Monthly Archives: September 2012

Turning Lemons N2 Aid 2012

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It’s that time of year again for the Lemonaid Stand.  Yes, I am  using a different spelling because 100% of the money that we raise as part of this multi family effort will go to the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society as part of our annual Light The Night fund-raising effort.  This was started three years ago when one of our friend’s daughter wanted to have a lemonade stand and considering the impact that LLS has had on our lives they were quick to say ok as long as the proceeds were donated to the LLS.  It was thrown together very last second and we were able to raise $160.  Last year we put a little more planning into it and were able to up that amount to $860.  This year, we are in the local paper again and are setting up fliers at both Cutler’s and Mason’s school, so hoping to continue to grow.

As is now customary, we will have lemonade, cookies, snacks, some adult beverages, a bounce house, and snow cones.  For the adults concerned about catching the local college game, I will even have the tv set up in the garage.  Last year was a tremendous success so here’s to hoping for a continued growth of our annual stand.  The lemonade and snacks are free for any donation.  No donation is too small.

So mark October 6th on your calendar, the stand will open at 2pm and go until 6pm.  We usually extend well beyond 6pm, but that’s the unofficial gathering.  Our address is:

429 Whisperfield Dr

Murphy, TX  75094

If you can’t make it but still want to help make a difference in the effort to squash blood cancers, you make a tax deductible donation at our Light The Night team page.

http://pages.lightthenight.org/ntx/Plano12/teamcutler2012

Thanks again to all of those that have already donated.  No second donation required to join the party.

I Presents You Make The Call

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On my trip to Alaska a year ago, I was fortunate enough to take a trip by plane to a remote location to observe brown bears in the wild.  Out of jealousy of not going, my lovely wife and our good friends Mike and Andrea insist their trip to the Anchorage Zoo was pretty much the same experience.  So I present to you the opportunity to put this argument to rest.  Below are sets of photos from both experiences.

Here you will find the pictures of very bored and unchallenged bears held in captivity.

http://youtu.be/s8C7tzYuEGQ

Here you will find happy and energetic bears living the life of the wild.

http://youtu.be/kCWwln2nJNM

To help further the argument, here is a photo of their ride to the zoo and mine to the wild.

Here is a photo of my foot print next to that of a bear that just walked past us.  To give you an idea of how big they are, I wear a size 12.

What 9/11 Means To Me

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Until three years ago, 9/11 was a reminder of the evil that resides throughout this world.  Now three years ago to the day, 9/11 is a reminder of the pain and helplessness you feel when your 6 month old child is diagnosed with cancer, but it is also a reminder of how an already strong family comes together in good times and bad times.  When I think back to being 5 minutes from the house on our way home from the oncologist telling us that he thought Cutler’s rash was just a rash and probably nothing to worry about only to get the call that we must return immediately I can recall almost every detail.  If I close my eyes when I think back to it, all of my senses bring me back to that day.  I remember having to call Melanie, who was in the car behind me and telling her we needed to pull over and get in one car and head back to the hospital.  I remember Melanie convincing our pediatrician to tell us what was going on before we got to the hospital.  I remember wondering what in the hell Leukemia was and how was this going to play out.  I remember praying harder than I have ever prayed before on our way to the hospital and just repeating over and over again that Cutler will beat this.  I remember how hard it was to leave Melanie and Cutler at the hospital for the night as I had to pick up Mason from school and take him to Amazing Jakes as was previously planned.  I remember trying to choke back that horrible pizza and trying to put on a face for Mason so that he wouldn’t know what was going on despite not having any desire to eat.  I remember getting a much needed laugh from Mason as we played our way through all of the games after suffering through the pizza.  I remember getting on the internet to research AML after getting Mason to bed and almost on que getting a call from my boss telling me not to worry about work and giving me the subtle recommendation to shut down the computer as reading about it instead of hearing from the doctor was a mistake.  I remember my friends and family dropping everything to help us through our tough times.  There are many things that I remember from that day alone, but what stands out in my mind is that there is a whole lot more good in this world than there is evil.

Best Brothers

National Blood Cancer Awareness Month

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Did you know that September was National Blood Cancer Awareness Month?  Slightly ironic considering it was September nearly three years ago that we were introduced to Leukemia with Cutler’s diagnosis.  Thanks to incredible organizations like the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society the survival rate for the most common form of Leukemia, ALL, has jumped from 3% in 1964 to 90% today.  This is one of the many reasons we raise money for the LLS via our annual Light The Night fundraising effort, including our upcoming Lemonade Stand.  That announcement is coming soon.

http://pages.lightthenight.org/ntx/Plano12/teamcutler2012

As a warning, I will be trying to post some good facts every couple of days throughout the month along with some stories and photos from our journey to health for Cutler.  While it would be easy to move on and try to forget those painful times, I think it is important to celebrate what he has overcome and never forget so that we know how blessed we are and to give us motivation to continue to defeat this horrible disease.

Our healthy boy almost three years later thanks to LLS.