It has been a year!!!

Well I am sitting here typing, realizing it has been a year since we were admitted to St. Charles and the Fred Adventure began in earnest. So where are we today?

Josh is in basketball and played his first game last Thursday. He even scored a basket. We are at church now for a youth sleep over event. He is laughing with his friends and just a normal teenager.

Who would thought a year ago that we would be here. We know it is only because of the grace of God and His healing power that we have made it. Josh goes in tomorrow for another MRI just to double check that spot - but we are assured that God had Josh's body produce that extra tissue to protect his brain from Fred the tumor. What an awesome God we serve!!!

So join us this Thanksgiving in praising God for all your blessings - and share them in the post! We want to hear from you and what you are thankful for!

God Bless You!!!
The Henrys
Bruce, Lori, Josh and Sarah

8th Grade is Better Because of Josh

Okay so this is the bias mom writing but I think LPMS is great with my son there.

He is hating school work - but who doesn't! It is not my favorite part to correct those papers, but he is loving being an office assistant and being the big kid on campus.

Health wise he is doing awesome and looking forward to basketball season starting soon. Our awesome and exciting news is that Josh got picked for Make A Wish Foundation and so he gets his wish granted. We never in a million years thought this would happen but it did. So guess what - Disney World here we come. We are hoping to go over Christmas - mom and dad have more vacation, but we are just blessed being able to dream. Josh has a great new hope and happiness. It is fun! God has blessed this family so much.

Well just wanted to write a quick update - we are doing well and just praising the Lord day by day!

Love you all and thank you for your prayers,

The Henrys

Bruce, Lori, Josh, Sarah and Captain Rakshak!

Woohoo more and more praises

First of all this is a picture of Josh and Bruce taken the summer of 2000!!!

Where oh where to start with the praises.

We love Seattle Children's Hospital and have been treated so well. We were bummed that none of our favorite nurses where here, but we saw others that we adore.

We had a great neuropshych evaluation - Josh had to do all the work. We don't get the results until September 24th - but we have some great techniques and he flew through in the math area - wonder where that came from.

Then off to see Dr. Ojemann - we still adore him. He made us sit down and visit and just hang together and visit. The spot we have been seeing and worrying about - hehehehe - Dr. O was not worried at all. We looked at the MRI before surgery and were able to see the difference. He does noth think it is anything and was not worried about it - but we will be having an MRI in 3 months just to make sure it is nothing. Then we are on the yearly checks - we will be back to Seattle in August of 08! Oh did I tell you - NO RADIATION!!!!

We are just praising the Lord - there is so much that could have gone wrong and he brought us through and we are doing great. We are doing so well and Josh is the best and Sarah got to share too! There is so much that could have gone wrong. But God who loves us so much and is taking care of every detail!

We don't know how to thank you - your prayers are such a blessing. We are heading back to Salem tomorrow. We have talked of going to the zoo, the aquarium, the space needle, Pikes market - but not my children. They are wanting to go to McDonalds for breakfast and then come back and swim some more. Got to love them.

God Bless You All!~
The Henrys
Bruce, Lori, Josh and Sarah

Day One down with Praises

We are praising the Lord in Seattle. We got here safe and with no car trouble - a first for this summer.

Josh had an intense MRI today - IV and all, and once again came through with flying colors - he said because he was rocking out to Steven Curtis Chapman.

Off to the opthamologist appointment - and finding out the results of the tumor on his eyes.

Are you ready - he has 20/20 vision and doing awesome. We saw the same doctor as we saw in November and he was amazed at how well Josh was doing. He mentioned that he had expected some serious permanent damage - even mentioned blindness. He told Josh to get out of there so he could see some patients that needed him.

There is still some damage looking up but not that bad - and said it could still be recovery too. He told us not come to back unless Dr. Ojamenn wants to see us in a year. He was so pumped - and made me feel so good.

Tomorrow is the 5 hour Psych test and then the big visit with Dr. O!!

Josh was the only one that slept good - so we are all heading to bed early tonight. Sarah had a fever earlier and was not feeling well but doing better now. We all hit the jacuzzi and hot showers and ready to call it a night.

We know we are doing well because of your prayers - as we have the Peace that is only from Jesus! Thank you so much for your prayers. More tomorrow night!

God Bless
The Henry's
Bruce, Lori, Josh and Sarah

Thanks Fields for keeping Captain for us - Josh is cool with it!!!

Off to Seattle we go~

Bruce and Josh are at Leadership Camp, so Sarah and I will pick them up tomorrow and start heading to Seattle.

We will spend Sunday night with Bruce's folks and head to Seattle on Monday. Josh's first appointment is Tuesday at 1:15 for an MRI - yep he is excited again. Then at 3:30 is his opthamalogy appointment - looking forward to getting some answers about his right eye now.

Wednesday morning finds us in Neuropsychology for both the family and Josh. We won't get the results back till the end of September, but it will be good to know what is normal teenager and what is from the brain tumor. Then we end Wednesday at 3:30 with Dr. Ojamenn - we will find out on follow up MRI's release for PE and sports, and then the biggy - radiation.

I will try to post on Wednesday night from our hotel room. While in Seattle we are talking about heading to the zoo again - praying for no snow. Then maybe the Aquarium - some Pikes Peak Market - the space needle. We are going to head back to Salem and Bruce's folks on Thursday.

We will hang in Salem till Saturday and then come on home. Mom starts school the following Monday morning in Bend at 7:30 sharp.

It is hard to believe our summer is over. But what a blessing to be home and just having fun together this summer. We did no homeschooling, just some reading and the kids loved it. Where oh where has the time gone.

Thank you for your prayers, we are all a little anxious for this week and know your prayers are a blessing to us all.

God Bless!

The Henrys

Bruce, Lori, Josh, Sarah and Captain Rakshak!

Oregon Jamboree was a blast!

Hey look we had so much fun we are sending you the picture sideways to show the fun!

We spent this weekend in Sweet Home Oregon listening to some of the best country around. Josh comments that he like Neal McCoy, Aaron Tipton, Dierks Bentley, and then having The Higgins in our campsite just rocked.

Josh also knows that it was Steve Leon - our Uncle Steve - and Country 99.7 The Mountain possible for us all to be there. Yeppers we are one of his peeps.

We had fun, not much for sunburns, but a great family time, and actually a little relaxing too. We have it figured out after last year. Some of the high lights for the whole family was spray on tattoos - mom got a ladybug, Josh got a dragon and cross, Sarah got a puppy dog and puppy prints. The food was the great too - ice cream, pizza, elephant ears, smoothies - yummy!

We are going to go camping again this weekend. The following weekend Josh and Bruce are going to LPMS Leadership camp, Sarah and I will pick them and head up to Seattle. Then can you believe it school will start up - amazing the time is flying.

Just wanted to share with you some of our fun - Josh did not miss Captain at all as he was with the Fields and he knew they take the best care of him!

More after Seattle!

The Henrys!

Beach was Wonderful!

The beach was awesome - this is me on the beach with a seaweed! It was a lot of fun - mom will catch up on the rest.

Well this airhead mom had the wrong weekend - but we hustled and made it for most of the trip. It was gorgeous until the end of the week and the rain started in. Not as much fun. I don't know who had the most fun - us or Captain.

Sarah decided to stay with Grandpa and Grandma - Josh came home afraid he would miss Captain too much - plus he was very tired. I have to keep on reminding myself we are still in recovery and not rushing him. But the best part of all was he was a normal teenager - he went out in the kayak and had a blast. He played with the kids. He would sit out when his was tired, but he is have moments of anxiety freedom.

I am reading up on a book and it is awesome helping us realize that he is not alone. Plus Aunt Linda shared some light on it all, which was a blessing. Not fair our family had to go through three major things last year, but we see God's hand through it all and HIS perfect love filling us up.

We are all missing Sarah, but madly getting the house ready for the new bedroom set and cleaning for Grandma and Grandpa coming. Although Josh and I are taking a kick back attitude - I thought the Brady Bunch had been replaced by Gilligan's Island but alas not yet. I need to get DVD cleaner for Brady Bunch.

Well we have a month until school starts and a lot happening - Oregon Jamboree, visit to Seattle and some more fishing in there, hopefully this weekend when Grandpa is here. Besides that we are enjoying our lazy days and blessed to be a family. Praying you are enjoying summer!

God Bless You!

The Henrys