A Happy, Hopeful Update for Your Prayer Journal

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Thank you for praying for Ian Stowe. After a very difficult week, the news is guardedly optimistic:

As many of you who care for Ian and have been following his story may know, it has been an arduous, weeklong journey for him, his family and his friends thus far. Ian entered Fairfax INOVA Hospital early on Sunday, January 22nd, and he has been through an insurmountable number of tests, procedures and operations. 

The news has varied for Ian, with expectations reaching highs and lows over the course of his stay at the hospital since he was admitted. His surgery went fairly well and the biopsy was completed last week, though the area of the tumor made it inoperable at the time. 

He has since come down with pneumonia, which he insists hardly bothers him, and was told some frightening news that he might have a GlioBlastoma (GBM). This is a very aggressive type of brain cancer and is the kind of news that would scare even the bravest of listeners; however, Ian has remained incredibly poised, confident and hopeful of better news and a positive outcome. 

Today, Ian had a Barium Swallowing Test in order to see if he would be able to eat on his own without having food or liquids enter his lungs. Unfortunately, the test revealed that Ian will most likely not be able to eat without assistance for short period of time, and may need to be fed through a tube that will lead directly to his stomach. 

 Finally, the much anticipated news from pathology came back, the news that would tell Ian exactly what form of tumor he had in his brain stem. After all of the frustration, the tests, the sleepless nights and anxiety of not knowing what the future may hold, Ian was given some good news.

 The type of tumor that Ian has is called a Germinoma. This kind of tumor is very sensitive to chemotherapy and radiation, meaning that the chances for long-term survival, or even cure, are excellent. Ian will most likely continue treatment at MCV in Richmond, VA where he will be close to family and friends, he plans to be moved there on Thursday.

 Though Ian is not completely out of the woods just yet, hope is at its highest point and he is confident that he will beat this tumor. Ian made it clear that he is very thankful for the love, care and support that he has received from everyone so far, making his stay in the hospital bearable. 

 I think we all know what kind of a guy Ian is and how much he means to us. The evidence of the significant impact that he has had on all of our lives so far has been portrayed in the reciprocated support for him during these rough times. Ian has always put his family and friends before himself and I think that one would agree when it is said that we owe him this kind of help during such an onerous period in his life.

So, thanks again to everyone for every ounce of support you have showed, and I ask you to please continue to fight alongside him as he wins this battle.

And a hopeful update on James Brogan from his sister:

James has the doctors & nurses AMAZED!! My mom & aunt have been working James all day & you are not going to believe what he did today. Mom brought in flash cards with pictures & the word of the picture on the back. Then she told James to squeeze her hand when she said the right word of the picture on the card. He did that immediately, so then she flipped it over to the word & asked him to do the same. Well James did 20 IN A ROW!! Then his right arm, which has had a harder time moving around lately, was all over the place today. So after the flash cards he put his hand in my mom's palm & acted like he was trying to write with his finger. My aunt ran down & got one of those huge pens for him & a notepad. They put the pen in his hand & James wrote "mom"!!! He also wrote my name, dad's, & then his name a bunch. When asked if he wanted to keep on writing he wrote "no" with a bunch of o's following after it (: Finally he reached over & grabbed his football squeezed it tight & threw it across his bed! Tears of happiness & relief run down my face typing this, but James is there! He remembers. I know he does! He is a miracle & he's not stopping until he is home! Everyone keep praying. It's working!!!

 

 

We interrupt the regularly scheduled homeschool day

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 to write testimonies for the boys to read tomorrow in front of the Full Education Committee in Richmond. We're all about House Bill 947, which would allow homeschoolers to play high school sports. I'm a little nervous about what they'll find when they get there. The Virginia PTA has sent out the following to all PTA presidents:

Coming soon to your team - students that don'tgo to your school!- HB 947 will allow non-public school students to play on public school teams
- Participation on athletic teams is a privilege that should be reserved for the public school students
- What's next? Drama, debate, electives?
Let them know that public school is your choice and team sports are a privilege you earned and expect them to protect.

I guess they don't know that homeschoolers are their neighbors and not dangerous aliens from another planet. I guess they don't understand that they will enhance the experience of the kids on the team. I guess they think that Nease High School would have been better off if Tim Tebow hadn't been allowed to play there. I do wonder what the folks in Ponte Vedra think. Oh wait, my family lives there. I know what they think. 


God willing, we're going to Richmond. I know for a fact that both the soccer and basketball coaches at my local school would think coaching my boys to be the privilege.

Directions to the capitol and parking here. Contact your legislator here.

Weekend Clicking

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I've got the pink box working on the sidebar--sort of. I can share posts from my blog reader there. There are some good things loaded up there now:-). I still haven't been able to make the bookmarklet work so that I can share from other places on the web. Here are few places that you might like to click over and visit this weekend.

10 Ways to Get the Right Guy to Like You. This is a cute video done by a teenaged (early 20?) boy for girls. I smiled all the way through when Mary Beth shared it with me.  Wise boy.

Lisa Hendey is traveling to Israel. And she's carrying a heavy prayer load.

I'm  a huge fan of Msgr. Pope. Here is the homily from the Teen Mass before the March for Life. Not to be missed.

The "I Hate Religion" guy? Jimmy Akin has a word or two for him here.

I cried through this one. What a Parent Wants to Say Before a Child Leaves.

And this. The Father carries us across the finish line. It's hard not to be discouraged as we run this race. Life is most definitely a marathon. This image is such a powerful one.

How to keep your house clean doing one big chore a day. Sigh. I so can't do laundry only once a week;-)

Even as I appreciate her honesty and empathize just a beginning bit with the pain she must feel as he father's mind slips away, I wish I could share with her that there is value in suffering and grace in the pain. 

And finally, as bright sun shines in late January and the weather is positively balmy, Ten Ways to Make a Walk more Fun. Time to get outside with the kiddos!

Another Request for Prayers

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Ian stowe

The world of youth soccer is like an extended family. There are lots of links and lots of connnections and there is always the common experience. I could tell you all the ways this young man's story tugs my heartstrings, but I'd rather just ask you to pray for  Ian Stowe, a recent graduate and soccer alumnus of William and Mary. He's been working here in the DC area since graduation and learned on Monday that he is suffering a significant tumor located on his brain stem.

Please storm heaven for Ian.

Hug your babies, no matter how big they are.

G'night.