Wednesday, November 30, 2011

A new twist!

Leighty's hair is getting long. It's at that point where you don't know what to do. So today we tried a tiny twist, 


 and she thought she looked AH- may-ZING! I just love her.
 Sighhhhhh... she has me totally smitten.
 and also I've been thinking about how I don't know any celebrities that have Ds babes, and I come across this in my new book.
Do you recognize this mister from scrubs?
One of the hardest things for Me to deal with as I raise this girl with Trisomy 21 is the fear.  It seems with Leighton we always have a something to worry about.
Hitting milestone, getting procedures and special shots approved, blood work test,  ultrasounds on different body parts: hips kidneys heart, lung x-rays, sedation, open heart surgery. You cross your fingers and hope/pray everything comes back "normal" on a baby that you have been told isn't "normal". You have all these "What ifs," what if she gets a blood clot, or a staph infection. What if she has pneumonia, leukemia, diabetes.  Sometimes I let these fears consume me. I sometimes go hid in my house with my little baby and shield us from all of this. I just shut the world out for a few hours and I just pretend nothing is happening. I don't know if it's healthy, but its what I do, and I feel better.
Anyway in my book he wrote about being a father of a Ds son, about how people let fear dictate their decisions in aborting the baby, but this is the part I needed this week.

"You get to trump fear by preserving glimpses of joy!  Now we will always be afraid of this, that, and the other thing. But it is almost impossible to live in fear when we are actively engaged in giving love and pursuing joy."

Who would have thought that the guy from scrubs would make my week just a little bit better. He is completely right!  I realized that's what I do.  I go home and play with her and I find joy in her.  I get to shut it out for a while. My little bug always brings me out of those terrifying fears.
   She is a beacon of light that fills my heart with warmth and calm when the darkness of fear starts to constrict my heart. She feels my heart with joy and it breaks those constricting bands that nothing else can loosen. I'm grateful everyday for my Children.
-JS

Friday, November 25, 2011

Welcome to Zebra Boots!

I can't even name the number of times I have been given this Holland story.  I think every "special needs" Mom must get one.  Kelle Hampton wrote a post on it too. I don't love this Holland story, and I don't connect with it.  Maybe if they said Hey, your still in Italy, but you have a different set of shoes then you thought you would have here. Your luggage was lost in travel.  It's a shock, and you might grieve for those comfy runners you thought you would have here.  You get over it quick, because your going to have a good time regardless, you just know it.   So you throw a hot pink shirt with those zebra boots. You never even imagined wearing something like that.  It takes a special person to pull that off.  Someone more daring then you. It's what you have been given though and your going to make it your own and pretty soon you realize it's comfortable, and their a new favorite (hey there's a wait list for these boots, and some people even go get them from other countries).  
I get that wasn't what you expected part.  It's the; "it wasn't the destination you planned on" angle,  because really it is.  Your still a parent. You still have these same emotions. You still have the same purpose, and your in the same place as any other Mom.  I used to say to myself when people would talk about it to me, "Well, I've been to Italy twice, and I get to see Holland too.  Not everyone gets to see Holland.  It's a fluke, a stroke of luck. Ya there's heartbreak, and worry in Holland, but there is in Italy too." Wherever I am, I'm happy with my destination.  I'm going to rock out these Zebra boots in a world that portrays them as defective, and would throw them away if they have the choice.  There are still a lot of people out there who appreciate my hot booties.  They look at them like their rare and wonderful. They make them smile, and they brighten their days.  Those are the people I have come to like anyway.
 My boots might start to think their famous, because they seem to be always walking the red carpet wherever they go.
-JS

Tuesday, November 22, 2011

Whats Up?

Dad/ Husband always hates that I have a million and one projects going on at once.  I don't know why I do it, but I have sewing projects, craft projects, and furniture projects that I always start.  I do usually finish them.  Sometimes quickly sometimes it takes a long time.  He can't really say anything though because only one of the three garden boxes got stained and he started that project 4 years ago.  Leighton has been so good while I worked on my new night stand.  She watched me until it got to cold for her to be outside.  

I love painting furniture. It's one thing that actually relaxes me.  I took a class at my favorite furniture store, and its been worth ever penny. Now I can buy the same stuff cheaper online and paint it myself.   My stuff looks the same and cost me half the price, plus no tax or shipping. Daddy/ Husband and I made a bed together for older sis 2 summers ago.  
We have also re-finished some things we got free or bought used.

Built the bed, and refinished that amour.

Starting with fresh wood is my favorite.  Stripping old paint isn't fun (but worth it), and it's hard work. 

New Night stand.
  I'm going to take on some more furniture projects this spring, it's to cold until then.
-JS

Friday, November 18, 2011

twin-sters

Big Sis loves to be twins with Leighty bug. They got to be twinsters yesterday so we took some pictures.





 Daddy was making little girl so happy that we had to take a few more.

-JS

Thursday, November 17, 2011

A Vegas Baby!

(alright supermodel baby what do you think of Vegas?  Eh!)
This little nugget got to visit Vegas.  Daddy had some training for work, and they got to bring their wives.  Which means I took the babes along.   My husband and I haven't taken a vacation without our whole family before and we have gone twice in a month.  It's crazy, but I guess this little girl is going to get to see some of the world. 

(give me oohing, and awing at the sights of the world).
 stayed at the Bilagio.

(little bugger enjoying the king size bed)
We watched the water show set to Viva Las Vegas.
True to her supermodel baby self she did a lot of shopping.

(check out her new skinny jeans so cutie).
 Not our favorite place. We probably wont be going back anytime soon, but we had a good time anyway.
-JS

Saturday, November 12, 2011

There is beauty all around.

The other day I walked out in the morning to take the kids to school and I thought "it feels like Thanksgiving."  I have a love hate relationship with this time of year. 
It's sad to see the beautiful bold colors of spring and summer
  fade to brown, 
 (Daddy was drying out these sunflowers to harvest the seeds, the birds have gotten to them first).
but their is beauty in the browns and yellows.  I'm excited for the traditions of this coming season. I'm am also bracing myself for the stress, and hurried pace. It's nice to have moments when you look out your window and notice the brown dry sunflowers are actually very beautiful shades. That has become a part of my life of late. Noticing beauty when you don't expect to.  Little Leighton attracts goodness in the most unexpected places.  I have noticed she is a magnet to loving people with kind excepting hearts.  I will over hear the comments of people who are probably observers from the sidelines.  Their probably to afraid to approach because they don't want to offend me. That's fine, I'm one of those people. I notice and love, but usually don't step out of my comfort zone. I have to actually be thrust in there by an unseen hand.  Then there are the brave ones who come talk to her. They aren't cautious. They jump head first into the encounter, and she makes their days brighter too.  I wonder if they go home and tell their loved ones about the unexpectedly beautiful baby who brightened their day.  I'm so blessed to be a witness of this little girls life.  
I know we will have days when the mean, and un-excepting will rear its ugly face.  I know those days will be hard, but I have so many beautiful days. I love to see the people who except this baby with open arms. Its almost never the ones you would expect.   Sometimes it's the dirty construction worker, or a sullen teenage boy who breaks out in a bright smile. They take the time to talk to her, and tell her she's so adorable, and I'm caught off guard in the best way.  I get a glimpse of their true hearts. Leighton makes me aware of the beauty that is in the shades of brown.    
-JS

Thursday, November 10, 2011

Picture Perfect.







-JS

giggles

This video wont load into my iMovie so I can upload it.  I admit computers aren't one of my expertise. Hopefully you can still watch it this way if you want.   Leighton was being so funny the other night and just wanted to smile and play.  She gets a little distracted by the iPad because she likes to play games on it, but she was still laughing.

-JS

Tuesday, November 8, 2011

big!

Leighton moved out of the bassinet today. She is almost 7 months, and I know that most babies move out at 2 or 3, but she has still fit. Well,  until a few days ago. She must have grown because her legs are always flopped over the top of her bassinet this past week. Oh and her clothes are getting tight! Yeah, but Nay too. Love that she growing.  If she grows so will her heart, and maybe her hole will close.  Crossing fingers. But oh do I love and enjoy this baby.  She's such a sweet content little bugglet.  I'm making her cribbing (bumper, skirt, and quilt).  The bumper and skirt aren't finished yet, so we just knew her legs were going to get stuck in between the bars.  Oh they will with the bumper too, just a little higher. She loves to stick those little feet between things, and fall asleep.  We let her play in it to get used to it. I looked over and she's asleep, and where is her foot?


Love this girl!
-JS

Sunday, November 6, 2011

daddy

Daddy came home from a meeting the other day and he had stopped at Nordstrom Rack on his way back.  It was so cute because he came home with these cute PJ's and he was excited about them.
 Tah-duh! 
They have cute monkey.
 I don't think He has ever done something like that before.  I usually pick out all my kids clothes.  If he's shopping with us he'll say......"Ya, that's cute." So it was pretty surprising he came home all "look at these cute PJ's I got Leighton."  With that excitement we better document it with some pics of her in them with bed head and all.


 and I swear she wants to crawl.  She tucks her bottom up, and tries to scooch forwards.
Umm baby girl you have to roll and sit before crawling!  She can roll on the bed, (both ways, tummy to back, back to tummy) but not the floor.  I think it's because the bed had dips that help her.  Hopefully soon.
-JS