Our Lottery Ticket

The boys playing around

Carter gazing...probably Noggin

I asked Matt today to buy a lottery ticket for us while he was out. I figured with everything happening to us right now, there must be some good luck heading our way. Matt said, “Our one in a million chance already happened.” We had to chuckle because those are the chances of being diagnosed with hepatoblastoma. It is still pretty unreal that this is our reality. Much like a lottery winner is probably in shock months after their winning day.

Many people have asked what they can do to help during this time. Well, there are a few things that can help other children like Carter, and maybe even Carter directly. But most importantly, some of these things can save lives.

1) When Carter was diagnosed, one of the oncologists at CHOC said take everything you know about adult cancer and throw it out the window. Pediatric cancer is so different from adult cancer at all different levels. Pediatric cancer is rare in and of itself that if you take all the types of pediatric cancer and group them together, this only encompasses less than 10% of all diagnosed breast cancer in adults. And within pediatric cancer, Carter has a very rare type of children’s cancer. Because of the rarity of pediatric cancer, little research is done to find cures. If you are looking for a cause to donate to, please consider donating money to pediatric cancer research.

2) Another easy thing for people to do is donate blood to their local children’s hospital. It is always useful and always in need.

3) The last thing is something Matt and I didn’t take the time to do until last month. Organ donation. We figured we can’t talk the talk unless we walked the walk. If you can answer this simple question, you can decide whether or not you should be an organ donor. Would you accept an organ to save your own life (or that of your child)? If your answer is “yes”, you know what to do…visit: Donate Life America.

Sorry for the ranting, but these are things that have become very important to our family in the past month and a half.

Carter has had a lot of energy the past couple of days. He’s been running around the house and playing with Bennett like the old days. He has gained his independence back, and does not just want to sit on the sofa cuddling Mom all day. It’s so nice to see. He was getting a little tired and almost seemed lethargic tonight, but we think he’s just exhausted from all the activity (and the fact that a salesman rang our doorbell during naptime to cut short his sleep). We are still constantly watching him and always on alert for any strange behavior. It’s just something you have to stay on top of when they are going through treatment. But, he didn’t have a fever and started acting rambunctious with Bennett before bedtime. So, we feel relieved (for now).