Our acts of love

We issued the challenge, so it is only fair that we follow through and participate in it too.  We performed 5 acts of love to celebrate for our princess.  It made the day one of goodness and sharing rather than of sadness and mourning.  These acts of service and love helped us feel Ethne close to us and made a hard day much easier.  So here's what we did:

1.  Considering that Ethne's birthday falls on Veterans' day (a U.S. holiday to celebrate and thank all those who serve and have served in the armed forces) we thought it would be appropriate to do something for the troops.  I heard about an organization that sends care packages to those serving abroad and thought that would be a great way to go.  This organization collects leftover Halloween candy and puts it into care packages for the service men and women.  They also request hygiene items such as toothbrushes, toothpaste, floss, mouthwash, etc. along with the packages of candy.  So we gathered up our leftover candy, the majority of Mr. E's stash, and the traded candy from my younger brothers (they got legos instead) to make a total of 12.5 pounds of candy!  Then I added some dental floss and some mouthwash strips (those Listerine things that clear your sinuses for a week), packaged it all up and sent it off on Monday.  Added bonus-- we don't have all that candy sitting around to hinder our efforts to eat healthier.

2.  If you read this blog regularly then you know about little Ethan who recently passed away after a very long battle with Leukemia.  What you may not know is that his sweet mom is pregnant with baby #7 and is due at the end of the month.  I remember what it was like after Ethne passed (granted our situations are different).  There were days, especially after the help quit coming, that I just didn't want to get out of bed, much less think about making dinner.  I knew that my family needed to eat, but when you are grieving it is sometimes difficult to even think about the necessities.  Those were the days that I was most grateful for my sweet aunts, grandmother, and mother who had gotten together shortly after the accident and made me a whole bunch of freezer meals-- I had so many that there wasn't room in my freezer for them all and I had to store some at my parents' house.  I also very recently had a baby and remember well the exhaustion and busyness of a new baby.  Pair the two together and I'm not sure what I would have done.  With all this in mind I got to work and put together a handful of freezer meals for Ethan's family.  It really didn't take me long to get them all together, but I'm sure it will save Ethan's mom lots of time in the future when she is too tired to even think.  I dropped those off to her yesterday morning.  We were able to have a nice, short talk and give each other a hug that said more than any dinners ever could.  I am so grateful to know Ethan and his family and so thankful that I had the opportunity to help them in this small way.

3.  This is something I do kind of regularly, but it has been a few months since the last time I have done it and we thought it very appropriate to take bracelet sets up to Primary Children's on Ethne's birthday.

4.  This is another something that Lawrence and I do regularly, and have done every year on Ethne's birthday since she passed away, but still, it is service, and some of the best service we can give.  Shortly after Ethne's passing we determined to make her birthday a day to celebrate out eternal family rather than a day to be sad.  Yes we miss Ethne terribly, and days like her birthday can be more difficult than other days, but we try.  We gather as much of our family as we can and go participate in an endowment session at the temple.  We also encourage our family that is far away to participate in their nearest temple.  The temple is one of the places we can feel Ethne's spirit best, so we especially feel it is an appropriate place to go on her birthday.  We also know that we are helping others who have passed before us and that we are helping Ethne as she is teaching and serving others on the other side of the veil (to learn more about LDS temples just click).  This year we were able to attend with my (Melissa's) parents and paternal grandmother.  We were sad that more weren't able to attend with us, but understood that work schedules can be hard to get around.  The session was made sweeter when my sister, Jessica's, brother and his wife were also in attendance and Lawrence's dad's cousin and her husband were also there.  It was really neat to see extra friends and family there, even if they didn't really know the significance of the day for us.

5.  Last, but certainly not least, we purchased gifts that we would have given Ethne and donated them
to the Road Home in Salt Lake.  I probably should have planned a little better as this didn't go over quite the way I had hoped for it to, but it was good nonetheless.  We purchased an outfit, a couple toys, and also took a bracelet set.  We hope that the girl(s) who receive these items can feel as loved and as special as Ethne is to us.

We took our boys along with us on all of these projects, except for the temple, and I hope that they can see us serving others and learn to serve as well.  We did make sure that Mr. E knew we were going to the temple and why we were going, he really wanted to go with us so we promised him that he could go when he is older and that we would take him to walk around the temple soon.

One last note:  I cannot take full credit for this challenge.  Several months ago my mom saw someone ask for acts of service for their birthday.  She called me and suggested that we try the same kind of thing for Ethne's birthday.  I'll admit that I had been thinking about our family doing service on her birthday this year, but I hadn't thought about inviting others to join us.  So I just have to say thank you to my mom for the suggestion, it really turned out well!

P.S. This is an official heads up, start planning 6 acts of service for next year.

10:20 am

Sweet Ethan returned to the loving arms of his Father in Heaven this morning. My heart breaks for the loving family he has left behind but I am also so very grateful for temples and eternal families.

Christmas Eve

Last night was Christmas eve for the VanLeuven family.  And what a night it was!  Follow the link and be sure to watch all four videos, but if you only watch one, watch the 10pm video and listen to the sweet things Merrill says to Ethan about Christmas.

http://www.ksl.com/?nid=148&sid=32083427#oowaOauefpIcMA8A.01

Yesterday and Today

A week ago I asked for help with a semi-secret project and I'd like to now share that project.  A week ago is when we found out about Ethan and his prognosis.  About a week before that my mom asked me to help her contact people and ask them to help us shower Ethan with birthday cards.  When we learned that his time was limited we knew we had to act quickly.  So we both posted to Facebook (blocking his parents and other family from seeing the posts) and asked for birthday cards to be sent to us to deliver to Ethan.  Over the weekend I collected several cards which we delivered on Sunday.  Over the next few days I collected even more cards, about two dozen that I took to Ethan on Wednesday so he would have them for his birthday celebration on Thursday.  I'm am happy to report that the cards continue to roll in and I will continue to deliver them as long as they keep coming.  I feel blessed to be able to help in this smallest of ways and to make these days just the tiniest bit brighter for Ethan and his wonderful family.

The story has gone national!

http://www.today.com/video/today/56292584#56292584

See his birthday celebration here (make sure to watch all 4 videos):

http://www.ksl.com/index.php?sid=32074766&nid=147&title=utahns-celebrate-holidays-with-terminally-ill-boy-for-the-last-time&fm=home_page&s_cid=topstory

Helping Ethan

A sweet boy heard about Ethan, here's what he is doing for him

http://www.ksl.com/?nid=148&sid=32064511#hCVoLLej9qDTFw6O.01

If you'd like to know how to help Ethan and his family you can go here:

https://www.facebook.com/fundraiserforethan

or here:

http://www.gofundme.com/ethanourhero

A Little Early Halloween

Little Ethan is nearing the end of his battle.  He has been given 2-8 weeks.  No matter when he finishes his mortal fight it will be far too early.  But his family and neighbors are doing what they can to help make these some of the best days by helping him and his family celebrate his life.  A local news channel found out about it and are doing a series of stories about Ethan and his amazing friends and neighbors as they celebrate Ethan and his favorite holidays this week.  Here's the first of the stories:

http://www.ksl.com/?sid=32047963&nid=#ijxrWTzjUCQ7P2si.01

Anything for a Friend +

We have had a pretty incredible weekend, it started on Thursday.  It started with Lawrence miraculously getting two WHOLE days off work, in a row!  He had some gigs at a couple state fairs with a band he has been playing with for a couple years now and needed some time off work for those, as well as to just have some time off with family and to relax.  It was so wonderful to have him home, to spend time with him, to relax, to be together.  Mr. E was so happy to have his "Gru" (each week we get new cartoon character names) home to play with, snuggle with, and otherwise terrorize. I was happy to have extra hands with the boys and Lawrence was just happy to not be at work.  Thursday we went bowling with my brothers and grocery shopping as a family, that night Lawrence headed to the Weber county fair to play with his band.  I stayed home with the boys so they could nap.  Friday we did some laundry, some cleaning, and some packing before heading off to the Salt Lake county fair for another gig.  We all went this time and had fun listening to the band's music and visiting some of the booths, Baby J even got his first (microscopic) taste of a snow cone.  Then it was home to unload musical instruments and load the stroller and bags before heading off to Ogden.  We spent the night in a hotel and had a lot of fun watching Mr. E try to jump from one bed to the other and run around the room.  Then Saturday morning we made our way to Weber State campus bright and not too early for a 5k.

About the 5k:  About two months ago an angel mommy that I'm Facebook friends with posted that she wanted to participate in the Anything for a Friend Fight to the Finish 5k.  She wanted to create a team in honor of her angel and needed at least 25 people to make a team.  We joined the team.  I had been toying with the idea of doing a 5k and getting to meet this angel mommy, Ashley, in person was the icing on the cake for me.  I have been following Ashley's blog for a few years, since before we lost Ethne, and have  admired how she and her husband have handled the tragic loss of their daughter with faith and enduring.  I was looking forward to the event and to meeting and connecting with another angel mom.













The event started with an explanation about how Anything for a Friend was started, what they do, and why we were there.  Then there was a balloon release and the "run" started.  Along the route they put up posters with pictures of the people each team was there in honor of.  Many were cancer patients or survivors, some were for other loved ones, and a few were teams that just wanted to help.  We loaded the boys in the stroller and set about the 3.2 mile walk with a very large group of people, with a team of people we really didn't know.  Ashley and her family were so nice and made us feel welcome, and the kids had a lot of fun running part of the route together.  As we walked I thought about Ethne and how we are fighting to our finish so we can be with here again, I thought about Ashley's angel and her fight, I thought about Baby J and his fight with HD, and I thought about little Ethan-- who is still fighting his leukemia.  They are all heroes in my book and I am grateful that my life has been touched by each of them in one way or another.

While we walked I also thought a lot about answered prayers and blessings, as we just had some big ones fall into our laps...

Earlier this week we received a hospital bill for Baby J's NICU stay.  I won't go into specifics, but let's just say that it was big.  Our insurance for the 4 days of last year Baby J spent in the NICU wasn't very good insurance.  They payed their max allowed amount, but this policy had no out of pocket max and their portion was only drops in the bucket of 4 days worth of NICU expenses.  I was panicking.  But we did apply for some help through the hospital group that runs Primary's and were waiting on a decision, I was told it would probably be made by Friday.  So Friday I called to find out what had been determined.  The man I spoke with on the phone was very nice and told me that a decision had been made that morning.  He asked if I was ready to hear our new balance, I looked for a pen.  He waited patiently while I hunted a pen down, when I said that I couldn't find one he said "I'll just tell you, it's a really easy number to remember."  He then informed me that our entire debt had been forgiven.  I couldn't believe it.  This huge bill, that we would have been paying off for years, had been taken care of.  A huge weight lifted off my shoulders, I was so happy and relieved that I was crying.  Our prayers were heard and answered, we had been immensely blessed.  I am so grateful for such charitable hospitals that took care of my baby, and for a loving Heavenly Father that gave me faith that everything would work out.

I am feeling so thankful that we were able to have this weekend to spend time together and to reflect on so many blessings.

Online Auction for Ethan

Remember a little while back when I posted about little Ethan who is fighting cancer?  Well, Ethan has qualified for a medical study for his leukemia.  The study is in Seattle, Washington, which means he has to travel quite a bit.  To help his family I am hosting an auction on Facebook.  If you would like to bid or donate I will share links to the event page on Facebook and the photo album for the auction when it opens.  I would really like for this auction to be a big success so please share with your friends and family so we can help Ethan and his family.  Thank you all for your support!

Here is the event page.  I'm fairly certain you have to have a Facebook page to view the event, but if you'd like to donate an item or service to the auction and don't have one feel free to email me a picture and description of your donation and I will add it to the auction (if you need to collect money to ship anything please include a shipping charge).  lmeestone@gmail.com

The goodness of people never ceases to amaze me!  Along with the auction I am hosting many people who participate in direct sales companies have opened up online parties to help Little Ethan.  Below are links to the parties and descriptions of each.

A good friend has opened a Pampered Chef catalogue show for Ethan.  Each party booked through this catalogue show means a donation to Ethan and a portion of the sales from each party will also go to Ethan.  Pampered Chef sells quality cooking and kitchen items.

Jamberry Nails is a new way to keep you fingers and toes looking stylish.  These nail decals come in a HUGE variety of prints and colors that are sure to make anyone happy.  They are adhesive and apply with a little heat and can stay for up to two weeks! (that's longer than any polish I've every applied).

And here's another Jamberry Nails party from a different host!  Both of these parties are donating 100% of the profits to Ethan.

Last, but not least, is Origami Owl.  This unique jewelry company features living lockets that you can personalize for you and your story.  Show off your children's birthstones or choose charms that match your hobbies or beliefs, wear it as a necklace or bracelet.  These lockets make great gifts for anyone!

Go check it out!

Little Ethan

Today I want to share someone else's story.

Two doors down from my parents lives a wonderful family of 8.  They have mom and dad with 5 boys and one girl.  Among these 5 boys is little Ethan.  Ethan is the same age as Ethne.  At 22-months old Ethan was diagnosed with Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia (ALL).  Ethan was given a 3 year plan for chemo to treat this aggressive cancer.  Summer of 2012 Ethan's cancer went into remission.  Life was good, prayers were answered, and shortly before this boy #5 was added to the family.  Unfortunately the remission only lasted one year.  They tried chemo for 5 months with no luck, so Ethan was given an experimental drug to help him fight.  Fortunately the experimental drug worked after only 4 weeks, he was in remission again!  This time around they decided to to a bone marrow transplant.  Ethan's family was tested for compatibility and his younger brother was a match!  After countless blood tests, cranial radiation, and more chemo Ethan received his little brother's donated bone marrow.  This was in January this year.  After 16 days the transplant engrafted and was considered a success, Ethan was on his way home!

Through all of this his family has seen so many miracles, blessings, and answered prayers.  Ethan was granted a wish through the Make a Wish Foundation and he and his family went to Disney World, they added a healthy and happy baby to their family, VIP concert tickets to The Piano Guys were gifted to Ethan, the old swamp cooler in their home was replaced with central air, and so many other generous gifts were given.  They are truly grateful for the outpouring of generosity and love they have seen throughout all of this.

Early this week Ethan went in for a routine appointment and it was discovered that he had RSV.  He was admitted to the hospital for treatment.  But there was something else wrong in the blood tests.  The cancer is back.

When his mother shared this on Facebook my heart broke.  This wonderful family has been through so much and sweet little Ethan is such a fighter.

Today I ask for prayers for Ethan and his family.  Prayers that doctors will know how to help bring Ethan back into remission, prayers that Ethan will not get too sick through this new course of treatment and that he will have the strength to endure it, prayers that his family will have the strength they need to endure this again.

If you want to know more about Ethan's story you can find it here.