She Just... Disappeared

Beth loves to text. She texts her boyfriend and she has a couple friends at church that she texts. She texts her sisters a lot. Sometimes it's only 'You're weird.' 'No you're weird.' But they text.

We've been emailing Diana regularly since she left and she told us that Beth texted her last week. Okay. But then she said that it's the first time Beth has sent her a text since she moved!

I asked Beth why she wasn't texting Diana anymore and she gave me her usual answer, "I dunno." I told her that I thought she did know and I asked her again, "How come you don't text Diana?"

Then she said, "I don't know where she is. I don't want to bother her."

Oh wow. I don't really know what Beth thinks about Diana moving. In her mind it seems, Diana has just... disappeared. I've gone to google/maps and showed her where she's living now. I pulled out our road atlas and we've looked at a map of the U.S. I've told her that just like my dad and sisters live their lives in San Diego, going to the grocery store and doing their laundry, Diana is doing those things in Philadelphia.  Course, I'm showing her all this on a piece of paper and I'm not sure she really understands the distance part of it. I don't really know what else to say or do.

In her mind, Diana is just gone.

So on Easter we facetimed with her and Beth got to see her and talk to her. I think that helped. Also, Diana is now texting her and telling her that she's grocery shopping, or headed to work and now Beth tells Chuck and I everything that Diana is doing.

I don't know if she really comprehends the whole thing yet, but we'll just keep trying to explain it.

A few days ago we were sitting at the kitchen table and she told me she never wanted to move out of our house. "It's too hard to say goodbye."

It Just Wasn't The Same

For the last few years our family has gone to Roozengaard to see the tulip fields. This year due to Chuck's schedule, there was only one day that we would be able to go and unfortunately most of the flowers hadn't bloomed yet. But we had good weather and it's always fun to hang out with family!

 

As soon as we got there, Beth had to use the restroom so while Chuck waited for her, Sharaya, Allie and I walked out a ways to the daffodil fields. It wasn't until after we got home I noticed a raindrop on my camera lens. :(

 

We went back up to the main garden area and took our usual family photos by the giant windmill.

 

Allie asked to borrow Sharaya's phone and walked around taking her own photos.

 

Then Sharaya wanted to continue a traditional photo shoot that they've done with Diana every year. Allie and Diana stand next to each other and make the same pose. Except, remember this year Diana has moved to Philadelphia. So Sharaya wanted to let her know just how much she's missed.

 

Ugh!! Broke our hearts seeing that lip out like that! We all had a great time but it just wasn't the same without Diana!

"Oh Honey Buns!"

Sorry I haven't updated in a while. We've all been sick around here. I watched Allie a week or so ago when she was sick and even though I sprayed door knobs and couches, Chuck and I still got it. I guess it's really going around. For me it's been a toss between allergies and the flu. More allergies than flu but it's still no fun. Allie is much better but Chuck and I are still fighting it. Sharaya hasn't come down with it, thank goodness. And Beth has managed to avoid it too!

Beth and I were at the store the other day and she found a new nickname for Nick:

 

His family has been on vacation so I don't know if she's had a chance to call him that. We sure had a good laugh over it, but we don't know how much Nick will like it! 

We got to have dinner with some on-line friends last weekend. Stephanie from The Sumulong 3 and Leah from Our Cora Bean and our families all met at the Cutters Crab House in Seattle. It usually takes out of towners to introduce you to places you've never been before. :) We had a great time and it was so fun to meet these young moms and their kids. We loved watching Owen and Cora navigate through dinner (it brought back so many memories of when our kids were small!) and Cora's little sister, what a personality! She was a doll!

Outside we took a picture of the moms with their Ds kiddos. To be honest, I don't have any friends who have children with Down Syndrome. Not ones that I get together with on a regular basis, so it was fun to meet these two! Thank you for inviting us!

I'm Not Really Sure You Can Call It A Proposal

Beth came upstairs a few weeks ago, screaming and yelling and jumping up and down. "Me and Nick engaged now!!!"

She handed me her phone and sure enough, he had sent her a text, "You and me are engaged now Beth." Oh my goodness she was ecstatic! I kind of let her have the moment because she was screaming and jumping around. "Wow Beth!! That's so exciting!!"

A little while later she came back upstairs a little more calm and I sat down with her and explained very gently that when a man proposes to a woman, he does it in person. Face to face. Not by a text.

"Oh."

And he asks her, 'Will you marry me?' he doesn't tell her that she will marry him. He politely asks and waits for her answer. And he usually gives her a ring.

"Oh." 

She was still pretty excited but I think she realized there needed to be more than just a text. Her and Nick see each other a couple times a week; they're in an art class together and on a bowling league. A few days after she got the text, she came home said that Nick gave her a present. She held out her hand and showed me a ring.

Nick has given her a promise ring. Awwe! Now that's more like it! Way to go Nick!! :)

Nick's mom and I try to get them together as much as possible outside their group friends. She called me recently and invited us to his celebrate his birthday with them. We all went bowling (Nick's dad and I didn't bowl - I'm wearing a boot and I'm not sure why his dad didn't bowl) and Nick decided it would be boys against girls! The girls won, woohoo!!

 

Nick wanted to go to Azteca for dinner so we left the bowling alley and went out for some yummy Mexican food. We love Azteca! I planned a surprise party for Chuck once there and had about 20 people surprise him as we walked into the back room. 

But anyway, his mom and dad and Chuck and I got to talk and just get to know each other a little better. Beth and Nick are sure growing closer each week and are definitely talking about having a future together. 

A Day That Should Go Down in History

One of the issues we've had with Beth is her lack of speech. She can talk, she just chooses not to. I expect it's because she knows people have a hard time understanding her. She's gotten better over the years but she still chooses when and where she'll talk.

We had her annual assessment last week and she barely spoke. Trevor asked so many questions about her health and her job and her boyfriend. She hardly said a word.

I got off work on Monday and took her to the doctor. The doctor asked her about Special Olympics and Nick and exercising and music. She looked at her knees for most of the appointment and maybe said 10 words the entire time.

Then we went to the grocery store. As soon as we got out of the car:

"I'm glad I have my hat! It's windy!"
"Imma have some hot tea when we get home."
"Imma take my own cart."
"I don't want apples. Dad like that kind."
"I have licorice and chocolate." (I made her put the chocolate back.)
"I'm not getting cookies. No way!"
"I don't know if I wanna get this. Maybe I wait."
And on and on and on.

I try to respond every time she says something but after more than an hour, I was drained! I will admit I have to look at her so I can read her lips and it makes having a conversation - while you're doing something else - so difficult.

We got to the register and she said she wanted me to go first. As I'm unloading my stuff, she's still talking and since I have to look at her I unload one thing then have to look at her and ask her to repeat what she just said. Unload a little, then ask her to repeat. Unload and ask. Again and again.

Oh my goodness, I was this close to telling her to stop talking! Beth, just... stop! Enough for a while! I didn't of course, but man, I never thought I'd see the day. 

Meanwhile, Here In Seattle...

Chuck got home late Wednesday night. Their trip back to Pennsylvania was uneventful, thank goodness. The car ran well, they had great weather and they made good time. Diana spent a couple days in New York with a friend she worked with here in Seattle.

 

 

Today she left New York and headed to Philadelphia. I got a text this afternoon and she's arrived at her friends house, the one she'll be staying with until she finds a place of her own. It still seems like she's just on vacation. I'm sure the longer she's gone, the more it will sink in.

Meanwhile, here in Seattle I've got a new fashion accessory. On February 6 I stepped wrong coming off our front porch and rolled my foot. I iced it and wrapped it and it began to feel better. Then a week or so later, I got these sharp, stabbing pains on the top of my foot. I had xrays taken and one doctor says it's a chipped bone, another says it's a torn ligament. Either way, they both say I have to wear the boot.

 

I usually wear it during the day and take it off in the evening. It's a pain. So many straps and SO much velcro! But, my foot doesn't hurt when I wear it. I go back to the doctor in a couple of weeks to see if my foot is healing. 

Beth got a new bed. But she's afraid to sleep in it. One day years ago, she suddenly became afraid of heights. Just, one day she wasn't afraid and the next day she was. She even stopped sleeping in her bed because it was too high off the ground. For years her mattress and box springs have been on the floor in her room. Then a friend of mine was selling this bed:

 

(And selling it for very little money!) I showed a picture of it to Beth and she loved it! I had her lay down on mine and Chuck's bed and told her this one would be high like ours but she said she wanted it anyway. It's a queen size so Chuck and I rented a cargo van and drove about an hour north to go get it. The first night she slept sitting up in her office chair. The second night I went downstairs to find her asleep on the floor. :(

The next night I went down and stretched out on the bed with her. She said she wasn't afraid of the height so much, it was the fact that the bed moved when she moved. I hadn't even considered that. So I told her that's how beds work when they are on a frame. But it's very strong and showed her the wood slats that are under the box springs. I told her that when dad snores I sometimes shake the bed to wake him up! She liked that! 

She's slept in her bed every night since then but I don't think she's sleeping very well. We may just have to take down this gorgeous headboard and put her bed back on the floor. We'll see.

The Ugly Cry

She's spent months cleaning out her room. I can't tell you how many loads we've taken to Goodwill. She's sold books and movies to Half Price Books and she gave stuff to Sharaya. Her and Chuck have planned their road trip, made hotel reservations and located all the truck stops along their route!

 

She's already got a job back there and a place to stay when she gets there. I think she's all set! Sharaya and Allie spent the night here last night. Allie slept in Diana's room and Sharaya and Diana slept (I think they slept!) in the living room so they could talk and watch movies all night. 

We all got up early this morning and Diana rearranged the rubbermaid bins. She was determined to get all of her stuff into just two bins! And she did pretty good! She took the two bins, one small bag (we call it her Mary Poppins bag cause it's about that same size) and one 'food bag' where she keeps snacks, drinks and stuff for the road trip.

 

Don't you like the title of that journal? Dreams & Schemes. :)

She left a couple boxes here, with stuff that she'll get next time she comes home. Or we'll mail it to her if she finds she needs it sooner.

It came time for them to leave so we all gathered around her and Chuck prayed for her before they headed out to the car for the last time.

 

After they left, Sharaya, Allie, Beth and I went back into the house. Allie was talking non-stop about something. I'm not sure what. Sharaya sat down on the couch. Beth and I went out to the kitchen, hugged each other and sobbed. Yep, we did the ugly cry! 

Sharaya was headed out to buy a table so she cleaned out her car, then her and Allie left.

Beth and I went into Diana's room and it was empty, except for the furniture. I turned around and saw something on her closet door.

 

 

Now I Can Write About The Big Stuff!

We traveled a lot when our girls were growing up. We spent 3 weeks traveling the Western U.S. visiting National Parks and famous landmarks.

A few years later we flew into New York, then rented a car and drove the Eastern Seaboard, from Massachusetts to Florida.

We love to travel, and Diana especially, caught the travel bug.

When she was a senior in high school, her and a few friends decided they were going to move to California (from here in Seattle) and get jobs working in the movie business as assistants on movie lots or maybe at Disneyland. Well, as many plans made in high school do, this one never happened. For whatever reason, they just never made the move.

But Diana still wanted to travel and see the world so she went to London. By herself. And LOVED it. The sights. The smells. The stores. "Mind the Gap". She loved it all. And she began to talk about living there one day. She visited again and again. But she knew once she moved there, her traveling days might be over.

So she went to Ireland.

And she rode Splash Mountain in Disneyland Paris.

And she went zip lining in Australia.

Well, now her dream of living somewhere besides Seattle is coming true. Not as fancy as Paris or beloved as London, but still quite an adventure. She's moving to Pennsylvania. Philadelphia to be exact.

This Saturday her and Chuck will climb into her car and begin their cross country road trip. At first she was going by herself and I immediately began to get nervous! But Chuck was able to get the time off from work (even though he's been there less than a year) and Diana said she would like the company so they're all set.

She already has a job waiting for her when she gets there and some friends have allowed her to stay with them while she looks for her own place. A lot of prayer has gone into this and we can see God's hand working out all the details.

As a family, we're trying to spend every moment with her. We've taken professional family photos, we've gone out to eat, last night her and Sharaya played cards here for a while. As I write this, they're wandering around Seattle, going to Pikes Market and just trying to get one last dose of this this great city before she leaves.

We know she never would have been happy staying here and we're so excited for this new chapter in her life. Chuck is just hoping and praying she doesn't become an Eagles fan. :)

The Sniffles

Allie spent the night last night. She's had a cold for a few days now and Sharaya and Diana wanted to go to a movie. (They saw How To Be Single. Said it was terrible.)

Last night we had some dinner and watched lots of TV. Peppa Pig to be exact. That girl loves her Peppa!  :)

I set up the couch with her sheets and blankets but when she came in she asked to sleep on the love seat instead. I thought it was a little small for her but she insisted it would work! So I put a lot of pillows on the floor beside it just in case she fell off in the middle of the night. (She didn't!)

I gave her some cold medicine right after dinner and at 8:00 she fell right to sleep. I heard her coughing around 6:30am and got up to give her more medicine. I was glad she fell back to sleep! She ended up sleeping more than 12 hours! The poor girl has such a stuffy nose and she's been coughing... The medicine is helping though.

I gave her a bubble bath today, washed her hair, then we snuggled on the couch and read a few books. I closed all the blinds and had her lay down on the love seat to rest, but she's been asleep now for almost 2 hours! One tired girl. It's no fun being sick!

Writing About Other Stuff Because I Can't Write About The Big Stuff

Saturday was Chuck's birthday. He wanted to go to Moonshine BBQ for lunch so we got there right as they opened. They have the best BBQ! Then we came back here and he opened his presents. He is the hardest person to buy for and he always seems to find out ahead of time, what he's getting! But it's still fun. He loves lemon meringue pie so we buy that instead of cake. :)

We had some family photos taken this weekend. They turned out really good and I can't wait to get them back!

I sprained my ankle as we were leaving to go take the pictures. I told Chuck, "Better my foot then my face!" :) It's still sore today but is definitely getting better.

Sharaya is enjoying her new job. Her and Allie hung out here on Saturday afternoon, she and Diana played cards and Allie and I read a bunch of books.

Diana bought a new car this weekend, it's a Kia Optima. It's smaller than her last car and gets better gas mileage!

Beth and Nick want to go on a date for Valentines Day but I don't think we're gonna be able to make everything happen. I hope we can get them together at least.

Nothing too crazy. Just basic, random stuff.

There is one amazing thing happening around here but I'm not allowed to say. Not yet anyway. :)

So this post will be short and sweet!