September 8, 2010

Howdy everyone. I've been on a sort of sabbatical from writing for a while. Partially from laziness and partially from selfishness. I've been trying to soak in everything that has happened over the whirlwind year we've had. So many folks have blessed us with their kindness and graciousness that we'll be all winter just trying to catch up on thank you cards. That's a good problem to have, though.

Garrett has had a very busy and fun last month or so, with much more excitement to come. On August 24th, he was the guest of honor at a Rockies game and was able to spend some time on the field with the players during batting practice. He was given a bat and it was signed by 9 players while he visited with them. Jessi, too, got a cap and a ball from Jeff Francis. Very cool day! He also got to go to a Bronco's game with his "Auntie Barb", which was a thrill for him. Then on Monday, Garrett received the honor of throwing out the first pitch at the last game of the year for the Sky Sox.

A big event coming up will be a trip to Orlando, FL to Disney World. It will happen after his biopsy surgery, so will be a very welcomed and exciting time to be sure. The kids are beside themselves with anticipation. The trip is compliments of the Make A Wish foundation. We will be able to stay at a site specifically for families of kids with terminal or life-threatening illnesses. I still can't believe it's going to happen. We've always dreamed of taking the kids there, but knew that financially we could not come close if we had to do it on our own.

As this adventure of ours has found legs of its own and traveled around, we've had tremendous opportunities to share Garrett's Journey with some very inspirational folks. Most recently, we've been contacted to share Garrett's story in writing and pictures for an event later this year at the Air Force Academy. The event is planned to share stories of folks who have dealt with challenges and kept on fighting. Then most recently, Kathy and I were guests at a special invite-only event to kick off the AFA football season. The room was filled with war heroes, athletes, business champions and boosters. The list of names would blow you away! We were asked to share our story that evening and were honored to do so. Any opportunity to share the many blessings we've received is truly appreciated.

We've stayed busy, trying not to think about the upcoming biopsy surgery, but it's now just around the corner and we can't help but wonder. Garrett has especially been anxious and has shown the out-of-character lows so rarely seen in him. He's been having some severe nightmares and is really scared that the biopsy will not come back favorable. My heart breaks for he and Jessi, as they carry fears that little kids shouldn't have to carry. We try to console and inspire them to think positive. Garrett's been feeling pretty good overall, but we did have to take him back to the hospital the other day because he thought his heart was failing. It wasn't, but he doesn't know when he feels a pinch or pain in his chest if it's a bad thing. With the mercy of God, the biopsy will prove that we've not just knocked this demon down, but we've knocked it down and out!

I did talk to the doctors, who admit that they truly don't know until the results come back. They're "cautiously optimistic", but can only say that they know for sure that Garrett has improved a lot. He's still not back to where we need him to be, but he's doing better since he got sick in August. But we really don't know if the bad cells are still lingering and going to re-appear. If that happens, it's back to the hospital for a few months to start over with a "more aggressive" approach. I can only liken it to pouring weed killer on crabgrass. The weed on the surface dies, and the grass gets greener. But unless you kill the root, it will eventually come back stronger and kill the grass. If that happens, you have to either find a stronger weed killer that also might harm the grass, or you have to transplant the grass.

So for now, again, we pray for continued resilience and determination. With the loss of Garrett's cousin, his other cousin in stage IV cancer, our cowboy gets a little down sometimes. Jessi, too, cried to me the other day, out of the blue. She said "daddy, I don't want God to let us lose Garrett or Levi, too". I just have to remind them that our God is so loving, so wise and so perfect, we just have to trust in His plan, not ours. Whatever happens, we will win because Jesus already fought the toughest battle for us. Just today we watched the news of so many folks who've lost their homes in the fires up north. We're blessed!

This weekend, Garrett gets to be a "Cadet for a Weekend" at the Air Force Academy. He gets to hang out with the team and see all kinds of very cool things. These tremendous events do so much to help the kids think of the fun things and not focus on what comes ahead. I'm so grateful for folks willing to help them like this.

As a daddy and a husband, I tend to doubt my abilities to protect my family. I'll keep working hard every day to do what I believe is right in God's eyes and do my best to give the rest to Him. We'll never live in a vacuum or stick our lower lip out for long. Life is too precious and everyone has challenges.

I hope this note finds all of our cherished friends safe and happy. You all bless us every day with your thoughts and prayers.

Be blessed, always.

JD