NashVegas Here We Come!

Big thanks to everyone for their kind emails, posts, calls, and visits to see Mikey yesterday. We received TONS of well wishes and each and every one means so much. Keep them coming!

Today we will proceed to move Mike to Vanderbilt to begin his treatment. I fully expect him to be down there sometime today, probably late afternoon/early evening. My mom and Melisa are going down with him today as well. Also, we are looking into different accommodations for the family, specifically Melisa, to stay during this treatment. Big shout-out to Jodie for getting the ball rolling on this one. :) There are several not-for-profit accommodations that are fantastic and are of little or no money to the family. These places provide meals, transportation to and from the cancer center, and laundry services. How awesome is that??!! We are so thankful that there are facilities such as this. It is a first come, first served deal and as of yesterday they had no availability. Boo! But, the gentleman that I spoke with was very nice and said openings come about everyday and just to check frequently. So we will do that. Please pray today for Mike's safe and comfortable transport as well as the accommodations for the family. Also, please pray that Mom and Melisa don't get lost! Without Poppy, I hope Mom can make it! HA! HA!

At this time, please be thinking of Debbie, Melisa's mom, as she is staying behind taking care of Casey. Debbie has been wonderful through all of this and has been a huge comfort source for not only Melisa but the rest of us as well as she is taking the best care of Casey. Bless her. What would we do without family??!!

One common thread that has come of this experience thus far is that SO MANY of you know someone whose life has been affected by cancer, and more surprisingly, leukemia. So many of you have contacted us and said, "My friend had leukemia and is a 12 year survivor..." or "My friend currently has leukemia and is down at Vanderbilt right now receiving treatment..." Thank you, thank you for these stories. I can't begin to tell you how much this means to all of us. In no way are these just mere coincidences and it is just another way to bring this situation to light. In the great book of John Jesus says, "I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will NEVER walk in the darkness, but will have the light of life." My first instinct is to keep this situation "hush hush" as sort of an out of sight, out of mind thing...if I'm not dealing with it directly, it will go away. However, when we place our faith in the Lord and have the confidence to share our experiences, we gain that comfort and strength from one another. It is a very empowering feeling. Therefore, we will not be ashamed, afraid, or hide in the darkness with this illness. Instead, we will keep looking to Jesus and vigilantly seek His light.

That said, another "helping" thought I had was to ask each of you, if you are comfortable doing so, to contact these friends and family members who have experienced this type of ordeal and have them email either Mike and Melisa or myself. Any advice, words of encouragement, etc... would go a long way with helping boost all of our spirits. Again, just a suggestion.

Once Mike is all settled down there, I'll pass along his contact information. Thanks for the prayers!

Jesus Saves!
Rachel