Aidan and the Beanstalk

Aidan's latest science experiment, growing beans, was a success. He learned all about how a simple bean seed can sprout and grow into a bean stalk. He was particularly amazed at how the bean needed moisture and light, but no soil, to grow. All the bean's food is stored right inside the bean. Imagine that...no dirt needed!He was even more perplexed when I told him that even HE did not need dirt to grow. Nope, not needed, but life sure is a lot more fun for an eight year old boy when dirt is somehow involved in his adventures.

Here are his science notebook drawings, showing his experiment...

Pencils...

There are many great mysteries in life we will never understand. One of the most profound for this family must surely be....the disappearance of pencils! Seriously. Where do they go?!? I must have bought three dozen since September. I'll take the sock fairy over the pencil fairy any day.

Just this morning, a frustrated Molly Grace says, "Mom, somebody stoled my pencil again!"

I found one lone pencil in the bottom of her bin and handed it to her.

Still frustrated, she said, "But somebody bit the eraser off this one".

Well, that somebody is no mystery. That would be our spunky two year old who not only bites the erasers off our pencils but has also been known to practice her new found throwing-things-in the-trash-can skill. She has mastered that one. Hmmm, I think she must be getting a kick-back from the pencil fairy!

The Bundle in the Basket

"I cannot believe they left me in this basket!"

"I wonder when somebody is going to notice me?!"

"They didn't even give me toys to play with! In fact, I'm laying, er, I mean, lying on them (ya, I hear those grammar rules all the time, I'm starting to pick up on them)"

"Well, this blanket is kind of nice and soft. I could play with it."

"I kind of like it in here!"


I think Bridget took these pictures of Seamus. Babies in baskets are just ALWAYS cute, aren't they?!

Oh...and on a side note...Mr. La Cucaracha (yes, that is one of his nicknames, poor guy) had his four month check up yesterday. He is TALL. Over 98% for height. Where did that come from?! Weight and noggin are only 25%. Everything checked out great. He's doing very well :)

"Bye-Bye Mama "

No, I am not going anywhere.

These words are, to the best of our memory, Erin's first sentence, which she said yesterday! (The kids claim that she says "my baby" all the time, but I pointed out that those words are not a true sentence LOL). I had been working with Erin for awhile now on getting her to say, "Bye-bye______ " (fill in the blank). She can say all our names (in her own cute way), several single words and she can sign about 75 words, but she has not been able to put a second word after the bye-bye. Stringing two words together does not come as easily or as early for a child with Down syndrome. However, it has been adorable watching her try! She'd say "bye bye" while signing "mama". She'll say, "Bye-ma", or "Dadab", while waving to her dad, combining the two words. Yesterday, as I was heading out the door, she said, "Bye-bye Mama", as clear as day, as though she had said it forever. Yeah Erin!!!

Wow, It's October!

Not only is October a very beautiful month here in Wisconsin, but did you know it is also both Respect Life month and Down Syndrome Awareness month? And, isn't it even more lovely that October 1st is, as my Catholic friends know, the feast day of our much loved Little Flower, St. Therese of Lisieux? She teaches us how we can love God in our own little ways, as children do. (These little ways are much more difficult to do on a regular basis, but they sure add up to big ways!) I think she is a wonderful patron saint for my little Erin to emulate.

As for Down Syndrome Awareness month, specifically, there are some great sources on the web, and on my sidebar, for learning more. If you have any questions about Down syndrome, or Erin, feel free to ask away and I will be more than happy to answer questions. If I do not know the answer, it would be my pleasure to look it up. Honestly, I love researching and talking about Down syndrome, so I do hope I get as least one question :)

I would just like to bring one issue into greater awareness, and that would be, conveniently, combining the respect life and Down syndrome pieces together. After all, if we cannot respect the right to life of an individual with Down syndrome, there is not much point in offering further awarness. In our country, 90% of parent who receive a prenatal diagnosis abort their child with Down syndrome. There are many factors that play a role in that startling statistic. It is my prayer that ALL life, born and unborn, will be seen as precious, respected and protected. And from a more personal perspective, it is my prayer that those blessed with an extra chromosome will be valued and not singled out for termination simply because of their genetic make-up. That is called eugenics. I pray that other parents will experience the honor and joy that Mike and I have, when parenting a child with special needs. St. Therese of Lisieux, pray for us! Our Lady of Guadalupe, Patroness of the Unborn, pray for us!

At that time the disciples came to Jesus and asked, “Who is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?” He called a child, whom he put among them, and said, “Truly I tell you, unless you change and become like children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. Whoever becomes humble like this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven. Whoever welcomes one such child in my name welcomes me. “Take care that you do not despise one of these little ones; for, I tell you, in heaven their angels continually see the face of my Father in heaven. Mt 18:1-5,10

Time to Go to the Grocery Store

You know you are low on groceries when you overhear this:

Eileen to Bridget: "I'm making potatoes again! I think Mom's trying to teach us about the potato famine".

Well, we are Irish you know. LOL

Soccer

I guess you can say that I do not qualify as a soccer mom. An Irish dance mom, for sure, but not a soccer mom. We did get our feet wet with soccer ten years ago, when Moira was in first grade. We had a lovely coach, great kids and a convenient playing field just beyond our own backyard. We routinely went to the practices and games each week. Moira bounced around the field, smiling, occasionally waving to us when she saw we had the camera in hand. She loved the treats that were faithfully passed out at the end of each game. I think she actually kicked the ball once or twice that season. However, when the season came to an end we decided it just wasn't Moira's thing. How did we know? Well, when I asked her if she'd like to continue on and play again the next year her response was, "Well, Mom, it was fun, but I just don't think I can play for the same team again because the socks don't match the uniform." A classic Moira comment. We then found her thing, Irish dancing, and the next three girls followed in her footsteps. It has actually been so nice to have only one or two locations for the lessons for all four girls. Thankfully, with Irish dance, there has not been a lot of running around.

Then comes Aidan. He is not interested in Irish dancing. We decided it was time to try out an outside interest and soccer seemed to be the easy and best choice. So, every Saturday moring this fall, off he goes to soccer. So far he is enjoying it very much. The coach is great, when he shows up. And the dads who fill in when the coach does not show up are awesome too!

Here's Aidan, sporting some Brett Favre Viking purple :)

Little Charmer!

We have this little table inside our foyer that holds many family pictures. Erin has learned to climb up there to grab our framed pictures (she loves looking at pictures!). Yesterday I was sitting on the couch reading to one of the little kids when I heard a crash. She had climbed up and pulled down a picture of Mike and I on our wedding day. It was in a glass frame that, thankfully, did not break. I started towards her, telling her how naughty that was to climb up there. Just as I approached her, she held up the picture, pointed to her mother, and said "Mama". She then, very quickly gave it a big smooch, emphasising the mmmmmmmaaaaaaaaaahhhhh sound!!! This all followed by a cheesy grin, of course. This child has such charm!

Look What Happens....

...when you are a little guy with six older sisters! It builds character, I say :).

We Have Winners!!!

The grandmas, wouldn't you know, along with Bridget correctly guessed the use of the mystery white item in the post below. Grandma M and Bridget guessed in person while Grandma D's guess in the comment section was exactly right. The white item is the cloth used to repair the hole in Erin's heart. It is made of waterproof Gortex...the same material that is used to make many winter jackets or rain gear! During the surgery, the surgeon cut a piece the size of the hole in Erin's heart, stitched it in for the repair and then gave us the little left-over "souvenir". It is a reminder to us of Erin's successful heart repair and of the God-given talent of the surgeon who held her heart in his hands two years ago today. Thank you God!

Happy Heart Day Erin! Your heart sure is sweet!