as many of you know, Marilyn Gherke who posts many messages here, and is a very special person to me, lost her son Alan two weeks ago. Alan was 37 years old and had fought a long hard battle with pain. Please keep this family in your prayers as they begin to deal with their loss and try to begin to heal.

I am sure I've rattled on enough for now. Be good.
Love to you all,
Beth

Tuesday, March 4, 2003 6:52 AM CST

JACK IS GOING TO SCHOOL TODAY!!

Jack's white count is up so he can finally go back to school. His platelet count however is low so our trip back to Memphis has been postponed until the week of March 24. With platelets as low as his we would not be able to start any chemo yet. Please pray that his platelets recover soon. I am starting to get a little nervous as the weeks without any treatment are passing by.

We have a new member of our family. We adopted a 2 year old 65 pound Shar Pei/Rodesian Ridgeback mix. She is wonderful with the boys and they love her! She stays right by Jack. Right now he is playing the quiet game with her. (They both won, it was a tie!) Her name is Miss Precious. Not the name we would have chosen, but it is funny considering she looks anything but precious. Maybe someday I'll actually get those new pictures I've been promising.

Life may not be the party we hoped for, but while we are here we might as well dance.

Have a great day.
Love, Beth

Wednesday, February 26, 2003 7:51 AM CST

THANK YOU CHATTANOOGA!!!!!!

The US101 St. Jude Radiothon yesterday raised over $305,000.00! It was truly an awesome day. There were so many people who truly gave from their heart and it was great to be a part of it. Thank you to all of you who continue to support St. Jude through all of the various fund rasing efforts. As we said over and over again yesterday, every little bit helps. I never want another parent to go through what we have and your kindness and generosity is helping that hope become a reality.

Once again, thank you and may God bless you and keep you.
Beth, Mike, Gus and Jack

Friday, February 21, 2003 4:43 PM CST

Hello, hello and Happy Rainy Friday!!

Yesterday was hospital day. I first had an appointment with Gus to see his orthopedic. He did some new x-rays of his hips. All seems to be progressing as expected. The x-rays showed some further deterioration but the head of the femur is still well contained within the socket which is what we want to see.

Next it was on to the clinic with Jack. His ANC has fallen below the magic 500 number so we are keeping him close to home. Good news is that they do not want to put him on the dreaded GCSF shots!! Just watch him and see how he does.
We are scheduled to be back in Memphis on March 10th.

Next Tuesday is the St. Jude US101 Radiothon. Yours truly will be on the radio from 10:00 am to 3:00pm with Jack Cole. I am really excited about this. It is my 3rd year to be a part of this incredible event. It is such an awesome feeling to read all those pledges on the air. To feel, once again, all the love and support from the people in this area. So tune in for some laughs, some tears, and some incredible HOPE!!

Also, I have heard from many of you that you are collecting towels for the Ronald McDomald House in Memphis. Thank you, thank you, thank you. This is awesome. I would love to take them when I go there on March 10. If you need me to come pick them up just let me know. My goal is 50 new towels so if you haven't already gotten some and you spot those super sales going on right now don't forget about those people living at the House that Love Built.

You are awesome people and I love you!!!!!!!

Be good, praise God, sing a song this weekend!!

Love,
Beth

Wednesday, February 19, 2003 7:13 AM CST

Good Morning!!

We are all doing well and glad to be at home. I pray that each of you and your families are well. There are so many people with different illnesses right now. I pray the warm weather is close and will be knocking out some of these nasty germs.

I just wanted to let everyone know that the St. Jude US101 Radiothon is next Tuesday, 2/25. I am not sure at this point what time I will be co-hosting but I will let you know. Many area business have placed the St. Jude "baby buckets" in the stores and I really appreciate it. If you see one on your travels make sure to thank them for their support. A little change goes a long way to making a big change! I also want to thank all of you who have become Partners in Hope over the past few years. You are awesome!! I hope to have more of you all joining us this year.

A member of our church was in a car accident the other day and is really in need of prayer. She has posted messges many times in our guestbook here and is a very dear friend.
She is currently at Erlanger waiting surgery. Please remember her.

May each of you have a very blessed day!
Love, Beth, Mike , Gus and Jack

Saturday, February 15, 2003 10:19 AM CST

Greetings from HOME in Chatt-a-boogie!!!!

Jack needed a platelet transfusion yesterday and after that we left Memphis in the torrential rain. I decided to try a new way home, through Alabama, which probably wasn't the smartest move I've ever made. The weather was just awful and by the time it got dark I had had enough. We spent the night in Decatur, Ala. and came came home this morning. Jack still isn't feeling great and his counts have dropped much more than I expected. He hasn't eaten much and has lost about 3.5 lbs. this week. But never fear, I found those pounds and will be happy to give them back at any time. :)

I hope that being at home will help him feel better and start to eat again. We plan to stay in and just work on getting unpacked this weekend. I am glad school is out on Monday so I can spend time with Gus.

Take care, give us a call.

Love you,
Beth, Mike, Gus and Jack
P.S. THE RONALD MCDONALD HOUSE IN MEMPHIS IS IN GREAT NEED FOR NEW TOWELS. I NOTICED MANY STORES ARE HAVING WHITE SALES THIS TIME OF YEAR. I'D LIKE TO TRY TO TAKE THEM 50 NEW TOWELS IN MARCH SO WHILE OUT SHOPPING PICK UP A FEW TO HELP THEM OUT. THEY HAD A HUGE FLOOD IN THE HOUSE A FEW WEEKS AGO WHEN A SPRINKLER HEAD FROZE AND FLOODED THE HOUSE. THE DAMAGE WAS VERY EXTENSIVE SO THEY COULD REALLY USE SOME HELP WITH SOME DONATIONS.
THANKS!!!

Wednesday, February 12, 2003 5:51 PM CST

Jack had his last radiation treatment today! Hurray!

He still feels lousy though. He is still running a fever and not eating or drinking. I really hated that they went ahead with radiation because he hasn't felt much like celebrating. His counts are getting low so they want us back in the morning for another check. If he is doing better we may come home tommorrow afternoon if not we'll wait another day just to be sure.

I've got to run. Jack needs me to hold him!

Be good, hope to see you all soon,
Love, Beth

Tueday, February 11, 2003 1:45 PM CST

OK, don't start planning our Homecoming Party just yet! Jack has the flu!!! He feels awful and we are just staying in the room at the Ronald McDonald House. They sent us here with him hooked up to a bag of fluids. He doesn't want to eat or drink and has a fever. They cultured everything and they don't expect to find anything but the flu but we can't be too careful. Hopefully he will feel better tomorrow and we can get back on schedule.

I'll update again later tonight.

Love, Beth and Jack

Monday, February 10, 2003 2:42 PM CST

Hello.

Happy Monday! Jack and I had a nice weekend. On Saturday there were a couple of different groups here at the Ronald McDonald House that provided meals and fun activites for the kids. On Sunday, Jack and I drove over to Selmer, Tn. to visit with Vonda and Sanford Burns(Molly's parents) and their boys. It was great to have time to visit with them.
In the guestbook, Kelley Hartness made a mention about Jack's "hard hair". Last week Jack was playing with Shawn one of the Child Life Specialists here and Jack noticed that his hair was spiked and "hard". Well, this was just the bomb for Jack and he too wanted "hard hair". Of course Shawn's hair is only about 1/2 inch long and as you know Jack's is much longer. Well, went to the mall on Friday and a girl and Regis fixed his hair like Shawn's. Actually he looked like a cross between Jimmy Neutron and Ace Ventura. Antway he loved it and if I ever figure out how to put the pictures on here I will.

It looks like we may come home on Thursday. Jack's platelets are a little low and they are leaning toward starting chemo in about two weeks so that he has time to recover a bit. We'll talk again on Wednesday, but so far it is looking good.

Well, we are due back for radiation in a few minutes so I better go.

We miss you,
Love,
Beth and Jack

Thursday, February 6, 2003 6:13 PM CST

Greetings from Memphis and Day 6 of radiation!!

All is well. I had a great visit with Tameria. I am so glad to have been able to spend some time with her. I know that coming back to St. Jude brought back many memories for her both happy and sad. She brought so much to my life with her visit. Thank God for our dear friends.

Now I have another great friend visiting for a few days, Kelley Hartness. Her son was a St. Jude patient when he was six months old with liver cancer. He is now an incredible first grader at The Bright School. These visits have been so wonderful and have really helped us pass the time. Kelley is chasing Jack around the room right now, he just got out of the tub, so he is having a big time and it gives Mom a nice break.

We are going to have dinner with Dr. Barfield and his family this evening, which is always very enjoyable.

That is about all. More radiation tommorrow.

We miss you!!

Love,
Beth and Jack

Tueday, February 4, 2003 7:53 AM CST

Good Morning!!

I haven't updated much because there really isn't anything going on here. We had a good weekend. On Sunday a Boy Scout troop from West Memphis brought in over 30lbs. of pop tabs to donate to the Ronald McDonald House. The troop leader works at Blue Cross with Mike and heard about the pop tab program from him. They wanted to help and they did a great job. If you aren't already saving these (pop tabs are from aluminum cans) you can start and I'll bring them to Memphis when I come. Thanks, boys, you rock!!

Monday was back to radiation. We continue with treatments twice a day this week and really don't expect any changes. We have some visitors coming today we are really excited about. Pastor Dave from our church will be spending some time with us today and also my dear friend Tameria (Olivia's Mom) from St. Louis is coming to spend a few days.

If I don't go we are going to be late!! Be good. We love you and miss you!!

Beth and Jack

Friday, January 31, 2003 at 12:17 PM (CST)

Hello, hello!

Things are going well. Jack is getting radiation treatments twice a day and he has had three so far. He complains about going and gives me a really hard time about it, but then we get there and he runs back to the radiation room like it was never a problem. The girls in that department are really great and they are quite taken with Jack. Because the radiation is being done twice a day I think I'll be home sooner than expected. We should finish radiation on 2/12, but I'm not sure what will be after that.

Other than that it is pretty quiet around here. The weather is yucky so we have been staying in the room a lot. Some of the nurses asked me to go out to dinner with them tommorrow night and one of my friends here is going to keep Jack for me. I feel a little guilty about going, but no enough not to :).

Have a great weekend. We miss you!!

Beth and Jack

Wednesday, January 29, 2003 at 04:44 PM (CST)

Happy Wednesday!
I guess I gave the wrong room number last night on my update so here is the correct information:

901-312-7428
Ronald McDonald House
Jack White
Room #28
Memphis, Tn 38105

They did not actually do radiation today. They had to make some more adjustments to the machine and re-mark his skin. We should be all ready to start tomorrow at 8:30. We got Jack's hearing aids today and they are going to take sometime for him to get used to. He tells me he can hear now and he doesn't need them anymore. He did great at his speech lesson with them, so I know they will help.

I'm off to Target to find a foam matress pad so that I won't be crippled when I leave here from back pains.

Be good, let us hear from you!
Love, Beth

Tuesday, January 28, 2003 at 05:08 PM (CST)

We made it! We are actually in Memphis this time. We were really lucky because we got right into the Ronald McDonald House. I was not looking forward to being in the hotel for one night then having to move. Here is how you can reach us:

Ronald McDonald House
Jack White
Room #28
535 Alabama Ave.
Memphis, Tn 38105

Phone numbers: at RMH: 901-312-7429
or local from Chattanooga: 653-9098

I won't have the cell phone on much during the day, but I will at night. Also there is voice mail on our room phone. We have a busy day on Wednesday starting at 7:30 am so I'll be sure to update tomorrow night. Glad to finally be here!!

Love, Beth

Friday, January 24, 2003 at 09:01 AM (CST)

GUESS WHAT???

I am still here at home! We were literally no more than 5 minutes away from being in the car to head to Memphis yesterday when the phone rang and it was St. Jude telling me that our appointment had been postponed until next Wednesday. I thought about getting angry for a few minutes, but then I just gave thanks that Jack wasn't in any immediate danger and that if the doctors were needed for a child who was, I didn't mind being delayed.

So suitcases back out of the car once again. I'd say that I was looking forward to a great weekend with nothing to do, however, it seems that we have frozen pipes (just the hot water)so I guess the plumber and I will be spending some quality time together. Pray they don't break!

Have a great weekend. SuperBowl party anyone?

Love ya,
Beth

Wednesday, January 22, 2003 at 12:11 PM (CST)

Our God is an AWESOME GOD!!!!!!!!

I am actually at a loss for words right now (which we all know doesn't happen often) so I'll just give it to you like I heard it. From the radiologist who read the PET/CT scan,"NO CONVINCING EVIDENCE FOR RESIDUAL OR METASTATIC DISEASE."

We are so happy. I can't tell you exactly what this all means, but it is GOOD. We are still going to Memphis tommorrow and going ahead with the radiation. We didn't do radiation the last time and I still feel that was a mistake.
As far as I can tell our plan will remain the same, but knowing that there is no live disease is an absolutely incredible feeling.

So sing, shout, dance, rejoice and thank God.

Love you all,
Beth

Tuesday, January 21, 2003 at 08:11 PM (CST)

Hello!

Since I didn't plan to be home this week I didn't have anything on the calendar and it has been wonderful. We have been bums and having a great time. Some more snow would have been nice, but Jack did get to play in a little on Friday afternoon.

Jack and I are heading to Memphis on Thursday. His radiation treatment will begin on Friday. They have it scheduled for twice a day, at 8:300am to 3:00pm. This will be done Monday through Friday for three to four weeks.
At least that is what I think.

Mike and Gus will be at home so check in on them when you can. Gus thinks Mike is going to build him a robot. Gus doesn't know Mike very well apparently so anyone with robotics knowledge should give Mike a call. When I get settled I'll post our adress and phone number.

I take a part of each one of you with me. Thank you for being on this journey with me.

Much love,
Beth

Thursday, January 16, 2003 at 05:29 PM (CST)

Well, as I always tell you all our plans are subject to change and once again the winds are a changin'. Jack went through the radiation simulation today and also a CT/PET scan. Apparently they now need about another week to map everything out so we will be coming home in the morning. We don't know any results and don't really plan on hearing anything until we get back. However, there is an antibody study which has some openings and there is a chance that Jack could get picked for this which could potentially change everything again. I am praying that he doesn't actually get picked this time so that we can go ahead with the radiation and his name will stay at the top of the list for the next time there are openings. I know this confusing for you all because I know I feel that way. So, it's back home for a few more days which is always a wonderful thing.

See you soon,
Beth
P.S. Jack picked today's colors for this page!!

Tuesday, January 14, 2003 at 07:27 AM (CST)

Good Morning.
Gus just left for school and in a few minutes I will be taking Jack to school. Proof positive there is a God!!

Jack and I plan to leave tommorrow around noon and Mike will follow sometime later. Gus will be staying with a friend, I hope! He is still having a hard time but being back in school yesterday helped a little.

Thursday we are scheduled to meet with the radiologist and to go through the radiation simulation. This is when they calibrate the machine specifically for Jack so that the beam goes in exactly the right spot each time. Apparently this takes a few hours and Jack will be sedated.

This is all I know right now and of course as you all well know this could all change. Mike is planning to return Friday night or Saturday to be with Gus and Jack and I will be hoping to get to the Ronald McDonald House. I'll post our phone number in Memphis when I can.

We are going to have such a big party when all this is over!!

Love you all,
Beth

Friday, January 10, 2003 at 07:28 PM (CST)

We are home and exhausted. I didn't realize how tired I was until I saw my big fluffy bed!

We met Dr. Krasin, the radiologist, this morning. He needs time to be able to review all of Jack's scan both present and past before giving us a detail of what they can do. Generally speaking he is thinking that they can radiate what residual disease is left and he also wants to radiate the lymph nodes along his sternum in his chest. Even though it has never shown to be disease there, the likelyhood of microscopic disease is great. At this point the general plan is to meet with him again on Thursday and from there he should have everything mapped out. He will also want to do a few more scans, includung a PET scan. He estimates that treatment will be from 3 to 4 weeks. Mike and I will both drive to Memphis, then once we have finalized plans, Mike will return home to take care of Gus.

I felt pretty good about all this while we were in Memphis and I felt that a month away was no big deal since I've been gone longer than that before, but when I walked in the door to home it didn't seem so easy. I got a little weepy, but I know we will be fine. I am sure we will start at the hotel, then move to the Ronald McDonald House.

Well, a long hot bath is calling, or is that the washing machine??

Be good,
Love to you all,
Beth

Friday, January 10, 2003 at 07:37 AM (CST)

WOW! I just read through the guestbook entries and it was great to read such beautiful messages from so many of you. You'll never know how much your messages mean to us. It really keeps us feeling close to home.

I really do not have any news to report. Jack had his MIBG scan yesterday, but I have not heard the results. We are scheduled to meet with the radiologist at 9:00am and we plan to try to leave for home by about noon. Of course, that could all change, but that is where we stand now.

I'll update tommorrow morning with the latest.

Hugs,
Beth

Wednesday, January 08, 2003 at 04:14 PM (CST)

I wrote an update this morning, but for some reason it did not post. Sorry. I know many have you have been anxiously waiting to hear. Jack had an MRI yesterday and according to the radiologist is showed, (drum roll please)........"significant improvement." YEAH!!!!

Good News. Now, what do we do next? We will have to wait for the results of the MIBG scan which is tommorrow, but for now they have mentioned radiation therapy followed by 6 to 12 months of oral chemotherapy. Surgery is not an option. The area of disease is small and ill defined. Not like a mass, more like a rash.

We will meet with the radiologist on Friday morning so I really won't know much more until after that. Jack got fitted for hearing aids yesterday and will have a speech evaluation in the morning.

As for the rest of us we are very pleased with the results and happy to be moving forward. We feel very blessed and know that God is hearing us. Thank you Lord for all your incredible blessings.

Love,
Beth

Monday, January 06, 2003 at 09:14 PM (CST)

Good Evening.
We just arrived safely in Memphis. The whole family is here. Gus was having a very hard time with us leaving and on the way to his friends house to drop him off he started to panic. So we just turned around and headed to Memphis.

I want to give a big THANK YOU to all of you who were able to join us in prayer at our home and those who prayed where they were. It was incredible. It was a wonderful time of sharing and it made me feel so close to the Lord our God. I told my sister this morning that my "tank was full".
After 6 hours in the car with Mike, Gus and Jack I am feeling a little depleted :) however, spirtually I am feeling great. My family is blessed to have you all on this journey with us.

We start at 7:15am on Tuesday morning. Jack will have an MRI and then we are scheduled to meet with the surgical team. I will update tomorrow night or as soon as I can.

Much love to you all,
Beth

Sunday, December 29, 2002 at 08:21 AM (CST)

Happy New Year!!

I saw a segment on television about New Years customs. In one country they write down all the things they want to forget or erase from the past year and then they burn them. I don't think I could get a burn permit for that that big of a fire at our house so I will just bid all trials and tribulations farewell and look forward to a better and brighter 2003.

As you all know we will be going to Memphis on January 6th for repeat scans. These scans are extermely important as the results will determine what our next step is. If the tumors are better or stable I believe they will be discussing surgery or at least a biopsy. If they have grown, I expect more chemo will be suggested.

In preparation of our trip Mike and I will be holding a three hour prayer vigil at our home next Sunday, January 5th from 3pm to 6pm. We invite you all to stop by during this time to pray with us. Please feel free to bring your children. I will have sitters here to supervise and I believe the prayers of children are very important. If you cannot make it to our home, I encourage you to join us in prayer wherever you are. Also, you may call us or e-mail your prayers so that we may pray with you. This is very imprtant to us and we hope that you will be able to come.
E-mail me privately for directions to our home. (KeyWest12@aol.com)

May God bless each of you and your families this new year. May He grant you the gifts of peace, health, hapiness, faith and love.

We hope to see you on Sunday,
Love, Beth, Mike, Gus and Jack

Tuesday, December 24, 2002 at 01:39 PM (CST)

The List

When it was determined that we would indeed be spending Christmas at home I became determined to make it the best Christmas ever. I got out a notebook and wrote down all the things that needed to be done. I organized each day to make sure all tasks were completed on time. Well, as any parent knows, this was just silly.

The night I had "scheduled" to prepare my Christmas cards to mail, Jack came in the room and said, "Mommy, would you get a blanket and snuggle me on the couch?" Guess what? You didn't a Christmas card in your mailbox. So now I wish you Christmas greetings. To all of you who have been with us on this journey. You all mean so much to us. I pray for love, peace, health and happiness for you and your families.

I also wanted to have a beautifully decorated Christmas tree. On the night we were decorating the tree I went to prepare dinner and Gus and Jack just couldn't wait. A little while later they came in the kitchen to get me. The brought me into the living room to show me that they had decorated the tree. They exclaimed, "Isn't it the most beautiful tree you have ever seen?" Yes, it is, even though all the ornaments are on the lower third of the tree. (I confess I have moved a few here and there)


There were many more things that didn't quite go according to plan. But there is one thing that did. As we sat talking the other night I asked the boys what was the one thing they wanted for Christmas more than anything, they both said, "For the White family to be all together."

We are, and I declare this the best Christmas ever.

I pray each of you are with your loved ones and that you have the best Christmas ever also.

Much love and Merry Christmas,
Beth

Wednesday, December 18, 2002 at 02:25 PM (CST)

Holiday Greetings!!

I know it has been a while since I posted! We have been quite busy as I am sure all of you have been. Gus turned 7 on December 12 and we celebrated for days! On the 13th we had a sleep over party with 5 boys at The Chattanoogan Hotel. They had a big time and Mom and Dad survived. Now apparently all the boys want to have their birthdays there too!

Mike and I will have been married 9 years tomorrow. My how time flies. We were in beautiful Key West with some of our closest friends and family. It was wonderful and I would love to be there now.

As far Jack, he looks and feels great. He is so excited about Christmas. It is so much fun. I am having a hard time making him understand that it won't be snowing on Christmas morning here. He really wants to have a family snowball fight.

I'll post again before Christmas. I hope to have new pictures on this weekend!!

Love, Beth

Thursday, December 05, 2002 at 05:58 AM (CST)

Good Morning!
Jack has not had to have any platelet transfusions in over 2 weeks now. His last count done on Monday showed his platelet count at 39,000. Not good for you and me, but good for him. I talked with them at St. Jude and it was decided for us to enjoy the holiday at home and to be in Memphis around the 6th of January. I am a little bit anxious about this because I want to know what our next step will be, but I am thankful that we are able to be at home.

I expect the next few weeks to be rather "normal" for us. Busy with all the holiday excitement.

Even though Jack is not in need of platelets right now, Chattanooga continues to experience a shortage. So I urge any of you who can to please call Blood Assurance to donate. I did on Tuesday and it took less than two hours. I spoke at a banquet Tuesday night honoring the pheresis donors and it was incredible. A pretty awesome group to belong to.

Last night as I lay in bed I remembered something my dear friend Mary Jane said to me. She said, "I believe God has already healed Jack, we just don't know it." I believe that too!!

God Bless
Beth

Thursday, November 28, 2002 at 09:47 AM (CST)

Happy Thanksgiving!!!

What a blessing to have you all in our lives!
I am THANKFUL for the flashlight that was shone in my eyes at 6:57 am this morning because it meant that Jack was awake. I am THANKFUL for the tooth that Gus lost this morning because it means that something "normal" happened in our lives. I am THANKFUL for the sound of the lawn mower because it means Mike and the boys are outside enjoying the beautiful weather and I am given this few moments of peace to reflect on this day.

Two years ago Mike and I were at St. Jude with Jack and Gus was here. It was horrible. I am so thankful that we are all together.

May your Thanksgiving Day be blessed and may you rejoice and be thankful for what the Lord has given you.
Love, Beth

Saturday, November 23, 2002 at 08:34 AM (CST)

Just quick update! All went well with Gus' appointment. We didn't really learn anything "new" just confirmed the diagnosis and treatment plan. Dr. Pearce will continue to follow him every three months. Unfortunately, there just isn't much that can be done right now other than pain management. He is in what is called the revascularization phase so the blood supply is being re-established to the head of the femur. Once the bone regrowth begins hopefully the amount of pain will decrease. I must brag and say I have two of the most incredible children. With all they are both faced with they greet each new day with such hope and spirit. I hope they are an inspiration to us all.

Jack is doing good. A true wild man. His new favorite thing to do is to e-mail Santa. He keeps changing his list however and it is getting hard for Mommy to keep up with.

Have a blessed weekend. Rejoice in the Lord for He is good.
Beth
P.S. There is now a new way to get to this page. Just simply type in jackwhite.info and it will bring you right here. This is easy to remember when passing this info on to friends.
Also I have added a new link to the Candlelighters website. Take time to read through the gold ribbon messages. They are beautiful.

Monday, November 18, 2002 at 03:38 PM (CST)

Hello,
Another day of platelet transfusing, but the numbers are on the upswing. He was at 19,000 (remember normal is above 150,00)but that is higher than he has been on his own for quite sometime. We are finally off the GCSF shots (hurray) and his ANC seems to be holding. So all in all we are hanging in there and having some pretty good days. Jack has been going to pre-school and having fun. We are getting in the Christmas spirit around here and actually put a tree up (no decorations yet)this weekend. Since we are not sure when we will be going back to Memphis we decided to prepare early.

We are taking Gus to another doctor on Thursday for a second opinion on his hip. He gets around OK, but is still limping and in pain. So we'll see what he has to say.

May God bless each of you and fill you days with health and hapiness.

Beth

Tuesday, November 12, 2002 at 06:02 PM (CST)

Today marks the one year anniversary of Olivia, precious daughter of my dear friends Eric and Tameria, earning her angel wings. Please remember this family in your prayers today.

Much love,
Beth

Thursday, November 07, 2002 at 06:42 AM (CST)

Good Morning.
I am sorry I didn't update sooner. The results of the spinal MRI showed no new growth. The disease in this area is stable. We are very happy with this news. We got back home late Tuesday night after spending the entire day at the hospital getting Jack transfused with both platelets and blood.

Yesterday marked the two year anniversary of Jack's diagnosis. I had planned to write a update outlining the history of all we have done since then. It hit me a little harder than expected and I am not quite ready to write it all down just yet, but I will in the next few days. It is something I want to do but it will require a lot of energy and frankly I just don't have it right now.

Our plan at this point is just to wait until Jack recovers. For him to no longer be dependent on blood and platelet transfusions. When that happens, we will go back to St. Jude to decide on the next step. It could be 2 weeks or 6 weeks. It is up to Jack!

Well, the troops are awake which means my five minutes of peace has ended. Much love to you all!!
Beth

Monday, November 04, 2002 at 09:55 AM (CST)

It was a wet, wet trip last night but we made it to Memphis safely late last night. It reminded me so much of the first trip we made to St. Jude almost exactly two years ago.

Jack's MRI of his spine is scheduled for this morning about 11:00. He will also have a hearing test at that time. If you have been around him you know how loud he is! This is something we have continued to monitor. We are all hungry as no one can eat or drink anything until after Jack is asleep. Gus is with us. He had a hard weekend with his leg. A lot of pain and I just couldn't leave him. Hard choices, but I am glad we are all together.

I'll update as soon as I know something.
Thanks for you love and prayers,
Beth

Thursday, October 31, 2002 at 03:32 PM (CST)

Jack and I arrived back home safely this afternoon. My plans not to find out anything didn't work exactly as I had wanted. I was in the hotel room yesterday when the nurse scheduler called me to tell me what time our MRI appointment on Monday was. I told her the doctor needed to call me right back to let me know what was going on. Apparently by that point he had already spoken to Mike. The news at this point is mixed. The MIBG scan shows improvement. It shows considerable shrinkage in one area. However, they want to get a clearer picture of the part of the tumor that extends into his spinal cloumn. They just can't say if it is stable or not. They want to do an MRI of the spine so that is what we have on Monday. This time Mike will go with me and we will leave here Sunday night. Of course while they are telling me there is possibly some compression of his spinal cord, he was standing on his head in a chair and spinning around with this legs going every which way. It is hard to believe there is anything wrong with him. So, we'll wash clothes and do it all over again!!

Have a Happy Halloween and a great weekend!!
Love, Beth

Tuesday, October 29, 2002 at 07:24 AM (CST)

Good Morning from Memphis. Jack and I got in last night. Today he has lab work, an Echo/EKG and his MIBG injection. Tomorrow will be the MIBG scan and MRI. His counts are still low so we are pretty much stuck in the hotel room when we aren't at the hospital. Jack has to wear his mask when he isn't in the hotel room or our car and he hates it. He used to be much better about wearing it.

I am asking the doctors not to give me any test results until after I get home. I hope to be home Thursday in time for trick-or-treating!!

Much love,
Beth

Thursday, October 24, 2002 at 07:06 AM (CDT)

It has been a week since my last update so I thought I'd give a quick one. Luckily, there is no real news to report. Jack's counts are still very low (white blood count is 1.3) but has actually come up a little (from 0.8). He is still dependent on blood and platelet transfusions. It was a long day at the clinic yesterday. We were there for about 7 1/2 hours. He got both blood and platelets. Thank you so much to all of you who have donated or made appointments to donate platelets. If you go, make sure to tell them you are donating for Jack, but if he doesn't need them to release them to Dr. Bhatka's office, Children's Oncology. There is still a shortage. The Dr.'s and nurses at the clinic are planning to donate their platelets on Friday so that kids have them on Monday. This is pure dedication. We still need your help. Platelets from random donors just don't work as well. And for those of you who are not in Chattanooga, please donate at your local center. I assure you there is a child with cancer that needs them.

Jack and I will be going to Memphis next Monday for scans. This is a very stressful time so please pray extra hard for good news. Mike is stying here to be with Gus. I hate doing scans by myself, but I decided that Gus need Mike more than I did. I'll update before we leave.

I pray each of you have a blessed weekend,
Love, Beth
P.S. The past few nights Jack has been giving himself his GCSF shots!! I am really proud of him. It gives him some control over the situation. I'm not sure I could give myself a shot!

Thursday, October 17, 2002 at 07:09 AM (CDT)

Happy Thursday!

First, if there is anyone out there who has some time and can donate platelets I urge you to call Blood Assurance and make an appointment. They are critically low on platelets. Mike has been donating and his are specifically designated for Jack which Jack got yesterday. However, Jack was the only person in town to get single donor platelets. If they do not have single donor platelets they have to use random donor platelets (these are collected from regular blood donations) and they do not work as well. There are lots of kids at the clinic that need your platelets. I'll also start donating next week for Jack to ensure he has a steady supply.

Well, now that I took care of my public service announcement we are all doing OK. Jack's counts have fallen below 500 so we are now in our isolation mode and giving GCSF shots. It was awful last night at shot time as usual, but we managed. Now we just have to pray for no fevers. If he were to get a fever we would automatically be admitted to the hospital. Mike and Gus are going on a camping trip this weekend so really pray hard we have no fevers while they are gone!!

Gus went to PT on Tuesday and they showed us some exercises we could do to help keep his muscles strengthened. They also gave him one crutch to use for when his leg really hurts and this seems to be helping. He has been doing better the past few days, but he just woke up and came in here and told me his leg really hurt today. It is a bit worse in the morning so we'll just see how the day goes. No school today and tommorrow so he'll be able to rest.

We don't go back to the doctor until Monday so hopeully I'll have no new news until then. Have a wonderful weekend. Love to you all, Beth

Monday, October 14, 2002 at 07:21 AM (CDT)

Good Morning!!
Well, it has been quite a week. Learning to manage another adjustment in our house will take some time and we are getting there. Gus has had a couple of pretty hard days and I have had to keep him home from school some. All I can say is how much more I appreciate St. Jude after having to deal with another doctors office. The most frustrating part has been dealing with the lack of help from Dr. Bruce's office. Gus' limping has gotten much worse and we are scheduled to see a physical therapist tommorrow afternoon. Hopefully that will give us some tools to use in order to help him be able to get around a little better. In spite of it all, he has never complained. He played soccer on Saturday (which I think was too much for him) and he was such a trooper. It was pityful to watch but he played his hardest and never once complained even though I could see the pain on his face. If anyone ever needs to reach me, just call T.C. Thompson, I'm sure I'll be there! :)

As for Mr. Wild Man, he is been doing OK. This morning he is about as pale as a ghost and I am assuming that he will need a blood transfusion today. Judging by the neew bruises on he legs I won't be surprised if he needs platlets too. I also think his ANC will be pretty low so will be starting the GCSF shots. :( yuck! We go to Dr. Bhatka's this morning so I'll let you know how is goes.

May each of you have a blessed day!!

Love, Beth, Mike, Gus and Jack

Tuesday, October 08, 2002 at 03:23 PM (CDT)

Hi! I know it has been awhile since I updated, but be assured it has not been dull at the White house. Jack did get a platelet transfusion last week and also this week. His ANC has been holding so luckily he has been able to do some things like go to school and his music class. We would expect his ANC to drop at anytime, but so far so good.

Some of you may know that Gus has been limping for a little while now. We finally went to see an orthopedic doctor yesterday and he has been diagnosed with Legg Calve Perthes disease. I am just learning what this is, but apparently the blood supply to the top of his femer was cut off causing the bone to die. We believe that it is in the process of regrowing but it is causing quite a bit of pain and he is having a hard time walking. There isn't alot they do for this, as long as the bone regrows properly there shouldn't be any problems. However, if it does not grow properly, he may require some surgery and physical therapy at some point.

I swear I am not making this up!! It is hard to believe with a plate as full as ours we were just given a second helping. And as my dear friend Susan said, "and it isn't even dessert!" I have to say that I wasn't able to write about this yesterday because I was feeling very sorry for myself. I allowed myself yesterday to do that and I am feeling stronger today. I don't know why we continue to have these challanges, but we will get through this and all will be OK. Having the support of friends and family like you all is an incredible help. I will be going to Cookeville, Tn tommorrow evening to do a talk for St. Jude about Jack so send good thoughts my way. Public speaking has never been something I felt comfortable with but I have learned to do a lot of things I never thought I could.

Send up those prayers for my Gus. He is such a good child and my heart breaks to see him going through this. Love to you all,
Beth

Monday, September 30, 2002 at 07:11 AM (CDT)

Happy Monday Morning!!

All I can say is, there is no place like home!! We had a nice time on our trip and the weather was beautiful the whole time we were on the boat. Jack got to meet many of the Disney characters and had a special meeting with the Captain and Captain Mickey. Our trip home was stressful. After sitting for hours in the Atlanta airport we finally gave up and rented a car to drive home. Our lugguage arrived sometime the next day. My advise is to never attempt to fly in and out of Chattanooga with ASA. We have just been gone so much this month that it feels great to say we'll be home for a few weeks. I hope to have some cruise pictures on here by this weekend. Jack felt great on the cruise and in fact when we got back his white count was 6.3. His platelets are going down fast and I wouldn't be surprised if he needed a transfusion this week. On Saturday he tried to stand on the arm of a plastic chair. He hit his face pretty hard. He looks awful as the whole side of his face is bruised. He says, "I don't have a black eye, I have a purple eye!". Of course he also said it was my fault he fell because I had a chair outside. It always comes back to Mom! I pray everyone has a wonderful start to the week!! Much love to you all.

Saturday, September 21, 2002 at 05:10 PM (CDT)

In the morning we will be off to our Make-a-Wish trip on the Disney cruise. We set sail for the Bahamas tomorrow evening and we will be home Thursday evening. We are very excited. However, Jack's counts dropped much more than we expected this week and his ANC isn't nearly as high as I would like to see it be for this trip. We are going to be giving him some antibiotics to help fight anything which may come his way. PLEASE say prayers that he stays well on this trip. I have been very upset about what to do and making the decision to go was not easy. Hopefully, his counts will level out and all be fine. Now if we can just stay away from the hurricanes.....

By the way, have I told you how much I HATE CANCER!!!!! Two of my dear friends lives have forever changed this week with news of their own cancer findings. Sometimes I wonder if anyone will escape.

Please send good thoughts our way. We will let you know when we get back. Much love to you all,
Beth, Mike, Gus and Jack

Saturday, September 14, 2002 at 02:54 PM (CDT)

We are home and happy to be here!! We missed Gus terribly and he was very happy to see us. Jack is feeling great. He played a mean game of soccer this morning. After a week of being still he is making up for lost time. I am going to try to get some new pictures on tonight so make sure to check out the photo album.

As far as what is next, we wait. Jack will need lab work done twice a week to mointor his counts. Once they fall he'll be back on the GCSF shots and blood and platelet transfusions. If he cannot recover on his own, we will have to go to Memphis to have his stored bone marrow given back to him. But before all that, we leave next weekend for Jack's Make-a-Wish trip on the Disney Cruise. We are really excited about it and after the past few weeks it will be a welcome break.

Once again, we could make it though this without all of you and the love of our God. Thank you,
Mike, Beth, Gus and Jack

Thursday, September 12, 2002 at 11:02 AM (CDT)

Good Morning!!

Things are going much better. His radiation level was down to 8.7 this morning and if all goes well we should be able to be released this afternoon!! No one expected the levels to drop so dramatically. That's my Jack. Keep em' guessing! :) Boredoom is our biggest hassle right now. They will be taking out his catheter and doing an MIBG scan about 2:30. After that they will take measurements again and if the number is 7 or lower we are free to go. I imagine after a stop at the Ronald McDonald House to load up we will be on the road. Got to get back for that soccer game on Saturday. God has carried us in His arms once again. I pray that my next message will be from Chatt-a-boogie!! Love you all, Beth

Tuesday, September 10, 2002 at 09:25 PM (CDT)

Hi! Today has been a rough day for Jack. He is in a lot of pain from the catheter and just generally very sad to be here. We have had a lot of tears today. Hopefully he will be a little more comfortable tommorrow. He did get the MIBG imfusion today and all went well with that. His inital radiation level reading was about twice what it was last time. To be honest I am not really sure what that means other than the fact that we probably will not be able to leave as quickly as we did last time. They estimate that it will be Saturday or Sunday before his level drops to the level that we can leave. YUCK! I need to try to get him to go to sleep. I'll write more tommorrow. Love, Beth

Monday, September 09, 2002 at 04:33 PM (CDT)

What a whirlwind weekend! We made it home late Friday night and headed for Philly Sunday morning. We spent the night outside of D.C. and got to Philly about 1pm today. We are all checked in and Jack is doing fine. Actually he and Mike are looking around the hospital and I am here in his room trying to catch up on some mail. He is scheduled to have his catheter (ouch!) placed in the morning and then the MIBG infusion will take place sometime early afternoon. 215-590-6324 is the phone number in Jack's room. As Dr. Maris said today, a boring hospital stay is our goal. Jack's radiation level cleared in 3 days last time and they expect about the same this time so it is possible we could be home by late Friday night. We miss home already!!! We love you all. Beth, Mike, and Jack
Gus is staying at my sister's and we love him and miss him terribly and can't wait to get back home to be all together again!!

Friday, September 06, 2002 at 07:24 AM (CDT)

Good Morning. We are still in Memphis, but plan to leave this afternoon. They scheduled a kidney function test to be done today so we were not able to leave last night. I was reading back over all the wonderful messages and I had to laugh a little. There is a posting from a nurse here at the hospital who said some very nice things about Jack being her patient. I laughed because she was his sedation nurse and he was asleep most be the time he was with her. She hasn't seen him at full speed! We certainly love all the nurses here. A very special group of people I can tell you that! Going back over the MRI results a second time, the opinion was that the tumors were really basically stable. One area did look a little smaller, however, one area actually looked a little larger. I have been a little stressed about this, but I know these measurements are so minute and there is a margin of error.

I probably won't post again until we are in Philly. Jack and Gus have soccer games on Saturday, I have lots of laundry and unpacking and re-packing to do, then we plan to leave for Philly on Sunday morning. I'll be quite busy to say the least. May each of you have a very blesssed weekend. Much love to you all.
Mike, Beth, Gus and Jack

Wednesday, September 04, 2002 at 09:57 PM (CDT)

It was a long day at the hospital, but we are finally back at the room. The results of the MRI are in and it is better! Yes, I did say it was better! Not gone, but better. We take all the positive news we can get and we are pleased with these results. Jack will have an MIBG scan tommorrow which will give a little clearer picture. Not sure as of now if we will come home late tommorrow night or sometime on Friday. We have to be in Philadelphia by 1:00 pm on Monday so it will be a quick stay at home. Before scans that I am really nervous about I always ask God for a sign that Jack will be healed. I always say, "Lord, I understand that our journey may not be over and I am willing to continue on, helping those along the way that I can, sharing with others what I can, but I need a sign that Jack will be healed." He always comes through and gives me that hope and strength that we need. God bless each of you and thank you.
Mike, Beth, Gus and Jack

Tuesday, September 03, 2002 at 02:38 PM (CDT)

Greetings from Memphis.
Well, the first thing we were greeted with was that they cannot find Jack's chart! His MRI was scheduled for this morning and without his chart he could not be sedated. This caused a problem because MRI appointments don't come along easily and we had to have this done. Well, never underestimate the power of suggestion. I told them to tell Jack he was getting his "sleepy medicine" and see what happened. They did and my little hero laid still and was able to do his MRI without sedation! I am not even sure I could do this. The MRI lasts about 45 minutes and he was inside a "tube" which comes pretty close to him. When they let me in he apparently had been pretty scared because he hugged me for about 10 minutes with all his might. However, he was super brave and they were able to get it done. I am so proud of him. He also had an Echo/EKG this afternoon. We have his bone marrow aspirate and meeting with the doctor tomorrow. We should be able to find out the results then. Keep those prayers coming. Today is my birthday and I am praying hard for the results we want.
Love to you all,
Beth, Mike, Jack and Gus

Sunday, September 01, 2002 at 04:07 PM (CDT)

Happy Labor Day Weekend! We are off to Memphis tomorrow. Jack's MRI is scheduled for 7:30 am on Tuesday. He will also have an Echo/EKG, bone marrow aspirate and biopsy, MIBG scan, and blood work. As the results come in I will be sure to post. This is a very scary and nerve racking time for us. Extra prayers this week will really be appreciated. Gus will be staying here with a friend from school. I hate leaving him here and he wants to go with us, but I know he needs to be in school. I'll update as I can. Beth

Friday, August 23, 2002 at 07:22 AM (CDT)

Hello!!
What a great day we had yesterday. Through the incredible generosity, love and support of you our friends and family, Mike and I collected almost $5,000.00 yesterday for St. Jude. I can never begin to tell you what all this means to us. Knowing how much you all care is overwhelming and to be able to give that much back to St. Jude was truly a blessing. Last year they raised about $10,000.00 all together with this event and by 11:00 yesterday morning they had already exceeded that number! They did mention that they believed Jack was one of the most well known St. Jude children there was.

On Wednesday night the Make-a-Wish Foundation treated Jack and some friends to a fun filled party at Chuck E. Cheese. Jack was elated and there was even a small clip on Channel 9 news that night. It was there that they told us that the final arrangements are being made for Jack's Make-a-Wish trip on the Disney Cruise. We are set to leave on September 22. This will be a huge help to be able to look forward to this while we are in the hospital in Philadelphia.

This weekend we are off to visit our dear friends, Vonda and Sanford Burns, Molly's family. They are hosting a huge party (250 people) at their home to thank everyone for all the love and support they received during Molly's illness.
I pray that each of you have a wonderful weekend. I know we will. Thank you again, we love you.
Mike, Beth, Gus and Jack

Friday, August 16, 2002 at 06:31 AM (CDT)

Hello!
We have had a great start to the new school year this week. Jack misses Gus during the day, but is so excited when he gets home. We are off to rafting down the Hiawasse today. This is an annual event sponsored by the Candlelighters. (Group for families of children with cancer)
We will spend tonight at a camp then be treated to an incredible day tomorrow with tons of games, activities, and food. This is a really fun time for us to spend with other cancer families.

Jack is off chemo right now and will start another round next week. This will be the last one before we head to Memphis for scans.

Now, for some late breaking news. Mike and I are going to be thrown in the slammer next Thursday and we need your help. Our crime? Being TOO kind to others. We are being Captured for Kids. St. Jude has asked us to serve time behind bars. We will be locked up on Thursday August 22 at 10:00 am at Long Pontiac on International Drive. We need help raising our bail money. I know I have asked for donations in the past and I really appreciate all of your help. If you haven't already made a donation to St. Jude and would like to do so this is a perfect time. Just e-mail us back privately, there is a link below to our e-mail address, with your name, address, phone number, and pledge amount. Your pledge amount will then be billed to you by St. Jude. Remember all donations are tax deductible. Mike and I really appreciate all support you all have shown us over the past 21 months of this journey.

Have a great wekend. I'll let you know how we did going down the river. Last year Mike fell out of the boat. Do you think I can manage that again??!!
Love to you all,
Beth, Mike, Gus and Jack

Sunday, August 11, 2002 at 12:20 PM (CDT)

Good afternoon. I had some problems with this page and my last entry was moved to the past entries. We are fine. You can look at the past entry to find out the latest!

Thanks,
Beth

Sunday, August 11, 2002 at 12:16 PM (CDT)

Saturday, August 10, 2002 at 08:17 AM (CDT)

Happy August! We have had a great week. Gus and Jack both went to camp at the Aquarium this past week. Gus was already registered and the people at the Aquarium were so wonderful and were able to find a place for Jack in their Aqua Tots program. They both had a great time and it was so good for Jack. He just beamed each day when I picked him up. God certainly does provide. Just when I felt very cheated on the summer and couldn't take much more, He gave us a wonderful time to have fun and for Mom to get a break. Jack is doing good. All blood counts are holding steady. He has two more days in this round of chemo, then he'll be off for 9 days, then one more round before we head back to Memphis. School starting on Tuesday brings mixed feelings. I hate to see Gus going back but he is excited. I also can't help to think about this time next year and Jack starting kindergarten. Pre-school for Jack is still up in the air. Not really sure of what we are going to do. We are trying to make plans to go on Jack's Make-a-Wish trip. He wants to go on a Disney cruise and we are trying to get that arranged for the end of September. As always I thank you for all your love, support, and prayers. We couldn't get through this with out you!

Monday, July 29, 2002 at 09:15 PM (CDT)

It is Monday night, and I have my fingers crossed as I say I do believe we are all on the mend. Jack was given the OK to go back to the summer camp program at St. Martin's. He is very excited about going and Gus is excited he'll have me all to himself for a little while.

As of now I think we will be in town until the first of September. We will go to Memphis on 9/2 to repeat all the scans in preparation for our trip to Philadelphia for the 2nd MIBG treatment on 9/10. We start another round of the oral chemo this week. Please pray that Jack has an easier time taking it. I am trying to find ways to help it be more palatable or at least a good bribe that will be worth it to him! :)

Also in your prayers this week, please pray for Lana Beth Webster. She is in Atlanta trying to have her stem cells harvested so that she can begin her transplant in about a week. This is such a scary time since there can be so many complications with the transplant. Please pray that all goes well for her.

Thank you to all of you for your prayers. I have been really having a hard time staying positive and strong these past couple of weeks. I know that it is through your prayers and strengths that surround us everyday that we get through this. The Lord has truly blessed our lives with each of you. I will update if there are any new developments. If I don't update for awhile, just know that we are doing good and trying hard to enjoy the little bit of time we have left before school starts back.

Friday, July 26, 2002 at 08:09 AM (CDT)

I just thought I'd give you a quick update. It seems that even when you have a child with cancer, you are not immune to some of the more "normal" illnesses. Even though I believe strongly that you should be. Jack and I have both come down with pink eye. This is the viral pink eye takes a while to clear up. Jack has been running a fever daily and his right eye looks awful. My left eye is the one that is infected so together we only have one good pair. Jack and I have taken over my bedroom as our "sick" room and kicked Mike out. This morning both of us had eyes that were swollen shut. So my plans for Jack to have fun at St. Martin's Summer Camp, Gus and I to spend so much need one on one time, and to have a family portrait made today are all down the drain. Bill White, a member of our church, has graciously agreed to do the sermon this week for me so no words of wisdom from me this week. I haven't been feeling very full of the spirit and decided not to get everyone at church sick either. The good news is that Jack's counts have remained good so we truly believe the fever is just the result of this virus and not some unknown infection. I will pray that each of you have a wonderful weekend. Take time to be with those you love and care about. And if there is someone you haven't talked to in awhile, pick up the phone and call them. You'll be glad you did.

Monday, July 22, 2002 at 07:51 AM (CDT)

Good Morning. Jack started running a fever yesterday morning. The doctor said just to give him Tylenol and to watch him and see how he does. So, I layed on the floor of his room last night. He woke about 5:30 am with his fever back up again. His counts were OK on Thursday, so more than likely it is just a virus, however it is hard to believe something could ever be simple. We'll go to the clinic today. We finally heard from the MRI results that there was no change. Seems the MRI wasn't sent as timely as we expected it would be, therefore the delay. Jack was supposed to go to "summmer camp" at St. Martin's this week. We were really looking forward to it since he has had so few opportunities to be around children his own age. Please pray that this fever is nothing and that he will be able to go. As always, I'll keep you posted.
Love, Beth

P.S. We are back from the clinic and all counts were good. Most likely the fever is a result of a virus, probably the same one that caused Gus to have "pink eye".

Wednesday, July 17, 2002 at 03:31 PM (CDT)

Hello everyone. We still don't have any news on the MRI. I was hoping to hear from them so I could post the results, however I thought I'd just let everyone know we are doing fine. Jack did 5 days of chemo, was off two, and will start five more days tomorrow. So far we have had no problems and no bad side effects. We are expecting to be able to stay in town until the end of August. We will go to Memphis to repeat all the scans in order to get ready to go to Philadelphia in September. Now for my other child... If it isn't one it is the other. Gus was having a wonderful time at McCallie Day Camp when he came down with "pink eye". It looks like he'll be out the rest of the week. He has a pretty good case of it. I suspect Jack will have it before too long. We just can't get away from the doctors no matter how hard we try. I pray that this message find each of you well and happy. Please know how much we appreciate all your prayers and that we pray every day for thos who are reading our updates. May God Bless you and keep you.

Tuesday, July 09, 2002 at 03:38 PM (CDT)

Good afternoon. Jack had an MRI this morning at TC Thompson. I am sure it will be a few days before we know anything. They will have to send the films to Memphis to be read. I am a nervous wreck as always. Keep those prayers going. Hopefully we will be able to start his chemo by Thursday. Love to all of you from all of us!!

Friday, July 05, 2002 at 09:23 AM (CDT)

Just a few short updates...Jack will be having an MRI on Wednesday at Erlanger!! We have to go to the clinic here on Monday for lab work and physical exam. Once all the necessary info is received in Memphis they will FedEx us chemo to start. Also, we talked with DR. Maris at CHOP and Jack is scheduled for the 2nd MIBG treatment in Philadelphia on September 10. We had a great holiday and pray you did too!! Love to you all. Mike, Beth, Gus and Jack

Tuesday, July 02, 2002 at 10:16 AM (CDT)

We're Home! Home, home on the range! Home Sweeet Home! Home is Where the Heart Is! What a wonderful place!! I just want to let everyone know we are here and happy to be. Jack will have another MRI next week. They want us to come back to Memphis on Sunday and then Jack starts round two of the chemo on Wednesday. I sincerely doubt at this point I am getting back in the car and driving all the way back over there in just a few days! I am trying to work it out to have the MRI here in Chattanooga and just have them FedEx the medicine to me here. We'll see who wins! By the way, I did redeem myself on Sunday with my children's nutrition. They ate very healthy the rest of the day. Unless something changes, I won't post for a while as we try to unpack and get settled. I pray that each of you have a wonderful 4th of July. May it be safe and may all of us look to our Lord and thank Him for the freedoms we enjoy.

Sunday, June 30, 2002 at 10:08 AM (CDT)

Good Sunday Morning to all! I sat last night and figured out that I have only spent 5 days in my house since the first of June. Hotel living is not for me!! This morning we all refused to have to go out to eat again and the boys had a breakfast of doughnuts (from the hotel gift shop) and Bar-B-Que potato chips. The worst part of it is that I really don't even feel that guilty about it. We are all very tired of being here and cannot wait until tomorrow. Jack is doing good. He has been having a little more intestinal distress so I have started him back on the Immodium. Of course doughnuts and chips aren't exactly what he should be eating. Maybe I do feel guilty after all!!
I am packing our car today. Our appointment is at 9:00am and I am planning to leave right after that. Please pray that nothing will delay us and that we have a safe trip home.

Friday, June 28, 2002 at 08:23 AM (CDT)

Good Morning. I really miss home!!! Mike is in Chicago attending the Neuroblastoma Foundation conference. He is enjoying meeting the other families we have corresponded with via the internet since all this began. Jack, Gus and I remain in Memphis with high hopes that we will be coming home Monday. Jack is doing OK. He has had some trouble taking the chemo. It tastes horrible and he has trouble keeping it down after he has taken it. Other than that things are going pretty well. We don't go back to the hospital until Monday so we are trying to find things to do to keep us busy this weekend. We are all really tired. Jack feel asleep last night at six o'clock and didn't wake up until 6:30 this morning. I am actually jealous he slept that much. I pray that you all have a great weekend. Love, Beth, Gus, Jack and Mike

Wednesday, June 26, 2002 at 08:51 AM (CDT)

We have moved to the Marriott Hotel downtown. We moved last night. Jack has been having some intestinal distress and I just felt better being closer to the hospital. He is doing OK, just hope it doesn't get much worse. He will start back on chemo today. The number here is 901-527-7300 room 1009. I have been having some problems once again with this computer (don't buy a Dell!) so if I don't post any messages, just know that it is merely computer problems. I can't wait to be home. We miss everyone. Our plan for the day is to go do the laundry at the Ronald McDonald House. Just doesn't get any more exciting than that does it.

Tuesday, June 25, 2002 at 07:52 AM (CDT)

Greetings! Yesterday's visit at the hospital was uneventful. Jack is doing great. Monday and today are days off of the chemo and we start back Wednesday for 5 more days. I asked about coming home this weekend. It seems silly to me to be here when he is doing this good, but the answer from Dr. Furman was, "No!". He says that it is during the second week that they see the problems with side effects. Mike is leaving on Thursday to go to a Neuroblastoma conference in Chicago so I think the boys and I are going to move down to the Marriott. I would feel better being closer to the hospital should anything happen. I think we will move tomorrow afternoon. Today we are going to the zoo. This week, the hospital is doing a summer camp program in the afternoons so the boys are going to that as well. Take care. Love, Beth, Mike , Gus and Jack

Sunday, June 23, 2002 at 09:20 AM (CDT)

Good Morning! All is well with us and I pray with you all as well. Jack is feeling good and active as ever. He has been really good about taking his medicine. We have it here at the hotel so we don't even have to go to the hospital. We will go to the hospital tomorrow for his counts and an exam, but so far so good. Gus apparently pulled a groin muscle and was limping around for the past few days, but that has gotten better. We have just been trying to keep busy here in exciting Memphis!! Last night was pizza and minature golf!! Today I am going to visit Molly's family while the boys have a day together. Wish them luck, Gus and Jack that is! I'll report any new news as we have it. If Jack continues to do well, I am going to beg to be able to come home by the weekend.

Thursday, June 20, 2002 at 10:46 AM (CDT)

Day 2 from the Medicine Room. We are doing OK. Jack had a good day yesterday. Today he is feeling a little sick to his tummy. Other than that there is no real news to report. The phone number at the hotel where we are staying is (901) 751-2500 room 111. Love to you all.

Tuesday, June 18, 2002 at 07:32 AM (CDT)

Good Morning from Road Trippin' Rhonda and her band of Merry Men!! Jack, Gus and I are off to Memphis today and Mike will follow us in a few days. Jack will start chemo tomorrow. It is an oral form of a drug called Irinotecan. The first two days will be long days at the hospital due to blood level tests they will be doing to measure how much of the medication is getting into his system. After that, we should have a pretty light schedule. We are going to be staying at a Homewood Suites Hotel in Germantown. I just couldn't handle not having any type of kitchen facilities for two weeks with all of us there. I will give the phone number when I get it. I have also added the hospital address to this page. Pray that this medication id effective in further reducing the disease and that the side effects are mild. Love you all, we'll update regularly!!

Thursday, June 13, 2002 at 09:07 PM (CDT)

This is going to be short and I'll post meore details later, but......the big news is Jack's tumor has SHRUNK!!!! The results of the MRI showed a reduction in the disease. It is by far not gone, however, this is definetly what we have been praying for. This changes everything as far as the treatment we were considering. We are looking toward more MIBG treatments, but they cannot get us in until August so we will have to do some chemo until then. We may come home for a few days before coming back to start the chemo. God has held us in His hands and has guided us this far. I believe this is all part of the miracle He is giving us. We still have a very long road ahead but I sure do feel good today!!!

Thursday, June 13, 2002 at 07:23 AM (CDT)

Yesterday we met with Dr. Furman and Dr. Barfield. The results of the MRI were not back yet so no definite decisions were made.
Jack was not admitted to the hospital like we thought. Today we will get the results of the MRI and decide on what course of treatment to use. More then likely Jack will be admitted tonight to begin chemo tonight or tomorrow. Once we have made a decision I will share the details. Please pray for us today to make the right choices. This is very hard and I have been praying for God to show us what to do.

Wednesday, June 12, 2002 at 10:56 AM (CDT)

Hi,
We made it to Memphis safely last night. Jack can't have anything to eat until after his MRI this afternoon so I am trying to keep him occupied. Check out the new pictures in the photo album. Thanks, Aunt Kathy for putting them on there for me. I know he is mine, but he is pretty cute!! I'll update tonight with the latest.

Monday, June 10, 2002 at 03:50 PM (CDT)

We are back home for the beach with enough time to wash clothes and put them back in the suitcase to leave for Memphis. We will go tomorrow with plans to do an MRI on Wednesday and probably admit him to start chemo. We will of course know more details once we get there. We had a wonderful time at the beach. A memory I will always cherish. It is hard to believe that in just a few days time our world is making such a huge change. From beach to hospital. Just doesn't seem fair.
Keep checking in. I hope to have some new pics on in a day or so.

Monday, June 03, 2002 at 01:39 PM (CDT)

I saw the most incredible site today. I saw my two boys, Gus and Jack frolicking in the ocean with their best friends Jonathon and Katherine. It was so beautiful to watch them all at the beach for the first time. I just prayed that this would be the first of many trips to the ocean. Jack had a great time. I was VERY nervous that the dressing I put over his central line wasn't keeping it dry, but luckily it did. I'll probably be able to relax about that a little more tomorrow. Thank you to Karen and Roland Witt for allowing us the use of their beach house this week. It is truly wonderful to be here.

Tuesday, May 28, 2002 at 01:40 PM (CDT)

Just a quick note...We had a good weekend. Nice and boring, just the way I like it. Jack's ANC and platelets were good at the clinic today so we are still in a holding pattern. We plan to go back on Friday. If there are no new developments, we plan to go to the beach for a few days to stay at a house compliments of a dear friend at church. Jack and Gus have never been to the beach and this is something I really want to do with them now. When we return, I assume they will want to see us in Memphis right away to determine our next step. When we heard the news the other day that Jack's tumor had not shrunk, a dear friend was with me. Through tears we asked why God hadn't answered our prayers for healing. There have been so many of us praying so hard and long now. My friend then looked at me and said,"Maybe He already has and we just don't know it yet." This is what I believe. Our miracle is happening, we just don't know it yet.
Keep the faith. Love to you all.

Friday, May 24, 2002 at 07:06 AM (CDT)

I sent out an e-mail this morning to those of you on our list. For those who didn't get the e-mail here is a brief overview. Jack's tumor did not shrink at all with MIBG so it has been decided that any further treatments would not be of any benefit. That have decided that we need to return to Memphis for the bone marrow rescue to get Jack fully recovered as soon as possible so that we can move on to another treatment. I am assuming that will be chemotherapy, but no official word yet. I will post more after we talk to the Dr. today.

Wednesday, May 22, 2002 at 03:26 PM (CDT)

AAAAARRRRRGGGGGHHHHH!!!! We went to the clinic today so that Jack could get platelets, and his ANC was back down all the way to 276. So...we are back to shots and staying in. It was great that whole day and a half that it lasted. One good thing, we did finally find out that the bone marrow aspiration that was done in Memphis was clear. We didn't expect any differently, but it is nice to know for sure. We will go back to the clinic again on Friday to check again before the long weekend. Oh well, maybe this means I'll get the laundry put away. May God bless your day with peace and laughter.

Tuesday, May 21, 2002 at 07:00 AM (CDT)

I am still working on that picture and determined to get it now. It still doesn't work, but it will soon. We are good. Jack's ANC seems to have recovered. His white count was 3.8 yesterday and his ANC 1,440. It will come back down a little now that we have stopped the GCSF shots, but hopefully will stabilize. We are going to a party at Gus' school this morning to celebrate the fact that his kindergarten class raised just over $5,000 for St. Jude in their Math-a-thon. Bacause they dedicated this to Jack, St. Jude is placing a plaque with Jack's name on it in the hospital. I am really proud of these kids and thank you to all of you who helped. One side note, when we were at the clinic yesterday they informed me that there was an extreme shortage of platlets in Chattanooga. In fact, there were none. Donating platlets in a little different than donating whole blood. It takes quite a bit longer, but is very needed. If you want more info on the process you can e-mail me privately or call Blood Assurance. If anyone hasn't donated blood in the last 8 weeks and you have some extra time, I highly encourage you to do this. Jack will need more platelets on Wednesday and we hope the supply will be better by then. Love and peace to all you!!

Sunday, May 19, 2002 at 07:49 AM (CDT)

There was a picture of Jack with a Thunderbird pilot in the online edition of the paper. I am going to try to supply the link and add also add the picture to the photo album. However, this is where my true lack of computer ability will shine through. If it doesn't work for me. I'll ask one of my real "techie" friends to help.
Love to you all.

Friday, May 17, 2002 at 05:52 PM (CDT)

We had a big day today! Thanks to the wonderful people at Make-a-Wish and LifeCare Centers we spent the afternoon at the private hangar for LifeCare watching the practice run of the Thunderbirds Airshow. After the flying was over, the pilots came out to meet everyone and take pictures. Jack and Gus had a big time. Mom and Dad had fun too! The best part for Jack however was the ice cream freezer full of Mayfield's ice cream. He has now added to his wish. He wants his own Mayfield Ice Cream freezer. Gus has been busy trying to build his own plane from cardboard boxes and now wants to be a fighter pilot. We take each day as it comes, the good and the bad. Today has been good.

Thursday, May 16, 2002 at 05:06 PM (CDT)

Doesn't the saying go, "what goes up must come down?" I feel like I am on the worst roller coaster ride possible. Jack'sNC was back down to 600 today. Not too bad, but defintely not the direction we were hoping for. It was another long day. We were at the doctors office 6 hours today. Jack needed more platelets and they took an unusually long time to get. So I am pretty tired. Jack, on the other hand, had a long Benedryl induced nap and seems to be going strong. Have a great weekend.

Wednesday, May 15, 2002 at 08:26 AM (CDT)

Good Morning!! The Lord has once again wrapped my precious one in his loving arms and kept us safe. Jack's ANC was up to 756 yesterday which means he is no longer neutropenic and we do not have to go back to Memphis this week. He may still have to have the bone marrow rescue, but right now things are looking good. Our doctor in Memphis(Furman) has sent Jack's scans to our doctor in Philadelphia (Maris) for his opinion. Once he takes a look at them we should hear something. It has been frustrating not knowing, but if it is bad news I don't want to know right now anyway!!
I wanted to thank you all for all the wonderful messages in our guest book. We really have enjoyed reading them and I hope you all have enjoyed reading the messages as well. It is so awesome to see all the love and support one little boy can inspire. We are still giving shots daily, but Jack has been so incredibly strong. The past two nights he hasn't even cried. Just another answer to prayer. May God bless each of you and your families this day and always.
Beth

Wednesday, May 15, 2002 at 08:26 AM (CDT)

Good Morning!! The Lord has once again wrapped my precious one in his loving arms and kept us safe. Jack's ANC was up to 756 yesterday which means he is no longer neutropenic and we do not have to go back to Memphis this week. He may still have to have the bone marrow rescue, but right now things are looking good. Our doctor in Memphis(Furman) has sent Jack's scans to our doctor in Philadelphia (Maris) for his opinion. Once he takes a look at them we should hear something. It has been frustrating not knowing, but if it is bad news I don't want to know right now anyway!!
I wanted to thank you all for all the wonderful messages in our guest book. We really have enjoyed reading them and I hope you all have enjoyed reading the messages as well. It is so awesome to see all the love and support one little boy can inspire. We are still giving shots daily, but Jack has been so incredibly strong. The past two nights he hasn't even cried. Just another answer to prayer. May God bless each of you and your families this day and always.
Beth

Monday, May 13, 2002 at 06:09 PM (CDT)

Whew!! What a long day. Jack and I were up a lot last night and I was constantly taking his temperature. He bordered on having a fever for a few hours, then early this moring his temp went to 100.6. Convinced that he would be admitted to the hospital I prepared. When we got to the Dr's. office at 9:00 am he no longer had a fever and remained that way the rest of the day. He did however need transfusions of both platelets and blood. So we were at the clinic until late this afternoon. The good news is that his ANC at least went up to 416. I am still not sure what we are doing. It seems to me that since his ANC came up we wouldn't have to do a bone marrow rescue, at least not yet. We have called Memphis to discuss it with them, but did not get a call back. So, I am not packing (or is it unpacking and re-packing) just yet. I really want to try to give him the rest of this week to recover here. If we need to go back, that's fine but I am hoping we can stay here this week.

Friday, May 10, 2002 at 06:05 PM (CDT)

We are home and oh so happy to be here! No news today other than the fact that Jack's ANC remained at 200 today. I will be giving him the shots of GCSF this weekend. Please pray that by Monday his ANC is up. I really don't want him to have to have the bone marrow rescue. He is glad to be home and it sure makes being isolated much easier. I'll update on Monday with the latest. Also, pray for no fevers this weekend!!

Thursday, May 09, 2002 at 07:21 PM (CDT)

Today Jack's ANC fell again to 200. This isn't what we hoped or expected. They are still scheduled to do an MRI tomorrow, but they want us back here next week to go over the results of all the tests. Also, if his counts do not come up by Wednesday, they will have to do a bone marrow rescue using the marrow they have stored. This is not want we want to happen. If Jack has to have this done, it would make him ineligible to have a second MIBG treatment. Anytime you start to limit your treatment options it gets pretty scary. We are all on edge today and will be happy to be home this weekend. We don't expect to hear anything tomorrow, but if we do I'll update.

Thursday, May 09, 2002 at 07:46 AM (CDT)

Good Morning! Jack was released from the hospital last night. He is doing good and full of himself as always. He did have and MMIBG scan and bone marrow aspirate yesterday. We haven't gotten any results, but we have a clinic visit later today so hopefully we will hear something then. As of now, Jack has an MRI tomorrow and we plan to come home after that. We are missing brother Gus!!! I let Jack watch Harry Potter last night on pay-per-view here at the hotel and right now he is busy trying out his new "spells". I better go before I find myself a toad!! Have a great day. Love to you all.

Tuesday, May 07, 2002 at 02:34 PM (CDT)

No real news today. Jack's fever seems to be gone which is good news. He wasn't able to have the MRI today because his hemoglobin needed to be at least 7.0 in order to be sedated and his was 6.8. He did get more blood today so he should be good tomorrow. As far as I know the MRI hasn't been rescheduled, but he should have the MIBG scan and bone marrow aspirate tomorrow. His ANC came up a little to 300 which is also good. We are a little bored, but if that is all we have to complain about, I'll take it!! Love you all!!

Tuesday, May 07, 2002 at 12:03 AM (CDT)

It is late and we have had a long day. We went in for Jack to get blood and about an hour into it he spiked a fever. Because his ANC was so low, we have been admitted to the hospital. We are finally in a room and will hopefully be going to sleep soon. They don't know the cause of the fever, but have cultured everything! They started running IV antibiotics. He has to be fever free for 48 hours before we can be released so no telling when we will get out of here. Just please pray that he doesn't have any serious infection. He is still scheduled to have an MRI and a bone scan tomorrow. This has all thrown me for a loop. This wasn't at all what I expected this trip to be like.

Monday, May 06, 2002 at 03:55 PM (CDT)

It is Monday afternoon. We arrived at St. Jude last night after first stopping to see our friends the Burns', their daughter is Molly who I have written about often. It has been a hectic day and it is far from ending. Jack's counts are very low, so he is having to wear a mask when out of the room and he is NOT happy about it. His hemoglobin is very low and he needs to get a blood transfusion. This takes about 4 to 5 hours and as of this writing they haven't gotten the blood yet. So it will be a long night. I hope they will be calling soon. Jack is very unhappy about being here and not cooperating at all. And his platelets are low, so I can't even spank him (LOL):)!
Jack did have a CT scan and even though we haven't gotten the official word, a little birdie told me there appears to be no change in the tumor. Not exactly the news we were hoping for, but the good part is that at least it hasn't grown. Of course the MRI and MIBG scan will reveal a lot more. I had to admit to them here that I was giving Jack GCSF through his line and not in a shot. They freaked just like I thought they would, so I'll have to start giving him a daily shot of GCSF until his ANC recovers. I am going shopping for major bribe toys!! Well, I'll update again on Tuesday. Keep praying.
Love, Beth, Mike, and Jack (Gus too!)

Thursday, May 02, 2002 at 03:37 PM (CDT)

Jack's ANC finally dipped below 500 today. His platelet count was VERY low today (4, the normal is 250)so he got a transfusion of platelets. We plan to leave Sunday morning to go to Memphis. We are first planing a stop in Selmer, Tn. to visit our friend Molly then we will go on to Memphis. I'll update the site as the test results come in. Keep praying. We really need all the prayers you can manage for this one.

Monday, April 29, 2002 at 03:38 PM (CDT)

We are doing well. The blood/bone marrow donor drive this weekend at St.Martins went well. We had quite a few people who came out because they had seen us on the news or heard us on the radio. That was exactly my goal, which was to spread awareness of the bone marrow donor program. Jacks counts continue to fluctuate. His platelets were at 18,000 today so we will transfuse him on Thursday.

Thursday, April 25, 2002 at 03:31 PM (CDT)

Thanks for all the wonderful comments, but you all give me way too much credit. CaringBridge is a great service and all I have to do is type in the info. I am however, having a hard time getting the updated information I put in. It is still showing me an entry from April 7th.
Anyway, today Jack and I were on the Village Idiots show on Talk 102.3 to talk about the Bone Marrow drive and the first thing Jack said to Wally was, "You are fat." I about died. Those are the moments that make you proud.

Wednesday, April 24, 2002 at 03:44 PM (CDT)

Good afternoon and thanks for visiting. I hope by this weekend I will have some pictures on here for everyone who hasn't seen just how great Jack looks. His counts were high on Monday so we got to take Jack out to dinner on his birthday. He chose Red Lobster and ate his weight in lobster tails, crab legs, and chocolate cake. (And who ever said he doesn't take after his mother?) We go back to the doctor tomorrow for another check. I hope to see lots of you at the Bone Marrow Drive this weekend. Let us know what you think about posting our messages this way rather than e-mail.
Love you all! Beth, Mike Gus and Jack

Sunday, April 07, 2002 at 03:27 PM (CDT)

Hello everyone and welcome. I am going to try posting messages here to see how this works. I may then decide to discontinue my e-mail update. Our list has grown quite a bit and this way you can check in when you would like to. Jack is doing fine today. The shingles are almost all cleared up. He is really tired of taking the medicine, but just a another day or so. I'll update again soon.

Sunday, February 24, 2002 at 02:51 PM (CST)

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