Always Going Above and Beyond

Sharaya was born on October 6, she's the second of our three girls.

Beth was just turning two when she was born and she couldn't get enough of her!

Sharaya has a tender spirit and is always going above and beyond what she is asked. When she was young she was helpful at home and at school. 

She's two years younger than Beth and would help her with things when she was really little. I remember when she was four, she helped Beth put a toy back together. When Diana was two, Sharaya was six and would play with her after she got home from school. And she's still that considerate as an adult. She worked at a middle school for a couple years, then due to budget cuts had to move to the transportation department. And you know, she still goes back to that middle school to volunteer where she can! She helps at school activities or makes posters. 

And as a mom? Due to addiction and abuse she became a single mom many years ago and she and Ally have such a close relationship. She has created a bond that is carrying them through the teen years.

She's an incredible woman and I'm humbled to be her mom.

Happy Birthday Sharaya!

Twas the Week Before Christmas...

 Hi,

I'm sorry I haven't been writing lately. I'm trying to spend more time with Beth in the evenings, and when Chuck hollers out to wherever I might be, "You wanna watch a Christmas movie?" Of course I'm going to say yes. 

We've been to the movies twice.

Walked around our little town.

Did some Christmas shopping.

Looked at Christmas lights.

And went to our church's Christmas concert. 

It's been a fun week that went by way too fast!

The fountain decorated downtown

Trying to get a picture of us in front of our town's Christmas tree. It was pouring rain and windy, and the phone kept slipping out of my hand!

We used a haze machine this year during the concert.

It was phenomenal as usual. 

The music, the lights, even the drama.

You can watch it  here. 

Even just the first minute. You won't be disappointed!

Oh! And Adelaide turned two! (There are three candles because one is for good luck.) We weren't able to be there for her birthday this year but Diana sent lots of pictures and videos. 

The next few days will be last minute prep for Christmas. I still have some wrapping to do, plus I'm working a half day on Monday. Unfortunately Chuck only has Christmas Day off this year. But I'm thankful he has it off!

Sharaya and Ally will come over Christmas Eve and we'll video chat with Diana, Peter and Adelaide so Ally and Adelaide can open their Christmas Eve jammies. (Ally has been sick the last week or so and has missed a lot of school but Sharaya says she's starting to feel better.) Then Christmas morning we'll all be at our own homes, then Sharaya and Ally will come over in the afternoon and we'll have Christmas with them. Diana and Peter will go to his parents in the afternoon. (D&P live in Pennsylvania and his parents are in New Jersey. We're in Seattle.)

Have you finished prepping for Christmas? Or for Hanukkah or Kwanza if you celebrate those? I pray this has been a peaceful time for you.  

Beth Turns 40!

We'll be celebrating her birthday on Sunday but October 10 is her birthday. We've got a lot of surprises for her, one being the chair in the header photo!

We didn't know Beth had Down Syndrome until after she was born. We were stunned when the doctor told us but we knew right away we would still love her.

Funny story - unbeknownst to us, my doctor relaxed our visiting hours. Beth was in my room all day while our families came and went. After a few days my dad stopped by again to see us and I was told they couldn't bring Beth to my room. That's when I learned the doctor wanted to see if we were planning to keep her. How would we treat her? When he saw how much we loved her he put the visiting hour restrictions back in place.

When she was just a couple months ago the Regional Center of San Diego sent therapists to our home to work with her. She learned to sit up at one year, and learned to walk at two.

Beth at One Year

Beth at Two

In this picture Beth is three and Sharaya is one

The Regional Center only worked with kids until they were two, then they started going to preschool. A contained class with other kids with special needs. I drove her the first few times, and this is Beth taking her first bus ride.

She absolutely loved riding the school bus! And did so for the next 19 years.

She's traveled all over the country. We've been on over 40 road trips in her lifetime and she does really well in the car.

Back when car seats were for kids under two

Beth's grown up with the best sisters. They look out for her and make sure she's getting the best care. They fight for her, and with her. 😊 We couldn't have asked for better kids.

Sharaya and Beth

Beth, Diana, Sharaya

Has it always been easy? No. We didn't expect this journey. We didn't even have time to plan for it. Forty years ago we made a decision to bring her home and to love her. She's been bringing joy to our lives ever since!   

Deer, Darling, Dreaming

 Hello, 

 

It's about 2:00. I got home from work a little while ago, fixed some yogurt, berries and granola for lunch and ate it in the backyard.

 

I'm in the process of creating a small sitting area in a corner of the backyard, nestled up against the house where none of our neighbors can see us. It's very secluded. And sitting out there today I was overwhelmed with the view. We look out onto a green belt, filled with so many different trees: we have Pine and Hemlock, Elm and Cedar. And the birds. Sometimes it's hard to hear all their calls, there's just so many. It's beautiful, and I can't believe I get to live here. I'm so blessed.

 

I worked 15 hours of overtime the last couple of weeks. We had two graduations back-to-back. Plus rehearsals, receptions. One was for our own preschool, and the other was for a local private high school. The seniors had to go down to the preschool area to the room where they would assemble before their event and they were so enamored with the preschoolers, and the preschoolers looked up at them so wide eyed. It was pretty cute. Can you tell which set up was for which class?

 

 

Chuck had a good Father's Day. We went out to eat at Moonshine BBQ, he loves that place. Many of us had pulled pork burgers and they were so good! Came back to the house for games and gifts. Chuck got a coffee pod holder, and tickets to see the Seattle Storm!

 

 

My birthday's on the 17th so we often celebrate them together. The girls got me some gift cards, and mouse ears! We're going to Disneyland in a few weeks and they've been talking about getting some for themselves on-line. I thought about getting some but didn't want to intrude on 'their' thing. But they got me a pair! And not just any ears. They're Bambi ears! Oh my gosh I love them! 

 

Summer's about here and we've got temps in the 70's this week. It's pretty close to perfect. Well, that's about all from here. I hope you have a great start to your summer!

A Christmas We Won't Soon Forget

Chuck, Beth and I flew out close to midnight on the 14th and arrived in Pennsylvania early on the 15th. We hung out at Diana and Peter's until it was time to check in to the hotel. By 5:00pm Beth and I were in our pajamas and in bed. We both slept until 8:00 the next morning!

 

We spent the next couple of days at their house playing with Adelaide, walking the dog, and just hanging out.

 

 

We saw Beth's suitcase being loaded onto the plane. She was pretty excited!

 

 

 

Blowing bubbles - entertains the baby and the dog!

 On the morning of the 17th Peter contacted Chuck and asked if he could go over to their house and let the dog out. They had been in the ER all night with Adelaide and she had croup! That poor girl!

 

 While they went home to sleep, the three of us spent the day around Philly, went to Bob Evans for lunch, stopped in at Shady Brook Farm, saw The Chosen Christmas Special, and looked at Christmas lights. The Chosen was so good, can't wait to see Season 4!

 

They had Adelaide's first birthday on the 20th when Sharaya and Ally flew in. Even though she was dealing with croup, she was still happy and playing!

 

And making sure everyone around the table was playing too!

 

A little unsure at first...

Happy Birthday Adelaide!

(The O in One is a meatball, their nickname for her while she was in the womb.)

 

 

The next morning we boarded the train and went into New York for the day. Peter had to work so he dropped Adelaide off at his parents - we really missed them both! It's just not the same when the whole family isn't together. 

 

 

Angelina's had the BEST pastries!

Central Park. The temps were in the 40's but the wind chill factor made it feel like the mid-30's. It was so cold! Beautiful but cold.

We had to see The Plaza Hotel. The one in Home Alone 2. Beth had been looking forward to this the entire day!

The Rockefeller Christmas Tree, where Kevin goes to ask if he could see his mom just one more time, and they find each other there at the base of the tree. Sniff...

 

And the moon rising over the Empire State Building.

That really was a magical day. But our trip was far from over...