T21 community in mourning.

I would like to light a candle today for two little ones that have both gone on to earn their angel wings this month. It has been an incredibly hard month in the Down syndrome community and we can only imagine the pain and sorrow that their families must be feeling. Our first little angel Eric, lost his fight and earned his wings on August 8th. He was son to Debbie and David,and brother of Zack, Madison, Isaac and Evan.

Our second little angel, Gabi lost her fight just last night, and has now gone on to earn her wings.

She was daughter to Micah and Jason and sister to Gracie.

Our thoughts and prayers are with both of these families during this incredibly difficult time.

We are so very sorry for your loss.

Please join me in lighting a candle to celebrate the lives of these two beautiful angels!!

Wordless Wednesday!!

Funny Friday

"Anything YOU can do, I can do BETTER......I can Do anything Better than YOU!!"...LOL

These were taken the other day at the playground, and boy oh boy, was Jackson in a mood that day. He wanted to do every little thing that the other kids were doing. Nothing was going to stop him. These pictures kind of show that he wanted to do the same things as the older kids, and the smile shows that he KNOWS he did a great job!! Now if i could just figure out how to load videos on here...... LOL

Wordless Wednesday!!

Mama? Are you in there??

Jack in the box!!

Jackson has this thing lately with dumping all of his toys out of the toybox and sitting in it. He's too funny. Then he looks at me like "what"??...LOL

And then his little kitty Gizmo goes nuts with all the toys all over the floor!!...Somedays this house is a zoo!!..LOL

Funny Friday

I honestly don't know what was so funny....All we said was "smile"!!!...LOL Jackson has really learned how to play it up for the camera and i have to admit...i love it!! He has the best smile and the most catching giggle!!!

P.s...please don't mind the undie pictures, we are toilet training.

Wordless Wednesday!!

(Can ya feel the love?)

Look what I did.....

Half way through, i thought, "oh boy, my mother's gonna kill me!!"...LOL

I have wanted a tattoo for years but have always been too much of a chicken to go and get one done. I also wanted to have something that would mean as much to me at the age of 65 as it does now. Because we all know that what is cool at 35 might not be cool at 65..lol

I decided on an awareness ribbon for Jackson. Raising awareness about Down syndrome is something i try to do every day and is something that i will always do. So this just felt right. I have two blue stars on one side of the ribbon that represent my daughter, Jennifer, and my son, Jeremy. The yellow star represents Jackson. I Love it and wil treasure it for the rest of my life!!

P.s....these pics were taken right afterwards and it turns out i am a 'bleeder'..lol so my yellow half of the ribbon is a little "pink"..lol

I will post better pics in a few weeks once it has completely healed. :o)

All Loved Up!!

I know that I usually do a "Funny Friday" but you see today is a special day for me, so I'd like to take a minute and let you know why.

Today is me and my husbands wedding anniversary. We have been married for 11 years and together for 17 years.

17 years!! Wow!! It has flown by so fast that i can hardly believe it. We were just kids ourselves when we first got together. Aged 16 and 19. Nobody thought we would last. When i became pregnant at such a young age we got the "sighs" from people who basically told us that we were too young to be parents and that not only did we stand no chance of having a decent future, but now we would be bringing a child into the mix.

Now i know that none of those people read this blog, in fact, most have moved on with their lives, but i would just love for them to see us today. Stronger than ever. Still very much in love with each other, and hell, i happen to actually enjoy spending time with my husband!!..LOL

Our daughter Jennifer turned out just fine, and afterwards along came Jeremy, who also is turning out to be a great, smart, and handsome young man, and then there is Jackson, whom people where sure would rip us apart because of the stress that comes from raising a child with special needs. Well let me tell you how much stronger Jackson has made us as a couple. Everyone should only be so lucky to have such an amazing little boy in their lives.

Anyhow...this wasn't meant to be about the children...not today, but about how much i love my husband. 17 years baby.....I can only hope that we will be lucky enough to 17 more!!

(ps.....i've added a few pics...some from when we first met, and some from about a year ago)

Wordless Wednesday!!

Funny Friday!!

I thought this was sooo funny, and had to share!!

P.s and sending out a very happy 13th birthday to my son Jeremy. God help me, i officially have two teenagers in the house!!! Hope that you had a great day baby!!! xoxoxoox

Wordless Wednesday!!

Summer, summer, summer.

Well, it's official, summer has taken over at our house. There has been no time for blogging, checking DS groups, facebook, even myspace.....there is only time for summer fun..lol
Well....according to Jackson..LOL
Play with me in the pool mama, lets go to the park mama, push me on the swings mama. :o)
As much as i am not thrilled about neglecting our blog, i am soooo happy to have my little guy at home to spend some time with.
When the kids are in school all year round, things seem very rushed, but now that the kids are home i am really enjoying hanging out with them.
Jackson is at a great stage!! We went to the beach on the weekend and wow, what a change from last year!! Last year Jackson wanted nothing to do with the sand, and this year he loved it!! We even managed to bury him up to his waist. And in the water....holy did this little boy every have fun!! Running and splashing!! I can't even describe how happy i was to watch him play and know that he was loving having a bit of independence!!
I will try to post some pictures later this week.
Hope that your all having as great of a summer as we are!!

Wordless Wednesday!!

Jackson making a "splash" on a hot summer day!!

EA and Teacher gifts

Well, it's that time of the year again, and this year i have been asked by a few friends about what i was planning on doing for EA and teacher gifts this year. Every year i find it harder and harder to come up with something original. I can only imagine how many apple knick knacks, or coffee mugs teachers must get each year.

I find it important to give something with a personal touch, but don't want to give something that will end up packed away in a box gathering dust. I try to stay away from anything that resembles an apple....LOL

I do try to give gifts that can be used rather than showcased. If i buy scented candles, i might try to find out what scents they like. The same goes for any soap sets.

I try to stay away from coffee mugs as well, as you can only own so many mugs, and not everyone actually drinks coffee.

Gift certificates are always a good idea. This year i opted for plants that could be re potted in their gardens. (i will post a picture)

I hear from many who have done camping chairs or tote bags and have added the teachers/EA's name. I think that is always a neat idea. Something i may try next year.

I do think though, that it is really important to add your own personal touch to any gift/card you may give. I like making sure that each gift i give has a little something that was done just for them. :o)

If anyone would like to add more idea's, please do....as every year..i find myself having a harder time coming up with something that i hope they will enjoy.

P.s.....the card read

Jackson taught me patience to rejoice in the small things that others take for granted.

Jackson taught me tolerance to accept that his perspective is different and deserves respect.

Jackson taught me courage to fight for him, when no one else would.

Jackson taught me endurance to go on when i felt i couldn't anymore.

Jackson taught me humility to accept when i can't make things any better but can only be there for him.

Jackson taught me to love at a deeper level than i ever thought possible.

What did Jackson teach you??

For teaching and believing in me, June 2007

Introducing......Gizmo!!

As promised, here are a couple of pictures of our new family member, Gizmo. In the pics he is meeting "Chopper" our chihuahua, sleeping in the 'dog' bed, playing in the pillows on the couch, and my favorite, sleeping with Jackson. :o)

Funny Friday!!

These pictures were inspired by the newest addition to our family. Our daughter has just adopted a 7 week old kitten, named Gizmo.Here's a couple of cute/funny kittens to start off the weekend!! I will post some pics of our new little one next week. Hope everyone has a GREAT weekend!!

Wordless Wednesday!!