Layups for Leukemia!

For those of you who could not make it out for the Layups 4 Leukemia, we made a little video of the highlights. Copy and paste the link below and enjoy. I don't have the total as of yet that was made for the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society but when I do, I will let you know. Thanks!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=odRazm4nui0

Winter Break 2010!

MASON vs SYCAMORE :)

Last year was a success but this year it needs to be even bigger! Our goal is to raise $10,000 for the Leukemia/Lymphoma Society This year we have decided to have a competition between Sycamore and Mason to see who will sell more t-shirts! SO WHICH SCHOOL WILL IT BE?

Honored Heroes:
-Liz Lothrop
-Joel Brown
-Leah Jordan

T-shirts will be sold for $10. Students wearing the t-shirt to the game will get free admission. Adults wearing the t-shirt will get in for $3, without t-shirt regular $6 admission will apply.

Sycamore and Mason High School will be selling t-shirts during lunch on January 28th and 29th and February 1st and 2nd.

Whatever t-shirts are left, will be sold at the door.

There will be competitions at halftime- Sycamore vs Mason!

There will also be items raffled off throughout the game.

If you would like to make an on-line donation please visit the event webpage at: http://soh.lls.llsevent.org/layupsforleukemia

Questions, please contact event co-chair @ ashleyschaefer21@yahoo.com

THANK YOU in advance for all your support.

Ashley
Play by play, we are closer to a CURE!

Up hill? No wait, down hill.

Liz and Jim at Youth Group ")

Have you ever gone to a movie on the recommendation that "It is the best movie you will ever see". Well, maintenance is a bit like that. Liz and I had these illusions that when the tough weekly treatment was over and we hit maintenance we would "see the light". Let's just say that we are not breaking out the sunglasses. Although we are seeing less of the doctors and downtown Children's, we are not seeing more of the outside world. We do miss our doctors and the nurses. Believe it or not, hours of waiting at clinic now seems like a fun day out.

Lizzy's counts remain swirling at the bottom of the toilet. We had blood work done at Children's Liberty today and her ANC is 10, platelets 21k, hemoglobin 10, white blood cell (WBC) .05. If you want to visit, please call me first, also make sure you are not sick in any way, even having the sniffles. This is where her counts were when she was admitted in November and remained in the hospital for three weeks. Without an ANC ,immune system, Liz cannot fight her own bodies bacteria.

All chemo is stopped until her counts recover to an ANC of 750, and platelets of 75k. Last week Liz received two units of packed red blood cells and one unit of platelets. There is a critical crises for blood and platelets. If you have never given blood or platelets, please prayerfully consider donating. Your donation saves lives! Not every one can give financially but every one can see if they can give blood products and if they can it doesn't cost a thing.

Please pray for her ANC to recover
that she does not get sick
that we "see the light" soon
for the researchers and funds that have allowed there to be an 85% cure rate

Blessings,
Christine

Layups for Leukemia

UC Relay for Life is back again!

Hello Family and Friends :)

I am back at this again this year! I am hoping to raise $3,000 with my team and bring us a few steps further in finding a cure for cancer.

This year, I am helping save lives from cancer by taking part in the American Cancer Society Relay For Life Event, and I’m hoping you will help by supporting me.

The American Cancer Society Relay For Life® is a life-changing event that gives people in communities across the globe a chance to celebrate the lives of people who have battled cancer, remember loved ones lost, and fight back against the disease. At Relay, teams of people camp out on the University of Cincinnati campus and take turns walking or running around a path. Each team is asked to have a representative on the track at all times during the event. Because cancer never sleeps, Relays are overnight events up to 24 hours in length.

In addition to helping people celebrate, remember, and fight back, Relay For Life® also helps raise much-needed funds and awareness to help the American Cancer Society save lives from cancer.

Please support me in my efforts by visiting my personal web page to make a secure, tax-deductible online donation at
http://main.acsevents.org/goto/cat.lothrop

Every donation really does make a difference. I know that times are tighter than normal for many of us, but any amount you can give truly can help save lives. Just $5 gets us one step closer to the exciting goal of a cure!

Thanks to your support, the American Cancer Society can:

• Help people stay well by helping them take steps to prevent cancer or detect it early, when it’s most treatable
• Help people get well by being in their corner around the clock to guide them through every step of their cancer experience
• Find cures by funding groundbreaking research that helps us understand cancer’s causes, determine how best to prevent it, and discover new ways to cure it
• Fight back by working with lawmakers to pass laws to defeat cancer and rally communities worldwide to join the fight

Each of us has our own reasons for caring about the fight against cancer … whatever your reasons, I hope you’ll choose to make a difference by making a donation online to support my efforts. I’m so grateful to have people like you in my life who want to see an end to cancer in our lifetime as much as I do. Together we can save lives.

If you want to learn more about Relay For Life®, please visit RelayForLife.org.

Thanks so much everyone :)
Catherine Lothrop

Counts down

The Lothrop "trickle train"

We are now 35 days into maintenance and her chemo may need a little adjusting. Lizzy's blood work today was not encouraging. Her ANC ( immune system) is at 80, well below the 500 mark. We had her at a basketball game last night; please pray that God was watching over her and will protect her from any type of sickness she was exposed to. Her platelets are only at 15k so here we sit at Children's getting a platelet transfusion.

Life is funny; you wait for this miracle of "Maintenance" and you find that you are still battling the same demons. I guess the first three months are a bit of a roller coaster until they have the dosage right for her daily chemo.

The plan as of now is to stop all chemo until her counts recover. ANC 750 and platelets 75k. Once that happens she will go back on 100% dosing of her 6mp chemo and see if she can hold her own. If not, her chemo will be held again until her counts have recovered and she will start back up at 50 to 75% dosing of her 6mp.

Please continue to pray for protection from illness,
her counts to recover,
minimal side effects,
the families and children on A5 South.

Be a blessing to someone today,
Christine

Count back

Liz and Batman riding home from Fort Myers

I was just going through my binder from the past 455 days of Elizabeth's treatment and here is a 14 month in review for you.

125 days in the hospital (3.5 months)
295 days at the hospital ( clinic, blood draws, blood/platelet transfusions, fevers)
35 days at home without running anywhere

God and you were with us every step of the way. No one could make it through that ordeal without the love of God, family, friends, and community. Thank you for being with us during our darkest moments and sharing some of our most wonderful moments of growing as individuals.

Please continue to pray for minimal side effects from her chemo and just the daily routine of all the drugs that she has to take.

Blessings,
Christine

Layups for Leukemia is fast approaching!!!

Last year was a hit...this year we are going to PACK THE HOUSE and SAVE LIVES!!!
The event details are:
Feb. 2nd 2010 7:30pm during the Boys game
Mason at Sycamore.

Event being held by Sycamore Womens Basketball team.
Questions contact co-chair Ashley Schaefer@ ashleyschaefer21@yahoo.com

T-shirts will be sold for $10. Students wearing the t-shirt to the game will get free admission. Adults wearing the t-shirt will get in for $3, without t-shirt regular $6 admission will apply.
There will also be items raffled off.

The webpage address if anyone would like to make on-line donations is:
http://soh.lls.llsevent.org/layupsforleukemia

Lizzy swimming under the water in gma and gpa's pool!

It has been a bit so I thought I would let you know what we are up to.

We had the OK to travel so we did! Probably a bit further then they meant for us to go.

We left Dec 26th at 4:40 am for Fort Myers and arrived 18 hours later. We have had a great time and are enjoying having some wonderful family time. First time on vacation for over 15 months.

Today we spent the day at the beach. I believe every other person on the planet did the same thing, but that did not stop us from having fun. Liz and Randy did some passing and bumping of the volleyball on the beach, getting ready for the day she steps back on the courts.

We will be leaving for home on Fri. morning and getting ready to begin school and the real world again.

Please continue to pray for:
Liz to stay in remission
minimal side effects from her chemo
her strength to return
for the families on A5 South
The doctors and nurses that continually take care of these children and their families.

Happy New Year and blessings,
Christine

Merry Christmas and God's blessings upon you in the new year!

First day of Maintenance

Dr. Jen and Liz signing her Maintenance papers.

We have finally made it to MAINTENANCE !!!!!!!!!!!!!

Elizabeth has 433 days behind her now of very hard chemos and treatment plan.

Elizabeth has 427 days left in her maintenance phase.

Elizabeth's five year remission will occur in 2016.

Elizabeth's cure will come in the year 2021, when she is 27 years old.

Elizabeth's faith remains strong, if not stronger, in the Lord.

Be faithful unto the Lord, always.

Blessings,

Christine

ORANGE!

Jim's basketball team busts out the orange uni's in support of Liz!

Wahoooooooo!

We are home. We came home yesterday around 11:00 am and could not be more thrilled, her ANC is 290. It is good to sleep in your own bed but better to know that your daughter's body is producing the new bone marrow.

Thank you to all how have been faithful to us during this difficult time. Upward and onward to a brighter future.

Blessings,
Christine