Post Transplant Day 323
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What a whirlwind! We are home and adapting back to yet another new normal. Its hard to process this past month+ I feel like there just hasn’t been time or energy to work through the emotions of this past year. There’s been a lot of hard. A lot of loss and mourning. So much pain and fear and just pure, earthly sadness. Loss of ability, loss of friends. Something so chronic and so deep changes your perspective on all things. You learn to accept what people are willing to offer without expectations and to value not what the world values, but where God says we’re valuable. But above all, there is gratitude. Gratitude for our family whether through blood or chosen. Gratitude for all the friends we’ve met through this journey and for all the ways we’ve been loved and supported. With this addition of Keira’s tumor and surgery, we never would’ve made it without both the prayers and love and financial support. Thank you from the bottom of our hearts. We feel so much genuine love for all of you. And continue to Thank God that he’s walking with us through you all.
Tate has had a busy week already, but tonight I’m going to focus on Keira. This girl has had her own crazy journey over the last two years. After a summer where Tate (and Keira’s mom) spent the entire summer in the hospital with Tate with life threatening illness and a very poor prognosis, keira returned to prep school in WI in the Fall of 2021. Tate was on hospice and Keira didn’t know if her sister would still be there to hug the next time she returned home. I don’t think anyone realized the impact this was having on her and she really didn’t receive the support she needed. She decided to come home the Fall of her junior year. Tate and I were home for about a month before Tate was admitted again. Keira was without an available mom again (but with a really amazing dad.) This girl did everything for herself. Online HS classes, got her CNA license and by summer was working full time. She graduated a year early and was accepted to college. She spent many days fitting in hospital visits and coming down to Brents Place to support and love on Tate and I post BMT the summer of 2022. August she headed to college early as she was asked to play soccer for WLC. First week of practice she tore her MCL and was out the rest of the season while working through PT. Also starting in August, Keira was experiencing chronic nausea and extreme episodes of vomiting-2 that landed her in the ER in order to get things under control. Migraines started to set in and school became very difficult. We had no idea a brain tumor was causing all these symptoms nor that every acute episode could’ve ended in sudden death. Thank you Lord for protecting her! A severe concussion and diagnosis of a brain tumor on December 22nd, was not part of the restful Christmas we were anticipating.
Keira has dreams of becoming a pediatric nurse and was hired and in process of starting a job at Milwaukee Children’s as a nursing assistant. This tumor has changed a lot of things for her. That dream job is on hold and she’s waitlisted for nursing school. She won’t be returning to school this semester. Post surgical testing highlights how the surgery removing the tumor and potential issues caused by the tumor growth itself is continuing to challenge her. We pray with time the headaches will stop, fatigue will dissipate and all will return to baseline functioning. It’s a lot. I know Keira is disappointed and worried. I also know that Keira is driven and nobody works harder. And nobody loves harder. She’s had lots of friends walk away upon leaving prep as HS age kids really only are focused on who/what is directly impacting them in that moment. For those who have walked with her through this long journey, they have the privilege to be loved by this beautiful girl with huge heart towards whomever or whatever she pursues. Keira isn’t really on FB much but I want her to know how incredibly privileged her dad and I are to get to be loved by this fierce, spirited, amazing human. Thank you for lifting her up through all this. She is grateful. We are grateful. Tatum’s journey alone deeply affects her siblings. The boys too! Keira continually puts Tate first. Keep Keira in your prayers please as she navigates the next few months at home.