4th of July!

Happy Independence Day! We hope everyone had a great, but safe, day! We were blessed with a visit from Grandpa Gordon and Grandma Joann. They can stay for a couple of days! We spent most of the day swimming and hanging out by the pool. We went back home to grill porkchops for supper. Grandpa and the girls did a great job! It was such a beautiful day! After supper we went over to the park to light our parachutes (we made the mistake of lighting them at home last night - some poor parachuter is in his new tree home). The girls had a blast chasing down the parachutes! We lit a few more in the evening and saved some for when it got darker. Unfortunately, Jeff is on duty today, but we had some firework fun with Dad last night!

It has been a while since we have updated (no news is good news!). Kerstin continues to feel great! She did wake up ravenous yesterday morning, ate two bowls of Cheerios, and then slept for 3 more hours! We had Vacation Bible School last week which kept us all busy, but very happy! Kerstin gets to visit Dr. G. on Thursday. We hope for more good news!

Have a blessed week!

TNT BBQ

Last night Kerstin and her family attended a Team in Training BBQ. We had a great time meeting lots of new athletes and honored patients (and seeing some familiar faces). The food was great and we had beautiful weather for it. Thanks again to Ryan and Sheri for hosting, and big thanks to all the athletes and what they do to raise money for the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society. (Click the title for more pictures.)

No More Training Wheels

Kerstin reached another mile stone today: no more training wheels. We have tried a couple of times this summer without success. She didn't really even want to try today, but we "convinced" her to. Her mom had to hold her up the first couple of attempts, then dad took over. After five feet of holding on to her, he let go and Kerstin didn't even realize it. For about 30 yards all Kerstin could say was, "I can't do it, I can't do it." Her dad who was walking three feet to her side finally said, "But you are doing it." After that there was no stopping her. (Except for one minor crash.) We can finally get rid of her junky little "training" bike and she can ride her new bike full time now. (Click on the title "No More Training Wheels" for more pictures.)

Father's Day

Kerstin and her family participated in the Father's Day Trail Trek. There was a 5, 12, and 24 mile routes. 5 miles was good enough for us this year. After the ride there was a picnic and fun stuff to do at Antelope park. (For more pictures click on the title "Father's Day".)

Update

Just thought we had better give an update. Kerstin actually is fighting a cough/cold this week. She woke up Tuesday morning sounding "croupy". We had a nice visit to her pediatrician who assured us it is just a virus. The cough is hanging on, but she is hanging in there. I can tell that it has made her a bit more tired than usual.

We have been busy with swim team for McKinsey and swimming lessons for Kerstin started this week. We LOVE the pool!

Today we had a lot of fun things to do. We started off by getting to go see the new movie "Cars" courtesy of our insurance agent. Thanks, Chuck! What a fun movie! We also brought some things to a garage sale at a friend's house where the girls had fun selling treats. Next, we drove to Omaha for a Team in Training event. The Tahoe century bike riders got together for their pool and picture party. (The picture above is from that event today - Kerstin swam quite a bit, but found some time to "hang out" next to the pool and make our friend Darren play silly games :) It was fun to see the riders and coaches again. We also got to meet the other honored patient, Rachel and her family. What wonderful people! Coach Mike made an awesome video of the event. We continue to be amazed and inspired by all the wonderful people out there who work so hard to raise money for the Leukemia and Lymphoma society! We know that they are really making a difference for kids like Kerstin. (Click the title "Update" for more TNT party pictures.)

Thanks for checking on us! Have a Happy Father's Day all of you Dad's out there tomorrow!!! Annie

Survivors Night at the Zoo

Kerstin, McKinsey and Annie went to the Lincoln Zoo for a Cancer Survivors Celebration last night. We had a nice time seeing all the new exhibits and animals. McKinsey was especially interested in the monkeys! They had pizza, brownies, and prizes, too! It was nice to see so many people and hear about the progress in Cancer research. We have already made plans to attend next year! (Click on the title "Survivors Night at the Zoo" for more pictures.)

Fun with J and J

We have sure been enjoying our summer so far! McKinsey started swim team at the Raquet Club this week. All three girls (Mom included) have enjoyed many fun days at their outdoor pool! Today we had fun bringing our friends Joshua and Jonah (and their Mom :) to the pool with us. Swimming is always more fun with friends! We even went to Eileens for a delicious cookie afterward!

Kerstin continues to feel great! She made it through her Atra week just fine. We pray that she will continue to feel good through the weekend! Thanks so much for checking on us and leaving such encouraging messages. We appreciate all of you! Happy Summer!

Saltdogs Game

Monday night was LEA night (Lincoln Education Association) at the Saltdogs game. Kerstin and her sister had a good time, even though they didn't see much of the game. (Click on the title "Saltdogs Game" for pictures.)

CureSearch Walk

Yesterday we took part in the CureSearch walk in Omaha. Kerstin's team raised just over $1200. The organizers announced that $50,000 had been raised for this event by all the teams. That's awesome! We want to thank everyone who donated to CureSearch. Just FYI, approximately 94-96% of all funds raised go directly to pediatric cancer research. The picture is of team Kerstin (click on the title for more pictures of the walk).

Caps for a Cure Day!

Wow! We are overwhelmed by the wonderful support of the staff and students at Rousseau. Today was the last day of school, and Caps for a Cure Day! A huge number of students and staff wore hats and brought donations for CureSearch. We raised $477!!! That is so awesome! Thank you to all the wonderful Rousseau families for your generous support! Thanks also to our friends who helped collect the donations this morning. We were able to start the day by having donuts in our driveway before we all walked to school together. It was a fun Last Day of School.

Saturday is the Walk for CureSearch in Omaha. Our new total is now $1092!!! We surpassed our $800 goal. Let us know if you would like to join us for the walk. It should be a fun time!

Have a blessed day!

Family Fun

We are so excited to have family in town this weekend. Cousins Jeremy and Trevor are here for a soccer tournament along with Uncle Jay. Grandma Clarice and Papa Gene are here, too! We were able to see TJ play this afternoon at Abbott. We had a nice dinner out and then came home, and the kids played outside. They even climbed the tree in the front yard (with a little help!).

Kerstin continues to feel great! She had a little headache at bedtime tonight, but Motrin seemed to do the trick.

Our new CureSearch total is $485! We are over halfway to our goal! If you would still like to donate, you can donate on-line http://www.firstgiving.com/kerstinscuresearch. If you are a Rousseau family, you can donate on the last day of school. Bring a donation to school, and you can wear your favorite hat!

Thanks so much for checking on us. Please say an extra prayer for our friend, Abby, who is starting maintenance and is not feeling well right now. You can visit her at http://www.caringbridge.org/visit/abbybridgewater. Tell her that Kerstin sent you!

Caps for a Cure

On Thursday, June 1st (the last day of school), Kerstin and McKinsey are sponsoring "Caps for a Cure." All students and staff at Rousseau will be encouraged to wear a hat to school and bring a small monetary donation. The girls made a bunch of posters which we hung up at school this morning. All the money raised will go to CureSearch, a national childhood cancer research organization. We are planning to participate in the CureSearch walk on June 3rd in Omaha. So far, as a family, we have raised $325 for CureSearch! If you would like to contribute to this worthy cause, you can mail a check to our home address or you can donate on-line at
http://www.firstgiving.com/kerstinscuresearch.

Thanks so much for checking on us! Kerstin continues to feel great! We are thankful for this wonderful blessing!

Children's Museum Field Trip

Kerstin and her class got to go on their last field trip yesterday. Annie got to go along. They spent a couple of hours at the Lincoln Children's Museum. The kids (and grown-ups, too) always find plenty to do there. Kerstin was taking money for the pizza I ordered in this picture.

Holmes Lake park was the setting for a picnic lunch. The kids ate quickly and had lots of time to play on the playground. Kerstin and her Mom had a great time! The weather was awesome!

Our new CureSearch total is $215!!! Thanks so much to everyone who has contributed. For more information, see last Thursday's post or go to www.firstgiving.com/kerstinscuresearch.

A good week!

We just wanted to let everyone know that this past Atra week was very good! Kerstin only had a couple of minor headaches this weekend. Last night she said, "I don't have a headache at all!!" She is also very proud of now being able to swallow her Mercaptapurine whole (we had been cutting it in half)!

Our CureSearch total is $150. If you would like to be a part of the Walk for CureSearch or donate to a great cause, see last Thursday's post for details.

Thanks for all of your support and prayers. We KNOW that it has made a huge difference! God's blessings to you!

Make-A-Wish Golf Tournament

Saturday was the Make-A-Wish Foundation golf tournament. Kerstin was one of two honored patients in attendance. The other child there was Alex Ford whose wish was granted this past winter. His wish was to play golf in Hawaii. The golf tournament was also used as a surprise party for Kerstin to let her know that her wish to learn how to hula dance in Hawaii has been granted. Kerstin and her family will be traveling to Hawaii on July 11th for one week of fun in the sun.

We wanted to take this opportunity to thank everyone who participated in the golf tournament and the sponsors: Lincoln Federal Bank, HiMark Golf Club and Bunkers Club House, Make-A-Wish Foundation, and all of the other businesses who are too many to list.

For more pictures of the golf tournament, click on the title "Make-A-Wish Golf Tournament"

Safety Fair

Annie took Kerstin and her sister to the South Pointe Safety Fair. They got to see their dad in action at one of the exhibits - the Lincoln Fire & Rescue Fire Safety House. This is a large camper that has been converted into a miniature house where the kids can learn to safely get out of a home that is on fire.

CureSearch Walk

Dear Friends and Family,

On June 3rd, our family will be participating in a walk to raise money specifically for childhood cancer research, and we need your help. Childhood cancer is the leading cause of death in children, killing more kids than AIDS, asthma, diabetes, and Cystic Fibrosis combined. There are 46 children under the age of 20 diagnosed with cancer everyday, and those numbers are rising.

Kerstin, and the many other kids like her, have become our inspiration for “Walking for CureSearch.” “In the Arms of Friends” is organizing this event which will be held at Village Point Shopping Center in Omaha. We hope that you can help us by sending a monetary donation so we can make sure that kids like Kerstin can survive this horrible disease, and that new treatments with fewer side effects are discovered. All the money raised in this event will go directly to CureSearch — the leading cancer research organization. Your donation will make a huge difference in the fight against this disease. For more information on CureSearch, you can go to www.curesearch.com on the internet. You can donate in a couple of ways. You can send a check to our address listed below made out to CureSearch. You can also donate on-line by going to www.firstgiving.com/kerstinscuresearch. All donations should be sent to us by June 3rd. We would also welcome anyone who would like to walk with us. We are so grateful for the support we have received in the past, and we thank you in advance for considering this cause that is near and dear to our hearts.

Jeff and Annie Leaf

4030 S. 30^th St.

Lincoln, NE 68502

Bike Rodeo

Rousseau Elementary held its annual bike rodeo today. Kerstin has been talking about it all week and was very excited to get to go. (She hopes to have the training wheels off some time this summer.) She is still pain free this week and we're keeping our fingers crossed.

TNT Info Meeting

Kerstin attended a Team in Training informational meeting tonight. There were a lot of potential athletes in attendence. It is great to see all the potential new members, and the TNT staff. Their passion for this cause is wonderful. If you are interested in Team in Training, you can go to http://www.teamintraining.org/hm_tnt for more information.

Mid-ATRA Week

It's Wednesday night of the ATRA week and all is well. The latest dosing schedule seems to be helping ward off the headaches (and other body aches). Keep the prayers coming.

TNT - Marathon

Patti, one of Annie's teaching colleagues, ran the Lincoln Half Marathon today. She ran as part of the Team in Training program, raising money for the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society with Kerstin as her honored patient. Patti has run the marathon in the past for a few other children, including her own daughter. Patti's daughter was diagnosed with Leukemia when she was 7. Ashley is doing great now, and even has a daughter of her own! Patti came over to visit us this evening. She looked great for running 13 miles this morning! She generously gave her TNT medal and her visors that she designed for the race to Kerstin. Another medal! Kerstin thought that was pretty cool that someone would run so far just for her! We are once again deeply moved by the kindness and generosity of others! God has been so good to us. He has brought so many wonderful people into our lives and hearts. Thank you, Patti for being and inspiration to us!

Wedding

Annie's cousin, Steve, got married in Kearney this weekend. Grandma Clarice and Papa Gene picked up Annie and the girls (unfortunately Jeff had to stay in Lincoln to work) after school on Friday, and we stayed the night in Holdrege with Uncle Brian and Brenna. The girls had a great time playing together. They had plenty of time to jump on the trampoline and dance on Friday night and Saturday morning. We were even able to celebrate Brenna's 10th birthday! It was fun to see all of Annie's aunts, uncles and cousins at the wedding on Saturday. We stayed overnight at a hotel in Kearney. The girls and grown-ups all had a great time swimming in the pool. On Sunday morning we visited Uncle Richard and Aunt Kay (and Brenna's chick, Softie) at their home in Kearney. You can check out my sister's blog for a cute chick picture. See links at the top left of this site - McKinsey's corner. All in all, it was a fun, but exhausting weekend. Kerstin felt really great all weekend, but was quite tired on Sunday. She was able to sleep most of the way home. Thanks for checking on us and for your prayers!

Gold Star Banquet

We attended the Foundation for Lincoln Public Schools Gold Star Banquet tonight where Kerstin was one of many honorees. Kerstin's principal (shown on the left) nominated her for the award and wrote this on the nomination application: "Bravery is defined as extreme courage in the face of difficulty. Rousseau kindergartener Kerstin Leaf deserves a gold star for demonstrating such bravery. This bright-eyed five year old has shown fierce determination in her battle with leukemia. Despite her illness, Kerstin has been able to keep up on her kindergarten schoolwork, has passed all assessments with flying colors, and is back with her friends and classmates at Rousseau School. She has taught us all what it's like to live courageously." Kerstin received a medal and a certificate.

Also pictured is one of the outstanding para-professionals at Rousseau who was also honored at the banquet.

May Day

Kerstin, McKinsey, and Annie spent a rainy Sunday making May Day baskets. It was all worth it when the girls got to deliver the goodies this evening. They were ready for a speedy get-a-way on their scooters. They did get caught once, but not kissed! Ha!

Books and Beyond

Kerstin woke up this morning and declared that nothing was hurting! She felt just "perfect"! Praise God! We are so glad to have our joyful child back! She missed an awards assembly on Friday, so Mrs. Braun, the principal, came in to her class today to present her and another friend with their medals. Rousseau has this great program called Books and Beyond where the students read books and write them down. For the kindergarteners they have to record 15 books per sheet. Any student that filled at least 5 sheets in the 6 week period got a medal, a certificate, and a new book. Kerstin was thrilled to get her "first medal ever"!

Rough 24 Hours

The past 24 hours have been pretty rough. Starting Thursday Kerstin was complaining of a headache and some general body aches. The Tylenol and Motrin was taking the edge off, but not getting rid of the pain. Yesterday morning Kerstin was in a lot of pain. She finally got exhausted enough to sleep for a while in the afternoon, but that was just a temporary reprieve for her. By bed time last night she was writhing in pain from head to toe. This is the most uncomfortable we have ever seen her. It was bad enough that she would even hold her breath to give her just a few seconds of relief. So, after a late night phone conversation with the on-call doctor and a trip to one of the 24 hour pharmacies in town, we have some stronger pain medicine which as of this morning seems to be helping. Kerstin is still experiencing some arm pain, but she is feeling good enough to get up and move around without complete misery.

Life is full of peaks and valleys, and we are obviously going through one of our valleys right now. Even with all the pain we have never heard Kerstin say, "Why me?" Since the beginning of this journey we have tried to teach her that life is not fair and God has a special purpose for all of us. Kerstin knows that she is not alone on this journey and there are many other children on the same path. With the help and support of these other "cancer kids", family, and friends, she has adopted our "take it head on" attitude and takes every day in stride knowing that we do what we have to do to make forward progress.

Thank you for all of your thoughts and prayers, and please keep all of the other "cancer kids" lifted up as well.

New Scooter

Kerstin has been saving her money for something special. Yesterday she found it: a new scooter.

Today she had her doctor's appointment with Dr. G. Labs were good: ANC up to 2412. This is her ATRA week and she didn't get a headache until yesterday. Today she woke up with neck/back/arm/leg pain. We are hoping it is just from all the scooter riding yesterday. Dr. G is still concerned about the headaches and may become concerned about the whole body aches if the scooter riding theory doesn't hold up. Everything else checked out ok.

We hope everyone else has had a good week. The weekend is just around the corner :)

Sister's Web Site

Kerstin's sister, McKinsey, has started her own web site now. The link is over on the left titled "McKinsey's Corner".

ATRA Sunday

Today is day one of ATRA week. We are hoping a consistent dose of phenergan will help prevent (or reduce) the headaches that Kerstin experiences during her ATRA weeks. We are also scheduled to see Dr. G in Lincoln on Thursday for counts and a checkup.

The last couple of days have been great for playing outside and the girls made the most of them. We even had an spur of the moment picnic yesterday in the park. (Sorry, no pictures.) We hope you all had a great weekend. Abby and Hanna, hang in there.

Good Wednesday

Kerstin's headaches have finally gone away. Unfortunately she starts the ATRA again on Sunday and we fear the headaches will return. She is scheduled to see Dr. G next Thursday. Hopefully he will be able to do something about the headaches after seeing her mid-ATRA week. Until then we will try to enjoy the nice (windy) weather.

Easter Sunday

Kerstin and her sister got their Easter dresses on and went Easter egg hunting this morning. Kerstin's ATRA week is over, but she is still having some bad headaches. We continue to "experiment" with her medications to find a good combination to reduce the side effects. Other than that, her appetite is very good and her hair continues to grow back.

We hope you all enjoyed a blessed Easter. Take care and God bless. 

Wiped Out!

After the egg hunt this morning, we walked home and the girls HAD to sort through all the goodies. Kerstin was complaining of a headache and stomach ache. I (Annie) gave her some Phenergan and an ice pack and then went to fix lunch. By the time lunch was ready, Kerstin was crashed on the living room. I moved her to her bed (she didn't even open her eyes), and she took an hour and a half nap. When she woke up, she was feeling much better. The rest of the day she felt pretty good. She came down with another headache this evening, but felt better after taking some Tylenol. The last few days have seemed like a series of ups and downs, although not as bad as two weeks ago.

Thanks so much for checking on us! Happy Easter to you all!

Egg Hunt

Our wonderful neighborhood association holds an Easter egg hunt each year. This year Annie and the girls even got to help clean up the park and hide the treats beforehand. There were many wonderful goodies to be found. Kerstin even found a numbered egg that meant she won a HUGE Easter basket. McKinsey won a cute butterfly. There were only a few raindrops before the hunt began, otherwise it was a beautiful morning! 

Feeling Better

Kerstin's runny nose has seemed to clear up. She went back to school yesterday, but experienced several headaches during the day. They don't seem to be as severe as she has experienced, but it would still be nice not to have them at all. The kids have the day off from school (Good Friday) and it looks like the weather is going to be great. I have a feeling we will be spending a lot of time outside today.

We hope you all have a great Easter weekend.

Runny Nose

Kerstin stayed home from school today because of a runny nose. No fever, or headache, or stomach ache, just a lot of green stuff coming out. So far, her new ATRA dose seems to be working without giving her some of the problems she has been having in the past few weeks. It's always a bummer to have a head cold with such nice weather.

Spring Cleaning

Kerstin and McKinsey and I (Annie) spent the rest of the afternoon today working outside. The weather was beautiful! The girls decided it was time to clean out the play house. They swept and mopped and filled 2 bags of trash. They also rearranged the play house and had me move in their portable chalkboard. The play house has not been transformed into a one room school! What fun! Kerstin felt great all day! We pray that this will continue all week long! Have a blessed week!

Bowling

Kerstin, McKinsey and Annie were able to spend a few hours this afternoon bowling with the Lincoln Candlelighters. This group is for families of children with cancer or other serious diseases. We haven't been able to get to a monthly meeting since December, so it was nice to be able to go today and have a fun time!

A Day in Omaha

We were able to spend the day in Omaha today as a family. We ate lunch with some great friends at our favorite Omaha pizza place, Zios! Then we headed over to Children's Hospital with a wagon full of gifts for the 6th floor playroom. Kerstin and McKinsey asked their friends to donate a gift to the hospital at their recent birthday party. Stacy, the child life specialist, was thrilled with all the goodies for the patients.

We were also able to meet up with some other Omaha chums for some kid playtime and adult chit chat.

We finished off the day with a family card party in Lincoln. What a great day of socializing! We are blessed to have such wonderful friends!

Thanks so much for checking on us. Keep Kerstin in your prayers this week as she has to take her Atra meds again. We are hoping that a change in dosage will help the nausea. We do have some new nausea medicine as a back-up plan. God's blessings to you!

No Cavities

Kerstin had her 6 month dental check up this morning, and she remains a part of the "no cavity club".

Headache update: Kerstin's headaches finally went away over the weekend. We are hoping next week when she goes back on the ATRA, the reduced dose will help keep the headaches away.

Thanks for checking in, and we hope you all have a good week.

Doctor's Appointment

Kerstin had her scheduled doctor's appointment yesterday at St. E's in Lincoln. As a bonus, we also ran in to Lauren and her dad there as well. Kerstin's counts are holding steady at 1318. Our biggest concern are the increased headaches she has been having. After some discussion, we have decided that she will skip the rest of the ATRA for this week, and when her next ATRA week comes we are going to reduce the dose. The Zofran has worked great on the nausea, but the headaches it gives her are terrible. An alternate medication we talked about is Anzemet. According to the literature it appears to have about the same incident of headaches as the Zofran. If anyone has any experience with the Anzemet, we would love to hear from you. In the mean time if we need something for the nausea, we'll go with the Phenergan. On the bright side, Kerstin's headaches have begun to fade since she stopped taking the Zofran and ATRA.

We hope everyone has a great weekend. Take care and thank you for the prayers.

Feeling crummy again

Just wanted to give a quick update. Kerstin is on her "tough" medication week. She has had a headache since Monday that just won't go away. She has even asked for Tylenol, which we have been giving her, but it doesn't seem to help. Yesterday she slept in until 9:30 and then took naps at 11:15 and after school. She didn't sleep well last night (maybe too much naps???), continuing to complain of a headache. This morning she still had a headache, so I didn't give her any morning meds. She barely ate anything and even threw up this morning. She also said that things were kind of blurry. When she laid on the floor while we were playing Barbies, I knew that she just wasn't feeling well. She ended up sleeping for a couple of hours this afternoon which seemed to help a little bit.

Jeff is working today, but Annie was able to stay home with Kerstin and even called the clinic. Dr. G recommended skipping some of her meds today and making sure she gets lots of rest. We have an appointment to see him at St. E's in the morning (it was our previously scheduled appointment anyway). He plans to give her a check up including looking at her eyes. Thanks for checking on us and for your continued prayers. We know that days like today are just little bumps in the road. Thanks also for your prayers for our friends Abby, Hannah, Mary, Elissa, and many others.

RSS Feed

Now you can follow Kerstin using an RSS feed. To find out more, click on the "Helping Kerstin" link on the left side of this site. Next, click on the "RSS Feed" link on the left side. That will take you to a page with more information. Thanks.

Team In Training

Saturday morning Kerstin got to meet about 30 of the Team In Training athletes before one of their training rides. The Omaha team (pictured) presented Kerstin with a teddy bear and a t-shirt. Kerstin brought some granola bars to pass out to the athletes. It was a great opportunity for the athletes and Kerstin to meet each other. For more pictures, click on the title "Team In Training."

Back Home

No exciting pictures for this post. (Unless you wanted to see the piles of dirty laundry from the trip.) We made it back home this afternoon. Kerstin is feeling pretty good. We had our fingers crossed the whole trip hoping that she would stay healthy. It was also nice Kerstin had her "easy" medicine week while we were on the road. We're hoping our new game plan for the "hard" medicine week works next week to keep her from getting sick to her stomach.

Thanks for the prayers, and please keep all those who couldn't enjoy spring break away from the hospital/clinic in your prayers as well.

Ice Skating

Kerstin and her sister got to strap on ice skates for the first time today. Both of the girls have been roller skating before, but they soon found out it's a lot different on the ice. We only lasted for about 45 minutes (which was long enough). The rest of the day was spent napping, going to the IKEA store, eating, and swimming. Tomorrow it's back to Nebraska.

Dinosaurs

After looking at all the fish, we went to the dinosaur exhibit. Kerstin's sister is studying dinosaurs in school right now so it was an excellent learning experience. (As well as a chance to sit down and relax.) Click on the title "Dinosaurs" for more pictures.

Aquarium

We visited the aquarium that is under the Mall of America. We even got to see them release a new sand tiger shark in to the shark tank with the rest of the fish. (Click on the title "Aquarium" for more pictures.)

Easter Bunny

The Easter Bunny even made it to Minnesota.

Flower Show

We took the "light rail" train to downtown Minneapolis just to check things out. While we were there we went to Marshall Fields to see the infamous flower show. (Click on the title "Flower Show" to see more pictures.)

Meeting Friends for Lunch

Tuesday we met Rose and Alex Bouvier for lunch at the Rain Forest Cafe in the Mall of America. It was a fun lunch and we were all glad not to be back in Nebraska scooping snow.

Mall of America

We spent the day (and I mean all day) at the Mall of America riding all the rides at what used to be "Camp Snoopy". Kerstin and her sister had a really great time. They should sleep really good tonight. :) Click on the title "Mall of America" for more pictures.

Back in the Water

This is the first time that Kerstin has been back in a swimming pool since she was diagnosed in October. In addition to getting the ok from her doctor to travel, he gave her the ok to use swimming pools again.

Birthday Party in MN

We visited some friends that live just east of the Twin Cities metroplex. In addition to a great supper, they had an impromptu birthday party for the girls.

Sick Again

Kerstin got nauseated today and vomited several times, so she missed another day of school. We can kind of see a pattern now with her medications and her getting sick. One of the meds she takes only every other week, and it seems about half way through that week she starts to get sick to her stomach. We called the clinic and talked it over. The called in a prescription of Zofran to the pharmacy. That seems to be the trick. Kerstin will now take the Zofran during her every other week of ATRA.

After the Zofran, a really long nap, and some supper, she was even feeling good enough to go to the ballet (Snow White) for which we had tickets for.

Fairies for Friends

We wanted to let you know about a wonderful opportunity our friend, Abby, is offering. For a donation of $5 or more, you can get your very own hand-made fairy. Abby, who is being treated for Leukemia at Children's Hospital, is making the fairies as a fundraiser for In the Arms of Friends. This brave 8-year-old is using her time stuck indoors with very low counts to benefit a wonderful organization. In the Arms of Friends provides all families of children with cancer a wonderful bag of items immediately upon diagnosis. The items include a treatment journal to keep track of all the mountains of paperwork you receive, gift cards, a disposable camera, a stuffed pet, and much more. This group also provided snacks for families at the Oncology clinic and much, much more. You can visit their website at www.inthearmsoffriends.org to find out more.

In order to get your own gorgeous fairy, go to Abby's website at www.caringbridge.org/visit/abbybridgewater and follow the directions. Tell them that Kerstin sent you. We are so proud of Abby and her mom, Kristi, for being so generous and giving. What an example they are for us all! Abby had hoped to raise $500. So far they have collected an amazing $1,825!!!

Thanks for checking on us! Have a blessed day!

Birthday Party

Kerstin and her sister had a combined birthday party this year, and this year they decided they wanted to have a movie theater party. They each got to invite five friends. The girls had ice cream and Barbie cake, opened presents, got a tour of the theater projection room, and then watched the movie "The Shaggy Dog". In addition to personal presents, each girl brought something to donate to the Children's Hospital arts and crafts room. (Thank you again everyone.)

Unfortunately, one of the invited girls was unable to make it to the party. Abby's (http://www.caringbridge.org/visit/abbybridgewater) counts were not high enough for her to be able to join us at the theater. However, we were able to meet up with her and her mom for a quick present exchange while they were on their way back to Omaha.

To see all of the pictures from the day, click on the title "Birthday Party".