Thankful...

I'm a little late with this Thanksgiving post...it's been on my mind for about 9 months, but getting it out of my mind and onto the blog is not always doable.

When Elliott was first diagnosed with his brain tumor last February someone told us to think about Thanksgiving and how we would really have something to be thankful for this year.  I clung to that memory throughout the agonizing process of deciding on a neurosurgeon and then his craniotomy and recovery.  It all seemed to happen so fast that I still don't think I've completely processed it.

So, here is what I am most thankful for this year...I am so thankful for that annoying and ongoing sinus infection that led to a cat scan which led to an MRI which located the lurking, asymptomatic tumor deep within Elliott's brain.  I am thankful for good health insurance which enabled us to have his craniotomy done by one of the best neurosurgeons in the country at minimal cost to us.  I am thankful for the amazing support of our family, friends, and strangers throughout this process.  I'm thankful that we were able to keep our senses of humor and laugh through the most difficult times in our lives.  I am thankful for an amazing surgeon who got the job done quickly and successfully.  I am thankful that Elliott recovered so quickly and so well (although the first few days were horrendous).  I am thankful that his tumor was benign, and there is an 85% chance that his tumor will not grow back (I live in fear of that 15% chance that it will).  I am thankful that there does not seem to be a hereditary component to this type of tumor, so our children are not at a greater risk of having a brain tumor.  I am thankful that our children have a daddy that plays with them in a treehouse and then climbs so high in the tree that their mama yells at him to come down (he didn't survive a brain tumor to fall out of a tree!).  I am thankful for my 2 sweet, loving, healthy, kind, generous, compassionate, stubborn, hilarious, brilliant girls who were asleep by 7:15 tonight which gave me a minute to write this blog post!