Author Archive: 'Carrow McClendon

Happy Monday!

Radiation treatment #26 of 30 is in the books. How can it be there are only 4 left? Time seems to be moving at record speed every day. My goodness how I would like for it to slow down!

Today Kayleigh’s treatment was much later than usual (5:00 pm). That allowed Tim and I to both run some errands and Kayleigh to meet her newest cousin. She was so excited. She’s trying to talk us into a younger sibling. Evidently she would like a younger brother. She did say an older brother would be nice if we could swing it. All we can do is laugh – sorry Sweet Pea, you’re going to have to just make do with cousins, more siblings are out!

Thank you for you prayers for safe travel. It was a nasty day to be on the road but most of the trip we were driving in between storms. We could literally see black on either side of us and the tiniest of strips of light in front of us. Such a clear answer to prayer!

We are now safely tucked in at Ronald McDonald House. Kayleigh spent the evening with Anna and her mom and sisters in the craft room tonight while I did laundry and cleaned our room. Thankfully Kayleigh is feeling great. To look at her you would have no clue anything was wrong. How thankful we are for these days of normalcy!

Please continue to pray with us for complete healing. We have such overwhelming peace that God has big plans for our precious girl. Plans for good, plans for a future. Plans for a future…

Pray those big prayers with us!

We love you all.
Until Tomorrow,
‘Carrow 💜

Happy Sunday!

No, you did not miss a post yesterday, we spent Saturday in the sweltering heat watching Grace play softball. By the time we were home I fell asleep tucking Kayleigh in and missed posting!

The good news is we have had a wonderful weekend. Saturday, Tim and I had some quality time with Grace and Tim’s parents were gracious enough to stay with Cole and Kayleigh so they did not have to endure the insane heat. That arrangement made everyone happy!

Today we rested and recuperated, visited with family and had friends we haven’t seen in forever over to swim. It was exceptionally normal and very much needed.

Tomorrow Kayleigh’s treatment is not until 5:00 pm so we are going to have a little extra time in the morning to run some errands. It still amazes me how God continues to orchestrate the smallest things like errand scheduling for us. I did not even realize I needed to be able to run errands Monday until this evening at 6:00. A situation that had potential to cause stress was already in line thanks to God’s plan.

As I see God care for us in the most minute details it continues to remind me that He cares for us. Not just about important things, but about everything. It reminds me that God wants to be a part of our lives in everything that we do. I find myself looking at situations differently. If I get caught in traffic and am delayed I don’t get stressed out, I wonder why I needed to be slowed down – am I missing a wreck? Is God protecting me from something? Is He orchestrating something bigger? Sometime I am able to see Him in things, like today’s scheduling and sometimes I don’t. But now, even if I don’t SEE what God is doing I don’t doubt that he is at work.

So, that is my challenge to all of you tonight – the next time something happens unexpectedly, don’t get worked up over it or worry, start looking to see what God is up to. He’s God, right? He is capable to do far more than we could ever imagine and His desire is to love, protect and grow us. Even in the bad situations God can turn them into good.

Isaiah 55:8-9
8 “My thoughts are nothing like your thoughts,” says the Lord. “And my ways are far beyond anything you could imagine. 9 For just as the heavens are higher than the earth, so my ways are higher than your ways and my thoughts higher than your thoughts.

Ephesians 3:20
Now all glory to God, who is able, through his mighty power at work within us, to accomplish infinitely more than we might ask or think.

No matter how scary things look on the outside, when you remember who is in control there is peace to be found in the storm.

Until tomorrow,
‘Carrow 💜

I did a terrible job taking pictures this weekend but I’ll try to do better next week!

It’s Friday! Radiation #25 of 30 is in the books and we are home sleeping in our own beds tonight, hallelujah!

It’s a tournament weekend which means our lives will be complete chaos and we are going to be exhausted m but that’s ok. It’s the kind of chaos we miss. It also means my posts may be shorter than usual 😄.

Prayer requests:
1.) Complete healing for Kayleigh this side of heaven.
2.) For bad side effects to continue to stay away and that Kayleigh will have no more headaches.
3.) For all 5 of us as we try to remember how to function as a family. Kayleigh is so accustom to having Tim & I both 24/7 that she struggles sharing us with Cole and Grace when we are home. Of course Cole and Grace are without us all week so they need time with us. Those dynamics are proving to be a little stressful. We would appreciate prayers for balance!

We love you all –
Until tomorrow,
‘Carrow💜

P. S. – it’s been a crazy day and I have no Kayleigh pictures. I did however get a new nephew this morning so you all get my “super proud aunt” selfie tonight! I will try to do better tomorrow!

I am thrilled to report another wonderful day, thank you Jesus!

Today was the busiest day we’ve had all week. Kayleigh had radiation, labs, OT, PT, and a neuro oncology visit. That was 7 hours straight at the hospital and while she was tired after it was all over she really did great.

Overall this week has been pretty smooth sailing. Kayleigh has had a few headaches break through on occasion but thankfully none of them were terrible. However, because they have been occurring her doctor decided it would be best to stay on the same dose this week and see where we are next week. Thankfully he does not feel like we need to increase which is a direct answer to our prayers. Thank you Lord!

One side effect Kayleigh is having is some hair loss at the radiation site. That is not unusual and hers is not terrible. Thankfully as long as I pay attention to how I style her hair no one will ever know. But every time I brush her hair and more strands show up in the brush she gets a little concerned. Her friends are battling the same thing so it is a tender subject around here.

In order to make Kayleigh feel a little better about it I pulled out my yarn and crochet hook and went about making a hat. I figure even if she doesn’t like what I make I can donate them to St. Jude. But she was pretty excited. She was even more excited when she googled “crocheted hats” and found an Elsa hat complete with hair. She sent me the screen shot at 9:00 this morning and has been cracking the whip all day for me to get it done. Patience is NOT one of her strong suits.

So tonight we are snuggled up in the bed. I’m enjoying another night of holding my baby while she sleeps and praising the Lord for another good day. I have no clue what tomorrow holds and I have discovered that I don’t need to. God has never failed me and He won’t start failing now.

Here are some of my verses for this week…

Luke 12: 25 & 26
25 Can all your worries add a single moment to your life? 26 And if worry can’t accomplish a little thing like that, what’s the use of worrying over bigger things?

Matthew 6:34
So don’t worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will bring its own worries. Today’s trouble is enough for today.

Philippians 4:6-7
6 Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done. 7 Then you will experience God’s peace, which exceeds anything we can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus.

Romans 12:12
Rejoice in our confident hope. Be patient in trouble, and keep on praying.

Deuteronomy 4:8
Do not be afraid or discouraged, for the Lord will personally go ahead of you. He will be with you; he will neither fail you nor abandon you.

I pray each of you that have read this far are encouraged. Please keep praying. Know that we love you very much –

Until Tomorrow,
‘Carrow💜

A kitty cat mask from a goody bag sent to the hospital

A beautiful treasure from a sweet friend

Playing hockey for PT

She really enjoyed it!

Her Elsa hat

Thank you Jesus for a wonderful day!

Wednesday’s are easy days for us as far as appointments go. Today it was radiation only and then we had the whole day to do whatever we wanted. Of course it’s 95 degrees and humid around here so the zoo and most other out door activities were off the list. Thankfully, one of our new friends here at St. Jude invited us to their place to swim. Kayleigh was thrilled!

After swimming we had the opportunity to meet some new friends at Tri Delta, eat pizza, and visit with other parents dealing with the same kind of thing we are. There is just something about sitting with people that understand exactly where you are that is peaceful. We don’t have to explain anything to them because they are in the same boat. We can just enjoy adult conversation and screaming kids. We are going to miss our new friends when we go home but we’ll be keeping up with all of their stories and praying hard for each of them.

Tonight’s prayers are exactly the same as last nights…
1.) Complete healing this side of heaven.
2.) For our phase 2 plans to start coming into focus. Clear direction!
3.) For phase 2 plan to not even be needed.
4.) For us to be able to successfully lower the steroids.
5.) Kayleigh’s new friends – Anna, Sawyer & Alyssa
Each new friend is a treasure and each one is fighting a BIG battle. Brain tumors are vicious and unrelenting but we know God is bigger.

Psalm 121:1-2

1 I look up to the mountains— does my help come from there? 2 My help comes from the Lord, who made heaven and earth!

Until tomorrow,
‘Carrow 💜

Awesome gifts delivered to the hospital!

Thankful for friends!

Thank you Brian and Jars of Hope

Psalm 121:1 – 2