(1/10) 6 years ago, when Joni and I first met, I was a Veterinary Technician still trying to land a good job down here and Joni was a purchasing analyst at Caterpillar but the plant ended up shutting down. Our first child was our son, Justin. 
(2/10) Because Joni only has one ovary and endometriosis, and because of her age, we were told chances were slim of another pregnancy. When Joni did get pregnant, we waited and waited to tell people. At 12 weeks we told family.
(3/10) We were told Down syndrome was a high possibility, but it never phased us and we were happy still. That pregnancy was rough, but we were all so happy. Justin was so excited for a baby brother.
(4/10) During the pregnancy we found out that Jaycen had a heart defect and two holes which would be monitored closely. Jaycen was born on October 13th 2016 via c section. He was taken to NICU where he spent ten days fighting, then finally came home.
(5/10) Jaycen has Down Syndrome and at under a year he had open heart surgery and was diagnosed hypothyroid at 2. Then this year we were all doing well, when I got a call from school that Jaycen had a fever.
(6/10) Over the next two days he got worse fast. I rushed him to the hospital where he received a diagnosis of RSV/ mild Pneumonia with no antibiotics/ no meds to go home.
(7/10) Overnight it looked like the life was drained from him. I told Joni to rush him to his pediatrician so she can get him to a specialist. Joni called and told me they believe he has cancer. Leukemia was confirmed November 12th. He will be in treatment until February 2022.
(8/10) NOTHING can prepare you for this. Jaycen is in remission and in about 2 months he'll be down to monthly visits until treatment is complete. Every day we wake up and don't know what to expect. What new challenges life may bring, but at least we have each other.
(9/10) We have learned to appreciate and love the simple things in life. We are so blessed to have great support and #TeamJaycen is ever growing. If anything, I want taken from his story is be your child's advocate and fight for best care.
