Author: Ty

Hello all, sorry for the delay in posting. As you can imagine we have lot’s of new and exciting things to report. We are settling in to our new routine in Bowling Green. The kids are all doing great and really like school and the new neighborhood! Peter and Ellie attend St. Al’s Catholic school and both have great teachers. Kate is going to pre school everyday and is having a ball. Erika is getting is still working for Tradition and is getting used to working from home. And I am getting used to college hockey and really enjoying the challenge.

Today, Peter, Erika and I are going to Ann Arbor and the Children’s Hospital there at the University of Michigan. This will be his first appointment/meeting there so we are excited to meet the new Doctors there, although we are all a little nervous because this is going to be new for all of us. Peter has been doing great, still growing like a weed. He has had a great appetite and his energy level has been really good. We think we will meet the new Doctor’s today and probably set up a time for his next round of scans and tests. The great thing is that Ann Arbor is just over an hour away, so it should make the visits much easier than going to New York. On a side note this past weekend, we played the University of Michigan in our opening series, and lost both games 4-1 and 4-2. They are the #4 team in college hockey and are very good. Anyway, Peter said to Erika “is it OK if I tell the Dr. that I don’t like Michigan.”

As for other news, Gramma and Grampa Poopster and Gramma Mary made a trip down in September which was great. The kids showed them everything in BG so that was fun. Then this past weekend, Gramma Mary, Grampa Sig and Trent’s family made a trip down in an RV for the weekend. The kids played with their cousins all weekend and everyone was very tired by the time Sunday morning rolled around!

Finally, thanks so much for keeping Peter and our family in your prayers and thoughts. We are continually strengthened by all of you and are so very forunate to have you all as part Peter’s Team.

God Bless,

The Eigner’s

Hello all,

It has been since Feb. since our last posting and many exciting things have happened.

First, Ellie, Erika and Peter all had birthdays! Ellie turned 6 and celebrated with her cousins and friends at Pump It Up!  Peter turned 8 and had a skating party at The Pond!  Erika on the other hand quietly celebrated her birthday without going to Pump It Up or The Pond.  It was a crazy couple of weeks, but we survived and had a lot of fun.

Second, Peter and Erika left for NYC today for his 3 month scans and tests.  As far as we can tell, he is doing great with his energy, appetite, attitude and all else physical.  So we will keep praying for clean tests and scans and hope the trip to NYC is uneventful from that perspective.  Hopefully the weather will be good and Erika and Peter can have a little fun.  I know he brought some birthday money to spend at the NHL Store, so that should be fun.

Third, we are moving again.  Yes, you heard that correctly.  I have accepted an assistant coach position at Bowling Green State University.  I have always wanted to get into college hockey and to have a chance to do it at my alma mater was an opportunity we could not pass up.  The next few monthes will be a little crazy, but we are used to that.  We are nervous and very excited about this new chapter in our lives.

Also, keep praying for Mary Virnig as she continues her battle with neuroblastoma.  She is one of the most couragous young women we know and her family is priceless.  She is currently at the U of M awaiting another transplant.  Also, add Jackie Bishoff to your prayer list.  She is the mother of 4 and was recently diagnosed with Lung cancer.  She is a fighter and an overachiever and we expect her to take this battle head on.

Finally, thank you all so much for all the prayers and support for Peter and our family.  We are truly blessed to have so many wonderful people in our lives.

God Bless,

Ty, Erika, Peter, Ellie and Kate

Hello All,

We are thrilled and blessed to report that ALL of Peter’s scans and tests came back clean!  Erika and Peter had a rather uneventful trip.  The weather was not as bad as they thought it was going to be, which was great since they were going to be walking around NYC for three days.  Once again, we can never thank all of you enough for all of your thoughts and prayers.  As for the day to day, we are busy day to day with school, hockey, swimming, gymnastics, baseball, playdates work and we would not have it any other way!  Although, it does make the weekends go by rather fast.  Finally, continue to keep praying for strength and peace for the Ludwinski family as they move forward after Erik’s passing.  And continue to pray for Mary Virnig as she patiently waits for her second transplant.  She has been on a real roller coaster lately not only dealing with her own situation, but also support the Ludwinski’s.

God Bless,

Ty, Erika, Peter, Ellie and Kate

Hello All,

It hardly seems possible that Peter is already due back in NY this week.  He and Erika beat the snowstorm and flew out Monday afternoon.  Peter was less than thrilled about going, he cried in the morning and said “why do I have to keep going to NY”  We think as he gets older, he understands more about what this is all about.  Anyway, he got settled down and went to school for a few hours and then they flew out.  He got a headache on the plane and threw up when he and Erika got to the Ronald McDonald House in NYC.  He slept for a long time and was much better this morning when I talked to him.  He told me, “Dad it is like summer out here, it’s like 30 or 45 degrees.”

He and Erika will go to the clinic today and Wednesday and he will have blood work, CT scan, MIBG test, Brain MRI, Bone Marrow Biopsy and other tests over that time.  All in all he does remarkably well considering all he goes through each visit.  Kate, Ellie and I will hold down the fort back home and see if we can’t shovel a little snow while they are gone.  We had 8 inches yesterday!

Also, please pray for Erik Ludwinski and his family.  Erik is 21 and was diagnosed with neuroblastoma at age 4.  He was NED for 15 years, then he relapsed.  For the past 2 years he has been getting many different treatments.  Recently it has has progressed and is not responding to any treatment and Erik and his family are doing an incredible job handling his situation.  Erika and I went to see him Monday, it was an incredible experience.  Erik was interacting with all his visitors and his attitude was amazing.  He and his family are spending whatever time he has left enjoying each other and getting the most out of every day! His mother is one of the most positive people I have ever been around and she has been unbelievably helpful to tons of families affected by neuroblastoma.

Finally, thank you for keeping Peter in your prayers this week while he is in NY.  We are so blessed to have so many people praying for Peter and our family.

God Bless,

Ty, Erika, Peter, Ellie and Kate

We recieved the rest of the test results, and they too came back negative!  We are so thankful for the results as well as all of your prayers.  This will certainly be a very “thankful” Thanksgiving.  We are planning on spending it in the Twin Cities with the rest of the Eigner’s.  I will keep this short, as it seems that there is a lot to do to prepare to host this event.  Again, thank you so much for your prayers and support and may you and your families have a wonderful Thanksgiving!

God Bless,

Ty, Erika, Peter, Ellie and Kate

Hello All,

We hope all of you are enjoying the fall.  Peter, Ellie and Kate are all enrolled in 2nd grade, Kindergarten, and Pre-School respectively and really loving school.  They are involved in hockey, gymnastics and swimming along with all of the other things that kids their age do.  All three of them are really excited about Halloween of course.  Peter is going as Wolverine from X-men, Ellie is going to be a cheerleader and Kate is going to be a Princess, Ariel, Barbi or basically whatever she decides on that day!  Also, congrats to Erika, Auntie Meese’s and Auntie G for fininshing the Twin Cities 10 mile.  They all trained very hard and did really well.  Away from school and all the activities, Peter is doing great health wise.  He has lot’s of energy, appetite is good and he is growing which are all great things!

Also, please keep Erik Ludwinski and Mary Virnig in your prayers.  They are young adults who we have met along this journey who are still in the middle their battle with this awful disease.  Erik is truly a hero to all parents and children with Neuroblastoma and Mary has more determination than any young lady I have ever met.  Your prayers for them will be greatly appreciated.

Peter is due back in NYC the first week of November for scans and tests, and as always we can’t thank you enough for all of your support and prayers.  We know that we are so lucky to have all of you on Peter’s team.

God Bless,

Ty, Erika, Peter, Ellie and Kate

Hello to all of you,

Well Peter and Erika had a rather uneventful trip to NYC (YES!). They went back and Peter went through a battery of tests that he has become all to used too familar with. Anyway, the great news is they all came back negitive! Thank you all for your thoughts and prayers, as I have mentioned many times before, we can never thank you enough. He is going to continue to go out to NYC every 3 months to do scans and be seen by the Doctors. We were hoping that it would be a little longer time between visits, but hey we will make it work. We are going to try to enjoy the last few weeks before school starts now that we are back home for a while. The good thing is all three kids are really excited about school starting. We are so happy that they all love going to school and are excited to start up again. Since the summer is almost over, I will keep this short. Again, thanks so much for keeping Peter and our family in your prayers and God Bless all of you.

Ty

Hello All,

Peter’s biopsy went very well this morning.  It did not take as long as we expected and the Dr. felt that he got plenty of tissue for a good sample.  Peter rested in the hospital for a couple hours afterword, ate some lunch and then we headed back to the Ronald McDonald House.  He is doing very well and is not in any pain.  We are heading home to the Twin Cities tomorrow morning, which is great.  We don’t have any results of the biopsy yet, but the Dr. told us to call back to the hospital next Tuesday and they should have some findings.  So all in all today went as well as it could have and now we will continue to pray with all of you that the biopsy results are benign and not NB.  As always, we cannot thank you enough and we are completely humbled by the support that you all have given to Peter and our family.

God Bless,

Ty, Erika and Peter

(Peter waking up from the biopsy)

Hello All,

As Uncle Matt stated in his post, we now have a plan.  Peter will have a needle biopsy done Friday morning at 8am.  This is good news being that a needle biopsy is much easier on Peter than the other option.  We pray that they are able to get enough tissue to clarify what it is we are dealing with. 

As for yesterday, it was a long day of waiting.  Peter had a blast in the playroom at the clinic and in the playroom at the Ronald McDonald House.  Erika and I mainly sat back and watched him.  He played with many different kids of varying ages.  He treats them all as if they are his lifelong friends.  It is really neat to watch.  He shot baskets, played knee hockey, video games, board games, checkers and was truly enjoying himself.  Erika and I were trying to see if there was anything he really wanted to do, and his response was always “go to the playroom”. 

For those of you that have not been to Memorial Sloan Kettering, it is quite the place.  You are there with people from all over the world who’s children are being treated for various types of this awful disease.  I often catch myself watching how all these people interact.  It is definately an interesting sight.  Then I am always drawn back to Peter, he is so polite and kind to everyone he comes in contact with, Erika and I are so proud of him. 

As for Friday, we continue to pray that Peter was healed two years ago and these spots are something other than Neuroblastoma.  It is very difficult to sit and wait, but we draw strength from Peter, from God and from all of you.  This is another test for our family and I am confident that with the grace of God and all your  prayers and support we will pass with flying colors.  We can never thank all of you enough and will never take for granted how fortunate we are to have so many people to help us through this.  We are also so blessed that Ellie and Kate are in such good hands with family and friends back home.  Thanks to all of you who have offered to give us a hand with the two of them.  We miss them a ton, but are comforted by the fact they are doing so well.

God Bless,

Ty, Erika and Peter

I had written a post prior to Peter and Erika going to NYC, unfortunately, I was unable to get it to post on the site. Anyway, I wanted to tell everyone how all was going with the Eigner’s. Peter is playing baseball and hockey this summer and loves both. He is growing and gaining weight has a great appetite and lots of energy. We feel like from the outside he is doing awesome, but you never know what is going on inside. I also wanted you all to know how well the girls were doing, Ellie is in hockey and gymnastics and Kate is doing gymnastics this summer. All in all we are doing very well. I was going to ask you to keep Peter in your prayers as he heads back to NYC for his scans and tests and again remind you all how much our family appreciates all of your prayers and support.

As you probably know by now Erika, Peter and I are going back to NYC today to see what the “abnormalities” on his liver are. We do get a 3 hour layover in Milwaukee to see Grandpa Sig, so that will be good. As for NYC, we will let you all know what we are dealing with as soon as we know. We tried our best to have a fun weekend up North, but it was very hard for me. Erika has been incredible since hearing the news of the spots on his liver. She has been positive and strong for all of us. I will be honest this news has made my stomach ache since last Thursday. As the weekend went on, I was strengthened by faith, family and all of you. Each time my phone would beep I would read the text, e-mail or answer the call and immediately feel the wonderful support.

As for today, I will tell you this. Peter is still gaining weight, has a ton of energy, has a great appetite and he and I are going to hockey this morning. He is the same kid he was prior to this weekend. He is a child of God and Erika and I could not love him any more than we do. He has a great family and is supported by so many of you. We continue say many prayers for strength and say “thanks” to all of you for doing the same.

God Bless,

Ty

Hello again,

All the Eigner’s hope all of you had a great Easter. We went up to Erika’s parents with the kids and had a great time. The kids got to go back to Jenny’s (our daycare person in Brainerd) they had a great time seeing all their old friends and had great weather for an outdoor Easter egg hunt. Peter, Grampa Poopster and I got to go ice fishing too. We had perfect weather and caught a ton of fish, so much that we had a fish fry on Sat. night and it was delicious. We also got to see Carrie and Dino Grillo’s new baby Piper Elizabeth Grillo, who was 3 days old when we stopped by to see them. The kids enjoyed that, especially Ellie who must have held her 6 different times. The winter is all wrapped up as far as winter hockey goes. The team I coach for won the Minnesota State Championship. It was a great group of players and coaches, and the best experience of my hockey career. Having watched the Tournament for 30 years, it was amazing to be a part of a Championship team and something I will never forget. This years tournament drew over 115,000 fans over 4 days. Peter and Ellie are currently playing hockey in a spring 3 on 3 league at Uncle Trent’s rink “The Pond” and having a blast. All three of the kids are very busy right now. Kate has gymnastics, swimming and goes along to everything else. Ellie has gymnastics, swimming, hockey and school. And Peter has track, swimming, hockey and school, with baseball starting soon. Erika is doing great at work, the new lower interest rates have her very busy. As you can imagine, our schedule is kind of crazy, but we seem to like it more that way!

Peter and I are going out to NYC on the 26th of this month for his 3 month check up. It is hard to believe that it is already time for that. We continue to pray for the best, and know that you all will too. From our point of view, he is doing great. Appetite is really good, energy is good, he is growing each week and is doing great in school. We see none of the signs that we saw prior to his diagnosis, but we have no idea what is going on inside. That unknown is the hardest part of this process, but as a parent of a child with cancer once told me, ” I guess you just know that it is something that you will always have to live with.”

Anyway, that is the latest with us. We hope that you all have a great spring and again we so appreciate all the thoughts and prayers that you continue to give to Peter and our family

Finally, I had my cell phone stolen so if you have been trying to call that is why I don’t answer. e-mail me at ty.eigner@traditionllc.com if you want my new cell number.

Ty, Erika, Peter, Ellie and Kate

We just finished getting all of Peter’s test and scan results back from New York. Brain MRI-CLEAR, Head/Chest/Abdomen CT-CLEAR, Bone Marrow-CLEAR, Urine Screen-CLEAR, MIBG Scan-CLEAR!!! We also found out that his HAMA level came way down, so he could be getting another round of anti-body treatment before we are due back for scans and tests in April. Thank you all so much for your thoughts and prayers, you will never know how much strength they provide us as we wait for test results. With that said, the trip to NYC had to be a succes right. All in All it was a pretty quick and smooth trip. The highlight for Peter was learning to play ping-pong in the playroom. He and I played everyday and he really started to hit the ball pretty well. Especially since he could not bend his arm all the way due to his temp IV line. He got to paint a jewelry box for Kate and Ellie, which has since been destroyed by Kate! He also made individual soap figures for Erika and he girls, they really liked that.

I also have to share one neat story from out there. Peter and I were in the playroom by ourselves on Monday morning, when a woman and a 5 year old girl came in. They sat at the table with us while we were playing a game. After talking with them for a while we found out that the girl’s little brother was being treated for Neuroblastoma. Her grandma then asked me if “Peter had a sibling that was being treated out here?” She was very surprised when I told here “Peter is the one who has Neuroblastoma.” Peter then said “I HAD Neuroblastoma Dad.” I don’t know who felt better about what he said me or the gramma who could see that there can be a positive outcome to this awful disease!

Anyway, I thought that was a pretty cool thing and thought you all would enjoy it. Well better get going, we have a busy Saturday ahead of us.

Thanks for everything,

Ty