Team Teagan Update | 6-18

Happy Birthday Teagan!, Today our little girl turns 2. This is a great milestone for us, not only because she has been able to be home with us since Mother’s Day, to enjoy her Elmo Birthday with us and her brothers, but also it’s roughly the half-way point for her treatments. After her reprieve last week due to a pesky (and messy (YUK)) nasal infection, her health has returned to “normal”, which means that tomorrow evening she’ll be checking into her luxury suite at Club AMC, for hydration and 5-6 days of chemo injections a.k.a. Round 4. Oh, Holly is sooo looking forward to that – NOT!

Over the last few weeks we’ve seen Teagan further develop her communication skills, and add several new phrases to not only her speech, but also her sign language. She amazes us each day and brings an enormous amount of joy to our family. She especially surprises us doing things we’re just not prepared for… like turning around to see her climb over the back of the couch – It’s quite the sight to see her little (almost) bald head disappear over the edge (ugh), or watch her stand on the edge of her toy box to reach for the light switch! We do have our house mostly “Baby Proof”, but I guess it’s not “Teagan Proof” as she still manages to find new ways to keep us on our toes… It’s encouraging to see her grow and develop “normally” considering everything she’s gone through.

On Saturday we were invited to a Ronald McDonald house event at the Shady Harbor Marina in Selkirk, where a great bunch of boaters gave up their time and boats to take families up (or down), the Hudson river in a variety of Yachts. John and Debbie from Green Island on their 37’ Silverton Yacht gave us a short tour on the Hudson River and were great hosts. Everyone had a great time, especially the boys who were able to assist Captain John with navigating the River. It was a great break from our daily lives which has mostly been dominated by Teagans care. Sometimes you’re just so close to a situation that you often forget to stop and smell the roses. Life felt normal (almost), and even for just a few hours we put our problems aside… We get so caught up in the daily problems, attacking each with determination to resolve it before we do the next task, the problem with that is that we often get stuck, stay in a rut, accomplish little, if anything at all… Summertime is here, with only a few short days before the kids start their break, we try and plan the days, weeks, months… maybe we should just relax and let fait take us. Because up until now, the planning part has not worked out very well for us… things just seem to come up… Maybe I need to put on that song “Jesus take the wheel” by Carrie Underwood, and this time LISTEN to it… Maybe we should ALL listen to it.

The boys are looking forward to summer and having Leslie and Renée, (our Summer helper) around to keep them fed, entertained and safe, so that Holly and I can deal with the little “fires” which are sure to creep up now and again… Let’s hope the weather is better this year… - Think Positive, Think Positive… Oh that’s me telling myself to be positive… and remember that “The Glass” is Half-Full, not Half Empty!

We’re thankful for our friends and family who continue to offer encouragement, help and support in a variety of ways and grateful for each day that we start and finish without a major problem. We hope the same for you, and especially to all those families who are dealing with similar situations as we are… I can’t tell or guarantee when it gets better, only that you’ll get through it somehow. It’s out of our hands!

Take Care and be well,

Juergen, Holly and Kids