Save Jace

Just over 2 years ago, some dear friends of ours received some life-altering news about their son, Jace.  On January 31, 2007, he was diagnosed with Brain Cancer.  I’m happy to report that after several surgeries to remove the tumors from his brain, as well as multiple sessions of chemotherapy and radiation, Jace is a happy and healthy little boy who will be celebrating his 4th birthday this coming Sunday, April 19.  We never thought that we’d be getting to celebrate Jace’s 4th birthday, given the diagnosis they received 2 years ago, but it is because of the fabulous work and support that organizations like St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital provide that made it possible.

A friend of mine used this in an email to support her request for donations for her 3 year old son, Kai, who is participating in a Trike-a-thon to help raise money for St Jude Children’s Hospital coming up.  I have been writing an update all week, but haven’t found the right words to say what I was trying to say.  I think her brief paragraph summed up what I was trying to get my thoughts to do.

We are celebrating Jace’s birthday this weekend.  His 4^th birthday! Its easy for us to think back 2 years ago when his diagnosis was grim and the doctors only gave him 2 months to live.  I remember the exact quote was “every day is a blessing and every month is a miracle.”

Praise God for Miracles!

So this week we celebrate FOUR!

To my blessed son, Jace:

I know how clichéd it sounds to say I can’t believe you are 4 years old already.  But it really is incredible to think that 4 years have actually passed. But then I look at you, and I watch you and I know it has been that long.  Right now you pretend, its imaginary box cars made out of diaper boxes and phone conversations with the world.  You’re still thrilled to watch the garbage truck pick up the trash can twice a week and the sand box in the back yard is a deserted island surrounded by a wild safari of animals.  When I ask you what you want for your 4^th birthday, you say a fire truck.  And, as simple as that may sound…you want a REAL fire truck. I smile and wish your innocence lasts for as long as possible and your ability to dream lasts forever. 

Your strengths include your fabulous memory where you remember small little things we said or did from a week to 6 months to a year back.  How you refer to them when something similar happens and you are reminded of those, often leaving daddy and I open mouthed. Your direction sense where you can remember that particular roads take us to certain destinations, identifying places that you have visited a couple of times simply from the road leading to them. We can’t even begin to imagine what all is being registered as you eye things with keen detail. 

You are curious.  Your new favorite word is “Why?”  We have hit the “why” stage with exuberance.  You want to know “why” for everything from, “why the car windows don’t go down every time you presses the button” to “why you can’t play outside in your underwear.”  You want an explanation for everything that moves and questions everything that doesn’t. A bag of questions, a huge one at that, not surprisingly every comment or piece of information or an instruction to do something is met by the big question! Why do I need to wash my hands, brush my teeth, take a bath, drink milk, eat food again and again, go to school, the list is endless.  At times you come up with silly answers to your own questions just because you love being silly. 

You are independent. You want to do everything on your own.  You dress yourself in very flashy non-matching outfits that clash with everything mom.  In fact, we walked into a restaurant a few weeks ago and I caught another mom look at you and comment, “We know who won that battle.”  For a split second, I cringed and then I just laughed. She was right.  Spider man fluffy house shoes, red basketball shorts that are 2 sizes to big with a bright yellow shirt, that is four year old independence at its best.

You are sassy. You have an opinion and you want us to know it.  If you don’t agree with our opinion, you let us know. If I try and pull a fast one on you, you usually catch me and then have some witty comment to back up your being “right.”  Daddy and I are constantly laughing at things you say and many times are corrected with things we say or do with four year old sarcasm.

You are a big brother.  Though this is not a personality trait, it is absolutely a part of who you are.  You love your baby brother more than Teddy or your pillow.  You don’t have much to do with him right now because Jarron is still so little.  But put you both on the floor and watch the laughter just roll out through your bellies.  And don’t try to take Jarron away from you.  If you think someone is taking him that shouldn’t (which is everyone but family), you will throw a fit like never before.

You are growing.  Nothing fits.  Your shorts are getting hard to button.  Your shirts are getting too short.  Your shoes are lasting months instead of years.  Even your socks are getting too small.  You think you are already grown.  What used to be a fight to get your height and weight at the doctor’s office has now become a declaration of growth for you. “See Momma, I’m getting bigger.”

You are imaginative.  Like me when I was a child, you can play for hours in your room by yourself.  We can hear you imagining things and playing with friends and going on rescue adventures.  It is fun to stand around the corner and just listen to you imagine.  Sometimes you will run in the room with your pinky to your mouth and your thumb to your ear and say “Momma, I have been trying to call you.”  At bedtime, in your room by yourself, after prayers and TV time you can continue to play and talk for an hour.  It is amazing your imagination.

You are ALIVE!  Your smile still lights up the room and your laughter still makes my heart burst. Your eyes are the window to your soul and everything I see there is good.  God has blessed you little one.  He has taught us all to believe in miracles and He has shown me the power of Faith and the power of Prayer. 

It’s amazing as I look back and see how much I have written and how much more I feel I still have to say.  It can’t be tough for a mother to talk about her son, right! So here is to 4. With a year ahead that is full of more change and more growth. 

I love you so much.
Happy 4^th Birthday.

Mommy.

Actual Update:
Everything has been going pretty well.  Last week we had some scares with both boys being sick.  Jace actually had it pretty bad and was running fever at times at 103.5.  That’s always scary to us since he is still on the chemo and we are not supposed to let his fever get much higher than 102 before we take him to the Dr or the ER if it’s after hours. 

I don’t know if its because its been 2 years, or because I know Jace, but I felt fairly comfortable with the fever not being anything worse than the cold that it was, so I decided not to even call the Dr that night and just give him tylenol and watch the fever.  I have been told in the past that if it came down within an hour that we were good, it was when the fever was staying high and not controllable with tylenol that we really needed to worry.  Sure enough, it took about an hour but the fever came down to 101.  Then in the morning when he woke, it was still 101 and with tylenol came down to about 98 and stayed there all day.  Needless to say, I am glad we didn’t go to the emergency room.

He has been doing really well since then.  This past weekend was the annual Little Wranglers Party.  That is the Easter party they put on here for Driscoll Childrens Hospital Chemo patients.  It’s such a nice treat for the kids as they have all kinds of activities and games for them to play.  There were cookie decorations and arts & crafts for them to do.  The Easter Bunny made an appearance and Jace even got his picture without crying again.  We also got a good picture with Jace and Jarron on the Easter Bunny.  I will post the pictures soon. 

We continue to thank you all for your thoughts and prayers.  Every now and then someone will say something to us or, like Becky above, use Jace’s story and it helps me to know that other people still think about Jace too.

We love you all.

Hope you had a Happy Easter!

God Bless,
The Sandovals.

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