Ty and Megan Gibson Family

2011-06-21T00:37:00.001-07:00

6 months is better then a year right?

2011-06-20T21:58:00.001-07:00

I must be getting old because time just seems to go by faster and faster....

In December Cloey and cal performed at a ward party, they even learned little dances and It was so stinkin adorable! and Ty was home for Christmas for the first time in 3 years! the kids were actually kind of bummed that Santa wasn't gonna come early this year, but It was really nice to Have Christmas Morning with our little family all together.

January brought my 29th birthday (once again, I'm getting old) and general crazy business. I was really starting to get involved with my apprenticeship and helping with my grandma, so there was a lot of adjusting going on. Ty and I entered the world of smart phones and now we don't know how we lived without them :) Cal also earned a lot of badges and arrow points at scouts. Lainey had her first teeth cleaning at the Dentist and brought along her American Girl "Laine" doll. the dentist cleaned her teeth too ;)

February I was invited by MGA healthcare to attend an IPPC conference on Palliative care for children. The conference included doctors from the pediatric hospitals in the valley and many other pediatric organizations here as well. Our input as parents on how things should be, was received very well and I have already seen changes happening. Mostly it was great to see Doctors actually care and express their frustration with the system too! And then make action plans to change it. I hope my input of what I have learned over the last 10 years helps make things better for other children & families just starting on this painful road.

March Cloey is freaking 10! I still can't believe it. We had a "pretend" sleep over and it was so fun to see what a young lady she is becoming. We participated in the Ryan House Run, on of the organizations most dear to my heart, Cloey got to be a celebrity and see a lot of her friends from the house there. Grandpa Cherry was with us and that was a special treat! And Ty started working at a (what we thought) was a permanent station, turns out he will be moving to another one in January, but at least he is not a rover moving around everyday anymore.

April My baby turned 5! we had a fun little party with her preschool friends at peter piper. She has really blossomed into a big girl so far this year. I got to run away to Colorado to visit my Best Friend! I had never flown on an airplane by myself before. It was a much needed break, and so great to spend time with my bestie! I did miss my family though, so maybe next year we can all go. We had a ward egg hunt and Cloey guessed right on the jelly bean jar and won it! Cal man turned 9 and he came up with a Star Wars Party all on his one, he made the invitations, gave us a shopping list and everything. He and Ty had a lot of fun ;) We attended the Easter Pagent at the Mesa Arizona Temple and on Easter Sunday we visited Grammy and roasted peeps, I think that might become a tradition everybody loved it so much! Then we came home to a water spot on our carpet and so began our woes with our rental agency. After 2 days of no hot water and a huge puddle in the middle of our house, we received permission to stay at a hotel. It took them nearly a month to reimburse us and they were lying and rude the whole time. It has been a stressful mess and sucked away a lot of our precious time. Ty also took Cal to Father's and son's while all this was going on and he got a flat tire on the way out of town! Some great people from our ward saved us so they could still make it. When Ty got back, he went straight to a camp out at Lainey's preschool.

May We had our annual family birthday party for the kids. We love to see all of our family together supporting our little one's as they grow. I also attended a mother's day tea at Lainey's preschool. She was so proud, it was a joy to see her being such a big girl. May is almost as crazy as December with all the end of school year activities. Thankfully I won't be dealing with all that next year since we have chosen to home school all the kiddos. I also started doing respite care through the state for my grandma, which basically means I am more consistent with helping, and I am getting paid a little bit too, which we can really use, so it has turned out so far to be a win/win situation. We also signed Cloey onto Hospice service. (princesscloey.blogspot.com for details)

We have also been able to attend fun events through HopeKids, Make a Wish and Ryan House. We got to meet Elmo and Grover after attending Sesame Street Live, Meet Mickey and Minnie, go to Cracker Jacks when they were invaded by Star Wars characters, See an Annie performance, and probably more that I am missing. We are fortunate that it seems like every week we have an opportunity to attend a fun event, gives us something to look forward to and a way to spend this precious time together having fun.

JUNE

The Lobdells came to visit us! we had a great time and the kids were so happy to see their friends again, it has been almost a year since they moved.
Cal & Ty went to scout day camp for 3 days and judging from the pictures and shear level of exhaustion, I think they had a good time.
We are doing the summer reading club at the library and the weekly summer movies to keep busy this summer and the kids are all enjoying looking forward to those activities.
Cal and Cloey are also buddy bowlers in an adaptive legue for Tempe.
We had a second leak in our house, and Cloey and Cal suspisiouly got pnemonia (posibly from mold?) The agency refused to even send us somewhere to stay while they repaired it, which included a jack hammer to the cement with dust everywhere for all of us including Cloey through her trach, to breath in. After 6 weeks of wet carpet and being treated horribly we requested to break our lease. They agreed, but now we have to be out on June 30th, our 11th anniversary. The last thing we wanted to do was move after 7 months and with Cloey on Hospice, but we have spent too much precious time fighting with the agency or dealing with a mess or no hot water. I don't want to bore you with all the tedious details, but basically moving is the lesser of to crappy options. My stress level has been almost unbearable, which is saying something. We have been crying (well not Ty so much), praying and worrying more then usual. We have also had angels all around us, helping us here and there, with a meal, paying for the hotel stays, an ear listen, listings for houses, legal advice, fans to dry out the carpet, and so much more. Otherwise there is NO WAY I would have survived and be able to move forward after having this happen now, while we are adjusting to Hospice. So, here we go again and hopefully we will find somewhere close, big enough, in our price range & stable, which is exactly what we need right now.

My next post should be from our new house! wish us luck......

2010-12-17T23:09:00.001-08:00

oops! another year has past.......

2010-10-31T20:44:00.000-07:00

here's the run down.....

In JANUARY Cloey started Special Olympics track & field! She was on a unified team, meaning she had a typical peer to help her and their scores were averaged. She had a lot of fun and won 3 medals! She also won 1st place at a Special Olympics Dance contest. As a family we went up North for a "snow day" after a big storm. the kids really had fun, but everybody agreed it was fun to visit but wouldn't be fun to live with!

In FEBRUARY we went to a hoop dancing competition at the Heard museum with grandma (my mom). I enjoyed going to these when I was a kid and was excited to share that experience with my kids. I think they thought it was pretty cool. Cal started going to Lego Club at the local library with one of his best friends and it became a much looked forward to activity every other week. He also started a home school enrichment program where he goes to "school" every Friday with other home schooled kids and works on science and fun enrichment activities. He's made a lot of friends there and really enjoys it. I enjoy not having to teach Science at home anymore ; )

MARCH brought Cloey's 9th birthday! I told her she wasn't allowed to be 10 because that would mean I was old. She still asks me if she can "please be 10" I haven't agreed to let that happen yet. Our family participated in the Make-a-Wish walk. It felt good to give back to an organization that gave so much to us, It was a lot of fun too! We went to the Easter egg hunt in our neighborhood and of course the Easter bunny came

APRIL was crazy busy. We participated in CAST fishing day, a special day at lake pleasant were special kids and their families are given the opportunity to go fishing. Generous Fisherman took us out on their boats, Lainey was the only one who actually caught a fish and she loved it! Shy little Lainey was laughing and giggling and even reached out and touched it on her own. Cal and Ty have never had a successful fishing day despite several attempts so this was especially funny since Lainey was on my boat and their boat was the one that came up empty handed. At the end they wanted a picture of the "CAST kid" with the fish, so we held the fish up next to Cloey and she backed up as far as she could she wanted nothing to do with it, but she got a fish trophy anyway and is very proud of it! Lainey turned 4 and had a diva party at the nail salon with a few of her friends. Cloey had her 10th set of ear tubes placed, this time they put in semi-permanent T-tubes and we haven't had any problems since (knock on wood) Ty participated in the Pat Tilman, he enjoyed it and hopes to do it again next year. He also took Cal on an overnight Father's & son's outing, They rode around in a jeep and shot things. That's all I know & probably all I want to know. They both said they had a lot of fun.

MAY brought Cal's Baptism! I can't believe what a big boy he has become. It was exciting to see him growing up and making decisions for himself. We are so proud of him. We also started taking Cloey to Ryan House. A hospice & palliative care facility for children. This place is so fun & full of loving volunteers to listen to all of Cloey's "Guess What?'s" It gives us the opportunity to take Cal & Lainey to things like water parks & camping that Cloey can't do. It also gives them (and us) a break from her constant care. The facility has nurses & volunteers around the clock, but it feels more like camp then a hospital. The unexpected benefit has been the all the great friends she has made. I also started helping out with my Grandma (who is trying to fix up her house) & Great Grandma (who moved to a care home in Gilbert) more. Both of these women did so much for me growing up, I'm enjoying helping them now.

JUNE We took a 5 day trip to my family's cabin, near Flagstaff. Cloey got to go to Ryan house & we took the other kids to play in the woods I played in as a kid. We got to visit with Ty's cousin's family and had a really good time at the park in the cooler weather. I believe we also played a game of Uno late into the night, Cal won. I got to run away with my girlfriends to see Eclipse (the best of the twilight movies so far) and.........WE CELEBRATED OUR 10 YEAR ANNIVERSARY!!!!! we got to go to a Scottsdale resort alone. (thanks Ryan house & J), we ate at fancy restaurants, window shopped at Scottsdale fashion square, & hung out by the pool and looked like regular 20 somethings who don't have 3 kids at home and a schedule full of Doctor appointments, therapies, meetings, IEP plan meetings at school, and beeping breathing machines. Guess what we found out?! We still REALLY like each other. It was great. but we did miss our little guys and the hugs we got when we got home were extra sweet.

JULY gave us a special visit from one of my best friends growing up & her new husband . (My Aunt who I spent every summer with). It was a welcome visit, They hung out with lonely me on the 4th while Ty worked. We also took a trip to Cincinnati Children's hospital to try and get some answers for Cloey. (read about it at princesscloey.blogspot.com)

AUGUST we were given GREAT seats to a Diamondback game by Ryan house, It was a lot of fun, Cal & Ty got to go with his best friend and his dad, and got a baseball! Then me Ty, Cal & Lainey went and Cal got another one! The seats were so close and right behind the dugout, we could see the sweat on the guys faces, even I thought it was cool. Cloey wasn't able to go because it was not handicapped seating, but Make-A-Wish provided us with some tickets later and we all got to go that time. They had so much fun & Baxter danced with Cloey. we took Cal & Lainey to Wet-n-wild water park too. That place is crazy! but the kids loved it, and we had fun chasing them around. Then my BFF moved away. We were all sad to see her family go, my kids lost their BFF's too. I guess this means we will have to vacation in CO at some point : )

SEPTEMBER I was in a stupid car accident, nobody was really hurt. I was sore from the airbag but cal was totally fine. We were the only one's in the car. It shook me up pretty good and really did a number on our van, which we were in no place to repair. Luckily some angels were there for us and we will never forget that. We realized how lucky we are that nobody was seriously hurt and that we have people who love us & are there for us. Then Ty turned 30 (better him then me) I took him fishing and to Dave's BBQ for lunch. Than another pretty lady took him to a dance (Cloey) he says it was a pretty good day. Little Lainey also started Preschool! She has really opened up and is loving it.

OCTOBER After fighting with Cloey's school for 18 months, they once again refused to provide the services she requires. They thought she was unable to learn in the classroom, and even though AZ disability law assured me that we had a case, we decided that if they didn't want our Cloey they weren't gonna have the blessing of having her in their school! This combined with Ty working in Scottsdale, my grandma needing help in Tempe, and all the other things we were driving around for, made us make the tough decision to move to Tempe. Someday we will be able to settle down. On the up side Ty and the kids buikt an awesome box fort in our new backyard that provided hours of fun. Ty work on Halloween, but was home for our church party the day before so we got to go to that together as a family and get to know our new ward. Cal was a bounty hunter from Star Wars the Clone Wars, Cloey was Ariel & Lainey was a Lainey-bug Princess. They are getting so big!

NOVEMBER After doing a little lactation counseling & teaching childbirth classes, I was offered a midwife apprenticeship. This is something I thought I would do after my kids were much older, and honestly didn't think I could do with Cloey. The midwife I am apprenticing with has been flexible and people in my life have really stepped up to help out and make it possible. I am really loving it and although it is a lot of hard work and I haven't quite figured out how to balance it with my family, I really think it's something I can be good at some day.

We are loving our little family and most of the time we love the craziness too. Thanks to all of you for peaking into, or being apart of our lives. And to all of our angels (you know who you are) We love you and THANK YOU for all you do!

Merry Christmas!

Happy New Year!

2010-01-08T00:07:00.000-08:00

So far 2010 is looking pretty good. I had a great birthday which was totally unexpected since I am getting too old to have fun birthdays anymore and the calendar is already filling up with fun activities. Can't wait to see what the year has in store. Enjoy the slide show of 2009!

2010-01-08T00:05:00.001-08:00

Merry Christmas!

2009-12-13T22:27:00.000-08:00

So since it has been a year since I updated I decided to go ahead and forgo the Christmas letter this year and do this post in place of it. Maybe my New Years resolution should be to stay more on top of this blog.....

In February we took the plunge and moved to Gilbert. We love all the young families out here. There are kids everywhere to play with. At any given time there will literally be 20 kids playing on our street. It also feels so good to be in a house with a garage and a yard! I will admit it has been hard adjusting to some things, we loved so many people and the school where we were, but new friends are helping it feel more like home every day.

In March Cloey turned eight years old and was baptized. It was a very touching and spiritual event for our family.

In April we had a fun Easter in our new house, Cal turned 7 and Lainey turned 3. Cloey also got to go to the musical Cats thanks to Grandma Doris. It was so fun Cloey was smiling the whole time. We were in the front row handicapped seating and when the cats came out with only green eyes lit up, one sneaked up on Cloey, and she got so scared she hit it on the head with her program! I was afraid we would be kicked out, but instead the cast paid special attention to her through the whole show. In May I got to go to a No Doubt concert with my sisters. Gwen put on a great show and we had a lot of fun. On the Fourth of July we went to Schnepf farms. It was one of the only holidays Ty had off, so we made sure to have a fun day together. All except for waiting in line FOREVER so the kids could ride a pony. We also went camping in July. We had to leave Cloey at home since she needed to be on the ventilator at night, and just requires so much care in general, that it would not be enjoyable for her or the rest of us. It was tough to leave her at home. Something we have put off as long as possible, our family has never really been camping because of it, but it was time. The trip was a good experience for Cal and Lainey to just be kids and not have to live on Cloey's care schedule for a couple days, and Cloey was none the wiser being spoiled at home. We also received a great gift in July. Ty's cousin nominated us for a program where a group of photographers choose a family with a critically ill member to do a photo shoot with and give them all the photos with copyright. Cloey was chosen! J'lynn Mak photography did a great job and gave us some beautiful photos we will treasure forever. In August, my aunt Becky married her high school sweet heart and Cloey and Cal were flower girl and ring bearer. It was a gorgeous ceremony. We were glad to be a part of it and wish them the best. It was in California (which Cal says he owns since it has his name on it) so we selfishly took the opportunity to take a mini family vacation and got to Knotts Berry Farm and the Beach. September welcomed a new bundle of joy-Brutus Ferdinand Willoughby, a Yorkshire terrier that fits right into our family. He keeps me company on the nights Ty is gone and the kids love to help take care of and play with him. We have had a few shoe casualties, but all in all he's been way worth the damage and shows promise to grow up to be a well behaved pup. In October our family was hit with the Swine Flu. All I can say is it sucked. Thankfully we all made it through-eventually. We also were part of my sister Emily's wedding. Cloey got to be flower girl and I was the Matron of Honor (ewww that sounds so old!). Ty was home for Halloween, so we got to trick-or-treat as a family. Our neighborhood was so cool! Nearly every house was decked out, there was smoke, a life size pirate ship, homemade scones and of course CANDY CANDY CANDY. The kids had a blast. November brought a Mayo trip. Ty's job allowed him to go with us which eased the load tremendously and we came home with good news! Check her blog for all the details (princesscloey.blogspot.com)

Ty has completed his year of probation with the Scottsdale Fire Department. He received excellent reviews all year and I am very proud of him. He has had some experiences that have made him grow both as a Firefighter and a person. He really enjoys what he does and is making friends along the way. It seems like every week he's telling me something else he wants to be involved in at the department.

I have decided to home school the kids this year. It has been a rough start and we still haven't worked the kinks out, but the pros out weigh the cons, and we enjoy learning together as a family. I have been fighting with the school district all year to get Cloey the support she needs, and it looks like she will be going to school for special education with a nurse as her aid, part time beginning in January. After completing some classes online I have narrowed down what it is I want to do and am completing a distance program to become a Certified Lactation Educator. I hope to have a support group going by the spring.

Cloey left her old girl scout troop when we moved and now does Activity Days through the Church. There is something like 20 girls and they have all welcomed Cloey with open arms. She really enjoys being their friend and feeling like a big kid. Her and Lainey have become very-shall we say- independent this year. In a lot of ways, it's like we have twin 3 year old girls. Cal enjoyed a Hip Hop dance class and basketball. He also went on several field trips with grandma to museums and had a day at the Riparian preserve where he learned about leaves and rocks.

This time of year holds a special place in our hearts. We love the spirit that can be felt. It reminds us what really matters in life. We Love all of you we are lucky enough to call family and friends. Merry Christmas!

2009-01-09T23:31:00.001-08:00

2009-01-09T22:51:00.000-08:00

Daddy Daughter Dance!

Ty escorted Cloey to her first dance. It was with her Daisy Girl Scout Troop at a local elementry school. She did her nails to match her shoes, and did her "movie star" hair. That's what she calls it when we straighten it, I wanted her to leave it in her beautiful curls but when I told her she would be dressing up for her "date" she requested her "movie star" hair. So, it begins already. Ty got her a corsage to match her dress and everything. It was sooooooo cute!

Firefghter Ty!

2008-09-10T13:58:00.000-07:00

Ty is in the Yellow Helmet

3rd guy from the left

4th guy from the left

Ty is officially a Scottsdale Firefighter! We can't believe it has finally happened and it is very exciting. Academy has proven to be very challenging for both of us. He leaves a little before 5am and is put through strenious physical workouts and training most of which is outside. They also have classroom work, and Ty usually comes home between 4 & 5 with 1-2hrs of homework. It will be this way through December. But it's what we asked for right? just kidding~ Ty loves it and is really getting attached to the Scottsdale Department & I have to admit it is a lot funner to answer the question "what does your husband do?"

2008-07-24T01:36:00.001-07:00

2008-07-24T01:17:00.000-07:00

We are back! and it was truly a wish come true for our little girl. Here is the run down plus lots of pictures:

Monday- An Excursion limo picked us up and took us to the airport. The kids thought it was so cool, and called it the princess car. It also made loading everybody and everything up really easy. We were met at the airport by our wish granter who helped us all the way to security. It was an easy, short flight and our rental car was ready to go and waiting for us. We had two rooms at the Paradise Pier Hotel, one of the Disneyland Resort Hotels. Immediately we were treated special. The Hotel supervisor came out to meet us personally, and told us to let them know if there was anything we needed & the kids were given balloons. We spent the first night getting dinner, setting up all of Cloey's medical supplies and ooohing and ahhhing over the fancy hotel.

2008-07-24T00:58:00.000-07:00

2008-07-24T00:55:00.000-07:00

Tuesday- We had special passes to get into the park an hour before it opened, so we got there as soon as we could (about a 1/2hr early). Cloey was in her medical stroller and wearing her Make-a-Wish shirt and we were escorted to the front of the monorail line. We went on the first rides we saw, Nemo and the autotopia cars (the kids favorite). we had a card that let us go up through the exit of the rides and not wait in line, and usually even get special treatment there, like going immediately on , or picking the color of the ride. All of the Disney Cast Members were extra friendly (if that's possible) to us and Cloey, getting down and talking right to her, which she loved. Then we went over to the Princess Fantasy Faire. Cloey LOVED the castle. She spent nearly all of her spending money at the princess gift shop, and was amazed to see all the princess stuff in one place. We were in there for a long time. Cloey got her Lanyard with 4 princess pins on it. If you are not familiar, Disneyland does pin trading. You can trade special Disney pins with any Cast member wearing the lanyard & pins. Cloey caught on real quick and loved trading pins, of course they all traded (or just gave) her the best ones, and talked to her and hugged on her, which she just eats up. At 10:45am we went down to the storytelling area and were escorted in front of the lines. Sleeping beauty came out to tell her story and Cloey started yelling "hi Sleeping beauty" at the top of her lungs as if she was coming out to tell a story just to her. This was extra special because just before we left I had borrowed the Sleeping Beauty move since Cloey had never seen it. So at that moment she was her favorite. Allthough she would never admit to anyone that she ever has a favorite. She just always says "all of them" After the story we were told to wait there for our personal meet and greet. Cloey didn't know what was coming and was happy just to sit on the Princess chair. Cinderella must have forgot her key because while we were waiting, she had to cut through to the back of the stage. Cloey saw her almost immediately and started to freak out, I literally had to grab her with both arms because I was afraid she was going to take poor Cinderella down. She waved politely, and walked past. Cloey was so happy, she would have been fine if that was as close as she got. Shortly after that they called us back to a little room, where Cinderella & Sleeping beauty were waiting just to see Cloey. They talked and hugged and even danced together. Cloey told Cinderella how she has pet rats just like her. I really almost lost it. She was oblivious to everything else, all the pain and struggles she has gone through, the effort it takes her just to breath, all of that was gone. She was just a happy little girl living her dream. They stayed with us for quite some time, then we were taken out to the main area where everyone was waiting for a coronation dance with all the princesses! they learned princess moves and danced with ribbon around a pole (like a may pole). All the princesses payed extra attention and blew kisses just to Cloey. That's when I lost it.

After that we went back to the hotel for lunch and a break. Cloey needed to take a nap on the ventilator, to give her enough energy to make it through the afternoon. Ty & Lainey took naps too, and Cal and Emily took a quick swim. Then it was back to Disneyland! We took Cal to the Indiana Jones ride as a reward for suffering through the princesses all morning. Cal had really been looking forward to it because of the recent happy meal toys & movie previews. He was tall enough, but Cloey was not. I took him on and I could tell he was worried. He was clinging close to me, I pointed out the bugs on the walls and he said "don't tell me, just don't tell me!" then when the boulder fell he was really scared and started crying. I had to carry him off the ride! when we came out Ty went with Emily on the ride and I took him to spend his money that he was itching to spend. I started to walk past the Indiana Jones shop, but he said he wanted to go in. I said "I thought you were scared of that ride?" and he said "but I still like the guy!" so he got some stuff there and was happy. The next ride Cal was looking forward to was the Pirates of the Caribbean. so we took him there hoping that would make him happy, but he was scared there too. We did as many more rides as we could before we were exhausted, including the teacups which quickly became one of Cloey's favorites. Then it was back to the hotel for dinner and Bed. Emily was a huge help getting up with Cloey's machines at night and helping with her care in the day. She even let us sneak back to the park for a mini date, which was really nice since that is where we spent our honeymoon.

2008-07-23T20:20:00.001-07:00

2008-07-21T20:14:00.000-07:00

2008-07-21T13:26:00.000-07:00

Wednesday- Some family met us at the park, so that was an extra special treat. We started at California Adventures. Ty, me, Cloey & Cal went on soarin' over California. We all thought it was really cool. Then was the buzz lightyear ride, the kids & Ty really liked it. Then we took the kids on roarin rapids, I thought Cal wouldn't be too scared because it wasn't the pretend kind of scary, but he didn't like that either. Cloey got soaked and thought it was real funny to run out and give dry daddy a big hug. He would have been more amused but he happened to be on the phone with someone from the Scottsdale fire department who had been trying to reach him to offer him a job (to be continued.......). Then it was back to the hotel for lunch and a quick nap. We went to the Wish lounge (a special place to rest, get refreshments & info in Disneyland just for Wish kids) The helpful cast member told us where the the best place to sit for the parade was and to get there soon, so off we went. it was kind of a long wait, but a barber shop quartet came by and made Emmy sing, so that past some time. We were sitting on the curb right under a tree, and it was well worth the wait. The pictures just don't do it justice, every one had to stay right on the curb and if the started to come at all close the the characters they were quickly put in place by a handler. Except Cloey. The first float was Sleeping Beauty, and the good fairies were walking in front. Meriweather came right up to Cloey and gave her a big hug. Through the whole parade, the characters came and gave her hugs, the ones on the floats blew kisses and spoke right to her. She was being treated like a princess, like the parade was just for her. It was perfect. Then we rushed over to make the last Jedi academy training for Cal. Unfortunately, he wasn't picked as a jedi but he really liked watching. Then it was more rides, including the Peter Pan ride, They liked that one so much they are still running around pretending to be Captain Hook and Wendy. Cal says it's because you "really fly" on that ride. Cloey bought a sword in the gift shop, and as we were leaving a cast member chased us down. He said "hey you left my store too fast" and Bent down to trade pins with Cloey. He gave us all one & Cloey a few, one of which was a "year of a million dreams" pin. Those pins can't be traded, but are only given to special people. She really liked to trade pins. Then as we rushed to dinner at Ariel's Grotto, we saw Minnie & Mickey Mouse. Of course there was a long line to see them and we were already running late. So we decided Ty should just take the kids over and see if they could squeeze them in. Before they even got there, the handler said "everybody, we have a special Make a Wish friend here, please back up" They not only got to take pictures with them, but Mickey & Minnie spent a good 10 minutes hugging and playing hand games with them, it was so cute. At Ariels Grotto, Make a Wish had reservations for us. We met Ariel on the way in, and throughout the dinner all the princesses (except Sleeping Beauty, which Cloey pointed out) came by to the tables. They spent extra time with Cloey, and even Cal had them sign his autograph book. Since it was our last day at Disneyland we wanted to stay as long as we could. So it was back to the park for more rides. We decided not to go and wait for the fireworks, because there was so much left we wanted to do and we could see them from our room, and anywhere in the park. We got Cloey a Mickey ears hat, pink with a tierra and a veil. Of course with her name on the back. We also had to get a picture in front of the Gibson Girl ice cream parlor with all of our Gibson girls (I took a picture there on our honeymoon). When the fireworks started we all stoped to watch. then when we were waiting to get back into fantasyland to go on more rides (it is closed until it is all checked out after the fireworks) a cast member told us to go over to the show fantasmic while we waited. He said it was worth it, and it really was. We weren't able to get to the Make a wish section (front and center) because we got there right as the show was starting, but we got to watch from the wheelchair section, and it was fantastic, they especially liked all the characters on the boat at the end. We squeezed in a few more rides, and as the park was closing we headed back to the hotel. Lainey had fallen asleep in the stroller at about 9pm. Cloey was out the second we put her in her medical stroller, and Cal was falling asleep sitting on the foot supports of Cloey's chair and in danger of falling forward and cracking his head open on the concrete. Absolutely precious.

2008-07-21T02:01:00.001-07:00

2008-07-20T23:24:00.000-07:00

Thursday- It was off to the beach. It wasn't too cold, and 5 or 6 dolphins were so close the coast guard was flying over and sending the fishing boats away. The kids buried dad, built a sand castle (well, tried), and searched for seashells. We met family there too, and ate lunch on the beach. The kids had never seen the ocean before so it was amazing to them. It was so much fun we didn't want to leave, but we had to get back to the hotel and get cleaned up for our dinner at Medieval times. We had to wait in line at the ticket counter, and Cloey said "Why we have to wait in line for?" it was so cute, since we hadn't waited in line for two days. Our family met us there too, so we filled up a whole row for the green knight. Cal really liked the jousting especially when the wooden shield broke into little pieces. Although he did ask me "mom. it's real swords and fake blood right?" just to be sure. and there wasn't even fake blood. When the green knight came to our section to throw flowers to the crowd, our whole row stood up and pointed to Cloey, so she got the flower. she immediately turned to me and said "He loves me!". After it was over we were leaving and the narrator was telling everyone goodbye. Cloey was looking for the green knight, I told her "maybe he will know where the green knight is" he heard me and started to say that the knights only comes out after the second show, then he noticed Cloey's shirt and said. "wait here. I'll see what I can do" shortly after, the green knight came out and took pictures with her and spend some extra time talking to her. She was thrilled to be his princess!

2008-07-20T16:00:00.001-07:00

2008-07-20T14:55:00.000-07:00

Friday- We woke up and went to a character breakfast at the Paradise Pier Hotel. They met several other characters including stitch who did all kinds of funny things like "pick" daddy's nose and wipe it on Cal's head. They both really liked that, but Lainey wouldn't get near any characters, she was fine watching them, but didn't want to get near them or have them touch her at all. Kinda like she is with people :) Next was Universal Studios. We were in traffic for a long time before we got there and Ty & I were joking that we needed a cut in line pass for the traffic. When we got there we had front of the line passes waiting for us at the will call counter. As we were going into the park, there was a line to take your picture with the Simpson family, Cloey doesn't watch the show but loves seeing characters, so Ty took her up to see them. They all made a big deal over her and she loved it. Then it was over to the Simpsons ride. Cloey, Ty, and Emily went on it. I really had no interest in it. Lainey was asleep and Cal was traumatized and refusing all rides. It quickly became Cloey's favorite, in total she went on 4 or 5 times, and I even went on once with her, but Cal could never be convinced. I did make him go on the Shreck ride because otherwise he would not be able to do anything at universal. He was screaming and crying when we were waiting to get on, then when we were inside and he had the 3D glasses on I saw him laughing and grabbing at the candy that was "thrown" into the audience. but when we were leaving he said "actually I didn't like it" so that was the end of rides for Cal. After the Shreck ride, we got to meet Spongebob Squarepants. Cloey was so excited she started jumping up and down. Then Spongebob starting jumping too! He was really playing with Cloey. Right next to Spongebob was Curious George, so of course we stopped to say hi to him too. Then Spongebob came over as a special treat and tapped her on the shoulder. Pretty soon they were all jumping up and down. Cloey was definitely the star of the show to the large crowd of people who had gathered to see Spongebob and Curious George together. Mostly Emily, Ty & I traded off to go on the big rides and that was fun. I got to take Ty on Backdraft which was cool , but I have to say it was more impressive the last time I was on it, when I was about 9 years old. Cloey rode Simpsons one last time and I broke down and got her a Simpsons t-shirt since she loved the ride so much.

Saturday- we rushed to pack and get off to the airport. When we checked out the Cast members were very nice and wanted to make sure we had a magical time. The man who was helping us load our luggage gave each of the kids an 8x10 signed portrait of some of the characters. When we arrived at the airport our wish granter was there to meet us, and the "princess car" took us home.

2008-07-20T14:44:00.001-07:00

I know this is extremely long, but I still feel I haven't described how truly magical it all was. The Make a Wish organization is outstanding. It wasn't about how much money they spent or what we got, but about making a wish come true. We didn't have to worry about anything. Everywhere we went it was all taken care of. It was so easy to check in, pick up tickets, cars etc. It was like we had fairy godparents watching over us. As I watched the other kids and realized they all will probably be back several times over their lifetime, not to mention all the dreams they will be able to make come true for themselves, I was filled with the most bittersweet feelings and a heart full of gratitude for being able to spend this extra special time with my Cloey. We will remember this for the rest of our lives. Cloey has now left her mark all over Disneyland and whenever we have the chance to visit again we will see our princess smiling in that castle where her wish came true.

2008-07-07T00:20:00.000-07:00

I'm too excited to sleep! We are headed to Disneyland to meet the princesses tomorrow at 11am and will be gone until Sat afternoon. We can't wait to be there to see Cloey get her wish. We will take lots of pictures and make sure to post all the details.

Besides the excitement of getting ready for our trip we have been going to swim lessons, tumbling, karate & a trip to the High School Musical at Gammage auditorium. Cloey was really impressed and didn't even mind that it was a different cast then she is used to. Lainey really likes the little trampoline, my little daredevil. Ty & I celebrated our 8th wedding anniversary with a full night out at the Carefree Resort. It was really relaxing. We had a couple say "oh, look at the newlyweds" ands we both started laughing out loud, so we had to explain that it was our anniversary and our 3 kids were at home. but it was really nice to just be "us" for a while. Ty has been working for a temp agency so his hours have been a little crazy, but after not working for 2 weeks we are just thankful for the work. The most recent bummer is that our van died, completely. we still owe money on It so we are not sure yet what we are going to do, bit it will still be broken when we get back so we'll deal with it then.

An organization called Songs of Love writes personalized songs for medically fragile kids. They wrote one for Cloey and you can download the song or ring tone at songsoflove.org. email me at megan.g@cox.net for her record #. It's a really cute song and perks Cloey right up. That's whats up with us, more to come after Disneyland.

Spring Break 2008

2008-06-08T02:16:00.001-07:00

Been Gone To Long.....

2008-06-07T19:04:00.000-07:00

I can't believe I haven't updated since Christmas! We have been keeping busy as usual. I am not going to even try to update on everything, just be sure to check out the pictures. Our Most recent blessing is Ty has passed the interview process for the Tempe Fire Department! Hopefully he will be in the Academy this fall (pending background check, etc.) We are so excited we can't even think straight!

Cloey's wish was granted! She wished to meet all the Disney Princesses, so Make-A-Wish is generously sending us to to Disneyland California on July 7th, for 6 days and 5 nights! Again can't think straight! The kids are excited and they don't have the slightest idea how cool it really is. Ty & I are excited too, we have never been able to go on a family vacation and we are really looking forward to it.

Cloey is amazing. Although we had to turn up her rates on the machine at night (meaning she is becoming more dependant on it), and she is starting to struggle in the afternoons (getting tired, using all her energy to breath, and being very crabby to the point we have begun to restrict our afternoon activities), She is still our smiling angel. Our hearts ache a little all the time. We are doing our best to count our blessings. One of which is that for now she is here with us and there is nothing imminent that would change that. She is as happy & as comfortable as possible, and that is what matters. We will continue to love her, enjoy time with her, and soak in her sweet spirit in the months to come. We are so blessed with all of the love and support that surrounds us. Not to mention the lessons we are learning about how precious this life is and that we must handle it with care. We have become much more laid back and loving and for that I am truly grateful.
Love from us- Ty, Megan, Cloey, Cal & Lainey

2008-02-20T21:44:00.001-08:00

our winter so far

2008-02-20T20:35:00.000-08:00

We had a surprisingly good Christmas. While it was strange without family, it was kinda fun to have a white Christmas. Thanks to generous and kind people all around us we were given enough gifts and money to make Santa come all the way to Ronald McDonald House for the kids. We all had lots of fun shopping and playing with all the gifts. The House put on an amazing dinner with China and linens and all the trimmings. Santa also visited the house and one little boy (named Cal) had all kinds of questions for him, like "where are your reindeer?" It was great. We flew home late New Years Eve, in fact we were some where between time zones to ring in 2008.

At Mayo we discovered that the problem with Cloey's breathing lies in her brain. It means there is nothing we can do to "fix" it, but it also means there were no surprise conditions or unexpected surgeries, truly a blessing. She came home on a Bipap ST machine in a last ditch effort to avoid putting her on a ventilator. Unfortunately it did not work and Cloey was placed on the vent about two weeks ago. This is a machine that is breathing for her, which makes her eligible for the Make A Wish program, so we have started that process. There are many complications that could arise with the vent, the most concerning being that she may eventually become completely dependant on the machine to breathe. That would make it hard for her to continue to go to school, church, and participate in so many other things that she loves about life. This pulls on our hearts and we have been on our knees in prayer trying to make the best decisions for our sweetheart. For now, she is only on the machine at night and is doing well on it. It is giving her the support she needs to sleep and wake up to be Cloey all day. We will take it one step at a time and continue to live our life. Whether it's buying a house, taking a job, having a baby or whatever. We don't want to sit stagnant waiting for Cloey to leave us, hopefully she won't, and we don't want life to pass us by in the meantime. That being said we are making sure we spent lots of time together as a family. We hope to go to the beach, camping, Disneyland and all the things we have not been able to do because we are always getting ready or recovering from some surgery or something. Our focus is now on Cloey's quality of life. There-It's all said and you can take a break to cry if you want to.

-sigh-

Ty is applying at various cities around the valley, we are hopeful it will happen this year now that he has his degree. In the meantime he is working as an electricians helper and looking for a part time job to supplement our income. He is also really enjoying the Wii that he got for a graduation present. He was released from the Elders Quorum and will now be the scouting program Chairman. Thanks to Uncle Albert and Aunt Robin he got to take Cal to monster trucks, once again he came home with more pictures of the trucks than my son, so I think it is safe to say they had a good time. Ty and I have recently come to the realization that we are old. Friday will be 10 years since we met, and St Patrick's day will be 10 years of being together, crazy. So I changed my hair and got a pedicure :)

As if we didn't get enough snow in MN, the kids had an ice skating field trip where they had a lot of fun. Our amazing Ward did it again with huge yard sale benefiting Cloey's medical care. It was even in the local papers. There is no way we would make it to Mayo without that help. It is so comforting to see how much good is around us, so many people put so much effort into the sale just to help one little family. Words can't describe the spirit that was felt by all involved. We are all recovered from the flu and bronchitis we had two weeks ago, it was horrible. Cloey was in the hospital and Ty was rationing my cough syrup with codeine because I was so miserable I kept asking him to bring me some. Little Lainey had her tonsils and adenoids removed on Mon. She had to stay overnight because she is under 4 and has asthma, but she is doing much better now. It is amazing she is already not snoring! She has snored like an old man since she was born. We think she will start feeling better and maybe gain some weight now. Now that Grandma Hall has helped us out with a computer, hopefully I will be able to update more often. We love and miss everybody we don't see nearly enough.
Pass on your blog to us if you have one!

We made it!

2007-12-19T16:44:00.000-08:00

Ty's party was a huge success! He really had no idea, and was very glad to see everyone. It was all we could talk about on the plane. Thanks to everyone that came and helped keep it a secret. Now he just has to get hired ......

We made it here ok, and only forgot a few things. Cloey is having back to back tests done and we really don't know anything yet. We do know we will have to go to the hospital on Christmas Day and have a PH probe (tube down Cloey's nose) removed and go over the results with the doctor. That is at 11am, so we will be able to have the morning together and will be back by 1pm for the house dinner. There is also supposed to be a snow storm this weekend, so that will be a lot of fun for the kids. (me, not so much)

We miss everyone, and will let you know how things are going after Christmas when some of the tests will be back and we have a better idea of what is going on with Cloey

Merry Christmas
love the Gibsons

Getting Ready

2007-12-13T22:00:00.000-08:00

We are finally updating our blog!
Right now I am
frantically packing and getting ready to head back to Mayo with Cloey. The short of it is that Cloey is still having problems breathing even after the trach. We are facing having to put her on a ventilator (breathing machine) at night. The information I have is that she will slowly become more and more dependant on the machine and require more and more time on it, significantly limiting her quality of life. We have made great efforts to give her a "normal" life, she is mainstreamed in kindergarten, goes to church, plays with other kids, gives hugs, makes jokes, runs, plays at the park, and is very much a part of a lot of people's lives. Being placed on this machine would make all of those things difficult if not impossible. We are hoping that Mayo will be able to find something else, or some other answer. We find ourselves at a crossroads with our little angel, and decisions way heavily at on our hearts. ok, I have to stop there, that is all I can say about that.

To raise the stress level a notch, little Lainey was in the hospital last week. after coughing for three months, it was determined that she has asthma. We started breathing treatments, and she kept getting worse. I took her into the pediatricians office, who gave her a steroid shot and another breathing treatment. It did nothing and she was visibly struggling to breath, so she was admitted straight to the hospital. She was there for 2 days of round the clock steroids and treatments, before she was doing better and sent home with 5 more days of the same. Now she is doing great and will get a breathing treatment twice a day for the rest of the winter. It ended up being bronchiolitis aggravated by her asthma.

On a lighter note-

Ty will graduate tomorrow on Dec 14th. I don't know if excited or relieved is a better word.

Cal is really excited about Santa this year, and keeps asking "how many more days?" He is also preoccupied with learning to read and write and is always asking "what does that say?" and "what letter does ______ sound with?"

In my attempt to keep up with blogging here are some fun pictures from this year, enjoy!

12-13-07
Megan

Hi everyone

2007-10-11T13:08:00.000-07:00

Since we are all so busy I was excited to find this way that we can keep everyone updated on what is going on with us. I'll try to get some pic's up before to long. Take care.

Ty