The Tooth Fairy

Well, it has happened. My "small child" is growing up. Emily lost her first tooth yesterday. She started crying like crazy when it happened. It scared her that it bled a little bit, but then she was VERY happy that the tooth fairy would be making a visit. Plus, she said that her daddy told her he would give her five bucks when her tooth fell out and so she was quickly adding up how much money she would have to spend. :)

The tooth fairy made her visit last night and gave her $3. Ethan actually got a visit from the tooth fairy, too, because he lost a tooth on our trip and it was in my wallet this whole time. I told him we were putting his under his pillow, too, so the tooth fairy didn't have to make two trips to our house. In his usual fashion, he woke up and totally forgot that the tooth was even under his pillow the night before. Emily, on the other hand, immediately started looking for her money when she woke up. Emily said she was upset that she only got $3. I told her that if she was going to sound ungrateful, then we would just leave a note for the tooth fairy the next time and tell her not to leave any money. She quickly changed her tune.

And then early today, it happened all over again. She lost her second tooth. Only this time she asked me to pull it out. It was barely hanging there by a thread and it was really bothering her. She came over to me and was very brave and let me pull it out. There was no crying this time because I think she saw the dollar signs in her head.

Tonight, when I was tucking her into bed, she told me the funniest thing. She told me that she is quite certain that I'm not the tooth fairy. I laughed and asked her why she is so sure. She said, "Well, for one thing, I know you wouldn't be willing to give up your money. And secondly, I know you wouldn't get up in the middle of the night to do it." This made me laugh so hard. I think it is obvious that the kids are constantly being talked to about not wasting money and not spending money. And I guess she thinks of me as an ogre who never buys her anything. If she only knew how much she cost me...

Home Sweet Home

I know that I haven't posted in a few days, and I should be ashamed of myself. We did end up going to Worlds of Fun in Kansas City. The kids had the best time there. Ethan rode his first REAL roller coaster with me. It was one that went upside down. He was so excited to ride it and planned on riding every single roller coaster there. Emily wasn't tall enough to ride most of the rides because you had to be 44" tall. She doesn't quite make that mark yet. As Ethan and I were on the roller coaster, Emily was down below with Daddy and was crying her eyes out. I found out after we got off that she had a very difficult time watching me and Ethan on that ride. It scared the heck out of her that she was watching us go upside down on a roller coaster. She told me that she was worried that we weren't secured in there good enough and that we would fall out. She was REALLY upset about it and just kept hugging me when I got off of the ride. I felt so bad for her. Ethan, who was gung ho about riding roller coasters, ended up not wanting to ride anymore after that first one. He tensed up really bad on the ride and was leaning forward and he said that it made his back not feel good. We still had a great time and the kids rode lots of other rides. There was one funny thing that happened. When we went to get on the carousel, the ride operator put the measuring stick against Emily. I was shocked to see that you had to even be 44" to ride the carousel. I usually ride the carousel horses along with the kids, but I couldn't on this ride. The operator said as we were getting on, "since she is a small child, you will have to stand next to her the entire time." This made Emily get so upset. She shouted, "I AM NOT a small child!!!!" This became our little nickname for her the rest of the trip. After doing several rides, we went to the children's area called Camp Snoopy. The kids thought this was the most awesome place. They even got to get their picture taken with Snoopy and Linus. Another favorite thing at Worlds of Fun was the ride called The Viking Voyager. I told them that that ride was there even when I was a little girl. We ended up going on one more roller coaster. It was called the Spinning Dragons and even Emily got on it. She wanted to ride it so bad, but she was still scared. She was crying as we were boarding the little car thing. I kept telling her that she didn't have to ride, but she wanted to and just kept crying. It ended up causing a problem and held up the ride. The operator wouldn't let us go until Emily either stopped crying or got off of the ride. I tried to convince her to get off, but she said she wanted to ride and she had to work to dry her tears before they would start. She squeezed my arm the entire time, but ended up loving the ride. Worlds of Fun was so much fun for all of us.

After leaving there, we went back to Uncle David and Aunt Vickie's house. Gram had cooked a pot of spaghetti and we all enjoyed dinner together. On Friday, we spent the day with Gram and went to the mall. Gram enjoyed showing us around and the kids got to ride another carousel in the mall as well as do this bungee jump thing on trampolines. They loved it. We all ended up eating dinner at my aunt and uncle's house again and this time my cousins and their families came over, too. It was a very nice evening and it was finished off with the kids hunting down more lightening bugs.

We left Kansas City on Saturday morning. Our original plans were going to take us home by way of Branson, MO. We had tickets to Silver Dollar City there and were going to enjoy that for a day before finishing our trip home. We had to adjust our plans, though, when Ethan got very homesick again. We talked to the kids and told them that we could head straight home if they wanted to. We didn't have to stop in Branson. Emily was really wanting to stop there, but she was okay with heading home, too. She saw how homesick Ethan was getting and she agreed to head home. She did ask me question, though, about Silver Dollar City and she was just wanting to make sure that she wasn't going to miss much. I played it down a lot because I didn't want her to get upset about not going. So as we left KC on Saturday morning, we drove as far as we could get. We got a hotel just a little North of Jackson, MS. We finished the drive today and it wasn't a bad one at all.

Overall, we put about 3,900 miles on the car in two weeks. We went through eleven states if you count Alabama. We created memories that will last a lifetime and had a wonderful time together as a family. We experienced so many things together and will be able to talk about them for years to come. I was amazed at how well the kids did on the trip. The only difficult day on the road we had with them was the very first day when we were driving to Houston. Aside from that, they were perfect angels. We made lots of stops and enjoyed the sights as we went along. Emily also took that opportunity to study her U.S. map and she learned almost all of the capitals for each state. It became a game for us to quiz each other while we were driving down the road. She loved every second of it!!! They also learned what it means for a city to be a capital city. We talked about how that is where each state's government is located and Emily became very interested in it. She was even impressing many of our family members with her knowledge of the capitals. Ethan didn't want to be left out of the mix either, but he wanted to work on some math quizzes instead of capitals. We ended up getting paper and doing lots of math problems for him to do. I think both of the kids were in competition with each other and was trying to outdo the other one. They were doing math problems like adding digits in the hundreds. Ethan even learned how to "carry over" if the number ended up being larger than 10. It was definitely an educational two weeks for all of us because of learning about the different things from our travels as well as the quizzes the kids did.

We made it home later this afternoon and it felt so good to get here. We have had the time of our lives, but there is nothing quite like coming home. Too bad my house was just as dirty and cluttered as when I left. Ha-ha! I guess that is what happens when you are rushing through and packing like a mad person right before the trip. And I can't end my post without saying how much I appreciated my mom and dad for taking care of our pets while we were away and for holding down the fort. I also have to say a big thank you to Grandma Burks, Tracy and Ray, Uncle David and Aunt Vickie, and to Gram for showing us so much hospitality along the way. It was very nice reconnecting with all of the family again.

We are in Kansas!

We made it to Kansas on Monday. We stopped for the night in Abilene. Before heading to Junction City and Ft. Riley for the day, we spent all morning in Abilene doing a little sightseeing. We went to a little museum in Old Abilene Town and the kids LOVED it. There was a lot of history there and it was so interesting going through it and teaching the kids about the Wild West. We also got to enjoy some of the old buildings in Abilene and got to go through a cabin and see what life was like in the mid 1800's. One of the best things was the very old carousel that the kids got to ride on. It wasn't a replica, but a restored original carousel that was built in 1901. This very carousel used to travel from town to town on a horse drawn wagon. It was an amazing experience for the kids to ride on this carousel. Wow, the history there was great and the kids talked about it the rest of the afternoon.

After we left Abilene, we went through Junction City and I got to take the kids by my old elementary school where I went to Kindergarten. We also showed them around the town that I spent so much time in as a child. We even went out to Grandma's old stone house and had the chance to go on the property and look around since there is a business there. I couldn't believe how all of the original buildings are still there. It was a little surreal looking at the old house that I have some of the best memories of my life from. We walked inside the old boat store that ironically is a boat store again. When the older lady inside asked if she could help me, I told her that I was just looking around and that my family once owned this property and I grew up here. She gave me a funny look and asked me my name. When I told her that it was Roberson, she got so excited to talk to me. She is still the same person that bought this property from Grandma all those years ago. She also was Grandma and Grandpa's loan officer way back from when they first started that business. She went on and on about how special my Grandpa was and how much she adored my Grandma. We talked for a very long time and she told me to tell my Grandma that she sends her love. It was really a wonderful moment to get to talk to her and listen to her talk so fondly about my family.

After we were done in JC, we went through Ft. Riley. This is where Rob was stationed in the Army when we met. We had so many memories there from that summer we met and we wanted to go back on Post and look around. We were a little disappointed to see that so much had changed on Post that we really didn't recognize anything. It's hard to deal with change sometimes.

When we were done with our sightseeing, we headed East to Kansas City. The kids were very excited to see Gram and she was just as excited to see us. We have been enjoying our visit with her and the rest of my family here. We went by Uncle David's shoes store today and loaded up on some shoes. After lunch, we went to this amazing place called Deanna Rose Children's Farmstead. This place was incredible!!! You could go around and learn about and interact with farm animals. They also had a great playground, this neat little tractor racing area where the kids could ride on pedal-driven tractors. They got to ride a pony, too. It was so much fun!

Ethan and Emily got to experience lightening bugs for the first time. Emily got so excited when she saw one. She said, "Oh my goodness!!! I have read about them in books and I can't believe I get to see them." She and Ethan were running around the yard all evening tonight while catching these bugs.

Tomorrow we are going to Worlds of Fun. I haven't been there since I was a kid. Grandma used to take us there when we were little, but it has been so many years since I have been back. The kids are very excited to be going there tomorrow. And this is one of the places where we have the free tickets to because of Ethan's wish.

Despite all of the fun we are having, Ethan did tell me tonight that he is missing home. I told him we could skip going to Worlds of Fun and could head home early, but he was having none of that. Ha-ha! So, I guess we'll stick with our regular plans. We will go to WOF tomorrow, visit one more day with Gram and everybody else, and then we are heading out on Saturday. We will then start to head South and work our way back home. We are planning on stopping at Silver Dollar City in Branson, MO on the way home. After that we will have a very long drive and then be home. This has been an amazing trip for us and we have really created some wonderful memories. The kids will have so much to talk about for a very long time.

Garden of the Gods and Estes Park

We are at my cousin's house in Greeley, CO. On the way here, we stopped at Colorado Springs and went to the Garden of the Gods. What an incredible place that is!!!! The view is amazing! We took some time to explore around and enjoy the sights. After leaving there, we made the short drive to Santa's North Pole Village. This is one of the places that Ethan had his tickets for from his World Passport from Give Kids the World Village. The kids loved this place. They had so much fun there riding the rides. It was hard to pull them away, but they were really excited to go to their cousins' house. Ashley and Blaine were excitedly waiting for us in the front yard as we were making the turn around the corner to get to their house.

The four kids have been having so much fun playing together. On Saturday we went to Rocky Mountain National Park in Estes Park. The kids all did an Animal Tracks Detective camp. The lady that did the camp works for the Rocky Mountain Nature Association. On the camp, they got to track elk, fox, and beaver tracks. The kids all had their camp bags and were ready to go. They had a lunch packed, their own binoculars, and a disposable camera so they could take pictures of their adventures. While the kids were at the camp, the adults did some sightseeing in Estes Park. Rob and I did a little souvenir shopping and enjoyed the view of the mountains. The kids loved their camp and we heard all about it on the car ride back to Tracy and Ray's house. Later in the evening, the kids just played outside while we barbecued ribs on the deck. It was a great day!

Today is just a day for resting and visiting. The kids have been playing and I am catching up on laundry. Emily has been struck down with another one of her headaches. As of right now, she is on the couch asleep with a trash can in front of her. Hopefully she will feel better soon and be able to start playing again. We will be leaving tomorrow morning to head toward Kansas. I know the kids are going to be sad to say goodbye to each other. They have all become such good friends!

We made it to Colorado!

It has been a very long day, but such a memorable one! We left Rob's grandma's house at 5:30 this morning and we headed North. We thought about which route we wanted to take and we ultimately decided to take mostly interstates and go up into Oklahoma and then head West back into Texas and New Mexico until we got to Colorado. The kids were so excited about this. They were wanting to go through Oklahoma so bad because it was the one state we were going to be skipping in our original plans. As we headed North, we drove through the Arbuckle Mountains in Oklahoma. Of course, this was just a small taste of what would be to come, but the kids were oohing and aahing at the scenery. Considering the fact that we live along the coast, all we ever see is flat land. This was a real treat for them. They also think it is hilarious that every time the word "Oklahoma" is mentioned, I break out into song. I just can't help myself.

OOOOOOklahoma, where the wind comes sweeping down the plain...

After we went through Oklahoma City, we then headed West down I-40. Well, as we all know, this is the highway that replaced the old Route 66. It has always been a dream of Ethan's to one day travel down Route 66. It just so happened that as we were driving along, my dad called me on my phone to tell me that there was a little town that he remembered along that route that still kept a lot of the old time charm of Route 66. Rob and I decided that we had to make a stop there if we saw it. It wasn't 10 minutes after I hung up the phone from my dad that we started seeing the signs for the old Route 66 museum and town in Clinton, OK. We took the exit and Ethan was more excited than I think I have ever seen him before. We drove down the road for a little bit and he kept saying, "I can't believe I'm on the REAL Route 66!!!!" It really was one of the best moments ever. We stopped at the old museum there in town and took a long break. The kids had so much fun looking at all of the stuff and we bought a few souvenirs. It really was a highlight of not just our day, but our lives.

After we got back on the road, we were good and refreshed and were heading towards Amarillo. And again, I couldn't help but to break out in song. The kids found it quite funny this time, too.

Amarillo by mornin', up from San Anton'... (Everybody loves George Strait, don't they?)

We made several more stops along the way for eating and rest area stops to stretch out legs. Once we got to Amarillo, we turned North and then Northwest toward New Mexico. The drive north of Amarillo was so stunningly beautiful! I can't even explain it. Even Emily was amazed and made a comment about how the sky looked painted. It was such a sight to see.

But nothing really prepared us for the beauty of when we were getting into New Mexico and started to really see some beginning small mountains. Ethan and Emily couldn't believe their eyes and we pulled over at a small rest area and got out just to enjoy the beauty for a few minutes. The kids thought it was so funny when we saw a sign that said something like "Warning: Watch for Snakes".

As the drive continued, we were entering the beautiful Raton Pass along the New Mexico and Colorado border. Our hotel that we are staying at is in Trinidad, CO and we have a view of the mountains from our room. The drive through the pass was breathtaking. I was able to also pass along the story to the kids that my dad used to tell me when I was little about the old Indian chief Falling Rock. As you drive along the rocky cliffs, you see the signs that say "Watch for Falling Rock". Well, my dad used to tell me that Falling Rock was an old Indian chief who stood on the top of the cliff and would throw rocks down at the cars that he didn't like. I can remember always staring out my window as a child looking and searching for Chief Falling Rock and the kids loved the story and they had fun looking out their window, too. Of course, my kids are way smarter than I suppose I ever was because when I told this to them Ethan immediately told me that it sounded like a legend to him. I replied that that was the funny thing about legends, you never knew if they were true or not. So now they intend to call their Papa tomorrow morning and ask him about Chief Falling Rock.

Tomorrow is a big day for us. We will leave early in the morning and head to Garden of the Gods in Colorado Springs. After exploring around there for a bit, we will then go to Santa's North Pole Village (where we have free passes thanks to Ethan's Magic Moment wish from Give Kids the World Village). After enjoying the day at these places, we will make the last two hour drive on into Greeley where Ethan and Emily are dying to see their cousins, Ashley and Blaine. We can't wait!!!!

Water and Power

Emily is doing fine. When she got so sick the other day, I think it was a case of getting overheated. We have been watching her closely and there doesn't seem to be any kind of shunt issues. Getting overheated can cause shunt problems, though, and that is what happened. Unfortunately, even though we try to describe to others how critical it is that she doesn't get overheated or dehydrated, people who aren't used to dealing with Emily's issues don't realize the seriousness of the situation. One thing I do know for certain, I won't be leaving the kids with anybody again that doesn't know them or understand the situation.

Rob has been helping his Grandma do some things around the house. One thing she desperately needed was a new kitchen faucet. Well, in the midst of installing the new faucet, it was determined that she has been having a leak in her water lines for quite some time. Rob couldn't leave it like that and had to find the source of the leak and replace the lines. It became quite a big job, involved taking up part of the floor, and also meant cutting off the water to the house. We were without water for about 24 hours until all of the repair work was finished. That was kind of hard, but we survived. And then just when we thought things were finally going to be nice and we were going to be able to have a normal night, things went downhill. The power went out to the entire area. I was in the middle of my shower when it happened and had to stumble around in the pitch black darkness to get dressed. Well, considering the temperature last night never cooled off much, and the humidity was still probably near 100%, it was HOT!!!! I was worried about the kids getting too hot (they were asleep already) because it was probably 85 degrees inside the house with no airflow. Thank God that Rob is always prepared. He went out to the car and got his battery pack and inverter. We were able to bring it inside and plug a small fan in and aim it at the kids while they were asleep. Some time in the middle of the night the power came back on. We had air again! Let's hope this is it for our Texas adventures. Ha-ha! The funny thing is that it isn't phasing the kids at all. :)

We are taking the day today to wash up our laundry and get things packed for us to head out tomorrow. And we also plan to spend the day just visiting with Grandma and having a quiet day. Tomorrow will be a long day on the road again.

Stop number two

We have made it to Rob's grandma's house. We got in yesterday evening. Before we left Houston yesterday, we went by and visited with Jeanne and her family. Jeanne is my best friend from school and her house was always like my second home. It happened to be her mom's birthday and they were so sweet to invite us to stay and enjoy lunch with all of them. I can't even begin to say how much I enjoyed spending time with everybody. It was like a family reunion for me seeing everybody!

We left Jeanne's mom's house shortly after lunch and headed out towards Dallas. It was such a peaceful drive for us. The kids were such angels. I'm sure that was partly because they took a long nap on the way. Ha-ha! It also helped that our drive was a relatively short one and they knew that.

Once we arrived at Grandma's house, the kids had a ball. She lives a little bit South of Dallas and it is in the country. There are chickens everywhere and it is the favorite past time of the kids to run around and chase the chickens. They pretty much did that until dark. Their cousin, Tai, who is 4, spent the night with us, too. She has been waiting for us to get here so she could play with Ethan and Emily. They all play really well together. Even though Tai is younger, she loves to show them the ropes. It is cute listening to her explain to Ethan and Emily what to do in regards to feeding the chickens, going in the pen, what is okay to touch and what isn't, etc. Ethan and Emily are clueless. Heck, so am I. Ha-ha! They are loving every minute of it, though.

The heat here is almost unbearable, though. The local channel today said it was supposed to get up to 108. And the humidity is ridiculous!!! It means that we have to stay indoors. The kids can only go outside early in the morning and then in the evening. They woke up this morning and immediately started their chicken chasing again. They had to come inside by mid-morning, though.

Rob and I went into town with his Grandma. There are several things around here that are needing to be repaired and he is wanting to take care of it for her. While we went to Home Depot, we let the kids stay here with his aunt and cousins. We were gone for about two hours. When we got back, I walked in and Emily wasn't in the living room with the other kids. I asked Ethan where she was. He said she was having a headache and that she was in the back room laying down. I came in here and she was in tears. Her head was hurting her so bad. In fact, I am still sitting next to her right now as I type this. She is taking a nap. I don't know what to think. We have been very careful to make sure that she is drinking plenty of fluids. She hasn't eaten much today and that could be part of the problem. She isn't wanting to eat, though. We always have problems getting her to eat. I am just so upset by this. I know her allergies have been bothering her and she has the "allergy eye" look today, but I can't say that this is a sinus headache. I'm going to have to see how long she sleeps and also see how she is when she wakes up. I am praying hard that everything is okay.

First stop...Houston!

We made it to Texas! We had a little setback on the way when Emily started having a bad headache. It was just before we got to the Texas border. The moment she started complaining of a headache, my stomach dropped. But it ended up being a sinus headache combined with the fact that Emily hadn't eaten much during the day. We had to make a stop and give Emily some Motrin and let her get out and rest. After a little bit, she was perfectly fine and we were able to get back on the road.

We arrived at my sister's around 4:30 and the kids got out and immediately started running around and playing with their cousin, Chase. Kaz was here, too, and it was great to see him!!! We all went out to dinner last night to eat Mexican food. It was so good!!!! After dinner, my childhood friend, Stacie, came by for a few minutes to say hi. It was nice to see her and her son, Caleb. It has been a year and a half since I have seen her. After we left the restaurant, we headed to my cousin, Ryan's house. We had a great visit with Ryan and Mindy and their family. The kids had a ball playing. We got back home very late and everybody just about fell into bed.

Today we will be meeting my other friend, Jeanne, and her family this morning. After lunch we will be heading up to Dallas to Rob's grandma's house.

We are on the road!!!!

We left this morning around 7am. I planned on leaving earlier, but it never works out the way we plan. The kids started out the morning by waking up on the wrong side of the bed. Well actually, Ethan woke up happy and excited, but then he quickly started complaining how tired he was. Emily woke up grumpy!!!! She is always like that if she doesn't wake up on her own. Before we got 100 miles into the trip, we heard things like "I'm sooooo tired!!!" and "I'm sooooo bored!!!!" With the exception of a few little mishaps from Ethan, their attitudes have improved. Actually, once Emily got over her bad attitude from being woken up this morning, she has been quite the little angel. Ethan is the one giving us the grief.

Despite it all, we have actually been having fun talking about the stuff we will be seeing and doing on our trip. We have a big adventure ahead of us and I'm looking forward to every moment of it, the good times and the not so good times. Because in the end, every single minute of it will be precious. And years from now, we will be able to look back and remember the good times and laugh about the bad ones. And THAT is what it means to make memories. I just pray for good health for all of us on this trip. I'm not naive enough to think that nothing bad can happen or that nobody can suddenly get sick. I have already been proven that before during Ethan's Wish trip. So, may God be with us as we drive across the country and enjoy this special time together as a family.

First stop...Houston!

One more day!!!!

Oh my gosh!!!! We leave tomorrow for the 2009 Ebbert Cross Country Tour!!! And I don't have a thing packed or even have the suitcases out of the closet for that matter!!! I have been running around like crazy trying to get things done, prescriptions filled, bills paid, dog groomed, music downloaded to MP3 player (Ha-ha!)...who has time for packing!

We are so excited and the kids can barely contain themselves!!!! We have added another stop on our journey and are going to Houston first (well, Deer Park to be exact). We will get to see Debbie, Kaz and Chase, eat some GOOD Mexican food (for a change), and I'll get to visit with a couple of friends of mine from school that I haven't seen in a while. I'm very proud of Kaz right now as I just learned that he finished his first semester of college and did well. Our dinner out will be a good time to celebrate that and also my sisters birthday.

I also needed to make a comment here about how thankful I am that we have such wonderful and caring doctors for our children. I know we could live in an area that has a bigger medical facility, but I wouldn't trade our doctors for anything in the world!!!! Ethan's pulmonologist personally called me on my cell phone this morning to tell me that he had called Emily's neurosurgeon about our trip. He wanted to let me know that they discussed it and that Emily should do just fine with the altitude and the pressure. He told me that given that information and with the precautions we have taken for Ethan, he hopes we have a wonderful time and to call him when we get back so we can work on weaning Ethan off the medicine. I LOVE THIS DOCTOR!!!!!

Road Trip...Here we come!

Wow, what a difference a few days makes. We were just planning a long weekend trip to Dallas to visit Rob's family, but it has turned into a full blown 3,000+ mile road trip. Why not? It isn't like we have jobs here waiting on us. Ha-ha! Actually, the way this came about is that I was talking on the phone to my cousin, Tracy, who lives in Colorado, and we were kind of laughing about how we should head up to Colorado after we leave Dallas. Like she said...we will be halfway there already. Well, in our initial conversation, I told her that there was NO WAY that Rob would ever agree to that long of a road trip. But after we hung up the phone, I started to really think about it and I realized that it was really a great idea and a perfect opportunity for our family to create some wonderful and lasting memories together. Who knows when we will ever have this much available time without commitments and we don't know what the future holds regarding the health of our family. We need to grab every moment we can and cherish it. And that is just what we are going to do. We don't even know exactly how long we will be gone, but it will be approximately two weeks.

We will leave this Saturday and head to Dallas for a few days. Ethan and Emily are so looking forward to seeing Grandma Burks and the rest of the family there. After we leave there, we will make our toward New Mexico and then head North into Colorado. We will stop along the way and spend the night. The next day will drive on in to Colorado Springs and do some sightseeing. Later that evening we will finish our drive through Denver to Greeley, where we will be staying with our cousins. We'll stay with Tracy and her family for a few days and spend time hanging out with them and visiting Estes Park, CO, and just having a great time enjoying the mountains. Not only has Ethan and Emily never seen the mountains, but Rob has never seen the mountains either. This is going to be exciting for all of us! Once we leave Colorado, we will head East into Kansas and go to my hometown where I was born, Junction City, and where I spent my summers growing up. This is also where Rob was stationed at Ft. Riley when he was in the Army and where we met. We will stay overnight and then look around for a while and see my old school, house, other family members houses, etc., and then also tour around Ft. Riley. Once we leave that area, we will then make our way to Kansas City to see Gram. I will also get to see my aunt and uncle and cousins that I haven't seen in many years. I am so very much looking forward to seeing everybody and catching up. After we have worn out our welcome there (Ha-ha!), we will start heading south by way of Branson, MO, where we plan to stop and go to Silver Dollar City. We will stay the night in Branson and then get up early the next morning to make the long journey home.

Now, here is some of the best part of this trip. Last year when Ethan received his wish and we stayed at Give Kids the World Village, we received this thing called a World Passport. It entitles our family to free passes at hundreds of amusement parks across the world. These passes are only good for one year from the date the child's wish was granted. That means that we can only use this Passport until December 2009. Well, guess what???? Since we decided to take this trip, we decided to do it right. We are going to hit as many of these amusement places that we can since we can go there free of charge with this Passport. We can go to Six Flags in Dallas, Santas Workshop near Pikes Peak in Colorado, Elitch Gardens in Denver (we might skip this, though), Worlds of Fun in Kansas City, and Silver Dollar City in Branson. WE CAN'T WAIT!!!!!!

I need to talk now about Ethan's pulmonology appointment we had today. This was supposed to be a check-up appointment. With the exception of his hospital stay over Memorial Weekend, Ethan has actually had a good summer. He hasn't had any asthma attacks at all. I did, however, have to talk to the doctor about Ethan's allergy testing that was done and discuss with him that we STILL haven't seen the allergist and haven't even been able to deal with it because of the stuff we have dealt with regarding Emily. The doctor talked in great length with us about Ethan's allergies. In fact, he gave me a copy of Ethan's allergy test report and explained to me just how much Ethan is allergic to his overall environment. He said that there is a medication that he thinks Ethan needs to take, but it isn't FDA approved for children younger than 12 years of age. Because of this, he will have to fight with our insurance company to get it approved and it will take time. Basically, it will be a monthly allergy shot. He said that he is going to start working on this before we see the allergist so the process can be in place. There is something else, though. We told him about our trip coming up and that we will be out of town for two weeks. He wanted to know where we were going so he would know what kinds of medical facilities would be near. He also said that with Ethan, because of the altitude and climate change that will be taking place, he wants Ethan to be taking an oral steroid throughout our trip. We are to call him as soon as we arrive home and he'll tell us what dosage to give him to wean him off of the medicine. And of course we are to make sure that he gets his regular nebulizer treatments twice a day, too. We have to make sure that he stays well.

Now, I only have three more days to pack, and I have done nothing! I haven't even done laundry to get ready for this little trip. Goodness gracious!

July 4th

Today was a day for BBQ and fireworks and we did both. We actually had a very quiet day at home. Rob cooked ribs out on the grill and Mom and Dad and Grandma came over and we stuffed our faces, as usual, and then the kids had fun with Daddy popping a few fireworks in the backyard. We didn't want to fight the crowds this year and go see any of the big shows. And as it turns out, we didn't have to. We walked outside tonight when we heard the big firework booms from the neighboring towns and we were able to see the fireworks from both Robertsdale and Summerdale. The kids were so excited to see that right there in our own neighborhood. :)

I need to talk a little bit about the issue with Ethan and his sensory problems. I did email his Kindergarten teacher and ask her if she noticed a problem with him in school. She said that she was very surprised to hear that he was having so much difficulty touching paper because he never indicated any kind of problem. In fact, she said that he was always so detail oriented with things that he was often one of the last ones finished when working on something. One thing that I started to think about was that maybe he has just been a little traumatized by everything that has happened this summer and it has just manifested through his sensory issues. He is always so sensitive and caring toward Emily and he was really affected when she had to go through two brain surgeries. Plus, as much as we try not to do it, he does kind of get tossed aside when we have to tend to her in the hospital. There is just no way to avoid it. He is with his Nana and Papa and loves it there, but there is still a feeling of being shuffled around. I decided to have a talk with Ethan today and I had an idea for him. Ethan used to make me pictures all the time. I went in his bedroom and closed the door so just he and I could talk. I told him that I noticed something today that kind of made me a little bit sad. I told him that I noticed that on our Art Wall in my bedroom (it is the one wall in the house that we designate for their pictures), all of the pictures that are hanging in there are from Emily. I noticed that we haven't received any pictures from Ethan in a very long time. I told him how much I used to love it when he would draw me the pictures of the movie characters that he was really into at the moment and I had an idea for him. I asked him if he would draw me something from Star Wars. He said that he couldn't touch the paper. I told him that I would tape the paper down to his desk so he wouldn't have to hold it down. We talked a little more about the feel of paper and he had a picture hanging up on his wall that he had colored last year and it was very detailed. I asked him what was different about paper this year that made it feel different for him than it did last year. I told him to feel the picture he did last year. I asked him how he was able to do it then. He told me that he actually didn't like the feeling of paper then either, but he just dealt with it. So, I finally convinced him how cool it would be to make me a Star Wars picture and I would stay with him the entire time he was drawing it. I even convinced him to use a PENCIL to draw with. He didn't finish the picture, but he made very good progress. We set up some of his Star Wars stuff for him to go by for his drawing, and he was concentrating hard. I am very proud of him for his effort. We will get through this problem of his together!!!

Something happened tonight that broke my heart into a million pieces. Emily realized that she has cerebral palsy (but without knowing it by name, of course). She walked over to me tonight and asked me why she is only able to stand on one foot. She told me that her left leg gets so tired because she can only stand on her left foot. She said that she can't stand on her right foot at all because it hurts her so bad. She wanted to know why she can't hop on that foot or skip on that foot and why she can't stand on that foot. I asked her what happens when she tries to stand on that foot. She tried to show me and as soon as she tried to put her weight on it, she immediately had to shift her weight off of it. I asked her where it hurt when she was standing on it. She said that it especially hurt in her heel and up the back of her leg. And then she asked again why she can't do it. I told her that we need to do exercises to be stretching out her legs and heel cords more. I asked her if she remembered the leg braces that she used to wear. She did. I told her that those were to stretch out heels and were to help her stand on both legs evenly. The thing is, I know that if we don't do something to make her quit compensating by standing more on that left leg, then she is going to have more problems down the road. It can lead to back problems, too. Emily is waaaayyyy over compensating for that right leg. She isn't able to bear any weight on it at all without it being painful to her. More things for me to add to my to do list!

God Bless the U.S.A.

Ethan and Emily were helping Daddy put up a new flag for the Fourth of July.

A sign of a sheltered life???

Do you want to know a sign of a sheltered life? It's when your nearly seven year old son is served watermelon for dinner (that he loves and eats all the time) and says..."What are these black things in my watermelon?"

Those black things that he is talking about are the seeds!!!!!!!

That is what happens when your child has sensory issues and a lack of tongue control. The last thing you would ever do is serve him watermelon with seeds in it. So, for his entire life, we have always purchased SEEDLESS WATERMELON. Goodness, it took forever for him to learn how to just get the food out of the side of his cheeks. I couldn't imagine trying to teach him how to spit watermelon seeds out of his mouth. He still can't even spit toothpaste out for goodness sake.

So when my mom invited us over for dinner tonight and served watermelon, none of us expected the reaction from Ethan that we got. He almost wouldn't even eat the watermelon because of the "black things" in it. We all had a good laugh and Ethan learned something new.

Now, how is this for irony, though. Ethan loves to eat fresh cherries. And yes, that means that he has to figure out a way to either eat around the seed or get the seed out of his mouth. He doesn't spit the seed out, but kind of reaches in and grabs it.

There is never a dull moment in the Ebbert household.

Rob's 37th Birthday

Today was Rob's 37th birthday. We celebrated at home by having mom and dad and Grandma over for dinner. I cooked his favorite meal (King Ranch Chicken) and we had cake and ice cream. Emily spent a good part of the day making several cards for her daddy. Ethan wouldn't make any cards today because he couldn't touch the paper and I'll get into that later in this post. Most of Rob's gifts were some new clothes. He has lost so much weight in recent months, ever since he started doing his daily running before he joined the Reserves, that he had very little clothes that fit him anymore. Now he finally has something he can wear that doesn't make him look like a clown. :)

Ethan has started coughing the past couple of days and I'm getting a little worried about him. His oxygen level is staying good, but his peak flow meter isn't where it should be. I hope he isn't getting sick again. Thankfully, our Tricare military insurance became effective yesterday, July 1st, and so I can rest easy knowing that our family is covered under that plan. Rob's healthcare under his old insurance will end on July 18th. The timing couldn't have been more perfect for us for the medical stuff. Ethan is supposed to see his pulmonologist on Tuesday and we will check out the new plan then.

Next week I also plan to call the school and start the process of setting up the kids' 504 plans for the new school year. Emily had one in place from last year. For her it should be just a matter of renewing the old plan. Ethan, on the other hand, never had one, but should have. He was out so much due to illness and the nurse was the one that told me he needed it for this year. I hope and pray that he has a better year this year, but I worry that it isn't going to happen. We haven't accomplished anything new over the summer regarding his treatment plan. We still haven't seen the allergist, and I'm not even sure now if we will get the chance to see the allergist before the school year starts.

I have another big concern regarding Ethan right now. It is about his sensory issues. We have always dealt with sensory integration dysfunction with him ever since he was an infant. He has come a VERY long way. There have been several times this summer that I have tried to get Ethan to write something or draw something on a piece of paper either by using pencils, crayons, or markers. Each time I have asked him to do this, he refuses and tells me that he can't do it because he can't stand the "feel" of it. He tells me that he can't stand to touch paper with his hands. He can't hold a piece of paper down with one hand while writing something with the other hand. During Vacation Bible School a few weeks ago, they had some time left during arts and crafts where the kids were just coloring on paper with markers. Ethan literally sank down in his chair and held his hands over his ears because of the sound of all of the markers on the papers. This is all a new issue for him because Ethan has always been the "artist" in the family. I have pages and pages of artwork of his that he has done. I have no idea why he has suddenly stopped being able to touch paper. And how in the world is he going to be able to go to school and not touch paper? I am VERY concerned right now!!!!