Today is the last day of childhood cancer awareness month. As you know, it’s everyday for our family and so many other families across the globe. We don’t need a designated month to know how unfair a childhood cancer diagnosis can be. On Tuesday, March 24, 2014, Shane was sedated for the first of, Read More

We had three hours to sit and mull over the fact that we were headed to oncology about our almost 8 month old baby. We went to lunch on UPenn’s campus. I used to work across the street and had been to the same place many times. Before we were married, while I was, Read More

Continued We headed to urology to meet with the doctor. Upon examining Shane and looking over initial blood work, he was discharged with enlarged lymph nodes. The mass wasn’t discussed. It was considered a site of inflammation. Shane had never been sick. No fever, nothing. The doctor said he looked perfectly healthy….like the “gerber, Read More

Shane was diagnosed at 8 months. He lived until 19 months old. Obviously he was not potty trained. So, we wore gloves to change his diapers. Our parents wore gloves when they thankfully watched him so we could breathe or be with Chase and Ella. When he went through his first chemo treatment, he, Read More

The beginning. Some are familiar with Shane’s story, but some are not. It all began with me taking a breather. I wasn’t seeing that much of Chase since he is in school all day and had soccer at nights. Usually my husband or father in law would take him to practice. On this day,, Read More

Deep thoughts…two parts Every day I begin thinking I’m going to do my daily childhood cancer awareness post first chance I get. That chance usually is when Will goes down for a nap. Then the side tracking happens. I have no short term memory. It’s terrible. I live with post-it notes or lists that, Read More

We received so much support from strangers, friends and family near and far. We never forget all you did. We remember the cards, the gift cards to restaurants, gifts to the kids, the meals that were personally delivered by friends from college, high school, my mom’s group, neighbors, food sent from friends across the, Read More

It’s Sunday. It’s Fall. It’s Football. Since 2009, more than $18 million has been raised for American Cancer Society (ACS) through their NFL partnership. For every dollar that is donated to ACS (including Relay for Life) only HALF A PENNY goes to all childhood cancer. There are about 120 different types of childhood cancer., Read More

The kids are back to school and now there are the sniffles and the coughs. I walk into the school and it’s the same sound everywhere. I think to myself…how did we make it? How did I have a preschooler (totally germy), an elementary school child (at least they use hand sanitizer) and a, Read More

We tried to spend as little time at CHOP as we could. The doctors and nurses were amazing at helping us do this. Shane was on your typical rhabdomyosarcoma maintenance protocol (yes, it’s only a “maintenance” one that exists for this type of cancer). One week required a 5 day stay at the hospital, Read More