Visiting more Friends

     A big thank you to the Asher Family for the great time that our families spent together. We arrived at Amy's friend Crystal's home on Nov 21st and spent the day. The girls played the piano, sang, hiked, and spent a good part of the afternoon working on drawing pictures. We had a wonderful time and can not believe that the past few weeks have flown by us so quickly. We have plans to go the the Memphis zoo and see the Christmas lights on our way back home to Arkansas.

      Please continue to keep us in your prayers as the first week of December will be challenging for all of us. Amy continues to do well and as of yet has not shown any outward symptoms other than being a little more tired than usual. The plan to start diagnostics is still in place once we are back home and we will have to spend several days in Little Rock.

     Thank you to all who have donated either through your local church, privately or online! We are extremely grateful to all those who have reached out to us at this time. It has been a roller coaster of emotions but God has seen us though so far and we continue to depend on His faithfulness. We desire your prayers most of all. Thank you to those who have been praying for us and we ask that you continue throughout this journey that we are on.

~ The McMorris'

Fun With Bethany - by Amy

The past few days have flown by as the Thanksgiving holiday approaches. We wanted to share a quick update on Amy and her adventures. Thank you to the Pinkston family for giving her some time to just be a little girl hanging out with friends! The following story is from Amy on one of the days that she spent with her friend from Mississippi.

Helping with Thanksgiving Crafts

Amy and Bethany being Silly Girls!

Bethany and Amy

Cupcakes!!

 " On November 21st I woke up at 4am! I arrived in Mississippi and my best friend Bethany's mom took me with her to the school where she teaches. I helped her kindergarten class make Thanksgiving crafts. 

   
   At noon we went to pick up Bethany from her school. She thought she was going to a doctor's appointment but I surprised her instead!! She squealed and I squealed the entire time we were hugging! We were so excited to see each other! 
   


We went to Target and bought legos and tried on funny glasses and headbands. We went to a cupcake bakery and ate peanut butter, chocolate cupcakes. Then we decided to go to the bookstore because we both LOVE to read! Later that afternoon we just spent hanging out and having a great time together." 

CANCER

New Hair Do

GANGLIONUEROBLASTOMA - the scary name that we were not expecting to hear. It is Cancer and only 5 out of every million children have this type of tumor. The doctor called with an initial plan today.

 The first step is to find out what stage it is in. An metaiodobenzlguanidine ( MIGB) scan will be done to help locate and diagnose tumors in the body. It will tell us if there are any more tumors. Since this particular type of tumor also attacks bone marrow she will need a bone marrow biopsy. The doctor let her know that it will be painful and we are trying to prepare her for it. She will have to take medication for her thyroid prior to the MIGB scan to protect her thyroid from the radioactive dye that is injected into her system. Pictures will be taken and any bright spots that show up are identified by the doctor. About 10% of these scans do not work and she will need a separate bone scan if that is the case. She will also need another CT scan of her entire chest and measurements will be taken of the tumor.

It will mean several days of testing at ACH and then once the results are in we will make a plan for treatment. We will begin these tests the first week of December. The doctor recommended that Amy gain a little weight and we requested a few weeks of normalcy.

Over the next two weeks we will be doing the things that Amy likes to do. We are going to bring her to visit friends that live in Mississippi and then going to Louisiana to visit family over the Thanksgiving holiday. It will be so nice to have a little time to balance out the craziness of the past few weeks.
Thank you to everyone who is praying and supporting us through this time. We know that our God has a plan for us and for our Amy. He is BIGGER than cancer.

Amy's Diagnosis

Amy at the Doctors

Hi Everyone, this blog is so that you can keep up with Amy's progress as her journey continues. Amy was diagnosed on Nov. 12 with gangelonureoblastoma, which is a type of cancer. Despite the diagnosis, she remains positive and smiling, as you can see.

Our family is extremely grateful for your prayers for our Amy D, and we ask that you continue to lift her up in the days ahead. The best way to get the most current update is to visit this blog, as we will strive to keep it up to date.

Thank you for your prayers!

- The McMorris Family

Home Sweet Home

We are home! Amy had a great day today. She and Zeke were able to play with their puppies and they had friends come over to visit. She walked to the neighbors house to bring muffins. Yum! She is still running a low grade fever but feeling much better. 

Camp Wannaplay!!

Amy's Scarecrow from Camp Wannaplay

We are going home today!! Yay! Amy was up and moving much better today. The hospital has a program called Camp Wannaplay. She was excited to make a craft as Amy is all about ART! She also felt up to taking a walk in the garden even though it was a challenge learning to get around with the iv and chest tube. She handled it like a pro. Her Child Life specialist came back today to help distract her while the tube was being removed. We are hopeful that we will go home today and that the test results will come in soon. 

One more Night at the Hospital

Holding Daddy's Hand

Nov 6th - The doctor came in this morning and said that we need to keep the tube in until tomorrow. She is still in a lot of pain. They had a child life specialist come in today to speak with her. She is helping Amy understand what is happening and she is playing games with her while they talk. They played Sorry and Crazy Eights. Amy was really enjoying the time she spent with her and it helped take her mind off the pain for a little while. The doctor told us that the biopsy has been sent to a national specialist and it may be a few more days until we get the results. We are ready for the results to be in and to make a plan. Everything in God's timing though and we are trying very hard to be patient. Amy is doing well on the hospital food with lots of chocolate ice cream, chicken noodle soup and mac n cheese! The doctor wants her to gain some weight so that should do it! 

Holy Moses and Hallelujah!

Silly Girl 

Nov 5th - What a day for our girl! A trip to the primary doctor this morning sent us right back to the ACH ( Arkansas Children's Hospital in Little Rock). They thought she may have a collapsed lung but it was fluid that was not being absorbed post biopsy surgery. It had caused the left lung to be compressed. Again they needed to insert a chest tube. They gave her a sedative to relax her so that they could get the tube back in and that's when her funny side really showed. She kept saying things like "holy moses" and "hallelujah!" when she felt the pressure of the tube! We are now in a room, they have given her some pain meds and she is resting. The doctor came in to say that the biopsy results have not come in yet and it may be next week sometime before we know anything more. 

Home Again

Waiting for the Doctor 

Nov 1st - We are home and she has had a great morning! Friends have come over to visit and she opened all the cards that were sent. Thank you to all who are praying and showing support for our family, it means a lot!

Nov 2nd - She slept ok but still running a fever and hurting more than I think she should. The little things in life make you so much happier, like finally getting a real shower after being away from home for a few days! We are all happy to be home and getting a chance to regroup! We called the doctor around 4pm because her fever is higher and gave her tylenol per his instruction. 

Nov 3rd - Amy rested well last night. She still has a fever but felt good enough to sing with her Daddy for about an hour. We called the doctor this afternoon because her fever keeps climbing. We will be taking her to her primary care doctor in the morning to be re-evaluated.