Climbing the Walls (Literally)

Kerstin has been telling us how she can climb all the way to the top of the climbing wall at school. So Jeff went up one day to get photographic evidence. Kerstin had no problem scampering up the wall and didn't show an ounce of fear.

Busy Weekend

Kerstin kept very busy this weekend. Saturday morning she went to the Star City Parade in downtown Lincoln. She and some other Make-A-Wish families had reserved seats in the enclosed sidewalk that goes over O Street. What a view! After the parade it was off to the roller rink for some roller skating for the Girl Scout Cookie Kick-off. Yep - we now have 2 girls in Scouts. There is no photographic evidence, but rumor has it she can skate all by herself now.

Sunday afternoon Kerstin and her family attended the Make-A-Wish Christmas party. The girls had lots of fun playing all the games, making crafts, and meeting Santa and Mrs. Claus. Kerstin's burning question for Santa was, "How do the reindeer fly?" Santa had a brilliant magical answer.

We hope you all had a wonderful weekend also.

Good Checkup

Kerstin (and the family) went to Omaha today for her monthly checkup. It was nice to see all the clinic staff that we haven't seen for quite some time. Kerstin's lab came back with good numbers, and there was nothing abnormal with her exam. Kerstin's "maintenance" meds are scheduled to last to the end of January. Dr. G has scheduled a bone marrow biopsy for January 12th to ensure Kerstin's leukemia is still in remission. (By the way, Kerstin's one year remission anniversary is Nov 29th.) It's an odd feeling to think that we are approaching the end of this chapter in Kerstin's journey. A lot of people have asked, "What happens after January?" We honestly don't know. What we do know is that there is no way we would have made it this far without our faith in God and all of your prayers and support.

As always, we would ask that you continue to keep in your prayers all the children (and their families) affected by cancer that have come before us and who will come after us. God bless all the medical researchers and staff striving for a cure, and all the medical professionals who lovingly take care of our children.

Happy Thanksgiving!

We can't believe it's been 23 days since our last post. We wouldn't be surprised if there wasn't anyone checking in on Kerstin anymore :) We look at it as a good thing that Kerstin is staying well and there is not much to pass along. And we give thanks for that this Thanksgiving holiday.

Kerstin has been keeping busy. In addition to going to 1st grade, she attends Brownies on every other Tuesday, dance on every Thursday, and mid-week worship every Wednesday. The rest of her time is filled with playing, a little bit of homework, and other miscellaneous little girl stuff.

For the past ten months Kerstin has seen Dr. G for her checkups when he comes to Lincoln. For a change of pace, this Monday we are going to see Dr. G (and everyone else) at the clinic in Omaha. We are looking forward to seeing the other doctors, nurses, and patients that we have not seen for such a long time. It will be nice to get caught up on everyone.

Now that the holidays are back, we should have more pictures to post. So please check back often, and we wish everyone a blessed holiday season.

Happy Halloween

Little Bo Peep found her sheep :) Kerstin and her sister had a lot of fun this year dressing up and being a team for Halloween. It's hard to believe that last year at this time Kerstin was in the hospital receiving her first dose of chemo. We give thanks to God, and all our friends and family that she has "healed" as well as she has. Our prayers go out to all the children and their families who are dealing with these horrible diseases that rob them of childhood memories like these.

"Kiln Time" in Hastings!

We just wanted to give you all a quick update. Kerstin and Annie got to go to Hastings last weekend. We met up with Uncle Brian, Erica and Brenna. We had planned to go to Pumpkin Patch, but the weather did not cooperate. We ended up going to an Imax movie about Coral Reefs (very interesting - reminded us of Hawaii!). We also got to go to a pottery place where Brenna and Kerstin each chose a box to paint. Erica, Brian, and I got to help with the painting. We can't wait to see the final results!

Kerstin had a doctor's appointment last week and everything looks great! We are so blessed! It has been one year since Kerstin's diagnosis. Our lives have certainly changed in the last year. We hope to never take the little things for granted. We know that God has been so good to us. We are blessed to have so many wonderful friends! Say a prayer for all of those kids out there who are still struggling with this disease. Thank you for checking on us and have a blessed week!

The Pumpkin Run

Yesterday was the Great Pumpkin Run at Pioneers Park in Lincoln. The girls both decided to run this one mile cross-country type race. As you can see in the pictures, Dad got to run with Kerstin. Mom ran earlier with McKinsey. It was a fun run with lots of little hills to run up and down. We were all a bit winded afterwards. I reminded the girls that this was 1 mile and the Team In Training runners go 13 or 26 miles!

We are grateful to see Kerstin happy and running this October. As we approach Kerstin's diagnosis anniversary, we continue to count our blessings. All of you are a big blessing to us!

Have a great week!

Roca Berry Farms

We were able to spend a very pleasant Sunday afternoon at Roca Berry Farms, aka the Pumpkin Patch with the Candlelighters group. It was a warm (94degrees!), but very fun time. Each of the girls got to pick out their own pumpkin to take home. Their favorite activity was the Haunted House (we went through 3 times in a row). McKinsey and Kerstin are working on perfecting their screaming skills. (Click here for more pictures.)

We enjoyed a bonfire complete with hot dogs and smores. It was nice to chat with some "old" friends and make some new ones. In the picture Kerstin is posing with some pumpkins - Does this look like a Senior picture pose or what?

Thanks for checking on us and have a blessed day!

P.S. We tried to post this on Sunday, but we have been having trouble with the Blogger web site.

JDRF Walk

Today, the girls and I (Annie) got to walk for our good friend and neighbor, Joshua. Josh has had diabetes since he was one year old. It was fun to walk as a part of "Sargent Clark's Army" for such a great cause. There was lots to do before and after the walk such as 2 inflatable bouncy things, tatoos, cloggers to watch, and lots and lots of great snacks! Say an extra prayer for our friend, Josh.
Thanks for checking on us! Have a blessed day! 

Time to Update

Sorry we have been a little lazy on the blog lately. I can't believe how fast the days are flying by the past few weeks.

Light the Night was last Thursday (Sept 14th) at Holmes Park in Lincoln. We want to give a big THANK YOU to everyone who came out and walked, and to everyone who raised money or donated to the cause. The organizers' goal was to raise $30,000, and the initial count that night was $33,000! We are still waiting to hear what the official total was. I was going to put some pictures of the event up, but the ones we took didn't turn out real well and I'm still waiting on some from one of the participants that was there.

Kerstin got to miss a half day of school today to go see her good friend Dr. G for her monthly "clinic" visit. We are happy to report that Kerstin is still doing well (her ANC is 1125) and everything else physically is progressing as planned.

Thanks for checking in we Kerstin and we'll try to do a better job of updating :)

Make-A-Wish Zoo Day

Today was zoo day at the Henry Doorley Zoo, sponsored by Make-A-Wish. There were lots of people there despite the rainy weather. The zoo staff brought out some critters for the kids to see. They included a baby hedgehog, a snake, a penguin, a tarantula, and a cockatoo (pictured).

While we were in town, we dropped off some "K-Team" t-shirts to some friends who are participating in the Light The Night walk this Thursday in Lincoln.

We hope you are all having a great September so far. Take care and God bless.

1st Day of School

Yesterday was the first day of school for Kerstin and her sister. Kerstin is a 1st grader this year. When her mom went in to wake her up yesterday, she found Kerstin sitting on the floor, dressed, bed made, back pack ready to go. Who knows how long she had been awake. She's been excited about going back to school for a couple of weeks and it really showed yesterday.

Fun in Arkansas!

As you can see by all the fun photos, the girls had a great time with Grandma and Grandpa in Arkasas. They got to have golf cart rides (some for fun, some to find Snicker the dog), kayak and play in the lake, make pie, paint rocks, build forts, sew pillows, and much, much more. I hope that Grandma and Grandpa had as much fun as the girls did. They were even good sports and watched the premier of The Cheetah Girls 2 last night!

It was such a blessing for the girls to spend time alone with G and G. We missed them dearly! Jeff and I did enjoy the time together, although I spent most of it getting ready for 23 third graders to come on Monday. I think we are all ready for school to start and get back into the routine again. The girls are excited to wear new outfits and see their friends again.


In case you didn't get our email, we are participating in the Light the Night walk for the Leukemia/Lymphoma society on September 14th in Lincoln. If you would like more information, please let us know. Kerstin is the honored patient for the walk this year. Cool, huh! We are putting a team together and even have team shirts available to all of our walkers (or people who would just like a "K" team shirt). Please call or email, or leave us a message if you would like a shirt. We will be ordering them on Monday afternoon. They are only $6.50, and we can get them to you the week of the walk. If you can't walk, but would like to make a donation, that would be great, too! You can send it to us or donate on-line at http://www.active.com/donate/ltnOmaha/aleafLTN. Checks can be made to the Leukemia/Lymphoma Society.

We hope you have a blessed week! We will try to post first day of school pictures soon.

Take care and thanks for checking on Kerstin. She still feels great! God is good!

Great Wolf Lodge

After deciding that we all didn't have time to make it all the way to Arkansas and back in 4 days, we decided to meet Grandma and Grandpa in Kansas City for one last summer fling. Uncle Brian and Brenna were able to join the girls and I (Annie). Unfortunately, Jeff had to stay home and work :( As you can see by the photos, the girls and the grown-ups had a great time. It took Kerstin a little bit for her to decide she wanted to go down the tube slides. Before the weekend was over, the 3 girls had mastered the very dark and scary raft ride. (Ok - Annie was the only one who really thought it was scary).

We had such a fun time swimming, sliding, playing games, eating, and just hanging out together. We also were able to do some shopping at the new Legends mall. Fun! We even had supper at the amazing T-Rex restaurant (think Rain Forest Cafe, except prehistoric).

As an added bonus, the girls get to spend the next week in Arkansas with Grandma and Grandpa! I have to go back to work this week at my new school, so I knew I would be very busy. Jeff is working, too, so it worked out great for Grandma and Grandpa to take them back to Arkansas. We miss them already!! It sounds like they are having fun hanging out at the lake, sewing, and keeping G and G VERY busy! It is back to school for them on the 28th, so they better enjoy the fun while they can.

Thanks for checking on us! Have a blessed day!

Doctor's Appointment

Kerstin had her monthly doctor's appointment with Dr. G today. We are happy to report that everything is going well even though her ANC is down from last time (currently at 1199 down from 1720 last month). She has had a veracious appetite lately which we think is from a growing phase. Whatever it is from, we are happy to see her thriving.

Kerstin and her sister have been attending Vacation Bible School this week. The theme is Bethlehem and the accompanying picture is of them grinding spices and making them into perfume. It is a family Bible School event where there are many "authentic" Bethlehem activities such as toy-making (with clay), a bakery, a dye shop, barnyard animals, a music shop, game-time, and, of course, lots of fun music.

We hope all is well with you and your families. Take care and thanks for checking in with Kerstin.

Thanks Kiann

Kerstin stopped by to see Kiann at the bank today to give her a little gift from Hawaii and to thank her for all of her work with Make-A-Wish.

Hawaii Day 8 - July 18th

Our last day in paradise. (Here's the pictures.) There were no activities planned for this day, so it was also a "free day" for us. Since Kerstin's dad is a firefighter, he was tuned in to where all the Honolulu fire stations were. Fire Station #7 was about four blocks from our hotel, so we just had to stop by and visit. We permission of the on-duty firefighters, we took pictures with Engine #7. We were hoping to get some pictures with the ladder truck assigned to Station #7, but they were gone on a call. (Ladder #7 has a surf board attached to the side of it.)

After visiting the fire station, we headed back down to Aloha Tower to visit the ukelele store there and eat lunch at Hooters. Even though we don't have any pictures of it, we went back to Waikiki Beach for a couple more hours of fun in the sun since this was our last day there.

Next, we cleaned up, packed up, and went to a real nice restaurant just across from the beach. All week we had been trying to catch the sunset, but had only been successful a couple of times (with clouds). We were hoping this would be the night since the restaurant was on a second story deck right across from the beach. Unfortunately there were palm trees in our line of sight with the sunset, but it was still beautiful.

After supper we loaded up the rental car and drove to the airport. This was probably our least favorite part of the trip. It's never fun doing the "hurry up and wait" routine at the airports. Our flight didn't leave Honolulu until 10:55pm (Honolulu time). We arrived in Phoenix just after 8am local time on July 19th. From there we changed planes and arrived in Omaha at around 2pm where Deb and Kaylen from Make-A-Wish met us. Deb and Kaylen were there to welcome us back and to gather our film from the cameras that the girls had used while we were in Hawaii. Our limo was also there waiting to take us back to Lincoln.

WOW!!! What a trip. We hope everyone has enjoyed the stories and the photos. We would like to send out a "GINORMOUS" thank you to all the Make-A-Wish people in the Nebraska and Hawaii chapters, and everyone else that has ever donated to this wonderful organization.

We hope you will continue to check in on Kerstin to see how she is doing as she goes in to the last six months of her current chemothearpy treatment. (Hopefully her last six months.) Please keep all the other children who continue to battle this disease in your thoughts and prayers. And pray for all those who continue to search for a cure for all cancers.

God bless and take care.

Hawaii Day 7 - July 17th

On day seven we split up. Jeff wanted to go hike the Diamond Head State Monument and the girls didn't find that appealing. So while Jeff was hiking, the girls went to Hilo Hattie's to do some shopping.

We all met for lunch, then got ready for the luau. The shuttle bus for the luau was supposed to pick us up at 3:30pm, but it didn't arrive until about 4:15pm. That was ok because we started out at the wrong spot to get picked up. (Lots of shuttle buses + lots of pick up points = very confusing) Thanks to rush hour traffic it took about an hour and a half to crawl along the highway to the resort where the luau was being held. Once we got there though, we had a really good time. There were all kinds of "native" Hawaiian activities to do before dinner and the show. Dinner was excellent. They served pork, chicken, fish, and plenty of side dishes. (And it was all-you-can-eat) During the show the girls got to go up on stage and show off their hula skills. It was late by the time we got back to the hotel and we were wiped out from a long day.

Click here for the pictures.

Hawaii Day 6 - July 16th

On this morning we got to go on a submarine ride. We were under water for about 45 minutes and went as deep as 119 feet. We saw all kinds of fish and some sea turtles. During the winter months there are Humped Back Whales that swim in these waters. We were curious to see how the girls handled being cooped up in the submarine and under water, but it didn't even phase them. I think there was so much stuff to look at that they were too distracted to get scared. The submarine company has sunk four artificial habitats over the past 18 years to attract the fish to these waters. The neat thing is that these are public waters and people are allowed to scuba dive here as well. It is amazing to think how clear the water is to be 100 feet under water and still be able to see 40-50 yards in front of you.

For lunch we stopped at Burger King for a Whopper with pineapple. Just kidding. Hawaii's Burger King serves the same stuff as Nebraska's Burger King. Then it was off to the beach. (Except for Jeff who was fighting a head cold and needed some extra rest.) Jeff did feel good enough to go to the beach after his nap and everyone really enjoyed the great weather in the afternoon.

Our evening consisted of walking down to the International Market Place where we ate supper at Coconut Willie's. After supper we strolled the market for bargains. The market place is about a block in length and as wide as a four lane highway. Kerstin and McKinsey found their grass skirts and sarongs. One of the shops even had a couple of cockatiels they let us hold. The evening flew by quickly and it was time to head back to the hotel and go to bed.

Click here for pictures

Watering the Yard...

...with water balloons. Later in the evening, when it was still 100 degrees, we had some of the neighborhood kids (and their parents) over for another round of water balloon fights. After we ran out of water balloons it was time to turn on the sprinkler and eat pop cycles. Everyone got cooled down, and the yard got watered. What a deal.