We returned to the Hem/Onc clinic at Arkansas Children's Hospital on Monday morning, fully prepared for Hannah to be admitted so she could finally start her new chemotherapy treatments. But when her bloodwork showed a platelet level of 3,000 (normal is over 150,000), we knew we would not be starting that day. With a platelet count that low, she was at risk for excessive bleeding ... and excessive bleeding is a potential side effect of Avastin, the chemotherapy drug she would be receiving. Her red blood counts were also quite low, so instead of chemo, Hannah spent the day receiving transfusions of platelets and blood.

Thank you for joining me for another bonus episode of the While We're Waiting podcast in this year-long series in which I share our family’s experiences as our teenage daughter Hannah battled glioblastoma brain cancer from February 2008 through February 2009. My desire is to process through the events of those twelve months with the perspective that 16 years has brought … and point listeners to hope in Jesus along the way.

I would love to hear your thoughts on the show. Click here to send me a message!

** IMPORTANT** - All views expressed by guests on this podcast are theirs alone, and may not represent the Statement of Faith and Statement of Beliefs of the While We're Waiting ministry.

We'd love for you to connect with us here at While We're Waiting!

Click HERE to visit our website and learn about our free While We're Waiting Weekends for bereaved parents

Click HERE to learn more about our network of While We're Waiting support groups all across the country.

Click HERE to subscribe to our YouTube channel

Click HERE to follow our public Facebook page

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Click HERE to make a tax-deductible donation to the While We're Waiting ministry

Contact Jill by email at: jill@whilewerewaiting.org

Though Hannah's ANC was rising, she was technically still in isolation due to her low blood counts. In spite of this, we made the decision to attend one of Bethany's basketball games together as a family. We sat by ourselves in an empty area of the bleachers. Several well-wishers came by to speak to Hannah, and that was great, but we didn't allow them to come within more than a few feet of her. We joked that we were her "secret service agents." She cheered for her sister, enthusiastically consumed a Frito pie, and enjoyed a few moments of near-normalcy that evening.

Thank you for joining me for another bonus episode of the While We're Waiting podcast in this year-long series in which I share our family’s experiences as our teenage daughter Hannah battled glioblastoma brain cancer from February 2008 through February 2009. My desire is to process through the events of those twelve months with the perspective that 16 years has brought … and point listeners to hope in Jesus along the way.

I would love to hear your thoughts on the show. Click here to send me a message!

** IMPORTANT** - All views expressed by guests on this podcast are theirs alone, and may not represent the Statement of Faith and Statement of Beliefs of the While We're Waiting ministry.

We'd love for you to connect with us here at While We're Waiting!

Click HERE to visit our website and learn about our free While We're Waiting Weekends for bereaved parents

Click HERE to learn more about our network of While We're Waiting support groups all across the country.

Click HERE to subscribe to our YouTube channel

Click HERE to follow our public Facebook page

Click HERE to follow us on Instagram

Click HERE to follow us on Twitter

Click HERE to make a tax-deductible donation to the While We're Waiting ministry

Contact Jill by email at: jill@whilewerewaiting.org

Lynda Wake and her husband have served with Wycliffe Bible Translators since 1998, and currently reside in Melbourne, Australia. She is a grandmother of two and a mom of four, including her daughter Bethany Joy who lived her brief life to the max! She is the author of two devotional books, “Heartbreakingly Beautiful” and “Waiting Well with Jesus”, and the founder of BE Blessings ministry. Lyn will be my guest over the next two episodes as she shares God’s faithfulness in her journey with Bethany, which is remarkably similar to my own. I believe you will be blessed by our conversation today.

To get your own copy of "Waiting Well with Jesus" visit your local Christian bookstore and ask them to order it ... or you can order one on Amazon HERE:

Click HERE to learn more about the Be Blessings ministry!

I would love to hear your thoughts on the show. Click here to send me a message!

** IMPORTANT** - All views expressed by guests on this podcast are theirs alone, and may not represent the Statement of Faith and Statement of Beliefs of the While We're Waiting ministry.

We'd love for you to connect with us here at While We're Waiting!

Click HERE to visit our website and learn about our free While We're Waiting Weekends for bereaved parents

Click HERE to learn more about our network of While We're Waiting support groups all across the country.

Click HERE to subscribe to our YouTube channel

Click HERE to follow our public Facebook page

Click HERE to follow us on Instagram

Click HERE to follow us on Twitter

Click HERE to make a tax-deductible donation to the While We're Waiting ministry

Contact Jill by email at: jill@whilewerewaiting.org

Hannah's Facebook status from sixteen years ago today was this ... "Hannah is back from the hospital for the second time in 2 weeks but feeling great!"

And an excerpt my email ... I wanted to spend a few minutes talking about Hannah in my update today. I don't usually say much about her personally, because she is a very private person and has been somewhat uncomfortable with so much attention focused on her over the past several months. However, after spending 24 hours a day with her for most of the past two weeks, there are some observations I'd really like to make.

Thank you for joining me for another bonus episode of the While We're Waiting podcast in this year-long series in which I share our family’s experiences as our teenage daughter Hannah battled glioblastoma brain cancer from February 2008 through February 2009. My desire is to process through the events of those twelve months with the perspective that 16 years has brought … and point listeners to hope in Jesus along the way.

I would love to hear your thoughts on the show. Click here to send me a message!

** IMPORTANT** - All views expressed by guests on this podcast are theirs alone, and may not represent the Statement of Faith and Statement of Beliefs of the While We're Waiting ministry.

We'd love for you to connect with us here at While We're Waiting!

Click HERE to visit our website and learn about our free While We're Waiting Weekends for bereaved parents

Click HERE to learn more about our network of While We're Waiting support groups all across the country.

Click HERE to subscribe to our YouTube channel

Click HERE to follow our public Facebook page

Click HERE to follow us on Instagram

Click HERE to follow us on Twitter

Click HERE to make a tax-deductible donation to the While We're Waiting ministry

Contact Jill by email at: jill@whilewerewaiting.org

So after being told we would be in the hospital a few more days ... Boom, just like that, they were telling us we would be heading home tomorrow. A welcome disruption to our schedule for once! As long as Hannah's counts continued their upward trend, we would be busting out of the hospital soon and we couldn't have been more pleased!

Thank you for joining me for another bonus episode of the While We're Waiting podcast in this year-long series in which I share our family’s experiences as our teenage daughter Hannah battled glioblastoma brain cancer from February 2008 through February 2009. My desire is to process through the events of those twelve months with the perspective that 16 years has brought … and point listeners to hope in Jesus along the way.

I would love to hear your thoughts on the show. Click here to send me a message!

** IMPORTANT** - All views expressed by guests on this podcast are theirs alone, and may not represent the Statement of Faith and Statement of Beliefs of the While We're Waiting ministry.

We'd love for you to connect with us here at While We're Waiting!

Click HERE to visit our website and learn about our free While We're Waiting Weekends for bereaved parents

Click HERE to learn more about our network of While We're Waiting support groups all across the country.

Click HERE to subscribe to our YouTube channel

Click HERE to follow our public Facebook page

Click HERE to follow us on Instagram

Click HERE to follow us on Twitter

Click HERE to make a tax-deductible donation to the While We're Waiting ministry

Contact Jill by email at: jill@whilewerewaiting.org

My name is Jill Sullivan ... and I have a calendar problem. I like calendars. A lot. I love filling in all the little boxes with appointments and special dates and activities. (Not that I want to do all the activities -- as an introvert, I enjoy writing them down much more than actually doing them, ha!) I even keep my calendars from year to year ... in fact, I still have my planner from this week in November 2008.

Thank you for joining me for another bonus episode of the While We're Waiting podcast in this year-long series in which I share our family’s experiences as our teenage daughter Hannah battled glioblastoma brain cancer from February 2008 through February 2009. My desire is to process through the events of those twelve months with the perspective that 16 years has brought … and point listeners to hope in Jesus along the way.

I would love to hear your thoughts on the show. Click here to send me a message!

** IMPORTANT** - All views expressed by guests on this podcast are theirs alone, and may not represent the Statement of Faith and Statement of Beliefs of the While We're Waiting ministry.

We'd love for you to connect with us here at While We're Waiting!

Click HERE to visit our website and learn about our free While We're Waiting Weekends for bereaved parents

Click HERE to learn more about our network of While We're Waiting support groups all across the country.

Click HERE to subscribe to our YouTube channel

Click HERE to follow our public Facebook page

Click HERE to follow us on Instagram

Click HERE to follow us on Twitter

Click HERE to make a tax-deductible donation to the While We're Waiting ministry

Contact Jill by email at: jill@whilewerewaiting.org

Hospital life is strange. You would think that the doctors and nurses want the sick person to rest ... but no ... you would think wrongly. All through the day -- and all through the night -- there are blood pressure checks, antibiotic infusions, and temperature measurements. There are even people who come in and clean the room during the night -- they flip on the lights, sweep the floor, bang the trash cans around, etc. And of course, there are the beeping IV monitors when a little air gets in the line. But the strangest thing Hannah was asked to do was climb out of bed at some wee hour of the morning (every morning) and stand on a scale so they could check her weight. I never could figure out why it was necessary to do that while the rest of the world was sleeping.

Thank you for joining me for another bonus episode of the While We're Waiting podcast in this year-long series in which I share our family’s experiences as our teenage daughter Hannah battled glioblastoma brain cancer from February 2008 through February 2009. My desire is to process through the events of those twelve months with the perspective that 16 years has brought … and point listeners to hope in Jesus along the way.

I would love to hear your thoughts on the show. Click here to send me a message!

** IMPORTANT** - All views expressed by guests on this podcast are theirs alone, and may not represent the Statement of Faith and Statement of Beliefs of the While We're Waiting ministry.

We'd love for you to connect with us here at While We're Waiting!

Click HERE to visit our website and learn about our free While We're Waiting Weekends for bereaved parents

Click HERE to learn more about our network of While We're Waiting support groups all across the country.

Click HERE to subscribe to our YouTube channel

Click HERE to follow our public Facebook page

Click HERE to follow us on Instagram

Click HERE to follow us on Twitter

Click HERE to make a tax-deductible donation to the While We're Waiting ministry

Contact Jill by email at: jill@whilewerewaiting.org

Molly Huffman is my guest on the podcast again today. She is a wife, a mom, a stepmom, and the author of a wonderful book titled “The Moon Is Round: A True Story of Extraordinary Loss, Grief, and the Fight for Faith.” Last week, Molly shared the story of how her precious son Tage was diagnosed with a terminal genetic disease when he was just six months old, and the hard and holy privilege she had to mother him until he went to Heaven two months later. Today we look back on the past ten years of grieving Tage and how God has taught her that no matter what happens, the moon is always round. We pick up our conversation right where we left off last week.

Click HERE to get a copy of Molly's book on Amazon!

I would love to hear your thoughts on the show. Click here to send me a message!

** IMPORTANT** - All views expressed by guests on this podcast are theirs alone, and may not represent the Statement of Faith and Statement of Beliefs of the While We're Waiting ministry.

We'd love for you to connect with us here at While We're Waiting!

Click HERE to visit our website and learn about our free While We're Waiting Weekends for bereaved parents

Click HERE to learn more about our network of While We're Waiting support groups all across the country.

Click HERE to subscribe to our YouTube channel

Click HERE to follow our public Facebook page

Click HERE to follow us on Instagram

Click HERE to follow us on Twitter

Click HERE to make a tax-deductible donation to the While We're Waiting ministry

Contact Jill by email at: jill@whilewerewaiting.org