My friend's child is starting chemo. There are other children at home.

She does not live near us but we want to help. Do you have ideas of what we can do to help? Hope she will let us pay for house cleaners. We would like to babysit the kids or make meals but we can't.

My son, age 5, finished chemo about 13 months ago for a Wilms Tumor.

Have your friend get onto www.acor.org and see if they have a support group for parents of children with her childs type of cancer. They have one for Wilms. I am on it.

Have her set up a Caring Bridge (www.caringbridge.com) or Care Page (www.carepages.com -- I think) site so that everyone can stay updated without having to call all the time.

Send gift cards to places to eat, that are near the hospital.

Activities that the child can do from bed or the couch are great! (games, movies, coloring books, etc...)

Hire a maid, grocery delivery, babysitting (I know you are not close but maybe you could help pay a sitter)..

Offer love and support and pray!

I can also get you a list of ideas put together by Wilms parents, if you would like to email me, off site. Can you set up home grocery delivery? Order her some weekly groceries to be delivered.....even the staples like milk, bread, cereal, some basic dinner stuff (pasta, sauce, fz. veggies), so if things are difficult she could at least open the fridge and put something together w/o going to the store? Check to see if they have one of those Dinner's Ready type places in there area. They are popping up all over. Call the place and ask them if they can put together and deliver the meals. If you tell them the story behind it they might even donate some meals for the family. Since they will be spending so much time cooped up in the hospital. Maybe you could send them little care packages with snack foods, crossword puzzles, games for the child to play on good days, videos, momentos, cd's, inspirational books, lotions (unscented stuff for all the handwashing) just little things to brighten their day. You can arrange to send things to the unit they are on or the place they will be staying during her treatments. How heartbreaking that your friend's child needs chemotherapy. I really wish all of them my best. And what a doll you are! That sounds like a fantastic idea of thoughtfully paying to have their house cleaned. How about also hiring a professional organizer since when one's house is organized, the mind tends to feel more organized.