Monday, October 28, 2013

San Francisco–the Drive & Day 1

 

We left around 4:30 p.m. on the 16th.  We have found in our past travels that splitting long drives into 2 chunks makes it so much more bearable for everyone.  Our goal was to make it to Reno, where we had a hotel booked.  It took us a good 9 hours of driving with all our pit stops (including ice cream and a stop at WalMart in Elko)!!

Loaded up and ready to go!

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Lots and lots of nothing!!  I think we were lucky to have seen a dozen cars on this stretch of highway.

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We did get to see the pretty sunset though.

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I think it was around 1 a.m. local time when we rolled in.  We were pretty beat.  After a good (not long enough) rest and some breakfast, we got moving again.  But not before a few minutes of awesome TV that we never see at home because we don’t have cable or satellite!

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About 30 minutes into our drive, we crossed the border into California!!

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The stretch of drive between Reno and Sacramento was my favorite.  Such pretty country!  And it helped that it was daylight.  And there was more to look at than a handful of vehicles, sagebrush and cows!

Our first view of the Bay, after about 3 hours of driving.

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Jared drove us around Richmond, one of the areas he served in while on his mission.  This is the church he went to while in this area.

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After seeing the area and stopping for lunch, we headed into San Francisco!  This is the first bridge we crossed – the Bay Bridge.  It is longer than the Golden Gate Bridge, but the suspended sections are not nearly as long.  Jared said the first part of the bridge was completely different than when he was there 16 years ago.  We had to pay a toll to cross (I think it was $4).

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A view of the Golden Gate Bridge from atop the Bay Bridge.  It was a hazy day, but you still can’t miss it!

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After driving around the city for a little while, and driving past the houses from Full House, we made a stop at the California Academy of Sciences in Golden Gate Park.  It had a big enclosed dome that was home to all sorts of animals, from creepy crawlies to jellyfish and butterflies.

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He was a trooper, but less than thrilled with the heat and humidity inside the dome.

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The aquarium level was much more enjoyable!

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Jellyfish!!  So much fun to watch!

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We also experienced a simulated earthquake and learned all about the earthquakes of 1906 and 1989.  Amazing!!  And ironically enough, it was only a few hours before this that there was a small earthquake back home!  So we went to California and missed an earthquake!!

After we did some more driving and found a place to eat, we set out to find our hotel.  One of these days we’re going to have to get smart phones so we can look up a map when we forget to print what we need.  We ended up stopping for directions AGAIN (we had to stop for directions in Reno as well).  Thank goodness the gas station workers were nice enough to look up the information on THEIR phones.  (But seriously, have things changed so much that no one can function without their phones anymore?!?!?)

Day 2 coming soon…

Monday, October 21, 2013

Vacation!! – {31 for 21}

 

Last Saturday, Jared surprised me by saying he thought we should go to San Francisco during the upcoming 2-day break from school.  I was all over the idea, so we started Googling.  In a little over 72 hours we planned out a trip, booked hotels, bought admission to attractions, and packed everything up.  Let me just say right here that finding a hotel that will allow more than 4 guests per room is almost impossible.  I was pulling my hair out in the wee hours of the morning on the day we were to leave trying to find something – ANYTHING -  that could accommodate all 7 of us in one room.  Mission accomplished the morning we left!

We spent parts of 5 days and 4 nights in beautiful San Francisco and its surrounding areas.  We crossed every bridge on the Bay.  We ate some ridiculously overpriced food and plenty of burgers and chicken nuggets.  We drove down the most crooked street in the world.  We saw the houses from Full House.  We saw and heard sea lions and dolphins.  We packed in as much as we could in the few short days we had.  And we enjoyed every minute of it.

I will post more – including pictures – another day.

But for now, I’m trying to recover from my vacation!!

Friday, October 11, 2013

Energizer Bunny?? – {31 for 21}

 

As far as gross motor skills go, Daniel is pretty much on target.  And he makes sure we know it every single day.

Exhibit A: The Piano Perch

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Exhibit B: The Milk Mess

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Exhibit C: The Slide and Climb Maneuver

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The boy has literally turned into the kid who doesn’t stop! He’s following a little too closely in the footsteps of a boy we affectionately call “Tornado.” A typical day with Daniel consists of keeping him away from the garbage can, keeping him from climbing on the stove, cleaning up messes from the garbage can, pulling wads of toilet paper out of the toilet, washing his hands every 3.27 minutes, keeping him off the kitchen table (or keeping him safe while he’s there), moving chairs back to the table after he has pushed them to where he wants to climb, mad signing when he sees something he’s interested in (like a car or a horse), and picking up the droves of toys, books and anything else he feels like throwing down the stairs. Then there’s the not-so-physically intense stuff: reading books, playing with a few toys, and singing the same three songs over and over and over. He just keeps going and going and going…. By 10 a.m. I’m beat!! (How have I made it through this phase this many times?!?!)

Tuesday, October 8, 2013

I Blew It! – {31 for 21}

 

Oh man, I totally blew the 31 for 21 thing this year.  It’s OK though.  I knew I likely wouldn’t be able to keep up.  Our life is slightly crazy with 5 kids (who, for some reason, need to be fed and clothed and taken places…go figure!) and continued house projects (we’re STILL in the process of getting our garage cleaned out so we can park in it) and everything in between.

One particularly busy day in late September, I was in the mad rush of trying to get Rachel and Caleb out the door to school, and Daniel and myself out the door to a class, when I got a phone call.  Half-tempted to let it ring, I decided I had better just answer it.  It was the secretary at Josh’s school, and I knew in an instant that the day was NOT going to run according to plan.  Josh had had an accident – a collision with the soccer goal during PE – and it looked like he needed stitches.  I got Caleb and Rachel off to school, made a few phone calls, and took Daniel with me to pick up Josh.  Sure enough, he needed stitches.

 

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After we dropped Daniel off with Grandma (thanks, Grandma!!) we ran to the urgent care center to get Josh taken care of.  He was very patient with all their poking and prodding, and very brave with the shot to numb the area (he said he couldn’t even feel it).  Ninety minutes later he walked out with three stitches and the beginnings of a black eye.

 

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I am so thankful it turned out to be nothing worse.  I had imagined several horrible things once I had been told he’d had an accident.  And I was actually more worried about a possible head injury, to be completely honest.  Reality turned out so much better than my worries!!

This is only the second time Josh has had a “major” injury – the first being a broken wrist just days before Daniel was born.  And this is the first time the PE teacher has had a student with an injury requiring stitches in her entire career.

Friday, October 4, 2013

Heart Day – {31 for 21}

 

I forgot once again to blog on Daniel’s Heart Day.  September 6 was the magical day.  I can’t believe it’s been two years!!

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What an amazing ride it has been!  From a boy who could barely make it through a feeding to a boy who can’t seem to get enough food.  From a boy who barely had enough energy to hold his head up to a boy who doesn’t stop!!

This kid is a living, breathing, heart-stopping miracle!!

If you’d like to read more about Daniel’s heart surgery, go here.

Thursday, October 3, 2013

The Story of Daniel–{31 for 21}

I’m not sure if I’ve ever told this story here.  If you’ve heard this before, forgive me!  I think it’s a pretty significant story and I hope my family will always remember it.

After Caleb was born –  a short 13 months after the most terrifying birth experience I could ever have imagined – I was pretty sure our family was complete.  Pregnancy had not been an easy thing for me.  After delivering my first baby (a 9 pounder!), the doctor had a difficult time getting my bleeding to stop.  During my second pregnancy, I developed high blood pressure and spent several weeks on bedrest (with a nearly-two-year-old running around).  While in labor, I experienced cord prolapse and had my first very emergent (as in knock me completely out) c-section.  During my third pregnancy, I developed complete placenta previa, which means the placenta attached itself over my cervix.  At 35 weeks I had a major hemorrhage and was forced to deliver 5 weeks early.  Along with losing enough blood to need a transfusion, I had a newborn in the NICU who was struggling to breathe.  My pregnancy with Caleb was bearable, aside from contractions that started too early and being in the hospital several times because of continued contractions.  Because I had already had placenta previa, the first few months of each subsequent pregnancy were terribly unnerving as we waited to see where the placenta would be.  You can see why I thought I was DONE!

At some point after Caleb was born (I really don’t remember when it was, but I know he wasn’t even a year old yet), I had an experience that got me thinking perhaps we were missing someone.  I won’t go into great detail, as it is an extremely sacred experience, but the thought was there.  And it was a thought I tried to dismiss for a long time.  I kept saying, “No.  I can’t do this again.  I’m done.”  And the thought would make its way to the furthest corners of my mind, only to resurface again days or weeks later.  I honestly did my best to not entertain the idea, as I knew it would only grow and consume me if I did.  I was scared.  I was tired.  I had a plan and this definitely wasn’t part of it!!

I had a nap one Saturday afternoon, late in the summer of 2010.  When I awoke, I had tears in my eyes and I knew.  I knew with absolute certainty that there was another person that needed to be part of our family.  I was terrified and worried about another pregnancy, but I knew this needed to be.  I found Jared, and tearfully told him what I was feeling.  I will never forget the way he looked at me, with the most comforting, soft, loving eyes I have ever seen.  After a big hug, he said he’d known for quite some time that we were missing someone.  He wanted to let me come to that realization on my own and was willing to patiently wait for my heart to soften.  (So that’s why he was always pointing out babies in crowds and commenting about how cute they were!)

I am thankful for a loving Heavenly Father who knew what I needed and was patient while I overcame my stubbornness.  Because of this experience, I know with every part of me that Daniel was meant to be part of our family.  It was an anchor of peace as I struggled to come to terms with the likelihood that he would have Down syndrome.  It is a sweet reminder of how important and precious Daniel is, not just to us, but also to our Heavenly Father.

Wednesday, October 2, 2013

Buddy Walk 2013 – {31 for 21}

 

The Buddy Walk was established in 1995 as a way to celebrate Down Syndrome Awareness Month, as well as to encourage acceptance and inclusion of people who have Down syndrome.  For our family, the Buddy Walk is a big deal.  It’s a time to be with people we love, and who we know love Daniel just the way he is.  It is an amazing and humbling event.  And it’s also a ton of fun.

This year was our second official walk.  (In 2011 we did on our own in the hospital, as Daniel was recovering from open heart surgery.)  Here are the highlights of this year’s walk…in no particular order:

The 5K run!  Grandma and Grandpa convinced Emily and Josh to run, and they both did it!!  I am so proud of them!

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Freedom!!

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Talking in the tube thingy on the playground!  (This picture just melts me.  This kid LOVES his daddy, and Daddy loves his boy.)

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HORSES!!  HORSES!!  HORSES!!  I’m going to have to get this on video some day.  Daniel goes absolutely crazy for horses.  He neighs, signs “horse” and nearly takes off in a dead sprint to get to them if he can.  If it was up to him, we would have spent our entire day on the wagon ride!

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Grandma!  And the swing!!

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Cheetos and frozen yogurt totally made the list too.  Hey, we love our food!!

Aside from a cool breeze, it was a gorgeous day all around.  Three years ago I never would have imagined spending my Saturday morning taking part in this activity.  Not that I wouldn’t want to, I just didn’t think I had a reason to.  Now that I have experienced it, I know what I was missing out on all those years.  I can’t even begin to explain what the Buddy Walk means to the loved ones of people with Down syndrome.  Put it on your list of things to do.  I promise it will fill your bucket!

Tuesday, October 1, 2013

World Down Syndrome Awareness Month–{31 for 21}

 

It’s October!  And that means it’s World Down Syndrome Awareness Month.  For the past two years, I have blogged every single day during the month of October – sometimes about Down syndrome – in an effort to increase awareness and understanding about Down syndrome.  My hope is that someone out there will read what our life is like and realize that Down syndrome is not the horrible, scary, meaningless life that so many out there seem to think it is.  On the contrary, it has been one of the greatest blessings.  Daniel has brought so much joy to our family.  He truly loves life and loves those around him.

Daniel is two years old.  He’s somewhere between walking and a dead sprint, he laughs, he does some jabbering, he tries to be like his siblings, he throws tantrums…oh, and he gets into an awful lot of mischief.  Tonight he decided to celebrate the beginning of Down Syndrome Awareness Month by pulling a quart of buttermilk off the counter.

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As soon as I got the mess mostly cleaned up – and believe me, that was one heck of a mess to clean up - he nearly did it again with another quart of buttermilk.  (I’m not smart enough to learn the first time around.)  And 30 seconds later, I barely thwarted his attempt at pulling a dozen eggs onto the floor.  All this was after a full day of keeping him from throwing everything away, keeping him out of the toilet, and attempting to get him to stay on the sidewalk for our walk.

I never knew I’d be so happy to be a part of all the mischief!