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Hebrews 13:15
"Through Jesus, therefore, let us continually offer to God a sacrifice of praise—the fruit of lips that confess his name."

Now that a match has been found, we are preparing for the transplant itself. The euphoria of the past couple of days has been dampened by the reality of the risks associated with the transplant. We know that the transplant should yield better results than not having one, and we know that all this is in God's plan. That's how we can "offer to God a sacrifice of praise."

We had a visit with KU Medical Center today to get the next steps scheduled. Here's a brief synopsis. Next week Tammy will have another round of low-grade chemotherapy, similar to what she had in early January. The following week, she will go in for her "evaluations," to make sure she's up to the transplant. The week of February 23, she will have another bone-marrow biopsy. This will determine the method of collection for the bone-marrow cells.

She is scheduled tentatively for admission to the hospital for the transplant the week of March 9. This will begin a four-week stay in the hospital, with the transplant occurring about a week in.

There are now three potential matches, with the first choice still being a 37-year-old male. He will be contacted in the next few days to make sure he is still willing to be a donor. He'll then have a complete physical to make sure he's healthy. If he is, he will be scheduled for his donation, either through a donation of blood or bone marrow, which will be determined by Tammy's tests. We are thankful to God that this young man is willing to sacrifice to help save Tammy's life. We don't know who he is or where he's from, but we ask God to bless him richly.

The detail outlined in the paperwork we received today is amazing. The day the "donation" arrives at the hospital, it must be placed in a "20ml yellow ACD tube" and the coordinator must be paged at this specific pager number. It's pretty detailed, but it gives us comfort to know how much preparation goes into this.

We'll update with more information as we get it.

A story appeared in today's Neighborhood News section of The Kansas City Star. Here is a link to the story (and just so you know, Tammy is really 49, not 50): http://www.kansascity.com/318/story/1015931.html

Once again, the media has done a good job of telling Tammy's story, and letting her share her faith. You all are a big part of that story, as you have carried us repeatedly to the Throne of God with your prayers. Please continue to do so. We love you all.