Exceptional Saturday

The county we live in hosted a fantastic event this past Saturday called Exceptional Saturday. It was held at the local high school. There were snacks,


crafts,





and resource tables. (Sorry no pictures of the resource tables...I was too busy grabbing all the great information)

The entire event was free and there were tons of volunteers helping the kids with their crafts and just there to make the day enjoyable. The entire event was AWESOME, but the highlight for ME was a project called: Take me Home. The Sheriff's Department was there with their camera and a page form to be filled out by the parents (if they wanted which I did). They snapped a couple pictures of Little Miss and entered our contact information into their computer data base.


The idea is that if M ever gets lost they will know how to find us. I'd never heard of a program like this before, but I think it's a pretty genius idea. I pray that this program will never EVER be needed, but I'm thankful that it exists. I know a lot of the families I follow and I personally seek out available resources, no matter how obscure. I never thought to ask our local Sheriff's department about anything like the Take Me Home project. Does your city or county offer something like the Take me Home Project.

My babies are 15 months old!

The best toy in the house is a box.

Going outside is pretty awesome too though.

Of course, making a mockery of the gyro bowl is a guilty pleasure for these boys.

Who painted the babies?!?


Story time is their favorite time.

Cuddle time is my favorite time :-)


They're both growing so fast. They're active, inquisitive, and love to be loved. They're all getting to the age (Little Miss included) where they enjoy playing with each other. There are plenty of battles over coveted toys, but in the grand scheme of things they each love on each other more often than they going to blows.

(yes, M's foot is on Ben's head...these are the pictures I get with 3 littles!) ;0) Very truly God has blessed our family!

Happy Heart Days and Sad "See You Laters"

Yesterday was Little Miss's Happy Heart Day. Her special day was overshadowed in expectation of today. On Jan 26, 2009 she had open heart surgery. She's a warrior, a survivor, and has beat the odds that are stacked against her. We love this little girl and couldn't imagine our lives without her in it.
At 4 months old she went from this...


to this in 2012 (yay we're SUPER blessed)...


However today, we're entering a new chapter...


We have to say goodbye for a little while to the very bestest playground player!


The littles are always happy to see him walk through the door at the end of the day, their wait is gonna be a lot longer in this chapter.


Please keep the kiddos and their Daddy (my best friend) in your prayers. This will be our 4th, Marissa's 2nd, and the boys 1st "see you later" so the littles don't understand what is happening and I don't think Daddy realizes how much he'll be missed.



We love you and miss you so very fiercely!! Our hearts are incomplete with you being gone.

Post Op Tonsilectomy

Little Miss had her tonsils and adenoids removed on January 13 at UAB. She had a rough recovery, but had strong meds to help her through the pain. We're at the end of week 2 post op and she is definitely back to herself. She's watching Barney like a champ, asking for cheerios all day long, and give her brothers a run for their money. She hasn't been to school since her surgery though. I can tell she misses her teachers, friends, and riding on the bus. (She specifically asks about the bus every morning.)

I've own this book for a while. Actually I got it as a Christmas gift shortly after Little Miss was born from my sister. I've looked at it here and there, but I just now started putting it to use. Little Miss is picking up quickly.

(She's pointing to her name) :-D


And Little Miss LOVES puzzles. She plays with puzzles all day long. This particular puzzle gives her some trouble because of the sun piece. She has a hard time line up the suns' rays. Well, she's got it mastered now.



And like all individuals with Down Syndrome she has low muscle tone, so we had to throw in some physical therapy too.


The boys were kept around to help M with her alphabet. We can all see how interested they were with that book.




So, we're back on the road to some sanity...as much as what can be found with these 3 around.

Meeting Friends

Thanks so our good fortune we were able to meet up with a fellow facebooking and blogger friend @ Penny's Peeps on Monday... She happened to be passing through our city so we planned an impromptu lunch date.

First things first for Little Miss and Wyatt...where to sit and eat.



That is until they realized there was a playland there!




There will definitely be many more visits for these two!

We're going on a car ride...

The 5 of us were supposed to drive to Birmingham tomorrow for Little Miss to have her tonsils and adenoids removed at UAB. She's having this procedure because she has Sleep Apnea.


Unfortunately Baby A (he's the one with no pants on) got sick with croup. :-( That means no couped up car rides for him and Little Miss because she CAN NOT get sick.


Baby Bear is perfectly fine and not getting mixed up in the sickness web. See...


Thanks to all my amazing prayer warrior friends and God's many blessings...Little Miss hasn't been infected by her sickly Little Brother. ;0) ...anyone notice the tiny cheerio Brayden is stashing for later on his neck?!? lol


So tomorrow Daddy and Little M will make the long trek (4-5 hours) "up north" for the surgery we've been waiting almost a year to have! Please continue to keep her in your prayers. It'll be a long couple days for her and Daddy.

Must See TV

Hidden Angels: American Families Saving Children With Down Syndrome

This story is inspiring and heart wrenching. May you each be called to act in your own way: to donate, adopt, or to pray for the children looking for their forever families. Go ABC for bringing to light the unseen children looking for their families! Go Reece's Rainbow for bridging the gap for these children!