Tuesday, February 8, 2011

Peter

Isn't he adorable?  This sweet boy is in an orphanage in Eastern Europe and he desperately needs your help.
Here is the message copied from an amazing mama of 3 boys(one of the boys is a twin and he sports the extra 21st chromosome) and a big advocate for those with Down Syndrome.... http://taylorvillethree21.blogspot.com/2011/02/urgent-update-on-peter.html
OK EVERYONE!!! The gorgeous little boy is named Peter, his forever family is in the beginning stages of bringing him home. HOWEVER, we now have word that Peter has had surgery and "is not doing well". Not doing well means Peter's life is LITERALLY AT STAKE.

Peter's forever family literally does NOT have the luxury of time to raise funds for him. Patti is doing that RIGHT NOW. As we speak his life hangs in the balance and YOU can make all the difference in the world. DONATE, DONATE ANYTHING YOU CAN. His family wants him home NOW, but they need YOUR help....please don't delay.

PRAY AS HARD AS YOU CAN. SHARE WITH EVERYONE YOU KNOW. PRAY GOD CONTROLS HIS PULMONARY HYPERTENSION (I believe that is the main issue because the RR site says he has a high degree of pulmonary hypertension) THIS FAMILY NEEDS TO GET HIM HOME AND LET THE DOCTORS HERE TREAT HIM. NOW.

There is $11,381.50 in his fund right now. We have until FRIDAY FEBRUARY 11th, 2010 at midnight to save him. Patti is graciously extending his fundraiser by one day. "One day? Just one day?", you may ask. Well this is what I have to say to that question, "THAT ONE day could literally be the day that saves Peter's life."

PURE LOVE GIVEAWAY <-----click that link and it will take you to the page to donate, just let the sidebar load and you can donate via Paypal right there. OR Mail a check out ASAP to Reece's Rainbow

P.O. Box 4024

Gaithersburg, MD 20885

Friday, February 4, 2011

Happy 6th Birthday Kate!

It is hard to believe how fast the years have gone by.  Kate has turned into such a beautiful little girl.  I say little because even though she has gotten so big and she insists that she is not little anymore, she still is my little girl.  I don't want her to grow up!  Kate is quite the character, with her great imagination.  I love watching her play because she always comes up with the funniest things.  Just the other day,she told me her pet toy mouse has Down Syndrome and has a hard time hearing, but that it is ok.

This year she started off at the same school she had been at when she was in preschool.  Well then, things got rough financially, so we decided to pull her out and homeschool for the rest of the year as the public school in our district sucks.  I had already seen how well she did last year and one of our concerns this year was that she wasn't going to be challenged enough.  Well, being at home, I have seen just how bright she really is.  She loves doing schoolwork at home and doesn't usually complain as long as it is somewhat fun for her.  She has a pen pal that she writes to, and she writes letters to her Uncle Mike and Poppy(even though he is 20 minutes away.)  She also has started to write stories, which she really enjoys. She pretty much does it all the spelling on her own, and even adds different punctuations in there as well.  She has done amazing with her reading and comprehension.  Just yesterday at the Doctor's office, she sounded out pharmaceutical.  I really love watching her get excited when something that she is learning just clicks.  Since she has been homeschooled, she has joined Daisy Scouts, Awanna(bible study), and recently started cheerleading.  She loves participating in all these activities and getting to be around her friends.

For Kate's birthday, Grandma treated her to some time at the salon getting her hair and makeup done.  She enjoyed being treated like a princess and even brought her princess crown for her hair.  Tomorrow, we are just having a little family party, which includes her friend, Mya that she has been talking non-stop about her coming!

Kate has definitely made these past 6 years memorable.  She is such a sweet, funny, intelligent, kind, chatty girl, who sometimes can be sassy, but that is ok!

Hopefully after the weekend, I will be able to post pics of the princess.

Tuesday, February 1, 2011

The Challenges Of Raising A Child With Down Syndrome

Often people wonder about the challenges that go along with raising a child with Down Syndrome, so I thought I would share my experiences.


  • Having to constantly deal with Kylee's happiness can be very challenging.  She almost always wakes up happy, even if she just spent half of the night awake playing.  It's not easy to wake up to that smiley, happy girl, but alas, it has to be done.
  • Since having Kylee, I've encountered a great support system online and in real life.  When you have a child with Down Syndrome, you acquire a great, new family.  Having such great support can be really hard sometimes, but it is what we do to help each other.
  • Also since having Kylee, I've come to appreciate the little things more.  When Kate was younger and reaching milestones, I was excited, but I don't think I ever got so excited about her being able to stack blocks or point to certain objects in a book.  When you have a child with Down Syndrome, you tend to get excited over every. little. milestone.  It's a lot of work to get all excited, but hopefully it will get easier.
  • I have come to have more respect for people that don't fit the perfect mold of society.  Oh, if only I could go back to not feeling this way.
  • Kylee can be very sweet and when she wants to she will give you a hug, but she hasn't gotten to the point yet where she gives out hugs all the time.  When I volunteered at a Down Syndrome camp this past summer, the kids there just wanted to hug on you all the time.  Experiencing that was hard, but I didn't want to make them feel bad so I just sucked it up and received many hugs.  I'm hoping that Kylee won't be that way because I can only imagine it is hard to feel that kind of love from your child.
  • Seeing the therapists get excited about the progress that Kylee continues to make is another challenge. I don't understand how they can get so excited, but whatever, I just humor them and pretend I'm excited too.
  • Since Kylee was born, she has been so easy going and has had slept through the night since she was born.  Luckily, at the beginning we were told to wake her up for feedings, but after a few months, we had the dreaded task of sleeping all night. 

Hopefully, overcoming these challenges will get easier.  Having to deal with this happy, sweet girl all the time makes it hard.... Bazinga(for those who have watched Big Bang Theory, you will get that comment)

Anyone else care to share their challenges?