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Saturday, December 31, 2005 9:30 PM EST
Day 586
We are looking forward to being in a new year with everyone healthy. We have all had a super lazy day. Best wishes for the new year to all our prayer warriors and please continue to keep praying for all of us. This past year has had many challenges but so many blessings. Our God is providing all our needs and growing our family up and growing is closer.
May God Bless You
Friday, December 30, 2005 10:00 PM EST
Day 585
Mac had a good day today. He is feeling good and still eating well. He is coughing but his lungs sounded clear yesterday. Mac, Tori, and I roasted marshmallows on Mac's Smore's Maker or the Roaster as he calls it. He loved it. Pray for a 15 year old from Bosnia who has a tumor on her breast. She was diagnosed yesterday. We talked to the family and told them we would pray for her and the family. Check out Damon Noll's site. He had his last treatment. God is good.
May God Bless
Ashlie
Thursday, December 29, 2005 10:42 PM EST
Day 584
We have had a very good day at the Dr. office. Mac's counts were still in range so there will be no need at this point to increase his chemo. This is a major blessing because the chemo increase always affects his eating. We had a safe trip and a good visit. We are truely blessed.
May God Bless You
Wednesday, December 28, 2005 11:18 PM EST
Day 583
We started the day off with a little rabbit hunting. I took Mac for his first time to run the dogs and he did a super job. Th weather sure was not great but we still had a good time. I think he will go again just because of the dogs. We go back tomorrow for another check up.
May God Bless You
Tuesday, December 27, 2005 10:23 PM EST
Day 582
We have had a great day today. Mac took advantage of the sunshine and played outside for awhile today. Mac, Tori, and Olivia all played together today. We received one of the best Christmas presents today. Mama Duck came to visit. We have missed her so much. It was so good to see her. Her back is doing much better. Egleston misses her too.
May God Bless
Monday, December 26, 2005 9:46 PM EST
Day 581
We had a much slower paced day today. It was good to see everyone but it is also nice to be at home. Mac and Tori have played all day today. It seems that they are still finding toys that they got yesterday.
May God Bless You
Sunday, December 25, 2005 9:52 PM EST
Day 580
What a day! Mac and Tori got way too many blessings. Mac could not believe that Santa brought him a bike and Tori has cooked several meals on her kitchen. We are all tired but have had a wonderful Christmas. Our families have been very generous. We hope everyone has had a Merry Christmas. Thanks for calling us Mama Duck.
May God Bless
Sunday, December 25, 2005 1:20 AM EST
Day 579
It has been a long night but Santa finally got his stuff delivered and put together. We wish a Merry Christmas to all and thank everyone that has helped us get to this time of the year and this point in Mac and Tori's life. We love all of you!!!!!!
May God Bless You
Friday, December 23, 2005 10:47 PM EST
Day 578
Mac received a letter from Santa today. It made his day. He is becoming the best little helper around the house. He tries to fold the clothes and clean up. If we could just direct this energy to his room it would be wonderful. Right now he is wired and still up. I am not sure why! At times he is like that little bunny rabbit on TV. He just keeps going, going, and going.
May God Bless You
Thursday, December 22, 2005 10:07 PM EST
Day 577
I am starting to hear the bells of Santa's sleigh and Christmas is getting close. This is a wonderful time of the year and one that is truely appreciated when you can live Christmas through the eyes of your children. Both Mac and Tori are getting excited. I cannot wait until Christmas morning!
May God Bless You
Wednesday, December 21, 2005 10:10 PM EST
Day 576
We had a fantastic night tonight. We loaded up the van and went to Lake Lanier Islands to see the Christmas lights. Everyone had a wonderful time. Tori was fascinated by the lights. We went to court this morning about Monica and the judge ordered that we still have temporary custody for another 6 months so Monica will stay at the Winshape home. Please begin to pray for the meeting in May. Before long the court will have to decide where her permanent home will be. We are praying that all 4 of the oldest children will stay at Winshape and have a chance at a future.
May God Bless You
Tuesday, December 20, 2005 10:02 PM EST
Day 575
Mac has a fun filled day today playing with his cousins while dad worked on the wood pile. At times he gets emotional but I think this is just the age and not the medicine but at the same time he has been through so much. He is such a fun little boy with a lot of life. We thank God for all the blessings of our life.
May God Bless You
Monday, December 19, 2005 10:10 PM EST
Day 574
Another good day has gone down in the books. I think Macc is going to help me cut wood tomorrow. It ought to be a fun day. Tori still has rash so we are still waiting for it to go away.
May God Bless You
Sunday, December 18, 2005 11:07 PM EST
Day 573
All is well in the house with the exception that Tori has a rash on her chest that is slowly moving to her legs. We are not sure what is causing it so she will probably see the doctor tomorrow. Mac has had a good day and is still feeling great.
May God Bless You
Saturday, December 17, 2005 10:39 PM EST
Day 572
The weather has been a little chilly today but it has been a good day for a lot of playing. I wish I could say the hunting was as good but that is another story. Monica came today for her visit. She looked really good and extremely happy. She spent several hours with us. Over the course of the time we learned a lot about her days and were able to give her Christmas presents to her. It seems like she is very happy in her new home. We miss her a lot but it was reassuring to see her so happy. Mac had a good time playing with Monica but he understands that she has another home and was OK with her leaving. Monica was actually ready to get back to her home. We can see that she is being well taking care of and we thank the organization that is help her and her brothers. We had a little family time tonight by roasting marshmallows in the fireplace and watching the Polar Express. Everyone enjoyed the evening. There is no better time than the time spent with you family.
May God Bless You
Friday, December 16, 2005 10:36 PM EST
Day 571
With the crazy weather and the trip to Atlanta is has been a long day. Both of the kids had their naps messed up so tonight was a little rough. Our trip to Egleston went smoothly as far as safety was concern with the roads. That was a blessing for sure. They said that everything was looking great. We were not able to see the breathing doctor but Dr. Broines said everything was sounding super. As far as the stool cultures are concerned they are still not showing any infection. (Another blessing) It appears that the Methotrexate that Mac takes on Fridays is causing the problem. As long as it does not get any worse they are not planning on doing anything. If Mac takes any medicine to coat his stomach it will interfere with the absorption of the Methotrexate. All in all it has been a really good day and a good start to the Christmas Holidays. Did I say Christmas and not Happy Holidays? I guess I know the truth about the season and have seen the blessings of God. No Holiday Tree can account for the blessings in my family’s life. Only the blood of Christ and the total power of God and accomplish the blessings that we have seen.
May God Bless You
Thursday, December 15, 2005 10:21 PM EST
Day 569/570
Sorry! The kids us played out last night and neither of us completed the journal. Mac is doing super! We go tomorrow for another checkup. The are still watching his breathing but it is not 100% but he is still playing well with no complaints.
May God Bless You
Wednesday, December 14, 2005 9:43 PM EST
Day 568
Today was Mac's Christmas party at school. Gigi went to the party with him and said everything was great. There was also lots of parties at church. Mac's class will be singing tomorrow night. We have bribed Mac with money if he will actually sing when he stands on the stage. He had his picture made with Santa again last night, but of course Tori wouldn't. He continues to feel great and we are glad to report Pawpaw had a much better day today. We are so looking forward to Christmas break.
May God Bless
Ashlie
Tuesday, December 13, 2005 9:55 PM EST
Day 567
We have heard from the stool sample and the results are all negative. This has us puzzled but for the itme being we take our blessings and thank our God for taking care of Mac. We may never know what is causing these symptoms but we just continue to pray that God's hand of mercy will stay on Mac. Everyone is doing well and getting ready for the Christmas Break.
May God Bless You
Monday, December 12, 2005 9:40 PM EST
Day 566
Mac had a wonderful day at school. He continues to be wide open as one of the girls in his class said to Grandmother and Grandley on Friday. Anna did hear some wheezing on the left side, I'm sure she will keep a close eye on things for us. Gigi and the gang are coming to read a story to my class tomorrow. I can't wait. We only have 4 more days until Christmas break. Please send up lots of prayers for our friend Jeremy. Pray for a miracle to find the way to his body and family.
May God Bless
Ashlie
Sunday, December 11, 2005 10:59 PM EST
Day 564
Even with the strong winds today Mac has had another good day. We had to take a stool sample over to the Dr. Office again. It appears that Mac is having some mucus in his stool every Saturday so this time they are going to complete a full check on it. We are not sure what is causing it but he is still feeling fine. I have changed the pictures so please check them out. I am having trouble getting the hunting pictures on the site for some reason. I will keep working on it.
May God Bless You
Saturday, December 10, 2005 9:52 PM EST
Day 563
It has been a busy for fun day. We have had two parties to go to and Mac and Tori enjoyed both of them. PaPa’s work place SKF had their annually Christmas Family Day at Chuckies Pizza and then Mac had a Sunday School Christmas party. Both were a success. Thank you to SKF for allowing PaPa’s grandson to come to the party. He had a wonderful time. Thank you Jennifer for making the Sunday School party a success. It has been a great day and we thank God for all of his blessings. Please continue to pray for PawPaw. He is having a real hard time with his treatments.
May God Bless You
Friday, December 9, 2005 9:00 PM EST
Day 562
Another wonderful day has come and gone. Mac had a great day at preschool today. One of the girls in his class told that teacher that Mac was really going all out. Kids can be so cute and caring. We had a birthday party to attend tonight. Mac cousin Beau had a party and everyone had a superb time. Mac tried his had at skating. He was doing pretty well and of course he had to do it himself. Later during the party he was running all around with a football in his hand. Oh the future images that were running in my head. (Thank you Copelan and Jordan for helping take care of Tori) She is a mess in her on way.
May God Bless You
Thursday, December 8, 2005 8:04 PM EST
Day 561
Today has been a cold day but the kids always warm the hearts. We rode to Buford tonight to do some shopping and as Ashlie said, "That is an adventure". WE are trying to get them in bed on time tonight. We will see how we do. Mac is feeling great and enjoying each day.
May God Bless You
Wednesday, December 7, 2005 10:08 PM EST
Day 559/560
Sorry the journal got missed last night. Mac has done great at school and church. Tonight at church him and Bryson were tackling each other. Mac was yelling, "Attack!!" It was so funny. I don't know if I have mentioned that Mac is going to be an astronaut when he grows up. Tonight he said he might be an artist. I love it. Tori has been a pistol tonight, she has been showing that sweet attitude. She was counting back to her father when he was giving her the 1,2,3 warning. Mac and Tori will be getting their picture made tomorrow. It will be an adventure.
May God Bless
Ashlie
Monday, December 5, 2005 9:40 PM EST
Day 558
Mac had a great day today. Grandley took him on a field trip today. They went to INK for story time. They had a wonderful time. He is doing great. I am praying for well children for Christmas. Mac has a new job, or at least he thinks he does. He thinks he has to help put Tori to sleep. He sings songs and tells her stories. He is such a big brother.
Sunday, December 4, 2005 10:21 PM EST
Day 557
Mac has had another good day! We all finally got back to church today and that is always a blessing. He is still playing well so the medicine seems to be helping his breathing. I had hope to update the pictures this weekend but it has been a busy two days. I have several hunting pictures to share so please be looking for them soon.
May God Bless You
Saturday, December 3, 2005 11:23 PM EST
Day 556
Today has been very good. Mac has felt well all day and even made it without a nap. Tori is still a little stuffy but she has also had a prety good one. Unless things change over night we should see everyone tomorrow at church.
May God Bless You
Friday, December 2, 2005 10:53 PM EST
Day 555
Mac had a great day at school. Ms. Kari said he ran a lot. He has had lots of energy. Tonight was the first night back on our regular dose of chemo. I pray it doesn't make him sick. We all helped Johnan and Abby unpack tonight, well as much as a 4 year old and 19 month old can help. We are proud to have them a little closer.
May God Bless
Ashlie
Thursday, December 1, 2005 10:18 PM EST
Day 554
Mac got a good report today. The team at Egleston thought he sounded much better, thanks to Aunt Anna we already knew that. I think Anna worries more than me sometimes, but it is definitely appreciated. We do not have to go back to Egleston until December 16, unless his breathing gets worse again. Our prayer is that Mac's lung problem will not continue to cause problems long term. If his lungs continue to get stronger than he will not have to have a CT scan. His counts were great, a little too good. So we are moving up to our full dose of chemo. He fell asleep on the way home so we will probably be up for awhile. I'm not sure if we have told you about our new nurse practitioner. We love her. She is so sweet and gentle. Thanks, Ms. Tera. We also heard from Mama Duck tonight. She will possibly be having surgery next week. She has hurt her back. We sure do miss seeing her. It has been awhile.
May God Bless
Ashlie
Wednesday, November 30, 2005 9:47 PM EST
Day 553
Another good day has come and gone. Mac has a good day at preschool today and church tonight. He goes back tomorrow for a checkup at Egleston. His lungs are still sounding good so it looks like the medicine is working well. We will let you know the results of the visit tomorrow.
May God Bless You
Tuesday, November 29, 2005 10:04 PM EST
Day 552
We have some praises tonight. Mac's stool sample came back negative and Aunt Anna says his lungs sound great. Thank you, Lord. Also, cousin Jordan will not have to have surgery for at least 5 months. She will be evaluated again in 5 months. Mac and Tori had a great time playing with their cousins tonight. Mac will be able to go back to school tomorrow just in time for his snack day and show-and-tell. Tori was already feeling better today. It has been a great day.
May God Bless
Ashlie
Monday, November 28, 2005 10:39 PM EST
Day 551
Mac has had a wonderful day today. I'm sure he will be back at school on Wednesday. We start cutting his dose of medication for his lungs down today. He asks, "Is is almost Christmas time?" I think he asks every hour. Tori has a slight ear infection and a cough. She is getting medicine now. Thanks for your prayers and concern.
May God Bless
Ashlie
Sunday, November 27, 2005 10:01 PM EST
Day 550
Like most teachers we start tomorrow anxious to teach the children but like the children we are counting the days down until Christmas Break. We always enjoy spending time with Mac and Tori and this time was no different. Anna says that Mac is sounding much better in regards to his lungs so that is a blessing. We took the stool sample to the Dr. today but it will be about 3-5 days before we will have the results. It seems like we are having nagging problem but the one thing that remains the same it that God is GREAT and he takes care of us.
May God Bless You
Saturday, November 26, 2005 10:14 PM EST
Day 549
The good days of Mac playing keep coming. One note though is that we are afraid that Mac has another GI infection (c-diff) so we will not be able to attend church tomorrow. Tori is all stopped up also so we are going to play it safe for everyone. We really miss is when we do not get to see our brothers and sisters in Christ. Mac is feeling good and is all over the house but we have to have a stool sample done tomorrow. Mac decorated his Christmas (not holiday) Tree tonight. He was the funniest thing. I am afraid that the tree will fall over because of all the ornaments that are on one side of the tree.
May God Bless You
Friday, November 25, 2005 9:36 PM CST
Day 548
Today was a very special day. Mac has felt much better even though our Anna can still hear junk in his chest. The results of the blood test show that his potassium is on the border line low and we did not hear back from Egleston so we will call first thing tomorrow. The special part of today was that Mac went on his first deer hunt. Mac, Papa, and me took to the woods tonight and had a very special time. Mac was a trooper! I have always packed a lot of items to the stand but never have I taken a Game Boy, Juice, Star Wars snacks, blanket, and snow coat. For a 4 year old he did wonderful but it troubled him that after 2 minutes we had not seen a deer. Tonight was for sure a moment in my sons life that I will always remember.
May God Bless You
Thursday, November 24, 2005 10:18 PM EST
Day 547
Mac has had a super day today. He has played the most that he has in a while. The medicine does not appear to be making him fo to the bathroom as much as we wer expecting but he is for sure playing better. Hopefully each day will get better.
May God Bless You
Wednesday, November 23, 2005 9:45 PM EST
Day 546
Today was a long day at Egleston. The other Dr. came and looked at Mac and wanted to try some medicine that releases fluid from the body. We had already deaccessed Mac so we had to do that again. The medicine may have worked a little and we are going to keep trying it over the next 2 weeks. We have to go back next Thursday for another checkup. This Dr. really thinks that a virus has caused Mac to have some lung problems but that time will heal the problem. By getting rid of the extra fluid Mac should be able to breath better. If this does not appear to work over the next week they will do a CT scan but he feels real good that this will work and that there is nothing major wrong. I would like to thank all of our co workers and administration that are being so understanding of our time away from work. The hard part of the treatment is overwith but the little things still have to be delt with. We have been met with nothing but understanding and love so please know that we appreciate you and thank you for making this time easier for us. I hope that everone has a wonderful day tomorrow and be sure and count your blessings. Our life is loaded with them.
May God Bless You
Tuesday, November 22, 2005 10:51 PM EST
Day 545
Mac has had a super day today. He has played well and his cough seemed to be a little better until tonight. It seems that he took it upon himself to go outside with the "big boys and girls" tonight after church. Tomorrow we hope to get some answers about why he is getting short of breath. We will let you know the results of the visit.
May God Bless You
Monday, November 21, 2005 10:12 PM EST
Day 544
Mac has had a good day today. He was a wonderful Pilgrim but I will let Ashlie tell you more about that tomorrow. We have heard from the Dr. and the heart echo that was completed on Friday did not show any signs of trouble. That is a blessing. Please pray that we can determine why Mac is short of breath after very little running. Everything seems to be leading toward asthma but we want to be sure and then treat it accordingly.
May God Bless You
Sunday, November 20, 2005 9:40 PM EST
Day 542
Mac had a pretty good day. He cried easily over little things. His legs seem to be getting stronger. This is good. Mac and I got the giggles late and he could not stop laughing. We got to talk to Monica this morning. She sounded great. She was talking a lot, which usually means she is happy. We will get to spend the day with her soon. We still miss her and Mac has been talking about her a lot.
Day 543
Mac, Tori, and I went to church this morning. David has been a little under the weather today. Mac's legs are doing well, we just need to get a grip on this breathing thing. I hope to hear from Dr. Briones tomorrow. Mac has a big day tomorrow. He is going to be a pilgrim boy and sing at preschool. I have taken off to see him preform. I will let you know how it went. We also made turkey cupcakes for his Thanksgiving feast. Mawmaw made turkey suckers for his class too. He has such great grandparents and great-grandparents.
Pray for:
Mac's breathing
Mac goes to Egleston on Wednesday
Pawpaw gets chemo tomorrow
Anna has a test on Tuesday
May God Bless
Ashlie
Friday, November 18, 2005 9:31 PM EST
Day 541
We had a good visit at the doctor’s office today but we did not really find out the reason that Mac is losing breath. They did a chest x-ray and a heart echo. The results of the x-ray were that his lungs look good. There does not appear to be any fluid on his lungs. We do not know the results of the echo. We should know on Monday. Mac has had a long day and he is fast asleep. Maybe Tori will join him soon. Last night, Mac had two good friends come over to the house to play. Thank you Kayleigh and Megan (I hope I have spelled the names right) for caring so much for my son. Mac loves to play with both of you.
May God Bless You
Thursday, November 17, 2005 9:04 PM CST
Day 540
Mac has had a super day. He appears to be feeling much better. His is playing more and not crying so much when he walks. We think his breathing is much better. We go back to Egleston tomorrow to see what they think and to let them do an ultrasound of his heart. This is just to be careful. The doctor does not think anything is wrong but still pray that everything goes smoothly.
May God Bless You
Wednesday, November 16, 2005 9:52 PM EST
Day 539
Mac went to school again today and did well. His breathing is getting better. We are still doing breathing treatments at least 4 times a day. Anna said she still heard some crackles, but she thought it was better. Olivia came over tonight so her and Mac could do their breathing treatments together. Mac of course was so in charge. Praise- we have actually went to church Sunday and Wednesday.
May God Bless
Ashlie
Tuesday, November 15, 2005 10:09 PM EST
Day 538
Mac and Tori went to visit Olivia at Mountain Lakes. He swam in the pool, which will help strengthen his legs. He continues to be short of breath. His wheezing seems to be better although it is still there. They also got to play with Copelan and Beau tonight, while we went to pay our sorrows to the Hill family. Please pray that God will give them strength in the days to come.
May God Bless
Ashlie
Monday, November 14, 2005 9:19 PM EST
Day 537
It has been a while but dad gets a chance to post an entry. Things have gone pretty well today. Mac had a wonderful time at preschool today and I think that is was also beneficial for him to go and play with the other kids. He is still having a shortness of breath but we are hoping that it will go away soon. Please pray that his breathing will get stronger as each day passes. A big thanks to the wonder people at his preschool. You take such wonderful care of our son.
May God Bless You
PS. Please remember the family of a friend of ours named Jordon. She lost the battle against Leukemia today. She was a friendly face that we often saw when we went to Egleston. They always wanted to know how Mac was doing and we always asked about her. Please remember this family is prayer!
Sunday, November 13, 2005 10:25 PM EST
Day 536
We were all finally able to go to church. Our church had a special prayer time for the children. Our church has been burdened with sick children. We all prayed over our children. Mac has had a little more energy today. It doesn't seem that his hair is falling out as much as before. We are hoping it has stopped. He continues to be out of breath when he walks for any amount of time. He will be going back to school tomorrow. I think this will help get him back on his feet a little more. Thanks for all the prayers, encouragement, and support.
May God Bless
Ashlie
Saturday, November 12, 2005 10:44 PM EST
Day 535
Mac had a pretty good day today. He is still saying that his feet are slow. Ashlie and I are thinking that the Vincristine worked a little harder this time maybe due to the facts that he ran a fever while he was taking it. We were able to get him outside for a little bit today but for the most part of the day he wanted to stay inside and play his GameBoy. Hopefully each day will get a little better.
May God Bless You
Friday, November 11, 2005 9:32 PM EST
Day 534
Mac seems a little bit better today. Dr. Briones did not here any wheezing, so that was good. He has still been short of breath when he exerts himself any whatsoever. Dr. B wants to do a heart ultrasound to make sure all the bases are covered. He said Mac's heart sounds very good, but just to make sure the shortness of breath is not coming from heart complications. Last night Mac pointed out that hair was in his eyes. Mac's hair is falling out. We are praying and hoping that it will just thin some and not fall out completely. This very much bothers me. I hate the hair part. I guess it just makes things a little more real. We asked Dr. B and he said it could come and go after he has the vincristin. Dr. B says Mac should go back to preschool and we should go back to church. So we will give it another shot.
May God Bless
Ashlie
Thursday, November 10, 2005 10:09 PM EST
Day 533
Mac seems to have been a little better today. He still gets out of breath when walks up the stairs or runs. I'm sure it will take awhile to get over this hump. Thank you Ms. Kari for checking on him. I hope he can go back to school soon. We have an Egleston visit tomorrow. Dr. Briones will check to see how he is improving. Tori is going with us tomorrow. So look out Egleston. It should be a short visit.
May God Bless
Ashlie
Wednesday, November 9, 2005 9:58 PM EST
Day 532
Mac went back to the doctor for a recheck. His breathing level was the same, but the doctor said he did not look as distressed. The doctors will check him again on Friday. We go back for an Egleston visit on Friday. Dr. Briones wanted to see him after leaving the hospital. Thanks for all the messages on the guestbook, they encourage us so much. Tori was very ill tonight. I hope she is not getting sicker. We need a clean bill of health.
May God Bless
Ashlie
Tuesday, November 8, 2005 10:06 PM EST
Day 531
Mac was back at the doctor's office today. He is still wheezing and I needed some direction on how to help him. He is now on steriods by mouth and in his breathing treatment. He is already doing breathing treatments every 4 hours. He is getting tired and crying a lot. This gets very old, so please pray that I will handle him better. Tori is as spunky as ever. Keep on praying.
May God Bless You
Ashlie
Monday, November 7, 2005 9:56 PM EST
Day 530
David and I actually got to work today. We are fortunate to have such understanding employers. It has been nice being at home. Please pray for Mac. He is still wheezing alot. We had to call Egleston and will be calling tomorrow. He is getting short of breath. Anna came to listen to him. We will let you know. Please pray for one of Mac's friend Maggie. She is having some tests run and will find out results on Friday.
May God Bless
Ashlie
Monday, November 7, 2005 9:56 PM EST
Day 530
David and I actually got to work today. We are fortunate to have such understanding employers. It has been nice being at home. Please pray for Mac. He is still wheezing alot. We had to call Egleston and will be calling tomorrow. He is getting short of breath. Anna came to listen to him. We will let you know. Please pray for one of Mac's friend Maggie. She is having some tests run and will find out results on Friday.
May God Bless
Ashlie
Sunday, November 6, 2005 10:12 PM EST
Day 529
We are home!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Dorothy had it right when she said “there is no place like home.” Mac’s counts are still critically low but they were good enough to come home and rebuild here. We have to go back on Thursday for a checkup but it should be a quick visit. Being away from home makes you appreciate it more when you come back. I hate having my family apart. It is a blessing that everyone is underneath the same roof tonight. We have to stay close to the house for the next week while his counts come back up and we get rid of this GI infection but please know that your prayers have been answered again and Mac is doing much better. Mamma Duck, we hope you get feeling better soon!
May God Bless You
Saturday, November 5, 2005 9:25 PM EST
Day 527/528
Sorry for not getting the site posted last night but they were working on it. The results from the Bone Marrow test were negative for any signs of Leukemia. We are still waiting for the “official” computer analysis of the marrow but Dr. Briones says that everything looks fine under the microscope. Praise be to God for this wonderful news. Right now we are playing the numbers game with his counts. His WBC is slowly going up but it was not high enough to go home today. We are praying that tomorrow will bring a going home party. We have been at Egleston for 7 days tomorrow. It has been a long week. We thank our family and friends at work and home that have helped cover classes and help us with Tori. It takes a lot of people to help a family that has a child with Leukemia and you are all loved. I am heading back to Egleston tomorrow and will spend the night if necessary but please pray that we can come home tomorrow. Mac is feeling fine and we have been able to take him to the garden to get him out of the room. After a week the walls start to close in on you. He is such a trooper about this visit. At times he gets anxious but for the most part he is wonderful and taking the stay in stride.
May God Bless You
Thursday, November 3, 2005 9:54 PM EST
Day 526
Tonight entry comes with many questions for tomorrow. Mac's counts are not coming up fast. They came up very little today but there was some bright spots in the numbers. Please pray for his counts! My prayer for the night is that the counts have jumped so much over the course of this day that we will not have to do the bone marrow test tomorrow. God has been faithful in answering our prayers. Please pray with us.
May God Bless You
Thursday, November 3, 2005 7:44 AM EST
Day 525
November 2, 2005
I'm sorry I didn't do the journal last night. I did not get home until late. I was going to do it this morning, but I overslept. Oops! Mac did not have a good day. He slept 90% of the day. He did pep up last night and played games. Grandmother and Granley brought him puppies that look like Trixie and Deva. Anna brought him an Operation game,fingerpaint, and coloring stuff. Thank goodness he did not cry when I left last night. I am going to stay tonight. He is still running a low grade temp. Please pray for counts to come up and the fever to go away. Dr. Briones will do another bone marrow test on Friday if counts are not going up. Pray, Pray, Pray!!!! Thanks to all who have visited or taken care of Tori. We love you all.
May God Bless
Ashlie
Tuesday, November 1, 2005 9:35 PM EST
Day 525
Mac has had a good day today at the hospital. The discoverd that he had a virus of some sort in his GI tract and began to treat him for that. This is not a major problem and the medicine should take care of it. The only real big thing about it is that he cannot go to the play room. His counts have not started to really go back up so I am unsure if he will get to come home tomorrow. Please pray for his health and that he will come home soon. Dad and son had a wonderful time last night at the hospital. It was extra special to spend the time together.
May God Bless You
Monday, October 31, 2005 10:38 PM EST
Day 524
Well, we are back in the hospital. Mac started running a low grade temperature this morning about 5:30. We took him to Egleston to be checked out and his counts have bottomed again. The doctor likes for his ANC to be b/w 500 and 1500, Mac's was 90 today. They did several tests to make sure everything was okay. His chemistries came back with electrolytes high, but the Egleston team is checking again because they feel this is not right. Once again we missed out on the Harmony Hall HallowHim. We hope everyone had a good time. Mac and Tori went trick-or-treating at the hospital. They got some cute prizes and were together. I came home tonight, which was a big step for me. I am always with Mac at the hospital. So please pray that God would give me peace. It is very hard. I feel the need to be with Tori and Mac both. This is the part that is not fair. But as our family has seen lately life is rarely fair. I guess you could say my circumstances are blinding me. Just when you think your life is bad, someone else is having an even harder time. A family we talk to alot got bad news today. There daughter relapsed. Please pray for God's healing touch and strength.
I did check on Monica today. Her and her brothers are doing well. They have played together alot the last two days. Amy said they were doing very well.
Jordan, my neice, will go for scans at Egleston tomorrow for her surgery. Pray for her please.
May God Bless
Ashlie
Sunday, October 30, 2005 9:56 PM EST
Day 523
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I think this means he loves you all.
Mac
Mac did not have a good morning, but by nighttime he was much better. We have went back to a whole resperidal at night. He will go back to school for a regular day. He is sitting in my lap singing his ABC's while I do the journal. He is being a big helper. I am going to email Amy, the house mom, tonight. We are anxious to hear from Monica. It has been very different at our house. It will take a lot of time. It was hard not having her at church with us. She had grown so much in her spiritual life. She was always reading her bible. What an inspiration. I was touched this morning by the serman. It was on how we let circumstances, people, and worries take our joy. This has definitely been me lately. I know God is in control of every aspect of our lives. I'm sure he would like for me to quite bringing him the same requests. He has worked so many things out for our family. He is truely awesome.
Saturday, October 29, 2005 7:35 PM EST
Day 522
Well Mac has had the most difficult day today. He woke up in a very up and down mood. He did go to a birthday party thanks to Abby and Johnan. He did pretty good there. He was also in decadron mode tonight. He went to spend the night with Abby and Johnan. You might want to say a prayer for them. I think a piece of us left our home tonight. We took Monica to Athens today. She will be in a wonderful place with Christian parents. Please pray for her and us. We will still be in contact with her and will let you know how she is doing. Tori is as spunky as ever.
May God Bless
Ashlie
Friday, October 28, 2005 10:48 PM EST
Day 521
Mac went to school today. This is the first time since decadron. They were having a fall festival. Gigi went with him. They had loads of fun, while Tori was seeing how much she could get away with Grandmother and Grandley. Mac and Mawmaw made chocolate suckers for his pre-school class. Actually, Mawmaw and I made most of them. Well please pray for us tomorrow. We will say goodbye to Monica. She has been a blessing to us all and we love her dearly. We hope and pray to keep in touch. I know God has a special plan for her life. It has been 9 months since her and the brothers have been together. This will be good for her.
May God Bless
Ashlie
Friday, October 28, 2005 6:26 AM EST
Day 520
This is coming a little late because we had a he did, she did moment and it ended up being neither of us did the journal. Mac had a pretty good day yesterday. He is still having his moments where his emotions get the best of him but he is doing much better. Monica has her last day at East Hall today. We wish her the best of luck!
May God Bless You
Wednesday, October 26, 2005 8:53 PM EST
Day 519
Mac has had a pretty good day. We did not let him go to school today because he was a little edgy last night. We had a wonderful time on the hay ride. Thanks Drew for opening the doors of your family's business to children. I think they all had a wonderful time. It was very cold but father and son had a super time. As Ashlie said, Mac loved the boiled peanuts. Now that we are off the Decadron we now start the coming off period. This will usually take around 7 days before you can see a big change. Thank you for all of your prayers.
May God Bless You
Monday, October 24, 2005 8:25 PM EST
Day 518
Mac has had better days than today. Mac and David did have a good time at Jaemor despite the wind. I will let David share with you later. Mac's favorite part was the boiled peanuts. We have one more dose of decadron. Thank the Lord!! This afternoon and tonight was getting worse fast. He said he was tired of being patient. We will go tomorrow for vincristin and his monthly antibiotic. He is already dreading the access so please pray for him. He said tonight that it hurts and Pawpaw agrees. Pawpaw did good today. They gave him several types of chemo. Thanks for all your prayers.
May God Bless
Sunday, October 23, 2005 9:27 PM EST
Day 517
Mac has done fairly well as far as not being ill or hateful toward people. He has been very sad and depressed looking on this decadron journey. He only has 4 more doses of decadron. Please pray for his bowel movements. He is not constipated, some of his bm's have been bloody with mucus. We called Dr. Briones. If he has another one we will send in a stool sample to have it checked. He has been playing well. Mac and David are going on a field trip tomorrow. I'm sure they will tell you all about it. Please pray for Pawpaw, he will get his first round of chemo tomorrow. Mac, Tori, and Monica all carved a pumpkin. They did a great job.
May God Bless
Saturday, October 22, 2005 11:17 PM EST
Day 516
We have had a pretty good day today. Mac has been all over the place playing. The Decadron beast still shows its ugle head at times and we do what we can to stop this from happening. We try to think ahead and have things planned out for Mac. The name of the game during this time is survial. It is very sad to see our little boy so bent out of shape. He is usually a very happy child but when he is own this drug, you can see it in his eyes that his nerves are on edge.
May God Bless You
Friday, October 21, 2005 10:43 PM EST
Day 515
Mac did not go to school today. We were very unsure of sending him because of the decadron. Mac and David will be going on the field trip Monday. I hope it doesn't rain, so they can go. We have some sad yet exciting news. Monica will be leaving our home next Saturday. It is sad for us because we are losing part of our family. Monica and three of her brothers are going to live at Winshape home in Athens. We will still be able to have contact with her, thank goodness. This is a wonderful experience for her. She will be in a Christian based home and will also be with her biological family. She will be missed deeply and will always be in our hearts. We had a going away party for her tonight. Thanks to all who came to say good-bye and for all the thoughtful gifts. Mac has had a pretty good day. The whole resperidal seems to be helping. Pawpaw did great with getting his port in.
May God Bless
Thursday, October 20, 2005 9:50 PM EST
Day 514
Mac has had a better day. You can still see his ever changing emotions, but today was a better day than yesterday. Please pray for Pawpaw, he will get his port tomorrow. Mac and Pawpaw will have a lot to talk about. Thanks for your prayers,
May God Bless
Wednesday, October 19, 2005 7:49 PM CDT
Day 513
Mac has had a rough day at times due to the Decadron. It appears that his temper has got shorter and has had trouble dealing with Tori at times. After a little bit of time he is OK and playing again. His emotions are on a roller coaster ride. Please pray that this will change and that he will be his fun loving self.
May God Bless You
Tuesday, October 18, 2005 9:24 PM EST
Day 512
The trip to Egleston went smootyly today. Mac was blessed with a good access and LP procedure. We start the Decadron Beast tonight so please be in prayers that the side effects of major mood swings will not take hold on him. We will take this drug twice a day for 7 days. We have had a wonderful time off but I guess all good things have to end so we must go back to work tomorrow. It is hard to go back when you have had so much time with your children.
May God Bless You
Monday, October 17, 2005 :54 PM ESt
Day 511
It has been a good day being at home with the kids. We are praying for a speedy trip to Egleston tomorrow and a quick return. We are beginning another Decadron (steroid) and Vincristine (heavy chemo) cycle tomorrow. These are always tricky and play heavy on Mac's moods. Please pray that God will grant him peace through this cycle. Pray that the sedation goes well on the Lumbar Puncture.
May God Bless You
Sunday, October 16, 2005 9:46 PM EST
Day 510
We are back home. We had a relaxing time at Lake Oconee. Mac especially loved the bunk beds. Mac and Monica went fishing several times. They only caught one fish, but lots of stumps and logs. Monica tried casting out and ultimately had one leg in the lake. Saturday night we went to Southern Manor Farm. We went on a hayride. Tori and Mac loved this because they got to feed the cows treats. We also went through the 10 acre corn maze. Yes, all five of us. It was extremely nice to get away from the business of home. Monica had a youth function tonight so we all went to Fairy Queen (that is what Mac calls it). We got so tickled at Mac and Tori eating mine and David's blizzard. Let's just say David and I lost out. Please pray for the following:
* Mac has a LP on Tuesday.
* Pawpaw will get his port this week and start chemo next week. Please pray for his pain.
* Anna had a biopsy on Friday. Please pray for her pain.
PRAISES!!
*** Olivia has her bandages off.
*** A relaxing family time at the Lake.
Friday, October 14, 2005 4:30 PM EST
Day 509
We are getting things ready for the trip to the lake. We are all ready. You know we need to get away when my wife is looking forward to going to The Mall. I will have to tell you the story later. We will not be at a computer tomorrow night so please check back on Sunday night for updates on the weekend.
May God Bless You
Thursday, October 13, 2005 10:10 PM EST
Day 508
The weekend is about her and we are making preparations to head off to the lake and enjoy the tranquility of Lake Oconee. It has been a long time since we have been there and I think Tori has never seen the lake so it will be fun to get away for a few days and forget about work (which is very hard to do) and focus all our energy on each other. We will be able to do a lot of fishing and sleeping while we are there. I am sure that we will have to see the cows and probably a few ducks. I hope that everyone enjoys their weekend with their family.
May God Bless You
Wednesday, October 12, 2005 8:04 PM EST
Day 507
The weekend is almost here. We have a long one planned with lots of fun and relaxation. We did get our new breathing machine today. Thanks to the friends that let us borrow theirs. We will try and keep this one out of the drive way. Mac has had a good day. I am waiting for them to get back home from church. As we speak I think I hear them coming. Mac is always excited after church and you can hear him from a mile away.
May God Bless You
Tuesday, October 11, 2005 9:25 PM EST
Day 506
Today we celebrated Pawpaw's 70th birthday. Mac had to blow up balloons for his party. Mac was excited about Pawpaw's birthday. I ran over the breathing treatment machine this morning. It did not start my morning off to well. Needless to say we are getting a new one. We will be borrowing one until the new one comes in. An update on Olivia, it looks as if she is not going to have to have surgery. Tori did bite her two times today, which I was not happy about. Sorry, Olivia. Anna goes to the doctor Thursday and Pawpaw goes to see the oncologist this week. Thank you for all of your prayer support. The key verse this morning in my bible study was cast all your burdens on Me. I will hang on to that.
May God Bless
Monday, October 10, 2005 9:30 PM EST
Day 505
Today has been a good day for everyone. Mac is still feeling well and playing all the time. He sure has personality and the vocabulary to match it. As I type he is taking another breathing treatment to prevent us from getting any worse. Hopefully after that he will be ready for bed. Today was his snack day at school. He took his Game Boy for show and tell. I guess we warned him a thousand times that the teachers would not let him play it in class.
May God Bless You
Sunday, October 9, 2005 10:21 PM EST
Day 504
Well we did go to church. Mac did not throw-up anymore, so we felt certain that it was car sickness. We had a wonderful time of prayer at church tonight. We are expecting God to answer our prayers. Mac has had a good day. He is back on Zyrtec and breathing treatments. His cough is sounding worse. We hope this preventive treatment will put us ahead. Thanks for all your prayers and please keep them up. Harmony Hall thanks once again for rallying around our family.
May God Bless
Saturday, October 8, 2005 10:05 PM EST
Day 503
It has been a busy day but a good one. Monica had to meet some new people that will have a positive impact on her life. Mac and Tori had a great time in the mountains. They slept together last night and seemed to do well. On the way home Mac threw-up his supper. He got home and took a bath and then wanted a snack. We are really praying that it was car sickness and not the stomach virus that is going around. This will put us out of church for another Sunday but it is better to be safe and not run the risk of exposing other children to the virus. I hope that everyone has a wonderful time worshipping the Risen Savior.
May God Bless You
Friday, October 7, 2005 9:54 PM EST
Day 502
It was good to know that today was Friday. Everyday is special because the lord has created it but this has been a hard week at school and around the house. Mac is feeling wonderful and his counts are looking good. His ANC is holding in the 800’s so that is still looking good. Tonight Mac and Tori are at Mountain Lakes spending the night. I know they will have a fabulous time. The camper will probably not be the same after they leave. Best wishes to all. Please pray for Monica tomorrow. She has a busy day.
May God Bless You
Thursday, October 6, 2005 9:40 PM EST
Day 501
Mac and David had a wonderful day today inspite of the rain. David and Mac were going on a field trip to the Apple Farm, but it rained them out. They went to INK. While they were there, someone from a television channel came and taped a story. So, we will let you know when you might could see them on t.v. He is doing well. He will have counts done tomorrow after school. Prayerfully, these will be in the range needed. Please pray for the requests last night. Thank you. Just to add a little bit, me and Mac had a super time. Fathers should take the day off and spend it with their children. It would be wonderful if companies made it possible for the parents to take one day off a month to take the children and spend the day with them. I think we would not see so many troubled children and families would be stronger.
May God Bless
Wednesday, October 5, 2005 9:46 PM EST
Day 500
Mac has had another good day. He has managed to dodge the stomach virus. I hope this keeps up. Tori on the other hand did not. She threw up all morning. Please continue to pray for several things:
Mac- his counts and remission
Tori- stomach virus
Olivia- burnt her hand and will be going to a plastic surgeon on Friday, that her hand will not get infected
Jordan- will meet with a doctor about her surgery
Pawpaw- biopsy was today, he is still in pain
Anna- will be going to see a rheumatologist, pain
Our families are precious to us. We need your prayers.
May God Bless
Tuesday, October 4, 2005 9:16 PM EST
Day 499
Mac has done very well today. He ate very good at Gigi's at lunch. We were all in the Collins Family Band tonight. He decided for us to all choose an instrument and march like a band. It was fun. Please remember Pawpaw tomorrow because he goes for a biopsy. Our dear friend Jeremy will be taking chemo once a week. Please pray for him and his family.
May God Bless
Monday, October 3, 2005 9:23 PM EST
Day 498
Mac was back at school today. He was glad to be with his teachers and friends. He slept in his own bed all night long. This is an accomplishment. I told him if he slept in his bed for a while we would get him a set of bunk beds. (David once again thought I had lost it.) He has started off in there tonight. Thanks to the Lunsfords for donating to Caringbridge in Malachi's honor. We love you all.
May God Bless
Sunday, October 2, 2005 8:19 PM CDT
Day 497
Mac has had a great day. He has been on video games today.(This drives his dad crazy.) He brought home a SpongeBob game that plugs into the t.v. from Mawmaw and Pawpaw's. Some of the Hulsey crew has gotten a stomach bug, so please pray that Mac and Pawpaw especially do not get this. We had a wonderful day at church. Today's serman was what I needed. I have been feeling very defeated lately and God revealed to me that ultimately He has the victory. So, I shouldn't be going around with my head hung low. I sometimes forget who is in control - JESUS - and thank goodness He is. Lots of Love.
May God Bless
Saturday, October 1, 2005 10:31 PM EST
Day 496
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From Mac
Mac has had a wonderful day today. I was so thankful that he slept all the way through the night. He slept from around 5:00PM until 7:30AM. He decided for his nap that he could go to sleep by himself and he wanted to bath himself tonight. He is definitely growing up. Pawpaw did not have a good night or morning. He was pain free most of the day, but the medicine made him very out of sorts. Thanks for all your prayers. May your church service be filled with honor and glory.
May God Bless
Friday, September 30, 2005 10:03 PM EST
Day 495
Our visit to Egleston went well. Mac's counts came up from a 2.93 to 3.95. His ANC was 880, which was good. He did a great job during the access. He cried a little, but there was no fit. I was very proud of him. Mac will begin chemo again tonight. He will get the normal dose of 6MP and Methotrexate. Mac's school friends sent him a gift and cards. His teachers at school are wonderful. He will be glad to get back. He has slept most of the afternoon. We do have several specific requests.
-Mac to continue eating well and his counts
-Mac's great-grandfather (the Gator Man) has not gotten good news this week. He has several spots to come up on his lungs and pelvic area. He will go Wednesday for a biopsy.
Thursday, September 29, 2005 8:31 PM EST
Day 494
Today has been a good one. Mac is feeling better. We will know more tomorrow about his counts. They should be good enough for him to get back on his medicine. I know he is ready to see his friends at school again. I hope that everyone has a wonderful weekend.
May God Bless You
Wednesday, September 28, 2005 9:54 PM EST
Day 493
It has been a long day for everyone. Wednesday is rough when I have class. Ashlie takes on a huge load taking care of the kids by her self. Not much longer and I will be able to help. Mac is still feeling well. We are looking forward to going to Egleston on Friday and seeing what the doctors think. We are pretty certain that they will put him back on his chemo because his counts have gone up so much. He is slowly trying to sleep in his own bed at night. He does not really make it but he is trying.
May God Bless You
Tuesday, September 27, 2005 8:33 PM EST
Day 492
Thank you for everyone that has signed the guest book and been praying for Mac while he has been fighting this fever and ear infection. It warms our hearts to know that so many people care. Mac has had a super day today. His white blood count has gone up from a .9 to a 2.92. His ANC has gone from a 600 to an 843. It appears that his body is starting to win the battle that is taking place within side of him. He has felt well today and his eating appears to be coming back to normal. For those that know Mac that means that he is starting to eat a lot. We are going to keep him close to the vest for another couple of days to make sure that his body is strong but by next week he should be ready to go full steam. I know that he misses his friends and teachers at preschool. I am going to get to take him on a trip to the pumpkin farm soon and I cannot wait!! Best wishes to all of our friends and we hope to see you soon.
May God Bless You
Monday, September 26, 2005 9:54 PM EST
Day 491
It was nice being with the kids today. We had a wonderful day playing and eating. Mac’s appetite is much better. I hope that it continues to increase each day. We will have his counts checked locally tomorrow to see if they are going up. I know that he would like to get back to his preschool class. We are starting the battle to keep Mac’s Medicaid. It appears that the state of Georgia does not feel that he is sick enough to keep his Katie Beckett Medicaid. If anyone has any connections with anyone at the state level please get on the phones. A lot of children are going to lose their coverage because they happen to take the majority of their treatment at home. What they (the state) does not seem to understand is that at a moments notice we can be back in the hospital just like we were this weekend. We have relied on God to see us through this journey this far and we know the he will see through this as well.
May God Bless You
Sunday, September 25, 2005 10:18 PM EST
Day 490
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po'5 (This is Mac's part of the journal.)
Mac has had a great day. He had 1/2 of a bisquit and gravy for breakfast; ham, apple, and ice cream for lunch; and for supper a piece of pizza. I truely believe that it was the increased dose of chemo that brought his eating to zero. He is off chemo until Friday. We missed church today. Mac's Sunday school class sent him cards and a gift. Thanks to all who have thought of us and prayed for us. We hope we can get out soon. It will prbably be at least a week.
May God Bless
Saturday, September 24, 2005 10:51 PM EST
Day 489
Praise the Lord! We are home. Mac's WBC went from a .69 to a .95. The real reason we came home is because the heating system broke and would not be fixed until tomorrow. We had no heat or hot water. It was extremely cold in our room. They were afraid Mac would get sicker being so cold. So we came home. We have to get Mac's counts done on Tuesday and then an Egleston visit on Friday. Mac actually ate food today. He ate 2 pieces of ham, pears, and mashed potatoes. It did my heart good. Thanks for all your prayers. We will have to stay close to home for a while. Mac's counts have a long ways to go. Mac says he feels better and he's glad we don't have to go to work on Monday and Tuesday.
May God Bless zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbb (This is from Mac)
Friday, September 23, 2005 10:16 PM EST
Day 488
Mac is still at Egleston with Ashlie. He is feeling good but still not eating much at all. His counts are still too low to come home so please pray that they will come up soon. Pray for Ashlie as it is very difficult for both of us when our family has to be seperated.
May God Bless You
Thursday, September 22, 2005 8:00 PM EST
Day 487
Dr. Briones said the place on Mac's arm was a weak place in the bone. He believes this has been there from the beginning of diagnosis. He said it looked as if it was trying to heal. We will have to have periodic x-rays to watch this place. Steriods can degenerate the bone, so we have to keep a watch on this. Dr. B said we have a 50/50 chance of going home tomorrow, so my hopes are not too high. We visit the playroom often. Thanks for all the encouraging notes on the guestbook. We appreciate them so much. We have to be very careful with Mac over the next few days to weeks. His counts are low. All he has eaten today is half of a bisquit. We need him to eat. He played BINGO tonight and won a dinosaur, coloring book, and matching game. Please pray for an increase in counts, an appetite, and medicaid coverage.
May God Bless You All
Wednesday, September 21, 2005 11:01 PM EST
Day 486
Well we get another overnight stay at Egleston. God has blessed us with very few of these, so I guess our turn has been coming. We thought Mac had a fever this morning, but he did not. He did eat a cluster of crab legs. Yea!!! He woke up crying from his nap. He has been telling us that he is sick. He proved right. I took him to the doctor's office to find out he had a fever of 101, which means an automatic visit to Egleston. He also said his ear was hurting. When we got to Egleston, we found out he has an ear infection. They did a chest x-ray and it came back fine. His counts did not come back too good. His WBC was low, so Dr. B wanted us to stay. The x-ray showed a liason on his arm which I will ask about in the morning. Please pray this is a short stay. Thanks for all your prayers and please keep them coming.
May God Bless
Tuesday, September 20, 2005 8:54 PM EST
Day 485/485
I am sorry for not getting the journal updated last night or this morning. Good intentions have never amounted to much. You are diligent in checking on Mac and keeping him in your prayers. Please forgive me. Mac is still not eating well. His Gigi bought crab legs today and he ate a little of them but that is about it. He is drinking a lot of milk. Tomorrow is another school day for Mac. I am sure that it will be a good one. Please pray that he will start eating soon. I am not sure how he has all the energy that he does.
May God Bless You
Sunday, September 18, 2005 9:53 PM EST
Day 484
We took Mac to get his counts checked today because he is not eating anything. They are dropping but everything appears to be going according to plan except for the eating. We are still not sure about this. They did a strep test and it came back negative. We are going to call Egleston tomorrow and let them know what is going on. Thank you to everyone that have been leaving notes in the guest book. Be sure and check out the new pictures.
May God Bless You
Saturday, September 17, 2005 8:44 PM EST
Day 483
Everyone has been a litte tearful today at times. Mac is still not eating. I think we are going to have his counts taken tomorrow morning just to see what they are. Tori is feeling better. The junk is out of her eyes if we can just figure out what is making her break out. I hope that everyone has a wonderful day at church tomorrow.
May God Bless You
Friday, September 16, 2005 9:49 PM EST
Day 482
Mac had another wonderful day at preschool. He seems to be doing a good job of listening. I sometimes wonder if the teachers are telling us everything:] He is still not eating well and tonight he said that the reason was that his throat was hurting. I guess it sounds crazy but we have not asked him why he has not been eating. He has been through so much I guess he does not think about the little things. We are trying to figure out what is wrong with his throat but we may make a trip to the doctor tomorrow.
May God Bless You
Thursday, September 15, 2005 9:17 PM EST
Day 481
The camera was out and ready tonight. Mac had to buy some skates and pads, so he could be like Monica. He got them out tonight. He tried to skate on the trampolin, but he found out soon that wouldn't work to well. Tori tries hard to keep up with him. She loves her big brother. She will be going back to the doctor tomorrow because she continues to break out. This will be my fourth visit since Sunday. Mac has not ate much again today. He was looking more pale, but David thinks I am a little paranoid about that. He has another day of school. It has finally hit Friday. Thank Goodness!
May God Bless
Wednesday, September 14, 2005 10:20 PM EST
Day 480
Mac had a wonderful trip to the dentist. He was a real big boy. He amazes all of us at times. I guess dad is now the official wimp at Joe’s office. Thanks to everyone there that made this first trip a success. We are ready for the weekend so all of us can have some fun. It seems like this week and the end of last has been one non-stop list of to do items. School is starting to take some time so please pray for Ashlie when I am away. The nighttime is a hard time to have the kids by herself. There is a lot to do to get them in bed.
May God Bless You
Tuesday, September 13, 2005 9:17 PM EST
Day 479
Tori went back to the doctor today. I think she is on as many medicines as Mac. She was feeling better tonight. (spunky as ever with some help from some medicine) Mac hasn't eaten anything. He has drank lots of milk. I'm afraid the increase dose of chemo is catching up with him. Mac has his first dentist appointment tomorrow. I hope they are ready for him. Of course, he can't just go to the dentist. He has to take antibiotics an hour before he goes to decrease the risk of infection. I will take pictures. We also have new pictures of Mac at school. Please be on the lookout for new pictures soon. Our friend, Jeremy goes for a biopsy tomorrow. Please, please pray for him and his family. Thanks and we love you all.
May God Bless
Monday, September 12, 2005 9:45 PM EST
Day 478
It has been a long day for us. It is funny how Mac's counts are not "in range" yet I think he has more energy than anyone in this house. Tori still feels terrible and I took David to the doctor today. Please pray that they feel better soon. We found out today that we may not get medicaid back on Mac. The state has changed regulations and only AML leukemia patients get it. So here goes another obstacle. I'm not sure, but I think David and I are just worn out. I know you have to go through times in the valley to make the mountain top so high. Our neice Jordan will have to have a major surgery in January. One of our friends at the hospital did not get a good report last week. Please pray for our family. On a good note, Mac loves school. The teacher said he is "something else". Isn't that the truth. We love you. Sorry if this was so pitiful.
May God Bless
Monday, September 12, 2005 6:40 AM EST
Day 477
This is a little late but last night was a little crazy. It seems that Tori has got the same junk in her eyes that Mac had. We took her to the doctor and they gave her some eye drops. It is the start of a fresh new week. Best wishes to all.
May God Bless You
Saturday, September 10, 2005 10:13 PM EST
Day 476
It has been a pretty day with the weather not turning too hot. Mac is having a little trouble with his eyes due to the hay being gut. A little rain would be nice. I hope that everyone has a wonderful church service tomorrow.
May God Bless You
Friday, September 9, 2005 9:55 PM EST
Day 475
It has been a long and busy week. It looks like Mac’s counts have dropped but we are not sure if they have dropped enough. We think so but Egleston did not return our call today to make sure. We had several question to ask them but they must not have thought it was important. Mac has had a super week at school this week. He has done much better than I was anticipating. Both he and Tori have went to bed early tonight because they were worn out. I hope that everyone has a wonderful weekend.
May God Bless You
Thursday, September 8, 2005 8:57 PM EST
Day 474
I did not really find out any more about school today. Maybe the second day will have him talking more. The teacher did say that he was very well behaved. That was a nice way to start the year. Mac goes to get his counts checked locally tomorrow. Prayerfully, they will be back in line where they are suppose to be.
May God Bless You
Wednesday, September 7, 2005 9:58 PM EST
Day 474
From what I hear the first day of preschool went well. I think Mac had a real good time. He loved the ride home in the pick-up truck. Thanks Grandly. I will have to give you more updates on school tomorrow and hopefully I will have some pictures to post from the first day.
May God Bless You
Tuesday, September 6, 2005 10:49 PM EST
Day 473
Mac was full of enery today. He is ready to go to school tomorrow. He is going to go to Sugar Hill for a little bit that morning and then Ashlie is going to take him. He is so excited. I guess you need to pray for daddy because his little boy is growing up.
May God Bless You
Monday, September 5, 2005 10:18 PM EST
Day 472
Today was a super Labor Day. Everyone was healthy and had a great time. Mac is still going strong and still ready for school. We go this Friday to have his counts checked again and see if the increase in his 6MP has brought them down. Please pray that this does work because we do not really want to have to mess with his Methotrexate.
May God Bless You
Sunday, September 4, 2005 10:18 PM EST
Day 471
The kids have been able to play outside for most of the day. We had our church services tonight at the park and everyone had a good time. Mac and Monica caught several fish. It was the first fish for Monica. They are both looking forward to going again. Mac had a fantastic time at the water park. He loves to play in the water. It was not really that important for Tori. I hope that everyone had a superb time fellowshipping with other church members.
May God Bless You
Saturday, September 3, 2005 10:08 PM EST
Day 470
The day was wonderful and full of sun. Mac has felt well. It will be interesting to see what his counts are on this coming Friday. We went shopping for some of his school suppy list. He is so excited about school. As a teacher, it would be wonderful if all kids were this excited. We tried to go fishing tonight with Papa but the water in the pond was too dirty. We are going to try again tomorrow when our church goes to the lake.
May God Bless You
Friday, September 2, 2005 10:26 PM EST
Day 469
Mac had a wonderful day at Pre-school. Today was a breaking in period and he did great. He did not really want to go home. I hope that each day he goes is a wonderful experience but I still wish my boy was still a little boy. I know these are feeling typically for a mother but I guess I just want to protect him, hold him, and know that life is being good to him. He is so full of life. God is truly GREAT.
May God Bless You
Thursday, September 1, 2005 9:20 PM EST
Day 468
Mac is getting ready to go to school tomorrow. I think I have about decided that I may have to start riding the buses to afford going to work. Mac is all excited about school. I hope that it goes well. Tomorrow is like a play day for the kids. It is hard to believe that this time has come. We have been through so much that I at times I am very apprehensive about him going to do new things. He is definitely full of energy and I am sure that he will give the teacher a run for her money.
May God Bless You
Wednesday, August 31, 2005 11:23 PM EST
Day 467
It has been a long day with so much going on. The lines at the gas station were even longer. It has been a good day for the family. Everyone is doing well. Mac is gettng ready for school. He seems to be excited! I hope that this continues on Friday and on into next week.
May God Bless You
Tuesday, August 30, 2005 9:48 PM EST
Day 466
Mac said he had a great day at school. Today was open house at preschool. He met his teacher and two friends. Mac says to tell his friends hello. He is still doing well. Thanks to God answering your prayers.
May God Bless
Monday, August 29, 2005 9:21 PM EST
Day 465
This may be rushed because of the weather. Mac is doing well and will visit his preschool class tomorrow. First Baptist here comes Mac. We had a fun supper tonight. All three of the kids made their own pizzas. Even Tori put cheese on her pizza. Tori seems to be feeling bad, we will see. Keep safe during the storm
May God Bless
Sunday, August 28, 2005 8:50 PM EST
Day 464
Today started out with a bang. We were about all ready to go to church when we discovered that Mac had put Play-Dough in his ear. We were not able to get it all out so off to the doctor we go. They did not have any trouble getting all of the bright blue stuff out. (Son, one day I am going to bring this back up when you have your own kids) After that the rest of the day went according to schedule. It is these moments in parenting that are the ways that memories are made.
May God Bless You
Saturday, August 27, 2005 9:56 PM EST
Day 463
Today was a beautiful day! The kids played well and are sleeping sound right now. Mac went to get a haircut today and tonight we played T-ball outside. He looked like a little slugger with that bat. Tori wanted to help. I do not think she is going to be a cheerleader. She wants to throw and hit the ball too much. It is always a blessing to sit and watch the kids play.
May God Bless You
Friday, August 26, 2005 11:00 PM EST
Day 462
Well, we got some disappointing news today. It seems that Mac's ear can not be corrected. The ENT feels that it would be too risky. He said that the bones were solid through the ear canal and doing the surgery would have a great risk of causing facial nerve damage. This would be more abnormal than his ear is now. Mac did a great job during the hearing test. The sad part is he has hearing in this ear, if it could only be opened up. This is the result that we have been expecting. We were holding out for another miracle but the blessings that God has given us have been great.Blessed is the name of the Lord! We are blessed because the audiologist said it is better to have hearing loss in the left ear than the right. We will be going to see a plastic surgeon soon. Mac was very tired for the Egleston appointment so that appointment was a little rocky. His counts were too high so they are increasing his nightly chemo. Please pray that this works. If it doesn't we will have to increase the methotrexate, this would probably make him sick at his stomach. The doctors have told us from the start that if his counts went up too high and stayed there they would increase the chemo so this is not a great surprise or a sign that the medicine is not working. It is just another reason why they check his counts every 2 weeks.
May God Bless You
Thursday, August 25, 2005 9:49 PM EST
Day 461
Tomorrow is the big day. We go to Emery to find out the offical results of the cat scan that was done on Mac's ear. We will know what they will be able to do to correct his hearing, if anything can be done. We also have to go to Egleston for his monthly checkup. It will be a long day but it is always fun to see the old friends at Egleston.
May God Bless You
Wednesday, August 24, 2005 9:27 PM EST
Day 460
Another day has passed and it has been pretty good. I am back into my classes so life is busy. Mac is doing well and I think he had a good night at church tonight. It is hard to believe that he will be starting pre-school soon. My little boy is growing up surrounded by God's love and his grace.
May God Bless You
Tuesday, August 23, 2005 7:53 PM EST
Day 459
Mac has had another good feeling day. He was pretending tonight that he was going to school. He said they played and read a book. He will start preschool after Labor Day. I think he will love it. Please pray for Friday. Thanks for praying always. Our library at Sugar Hill had a cute book. It was titled Kathy's Hats. It was about a little girl who had cancer. It was a sweet story.
May God Bless
Monday, August 22, 2005 9:40 PM EST
Day 458
Mac is doing well. We met with some great friends and played on the playground. Jennifer, Jasper, and Jayden, we had a great time with you all. Can't wait to do it again. Please continue to pray for Pawpaw. He will be going to the pain clinic tomorrow. Anna is feeling better and will get test results back this week. Monica and Tori are doing well.
May God Bless
Sunday, August 21, 2005 8:52 PM EST
Day 456/457
Things got a little crazy last night and I forgot to make an entry. Sorry! We are still having good days. Mac’s toe appears to be getting better. We bought him a new pair of shoes and they make him run “really, really, fast”. We go back to Egleston on Friday. We will also see the ear doctor. Please begin to pray for this trip. Mac will have to be accessed so receive his antibiotics. The ear doctor will tell us all of our options concerning Mac’s hearing. We have been waiting 4 years for this conversation. Best wishes to all.
May God Bless You
Friday, August 19, 2005 9:41 PM EST
Day 455
It is finally Friday. God blesses us with Friday's when we need it. Mac still has a strange blister that continues to come and go on his toe. It is funny how normally you would probably ignore this on anyone else. Now we are wondering if it is going to get better and do we need to call Dr. Briones. Please pray for guidance. Thanks for always praying for all of us. Tomorrow is a birthday party. Happy first birthday Olivia Grace!
May God Bless
Thursday, August 18, 2005 9:39 PM EST
Day 454
Mac's toe seems to be doing better. He never complains, we just worry. A blister keeps popping up on his toe. Mac decided when he was chewing gum that he would wrap it around his head. This was a funny sight. Of course, all who know Mac well will realize this was funny to me but a panic to him. He thinks everything should be so-so. We got it out with peanut butter and I doubt he will do that again. Aunt Anna is going to the doctor tomorrow for her legs and neck. She is having some pain and Pawpaw still needs your prayers. Thanks for always praying for Mac and his family. We love you.
May God Bless
Wednesday, August 17, 2005 10:06 PM EST
DAy 453
Mac, Tori, and Olivia seem to be feeling each other out and having some pretty good days. I think they have all made a truce. Mac had a super time at church tonight. His toe is still not looking the best. It appears to have a blister on it. We are keeping an eye on it. Please pray that it will heal quickly.
May God Bless You
Tuesday, August 16, 2005 9:43 PM EST
Day 452
It was another pretty day to play outside. I think that is what Mac has done most of the day. Ashlie took them down to the church tonight and he decides to hit his other toe this time. We are still waiting to see if the medicine will take the infection out of the first toe. Each day is falling into a routine of getting up, going to work, and looking forward to see the kids again in the afternoon. Normal days are still not taken for granted and we still rely on the grace of God to see us through this journey.
May God Bless You
Monday, August 15, 2005 10:17 PM EST
Day 451
It has been a long day. We took Mac and Monica to the doctor office today. The gave Mac some medicine for his toe and Monica something for her cough. Hopefully both medicines will work. Tori thinks that it is play time when it is time to go to sleep. It is taking about 45 minutes to get her to sleep. She is happy during this time but I sure wish that she would go right to sleep. Mac is still feeling well despite his toe. Sometimes I wonder where he gets all the energy.
May God Bless You
Sunday, August 14, 2005 8:59 PM EST
Day 450
It has been a great day in the Lord. Mac has played well today. He does have a small amount of possible infection on his big toe. Please pray that we can get this taken care of. We are going to call the doctor tomorrow. He hit it about 2 weeks ago and it has never really healed. It time to get Tori to bed so this will have to be short.
May God Bless You
Saturday, August 13, 2005 9:39 PM EST
Day 449
Everything is going well. We heard from our angel Momma Duck. We sure do miss seeing you. Mac and Monica went to town today and spent their birthday money. They had a wonderful time deciding what to buy. We have been jumping on the trampoline about every day. It is a good workout for Mac’s legs. PawPaw is back home. He appears to be feeling better. Please keep him in your prayers along with Mac and the rest of us.
May God Bless You
Friday, August 12, 2005 9:39 PM EST
Day 448
Overall we have been blessed with a good week. Pawpaw should come home tomorrow. We will be glad to have them back at home. Mac has had a poor appetite and has not eaten well this week. Mac and I played a game of Candyland tonight. David always laughs because, if you play with me you play by the rules. Mac wants to fudge a little, but I don't let him. We had a great time. We have all jumped on the trampolin.
May God Bless
Thursday, August 11, 2005 8:38 PM EST
Day 447
The week is about over with. It has been pretty good. Mac was up early from his nap so he should go to sleep pretty early. Tori has been sleeping well. They are waiting for the final pathology results for PawPaw but so far is look like scar tissue that is infected. Please continue to pray for great results. Mac was complaining of a headache tonight but we were not sure. We gave him grape syrup and he said that his head was feeling better. The job of a parent is never done. Mamma Duck, if you read this please call us. We have lost your number and would love to talk to you.
May God Bless You
Wednesday, August 10, 2005 9:28 PM EST
Day 446
Mac is helping me with the journal tonight. He wants to surprise his friends and invite them to play on his playground. His friends are Dakota, Valentin, Luke, Mark, Jada, Cole, Sean, Jasper, and Zoe. Mac is feeling good. Pray for Pawpaw.
Tuesday, August 9, 2005 8:59 PM EST
Day 445
Mac is having awesome days. He is feeling good. Please begin to pray for August 26. We will go to ENT about his ear and we also have an Egleston appointment. It will be a full day for him. Thank you for your constant prayers. Please pray for Mac's Pawpaw, he had to go in the hospital. Pawpaw is the gator driver. We hope he feels better soon.
May God Bless
Monday, August 8, 2005 9:02 PM EST
Day 444
The Bible speaks about praying in the will of God so I guess he did not want it to snow today. I really thought it would be a good idea but what do I know:] I think everyone had a super day either at school or at home. Tori took a short nap so she was ill as a hornet tonight. Mac is still playing well and his counts are still holding strong. Life is never dull around here.
May God Bless You
Sunday, August 7, 2005 9:25 PM EST
Day 443
Mac had his counts done today and they look good. He is doing well. After church tonight, Monica tried out her new rollar blades. She had some help from Kayleigh and Megan. They had a great time. Mac, of course, thinks he needs a pair. He had to try them out. The funniest part was David rollar blading. Thanks for all the prayers.
May God Bless
Saturday, August 6, 2005 9:43 PM EST
Day 442
Tonight we celebrated Monica's birthday. Thank you Doug and Lisa for allowing us to have her a pool party. Thanks to all who came to help us celebrate. She said it was the best birthday ever. Mac was in heaven too. He loves the pool. He is in good spirits. Wild as ever. Enjoy church tomorrow.
May God Bless
Friday, August 5, 2005 8:27 PM EST
Day 441
The first day of school is a very exciting day. (A day to see old friends and make new ones) I think Monica had a good day. Toro and Mac were ready to see Mommy when she got home. Everything is still going well. Mac has jumped a lot on the trampoline today. Tori was not much up on the idea. I guess she was afraid that she would mess up her hair. Everyone is getting ready to celebrate Monica’s birthday tomorrow. Her actually birthday was today. What better gift than to start back to school. We will spend the tomorrow in a swimming pool. Mac is such a card. He will talk your ears off about anything. He loves to read books and look at dinosaurs. Life is good.
May God Bless You
Thursday, August 4, 2005 9:21 PM EST
Day 440
It has been a very long day and we are getting the kids into bed. Tomorrow is the first day of school. We consider it an honor to be able to teach your children. Pray for Monica as she starts the Middle School. Mac and Tori will have to get use to being away from us again. That is always the hardest part.
May God Bless You
Wednesday, August 3, 2005 9:32 PM EST
Day 439
We got up early this morning to go to school and Mac thought he had to go to the doctor office. I guess his life has been filled with trips to Egleston. He thinks if we wake up early it must be time to go. His health is still great and so is his spirit. Tori was eat up by fire ants today. She did not cry or even let on that she had been bit. We had to go to the Middle School for open house tonight. I think Monica is a little scared but I know she will do a terrific job.
May God Bless You
Tuesday, August 2, 2005 10:34 PM EST
Day 438
Mac is still having great days. He is still not eating like himself but that will probably start to change tomorrow. We are getting Monica ready for the Middle School so there is a lot to do. Mac played for a long time outside tonight. It was muggy but still cool enough to have some fun.
May God Bless You
Monday, August 1, 2005 9:55 PM EST
Day 437
All is well in the Collins’ house. We had a good day but it was tough to go back to work when we have spent so much time with our children. I think both of us were ready to get back home today. Mac has had a super day and has played for the most part of the day. His appetite was off a little tonight at supper. You can always see the effects of the Methotrexate creeping onto the seen. This will usually last for a day or two and then his eating will pick back up.
May God Bless You
Sunday, July 31, 2005 9:50 PM EST
Day 436
Once again we had a beautiful Sunday. We have enjoyed our last day of the summer vacation. It has been super. For all that we missed last summer we have made up this one. We go into this school year with Mac healthy and enjoying each day. Please pray that this continues throughout the year.
May God Bless You
Saturday, July 30, 2005 10:08 PM EST
Day 435
Today was a very busy day. We all got decked out for a wedding. Vanessa, David's cousin, got married. It was very fun and Vanessa looked beautiful. Then we headed for Geraldo's, Monica's brother, birthday party. The kids had a wonderful time. Mac is doing well, wide open would be a better word. We also went to visit Aunt Abby. She had her wisdom teeth cut out. Please pray for her. Lots of love.
May God Bless
Friday, July 29, 2005 10:23 PM EST
Day 434
Today was a very special day. It was mine and Ashie’s ten year anniversary. It has been a journey and I have the best wife around. We have been through a lot and have grown together. Our experience with Mac has brought us closer together because we were in one accord. Through the difficult times my wife carried the personal burden of staying in bed with Mac for about 6 weeks. She is committed to her children and to me. I can never repay the debt that I owe for her love. I took Mac to the bicycle store today. He probably picked out about $500 dollars worth of bikes. We went to Chick-fil-A and I asked Mac 4 times if he wanted anything to eat and he said “No”. When I got my nuggets he ate 8 of the 12 nuggets. (So much for my lunch) We had a wonderful time together. Monica was invited to go to Six Flags today. I think she had a wonderful time. Thanks Dave and Sandy for taking her. It will be an experience she will never forget.
May God Bless You
Thursday, July 28, 2005 9:24 PM EST
Day 433
We had a honored guest with us all day. We all kept Olivia, our niece, today. I say all because everyone including Tori thinks they are in charge of Olivia. We had fun with her. We also went on our Thursday night tradition, but minus one. Monica had her first pool party. She was so excited. Everyone is doing well. Thanks for your prayers.
May God Bless
Wednesday, July 27, 2005 9:46 PM EST
Day 432
The weather is still making it a little hot to get out in the middle of the day and play. Mac is feeling well but his appetite is down a little. This will usually happen when he takes any form of Methotrexate. Mac was a big helper in setting up the classrooms today. Teachers have so many cool things to play with. Tori was walking around like she owned the classroom with Monica tying her best to keep up with her. The summer is quickly coming to an end. We will be trying to have as much fun a possible before school starts back.
May God Bless You
Tuesday, July 26, 2005 9:22 PM EST
Day 431
Today was a major success at Egleston. The LP procedure that was performed on Mac went splendid. The new sedation medicine worked like a charm. Mac did sleep a little longer than normal but he is the type that when he goes to sleep he will take a 3 hour nap. The doctors were pleased with the results and how well he is looking. He was accessed before I knew that they had started. He is growing into a big little man. By the way, his stats are 61.6 lbs and 3ft 9 inches tall. Thank you for your prayers and concerns.
May God Bless You
Monday, July 25, 2005 10:12 PM EST
Day 430
It sure is hot in Georgia. I think we are all loving to be home but we are missing the ocean to jump in and cool off. Today has been a very normal day. Sometimes those days are the best! We are making final preparations for our trip tomorrow. On the night before a fast Mac gets to eat what he wants and as much as he wants. Please lift him up tomorrow. Pray that the new sedation medicine works well and that he is not scared to be accessed.
May God Bless You
Sunday, July 24, 2005 10:46 PM EST
Day 429
Today was a very peaceful day. It was busy but all things are better at home. I think that everyone is still recovering from the trip because they all took long naps today. Mac was able to see his cousins today at my brother’s church. Today was his last Sunday to preach at this church. God has led him to another adventure and we all wish him the best of luck and the blessings of God. If God be for you than who can be against you? Please begin to pray for a visit we have on Tuesday at Egleston. We had to move the appointment because we were out of town. Mac will have an LP done and will have to be sedated and fast. We are trying a new sedation medicine and are praying that it works better. We did finally hear from the ear doctor but really do not know much. They want to see him to discuss the findings. They said that we had several options but I can not for the life of me understand why they would not discuss it with us on the phone. It is not like a stranger would want to find out about an ear surgery. Oh well! We will tell you more when we know more. I hope that everyone has a wonderful week.
May God Bless You
Saturday, July 23, 2005 10:55 PM EST
Day 427/428
The beach was wonderful but there is no place like home. We decided last night at about 10 to head home. Well, it ended up being about 1:30 in the morning before we actually left the beach to head home. It was a long trip but all the kids did wonderful. This trip was more than just a vacation. It was a celebration of life, celebration of family, and a celebration of the grace of God. We were unable to go last year on a vacation because of Mac going through his intense treatments for Leukemia. This year we went in full force and had a very blessed time. Mac and Monica were like fish in the water. They stayed in the ocean. Mac did a wonderful job with his swimming ring. By the end of the week he was no longer scared when the waves slapped him in the face. Tori is going to be the beach bunny. She has no desire to get into the water. I guess she is afraid that she will mess up her hair. She loved to play in the sand in the evening but during the day I think it was just too hot. I do not know how Mac played so hard. He for sure slept well at night but the next day he was ready to go again. Memories are those moments in time that we hold dear to our hearts. Some are of good times and some are of the valley. Together they shaped our thoughts and hold our hearts. We have long been waiting for this trip and it was everything that we were praying for. The pictures show the faces but being there with yourfamily captures the spirit of why a family is so important. Thank you for all of your prayers that made this trip possible. Be sure and check out the new pictures on the web page.
May God Bless You
Thursday, July 21, 2005 9:50 PM CDT
Day 426
The fun continues at the beach. Mac played most of the day at the beach with his new friend. He loves the ocean and wants to jump in the waves. Tori continues to not play on the beach until the sun goes down, then she walks around and plays, the rest of the time she is under the umbrella. Tomorrow is our last day at Mexico Beach. We plan to leave early on Saturday morning and be home in the early afternoon. We will update tomorrow or after we get home on Saturday.
May God Bless You.
Wednesday, July 20, 2005 10:00 PM CDT
Day 425
Mac is having a great time playing on the beach. He found a friend to play with today and he pushed her in the car she had brought down to the beach. It was so good to see him playing with other children and enjoying himself. It rained for about four hours this afternoon and cooled the temperatures a little. Take care and we will update again tomorrow.
May God bless you.
Tuesday, July 19, 2005 10:26 PM CDT
Day 424
Everyone continues to have fun playing on the beach, eating ice cream and all the fun things you do on vacation. We will update more later in the week.
May God bless you.
Monday, July 18, 2005 9:25 PM CDT
Day 422 and 423
Greetings from Mexico Beach. Mac is enjoying himself, he plays hard all day and sleeps hard at night. He and Monica enjoy playing in the ocean and play there most of the time. The weather has been great, except for the usual afternoon rain showers. Tori does not like the beach, she prefers to stay under the umbrella and play. We are so blessed to be able to come to the beach this year and enjoy ourselves--what a difference a year makes!
May God Bless You.
Saturday, July 16, 2005 10:27 PM CDT
Day 421
After 13 hours on the road and getting a (little)lost we are finally at Mexico Beach. Mac, Tori and Monica got to go down on the beach. It was quite a experience for Monica and Tori because neither of them had seen the beach. Mac ran into a wave and it swept him off his feet and he laughed and enjoyed himself. It did not bother him that he still had his pants and shirt on and not a swim suit. We are looking forward to a fun day tomorrow. Please continue to remember us in your prayers.
May God Bless You.
Saturday, July 16, 2005 10:27 PM CDT
Day 421
After 13 hours on the road and getting a (little)lost we are finally at Mexico Beach. Mac, Tori and Monica got to go down on the beach. It was quite a experience for Monica and Tori because neither of them had seen the beach. Mac ran into a wave and it swept him off his feet and he laughed and enjoyed himself. It did not bother him that he still had his pants and shirt on and not a swim suit. We are looking forward to a fun day tomorrow. Please continue to remember us in your prayers.
May God Bless You.
Friday, July 15, 2005 9:50 PM EST
Day 420
I'm not sure if we will ever get through packing. Yes, we are finally going to the beach. Last year our hearts were broke because we could not go, but now we are headed on our way. We will leave in the morning for Mexico Beach. Tori and Monica have never seen the beach, so this is going to be great. Mac is feeling great. We finally heard from the catscan. Dr. Briones came through for us again. He said that Mac did not appear to have the ear canal, tube, and several inner ear bones. It does seem to have nerves, but they will have to test to see if it can be fixed. He said He is hopeful that one day Mac will be able to hear out of his left ear. We will try to update the website, so don't forget about us. Thanks for all your continued prayers. May God bless you.
Thursday, July 14, 2005 10:23 PM EST
Day 419
It has been another busy day in the old corn patch. Mac and Tori took a good nap today and were in high spirits tonight at my parent’s house. Our trip to Mountain Lake was a preview of things to come on vacation. Everyone had a wonderful time. Mac is getting to be a real swimmer as long as he has his swimming ring on. Monica enjoyed the water slide as usual but Mac was not willing to get on it. I think Tori would have giving it a try if they would have let her. Tori did a little swimming which is a plus but she is still not loving the water. Mac’s health is still great. We still have not found anything out about the CT scan that was done on his ear. It appears that there is a major communication gap between us and the doctor’s office. He is supposed to call us tomorrow. It has been real frustrating not getting the answers that we are seeking. Patience is a virtue and I am really running out of it with this doctor. Hopefully he will follow through with the phone call tomorrow so we can find out some answers.
May God Bless You
Wednesday, July 13, 2005 10:26 PM EST
Day 418
It is good to be home. Everyone is feeling well and wild as ever. We have a couple of days here and then we head for the much awaited beach trip. Mac is ready to go. I will fill you in tomorrow about our week at Mountain Lakes. I have a little girl to get to bed right now.
May God Bless You
Tuesday, July 12, 2005 10:27 PM CDT
DAY 417
This is a quick update of our time here at Mountain Lake.Everyone is having lots of fun. We had some rain today, but not very much. We all rode in the paddle boats this afternoon, and hope to play on the big water slide tomorrow morning before we come home.
May God Bless you.
Monday, July 11, 2005 10:17 PM CDT
DAY 416
We arrived at Mountain Lake this afternoon. Mac was so excited about going and has really enjoyed himself since we arrived. Everyone INCLUDING TORI went swimming and had a great time. We are looking forward to having a busy day tomorrow and spending time together.
May God Bless each of you.
Sunday, July 10, 2005 9:05 PM EST
Day 415
As the storm has moved in so has the stomach virus. Ashlie, Tori, Gigi, and MawMaw all have got it. Please pray for Mac and Monica that they will stay clear of it. We had some wonderful services today at church and Mac was able to play outside after church. We are making plans to go to the mountains tomorrow so we are all hoping for a short run on this virus.
May God Bless You
Saturday, July 9, 2005 9:56 PM EST
Day 414
Today was the start of the annual corn pulling festival. I am not sure what we do with all that corn that we grow but we sure do grow a ton of it. Mac helped out by hauling corn around with his 4 wheeler. He is having a super time riding this battery powered machine. He is a little dare devil like Tori. He did not want to take a nap today and he is still up now. I do not know what keeps him going. We are looking forward to the mountain on Monday and Tuesday. I hope the weather holds steady for us.
May God Bless You
Friday, July 8, 2005 9:35 PM EST
Day 413
The results are in from Mac’s counts and they look pretty good. His overall ANC is 1,000 which is in the safe range. His platelets and WBC’s are holding steady but his hemoglobin has dropped to a 10.5. This is a little low but is due to the two doses of Vincristine. Generally, 7-10 days out is the lowest point in his counts so they should begin to increase soon. We went out to eat tonight and Mac ate like a p[professional linebacker. We went to the shoe store after eating and he bought a pair of Spiderman shoes much to the dismay of mom. Oh well, boys will be boys. I looked for a pair for me but could not find anything in my size. Best wishes to all and we sure are praying for the weather not to get to bad at the beach. We want to have a little sand when we get their next Saturday.
May God Bless You
Thursday, July 7, 2005 8:52 PM EST
Day 412
We have been blessed with another wonderful day. Today was Mac’s official birthday party and it was wonderful. All the kids loved the Sprinkler Park. Thank you to all that came to make this a special day for us. Mac just came up the stairs and told me to tell everyone to come back next year because he had a wonderful time. We were praying for the weather to break and God granted us a wonderful time. We are still going through the presents with Mac. I hope that everyone that gave blood has recovered and has felt great about the love that you showed. I will have pictures from the blood drive and the birthday party posted soon on the web page. Tomorrow we will have Mac’s counts checked locally. They should all be OK since we just came off the steroids.
May God Bless You
Wednesday, July 6, 2005 10:01 PM EST
Day 411
The rains are rolling in with the thunder sounding like bowling pins. The blood drive was a major success because each of you that were able and willing to give came and showed your concern for others and your love for Mac. The unofficial number was 61 units of blood collected. The people from the Red Cross said that it was the largest blood drive that they have had this summer. In dealing with the Red Cross they set a goal of 49 units. I told them with confidence that if we sign up 60 people we would have 60 people to show up. The love that each of you showed demonstrates your commitment to Christ and helping others. This blood drive may become an annual event but I urge each of you to work into your busy schedules to give every 56 days. I know that it makes me feel good to know that I have helped save a life. We had 7 people go above and beyond the call and gave what they call a “double” give. They gave the equivalent of 2 people. Thank you so much for giving your blood type that is not common to most people. There is always a high demand for blood and an even higher demand for these blood types. Thank you again to each person that supported the blood drive through giving blood, preparing food, and helping run the event. Tomorrow we are scheduled to have Mac’s Birthday party outside at a water park. Please pray for good weather for the event. I know they are calling for a lot of rain but I also have seen them wrong. I hope they are wrong tomorrow evening.
May God Bless You
Tuesday, July 5, 2005 10:12 PM EST
Day 410
Mac’s mood was better today but his eating was up. He has put away some food today. He thinks that mash potatoes are a snack. He has played well today and been in pretty good spirits. Please remember the Celebration Bleed Drive tomorrow at the church form the hours of 2-7. Tomorrow is a celebration on the goodness of God and the chance to help others with the gift of blood.
May God Bless You
Monday, July 4, 2005 10:02 PM EST
Day 409
Today has been a little crazy for Mac. His emotions have been on overdrive today. He would be happy one minute and the next he would be crying. The Decadron beast is trying to stick its head up. Please pray that Mac’s system will have peace and contentment. It will take several days for the effects of this drug to wear off. He has played well today and is still eating pretty heavy. He is such a precious little boy. We have loved the 4 years and look forward to seeing our young boy that loves to sing about the love of Jesus turn into a man that worships the Father!
May God Bless You
Sunday, July 3, 2005 9:57 PM EST
Day 408
It was about this time 4 years ago that Mac finally came, all 9 lbs. and 16 hours of labor. Who would of thought we would be going through this? He had a great time today. He got a battery powered 4 wheeler. He said it was awesome. He has had a wonderful time between the trampoline and 4 wheeler. He complained with a headache tonight and went to sleep during church. Remember to sign up for the Celebration Blood Drive. Call 770 534-5864. Thanks for your help. Lots of love to you all.
Saturday, July 2, 2005 11:12 PM EST
Day 407
It is late so this will be a short but good one. Mac has had a wonderful day. It got off to a slow start but as the day progressed he got some energy. We went to the mountains to swim and watch fireworks tonight. You could hear Mac laughing and having a blast. Tomorrow he will be 4 years old. Give thanks to God for this special day, for my very special son, and the grace and mercy that has been shown us this past year.
May God Bless You
Friday, July 1, 2005 10:59 PM EST
Day 406
Our trip to Egleston went well today. We started the morning with breakfast at IHOP. Mac was very hungry due to the Decadron. He was eating his food and ours. He was a real trooper at the doctor’s office. He was accessed without any crying. It was wonderful. God is still answering prayers. We have not heard any results from the CT scan but I will let you know as soon as we do. Tori has an ear infection. Last night was horrible. She was up for most of the night. We took shifts taking care of her. I took her for a ride at 1:30 in the morning and had to ride her for about 45 minutes before she would go asleep. The sleep did not last long. Hopefully she will sleep much better tonight. Mac’s friend, Monica, is home from church camp and Mac could not be happier. He has talked nonstop since she got home. He received an early birthday present today. It was a trampoline. Thanks for everyone that made this gift possible. He jumped for a little bit but the Decadron and lack of sleep was too much for him. We have a full day planned tomorrow with the night being filled with fireworks. I know everyone will have a tremendous evening.
May God Bless You
Thursday, June 30, 2005 10:21 PM EST
Day 405
Tomorrow morning is the last dose of Decadron praise the Lord. Mac's eating is up and he is starting to get very moody at times. Our visit tomorrow should be short. They will check him out, access him, and give him the Vincristine through his port. Please pray that the access goes well. This is always difficult for him.
May God Bless You
Wednesday, June 29, 2005 9:49 PM EST
Day 403/404
I need to start off with a big apology for not updating the site last night. We got in late and I forget to update first thing in the morning. I know that a lot of you check the site every day so that you know how and what to pray for. Please forgive me! We took Mac up to the youth camp to see Monica last night. He had a good time but his emotions are all over the place due to the Decadron so he was ready to come home when we got there. You can see the effects of the Decadron on his face. At times he is silly and a few minutes later he will be fretful. Praise God we only have 3 more doses of the drug on this cycle. His appetite is starting to increase and he is holding some water in his face. The past 2 days have been very good for the most part. Thank you to everyone that has signed up for the Celebration Blood Drive. There are still times left so please call the church to schedule a time slot. I will be calling the Red Cross this week to let them know that the people in Mac’s life still care and will be there on July 6 in full force. Your love and kindness for my son can never be measured and never be repaid.
May God Bless You
Monday, June 27, 2005 10:57 PM EST
Day 402
We have had our ups and downs today but all in all it has been a pretty good day. We have been heading toward a state of constipation but it looks like we have made it through these rough waters for a couple of days. Monica is off at a church camp. Mac wanted so much to go with her. He even packed his suitcase so he could go. He figured all he needed was a swimsuit, PJ’s and diapers for when he goes to sleep. After Monica left we kept him busy and the rest of the day was good. Tori is Tori and that means that she is all over the house. She is a special little girl with a lot of spunk. Please remember to contact the church to set up a time to give blood for the Celebration Blood Drive. I know it can be difficult to give a time but it really helps if we know how many are coming. If it is just not possible for you to nail down a time please come on and give. The important thing is that the blood is given and that lives are saved. Last year it was Mac that was needing to have a lot of blood. This year is another child that does not know what is going on just like Mac was last year. God has blessed us tremendously with increased health. Please share in our blessings by giving the life giving gift of blood. Follow the link on the home page for direction about the blood drive.
May God Bless You
Sunday, June 26, 2005 9:00 PM EST
Day 401
Mac has had a busy day and is already asleep at 8 P.M. We tried to get him down for a nap today but he was having too much fun playing with Monica. Monica showed great patience with him today. He followed her all over the house. The Decadron is starting to take hold and he has to have things done in a certain way. This is a usual behavior but the Decadron does not allow him to understand when things happen a little differently. So far his eating has not increased that much and I pray that is does not. We just take each day at a time and pray for the grace of God to cover the day. Join us in our prayers.
May God Bless You
Saturday, June 25, 2005 9:33 PM EST
Day 400
Day 400! It is hard to believe that it has been that long since our first diagnosis. Mac has begun his steroids and everything is going pretty good. He is already starting to get impatient and emotional but it is a far cry from what we have seen in the past. He has played well today but his eating has been down. He had a great time playing at our friends Pam’s house. He looked like such a big boy when he was with the other kids. All the sleepless night and sickness we have endured is nothing compared to the pride that is in our heart when we see him playing. It is what kids should be doing. Continue to pray for him as we work our way though this cycle of heavy treatment drugs.
May God Bless You
Friday, June 24, 2005 10:21 PM EST
Day 399
Praise the Lord!! We could tell people were praying today. Mac did great on not being able to eat. When we went for the CT Scan the sedation doctor thought we should try the scan without medication. I was not being the optimist. Wow, God amazed me. It was like He was holding on to Mac's whole body keeping. Not that he doesn't every day. Mac did awesome. I would have never suggested doing the scan without meds. Mac has to take 3 chemo's today. Yuck. He just went over to the counter asked what each was and took it himself. He is a trooper. Please continue to pray and praise God for Mac on the decadron week. Pray for Monica. She is so excitied about youth camp. Don't forget about the blood drive. Thanks and we love you all.
Thursday, June 23, 2005 10:35 PM EST
Day 398
Today has been a fantastic day. Mac has felt great today which was a plus since he decided to skip breakfast. This is usually a sign that he will not be feeling well but that was not the case today. Mac’s cousins are out of town and he missed playing with them tonight at my parent’s house. Tomorrow is the big day. We have been waiting for this CAT scan for a long time. It was not necessary to do it before now because a child’s ear will keep growing until they are 4. The scan will let us know if there is any chance for Mac to be able to hear out of his left ear. If certain conditions are right they will be able to perform surgery to help him hear out of that ear. If not, they will do some cosmetic surgery on the outer part of the ear. We leave the results of the scan in God’s hands. He has been gracious to us over the past year and we know that he will continue to watch over us and the results of the CAT scan. Tomorrow night we will be starting the Decadron (steroid). Pray for Mac’s mood swings over the next couple of weeks. He will take it for 7 days and it usually takes 7 more days for it to get out of his system. On my side of the fence, my test was a success today. I needed to score in the 25th percentile to be accepted into a Master of Education program and I scored in the 44th percentile. Thank you for your prayers.
May God Bless You
Wednesday, June 22, 2005 11:20 PM EST
Day 397
The gang went swimming today. It was a beautiful day for it. Of course Tori just sat in a chair and watched while she worked on her tan. Tomorrow night Mac will begin his fast for the procedures on Friday. He will have to be sedated so he will have to fast. Please pray for this time period. It is always difficult on him. Also please pray for me. I take a test called the MAT tomorrow to see if I can get accepted into a Master of Education program. I have only had a few days to prepare for the test and it is not the easiest test to pass. Also, please contact the church to sign up for the blood drive. If you know of people that are not keeping up with the web page on a daily basis please let them know about it. The Red Cross is hoping for 49 units of blood but I feel that their goal is too low. Last year everyone came out in groups for the drive. Please let’s celebrate what God has done in Mac’s life by giving blood to help others.
May God Bless You
Tuesday, June 21, 2005 10:50 PM EST
Day 396
Today has been one of those good old normal days. We went to the library and everyone had a super time. Mac found the animal books and the little fellow wanted to check out all of them. He was loading his arms with books. It makes us feel good that he loves books and loves to be read to. Please continue to lift Mac up in your prayers for the Friday trip to Egleston and be in prayer about giving blood in the Celebration Blood Drive.
May God Bless You
Monday, June 20, 2005 9:52 PM EST
Day 395
We started the day off with Monica going to the dentist and Tori going to get her shots. After that we headed over to see Rhubarb Jones and let Mac give money to help other children with Leukemia. He did great with the money but he would not have his picture taken with Rhubarb. I would have loved to have had that picture but maybe another day. The rest of the day was spent outside enjoying the weather. The summer is going so fast. The only good thing about that is that it gets us closer to the beach. Be sure and check out the new pictures. Please remember to pray for our trip to Egleston this Friday with the result being that Mac will start steroids again and take 2 doses of a powerful chemo.
May God Bless You
Sunday, June 19, 2005 10:21 PM EST
Day 394
Church was wonderful today. It is always a blessing to get to go to the Lords house and worship with his people. Through our journey, we have had to miss several services due to Mac’s health so you really appreciate it when you can attend. The tonight was on prayer. Prayer is such a simple word but a powerful act in a believer’s life. We have seen the power of prayer in Mac’s life as well as our own. After church tonight we roasted marshmallows. Everyone enjoyed themselves. Mac thought is was cool. True to his nature he also had to roast a hotdog also. When he is feeling well he loves to eat. Please remember to contact the church to sign up for the Celebration Blood Drive. You can follow the link on the home page for all the information.
May God Bless You
Saturday, June 18, 2005 10:49 PM EST
Day 393
In celebration of Fathers Day we went to see my dad and Mac’s grandfather today. Mac had a fabulous time in the pool. It was a beautiful day to be swimming and playing. Later on we of course go to watch the hail fall from the sky. Mac enjoyed seeing he ice bounce of the back porch. Best wishes to all the fathers our there. Our role in the family is large and we should seek each day to be the best fathers we can be.
May God Bless You
Friday, June 17, 2005 10:04 PM EST
Day 392
Today has been a good day for everyone. VBS is over with and we are getting closer each day to our trip to the beach. Mac had to help in the garden today. He loves to ride on the tractor. We are looking forward to a wonderful weekend and I hope the same for each of you. Please rember my nephew, Copelan, in your prayers. He had a place removed from his arm and they are sending the tissue off. We will know the results on Monday. About the blood drive, please follow the link on the home page. It will provide the needed information for signing up to give blood in Celebration of Mac.
May God Bless You
Thursday, June 16, 2005 9:20 PM CDT
Day 391
Mac has had a supper day today. He is still playing well and seems to be holding his own against the stomach virus that has come through the house. We went to a boot store today and he had to try on several cowboy hats. He looked like a cowboy. All he was missing was his boots. We have scheduled another blood drive to be at the church on July 6 from 2-7. I will give you further information tomorrow about how to sign up. We received 87 units last time. This blood drive is a celebration of the grace and power of God and Mac beating this disease. Please consider signing up in celebration of God's grace on my son.
May God Bless You
Wednesday, June 15, 2005 11:04 PM EST
Day 390
Mom: Mac had a great time at VBS. He is always the last one to finish eating. He is doing well. Please remember his friend Shaun. He is having surgery on his hand tomorrow. Monica has been sick today. Pray that no one else gets the stomach bug. David will be going to a Citizen Panel Review to hear about Monica's family. I am praying that God will give her a safe and Christian home to live in. Thanks and God Bless
Tuesday, June 14, 2005 10:40 PM EST
Day 389
Today was library day. Once a week we take the kids to get more books. It is the best thing that a parent can do for their children. As a teacher I can usually tell which students had parents that read to them. Mac and Tori love to have books read to them. Monica is increasing in her reading skills by reading daily. Mac had another good night a VBS. As usual it is almost 11 P.M. and we are still trying to get Mac and MOncica to bed. Oh well, at least they are healthy and happy.
May God Bless You
Monday, June 13, 2005 10:24 PM EST
Day 388
The sun was much brighter today and the yard was a lot noisier. They all played a lot outside and wore themselves out. I was blessed with a stomach virus this morning so it has been a long day. I think I am over it but we will have to see what tomorrow holds. Please pray for Mac and his immune system that he can fight off this virus. He usually does better than me about not getting them but with your prayers and God’s grace he will not be sick. Vacation Bible School was tonight. Ashlie was left short a helper (me) but had wonderful help from other church members that said they would help. I did not figure it was a good idea to go down there and infect the church. Mac had a good time and learned about the star that led the wise men to Jesus. I would love to have been in the class because I am sure that he had some comments. He has trouble understanding why we always go to church because he “has already learned about Jesus”. Tori is already asleep so we have 2 more to get to bed.
May God Bless You
Sunday, June 12, 2005 10:22 PM EST
Day 387
Despite all the rain it has been a good day. The kids are itching to get outside to play on dry ground and with a lot of sunshine. I think we are too! Please begin to pray for Mac’s next trip to Egleston the end of this month. We begin another cycle of Decadron (7 days) and Vincristine (2 Fridays) This is the heavy treatment steroid and chemo combination that he has to take about every 16 weeks. The steroids have to ability to produce major mood swings and increase his appetite. The Vincristine can lower his counts severely and produce severe constipation. We will also have a CAT SCAN done on his ear to see if they will be able to correct his hearing. We have not talked about it much if at all but Mac can not hear out of his left ear. There is not an opening. The scan will determine if this can be fixed. Even if the hearing cannot be fixed they will do plastic surgery on his outer ear to make it look like his other one. Please begin to lift him up to God for this upcoming treatment and this procedure on his ear.
May God Bless You
Saturday, June 11, 2005 9:39 PM EST
Day 386
We hand a fabulous day in the mountains today. The weather was not the best but God granted us a rain free day. The kids rode the water slide and played in the pool. Mac played a little Putt-Putt. He makes the rules as he goes. I guarantee that you will lose if you play against him. We also took a paddles boat ride. He wanted dad to go faster and faster but dad was about “fasted” out. Monica was a wild girl on the water slide. We had to drag her off of it when it was time to go. Tori did her “catwalk” dance around the pool. She has no desire to get into the water. She is just fine and happy sitting in a lounge chair and walking around the pool. All in all it was a wonderful relaxing day that we will have to do again soon
May God Bless You
Friday, June 10, 2005 10:22 PM EST
Day 385
It had been 2 weeks since our last CBC so Mac and I loaded up the truck to go an get a finger stick. He did a wonderful job and his counts came back good. They are in the range that they want. His ANC was a 1000 and this is good. He finished off his swimming lesson today. For the most part he has played all day. We have a shallow pool on our back porch and he and Monica spent a good deal of time in it today. Tori, on the other hand, is not interest in getting in the water. I guess she will be a dry land girl. We have another action packed day tomorrow with a trip to the mountains. They are all looking forward to the trip.
May God Bless You
Thursday, June 9, 2005 10:50 PM EST
Day 384
One more day of swimming lesson to go and Mac will have completed one week. Mac had a much better day. Over the past 3 days he has not taken his usual afternoon nap. He broke that cycle tonight when we went to my parent’s house. Riding in a car makes him sleepy and he could not hold on. We will see what time we go to bed tonight. The next several days look good for the weather so we should be able to get a lot of playing in. We were working on Bible School materials tonight and he walked over to the table and told me that the sheet of paper that I had cut was a triangle. I think he is smarter than all of us. Best wishes for the weekend to all.
May God Bless You
Wednesday, June 8, 2005 11:38 PM EST
Day 383
It took me a little while but I finally got to the computer. We have had a wonderful day. Mac did not have the best swimming lessons but none of the other kids really did either. We had MD’s tonight for supper and the gang played hard on the inside play equipment. Even Tori is trying the go down the slide. After church tonight, we all went swimming at Tammy’s. Thank you for opening your heart and your home to our children. I know that no matter how the day has gone that we are in your prayers and that your are petitioning the Father for my family. Thank you! Tonight I had an extra special treat. Mac was worn out and wanted to go to bed so we grabbed 2 books and headed to bed. After reading each book twice my son had fallen to sleep on my shoulder. He is such a mammas boy that I do not get this often but when I do it makes the world seem right. I wonder if God ever had Jesus to fall to sleep on his shoulder. I bet he did because there is no experience like it. It is as if the world is in perfect harmony. All the treatments, sickness, and mood swings are forgotten for that brief moment. There have been numerous songs written about sunsets and rainbows but they all pale in comparison to moments like these. Your prayers are allowing my son to beat this disease called Leukemia. Your prayers are giving me moments like these. I can never express in words my appreciation and my heart felt thanks.
May God Bless You
Tuesday, June 7, 2005 8:17 PM EST
Day 382
As I type the weather is pounding outside so this will be short. Everything is going great and we have all had a super day. Swimming lessons went well. I think Mac is starting to enjoy it.
May God Bless You
Monday, June 6, 2005 8:40 PM EST
Day 381
Let is rain, let it rain, let it rain! We have come through another Georgia thunderstorm. Mac started his swimming lesson today. I think he had a wonderful time. He wanted to do things his own way but that is just like him. He is a little Mr. Independent. Because of the swimming he did not get a nap so he will probably be going to bed soon. This time last year, swimming lessons were not even an option. Later in the evening we went swimming at a friend’s house. Thanks Jim and Jane. It was so wonderful to see Mac in the water playing. My heart wanted to shout for joy. The Lord has blessed us this past year and saw us through some pretty dark days. We give Christ all praise and glory.
May God Bless You
Sunday, June 5, 2005 10:20 PM EST
Day 380
It has been another wonderful day! Sundays are always busy but they are good. The sermon tonight was on finishing the race that God has put forth. Our race has had several critical moments but God has sustained us. Mac is still feeling well and that makes the world a wonderful place.
May God Bless You
Saturday, June 4, 2005 10:33 PM EST
Day 379
We started the day off with a little swim. I say little because the water was ice cold. I am the type that likes the pool water to be like bath water but today was nowhere near. We all sat around the pool and soaked our feet, except for Monica. She was the brave one. That is about all we could stand. We went to Red Lobsters tonight. This was a little treat for Mac, Tori, and Monica for doing such a good job at the wedding. The food was good but Tori is not the best in a restaurant. She wants to see too many things. It has been a good day.
May God Bless You
Saturday, June 4, 2005 8:21 AM EST
Day 378
This is coming to you a little late but it was a long night. We had a wonderful time at the Relay for Life event. It was a blessing to see so many people caring about knocking out cancer. A big thank you to Myers and Sugar Hill for caring about us. Mac had a good time but it took him a little while to warm up to being around so many people. It was a blessing to see so many cancer survivors walk the first lap. Mac was able to walk with PawPaw, Grandly, and Hooper. It was a big event in our lives. We did end up with a problem at the end. We lost Mac. He wondered off and we had a ton of people looking for him. As we were looking they turned off the light so that the candles that were burning in honor and memory of loved ones could be seen. Well, needless to say he had all of us in a panic. We finally found him and asked him why he left us and he said that we had left him. A big lesson was learned and luckily he did not realize the true nature of the problem. He was not crying and was not scared. He found a friend from church and was hanging out with them. Be sure to check out the pictures again. I have updated all of them and have included some from the Relay for Life.
May God Bless You
Thursday, June 2, 2005 10:10 PM EST
Day 377
The weather broke long enough today for us to get Tori outside for a little bit. Mac took another good nap and woke up ready to go to my parent’s house. We went to the library yesterday and everyone got to check out some books. Mac has always loved to read and Tori is following in his footsteps. Mac will soon start swimming lessons. That ought to be a riot. That will be a mommy/son activity. Dad has enough problems of his own in the pool. Before my skin cancer, my idea of swimming was lying out by the pool and getting some sun. I know they will have a great time together. Thank you for all of your prayers.
May God Bless You
Wednesday, June 1, 2005 8:30 PM EST
Day 375/376
Tonight’s entry will be for two nights. They were working on the web page last night and I was unable to update the page. Everything is going well. We heard from the doctor today about going back to the twice a day Bactrim. He said that it would be OK. Our next appointment he will have to be accessed anyway so we might as well start the Bactrim the next month. All of the kids are climbing the walls to out outside. I will be glad to see some sunshine again. Be sure and check out the new pictures. I posted some from the wedding.
May God Bless You
Monday, May 30, 2005 9:50 PM EST
Day 374
Last week was a crazy week but it looks like things are starting to slow down. As I have said, the wedding went well. All of the kids did a beautiful job. I think Tori thought she was in a parade because she was waving as Mac pulled her and Olivia down the isle of the church in the red wagon. Mac is enjoying each day and playing hard. We have asked the doctors to consider putting Mac back on the twice a day antibiotic called Bactrim. There is a little concern that this was making his counts drop. The reason we are asking is that the once a month antibiotic is wonderful except that Mac has to be accessed. He hates to have this done and gets very angry each time. We want to make sure that this is what he really needs. The once a month visits to Egleston could be over in about 10 minutes if he was not having to be accessed. Please pray that the doctors will have the wisdom to make the correct decision concerning this matter. Also, Mac has thrown up the past 2 Tuesdays in a row. Tomorrow is Tuesday. Please pray that he will break this cycle. We are going to give him Zofran tonight and in the morning to help his stomach. The doctors can not give us a reason. I think the Methotrexate that he takes on Friday has switched days and methods of making him sick. Just remember him when you say your prayers.
Sunday, May 29, 2005 11:24 PM EST
Day 373
Everyone is feeling the effects of the long day on Saturday. We all slept in this morning. Everyone is feeling well except for me. This hay is killing me. Oh well, I guess it comes with gettng old. Mac has played well today and is still going on strong.
May God Bless You
Saturday, May 28, 2005 11:13 PM EST
Day 372
With the wedding today it has been a very long day. Mac did a wonderful job! Hopefully we will have some pictures to share with you soon. Mac went to sleep about as soon as his head hit the pillow.
May God Bless You
Friday, May 27, 2005 11:09 PM EST
Day 371
It has been a long day with everyone getting ready for the big wedding. We had a good visit at Egleston. Mac's counts are looking great. He did a wonderful job tonight at the practice for the wedding. I know he will do GREAT tomorrow.
May God Bless You
Thursday, May 26, 2005 10:10 PM EST
Day 370
Tomorrow is another trip to Egleston. This one is a routine CBC and his monthly antibiotic. The only bad side of receiving his antibiotics this way is that they will have to access his port. He still hates to have this done. Today has been a busy day with getting things ready for Abby’s wedding. I took Mac to get our tuxes. He looks so handsome in his. He says that he would rather wear his normal clothes so Saturday may be a hoot trying to get him to wear it for such a long time. Please pray for a good trip tomorrow and a speedy return to home sweat home.
May God Bless You
Wednesday, May 25, 2005 11:32 PM EST
Day 369
Summer is here! We are all excited about the time we will get to spend together. We having a lot of making up to do for last summer. We are busy right now with the final plans for Abby's wedding. Mac has a big role of rolling Tori and Oliva down the aisle in a wagen. Look out below! Mac has not showed any signs of getting sick today so it was a good day.
May God Bless You
Tuesday, May 24, 2005 11:09 PM EST
Day 368
Mac was sick this morning. Tuesdays are pretty rough for some reason. He wants some milk but once he drinks it he will throw it back up. It has happened 2 Tuesdays in a row. Please pray that we can figure this little problem out. Other than that he has felt good all day long. It is a mystery to us but not to God.
May God Bless You
Monday, May 23, 2005 8:42 PM EST
Day 367
We have completed one day of post planning and are heading for number 2. Mac has had a fantastic day. He was excited that Monica was going to be with him today to play, play, and play. Mac’s appetite is still holding strong and his energy levels are still high. He has started to sing all the time. He thinks it is funny. We are going through a stage where he cries about everything. Any thing that does not go just the way he thinks it should will bring on the tears. He also gets very frustrated when he does not get his way. He will grip his hands together and just growl. I hope that he will soon grow out of this phase. As I write this I hear him singing E I E I O so I guess it is time to go and play some more.
May God Bless You
Sunday, May 22, 2005 9:53 PM EST
Day 366
Wow, what a celebration we had at church. We remembered back to a year ago where men meet and prayed for Mac's healing and now we are praising God for that healing. Thanks to all of you for your prayer support. We have had a great day in the Lord. We still have a few hurddles to jump, but we know God will be with us. We will finish 3 days of planning at school and then on for a wedding.
May God Bless
Saturday, May 21, 2005 10:22 PM EDT
Day 365
We have quietly celebrated one year of Mac’s treatment today. It has been a roller coaster ride. May 20, 2004 we took Mac to the doctor because they thought something was not right. God blessed us right from the start with a Nurse Practioner that was thinking of Mac on her day off. The next day we were at Egleston. The fear and anxiety that we had on that day were intense. We had experienced some loving times in our lives but nothing can prepare you for a day like that. The hardest part for me was that I could fix any problem that they seemed to be having. It took 7 tries to get an IV line in place. The agony of having to watch your son be stuck over and over and hear him cry for it to stop is almost unbearable. The thing to remember at this point is that you could not tell he was sick. He got tired quick but that was the only sign other than the blood test. After the official test came back that told us it was Leukemia we had to wait 4 hours for Egleston to type the disease. After the wait we received another blessing and mercy from God. The type he had was the most treatable and has an 80% success rate for full remission. At the hospital we were blessed to be assigned to an angel named Momma Duck. She took care of all of us during this time period and she still does. We have made a friend for life. After these several days in the hospital we were sent home and all the days started to run together. The chemo started to make him sick and eventually made his legs unable to carry himself. Mac spent about 6 weeks in bed. He would get out ever so often to ride the Gator but that was it. The miles we put on that Gator and the tears that were cried were too many to count. In my arms was my son who should be enjoying the summer with mom and dad but instead was clinging on for life. My wife had a hard role to serve during this period. Mac would not let her out of the bed. Even when he did fall asleep he would wake up when she left. It was very emotional on her. I was the medicine man but she was taking care of him every hour. He was very emotional and would not let anyone else in the room. The first 30 days of treatment is very intense and after these 30 days we received more mercy from God, Mac was in remission from the cancer. He has stayed this way over the course of the year. After he started feeling better he had to have Physical Therapy to strengthen his muscles again. This again was another hard process to watch. He would fall and we would urge him on again. At times the jobs of a parent of a sick child can be hard. Over the course of time his walking returned. We were worried at one point because his protocol called for another short delayed intensification period. This is the first 30 days done over again. Toward the end his walking started to become affected again and his doctor made the call to stop the last treatment. Once Mac got to feeling better and his strength returned life started to become almost normal. We still have to watch for fevers and keep him away from certain places when his counts are low but he is doing wonderful. People have often told us that they do not understand how we handle all we have been through. I am not sure that anything can prepare someone for a crisis like this. They only thing I can tell you is that God is faithful. He says in his word that he will not give you any more than you can handle. At times I sure thought he was pretty close to my breaking point. We have been blessed with so many friends that have prayed for us and Mac and this is the reason for Mac’s success. The doctors are good but God is Almighty. He showed us that he was watching from the first phone call from the Nurse Practioner, who is a Christian and God would not allow her peace with the diagnosis. Please do not forget about us this coming year and the years to come. Malachi was a messenger of God. I know that God has something for Mac to do.
Friday, May 20, 2005 10:49 PM EST
Day 364
What a day! We got all of our students on to their summer break and we are looking forward to getting our 3 post-planning days over with. Mac has had a wonderful day. He is so comical. He was dancing tonight. I think he may be ready for Soul Train. He loves to dance and “shake his booty”. My prayers go out to each of our students this summer that they will stay safe and come back in August ready to go again. This time last year we were getting ready for our trip to Egleston to see why Mac’s counts were doing strange things. We had so much fear that I doubt either one of us slept much that night. My personal thoughts were that the doctors were wrong and we would be coming home the next day. Ashlie had her mother’s instinct and thought differently. We were surrounded by our family and friends before it was time to “lay me down to sleep”. Tomorrow I will try and recap our year. I am thankful that this time, this year, we are going to sleep with a very talkative child and we are at peace!
Thanks Tammy for this thought:
FRIENDS ARE ANGELS WHO LIFT US TO OUR FEET WHEN OUR WINGS HAVE
TROUBLE REMEMBERING HOW TO FLY
May God Bless You
Thursday, May 19, 2005 9:34 PM EST
Day 362/363
Sorry for not having the site updated last night. I was unable to get on to the web page for some reason. They have routine repairs on the page sometimes so that may have been the problem. Mac is still having some wonderful days. We are all about finished with school and ready to roll into the summer. We have a four year old prayer warrior on our hands. Mac has been praying sweet prayers. Tonight he asked God to be with him when he gets his counts and to be with him when he gets shots in his port. He prays for everyone and is so thankful for his family. God has truly bless us!
May God Bless You
Tuesday, May 17, 2005 9:20 PM EST
Day 361
We started the morning off a little differently today. Mac got up at about 6 A.M. and appeared to be feeling pretty good. He asked for his milk and then for a refill. He later went back to sleep and at about 6:40 started vomiting. Well, that threw up all kinds of red flags and we made preparations for me to stay home from work. We still are not sure what the problem was but he started feeling better and had a good day. He may have drunk too much milk for that early in the morning or it could have been a virus. When your child is on chemo because of Leukemia he can never be just sick. You are always wondering if it is caused by the medicine or if he will run a fever. Please pray that tomorrow will start off better and finish great.
May God Bless You
Monday, May 16, 2005 9:11 PM EST
Day 360
Mac and Tori both had a difficult morning. Mac did not eat breakfast until late and just lay around. The afternoon was better. He played with his friend Valentin. They were a couple of wild kids on that Gator. I had some business to take care of in town and drove back by the Red Cross building on the way home. For some reason I felt the need to stop. I had only planned on giving blood but they said that they were low on plateletes also. It was not a planned thing but I could not leave without giving. In the beginning of Mac’s treatments he had to receive several units of platelets. These platelets were very important because of the role they play in the body and the fact that the heavy chemo was not allowing his body to produce his own. He also received several units of red blood cells. Without the transfusions his body could not have handled the chemo. If you have time, stop by and give blood. If you have a little more time, schedule an appointment to give platelets. I was able to give platelets and red blood cells in just over an hour. You may never know the life you safe on this side of Heaven but it will be worth it just the same.
Sunday, May 15, 2005 10:52 PM EST
Day 359
Another busy weekend has come and gone and with it the many blessing that we have received. Mac has eaten well today which is unusual since he takes his Methotrexate on Friday. Last night he said a beautiful prayer. He asked that God be with several family members that were not feeling well and even for himself that he would not have to go back to the doctor. He is truly an amazing kid. I know that God has big plans for him. Tori has learned a new trick today. It is called walking. She has been playing around with the idea but today she walked up and down the hall. I think the only reason she fell sometimes was that big old smile that was on her face. Mac and Monica were cheering her on the whole time. The development of a child is a wonderful thing. How people can believe that they have a choice to end future events is beyond me. Each life is a gift from God. We love and thank God for all of our gifts.
May God Bless You
Saturday, May 14, 2005 10:04 PM EST
Day 358
Mac had a wonderful time at a birthday party this afternoon. During the morning he and Monica played in the sandbox for what seemed like forever. Tori took a good first nap but later in the day she would not go back down and just wanted to be cranky. We have all had a good day and Mac did not have the usual nausea that goes with the Methotrexate that he takes on Friday night. Please pray for a good Sunday also. These are usually the two worst days for him.
May God Bless You
Friday, May 13, 2005 10:45 PM EST
Day 357
Everybody’s working for the weekend…Mac was able to experience Field Day at Sugar Hill today and he lived life to the fullest from what I hear. He stayed all day with Ashlie and wore himself out. He took a long late nap so he may never go to sleep tonight. Monica had a wonderful time at the dance. Thank goodness she did not dance with anyone. We do not need any of that nonsense:] Mac went this morning and had his CBC completed at the local doctors office. All of his counts are looking good. His total ANC is in the 900’s so he his still going strong. We celebrated Patriotic Day at Myers today. It is a chance to teach the kids about our wonderful country. Because of the freedoms we have, there are doctors in this country that are helping Mac. There are great minds of all nationalities but America has the resources to put these great minds to work for the good of its people. God has truly blessed America. I hope that we hall thank him for his goodness and his mercy. A man that does not think he needs mercy has never looked in the mirror and saw a true reflection.
May God Bless You
Thursday, May 12, 2005 9:41 PM EST
Day 356
Another night and we are all still trying to get in bed. We have a busy weekend planned but I am sure that we will be able have a lot of fun. Monica has her big 5th grade dance tomorrow so she is excited. I told her that I would be there to make sure no boys tried to talk to her. Mac has had a good day but was a little emotional tonight. He gets this way sometimes and the only person he wants is his mom. Tori is a spitfire. She has the prettiest smile in the world but behind those eyes is trouble in the good sort of way. Tomorrow we will have a CBC done locally so we know where Mac stands on his counts. They should all be OK but it is always nice to see the report that makes it official. I hope that everyone has a wonderful weekend.
May God Bless You
Wednesday, May 11, 2005 11:00 PM EST
Day 355
Its late and I have just got through painting a bathroom. Mac has enjoyed today. Some of the things he says is wild. At times I think he has a higher vocabulary than me. He makes us laugh by the way he looks at a situation and the comments he makes. He is playing hard outside the way a little boy should.
May God Bless You
Tuesday, May 10, 2005 8:54 PM EST
Day 354
The days are getting longer. I think God knows that kids like to play and need more sunshine in the summer. It is going to be wonderful when the summer break arrives. Mac has had a super day with the exception that he did not take a nap on schedule. Tori is sleeping well again. Monica can sleep through about anything. Mac is once again riding his Gator all over Gods green earth. Life is good.
May God Bless You
Monday, May 9, 2005 10:03 PM EST
Day 353
I found out yesterday that I have been spelling Copelan’s name wrong. Sorry! I never said I was the best speller. I guess you have figured that out by some of the journals. My mind and my fingers do not always get together. We have had a busy day but it has been good. Mac is still feeling well and that makes any kind of day great. Best wishes to all.
May God Bless You
Sunday, May 8, 2005 8:31 PM EST
Day 352
I had a great Mother's Day. I hope all the other ladies did too. I think Mother's Day and other holidays are a little more special since cancer has hit our child. I also got an extra special gift this year from Monica. Monica bought me a necklace that was a perfect fit. She picked it out herself. I always told David I wanted 3 children. I have 3 for at least a little while. I'm not sure how long hopefully a long, long time. We had a great day spending time with grandparents and great grandparents. We love you all so much. I am proud David and I have such wonderful families. Lots of love and blessings.
Saturday, May 7, 2005 8:57 PM EST
Day 351
We have had a wonderful but busy day. Mac and Monica had a birthday day party to go to and Tori had to go to a wedding shower. Happy birthday Coplain! Both Mac and Monica had a wonderful time at the party. Coplain got a trampoline for his birthday and they all enjoyed jumping on it. They were so funny making Jordon bounce up and down on it. It seemed as it Monica may jump over the side protection fence. One the way back home Mac fell asleep and did not get up until 7:30 so we may never go to sleep tonight. Tomorrow is Mother’s Day. I wish all the mothers a very happy day. I have a wonderful mother, grandmother in-law, mother-in-law, and my wife is following in the same great footsteps. There are a lot of women at Egleston that my not have children of their own but they are wonderful mothers to all of their children at the clinic. We thank all of them for taking care of Mac so well.
May God Bless You
Friday, May 6, 2005 11:00 PM EST
Day 350
God has blessed us with another beautiful day. Mac has played hard today. He is such a big boy. His Gator had not been running right so pappa and I fixed it today. He was so excited to have the reverse gear working. He thanked us several times for that. It has been a rough day at school. People see a teacher as someone that has the summers off. Teachers see themselves as someone that can change the future of a child. I have several students that concern me and I do not feel like I have made a difference in their lives. It breaks my heart to think what the future may hold for them. Eleven years old and ready to conquer the world. If they would only take a moment to be a child but for a lot of them circumstances has stole that childhood. Please pray for them. We work with Mac daily to share God’s world with him. He is greatly loved and cherished as is Tori and Monica. For God so loved…
May God Bless You
Thursday, May 5, 2005 10:02 PM EST
Day 349
The weather was strange today but we were able to play outside. The circus tonight was not the best. I guess you could say that is was the worse. The content of the show was not for kids. The man on the high wire was actually faking being drunk. We left early. Everyone is feeling fine except we are still trying to get to bed. Mac is still full of personality and having good days.
May God Bless You
Wednesday, May 4, 2005 9:53 PM EST
Day 348
Another Wednesday has come and gone. Each day is still a blessing. Mac has had a good day and I think a good night at church. Being a teacher allows me to truly express a heart for children and to show this love each day. Every child is a blessing and all are loved by God. I wish the world could grasp this concept. We do not have to do the 3 day stays any more and I am grateful for this but at the same time we miss the wonderful friends at Egleston. Mac’s friend Jose is almost finished with his treatments. He will be getting his “new” leg because they had to amputate one of his because of a tumor. He is excited about being able to walk and hopes to be able to walk at his Middle School graduation. He is one of the nicest kids I have ever met. Please pray for him. He loves Mac to death and asks about him each time we see him. We are going to take him rabbit hunting as soon as the season opens back up. It will be good to see him walking around looking for that rabbit. We go to the circus tomorrow. Everyone is excited. It should be another blessed day.
May God Bless You
Tuesday, May 3, 2005 9:51 PM EST
Day 347
Mac was able to see his cousins early this week. Beau, Coplain, Monica, and Mac played all over the yard. Beau and Mac were riding buddies on Mac’s Gator. From watching them I think we all need to pray for the day they begin to drive. Jordon was the wonderful “mother” and helped Mac during supper time. Today was my colored hair day at Myers. We had a little contest so see which of about 7 teachers could raise the most money for March of Dimes. Well, I think the whole school had it in for me. I also think that I need to review the accountant procedures of a fellow teacher named Alison. I think I was set up. Oh well! Anything that can raise money for children is worth it. Tori did not know what to think about my hair. She just looked and smiled. I will have a picture soon. Monica checked out the middle school today. I think she is a little excited about next year.
May God Bless You
Monday, May 2, 2005 10:06 PM EST
Day 346
Everyone has had a great day. All the kids appear to be feeling well and this makes for great play days. Mac is for sure not lacking in the personality department and I think Tori will not be too far behind him. We are going to a circus on this Thursday. Mac, Tori, and Monica all love the circus. I know we will have a blast.
May God Bless You
Sunday, May 1, 2005 9:49 PM EST
Day 345
It has been a busy day and I think we all be ready to go to bed. Mac took a late nap so we may be up for a while. Tori is already fast asleep. Three more weeks until the summer fun starts. We are still giving Mac the breathing treatments and the results seem to be positive. I think by the end of the week we will really be able to tell a difference.
May God Bless You
Saturday, April 30, 2005 9:24 PM EST
Day 344
Mac was in a much better mood today. He is back to playing and having a good time. We are continuing on with the breathing treatments and I think they may be making a difference. It is a little early to tell for sure but he does not appear to have as bad of a cough. Tori is all over the house on her knees. She will walk when you are holding her hand and she has taken a couple of steps on her own. I think if she would ever try walking she would really enjoy it! Monica has helped me out with Tori today at the car wash. She said Tori was just waving while I was washing the car. Best wishes to all.
May God Bless You
Friday, April 29, 2005 10:26 PM EST
Day 343
Today has been a very intense day. Mac’s counts looked good. His ANC had dropped back to 840. This puts him back in the target range that they want him to stay at. I sometimes wonder if God allows his counts to go up at certain times because he knows that he needs to fight off some type of infection. We will never know this side of Heaven but I do know for certain that his hand is on Mac. The LP had its complications today. The actual procedure went off without a hitch but it was the recovery that had problems. The sedation medicine started to have adverse side affects such as a very stubborn mood. We could not get him to lie down for the 15 required minutes. He was kicking, crying, and uncontrollable. The nurse almost had to give him the reversal medicine to get him to calm down. This would have added 2 more hours onto our visit. Instead, she made an educated decision and was correct. In a few minutes we were able to get him calmed down and we were soon on our way back home. The afternoon has had its ups and downs. The medicine has slowly worn off but he was very tired and had NO patience. Like father, like son. Thank you for all of your prayers. We have started him back on breathing treatments for possible allergies. We are hoping that this will help his cough.
May God Bless You
Thursday, April 28, 2005 9:32 PM EST
Day 342
The kids have all played well today. It was a beautiful day and we all made the best of it. Tomorrow is a big day for Mac. We report to Egleston tomorrow morning at 9 A.M. to have the LP completed. Please pray that Mac is able to handle the fast and also handle the sedation. At times he has trouble with the sedation so please lift him up. Prayerfully we will have a wonderful day tomorrow. Tori is walking more and more so I hope that it will not be much longer before she is walking on her own.
May God Bless You
Wednesday, April 27, 2005 9:29 PM EST
Day 341
Another busy Wednesday has came and gone and we are trying to get to bed. Mac is wired and playing with his trains. Mac was sick again this morning. We think that it is drainage from his cold but he does not realize this so he thinks that he needs a Zofran. Friday is fast approaching for his scheduled LP. Please remember us in your prayers.
May God Bless You
Tuesday, April 26, 2005 7:56 PM EST
Day 340
Let it rain, let it rain, let it rain. The good thing about the rain it that is washes everything clean. Mac had to go and get sized for his tux today for Jonan and Abby’s wedding. He did a wonderful job, just like a big boy. Tori is still getting fussy at night and her ears are still draining. She did sleep well last night so that was a plus. Eighteen more days of school and the summer cannot come quick enough. Mac is still getting car sick when we go about anywhere. We are going to discuss this with Egleston on Friday.
May God Bless You
Monday, April 25, 2005 9:20 PM EST
Day 339
With my wife and her writing abilities I guess tonight will seem normal. I am truly blessed to have Ashlie. Mac has had a better day but the mornings are still a little slow. We spoke with Egleston and they are not really concerned unless he starts to run a fever which he has not. They did suggest that we give him a Claritan (sp) to help with the drainage. I went back to the doctor today to have my stitches removed and to get the results of the pathology report. The report was good and it appears that they got all of the cancer removed. Thank you God for this blessing. Tori is still a little fussy bucket but she is already in bed. She woke up this morning at 5:45 so our morning was a little rushed. Mac got up about 6:15 so we just had a family time this morning. Anyone that has kids knows that when the kids get up and you have not planned on it the morning can be a real adventure. They are so precious. It is these moments that you wish you could just call in to work and go to the mountains or a park and spend the day with them. Thank you for all of your prayers. If I ever did win a million dollars I would not be concerned about what I would buy. I would be planning all the time I could with my family.
May God Bless You
Sunday, April 24, 2005 9:16 PM EST
Day 338
Well today did not go according to planned. Mac was supposed to go to a birthday party, but did not get to go. He has been coughing and we did not want to get him out in the cold. There was going to be blow up things to jump on. Which would be right up Mac's alley. We were afraid he would get hot and it being cold plus a cold already would not be good. Tori's ears have been draining some and she has a horrible cough and green nose. Monica is doing well. She has been in a great mood all week. Tonight maybe lengthy but I have to share some things. A few months ago I was impressed to share about the blessings in my life, but never did. Tonight's sermon was on obedience-thanks Jonan.
Blessings (from Ashlie)
1. I was born in a Christian home.
2. My parents were faithful in being examples of the importance of Jesus Christ in our family.
3. I have had the blessing of having grandparents and even great-grandparents.
4. I have two sisters.
5. I started going to Harmony Hall at 3 years old.
6. I got involved in the youth group at Harmony-which is where my faith in Christ was also challenged.
7. I began dating David in highschool.
8. We were married in 1995.
9. I began teaching in 1999 at Myers, there is no sweeter staff around.
10. 2001, Mac was born a whole 9 lbs.
11. August 2002, Christ saved our marriage and brought our family closer together.
12. 2002, I started teaching at Sugar Hill, which sent many wonderful friends.
13. 2004, God gave us the happiest little girl-Tori. (8 1/2 lbs.)
14. May 2004, Mac was diagnosed with Leukemia. The type that is the most curable.
15. Feb. 2005, God sent Monica into our lives.
This is just a few. Each day God blesses us with some trials and with truimphs. Take time today to look at the blessings in your life and thank Him for each one. Sometimes it is harder to find but I promise you will have many blessings each day. Our lives are so busy sometimes we take for granted the so called small blessings.Sorry for the length and hope it makes you stop and think of your life's blessings. Please pray for Mac. He has been sick at his stomach this week. We are going to call AFLAC and see if we need to do anything. David goes to get his stitches out tomorrow and find out about his skin cancer spot.
Many Blessings
Saturday, April 23, 2005 10:47 PM EST
Day 337
Mac and Monica went to a Magic show this morning and had a good time. It has been a long day for Mac. He missed his nap this afternoon because he would not slow down and we felt the results tonight. He has a lot more patience when he gets his nap. The weather is suppose to be cold tomorrow but I sure would love to have one of those pretty and warm days that we have had this past week. The kids do so much better when they can get outside and play. Since I still have 2 of the 3 up I guess that is enough for tonight.
May God Bless You
Friday, April 22, 2005 9:53 PM EST
Day 336
Mac was in a much better mood today even though he wanted to be carried into the house this morning. He also asked for another Zofran. With Mac you can never know for sure what he is thinking. As soon as he had the medicine in his mouth he said that he was feeling better. Zofran is good but not that good. The rains washed away any chance of afternoon playtime but the morning was filled with fun. Hopefully we will see the sun this weekend. Be sure and check out the new pictures.
May God Bless You
Thursday, April 21, 2005 8:27 PM EST
Day 335
This week is finally about over with. The testing week is always a rough week for everyone involved. Mac had a little spell on nausea and wanting to go back to bed this morning. He asked for a Zofran which is very unusual. As the day progressed things got better. Next Friday we will go back to Egleston for another Lumbar Puncture (LP). They will inject more chemo up his spinal column. We will have these several more times throughout the treatment but they are spaced far apart. Please begin to pray for him. He will have to fast and will have to be sedated. The sedation is always a tricky part of the procedure because it seems to work differently every time he has it. I will go back on Monday to have my stitches removed and to discuss the Pathology report. I hope that everyone has a wonderful weekend.
May God Bless You
Wednesday, April 20, 2005 9:19 PM EST
Day 334
Tonight was race night at church. The kids made cars out of wood. Monica one one race and Mac one several too. Everyone is doing well. My younger sister is getting married and all the kids are in the wedding. This is definitely a prayer request. Mac is supposed to pull Tori and Olivia down the aisle in a wagon. Monica will be handing out programs. What excitement!! Mac is growing up so much. He is really becoming a little man. He likes to walk in to Gigi's in the morning by himself. Everything is by himself. The independence comes from his daddy. This has been a blessing over the last year when he has needed to be so brave and fight. Please support Relay for Life some how. Our whole family is walking. Thanks Myers team for really showing your support to our family. We can't wait to see you.
May God send you Many Blessings
Ashlie
Tuesday, April 19, 2005 9:01 PM EST
Day 333
It is time for the garden to get planted again and that means that it is time for Mac to start riding on the tractor. He would love to drive it all by himself but I think that will be several more years to come. Momma Duck came to help with the garden. She is such blessing to see and fellowship with. Mac was too busy doing other things to talk to her too much. Sometimes he gets in those moods. Tori did not sleep well last night. I am not really sure why, but she was up off and on most of the night. Hopefully tonight will be a much better night. The week of testing is about half over with and we will all be glad when Friday gets here. Continue to remember Monica as she takes her test. Best wishes to all of our family and friends. We are really looking forward to this summer coming up. About he only thing for sure that is planned is spending as much time with the kids as possible.
May God Bless You
Monday, April 18, 2005 9:16 PM EST
Day 332
Monday has come and gone and the fun keeps coming. Laughter is definitely the best medicine. The kids have played outside for most of the day. They should sleep well tonight. Mac is not showing any signs of slowing down. If you did not know his story you would not be able to tell what all he has gone through. The prayers of the saints do make a difference. Mac even took a nap in his own bed today. I am not sure how you pulled it off mom but how about sharing the secret. He has already let us know that he will be with us tonight in his primary king size bed. He is such a sight to behold.
May God Bless You
Sunday, April 17, 2005 9:00 PM EST
Day 331
Sundays are a very special day. Mac has had a super day. Tori had a slow start but got to acting better later in the day. She stayed home this morning from church because she was so fussy. From the sounds of it she is ready for bed. My head is still feeling OK from where they removed the skin cancer. Pray for Monica this week as the school systems begin the CRCT testing week. It is a hard time for the kids and the teachers.
May God Bless You
Saturday, April 16, 2005 9:25 PM EST
Day 330
The morning started off cool but warmed up to a very enjoyable afternoon. Today and yesterday Mac has been pulled on a snow sled behind a lawnmower. He and Tori both loved it. It is full to see him and Tori on it together. He holds on to his sister while they both enjoy the ride. I think he is going to be a wonderful big brother. Later today, Mac and Monica rode the sled behind the Gator. Mac had his counts checked on Friday. They were all OK. They were actually a little bit too high in the good sense. I know it sounds strange but they do not want his counts to get too high. If they do they would increase his amount of chemo. We have seen this before and the next time they were checked they had went down. I hope that everyone has a wonderful day at church tomorrow.
May God Bless You
Friday, April 15, 2005 10:15 PM EST
Day 329
Todays was what life and family are about. We were able to play outside and have a great time. Mac had a wonderful day and is eating wonderful. The removal of my skin cancer went well. I now have 6-7 stitches on the side of my head. I look like I have been in a boxing match. The doctor said everything looked fine but they did send the tissue off to be checked. Thank you for your prayers. I hope that everyone has a wonderful weekend.
May God Bless You
Thursday, April 14, 2005 9:15 PM EST
Day 328
Another week is about over with and we are still enjoying the blessings of the Lord. Mac is still feeling great. Mac and Tori went to school today to see Monica receive her Advance certificate. I think they all had a good time. I go tomorrow to have my skin cancer removed. It should be a simple procedure but I still would rather not have it done. Thank you as always for all of your prayers.
May God Bless You
Wednesday, April 13, 2005 9:18 PM EST
Day 327
Everything has gone well today. The rain has washed away a lot of the junk in the air that causes people not to feel well, it has watered the things of God’s creation, and it has made us look forward to another sunny day. Mac has had a wonderful day. Gigi was telling him about preschool today and he told her that he was not going. He had to stay there with her and Tori. It will be an interesting time next year. Friday I go back to the doctor to have the skin cancer removed. I guess it is like cutting the bad part out of the apple. Pray that everything will go well. It is a weird feeling having something on your body that can cause harm and that was not invited. Each day is a blessing spent with my family. We all cannot wait until summer.
May God Bless You
Tuesday, April 12, 2005 8:29 PM CDT
Day 326
Praise the Lord! The spinter is out. Nurse Mom got it out. Mac has had a great day. He told me we were best friends. Tori continues to take a few steps. We went to visit Olivia tonight. Mac played peek-a-boo with her. We get counts done Friday so pray they will continue to be good. Please pray for Monica and the CRCT. Lots of love and blessings.
The Collins Bunch
Tuesday, April 12, 2005 9:08 PM EST
Day 325
Today has been a really good day. We have had a lot of outside fun and actually have everyone going to bed at a decent time. We were able to get the splinter out of Mac's foot today so that is a blessing. I hope the rains do not stay too long because they sure love to play in the sun.
May God Bless You
Monday, April 11, 2005 9:57 PM EST
Day 324
Wow, it was hard going back to work today. Tori took a few steps last night. She thought it was so funny. Mac walked home today from Gigi's by himself. David was waiting for him and he told David to get back in the house he could do this by himself. Mr. Independent. Where does he get this from? Mac has a big splinter in his foot we are working on. Pray we get this out soon. It could get infected easily.
Thank you and God Bless
Sunday, April 10, 2005 9:21 PM EST
Day 323
Well it is time to get back in the swing of things. Work. Tori has gotten so attached this week. So pray for Gigi. She may have a hard week. Mac has been eating better the last couple of days. Pray for Monica. She has to take the CRCT in a couple of weeks and has to pass it to go to the 6th grade. Pray that our absences from school has not hurt our students to much. Third and fifth graders will have to pass the test to be promoted. Our pastor preached on raising your child. I prayed so hard that I would be the mother that God has directed me to be- not just a good one but a Godly one. I want my children to see Jesus when they see me. They see us first thing in the morning and last before they go to sleep. What do they see? Oh, God I pray it is Jesus. What a job we have laid in front of us with Monica. She has really had a hard life. Pray she will see Jesus in us also. Thank you and we love you.
God Bless
Saturday, April 9, 2005 10:30 PM EST
Day 322
Mac had a wonderful day. Mac and Monica went to Memaw's today. We also decorated the kid's bathroom in jungle. Mac loved it. He thanked Monica for fixing the bathroom for him and said she did a great job. Thanks for all your prayers and keep them coming. Have a wonderful day in the Lord.
God bless you all
Friday, April 8, 2005 9:05 PM EDT
Day 321
ChuckECheese's was great. Mac got car sick on the way and threw up all over him and Papa. They both had to buy a new shirt. Welcome to the world of cancer. It is never a dull moment yet you cherish each one. Everyone had a great time. Mac loved the Skee Ball. Tori and Olivia loved the fire truck. Monica loved the games. We also had a wonderful visitor to share in our fun. Mama Duck! Thanks for coming and helping us have a good time. We all had to play games. Mac has not been eating well. Today he actually ate three meals. Aunt Mary, the Nemo pajamas will be worn out soon. Mac thinks he has to wear them every night and sometimes when he takes a nap. We love you all.
God Bless
Friday, April 8, 2005 11:08 AM EST
Day 320
Sorry for being late but I lost the internet last night during the storm. Everything is going well. I will let Ashlie tell you tonight about our trip to the pizza place.
May God Bless You
Wednesday, April 6, 2005 9:39 PM EDT
Day 319
Mac has had another good day. He started off very slow this morning. He said he was tired. Probably from not getting in bed early enough. Tonight we are going to bed earlier because tomorrow is ChuckECheese day. Monica, Mac, and Tori had a great time at INK. We will post pictures of our fun this week soon. (That's David's job.) We are celebrating Mac's pottying tomorrow. Mac and Monica also went to play with their friends Kayleigh, Megan, Austin, and Hunter. We hope you have had a great day. Happy Birthday David.
God Bless
Tuesday, April 5, 2005 11:30 PM EST
Day 318
I think we have all had a fun day in the sun. Mac, Tori, and Monica went to play at INK today. To hear the stories they had a wonderful time. We have been getting a big kick out of what we call Mac’s word of the week: actually: He uses this word all the time and uses it correctly. It is a little scary. He is also starting asking why about everything. It is funny to see him go through this stage. Right now it is late and we have 2 still to get bed so I will tell you more stories tomorrow.
May God Bless You
Monday, April 4, 2005 9:30 PM EST
Day 317
Fun in the sun was the words for today. Everyone has played themselves out. I think tomorrow will be the same. We have started that never ending job of working in the flower gardens. Tori went for her shots today. She was able to get all of her shots. We are enjoying our Spring Break and everyone is getting a tone of exercise. Monica is getting to be a real pro at cutting the grass.
May God Bless You
Sunday, April 3, 2005 Late
Day 316
Day light savings time has really messed us up. The kids showed up at church for Sunday School when it was actually time for preaching. I was working on the bills last night and forgot to update the journal. Sorry! Everything is going well. We are looking for a great week. We are going to Chucky-Cheese this week because Mac is doing such a good job with the whole poopy thing. Tori was feeling a little rough yesterday morning but make a great recovery. She goes today to have some of her 1 year shots today. She was sick at the last appointment and was unable to get them. The sun it up bright and I see a full day outside today.
May God Bless You
Saturday, April 2, 2005 8:47 PM EST
Day 315
Well David thinks I have totally lost it. At 15 till 9, I sat the Little People village up for Mac and Moncia to play. (There is a lot of little figures and places.) Oh well. We have had a very good day besides the fact we were out of power for about 5 hours. Mac has been in very good spirits. He wanted to go outside so bad today. It seems he has finally mastered the potty and Tori only took 2 bottles. The past couple of weeks have been very stressful for all of us. I believe that my focus has been on my stress instead of on Jesus. I know we should praise Him in every situation, so please pray that we will honor God. He has brought us so far. Thank you Jesus and thank you everyone. We are looking forward to a restful and fun spring break. Please lift up Jesus Christ tomorrow.
May God Bless You
Friday, April 1, 2005 10:07 PM EST
Day 314
Mac had a good office visit today. His counts were all great. The main count that we watch now is his ANC and it was a 1500. Anything below 500 puts him in isolation so were are very blessed. Thank you for your prayers. At one point today I caught myself as the girl in the Bible that was at the house that was praying for Peter. They were praying for Peter’s safety and that he would get out of prison. Well God answered their prayers and Peter came to their house and she would not let him in because she did not believe that it was Peter. God definitely answered prayers with his counts. Forgive me Lord for a lack of faith. We go back again to Egleston on April 29 for an LP. This is where they will inject chemo into his spine. This is always tricky since he has to fast for this procedure. Thank you for everything.
May God Bless You
Thursday, March 31, 2005 9:25 PM EST
Day 313
We go from the glorious sun to the blessed showers. I guess the one complements the other and makes both of them special. Mac did a wonderful job in Ashlie’s classroom today. I was able to watch the video tape and it was adorable. Tomorrow we go back to Egleston for a checkup. They will have to give him an antibiotic that will take an hour to take. This is the only bad part of not taking the Bactrime every night. Everyone is doing well and looking forward to spring break.
May God Bless You
Wednesday, March 30, 2005 11:03 PM EST
Day 312
Wednesday is a rather busy day of the week. When the sun is out it seems that we are always running just a little bit behind. Mac has had a wonderful day. He is getting to be so independent. He is trying to dress himself and take care of baby Tori. Tomorrow is a big day for him. He is going to Ashlie’s class at school to tell them about his port. I imagine he will be a “hard” teacher tomorrow. I am sure he will tell someone that they should not be talking when he is talking. I would love to see it. Tori broke her sleeping streak last night. She was up and down all night. She was very tired tonight so we are hoping that she will get back on track.
May God Bless You
Tuesday, March 29, 2005 9:40 PM EST
Day 311
Spring is in the air. The sun was wonderful today and the kids were able to enjoy it. Mac had a hard sleep today so he was a little moody after his nap but he finally snapped out of it and played hard. Three more days until spring break. We cannot wait. We go back for another CBC this Friday. This is just a check-up so we should not be there long. If you have not seen them, check out the new pictures.
May God Bless You
Monday, March 28, 2005 8:01 PM EST
Day 310
It is a little calmer outside tonight. The rain sure does make for some good sleeping weather. Everyone slept all night so it was a good night. Mac is doing much better with the pooping. He actually got out of the tub tonight to use the bathroom. That is called great progress. We are getting closer to a much brighter day. The little boy is growing up. God is really blessing with the health of our kids. Everyone is feeling well and getting to play outside on every pretty day. We should have a wonderful spring break next week.
May God Bless You
Sunday, March 27, 2005 9:20 PM EST
Day 309
The weather is horrible outside so this one will be short. Everyone has had a great day and is still healthy. It has been a busy day but it is good to be healthy so we can be busy. I hope that everyone had a good church service today. Christ is the answer to the problems of the world.
May God Bless You
Saturday, March 26, 2005 9:54 PM EST
Day 308
It was good to have the day off with the kids. We went and had pictures taken this morning and shopped a little at the Mall of Georgia. The afternoon was filled with coloring eggs and getting ready for the Easter Bunny. I and my family would like to wish each of you a very blessed Easter. The fact that Christ rose on that third day is the reason for our hope and our healings. I have never been one to keep a diary but over the last 308 days I have seen the results of belonging to a risen Savior. Everything is still going well with Mac’s treatments, Tori is still all over the house, and Monica is doing wonderful.
May God Bless You
Friday, March 25, 2005 10:25 PM EST
Day 307
Everyone was able to play outside today and wear themselves out. All of the kids are doing well as we get forward for this Easter weekend. Thank you for all of your prayers and concerns.
May Gdo Bless You
Thursday, March 24, 2005 9:00 PM EST
Day 306
Today was absolutely beautiful. The kids were able to play for the most part of the day before we went to see my parents and their cousins. They always have a wonderful time. Mac, Tori, and Monica are doing well and all are healthy. I received the results from the biososy that was done on a spot on the side of my head. The results were positive for skin cancer. I guess too many trips to the tanning beds and the beach. I believe that the type I have is called Basal Cell Carcinoma. I have got to go back on April 15th to have the cancer cut out. I have not spoke with the doctor about the results of the test so that is about all I know. I will keep you informed. Please continue to pray for Mac’s treatments and that he stays healthy. Lift me up also as we see what is in store.
May God Bless You
Wednesday, March 23, 2005 11:15 PM EST
Day 305
The weather was much better today so Mac and Tori were able to play outside. The exercise and fresh air does both of them some good. Egleston told us today that they did not feel like there was a need to have a CBC done this Fridy. They said that if they change their mind they would call back. I hope that everyone can stay healthy during this Easter weekend. Monica is working hard on her ADVANCE project. I think she will have the best in the class. Continue to pray for God’s hand on Mac’s treatments and that he will continue to have full remission. Things are going great now and we pray that this continues.
May God Bless You
Tuesday, March 22, 2005 9:44 PM EST
Day 304
Today has been the same. Mac and Tori woke up in a little bit of a mood but as the day progressed things got better. Tori went down early tonight because she took an early nap. Hopefully she will sleep better tongiht than she did last night. We have been working on an ADVANCE project with Monica. Mac wants to help also. I think he is ready to start homework. I am not sure that Monica is ready for Mac's kind of help. :] Everything is still going well with the treatments.
May God Bless You
Monday, March 21, 2005 8:42 PM EST
Day 303
The weather has not been bad today and that is always a blessing. Mac has been able to play with Monica and Tori outside this afternoon. Things are going well. Mac is trying to say his ABC’s and Tori is trying to play her toy piano. We are still hoping that his counts stay up. Today has been crazy and we have not had a chance to call Egleston to make sure that they want us to have his counts checked. I really hope they want to know where we stand because it would be a huge peace of mind if we knew.
May God Bless You
Sunday, March 20, 2005 9:25 PM EST
Day 302
Today has been a good Sunday. Everyone is feeling well and ready to start another week. We are hoping that Mac’s counts stay high enough so he can visit family and friends this coming Easter weekend. I believe that we are going to have counts done on Friday to make sure that his ANC is still above 500. Please pray that they are.
May God Bless You
Saturday, March 19, 2005 10:27 PM EST
Day 301
Today has been a wonderful day! We all went to an Easter egg hunt this morning and then we had Tori’s birthday party this afternoon. Mac has had a great day even though he did not have a nap. He fell asleep tonight when he was laying on the bed waiting for his bath. Tori was a sight to see at her party. She had a marvelous time. Thanks to everyone that came. Tori fell asleep right after the party so she has not had any time to play with her new toys. Mamma Duck, if you read this your hot pickles were a hit. Everyone loved them. I think we are all getting well so hopefully we will have a good week.
May God Bless You
Friday, March 18, 2005 9:09 PM EST
Day 300
The weekend has finally arrived. It has been a long week but it looks like the kids are finally getting better. I know that at school we have a lot of sickness going around so continue to pray for Mac. We do not need to bring anything home from school. His blood counts today were decent but they are dropping due to him coming off of the steroids. His platelets were in the 200 thousands which is good and his hemoglobin was in the 12’s which again is good. The story is the WBC and his ANC. His WBC has dropped to a 1.19 and his ANC has dropped from a 1500 to the 800’s. Remember that the 500 mark is where we have to isolate him from almost all outside contact, except for family. He is feeling well as is shown by running all over the house. Tomorrow is Tori’s 1 year Birthday Party! We had to have it late because of Mac being on steroids. It is hard to believe that she is a year old. So much water has gone under the bridge this past year. She has been a trooper through it all. I made a lot of mistakes when Mac was young that I wish I could have changed. It is a scary thing to be responsible for a life. This time around I think that I have got it right with Tori. An old friend once told me that having children was the most wonderful thing in the world. I think I have said it before but that is a statement that can not be fully understood until you rock your children to sleep and see that smile that is the peace of God on their life or have them so sick that they are totally dependent on you. Parenting is definitely a job that is easy to become but one that takes work to be good at it.
May God Bless You
Thursday, March 17, 2005 8:40 PM EST
Day 299
Today has been a day of sick kids getting better. Tori did not have the best day because she starting developing a rash on her body. We are not sure what it is all about so please pray that it goes away. Mac has not run a temperature all day so that is a praise. We sure do have a lot going on. I went to the doctor today to have a place cut off the side of my head. As usual, they are going to send it off for a biopsy so please pray for the result of this test. This appears to be the standard procedure when they remove something. I will find out the official test result Wednesday or Thursday next week. We have about got Mac off all the Resperdale medicine. Tomorrow morning will probably be his last dose. Your prayers have saw us through this steroid cycle. Thank you!
May God Bless You
Wednesday, March 16, 2005 7:54 PM EST
Day 298
The morning did not go well for Mac. He felt terrible and wanted his mommy. Ashlie eventually took him to Egleston. They did test for strep (never had to spell this word before, hope it is right) and X-rayed his chest and both of those produced good results. They believe it is a virus. We are watching his temperature and praying for the best. The steroid he was on appears to be helping him. His counts are still high so his body is able to do a little fighting. God has a way of making the little things into big things. The steroids are a battle but this time was God’s timing and he used the steroids to help him fight this infection. Please pray that he will continue to feel better. Tori is doing much better. She has not had a fever all day. Praise God! Please pray that this virus leaves Monica, Ashlie, and me alone.
May God Bless You
Tuesday, March 15, 2005 8:14 PM EST
Day 297
Today has been an interesting day. Tori is still running a fever so we are not sure what to think. Mac is still doing well even though we are still working on the poopy thing. We are sure praying that Tori will feel better tomorrow. It is hard not see her happy and smiling. We are still weaning Mac off the Respirdale and this will last for a couple more days. Please pray that he does not catch what Tori has. If he runs a 102 fever like she did he is going to the hospital no questions asked. Your prayers are the only thing that will keep this from happening.
May God Bless You
Monday, March 14, 2005 9:24 PM EST
Day 296
Hello, everyone. I hope you all had a great day. Mac is doing much better. His personality is coming back to his old self. Tori is a little better. She has sore throat, but it is not strep. Tori can not have her MMR shot because Mac has leukemia. Sometimes you think life will not ever be the same. To Aunt Sandee, Katee, Lynn, and Uncle Reggie. Thanks for sending Mac stuff through the mail all the time. He was especially excited there was stuff for Monica. Keep up the prayers. We love you all.
May God Bless
Sunday, March 13, 2005 8:33 PM EST
Day 295
Well it has been a day at the Collins' house today. Mac is still having some mood swings, so he did not go to church. Tori is running a fever, so she did not go to church. Monica and I went to Sunday school this morning. Please pray that Mac will not get a fever. That probably means a hospital stay. Pray that Tori feels better. Monica has visitation this week - pray for her. Tori turned the big ONE today. Happy Birthday, Baby Tori. We hope you have had a great day in the Lord. Thank you bunches.
God Bless
Ashlie
Saturday, March 12, 2005 10:57 PM EST
Day 294
Today has been about the same. Mac has been very bossy today but at the same time he has had a good day. We know that it will take several days for the steroids to get out of his body. I had to go out of town today but when I got back he was ready to see his dad. He about talked my ear off. It was GREAT. Continue to pray for us to deal the most appropriate way with the moods.
May God Bless You
Friday, March 11, 2005 9:44 PM EST
Day 293
Mac had a pretty good visit at Egleston today. He always hates to go, especially when he is on Decadron. We got the last dose of Vincristine in him through his port and finally worked our way back home. I did not think we were going to be able to leave the hospital. The gift shop had a fake garden in its display with live rabbits in it. We told Mac that he could look through the window but that the store was closed. He lay down beside the glass and said that he would wait for them to open up. I was a little worried at this point since the gift shop would not open up until tomorrow. We finally got him out of there when he decided that he wanted some pancakes. A quick trip by the I-Hop filled his stomach. All of Mac’s counts were up due to him being on the steroids. They will start to stabilize and drop now that he is through with another cycle. Thank you for all of your prayers. Mac is still walking and the mood swings have not been that bad. Continue to pray because it will take about a week for the Decadron to get out of his body and the effects of this dose of Vincristine will be around for another week.
May God Bless You
Thursday, March 10, 2005 6:46 PM EST
Day 292
We had another great day. Gigi, Mac, and Tori met Uncle Matt, Aunt Anna, and Olivia at Red Lobster for lunch. He of course had to have crab legs. When I picked him up, this afternoon he was ready to go back to Red Lobster. We all went to Burger King instead to play on the playground. The kids had a great time. We have some special prayer requests: Olivia went for a six month check-up and her hemoglobin was a little low. (This always raises red flags for our family. This is how Mac started out.) They have put her on an iron supplement for 3 weeks. Please pray that her hemoglobin will be back up. Next, Mac has a visit for the last Vincristine and his last dose of decadron tomorrow morning. Your prayers have all been heard because this week has been a blessing. We love you all. Hopefully we will see Ms. Heidi and Mama Duck.
God Bless
Wednesday, March 9, 2005 10:01 PM EST
Day 291
Today has been about the same with the exception that Mac is starting to want to be held and around his mother and me a lot more. We are still trusting in the promises of
God and have not seen any major outburst. He is still walking great and it playing a lot in the afternoons. We kept him out of church because he is getting back into a real structured routine. Everything has to be a certain way or he is not happy. Friday we go back to Egleston to have the last of the 2 Vincristine treatments. He will take his last dose of Decadron Friday morning to we can begin to get his life back to normal. Thank you for everything.
May God Bless You
Tuesday, March 8, 2005 10:06 PM EST
Day 290
Today has been a very good day. While Mac was still groggy during the morning but the afternoon was much better. We have seen very little signs of extreme emotions and he has played well. I did have to run and get his stuffed dogs tonight because he wanted to sleep with them. He was so precious curled up beside those dogs. A little boy fighting for his future but at the same time at peace with the world. Children have the world figured out. Adults spend too much time worrying about things that they cannot change and not enough time praying about the things that they can. It would appear that the constipation has eased up for the time being. This will still be an issue to watch and pray about. Right now the whole house is asleep and the quietness of it is comforting.
May God Bless You
Monday, March 7, 2005 9:01 PM EST
Day 289
Today has had its ups and downs. During the mornings, Mac is very groggy from the Respirdale. As the day goes on he gets better and starts to play. During the mid afternoon he starts to lose his patience easier. We have not had really any major outburst but you are always looking for the first. I guess that shows little faith on my part so please pray that God will strengthen my faith to not just lean on him but to rest in him. The constipation is getting better. We are out of the fire but not out of the woods just yet. Tonight has been wonderful. He wanted to have his father/son bath and we played with the boats for a while. He has played great. We also had to have a wrestling match on the bed. As the night goes on, he is getting a little bossy but still in a pretty good mood. Please count the days with us as you pray for this cycle of Decadron and Vincristine to be over with. Tori is still feeling well except for she is cutting some more teeth. Monica is being a big help with Mac. They were playing doctor tonight on the bed. I will have to let you see the pictures.
May God Bless You
Sunday, March 6, 2005 10:12 PM EST
Day 288
I hope that everyone enjoyed another Lord’s Day. Mac made it to Sunday School but wanted to go home and sleep. Tonight was better but he still fell asleep during the services. Right now with the medicine that he is on it would take a mighty loud preacher to keep him awake. It would appear that the Decadron is starting to take affect on his system. He is starting to ask for several things to eat at one time and his emotions are starting to become more intense. He also got very emotional because is TV show had went off when he left the room. You have to always plan ahead to try and stop as many of these situations as possible but you can never think of everything. We have been blessed so far and we know that the Lord will see us through this cycle. He did have a poopy last and today but he is for sure trying to get constipated. I think that we are on track with the medicine to help this but it makes me very nervous. Once you have seen a nurse stick a tube down your child’s nose so they can get gallons of medicine to his stomach, you tend to never forget the sight. I have to go because he is paging me from the bottom of the stairs.
May God Bless You
Saturday, March 5, 2005 10:18 PM EST
Day 287
In review of yesterday, all of Mac’s counts looked great. The doctor is very pleased with the results of the treatment. It took us longer at the office because we forgot about a dose of antibiotics that they would be giving him monthly. The Bactrim that we used to give him on Monday-Wednesday appears to have been one of the reasons his liver counts were going up. This new method is great for us because we do not have to give him the medicine at home on the previously mentioned days. The small downfall is that it takes 1 hour to give him the new antibiotic. We stopped at the Mall of Georgia on the way home and shopped for a little while. Mac went to sleep before we got home. I should have given him his medicine before we left the mall but I thought he could make it home. The bottom line was that we had to wake him up and give him the medicine. He did not like this one bit. During the night Mac woke up and was very distressed that he did not have on his PJ’s. We had to get him a set so he would go back to sleep. He is a very structured child and hates it when things are not the way they should be. He is just like his daddy. It is a hard way to live. With this outburst we thought that the steroid rages had begun but today has been a wonderful day so we continue to pray for God’s mercy on his body an the adverse affects of steroids. Please pray that the Vincristine does not make him constipated. Tomorrow will be day number 3 so please lift him up at church that the cycle will be broken.
May God Bless You
Friday, March 4, 2005 10:29 PM EST
Day 286
It is late but we have had a good day. I will go into greater detail tomorrow but please know that God has continued to answer your prayers. Mac's liver counts are back where they should be. His CBC counts were good and while he is always scared during the accessing of his port, they nurse did not have any trouble getting it to work. We are back on Decadron so we may be scarce at church for a little bit. Please lift him up during this time period. Monica was able to see Egleston today and have a better understanding of what Mac has to go through. Of course Tori was there smiling at everyone that would look at her. I hope each person has a wonderful weekend.
May God Bless You
Thursday, March 3, 2005 9:09 PM EST
Day 285
Tomorrow is the big day. The dose of Respirdale that we gave him made him drowsy this morning but he eventually snapped out of it. We gave it to him 2 hours earlier tonight so maybe it will wear off quicker. Please pray for Mac’s visit tomorrow. We are looking for good counts and for the access of his port to go wonderful. We are also praying that the Vincristine will not affect his muscles this time. Please remember that this is the chemo that made him stop walking. He is a lot healthier this time but we still rely of the hand of God to make sure that everything goes well. It has been several weeks since they have accessed him so we always worry when they have to do it again. We have all had a good day today. Mac had a wonderful night playing with Bea, Coplean, and Jordon tonight at my parent’s house. Thank you to all 3 of you for taking time to play with him.
May God Bless You
Wednesday, March 2, 2005 9:38 PM EST
Day 284
God blessed Mac with another good day today. He will begin a half of tab of resperidal tonight. This is the anti-depressant. Hopefully this will help with the mood swings. We have two days before the decadron. Continue your much needed prayers. Also pray for our new one she has had a hard week with family visits. Tori took a few steps tonight behind a push toy. What great joys.
Thank you and God bless!
Tuesday, March 1, 2005 10:36 PM EST
Day 283
Mac has had a wonderful day. He fed his baby Tori supper tonight. What a great big brother. We will start resperidal tomorrow night to help prepare him for the week to come. Please keep all of us in your prayers. We love you.
God Bless You
Monday, February 28, 2005 10:21 PM EST
Day 282
It has been another great day. Mac is playing well. We will be starting to get his eating in line on Wednesday to help with the constipation that comes with the Vincristine. Life is never boring when you have a child taking this drug. We had several "Poppy Dances" tonight. Maybe he is eventually starting to get the idea. It sure would be nice.
May God Bless You
Sunday, February 27, 2005 10:00 PM EST
Day 281
We hope you have had a wonderful experience with Jesus Christ today. Church was awesome. Mac is doing well. We even did the "Poopy Dance" tonight. He poopied in the potty. This has been an experience. On a serious note please pray for Mac over the next two weeks and all of us who will be dealing with the side effects of decadron. Pray for Monica this week too. God has blessed us with another beautiful daughter. We all love her.
God Bless
Saturday, February 26, 2005 10:07 PM EST
Day 280
What a day it has been today. The weather was beautiful and everyone was feeling well. We might never get the kids inside this summer. Tomorrow will be the last Sunday before Mac is accessed again on Friday. He hates to have this done and sometimes they have trouble getting the blood to come out of his port. Please have your church pray for him and the 2 weeks that will follow. The Vincristine can cause hi to go constipated overnight. We are going to be much smarter this time and try to watch what he eats before hand. We will be giving him the anti-depression medicine several days before he takes the Decadron so hopefully we will not have the major mood swings. As far as today, Mac had a wonderful time at a birthday party for a friend named Shaun. I guess McDonalds is a kid’s paradise. I hope that everyone has a wonderful day in the Lord tomorrow.
May God Bless You
Friday, February 25, 2005 10:32 PM EST
Day 279
Everyone is feeling pretty good. With the good weather Mac, Tori and Monica have been able to spend a lot of time outside. With Mac feeling well, he has been riding his Gator all over the place. We have to keep both batteries charged and ready to go. It sure is a welcome sight to see him playing so good. Hopefully it will pretty again tomorrow so the good times can continue.
May God Bless You
Thursday, February 24, 2005 9:53 PM EST
Day 278
It has been a long day so this entry will not be the longest. Next Friday we go back to Egleston and will start the Decadron (steroid) and the 2 cycles of Vincristine. We will take the Decadron for 7 days. Please pray for this time period. These drugs are used to cure the Leukemia but at the same time they can play bad games on Mac's system. Pray for God's hand of mercy on Mac during these days.
May God Bless You
Wednesday, February 23, 2005 10:02 PM EST
Day 277
Another day of blessed weather and a lot of play will hopefully make everyone sleep well today.. Mac and Tori have had a great day playing. Tori has an ear appointment tomorrow so maybe they can determine why she is still having ear trouble. It has been said that we have children that are like us to allow us to appreciate our parents. If that is the case I guess my parents are saints. Mac is so strong willed. He thinks that everything has to be done his way. I know that a lot of this is his age and the fact that he has undergone such hard treatments but I thought the Lord broke the mold after creating me. Pray that we can discover an appropriate way to lead him and correct him. Tomorrow morning ought to be comical. Monica has pictures at school and Ashlie is going to fix her hair. We will probably have to get up at 3 A.M. to pull this one off. :] Thank you always for praying us to such good times.
May God Bless You
Tuesday, February 22, 2005 10:43 PM EST
Day 276
It was a wonderful day. The Lord gave us a glimpse of what Spring will be like. We played all afternoon and the kids actually got to bed at a decent time. Things are still going well with Mac. He is playing like any three year old. Please lift him up daily for his treatments that he still has to go through to ensure that the Leukemia is beat.
May God Bless You
Monday, February 21, 2005 6:23 PM EST
Day 275
It looks like the weather is about to get rough so I am coming to you early tonight. Mac has had a wonderful day and Tori is feeling a little better also. She goes to the doctor again on Thursday. Mac is playing with everything in the house. Right now things are just great with his treatments and taking his meedicine. It will not be long before we go back on Decadron and Vincristine so please begin to pray for his condition as he takes these two heavy drugs. I will let you know the date as we get closer.
May God Bless You
Sunday, February 20, 2005 10:28 PM EST
Day 274
I hope that everyone has had a wonderful day at church. Our services were wonderful. Mac has had another good day. Tori’s day has been up and down. She still has a lot of drainage from her ears. Tonight she would not take her bottle at church because it hurt. Mac is having a blast playing with Monica. They are all over the house. I think Monica is the new PT person.
May God Bless You
Saturday, February 19, 2005 10:26 PM EST
Day 273
It was sunny this morning but that soon changed. Mac got his dogs out to play and rode around the yard on his Gator. All in all it has been a good day. I hope that everyone has a wonderful day at church tomorrow. Tori is sleeping well again so we praise God for that.
May God Bless You
Friday, February 18, 2005 11:29 PM EST
Day 272
The weekend is finally here and we are all hoping for pretty weather. Mac has had a good day but we are still not winning the game on this potty training. He has a mind of his own and it seems that until he is ready we are losing the game. He and his friend Monica have been having a good time. We are busy getting the bonus room set up for her. I know that things are going really well but please continue to pray for Mac to stay healthy. With Ashlie and me working as teachers, we are exposed to a lot of sick kids every day. Pray for protection for Mac and both of us that our bodies will fight off all the sickness that we are exposed to.
May God Bless You
Thursday, February 17, 2005 8:13 PM EST
Day 271
Today has been another good day. We are over at my parents house having a good time. Mac's cousins are sick so we wanted to tell them that we miss them. Mac was really wanting to play. I hope that everyone has a wonderful day.
May God Bless You
Wednesday, February 16, 2005 10:38 PM EST
Day 271
It has been a long day but a very good one. Mac has had another great day. The sun was shining so it was a good day to play outside. Tori appears to be feeling better. I noticed tonight that she wanted to sleep on her stomach again so maybe the medicine is taking care of the ear infection. The way she is pulling up on things and standing while she is holding on to a table I do not think it will be long before she will be trying to walk. Mac and Tori play well together even though at times you can tell they are for sure brother and sister if you know what I mean. Mac’s friend Monica will be staying with us for a while her mother gets some things in order. She is good to both Mac and Tori and they love her being around. Thank you for all your prayers and support.
May God Bless You
Tuesday, February 15, 2005 10:01 PM EST
Day 270
Today has been a busy day. The weather has still been on the rainy side so the outside fun will have to wait until another day. Mac has had a good day and even Tori’s ears have not seemed to have been so bad. We have been trying to get the kids into bed at 9 P.M. but this is a real choir. Parenting is never dull but that is the wonderful part about it. Thank you for all your prayers.
May God Bless You
Monday, February 14, 2005 10:36 PM EST
Day 269
I know we need rain and we thank God for it but it is sure no fun to stay inside when you could be running around outside. Mac has had another good day and we are thankful for that. Tori is still having ear troubles I think. You can really tell when it is time for her to have her medicine again. Please keep praying for her. The kids have been playing so hard that it is really difficult to get them to go to sleep at night. I hope that everyone had a wonderful Valentines Day. I know that God has truly blessed me with a wonderful wife that I love very much. Remember to hug your spouse and tell them that you love them every day of the week. It really does not matter how long you have been married. Everyone wants to be told that they are loved.
May God Bless You
Sunday, February 13, 2005 10:20 PM EST
Day 268
We had a wonderful time today at the circus. Mac and Tori had a great time. Our friend Monica went with us. This was the first circus she had ever been to. On the way back we stopped at Steak N Shake to eat a little brunch. Mac ordered chicken tenders and ate all of them and even ordered another serving. He said he was hungry and he was not kidding. We do not go back to Egleston for 3 weeks so hopefully Mac will stay healthy. Please continue to remember Tori in your prayers also. She is still fussy. I think her ears are still hurting her.
May God Bless You
Saturday, February 12, 2005 10:23 PM EST
Day 267
Today was a beautiful day and the kids were able to play outside for the most part of the day. We are getting things ready for the circus tomorrow at Stone Mountain. The nice people at Egleston gave us tickets for the event. They have been so nice to us and to all the families that need their care. Mac is still feeling great even though Tori scratched him tonight in the tub. I guess that is called sister love. Hopefully we will get some wonderful pictures at the circus to share with all of our friends.
May God Bless You
Friday, February 11, 2005 10:39 PM EST
Day 266
The doctor’s appointment went well. The blood work showed that the enzymes had went down significantly. They did want us to cut his dose of Methotrexate in half for the next 3 weeks. We go back to Egleston on March 4 to see how we are doing. I spoke with the doctor about stopping Mac’s PT and he feels that it would be OK. I got the feeling that he did not know we were still going. Tori has another ear infection even though she has tubes. She has really been blessed with the Collins’ ears. Thank you for your prayers and for God answering your prayers again.
May God Bless You
Thursday, February 10, 2005 10:41 PM EST
Day 265
The weather has turned chilly today. It was not a good day to play outside today. We did our usual today by seeing my parents. Mac loves to play with his cousins and this time Monica got to come along too. We are working through the fits that come with being 3 years of age and strong willed. Just pray that God will give us insight as parents as how is best to deal with Mac and raise him up to be a fine young man with strong character and good work ethics. Each day we mold him in some form or fashion and our prayer is that is it always positive for his future. Tomorrow we go back to Egleston. I will be taking Mac solo this time so pray for me. We have really eaten up Ashlie’s sick days so since it is only a blood test I will be taking him alone. We usually do well together when we have his blood checked locally so pray that this continues tomorrow. We will be leaving after lunch for the appointment. Hopefully we will get done in time to visit the best store ever created for a father and son-Bass Pro Shops.
May God Bless You
Wednesday, February 9, 2005 10:53 PM EST
Day 264
Both of the kids have had a good day. Mac had his weekly PT today and that went well. He is now the proud owner of an AWANA vest at church. He was excited about getting the vest. Friday is getting closer so be in earnest prayer about the blood chemistry that will be done.
May God Bless You
Tuesday, February 8, 2005 8:56 PM EST
Day 263
Mac had a much better day today. He was able to get back on his schedule so this made him feel better. Tori has been fussy today. We hope that it is not her ears. Today has been one of those good normal days for Mac. We cherish each of them
May God Bless You
Monday, February 7, 2005 8:15 PM EST
Day 262
Mac has been a little short tempered this morning but seems to have settled down a lot tonight. It was another pretty day so we were able to spend a lot of time outside. His friend Monica is staying with us this week so he is all excited. Tori is still feeling well and we have not had any problems with her ears. Continue to pray for Friday’s Egleston visit.
May God Bless You
Sunday, February 6, 2005 9:14 PM EST
Day 261
Mac has been a little off schedule today. He took a short nap at the end of church but woke up about an hour later. Tonight he fell asleep again during church but we got him home and in bed before he woke up. It was another pretty day so we were able to play outside again. He loves to be outside when he is felling well. Hopefully he will sleep the rest of the night. He woke up this morning saying that his throat was hurting. I think his throat was just dry because he did not mention it as the day progressed. Another work week starts and we continue to ask for your prayers about his liver enzyme counts. Pray that they will go down. Be sure and check out the new pictures.
May God Bless You
Saturday, February 5, 2005 7:58 PM EST
Day 260
Today was a wonderful day to play outside. The boys stayed at home while the girls went shopping. We got Mac's beagle out to play and generally just had a super day. With days like this it will be good so get to spring so everyday we can have so much fun. Mac is still doing great and life is good.
May God Bless You
Friday, February 4, 2005 11:33 PM EST
Day 259
Our trip to Egleston went pretty good. Mac LP went well and there was not a problem with his sedation. He was a little ill and short after the procedure but that was to be expected. The human body is a wonderful creation. Everything works together for a single purpose. Life! The liver filters most everything in the body (Science teachers can fill me in if I am wrong) including chemo and antibiotics. It seems that Mac’s enzymes levels are elevated. They check this each time they do his CBC in Egleston. It is called checking his chemistry. The effects could be bad if left or it was not noticed. Because of this they have taken Mac off his Bactrim (pneumonia prevention) and have suspended his Methotrexate until he can be rechecked next Friday. We had a week off from the Methotrexate anyway so that is not a really big deal in regards to his treatment. They replaced his Bactrim with an IV antibiotic that he was given today. This will be given once a month until they think he can go back on the Bactrim or they may just keep him on it. I am not sure. Please pray that his levels will go back down so he can stay on the full treatment protocol. By the way, any one looking for someone to perform the tube surgery on their child should look for Dr Callahan. He called today so see how Tori was feeling and if we had any questions. Needles to say he gets two thumbs up in my book!
May God Bless You
Thursday, February 3, 2005 10:11 PM EST
Day 258
It is the night before the trip to Egleston. It has been about a month since we have had to make this trip. Hopefully it will be a short trip. The procedure itself takes about 20 minutes but there is a lot of waiting for orders to get signed and chemo filled at the hospital pharmacy. Mac will have to fast again so remember him in your prayers. Pray that the spinal fluid will continue to show no leukemia and that his counts are still holding their own.
May God Bless You
Wednesday, February 2, 2005 10:10 PM EST
Day 257
Everything has gone well for Mac and Tori today. The doctors said again that Tori was a prime candidate for the tubes that were placed in her ears today. She handled everything fine and continued to play the rest of the day. Mac on the other hand has had a normal day. He went to the INK building today. It is the neatest place. They have all kinds of play stations for the kids to pretend that they are at a job. Individuals have donated the equipment and the children get to play with dentist chairs, restaurant equipment, and even pretend to purchase items at a mini store. Tori stayed at home tonight with mommy while me and Mac went to church. He was in full force at church. We are waiting for Friday to get here so Mac can have his LP and his counts checked. Please continue to pray for the sedation that they will be using. He has had some side affects from Verset before so I am not sure how they will go about sedating him.
May God Bless You
Tuesday, February 1, 2005 10:06 PM EST
Day 256
Mac woke up early this morning. It was about 5:30 and he was ready to get his day started. He had a good breakfast with us before we had to go to work. It was a GREAT way to start off the morning! The rest of the day was right on course. We went to Chick-fil-A tonight for a little birthday party. He was all over the playground and had a blast. We go tomorrow with Tori to have her tubes put into her ears. Please pray that all goes well with this procedure.
May God Bless You
Monday, January 31, 2005 9:36 PM EST
Day 255
Mac is doing much better this time with his eating. The Methotrexate that he received on Friday does not appear to have stunted his appetite. That is definitely a blessing. I actually went back to the medicine box to make sure that I had given him the right medicine. He and Tori had a good day today. Hopefully tomorrow will be the same.
May God Bless You
Sunday, January 30, 2005 10:36 PM EST
Day 254
All the white stuff is gone and Monday is around the corner again. I thought there was some rule that is was only allowed to snow and sleet during the work week. Despite the cold weather Mac has been having a great time. We got up this morning for one last trip into the snow and ice. We probable will not have any grass left because we sled down the hill so many times. He is getting to be so independent. He wanted to do it himself but when he tried to get on the sled it went down the hill without him. (Maybe next year son) Our major events for this week are Tori’s tubes on Wednesday and Mac’s LP on Friday. Tori will have to fast and so will Mac. Luckily for Tori they will start on her at about 7:30 in the morning so with the grace of God we should be OK. With God’s grace and your prayers everything will be OK for the both of them.
May God Bless You
Saturday, January 29, 2005 10:23 PM EST
Day 253
Today has been another cold day but a great day for family time. We took Mac and Tori outside to play for a little while. Mac had a blast. Tori did not make it that long. We pulled Mac on a sled behind a 4-wheeler. He really enjoys this. I hope that everyone has had a safe and warm day. Many thanks to the people that have kept the power on today.
May God Bless You
Friday, January 28, 2005 9:58 PM EST
Day 252
It sure is getting cold! Mac has had a very playful day even though it was inside. He told his Gigi that he was upside down on the couch because he was a bat and that is the way they sleep. I have no idea as to where he has heard that. He is like a sponge just soaking up information. Since it is Friday, Mac took his weekly dose of Methotrexate. I guess his appetite will start going down tomorrow. I hope his body adjusts to this medicine before long so he can keep eating healthy. It sure dose play havoc on his system when he does not eat well. Tori’s pre-op went well today and she is schedule for Wednesday morning at 6:30 to have her tubes placed. I hope and pray that everyone has a warm night and for the people keeping the power on I pray that they have a safe night.
May God Bless You
Thursday, January 27, 2005 8:50 PM EST
Day 251
Another good day has come and gone. Mac is still sleeping well and getting a little better with his eating. Last night he slipped off the bed to come and see me while I was working on the journal. He said that momma was already asleep and he was going to find a book to read to her. When we got back down stairs he used the picture in the book to tell a story. I think he is smarter than me and Ashlie. We never cease to be amazed at the things he does. We go tomorrow for Tori’s pre-op for the surgery that she will have on Tuesday. Keep us in your prayers.
May God Bless You
Wednesday, January 26, 2005 10:36 PM EST
Day 250
Today has been a good day. Both the boy and the girl are feeling good. The family I work with always kids me about if Tori and Mac have names because they are always the boy and the girl. Mac is eating a little better and he is clear of any problems of constipation. He is not on really any medicine that severely causes the constipation but when his eating gets bad his body lets us know. As a parent you can do your best to get him to eat but in the end there is really not much you can do and it is not really a battle worth fighting. Tonight, Mac thought he was the President I guess. He took his crackers and Coke to the bath tub and ate them while he was soaking. He was so careful as to not get his hands wet. It was a memorable moment. Right now we have 2 kids up so it looks like it is going to be a long night.
May God Bless You
Tuesday, January 25, 2005 9:52 PM EST
Day 242-249
Hello! It is good to be able to write to you again. The web site that we use for the journals somehow developed a problem and I have been unable to update the journal. I want to thank the team at Caring Bridge for fixing the problem and for finding my lost journals. Praise be to God. The journals are very special. I learned a very important. Save, save and save again. During the course of these several days Mac has continued to handle his medicine pretty well. He is not eating as much as he should but we are just keeping an eye on it so we can report our observation to Egleston. We go back to see them on February 4. He will have a LP (chemo in the spine) on this date as well as have his counts checked. Since the last update Mac has had his cast removed and has showed no signs of any hand troubles. Tori on the other hand keeps on getting ear infections. She will have tubes put into her ears on February 2. We pray that this will solve the problem. The antibiotics are really tearing up her stomach so this is really the best choice. Each day is still a blessing and we count each one of them special. We love the “boring” days when everything is going great. Tonight, Mac had a real special treat. His nurse from Egleston came up to go rabbit hunting and to eat supper with us. Mac insisted that she sit beside him at supper. We love you Momma Duck! Please let everyone know that the web site is back up and running. I will know for sure after posting this entry if everything is working OK but I am sure that it will work just the way it should. The people at Caring Bridge have really been great to solve the problem and I am forever grateful for them finding the lost journals. We can know begin working on Mac’s scrapbook.
May God Bless You
Monday, January 17, 2005 7:07 PM EST
Day 241
Tonight I need to start the journal with another request. I had been saving these journals to my hard drive but got behind. The last one I had saved was day 108. I went on the history page today and the first one that is showing is day 193. I have contacted CaringBridge and they are looking for the other entries. If by chance anyone has been saving these entries, would you please e-mail them to me? Things have finally slowed down and I was ready to start a scrap book for Mac and his journey so one day he will be able to see all that has transpired since May 21 and all the people that have lifted him up in prayer. If no one has them, please pray that they can be found. Today has gone well. Mac is back on a routine of going down for a good 3 hour nap. His eating is still off and on but hopefully it will settle in time. We go Thursday to get his cast off (prayerfully) and to have his CBC done locally. Tori is still fighting an ear infection. This morning was good for her but tonight is going down hill. I guess it will be another sleepless night for me and Ashlie. That’s OK though, we would do anything for either of them.
May God Bless You
Sunday, January 16, 2005 11:34 PM EST
Day 240
Today has been a good but cold day. It was a shame to have all that sunshine but not really needing to get outside. Mac has had a typical day. I had been looking for some flavored syrup to mix his medicine in and was not having much luck. We finally got smart and had the plain stuff mixed with grape flavor. I think it really helps with his medicine. I wish we had thought about this a long time ago. A friend of ours, Monica, was saved tonight. Rejoice with us in her decision. I hope that everyone has a wonderful week. Tori has the beginnings of another ear infection. I guess we are one step closer to her having tubes. I just want her to feel better. She has not slept in the past 2 night which means we have not slept in the pass two nights.
May God Bless You
Saturday, January 15, 2005 9:42 PM EST
Day 239
It was good to be off today. Mac took another dose of Methotrexate last night. It appears that each time he takes one it affects the way he eats. He told us today that he did not like bologna. This is strange because he eats it all the time. Later in the evening he did eat a little but is appetite has definitely went down. We are anxiously waiting for his counts to be checked on Thursday. His white blood count and ANC will probably be down but God has a way of giving us pleasant surprises so we will have to wait and see.
May God Bless You
Friday, January 14, 2005 10:35 PM EST
Day 238
We have cleared a constipation problem today. The little reward in life of being on medication. Today has been good but Tori is not feeling well. Hopefully we can get outside tomorrow and play. We are going to enjoy the long weekend and try to have as much fun as possible. Everything is going great with the cast and hopefully we will be getting it of on Thursday.
May God Bless You
Thursday, January 13, 2005 9:16 PM EST
Day 237
The rain sounds so peaceful. Tori decided to play late night bird last night so it was a short sleeping night. Tonight she was down by 9 P.M. so maybe we will all get a little extra sleep. Mac is not eating 3 good meals a day. He will usually have one good meal and the other times he sort of plays with his food. It was strange today not having his counts checked. We are so use to having a weekly count that we kind of miss seeing them. I guess we are having withdrawal from the doctors. I think we can definitely get use to this but it still feels weird. I posted some new picture of Mac and the baby chickens so please take a look.
May God Bless You
Wednesday, January 12, 2005 10:10 PM EST
Day 236
Mac has had a rather fretful day. I am not sure why but he has been very much on the edge today. If things do not go just the way he wants he gets upset. We are on a higher dose of medicine but I really believe that we are just being blessed with a child that is 3 years old. He has been through so much and I am sure that it is difficult for the parental boundaries to go up. The only way to have the good times parenting times is to pray through the “tough” jobs that a parent has to do in raising a child. The good times are too good to dwell on the difficult times. He is very strong willed and likes things to be just a certain way. (A chip off the old block) This has is pluses and minuses. Time will help him to deal with these characteristic traits. Thank you for everything.
May God Bless You
Tuesday, January 11, 2005 8:47 PM EST
Day 235
Mac has had a great day today. Thanks for all your prayers and support. He ate a better lunch, but not a good supper. One of his favorite things is still shredded cheese.
May God Bless
Monday, January 10, 2005 10:47 PM EST
Day 234
Mac’s friend Monica came to see him today. He loves to play with her and she is really good to him. All in all we have had a pretty good day. We are still working on the potty training. It has its ups and downs. He was a little constipated tonight so that made it rough but we finally had some success. The thoughts that must go through a little ones head as they have to learn new things. Mac’s appetite was down today probably due to the Methotrexate pills that he took on Friday. This is the first time he has taken the pill form of the drug so we are back in a learning phase. He will take these pills every Friday for the next 1.5 years. Thank you for your prayers.
May God Bless You
Sunday, January 9, 2005 11:07 PM EST
Day 233
Each day gets better and each day is a blessing. Childhood cancer is a disease that should not have to be. Mac has survived the hardest part of the treatment and each day we pray for his continued health and that he will stay in remission. Being a parent is scary enough as it is. Not scary in a bad since but you want so much for your children. I do not think we can truly understand how God loves us until you have loved and been responsible for a child. Mac is so special to us and to so many other people. He has a way of making us laugh and making us amazed at some of the things he says. Right now we continue to take life one day at a time and at the same time make plans for the future. Why Mac and our family are going through this we may never know. I do know that we see God’s hands all around us and he will guide us through each trial. Tonight’s message is probably just a bunch of rambling thoughts. Sorry! Just please continue to lift my son up in your prayers. Please do not let his name slip off your prayer list at home or at your churches.
May God Bless You
Saturday, January 8, 2005 11:04 PM EST
Day 232
It’s late and we have just got home. We took Mac to see some baby chickens tonight and he wanted to take all 30,000 of them home. Thanks Jonathan for the trip. Mac had a blast. Things are going well for Mac. As Ashlie said last night, we will have to be careful with his contact but not to an extreme level yet. The ANC represents his healthy white blood cells that are developed enough to fight infections. His are low so we just need to be careful. The biggest thing we need it your continued prayers to keep him healthy.
May God Bless You
Friday, January 7, 2005 10:18 PM EST
Day 231
We had a nice visit to the Clinic today. Mac's counts are not great, but they are okay. His WBC was a 2.36 and his ANC was a 600. The critical level is below 500. His other counts were great. Mac is getting a much higher dose of 6MP daily and dose of methotrexate weekly. This will probably lower his counts. Who knows? Please pray for strength in counts and we are not sure what the new, higher dose of chemo will do. Thanks again for your prayers.
May God Bless You
Thursday, January 6, 2005 9:37 PM EST
Day 230
Mac got something new today. A vibrant blue cast. In no way has this broke hand stopped him. He has been in rare form. Thanks for visiting our website. We go to Egleston tomorrow. Please pray for good counts. We will also begin a higher dose of 6MP and a once a week methotrexate pill. Thanks for all your prayers and keep it up.
May God Bless.
Wednesday, January 5, 2005 10:12 PM EST
Day 229
Little or should I say big Mac has had a good day despite the fracture to the bone in his hand. He is still favoring it but he is still your typical 3 year old that loves to play. We are not sure what kind of support they will put on it tomorrow but we sure pray that it will heal quickly and correctly. I will keep you posted tomorrow as to the results of our visit and what the doctor decided to do.
May God Bless You
Tuesday, January 4, 2005 9:15 PM EST
Day 228
We took Mac to the doctor today because he was still favoring his hand. The results of the X-ray showed a fracture on the middle bone on the back of his hand. We will go Thursday to see an Orthopedic doctor to see how it will need to be braced to heal the best. He is still favoring the hand but does not complain about it hurting. We are blessed t hat it did not break the bone because this would take much longer to heal. Please pray that the bone will heal quickly and he can get back to being a hard playing boy.
May God Bless You
Monday, January 3, 2005 9:49 PM EST
Day 227
The work week has started and all the bright learners will be there tomorrow. Mac did well today and did not show any apprehension with us being at work. He took a little tumble tonight and hurt his hand but it appears to be getting better. Nothing appears to be broke and it is probably a sprain or just bruised. Hopefully he will feel much better tomorrow.
May God Bless You
Sunday, January 2, 2005 10:25 PM EST
Day 226
I hope that everyone had a wonderful day in the Lord. My prayer is that each of you will remember the miracles and blessings of God that your prayers provided for my family this past year and that you continue to seek the face of God in 2005. The journey of Mac’s treatment is lengthy and your prayers will carry us to the end. We were able to attend both services today and Mac did a fine job in church. After church we went out for one last bit of fun to get some ice cream. Mac had a blast playing on the playground. It is great that his counts are up enough for him to do that. I hope that everyone has a blessed week at work.
May God Bless You
Saturday, January 1, 2005 10:44 PM EST
Day 225
Today has been a fun field day and I hope and indication of the year ahead of us. Monday will start another work week and leaving Mac and Tori. It is always hard to go back to work after a holiday, especially Christmas Break. We will go back to Egleston on January 7 for a CBC check to please begin to pray that Mac counts are at a safe level.
May God Bless You
Friday, December 31, 2004 10:30 PM EST
Day 224
(Mom Writing)
What a year this has been! This year has had several bumps. (good and challanging) We had a little girl, David and our brother-in-law finished school, the birth of a niece, my sister got engaged, and Mac got diagnosed with Leukemia. We pray for a healthier Mac this year and for all our family. We have all had a great day. Mac acts like a typical three year old. Thank you for all your prayers and we wish you all a blessed new year.
Love Always
Thursday, December 30, 2004 10:37 PM EST
Day 223
The whole Collins family is feeling much better. Tori received her last shot today and it appears that the infection is gone but she still has fluid in her ears. Mac hit off the tee again today and has enjoyed the warm weather. It is wonder the way he feels. Our family is so blessed and we give God all the praise and glory for it all.
May God Bless You
Wednesday, December 29, 2004 10:06 PM EST
Day 222
Today has been a repeat of the wonderful normal yesterday. Mac is still felling well and playing with his toys. We went outside today and hit a baseball off his tee. We were on three days of constipation but that broke today. The good thing is that we are not on any medicine that should really cause a major problem so we are not so paranoid when we hit the third day. We still keep a close watch but it is just different than when he is on the beast called Vincristine. Tori has completed day 2 of her 3 day shots for her ears. She is probably heading for tubes but I pray that she can stay away form having to have them. I forgot to tell you that we saw Mac’s friend Jose yesterday at Egleston. He had been in the ICU because of a low blood pressure cause by an infection. He was feeling much better and as always was so polite when speaking to Mac. Watching Mac hit that ball today brought back a lot of memories and dreams. The dreams have had to fade away even though they are still thought about but the memories never go away. Fathers teach their sons a lot of different things. I hope that I can share the lessons to Mac that my dad taught me about the simple things of holding a bat and throwing a ball. It seems unimportant but the discipline and practice involved do a boy good. I do not have a lot of memories for some reason of growing up (I guess my mind got old before my body) but I have always cherished those times spent on the ball field with dad and I hope that Mac can have those same memories. The smell of the dirt, the heat of the sun beating down on your back, and best of all the feel of the baseball in your hand while your dad watches are all memories that every boy should have.
May God Bless You
Tuesday, December 28, 2004 10:03 PM EST
Day 221
The results of the CBC turned out good. His WC was 2.48, him hemoglobin was in the 11’s and his platelet count had dropped to the mid-hundred thousands. The platelet count is the largest decrease but it is still in an OK range. His ANC (adult white blood cells) was a 980 which is well above the critical zone of 500. The doctors were pleased with his progress and we do not have to go back to Egleston until January 7. On this date we will enter the final phase of treatment that will last for approximately 1.5 years. Mac is still enjoying playing with his toys and loving each day. His energy levels are still high and he is feeling well. While things are good, now is not the time to stop praying. It will be 1.5 years before he has a scheduled bone marrow check and we pray that this is what happens. We pray each day for a complete healing for Mac and urge you to continue daily in your prayers. Those sacred and cherished prayers are what has got us to this point in the treatment and we know that those same strong prayer will see us through treatment.
May God Bless You
Monday, December 27, 2004 9:53 PM EST
Day 220
The weather was pretty today so Mac was able to play outside. He has a new Scooter and his is doing pretty well with it. We took him to the dentist today so he could see us get our teeth cleaned. Mac has been unable to go because of his counts. The bacteria that comes off the teeth runs a risk of getting into his port. This would be a major problem and would send us straight to the hospital. When he is able to go he will have to take an antibiotic an hour before his teeth are cleaned. While our life is getting back so some kind of normal we still have special things that we must do and think about daily to make sure that Mac stays healthy. The biggest is to continue to pray for him daily. Please continue to pray without ceasing for his health. We will let you know the outcome of his CBC tomorrow night.
May God Bless You
Sunday, December 26, 2004 10:50 PM EST
Day 219
The presents are all open and we are trying to get life back to normal. Mac’s energy levels are still up and he is wide open all the time. Tomorrow we start the long road again to potty training. The Methotrexate weekends really make it difficult to make any progress. Now that we are finished with the 3 day stays we hope to get over this mountain. We go back to Egleston on Tuesday for a CBC but it should be a short trip and we will quickly get back home.
May God Bless You
Saturday, December 25, 2004 10:21 PM EST
Day 218
(Mom Writes)
Wow! What a Christmas! Mac and Tori have been overwhelmed with many material blessings. David and I are thankful that we got to spend another Christmas with our children. I never knew how fast that could be taken away. Thank God for each day that he brings to share with the people you love. Please take a moment to think of all the blessings God has given you. Best of all the birth of His son Jesus and giving his life so that we would have a perfect place called heaven. Thank you for all your prayers. Please pray for a cancer friend named Jose. He is the most polite 15 year old we have ever met. He has had a very rough journey. Lots of love as always and have a great day praising God.
May God Bless
Merry Christmas Mama Duck-We love you! (our special angel on earth)
Friday, December 24, 2004 11:59 PM EST
Day 217
Mac has been full steam ahead all day today. He has been so busy that he was not able to get a nap which we all paid for later in the evening. This is the first Christmas that he really understands what is going on with the presents. It has been a blessing to see his little eyes light up. Merry Christmas to all that read the day by day events of Mac's life and pray for him and his health.
May God Bless You
Thursday, December 23, 2004 10:00 PM EST
Day 216
Mac has had a wonderful day today. He went to see his old baby sitter today and had a great time. It was hard to get him to come home. We had his CBC done locally today and the results were good. His ANC (number of adult healthy white blood cells) was 1200. This puts him in good shape for seeing family and friends during the holidays. We will go back to Egleston on Tuesday to make sure that everything is OK. This will be the routine for the next 1.5 years. We will do a lot of the blood counts here but we will still have to go to Egleston to let them look at him. I hope that everyone has a wonderful Christmas and remember that the family times and gifts are good but we are celebrating the birth of the Savior.
May God Bless You
Wednesday, December 22, 2004 10:41 PM CST
Day 215
Mac has had another excellent day. He still has a slight cough but he is still a wild man. Tori appears to be feeling a little better but she is still not sleeping well and has a terrible cough. We were up most of the night with her. Mac will have his CBC checked in town tomorrow and we are praying for good numbers so Mac can really enjoy the Christmas season. Watching Mac play and live life is so special. Those weeks spent in bed seem so far away but we realize that we at this point today because of God’s healing hand. I wish that all adults could catch a little bit of the spirit of a child. They do not require much except for love and time. Wouldn’t the world be a better place if we could put our schedule away and enjoy the time spent with our loved ones. We went to see the Christmas lights tonight and Mac had a blast. Once again, the simple things in life matter the most!
May God Bless You
Tuesday, December 21, 2004 10:37 PM EST
Day 214
Today has been good for Mac but not great for Tori. She has an ear infection and is congested (I think that’s spelled right). Please pray for her that she will get feeling better and pray that God will protect Mac from getting anything. Mac has played well today and is generally feeling great. To recap our weekend stay it began with the fact that he did not clear his Methotrexate on time. This is not a major concern but is did mean that we had to stay an additional 24 hours. We will have his CBC done locally this weekend and then report back to Egleston on Tuesday. The Methotrexate will lower his counts so please pray that they can stay high enough for him to have a wonderful Christmas. In another week and a half we will be entering the 3rd and final phase of the treatment. Most of the chemo will be given at home and we will not have to go to Egleston as often. Please remember that while Mac is in remission this 3rd phase is critical for him staying that way. Please do not grow weary in your prayers or think that they are not needed. Mac needs them every day and the Lord loves to hear from his people that recognize that he is God and that we need his blessings.
May God Bless You
Monday, December 20, 2004 10:28 PM EST
Day 213
We are finally home! There is no place like home. I will give you the details of the visit tomorrow and where the road will take us from here. Please remember Hayley's family. She went to see Jesus last night. Please see the web site for details concerning this special little girl.
http://www2.caringbridge.org/ga/hayley/
May God Bless You
Sunday, December 19, 2004 8:11 PM EST
Day 212
Well, the Lord has granted us another night at our home away from home. The 48 hour test came back and the result was a .33 instead of below .20. This means that we have to stay another 24 hours before we can be tested again because we are on study. That is one of the bad things about being on study but it is the studies that give the children like Mac the hope of beating this disease. We will make the best of it and enjoy another 24 hours here. Mac is feeling well and having a good time so we just wait and pray that he clears tomorrow.
May God Bless You
Saturday, December 18, 2004 11:07 PM EST
Day 211
Mac finished taking his chemo at 7 P.M. tonight. We will know his levels and if we will be going home tomorrow at 8 P.M. His 24 our count last time was an 18 and this time it is a 9 so we are looking pretty good right now. We are encouraging him to drink a little each hour to help him clear the chemo. With answered prayer we will be home late tomorrow night ready to enjoy the Christmas break.
May God Bless You
Friday, December 17, 2004 9:46 PM CST
Day 210
We have made it to the final stay (with prayer and the Lords blesings) for the Methotrexate. Mac got a little "short" this afternoon but he was in need of a nap. After getting some sleep he was feeling much better. Our start time is about 7 P.M. so it will be about 8 P.M. on Sunday night before we know if we are going home. We started his treatment with Mama Duck (his favorite nurse) and she will have us for this final weekend stay. She has been a blessing from the first day. She has taken care of us and Mac. She has provided answers from her years of experience that have helped out with all of our questions. I am sure we have bugged he to death but she just keeps on answering the questions. She is a very special person to our family and a cherished new friend. They have a lot of events planned for tomorrow so Mac will be able to stay busy. Hopefully we will see you very soon. Please continue to pray for Hayley. She is still holding on at home even though the doctors do not know how. I still pray that God will heal her. The doctors have done all they can do. Any healing at this point can only come from the Lord and all praise must go to the Lord. Please visit her site at www.caringbridge.org/ga/hayley to see this special little girl and have a face to go with your prayers.
May God Bless You
Thursday, December 16, 2004 11:14 PM EST
Day 209
Well the Christmas break is here and we are all ready for it. We start it by a trip to Egleston for a 3 day stay and a lumbar puncture but this is the last one. This trip will make a total of 7. The journey to this visit has been long but surrounded by love and prayer. Continue to pray that his counts are up so he can receive his treatments. Pray that he will clear on time Sunday so we can come home and be reunited with Tori. She has been through a lot too with mommy, daddy, and brother having to stay away for days at a time. She has been wonderful through it all. The final 1 ½ years of treatment will be composed of mostly at home chemo. We will have to go in occasionally to have a dose of Decadron and Vincristine but the hard stuff is almost finished. Thank you for caring for my son and for us.
May God Bless You
Wednesday, December 15, 2004 9:36 PM EST
Day 208
We count this day as another good one. Mac’s cough is about the same. We called Egleston and they said to keep giving him the cough medicine and to make sure he does not run a fever. He appears to be getting back on schedule so hopefully he will be going to sleep soon. He hates to go to bed because he loves to play. I guess we have another pillow fight coming up anytime now. We are once again getting ready for the 3 day stay at Egleston. Continue to lift our son up in your prayers.
May God Bless You
Tuesday, December 14, 2004 10:17 PM EST
Day 207
We today is following suit with the other blessed days. It has been a good one. His energy levels are definitely up and he is feeling great. He does have a slight cough that is worse in the mornings and evenings that we are praying about but other than that he feels good. We have had our usual pillow fight tonight and he trying to settle down to go to bed. With the Christmas break coming up we are excited about the time that we will be spending with Mac and Tori. He will not be on steroids so this Christmas should be very exciting and very special.
May God Bless You
Monday, December 13, 2004 10:41 PM EST
Day 206
Thank you to everyone that is praying for Mac and rejoicing in the results of his test. We have been playing so hard for the last couple of days it is difficult to remember that he is still going through treatment. He has a slight cough and that is enough to jog the brain into realizing how careful we must be with his health. We did end of staying up late last night but we had one of the best pillow fights that I have seen in a while. Mac, mommy, and I were all over the bed laughing and playing. This is exactly the way life should be for a child.
May God Bless You
Sunday, December 12, 2004 9:51 PM EST
Day 205
Today has been a peaceful day. There have been very little outburst. Really nothing more than a typical 3 year old has happened. He has had a good day of playing and we have enjoyed being together. We will probably get to have a lot of family time late tonight since Mac slept from 5 to 9 tonight. Thank you for your prayers and please begin to lift Mac up concerning his 3 day stay this weekend. Pray that his counts will be high enough to have the treatment and that he clears on time.
May God Bless You
Saturday, December 11, 2004 10:30 PM EST
Day 204
Today has been a good day. Mac is getting back to his old self. His mood swings are much better. We did take him to see a play a church but because of his counts we arrived late, sat in the back, and left before church let out. I know that everyone would have wanted to see him but his count are in the critical area and it would be very easy for him to catch most anything. Hopefully by next weekend he will have much higher counts. By the way, the play was wonderful!
May God Bless You
Friday, December 10, 2004 10:06 PM EST
Day 203
Mom Writing
Today was an awesome day in the Lord for Mac. Yes, God answered our prayer again. Mac is still in REMISSION!! Thank you God! Mac can not be sedated because he is allergic to the drug, so the departing to the OR room today was the hardest. We did have a little bump in the road. Mac's ANC count (the mature white blood cells that fight infection) was not high enough for him to have the Methotrexate chemo. Mac's were at a 300 and it needs to be higher than a 500. The doctor took him off the chemo pill we give him at night until we go back on Friday. His counts will hopefully be better then. Thank you once again for joining in prayer for Mac. We love you all.
I hope you saw the rainbow today. (Another blessing from God.)
God Bless
P.S. Keep looking at pictures, we will update some more.
Thursday, December 9, 2004 9:49 PM EST
Day 202
Once again we are making the final preparations for another 3 day stay at Egleston. This time is a little different because of the bone marrow check. We must arrive at 8 A.M. and the procedure should start sometime around 10. We fully expect for the test to show that the leukemia is still in remission and then we will continue with our Methotrexate over the weekend. Tomorrow is another stepping stone in our journey. There have been several bumps in the road to where we are now but God has richly blessed us on this trip. Mac is getting better every day and our little girl is getting bigger each day as she grows up. Please say a prayer for Mac and his test. The Bible tells us to taste and see that the Lord is good. Let the prayers for Mac flow from you lips like honey, strong and sweet and rejoice when the Lord answers your prayers.
May God Bless You
Wednesday, December 8, 2004 10:06 PM EST
Day 201
Mac had another good day of playing and eating. The mood swings may have been a little better today. He did have to go to time out because of his mouth but he improved after that. It is difficult to tell what is him being 3 and what is the still lingering effects of the Decadron. I would say that he still has some effects because of the amount of food he is eating. Tomorrow will be the final day before we find out the results of the bone marrow test on Friday. The results of this test are crucial. They will determine and show the power of the hand of God. We have prayed for healing as have so many of you. Continue in your prayers so that we may all rejoice in the miracle of God.
May God Bless You
P.S. A Note from Mom
The lady on the webpage is the famous Mama Duck. We all love her. I was visiting Hayley's webpage. Please pray for her parents because they are needing a miracle for a crushed heart. Pray for a quiet and restful night and day.
Tuesday, December 7, 2004 9:14 PM EST
Day 200
Mac has had a very good day. He still has his moments where his temper takes over and he is still eating a lot of food but things are improving. We had Christmas pictures taken tonight of Mac and Tori. The pictures were adorable. When they are sitting side by side they look so much alike. We are out of the woods with the constipation troubles and we are still in prayer about Friday. Please join us in our prayer for GREAT and GOD answered results on Friday.
May God Bless You
Monday, December 6, 2004 11:09 PM EST
Day 199
Today has been pretty peaceful. We are starting to take Mac off his “mood” medicine. He appears to be doing great. Please begin to pray for this weekend. Please pray that we will get an early time for the procedure on Friday morning. We will not know until Thursday afternoon what time we have to be there. This will make it difficult because Mac will have to fast. Please pray that we have an early appointment time. Also please pray that the results of the bone marrow test will be negative and he is still in remission.
May God Bless You
Sunday, December 5, 2004 10:19 PM EST
Day 198
Mac had a blast today at the Christmas Tree Festival. He hoped into the limo and was amazed that there were 2 televisions. We left the hospital with a convoy of 30 limos and about 30 uniformed motorcycle cops to escort us to the World Congress Center. Mac was looking around the whole time. I think even Tori had a good time. At the center Mac was not much into the trees but he had a great time on the rides. He even road a small rollercoaster by himself. Ashlie tried to sit with him but he would not let her. I think dad was the one more concerned. We did get to ride down a 50 foot high slide with him. It was wonderful to spend the day having fun and not thinking about blood counts or anything else. I think it did us all some good. We would like to thank the good people at Egleston for letting us have this day.
May God Bless You
Please pray for a special family. Hayley is spending her last days at home and her family needs our prayers.
Saturday, December 4, 2004 7:45 PM EST
Day 197
Well we are trying to get things ready to go stay in a hotel tonight and see the Festival of Trees tomorrow. It is like we are getting ready to go on vacation. The only place we have stayed over the past 197 days has been the hospital. It will be short night but I am looking forward to it. Mac is constipated so please pray that he will clear. We have started the Myralax full dose so hopefully something will happen tomorrow. It will probably happen in the limousine. That would be interesting! I hope that everyone has a wonderful day at church tomorrow and we will see you soon.
May God Bless You
Friday, December 3, 2004 10:45 PM EST
Day 196
Mac’s doctors appointment went well today. He had a couple of steroid induced outburst but it has been a pretty good day. He received a dose of Vincristine today. Any time he is on this type of chemo we are concerned because it was one of the reasons that he stopped walking before. When we started into the hospital today he was walking on his tip toes. We thought it was strange but I did not really give it any more thought. When the nurse saw the way he was walking she was concerned. She went to get the Dr so he could see him walk also. After they watched I guess they went to discuss the situation while we went to our room. When we got to the room Mac wanted to take his shoes off and we discovered something very interesting. There was a piece of dog food in his shoe. I guess the poodle thought it would be a funny joke. Everyone got a big kick out of the dog food when they found out about it. We do not have to have another Decadron and Vincristine mix until the end of February. That will be a blessing. We are getting all ready for the Festival of Trees on Sunday. We decided to get a room about 2 blocks from the hospital. This will take a lot of stress off the morning because we have to be there ready to leave at 8 A.M.
May God Bless You
Thursday, December 2, 2004 11:05 PM EST
Day 195
Mac has had a wonderful day. I was able to get off work early and enjoy the afternoon with him and Tori. I think the effects of the Decadron are wearing off. He has had a much better day and even asked for strawberry milk tonight. I know this sounds silly but when he is sick he only wants chocolate milk. It was good to hear him ask for something else. His big eating items this steroid cycle has been bologna and muffins. The good thing is that the fruit in the muffins has kept him from being constipated. Please pray for our visit tomorrow and for the upcoming test of his bone marrow on December 10th. Please pray that he is still in remission. We have so many people praying for us and I know that you pray expecting your prayers to be answered. Would you please pray the same for a little girl named Hayley. She is 21 months old and the doctors have done all they can do. They have sent her home to make arrangements with hospice. The family is waiting for God to answer their prayers for a miracle. Please pray for that miracle. You may visit her web page at www.caringbridge.org/ga/hayley
May God Bless You
Wednesday, December 1, 2004 9:27 PM EST
Day 194
(Ashlie)
Mac received his last dose of Decadron this morning. Hallelujah!!!! We gave him his Resperidal this afternoon because he was getting so upset. It is pitiful to see such rage in his eyes. Things he would normally not do are so multiplied. Please pray for my mom as she keeps Mac. She gets the morning rage and it gets very discouraging to see him go through this. Thank you so much for your loving prayers. We do have good news. Our family has been chosen by AFLAC Cancer Center to go to the Festival of Trees. We will even get to ride in a limousine. Thank you Egleston. Please pray that the Decadron side effects will be gone by Sunday so he can enjoy his trip. Mac has been complaining with a headache on and off the last few days. We will talk to Dr. Briones about this on Friday. Keep Praying!! We know you do. Praise- Our friend Jeremy gets to leave the hospital. Praise, I got to spend some one-on-one time with Tori. We had a blast.
Love Always
David, Ashlie, Mac, and Tori
Tuesday, November 30, 2004 10:04 PM EST
Day 193
The extra “mood” medicine helped Mac today until it wore off around 4:30 this afternoon. After that he was very short tempered and was not easily satisfied. We gave him another full dose tonight and are going to try and give him a full one in the morning. He had a great morning and played well. Tonight he was very demanding but we know that this is just the medicine working on him. Tomorrow morning will be the last dose of the Decadron until the end of February. It will take several days for it to get out of his system but we can not wait for this to happen.
May God Bless You
Tuesday, November 30, 2004 10:04 PM EST
Day 193
The extra “mood” medicine helped Mac today until it wore off around 4:30 this afternoon. After that he was very short tempered and was not easily satisfied. We gave him another full dose tonight and are going to try and give him a full one in the morning. He had a great morning and played well. Tonight he was very demanding but we know that this is just the medicine working on him. Tomorrow morning will be the last dose of the Decadron until the end of February. It will take several days for it to get out of his system but we can not wait for this to happen.
May God Bless You
Sunday, November 21, 2004 5:36 PM EST
Day 184
WE are going home. Tomorrow update will explain more about our visit. We are packing up now and should be leaving soon.
May God Bless You
Saturday, November 20, 2004 8:52 PM CST
Day 183
We started the flushing procedure today at about 4 P.M. The fustrating news is that we are starting at a level of 18 this time instead of the usual 9. Please pray that he can clear this high figure. We are giving him additional fluids to help but their is just so much a 3 year can drink. He is still in good spirits and we have had a wonderful day. Please pray for a family that left the hospital today. Their 21 moonth old child was taken home today with out much hope for recovery. They are tried all that they know to do but the cancer just will not go away. Please pray for Gods grace on this family and his healing power. With God all things are possible. Hopefully we will be coming home tomorrow. Please lift Mac up at your bedsides and your place of worship.
May God Bless You
Friday, November 19, 2004 10:02 PM EST
Day 182
Today has been long but we did finally get the chemo started at about 4:30. This is much better than the last time that was at 9:30. Mac took a late nap today so we will probably be up half the night. We are in the playroom right now and having a blast. Thank you for your prayers and continue to pray us back home on Sunday.
May God Bless You
Thursday, November 18, 2004 10:23 PM EST
Day 181
Well we are scurrying around to get the bags packed for the weekend stay. It seems like each time it get harder to leave Tori at home. Our appointment is for 10 A.M. but we hope to be there around 9 so maybe we can get started a little early. We are planning for a pancake stop at the IHOP. Mac really enjoyed this the last time. Best wishes to all of our friends and please do not forget to pray for Mac and bring him home ASAP.
May God Bless You
Wednesday, November 17, 2004 10:57 PM EST
Day 180
The weather was warm enough this afternoon for Mac to play outside. He was feeling good and played all over the yard with his friend Monica. It was wonderful to see them together going down the slide. It has been a long time since he has really paid any attention to his play set. I have heard K teacher talk about that each year they have one boy student that will use the bathroom on the playground. Well today when we looked out the window Mac was pulling his pants and underwear down to use the bathroom. He hopped over to make sure he hit the tree. I guess we might need to get ready for that phone call from the school. That’s OK. If that is the worse thing he ever does we do not have any concerns.
May God Bless You
Tuesday, November 16, 2004 8:16 PM EST
Day 179
Everything has gone well today. Mac has played well and slept well. Every time I come home from hunting he wants to know if daddy got a deer. I still wait for the time he can come with me. Mac has eaten pretty good day and has had plenty of energy. The weekend is coming on fast. Please remember us.
May God Bless You
Monday, November 15, 2004 10:30 PM EST
Day 178
Today has been a very special day. The whole family went out to eat and then to the movies. It has been a long time since we have done this. We had a wonderful evening and I look forward to doing it again. We went to see the Polar Express and Mac loved it. We had to play musical chairs at the theater and by the end of the show we had worked our way all the way to the front. The good thing about going on Monday is that there was only about 12 people in the theater so we did not bother anyone. Even Tori had a good night. The simple pleasure of spending time with your wife and children are really the best times to be had. Mac is still feeling well as we get ready for the upcoming weekend. Please pray that this will continue.
May God Bless You
Sunday, November 14, 2004 10:54 PM EST
Day 177
Today has been a good day. Mac was able to sing with the children’s choir this morning. He did not sing that much but he was playing with his eyes in perfect rhythm to the song. Only my son would think about doing that. He has played well today but we are having a hard time getting him to understand what “no” means. This is one of the challenges that come with raising a strong willed child. It has been said that we are paid back for our actions through our children and Mac is for sure giving me a pay raise. That’s O.K. Those same qualities will be used in his life if they are channeled in the right direction.
May God Bless You
Saturday, November 13, 2004 10:28 PM EST
Day 176
With Mac’s counts up a little bit he was able to go shopping tonight. He started to get tired toward the end of the end and it was time to go home. At bath time tonight, he felt like he needed to take a bubble bath. He loves to play in the bubbles. As far as where we are with Mac, we go back to Egleston this coming weekend for another 3 day stay. Please begin to pray that we can get the Methotrexate started early, get good result on Sunday so we can come home at a decent time. It is rough getting in late on Sunday night and then turning around and going back to work on Monday morning. We are truly blessed to be getting the results that we have had in the past but the Bible states that you have not because you ask not. Not with a tone of greed or selfishness but please pray that God will go ahead and work this prayer out so the whole family can be back together again early on Sunday.
May God Bless You
Friday, November 12, 2004 9:10 PM EST
Day 175
The rains have come and gone and Mac is still going strong. We went for his weekly CBC today and the results were still great. His WBC is at 3.49, his hemoglobin is down a little to a 10.6, and his platelet count is holding at 324,000. These are real good figures especially going into the cold season. While a healthy child has much higher numbers he is still holding strong and we are very blessed and give all thanks to God the Father for answering your prayers.
Thursday, November 11, 2004 9:09 PM EST
Day 174
Well the sickness got me today but Mac is still going strong. He has had a good day and does not appear to be getting any of the stomach viruses that appear to be going through the family. Please continue to pray for his health and ours. Tonight at bath time was a little crazy. I think I figured out why the water bill is high. Mac had turned the water on and filled the tub up to about an inch from the top so he could swim in the tub. I think we will probably have to drag him out of the tub. I might get a fishing pole and see if I can catch him.
May God Bless You
Wednesday, November 10, 2004 8:22 PM EST
Day 173
Mac had PT today and it went pretty good. He appeared to be tired but each day is different just like it is with adults. He did drop a fire truck on his toe. He was not happy about that. The toe nail looks blue so we always have to worry about should we call the doctor. It sound crazy but the smallest infection could lead to trouble. We decided to watch it and see if it gets better. Thank you for your prayers and please pray that we all stay healthy. I am tired right now and do not feel the best. I am praying that all I need is a good night’s sleep.
May God Bless You
Tuesday, November 9, 2004 10:26 PM EST
Day 172
Today was about in line with yesterday. Mac did feel the need to have a Zofran so we gave him one. We are trying to get back on some kind of night schedule so he was asleep by 10 tonight. That is later than we had hope but getting better. Tori did better today so I hope and pray that she is getting better.
May God Bless You
Monday, November 8, 2004 9:32 PM EST
Day 171
Mac has had a much better day. This morning he chose not to take his Zofran because he said he did not feel sick at his stomach. That is sure sign that he is doing better. Tori has had her moments. The Dr. office seems to think it is a stomach virus. Who knows for sure. Just pray that Mac will say healthy and that Tori will get to feeling better. We think that Tori may be trying to say “brother” but it sorta comes out as “bubba”. I am pretty sure that we may be stretching this just a little bit but she is definitely trying to make new sounds. It is wonderful to be a parent and watch your children grow.
May God Bless You
Sunday, November 7, 2004 10:12 PM EST
Day 170
It was great to have the whole family in church today! Both of them did great! There is no greater love that a parent can demonstrate for their children then to raise them in the church and show that Christ is the head of the household. Mac is still doing well. We had to take Tori off her medicine (I would tell you the name except I do not have a clue as to how to spell it) because it may be the reason she has been throwing up. She did not have any problems today. It is probably long past time to update the pictures on the web site so I will try to give everyone some recent pictures of Mac this week.
May God Bless You
Saturday, November 6, 2004 11:23 PM EST
Day 169
Mac has a good day. He helped plant some trees today and even got to go to the Mall of Georgia. His appetite is not the best and at times he still says his stomach hurts but I think each day is bringing new energy and renewed health. Baby Tori has been throwing up today. We know that she has fluid behind both of her ears to we are not sure if that may be causing the problem. Assuming the night goes well the whole family hopes to see all of our church friends tomorrow.
May God Bless You
Friday, November 5, 2004 10:12 PM EST
Day 168
With the medicine for nausea and the constipation cleared Mac has had a much better day. He took a late nap today and woke up in a “short” mood but I guess it is rough waking up with your baby sister grabbing your face. Tori loves him so much. We have made it through the night without any major problems. Prayerfully tomorrow will be the same.
May God Bless You
Thursday, November 4, 2004 10:09 PM EST
Day 167
Today has been a rough day for Mac. He has not felt good for most of the day. He has complained of his stomach hurting and just not feeling good. We took him a day early to have his CBC done and his figures looked good. His white blood count was actually in the 3’ which is higher than it was at the hospital. Tonight he started feeling better and we think is was because he cleared his constipation. After clearing himself he was playing and back to his old self. Thank you for your prayers. If nothing goes wrong, my whole family will be at church together this Sunday.
May God Bless You
Wednesday, November 3, 2004 10:47 PM EST
Day 166
Mac just keeps on playing. He did wonderful today at PT. He jumped on a trampoline today for about 3 minutes. The therapist said that she could really tell that he was getting stronger. We kept him out of church tonight just to be safe. His counts should be reaching their low point soon and with so many kids at the church I was a little scared to send him. Hopefully next week he will be able to go. He has had a good night but the constipation has still not been solved. Today is really the first day of him not having anything so please lift him up. With a child not going through treatment you would not really give it a second thought but knowing what the end result is (the tube going back into his nose) we all get a little crazy when he gets off schedule. Thank you for your prayers.
May God Bless You
Tuesday, November 2, 2004 9:39 PM EST
Day 165
Today has been a normal kind of day. We are starting to have a constipation issue so please pray that this will be solved tomorrow. Mac played a lot outside today. I do not think he really cared that it was Election Day. After all we have been through and still have to go through the big significance of Election Day goes away. You learn to live life day by day and prayer by prayer. The hard stuff is over with. We do still have two more stays and several more LP’s but with your prayer we will get through all of these. Our prayers are directed toward daily health with the flue season coming on and for the medicine and prayers to continue to keep Mac in remission.
May God Bless You
Monday, November 1, 2004 10:45 PM EST
Day 164
Each day is what you make of it and today was trick-or-treat day. Thank you to all the families that did and were willing to help make it possible for Mac to go out and get some candy. We arrived home last night at about 11 P.M. and it was so good to be home. Mac has had a good day today even though he has had to have 3 Zofrans for nausea. This is a common side effect of the Methotrexate but should go away in a couple of days. We have 3 weeks off until our next visit so please pray that he stays healthy.
(Ashlie) I thought I would put my two sense in. We took Mac and Tori to Mr. Ben, Ms. Jada, and baby Zoe’s house. Mac got really hot and striped off down to his underwear. He wanted to stay and play – forget going anywhere else. It was like pulling teeth to get him to leave. Then all the bugs went trick-or-treating tonight on the Gator. The ladybug (cousin Olivia), the caterpillar (Mac), and the butterfly (Tori) started their night off at Mr. Roy’s house. He had a special basket for Mac. Thank you for the basket and helping David with our grass. Then we went to Ms. Tammy, Mr. Terri, Kayleigh, and Megan’s house. Mac decided his friends had to go with him. So we all piled in the Gator to Mawmaw and Pawpaw’s, Ms. Sandra and Mr. Barry’s, and Papa, Gigi, and Abby’s. By the time we left Tori and Mac were crying because they were so tired and Olivia was asleep. Kayleigh and Megan, thanks for making Mac’s night extra special. We love you all very much. This night was probably more for me than anyone. Thank you to everyone who helped my kids be able to go out as a family. Many times you take for granted those simple moments like trick-or-treating. Anna, thanks for supper. Abby, thanks for dressing Tori and taking her to the church. Grandparents thanks for food, support, and especially bringing Tori to visits at the hospital.
May God Bless You
Sunday, October 31, 2004 9:43 PM EST
Day 163
We are going home. Thank you for your prayers. we are trying to get packed up so I will tell you more tomorrow.
May God Bless You
Saturday, October 30, 2004 7:00 PM EST
Day 162
(Ashlie) Mac has had a great day today. We all have. Papa and Gigi brought Tori for a visit today. We all went to a Halloween Carnival. Mac fished for treats and painted a pumpkin. We will be trick-or-treating at Egleston tomorrow. We have a caterpillar and a butterfly. Then all the bugs (Tori, Mac, and Olivia) will go treating on Monday night. Please continue to pray that Mac will clear his levels tomorrow night. Right now Mac is making up his own game of Battleship in the playroom. Mac has had a wonderful visit. This has become second nature to him. Not to me. I hate it when our family is in different places. I have to remind myself of the many blessings God has given us because it would be easy to get upset and down. There are so many times when things do not go according to our plans. We know God is in control. Please pray for our friend Jeremy. He will be having radiation next week and a bone marrow transplant on Friday. Mac loves Jeremy. Everyone have fun at Hallow Him and be safe trick-or-treating. We love you all.
Friday, October 29, 2004 9:26 PM EST
Day 161
It has been a day. The access of Mac's port went well but the pre-flush has not. Everything has taken longer than it should have today. It looks like the offical start time will be 9:30 P.M. which will make the stop time for the first check to go home 9:30 P.M. on Sunday night. Please pray that he will clear the Methotrexate on the first try. It will be late leaving here on Sunday but it will be a blessing to get home late and get our family back together. We will have a lot to do to get ready for work on Monday morning but it will be great to be back home.
May God Bless You
Thursday, October 28, 2004 10:31 PM EST
Day 160
We are in the final stages before the weekend. Mac has had an excellent day! He know where we are going tomorrow but has not said anything bad about the trip. The good thing is that he does not have to fast. We can get down the road and then get some breakfast. The Methotrexate will lower his counts by the end of next week but we are hoping that they will be up for the first part of the week so Mac can go to church and see his friends and family. We hope to see you soon.
May God Bless You
Wednesday, October 27, 2004 10:10 PM EST
Day 159
Today has been typical of the last couple of days. Mac has lots of energy and is playing great. We are preparing ourselves for another 3 day stay. This is both a physical getting things ready to go as well as an emotional battle knowing that our family will not be together for the weekend. Please remember us this weekend.
May God Bless You
Tuesday, October 26, 2004 11:04 PM EST
Day 158
It sure was a pretty day to play in the yard and Mac did just that. His Gator was at full speed as it tried to catch the lawn mower. He was having a great time. His energy level is up but we have not had a blood count check in a while so we are still leery of taking him out. We will have our next check this Friday. We are reading books again at night. He loves to look at the picture. It late and I hear Tori trying to extend to day. I have to run.
May God Bless You
Monday, October 25, 2004 9:27 PM EST
Day 157
Mac has played a lot today. He even got on his Gator went to see Mr. Roy. He told us that he could go by himself. He is so independent. He was in such good spirits after his trip to Mr Roy’s that we came back into the house and woke up baby Tori. I think we were in the doghouse for that one. Sorry mom! It is hard to be mad at him when he is feeling so well. We are getting closer to Friday which is another trip to Egleston for a 3 day stay. Please continue to pray for this weekend. Pray that everything goes well and he will be back in time to play games at the church on Sunday night. He has his costume and is ready to go.
Sunday, October 24, 2004 8:57 PM EST
Day 156
The energy just keeps on coming. Mac has had a great day. We are still dealing with the wonderful 3’s. People often talk how the terrible 2’s or some age like that. Each stage in a child’s development I am sure has its own unique characteristics. The thing that I can tell you is that while some of the characteristics may be difficult they should be counted as blessings. Contrary to what the scientist and politicians may tell you; God is the giver of life! Mac has a strong personality and a very strong will. These are traits that can have a positive impact on his life in the future. Dealing with his Leukemia I am sure has changed all of our perspectives on life. Values and priorities are reshaped. Each day is a blessing and one to be planted in love, grown and developed in time spent together, and one day harvested as our children have families of their own. Thank you so much for your prayers.
May God Bless You
Saturday, October 23, 2004 10:05 PM EST
Day 155
We have had a pretty good day again. I wish that I could say the same about the deer hunting. It will be much better when Mac can go. I saw a father/son at the Waffle House this morning. They were getting ready for a day in the woods. One day that will be us. Tomorrow is Tori’s dedication at the church. We will be making a brief visit for the dedication but will have to leave right after it because of Mac’s white blood counts. They are still too low to be visiting with his friends. Best wishes to each of you that are keeping us going by your prayers.
May God Bless You
Friday, October 22, 2004 10:08 PM EST
Day 154
The good days keep coming. Mac is such a little helper. He thought that Tori needed to have some shredded cheese to so he gave her some. He really cannot wait until Tori gets “bigger” so she can do and eat a lot more things. I received my high today when I picked him up and he was excited to see me and wanted to go home. The little “I love you” from his precious lips cannot be bought with silver or gold. We are still working on the potty training and it is going pretty good. This is probably one of the hardest things we have had to work with him on. It is frustrating knowing that next weekend he will get off schedule again because of the fluids they will be giving him to get rid of the Methotrexate. Please begin to pray for the entire visit and that Mac can clear the chemo by early Sunday so he can come back to play games at the church. If anyone is looking for a safe place to brings you children on Halloween you would be very welcomed to come to Harmony Hall Baptist Church.
May God Bless You
Thursday, October 21, 2004 10:10 PM EST
Day 153
Mac has had another good day. He is still playing hard and getting stronger. There has been no sign of a fever and this is a good thing. From talking to people I understand that there are a lot of bugs going around now. Please pray that this family can stay healthy for Mac’s sake. Our jobs put us in direct contact with a lot of children and sometimes they come to school sick. Please pray for a hedge of protection around each of us, especially Mac, so we stay healthy.
May God Bless You
Wednesday, October 20, 2004 10:25 PM EST
Day 152
Today has been a much better day. Mac has felt great all day. His appetite has been down but that will probably increase as his counts go up. He is doing much better with his potty training. It is difficult to encourage him at the hospital because of the fluids that they give him. At home we are making some progress. I think Tori is happy that Mac is home. She really loves her brother.
May God Bless You
Tuesday, October 19, 2004 8:49 PM EST
Day 151
We finally made it home early this afternoon. Mac’s counts are low but they were good enough to get us home. We are still in a critical area with his counts and will have to keep him isolated for a little while longer. His white blood count is a 1.4. This is better than it has been in a while but it still needs to be higher. It is great to have my whole family in the same house tonight. The times that the 4 of us are apart are tough. Our next scheduled visit is on the 29th of October and it will be a 3 day stay for Methotrexate. Thank you for praying for us and bringing us home.
May God Bless You
Monday, October 18, 2004 8:37 PM EST
Day 150
Well tick-tock this visit does not seem to ever stop. We have been here for another day and we only a a 50-50 chance of going home tomorrow. It has been frustrating but at least we have been off for fall break. We will know sometime around lunch tomorrow if we will get to go home. The fever has left but the Dr is is being very cautious because of his low counts. He does not want to send us home to early and have Mac get a fever and have to come right back. Please pray that his counts will rise so we can go home.
May God Bless You
Sunday, October 17, 2004 9:41 AM CDT
Day 149
We will be spending another day with our friends here at Egleston. While Mac is doing better they will not let us leave to go home. His WBC is still dropping and is now at a .6. Yesterday is was at a .9 and is was a 1.1 the day we arrived. The count drop was to be expected but it is greatly interfering with his ability to recover from this fever. This entry might have some mistakes in it because I have the big boy in my lap as I am trying to type. It is easy to get distracted when there is a hammer swinging over your head. Just praise the Lord he is feeling well.
May God Bless You
Saturday, October 16, 2004 8:21 PM CDT
Day 149
Today has been a long day. Mac has felt good but has had several fevers throughout the day. This morning he hit a 103 and then went several hours without one. Tonight he had a 101 fever. It is quite discouraging. He is playing and not complaining of pain but we cannot go home. The blood culture has not shown any sign of a bacteria infection and the respiratory check today showed no sign of a contageous virus. We are just playing the waiting game. Please pray that we will be home soon. At the present moment it appears that Monday will be the earliest we will get to go home.
May God Bless You
Friday, October 15, 2004 2:35 PM CDT
Day 148
Our short day at the doctor has turned into a ticket for a 2 day stay. Mac is running a fever of about 101 so we will be staying until Sunday night the earliest. It takes 48 hours for the blood test to come back to determine if the fever is being caused by bacteria, a virus, the chemo, or by the transfusion. He woke this morning with a 99.7 fever but we really did not think anything about it. Please pray that the fever will break and that we can go home ASAP. He is a little fussy at times but other than that he feels fine.
May God Bless You
Thursday, October 14, 2004 10:43 PM EST
Day 147
The results are back from the blood test and we will need to go to Egleston tomorrow for a transfusion. His white blood counts are holding steady but his hemoglobin and platelets are dropping. His hemoglobin count is at a 8.4 and his platelets have fell to 97,000. At an 8.0 it is basically an automatic transfusion for the hemoglobin. The staff at Egleston wants us to go ahead and get the transfusion because they know that he will continue to drop. Remember I posted on the journal that the counts will drop for 7-10 days after treatment. While his counts are low he is still feeling good. He is still playing and basically all over the place. Please pray that they will be able to access his port with ease tomorrow. The transfusion takes about 3 hours and during this time Mac can watch TV or play his Game Boy.
May God Bless You
Wednesday, October 13, 2004 10:40 PM EST
Day 146
All is well in the Collins’ household. Mac is feeling good and Tori went to sleep easy tonight. Tomorrow night will be the last dose of the chemo 6TG and Mac will have 2 weeks off from any type of chemo. He will go tomorrow and get his blood work done here in Gainesville. We expect the count to be down but are praying that they are not too bad. His body will start to rebuild the counts in about a week to 10 days. Listening to the presidential debates tonight was interesting. Two men are disputing figures and percents that any accountant could do the same. They discuss matters of foreign and domestic policy. These are all important to every American but the central focus and most important principal is family. I am not smart enough to understand the difference between 1 trillion or 2 trillion but I know that my son is getting better and by your prayers God is healing him. Maybe the leaders of the nation should stop listening to the accountants and start making all their decision based on what the word of God says. Maybe then they could experience his power, the same power that is saving my son.
May God Bless You
Tuesday, October 12, 2004 9:52 PM EST
Day 145
The shot are finished. Praise the Lord. Mac will take his last dose of 6TG chemo on Thursday night and he will be finished with this Delayed Intensification Period. It has gone much better than expected because of your prayers. His white blood counts are still down and will continue to drop for another 7-10 days so please continue to lift his health up to the Lord. We will be going Longstreet on Thursday to get his counts checked. By doing them late on Thursday we will be able to go to Egleston on Friday if we need to. We are really praying that his counts will stay up high enough by themselves that we will not have to receive either a hemoglobin or platelet transfusion.
May God Bless You
Monday, October 11, 2004 10:01 PM EST
Day 144
Three shots down and one to go. Mac has had a very good day. We are trying to get him potty trained and it has been a challenge. With all the treatments and sickness it has been difficult to find the right opportunity to push him hard. He stayed in “big boy” underwear all day today. Later in the night he did have an accident but this is a great improvement. We have about a month for him to practice until he goes in for the 3 day weekend. This will be a difficult time because they are flushing so many fluids through him because of the chemo. Tomorrow is supposed to be PT but he will not be able to attend due to his white blood counts being low. I would rather error on the side of caution than to be careless and cause a fever. If we can get Tori to go down I think we will be in for a good night. She is so nosy and she thinks she will miss something.
May God Bless You
Sunday, October 10, 2004 9:11 PM EST
Day 143
This Sunday has been a good day. I stayed home with Mac this morning during church and Ashlie took the night shift so I could go to church. Mac’s energy level is still going good. He received his second of four shots tonight. He hates to get them but he is over it soon after. You would not believe that a short while ago Mac was not able to express his thought through words. The short time that he was in speech has made a world of difference. Now he is very good as expressing his thought and a little too often his opinion. Tori is still not feeling well. It gets worse at night. Please continue to pray that she get well and that Mac can stay healthy
Saturday, October 9, 2004 6:00 PM EST
Day 142
It is hard to keep the wild man down when he feels good. His counts are low as I stated in yesterday’s journal we must keep him isolated for about 2 weeks but he is playing great. Each day brings about more silly stunts and actions by him. I spent some time today getting ready for the hunting season. It is going to be great for him to go with me in a couple of years. I long for that time spent together in the woods. Many of you may not understand that but those outside activities are the best for bonding. We will miss each of you at church and please pray for us to have a speedy return in about 2 weeks.
May God Bless You
Friday, October 8, 2004 5:43 PM EST
Day 141
Everything went fine today. Mac got agitated about having to have the procedure done but he got through it OK. The nurse did a wonderful job. Mac’s white blood counts have dropped to an almost critical range of 1.03. Due to this factor we regret that we will have to restrict visitors and his attendance at church and other places. By the end of the week the 1.03 will probably be cut in half which will place him in a critical area for infections. We hope that his counts will go back up in about 2 weeks. The doctors are not surprised by the counts and have been looking for it to happen. The treatment is still going well and this is just another part of the treatment. His counts have done well throughout the treatment and we have been blessed. Please pray that each family member will stay healthy (Tori has a slight cough) so Mac can stay healthy. At the first sign of a fever we must call the hospital so they can give him some antibiotics. We treasure your prayers and know that you will continue to lift us up.
Thursday, October 7, 2004 9:00 PM EST
Day 140
Mac has been in good spirits today. He went to see his cousins tonight and played hard outside. Today was also the first day back to the library. He loves to go and check out books. Tomorrow we go back to Egleston. Please say a prayer for everything that will take place. Our appointment is not until 9:30 A.M. so Mac will probably get hungry. Please pray that the Lord will keep him content until he can eat again. We had a great visit last time and we prayer that his port will work properly again and that the sedation medicine will do what it is suppose to do.
May God Bless You
Wednesday, October 6, 2004 10:46 PM EST
Day 139
PT went well today. Mrs. Kristen said that Mac did a fine job. He has played all day today. He would not go down for a nap. I was afraid that tonight would be difficult but he has been in a good mood. He was ready for bed and went off to sleep without any trouble. It is always good to get the call for daddy to lay with him on the bed. That is my sure sign that he is feeling better. Please begin to pray for the procedure on Friday. We will have to do another fast and they will have to access his port again for the lumbar puncture. This will be the last one for several visits so that is definitely a blessing. Thanks for everything.
May God Bless You
Tuesday, October 5, 2004 9:43 PM EST
Day 138
Another good day! Mac has played well throughout the course of the day. He finished off the first of 4 shots. He will start the last 4 on Saturday morning. He is really getting into throwing and hitting a play ball. I think he has got a future in sports. What ever his future holds it will be because of the blessings of God and the prayers of his people. Whatever makes him happy is what I want him to do. One funny moment in the brother and sister love for each other. Tori was going to bed and I asked Mac to give her some love. He told me no because Tori might slobber on him. Brothers and sisters! There is sure to be a special bond.
Monday, October 4, 2004 10:00 PM EST
Day 137
Mac has had a wonderful day. He has felt good and did a fine job with his shot this morning. He still does not like it but he is dealing with it. This afternoon I was cutting grass and looked up to find Mac on his Gator riding around the yard. It was such a beautiful sight. He is getting to be more like himself each day. Your prayers are holding back any problems with nausea and he is enjoying life. His appetite has also gotten smaller so the final stages of the Decadron are wearing off. He is getting to be a big helper is taking care of Tori. At times he can be a little bossy but it is so cute to see him try to take care of his baby sister.
Sunday, October 3, 2004 10:14 PM EST
Day 136
I hope that your worship service today was as good as ours. The Lord loves it when his people give him praise. Mac has had a good day. Every once in a while a little attitude comes life. At times he does complain of his legs hurting but I think this is due to muscle soreness brought on by walking again. We had a blast playing in the tub tonight. He enjoys making the dinosaurs talk. He will even use different voices for different ones. His hair is slowly growing back. That is a much welcomed sight. I guess dad can be the only bald one in the family. We are expecting a good week. He does not like to get the shots but thankfully there are only 6 more to go, two this week and then 4 next week. Mac was not sick on his stomach today so that was a real blessing.
May God Bless You
Saturday, October 2, 2004 9:50 PM EST
Day 135
The day started out pretty good. Mac received his shot this morning. He was a little scared but he did great. Everything seemed to be going fine until about 2 hours later he vomited. There was no warning of any kind. We had not given him a Zofran for several days because he seemed to be doing so good. The rest of the day went good but it looks like he will have to have a Zofran to get him through these 14 days. Continue to pray for this period of treatment. I hope that everyone is in church tomorrow to worship the Savior.
May God Bless You
Friday, October 1, 2004 11:07 PM EST
Day 134
Sorry it is so late posting this journal. It has been crazy since getting home from Egleston. The day was another answered prayer. All the procedures went excellent! We started Mac on his first dose of a chemo called 6TG tonight. He has 13 more doses. Tomorrow he will take his first shot of chemo at the house. Please pray that he will not be scared and that it will not hurt too much. He will only have to have 8 shots during the 2 week period. A friend was nice enough to volunteer to come to the house and give the shots. She is a nurse and I am sure could do a better job than we could. She thought it would be a good idea if it was not mom and dad that were giving the shot. Thank you for your prayers. Lift the name of the Lord up to your friends. The world needs to hear that God still answers prayers.
May God Bless You
Thursday, September 30, 2004 10:56 PM EST
Day 133
We leave to go to Egleston tomorrow morning. We will be their approximately 6 hours. Mac will receive a LP of his spine and a new chemo. The new chemo requires them to pre-hydrate him before giving and after receiving the chemo. Please lift him up during this procedure. We have had several complications lately and we really need to have a good day. Mac continued to play today and is still continuing to walk more each day. The next 2 weeks should not affect his progress but pray that the nausea will not hit him hard. Also, Mac will have to fast tomorrow. This is always a difficult time for him. Please pray that God will keep him content until he is able to eat again.
May God Bless You
Wednesday, September 29, 2004 10:13 PM EST
Day 132
Mac had Pt today for the first time in several weeks. He did show a short patience level when he had to get ready to go and also when the therapist made him walk to the car. With a child coming off steroids patience is a virtue. It will take Mac some time to get back into a routine and while you can nudge there probably is no reason to push. Mac is progressing each day and each day is blessed. Please begin to pray for the Lumbar Puncture on Friday. Pray that the procedure will go without problems.
May God Bless You
Tuesday, September 28, 2004 10:22 PM EST
Day 131
Today has been another good day. Mac has felt the best he has felt. The steroids are definitely wearing off and each day should get better. He let me play his GameBoy tonight but then had to turn around and show me how to play. I guess I am just too old. He played for the longest time tonight in the bath tub. He was making funny noises and having a blast. The sound of a child playing in a house is such a sweet sound. Without that sound the house is just an empty shell.
May God Bless You
Monday, September 27, 2004 10:45 PM EST
Day 130
The prayers of God’s people have brought another good day. Mac has been active today more than in the past week or two. He has smiled and cut of with everyone. The eating is still doing strong but he is feeling better. One way I personally judge how he is feeling is how much one on one time I get with him. Tonight was great. I got to lay down with him while he was going to sleep. Just the two of us: a father and his son. What pain God must have felt to have turn his back on his son Jesus and let him suffer on that cross. The pain that he must have felt when Jesus cried out: “Why have you forsaken me?” A mother and a son have a certain kind of bond and that bond is very strong but a father and a son have a different kind of bond that only the two of them will truly understand and I cherish each moment that we can be together and experience this togetherness.
Sunday, September 26, 2004 10:18 PM EST
Day 129
Mac has had a difficult morning but as the day progressed things got better. I think he was really tired this morning because of the long day he had yesterday with the cookout and birthday party. After his nap he seemed to feel much better. He has walked on several occasions today. I love to see him walk. It is a true indicator of how he is feeling. The eating continues but hopefully we will see a decrease in his appetite this week. Please begin to pray for the upcoming trip to Egleston this Friday. Mac will have another lumbar puncture. This procedure allows them to drain some spinal fluid to check for cancer and at the same time they inject Methotrexate into his spine. We have had some difficulty lately with this procedure so please pray for God’s blessing on the procedure.
May God Bless You
Saturday, September 25, 2004 9:41 PM EST
Day 128
Today has been another good day. Mac was engaged in the day before him today. He went outside of the house much more today and interacted with people better than he has in the past week. You can still see the Decadron working in him but each day brings hope. He should sleep great tonight if he is not too tired. He has not had a nap all day today. He has been accustomed to having several naps throughout the day but today he would not take one. I really think he wants to feel better and does not want to sleep because he is beginning to have some fun again. He did have a headache tonight that caused him a lot of pain. This is the first time for such a headache. We think that is was probably caused by being so tired. I hope to report an even better day tomorrow.
May God Bless You
Friday, September 24, 2004 9:51 PM EST
Day 127
A day with out Decadron is really good. Mac was in better spirits today but he still showed signs of the effects of the drug. His blood counts were good. The Decadron had jumped his WBC into the 8’s, his hemoglobin is holding in the 13’s, and his platelet counts dropped into the 100,000’s. With the exception of the platelets these are excellent counts and even the platelets is still OK. We will continue to give him the anti depression medicine for a little while longer as the Decadron is flushed from his system. We are really hoping for some much better days and hopefully his eating will ease off. He weighed 57 pounds today. We have been lucky in that he has only gained 7 total pounds since starting treatment. Some children gain in excess of 20 pounds. I think he may have a future in football.
May God Bless You
Thursday, September 23, 2004 9:13 PM EST
Day 126
Tonight ended a tale in Mac’s story. He was given his last dose of Decadron in this 21 day cycle. He will have a week off from any type of chemo and a good length of time away from the steroids. When he does take the Decadron again it will only be for 7 days. The doctors had told us how much a child could eat on steroid and we have seen that this time in Mac. He is an eating machine. Tonight he ate for about 2 hours straight. We would fix, he would eat, and then he would order something else. We have to go back to Egleston tomorrow for his blood work but he will not receive any treatments. After this week he will start back on 3 different types of chemo. One will be a shot that will be given at home. The side effects on these mainly include nausea. They are not the beast that Vincristin is. We still do have a lot of treatments but I think the worse is behind us now. The 3 days stays will start back soon but so far he has done well with them. Thank you for praying Mac this far in his treatment and for lifting us up also.
May God Bless You
Wednesday, September 22, 2004 9:04 PM EST
Day 125
The Decadron troubles continue. Mac is very much not himself for a large part of the day. The good news is that tomorrow will be the last 2 doses of Decadron. Maybe then we can get out loving child back from the grips of the Decadron beast. We will go back to Egleston on Friday afternoon for a CBC. They wanted us to do it down there incase his counts have dropped. I think they will be OK because they were so high the last time. Thank you for all of your prayers. We love reading you guestbook messages. They are definitely a lift on the bad days.
May God Bless You
Tuesday, September 21, 2004 10:07 PM EST
Day 124
The constipation has been broken thanks to the grace of God and the prayers of his people. The Decadron beast is still at large. Mac is very moody and at times has absolutely zero patience. His voice can be filled with so much anger that you would not believe it was him. He is still able to get around but he does not feel like it. He does not want to play but we have been able to read him some books. He is sleeping a lot and still eating a ton of food. He has 2 days or 4 doses of the Decadron left and even that is too much but we are almost to the end of the Delayed Intensification period. It will take him several days to get the drug out of his system but each day should hold a little promise. It will be some time before he has to go back on the Decadron and even then it will only be for 7 days. He has been through so much to only be three years old. He is doing the best he can and he still has those moments where we see a smile or two but I cannot wait to see them on a daily basis.
May God Bless You
Monday, September 20, 2004 7:09 PM EST
Day 123
I report to you early tonight with GREAT news. Mac has broken the constipation cycle. He has had two dirty diapers since 6 P.M. Please rejoice with us about this good news. God’s people lifted Mac up to the thrown and God has answered your prayers.
May God Bless You
Sunday, September 19, 2004 10:41 PM EST
Day 122
Today has been the same. Mac’s energy level is still down and he is still eating all the time. The main thing I need to let you know is that Mac is constipated. Today was day number 3. Please pray without ceasing that this will come to an end tomorrow. If it does not end soon we will be back in the hospital within a couple of days. Please call all of you Christian friends that may not be checking the website on a daily basis and let them know that we need the prayers of God’s people.
May God Bless You
Saturday, September 18, 2004 10:20 PM EST
Day 121
The effects of the Vincristine are still taking a toll on Mac. His energy levels are dropping and so is his strength. The strength lose comes from the Decadron. He slept a lot today and did not really feel like playing. We took him to town tonight but after a short while he was ready to go home. We are still doing better than before and the smiles are still there but I will definitely be glad when this 21 day period is over. Please pray that Mac will hold on to his strength. He takes his last Decadron dose for this period on Thursday night. Please also pray that he will have a bowel movement tomorrow. This is day number 2. He was given two dose of Miralax today. Please pray that this works. He is taking in a lot of food and a better variety of food that last time so I hope that tomorrow this problem will be taken care of. I hope that everyone has a wonderful day at church tomorrow.
May God Bless You
Friday, September 17, 2004 9:20 PM EST
Day 120
The trip to the doctor turned into a long event. The nurse was able to access his port on the first try but then the problems started. She could not get blood to come from the port. This means that something is obstructing the port or she is not in it. Mac had a type of x-ray run to determine if the port was OK. Everything turned out OK but there is a clot in the port. Your can push liquids through the clot because it will flap open but when you try to draw liquids (blood) the flap closes. We were able to give him his chemo with one little change. After talking to the doctor about the pain that Mac has been experiencing it was determined not to give him the 3rd dose of Vincristine. The Vincristine is getting into his joints and this lead to him not walking during the first 30 days. As far as the results of the treatment process it will not have any effect. Mac has already received more chemo than under the standard plan and the clinical that he is on does allow for one dose of the Vincristine to be skipped. I was glad the doctor made the call for him not receiving it. It was going to be a tough one to make. We go back again next Friday to have his counts checked. His counts today were all up except for his platelets (they are still OK but down). His white blood count had gone to almost 6. This is very good and a direct result of the Decadron. That is about the only good thing about this drug. It will raise your counts. Just to let you know how much Mac is eating, he ate a total of 12 eggs yesterday. He is putting away some serious food. Thank you for all of your prayers.
May God Bless You
Thursday, September 16, 2004 10:37 PM EST
Day 119
Thank you to the crew at Jackson EMC for getting the power back on in a timely fashion. Not having power can be a big inconvenience but not having power with a child on Decadron can be a nightmare. We I got home from school I began cooking stuff for Mac because I figured we would lose power. I made biscuits, rice, and green beans. I also made Tori’s bottles. We were able to give him everything he wanted except for pizza. He wanted eggs so I fired up the gas grill and cooked some eggs in a pan. The thing about the Decadron is that once he gets it in his mind he is not able to forget it. Mac had some severe pains in his legs tonight. It appears that the Vincristine is getting into his joint again. We are going to have to really talk to the doctors tomorrow about this. He is scheduled to get his 3rd and last dose of the 21 day period tomorrow. I just do not know what to do. We had to give him codeine again tonight for the pain. It tears your heart out to see him crying because of pain. Please pray for the nurse tomorrow that will access his port if we go through with this last treatment. Pray that she will be able to get it on the first try. I hope that everyone has had a safe evening despite the storms.
May God Bless You
Wednesday, September 15, 2004 9:46 PM EST
Day 118
Mac has had a little better day than yesterday. He still slept from 11-3 today but we have spoke to Egleston about him sleeping so much. We are going to try and take him off the antidepressant medicine in the morning and see how he does. We think that this may be the cause of the sleep. We gave him Tylenol with codeine tonight because he was complaining of his foot hurting again. Tomorrow will be day number 13 of the 21 day period. We are doing much better this time then last time but the medicine is working on him pretty hard. He is putting some food away because of the Decadron. We try to slow him down but this does not work to well because he gets very upset. We are praying for a better day tomorrow but at the same time we are thankful for the days that we are having during this treatment period. We have been blessed in several areas. I think that it does a person good to think about their blessing when they get frustrated. Mac is still walking, we are over half way through the 21 days, the nausea could be much worse (he went about 12 days without eating much last time), and he is still playing when he is not tired. God is good!
May God Bless You
Tuesday, September 14, 2004 10:47 PM EST
Day 117
Today has been a difficult day at times. We came home this afternoon and Mac shut down. All he had done all day long was lie in bed and sleep. The same thing continued when we got home. He said he did not feel good and all he wanted was his mom. Dad was told to get out of the room. Ashlie and I had thoughts about the first 30 days of treatment. We called Egleston and was scheduled to go tomorrow at 10 but a funny thing happened. At about 5:30 Mac had a major dirty diaper and started to feel better. We do not understand what happened. He was not constipated but was showing signs that he was. He had complained that his foot and knee was hurting but he has not mentioned it again. We are going to call the doctor tomorrow and talk with them. We go again for a scheduled visit on Friday. We were scared that the hurting foot and knee was the results of the Vincristine. Tonight he did have a major Decadron fit but it was short lived and he was fine again. We are wondering if the medicine that is taking he edge off the Decadron is causing him to sleep too much. Hopefully we will have some answers tomorrow. Mac has also developed mouth sores as a result of the chemo. Please pray that they will go away. We started him on the Diflucan which is supposed to be some great medicine. Please say a prayer for him when you read this. We are counting the days down until these 21 days are over. If he can continue to get through them Mac will have went through the strongest treatment that was available for him.
May God Bless You
Monday, September 13, 2004 10:36 PM EST
Day 116
Mac has been very tired today. He has spent a lot of time sleeping and laying around today. It appears that he needs more frequent naps as we go further into this phase of the treatment. This afternoon he went to the hunting club with us. We rode through the woods on the 4 wheeler. He had a good time but you could tell that he was tired. The doctors had told us that his counts would drop this week and I think they are right. His hemoglobin levels may be dropping and as a result he is getting tired quicker. Continue to pray us through this 21 day period. Pray that the Lord will life Mac up and give him the strength and energy that is needed to keep playing and an enjoying himself.
Sunday, September 12, 2004 10:27 PM EST
Day 115
I trust that everyone had a wonder day at church today. We made it for both the morning and evening services. Each Sunday that we can go to church as a family to worship is great. We want Mac to realize that church is not something that you think about doing but something that you do. We want to give him every opportunity to realize what Christ has done for him so that we he is of age he can make a decision for Christ. The Decadron is increasing his appetite very quickly. It seems like he has eaten all day. The Myralax is helping to keep him from being constipated. Continue to pray that this works. His patience is growing short. When he wants something he wants it right then. The problem is that some of his food orders take a little while to cook. It is easy to loose your patience when he keeps on saying something over and over. We do a good job at realizing that this is the medicine acting on him and not his normal behavior. Tonight though it was starting to get to me and I really had to ask for forgiveness for it. I did not yell at him but I could have showed a lot more understanding. He is such a wonderful child and each day is a blessing.
May God Bless You
Saturday, September 11, 2004 10:15 PM EST
Day 114
Today has been a good day. Mac still has moments of nausea but that is to be expected with the amount of chemo that is in his body. The procedure on Friday went well. We are very thankful for your prayers. At times he still has his Decadron moments but we are handling them pretty good. He is still walking well and playing well. He does sleep a little more than usual but one of the side effects of the drugs this time is sleepiness. We are planning on being at church tomorrow and hope to see everyone there.
May God Bless You
Friday, September 10, 2004 2:05 PM EST
Day 113
The procedure went well. They did not get Mac as sedated as they would have liked to but everything went OK. His counts are still up. The doctors said his numbers would probably start to drop this week. Mac is in bed right now catching up on some sleep. Thank you for your prayers.
May God Bless You
Thursday, September 9, 2004 10:30 PM EST
Day 112
The final preparations have been made for tomorrow’s trip to Egleston. Subs have been arranged and half of the kids are in bed. Tori is not really wanting to give it up and go to sleep. Today has been about the same. At times Mac gets emotional and at other times he is having a good time. At times he is sick and then 5 minutes later he is better. We watched a little TV tonight together, just the two of us. It was good to have him propped up on my shoulder and go to sleep that way. Children are precious when they are asleep. It is just a very small glimpse of the peace that must be waiting on all believers in Christ when we see our Redeemer. Tomorrow we will receive two types of chemo through his port and the Methotrexate given through the lumbar puncture. Please pray for Mac. They will have to sedate him in a different fashion this time. I am not sure what they have planned but pray that he will have a good visit with no complications. His counts are probably dropping so we need for you to continue to lift his blood counts to the Lord. Whenever we get back home from the doctor I will try to update the journal so that you will know how the day went.
May God Bless You
Wednesday, September 8, 2004 11:01 PM EST
Day 111
The nausea spells continue. Mac can be OK one moment and the next he will be gagging. We have done everything we can do to keep the smells down in the house. We are doing better this time period than the first 30 days but each day does seem to wear Mac down a little more. The Amana program started back up at church tonight. Mac went to his class but he would not let Ashlie leave. Each day he seems to be clinging just a little bit more to her. He still complains the Zantac does not taste good even though I am adding vanilla flavoring to it. We are going to try and mix all three medicines together tomorrow night and see how he does. We will be going back to the hospital for another round of treatment this Friday. Please begin to pray that the procedure goes well because it did not last time.
May God Bless You
Tuesday, September 7, 2004 10:10 PM EST
Day 110
Mac has had a pretty decent day. He is still fighting the nausea spells but I do not really think it was as bad today. He has cut his eating down I think to compensate for feeling bad. Your prayers are holding the fits down to a minimum and he is having pretty good days. He went to work out with me tonight but left me to play with some friends. Oh well. I guess he still has a couple of years before he hits some serious weights for the ball field. He has PT tomorrow and we hope he can go but the mornings are still rough on him and his appointment is at 9 A.M. He is still eating but not really like you would expect him to on Decadron. He loves pancakes. He has eaten two today. I am not sure which medicine is causing it but he is still getting emotional at times. He is not angry but will start crying if everything is not the way he thinks it should be. He is still extremely sensitive to smells also. I cut a bell pepper tonight and then went back to the bedroom and he smelled it on my hands. I told Ashlie that I think all the Decadron is going to his nose. Prayerfully tomorrow will be great.
May God Bless You
Monday, September 6, 2004 9:24 PM EST
Day 109
Last night entry did not seem to work. I will have to start checking to make sure that it got posted. Mac is doing OK. He is fighting nausea throughout the day. The mornings are the worse but 3 or 4 times today he started to get sick. We are giving him all the Zofran that we can to fight off the sick feeling. The only other option is to give him Phenagran. The bad effect of this medicine is that it will put him to sleep. We only use it as a last resort and prefer only to give it at night. The more Mac is up and moving around the better it has to be for his walking during these 21 days as well as keeping the constipation away. As I have told you were are being very proactive this time by giving him Myralax once a day to keep him from getting constipated. The once a day is working but at the first sign of trouble we will go to twice a day. Preschool will probably be out for a little while. The medicine that is keeping his bad temper outburst away so far also causes him to get sleepy. We hope to get him back to preschool as soon as we can because he enjoys it so much. We have enjoyed our long weekend with Mac and Tori. He is still playing well and so far there have not been any signs of him wanting to stop walking. Continue to pray that this trend will continue and that the nausea beast will leave him alone.
May God Bless You
Monday, September 6, 2004 10:04 AM EST
Day 108
I was not aware that the journal did not post last night. I apologize that I have not been able to correct it sooner. This morning is going rough. Mac is very nauseous. The Zoffran is not working at well. We are hoping that as the morning progresses that things will get better. Hopefully I will do a better job with the journal tonight. I hope that I have not alarmed people. Just remember us in your prayers. I will post again tonight with the events of the day.
May God Bless You
Saturday, September 4, 2004 11:18 PM EST
Day 107
The effects of the chemo have started to show up. Mac has had several spells of nausea today. We have had to give him 3 Zofrans to combat this problem. The medicine that is working to counteract the effects of the Decadron has made him real sleepy today. His color has not been good either. With all that being said we have had a pretty good day though. We went to the Mall of Georgia tonight and Mac’s and Tori’s behavior was wonderful. Mac is very sensitive to the smell of food right now. He has even switched back to drinking strawberry milk instead of chocolate. Hot dogs are becoming a favorite food. It has not taken long but we are seeing many of the same signs in the food department that he exhibited the first 30 days of treatment. The mornings are the roughest on him as he gets his system going again. We may not make it to church tomorrow but we hope that everyone will remember us in your prayers. Continue to pray that he will keep on walking and that the nausea will be controllable.
May God Bless You
Friday, September 3, 2004 9:53 PM EST
Day 106
I wish I could have reported that today went well but it really did not. Mac is OK but the office visit was hectic. The drug that they use to make Mac unaware of the Lumbar Puncture released a side effect. Mac got real emotional. They had to give him a reversal medicine to clear it out of his body. The Methotrexate that they were supposed to put in his spine squirted out on the table from the syringe. They only got half of the full amount in his body. We had to go back next week anyway but know we have to do another fast. This time he will be on the steroid Decadron so the fast will be harder. Nothing that went wrong was major but it was very frustrating. The song says to count your blessing and name them one by one so here goes. Today would have been easy to say that there were now blessings but we did. We had a safe trip, the side effect of the drug was minor, and we were given a new medicine that hopefully will help with some of the temper side effects of the Decadron. The new medicine is taken with the Decadron and is suppose to help take the “edge” off Mac. I pray that it works. Thank you for your prayers. While today was the best God is still in control, he still loves us, and he still wants us to pray for our needs.
May God Bless You
Thursday, September 2, 2004 10:47 PM EST
Day 105
With the subs in place at school, we are ready to go to Egleston tomorrow to start the 21 days. This will we followed by a short recovery time period and then two more weeks of various chemotherapy. Mac is in good spirits and we are upfront with him about where we are going tomorrow. Right now he has not made any negative remarks about the trip. We are trying to pump him full of food so he will not be so hungry. He is on his second hotdog for the night. I made an inventory check of the Decadron and the Zantac pills to see what type of prescriptions we will need to have filled. The big white notebook goes with us on each trip and anytime we leave the house for an extended time period. In the note book is all of his medicine list and his past blood counts. One day when he gets older he will be able to read the journal article and look at the notebook and see the deliverance that God has provided for him. We have to be there tomorrow at 8 AM because he will be fasting. With luck, I hope we will be leaving by lunch. Sometimes it seems that things do not go quickly for some reason or the other. The battle starts tomorrow but the battle has already been won through Christ through the petition of your prayers.
May God Bless You
Wednesday, September 1, 2004 8:51 PM EST
Day 104
PT went well today. The therapist still wants Mac to practice walking up stairs. She says that Mac is only using his strong leg to go up stairs and he needs to practice alternating his steps. Tomorrow is another day of preschool. I think tomorrow may be Mac’s day to bring snacks. One of his old friends came over from school with Ashlie today. He loves to play with her. He can be a little bossy but she is so good with him. We are getting our things in order for Friday. They will have to put Mac under to perform the lumbar puncture to check his spinal fluid. We will have to fast again and that is always a challenge. I do not think Mac is as afraid to go as he use to be but usually when we get there he is ready to come home. At least we will be coming home on Friday instead of having to stay the weekend. God worked out another miracle for us. Ashlie was out of sick days and was going to have to take no pay to go to the doctor. Hall county change the way they give out the sick days. Instead of giving them out monthly they have given our sick days all at once. That will enable her to have enough days to qualify for the sick bank. We were concerned about what to do if he has trouble with the 21 days or how she was going to go to the doctor but God has worked all of that out. Praise be to him!
May God Bless You
Tuesday, August 31, 2004 10:41 PM EST
Day 103
Preschool went without any difficulties today. Today was another string of the good days. After preschool he played and played outside. It is hard to get him to slow down. What a wonderful problem to have after so many weeks in bed sick. Friday is fast approaching. Please begin to pray for a hedge of protection around Mac and his little body. The side effects of the steroids and Vincristine can be nasty. The Bible speaks of believers praying for this protection and I have read numerous accounts of believers being safely delivered from harmful encounters by the prayers of the saints. The battle begins again on Friday so please begin to pray specifically that Mac will continue to walk during these 21 days, the steroids will not temporary destroy his personality, and that the constipation and stomach cramps will not affect him this time. What a wonderful testimony it will be to give all praise to God when he has answered your prayers.
May God Bless You
Monday, August 30, 2004 10:47 PM EST
Day 102
We all got a good night sleep last night. Tori and Mac both slept well. We are getting things ready for preschool tomorrow. Mac has made his lunch order. I think it is a round PB&J. He has played hard all day long today. He went fishing tonight with his Papa and came back with several brims. I am not sure what he did during the day but I know that he has been outside most of the afternoon. When I came home he came busting out the door with a big “Daddy”. That has to be the most precious words for a father to hear. I pray that he does well at school tomorrow. This weekend he was very attached to his mom. I think he will do OK but please say a prayer for him. He loves school but he also loves to be at home.
May God Bless You
Sunday, August 29, 2004 10:08 PM EST
Day 101
Church was wonderful today! To have the freedom to worship the risen Savior makes everyday special. Mac did not want to go to the nursery so he went to Big Church. He behaved well and had a good time. He took a late nap today so we may be up for a while. Tori on the other hand hardly sleep any today so she is already in bed. With the Lords blessings she will sleep all night. Mac has played well today. He is still wild as a buck at times but that is OK. It was good to see old friends tonight at church and we appreciate your prayers. Mac had to make a pizza tonight when he got home. He just starts pulling everything out of the refrigerator. It was a cute thing to see. He had his oven mitt on because a stove is “hot”. Best wish to each of you and your families.
May God Bless You
Saturday, August 28, 2004 9:37 PM EST
Day 100
In school in the lower elementary school age kids, day 100 is a special day. They have been counting up to this triple digit day. In our life we also have been counting. The 100 days does not hold any thing special in Mac’s treatment on the surface other than the fact that we have endured 100 days of treatment. Underneath there is a whole lot more. We have endured the worst of times and we have rejoiced over crazy things like Mac not being constipated. Who would have ever thought that you would rejoice when he blows his diaper off? We have been blessed by seeing family and friends and people that we have never met help provide for our family through financial gifts, cutting our grass on that first weekend that we found out and were unable to come home, great food, snacks for the stays at the hospital, and prayer. The tangible things warmed our spirits and helped us through the bad times. Ashlie and I was talking the other day about how well the treatment is going and we both agree that the reason Mac has done so well is because of you. We have asked and even begged for you to pray for specific problems and you did. God heard the petitions of his people and has showed the world that he is still in the miracle business. Mac has only had one fever that sent us to the hospital since starting treatment. That is because of your prayers. We want to thank you for caring for us in our most troubled times. Our little family has grown closer over the course of these 100 days. I have often asked myself why this happened. The only answer I have is that God has allowed us first hand to see the power of prayer and how that power is magnified when a community is praying and giving all glory and praise to God for his healing hand. The doctors are good but Mac’s complete healing relies on God and God alone because he is the creator of life. We have many more 100 day periods to go through. Please do not grow weary in your prayers.
May God Bless You
Friday, August 27, 2004 10:40 PM EST
Day 99
Another week has come and gone and we have had another blessed week. Mac had his CBC done in town today and the results were great. His WBC has moved into the 4’s, his hemoglobin in the 12’s, and his platelets have moved into the 300 thousands. His body is recovering nicely in preparation for the upcoming treatment. This entry will be short because right now I am blessed with everyone in the house up at 10:35 so I need to help move some children to the bed. It truly is a blessing because they are both smiling, they are both healthy, and both are a gift from God.
May God Bless You
Thursday, August 26, 2004 10:47 PM EST
Day 98
Preschool was another success today. Mac insisted on being picked up in the car line like the other children. Tori is getting over her 4 month shots. Last night was not good. She ran a low grade fever which continued today. She is a little fretful but right now she is asleep. Mac tries to make her feel better by making silly faces to her. Tomorrow Mac will go to the doctor at Longstreet for his weekly CBC. I feel confident that his counts have climbed to even better numbers since he is off all of his chemo medicine. People have often mentioned how well we are handling all that has been put on our plate. If we were trying to make it through all of this by ourselves we would have failed long ago. The prayers and support of our family and friends has been astounding. We know that we still have hills to climb but we take those hills on the prayers of every person that is praying. I have been asked by the Red Cross to speak at an open house of their new platelet collection machine. We have been blessed by Mac’s counts staying up. That could change at any moment. The blood drive in honor of Mac was a huge success. September 1 is the date that everyone can give blood again. I hope that each person will be in prayer about the opportunity to give the gift of life again.
Wednesday, August 25, 2004 10:22 PM EST
Day 97
PT went well today. Mrs Kristen wants Mac to work on getting up off a cushion from the floor. She is still trying to build up his leg strength. Tomorrow is another day at preschool. Mac was placing his order for lunch a little while ago. Each day his appetite is growing. The effects of the Methotrexate seem to be wearing off. Before long he will have to take a rolling cooler to preschool to hold his food. He has always liked to eat. Mac did not want to go to the nursery tonight so he got to hear the vision of the church. To know Christ and Make him known. The world would be a wonderful place if the world could only understand that Christ loved them so much that he gave his very life for them!
May God Bless You
Tuesday, August 24, 2004 9:35 PM EST
Day 96
Preschool went great today. Mac said that they played and pushed and that Mrs. Kristen had a mean look. Mac said that he was not pushing but something tells me that may not be the truth. He did not cry for his mom today and had a fun time. Each day is getting better. The last two mornings he has not had his Zofran for nausea. I know that he will have to go back on it in September but it will be nice to give his body a break from it if he can continue to feel good without it. He has PT tomorrow. He has made tremendous progress but he still needs to develop more leg strength. Tori went to bed about an hour early tonight so we are scrambling to get into bed ASAP because she will probably wake up all smiles early in the morning. I say we all are, Mac is pretty wired. He went “walking” with Ashlie. He came in telling that Mr. Berry worked them hard. They “run, and run, and run!” I think Ashlie got the worse of it since Mac “walks” in his stroller while mom pushes.
May God Bless You
Monday, August 23, 2004 10:25 PM EST
Day 95
The days are good when your child that has been so sick is feeling well. When they are sick you cannot wait to get home to take care of them but when they are well you cannot wait to see them and play games with them. Our good days continue! With a little cough medicine and a lot of prayers Mac’s cough is under control. He is excited about going back to preschool tomorrow to see his friends. He has decided to take a “round” PB&J sandwich and cheese puffs. He calls them hot but they really are not. We have been planning our days better so we are getting to bed earlier. I was looking at his upcoming schedule of treatments and it is easy to be discouraged but having faith in Christ and looking back at all God has done for us I do not feel alone in this struggle for Mac’s healing. It is never to early or too late to start praying for his treatment in September and October so please join us in lifting Mac up to the alter of God that everything will go well and Mac will continue to show improvement.
May God Bless You
Sunday, August 22, 2004 11:01 PM EST
Day 94
I trust that everyone had a wonderful time in the Lord today. Mac had a good time at church. He did not stay in the nursery this morning but in the evening service he did make his way over there to play. His cough is better today. We did give him some medicine for the drainage but prayer is the key. He is still not eating well. I tired to mix some children’s Ensure in with his chocolate milk tonight but he was able to taste the difference. I do not know how he does it but he can tell every time I try it. We should have a great next two weeks. We are enjoying this time and making the most of it.
May God Bless You
Saturday, August 21, 2004 11:02 PM EST
Day 93
We have had another good day. Mac got to hold baby Olivia tonight at the hospital. We got a picture of him, Tori, and Olivia. It ought to be one for the books. Mac still has a cough so please continue to pray that God will heal him. His appetite is down due to the chemo he received. It will probably be down for another couple of days. We have to give him Meralax for the onset of constipation. It appears that every time he stops eating he starts to get constipated. Prayerfully we will show signs of this problem solved tomorrow. It is better for him to be a little loose than the other direction. We hope to see everyone at church tomorrow.
May God Bless You
Friday, August 20, 2004 10:38 PM EST
Day 92
Today has been a special day. Mac has a new cousin. Matt and Anna gave birth to Olivia this afternoon. I will let them give you all the details. Mac got to go to the hospital and see her. Earlier in the day Mac had to go the doctor to have his CBC done. Once again people are praying and God is answering. All of Mac’s counts are good. I do not have the figures in front of me but his WBC is in the threes (up from the 2’s), his hemoglobin is in the 11’s and his platelet count is still holding strong. These are excellent figures after coming off the Methotrexate. He now has 2 weeks to build his counts up in preparation for the September 3 schedule. He does have a slight cough but the doctor today said that while he did have some drainage everything looked OK right now. Please pray that this cough will go away. God will answer your prayers. We have seen too many times that he has not to believe that he will cure this cough. The house has that nice peaceful sound. Everyone is resting, everyone is at peace, and God is good!
May God Bless You
Thursday, August 19, 2004 9:43 PM EST
Day 91
Preschool went well today. Mac played hard the whole day. At one point he was too tired to walk up the stairs so he crawled up them. They offered to carry him up but he would not allow them to help. As I have said before, he is very head strong. We gave him the last 6MP for the next two weeks. It will be a good change not to have to mix that medicine up. He will still take Batrime twice a day on Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday and his Zofran for nausea but any chance to drop a medicine is good news. Tomorrow he will have another CBC done in town. We expect his white blood count to have dropped due to the Methotrexate he received this weekend. His energy levels are still up so I think his hemoglobin level is OK. I will let you know his counts tomorrow. We are almost a 100 days into this journey. We have had every kind of emotion that you can have during this time. We are experiencing some good times now and enjoying every minute of it.
May God Bless You
Wednesday, August 18, 2004 9:35 PM EST
Day 90
Since starting back to school the days seem to run together. Tomorrow will be the last day that Mac will take his oral 6MP chemo for the next two weeks. This will give his body a chance to build itself up before starting the 21 day Delayed Intensification Period. Each day it get closer I get a little more nervous. My prayer is that he will be able to handle the medication this time since he is stronger. Physical Therapy went well today. Kristi said that Mac’s legs still need to get stronger but that everything was looking good. Mac helped us with splitting wood again today. I hope that he is this willing to help when he can really swing an axe. We are heading for bed and hopefully Tori will do the same. I would not trade the late nights with her for anything but every once in a while a little more sleep would be good. Our family is so blessed. Even in the dim moments of Mac’s treatment we are able to hold strong and let Gods love for us flow through us to each other.
May God Bless You
Tuesday, August 17, 2004 9:43 PM EST
Day 89
Mac made it through another day of preschool. He cried a little bit this morning but stayed the whole day. His energy levels continue to be high. He took a nap this afternoon but other than that he has been full steam ahead. Tonight he helped us split wood. He ran the up and down handle. He did a wonderful job. The thunder is rolling and the lightning is flashing outside so I guess it is time to say goodbye. September 3 is coming up soon. Please begin to pray for the months of September and October. Without you prayer coverage could be tough. The steroids make Mac ill and short tempered.
May God Bless You
Monday, August 16, 2004 10:40 PM EST
Day 88
It was good to come back home last night even though it was late. The whole weekend seemed to move in slow motion. On Friday we were 4 hours later than usual getting the Methotrexate started. That gave us a finishing time of 7 P.M. on Sunday evening. At this time they did the check and it came back a 0.40. It must be below a .20 to come home. The last time he did not clear the chemo the doctor told us to ask for a redraw. This put us into a very strange situation. Mac’s nurse is wonderful. We have complete trust in everything she does and at no point did I want to make her think that the draw was bad. We talked a little and she called Mac’s doctor at home to ask our options. We had 3: do a redraw through his port and risk contamination by the chemo again, draw the blood through his arm, or wait 24 more hours. The study we are on would not allow for an early draw. It must be done every 24 hours. Ashlie and I agreed that we would not subject Mac to drawing the blood out of his arm so we decided to do the port again. We waited for the results and a strange thing happen. When the nurse called the lab they could not understand why we were doing another test when the first test was a .10. The lab tech had miss entered the data into the computer. Both draws showed a .10 level. We could have left much earlier if the mistake had not happened. Happiness is a funny thing. While I hated that we were leaving so late, I was not angry because I felt so blessed to be going home with my family together. I tell my math students that in math their can be no mistakes in the final answer. Math is not about style but about being correct with your numbers. The lab tech had 15 years experience and had never made such a mistake. The lesson learned is it that is always pays to be careful and recheck your work. The same thing applies to life. Check your answer and make sure that you are working the right problem. Right answers to wrong problems are still wrong. God has blessed us through our family and friends. Please continue to pray that we will make the right decisions when they need to be made.
May God Bless You
Sunday, August 15, 2004 11:07 PM EST
Day 87
Praise the Lord we just got home. It late so I will fill you in on the details tomorrow. Thank you for your prayers.
May God Bless You
Saturday, August 14, 2004 9:37 PM CDT
DAY 86
Mac has had a good day today. At 7 tonight we finished off the Methotrexate. His Methotrexate treatments were delayed for several hours yesterday because of the long time fast with no fluids and then having problems accessing his port His initial toxicity report was 6.08. Please pray his count will be 2.0 or below tomorrow night at 7 P.M. so we can get back home tomorrow. Mac went to the dog show today and really enjoyed it. Please pray for a Spanish family whose little girl was admitted to the hospital today and is across the hall from Mac. I am not sure what is wrong but the family is very upset.
May God Bless You!
Friday, August 13, 2004 8:13 PM EST
Day 85
We have made it to Egleston for another treatment. So far everything is going good. They did have trouble drawing blood from his port. A piece of skin or anything little can block the opening so that had to solve that problem first. We did not get the Methotrexate started until 7 P.M. so it will be late Sunday night before we get to go home. That is going to make for a rough Monday going back to work. Mac has been a wild man at the hospital. The staff has got to see the true, fun loving child that he is. At times they have got to see his little bossy side also. Continue to remember us in you prayers as we take care of him this weekend.
May God Bless You
Thursday, August 12, 2004 11:44 PM EST
Day 84
Preschool went well today. Mac had a grand time at P.E. and the other activities that they had planned for his class. Tomorrow we go back to Egleston for another round of Methotrexate. Please pray for a good weekend and a speedy return home on Sunday. Dad got to have a little father/son time with Mac tonight. He wanted me to lay down with him to go to sleep. These moments are very special. Ashlie is usually the one that he likes to go to sleep with so I cherish each of these moments. I wish each person a wonderful weekend and please remember us in your prayers.
May God Bless You
Wednesday, August 11, 2004 11:14 PM EST
Day 83
Mac had PT today. He did extremely well with his exercises. He does have a little problem about being headstrong and not doing what Kristi wants him to do but he is still getting a great workout. He walked up 4 flights of stairs at the hospital! He ought to sleep great tonight. We are making our final preparations for our weekend stay at Egleston so Mac can get his Methotrexate. Please start praying that everything will go according to plan and we will be coming home Sunday later in the afternoon. He will have to fast again and this is always a challenge. Tomorrow he is scheduled to go back to school and play with his friends. Tuesday went great and we are praying for the same thing tomorrow.
May God Bless You
Tuesday, August 10, 2004 11:19 PM EST
Day 82
Bill Cosby always said that parents of only one child did not experience real parenthood. I know what he means. Tori had to have a little late night, front porch, swing action tonight. Mac has had a super day. He stayed all day at school today and even got to be the leader for the day. He got upset because he was not picked up in the carline like the other children. He is such sight to behold. He spend most of the day outside after is afternoon nap and tonight when Tori started crying he was a little upset because baby Tori did not realize that it was time to go to sleep. . I think he is going to be a great big brother I grabbed Tori to go out side but not before I got a “good night” and “I love you”. Sitting on the swing with Tori I could not help but thank God for these blessings.
May God Bless You
Monday, August 9, 2004 11:07 PM EST
Day 81
Tomorrow is another try at preschool for Mac. I think he may do O.K. Lift him up tomorrow morning that he will have a good day. He had a great time the first time he went but he is such a homebody. The highlight of tonight was seeing Mac play with his Beagle puppy. They played all over the yard. Mac was making attempts to run after the puppy. While he was slow, he was trying and laughing the whole time. I would love to be able to see the world through the eyes of a child. I think that is one of the benefits of teaching. To see the eyes sparkle with curiosity and love of life. Too often as adults we forget to laugh and enjoy the world that God has given us. A child like Mac does not plan for the future but lives for the moment. While planning is not a bad thing and in some times a necessity, to watch Mac live life and to allow myself to be taken into his world is a pleasure that words cannot explain.
May God Bless You
Sunday, August 8, 2004 11:24 PM EST
Day 80
I hope that everyone had a wonderful day in the Lord. Today has been another good day. Mac was able to attend a Birthday party for a friend. We were able to attend both services today. Baby Tori was a little different tonight. Usually she will cry out and then rocked right back to sleep. Tonight she decided that she wanted to stay up with her brother for a little bit. She is a real trooper. Tomorrow starts another new week with our students and leaving Mac at home. It is going well but we sure do wish we could stay with him. Even through all the trials we have endured this summer we developed a spirit of togetherness that saw us through it all. Spending time with your family is something that money and prestige can never buy or replace.
May God Bless You
Saturday, August 7, 2004 9:11 PM CDT
Day 79
Mac has had another good day. He is walking very independently now and his balance is still improving. We started the day off by trying to take him off is Zofran for nausea. We had backed him down to only one a day and had plans to back the one off for this coming week before he goes in for his 3 day stay. Our plan did not work. He smelled the breakfast this morning and gagged. We were hoping the 6MP chemo that he is taking was mild enough so that he would not get sick. We just did not want to be giving him medicine that he did not need but we quickly found out that he still needs it. This was a big lesson learned. We went to a cookout tonight and Mac had a splendid time. He played and made several friends while he was there. Everyone is amazed at the progress he is making. God has a way of letting you see his goodness in a situation.
May God Bless You
Friday, August 6, 2004 10:25 PM EST
Day 78
Mac has had a pretty good week. He is still walking and playing. Each day he gets stronger and is enjoying himself. I think he will be much stronger by the time we go into the next 21 day cycle on September 3. His CBC was good today. His WBC was a 5.3, hemoglobin was up to a 12.2, and his platelets have dropped to 279 thousand. His platelets are slowly dropping. I am not sure why but I spoke with the nurse from Egleston and she assured me that everything was looking real good. She said that while they were dropping they are still high and not a cause for any concern. At one point early in his treatment his platelets had dropped below 10 thousand. You can definitely tell that his hemoglobin is up because at times he is a wild man. He loves to play. I think Nike ought to use him in one of their ads with Lance Armstrong. They could Just Do It together while they Live Strong. I hope that everyone has had a blessed week. Please begin to pray for next weekend. We go back to Egleston for a 3 day stay. Please pray that he will clear the Methotrexate in the ususal 3 days. It took him 4 days last time. Pray that he does not get nauseous from the chemo. I pray that everyone reading has a wonderful weekend.
May God Bless You
Thursday, August 5, 2004 11:58 PM EST
Day 77
Preschool did not go well today. Mac cried from the time he got to the room until we came back to get him. He said he would go back on Tuesday. We will have to wait and see. His Papa told him that he wanted to go to school and Mac’s reply was that he would cry until his mama or Gigi came to get him. His appetite is down a little. I am not sure why. He goes for his CBC tomorrow at the Longstreet Clinic. I am anxious for the results to see if they shed some light on his eating. Tomorrow is the first day of the new school year. It will be a long day not being away from him.
May God Bless You
Wednesday, August 4, 2004 11:51 PM EST
Day 76
Today has been a busy day. Getting ready for a new school year requires a lot of work and time. Coming home after work to see Mac still playing makes you forget about everything else. We took the family to Target tonight. I don’t think Tori was too impressed but Mac had a blast. He found the games in the store and had to see everything. Tomorrow is the second day for Preschool at Hopewell. Mac is taking snacks tomorrow for the class. Of course he is taking round PB&J sandwiches. Mac is one of the few kids that think a sandwich is a snack. Our work schedule tomorrow will enable us to take him to school. I hope and pray that he has another good day. Please continue to pray that his count will stay high and that he will be able to fight off any illnesses that he may come in contact with. We know that there will be times that his counts will be too low to go to school but he will be at some level of risk for most of the treatment period.
May God Bless You
Tuesday, August 3, 2004 7:19 PM EST
Day 75
Preschool went wonderful today. Mac had a great time. The teacher said he was very well behaved and unless you knew he was sick it would have been hard to tell. Mac told us that he enjoyed playing with his friends today. I sneaked over there at 12:30 to see him and he busted into a smile as he said “Daddy!” It was great to see that smile. We waited on the church steps for Ashlie to come and pick him up on her lunch break. He still wanted to play silly games until she got there. I think once he got into the car he realized how tired he was because he just laid his head over on Ashlie. All in all it has been a super day for all of us. Thank you for praying for Mac going to preschool.
May God Bless You
Monday, August 2, 2004 11:46 PM EST
Day 74
Tomorrow is the big day for Mac. He will start a 2 day a week preschool at Hopewell Baptist Church. He seems to be excited and ready to play with some friends. I hope that he does well in a new setting with new people. He had a good day staying with his Gigi since we had to start back to work. I sure missed him and Tori today. We have spent so much time together that it is hard to go back. He is still very energetic and enjoying each day. At times he wants to be held but I think a lot of this has to do with us holding Tori. He had several friends over at the house today and I think he wore them all out playing. He loves to have a good time and it is great to see him playing again.
May God Bless You
Sunday, August 1, 2004 11:44 PM EST
Day 73
Church was wonderful today. Mac went to the nursery and had a great time. We were able to attend both services today. When we picked him up after the evening services he was dancing with everyone else in the room. His legs keep getting stronger and stronger each day. It is truly a blessing. This afternoon he went swimming and did well. He wanted to jump off the diving board. I think he is going to be the death of me. The preacher tonight spoke of God doing supernatural things. He said to live expecting God to do these things. Mac health and healing are for sure one of these events. The doctors give the treatment a 80% success rate. As good as that is, through your prayers and petitions, God has a 100% success rate. We start back to work tomorrow. It is going to be a long day away from Mac.
May God Bless You
Saturday, July 31, 2004 11:55 PM EST
Day 72
Mac has been in good spirits today. He is still getting around the house better each day. Ashlie and I were able to go out tonight to celebrate our anniversary. It did us both some good to get out of the house for a date. Mac just kept right own playing. We are getting things ready for him to go to a 2 day a week preschool. The socialization that he will be able to get will do him some good. It is a little scary to think about leaving him and going back to work. We have been by his side every minute for so long that it is hard to let someone else watch him. His CBC on Friday was high enough for him to be able to go on Tuesday for the first day. I am sure he will have a good time. We hope to see everyone tomorrow at church. It is a sight to see us getting ready to go to church. I think we could start at 4 A.M. and still be late.
May God Bless You
Friday, July 30, 2004 11:45 PM EST
Day 71
Each day continues to get better. Mac went to school with me this morning to help out. We had a wonderful time. It was great to have him in the truck with me asking questions about everything we saw. I have so longed for such moments all summer long. His CBC at the Longstreet Clinic went good. The results again show answered prayer. His WBC was a 3.4. It only dropped 1 point from the Methotrexate he had this pass weekend. That is definitely answered prayer. The last time it dropped 3 whole points. His hemoglobin is holding steady as is displayed by his energy levels. His platelets have dropped but they are still at 354,000. That means that he is still out of the critical area. Thank you for praying for him and us. We went to the mall tonight and he had to go to the book store to play with the train. He laughed and played the whole time we were there. He had to know the names of all the trains. Continue to be in prayer for September and October. The first of September he will go back on 21 days of Decadron. These 21 days are going to have to be bathed in prayers to see that he continues to stay strong. He will also have 3 straight Vincristine doses during these 21 days. The Vincristine is probably the reason that he has to learn how to walk again. Thank you for caring about us and showing you love toward us in so many different ways.
May God Bless You
Thursday, July 29, 2004 10:55 PM EST
Day 70
Today was picture day for the gang. We took Mac and Tori to have their pictures taken at the Mall of Georgia. They were wonderful. After the pictures Mac had to ride on the Merry-Go-Round. He wanted to get on the “round spinning thing”. I am getting too old to be spinning around but he loved it. Tomorrow we will take Mac to NEGMC to have his blood counts done. They will fax the results to Egleston. We are really expecting his count to be down. The Methotrexate that he had last weekend can really lower his counts. The last time he had it his white blood count dropped 3 points. If his WBC falls 3 points again it will put him in a 1.0 range. We will have to be real cautious of his activities until they get higher. Today has been a fantastic day. Mac played with his cousins tonight at my parent’s house. He was walking all over the house. He is not steady with his walking but he is still improving each day. Be in prayer tonight and tomorrow about is counts and the finger prick they have to do to draw the blood. He really hates to get his finger stuck.
May God Bless You
Wednesday, July 28, 2004 11:42 PM EST
Day 69
Mac has had a super day! He is starting to walk a little more by himself. He walked to several rooms today because he wanted to go in them. We have had a little complication today. He has a tear on his bottom. They have a name for it but I am not sure what it is. It is the result of all the chemo he is taking. It looks like a surgical cut. It hurts a little but the real concern is infection. Given time the body will repair itself. Due to the area it occurred on the risk of infection is probably higher than in other places. Please pray that it will heal quickly and that God will protect him from getting an infection. He has played wonderful today. His baby sister has had a better day also. At this time I do not think she has an ear infection. I think that it was either her gums or her stomach that was hurting last night. Tomorrow we will have been married for 9 years. It has not always been the easiest of times but Ashlie has given me the best 9 years of my life. Marriage is a never ending learning endeavor. I have made more that my share of stupid mistakes but by the grace of God we have overcome tremendous odds. God has grown us up a lot this summer. We could have easily melted down due to the stress that has been placed on our family. Thank you for keeping us in your prayers and continue to pray that we will seek God’s direction in the times to come.
May God Bless You
P.S. Ashlie, When you read this journal know that I love you and thank you for being a WONDERFUL wife and mother. Happy Anniversary!
Tuesday, July 27, 2004 10:36 PM EST
Day 68
Today has been wonderful. PT went great this morning. Mac really worked hard for Mrs. Kristen. After PT, we went to INK. I think that is spelled right. It is a place in town that has different rooms set up for kids to play in. They have a train room, a radio broadcast room, and other type of room setups. Mac stood and played for an hour. We were able to come home and get him to take a nap on schedule at 2 P.M. Hopefully we will get to go to bed on time tonight. The only problem is that Tori may be getting another ear infection. Being a parent of two is never boring. Please continue to pray for his treatment and his walking. He is doing much better but his walking still needs to improve. He is healthy but we cannot take that for granted. His counts are pretty good right now but as they drop due to the Methotrexate he will become an easy target for infections that could lead to a fever. Pray against these things as you pray for him to stay healthy.
May God Bless You
Monday, July 26, 2004 7:48 PM EST
Day 67
We are back home! Our levels came in at a .07. We needed anything under a .20. Mac had a good stay but he was ready to get home. He fell asleep on the way home. When they double his hydration to flush the chemo out you had better have a diaper handy. We went through 27 diapers in 1.5 days. We do not have to go back to Egleston until August 13th. We are going to be able to do our Friday CBC’s at NEGMC instead of having to go to Atlanta. That will be a big help with us starting back to school. Thank you for the prayers that brought us back home.
May God Bless You
Sunday, July 25, 2004 4:17 PM EST
Day 66
Well the results are in and we do not get to go home. Mac’s level dropped to a .63 which is above the .20 cut off level. It is not what we were hoping and praying for but we knew that it was a possibility. Continue to pray that he will drop below the level by tomorrow at 3 P.M. They will probably up his IV fluid amount so that he can flush more of the Methotrexate out. Most patients do not get to go home on the first cycle of this chemo. We did. We got caught on the second cycle. We are very disappointed but realize that this could happen. Just tell everyone that you speak to pray tonight and tomorrow for the levels to drop. We have had a good day other than the levels being too high. The hospital had a Christmas in July program. Mac did arts and craft (dad was not much help in this department). I am about to put him down for a nap since we are not going anywhere. Hopefully we will have better news tomorrow.
May God Bless You
Saturday, July 24, 2004 11:13 PM EST
Day 65
Mac has had a busy day. He stayed up until 1 A.M. last night and did not get up until 10 this morning. At 10:30 we went to see the dogs that they bring around to the hospital. He had a very good time petting and brushing the dogs. Later in the day, he went to watch some Latin dancers and was winking at one of the dancers. I guess it worked because he got 3 coloring books from the lady. At 3 today we finished off the Methotrexate. His initial 24 hour count level showed him to be 5 something. I have not seen the official report. The last time we were here for this type of chemo his initial level was in the 9’s. We have less chemo to get out of our system so that is a blessing. With continued God’s blessings we will be able to come home tomorrow. He was able to have Mamma Duck for his nurse today. He loves her a lot. She is so good to him and I am sure to all of her patients. Mac is still walking but we did not get a lot of practice today. Being in the hospital with an IV bag really seems to mess up our walking exercises. I can not really blame him. I would hate to be attached to a pole for 3 days. Continue to pray that his counts go down to a level below 2.0 so we can get back to home sweet home tomorrow.
May God Bless You
Friday, July 23, 2004 11:41 PM EST
Day 64
It is late and Mac is wound up tighter than a drum. He slept for 4 hours this afternoon so we may never go to bed tonight. Today has been good. God answered your prayers about accessing his port. The nurse was able to hit the location on the first try. His CBC looked good. His white blood count has dropped to 4.13 from over 12 but that is because he is off the steroids. Despite this drop the counts are still looking good. His body is producing platelets and his hemoglobin counts are staying high. We started the Methotrexate at 3 P.M. so we will not know anything about going home until after 3 P.M. on Sunday. So far the treatment has went well. He has not showed any signs of nausea. The nurse gave him a 24 hour dose of Zofran for nausea instead of breaking the dose down into segment like we do at the house. We always give him Zofran before breakfast and he cannot have any more now until 1 P.M. on Saturday. Please pray that he will not be sick on his stomach during breakfast. They are going to have some dogs here tomorrow morning so we are going to take Mac to pet them. I know he will love that. Continue to pray that we will be able to go home on Sunday afternoon after the 48 hours is up.
May God Bless You
Thursday, July 22, 2004 11:59 PM EST
Day 63
We are making the final packing plans for the weekend trip. Everything is still going well with Mac. Tomorrow we go in for a spinal check and the 24 hour Methotrexate. Continue to pray that we can leave 48 hours after he has taken it. Also pray that his blood counts will not drop too low due to the chemo. This is one of the side effects of Methotrexate. The summer is winding down and school will start soon. We want to thank everyone that has been praying for us. Your prayers have sustained Mac and us. I will keep you updated from the hospital and with prayer I will be back home to start again on Sunday night.
May God Bless You
Thursday, July 22, 2004 1:15 AM EST
Day 62
The walking keeps on coming!! Mac has had a great day walking. He has rode on his Gator today, wanted to get his puppy out, and played a lot in his room. He has been silly today. I was trying to explain something to Ashlie about school and he was propped up listening to the conversation and then tried to explain what I had said. Like most parents I am sure that he will go to Harvard. Tonight he wanted to take a bath with Tori. They played in the tub and acted silly. Mac loves Tori and Tori loves her big brother. We go on Friday for hopefully only a 3 day stay at Egleston. They will give him the 24 hour chemo again and we will have to wait 48 hours for it to clear his body. Please begin to pray that it will clear in 48 hours and we can come home on Sunday. Pray that he will not get sick from the chemo. The nurses have been having trouble accessing his port because of the weight he has gained from the steroids. Pray that it will go smoothly. It is hard to see them have so much trouble. I do not think it hurts but I think Mac gets scared when they have trouble. It is so late tonight that today is Friday and I hope that everyone has a happy and safe weekend and will find a church to worship Christ in if you do not have one.
May God Bless You
Wednesday, July 21, 2004 12:18 AM EST
Day 61
(Ashlie) I have had a little time tonight to view other caring bridge websites. Wow, we are so blessed. When you think your situation is bad, there are always people in worse circumstances. God is so good. Mac had an awesome day at PT. He is starting to really like Miss Kristin. Mac has started to take steps by himself. Today at PT, Mac and I shook our bootie. (What a scene!) Please pray for some guidance. Mac has been enrolled at Hopewell and we need guidance in whether to keep him and let him go as much as you can. Thanks for always praying. (David) Ashlie is right. It has been a good day for walking. As she was typing her thoughts Mac walked from the kitchen to the front door by himself without holding on to anything. He wanted to show mommy so I had to go and get her. Earlier on today, he was standing at his train table playing. He stood there a good while enjoying himself. It would appear that the Decadron is slowly leaving his body. He is having fewer outbursts. His personality is shining through in a highly spirited fashion. At times he has us rolling on the floor by the things he says. His eating is still going strong but that usually takes a little while to settle down. Please pray with us about the Hopewell Pre-School. Mac is a handful and while his walking is coming on strong we are not sure he will be ready by August. Also we may have a rough August and September where he may be sick and very ill at times.
May God Bless You
Tuesday, July 20, 2004 12:25 AM EST
Day 60
Mac has made great progress in walking today. He is still struggling to gain his strength but he was able to walk down the hall by himself as he held on to the wall. He took several steps without holding on to anything. I think he is a little scared right now but each day should bring new courage. He still has a healthy appetite but the smiles are coming more often. Please do not stop praying for the strength to walk and that he will stay healthy. We are going through a good period right know but he still has a lot of treatments left. The road to recovery and full remission is still going to be an up hill climb. It is your prayers that will see him over this mountain. I added a picture from his birth day party. I am sorry the picture is so big. I am having trouble getting the pictures smaller. I will keep working on it but it is late tonight. Maybe I will come up with something tomorrow.
May God Bless You
Sunday, July 18, 2004 10:00 PM EST
Day 59
Today has been a good day. The family was able to go to both the morning and evening services at church. It was good to hear the word of God preached again. Mac is continuing to walk and his energy is staying up. We had to give him his chemo tonight at church to ensure that it would be on an empty stomach. It is difficult to catch him on an empty stomach when he is on Decadron. During the morning service I had dropped Tori off at the nursery while Ashlie took Mac into the sanctuary. About 10 minutes into the service Mac had to see Tori. After I took him to see her he was satisfied. I think he is going to be a great big brother. With 2 weeks until we both go back to work I think we are both getting a little nervous about how he will do. He has got much attached to momma and daddy and we have a rough September and October coming up. It will definitely take your prayers to get through these months. I hope that everyone has a wonderful week.
May God Bless You
Sunday, July 18, 2004 12:25 AM EST
Day 58
It is good to be home. Vacations are nice but there is no place like home. We had a supper week at Mt. Lake. I think it really did Mac a lot of good to get away. He played each day that we were there. It really worked out good that we did not attempt to go to the beach. Between Mac being on the steroids and Tori being 4 months old it would have been a VERY long trip. Right now Mac received an IV Vincristine on Friday. He is off the Decadron until September 3. This time the steroids are causing him to eat. He gained 2 pounds in a week. He took a good long nap today and woke up to eat 3 PB&J sandwiches. Friday at Egleston we talked to the doctor out our current plan of treatment and if it was the best for Mac. The doctor feels like the C plan is the best option because it is very aggressive and treats the Leukemia with the most chemo. He said that if we get into the treatment in September and Mac starts to react like he did the first 29 days the decision would be made for us and they would pull Mac out of this aggressive treatment plan. The doctor said that he feels Mac will do better this time because his body has a lot more healthy cells this time. We are still praying about the decision to make and hope that you will pray with us about this decision. Tonight has been wonderful at home. Friends came over to see him and he had a blast playing with them. For the most part he has been eating since he got up from his nap but hopefully this will start to taper off soon. We are going to attempt to make it to church for morning worship tomorrow. It will be good to see friends that have been praying for us. Each day is bringing new challenges but at the same time each day brings new praises. It does our hearts good to see him playing like he should be doing. He is still learning to walk again but each day he is getting stronger. Thank you for praying for our vacation week. God has answered you prayers again by giving us good blood counts and a wonderful week.
May God Bless You
Friday, July 16, 2004 11:00 PM EST
Day 57
The doctor's appointment went well today. Mac is starting to show improvemnts in his blood counts. His CBC showed the white blood count has increased to 12.4, this increase is caused by the steriods he has taken the past 7 days. His hemoglobin level is 11.6 and his platelet count is 564,000. When we left Elgeston today Mac wanted Domino's Pizza, this seems to be the food of choice for him right now. After returning to Mt. Lake Mac, Ashlie and I went out on the lake in a flat bottom boat and really enjoyed it. Tonight we went to Helen to eat and after eating Mac got to ride in a horse drawn carriage. He really loved the ride and also got to feed the horse afterwards. (from David's mother) I would like to say thank you for all your prayers and support for Mac, Tori, Ashlie and David. We know that prayer can make such a difference and David's Dad and I would like to let you know how much we appreciate you lifting our family up in prayer so many times. Please continue to pray for us and we will see miracles happen. We love you. They will return from vacation tomorrow, so tomorrow night David will give you a complete update on their vacation and Mac.
May God Bless You
Thursday, July 15, 2004 10:31 PM EST
Day 56
I have a fishing report: MAC CAUGHT A FISH!!! He was so excited and of course plenty of pictures were taken, so be prepared to see new pictures soon. Mac played Putt-Putt for a while today. Prayers concerning Mac's walking are more evident each day, he walked down the hall today while holding on to the wall for a little support. Tomorrow we have a 10:30 appointment at Elgeston for weekly blood counts and Vincristine. Please pray for Mac and the upcoming doctor's apointment.
May God Bless you.
Wednesday, July 14, 2004 10:30 PM EST
Day 55
Vacation is going well. Mac sleep good last night and woke up this morning ready to go fishing. He went fishing but did not catch a fish, but got a few bites. Mac played video games today standing up in a chair and leaning just slightly on the back of the chair. This afternoon he felt a little nauseous but it didn't last a long time. Tonight it was time for Mac to take three different kinds of medicine, so I ask him which one he wanted to take first. He ask me the name of each medicine and then he told me how each one tasted before he decided which one to take first. Mac continues to eat good and loves to ride on the golf carts. Please continue to keep our family in your prayers.
We love each of you.
Tuesday, July 13, 2004 11:15 PM est
Day 54 We have had a good day. PT went very good. There is no phone lines here to hook up the computer. My mother is typing the journal. Mac is have a great time at Mt. Lake. He has went swimming and even rode down a water slide. He wanted to play Put-Put but it was closed. He has has fun all day and was very easy to get to sleep tonight because he was so tired from all the activities. Tomorrow we hope to take him fishing. Continue to lift us up in your prayers.
May God Bless you!
Monday, July 12, 2004 11:31 PM EST
Day 53
God has a way of putting two people together to help each other. I forget to give Malachi his Bactrim that helps to prevent pneumonia. Ashlie was the one that remembered it. It is not a big deal to miss one day. We will just give it on Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday but it was a great help for her to remember. (So much medicine for such a small child) Today has been a pretty good day. The Decadron is still showing its ugly face at times but it much better so far than last time he was one it. Mac is definitely ready to go to the mountains on vacation. I think it will do him some good to get away. Unfortunately, the medicine has to go with him. He is getting tired easier the last couple of days. His hemoglobin level is probably dropping also. We fully expect on Friday to get a blood transfusion. He is still making efforts to walk so we are making progress to fight off the side effects that hit him the last time. Please be in prayer for us this week. Pray that he will stay strong and healthy. He has been through a lot and deserves a good week on vacation. I will have a computer with me on vacation. It is probably not a surprise to some of you that I could not spend that many days away from a computer. A dear friend of ours has loaned me a lap top so I can update the journal. Thank you! Continue to check in on us and I will keep you informed of how the week is going. Your prayers are important to Mac and us. They help us make it through the days.
May God Bless You
Monday, July 12, 2004 12:17 AM EST
Day 52
I trust that each person had a wonderful day in the Lord. Malachi has had a decent day. The side effects of the Decadron are starting to become pronounced. His appetite is slowly increasing as well as his ability to have mood swings. We are handling him and the effects of the drugs a little differently this time. We understand that the drugs will make him become emotional but at the same time we must seek ways to deal with these emotions. The doctors have stressed the need to maintain some form of discipline. At the present we are trying to allow him time to calm down but at the same time not allow him immediate gratification. Our desire is not to withhold anything from him but at the same time not to reward him for screaming. It is not the most pleasant thing to do. Parenting can be very rewarding but stressful at the same time. Ashlie and I talk frequently about how we are going to handle different situations. Communication is the key the different phases of treatment. Another thing we are dealing with is the fact that his count are probably dropping. While he appears to be feeling fine he is still very prone to infection. Currently he is on three different types of medication that will lower is blood counts. The Vincristine is a powerful chemo that among other side effect will lower his counts. Some decisions are hard to make but this will be a 2.5 year learning process of making tough calls about his activities in relationship to his counts. He is still getting better at walking. At times he does not want to but we are insisting that he walks at various points in the day. We are hoping that this tough love can counter the effects of the Decadron and Vincristine that hit him so hard to first go around. Please continue to pray against the nasty side effect of treatment and that Mac will have a good vacation coming up this week. He is really looking forward to fishing. I hope he catches a big one.
May God Bless You
Saturday, July 10, 2004 11:18 PM EST
Day 51
Mac has gone through his first day with 2 doses of Decadron. He started asking for some of the food items that he ate when he was on it before. I am glad that he will only be on it for 7 days this time. His spirits have been high today. He is ready to go on vacation. Your prayers are helping him to walk. He walked down the hall tonight by only holding Ashlie’s hand. He is very independent! This independence will help him to recover. We are trying to break his medicine up as much as possible. He has to take medicine 9 times. The Decadron is given in the morning and at night with a dose of Zantac to help his stomach. We give the 6 MP chemo treatment before supper and he takes Diflucan for mouth sores that are caused by the chemo. On top of all of that he takes 2 dissolvable tablets of Zofran for nausea created by the chemo. He takes one in the morning and one at night. We were only giving him the Zofran in the morning but since he is back on the Vincristine we have went to two. The Vincristine that they give him is a potent chemo. For a dad that rarely takes an aspirin I am getting pretty good at mixing up all this medicine. We got a tackle box this weekend to keep it all organized. It seems to work well and it will help when we go on vacation. I hope that everyone reading these journals will have a blessed day at church tomorrow. Please remember Mac and pray for his health and full recovery.
Friday, July 9, 2004 11:49 PM EST
Day 50
The doctor’s appointment went well today. Mac started his Vincristine and Decadron today. His CBC showed that his white blood counts have dropped to a 2.14. We are moving toward the critical level which starts at 1.0. His hemoglobin level was still in the 10 range and his platelet count was 244 thousand. Both have dropped a little bit but they are holding pretty steady. The medication that he started today can bring these counts down fast. He is also showing effect of the chemo that was given at the hospital on his bottom. It does not seem to hurt him but it looks bad. We leave for vacation next week and we really need your prayers. We want Mac to have a good week. Please pray that his counts will stay stable or go up and that his body will stay strong. The Decadron can play with his personality. Please pray that it will not cause him to be in a bad mood. He is such a happy child when he is himself. As children of the King we have the right to enter the thrown room of God to make our petitions. Please pray for Mac’s health in the upcoming weeks as well as the years to come.
May God Bless You
Thursday, July 8, 2004 11:56 PM EST
Day 49
Well the official results are in from the blood drive. The Red Cross was able to collect 82 units of blood. This is wonderful and will be a big help to those in need. There were more than 40 people that gave blood for the first time. I hope the experience was one that you will repeat again and again in the future. Thanks again to everyone that helped make this possible. Mac has had a pretty good day. He is still playing and has walked more today than the previous days. We were able to go to Thursday night at my parent’s house. This is something that we usually do each Thursday but have been unable to do for the last 48 days. He had a good time. The social skill of playing with others is still an issue but as any parent knows this is an issue with any 3 year old. We are going on a vacation to the Cleveland area next week. Please be in prayer about this. We had to cancel our trip to beach because we felt it was too far away from the hospital. Mac will go back on Decadron (steroid) and Vincristine (chemo) starting tomorrow. Please pray that the negative side effects will stay minimal and that he can have a good time in the mountains. We all need a break, Mac included. Pray that his body will stay strong and that fevers will stay away. We took Tori back to the doctor to check her left ear. It had been infected. We found out that it is now clear but the right ear is now infected. Life is never dull around the house. Thank you as always for your prayers. We really need blood bought children of God who are committed to praying for Mac and us for the next 2.5 years. We have seen the power of Gods hand when his people pray.
May God Bless You
Wednesday, July 7, 2004 11:04 PM EST
Day 48
Today has been a wonderful day. Mac had PT this morning. He did great at times and at other times he would not mind. We are praying about ways to motivate him to listen to the physical therapist. At times he has a mind of his on. Mac has walked with his walker several times today. At one point he wanted to walk with his feet and not the walker. The desire is coming on strong. The blood drive today was a 100 uccess. They had set a goal of 60 units. They probably ended up gathering around 85 units. I will know the final figures tomorrow. We want to thank each person that helped out with the drive. We also want to apologize for the back up that occurred. I know that most of you in the afternoon had extended wait times. I know that there was nothing that I could have done to fix the problem but I wanted to tell each of you that I am sorry. Thank you for hanging in there and still giving blood. The blood drive was put in motion by me and then handed over to Ben Harrison to communicate with the Red Cross. (Thank you Ben for all of your hard work.) Everything was great! I had told the Red Cross that when 80 people from this community and our friends signed up to give they had better expect that many to show up. There really is a need and you really helped with that need.
May God Bless You
Tuesday, July 6, 2004 11:47 PM EST
Day 47
The sun was out today and so were the smiles. We tried to go swimming again but Mac did not do as well. I think he was tired from the day before. He has walked several times today with his walker. He even took the initiative to get off the couch by himself and use his walker to go down the hall. Of course we were near but this was a major improvement. We have noticed a little bit of gagging tonight by the smell of food so we gave him another Zofran to help with the problem. We try to be careful and allow his system to fight the nausea but when he needs a little help we give him the medicine. We have been doing well by just giving him a morning dose. Each day is different and must be treated as such. His girlfriends (Megan and Ashley) came over again to see him. I have figured out that they would not be good as his physical therapist. He smiles at them and they love to do what he wants. I guess in the end it is mom and dad and the therapist that must be the firm ones. Everyone needs someone to baby them and he sure does love his girlfriends. Tomorrow is the blood drive. Please remember and come at the time you have signed up for. We want to thank each you that have signed up to give. We are going to try and have Mac there for a little while but there is not way to tell when that will be. It is sorta up to him and his nap. Thank you for all that you have done, are doing, and will do in the future.
May God Bless You
Monday, July 5, 2004 11:49 PM EST
Day 46
Few things can surpass the smile of a child. Mac has had a great day. He has eaten well today and played hard all day. His walking has improved. He is trying to make progress. Praise be to God. This afternoon we went swimming and he did wonderful in the water. He was kicking his legs and having fun. He was supposed to lie down and take a nap at about 1:30 but he had other things on his mind. I came back in to check on him and Ashlie and he told me that Momma was resting. I told him that he was supposed to be resting and he just smiled. This evening he wanted to go back and swim. Again, he worked his legs hard and even tried to climb up the ladder. Each day God is answering your prayers about his walking. We finished the night off with a good session of Play-Do and he is now a sleep, I think. Hopefully tomorrow will bring another good day.
May God Bless You
Sunday, July 4, 2004 3:38 PM CDT
Day 45
Rejoice with us. The test came back at a .14 so we can come back home.
Monday 12:25 A.M. EST
As stated we were able to come home today. Your prayers have been answered again. It is unusual for a patient to make the 48 hours on the first treatment of this type of chemo but with God all things are possible. Mac has been in good spirits since getting home. He has played well and even walked down the hall with the aid of his walker. Please pray diligently about his walking and allow God to hear the prayers of his people so that he may answer. He really needs to get back to walking ASAP. Next weekend we start a 7 day full dose of Decadron (steroid) and a 2 week Vincristine (chemo) cycle taken on Fridays. One or both of them resulted in Mac not walking. Begin to pray that he will be walking in full stride by this coming Friday and that the side effects of these 2 drugs will not hit him this time. It is wonderful to see God answer prayers and I know that he has an unlimited love and desire to answer the prayers of his people if they will continue to pray. Thank you so much for helping my son.
May God Bless You
Saturday, July 3, 2004 9:52 PM EST
Day 44
We have made it through the 24 hours of chemo infusion. This morning Mac was sick at his stomach a little and the result was that he gagged on his breakfast. The rest of the day has been O.K. He has not eaten as much as usual but he has kept what he ate down. Our initial toxicity report was a 9.32. This figure will need to go down to a .2 before we can go home. That may seem like a lot but the 9.32 was taken right after finishing the treatment. We did speak with the doctor today and he cautioned us about tomorrow. He said not to be disappointed if we were not able to go home. The first time a patient receives this chemo it takes a little longer to clear it from the system. We all want to go home but we understand the need if we have to stay. The birthday party was great today. Because it was at the hospital it could only be a small and informal party for family members. Mac was in good spirits. The only dark spot on the party was that about 30 minutes before the party was suppose to start I realized that I had lost the keys to the car. That in itself was bad enough but the real issue was that most of the party supplies were in the van. We finally got Emory Security to slim jim the car and AAA finally showed up to cut a new key. Needless to say, that part of the day I would rather forget about. I am sure one day that it will be a laughable moment but at the time I felt like a failure for my son. I guess all dads want to have everything perfect for their children. Right now we are in the play room having a good time. Continue to pray that Mac will flush the chemo from his body as quickly as possible. We love all of you.
May God Bless You
Saturday, July 3, 2004 9:52 PM EST
Day 44
We have made it through the 24 hours of chemo infusion. This morning Mac was sick at his stomach a little and the result was that he gagged on his breakfast. The rest of the day has been O.K. He has not eaten as much as usual but he has kept what he ate down. Our initial toxicity report was a 19. This figure will need to go down to a .2 before we can go home. That may seem like a lot but the 19 was taken right after finishing the treatment. We did speak with the doctor today and he cautioned us about tomorrow. He said not to be disappointed if we were not able to go home. The first time a patient receives this chemo it takes a little longer to clear it from the system. We all want to go home but we understand the need if we have to stay. The birthday party was great today. Because it was at the hospital it could only be a small and informal party for family members. Mac was in good spirits. The only dark spot on the party was that about 30 minutes before the party was suppose to start I realized that I had lost the keys to the car. That in itself was bad enough but the real issue was that most of the party supplies were in the van. We finally got Emory Security to slim jim the car and AAA finally showed up to cut a new key. Needless to say, that part of the day I would rather forget about. I am sure one day that it will be a laughable moment but at the time I felt like a failure for my son. I guess all dads want to have everything perfect for their children. Right now we are in the play room having a good time. Continue to pray that Mac will flush the chemo from his body as quickly as possible. We love all of you.
May God Bless You
Friday, July 2, 2004 9:32 PM EST
Day 43
Well, we are back at our home away from home. Today has been a very good day. God has answered the prayer of his people. Mac’s blood counts were excellent. They have not been this high in 43 days. His white blood count was a 5.13, up from a 3.5. His hemoglobin count was 10.8. This is still holding strong. His platelet count has gone from 336 thousand to 533 thousand. This is very good. The spinal treatment went good today with no complications. We do not have any results from the spinal fluid but it should still be clear. At 2:40 today we started a chemo drip called Methothrxate. This will drip for exactly 24 hours. After this time they will begin the flush of the system. They will check Mac’s toxicity levels at 48 hours and see if he can go home. If they are still high they will wait 24 more hours and check again. It critical that the levels go down because of the damage the chemo can do to the kidneys. The method of flushing the chemo out is through IV’s at a high level so we will have a lot of diapers to change. Thank you for your prayers and rejoice that God has answered yours and our prayers. Mac will be 3 tomorrow and we will celebrate with him at the hospital. I wish we were home but if will be wonderful to celebrate this special day anywhere.
May God Bless You
Thursday, July 1, 2004 11:26 EST
Day 42
Today has for the most part has been a repeat of the previous day. Mac has done well in his attempts to walk. He has continued to play and be in good spirits. I wanted to tell you about something the hospital did several visits ago. On staff at the hospital they have what is called a Child Life person. These people work with the children to help them cope with all that is going on. Kerrie has been with us on several occasions. She gave Mac a doll that has a port in its shoulder like Mac. The doll came with the same access lines and a syringe that they use to access Mac’s port. (A port is a device placed under the skin that works like an IV line.) For several weeks Mac would have nothing to do with the doll. Since he has been feeling better that has changed. He can explain what the nurses do to him and even show it on the doll. He did tell us that there was one difference. The difference is that the doll did not have red coming through the line. The red he was talking about is his blood. It is amazing that he can describe this process with such accuracy. Tonight we get ready to go back to Egleston tomorrow morning. We have to be there at 8 A.M. Since Mac will have a spinal check he will have to go without food for 6 hours before the procedure. This is always a battle so please pray for Mac. We will celebrate his birthday on Saturday at the hospital and if all goes according to plan we will be coming home on Sunday sometime. Pray that Mac responds to the chemo well and that they can get it flushed out of his system in the usual 2 days. I will keep everyone posted from the hospital.
May God Bless You
Thursday, June 30, 2004 12:18 AM EST
Day 41
Today has been another success. Mac has made great progress in walking. This morning we went to pick out his birthday cake. He wanted a Clifford cake. Of course we had to get him a cookie while we were there. We went to see a Physical Therapist today at NEGMC. She worked very well with Mac. At times he would not do what she wanted him to do. I guess he get this stubbornness from his dad. They rented us a walker for him. This will enable him to get around by allowing his upper body to support him. He has used is several times tonight. We went to Bible School again tonight. Mac had a good time but we had to leave early because he got tired. The physical therapy did not make it possible for him to have a nap today. Maybe tomorrow he can get a nap so he can stay the whole night. After we go home from Bible School, he tells us about the lesson. It is amazing how much he can recall. The first night he told about Jesus and the women at the well. It was great! We have begun to make a list of the things that we will need to take to the hospital this weekend. Having a planned trip is easier to take the needed supplies. On thing that we are going to take is some eggs. Mac hates the hospital eggs. I really cannot blame him. He is eating a lot of eggs but this is good since eggs are an excellent source of muscle building protein. Another part of going to the hospital is like vacation. I hate coming home to a dirty house after a vacation and the stays at the hospital are no different. Our continued prayer is that the Leukemia is being killed and that Mac will start walking soon. Please pray with us.
May God Bless You
Wednesday, June 29, 2004 12:32 AM EST
Day 40
Each day has brought renewed strength to Mac. He has had a very good day. He started the day off playing and finished the day playing. He appears to want to walk. Several times today he has made the needed effort to try and get his legs moving. This afternoon his “girl friends” came by to see him. He had a blast. We were able to go back to Bible School tonight. I think seeing the other kids walking and playing is helping him. When we got to the church Mac got himself out of the car seat and was standing at the side door waiting on Ashlie to get him out. At church he walked up the steps to the sanctuary. After church I heard these little feet moving down the hall. With the help of Ashlie he had walked from the bedroom to the kitchen to sneak up on me. He is very slow and Ashlie has to support him but he is putting forth the effort. I think that each day will bring new victories for him. His personality is much better. It would appear that the final stages of the Decadron (steroid) are wearing off. It is such a joy to see that precious smile. Please be in prayer for us this weekend. We go back to the hospital for a minimum of a 3 day stay. Mac will begin a new chemo that will take 24 hours to take and at least 48 hours for it to be flushed from his system. We will also be celebrating his birthday at the hospital. I hope that he will have a great time even though we are there.
May God Bless You
Monday, June 28, 2004 11:58 PM EST
Day 39
Today has been a great day. Mac has been in good spirits all day. He has kept his food down and this should help give him the needed strength to walk. We failed to hear from the Physical Therapist today. I am not sure why. We will be calling tomorrow morning to find out why. It would appear that Mac is ready to start trying to walk. He is able to stand briefly by himself. He appears to be scared. His desire was strong enough for him to try and get off the couch by himself today. The result was that he fell. This would at first seem like a failure but it should be viewed as a success. Mac has spent the most part of 39 days being carried. Anyone that has had a cast on their leg can tell you of the struggle to get one leg to work again. Mac had the desire to get off that couch. That is a major success! Each day brings new courage and strength. We have worked with him to build back that strength. It may seem silly but he was kicking Tori’s play toy today. He did this for about 10 minutes. The effort needed to complete this task was great for him but he did it with a smile. He thought it was a game. I guess when he gets older we can tell him the truth. I do not think he will mind the truth. Tonight’ Mac went to Bible School. He did pretty well. He interacted some with the other children. He was tired when he left and he was ready to be away from a crowd. Please do not take this statement wrong but try and remember that because of this low white blood count he has not been able to interact with a lot of people. It will take time for these social skills to come back and for him to fully enjoy the moment. One day he will know that all of those people were around him because they love him, care for him and they have been praying for him. Tonight was special when we got back home. Mac and I played together for over an hour. Father and son! I had so planned on such moments this summer. Family moments are great but there is something special about being with your children alone. You are totally focused on them and them on you. There are not too many Kodak moments that can beat that feeling. Today was also the first day that he has really called me dad. For the past 30 plus days it has either been get out of the room or recently he has called me David. To hear him say dad and to hear him say I Love You is worth all the gold and silver in the world. This afternoon I spoke with the Red Cross. They wanted me to do a testimonial about the importance of giving blood. Anyone that knows me knows that I have no desire to draw attention. I would rather do what needs to be done and go about my business. I felt that the opportunity to stress the importance to give blood was too important to pass up. Like I told the Red Cross, without the blood all the chemo in the world will not save my son. The chemo will kill the Leukemia but at the same time it lowers his blood counts. A child with cancer must have blood available to bring their counts up! In the Bible, Christ shed his blood so we may have life. He did it out of love. All ready my son has been the receiver of blood and platelets from 5 people that gave their blood that he may have physical life. While the similarity between the two acts is small the action of love is great in both of them. I have had a lot of time to think the last 39 days. I have come to realize that most of the things we chase after in this life are truly worthless. What would you give to save your child? What would you give so that someone else may save their child? Please pray about becoming a blood donor. Continue to lift us up to the very thrown of God so that he may answer your prayers.
May God Bless You
Monday, June 27, 2004 12:53 AM EST
Day 38
Sundays are always special! We have had another good day today. Ashlie started the day out by showing a video to the children at the church. It was called Why Charlie Brown, Why? It is a kid friendly way of explaining to the children at church what is going on with Mac. Throughout the day Mac has been playing. We were able to slip of to town today while he was playing at the church with his aunts and uncle. We had given him a Zofran for his nausea this morning and sure enough he kept his breakfast down. Tonight we went to church. It was good to have my whole family in church together. Mac did well considering the fact that he has not been there in 37 days. It was a blessing to see our brother and sisters in Christ. After church we worked on building up strength in his legs. He is doing better but still has a ways to go before he will be walking. Tomorrow we will speak with a Physical Therapist about what we can do to speed the process up. I think that the kids that Mac has been playing with over the last 2 days have helped. He sees them walking and hopefully this will strengthen his desire to walk. Starting tomorrow we will have to start showing some tough love about him trying to walk. I can only imagine how difficult this will be. No parent wants to see their child struggling but the doctors have told us that he must be pushed to walk. Please pray for us in this matter. I am not the best one for this type of job but as big as Mac is it will be difficult for Ashlie to hold him up while he is trying. Thank you always for your prayers, your support, and your love.
May God Bless You
Saturday, June 26, 2004 11:15 PM EST
Day 37
Mac has had a good day! He started out with a good breakfast but vomited it up about an hour later. The rest of the day was good. He kept down everything else he ate. Chemotherapy has nausea/vomiting side effects. He played for most of the day. We tried to get him to lie down but he wanted to play or watch T.V. We have been able to work a little on his walking. We have to build his strength back up so we are playing little games with him kicking. We pray that each day he will gain more strength in his legs. It is vital that he get going again. Tomorrow we are hoping for a great day also. We can give him some medicine for the nausea. The problem this morning was that he did not show any signs of being sick at his stomach. Tomorrow we will probably be more proactive even if he does not show signs. I hope that everyone has a wonderful Lords day tomorrow and remember us when you are at Gods alter.
May God Bless You
Friday, June 25, 2004 11:34 PM CDT
Day 36
Praise be to God for answered prayer. Mac’s blood counts have gone up. His white blood count is a 3.5. This is up from a 1.36. This means that Mac’s body is producing white blood cells again. His hemoglobin was 10.3 and his platelet counts were 344,000. These are the highest counts he has had. The doctors took him off the oral chemo for 4 days to get his counts up and it worked. We start the chemo 6MP again tonight. One side effect of this drug is low blood counts. Please pray that his body will be able to counter this side effect. I know that his counts will go down but we hope to stay out of the critical zone that we have been in for the past 35 days. We were able to talk to the doctor today about the upcoming treatment. We were not able to get all the questions answered because a lot will depend on Mac’s ability to handle the first round of Decadron and Vincristine that starts on July 9. The doctor is aware of our concerns and at the same time he is closely monitoring Mac’s progress. The final decision will be ours to make about whether to keep him in the clinical trial but we do trust that the doctor is watching also for signs that Mac needs to be put on another treatment plan. We were able to learn that the C plan he is own is not some plan drew up out of thin air. This is the same plan that was used at Scottish Rite Children Hospital before the two groups merged. This does not mean that Mac can handle the plan but it is comforting to know that other children have been on the plan. Please continue to pray that we will have the wisdom to make the right decision for Mac. Tonight has been good. We took Mac to Lowes and Target. It was fun to be together. He had a couple of old Decadron fits but for the most part he was a happy camper the whole night. We are still dealing with the fact that Mac is not walking but we did see hope tonight in that he made the effort to get on a lawn mower at Lowes. He was not able to complete the walk but he is trying. Monday we will be in contact with a Physical Therapist from North East Georgia Medical Center that will help us come up with a plan to get strength back into his legs. Tonight we go to bed encouraged by the events of today and assured that God’s people have “asked” and he has answered. Please continue to pray for his healing hand on Mac.
May God Bless You
Thursday, June 24, 2004 11:33 PM EST
Day 35
Today has been a great day also. Mac started out slow this morning. I guess he is like his mother in this regard. He finally decided that it was time for breakfast and ate a healthy portion. He has played most of the day. Today he was back on his Gator. He is not taking long trips but any length is an improvement over the first 30 days. Lunch lasted for about 4 hours today. He ate lunch at every house he was at. Right know it is mash potatoes. Thank God for instant mash potatoes. Later in the afternoon he went to play at his Papa’s house. Ashlie and I were able to go to the grocery store. That may not seem like a big deal but this was the first time that we have been able to go some where by ourselves in over 30 days. It was only about the second time that Ashlie has left the area around our house in those 30 days. Tonight has gone well. We did have to take Tori to the doctor. She has a “Collins” ear infection. I guess it just comes with the name. Tomorrow we go back to the doctor for a blood count check (CBC). This will determine if Mac can start his chemo again. Please pray that his counts are up. He must get back on the chemo to fully get rid of the Leukemia. We would like to thank each of you that are praying for us daily. The doctors are good but God is GREAT. We would also like to thank each person that has signed up for the blood drive. We need about 14 more people to be willing to sign up for a time slot to reach our goal of 80 people. The drive is July 7 from 2:30 to 7:30. Please pray about this drive. Each time we go to Egleston Mac has the potential to need blood. Even if Mac does not need it there is a whole floor of children just like Mac that need it. I have went 32 years without ever needing blood but having a child that has needed it to survive has definitely changed my way of looking at blood drives and the reasons to give. Please call Ben Harrison at Harmony Hall Baptist Church if you would be willing to help out. The phone number is 770-534-5864. Thank you again for all of you that are checking the web site to read about Mac’s progress. We are going through better times now. The chances that we will have some more valleys are high. The intensive treatment that must be used to help Mac will weaken his body. It is your prayers that will lift him up and give him the strength to face the day.
May God Bless You
Wednesday, June 23, 2004 10:24 PM EST
Day 34
Today has been a good day also. Mac has continued to play and he even drove his small Gator today. This is the first time he has done this in about 30 days. We still need to encourage him to begin to walk. We have a meeting with the doctor on Friday and this will be one of the questions that we have for him. Mac spent a little bit of time out of the house today so I think that the steroids are continuing to get out of his body. This morning he asked to have cinnamon rolls, eggs, and oat meal for breakfast. He is beginning to get back into a normal routine about what to eat in the morning. We are still praying that his white blood counts are going up so that he can resume taking his chemo starting on Friday. It is such a blessing to see him smiling again. Continue to pray with us for a full recovery and a full remission from the Leukemia.
May God Bless You
Tuesday, June 22, 2004 10:36 PM EST
Day 33
Today has been a GREAT day. Mac has played most of the day. He has eaten well and even allowed Ashlie to leave the house for over an hour. Each day seems to bring him further out of the steroid induced anger. He still has his moments. He did take the steroids twice a day for a month. It will take time. He still has not attempted to walk but he is trying to crawl around in the bed. Due to the power going out this entry will be short. I hope to have more wonderful things to tell you tomorrow.
May God Bless You
Monday, June 21, 2004 11:55 PM EST
Day 32
We are back at home. Mac’s blood culture came back negative for bacteria infection. They gave us one more dose of antibiotic and told us top come back on Friday to do another blood count check. We are off the medicine until Friday so Mac can build up his white blood counts. Chemo will tear down the white blood cells and coming off a fever Mac needs to increase his counts. The most amazing thing happened today and tonight. Praise be to God! Mac started playing. He was playing with Play-Do at the hospital and at home he even wanted to go to his room and play. He was smiling and becoming his old self. He is very tired and is still having his moments of steroid induced anger but he actually had fun today. Please continue to pray for him. Please pray that his body can resist infections. This will be a continuous prayer for him. He can not fight off infections like a healthy child. I updated the photo’s today so check out some pictures taken tonight of Mac. I may be biased but I think he has the best smile of any child!
May God Bless You
Sunday, June 20, 2004 9:46 PM EST
Day 31
Things have been calmer today. Mac has had a much better day today. He has still ran a fever at times so they are still treating him with antibiotics in case it is bacteria. His blood counts showed that his hemoglobin was low again so he received his third blood transfusion since starting treatment 31 days ago. This after noon he was in good spirits and we received our first smile in weeks. Tonight has also been much better. He was watching Veggie Tales and starting laughing a little. He was trying to make faces like the whale on one of the previews. This went on for a little while. The blood transfusion has given him a little more energy. He was playing with the electric bed tonight. He loves to do that when he is feeling good. Hopefully tomorrow we will have another good day. Remember us in your prayers.
May God Bless You
Sunday, June 20, 2004 12:53 AM EST
Day 30
I wanted to let everyone know that we are back in the hospital. Mac started running a fever at 1:30 and by 2:30 it had went to 101.4. Any fever over a 100 is a cause of concern and a fever over 101 is an automatic trip to the hospital. They are doing a blood culture to determine if it is bacterial. It will take 48 hours to determine this. We will be here a minimum of 3 days. At the moment Mac is running a 100.4 fever. It is coming and going. They have him on antibiotics to help fight whatever the infection is. Please remember us in your prayers. While it is difficult to be here at least we are being watched around the clock and if any problem develops they can act fast to keep it from becoming a larger problem. On a positive note, Mac said thank you tonight when Ashlie gave him a sandwich. He used to always be so nice and considerate. Maybe this is a sign that the steroids are leaving his body and he can get back to being the fun loving child that he is instead of one being driven by the steroids. Sorry is took me so long to get this journal posted. I could not get to a computer. Please remember the blood drive at the church on July 7 from 2:30 to 7:30. Contact the church to sign up. Thank you in advance for your help with this drive.
May God Bless You
Friday, June 18, 2004 3:44 PM EST
Day 29
We wanted to let you know that God has answered ours and your prayers. Mac is in remission from the cancer. The treatment will still last for 2-2.5 years but they did not see any Leukemia cells under the microscope today. I will let you know more of the details later tonight about what is the next phase in the treatment, but I did want you to know early that God is good.
May God Bless You
Day 29 con’t
Well it’s late but all is well in the house. I finally got back to give you some more details about where we stand. As I stated, Mac is in remission but the treatments must continue to keep the Leukemia from coming back. The whole treatment process will last about 2.5 years. We get 2 weeks off from going to Egleston. Mac will be taking chemo daily for these two weeks by way of a pill (6-Mercaptopurine). The entire clinical research test came back indicating that Mac is considered a low risk. The result is that his treatment will not have to be as strong. That is answered prayer! Our next trip to Egleston will be for another type of chemo called IV Methotrexate. We will go on July 2. This will be given over a 24 hour period. Mac must have this flushed from his system before we can leave. This will take approximately 48 hours after the 24. They will flush it out of his system by way of IV’s. We will have to stay in the hospital like this about 6 times over a 27 week period. On signup for the clinical we could receive 4 different paths. Our path was Path C. This is one of the longer paths. Please pray for wisdom. This pathway will add 6 weeks to the standard path. It will also add a 3 week period of Dexamethasone (steroid) and Vincristine (chemo). The doses will be lower because of Mac’s risk level but we do have some concerns about the study. One of the two medicines or both working together caused Mac to lose the ability/desire to walk. We have question that need to be answered from the doctor. Mac cannot go through another period like we just went through. We can decide to get out of the clinical study. We are praying about what to do. Most children do not have the side effects that Mac had with the walking. The path ways are generated by a random selection process without regard to the first 29 days. That is the nature of a clinical study. This is the area that we need wisdom. If Mac can handle the extra 6 weeks I would not have a problem with him going through it. I am not sure if he can. If we decide to get out of the study we would be given a standard pathway that is just as effective as the one we have been assigned but the research study will be forced to stop. About 10-15 years ago the success rate of childhood Leukemia was about 10 percent. Through these studies they have raised that rate to 80 percent. We wish to further research but not at the expense of Mac’s health. Please pray that we will know what to do and make to right decision. Another Praise is that Mac’s blood counts are going up. The bone marrow has begun to produce healthy cells. His white blood counts are out of the critical area. His platelets are in the normal range but on the low end. His hemoglobin was low but the doctor is confident that these will go up as well. Continue to pray that Mac will start feeling better soon and start walking and playing again. Also, please pray for a Jeremy Gaddis. He is a young boy that is receiving treatment for 2 types of cancer. Ashlie went to school with his mother’s sister. They asked that you would pray that the chemo he is on will work. Thank you again for all of your prayers and support. I hope that this journal is clear. I know it wordy but we wanted you to know where Mac stands in his treatment.
May God Bless You
Thursday, June 17, 2004 10:29 PM EST
Day 28
{Ashlie} - Halelujah!! We actually got some good news today. One of the test results came back and considers Mac in a low risk category. Thank you for your prayers. On a disappointing note we will not be able to go on vacation. Praise God this was Mac’s last night on the full dose of steroids. I love you. {David} As Ashlie has said, the news was great. When we started this treatment 29 days we signed up for a clinical study. What that means is that they collected extra bone marrow from Mac on that first Friday. These extra samples were sent to several sites around the country to be studied on a genetic level. The test results that we got back today were from New Mexico. From what I understand, Mac’s chromosomes were of a nature that put him in the low risk category. If we had not signed up for the study they would of treated him as a standard case. The test results will enable Mac to receive a lower dose of chemo. This is definitely a blessing. We will get the results back from Boston, Alabama, and I think Tennessee tomorrow. I pray that the other three results are as good and promising. Tomorrow is the last day of the initial 29 days. This will probably we a difficult night. Mac can eat solid foods up until about 3 A.M. and then he can only have clear liquids. After 7:30 he can not have any thing to eat or drink because they will put him to sleep to collect the bone marrow. Please remember him and us as you say your prayers. He is eating pretty good right know and the steroids make him easily agitated. By throwing in the taking away of food, we may have a rough time. Please pray that he will eat well tonight and be content tomorrow. Tomorrow I will try and get the results of the test on the web site as soon as I can because I know that we have an enormous amount of prayer warriors that are anxious to hear that there prayers were answered. Please remember the blood drive at Harmony Hall Baptist Church on July 7. Please contact Ben at the church and let him know when you can give. :}
May God Bless You
Wednesday, June 16, 2004 11:08 PM EST
Day 27
For a boy that loved to play outside, Mac has become a bedridden child. He has very little interest in anything other than watching T.V. and laying in bed. We will be going to the doctor tomorrow for an unscheduled visit. Mac has been having 8 plus bowel movements a day. The result is that his bottom is very raw. Tonight he lay in bed in horrible pain. We called Egleston and they would like to see him tomorrow just to be sure that everything is OK. I really do not feel that anything is wrong other than he is very raw. He is still eating and drinking well so dehydration is not a worry at this point. We are hoping that they will go ahead an do the bone marrow test tomorrow instead of Friday. The only problem is that Mac has to fast before the test and I could not bear to deprive him of food and not have the test. We are doing what we can tonight to keep him as pain free as possible. Please pray that Mac will be at ease through the night. Remember that Eagle 106.7 will be at Wendy’s on Shallowford Road Friday, June 18, at 11:30 collecting pennies for Leukemia. Also the blood drive is July 7 please give to help children and adults like Mac. Thank you all for your encouraging words and most of all prayers. We love you.
Tuesday, June 15, 2004 11:20 PM EST
Day 26
I wish that things were different, but today was a repeat of yesterday. Mac has had little or no activity. He just lies in bed and watches T.V. He is still eating well but the food is not able to make up for what the steroids have taken away. Just 2 more days! I pray to God that in 2 more days my son will be able to get off the drugs that are helping him but at the same time breaking him down. Since our last 2 days without a bowel movement Mac has been having probably around 8 a day. His bottom is raw and this makes things difficult. Giving him the medicine is starting to be an act of patience in that he does not want to take it. It seems as if the steroids have saved all their wicked charm for the last week. At times Mac is peaceful but sad. At other times he is an angry child. Continue to pray for the test on Friday that will allow make to get off these high doses of steroids and continue on with his treatment!
May God Bless You
Monday, June 14, 2004 11:45 PM EST
Day 25
Today has been a repeat of yesterday. Mac has stayed in the bed all day. He has showed no interest in doing anything. I pray that we will soon be off these steroids. With answered prayers that will be Friday. One blessing is that his appetite is still good. He eats a little of a lot of different things. Today he decide that he wanted shrimp but he only likes the small ones. Maybe tomorrow will be a better day with his energy level. I know he has to be sad about the way he feels. Mac is definitely all boy and I know that he has to hurt by not feeling like doing anything. Continue to pray for the test results Friday and that Mac will get some energy tomorrow. Also, please remember the blood drive that will be held at Harmony Hall Baptist Church on July 7 from 2:20 to 7:30 P.M. I know that this date may be in conflict with a lot of people schedules but if you can please donate. You can e-mail me or call the church and talk to Ben Harrison. We are shooting to have 80 people donate and we already have approximately 35 signed up. Thank you again for your prayers. Last night we did not get the most amount of sleep. It is easy to get frustrated by it until I stop and think about all that Mac is going through. Losing a little sleep is little to pay for taking care of him.
May God Bless You
Sunday, June 13, 2004 11:04 PM EST
Day 24
Five more days to go and we complete the Induction period of 29 days. Mac has been out of sorts today. His patience has been non-existent. He has eaten well today. He has taken a liking to the Happy Fries at Zaxby’s. We had to buy some today to put in the refrigerator for fear that he would want some in the middle of the night. The thing about the steroid is that when he wants something there is no persuading him into something else. We did not want to try and explain to him that Zaxby’s is not open at 2 in the morning. For the most part, Mac has been inactive today. We had to ride him on the Gator even though he was not asking to go. The first several days after chemo are always the roughest. Prayerfully tomorrow will be a better day. A challenge that we know we will have after the 29 days is getting him to walk. It has been over 3 weeks since he has walked. This is the results of the steroids. Please continue to pray for the bone marrow test on Friday but at the same time begin to pray for Mac as he is “learning” how to walk again.
May God Bless You
Saturday, June 12, 2004 10:16 PM EST
Day 23
The results of prayer have continued today. Mac has had a pretty good appetite today compared to what it has been. He slept O.K. last night. At times today, he showed great improvement like sitting up in bed. He and Ashlie had a little picnic on the bed. At other times the steroids played fits with his attitude and you would not think that it was the same child. We are counting the days down until Friday. Prayerfully, we will be through the first stage of treatment and maybe off this high dose of steroids. We will be at the doctor on Friday, June 18 but I wanted to make everyone aware that Rhubarb Jones from Eagle 106.7 will be at the Wendy’s on Shallowford Rd starting at 11:30 A.M. His March Across Georgia is raising money to help children like Mac. If you are by that way, please stop by and help their efforts to find a cure of Leukemia. Right now, the house is at rest. Tori is almost asleep and hopefully we will have a good night.
May God Bless You
Friday, June 11, 2004 10:13 PM EST
Day 22
Today has been a day to rejoice. God has heard the prayers of his people. We went to Egleston to get the weekly chemo today. The blood counts came back and they were a blessing. The white blood count was up but the biggest jump was the platelets. On June 6 they were at 16,000 and we received a platelet transfusion. The highest number Mac has had after a transfusion was 65,000 and the next day it went to 31,000. Today. 2.5 days after the transfusion, his count was 98,000! That is the highest platelet count we have had since starting treatment. Praise be to God! We also learned that today was the last chemo in the 29 day period. I had misread the roadmap and thought we had one next week. Because of Mac inability to walk they cut the chemo dose in half today. The doctor said that this would not effect the treatment because Mac has hung in there and taken full doses on all previous chemotherapy’s. Next Friday at 9:30 we head back to Egleston for the bone marrow test. This test will show us the results of all the treatment. If they can not see any Leukemia cells under the microscope we will enter the second phase of treatment which will last for approximately 1.5 years. If they do see signs of Leukemia they will continue intensive treatment for another 2 weeks. Please pray specifically for this test. Pray that the treatment has worked and that we can enter the next phase of treatment. Thank all you that have been praying for his platelets. Know that God answered yours and our prayers.
May God Bless You
Thursday, June 10, 2004 10:07 PM EST
Day 21
Today was much better. With the help of the medicine, Mac was able to get a little sleep. Tori slept until 4:30 so it was a pretty good night. Mac’s appetite was better today and he was able to keep the food down. The food will definitely help him get stronger. We go back tomorrow for another chemo treatment at 11 A.m. They will check his blood count (CBC) first and determine if he needs platelets or hemoglobin. Please continue to pray that he stays healthy and strong. The chemo takes a lot out of him and we need your prayers. The Red Cross came to the church today and everything is in place. The sign up sheets will be posted this coming Sunday for anyone wishing to participate. Feel free to let me know if you are planning on coming if you can not get to the church to sign up and I will have your name placed on the list. God has brought many people into our lives that have the same story as Mac. Children that were stricken with the Leukemia and have battled during the treatment and have beaten the cancer are encouraging to Ashlie and me. Mac will beat this! He will be able to live a life to testify to the things that God has done! Thank you for all of you prayers and support.
May God Bless You
Wednesday, June 9, 2004 10:02 PM EST
Day 20
Today started last night. Mac did not sleep well. He was complaining of his stomach. We believe that he was sick on his stomach more that he was having stomach pain. Today was the same. We called Egleston and they called in some more medicine. This medicine makes Mac go to sleep while it helps his stomach. This is good because he has not had a good night sleep in weeks. We had to back him off what little food he was eating for about 6 hours to give his stomach a chance to catch up. The problem started when he vomited at breakfast. We are going to give him some more of the medicine so hopefully he will have a good nights rest. The blood drive is officially on. The date is Wednesday July 7. The time is from 2:30 to 7:30 P.M. The location will be Harmony Hall Baptist Church. There are sign up sheets at the church for anyone wishing to give. To anyone that does not go to the church they can either e-mail me, sign the guest book saying you wish to participate, or call the church office and speak with Ben Harrison. Ben has agreed to head up the blood drive from the church. The phone number for the church is 770-534-5864. I have told the Red Cross what wonderful friends and family members we have. They are planning on bringing enough staff to help around 80 people. Giving blood has taken on a new meaning for our family. If you can, please come out and give. It does not take long and it is not that painful. You will be helping out children and adults like Mac. I know in the years to come, when he understands, he will appreciate your kindness. Thank you ahead of time for your support of this blood drive. Continue to pray for us as we take care of Mac.
May God Bless You
Tuesday, June 8, 2004 11:16 PM EST
Day 19
Today was blood count day. Mac’s hemoglobin was within the normal range. This is essential for proper oxygen in the blood which results in energy. His white blood count is still very low at a .26. This is down from a .28 on the last check. This means that Mac is still at a high risk for infection and will still have to be isolated. We know that everyone want to see him but the risk is too great. After the 29 day induction period, the frequency of the chemo will go down and his counts should go up. Our last day of the induction period is June 18. More of Mac’s hair is falling out. We cut it tonight to try to keep it from falling on his face. The hair cut resulted in us being able to tell exactly how much hair he has really lost. This is very difficult for Ashlie. I can count on one hand the number of days that Mac has not had a bath and his hair washed since he has been born. A mother’s love runs deep. On a positive note, Mac was able to eat some tonight. He had the cook working overtime. He did not eat much of any one thing but he did eat a little of several different items. He also drank most of a class of Carnation Breakfast added to his milk. Our next appointment will be Friday at 11 A.M. Mac will receive another blood count and chemo. The chemo is rough on him so please go ahead and begin to pray for him. On a different note, I received an e-mail with the attached sign-up sheet from the Red Cross. Ben Harrison, our Minister of Music, has agreed to help set up the blood drive. We have not confirmed a date but the sign up sheet will let us know how many people would be interested. He will be posting it at church starting tomorrow. If you would like to give blood in Mac’s honor please either call the church or sign up on the sheet. For all our friends that do not go to Harmony Hall Baptist Church but would still like to give please let me know by way of an e-mail or the guest book. As soon as we have an approximate number we can set the date. Right know we are either looking at the end of June or the end of July. Thank you for all your support.
May God Bless You
Monday, June 7, 2004 11:00 PM EST
Day 18
Today has been a little better. We were able to get some sleep last night because Mac was not in pain with his stomach until later in the morning. Sleep always does the body good and I thank God for the sleep he gave Ashlie and me. Mac was able to eat a little bit today. That will help his body get strong again. We are trying to get him to start walking again. It has been approximately 2 weeks since he has really walked. I know that he is tired and weak but we are trying to get his legs some exercise. Right now it just a matter of steps. It seems so tragic that a child that ran all over the yard is now trying to take a few steps. We are still spending a lot of time on the Gator which he finds peaceful. I guess the vibration of the machine helps him to sleep because most of the time he is asleep by the time we get back to the house. We go tomorrow at 1 P.M. for another blood count check. He will probably have to have another platelet transfusion. I spoke with the Red Cross today about setting up a blood drive in honor of Mac. I will post the details in a journal when they are finalized. Be in prayer about coming to give blood. The blood may not be used directly for Mac but once you have been put into a situation like we have been placed you begin to see the world a little different. There are Mac’s all over the world that could use your help. Continue to pray that he will eat more and regain the strength that the chemo has robbed him of.
May God Bless You
Sunday, June 6, 2004 10:32 PM EST
Day 17
We made it through the night without having to go to the hospital. At about 12 midnight, Mac asked for juice and drank off and on throughout the night. Today, he has done the same. He has taken in enough fluids to produce several wet diapers. Thank God for answered prayers! Today has been better. He has not cried out in pain as often. He is still not eating well but we were able to get some applesauce in him. Mac is also doing much better with his medicine. He still hates to take it but after a little fight he will be a trooper and take all of it. He is still showing signs of nausea brought on by the chemotherapy so we continue to give him Zofran to aid in this area. Ashlie and I missed seeing our church friends today and hope that everyone understands why we must keep Mac sheltered. Another blessing that I realized while taking to my father is that we are going through the roughest part of the treatment in the early summer months. We are away from the flue season and the other sicknesses that are associated with the winter months. We hope and pray for another good day tomorrow. We will be going to Egleston on Tuesday for a blood count check. I hate to see the counts go down but I realize that the chemotherapy shows no mercy on good cells. The fact that the counts are going down appears to me to be an indicator that the chemo is working. Continue to pray with out ceasing for my son’s health.
May God Bless You
Saturday, June 5, 2004 11:16 PM EST
Day 16
Today started out on a positive note. Mac had a little breakfast and I thought it would be a good day. Little did I know that breakfast would be all he would eat or drink for most of the day until 8 P.M. We tried all day to get him to eat or drink but he would not. At 7:30 P.M. we called the doctor because it had been 8 hours since he had a wet diaper. The doctor told us that if we could not get fluids into him we would need to bring him in for fear of dehydration. His Aunt Anna is a RN and she checked his blood pressure. It seems that when you are dehydrated your blood pressure goes down. Mac’s pressure was OK. Thanks Anna. Finally at about 9 P.M. he had a wet diaper. We are going to have to watch Mac throughout the night to make sure that he stays hydrated. Each day has new challenges. The guest book responses are encouraging! Thank you for taking the time to write. Please continue to pray for Mac. I am not a doctor but I know that he must start eating and drinking. Today has been rough. I just want my boy back healthy. I really hit hard today thinking about the things that we should be doing instead of fighting Leukemia. We are setting an alarm for 4 A.M. to make sure that his diaper is wet. I am not sure what we will have to do if it is not. Please continue to keep us in your prayers and your thoughts.
May God Bless You
Friday, June 4, 2004 10:50 PM EST
Day 15
{Ashlie}I wanted to do some thanking today. I am so grateful to all of our family and friends for the prayers that have went up for Mac. I also wanted to let everyone know what a great father David is and what a great job he has done with all the information, medicine, food, etc. This has been a hard day for me because I woke up this morning with some of Mac’s hair on his shirt. This breaks my heart because of course I think he is gorgeous. (and he will always be) To prepare everyone, Mac will be looking like his Dad soon, bald. Last night was not the best, but I know it will get better. Mac is still having stomach cramps and sleepless nights. He also seems depressed and sad, which if you know Mac is very out of character for him. {David} Today has been a rough one for both of us. The effects of the steroids seem to have been the worse ever today. There were times that he did not even want his mother in the room with him. Any mother and husband can see that this would be difficult for Ashlie. My wife is kind in here words about me but it is Ashlie who Mac cries to for comfort most of the time when he is in pain. That is one reason why it has been a difficult day for Ashlie. Mothers and fathers each play an important role in raising their children. No role is more important than the other. We hope and pray for a better day tomorrow. I have been told that several family members and friends wish to give blood and platelets for Mac. I did a little research and found out that blood is only good for 46 days and platelets are good for 5. I hope to be able to get the Red Cross to come to our church for people to donate to anyone in need. It would be hard to nail down a 5 day window for platelets for Mac. We can guess the days that he may need them but we never know for sure. While your donation may not be used directly for Mac it would go for someone like him who is in need. I have been told that people may give blood and platelets in honor of Mac. I will be contacting the Red Cross soon to verify this information and keep you posted. I know that today’s journal does not have any blood counts for your information but it is loaded with continued request for your prayers. Sleep is hard to come by so I pray that the sleep we get will sustain. Please pray that Mac will sleep better, his stomach feel better, and that the treatment will be a success.
May God Bless You
Thursday, June 3, 2004 11:00 PM EST
Day 14
It’s good to be home. There is definitely no place like it. Mac had to receive a bag of blood before he could go home. His hemoglobin count had slipped to a 7.7 which is too low. They were able to give him his Friday chemotherapy today so we do not have to drive to Atlanta tomorrow. Mac’s platelet counts had went to 65,000 after the platelet transfusion yesterday but today they are at 31,000. The platelet transfusion will be an on-going process for probably the first 29 day of treatment. We arrived back home at about 6:30 P.M. and he took a little nap. He later wanted to ride on the “Big” Gator so off we went. He was able to spend time at his Papas house and this enabled Ashlie and me to spend time with Tori. All in all, the evening has been pretty good thanks be to God. My immediate prayer is that everyone is able to get a good nights rest. With lot of prayer, hopefully I will be able to report another good day tomorrow. Each day is taken one at a time and each day is a gift.
May God Bless You
David
Wednesday, June 2, 2004 9:26 PM EST
Day 13
I am writing early so that you may pray specifically for Mac tonight. We are at Egleston. Mac has still not had a bowel movement so we brought him back to for another check-up. His platelet counts did come up due to the transfusion but his other counts are still dropping due to the chemotherapy. While we were herE they decided to admit us to the hospital to treat Mac’s constipation. Due to the amount of medicine they would have to give Mac they decided to put a tube through his nose that would drain into his stomach. They are basically given him the same medicine that people are given when they have their colon checked. The medicine will clean out his intestine system and make him have a bowel movement. We also discovered that he has thrush. This is a fungus of the mouth due to the steroids. It is easily treatable but can be painful if not treated. I HAD TO STOP BECAUSE A NURSE WAS CALLED TO MAC’S ROOM. PRAISE THE LORD HE HAD A BOWEL MOVEMENT. THEY HAVE TAKEN HIM OFF THE MIDICINE BUT WILL LEAVE THE TUBE IN PLACE UNTIL MORNING JUST IN CASE. THE NURSE THOUGHT THEY WOULD DO AN X-RAY OF HIS STOMACH TO MAKE SURE THAT HE IS CLEANED OUT. THANK YOU FOR YOUR PRAYERS!!!!! HOPEFULLY WE WILL BE LEAVING TOMORROW. PLEASE PRAY THAT WE WILL. THERE IS NOT PLACE LIKE HOME.
MAY GOD BLESS YOU
Tuesday, June 1, 2004 10:51 PM EST
Day 12
We are still coveting your prayers for Mac. He woke up this morning in pain from the constipation. We called the doctors office when they opened up and they told us to bring him on in. The first thing they do when you arrive is do his blood count check. Mac’s blood counts have continued to drop. His white blood cell count is at a .4 and should be around 5.0. Again, this is not much of a surprise to the doctors because of the amount of chemotherapy his is taking. His platelet counts have dropped below 10,000. This is in a critical area. He had to have a full bag of platelets today to bring his count back up. The nurses use a line that is in his shoulder to give the platelets. His counts are so low that he was bleeding the entire way home and about 45 minutes after we got home. I was really scared on the trip home. We called back to speak to the nurse and they said to just apply pressure but it was a fearful time for Ashlie and me. One positive note of the evening is that he did play with Play-Do. His was laughing a little but really did not have enough energy to sit up while he was playing. At the present moment we are still waiting for his constipation to break. They did X-rays at the office and everything looked fine except for thee fact that he needs to go to the bathroom. We were afraid that something might be wrong with his liver of pancreas but all the test game back good. If he has not had a bowel movement by 12 noon tomorrow we are heading back to the doctors office. I have no idea what they will do next. The doctors are really trusting that the laxative will work. Please remember us in your prayers. Pray for his constipation to end and his platelet counts to increase. His white blood cells are basically nonexistent right now so we pray that he does not get an infection or have any grade of a temperature or we will have to go immediately to the hospital. Thank you for everything.
God Bless
Monday, May 31, 2004 11:30 PM EST
Day 11
I hope that everyone had a good holiday. We have had a rough day today. Mac has complained of his stomach hurting all day. We did as the doctor said and gave him two dozes of Miralax which is a stool softener but his has not helped. Finally in desperation we called the doctor back. We were concerned that something else might be wrong. A lot of the drugs that Mac is own can cause trouble in the pancreas and the liver. He still feels like we are dealing with constipation because of the symptoms. He told us to go and get Magnesium Citrate which is a laxative. I hope that it helps! We go back to the doctor tomorrow for another blood count. They will be able to check him out to make sure nothing else is wrong. Hopefully by then we will have our answer by the way of changing diapers. We called some friends that we met at the hospital. Their son has the same type of Leukemia. They said that they had already been down this road. That was a big relief to know that another family had experienced the same thing. It is like the family of God. We gain assurance when we know that we are not traveling down a road that no one else has been on before. I guess we call that fellowship. Please continue to pray for Mac and his troubles with his stomach, his constipation, and his blood counts.
May God Bless You
Sunday, May 30, 2004 10:45 PM EST
Day 10
The day actually started last night. We were up most of the night. Mac had trouble sleeping because of stomach pains caused either by the steroids or constipation. We spent the most of the day tending to his needs and trying to keep him satisfied. Later in the day, we finally called the Dr to find out if there is anything that we can do to ease the pain. The Dr felt that constipation was probably the cause of the pain and intern he increased the medicine to twice a day. Please pray that we can solve this problem so Mac does not have to be in such pain. His appetite was not the best today but it was not the worse. One funny note is that he asked for a milkshake today. He has probably only had one his whole life. We had to scrounge around a bit tonight because he asked for biscuits and gravy. Thank goodness for Bisquick! As I write this journal he is laying in bed not complaining too much. He is taking his medicine a little better though he still covers his mouth when we try to give it to him. Thank you again to all the churches and Christians that prayed today at church and will continue to pray us through this situation. I wish each of you a great Memorial Day as we remember those that have given all so that we may have so much in this country. In thinking about the holiday and our situation, I know that because they fought for us and died for us Mac could have doctors that can help him and we can have a place to worship the Savior, Christ Our Lord.
May God Bless You
Saturday, May 29, 2004 11:15 PM EST
Day 9
Because of your prayers and the grace of God, today has been a much better day. The morning times are still the hardest. It takes Mac several hours, sometimes a little past lunch, to get going. He ate a little breakfast and a little lunch but did much better in the evening. We have begun to give him Zofran for the nausea. It appeared to help tonight but he does not like to take it. Zofran is a pill that rapidly dissolves in the mouth. Mac is still scared and hates to take all the medicine that he is having to take. We have been able to switch to a pill version of Zantac which helps with the stomach acids caused by the steroids.. The liquid form taste horrible and he was having to take 3 ml of it. With the pill we can crush it and mix it with 2 ml of cherry syrup. While he still does not like to take medicine is seems right know to be better for him. This evening he spent a good deal of time outside. The fresh air would have to help him feel better and hopefully sleep better tonight. Last night he was able to sleep all night and did not wake up until 7:30. This was a big help to Ashlie and me. Tomorrow will be the first Sunday that we have been back from the hospital that Mac will not be able to go to church. He loves to play with the boys and girls and hopefully he can return before long. The critical factor still involves his count of healthy white blood cells and his platelets. I know that Christians and churches across the state will be lifting him up tomorrow and the days to come. Thank you for your support and your love.
May God Bless You
Friday, May 28, 2004 11:30 PM EST
Day 8
Mac has shown an improvement in his appetite. He woke up at 4 a.m. wanting a hot dog, muffin, and milk. We went back to Egleston today for the following test: bone marrow, spinal tap, and blood count. Mac’s appointment was not until 12:30 so we had to struggle with the fact that he was hungry all morning. We arrived at the Dr and received the news that Mac would have to have a platelet transfusion before they could perform the test. His platelet count had gone from 32,000 on May 24, 2004 to 15,000 today. While this is not a good situation, as far as I can understand it is to be expected due to the chemotherapy. The Dr performed the test and Mac woke up wanting to eat. Hopefully his appetite will continue to increase from day to day. A lot of the drugs that Mac is on can lead to constipation. For most of us this is simply a mild discomfort. For Mac this could lead to a tear which would lead to bleeding. This could become a problem due to his platelet counts. We were given some medicine for this as well as medicine for nausea. Before we could get home from the hospital, they called. They want us to come back in on Tuesday for another blood check. They do not want to go a week with out watching his platelets. This may result in another platelet transfusion and possible a stay in the hospital. Please pray that Mac’s body will begin to produce platelets. Tomorrow is another day filled with new challenges but also another day covered with your prayers. Thank you!
God Bless You
Thursday, May 27, 2004 11:55 PM EST
Day 7
Today started out like the rest. Mac was up as 2, 4, and 6 a.m. He was complaining of his stomach hurting. We did the best we could do to get him back to sleep. As the morning progressed it appeared that it would be a typical day. He always wants Ashlie to hold him for about the first 5 hours of the day. He did eat a little breakfast but spit up his medicine. We did not know what to do about the medicine so off we went to the phone to call the Dr. When the afternoon rolled around he wanted to see his Aunt Abby. They were able to spend a little time together which helped my wife greatly. As the day progressed he decided that he also wanted to see his Papa, Gigi, Uncle Matt, and Aunt Anna. All in all he rotated among these family members for about 4 hours. This was a great help to Ashlie. It has to be hard always needing to be needed. She would never complain but I know that she gets tired. Every boy wants his mother when he is sick and Mac is no exception. As night rolled in and Mac returned home we heard the magic words, “I want a hotdog”. Well we had to get help with the trip to the store but the end result was that he almost ate a whole hotdog weenie. That was probably the best he has eaten in days. As I write this journal, Mac is resting asleep in bed. May he have sweat dreams! Please be in prayer tomorrow. We go for a bone marrow test, spinal tap, and a blood test. He will have to get up at 6 to eat because they will put him to sleep to perform the test. Please pray that he will be able to hold off eating until our appointment time of 12:30. Adult do not like having to not eat before a test and 3 year olds do not understand. Another part of having a child with Leukemia is that you always have your bags packed to either go to the hospital at any time of the day or night or stay when you do go for a check up. We are learning each day what to do and how to deal with Mac and the effects of the medicine. We have learned to cherish each moment of life. I will update all of his friends the results of his blood test tomorrow night.
God Bless and thank you for your prayers
Wednesday, May 26, 2004 11:41 PM EST
Day 6
Each day appears to be different with a child with Leukemia. Mac has been sluggish most of the day and has not wanted to eat much of anything. He drank a lot of milk which he vomited up tonight. It was not the milk but the effects of the drugs that are helping him to get better that made him sick. The common side affects on most of the drugs is nausea and upset stomach. We were able to get him to eat a little bit tonight so hopefully this will help his stomach. From his energy levels I would say that is blood count is still low because of the chemotherapy. Mac was playing a little bit around supper time. It was a joy to hear him laugh. A child’s laugh warms the soul. You do not realize how much you love to hear a child laugh until they are sick and you are not hearing that laughter. I have always heard that it takes a village to raise a child and we are certainly having help from the village. Thank you again to our friends and family that are helping with Tori and the other endless task that must be done each day to ensure that we are able to take care of Mac.
God Bless each of you
Tuesday, May 25, 2004 11:49 PM EST
Day 5
You really learn to appreciate home when you have been forced to be away from it. After all the stress yesterday, we were able to have a good night sleep in our own bed. Today we went back to Egleston for two steroid shots of Asparaginase. Mac was a trooper and only seemed to cry because he is just scared of the building and past experiences. Today has been a much better day. The mood swings have been a little better but the night time seems to be the worse. We received our blood counts from the Dr Office. All of Mac’s counts are down. His active white blood cells (ABS NEUT) are at 140. We were instructed that when this count falls below 500 we must limit his contact with people. For this reason we have had to post a sign on the door to inform visitors if they may come in or need to come back another day. This was a hard decision for Ashlie and myself because we know that so many people are concerned about him but we must do what is best for him. As his count comes back up, I know he would love to see his friends. Throughout the course of the 2.5 years we will have to shield him away from sickness of others. This will be a difficult process but his body can not fight infections at this point in his life. We hope that all our friends will understand and continue to pray for his health. The facts that his counts are down is not a great surprise considering the amount of chemotherapy he is on and the counts will go back up in due time. Please continue to pray that he stay healthy. Our next scheduled visit to
Egleston is this coming Friday. Mac will be undergoing a bone marrow test, a spinal tap, and another blood count test. This will be the last spinal tap he will have during the first 29 day of treatment. His spinal fluid is clear of cancer and he will be able to skip numbers 3 and 4 spinal taps. Thanks be unto God.
Monday, May 24, 2004 11:00 PM EST
Day 4
Today has been an interesting day. We started the day out planning to spend the night again. The doctors came with good news. All of the previous tests have showed such good results and they were going to let us go home early. Mac has been in pretty good spirits today. The steroid he is taking is playing havoc on his personality. They case major mood changes at the drop of a hat. Our little boy that is happy most of the time develops a major temper and there is nothing we can do about it. Please pray for us concerning this development. The doctors and everyone else that we have spoke to have all warned us about the change. We know that the outbursts are all because of the medicine but it is still difficult. The crazy thing about the day was that we were all loaded up to come home and the van had a flat tire in the parking garage. We finally got home but the little things of the day can really add a lot of stress to the already stressful day. We go back tomorrow for 2 chemotherapy shots in the legs. Luckily, these last a long time and Mac will not have to have any more for several weeks. Thanks again to all of your prayers and support.
Sunday, May 23, 2004 10:58 EST
Day 3
Today is the end of the third day that we have lived with our son having Leukemia. Since this is the first entry into this journal, let me give you a little background. On May 11, 2004, Mac had a fever of 102 degrees. We took him to the doctor and it was assumed that he had a virus. While at the doctor’s office they took a blood test. The test showed that his red blood count and his platelet counts were low. On May 18, 2004 we took him back for a recheck. The results were the same. We were given iron supplements and told to come back in a month. The next day the Nurse Practitioner that say Mac called us at the house and wanted to conduct some more test. She was not satisfied with the previous results. Friday May 20, 2004 our lives were changed. Dr. Bailey reviewed the results and saw a pattern that suggested that Mac might have Leukemia. Appointments were made at the Atlanta Healthcare of Atlanta for Mac to be seen by specialist. At this point I was concerned but I still felt like everything would be OK. Ashlie felt in her instinct that I was wrong. There is something to be said about a mother’s instinct. The tests were conducted and the result was a positive ID of Leukemia. The pain that Mac had to endure was something that no parent should have to endure. The next step was to identify which type of the disease Mac had. We had to wait 4 hours for the test to give us this answer. By the grace of God, the type of cancer that my son has is very treatable. The treatment will last for 2.5 years. During this time he will undergo a lot of chemotherapy and steroids. We have to deal with intense mood swings cause by the steroids. Its hard to see your son behaving in such a way and knowing that is only being cause by the drugs that are saving his life. Through is all Ashlie and I look back and see the hand of God in the situation: The Nurse Practitioner cared enough about my son to be thinking about his case during her vacation, the type of Leukemia Mac has is very treatable, both of us are out for summer break so we can take care of our son, the love and prayers of our friends and family. I would like to thank everyone that has showed their love for our family. Its easy to slip into asking why. While at time my heart does not feel it but the Bible tells us that his grace is sufficient and he has given us so much more.
Sunday, May 23, 2004 9:18 PM CDT
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