​Team EvanMarie, we have wonderful news: she is coming home today!

After being admitted way back on February 19 for a bone marrow transplant, EvanMarie has crossed all the benchmarks the doctors were hoping to see in her engraftment and recovery, and they have given us the green light to leave the hospital. It has been nearly a month on floor 8, perhaps the hardest month our family has ever endured, but God has brought us through it all.

Thank you for the continued prayers! Home will not be without its challenges. EvanMarie’s body is still very weak, and we will need time to readjust to life all together again, as she continues to heal. But home is where she belongs. Home is the best place for her recovery.

This past month has stretched us in ways we never imagined. And yet, through every long night and difficult day, we have felt the presence of God and our community. We come out of this season stronger, more grateful, and more dependent on God than ever before.

As we enter these final weeks of Lent, we give all glory to the One who sacrificed everything for our sake. In our own small way we take up the crosses entrusted to us, striving to follow the Father in obedience and to unite our sufferings with the suffering Body of Christ. 

Thank you for walking this road with us. This milestone feels like a huge step in her total healing. Glory to God in all things.

​EvanMarie had a good day yesterday and today. Thank God, she’s starting to feel more like herself again, playing games, joking, and being opinionated about everything, especially her parents’ recommendations. After some heavy negotiating (and a few bribes) yesterday, she finally brushed her teeth, which felt like a huge win. She’s also eating a little bit of yogurt and drinking water now.

If you were wondering, EvanMarie’s strong will is alive and well, y’all, and right now that old stubbornness of hers is working in her favor.

We also have some encouraging medical news. Her stem cells have officially engrafted, which means her bone marrow transplant is complete. Her ANC (the measure of her white blood cells) has now been above 1500 for two days in a row, a major milestone that shows her new immune system is beginning to do its work. This means we will be talking about discharge soon. 

These past three weeks have been incredibly difficult, and we want to take a moment to give big props to her incredible siblings: Madeline, Dominic, Sophia, Avila, Lucia, Quinn, Zelie, and Oliver.

Some kids spend their spring break at the beach or on a mission trip somewhere far away. Ours decided to mission right here at home, taking care of one another, especially their five-year-old brother, and keeping the household moving along while Cana and I spend long days and nights at the hospital.

Their selflessness, teamwork, and love for their little sister have made it possible for us to be here with EvanMarie, guiding her through this difficult stretch. We are incredibly proud of our children, and deeply grateful to God for them.

Our family is very tired, but full of hope. 

And we are so thankful for the prayers and support that continue to carry us along this long hard road.

​Praise God, EvanMarie is beginning to feel better as engraftment has started. After some very difficult days, it is a gift to see her talking, joking, and playing again. She still isn’t eating, but she is drinking water, which is an encouraging step forward.

We are closely watching her ANC, the measure of her white blood cell count. Today it is 1220, up from 310 yesterday and 110 the day before. Once it remains above 1500 for several days, the doctors will begin weaning her from IV medications and start watching how she does with eating and drinking. After that, we will begin talking about a possible discharge date.

After nearly three weeks on Floor 8, the days have blurred together. It has been exhausting and, at times, very hard to watch her suffer. But today we are simply grateful to see real progress.

Thank you for your continued prayers. God hears our cries.

I wanted to give everyone a quick update on how our EvanMarie is doing.

First, some very good news! Her fever finally broke. In fact, the first normal thermometer reading we saw in five days came just hours after we last asked you, our community, to pray for it. It truly felt miraculous. While it did spike briefly again later that night, it has not returned since, and she has now been fever free for more than 48 hours. Glory to God!

The CT scan that was originally expected was delayed by a day, but when it finally happened it brought reassuring news. There is no sign of infection. Instead, it confirmed what the doctors suspected, severe inflammation that, while intense, is still within the range of what is expected after the very high doses of chemotherapy she received to destroy her bone marrow before transplant.

Even knowing that, this stage has been incredibly hard.

EvanMarie continues to suffer from severe mucositis, which is affecting her entire digestive tract, from her mouth and throat all the way through her intestines. When she is resting, she gets enough relief to sleep, but when she is awake the pain can be excruciating. She doesn’t talk much right now, and she isn’t eating or drinking because it hurts too much. Instead she communicates mostly by pointing or small shakes of her head, and she receives her nutrition through IV.

I have been staying very close to her side. Right now, her mama is her greatest comfort, and it feels almost impossible to leave her when she is hurting like this. I miss my husband and our other children terribly. Ennie comes as often as he can, and our big kids are being so brave. But for now my place is here with her.

Even in the midst of all this suffering, though, EvanMarie is still EvanMarie. Her courage, her quiet sense of humor, and her deep love for her family continue to shine through in small moments that feel like little lights in a very dark place.

Right now we are waiting for engraftment, the moment when the bone marrow stem cells that were returned to her body more than a week ago begin to take root and start doing their work. Once that happens, the doctors tell us her body should begin to recover quickly and the healing process will really begin.

So this is where we are asking you to please keep praying.

Pray that engraftment begins IMMEDIATELY.
Please pray that her pain is eased and that her healing comes quickly.

We know that in God’s economy no suffering is wasted, but as her parents we are also begging Him , very simply and very honestly, to ease our daughter’s suffering and bring relief to her little body as quickly as possible.

Thank you for continuing to pray for our girl and for us. 

​I know many of you have been praying and want to know how EvanMarie is doing. It’s taken us a little while to post an update because this past week has been incredibly difficult for EvanMarie. It’s like that emotional roller coaster we were on, with some good days and some bad days, broke down and is now stuck… at the top of the loop, and there we are just hanging upside down waiting for the horrible ride to end. This stage of bone marrow transplant has been by far the hardest for her physically and really makes the previous cycles of chemotherapy look like child’s play. The very high doses of chemo leading into transplant have caused intense side effects: mucositis, diarrhea, exhaustion, constant nausea, and a great deal of pain. It has been absolutely heartbreaking to watch our brave girl endure so much.

On top of that, she is now on day five of a persistent fever that only comes down with medication. The encouraging news is that all bacterial and viral blood panels have been negative so far, which means there is no obvious infection in her bloodstream. In just a few minutes she will undergo a CT scan so the team can rule out any hidden source of infection. The most likely explanation right now is that EvanMarie’s body, from her skin to her internal soft tissues, is reacting strongly to the drugs, creating widespread inflammation that is causing the fever.

Even in the midst of this, she continues to fight like a champion. Cana has been by her side constantly, serving as her human “security blanket,” offering every bit of comfort possible while helping her stay calm and hopeful. The doctors continue to reassure us that this stage will pass and that we will certainly see the bright light return to our little girl’s eyes.

Through it all, one thing we know for certain: God is near to us. He is present here in this hospital room. And we are not without hope.

Right now we ask our community to pray fervently, that the fever would break, that the inflammation would calm, and that EvanMarie’s body would begin to heal and recover from this intense treatment.

Please continue to pray with us, friends. We will update you again soon.