Bloggy Award #2

I received a nice surprise reading one of my regular Peeps blog. Kaci over at My Three Sons (can't imagine why I read her blog huh?? LOL) nominated me for the Proximidade Award. I am accepting this award and passing it along....
Post the following message on your blog:

These blogs are exceedingly charming. These kind bloggers aim to find and be friends. They are not interested in prizes or self-aggrandizement. Our hope is that when the ribbons of these prizes are cut, even more friendships are propagated.

Please give more attention to these writers!

Deliver this award to eight bloggers who must choose eight more and include this cleverly-written text into the body of their award.
Because I want to bring attention to the fact that October is Down Syndrome Awareness Month, I am nominating all Blogs that love someone with Down Syndrome.
Please visit their blogs. Each person has a unique life just as we "typical" folks do.
Enjoy...
Nominees are:

Blessed With Girls

Big Blueberry Eyes

Henrys Mommie

Braska Bear

Lilys Life is Great

Sarah Class of 08

Gabi's World

Teague Tribe

Show and Tell

Friday is show and tell day at school. Tyler's choice today was a new toy car he got from a Happy Meal from McDonalds. It has a little light on it so he thought it was really cool. Thomas' choice was his bracelet he got in his goody bag from the Buddy Walk. The bracelet is stamped with the words Buddy Walk Down Syndrome Awareness. I asked him what he was going to say about his bracelet. He told me where he got it from. I then asked him what the Buddy Walk was for. He told me it was where kids got to play games and some of them had Down Syndrome. I asked him what Down Syndrome was. He then proceeded to tell me that it meant that it takes a little longer for kids with Down Syndrome to learn some things. Then he said "Well, it means that they get to play longer before they have to be a grown-up." And he is kind of right! I just thought that was too cute....

It is never too early to educate your children about special needs of all kinds....

Buddy Walk Part 2

Here are some more pictures of the buddy walk.


There were slides... (Tanner)



There was face painting (Tyler)




Meeting new friends! (Kathy, PJ and Mattie, Kim)

And lots of games! (Lee with his back turned, Madison, Caroline picking up Tanner and Thomas)

We had great time.

Fun Day at the Buddy Walk

The Buddy Walk was a blast! We had really great time, and the kiddos did too! I took a bunch of pictures, but I am too tired to post too many! LOL

Here are a few... More to follow!

The Kiddos....

The whole gang!

The reason....

Buddy Walk

Buddy Walk here we come!

The family is heading to the Buddy Walk this Sunday!

We can't wait!

A New Friend with DS

Thomas had a ball game tonight and I spoke to his coach. If you recall, at last Thursday's ball game our coach's sister was there with her little boy who has DS. I was afraid to approach her about her son. The coach was very excited, because his sister was approached by the secret service this afternoon to arrange a meeting for her and her son to meet Sarah Palin! She spoke @ ECU tonight! How exciting! Well, that opened the door for me to mention to him that Mattie has DS too! I asked him if he thought that his sister would be interested in meeting Kim. They live very close together and they could discuss "local" programs etc. He said YES! So we swapped phone numbers and email addresses. So the two of them will be in contact with one another soon. I am so glad that Kim will have a new friend to talk to face to face! Their kids are only 10 months apart. The coaches sister is trying to organize play groups for kids with DS in out area.

To top the night off, Thomas kicked butt! He smacked the ball to the out field and ran like crazy to first base! He ended up making it around to home plate! The second time he hit, he was thrown out @ first. But that was ok - his fielding was great tonight. Our team, got 6 double plays! They were on fire! It was a lot of fun to watch!

Whoever Said...

That Moon Sand was not messy was WRONG! I believe it goes like "The Fun of the Beach Without the Mess!" Yeah RIGHT! The boys played with the Moon Sand they got for Christmas yesterday afternoon. (I just found it in the laundry room). Thank the good Lord above, I made them go outside! Thomas kept telling me that all the Moon Sand (on the concrete) would be okay - because it doesn't dry out. It may not dry out, but it can't stand up to a blower! Ha! Frank blew the driveway off after they were done playing. I salvaged as much of the Moon Sand as possible for another day of play! It is neat - but messy stuff!



I took pictures for proof! They are a bit "bright" though...

Check this out!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-_-P4t2jR1g

Go Visit Life with my Special K's and wish her A HAPPY BLOGOVERSARY! And enter her give away!

Are the Smurfs Moving in???

While I was outside hanging out with the boys yesterday afternoon I discovered this community of mushrooms. We decided to look around the yard to see how many we could find. OMG! There were soo many! All different kinds too. I have decided that the Smurfs were moving in! Now you may be asking what is a Smurf? Here is what I found on the Smurfs website - yes they have their own website!
Far, very far from here, in a little village full of mushroom-shaped houses live the Smurfs. The little characters are three apples high, have blue skin and are dressed in white trousers and a cap. Yet they are a happy, easy-going bunch - give or take one or two.

Here is some suggested reading as published by http://www.downsyn.com/index.php

Top 5 Books
1. Road Map To Holland
2. Gifts: Mothers Reflect on How Children with Down Syndrome Enrich Their Lives
3. Babies with Down Syndrome
4. Communication Skills in Children with Down Syndrome
5. Gross Motor Skills in Children with Down Syndrome

I have personally read the first two books. I recommend not only new parents of children with DS read these, but also the parents friends and family.

Great Link...

I am trying to post a fact a day to help bring awareness of Down Syndrome. I found this sight that will guide you towards the right thing to say, or NOT to say should you ever have the privilege of meeting a child with DS. I wished I had found this site right after my Mattie was diagnosed. I didn't know "what to say" or "what not say". If you find yourself, meeting a child with DS, keep in mind the child - NOT the diagnosis. Here is the link Diagnosis Down Syndrome.

Get it Down 31 for 21

I chose to participate in the 2nd Annual 31 for 21 Challenge. October is Down Syndrome Awareness Month. The purpose of this Challenge is to bring awareness of Down Syndrome (otherwise known as Trisomy 21). I do not have a child of my own that has Down Syndrome, but here is why I chose to participate in this challenge.
On February 29th (yes - Leap Year) of this year, my very best friend gave birth to a healthy baby girl. We call her Mattie (okay Kim & Matt named her, but I help pick out her name! :0)). The moment I laid eyes on her, I knew there was something very special about her. She was just “Angelic”. Mattie was our “surprise Blessing from God”. From the moment we found out Kim was expecting, all we could say was “This baby is a blessing from God”. The day after Mattie was born, Kim called me from the hospital. She spoke the words, I never expected or wanted to hear. She told me that the Doctor said that Mattie may have Down syndrome. The next week while waiting for the test results, I hit my knees hard and prayed – a lot. My heart was broken for my friend. Her baby wasn’t “perfect” we were expecting. I didn’t know what she was going though. I didn’t know how to comfort her. It hurt because I could not “fix” it. I cried for hours at work, so I could “get it out” of my system so when I talked to Kim, I wouldn’t cry. That Friday, the test results were in. Kim called me with the results and asked me to write an email to let all of our friends know. It was the hardest email, I have ever written. I simply wrote that the test results were not what we had all prayed for and reminded everyone of what we said from the beginning of her pregnancy “This baby is a blessing from God”. God knew that Mattie would be a perfect fit for this family. Little did I know how perfect Mattie is. She is truly a blessing from God as all children are. God just gave us an extra chromosome to love.

Over time, I have “met” so many other families who love someone with an extra chromosome. I have learned so much by reading other blogger’s stories. I encourage you to read some of my favorite blogs, which can lead you to many other blogs.