Mattie Miracle Walk 2023 was a $131,249 success!

Mattie Miracle Cancer Foundation Promotional Video

Thank you for keeping Mattie's memory alive!

Dear Mattie Blog Readers,

It means a great deal to us that you take the time to write to us and to share your thoughts, feelings, and reflections on Mattie's battle and death. Your messages are very meaningful to us and help support us through very challenging times. To you we are forever grateful. As my readers know, I promised to write the blog for a year after Mattie's death, which would mean that I could technically stop writing on September 9, 2010. However, at the moment, I feel like our journey with grief still needs to be processed and fortunately I have a willing support network still committed to reading. Therefore, the blog continues on. If I should find the need to stop writing, I assure you I will give you advanced notice. In the mean time, thank you for reading, thank you for having the courage to share this journey with us, and most importantly thank you for keeping Mattie's memory alive.


As Mattie would say, Ooga Booga (meaning, I LOVE YOU)! Vicki and Peter



The Mattie Miracle Cancer Foundation celebrates its 7th anniversary!

The Mattie Miracle Cancer Foundation was created in the honor of Mattie.

We are a 501(c)(3) Public Charity. We are dedicated to increasing childhood cancer awareness, education, advocacy, research and psychosocial support services to children, their families and medical personnel. Children and their families will be supported throughout the cancer treatment journey, to ensure access to quality psychosocial and mental health care, and to enable children to cope with cancer so they can lead happy and productive lives. Please visit the website at: www.mattiemiracle.com and take some time to explore the site.

We have only gotten this far because of people like yourself, who have supported us through thick and thin. So thank you for your continued support and caring, and remember:

.... Let's Make the Miracle Happen and Stomp Out Childhood Cancer!

A Remembrance Video of Mattie

April 28, 2022

Thursday, April 28, 2022

Thursday, April 28, 2022

Tonight's picture was taken in April of 2006. Mattie was four years old and was visiting the Reston Zoo. It was a favorite of ours because of the size and hands on activities. I was always leery when Mattie was sitting or riding on a horse. Given my experiences with horses, I know they startle easily and can literally start running. I tried not to translate my fears down to Mattie. He loved horses and had an appreciation and respect for their size and strength. 


Quote of the day: All his life he tried to be a good person. Many times, however, he failed. For after all, he was only human. He wasn't a dog. ~ Charles Schulz


Last night was a nightmare. At around dinner time, my dad started complaining that he did not have a bowel movement that day. He is very fixated on bowel movements and has NO INSIGHT or discretion as to when he can and can't talk about it. In any case, by 10pm, he was doubled over in pain. Given the fact that I rushed him to the ER in Los Angeles in June of 2020 with an impacted colon, in which he had to hospitalized for a week, I wasn't taking any chances. 

So I gave him an oral laxative as well as a suppository. I waited for the suppository to work for TWO hours. NOTHING. By midnight, I had to go to sleep because I had to wake up at 5:30am in order to do my morning chores and get Sunny to the vet by 7:30am. When I went to bed, I dreaded today because I figured if the suppository didn't work, we had another problem on our hands. Fortunately my dad went to the bathroom at 1am and that crisis was averted.

I took Sunny to see his surgeon today. Peter and I trust her and we want ahead and approved her to do a CT scan of Sunny, which required sedation as well as a special urine test called BRAF. BRAF is a genetic mutation that is identified in around 80% of dogs with transitional cell carcinoma in the bladder and prostate. The Cadet BRAF test is PCR based genetic test that allows detection of this mutation in the urothelial cells that have been shed in the urine.

Sunny was with the vet from 7:30am to 5pm. Apparently for Peter and I, we are allowed no peace, no joy, but instead a life of grief, heartache, and sadness. Today it was confirmed that Sunny does indeed have cancer. So further assessments are needed to determine specific type and whether we are dealing with multiple cancers at one time. Sunny's surgeon feels this is a very unusual presentment, especially when he has no symptoms. If Sunny never had a preventative sonogram at his senior check up, I would still be clueless about his adrenal gland mass, his bladder mass, and his mass in his spleen. Honestly maybe I would have been better not knowing. 

Sunny has been a God sent in our lives. He has filled our home, hearts, and life with love and joy. I just can't imagine losing something else I love so much to cancer. Sunny is a beautiful and gentle soul and the thought of him enduring cancer just doesn't sit well with me. 

3 comments:

Chris Bentley said...

My sincere heartfelt thoughts and prayers for you and Peter. and Sunny. I wish you nothing but comfort at this hard time.

Anonymous said...

My heart is broken. Crying with you.

Anonymous said...

This is Cheryl Wood