It's been a while...

Hey guys! I know it has been so long since I have blogged and I'm so sorry. There are some followers on here that do not have a Facebook so aren't able to see some of the updates I post about Cash and have been asking about him. Anyways, he is doing WONDERFUL! Development wise, he is right up along side a "typical" sighted child. He talks all the time and he is such a ham. If he does/says something and I laugh, he just keeps doing it over and over because he loves to make people laugh. Vision wise, he is doing great. His light perception has gotten so much better over the past few months that he will sometimes face the TV and "watch" it when it is dark in the room. He can't see what is on the TV but he can see the contrast in colors and brightness and he likes it. He can be in his room and see lights turned on in the hallway or bathroom. He also can see things that are solid red that are held up to his face. This is so much better than when we even first returned from China. He has made so much progress in everything over the past few months. Hormone wise, everything is still fine except for his growth. He has been prescribed growth hormone replacement and will start that as soon as everything is worked out with insurance. We are really excited for him to finally have the right amount of growth hormone and start growing like a weed! Other than that, he is a happy, healthy, super smart 21 month old. We honestly could not be more proud of how far he has come! I can't say a big enough thank you to all who have helped us on his journey, whether it is through donations or prayers or well wishes. We truly appreciate it all SO much!

~Thank you all~
Morgan and Jesse

First post China ophthalmologist appt.

WONDERFUL NEWS!!!! We have been waiting to blog about this until we had an appointment with Cash's ophthalmologist who has been following him since birth. We saw him this morning and he was very impressed with Cash's vision! He read us his notes from back in April when he saw Cash right before we went to China, which said "Despite many attempts, I cannot convince myself that Cash has any light perception whatsoever." Now, 2 months after stem cell treatment began, he said not only does Cash have light perception, he has a step above that called light projection. Light projection means that he can identify the area in which the light is being shined. He said he can obviously see an improvement and he is very pleased with it. He wants to send an email to a doctor we saw before that was kind of discouraged with our  decision to take Cash for stem cells. He wants the doctor to know what he has seen! He ended by telling us that he thinks the future of Cash's vision definitely lies within stem cells. This treatment is so new and it's only getting better and better. Cash's vision can now improve for up to a year on this treatment alone. There are several children that have gone back for a 2nd or even 3rd trip, receiving better results everytime.
                    I know that any of this wouldn't be possible without our amazing God who makes anything possible! He definitely has favor for our sweet little Cash and continues to show us everyday just how much of a miracle he really is! I also really want to just tell all of you THANK YOU so much!! To each one of you that donated to Cash, or that had a hand in helping in any way, you were all a part of a true miracle, and it just doesn't get any better than that! :) We love you guys so much! We are wanting to go back to China maybe next year, or just whenever we can save enough/raise enough to go back. We, along with his doctor, are so encouraged by what we have seen and it can only get better and better.


Morgan and Jesse

...and were off to CHINA!!!

Hey everyone. I'm sorry I've been lacking on the blog updates, we been just a little busy around here ;). So as most of you know, we are leaving for China in just 4 days! We will be there for 17 days, returning home at 11:59 p.m. on June 23rd. This absolutely would not be possible without all of yall's help! We have the best friends and family ever, that's for sure! This would also never have been possible without all of our blessings from the Lord. It seems like we have just been blessed on one thing after another lately, it is so amazing! Life is gooooood. Cash is doing really well. He is getting so big and smart, and has developed an awesome personality. He is so much fun now, we are LOVING him getting older. He will start working with an Orientation & Mobility therapist when we return from China, who will be the one to teach him to walk confidently. I, especially, am so excited for this because he is getting really heavy! He has an appointment with his Endo also when we return from China, and will start on his GH injections then. He will be a growing machine! Other than that, everything is going great! We will keep all of y'all updated on everything, and just ask all of you to pray for us everyday. Pray that this goes as smoothly as possible, and Cash adjusts quickly. A happy Cash keeps everyone happy :). Pray for safe flights on the way there and back. I know God will be there with us! Thank you to all of you for your donations and your support. We love you all!

Morgan and Jesse

Cash's Ophthalmologist appt.

Yesterday, Cash had his check up at the pediatric ophthalmologist. There wasn't really much that he could do since Cash is still so young and can't tell us anything. As far as we can tell, there is still no light perception, or anything at all. As all of you ONH mommies know, it is always good to find a good doctor that supports our decisions to take our babies to China. We need all the support and help that we can get. So Cash's doctor yesterday was so awesome! He is the one that diagnosed him at 4 months, and we haven't seen him since. He told me that he is very proud of what we are doing for our son, and if it was his child he would already be on a plane to China. He told me a really neat story about his experience with stem cells. His daughters best friend was 20 wks pregnant when they told her that she should not keep the baby because the babies brain was severely underdeveloped, and there was no way she could survive more than a few hours after birth. The family got in contact with a doctor at a university that agreed to do a stem cell transplant on the baby girl after she was born. After the baby was born, she was sent home on hospice, and she received the stem cells. Long story short, Cash's doctor is attending her 3rd birthday party in June, and she is walking and talking! So he has seen it with his own eyes, and truly believes that if Cash will ever have a chance at sight, this is it. He is going to do another check up when we get back from China and see what kind of improvements he has. As I was checking out of the office, the receptionist said "I don't know why, but he is not charging you. You owe nothing." How sweet is that? I asked her to thank him for me when he came out of his next appt. Then about 40 minutes later, I got a notification saying that his doc had just donated $250 to Cash's account. Now if thats not a supportive doctor, then I don't know what is! :)

Results from the Endo...

So Cash got his final results back from the Endocrinologist. All of the tests came back normal except one... his growth hormone. We got the call today from the doctor, his Growth Hormone (GH) level should be in the hundreds, and his is 14. The doctor was very surprised by this because that is extremely low, almost undetectable,  and typically with this level he would be off the charts in length. Normally they would start the injections right away, but since Cash is still 15th percentile in his length, he's going to test him again in July and start him on injections then if it's still so very low. I've had a feeling his GH was low since my girls are both tall and he's been so short. The good thing is, with the shots, he will still grow to be of normal size. The HGH will make his levels normal so he will grow to be the size he would be normally. He will take them 6 nights a week until he's done going through puberty. His doctor told me that kids get used to it very quickly and it becomes no big deal. He said he has a young girl that already gives her own injections. I don't know the exact cost of these since we haven't had to cross this bridge yet, but I'm praying that our insurance will cover a large chunk of them since this is something that we will have to do for many years. Anyways, just keep him in your prayers that everything will work out fine. This is just something that comes along with his disability, and it could always be a lot worse. Praise God that his other levels were normal!

The date is set...

...and were going to CHINA!!! Cash will be admitted to Chengyang People's Hospital in Qingdao, China on June 8th, 2011. He will receive AT LEAST 6 rounds of stem cells (or more if we can afford it) through IV and lumbar puncture.  This will be about 27 hours of just air time, one way, and some hours of layovers in between. It is going to be a very tough flight, but it will be worth it! Also, the days over there are pretty much opposite of here. So not only will we be changing time zones, our then 15 month old will be also!

Now, this just means its crunch time. We've got just 11 weeks until payment is due in full. We still need to raise a good amount of money but were pretty confident that all of us, along with you guys, can do it! The dates have to be set in advance because there are limited Stem cell wards over in China and we have to make sure we get in as soon as possible instead of waiting until we have raised all the funds, and then having to wait months to get a date. We need all the help we can get now. Just please tell anyone who will listen, spread the word everywhere you can to get donations in. We need them more then ever!! Thank you so much to everyone who has already helped us out in getting vision for our little man. Please contact me with any fundraising ideas you have.

Thanks so much!
Morgan and Jesse

February~update on the little man

Hey guys!

First I wanna give a big HAPPY BIRTHDAY to the most wonderful husband/daddy in the world! We love you so much! Also, can you believe Cash will be 1 year old in 18 days?!?!?! I can't! He is getting so big. He is learning the cutest things. It is so neat now that he recognizes people that he spends time with often. Nothing makes you feel more special than his little giggle when he hears your voice. He is such a sweet kid. Cash almost has 8 teeth now. Numbers 7 and 8 are just right there under the skin. Poor kid is chewing on anything he can get his hands on, and chews on his hands if nothing else is in reach. He is completely on table food now, which is amazing! We expected some texture aversions, but nope! He eats anything you give him. He will be off formula/bottles in a couple weeks, which makes me soooooo sad! With the girls, it was easy and i looked forward to taking the bottles away. But with Cash, he is my last baby and I do not want to give that up :( O well! He says Mama and Dada. More Dada for sure. He shakes his head No when i ask him if he wants kisses, which Jesse thinks is hilarious! I give them to him anyways :) He pulls up on everything he can. If theres nothing in reach, he rolls around until he can find something that he can pull up on. He's doing so well that one of his therapists decided to only come once a month for now, unless he starts falling behind.
           In my last blog i wrote about him going to the Pediatric Endocrinologist. The appointment is set now- February 21st. One day before his birthday! I am very anxious to get this done. I have held it off as long as I can, just believing that he is fine. I know that this is something that we have to do, and I'd rather find out now if he needs hormone replacement then wait until it is too late. We really believe he is fine though, he seems to be a healthy, growing boy. We should know the results by the beginning of March and I will definitely let you guys know.
          The China trip is becoming more and more of a reality everyday. We have reached about 60% of what we need for his first treatment. Thats HUGE! We are saving everything we can every month and putting it in his account. Every little bit helps! We just need everyone else to keep giving anything that they can (without putting financial strain on yourself), and keep spreading the word to make this thing possible! There has been 4,670 views on this page so far. Just think, if every person that viewed so far donated just $5 (which some of you have done much more!!), that would be $23,350!!! So yes, EVERY little bit counts, and we appreciate it more then words can say. We love you all so much and thank you so so so much for making this possible for Cash!


Morgan and Jesse

May this be a miraculous year!!!

Hey everyone!

Hope you all had a very Merry Christmas and an awesome new years! We definitely did. The kids got to see so much of the family and they had a blast playing with their cousins and opening tons of gifts! I've started planning Cash's first birthday party, and i cannot believe it is only a month and a half away! This has been a very crazy year- so emotionally challenging yet so blessed in many, many ways. We have so much to be thankful for in this past year. Cash is making some wonderful progress, and it shouldn't be long before he is walking around on his own! We just have to find the right motivation to get him to take those steps. He is doing very well in therapy. He gets sick of being messed with after about 30 minutes, so they hour long sessions are usually cut short. He's got a super strong will, and will let you know when he just wants to be left alone. Thats a red head for ya! Anyways, as some of you know, most children with Cash's condition have multiple hormone deficiencies due to the pituitary gland not working properly. The most common deficiency is having little to no growth hormone, and if thats the case then the child will have to have an injection of growth hormone 6 nights a week until they are done growing. There are also many other serious deficiencies they can have, and have to take hormone replacements forever. Usually when it is severe, they child will show signs at birth and need to be hospitalized for different reasons. Luckily for Cash, he has not shown any signs of deficiencies, and he seems to be growing properly on the growth charts... so far. He is VERY lucky because it is uncommon for that to happen. As a precaution, we are having to go to a Pediatric Endocrinologist and get his hormones tested for the first time, and even if they show no problems, he will get them tested every 6 months. We are extremely nervous to do this, because we have talked to parents whose children seemed to be fine, who had surprising results on the test. We don't have a test date yet because the Endocrinologist is reviewing Cash's labs, films, and charts before them appointment is set. We should know by tomorrow of Monday when it will be. We know that the Lord will take care of our son. I'm believing that Cash is going to be in the very small percentage of children without the other medical problems, and that he is going to continue to shock the doctors with how wonderful he is doing. He's a fighter, I know that no matter what happens, he's going to be a happy guy!
             Also, we have the opportunity to go to dinner with a couple of people that work for the Stem Cell company in China, and learn even more about what we will be experiencing. We will be going tomorrow night, along with another couple who live in Carrolton. They have a baby girl named Piper who is deaf and blind. They are raising money for her trip also, so please pray for their success and their strength as they go through this.
             The fundraising is coming along. We have raised about 40% of what we need for his first treatment. We are getting there! We still need to spread the word and get as many donations as possible to make this happen for Cash. We've had friends do some awesome things to help us out, and we appreciate is SOOOO much!!! We've had some awesome donations come in over Christmas, thanks to our wonderful family and friends :). We are almost half way there, so keep it coming guys!! You guys are so awesome and we love and appreciate you more then words can say.

Thank you for your support~
Jesse and Morgan