Entry 34

Ian has been so incredibly bored with his sisters being out of town so took him train ride. He asks to ride on a train all the time and we found out about a little place in MO where you can take a train ride for an hour. I have to say, I hate google maps. It has gotten me lost more times than I can even remember. Stick with mapquest. Anyway, that tangent over, we made it there at 7:04 when the train was supposed to leave at 7. By some miracle, we were able to purchase tickets and run onto the train before it took off at 7:05.

Ian was so excited when he sat down! You couldn't get the smile off his face! The train was this little old train from the 1920's that used to take passengers to and from work in New York. There is no air conditioner or heater, so the windows were open as the train creeped along. They tell you the history as they drive along and playing old train music. It goes really slow, I think I could have walked faster than that train in some places. There was even a point where they had to stop and let the train rest for a minute so it wouldn't overheat.

When the ride is done you can see some of the older cars parked along the track. They have an old car that must have been like the dining car. It has tile on the floor, tables, and a bar. We also went inside the caboose. It was interesting to see. It was like a really small apartment with a bathroom, desk, sink, and a bed.

It was so great to have some alone time with him in that way. He was so grateful and kept telling me "Thank you for taking me on the train."

Entry 33

Lauryn and Emma have been at their Nana's house all week. Surprisingly, I have had less time to write and fill you in because I spend a majority of my time entertaining Ian. He has been so bored without his sisters here! Neither of us have really known what to do with ourselves. He keeps telling me to "Go to the airport and pick them up." They'll probably come home and it will only take a few hours before he's saying "Send them back."

Ian's schedule was a little different this week because his Dr. was out of town last Thursday. He had chemo on Monday- which went well. He is getting more and more used to it. I definitely wouldn't say he is begging to go, but he isn't hysterical either. We had a follow visit yesterday for some blood work and a follow up with the neurologist. The neurologist is starting to wean him off the anti-seizure medicine. I haven't heard anything back yet on the blood work, but they are making sure his levels are ok with the blood thinners he is on. I'll keep you posted.

Entry 32

I have a cousin who is a fireman so we went to visit his firestation today. It was spontanious, so I didn't have my camera (which I am sad about) but the kids had fun. They got to climb inside a firetruck and an ambulance and see the fire station. It's kind of like a big house with a living room with a big tv and tons of seating, a kitchen, and a room with about 25 beds. At the end of the tour, they had a call and the ambulance and fire truck had to take off sirens wailing-which of course, was the coolest part. Ian was pretty upset that he didn't get to ride in one though. I guess he forgot all about his ambulance ride a month ago. Hopefully, that's one experience he'll have to feel deprived over because I don't want to have to do it again.

Ian is doing well. He gets more energetic every day and is looking more like himself as he thins out.

Entry 31

Ian's Aunt Brooke is here in town right now. He has been getting spoiled with tons of attention, massages, and pampering. We went to the Deanna Rose Farm again (it is one of our safe spots- it's outdoors and he loves it). Ian went on a pony ride while the girls fed the baby goats (I don't think he liked them jumping up on him last time) and then they went gem mining. It's really cute- they give you a big bag of sand and gravel and then you have this tray you dump the sand bag in and stick it in the water until you start seeing your gems.

It was hilarious because Ian was trying to teach Brooke how to play Lego Star Wars. She didn't know how to do it and apparently was slowing him down. He said, "Log out Brooke" which she didn't know how to do. Without missing a beat or taking his eyes off the tv screen, he reaches over to her controller, fiddles around with a few buttons, and removes her from the game. Evidently, he has no patience for anyone who slows up his progress in star wars.

We are still trying to get Ian's new chemo medicine figured out. He has been taking an oral one in lieu of getting it through his port. The oral chemo makes him alot more nautious. Unfortunately, we've had a few instances at friends houses and at restaurants. We've been given some anti-nausea medicine to counter it so hopefully, it will work for him.

Entry 28

Howdy Ho!

This is Mike talkin' now. It's been over a month since I personally posted to Ian's blog. Before I update you on Ian's status I want to post some cool pics about a super huge tornado watch/thunderstorm that is moving right overhead right now. check out these pics from just west of us.













The news choppers have been flying over head to track this beast. Kansas life is great!

Entry 28

Ian has been WILD!!! He is teasing and irritating his sisters so you know he is feeling well. It's funny, because the past few times I have taken Ian somewhere, without him even doing anything someone has said, "Oh, he is a rascal isn't he?" He has that little twinkle in his eyes that tells you his mind is up to something. I guess it has been a while since we've seen it but I am glad it's back!

Ian went to a birthday party the other day. It was one of the first ones he's been to in a long time (if ever, I really can't remember him going to one before). He was so excited to go and was talking about it all morning. When we got there he was so shy even around all of his friends that he is normally comfortable around. He must have kept his head buried in my shoulder for at least the first 20 minutes. Finally, I got him to look out by having him take pictures but he still wouldn't look at anyone directly. It wasn't until the end of the party when it was pinata time that he opened up.

It's funny, in some ways he seems like he has regressed a little- he's more shy, more cautious, and talks like a baby alot- but in other ways he seems so much older. It's almost like it's just this look in his eye of an understanding of what is going on that is more than you would expect a 3 year old to comprehend. I don't exactly know how to explain it. He is definitely more compassionate- Lauryn got the tiniest little scrape on her leg and he was so concerned about her and demanded that I give her a band-aid so she could feel better. The next thing I know, he had walked up to her and given her a hug and a kiss to comfort her.

Entry 27

I can't believe that it has been a week since I've written! I am so sorry. I guess there hasn't been alot to report on (That's great though, I prefer to not have drama). Ian had his LP this morning (chemo they inject into his spine). He was so grumpy when he woke him up I was worried how it was going to be. He was crying "OW, OW, OW" when I was changing his shirt and putting on his numbing cream. He didn't say a word on the drive up to the hospital. All in all, he did great though. He was dramatic about them cleaning his skin before they accessed his port, but after that, he calmed down and was fine. He actually threw a few smiles (strained and small but smiles nontheless) at the nurse. All of his blood counts look good; they have all improved since last week.

He has been as wild as wild can be these past few days so I know he is feeling better. Unfortunately, the mellowness that I thought he had gained when he turned three was nothing more than him being sick; but I'll take it. I am glad he is feeling well enough to harass his sisters and be a little stinker.

The shots Mike and I have to give him get harder every time. He gets so upset when he knows it is coming! His poor little legs look so beat up. There are bruises everywhere and now his skin has started to react to the adhesive on the bandages (another lovely side effect to meds) so there are places where the top layers of skin have peeled off and left a perfect little bandaid shape sore/scab. They told us originally that they thought he would have to be on the blood thinners for at least 3 months, but I think his Dr. will re-evalutate the clot with another MRI in a few weeks so pray that the clot will be gone so we can quit giving him the thinners and that he won't have any more clotting issues. That is our request for this week.

Mike has been in the R/C car industry for a few years filming racing events and compiling them into DVDs. He has made some loyal, lifelong friends there. There is a new car that just came off the assembly line for Ian as well as a few races coming up in the next month (you have to scroll down to see the race info). I am not mentioning this for you to buy anything, just to check out. It's kind of cool. It also has his friends thoughts on this whole situation and how everything has come together for Ian in the race industry. http://www.rcprosites.com/