My Baby is 1!

Oh, I cannot believe that Cobee is one!! Where does the time go?!? He is cuter than ever! He is getting so grabby and mobile!! Before Cobee, I would have been thinking "Great! He is going to be into everything! Let's slow him down!!!" But with Cobee, I am all for him getting into everything! That is how he will learn! (Yeah, give me another few months and we will see how I feel about this last statement!) In all seriousness, it is a celebration with each bit of progress that he makes. We just got him sitting up from his side to his bum. We have been working on this for a couple of months now, and he is finally doing it! He is getting on his hands and knees and rocking. YEAAA Cobee! It won't be long before he starts to crawl. He is soooooo cute and fun!! Who would have ever known? He is digging into his first birthday cake and loving every minute of it! It was funny because he would lunge into it and grab fist-fulls of CHOCOLATE cake and frosting and then look around until he found me to see if he was going to get in trouble, but when he saw me laughing, he knew it was okay and so he went in for more!

Mom, do I have Down syndrome?

Carter is so hillarious. He is getting so big and smart. He is starting to catch on to this whole "down syndrome" thing---so I thought. We have never made a big deal out of the down syndrome thing to our boys because we want them to think of Cobee as being exactly like them, which he is. We do not and will not treat him "differently". So we have never told the boys that he is different or "special". We tell the boys that THEY are special because they get to be Cobee's brother. So the other day Carter saw some pictures of children with Down syndrome and recognized that they had it which sparked a conversation and lots of questions about it. I asked him what he knew about kids with Down syndrome. He said, "I know that they are pretty cool kids." I was completely satisfied with that answer. The most important thing to know is simply that! And then he asked, "Mom, do I have Down syndrome?" I laughed to myself, but not out loud, "No, sweetie, you don't". Why would he think that? I thought he understood what Down syndrome is?!? "Did I have Down syndrome when I was a baby?" "No, you didn't" "Cuz, boy, Cobee sure looks a lot like me!!" I had to fight back tears, but he is right! Cobee does look a lot like him (both of which are very handsome!), and Carter is so proud of that! I want him to be proud of that forever! Knowing Carter and his ability to love and care for others, and especially the way he loves Cobee, he WILL be proud of that forever.

A great email

I got this email from the Special Olymics of Idaho. I wanted to share it. I love SCRUBS. This message is from the actor who plays Dr. Cox. He has a 10 year old (I think he is 10) named Max, who has Down syndrome. Who could look at this face and not feel bad about using the word "Retard" in a derogatory way?

Spread the Word to End the Word
A personal message from John C. McGinley

Hi, I'm John C. McGinley. I'm an ambassador for the National Down Syndrome Society, and today I'm teaming up with Special Olympics to bring you a message that's important to me.

So many times in life you are asked to change...
Change your clothes. Change lanes. Change jobs. Change the sheets. Change flights. Change your tune. Change horses midstream. Change your latitudes and your attitudes!
Change, and the ability to adapt, is to the human condition as air is to the lungs. We change, and in the doing, we thrive!
In fact, we just elected a president who promised, above all else, to "change."
What if, on March 31, you elected to change the way you use the words "retard" and "retarded"?
Hardly seems like the largest of sacrifices. Not when you consider the changes in language that you have, so willingly, already elected to integrate into your vernacular. You no longer use the words nigger, or kike, or faggot, or jap, or kraut, or mick, or wop.
Why would you? Why on earth would you? Those are all words that hurt. Those are all racial and ethnic slurs and epithets that perpetuate negative stigmas. They are painful! And that is not okay. It is wrong to pain people with your language. Especially, when you have already been made aware of your oral transgression's impact.
Make no mistake about it: WORDS DO HURT! And when you pepper your speak with "retard" and "retarded," you are spreading hurt. So stop it. Stop saying "retard" and "retarded." Those words suck! You are better than that and you definitely do not need to be "that guy."
There is no longer any acceptable occasion to lace your dialogue with the words "retard" and "retarded." Without fail, those words are the stuff of hurt. They, straight up, are. So, stop it! Stop using the "R-word."
The 7 million people with intellectual disabilities (around the planet) who are on the receiving end of this hate speak are genetically designed to love unconditionally. These "retards" are NEVER going to return your vitriol. Ever! So what could possibly be the up-side of continuing to use the "R-word" in your daily discourse?
We love you. We do!
And, just in case you missed it and you need an extra hug? We love you!
You do not need to love us in any kind of reciprocal fashion. You don't. (It's not that kind of bargain.)
But, how about on March 31, you elect to change? A word? Two stinkin' syllables?
On March 31, join us and "Spread the Word to End the Word." And the word is "retard!" It HURTS! So help us to cut it out.
Thank you! We do love you!
John C. McGinley