GOOD NEWS FROM TRISTAN'S PARENTS

From Mark and Jill...

Thank you all for your prayers! We got some great news today! Tristan has a genetic disformality that makes his body sensitive to chemo and only 15-20% of kids have it. This gives him a 95% chance of never getting it again after the 3 year treatment plan. Also as of monday he has zero cancer cells in his blood. He will have a bone marrow test done in a few weeks to see if any cancer cells are hiding out there, and if there arent any we will have a much easier 3 year treatment plan, so everyone pray for that. This is all happening so much faster than we could have ever hoped for! His body is on the fast track to recovery and I have all of you to thank for that because your prayers are working! Keep up the prayers because we are far from clear but this is really great news!

WOO HOO!!! OH, THE POWER OF PRAYER!!! A GREAT DAY!!!

Where to Send Donations

For those of you who have been asking, there is now an account set up for Tristan at Bank of Fairfield. If you want to send a donation, here is the information:

Tristan Seubert Benefit
5 W. Emma St.
Rockford, WA  99030
(509) 291-5029

*You can call or mail any of the other Bank of Fairfield branches if preferred. The account can be accessed at all branch locations.
The ladies at the bank said that if you forget the name of the account, my name will work too and they will make sure it goes to the right place.
If you are already a member at this bank, just call them and they will transfer funds. Thank you!

Heidi Johnson

Journal Week 2

Sunday, January 8th, 2012
Just a really nice day of resting and relaxing. He told the nurse that she was "on the naughty list." He still has a sense of humor! Even though it was pretty obvious he wasnt joking!

Monday, January 9th, 2012
He will be getting a spinal tap around 4pm and chemo tonight. He will be receiving Methotrexate which is used to treat the brain and spinal cord and is given using a needle inserted into the fluid surrounding the spinal cord. Please pray for no side effects. Its going to be a long night for everyone.

Tuesday, January 10th, 2012
Long night last night. The steroids make him really restless and HUNGRY! He did receive a beautiful cookie bouquet from Grocery Outlet - Concord!

Wednesday, January 11th, 2012
GOOD NEWS! The doctor is not able to find any leukemia cells in his blood. It was so fast that he sent Tristans blood and spinal fluid to a lab in California. The lab confirmed the great news!

Thursday, January 12th, 2012
Quiet day. Waiting for blood number to increase so everyone can go home.

Friday, January 13th, 2012
Numbers went up and Tristan sat up on his own for the first time since being admitted to the hospital.

Saturday, January 14th, 2012
Another day of rest and quiet. Grandpa Mike and Mark stayed at the hospital and Jill Grandma Shannon got to go home and spend some time at the house. A nice little break.

Another Bump In The Road

Lots of good news from the medical side of things, Tristan is receiving the chemotherapy and steroids well (with a few anticipated side effects, of course).

On the personal side, when it rains it pours...
Jill has been having some minor issues with her car so Mark's brother-in-law scheduled to meet with her at their house to pick up her car and work on it. On the way to the house to meet him, the transmission went out in Mark's car. They are now without a car and are trying to work out arrangments on how to get Mark to work each day.
I believe Richard (Mark's brother) is helping as much as he can with transportation issues, but if any of you readers have any wonderful ideas on how to help, please feel free to post them here. Or if you have access to Jill and/or Mark, call them directly.

Also, as some of you may know...
There was a glitch/error/oversight with insurance and Tristan is not covered. I'm sure there are several options for assistance, especially with a small child but with all of these other things adding up, things are apt to get a little spendy.

I will be opening a bank account (or two) on Monday, January 9th, 2012 in Tristan's name and will post on here and Facebook how you can donate.

Journal Week 1

December 31st, 2011
On this day, Mark and Jill brought their 3 year old son, Tristan, to the emergency room because he was suffering from, what the thought, was just a really bad case of the flu or some other bug. Shortly after admission, blood was drawn as a preventative measure and the doctors were pretty confident it was a strain of Leukemia.


January 1st, 2012
Tristan and his parents met with an Oncologist, who did a bone marrow biopsy to confirm the worst. It is indeed Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia, or ALL. Time for an aggressive plan. A 28-day plan this involves consecutive schedule of steriods and chemotherapy.


January 2nd, 2012
Tristan received a spinal tap and a dose of chemo in his spinal fluid first thing in the morning. He received it well and went another round chemo in the afternoon in his blood. When his blood was taken on January 1st, the level of Leukemia was at 70%. After the (very 1st) treatment, the level of Leukemia had dropped to 13%. A HUGE deal. Go Tristan...this is just the tip of the iceberg in showing how strong our little guy is.


January 3rd, 2012
Recuperating from yesterday. Lots of rest and little mood swings...complements of the steroids :)


January 4th, 2012
Still recuperating from the chemo. Very achy and feverish


January 5th, 2012
Another round of chemo and steroids, a different kind called Asparaginase. Tristan received this round very well, of course. A true fighter.


January 6th, 2012
Tristan complained a lot of jaw pain and doesnt really understand that the pain meds will make him feel better. Jill and Mark are having a hard time getting him to take anything.


January 7th, 2012
Lots of rest today. The medical staff gave him some Morphine and it made him feel a lot better. Much better mood today and a real appetite!

Fundraiser for Tristan and Family

Several people have asked about a fundraiser/benefit they can attend or volunteer at to support Tristan and his parents in this time of need.
Tentatively speaking, here are the details

Who: Tristan!!! (and family)
What: Live music, Live and Silent Auction
When: March 3rd, 2012 7:00pm
Where: Black Diamond
            9614 E. Sprague Ave
            Spokane, WA 99206
            http://www.blackdiamondspokane.com/
Why: To raise money to help Mark, Jill and Tristan pay for medical bills and support the family in beating this disease!

At this point, we are accepting donations for the live and silent auctions. If you can help or would like to donate something, please email Julie jubietoes@gmail.com or Heidi hroecks@yahoo.com

Want to donate blood?

 Here is the information gathered from a family member

Donating Blood Info: I called the Inland Northwest Blood Center today and here is what you will need to do if you would like to donate blood in Tristan's name.

• When you go in to give blood you will need to give them Tristan's name
• If you carry the same type of blood as him (A-), your blood will go directly to him, if you do not, the blood bank will give $ directly to Mark and Jill thru the giving assistant's program
• His account will be set up as of Monday next week (January 9th, 2012).

I am going to give blood then and will give them all the info that they need to get this set up. If you would like to give at anytime that would be greatly appreciated. You can either go directly to the blood bank or they have it at the (Spokane) Valley Hospital every Monday from 1pm-6pm. You can call and make an appointment @ 800-423-0151 or you can just walk in if you would rather. If you have any questions, post them and I will ask.

***UPDATE***
From Jill's cousin Kaci:
"Ok I have that all set up as of today. U will just need to give them Tristan’s name and then they will add it to his account.  Also wanted to let you know that they are at the Valley Hospital on Monday’s from 1-6 as well as Thursday’s starting this week."

KNOW BEFORE YOU GO... Here is a link to the American Red Cross website to see if you are eligible to give blood http://www.redcrossblood.org/donating-blood/eligibility-requirements/eligibility-criteria-topic

Recipient	Donor
	O-	O+	A−	A+	B−	B+	AB−	AB+
O−	Y	N	N	N	N	N	N	N
O+	Y	Y	N	N	N	N	N	N
A−	Y	N	Y	N	N	N	N	N
A+	Y	Y	Y	Y	N	N	N	N
B−	Y	N	N	N	Y	N	N	N
B+	Y	Y	N	N	Y	Y	N	N
AB−	Y	N	Y	N	Y	N	Y	N
AB+	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y