Hello there. It’s just a hair over a month from the last update. I’m glad I established a plan for regular posts, but that also means I have to come through with the first one so here we are. Jennings is doing great. His snotty nose is still snotty, but that’s all there is to report. Actually, I don’t think it’s ever truly cleared up since he was diagnosed, but we’ve all joined in swapping colds back and forth and back again over the past few weeks.

His last follow-up was here locally the first week of November. His labs looked good and his chimerism came back the following week at 100% - praise the Lord!

Today seemed like a fitting day to post. Not only is it close to the monthly mark, but it was exactly one year ago today that we learned of Jennings’s relapse. Lauren had gotten an unexpected call from Aimee the day before. His chimerism had come back at 70% seemingly out of nowhere, so Jennings and I went in for an outpatient bone marrow aspirate at Novant Hemby the Tuesday before Thanksgiving to try to get to the bottom of the anomaly. Turned out that we didn’t need to wait for the bone marrow MRD results and it wouldn’t be outpatient after all. His CBC showed a white count at 97,000, up from a normal range a week or so before when the chimerism was drawn. He had relapsed and just like that we were plunged back into a world we were sure we had left behind.

This time of year holds so many triggers for us. Lauren captured it well in her social media post recently:

The sounds, the place…even, for me, just pulling the turkey out of the freezer or starting to plan Thanksgiving week logistics. We did it all last year for the Thanksgiving that never was. Those things trigger emotions and connections to trauma that catch you suddenly and then weigh heavily on you.

Coincidentally, or more accurately providentially, I was contacted recently by St. Jude for a story. As part of the interview, I was recounting our entire story back from his original diagnosis. I had not done that in a long, long time. To chronologically walk through the events, saying it all out loud reminded me of just how hard and unique that road was. I found myself choking up, having to stop in random places through the story. For some reason, it would surprise me every time it happened.

The memories that are there on the surface, more easily recalled, tend to revolve around childhood cancer - Jennings’s diagnosis, the treatment, the statistics, the long road. That’s a lot in itself, but I had not thought or processed through the other emotional and physical demands from way back…the pieces that make an uncommon story that much more unique. Lauren was pregnant with twins when he was diagnosed and they were born two weeks into his first round of treatment. We entered into survival mode and had to divide & conquer. That meant I was not a daily part of the twins’ lives until they were over six months old. My relationship with them could be categorized as strained at best and inconvenienced at worst, with this dynamic lasting long past our return to Charlotte. Lauren, on the other hand, had to be away from her sick child who was fighting for his life. The one place she felt like she had to be 24-7 she couldn’t be because there were two newborns who also needed a mommy. Those circumstances, along with looking out for Caroline, moving our family to Memphis - all of that trauma, left deep wounds. We are still working through the rubble.

Last year at this time, we found ourselves back in this world. Like pieces in a board game so close to the finish that land on the “back to the start” square, we were at the beginning of a journey we had traversed before. We knew all too well its length, its difficulty, the risks, the cost.

This is now a season that triggers memories of this trauma. I’ve heard trauma defined as “when a person’s suffering overwhelms their ability to cope with that suffering.” We have been there. To paraphrase Lauren when we were talking through some of this the other night, “What we do everyday…that’s some warrior *stuff.” And it is. Everyday the enemy is there. Prowling around to steal our joy, to have us give into fear and anxiety, to have us play the victim. By the grace of God, every morning we can throw that off, choose to get up, and live for the day.

God promises that there is beauty for ashes. That doesn’t diminish the pain from the fire that caused the ashes, but it does offer hope. We sit in the tension of this season and how it is now defined for us: still grieving the fire, but thankful to be here as a family enjoying God’s goodness of another holiday season.

Cue awkward segue. So I mentioned last time that there would be a couple surprises for you. They’re better told in pictures, so get ready to fake it because here they are 👇

#1

Coca-Cola was the presenting sponsor for the Clemson-FSU game at the end of October. They chose Jennings (and his big sis, transplant #1 donor) to receive the honorary game ball. It was such a cool experience to be on the field before the game. Charlotte was awestruck by the cheerleaders in the tunnel, Henry was terrified of the Tiger, Jennings was thrilled to be the center of attention, and Caroline felt honored too.

#2

We went to Disney World! It was a surprise to them and this is the video of them finding out:

We really wanted to capitalize on his health and their sweet ages, so we did this trip.

Left to right from the top: lunch with Minnie at Hollywood & Vine; most of us on the Slinky Dog rollercoaster at Hollywood Studios; smallish Cinderella having lunch at Cinderella’s table; Splash Mountain!; Caroline, me, and the twins on Tower of Terror…they insisted that they wanted to go and I think Charlotte might be the shortest & youngest person to ever have ridden it - they all left in tears 🤣; ponchos for the win at Toy Story Land.

Left to right from the top: pool day to let mommy & daddy recover; Magic Kingdom!; we went to Legoland the first day for Jennings; the castle lit up during fireworks; a life size Emmet; our Star Wars pose at Hollywood Studios.

Big thanks to Lonna and Magic Managed for helping make this trip one of our best family vacations ever!

I hope you all have a wonderful Thanksgiving. Jennings and I head to Memphis in early December for his next checkup. We’ll catch up again in month or so…thanks for keeping us in your prayers.

“The Spirit of the Lord God is upon me, because the Lord has anointed me to bring good news to the poor; he has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to those who are bound; to proclaim the year of the Lord's favor, and the day of vengeance of our God; to comfort all who mourn; to grant to those who mourn in Zion— to give them a beautiful headdress instead of ashes, the oil of gladness instead of mourning, the garment of praise instead of a faint spirit; that they may be called oaks of righteousness, the planting of the Lord, that he may be glorified.” Isaiah 61:1-3

#allinforjennings