Ian has made amazing progress in the last four weeks. Soon after we arrived at St. Jude in early January, we began to notice positive signs in him, such as turning his head to look at us. As time went on, it seemed that every day he did something that he hadn't done before. 

Despite chemotherapy and an unexpected stay in the hospital for a fever, Ian has continued to progress rapidly. His arms have come alive, and we are getting fist bumps, high fives, and hugs. He is very aware of what is going on around him. Although he still isn't talking, he is working on it, and has managed to say "mama" a few times in the last couple of days. Thanks to Melanie working persistently on his writing, he can communicate with us fairly well. This has evolved from writing single letters to say yes and no to writing partial sentences to answer questions.

This weekend I brought him a new Ipad and was rewarded with the first happy look I have seen on his face in in almost seven months. We got lots of smiles and silly faces this weekend. Melanie and I feel like we have our son back after months of wondering whether he would ever improve. We know that it cannot be easy for him, but we are so proud of the spirit that he is showing us as he works and struggles to progress.

We are aware that there are many people from all over praying for Ian, and we are very thankful for all of those prayers. We are also grateful for the amazing people - friends, family, and strangers, who have helped us in countless ways.