Layla Grace Children's Cancer Research Foundation

To say that having a child with cancer is stressful is an understatement, but being organized can help slightly reduce some of that stress.  A couple of veteran cancer moms have shared their top tips to help you out. Read More…

It all seems like yesterday. I can recall rushing to the hospital on January 7, 2010 after being called to pick my child up from preschool. His breathing was shallow, his skin tone was blue, and he was lethargic. This was the day after my son had received an all clear from his pediatrician for what was believed to be round pneumonia. This was the day that the hospital realized that the round pneumonia was actually a tumor that had just burst. This day was the first day of my new life. A life where cancer is the first thing I think about each morning and the last thing I think about each night.

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There might be times where you’ll have questions for your child’s doctor but won’t remember them when you have the opportunity to speak with her. Start a journal and write them down as you think of them. This way, when you do have time with your doctor, you’ll have them ready to go. Here’s a list of question to get you started.

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Medication is only a part of your child’s treatment, but it is an important one. You’ll repeatedly explain why they need it to get better, but sometimes giving them their dosage or trying to get them to eat will still be challenge. Here are a few tips and trips on what you need to know before giving your child medication. Read More…

Let me start off by saying today is a good day. Today is a good day because today my son is doing well. Today my son will go to preschool like every other healthy child his age. Today my son will laugh and play. Today my son can focus on just being a kid. This is how I live my days now, one day at a time. I make sure that I enjoy every moment that I am with my family, because they are what’s important. One thing I have learned this year is that life is unpredictable, and that you should never take anything for granted. Today I will smile and hold my children tight, but today, I will also think about cancer.

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When my child, Bryson, was diagnosed with Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia on March 14, 2009, sanity went out the window. The first important thing that helped me was to cry. That day, while Bryson was with his daddy and family, I just let it all out. After the shock of the news finally wore off, I walked around the floor and met other parents. I found it was the best way to ease a lot of the anxiety because it helped me realize that I was not so alone. Having to be in the hospital for any amount of time is not easy for anyone but here are some of the ways that I was able to make the hospital a home away from home.

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My junior year of high school brought a whole new meaning to the saying when it rains it pours. Like any other seventeen-year-old girl, I thought I was invincible. I was an honor student. I danced on my school’s dance team. I had all the friends I wanted, including the “perfect” boyfriend. On February 18^th, 2010, all of that changed.

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I have endured more disappointment, fear, and pain then I would wish on anyone. August 24, 1998, when I was a 15-year-old freshman, I was diagnosed with Osteosarcoma. But, during those 3 years of being in the hospital, I also experienced love, joy, and healing. Some of my hospital memories are downright shattering. I have watched five of my friends pass from cancer, but I take comfort in their memories. I treasure all the times I shared with them because it was like living in the eye of the storm, so to speak. There was a calm it created, an environment to actually be able to feel again, to forget everything that was going on and just laugh. So that’s what I did.

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