I can't believe it is already July. In some ways, I am so very thankful at how quickly time has flown by, and in other ways I'm dissatisfied because when we were first faced with Ethan's illness back in early April, I thought that by mid-June we'd be up in Boston and he'd be getting his transplant. But now it's July and we're probably about 3 weeks away from Ethan's transplant. But... it isn't lost on me that we are very close to that important day, and even though it didn't happen on the mental timeline I created in my mind, these past couple of months with Ethan have been so wonderful. Everything has happened on God's timing, and truth be told, that's just fine with me. I continue to learn that any thing that appears as a "delay" or if all of a sudden there's a "problem with the plan", that really it's a blessing in disguise. So I don't really worry too much about the timing of things. I know Ethan's not forgotten by the Lord and neither are we.

But I still can't believe it's July! I'm so thankful! Back in April, we had no idea what the next few months were going to look like, and even whether or not we'd be able to get through them. But looking back now.... wow. That's all I can say. Wow. Not only did we get through the past months and all the daily details, but we went through it all fairly easily, and Ethan has continued to thrive despite his horrible cancer. God's grace just seemed to pick us up and float us through each day. There were rough spots, but He never let us fall from His hands. And I need to remember that as we face the next chapter of Ethan's story....

Continue to pray about what will be done about Ethan's spleen. I need the doctors in Hartford and in Boston to agree about what needs to be done - whether to take it out or leave it in. I've mentioned before that it doesn't bother me that he could live without a spleen. I know people that are wonderfully "normal" that do not have a spleen. However, my concern is whether or not his little body can handle a major surgery and then a major cord blood transplant. If the decision is made to remove the spleen, it's because his spleen has quite a bit of cancer living in it. The transplant could help remove the cancer, but it is really meant to keep new cancer cells from growing. If they remove the spleen, he may not need as intense chemo treatments prior to the transplant (which is intended to kill off any cancer in his body at that time). So there is good arguments to remove it.... however, it is surgery.... and he is a baby.... and they'd be removing an organ. And Ethan's body has already been through so much. So needless to say I need the Lord's wisdom to be with the doctors and whatever they decide upon, I will trust is from the Lord. Please also pray that all of this can happen quickly and there is no delay in moving forward with Ethan's transplant. He needs a recovery period from his last round of chemo before we can transplant and a recovery period before and after surgery of the spleen. So there's a lot a "waiting" - in the mean time, we don't want Ethan to lose any of the progress he's made thus far, so please pray he will be fully protected by God's grace and mercy as we "wait".