Every day is a challenge for Anna and Aurelio Gumayagay as they care for their son who has severe cerebral palsy.

Every day his lungs are congested and every day he's at risk of getting pneumonia.

And every day he gives them joy and love.

In September he was hospitalized for two months with pneumonia. In October he was hospitalized for two weeks more, also with pneumonia.

After that last hospitalization they moved him out of his bedroom and into their room. He sleeps with his parents now so they can monitor his breathing to make sure fluid is not building up in his lungs.

At 14, her son is wheelchair-bound and cannot talk any more.

"If there is a blessing from God, I would ask him if he could make my son talk to me," said Anna Gumayagay, 37. "Now when he gets sick, we have to take him right away to the doctor to avoid going to the hospital."

The last time, doctors wanted to put in a tracheotomy to help him breathe, Gumayagay said.

The Waipahu woman gave up working full time after the second hospitalization and now works nights at the Burger King in Pearl City. Her husband works days at the Coca-Cola Bottling Co. as a machine operator. Together they care for their son with the help of their 18-year-old daughter, who graduated from high school and wants to attend college to become a nurse.

"Caring for him is very hard," Gumayagay said. "I'm not a nurse, I just learned how to help him from doing. My husband went to school to take nurses aide classes."

If someone adopts them, Gumayagay would appreciate a gift card to Wal-Mart, a desk fan and double-bed-sized sheets and a backpack for her son for when he does go to school at Waipahu High School.

"I really believe my situation is very challenging," Gumayagay said. "My husband and I, we have dedicated our lives to our son. He is a cute boy. But he is growing a lot and I cannot carry him alone anymore."