Buddy Walk

Zach, Brandon, and Jimmy

Elijah, Mama, Jimmy, and Caleb ready to walk.

Yes, he wore this during the entire walk! He only took it off when he ate. See below.:)

Elijah at his first Buddy Walk. He was such a sweetheart and really enjoyed it, even though he was tired and had a cold. He even ate pizza, well the cheese anyway.:)

Caleb had a good time. He loves wagon rides!

Jimmy hamming it up for the camera! I know, you've never seen him do that before, LOL!

Brandon, Jimmy's buddy.:)

It just keeps getting better

For those of you who may wonder what the future will be like with your child with Down syndrome........
Let me give you a preview.....



It's going to be a blast! This kid of mine just cracks me up!! Right after I took the first picture, Jimmy said "Hey Mom!" and then did this! LOL! Too funny!

Caleb loves his trains

Caleb really likes to play with his trains. He will play for an hour at a time pushing them around and through the tunnel. He says "hi" to Sir Topham Hat every time Thomas goes by him.:)


I think he likes the "train wash" the best. When I showed it to him, he got all excited (you know how he loves the car wash)!

He has a cold right now, and that is why his nose is shiny (Neosporin). But even though he wasn't feeling so good, he still wanted to play longer when I told him it was bed time. I love to see him playing and having fun. He has quite the imagination!

A couple firsts:)

Today I brought out the potty chair for Elijah. I was curious to see what he would think about that. When I put him on, he was pretty unsure about it but once Caleb sat down on the toilet, Elijah was okay. He wasn't sure what to do, but shortly after Caleb went to the bathroom, Elijah did too! We clapped and cheered!!!Yay! Fast forward to tonight. It was bath time, so I put Elijah on the potty chair again. Believe it or not, he pooped on the potty chair. WhoooHoooo! We're cheering and clapping again! Then as I put Elijah into the tub, I hear Caleb shut the toilet behind me. I look in the potty chair and the poopoo was gone. Yep! Caleb picked it up with his hand and promptly disposed of it into the toilet! What do I say? Uh...thank you for helping Caleb. Then we wash his hands and I explain that we don't touch the poopoo with our hands.:):) Like I always say "Boys, Gotta Love 'Em!!

And yes, I did take a picture of Elijah's first poopoo in the potty chair, but I will spare you that one and just post a cute one of Elijah instead!

Look what I can do!

Look, Elijah's on his tip toes! So cute!




"Weeeeeeeeeeeeee!"

He may be small but Elijah is very determined to do everything that Caleb does. Maybe I should start potty training now. LOL! He is very proud of himself for climbing up and going down the slide all by himself. Mommy is very proud too.:)

First Day of School

Elijah loves Elmo so I was happy to find an Elmo lunchbox for him. He really likes it!:)



I can't believe Caleb is already in 1st grade. He is growing up so fast!



Caleb's first day of school was supposed to be yesterday but ended up being today. I took him to daycare yesterday where he stays for about 45 minutes and then gets on a bus to go to school. But when we got to daycare, he was complaining of a tummy ache so I ended up taking him back home.:( So today was the first day for both Elijah and Caleb. Caleb was so excited to ride the bus again! That's all he talked about on our way to daycare. Elijah signed bus over and over while Caleb was talking about the bus. They said Elijah cried just a tiny bit when they put him on the bus, but once he saw some more of the children from daycare also getting on, he was fine. His teacher Mrs. M, said that he had a good day. He sat well with the group and also fingerpainted.:) This afternoon, Caleb came off the bus all smiles and even told me that he ate chicken for lunch.

Now how does this happen? After being healthy all summer long, they can come home after the first day of school with a runny nose? LOL!

It's almost time

It's that time of year already. I always like the beginning of a new school year. Getting ready for the first day of school, labeling lunch boxes and school supplies, and writing narratives of the boys to give to their new teachers. I spoke often with Caleb's new teacher throughout the summer and this last week, so I didn't send in a narrative for him. I had a lot to write up for Elijah though. He has learned over 20 signs and continually amazes me with how observant he is. He helps me unload the dishwasher and knows where the spoons and sippy cup lids go just by watching me. Those are the only ones he can help with right now, and he does a good job. He is also trying to dress himself. If I start to put his pants/shorts on him, he quickly grabs them and tries to do it himself. He almost has it mastered too. Anyway, there were plenty of things to tell them about that he has learned to do this summer.

Caleb's first day of school is tomorrow and Elijah's will be on Wednesday. Caleb is attending a new school this year. We have three 1-4 grade schools in our district and he is attending one that has an elevator so he is happy. (Remember I said he is a button pusher). He will attend 1st grade for 1/2 day and a resource room for the other half of the day. He has visited his teacher several times this summer so he is familiar with her and also the building.:) Elijah will be attending the ECSE (Early Childhood Special Education) program 4 days a week for 2 and 1/2 hours a day. He will be bussed to daycare after school, where he will eat his lunch and take a nap. I will be picking him up right after his nap each day. On Fridays, he will attend daycare all day. He has already went to daycare twice last week so he is familiar with it and the caregivers there. They said although he cried for several minutes after I left, he had a good day.:) Last Thursday, we visited his teacher at school so he could see his room and get to know her a little before the first day. I'm concerned about his bus ride on the first day. I talked with Transportation and shared my concerns. I told them he may be apprehensive and cry the first day or so, but hopefully he will enjoy it as much as Caleb. Too bad Caleb and Elijah are on different buses, because it would have helped to have Caleb with him. They told me that he will have an aide on the bus and also be riding in a car seat, so I know he will be taken care of. Today I am going over my lesson plans for my classroom and we also have to run out and get Elijah a couple pair of pants and another pair of shoes. I already had them bought earlier this summer but he has not grown as quickly as I had expected so we need to buy a few smaller sizes. He isn't wearing any of Caleb's clothes yet, because when I brought Caleb home he was wearing 2T and Elijah was only wearing 12 months. He is beginning to wear 18 months now. Hopefully he will be able to wear some of Caleb's things in the Spring.:)


Guess who likes ice cream? Elijah has discovered that ice cream is really yummy. He also like bacon now too! I am thrilled that he is trying new foods and actually likes them.:) Stay tuned for First Day of School pictures coming soon.