Happy Turkey Day!

How many of you can say you didn't eat any turkey on Thanksgiving? We can!! My poor mom and her malfunctioning meat thermometer left us with a medium rare turkey. Luckily the sides (my favorite part of the meal) didn't disappoint.

Gavin, Jack and Ryan started off the holiday festivities with a Turkey Trot. They all finished within a minute of each other. Ryan crossed the finish line first with Jack 30 seconds behind and Gavin 10 seconds later. It's the first time he didn't need to "let" them win.

Our cute kids

Mia and her cousin Luke

Getting ready for the feast

Grandma and Grandpa proudly carving the (raw) bird

Thanksgiving night fun with the cousins

Turning sugar cookies into turkeys

Griffin was excited to do his own turkey design

And of course a cousin party wouldn't be complete without a sleep over!

Gavin kept trying (unsuccessfully) to turn our dinner conversation into a gratitude moment but it just wasn't going to happen, but I do have so much to be thankful for. Thanksgiving is all about family and being together and this was more evident than ever this year. I am so grateful for my amazing husband and 6 children, and also very thankful for my parents and siblings (and their spouses).

Happy Thanksgiving!!!

Happy Birthday Ryan!

Eleven Years Old

Ryan has been asking non-stop for another hamster. His first 2 hamsters died after a few weeks (hibernation and stress) and we decided to take a break for awhile. These past few weeks it's been non-stop hamster talk from Ryan. Things like, "Hey mom come out to the garage, there's something I want to show you." and then once in the garage, "Ok, now get in the car and let's go get a hamster!" He didn't want any old hamster though. It needed to be a Black Bear Hamster. I started calling around a few days before his birthday and called about 10 pet stores before I finally found a store that had one in stock. I took Ryan to make sure it was all he had been dreaming about. It was instant love.

Introducing "Bengal"

Technically my kids don't have Birthday parties after their 10th birthday. Instead they can invite a few friends to go do something. Ryan chose to go see the movie, "Shorts" and then a late over at our house playing video games. I think they all had a good time and were happy to hang out together until midnight.

"11" cake--hey he's not even supposed to get a party so he should be thrilled with this custom creation!

He wanted to light his own birthday candles

Showing off his birthday presents. We watched "UP" on his birthday and then he chose BFD (Breakfast For Dinner) for his Birthday dinner. He's been reading The 39 Clue books non-stop since his birthday.

In honor of his 11th birthday---

1. He keeps us laughing with his quick wit and sense of humor even when sharing his testimony in FHE.

2. A great cub scout. He has worked hard all 3 years in cubs and has earned his Arrow of Light. He is excited to start going to Boy Scouts now.

3. A cuddler. It's always fun to sit next to him on the couch because there's always a guaranteed cuddle.

4. Enjoys our family tv nights--watching Survivor and Amazing Race.

5. Athletic and really excels at football and basketball. He knows everything about the NFL and NBA teams and players (from his wii games).

6. He's earning his Bachelor's Degree in his 5th grade class and learning all about animals.

7. Enjoys playing the piano and has had several opportunities to share this talent-- played the prelude music in Sacrament Meeting for the Primary program and the opening and closing hymns at the Stake Priesthood Preview.

8. A loyal friend. His best friends are Tate, Tanner and Truman.

9. He is terrible at brushing his teeth but somehow is the one to never have cavities at the dentist.

10. He doesn't like sweets. He's always the one with Halloween candy left over months later, ice cream melting everywhere, and he doesn't like donuts and just ask Jack, "everyone loves donuts!!" (Maybe #9 and #10 are related.)

11. He likes to listen to Christmas music while going to sleep.

Happy 11th Birthday, Ryan! We love you!!!

Championship Game on Saturday!

Whose team is undefeated and playing for the championship on Saturday at noon? Oh, you better believe it!!! Put on some layers and brave the cold and snow as you cheer Ryan on to victory. Think of all the fun . . .

You can help hold this banner at half time--

See sexy dads playing catch on the sidelines--

And hot moms cheering on their kids (except with more layers)

and their saggy butts

(P.S. Don't let your husband take pics of the game or you too will end up with hundreds of pics like this one)

You can witness great handoffs--

and awesome punts--

and surprising catches--

And hopefully lots of these. Touchdown!!

Game time is noon at Bingham High. Remember Blog stalkers are not invited.

P.S. Hopefully you won't see a lot of bump-and runs, encroachment, fumbles, holdings, intentional grounding, offsides, personal fouls, sacks, or turnovers unless it's the other team. . . and then that would be ok. (And don't ask why those are in alphabetical order because those are just some random football terms I like to throw around and definitely did not copy from some football website.)

Sweet 'n Sassy

22 months later and I'm still head over heels in love with this little girl! She is growing up quickly and proving she doesn't have to be sweet all of the time. Something clicked last month and she decided she could be just as feisty as the rest of them (meaning Griffin and Morgan). She's figured out how to hold her own and show real attitude.

I never get tired of hearing her cute voice call me "mom". Maybe it's because she's my last. Or she was the unexpected gift at the end of our family. Or maybe it's because she's just really so sweet!! Whatever the reason--I am cherishing the moments with this little one.

Happy Shrekin' Halloween!

This year's theme was an easy one. My kids are obsessed with Shrek. It's the first thing Mia asks when getting buckled in her car seat, "Shrek and Donkey?" hoping to be able to watch Shrek during the car ride.

The Shrek Family

Griffin--Puss 'n Boots

Mia--Donkey

Morgan--Princess Fiona

Ryan--Lord Farquaad

Fairy Godmother

Gavin--Shrek

And the two kids that didn't want to participate in the Shrek family:

Hadley--football player

Jack--Mr. Monopoly

Trick-or-Treating fun!

California Adventure

We just got home from a fun-filled family vacation to Southern California. We were busy every day -- Sea World, Laguna Beach, Disneyland, California Adventure, and San Diego Wildlife Park. The kids (and parents) loved it and can't wait to go back!!

Sea World

Shipwreck Rapids

After the soak

Touching the bat rays at the forbidden reef

Starfish at the tide pool

The boys went on Atlantis

Leaving Sea World-- Morgan's sound asleep.

Laguna Beach

It was perfect weather and a beautiful beach. The kids could have stayed there for days and days. Jack and Ryan loved playing in the water and all the rest loved playing in the sand and feeding the sea gulls.

Disneyland

Disneyland is so much fun at Halloween with all the holiday decor and rides. But it also means the park gets really crowded with all the locals and tourists. We lucked out with having Morgan in our family--she got a disability pass that allowed us all to go right on the rides without having to wait. The pass requires that Morgan be on the ride in order to use it which meant Morgan went on A LOT of rides that she wasn't too excited about (the Matterhorn) but it helped the most with the rides that are so short but have the longest lines and no fast passes, like Dumbo.

Waiting at the exit line for Dumbo--Morgan & Griffin's favorite ride

Meeting Mickey Mouse!!

Morgan and Gavin enjoying the teacups!

California Adventure Park

We were so lucky to have nan and papa come join us for a few days of our vacation. Papa was very adventurous and went on all the rides with the boys. Nan was full of loves and treats for all of the kids and even went on a few of the rides!

Jack and Papa Jack

It's a Bug's life

Tower of Terror is my FAVorite ride. I laugh the entire ride!

Grizzly River Run

Pixar Parade--I had more fun watching Morgan than the parade. She kept trying to go out in the street to dance with the parade. She was dancing, singing, clapping, having the time of her life. The characters were all so cute with her and made sure to wave to her and some came over to give her high fives.

San Diego Wild Animal Park

We had just a few hours before our flight back home and made a quick trip to the park. We had time to see a few animals, feed the lorikeets, and pet some deer.

Now back to reality. Jack got the flu while we were on the trip and missed one of the days at Disneyland and now I have it. It seems everyone is getting it this year. Just a bummer it has to be over Halloween.

Are you in good hands?

October is . . .

Down syndrome awareness month (and it's also 'really busy month' at the Seal household). I have done a really crappy job of helping raise awareness this month. Hopefully I can get a few posts out before the month is over.

We met with Morgan's team a few weeks ago at her school. The special ed director from the district was amazing. I was prepared to fight and advocate for Morgan but didn't need to-- nothing to fight about. The team was incredibly positive and had only good things to say. I thanked the district lady for approving the aide for Morgan. She said it was a no-brainer. Life is inclusion. When Morgan grows up there won't be 2 separate communities--Down syndrome and typical. This is real life and she is right where she should be. Amen!

Her temporary aide, Kiersten (whom we adore!! She has a 16 year old sis with Ds and her husband has a 29 year old bro with Ds) was all tears as she thanked us for believing in Morgan and said over and over, "she is just so dang smart and I want everyone to be able to see it, like I do." Morgan will perform for her but no one else. She shuts down with her teacher and speech therapist. Her words, emotions and tears reminded me of my own. Trying to get Morgan to shine and perform in front of others instead of shutting down so everyone is able to see her amazing potential. This is the last week for Kiersten. The district hired a full-time aide for Morgan. And Morgan is not taking the transition well. I didn't think about the loss Morgan would go through when the full time aide was finally hired. Kiersten has been her best friend and security these past few months and she is starting to act out at school again and refuses to do things for the new aide. Hopefully things will improve as she gets more comfortable with the new aide.

During the meeting, her teacher and aide showed us the upcoming spelling tests for 1st grade. Mrs. D said that Morgan would be taking the regular spelling test and they were expecting her to know the words just like all the other students. I was pleased with their high expectations but also a little skeptical. We had never worked on spelling before, she's still learning how to write all the letters of the alphabet, and I just didn't know how it would work.

I couldn't stop smiling when I looked in her backpack and found her first spelling test. 16/20.

The note on the side says: " Heather and Gavin, This is the actual score Morgan got on her test. She is amazing. This is how we did her test . . . I had a small white board, I would write the word, she would read it, and then we spelled it twice together. Then I would turn the white board around and ask her to spell it again to me by herself. I wrote them just as she spelled them. She did awesome. I am so proud of her!"

So there you have it. My first grader is learning spelling just like she should be doing in first grade.

I would love ideas and comments of what has worked best for your child to learn how to spell. C'mon Scarehaircare...it's time for your video!

A Perfect Afternoon

Silver Lake

Marathon Weekend

Yay for Gavin! He ran his 5th marathon a few weeks ago. It's been 4 years since his last one and he's tried off and on to get into one but his name never got picked out of the lottery. This year he didn't wanna take any chances and registered twice (using his name and address and his dad's name and address) to guarantee his entrance. He was excited about his training and felt like this would be his best one yet. Then he went waterskiing. . . and injured a ligament/tendon (is there a difference? Somehow I managed an A out of Anatomy)in his calf. He wasn't able to run more than a few houses down the street before coming back home with pain. That went on for 2 months and didn't get any better. We already had our condo booked and were excited for a little family vacay with or without the marathon. I didn't think Gavin had any intentions of running it. And laughed when I saw him packing his marathon clothing. Who runs a marathon with no training? Gavin.

Mile 26 . . . moments before the finish line

Crossing the finish line 4:33

Jack, Ryan and Hadley are so proud of their dad. They have NO idea how far he just ran!!

A few days before the marathon Gavin started looking for 'training tips' to help him run the marathon. Apparently sit-ups are important as is a big pizza dinner for carb loading. But the biggest difference was following Jeff Galloway's marathon running tips--4 minute run and 1 minute walk. Whatever he did, it worked!! Way to go!!

sit-ups the night before the marathon

He continues to amaze me!

The fun didn't end with the marathon . . .

We also got to hang out with nan and papa

lunch at Pizza Factory with nan and cousins

papa fixing Ryan's brakes

and sleepover and playing with cousins

Dinner in Pine Valley

And what marathon post would be complete without a little trip down Marathon Lane--

1984--13 years old

First marathon. 3rd place.

2000

2002

2005

She's done it again!

It's been a year since it last happened. And you really can't beat the timing with school pictures this week and family portraits next week. It all happened within a few minutes of forgetfulness. I left the scissors on the bathroom counter and was helping Hadley get ready for church when I overheard Morgan in the bathroom say, "Oh no!"

I ran to the bathroom just in time to see the hair fall to the floor. She even got in one more cut before I could get the scissors from her. This little girl definitely knows what she wants to be when she grows up . . . bald! Or maybe a hair stylist.

SLC Buddy Walk 2009

The buddy walk was amazing and inspiring! My friends Amy, who gets paid to plan college football bowl games, and Mandy were in charge of it this year and put so much work, time and effort into the event. It was incredible! I'm already excited for next year's buddy walk. We are gonna do it right next year and get a team for Morgan. Not that Mia, Griffin, grandma and I don't make a great team . . . cuz we definitely did! I'm just saying, we can do better!

Video Highlights from the Walk:

Buddy Walk is Saturday

Saturday September 26

Antczak Park
1850 East 7200 South

10:00-11:00 Carnival (face painting, bounce houses, clowns, cake walk, balloons, etc.)

11:00 Walk around the park (10 mins.)

11:30 Lunch provided by Red Robin

It's that time of year again. The Salt Lake Chapter Buddy Walk. I waited to post anything about it because I wasn't sure we would be able to make it with our crazy Saturdays. We may be a small team, but at least Morgan and I will be there walking!! If you would like to walk with us, help promote Down syndrome awareness and be a "buddy" to Morgan, here are the details: The registration cost is $7/individual or $20/family which includes a Buddy Walk t-shirt, lunch provided by Red Robin, and the carnival activities.

Let me know if you can make it!

Another year older and grouchier as ever!

I'm gonna blame it on not feeling well and not just a 7 year old phase (at least that is what I am hoping!). Morgan woke up extra-grouchy on her birthday. She was awake most of the night and the next few nights with a cold and croup. She was in a bad mood all day. I tried to explain to her that it was her birthday and most kids spend the day happy and excited, not ornery and mean. She didn't care. I've taken some editorial liberties and decided to only post the pics and videos of a happier girl.

Birthday morning. We sang Happy Birthday to her and then had cake for breakfast. I didn't get best mom award by being a healthy cook (or for any reason, actually)! We were rushed.

She was very excited to get a new bike, until she kept getting stuck in the kitchen while trying to ride it around the island.

I loved going into her classroom and seeing all of the kids excited to see me-- "It's Morgan's mom!" and all of them being so kind and cute with Morgan! She loved having all of the attention for her birthday song and then she passed out her treat (ice cream sandwiches) to all of her friends.

Birthday party at Jungle Jim's (an indoor mini-amusement park) with some of her cousins and friends.

No interest in posing for this group picture

lack of interest is a little more obvious in this picture

She loved her cake!

and loved the rides

even the fast elephant roller coaster!

She lost her front tooth 3 days before her 7th birthday

We received some exciting news from her school on her birthday. The resource teacher called to let me know the school was approved 2 aides (a morning and afternoon aide). Which means Morgan will be able to do full inclusion in the classroom and not be removed from her peers during the day. The district is still in the process of hiring the 2 aides but I am excited to meet with them and get going on her IEP goals. I love the social experience she is getting but also want her to continue to grow academically. She has been doing really well in the regular classroom and so far I am happy with our decision.

Here is a little video footage of Morgan's birthday celebrations. I love all the laughter at the beginning of the video but my favorite is at the end when she decides she'd like to make 7 wishes with her one candle!

In honor of her 7th birthday, here are 7 things we love about Morgan

1. She loves to ride her bike and sneaks out of the garage all of the time to go ride it. She has gotten better about not 'running away' and knocks on the front door when she wants to come inside (the knock is usually our first indicator that she is gone).
2. She loves babies (especially Baby Luke "Loot" and Abi -- her baby cousins)!
3. She is one smart cookie and is reading on a first grade level.
4. She still loves Barney but luckily she's expanded her horizons to now include Shrek ( but don't let your kids watch Shrek 3. It started a "You shut up. No, you shut up!" Morgan phase at our home!), Finding Nemo, Shaggy Dog, and The Sound of Music.
5. She loves a good corn dog with sauce (ketchup).
6. She's Griffin's best friend
7. She is a great swimmer and after a summer full of swimming lessons--swimming is her favorite activity.

And I had to put in a little footage of her bike riding skills. She finally got the steering thing down this summer and is now able to go around the block on her bike. Good physical therapy for her legs!

Another trip to the hospital

We found out about Ryan's asthma 9 years ago when he was admitted to the children's hospital on a Christmas night. We spent Christmas Eve at my grandma's house that year. She liked to have a fire going in her fireplace when it was cold and snowing outside, but that year it was more smoke than fire. We all felt it in our lungs. The next day we went to my parent's home for Christmas breakfast and Ryan was around their dog and by that night he was having a hard time breathing. Gavin wanted to take him to the ER but I tried to talk him out of it, "they will just send him home like they do every time. He just has croup and they always just send us home and never do anything for us." Good thing he chose to not listen to me and my good nursing advice, Ryan was admitted for several days and diagnosed with asthma. So far he has only had allergy-induced asthma around dogs (nothing with exercise, colds, etc.) and it isn't something we take lightly. He has a difficult time breathing after just a few hours inside a house with a dog. It was hard for him to understand this as a young child. He would ask all the time if he would be able to touch and pet dogs in heaven when he died. Not what I needed my 3 year old to be thinking about! We couldn't let him play or sleep over at friends' houses if they had a dog. And then, of course, both sets of grandparents have dogs!

We've done a pretty good job at keeping his asthma under control but there are the exceptions and this week was one of them. Gavin took him up to the ER on Monday night when Ryan started getting panicky and laying on the floor. He was admitted and started on breathing treatments, Prednisone, and oxygen. He was there less than 24 hours and hopefully this will be his last time there!

Getting a breathing treatment

His favorite thing about the hospital is the room service. They actually have really good food and let the kids order anything on the menu as often as they want. Ry was excited to have deep-fried shrimp, tomato cheese soup, tapioca pudding and a peach sunrise smoothie for lunch. Much better than school lunch!

Time for another breathing treatment and dinner. He ordered this while I was home getting all the kids situated from school to dinner. When I got back he told me, "I just ordered a bunch of side dishes." A bagel with cream cheese, mozzarella sticks, tomato cheese soup, and another peach sunrise smoothie (I drank most of his smoothie.) So yummy!

Mia and I spent most of the morning with him, but had to go home when Mia started breaking everything in his room.

He is still on the prednisone and breathing treatments but doing so much better. Does it make us bad parents if we let him play in his football game on Saturday?

I can't forget to give my awesome friends a big thank you! I had several friends call to see if they could bring us dinner. I turned them all down. My kids would think there was something up if there was a home cooked meal on the table. No need to mess with the routine. That night I had two friends show up a few minutes apart with two complete meals. My friends rock!!

Utah State Fair

Who doesn't love a good deal? The fair had a family deal on Monday ($12 entrance for the entire family, compared to the usual $40 for our family) that made it worth going. It wasn't the best circumstances . . . the kids had piano until 6:30, it was pouring rain, and it was a late FHE activity for a school night. I convinced Gavin that it could be fun to go and run through the rain with our umbrellas. Fortunately, the sun started shining through the clouds as we pulled into the parking lot and the rain stopped minutes after we walked through the entrance.

These umbrellas are huge and poked lots of friendly fair-goers in the face. Sorry!

Our first stop was the building with the displays and demos of random products. I stopped at the first display and got my wedding ring cleaned (maybe the first time in 13 years). It is all shiny and sparkly again!

Then we stopped at this display--"Super Shami". He had me at "Look at all this soda pop I am going to pour on this carpet sample. Now look at how this shami soaks it all up. Every drop." SOLD!! That's a daily occurrence at my home!!

We convinced the kids that rides weren't safe and that we really should wait until Disneyland next month. I feel a little guilty about it now. We should have at least let them do one ride. Griffin was going crazy over seeing all the rides and wanting to do them. Maybe next year.

Instead we went through the animal exhibits. Equally as fun!

Checking out the dairy cows. Ryan's asthma had been bad all day and walking through the animal exhibits didn't help. I think this is when we decided he shouldn't go into anymore of the stinky exhibits. We saw chickens, roosters, ducks, goats, rabbits, pigs, sheep, and cattle.

And it can't be a true carnival experience without a funnel cake!!

This funnel cake was Y-U-M-M-Y!!

Because oreos, twinkies and candy bars aren't already fattening enough!!

There are some crazy things at the fair. What's with having the "World's Smallest Woman" on display? I had mixed feelings about this exhibit since I spend most of my time being the disability police around my kids' friends, but . . .

We caved. My kids were so curious to see if there really was a woman in that small box that we let them go in. Jack took the "You talk to her. She talks to you!" advice on the exhibit to heart and asked her lots of questions. Apparently she doesn't understand English and just said yes to everything he asked. He felt like Ryan and Hadley just wasted their dollar because they didn't say anything.
Ryan continued to have a hard time breathing after we got home. When he wasn't able to keep his oxygen levels up without using his inhaler every few minutes we knew it was time for the ER.

A winning Saturday

Our beautiful view from the field

9:00 am--Hadley's first soccer game (Final score 3-0)

She hasn't ever played soccer before but looked really good out there. She is one fast runner with those long legs.

She was nervous to be playing in a real game and found comfort by twisting her earrings. I don't think she has ever taken such good care of her pierced ears like she did out on that field.

11:00 am -- Morgan's 1st soccer game (no need to keep score on the VIP league!)

She is playing on the "VIP team" and liked her new friend, Lucy. Some of you may recognize her from the Signing Time DVDs.

It wasn't hard to keep her attention and excitement up during warm ups when she had her own ball to kick around the field.

But it was a different story by the time the game started. She didn't want to stay on the field and had lost interest.

Here she is on the field in the middle of the game. Just hanging out and sucking her thumb. I am excited to see if she likes soccer more as the season goes on.

3:00 pm -- Jack's soccer game (Final score 8-3)

This kid has the moves! He took a few years off of soccer and I thought it would take him a little time to get back in the groove. I was wrong! He is so fast and has crazy foot work. It was so fun to watch him back on the soccer field.

3:00pm -- Ryan's football game (Final score 16-7)

Ryan had another great game and helped his team with a touchdown.

"Oh. Okay."

Griffin started preschool last week and goes 2 days a week. This means I have 2 mornings all by myself with just cute, little Mia! I am hoping to start a fun class (Kindermusik or Gymboree) with her on those mornings.

I've been telling Griffin all summer that he wouldn't be able to go to preschool if he didn't go poopies in the toilet (too much info?). We started potty training him at the end of June when he was almost 3. He is a tall boy so I decided to just let him stand up and forego the potty chair. Big mistake. How did I not know this after potty training 2 other boys? Apparently boys aren't supposed to do their thing standing up til the potty training is complete. Or you might end up with a boy that refuses to sit on the toilet. Ever. That's our problem. He's great with the potty portion and staying dry (a few accidents here and there) but nothing is worse than cleaning up poopy underwear, legs, feet, and bum. How did my mom (or all the good "green moms" out there) do cloth diapers? Whenever I talk to him about it he pretends like he is listening and cares. And after my long discussion about how we don't go poopies in our underwear but in the toilet, he always responds, "Oh. Okay." But nothing ever changes. I even tried bribing. I bought Star Wars action figure toys that he could open after using the toilet. No luck. He was excited for a day and didn't care anymore. I called his preschool to let them know Griffin would not be coming quite yet since he still wasn't fully potty-trained. The school didn't care and said he could still come (what a change from when I tried to find a preschool for Morgan and everyone used the potty training excuse to not have her in their classroom. Grrrrrr . . .). So here he is on his first day of school (in underwear because he refuses to wear a pull up while awake).

We went to Carl's Jr. for lunch to celebrate his first day of school with a few friends. Unfortunately we had to leave a little early because of a stinky boy. Guess I'd rather have it happen at lunch with me than at school with his teachers.

Any ideas of what might help? This is all new for me. I've stopped talking about it with him because he started stuttering right around the same time. I figured he'd heard enough of my discussions for awhile.

Game On!

Football season has started once again and Ryan picked up right where he left off last season. His first game was last Saturday and he played great. Jack decided that football was not his sport and has opted for soccer instead.

Here are some highlights of Ryan's first game: (Ryan is number 3 - in the blue uniform -the one with the ball) And I don't know why I am getting this blue underline, but I like it. Enjoy!

Sneaking in for a Touchdown!

Heather was afraid she might miss a status update, so she was checking fb every chance possible!

Here is a quick video of a few of Ryan's runs. He is quick and seems to run well with the ball. He reminds me of his dad!

Labor Day

I don't have any idea what we are celebrating on Labor Day. I probably should google it before admitting to that. I'll feel really bad if it is honor of our veterans or something. When I hear the word 'Labor' I think of immense pain, sweat, nausea, shaking and then tears, joy and happiness when I see my new little baby's face. I have spent about 60 hours in labor so I think it's nice that they have given us a holiday to celebrate it! We didn't go anywhere exciting for the holiday weekend. Just stayed around the house working on different projects. We did enjoy a yummy Labor Day breakfast and a little football action at my mom's church.

Update: Thanks google!!

The first Monday in September of each year has been observed as Labor Day for more than 100 years. It is a day dedicated to the social and economic achievements of American workers: an annual tribute paid to all workers for their contributions in making the country a better place in which to live and work. I like my explanation better!

Is it too early for this?

Hugs and Kisses

Back to School. I wish I could say I was the mom that wished summer could go on forever and ever but I am always just a little bit excited about being able to get back into some sort of routine and structure. I do miss having the big kids around and have realized this past week that life hasn't seemed any easier with 2/3 of the kids in school all day. There is a lot of adjustments with returning to school-- waking up early, headaches from still feeling tired, grouchy, hoping for a nap, trying to be more responsible with getting things ready to take to school first thing in the morning, figuring out clothes to wear the next day, etc. and then the kids have their own adjustments too!

I sent each child off to school with a baggie full of hugs and kisses and a little note saying that I hoped they have a great first day at school and since I couldn't spend the first day with them I was sending lots of hugs and kisses to help them through their first day.

Jack is my big 7th grader this year. He is loving being in junior high and having his own locker. He couldn't get it to open the first day (7th graders worst nightmare) but he didn't act like it bothered him. Apparently they had given him the wrong locker combo and got it all taken care of by the 2nd day of school. His favorite thing so far has been his 3-ring binder. He has had this binder for several years and always wanted to use it in elementary school but didn't need it. Now he finally needs a 3-ring binder and apparently his is PERFECT!!

Ryan is in 5th grade and loves his class and teacher, Mrs. S. There is a big group of boys from the neighborhood that are all friends and work really well together and they are all in the class together.

Hadley is in 3rd grade. Our school lets parents request teachers for the upcoming year. I requested a certain teacher for Hadley because Ryan had such a great experience in her class when he was in 3rd grade. They post the teacher's lists on the school doors the day before school starts. Ryan and Hadley were so excited to go over there and see who their teachers were and what friends were in their classrooms. Hadley was so disappointed when she saw she had a different teacher and only knew 2 kids in the class. All (and I mean ALL) her girlfriends were in the teacher's class that I had requested, but for some reason she didn't get. I debated over just leaving her in the other classroom and talked to Hadley about how this could be a chance for her to spread her wings this year and get to know a lot of new kids at her school. But I know how mean girls can be and wanted to avoid having her feel left out at recess and other things because she wasn't in the same classroom as all her friends. I spoke with the office that morning and they were able to move her into Mrs. J's class and she is loving school so far! She came home from school the first day with a Hershey's kiss in her hand and as she gave it to me she said, "I saved the last kiss for you because the last kiss is always the best!" What a sweetie! Y'know I think she's right. The last kiss is always the best!

We have a new school district this year which I think is one of the main reasons Morgan's classroom experience on the first day was such a disaster. We used to be part of the largest school district in Utah but voted to break away from that district and create a new school district. My biggest concern/worry was how the new district would work with special education. Since the district is so new they still have not created all the job positions that they need to run the special education department, one of them being the transitional team. That explains why no one has been around to help us with getting everything in place for Morgan. Apparently we couldn't have picked a worse time to be transitioning her from the cluster classroom to our neighborhood school. I am hoping it will just get better and better from here on out.

A Rare Opportunity

Since I had the opportunity of taking Morgan to school this morning, Heather asked that I update the blog tonight. Morgan was excited to get back to school and I was excited to take her. Unfortunately, it didn't take long for my happy feelings to disappear. Morgan's class lines up on the playground and waits for the teacher to lead them into class. Morgan and I had just entered the playground when I noticed two boys staring, then making fun of Morgan's eyes. They were squinting their eyes and making them distorted with their fingers. I don't know what they were trying to do, but I knew it wasn't nice. I really wanted to go let the kids know my thoughts, perhaps show them the way I was feeling by using the end of my foot. I stared at the boys for a few seconds and with Morgan pulling my hand towards her teacher, I let them go. Heather and I had talked about this before; anticipating this exact event. I know that kids can be mean - I'm sure Heather was mean growing up too. (That was supposed to be funny) Anyway, I know that this is somewhat natural and will continue to happen. Morgan didn't notice a thing and kept pulling me towards the school.

Her teacher approached us and told me that today would be better because she had a 'plan'. Not sure of the 'plan', we marched forward with the other kids to the classroom. I knew the teacher was worried that she was not able to set a firm tone in her classroom yesterday, so I was planning on helping Morgan as long as she needed. The last thing I wanted was for the teacher to be left alone again. We don't need the teacher to be burned out on the second day! The teacher told me an aide would be arriving in 30 minutes, and that she would be staying the whole day to assist with Morgan. I guess this was the 'plan'.

After standing and reciting the Pledge of Allegiance, which Morgan did with a smile -and her left hand across her chest, she took her seat. I thought we were off to a great start in the classroom. The school psychologist entered and told me of her plan to reward Morgan for her positive behavior by placing stickers on a placard they had made for her to wear around her neck. They had some chocolate ready to give her when she had earned three stickers. I wasn't sure about it, but she quickly started awarding the stickers. Morgan loved it. She looked back at me and said, "Look dad - two stickers!" The psychologist was so impressed that Morgan was using her number logic. One more sticker and her reward was coming! I was excited for her. I told the psychologist of my fear that we were overloading the teacher without having an aide in the room. I had voiced this concern earlier in the summer when we met with the school leadership team. My fear was that Morgan would become such a burden that nobody would want to work with her. Everyone assured me that this would not happen (yesterday, it did). The psychologist then told me something that gave me great hope. She said that Mrs. D, the teacher, will need to be reminded that she is part of something very special. She said that when Morgan is walking the halls as a sixth grader, she, Mrs. D, will have played a major role in what Morgan will have accomplished. What a vision! I know Morgan can add value to the school. It will take patience and a team effort, but I know she can play an important role in all the students lives. Some will tease and mock, but I don't think Morgan will understand. Others will will truly see her value and love her. They may not understand what Morgan can teach them at this early age, but it will be manifest in their actions towards others. We have seen it take affect with our family and friends. I am excited for the affect to silently spread to others as well.

Morgan had a great day. She had an aide with her and the teacher said she was able to teach! She actually seemed excited for next week! I am proud of my Morgan. I know this is a huge adjustment for all the little kids, but even bigger for Morgan. She seems to enjoy it - so far.

I want to say to all of you that follow Heather's blog - THANK YOU! I know Heather draws strength and comfort from your comments and thoughts. Turns out this blogging thing can bring value to lives. And to think I just thought it was a waste of time. Silly me - my bad. Who knows, depending on the comments, I may be invited back.

Not good news

How can this cute little face be so much trouble?

Notice all the goodies on the teacher's desk right behind her

First of all, thank you for all the positive comments, emails and phone calls today. It means more to me than you'll ever know. And your comments helped remind me of something I've known all along but somehow forgot along the way. . . I need to follow my heart and do what makes Morgan the happiest. That said, she seemed pretty dang happy when I went to pick her up from school today but her teacher was another story.

The school psychologist, resource teacher and 1st grade teacher wanted to talk to me after school about the things that worked and the things that didn't. Her teacher (Mrs. D) started crying and said she felt like she had failed. Failed Morgan and failed all of her other students too. She is an amazing teacher and everyone at the school requests her for their child's teacher. She is everything you could ever dream for a teacher. But she wasn't able to shine today. I think it was her first time in her career that she wasn't productive and it was her students first impression of her. She was left alone with Morgan. No help from the resource teacher, her two aides or the psychologist. They did come down to help her with bathroom needs but that was all. Mrs. D kept saying she just felt so overwhelmed and was having such a hard time because she is usually a good teacher but didn't feel that today. She was a mess. She didn't get to eat lunch because she was with Morgan. She didn't get to do the 'get to know me bags' with the kids because of Morgan. She felt like she wasn't able to accomplish anything with her students today. "I don't think the kids even got to do one fun thing today."

She then started to describe Morgan. Things that her other teachers knew to expect because they are special ed teachers. . . she has a hard time with personal space, she kept touching the other kids and their papers, she hit someone on the back as she walked by him, she kicked a few kids, she likes to wash her hands and would have done it for 30 minutes if I would have let her, she turned off the lights (for some reason that one makes me laugh because I can totally see her doing it), she wouldn't come in from recess and I had to leave the other kids to go get her, etc.

The resource teacher just sat there and didn't say a word. Didn't offer any options to help. I finally said, "What about your 2 aides? You don't have any students until after Labor Day. Could one of them come in here and help out? This current situation is not an option. If there is no assistance then this is never going to work." It was an awful situation. I know exactly what the teacher is feeling. It is how I feel almost every day . . . overwhelmed with not knowing how best to help Morgan. She is not supposed to feel that way.

The psychologist was optimistic that with some positive reinforcement with stickers and candy rewards that Morgan should be independent on the playground and coming back into class on her own in one week. Seriously? Because I am sure that cute paper necklace you made to put stickers on will be ripped apart before morning recess. We are still talking about a first grader with Down syndrome, right? Independence is a wonderful goal but she is going to need an aide to help her on the playground and in the lunchroom all year, not one week.

They finally came to a decision that one of the resource aides will spend the first week in the classroom to help out. Apparently we have to try everything we can before we can go to the district and request more help. Basically it's a great system -- let everyone feel overwhelmed and fail before we do something to make it a positive experience. I understand her teacher's concerns. All the kids are young and adjusting to full day school and the new routines. If they don't get it these first few days, weeks even, then she is looking at a year of chaos and trouble. How does she explain to the kids that it is ok for Morgan to not be following all the rules but not ok for them? I even suggested I keep Morgan home for the first few weeks and try it again when all the other kids have adjusted to the new routine. Apparently it's against the law for me to not bring her to school when it is in session. Who knew? :)

I feel good about the cluster classroom choice, too. I have a friend with a daughter in that class and there are only 7 kids in the class with a teacher, aides, and speech therapist. It doesn't sound so bad now. I know Morgan would gain more academically at the cluster but that her social skills would not progress as quickly. She would be in a room of kids with delayed speech and behavioral issues. I don't feel like we've (Morgan, Mrs. D, and I) failed if this is where Morgan ends up. Mrs. D. said she would feel like she failed Morgan if I left the school. I told her it doesn't mean we failed if this is not the best option for Morgan. There is not only one right way. And the cluster room may be the best option for Morgan and her needs.

One more thing . . . on the way home, Morgan was speaking in longer sentences and more than she has in a long time, if ever. And that was just after one day.

Second Thoughts

Morgan starts 1st grade tomorrow and I am questioning if we made the right decision for her school placement. I guess I will know after the first few days but all I can do right now is worry and wonder. We decided at the end of the school year last year to mainstream Morgan this year. It was after a lot of careful consideration weighing all the pros and cons and I felt like it was the right decision for her. She did a 'cluster classroom' last year for Kindergarten and had an amazing teacher but was held back socially. All of the children in the classroom had an intellectual disability (ranging from blindness, severe CP, autism, Down syndrome, etc.) and behavioral problems. Morgan didn't have anyone to look to as a positive peer model of appropriate social behavior and seemed to be further ahead of all the kids academically too.

We were told last year that she would spend the first half of the day in resource and the second half of the day in the regular classroom without any aide assistance. I have been reading Lisa's blog posts on inclusion and disabilities these last few days and found myself agreeing with many of the topics of inclusion. Why does her school just assume Morgan cannot function in the regular classroom? Why not let her try being with her classmates and let her show them what is best for her? Well I guess I need to be careful what I wish for . . . we (Gavin, Morgan and I) met with her 1st grade teacher today. Her teacher is extremely positive about having Morgan in her classroom and is open to any ideas or suggestions we have. She hasn't ever had a child with special needs in her classroom so this new for both of us. She let us know that Morgan will be in the regular classroom all day for at least the first few weeks. She and the resource teacher feel like this will help her adjust easier to the new routine and structure. I love the idea of this but reality is something completely different. Realistically, she cannot sit in a classroom for 6 hours with 20 other students, one teacher and no aide support. I wish that was my child but it isn't. The teacher put Morgan's desk right next to her desk and of course the first thing I noticed were the sharpie markers, tape dispensers, staplers, cups of pencils all sitting right on the edge of the teacher's desk. I can only imagine Morgan's delight as she sits at her desk and is able to reach over and knock all of that stuff off the teacher's desk. She also had scissors in her desk. The teacher asked me if she knew how to use scissors and I told her she was great at cutting her hair all off with them and that it was probably best that Morgan didn't have independent access to them. I wish that was all I was worried about but there is so much more. She needs someone to take her to the bathroom every few hours and help her with getting her pants off and on. Of course the teacher can't leave her classroom so she is going to see if one of the resource aides could help with that. Then there is the worry of lunch. Carrying her lunch tray, opening her milk, helping her with her food, wiping off her dirty face when she is done eating. And she likes to wander. Will anyone be with her at recess and help her come back in when the bell rings? She is not going to willingly leave a good slide for sitting at a desk in a classroom. And I worry about her being a distraction. Who am I kidding? She is definitely going to be a distraction and that isn't fair to the other students.

I wish our district offered some sort of middle ground. Instead it is all or nothing. Either the student needs to be able to function independently, without any assist to mainstream, or be bussed to a school far away and attend a cluster classroom with lots of support (a teacher with 3-4 aides) but no typical peer models in the classroom. It just doesn't seem like a real win-win situation. I am trying to be positive but it is hard when I feel like we are setting her up to fail.

My two little fishies . . .

. . . Morgan and Griffin

Morgan has always been cautious (and even that word might be an understatement), but her biggest fears seem to be with depth perception and heights. This is most apparent at parks and playgrounds. Most people probably haven't paid much attention to how playgrounds are designed, but most play sets have really small holes on the stairs and walkways that make it possible to see the ground down below. Morgan is getting better with this but has struggled with being able to walk and not crawl around on these playgrounds out of her fear.

She carried this fear of depth into swimming. She was fine in a kiddie-pool where she felt in control but terrified in a regular 3-4 ft. shallow end of a pool. We started her in swimming lessons at the beginning of summer and she hated it! Every morning when she woke up she would ask if she had swimming with Uncle Blake. And was never happy to find out she did. I wish I would have gotten some videos of her from the beginning of summer . . . she would wrap her arms and legs around my brother (her teacher) and practically strangle him. It was pretty much impossible to get her arms and legs unwrapped to be able to start working on swimming (isn't she supposed to have low muscle tone? Ha!)

It may have taken a summer full of swim lessons, BUT . . . I now have a swimming girl that LOVES to swim, has her face in the water more than out, and now begs to go swimming with Uncle Blake! The first videos shows Morgan swimming from the rope to the steps.

The other two videos are of Griffin. I guess we forgot to tell him he just turned 3 and isn't supposed to be able to swim all over the pool all by himself.

We are going to miss swimming in grandma's pool every day now that summer is coming to a close and I KNOW my kids are going to miss having Uncle Blake as their teacher. He really is the best-- so patient, loving, and positive with them. We love you Blake!

Bear Lake: Three-peat

Our family takes up an entire swing set! Love it!!

We made it to Bear Lake 3 times this summer and only had a few warm, sunny days in all the trips combined. We went for a 4 day weekend and stayed at the Ideal Beach condos. The kids were excited to stay at this resort because of the mini-golf, pools, and park area. And we got the added bonus of getting an updated condo. Last time we stayed there we were in one that was falling apart and didn't look like one thing had been updated in the past 30 years.

Luckily we got in some boating on our first day there since we had no idea it would be cloudy and rainy the rest of our trip. I even waterskiied this trip. My first time in 10 years. My kids were so proud of me, especially Morgan!

Hadley, Jack and Ryan on our lunch break

Morgan and Mia

The hot captain of our boat

Mia tried out the tube for the first time-- not sure if she liked it or not.

It was just our luck that Rich County was having their annual Demolition Derby that night. We forgot to get enough cash to get all of our family in (what? No credit cards??!!) but the cute high school kids took pity on us and let half of us in for free. It made me feel a little bit like white trash, but then I realized we fit right in once we got inside. There was no seating left so we just sat down on a big dirt hill and Morgan, Griffin and Mia thought they were at the beach and decided to rub the dirt all over their legs and then throw dirt all over themselves and us.

Jack, Ryan and Hadley thought it was the best part of the trip and loved every minute of it!

Hadley, Gavin, me and Mia

all of us in our premium seats

Lunch in the condo

We did lots of swimming

And the big kids played some mini-golf

Having fun at the park

Gavin was giving all the kids 'under-dogs' and Morgan didn't want to feel left out and started chanting, "under-dog, under-dog". She LOVED it!!

And of course we had lots of yummy raspberry (with varying combos) shakes! My favorite was raspberry/banana/heath. Yum!! and yes . . . there is NO LINE!! Everything officially closed down today and will re-open next summer. The town was crazy with crowds on Saturday and by Monday we were all on our own!

It was a fun family get-away and now it is time for some serious back to school shopping (school starts in 2 days and I haven't bought my kids any new school clothes or supplies. I am sure I am just in denial and not just a really bad procrastinator!) and some hair cuts for Jack and Ryan.

Gavin's 'life changing' Sky Coaster update

I know you have all been anxiously awaiting the video footage of Gavin's 150 ft. free fall plunge at Lagoon with his two brothers-in-law. The wait is over. My sister has it on her blog. Just scroll down to the bottom of this post and you can see it. I was in the car with Morgan and Griffin and had to watch it from the parking lot so I had no idea this is how he 'prepared' himself for the big plunge (but must add that I am not surprised)!!

Education Week at BYU

What an amazing day! I spent the entire day at BYU (my alma mater) going to classes to learn how to live an inspired, enriched and fuller life. It was so much fun just to be up on campus again and in some of the same classrooms where I spent my undergrad studies. I really do love Provo and my BYU experiences. I can't believe it has been 12 years since I was a student there.

Some of the highlights:

• The Sabbath Day is a gift from God, not a burden but a blessing. It is a test to see if our devotion is complete.
• The facets of marital intimacy include: emotional, intellectual, spiritual, recreational, financial and sexual.
• It's not the parent's primary job to provide a happy childhood. A parent's real responsibility is to prepare children for a happy adulthood.
• Our children's belief system, "I will become what I think you think I can."
• Treat children as they will be, not as they are.
• Where there is a silent and withdrawn man, there is usually a critical woman.
• Recurring themes of the past few General Conferences:

Live within our income

Visit the temple often

The promise of angels to bear us up is real

Faith and Doubt cannot exist in the same mind

Live with respect to those of other faiths

Education Week (or day, in my case) is such an amazing experience. Experts in all fields--marriage, family, cooking, traditions, scriptures, gospel knowledge, disciplining, etc. You name it they offer a class on it. Everyone is running from class to class hoping to get some new (big or little) bit of information to help them achieve an even greater happiness in the journey.

Gavin spent the morning with me and then went home to be with the kids while I enjoyed the rest of my day with my sister and bro-in-law

Gavin with my sister, Heidi and her husband Scott

I even got to go to some classes with my BFF Daisie!

All the Stewarts joined us for the musical Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat. It's no secret that I cry over everything. It started after Morgan came into my life. But I cry even easier after having spent the entire day in uplifting, spiritually motivating classes. I knew I was doomed when the musical started and I noticed that two of the cast members had Down syndrome. One of them actually had a lead role and was amazing. I wish I could have talked to him after the show, but everyone was starving and we ran to the CougarEat for some ice cream before they closed. The show and seeing an extremely talented individual whom also happened to have Down syndrome was the perfect ending to this day!

Cassidy, Hadley and Karsyn

Well we are off on another 4 day adventure to Bear Lake tomorrow. I am not looking forward to all the packing and laundry again. It's our last hurrah before school starts next week.

Keep your arms and legs inside the vehicle at all times . . .

. . . and have FUN!

Lagoon Day is something my kids look forward to all summer -- UDSF (Utah Down Syndrome Foundation) "buy one get one free" day at lagoon. All the cousins come and usually grandma (but this year she volunteered to stay home with the babies) and enjoy going on all the rides together and getting a little treat in the pavilion with Morgan and all her friends! I have lots of pics of Griffin and Morgan since they stayed close by my side. The big kids all took off and enjoyed the big kid rides together and didn't make it in very many of my pictures.

Griffin managed to injure himself on the way into the park. He fell down and split open his eye on the asphalt. So he was the lucky one who got to wear around this tiny band-aid all day and suffer from partially obstructed vision.

Gavin with Jack, Ryan, Hadley and Griffin

Griffin was really excited about the 'pirate ship' ride (aka Tidal Wave) but Morgan had some reservations as we waited in the line and saw how high the boat went up and down. Griffin was too focused on the pirates to worry about any possible danger. (Remember the birthday party last month?) Yeah, he still loves pirates. . . At least he did. We started the ride and he was doing his best to keep his arms up and enjoy the ride. But it only took about 30 seconds for his expression to change to complete terror as he yelled out, "I don't like this pirate!!!" Unfortunately I don't have a picture of his cute, scared face, but I do have this sweet one of Morgan giving her daddy loves right before the ride started.

Jack and Ryan pretended to like "Puff the Dragon" rollercoaster (can someone please get these boys a haircut?!?!)

One of the highlights of the day for me was running into this cute girl (aka The Love Magnet) and her mom, my dear friend, Scarehaircare! She is Morgan's age and amazing! She walked right up to me and asked me what my name was. I told her that the last time I saw her was after her heart surgery last year. She showed me her scar and I told her that Morgan had the same scar. She got so excited and was talking up a storm with Morgan about how they both had the same surgery. "Show Gavin your surgery, Morgan!" Her speech and cognition is incredible! I just wish they wouldn't have moved 6 hours away from us.

Jack, Hadley, Karsyn, Will and Ryan

Gavin, Jack and Ryan apparently had a life-changing experience on their last ride of the day. They all did the 150 ft. bungee jump/ sling shot ride and can't stop talking about it. Gavin thinks I am going to do it with him next summer. Never mind I had a headache from just the rides in Kiddieland and am terrified of heights. Don't think that will happen.