a little pain but we are good

Thank you so much for your prayers. We all felt them during the back procedure yesterday. Sarah is experiencing more back pain than usual, but it is not as bad as the last procedure.

Also, below is a video of the flash mob that Sarah and Hannah participated in during church on Sunday. You can play the game, "Spot Sarah". A hint is she is in the back in a blue shirt. When the camera zooms toward the blue shirts you should see her face. Hannah on the other hand is very easy to find. The only hint I will give is she has a purple shirt on.

God Bless,

Bent Tree FX Live Flash Mob from Bent Tree on Vimeo.

Back procedure on Wednesday

Please keep Sarah in your prayers on Wednesday. She has a spinal tap to inject chemo and take fluid for testing. After her last spinal tap in June, she had really bad side effects and had to go to the hospital for a few days. We of course do not want that to happen again. It was very painful for her.

So pray that she does not have side effects and that we get through the day without any problems. After Wednesday, she will only have two more back procedures with one in December and March.

Thanks so much for sharing the burdens with us.

a good week

The follow up x-rays of Sarah's hand were great. We do not have to go back until February to see the specialist. There will always be a chance the tumor can grow back as long as her growth plate stays open. So we will have to keep following up with the Doctor for a few more years. Hopefully soon, we go to one year visits.

She if feeling better after the chemo on Tuesday. All of the girls are excited to go hear Bethany Hamilton speak at Fellowship Church tomorrow. My girls are huge Soul Surfer fans! They highly recommend the movie.

another request

Thanks for your prayers yesterday. The appointment was very smooth and Sarah's numbers are good even with the increase in her daily chemo pills. She did not feel very good today so please continue to pray for her.

Also, please pray tomorrow as Sarah goes for a follow up for her finger. Even though the tumor was benign it still can grow back so we of course don't want that to happen. We also continue to pray that Sarah's finger grows straight as the tumor was on her growth plate.

Number 8

Tomorrow is Sarah's monthly chemo appointment at the clinic along with starting steroids. Please be praying for her as she is more tired and nauseous from these trips. The appointment is at 3pm.

Also, a few weeks ago we went back to visit an old friend at Sea World in San Antonio. Elrod the sea lion is a hit in the Clark family. His legend grew even more after seeing him act in his show. He is a precious creation from our heavenly Father.

I also want to thank Mike Poole and Sea World for all they've done for Sarah and our family. It is great to continue to receive these blessings to help us keep our endurance.

Video from trip to Trail West

With being on vacation and traveling most of June along with my school starting in July, I am behind on pictures and videos! I thought you would enjoy this video from our time at Trail West. Jay

another month down 8 more to go

On Tuesday, Sarah had her monthly clinic visit to receive IV chemo in her port. Her blood counts were good, and overall she is doing remarkable well considering all the chemo she has endured over the past year and a half. I know that it is by God blessing her so please keep her in your prayers.

When the doctor was visiting Sarah in the clinic, I was able to talk more about "what's next" for us. Throughout this journey, the doctors have been really good at keeping us focused on today and not allowing us to think too far in advance. Now that we are only 8 months away from the end of Sarah's treatment, they are giving us more information. Below are some of the highlights.

- If she does not miss any chemo in the next 8 months (due to illness, etc.), her end date is the 24th of March. Which is ironically Deborah's first birthday. (When we get closer, we will post information for a party we hope to give Sarah to celebrate the end of chemo treatments.)

- In May or June she will have a surgery to remove her port. She will also stay on her antibiotics for six more months just in case she has any infections.

- Two years after the end of chemo, March 2012 to March 2014, she will go to the clinic once a month to monitor her blood counts. At first we will see the doctor each month, but eventually we will start just seeing the doctors every quarter.

- For one year, March 2014 to March 2015, she will meet at the clinic as part of a cancer survival "club". This will be more about helping her emotionally in being a cancer survivor. At the end of 2015, they will use the word "cured". Sarah will be starting her teenage years, so emotional issues will be a good thing to talk about.(At least that is what I am being told will happen when my girls become teenagers. :))

Of course, we believe she is "healed", but I admit that I look at the day they use the word "cured" with great expectations.

So the journey continues. We can see the end, but we know that God still wants us to focus on today. Our prayer request is that we do not think too long about the end, as great as that will be, but instead to make sure we stay strong today because we know from experience it only takes one moment, and we could face the horrors once again.