Once again, good numbers and we continue on...

Kateli has been doing marvelous. God continues to amaze us through her strength, how well she is tolerating all that she is going through and her high and happy spirits day in and day out. We went to clinic on Wednesday as is customary, but this Wed was a full day. In clinic Kateli had a spinal tap to administer intrathecal chemo, she was given another chemo through her port; we came home and she took her normal meds at home and also started another 5 day cycle of the steroid. So, by the end of the day she had taken in 4 chemo drugs, 1 antibiotic, a steroid and a bit of pepcid, just to prevent her belly from getting too upset at us for all those medications!! We dreaded the arrival of our clinic appt, because we went in knowing all that she would have to take that day, and it was difficult to digest (literally)! But, once again SHE is amazing!! She is so strong. She is so resilient. She just bounces back and is Kateli through it all!! How wonderful it is to know that God is watching over her, providing her and her little body with the strength needed to withstand this harsh treatment! How amazing it is to witness God at work first hand with our beautiful little girl! She gives us strength. Her smiles and her perseverance give us so much encouragement in this trial that we are in.

I do want to ask for prayer for her, though. Over the last two days she has come down with something. We think it's a cold, and are hoping it's just mild. She has not been running any fevers, but she just has doesn't seem to be feeling well. Though you ask her if she feels okay, and she'll look you in the face and say "yeah" with a HUGE grin!! Please pray that this is a mild cold and that it clears up fast, without any complications.

Thanks for keeping up to date with our ongoings!!

Numbers are good for another week

Praise the Lord. Katherine's counts are where they should be, so we are continuing with treatment as normal. The schedule is becoming routine. I hope we don't take for granted how good it is to be on schedule. Katherine is doing awesome, she really has a lot of energy like the Katherine we're used to. Her hair is growing back, although our nurse preps us by saying, "it will fall out again".

Please begin praying now for our appointment next week. Kateli will get many medications on Wednesday (6 including a spinal tap). It seems like a whole lot for a person to handle, especially a little one like Katherine.

We had a fun week this week, celebrating Marleny's birthday. She is ## years young now. We had a fun surprise visit from her sister Marta, brother-in-law Misael, and niece Daniela. I'm sure Marleny will post some pictures when she has an opportunity. She took some great one's of the kids.

Another good report

New feature on the blog this week- check out the translator gadget on the right. Since Marleny is asleep, I don't really know how well this thing translates into Spanish. For all of our multi-lingual visitors- give it a whirl and let us know how it reads in other languages that you know.

As Marleny mentioned this week's appointment was just a CBC blood check. Kateli's counts were above 700, so we're continuing on schedule. We had a fun time at the hospital today. We got to meet the helicopter crew for life flight and Kateli got a stuffed animal from the pilot. We stayed to watch them take off, which Kateli really enjoyed.

We also played outside on the playground waiting for the lab results. We sent the stuffed animals down the slides and watched them tumble on the ground. Kateli said, "Silly, silly daddy". She cracks me up.

Thank you for your continuing prayers.

It's been a while...

since the last blog entry that we posted. I'm sorry. Life just seems so busy these days, I don't know that there are enough hours in a day to get things done that need to get done, much less those things that are on my "want to do" list. Anyhow, enough of excuses...let me just update you.

Well, like they say, no news is good news. And that is what we have on our end. Kateli has been doing GREAT!! It truly amazes me each day to see how well she is doing, how well her body is tolerating the meds, and how upbeat she is about life in general. She is zealous about EVERYTHING around her. She loves her mommy, daddy, and "baby josua" among MANY MANY other people in our life right now. There is not a bit of sadness, discouragement, or disillusionment in her with all that she is enduring at her 29months of age. Tomorrow marks the 3rd anniversary since her diagnosis and we are truly blessed by how God has been working in all of us, and continues to do so each day. Over and over He continues to show us His faithfulness and His love for us and for Kateli. Her heart is so full of joy, her face glows with never ending smiles, and her laugh sounds like music to our ears. She loves to giggle, she loves to be silly, and lately her deal is pretend play. I know it's a stage. She is at that age right now, but it is so sweet to watch her pretend to be a mommy...oh, and is it ever so humbling and eye opening. She definitely SEES and HEARS all around her, and she pays such close attention to all that I do. She is like a "mini-me mommy" to her baby!! Good thing, I try to be a good mommy!!

Last Wednesday our appointment at the clinic was to check her blood counts. It was a short appointment and we got home with good news. Her ANC was up at 900, so there was no need in delaying her treatment. This Wednesday we go back again for yet another blood test. She will not get any meds in clinic, but we are continuing the daily chemo at home, among other meds that she takes at home with us. Please pray that her counts continue to stay about 750--even higher is a plus!!

Thank you so much for visiting our blog and staying up to date with our little girl's progress through this journey. We truly appreciate your concern and your continued prayers for her and our family.