First off I HAVE to share this video with everyone who knows
Chloe or knows OF Chloe. It made me cry
and I think it’s amazing!
So this blog post will be dedicated to Chloe and her biggest
cheerleaders Xander and Sadie, in honor of WDSD which takes place on March 21st
every year. Get it???? 3/21. . . . wait
for it. . . Trisomy 21 the official medical
term for Down syndrome. I know, cute
right? Anyway, let’s talk kids. Mine, of course, cause it’s my blog (hee hee). I haven’t done a general update in awhile so
here goes:
CHLOE has been a busy little beaver. Which in turn means so have the rest of us! But what else is new! I was shocked at my most recent teacher
meeting when she showed me the book Chloe was reading. Yes, I said it R-E-A-D-I-N-G! Not “reading” like I thought, where she
points her fingers at words and talks along in gibberish as she goes, but
actual word recognition reading! wooo
hooooo! Now that’s a milestone I wasn’t
even quite expecting yet. What a
pleasant surprise. She’s also talking in
FULL, sometimes long sentences! Not
always, but every now and then she comes out with a wowzer! Like “Mom, can you stop doing that?!” (probably when I’m singing or dancing). She’s got a new i-Pad that we’ll be using to
help her communicate because although she can speak in full sentences at times,
at other times the words just escape her and frustration bleeds into her sweet
little eyes. Chloe’s also toilet training and has been for
what seems like months! She’s so darn
close. Close, but yet so far. . . Chloe loves to sing and dance with Sadie,
play floor hockey with Xander, watch movies and act them out, play with her
Playmobil people and her cars. She is
full of spunk and zest, but a full on love.
I find if I’m getting frustrated with her if I can get her to laugh, we’ll
all be okay! Lastly, she’s been busy
doing gymnastics (or should I say Max her shadow has been busy chasing her
during gymnastics!) I think that covers
Chloe in a nut shell. Oh, I forgot the
medical update. . . we’re trying to wean her off her thyroid meds and heart
meds and could potentially have her MED FREE by the end of April. I get VERY emotional when I think about this
as it seem like the end of a very medically dominated era. I’ll keep y’all posted.
AND as if all this isn’t enough, Chloe has taken to RUNNING out
of the house. We’ve gone into lock down,
but mistakes happen and she has gotten out and gone missing, although only
briefly, several times. One time she was
seen bolting out into our busy street without even glancing for cars or
hesitating. We were sooooo
lucky!!!! We will be putting this in the
forefront now that the warm weather is returning and will be working with our
local police department to get her hooked up with Project Lifesaver, a tracking
program for people with disabilities. We’re
also working with the Department of Disability Services and the school to come
up with some behavior plans to help prevent bolting. It’s a very scary prospect!
SADIE SADIE SADIE.
What can one say about Sadie. The
poor middle child, sandwiched between two very high maintenance siblings. And a drama queen in her own right. Well, she’s been struggling a little with her
place and has expressed the feelings of being left out so we’ve made a real
effort to give her some special extra attention, her school is hooking her up
with a mentor and I’m enrolling her in a program called SibShops, just for
siblings of kids with disabilities. She’s
looking forward to both! She’s also
taking gymnastics with Chloe, doing well in school and growing like a
weed! She LOVES to play school,
experiment, dance and be silly and do “fashion”. I fear the day when we can fit in the same
clothes! Although I guess that means I
get to steal from her closet too ;)
Sadie’s had two bouts of strep but otherwise is healthy. No specialists for her. She is such a great sister to both Chloe and
Xander.
XANDER MAN! Last but
not least. He’s 13. Yes, 5 years from 18. . . 3 years from being
able to drive. 1 ½ years from high
school. And I know all this because he’s
been sure to point it out to me! He
loves toying with me and reminding me he is growing up! AND UP
AND UP. Every week he likes to point out
how far above my head he’s gotten. Last
count 5’5” and growing. He’s a beanpole
though. 95lbs soaking wet. He’s definitely working to find himself out,
but he, like his other sibs, is a strong part of the family. He’s working VERY hard in school and hockey
and LOVES playing video games. He’s
still interested in medicine (has been since he was 2), but also takes some
interest in the military. He’s a family
guy for sure, heading down to VA to visit his Great Nana who he loves very
much.
Stacey and I are doing well.
22 years together and 19 years married.
wowzers! And still going
strong. He’s gearing up for the spring
season at work and I’m about to take on an increased caseload at my job (hence
the early WDSD post). We’re ready for
spring for sure! It’s been a LONG and
stressful winter.
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