Over 400,000 precious minutes with Adrianna! Thank you!!!

Stephanie's latest entry in at www.caringbridge.com/visit/adriannacavanagh made me feel so proud of the accomplishments of 100 Strong! We had a singular vision to keep this family together throughout Adrianna's fight with neuroblastoma, and we accomplished that goal. Granted, that singular vision has taken on a life of its own; full of prayers, words spread amongst friends and families, so many people united and waiting with bated breath for any word about this precious baby girl that we have all grown to love. I can't thank all of you enough for helping my friends through this tumultuous journey. You have each contributed to make it just a little bit easier for them, even in these days since Adrianna has earned her wings, now and for countless days ahead Stephanie and Joe will have time to reflect upon those memories that they will forever cherish--all because you reached out to help. Thank you!

As my father used to tell me, "You've done good kid, you've done real good."

"I can barely wrap my head around all of the things that have occurred in the past month. But now as we grieve for the loss of our daughter, I am overwhelmed by the amount of people who have written to me and Joe to share that our 3 year old daughter changed their lives so much- even as far as saving them and teaching them about Jesus Christ!

This is such an awesome realization for us. We knew she touched so many through different means of technology, or in person. But to know that sweet Adri may have saved the lives of nonbelievers is even more miraculous than her little life! How proud we are of her, and how proud she will be now to know she had done her job here on Earth at such a young age!
I've been engulfing myself in many books lately- reading a little from each book every day. One of the ones I came across was given to me by someone and is a small devotional book to read on different aspects of life.
Here are a few that touched me tonight:
On Heaven:
He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away. Revelation 21:4

On Strength:
My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever. Psalms 73:26

On Comfort:
The Lord is close to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit. Psalms 34:18

Joe has been staying busy working on projects outside when weather permits, and trying to work on some school work. I am keeping busy too, but think of darling Adrianna every second of the day. Sometimes it makes me cry, but a lot of the times I hear what she would always say to me, "Don't cry, Mommy. I don't want you to cry."
Just thinking of her dancing, singing, and rejoicing in Heaven brings such peace over me. Although I am not always that strong, and have my meltdowns, it does make things a lot easier.
I want to send a HUGE hug and thank you to all the nurses and doctors at Children's Hospital in New Orleans. As well as the staff at the Hope Lodge. Everyone there made our daughter feel so special. They treated her like a little princess and tried to make her feel as comfortable as possible. They loved her- it was plain to see. And she loved them back. They did all they could to help us defeat her disease, but in the end....Adrianna won! She is with God and that is the best place to be!!
Being selfish and wanting her back here with us does not fully comfort me. It is human nature though....I know it's going to be a LONG, TOUGH journey for Joe and me, but we did get to share 10 months with our daughter and fit in as much fun time as we possibly could. We also know we did and said everything we could have possibly done and she knew, with no doubt in her mind, how much we loved her. I feel that when I start to cry---I feel her telling me not to be sad for her...and to be happy for her now.
Many other cancer parents or other parents who have lost a child may feel a similar feeling.
We were blessed by being able to be with her almost every moment of every day through that rollercoaster of a ride we were on. So there are no regrets..nothing said that we didn't get to say to her...she trusted us and loved us with all her might. It was evident in the strength she had through it all....
With loving thoughts and memories of our girl,
Stephanie and Joe"

"Adrianna is free from all pain. The Good Lord came and retrieved her spirit at 7:41 this morning after long hours of labored breathing. She fought so long and so hard that we were relieved to see her leave for Heaven. Just yesterday afternoon she had told her sweet daddy (at his request), "I love you daddy", and kissed him.

We ask that, in lieu of flowers that you PLEASE consider giving to:

Children's Hospital of New Orleans, 200 Henry Clay Avenue, New Orleans, LA 70115, or to:

www.bandofparents.org,

Band of Parents Foundation PO Box 335 Dewittville, NY 14728

Funeral arrangements will be available later today at www.crainfh.com.

Joe and Stephanie are doing well, but they called on me to write this entry. Stephanie will write later. As for the four Grandparents, we are also pleased that Adri's suffering is ALL over with. She fought longer than anyone could have imagined, and in her suffering Joe and Stephanie found that they could let her go. But it is soooo HARD! She was so sweet and special that we cannot understand, though we accept, that she HAD to die. On the brighter side, she entered Heaven in only 3 short years, after ten months of blessing tens of thousands with her sweetness and cheerful ways. You can't know the half of it unless you were around her all the time. She was the most unique 3 year old I have ever known!She will NEVER be forgotten as long as any of us live. Thank you for your love and expressions of faith." Reggie/Poppa

In the arms of the Angels...

...may you find some comfort here.

Adrianna has passed through this life, and continues her life's journey beyond this little planet Earth. Please pray for her parents, grandparents, aunts, uncles, cousins, and for those who have come to love this little girl. I, personally, find great peace within myself because I am so grateful for her painful journey to end, and I am so thankful that her peaceful journey has begun.

I pray that each of you find solace in these words:

"Thousands of candles can be lighted from a single candle, and the life of the candle will not be shortened."

Let the light of Adrianna live on through you everyday. Pass on the strength, love, devotion, selflessness, faith, hope, blind joy and resiliency that you have witnessed in Adrianna, Joe and Stephanie.

Many blessings to you all,

Michelle

Adrianna update

An update from Adrianna's grandparents...

"Steph will resume her journaling when she can, but she, Adrianna and Joe are now getting some much-needed sleep. Thus, this entry comes from the grandparents. Prayer can't always change the situation, but we believe prayer can always change US. If our prayers for Adrianna's miracle cure are denied, we can still consider our prayers answered in another way: Adrianna may soon leave this world of pain and suffering to enter the Kingdom of God and enjoy the blessings of Paradise. SHE will be much better off there, though she will be painfully missed by all of us who know her best. The doctors have looked at her blood tests and find evidence that her kidneys and liver are beginning to decline in efficiency.

Though in some pain she continues to bless us by her great spirit and personality, which help to renew her mom and dad's courage as they lovingly care for this child. We delight in her own special phrases like "in a little while", "be careful", "ebby day", and calling our names, Poppa, Pop-pop, Mimi or Nanna. She still talks, though not as much as when she was not sick. Stephanie took Adrianna into her own room last night to let her see her dolls and animals (the little friends you have given her over the past 10 months). She asked for several to hold and love, and we realized again how much these little ones have helped her on this long, agonizing journey. Afterwards, we watched her as she lay between her parents and clasped her hands together to say her prayers, "Now I lay me down to sleep...I pray the Lord my soul to take." I was thankful they videotaped that prayer. How real and meaningful it was for her at this time. Our prayer now is that we can accept God's will, if He does not heal her. We are hoping that her life will continue to influence the lives of others. We do not find the words to express our gratitude for the unexpected love, thoughts and prayers of all of you who have loved Adrianna so generously and unconditionally. You have certainly made this Journey easier for us. Judy and Reggie Irene and Brian"

A mother's thoughts....

Here is a new post from www.caringbridge.org/visit/adriannacavanagh :

"Last night Adrianna ran a low fever, but allowed us to move her from our bed into the living room for a little while. She did not eat anything yesterday, but stayed hydrated with liquids. We figured it was because the day before she ate SOOO much, and then she didn't have a bowel movement. However, this morning she did have 2 dirty diapers, and we were pleased when she ate some bites of cheese toast. As we slept last night Adrianna could not get close enough to her Mommy. I was about to fall off the bed, and everytime I'd move her over, she'd snuggle right back up with me- which of course made me happier than you can imagine. Every time she'd wake up, she'd say, "Hold my hand, Mommy" and grab my hand. How precious this little girl is... First thing this morning she woke up and said, "Teppy! (this is what my nephews call me) "Go get me some milk, please!" This made me laugh and it was so good to hear her little high pitched voice, being silly. Later on, we moved her back onto the couch and she watched a movie. We also took her in her own room for a few minutes to pick out some more stuffed animals to bring into Mommy & Daddy's bed. She has more of these than we can even count! And she loves them all the same, and knows them all by name, even when Joe and I can't remember which one is which! Right now the Hospice nurse is here to help us with her meds. Please pray that her legs, feet, arms, back, and belly stop hurting her so. And that she doesn't have anymore hallucinations that scare her. We want her to be as comfortable as possible, but we also want her to be able to converse with us as much as possible. All these little conversations we have had the past few days have been a miracle to us! Last night she wanted to discuss again why bears have to have fur to stay warm. She is a thinker! Just a moment ago I asked Joe if he'd talked to his sisters lately. He said yes, and that they were thinking and praying. Well, Adrianna must've heard this conversation while she was lying there sleeping, because when he said that they were praying, we saw Adrianna clasp her hands together and raise them up, like she was saying a prayer too. It was so cute....right there in her sleep! We very much enjoyed the candlelighters again last night at our house. I cried tears of sadness, but also tears of joy, for the love and support this community has shown us. Brother Luther said a prayer for Adrianna, Joe, and me, and all of our family, which was concluded by everyone singing "Amazing Grace" and "Jesus Loves Me." I saw a bunch of children out there, with their candles lit, and it really touched my heart. I think I am still in a bit of shock and disbelief that all of this is happening right now. It has been such an emotional rollercoaster and I have moments of real meltdowns. But mostly, I have been strong in front of Adrianna, who will not let me leave her side. She does not want to see her Mommy cry. I think this is God's way of keeping me strong and also His way of giving us special moments together before Adrianna goes to live with Him. I don't know what I'm going to do without my beautiful little sidekick. Nothing seems fun without my sweet Adrianna. She will be the biggest void I have ever known.....but also the greatest gift I've ever been given. Please continue to pray for our strength and Adrianna's comfort. Trusting in Him, The Cavanaghs"

Adrianna update...

This is the most recent post from Stephanie, Adrianna's mom, on her Caringbridge page:

"Thanks to my sister, Kristi, for updating earlier for me. Just wanted everyone to know that Adrianna has been doing a lot of sleeping, but a lot of eating, too. I also updated some photos from the last few weeks so that everyone could see how well she looks. Thanks to all of the thousands of prayers, Adrianna has stopped having seizures and we've been able to have conversations with her. This was an answered prayer for me, after seeing my baby go through so much on Saturday night and Sunday morning. We've been watching lots of movies and letting her "boss" us around. So glad she has an appetite. Now we just pray that she can stay as pain-free as possible and that the hallucinations she has been having will stop. And as always, we are continually praying for a miraculous healing that only God could bless us with. We thank the 100 or more people who stood outside our house last night, with candles, singing and praying for our sweet Adrianna. It was so touching to all of us. And for all of you who were doing the same at your home, and from miles and miles away. We are taking it day by day, hour by hour, and soaking in all that we can possibly get with Adrianna. She is such a fighter......we continue to be, as always, the proudest parents of this girl. Love to all! Believing in God's will and in miracles, Stephanie"

Thank you for your continued prayers, support and donations!

Local Newspaper covers Adrianna's trip home

BY MARCELLE HANEMANN
The Daily News

Adrianna Cavanagh is home.

The 3-year-old who suffers from aggressive and devastating neuroblastoma cancer, arrived at the Bogalusa airport Thursday afternoon aboard a bright red air ambulance.

She has come home from Sloan Kettering Cancer Center in New York to spend what could be her final days surrounded by loved ones in the comfort of her Franklinton home.

About 30 people, some who have never met the child but have grown to love her by reading the family journals on a Web site, silently stood to welcome the girl and her parents back to Washington Parish, and to show support for the little family that has captured the hearts of a community during a heartbreaking year of treatment, hope and prayer.

Other people waited along the route a land ambulance would take, as family members prepared for Adrianna’s arrival at her house.

Stephanie Cavanagh, Adrianna’s mother, was the first off the air ambulance. She smiled at the crowd and offered a thumbs up. The child’s father, Joe, followed, then the little lady herself was transferred from the air to the waiting ground ambulance. Adrianna waved to those who stood behind the fence across the tarmac.

And while there were some tears at the airport and surely more than could be counted in the home, Adrianna’s is a life to be celebrated.

Countless people have kept up with Adrianna’s battle with cancer during the past year.

“This has affected people all over the world,” said Jan Murray as she waited at the airport. “It’s not too often in life that you come across things that hurt your heart like this. It’s sad. But maybe it’s all happening for a purpose.”

It is said that every life is a gift, one that’s not measured in years, but by content.

Adrianna has shared her gift with many, and she has earned a rest whenever she is ready.