Buddy Walk (long)

Today was a very big day. We all participated in the Atlanta Buddy Walk. The Buddy Walk was started by the National Down Syndrome Society in 1995 to promote acceptance and awareness of people with Down syndrome. In 1995 there were 17 walks around the country, in 2006 there are more than 275 Buddy Walks planned. I would encourage anyone looking for a very enjoyable and inspiring event to attend a Buddy Walk. The event that we attended was held in the park at Duluth town square. There was at least 1500 people in attendance. Activities included things such as inflatable bouncy thingies, cake walks, silent autions, raffles and continuous musical entertainment. There was also a family from the Atlanta area with 23 special needs children (many with Down syndrome) in attendance. Several of the children in this family presented a gynastics performance. They were very good. The family received a $10,000 check from the Atlanta Down Syndrome Association, which I'm sure will go a long way in helping them continue what is truly amazing work for extremely deserving children.

The main event, of course, was the walk, in which you had the choice of taking the 1/4 mile walk or the 1 mile walk. Sawyer wanted to the go the full mile so that's what we did and everyone made it with no problems.

I would also like to take this opportunity to thank everyone who donated to the Down Syndrome Association of Atlanta in Sawyer's name. (GiGi, Jim Morris, Nana, Pop-Pop, David, Sarah and Josh, Lori, Leigh-Anne, and Evie) It means a great deal to us and I cannot fully express in words the awareness and opportunities that the donations promote for people with Down Syndrome. I can confidently say that each person with Down Syndrome who has been given the opportunity to realize their full potential will, without a doubt, help numerous others, with or without Down syndrome, to realize the beauty and wonder that life is.

Sawyer and the Doctor's Visit

Today we took Sawyer back to the cardiologist for a checkup. They are all amazed at how well he is doing. He had an EKG and and Echo and all was well. He does not have to go back until next summer. (about 9 months) Since he is the first for his type case to survive, they just don't know what to do with him, so they want to see him next summer.

Funny side note: Little Miss Priss was ever the flirt. While we were in the waiting room, she decided to try to make friends with a little boy. This little boy was playing a hand held game. So she sat down close to him. She tried everything in her bag of tricks to get his attention. She blinked her eyes. He never looked up. She made some noise. He didn't notice. She even offered him her bag of goldfish crackers. Again, he was oblivious to her ways. Had she had time, I'm sure she would have clubbed him over the head in order to gain his undivided attention and probably would have taken his game too.

Buddy Walk-October 14

Hi Everyone,

Just an update on Sawyer's fund raising for DSAA's Buddy Walk. He's raised $385 so far! Thanks to everyone who has contributed to his efforts. We walk next weekend. If you would still like to contribute, you can do so via the following methods. All contributions are tax deductible.

Sincerely,
Randy, Jan, Judson, Sawyer and Ansley

To donate online, click here to visit my personal Web page.

Check out the Team Page to see our little guy's picture, too.

To send a donation:

Make all checks payable to:

DSAA Put "Sawyer Stricklin" in the memo line

Mail to: DSAA
4355 J Cobb Parkway #213
Atlanta, GA 30339

This Week in Pictures

Not much to say. We had a good week. Hope everyone has a good weekend.

Friends

We had some friends come over on Saturday. They have 3 boys! We all had a great time. Judson found a new playmate with Evan. They decorated cookies and built Thomas train tracks and 'trimmed' limbs off bushes in the back yard. Ansley had lots of kids to boss around and had someone else to flirt with. (as in Scott, the dad) Sawyer just did not know what to think. It was good for us to see old friends and good for the kids to make new friends.

I'm also throwing in a tu-tu dress picture for your enjoyment!

Good Ol' Rocky Top (lots of pics)

Oh what a wonderful weekend we had. We loaded up the car and headed to the Smokey Mountains for a long weekend. We were looking forward to enjoying the beauty that is so bountiful up there along with visiting some 'kin folk' (as Judson likes to say). Well, Mother Nature had other things in store. It rained inches upon inches! They even asked that people not come to Neyland Stadium because the streets were flooded. So outdoor beauty was limited to our view from the hotel room. We did get alot of visiting in and that was so much fun. It was the first time my family had been able to meet Ansley. She warmed up to them pretty quickly. (especially the men!)


We did have a few meltdowns. Have you ever stayed in ONE hotel room FOUR days with THREE very young children? The key is to keep moving. Do not stay in the room very long. We hit the mall in Knoxville (the 'K' is silent, so Judson tells me), the outlet mall and Christmas village in Pigeon Forge, along with a few eating establishments. Another key is NOT to go to restaurants where the food takes longer than 10 minutes to arrive at your table. All I can say is we left the hotels in one piece and the restaurants just a little bit messier than we found them.



It was wonderful and we're already thinking about what we'd like to do next time!

Observations after 3 months.

Can you believe it has only been 3 months since Ansley came home? It just hit me today, this child hasn't been with us FOREVER. It sure feels like she has. Her communication has grown geometrically over the last 3 months. Don't get me wrong, she still WHINES. Oh boy, does she whine. But she has gotten better. She is saying alot of words: Momma, DaDa, JuhJuh (Judson), SawSaw, bye, hello, wah(water), MeMe (cat), eat, no, bad. She is sleeping thru the nite with minimal waking. She still bites Sawyer every once in a while but she knows that is "BAD". She also knows what timeout means. She loves to GO, just like her mommy. She is very observant. She loves to put puzzles together. She loves music. She loves shoes. She is a little gymnast. She likes to play games: "Where's Ansley?" and "Ring around the Rosies". And she follows Judson around like a little puppy. What a perfect addition to our family!

This Week's Pictures

I had so much fun adding pictures to the collage last week, I decided to do it again for this week. Couple of things: One, Sawyer has a black eye because he fell while trying to cruise aroung the kitchen table. Two, Ansley LOVES music and LOVES to dance. Three, Ansley loves hiding underneath the bed! Four, Judson has a new Big Boy bike, hence the helmet.

Enjoy!!

Odds and Ends

This is just a collage of pics I've taken the last couple of days. EXPLANATION: Ansley is underneath the megasaucer in the middle right pic. While underneath the megasaucer, she was using the seat like a periscope. Thus the picture in the top right.

Judson's Birthday

Let me just take this opportunity to brag on my oldest son. His #4 birthday is coming up. And his Nana and Pop were in town and we decided to celebrate. I asked him what he wanted for his birthday. His answer was " His mommy and a cake". Then I asked would he want a store bought cake or would he like to make a cake. He decided he wanted to make a train cake. So we spent a few hours making and decorating the cake. He even cracked the eggs (including some shells) and ran the mixer.
Then we opened presents. I promise you he would have been happy with any 'one' of these gifts. After opening each one, he'd want to play with it. He didn't want to move on to the other gifts. I've seen so many kids just mow thru packages and when the packages were all opened, they'd just say, "Are there any more". Not this kid. He was content just playing with the one gift he was opening. We had to coax him to get him to open the rest of the presents. Gosh, I hope he never changes.

He is an awesome little boy and growing into quite a young man!!!!!

Play Date

We had a playdate today with some cyber friends from Reece's Rainbow. The kids and I loaded up the car and treked north. It wasn't that bad, comparatively. We had a great time and got to make some new friends. Plus, it's always more fun to play with someone else's toys rather than the 'same' toys you have at your own house.

Re-adoption (Domestication of Adoption)

Here we are in the judge's chambers. We just completed Ansley's re-adoption. Everything went very smoothly and quickly. The process took all of 5 minutes. To celebrate, we went to McDonald's and ate cinnamon rolls and played on the playground!!!! WooHoo!!!!!

Pool Party!!!!!

Ever wonder how the poor smucks who don't have pools keep cool in the summer. We pull out the hose and the plastic pool!!!!! Life doesn't get any better.

Say Cheese!!

Don't you just love these smiles??????

Yet another Geek!!!

Can you believe it? It must be the house!!! Isn't it written somewhere, The Geeks shall inherit the earth?????? Just kidding....

Just a Swingin!!

We finally added another swing to the swing set. Now all three kids can swing at the same time. I don't think Ansley likes to be in the swing because it makes her sleepy. It's pretty funny to watch those little eyes trying to stay awake. Judson can swing so high he touches the leaves on the tree! And Sawyer just likes to swing. He'd swing all day if someone would push him. Enjoy.

More Pictures

Don't let those innocent faces fool you.....


Daddy and Judson fishing









Pop-Pop holding fish Judson caught
Sawyer and Ansley doing what they do best....mess









Ansley doing her best Scarlett impersonation----It was very hot!