Click on the word giggles…it is the sound of Carly laughing. It will need to down load and play in your media player.
The sweet sound of Miss Carly playing with her brother, Brady.
Mary Jane sent this to me while I was out of town on business last week. Made me smile from ear to ear.
Today was the Massachusetts Down Syndrome Buddy Walk. I was not able to attend, however; Mary Jane, Brady, and Carly were able to go.
This is walk number three for us, missed the one last year as we were in transit from Sacramento to Boston, and a fun family tradition.
MJ took some pictures…..
And we’re walking
and still walking
Brady, Carly, and Doctor Brian Skotko
Everybody had a great time and can not wait until next year!
As I type this, Mary Jane (Down Syndrome Mommy) is out with Carly for another one of Carly’s therapy appointments. Today is Miss Carly’s Feeding and Speech therapy appointment, yesterday it was her physical therapy appointment, and next week she does it all again. After her appointments, Mary Jane will drop Carly off at school and then in a few hours she, Mary Jane, is on the move again picking up both Brady and Carly at the end of the school day.
Mary Jane not only takes Carly to her appointments, she takes care of Brady and Carly (while Down Syndrome Daddy sleeps (the joys of working the night shift)), does an excellent job as my human alarm clock, and runs a successful home business.
There would not be a successful Down Syndrome Daddy if there was not a Down Syndrome Mommy by his side each and every day.
This post is dedicated to you my love and the wonderful wife and mom you are.
We are blessed to have you and love you so very much.
Thank you for everything you do!!
What a great idea for a raffle to help raise money for Down Syndrome research.
Shane “Hurricane” Helms, @ShaneHelmsCom, is teaming up with TruTV’s Lizard Lick Towing as Ronnie, Amy, and Bobby offer fans a chance to win a Monster Truck!! All proceeds from this raffle go to the Kanaan Bunn Foundation, whose mission is to provide funding to promote research for Down Syndrome, and the many medical issues and life challenges that individuals with DS face including Leukemia, heart ailments, Alzheimer’s, vision and hearing loss.
Tickets can be purchased at LizardLickTowing.com. Click on the monster truck raffle located on the home page. The drawing will be held on May 2 when the cast of Lizard Lick Towing appears on Helms’ Internet Talk Show “Highway 2 Helms.” H2H, returned last week and powered it’s way to the No. 3 spot on the Video Sports Podcast list, beating out UFC and HBO.
Who will win?
Taking a nap or shopping at Target?
Looks like Sleeping won!
Brother and sister hanging out together. Best friends!
Myth: Most people with Down syndrome are institutionalized.
Truth: Today people with Down syndrome live at home with their families and are active participants in the educational, vocational, social, and recreational activities of the community.
They are integrated into the regular education system and take part in sports, camping, music, art programs and all the other activities of their communities.
**Most importantly***
People with Down Syndrome, are just like you and me.
Driving with my brother
I remembered to be a Dad today.
I remembered to love my boy without condition.
I remembered to have fun.
I remembered to see the world through my sons eyes.
I remembered to keep my promises.
I remembered how good a hot dog bought from a food cart tastes, when you are sharing it with your best friend.
I remembered to listen before I spoke.
I remembered to listen….
I remembered to take a picture.
Two dudes at Fenway.
I remembered to be a Dad today, which is something I had forgotten.
Since our move to Swampscott, MA, Miss Carly has been on an interesting or forever changing sleep schedule. Some days she falls asleep in the car, other days she fights sleep until the very last minute that her little body can force itself to stay awake. We currently do not have her crib with us; it is on the moving truck slowly (ever so slowly) making its way to us. So, Miss Carly has been sleeping on the mattresses with us.
The mattress experience has been very entertaining and stressful at the same time. She loves the mattresses and being able to roll around the place without being restrained by those darn crib bars. On the other hand, it is stressful because she loves to chase Brady around the mattress or if Brady is already asleep, she will climb over him and try to track down Charlie cat. This “game” can last up to 90 minutes and requires Mary Jane or myself to keep an eye on her so she does not stray too far and complete her quest to discover all of the electrical outlets in our new villa.
We have encountered another challenge as we live above another family and we, meaning me, are way over concerned about the about of noise we make. Our apartment is the upper two floors (the top floor is a wide open master bedroom) with the floors being hardwood and without the furniture or other belongings everything echoes and sounds louder than it really is, including Carly laughing, crying, and falling off the mattress.
Does it make me a bad Dad if I am counting down the days until our furniture comes so that Miss Carly can go back to sleeping in her crib? Or am I a bad husband because I have been stressing my family out because of my paranoia of being too loud to the neighbors beneath us? Perhaps a combination of both? What I do know is that I cannot wait until our furniture gets here and we return to some sense of normalcy including Miss Carly’s sleep schedule.
The other day, I mentioned that Confessions would soon have a major announcement and I am happy to say that we are hitting the road.
Carly, and the rest of the crew: Jason (me), Mary Jane, and Brady are headed off to a new adventure in Peabody, MA. Emma will be our West Coast anchor as she will stay in Sacramento with her mom.
We are excited and a bit nervous at the same time. I have lived in California for 20 years while MJ has been here 14 years, so it will be a climate change for all of us. Looking forward to the four seasons and experiencing US history close up.
Next step is getting everything in order for Miss Carly, so the transition into a new educational and support network is easy for her.
Now it is back to the packing and getting ready for a coast to coast move.