January Moments

Snow Day: Still life with outerware.

Let's face it. There's not much that's nice about January.

I forget how much I do not enjoy this time of year. The cold, the unpredictability of snow storms and potential snow days (which I have to admit, I don't dread as much as a I used to, both because I don't have to stress about attempting a commute into the city, coupled with the fact that the children are much better about amusing themselves on a day stuck at home). At least that's nice (trying to find a positive spin, can you tell?).


Snow days: Not what they used to be! (That's a snowman with his scooter and basketball, by the way--because, of course).

Nope, this is definitely not the easiest time of the year.  The holidays are over. Spring is a looooong ways away. It's cold. Did I mention it's cold?


This picture was taken back when we could see our driveway. Now? Not so much. Snow, snow and more snow.


We are doing our best to make lemonade out of the snow. Or, in my case, virgin bloody marys (see my glass, above). It was early Sunday morning and I was dreaming about a kid-free, bloody-mary-and-The-New-York-Times-Long-Brunch. Instead, we did a Valentine craft.


I'm going to the library as often as possible. The twins love when I bring home grocery bags of books, devouring them immediately. I usually just take Leo and Ellie with me to the actual library--when I pulled into the parking lot last time they both cheered, so I guess I must be doing something right.

Before the snow and deep freeze pummeled us, the Oregon Grandparents were here for their semiannual winter visit.



We took our traditional trip to our local zoo on New Year's Eve day and it was as magical as ever. For some reason--maybe it's that it's never above 25 degrees when we go, or because everyone has overdosed on the zoo (its "holiday zoo lights" display brings people from far and wide), but there is never anyone else there on New Year's Eve day. Seriously it's like having a private zoo, all to ourselves.



It was just the wolves and us. And yes, they were pretty much licking their chops at these scrumptious children.






One of the best parts about a frigid visit to the zoo is the hot chocolate/donut warm-up that follows.


The next day we feasted on Jewish deli food and watched the big Oregon game. It was fun to have family around to cheer on our "home" team. Most importantly, Ellie and Leo learned the art of chest bumping. (Thanks, Grandpa).


We bid the grandparents a sad goodbye, went back to school and Lucy managed to fall flat on her face and get her first black eye, earning her a new nickname, "Rocky." (I didn't know you could get a black eye wiping out the way Lucy did, but apparently you can).

But by far I think one of my favorite January moments was when Jake and Adam, Leo's buddies from the Friendship Circle, came over for a surprise visit while they were home visiting from college. It took Leo months to stop asking for these guys, who have been spending an hour every weekend with Leo since he was four and they were thirteen. So I thought it would be fun to surprise Leo and not tell him they were coming.



It was better than I could have ever imagined.

First Snow Storm and Christmas Cookies: Nailed It!

Saturday was our first "real" snow of the season. Thank goodness it happened on a weekend when we could enjoy it and not worry about trying to get to work or how we'd manage to pick up big kids at school in the snow with two toddlers in tow.



Ellie fulfilled a lifelong dream of finally ice skating.

Sort of.


This is so often how it goes. Ellie, Leo and Lucy plotting something (in this case a rousing snow ball fight) while Harry says "You know what? I'm gonna just go over here and play with my helicopter thankyouverymuch."


A yard full of snow to play with, half a dozen kid vehicles and she has to stand On Top of Him. This really sums it up (don't worry, the second I managed to snap this, I rescued Harry from her clutches).

Regarding the snow: Let's file this one under "Reason 979 why Big Kids Rock." Can I just say how fabulous it is to have older kids who can put on their own snow boots (mostly) and gloves and hats and coats? I really had forgotten how maddening it is to try and put miniature gloves on tiny, uncooperative fingers. And then they look at you all cold and pink and furious when they take their gloves off and they can't figure out why it feels like their fingers are going to snap off.


See? No gloves on this one. Seconds after this shot was taken she would announce that her hands were cold and "Where are my mittens?" (over there in the snow where you pulled them off in a moment of fury, Lou).

At some point in the middle of Saturday's snow storm I found myself saying, Let's make Christmas cookies! Because, clearly I've lost my mind.


Harry gave the unbaked cookies a good poke and promptly sampled some raw dough. Whoops!

I grew up making these cookies for the big Christmas Eve celebration with my step mom's family. This is the first time I was able to pull it off. It's not like it's so hard, it just takes planning, as does pretty much everything in our life. I had a minor freak out in the beginning when the dough was very sticky and none of the cutters were working but then something clicked toward the middle/end, sort of like how the first few pancakes in a batch are always terrible? Maybe it had to do with the dough temperature or something. Regardless, we rallied and they came as close to perfect as something in our house can come.

My stepmom sent me the recipe, which is from The Joy of Cooking (by the way, you can reduce the sugar to 1/2 cup--they are still plenty sweet and if you frost them like we did, they are definitely sweet enough).



These cookies actually taste really good (I know, just what we all need this time of year, more cookies that taste good). But so often Christmas cookies look good but end up tasting...not so much. Anyway, fair warning: Delicious buttery cookies.



At one point, all four were doing the same activity, which always warms my heart. Now that the twins are getting a little older, that's happening more and more and it makes me soooo happy.



OK, so Harry might have also been watching "Star Wars" and eating all of the cookies he was supposed to be decorating.

No matter.

Snow Day(s)

The snow started falling on Friday morning: tiny, fast flakes. By afternoon the roads were getting dicey and it was definitely sticking.

By evening it was a confirmed and beautiful blizzard. "Look Mommy!" Ellie squealed, "It's a Winter Wonderland!" (Earlier in the day I overheard Ellie asking Leo if he was "Gonna freak out if we lost power"--yes, she was full of zingers on Friday).

When it was all over (it snowed for about twenty-four hours straight), we had about sixteen inches.

Snow rendered the usually gutsy and outspoken Lucy quite...irritated. The funny thing is, this snowsuit is a hand-me-down from Ellie and I have pictures of her at around the same age with nearly the identical expression of disgust. Ah, sisters.

Harry was much more game about the snow business. Here he is attempting to stand and ending up...doing a sort of variation on splits. It was just impossible for these two to do much of anything.

Erin had the best idea of all, which was to take the twins (and the big kids) for a walk around the neighborhood since our backyard was just one big snow drift (probably three feet high in snow, in some places). By Saturday afternoon most of the sidewalks were shoveled and semi-clear and Harry and Lucy reveled in the novelty of walking the streets, free from the shackles of the stroller. There was enough snow that they were still hesitant and therefore weren't taking off at their usual breakneck speeds.

If you asked Lucy, I think she'd be most excited about the fact that the weekend snow storm forced me to seek out my boot stash and lo and behold I found this little pink pair (again, Ellie hand-me-down). Lucy is now seen, most often, clomping around the house, always with the one boot. She loves her boots.

It takes a lot of outerwear and organization to get all these people out the door and warm.

By Sunday, the roads were clear enough to head into the city where we took Harry and his big brown eyes (and the rest of the family) out for brunch.

An Epic Tale of the Nightmare Before, During and After Halloween or Why I Stopped Blogging for "31 or 21"*

So I'm here to tell you I have one HECK of an excuse for the disintegration of my end of "31 for 21."

I wish it weren't so.

Let's take stock, shall we? In the last eighty-six hours I have:

-Gone to Costco for party supplies for our little Halloween shindig and filled an entire refrigerator.

-Because (forshadowing here) nothing says "Power Outage!" like a full refrigerator, right?
I took this photo for the insurance company. I don't normally document my refrigerator, by the way.
But look at the giant, gorgeous hunk of brie. For my beloved cheese plate. It breaks my heart.

-Baked forty-eight pumpkin cupcakes and lovingly frosted them with cream cheese frosting.

-Watched, through the living room window, snow fall hard and quickly on trees full of golden, orange and brown leaves. Something is wrong with this picture.

-Heard the snap, like gun shots of trees falling all around us (PLEASE DON'T HIT THE HOUSE PLEASE DON'T HIT THE HOUSE).

My poor neighbor's tree.


-Answered call after call from guests who "couldn't get out of their driveways" or who were "afraid to go out in the storm."

-Watched little Ellie's shoulders slump and her lip quiver with the question "Why isn't anyone coming to my party?" [Insert stab to my heart here.] Ellie has been talking about and planning this party for weeks and weeks, every day it's "Hey guys I have an idea for the party!

-Cringed as the lights flickered, once, twice, went off, came back on and finally, off.

-Remembered, once again, how there are few things in life more cringe inducing than the ominous thud of your house's power going off. As if I needed reminding.

-Felt uneasy as darkness falls. It's going to be a long, cold night. Put socks, hats, two sleepers and extra blankets on the babies in their swings (it's too cold to put them upstairs). Check their cold hands every three hours as the temperature in our house slowly drops to 48 degrees.

-Made the decision with Erin that we could not spend another night in the house without heat and began the stressful process of trying to find a hotel room in the most densely populated state in the country boasting half a million people without power.

-Found a hotel room! Thirty miles away. Sigh.

Of course the kids thought it was a party. Our hotel had a pool! And room service! They got to eat pizza and watch Spongebob in bed. Halloween Party? What Halloween Party?

Someone in housekeeping had a lot of fun cleaning our room.


-Spent first night in hotel room. SO MUCH FUN WITH BABIES, by the way.

-Returned to house in the morning to throw away roughly $1000 dollars worth of rotting food (and don't forget the deep freeze which really comes in handy when, you know, buying in bulk.

-Driven back to hotel room for more "Spongebob."

We basically skipped Halloween. We were told by the hotel management (when they saw the kids) that there was a neighborhood a few blocks from the hotel where they could Trick or Treat but that just felt, I don't know. Weird. Then I got an email from our town that Halloween had been postponed for next week. So I didn't feel too bad. Did I mention Leo's school was closed Monday through Wednesday and is finally just reopening tomorrow?


-Woke up Tuesday morning to the news that our hotel would not be able to extend our reservation past the initial two days despite the fact that they assured us, upon check-in, that we could stay as long as we needed (No, I'm not bitter about this at all, why do you ask?)

-Paused to realize the babies were five months old! By second night, babies seemed to enjoy hotel bed.

-Made hotel manager find us a new, comparable hotel room.

-Drove the kids thirty miles to Ellie's school (where Leo used to also attend after-care and where they graciously let him go too on Tuesday so I could move our belongings without the "help" of four kids), first stopping at Dunkin Donuts to get lunches for the kids (I can't even believe I just typed that). Felt like circus sideshow as I hauled all four children into Dunkin Donuts to buy bagels with cream cheese (aka lunch).

-Felt concern that Lucy doesn't seem well. She has a low grade fever, which I learn when I stop at the house to check her temperature. Did I mention the interior of the house was 45 degrees? Harry doesn't seem great either. He's got that hacking cough that won't go away. Called doctor to make sick visit appointment.

-Needed to return to hotel to move our things to "new" hotel but first take babies to the doctor. Ta-da! Twin ear infections. Because there just wasn't enough going on.

-Rushed back to hotel room to pack room while Harry provided soundtrack. Nothing says fun like throwing your family's belongings into shopping bags as fast as you can while a sick baby screams in the background.

-Arrived at new hotel. Use term "hotel" loosely. Feel disgusted by the fact that while we may have been assigned a "non-smoking room," just walking through the hallway gives me a sore throat. Decide we cannot stay there. Put things back in the car and drive nervously back toward home, willing, praying, hoping that somehow, the power came back.

-En route to pharmacy to drop off babies' antibiotic, call neighbor, to check if, on the off chance the power has been restored.

-Learn the power was restored sometime around 4 p.m., right about when I was hauling bags into (and quickly out of) the Bed Bug Inn.

If I have learned one thing this year, it is to not take electricity for granted. Oh and heat is also nice. I realize, it could have been much, much worse. It was roughly four days without power. But there is just something very disconcerting about being displaced from your house and daily routine.

And after this year?

All I want for Chrismakah is a generator.


*With thanks to the illustrious Newark Star Ledger for the "Nightmare Before Halloween"

Unplanned Hiatus, A Return Thanks to Chemistry and Also: the “S” Word. Again.

What have we been up to? I’m so glad you asked.

You may have heard that it snowed (how many times am I going to say that this winter?) While nothing compared to the inundation that the DC-area has seen, last week was pretty impressive.

There have been snow men.

And of course, snow elephants.

And the Loch Ness Snow Monster made his home on our snow covered patio furniture.

There were a lot of Hayrides.

I came down with a wacky, miserable illness that I feared was going to land me on “Mystery Diagnosis” or “House.” Thankfully some good old pharmaceuticals stepped in and seem to be doing their job.

Leo continues his love for "Curious George: The Movie." I’d like to take this opportunity to publicly thank the compassionate librarian who took pity on me and let me re-check out the Curious George DVD (apparently that’s strictly forbidden). I had to pry that DVD out of Leo’s little hand when I went to renew it (and then discovered you’re not supposed to renew DVDs).

Leo discovered Peter Pan (the Disney version). Pirates. That’s all he needs.

I’ve started going to the library every Saturday and bringing home a heaping grocery bag of picture books for the kids. I know, I’m a little late to this. I think I got turned off on the library because I made the mistake of taking the children there to pick out books and they just aren’t ready for that yet—too overwhelming. Or maybe I need to up my medication to be able to handle taking them there. Kidding.

Ellie’s attention span for books has exploded in the last couple of weeks.

She wants to read the same book again and again and again. On repeat right now? The Max and Ruby books. They are adorable, I’ll admit. A way more palatable book-TV tie-in then that Dora girl.

What else? Let’s see.

Ellie got a haircut.

We plan on keeping it short for as long as she’ll tolerate it. I always thought long hair for a little girl would be a given, but Ellie’s not crazy about barrettes or pigtails, so for now, bob it is. She’s a little bit Coco Chanel, a little bit Ramona Quimby. It really suits her personality too.

Leo...

did not get a haircut.

To be fair, we have tried everything. Promises of ice cream cones while cutting hair, ice cream cones while watching "Dora" and getting a haircut, trips to the toy store after hair cutting. Nothing. I joke about it, but it really is troubling. I want him to look well-kept. Also, I hate that it is so upsetting and distressing to him to even consider a haircut. I cannot overemphasize how terrified he gets. I'm not sure how long we can go on my secret late night haircuts. I emailed Leo's teacher today to see if we can talk about some strategies. I guess it's sensory. Maybe his O.T. can help? Is there behavioral therapy for hair cuts?

Oy. Back to lighter topics.

The snow doesn't close our playground.


Ellie and I took a walk on Sunday afternoon.

She walked about two blocks before she announced “Uppy.” We went home to get the stroller, but the walking was fun while it lasted. When she’s not exhausted she can be a great little listener. It just never ceases to amaze me how she attends and follows me and stays close to me.

Ellie’s school (and Leo’s aftercare program) moved to a new location, about four minutes down the road. It’s a much nicer location and they’ll have a huge playground and garden once it warms up, but logistically, I’m not thrilled. It means I pick them up ten minutes later than I used to, and they’ve tightened the rules about lateness, apparently they’re going to start charging when they didn’t used to. I’m at the mercy of my bus (the 5:20) and the New Jersey Turnpike. Not a great combination.

I was worried when I learned the new bus Leo would be taking to the aftercare program would have him riding for almost an hour after school (OK, confession, I had a near freak-out). But then Erin calmed me down as she always does and made me look at it from another angle. We talked about whether it was so terrible for Leo to have a little time to decompress? He’s go-go-go all day at school. Hell, maybe he’ll even nap on the bus (the horrors!). A moving vehicle is the only way I can ever get him to sleep during the day.

So, yes. The one hour bus ride. At first it was feared, but now I think it's almost (almost) serendipitous. It's all about perspective.

I wonder, if he falls asleep on the bus, could they cut his hair?

Grateful and Raw and Snow Days Too

I’ve been feeling raw since last week. Raw.

It’s just the only word that describes it.

I’m torn between feeling overcome by the beauty and preciousness of life and terrified of having the other shoe drop, for something awful to happen. It’s no way to live.


I find myself hovering over the kids as they eat, calling over and over to sit down, stay in their chairs, to take tiny bites. I’ve started cutting oranges up into small pieces rather than simply peeling them and laying out plump slices like I used to. Remember, my kids are five and two. Am I nuts?

It’s just impossible for me to not feel so grateful. Grateful for snow days and two little bodies who sit like bookends, enthralled by "Super Why" (Leo’s latest obsession and I swear it’s way more educational than Sesame Street—it’s really quite an amazing show, check it out). I feel almost no TV guilt when the kids watch it and bonus: even Ellie likes it).

I feel grateful for these warm little bodies that beg for macaroni and cheese and more grapes and smoothies. I feel grateful for these little people who cheer because they get to go to Trader Joe’s or even better, the "slide place."

There’s that lingering, shadowing little tug. Why do terrible things happen sometimes? And why do they happen to one family and not another? And why shouldn’t they happen to us?

Like I said, it's no way to live.

And I don’t just worry about the children when they’re eating. Leo’s always been a wanderer. I’ve always had to watch his every move. He listens to me about fifty percent of the time. But he certainly cannot be trusted. The fence we had installed in the backyard two summers ago was the best money ever spent, but I still worry. The boy is clever. He’s been known to push a chair up against a fence and at least attempt an escape route.

Last week while playing with the kids in the backyard on one of our two snow days I looked away from Leo for thirty seconds while I helped Ellie clear snow from the slide. I turned around and Leo was simply, gone. The backyard was filled with an eerie silence. Believe me, Leo makes his presence known, always. He was no where to be found and instantly, that sick fluid of dread rushed through my veins as I began screaming Leo’s name, maniacally. I can only imagine what the neighbors must have thought.

And not even thirty seconds later I found Leo inside, sitting on the the kitchen floor, a tangle of limbs, stripping himself of his snow suit, shaking off his boots and gesturing toward the cupboard. Apparently, it was snack time. Outside play was over for him.

Thanks for the heart attack Leo.

I blame all of this for the fact that I knew I would be attending the funeral of a three-year old boy later in the week.

And an irony in all of this is that there was a time in the not so distant past when Down syndrome loomed as the huge, terrible, awful thing that had happened to us. There were so many days of why us? Why him? And now, Down syndrome just is. It might complicate things sometimes for sure, but it is no tragedy. It's amazing to me to think about how it once was.
***
So yes, there have been snow days and futile feeling “work from home” days where entirely too much TV was watched by the short people in the house (by necessity). No, really.

And snow days meant a lot of “Hayrides.” My expectations for a neat house plummet on a daily basis:

But in light of everything, I can honestly say I wouldn’t have it any other way.

Snow days have meant I have cooked real dinners: chicken Parmesan and cheese enchiladas.

There have been harried days back at work.

Valentine’s Day came and went and I felt like a complete schmuck when I realized I totally forgot to do anything about it for the kids this year. Yes, those cheapo drugstore Valentines are annoying and get thrown almost directly in the garbage (I mean recycling bin) when they arrive home, but aren’t they a right of passage?

Yesterday I found, crammed in Leo’s backpack a gigantic handmade, heart shaped envelope, a “holder” for Leo’s Valentines.

He had four. FOUR valentines. Three of them were from his teacher and the two class aides.

I know I am totally over thinking this. For goodness sake Leo only has five kids in his class, including him! But still. I want him to be the popular kid. I want him to have cards from dozens of children. I want him to have friends. What about all the kids from music and PE and art (Leo attends all those subjects with his “typical” peers). Where are the cards from them? Am I just deluding myself to think that any of them would deign to be friends with Leo?

Or maybe it’s just the general rawness of late. I’ll weep for anything.

Even gratitude.

From the Offices of Granola, Holiday Mix and Oatmeal Cookie Central and "Uppy Uppy Uppy" and also: SNOW

You may have heard that it snowed. Why, yes it did.

We built a snow man. Leo was beyond excited…

even though our snow man was more like a snow bump. Or snow lump.
He didn’t mind. There was plenty of snow-at least a foot, but it was so powdery. Just not snow man snow.

It sounds corny I know, but it warms my heart how much joy Leo gets from the tiniest things, like a snow man/bump/lump. He is the eternal optimist and has the sweetest little soul. I just have to remind myself of this fact when he crawls into the back of the minivan and laughs at me and refuses to get into his car seat and I want to strangle him.

Here's an illustration: This is Leo doing his homework on Sunday night. The happiest little boy to do homework ever.

And, the fruits of my labors, otherwise known as “how I spent my Saturday before Christmas.”

These are just some of the homemade goodies for the many teachers, therapists, aides and bus drivers in our life. There are about twenty more bags that just didn't make it in the photo.

I admit, I got a little crabby and manic during the whole process. I kept thinking to myself, so THIS is why people give gift cards! But now that all the little baggies are stuffed and the labels are made and the ribbons are tied and the cards are written, it feels worth it.

And re. Miss Uppy Uppy Uppy, Ellie still seems under the weather. She took three hour naps both Saturday and Sunday but was up at 6 a.m. and in our bed this morning, which is never a good sign. And her new favorite phrase is “I want to go to your room.” Poor Noodle.

This morning when I left her in tears at daycare I told her we just had to get through one more day. Tomorrow is her holiday concert at the daycare (I’ll be bringing my tissues for that one) and it’s also surgery eve, as Leo goes in for new ear tubes and his adenoidectomy on the 23rd.

Tomorrow was going to be my one day to do everything I needed to do before spending the next twelve days straight with all kids all the time (I'm off work for almost two weeks--notice how I do not call it a "vacation"), but alas, it looks like I will have a partner in crime as I clean the house and finish up with the last minute Christmas and grocery shopping.

I can think of worse things.

In Like a Lion, Indeed

I'm not sure if the snow was unexpected to everyone (yesterday at Ellie's music class her teacher told us to "have fun in the snow" and I was all, wha..."?). Then I went home and checked the forcast. In any event, we're having a little March blizzard here. In case anyone was confused it's decidely still winter. New York City schools were even closed, the first time in five years they're saying. All told, NYC could get a foot and even more where we are.

No shock of course, the kids' daycare is closed too, so I am home.

It's a quiet day. It's been a quiet weekend here at Chez Green Snot. Spirits are high but mucus is flowing freely and so we've been laying low in the hopes of beating the relentless cold and congestion. Rest is good.

We're watching "Horton Hears a Hoo" while Ellie naps. She's such a little sweetie sometimes. How did I know it was nap time? She lay right down on the living room rug and covered herself with her blankie.

I'm considering taking Leo outside to play in the snow but it's so windy the snow is blowing sideways, so not certain how fun that would be. But he's a little top today (energy on overload) so we'll have to do something.

A Good Boy, New Kicks and Lots of (Fun) Yelling

It’s already Tuesday, so a weekend report feels dated, but here goes. Also some info that is not weekend-related.

I spent a lot of nice quality time with Leo this weekend. I am always amazed by how well behaved he is when it’s just the two of us. He holds my hand in the parking lot. He doesn’t kick me in the face and go rigid when I try to put him in his car seat. He walks calmly with me to the potty and doesn’t protest when I tell him it’s time to go. It’s so encouraging and refreshing. My little boy can be good. My little boy is growing up.

On Sunday Erin had work to do from home so while Ellie napped (well, that was the plan, she ended up waking up five minutes after Leo and I left the house) Leo and I went to a nearby indoor play space that he adores. There’s all kind of cool stuff to climb on and over and through. Plus it’s fun to see him interact with other kids and there are always some moderately friendly and sometimes downright annoying but humorous other parents there to either talk to or eavesdrop on.

After playing Leo was my shopping partner in crime. I went to Target ostensibly for diapers but of course, couldn’t just buy diapers. I simply had to get Ellie these:



How very Kurt Cobain of her, no? I guess you didn't know it but Ellie is a real hipster. OK so now you now.

Can you believe these are her first pair of sneakers ever? I wanted to get Leo a pair too but they didn’t have his size.

Later that evening Leo loved yelling along with Erin, as we watched the Superbowl. There was a time when Leo would cry at loud sporting events on TV (he hated any kind of loud, sudden noises, period—oh the tears) but those days appear to be long gone. NOW WE CAN YELL AS LOUD AS WE WANT! Yay!

And also:

Ellie has two new words:
“Uppy” (Up)
“Out”

It’s snowing here. Again. The daycare is closing early. Again. They are oh so sensitive to the needs of working parents, aren't they? Frankly, I'm losing my patience with them. I'm sorry, but the roads are not going to be that bad. I get that public schools have to close early because of buses, etc. but this is daycare folks. OK, rant over. Anyway, I fear a hellacious commute home (as everyone panic and scrambles to leave early) but look forward to hopefully being home in time to cook a real dinner, you know not Annie’s and not a Trader Joe’s frozen stir fry kit. Mom of the Year.

Again With the Snow

Schools are closed AGAIN. I've lost count of how many snow days we've had so far this school year. I'm going to work from home (like I have a choice).

Leo slept until almost 6 a.m. this morning. In his own bed! How downright indulgent.

Taking a cue from Leo, Ellie (she's so advanced! yay! (said sarcastically)) decided to rearrange my computer keys this weekend. It took me a while to realize the "c" was where the "/" was. We really really need a new computer.

And I just learned that the child of parent who started one of the support groups that was such a lifeline for me after Leo was born, has died from complications from leukemia. I don't know the details, how long he was sick, but please keep this family in your thoughts.

Better Late Than Never

I'm really late on posting a bunch of photos. As everyone knows, it snowed all over the country a few weeks ago. We had a nice time playing in it. Well, Leo did.



Ellie, not so much. Does that look like a happy face?

She's fallen and she can't get up (sorry, I couldn't resist). Seriously, she fell and just sort of froze, whining in that position until I came to pick her up. A bit of a priss, but we love her.

There's Leo yelling at me, as per usual when I try to take his picture.

The sad little Snow Princess.

Smarty

Sometimes I think that I don't give Leo enough credit. It's not that I think he's dumb, I just, well I think that sometimes I set the bar low, so I won't be disappointed. Also, I don't know quite what to expect of him. I like to think that he's high functioning, and all signs so far seem to point towards this, but I don't want to get too comfortable. Will he keep going at this trajectory? Will he have some huge plateau and just stop developing at age five? Maybe that sounds silly, but I just don't know. Maybe it's a protective measure--if I expect little or nothing, then whatever I get is gravy. For years I've been reading about how parents of children with Down syndrome celebrate the little victories, the tiny accomplishments. It's really true. So I've just come to expect little things. And of course, to celebrate them.

Well, he is just full of surprises. And never ceases to amaze me, really.

Two recent things:

1) Leo is very interested in opening packages (making it impossible to put any presents under the tree this year but that's another story). Last week a box arrived for me. It was a small box containing shoes that I was not sure I was going to keep so I didn't want to bother to opening them. Well Leo had other plans. We've received a few gifts via the mail recently so I'm sure he thought it contained something for him. I told him that No we weren't going to open the box right now, and proceeded to begin my evening coming home ritual of hanging up coats, unpacking lunch boxes, going through kids' papers, starting dinner. It was after a few minutes that I realized Leo was being suspiciously quiet. There were no pleas for "Dora" (which is usually the first thing he asks for when I pick him up from school.

That's when I spotted him. He had gone into the junk drawer to retrieve a pair of scissors, which he had seen me use (bad modeling) last week to open a package. Before you call Children's Services on me I keep those scissors way in the back of the drawer but yes, it is troubling that he reached them (note to self, move scissors). There was Leo, sitting on the mud room floor, attempting to open my shoe box with the scissors. He had thought through the opening process and realized he would need a tool, knew where said tool was, and got it. His attempts were quickly dashed by me, but I still thought the whole thing was pretty great.

2) During the weekend's playing in the snow fun, Leo wanted me to pull him in the Red Flyer wagon. There was way too much snow for wagon pulling, so I explained to him that it would not be possible to pull the wagon because it would get stuck in the snow. That's when he climbed out of the wagon, bent down and began digging the snow out from under the wheels of the wagon. Again, he thought through the problem and thought up a solution (that's him, pictured above, trying to dig the snow out from under the wagon tires).

Leo, you are quite a guy.