Thankful

Tonight I am thankful.

Thankful that Kayla was not in the car with me Tuesday night.  For the record, slamming into a concrete pole at just 5 mph really hurts.  Note to self: always buckle up...even if you are just driving to the next row over at the mall.

I am thankful that Kayla got to meet Lila {and I was able to catch up with her Mommy, Linda}.  They were passing through Delaware on their way to New York and we were able to get together for lunch and sweet memories of our girls playing together...

So thankful that my hubby bought me a "just because" gift...a watch he picked out all by himself...

Thankful that when Kayla fell asleep at the top of the steps she didn't roll over and fall down them.  My mom has a picture of me falling asleep eating and now I have this...

I am thankful that my girl needs no reason to dress up...jammies, a hat and a ridiculously cute smile...the perfect accessory for breakfast at 7am.

Thankful that Kayla's birthday party details are falling nicely into place...

Thankful my friend, Kristi, and her husband, Dave, welcomed a healthy 8 pound, 12 ounce...22 inch baby girl, Lily Ryan.  A beautiful name for a beautiful baby girl.  Her middle name, Ryan, is a family name.  Ryan was Kristi and Dave's nephew...he recently passed away just a few months shy of his high school graduation.  An incredible tribute to the memory of an amazing young man.  

I am thankful that Spring has finally sprung...enjoying the sights of this much welcomed season!

Thankful to have spent two days this week photographing some ridiculously cute kiddos {tell me you don't want to just squeeze on the first two}...

So thankful to have spent a little bit of time with my favorite speech therapist...Kayla just adores 'Aunt Sarah' {but still wanted to spend time with Johnny Walker...the man...not the liquor}...

Just 3 months old, I am thankful that baby Natalie's open heart surgery was a success!

I am so thankful for how adorable Kayla's personality is these days.  How she says the funniest things like...when I "ordered" a meal from Kayla's cafe she told me "It'll be a few minutes...I'm all alone today".  Or when I ask her if she will draw me a picture and write her name she says things like "Sure, no problem"...

So thankful to be spending time with those I love this Easter weekend.  Thankful to be soaking up all that is wonderful in this world...for those of you that celebrate, hope you are enjoying your Easter weekend and that the Easter Bunny leaves you special treats and wonderful memories...

One Month Countdown...

Pink paper everywhere.  Cricut machine on overload.  Hot glue burns on every finger.  Boas and glitter and streamers, oh my...it can only mean one thing...the Buddy Walk is fast approaching and Princess Kayla's Court is gearing up for another amazing day!  Today marks one month until the Buddy Walk...a very big day in our house!  


Here's a picture of last year's team...over 150 of us!  Our team is so amazing that we won "Most Extreme Spirit".

And this year?  This year is monumental...our 5th Buddy Walk {I can't believe how fast time is passing by}...it's amazing how much she has changed in just 5 short years...
2007...Our sleepy baby...a big day for a one year old

2008...our walker...at age 2 she was getting the hang of it!

2009...age 3 was priceless...just adorable and sweet...

2010...my little diva...age 4

You've come a long way baby and I am so proud to be your Mommy.  


Each year our team has grown...each and every person becoming such an important part of our family.  There are no words to describe how loved we feel on this very special day...to those of you that walk and donate...thank you just doesn't seem like enough but we thank you from the bottom of our hearts!  We hope to see you May 15 at the Buddy Walk!


Be sure to let us know if you have registered to walk so we can order your official Princess Kayla's Court t-shirt.  Oh...and as an added bonus...if you can't join us but donate or raise $100 or more for Princess Kayla, we will send you a shirt!  You know you want one...  

We hope to see you at the walk.  The princess would love to see you there!  Click here for more information.  

tidbits from the uninspired.

There are days when I have so much to say and my mind is spinning so fast that I can barely get my thoughts to quickly move from my brain to my fingers and into text.  Today I have hit backspace more than I care to admit and I am only on my second sentence...trouble.  It's not that I don't have a lot to say, it's just that I have so much going on my brain has spun into overload and is now in a mushy state of blah.  It's true.  With so much happening I am feeling uninspired.  There's lots to do, little time to do it.  I know...we all suffer from time to time with schedules that barely leave room for sleeping and eating...and while I could stand to go without the latter, I still require at least five hours of sleep a night.  Right now I am spinning out of control into our "busy season".  Our two biggest events of the year happen within days of each other...Kayla's birthday and the Buddy Walk.  By far my two favorite days.  So with all of my energy going into planning those events I am left with little brain power to be able to feel comfortable clicking that little "publish post" button...but I'll try to fill you in on what we've been up to...


KAYLA'S 5th BIRTHDAY PARTY
Here's a little sneak peak of our birthday party theme...

Stay tuned...the party is just a few weeks away!


BUDDY BOWLING
I know you may be getting tired of hearing it, but Kayla's Blue-Gold buddy, Amanda, is amazing!  Kayla just loves hanging out with her and each time they hang out Kayla doesn't stop talking about her until the next time they hang out.  This past weekend was Buddy Bowling...

At first Kayla was all about having Amanda help her roll the ball.  By the end she was clutching that 6 pound ball like it was her job, dropping it down the lane where it sometimes rolled half way to a stop...but she did it all by herself and to her, that was more important than knocking over even just one of those pins. 

And while I didn't capture all of the kids bowling through my lens, let me assure you it was a sight that would make your heart smile.  One sight I particularly enjoyed was a young boy confined to a wheelchair that had little control over his own two hands.  I watched as he extended his arms and pushed his bowling ball down a ramp.  He watched it go down the shiny wooden lane and smack into the little white and red striped pins.  Without him saying a word I knew what he was feeling...happy.  He cocked his head back and smiled up at his buddy who returned the same expression.  I was completely filled with that exact same emotion.  Watching Kayla and her friends enjoying the most simple moments in life that we sometimes take for granted is a reminder that we all need to live our best life. 


A TASTE OF THE SEASON
Those of you that have been reading from the beginning know how much I love my perfect cup of hot chocolate on cold winter days...and by perfect that means it must be topped with either whip cream or marshmallows and if I am going all out, I add some sprinkles {they make me smile}.  Well...I equally adore my ice cream on hot summer days.  In fact, I love it year round.  To me my best childhood memories were summer days...swimming, boating and eating ice cream.  Every weekend during the summer my Mom and I would drive past Mike's Ice Cream stand in Middletown on our way to the boat.  We would always get three soft serve ice cream cones.  One vanilla cone for me {with rainbow sprinkles, of course}, one twist cone for her and one vanilla cone for our dog, Muffin...I know there's probably something terrible in ice cream that dogs shouldn't eat but she loved it {and she lived to be 13 so it couldn't have been too bad for her...just sayin'}.  We would open the back hatch of my Mom's silver Volvo station wagon and eat our ice cream on the side of the road, watching cars zooming by...talking about our weekend plans on the boat where life passed by a little more slow, allowing us time to soak up each moment.  There is just something nostalgic about getting soft serve ice cream on warm days...I guess I feel like I am providing those special memories for Kayla, just as my Mom provided for me.

"Cheers, Daddy" {followed by a sampling of Daddy's cone}...

And do you know what I love now about ice cream cones?  Kayla's cute little chubby hands clutching the cone as ice cream and sprinkles melt down over her cute little fingers....

And what is better than watching her eat ice cream?  Listening to her little made up jingle as she enjoys her cone {and wiggles her hips from side to side}..."I love ice cream...I love ice cream...Yeah...I love ice cream...".  Ok, so it's a jingle that might not be headed to the Top 40 anytime soon but to me, those words sound so sweet.  


I just love all of these little precious moments in life.  I love planning the big events and enjoying the small ones.  I just love life.  I know not all days are filled with ice cream cones, rainbows and unicorns but that's life...and I wouldn't have it any other way.  So while I am feeling a little uninspired with this weeks to-do list being 47 items long {and growing}, I know that life isn't just about checking off the boxes on that list...it's about the path that we take and the journey to each destination.  Sure we could just follow our list of things we have to do, but doing things we enjoy is equally important.  That's why I choose to stop for ice cream and memories...life's sweet...eat it up!

Spring Break in Paradise

I've always believed in making the best of every situation.  So with spring break being smack in the midst of ridiculously cold weather and Kayla being sick we did just that...made the most of it.  We packed as much into our week as we possibly could...

I know I've said it before...but I'll say it again...I love the DFRC Blue-Gold Hand-in-Hand program.  Kayla's buddy, Amanda, is amazing!  She came over to bake with Kayla...and I am tearing up just thinking about it...Kayla just loves her...and loves bossing her around, playing hide and seek and spending time with her all by herself...just like a big girl.  Seriously...how could I not love this...someone caring about my child...wanting to spend time with my child...

We played inside...I love that she shoved all of her doll pastries off of her doll table and used it as her snack table...and how she played hide and seek in an empty bin...and of course the play-doh...oh how she loves play doh...oh and zingo...did you see the post with her playing zingo????  If not, click here!

Then onto the DSA dinner preparations...
Every year we wait until the last minute...don't we, Karen?

It has now become an annual tradition...the night before our Down Syndrome Association of Delaware dinner we are up until the weeeeeee hours of the morning making centerpieces and favors {2:30 am to be exact}.  These are our favors...notecards with photographs of our beautiful children...

Our girls played, sang, watched movies and ate pizza...don't worry...they were sleeping by 11:00 pm {Kayla has the dark circles under her eyes to prove it}...

What did we do with all of this?

And some of this {which Rick stole from someone's yard because we were on a budget...shhh...don't tell}...

We turned it into this...

Not bad, eh?
So while I was completely exhausted, I was excited to attend the dinner with my husband...a little date night.

It's a great event.  A room filled with Moms just like me...Dads just like Rick...all parents that have a child with Down syndrome.  All parents that have been there before or will be where we are one day.  Parents I look up to and now some that look up to me.  This event is filled with acceptance, understanding and love...and a few ridiculously cute babies {meet Charlotte and River}...oh how I wanted to take them home...

I have always joked with Rick that the DSA is the sorority I never pledged but am now a full fledged card-carrying member...and I will gladly show my {metaphorical} membership card to anyone.  These parents, while some are people I may have nothing more in common than our children, are all amazing.  I have learned so much from each of them.  All have advice they willingly share...all we need now is a secret handshake.  And so while this was a night out with adults it is still one that causes me to stop and reflect about Down syndrome.  Our keynote speaker was amazing...a brother to four siblings with Down syndrome {one by birth and three by adoption} and now a parent to a son and daughter from China that both have special needs (one having Down syndrome).  Can you imagine seeking to adopt a child with Down syndrome?  A child viewed as "less than perfect" by society but perfect for you?  He could...because he grew up with Down syndrome.  He understands Down syndrome and he and his wife love people with Down syndrome.  They see the beauty in Down syndrome.  The beauty in every life regardless of disability or differences or similarities....they see love and family...and they have two mottos..."why be normal" and "Down syndrome rocks"...and Kayla now owns the shirt!

The highlight of my night?  The amazing {teacher of the year} Tracy Taylor Calhoun telling me she watched the zingo video and was amazed by Kayla's speech and abilities.  She is a special education kindergarten teacher and is AMAZING...so for her to compliment my Kayla was so wonderful and encourages me to push harder and do more for Kayla because she can and will do anything she wants to do in her life because she has ABILITIES....amazing abilities.  It was a great night with good friends.

Kayla attended her first birthday party at Build-A-Bear for her friend, Addison, who just turned 9 {and that's her adorable baby sister}...

She was beyond exhausted but we pushed through...and she loves her new bunny...

And check out Kayla's autograph...amazing stuff...I am one proud Mommy!

Before we could even pull out of the parking spot this was my girl...done...

But she only had about 10 minutes to snooze...we were onto swim lessons...
I have to admit...I was a bit nervous for this day...swim lessons for Special Olympics Young Athletes...
We were instructed to take our children to the pool, go to the observation area and they would take care of them.  A pool...a dozen or so Special Olympics athletes...water...deep water...lots and lots and lots of water...and a princess that doesn't know how to swim equals one very nervous Mommy.  But I have to tell you...I was impressed!  Each athlete had their own "coach".  A one on one interaction in the water...it was amazing.  Kayla strutted out of the locker room and onto the pool deck in her pink zebra tutu bikini.  She made her way to the steps, spotted Kiersten and within seconds was in the pool...no fear, ready to swim.  It helps that she knows and loves Kiersten {Victoria's older sister}.  I was a competitive swimmer for 13+ years of my life and I have to tell you...I think I witnessed the beginnings of a super star...

Oh...and I didn't follow the Mommy rules...I stayed on the pool deck to take pictures...maybe I'll follow the rules next time...maybe.  Oh...and this is what we are working towards...

This is the amazing Victoria.  Just look at her go...and look at that form!  We are working towards this goal...but for now we will just concentrate on floating, blowing bubbles and kicking...

So there you have it...our wonderfully random spring break.  It may not have been a sunny and 80 degrees, palm trees swaying kind of paradise...but it was paradise nonetheless...

Now back to reality...well...this is my reality...life with my rock star...




























Wishing you a great week, friends!  Happy Monday!