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31 for 21 Day 3

Pictures.

Since I've been going through pictures, I thought I'd post several that make me HAPPY. You see, Sawyer makes me happy. Every time I see him, I smile. (Unless of course, he's having a Stricklin fit. Then I just turn to Randy and say, He's yours)

See the one of him in his baseball uniform?
Know why that makes me happy?
Look closely.
It was one of the first ones taken after we
removed the oxygen and feeding tubes.
You can tell that because of the redness on his cheeks.
That was caused by the tape to keep everything in its place.

No more feeding tubes, which he'd yank out and I'd have to put back in DAILY.
No more oxygen.
No more meds.

It makes me happy!

31 for 21 Day 2

Pet Peeve

Don't call my son, "Downs kid" or say "He's Downs, isn't he". Drives me BONKERS. Yes he has DOWN SYNDROME. You may say, Does he Have Down Syndrome or something like that. DON'T say 'He's downs'. What the heck does that mean anyway? I think it's grammatically incorrect.

Besides you are defining him by one aspect of what makes him unique. If you know much about him, it really is only a small part of what makes him HIM. Did you know he's stubborn? That's a Stricklin trait. Did you know he loves music? That's a Bledsoe trait. Did you know he's a comedian? Not sure who takes credit for that. Did you know he has a memory like an elephant? He gets that from me. :0) Crystal blue eyes, Stricklins. (Judson got the Bledsoe blue eyes) Cowlicks, both sides of the family. In reality, Down Syndrome makes up only a tiny part of who he is. Stubborn, funny, great memory, music....those things make up way more of who he is. Those are the things we see everyday. Those are the things that make him HIM.

SO do me a favor. Stop saying He's downs. Every time I hear it, I get a knot in my back and have to go to the chiropractor. It's getting expensive!

Judson on the left. Sawyer on the right.

31 for 21 Day 1

A basic lesson.

Down Syndrome was first described in 1866 by John Down, hence the name Down Syndrome. There is nothing "down" about it though. It was not until 1959 that the disorder was associated with the 21st chromosome, thus the name Trisomy 21.

Did you know that there is more than one type of Down Syndrome?

There is Trisomy 21 that occurs when all 21st chromosomes are triplicated. This happens in more than 95% of cases. (88% of the time from the egg and 9% of the time from the sperm)

There is Mosaic Down Syndrome which accounts for 1%-2% of children born with DS. This happens when only some of the 21st chromosomes are triplicated.

There is Robertsonian Translocation. This can be inherited and happens in 2%-3% of births. With this type of Down Syndrome, the extra chromosome attaches to another chromosome besides the 21st. (typically the 14th).

In a room full of 100 children with Down Syndrome, the children would all look similar and it would be hard to distinguish which type of Down Syndrome each child had. Just like a room full of 100 kids without Down Syndrome, each child would have his/her strengths and weaknesses. Each would carry similarities in features(personality, looks, talents, etc) to other family members.
Here is a picture of Sawyer as a newborn. Even then, he had features much like his Pop-Pop. As he has grown, he also shares many personality traits with his Pop. (some good, some not so good)

31 for 21 Starts Tomorrow

Grab This Button

Wordless Wednesday (It is Wednesday, right?)

Nothing More to Say Really

Just click on the link,
http://www.only1mom.com/2010/09/orphanages.html

The Big "C" (EDITED)

I hate CANCER. It stinks. It just plain is not fair. Please check out this blog post from Hannah's mom about sweet little Lois: http://hannigans.blogspot.com/2010/09/lois-news.html


Lois needs our prayers, good karma, and all the other good stuff you can muster. This is a tough fight. Here is her momma's blog: http://thedailylois.blogspot.com/2010/09/devastation.html

Get Ready

Coming in October. 31 for 21 challenge.
October is Down Syndrome Awareness month.
I'm going to try to post something about Down Syndrome each day in October.

One Last Hoorah!

By the Way, this is how a mermaid sits!

With a big shout out to Kimmy, THANK YOU!

Loving School

Last night as I was getting Sawyer ready for bed, out of the blue he said "Mom, I love school". I said, "You love school?". He said, "Yeah, kindergarten". He had the biggest smile on his face. Makes all the drama and tears of the 'school fight' worth it.

What would you draw?

Your house and your neighbor's house with the sun?
Circuit diagrams?

A Race Track?

It's all good.
Except, Sawyer was down with allergies and couldn't join in.

Enkutatas, Ethiopian New Year

Today in Ethiopia (and many other parts of the world), they are celebrating New Years. (Enkutatas) So what better way to celebrate the New Year than to celebrate Turner. He is an awesome kid. He epitomizes what is good and right with this world. SO Happy New Year to all my Ethiopian friends and to all my Jewish friends.

No, I cannot get rid of the underlines.

Turner LOVES being from Ethiopia. Loves telling people he was born there. He is very proud of that fact. (for that I am very thankful) He loves talking to the boys at Kolfe because "They are from Opiopia like me". So, when Rosey Posey (see link on side of my blog) made her grandson an Ethiopian hat, I knew I had to have one for Turner. He LOVES this hat. I have to take it away and hide it or he'd wear it everyday, all day.

Just for my Sister (she knows why!)

And Yet Another Museum

We saw TWO museums when we visited Oak Ridge. The second was a children's museum. There was history about the Appalachian Mountain community including pioneers and animals and WWII related things. There were trains, dolls, puppets, a play house, a water area and much more. The kids loved it!

If you are ever in the area, I would definitely recommend both museums. There is also a train ride which sounded interesting but we just ran out of time. Cost was not bad. The science museum is free for 5 and under. The other museum was a bit more pricey but still overall not bad for several hours of entertainment for a family of 6. You could easily make a full day at either museum. The science museum did not allow food/drink. However, there were picnic tables outside. I am not sure you could leave and come back though. The children's museum sold snack foods and had an area set up inside where you could eat. Outside, it also had a picnic pavilion and a children's playground. Plenty to keep the kids busy.

Be sure to click on the collages to see the pictures.

A Day at the Museum

Oak Ridge, TN

1940's
Manhattan Project
Atomic Bombs
That's about all I knew until we visited.
It is set in a very beautiful area.
The mountains are absolutely breath taking.
(I will say we were definitely a curiosity to folks around there )
AND
There's a Science and Energy Museum.
A must see if you have a child like Judson
Very hands on type of museum
Very kid friendly
A lot of history about the Y-12 National Security and Nuclear Energy
Lots of information about all types of energy
Something for everyone.

Just for Harry

Friday night eating with family

Harry, this is where Ansley drew the picture for YOU!

No. 8

Can you believe it? Our little guy is 8 years old!!!

How can that be possible?
I cannot even wrap my feeble brain around 8.

We celebrated all weekend.
Thus, we are TIRED.
So tonight, I'll just post birthday cupcakes.

You can tell how tired I was.
Store bought cupcakes.
No wrapping paper for gifts.

Here's a Story

It is not a story you'll read about on the news. Why? Because it's about the goodness and wonder in people. News doesn't sell if it's about goodness.

Picture it. Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. A poor country but a proud and beautiful country with many wonderful and beautiful people. This story is about approximately 30 orphan boys on an adventure of a lifetime. (some have made the trek before but many have not) They take a bus ride up into the mountains. The bus takes them as far as the roads will allow. Then they must get out to climb the mountain. Their destination, Debre Libanos.

It is the new year in Ethiopia. A time for Orthodox Christians to celebrate many religious holidays. You see these kids are not evil. They are not out to hurt people. They are out to celebrate New Years. They are on their way to a monastery. A church carved out of rock that is hundreds of years old. They have never been on such an adventure.

This adventure takes 2 days, for the walk is long and it is as much about the journey as it is the destination. The average teenage boy could have probably walked it (one way) in 3 hours. These are not average. These guys are also helping one of their 'leaders' up the hill. This leader must walk with help because his legs do not work well. (not much at all) So these guys walk 6-7 hours one way so that all can experience this religious event together.
Along the way, they buy sugar cane so they have the energy they need. There is very little water because apparently in this region the farmers have to bring water for many miles to water their animals and therefore have none to give to the visitors.

They are not the only ones traveling. They estimate maybe 10,000 people are making this religious pilgrimage. Most make the climb and descent much quicker than they so much of the time they are on their own trying to figure out which path to take. (In a lot of ways, it's much like their life. Many have been making life changing decisions alone for years)
Along the way, they 'shower' in a huge waterfall. They rest in another church. They sing religious songs and chants. They fall in love with the natural beauty many have not seen living in an orphanage in a big city. They become closer friends than even before. They make memories.

And when they call me, the smiles are ear to ear. All trying to tell me about what they did. Each wanting to tell me something. Me, I'm trying to decipher all the words. The one thing I get, is the joy and wonder in each as they recall their adventure. It would have made a good Disney movie, I believe. One I would have loved to watch.

I Wanna Be......Bet you can't guess?

When T grows up, he wants to be RACE CAR. If that doesn't work out, he'll be a Race Car Driver. This is what every well dressed race car driver wears: Helmet (safety first), Gloves, and a skirt. It is NOT a boo-t-ful skirt. It is a race car driver skirt. It has pockets to hold essentials such as tools and keys. He was not completely dressed on this day. He forgot Mom's old purple snow boots. Every race car driver has to have the right shoes.

He cannot decide if he will be Herbie (Dean Jones version) or Lightning McQueen. (Cars movie)

Life is full of decisions, isn't it?