Last week Ashton had blood transfusions, multiple blood draws to her check numbers, one MRI, and one round of outpatient chemo. And probably more that I am leaving out. This doesn’t include her daily meds, nausea patches, vitamins, etc.

This is just one week, in the world of childhood brain cancer.

As many of you know, we had the brain scan we’d waited almost eight weeks for, and the days and nights leading up to it, and especially that day, were some of the hardest.

The spots are still lighting up like they were a few weeks ago, but they did not take the form of a cancer tumor, so that was the best outcome, aside from the spots disappearing as well.

We pray that by the next scan, there are no spots that light up.

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The kids school year ended on Thursday, and it usually takes me a few weeks to get used to the transition of them being gone during the day while I work vs. them being here.

One day this past week, while her sisters weren’t gone, Ashton spent a lot of time upstairs and told me I couldn’t come up because she was working on a surprise.

You know what that surprise was?

She cleaned the entire upstairs. Every bathroom, every room, the hallway, the laundry and everything else.

She made the beds. She vacuumed. She put all the toys away. She folded all the blankets. She collected the old water bottles and bowls and put them in a bowl for me to carry down.

She did all of this out of love. To show me how much she loved me.

After all we share the same love language – Acts of Service.

We give and receive it through Acts of Service.

My heart melted. As she showed me each room, I cried. And I hid it of course.

Her thoughtfulness, showing me her love, which has always been the way she has, made me so full of love and so much gratitude.

Even with all she is going through, she still loves to do things like this to show her love.

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Lately Ashton has had the best one liners. From jokes, to correcting her sisters about their manners, or demanding they clean up after themselves, she’s been cracking me up.

She enforces the rules and takes care of them. She helps with breakfast every morning, cleans up after them, and is such a caregiver.

It comes so naturally to her.

It always has.

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Ashton is also as fashionable as ever. She has so much fun getting dressed every morning in nice outfits all on her own, and while she tries to wear platform shoes, she can’t anymore because of balance.

But that doesn’t stop her from trying 

She never comes downstairs without doing her make up, and especially never misses her mascara. She only has about 2 clumps of lashes left, but she sure does know how to make them look great! (With her hair coming out again, she has lost most of her eyebrows, and her eyelashes as well.

I just hope she doesn’t notice, and with how she applies her mascara every day, something tells me it doesn’t matter to her as long as she still has some.

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Today I head out of town again for work.

My first one was the week Ashton was losing her hair, and that was the hardest.

It’s always bittersweet and has gotten easier to travel with each trip.

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Please pray for a calm week ahead for Ashton.

We have a surprise we were gifted with starting next Saturday, and we need Ashton in the best health possible.

It’s been hard to contain our excitement, but won’t know until the few days leading up if we can make it word.

Fingers Crossed.