He's well!

Ethan is well! He does not (at least not yet) have HAE! I am so relieved!!

It took some real patience to get his stomach to stop rejecting food, but after a few hours of an ounce of fluid per 15 minutes, he was much, much better.

He is such a good boy. He loves the idea of me keeping kids at home, of course he knows and like the kids, so that helps.

I am proud to be Ethan's mom.

Stomach Flu?

Ethan was sick on Wednesday afternoon and into the night with what we thought might be a stomache virus. He complained of major abdominal pain. He vomited everything out over several hours and then dry heaved the last time in the wee hours of the morning. It was just awful.

He seemed better Thursday, though he was tired and cranky and he said his tummy was sore and hurting. We kept him home from school. Today he went to school, but this evening after dinner, he complained of pain again and threw up all of his dinner.

Could my little innocent boy have HAE? Could I have given him this horrid hereditary disorder? The thought makes me ill.

I think I will have Dr. Sauder do a blood test to see if it's HAE. I am praying that it's not.

Ethan - 6 Years Old - with Daniel

For Ethan's sixth birthday we decided to do a bedroom makeover. He had really wanted an extreme home makeover, like on TV, but of course that's not really something we could do! On Friday the 14th we drove up to IKEA in Woodbridge and got some shelves and storage boxes for his room. Ethan loves to go to IKEA because they have a really cool indoor playland where parents can leave kids. It is a well staffed, tricked out room with a ball pit, climbing wall, slide, etc. Kids can stay for 45 minutes at a time. Ethan went twice! We had lunch there (they have a really inexpensive, yummy food restaurant too). So that took the entire day and when we got home, Walter went to work and Ethan, Daniel and I went to Applebee's with Nana and Di. On Saturday we got up and drove to Charlottesville where we got some bulk groceries at Whole Foods and a gate and booster seat (for Ethan) at Toys R Us. On the way home we dropped Walter off at Ian's and they went and picked up a bunk bed that Ian got from freecycle.com. Saturday evening we went to Walker's 5th birthday party at Skate Town. Ethan had never been skating before and was afraid to skate by himself. Walter and I walked him around the rink a few times and he was off by himself. He was pretty good at it by the time we left! Sunday was a rush of church and cleaning. We got the house pretty organized before the party. Ethan's room is still kind of a jumble, but we got the shelves and the bunk bed built and in place. I hope to get some organizing done this week. Today I'm going to rest! Ethan has Josiah over and they are playing Nintendo. Whew!


Ethan's 6th Birthday CAKE!


Sam, Will, Ethan, and Walker Waiting to Dive In

Sun Bread

The other day, Ethan and Mommy read a book called Sun Bread. Ethan really enjoyed the story and because there was a recipe for sun bread on the back cover, we decided to make our own sun bread.

Ethan ended up watching the making for the most part, but he did knead the dough and was very proud of the final result. Notice how similar the bread on the book cover and our creation look! FUN!

SUN BREAD
Written and illustrated by Elisa Kleven (Dutton, '01)

A baker brightens a bleak winter by baking a golden, glowing sun bread, which lifts the spirits (and bodies) of all who taste it, while it lures the real sun out of hiding!

"With rhyming text, brilliantly colored illustrations, and her trademark collages, Kleven depicts a world teeming with animals who celebrate the joy of baking bread and the return of the sun. With a sun bread recipe on the back cover.

The Book


Ethan and His Sun Bread