History

Sunday, March 26, 2006 9:08 AM CST

Just wanted to let everyone know we are back from the Bahamas and everyone had a blast. The best part about the trip was watching MacKenzie and the girls having a time of their life. I am not going to post all the details of the trip until Chuck and I get all of the pictures organized. We want to make photo/video that will capture all of the highlights of the trip. Ok. I thought about it (two seconds). Here is a sneak preview. Click on view photos to see a few.

Saturday, March 11, 2006 9:59 PM CST

MacKenzie and everyone are doing great.

On March 7th MacKenzie had a CAT scan and on the 8th had a bone marrow aspiration and biopsy, all showing no signs of cancer. MacKenzie had to get new hearing aids last week and seems to be hearing much better. She is now wearing them all day. Please pray that she does not lose any more hearing.

Our latest trip to Disneyland was to celebrate Mallory’s 11th birthday. Once again we had a MAGICAL DAY. Mallory and her friends rode rides while the little girls were swept away by Cinderella. Cinderella and all of the princesses were so excited to see how good MacKenzie looked and felt. We were introduced to Princess Mia by Cinderella. Mia is 2 years old and has stage IV Hepatoblastoma and was at Disneyland on her Make a Wish Trip. Later that evening we ended up at the same spot to watch the parade. We were able to share stories and give each other hope. As we were sharing stories Mia’s mom shared with me that they were also giving Mia Manna Tech products. I still believe this product was a special gift of life from God.

Mackenzie has chosen to go to the Atlantis Hotel on Paradise Island in the Bahamas for her Make A Wish Trip She is counting on having as much fun as Mary-Kate and Ashley did in the movie Holiday in the Sun. We leave right after mid-night on March 20th and will return on the 25th. She and the girls are looking forward to swimming with the dolphins.

Teri

Saturday, March 11, 2006 3:53 PM CST

MacKenzie and everyone are doing great.

On March 7th MacKenzie had a CAT scan and on the 8th had a bone marrow aspiration and biopsy, all showing no signs of cancer. MacKenzie had to get new hearing aids last week and seems to be hearing much better. She is now wearing them all day. Please pray that she does not lose any more hearing.

Our latest trip to Disneyland was to celebrate Mallory’s 11th birthday. Once again we had a MAGICAL DAY. Mallory and her friends road rides while the little girls were swept away by Cinderella. Cinderella and all of the princesses were so excited to see how good MacKenzie looked and felt. We were introduced to Princess Mia by Cinderella. Mia is 2 years old and has stage IV Hepatoblastoma and was at Disneyland on her Make a Wish Trip. Later that evening we ended up at the same spot to watch the parade. We were able to share stories and give each other hope. As we were sharing stories Mia’s mom shared with me that they were also giving Mia Manna Tech products. I still believe this product was a special gift of life from God.

Mackenzie has chosen to go to the Atlantis Hotel on Paradise Island for her Make A Wish Trip She is counting on having as much fun as Mary-Kate and Ashley did in the movie Holiday in the Sun. We leave right after mid-night on March 20th and will return on the 25th. She and the girls are looking forward to swimming with the dolphins.

Teri

Wednesday, January 25, 2006 3:56 PM CST

I bet you all thought I forgot how to update Mackenzie's web page.

So I am going to try to sum up what has been happening the last three months.
First of all MacKenzie is doing GREAT!!!!!!!! She has not had to get any platelets since the first week in Nov. and has not had to have a blood transfusion since the first week of Dec. Most of all every test and scan Mac had in Dec. and Jan. still show she is cancer free.

Some of you may already know we had a great trip to Louisiana. We were there from Dec.7th-the 16th. MacKenzie and all the girls were treated like real princesses. We are so thankful to all who made our trip a true fairy tail.

We are all excited to see MacKenzie full of life and energy. She still loves going to Awana on Mon, Choir on Wed and last Friday she started gymnastics.

Please continue to keep us in your prayers and pray the MacKenzie and our Family continue to blessed with God's Goodness.

Teri

Wednesday, November 23, 2005 6:37 AM CST

CHRISTMAS OPEN HOUSE AT
THE MILLERS

DECEMBER 10, 2005
FROM 1:00 PM - 5:00 PM

We have a lot to celebrate this year!!! MacKenzie is doing GREAT and will be in Bunkie. She would like to see everyone that has been praying for her. Please come by between 1:00 and 5:00 PM to visit and see how cute she looks with her new hair growing back. Teri, Chuck & and the whole Miller gang will be there to celebrate what the Lord has done for us!

Where: Terry & Peggy Miller’s House
804 W. Dr. McConnell Blvd.
Bunkie, LA

If you are sick with any kind of cold, anything that is contagious or if have been exposed to chicken pox please do not come. Please do not bring gifts.

Tuesday, November 1, 2005 11:46 PM CST

MacKenzie's Bone Marrow was rechecked last week and it is still free and clear!!

Our two issues continue to be why does she need blood and platelets so often and when will her kidney function return enough to allow us to start the final phase of her treatment. The Drs have sent off a sample of her bone marrow for study to see if any reasons can be found for the continuing need of blood and/or platelets. We will let you know when we know.

MacKenzie sang in church last week (She was loud and proud!!), and she went trick or treating yesterday. She is enjoying her time at home. She has also gained about 2 lbs in the last 2 weeks.

Last week, Teri and I went to Santa Barbara and MacKenzie/Mallory did not want to go because they would miss choir practice. It was MacKenzie's first night away from both of us in over a year. We were worried and called in frequently to check but she handled it with no problems (Mallory and Madison got lonesome but Mac was a trooper and made sure Nana gave her her medicines on time).

Friends from Arizona and Maine have been to visit recently and MacKenzie has had a wonderful time playing with all her friends. We posted some photos from Disney with her friend Anna and will post more soon as we are going to Disney Thursday with our friends from Maine

The Maier Family
23037 Magnolia Glen Dr
Valencia, CA 91354

Saturday, October 15, 2005 8:41 PM CDT

It's been awhile since we updated so I'll try to bring you all up to speed.

We still have not been able to start the final phase of treatment (13 cis-retinoic acid) because MacKenzie's kidney function remains below 50%. The Dr is currently researching the possible use of a lower dose and/or an alternate drug called Celebrex. Although the retinoic acid is not a chemo drug (i.e. it does not kill cancer cells), it does help keep any remaining tumor cells from being able to regrow.

We are still having to get platelets once a week or so and blood a little less frequently than that. We had hoped to be less dependent on transfusions by this point but it has not worked out that way. SO PLEASE KEEP UP THE DONATIONS OF PLATELETS AND BLOOD for MAcKenzie.

MacKenzie's last cat scans/bone marrow aspirates were about a month ago and were clear. We will be repeating these tests again soon to make sure nothing has started to regrow.

MacKenzie's appetite is returning and she is maintaining her weight right now. We hope she will start gaining soon.

MacKenzie's Fairy God Mother (from Make-A-Wish) visited with her yesterday and MacKenzie told her that her wish was to go on a Disney cruise/Disneyworld trip or to go to Hawaii as an alternate. MAcKenzie was excited and even talked to the lady although she had never met her before (anyone who knows Mac knows what a step that is!!!)

Today we went to Lombardi Ranch and the girls had fun going on a hayride, pony rides, and trying out the corn maze. They painted their pumpkins for Halloween also.

We will try to post again as soon as we know more about what we are going to be doing about this last phase of treatment.

Chuck

MacKenzie Maier
23037 Magnolia Glen Dr
Valencia, CA 91354

Thursday, September 22, 2005 7:28 PM CDT

Hello everyone,

Happy Birthday MacKenzie!!!! On Monday, September 26th Mac will turn 5 years old!!! I can hardly believe that a whole year has gone by. Sometimes it has felt like this year has been an eternity and then sometimes it feels as if only yesterday she turned four. She would love for everyone to send her an e-card at her email address or leave her a message on the guestbook.

MacKenzie and Mallory have started school this year. They both have the same teacher! You guessed it, it is Mom. They are being home schooled this year.

Prayer alert!!! We are asking for everyone to pray for MacKenzie because she is back in the hospital and wants to be able to come home before her birthday on Monday. She has lost a lot of weight since coming home from her long stay in the hospital during her bone marrow transplant. She doesn't have an appetite and is having trouble keeping anything in her stomach when she does try to eat. She has become very weak. The doctor has started her back on the TPN (a nutritional supplement through IV) Pray that the TPN does not affect her kidneys or her liver.

Praise Report
All tests that were run over the last few weeks show that there is no sign of cancer!!! God is good ALL the time!

PRAY PRAY PRAY PRAY PRAY PRAY PRAY PRAY PRAY
1. Specifically that Mac comes home from the hospital before Monday.
2. That she will start eating and that the food stays where it belongs (I think everyone understands what I mean)
3. That the TPN does not affect her kidneys or liver.

Praying and believing in the Healer,
Antoinette (Mac’s aunt)

MacKenzie's email address is dora_bff@yahoo.com

Thursday, September 15, 2005 4:55 PM CDT

MacKenzie continues to recover here at home. We are at the clinic 2-3 times a week to check her blood/platelet levels and kidney function. She seems to have dropped to only needing platelets once a week or so now, and blood even less often than that.

She continues trying to eat but is having a good bit of nausea and has not been able to keep much down. We may put her on some iv nutrition at night? She is at teh clinic right now getting blood and platelets and turning in a 12hr urine collection so that her kidney function can be accessed.

We will be getting her screened for her hearing aids soon. All of her scans and her bone marrow aspiration from last week have come back clear with no sign of tumor. There is one more step in her treatment which will involve taking retinoic acid for six months or, if she cannot take that, perhaps taking Celebrex.

We are slowly trying to get back to a "normal" routine but it is a slow process. We will post again soon. Thank you to all who have prayed for MacKenzie!!

Sunday, August 21, 2005 11:29 AM CDT

WE CAME HOME ON WEDNESDAY!!!!!!

We left the hospital Wednesday afternoon via limo (THANKS AGAIN TO RON STEIN AND EXECUTIVE SEDANS!!!) and have been relaxing at home since. We have had a few incidents of pain and one episode of some blood in the urine. The bleeding medication was available in pill form and so we gave her a few doses of that and the bleeding stopped again.

We are going up to the hospital each day for radiation. This will continue thru next Friday. We got another platelet transfusion on Friday.

We are giving Mac Formula thru her NG tube as well as all her medicines. This makes it SOOOOO much easier to give meds, although we still hope to be rid of it soon. Mac is starting to regain her appetite.

Will post again soon.

Our Address:

23037 Magnolia Glen Dr
Valencia, Ca 91354

MacKenzie has her own e-mail now; dora_bff@yahoo.com

cedwardmaier@yahoo.com
terimaier@comcast.net

Monday, August 15, 2005 0:57 AM CDT

The Drs have gotten the bleeding in MacKenzies bladder to stop after the third surgery on July 30th with the help of Amicor, Nova 7 and Humate-p. These drugs are used to stop bleeding most commonly with hemophiliac patients. On Aug 1st MacKenzie was free from both tubes going into the bladder. MacKenzie is off two out of three of the drugs and hopefully by the end of the week (Aug 14th) she will be off of the third. The 1st attempt to ween her off the amicar on Thursday was not successful. They tried it again on Friday doing things a little differently and so far it is working. Fingers crossed we will never see blood in her urine ever again.

Saturday Aug 6th they had to put a NG tube in Mac nose. The reason for putting the NG tube was to be able to give Mac enough medicine to relieve her from having belly pains due to being constipated. I hated to tell her another tube would have to be placed and this one in her nose. Now that the NG tube is in we will now give Mac nutrition through it until she starts eating on her on.

Just when you think things are going to start getting better Sunday Aug. 7th we got another scare. Mac began retaining fluid. The Drs ordered a chest x-ray which showed fluid in her lungs and her heart looked a little enlarged. With the help of lasix, decreasing fluid volume and stopping one of the meds they were using to stop the bleeding in the bladder they were able to get a handle on things. The repeat x-ray on Monday Aug 8th and an echo showed that everything was fine. The olny thing is MacKenzie blood pressure is not under control. The Dr have her on two BP meds and she is still having BP of 140/90-100 two to three times a day.

We started radiation treatment Thursday Aug 11th. Mac will have 12 treatments. I hope that all 12 will go as good as the first two went.

We are starting to see the light at the end of the tunnel. Hopefully we will be home by the end of this week. Looking back on every thing I am amazed how well Mackenzie has done. The promise of hope and everyone making the best out of bad situation has help to keep Mac smiling most of the time.

MacKenzie has decided she wants to be picked up in a limo to go home. I don't know where that came from but all I know is that she will be going home in one. Thanks to Executive Transportation.

Chuck, Madison, Mallory and Maw Maw Kay celebrated National Gymnastics Day at Anti Gravity. Anti Gravity had open gym, exciting exhibitions and a special cartwheel-a-thon to help raise awarness about childhood cancer. Half of all of the proceeds taken in were donated to MacKenzie. Mallory was so excited, tired and dizzy after she completed 55 cartwheels in a row without stopping. Thanks to all who sponsored her. A special thanks to everyone at Anti Gravity.

Sometime I can't help wondering why anyone has to face troubles especially troubles that are so out of their control. As I sat one night watching Mac sleeping I opened by bible to read and God answered me in 2 Corinthians 1:3-7
Praise be to the God and the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves have received from God. For just as the sufferings of Christ flow over into our lives, so also through Christ our comfort overflows. If we are distressed, it is for your comfort and salvation; if we are comforted, it is for your comfort, which produces in you patient endurance of the same sufferings we suffer. And our hope for you is firm, because we know that just as you share in our sufferings, so also you share in our comfort.

After reading this I once again began to see the bigger picture God has in store for our family. If Mackenzie was never diagnosed with cancer we would have never been able to relate too or be able to help other families facing the same challenges of watching your most prized gift from God fight for their life. So now each day I remind my self not to get overwhelmed but to allow God to comfort us and remind us that every trial we endure will help us comfort others who are suffering similar trouble

Thanks to all for blessing our family
Teri

23037 Magnolia Glen Dr
Valencia, Ca 91354

Thursday, August 4, 2005 9:37 PM CDT

The bleeding has gotten much better. We are now using NOVOSEVEN, AMICAR, and DDAVP. We are still not 100% free of blood and small clots but at least the catheter and drainage tubes have been removed allowing Mackenzie to move around more easily. mackenzie is having to use the bathroom about once per hour right now which can get hectic at night but at least 90% of the urines are clear.

Mackenzie's blood pressure has been running high and we now have her on IV Enalapril to keep that in check. She has also been experiencing a lot of nausea which may be from the AMICAR, the fact that we are weaning her off the Morphine drip, the chemo after effects, or some combination of those. Even with round the clock Zofran she has still had some breakthrough vomiting. Everytime she vomits her bladder starts bleeding again.

We are hoping that perhaps she may get to go home in a week or so if these drugs continue to work. This will be wonderful as she has been in this hospital room for nearly two months now except for the few times we had to go down for surgery (not exactly a fun outing!!!).

We will start radiation treatment on Monday. She will receive twelve doses of radiation to the original tumor site over twelve days. If we go home then we will continue the remaining doses on an outpatient basis.

MacKenzie's spirits are still remarkably upbeat considering everything that has happened but we sincerely hope and pray that this ordeal is over soon so she can come home and recover.

The Anti-Gravity Gymnastics open house iand benefit for MacKenzie is this Saturday. Mallory will be participating in the Cart-Wheel-a-Thon which is raising money for MacKenzie.

Our mailing address is:
23037 Magnolia Glen Dr
Valencia, CA 91354

cedwardmaier@yahoo.com
terimaier@comcast.net

Friday, July 22, 2005 4:48 PM CDT

The bladder bleeding has gotten better although we still have some occasional problems. It seems to be more of a situation where mackenzie strains while using the bathroom or throwing up and the bleeding restarts, or sometimes after she has been standing up and moving around a lot. The bleeding usually stops again pretty soon unless her platelets are low.

MacKenzie got chills and a high fever two nights ago and her picc line grew out a bacteria. The infection is in her bloodstream and we are treating it with antibiotics. This means at least another 1-2 weeks in the hospital. Everyone is starting to get a little stir crazy after already having been cooped up in here for 5 weeks, but we continue to take it one day at a time with hopes that this could be the last prolonged hopsital stay of MacKenzie's treatment as everything else is done on an outpatient basis.

Anti-Gravity sports complex (www.antigravitysports.com) in Valencia is hosting a celebration to honor National Gymnastics Day on August 6, 2005 from 1:30-4:30 pm. They are donating part of the proceeds to MacKenzie to help her win her fight against cancer. MacKenzie's older sister Mallory will be participating in the cartwheel-a-thon. Mallory needs people to pledge money either on a per cartwheel basis or just a set amount. If you or anyone you know would like to help please email us at cedwardmaier@yahoo.com or terimaier@comcast.net. In addition to the cartwheel-a-thon there will also be open gym time and team exhibitions. Please help support this wonderful and generous business as they celebrate their day and try to help MacKenzie.

Still no date on the Santa Clarita Home Health Golf Tournament or the Sherrif's dept events but if you are interested please email me and I will keep you informed.

A special thanks to the members from Grace Baptist Church who came over recently and helped me move furniture and put down new flooring throughout our entire home. I simply could not have done it without you!! God Bless each of you and your families!

Our address:

23037 Magnolia Glen Dr
Valencia, CA 91354

Sunday, July 17, 2005 6:29 PM CDT

MacKenzie had to go back Friday night for another surgery to remove clotting from her bladder. She has been getting flushed with 1% Alum to try and stop the bleeding. We are not sure if we have had any luck with this or not but over the last 24 hours she has had a hard time tolerating the Alum. If the Alum doesn't work and the bleeding doesn't stop on its on, the next step is to use a formaldehyde solution. This can have side effects later in her life though and we would rather not have to resort to it. Also, her urine tested positive for BK virus but the drug used to treat that is so harsh on the kidneys that we don't want to risk it if possible.

Right now her urine is clear with saline running at 1 liter per hour but we don't know if it will maintain once we slow it down. Please pray for MacKenzie because she is really getting restless as she has now been in here for over 4 weeks. Everything else in the BMT has gone well and her white counts are good. We would already have gone home but for this Hemorrhagic Cystitis.

A reminder that in our area two businesses are planning events to help MacKenzie. Santa Clarita Home Health is hosting a Golf Tournament soon, and The Anti-Gravity Sports Complex is donating part of its proceeds from events planned for National Gymnastics Week at the beginning of August. Please support these businesses and/or these events if you can. The Los Angeles County Sheriffs Dept also wants to get involved but no specifics yet on how or when.

MacKenzie's mail address is:

23037 Magnolia Glen Dr
Valencia, CA 91354

and she has an account at Washington Mutual at the corner of Citrus and Valencia Blvd for anyone wishing to donate there.

Will post again as things change and time permits

terimaier@comcast.net
cedwardmaier@yahoo.com

Monday, July 11, 2005 1:30 PM CDT

Since our last update we have had a set back. MacKenzie's Hemorrhagic Cystitis got worse and last Thursday they discovered a clot the size of your fist in her bladder. We had emergency surgery Thursday night and they removed the clot. They also placed a tube in her bladder so we can irrigate through her catheter and have it drain out this other tube. We have been flushing her bladder since the surgery. The goal is to continue flushing unitl her bladder quits bleeding. So far we have been able to reduce the rate to about 1500 mls per hour before we start to see any blood show up. Hopefully over the next few hours/days the bleeding will stop and we will be able to remove the catheters.

Unfortunately, there really is no effective treatment for this other than keeping her hydrated and letting the body heal itself.

Once we get the bleeding to stop it will take a few days to wean MacKenzie off the morphine before she can go home (assuming no other complications arise in the meantime). As of now, MacKenzie is scheduled to start 2 weeks of radiation on July 21. Of course, that is dependent on how her bladder heals.

For those of you who live in our area, two places are planning events to benefit MacKenzie. Santa Clarita Home Health is planning a golf tournament for the end of July and The Anti-Gravity Sports Complex will be holding events the first week of August to coincide with National Gymnastics Week. Also, the Los Angeles County Sheriffs Dept is involved in helping MacKenzie as well.
If you can support these events and/or these organizations it would be most appreciated.

Our address for cards, letters, smiley faces, etc... is;

23037 Magnolia Glen Dr
Valencia, CA 91354

Our email is:

terimaier@comcast.net
cedwardmaier@yahoo.com

There is an account open at the Washington Mutual bank on Citrus (by city hall at the corner of Valencia/Citrus) in macKenzie's name for anyone who wishes to donate.

Also, for those back in Louisiana there is an account open at Concordia bank in Monterey, &/or catahoula bank in Jonesville.

We are grateful for all who have donated, sent cards and letters, prayed for MacKenzie, and taken the time to sign this guestbook. We have been so fortunate so far in that this is the first real problem that MacKenzie has had since she started her chemo. WE HOPE IT'S THE LAST ALSO !!!!!!!!!!!

Chuck

Tuesday, July 5, 2005 9:47 PM CDT

Today is day 15. Good news MacKenzie's white blood count keeps climbing. It ia now at 2.01. Since Thursday MacKenzie has had no fever and because the wbc is up the Drs have taken her off all antibiotics.

This is all great news and we would probablly would have gone home Friday, BUT Mackenzie has developed a condition called hemorrhage cystitis. The cystitis started out very mild Sat. and each day has gotten worse. HC is irritation of the bladder which causes frequent, painful, bloody urination. MacKenzie has to go to the potty every 40 min to an hour. this makes it hard to get a good night sleep. The Drs have had to up her morphing a couple of times and now it seems like the pain is under control. They are wanting to keep her platelet and hemoglobin a little higher than they normally would because of the bleeding. Since everybody heals differently we do not know how long it will take for Mac's bladder to heal.

After MacKenzie took her bath today she seems to be feeling better because she wanted to dress herself and then wanted to put stickers in her card scrapbook. She even let me film her a little on the camcorder. Hopeful this means that the HC is starting to get better.

Since the last update MacKenzie has had to have four platelet transfusions. Thanks donor # 0136909, 0137025, 0137026 and 0137026

MacKenzie needs me. Got to go.

Teri

Friday, July 1, 2005 2:16 AM CDT

We are now at Day +10 and it looks like the worst is behind us. Sorry I am not one who likes to write about bad days. That is probably why I have not updated the in a while. Mackenzie's white blood count has started to go up YEA!! Yesterday they were .14 and today they are .19. Over the last four days MacKenzie has spiked a fever of 104 in the evening and so far tonight she has not. Hopeful she will not have any more fevers. The good news is that so far the fever is not being caused by an infection in her body because the blood or urine cultures are negative. So please pray that MacKenzie's body continues to stays free of infection.

Since the last update Mackenzie has had two platelet and two blood transfusions. Thanks donor #0136801 and #0136798 Mac got your platelets and thanks to donor #0136714 for the blood.

We are so thankful for God giving us the strength to get threw each day. Since MacKenzie was diagnosed any time she felt like she couldn't do what was being asked of her she would ask me to pray for God to give her strength and after we prayed I would quote Philippians 4:13 and have her say it back to me I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.

Teri

MacKenzie Maier
23037 Magnolia Glen Dr
Valencai CA 91354

Saturday, June 25, 2005 7:35 PM CDT

We are at day 5 and are doing OK. These next several days are extremely scary as they are the time when most side effects occur if they occur at all. So far, MacKenzie has had very little in the way of sores in her mouth and throat and is still able to take oral medicine crushed up and put in yogurt. In addition to needing platelets (donor #0136719/A) she got yours on 6/24) and blood (donor #0136714-A she got yours on 6/24) almost daily, she has needed albumin as well. Albumin is important in helping to prevent a serious side effect called Veno-Occlusive Disease (VOD). The Dr. has assured us that all kids need albumin transfusions during BMT and that so far there are no signs of MacKenzie developing this problem. Even so, we ask that you pray for MacKenzie to be kept safe from any cmplications such as this during her BMT. MacKenzie has only had fever a few times and so far nothing has grown out in any of her cultures.

We should expect to see MacKenzie's condition improve starting around Day 12-14 and her counts should start rising then also. That will be great because then we won't have to wear masks in the room and she will be able to have visitors.

We are thankful to all of you for your continued prayers, thoughts, smiley faces, care packages, and other support. Most of all, we are thankful to God for carrying MacKenzie through this ordeal and for keeping us sane as well.

Mackenzie is in good spirits considering what she has been through and is still going through and that is in no small part due to the love that has been shared by all who have given cards, pictures, money, etc... Mail time is still the highlight of her day!!!

MacKenzie Maier
"Miles of Smiles"
23037 Magnolia Glen Dr
Valencia, CA 91354

terimaier@comcast.net
cedwardmaier@yahoo.com

Wednesday, June 22, 2005 5:22 PM CDT

Monday was considered day 0 because that was the day of the stem cell transplant which went great. This day represents new hope and life for MacKenzie. From now on we will recognize June 20th as Mac’s second birthday. It took one hour. They started at 9:50 Monday morning and finished at 10:50. Mackenzie slept through most of it. She woke up when she began to get a bad taste in her mouth. If she was tasting what we were smelling I can’t imagine what that was like. I was quick to give her some starburts and that seemed to help.

Yesterday day +1 as expected her counts have dropped to 0. Her platelet count was 10 so she was given platelets. Thanks to direct donor #0136585 she got your platelets. MacKenzie has started to have some pain in her belly and they started her on a morphine drip about 9:00. Once the pain was controlled, she slept until 1:00. She woke up in a good mood and wanted to take a bath. After her one hour bath she watched a movie and then took another nap. During the evening she started running fever. They now have put Mac on antibiotics just in case there is an infection some where. The Drs. and nurses say this in all normal and reassuring that the chemo has done its job.

Day +2 starting off about the same. MacKenzie needs more platelets. Thanks donor #0136687 she is getting yours. It is 10:30 and she is still asleep. We are praying for a great day.

It is so great having the smiles on the walls. Everyday Mac picks out her new favorite. The smiles on the wall definitely brighten each day for us and gives us comfort knowing that so many people are praying. MacKenzie still likes getting smiles. As long as we open the mail out side her room we can bring what is inside it to her.

Continue to keep us in your prayers. If you have time please post a note on her page. MacKenzie loves for me to read them to her.

Teri

MacKenzie Maier
23037 Magnolia Glen
Valencia, Ca. 91354

cedwardmaier@yahoo.com
terimaier@comcast.net

Saturday, June 18, 2005 8:00 PM CDT

We are at Transplant Day -2. The high dose chemo finished up on Friday afternoon and MacKenzie made it through with very few problems. She is now resting and waiting for Monday which will be transplant day.

MacKenzie's urine has tested positive for bacteria and so she is starting IV antibiotics this evening. She is also getting a blood transfusion as her Hemoglobin is low. Her white counts and platelets are falling but have not bottomed out yet.

I will post some photos of MacKenzie's room so that everyone can see all the smiley faces. It looks awesome to see her room filled with so many peoples thoughts and prayers. Everyone of the drs and nurses have commented on what an awesome room MacKenzie has with all her smiles.

After the transplant Monday we will begin the waiting process for her body to begin making new blood cells and we will be treating any infections, mouth sores, etc... and trying to keep her comfortable and entertained

MacKenzie will need blood and platelets every day (sometimes more than once a day) until her body starts making these cells again so if anyone wants to go by Children's and donate blood or platelets that would be wonderful. Platelets only last for about 4 days once given so hopefully everyone doesn't go on the same day :-) MacKenzie is O for you potential blood donors but with platelets blood type doesn't matter. If you give, please be sure and specify that you want your donation to go to MacKenzie. Also, you would need an appointment to give platelets as that process takes a couple of hours.

We will post again soon

Chuck & Teri

Anyone wishing to decorate a smiley face and send it along to macKenzie, you can mail your donations/pictures to:

MacKenzie Maier
23037 Magnolia Glen Dr
Valencia, CA 91354

cedwardmaier@yahoo.com
terimaier@comcast.net

Monday, May 30, 2005 9:24 PM CDT

Sorry I have not updated in a while. MacKenzie had five days of out patient chemo.(May 16th-20th) We had to be at the hospital by 8 am which meant we had to leave the house by 6:30 and we would not get back home until about 4:30. This made for long days but MacKenzie did not seem to mind because she was so glad to get to go home and sleep in her own bed. Mac did O.K. with the chemo, she got sick the first day and the last day and a few times since.

Sunday May 22nd Mac spiked a fever of 102.9. We went to the ER and was admitted into the hospital because her white count had already dropped to almost nothing. The doctors said that she had an ear infection in the left ear and they were also checking for bacteria in her central line. We were so thankful that no bacteria showed up in any of the cultures. While she was in the hospital she had to have one blood transfusion and platelets twice. She was able to come home Friday, but will have to take antibiotics for the next 14 days.

MacKenzie was so excited yesterday because she got to ride to the airport to pick up her Aunt Antoinette and her cousin Lauren. They have had a blast today. We went to the park and had a picnic and played on the play ground. It has been a great day.

Starting Wednesday we will be back and fourth to the hospital having all the test run to see if bone marrow transplant will be possible. If it is not MacKenzie will have five more rounds of out patient chemo. We continue to pray for God to be in control and give the doctors and us the guidance to do what is best for MacKenzie.

Miles if Smiles is greater that we have ever imagined it would be. Thanks to everyone for making it work!

With lots of Love
Teri

Sunday, May 15, 2005 11:31 PM CDT

Since our last update MacKenzie had her central line removed. So for the last two weeks she has been having lots of fun. She has gone swimming, taken extra long baths and she has been able to play with her sisters and friends without having to worry about her line getting pulled out or getting wet.

MacKenzie and Mallory had a magical day at Disney Land on Thursday. Cinderella and Susie one of the mice road the carrousel with them and then paraded them through out the park to visit with all the other princess. It was as if they were the only two kids tin the park. Words or pictures can not even begin to describe how excited the girls were. It was like we were in a fairy tale dream.

Tommorow May 16th MacKenzie will have another central line surgically placed in order to continue with treatment. For now she will start a new series of chemo therapy to see how my liver and kidneys will react. The doctors will re-evaluate her case after one or two rounds to see if she will continue with the alternate chemo, which will be a total of six rounds or move forward with the bone marrow transplant. In either case she will also need 2 weeks of radiation followed by six months of taking chemo orally at home. As you can see, she still has a long, hard road to travel before beating this cancer. Everyone please continue to keep MacKenzie in your prayers. We are praying for God to continue to guide us down the correct path that will completely heal her body so the cancer will never return.

Please also pray for us tomorrow that all goes well with surgery and also for our emotionally and physical strength because we now have to get back into the routine of the daily up keep with Mac's central line and side the effects from chemo and possible having to hook her up to fluids at night which means waking up several times during the night. It has been so nice the last two weeks to go straight to be and not have to do anything but wake up the next morning.

Thanks to all for making MILES OF SMILES work. MacKenzie loves opening the mail to see all the smiles. Some of you have been very creative and she loves it. Thanks for making MacKenzie smile and for helping Chuck and I with finical support.

A special thank you for Maw-Maw Kay, Sheriff Randy Maxwell and all who helped with the lunch benefit to raise money
for MacKenzie. We heard is was a great success and it was one the best benefits the Sheriff has sponsored.

Also another special thanks to our church for always being right by our side and taking care of or needs. We are grateful to be apart of church with such Godly people.

I will try to keep you all updated.

Teri

Thursday, April 28, 2005 1:35 PM CDT

It's been awhile since we updated so I have a lot of information to post.

We entered the hospital last tuesday (4/18/05) to start the bone marrow transplant but MacKenzie's liver enzyme tests came back outside the normal range and so we were sent back home and we will retest on 5/11/05. Everyone seems to think the abnormal results are most likely due to her having been on TPN for the last two months and so we have stopped that to see if the counts return to normal. If her counts continue to be high then she will not be able to do the transplant and will start the alternate therapy which consists of more chemo using different drugs.

We got a call from the hospital yesterday (4/27/05) that a bacteria showed up in the last culture taken from Mac's central line, so she was admitted last night in order to start Vancomycin therapy. She will have to stay in the hospital until we get at least three cultures back with negative results.

The "Miles of Smiles" fundraiser is underway and the responses so far are wonderful. Everyone is so supportive and for that we are eternally grateful!!

We will post again after the liver enzyme re-test unless something comes up before then

Chuck

23037 Magnolia Glen Dr
Valencia, CA 91354

cedwardmaier@yahoo.com
terimaier@comcast.net

Sunday, April 3, 2005 11:46 PM CDT

MacKenzie spiked a fever March 24th and has been in the hospital since. The doctors determined that the fever was due to a urinary tract infection and because her white counts have not recovered from her last chemo she has not been able to go home.

Since we were in the hospital we were able to complete almost all of the Bone Marrow Transplant Work-up.(CAT Scan GFR Scan, Hearing test, EKG, Ultra sound of the kidneys and MIBG scan) This was great so now we do not have to drive back everyday this week to get it done. All that is left to do is the MIBG scan.

We got a little bit of bad news from the hearing and GFR test. The hearing test showed moderate hearing loss in the higher pitch sounds and they want to fit her for hearing aids. The GFR scan showed the kidney function to be about 65 Both of these side effects are very common with one of the chemo drugs MacKenzie had to have. They say that the decreased kidney function is usually reversible but the hearing loss is not.

MacKenzie was a little upset she was not at home for Easter but we made the best of it. I posted pictures of the girl having an Easter egg hunt and tea party in the hospital gardens.

Please say a special prayer that Mac’s counts come up soon because we are both ready to go home.

Thanks for all the prayers and support
Teri

Tuesday, March 22, 2005 11:22 PM CST

MacKenzie has just finished her sixth and final round of induction chemotherapy. She is home and doing well. All tests have come back with no signs of cancer remaining.

In about 4 weeks, MAcKenzie will undergo her bone marrow transplant and will have to be hospitalized for about 3-5 weeks. This is a very intense process requiring her to be in isolation with no ability to roam the halls and go to the play room as she usually does. In addition, she will be limited in the number of visitors she can have at any one time. We have been trying to come up with ways to help her (and us!!!) cope with this stressful event and to help cover some of the expenses that insurance does not cover. We have come up with an idea called "miles of smiles", a fundraiser to sell smiley faces for $1.00 each that people can then decorate and send back to MacKenzie to hang up in her room during the hospital stay. If anyone would like to help us sell these at their church, school, etc..., let us know and we will send you an envelope full of the cut outs, photos of Mac, and other info pertaining to her journey. We think this would be a great way for everyone to bring joy to MacKenzie and help cover some expenses (such as allowing her dad to take some time off work so he can be with her and the rest of the family during this time) for only a small donation.

We think this idea will work well based on MacKenzie's delight at all the postcards and other mail she has been receiving over these past few months. The mailman's visit has become the highlight of her day!!

We are so thankful to everyone thus far for all your prayers, cards, gifts, words of encouragement, and other acts of kindness. God has truly blessed us by bringing so many wonderful people into our lives and by answering our many prayers for MacKenzie's well being. Anyone wishing to send postcards to MacKenzie or Samples of foreign currency to Mallory can continue to do so at the following address:

23037 Magnolia Glen Dr
Valencia, Ca 91354

Check back frequently during this hospital stay as the web page will be a daily activity journal for MacKenzie,

MacKenzie's Family

Monday, February 28, 2005 9:27 AM CST

Hello Everyone,

MacKenzie came through round five chemo with flying colors!!! She was able to get out of the hospital just in time to see her big sis, Mallory, sing her first solo in church. They were really cutting it close. By the way Mallory did a great job!! (according to Mac)

We have GREAT NEWS!!!! MacKenzie had the bone scan done last week and the doctor DID NOT find any cancer on her bones!!!!! God is so faithful and true to His WORD. Thanks to everyone who has been faithful in praying for MacKenzie!!!

Next week, on March 2nd MacKenzie will have a CAT scan done to check the original site of the tumor. We are expecting and believing in another miracle! We will post next week to let everyone know the results. Continue to pray for complete healing and thank God for all the healing that has already been done! Also, please pray that Mac’s blood count continues to go up. If all the counts are where they need to be then she will began her 6th and final round of chemo on March 3rd! Can you believe that we are almost finished with chemo? !!!!!!!

Thank you Edith for sending Pastor Kerry Wood’s CD of scriptures on healing. MacKenzie goes to sleep every night listening to Pastor Kerry reading scriptures related to healing. Her little spirit is receiving the powerful spoken word of God through these scriptures. God’s word has healing power and that’s what we want for MacKenzie. As soon as she gets all snuggled in bed she asks her mom to turn on her “healing cd.” When Mallory was feeling sick with the flu MacKenzie ask her sister to come lay down in bed with her so she could listen to the “healing cd.” Even a four year old knows the power of God’s word being spoken out loud!

Mallory and Madison, both have been sick with the flu. Papa got there just in time to help Nanna take care of them. They are both doing great now. The most amazing thing is that MacKenzie did not get the flu. Our prayers were answered AGAIN!

Mac continues to amaze us with her sweet, beautiful, little giving spirit. When she is in the hospital she loves to make other children smile by giving them little gifts and visiting with them. I can hardly reach them by phone in their room because she is so busy visiting everyone. It’s like a big reunion the first day she goes back to the hospital because she has to go see EVERYONE when she gets there.

Along with amazing us with her giving spirit is the fact that she has regained her strength! She is running, jumping (off the sofa or the bed scaring Nanna to death) and turning summersaults! Yes, you heard me correctly, SUMMERSAULTS!!!!

About two weeks ago Teri took all the girls and one of Mallory’s friends to the beach. (against my better judgment) Teri used a Ziploc bag to seal Mac’s port so that no sand could get in it. They all had a blast and the fresh air and sunshine did MacKenzie a world of good. She had so much fun. Because I put up such a fuss about them taking her to the beach, they played a HUGE joke on me. They buried Mallory in the sand up to her neck and then Teri cropped off Mallory’s head and put MacKenzie’s head in the picture so that it looked like they had buried MacKenzie in the sand ( I might add that it took Teri an hour to figure out how to do that little trick). Then the real fun (for them ) began when they emailed me the pictures and made me look at them while on the phone with them. Boy, did they get a reaction from me (exactly what they had expected) and everyone got a huge laugh! You can take a look at that picture in the “view photos” section. Then please send them a message that it was not a very nice thing to do to “poor old TonTon.”

God is so awesome! It has been so amazing watching him perform one miracle after the next. We know the reason behind God showing us so much love, compassion, and miracles is because of all the prayers that have gone up on MacKenzie’s behalf. We can never began to thank everyone enough for that!!!

We are also grateful for Mannarelief Ministers for their prayers and for sending MacKenzie the highest quality nutritional products that she needs so that her body can fight this disease to its fullest. We have seen amazing results with these products!! One of the latest results is after adding the antioxidant (Ambrotose AO) she did not get any more mouth sores!

There is no way that we could get through this journey to recovery without everyone’s prayers, cards, phone calls, and visits. Thank you again for praying!

MacKenzie can’t wait for the mailman each day. It is the highlight of her day to get cards and postcards from all over the world. I wish everyone could see her face when she goes to the mailbox and pulls out her cards. Her eyes are dancing and her face has the biggest smile on it and then she turns around and says “look Mommy at all my cards.”

Mallory’s birthday is coming up on March 17th. It would be great for her to receive some birthday cards. This has been extremely hard on her to watch her little sister go through so much. It would be great for people to send some encouraging words to her.

23037 Magnolia Glen Dr.

Valencia, CA 91354

Praying and believing in the Healer,

Antoinette (Mac’s aunt)

__________________________________________________

Thursday, February 10, 2005 10:51 PM CST

We are on the second day of treatment for round 5. All tests came back ok in relation to kidney function and so the drs have given the go ahead to continue with the treatments as planned. We are hoping to be out of the hospital by saturday afternoon so we can make it to hear Mallory perform her first solo in church choir saturday night.

MacKenzie continues to be thrilled each day by the mail she receives. We now have post cards from all but 1 or 2 states and we have received cards from several foreign countries including Australia, The Netherlands, England, Finland, and Canada. Thank you all for your genorosity in taking time to send a card and/or a bear or other stuffed animal. In case anyone needs it, our address is:

MacKenzie Maier
23037 Magnolia Glen Dr
Valencia, CA 91354

My oldest daughter Mallory loves old coins and/or foreign currency, and I would be most grateful to anyone willing to send her a note with a coin. She sometimes feels a little left out because little sis is getting all the attention lately. Mallory's birthday is also coming up soon (March 17 i.e. St. Patrick's Day) and I know she would be thrilled to receive a card or note wishing her well as she turns 10.

They will do more body scans after this round to see if all the tumor spots are gone. Keep up the prayers because I know they have helped and although I know we will beat this, we still have a ways to go.

We will post again after this round is over and the scans have been done.

Chuck

Thursday, January 27, 2005 8:53 PM CST

Thanks a million for all the postcards that have been sent. Mackenzie enjoys looking at the beautiful pictures on them. She has had a lot of fun locating the states on her map and keeping up with all the states she has gotten postcards from. It looks like it won’t be long before she fills up her scrapbook. So for she has gotten postcards form all the states except Georgia, Hawaii, Idaho, Kansas, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, South Dakota and Utah. She has also gotten postcards from Australia, England and the Netherlands. She can’t wait for the mailman to come ever day.

MacKenzie’s fifth round of chemo has been delayed until Monday because her hemoglobin and platelet counts were too low. Today she had a blood transfusion so that should take care of the hemoglobin count and the Dr is hoping the platelet count will come up on is own. Also there is question if her kidneys are function correctly because there were some abnormalities that showed up on a test that was done on Tuesday. The test will be repeated tomorrow.

You would never know she was sick. This whole week her energy and activity level has sky rocked. Last Friday we went back to Disney and once again the day was filled with fun. Saturday we went to church and Monday she went to Awana. She has been running all over the house, playing hide-in-seek, dress up and singing with her sisters. The baby is eating it up. You can tell she feels like she has gotten her big sister back.

Thanks again for all the postcards, cards, gifts and prayers. They keep Mac’s spirit up and help her get through all of her treatments and their side effects.

Please pray for MacKenzie counts to go up and for the next test results to show improvement in the kidney function in order to keep her treatment plan on track. Also pray that God will continue to fill our hearts with joy. "Do not grieve, for the joy of the Lord is your strength." (Nehemiah 8:10)

Lots of Love,

Teri

23037 Magnolia Glen Dr
Valencia, Ca 91354

Thursday, January 27, 2005 8:53 PM CST

Thursday, January 27, 2005 8:28 PM CST

Thanks a million for all the postcards that have been sent. Mackenzie enjoys looking at the beautiful pictures on them. She has had a lot of fun locating the states on her map and keeping up with all the states she has gotten postcards from. It looks like it won’t be long before she fills up her scrapbook. So for she has gotten postcards form all the states except Georgia, Hawaii, Idaho, Kansas, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, South Dakota and Utah. She has also gotten postcards from Australia, England and the Netherlands. She can’t wait for the mailman to come ever day.

MacKenzie’s fifth round of chemo has been delayed until Monday because her hemoglobin and platelet counts were too low. Today she had a blood transfusion so that should take care of the hemoglobin count and the Dr is hoping the platelet count will come up on is own. Also there is question if her kidneys are function correctly because there were some abnormalities that showed up on a test that was done on Tuesday. The test will be repeated tomorrow.
You would never know she was sick. This whole week her energy and activity level has sky rocketed. Last Friday we went back to Disney and once again the day was filled with fun. Saturday we went to church and Monday she went to Awana. She has been running all over the house, playing hide-in-seek, dress up and singing with her sisters. The baby is eating it up. You can tell she feels like she has gotten her big sister back.

Thanks again for all the postcards, cards, gifts and prayers. They keep Mac’s spirit up and help her get through all of her treatments and their side effects.

Please pray for MacKenzie counts to go up and for the next test results to show improvement in the kidney function in order to keep her treatment plan on track. Also pray that God will continue to fill our hearts with joy.
"Do not grieve, for the joy of the Lord is your strength."(Nehemiah 8:10)

Lots of Love,

Teri

23037 Magnolia Glen Dr
Valencia, Ca 91354

Thursday, January 13, 2005 1:36 PM CST

MacKenzie is home and finished with round 4. We have started TPN (total parental nutrition) in order to try and get some of her weight loss back before the bone marrow transplant. She continues to be a trooper about everything and is taking her medicine pretty well (we had to give her regular tablet/capsules instead of liquids as she prefers to swallow those with some drinkable yogurt)

She continues to have one or two bouts of nausea each day but it's amazing the things you get used too and we have just sort of learned to treat this as a part of our day.

Thank you to all who have donated blood and platelets as MacKenzie has needed one or both after each round so far. Anyone wishing to go to Children's Hospital and donate in MAcKenzie's name can contact us for the phone number to make an appointment and for MacKenzie's case number.

MacKenzie's new quest is to see if she can get a postcard from all 50 states and as many foreign countries as possible so she can create a scrapbook of them. Anyone who is able to send a postcard, please mail it to 23037 Magnolia Glen Drive in Valencia California 91354.

After this next round of chemo we will do bone scans and pet scans again to see if there are any tumor spots left. Keep us in your thoughts and prayers that they are unable to find anything. Even if that is the case, we will still continue treatments but it would still be wonderful news to hear.

Chuck

Wednesday, December 29, 2004 11:55 PM CST

Sorry it has been so long since we posted an update but we have been enjoying our time at home with MacKenzie!!! She continues to do well and we are all filled with joy and thankful for all your tremendous support. SHe started the stem cell collection process today in preparation for the bone marrow transplant which will probably be in Feb or March after round six of chemo. She continues to have a few bouts with the nausea and thus her appetite as well, but overall she is doing good. We will return to the hospital tomorrow to do another stem cell collection and round 4 of chemo will start next week.

To those who have donated blood and/or platelets, thank you soo much for your kindness. Anyone wishing to donate can contact us via email or phone (661)430-9444 and we can give you the phone number for appointments as well as MacKenzie's case number so she gets credit for your donation.

MacKenzie's high point of the day continues to be opening her mail so thanks again to those who have sent cards and gifts. Anyone who wishes to send a card can mail it to 23037 MAgnolia Glen Drive Valencia CA 91354.

We will update the site again next week after round 4 starts unless something comes up between now and then. Check out the christmas photos I just uploaded as well.

Chuck

Wednesday, December 15, 2004 9:39 AM CST

MAcKenzie's bone marrow aspirate came back free of tumor. We are so excited as it appears as though the chemo is working even better than expected. MAcKenzie has been in a very good mood since hearing this news and is eating like a "pig". She has a christmas party tomorrow at the hospital and is looking forward to that.

This round of chemo is using a different combination of drugs and is supposedly the most emetic of any of the combinations used. So far we have only had one bout of nausea but it is still early in the course. Keep up the thoughts and prayers as we know they have been heard and wil continue to be heard.

If all goes well MacKenzie will finish this round on saturday night and maybe come home on Sunday. The worst part is that her white cell counts will likely hit bottom around Christmas eve thus making her most vulnerable to an infection (i.e. a return trip to the hospital) right around Christmas day. But we will continue to pray that God will watch over her and keep her here at home during that most wonderful time of the year.

Anyone wishing to donate blood or platelets in MacKenzie's name just give us a call or an email and we will give you MacKenzie's case number and the phone number to call for an appointment.

Chuck

23037 MAgnolia Glen Dr
Valencia, CA 91354
661-430-9444
cmaier@piercelaw.edu

Sunday, December 12, 2004 0:41 AM CST

MacKenzie will return to the hospital on Monday 12/13/04 to start round 3 of the chemo. They will also be doing a bone marrow aspirate to see if it is clear of tumor yet. Hopefully, the stem cell harvest will occur the week after christmas if all goes as planned.

MacKEnzie has been home for over a week now and is doing great. She is eating alot and playing up a storm. We went back to disneyland last Thursday to see the christmas decorations and had a wonderful time. We will try and post some pictures soon.

We will update again as the week progresses but keep up the thoughts and prayers as we have no doubt that they are helpful beyond what words can express.

Anyone wishing to send a card or letter to MAcKenzie (or Mallory so she doesn't get too jeolous :-) ) please use the following address;

23037 Magnolia Glen Drive
Valencia, CA 91354

Also, anyone interested in donating blood or platelets in MacKenzie's name can call children's hospital at 323-660-2450 and make an appointment with the blood center.

Chuck

Friday, December 3, 2004 2:55 PM CST

MacKenzie has been in the hospital since the Friday after Thanksgiving. She began running fever that night and had return to the hospital. In the last week and a half she has received three blood transfusions and one platelet transfusion. Her blood count is starting to come up ever so slowly. Day before yesterday, she felt well enough to go to the playroom and visit her friend Brittiana. Brittiana can always cheer her up! Thanks, Brittiana, for being such a good friend!

As of 7:00 PM last night, December 2nd, MacKenzie was able to come home!!! The doctors were unable to do the stem cell harvest as planned this week because her white blood count was too low. Please pray that her white blood count continues to go up. Please pray that after her next round of chemo that her white blood count will be at the right number so that the doctors will be able to do the stem cell harvest. The third round of chemo that was scheduled for Wednesday the 8th has been postponed due to an infection that has required her to be on antibiotics. The new date is scheduled for December 13th. Also, please pray that she not have any more nausea because she has had a rough time of it with the last round of chemo, and the next round of chemo will be even stronger than the others.

Thank you for ALL the prayers, cards and packages that arrive daily! MacKenzie loves opening up her mail!

A HUGE thanks to everyone that will be going this Saturday to give blood at Children’s Hospital in MacKenzie’s name!!!! Words cannot express our appreciation for your kindness and concern.

Praying and believing in the Healer,
Antoinette

MacKenzie Maier
23037 Magnolia Glen Drive
Valencia, CA 91354

Thursday, November 25, 2004 0:18 AM CST

Round two of chemo was over on Sunday and MacKenzie has been home since then. She had to return Tuesday for some blood because her Hemoglobin was low but otherwise the only problem has been some nausea. We are all looking forward to spending Thanksgiving together and we cannot even begin to list the things and people we are thankful for. Thank you to everyone for your thoughts and prayers and please keep them up.

We return to the hospital in about two weeks to do the first stem cell harvest and begin round three unless something puts us back there earlier. We will put up some pictures from Thanksgiving later in the week.

Chuck

Thursday, November 18, 2004 6:41 PM CST

Hello Everyone,

MacKenzie had a great time at home the past five days!! Her appetite has been great and Teri has been able to get her to take her nutritional supplements! (I owe her a lot of dollars she says, a little bit of bribery doesn't hurt) They put up the Christmas tree and she even has a tree in her bed room. Before MacKenzie got sick, she used to call me three to four times a day. Teri showed her which number on the speed dial was mine and that was it. All throughout the day she would call us just to see what we were doing and to tell us what was going on at her house. Since she has been sick she doesn't want to talk on the phone which has been really hard for Lauren and I because we were so use to her calling. Tuseday she ask Nanna to dial our number so she could talk to us. She talk to Lauren and I for about 45 minutes. She told me that she had to get Nan to dial the number because she doesn't know our number anymore but that she knew our number when she lived in New Hampshire but not any more since she moved to California.(yes that is a run on sentence, but if you know MacKenzie all that was said without taking one breath!) Words can not begin to explain the joy Lauren and I felt Tuesday afternoon to hear her voice so strong and happy! She has played, ate, sang songs, talked on the telephone, went to church on Monday night, and enjoyed being at home with her family! She has a strong will and that twinkle is still in her eyes!!! I can't wait to get my arms around her and give her a big huge this Saturday! Lauren and I will be flying out this weekend and staying to help out until December 19th.

The doctor put in a new port yesterday and every thing went great during surgery. She is back in the hospital for her second round of chemo which started last night around midnight and will continue until Saturday at midnight. She was a little nauseated this morning but this afternoon has felt well enough to play. Pray that all goes well and that this hospital stay is a short one!!

Your prayers are so greatly appreciated!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

"One can put a thousand to flight and two can put ten thousand to flight" Deuteronomy 32:30. It doesn't take a mathematical genius to see how powerful our prayers can be for MacKenzie when we join together and cry out to God for her healing! The Bible says, If two of you agree on earth concerning anything that they ask, it will be done for them by My father in heaven" Matthew 18:19

We will not give up and remain even more committed to prayer than ever before for MacKenzie's complete healing. Our part in this battle is to pray. God's part is to fight the battle for us!

Thank you again for all your prayers, support, cards, and encouraging words that are sent to her on her website guest book. Keep them coming because they are so uplifting and precious to us. It's so encouraging to log on the her website and read all the messages!

Praying and believing in the Healer,
Antoinette Miller Acosta (Mac's aunt)

Friday, November 12, 2004 8:48 PM CST

Good News! MacKenzie got to come home today. We got home around 2pm and have been putting up our christmas tree (who knows where we will be the weekend after thanksgiving which is when we usually do it). So far she is fever free and enjoying herself. She seems to be accepting her hair loss pretty well and even joked today that she would have to wear a hat when outside so she doesn't get a sunburn on it (which is what her dad has to do also but the difference is hers will grow back)! MAcKenzie has also been making friends with some of the other kids at the hospital and seems to be in a much better frame of mind concerning her illness. (MacKenzie says, "Hi Brittiana"!!)

Thank you all for your prayers, thoughts of kindness, and cards/gifts. A very special thank you to "our brothers and sisters in christ" for your gift (words are inadequate to convey our deepest appreciation for your extreme kindness. We will never forget).

The next round of chemo begins wednesday but for now we are just enjoying our down time. We will post again if anything changes.

Chuck

Tuesday, November 9, 2004 9:57 AM CST

Well, the white counts went up a little but MAcKenzie started running fever again and so she was not allowed to leave the hospital. She is starting to lose her hair now and this has upset her alot (and us too). She is not eating and has lost weight. We are contemplating whether or not to put in a feeding tube as we cannot get her to eat. Sorry for the dismal tone but that is where we stand today. Keep praying and if you have any ideas for getting her to eat and/or cope with the hair loss please feel free to share them with me via my email.

Chuck

Sunday, November 7, 2004 8:53 PM CST

MacKenzie's white counts are starting to rise ever so sloooowly!! and it looks like she may get to come home tomorrow (monday). Pray that her counts continue to go up and that she continues to remain fever free. The next round of chemo will start a week from wednesday and she will also have to have her central line replaced at that time due to the earlier snafu of getting her foot caught in it and pulling it part way out.

We are grateful for all your thoughts, prayers, and gifts. We are in as good of a spirit as we can be under the circumstances and we remain confident that MacKenzie will beat this! Without a doubt there are some tough times to come on this path we have been given to follow, but onward we shall tread with heads held high and hope in our hearts!!

Chuck

Wednesday, November 3, 2004 11:19 PM CST

WOW. It is so wonderful to see so many people (some of whom I don't even know) expressing care and concern for MacKenzie. Your thoughts and prayers are much appreciated and needed. MAcKenzie has been fever free today so pray that this trend continues and she may get to come home by the weekend. She has had a few bouts of nausea over the last day or two but I know it could be worse.

MacKenzie has changed rooms (439 I think now?) but if you call, just ask for her by name.

The road ahead is a long one, but as history has taught us, it begins but with a single step. We have made that first step and we will continue to walk forward down this path with faith and hope that when we emerge at the other end we will not only be victorious in our battle but will be stronger and better for having made the trip.

Chuck

Tuesday, November 2, 2004 8:41 AM CST

Thanks for all your thoughts and prayers. Several people have asked for our address so here it is:

23037 Magnolia Glen Drive
Valencia, CA 91354

MacKenzie was still running a fever as of last night and so she remains in the hospital. They have decided not to risk replacing her central line right now since her white count is so low due to the chemo. They inserted a regular IV to use for the antibiotics and we will place the new central line just before the next round of chemo which is in about 2 weeks.

For those who have expressed a desire to help, the only thing I can think of is to send MacKenzie and/or Mallory a card to let them know you are thinking of them. MacKenzie loves getting mail and I think maybe Mallory is starting to feel a little left out and I think it is important that she know people are thinking of her as well.

Thanks again for your prayers and please keep them up.

Chuck

Saturday, October 30, 2004 6:46 PM CDT

Chemo Cycle 1 to treat the neuroblastoma started this past wednesday at midnight and will end tonight at midnight. This normally would mean we go home tomorrow for 2 weeks, but Mac started running a fever last night and it is continueing today so going home tomorrow is not a reality now. She is being given antibiotics.

Also, her foot got caught in her iv lines last night and the tug altered the position of her central line. She will have to go back to surgery probably monday to remove this line and place a new one. If all goes well with that and with the fever issue we should go home Tues or Wed.

The game plan is to do 6 of these 3/4 day cycles of chemo with a stem cell harest taking place at some point during this time. After the sixth cycle she will then be admitted to the hospital for some very high dose chemo (which wil ldestroy her bone marrow) followed by transplant of her previously harvested stem cells to regrow her marrow. After this, she will get spot radiation and then tkae some oral drugs. The whole process takes about 12 months.

We will try and post to this journal as often as we can. We will also try and put in some photos from time to time. I will upload some disneyland photos (from last tuesday) maybe tonight or tomorrow.

Saturday, October 30, 2004 5:17 PM CDT

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