Aidan Reading

Aidan goes to a tutor once a week to work on reading, counting, and all other sorts of academic things. Her name is Joanne Mothes, and I swear every child that I know in Central Ohio with Down syndrome is tutored by her. He loves her and cooperates with her and does a really great job. I keep telling people that he is reading, but they don't believe me. He is reading well over 100 words and reading some books. He loves it. I am going to be recording a series of videos to show his teachers at school so they can see what he is capable of. Yes, Aidan is 4 years old. He has Down syndrome. He can read.

Crayola Keyboard

My friend, Sally, told me about this Crayola Keyboard. I thought it looked really great for kids. Then, Scotte and I found it for $20 at Costco and decided to purchase it. The kids love it! We are going to buy another one to donate to Aidan's school for the computer in his classroom. You can't tell very well from the picture, but it's a simplified keyboard, and the keys are much bigger than a typical keyboard. It makes it easier for a kid to find the letter he/she is looking for.

Both of our kids were exposed to a touch screen computer monitor very early on with Aidan's speech therapist. So, the problem we're having now is getting the kids to keep their fingers off the screen and use the mouse. They would much rather poke at the screen. We really need to find some easy mouse games for the kids to play.

I could just eat him up...

THE BIG 4-0

Yesterday was Scotte's 40th Birthday!!! I met Scotte when he was 30, so look how he has changed in the last 10 years (I haven't changed one bit, of course:) ). This photo was taken a few weeks after our first date. Well, that seems like yesterday, but obviously we've both changed a lot in the last 10 years, going from single folks to married with 3 kids and a house.

Happy Birthday to Scotte! We are having ice cream cake and presents with the kids today. Yesterday we actually used some respite care for the kids and went out together for a few hours in the evening (with Liam in tow).

Flexibility

I have posted in the past about how flexible Aidan is. Well, one night Scotte and I were cracking up watching Aidan play on his computer. Then, we laughed even harder when Brendan heard what we were talking about and tried to imitate him.

Sleep

Liam slept for nearly 10 hours last night!! Will I be so lucky tonight?

Word Cloud

This is a word cloud I created at http://www.wordle.net/ from the introduction to my dissertation. I think it's really pretty. I tried to create one from my blog, and it wasn't so cute:)

Click the images to see them larger!!

Swine Flu

I'm usually not one to freak out about things like swine flu. Well, at least before Aidan was born. I already feel like a nervous wreck this year, and the flu season hasn't even begun yet. You see, often when Aidan gets sick we end up at Children's hospital. Now, we also have a newborn baby in the house.

I just read an article about how children with Down syndrome are at high risk for complications from swine flu. I can bet you all that if Aidan gets swine flu, he will be hospitalized, or even worse.

So, how am I going to prevent him from getting it? If he's been exposed, will I be able to convince his pediatrician to give him tamiflu right away? What do I do when swine flu is going around his school? Will I end up keeping him home all winter? And, what about our twice weekly trips to Children's for therapy where we share a waiting room with the urgent care? Do I skip therapy this winter? I have a lot of worries and a lot of questions going through my mind.

I know I can be much more diligent about hand washing. I'm going to be using Purell the second we leave Children's, before we're even in the car. I'll Lysol his school backpack everyday, and I have Clorox wipes handy to wipe down the anything I think needs it. I have Purell sitting on my kitchen table now, just in case.

So, am I being paranoid or am I not doing enough? What are you going to do?

A Conversation with Liam

Tomato Pie

We just tried another new recipe to use up some garden tomatoes. It was a big hit for both Scotte and I, but the kids wouldn't touch it.

TOMATO PIE
Bisquick
1 large sweet onion
2 lbs tomatoes
mayo
shredded cheddar
basil
salt
fresh cracked pepper

Make 1 biscuit recipe from the Bisquick box

Use as pie crust and bake it. Place either ceramic baking beads or another pie plate on top of it to keep it from rising out of control.

Layer in the pie crust (really high) the sweet onions sliced pretty thin (generally 1 big one) and garden fresh tomatoes not too thin (about 2 lbs). Season each layer with salt, fresh cracked pepper and fresh basil.

Make a top crust with 2 cups shredded cheddar and 1 cup mayo. Mix the cheese and mayo and squish it all over the pie like a top crust.

Bake at 350 degrees for 45 minutes to an hour.

When we made this, our pie crust might have been smaller than others because we only used about 1 lb tomatoes and 1/2 an onion. It was really good, though, and was enough for two meals for Scotte and I.

Giant Microbes

This highly amuses the biologist in me. I think I've found some new Christmas present ideas.

GIANT MICROBES

The Hartford Fair

We missed the Ohio state fair this year, but we thought the kids would really like going this year. They're finally big enough to go on some rides, and fair food is always a good idea, right?

So, a woman came to our house to photograph Scotte for a magazine article (Business First magazine) they are doing about Solar power. After talking with her, he discovered that she was going to be at the Hartford Fair showing her alpacas. We were wanting to go on a family outing together, so off to the Hartford Fair we went. The kids were quite enamored with the alpacas!

This is Janet (owner of the ranch), her daughter, and one of their alpacas. I think it's name was Maia. We ran into a couple of friends of mine. It's crazy! I haven't seen them in a couple of years, but we've kept in touch recently on Facebook. We ran into Amy, Andy and their daughter, Katie (3 years old) at the fair, and then a few days later I ran into Amy again at Once Upon a Child. So weird, but nice!!

The kids had a lot of fun dancing to some music and eating together, and Andy was nice enough to be an adult chaperone on a train ride with the kids. Thanks, Andy!!This was a great fair! It was small enough to not be crazy, but had everything we wanted. We might go here in the future instead of the state fair. We loved it!

All the boys

Scotte's first day back to work Baby Liam is getting stronger Brendan actually looked at the camers and smiled for me

Aidan with food smeared all over his glasses

Visiting

Several weeks ago we took the kids home to visit Scotte's family and my family. We took a lot of photos with Scotte's family, but we used his mom's camera so I will have to put those up later. We ran out of time and didn't get to transfer them to our memory card.

Here are some photos from our trip to visit my parents. The kids had a great time swimming. We liked having lots of extra arms to help us out, since both kids need maximal supervision in the pool. Liam was a gem and took a huge nap so I didn't have to miss out on the fun.

Liam got to meet my brother (Uncle Joey) for the first time; the older boys were so happy that Uncle Joe went swimming with them.

New Videos of the Kids

We spent a lot of time in the backyard this summer. The kids had a great time, though.
Backyard Fun!!


Liam is starting to bat at toys. I love this baby stage!
Liam and his Monkey

Photos from Buddy Walk 2008

Here is our photo montage from Buddy Walk 2008! I think I'm going to create one from Aidan's first Buddy Walk next!

I can't get this resized properly for my blog, so your best bet is to follow THIS LINK to see the montage at the proper size.

Make an on-line slideshow at www.OneTrueMedia.com

Miss Brenda

Aidan has had the same PT since he was 6 weeks old. She has come to our house nearly every week for 4 years. She has decided to stop seeing Aidan (for very good personal reasons; I knew it was going to happen eventually!), and we are going to miss her so much!! Thanks, Miss Brenda, we love you! I'm pretty sure Aidan wouldn't be doing as well as he is without your help.

Through the years...

Flying Planes with Daddy

This video makes me a little seasick, but it's fun to watch! The kids love to fly their toy planes and helicopters with daddy.

Buddy Walk 2009

It's time for the buddy walk again!! We've had a lot of people asking us about it, so it's time for me to post it on our blog.

This year's event will take place on Sunday, September 13, 2009 at Columbus Crew Stadium. The walk will begin at 10am.

We are going to be walking again this year, but we have decided to walk as a family and enjoy the activities together. This will be our 5th buddy walk, and we have raised more than $10,000 dollars for DSACO in the past. The year Brendan was born, the buddy walk was just 3 weeks later. I just about killed myself getting ready for the walk. With another infant in tow this year, we have decided to skip the tailgating and see for the first time what activities there are. We're usually having too much fun visiting with our friends to even see what else is going on.

We would love to have people join us for the walk, if they would like to, and join us for activities. But, we are not setting up a tent and having food. We'll probably grab some subs and bring them - something easy for when the kids get hungry.

Aidan had a great year. He loves preschool and loves to talk about his classmates. He broke his leg a few months ago, but he has recovered from that fully and has made some great strides this summer, physically. He still loves the sand box and playing in water (maybe we have a future swimmer on our hands). Also, he has gotten over his fear of slides and is back to loving them again! He is doing really well with his tutor and loves to read. He can read over 100 words and is reading some books now. We are working on reading comprehension and reading more books. His brother loves to count so he is starting to get into that a little, too. Aidan has a new little brother, Liam, and he loves him so much and makes sure I take care of him properly:) If you want to see Aidan in person, come join us at the walk!

Please visit Team Aidan's Website!! TEAM AIDAN I'm having a little trouble personalizing the website at the moment, so if it seems a little off to you, I hope to get that fixed soon.

If you would like to make a donation to the our team, we would be very grateful. If you would like to come walk with us even though we are keeping it low key, we would love to have you. T-shirts this year are scarlet red, in case you are wondering!

Next year we plan to be up and running again with another tailgating extravaganza.

If you would like to register to walk and want a shirt, the registration deadline is AUGUST 29.

Enjoy the walk, and thanks for your support!! I promise to get photos up from last year's walk soon. I can't believe I haven't done that yet!

Summer Recipes

We just tried an amazing rice salad recipe I found over at Livin for the Love. It's super easy and delicious! The kids like it, too, and it involves ZERO COOKING (well, except for the rice). Perfect for summer.

I decided to post one of our favorite recipes for summer. This recipe is a great way to get rid of some fresh tomatoes. I can't take credit for the recipe, though. It's a Bobby Flay recipe from the Food Network.

Penne with summer tomato sauce with fresh mozzarella and basil

4 ripe tomatoes, seeded and diced (I use more than 4 tomatoes - the more the merrier)
4 cloves garlic, finely sliced
1/2 cup olive oil
1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
1/4 tsp red pepper flakes
1/4 cup basil chiffonade
salt
1 pound penne, cooked al dente
1/2 pound fresh mozzarella, cubed (make sure it's fresh!)

In a large serving bowl, combine the tomatoes, garlic, olive oil, vinegar, red pepper flakes and basil, season with salt. Add the pasta and mozzarella and stir to combine.

The kids love this recipe (although Aidan won't eat the mozzarella), and it's even good cold right out of the refrigerator.

1 Month Old

Well, I didn't get to post this on the actual day, but I now have a 1 month old baby!! He had his 1 month check-up last week and weighed in at 10 lbs. 1 oz, and 21-1/2 inches long. Interestingly, Aidan was always in the 5-10%-ile range during his first year, and Brendan was in the 90-100%-ile range (although now his weight is only in 15%). Liam was 50%-ile in everything. I guess we've got all ends of the size spectrum covered.

Here are photos of all of my boys from when they were a month old. I like to compare them, but I think all 3 boys look quite unique.

AIDAN

BRENDAN

LIAM

Afternoon Tea

Recently I attended a bridal shower for my cousin Sean's fiancee. It was the most amazing shower I have ever been to! Can we say afternoon tea at the Ritz-Carlton??!! It was as good as it sounds.

I had to take Liam with me, but it was a great opportunity for him to meet some of my aunts and cousins, and to see his Grammy and Aunt Kelly again.

We drank mimosas and lots of tea, and devoured tons of desserts and pastries. Oh, yes, and a woman played the harp the entire time.

This is what the tables looked like, with beautiful tea cups and pastries piled high in the center of the table. This is a photo of my aunt Bridget, cousin Kim, aunt Kim, and cousin Bridget. Are you confused yet?

Here are Renee and Sean in their new kimonos. Sadly, this is the best photo I have of them.

Here I am with Liam, my mom and my sister My mom, my aunt Rita (Sean's mom), and my aunt Bridget (my mom's sister)

Travelling

We just returned from our first long weekend travelling with 3 kids. Thanks goodness for help from Nana, Grammy and Pap Pap. We had a great time visiting everyone, and we're really not any more sleep deprived than when we left. Now I have 300 photos to sort through, piles of laundry, no food in the house (we are actually out of milk, that has never happened before), and lots of our usual appointments this week. Hopefully I'll get some photos up tonight (although all of the photos we took at Nana's house are on her camera and we forgot to transfer them to our memory card...we'll have to get them next time we're together).

I'm off to the grocery store!!

A chance encounter

This is my 400th blog post! How crazy is that?!!

Last week I had a chance encounter. Or, maybe it was fate. I'm not sure.

I decided to sell Aidan's nursery bedding on Craig's List because we are going to update his room and make it a little older for him. The bedding is still in great shape. We used different nursery bedding for Brendan's room because Aidan and Brendan are so close in age. Now, Liam is using Brendan's bedding and Aidan's is unused.

To make a long story short, I was contacted by someone wanting to buy a few of the items. When she and her family stopped by to pick up the items, I found out through our conversation that it is likely that the baby boy she is carrying has Down syndrome. Of course, I am currently a hormonal mess (she may be also if she's anything like me during pregnancy), so I was crying a little and we were talking about Aidan. It really brought me back to all the emotions that took over my life after Aidan was born. We are happy that we got to meet Aidan before we had to deal with all the crazy emotions. I have a feeling it's harder when you don't have a baby to hold in your arms.

I vividly remember meeting older children with Ds after Aidan was born. I know I always wanted to be comforted by them, and I loved the older children we met, but somehow it was still very hard to know that my child wasn't going to grow up in the way I envisioned. Sometimes, it was even scary. Now, I want Aidan to be that comfort for another family. I know it's probably scary for them, too, to see him and think about their child's future, but hopefully also somewhat comforting at the same time. I know I look at people differently since Aidan was born.

If there is anything I could tell another family, it's the same thing I was told by so many 4 years ago. I was told that it would all be okay. Actually, it is better than okay. I didn't always believe it would be at the time, but I do now. They were right. I wish I could spare everyone from the pain of learning that their child has a disability, but I truly believe that it is necessary to go through the process of grieving and acceptance to appreciate what you have.

Life is way better than okay. It will be for you, too.

Playing Together

I am really lucky that my boys play so well together. Since Liam was born, they have been doing great at amusing themselves and sharing toys. They have their moments, of course, but for the most part I couldn't ask for two better boys.

Aidan has been so cute with Liam. He is so concerned when the baby cries, and tells me constantly to pick the baby up. I thought he would want me to put him down all the time, but instead he insists that I hold him. He kisses his forehead all the time, and loves to look at Liam sleeping in his bed. One day when I was visiting at my sister's house, my mom and sister came out and took Brendan and Liam in the house while I got Aidan. Aidan did not notice that someone took the baby seat, and he was freaking out that I was leaving Liam in the car. He's just been so stinking cute with the baby. I love it!

Brendan has also been doing great. He doesn't care about Liam as much as Aidan does, but he doesn't seem to be having a hard time with it either. All is well.

Bottles

We tried a bottle with Liam over the weekend. Neither Aidan nor Brendan would take bottle, so I was very excited when Liam sucked one down. I don't mind breastfeeding. In fact, I enjoy it and it's been a great experience with all 3 kids. But, given that we now have 3 kids, I know there will be a time or two when I might need to leave for several hours without Liam. If he will be willing to take a bottle, it will make things a lot easier. Of course, I do not enjoy pumping milk. But, you have to do what you have to do.

The kids were fascinated by the whole thing, especially Aidan. I think it will be really fun to let the kids help me give Liam a bottle.

Oh, and poor Liam now has a bad case of baby acne...just in time for his one month photos:(