It's Almost St. Patrick's Day...

Here at our house, the fact that it's almost St. Patrick's Day means it's one of our busiest times of year!  It's so busy that we generally refer to it as Saint Patrick's week, not day.  This year it almost seems more appropriate to call it St. Patrick's month. Of course we love Dear Saint Patrick, patron saint of the Irish, but our month-long busyness has much to do with the fact that we have four Irish dancers in the house.

The wigs are ready; the dresses are set; poodle socks are clean and white, bobby pins are bought by the dozens; sock glue is handy; spankies are washed; suspenders are found (in the bottom of a dress-up bin); and Irish music can be heard from all corners of the house, usually accompanied by the bang bang bang of hard-shoes hitting the wooden practice floor in rhythmic patterns. I have become so accustomed to recognizing the sound of hard-shoes hitting the floors that I no longer hear it...sort of like how you don't hear trains when you live next to the railroad tracks.  When visitors come over, they look at me with wide eyes, asking, what is that?! LOL .

The girls already had two fun performances last week.  Moira, Eileen and Bridget perfomed with Different Drums of Ireland in Door County last Friday.  It was a late show so Mike took the girls and I stayed home with the little kids.

Here is a group shot of the girls who perfomed with Different Drums (Moira on the far left, Eileen with the pink and green crown fourth from right, and Bridget and cousin Colleen in black dresses near the right)

All three girls are in the front row (Bridget borrowed a solo dress for this number because she only has the "school dress", which is black, and their instructor preferred the solo dresses)

Then, on Sunday, all the girls were able to perform for the CP (Cerebral Palsy) Center Telethon.  They had three dance numbers which were live performances.  The rest of us were able to watch them on TV, which was fun!  I was unable to get a link to the recording of the dances (sorry mom! I think Kelly and Kelley have it recorded).  This was the first time the dancers participated in the CP telethon, not only by dancing, but also by fundraising for the center. It was inspiring to be a part of it, and the dancers and their families raised over $2000 for the center.  The CP Center is a great resource for those with many different disabilities, not just cerebral palsy. We have not used it much ourselves but we may take advantage of the center when Erin is a bit older (they have a wonderful warm-water therapy pool).

Here is a picture of Moira and Eileen's class giving their check to the CP center.

This week we have a moring performance on Tuesday (it will be on TV locally on WLUK, starting about 8:15 am), three performances on Wednesday and possibly one on Thursday.  Happy Saint Patrick's Day everyone, even if you are not Irish :) !!!

More Birthday Pictures

A few months ago Erin went to a birthday party at Chuck E Cheese and loved it, so we decided to take her there again for her birthday. Once again, it was a hit. We all enjoyed it....only one of us came home with a small headache!

Here are a few pictures, capturing the fun...

soooo much fun :)

Seamus is clamoring to get out of his sound-proof box here...

I didn't get any pictures of Erin climbing through the tunnels, but that was probably her favoite part of the night.  It was certainly mine.  She is still so tiny. She is only in the 10th percentile on the Down syndrome growth chart, which doesn't even put her on the typical kid growth chart. I really questioned whether or not she'd be able to manage the tunnels, let alone the giant steps and slides. Well, as Erin showed us, when there's a will there's a way!  She quickly managed the tunnels, steps and slides, without hesitation.  And then she turned around and climbed back up the slide.  Yes, she showed us.....once again. And she was having so much fun!   

We finsihed off the night with presents and cake. 

  Last year when Erin turned two, she wouldn't even touch her cake, let along take a bite.  She is not a sweet tooth and never has been.  But this year she gave it a try...

And loved it...

As we were getting ready for bed, she took one last look at her new fridge phonics toy. 

Oh yes, and since Erin refused to wear her Irish princess crown, we had to try it on someone....

Overheard...

This morning the kids had the playdough out bright and early....

Aidan:  Teresa, do you want the pink?

Teresa:  That's not pink, it's fusha.

Aidan:  I'll have the purple.

Tersea:  Aidan, it's not purple, it's magenta.

Aidan:  Nevermind, I'll just take the blue.

Oh, the differences between girls and boys :) 

Happy Birthday Erin!!!

"I'm dwee!" Yes, that's right, in Erin's own words, she is three today! Happy birthday sweet girl. You make us smile, you teach us so much and you make us very proud. We all love you dearly. Thank you, God, for the gift of Erin!

I'll take more pictures after the party....don't you love birthdays during Lent?! Another excuse to have a piece of cake..and it's not even a Sunday :).

Teeth!

Seamus has had teeth for awhile now, but I don't think I've posted a cute picture of his chompers.  He now has two on the bottom and two on the top.  If you look closely you can see the little ones on the bottom (it's certainly not the best pic, but cute :).

And eyelashes! Yup, he's got those too...

(Today is Erin's birthday!....I'll be sure to post some picture later today or tomorrow)

Double Stuff

Whenever I send Mike to the grocery store with a list he always gets two of whatever I ask for.  It's just his thing.  He always says, "It'll get used".  Yep, he's got that right.

Two Ketchups...

Two jumbo rolls of toilet paper (well, I think he actually bought three of these).....(on a side note...he once ran into Ted Thompson in the toilet paper isle and they had a discussion on the best deal.  Don't ever say that Mike didn't give TT advice!  LOL)

Etc...

Etc...

And if he does not get two, he gets the largest quantity available, such as the 500 paper plates...

And lucky for Erin, who thinks pretzels are one of God's greatest creations, he got a bag almost as big as her!

Happy Fat Tuesday!

Mardi Gras, Fat Tuesday or Shrove Tuesday....whatever you want to call it, is here!  For Catholics that means it is the last day for rich sweet-type food before we typically give it up for Lent (except Sundays).  We usually make sure we have a nice big dessert on this day...which reminds me, I need to get to the store to provide that treat!

Wow, I haven't blogged since the the Father-Daughter dance.  I guess we've just been busy.  We are trying to cover a lot of ground with school which makes for long days.  Also, Moira started driver training, which meets every day for three weeks.  Yesterday we were running late to get her there and her dad had to tell her..."Moira, do NOT drive the way I am right now." Oh dear. Additionally, Irish dance is starting to pick up....the girls are adding in little extra practices, getting ready for St. Patrick Day performances.  We already have three performance dates on the calendar and I'm sure there will be more.  Let's see...Moira, Eileen and Bridget are also taking ballroom dance lessons this month.  They will be ready to do the Tango, Mambo or Salsa at their uncle Patrick and Anna's wedding!  Molly Grace started a little class called Little Flowers, which focuses on the virtues of the saints. We are still working on Eileen, Bridget and Teresa's bedroom, doing lots of painting.  It is almost done. Erin will be having her very last therapy session with the Birth to 3 program.  So she's our little graduate....almost three years old!  I am often asked by other moms who have kids with Down syndrome how she is doing developmentally.  Well, she is doing just beautifully. (This must be a whole different post, but I promise I will post some of her many signs and now WORDS that she is saying.  It is all so much fun to see her so eager to learn). And last but not least....little famous Seamus is crawling and getting teeth.  We are also working in his insomnia issues.  This child does not need as much sleep as his parents.  Oy yoy yoy! (Or however you spell it!) I guess February has been a busy month.

Last Friday and Saturday we had a visit from one of our favorite friends.  Father Eric (Seamus' Godfather), happened to come to town to give a talk, so we had the pleasure of his company for a nice visit.  We always look forward to his visits.  After a nice dinner and a rosary, we got down to business doing what the kids enjoy most:  playing Hide the Kid.  No, we do not play Hide n Seek, but rather, Hide the Kid.  Father will help hide a kid anywhere in the house and the other kids must find that kid.  And I mean anywhere. Ha!  For all the moms reading this, you know what that means?  Yes, it means I have to clean everywhere, even under beds and in closets :) LOL.  Actually, I should have, but didn't.  Thankfully, Father Eric knows us well; he graciously looks the other way at our messes.  The kids love this game and all the wonderful stories that Father tells them each time he is here.  Yes, a treat indeed. He is a treasure!  Then to top it off, we had Grandma and Grandpa D here for the remainder of the weekend.  We hadn't seen them since Christmas, so it was extra nice.

Here's a little Hide the Kid in action....

Molly Grace on our top shelf of the mud closet...

And Aidan on the top shelf of a book case....

Father-Daughter Dance

The Valentine's Father-Daughter Dance was last night!  Mike was the proud father of five dancing daughters (Erin is still too young).  Fun fun fun!

And the boys at home with Erin and Mom......

Did I Mention Seamus Was Strong?

He went from commando crawling to carrying Erin around on his back. LOL.

Of course I'm just kidding. I have no idea who took this photo, but I thought it was funny.

Our Little Artist

Dear Erin,

Your mom and dad are very, very happy that you have taken such a liking to coloring.  We are thrilled that you have found a little niche for yourself, and you are really very talented!

We are proud that you can now hold the crayon, pencil, marker (sometimes the permanent kind) or pen in the proper way!

We warmly welcome that fact that you enjoy coloring for hours each day, making lovely works of art.  It does wonders for your fine-motor develepment.  Trust us, we very much want to encourage you in your endeavours! 

But there is only one tiny problem.....you seem to forget WHERE to color.  Remember, we color on PAPER, not walls, refrigerators, cabinets or toys :).  For as much as your beautiful works of art warm our hearts, please, please stop coloring on our stuff.  And one more thing...when you are coloring on a wall, and we call from the other room for you to stop, please do so.  You are caught, red-handed!  Rather than coloring faster and faster, so as to make the most damage in the moments it takes for us to get to you to remove the writing device out of your sticky little paw, just stop.  And no giggling; it only makes matters worse. 

Thank you,

Your Loving Parents (who do not like their new pastime of scrubbing walls)

PS.  I am off to remove this...

And this....

And this......