Home Sweet Home

Today Seth came home! He was welcomed by his brother and sister, Grandma and Grandpa Bennion and me :)! He seemed pretty worn out from the event, but I actually believe he looked happy to be home. Once the excited settled a bit, his home health nurse came by and helped get his feeds and IV's hooked up and going. He also had a visit from "dave" the oxygen guy to get his oxygen set up and going. I spent a couple of minutes talking to him and it was pure bliss! He actually smiled and I can't say there was anything better about my day! What a privilege!

Enjoy the pictures.....More updates to come as him at home adventure begins! Thanks to all for your support and prayers as we are hoping to make this time with him pack-full of many, many wonderful memories!

A Fighter's Fight.....

This is one of those times that I am CERTAIN, no matter what I write, it won't come our right, it won't feel right and it won't be right. So please read with patience as I try and get through this.

Last night Shannon and Darin were given the preliminary results to a lumbar puncture and Bone Marrow Aspirate. The news was not good and not what we have been hoping to hear. There is infection in the spine (spinal meningitis) and a lesion of some sort (most likely infection) on the base of the brain. Also, there are leukemic blasts forming. Seth has had some noticable changes in his 'attitude' and looking back we can see why now. He hasn't really interacted much with anyone and seems to have moments of complete confusion and frustration that are hard to work through. This is all reflective of what the test results show. Darin and Shannon are going to take Seth home. Most likely this will happen on Monday, perhaps Tuesday. He will continue to be given medication to try and fight the infection and will have medication available to manage the pain. He will be able to spend time at home with brother and sister, mom and dad and family. We do not know how long this precious little boy will be in our presence, however, we are determined to love every minute we have with him and make them all count. I know there are a lot of questions, and some have answers, some don't. But bottom line is Seth has fought a fighter's fight and he is going to go home to enjoy his family.

I can't begin to describe my heartache. As most of you know I am Seth's aunt. I can attest to MANY MANY acts of kindness in this families behalf and they have not gone unnoticed. As some of my siblings and I gathered around our brother last night to lend support, I was overcome with a feeling of gratitude for family and all that it means. I was also able to spend some one-on-one time with Seth and I want you all to know what an absolute angel he is. Truly in every sense of the word that little man is an angel. His eyes are bright and clear and he is mindful of the love that surrounds him. He allowed me the privilege of holding his little hand for awhile and I was able to talk to him and tell him how much he is loved. It is a moment I will treasure forever.

I will continue to update this blog...perhaps on a more regular basis now to keep you updated on the fun times Seth will be enjoying with his family. I only ask that you send your comments if you feel prompted and if any of you have picture of Seth with our without his family I would sure love a copy...you can email me at dtwebarker@msn.com.

You are an amazing group of friends and family. Your prayers are heard and felt and we are grateful for the kindness you've shared and continue to share with our family at this time. God Bless you for it!

The little guy keeps fighting....

There is not much to update at this point, but I know some of you check this for updates! Seth is still showing infection....dang-it! At this point in time it is still a battle to rid his little body of the infection. When I visiting him last weekend he let me lay my head by his and I talked to him for a few minutes. He didn't talk back, but he didn't scream NO either! I asked him if he was a tough boy, if he could keep fighting hard to get rid of that nasty infection and if he could stay tough! Again, he didn't scream no, so I took it as a yes!

I have been recently reminded that miracles abound all around us every minute of everyday if we will look for them! So I decided to do that as I can count MANY miracles this day from our families 'go' on this trial we are riding. Seth brightens Everyone's day. He makes us want to be a little kinder to one another and to help each other a little more. What a treasure. I am praying for yet another miracle on Seth's behalf, that he will have the strength to fight! Send that nasty infection away and get his strength back!

I love you little man! Your AWESOME! Heavenly Father is right beside you, sending strength, comfort and peace!

Bone Marrow Aspirate Results.....

I must start this update with a HUGE THANK-YOU! I cannot express enough gratitude for all the support we received this last weekend at the Yard Sale. It was amazing! Thanks for your donations, you time, your willingness to help and your purchases :) It makes a huge difference!

As for updates on what's happening in Seth's world, here's basically what I know. The Bone Marrow Aspirate results are back and they show a completely empty bone marrow. The good of this is no leukemic cells, the bad is no white blood cells and he needs good white blood cells to fight off the infections currently plaguing his body. No leukemic cells is good, VERY good but the doctors need to see what type of cells are going to grow back... BAD Leukemic cells (MYELOID BLASTS) or GOOD Neutrophil cells (healthy, strong, infection fighting white blood cells) The last round of Chemo did take him down and he is having a hard time with count recovery. With every round of chemo it will take longer and longer to recover, so we aren't surprised, with the infections we realize how important it is for him to get the good cells charging and fighting. From what I understand, we really need to see the results from a Bone Marrow Aspirate once he starts to build a Count. This will show if there are any "blasts" forming, if he is in complete remission or at-least closer to achieving remission. I don't know when this will be.

As for the infection, he has been fighting something called 'enterococcus bacteria'. They have done CT scans, ultrasounds and other test's to try and locate the infection, but as far as I know, they still haven't. They are hitting him with a variety of anti-biotic and such, but they are designed to work with your own immune system, so without one, it is tough work to fight this infection.

That is what I know....please pray for an end to this infection, a count to start building and a remission! We love you all and thank you for your support!

btw: We would love to know whose (if anyone :} is reading this blog, feel free to leave a comment! Thanks!

Test day....

Today around 3:00 pm Seth will be having a Broviac placed and a Bone Marrow Aspirate. He was running another fever last night and his heart rate was out of whack again. We have a lot of anticipation regarding these test results and would greatly appreciate your prayers!

It should be about two days for the test results to come in. I will update when I know what the next step is! Thanks for your love and support!

An evening with Seth.....

I had the privilege of spending the evening with Seth. It began with a field trip to the Ultra-sound room. The wagon ride was nice, but getting Seth and all his tubing where it needed to be was somewhat comical for me! The Ultra-sound was to check a spot on his chest where the Broviac was that seemed to be a bump. In fact there is a pocket of fluid there and tomorrow his team will meet and discuss what to do. The idea is this may be the source of the infection. Stay tuned.....we should know tomorrow if and what they plan to do.

Other than our field trip, it was a pretty un-eventful night. It took a lot out of Seth to go for a ride and he slept most of the time. He has had the feeding tube put back in and so eating is no longer something he really wants to do. (Not that he was eating much before).

Sethman is such a fighter and I am amazed at his will! As I sat with him tonight I was emotional with the thought of what a gift this little guy is to me. I know as a family we have been strengthened and unified through this trial. His nurse tonight commented on the amount of extended family Seth has with him all the time, as well as his mom and dad. She said it was so awesome. What can I say to that? I do have an amazing family! Once you spend some time with Seth, you can't wait to get back up to the hospital and see him again!

The pictures I choose tonight are representative of what my prayer is for Seth.....lets get you from sleeping to eating!

As always, we want to thank you all for you love and support! I know your prayers are giving us the strength to carry-on. We are moving into the 11th month of hospital stays and your willingness to help and contribute have been so comforting. Please feel free to email me with questions, comments, or if you are wanting to know how to help with the yard sale or other opportunities at: dtwebarker@msn.com.

Keep praying for our Seth! Love you all!

Tough as Nails.....

I feel like its time for an update....problem is, I don't really know what to say! Seth has an infection. He came down with it about a week or so ago. They ended up pulling out his Broviac line with the hope that would help clear the infection. So far that has not happened. He also had an EKG to check for infection in his heart....it was all clear. So he is still fighting an infection and it really seems to be taking a toll on his little body. He has no white count and the doctor explained all the antibiotics they are administering are designed to work with your white blood cells...since Seth doesn't have any, we are praying the antibiotics will kick in and do their job, without a white count.

Please pray that this tough little guy can fight this infection, and regain a white count. I know a break from that hospital would do everyone a world of good....especially Seth! Thanks for your prayers!

We are still planning to have a HUGE yard sale, Bake sale, and boutique on Saturday, April 17. If you would like to help, have any items you wish to donate, or items for a bake sale or boutique, please contact me at dtwebarker@msn.com.
Thanks, Tammy