Anna Ives - Children's Hospitals Family Advocacy Day 2008

Going Home

We are headed back to Memphis today. It was a fantastic trip. We've learned a lot about the process, and why it is important. Our job was to help put a face and a story with general children's health issues in our state, and I think we did a good job.

I really enjoyed spending time with this very talented Le Bonheur team. Jennifer has held our hand through this from the beginning, and it's been great. Kristen and Bob are as good with the issues as they are with people, and helped make our job as easy as possible here in unfamiliar surroundings... and we really appreciate it. Tim was a perfect ambassador for N.A.C.H., and showed us some fantastic photographer poses (some of which alarmed security). I really liked how everyone kind of pitched in as part of the family - it was almost like Anna had an extra set of uncles and aunts on the trip.

The crew up here in DC from N.A.C.H. was tops. What an amazing event! I'd like to thank everyone who made this event possible (especially Norida and Natalie, who asked us to do the blog in the first place). We really enjoyed it.

We also appreciate all the support we have gotten, through this blog and elsewhere, along the way. Your comments have meant a lot to Anna, Amy and me. Being a part of this has made us feel very special. We like playing a role, however small, in something we believe in so much.

We just found out that there was a great story in today's Commercial Appeal newspaper on our trip. Very cool.

If you are interested in learning more about advocating for children's health care, check out The Le Bonheur Grass Roots website. Also see the NACHRI & N.A.C.H. site to find a hospital in your area or more about legislation and other issues that impact children's health.

Here is a short video of our story and why we came to Family Advocacy Day.

Back from The Hill

We made it! We met with our two senators, three representatives, and one rep's chief of staff. It was fantastic. Anna played with Sen. Alexander's desk turtle and Rep. Cohen's airplanes, introduced Rep. Tanner's Chief of Staff to her unnamed toy poodle, tickled Sen. Corker,  looked at pictures of Rep. Blackburn's grand baby, fell asleep in Rep. Blackburn's office, woke up in Rep. Berry's office and traded him one of her baseball cards for a congressional coin.

Ives on Capitol Hill

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It felt good to be a part of something here. Everyone seemed interested in Anna's story, aides and members alike. Some had even been reading the blog! The thing we heard from several of the members we talked to was that it helps to see how passing bills can affect real people... pretty cool stuff.

Alright - Anna and I are off to hook up with Grandma Nonna, Aunt Pat and Aunt Sonya... we're going to go grab dinner.

Here is a video of Anna playing in Senator Alexander's office.

The Hill

Zac and Anna Enjoy N.A.C.H. Carnival

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The dinner shindig was fantastic last night! There was face-painting, an ice-cream stand, a toy shop, caricatures, a magician -- fun everywhere. A bluegrass band played and Anna danced with the other kids. She made a new friend Lili, and just had a blast. What a night!

Our day is here! This is what we came to do. We are a little nervous and very excited about hitting The Hill and talking with our members today. Wish us luck!

A Day in DC

Ives Tour Washington Sights

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We've had a busy day! We woke up and caught breakfast with Bob, Kristin and Jennifer. Then we met our N.A.C.H. Ambassador Tim Haynes and headed out to the bus for our DC tour. It was fun - Anna's highlights were probably playing with her new friend JayLynn on the bus, playing on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial with Tim and the interactive exhibit at the Air and Space Museum.

We got back to the hotel, ate some lunch, and went to the Family Advocacy Training Session. This was interesting, we got some background on how the Hill works and what we will be doing as advocates for children's hospitals. Basically, we'll be letting our senators and representatives know how important Le Bonheur is to us, and why it's important to others. It's a little reminder that can be important when they are considering legislation that can affect children's hospitals.

We also did a little training there with our gang. Everything went well.

Jennifer, Anna and I went down and did another interview with the N.A.C.H. folks after that. Anna laughed as they put makeup on me. Figures.

We also got to meet Cedric, who is doing the other blog for N.A.C.H. That was fun. It's really neat to see so many great kids in one place.

Now we have some downtime prior to the big dinner tonight - sounds like the kids will have a blast. Anna's finally getting that nap. Woo-hoo!

Here is a video of our tour of DC.

Download NACHRI_Vlog_June18b.wmv (10692.7K)

Getting Ready

So here we are, a day away from our trip to DC. Anna's really excited about riding on a plane. She flew once with mom when she was a little tot, but she was too young to remember.

Ives Travel to DC

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I'm excited about taking the trip with Anna, and getting to show her a bit of DC. I'm looking forward to meeting other families, learning more about advocacy and telling our story to let people know how much Le Bonheur has meant to us.

Amy and I lived in DC for three years after college. We moved back to Memphis in 2000. I'm looking forward to getting back. We won't have too much time, but I hope to catch up with some friends and family before we leave Friday morning.

Amy helped Anna get all packed up. She also snuck some extra little happys into my bag for her. I've been given strict instructions on when to give them to her. Amy thinks of everything. I know she wishes she was coming too.

Oh yeah, we watched Anna on TV tonight! We met a crew from a local TV station earlier today and they did a piece on our trip and this blog. Pretty cool!  Also, here is a great story from Memphis Fox News that ran today about us.

Here is a clip of us going to Washington and many warm wishes from Le Bonheur staff.

Download NACHRI_Vlog_June18.wmv (12245.9K)