A few more things...

Hi everyone,

Just a quick update to pass along some info to you all. In my last post, I mentioned that they did a bone marrow aspiration on Levi along with the spinal tap... Apparently, in the controlled chaos of it all, I got my info mixed up. They actually did not perform a bone marrow test, so there are no results to wait for there. Since his last couple of tests came back clean, they did not find it necessary to continue the bone marrow tests before the start of the rounds.

They did perform a spinal tap, during which they drew a sample of his spinal fluid and directly administered a high dose of chemo to knock out any leukemia cells that may be hiding out there. We learned yesterday that his spinal fluid came back clean, so that again is a HUGE PRAISE!

Another thing I failed to mention - Levi has actually grown quite a bit through all of this. He's put on about three pounds since July and is now up to a little over 21.5 lbs. He's also shot up a few centimeters, which is evident in his ability to hang off the door handles in the hallway and open the bathroom door on us...

I talked Steph a little while ago, and the doctor said that Levi can be unhooked from the IV during the day when he's not getting chemo. And if you've ever seen how busy this little boy is, not to mention how fast he is, this is a huge improvement and makes Steph's job ten times easier during the day. So he's now free to run up and down the halls and make his routine flirtatious visits to the nurses station. He finished his high-dose chemo this morning at 2am, and is now on the second drug (the new one) for the next couple of days. He's getting it once a night, and will finish it up on Thursday night around 10pm.

Also, I wanted to let you know that Steph and Levi did move rooms yesterday, so they are in the room now that they will be in for the remainder of this round. This new room is B409. Here is their new mailing address:

Indiana University Health North Hospital
Attn: Levi Whitesell, Room B409
11700 North Meridian Street
Carmel, IN 46032

If you sent something to the old room (B410), don't sweat it. Levi's a pretty popular guy on the floor, and all the nurses know him. He'll get his mail... :)

Finally, I have had a lot of conversations about the "cocky" comment I talked about in my last post. Clearly it struck many of you in the same way it struck Steph and me. So, I wanted to share with you a few verses that jumped out at me on Saturday night as I was turning in my Bible to a bookmarked passage for my devotions. I had highlighted it a long time ago, but it was like God told me to hold on a second and read it again before I resumed flipping pages. I've always liked the passage, and I think I've posted it before, but I don't think I ever really fully appreciated its message until that night.

Hebrews 10:35-39

So do not throw away your confidence; it will be richly rewarded. You need to persevere so that when you have done the will of God, you will receive what he has promised.

For,
“In just a little while,
he who is coming will come
and will not delay.”

And,
“But my righteous one will live by faith.
And I take no pleasure
in the one who shrinks back.”

But we do not belong to those who shrink back and are destroyed, but to those who have faith and are saved.

So there you have it. We are not throwing away our confidence. If anything, it has become stronger. We will not shrink back, because we belong to those who have faith and are saved.

Thank you all for your encouragement and love for us. We couldn't do this without all of you.

Our God moves mountains.
Michael, Stephanie, Caylee, and little Levi