THE BRADBURNS

Yes, he's cancer free but this still sucks.

2012-02-06T23:05:00.000-05:00

I guess I was getting too comfortable. I guess I had really settled into normal because 2 weeks ago my world got rocked (again) and I'm still trying to get my head around it.
For those of you who aren't on Facebook or don't follow me on Twitter, I will bring you up to speed. Forester has lost almost all of his hearing in his left ear.
About 3 weeks ago Forester had some congestion, sneezing and runny nose. After a bout of sneezes and nose blowing he said he couldn't hear out of his left ear. We chalked it up to sinus congestion/pressure. After 2 days of him saying he still couldn't hear we took him to the pediatrician. I thought for sure either Forester was being dramatic or he had the beginning of an ear infection. His ears were clear but the doc gave him some Fluticasone to help clear the pressure, etc. After 7 days and no change we weren't terribly concerned until I saw Micah say something in Forester's left ear and then Forester turn his head around and asked him to say it again in his right ear. Wait. That's not being dramatic. We scheduled an audiologist appointment at MUSC for the following week. Oddly enough Forester's school requested a hearing & eye test with the nurse the next day. They called me in to share the results. He had failed the hearing test completely in his left ear. Heard nothing. We called the audiologist at MUSC and they moved his appointment to the following morning. Slade and Forester and I went. I thought for sure he probably had something going on in his middle ear - something fixable. His hearing tests (which he gets every 6 months) usually take 10 minutes at the most. When he didn't come back to the waiting room after 20 minutes I got nervous. When he still wasn't back after 40 minutes I was really, really nervous. You may remember that Forester took a chemo drug called Cisplatin that can cause hearing loss. He did lose some hearing in the "dog whistle" high tones but it was minimal. He's had consistent hearing tests with no change for almost 2 years now. So...this just didn't make sense. It has to be an ear infection.
Long story longer, Forester completed his tests and the audiologist pulled me into a tiny little room to talk. She said "well, it's not good news". (all too familiar people!) He has had dramatic hearing loss and it is permanent. She said a hearing aid wouldn't help him as the loss is too severe and bunch of other stuff that I can't remember because Slade was screaming "MOMMMEEEE!" from the waiting room the whole time. But, somehow I came away thinking this was related to Cisplatin. We were immediately set up to see an ENT specialist within a couple of hours. She said something about a possible treatment (huh? I thought you said permanent?), steriods, tests, shots... blah. I hated this day. It reminded me too much of Forester's diagnosis day. Pete wasn't with me...I called him crying...being whisked away to other doctors and tests...all of it. Yucky.
Moving on.
My parents met me at my house to watch Slade and Pete met Forester and me across town at the ENT. This doctor is much more positive. And he's tall. Very tall. He says this is not from Cisplatin. Cisplatin not only doesn't cause hearing loss in this way but definitely not two years later. The theory (also known as we don't know why this happens) is that a virus of some kind infected Forester's Cochlea or Cochlea nerve. This is extremely rare but it happens and the end result is instant dramatic hearing loss that is likely permanent. Really? I mean, really?? This craziness isn't related to cancer & treatment? What???
We were told that high doses of an anti-viral drug along with high doses of steroid could give Forester a 50/50 chance of regaining some or all of the hearing loss. We've already dealt with rare. We've already dealt with a 50/50 chance. This sucks but at least you're saying there's a chance. So, for the last 10 days Forester has been jacked up on huge amounts of these drugs. This morning he had a hearing retest to see if the drugs had reversed the hearing loss. Unfortunately, the result was minimal improvement. A little bit, but not much. The next and last step to try to regain his hearing began today. The ENT poked a small hole in his eardrum (yeah, ouch.) and then applied liquid steroid directly to the Cochlea. Forester was very brave. Once again, this kid was a trooper during a procedure that most kids would have freaked over. I was very proud of him and very sad for him all at the same time. He will have to do this again on Wednesday and again on Friday. He will have another hearing test a week from today (Monday), and those results will be final and permanent.
I've gone through a lot of emotions this past week and today. Mostly sad. I've cried a lot today. Maybe I can blog more about how I feel at a later time but right now I'm just tired and weary and really sad. Sad to be here again...kind of. No, it's not cancer. Yes, he's still cancer free! But, right now he's lost the ability to hear out of one ear and that still sucks. This one thing alone would be devastating to any parent. Every parent wants their child to have everything they're supposed to have. But on top of everything else?! Ugh. This mother's heart is hurting. Bad. I know he'll be okay even if he doesn't regain his hearing. I know he can still hear well out of his right ear and he doesn't seem extremely bothered by the loss. But, he's my baby. I don't want him to struggle anymore than he already has.

Please pray that miraculous things will happen this week and that Forester's hearing will be restored. Thanks, warriors.

Whitney

Happy New Year

2012-01-20T16:02:00.000-05:00

Hello family and sweet friends,

It's been about 4 months since my last post and wow, how time flies! Since that time each of our children have had birthdays (10, 7, 3), we celebrated Thanksgiving and Christmas, rung in the New Year, finished soccer and started basketball and are almost halfway through 4th grade and 1st grade at a new school. I think I need a nap just thinking about all of it!

Micah...
Micah has really settled in at his new school. He has made several new friends, loves his teacher and really seems to enjoy learning. He also seems more and more interested in sports with each passing day. He loves Upward basketball and he can't wait to sign up for baseball for the first time this spring. Micah seems to have an internal motor that is always running so we're glad there is an outlet for him in sports!

Slade...
Slade is three. How can my baby girl be three? It's known to all that two's are terrible but I disagree. I think two is challenging and three is terrible. It's the year of choosing to disobey and testing the limits. Of course it's also full of wonder and discovery, love and snuggles! I wouldn't trade it for the world and Pete and I are up for the test. I think. We've haven't parented a diva before...

Forester: A kid's life post-cancer...
Forester is doing well. He finished soccer better than he started and really loved playing goalie. He's also playing Upward basketball and is holding his own against some of the older and taller players and improving his skills. He still seems to end up on the ground more than most. I don't know if that's residual neuropathy in his legs, lack of strength, or just tripping over his own feet but he gets right back up and keeps going.
Another MRI was done in December with another perfect result. Thank you, Lord! A small cataract has begun to develop in his left eye. This is a side effect from radiation. He will see an Ophthalmologist in February and we hope to have a better understanding about the growth rate of this cataract and treatment. His thyroid levels are currently balanced well with the small amount of Synthroid he takes each day, and he is still on target to start daily growth hormone shots this summer. We are starting to see more side effects from having a low growth hormone level. Obviously, in his height, but he also gets winded and tired more easily than others. His hair is still baby fine and thin. He has less muscle tone than he used to and his metabolism is sluggish so he's carrying more fat. He is not overweight but we were encouraged to keep him as active as possible, limit snacks and make sure he's eating healthy. Sounds like a good idea for all of us! It is ironic though. His treatment caused him to lose so much weight and the doctor's advice was to give him anything he wanted to eat at anytime. The more fattening, the better. We were calorie pushers and short order cooks! That same treatment has now caused his system to slow down and not metabolize properly so we're on the other end of the spectrum. But, I'm thankful for the needed discipline because we've allowed Forester to continue some bad eating habits that need to stop. I need to stop catering to what he likes or says he doesn't like. He can still be very picky about how something looks or smells and still has to take Prevacid everyday to keep his tummy from feeling bad. So...food can still be frustrating.
School has definitely been our biggest challenge over the last four months. Forester has been blessed with an amazing teacher who wants to help in anyway possible but it quickly became obvious to us that he needed more than just a supportive teacher. Math has become more and more difficult, multiplication just doesn't seem to be sticking, he's beginning to have more attention deficit episodes where he "spaces out" and homework is taking twice as long to complete. We met with Forester's child psychiatrist at MUSC and she confirmed that all of these things line up perfectly with the side effects of the treatment he received and the results of her testing. She recommended that we pursue getting an IEP (individualized education program) put in place. This would give Forester access to special education help in math, taking tests, homework, etc,. We are currently in the process of trying to make this happen but it's been tougher than we had expected. We have another meeting with the school board on Feb.1st. at 10:30am. Will you please pray that they will approve this IEP without opposition? We want Forester to have every resource available to him so that he can perform to potential.
Thank you for caring for our family and for praying for us. We are praying (as always!) that 2012 will be cancer free for our family and filled with opportunities to share the love of Christ. We thank God of each of you and pray His blessings on you in abundance!

Whitney

But, he used to be...

2011-09-25T12:18:00.000-04:00

Hello, my friends! Forester had another MRI brain scan last month and the results look great with no evidence of disease. My heart soars every time I hear those wonderful words. Thank you, God!

We were also able to get more clarification about Forester's thyroid and need for synthroid. His level is only slightly low and therefore the amount of synthroid is teeny tiny. It's not near enough to throw him off balance and just brings him up to the normal level.

Also, we have not started growth hormone shots. It turns out that Forester is not "allowed" to have growth hormone shots until he is a full two years out of treatment. His oncologists explained that we don't want these shots to stimulate anything that shouldn't be growing to start to grow. That makes sense and we surely don't want that either. Pete and I have been angered and disappointed that an Endocrinologist at MUSC who supposedly deals with cancer kids frequently wouldn't know this timeline. If these decisions hadn't had to pass through Forester's oncology doctors we could have jeopardized his treatment. Scary. I was also a little bit sad that we have to wait a year. I don't want Forester to have to take shots everyday but I also want him to be as normal as possible. He'll be 3 years behind in growth. Thankfully, since he was a baby he's always been the biggest and tallest kid among others his age so right now he's evened out and looks like everyone else.

On to prayer requests for Forester....or maybe more for me. The last month or so I have found an anger and sadness rising up in me. While in the midst of Forester's treatment all I really cared about was his survival. I would hear the list of possible problems and difficulties due to the side effects of chemo and radiation and I cried. But, in the grand scheme of things he would be alive and those things were minor in comparison. Well, now he is starting to live out those side effects and I'm really really sad. I'm mad about what's been stolen from him because of cancer. Forester is back to playing soccer for the first time since he was 6 years old. This is a huge praise in itself since at one time we weren't sure if he would ever be able to run normally again. But, he used to be so naturally athletic. The last time he played this game it was on a tiny field, 3 against 3. Now it's a big field with a bunch of 10 year olds with offense & defense positions. He doesn't run as fast or kick with the same amount of ease. I can tell when he gets tired because his left leg can't keep up with his right. My heart tightens up every time his coach yells his name trying to direct him. Now, in complete fairness there are other kids on the team who are getting "verbal direction" too and aren't sure about what they're supposed to be doing either. There are other kids on the team that aren't athletically gifted. I think I would be ok with that if that had been the case for Forester but it didn't used to be before cancer. Would he have been a soccer star before? I don't think so. It's just that now he struggles where he didn't used to.
Another area where this is playing out is in school. Radiation to the brain causes learning delays and challenges. When your child has brain cancer and radiation is the best chance to get rid of it for good, having a tougher time in school is on the level of "not a big deal", he'll be alive. But, now that we're watching that play out I'm just mad. Learning/school had always come easily for him. All subjects easily clicked. Straight A's, no sweat. Math used to be his favorite subject. Math is now his most difficult subject and he hates it. In all subjects things are just tougher. I can see how his brain has a hard time "getting it" and I know he's giving it his best effort. And I'm just sad. I'm grieving the loss of what was or what could have been. I have learning disabilities and I struggled in school. I don't want that for him! I know this is the beginning of many small losses I will grieve. And though they are small it still hurts deeply. When Forester was in daily treatment I had a hard conversation with another mom about these types of things. We both concluded that treatment ends, cancer can be beaten but cancer never really goes away.

In the midst of my own sadness I am also thankful because Forester is not aware of any of these things. He doesn't know there is a difference on the soccer field or in school. He doesn't relate any of this stuff to cancer or treatment. He still has no idea the magnitude of what he's gone through or overcome. Ultimately, I know all of this is part of his story. I know God will use all of these things to mold him and shape him into an amazing man who can share the miraculous healing of Christ and the victory we can have in our struggles. But, as a mom...no one wants to offer up their child to be the one who has to take the hard road.

Please continue to pray for our Forester, our family and my aching heart.

Thank you doesn't say enough,
Whitney

Endocrinologist Results

2011-08-11T15:25:00.000-04:00

Last week Forester had an extensive Endocrinology appointment testing his thyroid function as well as his growth hormone levels. This included getting IV drugs and several blood draws. Unfortunately it was a very rough day for Forester since his little veins weren't cooperating. Once they would finally get an IV going his vein would collapse and they would have to try again in a different spot. The same thing would happen when they tried to draw blood. :( After 5 sticks he was really missing his port!

Results
Though his thyroid numbers are still in the normal range now his doctor believes that hypothyroidism is inevitable and wants to go ahead and start him on Synthroid. I don't understand this at all. If his number isn't low yet then why would they want to start a med to raise the number? Wouldn't that throw him into hyperthyroidism? As you can see , I have questions and would like a 2nd opinion on that.
A normal growth hormone level for a boy Forester's age is between 7-10. Forester's is 1.8. In a couple of weeks we will begin administering daily growth hormone shots to Forester that will continue through his 18th year. Not news we wanted to hear but we knew it was coming. Forester is still at the height of a 7 1/2 year old which is when he started his chemo treatment. He'll be 10 in early November. He doesn't know about the shots yet and we won't tell him until the day before the nurse comes out to show us the ropes. We've been reassured by others who have gone through this that it is a very simple shot and just a pinch of pain. We look forward to watching him grow!

In other news, Forester and Micah start their first year in a big public school on Tuesday! They are so excited and we are too. I think they will love 1st and 4th grade at Drayton Hall Elementary. We are praying for the very best teachers for them and new wonderful friends.

My sister and I still have our loser blog going. There has been some BIG news as of late. If you haven't checked the site, I highly recommend doing it now to find out what the BIG news is!! Click here: http://mysistersaloser.blogspot.com

2011-07-20T15:20:00.000-04:00

New posts are up on http://mysistersaloser.blogspot.com! Make sure you enter your email address on that blog site if you want to follow our progress and get email alerts. :-) Thank you, friends!
~Whitney

New Blog

2011-07-12T16:48:00.000-04:00

There is a new post on my new blog! Have you checked out my new blog yet? It's called "My Sister's A Loser". Follow the link to see what it's about. http://mysistersaloser.blogspot.com

Whitney

2011-07-11T22:04:00.000-04:00

So... it's finally here! Initially I thought this blog, "The Bradburns", was about to take a turn in another direction but over the past couple of weeks I've decided to launch a new blog. I am so excited about this and it's purpose and I need you to check it out! I will continue to update this blog as needed with posts about Forester and the kiddos -albeit not as regularly because we are officially in the stage of life after cancer. Woo-hooo! PLEASE go HERE to check out my new blog site. GO NOW! :-) :-)

Ummm....

2011-07-09T16:26:00.000-04:00

Did I say next week? I mean to say Monday, July 11th! Ok, so I got a little distracted but I promise, Monday is the day! STAY TUNED for the changes that are coming! :-)

Transition

2011-06-22T10:43:00.000-04:00

It's been a long time since my last blog post. Four months actually. Since then Forester has had another brain MRI and he continues to be cancer free! We're transitioning into a new phase of post treatment care. Forester continues to get hearing tests and blood work and physical therapy but he is now also meeting with an Endocrinologist. Due to radiation to his brain and spine it is expected that he will not grow as he should and his hormone levels may not function properly. We have already seen a drop in his height percentage as he used to be in the 60th percentile and has dropped to the 30th. Growth hormone shots may be in his future but not yet.

We've also seen some struggles in school this past year also due to radiation therapy slowing down his brain's processing center. Some of the struggles are also due to missing an entire year of school & trying to make it up within four months. There are some learning gaps that we need to make up for. Overall, he ended 3rd grade with A's and B's and we are extremely proud of him. He worked hard for it. Unfortunately, school is not as fun as it used to be and we had quite a few homework battles at home. As our children transition out of their small private Christian school into public school next year, we're praying for: 1) the right school - as we are still undecided on where we will be living (in Charleston) in the fall. 2) Compassionate and passionate teachers & staff who are willing to work with Forester's needs. 3) A renewed love for school for Forester and peace at home when working on it. We would love your prayers as well! Thank you.

Since this blog has been mainly focused on Forester's cancer journey, the posts have waned because life has returned to normal around here. Praise God for no news! So, I think I'll begin to transition back to blogging about "life as we know it", my internal thoughts and struggles...you know, awesome cancer-free boring stuff! I'm actually thinking this blog is about to have a new purpose but... we'll talk about that next week. Anyway, I tell you all of this to give you permission to unsubscribe without guilt if you don't want to continue to receive my blog updates. My feelings won't be hurt, I promise. Just send an email to: bradburnfamily@gmail.com with "Unsubscribe" in the title. But, I hope most of you will stay with me on this journey. I'll need your help in the challenges that lie ahead. More about that next week....

Two years ago today...

2011-02-24T18:05:00.000-05:00

Can you believe it? Two years. It was 2 years ago today that our little 7 year old firstborn was diagnosed with a malignant brain tumor and our lives changed forever. I didn't think my heart would survive to make it to this day much less consider it a day of celebration! But it is! Praise God, Forester James Bradburn is on the other side of his battle with cancer and is CANCER FREE! Once again I am reminded of God's goodness to us in the midst of the most devastating time in our lives. Not only did he pour out his peace upon us but he raised up the body of Christ from all over the world (literally) to pray for our child and be the hands and feet of Jesus. I am humbled and in awe at the thought of it. We are just a speck in the sea of people on this earth, but we are special to God and cared for by him! And so are you! Isn't that truly amazing?
Once again we thank you for praying for us, loving us and walking beside us. Today is a day to celebrate LIFE. Glory to God!

*if you're viewing this by email I uploaded a picture collage to the blog. Check it out! http://thebradburns.blogspot.com :-)

Update on Ansley

2010-12-21T11:10:00.000-05:00

Ansley is doing great!! If you haven't checked her blog, you can scroll down our blog and a link to hers is listed on the right. Please continue to pray for this precious family.

Thanks to Ansley's family and all that they are going through, I am once again reminded what Christmas is all about. It's about LIFE. The gift of life that God graciously gave to us through his son, Jesus Christ. We take life for granted! As Christmas Day quickly approaches, I am trying to remember that all the presents and food, parties and decorations, & desperate attempts at making memories for the kids, are gifts in itself. These days are precious. These moments are precious. I am so thankful for our healthy family of five. So, I hope that you, too, will enjoy this week. Be in the moment with your family. Get on the floor with your kids, play games and color, drive around a look at lights, sing Christmas songs, give hugs freely and say I love you.

Today is a gift!

Merry Christmas and many blessings,
Whitney

Praying for Ansley

2010-12-11T14:34:00.000-05:00

Sweet 4 year old, Ansley, has been diagnosed with stage 3 anaplastic large cell (t cell) non-hodgkin lymphoma. Please do not google this as you will find statistics for adults & kids intertwined as well as very old information that is not trustworthy. Lymphoma is very treatable in children and although Ansley will have a tougher road, there is still as 75% cure rate with her specific stage and type of cancer. Praise God! She will have a year of chemo ahead of her which has already begun. Please continue to pray for her and her family! They have begun a blog with info, pictures and updates. If you would like to continue to keep up with Ansley and her family the website is:http://prayingforansley.blogspot.com I'm sure this family covets as many prayers as they can get. May God bless you, Forester Friends and prayer warriors. You are a precious gift.

Update

2010-12-09T23:26:00.000-05:00

Our little 4 year old friend has Lymphoma. Please continue to pray for her and her family. I know they are still in shock and still trying to wrap their heads around the fact that their world has forever changed. 48 hours ago they thought they were dealing with simple belly pain, tonight they are dealing with pediatric cancer. Our family knows this grief and shock all too well. I remember every moment of those first few weeks and they are definitely some of the most difficult they will face. Please, please pray.

Thank you,

Whitney

Urgent Prayer Request

2010-12-09T12:34:00.000-05:00

Friends of ours here in Charleston just learned that their youngest (5th) child who is 4 1/2, may have Lymphoma. They are currently waiting for biopsy results to determine whether or not this is cancer and if it is, what type of Lymphoma. We are gathering all resources to ask for prayer. So many did this for us almost 2 years ago. Thousands were lifting up our Forester! It was the greatest blessing of our lives. Will you do the same for this precious little girl and her family? *I will share more about them if I get permission to do so.

God's bring your healing power and your perfect peace!

Thank you,
Whitney

Halloween Pix! :)

2010-11-06T21:41:00.000-04:00


painting pumpkins with grandma


preparing for the craziness ahead...

Craziness! But so much fun with friends!


my Star Wars kiddos

Trick or Treat!

Joshua YODA! (minus the hot annoying mask)

Slade's 1st time to Trick or Treat


She likes it!!


Grandma is ALWAYS festive!

Staci with Yoda & Ewok. :-)

Bye Bye Port!

2010-11-06T21:18:00.014-04:00

(sorry, to re-post but there was a huge typo I just had to fix. The gas alleviated his anxiety not elevated! Ok, now I can sleep tonight..)

Last Friday's surgery went really well. We had to do a lot of waiting beforehand due to two pediatric emergencies but other than that, Forester did fabulously. He was put to sleep via gas before the IV was placed which alleviated a lot of anxiety and he had no pain when the IV was removed. Thanks for your prayers about that! He was a little sore when he awoke from surgery but morphine helped and he felt fine by the time we got home. He hasn't had any pain meds since! Not even tylenol. In fact, we went bowling on Saturday night to celebrate Micah's birthday and he was able to do that without any problem or pain. His stitches dissolve and we can remove his bandage tomorrow.

Micah had a wonderful birthday and everyone enjoyed dressing up for Halloween. Darth Maul (Forester) , Aniken (Micah) and the Ewok (Slade) looked great! Slade received one piece of candy and was practically running to the next house for more. Fun for all!
...And now onto Forester's 9th birthday on Sunday! (whew!)

*Here are some pictures from last weekend's events. ...I've been struggling with blogspot & these pictures for hours. I'll have to post Halloween pix separately. Stand by...

waiting & waiting...


All done! BIRTHDAY!

Baby Micah

SIX!

Pinata loot!

Scooby Dooby Doo!

The day is almost here!

2010-10-28T10:00:00.000-04:00

Tomorrow is Micah's 6th birthday!! How can this be possible?! It is also a very special day because Forester will be having port removal surgery! YAY! Forester was very excited about this...until last night. During dinner he mentioned something about after his port was out he wouldn't have to go to the hospital anymore. I corrected him and said, "well, you'll still have to go for blood labs from time to time and still have MRI's every 3 months for a while". He was very upset. Removing the port to him meant it's all over. It was heartbreaking to see the realization on his face that this is not the case. Then began the anxiety about having to get stuck for those procedures and he said, while crying, "I do not want to get my port out!". It broke my heart that this happy milestone has now created sadness and anxiety in him. I held him while he cried for a while and then we talked it through and he feels better about things now. But, please pray for him that he will have peace and not be afraid of future hospital visits.
At his last check up his weight was up to 66 lbs and his height was 4'4". Great news! But Pete and I have both noticed that once again his appetite has begun to decline. He's only had a couple vomiting episodes this month which we think was related to eating too fast so that is a big improvement. It really seems that we're controlling the nausea issues but he needs a boost in his appetite. The megace effect is gone. Less and less is sounding good to him. It's a fight to get him to eat breakfast and he brings most of his lunch back home in the afternoons. So, keep praying about that. Thanks.

We'll keep you posted about tomorrow's surgery. We still haven't heard what time the surgery will occur. So, just say a prayer for our little guy when you wake up tomorrow. :-) THANK YOU!

Another Update! :-)

2010-09-14T17:12:00.000-04:00

On Friday we arrived at clinic early without allowing Forester to eat as is required to test his cortisol level. Testing his cortisol is a simple blood test and it was added to the rest of his routine blood labs that were ordered. After they took his blood he was able to eat so we went downstairs, & brought up some food for Forester to eat in the clinic. He proceeded to eat some eggs, grits, a biscuit, bacon and a pack of Nekot peanut butter crackers! Now, before you go gettin' yourself all excited there is a bit of information I neglected to to tell you in my last post. About 2 weeks ago when Forester was barely eating, Pete & I decided to start giving him Megace again. This is an appetite stimulant that he has been given over the last year and a half when his weight has gotten too low. This stuff works but tastes disgusting. Anyway, we only had a little bit left so he received about 5 days worth. We called the clinic to ask them to call in a refill and they kinda freaked on us and said no. We were told that Megace is only to be used during chemo treatment and he can't have it anymore. It turns out this drug can have some substantial side effects and it shouldn't be given unless absolutely necessary. Also, since Forester has been off of treatment for 3 months now they want to know why this is happening - not just treat the symptoms but find the root. But, like I said this stuff works. For the last week or so Forester has been eating a block of cheese a day. I am not exaggerating. A BLOCK of cheese a day & snacking on other things throughout the day. Major improvement. But, I think we shot ourselves in the foot because at clinic they raved that Forester's weight was up 2.2lbs and rejoiced in watching him devour that breakfast! I kept mentioning that these things were related to the Megace but I'm not sure they heard me....but oh well. The cortisol level came back not just normal but "great" and all of his other blood counts looked really good as well. For the 1st time in 18 months Forester's red blood cell count was at 11 (normal)! HAPPY! I guess this means we're back at square one with the appetite stuff once the Megace effect wears off but I am thankful that his cortisol is normal and that his body is doing what it is supposed to be doing. Our new regimen will be Zofran & Zantac in the morning & Prevacid and Zyrtec at night. Forester's blood labs did indicate seasonal allergies & that can contribute to stomach upset sometimes. So that's where we are on that.

Yesterday was MRI day and our little man did great. He was so patient as the wait was long and boring as usual. Not one complaint! Sedation and wake up went fine and then he headed back to school. Seems so weird to have your child under general anesthesia in the morning and then studying at school in the afternoon, but I digress... We received a call today that the scan looks "fantastic" and we will talk about scheduling the port removal surgery at his next check up in October. WOW. We are thrilled beyond words!!! Thank you so so much for your thoughts and prayers for us. We are so thankful for you and your love for our family. And a huge thank you to some of God's angels here on earth, Staci McLain, Mary VonRosenberg, & John Fortney who helped in big ways yesterday so Pete & I could both be with Forester & hear news about the scans right away. God bless you!!

In other fun news, on October 1st Forester & our family will be attending another Braves game! Coach Glenn Hubbard asked Forester to come back and once again enjoy batting practice & some other fun stuff now that he is feeling well enough to really enjoy it. This man has been amazing to us and has such a servant's heart. Forester can't wait and neither can we!

Thank you again for your prayers and as always we'll keep you posted.
Love,
Whitney

Update on Forester

2010-09-09T14:30:00.000-04:00

Thank you for your prayers for us. Things have still been tough when it comes to Forester and food. You all have asked several questions and given suggestions which we appreciate so much. I will try to answer some of your questions here.
It is difficult to explain exactly what is going on with Forester... Generally, he doesn't feel nauseated. Though frequently (at least once a day) he'll stop in the middle of eating something, spit out the food, gulp down some water & say "I can't eat anymore of that or I'll get sick". But, then he may wander over to the pantry, pick out something else & start to munch - sometimes not. The vomiting usually comes as a surprise. It's not like the instances above but just "all of a sudden" and a lot of times it's before he's even eaten anything. I still describe Forester as being like a 1st trimester pregnant person with morning sickness. If you've had it you know what I mean. He's hungry. He decides he wants lasagna. I make the lasagna. He looks at it or maybe even takes one bite and says, "I don't think I can eat this. It doesn't look good/taste good to me. Can I have something else?" I say, "Ok, what else would you like?" I proceed to name & search for everything we have. Sometimes we find something else and he eats it! Sometimes we never find anything that sounds good and he complains that he's hungry but there is nothing "good" to eat. Sometimes I make something else and then the exact same thing that happened with the lasagna happens with the next item and we do it all again. I get exasperated and frustrated & I'm not very good at hiding it. I know Forester feels bad & doesn't want to tell me that he "can't" eat what's in front of him. :-(
An example of a day of eating a week or so ago was this: a cup of dry Fruit Loops for breakfast, a mixed fruit cup for lunch, 2 bites of chicken & 2 bites of mashed potatoes for dinner, a couple handfuls of Doritos. That's it. On occasion he'll have a day where he eats like a normal 8 year old boy. It's not predictable & not consistent so we can't really figure out why a normal day is normal. He has quite an aversion to sweets so things like milkshakes or smoothies for breakfast, things we could sneak extra calories or protein into, just don't appeal to him. So...it's a challenge.

Now, on to some good news. One of the leaders of a non-profit organization that helps cancer kids, called Courageous Kidz, emailed other moms to see if they had any insight to Forester's issues. One mom whose son also had Medulloblastoma recommended getting his cortisol level checked. Hmmm.. A couple days later I had a really good 20 minute conversation with one of the nurse practitioners at the hospital. She really listened to me as I explained what was going on and she also suggested having Forester's cortisol level checked. So, tomorrow morning we'll be doing that! Regardless of the outcome, I am thankful that we are being heard and that something is being done to try and figure out what's going on. So, thank you for praying and keep it up!

Forester will also have another brain MRI on Monday morning. Same routine as always - under general anesthesia, usually takes all morning & requires a lot of boring wait time for Forester. Please be praying for a beautiful and clear scan report!!!

Prayer Request For Forester

2010-08-27T17:37:00.000-04:00

Forester has been doing really well! He is adjusting to school and life in the 3rd grade. Just a reminder that it is such a miracle that Forester is in the 3rd grade after missing half of 1st grade and half of 2nd grade due to cancer. God is good! We've had a wonderful and normal summer and good check ups at the hospital. In fact, we were told at his last visit that if his next MRI on Sept 13th comes back clear then we can schedule his port REMOVAL surgery! This is the port that was surgically implanted under his skin on his chest that has been accessed to administer chemo, fluids, blood transfusions, etc. And though it was a huge milestone for us when Forester reached the ends of his chemo treatment, I think for Pete and myself this is an even bigger one. Having his port remain for a while has kind of been code for "let's wait and see if the cancer comes back - we may still need that." So, to remove it is a great confirmation that he is in the clear! Please be praying for this scan on the 13th, that it will beautiful and perfect.
I'd also like to ask you to pray for Forester's appetite. According to his doctors he shouldn't still be having problems with vomiting and food aversions. But, he is. It seems he still has a random vomiting episode every couple of weeks. He is still taking Zofran once a day. He is still very particular about what he will eat. It's a daily struggle and though it is small in comparison to everything else that has come our way, it is still difficult. Everyone needs to eat. Several times a day. For me, this means some level of conflict or frustration several times a day. In reality, Forester hasn't been eating much at all and is losing weight again. I am unsure of what to do about this on a daily basis. Will you please pray that God will grant me wisdom in this and an even temperment? And, also pray for Forester's system to balance back out so he can once again have a normal relationship with food?

I knew you'd say yes! :-)

Thanks and love,
Whitney

A little conversation with Slade (video)

2010-08-20T15:13:00.000-04:00

Happy Friday! Slade doesn't talk much around others so here's a glimpse of her little vocabulary.

Click Here

Bradburn Kids DANCE!

2010-08-17T14:22:00.000-04:00

I didn't have time to edit this & my camera is always shaky - sorry. Thanks to Weezer for the soundtrack. Enjoy!

Bradburn Kids DANCE
(click on the link above)

Way to go, Pete.

2010-08-08T15:19:00.000-04:00

Yes, Pete has done it again. He has raised the bar and left other husbands around him cursing his name. He took me on a SURPRISE trip for my birthday to NEW YORK CITY! The day of my birthday (July 15) Pete arranged for family members to watch our kids for the long weekend & we packed bags and drove to the airport. I had no idea where we were going until we got our tickets! Needless to say, it was the BEST BIRTHDAY EVER. Pete spent months planning for this and many gave to make it happen. Of course, you know we could never afford a trip like this but thanks to frequent flyer miles and the amazing generosity of my wonderful mother in law (& her friend, Allie, & her apartment!!), we were able to go. We ate great food, saw great shows (Wicked & Jersey Boys), and walked and walked and walked. It was a wonderful time to just be together without the children/responsibility. :-) I am so blessed and so thankful. Here are a few pictures from our trip.

FAO Schwartz. :-)

Isaiah 43:2-3

2010-07-26T19:49:00.000-04:00

For some random reason I decided to be someone else and just click on our blog as if I had never seen it before. Thinking, as I browsed through, "it's really hard to pretend not to be yourself you silly girl." But, I clicked on the "how it all began" link. I don't think I ever have. I read the post. I don't think I've read since the day I wrote it. And, I cried. I cried for that poor boy, those parents, that family. I cried for me.
Believe me, I've done a lot of crying over the last year or so but this was different. I'm removed from it now. I can stand outside of it now and look in on those people. With my heart aching I think, "oh my gosh, how do you survive something like that?"
With Jesus, one day at a time.
We're standing outside of it now but sometimes I feel like we're still in the middle of it. God has done so much in our lives. I am so grateful for the healing in Forester's body, the peace that passes all understanding, and God's presence that has been so near. But I'm realizing that though he's brought us through the fire, I still grieve that we, rather my child, had to walk through the fire in the first place. It's like a tender bruise that won't heal. Does that make sense?
Sometimes I'm just sad about it all. Not any less grateful, just sad. Today seems to be one of those days.

Ryan Olivia Swaney

2010-07-22T16:26:00.000-04:00

I have a new niece! My sister, Katie, gave birth to a precious 7lb.15oz. baby girl on the morning of July 11th. She is so beautiful! Though Katie was past her due date, once labor began she went pretty quickly so unfortunately I didn't arrive in Atlanta in time for the birth. But, Slade and I did get to see her when she was only a few hours old and got to stay over a couple of nights. I got in some good Aunt Whitney snuggle time. So far, Katie is feeling great and Ryan is doing wonderfully! Her older brother, Jack, who is not quite 2 doesn't seem to notice her much and seems to be adjusting to her quite well. That may have something to do with Muzzy being there - who has been there since July5th! We are blessed with a great mommy who always helps so much when new grandbabies are born. I'm sure she hates every moment. :-) Pop has put in a lot of help time too!
Thank you, Lord for sweet Ryan. Our family is blessed beyond measure!

Hi!

2010-07-22T11:45:00.000-04:00

I know a new post is long overdue!! Why is it that it takes me 2 hours to do a blog post? Needless to say it makes it tough to carve out the time. We have had a fabulous last couple of weeks and I just need to unload my pictures to the computer so I can POST them! Coming soon!...

Video of Forester's Baptism! :-)

2010-06-27T17:59:00.000-04:00

Click here to see Forester's Baptism!

Question: What is Baptism?

Answer: A general definition for the word baptism is “a rite of washing with water as a sign of religious purification and consecration.” This rite was practiced frequently in the Old Testament. It signified purity or cleansing from sin and devotion to God. Since baptism was first instituted in the Old Testament many have practiced it as a tradition yet have not fully understood its significance and meaning. In the New Testament, the significance of baptism is seen more clearly. John the Baptist was sent by God to spread the news of the coming Messiah—Jesus Christ. John was directed by God (John 1:33) to baptize those who accepted his message. John’s baptizing is called “a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins.” Mark 1:4 (NIV). Those baptized by John acknowledged their sins and professed their faith that through the coming Messiah they would be forgiven. Baptism then is significant in that it represents the forgiveness and cleansing from sin that comes through faith in the Lord Jesus Christ.

The Purpose of Baptism:

Water Baptism identifies the believer with the Godhead – Father, Son & Holy Spirit.
“Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.” Matthew 28:19 (NIV)
Water Baptism identifies the believer with Christ in His death, burial and resurrection. “When you came to Christ, you were "circumcised," but not by a physical procedure. It was a spiritual procedure--the cutting away of your sinful nature. For you were buried with Christ when you were baptized. And with him you were raised to a new life because you trusted the mighty power of God, who raised Christ from the dead.” Colossians 2:11-12 (NLT)
“We were therefore buried with Him through baptism into death in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too may live a new life.” Romans 6:4 (NIV)
Water Baptism is an act of obedience for the believer. It should be preceded by repentance, which simply means “change.” It is turning from our sin and selfishness to serve the Lord. It means placing our pride, our past and all of our possessions before the Lord. It is giving the control of our lives over to Him. "Peter replied, 'Each of you must turn from your sins and turn to God, and be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. Then you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.' Those who believed what Peter said were baptized and added to the church--about three thousand in all.” Acts 2:38, 41 (NLT)
Water Baptism is a public testimony - the outward confession of an inward experience. In baptism, we stand before witnesses confessing our identification with the Lord.
Water Baptism is a picture representing profound spiritual truth:

Death - “I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.” Galatians 2:20 (NIV) Resurrection - “We were therefore buried with Him through baptism into death in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the father, we too may live a new life. If we have been united with Him like this in His death, we will certainly also be united with Him in His resurrection.” Romans 6:4-5 (NIV)
“He died once to defeat sin, and now he lives for the glory of God. So you should consider yourselves dead to sin and able to live for the glory of God through Christ Jesus. Do not let sin control the way you live; do not give in to its lustful desires. Do not let any part of your body become a tool of wickedness, to be used for sinning. Instead, give yourselves completely to God since you have been given new life. And use your whole body as a tool to do what is right for the glory of God." Romans 6:10-13 (NLT)
Cleansing - “And this water symbolizes baptism that now saves you also – not the removal of dirt from the body but the pledge of a good conscience toward God. It saves you by the resurrection of Jesus Christ.” I Peter 3:21 (NIV)
“But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God.” I Corinthians 6:11 (NIV)

Baptism!

2010-06-27T10:16:00.000-04:00

Forester is being baptized today at 2pm! Our church goes out to the beach for a great celebration. Please pray for Forester,that he will have God's peace as he wades out into water with our pastors & that he truly understands what baptism means. Thank you!! It's a great day of celebration!

Hearing Test - Proof!

2010-06-19T13:27:00.000-04:00

For those who are interested in seeing the "proof" that Forester has regained hearing in what was described as permanent loss, here are the actual results.

The shaded area represents normal, day-to-day hearing frequencies (e.g.,conversation, music, TV, etc). The hand-written line that trends downward is marked by the audiologist and represents the beginning of hearing loss. You'll notice on the "After" graph that the hand-written line is further to the right now and passes through less of the shaded area than it did 6 months ago.

Though Forester still has some hearing loss in the high frequencies we are continuing to pray that God restores his hearing completely. Not, just because we want Forester to be whole, of course we do. But, because we truly believe that that is the kind of stuff God can and will do! We want YOU to see the good God we know and be encouraged!! I mean, He rocks. He totally ROCKS!

*if you're reading this via email, go to the blog to see a couple of updated pictures. The kids are growing up! http://thebradburns.blogspot.com

Before (12/09)

After (6/10)

Video -Updated/Revised

2010-06-18T17:07:00.000-04:00

I made some volume & info revisions per the request of others who would like to share this video. Please feel free to share it!!
Thanks,
Whitney
What a difference a year makes (REVISED)

Nothing is Impossible

2010-06-16T20:39:00.000-04:00

Click HERE
to see a great video of Forester. I think you'll like it.
And if YouTube is giving you a hard time (not loading and playing the video) give it a minute and retry. Not as fun to watch if it keeps starting and stopping. If I could figure out how to put the video directly in the post I would. Still learning...

Whitney

*I'm having trouble getting this post to go out to sunscribers so I'm re-posting. Hope it works cause I have no idea why it isn't!

It's a great day for good news!

2010-06-10T14:22:00.000-04:00

I just got the most amazing text message from my husband and I can't stop crying and just saying "PRAISE YOU JESUS"!
Forester & Pete have been at the hospital today getting Forester's blood counts checked and also a hearing test. This is what the text said: Big IMPROVEMENT in Forester's hearing since his last test in Dec. The audiologist said to me four times, "I can't explain it. This is the opposite of what I expected to see and there's no medical explanation for it. This is amazing!"

God is healing Forester and HE is AMAZING!! If you remember several months back I was very discouraged about Forester's hearing loss because I had prayed so hard and really believed that God was going to spare him from that. Please re-read that post here! Leave it to my amazing and all powerful and all knowing Father God to do something that can't be explained by medicine and only be described as amazing and miraculous! And, it's documented! That's the kind of God he is!! We are thanking Him and full of joy and couldn't wait to tell you. GIVE HIM PRAISE, YA'LL!!!

Love,
Whitney

The LAST Day

2010-05-26T11:42:00.000-04:00

Today is Forester's very last day of chemo!! Two more pills and he's DONE!! Woo-hoo!!

He'll have a brain MRI on June 23rd as well as hearing tests, liver tests, etc. this month. He'll continue to have MRI's every 3 months for the next year or so. If everything continues to look good 6 months from now, they will remove his implanted port and we will hope to hear the word REMISSION.

Tomorrow starts a new day of freedom for Forester. We REJOICE, we PRAISE and we THANK God!! He has been with Forester and all of us every step of the way. Our God is faithful in all circumstances!

With love & thanks,

Whitney

DoDo The Great

2010-05-11T16:11:00.001-04:00

Our family is very saddened as my grandmother, "Grand DoDo", passed away on Saturday. She would have been 89 on the 23rd of this month. Her body just started shutting down - her heart wasn't pumping efficiently and her kidneys began to fail. Thankfully this began only a few short months ago and she was still feeling good and enjoying everyday life until very recently. I was privileged to be with her daily and help my mom and dad care for her these last couple of weeks. As her kidneys began to shut down she began to become very swollen. Her "Pray for Forester" bracelet on her arm began to cut off her circulation so we asked if we could take it off. She said "no, I'll never take that off" and she hadn't since the first day she put it on & it was on when she died. Precious! We have it saved in a special place. She loved her children, her grand children and great grand children with a passion. She has lived with my parents for the last 4 years or so and passed away in the comfort of her own home and bed surrounded by loved ones. She was amazing and we miss her so. We are so thankful to know that she is completely whole and free with the Savior!

Obituary below.

Dorothy M. Slade

Dorothy M. Slade, 88, a native and long time resident of Evansville, Indiana, passed away Saturday, May 8, at her home in Seabrook Island, South Carolina, following a brief illness.

Dorothy Slade, known as Dodo, Grandodo and Great Grandodo to friends and family, was born May 23, 1921 in Evansville to Ralph and Lillian Burchfield. She graduated from Bosse High School and attended Indiana University, then supported the WWII war effort as a clerk in the rations office. She later worked with her husband at Jack Slade Realty.

In 1943, Dorothy married John T. Slade and became mother to a son and daughter, and the adoptive mother of dozens of cocker spaniels and lhasa apsos — the couple shared a hobby of breeding and showing dogs.

Dorothy was a St. Mary’s Hospital Pink Lady and a volunteer at Little Sisters of the Poor. She was an enthusiastic fan of University of Evansville basketball, Davidson College football, Atlanta Braves baseball and the NFL. She was an avid bowler, bridge player and Scrabble player and worked the daily crossword puzzle in ink. She was a lifelong member of St. Benedict’s Catholic Church, where she was baptized nearly 89 years ago. She loved the ocean and spent the last four years of her life living beside it in her home near Charleston, SC.

She is survived by a daughter, Susan S. Brown of Seabrook Island, SC, and a son, Gordon B. Slade of Stone Mountain, GA. “Grandodo” was dearly loved by her grandchildren: Parker Slade, Whitney Bradburn, Katherine Swaney, Brandon Slade and Forrest Goodyear-Brown. She recently said that her favorite music was the voices of her great-grandchildren: Anna Slade, Madison Goodyear-Brown, Slade Bradburn, Sam Goodyear-Brown, Forester Bradburn, Jackson Slade, Micah Bradburn, Jack Swaney and Nicholas Goodyear-Brown.

She is also survived by her beloved sister-in-law, Isabelle Burchfield, by nieces Marty Slade Perlman and Ann McCutchan Osuch, and nephews John Burchfield, Dean Burchfield, Bryan Slade and Tom Slade. A nephew, David Carlton, died in 1972.

Dorothy was predeceased by her husband and by her sister, Betty McCutchan, and brother, Jack Burchfield.

A mass for Dorothy Slade will be said at St. Benedicts Catholic Church on Friday, May 15 at 9:00 a.m. with burial to follow at Oak Hill Cemetery. The family will receive friends from 5:00 to 8:00 p.m. at Alexander Funeral Home – East Chapel, 2115 Lincoln Ave. in Evansville.

In lieu of flowers, the family requests that memorial contributions may be made to a fund that helps to pay medical bills for Dorothy’s great-grandson, who is being treated for a brain tumor: The Forester Fund, 114 Sugar Magnolia Way, Charleston, SC 29414, or http://thebradburns.blogspot.com

Condolences may be made online at http://www.alexandereastchapel.com

Forester's Medical Bills

2010-04-19T14:06:00.000-04:00

Throughout this last year we have been SO blessed by your amazing generosity to us. So many care packages, gift cards, AMAZING fundraisers, and financial gifts. Thank you just doesn't do justice to how we feel. Because of you, we are not drowning in a sea of debt right now and that is a miracle in itself! In spite of this, our medical bills continue to come in and we continue to be challenged by this financial burden. And, we regularly encounter people who ask us what we need & how they can help us financially. So, we have added a Donate button on the top right of our website. If you feel led to contribute to Forester's medical bills (even if it's just $5.00!) please click on that button and it will take you directly to Paypal and Forester's fund. We thank you so much for your care and willingness to fight this cancer battle with us. We are not alone and you are a part of our mighty army that is winning this war. To God be the Glory!

We love you,
The Bradburns

April Update

2010-04-17T17:48:00.000-04:00

I've been working on a new post for quite sometime now and I believe I have "bitten off more than I can chew" as they say. Lately we seem to be surrounded by a lot of difficult situations...my grandmother's health is declining, we lost one of Pete's best friends to cancer 2 weeks ago, some of our closest friends are dealing with a very fragile pregnancy with twins - one twin with Downs Syndrome & possibly other complications. Frankly, too many people I know have CaringBridge websites! Are you picking up what I'm puttin' down? YUCK. And again it begs the question WHY? So, I started a post about what I have learned in the last year or so about asking God that question. It's not a small thing to try and put into words and I'm currently stuck due to my lack of communication skills and feeling completely inadequate to tackle such a question. But, I'll keep working on it. Meanwhile, it's been a month since I've updated you on Forester and I know it's overdue.

The last month has gone quite well. We are back into the normal routine of school and homework, church and play, and even some normal weekend activities like golf with Daddy & Pop & Uncle Steve, and kicking the soccer ball in the backyard. Forester continues to go to physical therapy once a week to work on improving his balance and regain strength in his legs. He met all of his goals in physical therapy last month and was so proud to show me. Things such as, 15 jumping jacks, & running on the treadmill! His therapist is very good and we are so pleased with the progress he is making. We continue to see some side effects of his chemo like; random nausea/vomiting, fatigue, emotional ups and downs, depressed blood counts & loss of appetite. These are minimal compared to what we were dealing with a few months ago but can still be stressful at times. Our biggest concern at the moment is Forester's weight. He's about 10lbs under weight and looks pretty skinny. He just isn't eating much at all and still has what I describe as being like 1st trimester pregnancy morning sickness symptoms. Something may sound good until he sees it and then he rejects it. Certain foods will sound good for a week or so and then he doesn't want it all at anymore. He'll take 2 bites of something and that's it. I know it must be so tough for him. But, it can also be so frustrating for Pete and myself. Especially for me when I spend time cooking what he wants (in addition to what I've already made for dinner) and then he doesn't eat it. Please pray for patience for us where food is concerned.

At Forester's check up on Thursday his blood counts were really good - almost normal! Everything we heard was positive except he was put back on Megace, an appetite stimulant. Pray that it increases his appetite and that he eats and gains weight! Again, in comparison to our worries a few months ago this is nothing and we are so thankful that this is our greatest concern at the moment. We are also so thankful that we are in the last 2 months of chemo! Is that a light I see at the end of this tunnel?? God is so good and YOU and your prayers have made all the difference. We are so thankful for you - that you care and that you pray. It is overwhelming and completely humbling. Thank you and don't stop. :-)

Love, love, love,

Whitney

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, PETE!

2010-03-15T17:54:00.000-04:00

Cancer can bring out the best and worst in people. It's really true. I've seen both sides. And, I have to say in the midst of the most trying year of our lives, my husband, Pete, has come through shining and he truly is the BEST! Today is his birthday and I just want to celebrate him. Though, I would never wish cancer on my child and I would take it away in a second if I could, I am thankful that I've been able to see more of who Pete is. (see how God can take even the hardest circumstances and use it for his good?!) To say that Pete stepped up is an understatement. His compassion and patience, his calmness and humor, his love for God and trust in Jesus have kept us all together. He is a Godly husband and father, a hard worker and wonderful provider. I am so blessed to call him my husband. I love you, babe. HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!

Prayers for Layla Grace's Family

2010-03-10T08:41:00.000-05:00

Some of you already know this but the little girl, Layla Grace, who I referenced in my post a few weeks ago, passed away yesterday morning. Unfortunately, her mom and dad spent the last two weeks watching Layla die and very slow and painful death. So, while we all grieve with this family because of their loss, we can also rejoice in the fact that Layla is "playing with the angels" as her mom said. She is no longer in pain, she is no longer stuck in a body overtaken by cancer. She is free. She is whole and she is in the most wonderful place - our minds cannot even fathom it! But, Layla has 2 older sisters. One who is 9 and one who is 3. Please pray for this family as they begin a whole new journey on a very lonely road called loss. No one ever wants to travel that road. Especially when it's the loss of your 2 year old daughter.

If you've read this blog, you know I believe in prayer. I believe our prayers make a difference. I believe it's one of the greatest gifts we can give someone else at anytime we choose! Because, I believe God hears. I believe He listens. And, I believe he loves. He cares deeply for His children - which includes me and you. He hurts when we hurt and wants to comfort us. So, I'm asking. Would you please pray for this family? It only takes a moment and I truly believe your prayers can bring God's peace and comfort to them.

Some of you may ask: if God is God, if God loves us & desires to comfort us, & hurts when we hurt, why would he let poor Layla die of cancer? I am not a theologian and I'm almost afraid to even "go there" for fear of the judgement of those who are, but I will. Just not now. I have Bible study in a few moments and don't have the time right now! But, I will. Because I, too, have asked this question. I'll be happy to share what I've learned. Stay tuned...

Please pray.

All my thanks and love,
Whitney

Cleaning house around here

2010-03-08T17:44:00.000-05:00

I'm in the process of taking over the bradburnfamily@gmail.com account that is referenced on the sidebar of this blog. When Forester was diagnosed last year some dear friends of mine set up this account and got things going. As time has gone on this account was neglected. So, my sincere apologies if you requested to subscribe to this blog, or sent us a message or made a request and it was never tended to. I started trying to go through each email to figure out who had been added or replied to but there are over 500 emails & it's just too big a task. SO, if you wouldn't mind, if you were one of those who did not receive a response will you please email again? I have all my accounts going into one mailbox now and I promise I will get it and respond! If you would like blog updates to come to your email inbox, just send and email to bradburnfamily@gmail.com with Subscribe in the subject. Thank you!

~Whitney

Always good to hear good news

2010-03-06T17:31:00.000-05:00

Official MRI results: "Looks beautiful". :-)

We're enjoying a gorgeous day here in Charleston. Hope you are having a wonderful weekend!

MRI Follow Up

2010-03-05T14:01:00.000-05:00

I'm in a rush today, (seriously, how do people like MckMama find TIME to blog everyday??) but I wanted to quickly post about the MRI. It was a long wait and it even felt like the actual procedure took longer this time. Poor Forester didn't wake from the anesthesia very well. Usually, he's back to his normal self rather quickly. Yesterday, he was crying, panicked, somewhat hysterical & disoriented. His blood pressure shot up and things started turning red on the moniter and beeping which totally freaked me out. But after 45 min or so, Forester calmed down, things got back to normal and we were able to come home. He was groggy the rest of the day and didn't sleep that great last night but seems fine today. Thank you for your prayers. It's never fun to have your child sedated.

Also, our "inside man" took at look at Forester's scans last night and said everything looks good. So, he'll be cleared to move forward with his 10th month of chemo. May should be his last treatment month. It's just around the corner! :-)

MRI

2010-03-04T13:34:00.000-05:00

I'm at the hospital right now and Forester is currently sedated while getting a routine MRI. Please pray. MRI's always make me nervous.
Thanks,
Whitney

One Year Ago Today...

2010-02-25T09:10:00.000-05:00

At this time, exactly one year ago, Pete and I had said goodbye to Forester as they wheeled him away to the OR and we settled in the waiting room. It was going to be 8 hours until we'd see him again. It was going to be a long day. I just knew every minute was going to tick by so slowly. And then, our family showed up. Our family by blood and our family in Christ. They took over a corner of the waiting room, they brought coffee, breakfast, snacks and lunch! But the absolute greatest gift was fellowship and the love of Jesus. Believe it or not, we had fun that day! Everyone kept us distracted. We talked of the mundane and laughed together. Pete and I were amazed that the time really did go by quickly. You who were with us that day were the hands and feet of Jesus to us and we are forever grateful and will never forget those moments.
As we arrived at the year anniversary of Forester's diagnosis yesterday Pete had planned to write a post. But, it was a crazy busy day and time just didn't allow for it. There is so much to say but I will refrain and let Pete tell you in his own words. Stay tuned. :-)

We are so thankful to God for all the miracles he has done this year!!

Love,
Whitney

Losing Perspective

2010-02-17T17:18:00.000-05:00

I know my posts don't come as frequently these days and I'm sorry for that (for those of you who care). I still can't believe anyone actually reads my blog!

Ultimately, less posts is a praise because there hasn't been as much to report as things are starting to fall into a pattern of normal. Lately, I've found myself being annoyed by all this rainy weather we've had in Charleston, looking down at my toes and thinking that they really need attention and feeling a little overwhelmed by the big task of cleaning out the kids closets of all the stuff they are outgrowing. Why is this significant? Because the day that Forester was diagnosed, when I was driving home with Forester from the hospital with only a tiny sentence of information, "he has a brain tumor" and nothing else, I instantly began to think about all the trivial things that consume us. I literally thought "all these people in these cars passing me by have no idea that I just learned that my 7 year old has a brain tumor". I saw a women drumming her perfect gel nails on her steering wheel and thought, "I can't believe people actually care about fingernails!" I can't believe we waste time honking at the slow car in front of us and getting angry - who cares! And, who knows what kind of day that person is having. I can't believe we care about Brad & Angelina. None of it matters. All of these things were flying through my mind in an instant. In the next several hours I thought, I don't care if I live in a shack, don't have a car, wear clothes that have holes in it and bathe in a creek. I don't care. I just want my baby to be ok. Through out the next several days and weeks I would get angry over the Facebook statuses I would read. Really? You're mad because someone always misspells definitely? You're complaining because you're "stuck" indoors all day with your kids? You have got to be kidding me.
And yet, here I am almost a year later reverting back to the "old me". Thumbing through the People magazine while checking out at the grocery, seriously considering whether or not quarterly pedicures could be worked into the budget (the answer is no, btw), and posting trivial Facebook statuses that include counting down the hours until my children are asleep and complaining about a puppy who keeps peeing in the kitchen. How have I managed to lose perspective? Why do we lose it?

Then, I receive an email from a local cancer kids organization letting me know that 2 MUSC children have passed away. One of them from a brain tumor. And my heart stops and I can't breathe. Instantly, I regain persepective. And I pray "Lord, I need you... I'm freaking out and I need you. I'm scared to death that will be my child one day." I also happened across another mom's blog today. http://laylagrace.org Her 2 year old daughter is now in the process of dying from Neuroblastoma. Usually, I run from anything like this because I just can't bear to read it. But, today for some reason I read. I can relate to her posts on so many levels. She was "just a mom" like me. She had a happy healthy little girl until May when they were stunned with the diagnosis of cancer. And like us, they have taken so many aggressive steps to kill this cancer and in the process watched their child suffer. Like us, they have a strong faith in God, asked Him for miracles, & believe in power of prayer. Some of her posts sounds so similar to my own. But, there is a huge difference. Treatment didn't kill the cancer. It's continued to overtake Layla Grace's body and now she is in the last days of her life. They are currently living my biggest fear. My heart completely breaks for them. And again in an instant, I understand what really matters. I would encourage you to read the latest post on Layla Grace's site. Especially if you're a mom. For me, I know what it's like to want to hear your kids fighting with each other again. Wanting your child to be healthy enough to have to say "calm down" and for those things to be the biggest stresses of the day. I longed for it! And, now it's here. Praise God! But, instead of being thankful for the silliness that's getting out of control at the dinner table I'm getting angry. And, I'm not reading Forester and Micah a story before bed because I feel like I have too much laundry to get to....perspective lost.
Thanks to Layla Grace and her family I have it back. Who cares about a messy house or piles of laundry. I'll get it done eventually. Today I'm going to BE with my children. Play with them, hold them, and enjoy the moment. I may even let them sleep in my bed tonight! I pray that God continues to remind me of what really matters and just how blessed I am. I pray that he will continue to show me how to live and love in the moment and cherish the gifts he's given me.
I pray the same for you. And I ask you to stop for a moment and pray for a family who is about to lose their precious Layla Grace, to the nasty monster called cancer.

BIG NEWS!

2010-01-20T16:56:00.000-05:00

This is long overdue and it seems I start quite a few posts in this manner. Sorry! Things are as crazy as they can be with 3 kids and a puppy! And, I tend to give the "play by play" via Facebook and Twitter and sometimes forget about updating the blog immediately. You can follow me on Twitter by clicking here.
Last Wednesday Forester had a clinic appointment for blood labs and a check up. His labs came back looking pretty good and to our surprise Forester was approved to return back to school on Tuesday, January 19th!! Forester was so excited. The look on his face when he told me was priceless. Here we were thinking it would probably be March or so before he could return to school and God did it in January! It was a long 6 days of waiting for Forester. He was so cute. At 7 in the morning on Thursday he was trying on all of his uniform shirts and pants to see which still fit. And, he and Mrs. Weston worked very hard, doubling up on lessons to get Forester caught up with the rest of his 2nd grade class.
So, after 329 days, Forester returned to school yesterday! Right now he is only attending until noon each day until he can build up his stamina for a full day. He was all smiles and enjoyed every minute of being back with his friends and in the classroom learning. His only complaint was that he had to leave mid-day. He truly was sad yesterday and a little bit today. I know he longs to be "normal" like everyone else. It will take some time to get there and we are so thankful for how far we've come!
Please pray for all of us during this time of transition. We are so thankful that Forester is in a small private Christian school full of staff, parents and kids who love him. We are thankful that he is one of 8 children in his class where he will receive amazing personal attention in learning and development. We are also thankful that because of a smaller school environment it is less of a risk to his health as far as sickness goes. Pray for Forester's teacher, Mrs. Walters, and also his classmates!
Another specific prayer request is healing for Forester's legs. As you know the chemo, Vincristine, has wreaked havoc on Forester's balance and legs. To see Forester for a few moments you may not notice but as Forester's classmates and Mrs. Walters may now tell you, his legs are more severe than one would think. I'm not trying to paint a dramatic picture here I'm just trying to express how things truly are. Forester cannot run - it looks more like a limping gallop. He cannot walk in a straight line. He cannot take the stairs one foot at a time but instead 2 feet at a time like a toddler would. He cannot balance on one leg long enough to get to the next step. When he walks his feet tend to "slap" and he walks wide legged and in a zig-zag pattern. He falls easily. We have been told that in most cases these issues are temporary. We have yet to see any improvement. We will soon begin physical therapy again for Forester and pray that it helps. Will you please pray for restoration to Forester's muscles and nerves in his legs and feet? Pray that these side effects are temporary and not permanent. Pray that the activity he does at school will be great physical therapy and with each passing day he will improve. This little 8 year old boy longs to run and jump and play sports with his friends again. So, we would also ask that you pray for protection over him. His body does not cooperate with his mind and sometimes he does things he thinks he can do. Especially if his friends are doing it! Normal boy stuff. We believe that God can restore Forester completely! Thank you for praying for him and us.

Here are some pictures of Forester's 1st day of 2nd grade!

Better!

2010-01-10T13:27:00.000-05:00

Forester slept very peacefully last night and woke up hungry! He's been eating normally and taking his pills and feeling good. Thanks so much for your prayers!! So far everyone else is feeling fine too. Praying that continues.

Hope you're having a wonderful weekend,
Whitney

Praise and Another Prayer Request

2010-01-09T22:11:00.000-05:00

First of all, we finally received the official results of Forester's MRI via phone message saying everything looks "good". Thank you, Lord and thank you for your prayers!

Asking for some more prayers tonight. Forester is sick with a tummy bug. I am just mad about this because he's done enough puking this year to last a lifetime and I think he deserves a break! Selfishly, I think we could all use one and I feel a little overwhelmed by the thought of another stomach bug making the rounds in our house. Please pray for grace and God's mercy and protection over us all. Right now I'm thinking: "Uh, yes. I'd like one pass for smooth sailing for 6 months please. Thank you." But like I said this is selfish and self focused and the truth of the matter is we have been blessed beyond measure. We live in a fallen messed up world and it comes with hardship, sickness and heartache. As much as I wish it weren't so...
But, that won't keep me from praying and asking you to pray. Pray for Forester to sleep peacefully tonight and be fully recovered in the morning and also a hedge of protection around the rest of our family.

Thank you. I will keep you updated.
xoxo ~ Whitney

MRI

2010-01-04T15:11:00.000-05:00

Forester's MRI went smoothly. We're back at home and he's ready for some Kraft mac and cheese. We probably won't get any official results of the scan until tomorrow or the the next day, but we have friend at MUSC who was able to take a peek. From what he could see, the scan looks great but of course we need to wait for the official read. Thank you so much for your prayers. Keep them up!

HERE is a link to a short video of Forester receiving the sedation drugs and drifting off to dreamland.

A Big Christmas Surprise and a Prayer Request

2010-01-03T20:07:00.001-05:00

Well, it was quite an amazing Christmas at the Bradburn house. We now have a new member of the family. An 8 week old Cockapoo boy named, Max. He is absolutely precious. It was a BIG surprise as we have always told the boys "we are never getting a dog, we have kids". But, after the year that Forester has had we agreed that if any boy deserves a puppy, it's Forester. He's been asking for a dog since he was three and he is a big animal lover. He loves to watch animal planet and has decided he wants to be a snake wrangler and have his own snake show. Well, we're not getting any snakes so a puppy it is! Max was in a big box in front of the tree with a big bow on top and the boys were in shock when they opened it up. I think Forester was truly stunned! Max is already snuggling into our family just fine... though the housebreaking is quite a challenge. We've never had a puppy before! I thought I wasn't having any more kids - I guess I was wrong. Max is baby # 4! ha!

Max's arrival also marks a milestone in Forester's treatment. The day he was diagnosed (Feb 24th 2009), the Oncologist told us "no new pets" until after treatment. And here we are on the other side of the hard core chemo and embracing a new furry friend. Thank you, Lord for the victories in Jesus!

Health wise our family has still been struggling a bit. The stomach bug hit about 10 out of the 17 of us and about half of us are still battling a cold/cough. Thankfully Forester hasn't really had much in the way of symptoms of either - miraculous! But, when he went to the clinic on Wednesday his white blood count was really low which probably means his body is trying to fight off something. So, we're trying to keep him protected. Thankfully, he seems fine! Thank you so much for your prayers of protection over Forester's body. Keep it up! They're working!

Prayer Request: Tomorrow at 9:40 AM Forester will undergo another MRI of his brain to make sure everything looks as it should and that there are no traces of cancer. He will be under general sedation for this procedure which will last about an hour and a half. Please be praying for peace for him, that everything goes well with the sedation, and that the scans look PERFECT! Also, please pray for me (& I know that you are) that I, too, will have God's peace. It's so hard not to be scared and anxious about these scans. Strangely, in this last month I feel scared about Forester's health all the time. I'm not sure why as one would think I would be breathing a sigh of relief. Maybe because we're stepping into new, uncharted territory and I just don't quite know how to "be". Maybe all the emotions of the last year are catching up with me (again). I'm not sure but I do feel a bit like I'm suffocating sometimes and I'm not sure how I'll continue to live in this overwhelming sense of fear. I need God's peace and healing and I know I need to trust Him. I also know I need your help by asking you to pray. Please pray.

Thank you. As I've said before, words are not adequate in expressing my gratitude to you. For reading our blog, loving our son, praying for our family, and keeping us encouraged. Your friendship is an amazing gift. I pray that you were truly blessed over the holiday season. I was more than ready to kick 2009 to the curb and welcome 2010 with open arms. We are praying that 2010 and beyond will be CANCER FREE for our family. We're praying for you, that 2010 will bring to you more than you ever thought possible. Amazing joy, amazing peace and the amazing love of God.

Happy New Year!
Whitney

To view short videos of Max, click HERE and HERE!

Feeling Better!

2009-12-24T16:55:00.000-05:00

Slade has been moving around a bit today and eating and drinking a little bit more. I am feeling much better than I was last night and am going to attempt to sing tonight! No matter how it sounds, to God be the glory. Thanks so much for your prayers for all of us. Blessings to you all!

MERRY CHRISTMAS!
Whitney

Keep Praying

2009-12-24T00:00:00.000-05:00

Slade is making progress, drinking some and having a few cheerios, she is crying a lot in her sleep and very restless. It's almost midnight now and she is crying. Poor girl.
I seem to be close to miserable with tons of pressure in my head, sneezing, aches, chills and even jaw pain - huh? Anyway. Pray that tomorrow is a brand new day. It's CHRISTMAS EVE! Unless a miracle happens overnight I don't think I'll be singing tomorrow. Sad. :-( I was looking forward to being with my worship team family tomorrow night.

Ultimately though, this is a praise report! As of now no other family members have come down with anything. Keep praying that coverage. THANK YOU!

Goodnight!
Whit

Little Prayer Please

2009-12-23T11:15:00.000-05:00

Slade and I came down with a stomach bug yesterday and while I am feeling much better, poor Slade still can't keep anything down and has had a consistent fever of 100. She is pitiful! Please pray for protection over the rest of our family. All the Browns(my parents & sibs & kids) have been together here in Charleston since the weekend. There are 16 of us! Please pray no one else gets this nasty bug, especially Forester! I also seem to have come down with a cold as of last night. I know! !?!? I'm supposed to be singing at church tomorrow night and a cold seriously complicates things. Pray that this cold does not get in the way! Or better yet, just goes away!
I still have so much to do before Christmas morning and I so want it to be Forester's best Christmas ever after the year he's had. Sickness was not part of my plan! Please also pray for me, that I can keep what really matters in perspective and not get too anxious about all of this. I am really good at getting anxious...
Thank you for your prayers. May God bless you!

Whitney

Yesterday's Labs & Hearing Test

2009-12-17T09:51:00.000-05:00

Forester's labs were pretty good. Everything is almost in the normal range except for his hemoglobin. It continues to hover just under 9. They usually transfuse if it goes under 9 but since it's not continuing to go down they want his body to recover on it's own. We don't have to go back for 2 weeks which is nice.

The results of Forester's hearing test showed that he has lost a little bit more in the higher tones. I was told yesterday it's possible for him to lose even more as a residual effect from the chemo. What can I say. It's very disappointing and I'm sad. I'm praying the hearing loss stops. I really don't want him to have to have hearing aids on top of everything else he's endured. I'm discouraged so I would really appreciate you praying in faith on my behalf. My faith in this area feels a bit deflated.

Love,
Whitney

2009-12-15T09:08:00.002-05:00

Every one slept great last night! Thank you for your prayers!
-Whit

Transition

2009-12-14T17:29:00.000-05:00

I'm sorry it's been so long since my last post. The wonderful Christmas craziness has begun and I haven't had a chance to update you. I never did finish a slideshow of Slade's first year. After the New Year, I guess...

There isn't a whole lot to report. Things have been going smoothly and Forester is doing well. We're still trying to adjust to this new schedule of normalcy! After so much this year, I find it a little bit difficult to transition back into our old life. Of course, it will never be our old life because that was a life without a child with cancer. I was talking with another cancer-kid mom the other day and I said something like It's hard to imagine what life will be like when this is over. And she posed the question: "Is cancer ever really over?" I wasn't sure how to answer that. Forester will have MRI scans for the rest of his life. How do I not live in fear that his cancer will come back every time he gets a scan? Will it always define him? Will it always define us? I don't know.

Right now, we're working on transitioning Forester back into school by sometime in January. He has a lot of progress to make between now and then but I think we can do it. The biggest challenges for him will be stamina and schedule. He's used to taking a 2 hour nap everyday, eating whatever he wants whenever he wants, and in general, a whole lot of flexibility. We've started to cut out the naps and as of this evening Forester will finally be sleeping in his own room - not on the floor in our room like he has the last 10 months. Kinda sounds like I'm transitioning an infant doesn't it? All 3 kids in their beds by 8pm tonight sounds like a dream! Pray that it goes well. Forester wasn't too excited about leaving our bedside. He's become quite attached to his little space in the corner.

Forester continues to go to the hospital clinic once a week for blood labs and this week he'll have another hearing test. He'll have another MRI of his brain at the end of this month. He still takes a handful of pills 3x times a day but hopefully as time goes on the amount of pills that he needs will decrease. Accutane will start back up after Christmas.

Hard to believe it's less than 2 weeks till Christmas! Remember when you were a kid and it took forever for the month of December to go by? We've really enjoyed getting ready. We have a beautiful tree, lots of other decorations up and several Advent calendars. The boys love counting down the days until Jesus' birthday and Santa's visit! Forester keeps reminding me that we really need to move all of the stuff that's in front of the fireplace because it will be in Santa's way. They've even been a little nicer to one another as the Elf on the Shelf is watching...

We have so much to be thankful for this Christmas. I hope during all the busyness of this month, you have a chance to stop, look around and truly be thankful for all the blessings in your life.

Love to all,
Whitney

One Year Ago Today...

2009-11-30T11:21:00.000-05:00

One year ago today, I was extremely uncomfortable and anxiously awaiting the following morning so it would finally be the day my daughter would be born. Some of you remember I was hugely pregnant and measured 6 or 7 weeks ahead for the last 12 weeks or so of my pregnancy due to extra fluid. Plus, there was a big baby in there (9.2)! I couldn't wait to meet my baby girl. I was also a little apprehensive about being a mommy to 3 kids. Could I juggle it all? Especially with Pete's travel schedule? I definitely thought that adjusting to being a mother of three would be the biggest challenge I would face this year. Who knew only a few short months later all that would change. What a year it's been! I am so thankful for my beautiful, sweet sunshine, Slade Katherine, who has been a constant source of joy in the midst of such a trying year. Thank you, Lord for blessing our lives with her!

I hope you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving holiday. We had a lovely low key Thanksgiving here in Charleston. Forester had to go to the ER for blood labs on Friday because the clinic was closed but it was a relatively short trip and he didn't need any transfusions. Right now we are getting close to the end of his Accutane cycle so he's starting his monthly peel. His head and face, hands and a few other spots peel as if he had a bad sunburn and his lips get very raw and chapped. He'll stop Accutane on the 4th and thankfully his skin recovers within days of stopping the medicine. This will be the first time we won't be in the hospital for chemo during his last Accutane dose. It feels weird. We head back to the clinic on Wednesday to check blood counts again.
We got our Christmas tree on Saturday and I've been busy decorating. Last year I was so pregnant and then had a newborn so my family did most of the decorating for me. I'm really enjoying it this year. I love Christmas!

I'm working on a picture slide show of Slade's first year and I will post it tomorrow on her 1st Birthday! Sadly, Pete has to be out of town on business so we're postponing a party until Sunday. :-(

Got to get back to decking the halls!

Whitney

When Daddy's away it gets loud...

2009-11-19T20:07:00.000-05:00

AHHHHH!!!!

Round 6, Week 2

2009-11-18T22:10:00.003-05:00

Sorry it's been so long since my last update. I've just been procrastinating. I'm really good at procrastination. Seriously, I could win awards.
Anyway, Forester has been doing really well the last week or so. He's had only 2 vomiting episodes and for the most part has felt pretty normal. He received a blood transfusion and his very last Vincristine dose on Friday. Woo-hoo! And, guess what? (What?) We have another reason to be thankful! We were told a while back when Forester's legs were getting so bad and thought we would have to stop the Vincristine, that we shouldn't be too concerned because no one ever gets all of the doses of Vincristine. The side effects are just too taxing and at some point everyone has to skip doses or back off of it altogether. Well, Forester got all the doses of Vincristine! And, not only that, he still has reflexes in his legs, he's walking more normally than before and even doing some dancing on a regular basis! Can I get a Woot in the name of Jesus? God is rockin and working miracles all over the place. How can we not praise Him? How can we not fall on our knees and be thankful? My God is so good!!

Forester had another long day today at the clinic. He had to receive a blood transfusion again today and also a platelet transfusion. His ANC count is really low at .030 (normal is 2,000-5,000). Hopefully the GCSF Neupogen shots will do their job and his count will pop back up by his next appointment on Friday. It's so strange that these things have become normal and in comparison to other months this one is going very smoothly. We are excited about the fact that once his counts pop back up that they shouldn't go back down again. They're going to stay up! His hair is going to start growing back! Yippee! We really are approaching the finish line.

I want to thank you so much for your prayers. I believe with my whole heart that your prayers are reason our family and Forester has stayed relatively germ free through all of this (and so many other answered prayers!). Seriously. Think about it. Think about the last 9 months and how much funk has been going around. Think about how low Forester's counts have been and how susceptible he's been to picking up any illness. God is at work! YOU are witnessing miracles! You are a part of it! PLEASE do not stop praying for us! Sickness changes everything and we need to continue to pray protection over all of us from any illness. Thank you, thank you, thank you. I wish I could hug each and every one of you right now. God has blessed me through you. You have blessed our sweet Forester! I will be praying for you, thanking God for you tonight as I always do.

Love,
Whitney

**sorry to those who got a double delivery of this post in their inbox. I had to fix a typo! I always miss at least one...

Forester's 8th Birthday Slideshow

2009-11-18T20:53:00.000-05:00

Forester's 8th Birthday Highlights

HOME!!

2009-11-09T16:00:00.000-05:00

Forester is HOME! He had a wonderful birthday in the hospital with lots of visitors and attention from the docs and nurses. The rest of his stay was uneventful (which is great!). He arrived back home about 11:30 am and you should have seen the smile on his face! He has spent most of the day putting together one of his birthday bionicles - his favorite thing! He is resting now and in a couple hours we will have a family celebration including some birthday presents he wanted to wait and open tonight. We have much to CELEBRATE!! Praise the Lord!

We're so thankful the hospital stay is OVER but we still have the roughest part of the month ahead of us. Tomorrow we start the GCSF shots. Forester's blood counts are going to go down. He will get one more dose of Vincristine on Friday and if trends continue, also a blood transfusion. Please continue to pray for us! Pray for me as Pete is now out of town on business until Friday. Please pray for protection over all of us against any illness. Thank you!
I will upload pictures soon.

We love you,
Whitney for the Bradburn 5

Let's Rock and Roll

2009-11-06T11:56:00.000-05:00

Forester's ANC jumped from .730 to 1300 in 2 DAYS! Miraculous! Am I surprised? No. Cause my God does stuff like that! Am I excited? YES! Let's get this last round over with! Prayers please for the smoothest treatment yet.

I'll keep you posted - tomorrow is the big birthday!

**HUGE thank you to our family inside our church family, the St. Andrews Worship Team. Pete and I were able to go downtown for a date last night thanks to them. We had a great time and it was a much needed. Thank you Grandma, for babysitting!

6th treatment is delayed

2009-11-04T16:48:00.000-05:00

**Several of you told me the link the the Halloween slideshow didn't work. So, I re-uploaded it and you can view it by clicking here.

Today we were all geared up to start the LAST in patient treatment for Forester. When his blood counts came back this morning his ANC (absolute neutraphil count - white cells) was only .730. Normal is around 5,000. It has to be at least .750 in order to be admitted to start chemo. So, no chemo today. There isn't anything we can do at this point to increase his count so we just have to wait for it to go up on it's own. The higher his blood count when he starts the better. So, we'll just pray it really goes up! We return Friday morning to check his count again and hopefully it will be high enough for him to be admitted. They only downside to this, besides all of us being ready for this to be over now, is Forester's 8th birthday is on Saturday. We had really hoped he would be able to be home on his birthday and so did he. But, as I reflect on this, maybe it will be more fun in the hospital...minus the chemo part. Maybe he'll get lots of birthday wishes and special treatment from the nurses and doctors? I think I will make giant posters to put on his hospital room door and do my best to be obnoxious and tell everyone, IT'S FORESTER'S BIRTHDAY! ;-0 Hey, there is a positive side to every situation, right? Right. Forester seems to be fine with this change in plans which is pretty miraculous! Thank you, Lord. My little fighter rolls with the punches.

A few moments ago I was looking at some pictures from Forester's birthday last year. Ugh. It made my heartache to look into that happy face. He's been through so much since then. He's lost so much innocence, had to be so brave, had to endure so much pain and sickness and change. It seems like yesterday and forever ago. It seems like forever ago that he had hair! But yet, I believe with every fiber of my being that God has a greater purpose in all of this. Forester's story is just beginning. God is just in the beginning stages of doing miraculous things through the life of Forester James Bradburn.

"And we rejoice in the hope of the glory of God. ³Not only so, but we also rejoice in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; ⁴perseverance, character; and character, hope. ⁵And hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out his love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom he has given us."

Romans 5:2b-4

(one year ago)

I'll keep you posted.

Love,

Whitney

Halloween Video Slideshow (revised & working link)

2009-11-02T23:03:00.004-05:00

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mkJRP2VPmUQ

Micah's Birthday Video

2009-11-02T19:30:00.000-05:00

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bZ2krFIhjIc

Update: Round 5 Week 3

2009-10-27T11:48:00.000-04:00

It's been a week since my last post and it's been quite uneventful. Yahoo! Forester's counts were back up on Thursday and we were able to stop the GCSF shots. As of yesterday his platelets were still on the low side but not low enough for a transfusion. We go back on Friday to check his counts again and then round 6 (FINAL!) is scheduled for the following Wednesday, Nov. 4th. So we have another week of feeling pretty good and just being together before we start all over again. Thank you, Lord! Thursday is Micah's 5th birthday. Because of our situation we are have a very small family party which Micah seems completely fine with. He's chosen a Super Mario Brothers theme with a Pumpkin cake. Interesting... I have a couple crafts planned so it should be fun. I can't believe he's going to be FIVE!

We're trying to stay indoors as much as possible but please continue to pray protection over our family against any illnesses - especially the flu! Forester is in the high risk category and as I've said before we don't want anything to prolong his treatment! Thank you so much for your prayers and encouragement.

Love,
Whitney

More blood, please.

2009-10-19T13:20:00.000-04:00

As you know, Forester recieved a blood transfusion on Thursday. I knew this wouldn't help too much because his white count hasn't bottomed out. It's taken us a while to understand how all of this works but it generally takes 10-12 days for Forester's white blood cell count to hit rock bottom. Until this happens, it continues to pull all of his other counts down with it. So, even though Forester received blood on Thursday, his white cell count is still pulling that red cell count down. Make sense? It's not as low as it was on Thursday but it's still low. All that's to say is it's 4 days later and Forester will be getting another blood transfusion and also a platelet transfusion today. Our hope is that his white cell count will bottom out soon and all his counts will start to recover. Meanwhile, we have to continue doing daily shots until his next appt (Thursday). This is the first time we've had to do more than 10 days in a row of shots. Blah.
I'm so ready for all of this to be over for Forester and our family. Though I admit I can hardly imagine it! Really. It's so hard to picture a life without the hospital, chemo and shots, pills and analyzing blood counts and worry...but we'll get there. As we continue to run this marathon, we are all so weary and tired. I have to remind myself daily, keep one foot in front of the other, just keep going......
The end is in sight. Please keep praying for us.

Praying for all of you today who pray for us!
Whitney

Round 5, Week 2 Begins

2009-10-15T14:20:00.000-04:00

This week has been pretty uneventful, thank God! Forester arrived home from treatment on Saturday night which was earlier than we thought. He was thrilled! So far he's only had one vomiting episode which is a big difference from last month. He was still scared to eat for a couple of days but is now back to his hungry self. He's still eating lots of pickles, cheese and popcorn! He's been able to do school each day this week and keeping up pretty well.

Micah came down with a croupy sounding cough on Monday night, so Pete took him to Muzzy & Pop's for the day to keep him away from Forester. He never ran a fever but definitely has a cold. Slade woke up with a really yucky nose and cough yesterday morning. So far, Forester hasn't caught it. Pray he doesn't!! We're trying to keep the boys separated but it's hard to do these days. They really enjoy playing together. So, all day yesterday they wore masks just so they could play "Bionicles" and watch TV together! Very sweet.

Today Forester is at the hospital with Muzzy getting Vincristine (chemo) and also a blood transfusion. His hemoglobin is 5.9. That's low! 11-16 is normal. When he woke up yesterday he was so pale I just knew he needed blood. He's also been extremely emotional, crying several times a day over small things. I'm hoping maybe the blood will help with that too. So, it will be a long hospital day but he should feel much better by the end of today. We're still waiting for his white blood cell count to bottom out before it starts to recover again. I'm guessing it will bottom out on Monday.

Guess who is on the way here RIGHT NOW? Aunt Katie (my sis) and Jack (my neph)!! We can't wait to see them!! Forester just loves Aunt Katie and adores little Jack. It will help the next week go by fast. :-) Thank you, Lord, for sisters that rock!

Please pray for safe travels for Katie, quick recovery for Micah and Slade, and no more illness in the house! We are taking every precaution to protect Forester from the flu but I confess it still scares me. BUT, God is protecting him and us... I just need to TRUST Him. Pray that I will trust God in all things concerning Forester's care.

Thanks for all of your prayers for us. More soon.
Love,
Whitney

Round 5 starts off with a blow

2009-10-08T12:17:00.000-04:00

April made it safely here on Tuesday morning, and we've had a great visit together. She was able to go to Micah's soccer game with us and see Muzzy & Pop and Grand Do Do, as well as witness Micah scoring 3 goals! Then Grandma Kathie was so kind to watch the kids so Ape and I could go out. We had a wonderful dinner downtown at SNOB (Slightly North of Broad) and relaxed on the Vendue Inn Roof Top Bar. The weather was perfect, and the company was even better! I am so thankful to have her here and sad that she has to fly back home today.

Forester's round 5 began yesterday. As always, he had a hearing test first. The results this time were not what we hoped. Forester has had significant high frequency hearing loss as a direct result of the crucial chemotherapy drug, Cisplatin. As I have mentioned in previous posts, this loss is permanent - not temporary. As you can imagine, we were devastated by this news. If we have to make a choice between returning cancer or hearing loss, of course we would choose hearing loss. But who wants to "choose" either one at all?? Who doesn't want their child to be completely whole? He's been through so much already, he's endured so much already....not this too. I think I am particularly heartbroken over this because I have prayed constantly that God would protect him from this. I have asked all of you to pray, and I constantly remind my closest friends to pray about his hearing. We had several people pray over him at church specifically asking God to protect him from this. These sad results are common, but I truly believe that God is bigger than that. I do! So, why didn't He do it? Why didn't He answer my prayer and protect him from this? My sweet boy, who feels music in his bones, who loves to sing and dance, who wants to play the piano and drums. Hearing is important to us all but especially so for this musical family and this musical boy. I know that God's ways are higher than our ways. I know we cannot understand the mind of God, but to be honest, I feel heartbroken by Him. I feel like I put myself out there, believing wholeheartedly in His protection, and He broke my heart. I truly believed this wouldn't happen. I feel the fool. Do I love my Jesus any less? No. Do I believe that God IS who He says He is? Yes. Do I still trust Him? Yes. Do I believe that God can restore Forester's hearing? Absolutely. But, am I hurting? Yes. Do I understand it all? Never.

Forester's Cisplatin dose was reduced by 25% in hopes of preventing any more damage to his hearing. We asked about the ramifications of stopping Cisplatin altogether, but we were told by his doctors it is crucial for treating Medulloblastomas and especially crucial in Forester's case since his tumor was anaplastic. I will continue to beg you for your prayers. That this 25% reduction will keep him from having any more hearing loss. Pray that the amount that he has lost will be restored. That he won't need hearing aids. Pray for my broken heart and for the strength to continue to watch my child endure this horror for the next 2 months.

Due to Forester's specific gravity in his urine (too concentrated) they had to have him on fluids all day yesterday and chemo didn't start until midnight. This means an additional 12 hours or so in the hospital. This made Forester very sad as he is always anxious to get home as soon as possible. We hope he will be discharged by Sunday night. Please pray for Forester's spirits and that the time will go by fast for him. Pray that he won't have severe vomiting like he did last month. Ugh. Just pray.

Thankful for another day in spite of my tears,
Whitney

(pictures from yesterday)

Prayer Request

2009-10-02T00:43:00.000-04:00

First of all I shouldn't be writing this after taking Ambien so forgive me.
But, I am so excited that April is coming for a short visit next Tuesday-Thursday!! (Forester enters treatment on Wed) Please pray that everyone in April's household will remain COMPLETELY HEALTHY. Since March, that poor family has been one giant walking germ. Seriously! 3 kids under 5 and the oldest started Kindergarten this year = illness. Plus you know about April's Spinal Meningitis! It's been a trying year for them too. We both could use some time together. I haven't seen April since Forester's brain surgery back in Feb.!! So please pray that nothing interferes and that God will continue to put a hedge of protection around us to keep us from anything that could compromise Forester's treatment.
THANK YOU!
Forester had a great day today. He has some laughing gas at the dentist while getting some preventative sealants put on his teeth. It wasn't a problem at all. Smooth and easy. Then came home and has a short school lesson with Mrs. Weston. They were unable to get to Bible today due to time so Forester stayed at the table and read and explained his Bible stories to Micah. It was a precious moment. He loves Bible time!

Hope you all have a wonderful weekend ahead. It's going to be a tough game for our Georgia Bulldogs playing LSU. GO DAWGS!
Love - Whitney

Doing Well

2009-09-29T14:37:00.013-04:00

Sorry that it's been a few days since my last update.

Forester's body has recovered from the chemo and all of his counts are almost in the normal range. His platelet count is still really low but not low enough for another transfusion. We just have to be careful about bumps and falling (bleeding essentially). The last several days have been really great. Forester seems more like his old self and it's been a long time since we've seen that guy. He was kicking the soccer ball this weekend, going up and down the stairs without holding on and even jumping around a bit. All of these things are signs of great improvement in his legs. He even said "Mom, I'm getting my balance back! Yay!". So, your prayers are working! He's also been getting along very well with Micah and they have spent hours together building Bionicles and playing. This is unheard of! I mean, they're brothers!! It's been a precious gift to me to over hear my boys being nice to one another and enjoying each other's company. SO, in all things, God is good and has been giving us little gifts along the way.

Round 5 (We're reaching the homestretch!!) will begin on Wednesday, October 8th, 8 days from now. Thankfully we don't even have to go back to the hospital for a check up before then! Forester will have a hearing test at 8:30 on the 8th (PRAY) and then they will check his counts and get him admitted into a room. Once again it will be the same 4 chemo drugs and a 4 day stay in the hospital.

So... have any of you heard of this thing called the Swine Flu? Ha ha. Yeah, it's going around and it's everywhere! Pete and I talked about it the other night and though it may seem to be extreme we are going to take every precaution necessary to keep our family healthy and avoid any illness that could delay Forester's treatment. We REALLY want him to be done by December and maybe even have a little hair by Christmas! So, we're going to be hermits for the next couple of months. And please, keep praying for God's protection over us. I know it's His protection that has kept Forester from illness thus far. Thank you, Lord!

Thanks as always for thinking and praying for us. We thank God for you! We pray that this week will be full of uneventful, boring days in the Bradburn house before the next round starts back up.

Here are a few short videos for you to enjoy. Don't forget to pause the playlist at the bottom or if you received this by email you will have to go to the actual blog site to view the videos.

Love,

Whitney

Motorcycles, Pills, Transfusions & Cheese

2009-09-21T21:12:00.009-04:00

First of all, thank you so much to Molly Meekins who worked so hard for MONTHS to organize an amazing fundraiser for us on Sunday. 50 or so bikers (these are Harley dudes, not cyclists) came out for the poker run and gave so generously to help us with our medical bills. THANK YOU to all who participated and volunteered for this event. Pete really wants a Harley now! :-)

Forester had another long day today. His platelet count was very low (3, normal is 140-440) so he had to get a transfusion of those. His hemoglobin count was low (7.5, normal is 11-15) so he had to get another blood transfusion. His white blood cell count is 27 (normal is 2,000-6000) so we need to continue neupogen shots. Unfortunately, I gave him the last one we had this morning. We were told today by hospital staff that more would be ordered & delivered. When I called to follow up on that this evening it had not been done. SO frustrating. It usually takes at least a day to receive a home shipment so we may have to go back to the hospital tomorrow just for a shot. Blech. It seems that Forester's little body is having a harder time recovering from the chemo than the first couple of months. He had 2 blood transfusions last month and this month as opposed to just one per month. He's had to get platelets the last 2 months where he has only needed platelets one other time in the last 8 months. His white cell count is taking longer to recover....it all really stinks. We're tired of our boy being sick and cannot wait for this to be behind us and see him healthy again. Keep praying for all of us.

The good news we received today is that Forester's weight is up from 61 lbs. to 66lbs., thanks to starting the Megace again. He is back to eating lots and lots of cheese cubes, pickles, and cheese quesadillas & cheese dip from the local Mexican restaurant. Something about the Megace and cheese...but we're thankful he's eating again. He's also been able to take his pills with a lot more ease. Prayers answered. It's amazing the amount of pills he takes a day. The picture posted is of one week's worth of pills. The horse pills we break up into 6-8 pieces. It makes for about 20 swallows of pills, 3x a day. He is a trooper.

I am sorry this is a disjointed post. I'm tired and have more chores before bed. Just wanted to keep you all updated. We will see what tomorrow brings.

Praising Him for another day,

Whitney

Another Hospital Day

2009-09-18T14:26:00.008-04:00

Another long day at the hospital today for Forester. When they drew his labs this morning his potassium is still very low so he has to get a bolus of that before leaving. It takes 2 hours to drip. Also, even though he just had a blood transfusion his level only went up from 7 to 8. Anything under 11 is low. So, I fully expect him to have to get another blood transfusion on Monday. His platelets are going down too so he may need those too by the time Monday gets here. His white count is still in the 2,000's which means it will probably tank over the weekend or by Monday. So, no going out and no visitors this weekend. At least there's football. :-)

Prayer request: Over the last week Forester has really struggled to take his pills. It's understandable. He has so many to take I wouldn't want to do it either! When we break up the large potassium & magnesium & septra into smaller pieces it ends up to be about 20 pills, 3 times a day. We were doing most of them in applesauce which has been fine until recently. It seems to be a mental struggle and he's so afraid of vomiting. Please pray for him! He has to take these pills. And starting Tuesday we add 4 accutane a day into his regimen. It has become quite stressful for me - pressure from the doctors to get them down him - trying to force him to take them...trying every different way possible...and without success. Poor guy. I wish I didn't have to make him do this. So, if you would, just pray about the pills. Also pray for my general attitude. I think I have become very weary in this marathon. I'm so tired of my baby being sick. More of the things that we have been used to as the new normal have started to upset me all over again. I need to regain my balance & keep focused on the finish line. *sigh*

A quick reminder about the motorcycle ride for Forester on Sunday - ANYONE is welcome with any kind of transportation. I wish Forester could be there & so does he!! A Bradburn will be out there to represent though!

Love,

Whitney

HOME

2009-09-17T00:54:00.004-04:00

It was a long day but we arrived home at 10pm and I was able to get all three kids in bed and asleep by 11:00. I am completely exhausted but have so much to be thankful for. Slade was an angel all day and even took a pretty good nap in the stroller. Forester was able to get blood & chemo, potassium & zofran. All of which will help his little body tremendously. Though it was a taxing day, I am thankful we have the resources that Forester needs available to us and such a wonderful hospital in the town we live in. So many families have hours to drive home after treatment. We have 20 minutes! God is good! And, on top of all that precious Lauren Fortney watched Micah for me all day and night in addition to her own two (and pregnant!). Thank you, Lauren! And thank you , Rebeccah for bringing me some food and a hug today. It was a great pick me up. I am blessed!...and sleepy. Thank you for your prayers! Goodnight...or I guess it is now morning...whew.

Praising Him,

Whitney

It's going to be a long day.

2009-09-16T14:24:00.004-04:00

We came to clinic this morning to get Forester's blood labs & Vincristine chemo done with hopes that we would be back home in time for school at 1:00. No such luck. The first sign that this day wasn't going to go how we had hoped is that Forester was very winded after getting in the car. Then, he did not want to walk to clinic and we had to request a wheelchair escort. This type of tiredness we have come to learn is directly related to his hemoglobin/red blood cell count. And, as I suspected his red count is low and he needs a blood transfusion today. This transfusion takes 3 hours to complete. Forester's Potassium and Magnesium (electrolytes) are also low which can cause the same type of symptoms of fatigue & issues with heart and kidney function. As I type, Forester is currently getting a bolus of Potassium which takes 2 hours, then he'll get his chemo which takes about 15 minutes. We will then go over to the hospital (because the clinic closes @ 5:30) and he will get his blood. So we will probably be here until 9pm tonight. Please pray for me & Slade & Forester and that this long day will go smoothly. Also pray for Micah and my sweet friends who are passing him around today. I'll keep you posted. Thanks. ~Whitney

Ride For Forester - Fundraiser!

2009-09-15T10:59:00.016-04:00

Attention Carolina Bikers! Biker fans! Or, just fans of Forester and fundraisers! Please join us on Sunday (this Sunday) at 11am!!

It is late for me to be posting about this (so sorry Molly) but my trainer and friend, Molly Meekins, has put together a fundraiser for Forester happening THIS Sunday. It is a motorcycle poker ride! If you don't know what that is (I didn't), you pay a registration fee, then all bikes start at one location and travel to 4 more stops, ending at the 5th. At each stop you receive a playing card, but there will also be other fun things happening at each stop. At the final and 5th stop you show your "poker hand". Prizes will be given to the best hand and the worst. There will also be tons of stuff being raffled off as well as a band playing, a fish fry, and some dude who does cool tricks on his bike! CARS are also welcome! You don't have to have a bike to join the fun. All proceeds will go to help pay Forester's medical bills!! Hopefully Forester will be feeling good enough to be there for all the fun, too.

It's hard to see the details on the flyer above so here are the details I have:

Sep 20: Ride for Forester!

Registration @ 11am @ Clydes Place (5245 Dorchester Rd, N. Charleston),

$15/Bike $5/Passenger.

Last Bike Out: 12:30pm.

Last Bike In: 4:30pm. @ Checkered Flag (2366 Ashley River Rd. W. Ashley)

Live Band (Numb909) starts @ 4pm. 50/50, Raffles!!

Reminder...

2009-09-14T10:19:00.006-04:00

Please take less than a minute to log in and vote 10x for MUSC Children's hospital to get the Xbox upgrade! THANKS!

So far so good today. Forester is having a little snack & watching a disney movie.

http://xbox.childrensmiraclenetwork.org/default.aspx

Feeling better!

2009-09-13T21:37:00.005-04:00

Forester returned home with a smile and a request for steak. What a difference an ER visit can make! He's been giggling and generally in great spirits which is a huge contrast from the weepy, tired, sick, little boy he was this afternoon. We had to say no on the steak..maybe not the best choice for tonight. But, he's having some Gatorade and some crackers and watching a little TV. Thank you so much for your prayers. Please continue to pray that this will be the beginning of managing his symptoms and that tomorrow will be a good day. Pete leaves before sunrise. Forester is always sad when daddy isn't here so please also pray for his little heart and that I can be the comfort he needs while Pete is away. Oh yeah, and pray for my sanity. :-) Love to you all & goodnight!

~Whitney

Still at the ER

2009-09-13T19:56:00.003-04:00

Forester and Pete are still at the ER. Forester is getting some color back thanks to the bags of fluid, and is getting ready to try some pretzels. We're praying those go down ok. Tests are being run to make sure he isn't fighting anything else and we're still waiting on results. I'm hoping they'll be home in the next hour or so. Keep praying & thanks so much for doing so! ~Whitney

Headed to the ER...again.

2009-09-13T11:55:00.004-04:00

Forester has been home since early Friday evening. Round 4 went ok. He had some vomiting in the hospital but otherwise things went fine. In the last several months we've been able to manage the vomiting pretty well with all of the drugs he's on. For some reason, this month the meds don't seem to be doing the job. Forester has been unable to keep much down since he got home & today he cannot even tolerate a small amount of liquid. This is a vicious cycle because his nausea medicines aren't staying down either... So, per doctor's request we'll be heading to the ER when Forester awakes from a nap. He'll get some fluids via his port and hopefully this will help the dehydration and in general help his body to return to "normal". Please pray for him! He is scared to eat or drink anything now...so tired of being sick. I just feel so bad for him.

Pete is leaving town for the week on business. He was supposed to leave tonight but was able to change his flight to tomorrow morning. Please pray for all of us as the timing of this trip is not great. I'll keep you posted. Thanks for your prayers!

Whitney

One way you can help!

2009-09-12T09:13:00.007-04:00

As you know, Forester's hospital stays are tough and to be honest, quite boring for him. One thing that really helps pass the time and is something to look forward to is the Atrium Playroom at MUSC Children's Hospital. One of Forester's favorite things to do in the Atrium is play Xbox. Unfortunately, it was broken this week. Children's Miracle Network and Microsoft are teaming up to provide an gaming upgrade to a Children's Hospital playroom but it will be determined by VOTERS. We need this upgrade! Please follow this link, and take the short little steps to vote for MUSC Children's. You can vote 10 times per day! If each of you from this blog would vote 10x each day, I'm sure that MUSC would win this upgrade. We are currently in 6th place. The top 3 win! Please take a moment and VOTE! THANK YOU!!! (more details from this week and future happenings to be posted soon!!)

Here is the official info and link: (thanks Betsy!)

The Children's Miracle Network has partnered with Microsoft to award an upgraded game room to the three CMN children's hospitals that receive the highest number of votes in a national contest among pediatric hospitals.

YOU can help us win this amazing opportunity for the children at MUSC Children’s Hospital.

People who vote also have an opportunity to win one of several Xbox 360 game systems. Each person may submit a maximum of 10 votes per day.

It only takes a few minutes to sign up (heck, it took me 47 seconds, but your results may vary). Register and vote here: http://xbox.childrensmiraclenetwork.org/default.aspx

Please vote 10 times EVERY day and pass this email along to others!

p.s. The contest runs until 16 OCTOBER.

p.s.s. MUSC Children’s Hospital is currently sixth on the list. Remember: we only need to reach the top THREE~!

Hearing Test

2009-09-08T12:50:00.001-04:00

Forester's hearing is still PERFECT! PRAISE GOD!! Woo-hoo!

BRAVES GAME!

2009-09-08T10:52:00.006-04:00

We had the very best day at the Braves game! It truly was a boys' dream come true. Forester was given his own jersey, ball and glove all signed by the players. Coach Glenn Hubbard took Forester into the clubhouse and he was able to meet all the players. He said it "was so cool"! Coach Glenn is an amazing man. We just can't express our appreciation to him for making all of this happen. Forester even got to say "Play Ball" to start the game! Thank you sooo much to all of you who came out to support Forester and love on us. I am sorry most of you didn't get to see Forester. He was so wiped out from the heat, the walking and pre-game festivities, he took a 2 hour nap on the couch in the suite & missed half of the game! I am also sorry we weren't able to see and talk to each one of you who came out. :-( It was a crazy day, but PERFECT (minus the loss in the 12th inning!).

A lot has been going on the last couple of weeks and I haven't had a chance to blog. I'm limited on time today too as Forester's 4th round of chemo starts today. He will have a hearing test today (PRAY) and then the 4 chemo drugs will start this evening (PRAY!) Remember all those yucky side effects and keep praying against them. Also, Micah apparently bumped his front tooth a few months back and it has died and become infected. He has to have his 2 front teeth extracted today at 2:30. Please pray that everything goes smoothly. As always, please continue to pray protection over our family from any illness as germs are our biggest enemy these days. It is obvious these prayers are working!! Please keep it up. More very soon. We love you all and thank you so much for your love and prayers for us.

*A professional photographer was taking lots of pictures on Sunday and I know some of you have some that are much better than mine, but I wanted to get something on the blog right away. Here's a little snapshot of our day!

12 Years Ago Today...

2009-08-28T20:37:00.008-04:00

This post is dedicated to my sweet, Pete, whom I married 12 years ago today. I still honestly can't believe this man wanted to marry me. He was and IS my dream come true. I love you, baby. We've been through quite a lot over the last 12 years...working in ministry in Atlanta, surviving seminary, leaving all our closest friends in Birmingham and moving to Charleston where we didn't have friend (minus my mom and dad) or a job! We've endured a lot of change as we've grown our family. And this year, enduring the biggest challenge of our life...a daughter. (hee hee.) Of course I mean Forester and cancer. You have been, and continue to be, the rock of our family. You are an amazing husband, a wonderful, completely involved and fun father, you are a hard worker and a dedicated provider. You love God, you love me, you love our children. And, you are so fun and funny! I truly enjoy being with you and feel so blessed to be the lucky girl who gets to call you her husband. I know others are jealous and they should be. :-) Thank you for loving me so well these last 12 years. Thank you for giving me the gift of our three children even though you were really apprehensive about the third one. Thank you for being understanding about my short comings and patient with me. I know I'm not easy to live with. I know I test your limits and you extend grace to me over and over again. You motivate me to be a better wife, a better mom and better person. I want to be someone you'll be proud of and brings you joy. I hope I succeed at least some of the time. You are the one I try to dress to impress. You are the one I hope and pray still thinks I'm cute after all these years....even though I wear the battle scars of carrying our children. There is no one else I desire to please other than my God. I am so thankful you serve Him and love him as I do. More than anything, that is the greatest blessing to me. Your love for Him. I pray we will have many more wonderful years together, that we will see each child leave our nest, and enjoy many years after as best friends. I love you, now and always.

Happy Anniversary!

Whit

Updates on Braves Game

2009-08-26T23:50:00.005-04:00

Hey, friends! It's Katie (Whit's sister). I just wanted to mention a few of things about the upcoming Braves game on September 6th:

We have almost 100 people in the Friends of Forester section - woo hoo!
Our seats are in the upper level in Section 402, Rows 17-25. This is straight back from home plate, so we should have a great view. I THINK these seats are covered (but don't hold me to that), so we might have some good shade.
As mentioned before, Forester and immediate family will be visiting our section, but they will have some special seating that Glenn Hubbard has provided that's a little closer to the field.
If you have paid me for your tickets and t-shirts, thank you!! I will be mailing your tickets tomorrow. If not, I'm holding them ransom until you do :) You can either pay my via PayPal (swaneyrox@gmail.com) or mail a check to Katie Swaney at 4020 Andover Circle McDonough, GA 30252. Each ticket is $10 and each t-shirt is $7. One payment for everything is fine. No need for separate checks or transactions.
The plan is to wear our t-shirts at the game, so I'll be distributing them as you get to your seats. Please don't feel like you HAVE to wear your t-shirt, though. No pressure.
A God thing....A Christian singer, Matthew West, will be performing after the game. I've downloaded his top two songs and I really like them. Check him out.
Email me at fofbraves@yahoo.com if you have ANY questions. I'm happy to help.
THIS IS GOING TO BE SO MUCH FUN!!! We're so excited. I think Forester is going to have a blast and all of you are going to be to blame for that. Hee hee. Thank you, again, for the support! See you Sept 6th.

Just Another Long Monday

2009-08-17T13:36:00.010-04:00

We made it through hospital week and had a very low key weekend. I'm here at the hospital clinic now with Forester and Slade. Forester's red blood cell count is already low so he's getting a transfusion now. He will also be getting another dose of vincristine today. This may be his last dose of vincristine for a while because his legs are getting so bad. I'm posting two videos below (if you received this via email, you usually have to go to the actual blog site to view the videos). One is Forester walking through the hospital today - just trying to show you how much his legs/gait have changed. I was trying to be subtle about it so I'm walking too - sorry if it's shaky. The other video was taken moments ago - I was trying to whisper since everyone is asleep in here so I'm sorry if you can't hear my commentary very well. I'll write more soon.

*don't forget to scroll down and pause the playlist songs

oh, and a HAPPY 41st Anniversary MOM and DAD (muzzy & pop)!! I LOVE YOU!

~Whit

BRAVES GAME INFO

2009-08-10T23:28:00.004-04:00

Hi, Friends of Forester!

I’m Katie, Whit’s little sister, and I’m attempting to organize all the details for the September 6th Braves game. We’re so excited that so many of you want to enjoy this day with our family and I want to make sure everyone knows the plan and has all questions answered. If you still have ANY questions after you read through this information, please contact me at FOFBraves@yahoo.com or 678-485-9950. Whit and Pete have enough on their plates this week with Forester's next round of chemo, so I'd like to help with any issues regarding this game.

Here are some of the details everyone should know:

This game is LABOR DAY weekend (Sun, 1:35pm). We brought that up last night to some friends and they hadn't realized they were going to be out of town. Just wanted to mention that, in case anyone discovers a conflict.

As mentioned before, this day isn't any sort of official event sponsored by the Braves. Forester will just be meeting the team, getting to see the dugout, and they will give him his own jersey and glove that's been signed by the players. This will all happen before the game and there won't be any special Forester happenings after. It's just a fun day for us all to get together in one place and let Forester know we love him.

Though not confirmed, Forester (and probably the immediate family) may be sitting in box seats or some type of reserved seating, courtesy of Glenn Hubbard . Forester will not be sitting with the rest of us in the "Friends of Forester" section, but we’ll get him up there at some point so he can say hi to everyone and you can all get a chance to meet him.

The tickets I will be ordering are located in the Upper Box, (most likely in the 413 section), near the top of the stadium. To improve the seating as much as possible, we've decided to go with $10 tickets. If you'd prefer seats closer to the field, please let me know so I can remove your name from the ticket list. I'll be ordering the tickets the morning of Wed, 8/12, so let me know of your decision by then. Below is a seating chart to give you a better idea of the exact location.

Children under the age of 3 are FREE, if they are sitting on your lap.

The T-shirt design is shown below and is available in adult sizes of XXXL, XXL, XL, L, M, S and youth sizes of L, M and S. If you have not let me know your shirt sizes, please email those to me now.

Review the list below (double click to enlarge) and make sure I have the right number of tickets, the right number of t-shirts and the correct sizes listed. I will need to order the shirts by Friday, 8/14 and they will be $7 each. The $7 is strictly for the cost of the shirt and does not include any sort of donation to the Forester Medical Fund. If you would like to make a donation, just email me and let me know that and we can work that out separately. We just don't want to mix donations in with the cost of the shirts and the tickets b/c it will get too confusing.

I will be paying for the tickets and t-shirts, so all payments can be sent to me. You can either mail me a check (Katie Swaney, 4020 Andover Circle, McDonough, GA 30252) or send payment through PayPal to swaneyrox@gmail.com. Please indicate very clearly, either on the check or through your online transaction who you are paying for, # of tickets and # of t-shirts so I can make sure everything matches up with my master list. Please make sure I have a return address also so I can mail you the tickets.I will distribute t-shirts at the game. Ideally, I would like to receive all payments by Sun, 8/23.

I hope I've answered most of your questions. If not, just shoot me an email at FOFBraves@yahoo.com. As always, thank you for continuing to pray for Forester and being such supportive friends of the family!!

See you September 6th! We'll put our shirts on when we get there and maybe we can figure out a way to get on TV - woo hoo!

Katie Swaney

Round 3 starts off with a breakdown

2009-08-10T22:09:00.009-04:00

It's been a long day and I am finally home which feels so wrong. It just can't be right to sleep in your own bed when your son is in a hospital getting chemo. But, I've tortured myself with these thoughts before so I won't continue to do it again.

I have great news to report! Forester had his hearing test today and his hearing is still perfect. Woo-Hoo! Thank you, Jesus just doesn't cover it! 2 down and 4 more to go. Tonight he gets Cisplatin for 6 hours which is the drug that can cause hearing loss. Please continue to pray protection over his ears and every healthy cell in his body. He'll be getting chemo for the next 4 days.

Today was particularly hard. After a long day on the Hem/Onc floor, we finally got a room on 7B. We moved into the hospital "suite" (it's a huge room!) and Forester got settled. Once in his bed and all snuggled down he became very sad. I asked him what was wrong and he began to cry. It was heartbreaking. As I talked with him he said he's just tired of having to do this stuff. Tired of the IV pole, of random people taking his vitals constantly, sleeping away from home, the shots that will start up again soon... Can you blame him? He has been so brave and sweet through all of this. Polite and rarely complaining. He definitely deserves a breakdown. He cried himself to sleep. I felt so inadequate in that moment. Somehow I felt like I was failing as a mom. I felt like I should have had the perfect mom thing to say to make him feel better but there wasn't anything. All I could say was it's ok to be sad. I'm sad too. As I lay next to him in the bed I was wishing I could switch places with him - that I could take it all away. I know that if I feel this way, my God feels that even more. His heart is breaking too. And yet, He is allowing Forester to go through this. His purpose in this must be great! These days are refining us. Ugh. Refining is painful but the result is beautiful.

This weekend April said "I can't believe it's time for Forester to go back in the hospital again. It's going by so fast." It reminded me of being pregnant. It goes by fast for everyone around you but each day seems to creep by when you're the one waddling around with back pain and swollen feet. I'm so glad we're in round 3 but we still have a month before we're half way done with this 6 month cycle. The days seem long. The end seems far away. But, we'll get there.

Thank you, as always, for all your love and prayers for us. Your encouraging words keep us going. God is using you to bless us. And we are so blessed.

All my love,

Whitneywaiting for our room assignment

Slade, happy as usual!

the big roomview of Charleston from the hospital room - it helps!sad but asleep - my sweet baby.

Chemo Round 3 Begins...

2009-08-10T01:08:00.006-04:00

Chemo round 3 starts today (ha! it's 1am), Monday. Please pray for Forester and those nasty side effects. He has a hearing test today too so keep praying for those eardrums! Also, the vincristine is taking it's toll on his poor little legs. They just don't work right anymore. He can't walk in a straight line and has a hard time climbing the steps...he tends to walk wide-legged and with a foot-slap motion. It's no fun to watch - breaks my heart. The solution is to back off of the vincristine. But we're dealing with cancer here. It makes it so difficult. Do we want them to back off the vincristine or hope we can take every dose to give us the best chance that the cancer doesn't come back? I don't know... So, just pray as God leads you. I'll be posting updates from the hospital the next few days and hopefully with pictures too. Thanks for walking through this with us.

Our love,

Whitney

Check out CROWFIELD

2009-08-03T21:18:00.007-04:00

Pete and I were very fortunate to be able to go out on a DATE this past weekend. We headed to the Windjammer to see CROWFIELD. It was such a great night. Great music and we got to catch up with a wonderful old friend. It felt very normal and just plain nice. I have to say.. & I know this is a shameless plug, but our dear friend, Micah (far right in the pic) plays in Crowfield and it truly was an amazing show. Micah is like a little brother to us and I'm so proud of him but I truly believe you will be seeing more of Crowfield VERY soon. Please go to iTunes and download the album. You won't regret it. Promise. You'll be saying "I knew them when..."

http://www.myspace.com/crowfieldmusic

http://www.apple.com/search/ipoditunes/?q=crowfield

2009-08-03T18:04:00.001-04:00

Longing for Spring

2009-08-02T11:23:00.016-04:00

Amazing how we have found a new normal around here. 6 months ago, the world we now live in, a child fighting cancer, didn't exsist. 6 months ago I would have told you that would be something I couldn't survive much less get a handle on. And yet, God gives us what we need when we need it. Not a moment before. It is impossible to store up courage, or peace, or even true grief. It happens when it happens and God provides in the moment. Somedays really feel normal around here. We've gotten used to the schedule, the hospital stuff, the pills, the shots. And somedays it just hits me and I absolutely hate our new normal. Yesterday was one of those days. It was time to get Slade's portraits done and I wanted some with the boys too. Looking at the proofs of the pictures, it just didn't look like my Forester. He's swollen from the steroids and he's not as athletic looking like he's always been. It just made me miss him. Even though he's right in front of me, (thank you Lord!) I began to miss my "old" guy. I was kindly reminded today by my sweet friend to remember that this time in our lives is just a season. She's right. Forester has already beaten cancer as far as I'm concerned & we're just dealing with the crappy side effects of chemo. But, one day this will be in our past. These days will be a memory. He may miss 2nd grade but he'll be a "normal" kid in 3rd grade. This too shall pass. I'm doing my best to embrace the current season that we're in. But somedays I just long for the new season to come like you would long for spring after a long, cold winter. It will come. I just miss my guy.

Above is a slideshow of Forester. I tried to put it in the sidebar but after hours of trying I just couldn't make it work. It's also supposed to be in chronological order but it's randomizing. Oh well. Grrr.. I'll keep trying.

I love him so much. My first born, my baby.

Do You Hear What I Hear?

2009-07-31T10:45:00.014-04:00

Two posts in two days? Whoa!! Just I thought I would share a few little happy things.

This morning Forester & I were playing with Slade on my bed and my timex watch alarm, which was on the stairs in the other room, started going off. After a couple seconds Forester asked"what is that noise?". HE HEARD IT! It's a high pitched noise & rather quiet from the other room and he heard it! As you well know I am always praying protection over his ears from permanent hearing loss. I know you are too. We still have four more rounds to go but I really want to give God the glory for His protection over his ears. At the end of these 6 months I want Forester to have perfect hearing. I want to hear people say, "you're so lucky" so I can say "no, we prayed and prayed and God answered"! Let's keep praying! I know there are some of you who read this blog who are not Christians and you think I'm acting a little freaky. You're right, I'm freaky! I have seen and witnessed what God can do. He has proved Himself to be faithful and trustworthy over and over again. Will everything turn out just like I want it? Maybe, and most likely not. Will God take care of us and continue to give us joy and peace in every circumstance regardless of any outcome? YES. Does He desire for us to be healthy and whole? I believe He does. I'm going to keep praying and keep giving Him the glory for every good report that comes my way.

Now for a really human moment....I find myself thinking if I post what I just wrote above will that mean that Forester will lose some hearing? Just so I have to eat my words? Such a dumb way to think but you know how you might say, "that will never happen" and then it happens so you don't want to say "that will never happen". Basically it comes down to some silly superstition, right? I also want this so badly and I want others to see what God can do - if it doesn't happen does that cause someone else to doubt God? Those are my thoughts. But this is the truth. I am not responsible for TRYING to make God look good. He doesn't need my help by any means. So that's why I'm ignoring those silly thoughts and posting this! (Now my non-Christian friends really think I'm crazy!)

Okay, for more happiness here are a few cute videos of Slade waving Bye Bye and giggling at Micah being silly. She'll be 8 months old tomorrow!

*Remember to scroll down and pause the playlist so you can listen to the video.

HAVE A WONDERFUL WEEKEND MY FRIENDS! ~Whit

Sorry it's been so long...

2009-07-29T12:58:00.024-04:00

My apologies to all of you who have been wondering what the heck has been going on with us the last week or so. I decided that family is family and regardless of Forester's counts we would stay the week out at Seabrook Island with Mom & Dad, Paris & the kids. I took a mini vacation from life at home & the computer. It was a great week! We had to take a few 6 hour long trips to the hospital but Sam went with us which made it more fun for Forester. We had a wonderful time just being together.
Foresters counts bottomed out last Friday & he had to get a blood transfusion which was expected. His white blood cell count bounced back up from 40 to 24,000 on Monday. Thank you Neupogen shots! So we made it through round 2 without an additional hospital stay or fever. Forester seems to be doing pretty well except for the neuropathy in his hands and legs as a side effect from the Vincristine. He struggles to walk normally and has some pain. He is now on Neurontin 3 times a day to help with these side effects. So far, we haven't seen much change & it really ups his daily pill count! It also makes him very sleepy so he's taking more naps each day. We hope the benefits will kick in soon. Amazingly, his weight is up to 74 pounds so we were able to stop the Megace liquid (so nasty!) which is an appetite stimulant. Forester was very happy about that! Round 3 begins on August 10th.
Many of you have been asking about Pete. And once again I'm sorry I haven't updated you sooner. There really hasn't been much to tell until this week. We have no concrete conclusions but all tests have come back with good results. Including the sleep study. No sleep apnea. What has been discovered and confirmed 3 times now is that Pete does have an arrhythmia in his heart called ventricular bigeminy. It's a very consistent arrhythmia and doesn't seem to be cause for concern but he's going to follow up with a cardiologist in August. The last "non-breathing" episode happened almost a week ago & Pete seems to be feeling better with each passing day. It seems whatever was happening was related to some kind of virus that was in his chest & possibly in his heart. Don't know if we'll ever have an official diagnosis but the closest one we have is Myocarditis.
I know there is more to post but this is all I have the energy for today. I've been feeling pretty worn out emotionally...I'm not sleeping much these days as I tend to be so worried about my guys during the night. My brain is suffering the consequences!

*Still trying to work out details on the Braves game on Sept. 6th. More on that soon! Thanks as always for your love and prayers. ~ Whitney

*pictures from last week at Seabrook & the hospital.

Bald Stud

Micah - loving every moment! He's like this all the time. He loves life!

Maddie & Forester ....Forester could only get his feet wet which was sad & then I found out later we should avoid the ocean altogether for a while. Boo.

Sam & Forester at the hospital. Waiting for blood to arrive so the transfusion can start.

With a transfusion comes Benedryl so Forester sleeps through most of it.

A beautiful night at Seabrook Island's Pelican's Nest. I declared this day my birthday since it was so much better than my actual birthday.

Forester & Madison. Forester has a blue mouth from a blow pop.

Slade being adorable as always.

Having fun while waiting for the food to arrive.

Pete & Forester - always close together.

Me & Slade.

Pop & Slade

Pop showing the boys something cool on the computer.

Cousins! Baby Nicholas & Slade (she looks huge! sniff sniff)

Round 2 is done.

2009-07-17T13:47:00.016-04:00

Forester is home and doing well. Happy to be in his own bed...or make shift bed in the corner of our room which has been his bed since Feb. He slept great and is in a great mood today!

The results of Pete's CT scan of his chest and neck were clear. We are thankful for that! Still not exactly sure what's going on with him but a clear CT rules out a bunch of serious stuff. Last night Pete slept well for the 1st time in about 2 weeks so praise God for that!

We return to the hospital for blood labs on Monday afternoon. My sis in law, Paris and her 3 kiddos (Sam, Madison, & 8 week old Nicholas) will be arriving from Nashville on Monday. Sam is Forester's very best friend in the whole world. They only see each other a couple of times a year. Forester currently doesn't know that they're coming because there is a chance that if his counts are already plummeting by Monday then we will have to quarantine him. Pray that Forester's counts take a slow decline so that I we'll be able to surprise him with the news that his favorite cousin is in town and he can go PLAY. I'm picturing the joy on his face...I pray I can give him this good news!

I'll keep you posted on the Pete mystery. Thanks for your prayers & keep praying against those chemo side effects!

Some birthday happiness...

my beautiful flowers... my flower made by Forester...and a great gift from Kathie, hanging pictures!

Another update!

2009-07-16T14:21:00.004-04:00

Pete is on his way for a CT scan now. They're going to work him in. And, Forester gets to come home tonight! Sometime after dinner time..yay! I'm praying I'm not taking one out of the hospital and putting another one in but whatever it takes to get everyone well. Pray for a clear diagnosis for Pete, discernment for his doctor and pray that it's nothing serious! Thanks! I'll keep you posted...

FYI: Slade is on the mend but she's still a little stuffy and I'm pretty sure her top 2 teeth are about to break through. All I can say is thank God for miracle Motrin! :o)

Video & Brief Update

2009-07-16T11:47:00.004-04:00

I know I should update with more info but to be honest I just can't re-hash it all right now.

Brief summary: Forester has been doing really well in the hospital but won't be discharged until tomorrow which we're all sad about. We miss him & want him home. Pete continues to get worse and not better. It's freaking me out because it's bizarre. Forester's headaches were bizarre. I do not like bizarre...it scares me. Right now the guess is it's related to a problem with his heart. Pete has a CT scan of his chest & neck tomorrow but he feels bad enough that he was trying to see if he could get it done right away. Not possible. Pete is the glue that holds us all together. My glue is falling apart, therefore I feel....anxious and afraid and a bit like I'm free falling. I feel like my limits are being tested as far as just how much one person can handle. And somehow I know God is trying to teach me to trust him above all else. I have no choice but to trust Him and I do. But, I'm still scared. Prayers are needed. Thank you. ~Whitney

Happy birthday dear Whitney! Happy birthday to you!

2009-07-15T00:10:00.003-04:00

Growing up, I often wished I had a sister. I now know the Lord did not give me a sister because He wanted to give me YOU! You are my sister, and I could not love a biological sister any more than I love you. You are my very best friend and have stood by me and with me through highs and lows, through good decisions and baaaad decisions, through times of laughter and joy and through times of pain and sadness... You know me better than anyone (probably even Marty) and you love me just the same. My life is richer and more beautiful because of you.

I know you - you with your amazing gifts, your oh so human imperfections, and your brown, burgundy, blond, black, light brown, darker brown, red, straight and curly hair (hee hee!), and I am so very proud to know you and love you and call you my best friend. You are a treasure, an unbelievable girt, a perfect creation in Christ Jesus. You love Jesus with every ounce of your being and His love and His life shine through you. You touch lives in immeasurable ways, you love with the love of Christ, and you sow joy wherever you go. You are gorgeous inside and out. You are strong because of Him who gives you strength. You, as you live out your life and your authentic faith in front of all of us, are an awesome testimony to the perfect power and peace available to all of us in Jesus.

You are precious to me. You are a blessing to me. My heart aches for you, as you and your family have to walk this road with Forester, and I wish I could take it all away. Know this though: You are my family. Your family is my family. Just as nothing will separate you from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus, nothing will ever separate you from me.

My prayer for you today is that you have a day of renewed rest, perfect peace and inexplicable joy, that the stress you're feeling vanishes and that you feel the very real presence of Abba Father in new ways. I pray that you have a glimpse of the celebration occuring today because of you and that you hear the Lord singing over you. I know He is.

I look forward to decades more of bestest friendship with you! Happy Birthday! I love you and so wish I could celebrate with you today!

Illnesses, Braves Games & Chemo, Oh MY!

2009-07-11T12:17:00.007-04:00

Sorry it's been a week or so since my last update. I was hoping to have pictures from the run to post but I don't have any yet! Can you believe I didn't take any myself? It was kinda crazy...and early. But, it was a fantastic event raising $4,000! Thank you so much to all of you who participated. I know it was an early morning effort to get out there but I pray that you were blessed and had fun. You have certainly blessed us!! For those of you (like me!) who weren't able to get a T-shirt due to such a GREAT turn out, please let me know as we are going to place another order for those very soon. Just comment here or shoot me an email @ whitbradburn@gmail.com Or if you have pictures you could share with me, ditto!

In other good news, I met with one of Forester's doctors this week as a follow up to his Developmental Neuropsychological Evaluation. Basically he was given a battery of IQ tests and other neurological function tests to determine the effects of chemotherapy and radiation on his brain. All of his test scores showed Forester functioning in the average range in all categories. Most of these he was actually in the high-average range and in only 2 areas was he in the low average range. These 2 areas have to do with processing speed, and auditory working memory. These 2 areas are very commonly effected by chemo and radiation. We are thankful he is still in the average range and we also have some tools to use to help him be successful (like having more time to take tests & written directions). Hopefully we can exercise these brain areas too. All in all it was WONDERFUL to receive good news!! Initially after the brain surgery I wondered if he would ever be able to walk & talk much less complete school work... So, HAPPY!! And, this Dr. said she doesn't need to re-evaluate him for another 2 years! Isn't that amazing? So to God be the glory and give Him praise for this awesome report!!!

In more good news....ATTENTION ATLANTANS & BRAVES FANS!!! Forester has been invited by 1st base coach, Glenn Hubbard to attend a Braves game on Sunday September 6th! He'll get to meet the players, get a jersey and a glove and all other kinds of fun stuff! Isn't that awesome? We would love it if you, who have been praying for Forester, would join us for this fun day so that we could meet you and you could meet Forester. Of course there is always the possibility that this may not happen because of Forester's treatments but we are going to hope and pray that Forester's treatment stays on schedule so this works out! So get your tickets now and join us for Forester Day at the Braves Game!! SEPT 6th! We'll have to find a way to be able to recognize "Friends of Forester" at the game...I know you guys are creative so let me know if you have any ideas. Wearing your blue bracelet would help...maybe we could all wear a certain color?? Like I said...need help - comment or email me! :o)

We've had a bit of extra drama around here lately. I was just wishing we had more drama cause things were starting to get boring! ;-0 Pete has had a chest infection for the last couple weeks and has taken several meds for it. In the last week he had 4 what seemed like asthma attack episodes where he instantly could not get in any air for several minutes. It has been frightening. Horrible. I was scared to death and wanted to put him in the hospital last night! Anyway, he survived last night and is on his way to Atlanta for his 20th year high school reunion. Will you please pray for him. Pray that whatever is causing this would heal and that he wouldn't have any more of these scary episodes. You know it's bad when I went to the computer to review rescue breathing/CPR. YIKES! For Pete's sake, pray! (hee hee) Thank you.

Also, a praise and a request. Slade is sick too. She's has her very first cold and fever. So, this is where the praise comes in. She's 7 months old and this is her very 1st illness!! God has been protecting us and sweet Forester. Just pray that God will comfort her and that she will recover quickly. Apparently Micah has a hacking cough and Muzzy (my mom) is getting this cold too. Pray for quick healing and please pray protection over Forester as any illness could delay his next treatment. THANK YOU!

Crazy yucky cancer killing chemo ROUND 2 begins on Monday! We go in at 10:45 and Forester should be in the hospital until Thursday morning. Please get out that list of side effects (or look at the older post with the list) and pray protection over Forester against all of them. My general prayer has been: "Lord, please bless every cell in Forester's body. Allow the chemo to destroy unhealthy cells and place your complete protection around his healthy cells." If you don't know what else to pray, please join me in praying that prayer.

We love you all and as I continue to say, there are no words to express our gratitude,

In the palm of His hand,

Whitney

Thank You, Jesus! Can I get an AMEN?

2009-07-02T20:06:00.007-04:00

Forester's blood work looked great this morning. In fact, his GCSF shots really gave him a boost the last couple of days and his white count/ANC was 28,ooo!! So, he is free to play like a normal kid this weekend and attend the run. Yay! Praise God for answered prayers! Remember, on Monday his ANC was 500!

Another praise report!! Forester had his first hearing test (he'll have one during each chemo cycle) and his hearing is still PERFECT! Woo-hoo! One down and 5 to go. We're PRAYING for that same result each time. Thank you, Jesus!
Forester is such a trooper and was so excited that his counts were good today. He already went swimming tonight with Pete and Micah.

Looks like we'll be right on track for his next chemo cycle which is also a praise. The sooner we move forward the sooner we're done. Cycle 2 will begin on July13th.

That's all for now. I must get to sleep soon as it's an early start tomorrow morning. Hope to see you there!!

Love you guys and thank you sooo much for your prayers. ~Whitney

Prayer Request & Reminder

2009-07-01T10:17:00.008-04:00

Prayer request: Forester will be getting blood work done tomorrow morning. Please pray that his counts will be high enough so that he will be able to participate in the run on Friday. Pete is planning on pulling Forester and Micah in "the chariot" via bike, so that he can see and wave to everyone during the race. What a great motivation to keep running, right?

I'm so excited about those of you who are coming to the race! It's going to be a great time. I just wanted to reiterate that it is on Friday. The logo above is a prototype for the t-shirt and it says 07.04.09 and this may have confused you. This race is not on the 4th but on the 3rd. The logo will be correct on the t-shirts of course! Anyway, it's not too late to sign up. Just call 768-7964 to register so you can get onto the island and pay the $15 when you arrive. It's going to be a great day of family fun. Please join us!