Monday, December 22, 2014

I'll Be Home For Christmas!



That's the first thing Caleb said Friday, when he was released from Texas Children's Hospital!  We had a little scare with an unexpected illness, and Caleb & Zach had to miss their Christmas parties at school on Friday because of it.  The timing was tough... they were both very sad to miss such a special occasion with their friends & cherished teachers.

Caleb underwent a lumbar puncture (spinal tap) today.  His Oncologist injected chemo into his spine, plus took a sample to test.  We feel confident the results will come back & prove his cancer is still in remission!

Cal starts back on steroids today, so that will give him a great appetite for his grandmothers' special Christmas treats!










Caleb also got IV chemo today, which is more medicine than his little body is used to.  The steroids should also help him overcome that.




Caleb has had a special month, thanks to several local organizations & sports stars.   We're so thankful for the men who use their celebrity to help cheer up the lives of children fighting cancer.

Caleb & Zach got to hang out with Baseball Great Craig Biggio at the Sunshine Kid's party.
The Houston Texans/Tennessee Titans Kevin Walter & Texans Chris Myers add rays of sunshine to the event!

Then the Candlelighters Childhood Cancer Family Alliance & The Houston Rockets invited Caleb & Zach to a fun celebration.   

A nice "Welcome" from Hall of Famer Calvin Murphy & Zany "Clutch". 
Now that's quite a basketball player.  :)
The Rockets seemed to really enjoy spreading Christmas cheer to these children fighting cancer and also to their siblings, who also have a tough time because of cancer!

To wrap up the month, Zachary got baptized!   He has patiently waited a year and a half, after walking forward in our church.  He postponed it the first time when Caleb was hospitalized and had to stay home for a year.  Then, he postponed it after one of Caleb's recent emergency hospitalizations.  It was important for him to have his little brother there. 

It was a glorious day for our family.  Zach is a great role model for his little bro. 
David got to do the honors of baptizing Zach, with the assistance of a pastor.

Christmas is always magical, but we seem to take it even more seriously now.  It means so much to us to celebrate Jesus' birth.  I have no idea how we would've survived the past fifteen months without truly believing:

I can do everything through Him who gives me strength.  Phillipians 4:13

Caleb is resting comfortably tonight, and we know our Savior is watching over him.

Happy Birthday, Jesus!  Thank you for bringing us light and love and hope.  

As for our faithful friends and family, may you have a very Merry Christmas and many blessings of good health throughout the coming year.  

10 comments:

  1. Merry Christmas to you ALL! The Lord Jesus Christ will walk beside us through the hard times. Thank you again Melissa for the updates. Our family looks forward to reading the ups and downs as we continue to pray! Hang in there Caleb!! XXX000 The Green's

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  2. Looking for updates and praying constantly!!! Merry Christmas to all of you!!
    You are loved...

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  3. Merry Christmas to all of you....Keep fighting Caleb....GOD bless you!

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  4. Sending you love and prayers this CHRISTmas!

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  5. Caleb, God loves you and so do I. Prayers for you and your family. Merry Christmas.

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  6. Prayers for Caleb and the whole family!

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  7. So glad Caleb and Zach were able to join in for all of the Christmas celebrations, (except the school parties, that's a bummer!) Hope you all enjoyed being with family to celebrate; an answer to prayer! Zach, congratulations!! What a huge step in your faith journey and it took place on just the day it should have, because you were patient to wait. Really impressed that you made this decision to publicly proclaim your salvation. Way to go! Happy New Year to the Cooks, praying for God's best for you all in 2015! Love from California

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  8. Though the world is forever changing, God is forever the same!

    Psalm 18:2 The Lord is my rock, and my fortress, and my deliverer, my God, my strength, in whom I will trust.

    So glad to hear Caleb made it home for Christmas. We continue to pray for him and the whole Cook Family daily!

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