Super Hero Cooper

Many people remember their lives in moments, photographs, experiences, maybe phrases. If we were to think about the greatest words we ever heard up until now, we might list the following: "I love you" "Will you marry me" "I do" "Congratulations it's a boy" "Congratulations it's a girl" Until now.... On Friday we got the results from Cooper's bone marrow test after the induction cycle of his chemotherapy. The doctor called us and said "no leukemia cells were detected". THIS IS HUGE!!!! This for sure makes the top of our list. What a relief it was to hear that everything our child has been going through is working. Friday was probably the most nerve racking test and biggest indicator for us in his journey. The goal of induction was to achieve remission. So now we move forward. Make no mistake, this by no means indicates that we are done. This does not indicate that the road is easy. This also certainly does

I’ll start this post with a couple disclaimers.  First, this is a post I’ve been holding out on, mainly because it’s a topic that I have struggled with.  The second disclaimer is that I make no apologies for my/our declaration of faith. I appreciate that many of you reading this may not have a personal relationship with God and please know I am not preaching nor judging.  Belief in God is the most personal journey you embark upon – and taking that step is up to you.  This blog was started to provide our loved ones with updates and Cooper but also document our journey as a family. To not include how this has affected our faith would not due the story justice, as it would leave such a huge hole in the truth. Kristy and I both were raised in Christian homes.  Our parents were an integral part of our development as children, but at some point, your faith needs to become your own.  We have spent the majority of our marriage extremely blessed and comfortable. I will say, that having fai

Today marked the end of the first cycle, induction. Many consider this to be the hardest and most challenging cycle. It is certainly not the longest, but difficult for a lot of reasons. This is the only cycle where Cooper will be on large steroid dose every day. This was hard because in a way we felt like our child moved out and someone else took his place. He looks different, he acts different, he sounds different, but most of all his bright contagious smile that lights up a room seemed to be hidden somewhere under everything, including his chubby little cheeks. During this 28 day round we did 8 days in the hospital, 28 days of steroids, 3 OR visits/procedures which included 3 spinal taps, 3 administrations of chemo in his spinal fluid, 3 extractions of spinal fluid, 2 bone marrow aspirates, the insertion of a PICC line, the removal of a PICC line, the insertion of his port, and 6 additional rounds of chemotherapy in clinic. All I can say is we survived! I mean, that's en

One of the COOLEST things this past week was a gift that Cooper got in the mail. I wrote to Mike Houston (The Coach of the JMU football team) and his staff explaining  our story and that Cooper had planned to attend a game this year to cheer on his favorite football team. However, due to the diagnosis, we would no longer be able to attend. I asked if I sent them a t-shirt, if the team would sign it for him to lift his spirits. We can confidently say that we have never been more proud to be JMU alumni. This team is everything...from the coaching staff to the character of every player on that team. If you've been following the Dukes, there have been many things on ESPN leading up the the last 2 National Championship games that they played in talking about how special this team is on and off the field. They support each other, they're a family, and there are no "individuals" on that team, which is why they are so successful. It's one thing to be a great player on t

With the very likely hairless future that we will face, Cooper made the decision to take a little bit of control and have some fun too. He decided to get his hair cut. Not just any haircut....a Washington Capitals logo haircut! I mean, if you're going to lose your hair, you might as well look awesome doing it! The regular barber that Cooper goes to, fortunately had someone who could complete this crazy request. They were unbelievable. They made him an appointment before the shop opened so we wouldn't have to worry about having him out in a crowd with his immune system. Everyone was so supportive. Wes at All About Men is the BEST!!!!! Cooper left with the coolest capitals eagle on the back of his head. Wes even wore his Capitals gear too!

Everyone thinks their own kids are the best. That's every parent's right as their guardian.  We are obviously bias but we can't help but look at our kid in absolute awe with how he is dealing with this situation. Nothing like your 5 year old setting the record straight with a bunch of grownups who feel like they're trying to get their act together. From the beginning we have done our best to be completely honest with Cooper about what is happening to him. Granted, this is a tall order to try to make sure to explain a life threatening disease in a developmentally appropriate way. Those of you who know Cooper well, know that he is a very literal kid, a straight shooter. You'd better be honest with him or he will be the first one to call your bluff if you aren't. It is this wonderful quality that Cooper has that will most likely earn all of his classroom teachers a nice bottle of merlot for Christmas. Cooper is also a very observant kiddo, he's a watcher...he

Week 2: All in all, it's been a good week at the Trueblood's.  We have had great help over the last several weeks from both sets of Cooper's Grandparents (thank you for putting your lives on hold to support us and keep us sane!), as well as our wonderful neighbors for keeping us well fed and taking care of our high-maintenance lawn.  It's been truly an answered prayer with the amazing show of support for us through this difficult time.  Thank you all! After our long day at Hopkins on Monday, Cooper had a few days off which he spent (surprise!) building Lego, puzzles and grandparent fun!  We returned to the hospital on Friday for his lab results from Monday as well pulling new labs to check his levels.  The continued great news is that his leukemia levels are down to 0.4% which is showing that he is responding very well to the treatments. They also did a genetic analysis of his chromosomes to determine the specific mutation that has caused all these issues.  They det