Snacktime! and a Turning Point for me

John Michael is almost 19 months old. He's drinking more from a sippy cup these days -- milk and OJ and sometimes diluted apple juice. He can use a straw very well, too, but these lightweight disposable cups are easier for him to maneuver. Psst, don't tell him it's an older girly princess cup of Greta's. He hasn't noticed yet. BUT! Yesterday, I gave him milk in a Dora the Explorer cup and I asked, "Where's Dora?" With his middle finger, he pointed to Dora and said Dih Dih. Another word! Yay! Now we have Dada, Bap for bath or water, Eh Duh for Greta, "K" for big brother Nic and Cat, and Dih Dih for Dora.

Check this out! He can reach and put his sippy cup in the cup holder of his high chair tray. We're beginning to work on simple puzzles now.

He loves snacking on graham crackers or baby Gold Fish crackers and orange juice. His pincer grasp is getting better. He used to pick up food with 3 or more fingers and shove it in. He's working on using his index finger more, although he still points with his middle finger more often than not.

It looks like he has a headache, but he's actually playing peek-a-boo and trying to hide his eyes from me. It's so funny, I can never keep a straight face! John Michael also will shake everyone's hand and give high-five's. He's very social and loves to get peoples' attention by forcing eye contact.

So here's my "Turning Point." I brought Anna to the racquet club this morning for summer tennis camp. BJM (before John Michael) I used to play tennis at least once a week, on a team or just fun doubles matches. Somehow as he's grown and his delays are more obvious, I haven't had the courage to put him in the play care room at the club so I could play tennis or exercise. As a result... well, I'm not physical enough.

On our way out, I decided to pop in the play care room and ask the woman there if there were slower times and whether they would take JM. It turns out that every morning from 9:30 to 11, the 4-6 year olds go outside to play on the basketball courts so the room would be quieter with kids more his size.

I went through the diagnosis, explained he's healthy as a bear -- just delayed in some areas. I was choked up and on the verge of tears the entire time I was talking with her. She watched him crawl over to the shelf, pull out some big plastic dump trucks and start pushing them around. She asked a few questions about whether he could eat Gold Fish (yes) and drink from a sippy cup (yes) and whether he was OK with strangers (not always, but a Binky will help). She remembered Greta from the past and asked if she would be joining him (yes!). After watching him play contentedly for a few minutes, she said he'd do fine in there and that it would be good for me and him. Before we left, she knelt down, looked John Michael in the eyes, and spoke directly to him and welcomed him to come anytime. I smiled, thanked her and said, "I promise!"

I left there with a load lifted off my shoulders. I'm still emotional typing this. It's been 2 years since I've played tennis. It's the only sport I thoroughly enjoy and I miss the physical and social aspect of it. Last year Nic and Anna got to play while I stayed home with a baby. Now it's my turn. I think this might be a great summer.

Met another new blogging friend...

Saturday was one of those super-busy, every minute of the day is planned, fun days where I really didn't lift a finger beyond vacuuming the living room and entry. We started with Greta's Trik-a-thon at preschool. She rode 15 laps around her school on her trike and raised some money for her school in pledges.

Anna joined us. The girls had fun "hanging" after lunch.

Anna adores John Michael. Seriously!

She and Greta can't get enough of him and

Greta gets jealous when Anna "takes over".

Below: Saturday afternoon, some local blogging moms met up with Chrystal and Malea of "One More, More than One" who were visiting Sheree and Gabby for the weekend.

L to R: Sheridan, Gabby, Malea, and John Michael

And us moms... Chrystal and Malea, Monica (me) and John Michael, Sheree and Gabby, and Lisa and Sheridan.

We're all going to the Convention. How 'bout you?

Come visit us at DS Bloggers so we can meet you at the Convention, too. You can also check out my previous post for more information.

"DS Blogger" ID Tags for bloggers going to the NDSC Convention

If you're someone who blogs about Down syndrome and you're headed to Sacramento this summer for the National Down Syndrome Congress convention, here's a fun way we can identify each other.

Check out our new blog, DS Bloggers.

If you send me your name, blog name and URL, we'll add you to our list and create a custom DS Blogger ID badge to wear to the Convention.

This will be an easy way to visually identify other Ds bloggers who we may not recognize in person. What a great way to strike up a conversation and forge new friendships!

Please share this link with your blogging friends, post to your own blog, add it to your Facebook, and grab a button.

We're also working on finding a time to meet. More on that in the coming weeks.

My team members are: Jennifer Varanini Sanchez of Three's a Charm, Sheree Pham of The Phamily Blog, and Lisa Lindsey of Genetically Enhanced. Come check it out and register your blog.

Life's More Fun with Friends and NDSC meetup

John Michael enjoyed having two of his friends come over to play yesterday. Gabby came with her mom, Sheree, and Sheridan came with his mom, Lisa. It was so fun to see them interact together. Sheridan was showing off his new sitting up moves. Gabby was the charmer of the group, smiling and clapping and occasionally knocking John Michael over. He didn't seem to mind, though. John Michael stood at the piano and played a couple notes for his friends. I just love seeing him with his buddies! Melts my heart.

On a separate note... we were discussing how to identify fellow Ds bloggers at the NDSC Convention this summer. If you have ideas from previous conventions, please share. I'll soon be making a separate blog for listing names and blogs of people who would like to meet or be identified somehow at the Convention. I was just thinking how cool it would be to have a special name tag or ribbon to identify us bloggers so we might strike up a conversation. Ideas welcome!

John Michael's cruisin' in the kitchen...

Take a look at what goes on when I'm out of the room!

I just happened to walk back to the kitchen to find John Michael pushing a barstool and walking behind it! He'd already moved it from the other side of the island by the time I saw him! Lucky for me, the camera was close by and had ample battery power.

So awesome!

Respite -- a welcome break!

John Michael loves his "bap" (as he calls it).

What a ham!

I guess he thinks the red bowl is a top hat like the one Nic wore as the Artful Dodger in Oliver! LOL

At our last IFSP meeting, our regional center offered us 48 hours of respite services per quarter. That equals about 16 hours per month or 4 hours per week. My mind quickly turned to thoughts of "me time" and playing tennis and shopping and running errands kid-free. Mostly, I've used the time for dates with my husband, Doug.

The toughest part was trusting someone to watch my little guy. The first woman I interviewed was nice, mid-50's, but smelled heavily like cigarette smoke. If someone smokes, it's their business, but I don't want my child to smell like smoke when he cuddles with someone. The second woman I interviewed over the phone. Each time I called her, she sounded like she was asleep... in the middle of the day. And had no phone etiquette. OK, next!

Third time's a charm. On our third try, I asked her straight up if she smoked and about her experience. She's worked for respite 5 years and has an adult cousin who has Down syndrome. She takes him bowling and hangs out with him. She's pretty young, early 20's, doesn't smoke. Doug and I tested her out with a 2 hour dinner and art show date. All 4 kids really liked her and Anna said, "Mom, you can't judge a book by its cover," referring to her current make up and fashion style. We've used her several times now and I feel comfortable with her. Most importantly, she takes John Michael for walks and they ate lunch in the backyard and she really focuses on him.

Yesterday, we had another woman come over since #3 was spending the weekend with her cousin who has Ds. I'd interviewed #4 over the phone and she sounded great. She's 35, works in the medical field as her day job, and loves kids. We totally hit it off and she fell in love with John Michael (her words) within minutes. Of course, he sealed the deal when he layed in her arms and fell asleep while we were finishing up details.

So now we have two respite workers that we like and it's such a relief knowing our kids are happy and well-cared for while we're away, taking that much-needed break. Ahhhhhh, thank you to our Regional Center and UCP for your services!

Oliver!

Nic as the Artful Dodger, Anna as a street urchin and orphan, and Greta as a rich girl.

Last week, we lived our days and nights for the Oliver! musical. The kids had full dress rehearsals from 5 to 9:30pm 3 days in a row and then 3 performances back to back. They performed the full Broadway version, which for an elementary school, is a tall order.

The kids were excellent! Nic had several solos and some dance moves. Anna sang and danced with the other orphans and Greta came on stage for the Who Will Buy? scene. I was so proud of her getting up in front of an audience 3 times and singing with the cast.

On the final evening of the performance, Greta was brave enough to go up with Nic to take a bow.

Never far behind, John Michael was hoping to get in on the action, too.

Memorial Day in Old Sacramento

If you're headed to the National Down Syndrome Congress Convention this July, you'll want to come check out Old Sacramento.

Established in 1849, Old Sac is bustling with shopping, dining, entertainment, historical attractions and world-renowned museums set within the time of the California Gold Rush and the Transcontinental Railroad.

Over Memorial Day weekend, Old Sac hosted the 36th Annual Sacramento Jazz Festival and Jubilee! It featured more than 60 bands at 23 venues, playing jazz music of all types, including sixteen bands made up of teenage musicians on their own stages.

We had a blast listening in on all the free family jazz venues.

My sweet John Michael.

Definitely all boy first...

Down syndrome is way down on the list of things to describe him...

Riding in an open car pulled by an old 1860's steam engine in Old Sacramento. A jazz banjo band entertained us for the 45 minute ride up and down the Sacramento River.

These brothers have a special bond.

John Michael makes a hard "K" sound for Nick!

I just love love love this little guy's smile. Thanks to Anna for helping me get this great shot. She is the best at getting him to smile for the camera. His eyes are sparkling in this photo!

We took a coffee and ice cream break aboard the Delta King Paddle Boat. Just over the rail we could see and hear below an excellent teenage jazz ensemble play old jazz standards. On the front side of the boat, we saw a huge family of Canadian geese and goslings swimming upstream and one lone turtle sunning himself on a rock jutting out of the river.

Me and my girls, Anna and Greta.

And a very special thank you to the men and women who have served and are serving our country. Freedom comes at a great price and we are grateful for all you do. A special thank you to those who gave their lives so that we might have ours.

PS: Drop me a note if you're coming to the Convention and would like to meet. I'd love to meet some of my blogging friends in person!

Hangin' with his friends at Gabby's 1st Bday Party

John Michael and Joaquin busy playing with Gabby's new mailbox toy.

John Michael is sharing some mail with Joaquin.

The "ball" babies...

Oooh, our special gift to Gabby. Her own T21 Afghan.

I ordered the afghan from Miss E's mom, Chandos, and gave her the color scheme I was thinking -- light pink, dark pink and green. I had no idea it would be a perfect match to Gabby's bedding. How cool is that?!?! Miss Gabby loves her soft blanket and I'm so thankful to Chandos for her talent and eye for color.

It was a perfect afternoon of fun and friends (although the 100 degree temp outside was a slight bother). Us moms, including Lisa with Sheridan, hung out chatting and noshing while our little ones played together inside and the older ones played outside in the pool. Fun fun!

John Michael's 18 month check up

John Michael turned 18 months old yesterday, May 14th.

Today was his 18 month check up. Hurray, my little guy is (finally) growing again. Between 12 and 15 months, he'd had a weight loss and hadn't grown in length. The pediatrician wasn't too concerned since JM had just started crawling and was no longer nursing, which resulted in a slight weight loss.

John Michael weighs 27 lbs 9 oz and is around 50th percentile on the typical kid charts for height and weight. His head circumference is 3rd percentile, which explains why his little toddler bicycle helmet nearly covers his eyes. It looks pretty funny. I'm going to put some more foam in it so it doesn't bother him so much and maybe it'll fit better.

While we were waiting for the doctor, his assistant gave me a check list of milestones for an 18 month old. First question... Does your child walk fast and walk backwards? Uh, no, but he can pull to stand and is starting to cruise... Next... Can he say 4 to 10 words? No, but he can sign 5 or 6 words... Can he climb into and sit in an adult chair? Got me there...

I started to answer the questionnaire, but I got hung up on each question and was writing, "No, but... " When the doctor came in, I asked him for a 12 month old's check list and that was much better. He had met all the milestones except for the verbal communication, which he makes up for with signs.

In so many ways, John Michael's growing by leaps and bounds. He's super-active and engaged. He loves to explore his environment. He likes people and loves to shake hands. He's communicative with body language and some signs. He's pulling himself to stand on everything around him and has recently started cruising. This week he surprised me by using the kitchen barstool as a walker to go a couple feet, step by step.

He can nest cups and stack 2 or 3 blocks, put things "in", can find hidden objects wrapped in a bandana... He pushes cars and trains and balls all over the house. He signs "dog" whenever he sees or hears a dog and says "K" when he sees our cat. He also says "K" for big brother, Nick. He says Dada, but not Mama. He points to objects (with his middle finger!). He vigorously signs "more" when he really wants something, like frozen yogurt tonight. It was so funny, he just kept signing more... I guess it was that good :-)

Over the past several weeks, he has occasionally fallen asleep in his crib after I put him down still awake. This is so much better than always waiting for him to fall asleep in our arms first. He usually sleeps from about 8:00 or 9:00 pm to 6:30 am. If he's teething, we usually have to get up a couple times to soothe him and give him his Binky or some Tylenol.

Below are some photos from this week. In Music Therapy, he got to play a new instrument, the cabasa. It is a fabulous instrument that had him using his fingers, improving his fine motor skills. He loves his MT sessions and stays pretty focused while she's here.

In the other photos, he devoured his first whole apricot. In the last photo, I asked for a bite and he quickly offered it to me. He is understanding so much and following simple directions as well. This is a very exciting time to watch him grow and develop.

My biggest concern is whether he's getting proper nutrition from his food. I try giving a liquid vitamin, but he hates the taste. If anyone has a good website that has ideas for healthy toddler food, please share it here.

Working his fingers on the cabasa.

Loving his apricot. Mmm juicy.

Can Mommy have a bite?

Wordless Wednesday

I love that smile -- even hiding behind the Binky!

Keeping up with the news...

Mom, can we please go out?

Now?

"Does your son have Down syndrome?"

This is the question I was asked earlier today while shopping at Goodwill for more costumes for the Oliver musical.

"Excuse me. Does your son have Down syndrome? He looks like it."

Well, I thought, this could go anywhere. What do you say? "Thanks?"

I just smiled and said, "Yes, he does."

She quickly explained that her nephew has Down syndrome and he's super cute and John Michael's eyes look like her nephew's eyes. He's four, she said, and is learning to sign at a special school. I didn't ask any questions, but she felt like sharing. She didn't hesitate to tell me that "they" (kids with Down syndrome) are all sweet and loving and quiet.

To that, I smiled again, and said, "He's not always quiet, but he's certainly loving and sweet."

She quickly replied, "Oh, I don't mean to say "they" as in grouping them all together, but it does seem that way. They are such beautiful children and I love your son's eyes."

In her own quirky way, she actually touched my heart. I know it was a slightly awkward moment. For me, it was her opening line that got me. Of course, John Michael "looks" like he has Down syndrome, but honestly, that's not what I see. So it took me off guard when someone actually said it out loud.

I see a sweet, loving, stubborn, cute, strong, quick, able toddler, who's making his way in this world one step, one milestone, one victory at a time. And, I'm so glad he's taking me along on his journey.

Happy Mother's Day -- My Favorite Spring Things...

These are a few of my favorite "Spring Things" -- photos from my garden.

I wish all of you moms out there, especially first-time moms, a very special Mother's Day! I am grateful that each one of you has blessed my life in countless ways.

I want to share a very special poem written about mothers by Cardinal Joseph Mindszenty --

The Most Important Person on earth is a mother. She cannot claim the honor of having built Notre Dame Cathedral. She need not. She has built something more magnificent than any Cathedral-a dwelling for an immortal soul, the tiny perfection of her baby's body...The angels have not been blessed with such a grace. They cannot share in God's creative miracle to bring new saints to Heaven. Only a human mother can. Mothers are closer to God the Creator than any other creature; God joins forces with mothers in performing this act of creation...What on God's good earth is more glorious than this: to be a mother?

Happy Mother's Day from me, "John Michael's mom" :-) to you!

Wordy Wednesday -- Bathtime Fun

I love the idea of Wordless Wednesday (well, it's Wednesday on the east coast!), but do you know how hard it is not to write something? So, I'll keep it brief...

Now that he's pulling up to stand, it's almost impossible to keep John Michael sitting. His favorite thing to do while taking a bath is to throw toys out of the tub. When he's not bathing, he throws things into the tub. He also has a newfound love affair with trains, especially Thomas trains. I'm thinking I'll have to pull out Nic's wooden Thomas set out of the attic this summer. John Michael doesn't really suck on toys, but I think I'll wait a little longer since there is probably lots of lead paint on those old trains!

Ahhh!!! I'm going to Scream!!!

Edvard Munch's "The Scream" is exactly how I feel right now!!!

We just received news that the kids' school will be closed now until next Thursday due to the Swine Flu rearing its ugly head. I'm grateful that the school is taking the recommended safety measures, but I'm also starting to worry about all the work that the kids will need to make up before the (very busy) school year ends.

This seriously cramps everyone's style... I feel for the parents who work full-time and don't have the flexibility that I do.

Word to the wise... Be proactive, wash your hands all the time, stay healthy, and while you're at it, eat your vegetables and take your vitamins!!! Ugh!!!