2013 Man & Woman of the Year Grand Finale

We were invited to attend the grand finale again this year.  Joey got to go on stage when they announced Cole as the Boy of the Year. Joey loves Cole, so it was extra special for him.  It was fun to get dressed up and go out.

Ava 4-Month Pictures

Belt Testing

Another round of belt testing for Tae Kwon Do.  To go much further, she'll need to start sparring and going to tournaments.  Unfortunately, she really doesn't like to spar, so I'm not sure how much further she'll go.

Expert Night

Every year, the gifted class creates "expert" projects and then shows them off to the parents for an evening.  Katherine's topic was Chess.

Camp Quality Fundraiser

Joey got to hand out finishing metals at and adventure race in El Dorado.  A portion of the entry fees are going to Camp Quality!  

Last Chemo Shot!!!

Joey had his very last chemo shot on his dad's birthday!  We brought the whole family for it - even let Katherine get out of school.

Here is the plan now:  He'll take his daily chemo pill for one more week, and then NO MORE CHEMO!  He'll continue to get his finger poke for labs each week. In 3-4 weeks, we'll go to the hospital for a bone marrow aspiration to make sure there are no more cancer cells.  If that's clear, he'll be done!  His body will take about 6 months to return to normal so he still can't get his vaccinations and will keep taking the antibiotic.  He'll start seeing Dr. Rosen once each month and have his blood checked once a month for the first year.  They'll take out his port some time this summer.

When we first started this, we were given a weekly roadmap - it was for 130 weeks of treatment.  I kept track every week of where we were, and now all of those weeks are complete!  It seems a little strange, but it's certainly a blessing!

5K-aiden

The kids participated in a 5K run/walk to raise money for a boy with leukemia who just had a transplant in Kansas City.  We asked Katherine's soccer team if they wanted to do it with us.  Only three of them signed up, but it was good to at least have them there.  Once again, Katherine won first place for her age group.  It wasn't officially timed, but they watched at the finish line.  I'm not sure what her time was.  Joey took much longer (almost an hour) but he finished the whole thing and never asked Grandpa to carry him, like I thought he would.