Bring a card for Bennett to the Wing

Casady Blood Drive Thursday, December 11th - 7:30 - 12:30 @ the Woolsey Wing

Bennett mom teaches at the
 Casady Lower Division

Credit to Patient Blood Drive for Bennett Hanneman.  Blood donations credit will be offered to the Family of Bennett Hanneman to help defer the cost of blood needed by Bennett.

Each donor receives FREE: a Health Screening, and Donor Rewards Points

16 and 17 year olds need signed parental permission.

Weight requirement: 125 pounds if 16-17 years old.  110 if 18 or older.

Eat a good meal and drink plenty of liquids.  Have a good night sleep before you donate.

Caring Bridge post

Thursday afternoon, 12/4/14

The test dose of chemo went well Monday and we are ready for the real stuff today. There really wasn't much change in the lab work since the first test dose back in October. 

Over the past few days, they've started him on several meds for preventative purposes, mostly to help with potential side effects. He seems to be handling all of those fairly well at this point. His potassium level has been creeping lower over the past few days. It is low enough this morning that he needs a supplement later in the day. 

The real doses of chemo start this afternoob and go through Sunday. On Saturday, he'll get the first dose another med to weaken his immune system. As I mentioned in my last post, the effects can be ugly! We are hoping and praying for the very best things to happen. In faith, we are trying to push fear away from us because the unknown feels rather scary! We pray the "Bennett factor" means the side effects are minimal and he will be as comfortable as possible!! He's done a great job letting the nurse swab his mouth to fend off the mouth sores. When he's finished, we all say a minty fresh "aaaahhhh!", which is directly opposite of the "BLEH!" he uses for something gross! 

He's doing an amazing job moving his leg without the cast! He's continued to want it covered with a light gauze but decided to trade that for a sock last night. He's a little sensitive to the seams on the socks so we go back and forth with the wrap. Please pray for him to become increasingly comfortable with this new situation and all the adaptations we'll make together. 

Thank you, THANK YOU for being here for us and with us through this journey! Your unending prayers mean the most but your actions have blessed us, too! Our yard has been tended beautifully to this point. Some friends came the past two nights to decorate his room for Christmas. It looks and feels so festive! I've had a few requests for the calendar link so here it is. https://mealtrain.com/o58v4 

More than ever, it is critical that you are healthy when you visit. On some days, it will be best to leave Sonic treats and yummy meals at the nurses station instead of coming into our room. Thank you for understanding and helping us keep Bennett as safe as possible! 

May the One who loves like crazy hold us close and heal our brave boy!

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Day 6: Tinsel By Professor Carol on Dec 05, 2014 03:00 am Jüppsche (CC BY-SA 3.0) Each Advent, our closest friends in Weimar pull out their real, vintage East-German tinsel from the attic. They carefully press the strands with a cool iron and place them individually on the branches of theirTannenbaum (Christmas Tree). After Epiphany, they gingerly remove the tinsel from the tree, strand-by-strand, press it again, and store it in long bundles, wrapped with tissue paper. They could go buy the new stuff, but it doesn’t glitter. It doesn’t hang. And it doesn’t have memories. It also doesn’t have lead, which is why the old-style of tinsel left the market in the early 1970s. But, no matter. Once a year the real tinsel sparkles on the tree in their parlor. They’re pretty sure everyone will survive the “danger” while they rejoice in its beauty. We had the same tinsel, too, when I grew up in Virginia. Before the tree came down, my mother had me pick the strands off and lay them in a long line for her to wrap around a piece of cardboard for storage. As much as I clamored to put the tinsel on, I hated to take it off. But I was released from my task when lead tinsel in the 1960s succumbed to the uproar over its dangers. By the early 1970s it was replaced by lightweight aluminum strands—an utterly disposable alternative that fit right in with aluminum trees and twinkle lights. My mother called the new product “icicles.” Tinsel was invented in 1610 in Nuremburg, Germany, home of the traditional gingerbread known asLebkuchen. The word refers not to “tin” as you might think, but derives from the Old French word for “sparkle”: estincele. Yet it was not designed just for Christmas. It was strewn on sculptures and other items to enhance their beauty. It also created the starry skies in Nativity Scenes. And, of course, it was soon hung on Christmas Trees to reflect the light of candles. Reflection has many meanings. We think of mirrors and metals that reflecting light, which tinsel surely does. This meaning corresponds literally with the Latin roots:re (back) and flectere (to bend). In addition, from the mid-17th century we find “reflection” meaning “to turn one’s thoughts back on something,” as in pausing to consider or meditate. This meaning speaks even more strongly to us during Advent. Liturgically, we are called to reflect upon the quiet, but monumental impact of Christ’s birth. At the exact same time, the secular world has all but wrecked the season of Advent, tossing away the avenues of reflection as we race from event to event. Don’t we all cry out for more time to reflect? To savor the moment when our little ones string their first garland or grandma helps them make cookies. To pick up a book of devotional poems or write an over-due letter to a relative. Or, simply to sit and gaze at the frosty morning sky. Reflection is our first obligation during Advent. It stills our being. It opens the flood-gate to good ideas. It rights our path as it draws us to God. And so, when you place the tinsel on your tree, mantel, or banister, remember that each strand is a little mirror for reflection. Just as it reflects the light, let it unleash the reflections and prayers that make Advent a holy preparation for Christmas. The post Day 6: Tinsel appeared first on Professor Carol.