Celebration of Life

Yesterday we celebrated the life of a wonderful man.  I want to thank everyone who took time out of their day to join us. I pray that you received a blessing by sharing the day with us. Our family truly appreciates all the plants given in his honor, the cards, the calls, the food and most of all the love shown to us all during this time. I truly feel God's peace. Mike was truly loved by all. He will be greatly missed.

"Well Done Thy Good and Faithful Servant"

I have no doubt that Mike heard these words when he went to heaven a little after midnight. He went peacefully in his sleep. I was trying to tell him how special he was but I guess he got tired of listening to me ramble. The next chapter in our lives are going to be difficult at best. Please continue to pray for our family. A couple of praises. The 2 family members who had to travel the farthest were here in time to visit and will be here for his "Celebration of Life" Ceremony. More to come on that a little later. Thanks for all your kind words and prayers.

Major Setback

Mike is currently on oxygen & pain medicines to ease his "distress" in the words of his nurse. This morning when I woke up he was not breathing like normal, it was almost like he was moaning. When hospice came they told me to call in the family that it would just be a couple of days. So we have had lots of visitors today. He isn't responsive but I am convinced that he can hear. We have his music playing softly and I am reading him facebook and email messages. I pray for our children and grandchildren that will miss out on growing up with this wonderful man in their life. I will keep you updated. Praising God for no pain, his sister arrived from California, and our wonderful friends and family.

Time for Hospice

I met with the Dr this week alone since Mike was too weak to go. He has been in bed for days and not eating. The Dr suggested we call Hospice and work on "Comfort Care". In other words, make him as comfortable as possible. I am not naive enough to believe he will beat the odds and I will do everything they say for him. I still believe in God's healing power and He will heal Mike if He chooses to do so. I personally can't imagine why he wouldn't but I can't see the future like He can. Our daughters are arriving to visit as much as they can in these next few weeks. Penny is here from Africa and it's great to see her and Michael. Mike isn't talking much. He will respond when spoken to but he has always been rather quiet. It's been great hearing from long lost friends and the visits are wonderful. I just hate it's under these circumstances. There just isn't much good to report! We know many many prayers are being prayed on our behalf and we are humbled. We appreciate all the kindnesses shown to us. Little things mean so much. We love you all. Here's an oldie but a goodie of Mike & Belle.

Prayers Requested

This is so very hard to write. Mike is too weak to continue chemo and radiation. Without these treatments or a miracle, there is nothing that we can do except pray. He is so tired and still isn't eating. They have given him something to increase his appetite but it hasn't worked yet. He is sleeping a lot and not in any pain which is a praise. Our family covets your prayers in the next few days and weeks. This is the hardest thing I have ever had to go through. Watching someone you love so much suffer and not being able to do anything for them is unbearable. I have tried to post positive updates but our hearts are broken. This is the reality of cancer.

Reality

Mike is not doing great these days. His bilirubin is 32 which is down from 36 last week but still extremely high. ( A normal person's bilirubin is under 2) This is the bile backing up in his body causing him to be yellow. His appetite is non existent. He lost 6 lbs in a week and due to blood work which indicates he's not drinking enough, they canceled chemo yesterday. They did administer fluids but not the chemo drug. He has been doing better since our visit yesterday. Please specifically pray that:
He eats and drinks more.
His bilirubin level drops.
His lab work shows improvement Monday.
His strength improves.
He is very weak. This is all part of the treatment but it's hard seeing him so sick. We truly appreciate all your prayers. I say that a lot but I really mean it. God bless you.

Dr. Visits Today

We had appointments with the radiologist & oncologist today. The oncologist was encouraging and showed us some charts where the liver enzymes were dropping. I am not exactly sure what that means but he was happy. So I am happy. Mike thinks I'm grasping at straws but I will take ANY good news. Mike is extremely weak and I need to get him to eat more. It's a vicious circle, he doesn't have energy because he isn't eating. He isn't eating because he's weak and feels bad. On a positive note, we have purchased an adjustable bed which should make him a lot more comfortable and hopefully help him sleep at night. It will be delivered Saturday. AND the nurse told us today it may be covered under our insurance. If that's the case I will be doing a happy dance. Last week we attended a Father-Daughter banquet at our church. Mike took our granddaughter and I also made an appearance. Please keep praying for Mike and our family. We truly covet your prayers. Until next time....

From Mike

THE POWER OF THE CONNECTOR

This photo is of a house wire connector.  A very small electrical part, but very important.  It connects a wire to the power source (example: a wire going to a light switch from the power box). After you connect the two wires together the power can travel to the switch, there is no break to the power source.  Without power to the switch the lights will not turn on.

Gregg, a co-worker had a connector on his key change. When I asked him what it was for, Gregg stated that it reminded Him to stay connected to Christ every time He pulled his keys out of his pocket.

I thought that this was a great concept.  I started making connectors and sharing with others.  We live in a small town and at the fall festival my grandson gave away 75 connectors. The photo is of some of the police offices adding a connector to their key chains.

I would like to mail you a connector and a couple to share. Please send a request, including your mailing address to my email address (mikeb.2275@gmail.com).

Be Blessed,
Mike

From Cheryl~~
Recently, a friend from church told me every time he pulls out his keys and sees his connector he is reminded to pray for Mike. We have completed our first week of radiation. Only 6 more weeks to go. The chemo will continue as long as the radiation. He has not been sick but just very weak. Trying to get him to eat more. We so appreciate all the prayers and kindnesses extended to Mike and our family. We love you more than you will ever know.

Happy Anniversary

Mike began radiation treatments today. We will go daily for 7 weeks to Rome at the Harbin Clinic. After that and 2 more rounds of chemo we will see if the mass is shrinking. Mike is very weak but otherwise he is doing ok. He still has no appetite but that is normal. We know God is in control no matter what the outcome is, I just pray this works and he is with us all a LOT longer. On that note, today is our 41st wedding anniversary so I wrote a little story in case you were curious as to how we got here. It's a little long, so feel free to stop reading here if you'd like. 

"A Modern Day Love Story"
A little history of how we got to where we are today.....

1974: Boy crazy 16 year old girl sees blond haired blue eyed hunk for the first time and is instantly hooked. Boy doesn't speak to her because boy is dating someone else and doesn't want to be unfaithful. But boy DID whistle at girl. (this did NOT sit well w/girl) Boy meant whistle to be a compliment but girl interpreted whistle as: (does he think he's God's gift to women, he can just whistle and I will come??) 
Girls takes family vacation to Mexico. When she returns, boy has ditched said girlfriend and is ready to move forward. Girl is on cloud nine.
First place boy takes girl is to his church, while in parking lot, boy mentions ex-girlfriend attends same church. Girl immediately turns and heads back to car. Boy talks her into going inside.
Second real date, boys asks girl to marry him. Girl asks “Are you serious”? Lucky for girl he was. Boy did construction work w/his dad. A building fell on his dad and boy escaped unhurt. Girl begged boy to get out of construction work. Boy agreed. Boy's dad recovered nicely.
1975 Feb- Boy asks girl's mother if she will sign for girl to get married when girl graduates in June because she will still be 17. Girls mother says she will think about it. Girls mother agrees to sign papers immediately IF girl promises to finish school. Girl readily agrees. Yep yep yep. Girl on cloud nine again. On Feb 22nd, boy and girl get married and plan to live happily ever after. Boy has to sign girl's report card for the rest of her senior year. Girl embarrassed. 
1976 April – Boy and girl become parents for the first time. Lori Grace is born and they are instantly in love with her. All of girls dreams have come true, she is a wife and a mother. Boy and girl are so happy!
July – Boy and girl lose precious baby girl to SIDS (Sudden Infant Death Syndrome). Words cannot express how devastated boy and girl are.
Girl gets a job to help get over loss of baby. Boy working 3 part time jobs, having trouble finding a full time position. Girl's employer notices boy helping girl at work and offers to send him to appraisal school for Crawford & Company and company car is a perk. Boy and girl are over the moon excited. 
1978 Boy and girl buy first home in Austell, Georgia and have another daughter. Penny Lynn. Life is good.

1980 Boy gets transferred to Dalton, Georgia where another daughter is born. Amy Renee. Boy works for Crawford and Company and girl gets a job there as secretary. God is good. 
1982 Boy and girl move back to Lithia Springs. Life goes on, boy and girl work and raise family.
1986 Boy and girl sign contract on house. Girl goes to doctor, surprise surprise, girl is expecting! Boy tells girl she can have house OR baby but not both. Boy gives in and girl gets BOTH. November brings another daughter Paige Marie . Life is crazy.
1990 Boy and girl buy bigger house to accommodate children. Boy plays softball a LOT. Girl not too happy. Boy gets broken leg playing softball. Boy out of work for awhile. Boy heals nicely and life goes on. Boy tells girl he wants them to be foster parents. Girl says no way. 
1991 Boy finally talks girl into becoming foster parents. Girl is less than thrilled. Girl thinks she is busy enough with her own kids. Boy doesn't agree and thinks they can be a blessing to other children who are needing love and a place to stay. Girl falls instantly in love with these children that enter their home. God is good. Boy and girl very happy but very TIRED.
1993 Boy and girl transfer to Tampa, Florida with USAA. While there, girl gets job at USAA in policy service. Girl gets PAID to talk on the phone. Girl is VERY happy. 
1997 Boy and girl really missing family and friends and move back to Georgia. Boy and girl find house within 5 miles of previous home. Boy builds apt in home for girls mother to move into. Boy is so sweet to mother in law.
1998 Boy and girl resume foster parenting. Boy and girl have scare with boy's health but God is good and girl is happy boy will be around awhile. 
2000 Boy and girl become grandparents for the first time. (Where did the time go?) If boy and girl thought they loved their children, they had NO IDEA how much they could love grandchildren. Girl discovers scrap-booking and is instantly addicted. Girl LOVES taking pictures of Kayleigh Madissen.
2001 Boy and girl adopt one of their foster children (a 14 year old GIRL) who has been a part of their family for the past 4 years. Autumn LeeAnn . One week after adoption is final, boy and girl get custody of granddaughter. Here we go again, now boy and girl have a 14 year old and a 16 month old. 
2004 Boy and girl welcome first grandSON weighing in at 4 lbs. Owen Michael Grega He is a little early but starts plumping up in no time. Girl still scrap-booking.
2005 Boy and girl welcome another grandson into the family. Boy and girl get custody of grandson McKane Michael. Boy and girl so happy they FINALLY got a boy!! Girl still taking pics.
2006 Boy buys a spot in campground in Centre, AL on Lake Weiss. Boy and girl now LOVE to go to the lake. Boy and girl and grandchildren go every weekend they can get away. Lots of photo ops.....girl very happy. 
2008 Boy and girl welcome another grandson. Ellis Bean (yes that's his real name) is Owen's little brother. They get to come to the lake with boy and girl quite often. Boy, girl and all the kids are happy cruising the lake. Girl still taking pics and scrap-booking.
2009 Boy and girl raising grandchildren, working, going to the lake.
2010 Girl moves to Centre, Alabama with children and boy comes over every weekend. The schools and town are smaller. Better place to raise children.
2011 Boy buys girl a new camera for Christmas so she can take even better pics. Boy is still so sweet!
2012 Boy and girl welcome another grandson, Ashtain Mykel, born in January. And another grandson in July, Tristen Dean. Girl now has a million pictures to scrapbook. She will never get caught up. 

2013 Life is good living in Alabama, girl working as substitute teacher and helping out with arts & crafts at the elementary school. Very involved in church in Alabama. Life iLife pretty much the same as 2013, girl missing boy a lot but feel this is best for children. 

2014 Welcomed grandchild number 7, Michael Mateo, born in Guatemala. Life is great but girl missing boy a lot. 

2015 Great news, boy gets to move to Alabama and work from home. Boy and girl together again and very happy. 

 2016 January Boy very sick, cancer found in liver, Boy and girl are devastated at this news. But they know God is in control. Many many prayers going up for boy and his family. Boy is humbled by the outpouring of love and support. Boy started chemo and hoping for the best.

February Boy and girl celebrated anniversary of 41 years.  Girl still on cloud nine and can't believe how lucky she is. Girl thought she loved boy when she married him but now girl knows what true love is. Boy still sick but girl plans to do everything Doctor says to make boy well. Boy and girl plan living on happily ever after as long as  God allows! 
To be continued.....

Happy Valentines Day

We have had a wonderful few days. Mike had his first chemo appointment on Friday. He has had no side effects yet except for hiccups. He has been more active the last couple of days. Our daughter & grandsons visited yesterday & today he went to church. I think it really lifted his spirits.  He hasn't been able to attend in several weeks.
His brother & his wife came for lunch today. His appetite seems to be increasing.  I am so thankful for small things like an appetite and energy and hope. We appreciate all of your prayers.
Mike has decided against going to Cancer Centers of America for now. Maybe later he,said but we are going forward with treatments in Rome as originally planned. His pet scan came back with no cancer anywhere else in his body and we are so grateful for this news. Hopefully he will continue to improve. Specific prayer requests:
Bilirubin levels to drop
Chemo and radiation will work on mass
Hiccups to go away
Until next time

I love this man with all my heart!!

Second Opinion

Today Mike had a PET scan to determine if there are any cancer cells anywhere else in his body. Very long and tiring appointment for Mike. The current plan is to begin radiation therapy on Feb 24th and to begin chemo with the one drug his body can tolerate on Friday of this week. The radiation will be for 7 weeks daily. With that being said, we are looking into getting a second opinion. Technically it will be the third opinion if you count Emory.
We should hear tomorrow how soon we can go for an evaluation. We have contacted he Cancer Centers of America in Newnan. We had some other options but felt like this was the best option for us based on the location. Please join us in praying for wisdom concerning these decisions. We want the best possible outcome for Mike. We will keep you updated as we move forward. We should have the results of the scan tomorrow afternoon. Until next time....

Emory Decision

We have not spoken with the Doctor personally but we did receive a message that Emory did not consider Mike to be a candidate for their liver transplant team. We are not sure why. We did visit with the radiation Doctor today and he will begin 7 weeks of daily radiation within 2 weeks. He will begin one of the chemo drugs on Friday. He cannot take the other drug at this time because of his bilirubin levels. We are still praying and believing that God is in control. Because we sure aren't. Specific prayer requests:
Chemo side effects are non existent or minimal.
Wisdom for the Dr's treating Mike
Nothing to show on the PET scan anywhere else in his body
Mike's appetite to increase
We thank you all for your prayers, even if we don't respond to each and every message we read them and are overwhelmed by all the love shown to us both. Until next time...

Emory Results

We made it to our scheduled appointments at Emory today. The MRI went off without a hitch. Praise The Lord! We then met with the surgeon. He told us that there was no way they could operate since the cancer involved the bile ducts and was inside the liver. However, they do have a PROTOCOL that would involve a team of specialists agreeing to take Mike on as a patient, do chemo and radiation and then do a liver transplant. The surgeon seems to think  this might be Mike's best option. He will present  Mike's case on Friday. We should hear from him Friday or Monday at the latest. So our specific prayer requests are:
The bilirubin count continues to drop
The team approves Mike to be a patient
Mike's spirits
If he is approved, we need to pray the chemo and radiation work and he finds a viable liver.
That is a hard prayer to pray because it involves someone losing someone.
We just have to continue to trust God and know that He has Mike in His hands. Again we thank you for your thoughts and prayers. Until we have more news.

Heading to Emory

Here is the latest on Mr. Mike Blackwell. The surgeon in Atlanta would not ok starting radiation without seeing Mike. So we are off to Atlanta tomorrow. (Lord willing) He will have another MRI tomorrow and then an appointment with the surgeon at Emory. He is supposed to be a top surgeon in his field. There is a slight glitch with the insurance but we are praying hard it will all be worked out before we arrive for his appointment.
Mike has been going outside for the past few days for a little while. He has overdone it but it has been good emotionally for him to work on his "projects".
We have had  some meals brought by some awesome angels of mercy. Another angel is coming to take the kids to and from school. We are getting so spoiled.
We continue to covet your prayers for Mike. Please pray specifically for:
Insurance approval
Some answers or a treatment plan from the surgeon
Total healing for mind spirit and body

Words cannot express how much I love this man!!

The Latest

Mike's bilirubin (yellowness)  level is not dropping as fast as they had hoped. So they are going to see about trying radiation to shrink the area around the bile ducts. One of the chemo drugs cannot work if the bilirubin is too high. The oncologist is trying to coordinate Mike's treatment with a surgeon at Emory Hospital in Atlanta. Until we hear from the surgeon we are just waiting. "They that wait upon the Lord shall their strength." Hopefully this will happen soon. Mike asked the Doctor today,
 "Am I this weak and sick because of all the bile in my body?"
 "No, you are this weak and sick because you have cancer!" he answered.
Pretty straight forward huh? He did add that the bile in his body added to the weakness.
So we are still at the beginning of this journey. We did meet an angel in the waiting room today. She was receiving her last chemo treatment. She has had 18 treatments is 18 weeks and was still working. She left work to come do her treatment and was going straight back to work. She shared some encouragement with us and offered her prayers. We did the same. I wish her all the best!
Until we know more, please keep the prayers coming.

One Step Forward, Two Steps Back

We went to our Chemo Information meeting today and we are now know more than we ever thought we would about chemotherapy. We were all set to begin chemo tomorrow but got a call tonight that they were going to cancel chemo for tomorrow. Mike's bilirubin is still too high. The chemo won't work if it's too high. So we are back to square one. We thought the drainage tubes would work faster than they are. I guess we can't get in a hurry. We are thankful that they didn't let us get to the appointment and then tell us this. So we are a little frustrated and uncertain at this time as to what's next. I'm hoping we get some direction tomorrow. Please pray for:
Bilirubin levels to go down
Drainage tubes to be working correctly
Mike's pain & fatigue
We appreciate all the calls and texts and prayers for Mike. God's got this!!

Good Friends

Mike will begin chemo treatments next Wednesday. We covet your prayers for him. We have heard horror stories about the effects of chemo. We have an information meeting on Tuesday which will help since we are clueless. We have enjoyed the visits and the meals that we have been blessed with. We are amazed at God's timing of encouraging words just when we need them.
We had a visit today from some of the fathers and sons from our church in Georgia. We have known these guys a long time. It really meant a lot to us. AND THEY BROUGHT FOOD!!! God is so good. They had a great visit,& shared some time in prayer. I read a blog post today and it was just what we needed. It was written by my friend Amy (bytheword.net). In part it said...

~~"How do I find peace in troubled times? Jesus answered this question in John 16:33
"These things I have spoken to you, that in Me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation; but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world."~~

And finally "Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid." ~John 14:27

Some of our prayer warriors

Biopsy Report

Well, the biopsy came back positive for cancer cells. Which the Doctor told us would happen. It is just hard hearing it and seeing it written. Before that, there was a very small chance it was something else. So we move on to step 2. Begin chemo asap. We have an appt at the Cancer Center in Rome next Friday but the Doctor doesn't want to wait that long. So next week we will begin the process of shrinking the mass. Mike has ups and downs. I wish I could take his place.
This is an excerpt from "Jesus Calling" yesterday. We are clinging to this promise.
"On days when your plans are thwarted, be on the lookout for Me! I may be doing something important in your life, something quite different from what you expected. (You can say that again) Don't try to figure out what is happening. Simply trust Me and thank Me in advance for the good that will come out of it all. I know the plans I have for you, and they are good."

Please continue to pray for Mike. Your prayers are lifting him up and sustaining him during this difficult time.

At Home

There is not much new to report, Mike is at home resting and trying to regain some strength. My biggest obstacle right now is trying to get him to eat. He has no appetite. We have been so overwhelmed by all the prayers being prayed on Mike's behalf. A few have asked for our address to send Mike a card or note of encouragement. I think that would do him a world of good so here it is:
Mike Blackwell
905 County Road 385
Centre, AL 35960
He will have another biopsy Monday at 7:30 and I pray this is the last one and they can get what they need. We did find out that the chemo he needs will NOT cause him to lose his beautiful blonde hair. God is good!!
I will share with you a prayer that has really kept us going and we will continue to pray during this journey. I hope it helps you as much as it is helping us.

God, grant me the serenity
to accept the thing I cannot change,
the courage to change the things I can,
and the wisdom to know the difference.
Living one day at a time,
enjoying one moment at a time;
accepting hardship as a pathway to peace;
taking,as Jesus did,
this sinful world as it is,
not as I would have it;
trusting that You will make all things right
if I surrender to Your will;
so that I may be reasonable happy in this life
and supremely happy with You forever in the next.
Amen