Keith: Small but mighty

The nurse who handed Keith to Brent after he was born called him "small but mighty". At 3 lbs 2 oz he was small and he's proving now like he proved then that he is as mighty as they come. He fought for life in the womb and he won and we know he can do it again.
For anyone who does not know, Keith was diagnosed with a brain tumor yesterday. The neurosurgeon has not done a complete MRI reading, but his initial words to us yesterday were that this tumor is "enormous", "ugly", "definitely malignant" and "invasive" (meaning it's in the brain stem). We'll know more details this afternoon and certainly much more once we receive the pathology reports from the actual tumor. Surgery is scheduled for tomorrow morning. We know the neurosurgeon will remove as much of the tumor as he can without disturbing the portion in the brain stem. We do not know how small or large of a portion that is yet. Beyond that, we aren't speculating much about the future. We are taking this one day at a time.

Keith is doing well. We are watching Beauty and the Beast in the Pediatric ICU. He will be here until the excess fluid in his brain is drained. (There has been spinal fluid build-up due to the tumor blocking his brain's ability to re-absorb the fluid.) Fortunately, the major pressure is off and we're just waiting for the fluid to drain. The medical team is unsure how long that will take, likely anywhere from 1 to 10 days.
Keith is in good spirits today. He keeps asking to go home and obviously at 3 years old, he does not understand why he is here. But he's anxiously awaiting a visit from Cole and Ally this morning which will be great for all of them.

Life is full of surprises, mostly good and some not so good. To think that Tuesday morning my main focus was training for the Boston Marathon and a few hours later, I was intensely focused on a much different, much harder and much more important kind of endurance test. Fortunately, Brent and I have a very strong relationship. We continue to love and support each other. We have family support that is second to nobody else I know. We have friends who love us. And most importantly, we feel the love and support of a Savior who has suffered all and knows how to best succor us at this time. In the strength of the Lord we can do all things. If anyone can overcome this it is us. It is Keith.
Thank you all for your prayers and support. We can do this.