MAKE A WISH TRIP- Jan 25, 2006

Emily and her family left for Florida on her 5th birthday, January 13. The Make A Wish Foundation granted her a wish to travel to Disney World. Thanks to this Foundation and the Give Kids the World Village, we had a wonderful week of fun! We were greeted with warm smiles and hugs by the kind volunteers of Give Kids the World. Give Kids the World is a village created to house families of children with life threatening illnesses visiting the Orlando area. The Village has a putt-putt course, a game room including a train layout (which Jake loved!), a beautiful carousel, a snoring tree, a “Castle of Miracles,” a dining hall, a pizza parlor, an ice cream parlor, a pool, a fishing lake, a movie theater, a chapel and hundreds of dedicated volunteers and employees. Everyone was so kind and helpful. We had everything we needed, and what we didn’t have, all we had to do was ask. The mayor of the village is a 6 foot gray rabbit, named Mayor Clayton. He came by our villa the second night we were in town to tuck Jake and Emily into bed. There were alot of activities that went on at the village, like a fishing tournament where Emily caught her very first fish and went on to catch 5 more! We were offered tickets to several local attractions, and we narrowed our adventures to the Kennedy Space Center, Disney World and Sea World. Kristi’s Mom and Dad came down and spent about 5 days with us. Some of the highlights included a character breakfast with Minnie Mouse, Chip and Dale, and Goofy, and dinner with Shamoo the Whale at Sea World. We had a smooth trip with no travel problems. We were sad to see the week end, but glad to come home and rest! Ha! We are trying to get back into a “normal” routine after a hectic holiday season and a quickly planned trip to Disney. Emily should resume her oral chemo. doses this week. She is also working with county and school employees on Kindergarten preparation and assessments. Her next MRI has been scheduled for February 17. She is looking good and doing well. We watch her closely to make sure we aren’t taking any backward steps, and in doing so, feel we continue to move forward. We ask that everyone continue to keep Emily in your prayers. We pray that God will grant Emily the miracle of healing. Our thanks to everyone for all of the expressions of care and concern you have showed to us. We are so very grateful for everything that everyone has done.