Items We Need Donated...

We have been receiving some emails from people wanting to know what needs donated for the dinner yet and here is the list!

- Buy a ticket! We still have a lot of tickets left to sell so please contact me at the email address below if you would like a ticket!

- Gift cards for grocery stores to purchase food for the spaghetti dinner

- We are still in need of door prize items, especially for children and men

- Silent auction items for men and children

Thanks again to all of the family members and friends so far who have volunteered baked goods and their time to help us make this event successful!

Please contact Sandy at fightformike@hotmail.com if you have any questions or wish to donate! Thanks!

These Businesses Have Kindly Donated...

The following businesses have generously donated gift cards, door prize drawings and silent auction items for Mike's spaghetti dinner on December 1st. Some of these people who donated I don't even know - I "met" them online and they graciously gave! Thanks a million!

Gretchen from Tastefully Simple

Crystal with Beauty From The Earth

Christie Walker with Mia Bella Candles

Anita with Send Out Cards

Yolanda with Mia Bella Candles

Penny Poorman with Mary Kay Cosmetics

Peggy Thompson with Home & Garden Party

Ron Rosenberry of Rosenberry's Abattoir, Inc. in Chambersburg, PA

Harold Gabler of Gabler Trucking

Giant Food Stores in Chambersburg & Shippensburg- Thank you managers, Jim Bishop and John George

Weis Markets in Chambersburg - Thank you manager, Travis Gottfried

Starbucks in Chambersburg

Bruster's Ice Cream in Chambersburg

Shippensburg Walmart

Fighting Cancer

I read a very interesting article over the weekend on cancer that was written by Dr. Tedd Mitchell. I thought it would be neat to share here. It is rather long, though so grab your coffee or drink and relax a minute!

We've turned the Corner On Fighting Cancer
No longer called the "Big C", we no address it forthrightly.


"When I was a child, cancer was a scary, taboo topic that folks never discussed. Even John Wayne didn't use the term after his lung cancer surgery, instead calling it "the Big C". Perhaps he did that because our ability to diagnose and treat cancer a generation ago was more limited, so the diagnosis carried with it a more ominous outlook.

Well, things have changed. Advances in medical science have dramatically improved our ability to diagnose a number of cancers at earlier stages, when treatment is more effective. And because early diagnosis is still the best way to successfully intervene, numerous organizations have embarked upon campaigns to increase public awareness.

Today, survival rates for those with cancer have improved enough that the pendulum has swung. Folks who once were expected to suffer in silence now find strength in facing their illness in a full frontal assault. Family members and friends have joined the fight, as well, volunteering in events such as walks, fun runs, telethons and all sorts of fundraisers.

The shift in how far we've come with public awareness about cancer has even moved to the funny pages. A patient of mine, Tom Batiuk, author and "Funky Winkerbean" cartoonist, has written a book called Lisa's Story: The Other Shoe, which chronicles the heroic struggle of a woman with breast cancer. He uses the comic strip to illustrate the triumph and struggles that cancer brings to individuals and their families and friends.

Speaking about what inspired him to write the book, Batiuk said: 'The first part of Lisa's Story was based on the experiences of friends and relatives who had been touched by cancer. When I was diagnosed with prostate cancer in 2003, I realized what a huge gulf exists between empathy and personal experience and that I had only skimmed the surface of a cancer story in the first telling. This led to the second half of Lisa's Story, which I hope will be a cautionary tale about the importance of early diagnosis.'

As a cancer survivor, the author has a keen sense of its implications for a family. His book is also a remarkable illustration of how much we've changed our approach to the problem.

We have turned the corner in our discourse about cancer. Addressing it in a forthright manner helps people understand that having "the Big C" no longer means giving up. John Wayne certainly would be proud."

And More Pictures...

Mike, Kayla and Dean - Alright Kayla! No fair hiding your eyes!

Bev - this one is just for you! I KNOW how much you love having your picture up here! (Sorry - I just couldn't resist!)

Bev, Helen and Bill chatting and relaxing.

Josh and Jess - It was a special treat having Josh there because he lives and works in Pittsburgh.

Still at the table - the back of Helen's head (Hey - I never said I was a good photographer!), Chris, Michelle, and family friend, Maria or AKA "Mama Banks".

Mikie and his girlfriend, Joy. Sorry guys! My son decided to walk in front of the camera just as I was taking the picture! In the background are the granddaughters, Austin and Judy!

Fun around the table - Jess (Josh's girlfriend), Josh, Shawn and Helen

The little ones - My son Logan, Austin, and our granddaughters, Mikaela and Alexis

Pictures From The Party...

The twins - Mikie & Michelle

Mikie had this blanket made from a picture taken of Kayla and Austin in Florida. Mike & Judy took the kids to Florida a few months ago! This is really neat!

Michelle, Judy, Mike & Mikie - The Metzler Gang

Dean, Michelle,Austin, Judy, Kayla, Mike and Mikie! All together again!

Chris' son, Josh, and Judy or better known as "Aunt DuDu"!

The five kids - My hubby, Bill, Judy, Bev, Chris, and Bobby - the "baby" of the family!

The entire family!

What A Great Night!

Justin Baer - the birthday boy! Seventeen now! He was only four years old when Bill and I got together - how time does fly!

Last night at my sister-in-law, Chris' house was so much fun! The whole family gathered for Justin's birthday party and we got to see Mikie and to meet his girlfriend, Joy. We had a wonderful evening of food, fun, games and laughs!

I got to play the game Taboo for the first time and I was pretty bad at it. But it was okay - some of the other players weren't much better than me! (Just kidding, guys!) Chris' other son, Josh, he was very good at Taboo and so was Michelle.

The house was full, as you will see from the pictures. Bev, my one other sister-in-law, said she didn't want to see anymore of her pictures on here but guess what Bev? MY BLOG - MY RULES! :)

It is always a good time when the whole family gets together. My husband's side of the family are all fun and it has been a joy for me to be a part of this family. Even if I don't always show it, I love them all and they are all very special in their own ways.

Mike was there and as usual, he and I had our back and forth banter of picking on each other that we usually do. Mike and I have always had this joke that he is the "other" man in my life and we kid around about that frequently.

Welcome Home, Mikie!

Today Mikie comes home to visit his mom and dad! He is bringing his girlfriend and she will get to meet the entire family tomorrow night. Mikie lives in Florida and works for Citi. He moved to Florida a few years ago and everyone misses him!

It's great to have you home, Mikie and we will all see you tomorrow night! I'll bring the camera! :)

Thank You!

For the past few years I have seriously doubted the number of good people left in this world - until now. This whole thing with Mike has restored my faith in people and I realize that yes, there are still many good, loving people out there.

This outreach and showering of love for Mike and his family has been truly overwhelming and I am just their sister-in-law! I can't even begin to imagine how touched Mike & Judy must feel!

Since we found out that Mike's cancer was back and since this blog has went up, we have received many donations, prayers, well wishes, offers to donate items for his spaghetti dinner, offers to make desserts for the spaghetti dinner, basket sales - I could go on and on.

I have been going around to the local grocery stores the past two days and the local Giant and Weis stores have been wonderful in donating. At four of these stores, the managers didn't even hesitate when I asked if they would be willing to donate gift cards for Mike's spaghetti dinner.

You all know out there who you are who have been so generous to Mike & Judy and we thank you tremendously.

This has been a great opportunity for me to get to know some of Mike & Judy's friends and family also! I was able to meet two of their friends this morning when I delivered their tickets for the dinner and Vivian and her daughter, Heather, have a lot of love for Mike and Judy. Vivian was sharing with me how great the Metzlers have been to them.

There is hope...

Yesterday when I went to one of the local Giant stores, the manager told me that he had been diagnosed with Stage 4 cancer; he was given a 1 in 10 chance of surviving. He was given three to four months to live - and that was over two years ago. He has been cancer free since that time. I told him he gave us hope for Mike and he was an inspiration. Miracles are out there and we know that there is one miracle being saved for Mike! If anyone deserves it, he does!

What's New...

I talked to Judy today and she said Mike is feeling good! He's tired but that is to be expected with what all he is going through. Mike is down to 139 pounds now. That is a huge difference from what we are used to seeing Mike weigh.

Judy had a visit today from Misty, Mike's niece. She came to pick up her basket that she bought. Judy said they had a nice talk and it was great seeing her.

Saturday was the "Ride for Eternity". Money raised went to the Crossbearers Youth Ministries and to Mike. Rose from Crossroads Church said:

"It was a great sight to see all the bikes heading out on their ride with our own Bill Elliott bringing up the rear in his pick-up truck with the American flag waving from his tailgate."

There were lots of baked goods and it turned out to be a great day for all!

Mike and Judy's son, Mikie, is coming home on Thursday and then Friday night the whole family will be together at Chris' house for Justin's birthday.


The fundraising is going pretty good for Mike! The family has sold about 37 baskets to date and Michelle is waiting for the second shipment to come in to deliver!

The spaghetti dinner benefit is coming together and Bill and Judy's aunt, Alma, and Francis, who both do the spaghetti dinners at the nursing home in town. They offered to come out and walk Lori & I through everything they do for their spaghetti dinners. I have never done a spaghetti benefit dinner before, so we are very grateful to them for offering to help us. The church Bill, Logan and I attend is letting us use their facilities to host the event so we are very thankful to them as well.


Anyone wanting tickets for the dinner, or a basket, please email me at fightformike@hotmail.com and I will hook you up! If you would like tickets to sell you can contact me about that also!

Please keep Mike in your prayers!

Friday Night At Mike & Judy's

Logan and I spent the evening at Mike & Judy's on Friday. Logan (left in the picture) and Mike & Judy's grandson, Austin (on the right) have a really special friendship. They are cousins but they are good buddies too. It amazes me how much patience Austin has with him, as there is a four-year age difference between him and Logan. Most kids Austin's age wouldn't want to play with a 6-year-old but Austin is special. Austin's sister, Kayla, has always been good with Logan, too. She will be 14 next month and it seems so hard to believe. When Bill & I got together Kayla wasn't even a year old and now she is a beautiful teenager. I'm sure she is breaking lots of hearts!

Logan is always wanting to know if Austin will be at his "Aunt Dudu's" house. When I told him on Friday after school that he would get to see Austin that evening, his whole face lit up. He was very excited.

All the kids in the family have always liked going to "Uncle Mike" & "Aunt DuDu's" house. They are just great with kids. It always amazes me the amount of patience both of them have with children. Judy can relate well to children and she can think like a child. No - she doesn't act like one - she can just THINK like one!

While the boys played, Bev & I cut out the spaghetti tickets for the dinner benefit we are holding on December 1st. Mike was pretty tired while we were there and he rested in the bedroom watching the local news, dozing off at times. It was good to see him rest. It is seldom that you will see Mike resting. Then later he came out and ate his supper and we talked some. He still has trouble eating certain foods and he will feel pretty sick after eating at times.

We Are One Busy Family Fighting For Mike!

It has been a busy week of baking for the family! Judy, Bev, me and Judy's aunts, Alma and Edna, made cupcakes, brownies, rice krispie treats, cookies and muffins for the bike riders for tomorrow. I believe Alma and Edna made 25 dozen cookies! I hope there are a lot of hungry bikers that turn up!

I just printed out tickets this morning for Mike's spaghetti dinner on December 1st, so anyone wanting tickets please contact me at fightformike@hotmail.com. I will be taking tickets to Judy's tonight and they are going to take them to the bike ride fundraiser that is being held for Mike tomorrow. I have printed almost 260 adult tickets and 50 children's tickets for the event.

We found out that since we are holding the event in a church we cannot have a raffle but they did approve a silent auction. Our daughter, Lori & I will be starting to go out asking for donations next week for the door prize drawings and the silent auction. We are also going to see how much of the food we can get donated.

The basket sale is going great! At last count this morning there are only seven baskets remaining out of the initial order of 25 that Michelle got in. Michelle can order more baskets, so if you want one, and if you want it personally signed by Mike, you can just let us know! Email me at the address above!

This family is definitely full of go getters and these are the types of people that it is so great to be in a family with!

Mike is doing pretty good. Judy said his arm was swollen after his chemotherapy treatment on Monday and he is tired and weak from it. He still has that great attitude we all know and love and with that attitude, and his faith in God, he will pull through this!

Fundraisers For Mike

Members of our family have been busy preparing and planning fundraisers to help fund Mike's chemotherapy sessions.

Fighting For Mike Baskets

Upcoming fundraisers include Custom Fighting For Mike Baskets that are selling for $45 each. The basket is custom designed (see pictures above) by American Traditions Basket Company in Ohio and these baskets are limited in number and each basket is hand numbered.

The basket is 8.25" x 6.25" x 3.25". It includes a Brass Tag that says "Fighting For Mike 2007", Blue checked cloth liner and plastic protector.

Michelle said today that the baskets have been shipped out and the first shipment should be here within a few days. If you would like to put your order in for a basket to help raise funds for Mike, please email me at fightformike@hotmail.com.

If you would like to take orders, I can email you the PDF order form shown in the first picture above.

All-You-Can-Eat Spaghetti Benefit Dinner

My stepdaughter, Lori, and I are putting together a spaghetti benefit dinner for Mike that will be held Saturday, December 1st at the Mt. Rock Church in Shippensburg, PA.

Serving times will be from 5:00 pm. - 7:00 pm.

Tickets are $6.00 for ages 10 and over, $3.00 for ages 4 - 9.

Our menu will include spaghetti, cream slaw, pepper slaw, dinner rolls, applesauce, dessert, coffee, iced tea and punch.

We are looking for donations for the food so that we can use all proceeds to give to Mike for his treatments.

I will be printing off tickets for the spaghetti dinner hopefully by the end of this week. I have some paperwork to fill out to see what all we can and can't do, then I will print out the tickets and distribute them among the family members.

If you would like a ticket or if you would like to donate food or other items to the dinner, please email me at fightformike@hotmail.com.

My goal is to sell between 200 -250 adult tickets, so we hope everyone can come!

The Gangs All Here!

The Whole Gang!

Friday was my mother-in-law's 84th birthday so all of her kids, some of the grandkids and their spouses, and the great-grandkids were there to celebrate! So here are pictures from that night at the restaurant that I took. As always, Mike was there and he looked really good Friday night!

For those of you reading this who don't know the family, Helen's (my MIL) kids are:

Bill, Judy, Bev, Chris & Bobby

Judy & Mike talking to someone they know. Their kids are Michelle (who is in a picture below), and Mikie. Mikie lives in Florida but he is coming up next week for a visit. More pictures!

Bev & the birthday girl, Helen

Bobby & his wife, Jane - Bobby is the youngest of the five kids. He & Jane have two sons, Brandon & Ryan. Bobby also has an older son, Robby.

Jane & Chris - Chris has two sons, Josh (he lives & works in Pittsburgh) and Justin, who is still in high school

Me & Bill - Our son Logan (who you will see in a picture below) and daughter, Lori and her family are in pictures below!

Mike & Judy's daughter, Michelle, her husband Dean (hiding his face on the right!) and their daughter, Kayla. Kayla was showing her school spirit for Spirit Day

Lori & Stan (pictures of their two daughters next)

Lori & Stan's girls, Alexis & Mikaela

Our son, Logan (on the left) and Michelle and Dean's son, Austin (on the right)

Chemotherapy Treatment #2

(Photo courtesy of FreeFoto.com)

Mike had his second chemotherapy treatment today and Judy said he is doing much better than what he did a few weeks ago at his first treatment.

He wasn't feeling well at all this weekend. The pain in his back was really bad so today at chemotherapy they gave him a morphine shot and a prescription for Percocet. Hopefully he will be able to get some relief. I have read that cancer pain, particularly when it has metastasized to the bones, is the worst pain there is.

From an article on the Oncology Channel website about pain:

Studies have shown that 90% of patients with advanced cancer experience severe pain and that pain occurs in 30% of all cancer patients, regardless of the stage of the disease. As many as 50% of patients may be undertreated for cancer pain, yet not all cancer patients fell pain, and pain is rarely a sign of early cancer. Pain usually increases as cancer progresses.

The most common cancer pain is from tumors that metastasize to the bone. As many as 60% - 80% of cancer patients with bone metastasis experience pain.

The second most common cancer pain is caused by tumors infiltrating the nerve and hollow viscus. Tumors near neural structiures may cause the most severe pain.

The third most common pain associated with cancer occurs as a result of chemotherapy, radiation, or surgery.

Judy said that Mike will have 10 more chemotherapy treatments and he has blood work throughout the treatment process to make sure that his cell counts are okay.

We Can Do The Impossible

We can, do the impossible

We have the power in our hands

...And we won't stop 'cause we've got

To make a difference in this life

With one voice, one heart, two hands, we can

They say the odds are stacked against us

But that can't hold us back, we will be relentless

There's a voice they're gonna hear

A voice so loud and clear

So let them say we can't do it,

give us a mountain,and we're gonna move it..

...We're gonna make a change today

Because we've got the faith it takes

To win this race, so let them say we can't do it

Put up a road block

And we'll just run right through it...

Big Fundraiser For Mike In The Works & Other Updates

My stepdaughter and I are working on a big fundraiser for Mike. I will have details to post next week, as we are waiting to hear back from the location we want to use for the fundraiser.

I talked to Judy today and she said Mike is doing pretty good. He has been able to eat more, but he is having difficulty with any food that contains yeast. He ends up feeling sick, with the extreme belching and pain.

Tonight we are having a birthday dinner for our mother-in-law. She is 84 today! There will be over 20 of us at her dinner and I will have pictures to post come Monday from the event!

Have a nice weekend!

Would You Please Vote For My Blogs?

I am interrupting the normal flow of this blog to ask all of you friends, family and readers to vote for my blogs on Blogging To Fame. I just found out this week that my Fighting Fatigue blog was short listed and has made the cut to the final 500 that will be chosen from for the Blogging To Fame Awards. This is a pretty big deal, as the prizes are great! Check these out:

• 1 Super Famed Blog wins $25000
• 3 Famed Blogs win $10,000 each
• 5 Glorious Bloggers win $5,000 each
• All Winners Receive Free passes, stay and Tickets to Award Ceremony

So here is what you have to do. You have to vote for my Blogger Profile and My Blogs. I have Fighting For Mike listed too!

• Go to the Blogging To Fame Website (click here)
• On the left hand side, click "Register"
• Complete the registration form
• Come back here and click on the badges above
• Vote!

Votes do not count if you don't register. I know it's a pain but it only takes a second! Make sure you vote for both Fighting Fatigue & Fighting For Mike!

If you have any questions, just leave me a comment here and I will help you!