MRI Clear

Thank your for your continued prayer as we made it through Kyler’s most recent MRI. This was the best he has ever done as far as not freaking out beforehand and coming out of anesthesia well. Thankfully, Kyler did not have to fast all day before the MRI. All he had to miss was breakfast. He was hoping to be able to see Stan from the ROC where he had his radiation. He had become very attached to Stan during those six weeks. We were planning to stop by after the MRI to see him since it is very close, but Stan saw Kyler’s name on a board and came over and was there when Kyler woke up. He carried Kyler out to the car with us and Kyler was able to chat with him a bit. That was very cool.

It took a few days, but we finally got the call that everything looks great on the MRI.

Right now, Kyler is in great spirits and seems to have lots of energy. His blood counts are up and he should be ready when it’s time for chemo again.

The next round of chemo is a Tuesday November 7th. Your continued prayers are much appreciated and needed. Unfortunately, it is fairly common with Kyler’s type of cancer for the appearance of new tumors during chemotherapy. It’s a catch-22 it seems. Chemotherapy is used to try and kill off any possibly remaining cancer cells but at the same time it destroys the body’s only natural defense system against the cancer.

We still have a long way to go. Thank you for your faithfulness and support.

Many of you have asked about how Kendrick is doing. He seems to be doing well as far as it relates to Kyler’s situation. He doesn’t seem to worry about it much at all. He likes to show off Kyler’s scar to other people since Kyler can’t see it and seems to forget it’s there. Sometimes it’s hard to tell how and where it is bothering him. Kendrick could use prayer for self-motivation in school and the ability to slow down and do his work carefully instead of flying through it and making mistakes he wouldn’t otherwise. We’re going to have him tested for the GATE program since he gets easily bored in class and is frustrated that the pace is set for the students who are the furthest behind. He told us that he did not do his best on the GATE test last year because he thought he would have to go to different school. His teacher thinks he may be a bit depressed and she is going to try and help find some more challenging work for him during class time. She suggested we tour some college campuses and find some summer classes nearby for gifted kids.

Enjoy the pictures. Kyler’s hair is coming in a bit and it seems to be very dark. I tease him every now and again about needing a haircut. He gives me that Kyler grin and rolls his eyes and says, “But Dad, I don’t have any hair.” In the morning Sandie or I will call to the boys sometimes, “Fix your hair if you got it!” I’m glad he is able to keep a good sense of humor about it. The hair is taking longer to grow back in at the back of his head where he received the focused boost of radiation. We’re told it might never grow back there.





Sandie’s Dad, Walt, continues to improve after his massive stroke. We were in Redding this last weekend for a brief visit with family. Walt owned a bookstore for 25 years and it has been devastating for him to learn that he has forgotten how to read. It is a combination of a sight problem (the right part of each eye is blinded) and cognitive difficulties. He has to start with the basics again of letter recognition and sounds. It is very depressing for him. Thanks for your prayers for him as well during physical therapy and re-learning how to read.

Tomorrow is Halloween and this is the first year Kendrick did not want to dress up. And since we have pretty much cut out all refined sugar in our house, we decided to stay home and hand it out to other people. Sandie and Kyler are still going to go out and trick-or-treat, but Kyler said he was going to pick out his 10 favorite pieces and give the rest away. He looks cute (I mean tough) in his red Ninja costume.

Blessings,

Darrell

Three Weeks Out

Well, Kyler had to stay at the hospital for the day Tuesday to get platelets. It is supposed to be a much quicker process than getting red blood, but ended up taking just as much time.

His ANC count is 200, well below the neutropenic threshold of 500. Last round of chemo at this time his immune system was gone. His ANC was 0 and he was hospitalized for four days until his white blood cell count started to trend upward. We are thankful he didn’t have to be hospitalized at this point and that he still has some white blood cells. Going to school is not an option until next Wednesday at the earliest and only that if his ANC is 500 or above. He has to stay away from crowds or anyone who appears to be ill because his body isn’t prepared to fight anything off. We head straight to the ER if his temperature gets to 101° F. Other than that he seems to fine. Still the same good-natured boy we love.




Twice during the night Kyler woke us up crying that his ear hurt. Sandie couldn’t see anything visibly wrong and prayed for him and he calmed down and went back to bed. In the morning when he woke up he was very agitated complaining that his ear and head hurt. Sandie started getting very nervous and she and Kendrick prayed for Kyler. Three minutes later he was fine, distracted by watching his brother work on the computer. When Sandie asked him how he was feeling, he said, “Fine. Jesus healed me.” We’re not sure what was happening with Kyler and we will be keeping an eye on it and calling in if it repeats.

Today Kyler spent the day hanging out at the house and watched the movie Over the Hedge, played with Nozomi (Sandie’s cat), beat us at Uno, and kept asking what he could do that was fun. He hates missing school. He helped Sandie in the kitchen, which he loves to do. They made some very interesting cornbread. When you try adding protein powder and coconut oil to the recipe something just doesn’t turn out right. Sandie is always trying to sneak in protein or fat to help Kyler gain weight and many times they just aren’t quite right (those of you who had the unique pleasure of trying Sandie’s spinach brownies will know what I mean. In all fairness, our boys loved them.) Unfortunately, Sandie and I are the only ones who are gaining weight. Actually, Kyler gained .6 pounds from last week. He now weighs in at a whopping 33.6 pounds. That’s less than several of the dogs in our neighborhood.

Please pray that he body is able to generate white blood cells and get his ANC count up as well for a clean MRI next week. Sandie and I are both PMS-ing right now (Pre-MRI Syndrome) and could use your prayers for God’s peace to be upon us. We’re not sleeping real well right now.

Thanks for your faithful prayers.

Darrell

Marching along

It’s been three weeks since my last post. I know that’s a long time and I apologize for those who have been trying to keep up with how to pray for Kyler.

Kyler had made it through his second round of chemo. It was another 24-hour stay at the hospital. There’s nothing extraordinary to report from that visit. They wanted to give Kyler the shots to try and help his body make white blood cells but again we wanted to try and find a non-drug way to help his body do this itself. We have since added several things to his daily regimen to try and do just that. You should see the ‘cocktail’ he has to drink four times a day. It looks like something from an industrial waste treatment facility – green, thick, bubbly, and foul smelling. And yet he chugs it down like a pro. I wonder how many adults would be able to do that.

The day after his second chemo treatment we went out near Auburn to the Biblical Gardens. It was a beautiful day and we enjoyed walking around and viewing the scenery. It is a walking tour depicting the passion of Christ with verses scattered throughout the pathways.





One week out from the second chemo treatment his ANC count was 1400. The second week out his ANC was 1000 and he needed to stay and get some red blood cells.

Tomorrow is his third week appointment. It was at this time during his first round of chemo that he had bottomed out and was hospitalized.

Please pray that his counts will be high enough to avoid hospitalization and becoming neutropenic, which would put him at risk for infections.

The boys are loving school and doing well. Kyler is enjoying learning to read and write sentences. Kendrick’s teacher is working at helping him stay motivated and challenged.

We’ve been so grateful to the C&MA over these months as they have continued to support us even after we’ve had to step away from church planting. I am now at a point where I need to be looking for what God has next for us. I’m starting to look for something part-time to supplement my income as district support is waning off. I’m continuing at Fed Ex in the mornings but I’ll need to be looking for what God might have next for me in the way of ministry opportunities. It encourages us so much to hear that people are consistently praying for us (even small children). We know God loves to listen.

Thank you for your continued prayers for us.

Darrell Haskins