Another year has come and gone. You are 9 years old and absolutely thriving!! As always, I update your blog on April 1st with what has happened for the past year. I will do this again this year but know that I feel so blessed that I can report that you have had an uneventful year, in regard to your health. Today, it has been 7 years since we were given your diagnosis and your journey to beat cancer began. I will never forget that day and I will always bring awareness to the success side of this awful disease.
To start off I must state the obvious and most current event of 2020, which is COVID-19. COVID-19, also know as the Coronavirus is a disease that has not been previously identified in humans and to stop the spread we need to stay home and out of the public. Today, we are working and doing school from home due to the pandemic that is affecting our world. This will be a big piece of history. You have only been home now for 2 weeks but they project that we will be staying in our houses, away from others, until summer. I am happy to report that you are coping well completing online learning through Google Classroom, social interactions through face time, and physical activity in the yard with your sisters. However, I have thought a lot about how we would have handled this whole situation when you were in the hospital. My heart absolutely breaks for those families that have their children in the hospital with little to no immune system. We are so lucky that we don’t have to worry about this situation but pray that those fighting, as you did, are kept safe.
Enough for the history and sad state of the world, this update is about you and what you have been doing for the last year. Your passion for sports is still evident at every passing season. You just finished your first year in the Atom division for hockey. You loved your year and I can’t believe how well you improved. The Oilers are still definitely your favorite team to watch but due to COVID-19 their season is “postponed.” You were convinced that this was going to be the year we would be able to follow the Oilers through a few playoff rounds and may be right to the cup; however, we will have to see when the season continues or if it will just be canceled, which is crazy to think. To say we don’t know what to do without hockey to watch is an understatement!! Even though baseball season will also be postponed, you have already started practicing with your sister. Pitching seems to be something you are interested in pursing and I hope you get a chance to play this season. Your dad and I love watching you pour your heart into every sport you challenge, you definitely don’t see any barriers in your way.
School is school. Definitely not your passion but you continue to go each day...well not now because of that coronavirus going around. Your favorite subjects still continue to be gym and lunch. Your biggest struggles are definitely math and having to do any corrections. This year during your checkup at the long term survivor clinic they offered us the opportunity to get a Neuropsychological Assessment completed. This assessment is offered as many of the chemo meds you took affect brain development and could lead to other learning complications. The results of this test showed that some tasks that require a different kind of thinking can be difficult for you, especially mathematical reasoning. It also showed evidence that your executive functions which help you with everyday tasks such as organizing and time management could cause you some grief. All this information gives your dad and me as well as the school some strategies that can help you out in these areas. This is really cool stuff and will help us all understand you just a bit better!
Speaking of your appointment at the long term survivor clinic, it was very much routine. You are growing and thriving as you should. They are so informative and ensure that your dad and I have all our questions answered. We don’t have to go back for another year, so another year we will wait for our reassurance. I have to admit that I was worried about going to one appointment a year but it is always hard going back and reliving all those experiences. The longer time has passed the less we have a “need” to be back.
Well, life continues to give us some ups and some downs and you are able to tackle what you are given. I look forward to updating again in another year and look back at all you have accomplished.
Love you to the moon and back,
Mom
To start off I must state the obvious and most current event of 2020, which is COVID-19. COVID-19, also know as the Coronavirus is a disease that has not been previously identified in humans and to stop the spread we need to stay home and out of the public. Today, we are working and doing school from home due to the pandemic that is affecting our world. This will be a big piece of history. You have only been home now for 2 weeks but they project that we will be staying in our houses, away from others, until summer. I am happy to report that you are coping well completing online learning through Google Classroom, social interactions through face time, and physical activity in the yard with your sisters. However, I have thought a lot about how we would have handled this whole situation when you were in the hospital. My heart absolutely breaks for those families that have their children in the hospital with little to no immune system. We are so lucky that we don’t have to worry about this situation but pray that those fighting, as you did, are kept safe.
Enough for the history and sad state of the world, this update is about you and what you have been doing for the last year. Your passion for sports is still evident at every passing season. You just finished your first year in the Atom division for hockey. You loved your year and I can’t believe how well you improved. The Oilers are still definitely your favorite team to watch but due to COVID-19 their season is “postponed.” You were convinced that this was going to be the year we would be able to follow the Oilers through a few playoff rounds and may be right to the cup; however, we will have to see when the season continues or if it will just be canceled, which is crazy to think. To say we don’t know what to do without hockey to watch is an understatement!! Even though baseball season will also be postponed, you have already started practicing with your sister. Pitching seems to be something you are interested in pursing and I hope you get a chance to play this season. Your dad and I love watching you pour your heart into every sport you challenge, you definitely don’t see any barriers in your way.
School is school. Definitely not your passion but you continue to go each day...well not now because of that coronavirus going around. Your favorite subjects still continue to be gym and lunch. Your biggest struggles are definitely math and having to do any corrections. This year during your checkup at the long term survivor clinic they offered us the opportunity to get a Neuropsychological Assessment completed. This assessment is offered as many of the chemo meds you took affect brain development and could lead to other learning complications. The results of this test showed that some tasks that require a different kind of thinking can be difficult for you, especially mathematical reasoning. It also showed evidence that your executive functions which help you with everyday tasks such as organizing and time management could cause you some grief. All this information gives your dad and me as well as the school some strategies that can help you out in these areas. This is really cool stuff and will help us all understand you just a bit better!
Speaking of your appointment at the long term survivor clinic, it was very much routine. You are growing and thriving as you should. They are so informative and ensure that your dad and I have all our questions answered. We don’t have to go back for another year, so another year we will wait for our reassurance. I have to admit that I was worried about going to one appointment a year but it is always hard going back and reliving all those experiences. The longer time has passed the less we have a “need” to be back.
Well, life continues to give us some ups and some downs and you are able to tackle what you are given. I look forward to updating again in another year and look back at all you have accomplished.
Love you to the moon and back,
Mom
