Weekends are busy… and we are in the midst of it. As many of you know our kids are active and we tend to see a lot of familiar faces on the baseball field/soccer field/hockey rink/lacrosse field/dance studio and just around the neighborhood. My kids love the outdoors and being active… Declan is no exception.

Lately he’s been spotted pushing his little tykes firetruck and moving so swiftly. He’ll go for multiple walks a day. He’s also moving around the house a lot. His mobility & appetite continue to improve. I think this kid has had a pound of tortellini in the last 24 hours. Ha!  Even at the Jimmy Fund Clinic Friday, his weight went up a little and he chose to take his walker and move than the stroller which I considered a win. As we were leaving, I ran into another Mom that I had just met at Fenway and realized I’m at the point where familiar faces are common now that we travel into the clinic multiple times a week.

I’m sure we’ll get to know the staff at Hasbro too… as Declan will start this new trial on Monday.

Am I scared? Hell yes… I continue to be reminded that this trial is just that… a trial. There is no guarantee that this will keep Declan clear of his cancer returning which our doctors tell us ‘it’s never not come back’ to kids in his subgroup. Even other parents with kids that have been down this road continue to urge radiation rather than ‘be an experiment’. However, I feel like this right now is the best decision for Declan and are completely supported by our teams in RI and Boston.

We are also supported by our community and today was another reminder of that. The Waltham High School baseball team played a game that showed support for Declan and other kids who are battling pediatric cancer. They all wore #ThumsbUpForDec and yellow wristbands as well as yellow shoelaces… even the opposing team (Westford Academy) wore the #ThumbsUpForDec wristbands, and the coaches wore the yellow pins for pediatric cancer. Bobby and JB were able to attend for a bit which was nice. It means so much.

As I mentioned this weekend is busy. Mallory was in musical/play at her school on Friday, and she WAS amazing (humble Mom brag) … but to be honest, so was the entire cast and production crew. So much hard work goes into the performance and each kid shined! This new love for theatre that Mal has developed has been such a great outlet for her over the past several months. She’s also been working hard at dance (besides soccer and lacrosse!). This weekend is her big dance recital and today was the dress rehearsal. I was able to attend and enjoy a few hours alone, just focusing on Mal. She lit up the stage again and I’m so proud of how hard she has worked this year. She’s in 5 dances… and I was so happy to see her so happy performing them. At the end of the production… the entire company gives a big thumbs up before they bow. That moment right there… probably didn’t mean much to many of the other parents watching today… but it hit me… I know that was for Dec. It was sweet.

I wish Declan could be at the recital tomorrow… he loved it last year. He is day 59 tomorrow after transplant, which means he is one day away from coming out of isolation and allowed to freely roam in public. It’s wild… but I’m looking forward to bringing him into a store… he has been homebound or hospitalbound for so long. Small steps though… we’ve come so far and have so much more to go.

Thanks again for your love and support! We appreciate it! I'll never stop thanking everyone who has helped along the way... it truly means the world to us! 

#ThumbsUpForDec
#DeclanStrong 

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