Went to Hawaii on Thursday . . . .

3/24/2012: 10:05 AM

An amazing week.

My sister Amy told me about this website, Goalforit.com, that creates an online chore and behavior chart for each child in the family. I can assign the chores and behaviors a point value and when the child reaches a certain amount of points, he/she can cash it in for prizes that I have assigned. So far, so good. Davis' chore chart includes being thankful (no complaining), being respectful, and taking his medication on time without complaint. Annakate's chore chart includes no yelling, picking up after herself, and practicing the piano (something she is not a fan of). Of course, there are other chores as well. Needless to say, we haven't had the medication fight with Davis this week. I hope this is the start of something new and permanent.

There was quite a surprise waiting for Davis at school on Thursday. While he was in the hospital and on spring break, his teachers and the parents of both Miss Goodchild's and Mrs. Meyer's classes organized a day in Hawaii for Davis. Since he was unable to attend his Make-A-Wish vacation because of a hospital stay, they brought Hawaii to him.

The room was abundantly decorated. There was even a banquet table for food set up on the north side of the room. There were palm trees, fish nets, flowers, tiki torches, shells, leis; all the things you would imagine seeing in Hawaii. Some of Davis' classmates were even wearing Hawaiian shirts. When Davis walked into the classroom, he didn't get it. He had no idea what to make of it. Mrs. Meyer explained to him that his classmates' parents worked really hard to bring Hawaii to him since he was unable to go. He was speechless.

At lunch time, Mrs. Meyer's class and Miss. Goodchild's class filled the classroom for a feast. The kids munched on pizza, Hawaiian rolls, pineapple, grapes, strawberries, and cookies. The kids even had treat bags full of goodies too.  A big thank you to Papa John's for giving the classes a substantial discount on pizzas.

The feast ended with a presentation from Mikayla Kuznicki on behalf of her family. To my understanding, the Kuznicki family has a friend who is native to Hawaii. I believe she made two authentic leis for Davis. The leis are beautiful. Davis is very careful with them. He takes them out of the box, shows them off, and puts them right back up. I think he is afraid they are going to be broken.

I know that there were a lot of families involved in making this day so special for Davis and for the rest of the classes. I wish those of you who are not familiar with the children Davis goes to school with could see how these children have bonded and become a little fifth grade family of sorts.  I feel like Davis (and we) have a support group like no other. A heart-felt thank you to the Simmons family, the Schutzbach family, the Kuznicki family, the Holly family, the Cox family, the Williamson family, the Hendrix family, the Ebinger family, the Cline family, the Gandolfi family, and the countless others who helped or offered. The families of Davis' classmates raise the bar on generosity, support, and kindness; and we are forever grateful.

After Thursday, Friday was pretty anti-climatic, but it was Friday, so that was a plus. Davis has baseball try-outs today. I am a nervous wreck. I am worried that he is going to be injured or too weak to do much of anything. I don't know if he is even strong enough to hold up his bat for consecutive pitches. His whole body hurts every night and morning; we assume that he is building muscle again. He is worried that he is going to make a fool of himself in front of all of his friends. I assured him that they understand that being sick has taken a lot out of him, but he is convinced otherwise. I will let you know how it goes. The doctor did tell us that stepping back into "normal" life is difficult and scary. I guess this is what he meant.

Medically, we don't get blood counts again until Thursday. I am eager to see how he is doing. He seems great, so no worries here. We still appreciate and need your positive thoughts and prayers. This battle isn't over yet.

We will keep you posted.