#Loganstrong

Logan had a good morning today. Mom & him went to hospital to get blood work done (uncle Pat watched Peyton). Logan’s counts are all up. While at the hospital though he did get sick. They gave him some medicine that made him very tired. He fell asleep at 12:30pm and woke up at 6pm. While driving home w/ Logan Kelly did have a scare. She looked back and just saw the whites of Logan’s eyes. She screamed his name and shook his leg but he would not wake up. She pulled off the freeway and shook him. He then woke up. He was in a very deep sleep. He then was very angry she woke him up. Tonight he is watching cartoons. He has been drinking apple juice and ate some chips. He is very, very weak. As I finishing typing this though he is playing in the bathtub w/ some toys! God we love him so much!

We are home! Logan is feeling a little better. Still a little tired and worn down. He is really getting used to and doing very well w/ the NG Tube. When we got home he wanted oatmeal and Tatar tots and of course he got them. So far he has kept it all down. He has been playing pinball on the computer since he got home. Tomorrow Logan goes back up for a check-up to check blood counts and make sure he is gaining weight.
Today we also met a family going through exactly what we are dealing with. Their son Benjamin is two years old and was diagnosed w/ neuroblastoma just three weeks after Logan. They live in Seattle. It is really nice to talk w/ someone that is experiencing the roller coaster of emotions that we are. The dad’s name is Jeff and mom’s Carin. Please visit their website above and add them to your prayers & thoughts.

Logan did amazing having the NG Tube put in. He is feeling a little better but still far from himself. Once we get him some nutrition he should start perking up. His mood most the day has been quiet. He played his game for awhile which is a good sign he is feeling better. The only time he really pepped up was when Peyton came to see him. Logan actually sang him a song. He has not had any nausea medicine all day and the only issue we have had w/ getting sick was he gagged on the tube. It sounds like if we have a good night we will get to go home in the morning. The chemo medicine that has made him so sick is called Cisplatin. It is nasty! He will have to unfortunately have it again in his fifth treatment of phase one as well as a chemo treatment in phase two.

Sorry I was unable to update everyone last night, the hospital is having issues w/ online connection. By the way we are back in the hospital. Logan was very dehydrated from being sick so much. Within about three hours they pumped two bags of fluid through him and he only went potty once. We had a good night last night. He fell asleep about 7:30 and woke up this morning at 6:30am. He was up a couple times to go potty. He also woke up a little disorientated. This morning he is still feeling a little yucky but getting better. He has not eaten anything as of yet but did ask for grapes. The nurses are trying to get some. He also saw a pancake commercial and said they looked good. We do not know how long we will be here as of yet. They were unable to put the feeding tube in yesterday because he was so dehydrated. Hopefully today so he gets some nutrition. Yesterday I bought him a big Lego airplane (401 pieces) so we have been working on that all morning. He will help for a little while then take a rest. Well I will update everyone as soon as I can pending Internet connection. Thank you all for your continued thoughts and prayers.

Good Friday morning to everyone. Logan is still feeling pretty yucky this morning. The good thing is he got about 6 hours of sleep off & on last night. This morning he said he was feeling better but followed that by getting sick 2 times. Today he will have the feeding tube put in. I am very happy for this because he really needs the nutrition. He has not had anything to eat in four plus days. He is drinking a lot of water though. Before I left for work this morning we talked about the feeding tube and he asked if they will be able to fill the food backpack w/ a milkshake. I told him “you bet!” I will hopefully update everyone tonight on his day.

Some sad news to pass along. On Sunday I put a link to a Seattle Times article about an 11 year old girl here at Seattle Children’s Hospital that has been fighting Neuroblastoma for 4 years. If you got a chance to read it hopefully you were as touched as I was. I asked if Logan and I could go see her that Sunday morning but the doctor recommended Logan not see her because of her condition. She passed away this morning. The amazing news is yesterday was her dad’s birthday and she sang him happy birthday and told him she loved him.

Sorry we did update the blog yesterday. Logan is feeling miserable. He has been throwing up about every hour. Last night he did not sleep one minute so he is very tired (as are we). Kelly called the doctors this morning and they said this is typical for this chemo. They said as long as he is drinking water in which our amazing kid is drinking a lot. He has a spider man thermos w/ water and is always taking sips. He has not eaten anything since Sunday. We were told this is also typical.
I have to really say on a public forum say how amazing my wife Kelly is. Not only dealing w/ the newborn but also w/ what is going on w/ Logan. I am trying to work as much as possible because we do still need an income. My mother and her husband David have also been amazing in helping out. They have put their cross country trip on hold to help out w/ Logan. They are living out of their R.V. Aunt Traci has also been a blessing. During difficult times there are always positive things to take from them. My family as well as Kelly’s family are amazing. They have put there lives on hold to help us. Also our network of friends….wow. We could not have better people around us. If I were to mention all of the positive comments, responses, cards, etc. I would need to write a book. All we can say is a continued thank you and we love you all!

Enjoy the above picture of Logan’s CAT scan (thank you uncle Pat for scanning these). The top one is the first CAT scan when we found out of the cancer on 7-26-07. The tumor is circled. You are looking down at Logan. The spine is on the bottom and belly on the top. The Kidneys (two circles) are on both sides of the spine. You can see how much the tumor is pushing on his left kidney. The lower picture is the CAT scan the did last Wednesday on 9-12-07. The tumor shrank by more than half!

Wow what a long day. Kelly, Peyton, myself, and a very tired (currently sleeping) Logan are all here in the hospital room. We are being discharged tonight at 11:30pm. They did give us the option to stay another night but we really want Logan to wake up in his own bed. Also our neighbor the last 2 nights has woken up w/ extreme tummy aches and screaming very loud. Last night he screamed steadily from 11am to 1am then again at 4am. I felt sorry for him as well as Logan.
Logan is still feeling misrable. Very weak and not eating anything. The doctors said this is all expected though. They want to hold off on the feeding tube until at least Friday because Logan did so well gaining back his weight between chemos. Keep praying for him. It is amazing his support chain. We thank everyone.

Good Tuesday morning to all. This chemo is harsh! Logan’s tummy feels very yucky. He is throwing up about every hour or so. They have been getting him medicine which helps a little. Last night went o.k. The only times he was sick was when he woke up to go potty. I think standing up makes him dizzy which in turn causes the nausea (this is something I passed down to him, I get motion sickness on the merry-go-round). Today they are going to give us a patch to put behind his ear that helps w/ motion sickness. He still has no appetite. Today he will be weighed and we are assuming they will be giving him a feeding tube. This is inserted through his nose and goes into his tummy. It will be a long week…one day at a time!

Good Monday night. Logan’s tummy aches are back. They are trying a different medicine. That is really not the reason I wanted to write though. Logan’s roommate is a little boy named Anthony. He is age 3. He is been battling a tumor in his belly as well (different kind of cancer). He has a lot of stomach pain. He has had many rounds of chemo and the tumor has come back w/ others. They are going to start a new round of chemo tomorrow.
What I wanted to tell everyone though is how amazing Logan is. During all his treatment, sickness this time he found time to make Anthony a crown w/ stickers. Anthony was so excited. Logan also made him a special train ticket to anywhere. Later in the day Anthony had to get his patch by his Hickman line changed (very painful because it involves taking off a very sticky band aid). Logan knows how much it hurts because we have to change his at least once a week. While Anthony was getting his patch changed Logan brought him over one of his new toys to comfort him. It worked. Thought that would bring a smile to every one’s face on the special kid we are all thinking and praying for all the time.

Welcome to Monday. Logan had a bad night last night. Was very sick to his tummy throughout the night. Thank you Mom for being so patient w/ him and letting me get some rest. Today they have switched his nausea medicine to try and be proactive instead of reactive. It has seemed to be working. He has had a pretty good day. Has not eaten anything though. Currently he is sleeping. One of the anti-nausea medicines make him tired. He looks very peaceful over on his bed. We are scheduled to go home late tomorrow. We have to wait until 12 hours after last chemo is done. That means will will not get released until about 11:30pm. The nice thing is that he can sleep in the car and then wake up in his own bed! We already have all of the anti-nausea medicines at home so we will stay on it. The current chemo he is on is the strongest. The doctors said it will linger in him for about five days. After his counts go back up he will be in for a three day chemo (not as harsh on tummy). Then chemo five will be unfortunately like this one. He then will have surgery to try and remove tumor & then come back for another chemo again.
I do have some good news….My internet manager Rod Cory at work & his wife Kelly sent out Logan’s story to all their friends, family, etc. in their home e-mail mailbox. They asked everyone to send $1.00 to them as well as forward the e-mail to as many people as they can. To make an amazing story short they have recieved $425 so far as well as many amazing positive messages from all over. Rod & Kelly are also going to get Logan a map and what we are going to do is place a pin in the map from everywhere he gets a letter. THANK YOU!