Glasses It Is!

Daniel saw the ophthalmologist in March, who told us that Daniel is very farsighted, but we will wait for glasses until next year.  Honestly, I was relieved we didn’t have to fight that battle yet.  (Selfish?  Yeah, I know.)  But the more I thought about it, the more it ate at me.  If the kid can’t see, why wait?!?  So after talking with the doc., we decided to go with glasses now.

Daniel’s nearly non-existent nose bridge made it hard to find a pair that fit him right.  So we decided to go with MiraFlex.  They’re made completely of plastic that is bendable.  There is a strap on the back the keeps them in place, so they actually stay where they’re supposed to.  And there are about 20 different color choices (yeah, not good for me).

I didn’t think Daniel could get any cuter.  Boy, was I wrong!

 

 

And so far, so good (mostly).  As long as he is busy and engaged, the glasses stay put.  I can tell a difference in what he’s doing, too.  He seems more balanced, he’s more accurate and, oddly enough, I swear he’s making more noise.  I’m so glad we didn’t wait a year and take the easy road!

Party Like You’re Two!!

Two years ago, I was snuggling a brand new baby.  Little did I know then what a ham Daniel would turn into!  This kid is so full of personality, he’s nearly bursting at the seams!

 

All the attention from siblings and Grandma and Grandpa was just egging him on.

 

I know this is not the greatest picture, but can you see the excitement?!?!  LOVE!!!

 

We let Daniel dig into his own cake again this year.  He taught us a few things.  First, a little caution goes a long way when a grown-up hands you an entire plate of cake.  Best to make sure it’s not broccoli hiding under all that frosting!

 

Second, once you’re sure it’s OK, please remember that cake is best eaten two-fisted!

 

Third, there’s never a wrong time for a round of “Head, Shoulders, Knees and Toes.”

 

And last, but certainly not least – no matter how difficult it may be, don’t forget to at least ACT like you’re having fun!

 

We love us some Daniel!!  He is such a hoot and a true joy to have in our lives.

Some of his latest accomplishments:

• Almost full-time walking
• He loves to do the actions for “The Wise Man and the Foolish Man” as well as “Popcorn Popping”
• He signs milk!
• He’s initiating communication by signing his wants

We have been blessed by Daniel’s presence in our family more than we can ever express.  Happy birthday little dude!

World Down Syndrome Day 2013

Happy World Down Syndrome Day!!  I’m letting Daniel author today’s post, because he is the one we’re celebrating.  Without further ado…

 

I am Daniel.

I am a brother who is adored by his siblings.

I am a daddy’s boy.

I am a cousin.  (I have 16 cousins, with 4 on the way, and 8 soon-to-be step-cousins.)

I am an adored grandson.

I am silly and smiley.

I have feelings and emotions.

I am adventurous.

I am curious.

I am a survivor.

I am social.

I am Daniel.  I have Down syndrome.  I am loved.  I am wanted.  I will do great things.

Tales of a Frigid January

I’m pretty sure this morning’s –22 degrees broke the cold record for the month.  I guess that makes the –12 of a couple of weeks ago seem pretty warm. 

Spring has never looked so enticing!!    I’m sure those icicles are only going to get bigger as we shiver through the next several weeks.

We’ve been working on our sign language lately.  Rachel really loves to use “no”…

…but I’m not sure we can take that big smile seriously!

Daniel has started to sign “book” – though he does the sign for “again” instead.  I’m not sure how he got them mixed up.  But we know what it means, and he obviously does too, so we’re working on fixing that one.  He started nursery yesterday.  There is a lady in our Ward who is in charge of being his assistant.  So he gets one-on-one attention while he’s in there.  I’m so glad our Primary President was the one to take the initiative on that.  She recognized that we might have a need there and came to me for the scoop.  I feel much better about sending him when someone is directly responsible for only him.  Though, I’m still super worried about the germs.  We’ll see how these first few weeks go.

How could you not love this face?!?!

Or this one??!?  (This is what he does when anyone talks about animals.  He’s barking like a dog, but without much sound.)

This is the month of hardly any school (at least it feels like it) for our kids.  They started back on the 3rd.  Rachel has today off, and they all have tomorrow off, for parent teacher conferences.  Next Monday is MLK day, so there won’t be school.  And the following Friday will be a no school day as well!  Good grief!  Sometimes I wonder why they even have school at all during January!!

We’re going to cross our fingers for a warmer-than-usual February and try to stay warm in the meantime!

2012 In Review

It was quite an eventful year for us.  It’s nice to have some proof that we did more than just build our house!

Daniel: Turned 1, heart healthy (!!), surgery for tubes and to open his tear ducts, normal hearing (!!!), sprouted at least a dozen teeth, got his first haircut, learned to crawl, learned to cruise, learned to stand unassisted, learned to blow kisses and play Peek-a-boo, learned a few signs…oh, and won the popularity contest everywhere he went.

Caleb: Turned 4, broke his nose, had surgery to fix his nose and place ear tubes, crammed a broken plastic pipe into the back of his mouth, got lots of scrapes and bruises, fell off his chair at every meal, cut his hair and Daniel’s too, cut his finger open with a box cutter, started preschool, perfected every ninja move in the book.

Rachel: Learned to read, turned 5, graduated from Preschool, lost her first two teeth (in the same week), started Kindergarten.

Josh: Ran the Wellsville Mile, earned his Bear in Cub Scouts, turned 10, participated in his first Pinewood Derby, started 5th grade.

Emily: Participated in the Young Writers’ Fest, went to Girls’ Camp and won the “Giggler” award, started 7th grade, earned her Faith in God award, turned 12, started Young Women, gave her first Sacrament Meeting talk, spent lots of hours babysitting, got her first 4.0.

Heather: Went to Girls’ Camp, said good-bye to the most amazing Young Women in the world, spent countless hours painting, made lots of meals, did lots of laundry, put lots of miles on the Suburban, and is in the process of filling 2 million finish nail holes (and we won’t mention anything about getting her first ticket).

Jared: Started the process to become a Certified Valuation Analyst, was appointed to the board of directors for the Sunshine Terrace Foundation, was released from the Bishopric, did 99% of the finish electrical work in our new house, and did a lot of sub-contractor babysitting.

21 Tidbits About Daniel

1. He is 18 months old.

2. His favorite food is anything that anyone else is eating, especially treats.

3. His most-used word is MORE.

4. His favorite activities are reading books, getting into drawers and boxes, and putting things in his mouth.

5. His favorite toy is his FisherPrice music-maker thingy that has a mirror.

6. He hates water on his head, face and near his ears.

7. He loves Nutella.

8. He is a champion sleeper.

9. He loves music.

10. His newest (spoken) word is TOUCH.

11. He cries every time I walk out of his sight.

12. He smacks his lips and tongue when he eats.

13. His newest sign is CRACKER.

14. He has reflux, and his medicine is working wonderfully (well, it was until today).

15. He is super flirty.

16. He always pulls off his right shoe when he is wearing his black dress shoes.

17. He likes to tease.

18. He has a fake laugh that makes everyone else break into hysterics.

19. He crawls about as fast as a spider, and cruises around furniture almost as fast.

20. He weighs 21 pounds, 10 ounces.

21. He has us all wrapped around his pinky finger – in a major way!

Peek-a-Boo

Daniel’s version of peek-a-boo: covering his ears with his hands.

And peeking over the arm of the couch.

Can you see the giant smile on his face?

Happy Heart Day (a little late)!!

Hello all you blog people!  This is Daniel.  I’m writing for my Mom tonight, ‘cause she’s kinda embarrassed about forgetting to write about an important day on this blog.

I can’t believe she forgot to write about it!  Shhh….don’t tell her I said so!

It’s OK, though.  I’m not mad or anything.  I just thought it would be fun to tell you all about it myself!

A whole bunch of days ago (OK, mom said it was a YEAR ago…whatever that is!), I got dressed up in this funny shirt thing, and there were lots of strange people coming in and out of a small room to look at me and talk to my mom and dad.  They all said how cute I was and lots of other stuff like that.

Mom and dad seemed kinda’ worried.  But they were giving me lots of snuggles and kisses, so I was A-OK.  We walked down a hall with one of the guys that came in to talk to us, and then they let him hold me.  He was a really nice guy.  I didn’t even cry at all! 

And then I went to sleep and when I woke up things were reeeaallly weird!  There was all this stuff on me and and I was in a weird crib and there were lots of strange noises and lights.  And I got to see my mommy and daddy again.  And they looked so happy!

Mommy said that all those things were helping make me better.  And when I was all better stuff like eating and playing would be so much easier.  After lots of days sleeping in that weird crib, we got to say “Bye” to all those nice people that kept saying how cute I was and go home to my own crib.  And I got to see all my brothers and sisters again, and my Dad too.  Boy, I missed them a lot!!

And now I’m such a big boy!  I can crawl super fast like a spider, and I can even walk around if I have something to hold onto.

You can see that line on my chest where they fixed me up.  My mom likes to call it my zipper.  I don’t know what that is, but I’ll always know that I can do everything I do because those doctor guys put that zipper in my chest.  I like those doctor guys!

Walk Star

After a couple of months of absolute hatred, the little mister in our house decided that this walker thing is OK.  He’s been cruising the lengths of the living room every chance he gets.  Every time he does it he gets a little more steady and a little more controlled.

Add this to his love of the stairs and I’d say we’re in trouble.  But don’t think for one second that I’m not smiling about it!

Park Photo Bomb

I took the three Littles to a new (to us) park last night after we got ice cream.  Hey – we have to have fun when Dad and the Bigs are gone!!  I took a ton of pictures (a large proportion of which were pathetic) when I wasn’t holding Daniel or trying to keep woodchips out of his mouth.  Here are the best.

Just a little peck on the ear.

I think her ship is trying to beam her up!

Holding on tight while Mom gets yet another picture.

 

And…he’s had it.  Too much heat and oh-so-tired!