As of today, Maddie is 11 months cancer free!!!!!!

We went to clinic today and Dr. Martin said she still looks great and is doing fantastic.  He also said that most often, if the leukemia would come back, it would happen during the first year after the transplant.  We are almost there!  Also, he said she has passed the danger point for a lot of complications that can arise with a bone marrow transplant.  So...we left the clinic in very good spirits feeling very blessed!  We will go back to clinic on July 13th for Maddie's one year tests.  At that point we will do another DNA test and her eyes will also be checked annually for cataracts as a possible side effect of radiation.  She is also very excited about starting the third grade in a couple weeks!

One thing you all know about Maddie is her attitude of never giving up.  We were in church about a month ago and the chairman of the church Relay for Life team stood up and spoke.  He asked everyone who was a cancer survivor to stand up.  Maddie was listening to him but didn't stand.  I reminded her that she was a cancer survivor and she said, "Mom, that was a long time ago."  Tim told her that she will be a cancer survivor for the rest of her life.  She then said, "OK.  I'll stand up, but it was still a long time ago."  It's amazing how resilient kids are.  It also shows us that she has an unstoppable spirit.

We just got back yesterday from a week and half trip to Ohio.  I never thought I'd say that it was nice to be able to make that drive, but it was.  It was a very busy trip but also a lot of fun.  We really enjoyed seeing everyone.  Seeing everyone reminds us how incredibly lucky we are to have such a good support system of family and friends.  As soon as people found out about Maddie, the wagons were circled around us and they haven't stopped yet.....and we greatly appreciate it.