Our God is an Awesome God!

He reigns from Heaven above!  With wisdom, power, and love, our God is an awesome God.  Before I share absolute proof of that in Caleb's life, I'll fill you in on the past week. 

Caleb underwent a spinal tap last Monday. 

We were highly disappointed to find out Caleb's higher dosage of chemo the past few months is still not enough.  Now he's up to 120% on his dosage, of other children his size, to try to fight his leukemia better.  The side effects have been brutal & just as bad as anything he's been through.  It wiped out his legs & the pain has been so severe, he couldn't sleep.  I stayed up with him off & on all night for the past week to massage his little legs, apply heat, and offer understanding hugs.  His "chemo mouth" has been so bad, he hasn't been able to eat without whimpering.  His "Magic Mouthwash" wasn't even strong enough to help.  It's never a good time to have a hard time eating, but Thanksgiving made the problem seem even worse. 

Here's where God comes in.  We stayed silent about how sick Caleb had been for 6 days, except to family.  It's the season to be happy, and we didn't want to burden others.  Then, we started prayer chains, and it was like a miracle before our eyes.  

Caleb went from snuggling under a blanket in our laps all day yesterday to laughing & getting up & playing with his little cousins, & eating his first meal without complaining.  I've never seen a quicker turn-around. 

He only woke up once last night for a few minutes in pain, versus all night long.  My eyes are filled with tears as I picture God listening to all of those requests for Caleb, and then lovingly granting him our wish.  Thank you.  What a gift and blessing.

Caleb has also been on a higher dose of steroids than he has ever been on.  Since it makes him so hungry, my mom gave us the best gift ever - two ice chests full of his favorite foods - all labeled with love.   

He adores her cooking & worked through his mouth pain, to eat every last bite.  Thank you, Mom, for allowing me to provide love and care for Caleb when he needed me the most, versus cooking night & day to keep up with his steroid cravings. 

On another happy note, Caleb got to play baseball in Minute Maid Park with Hall of Fame Star Craig Biggio.   

It was a huge moment in life for Biggio to pitch to our little baseball player.

Caleb's team had a winning season & made it to the play-offs!

He loved it when dear friends came to cheer him on!  Thanks Kip, Christine, & Angeli for going to his games!

Caleb & big bro Zach both had orthopedic injuries only one week apart, and that was dramatic to balance.  Caleb tripped & fell at a Halloween party. 

The great news - after a quick trip to the E.R., we found out Cal only sprained his wrist.

Zach wasn't so lucky.  He fractured a bone in his foot playing football with friends.  It made their Halloween costumes look even more interesting!

Everyone on Caleb's baseball team has been supportive of his condition, especially Tayten!

 

He has been collecting soda can pop-tops to donate to Texas Children's Ronald McDonald House.  The Ronald McDonald Rooms at TCH are such a blessing for our family.  They're a safe haven to get a "breather", gather support from other patients' families & get a fresh cup of coffee or tea. Thanks to Tayten for doing this in honor of Caleb!

 David's cousin, Rhonda, has still been working hard at her school, Woodson Elementary, to teach kids about cancer through Caleb's condition, & the importance of raising funds for research.  They recently made another big donation to TCH in Caleb's name.  We are so proud of them for their dedication and hard work to raise those funds!

 Caleb's Courage Team was a big one at Light the Night... more than 50 people strong!  We were the 10th Biggest fundraising team out of 254 teams! Thanks to everyone who made this possible!

Caleb's teacher and a few of Zach's former teachers joined us to help raise funds to find a cure for leukemia.  It was an incredible partnership and meant a lot to both boys!

Some of my colleagues joined us - thanks Greg & Michelle! 

The boys got to hang out with some Houston Texans football players, including David Quessenberry, who recently battled cancer and had some wise words to share with Caleb. 

Thoughtful friends from school also joined us - thanks Mize's! 

It was powerful to have my parents there with us every step of the way!

I was on stage Emcee'ing the event, and had to choke back tears, as I watched Caleb and his daddy walking down the tunnel with their white lights, in honor of fighting cancer.  It was very upsetting for Caleb to look out at the yellow lights and realize how many people had passed away from leukemia or blood cancer. 

May God richly bless those hurting because of their losses from this disease, be with all of those fighting it, and with all of those red lights - the supporters - who help us all get through it. 

 My amazing sorority sisters even organized a team to walk in Caleb's honor in the Dallas/Ft. Worth area!!!  They've truly been the sisters, I never genetically had, all of these years.

Our specific prayer for Caleb is that he continues to handle the high dose of chemo well and that his levels get in a "safe zone". Thank you for caring about Caleb.  We would love for you to also pray for Caleb's friend & fellow leukemia fighter, Arda.  

 Arda is in the hospital right now, fighting liver disease from his chemotherapy.  He and his family really need us to lift their entire family up.  We are all in this together.  Their tough time is our tough time. Our hearts ache for them.  

"BY HIS MIGHTY POWER AT WORK WITHIN US, HE IS ABLE TO ACCOMPLISH INFINITELY MORE THAN WE WOULD EVER DARE TO ASK OR HOPE."   
Ephesians 3:20

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=wx3st6YjQBs

God bless you all.