One Kid is Too Many

“Mama, how did you feel when the dr. told you I had cancer?”  (Jace, 9)

Jace was 2 years old when he was diagnosed with Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia. 

We were still potty training as we sat in the ER after the dr. confirmed what I already knew. 

Cancer. 

How did I feel? Helpless. Hopeful. Both feelings all at the same time. 

My experience was not the experience of anyone else. Jason would tell you today that the news pretty much shattered him and the girls will tell you that cancer affects everyone. Cancer made them a target for bullying and changed their entire lives just as it did for the rest of us.  It changes you. It morphs your perspective into something that not many will have nor will they ever understand. 

I knew he had leukemia.

 I knew he could die. 

But, I was already declaring victory over the cancer and his life before we ever walked into the ER. You see life had already thrown me some pretty tough curve balls, BUT all of my life God has been faithful. In ever single valley God was right down on the ground with me in the midst of all the pain, sorrow and struggle. I knew he was not leaving me or Jace alone in the biggest battle yet. 

So, for all the days of my life, I’ll be an advocate for childhood cancer. 

Families like us will never be the same. We will never look at life the same. 

Jace is 9 now and asking a lot of questions about his treatment, his medicines, his doctors and those that were his friends that didn’t make it. If you watch him closely you will see he is still very sensitive about his port area and just recently said he wasn’t sure he could ever play tackle football because that area is still sensitive. His joints, especially in his hands, still bother him a lot. He deals with the effects of his cancer and his treatment pretty much daily. 

There’s not much left to say that I haven’t blogged about either on Jace’s FB Page, my blog, or his Caring Bridge, but there is still so much work to be done. 

4% of funding is all our kids are getting for childhood cancer. 

Meanwhile, because it's more profitable for drug companies, breast cancer gets $584 million. 

How can that NOT resonate with you? 

We can talk about how sad it is that 46 kids are diagnosed with cancer each day. 

We can cry because we feel and see the pain they and their families go through. 

We can look away  because for some it's just too much to handle. 

OR we can do something. 

What will we do? 

• Give up your Starbucks for the month and give all of the money saved to one of the organizations listed below. 
• Buy a T-shirt to wear to bring awareness. 
• If you run, sign up to run as a St. Jude hero or something similar. 
• Shave your head with St. Baldrick's. 

We have plenty of opportunities to do our part! Jace's treatment phase is over but we will not  stop teaching, leading, & showing others why 4% ISN'T ok. 

Nothing will change if all we do is sit and wish the reality was different. 

No one in power will change anything unless WE make them see why this isn't ok. 

I hope you'll join our family this month and choose to do at least one thing to create change. 

Childhood Cancer Donation List

  We cannot say enough about many of these organizations. Most of them have directly impacted our lives. (I've placed a * beside the ones we've directly benefited from. We share them with you in good conscience that they are doing what they say they will do with your monetary donations. 

Visit Charity Navigator to view efficiencies & financial information for many major charities:  http://www.charitynavigator.org

Local - Texas

Super Sofia’s Lemonade Stand

Saturday Sept 28 7 AM - 7 Pm

Brookshire’s of Celina, 675 Sunset Blvd

https://www.alexslemonade.org/mypage/1899197

Team Connor

http://teamconnor.org

Heroes for Children

http://www.heroesforchildren.org

Silver Dollar At The Ranch *

http://www.silverdollarattheranch.com

Make A Wish *

http://wish.org

http://ntx.wish.org

Hope Kids *

https://www.hopekids.org

Peach's Neet Feet *

https://peachsneetfeet.com

1 Million 4 Anna

www.1million4anna.org

National

Cure Search

http://www.curesearch.org

Triumph Over Kid Cancer

http://triumphoverkidcancer.org

The St. Baldrick’s Foundation

http://www.stbaldricks.org

Alex's Lemonade Stand

http://www.alexslemonade.org

Lighthouse Family Retreat *

https://lighthousefamilyretreat.org

Eliminate It

Cut it out. Detox. Purge.Cleanse. 
People | Things | Behavior

If it's not improving your spirit, your heart or your life, let it GO.

Only you have the power to get rid of the things that are not making you better.

It's not going to be easy.

But you will be better for it!

An Open Letter to Complainers

Hey guess what? 

Life is short. 

Take a second, a moment or how about an ENTIRE day to be grateful. 

Surrender that you only have control over yourself. Control over anything else is an illusion. 

Spend more time investing in your relationships than in anything else because upon your last breath nothing else will matter more. 

Remind yourself of all the things you GET to do today that others wish they could do. 

Gut check: Why is this happening to you? Why not? You aren't immune to struggle and you don't have a monopoly on pain. It's happening because you are still breathing and still have some growing left to do. 

Be ridiculously faithful, give up your right to be right and live a life of joy despite the circumstances. 

It IS possible. 

Operation GIFT CARD Birthday Blog

#40days Day 40: On this 40th day, I'm taking a leap of faith & thanking YOU in advance for helping me continue to leave a legacy of #giving, #goodwill and #gratitude. {keep reading!}

My 40th birthday is in exactly 2 weeks. 

I've been back and forth on what to do to celebrate me but every time I kept thinking of what I could do for others. 

You know if you've followed me for long that #childhoodcancer and #caregivers are dear to my heart. You know in years past we've made contributions in honor of my #adoption, you joined me as I did "a gift to myself" with 36 random acts of kindness #rak and you helped me deliver 50+ caregiver bags on my birthday in 2013 with #operationlove 

#superJace actually helped me with the idea for this year --> 

#OPERATIONgiftcard

We want to deliver AT LEAST 40 gift cards to the kids at Jace's clinic {Children's Hospital}. 

One of Jace's FAVORITE things after chemo was being able to go pick out his own toy at a real store after his long day of infusions. He most often went with his mask on and me sheltering him from any possible germ but his face and smile were always worth it when he walked out proudly with a small toy. 

See, those of us that have walked the path of incredibly ill children don't take even a quick visit to a store for granted because we know how impossible it can be to do with immune deficient kids. 

We know that many kids get to pick out toys while at the clinic and many of them are delivered toys by many other organizations but we wanted to give them the freedom to pick out something they really love. 

So $5 or $10 cards will work! It need not be expensive to make a HUGE impact on their day. 
You can deliver the cards to me or mail them to me at PO BOX 6, Celina, Tx 75009
We will be delivering the cards on Dec 7, so that gives you some time to pick one up and get it to us! 
Thank you in advance for helping us! We couldn't make a difference this big without your help! 


#gratitude #grateful #thankful #thankfulness

Become Thankful in 40 Days

9 years ago I sat in my car realizing that the world around me was more negative than I ever expected. I was going through a difficult time and had a revelation that I did not have to join in the negativity of the crowd. I decided to start a movement that started within me first. I began posting my gratitude on social media. One day turned into two and so on until I was at the end of 40 days. 

If this sounds like a place that you're coming from, keep reading. . . 

A question I continue to ask of my family and my students is this: Are you using the power of social media to help or hinder those around you? 

In those early years of #40days, I didn't blog about my experience and I wish I had. The transformation within me is what helped me get through some of my worst days and years. 

My first blog (40 is all you need) talks about changing the world with an attitude that isn't driven by the issues and struggles in your life. 

My second blog (Grab Gratitude) tells exactly how 40 Days of Thankfulness was birthed and how one single declaration a day can help change your attitude altogether. 

You can visit my past blogs to read about Maria's gratitude story , how 40 Days WILL Change You, and my perspective on gratitude in the middle of our childhood cancer days with #superJace. 

I started this blog based on my belief that gratitude is one of the most powerful keys to living life to the fullest. 

You cannot and will not grow until you take time to stop and breathe out a moment of gratitude. 

40 Days of Thankfulness is simply about cleansing your mind and detoxing yourself from the negative, toxic thoughts, comparison to others,  bitterness, unforgiveness, low self-esteem, focus on lack or dwelling on mistakes. 

I cannot promise you it will be easy. 

It will not. 

Every single year within the 40 days, something I have struggled with has been revealed. Every single year, I've had to stretch myself to overcome a situation or a thought that has had power over me. 

When you commit yourself to take 40 days to declare even the smallest gratitude you will begin teaching yourself to live a new level and will change your heart and your life in the process. 

So, how does #40days work? 

You choose where to document your thankful. You can write it in a journal (as shown below). 

You can post it on Twitter, Facebook, or Instagram (don't forget to include hashtag #40days) If you're a SnapChat user, you can also snap it to your story so that your friends see it. 

The idea is to declare one gratitude per day. Some days you may have what we call a "bonus gratitude" or an extra good day where you want to acknowledge your blessing. 

Eventually your friends will start asking what you're up to, that's when you'll share this page with them and have them join you, too! https://www.facebook.com/40daysofthankfulness/ 

{They do not have to have facebook to see this public page.}

In years past to get the kids involved, we've bought a large poster frame, thrown on some chalkboard spray paint and let them use chalkboard markers to declare their own gratitude. They LOVE makers and seeing the board after 40 days with thankfulness in their own handwriting is fun for all of us and a good conversation started for visitors.  

                     

            
 
           

You could also write your daily thankful on some pretty scrapbook paper strips and add it to a jar to go back through and read later. 

There is no right or wrong way to do this. However, writing it down is imperative to your success. 

You will want to stop.

Like anything that grows you, you will want to resist it. You will come up with every excuse in the book. 

"I had a long day. I was too tired. I didn't have time. This day had nothing good in it. I can't think of anything. I didn't feel well enough. The kids kept me too busy. I was out late."

Look, I know. I KNOW. 

But you have to push through those days and moments. 

Join the Facebook Page we've created for you! Accept and "Go" the current year's 40 Days of Thankfulness event. You will have support there and many gratitude friends to cheer you on. 

The event page will list for you the days we've set aside to start and end, but if you want to start immediately, DO IT! :) 

The ending date is intentionally set so that you will end your 40 days the week of Thanksgiving. 

Now,  prepare your mind for these next 40 days! 

#40days

https://www.facebook.com/40daysofthankfulness/

Do Something. Do Anything. 4% Isn't Enough.

*updated September 2017

For all the days of my life, I'll be an advocate for childhood cancer. 

Jace looks normal now and most people will forget his journey eventually, but his 4 years of treatment have changed everything for us. 

We will never be the same. 

We will never look at life the same. 

There's not much left to say that I haven't already said, but there's so much left to do. 

4% of funding is all our kids are getting for childhood cancer. 

Meanwhile, because it's more profitable for drug companies, breast cancer gets $584 million. 

How can that NOT resonate with you? 

We can talk about how sad it is that 36 kids are diagnosed with cancer each day. 

We can cry because we feel and see the pain they and their families go through. 

We can look away  because for some it's just too much to handle. 

OR we can do something. 

Anything. 

• Give up your Starbucks for the month and give all of the money saved to one of the organizations listed below. 

• Buy a T-shirt to wear to bring awareness. 

• If you run, sign up to run as a St. Jude hero or something similar. 

• Shave your head with St. Baldrick's. 

I'm always churning ideas in my head to make an impact. 

We will offer you at least TWO ways, locally, for you to make a difference and GO GOLD in September for Super Jace and kids like him. 

Just because Jace's treatment phase is over doesn't mean we will stop teaching, leading, and showing others why 4% ISN'T ok. 

Nothing will change if all we do is sit and wish the reality was different. 

No one in power will change anything unless WE make them see why this isn't ok. 

I hope you'll join our family this month and choose to do at least one thing to create change. 

Childhood Cancer Donation List

  We cannot say enough about many of these organizations. Most of them have directly impacted our lives. (I've placed a * beside the ones we've directly benefitted from.)

We share them with you in good conscience that they are doing what they say they will do with your monetary donations. 

Visit Charity Navigator to view efficiencies & financial information for many major charities:

http://www.charitynavigator.org

National

Cure Search

http://www.curesearch.org

Triumph Over Kid Cancer

http://triumphoverkidcancer.org

The St. Baldrick’s Foundation

http://www.stbaldricks.org

Alex's Lemonade Stand

http://www.alexslemonade.org

Lighthouse Family Retreat *

https://lighthousefamilyretreat.org

Local - Texas

Team Connor

http://teamconnor.org

Heroes for Children

http://www.heroesforchildren.org

Silver Dollar At The Ranch *

http://www.silverdollarattheranch.com

Make A Wish *

http://wish.org

http://ntx.wish.org

Hope Kids *

https://www.hopekids.org

Peach's Neet Feet *

https://peachsneetfeet.com

1 Million 4 Anna

www.1million4anna.org

Off Treatment Means It's Over, Right?!

Look. We will be the first to tell you that we know many are tired and worn of hearing about Jace and cancer. We know people talk negatively about it and maybe even talk negatively about us. In the last three and half years, we've had it happen more times that we'd like to admit from people we've loved and thought were for us. 

We did not ask to be put in the middle of this disease and did not ask to have to miss out on so many "normal" everyday moments. We know that many care so much for Jace and maybe care not-so-much for the rest of us. That definitely comes with this territory as we've recently learned.

However, I'm fully confident that someone, including us, is learning some sort of lesson surrounding all of the above. Maybe the lesson is grace or compassion. Maybe the lesson is holding your tongue more and giving out love in lieu of criticism and judgement. The lesson might even be to find joy even when joy isn't anywhere in sight.  We've, personally, learned lessons in trust, discernment, and extending undeserving grace. 

Today as we embark on a new season, our family stands together moving slowly into a new normal while many around us will not understand the emotions and complications of this new life we are living. 

Tomorrow Jace will get his port removed. We are joyous that he will be able to experience life without it. We are excited that a small fever won't mean a rushed trip to the ER. But no matter how faithful we are, we are still human. We still pray everyday that he is cured, we ask for healing from his head to his toes, we cry out victory over his life and we hope with everything we have that he will spend many, many, many joyous and fun years living life to the fullest. We constantly have to put our faith over our fear now. 

Cancer/Leukemia will always be part of who we are. We will talk about it. We will be passionate about it. We will work to raise money for families affected by it and for research to cure it. It is intertwined into all of our individually unique life stories. 

For that reason, I will continue to give you a small peek into our perspective in the current moment. 

Our new challenges are different, but equally as daunting some days.  

One of the challenges is getting people to understand that just because Jace is off treatment and has his port removed that everything is as normal for us as it is at their house.  "Cured" in our case usually isn't used until several years off of therapy. 

Another challenge is helping others understand that many of the side effects of the many medicines that flowed through his body will not show up right away. Often learning difficulties or educational challenges take some time to show up, but we have friends ahead of us on this path and have confirmed classroom struggles that were not present before.  We've also had friends tell of unempathetic teachers or administrators who refuse to keep the kids who are off-treatment on their 504 plans while in the classrooms. (NOT in our district) As an educator, my heart so goes out to these kids and families who are struggling themselves to adjust to a new normal and still help those around them understand that "this isn't exactly over." 

Some effects do show up right away. The rash that he battles all over his body that could take up to a YEAR to go away is something we didn't even think about until now. His legs and muscles still ache and hurt and his bones are still weak. He still gets exhausted like before. 

I won't even bore you with the financial or emotional burdens we face everyday. We aren't unlike the majority of people in the world. 

There are days that we still cry overcome by the emotion of it all and moments that we feel like we can't breathe because this journey was hard. And because it was hard and we had to work everyday to keep lifting our face to our faith, we are now trying to relearn who we are now, what we like, what our relationships can be while not being surrounded by chemo. 

Off-treatment, monthly checkups and no port IS a great season to be in, but like anything else it, too, comes with it's challenges and lessons and as long as we get to do that along side of this sweet face, we will be good. 


xoxoxo