Halloween Party

Sawyer's Down Syndrome playgroup had their Halloween Party today. It was a nice day and we had a very good time. I think Judson was a bit disappointed there were no older kids and Ansley was very restrained. She does good in small groups but when there are a lot of people all speaking English at the same time, she seems to retreat. I don't think she can understand and it scares her. Here are some pictures of the tooties.


Does this outfit make me look like Phil Fulmer?
Please tell me this is just a dream!
Elephant Boy

Win a Monkey, Save a Life

Check out this blog. You might be moved to help.
http://www.cornishadoptionjourney.blogspot.com/

Judsonisms

Life with a 5 year old boy is always interesting. Add to that, this 5 year old boy is a very literal boy. He does not understand the nuances of language. If you say "it's raining cats and dogs out there", he's going to look out the window to see how many cats and dogs are falling from the sky. So here are few of the funny things our little 5 year old says:

1) Mommy: (after many many MANY requests for Judson and Ansley to stop the "yes I am, no you're not" conversation) "Judson and Ansley please stop, you are acting like all you have is Stricklin blood in you because all you do is argue"
Judson: "Ansley has more Stricklin in her than I do" (he might be right)

2) Judson: (a dirtier boy, you've never seen) "Do I have hair growing on my back"
Mommy: What?
Judson: I've been playing with the doodles (our dogs) for a WHOLE hour. I want to become a dog. Do I have hair growing on my back like a doodle?


3. Judson: I have Up Syndrome
Mommy: What's Up Syndrome
Judson: That's when you are 5 but you look like you are 6.

4. Mommy: Where was Judson born?
Judson: Georgia
Mommy: Where was Sawyer Born?
Judson: Georgia
Mommy: Where were Mommy and Daddy born?
Judson: Tennessee and Florida
Mommy: Where was Ansley born?
Judson: Taiwan
Ansley: No, Ansley born in 'ennessee
Judson: No, you were born in Taiwan
Ansley: No, 'ennessee
Mommy: It's okay, Judson. She can say she was born in Tennessee
Judson: But Mom, she was born in Taiwan. Ansley, you were born in Taiwan.
And thus, another debate began between the two.


5. Mommy: Judson, what is 100-5?
Judson: Mom, I've been knowing that since I was 2. (eyes rolling and exasperated sigh) It's 95!

Thus goes the life of the mom of this 5 year old.

Buddy Walk, Great Time! (long)

Buddy Walk is history for 2007! What a beautiful day. We had such a great time. We couldn't have asked for more. There were so many people there and we all had something in common, which made talking with strangers very easy. The kids jumped in the moon walk thingy. They danced to the music and walked the 'buddy walk' and received their medals for doing so. There was also a folk band playing, which included Chris Burke. If you recall the Life Goes On television show many years back, Chris was the brother with Down Syndrome. It was interesting to hear his story. When he was born, the doctors told his parents he'd never learn to read or write or even speak. The doctors also told his parents to put him in an institution. (they of course did not do that) They had to put him in private school because he was not allowed in public schools. He proved the experts wrong as have many other people with Down Syndrome.

To date, DSAA has raised over $144K. Last years donations totaled over $170K. They are accepting donations through the end of October and I think they will probably beat last year once all is said and done. Our family raised $770! Thank you to all who donated. We really appreciate it.

The reason we do this! And the many other folks who joined in!

All 3 of our tooties!

We Got It, Tra La La La La!!!!!

The last piece of the puzzle for Ansley's adoption was her Certificate of Citizenship. We applied in late July (right before the price increase) for her CoC. We received word that they did get our application and it could take up to 1 year to process. I was told some folks actually had to go to their Homeland Security Department and appear in person to receive the certificate. Imagine my surprise when the mail person asked me to sign for a package today from USCIS (Division of Homeland Security). Inside this package was the most beautiful piece of paper stating our little girl was now (and forever more) a citizen of the United States of America!

So we are through. No more adoption paperwork. Although, they tell me we need to check with Social Security to make sure her status is listed as 'citizen' and not 'permanent resident'. In other words, maybe I'm not quite through after all. But, I'm close!!!!!!

Last Buddy Walk Update

Buddy Walk is in a couple of weeks. There's still time to donate if you wish. We're over $600 now! What an awesome group you are!!!!!!

By credit card, go to this site:

http://buddywalk.kintera.org/faf/donorReg/donorPledge.asp?ievent=237018&supId=182868676

You may instead send a check made out to DSAA. Please put Sawyer Stricklin in the Memo/For section. You may either send the check to us or directly to:
Down Syndrome Association of Atlanta
Attn: Buddy Walk
4355 J Cobb Parkway, #213
Atlanta, GA 30339

If there is a Buddy Walk in your area, I encourage you check it out. You will meet a wonderful group of people. (not just people who have 1 extra chromosome but their families and friends, too).

In a day and age, where people are offered pre-natal testing (not for preparedness but for purposes of terminating pregnancies), it's good to see what 'real life' is for people of all abilities.

Check out some pics of the kids.

My little Fashion statement and her sidekick (See previous soapbox post)
Judson has been sick for a week. (Darn MMR shot! But yesterday he said he felt like he did before he got the "MRM" shot. Thank goodness. Men of all ages are just not good patients, don't you know)

On My Soapbox (Again)

Okay. People go through stages in their lives. Right now, my children are young. I haven't made it to the PTA stage or the Soccer Mom stage. I am in the Home School stage with Judson, Down Syndrome Stage with Sawyer and the Adoption Stage with Ansley. So, when something in one of these three categories comes up, I notice.

I get a bit peeved when a certain clothing maker puts out a t-shirt that says, "Adoption, the next black". In other words, when in doubt (fashion-wise) wear black such as "the little black dress"; "black tie", etc. So if you adopt, you'll be 'in style'! If t-shirt logos hack me off, just imagine when I read that on The View (I do NOT watch that show) they made a statement that once it was fashionable to adopt from China, now it's fashionable to adopt from Africa, saying something like African adoption is like the latest Louis Vitton (sp) bag. So what happened to all the children adopted from China, were they cast away/put in the closet/sent to Goodwill now that they are no longer 'fashionable'? My daughter is not some accessory like some handbag or tshirt or pair of shoes. She is a living, breathing, human being!

Let me give you some statistics: (2005 stats since the UNICEF page only has #'s for that year)

According to USCIS (they issue visas for people coming into the US), In 2005, they issued 7906 visas (For orphaned children) coming into the US from China. In that same year, they issued 441 visas for orphans entering the US from Ethiopia. (Liberia made the list at 183 visas issued in 2005) Let's put that into perspective. In 2005 (according to UNICEF), China had a population of 352,718,000 children under the age of 18. Of that number, 20,600,000 were orphans. In Ethiopia in 2005, there were 29,792,000 children under the age of 18. Of that number, 4,800,000 were orphans. Liberia has similar numbers. (By the way, the US didn't even have numbers on orphans on the UNICEF website.)

You do the math. Adoption is NOT a fashion statement. It's not even a drop in the bucket. You don't go through the mounds of paperwork and red tape it takes to adopt a child (domestically or internationally) to make a fashion statement. PERIOD. You do it, first, because that is how you choose to grow your family. You choose the country from which you adopt, because for some reason you are drawn to it. Sometimes at first, it's purely because of the fit. (cost, qualifications, etc.) Sometimes it's because you are drawn to the people and the culture. You go thru many questions/self-evaluations: Can I parent a child who is racially/ethnically different than I? How do I feel about this child's heritage? Can I help him/her to be proud of their heritage/looks? Yes, there are some folks who are out to 'rescue' the poor children. Take a look at those numbers again, rescuing via the adoption route is NOT going to work. What really needs to happen (for those interested in rescuing) is topic for another Soapbox post.

Sometimes as an Adoptive Parent(AP), you feel like you are a vulture or something. Sitting around waiting for something bad to happen to someone, so that you can grow your family. Take a look at the statistics. You don't have to sit around. Bad things do happen. As AP, we may have helped one little girl but she has added way more to our family than we ever will be able to do for her. So my response to the ladies on The View, "You are all idiots if you believe people adopt to make a fashion statement!" Anybody who tries to adopt without putting more thought into the adoption than they would in deciding on a purse, will not make it thru the adoption process.

Whew. I'm better now. I just had to vent. My next soapbox post will probably be about home schooling. I don't even tell folks we are home schooling much. Oh the comments one gets when you open up that can of worms!

We've been busy

Building play areas and tweaking bedrooms. Here's our latest handy work. (Yes, there's still more to do on the play area but the kids love it already)

Randy designed and built (with the help of his dad) this fort. The kids are loving it. The slide is so fast that we have to hold the babies as they go down or they shoot right off the end and skip across the ground on their bottoms.

Inspiration

Sometimes as you walk through life you stumble upon people who inspire you for one reason or another. (Spiritually, emotionally, physically) I have found one of those people. I don't even know her name but I see her at the gym every time I am there. I asked someone about her and this is her story.

She is preparing to go to her 50th class reunion. (I'll let you calculate her age) She's only been coming to gym for 2 years. She comes as often as her ailing husband's health will allow. She's a sprite of a woman. I doubt she even weighs 100 pounds. I suspect she suffers from osteoporosis. Her personality is bubbly and cheerful. She always speaks to everyone. She has the energy of my two sixty pound doodles! I have watched her zoom thru an aerobics class with as much energy as the teacher. I have seen her do body sculpting classes with weights heavier than people, much younger than she is, are using. (Okay, much heavier than I use. There, I said it.) The tone in her arms are what we all are striving to achieve. In her pilates class, she is one of the few that can do a one arm-one leg plank. (I don't even pretend to do pilates!) She is a force of nature. I am constantly amazed and inspired by her.

So on days when I really don't want to go to the gym or am tempted to go easy on myself, I see her and realize I have no excuses. Just thought I'd share.

Singin' in the Rain and other stuffs

It doesn't take much to make a child happy. Sometimes I think we, as parents, grandparents, aunts/uncles, etc, forget that. While trying to keep up with the Jones', we forget just to spend time with our children and let them enjoy being kids. They don't need the latest gadget or the newest styles in clothing. They need to feel loved and safe and well. So here we go trying to lead a 'simple life'. (of course, we still have to watch Barney and Wiggles way more than I'd like. So we still have room for improvement in living that simple life.)

Judson has been wanting to play in the rain FOREVER. Not sure why. It's just something he has mentioned multiple times. Believe it or not, I don't own an umbrella. Let's face it, 3 kids, diaper bag, purse, stroller, etc, just don't lend themselves to carrying an umbrella. So I found a kids umbrella for Judson and some cheap puddle jumping shoes. (not stylish but quite fun and functional) We finally had a rain where there was no thunder and lightening. This is the result. He had a blast.
Hats! You just can't have enough hats. They must be in all colors and shapes and sizes. And if you don't have one ready, you improvise. Here we are with our 'hats'.




"Boy, is that a panty on your head?" Yes, he is wearing a pull up while he sits on the potty! It was clean, in case you are wondering.

September Buddy Walk Reminder

We are doing great on our Buddy Walk goal. We are over the $500 mark. We hope to raise even more money. If you still want to give, here is how you can do it.

By credit card, go to this site:

http://buddywalk.kintera.org/faf/donorReg/donorPledge.asp?ievent=237018&supId=182868676

You may instead send a check made out to DSAA. Please put Sawyer Stricklin in the Memo/For section. You may either send the check to us or directly to:
Down Syndrome Association of Atlanta
Attn: Buddy Walk
4355 J Cobb Parkway, #213
Atlanta, GA 30339

As always, thank you for your support. Here are a few reasons we do this:

Naum (Now known as Xander) http://chroniclesofhousehold6.blogspot.com

www.reecesrainbow.com (Check out the Homecomings and Sponsor sections)

And of course, our little guy:


He'll do anything for sister, even Tea Party and Dress Up.

Things to Consider

So, you think you want to have children. Here are some things you need to think about before jumping into the kiddie pool.

1) Do you fancy your house being on the cover of Architectural Digest? Forget it. Think more, Farmer's Digest (under Pig Sty) or College Daze (under Frat House). Your main focus while raising your kids will be to keep the house structurally sound. Just keep it standing until you can push all of them out of the house. Then you must rush to re-decorate before they decide to move back in.

2) Do you enjoy dressing in fancy (dry cleanable) clothes? Do you like to look like you just stepped from the covers of Cosmopolitan? Don't even go there. On your very best day (maybe 1% of the time) you might look like you stepped out of the JCPenney catalog. The rest of the time, you don't want to know. Think of it in the same way you think of the house, just keep your body structurally sound and some day you might not have dried up snot, sticky syrup, or worse, stuck to your clothes.

3) Do you enjoy going to nice restaurants with real silverware and dishes? Not going to happen. (at least not very often) Think more along the lines of Happy Meals and play grounds. For nice dining, think along the lines of Mexican. Tile on the floor and lots of music and noise to cover up the sounds of your kids doing what kids do.

4) Do you enjoy watching a quiet movie on tv or reading a good book? Oh you can still do this. You just have to do it when you used to sleep. You see, it's a trade off. Sleep or read? Or if you are like us, you start off reading and fall asleep. (best of both worlds!)

5) Do you like slobbery/sticky kisses? The smell of baby shampoo on wet hair? The sound of true joy when you come home from the gym (having only been gone an hour) and little voices saying, "Mommy's home!"? The sound of laughter? The twinkle in someone's eyes when they learn something new? A hug around the neck for no apparent reason other then they just felt like doing it?

Life is about trade offs. I feel like we got the best end of the deal because nice/clean houses and fancy clothes don't begin to compare to THIS:

More Birthday Pictures

We went to the park to continue our birthday celebration. We had a picnic. As you can see, I worked very hard to prepare our 'meal'. Then we let the kids play until they were too tired to play anymore. They had a lot of fun. Judson and Ansley both made new friends and had a great time. Sawyer is very captivated by babies. So he visited with the babies.

Happy #5!

Judson is turning 5 years old. My little guy is growing into such a big boy! And what a wonderful boy he is. The other night I was putting him to bed and I told him how much I loved him and that one of the reasons was that he had such a big heart. His initial response was "it's just a muscle with a bunch of blood vessels in it". So I explained what 'heart' was. I told him that his heart was so big that he wanted to save the earth and the endangered species and that made me very happy. I also told him how much I appreciated him helping with the babies and how proud I was that he loved them so much. His response was "I love Sawyer 'superman size'. Sometimes I don't love Ansley too much, when she is mean to me" I said, "but you still love her a little bit". His response, "sometimes it's very teeny weeny and you really can't see it". I told him that was alright. He'd learn to love her someday. (I'm hoping) They do love each other so much. Even when Ansley is in timeout and crying (giving one of her Oscar winning performances), Judson will ask if he can go back there and sit with her until she can get out of timeout.

We are celebrating J's birthday this weekend since Nana and Pop are here. Pop is helping Randy build a 'fort' for the kids. We are also making the obligatory 'train cake'. (I asked did he want to buy a cake or make one. He said 'make'. Then I asked (as if I didn't know) what kind. He said a 'train cake'. It's in the 80's outside and football season is starting and my big boy is turning 5. Can't ask for anything more. (OK. I would have asked for UT to win their opener but that would be selfish on my part, ay?) We just opened one gift today, Sunday. He got so enthralled with it, we decided to wait and open some more later. Stay tuned.








Nana and Pop gave him a book on the Universe and one with Bible stories











Fort Stricklin









Like Momma, like son.









"I'm ready for my close up" (Okay, he has nothing to do with anything except he's in our front yard and I liked the picture)

Happy Birthday To Me!!

Yay me! I celebrate my birthday today. As I tell Judson, I'm 39 years old. I will be 39 next year at this time and the year following that. (This revelation drives him crazy. He cannot understand why I do not age by 1 at each birthday like he does) I tell him it is a mommy's choice as to how old she wants to be. I'm going to be 39!

P.S. Happy Birthday (belated) to my friend Lori! Hope you had a good one on the 25th. Were you celebrating #39 also?

The Best News Ever!

We took Sawyer to the cardiologist for a follow up appointment. He blew them away with his healthy self! His pulmonary pressures were great. His valves were in good shape. The places that were surgically repaired looked wonderful. The spots that closed on their own, looked fantastic. Everything was A-O-K! Even better news.....he doesn't have to go back for 2 years! That's right. He'll be almost 5 before he has to see the cardiologist again. Can't ask for anything better than that.

On a side note, our cardiologist is also an accomplished artist. He has art shows for his paintings/drawings. He's apparently a very talented man. He picked up a doodle pro (magnetic drawing pad) that Sawyer was doodling on. He was very much impressed with Sawyer's scribbles. He said they had a Picasso-like quality to them. I said, "I think that has to do with his wrist not being very stable." (OK... I'm a mom and I think all their drawings are beautiful but I don't see things in terms of "Oh my God, I've got a artistic whiz on my hands") He was quite serious. He said, "You need to keep a pencil in this little guy's hands". So now Sawyer's two very left brained parents have to find ways to enhance their little guy's right brained abilities. No telling what the outcome of that adventure will be.

Just Plain Hot!

Is it H-O-T or what? We thought we'd take the kids out Saturday night. There was a car show downtown so, what the heck, we decided to go. We went by the play place at McD's first. Of course, Sawyer climbs up to the top but cannot easily get down without killing or seriously maiming himself. So Randy climbs up to the top of a very windy and small stairwell to retrieve him, not once but twice. After some fun and food, we headed over to the car show. Mind you, the thermometer at the bank was registering 95 degrees at 6:30pm! The hit of the show was actually the train that came thru. They all loved that. They really didn't care too much for the cars though. So after about 30 minutes (if that long) we decided to come home. Here are a couple of pictures, before and after. Notice how big Ansley is looking these days and how RED their faces look. Did I mention it was HOT?

Daddy - Judson Bonding Time

Randy and a new friend we made at a Down Syndrome function met last week and went hiking. They took Judson with them. They hiked for 3 hours in the heat! Judson absolutely loved it. So did Dad. They liked it so much that they intend on getting up at the crack of dawn this weekend and do it again, in spite of the 1,000,000 degree heat we are experiencing. Here are some pictures. (Forgive the quality of the pictures. They took the old camera that doesn't work so well.)

Buddy Walk Reminder for August

Last year many of you followed our adventure with the Down Syndrome Association of Atlanta's Buddy Walk. Just wanted to let you know we are doing it again and would love to have your support.

The purpose of the Buddy Walk is to raise money. They use the money to promote national education, research and advocacy projects for people with Down Syndrome. Obviously, that is important to our family.

If you would like to help you may go to our family site:

http://buddywalk.kintera.org/faf/donorReg/donorPledge.asp?ievent=237018&supId=182868676

And donate online using your credit card.

You may instead send a check made out to DSAA. Please put Sawyer Stricklin in the Memo/For section. You may either send the check to us or directly to:
Down Syndrome Association of Atlanta
Attn: Buddy Walk
4355 J Cobb Parkway, #213
Atlanta, GA 30339

Thank you for your support!

More Pictures (as promised)

Here are a few more pictures. We took 200+ pictures. So I'm sure I'll have a few more to post later. Have a great weekend!

Here we are getting ready to go to church.

Pop and Sawyer. Nana and Sawyer on the tractor.



Just after getting our bath.

Visit to Nana and Pop-Pop

Let me just start off by saying, there are too many pictures to post at one time. So come back again later this week and I'll post some more.

We had a great time in Alabama. The children had a great time playing together. Judson went fishing with 'just the guys' and he caught the most fish with his new fishing pole. (However, he was not real happy when he found out what happened to the fish. He has a very tender heart.) Sawyer loved their dog and the their lawn mower and their tractor. He just might be a country boy?!?! Ansley was scared of the dogs but loved the 'animals'. (aka, COWS) She also ate up all the attention but you could tell she wasn't 100% comfortable in the situation. I'm not sure when that feeling will go away with her (IF it will go away). It made me sad sometimes to see the lost look on her face, as if she didn't understand this was just a visit and she was going to come home with the rest of us.

Enjoy the pictures! (you s/b able to click on the image to make it larger)

That's the expression on Ansley that made me sad.

Judson and Abigayle playing.Judson and Pop-Pop.
Sawyer, The Lawn Mower, and The Dog
More pictures later.

Orphan Update

A few months ago I told you about 2 orphans in need of adoption. They have found their forever families.

Louinard, from Haiti, will be moving to Minnesota! His new mommy and daddy have been able to visit him. They sent back pictures (I am not able to post them) and let me tell you, that little boy is one handsome guy. He was sick while they were there but they were able to keep him in the hotel with them. The downside to visiting your child before the court has approved the adoption is, you have to leave without your child. To top that off, Haiti's court system is not fast. It could be 6 more months before they bring him home. In a country like Haiti, where money and health care are in short supply, that can be a very scary wait.

Naum, from Ukraine, is coming home! His family is over there right now going through the courts. The Ukraine court process can take about 4 weeks. The family will be there the whole time. Then they can bring that beautiful boy home.

Anyway, I love happy endings and thought I'd share these two wonderful stories. Keep your fingers crossed that Louinard can get home soon. And visit www.reecesrainbow.com to see pictures once they get home. (Under the HOMECOMINGS tab).

HELP, I've been tagged.

OK. I've been tagged. In the blogger world, that means I have to now tell you 8 random facts about me. Here are the rules (which I must post prior to writing my facts):
Here's what I have been "tagged" to do:

1. I have to post these rules before I give you the facts.
2. Each player starts with eight random facts/habits about themselves.
3. People who are tagged need to write their own blog about their eight things and post these rules.
4. At the end of your blog, you need to choose eight people to get tagged and list their names.
5. Don’t forget to leave them a comment telling them they have been tagged, and to read your blog.

Facts:

1) I used to talk like a yankee. It's true. (Or so I'm told) When I was younger, we lived in Illinois and when we moved back to the dear old south, I had a northern accent. So, you don't believe me? Ask my parents.

2) in a million years, I would have never said I would be a stay-at-home mom and be enjoying it. Never. Didn't really care if I had kids or not. Now, OMG, I cannot imagine doing anything else. It is the perfect job. (Okay, so they aren't teenagers yet. Let me enjoy it while I can)

3) I'm terribly afraid of heights. I absolutely hate looking out over the edge of mountains. I never go to the edge to look down into valleys. Don't care if I ever see the Grand Canyon. I also hate balconies. It doesn't bother me to fly though. The irony is, I love vacationing in the mountains much better than going to the beach. Go figure.

4) My husband and I have a 'mixed' marriage. Yep, he's and Auburn fan, and I'm a Tennessee fan. Somehow, we make it work. We just keep our fingers crossed that our children don't become Georgia or Florida fans!

5) I can't dance, sing, or play a musical instrument. I have no artistic abilities. I really don't have much athletic ability either. That bothers me. Now, it's not the worst thing in the world but geez, you look at my family and you wonder, how could you not get any of those things? Ahhh. but life goes on.

6) The best thing I ever did was leave Tennessee. I would have never met my husband had I not left. He is my soul mate!

7) Favorite food: Corn

8) I hate chain letters. So don't worry, I won't be 'tagging' anyone else. Just thought I'd share a few odd facts about me.

Good Week

Not much going on. We are getting ready to go visit Nana and Pop soon. That will be exciting! The pics are of our favorite afternoon past-time, watching Curious George (or Calliou) and eating popcorn. Also, Judson has a tomato plant (no one in this family will eat tomatoes). It has not produced many tomatoes but we check it everyday and water it too. We cannot fertilize it or put bug spray on it, since it could harm the wildlife and pollute the ground water. Yes, he's been reading the Eco-Kids website.