Mighty Max's Cancer Journey: Last chemo treatment and port removal! YAY!!!

Monday, September 23, Max went in for his final chemo treatment. He had had scans the Friday before and everything looked great, so we were all set to be done with this nightmare! He did a great job getting both chemo meds, and even sat on Dr. Barnettes lap to get a few pics. He was such a tease to the doctor and nurses that day. I think he could tell it was all coming to an end. They finished off his last chemo treatment by singing him a song, bringing him out a poster and a gift basket, and having him ring the bell 3 times on his way out. Of course I bawled like a baby and felt so much relief that my baby wouldn't have to be poisoned anymore. Once he finished chemo, they took us straight to same day surgery and removed his port. It took about an hour for them to take it out and for him to recover. As we sat in the parent waiting area, I thought back on the last time we had been in the room and how much I had cried and how stressed out I was. This time, Nate and I were still a little worried, as parents always are when there has to be a surgery. But we both had such big smiles on our faces knowing that we had made it through the storm and this was finally coming to a close. Max cried a lot when he first woke up from surgery, but calmed down once I got in the room with him. He threw up on the way home, but that was the worst for us this week. I thought he would have a rough week after his surgery and getting chemo all in the same day, but as usual, he amazed me and has been playing and running around all week. He's such a hero! He has fought this disease with all his might and has come out of this so strong. I'm just so proud of him! He also has just a little bit of fuzz coming back on his head and a few eyebrow hairs coming back in! I can't wait for his beautiful hair to come back.

We had a great raffle fundraiser on Max's 3rd birthday a few weeks ago. We had an awesome turn out, even with the crazy storm that blew through Utah County that day. We had an awesome rockin' band called "Geezer", an adorable clown named "Lollipop", as well as popcorn, lemonade, and some amazing gifts to raffle off. We had so many donors and sponsors for this event. I was truly humbled by those that were so willing to give. We were supposed to have a bounce house, which my boys were looking forward to the most, but it was too stormy for them to set it up. But they still had a great time with the balloon animals our clown made and dancing to the music. Thank you again to everyone that came out that night and supported us. And to those who also supported us online. I will post some pics from the event under here. The amazing Megan Hess did the photography for our event and the pics were priceless. Thanks again Megan!

We have a lot to look forward to the next couple of months. Nate started a new job and will hopefully be starting school before the end of the year. We are also going on a two trips to Florida in October. The first is called The Lighthouse Family Retreat which is for families who have a child who has/had cancer. They are paying for us to fly to Panama City Beach, FL to stay in condos with other families and talk about all of our different experiences. They pay for our stay and all our food. What a great organization to help families make friends with other cancer families, share stories, and have a good time on the beach as a family, not having to worry about anything for a week!

Our second trip will be our Make-a-Wish trip to Disney World. We couldn't be more excited for this one! We get to stay at a resort just for wish families called Give Kids The World, and we get to visit all the Disney Parks as well as Universal Studios Orlando and SeaWorld. I think I'm most excited for Harry Potter World! I know, I'm a total nerd! I think it will be so much fun to be at Disney World during Halloween time. I can't wait to see how it's all decorated.

I'm also going to be going to seminars over the next few months to learn to be a Jin Shin Jyutsu Practitioner. It's a Japanese art of healing. It's kind of like acupressure, not acupuncture. I'm very interested in this for many different reasons, but especially for Max as it's been used to help cure cancer, as well as help cancer patients not have as bad of side effects from their chemo treatments. My sister is already a practitioner and has worked on me and my boys and I am amazed by the way the body can heal itself. If anyone wants me to practice on them before I'm certified, just let me know! I go to my first week of seminars the week we get home from our first Florida trip. I will literally only be home in October for 1 week. lol Oh how I'm going to miss my own bed! But it's going to be an exciting month.

Again, I can't express how much we have appreciated everyone for your prayers, support, love, donations, time, and help. I find myself telling people more often how much I love them. Even people I've never said that to before, but I just feel so much love in my heart for all the help we have received from family, friends, and even complete strangers. So, if I tell you out of the blue that I love you, don't be too wierded out! lol

Our lovely clown Lollipop

The beautiful Gwen Hales manned the popcorn and lemonade station for us all night. She's truly amazing!

These were our balloons that were to be our decorations since it is Childhood Cancer Awareness month, but they only lasted a few seconds before they blew up into the power lines. lol Oh well, at least I tried!

Our rockin' band Geezer.

These were just a few of the amazing items we had to raffle off.

Max loved his balloon pirate sword and pirate belt!

Max just adores both his Grandpa's.

Sam showing off his dance moves on the stage.

The SIC Tattooing shop were our biggest sponsors, donors, and even closed their shop early so they could all come out and support us. These are some seriously amazing people!