Day 270

     Katie caught a cough and cold this past week.  We have been watching her closely - if she gets a fever over 100 we have to take her to the hospital.  We are glad she hasn't spiked a fever.  We will be taking Katie to the clinic on Wednesday for chemo (which means she will also start her 5 days of steroids).  It is hard to believe it has been a month already! 
     Katie is scheduled to get her port removed on August 17th.  I have mixed emotions about that... but I know it is best if we get it removed.  I just worry about her going through the surgery.  I asked about platelets (which she is severely allergic to) and I was told she will only get platelets if absolutely necessary.  When Katie got her port put in she went into severe encephalitic shock and the doctor had to do chest compressions on her during the surgery.  Hence my worry about taking it out.  Although I have been told the removal of the port is much easier than putting it in.  So, I will try to control my worry.
     Other than her cold, Katie seems to be doing well.  Her hair is growing - it has lightened up in color - and she is very excited about getting hair.  Conner keeps getting hurt somehow.  Is it just the age?  Or just part of being a boy?   Whatever it is, it is stressful!  We got great news this week for Nathan.  We have been working (fighting) with the school district for a year and a half, trying to get appropriate services for Nathan because of his Dyslexia.  We met again on Friday and they finally agreed to pay for a one-on-one Dyslexia tutor for him during the school day!  It has been a long hard battle, but this will completely change his life and we couldn't be more pleased!  - Blessings are flowing and we are grateful!
     Susan W. Tanner has said: "I delight in the Lord's mercies and miracles (see "Bless Our Fast, We Pray," Hymns, no. 138). I know that His tender mercies and His miracles, large and small, are real. They come in His way and on His timetable. Sometimes it is not until we have reached our extremity. Jesus's disciples on the Sea of Galilee had to toil in rowing against a contrary wind all through the night before Jesus finally came to their aid. He did not come until the "fourth watch," meaning near dawn. Yet He did come. (See Mark 6:45-51.) My testimony is that miracles do come, though sometimes not until the fourth watch."  ("My Soul Delighteth in the Things of the Lord," Ensign, May 2008, 83).