Monday, May 9th

Firstly, belated Happy Mother's Day everyone!  It was a great day to take a wee drive to Halifax to get Michellie, a wee drive back, and then another wee drive to Island Sunset for a wonderful meal overlooking the ocean.  It seems weird having not communicated with everyone in a week, and really, we are not sure where the week went.  All of us were very busy training, working, clearing, gardening etc. 

Michellie's trip was an incredible success!  The four kids and Esther came through customs with big bags under their eyes, and smiles from ear to ear.  They had a wonderful time.  Michellie talked our ear off for several hours with all of the tales and people and places and details.  We have not been able to download the photos yet, but will get some posted.  And, we do not have the whole week sorted out, but I will write a bit about the highlights of her week.

Monday was at the Smithsonian, which is huge and overwhelming.  The afternoon was spent at a bowling party.  They did a day at the War Memorials, and Michellie loved going to the top of the Washington Monument at 550 feet.  She said the elevator ride down was interesting with different rock formations exhibited all the way down.  The view from the top was spectacular.  She could not believe the silence that holds at the Vietnam War Memorial.  She said that was a weird feeling to have sound just die.  And, she enjoyed the size of Abraham Lincoln's statue.  At the White House it was a quick tour of several rooms, but the President got into a helicopter in the field in front of them, and one of the kids was at the elevator with Mr. Obama's dog and got to pet it.  At DEA, the crime investigation training site, they all got to shoot the various styles of guns.  Michellie shot 4 different guns - the smaller ones - and was surprised by the amount of kickback that they have.  Apparently, she had a big grin on her face for this experience.  They also attended the Air and Space museum (both Dad and Grandpa were extremely jealous), and enjoyed the Enterprise Shuttle on display there.  At the Six Flags amusement park she did a couple of rides - no rollercoasters as they are not her favorite.  Everywhere they went they were treated like royalty.  The organizers for the Sunshine Kids event were very fun and entertaining.  There were 24 kids from across North America, and they were the only 4 from Canada.  Michellie was able to educate the other kids about what Nova Scotia is, and where it is, and they had some fun with accents with all the kids coming from different regions.  Michellie could represent the West and the East of Canada with accent fun!

There was a huge table set up at the hotel with all kinds of candy treats, and they were taken to several neat restaurants.  Michellie got into a rhythm of what she could eat, and balanced her time with when wheat was an only choice.  She is refusing to eat any more salads this week, so I will have to be creative - it seems she ate a lot of those.  She is a little slow and tired today, but she is so glad she went on the trip.  We are so thankful to Prudential Real Estate, and to the Sunshine Kids organization for creating this opportunity for the kids.  Michellie was able to find her independence and to experience her own fun.  She loved sharing with the other kids, and was able to fit into the group as everyone had different stories, issues, limitations, hair length etc. 

Michellie did get to swim at the pool, and the chlorine shrivelled up all the dry skin on her feet and legs.  Her rash is now a faint memory, and the last of the healing under the skin is almost complete.  She is very happy to have this side effect gone.  She has a few zits from all the sugar treats all week, but she says she is happy to not eat any more sugar for a while.  Her clear skin should return quickly in that case.  Her legs got a real workout walking, and there were no wheel chairs for her to rest in, so she had to keep going.  After a few days rest I am sure she will be walking tall and strong again. 

Michellie is resting at home today and then she will be off to school tomorrow.  Her "big sister" Brittany is home for a visit, and they have not seen each other in over a year, so this afternoon will be a chance to catch up.  They can have tea and chat - definitely more food for the soul. 

Michellie spent a little money on herself - gifts from Sunshine Kids - she has some new t-shirts and a sweatshirt with Washington on it.  She has an I Heart DC that has signatures all over it.  (I am glad we used to do that with all of our dance shirts, as Michellie instigated this with the group on the last day).  Great memories for sure.

Michellie also has a scrapbook they made together.  She did a great job with this.  There is a video of all their antics coming (we are told that only she will be able to see it - I am not sure what that means?!**)  and the Sunshine Kids will post photos on their site as well.  We will let you know when that happens.

So, we have a trip to Antigonish on Wednesday for her Pentamadene treatment (only one more after that), and we should be hearing from the hospital about our dates for the June follow up and Port removal.  This weekend the Hillsborough Hall is hosting their weekly Jam night, with an honor to Michellie and a fundraiser for the IWK.  That will be Saturday night.  We are just in the process of planning the healing bracelet celebration, and we will post the details to this shortly as well.

So, off to make some lunch for us all - no salad for Michellie.  Looking forward to posting pictures for you all.  Thank you for all the well wishes, and for everyone's emails to keep up with Michellie this week.  It is so great to write about good things and celebrations!