OUR SOLDIER HAS TONSILITIS

Hello Deqlans army

How are you all doing?

Deqlan has been a little niggly pulling on his ear on nose and touching his head the last few days, and we have kept a close on eye it. This morning however, Deqlan cried and moaned and groaned and i just couldnt figure out what was wrong or worrying him. After him not wanting his dummy, bottle of milk or juice, it seemed like it was sore to swallow, so i guessed it was his ears or throat giving him so much hassle. After trying for half an hour i eventually got through to the doctors rooms and made an appoinment to have him checked out.

By the time we got to Nanna, he was a little better and even enjoyed a slice of Nanna's famous french toast !

Our soldier fell asleep before we left for the hospital and stayed in dreamland until we got there, he wasnt very happy waking up there, but we managed to calm him down with some cars and mickey mouse

Dr Engelbrecht couldnt find anything wrong with his ears after doing a number of tests, his tummy felt great , but when she had a look in his throat, oh boy , she said straight away tonsilitis it is! She even got me to have a look and i was shocked to see such red swollen tonsils with little white sores everywhere - shame, it looked so sore. She said it was no wonder Deqlan was feeling like he was. So we have him on an antibiotic and hopefully can start kicking in and start making our soldier feel better!

I have had a cold hanging around for a week or so, so decided to go to the doctor to get myself sorted out so we dont re infect each other,i have upper respiratory infection, so also on antibiotics - Grandpa also feels exactly as i do and got the same meds to!

So its going to be a very quiet weekend of unpacking and recovering, please pray for Deqlan to feel better soon!

God Bless, be in touch soon, enjoy the photos of Deqlan and Keaton - Deqlan has become so lovable and caring with Keaton the last few days - so much eye contact, so much interest in him , even tries to make him laugh by playing games. These photos where precious and i am so grateful megs had her camera and video camera around - Deqlan wanted to share his dummy with Keaton, then bent down to kiss him, man it was adorable, and i moment ill treasure always. Thanks Megs for the lovely musical toys and gorgeous cars clothes for Deqlan, they are gorgeous!

All our love

Mark, Samm, Deqlan

SACRED HEART OF JESUS WE PLACE OUR TRUST IN THEE ALL FOR THEE OH LORD OH MY JESUS ALL FOR THEE

DELAYED HAPPY BIRTHDAYS,CONGRATS AND THANKS!

To Dear Debbie, we hope you had a great 30th Birthday on the 26th of July! Hope the year ahead is fantastic as you take on all your travels and adventures! May you continue to be blessed in abundance!

To Nicci and Cindi, hope you had a great celebration for your birthdays on 28 July and thank you to for your continued support for our soldier Deqlan!

Congrats to The Gerber family in Cape Town, and the arrival of baby Ethan 22 July! We pray he brings you much joy and happiness and I know he is going to have the best big brothers in Connor and Aiden!

Thank you Karen and Ant for the most stunning pjs! I was blown away to hear that you guys still contributed so lovingly to our snug as a bug project - you can be sure they are going to be keeping some very happy kids warm and snug . Thank you for your willingness to help in anyway you can and for all your support, love and prayers for Deqlan!

Thank you Sophie for the beautiful Mother Mary and Jesus trinket and Moscow doll souvenirs from your European trip - they are to beautiful and they already have a place in our new home, i am so glad you had a great time, you deserved it!

Darling Grandpa and Nanna, thank you for the most gorgeous camo wellington boots i have ever seen, will definitely be posting pics so everyone can see how cute our cowboy looks in them! Thank you to for the funky winnie the pooh bear that dances and sings - as you have witnessed Deqlan loves him very very much already!

May God bless you all and keep you safe , with all our love and thanks
Mark, Samm & Deqlan

BUSH SIGNS PEDIATRIC CANCER BILL!

Bush signs pediatric cancer bill named for Rep.Pryce's daughterTuesday, July 29, 2008 By Jonathan Riskind
THE COLUMBUS DISPATCHWASHINGTON -- They've been in a tough fight with avicious disease, but two little girls from central Ohio emerged from the Oval Office and walked out onto the driveway outside the White House this morning with wide grins, official pins andpresidential words of encouragement.
Hannah Lewis, 7, of Reynoldsburg and Eden Adams, 8,of New Albany, who became friends as they underwent cancer treatment at Nationwide Children's Hospitalin Columbus, were among those on hand to watch President Bush sign a pediatric cancer bill into law.
The Caroline Pryce Walker Conquer Childhood CancerAct was crafted by Rep. Deborah Pryce, R-UpperArlington, and named by lawmakers after her daughter, who died in 1999 after battling neuroblastoma.B
oth Hannah and Eden used the same word to describe meeting the president and first lady, being given presents and a tour of the Oval Office: "Cool."The signing ceremony was not open to the press aside from still photographers, but Hannah's mother,Jessica Lewis, said Bush told the families that he knew "we were going through a tough time and wished us the best."
Jessica Lewis and Eden's father, Rourke Adams, said they hope the next step after President Bush's signature will be for Congress to approve spending the first $30 million installment this year of what the law calls for: $150 million over five years for such initiatives as expanded pediatric cancer research and a national childhood cancer database.
The single parents saw their friendship at Nationwide Children's Hospital, which paid for the families to attend the White House signing ceremony,blossom into a relationship."This is something we deal with every day," RourkeAdams said about having a child who is battling cancer. Adams said it is his hope that a fully funded cancer database will in future years give researchers more information about why children develop cancer.
After the signing ceremony, Pryce said shewas "delighted" to see her legislation enacted.The president and first lady spent a lot of time with the children and families - including Hannah's five-year-old brother, Duncan, and Eden's brother Riley, 14 - before Bush wielded his signing pen,Pryce said. Bush lost his three-year-old sister Robin to leukemia in 1953 and Bush told Pryce he is looking forward to telling his parents that he gott o sign the pediatric cancer bill into law, thec ongresswoman added."This is a great step forward," Pryce said. "We have been waiting for this day for years now."

Happy Birthday Zita

Dear Z

Hope you have a fantastic Birthday today and many many many more!

Hope the year ahead is the best yet and that you are able to celebrate with all your loved ones today , i am sure Olivia will love helping you blow the candles out!

God Bless and thanks for all your love and support and prayers for our soldier!

Lots of love

Mark, Samm, Deqlan and Logan

I think we're gonna like it here!

Hello Everyone

I HAVE SO MUCH TO REPORT I THINK I AM GOING TO HAVE TO SPLIT OUR ENTRY INTO TWO , SO HERES THE FIRST - I KNOW I OWE A LOT OF PEOPLE THANK YOU'S AND HAPPY BIRTHDAYS, PROMISE TO WISH YOU ALL IN THE NEXT ENTRY!

Well, we are in and we are safe and sound - 100 boxes unpacked , 300 to go.....

It all started Friday morning when i washed curtains and carpets and anything i could lay my hands on that could be cleaned! Tried to pack whatever i could into the amazing 4 x 4 Merc Dee had lent me as my golf was still being fixed. Mark arrived home and immediately sprung into action, putting whatever he could into the van he had lent from work. I tell you something, i will never ever move to a place with stairs again what a mission to get everything down the steps!


Then the Higgins team arrived - Kevin, Tyler, Gaynor and Moses and they all gladly lent a hand to help us get all the small goodies packed up- we arrived at our new place and met Mike and Sandi who gave us a tour of our new place and explanation of all the important things to remember! Mark and Kevin and Tyler did another load and Dadda worked late into the evening trying to get as much done as he could. Thank you so much guys for all your help, how wonderful it was to have you all carrying, packing, unpacking - we couldnt have done it without you and we owe you all a lovely braai to say thank you!




I then went back to Nanna and Grandpa and Deqlan and i spent the evening with these amazing parents and grandparents. Nanna and Grandpa have gone out of their way to help us with our big move and i cant thank you both enough for watching Deqlan and giving him all your love and attention and care while we pack up . Thanks for loaning me the car Dee, we can swap anytime, i really loved driving high up on the road , i was petrified of driving an automatic car, but within a few minutes got used to it and loved every minute! Thank you Mom for the amazing effort you went to in preparing our room and making sure we had everything our hearts desired!


Saturday was off to an early start with Conrads team arriving at 730 am to load all the big back breaking furniture! Mark and I made one more stop in at our old place during the morning to collect a few odds and ends and get our precious doggies and cat, and to do a final clean. I was fortunate enough to have Joyce helping me clean ( thanks so much Megs for letting Joycie help me, it made the world of difference) Than you Joycie for working so hard and for being so helpful and willing to help us!


I eventually only started at our new place after 1500 - i had visions by this time curtains would have been hung , but my time frame wasnt working they way i had hoped! Anyway, we welcomed our first visitors Meggie and Keaton and they brought us some lovely sweets and jumped in to help by putting us some curtains in our bedroom - thanks so much Meggie, its exactly what i needed you to help me with!


Dadda was missing our soldier, so i went to go and fetch him from Nanna and gave him a tour of his new house. He was not sure where he was, but didnt really care, as long as he was with his Dadda. Deqlan helped us to a few things and then we all took great delight and letting Deqlan run to the park -wow - what a different feeling - running in the road, going to play in a park, watching children run in the road and ride on their bikes - how things use to be hey? Sad that to have that, we need to live in side a security estate - but we will take - freedom and safety , what a pleasure!


Then it was back to Grandpa and Nanna who had another little monkey, Keaton, to watch for the evening! Megs and Conrad were at Kevin and Darryls 70's 30th party - hoping Megs posts some pics on her blog, they are hilarious - everyone went to so much effort! Sorry we missed it guys !

Little Keaton was an absolute honey to watch as he laughed at Deqlan bouncing his ball around the kitchen. I was amazed to see Deqlans interest in Keaton - it has been there, but not as much as Saturday night ! He was bending and putting his head down for Keaton to kiss him , it was to adorable for words!


Bright and early Sunday morning Dadda had gotten some order into our new place, enough for us to bring Deqlan to his new home. He excitedly ran around discovering all the new rooms and passage ways ,trying to glimpse something that was familiar to him - BINGO - he found the tv and his Dub tv and we were set! Deqlan was so good, he played with his toys and watched his stories while Dadda and I tried to continue getting some order into the kitchen and play area and our bedroom. Eventually Deqlan had his nap 2 hours late, but slept for 4, so Dadda and I really got stuck into hanging and unpacking and washing and folding - we really got a lot done.


We took our soldier on a shopping spree to get some food for the house and enjoyed a late lunch/early supper before heading back to the old place to hand over our keys and remotes etc.

Deqlan was very confused going to our old house and running into his room,well, where it used to be, and running to the cupboard to get an oreo, well where they used to be, and then he got into the bath wanting me to bath him...shame, it was sad to say goodbye but we are already very happy in our new place and as Annie said ' I THINK WE'RE GONNA LIKE IT HERE'

Till the next post...sooner then later i promise

God Bless

Love Mark, Samm, Deqlan

BE STILL AND KNOW THAT I AM GOD

HAPPY 2ND BIRTHDAY CHARLI!!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY 2ND BIRTHDAY CHARLI !

WE HOPE YOU HAVE THE MOST WONDERFUL BIRTHDAY TODAY AND HOPE YOU HAD A FANTASTIC BIRTHDAY PARTY! YOU ARE AN ABSOLUTE INSPIRATION TO US ALL , YOUR CHARM AND CUTENESS CREPT INTO OUR HEARTS FROM DAY ONE OF MEETING YOUR AMAZING FAMILY.

EVEN THOUGH WE ARE THOUSANDS OF MILES AWAY AND ACTUALLY NEVER MET, KNOW THAT YOU ARE THOUGHT OF EVERY DAY AND THAT OU REMAIN IN OUR PRAYERS EACH DAY , FOR OUR LORD TO CONTINUE HIS MIRACLES OF HEALING IN YOU AND DEQLAN AND ALL OUR OTHER LITTLE FRIENDS!

HUGS, KISSES, HOPE AND GOD BLESS

MARK, SAMM, DEQLAN AND ALL OUR FAMILY

Happy Birthday Morgan!

Dear Morgan

A very very Happy 9th Birthday to a very special girl !! We hope you have a fantastic day today celebrating your special day!

You are an inspiration to us all being a 6 year survivor of nb - you are truly an inspiration!

God bless and continue to keep you safe and ned always

All our love

Mark, Samm, Deqlan and Logan

Happy Birthday MOrgan

Happy Birthday Sam!

To our dearest friend and cousin Sam,

A very very Hapy Birthday to you for today! May it be one of the best yest! I am sure it will be as you have two gifts in the form of Mia and Liam to celebrate with !

Hope you are spoilt rotten and that you are blessed in the many ways you bless others!

May all your dreams become a reality and may you continue to be such an inspiration and amazing friend

We love you and miss you more then i could tell you, know we are with you all always

God Bless and lots and lots of love

Mark, Samm , Deqlan and Logan

PRAYING FOR A SUNNY DAY IN THE UK FOR YOU TODAY!

Happy 2nd Birthday Peyton

Dear Peyton

A very happy 2nd Birthday to you for today our little friend, and many many more!

We hope you had a fantastic party on Saturday, we are so sorry we couldnt be there, but cant wait to be at your 3rd Birthday party in full swing!

Have a wonderful day today celebrating with your friends, cant wait to see you all again!

God Bless, lots and lots of love

Mark, Samm, Deqlan and Logan

What a week its been...

Hi Deqlans army

Hope you are all well - i am sure you are wondering where we have been and why we have been so quiet? Its been a very busy, very hectic, very rewarding, very frustrating past week.

Saturday afternoon after Deqlan and I had packed the entire morning we decided to go to Meggie and Conrad for a break and so Deqlan could have a change in scenery and perhaps get to plan a bit with his little cousin Keaton. It was wonderful to see so many friends that we haven't seen in months! It was also wonderful to meet little Caden for the very first time, he is to beautiful, another miracle in front of us, he is doing so well! Elriza had to go back to work on Monday as her maternity leave was up, i know how hard that is, but luckily she is only working half day so still gets to spend most of the day with her little boy.

Was wonderful to catch up with Lisa and Dale to - Dale really enjoyed playing cars with Deqlan, and was fascinated to see how fascinated Deqlan was in the wheels of the car , more then the actual car...maybe we have an engineer on our hands? I also was so excited when i heard Deqlan say 'VROOOM' the sound Dale was making while playing with the car - this is a big deal as it could show Deqlan understanding the concept of pretend play - so we will continue working on this sound - thanks guys for playing with Deqlan

I also enjoyed catching up with Coreen and hearing all about her and Grants wedding plans (so far) for next year Sep - thank you Coreen for also being so kind and patient and playing so nicely with our soldier !

Loren and Darryl were also there, Lorens got around 4 weeks to go before the expected arrival of their baby boy - yes another boy for our group of friends! Take it easy Loren and catch up on your rest before little Malakai arrives into our big world!

Dada also joined us after his conference had ended and we had a great time all watching the boys playing and laughing and eating and drinking and climbing and thoroughly enjoyed Conrads amazing cooking skills on the braai! The party didn't last into the night for us as we knew we had to return home to continue with our packing..

Sunday, you guessed it, we packed and we packed and we packed some more - Mark got so much done in terms of painting the walls and sorting the kitchen out . It took me a full two days to sterilise and pack Deqlans room - its not as easy as just packing his stuff into boxes as i wanted everything to be sparkling and clean and ready to unpack in the new place, instead of having to un pack and sterilise everything there - there is going to be way to much stuff to do this coming weekend.

Dada and I have had an absolute ball watching how cute and clever Deqlan continues to become each day - it was an absolute treat to watch Deqlans this weekend. He seems to understand he concept of dancing now - i started singing and clapping my hands to a song that was playing and Deqlan stood up in the bath and started laughing and moving along with me! Later that evening i started clapping my hands and clicking my fingers and again Deqlan screamed with laughter as he turned around and around laughing and moving his hands- was amazing to watch. Deqlan is also thoroughly enjoying games Dada invents - especially with his beloved Dub - Dada will had Dub behind his back and Deqlan will peer over and around and where ever he can to try and find him or even get a glimpse of his best friend , and shriek with laughter.

Deqlans hair is growing now - so happy miss his long hair that i could play with , but its growing nicely now. Our soldier is eating a bit better these days - i even manage to get some vegies in here and there! If I am lucky ill get to brush his teeth to, but most times thats so unpleasant for our monkey - he screams and runs away!

We went to speech therapy as normal yesterday and had a real great session. Anri managed to get Deqlan back into the actual OT room, which Deqlan really didn't like earlier on in our sessions. Again, exercises all to do with sensory integration - the main aim of yesterday was to teach Deqlan to lift his hands and asked to be taken out of a situation/activity he had enough of - for example the ball pit, when he had enough,i had to wait for him to raise his hands to be asked to be taken out - the same with a swing and a hammock and Deqlan did fantastically well. He wasn't comfortable on a special swing Anri used in the beginning of the session, but by the end, was very comfortable and lay on the swing for quite some time . Anri would like to use these methods to teach Deqlan about doing other things and we are very confident about her new techniques and so excited to see what happens each week.

When the door opened Deqlan thought it was home time so was very upset when we took him to his normal room for Speech with Esedra , we had to first come our soldier down and then get down to the activities for the day. Deqlan loved the slide and showed off his skills as he fearlessly slid down head first. He also enjoyed the bubbles and balloons and even made lots of BA sounds - Deqlan and I also had great floor time together where his eye contact was constantly on me - if i think back to even a few weeks ago, his eye contact has come leaps and bounds. It is definitely more intense with Dada and Mama and Nanna, so he is still getting used to eye contact with others, but it seems quite hard to do with strangers. But i know our monkey will get there in time!

On our way home from therapy, and as I got onto the onrap for the highway , we heard a huge noise - it sounded like something had shot from the engine to the back of the car and out of the exhaust, then immediate smoke, so much smoke that we couldn't see a thing behind us - luckily the cars around me saw something was wrong and let me pull off into the emergency lane - it wasn't even 2 minutes later and a car stopped behind us to help, the gentlemens name was Gilliam, and it was like he was an angel sent at that time, at that place. He was incredibly helpful by first telling me not to even try and drive the car further as something was very very wrong and the smell indicate oil somewhere - but there was no indication of a leak - he then suggested that the turbo had gone on my lovely golf tdi! luckily meggie came to the rescue and came to collect Nanna and Deqlan from the side of the road, and then waited with me and Gilliam for the tow truck to arrive. Gilliam, thank you for being so kind and helpful and even helping transfer all my baggage from my car into my sisters- thank you for being so conscious about our safety and for taking such interest in our beautiful soldier, i cant thank you enough and hope you one day be able to repay you some how! Mark also left work immediately, all the way from the airport - 45 minutes away to come to our rescue! As he got there the tow truck was ready to leave with the car, the guy also gave his opinion in that the turbo has gone. We got to VW and we were told the car is no longer under warranty and we will have to pay around R32 000 to have it fixed! WHAT? Mark said? We went and did our homework, Mark actually did the work, and read all the fine print which actually proves we are still under warranty - so praying this can be sorted out and the car fixed! What timing...but thank You Lord most importantly that we are all safe and sound!

Our house looks like a paint ball course - there are so many boxes and objects everywhere, it feels like we are ducking and diving - Deqlan seems to be enjoying climbing on top of everything so it seems like he is having fun! Mark is going to start moving the small stuff n on Friday afternoon so things go smoother on Saturday. Nanna and Grandpa to the rescue again as they will be watching our little monkey while we move in and get everything ready for his grand arrival on Saturday afternoon!

Go and watch the following story and some neuroblastoma families in Australia - what a heart breaking clip, but at the same time these amazing kids are creating awareness and how rough neuroblastoma really is - their courage, wisdom beyond their years and hope and trust and faith is inspiring to say the least - I have added Olivia and Dyllan's links to the right if you would like to go and pay them a visit. Isla our little friend is also featured sitting on her Dads lap, her link also to the right if you haven't paid her a visit yet.
http://www.sixtyminutes.ninemsn.com.au/article.aspx?id=598911

More news in the nb world is that the CHILDHOOD CANCER ACT has been passed ! last step - THE PRESIDENTS SIGNATURE:

Dear Team Leaders,The Senate of the United States works in strange and wonderful ways. Late thisafternoon we were notified that Senator Jack Reedplanned to bring the CarolinePryce Walker Conquer Childhood Cancer Act to thefloor of the Senate to see ifit would pass by unanimous consent. I am so pleasedto let you know that therewere no objections.The bill passed.Tomorrow we will send out the official press releasebut tonight I wanted to youto know how grateful I am for the hard work you haveall done to make thishappen. This is historic and you should all be veryproud that you have had apart in changing the world for children with cancer.My very best,KateKate Shafer, LICSWDirector of AdvocacyCureSearch National Childhood CancerFoundation

Update on Baby Dyllan - he had heart surgery on Friday afternoon to repair a hole in his heart - apparently, this can happen in prem babies. He is stable, but very sick and needs all our prayers for his recovery- please pray for his Mom Louise and Dad Roelof and big sister Jessica to.

Update on our Uncle Bill - he was released from ICU last week Friday !! On Sunday morning at 515am he had another heart attack and was rushed back to theater -apparently caused by a clot , which has now been repaired.Please pray for his speedy recovery and for strength and guidance for Aunty Val and Hayli and Yves.

Urgent prayer request for Katie and her amazing family - http://www.caringbridge.org/visit/katiekrize

And please remember all our other warriors in your prayers to!

Have a wonderful week let us know how you all are and take care of each other. Enjoy the new pics, the cutest ones of Keaton listening to Nanna's dvd player,and Deqlan giving me hugs and kisses after our chocolate mousse! Another favorite for Deqlan is push and close the gates when he gets the chance!

God Bless and all our love

Mark, Samm, Deqlan

FOR I KNOW THE PLANS I HAVE FOR YOU, DECLARES THE LORD, PLANS TO PROSPER YOU , AND NOT TO HARM YOU, PLANS TO GIVE YOU HOPE AND A FUTURE

JEREMIAH 29;11

LAUNCH OUT JUST ONE MORE TIME

Hi All

I get daily emails from NEW THING MINISTRIES and wanted to share this specific one with you all:

Today I was watching a TV segment about a man who had battled cancer for 10 years. Understandably, he was weary of the battle. He didn't want to take any further chemo or be hospitalized another time - he wanted to let the cancer take its course.

Those he loved and who loved him, begged him to try one more time. He replied that he was afraid. They asked him what he was afraid of and he said he was afraid to hope again. You see, he had hoped so many times, for ten years, only to find disappointment. He no longer wanted to hope.

The Bible says disappointment makes the heart sick. I know that to be true. I too, have battled and stood against disappointment many times in my walk with God. Even recently, there was a situation that had disappointed me over and over and over - yet, I felt God kept telling me to continue to believe.

Often times when I minister or speak behind a pulpit, I will look out into the faces of those attending and what I see makes me so sad. Most faces look weary and worn down, they often look defeated. It should not be this way in the Body of Christ. We are citizens of the Kingdom of God - all things are provided for us and we have a hope of a wonderful future in God. Yet every day, I see friend after friend with unanswered prayer - struggling to keep hoping.

Abraham was a man of hope. The Bible says He hoped against hope. What does that mean? It means when there was absolutely no reason for hoping that what God had promised would come to pass - he hoped on anyway. And Abraham saw every single thing God told him come to pass - as it always is with God.

Moses, he too hoped against hope. When it looked like they would all be slaughtered on this side of the Red Sea - he continued to trust God and obey what He said. In doing that - they all made it to the other side and not only that - but every single enemy was destroyed.

We see in the New Testament another who hoped against hope. Remember when Jesus told Peter to launch out into the deep? Peter said 'but Lord, I have already done that - frankly, I have been doing that all day and night and I have caught nothing, not one single fish, I am tired and weary, I am ready to call it a night.' Yet Peter, knowing the power of Jesus' word declared, 'nevertheless, at Thy word, I will launch out one more time.'

Peter, as we know, launched out and brought in a huge haul - so large that he had to get another boat to help him bring it in.

Let me ask you this; what if Peter had said 'Lord, I have already tried, I know I should trust You but I am just too tired to give it one more try, perhaps tomorrow.' What do you think would have happened? I will tell you, he would have missed the largest haul of his life - that's what.

Oh I know weariness comes - it comes to all of us. But don't miss your moment, as Judy Jacobs would say - don't miss your moment of launching out into the deep one more time. Don't miss the moment of seeing with your eyes the biggest haul of your life. Don't miss your moment. Never ever stop believing - what God showed you in the beginning has not changed - it is still there for the taking but it is according to your faith.

If you have grown weary in believing - trust one more time. If you are tired from the battle - purpose in your heart that you will fight one more time - only God knows what that one more time will bring. Choose to trust - choose to hope against hope. Choose to believe the word of God REALLY IS the final answer.

Yes, the Bible says disappointment makes the heart sick - but it doesn't stop there - it goes on to say 'but when the promise comes it is the tree of life.' The tree of life - sustenance to last the rest of your days. Something you can eat from every single day, every month of the year. The promise does come. Allow patience to have it's perfect work in you - in the end you will be whole, lacking nothing.

Go ahead - launch out one more time. Trust one more time. And bring in your haul.


Kim Potter

More Happy Birthdays!

Dear Uncle Dan,

You to share your Birthday with Madiba! We hope you have had a fantastic Birthday today and enjoy the celebrations over the weekend! Hope you are all well and thank you again for all the support and prayers for our soldier Deqlan!

Dearest Tracey,

We hope you have had a wonderful day down under in Australia, wishing you a great Birthday and hope you enjoyed the day with your loved ones! Thank you to for all your prayers and wishes for Deqlan!

God Bless and lots of love

Mark,Samm, Deqlan and Logan

PRISON BREAK

Hi Everyone

Firstly i wanted to say thank you to those of you who read all our posts and take my prayer requests to heart -i know that when Deqlan was having treatment/surgery/scans you name it, word for prayers spread like wild fire and a multitude of people around the world all stood firm in their faith and prayed for Deqlans healing - i cant thank you all enough for being part of this army and for each and every single prayer you continue for Deqlan and his friends. I have found this to be such a powerful tool ( and we to continue to pray for others with requests on blogs and caring bridge sites) and thats why i continue to request prayers through our blog for all our friends around the world, I know Our Lord hears each one, but the more prayers the better and the more amplified they are to Our Lord. So thank you for reading them, thank you for your prayers.

We had speech and occupational therapy as normal on Tuesday and it went pretty well, Deqlan gave great eye contact to Esedra and Anri . Anri is trying a new programme called sensory integration which of course has to deal with the senses and stimulating them in various ways - i am still learning about this new subject so will be able to explain more in detail as we go along. Esedra also enjoyed watching Deqlan figure out new puzzles and excercises and handle them fantastically and actually concentrate on them for long periods of time. For the first time in a long time, Deqlan wanted to get out the room ( think its cause he saw the pretty colour flowers outside) and i tried my very best to let him open the door when he asked, but then close it and try and keep him focused on the excercises at hand, and he did very well i must say.

Yesterday we started they day off by going through to see Uncle Bill and give Aunty Val and Aunty Shirl a hug. Uncle Bill looked good and was sedated, recovering after they placed 4 stents in his heart. We have just heard that he has just returned home and thats great to hear you can recover at home over the weekend. Keaton and Deqlan also recieved the most beautiful good night prayer books , thank you so much to you both Auty Val and Aunty Shirl - you are so thoughtful , they are so beautiful and we already read about the creation last night. Thank you for being a HUGE support to our family and to Deqlan especially , thank you for your prayers and love, they mean the world to me.

In the afternoon, we went to our second session of music therapy. Deqlan nearly fell asleep in the car on the way there , so i knew who wasnt going to be to happy during the session. We closed the door and he was ok, and then went over to the window, turned the knob that keeps the window open or closed, then pulled the handle down and climbed half way out the window!! i was flabergasted as we have never ever taught him how to open a window and he did it within 2 seconds, no mess, no fuss. Michael Schofield would have definitely recruited Deqlan to be part of his prison break plan! Their where other great moments of fantastic eye contact and lots of interest in the guitar again, but he clearly wanted out of the room. We tried to distract him , let him open the door,to show i understand what he wants, but then close again to show that we want himto be part of the session and he would need to wait a little , but eventually he had enough and we let him out to run in the garden.

Needless to say he had a great sleep after we got back to Nanna's house!

Deqlan continues to grow bigger, smarter and more gorgeous by the day. I made his appointment for the ultra sound Dr wants, which will be 15 August, so of course the nerves have kicked in a little again, but prayers continue for our beautiful boy and i continue to put all my trust in God who has already healed our beautiful Deqlan. We battle on days with food - Deqlan LOVES cheese, bread, biscuits, banana,spinach, yoghurt and ravioli, oh and how can i forget, cream soda - anything else is on a day to day basis of deciding whether he likes it or not? The biggest challenge at the moment is brushing teeth - oh boy...from loving it to HATING it - Deqlan screams and pushes me away and runs away when he sees the toothbrush - he cries and gets himself so worked up - got to think of a plan to get this on sorted out, any ideas welcome!

We have a BIG weekend ahead of us, not in excitement but in hard work - packing! we have 1 week to go and tons of stuff still to do, but i must say i am starting to look forward to our new little place and know we will be happy there, snake free! We loved the place we are in now, really, safe and quiet and loads of space outside, but its time to get more space in side and the pool is a bonus!


Got some good news just now, Yolandi from choc, the lady whose cancer had spread to her lungs - her counts have come down after some chemo, so we are all praising God for this great result

Please keep all our friends in your prayers - especially sweet Katie and Max and little baby Dyllan

Have a great weekend , God Bless and lots of love
Mark, Samm, Deqlan

BE STILL AND KNOW THAT I AM GOD

Happy Birthday Debs

Dearest Debs,

We wish you a very very Happy Birthday today and many , many more!

We hope you have the most wonderful day celebrating and enjoying the company of your loved ones! Even though we are a million miles away, know that we are thinking of you today and sending you lots of wishes and love and happiness! Hope you are spoilt rotten and recieve every blessing!

Thank you for your continued support and prayers and hope and love for our little soldier - he sends you a big hug and kiss to say Happy Birthday!

God Bless and lots of love

Mark, Samm, Deqlan and Logan

Dad and Bev

Conrad, Meggie and Keaton

p.s - HAPPY 90TH BIRTHDAY MADIBA, WHAT AN HONOR IT IS TO BE A SOUTH AFRICAN, HAPPY BIRTHDAY!

URGENT PRAYERS NEEDED FOR BABY DYLLAN

Hello Deqlans Prayer Army

We need to ask you for urgent prayers for baby Dyllan, who is still in icu, but started to crash early this morning. After running a series of tests, the conclusion was that it was his heart, and he will be going into surgery at 2pm this afternoon - please urgently pray for this little fighter to continue fighting , and for peace, strength , guidance and hope for his parents Louise and Roelof and his sister Jessica

God Bless and thank you
Love Samm

HAPPY 2ND BIRTHDAY RUAN!

Dearest Ruan,

A very very very Happy 2nd Birthday to you for today and many many more!

We hope that you are having a wonderful day celebrating and know that you are going to have the most awesome birthday party this weekend, wish we could be there with you to!

You have crept into our hearts and souls and you and your wonderful mommy and grand parents will always have a special place in our lives!

You continue to be an inspiration and we continue to pray to our Dear Lord and Healer for your total and permanent healing!

God Bless, hugs and lots of love

Mark, Samm, Deqlan , Logan

Bev ' ouma bubbles" & Derek

Meggie, Conrad and Keaton

Happy 6 months to our boys!

Today, marks 6 months ago that Deqlan was declared to be NED -PRAISE OUR HEALING LORD! I remember getting ready to go the hospital to see Meggie and Keaton, and getting the call from Dr Jacobs - i hung onto her every word - THE BONE MARROW IS CLEAR - i immediately fell to my knees and sobbed and sobbed and then continued to say thank You thank You thank You Dear Lord - Deqlan was having his morning nap so all i could do was lie next to him and just hold him and kiss him and tell him that he had won the fight he had fought the battle of nb and those walls came tumbling down! What a day of celebration ! Dear Lord, please continue to keep our Deqlan NED always - please continue to work your miracles through him , in him , around him - Let our Deqlan continue to grow stronger and healthier each day and let us continue to look forward and be Blessed with all the things you have planned for our soldier whom we love with all our hearts and souls, a love that is endless and has no boundaries, no conditions - and love that teaches us to treasure each moment of every day - you are our hero Deqlan Ross and we are honored to be your parents, we love you beyond words! You have an entire army fighting this with you and i know they love you just as much as we do- please keep fighting army , please keep praying for our beautiful Deqlan











That brings us to our second celebration today:








HAPPY 6 MONTHS BIRTHDAY KEATON! Wow a whole half year since you arrived into this world. I remember it like yesterday...we were awoken with a phone call by your mommy at 2am on the 16th of January saying that i would become an aunty today and i remember, having to sit up and shake my head around a bit to make sure i wasnt dreaming, as you where not due for another month! Your mommy told me to go back to sleep and she would call me once the doctor has decided on the time you would be arriving - WHAT - GO BACK TO SLEEP? There was way to much excitement for that ! I couldnt wait to get to the hospital that morning to see your mom and dad and to touch your mommys tummy for the last time before you took your first breath of air. Nanna and I waited outside the delivery rooms anxiously awaiting news that your mommy and you were ok - we were overjoyed to see the paediatrician walk past us and so excited to hear you had arrived safely and where ok. We were overjoyed to see your Daddy walk towards us to tell us that you were to beautiful and had lots of hair and he even showed us a photo of you - Nanna and I were in tears of joy and excitement - we couldnt wait to meet you - when we eventually got to get our first glimpse of you and your mommy, you looked so tiny , but so beautiful and we just wanted to hold you in our arms .The nurse decided though that you need a little help breathing and off to the icu you went . We had to wait a whole ten days before officially being able to see you properly and to hold you for the first time!





We have watched you grow and blossom into the most beautiful , smiley boy - you are such a joy Keaton and bring so much happiness and love to all those around you- you are loved more then you will know , you are another gift and blessing to this family. Its amazing how much you and Deqlan have in common already - you share such a special day 16 Jan 2008 - your birth and Deqlans day he reached NED . Another special day was the day your mommy told us she was expecting a miracle, YOU - it was the same day Deqlan had to have emergency surgery to repair a blockage in his intestines. I know you are going to be the best of friends - know that even when Deqlan wants to poke your eye or strokes your face a little hard, its all his signs of love for you little Keaton - congrats on your half birthday and always know how much we love you





WE ARE BLESSED BEYOND DESCRIPTION, THANK YOU LORD FOR OUR BEAUTIFUL BOYS

p.s - our friend Ruan, fighting leukimia recieved great news yesterday - his bone marrow is now clear so they can start to set up the stem cell transplant , please keep him in your prayers - what a fantastic 2nd birthday present for him which is tommorow!

Welcome to the world Gabby

Dear Jacques & Celeste,

A huge congratulations on the birth of you baby girl Gabriella at 1300 today!

What a joyous celebration of God's gifts and blessings to us!

We pray that Gabby brings you much joy and love and that God keeps her safe always!

Congratulations , we cant wait to meet her!

Congrats Ouma Tokkie and Oupa Frans!

God Bless and all our love

Mark, Samm, Deqlan and Logan

Derek and Bev

Conrad, Megs and Keaton

Say Cheese!

Hi Everyone

hope you all had great weekends?

We started packing - i started to realise how much stuff we actually have and its going to take a lot longer then what i though to sort through, pack and still have space to move around the house!

It was FREEZING cold this weekend, but we cant actually complain as it was the first real taste of winter we got! Nanna and Grandpa were absolute stars as always watching Deqlan on Saturday morning for a few hours while i climbed into the packing. Mark was on conference on Saturday and will be again next Saturday so we got to make the most of our time to pack , with only 12 days to go!

Deqlan and i had a quick visit to Meggie and Conrad and Keaton and enjoyed a new baby einstein dvd Conrad brought back from the states.we also leant one to watch at home on baby sign language - we are trying to learn these signs in speech therapy also and Deqlan has mastered the sign for open , which is tapping on what he wants to be opened. I have learnt about 20 other signs and continue to try and show Deqlan in everyday life. in really believe that he will be able to catch onto them - maybe it helps him communicate more with us ? We will definitely give it a try and see. Although, i must say , he has definitely improved in showing us what he wants - its not so much dragging us to the cupboard any more - he definitely gestures/points at times to what he wants . I have also been giving him choices, like cheese or bread and he taps on what he wants, so we definitely making progress!

Mark got home a little earlier and i was fortunate enough to go to mass with Great grandpa and Nanna - as i posted earlier we had a great shock from hearing the youth eucharist minister suddenly passed away. But , we all sang in memory of Chris, when the saints go marching in! The message of the sermon was also so true - instead of being sitters, and just listening and taking the information in we recieved weekly from mass, we need to be do ers - to stand up and do what God wants us to do - act on His word - grow amongst the thorns. Inspiration much needed for alot of us. While we were at work the rain came pouring down - in the middle of winter? - in the middle of Pretoria? really strange weather, real Cape weather!

On Sunday Morning Nanna and Grandpa again came to the rescue and watched our soldier, who was as good as gold, while we got to see Logan and spend some quality time with her. It was her choice as to where we went and surprise , surprise, it was spur - shame she loves the spur. Logan has grown like you cant believe - she has gotten so tall, her hair nearly as long as mine and she is as beautiful as ever. We had lots of giggles and smiles - Mark said ' SO HOW IS SCHOOL GOING MY BUD? ' a name, he often used to use with Logan - she quickly put him in his place saying ' IM NOT YOUR BUD, IM YOUR CHILD' Mark and I had to compose ourselves after laughing for quite a while on this comment! We had a great time catching up with her and hearing about school and her friends. She loved some prayers that Bev sent for her and asked her to read them to her. She is very good at reading Afrikaans but still getting used to english reading - she can spell lots of english words already which is great and really going to help her down the line. She was so sweet to use some pocket money i gave her to get two balls to give to Deqlan and she took two home with her.She has always been so thoughtful, always wanting to give to Deqlan. We took her past the outside of the house we will be moving to so she can picture herself there and have soemthing to look forward to. what a lovely child, what a blessing, we miss her terribly and cant wait for her and Deqlan to play together again!

After dropping Logan back off at Gaynor ( thanks so much Gaynor for taking such good care of Logs) We then spent the rest of the afternoon packing and Deqlan also wanted to pitch in and was climbing in and out of the boxes and then once closed, on top of them, he had a great time - we got another 5 or so boxes packed and Mark has taken all the pictures off the walls to start filling the holes from the pics - it looks so white - i miss the photos already , and so does Deqlan. He keeps standing by our photo wall looking up at the pictures - but they arent there! He is also so used to having the tv and dvd player in our room, mounted on the wall. He took great delight in me picking him up to open the machine to put the dvd HE chose in - but now he just holds the dvd in his hands looking at the wall , not understanding where his beloved machine has disapeared to! Shame, i feel so sorry for him being so disorientated, he probably will be to in the house. Deqlan will stay with Nanna the day we move ( thank you again Mom and Dee for coming to the rescue, Deqlan loves being by you) and i want everything to be packed out and looking as normal as can be, like Deqlan is used to

Today at lunch time, Deqlan was requesting his normal bread and cheese and his beloved rama spread. I was saying the word cheese to him, as i handed him his favorite food, and i heard him say 'chee' - i continued to say cheese over and over as i handed him each piece - and the next thing, Deqlan said a definite CHEESE! i am SO PROUD of you my beautiful boy - what a wonderful achievement! I celebrate each word and I know how hard you are working on getting each one just right, you are doing the best job my boy and I promise we are going to continue helping and motivating you every step of the way!

Now for some more notices:

Happy 1st Birthday to Olivia for Birthday for 12 July - we hope you had a lovely party , even in the freezing cold weather! Stay the gorgeous little angel you are!

Happy Birthday Jordyn for today - hope the trip to Vermont is a huge succcess with a great game plan in place for you, an amazing warrior!

Update on baby Dyllan - he is now only needing oxygen, so off all the big machines - now eating 7 mls every 3 hours and weighing 1.430 kg - please continue prayers for this special little man!

Please remember the prayers for our beautiful Deqlan to remain NED ALWAYS and for all our friends around the world - especially for Katie today.

We hope you all have a great evening

God Bless and all our Love

Mark, Samm, Deqlan

WE CAN DO ALL THINGS THROUGH CHRIST WHO STRENGTHENS US

Prayers please

Hello Deqlans Prayer Army

Please pray for:

My Moms Uncle Bill, he will be going into surgery at 11am this morning to place a stent in his heart as their seems to be a blockage causing terrible pain. Please pray for his speedy recovery and prayers for his wife Aunty Val and Daughter Hayli.

Katie - has now been sent home on hospice , please pray for her family and her friends and for God to show His mercy upon this beautiful warrior
http://www.caringbridge.org/visit/katiekrize

God Bless
Mark, Samm & Deqlan

WE CAN DO ALL THINGS THROUGH CHRIST WHO STRENGTHENS US

Christopher Kamson

Please say a prayer for the family of Christopher Kamson - we heard at mass on Saturday night that Chris passed away very peacefully in his sleep on the 6th of July . Chris was only 25, and he was the youngest minsiter of the eucharist ever at our parish. He so lovingly dedicated his life to leading the children at our church. He actually had a discussion with his parents that very afternoon that he had decided he would become a deacon.

Rest in peace Chris, we know you will be sorely missed.

Happt Birthday Mich

Dear Mich

We hope you have the most wonderful Birthday today and many many more!

Hope you make unforgetable memories and that you are spoilt rotten by being Blessed with all the things you hope for!

Thank you for being a great friend and for being a great part of Deqlans army, for your continued prayers and all your support in our projects!

God Bless and lots of love

Mark, Samm, Deqlan and Logan

Happy 22 months our beautiful Deqlan

Wow, i cant believe how quickly the time has flown, that you are 22 months today our beautiful Deqlan - i cant believe that we are only 2 months away from celebrating your 2nd Birthday!


I know i always say this, but you continue to be the light in our lives, the joy and spring in our step , our reason for wanting to be the best mama and dadda we can be. Your smile could light up a country that has no electricity ! Your laugh could warm the coldest heart - you are just an absolute gift and blessing from above, and i promise you our darling boy, that we will do EVERYTHING in our power to give you every ounce of love and care and guidance we can. We love you and thank Our Lord each day for trusting us with you and for choosing us to be your parents, and absolute honor , privilige and blessing like no other. We pray He continues to keep you NED and safe and sounds in His hands always!


We had our first music therapy session yesterday with Anja who is very experienced in her field. I warned Anja that Deqlan would probably want to get out the room is he was not used to this new environment - boy was a wrong! As soon as Anja started playing on her guitar, Deqlan immediately took a fascination in this new sound and instrument and started strumming the strings and tapping on the guitar himself - he loved it! He then took a look at the other instruments in the room, but was more attracted to the guitar. Anja had a computer and a hi fi in her room which Deqlan was immediately attracted to , in order topush all the buttons on them. If i havent mentioned it before, this is something Deqlan LOVES to do at the moment - push any buttons on tvs' dvd players, computers, anything that he can get a reaction from - dont give him something that isnt pluged in - he knows - its got to work and do something when he presses the button! Anyway, to get back to music therapy, Anja will try and hide these as they where a bit of a distraction for our soldier. But he still seemed to enjoy it and we look very forward to our next session on Thursday!



Dada bought him the cutest little toy from Mcdonalds last night - they are currently promoting the movie kung fu panda. This toy is a cat that you have to bend down to activate and then he does a somersault - Deqlan LOVED this and laughed hysterically for 5 minutes , each time we did it - when he realised this morning that it was just waiting to be played with he already started laughing before asking me to bend it for him - i tried to down load the video clip but it wont let me!



Dada also came home with a new vacuum cleaner as ours blew up! Deqlan thinks its his new favorite thing as why? you guessed it, it has wheels! he loves to push it around and press all the buttons - but nothing compares to Dada sucking his hand with the pipe or sucking his top - he loves it !



Another favorite trick is Nanna twirling Deqlan around in her bucket ! Nanna cant go fast enough and beams of laughter are heard from our soldiers direction!



Logan will be in pretoria this weekend and we are going to hopefully we able to see her on Sunday - Mark and I will need to take turns, but i am so looking forward to even an hour with her. She has grown up over night - I try to call her on her own phone during the week to catch up and see how she is, but a do miss her terribly and cant wait to giver her a hug in person!



Now for todays notice board:

Thank you so very very much Dirk for the beautiful hand made pjamas you sent with Kelly! They are so beutifully made and i am so grateful and thank ful that you have helped our project! Thank you for all the love and effort and time put into them, they are so very special, thank you!

Happy Birthday Debbie! We hope you have a stunning Birthday today and all the best for the upcoming year! Hope you have something special planned and hope that includes being spoilt and relaxing with Kevin and Josh! God Bless!


Congrats Tracey! My friend from post natal class has just found out she is pregnant with her second baba! We pray for a safe and wonderful pregnancy and know Luke is going to love his new brother or sister!


Update on prem baby Dyllan- His mommy says he is now off the ventilator and on a c pap machine which blows oxygen into his nose. He is weighing 1.415kg and is up to 3mls of milk every 3 hours - please continue to pray for the precious baby boy and his family


Prayers for Katie: http://www.caringbridge.org/visit/katiekrize


Have a fantastic weekend everyone, snuggle up winter hs really arrived today

GOD BLESS AND ALL OUR LOVE
MARK,SAMM,DEQLAN


'I WILL BLESS THE PERSON WHO PUTS HIS TRUST IN ME'

JEREMIAH 17

Happy 10th wedding anniversay Dee and Mom

Darling Dee and Mom,

Congratulations on your 10th wedding anniversay! What a stunning achievement!

You are both such a shining egsample to us all, on unconditional love, support, friendship and trust.

Dee, we were delighted to learn 10 years ago that you would become a permanent part of our family , as you brought Mom so nuch joy and happiness, it just beamed from her. Thank you for taking such amazing care not only of Mom, but our entire family.

Mom, you deserve all the love and happiness in the world and we are so glad you found it in a man name Derek.

We pray Our Lord continues to shine his love and care down upon you both, that you remain united for many many more years to come and that you share many many more wedding anniversaries together.

Celebrate today with so much pride and joy and love in that you found each other and bring the absolute best out in you both. We are so proud of you and so proud to have you as our parents and grand parents, friends and guardian angels on earth.

PARENTS ARE LOVED FOR THEIR WARMTH AND THEIR SHARING.

THEIR KIND, GENTLE CARING-

SO TENDER, SO REAL.

PARENTS ARE LOVED WITH A LOVE FELT SO STRONGLY-

A LOVE THAT THE WARMEST OF WORDS CANT REVEAL.

FOR THE LOVE YOUVE ALWAYS GIVEN

FOR THE JOY YOU ALWAYS BRING,

THIS COMES TO THANK YOU AND TO WISH YOU

THE HAPPIEST OF ANNIVERSARIES

Have the most magical day together reminessing on your very special day 10 years ago

God Bless and always know how much we love you

Mark, Samm, Deqlan and Logan

balls and bunnies, bumps & bruises and birthdays

Hello Deqlans Army

Sorry, it has been a while, i left the cord for my camera at Nanna's house over the weekend!

Where do i begin...ah...Ruans Golf Day

It was FANTASTIC to say the least - Sandvik did an outstanding job in hosting the event. It was so well organised and so much effort was put into every little detail . Each player got a beautiful ribbon to wear saying Ruan, our champion! Each player got a cap, water bottle, golf towel and the list goes on - there were 140 players for the day, a full field. There where huge sponsors involved including Sandvik and Nissan - Deqlan loved the Nissan display of cars, he wanted a turn in everyone and it took all my might to get him out the car and stop him from pressing all the buttons !

Ruan is looking fantastic - he was already hitting his little golf ball around when we arrived and greeted us with a huge smile. This family is so very special and will stop at nothing to do whatever it takes for Ruan. We heard that they have found 2 donors in the UK. Another bone marrow biopsy was done last week and we get the results tommorow to decide on the next step- please pray they are clear and they can ahead with the stem cell transplant.

Ruan loves balls ! So for his upcoming birthday we got him a golf set with balls and clubs and a little basket ball with a hoop so even if he is in hospital he can play with the ball as its a portable one - he loved both of them and didnt mind Deqlan checking them out to. Deqlan tried to grab, lets rather say pull Ruan to walk with him, but he wasnt having it ! Shame, our little soldier seems to love holding hands and walking together with his buddies.

We then caught a ride with Dada in the golf cart to the 10th tee, where Dadda, Grandpa, Frans and Bob were due to tee off from - Deqlan was very chuffed to be in a mini car and to be sitting on his Daddas lap - couldnt get better then this hey my boy! We watch the guys tee off and then watched them walk into the distance. Nanna , Deqlan and I had lots of fun and games back at the golf club while having our lunch and then decided to go past the bunny park not to far from the course.

It was lovely to walk around in the open and watch the bunnies and goats and geese and ducks but, our soldier was more interested in the dangler swings going round and round. After a quick walk around the park it was time to head home as our soldier hadnt slept yet!

We heard that the guys had a great time at the golf day and they raised over R40 000 for little Ruan! How amazing is that - the guys were so giving and generous and wanted to learn as much as they could - i think it was a fantastic idea and look forward to many more events like this - awareness awareness and funds raised !

As we waited for Dadda to arrive home after the golf day, Deqlan and i were enjoying some chocolate and he was running in circles and went boom straight into the corner of the wall! It bled a little and was very sore for our soldier. Needless to say he woke up with a huge bruise on the top and bottom of his eye and down onto his cheek. Considering this happened on the eye that is still healing, Deqlan did pretty well and its starting to look a little better today.

Saturday we had an afternoon out to Kevin and Louise to wish him for his Birthday. We thoroughly enjoyed the boerie rolls and cupcakes thanks guys and Louise you did a stunning job decorating and making it so special for Kevin. Deqlan had fun to - pressing every imaginable button he could, we had to keep saying no and no and some more no , so he started getting very frustrated. Corlien, Louises sister did a great job in disctracting him and played peek a boo with Deqlan through the chair - he loved this and even gave us a few laughs. The cold wind picked up and i decided to get our monkey home, back to pressing his buttons and climbing on our furniture.

Speaking of which....we are busy looking into jungle gyms for our monkeys birthday coming up and have found some lovely ideas - still deciding on which one and how as we need to ensure it fits into our new place , which we move into 26 July ( and no, we havent started packing yet)- but i am so excited to see him on one and I know he is going to just love it !

Grandpa and Nanna bought Deqlan the cutest little table and chairs which he just loves - he has started taking the chair and moving it to places in the house and sitting on it while he watches his stories or while we try and get some food in during the very few minutes he still still. Thank you Grandpa and Nanna i love it and cant wait for Keaton to sit with me!

Also thank you to Conrad for all the stunning gifts you brought back for us from your trip - Mark is elated with his, being the biggest brazil soccer supporter i know - and Deqlan the most stylish kid in his Gap hoodie ! Thank you so very very much for spoiling us rotten. Conrad also brought some books we ordered - LUNCH FOR LIFE - they are in aid of raising more funds for neuroblastoma research and we where so elated to see a recipe and Deqlans story i sent in last year was published in the book! So proud of you my Deqlan and we used Great Grandpa's famous cottage pie recipe!

Congrats to little Keaton on taking his first bite of food - being butternut on Saturday! Meggie says HE LOVES it and cried when it was finished , shame sweetheart, you will soon be able to eat lots more and different varieties - your Aunty Samm will even get some sweet treats in when your Mom and Dad arent looking! Ha ha ha - just joking!

Well thats all for now folks - stay warm to everyone at home and enjoy the summer to our friends up north!

Please keep the prayers going for Deqlan to continue thriving, for him to remain NED always and for Our Lord to keep him safe and give us the shoes to continue on this journey - please pray for all our friends around the world fighting nb and other cancers

God Bless and lots of love

Mark, Samm & Deqlan

BE STILL AND KNOW THAT I AM GOD