Friday, September 30, 2011

B is for Bogdan, G is for Giveaway!

This is Bogdan,



What a dumpling! My friend April over at The Narretto Family has been his advocate for like... ever! 
Well, she has taken the plunge and is hosting a great giveaway in his honor!

Many ways to enter and all of them painless! So please take a look and support her efforts.


This little man needs his family to find him! I honestly can't believe he is still waiting! 


What better way to kick of Down syndrome Awareness Month than by helping Mr. B home! 

Thursday, September 29, 2011

Who Is In This Year?

I just realized the date! Saturday is October 1st ! October is Down syndrome Awareness Month! Whose in for 31 for 21 this year?   

And on that note I probably should save this video for a day around mid October, but knowing Em there, will be plenty more where this came from. Here she is showing off some of her unique dance moves. I seriously don't know how she comes up with them but we sure do enjoy the show.  

Tuesday, September 27, 2011

Red Lipstick

The only things missing are a pair of stilettos and a little black dress.




Why do I have the feeling they're not so far behind...

Monday, September 26, 2011

Are You Walkin???

Well, Miss Em is walking! Our Buddy Walk is October 2nd! Locals come out and join us!  Or support The DSSRI by visiting Emilia's First Giving Page. 


This year we will have an Alex and Ani bangle bar! 20% of all proceeds will go to the DSSRI!!  And... a Reese's Rainbow table!


So call all your friends and save the date, we'd love you to join us!

 Em's making a few calls... watch your caller ID!!!

Saturday, September 24, 2011

Eligibility Meeting...

Well yesterday was Emmie's eligibility meeting at her new school with all the troops. It went amazingly well and Miss Em already has everyone wrapped nice and tight around her adorable little pinkie. She has already been dubbed Queen of the school and she hasn't even had her first day yet. 


All of this positive energy from the folks at school is doing wonders for my nerves. I'm actually getting excited about her first day. I think the timing is just right for Em and this is just what she needs right now in order to just keep progressing forward. She wants to be there , she enjoys the other children, and just loves all the attention. 


I think we may have just one little problem. I told them that Emmie could eat with a fork. She will occasionally switch to using her hands, but she is doing really well with utensils. I told them that I'm really proud at how neatly she has been eating during meals.




Hopefully snack time will consist of finger foods only.
Oh Miss Em...

Friday, September 23, 2011

The Older Girls

Brigita


Miss Brigita is on of the older girls on Reese's Rainbow. She will be seven in February.  She still looks like a baby to me. I saw an updated photo of her and she is still just as beautiful, but still reminds me of a baby. To me and the "mamas"(there are a few of us around this planet who love her to pieces, and God saw fit to let us all find each other) that love her, she is precious, perfect and any one of us would run through fire to take her home. 
Of Course running through fire would be the easy part. Each one of us for a variety of reasons do not qualify to adopt her. So instead we advocate for our Sweet Miss B.


A wonderful bloggy friend of mine, Jane,blogs at Flight Platform Living, has a super way of advocating for these precious ones. it's called Forget Me Not Fridays. Here you can view her gallery of Delights, all looking for their forever homes.


Miss Brigita has her account back on Reese's Rainbow. I was so, so happy that the older girls now have their own individual accounts. Now we just have to fill it, find her mama, and get her home!





Thursday, September 22, 2011

Another Life...

Another heartache, another child in the long line of children in need has caught not only my attention but most of bloglands and FB's. I'm talking about Josiah. He's beautiful and perfect, and he has been transferred. If you haven't met Josiah yet here he is


Josiah


The word from someone who was there was that he was crying and trying to get back in to the car as he was dropped off at the institution. He has lost all that he knows. He's a little boy lost and alone, even more so than before. There is nothing to think about in situations like this. He just needs to come home... period!


As we have done so many times in the past we MUST band together again and use our "powers"... prayer and the Internet to spread the word about Josiah!!! 


As I have been reading blogs over the months I have found that so many people have found a child( and mostly when they weren't really looking for a child) through other blogs, on FB, someones post, a comment... word of mouth! A face on a blog leads them to Reese's Rainbow, or a word about a child in need opens their hearts.


Please don't be silent. Speak for Josiah who can only cry!! His pleas fall on deaf ears but we, together, can be a loud voice for him!!! Please do your part, whatever that may be. But please act in some way towards the rescue of this child. And it is a rescue! He is in an institution and needs to be rescued!


There is a Scentsy Fundraiser going on here
Here is his account on Reese's Rainbow.

Blogging and FB are excellent ways to reach a lot of people and only take a minute! 

Please be a voice today for Josiah!!!   It very well could be your simple act that finds his mama!

Sunday, September 18, 2011

Happy Birthday Liv!!

When I wrote the post Changes, this is the little girl I was thinking about. This little girl is fourteen today.  


This is my absolute all time favorite picture of Liv. It captures everything good and beautiful about her.


Happy Birthday Livie!!


I love you more, 


Mommy




* Thank you to all who donated to The Cole Family to help bring Nellie home and grant my birthday wish!! Tomorrow is my day! Please consider donating and making my wish come true.

Saturday, September 17, 2011

A Sleepover, A Cold And A Wish

Tonight on the eve of her fourteenth birthday , Olivia will be having  a sleepover. I reluctantly gave in to her whimpers and said yes. I don't know the actual  count of teens that will be over taking my small home tonight and I don't want to know.  I will instead clean like an idiot all day so in two seconds they (the teens) can completely undo and erase all signs of cleanliness. I will get  a "to die for" chocolate cake and pizza , chips and drinks. And when they start arriving I will gather my children and husband (who are not invited to this Soiree) and hide out downstairs.  I will also do all this heavily medicated as I was blessed with a whopper of a cold for the birthday weekend.


So I've covered the sleepover and the cold , now the wish. Sunday is the eve of my 43rd birthday. If you know me you know I'm not a fan of getting older. I truly wish I were. I have friends that are proud of their age, show it off like a badge of honor. Alas, I DO Not! Instead I cringe at the thought, I look in the mirror and wonder when did all this happen??  Where did my 30's go?? I was just getting used to them and they left, so abruptly, replaced by these forty's! YUK!


And anyone who knows me also knows I don't go around screaming my age. So for me to be posting about it is a big deal. Really laying it on the line here. Not even kidding or being funny, it's tough for me to talk about age. So being on the heels of 43, I have a wish. First I should regress and say that I have not had a birthday party since I was a kid.  I didn't have a sweet sixteen party, I think I worked on my 21st birthday, no big turning thirty bash. When I was turning forty I was as big as a house with Emilia and was in no mood for a party.  So I'm due for a celebration!!! Now, if I could, I would have big old party with all my friends and cake and music and dancing til dawn, but that's not going to happen this year(maybe for Olivia but not for me)

So in lieu of of a party, I'm asking for one thing this year. Please donate to Nellie's FSP. Please make turning 43 sweet this year. If just 43 people donate five dollars I think I'd would just flip for joy!! 




The Cole Family has fallen in love with Nellie and are bringing her home. I say the quicker the better. She has waited almost five years to know love. Now it's just around the corner. Oh if she only new what was waiting for her :)    Please help Nellie get home and me be a happy 43 year old!!




Friday, September 16, 2011

Parent's Guide to Email Security For Kids

The Internet is increasingly more dangerous to us and our children. Explicit materials are in many cases slipped through the “Back Door” past our computer systems' trusty email security. Predation and violence are just some of the dangers that a kid might be pulled in if they were left wandering the Internet with out the parents' guidance. Spam emails pose a serious threat to our kids, who are are quite vulnerable and curiosity will win, whenever a picture of a pop starlet or cartoons are a part of the message.

It is easier to entice Children today with an email message that is attractive with flashy font characters or graphics. The mere fact that the sophistication level of a cyber criminal is at all time high, kids today can easily be enticed to open spam emails. In order to address this problem, parents should have a better grasp on email security for kids.

What Email Virus and HTML Code Have In Common?

To make Email messages enticing, attractive and easy to read with its colored letters, fancy text and attractive graphic images, HTML codes are widely used. However, email messages wrapped in HTML have a downside that parents should be aware of, it may contain an email virus. As much as security is a concern, simple emails without any HTML wrappings is a way better and safe. Emails with all text content is safer to read and provide better family security than email messages with awesome graphics and colored letter.

The best thing that parents should do in order to detect if these HTML wrapped email messages are safe to open and read is to use anti virus email software, which should have the virus definitions updated regularly. If you ever encounter an attractive and flashy animations with popular cartoons or celebrity found on the website, but then you’ve got a feeling that it is a spam email due to its unprofessional look, then you better not download anything from this place.

Here Are Guides To Parents On Email Security For Kids, To Help Avoid Spam Email And Email Viruses

  • Never open or read any attachments to the email if you are unsure of the sender or to whom the letter was from. Sometimes these emails may appear harmless but beware since it may be a spam email containing email viruses. It is advised that you confirm it first from the sender.
  • Delete junk and chain emails immediately. Never make any reply or forward anything to them since it is considered spamming.
  • Avoid downloading anything from a stranger or from a site that you are not familiar with.
  • Always be cautious when downloading any types of files from the Internet. It’s always advisable to check the legitimacy and reputation of a particular site. Use a anti virus program to check the downloaded files.
  • To stop every email virus, email worm and other malware from infecting your computer, use an email security software.
  • Always back up your files in a regular basis. This practice is considered very important in securing your files if ever there will be a virus spread out that could damage or destroy your files. Your back up files should bed separated from you computer or you can use other storage devices.
Credits
Andrew Thomas has been a frequent guest at parenting blogs offering advise to moms and dads on how to have enjoyable, useful and trouble free use of the cyber world resources. If you would like his expert opinion expressed on your blog, You can find him at webbaster.com

Thursday, September 15, 2011

Emmie Meets A Princess

Before the show, with Princess Tiana
 During the show  Wish it wasn't so dark. But she was dancing up a storm.









 
After the show
All in all a great night with The Princesses!

Sunday, September 11, 2011

Where Were You?

I know like most of us, you can remember exactly where and what you were doing ten years ago today. I wasn't going to post about 911 today. I haven't turned on the TV, I haven't listened to any shows or looked at any pictures. In a way I guess I really just want this day to be over. I want it to quietly pass over us and be gone. I want our country to stay still and undetected today. I want the the unnerving feeling of being watched to go away. I feel like the world both good and evil have their eyes on The States today. All wondering if anything is going to happen.


On September 11,2001 it was a beautiful sunny day, just like today. It was Olivia's first day of school... her very first day. She was a proud preschooler. 
Shortly after 9:00am our phone rang. It was my neighbor( her daughter was starting school with Olivia) telling me to turn on the TV, the Pentagon had been attacked. As we sat in complete horror watching the events unfold, I felt a terror and uncertainty I have never felt before. 

What is happening? Is this the end of all of us. Is it coming our way. We are so close to New York.Who is it? Why?
And do I send Olivia to school? Her very first day?What if something happens and I can't get to her.


I walked down to my neighbors house and we decided to send the girls to school. 
I remember I needed shoes for Olivia. How could I go to the store and do something so "normal" when something so horrific was happening? 
I felt like I was in another world as I went to Wal- Mart to buy a pair of shoes for Olivia. Weeping through the isles as all the TV's were on. Standing and watching in complete disbelief.  


Dropping her off at school I tried to smile and take pictures, but my mind was obviously elsewhere. It was so hard to drive away that day.


Then back at home as the planes were immediately grounded, we heard them  coming in. One by one they landed. We are just a couple of miles from the airport and the planes fly right over us when they land. The days that followed we so eerily silent without the familiar sounds of the planes.
I remember when the no fly ban was lifted, and the familiar sounds were back.  You know each plane has a different sound. After a while you can tell without looking which one is flying overhead. 
As i type this the planes are flying above. I wonder what 's going through their heads today. I wonder how the pilots feel. Can't be easy for them today.
The following days were spent in tears in front of the TV, praying for a miracle. Praying for more survivors, Praying we would be safe.


Today as I go to church I will again be praying.  Praying for the survivors, praying for the families who lost their loved ones, praying for the ones never found, and praying that we are all safe.









Saturday, September 10, 2011

Friend Request??

I turn my back for a second and she's trying to set up her own FB page! I wonder how many friend requests she sent out? Little Stinker!

Wednesday, September 7, 2011

And it begins!

She'll be playing tennis with the others in no time!

Monday, September 5, 2011

Over Forty Years Later...

my little girl

is loving

my

first baby doll, Noelle.

And two favors, could you please click here and vote for Kayla from Big blueberry eyes! Her mama entered those gorgeous eyes of hers in , Prevent Blindness America's Most Beautiful Eyes contest. Just takes a second to vote and well... she should win, just saying :)))


And Miss Em has her own thing going on right now. Em has her very first, First Giving page! Our buddy Walk is coming up in October and she is raising funds! It was all her idea! ;)   If you have a chance please check it out.

Saturday, September 3, 2011

Labor Day Blues

We are running to the beach today. I refuse to say for the last time. I'm still hopeful that we will get there again this year. School starts Tuesday after a week delay(Irene) and Emmie and I will have a month left together before she runs off to preschool :( 

I don't know why this summer is so hard for me to let go of. I think the older I get the more emotional or sentimental I get. I know I have a limited amount of time before all of my children are not under one roof. Olivia is starting high school and in a few years will be off to college.  It's out of my control. Time is moving forward. 

The other day Peter said "That's why God gave us Emilia, so she would always be with us"  I was never one who longed for an empty nest. A quiet house is impossible to live in.  It's kind of funny because when Emmie was born one of my first thoughts were, "Thank God I'll never have an empty nest now". 

Watch, she'll be the first one out! lol


Even now my two oldest "darlings" are begging to spend the day with their friends instead of coming to the beach with "us".  Already friends are the first choice...   

I  remember being the same way. When you're young you think there is always tomorrow. Family will always be there. Time is on your side when you are young.  


As you age you realize that somehow the clock ticks differently, for you. Much, much faster. It is so important to hold on to every moment for as long as you can. To treasure the time you have with family. To create memories to carry with you through life, for those inevitable times when family is not there. 

So today we will be a smaller family at the beach, we will create new memories to carry with us, and a melancholy mother will think back to older memories that I carry safely in my heart . 


I will try to accept the ending of summer, embrace all the new beginnings that are upon us, and keep up with the rapid ticking of the clock.