No Cancer!!!

Ahhh, it feels so overwhelmingly good to say that!  We received wonderful news today that Benjamin's tumor turned out to be benign.  The doctor was especially pleased with how well the "wound" has healed.  Our first peak at it was today when the brace and bandaging came off.  It's an astonishing four inches or so long and in the nice shape of a Y.  We're now trying to come up with what the Y should stand for.  Any ideas?!

No more brace!!

Benjamin is still walking around a bit stiff-legged, favoring his right leg.  It's not hurting, but just feels "weird" to bend it much.  He's supposed to stay away from PE type activities for another month and then we'll go back for another wound check.

When we got home, Benjamin was trying out getting his own shoes on, climbing up and down the stairs (very carefully!) and he is currently enjoying his first shower in over two weeks.  Woo hoo!

Thank you again so very much for all of your concern and prayers.  We are still so humbled by the expressions of concern and the prayers that have been uplifted on behalf of Benjamin and our family.  Our God answered these prayers and we give Him all the glory!

 

He's just out and said, "That was the best shower ever!"

KC Christmas

After Grandpa and Grandma left, we had some time to spend the next morning at the hotel and let the kids swim.  Poor Benjamin.... but Michaela and I stayed out of the pool to keep him company.  Then we headed to see Uncle Eric, Aunt Kate, Elle, and Zane.  We had a nice visit, but unfortunately after a short while Ami wasn't very interested in playing with her favorite Elle.  She ended up with a high fever and slept most of the afternoon there.  Poor thing cried that she wanted to play with Elle, but at the same time wanted to go home.  We're hoping we didn't share any germs with the them!  So Christmas with KC family was short, but sweet.

Zane and Elle have been faithful prayers for Benjamin's leg.  They were interested in seeing Benjamin's big "band-aid".  

Glad Johanna and Elle enjoyed playing together since Ami was sacked out (in the background).

Zane, such fun!  He hardly sits still for a moment and is all boy.  He's got the best laugh, too!

Grandpa and Grandma

It was a very special surprise for us to have Grandpa and Grandma Clark visit for Christmas.  They had planned to use their airline miles and spend time in Hawaii over Christmas, but when they knew how serious Benjamin's situation was they changed their schedule giving up time in Hawaii to be with us.  It meant a lot to have their moral and physical support here.  We're still waiting on the pathology report, but are feeling confident that with the tumor removed, Benjamin will be completely healed.  Nevertheless, it's been an emotional ride over the last month.  With all the emotional extremes, I'm a bit exhausted, but am so thankful for the many that have supported us in prayer, phone calls, emails, and visits.

Here are a some shots from the rest of our visit with Grandpa and Grandma.

New Legos, always a hit:

Pony pretend with Grandma:

The laptops, ultimate joy  :)

Nerf guns....more fun than described on the box:

Hawaiian hair clips from G/G:

Daily hair washing at the sink for Benjamin.  He's looking forward to a shower again!

Always our favorite BBQ with Grandpa here:

Otoshidama a bit early from G/G (Japanese New Year money)

We spent our last night with Grandpa and Grandma at a hotel near the airport as they had to leave super early the next morning.  Always hard to say good-bye, but we're already looking forward to their upcoming summer visit when there will definitely be more gold panning!

Love you Dad and Mom!  Thank you isn't enough to say for your surprise visit!

Panning for Gold

Yep, right here in Missouri in the warmth of our kitchen!  Dad has done some panning in his California mountain days, and thought it would be a fun activity to do with the grandkids.  Yes, he ordered dirt, had it sent here from California, and the kids had some exciting fun.  They barely got through any of the dirt (the rest will be saved for summer when Grandpa returns), and have found gold.  But wait, that's not all....they even found some rubies!  These are tiny pieces, not nuggets or anything, but it's gold.  Fun times!

The best part is that the kids were "doing" school over vacation without realizing it.  :)

Christmas Day

After worship service on Christmas morning, we came home and opened the few remaining gifts left from Christmas Eve.  We enjoyed Christmas dinner together and then Uncle Jeremy broke out the computers that he had cleaned out of his office.  Yes, each kid now has their own Netbook and they are quite thrilled.  As if Christmas gifts weren't enough!  :)  Thank you, Jeremy.  You have recemented your name as the electronic gadget king to our kids!

How I found the boys early Christmas morning....Benjamin propped up on the floor and both working on piles of Legos:

Our two Amy/Amis...we started calling Ami by her Chinese name so that Aunt Amy wouldn't keep having to look around each time Ami was called!

We said good-bye to Uncle Jeremy and Aunt Amy as they were heading out early the next morning.  They are moving to NC and we are so excited that they'll be a bit closer to us!  I see a trip to the east coast in our near future.  :)  Thank you guys for making the effort to be here for Christmas, and for bringing along a wonderful Christmas surprise!

Christmas Eve

Our Christmas Eve was a little merrier than expected!  We were really looking forward to having Uncle Jeremy and Aunt Amy here, and it was made all the more sweet by their bringing Dad and Mom along with them from the airport.  We enjoyed the day relaxing and listening to Ami ask, "When will be open presents?"  Our Clark tradition is to open our gifts on Christmas Eve.  Seeing as how there were quite a few more Clarks represented this year, we opened most of the gifts Christmas Eve and saved a few for Christmas morning.

Early gifts opened Christmas Eve morning....Jeremy and Amy thought that Benjamin would appreciate having a toy that he could play with while keeping his leg propped up.  Air Swimmers!  These things are so cool.  We have two new pets in the family, a shark and a fish that are randomly seem swimming through the air waving their tails.  Lots of fun!

 

Finally time to open gifts after family photos and the reading of the Christmas story.

Lots of gifts expressing lots of love.  We are blessed with family!