Thursday, December 20, 2007
Meet Henry
Wednesday, December 19, 2007
Payton got assaulted at daycare
Payton's New Favorite Words
The first time she said "no" was when I was telling her "no" because she was throwing Cheerios all over the floor. She then looked at me, pointed her finger at me (wonder where she got that) and yelled, "No!" I was cracking up and so excited to hear her say that. Isn't that usually one of the first words kids say? Not Payton! Now she loves to tell the dog and her brother "no" all the time. Even her daycare teachers have told us that she tells the other kids in her classroom "no" ... too funny.
I'm not really sure where along the way she picked up "wow", although it has become more evident lately when we have seen Christmas lights. She sort of whispers it ... "wowww" ... and I think it is because I sort of whisper it to her, as if telling her "look at that". Now we can look at the ceiling lights or a chandelier and get a "wowww" for that. Love her! :)
Ho Ho Ho
Tuesday, December 11, 2007
Beatitudes for People with Special Needs
BLESSED ARE YOU who walk with us in public places, and ignore the stares of strangers, for in your friendship we feel good to be ourselves.
BLESSED ARE YOU who never bid us to "hurry up" and, more blessed, you who do not snatch our tasks from our hands to do them for us, for often we need time rather than help.
BLESSED ARE YOU who stand beside us as we enter new and untried ventures, for our unsuredness will be outweighed by the times when we surprise ourselves and you.
BLESSED ARE YOU who ask for our help and realize our giftedness for our greatest need is to be needed.
BLESSED ARE YOU who help us with the graciousness of Christ, for often we need the help we cannot ask for.
BLESSED ARE YOU when, by all things, you assure us that what makes us individuals is not our particular disability or difficulty but our beautiful God-given personhood which no handicapping condition can confine.
REJOICE AND BE EXCEEDINGLY GLAD for your understanding and love have opened doors for us to enjoy life to its full and you have helped us believe in ourselves as valued and gifted people.
Friday, December 7, 2007
Monday, November 26, 2007
Payton and her baby
Sunday, November 25, 2007
Another Conversation with Mason
Mason: I fink [think] I will save my treat until morning.
Me: Are you sure?
Mason: Yes, it is 1 o'clock [it really was about 9 o'clock] and it is time for bed.
Me: Okay.
Mason then went upstairs to bed. He cracks me up. It was like he was the parent and I was the kid.
Tuesday, November 20, 2007
Artwork: Payton's Turkey
Wednesday, November 14, 2007
Mason Funny
Mason: Who was that?
Kyle: Mommy.
Mason: What did she want?
Kyle: She wanted to tell me to take a check to daycare to pay for your school.
Mason: Ohhh, pay monies for my school?
Kyle: Yeah, we have to pay money for you to go to school.
Kyle continues getting the kids stuff together so they can leave the house. In the meantime, Mason went upstairs and came back downstairs to leave for school. When they got to school, Mason held out his tightly fisted hand and said ...
Mason: Should we go give this to Ms. April?
Kyle: What is it?
Mason opened his hand to reveal 8 cents that he must have gotten from his piggy bank when he went upstairs prior to leaving the house.
Kyle: Aww, thanks buddy, but I'll pay for it this time.
Mason: Ok.
Mason put his money in his cubby and the rest is history. Kyle said it melted his heart and it melts mine too. He really is such a good kid.
(Smile)
Tuesday, November 13, 2007
Momentous day for us ...
The sign for "more" is to touch the tips of your fingers together (bad explanation, I know). A lot of kids will clap as their way of signing "more" and while Payton has clapped during mealtime, I have never been able to really associate it with her saying she wants "more". Well, today I was able to associate it. I asked her verbally if she wanted more while I signed it and I kept asking her, trying to get her to sign. SHE DID IT!!! Several times, on que! OMG I kissed her about a thousand times! It is such a great feeling to have your child communicate back with you, especially when you have worked so hard to get there.
Aside from signing, Payton has some words! Here is a list of the words she says (some of them perhaps only her father and I understand) and correctly associates:
Mama
Dada
Hi (this is her favorite word right now)
Bye-bye
Doggy
Ball
All done
I think that is it (that we can interpret, at least), but it is a fabulous list if I must say so myself! Her development has been phenomonal and I'm praying that her communication continues to flourish!
Wednesday, October 31, 2007
Tuesday, October 30, 2007
Sleep Study
Payton fell asleep on the way to the sleep study (it was at Children's Hospital in DC), so we were not off to a very good start, considering she was supposed to fall asleep when we got there. We ended up having to wait for probably an hour for the room to be cleaned (go figure), so luckily I had that time to try to wear her out. She was not very happy with the tech when he was hooking her wires up. I decided to give her a bottle (yes, she still gets that dang bottle at bedtime) to try to distract her. She eventually got used to him prodding her, bless her heart. There were wires attached to her scalp, her forehead, her cheeks and her chest. She also had a nasal canula and a sticker that was a microphone under her nose to monitor her breathing and sounds. She tossed and turned all night, all the while tangled in wires. I didn't sleep much either, so we were happy to get out of there in the morning! We should find out the results in about 2-3 weeks.
Here she is ...


Sunday, October 28, 2007
Shawn and Taniya's Wedding
Sunday, October 14, 2007
School Pictures
Nice sneakers, eh? LOL
Sunday, October 7, 2007
Support Down Syndrome Lately?
Our little flower girl ...
Mason can spell his name!
Mason Funny
Saturday, October 6, 2007
Win a pair of Vincent Rainboots!
Wednesday, October 3, 2007
Payton Update
I also asked about allergy testing and they told me to ask her pediatrician. I am interested in allergy testing because there has been a lot of talk lately about diet affecting behavior and development in general. I am very interested in learning more about this, and finding out specifically if Payton has a sensitivity, or even an intolerance, to wheat, etc.
Cute story ... Up until now, I have mostly kept Payton in soft sole shoes because they are supposed to be so highly recommended for new walkers. After seeing Pat Winders (one of Payton's physical therapists) a few weeks back, she recommended that we now get Payton in some supportive shoes with inserts to force her to roll her feet correctly. They roll in a tiny bit right now. The supportive shoes will also ultimately cause her to bring her legs in closer when she is walking. So, we put her little pair of size 5 Nike sneakers on her and she is loving them! She is cruising all over the place with those things on ... then she will stop, look down at her feet, pull on the laces and then keep on cruising along. So cute.
Friday, September 7, 2007
Preschool
Well, his teacher has done nothing but rave about how well he is doing with the older kids. He is one of the few kids who follow directions (I'm still trying to find that side of him) and he does much better on his assignments than some of the four year olds. For example, they were doing worksheets where they had to trace lines. Mason was not only the first one to complete the assignment, he was the only one who actually traced the lines instead of drawing random lines.
This makes me smile, because I have really been feeling like he should be doing more than he is doing and that his school has been failing him. We recently got a new principal, so I'm hoping these changes are for the better!
Thursday, September 6, 2007
Photo time with Mommy
And then I asked her to show me where her nose was ... and she did! (You don't understand ... we have been working on this with her for forever!!)
And then of course her brother had to pop in and show us that he knew where his eyes were ...

And here is some video of my girl dancing, playing peek-a-boo and waving bye bye!
Tuesday, September 4, 2007
Here doggy, doggy!
So ... Payton is obsessed with the dog's kennel. She takes the dog's bed out and replaces it with ... well ... herself, of course! Today Mason decided he would join her ...
After getting them out of the kennel, we went outside to play on their playground ...
Sunday, August 19, 2007
Thursday, August 9, 2007
Sad news...

Thursday, July 26, 2007
Mason's first visit to the dentist ...
Unfortunately, he had three small cavities that needed to be filled, and they also wanted to seal his teeth. So yesterday Kyle took him back for his fillings. Two of them were so small they were able to do them without numbing him, but the third required numbing. Kyle said he sat through it like a champ and that Mason was quick to remind him that they would be going shopping for Power Rangers for a reward.