Aspiring to be Pierce

This goes so well with my I Piercy entry from yesterday. This is from my friend, Andrea, who is the mother of Pierce's best buddy Hen Hen (Henry).

I keep meaning to tell you...the other night we were getting Henry ready for bed, and after saying his name about something (likely to “come here”) he said, “No, I’m Pierce.” This continued several times, and he was quite adamant about it. We gave in and asked him where Max & Graham were, to which he responded with giggles. Clearly this is the start of a man crush. J

Prayers for Michelle

Mitch's sister, Michelle, recently found out she has stage 3 colon cancer. A shock to her and difficult for all the family as everyone, especially Mitch, Michelle and their two sisters, are still grieving the loss of their father, Ray, to lung cancer right before Christmas. Honestly, I don't think a family should have to deal with this much.

While we've known the news since Wednesday, February 2 with more details each day, here's a brief summary from Michelle she sent to a group of friends and family earlier yesterday. Our prayers for her continue.

This past month has been a whirlwind!

The last time I wrote, I told you about my trip to Raleigh and asked you to pray. It was an amazing week as I met with college volunteers, full-time staff, and students to hear all that God is doing in that city. I heard about Nikki, a junior at Broughton High School, who came to know Christ and then attended our FastBreak conference. She had invited her friends to join her, and they all placed their faith in Christ as well. Hearing this story caused the other volunteers to want to get in there and start reaching out to the basketball team, the track team, the band, and even another high school with the gospel. Since I was there two of the college girls have already connected with the track team and are leading a group of girls to grow in their faith. God is on the move!

I left Raleigh to return to Wisconsin to pack up the house. When I returned to Florida I began further tests on my health journey. You may remember that ever since this summer I wasn’t feeling quite right. I thought it was stress related to my dad’s health. The symptoms grew somewhat worse as I headed into the fall. After my physical my doctor sent me down the road of getting a colonoscopy.

What started out as a routine test has yielded anything but routine results. The doctor found a tumor in the colon that has turned out to be stage 3 cancer. I have spent the last week doing CT scans and doctors’ appointments in the midst of our directors’ meetings. Surgery to remove the tumor is set for next Tuesday, February 15, at 11 a.m. It’s a 3 or 4-hour surgery followed by a week in the hospital for recovery. As my body heals, I will begin chemo in the near future.

I am still in shock. Some days I think this is all a dream. At other moments, I am immersed in this and have forgotten what normal is like. All of that to say, I don’t even know how to ask you to pray. I know you will pray and for that I am so thankful. I have experienced the Lord’s love and nearness and sovereign hand behind it all.

A friend will keep you updated this week with the results!

Love,
Michelle

Next fight for Ray

This is from an email Mitch sent earlier today

Cancer is a really tough opponent, but Dad is up for the fight. We received some disappointing news with regard to the tumors in his liver. Although his lungs look good at present time, the cancer in his liver is on the uptick since late July.

So he starts a new round of chemo this morning that consists of a drug to target his liver tumors. The plan is for it to shrink or keep stable the liver cancer.

Overall Dad looks great; feels normal and has normal liver function. His spirits, although a bit dampened yesterday, are back today. He has a very positive outlook and believes this round will attack and shrink the liver tumors. Why not?

I'd ask you to continue to keep him in your thoughts and prayers as he could use a ton of good vibes over the next month or so.

Also make sure you continue to make the most of your and your family's time today, tomorrow and the day after that. Keep your self focused on the mission and continue to make this world a better place.

God bless!

First night alone with G & G

A note from my mom (this morning) after Pierce's first overnight with them and sleeping on the twin bed for the first time!

Pierce and Dad just stopped for a visit. Everybody, of course, saw how very cute he is!!!! I am already so anxious to get home after school. Want to be with him!!!!!

Great night – three times just his little cry but right back to sleep. Dad put pillows between mattress and bookshelf like used to do with the other boys so don’t hit in the night. Put gate up in doorway. I was getting ready in the bathroom when he opened the door and gave me his big morning smile!

Have a great day!

Love you LOTS!! XOXOOX Mom

Gamma and Gump Time

(An update from mom after a few days with the boys. She doesn't do justice in telling the amount of effort and love my dad and she put into thee four days. Wow!)

Gamma and Gump had the privilege of spending quality time with the boys and Mitch while Kristin spent some time in Florida with her girlfriends. I am pretty sure she had the most relaxing time. But it is definitely debateable who had the BEST TIME!!!!!


What a great Daddy Mitch is! He kept everything running smoothly.....and grilled a great steak!

By Thursday morning Max asked what we would do that day. Truthfully, I couldn't think of a thing we hadn't already done!!!!! Our days were filled with Corridor Coffee, McDonald's, Barnes & Noble, the mall play area, Build-A-Bear, Children's Museum, bowling, library, swimming, reading, legos, about ten different board games and war...don't forget a trip to Target!!!!

What better to wake up to that three happy boys crawling into your bed! Especially since we had a good night's sleep....Mitch on the other hand had several busy nights with storms erupting LOUDLY and boys filling his bed!

Max proudly approached the high dive for the first time and without hesitation climbed the ladder and jumped off the end - what a feat! He also lost one of his front teeth at the hands of Gamma's elbow during a bed tussle! Fortunately, it was already very loose!

Pierce had a leaky diaper at Mary's because Gamma didn't put his diaper on correctly - YIKES!!!!!

Graham got the only prize at golfing when he played plinko at the end and sunk his golf ball - GOOD JOB!

Gump got the swingset stained after Mitch had cleaned it.

The boys were great company and very good helpers...definitely earning money for their penny jar.

Mitch's sister

My prayers each night are focused on our family and then extend to friends who are close to us, people who need our prayers and other concerns and joys in our lives. Tonight, I continue to pray for Mitch's sister Danelle who was confirmed to have thyroid cancer on Friday.  I pray for Mitch, as well, as he provides strength to his dad, his sister, the boys and me while also finding his own ways to handle his father's cancer and that of his sister. I've been overwhelmed these past few weeks with this news and trying to understand a world and a God who brings this into our lives.

Danelle first suspected something in early May and has selected an Dr. Angelos at the University of Chicago for her care. Below is the email Mitch sent to my parents and sister today summing up what we have learned from Dr. Angelos and the next steps for Danelle.

Mitch's message at 12:00 today.

We were able to get her in @ Univ. of Chicago with Dr. Angelos. She was seen last Friday and he confirmed that she has thyroid cancer. Her thyroid cancer is completely treatable and she should be able to live a healthy life with medication. In the meantime, her surgery to remove her thyroid and any cancerous nodules around it is Tuesday, June 15. Dr. Angelos is one of the world’s leading experts when it comes to thyroid cancer. He is an MD/PHD (the best of the best in academic medicine!); and performs more than 200 of these surgeries annually.

Danelle’s recuperation from surgery is about a week. Then following that, she drinks a radiated iodine dye for three weeks to eliminate any remaining hot spots. She is unable to be around anyone for about 48 hours after taking the dosages. Following that she should be okay, and the plan is for her cancer to be in remission.

The biggest complication from surgery is making sure her vocal cords aren’t dinged.

Thanks for your continued prayers, hugs and love. Now off to Dad’s to make sure his follow up appointment and planned chemo treatment protocol #5 goes according to plan.

Make sure you hug and kiss your loved ones today. Life is way too short.

Mitch

Grampy is too funny!

Posted by Mitch earlier today about our trip to see Ray this past weekend (you'll read some repeat of my post on the same) -

The entire Beckman crew just got back from spending the weekend with Dad and Deniese and we had a blast! It was very nice to visit just for fun. No appointments, no chemo, no doctors, no nurses. We had fun family time all centered around Dad and the boys getting crazy. Grampy taught the boys the Iowa wave, introduced them to the Tom and Jerry cartoon, and told numerous old-school jokes the boys are now re-telling to their friends and teachers. Graham and Grampy really bonded on this trip as both enjoyed each other's teasing and come-back lines. I've never seen Graham as happy. For several moments we were able to forget about cancer.

Just before our visit, Dad successfully completed his 4th round of chemo. Prior to this round of treatments, his oncologist, Dr. Choong, examined him and continues to be very happy with Dad's progress and how well he is handling the extensive chemo treatments. The only noticeable side effect is Dad's hair loss which doesn't look that much out of place.

Next steps include a second follow-up chest CT scan next week, along with another reading of this scan and his blood results, an exam by Dr. Choong, and hopefully, round 5 of chemo. I'd much rather be traveling back to hear more jokes and laughter, but any time with Dad now is quality time.

Circus Fun - Gamma and Gump Style

Written my Mary Loupee, my mom, aka Gamma - 

The circus has changed in twenty-five years - but the excitement of a child has not!!!

We took Max and Graham to the Shrine Circus on May 1st.  I guess it took the place of May baskets this year.

We had great seats.  We could see the action in all three rings.  Max closed his eyes at some of the acrobatic stunts - and Graham was worried about the motor cyclists in the cage.

We arrived in plenty of time to take in all the atmosphere - the clowns, the horses, the elephants...the food kiosks and the restroom locations!!

We told each boy they could have one overpriced, poorly made circus toy (that aspect has not changed a bit!)  Max and I immediately headed to the sale table where he chose very carefully a lighted saber..."good choice" we were hoping Mom and Dad would say - NOT!

Graham had wanted to wait until later.  But when the circus lights dimmed and all the sabers in the crowd lit up...we bought his from the first salesperson to get near our seats!

And what is a circus without a bag of cotton candy.  We all shared the sticky concoction.  Wet wipes rescued us all

Having waiting patiently for food until intermission, we headed to the concession stand.  But the boys were so worried they would miss something they headed back to their seats with Gump - leaving me to figure out how to transport all their requests...hot dogs, pretzels, drinks, nachos and cheese - all totally nutritious!

Graham took it all in fairly quietly seemingly in awe of what was happening before him.

Max laughed out loud - seeing all the humor in the clown skits and even understanding the mime act of the clowns.  He questioned how all the tricks were done...maybe in preparation for a kindergarten performance or future employment.  

Both boys were very tired as we made our way out of the parking lot at Veteran's Auditorium.

All four of us had a very special circus day together.

Expect the Unexpected

Posted on Ray's CarePage by Mitch today

Dad and I are learning that when it comes to his ongoing treatment and care, we should always "expect the unexpected." Case in point is that dad's 3rd round of chemo was postponed at the last minute because his white blood cell count was too low. Ironically with his count being low, he was more at risk for harm because of his inability to fight infection vs. the harmful risks of his cancer. He took the unexpected news in stride and rescheduled round 3, beginning next Thursday, April 22, preceded by his check-up with his oncologist, and a second CT scan to compare and determine whether the spots in his liver are shrinking. He is in very good spirits, and remains encouraged that there is a strong liklihood that shrinkage is occuring and will continue to stay shrunk for as long as possible.


Dad continues to work every day, and sticks to his nearly-normal routine, which makes him happy at the moment. With spring in full force, he's all about baseball and the Brewers, the NFL Draft, spring football, grilling out, keeping his plush green lawn manicured, and most importantly, spending a great deal of quality time with my sisters and me, his friends and neighbors, and his dog, Scooter.

Thanks for your continued interest and support. Please continue to keep dad in your thoughts and prayers, especially the morning of Monday, April 19.

Spring break time with Grampy and Aunt Shelby (March 17-20)

The week after dad’s second round of chemo, Kristin, Max, Graham, Pierce and I traveled to dad’s to spend our spring break with him and Aunt Shelby while she was visiting from Florida for a week. We arrived late Wednesday night and the boys were really excited to see Grampy and Aunt Shelby! All things considered, dad looked good and seemed to be tolerating his second round of chemo fairly well thus far. No fever. No nausea. And his appetite remains good. All are good signs as he progresses through this round which involves his first full dose of chemo. He’s lost a little bit of hair but it’s not too noticeable. During our time and Michelle’s continued stay after our departure, it marked 7-10 days post chemo, which makes him most susceptible to illness, infection and severe fatigue. Overall, he seemed to keep these things away!

Thursday morning Max, Graham and I awoke early around 6 am so we could spend the day with Grampy at work. Work with Grampy is always a blast as Grampy spends the day working out of his truck delivering parts and taking orders from his customers throughout SE Wisconsin. Our first stop was McDonalds and then to National Bakery – voted the best bakery in Milwaukee! Grampy bought the boys huge chocolate and cream-filled donuts. At this point, Max and Graham were thinking that Grampy has the best job in the entire world. The boys proceeded to spend the day on the road traveling the countryside and making several stops along the way, including a stop that Max and Graham got to sit in a big rig; another that allowed them to sit in a huge John Deere tractor; more donuts and sweets at Piggly Wiggly, and my favorite stop, Widmers Cheese Factory in Theresa, WI, home to the world famous Widmer’s brick cheese. The cheese factory also included free samples and we definitely took advantage. Of the four boys, I'm not sure which one of us enjoyed this day of work most.

We spent Thursday afternoon outside at Whitnall Park with Aunt Shelby. Dad needed a break and the boys needed to run off some sugar energy. The weather was perfect for a day outside on the play equipment. After the park, it was more NCAA basketball viewing and takeout for dinner. Since dad normally has limited taste options, we did takeout from Culvers and Noodles. One of the highlights from this trip played out over dinner between dad and Graham and how dad teases Graham when responding to some of his questions. For example, Graham asked whether dad was going to go to Stone Fire Pizza Company with us, and dad said, “Nope, I’m going to go to the Walt Disney pizza company next door.” Of course Graham replied and said he’d rather go with dad instead of us. But after several times of dad’s teasing, I think Graham finally caught on and figured out dad was making it up. After several days of this, Graham would tease dad right back. It was really funny to watch them go back and forth. I’m not sure Graham will ever believe grampy again when he asks him a question. After a very long day, the boys went to bed early for a much needed night of sleep.

Friday was more basketball and Stone Fire Pizza day. We were all fired up after the Badgers won their game. After the game the boys headed to Stone Fire with Aunt Shelby and Kristin. The Mass family joined them, and Brianna and Emelia were great to the boys. The four of them bonded very quickly as if they had known each other for a very long time. Dad, Pierce and I joined everyone later for dinner. It was nice for dad to get out for dinner and spend the time with everyone.

Saturday was departure dad and much of the morning was spent preparing for leaving. Dad treated us all to breakfast, and what an eventful breakfast it was, especially for Pierce. For the first time, Pierce didn’t want to cooperate at all. He really didn’t want anything to do with sitting still and eating. Max and Graham were also full of energy and didn’t seem all that interested in sitting too long over breakfast. Everyone survived though. After breakfast Kristin and dad went to Sendick’s, dad’s favorite grocery store, and now Kristin’s too. By the time Kristin packed us, we left around 11:30 and had a peaceful drive home.

What a fantastic weekend for us! We had a great visit to Grampy’s and look forward to our next family trip in May when we’ll see a Brewer’s game – a favorite pastime of my dad.

Ready for some football!

Gump and Gamma came to spend time with the Beckman boys while Mom and Dad went to the Iowa/Minnesota game. We decided to all ride along to drop-off Mom at the stadium. Graham expressed a real fascination with seeing the stadium itself. So, because Gammas and Gumps always want to please their grandchildren as long as the activity is not totally against Mom and Dad's rules or dangerous, after Mommy was dropped off Gump proceeded into the depths of Hawkeye game day traffic right up to the entrance so Graham could get a glimpse of Hawkeye football! He looked through the entrance to the press boxes, the rows and rows of seats and even got a look at the scoreboard before Gump decided enough was enough and turned around in the hospital driveway. It was just enough to make Graham think about being INSIDE the stadium. We said "next year"! Get ready Mom and Dad. You won't be going alone next season!

Written by Gamma/Mary Loupee/Kristin's mom

School day for Gamma and Gump

We were invited guests of Graham at his Montessori School on Friday,November 6th. I did not have a contract day and Gump had a vacation day, so we gladly planned a special day with our Graham.

What a way to start our day!!!! As soon as we walked into Mrs. Honey's classroom, Graham saw us and came running with hugs and his typical shouts of greeting!

He excitedly showed us all the things he works at while he is at school. Then came outside recess where he got rid of some of his energy before returning for music class with Miss Angela. He especially loved the prancing around the room to the rhythm of the music!

He was respectful of the other kids and teachers and followed directions very well.

He snuggled up with us for storytime and raised his hand and waited to be called on to ask questions about people's show and tell.

Max was home sick that day so I took him a Subway lunch while Gump stayed for Friday pizza and peas with Graham.

We were both very proud of our "good looking little man"!!

Written by Gamma/Mary Loupee/Kristin's mom

Go Badgers!

Max and I spent a father and son wonderful weekend in Madison, September 18-20. Unfortunately, Graham (mom and Pierce, too) was supposed to join us, but couldn’t make the trip. What started out as a normal Friday getting ready for the trip, quickly changed as Graham came home from Montessori not feeling well. Dad took graham to the clinic and he was diagnosed with a virus, strep throat, terrible cold. Poor Graham. He was a trooper though as he had to spend the entire visit wearing a mask and then had to go through 2 tongue depressor throat wipes. With Graham sick, dad wasn’t sure the trip was even going to happen, but Kristin to the rescue. She modified our plans and somehow managed to get Max and dad packed for the weekend trip only a few minutes later than expected.

What a trip it was! When we arrived, we were greeted by a huge fire pit in the Lawrence driveway. Max very quickly assimilated to his new surroundings and fit right in with Kelcy and Alysa. They spent the entire evening running around the front and back yard with the flashlights pretending they looking for treasure and spying on the adults.

Saturday was game day! We started the day early and attended Kelcy’s soccer game. Shortly after the game ended we found ourselves on campus for the Badger football game against Wofford. The pre-game festivities were in full swing as we passed the football around and walked from our parking spot to the game. Max was very excited with all of the happenings, including the marching band in the street, and all of the fans dressed in red. We had a great time at the game as Max got to fully experience the cheers, food and marching band, not to mention the football game that was happening on the field. He was rocking out in the first row of the upper deck on the 50-yard line with Alysa and Kelcy during halftime watching the marching band. What a riot! We stayed for the majority of the game as Max also got his fill of hot dogs and nachos, not to mention doing the wave several times.

After the game, we spent the whole day on UW-Madison’s campus. The highlights included walking the lakeshore path and going out on the rocks of Lake Mendota, fishing out coins from the fountain, walking barefoot in the lake, sitting in the big Union Terrace Chair, and getting Babcock Hall ice cream. Yummy!

Afterwards, we went back to the Lawrence for a full evening of cooking out and playing in the backward play set. Max was completely worn out at the end of a great day!

What a great trip for dad! The time spent together with Max was some of the best quality time ever. We agreed to repeat the trip next year.

Birthday Dinner - 8/27/2007

Written by Sheila Baldwin - Max's godmother

Brad and I were so excited to host Max for his first "outing without family." I wanted to share two funny Max'isms from his birthday dinner at Boston's.


When he opened his gift, he asked about the certificate indicating the savings bond we had purchased for him. I told him that would be money for college. He said, "I don't like college. I don't want to go to college." I asked him whether he had ever been to a college. He said, "One--my dad's." I told him he might like college if he visited his mom's!

We had ordered a cookie for him for dessert, but asked the waitress to not bring it out until he had finished his dinner. Unfortunately, they didn't listen and brought it out too early. Max pushed away his dinner and said, "I'm full of chicken. I'm hungry for a cookie."

What a kid. What a great time!