Jonny's Journey. A Path to a New Beginning.

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Jonny's Journey. A Path to a New Beginning.

Meet Jonny, who was born with a rare metabolic disorder called OTC Deficiency.

Follow his journey ahead as we look to give him a new beginning with a Liver Transplant.

01/26/2026

💚 6 Months. A Huge Milestone. 💚

Today we celebrated Jonny’s 6-month liverversary. Six months of healing, strength, and learning what life looks like when fear no longer leads the way.

We started the morning with a little celebration in bed and gave Jonny full control over how he wanted to mark the day. First request? Unlimited screen time. On a cold, snowy day like today, that one was an easy yes.

Next on the list was CTC Obstacle Course, where the boys spent some time climbing, swinging, and showing off their inner Alex Honnold after watching Skyscraper last night. Watching Jonny trust his body and push himself without hesitation was something I quietly soaked in.

The rest of the evening slowed down in the best way. Cracking open yet another Lego set for each of the boys and somehow them finishing it before my eyes, followed by Jonny’s favourite dinner. A loaded bourbon BBQ steak and cheddar sub from Subway.

There was a time when days like this came with constant calculations for energy, food, hydration, and the fear that one wrong move could tip everything sideways.

But today?
Do you, kid.

Six months in. Halfway to one of the biggest milestones for transplant patients and a reminder of just how far this boy has come.

So proud. So grateful. 💚

01/14/2026

🎉 12 Years of Jonny 🎉

Today my boy turned 12 and what a year he has come through.
Ages 10 and 11 asked more of him than any child should have to give. They were years of hospitals, procedures, recovery, and learning how strong a kid can be when he shouldn’t have to be. Moments people don’t experience in a lifetime.

As we step into 12, my biggest hope is simple:
Less hovering from me.
More freedom for him.
Freedom in his body, his choices, and his everyday life.

And more than anything, I wish him a year where he doesn’t have to prove how resilient he is. A year where he doesn’t have to be strong or brave or push through hard things.

A year where he can just be.
A 12 year old whose biggest worry is homework.

Happy Birthday, my sweet boy. 💚
Here’s to freedom, laughter, and a lighter year ahead.

01/05/2026

Christmas Break Recap ❄️

Our Christmas break was full in all the best ways with some skating, swimming, and more tobogganing than I can count. The kids spent endless hours with their cousins and squeezed in time with friends along the way, filling our days with fresh air, movement, and laughter.

Most importantly, everyone is healthy. That alone never goes unnoticed around here.

We’re heading back to school tomorrow, and I’ll admit I was bracing myself for the Sunday scaries today. But Jonny has handled this transition with so much perseverance and calm so far. Fingers crossed tomorrow’s first day back goes just as smoothly.

Grateful for a break that felt normal, active, and full of togetherness. One day at a time and tonight, feeling thankful. 💚

01/01/2026

🐍➡️🐎 New Year’s Day — Leaving Survival, Entering Freedom

As we step into a new year, I find myself reflecting less on resolutions and more on what we’ve survived.

For so long, our life was shaped by Jonny’s condition. Every day was measured, protein counted, symptoms watched, emergency plans ready. I lived with constant awareness that his body could turn on him without warning. Joy was present, but always guarded. Life was lived carefully, deliberately, and with fear sitting quietly in the background.

The Year of the Snake asked us to shed that life.
Not gently but completely.

It stripped away the version of motherhood that required hyper-vigilance.
It took the diagnosis that dictated my days.
It forced us through the unthinkable so that something new could take its place.

Jonny’s transplant didn’t just change his health it changed the way we exist. We are no longer living in constant calculation or crisis prevention. We are learning what it means to live without restriction, without the weight of “what if” attached to every decision.

Now we enter the Year of the Horse
A year of movement, strength, and forward momentum.
A year of freedom earned!
A year where we trust what we’ve learned, honor the road we walked, and move ahead with purpose.

I don’t forget where we came from.
But we no longer live there.

Happy New Year from my family to yours.
Here’s to health, healing, and the courage to keep moving forward. 💚

12/25/2025

🎄 Christmas Morning, Five Months In 🎄

This morning feels different and not just because it’s Christmas. Today also marks five months since Jonny received his new liver. Five months of healing, of milestones, of learning what life looks like on the other side of something I once feared so deeply.

2025 was a year that reshaped our family in ways I never expected. It stripped things down to what truly matters and showed me how fragile, yet incredibly powerful, life can be.

Watching the kids open their gifts today, the games, the lego, the fishing gear, I was reminded that the most meaningful gift this year wasn’t wrapped or placed under the tree. It’s the gift that gave us time. Time together. Time for health. Time to dream forward instead of just survive.

Five months ago, everything changed. And this Christmas, we’re holding that change close Grateful, humbled, and deeply aware of how precious every ordinary moment really is.

Wishing you all a Christmas filled with peace, perspective, and hope. 💚

12/19/2025

💚 Grateful Beyond Words 💚

I feel incredibly lucky and blessed to share that we’ve connected with the Simon Keith Foundation, and they will be funding Jonny’s fencing for the year.

This amazing foundation supports kids post-transplant as they work their way back into regular routines, activities, and sports, encouraging healthy, active living after transplant and reminding these kids that their lives don’t stop, they begin again.

For Jonny, fencing has been such a positive outlet, a place to move his body, build confidence, and feel like himself again. Knowing he can continue without barriers is a gift I don’t take lightly.

Yesterday, we received a box of swag from the foundation, and let’s just say… we will be showing it off in style. 😄

We are so deeply grateful for the support, generosity, and belief in kids like Jonny. Thank you, Simon Keith Foundation, for helping my boy and so many others return to life, movement, and joy after transplant.

12/15/2025

🚆 Locked, Loaded & Heading Home 🚆

What a smooth morning! We were in for bloodwork, had Jonny’s clinic appointment, and were back on the train by 11:30 heading home. Exactly how we hoped this trip would go.

The very best news?
Jonny’s bloodwork came back absolutely perfect. His new liver is doing beautifully. Truly the greatest gift we could have received this holiday season. 💚

We’ll be back in Toronto in about two months for his next follow-up, with some routine bloodwork in between.

Friends… we are doing it. This is really happening. Life feels good, hopeful, and full of gratitude. This gift is one I will never, ever take for granted.

Thank you for all the love, prayers, and positive vibes that continue to carry us. 💛

12/14/2025

🚆 Toronto Bound Today 🚆

Jonny and I are heading to Toronto today, just the two of us. Our goal is to get in and out as smoothly and quickly as possible. And I have to say… my present self is very grateful to my past self for booking the train, especially with this winter snowstorm happening. ❄️

Jonny has a clinic appointment tomorrow morning, and we’re heading in with all the positive vibes. It’s been about six weeks since his last bloodwork, and while that’s part of the process (and a sign that his body is doing well), the waiting can be hard. These are the numbers that reassure me his new liver is settled in and happy.

The longer gaps between tests mean things are going right and I keep reminding myself that this team is a well-oiled machine. They know exactly what they’re doing, and if Jonny needed more frequent bloodwork, it would be happening. This is what I tell my anxiety… on repeat.

So for now, we wait, we trust, and we take it one step at a time. Please keep us in your thoughts, and I’ll update everyone tomorrow with how things go. 💚

11/26/2025

💚 4 Month Liverversary Update 💚

It’s been a hot minute since our last post and we’re still living by the motto “no news is good news.”

Today we’re celebrating Jonny’s 4 month liverversary. It was a quiet and uneventful evening here, but we plan to make up for that this weekend. We don’t let these huge milestones pass without giving them the recognition they deserve.

In other happy news… this guy is officially back to fencing and doing so well. ⚔️
Seeing him return to the things he loves has been such a gift.

Day to day life has calmed down in ways I honestly never imagined we’d get to experience. Jonny went to his first birthday party since transplant — and for the first time ever, I didn’t have to send meds, prepared special snacks, or safe options.

And the best part?
If he chooses not to eat something simply because he doesn’t like it… it’s fine. His body isn’t going to spiral into a crisis from missing a few calories in the short time.

Those are the daily wins we’re soaking up.
And we are celebrating every single one.

11/05/2025

💚 Day 100 & 101 : A Milestone Kind of Week 💚

This week was full of moments that reminded me just how far Jonny has come.
Sunday marked day 100 post-transplant, and we couldn’t let it pass without celebrating in a big way! We spent the evening at Medieval Times cheering, laughing, and soaking in every moment. Jonny loved every second of the show, eating with his hands like a true knight and grinning from ear to ear.

The next morning, it was back to business with Jonny’s routine 3-month clinic appointment in Toronto. Bloodwork came first, followed by a gruelling 2-hour ultrasound (with lots of stops, starts, and “we just need a few more pictures”).

This mama’s anxiety was climbing with every pause… but sure enough, every single concern was ruled out.
✅ Ultrasound looks great
✅ Bloodwork looks great

A huge sigh of relief.

To celebrate, we made one more stop before heading home to the Ripley’s Aquarium! Because when you hit day 101 post-transplant, you celebrate every chance you get. 🐠💦

We’ll be back in Toronto in about six weeks for his next follow-up, with some routine bloodwork in between.

It’s incredible to be on this side of things!
Oh, and one more exciting update, he is down four medications this month! That means Jonny now only takes his meds twice a day. 🎉

Huge progress. Huge gratitude. Huge hope. 💚

11/03/2025

🛡️ Checked In & Ready for Tomorrow 🛡️

We’re all checked into our hotel in Toronto tonight after an amazing evening at Medieval Times. Dinner and a show to kick off this trip to Toronto in the best way possible.

Tomorrow Jonny has clinic with blood work and an ultrasound. I’m choosing to believe we are going to rewrite history. The last time we came to Toronto for “just” a clinic visit that included an ultrasound, we didn’t leave for 10 days after learning he was facing a rejection.

Tomorrow is a new chapter, and I fully believe we’re walking into a completely different outcome. ✨

What made tonight even more meaningful is that the last time we were at Medieval Times was back when we were exploring the possibility of transplant for Jonny. The piece of chicken they serve is 92 grams… and Jonny’s daily protein allowance used to be 28 grams. That meant only a few tiny strings of meat for him.

Tonight, I watched my boy tear into that chicken with his hands medievil style, with zero restrictions, smiling ear to ear. 🍗
No measuring.
No weighing.
No limits.
Just freedom.

Such a perfect way to mark being in Toronto for his 3 month post-transplant appointment, and to celebrate that he’s now allowed back into some indoor spaces again.

Please send us all your positive thoughts and prayers for tomorrow. 💚
We’re ready for good news.

onto

10/26/2025

🎉 Three Months Post-Transplant — Our 3 Month Liverversary! 🎉

Today marks 3 months since Jonny received his gift of life — his brand new liver! 💚

We plan to officially celebrate next week when we’re back in Toronto for his next clinic appointment, but this milestone feels too special not to share. Three months means Jonny can now start going into some indoor places again — a huge step forward!

Of course, with flu season in full swing, this mama’s nerves are definitely high 😅, but we’re focusing on the incredible progress and the freedom this brings.

To mark the day, we ventured out this evening to see some Halloween fun on Havenridge Crescent — spooky decorations, music, and some seriously impressive dance moves in the streets! 🎃🕺

It’s moments like these — being out, laughing, and just enjoying life — that remind us how far we’ve come. 💛

h

Address

London, ON

Website

https://www.giftoflife.on.ca/resources/pdf/transplant/PRELOD_Brochure_April_2023.pdf, https://www.diabetes.ca/en-CA/reso

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