New Baby and Labs

Weighing 8 pounds 3 ounces and measuring 20.25 inches, Samuel Halvor was born on June 27, 2026, at 12:19 p.m. He was a rather quick birth, and once again God is proving His providence over our schedule. Samuel could not have come on a better day. He and Jerusha are home now and recovering well. So far the transition has gone smoothly. We have been blessed with very easy children, and Samuel is no exception. We've chosen the names of our boys almost as prayers over their lives for the men they will become. We were mostly settled on Samuel before finding out about Micaiah's retinoblastoma, and the meaning of that name ("God hears") has been a comfort to us during this time. We are so humbled by the undeserved blessings God continues to pour into our lives.

Elias fell in love with Samuel immediately. Micaiah was curious, but took a while to warm up to him. Micaiah also needed some major comfort when he came into the room. Our theory is that he was apprehensive about entering the hospital. He gripped onto my neck in a bear hug and didn't want to be put down for about 10 minutes—or rather until I pulled out his farm animal book.

Even so, Micaiah is impressively resilient. His attitude has been great, such that the doctors and nurses have commented on how well he is handling everything. Whether that's a genuine remark or simply a kind encouragement is unclear, but we are impressed by him at the very least.

We've finished the first round of lab draws now, and his blood counts have bottomed out and are starting to recover. We were thankful he did not require any transfusions this time around. He may well need some in future rounds, but we are grateful for each glimpse of strength we can see in his little body. Our next appointment for him will be his next round of treatment in July. Samuel, however, will go in on Wednesday, July 1 to get an eye exam. Given that retinoblastoma generally has a genetic component, they want to give him an exam to get ahead of any issues he might have. Elias will eventually need to get his eyes checked as well. Since we have no known family history of retinoblastoma, we don't know whether Micaiah's is due to an inherited mutation or a new genetic change. The eye exams and genetic testing will answer some of those questions. We continue to pray that our other boys will be cleared of any danger of retinoblastoma.

As for Micaiah's progress, we will have to wait until next month (after the next round of infusions) when we will have another exam under anesthetic. That being said, Jerusha and I have both noticed a reduction in the darker eye color of the left eye. At first we wondered if we were imagining it, but the doctor said that it was possible and recommended we keep observing. Since that conversation, we have watched his iris continue to lighten and now it looks almost identical to the right eye. His left eye is still dilated more than the right, but we are encouraged that this could be a sign of treatment efficacy. We will continue to pray for effective treatment as we look forward to getting the results of his next exam (July 22).