Warm your heart with this.

Eureka! I just had one of those moments. You know, the one where you think (briefly) that you are not making a botch of parenting and might actually be doing something right.

Today is the last day of school before Christmas. Kirk was very eager to get to the bus stop, because if you leave early, you get out of school early, right? This 7 year-old boy logic. Anyway, he was putting on his coat and his backpack (which he left in a heap by the front door) and Suzanne was standing there watching the whole thing. I went into the kitchen for my second cup of coffee and heard this little exchange...

Kirk to Suzanne: "Goodbye, I love you, give me kisses!"

Mom to Kirk: "Goodbye, honey, I love you!"

Kirk to Mom: "Mom, I wasn't talking to you!"

Clearly all his love is reserved, at least this morning, for Suzanne. And I think that is fine and dandy. He didn't even seem to mind that she was standing there wearing nothing but his UofO Jersey. And for once she didn't get annoyed that he gets to leave for school before her. She's going to be really irked next week when we don't get on the bus at all...

We are also going to hockey tonight, which is always a good time. We are going to take one of Kirk's friends and Kirk has decided to use some of his own money to buy snacks. He has a bank that was given to him by his Grandma Della that is filled with dollar bills, also given to him by his Grandma Della (she sticks a dollar in every card she sends). Since I'm not very forthcoming with bucks for snow cones and cotton candy, he's going to spend a few of his own and treat his friend.

Suzanne loves hockey and is really getting into the cheers. The best one is the one that they do whenever they make a goal. Haven't had much practice with that, unfortunately, because the Winter Hawks really stink this year, but we are always hopeful that the next game will be the one where they pull it together and make some goals. Suzanne will be happy as long as she gets to hug the mascot, Tom-A-Hawk. Cute name, eh?

Nag and thou shalt receive

I'm very impressed with Kirk. That boy has great focus and determination, traits that will serve him well later in life. It's kind of a big pain for me, but good for him.

Grandma Pat can take credit for this one. She decided to take all of her grandkids skating over the Thanksgiving weekend. FYI--Klamath Falls has a really nice outdoor skating rink and a nifty Zamboni to keep the ice smooth. Not like the old days where you'd practically break a leg skating on the lumpy, bumpy rink out by Moore Park or, heaven forbid, the "A" Canal. It was Kirk's first time skating and after he decided to let go of the wall, he did pretty good.

This led to two weeks of nagging to go to the Lloyd Center skating rink. We decided to go this past Sunday because it was a benefit for the food bank and we could finish our shopping. Kirk spent about 4 hours skating while we went to various stores in the mall to shop. He wouldn't even leave to eat lunch, so we got him a dog, chips and a root beer.

This happy event led to a few hours of nagging about our tree. Can we put it up? Can we put it up TONIGHT?????

At approximately 9:30 pm Sunday I finished putting up the tree (thank goodness for fakes). Kirk is finally getting the hang of spreading out the ornaments and not putting all the reds together. The same cannot be said of his father, but Kirk did a good job of coaching his dad to space them out a little better. Kirk takes the tree decorating quite seriously.

Suzanne, for once, paid very little attention to any of it. She got her hand swatted once and seemed to having enough of decorating She likes to sit on the couch and look at the lights, but she's doing a good job of keeping her fingers to herself this year. The next test will be when I put some presents under the tree. I wouldn't bother except that Oscar has taken up residence underneath the tree and he's as clumsy as an ox and could bring the entire thing down.

We are having a cozy holiday this year. I'm throwing a party on the 22nd for our friends and neighbors, which will be a lot of fun. The highlights will be Grandpa Wick's egg nog (a boozy holiday treat!) and Susan's hot crab dip. I'm also going to offer a signature holiday drink. I'm torn between the Ginger Martini or a Cranberry Vodka Slushy. If you have a preference, please let me know.

Suzanne loves a party and I'm sure she'll be the queen of this one. It is nice having two kids who are social and good in crowds. I just hope she manages to keep her clothes on the entire time. When she feels like getting nakey, she doesn't care who is in the house.

Yikes! Banging from upstairs...wait...it's from the bathroom. Please let me find Suzanne sitting on the potty!

Never a dull moment...

I remember the first time Suzanne met Santa. It was our first Christmas in Washougal and we took the kids to Meier & Frank (now Macys) to see Santa on the 10th Floor. It was the last year that Santaland was open. Just think "Miracle on 34th Street"--that's what it was like. Suzanne waited patiently in line for nearly 2 hours, smiling and laughing the whole time. The second she got seated on Santa's lap, she busted out crying and wouldn't stop. Kirk's smile was big enough for the both of them, and he refused to let her bad mood spoil his good time. I think we used that picture in our Christmas letter that year--Suzanne yelling and Kirk giddy with joy.

Then there was last year. My sister and I decided to celebrate a little with a Girl's Night at the Melting Pot Restaurant (all fondue, all the time--yum!). Greg is not one to sit at home with the kids, so he got Hilary and took the kids for a ride on the Holiday Express steam train. Suzanne didn't exactly cry when she encountered Santa, but she did look at him with suspicion in her eye.

And then there was last Sunday. The Down Syndrome Network Oregon hosted a Christmas party at the Portland Children's Museum and I would have to say that Suzanne has overcome her distaste for fat bearded men in red suits. She sat on Santa's lap, she danced with elves, she played in all of the exhibits, and she did it while battling a fierce case of plumber's butt. Poor kid could not keep her drawers up no matter how tight I cinched the waistband!

Oh well, Suzanne does not let these little inconveniences distract her from having a good time. Or from meeting new friends. She was quite taken with a little guy named Sam who is 2 1/2. They sat together during the magic show. She stole his snowman, he responded by taking her reindeer. Finally, a man who doesn't let her push him around. Kirk, pay attention!!

It was so nice to have a nice family day considering what happened last Tuesday. Oh gee, did I not mention that we had to repaint the house last week? OK, slight exaggeration. We had to repaint the upstairs from the 3 foot line on down because Suzanne found a magic marker and decided to practice writing her "T's" from Kirk's room clear down to the front door. At approximately 3:30 p.m. last Tuesday I found her sitting in the living room painting between her toes with a blue magic marker. I wasn't too bothered by this because magic marker comes off after about 3 baths. At approximately 3:31, I turned toward the stairs and my eye was drawn upward by the blue marks going up my staircase wall...upward across the computer room door...thence to the master bedroom...thence to Suzanne's door...thence down the wall to Kirk's room. She painted the carpet also. My eye is beginning to twitch just thinking about it.

I hurried to get the marks off the woodwork just in case it decided to soak in and need to be sanded. This took about an hour. Then I started working on the carpet, got ready for a meeting, reminded Kirk to get ready for basketball, released Suzanne from the prison of her room, then discovered that she had done this little number on the living room couch! More squawking ensued as I tried to rescue this piece of furniture and some blue marks on the hardwood floors. We then piled into the car and went to basketball practice, where I was glared at by Greg because I was late. I explained to him that when he saw the walls, perhaps he'd understand. When I got home later that evening, I discovered that he had spent the time repainting. We still have a bit of touchup to do, but most of the blue is gone now.

Kirk is nagging me to put up the tree, which I want to do, but I'm hesitating because....well, you can probably see why I'm hesitating. Sigh! I need to time it so that the tree is up long enough to please Kirk but not so long that Suzanne's tree shenanigans tempt me to flee the country.

Balance, life is all about balance....

No Tricks, All Treats

We live in such a great neighborhood. Halloween was so fun this year with all the little trick or treaters coming to the door and the kids had a blast. Hilary came over to hand out candy, which puzzled me until I remembered that my sister lives in a house on a very steep street, up which no little ghost would dare to climb. She's never really had the fun of opening the door to see all the little princesses and superheros. I don't know how many kids we had (mom always counts, but I get distracted) but it was probably around 80-100.

Suzanne went to a couple of houses, but she really had more fun with Hilary. They opened the door and gave out candy and Suzanne waved and giggled all evening long. Whenever the doorbell rang, she'd run down the hall yelling "Door! Door!" We didn't have dinner until around 8p.m. because neither one of the kids could sit still long enough. The weather was mild and a good time was had by all.

The next day Suzanne had her parent teacher conference. She is at the head of her class in the areas of knowing the class routine, moving to different tasks, and following instructions. She is learning her colors, she can count to five, and she is now able to say two word sentences. It turns out that her teacher started her career in special ed, which is why she is so in tune to what Suzanne needs. In fact, this is the first year that Washougal has practiced inclusion at the preschool level, and Mrs. Stump is the reason for that. You can find good teachers everywhere--even in little old Washougal!

Speaking of teachers, I'd like to talk about school funding. Most school districts are underfunded. Teachers do not get paid what they are worth. Washougal was finally able to put P.E. back in the grade school curriculum this year, but just barely. Kirk has been in a class size of 25 or more each year, which makes it hard for the teacher to give good individualized instruction. Parents are called upon more and more to fill in as teacher's assistants in reading and math. Quite frankly, if there is any measure on the ballot that increases funding to schools, you should vote for it. The way that we expect schools to get by on a shoestring is deplorable. Let me ask you this--do your want your future doctor, the person who saves your life, to be the smartest kid or the one who who didn't get to take chemistry? Do you want your house to be built by the kid who flunked out or the kid who can do geometry so that your walls are straight and your roof doesn't cave in? Take your pick. The money that you put into your schools today will be paid back to you as these kids grow up well educated and with a desire to do great things in life.

Okay, I'm done now. Back to our regular programming...

WARNING: Get some kleenex...

A Friend Like Me

by Traci Sandrock

Please don't be afraid of me

I want to be your friend,

And if you get to know me

Your rigid thoughts might bend.

Thoughts that I am different

From others that you know,

I really am no different

And this I'd like to show.

I live and breathe and laugh and cry

I love to play and learn,

I sometimes do things differently

Which can cause some concern.

You see some say I'm special
I guess this much is true,

But if you were to ask me

I'd say you're special too.

We're all a little different

No two are just the same,

It's really something wonderful

The way there is no blame.

When things don't go just perfectly

and others get confused,

And say things like "poor child"

and others terms they use.

It's okay if you look at me

And might not understand,

It's okay if you touch me

And even hold my hand.

My life has many obstacles

Much more than you could know.

But that's not what I dwell on

I'm me, that's all, and so...

Please don't be afraid of me

I want you just to see,

How truly great and wonderful

A friend like me can be.

Soggy Sunday

I can't quite decide which way to go this morning. It must be the sun. You see, we haven't had much sun lately and it's throwing me off. In fact, we are 1.5 inches over our normal rainfall for the year. Now, for those of you who live in more arid climates, an extra inch and a half is probably a good thing. I, however, live in the PACIFIC NORTHWEST! We get plenty of rain, thank you very much, and an extra 1.5 means you should start looking for a large wooden boat.

I'm a bit concerned because a new family moved to the neighborhood, and the kid's name is Noah. This cannot be good...

The rain managed to hold off yesterday, however. We went to a pumpkin patch party put on by a local Down Syndrome support group. There were some bigger kids, mostly boys, so Kirk got to play a little football and toss pumpkins down a hill at a target. Suzanne made friends with the folks who hosted the event and then invited herself into the house, and around the back, and eventually into the water fountain. She liked the pumpkins and got to draw for one (as you can see, she got a nice one). Then she started running after the pumpkins as they rolled down the hill. This went well until one actually hit her, but she got up and started yelling at it. Everyone who saw this started laughing because it was clear that she was ticked off and letting that pumpkin know what she thought!




The folks who hosted this event don't have a child with DS--they are friends with 2 other families with DS kids. Their own kids are teenagers, so when they got too old for the pumpkin patch party they decided to continue holding it for DS kids. There are special people everywhere, and the Welchs are one of those families.


Suzanne crashed in the car on the way home. She just about ran her little legs off, had more than her share of cookies, and combined with the fresh air, she didn't have a chance. We were down in Lake Oswego, so after we did a little sightseeing (lots of fabulous houses to look at) it took us an hour to get home. The little snores from the back seat are so adorable...


I'd love to write more, but I have a garden full of dead stuff to pull up and throw in the yard debris bin. The day is sunny and Suzanne is at school, so I'd better get to it.

For A Quiet Evening, It's Awfully Noisy

We're having a yawnfest around here. It's Thursday night and the kids (and Dad) are tired from a long week. Suzanne is sitting on Greg's lap, blankie on her lap, and she's sucking her thumb. That tells you how tired she is--she NEVER sucks her thumb. Greg is yawning sympathetically. Every once in awhile she looks up at him and gives him a kiss.

Kirk is a bit wound up because he's been grounded today. He tried to dispose of last night's vegetables in the bathroom trash, and since I used to do that stuff myself, I figured it out. He tossed a couple of perfectly nice carrots in the trash. At least I chose a truly horrible vegetable to dispose of--Brussels Sprouts!

We are engaging in one of Greg's favorite pastimes, watching Fox Sports Classic. Who knew that there was a cable channel that showed old college football games. I don't really see the point, since I already know who wins this one (Oregon 31, Huskies 20), but we're watching anyway. In case anyone out there cares, this is the game with the famous Kenny Wheaton interception and touchdown of 1994. The best part is checking out the uniforms to see how much they've changed. Since the interference of Nike, the uniforms have lost their Disneyesque quality. Bring back the gold pants, I say!

My kids are getting such an eclectic education from Greg and I. If my kids aren't math geniuses I'll be surprised because they spend a lot of time learning sports trivia and stats. Greg is very patient as he explains this play or that and what it means in terms of overall strategy. From me they are getting sound fashion advice. "No, football players should not bare their midriffs, no matter how nice a 6-pack they have. It's just tacky!"

In between the yawns, Suzanne is trying out her new skill--counting to 5. You can tell she's tired because she keeps editing it a bit. It's coming out, "One.........Fo Fi!" Usually two is her favorite, but she keeps skipping over it. The funny part is when she watches a tackle on the TV, she yells "Down!" My kids know their sports, for sure.

Kirk, on the other hand, is skipping over nothing. In fact, he won't shut up tonight. Gad! Now he's whistling! Nope, now he's doing that tongue clicking thing that kids do. If he starts cracking his knuckles I'm done for. Well, both cats are purring now, isn't that just swell! Note to self--buy ear plugs...

Nature...ick!

This will come as a shock to some of you, but I'm a GRANDMOTHER! If you are wondering how this is possible, please refer to my post on August 31. My sandbox is the home of one actual frog and a bazillion tadpoles. Yes indeedy, one of Kirk's original tadpoles turned into a frog (that half-tadpole, half-frog stage is a little creepy) and through the magic of reproduction, I've got more baby tadpoles than ever. I think we are going to have to engage the services of the Tadpole Relocation Program. Actually that will just be me with a bucket of tadpoles hiking down to the creek. You try to be a good mom and provide your children with a close-up glimpse of nature but really you just end up running a branch of Planned Parenthood for Amphibians! No good deed goes unpunished!

I was also called upon to make a fairy house this week. It turned out quite nice with some interesting rocks that Kirk found, some maple tree leaves and the petals of my smashed chrysanthemum that the neighbor kids jumped on. You can't use living material, but I figured since the flowers had been killed by someone other than Kirk, we could get away with it. Kirk got to display his fairy house in the school library, so he was happy.

Today is a school in-service day and so all the neighbor kids are massing outside planning their day's activities. It's starting to look like the playground scene in Alfred Hitchcock's "The Birds." You know the one--the crows are lined up on all the playground equipment and are looking menacing just before they swoop down on the unsuspecting children. Except that it's all boys on their bikes or scooters trying to figure out which mom to hit up first for snacks. Kirk, a natural leader (drat!), is gesturing toward my house--this can't be good for me!

I went to Costco the other day and took Hilary with me. She spent the entire trip sticking things in my cart, most of which I made her put back (she's 22 BTW), but she did manage to keep the giant bucket of Toll House Cookie Dough out of sight until I was at the check stand. I see the hand of fate here--I'll just make those up this morning and if the boys look like they're going to converge on my house I'll throw some cookies out the door at them. Perhaps if Tippi Hedren had had a few cookies to toss to the crows the movie wouldn't have given me nightmares for 20 years.

There is banging coming from my bedroom and I don't think it's the cats. Better go see...

The Wheels on the Bus

Yes, this is the latest on Suzanne on the Bus. Look at that happy face...and the happy face of her best friend, Karissa, sitting behind her!




Greg was home today (Columbus Day--a rather useless bank holiday) so I made him go out and put her on the bus. Of course, he took a few photos while he was at it. She loves going to school and started nagging us as soon as Kirk left. She goes an hour later than him, so she gets a little irritated when he leaves the house and she doesn't. At one point this morning, she took off her jammies, put on her shoes, socks and jacket and tried to open the front door. I explained to her that she would be a bit chilly with no pants or shirt, so maybe we should trot up the stairs and do something about it. I guess it made sense because she scrambled up the stairs and went to her bedroom to start her morning ablutions!



School is going well now. She only had the one time out (she did not want to move to a new activity when it was time) and she hasn't walloped anyone lately. This is something that she learned from her brother and his friends. I have pointed out that she will not always be small and one day will be able to do quite a bit of damage to them. They think it is funny, but I am not amused...




She is learning to count objects up to 5, she is learning her colors, and she is starting to speak much more clearly. Greg is certain he heard her say "Where's Karissa?" this morning when they went out to the bus stop. I think she tosses in new words just to make sure we're paying attention to her.


What a strange day...Greg is here, but not really since he is upstairs on his computer and not making any noise. That cats have disappeared, probably upstairs with Greg. Perhaps I will send him an e-mail to get his attention. I could just yell up the stairs, but that would ruin the peaceful silence. Then again, Suzanne gets home in an hour and THAT will destroy the peaceful silence!

SpongeBob

Have you ever seen one of those sponges with advertising that you get at the fair or the home show? The kind that are dry and flat and turn into regular sized sponges when you put a few drops of water on them. They grow before your very eyes and kids love them until they figure out that it only works one time and no amount of mashing with an iron is going to make it work again. Kirk grows like that--right before your very eyes. He's always been the tall kid and his pants never seem to be long enough. Top 95th percentile for height.

And then there is Suzanne... My Precious Peanut. My Little Ray of Sunshine. I'm proud to announce that at the age of 3 years 3 months, Suzanne has now climbed her way into the bottom 20th percentile for height and weight!! She is a whopping 28 1/2 lbs. and 35 inches tall!!

What she lacks in stature, she makes up for in personality...

Yesterday, in the pouring rain, we drove to Lake Oswego to participate in a Buddy Walk. The Buddy Walk was established by the National Down Syndrome Society in 1995 to celebrate Down Syndrome Awareness Month in October. It was the first time that we were around a lot of kids with DS and had the opportunity to chat with other parents. In spite of the weather, it was a great day and the kids had fun. These folks know how to throw a barbecue--in addition to hot dogs and burgers, they had a plate of PB&J which totally made Suzanne's day! A girl can stand soggy pants and being trapped in a stroller as long as she's got her PB&J and a bag of chips...

What we discovered is that we aren't the only ones with interesting and frustrating challenges. One family told us about their 8-year old son, Eli, who likes to call 911 operators--a lot. Suzanne has hit the redial a couple of times and called Grandma or Aunt Susan, but she's never actually called a stranger. Makes her poop nuggets seem not so bad.

It was just nice to meet parents with whom we immediately had something in common. Having a child with a disability is very isolating because your friends can't really relate to your struggles. For example, what do you do when your kids get home from school? You ask them how their day went. Unless they are a stinky adolescent, they will probably answer and you can have a conversation. Not so with Suzanne. She doesn't have the ability to answer that question yet, so I was totally in the dark about how school was going for her. Fortunately, I got an idea from another DS parent and we now send her with a notebook so the teacher can write notes about how things are going for her. It gives me a little peace of mind about what is happening while she's away from home.

I hear my little 35 inch whirlwind now...we take bets on what she'll be wearing and I'm betting on shirt but no pants. Kirk has just bellowed down the stairs and indeed, she is wearing no pants. Kirk thought she'd be totally nakey--I win again!

Let's Play HAWK-EY

Have I ever mentioned that I love hockey? Oh sure, I had the usual snooty attitude of the uninitiated, those peaceniks who believe that hockey isn't so much a sport but rather another form of barbarism, not unlike the WWF or American Gladiators.


How wrong I was--hockey is nothing short of poetry on ice. It has all the qualities of a great sport--speed, agility, strength, strategy, sneaky plays--and you get to hit a little rubber nugget with a stick! The best part is that most of the time the players are skating BACKWARDS extremely fast. Each team has a goon, that is a player who engages in fisticuffs in order to teach the other team a lesson. This isn't an "official" position on the roster, but after the first few games of the season it becomes apparent who that person is. If the game isn't going well, he is the player to watch.


Friday was the first game of Western Hockey League (WHL) season. Our team is the Portland Winter Hawks...read the title of this blog again...and they play in the Memorial Coliseum. We took the kids and Hilary, as we've done many times before, but this game was different. For one thing, the Coliseum finally has booster seats available for the littler fannies. That would be Suzanne. I was walking around the concourse with Suzanne (because she doesn't like the opening ceremonies where they skate in to loud music and flashing lights) and she stopped to chat with the nice lady at the guest services booth. It was then that I noticed the stack of red plastic boxes and asked if those might indeed be booster seats. Voila! Suzanne could now sit in her own little seat and actually see over the bald man in front of her, enabling me to actually watch the game without getting wapped in the nose every time she decided to cheer. Here is the interesting part--Suzanne really likes to watch the game. She follows the players, yells when it is appropriate, and generally has a really nice time. In fact, she lasted almost the entire game before she pooped out and had to sit with me.


Which brings me back to the goon. My beloved niece, Hilary, comes to a lot of the games with us, and she's really starting to learn the rules. So much nicer to follow a game when you actually know what's going on. This particular game was more "active" than usual, probably because the Hawks were playing last year's Memorial Cup champions. They hung in there, but ultimately lost, and as the game went on it became apparent that the scuffles were going to be numerous. This really brought out the dark side of Hilary. Every time it looked like the gloves were going to come off, she'd jump to her feet and yell something totally goofy like "They're going to fight!" or "hit 'em again, hit 'em again!" I watched her with a bemused grin on my face, knowing that she had crossed over from the more gentlemanly sports and had become one of us.

Lest you think we are all barbarians, please understand that hockey players are dressed in full pads, much like the Michelin Man, and have to take their punches while on slippery ice. It's really hard to get in a good swing on skates. They are in more danger of getting hurt during the actual game when the pucks are flying around than when they are rolling around on the ice like those guys in the fake sumo wrestler suits.

Hilary was so excited to be there that she actually bought a lovely hooded sweatshirt in bright red with the Winter Hawks logo--for FULL PRICE! Did she wait, like her cheapskate auntie, until after the holidays when things go on sale? No, she didn't want to take a chance that they might run out of her size. Poor Hilary, she thinks stores run out of smalls and mediums. I'm here to tell you that the only size they run out of is my size, the Big Whopper. The skinny girls can always find something to wear.

I'm sure that Hilary will quickly figure out who the goon designee is. She's already learning the names of the players. There are the Canadian guys and the guys whose names end in "ski" "ov" or "uk." What a bummer that Robin Big Snake is no longer with the team--his name looked great on the back of a jersey!

Not a baby anymore

Suzanne is officially a school girl. At 9:15 a.m. on Mon, Tue, Thu, Fri she gets on the bus to go to Hathaway Elementary Preschool. At 12:40 p.m. she comes home. So, for 3 hours I can do stuff. Get a pedicure, go shopping, read a book. I haven't actually done any of those things, but I could...I suppose.

In fact, during Suzanne's first 4 days, I went to the dentist twice, grabbed breakfast with a friend, and had one morning to myself. That was a little weird because Suzanne is either with me, with Greg, or a family member. To have her be with little kids who are (there's no way to say this gracefully) not like her is strange. She has been going to the PRIDE Center for 2 years, but that is a pre-preschool for kids like her. At PRIDE the playing field is even and all kids are nurtured, protected, and given the opportunity to grow by teams of specially-trained, caring professionals. I can see the benefit of her being in a regular school, but it's hard to not want to keep her in a protected environment. She's my baby, after all...

On the bright side (it's all bright for Suzanne), she loves the bus. She thinks the bus is the best part of the day. Since she is so small, I had them put a car seat in for her. She gets to sit right up front and high enough to see out of the window. The bus drivers can't help but smile when they see her dash for the bus door--she likes to be first. The neighbor girl, Karissa, goes to the same preschool and they are so cute together. To give you an idea of how small Suzanne is, she and Karissa have birthdays only 2 weeks apart. Karissa is 3 inches taller. I've got a beanstalk and a peanut for kids...

If you are interested in why we have Suzanne so deeply entrenched on the education trail, click on this link... Karen Gaffney Foundation She is Suzanne's role model and a great example of why parents should be their child's best advocate. We believe so fiercely in this young woman's purpose that we invited her to speak at the Camas-Washougal Rotary Club and then meet the superintendent of Washougal Schools. I'm a matchmaker at heart!

Now, all we have to do is get Suzanne to keep her shoes on while she's in the bus. I've got to find a shoe that she can't take off. Any suggestions?

The Shortest Miss America!

Today I got to see just how far my little Suzanne has come in 3 short years. This morning we went to her preschool Open House for a little meet-n-greet and it was quite amusing. Let me just say that I am so proud of Suzanne that I'm all a twitter...

Suzanne just turned 3 in June, which makes her the youngest child in her class. She is also the smallest by far. To look at her, you might think that she was more immature and less able to handle the rigors of a classroom. You would be, however, completely wrong and in for a big surprise.

From the first second that we arrived, Suzanne owned the room. I mean OWNED. Sarah, Tammy, Ryan, you know what I mean. She sailed through the door in her little mini backpack, looked over the various work and play stations, found an appropriate baby doll to drag around, and proceeded to show those other kids how it's done. For those of you who thought she would never be able to sit still and complete a task, she worked at a table for 20 minutes today. She drank juice without dumping it on the table. She did not eat any crayons. And she took pity on one of her poor classmates who was bawling his little blue eyes out and gave him a big hug and a pat on the back. When we had to leave, she did her pageant wave to all her subjects and sailed out the door.

My kids spoil me sometimes. I have never known what it's like to have a shy or fearful child. Both of mine are so gregarious and outgoing, completely at ease in most social situations (although Kirk is getting a little squirrly about girls).

I can hardly wait for tomorrow to see how she likes the bus. I may actually follow them in the car, not because I'm fearful of the bus, but because I want to see her when she gets off and marches into her classroom. Washougal School District--look out, here comes Suzanne!!

Mighty OR-EE-GUN!

Subtitle: The Day Suzanne Tried to Kill Grammy and Bampa...

My folks are great. Any time I need them, they are right there for me. Like Saturday. Greg & Kirk wanted to go a University of Oregon football and I actually got invited this year. Normally they do a father/son sort of a deal, but Greg is getting the idea that I need to get out more. Anyway, he worked it out with Mom & Dad so that they would come up for Labor Day weekend and stay with Suzanne while we went to the UofO game on Saturday.

This was an absolutely great idea...quality time with the grandparents, blah blah...until you really started to look at the logistics. My parents are in their 70s (not decrepit of course, but the warranty is starting to wear out). I have a house with stairs and Mom has bad knees. And Suzanne is...well...Suzanne!

To show you how desperate I am, I thought through all of this and then erased it from my mind the second we got in the car to leave that morning. The idea of spending a sunny day at Autzen Stadium with my son and his rather intense Duck alum father was just more than I could pass up. So off we went, with the legions of UofO fans who reside in the Portland metro area, down to Eugene to watch PAC 10 football.

My apologies to Barbara--the Ducks beat the University of Houston 48 to 27. Your guys probably played a better game, but this was game of quantity over quality.

Anyway, there is nothing like college football to bring out the crazies. This guy for example. Kirk took this picture from the backseat of the truck--you only see the front of his RV, the back has a backside shot of Donald and a few other choice words.

The problem with having green and yellow school colors is that you get a whole lotta ugly going on at the pregame party. Mr. Tie-Dye was the worst I think. Not only was it the standard yellow and green, he was obviously a Eugene resident as he had the hippie thing going on as well. I thought my eyes were going to start bleeding...

I managed to make it through with the help of a lovely pregame libation (or two). See, you have to get a buzz on before you go into the stadium, just in case the Ducks do their Jekyll and Hyde thing and win the game for the other team.

All in all it was a fine day and when we got home my parents were still amongst the living, although just barely. Suzanne did her best to run them ragged, but in the end it was still two against one. I have to hand it to Dad, he did something that he rarely does. He danced with Suzanne all day long. He danced more on Saturday than he has in his entire life and he's finally found someone who can deal with his...uh, quirky...sense of rhythm. I think he knows all the words to "Wheels on the Bus" now, too! Gotta love a guy like that!

They left this morning to go home. They didn't exactly run out of the door (who can run after the weekend they've had) but they did hustle a bit. Mom said it was because they needed to get to the dog kennel to get Albert, but I'm pretty sure they wanted to go home and rest up before Thanksgiving. We're coming...with Suzanne...and she'll have new tricks to pull by then!

Nag, Nag, Nag

Yes, I know it's been fully a month since my last post. My apologies, loyal readers, but I've been busy. It is summer and my rugrats hardly give me a moment to pee, much less do anything requiring coherent thought. Here are the highlights of August...

1. I have adopted two more children. Their names are Ben & Jerry. They are not the two-legged kind, and in fact they have no legs at all right now. They are tadpoles. Kirk and his buddy Cameron came home with Ziplocs filled with creek water and itty bitty swimmy things. I kind of thought it was just gunky creek water until I noticed the little eyes on something that looked like a piece of bark. I left them in the baggies on the patio table overnight, and when I went to throw their dead carcasses out the next morning, I discovered that 2 were still amongst the living. I'm not totally heartless, so I pitched them in the sandbox, which was partially filled with rainwater, and forgot about them for another day. The next day, the kitties found them swimming merrily in their new environment and I figured if they could live through kitties whacking at them, they deserved a little better treatment. I did a little research, put more water in the sandbox, and every day or so I toss bits of lettuce and a few kitty kibbles in there. They are getting bigger all the time and have learned to hide amongst the rocks (I'm decorating their environment now...) when Oscar and Emmy loom over the side of the box. Hopefully in another few weeks I'll have frogs. Kirk has told me we will take them back to the creek to "release into the wilderness." His words, not mine.

2. We went to the Clark County Fair. My lovely niece, Hilary, decided that week to become a vegan (she's rather impulsive). This only lasted until she found the hand-dipped corn dogs and elephant ears. After a rousing bout of indigestion, she decided that going from no fat to high fat was a mistake and that perhaps she should have slid into her new lifestyle a little more gradually seeing as how it was fair week. I offered to get her a deep fried Twinkie so her fair food experience would be complete, but for some reason she wasn't interested. BTW, a few days later she decided that being a vegan was not really for her and that perhaps she'd just go with eating a low fat/low carb diet instead. This seems to be working out better.

3. Kirk went to baseball camp. This is a camp put on by the Portland Beavers, a farm team for the San Diego Padres. I took him during rush hour to downtown Portland (PGE Park). After we checked him in and saw that he was having a good time, Suzanne and I hopped on the train to go shopping. We went to Saks and Tiffany's, looked in the windows, then got serious and went to Baby Gap and Gymboree to look for a birthday present for cousin Landon who turned 1 on August 29th. We found an adorable outfit with wiener dogs on it (shout out if you remember Bitsy and Mandy!) and then hopped the train back to the park. Turns out I'm a fare thief. I thought the ballpark was in Fareless Square, but I guess it stops at 12th avenue. The park is on 18th Avenue. I wonder what the fare is for 6 blocks?

Did I mention that Suzanne does not like jackhammers? There was a lot of work being done when we were shopping and Suzanne liked none of it. She vastly preferred being at the ballpark and getting to run around the beer yard (unfortunately at 11 a.m. there was no beer to be had anywhere...). No I'm not corrupting my daughter, that is just where they had the parents wait on the field. There is a Widmer beer garden by the first base line. It is a fine place to watch a game and you can catch a lot of balls there.

My next blogs will probably be devoted to preschool countdown. She starts school on the 13th. She's going to ride the bus. Kirk starts 2nd grade tomorrow, but big whoop--he's an old hand at it. When we took him to the open house last week to meet his teacher, he was sauntering down the hall like he owned the place. "Hey dude, how's yer summer?" "Peace out, dude!" That kind of thing. This "dude" thing is really starting to annoy me.

Gotta go check on Ben & Jerry--the cats are out...

Gardening and Life

Ah the joys of gardening! A garden is the microcosm of life, wouldn't you agree? You plant a seed, water it, nurture it, and it blooms into a lovely flower! Just like children. And just like children, some of these flowers never go away, they just keep reappearing year after year in places that you don't want them to be. And just like children, they attract bugs and you have to buy expensive stuff to clean them up. And just like children, if they are unhappy, they let you know it.

When I think about it like that, I don't think I'll go into the back yard ever again...

Plants have to be tough to survive in my yard. Considering that I live in the greenest state in the country, I have some inhospitable conditions in my yard. I have spots that are super shady with bad drainage. I have one corner that is like the Sahara Desert. I have an interesting collection of weeds that sprout up overnight. I'm in serious need of soil amendments. And I have Suzanne.

Because of our trip to the beach, Suzanne has discovered the joys of digging. She now likes to dig anywhere. She even snatched my long weed poker (is there a name for that thing?) and decided to have her way with the petunias. And the lobelia. She was on her way to the clematis when I stopped her, which was fortunate because the stupid plant never bloomed last year and won't stop blooming this year. I've tried to reason with Suzanne and let her pick the alyssum, which has come up everywhere this year. If she can get rid of some of that, I'd be thrilled--last year's mistake lives on and on.

She has dined on quite a few blooms, which has lead me to a frenzy of research to see if any of it is poisonous (I'm in the clear on that).

I have some flowers that I can't identify because she picks the buds when she sees them. And the delphinium in corner quivers when she walks by because she's already beheaded him once this summer. He grew a new stalk, but we'll see he can make it to bloom this time...

A love of gardening starts early. Mine started when I buried my glasses under the petunias when I was 3 or 4. I think that Suzanne and I will share a love a of gardening..some day...after she outgrows the urge to pick everything she sees. That she gets from her dad--he thinks everything is a weed! After he pulled up the peonies one spring (before they had blooms--it just looked like a bush to him) I forbade him from ever pulling anything out of the ground without my express permission.

It occurs to me that there is a space where the foxglove used to be...wanna bet one of them had something to do with it?

We're having a heatwave...

We're having a heat wave,

A tropical heat wave,

The temperature's rising,

It isn't surprising,

She certainly can can-can.

She started a heat wave

By letting her seat wave

In such a way that

The customers say that

She certainly can can-can.

Is there anyone besides my mother who recognizes the song stylings of Irving Berlin? No? Too bad, that man had quite the way with words. Rappers would do well to take some lessons from him!

It was 104 degrees yesterday and today it is supposed to be cooler at about 100 degrees. Suzanne has decided that playing outside is not high on her list of things to do. She wouldn't even go to the mailbox with me. She insisted that she ride in her little red car while I pushed. Then she went and banged on the neighbors' door to let her in since I was taking too much time watering the droopy flowers.

Suzanne will never know the joys of living in a house sans air conditioning. Mainly because I will have air conditioning until my dying day. I like to be cool and I don't mind paying for it. And since we have a 2-story house, it is pretty much a necessity if you plan on actually getting any sleep at night.

Today I met with her old physical therapist to see about getting some fixes for her new tricycle. Grandma and Grandpa Hunter got Suzanne the Cadillac of tricycles for her birthday, but of course her little legs are still too short to reach the pedals. Ryan came through, however, and with the aide of a pool noodle, a drill, and some velcro, we now have a functional vehicle for her. Sounds crazy, but I'll take some pictures later to show you how it works. Half the battle for Suzanne is me knowing the right people to talk to when I have questions about these kinds of things.

I would take the pictures today, but it is HOT so we'll have to wait for Suzanne to decide that she wants to go out again. Maybe when it gets down to 90...

The good fireworks are in Washougal

What a whirlwind week it's been! The 4th of July was wonderful with lots of fireworks. Suzanne didn't like all the booming, but she enjoyed the barbecue at the neighbors. Then there was Kirk's birthday party at the Portland Beavers baseball game on Sunday. The Beavers are a Triple A farm team for the San Diego Padres, so the talent level is pretty high. There was even a home run hit completely out of the park. Of course, the innocent motorist driving by on SE 18th probably didn't appreciate getting whacked by a baseball very much...

I guess I take Suzanne for granted, but all the people we were with were astonished at her ability to have fun and pay attention during a 9 inning game. It was even an afternoon game, during prime napping time, but Suzanne didn't start to fade until the 8th, and then a walk around the concourse cured that. Of course, she was asleep within 2 minutes of getting into the car but heck, we were only going home.

Actually, we are quite blessed with both of our kids. On more than one occasion, we have gotten the "you're bringing your kids?" gasp, but our kids usually manage to impress and amaze onlookers. Oh, perfect little angels they are not, but stick them in public where there is fun to be had and they rise to the occasion. My kids like to go places and they know that if they don't behave, they stay home. All I ever have to do it threaten to cut Kirk off from his social activity and he snaps right back in line. Turns out that Suzanne is much the same way.

I suppose this could also mean that it is downright dull at home and anywhere else is a step up...

Tomorrow Suzanne gets to participate in a professional photo shoot for her alma mater, the PRIDE Center. Part of what they have to do is schmooze for funding, so they are taking happy kid photos at their wonderful playground. Since Suzanne looks happy about 90 percent of the time, she'll be a good model. She's been in a couple of these all ready, which would explain why she always knows to look in the camera and smile. She's getting quite the Cheshire Cat grin.

Suzanne sells seashells by the seashore

We have returned from the seashore! From Seaside, Oregon actually, and it was quite fun. The last time we took the kids to the beach, Suzanne was 3 months old. This time was a lot of fun and Kirk now has something good to write about his summer vacation...

Monday was a beach day. Suzanne liked the ocean, but she liked digging better. She also spent quite a bit of time eating the sand. I guess something is missing in her diet like clam shells or sand dollars or kelp. Kirk went straight for the waves. If you find a red ball with yellow stars bobbing in the waves, that's ours. We lost it the very first day...

Tuesday was a town day. For those of you not familiar with Seaside, it has a rich history as a tourist attraction. That is a nice way of saying that it is kind of a tacky little town with odd things to do. Actually, it is much nicer than it used to be, but the bumper cars are still a must-see. In fact, Grandpa Frank probably had more fun than anyone on the bumper cars.

Then we had a traditional Hunter/Brown family meal at the venerable Pig-n-Pancake. My mom and I would go here every day, but my sister believes that one trip is enough. They have umpty-bazillion kinds of pancakes--how can one visit possibly be enough?

We even managed to squeeze in Suzanne's first ride on the merry-go-round. About half-way through the ride she quit clutching cousin Hilary's neck and decided it was a fun thing.

The next day was excursion day with a trip down to Tillamook to go to the Naval Air Museum and the famous Tillamook Cheese Factory. Needless to say, the cheese factory was the highlight as it involved tasting, one of Suzanne's favorite activities. If you're ever there, don't hesitate to try the Wild Huckleberry ice cream. The other berries pale in comparison...

Thursday was a shopping/rain day. Mom and I took the kids up to Gearhart to a lovely cafe called Pacific Way Bakery & Cafe. The crab and artichoke ravioli was so good I nearly snorted it down. Suzanne had a grilled cheese panini and thought it was wonderful. From Hwy 101 north or south, take the Gearhart City Center turn. Go to the first stop sign and park. Don't worry, there's only the one stop sign so it's easy to find. When you hit the ocean, you've gone too far...

Gosh, I'm getting hungry again as I write this travelogue. I will end with another wonderful Greg Brown picture, Kirk at Sunset...

A River in Egypt

My gosh, it's been weeks since I've posted! I could go on about how busy it's been with the end of the school year or getting ready for vacation, or some other blather, but what it really boils down to is my baby is getting older and I'm in denial...deeeeeep denial...about the whole thing.

Suzanne turned 3 last Sunday. Her last day of baby school was Monday and her last speech/PT was Thursday. Now she enters the world of "Public School." It's just that she's been so protected within the Early Intervention sphere and especially at PRIDE that I'm having a little difficulty with the thought of my little precious mixing and mingling with kids who aren't like her. Reverse snobbery in a way.

Greg's mom came to see us for Suzanne's birthday, which was nice. I managed to get a cake made while they were out buying Pat a new car. We took a drive to try out the GPS system, went to have some Mexican food and just had a nice evening. Sunday was much the same. Here are some before/after pictures of Suzanne...

BTW, Pat--you should come see us more often. You are a good influence on your son. He went out and bought a headboard for the guest bed just because you were coming. If you came more often I would probably get all of my household projects done!!

I've got more pictures of Suzanne's last day at PRIDE coming--my photographer/husband hasn't had time to photoshop them yet. I really can't say enough about all the wonderful folks at PRIDE. They care so much about the little kids and it shows. Suzanne went to her preschool visitation this week and totally took over the joint. She blew away the 3 teachers with her independence and self assurance. They might have thought she was going to be a demure, sweet little girl, but they quickly figured out that Suzanne will keep them on top of their game because she demands excellence from everyone she meets. And she does it with a smile and a hug.

I may be in denial about Suzanne turning 3, but Suzanne is more than ready to go out and conquer the Washougal Preschool Program.

2 good days...

Suzanne's birthday is looming. She will be 3 on June 17th and I can hardly believe it. On her first birthday (when this picture was taken with her Aunt Susan) she couldn't even pull herself up on the furniture--now she's climbing to the ceiling. "To Infinity & Beyond!" as Buzz Lightyear says.

Yesterday she followed a 2-part instruction. We were in my bedroom and she kept trying to close the door on me. I told her, partly in sign, to leave the door open and find her brother. She had to think about it for a second, but then she did what I asked!! If I get a couple of these little victories every day, we'll really be making some progress.

She also invented a new game. She took her baby doll and stood her up against the wall. Then she took one of Kirk's baseballs and tried to play catch. Turns out that when the ball hit the baby, it rolled back to her. She played this way for quite a while. Then she decided to try whacking the baby's head with the ball. Good thing the baby has a hard head...

Today she is mad at me. She wanted to use her play table to climb to the top of her dresser, so her mean old mommy just took the legs off the table. If you heard a lot of booing and hooing from the direction of Washougal, that was her. She is now consoling herself by sitting on my bed and watching Martha Stewart. She chose the channel, not me. I think she is really starting to take after her Aunt Susie!

What's In a Name...

It is such an exciting moment in a parent's life when their darling child begins to speak. Kirk started talking in earnest at 18 months and has yet to shut up about anything. He is at ease in nearly every situation and is quite deft at expressing himself. In fact, he's yakking at me while I type this--it's all about the Relay for Life, which he and Greg participated in last weekend. They camped out all night and he played with his friends and slept under the stars, and checked out the luminaria, and played with his friends...yadda, yadda, yadda.

Suzanne talks a lot, but mainly in Russian. At least it sounds like Russian. She has a lot of single words, but doesn't put them together very much. In fact, her first word was "dada," which totally made Greg's day 2 years ago when she said it. She is learning everyone's name, too--except for mine. I don't know why she won't say "mama" because usually M sounds are easier. She says "me" and "maymen" which actually means amen. Gosh, she can say "Kirkie" which has got to be harder than "mama" and Ok for Oscar. She can even say Emmy (more Ms). Maybe it's because she's with me so much that I just blend into the scenery.

Whatever it is, I'm finding myself getting a little impatient at the wait. She's going to be 3 this month, which is astonishing. She's made tremendous progress in her life, with this one exception, so I shouldn't get too torn up about it. And it makes her daddy feel good every time she runs to the door to welcome him home after work. I should be content with that, right?

I've settled for a lot of things in my life, but this is not an area where I want to settle or make do. I want my daughter to recognize me as a person who is important to her, not just a presence in the background. I think a lot of women settle for being that presence in the background, but when you do that you're relegating yourself to the status of the furniture or the wallpaper. You start to become invisible to others and to yourself. The old saying is that children should be seen and not heard--it doesn't say anything about mothers...

Suzanne Van GO!

Want to know what awful thing Suzanne did yesterday? Well, I'm not going to tell you!! It was such a horror that I don't want to relive it. Suffice it to say that while the floor is now clean, I will be chipping the dried pancake batter off the kitchen chairs and an end table for awhile longer.

The good news is that she may have some artistic talent. The "finger paints" on the end table are nice and swirly if you don't take into account the actual medium...

Needless to say, this is what I looked like yesterday. In fact, this is how I look on most days anymore. The Makeover Queen needs her own makeover...

I think that there is a book missing in my repertoire of Down Syndrome material. Most of what I've seen talks about the physical symptoms of DS or the mental issues or other clinical stuff. Then there are the plethora of "feel good" books about what a wonderful and uplifting privilege it is to have a child with DS. That is true--it is a wonderful privilege to have a DS child. To a point...

I have yet to find a book that talks about navigating the day-to-day, mind boggling, spirit crushing onslaught of activity that I find myself inundated with. (Sorry about ending the sentence with a preposition--I really couldn't care less.) The point is, there should be some kind of manual or guidelines that lays things out. Some helpful hints like Heloise used to dispense...

For example, "Beware of hardwood floors. They do not provide resistance when child is learning to crawl and when they can walk, hardwood is merely another item on which to bonk one's head." Or how about, "At first birthday, gather all relatives and friends to help install ceiling shelves. Begin moving all items, including cotton balls, liquids, and kleenex to upper storage, completing task on or before 2nd birthday."

It should also contain a list of things you should get by the caseload, such as packing tape and bungee cords. You will use these to tape and strap shut EVERYTHING that cannot be suspended from the ceiling. And let us not forget the doorknobs. If you have the lever kind that are so popular now, plan on replacing each and every one of them with the round, slick kind. And put deadbolts or chains on every door, inside and out. Step stools or kitchen ladders--get rid of them immediately!!! I don't care if your spouse has to toss you in the air like a cheerleader to get the olive oil off of the ceiling shelf--DS kids do not need any help in the climbing department.

And chairs or sofas in general--you might want to consider replacing your furniture with a mattress and some beanbag chairs.

Well, that's all for now folks. I'll get started on the topic of Yard & Garden Safety at another time!

But seriously, folks...

Big sigh! I am feeling every bit of my 47 years today. My joints ache, everything is sagging, and if it weren't for coffee, I'd have no incentive to get up in the morning. Suzanne did something yesterday that I still can hardly believe and yet... I take yesterday's event as conclusive proof that God does exist and that He sends angels to keep track of children with an extraordinary ability to get into hair-raising situations.

I think we've established the fact that Suzanne is a climber. If not, let me say emphatically that Suzanne can climb anything she sets her mind to. We shut a lot of doors around here just to keep her out of and off of things. Suzanne has also embraced the door shutting. She hasn't mastered opening yet, but it is just a matter of time and about 1 more inch in height.

My lovely niece, Hilary, stays with us a couple nights a week and yesterday morning she was hustling around getting ready for work. While she understands Suzanne's capabilities, in the rush of getting to work on time she usually manages to forget something and this week it was the closing of the upstairs doors. The guest bathroom is not a place that Suzanne gets to go that often, especially now that she has forsaken her potty chair (momentarily I hope). That was the door that my darling Hil left open. After she left, Suzanne took it upon herself to go upstairs and check, and sure enough--the forbidden bathroom was wide open. Her bedroom door was also open, so she obligingly closed it and then marched down the hall to the bathroom.

I was in the bedroom folding the never-ending mass of laundry and heard doors closing, which didn't alarm me. In fact, I looked out in the hall, saw Suzanne's door was closed and assumed she was on the inside playing--this happens all the time. It wasn't until I heard the water and the yelling that I realized she was in the bathroom.

Let me cast the vision for you...the guest bathroom has no window. Suzanne shuts the door and is enveloped in total darkness, except for the crack at the bottom of the door. Then, she climbs up on the toilet (Kirk is a fanatic about keeping the lid down). Then, in darkness, she climbs up on the counter and then into the sink where she gets stuck in the basin like an upside down turtle. Then she turns on the water, gets all wet, and turns it off again. This is when I find her babbling merrily away.

She could have fallen off the counter, she could have turned on the hot water, it could have turned out very badly. As I said earlier, there are angels who watch over children, and Suzanne's angel gets quite a workout.

I realize that most folks (including my family) who spend actual time with me think I'm somewhat of a shrill alarmist when it comes to Suzanne. Well, I'm not an alarmist and if people would take me seriously, I wouldn't have to be so shrill. This is what happens when you spend your entire life making people laugh--no one takes you seriously.

I'm not asking for much. Just shut a few doors, keep your purses out of reach, and be aware that it only takes a second for Suzanne to think up something new. You don't have to take me seriously (I'm only the mother, right?) but DO NOT underestimate Suzanne.

Suzanna and the 'Ventures

My kids lead an interesting life. It's not so much that we lavish spendy toys on them or take them on luxurious vacations, we just DO stuff with them. When Kirk was little he called his weekend outings with daddy his "'ventures." For those of you who don't recognize Kirk's tendency to chop off the first syllable of words, this means adventures. He had such a cute way of speaking when he was 3, either dropping or adding first syllables... (re)mote, (con)troller, rememberies (memories), (Ken)Tucky Fried Chicken. Now he's quite sanctimonious about pronouncing words correctly. I miss the syllable dropping...

Kirk's weekend 'ventures started at 9 a.m. Saturday with a 1.5K run for the Washougal Schools Foundation. Then he had little league at 1 p.m. followed by a camping trip to The Dalles after that. While at The Dalles they went to a train slide show (which I won't bother to explain for those of you who aren't into trains), he saw his friends the Pohlls and the Shaws, slept in the back of the pickup, had breakfast at his train Grandma's and then came home.

Suzanne and I had a girls weekend. Went went to the run with Kirk and cheered him on as he crossed the finish line. Then she helped me pull some weeds in the garden. We didn't go to the game because she was cranky and it was in the middle of nap time. After a long nap I painted her toenails bright orange (no pale pink for my Suzanne!) and then we played until it was time to go to dinner with my Aunt Connie. Aunt Connie recently returned from a 2 week trip to the South of France and she had lots of pictures and vivid descriptions of everything she did. Aunt Connie has never been out to dinner with Suzanne, so she was pleasantly surprised at how well she behaved.

The interesting part of dinner was the booster seat. Suzanne usually gets to sit in a high chair because high chairs have seat belts. Seat belts which confine children to a particular spot and which keep them from sliding under the table and escaping. Booster seats rarely have seat belts. Suzanne did really well until she was finished with her dinner and started looking for a new 'venture. Only then did she realize that she was free to slide under the table and head out on her own. She was so silent about it that if she hadn't touched my pant leg, I might not have noticed until she was helping the hostess seat the guests! Now, neither my aunt nor my niece, who were sitting facing her, saw a thing. Suzanne is shaping up to be a really good escape artist.

There is a reason that I put Suzanne in a cart whenever I'm at a store. If no carts are available, she goes in her stroller. Greg thought he could take her through the grocery store on foot a couple of weeks back. Ha Ha Ha...nice try, honey! She protested every inch of the way and pitched a little fit when his hands were full of stuff, then sat down and refused to move. She wanted to go where she wanted to go and at least if she's in a cart, you can roll her in spite of the protesting.

After dinner we ended up at Fred Meyer (a one stop shopping center, for those of you who don't live on the west coast). You see some interesting people at 9 p.m. on a Saturday--not the creepy types, they hang out at Walmart. You can tell who has a date and are getting provisions vs. those who do not have a date and are just buying comfort food to take home. And then there are the people watchers like Suzanne and me. She had a pretty good time until exactly 9:27, then it was time to go home. I could tell because she kept making the sign for "go" and yelling it at the top of her lungs. She did her pageant wave past the line of checkers (who all waved back) and we sailed out the door, drove home, and she went to bed. A fine evening it was!

So you see, you can have adventures wherever you go if you're with the right person. Suzanne is the girl to have adventures with!

It's not how you start, it's how you finish!

"Song Titles for $100, Alex!"

For those of you who have never been to a big Mary Kay event, you might not have heard this song. Too bad for you, since it has a nice beat and you can dance to it! And while the message is a bit schmaltzy, it is very true--it's not how you start, it's how you finish.

Suzanne is a prime example. She had a rather humble beginning at only 6 lbs. 11 0z. To give you a little perspective, she's wearing a 0 to 3 month dress and she is just swimming in it. In fact, the bloomers wouldn't even stay on her little fanny because she was so scrawny. We probably should have gotten a few preemie outfits just so we didn't lose her in her clothes!

But I'm not really thinking that much about Suzanne today. She's booing and hooing in her bedroom right now because her mean mommy thinks she needs an early nap. Too bad Sister! You're just going to have to trust that I know what's best for you...

No, I'm really thinking about someone else who is equally special to me. Today I'm thinking a lot about my dad. My dad and I have always had a special relationship--I was the one who would go fishing with him, but I wouldn't touch the worms or the fish. I'd go to the dump with him, but he wouldn't let me heave the trash over the side. And I was the only one who had the patience to help him hitch up the trailer that I talked him into buying. I was 8 at the time.

He has a very special anniversary this month, which epitomizes my phrase of the day, "it's not how you start, it's how you finish." You see, my dad made a decision 20 years ago that not only changed his life, it changed all of ours too. Because of his decision to change his life, my kids have the best grandfather that I could ever ask for. My parents celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary last November, but I think this ranks right up there as equally momentous.

Greg, the kids and I are going on vacation with my parents in June. In fact, we do this every couple of years because we like being together. 20 years ago this never would have happened, but now my son gets to look forward to taking his grandpa on the bumper cars in Seaside. The big joke is that my family likes to travel in packs. We've been on 2 cruises with them (3 for Susan and Jim) and another fun trip to the beach (6 days, 7 adults, 2 kids, 1 dog, 1 house, no fatalities). We enjoy each other's company--imagine that.

So Dad, know that you are loved and appreciated. And please forgive me for putting the idea in Kirk's head about the bumper cars...

Dancing Queen Bee

Suzanne has definite likes and dislikes with regard to televised entertainment. She...

Likes real people
Dislikes cartoons
Likes shows with color and action
Dislikes slowness
Likes Elmo
Dislikes Cookie Monster (how do you not like Cookie Monster?)
Likes any show that requires clapping and cheering

LOVES Dancing With the Stars!

I think this falls under the category of color and action. She also really likes hockey. I don't even want to think about that...

Last night we were watching DWTS and Suzanne was doing her best impression of Arthur Murray. When she sees the dancers she actually tries to imitate them. I'm certain that dance will be a huge part of Suzanne's life if we find the right class and instructor who understands the mechanics of a child with Down Syndrome. Just because she can do the splits both ways doesn't mean that it is necessarily a good thing. The object is to build strength in all of her muscle groups, which Ryan (our beloved physical therapist) has been working on for nearly 2 years now. She can do some amazing things and she's learning more all the time.

In fact, I caught her walking up and down the bleachers during Kirk's baseball game last night. Two weeks ago she was too scared of falling underneath to even try it and now she would scramble right up to the top if I'd let her. She does have a problem with the visual aspect of going down things, but when she gets the hang of it, watch out!

And so I think of things like tutus and tights and all the fun things that girls should get to do when they're little. Even I got to be a ballerina once and it is something I've always remembered fondly. I'm not sure my mother remembers it that fondly--from what I understand those costumes were a real pain to make!

Suzanne is going to have a lot of things happen in her life in the next few months, what with preschool and anything else I can find to shave the tomboy edges off of her. Perhaps I'll get to be a baseball/dance mom--I can but dream!


Jennie

PS - the weather is getting nice so get outside and plant some flowers--it is very therapeutic. Except you folks in Klamath Falls--you should wait a couple more weeks. Do what I'm constantly telling Suzanne...wait, wait!!

The Children We Deserve

Not long after Suzanne was born we got a call from someone who told us that God had given us what we deserved. This remark was intended to hurt us, but since it came from a very sick person, we considered the source and blew it off. Her loss, because Suzanne is a little ray of sunshine to everyone she meets. We will never allow her to be a part of Suzanne's life because Suzanne deserves to receive as much love as she gives.

I have pondered this remark from time to time, though, and while this person meant it in a cruel way, there is a lot of truth to it. In many ways I think we get kids who are way too good for us and our challenge is to raise them without botching it up too much. Take Kirk for example--he has a natural honesty and frankness about him that is both shocking and endearing. Like the time he and Greg went to Bi-Mart to buy another plunger. (We had 3 toilets and only 2 plungers and I firmly believe that each toilet deserves its own plunger.) Anyway, as they were checking out, Kirk strikes up a conversation with the cashier and calmly informs her that they were buying the plunger "because Daddy overloads the toilet." Poor Greg--I'm not sure he's ever been back to Bi-Mart since then! The question is, how do we teach Kirk tact and discretion without squelching the very thing that makes him so interesting?

And then there's Suzanne. This has been a week of huge learning, but at the same time we are trying to teach her boundaries. The two don't go together as far as Suzanne is concerned. I was mulling this over awhile back when we met another couple with 2 children. The mother is a lovely young woman who takes issue with germs--she would never allow the 5 second rule. Most of us get over the cleanliness issue with the second child, but I doubt that she ever will. Hey, she has the kind of nice clean home that I can only dream about so more power to her.

But I was thinking about how it would be if Suzanne were her daughter. I don't think she would fare very well with Suzanne because Suzanne insists upon controlling her own environment. I have given up on controlling Suzanne's environment, it's just not feasible. About the second time she found poop nuggets all over the bedroom floor we'd probably have to ship her off to the spa for some aromatherapy and a relaxing facial.

So I guess in some ways we do get the children we deserve. I may not like Suzanne's learning process or the control she has over my life, but I can live with it (grumbling all the way...).

And speaking of the spa, should anyone in my viewing audience wish to take pity on me, please nominate me for a makeover at http://1041thefish.com/makeovermonday.aspx . I could nominate myself, but that seems a bit pathetic. Alright, begging for nominations on a blog is equally pathetic but I have no dignity left.

(sigh....) Let's go see what Suzanne has in store for me today!