Easter 2012

We had the good fortune to be able to celebrate Easter with Mammy and Kip!  The countdown to their arrival was a big event, good thing we didn't let the kids know that Mammy and Kip were coming until a week prior...any longer than that would have been torture!

Mammy and Kip arrived in style too...

That just put my minivan to shame!

We had tons of fun playing lots of games and reading books and playing house, Mammy has all the stories for those, but good luck getting her to retell them without bursting out laughing.  Thankfully were also able to complete some Easter crafts, like building Peep birdhouses....

It started out so well, and everyone had a lot of fun making them too...a little unconventional for an Easter craft, but this is coming from the woman who makes Groundhog donuts on February 2, so what do you want from me?

The Final Products:

 

We made them double deckers with a choice for a covered home or a bird nest on the roof.

Then we got some complaints...

Then we suffered a catastrophic event:

Please know that no Peep was injured in the devastation, they were only eaten...no harm no fowl...:)

In an effort to save face our next Easter craft was n safe one...Dying the Easter Eggs....

A HUGE success, and quality work for the Easter Bunny to hide!  A handwritten and illustrated not, with just one minor adjustment (I had no carrots just lettuce, or 'Lettis').

Easter Morning arrived, and the baskets that had been hung by the Chimney with care, oh don't roll your eyes..I know what Holiday it is, did you forget whose blog you were reading??

Anyway, the Easter baskets were filled to the brim with goodies by the Easter Bunny, and later that morning we were dressed in our Easter best and headed off to church!

The kids were AMAZING in church, and I had my doubts as Palm Sunday didn't go that well, but you have to set the bar low for that especially since everyone in Church thought it was absolutely necessary that each of the children have their own Palm Branch. Don't worry, they were regretting it by the time they got whacked in the head with it for the tenth time.  You now know why I had my doubts about Easter.  However, they were perfect, just ask the very unbiased Mammy and Kip.

After Mass we went out to lunch, and then back home for the Easter egg hunt...

After all of that, we had cupcakes for dinner....

 

 The kids had to have a little sugar, right?

Science and Math Night

The kids school hosted a "Math and Science Night" which was meant to introduce the kids to math and science skills at all different grade levels.  The kids had a blast, well at least Rory and Jack did, Brendan is not a fan of going back into the school building after school hours, apparently he feels that it is inhumane that we do that.  Oh well, good thing he starts the full day school year in the fall!

Anyway, the first station they went to was run by the preschool teachers, and the science experiment was one that needed goggles....

...Brendan participated as well, but had no interest in letting me take a picture of him with his goggles...

The experiment had to do with putting an Efferdent tab in a film canister, (2 things that I didn't think were still available) and adding vinegar, then you shook it up and put it on the table lid side down, and then the canister shot like a rocket high into the ceiling....it was a HUGE hit!

The highlight of the evening was a show in the cafeteria put on by a guy named Dinosaur George.  Since all of the kids are very into dinosaurs (I can name about 25 of them) and the event was free...we were there!  He brought lots of dinosaur bones and was very funny...he was so entertaining that Jack sat still for the entire 45 minute show, so now I think this guy is a miracle worker too!

Brendan is not a huge fan of big crowds and super loud noises, so he took a walk with Bryan...

That would be Brendan and Bryan along the wall at the rainbow painting, I think Brendan was trying to go Somewhere Over the Rainbow!

As a reward for being so good during the presentation, Rory and Jack were able to have their picture taken with Dinosaur George and a T-Rex bone!

Jack really was thrilled about the whole thing!

What we did for World Down Syndrome Day 2012

Over a week ago, March 21, 2012, we celebrated World Down Syndrome Day, and what a celebration it was!

About 3 weeks before that day I thought about how we could celebrate, and I came up with the idea of making ribbons and sending them out to people to wear.  I thought that maybe 20-30 people would want to be a part of it, and wouldn't that be great!  Well, I need to set higher expectations because I got requests for over 100 ribbons!!  What an incredible labor of love it was!  All we asked in return was for people to send a picture of them wearing their ribbon...and I was moved to tears when they started coming in!

From coast to coast and from the north to the south people wore their ribbons and I was told of so many incredible stories that they were able to share about spreading awareness about Down Syndrome and our fighting irishman!

So, here you are.....

We sincerely mean it when we say "Thank You".   I was so moved when I checked Facebook on that morning and people had already posted and reposted and shared about it being World Down Syndrome Day, you all beat me to the punch!

I remember being on the phone with my best friend Becky and just crying with tears of joy because my "little" project just took on a life of it's own!

Later that day, Brendan and I went into Rory's 1st grade classroom to talk about Down Syndrome, and to hopefully get the message across that just because someone is different it doesn't make them any less of a person.  Well, didn't they get it!  They sat and they listened, they ask questions, they participated in an exercise that we did, and then at the end they all rushed up to Brendan to give him a High 5!  Didn't he just think he was the King of the moment.

As we were getting ready to leave, Rory's teacher asked them what they had learned about Down Syndrome.  The smallest little girl in the class shot her hand up and answered "Just because Brendan looks a little bit different and it takes him a lot longer to learn how to do things, he's a kid just like us."  Well, cue the water works!  They are such a great bunch of kids, and we are so thankfully that we got to spend an hour with them!

It's not the best picture, but it was one of the best moments!

We also gave the some pretty "sweet" thank you gifts for letting us come in..blue and yellow M&M's!

In addition to people wearing their ribbons and spreading awareness, if included some information if people wanted to make a monetary donation.  The organization that we recommended was the Down Syndrome Research and Treatment Foundation.  I had heard about them from our friends at the Down Syndrome Guild in Kansas City.  They offer webinars on research that they are doing to develop treatments that will greatly improve the cognition abilities of people with Down Syndrome.  (When I participated in my first webinar I really wished that I had paid more attention in my science classes!) 

On March 21, the foundation had 3 incredible sponsors step up match every donation 3:1, (did you get the 3-2-1 reference?)  They were so amazed by the amount of donations that came in on that day that they even more generously offered to continue the match for one more day!  At the end, the grand total for donations that were made and matched was over $425,000!!!  WOW!!!

Can you think of a better way to celebrate the day?  Well, save your ribbons and get your friends and family signed up for more, because we have 354 days to figure it out!

Celebrating the Extra Chromosome!!

We had a wonderful day and to say we felt an amazing outpouring of love and support would be a gross understatement.

When I put the offer on Facebook about Down syndrome awareness ribbons, never in a million years did I expect such an overwhelming response.  Over 100 ribbons made their way throughout the United States, and then this morning the pictures started coming in, and they kept on coming throughout the day.  They were from family and friends, and then friends of family and friends that we had never met! 

The Facebook messages reminding people that it was World Down Syndrome day made me swell with pride, and I dare say brought a few tears to my eyes.  

We are forever grateful to each and every person who took the time to send a note, wear a ribbon and make a donation, and to talk to anyone who came up to them to ask them about their ribbon.

When we began our journey 4 journeys never could we have imagined that some many people would join us with so much love and support.  

I'll have more to write and pictures to share, but I couldn't let this day pass without saying Thank You.

Signs of Spring

Breaking out the baseball bat

Tuning up the lawnmower

New coat of paint on the birdhouse

Catching butterflies

Goodbye Winter...Hello Spring!!

Will you join in our celebration?

March 21, 2012 is World Down Syndrome Day...3-21....it represents the 3 copies of the 21st chromosome that people with Down syndrome are born with.

This year we would like to invite you, our friends and family, to join us as we celebrate this day all while helping a worthy cause!

I have made these ribbons...

..we are asking our friends and family to wear this ribbon on March 21st.  Just let us know if you would like one, and off in the mail it will go!  You can leave a comment here or on either one of Facebook pages.  All we ask in return is that you take a picture of yourself sporting the pin and supporting  all people with Down syndrome. You can email or text it to me!

In past years our family has participated in the Down syndrome walk, but we weren't quite settled in Texas enough to take part this year.  However, there is another organization that could use your monetary support, if you so choose.

On World Down syndrome Day the Down Syndrome Research and Treatment Foundation will be accepting donations that will be matched 3:1 by an amazing donor!  On that day, and that day only, your $5 donation will be turned into $20!!

This organization is doing amazing research, and hopefully in the near future, there will be clinical trials of drugs that will help improve the cognitive ability of people with Down syndrome. As people with Down syndrome are living longer the Down syndrome Research and Treatment Foundation is working hard to make sure that those we love with Down syndrome are able to life their life to its fullest.

Here is the link to the DSRTF web page..http://www.dsrtf.org/

Thank you for all of your support!

Time to roll it out..

...the carefully crafted red carpet, that is!  Oscar Night means it's time for the annual Red Carpet show in our house, dress up gone wild! 

A few things:

1. My camera was failing me tonight, so sorry :(

2.  I love how Bryan even got in on it...this was his first Red Carpet experience...lucky guy!


I don't know how much longer this will go on, but I'll take it for as long as I can!