Enjoying our time at home

Hello everyone! We have been having a GREAT time at home!! Dylan is doing AWESOME and has not had any fevers and has been able to be a normal baby for the past week and a half! We are loving it! I am only reminded of his cancer when I flush his broviac in the mornings, or when I give him baths. He seems so healthy and happy, and we are so thankful for this short time of health. He is such an awesome little boy. He is back onto a schedule at night which is great for me, because I now get a little bit more sleep (just a little bit), and Dylan is rested and ready for his day! We have lots of play time, lots of cuddle time, and ......lots more cuddle time. We got the go ahead from the doctors on Friday to take him up north to Flagstaff for the weekend!! It was a much needed respite for the family. My sister lives there, so we had a great time hanging out with family and just relaxing in the cooler weather! 40 degrees cooler to be exact!! We also took our dog Lily with us, so it was truly a family vacation. We were so thankful to be able to get away for the weekend before embarking on the stressful journey ahead of us. We still have a full 5 more days of "normal" life and we will enjoy every second of it! We have a few specific prayer requests that we would love for all of you to start praying for:
1. My knee: I got reconstructive knee surgery 3 years ago, and now my arthritis in my knee is acting up and the muscles in my knee are weak and now it is hurting and popping all of the time. I saw my knee doc today and he said that sitting on my bum for 2 months in the hospital has hurt me, and I need to strengthen it--not so easy to do in our situation, but I have to do it! So please pray that the pain goes away and that I can carry Dylan around without the fear of falling, and that I can make it a priority to strengthen it while in the hospital with Dylan.
2. Dylan is getting surgery Monday morning at 9:30am. He will be getting a double broviac that will be placed on the right side of his chest. He already has a single broviac on the left side. This will mean that he will have 3 lines coming out of his tiny little body. Please pray for precision for the surgeons and that his tiny veins will have enough room for the double broviac.
3. Chemo starts Tuesday. VERY STRONG CHEMO. And with that chemo comes side effects. Please pray that the side effects are mild or non-existent. They can be horrible and it is going to be difficult to watch our baby suffer through this.
4. The actual transplant is the following Monday on Aug 31st. Please start praying that Dylans body will not reject the transplant and that the transplant does not reject Dylan. He will be on a lot of anti-rejection meds to avoid this, but it is always a possibility.
5. Pray for us as a family. The next two months are going to be rough to say the least. Things have been so nice for the past month and we are going to have to go back to the scary stuff. Please pray that we do not let Satan into our heads causing any kind of doubt of Who is in control. Pray that we go to our Creator with every fear, anxious thought, or worry. He is in control and we are waiting on Him to heal our Dylan.

Those are just some specifics for right now :) I also would like to ask for your prayer for two little ones that we have come to know through Dylans sickness. I have mentioned both of them before in the blog. First there is little ZOE. Her family has decided to wait on the Lord to see if her tumor goes away. They have been instructed from many doctors to do the same because her type of cancer can sometimes go away on its own. As you can imagine, this is a terrifying situation for them as they have no control over the situation. Please pray for baby ZOE. She is 5 months old. The second child is baby BRADY. He is the little boy who was diagnosed with AML Leukemia at 8 weeks old, just like Dylan, and is now a year old. He went through a transplant in February through an adult donor. He is now 5 months out of transplant and his leukemia is back. This is our worst nightmare. He now has to go through the entire process again. Please pray for his fragile body and his parents.

We are very hopeful for Dylan's transplant, but we are also aware of the risks. It is a dangerous procedure and we are not guaranteed anything. We know that this is the direction that God is leading us and we are walking blindly by faith knowing that God has His hand in EVERY detail. We are beyond thankful for your support and your prayers and we know that our Heavenly Father is listening to our cries to heal our Dylan. We love you all so very much! I cannot wait for the day to show Dylan how many people are praying for him and how many love him so much--many of you who have never even met him or us--THANK YOU TO ALL OF YOU!!

In His Grip,
Michelle