History

Friday, July 25, 2008 10:45 PM CDT

Clear the roads! Warren has his permit! He got it 3 days after he turned 15. He is taking driver's training this summer.
Warren is off with his youth group to Kamiah, Idaho tonight to once again serve the Nez Perce Indian tribe for a week. They run a VBS and help mow lawns and paint houses.Please pray for safe travels and service there.

Then our family will head to Camp Agape for kids who have (or have had) cancer.They will have lots of activities for the kids, and some for the adults, too.
Warren will have his next check up in September. He's still feeling great! Thanks for your prayers and love!

Saturday, May 3, 2008 23:00 AM PDT

What a day can bring. Baby Nathan Cole Mattox was born May 3, 2008. He was 8 pounds 7.5 oz. Our biggest baby so far. He was born through cesarean section. Tamra work me up around midnight. She was in early labor. So I picked up her mom to watch our other children while we were gone to the hospital. At the hospital they put Tamra on a monitor to see if she was in labor or not and after about an hour and a half they decided that she was in labor. Through the wee hours of the morning they kept checking her to see how far along she was and she made good progress from about 4 cm to 7 cm at around 7 am. Around that point it was decided to put Tamra on pitocin. Tamra by about 11 am was told to start pushing. Just at about that time her epidural stopped providing pain relief. She continued to try to deliver but was getting warn down by the pain. At about 12 the baby should had been down far enough to come out, but he was stuck. At 1pm The doctor came in to discuss what options we had. The three that Tamra was given were 1 to keep pushing, 2 try to vacuum the baby out or 3 to do a cesarean section. The pushing just was going to work after like 2 hours of pushing baby just wasn't coming out. Vacuum had the problem of baby could get further jammed along the way and it would be much more painful since the epidural wasn't working anymore so Tamra decided to go for the cesarean section. Tamra went in for the cesarean section around 1 pm and baby was born at 1:30 pm. Baby's head even after 2 hours of labor was 11 cm so he just wasn't going to fit. At this point baby and mom are doing well. Tamra is looking at needing six weeks to recover. I have planned to be off for three weeks. Please keep us in your prayers at this point that Tamra will completely and fully heal quickly from this unplanned surgery. Pray for our finances. We plan to use the federal stimulus refund to help with the lack of pay for three weeks. Pray also about my job situation. I am trying for a promotion at my current job but if I am going to be out for more then three weeks my employer might not consider me for that promotion. Please also pray for the rest of the family as we transition to the new member of the family. Particularly Heather is going to have to get use to not being they baby of the family. She is such a princess I am not sure how she is going to take having a new baby. That's the update for now. Thank you,
Mark Mattox

Wednesday, April 23, 2008 5:04 PM CDT

Hi Everyone!

A short prayer request: Baby Nathan is due in two weeks. Would you please pray for his and my safety through the delivery?
Also, Warren has experienced problems with short term memory a few times now...the beginning of long term side effects. Please pray that his brain can heal from the damage the chemo did. Thanks so much!

Tamra

Monday, March 31, 2008 10:53 AM CDT

Hello Everyone!

We're still just living our normal life here, things are going along pretty well...
The only little thing I'm figuring out is when to start an IEP for Warren at school...Warren is fighting against having any special treatment, especially if the other kids can figure it out...I think it's definitely time. He has chosen to take a weight training class this fall, and in this class the kids are pushed to lift as much as they possibly can...Now that may be okay for most kids, but a kid whose had chemo that was hard on the heart, it's a big no no. And it seems that teachers there don't just listen to a kid who says something is too much for him...They just think that they're trying to get out of something...This year I just wrote a note to the PE teacher, explaining Warren's circumstances, and that worked most of the time (except when there was a substitute). Warren has gradually built up his stamina, and is running for 8 minutes with his classmates. I'm so proud of him!!!

Please keep these kids in your prayers:

Rebekah's scans were irregular this week. She will have more scans in the coming week...
www.rebekahspage.blogspot.com

Gage is being treated for an Ewing's sarcoma relapse...
www.caringbridge.org/visit/gage

Wednesday, March 5, 2008 8:58 PM CST

Hello all!
We went to Warren's half-yearly checkup today. His blood counts were good. But as we were discussing his heart and possible damage, the physician's assistant told us that he WOULD have heart damage from one of the chemos,in 10-15 years, no matter what. Huh? This was different from what they had always said before, that we would just watch for it because it COULD happen.(I don't think they tell you the blatant side effects up front- they were just trying to save his life at that point. I'm sure Mark or I signed something that listed all POSSIBLE side effects...) She said that if he gets his heart rate up with exercise a few times a week, forever, it will help those tired heart cells have more stamina. Also, since he does have a small risk of getting other cancers (again, because of chemo), he has to be very good to his body. This includes no smoking, eating colorful veggies, and light alcohol,if any. So, here we go into the unknown future of side effects...
Please pray that Warren's body will stay strong, and that he will take good care of himself. Thanks!
I want to include an email I sent to a friend of mine a few weeks ago in response to her posting on her blog that she couldn't be around other families with cancer kids right now, while she's healing emotionally from the fight:
I totally understand where you're at right now. I have been going through a similiar time of staying away from other families. I just need time to rest and heal.
But as I climbed the mountain, I was too angry at Him for allowing another horrible thing to happen to our family. I didn't want to hold His hand, or even look at Him very much. I was too hurt.
But where in the Bible does He promise our life will be all roses? He actually promises extremely hard times, even persecution to death. I've finally decided that the expectation I had of having no more big, painful things in life is just the American way of thinking. " I can avoid unpleasantness in my life if I can just control everything with enough money, power, and even expecting God to give me a nice, normal American life."
But it still hurts when I go through the fire. I still have gaping wounds that need to heal. I didn't expect to grieve so much for my son when we didn't lose him. I grieve the pain, chemo, and procedures he had to go through to save his life. I grieve the time he lost being sick, the feelings he's had to work through ("Why me? I must have needed to learn something"...and on almost dying: "Mom, why didn't you just let me go?"), the loss of his childhood (he had to grow up too soon,facing what he was going through). I grieve for the future: side effects he has and will have to get through because of his treatment, and, finally, the fear of recurrance.
My relationship with God also needs to heal. That's not to say it was so good (on my side) in the first place; just that I need to trust again, to learn His expectations of life, to find some peace for my soul.
And I also pray that for you, my sister.

-------God bless all of you for caring for us.

Saturday, January 19, 2008 4:26 PM CST

Update February 2, 2008

Warren did not have the measles. It's just hives (we don't know why). He has had small patches of hives for three weeks now, which is way too long for the measles. He never had a high temp or a fine rash. What a relief!!!

Saturday, January 19, 2008

Hello everyone!

We think Warren has the measles! It has been a very itchy week for him (he had hives with it as well!) We will have to wait on his checkup till he and Heather(waiting to see if and when she gets them)are over it (I would have to bring her to the appointment with us.). We certainly don't want to risk exposing anyone who goes to the oncology clinic.
Jared caught strep from school, and has also been home this week, and is on antibiotics. He was so sick, and didn't want to eat, his throat was so sore! He's usually so energetic, and has been lying around and sleeping alot. Poor kid!
Expected baby is doing well. I am almost 6 months along, and he's doing fine! We've decided that his name is Nathan.
I am still quite anemic, though. I'm very exhausted most days, with a tendency toward migraines.
Mark has quit Pizza Hut now, and has Saturdays off to stay home with us, or do his computer fixing business. Although the next two weeks he has required overtime at work...grouse, grouse.(That was me grousing.)
We're thankful that over all, things are going okay, we only have minor illnesses.
Please keep us in your prayers.
Please also pray for little Gage and his family. They are dealing with a possible third cancer occurrance.
http://www.caringbridge.org/visit/gage
Thank you!

Tam

Friday, November 30, 2007 3:29 PM CST

Hi everyone!

Well, we're zooming along at the light speed of life. Mark is working more than full time, the kids are busy at school picking up germs (some of us are sick again), and I'm busy at home with Heather.
I've reached week 17 of pregnancy. There was a strong heartbeat at my last checkup, and last week as Ryan slipped by me as I stood in the kitchen doorway, I felt the baby kick him! Yes, they're already fighting, I guess...
I have a sore tooth, from trying to open a stuck gluestick with my teeth. It may even be cracked. The dentist says, since it won't show up on an x-ray (thank goodness, since I am pregnant), we will have to wait and see if it gets worse. Then, depending on which way it cracks, he can either do a crown (Yay! Expensive!) or pull it out (Yay! No tooth!). We won't have dental insurance until January, so hopefully whatever it is will wait till then...
Warren is doing great! He is due for a checkup in December, but we'll push it to January again, because the new insurance will cover more of the bill. Also, since he's been in PE for more than a year now, the tightness in his legs is alot better, even though the stretches went out the window long ago.
Warren is doing the Angel Tree project again this year with the youth group. He raises money for the child whose name he picked (whose parent is in jail), and the group goes to the store to shop, spend the night together, then deliver the presents to the kids the next day.
Warren gets to go see Switchfoot in concert in Salem this Sunday night. This is his favorite group, and their music helped him get through some tough times in his life. I decided that we were going to send him somehow. Mark will be bringing a few more kids from the youth group - our van will be full...
It's so nice to be back to "normal" life...

Tam

Friday, September 21, 2007 9:45 PM CDT

Hello All,

We do exist! I've been taking a break from cancer web sites (including ours, obviously).
Warren had an extremely busy summer. After Trout Creek Bible Camp, he went on a mission trip to Idaho to serve the Nez Perce tribe. The youth group did a vbs and basketball camp for the kids there. Warren's group went around town improving things: painting, mowing,weeding. They all had a good time together.
Then Warren and Ryan were off to Camp UKANDO at the coast. This is a camp for kids who have/had cancer and one sibling. Since Jared got to go last year, and Ryan was old enough now, it was his turn. He had a good time, and so did Warren. They caught some fish for us, and we had it for dinner when they returned home. Yummy!
Then at the very end of summer (Labor Day weekend), our whole family got to go to Candlelighter's Camp for families at Camp Harlow in Eugene. That was a good, relaxing time for all of us. We all rode horses and swam in the pool, the boys rode in go-carts and bumper boats (and Jared rode the zipline), and the food was awesome! (Especially since I didn't have to cook it!) It was really nice to see some families that we had met along Warren's cancer journey.
Well, since we've mentioned our financial woes so much on this site, I have to mention that we've finally got some good news money-wise! Mark has been hired by Stream as a case manager (the person that solves callers tech problems when level one and two haven't been able to fix them). Here's the catch: no insurance for three months. So Mark plans to keep working at Pizza Hut very part time to keep their insurance till the new one kicks in. And hopefully it's better than our present one. We have to pay 20% after co-pays! Needless to say, the medical bills are really piling up! Aah!
I am expecting our ninth child (we've had 4 miscarriages), hopefully our fifth here on earth. We are 7 weeks along. I've been feeling pretty cruddy, mostly because, as soon as I became pregnant, my thyroid levels shot through the roof again. I had to deal with this problem while I was expecting Heather. I had to take meds, which I am on again, to keep from losing her from the high thyroid levels. After I delivered her, my levels went back to normal. Hopefully the same thing happens this time... Please keep us in your prayers.
The boys are back in school again, and we're settling down to that routine. Ryan immediately (the second day of school) resumed what we believe to be an allergic cough. He got it in the fall last year, and we couldn't figure it out then or now. Mark wonders if it's a chalk dust allergy, but it did seem to get better by springtime...Ryan likes music and math. Jared is going to be in band, and hopes to play the flute. He enjoys free reading time, and math. Warren is in advanced classes for all the basics (which is good, because he doesn't have to deal with goof-offs in class, because they're all in the regular classes...). He's taking a cooking class, drama, and computer classes as electives, and is enjoying all of it! He says the high school has edible food (which is important to a foodie kid).
Well, I'll sign off for now. Hope everyone out there is doing well.

Tamra

Friday, July 20, 2007 1 0:13 pm pDT

Friday, July 20, 2007 10:04 PM PDT
Warren got back from the Imus ranch hungry for some meet. All is going well right now. Warren is now at Bible Camp and should be back on Saturday morning. He will be traveling quite abit this summer please keep him in your prayers.
We are still stuggling with money issues.
Thank you for keeping in touch with us.
Mark

Monday, June 18, 2007 8:44 AM PDT

Warren is off to the Imus Ranch in New Mexico. He had to missed his 8th grade party. He will be gone until Tuesday the 26th. It sould be fun for him. One interesting thing for him is the fact that it is a cattle ranch that only serves vegan food. Warren is a major meat eater and there he will only have veggiterian food. Well it should be a learning experience. Please keep him in prayer.

By the way he turned 14 years old today. Happy birthday Warren! Ryan had his birthday on the fifteenth. He is now 8 years old.
That is it for now,
Mark

Tuesday, June 12, 2007 3:04 AM PDT

First I want to say thank you for checking in on us. We are doing well. Warren will have more scans this coming week. We went on a little mini vacation down to Tillamook. We had a great time getting away. There was no phone in the house that we were staying. There was no cell phone service and no Internet, Just family and a large beach to explore. Something about being in nature really has healing properties. I want everyone to know at this point no news is good news. We are in our new normal right now. If we aren't updating then there is nothing hurting so bad that we feel like updating. So why am I updating... that comes to my second point.

Second please pray for Rachel Hansen's family as they morn the loss of their child. She was a fighter and fought this fight all the way to the end. Her family never gave up hope for an earthly cure to her cancer. They need to be lifted up the the Father and bathed in prayers over the coming weeks.

Third this childhood cancer family I find myself in is very rough. There has just been too many people that I know that has had their life turned upside down by this monster. I want to thank all the nurses, doctors, and other professionals that have dedicated their lives to treating the children and the families that are fighting for their lives.

Fourth Warren's great uncle Jack is fighting cancer and had a bone marrow transplant last year. His health is declining and It looks like he is going to discontinue treatment. He and his family could use your prays as well during this time of transition.

Fifth we still need God's help with the income area. The business is very off, off and some on. The pizza hut job is helping us the barely make it. One problem is the Heath insurance is very costly Like 1/3 of the paycheck and I am concerned if Warren's cancer were to come back it would stop at $25,000. Yes like when Warren was in the hospital one week was $30,000. This insurance for �minor medical needs� would be pointless if we really needed it. I would almost rather have insurance that didn't cover anything for the first 10000 rather then have one that died after the first week! So why am I still keep it? Well when we transfer to a better insurance it counts against the predisposing illness clause so we would be covered after we switch health insurance.

http://www.caringbridge.org/mn/rachelhansen/

http://www.caringbridge.org/cb/inputSiteName.do?method=search&siteName=jackway

Thank you for stopping by,
Mark

Monday, March 19, 2007 10:29 AM CDT

Hello Everyone!

Mark took Warren to the St. Baldrick's celebration yesterday. They had a good time. Warren got to shave nurse Monica's head ( he wasn't sure if he wanted to when he left home ), they watched other nurses and doctors they knew from Emanuel hospital get shaved, and they ate at the buffet (which also raised money towards children's cancer research).
This week I will be taking Warren in for his first haircut since chemo (it's been more than two years since he's had one). We will post his new look!
I am not reading about other kids with cancer for now. I need a break from sadness, so my soul can heal. This sadness has come between me and my Lord, so I must abstain for now (but I do keep all of you in my prayers). Thanks for all of your support and prayers for us!
Please keep us in prayer about future financial decisions, including whether Mark should get a regular day job(he doesn't see the kids much as it is).
Thanks for checking in on us!

Tam

Tuesday, February 27, 2007 6:57 PM CST

Hello Everyone!

I took Warren in for his follow-up appointment yesterday. Dr. Norwood said the CAT scan and blood test results were good. The bone scan showed he has osteopenia (thin bones). But the Dr. cleared Warren to ride a horse this summer at Imus Ranch- he said he has the same risk of breaking a bone as regular people. So now we have to fill out all of the forms so he can go!
St. Baldrick's is coming up in March (when adults raise money towards getting their heads shaved for kid's cancer research). One of the nurses from Emanuel wants Warren to be there to shave her head. Warren and Mark plan to go.
We praise God that Warren is doing fine! We continue to pray for other children fighting cancer.
Thanks for your prayers!

Tam

Wednesday, February 14, 2007 1:19 AM PST

Update, 2-14-07

I have a few prayer requests.
First our family has been hit with fevers, coughs, other cold and flu symptoms. We haven't heard anything on Warren's ct results yet.

We are really struggling on the finance end of things right now. The Pizza Hut job has cut back my hours to 13 hours a week. We have had to decide between paying power or paying for the house. Even with many ads placed in Craigs list there has been very few nibbles. I have been thinking about placing an ad with the Clipplers magazine, but I am unsure about the costs and if it will work.

My sleep schedule is all messed up. No matter what time I go to bed I wake up at about 1:30 and am unable to get to sleep until about 5 am. Keep us in your prayers. I feel like the complaints that I have are so minor compared to the next two prayer requests.

Second more urgent Cheree Jones has asked for prayer for her whole family her younger sister BreAnna has a mass in her chest that the doctors are preliminarily calling Lymphoma. Yes the same monster that Cheree had to fight two years ago has apparently struck her family again! Cheree's website is http://www.chereejones.com . Please keep her family in prayer. I could only imagine how devastating this must be for them.

Third Rachel Hansen has been in the hospital for the last few days. She has had a lot of pain and recurring fevers. Her website is http://www.caringbridge.org/mn/rachelhansen/ .

Thank you for checking in on us and continueing to pray for us,
Mark
p.s. It looks like Warren might be going to the Don Imus ranch this summer. Please keep him in prayer.

Here is a partial list of the websites that we are following

http://www.kaeliallison.com/

http://www.caringbridge.org/or/kaitlin/index.htm

http://www.caringbridge.org/or/oliver/

http://www.caringbridge.org/or/joshua/index.htm

http://www.chereejones.com/updates.asp?month=0&year=0

http://www.javadsjourney.blogspot.com/

http://www.christithomas.blogspot.com/

http://www.paulsaxon.com/

http://www.caringbridge.org/fl/taylor/index.htm

http://lindseyann.net/updates.aspx

http://www.caringbridge.org/mn/rachelhansen/

http://rebekahspage.blogspot.com/

http://www.caringbridge.org/cb/inputSiteName.do?method=search&siteName=madeleineobrien

http://www.caringbridge.org/cb/inputSiteName.do?method=search&siteName=craighatch

http://www.caringbridge.org/cb/inputSiteName.do?method=search&siteName=jackway

http://www.caringbridge.org/cb/inputSiteName.do?method=search&siteName=princessmia

http://www.caringbridge.org/cb/inputSiteName.do?method=search&siteName=gage

Monday, February 5, 2007 8:32 PM CST

02-09-07
Warren's scan update:

The nurse called me back late today with the scan results: In the CAT scan some lymph nodes showed up; she said they'll know more after the tumor board meets on Tuesday morning (it seems like this has happened before), and on the bone scan, he has weak bone in his hips/pelvis(which is the only place they scanned, she said). The steroids he was on to shrink the tumors causes de-calcification of the bones,so she wasn't surprised. (This makes me wince, remembering that Warren went with the youth group on Wednesday night to Mt. Tabor to slide down hills on blocks of ice. On his first trip down, the ice hit something, and he kept sliding- right onto his tailbone! He couldn't sit on the ice after that- he was too sore.)Please pray for good news on the scan on Tuesday. We'll post any new info as soon as we hear it.
Please pray for Josh and his family- his scans showed multiple nodules in his lungs, with some pneumonia as well. Please pray that his coming scans will be clear, and that their hearts will be full of peace and trust in the Lord.
Thank you!

Update: 02-09-07
Well, another of our young cancer warriors has come down with the nasty virus. Madeleine and her brother Connor came down with it Saturday (after being several places at the hospital the Wednesday before. They weren't at the clinic, but they did visit the third floor. Madeleine was severely dehydrated after a few days of this germ, and the DR. wanted to hospitalize her (but agreed to prescibe Zofran instead, and let her go home). She's doing better now, but Connor is still running a 102 temp on Tylenol. (Please pray for them to heal quickly!)Madeleine's mom Kathy says her paramedic friend told her that the norovirus is all over Portland, including at the hospital.Kathy recommends not going to the hospital if you don't HAVE to. I'm going to cancel Warren's appointment, and just call in to make sure scans are clear (just in case someone didn't look at them). It freaks me out that we were at the hospital for scans a week ago, and Heather kept wanting to be on the floor and putting her hands in her mouth, etc. I did use some sanitizing foam on her hands that they had in the private CAT scan waiting room, but who knows what she touched after we left there? We went to eat at the cafeteria after that. I guess the germ would have shown up by now- it seems to take over just a couple of days after exposure.
www.cdc.gov/ncidod/dvrd/revb/gastro/norovirus-qa.htm
Tomorrow we head up to Mount Hood with Candlelighters for snowmobiling!

Update 02-06-07

I was contacted by a mom who was concerned about the virus at the peds onc clinic. But like I wrote, I might cancel if it's still going around. I might even cancel just because I REALLY don't want us to catch the germ. It's particularly hard on babies and people with low immune systems.
I read about Kaitlin and family's experience http://www.caringbridge.org/or/kaitlin/index.htm . They all caught it less than 36 hours from being at the clinic. When they called the clinic because she couldn't keep meds down, a nurse there told them a virus was going around. I think they should let parents know about a germ going around the clinic BEFORE they bring their child in, so they can decide if their child is strong enough to be exposed to it. Maybe the center for disease control should temporarily shut them down, to stop the cycle.
Mark told me it sounded like a rotovirus, which has the same symptoms ( vomiting, explosive diarrhea) and can be passed to another person in just 48 hours.

Hello Everyone!

Well, Warren and I headed out to Emanuel for his scans on Friday morning. They brought him the cup of clear contrast mixed with water (no sludge, but still tastes pretty nasty) to drink in the waiting room. Warren was procrastinating that first sip, which wound up being a good thing this time- the bone scan technician came out and said she wanted to take her pictures first, and she would prefer him to not have any contrast yet. I felt bad that he had to get those scans while starving (which isn't required for that test), maybe I could have brought him back another day for those. Anyway, it was done in about 20 minutes, then they brought us to a private room for Warren to finish drinking the muck. Warren was having his usual hard time drinking it, and dared me to try some. Well, I did, and it actually didn't taste that bad- but Warren pointed out that a whole mouthful tasted worse (also, it upsets his stomach). I was thinking that if it were bitter, those receptors are on the back of the tongue, so I wouldn't have fully tasted it. I know for sure that I wouldn't be able to drink the sludge mixed with juice that they usually give people!
The nurse who came in to give Warren the IV used a heat pack to bring the vein up, then the freezy spray to numb the spot. She got it in on the first try, screwed on the tube for the blood test, then- oops! forgot something, and put down the tube (which was still connected to Warren's IV and now, with it's weight unsupported, pulling the IV toward the ceiling). OW!Warren didn't like that very much. Then when she unscrewed the tube, blood leaked out onto his arm before she could clamp the IV. Then she flushed it with saline, and I flashed back to cancer treatment days, when they had to flush his semi-permanent Hickman IV with heparin, because he has a super-clotting gene called Factor Liedon 5 ( I worried that maybe they should do that with a temporary IV as well, but didn't say anything).
We waited in there for an hour (by which time Warren was through drinking the glowy stuff down). Then, since they had missed his original CAT scan time because of doing the bone scan first, I was worried that they weren't going to come get him for the scans soon enough, and he would have to drink the nasty drink again. After we bothered them a couple of times(looking into the connecting door where they were all sitting around talking), they came and got him and took the pictures. Everyone seemed calm, but they never tell you the results, and you have to wait till you see the doctor at the follow-up appointment. (I was told by the secretary at the oncology clinic that if anything looked abnormal to the radiologist, they call the doctor right then, and he orders more scans while you are still there). That didn't happen, and Warren has no symptoms, so I'm sure it's all clear. Our follow-up appointment is scheduled for Tuesday the 13th with Dr. Norwood. (Although I read on Kaitlin's site that there's a NASTY rotovirus going around the clinic (vomiting, diarrea, etc.), so if it's still around by then, I'll postpone the appointment).
Warren had a cramping stomach and the runs the rest of the day, thanks to the nasty contrast liquid. So, basically, he was good and dehydrated by the next day, when he wanted to go to Starbucks for his favorite reward for making it through another CAT scan (or in his words "After the CRAPacino, I get a cappucino.") I made him get a decaf, so he wouldn't get extremely dehydrated. One of these days, I'd like to take him out for a coffee just to sit and talk (although Mark says boys don't like to just talk, they want to DO something. Well, I'll have to think about that. Maybe a hike or something).

Here is a poem I wrote this week, while thinking about all the wonderful, loving people who helped us in various ways during Warren's treatment:

His Loving Hands

I hear the news, but I just can't believe it.
Denial comes over me in a wave- there's no way this could be true.
My son is only days from death.
The awful treatment begins.
I watch my child go through pain, I cannot save him from it. He must go through pain to seek life anew.
As the days go by, sorrow, fear, and despair, like rising waters, threaten to drown.
Why, Lord, why?
Deep darkness swallows my spirit.
Pain, trouble, trials. Is there no hope ahead?

Warm hands reach out- reach out and lift me up, up, up, into the light.
Hopeful words spoken.
Love offered.
Gifts given.
Visiting angels.
Prayers lifted.
Jesus' hands on earth.
His church, His body.
His loving hands.

-Tamra Mattox

I pray that all is well with your family. Thanks for checking in on us!

Tam

Sunday, January 28, 2007 2:46 PM CST

Well, Warren has decided to have the CAT scan. "It's PROTOCOL, Mom!" So he is scheduled for a blood test, CAT scan, and bone scan (to make sure his bones are strengthening up after the steroids made them soft) this Friday morning. (I was reminded when I called to schedule the scan that this is his last follow-up CAT scan- I feel kind of silly being all mad about it now- but I still don't believe it's needed.) Then he will have his follow-up appointment on Tuesday the 13th.
We are still concerned about his leg ligaments and muscles- his stretches haven't made much of a long-term difference, and within 2 days of not doing stretches he can't run again. (Now, Warren is only doing the stretches how HE wants to- propping his leg up on the wall instead of using a belt around the bottom of his foot and pulling, the way PT prefers). He seems to be able to mostly keep up with the other kids in P.E. now. But he still feels exhausted all the time, and sleeps ALOT when he gets the chance. I was listening to a natural health program on the radio the other day (accidentally- Mark had it on...) and they mentioned that during chemo your adrenals are drained, and it's good to take adrenal support capsules for a while when you're through. So that is the next thing I will be looking into for him, in case that is the problem.
I hope all of you are doing well. Thanks for caring and praying for us!

Tamra

Wednesday, January 17, 2007 0:01 AM CST

Hello Everyone!
I hope you are all home, snowed in, and cozy with your family like we are!
I am still procrastinating bringing Warren in for an oncology appointment to talk to the doctor about the necessity of a CAT scan. We are supposed to go in for the pre-ordered scan and blood test, and then make a follow-up appointment to get the results and a checkup for Warren. Hey! Maybe I could get one of the crazy-busy doctors to call me to discuss it! Hmm...
We were sponsored for Christmas by U.S. Bank in Gresham ( through Candlelighters). A very greatful thank you to them for blessing us with a big stack of presents for each one of us, and Christmas dinner as well! (See a few of these wonderful people on our photo page).
Thanks for your prayers for us- please keep them rising for us. We are just emotionally exhausted, we both need more sleep, and we need more income. We also need to lean totally on the Lord for everything, and to know that He will provide what we need for each day. I know that's what we need to learn in this period of our lives.
Thanks for checking up on us.

Tamra

Saturday, January 6, 2007 9:17 PM CST

Prayer needed for Heather. Thursday night she fell out of a chair that had rollers and landed on her arm. She broke her arm just up from the wrist. It did not break all the way through only 4/5th's through. We went to the urgent care that our insurance's website said would be covered. When the office staff looked at our card they said that they were not in the preferred provider list and it would probably cost more then the clinic right by our house. Since it was almost 7 P.M. We decided to just go ahead and get her taken care of there. How maddening. Heather has a fiberglass cast that covers from her elbow to the palm of her hand. She just hates it and wants to remove it. We will go back in two weeks for follow up and hopefully get a smaller cast.

Warren is at winter camp with our church's youth group right now. Hopefully he isn't too cold up there.

Ryan has had a dry hacking cough for about 2 � weeks and he has been having a chronic rash on his hands. It gets better with Hydrocortisone cream but then it comes back.

Jared is still fighting a flu and upper respiratory infection.

Tamra is having problems with depression and has too many aches and pains all over her body to list them all.

I am having pain in my left middle finger that I might have broken at work. I am also having a problem with a coworker who is giving me the silent treatment and has been very hostile towards me. I just do not know what to do with her.

The computer business has been very slow and I am feeling like giving up. I know that it takes a lot of hard work and determination to successfully start a business. It looks like we are going to crash but God has always provided.

Please keep us in your prayers,
Mark

Saturday, January 6, 2007 8:26 PM CST

Friday, December 15, 2006 8:07 PM CST

Update!!!
Please pray for Yonadav Chaim Rafael Gibor Allouche. It seems that he is close to going home to be with Jesus. I'm not sure if his parents know Jesus or not. This is their second child to go maybe go home to be with the Lord. They all need your prayers.
you can read his mom's most recent post at http://forum.cancerkids.org/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=1360
Thank you everybody,
Mark

Merry Christmas, Everyone!

Warren is feeling fine, but he is supposed to have a CAT scan this month to verify that he is still cancer-free. We
now have a bare-bones accident or illness insurance through Mark's job
at Pizza Hut, and we are still
looking into what is covered or not.
Warning: upcoming grump session:
I don't understand how a scan every six months for a cancer that
kills you in 4 weeks does much good. And they only scan the previous
site of the cancer, so if it recurred,say, in the brain, or somewhere
not in his middle, they wouldn't catch it either. It just seems very
invasive for how likely it is to catch anything (drink a whole glass
of very disgusting liquid that causes nausea and cramping in guts,
have glowing hot liquid forced(by machine) through your veins). And it's VERY EXPENSIVE. But I, like any parent, would do it if it made more sense. We will chat with the doctor about this.
It seems like it's so against the flow to question the rationality of a recommended habitual medical procedure.
I have been dealing with depression lately. Please pray for me. Mark is beginning to struggle with feeling down. It must be rubbing off on him. Oh no!!! Please keep all of us in prayer. Thanks.
We're keeping all of you families who have been slammed by cancer in our prayers.
May the Lord's peace, which passes all understanding, fill your hearts and minds this Christmas!

Tamra

Tuesday, December 5, 2006 4:04 AM CST

The first insurance payment just came though on My paycheck so we now have some insurance (limited and we pay 20%. Pray that we all stay healthy) through my Part-time job. Just in time to qualify to not have a waiting period before they would treat Warren! PTL! The following list is from http://www.squirreltales.com/forfun/fun.html It is a list of "You know your a parent of a cancer kid when..." I ound it to be very funny.
www.squirreltales.com is a great resource for Parent's in the thick of the cancer battle. I highly recommend it to everyone who has a little one with cancer.
Mark

1. You carry a tube of Emla� in your purse instead a
tube of lipstick
2. Kids with hair look kind of strange to you
3. You can sleep anywhere, and anything that reclines
more than 15 degrees looks "comfy"
4. Your spouse asks what that sexy perfume is, and
it's Betadine�
5. You don't realize the sharps container is on the
kitchen table until half way through dinner
6. You enjoy the drive at 3:00am to emergency
because there aren't any other cars on the freeway
7. You can name all the equipment used on ER
8. You can dx the patients on ER before the Docs do
9. You hear a truck backing up and you think the IV is
beeping
10. You are so proud when your baby finally gets hair
(and he is 8)!
11. Your new bathroom trash can has "Hazardous
Waste" written on it (recycled sharps container)
12. You can maneuver a double pole with six boxes and a
kid riding, on a tour of the hospital, and make it
back to the room before the low-battery alarm
sounds and the kid has to pee
13. You realize you've been home two weeks, and you're
still measuring I's and O's
14. The nurses stop responding to the IV alarm, knowing
you'll fix it anyway
15. Your child asks what's for dinner, and you
automatically reach for the bag of hyperal
16. Your 2-year-old knows where all of the medical
equipment goes, and how to use it
17. Your child's first word is a medical term
18. You keep a bag packed at all times like your 9�
months pregnant
19. You can eat with one hand while you hold the barf
bucket with the other
20. Your child's bedroom looks like a Toys R Us� store
21. You ask your CPA if bribe toys are tax deductible
22. You correct the doctors spelling on the chemo meds
23. You can read the doctors prescription word for
word, and are asked to decipher it by the
pharmacist
24. You know medical terminology better than your
family practitioner
25. There are 4 new Mercedes in the doctors' parking
lot due to your child's payments
26. The pharmacy sends your family Christmas presents
27. You get excited when there is a 15% off sale at the
pharmacy
28. The local needle program comes to your door
29. You have a syringe in your purse and you're not a
diabetic
30. You have more meds in your cupboard than food
31. You can read your son's chart better than his nurse
32. You look like you're tan but it's really Betadine�
stains
33. You and your hubby get matching stress tattoos for
fun
34. You start teaching your daughter the parts of her
body, and you point to her chest, and she says
that's her port
35. None of the security guards on the pediatric floor
ask for your ID anymore, and you're on first-name
basis with the operating room staff
36. Medical students ask to borrow your notes
37. Your toddler refuses to sit on Santa's lap because
he's too germy from all the other kids
38. You wrap presents and packages with medical tape
Page 2 �2006, Squirrel Tales Publishing. All rights reserved
39. Your main source of nutrition comes from aspirin
40. Your child is more familiar with CT scan & bone scan
pictures than the portrait studio!!!
41. When you use the term six-pack, you are talking
about platelets, not Budweiser�
42. Your child is going on a field trip and wants to know
if you have signed his "remission" slip
43. Your child can easily pronounce "Neuroblastoma,"
"chemotherapy" and "coagulate," but has trouble
pronouncing the state you live in
44. Your child uses Legos� to build "MRI" machines
45. You don't have to ask, "What's that mean" to the
previous 44 items
46. You hear yourself say the words, "I'll buy you
anything you want" at least twice a month
47. You know you are the friend of a family with a child
with cancer when you call to check the chemo
schedule and ask, "How will her counts be on, say,
the 11th?" before you schedule a birthday party
48. You have been asked by more than 25 friends and
family members, "So, when is his next treatment?"
49. Your four year old's critique of the medical
student's examination skills is the same as the
supervising physician's
50. A younger sibling identifies a nipple as "my port
site"
51. Your daughter has more Beanie Babies in her room
than the specialty store in the mall
52. You really think this list is funny, when most normal
people either don't get it or start to cry!
53. When your seven year old begins to sound like
Doogie Howser, MD
54. You give out barf buckets as birthday party favors
55. When a Radio Flyer� wagon is considered an
essential transportation device
56. When you walk down the hall in your house holding
your baby and feel odd because you're not trailing
an IV pole with the other hand
57. When the siblings want to know what the child's
counts are to see if they can go inside and eat at
McDonald's
58. You think nothing of taking your 3 year old into a
department store in his underwear because he has
thrown up on his last set of clothes and you are an
hour away from home and have an important
doctor's appointment
59. Six months after treatment ends and the hair
starts to grow back someone stops you in the
grocery store and says, "I just love her haircut.
Where did you get it done ?"
60. When you send copies of this list to all your cancerparent
friends
61. When your idea of funny is to ask, "Where's your
line?" and then giggle while your toddler takes off
all of her clothes looking for it�even though you
know it has just been removed
62. You can reset the IV machines overnight, in your
sleep, every 30 minutes without waking up once and
still call it a good nights sleep!!!
63. You have a kid who did not wake up by 5 AM on
Christmas morning
64. Your kid takes more pills than you
65. When you say "Get up and smell the coffee" your kid
says "The coffee's going to make me puke"
66. When your kid asks for a Happy Meal� you don't
say, "Wait until we get home to eat." Rather,
"Really?" (unless of course your kid is on prednisone,
when you say, "A Happy Meal or a Super-Sized Value
Meal?")
67. Your best friend buys you a relaxation tape for your
birthday and you swear it doesn't work right
68. You cannot try aroma therapy for yourself because
the smells trigger nausea in your kid
69. Your kid wears out a pair of Nikes� pushing an IV
pole around the hospital during BMT recovery
70. The "CK" on your tee shirt stands for Chemo Kid,
not Calvin Klein�
71. You make Jell-O� with Pedialite�
72. You draw smiley-faces on your isolation masks
73. Your kid has received enough get-well cards to fuel
a small bon-fire
74. Your child receives soooo many toys while in the
hospital that at Christmas time that you can now
open your own toy store
75. When you are thankful for steroids because there
will not be turkey leftovers after the Thanksgiving
meal
76. Every little thing can make you cry in a heartbeat,
but this list, on the other hand, has you rolling on
the floor!
77. When your child is ecstatic because all she's getting
is counts from her arm and a shot in her leg (Now
that's a good day on the chemo ward!)
78. You can tell the nurses where their supplies are
79. When you can whip up a seven-course meal in
minutes for a six-year old having a prednisone pig
out
80. When your child tackles you screaming, "I'm
starving to death! Why won't you feed me?!" in
public and you can laugh instead of scolding them
for their manners
81. You can make a variety of arts and crafts out of
hospital supplies: isolation masks become turtles and
spinal fluid tubes filled with glitter and baby oil
make great key chains
82. When the doctor finally enters the examination
room and finds you and your child with latex glove
powder around your mouth from blowing up the
gloves
83. The nurses and techs call out, "see you next week!"
with true joy knowing that you will pass on all the
get-well candy ("No way I can eat that, I'll throw
up!") and the leftover "bribe-sicles" that you
couldn't get her to eat
84. When it's time for your 2 year to have her vital
signs taken and she lifts her arm and sticks out her
leg, without crying or fighting you
85. Your child names pills after superheroes
86. When you are helping your daughter, the sibling, pull
her hair into a ponytail and she says, "Look at my
forehead, I have great veins there don't I? If I
ever need to get a shot, I could get it there!"
87. When you have a collection of "throw-up buckets" in
every room of your house!
88. At dinner your, one son refers to ketchup as blood
and the son with ALL corrects him because blood is
a darker red.
89. The local small town emergency room calls you at
home and asks what size huber needles to stock in
case they have to access your child's port and then
ask if you could inservice them.
90. The guys use viale tops instead of poker chips on
poker night
91. When you think that anything that your child will
eat and keep down is a "nutritious meal", even if it is
chocolate cookies and candy
92. Your two-year old learns his colors from all the pills
he has to take!
93. All your body lotion and tattoo bandaids are gone
because the doll needed Emla� too!
94. When all the other boys in the seventh grade shave
thier heads to look as cool as your son.
95. When your 6 year old is making appointments for
the nursing staff to do their manicures, because the
love her nail art.
96. A wing of the pharmacy is now dedicated to your
family.
97. Training for the New York City Marathon consists
of laps around the Pediatric Oncology Ward with
your kid in her wheel chair.
98. When your child has done all of the puzzles in the
play room at the hospital so many times that she/he
can now do them in five minutes with the pieces
upside down.
99. Your 2 year old (with a chest port) points to your
left breast and says with confidence to the
oncologist: "That's Mommy's owie!"
100.Your child has his/her own website to keep family
and friends updated on his/her progress because
calling everyone gets to be too expensive and
repeating the report over and over is tiring.

True love looks outward not inward.

Here is in part some of the cancer people we are following. Please Visit and pray for the following people as they go through this trial called cancer, also if they have a guest book allow them to know that you are prayinging for them.

Mark

http://www3.caringbridge.org/or/kaitlin/index.htm

http://rebekahspage.blogspot.com/

http://www.caringbridge.org/or/oliver/

http://www.caringbridge.org/or/joshua/index.htm

http://www.caringbridge.org/visit/madeleineobrien

http://www.chereejones.com/updates.asp?month=0&year=0

http://www.courage4kennedy.com/main/

http://www.caringbridge.org/visit/craighatch

http://www.caringbrigde.org/visit/gage

http://www.caringbridge.org/cb/inputSiteName.do?method=search&siteName=jackway

http://www.kaeliallison.com

Anyone who wants to be added can email me at kc7hta@yahoo.com

Wednesday, November 15, 2006 10:24 PM CST

Update 11-25-06

Praise the Lord with us!
We found out that Mark can get benefits through his part-time job. What an answer to prayer! Warren missed his November check-up because we didn't have the money to bring him in(and no insurance). If they put us on the insurance right away (we saw no minimum waiting period listed when we signed up), we will have made the "60 days of grace" window before every health problem is classified as pre-existing (and therefore not covered under the next insurance- I hate that they can do that to you!!!). Please pray with us that this is so, and thank God for His provision for us. Please continue to pray for our finances to come up to where we can pay the bills as they come, not just when they are threatening to shut it off. Thanks for loving us!

Hello all,

We are feeling much better health-wise. Thanks for the prayers.
Mark has snagged an evening delivery job at Pizza Hut to supplement our income. Pray for lots of tips! Also, please pray that he'll have enough energy to do computer maintenance during the day, after such weird hours at night(sometimes closing until 4:00 am). Thanks!
My Uncle Jack is doing fine after the transplant, and is to be released on Friday. Praise God!!!
Please continue to pray for a bone marrow match for Gage, and for the cancer to go into remission (through the chemo they're giving him, or through God's healing touch)so they can do the transplant.
Please keep Jenni and family in prayer- for them to truly feel the Lord's comforting arms around them during this time of huge grief at the loss of their son (and brother), George. Thanks for your prayers.
I hope you and your family are doing well, and enjoy Thanksgiving together praising our Maker for all the blessings He supplies us with (even in the midst of fiery trials), and for His loving care for each one of us. Thank you, Lord, for being there for me always.

Tamra

Thank you for your love and concern for us. Please remember we are in a watch and see mode for the coming year. We really appreciate your prayers and entries in our guest book! We have felt much encouragement knowing that we were not alone in this crucible of fire, that tests the heart of man kind like it does.

True love looks outward not inward.

Here is in part some of the cancer people we are following. Please Visit and pray for the following people as they go through this trial called cancer, also if they have a guest book allow them to know that you are prayinging for them.

Mark

http://www3.caringbridge.org/or/kaitlin/index.htm

http://rebekahspage.blogspot.com/

http://www.caringbridge.org/or/oliver/

http://www.caringbridge.org/or/joshua/index.htm

http://www.caringbridge.org/visit/madeleineobrien

http://www.chereejones.com/updates.asp?month=0&year=0

http://www.courage4kennedy.com/main/

http://www.caringbridge.org/visit/craighatch

http://www.caringbrigde.org/visit/gage

http://www.caringbridge.org/cb/inputSiteName.do?method=search&siteName=jackway

http://www.kaeliallison.com

Anyone who wants to be added can email me at kc7hta@yahoo.com

Tuesday, November 7, 2006 12:31 AM CST

Update 11-08-06
George's mom emailed back today:
"I am sorry to tell you that George died on Sunday November 5th, at 2pm. It was very peaceful. He was holding his sister Lucy's hand and the sun was streaming through the window, almost as though God was lighting everything up for us. Seconds before he died, my husband (who had been snoozing upstairs) came down and said he'd had the weirdest dream, where one of our elderly aunts who has already died appeared to him and said "I'll be with you in a minute". Auntie Marion would have been the only person in spirit that George would have known, and I just knew she would come and collect him.
George was a massive Doctor Who fan. We are having a Tardis coffin made. Everyone has been so kind and supportive. It hurts like hell, but at least we knew we did the right thing by George. Thank you so much for praying for us and for your support these last few months."
Goodbye, sweet George. We'll meet you in heaven, where there is no sickness, no pain, no tears.
He was only seven years old.
Please keep his family in your prayers. Thank you.
(We have posted a picture of George on the top of our photo page.)

Hello all,

We have all been so sick! Finally coming out of the haze now...Baby Heather got croup this week...Please keep us in your prayers.
Also, please pray for the Lord's direct leading on the path we should take to grow Mark's business more and continue to provide for our family at this point.Thanks!!!
My uncle Jack is doing okay so far with his transplant.

I received an update from George's mom in England:

"Unfortunately, because George's cancer came back while he was still "on treatment", that means he must have had a strain of Burkitts that was resistant to the chemotherapy. There are no current drug trials or experimental treatments for Burkitts, either, and no drugs that are unrelated to ones he has already had and which have not worked. After long talks with George's consultant, we decided that the only thing we could do for George now was to bring him home and keep him as comfortable as possible. The doctor did give us the option of very strong steroids which would have given us maybe another couple of weeks. The side effects, though, were horrendous - basically he would have spent the time in hospital with chemical meningitis. Since by now we understood that we could not change the final outcome - ie that George was going to die - it rapidly became clear to us that we had two choices. George could either die in hospital, in agony with chemical meningitis, or he could die at home in peace and comfort with us. Frankly it was a bit of a no-brainer. It is now November 5th (Bonfire or 'Fireworks' night here in England) and George has been home for three weeks. He is in a coma, and his heart is failing. But he is comfortable, and, during the first week he was at home we were able to take him to the park and do some other special things with him. The hospice-at-home nurses reckon that we probably have only hours left with him. It hurts like hell. I guess he was only lent to us for a little while, and now God needs him back. That is how I have explained it to my 10 year old daughter Lucy, anyway. I have no idea if I will ever really get over this, but I have to move forward for my daughter's sake. All we can do now is to pray that George's passing is full of peace and love." Love, Jenni
Would you do something for Jenni? Would you pray for their family, write it in an email, and send it to her? Her email address is: jchurches@btinternet.com . Let's give her overwhelming support at this difficult time for their family.Thanks so much!!!

Love, Tamra

Tuesday, October 24, 2006 9:53 PM CDT

Hello All,

Warren has been really sick this week with bronchitis and a sinus infection. He seems to be finally getting better. He's missed 6 days of school already (since last Monday). Please pray for him to continue to heal.
Mark brought Jared and Ryan to the pumpkin patch with Candlelighter's on Sunday, and they had a really fun time playing in the western town and the treehouse and watching the catapult throw pumpkins.
My Uncle Jack, who lost his wife Linda in a car accident 5 months ago, has been diagnosed with Multiple Myeloma (cancer) of the bone marrow and will be undergoing an autologous stem cell transplant (using his own cells).The harsh chemo to wipe out his white blood cells down to 2 begins next week. Please keep Jack in your prayers, for strength and health, and enough people to volunteer to fly to Arkansas to stay with him (one week at a time)during his treatment. His website is: www.caringbridge.org/visit/jackway .
Please continue to keep George and Gage www.caringbridge.org/visit/gage
in your prayers (see previous journal).
Thanks for your prayers. May God bless you richly.

Tam

Tuesday, October 24, 2006 9:53 PM CDT

Wednesday, October 11, 2006 11:05 PM CDT

Update 10- 13-06
Please pray for Gage, a 5 year old boy from Portland who has now been diagnosed with chemo-resistant AML (leukemia),a secondary cancer, probably caused by the treatment for the first cancer, ewing's sarcoma. He will need a bone marrow match and transplant in the next month. Please pray for this miracle! Gage is an only child. Please keep his parents, Trux and Lauren, in your prayers for strength.
Update 10-12-06
Please pray for George, an 8 year old boy from England who's Burkitt's lymphoma just relapsed in his spinal fluid during treatment. His doctor said there's nothing else he can do. This sounds crazy to me, as our doctor had told us that if Warren relapsed, he would do stronger chemo, then after a second relapse, they would do a bone marrow transplant. Please pray for them to get in touch with a doctor who can help them get on a new protocol. Please pray for strength and wisdom for his family in the days ahead. (His mom Jenni emailed me a couple of months ago out of the blue- she had seen Warren's site and felt encouraged about their fight with Burkitt's. They don't seem to have a website. I will attempt to keep you up on how he is doing) Thanks.

Dear All,

Update on support group for parents of children diagnosed with cancer:
-I am having a difficult time finding someone who works for Emanuel to sit in on our support group meetings ( their stipulation for continued meetings there). So from now on, the support group will meet at our church building. We will meet on the second Friday of the month through May (then take a break for the summer). We have no solid plans for our meeting times- we just discuss what people are going through at the time. We don't give advice unless it is asked for. It is a relaxing, loving place to be- a shelter in a time of storm.
We will meet October 13th from 6:30 - 8:30, at Central Bible Church, 8815 NE Glisan St., Portland, 97220. Go north onto 90th Street off of Glisan- take a quick left into the upper parking lot. We will meet in the first room you see when you walk in the front door. We will have a snack (so that no one is starving if they have to come straight from work).
I totally understand if you are not ready to talk about the traumatic things you have been through with your child. It's taken me 8 months from the end of chemo to feel the post-traumatic syndrome feeling dispersing a bit. Come if and when you're ready.-

Please keep this little goup of parents in your prayers for healing, peace, and wisdom in everything they deal with concerning their child's health.

Thanks for praying for us!
Business is pretty slow yet. Mostly people from church, and that will dry up soon, I expect. We're blanketing the town with fliers, have a webpage up (freedomcomputerservices.com), and are just asking people to refer us. We posted on craig's list (online classifieds) for Portland, but so far we've just heard from a couple of guys wanting free advice so they could fix it themselves. Although one of them did say his buddy buys used computers, fixes them up, and sells them, and he may be calling Mark to have him fix some for them as well. We'll see.
Other than that, things seem to be fine the kids, etc.
Warren needs an oncology checkup at the end of this month, and we're trying to figure out what we can do for insurance. The COBRA is $900.00 per month. Right now, that would probably bankrupt us. But the only other insurance that we've heard about that will cover Warren is the Oregon medical insurance pool, which is $1000 per month. So maybe the COBRA is a good deal since it would cover all of us....
There is a possibility that we may be able to get all of us onto the Oregon Health Plan.
Please continue to pray for the Lord's provision for us. Thanks.

Tamra

Tuesday, October 3, 2006 5:50 PM CDT

Dear All,

Warren has been feeling exhausted every day. I have been trying to get him to go to bed on time ( I think that's the problem). ( p.s. We've now started a bribe system to get the kids in bed on time each night. We wrote down fun places to go and things to do on slips of paper and put them in a jar. On Saturday, the kids who went to bed on time EVERY NIGHT get to participate in the activity drawn from the jar. This seems to be working well). Warren has been very responsible with getting up (6:30)and to the bus on time, and with doing his homework. He hates how many rules they have at school, and how much time they talk about them and what the punishments are if they aren't followed (there are a lot of naughty kids there). He got like a billion extra credit points in his computer class because he can do computer stuff easily (the laptop helps a lot).
Jared is doing fine with the schoolwork at this point, but is still pretty stressed out when he gets home (from sitting still and concentrating all day). He does enjoy music and P.E.
Ryan feels overwhelmed at times (his anxiety freezes him up if something looks too hard for him to do), but he also surprises me at how quickly he can learn. He's an awesome speller! He enjoys computer lab, recess, P.E.,and music. The school staff thinks he may have a processing problem ( it takes him a long time to answer a question), and will be evaluating him for that.
Mark's job at GNC ended this week, and he will now be fixing
and maintaining computers full-time. The insurance has ended now(and we'll have to get another one or the Oregon Health Plan, or we'll do COBRA, which will be very expensive). Warren needs regular checkups, scans etc. on an ongoing basis, and you never know what other major medical issues could come up for any of us. Could you pray for the Lord's provision for us with income and insurance?
I went to physical therapy last week. They said that I have the worst "frozen shoulder" they've ever seen (hardly any range of motion due to shrinkage of the little fluid sac that surrounds the joint). I overused my shoulder holding Heather in that arm, and then,after it was damaged, I didn't use it much- and that caused it to shrink up.They said it will take months of stretching it to get some normal range of motion. They showed me exercises to do at home for now. It hurts alot at night (shrinks back)if I don't do the stretches every day.

Praises:
I am thankful I get to stay home with Heather at this point.
I am glad that Mark is taking more of a leadership role in our family, and that he will be home evenings.
I am happy that the kids are doing a good job being responsible about schoolwork ( and that I'm not totally responsible for their learning anymore).
I'm thankful that you want to uplift us in prayer.
I am thankful that the Lord has always provided for us.

Tamra

Saturday, September 23, 2006 9:03 PM CDT

Hello everyone,

Christi is in Jesus' arms now. Please keep her family in your prayers. http://www.christithomas.blogspot.com/
Warren is doing well in school, but is exhausted most of the time. Long days for a kid who's used to being home all day and sleeping in.
Jared is doing better in his class academically, but is still stressed out from sitting still all day and from the high expectations of the teacher.
Ryan seems to be behind in his class, like maybe he should have done 1st grade instead of 2nd, but the school is reluctant to switch classes for him. They are testing him for suspected slow processing problems for now.
Heather is walking! She still does it sideways some of the time (as she was comfortable doing this while holding on to things), but she's doing great! Still working on that 7th tooth!
My shoulder is doing better, and the x-ray must have been fine (because the doctor didn't call), but I haven't made it to PT yet.
Mark is at our church's men's retreat this weekend. Please pray for him to have a good, refreshing break before jumping into full-time computer work.
Well, Emanuel said we can't meet there anymore unless someone from the hospital meets with the group as well. We didn't really want a psychologist-type person, so I called the chaplain's office Tuesday and left a message asking if one of them could be with us when we meet. No one has called me back, but the message did say that a certain person was on vacation, so I may still receive a call back.
Our first meeting went well, and we were able to deal with some past emotions, and just share on a deeper level how cancer has affected our families. It was really a good experience, and just showed us again how much we need this group on an ongoing basis. I will try again this week to find out if the hospital could still be an option, and then look into other possibilities. Please pray that this little group can keep going, and reach other families who need to talk to people who understand what they're going through.
Thanks for checking in on us and praying for us!

Tamra

Monday, September 11, 2006 8:29 PM CDT

Personal request... Please pray for Christi Thomas She is having a very rough time right now with pain and maybe graduating to heaven very soon.
http://www.christithomas.blogspot.com/
Thank's,
Mark

Hello All!

Please keep the support group for parents of children with cancer in your prayers this week. We will be hearing back from the hospital about whether we can continue to use their facilities for our meetings.
Also, my shoulder is worse now. It feels as though a tendon or something is torn. It is hard to sleep at night because of the pain. I will have an x-ray done tomorrow, then the doctor says lots physical therapy (even if something is torn a little; they don't do surgery unless it's a large tear)in the coming weeks to strengthen my arm. Please pray for quick healing of the damage, so I can get back to normal Mom things: cooking, cleaning, and picking up Baby Heather. It's a good thing she's about to walk! Or is it?

Tamra

Monday, September 11, 2006 8:29 PM CDT

Hello All!

Please keep the support group for parents of children with cancer in your prayers this week. We will be hearing back from the hospital about whether we can continue to use their facilities for our meetings.
Also, my shoulder is worse now. It feels as though a tendon or something is torn. It is hard to sleep at night because of the pain. I will have an x-ray done tomorrow, then the doctor says lots physical therapy (even if something is torn a little; they don't do surgery unless it's a large tear)in the coming weeks to strengthen my arm. Please pray for quick healing of the damage, so I can get back to normal Mom things: cooking, cleaning, and picking up Baby Heather. It's a good thing she's about to walk! Or is it?

Tamra

Sunday, September 3, 2006 0:00 AM CDT

Update 09-08-06
School seems to be going fine for Warren and Ryan, but Jared (4th grade)is really struggling to keep up. His teacher lectures all day, and he is expected to take notes (write quickly)and get done with his work in a certain amount of time, which he never had to do while homeschooling! Please pray for his spirit these next few weeks. He is usually very exuberant and confident about everything in life, but since he started school he really feels overwhelmed and wants to quit. I am doing what I can to help him grow through it and get back to his happy self. Just please keep us in prayer about this.
Also, Mark's job at GNC is ending in three weeks. They were threatening to fire everyone who didn't sell a certain percentage of multi-vitamins (which would mean his whole store of employees would be fired, as no one can sell that much while construction still goes on at Clackamas Town Center- no parking for customers). Anyway, Mark asked if he was going to really be fired in a week, and his manager said,"Either that,or demotion to a regular employee". Either way, this means NO INSURANCE!!! That is scary with a child who has had cancer and needs follow-up appointments on a regular basis. It is about impossible to get insurance on our own that will cover Warren.
So, Mark is being led by the Lord to do his computer fixing and training business full-time. This is like stepping out into air (into the Lord's hands), because his clientele is not built up enough yet to fully support us. But the Lord says He will supply our needs. And He certainly has thus far in our lives. I told Mark that if it doesn't work out we will have to sell the house, and he agreed (he's that sure of the Lord's leading). I have heard many stories of failed small businesses, and I don't feel like we're very experienced yet. But Mark has officially been fixing computers for a year now (not including all the years previous, when he was doing it on the side for friends), and he's REALLY GOOD at it. The Lord has really gifted him with an understanding of computers, and how to research and nuke viruses. Anyway, Mark gave three weeks notice just so we could keep our insurance another couple of weeks. Please pray for us in this huge transition , to just lean on God totally, and not to trust in what we can do on our own. Also, please pray that somehow we will have insurance for Warren. Thank you SO MUCH for loving us and praying for us!

09-03-06

We all went camping at Cove Pallisades in sunny eastern Oregon this past weekend! We used a ton of sunscreen, but Ryan stll managed to get a sunburn- between his shirt and shorts! (He was leaning over a floating "bed" for a while in the lake) We got to go on a speedboat ride as a family (yes, even Baby Heather came with us- they had a baby lifejacket on the boat!). It was really awesome having a closer view of the sides of the canyon, and it was kind of symbolic for me- our family being in one boat (life), hitting waves periodically (trials), but the captain (Jesus) got us to shore safely( heaven, and Jesus' arms) without losing one of us. Jared and Warren rode behind the boat on the innertube on a few of the boat rides the teens took. It was really a good relaxing time before school starts.
Speaking of school, I registered all three of the boys for school this week. I am still worried about Ryan's anxiety and small hearing problem (sometimes he thinks we say something different that rhymes with what we really said), but they said they can work with the hearing problem. Maybe the anxiety will get better with just having a chance to be more independent. Anyway, Mark thought that we should just do it, since I have trouble handling multiple responsibilities with limited energy, and something usually suffers. Please pray for the kids to have a smooth,confidence-building transition this fall.
Warren had his 2 month check-up yesterday, and everything looks great! The doctor thinks his ligaments will stretch out some on their own with Warren being in P.E. every day at school, and being in some sort of sport. With that and stretches every day, he says we won't need the physical therapist visits. Guess we'll see.
We will be hosting a monthly support group for families who have children who have been diagnosed with cancer, who are on or off treatment, on the second Friday of each month, 6:30 - 8:30 pm, at Emanuel hospital. Our first meeting will be September 15th ( I know it's not the second Friday, but school starts this week, and it feels like next week would be better this month), in the family waiting room ( with the code keypad on the door) between pediatrics and school-age areas (two quick rights off "C" elevator on the third floor).
Please keep this support group in your prayers. So many families we meet need somewhere safe to vent their grief and frustrations about what they are going through, and to just feel heard and loved. Please pray that the Lord will fill us up with love for these precious families.
Thanks so much for your love and prayers for us.

Tamra

Sunday, August 20, 2006 10:19 PM CDT

Warren and Jared are back from camp. They had a blast!
Warren caught 4 trout, built a rocket, went bowling, shopped at their "store" for shoes, and played dodgeball (and other active games). His cabin had to do the dishes two nights. Also, they had a memory time for friends who had passed on this year. He said, "I have to wait a whole year to go back!" He is only allowed to go for two years following chemo.
Jared liked canoeing, the running games, archery, and arts and crafts(his favorite thing). He's bored now that he's home. (He was at two different camps these past two weeks. It's hard for him to slow back down.)
Our van died a couple of times on the trip Mark took to pick up the boys in Tillamook. Mark thinks he knows how to fix it- a wire looks kind of corroded in the engine. Please pray for wisdom for him to know how to fix it, as we have no money for a mechanic!
The boys and Mark will go camping this week at Cove Pallisades with the church youth group (there's a small possibility that Heather and I will go, but her ears hurt through the mountain pass on the way to the beach, so it could be a repeat of that. And, she would be stuck in a playpen for three days- I think she would be pretty bored. Also, we'd have to find shade or create it.)
My right shoulder is pretty messed up from holding Heather in that arm too much. Please pray for wisdom on how to heal it, and opportunities to rest it. Mark did some energy work on it for two days, and it helped the nerves calm down a lot, but I still can't lift my arm past my shoulder, and the nerve gets pinched at almost any arm movement. Thanks.
Warren did not do his ligament stretches while he was at camp. We are going to have to go back and see the physical therapist. For one thing, when he does do them, he doesn't do them as far as she does(because it hurts). But when he's with her, he doesn't complain because he doesn't want to seem wimpy in front of her. There is a stretch he's supposed to be doing, and he doesn't, because it makes him feel like he's going to throw up, it hurts so bad. So, in order not to miss that "window of opportunity" for him to return to normal, we are going to go see her more often. Please pray that he will be able to normalize his legs soon( and for the money it will take to do it). Thanks!
Thanks for praying about our income. The Lord has increased Mark's customer load some.Yay! Please pray that with this work on the side, he will still be able to balance rest times and family time. Thanks so much for your prayers!
Update on Rebekah: Some "active" areas showed up on the PET scan they recently had done. This could be the cancer recurring. Please continue to pray for peace and strength for her and her family, and wisdom for her parents and the doctors. http://rebekahspage.blogspot.com
Update on Josh: He will have a follow-up scan on Monday. Please continue to pray for a clear scan, and for wisdom on how to deal with side effects from the radiation. Pray that he and his family will have peace and strength, and for wisdom for his parents and the doctors.
http://www.caringbridge.org/or/joshua/index.htm

Thanks for checking up on us!

Tamra

Monday, August 14, 2006 12:06 AM CDT

Update 08-15-06
Please pray for Rebekah and Josh (see webpages below). They both had scans with a new spot showing that needs investigating by the doctors. Please pray for clear second scans/healing for their children, and peace for their families. Thank you.
Tamra

Warren and Jared are at Camp UKANDU for the week. It is a camp for cancer kids and their siblings. While we were on our way to the camp we had one of those divine appointments. We stopped into the Jack in the Box in Hillsboro. I noticed there was a teenager who had a American Cancer Association T-Shirt on and he had the fresh after-chemo hair style. So I assumed they were on their way to the camp as well. The amazing thing was they were not. They were just getting back from the coast. We talked and shared for a bit. Then it was time to get going. We were eight minutes late getting to the camp. Check in was from 1pm to 4pm. We got there at 4:08 but,no problems. They let us in.

Got to go,
Mark

Here is in part some of the cancer people we are following.

http://www3.caringbridge.org/or/kaitlin/index.htm

http://rebekahspage.blogspot.com/

http://www.caringbridge.org/or/oliver/

http://www.caringbridge.org/or/joshua/index.htm

http://www.caringbridge.org/visit/madeleineobrien

http://www.chereejones.com/updates.asp?month=0&year=0

Saturday, August 5, 2006 1:02 AM CDT

Update 08-11-2006
I'm feeling better. It took a few days, though. Thanks for your prayers.
Tamra

Update:08-08-2006
Well, Warren's blood test looks normal. They said his hemocrit (red blood cells -if they are too low, then it causes anemia)was 39, and I asked what it was last time. They said 41, but it's normal for it to go up and down a little bit. Thanks for your prayers and concern! Please pray for me (Tamra), as I'm down today with the flu or food poisoning.Thanks.

Hello everyone!

Warren has been very tired this week. He has had some arm pain in the same arm for a few days (instead of the usual come-and-go growing pains that alternate limbs, it is one particular limb, like when he started the cancer; but unlike when it started, his appetite is just fine). He has decided it's nothing, just a little depression or something. I have suggested bringing him in for a blood test to make sure nothing bad is happening. ( This anxiety when a strange symptom presents itself could eat me alive)He assures me he's fine. I am going to call the clinic Monday if his exhaustion continues. Even if it's depression or anemia, or whatever, I would like the peace of mind of knowing either way. And what kind of mother would I be if I ignore what could be signs of the return of something so deadly?

Saturday, August 5, 2006 1:02 AM CDT

Hello everyone!

Warren has been very tired this week. He has had some arm pain in the same arm for a few days (instead of the usual come-and-go growing pains that alternate limbs, it is one particular limb, like when he started the cancer; but unlike when it started, his appetite is just fine). He has decided it's nothing, just a little depression or something. I have suggested bringing him in for a blood test to make sure nothing bad is happening. ( This anxiety when a strange symptom presents itself could eat me alive)He assures me he's fine. I am going to call the clinic Monday if his exhaustion continues. Even if it's depression or anemia, or whatever, I would like the peace of mind of knowing either way. And what kind of mother would I be if I ignore what could be signs of the return of something so deadly?

Thursday, July 27, 2006 2:21 PM CDT

Hello everyone!

We just finished VBS week at Central Bible Church(yes, the extremely hot Friday evening we went out in the heat to attend the last nights goings-on). Warren was the videographer for the week, and he did an excellent job getting footage of the children and adults doing silly and serious things. There were elective classes, like basketball, baking, candymaking, dancing,etc., so it made the videos pretty interesting. Warren made a short film to play each evening for the group of kids to watch before they headed off to class. Then he took clips from those videos, and made a video to play for the congregation on Sunday morning.They are planning to sell the DVD that Warren created from the whole week.
Please pray that this gifting from the Lord will be well used throughout his lifetime- I'm hoping he can make spiritually healthy movies to combat what Hollywood releases, and to prove that that's what most of the public wants. But the Lord may have another path for Warren, and the most important thing for Warren to do is to follow as the Lord leads, for God has some very special plans for his life.
Warren is doing his ligament stretches every day, and we just bought some arch supports (since his arches are basically gone from the chemo, and it's hard on his knees to walk and run), but he also needs new shoes, since he's outgrown his second pair this year. He's gone from size 7 1/2 last summer, to 9 1/2 now. All of this growing is expensive!
Please pray over Mark's work situation. He's contemplating a job change, but he knows that the Lord brought him to GNC, so he's reluctant to leave without the Lord's leading. He was demoted from a managerial position right after claiming Family Medical Leave Act last April. He was made an assistant manager(but with a lower wage than an assistant manager is supposed to get at GNC), and we've been struggling along on basically minimum wage income with some social security payments because Warren was sick. Well, now the SS payments will end, and we're going to run into a brick wall if something doesn't change fast! I'm discussing with a wage lawyer about possibly getting reimbursed for the past year of wages owed us- at least for his assistant manager pay. We have been fervently praying for the Lord's leading on all of this- would you please join us in prayer? Mark's computer fixing and training business could grow if his exhaustion would stay away, which it has for two days now. The Lord gave me the scripture about Him caring for the birds, so why worry, since he loves us even more. He WILL take care of us, it just seems like we're falling off of a cliff -into His arms. Please pray for our peace, and for us to know what to do. Thank you so much for your prayers and love for us.

Tamra

Sunday, July 2, 2006 9:52 PM CDT

See new pictures! Warren figured out how to turn a normal stick into an animated "light saber" on his computer...

Update 07-05-06
Warren's scans were clear, except his lymph nodes where the cancer was (in several places)are staying a little bit big, because of scar tissue, they think. His thymus gland (which was enlarged on the last two scans) has shrunk back down to normal( it is done revving up to replace all of the white blood cells he was low on). His blood levels are all normal.
We need to make sure he does his ligament/muscle stretches every day, twice a day, because the doctor said that we only have a "small window of opportunity" to stretch his body back to normal, before it becomes semi-permanent. Please pray for us to stick with it on the stretches, and get Warren back to normal, so he can run like a regular kid. Thank you.
Tamra
Warren is back from camp. He forgot his toothbrush and didn't wear any sunscreen, but he survived. He had coffee too late in the day (there was bottled Starbuck's for sale at the snack shack)and stayed up late into the night, only to be woken early the next morning to start the day's festivities (archery,bb guns,the zipline, canoeing, swimming,hiking,climbing wall, and various group games). He was absolutely exhausted when he got home. He says that his whole cabin of boys, besides him and Justin (his best friend)followed girls around the whole time. How dumb is that?

Sunday, June 25, 2006 7:35 PM CDT

Hello!

Warren had a CAT scan and chest x-ray Thursday; we haven't heard anything yet, which probably means they are normal. They weren't able to get any blood from him, though. As soon as they put on the numbing spray, his vein would shrink too much. They stabbed him three times, and finally gave up(they wanted him to come back after the scans, but Warren didn't want to try anymore, and Mark didn't make him). Warren has camp this week, and his appointment at the clinic the following Wednesday. I guess they'll get some blood then...
Last Saturday, we went to Oaks park and rode the rides for free, compliments of the Optimist's Club. Warren was able to go on the big roller coaster that swirls upside-down (with a friend he bumped into there). I went on the bumper cars with Warren and Jared- that was fun!!! Mark went on some circular rides (that would make me sick!), and Heather LOVED the carrousel! She laughed the whole time.
I've been meaning to mention that we went to the Seaside Aquarium on our beach trip, and the kids loved the open tanks where you can touch and hold hermit crabs, starfish, anemones, etc. Also, you can feed the seals, and they will yell and clap for food if you act like you're going to throw the food, then don't. The octopus stared right at me while he swam up and down in his tank- that was strange. And the jellyfish were beautiful as they swam, swirling their tentacles behind them. I also liked the funny crabs, running backwards up the rocks. It was only 24.00 for a family of six. I really recommend it as a family destination.
Please pray for Warren's safety while he's away at camp, and that he'll remember to wear his sunscreen (as it will be very hot this week).
Thanks for checking in!

Tamra

Sunday, June 18, 2006 11:20 PM CDT

06-18-06

Happy 13th birthday,Warren!

Warren, we're so glad you're still with us! That we can still enjoy being around you and finish raising you to be a godly man.
Warren, I love you. Sometimes you're wonderful, and sometimes irritating, but I love you all the time.
Things I appreciate about you:
Your good attitude
willingness to help
mercy for those weaker than yourself
your sense of humor
perceptive mind that can figure out a solution to most problems
taking the time to be with people who need a friend
your artistic abilities: making videos, your imagination, and drawing, to name a few

May you continue growing up in the Lord, and following His path for your life, as it will be more fulfilling than any path you could make for yourself.

Love, Mom

Thursday, June 8, 2006 6:24 PM CDT

update 06-14-06
Warren's arm is healing fine, and he was told to remove his cast. He'll have a blood test, chest x-ray, and CAT scan next week. (Last CAT SCAN till December! :) The liquid warren has to drink is noxious. A CAT scan tech finally sugested just mixing the barium with water, which is a little better than the sludge with juice, but it still cramps his stomach and makes him lose his appetite for a few hours.)

Hello Everyone!

Warren had physical therapy yesterday. Amy said that his leg muscles and tendons are very tight, and that it will take about 3 months of twice daily stretches to get his legs to be normal again. Once we get to that point, we will be able to stop the stretches, and his legs will be basically normal from then on (they won't tighten up again). Also, she said that his arches are completely gone, and he will need stretches and arch support to help his feet get back to normal. All of these problems can cause knee pain (which Warren has been having), but once they are fixed, the pressure will be taken off his knees, and they shouldn't hurt anymore (unless it truly is a joint problem, but that tends to develop over the years following chemo).
The hospital also took an x-ray of his arm, to see if the bone is all the way healed. We are waiting to hear the results from his doctor.

Tamra

Monday, June 5, 2006 0:33 AM CDT

Happy cancer survivor day!
We went to the celebration at Emanuel- small, but nice. We saw Rebekah's family there, and had a good talk with them. We saw Dr. Judy (oncologist)leaving from her duty on the pediatric floor, and chatted with her a bit till she got a page... Warren and I received a free massage(Mark had to work today). We went up to the 3rd floor to say hi to the nurses, and I saw a guy I went to school with (in one of the rooms). So I called my sister (who goes to church with him)to see if anything was up with him, or if he was just visiting someone that I don't know. It turns out his son Aaron was just diagnosed Friday with leukemia. Please keep the Yaws family in your prayers this week, for peace, strength, and for the Lord to hold their family together all the way through this trial.Thanks so much!
Warren is offically done with Septra! (Six months of antibiotic following chemo)Yay! He will have a blood test and CAT scan this month. Please pray for continued clear scans! Hopefully he will be having PT this week with Amy at the hospital (confirmed tomorrow). He needs to stretch his leg ligaments, which are still too tight (from chemo)to put his legs out straight. Also, Warren's knees have been bothering him, and we've heard that chemo can destroy your joints. We will be starting glucosomine supplements, to try to heal the damage.
Warren is done schooling with my friend, and still has a few things to study before he can enter 8th grade next fall. Please pray for us to stay on track with learning, so he can be all the way caught up with his peers.
Thanks for checking up on us!

Tamra

Monday, June 5, 2006 0:33 AM CDT

Saturday, May 20, 2006 3:32 PM CDT

Update 05-26-06
Warren will continue to wear a light splint for two weeks, then have an x-ray to check if it's healed.
My crowns are on, but I'm still having some nerve pain, and those teeth plus one filling site are still tender. I've been eating squishy food for a month. I will be SO glad to eat normal food again!
Mark has had his breathing machine for a week. He will probably have to go to one more sleep study to adjust the machine pressure, as he's not sleeping too well, which means he's still waking up several times a night.
My aunt Linda was killed Monday in an auto accident.Would you please pray for her family as they grieve the loss of her vibrant presence (until Heaven)?
Thanks for your prayers for us.

Tamra

Update 05-23-06

Warren broke his arm this weekend!`But they didn't know it was broken (on Friday, Warren kicked a ball at Shon, the youth pastor, and he threw it back at Warren, who blocked it with his hand...) Anyway, Warren was on prednisone (a steroid, to shrink the tumors)off and on through his year of chemo, and it does cause bones to become weak. He lived on ibuprofen for the weekend, and when I picked him up on Sunday afternoon, he was really nursing that arm. He could move it, but not lean on it. So I took him to urgent care, and they put on a temporary splint. His Dr. will decide later this week if he needs a stronger cast, as it is a pretty small break.

My dental appointment to put on my crowns has been moved to tommorrow, as the crowns haven't arrived yet.

Tamra

Hello Everyone!

Warren is gone on a church youth trip this weekend. The youth have gone up to the Jonah's Ministries camp to help clean it up in preparation for the summer campers. I don't know much about the camp, as Warren has only gone to Trout Creek camp (also christian)for a couple of summers (he absolutely loves it there, he was SO sad to miss it last year, and we're planning on sending him again this summer). Please pray for safety, as they will be swimming while there, and driving for an hour and a half back here on Sunday.
My teeth are feeling mostly better- I will go in Tuesday to have the two crowns put on. Thanks for your prayers.

Tamra

Wednesday, May 3, 2006 4:29 PM CDT

Update May 11th, 2006
I (Tamra) had my root canal etc. done yesterday. It hurts worse now than before they did it. Could you please pray for speedy healing, and no infection? Also, my mom covered my expenses with her tiny savings that she needed to use to buy a car. Please pray that the money will come to us quickly to pay her back.Thanks!

Hello All!

We had a good time at the beach together! We were late leaving on Tuesday (it wound up being evening instead of morning)because I had a cracked filling in my tooth AND the flu! I felt too sick to make it to the root canal specialist appointment we had waited for all day , so I took ibuprofen (my tooth was swollen by then, as well as hurting)and a homeopathic flu medicine, and decided to go anyway. My reasoning was, we would be charged either way for the whole cost of a two - night stay, so we might as well try to go. Also, it was our big "back to normal" event that Warren had been looking forward to all through chemo. So I'm glad I pushed through the haze and went anyway. I felt some better the next day, except when the wind blew - that kills a toothache! So I tied my hood on, and kept my face warm, and it was better.I saw the specialist on Friday, and he recommends being sedated for the root canal because the nerve is inflamed and my TMJ ( inflamed and out- of- place jaw joint)makes it so I can only open my mouth half-way. Please pray for the Lord's provision on this, as we have been given a quote of $2500 to do this and some other badly needed dental work at the same time.Also, please pray for energy and focus for me to complete the preparation it's going to take on my part to prepare for Heather to have a day's worth of milk waiting for her as I won't be able to nurse her for a while afterwards.
We went to Ecola State Park on Wednesday (absolutely breathtaking views! It's worth the 10 minute winding road through the forest and the $3 day use fee).This was my Dad's favorite park on the coast( he was taken to heaven 10 years ago after a battle with non-hodgkin's lymphoma). The picture above was taken by Warren through the telescope they have there on the path. He also made a video of our trip (there is no sound recording on his digital camera, so he added music and captions), which is pretty neat. I think he's going to make movies for his life's work; some that families can watch without having to fast-forward half of it to skip the offensive parts!
Warren had his monthly blood test Monday, and it looked great! His counts are looking pretty normal at this point, although they said some of the "underlying" parts of his bloodcount are still probably not normal yet. We got a prescription for physical therapy, as his ligaments are gradually getting tighter. When he lies on the bed, he can't straighten his legs all the way to point them at the ceiling; he can lay them flat on the bed while on his back, however. Anyway, he's in favor of having Amy, his in- hospital physical therapist, work with him. I'm reluctant to have to drive that far when my physical therapist is 2 minutes away from us, but I would like someone who has experience with cancer kids' problems (which she definately does), and someone who can motivate him and make it somewhat fun(there again, she can. As Warren says, she's strict; she also keeps up a continual conversation, which is a good diversion tactic). So I guess we'll look into having her do it or recommending someone with the experience we desire.
One more symptom of post- trauma I've been having is a super concern that someone in our family will die of some cause that I've overlooked (they call this hyperviligence). Most examples of this include medicine dosing. When it's time to give anyone (including myself) medicine (like Tylenol, for example)I have to read all of the warnings on the back EVERY TIME and get scared reading about allergic reactions, kidney failure, etc., then I make sure I know the dosage they need (I check three times). One day I yelled at Jared right when he was taking a dose of liquid Tylenol, "Stop! Spit it in the sink!" because I had just read the back of the bottle again, and thought for a terrifying second that I'd given him Tablespoons instead of teaspoons, because I had used a Tablespoon to measure the three teaspoons all at once. He asked me to please not yell next time. I'm going to transfer an extreme fear of medication to my children! I was anxious enough before all of Warren's cancer treatment. Warren, on the other hand,is now very laid back about medicine- "Gee, Mom, after chemo, what could be worse?"
Warren got to go through a tour of the ICU with Lyn from Childlife at the hospital on Monday. He doesn't remember much of the week he was in there, so I thought it might help him to process a little more of what he had gone through this past year. He did remember a little more, and he remarked on the pictures around the edge of the ceiling, "I got so tired of staring at those!" We're so glad he made it out of there, and is stiil here with us today!
Thanks for your viligent prayers for us!

Love, Tamra

Thursday, April 20, 2006 1:26 AM CDT

Greetings!

This week Warren is SO grounded! By that, I mean, he is grounded off of everything fun that he allows to get in the way of doing his daily chore and homework. So far, it's working okay.He's managed to get done what he needs to each day, with lots of encouragement from us, and talking himself into it. We want to teach him dedication to important things first, and enjoying fun things last. Please continue to pray for wisdom and like-mindedness for Mark and I as we raise our kids the Lord's way!
Mark's Dr. has prescribed a hormone for him (which he was low in, causing tiredness),reluctantly(because of a higher risk of cancer associated with taking it). Mark will also be receiving a breathing machine, although we haven't heard from the company yet like the Dr. said we should have.
The cardiologist called me on Tuesday, and told me that nothing irregular showed up on the heart monitor, and that he could put me on beta-blockers for the weird heartbeat, but it would come through my milk to baby, and could affect her heartbeat or blood pressure.(I decided not to take it for now, and hopefully not till I'm done nursing) He also said that he thought that the weird EKG could just be because I'm nursing, and the normal spot to place the EKG wire is covered up because I am temporarily larger. So he suggests doing another EKG 6 months after I'm through nursing baby, to see if it is normal then.
I've been dealing with a lot of flashback emotions, now that we're in April again. (Last year, April, Warren was diagnosed.) I haven't felt like being around people, and I don't feel like calling them back when they leave a message. I also have been having memory problems, just forgetting what it was I was going to say IN THE MIDDLE OF MY SENTENCE! Emotional exhaustion plagues me day after day. These sound like signs of post-traumatic stress, which parents of cancer children often get. We are going to go in for counseling with a christian psychiatrist, as a family, and also individually. Even though we only have a $25.00 co-pay each time,this could get expensive really fast. Could you pray for the Lord's provision, so that we can work through these things in a timely manner? Thank you! Also, Warren has not had a good experience with a couple of official psychologists at the hospital(although he liked Childlife, maybe because he didn't realize they are counselors), so could you pray for him to click with the counselor, or at least put up with her? He doesn't seem to like to talk to anyone about his cancer experience except to us, but we'll try it, in case she can give him more tools to deal with things than we can.
We're off to the beach next week. Yay! Please pray for safety as we travel, and also the Lord's provision (through Mark's computer business would be nice), as we are using money that really needs to go toward bills. Also pray for peace in our souls and a good bonding time for our family and SUN!

Thanks,

Tamra

Saturday, April 15, 2006 11:10 PM CDT

Hello everyone!

Today is Thankful Day! It seems like I'm always talking about what's WRONG with us, you know, for prayer requests. So today, it's time to be thankful!
Thank you, Lord, for:
Your love and continual mercy towards us,
giving us your only child as a sacrifice to mend our relationship with you,
freedom in Christ,
no condemnation in Christ,
Your daily provision for us (physically as well as spiritually),
Carrying us when we can go no further on our own strength,
a plan for our lives that fulfills Your will AND fulfills us,
Your beautiful earth,
families who love us,
children,
church families who care for us,
trials -to build character in us,
opportunities to help others,
and the freedom we have in this country to worship publicly.

I'm thankful for:
The people who know us and love us, and support us no matter what happens,
everyone I've met on this cursed journey called cancer (I am thankful for even that trial, because the Lord will bring good things out of it)
basically good health,
interesting, fresh food,
times to play,
times to rest.

Now on to our update:

The kids are feeling a lot better. Warren will return to "school" on Monday.
I wore the heart monitor for two days, having itchy welts from the glue the whole time. Heather only grabbed the wires a couple times, then I figured out to wrap her in a blanket to nurse (to hold her arms down), and that worked great! I will hear the results (if any- I didn't notice much happening) on Thursday.
Mark's Dr. has switched him to a different pain clinic, because he was concerned about all the pain medicine Mark has been living on. The new pain Dr. actually has a different diagnosis- one that he believes can be treated in
a year of high vitamin doses,a medicine (Mark has taken this before- it totally wipes him out)that helps his body's endorphins to rise ( to fight pain), and also a medicine that causes more blood to come to his leg to help it heal itself. If this basically natural treatment plan would work, that would be MUCH better than what the other pain Dr. wanted to do next (after the 4 steroid injections that only helped a little), which would have been to attempt to destroy the feeling in that nerve FOREVER in an attempt to fix the problem. Praise God for working all of this out.
Also, a little update on Kennedy: she's doing okay with the radiation, her family is making it through alright emotionally. She has 4 more days of radiation to go.
May you all have a wonderful Easter!

Love,

Tamra

Wednesday, April 12, 2006 0:39 AM CDT

Hello All!

Warren says, "How's ya'll doin'? I'm gettin' myself a real good edjumication. I'm gettin' learned real good. Hee hee."
Actually, Warren has not done homework in a few days...
He is feeling some better. The fever seems to be gone, but the cough, exhaustion, and occasional dizziness linger on...
Heather got the fever, plugged nose,and cough on Sunday, and has been pretty miserable ever since.
Jared has been sick with a fever and lots of coughing.
Ryan has been sick, but still seems to have his normal amount of energy.
Please pray for all of our kids to get better quickly!
Hopefully in time for the beach in two weeks! By the way, Rachel, would you please take Sparky while we're gone?
I will be hooked up to a portable heart monitor tomorrow, and will get get to wear it for two days. Hopefully something useful shows up. I was just realizing that it's going to be fun trying to get baby Heather to leave all the wires alone when she nurses. Hmmm....
Mark has been feeling a ton better since the Dr. switched one of his nerve medicines. He doesn't feel as low, and actually feels like he gets some sleep. He still has insomnia at times though, so we'd appreciate prayer about that.
Warren has a blood test due at the oncology clinic in a week or so, even though the one he just had at the regular Dr.(checking for a bacterial infection) looked fine. It wasn't as specific and technical as Emmanuel though, (they also check the level on other things, like liver enzymes, which I'm sure are high again from THIS virus). We'll definitely wait a little bit longer to avoid needing to draw blood AGAIN to make sure the enzymes have gone down. I also will be asking for physical therapy to help Warren's ligaments stretch back to their normal position if possible. (The chemo makes ligaments tighten up, among a host of other nasty things.)
Please pray for Kennedy, who will be having radiation with chemo this week. Pray for peace for her family's hearts that they are doing the right thing, for minimal side effects, and the Lord's protective and healing hand on her little body.
Thanks for your prayers.
May the Lord bless you as well.

Tamra

p.s.The most meaningful christian song to me this year, so hard to hear but so soul-cleansing. I shed tears most times I heard it.

"Natalie Grant - Held"

Two months is too little
They let him go
They had no sudden healing
To think that providence would
Take a child from his mother while she prays
Is appalling

Who told us we�d be rescued?
What has changed and why should we be saved from nightmares?
We�re asking why this happens
To us who have died to live,
It�s unfair

Chorus:
This is what it means to be held
How it feels when the sacred is torn from your life
And you survive
This is what it is to be loved
And to know that the promise was
When everything fell we�d be held

This hand is bitterness
We want to taste it, and let the hatred numb our sorrows
The wise hand opens slowly to lilies of the valley and tomorrow

(Chorus) ...
This is what it means to be held
How it feels when the sacred is torn from your life
And you survive
This is what it is to be loved
And to know that the promise was
When everything fell we�d be held

Bridge:
If hope is born of suffering
If this is only the beginning
Can we not wait,for one hour watching for our Savior?

(Chorus)
This is what it means to be held
How it feels when the sacred is torn from your life
And you survive
This is what it is to be loved
And to know that the promise was
When everything fell we�d be held

Wednesday, April 5, 2006 11:45 PM CDT

Update 04-06-06
Warren did not have a fever when Mark checked him at 4:00 am, but by 10:00 am,it was back up to 103. We went to the Dr., and they said it just looks like a virus - no bacterial complications yet. We'll just keep an eye on him, and manage the fever, and he should be fine. Thank you, Lord!
The cardiologist called me on Sunday, and said my stress test was fine. He also said that my heart block has nothing to do with kidney failure, but we could discuss it more at my appointment following wearing the heart monitor for a couple days. (No one has called me yet to set that up.) Meanwhile, the arrythmea is basically gone, but it seemed that my thyroid was higher. I got that test done, but it says I'm normal. The endocrinologist suggested maybe hormones? could cause similiar symptoms, including being awake for most of the night Sunday, part of Monday, and a little bit of Tues.It seems to be getting better each day.But something kind of funny...when I upped my dose of anti-thyroid medication (before talking to the Dr.), my chest pain went away completely. Not anything to do with my thyroid, huh? It could be that my body is super sensitive to my thyroid hormone, and it's causing my heart to be jumpy (the urgent care Dr.'s theory), or my hormones regulating themselves after delivery of baby (endocrinologist's theory), or it could be this virus we all have- Mark says he has been having chest pain since he caught the germ this week. Guess all I can do is wait and pray that the Lord reveals in time what is truly happening.
Thanks to you signers of the guestbook- it means a lot to me to know that a few people regularly check on us and are praying for us.Thanks for your love and prayer for us.

Tamra

04-05-06
Warren has a very high fever- 103.3- and cough with a pretty bad headache. The oncologist says it's probably just a virus, and to alternate Tylenol ( which he's already on)and ibuprophen to get the fever down; if it stays high, call them back. Please pray!

Friday, March 31, 2006 9:42 PM CST

Hello!

First of all, I thank all of you for your prayers and concern for us.
Second, how many of you are there? I wonder how many people are reading my updates on a continual basis. Sometimes I feel like maybe no one is reading this, and why am I spending time doing it (except for my own sort of outlet)? Let me know you exist! Please sign the guestbook and encourage Warren to keep up the good work in school, and also tell him that you're glad he survived cancer!!! Warren checks the guestbook often, so a bunch all at once would be exciting for him. Thanks!!!
The clinic called this week to tell us that Warren had high liver enzymes on his last labs, and we needed to come in to make sure that they came back down. (This was something that was inadvertantly missed by two doctors, the one who signed off on it, and the one we saw in the clinic the week following the blood test/ CAT scan.)They said it was probably just a virus he'd had at the time. We went in Tuesday afternoon, and heard a couple of hours later that his enzymes were normal.
Even before chemo ended,Warren wanted to come back to help pass out candy on movie night, so, since it was Tuesday, we stayed for that. They put him to work popping bags of popcorn, and they gave him some candy and pop for his trouble. I believe it helped him to be on the other side of the counter- the regular guy helping sick kids to feel happy, and indeed, on the way home he verbally processed a little more of his long hospital stay. I think that doing things, for Warren, helps him deal with emotional stuff more than sitting in a room, being prodded to talk (like in the support group), which always shuts him down emotionally. In the hospital, his favorite thing (besides playing video games and watching movies) was art therapy, and once in a while, a craft. Also, during maintenance chemo, he would walk around and around the floor, playing with his yo-yo, and if he could get them to unhook him from the IV pole for a few hours, he would chase nurse Stephanie with a syringe full of water, or go down to the cafeteria or to the nursery to look at newborns (before Heather was born).
I was asked this week by Melenie, another mom with a child with cancer, "So, are things NORMAL for all of you now?" That is what all of us cancer families strive for- to finally be normal again. Warren kept thinking back to our trip to the beach as our normal, so we talked about going back when chemo was over, as something to look forward to. Well, we'll be heading back to the ocean (and the same little inn we went to last year) at the end of April, and we will have come full circle. As for truly normal, I don't know if we will ever get back to where we were before emotionally. We are always guarding our hearts at least a little from the possibility of a recurrance. And, even before Warren's cancer, we lost 4 babies through miscarriage, so our hearts were already hurt. Why would the Lord allow another huge hurt to befall us? Asking that question made it take longer for me to accept Warren's illness and deal with it. I was running away from the One who would give me the strength to handle the impossible. In my grief I stayed out of the Word that would give me clear direction and wisdom and comfort during this trial. I knew he could have cured Warren immediately or stopped it from happening altogether. It was hard for me to forgive God for letting Warren,me,and the whole family, go through it. I compared what we were going through to other christians who seemed to never encounter trouble -on the surface at least.

But now I remember a scripture.."I have told you all this so that you may have peace in Me. Here on earth you will have many trials and sorrows. But take heart, because I have overcome the world."
Jn 16:33
And another, "Dear friends, don't be surprised at the fiery trials you are going through, as if something strange were happening to you. Instead, be very glad- because these trials will make you partners with Christ in his suffering, and afterward you will have the wonderful joy of sharing His glory when it is displayed to all the world." 1Pet4:12-13
And two more that I found just looking the first two up..."All praise to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. He is the source of every mercy and the God who comforts us. He comforts us in all our troubles so that we can comfort others. When others are troubled, we will be able to give them the same comfort God has given us. You can be sure that the more we suffer for Christ, the more God will shower us with His comfort through Christ." 2Cor1:3-5
And ..."But this precious treasure�this light and power that now shine within us�is held in perishable containers, that is, in our weak bodies. So everyone can see that our glorious power is from God and is not our own.We are pressed on every side by troubles, but we are not crushed and broken. We are perplexed, but we don't give up and quit. We are hunted down, but God never abandons us. We get knocked down, but we get up again and keep going. Through suffering, these bodies of ours constantly share in the death of Jesus so that the life of Jesus may also be seen in our bodies.Yes, we live under constant danger of death because we serve Jesus, so that the life of Jesus will be obvious in our dying bodies. So we live in the face of death, but it has resulted in eternal life for you.
But we continue to preach because we have the same kind of faith the psalmist had when he said, "I believed in God, and so I speak." We know that the same God who raised our Lord Jesus will also raise us with Jesus and present us to himself along with you. All of these things are for your benefit. And as God's grace brings more and more people to Christ, there will be great thanksgiving, and God will receive more and more glory.That is why we never give up. Though our bodies are dying, our spirits are being renewed every day. For our present troubles are quite small and won't last very long. Yet they produce for us an immeasurably great glory that will last forever! So we don't look at the troubles we can see right now; rather, we look forward to what we have not yet seen. For the troubles we see will soon be over, but the joys to come will last forever. 2 Cor 4:7-18 NLT

More update: Heather has her first little tooth peeking through the gum. We've had a week full of crying,tylenol, restless sleep,and biting everything!
I continue to have weird heart symptoms. I had Mark call an ambulance on Sun night because after my heart tripped a beat, the adrenaline just kept pumping more doses into my body, and I knew it wasn't calming down fast enough. So the EMT's said the ekg looked fine, and I could go to the hospital if I wanted to...I saw a cardiologist on Wed, and he said that with my chest pain symptoms, and the weird ekg, he wanted me to do a stress test just to rule out a clogged artery (which would be extremely rare for someone my age). So I went today and did the only stress test I will ever do in my entire life. It was truly horrible. My lungs are still hurting from trying to get enough oxygen to my brain and body, my brain was very foggy the rest of the day- I think too many brain cells died in that traumatic event. I almost passed out, and I still didn't get to their average heart rate goal for a 35 year old. Hopefully there is enough of a result, because I'm not going back. They will call me on Monday with the results. They want me to wear a heart monitor for two days to try to record the arrythmea. The hospital will call me and set me up with that...
Mark went to the sleep study on Monday night, but he was worried I'd have a heart episode while he was gone. Halfway through the night, they hooked him up to the c-pap machine, which probably means he will need one. We have to wait for the official word from the Dr., who may want another night of sleep study to adjust the pressure over a full night. Mark says he felt claustrophobic with the mask on over his nose, but told himself it was like an oxygen mask like the fighter pilots use, and he was able to go to sleep with it on.
Prayers for our health would be greatly appreciated. Our whole family has been dealing with a virus that lingers for weeks - we feel better for a while, then worse, then better. And basically always have a headache.
Please continue to pray for wisdom in parenting, for us to have agreement on grounding, chore motivation, homework done in a timely manner, attitude adjustment, etc.

May the Lord bless you and keep you-

Tamra

Friday, March 31, 2006 9:42 PM CST

Thursday, March 23, 2006 12:39 AM CST

Hi everyone!

Warren's CAT scan was clear. The Dr. did mention that his thymus is growing, which is usually normal after chemo (this is an organ under your breastbone where the white blood cells are matured). This was a new doctor who didn't know where his original cancer was, but seemed relieved that it hadn't begun there. She said if we were worried at all about it, she could order a PET scan, which would show cancer cells more clearly than CAT scans can. Warren didn't originally have a PET scan, because they were in a rush to start chemo the next day after they found the cancer. Then the other Dr.s seemed to think that without a previous PET scan(with cancer) to compare it to, doing a follow-up one would be inconclusive. Anyway, we decided to wait on another scan since this is usually normal, and Warren is feeling pretty good right now. If he starts to feel crummy, we will do it.
His blood levels are low normal now. Yay!
She mentioned that his hormone level is getting higher- the onset of puberty. I could have told her that! Warren is testing us to see who's really in charge- please pray for strength for us as Mark and I are both exhausted.
I have a total body yeast infection that I've had for a long time,kept under control with diet(whole grains, no sugar) for a couple of years, but during pregnancy it raised it's ugly head again. And, after delivery, I started eating some sugar and white junk again...There is a pill I can take to kill the yeast, but it is hard on the liver, could have some nasty side effects, and baby would get some in my milk. It is time-released, so any side effects could continue for five days.Please pray for wisdom about whether or not to take this medicine. Mark has been taking lots of different medicines for the inflamed nerve in his leg, and he's been so tired that he mentioned it to the pain clinic Dr., who said some of these medications can cause a drop in hormones. Mark's blood test did show low hormone level, but the regular Dr. is reluctant to put him on the hormones, because of the increased risk of cancer, so he's sending Mark to a sleep study next week to see if he has sleep apnea or anything else that could be contributing to the exhaustion. Meanwhile, he's sleeping heavily when he finally gets to sleep (it's hard to fall asleep when you're in pain).
Mark also has been having a recurrance of gut pain and possible kidney stone problems. The problem with being on pain meds is, if your body is sending you pain signals because of some other problem, you don't feel it much!
Thanks for faithfully holding us up before His throne.

Much love,

Tamra

Friday, March 10, 2006 1:20 AM CST

Dear All,

We finally bought a van! We praise the Lord that He led us and advised us through others until, tadah!, there it was.
We can go places as a whole family now.
The kids' coughs are worse this week, Warren had a fever on Sunday, but none since. Heather also came down with it, and was making choking sounds the first two days till she figured out how to cough. Poor baby! Please keep us all in your prayers for health.
Warren has a CAT scan on Thursday. Please pray for continued clear scans.

God bless you all,

Tamra

Wednesday, March 1, 2006 9:37 PM CST

Hello All,

I hope everyone is well. I have been praying for all of you this week- everyone who visits our site! The Lord bless you for your faithful prayers and love this year.
Warren is feeling better, but still has a bit of a cold. Jared and Ryan are totally miserable with a sore throat and cough, and I can feel that my body is trying to fight it off. I've also had heart arrythmea for a couple of weeks, and the doctor said the EKG showed an imbalance of electrolytes, which doesn't mean bad things for my heart, but possibly future kidney failure or other things. So I have to go see a cardiologist to hear the whole story. Please pray for wisdom for the doctors to figure out exactly what's going on with me(Tamra).
Heather seems to be teething. She's 5 months old now! She almost looks like a different baby - her head has changed shape ( it's nicely rounded out), most of her dark hair fell out and some lighter hair came in- about the color of Warren's or Jared's hair. Her eyes are still blue, just lighter.
We may be putting all of the boys in school come Fall- please pray for wisdom for us in this decision. I feel pretty protective of the younger boys, as they each have a problem that I'm not sure will mesh with regular school. Jared seems to have ADD- like his dad ( it might be difficult for him to sit still and pay attention that long, also he will hear the first part of instructions, and then tune out the rest, because he's so gung-ho to start); Ryan is hard to understand at times and probably needs speech therapy, and I am afraid that he will be teased, or at the very least, not understood correctly. I hope we will be able to address these problems before Fall, and have an ongoing fix in place by then.
Mark continues to have pain in his leg from an inflamed nerve- they've done 3 steroid injections, but it doesn't seem to help much. Please pray for healing for him.
Also, there are two kids with cancer who are heavy on my heart this week- Oliver, a beautiful two-year old boy who has relapsed with leukemia and faces worse chemo and radiation for another try at stem cell transplant. Please pray for him to be healed, and for his family to be drawn to the Lord through all of this. It would be so difficult to have to put a baby through that, and not be able to explain what's happening, and for him not to be able to communicate where his pain is, etc. And Kennedy, a vivacious 5-year old with leukemia who has another nasty chemo round coming up (which almost shut down her liver last time they did it), and radiation on top of that. Please pray for Kennedy to be healed and for her family to be held through all of this.
Also, another child, Josh, a charming 5 -year old who is in remission (Yay!), but his parents are having to deal with the side effects of radiation to his neck- please pray for wisdom for them and the doctors about a possible surgery to fix his esophagus, and for his family to feel the comfort of the Lord through everything.
I love all of you. May the Lord, who never sleeps, keep you in His care-

Tamra

Saturday, February 11, 2006 8:38 PM CST

Update 02-17-06

Warren's blood counts are gradually coming up. It will take a year from the last chemo treatment(Dec)for his immune system to be at a normal level. Warren's cough is still hanging around. The doctor said they'll assume it's a virus unless it stays longer than two weeks.
We're still trying to catch up on homeschool, and Heather keeps me constantly busy. Mark has started his own business, Freedom Computer Services, fixing slow or broken computers and training people to use computers (he's been doing this for years on a small scale). He charges an extremely low rate- $25.00 per hour. Interested? Please email him at kc7hta@yahoo.com, and write " Fix my computer" on the RE line. Thanks. We need to get our income up to living standards, not just juggling the bills.

Update 02-12-06
My Grandma, Mona Wilma Patterson,died this morning in Detroit after a long struggle with heart failure. The doctors kept treating the symptoms ( fluid on the lungs, and throughout the body)until her body was just too tired to keep going. She was 89. She absolutely hated the hospital, and didn't want to go back, and I'm so glad she won't have to. I look forward to seeing her on the other side and getting to know her more than I got to here. I did get to fly back and see her for two weeks two years ago, and I'm so glad I went. She loved okra and fried green tomatoes, chocolate pie, steamed greens, fresh garden tomatoes, and sprinkled cayenne on everything. She had a most contagious giggle, lots of attitude, and would talk so fast sometimes in her Southern accent and phrases that it was hard to tell what she was saying. She was also rather bossy, and,definitely, a workaholic- she was always doing something with her hands. She will be dearly missed.

Tamra

Hello All,

Well, Warren finally caught the cold on Thursday, and it turned to a cough as well today. Please keep him in prayer to recover quickly. He has his monthly clinic appointment and blood test on Wed. He will start Septra pills next week ( for 6 months)to combat Pneumocystis carinii pneumonia, which tends to strike immunosuppressed people. He has been taking Pentamadine for this since starting chemo, but they would have to give him an IV for that since his Hickman line is out now. It was kind of nice because it was only once a month, but Warren did get nauseous from it, so hopefully he'll feel okay on Septra.
Mark and the kids were up at Mt. Hood today at the Candlelighter's yearly snowmobiling day. They had a blast! (see pictures) Definitely planning on going next year.
Please pray for wisdom for us to buy a vehicle that we will all fit in. We also need to fix our little toyota- the water pump? and the cv joint and boot. We might have to choose between the two, and the obviously wise thing to do would be to fix what we have and stay close to home. We have a small tax return, and we are paying accumulated bills first, after that we will have to agree on how to spend the rest of it. Please pray for like minds and clear guidance for Mark and me as we go forth and spend.
Thanks for checking up on us!
Tamra

Monday, February 6, 2006 8:23 PM CST

Warren has been catching up on homeschool with a gracious and loving friend of mine. I'm catching Jared and Ryan up as well.

Ryan's blood results are back and look normal; the doctor will call if the ultrasound results show anything abnormal.

Warren's IV Hickman line has been removed! A few things we are glad we no longer have to do...

-Change the bandage cover once a week

-Flush with saline and heparin every day

-tape up the tubing and cover it all with an "aquaguard" for a shower, (plus no baths or swimming for 8 months!)

-daily Lovenox shots, because Warren has a "super clotting gene", and his first line lasted only a month before it clotted shut and had to be removed

-mix and hook up TPN (IV nutrition) with a pump to carry around

-hook up antibiotics and pump every 6 hours (that means START it every 6 hours, it doesn't include ENDING and unhooking and flushing after 1 1/2 hours of running it) -yes, even in the middle of the night

-have a home nurse come to our house to train us on these pumps, etc. (usually when we got home late in the evening after a few days in the hospital and were exhausted, and they wanted us to learn something new!)

-worry that he'll get an infection through his line

-be careful that it doesn't get accidentally pulled out

What a relief!!!!!

Please pray for continued clear scans for Warren. He has a blood test next Monday to make sure his counts are still coming up.

Tamra

Saturday, January 21, 2006 7:30 PM CST

Update 02-01-06

Warren's surgery went fine yesterday. He was still a little nauseous today.Hopefully he'll feel better tomorrow.
Mark took Warren to Nicolette's funeral this morning.

Update 01-30-06

Warren's Hickman removal has been changed to 3:30 pm,Tuesday, Jan 31st. Warren is bummed that he won't get to eat for half of a day as opposed to all night. Please pray for a safe surgery and wisdom for the doctor.
Warren found out last night that his friend Nikolette, whom he met at the hospital during mutual chemo, had passed away after fighting her third bout with cancer. Please pray for her family as the grief sets in, and for Warren as well, as he deals with the loss of a friend and also the fears of cancer (for us and him) that are raised by her passing. Thanks so much.
Also, our youngest son Ryan may have a kidney or bladder problem. He went in for a blood test last week, and this Friday is an ultrasound just to check things out. Could you keep him in prayer also? Thanks so much for your prayers.
We all have colds this week (except Warren,amazingly),and Baby Heather has been particularly fussy and downright screaming at times ( she still has digestive troubles),so prayers for her and all of us sickies would also be appreciated. Thanks!

Tamra

Hello All,

Good news!
All of Warren's one-month-after-chemo-ended scans are clear of any cancer! Praise God, the Healer!
Thanks for all of your prayers, love,and help in this heavy time in our lives.
Please continue to pray for emotional healing for all of us.
Next up: Warren will have his Hickman chest IV surgically removed in the next two weeks. We'll let you know the day when we find out.
After that we'll have monthly blood tests, and every three months scans, which will gradually be farther apart.
They say that Burkitt's, since it's such an aggressive cancer, would most likely come back in the first year if it was going to at all. 80 percent of kids treated are fine five years after treatment (when their risk of cancer returns to the same risk percentage as a normal person). So please pray for continued clear scans and good health for Warren. (And for him to want to eat vegetables and fruit!)

Saturday, January 14, 2006 3:58 PM CST

Update 01-17-06

Warren's bone marrow test was also clear of any cancer! I called the clinic again, and a nurse looked in his file. I haven't heard from a doctor yet, so I'm still a little nervous about assuming everything is good, but I guess they would call me if it was bad.
CANCER-FREE, FOLKS! Praise God, He's the one who heals! Thanks for all of your faithful prayers and love and support through all of this.

Update 01-16-06

The clinic did not call me with results by 3:00 pm today, so I bothered them till a nurse finally called me back after 5:00 with some results: spinal fluid, clear; CAT scan looks clear; bone marrow not back yet. There definitely is a lack of communication from them at times, probably because of a shortage of doctors. The clinic usually has four; they've been running on two since July. Let's pray for more doctors to apply for the job openings there.

p.s. A nurse told me Wed 01-18-06, they have hired a new doctor who will be here in a week! Praise God! She said they've been extremely busy with new cancer cases since Christmas.

Hello All,

Warren had his one-month-after-ending-chemo bone marrow test,spinal fluid test, and CAT scan this week. We should hear the results on Monday. Warren did get to see the CAT scans for a moment, and the person who took the pictures said they looked clear, but the radiologist has to officially declare that. Please pray for the tests to remain clear of cancer,for wisdom for the radiologist and oncologists, and peace for our spirits either way.
Also, please pray for wisdom for us and the means to buy a vehicle we will all fit in, as we had to return my sister's car this week ( after borrowing it for 7 months!) Thanks, Denine!

Tamra

Thursday, January 5, 2006 9:42 PM CST

Dear All,
The kids had a windfall of gifts for Christmas because of two organizations: The Optimist Club of Gresham, who gave us gift cetificates and Christmas dinner, and Majestic Mortgage, who brought presents for them. Also, a gift of money from a family we go go to church with covered the rest of groceries that week. Thanks so much, everyone!
Warren's blood counts continue to rise closer to the low normal levels. He's so glad to be able to go places again! Warren plans to go to Winter Camp in Estacada this weekend with the rest of our church's Jr High youth group. They will hear a great speaker and play in the snow! Please pray for him to be healthy and happy and WARM while there. He continues to have problems keeping his hands and feet warm because of the nerve damage from the chemo. We're not sure if the problem will improve or worsen as time goes on.
There is a CAT scan and bone marrow planned for next week, tentatively Thursday, so please keep him in your prayers for clear scans and total healing. It's kind of scary to think about a possibly negative report. Most kids with Burkitt's lymphoma go into remission after chemo and remain cancer free for the normal 5 years measuring stick, after which they have as much chance of having cancer as anyone else. If it came back, it would probably do so in the first year following the end of chemo because it is such an aggressive cancer.
Thanks for your faithful prayers!

Tamra

Monday, December 19, 2005 3:59 PM CST

Hello All,

Warren got his laptop on Saturday (Make-a-Wish came by), and a pizza party with an ice cream cake, and he and his friends and we went to see the new Narnia movie at the Tigard 11 Cinemas for free!(Thanks to the theater) Excellent movie, by the way. I liked it better than the book.

Then in the evening, we went to my family christmas and ate yummy food and gave and opened gifts. It was a pretty whirlwind day for all of us. But lots of fun.

Warren has an appointment at the clinic tomorrow, he may need blood or platelets transfused. He feels kind of cruddy today, and has been bruising easily the last few days, so he'll probably need platelets for sure.

Warren had his last chemo a week ago, so his white blood cell levels will continue to drop to 0. Please pray for protection from germs, and pray for wisdom for us in where we allow him to go. He's always gungho about anywhere he can go, especially church (that's the hardest decision for us, as it lifts his spirits to go).

Thanks for your prayers and love.

Merry Christmas to all! Thank God for sending His only Son to restore relationship with us. His love is what strengthens us through all of this-

Tamra

Update 12-22-05 Warren got blood and platelets on Tues., and is feeling better. We are home for now!

Wednesday, December 14, 2005 4:02 AM CST

Great News for Warren

Last Friday, Warren had his last chemotherapy treatment at 9:00PM and At 9:30 He was able to go home. Lord willing it will be his last over night stay in the Hospital. I really feel like a new chapter in our life is turning. Wow what a thrill ride. There have been some ups and a lot of downs with a few looptloops thrown in for extra queasiness added in. I want to thank everyone who stood by us and supported us in every way. Thank you. Your immeasurable support is truly a wonderful gift from The Lord Himself.
Make-a-Wish called on Tuesday to tell us the Laptop for Warren Is almost done and It will be ready by early next week. Please pray that Warren will enjoy it and not idolize it. Warren get to have a party because of the laptop.
Warren is going to have an end of chemotherapy party at the hospital. Please pray that everything will go well with it.
Thank you again for all your prayers and support.
In Christ alone do I put my trust,
Mark

Friday, December 9, 2005 5:28 PM CST

Dear Friends,

Warren is in the hospital this week for his last round of chemo! Praise God he's made it this far with only a few complications! He'll be going home Sat., Dec. the 10th. Please keep him in your prayers this week and next, when his blood levels will drop very low, and he'll need a blood transfusion or two.
Thanks SO MUCH for your faithful prayers and concern for our family. We'll keep you all up to date on the monthly checkups and scans - please pray that they will remain clear.

Love,

Tamra and family
Update 12-10 : Warren is home!

Thursday, December 1, 2005 2:40 AM CST

Hi Everyone!

Warren was clear of bacteria in the blood for two days, so he's home now (Wed night). We're finishing the antibiotics (using his chest IV)through next Thurs, waking up at 4:00 am to start one dose, and at 6:00 to end it with a flush. I'm hoping it will coincide with when I'm up with Heather anyway, but I doubt it. Mark wants to help with it, but the medicine he's on for nerve pain in his leg totally zonks him out and he CAN'T wake up. The Dr. will try another nerve block on Mark's leg this Fri, but last time it only worked for 3 days. Thanks for your prayers!

Monday, November 28, 2005 4:49 PM CST

Warren's fever has stayed away, but his blood cultures have come back twice as positive for bad bacteria. They had us come in yesterday for another dose of antibiotics, and today he and Mark are at the clinic, waiting to hear if they are going to admit him for stronger antibiotics. We all went to the Candlelighter's holiday party last night in Tigard (for kids with cancer). It's interesting taking two cars to a function ( we're still borrowing my sister's car, as we don't all fit in ours anymore), especially if I'm not familiar with where I'm going. It was fun - music (Michael Allen Harrison), a buffet to please children, and presents for the kids.
Update: Warren has been admitted to the hospital for two days of antibiotics and monitoring.

Saturday, November 26, 2005 6:39 PM CST

Warren had a fever yesterday (Fri), so we went in to the clinic for some antibiotics. Now we are just watching him closely for recurring fever- so far he has none. Mark had what we've always thought was a cold sore recur last week, but the Dr. thought from symptoms it was shingles, which people can get chickenpox from. Well, new little Heather has never had chickenpox, and if she catches it, then Warren would be susceptible to chickenpox again, and the nasty complications are many times more likely to occur in the immunosuppressed person. Please pray that if it was shingles, my natural defense will reach Heather through my milk, and that Warren's body won't have to try to deal with one more burden. Thanks!

Thursday, November 17, 2005 7:19 PM CST

Warren is doing okay- coasting along. His blood counts were going down this week from the chemo, got blood Tues. Has no white blood cells right now- can't fight off germs. Mark came down with pink eye yesterday ( he works at GNC, with sick people coming in all day for cold remedies, etc. -he uses hand sanitizer constantly)- I'm trying to keep the germs away from Warren, which is difficult in the same house. Please pray for protection from germs for Warren, and for healing for Mark. Thanks! Next chemo probably close to beginning of December- last one!
Update: Mark has a fungal infection, not bacterial, and is on medicine for it.

Thursday, November 17, 2005 7:19 PM CST

Saturday, November 5, 2005 5:22 PM CST

Warren is home for now, taking the rest of steroids in pill form following outpatient chemo this week. At first he wanted to be in the hospital so he wouldn't have to swallow anything, but Mark and I wanted to stay home this one time that it was possible, as it is stressful to be split up as a family. The pills are going okay, a little rough at first, but he's putting each pill (they taste nasty) in a small lump of caramel dip, and swallowing it, with little or no aftertaste. He has the beginning of mouth sores, and a sore throat, bone pain and tooth pain. He always gets huge black bags under his eyes, and just looks terrible. Thinking about chemo going into his little body makes me want to beat someone up or take him and run away (fight or flight), but we just have to stand it a little longer, and he will have the greatest chance to continue to live.
Thanks for praying for us, and standing with us through this stressful and sad time in our lives. Please pray for emotional and physical strength for all of us, and the least amount of side effects for Warren, short term and long term (heart, liver, and nerve damage, fatigue, learning and memory problems). He will be immuno-compromised for a year following last chemo (in Dec), and will need physical therapy for at least 6 months to regain his strength. He's looking forward to swimming again, once the Dr.s pull out his Hickman (IV line in his chest).

Wednesday, November 2, 2005 0:11 AM CST

Tamra here. Warren goes in tomorrow for two days of outpatient chemo (Wed and Thurs). Please keep us in prayer, as I and baby Heather have to be there a day and a half with him, and I am exhausted just mostly staying home. Pray for just mild side effects and for him to be able to swallow the pills he needs to once we get home(chemo makes it hard to swallow). Last time with this kind of chemo, he had a bad sore throat for a week following. He's dreading that it will happen again. After this round, only one left! :)

Wednesday, October 26, 2005 10:24 PM CDT

Hello everyone! Tamra here, making a rare journal entry. On Monday, Oct. 17th, we went to the clinic for blood tests, and were happily surprised that there were presents waiting for Heather from two of the families we'd met at the hospital whose children are also going through treatments for cancer! ( I am amazed at the grace God gives His children to love each other even when going through the hardest thing they've had to deal with). Warren then had to go to day treatment and receive a blood transfusion. On Tuesday, Oct. 18th, Warren had to be admitted for a fever. His blood tests didn't show any germs, as usual, he just needed some blood, and they let him go home the 20th. We've been home since then, and Warren still has a very low white blood cell count, so please pray for protection from germs during this flu season. We all have to get the flu shot this year (and next, as Warren will have a low immune system for a year after the last chemo treatment, which will probably be December).Two more maintenance rounds to go, and these are lower doses, and not as severe side effects (except for needing blood). Please pray that Warren will be healed completely, and that he will be spared from serious long-term side effects ( heart, liver, and nerve damage, learning disabilities).
He's still waiting for his laptop from Make-a-Wish (it looks like it will be January or so).
He'll be helping at the fall carnival at church, handing out candy to the little ones.
Thanks so much for your faithful love and prayers.

Saturday, October 8, 2005 2:28 PM PDT

Late news update
I am sorry for not updating the webpae but each time I tried to update the web page something came up and prevented me from doing it. Having a baby around slows everything down.
Warren has been in the hospital this week since Tuesday. Warren is hoping to make it to Sunday morning church. So far he has been tolerating the treatments pretty well. He has only had a little bit of nausea and has a diminished appetite. This round of chemotherapy is a much smaller dose. Please pray that all the cancer will be completely destroyed and Warren will be completely healed of this disease.
Heather is doing great. She is sleeping sometimes as long as 4 hours a night. She is truly a great gift from God. I love holding her close to my chest and just listening to her breath and make baby noises. It has been so long since I have had a baby to hold. It is very special to see Warren holding Heather. Holding Heather is like a calming therapy. (Baby Therapy)
Tamra seems to be tired out. Heather is not on our schedule yet and the littler boys getup eary in the morning. Please pray that her energy will be restored and she will be able to cope with the demands of mothering.
By the way we are still in need of a bigger vehicle. Please pray that God in his Right timing will provide the right one.

In Christ�s perfect plan,
Mark

Please take a moment to pray for these other people,

Rebekah is a wonderfully active three and half year old with lots of energy to spare. She lives in rural Banks, Oregon. Rebekah has had developmental delays including cerebral palsy and other neurological issues throughout her short life and has recently been diagnosed with Ewing�s Sarcoma, a bone and soft tissue cancer that has spread throughout her face, head and neck. It is not treatable by surgery and extensive chemotherapy and radiation have begun.
http://www.helprebekah.com/

Please pray for Cheree Jones she is fighting a very tough cancer. She has been praying for Warren even though she has had her own fight to fight.
Her website is
http://www.chereejones.com

Kennedy she has Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia which is a very nasty cancer. She is almost 5 years old and was diagnosed exactly one month after Warren. This type of cancer is treated for at least 2 � years. She has been slow responding to the chemotherapy so she especially needs the hand of the LORD on her little body.

Joshua Brenneman he was diagnosed with Ewing Sarcoma in October of 2004. The doctors have found some spots on his lung that might be a progression of his cancer. Also he will have to have his throat stretched open slowly. You can read more about him at http://www3.caringbridge.org/or/joshua/

Maggie May she has had a relapse with her cancer and there isn't anything more that they can do. She will be receiving Hospice care in the coming weeks.
http://www.curemaggie.com/

Thursday, September 29, 2005 10:14 PM PDT

Great news Heather Joy Mattox was on Thursday September 29,2005 at 7:13 A.M.
The birth was quick but very hard. Tamra and I went in at 6 AM and Heather Was born at 7:13. Heathers face was the wrong way and she got stuck. On top of that the cord was around her neck and her heart rate was dropping very fast. The nurse told Tamra that she had to push Heather out right away. Tamra amazingly was able to push Heather out despite the pain. When Heather did get out she was very pale and blue and wasn't breathing. The NICU nurses did a great job and got her revived with in a couple minutes. Then the midwife was able to get the cord blood collected just in case we ever needed it. Heather within a few minutes was hungry and was ready to nurse right then. The nurses said that it was a good sign that she was ready to eat. They said that a baby that is having problems would not want to eat. Praise God that Heather came though this trial and thank God for the great team that was on hand right then. Heather was the first of at least 4 babies that were being born this morning. We got the last birthing room that was available. They were very busy but it all work out just right. Please pray that Tamra will heal up quickly and completely she did have some areas that needed stitching to repair her from the rushing of the birth. She did have to take some pain medicine. Warren is doing great and is spending the night with Tamra in the room while I am staying here at home with the Boys. Her room is 2511. Warren is doing fine right now he is between treatments right now. His next Dr appointment is on Tuesday. Hopefully we will not have to start chemotherapy on that day. We would like to have a week to enjoy Heather without having to do cancer treatment at the same time. Ryan and Jared love Heather and are clamoring to do something for her like give her teething toys (a little early for that :) or help with diaper changes. (never to early to learn how to help with that). She has dark hair. She was 7lbs 14.4oz 20 in long. She seems to be a content baby that only complains when there is a reason. She is just lovely and very precious. I am on a 2 week vacation right now and one week is paid and the other is not. We are trusting that God will provide for us. Thank you for praying for us,
Mark

Wednesday, September 21, 2005 9:13 PM CDT

We are home now. Warren had no fever last night, so they let him go home today. It should get better from here till the next chemo (probably mid- October), barring an infection. Please pray for protection from germs and time for us to be able to rest before baby is born (due on the 28th). Thanks for your prayers. - Tamra

Sunday, September 18, 2005 2:38 PM CDT

Warren is back at the hospital. He has a fever and is having pain from mouth sores. He was given red blood cells and platlets. He is on antibiotics to clear up the fever. Please pray for his protection from infection.
In Christ's comfort,
Mark

Monday, September 12, 2005 1:26 AM PDT

We had a blast today. We went to the Air Show in Hillsboro. There was a lot of great pilots and some assume tricks and stunts. It was too long though. We got there 9:30am and we sat in the sun until 4:30pm. At about 11am Ryan said �could we go home now�. He was done. Warren liked the Thunder Birds. Warren got bored and wishes that he had one of his friends with him. We were given tickets from the Make-a-Wish foundation. It was a great day, a little long but overall it was really nice. Please keep Joshua in prayer during this week. He is going in on Monday for a PET scan. This scan will be more definitive. On his most recent CAT scan there were something in his lungs that might be cancer or it could be a partially collapsed lung from being on his back in bed so long. Please pray for his family to have peace no matter what may come.

Warren is having a hard time swallowing his prednisone pill. Please pray that he will be able to successfully manage to take these pills. They taste very bad and he gags on them each time he has to take them.

One extra prayer request, When the baby is born (Heather Joy) we are going to need a bigger vehicle. Our little toyota is too small for another person. Please Pray that God will provide a car or van that is big enough to fit the three boy, Tamra, the baby, and myself.

Thank you for all your help and support. We are leaning on God.

Please take a moment to pray for these other people,

Rebekah is a wonderfully active three and half year old with lots of energy to spare. She lives in rural Banks, Oregon. Rebekah has had developmental delays including cerebral palsy and other neurological issues throughout her short life and has recently been diagnosed with Ewing�s Sarcoma, a bone and soft tissue cancer that has spread throughout her face, head and neck. It is not treatable by surgery and extensive chemotherapy and radiation have begun.
http://www.helprebekah.com/

Please pray for Cheree Jones she is fighting a very tough cancer. She has been praying for Warren even though she has had her own fight to fight. She needs to have consistent sleep and rest that restores her body, soul, and spirit. She is battling an infection and is in the hospital.
Her website is
http://www.chereejones.com

Kennedy she has Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia which is a very nasty cancer. She is almost 5 years old and was diagnosed exactly one month after Warren. This type of cancer is treated for at least 2 � years. She has been slow responding to the chemotherapy so she especially needs the hand of the LORD on her little body.

Joshua Brenneman he was diagnosed with Ewing Sarcoma in October of 2004. The doctors have found some spots on his lung that might be a progression of his cancer. Also he will have to have his thoat stretched open slowly. You can read more about him at http://www3.caringbridge.org/or/joshua/

Maggie May she has had a relapse with her cancer and there isn't any thing more that they can do. She will be receiving Hospice care in the coming weeks.
http://www.curemaggie.com/

Saturday, September 10, 2005 8:28 PM CDT

Warren came home from the hospital today. He is exhausted and feeling emotionally low with the steroid's effects, his blood counts going down, and mouth sores coming on. He will need some blood transfusions in the coming weeks.
The CAT scan looked even better this time- all tumors gone (like the last one), but also the shadows of leftover dead cells or whatever was there last time is also gone!
It's been an emotionally heavy week besides our own troubles. Two kids with cancer whose stories Mark has been following closely had setbacks- one, Joshua, had some spots on his lungs on his last scan- they are praying that it's not the cancer, but a result of lying down in ICU for a week. Please pray for his family to have peace in whatever happens. Also, a little girl I've never met, (because she had to be in her hospital room to avoid germs)Maggie, had a second relapse(after a bone marrow transplant), and has gone to Disneyland and then will have home hospice care. This is very heavy for her family and the nurses and doctors who have bonded with her. Please pray for all involved with her situation.

Wednesday, September 7, 2005 2:35 PM CDT

Hello all- Tamra here, Warren's mom. Warren was admitted yesterday for chemo. This particular chemo can cause heart, liver, and/or nerve damage, so please cover Warren in your prayers this week. He will have a cat scan on Saturday, to see if the small shadows of questionable mass have disappeared yet. They don't think it is cancer at this point, just residue that his body needs to dissolve, so it should gradually disappear. If not, they may need to do a biopsy to find out exactly what it is, but it is so small, it would be very difficult.)
Please pray for his spirits this week, as the steroids they give him mess with his emotional strength, and then, of course, feeling sick and low energy doesn't help. He also misses a lot of sleep as they are pumping lots of fluid through him to make sure the chemo leaves fast enough.
I have to say that I've been so surprised by Warren's tenacity in living life, in trying to jump back to being normal as soon as possible after a chemo round. He just can't wait to be normal again all the time. But even with his low energy and the doctors telling him to only go to church once a month when his white blood cells are higher (to be able to fight off germs), he is determined to be there every time he can.(This strength reminds me of my dad who died of lymphoma when Warren was 1 1/2.) Warren helped with VBS and Kid's Worship at church this summer, even when he didn't really have the energy. It probably improved his energy levels to have a focus and a reason to keep moving, and helping others changes one's perpective on what one is going through. It is interesting that he is seeking activities to help with, as I am backing way off of commitments in this stressful, busy time. He really enjoys helping with kids, and plans to be a counselor at Trout Creek Bible Camp when he's old enough. He also would like to help with the Child Life people who help the kids at the hospital have entertainment and positive interaction while in treatment. Please pray about his future path and plans, and for the Lord to show him a clear goal to live toward.
Thanks for all your prayers and concern and for loyally praying for us in this difficult time. May Jesus be praised for getting us this far, and I know He will be faithful to give us the strength to get through whatever lies ahead.

Monday, August 29, 2005 8:18 PM CDT

Warren is home for another week. His platelets were 79,000 and they have to be at least 100,000 to start the next round of chemotherapy. Tamra was just sure that Warren would be back in the hospital because Warren's energy was coming back. It is nice to be out of the hospital for awhile. Please continue to be praying for Warren. This coming round of chemotherapy has caused Warren intolerable mouth sores and very bad nausea. Please pray that the Doctors will have compassion on Warren and treat his pain as he gets it. They play this game of wait and see until it gets very bad. Warren will be getting a cat scan when he goes back to see if the remnants of the tumor has gone away or not. Warren will also have a bone marrow aspiration to check and see if there is any detectable cancer there.

The neighbor that lives across the street from us died of an asthma attack on Friday night. She has 4 children ranging in age from8 months old to 15 years old. It is a very traumatic time for them. We were not very close to the family. They moved in the first month of Warrens disease. I don't even know their name. It looks like the Grandmas of the children are going to step in and help the Father of the two youngest children. They are going to be going through a horrible transition. The Dad is going to have to move in with His mother. He is going to keep all four children together and raise them as his own. Also school is going to be starting very soon. It is going to be very hard for them. Please pray for this family.

Please take a moment to pray for these other people,

Rebekah is a wonderfully active three and half year old with lots of energy to spare. She lives in rural Banks, Oregon. Rebekah has had developmental delays including cerebral palsy and other neurological issues throughout her short life and has recently been diagnosed with Ewing�s Sarcoma, a bone and soft tissue cancer that has spread throughout her face, head and neck. It is not treatable by surgery and extensive chemotherapy and radiation have begun.
http://www.helprebekah.com/

Please pray for Cheree Jones she is fighting a very tough cancer. She has been praying for Warren even though she has had her own fight to fight. She needs to have consistent sleep and rest that restores her body, soul, and spirit. She is currently resting at her home in Washington.
Her website is
http://www.chereejones.com

Kennedy she has Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia which is a very nasty cancer. She is almost 5 years old and was diagnosed exactly one month after Warren. Her family is strong believers as well. This type of cancer is treated for at least 2 � years. She has been slow responding to the chemotherapy so she especially needs the hand of the LORD on her little body.

Joshua Brenneman he was diagnosed with Ewing Sarcoma in October of 2004 His family is asking for prayer and wisdom about his treatment. They recently discovered his throat has closed down to a very small opening and he will have to have it stretched open slowly. His family is very strong believers. You can read more about him at http://www3.caringbridge.org/or/joshua/

Maggie May she has a very tough cancer to fight and has had a bone morrow transplant up at Doernbecher. It will be very tough for a very sweat little girl. You can read more about her at
http://www.curemaggie.com/

Thursday, August 25, 2005 11:51 AM PDT

We have been home this week. Warren's platelets were not high enough for them to start chemotherapy. We will go in on Monday to see if his body is ready then. Please keep praying for Warren's health during this week of low platelets. Thank you for your continuing faithfulness especially during the summer when so many other things are calling.
In Christ,
Mark

Tuesday, August 23, 2005 1:04 PM CDT

quick update to last nights update, Someone at the hospital had used our old insurance info so those bills will have to be repocessed. We still have health insurance! It was another test of faith. Please keep praying,
Mark

Ps Warren, Tamra, and the brothers are at the clinic today. We will see if Warren has to start chemotherapy today or not.

Monday, August 22, 2005 5:49 PM PDT

Quick prayer request,
Our health insurance has sent us a notice that our coverage has been canceled as of 5/30/05. It is too late to call them today so I'll call on Tuesday and let you all know what is up. Please pray about this as it is very upsetting to get such a notice right now,
Mark
By the way it has been less then 12 hours since the last update. If you haven't read it it is in the journal history.

Monday, August 22, 2005 12:38 AM PDT

Warren has been home this week. It has been nice to have a little down time. Warren had a great time on Sunday at the yearly church picnic at Trout Creek Bible Camp. I think Warren would choose to spend the rest of his life there if he had the choice. It was a little sad for him because he could not swim because of his hickman port, but he had a blast anyway. On Thursday he went in and had a unit of blood and platelets. We are waiting to see what his numbers will be on Tuesday to see if he has to start chemotherapy on that day or not. Please pray that warren will start at the right time. I want the cancer killed but not the patient. Pray that God will protect Warren's mouth from the mouth sores that he has had in the past. Also please pray for Tamra and I during this round of chemotherapy. It is very stressful for us because the treatment is so hard on Warren and the Doctors seem so slow in responding to the situation. Pray that the doctors will have the wisdom and kindness to treat Warren's pain as he get it instead of waiting until it is out of control.

One praise report we were given the money to cover the cost of the transportation fee for the cord blood! God is good and has provided for us. It is gut wrenchingly disconcerting though because we are hoping that Warren will not be a candidate for needing the cord blood. It would only be used if Warren needs a blood marrow transplant and that would only be necessary if he had a relapse. I am hoping that we are collecting it for someone else in need. After we do not want it we can donate it to the cord blood bank for a stranger to use. Pray that God will give us the wisdom to know what to do with the blood after Warren is through with this. We could keep it for us just in case one of the other children needed it or we could donate it and give someone else the chance to use it. It would be a tough decision for us to make because once it is donated it can not be gotten back. Only the Lord could provide the perfect choice.
Please be praying for me. My leg has been really hurting lately and my regular doctor seems to be out of ideas. He wants me to just go through the pain clinic and they seem to be booked up most of the time. Also last Monday the Doctor gave a scare my blood pressure was up so he wanted me to start taking medicine for that and He wanted me to buy a blood pressure monitor to check where i was at on a daily basis. Well i got the monitor and it seems to be alright. I am thinking that it must have been because I was at the doctors office and all the stuff that has been going on lately. My hands and feet have been swelling very easily lately from a salt so something is going on. Please pray that God will continue to bless my work situation. A major part of my paycheck is from the commissions and I sometimes have to make a decision between selling what the company wants me to sell(like selling our brand of something say protein for instance) or selling what makes more commission. It is strange but the name brand can some times pay me up to 4 times more than our brand does. The problems is the management puts a lot of pressure on the sales people to sell the in house brand. My company makes more profit if it sells its brand. So I want to keep my manager happy so things go well there while at the same time i want to make enough money to make up for what was reduced from my earning power during this time of distress. Please pray that God will guide my decisions while i am helping the customers that i am helping. Please pray for my sleep cycle I have been unable to get to sleep until around 2am or later. It would be fine if I didn't need to get up early from time to time. My work is mainly at night so it has been fine for that but things like morning church have been difficult for me to get to.

As always thank you so much for your coveted prayers and support.
Being identified with Christs suffering and daily dieing to self,
Mark
I wanted to share a cool website with all of our friends who have children with cancer
http://www.squirreltales.com/
It is a real lift.

Please take a moment to pray for these other people,

Please pray for Cheree Jones she is fighting a very tough cancer. She has been praying for Warren even though she has had her own fight to fight. She needs to have consistent sleep and rest that restores her body, soul, and spirit. She is currently resting at her home in Washington.
Her website is
http://www.chereejones.com

Kennedy she has Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia which is a very nasty cancer. She is almost 5 years old and was diagnosed exactly one month after Warren. Her family is strong believers as well. This type of cancer is treated for at least 2 � years. She has been slow responding to the chemotherapy so she especially needs the hand of the LORD on her little body.

Joshua Brenneman he was diagnosed with Ewing Sarcoma in October of 2004 His family is asking for prayer and wisdom about his treatment. They recently discovered his throat has closed down to a very small opening and he will have to have it stretched open slowly. His family is very strong believers. You can read more about him at http://www3.caringbridge.org/or/joshua/

Maggie May she has a very tough cancer to fight and has had a bone morrow transplant up at Doernbecher. It will be very tough for a very sweat little girl. You can read more about her at
http://www.curemaggie.com/

Saturday, August 13, 2005 11:07 PM CDT

Warren is home. He came home on Friday. He is feeling fairly tired. Please pray that God will continue to protect him from infection. Warren ANC continues to be none. He has no white blood cells at all and he is now getting daily GCFS shots to bring that up. Please pray that Warren will not get any bone pain from it. Sometimes when the bone marrow kicks in too fast there can be bone pain. Please pray about the upcoming chemotherapy round. It will be a repeat of the first 2 rounds of chemotherapy where Warren had bad mouth sores and rear sores. Please pray that Warren's body will be protected from the side effects of the Chemotherapy.

A side note We are needing $300 for the baby's cord blood storage. There is a chance that Warren will need the cord blood if he has a relapse. There is a grant from the government that reduces the cost down to $300 for the transportation fee and $100 per year for the storage fee. We need the money by next week. We have to pay the money at the time we apply for the grant and we need to apply right away. I hate to ask but if anyone wants to help we would gladly accept any donation of any size. The church has set a fund for us at the church. Cash or check donations can be sent to the church on our behalf. Just send the donation to the church and include a note saying it is for the Mattox family fund. Donations can be sent to Central Bible Church, 8815 NE Glisan Street, Portland, OR 97220. Thank you for your support. The LORD has continually been teaching us to lean on him and we have had to learn total dependency on Him and His body. It has been very hard for us to learn. Please continue to pray that The LORD will protect us and guide us. I want to thank our church for paying Warren dental bill. It is a relief not to have to worry about the medical bills. Our biggest stress has been centered around Warren's health. I feel very blessed to have one of the best medical insurance plans. It is covering most of the costs. We do have to pay for the copays of $25 each time we go and we have to pay copays for his medicines but other than that it has mostly been covered. The nurses say that their plan is not even as good as ours. God was looking out for us when we signed up for it. Tamra just mentioned that we are still looking for a van or something big enough to carry 6 people as our family will be growing soon. Also please pray for the long term protection from the side effects of the Chemotherapy. Warren could get a secondary cancer (leukemia) or He could have Heart damage. Just pray that the LORD will provide a complete remission and healing of his body, mind, soul, and spirit. Please also pray for his brothers. This disease has effected our entire family. It has created a sense of uncertainty and a feeling like you can not count on anything. I know that the LORD is doing an important work and He will see it through completion. Please continue to pray that we will feel the LORD's peace and comfort during this trial. Please also pray that God will continue to provide for all our bills it sometimes has been a struggle. I have to miss work sometimes to care to Warren. That's it for now,
Mark

I wanted to share a cool website with all of our friends who have children with cancer
http://www.squirreltales.com/
It is a real lift.

Please take a moment to pray for these other people,

Please pray for Cheree Jones she is fighting a very tough cancer. She has been praying for Warren even though she has had her own fight to fight. She needs to have consistent sleep and rest that restores her body, soul, and spirit.
Her website is
http://www.chereejones.com

Kennedy she has Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia which is a very nasty cancer. She is almost 5 years old and was diagnosed exactly one month after Warren. Her family is strong believers as well. This type of cancer is treated for at least 2 � years. They have been having a rough time of it lately with the chemotherapy treatments. She has been slow responding to the chemotherapy so she especially needs the hand of the LORD on her little body.

Joshua Brenneman he was diagnosed with Ewing Sarcoma in October of 2004 He has finished his 13th round of chemotherapy out of 14. His family is asking for prayer and wisdom about his treatment. They recently discovered his throat has closed down to a very small opening and he will have to have it stretched open slowly. His next treatment will be August 16. August 16 will Lord willing begin his last chemotherapy treatment. His family is very strong believers. You can read more about him at http://www3.caringbridge.org/or/joshua/

Maggie May she has a very tough cancer to fight and has had a bone morrow transplant up at Doernbecher. It will be very tough for a very sweat little girl. You can read more about her at
http://www.curemaggie.com/

Thursday, August 11, 2005 2:19 AM CDT

Quick news flash Warren is back at the hospital!
He went to the clinic on Tuesday and he received red blood cells and platelets. He got home after six and around 8:30pm, he spiked a 102.7� fever. He is now in room 3522. He has a zero white blood count and so has a zero ANC. Basically he has no defense from any germs. He is having bad itching again. Please pray for him.
Thank you,
Mark

Sunday, August 7, 2005 1:06 AM PDT

Warren was discharged today! His fever is gone and he has not had any positive blood cultures. That was our quickest bounce back. When he got into the hospital room they gave him two units of packed red blood cells and a unit of platelets. After that he started to feel better. He is scheduled to go back on Tuesday for a check up. Warren will continue to be on the Vancomycin while he is home.

It is very nice to be back home.

Please continue to pray for us. Please pray that Warren will continue to be protected from infection. Pray that our family will continue to grow spiritually and grow in our love for God and each other. Pray that Warren will be healed in God's timing and in a way that will bring the most glory to the Lord. Thank you for praying. So far it has seem that most of the things that are big problems have been taken care of right away. I sometimes feel silly bringing these prayer requests to you guys, because it seems as soon as I post the prayer request The LORD answers it. As though it was no big deal in the first place. The LORD is awesome and is worthy of all my praise. Pray for the Doctors at the Oncology Clinic. They still do not have a third Doctor yet. This means that they are still working 2 weeks straight without a break with one week being on call at night and working on the hospital floor during the day. I am worried that they might burn out. You can read more about that in previous posts in the Journal history. I pray for each of you that you may walk closer to the lord and sense his leading for your life. Thank you for being faithful to pray for my family and thank you for checking up on us. Warren appreciates everyone who calls or visits. He needs it.

One special Prayer request with heather coming sometime in late September or early October we are going to need transportation big enough to hold us. We will either need a big car or minivan or something. It needs to be in good condition. Tamra prefers an automatic transmission. Please pray for us in this matter. Please pray that God will continue to provide for our financial needs. Because I have been working less so I could spend time with Warren. I am starting to have some very low paychecks. I know that God will provide. It is sometimes nail bitingly close. By the way the Latest update from Blue cross is that they have spent $316,842.00 of his $2,000,000 life time benefit since April 7, 2005. Thank God for health insurance. Please pray that we will not exceed that limit. That amount does not include the cost of medications that are outside of the hospital. We have a different prescription insurance for that. We are blessed to be in the USA. I pray that this country will have a spiritual revival and will as a majority come to worship The LORD.

Warren hasn't been getting the cards of support like he did at the beginning. It is like many people are on vacation. A quick note from you would brighten Warren's day.
Thank you again for your faithfulness and kindness,
Mark

I wanted to share a cool website with all of our friends who have children with cancer
http://www.squirreltales.com/
It is a real lift.

Please take a moment to pray for these other people,

Please pray for Cheree Jones she is fighting a very tough cancer. She has been praying for Warren even though she has had her own fight to fight. She needs to have consistent sleep and rest that restores her body, soul, and spirit.
Her website is
http://www.chereejones.com

Kennedy she has Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia which is a very nasty cancer. She is around four years old and was diagnosed exactly one month after Warren. Her family is strong believers as well. This type of cancer is treated for at least 2 � years. They have been having a rough time of it lately with the chemotherapy treatments

Joshua Brenneman he was diagnosed with Ewing Sarcoma in October of 2004 He has finished his 13th round of chemotherapy out of 14. His family is asking for prayer and wisdom about his treatment. They recently discovered his throat has closed down to a very small opening and he will have to have it stretched open slowly. His next treatment will be August 16. August 16 will Lord willing begin his last chemotherapy treatment. His family is very strong believers. You can read more about him at http://www3.caringbridge.org/or/joshua/

Maggie May she has a very tough cancer to fight and has had a bone morrow transplant up at Doernbecher. It will be very tough for a very sweat little girl. You can read more about her at
http://www.curemaggie.com/

Thursday, August 4, 2005 2:05 PM CDT

Warren has a fever of 102, when he got to the clinic he was at 101 and in 20 min he got to 102. Please pray for him.
He is being admitted to the hospital.
Thank you,
Mark

Monday, August 1, 2005 4:02 PM CDT

Warren is home. !!!! Praise Jesus! His cultures came back clear today. Thank you for praying. I know that the LORD has answered your prayers. Warren is scheduled to back in the clinic on Thursday. He might need red blood or platelets. I am very thankful for how quickly we were able to get to go home this time. Warren did not have very many side effects this time. Warren's energy is up right now. He did have a unit of red blood on Saturday. So he is feeling pretty good today. Please keep praying for him. In the next couple of week's he will be susceptible to infection. The doctor's expect that he will probable will be back on bounce back at least once the next few weeks. The doctor said that if Warren's ANC doesn't come back up fast enough after the next 2 weeks He would start Daily under the skin shots of GCSF it stings very bad. Warren take umbrage having to just get one that lasts two weeks. Please pray that Warren's blood counts will come back sooner. Please pray that Warren will be protected from infection. Please pray that others will come to follow Christ though our suffering. That our suffering will have a purpose and a meaning. Pray for our family, especially the younger brothers Ryan and Jared. Pray that they will feel the love that we have for them and the love that Jesus has for them. Sometimes they haven't had as much attention as the could get. Also with the baby coming in late September or early October Ryan will not be �the baby� of the family. I just ask for prayer for a smooth transition for our family. It has been 6 years since our last full term baby. Please continue to pray for the Children Oncologists at Emmanuel. They are short staffed and work an incredibly long work week (like two weeks straight and on call one of those weeks). Pray that the LORD will protect them from potentially deadly mistakes. Pray that they will find their rest in HIM. Pray for the new doctors that will be in their clinic.

Please keep my job in your prayers. I need the Lord to bless it. My commission percentage was recently reduced without warning. The enemy would like to discourage me. My job is our primary source of income and It is the source of the health insurance. Pray that the Lord would strengthen me and help me to help others. I love what I do. It is as close to a naturopath as I can get without having my degree. I really desire to get back to school, but it is in God's timing. First things first. Warren and my family come first. Pray that the Lord will help me to keep my eyes on him.

Please pray for Tamra's health. She is having to take medicine to help keep her hyperthyroidism under control. This medicine can effect the baby. She could get goiter from it. Pray that the medicine will do it's job and that the baby will be protected from it. Tamra also has a very restrictive diet to keep her symptoms down. It is hard to make food that she can eat. Pray that she will have the touch of God's healing hand on her. She is keeps the home going while i am away with Warren. Even when I am home she is a hard worker. After my relationship with the LORD, Tamra is the second best thing to ever happen to me. I love her. She is the best.

Please pray for healing of my leg pain. I still am having very bad pain in my leg. It sometimes is very a dull ache at other times it is very intense. It sometimes feels like it is on fire or it feels like something it drilling through it. I sometimes can't get to sleep. I have been dealing with this for about a year and a half. I have tried every thing. I have seen many doctors. The pain clinic was suppose to call me back to schedule and appointment for July and they never got back to me now it is August.

Thank you for all your love and support. The Lord keep you and bless you,
Mark

Please pray for these other people,

Please pray for Cheree Jones she is fighting a very tough cancer. She has been praying for Warren even though she has had her own fight to fight.
Her website is
http://www.chereejones.com

Kennedy she has Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia which is a very nasty cancer. She is around four years old and was diagnosed exactly one month after Warren. Her family is strong believers as well. This type of cancer is treated for at least 2 � years. They have been having a rough time of it lately with the chemotherapy treatments

Joshua Brenneman he was diagnosed with Ewing Sarcoma in October of 2004 He is in his 13th round of chemotherapy out of 14. His family is asking for prayer and wisdom about his treatment. His family is very strong believers as well. You can read more about him at http://www3.caringbridge.org/or/joshua/

Maggie May she has a very tough cancer to fight and has had a bone morrow transplant up at Doernbecher. It will be very tough for a very sweat little girl. You can read more about her at
http://www.curemaggie.com/

I wanted to share a cool website with all of our friends who have children with cancer
http://www.squirreltales.com/
It is a real lift.

Sunday, July 31, 2005 0:09 AM CDT

Warren would like visitors or phone calls at the hospital. His number is 5034131314. He will be in the hospital for at least one day longer, than we expected, because he has had positive blood cultures. This indicates that he is having some kind of infection in his blood. He will be in the hospital until his blood cultures come back clean. The doctors are worried because Warren might have an infection in his central line that runs from the outside and feeds into his vein that is close to his heart. Warren might have to have the line removed or replaced if it is infected. Please pray for Warren�s line. It would be very bad to have to replace the line. I really hope that it does not have to be replaced. It is a major deal involving surgery and a new line now would have to run down to his leg or something. Warren is on Vancomycin. He has had reactions to this medication before, so they are giving him benadryl before they give him the Vancomycin. This makes him very sleepy. Please pray that this infection will go away. The strange thing is Warren does not have a fever. Last night Warren started to have the Hand and Foot reaction from the Cytarabine. His heal feel bruised and is very red, also his hands are starting to have little red spots from the reaction. The Doctor was surprised because Warren has bean getting hydrocortisone shots to prevent this reaction. Now they are trying hydrocortisone cream on the red spots. Please pray about this as well. It is not as important as the infection, but Warren was very miserable last time from this reaction.
Thank you for your continued prayer and support,
Mark

Friday, July 29, 2005 1:49 AM CDT

Warren is doing well. He should be done with this round of chemotherapy around Sunday. Then he should go home for a few days unless he has a bounce back, which is expected, considering the chemotherapy he is receiving this time, is the same as last time. The doctors seem to be a little more understanding this time and seem more willing to give warren the medications that he needs to prevent or at least take away the nausea that Warren has been getting. One thing is Warren is sleeping a lot. Please keep praying that Warren will be healed of this cancer. Pray that Warren�s blood counts come back faster this time and pray that Warren will be protected from infection. Please pray that Warren will not loose heart during this battle. This chemotherapy round seems to affects his mind. Pray that God will guide the Doctors hearts and that they will be given wisdom and knowledge from God concerning how to treat Warren and all the other children that they treat. Please pray that the two doctors who are left will not become burned out. They work very long hours and very long weeks. Please pray that they will treat Warren as a person not as a disease. Pray for the new doctors who will be replacing that doctor who left. Pray that the new doctors will be a prefect match to balance out the two doctors at the clinic now. Pray that the Doctors will come at the right time.
I want each one of you to know that I really appreciate all the help that each one of you have done. I know that many people have been and continue to help us in many ways. I want to thank thoughs who are praying for us. It is what is keeping us together. I never really understood the church and its role in my life, until I went through this. My true family has been the great people who have sacrificed a part of themselves to provide comfort and support to us. Words are not enough to express my gratitude to everyone. Thank you. Please pray that we can keep our eyes on our great comforter, redeemer, and source of life. Pray that we will have His mercy to keep going. Please pray that many people will be touched by the work that the Lord is doing through us.
I pray for each person who reads this that their heart�s will be turned toward our great and compassionate Creator, who loves us so much that he came and died for us, to make a way for us to come and know Him personally. I pray that you will come to know Jesus in a personal and fulfilling way. The best decision I ever made was to open the door of my heart to allow Him to come in and live inside of me. I pray that this fiery trial will some how touch your life so that you can learn how to walk with god each day and learn how to share in his sufferings.

That is it for now with much love and gratefulness,
Mark

Please pray for these other people,

Please pray for Cheree Jones she is fighting a very tough cancer. She has been praying for Warren even though she has had her own fight to fight.
Her website is
http://www.chereejones.com/updates.asp?month=0&year=0

Kennedy she has Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia which is a very nasty cancer. She is around four years old and was diagnosed exactly one month after Warren. Her family is strong believers as well. This type of cancer is treated for at least 2 � years. They have been having a rough time of it lately with the chemotherapy treatments

Joshua Brenneman he was diagnosed with Ewing Sarcoma in October of 2004 He is in his 13th round of chemotherapy out of 14. His family is asking for prayer and wisdom about his treatment. His family is very strong believers as well. You can read more about him at http://www3.caringbridge.org/or/joshua/

Maggie May she has a very tough cancer to fight and has had a bone morrow transplant up at Doernbecher. It will be very tough for a very sweat little girl. You can read more about her at
http://www.curemaggie.com/

I wrote this to the parents of children with cancer Dear beloved child of the Lord,
I want you to know that I am praying for you. I have been asking everyone to pray for you and your son. May the God of all comfort, comfort you during this hardship. May you feel His awesome power and healing strength. I pray that you will feel the LORD�s presence right there in your room. I have been greatly encouraged sharing in your sufferings. Thank you for sharing your trials with others. I know that it is a very painful road your on in this night time of shadows but, please remember there is joy in the morning. Please do not lose sight of our wonderful Savior who loves us so much. Please remember he is with you always and will never leave you or forsake you. Remember that when you hurt he hurts as well. When this world gets too crazy, remember you are only a traveler through this world. Remember that this world is not your home. Your real home is in heaven. That is what your heart truly longs for, to be in The LORD�s awesome presence. There is no other better place to be. You are here because the LORD has a plan for you here. I pray that you will feel his love and kinship. He is closer than any friend is. Put your complete trust in Him. I pray that you will not give up hope. I pray that you will have your prayers answered and your child will be completely healed in everyway his entire body, mind, soul and spirit. I pray that you will be restored and even stronger than you were before this affliction began. I pray that the LORD will fill you with His joy and peace. You are touching many people through this tribulation. Many people you will never know on this side of heaven are coming to Christ in prayer for you. Keep up the good fight. In Christ,
Mark Mattox

Tuesday, July 26, 2005 8:20 PM CDT

Warren is back at the hospital. His counts were finally up to the level where it should have been two weeks ago. Warren is starting the same chemotherapy combination as he had last time. (ARA-C and Etopiside) Please keep Warren in your prayers. This chemotherapy really effects him emotionally and physically. Warren is already having nausea and is feeling very sad to have to be back at the hospital. It so hard to see him full of life Monday and then wiped out today.

Social Security sent us a check. We were very surprised. Now we feel like we have to be very careful about the money that we get from the church. So that it will not be held against us.

That's it for now,
Mark

Tuesday, July 26, 2005 8:20 PM CDT

Saturday, July 23, 2005 12:44 AM PDT

A quicker note than last night. Warren is doing very well right now. Last night I had to run and get Warren out of the tent in the back yard because of the lightening shower we had. The whole sky was being lit up and the ground was rumbling under our feet. It was awesome to see this power of nature and to remember that it doesn't compare to the mighty power of God. Wow! Praise His name. Be still and know that He is God.

It has been really nice to have the break from the chemotherapy and hospital life. I look forward to the day when we will be home for good, without the treat of at any moment we have to jump into the car and go the hospital. I look forward to heaven where there will be no more tears and no more pain or sorrow. That will be the day of great adoration of my Lord and King. I love and serve one master the only one who is worthy of my devotion.

I had a pretty good day at work today. I had a myriad of customers. It was very good to be busy and I was able to make some good money, not as much as I would have before my commission had been cut, but I made more money today than I usually do. I really want to keep busy at work and help customers the best that I can. It is really encouraging when customers come in and say that they have benefited from my work. I try to work as though I am working for God.

I just got a letter from the insurance company about some of the bills they have paid and on the back it lists Warren's lifetime maximum coverage. So far the insurance company has paid $249,092.88 of Warren's maximum of $2,000,000 life time benefit. Thank God for health insurance. I really never appreciated the insurance before, but now I really do I plan to never live without insurance. How other people do it I really do not know. Please pray that we will not exceed that lifetime benefit amount. Please pray that our family will have the strength and courage that comes from God to make it through this tough time.

Thank you for checking up on Warren and praying for us. Please continue in your love and support. In Christ's Goodness,
Mark

Please pray for these other people,

Please pray for Cheree Jones she is fighting a very tough cancer. She has been praying for Warren even though she has had her own fight to fight.
Her website is asking for urgent prayers right now. Her website is
http://www.chereejones.com/updates.asp?month=0&year=0

Kennedy she has Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia which is a very nasty cancer. She is around four years old and was diagnosed exactly one month after Warren. Her family is strong believers as well. This type of cancer is treated for at least 2 � years. They have been having a rough time of it lately with the chemotherapy treatments. I hope to be able to give her caringbridge website info after I get permission from her parents.

Joshua Brenneman he was diagnosed with Ewing Sarcoma in October of 2004 they are about to start their 13th round of chemotherapy out of 14. His family is asking for prayer and wisdom about his treatment. His family is very strong believers as well. You can read more about him at http://www3.caringbridge.org/or/joshua/

Maggie May she has a very tough cancer to fight and has had a bone morrow transplant up at Doernbecher. It will be very tough for a very sweat little girl. You can read more about her at
http://www.curemaggie.com/

Friday, July 22, 2005 2:14 AM PDT

Quick update,
Warren is still at home. His blood counts are still too low, especially his platelets. He went to the clinic Monday and Thursday. This has been the fourth time that we have gone to the clinic only to be turned away because of Warren's numbers. It is starting to get expensive we have to pay $25 each time we go and then we go home to wait for Warren's numbers to get to normal until the next time we go to the clinic. Thankfully we had Dr. Norwood because he insists on following the protocol. It worries us that Dr. Olson wants to hurry up the process and not wait for Warren's body to catch up. One concern we have is that the cancer might come back while we are waiting for his platelets to come up. Please pray for Warren's protection from the cancer and from the chemotherapy. Pray that the Chemotherapy will only effect Warren's cancerous cells and not his normal cells. Please pray that Warren will continue to get stronger and stronger each day.

On the first side note we have received notice from Social Security that we might not get any benefits because of the gifts from our church. Social Security wants to treat these sporadic gifts of love from our caring church as though it was income. I am extremely incredulous that Social Security wants to treat this as income. They would only allow it if it where from the church and directly paid to the medical bills. I want to scream at them. Right now my work just decreased my income again. Last week my commission rate was lowered out of the blue with no notice. I only founded out because I was not getting as much money as I usually make. I was hoping that Social Security insurance would help with the first reduction in income from my demotion, now there is this. It is about a $60 reduction in our income per month from the reduction in my commission, but add that to the $2.75 an hour decrease in income from the demotion and it is starting to add up to some real choices for us to have to make. Please pray that God will take care of all our financial needs. I am not sure what to ask about the SSI. I know that the LORD will take care of us. It is a little disappointing to have one time free will gifts held against us when we have been paying SSI all these years and we finally have a need for it and they are threatening to not let us have the money that we have been forced to put in. If the church had not helped us we would be qualified to get it. As a family of five we only made $22,000 last year. We are below the poverty line. Social Security does not even care that I have been demoted, the that my income has gone down, or that I am need to help Warren so I have taken time off of work to help him. All they care about are a few generous gifts from the church.

On a second side note last night I had a very bad migraine for the first time in about 5 years. Also my leg pain has been getting worse each day. I need to get back to the Pain clinic, but it is hard to schedule an appointment with them because I do not know what my work schedule will be from week to week and I do not know if I'll be at the hospital with Warren. Please pray that God would heal this pain if it is in his will. If it is not God's will to take these pain away please pray that I will be able to get an appointment time that will not take me away from Warren and that it will not interfere with my work schedule. My life seems too complicated with Warren's situation to have to have my own set of on going medical needs. It seems like I already have enough trouble than to add this to it. Last night I was in so much pain I could not even tolerate the sound of my own breathing. I just went into bed and put one pillow under my head and one pillow over my head just to try to keep the noise and light out. My Irritable Bowel Syndrome was feeling like someone was cutting though my guts and my leg felt like it was on fire. Please pray for God's protection over my body and for God's protection around my family. God's ways are not our ways. I want to feel God's presence in my life and I want to reach others with God's love.

I have a friend who is having a hard time right now she is pregnant and scared. Please pray that Julie (that is not her real name but God know who she is) will feel God's love right now and that she will feel like this new baby is a blessing. She is having a hard time with her job right now. She is very concerned about her income during the pregnancy and after. I fear that she might consider taking the easy way out. I believe that every life has a purpose and that with God there is no accidents. There is nothing that He did not know about before it happened. I believe that he has a plan for that new baby. I believe that we just need to trust Him and give everything to him in a constant flow of prayer and submission to Him.

Please keep us in your prayers. Thank you for all your support and prayers. I love you all in the LORD,
Mark

Please pray for these other people,

Please pray for Cheree Jones she is fighting a very tough cancer. She has been praying for Warren even though she has had her own fight to fight.
Her website is asking for urgent prayers right now. Her website is
http://www.chereejones.com/updates.asp?month=0&year=0

Kennedy she has Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia which is a very nasty cancer. She is around four years old and was diagnosed exactly one month after Warren. Her family is strong believers as well. This type of cancer is treated for at least 2 � years. They have been having a rough time of it lately with the chemotherapy treatments. I hope to be able to give her caringbridge website info after I get permission from her parents.

Joshua Brenneman he was diagnosed with Ewing Sarcoma in October of 2004 they are about to start their 13th round of chemotherapy out of 14. His family is asking for prayer and wisdom about his treatment. His family is very strong believers as well. You can read more about him at http://www3.caringbridge.org/or/joshua/

Maggie May she has a very tough cancer to fight and has had a bone morrow transplant up at Doernbecher. It will be very tough for a very sweat little girl. You can read more about her at
http://www.curemaggie.com/

Friday, July 15, 2005 2:28 AM CDT

Tamra and Warren went to the oncology clinic. Warren's blood count numbers are still to low to start chemotherapy. Dr Olson expects that his numbers will be close enough to start on Monday. She said even if his platelets where only 95,000 she would start him. That news is very unsettling to us because the protocol calls for waiting until Warren is at 100,000. Tamra is considering refusing to allow them to start chemotherapy until the platelets hit the magic number. The reason why she would second guess the Doctors is that she has seen just what this round of chemotherapy does to Warren. Please keep this in your prayers. I know that we are not the experts in cancer and chemotherapy but, we are the ones who know Warren the best. Please pray that the doctors will have the super natural wisdom and incite into how to best treat Warren and that everything will happen in God's perfect timing also, Please pray that if Warren does start chemotherapy on Monday that the Lord will protect Warren's real cells from the damage of the chemotherapy. Pray that Warren will have the grace to get through this treatment with love and the joy of the Lord. Please pray that our family will feel the Lord's presence in our lives and His joy that surpasses all understanding. I want everyone to know that I appreciate each person who checks in on this website. I wish I could thank each one. Please keep checking in and seeing how Warren is doing. Please also spread the news to others who would care to know and pray for us. I know that the Lord is doing a great work through this cancer. Please pray that the cancer will continue to respond to treatment and that what ever the shadows are in Warren's body if they are cancerous pray that they will be destroyed. Tamra said that the doctors are watching a few spots where the cancer was. One is near the liver and another is in the kidneys. Please also pray for the replacement doctors that the oncology clinic is looking for. Pray that the new doctors will have the right personality to match the existing doctors.

Please pray for these other families here at the hospital.

Kennedy she has Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia which is a very nasty cancer. She is around four years old and was diagnosed exactly one month after Warren. Her family is strong believers as well. This type of cancer they treat for at least 2 � years.

Joshua Brenneman he has Ewing Sarcoma in October of 2004 they are about to start their 12th round of chemotherapy out of 14. His family is very strong believers as well. You can read more about him at http://www3.caringbridge.org/or/joshua/

Maggie May she has a very tough cancer to fight and is about to have a bone morrow transplant up at Doernbecher. It will be very tough for a very sweat little girl. I am not sure if they are believers but they could use the prayer. You can read more about her at
http://www.curemaggie.com/

Monday, July 11, 2005 4:13 PM CDT

Warren's blood counts were too low to have chemotherapy today. His platelets were at 29,000 they have to be at least 100,000. His ANC was at .81 normal is 1.50. His hematocrit is at 20.4 normal is at 39.8.
So the point is Warren isn't ready to have chemotherapy now. We are scheduled to go back on Thursday but, Dr Norwood thinks that Warren might need to have red blood cell or platelet transfusions by Thursday. Dr Norwood said that chemotherapy might be delayed as long as late next week. He wants to make sure that Warren is safely ready for chemotherapy and not harm Warren's bone marrow. Please keep Warren in prayer. Pray for Warren's safety during the vacation bible school this week. Warren is planing to be a helper at VBS this week. Pray that Warren's blood will come back to normal.

That it for now,
Mark

Thursday, July 7, 2005 11:55 PM CDT

Fever went down in the morning. We are in a wait and see mode to see if the fever is going to go up or not. Warren didn't need to have any blood today. That means that his bone marrow is doing its job. We are still scheduled to start chemotherapy on Monday. Dr Olson said that she thought that the treatments would be over by Christmas and that there were only 5 more treatments left. Today Dr. Olson said that Warren might need to have a biopsy of the spot where Warren's cancer had been. That spot had a shadow. Dr Norwood said that it was nothing three week's ago. It is frustrating to be toss to and fro by these doctors. Do they not communicate with each other? Is it nothing or is it something? Please keep the doctors in prayer so that they will have the wisdom to treat Warren correctly. Please keep us in yours prayers,
Mark

Thursday, July 7, 2005 1:06 AM PDT

Warren has a fever of 101.0. They are having us stay at home since he is scheduled for an appointment in the morning and he has no other symptoms. Thank you for your continuing support and love.
In Christ's loving care,
Mark

Tuesday, July 5, 2005 4:21 AM CDT

Warren is out for at least the next few days. He is scheduled to be back in the clinic on Thursday. He might need more red blood cells or platelets on Thursday. He is tentatively scheduled to start his chemotherapy on Monday. His white count was up to .4 ANC. Dr. Norwood was very happy to see Warren's white count going up. That means that Warren's Bone Marrow is finally working. It took about two weeks to work. Praise God that it is working and Warren is starting to feel better. He is moving around and having a lot of spunk. We went over to one of his cousins house and watch some great fireworks. I have had a nice little break from work over the last three days. Please continue to pray for my family. We are in constant need for pray. Pray for incite for the Doctors that are treating Warren. The oncology clinic just lost one of their doctors so there is only two doctors Dr Olson is the head of the department and Dr. Norwood. Pray that these hardworking fighters of cancer will not be overworked. They work very long days and each week they take turns of being on call every other week. Pray for the replacement Doctors. Pray that they will find someone who will match their personalities and strengths. I really respect them for the work that they do and pray for them daily. Pray that they will be given the wisdom that they need. Please continue to pray for healing for warren. Over the last three days warren has had some bleeding after he has been getting his lovenox shot. Tonight he didn't but please pray about it. Please also pray that Warren will do better this coming round of chemotherapy it will be round four and it will be the exact thing he just had last chemotherapy round. I am concerned that he will have the same problems that we just had. Thank you all for your love and support. I just can not say how dependent we are on everyone. The stress has been unreal and the need is great as well. Pray for the other families here as it is very hard on everyone. Pray for a support group that I am planing to start. It will be for families of children with cancer. Thank you,
Mark

Their are some other families here that I would like to have prayer for:

Kennedybrooke she has Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia which is a very nasty cancer. She is around four years old and was diagnosed exactly one month after Warren. Her family is strong believers as well. This type of cancer they treat for at least 2 � years.

Joshua Brenneman he has Ewing Sarcoma in October of 2004 they are about to start their 12th round of chemotherapy out of 14. His family is very strong believers as well. You can read more about him at http://www3.caringbridge.org/or/joshua/

Maggie May she has a very tough cancer to fight and is about to have a bone morrow transplant up at Doernbecher. It will be very tough for a very sweat little girl. I am not sure if they are believers but they could use the prayer. You can read more about her at
http://www.curemaggie.com/

Saturday, July 2, 2005 11:31 PM CDT

Hello every one,
Thank you for your continued prayers and support. Warren today got to go out on pass and visit his extended family. He had some cousins in from out of town. He had a blast. He also had some time with his best friend. I really savor the good times. The LORD is good. Warren will need red blood cells and Platelets on Sunday. Hopefully after that we will get to go home. It looks like his white count is too low for Chemotherapy. He has an ANC of .1 yes .1. That is considered very low, Normal would be around 1500. It means that Warren has no white blood cells to count. He is at risk for infection, but he is getting 3 high dose I.V. antibiotics. Please pray that he will stay healthy and not get an infection. Pray for his bone morrow. It is taking a long time for it to recover. The bone morrow is what produces the blood cells. If warren were to get chemo too early before the bone morrow is healthy again the chemo would wipe out the bone morrow. That is not what the doctors are trying to do right now, as things stand now it will not be necessary to do that unless warren a relapse or recurrence of the Burkitt�s. Please pray for wisdom for the oncologist who are treating Warren. Warren is eating a little now. Praise GOD. Warren also is starting to take oral medications. This was a very big hurtle that he had to get over. The LORD is listening to prayers. Some times it is unsettling to know that Jesus is all powerful and answers prayer but He has decided to allow our family to go through this roller coaster. I know in my heart that when I get to heaven it will make sense but right now I is hard to understand how this could be to His glory. Since HE is the potter and I am the clay I will trust that HE does really know what he is doing. I will say that I have had more time for bible study and pray then I have since I got married. I am reading through the bible in a year following the Chronological Bible in the New Living Translation. It is exciting because it is a new translation for me and it is in a different order than the usual bible layout. It puts the stories of the kind together like if there is an account in 1 kings and 1 Chronicles it puts one account right after the other. I could not speak more highly of this particular bible. I really like it. It is hard to use in church because the books are broken up, but it is great for the context. The way I pray is a constant running conversation with God and seeing Him as my master and friend, so I am constantly praying and seeing him. There are times while I am talking to someone I will pray for them in my head asking the Lord to speak through me. My greatest goal in life is to be useful to Him. I some times think of myself as a pen and the LORD is the hand. Some times the LORD picks me up and writes something into someones life a word, or encouragement, or what have you. Sometimes He puts me down to fill me up. Sometimes he puts me in his pocket close to his heart. I am either in his hand or close to his heart. I am only useful when I do exactly what he wants. If I am overfull of myself I will make a mess. If I am dry and not full of his spirit I can�t write what he wants. What he wants to wright or how he wants to use me doesn�t matter to me. I am not to add to or subtract from what he is doing with me. I just want to be right where he wants me. I am more useful to him the more I become like him. Truly I must say that I simply love Jesus and the family he has given to me. My highest purpose is to reflect the life that the Lord has given. An idol is anything that becomes more important to you then Jesus and anything that keeps you from doing his will. Thank you for your support,
Mark

You can email Warren at kidsworship2000@yahoo.com

Their are some other families here that I would like to have pray for:

Kennedybrooke she has Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia which is a very nasty cancer. She is around four years old and was diagnosed exactly one month after Warren. Her family is strong believers as well. This type of cancer they treat for at least 2 � years.

Joshua Brenneman he has Ewing Sarcoma in October of 2004 they just got doen with their 11 round of chemo out of 14. His family is very strong believers as well. You can read more about him at http://www3.caringbridge.org/or/joshua/

Maggie May she has a very tough cancer to fight and is about to have a bone morrow transplant up at Doernbecher. It will be very tough for a very sweat little girl. I am not sure if they are believers but they could use the prayer. You can read more about her at
http://www.curemaggie.com/

Friday, July 1, 2005 11:37 aM pDT

Warren is still at the hospital. There was a very big miscommunication about when Warren would be going home. He is being delayed because he has not been eating and He was having a hard time with oral Medications. That was yesterday. Today he is making a great effort to take the medications that they want him to take by mouth. Last night he was eating a few Cheddar Cheese potato chips. We were disappointed that we were not going home but Warren has to be able to take his medications and eat food. One of Warren�s problems is that he cannot taste most things because his taste buds were destroyed by the Chemo. Everything tastes bland to him. Pray that the LORD will restore his taste buds so food is interesting again. One of Warren�s problems with oral medications is that he has a very sensitive gag reflex and some medications hurt his stomach. Last night he finally took some pain reliever by mouth. It worked really well. We just need him to take a few more medications by mouth and hopefully we will be good to go as soon as he eats a little more food each day. The doctor believes that Warren is getting an anxiety about eating and that is causing the nausea that Warren is having. Please pray about this and pray that Warren will have the peace that passes all understanding.

I want to say that some of the problems that we were having with the doctor is getting better. I believe that there was some kind of spiritual interference going on. As soon as I realized it I started to pray about it. Tamra and I had a talk with the oncologist on Thursday we talked about what was going on and what we would like to see happen with Warren. The doctor is afraid that warren will need a lot of rehab if Warren isn�t being active enough. Warren wants to stay in bed the whole time and he needs to get out of bed and walk around each day so that his muscles will stay strong and flexible. Pray that God will restore Warren�s energy and pray that Warren�s motivation for actively living will be strong. Please keep the whole family in your prayers. We were really hoping that warren would be home before that next round of chemo, which is scheduled to begin on Tuesday. I really wanted to be home to get some projects do around the house the mowing the lawn and I wanted to put up a screen door on the front door since it is going to get hot soon. When I am here at the hospital, I am not there at home to do the man of the house duties. It is hard on everyone when Warren is at the hospital. One answered pray is many people have stepped forward to help out with the younger brothers. Thank you. It is a very helpful. It allows Tamra to spend more time with Warren.

Their are some other families here that I would like to have pray for:

Kennedybrooke she has Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia which is a very nasty cancer. She is around four years old and was diagnosed exacty one month after Warren. Her family is strong believers as well. This type of cancer they treate for at least 2 � years.

Joshua Brenneman he has Ewing Sarcoma in October of 2004 they just got doen with their 11 round of chemo out of 14. His family is very strong believers as well. You can read more about him at http://www3.caringbridge.org/or/joshua/ .
Thank you for your continuing pray and support,
Mark

Wednesday, June 29, 2005 2:10 AM CDT

Warren is doing some better. The Doc's are working on getting Warren home by around Thursday. I still feel like last night was unnecessary. Please keep Warren in your prayers also pray for his doctors to have God's wisdom in their care of Warren. Warren is due to start his next round of chemo starting in about a week. Pray that Warren will not have to come back before then. Thank you for your continued support and prayers,
Mark

Tuesday, June 28, 2005 2:48 AM CDT

Tonight has been one of the worst nights since this all started. The Doc's are way under treating Warren and we are at the end of our ropes. We are considering moving Warren to OHSU. I am not sure what to do to get through to them. They want him to take oral meds and they want to try to treat his itching with a topical treatment that is not working. Warren's itching is so intense that he is jumping up and down on the bed. He was getting 25mcg of fentinal ever four hours now they are only giving him 10mcg twice a day. I could understand if Warren was feeling ready to go home the Doc's changing his meds like this but right now he is no where ready to go. The next round of chemo is the same very thing they just gave him. I feel like if they are unable to properly treat the after math of what they have done that they should not be the ones to give him the next round. Maybe OHSU would be more willing to give Warren the right treatment of this so he could have some peace. Please continue to pray for us.

We just got a statement from the health insurance and in the last three months, that Warren has had the insurance paid $193,618.01. Of that, the only thing that we owe right now is the co pays for the day treatment center, which is $15, each time and the Clinic visits that are $25. I have never been sooooo thankful for insurance, as I have been now. One concern though is that Warren has a maximum of $2,000,000 lifetime benefit. Right now, we are ok but hopefully we do not exceed that amount.

Please continue to pray and keep us in your thoughts. Thank you everyone for your help and support. I know that all the Central bible People know this but, the church has set a fund for us at the church cash donations can be sent to the church on our behalf just send the donation to the church and include a note saying it is for the Mattox family fund. Donations can be sent to Central Bible Church, 8815 NE Glisan Street, Portland, OR 97220. I wanted to put this in to let our extended family and friends know that is available to them if they want to help with the costs involved. We have received three very helpful checks from the church helping us with expenses.

Thank you for the people who have offered to help with the childcare. It is a huge need and a wonderful sacrifice to help in this area. Thank you also to all the people who have provided us with the meals that have been very helpful as well.
Most of all thank you LORD for helping us and giving us such magnificent strength in our time of need. The LORD has been teaching us to lean on him for our strength and learning to lean on his body to help us out. It has been very hard to learn because we always want to just lean on ourselves, but this cancer is bigger than we are.

Give love to those around you and remember what are the most important things in life,
Mark

Sunday, June 26, 2005 12:46 AM pDT

Warren is doing a little better tonight. His fever is mostly down it is a little higher than normal but not as bad as last night. We are still at the hospital. Room 3510. Warren is getting all sorts of I.V. antibiotics and antiyeast medications. Please pray that Warren wont have any bad reactions to the medications. Warren is talking about getting TPN (food in a bag through the IV). He has not been eating at all over the last few days. He still has some skin sores and mouth sores. The mouth sores are preventing him from opening his mouth very much. His pain is partly being taken care of but I think he needs a little more. I feel like it is like pulling teeth to get the Doc's to give him enough pain medicine. Warren will tell me that he has alot of pain and turn around and tell the Doc or nurse that it isn't that bad. Please pray that we will get home for at least a few days before the next round of chemo. Please pray for a reduction in Warren's pain. Pray that Warren will have a sence of God's peace that passes all understanding. Pray that Warren will have the joy of the Lord in his heart, that no matter what happens that Warren will serve the Lord with Joy. pray that Warren will know what it really means to have the Joy of the Lord. Pray that the Holy Spirit will fill Warren with his overflowing power. Pray for me also that I may rest in the Lords strength and trade him his burden for mine. Thank you for all the prayers and support. We would not have made it this far without the support of fellow believers in Christ. By the way I am not sure if I have put this in the Journal yet but the monday before last Warren had a follow up CT-scan and Warren's Tumor is gone. The chemo is doing the job. They have to keep going however if they stopped now Warren would get the cancer back in less then a month. So we have another 5 or 6 treatments left. It is very good news that all of the tumor is gone. The doc's say that there also very little scarring from that cancer because of how quickly it grew and how quickly it was goen from the chemo.
Take care of the ones you love because you never know what evil a day may bring.
Your brother in suffering,
Mark

Saturday, June 25, 2005 0:12 AM CDT

Here we go again Warren is Runing a fever of over 100.5 and is back at the Hospital. He is in room 3510 at Emmanuels Childrens Hospital. Please pray for us. Warrens itching was very intense and Tamra called the clinc. Then we had the home nurse here for I.V. benadril for Warren's itch. The nurse dicovered that Warren had a minor fever. Later tonight around 8:30 Tamra told me Warren's fever had gotten worse. These hospital stays are very hard on Warren as well as the family. Please pray about the child care arrangements to come together. Last week on Monday Tamra had the littler children with her the whole day starting around 10 am until 10 pm at the hospital. It is very stressful for all involved. I need to take time off but I am having a hard time communicating with my boss. I think that she doesn't want to hear me. I've tryed a few times to communicate the need for time off while still trying to help meet the need's at work. She just doesn't seem to get it. I need prayer for boldness to talk to her.
Please pray for Tamra she seems to take on too much responciblilty for caring for the children rather than lean on others in the body. Thank you for all your prayers and continued support.
Mark

Thursday, June 23, 2005 11:02 pM pDT

Just a quick note Warren is in extreme pain and itch. He is very agitated. Warren is considering going to the hospital tonight. Please pray for him. He is also fighting a mouth yeast infection. He is having a hard time taking anything by mouth. He hasn't eaten anything since yesterday. I am very worried about him. Thank you for all you prayers and support. We recieved a very nice meal tonight from Rochelle Acker thank you it was very good. I am learning to lean on my brothers and sisters in Christ. I have never been so dependant on others. Please continue in prayers for us. Thank You,
Mark

Wednesday, June 22, 2005 10:34 PM PDT

Warren was back to the clinc. He got some red blood cells and Platlets today. We started about 11 AM and got out around 6 PM. Warren is doing well. He still has some intence itching. He also has some pain. It was a long day in the Day Treatment Center. Candle Lighters provided us a small lunch. It was nice. I want to really thank the people who have helped us out all along the way. We are applying for Social Security Insurance for Warren. I am toying with starting a small support group for parents at the hospital. I am not sure what God is doing but I am just wanting to follow His lead. I sence a real need for parents to have some sort of support group right away at the hospital. I really am not sure weather to leave it just for Cancer or be more inclusive. I am sure their are other parents who need support whoes children don't have cancer but, those very parents could be insensitive to the needs that cancer parents have. Please be in pray about this. I would like any input anyone has as well.
Please keep Warren in your prayers.
Mark

Monday, June 20, 2005 11:23 AM CDT

We are Home!
Warren was given a pass for his birthday. He got to hang out with his friends for a few hours before we went to spend the night overnight at the hospital. Warren was set free on Sunday at about 10am. We got to see the last part of church service. I was very pleased to see him in church where he is so happy to be with his buds. He is still having problems with itch. Please pray for him. Pray that we will not have to go back for a while. Warren's energy has been low and I think He needs to rest a little before going back to the hospital. Please pray that the LORD will renew Warren's strength with God's. Pray that Warren will focus on the Lord and His greatness. By the way Warren got a gift from ChemoAngels it was great. It is a very nice program for anyone who is receiveing chemo. Also our church has given us a very nice gift which will help us. The LORD is good and helping us greatly.

Thursday, June 16, 2005 3:37 PM PDT

Warren is still in the hospital. He should be able to go home Saturday. He isn't so far having any mouth sores but he is having rear sores. Please pray for protection of Warrens body. There are some very scary possible side effects with this batch of chemo. One is the possiblity of warren getting a second cancer, Leukemia 2 pecent chance. Pray for protection of Warren's eyes from this chemo. Pray that only the cancer cells will be wiped out. This batch of chemo is wiping him out right away. Pray for Warren's energy to come back. Also pray that his appetite will coume back. The first chemo's that he had it took a couple of days. Please pray that he will be able to make it back for his birthday and pray that he doesn't get an infection. The Doctor expects that Warren will have to come back next week for some blood tranfusions and for fever with infections. Please pray that we will have the grace to make it through this closer to God. Pray for the whole Family. It has been a strain on the little boys and Tamra. We need more help with child care. Tamra had the two boys with her here at the hospital on Monday for basically 12 hours. Thank you for all you prayers, support, and love.
I love you all. In Christ's love,
Mark

Tuesday, June 14, 2005 9:37 PM PDT

Just a quick note,
Warren is back in the hospital for his third round of major chemo. This round seems to affect him a lot quicker. the first two rounds they gave him the chemo and a five or six days later he would start to notice something. This time he noticed some symptoms right away. He needs lots of prayers at this time to make it through this. His mood is very grumpy and at the same time very needy emotionally. Please keep the whole family in prayer during this time. Please pray that the Lord will give Warren a sence of peace and Hope during this phase of the road that he is on. Thank you for your many prayers and kind support. It has been very helpful.
Mark

Tuesday, June 7, 2005 9:57 PM CDT

Warren is doing a little better today his pain seems to be less than the last few days. One thing Warren hates is the shots. He has to get blood draws through his finger to check his blood sugar level. He also has Lovenox shots in his thigh at night. He is fairly tired he is in bed most of the day. Please pray that the LORD will give Warren all the emotional support that he needs to get through all these tough treatments and times. Pray that we will get closer as a family and we get through this hard time more committed to Jesus. Take Care,
Mark
p.s. My operation to numb my leg was partly successful. I stall have some pain close to the top of my knee.
Tamra's Pregnancy seems to be going well.

Monday, June 6, 2005 2:14 AM CDT

Warren came home on Saturday. His fever went away and his mouth sores are mild. He is having very bad pain in other parts of his digestive tract. Please keep him in your prayers. Please keep me in your prayers as well because this morning I am going to have the nerve that has been causing me pain numbed.
Many thanks,
Mark

Monday, May 30, 2005 10:01 PM CDT

Warren has a fever and went to the ER. His mouth sores are very bad. He has been admitted to the hospital and is in room 3533. Please Pray for him for pain relief and that whatever caused the fever will be fixed.
Mark

Saturday, May 28, 2005 0:49 AM CDT

Wow what a difference health insurance makes. We were worried about a prescription that Warren had. When we bought it at Fred Meyer we paid $75 for 5 days and with the mail order it cost us $8 for 30 days -that included the cost of overnight delivery! Praise God! I can't believe how much we saved. This medication without insurance cost us over $100 a day. How anyone could afford it I do not know. We would have been in a serious bind having to choose between food for the family or medication for Warren, but thankfully we don't have to. :) Now we need to make sure every prescription goes through the mail order.
Warren is very tired today. He is having some kind of chest pain, not sure why. We are going back to the Oncology Clinic on Tuesday for a follow up. Please pray for us as the stress is very great. A few other pray requests, Tamra is going in for an ultrasound on her thyroid to check if the cold nodule has grown, because it might mean that it is cancerous. Please pray for Heather (the baby on the way) for good health and protection from disease. Pray also for me as I am going in on Tuesday June 6th for the leg pain. The doctors are going to numb the nerve with a nerve block injection.
Thank You,
Mark

Thursday, May 26, 2005 6:20 PM CDT

Warren is home how. Warren is doing some better today. We just got home a 3pm pdt. Warren will be on TPN (food in the blood) while he is home. Hopefully he will be here for the two weeks. He still has some of the beginings of the mouth sores. He was able to have less fluid last night so he was able to sleep a little more last night. The nurse at the hospital that has to deal with the presription insurance was taking over 2 hours trying to get Warren's medications all setup for the mail order. The precriptions for warren are very expensive. When we go to the local pharamacy we can only get one precription and one refill. Well the doctors want to prescribe small amounts of the drugs until they know how much warren needs, but this makes it very expensive. After one refill we have to pay full price. So that is why the nurse has to get the mail order going but they make it a pain to get it going. Please pray that it will go through because we could afford the full price of some of warren's drugs. One that he will be taking for six mouths is $100 a day. with the mail order it will be either $26 for 3 mounths or $97 depending on if it a perfered drug.
I know that God will take care of it but it seems very scary how much this could cost.
God bless you guys,
Mark

Thursday, May 26, 2005 3:42 AM CDT

Just a quick note. Warren's mouth sores haven't fully started. He just feels some tingling. His doctor says that if things go well thursday that Warren might get to go home for at least a few days until something happens (like bad mouth sores, Fever, bleeding, or infection). During Warren's first chemo treatment at this point Warren developed very bad mount sores and a fever (that delayed our leaveing by 2 weeks before we could go home). Please pray that warren will get to be able to go home for as long a possible. He is feeling very discouraged and Is not Coping very well with the demands of being a Cancer patient. Thank you for as your prayers and gifts of love.
Mark

Tuesday, May 24, 2005 3:37 AM CDT

Hi all thank you for come to see Warren's Page.
This is the latest. Warren was able to finally go home May 14. He was in the hospital for a Month and 5 days. He went back to the hospital May 20 to start his second Full round of Chemothearpy. Yesterday warren had a spinal tap to put chemo into his spine as a precaution to having the cancer get into his brain. He felt and remembered the whole thing. He was suppose to not really fell it and really wasn't suppose to remember it. Please pray that the doctors will figuare out why the med's didn't work. It was very stressful for Tamra. Warren is starting to feel the mouth sores again. Last time warren had to be on a morphine pump to control the pain he was having. It took a lot of work to find a dose that worked for him. He suffering from a lot of nausea over the last couple of days. My job just demoted me from the store manager postion at mall 205 to the asistant manager postion at Clackamas Town Center. My wage just went from 9.75 hour to 7.50. I am not sure how God is going to get us through this one but our on hope has always been Jesus. Sometimes when thing's are going well for us we tend to forget. Well that all for now it is 2AM on Tuesday 5-24-2005. Please just keep our whole family in prayer as everyone is feeling the strain. Love in christ,
Mark

Tuesday, May 24, 2005 3:22 AM CDT

This page has just been created. Please check back for additional updates.

Click here to go back to the main page.

----End of History----