July 23, 2026

Long Road Ahead

We have officially received our first status update for Micaiah's retinoblastoma. The good news is that Micaiah's right eye is responding excellently to the treatment—the tumor mass has shrunk by about 50%. The left eye is still tenuous, but we believe in a God who specializes in miracles.

July 15, 2026

Round 2 Begins

We committed early on to enjoy God's blessings through this trial and avoid catastrophizing our present moment with possible future challenges. Still, as we get closer to Micaiah's next eye exam, we gradually become more apprehensive. Round 2 of treatment began 7/14, and Micaiah handled everything very well—even the port access.

June 30, 2026

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 and Jerusha are home now and recovering well. Micaiah's blood counts have bottomed out and are starting to recover, and we've noticed a reduction in the darker eye color of his left eye—a possible sign of treatment efficacy.

June 24, 2026

God is Over All

Four days overdue, and still no baby. We've had a lot of uncertainty and a large dose of hurry-up-and-wait since our last update. Meanwhile, Micaiah is handling his treatment very well. His appetite has been good, and he hasn't been significantly nauseous. We received the report from the marrow biopsy—everything was negative! Right now, the doctor tells us that the globes of the eyes are the only area of concern.

June 18, 2026

Round 1 Infusions and Sundries

Our hearts are tired, but full. The news we have received so far this week has been a mix of good and unclear news. So far we haven't received any bad news, but we have a long road ahead of us. This is just the beginning of our journey, so we are preparing ourselves mentally and spiritually for the days to come.

June 16, 2026

Schedule Updates

The week leading up to Baby #3 (due Saturday, 6/20) is filling up quickly. It's quite remarkable, actually, how the timing of everything has worked out. Although we regret we didn't find out about Micaiah's tumors much earlier, it's hard not to see God making a way for us.

June 12, 2026

MRI Results and Treatment Schedule

Today was another step in the process. While Elias and I went into work, Jerusha took Micaiah for his MRI appointment as well as a hematology and oncology consultation. It was a long day for Micaiah. He left home before 8am and didn't get home until 6pm. Since they put him under for the MRI, he wasn't able to eat anything throughout the morning.

June 11, 2026

How We're Doing

What we're experiencing now is a calm before the storm. Of course we are in emotional turmoil, but as far as daily life goes, there's not a whole lot we can do for Micaiah until treatment is implemented. We've done a lot of thinking and processing. Last night, Jerusha and I got to finally sit down and connect over all this.

Start Here June 11, 2026

Micaiah's Diagnosis

A few months ago, we started to notice that Micaiah's eyes were slightly different shades of blue—one darker than the other. I thought it was a fun physical trait that would be a go-to ice breaker for him while making friends. Jerusha's motherly instincts, however, turned out to be correct. The optometrist ran some tests and, according to Jerusha, became visibly disturbed, giving us an "urgent referral" to Seattle Children's.