Miracles happen all the time

Well, I closed with my last post hoping to report good news....and....guess what!! There was no cancer seen in Luke's Mibg scan and they also did not see any tumor markers in his UA. This news was such a blessing! I walked out of the Oncologist's office to the car forgetting my purse, I was so excited.

I held Luke as he fell asleep the other night and I said "you know, its a miracle?" he said "what is a miracle?" I answered, "that's when something great happens that only God can do" he replied thoughtfully "Well, I can think of a lot of miracles" he counted on his fingers "You getting married to Dad...getting all of us kids...and... I know the biggest miracle EVER!... it was Jesus dying for us so we can go to heaven". He smiled and fell asleep.

I'm thinking God must have mighty plans for this little man.

Thank you, my friends, for all your prayers and comforting words. ~Erica

We find out Monday what God has in store for us!

April Scans

Today we got the results of Luke's scans from last week. Dr.Hsu said they saw compression in his spine at his T12 vertebra. They would like to do an Mibg scan to see if their are any Neuroblastoma cells in the area causing this. There are other causes of spinal compression, but of course the reason for all of these scans it to catch ANY abnormalities. Luke is feeling great he's playing baseball like a champ, eating well, gaining weight, growing taller and smarter everyday. We already had an appointment scheduled with UCSF to meet with Dr.Horn, one of our bone marrow transplant specialists, so we will take copies of Luke's C.T. Scans and see what they think...It's hard not to start thinking the worst...I'm not sure why our mind's do that to us :/ I saw a poster of "Dory" from the Disney movie "Finding Nemo", it said "Just keep swimming, just keep swimming".LOL, It's true, we just have to keep moving along, and keep ourselves from wading in worry. I trust in the Lord... no matter what comes our way. He has shown me his power, love, mercy and his gentleness. In him I find my strength :) I hope to report good news soon...Keep praying for our Lukas !!

January 2011 Scans

Luke and I had a quick and easy check up at the Oncologist Wednesday. The nurse put us in the same room we were in when they told us he needed to have a bone marrow transplant (icky memory) but....this time was much better. Dr. Shu said his scans and blood and urine tests were all perfect!! April will officially mark one year "off therapy", because he was taking oral meds. until then, so Luke will have scans again then, along with a ECHO of his heart to check for any damage the chemo could have caused. If all is good, we will then be put on a schedule of scans twice a year! I am praising God for everyday I have with my boy. He's such a blessing. He lost another tooth this morning...I think that was number 7 so far. He was very proud he has passed up cousin Veda on the race to loose the most teeth. And speaking of number 7!! Luke's birthday is coming up on the 27th of this month. He picked out a toucan piñata at the grocery store on our way home from the Doctor's office. Not sure why a Toucan, but that's what he wanted, so of course Grandma Kay wanted to get it for him. He carried it out of the store with a big smile on his face. I thought it was pretty cute that he was re-thinking the idea of hitting it with a bat on his birthday...I think he wants to keep it :)

Scans for the New Year

Mike and I were both able to take Lukas for his tests and scans on Friday. It was an early morning appointment an very cold and misty in Sacramento. Everything worked out just as it should at the hospital. Luke got his blood work and urine test and drank his giant cup of "red juice", aka, contrast. He got his IV with, not too much screaming. Daddy taunted him saying maybe he would feel better if he sang the song from Beauty and the Beast...to which Luke snarled with a crinkled up nose "gerrr...stop it Dad...I don't like princess songs!" Then of course when it came time to remove the IV Daddy started in with a soft voice, singing "Tale as old a time...Beauty and The Beast" but this time Luke was laughing "St-ahpp-it-Dad". As we where leaving Lukas asked "why do I have to do these scans again?" I said "why?, because you had cancer...remember your tummy bump?" Luke replied shaking his head "all this, for a little bump?" My eyes widened as I recalled the pictures of that enormous tumor removed from his little precious body." Yep" I said.

Thanks to all my facebook friends for praying with us our memory verse for this week Psalm 103:1-4
Bless the Lord, O my soul,
and all that is within me,
bless His Holy name!
and forget not all of his benefits:
who forgives all your iniquity,
who heals all your diseases,
who redeems your life from destruction,
who crowns you in lovingkindness and tender mercies.

Christmas 2010

Merry Christmas to all our friends and family. Luke and the rest of the family continue to be blessed with good health as we near the most important Birthday party of the year! I just realized I have not posted the results of our last set of scans...I did on Facebook but not on the blog, So for any of you who have not heard, Luke's scans were all good! No signs of cancer and his lungs were even more improved :) He's just a regular little boy now! We have two computers set up right next to one another on Mike's disaster of a desk. Luke is beside me working on his math with his headphones on. He is, of course, reluctant to do his school work...like all my kids...but we have been chugging right along. We are all looking forward to our Christmas break.

All of us gathered around and watched "It's a Wonderful Life" this weekend. Luke was confused near the end when everyone was coming in, bringing money to help George. He asked "Why are they giving him all their money?" I explained that George needed help and people loved him...so they wanted to help him. I said "Did you know the same thing happened when you were sick in the hospital? Our family, friends and even strangers came and brought us money! Money also came in the mail and some people put right into our bank account!" He smiled a sort- of embarrassed smile. He feels so loved.

Our prayer is that each one of you feel that sort of love, undeserved love, that comes only by God's grace. All you have to do is open your heart and receive the gift that He has given us in His Son Jesus Christ. We love you all,

~The Finches

Praying For Wonderful, Upcoming Scans!

Hello everyone! Just wanted to send out a prayer request for Lukey's up coming scans. Friday morning @ 9am, Luke will have a C.T of his chest,abdomen and pelvis and he will also have his blood work and HVA-VMA test. We are daily in prayer for his healing and feel confident God has a plan for our boy. The kids and I just started studying Jeremiah this morning. A great reminder of how God is in control of our lives. Thank you for praying with us. ~Erica

Jeremiah 29:11 ~For I know the plans I have for you," declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future