Anniversary

August 30th marked Mike's one year anniversary since his leukemia diagnosis. This past year has been a year of uncertainties, struggles, and finally, elation. Thank you for trolling the blog and checking in on our family.

One Vanderbilt story from '07 - While staying down in Nashville visiting Mikey, Sherry managed to make the best homemade vegetable soup using the equivalent to a JiffyPop aluminum pan while cooking on a dorm sized hot plate...all because His Royal Highness felt like having some soup! But that's not a chore...that's LOVE!! We can look back and laugh (and even remember!) some of this stuff now.

Here is a word from Sherry:

One year since Mikey's initial diagnosis and what a year it has been! Sobering days? To be sure. But also days or purpose, action and "getting on with it". And then that most memorable of days when this sweet diagnosis, REMISSION, turned hope into reality! Thank you, Lord, for drawing near and leading the way. And thanks for...Your perfect timing. Medical miracles! Togetherness. Generosity of spirit. And for that wild, wonderful "floozy" we affectionately call Ida Rubicin! Feathers flying. The Blog. And for that irrepressible laughter that somehow eclipsed our tears.

And Mikey, just so ya know, of all of the comments I've received about the blog, this one has to be my very own personal favorite: "No way. Are these people for real??!!" hahahahaha

"Today is the tomorrow we worried about yesterday...and all is well."

-JESUS SAVES-

Get on with it, Mikey!

All Apologies

I apologize for the infrequent posting of late. I suppose with being on the upswing of cancer (praise the Lord) the need to post daily updates has subsided. Some biggies that should have made their way into the blogosphere however: Mike's back at work! After months of recovery and mounds of paperwork, he's back to the grind. So far...pretty good. Not great, but not terrible either. It's a major adjustment going back to work at any stage in one's life, but post-cancer is a different bird. Assuredly both a blessing and a curse. Another biggie is that Mike had his second every-3-months BMB and all was clear. Assuming his health continues to positively progress, these BMBs will be scheduled further and further apart.

One major facet that most, if not all, cancer survivors face is the threat of relapse and the effect that has on his or her overall mental state. Wake up not feeling well? Chalk it up to a bad nights sleep or has the cancer returned? Lose a few pounds and don't feel much like eating? Virus or has the cancer returned? These are legitimate threats that these survivors face. Moving on can sometimes be crippling. As we continue to pray for Mike's physical health, let's also pray for his mental health. Please pray that his peace of mind is not attacked and that he is able to "get on with it" without the interference of fear and doubt.

Props to the Pops

Happy Father's Day to all the wonderful Daddies out there!

TNT Marathon

I am not sure when exactly it occurred. Perhaps it was during one of the last snow and ice storms to hit Kentucky a few months ago. Perhaps it was even earlier than that, I don't know. But somewhere along the line I'm pretty sure that I've fallen down and hit my head because I've registered myself for the Chicago Marathon this October (Sunday the 12th at 8 AM CST to be exact but who's counting???). I'm pretty sure that's grounds for suspecting head trauma, right?

Since Mikey's diagnosis with leukemia I have been searching for ways to help, as I am sure many of you have. While many volunteer efforts have been no doubt fulfilling, my dream (delusion?) of running a marathon has come to fruition with the help of the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society's Team In Training program. They help me train and together, we help research and cure leukemia. I can't think of a better win/win situation than that.

TNT is celebrating its 20th anniversary this year. Since its inception, over 360,000 individuals have helped raise more than $850 million dollars to help blood cancer patients live longer, better lives. In the past 20 years, the survival rate of those living with a blood cancer has more than tripled! Through research and funding, we can help find a cure for this disease.

So get out your pocketbooks!! My personal goal for this fundraiser is $5,000.00. Attached at the bottom is the link to my TNT website where you can donate online quickly and securely. All major credit cards are accepted. You can donate anonymously, conceal your donation amount, make a donation in honor of a certain individual, as well as leave a note of encouragement. Many of you will receive a more formal email/letter/both outlining the donation process, so please be looking for that as well. Please, will you take the next 5 minutes and make a donation to such a great cause?


Thank you for your generosity,
Rachel

http://pages.teamintraining.org/ky/chicago08/rhall

The One That Didn't Get Away

A wise person once said: Give a man a fish and he eats for a day. Teach a man to fish and you can get rid of him the whole weekend. Sometimes that's not a bad philosophy! HAHA! Mikey has had some pretty tremendous luck with fishing lately at a little undisclosed "honey hole" location somewhere in the state of Kentucky....and he even has the pictures to prove it. You can call him Mike Dance from now on out. I hear he's looking into joining the Bassmasters tour as an alternative to Dana.

"...AND DOWN THE STRETCH THEY COME!!"

Is there anything cooler than the Kentucky Derby??? Sundresses, wide brimmed hats, gigantic sunglasses, GQ suits, mint juleps, "My Old Kentucky Home", sunshine, horses, jockey silks...it's all fabulous! Living in Louisville is especially awesome during Derby time. It's like our own mini Mardi Gras. Preparations and festivities usually begin around the 1st of April and this week's electricity is almost tangible. It is such an awesome time to be a native of Kentucky. This Derby is sure not to disappoint - there is no Tiger Woods, no clear cut winner in this race. All of this year's horses are blue collar, hard working horses. Out there to "Git 'R Done." It will be interesting to see who takes the blanket of roses. Below are the silks and the names of each horse. I want to know - Who are you cheering for? What are your plans for the Derby? How do you pick your horse? Do you have any special traditions/superstitions that you follow each year? We'd love to hear about it!

Row 1: Big Brown, Gayego, Recapturetheglory, Cowboy Cal and Denis of Cork

Row 2: Adriano, Monba, Bob Black Jack, Smooth Air and Z Humor

Row 3: Colonel John, Pyro, Visionaire, Big Truck and Z Fortune

Row 4: Eight Belles, Court Vision, Anak Nakal, Tale of Ekati and Cool Coal Man

Happy Belated Birthday (Yesterday) to Ty Eades also!!

Happy Birthday Melisa!!

Someone else wants to wish you a Happy Birthday too!

Click here to see a hilarious clip of Stuart getting his picture taken. "Look what I can do!"

Spring Cleaning

OK, so I thought the blog needed a little sprucing up. I know I sure get accustomed to seeing something a certain way and when it's different, it kinds of throws me for a loop. I'll try to keep the change minimal. Hope ya'll don't mind the new and improved format.

This week is Spring Break for our boys and we went to Henderson for a few days. We hung out with the fam, ate entirely too much, and just basically enjoyed not having to be anywhere at any particular time. We got to see Mike, Melisa, and Casey too, which is always nice. Casey and "Baby Hooston" had a lot of fun together. I think Casey enjoyed being able to boss Houston around. I was just surprised that Mr. Obstinate would oblige. I think I should bring Casey home with me for a few days. Perhaps he could get Houston to "eat three more bites and then you can get down, put down the ball and get inside...NOW!!, and no, you can't have another drink of water - go to sleep!" Since I haven't been having much luck lately. ((and who says the 2s are terrible???))

Also Happy Belated Birthday to Lane Gross!! Lane turned 1 last Friday and had one of the biggest parties I've ever been to on Saturday! He was so cute and managed all of attention like the Rockstar he is! Other than Garrett drilling Rendy in the ribs, thinking she was Luke, it was a pretty mild event.

Boy I sure could go for a cold drink right about now...

March Crazy Pants

If it were left up to me I'd change the terminology from March Madness to March Crazy Pants. I think it has a much better ring don't you? I mean come on...Siena over Vandy, San Diego over UConn, Western over San Diego, Davidson over anybody, buzzer beaters galore, UK and IU out quicker than they got in - well that's just Crazy Pants I tell ya! (OK so maybe UK and IU aren't so Crazy Pants after all.) Hey Mikey - HMDKSHHRN???? That's text messaging for: How Much Does Kelvin Sampson Hate Himself Right Now? It is one of the best times of the year; it's madness and I LOVE IT!!!

For the record I'm going out on a HUGE limb and saying that I'm going with the Bluff's 2nd finest Psycho T and crew at North Carolina. I know that's a stretch but ya gotta go with the underdog from time to time. :)

Like Josh said this friendly blog just might get a little sticky here soon. So let's hear it, who are you pulling for?

Who's the Man?

In the past 4 days I managed to do 12 loads of laundry, run 4 carpools, find a missing soccer cleat and coordinating shin guard (they were in the car), hit the gym not once but twice thank you very much, attend the Boys State Tournament in Lexington - Go Rockets!, stuff 3 dozen plastic eggs with "treats-stickers and candy are ok, but remember no peanuts!", dye 1 dozen hard boiled eggs...with a 2 year old, attend 2 soccer practices and 1 baseball tryout, get two squirming boys' haircuts, sign a report card, purchase coordinating Easter outfits for a family of 4, stuff the Easter baskets, make a fruit salad and the best deviled eggs you have ever placed in your mouth for brunch, go to church, and finally bake a bunny cake because my mom, who though will never see it, will be happier than both of the kids combined. Afterwards, you can imagine how I was feeling...Why did you say exhausted??? That's why I hit the gym...twice (reread above if necessary.) I was feeling pretty proud and confident. "Oh yeah, I'm the woman, ummhmm," I said to myself as we walked into church services with my freshly coiffed men surrounding me. I was still patting myself on the back as our pastor Kyle Idleman delivered a fabulous Easter message. He was preaching about Jesus, about His anguish in the garden, about His uncomfortable truths He unapologetically delivered, about His heart-wrenching crucifixion, and lastly about His resurrection. Kyle said, "The next time you are feeling high and mighty, try walking out of your own grave." Ouch! Those words convicted my heart like a sword. Here I was proud of my accomplishments, proud of my deeds, and like an idiot, totally lost sight of the cornerstone, the catalyst of Christianity - Jesus' defeat over death. You can imagine how I was feeling now...you're right this time, small and insignificant.

Let's not lose sight of this holiday - it's not about the fabulous dress from Clodhoppers, the seersucker suits, the Honey Baked ham, the pastel eggs, or even the bunny cake, it's the ultimate proof that death is not the final end all of our lives. And if we believe the truth that Jesus walked out of his own grave, we too will walk out of our own graves. But please do not take my word for it, check if out for yourself.

Clear BMB!!!

Mike's bone marrow biopsy came back clear!! Whoo-Hoo!! Thanks again for the kind words, thoughts, and prayers the past few days. He is able to remain a free man for another 3 months, barring any unforeseen complications. Go Mikey! It's your birthday! Gonna party like it's your birthday!

One Down, One To Go

Whew! The bone marrow biopsy (BMB) is over and I am happy to report that Mike felt no pain during the procedure! For those of you that have been following the blog, you know that this procedure has been extremely painful in the past and that Mike's oncologist was in disbelief over any claims as such. She stated that BMBs "just aren't painful" and flat out refused any additional pain medication. Well today the good doc did the procedure herself and Mike felt no pain! Perhaps it was additional experience or additional anesthetic Dr. Z provided, but whatever the case the procedure went better than expected. And I thank you for your thoughts and prayers to get us here. Kinda makes me want to dance a little Irish Jig!

Now we wait (and wait...and wait...) until Tuesday for the results. Of course I will post more then.

Have a great weekend!

Friday

I hope everyone was able to dig out from under their respective snowfall amounts. I think almost everyone in Kentucky saw quite a bit of accumulation. I don't recall ever having a snow like this in March but I guess there is a first time for everything.

I just wanted to get the word out to all of the prayer warriors who take the time to read the blog. Mike will have his first post-remission bone marrow biopsy this Friday. This is a scheduled procedure, falling 3 months since his treatment ended. 3 suggested prayers if you will: 1) please pray that Mike and Melisa's minds are put at ease while they wait (and wait) for both the procedure and the results, 2) please pray that this procedure will be as painless as possible, and of course 3) please pray that no leukemic cells are present. Again, those are just suggestions. I have gotten numerous prayer requests from you all that just simply break my heart and I know that you all will continue to ask where your heart leads. Thank you for that.

Have a nice week!

Happy Birthday Luke Eblen!!

Your Schrute Bucks are in the mail!

Jarrod Morris' father Bud passed away early Monday morning at his home in Henderson after battling a long illness. Bud was a long time employee of Alcoa and was married to Yolanda for 38 years. Jarrod is one of Mike's best friends and he has really been there for him through his battle with cancer. It's never easy to say goodbye to a loved one. Please be thinking of Jarrod, his mom Yolanda, and the rest of his family as they go through this difficult situation.

Go Orange?

As most of you all are aware, #1 plays #2 tonight in the big Tennessee showdown. #1 Memphis takes on #2 UT. Guaranteed to be a good game. I guess we will pull for the Vols as: 1) our favorite resident dentist resides there 2) Lofton hails from the bluegrass and 3) NOBODY can pull off that heinous push pop of a sports coat like Coach Pearl. Besides, my husband takes about as much liking to Calipari as a head cold. I was always worried that he would get into a fist fight with him at Freedom Hall!! HAHA!! So here goes, for what it's worth......GO ORANGE!!!

"If you're skating on thin ice, don't jump up and down." Mike Pace, when asked about the antics of his beloved Hoosiers' hoops coach Kelvin Samson. Here! Here!

Party! Party!

If anyone has been in or around our family for any period of time, it doesn't take very long to realize that we are quite the partying bunch. As a friend of mine said recently, "You all are just a party waiting to happen." Give us any excuse to get together to eat and laugh and we're there!

With Mike's 30th birthday last weekend, we didn't need a hunt for reason to party. We had an actual event to celebrate! So Melisa and crew decided to throw Mikey a surprise party. We didn't know if we could pull it off but then we remembered...he's a man - he's oblivious!! (No offense guys.) So Sunday after church, Mike, Poppy and Bret went back to Bret's house to watch the IU game while we girls got to work decorating and preparing for the party....all while the little ones scrambled around our feet. HUGE thanks to our resident party planner extraordinaire Miss Jodie for providing all the little extras that mean so much! While we were busy getting everything settled, Poppy and Bret had to properly time the ending of the ballgame with the beginning of the party. Bret kept trying to fast forward through commercials, halftime, etc... But Mike wasn't having any of it. More than once he told Bret, "...getting a little antsy aren't ya???" Finally he just said, "Give me the remote!" Anyhow, after giving him some lame excuse about Scott having car trouble in Atkinson Park (*see oblivious note above*), they finally got him there! He was welcomed with a big "Surprise!" by several family and friends. We all had a great time and it was nice to see so many friendly faces and catch up with people we haven't see in a while. Hopefully I can post some pictures soon of the big event.

Happy Valentine's Day!!

Happy 30th Birthday to the One and Only!!!

STEWIE: (After Lois tries to feed him his broccoli "airplane style") "Damn you, Damn the broccoli, and Damn the Wright Brothers."

Fly Fishing on the Holston River

Mike and Melisa got some much needed R&R this past week in Gatlinburg. They stayed at Mom and Hope's condo and enjoyed some of the unseasonably warm weather on their trip. Melisa's mom Debbie was kind enough to keep Casey for a few days in Henderson. Then about mid-week Casey was able to travel down to Gatlinburg to see his Momma and Daddy too. Also during their stay in the mountains, Josh and Brandi made the short trip over from Knoxville and stayed with them for a day or so. Mike and Josh were able to take in some fly fishing opportunities on the Holston River. Their guide was Ian Rutter and he and his wife own R&R Fly Fishing out of Townsend, TN. They drifted part of the Holston River tailwater below Cherokee Lake and fished the part of the river that ran from Buffalo Creek to Indian Cave. And other than Mikey jumping in an outdoor swimming pool that he mistakenly thought was heated, it sounded like they had a great time.

Here is a link to Ian's website where he blogged a little of their trip and also some pics of the fishermen:

http://www.randrflyfishing.com/2008/02/05/warm-days-provide-great-tailwater-fly-fishing/

Happy Birthday Lindsay!!

I don't have any pictures of Lindsay, but I do have one of her sweet boy Lane!! (It's amazing how mom's just simply disappear from all photographs after we have children!) I hope you have a great day, Linds!!!

Birthday Party

Casey had a great time at his birthday party yesterday. He had cake and ice cream along with friends and family at his house. He got lots of presents - a lot of Thomas the Train stuff, which he loves. Moppy and Poppy got him a hooded sweatshirt and when he opened the gift, he tossed it aside like it was leftover tissue paper or something. Too funny. Most kids, especially boys, don't particularly care for clothes. :)

Happy 5th Birthday Casey Pace!!

Here he is wearing his doctor's costume for Halloween. "Dr. Pace"

Rocky Road?

Whoa! What happened there??? I debated, I really did...keep my mouth shut or talk trash? With all of the VolNation clog on the blog, I just had to do it. And quit trying to corrupt my sweet niece!! Besides, she can't be a Volunteer...she has all of her teeth.

Sweet

Click the link on the side bar in the upper right hand corner to view the sweetest slideshow of Melisa and Casey. Lovies.

Max Lucado

Hey! I hope everyone is getting through this frigid week. At least it's frigid here in Kentucky. I saw on the weather that the low is supposed to be 4 degrees on Sunday in Louisville! That's insane! Looks like it's a perfect day for some football, some chili, a fire, and some cozy lounge time on the couch. When we were little, my mom used to tell us, "Appreciate the winter; it makes you slow down." As a youth on the move, I'd usually respond with my signature eye roll and huff. But ya know, as with most everything, Mom's right! And for that reason, I don't mind winter at all...at least not a little bit of it.


Anyhow, I wanted to let you know that Max Lucado will be preaching the weekend services at Southeast Christian Church in Louisville this coming weekend, January 19-20. And if you're half the fan my aunt Sherry is, you won't want to miss it! This could be a great opportunity for a little road trip and a chance to hear one of our most popular preachers. Lucado's modern application of scripture mixed with light-hearted humor makes him a wonderful author and public speaker. He will be preaching on his latest book "The 3:16 Promise." After each service, he will be available for an autograph signing. So if you have the book, you may want to bring it along. Southeast is located just east of downtown Louisville off of I-64 on Blankenbaker Parkway. The 3 services he will be preaching are Saturday at 5:00 PM, Sunday at 9:00 AM and 11:15 AM. Attached is the link below:

http://www.southeastchristian.org/

Bonafide Update

As the saying goes, no news is good news and I suppose that is the truth with our case. I realized that I hadn't posted an actual update on Mikey in a while now. So here goes, one with no birthday shout-outs or fundraising effort requests. As you know Mike finished up his final round of consolidation therapy just before Christmas. His cancer appears to be in remission now and he is (somewhat) a free man for about 3 months, when he must return for the dreaded bone marrow biopsy. I say somewhat a free man in that he has had to travel to and from the hospital recently to receive units of blood and/or platelets. This has remained a challenge to Mike and Melisa as the ginormous communication barrier between hospital/oncologist/home health staff is still upon them. Ultimately Mike gets what is needed but not without facing many challenges along the way. As Lemon would say, "Blerg!" Hopefully his body will rebound very soon so that he can take advantage of some of his freedom. A good friend has been praying that Mike's cancer will stay in remission forever. Will you keep this wonderful thought in your prayers as well?

On another note, Mike and Melisa have had a major curve ball thrown their way regarding their health insurance and disability benefits. At this time, it's too much of a mess to post the details in their entirety, but the worst case, bottom line is that Mike, Melisa, and Casey stand to lose their coverage and source of income. Again, that is the worst case scenario and hopefully it won't happen. Mike and Melisa have been researching the who, what, when, where, and whys of this mess. Please be thinking of them as they navigate through the major plate of spaghetti that we call health care. (Where is Hillary when ya need her???) Of course, I'll post more when it's available.

Have a great rest of the week.

PS - Melisa would like to know who you all are cheering for in Sunday's games. Please pick your favorite team in the poll above.

Happy Birthday Michelle Hope!!

That's her out on Poppy's boat on the river this summer. Not bad for 2 kids!

Make 2008 Great!

I read somewhere that each year about 70% of Americans make some sort of New Year's resolution each year. I wonder how many of us actually keep them for longer than the month of January, but that's a different story... Here is a top 10 of the most popular:

1. Lose weight
2. Pay off debt
3. Save money
4. Get a better job
5. Get fit
6. Eat right
7. Get a better education
8. Drink less alcohol
9. Quit smoking
10. Reduce overall stress

Do any of these resemble any of your goals for 2008? If lose weight and/or get fit are in your plans for the great 2008, you may want to check out The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society's Team in Training. Twenty years ago, a man named Bruce Cleland trained with a group of friends to run in the NYC Marathon while they raised funds for leukemia research. Cleland's, baby daughter Georgia, had been diagnosed with acute lymphocytic leukemia. They referred to themselves as the "team in training" and the name stuck. Today the Team in Training (TNT) is the world's largest endurance sports training program, providing support for people to cross the finish line at all sorts of endurance races. Over 340,000 participants have raised more than $700 million dollars to help blood cancer patients live better, stronger lives. Pretty impressive group. If you have ever considered joining up with a group of people and getting your rear in gear, this would be a fantastic place to start. They work with all sorts of fitness levels, from absolute beginner on up to the Lance Armstrong's of the world. Following are a couple of informational meetings near some of us:

Evansville, IN
Dunigan YMCA Annex
Meeting Room
6840 Logan Drive
Wednesday, January 16 - 6:00 PM

Louisville, KY*
Crescent Hill Public Library
Meeting Room
2762 Frankfort Avenue
Wednesday, January 16 - 6:00 PM

*There are 3 other informational meetings in the Louisville area during the month of January. Also TNT provides these informational meetings and training groups all around the country. Check out the website for more information: http://www.teamintraining.org/

So, if you have ever wanted to tackle a large or small race and enjoy opportunities to socialize along the way, this would be a nice start. Not to mention the enormous amount of support that you would provide for people living with a blood cancer disorder!

Go For It!! This is YOUR Year - MAKE 2008 GREAT!!