Christmas Picture Outtakes

2 outfits.

3 diapers.

2 attempts.

110 pictures.

20 deleted, never to be seen again.

49 made it into the 2008 Christmas Card Outtakes.

Tall Tales

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Bedlam

Today is the day family loyalty means nothing. They are either with your team or against you. The state of Oklahoma is divided. You wear either crimson red or the other colour. Some of your friends become your enemies on this day.

You earn bragging rights for a year.

The bell is at stake.

The University of Oklahoma and their rival, the other team from Oklahoma, Oklahoma State.

And where do our loyalties lie?

Puh - lease!

How was your Thanksgiving? We hope everyone got to have a ton of fun eating and spending time with family.

Yesterday, Thanksgiving, Aiden decided to take his nap 30 minutes before we had to leave, even though I put him in his bed an hour and a half before. He was tired, his eyes were red, but he wanted to play. I'm not sure how the child confused nap time with play time.

On the way to Grandma Susan's house, he didn't want to sleep either.

But he was cranky...

If he was on the floor playing, within 3 minutes he was screaming.

Chris showed up maybe 15 minutes of us being there and me unloading Aiden, the mashed potatoes and equipment for those Kodak moments.

Aiden was ready to eat, but Cousin David had other plans.. PLAYING. Put a toy in front of a child and the child forgets anything else around him even exists.

So, the sweet potato casserole I was attempting to feed Aiden is smeared on his shoes and the carpet. I'm pretty sure that the dogs were happy.

Then we left to go to Grandma Nise's house. Guess who decided to fall asleep in the recliner carseat not even 10 minutes from our destination? Meaning when we pull into the driveway and put the Jeep in park he automatically wakes up and doesn't want anyone to touch him.

(And Grandma Nise has dogs too. Only hers are little ankle biters who bark if you move a muscle. We hardly ever hear Hound bark, when he does bark I have to double check that he is actually the one doing the barking.)

Grandpa JC decided Aiden could share his Diet Pepsi. Only Aiden didn't want the cup, he wanted the entire 2 liter bottle and got mad when the lid went back on. So Aiden had to make due with a cup.

Being the mommy I am, I made sure to take Aiden's jammies with me. I knew he would fall asleep on the way home, and he did half way. I didn't want to have to wake him up from being sound asleep ( and he was really asleep ) by putting on his jammies and trying to put him in bed.

He stayed asleep for 2 hours. While Chris and I were planning my Black Friday shopping strategy, Aiden woke up. And Aiden wanted to cuddle.

Here are pictures from Aiden's Thanksgiving:

Aiden stayed asleep the rest of the night, well until 3:39 this morning.

My alarm was set to go off at 4 am. I had to be in line at Wal-Mart for presents.

So, I quickly got Aiden a bottle and took him to bed with me. When my alarm went off 20 minutes later, Aiden was still sound asleep and he was holding on to that bottle for dear life. I wasn't about to remove the bottle and risk waking him up. That would classify me as being insane.

Black Friday shopping was over and done with at 5:35am. I was back home and didn't have to knock anyone out. I have worked a Black Friday sale at Wal-Mart. I have seen the fights. I have been physically pushed out of the way. People get down right mean on this day. And over something as frivolous as a 98 cent Hot Wheel toy.

I got everything that was on the list, except for the Cars toys I wanted for Aiden and the DVDs Chris wanted. I'm not too sure our Wal-Mart even bought out the Cars stuff. There was no sign of them at all. And the DVDs were strung out from hell to high water and I was not going to sift through the mess. I am not that patient.

When I got home, Grandma Nise was calling to see if I had picked up the lap top that Chelsea so insanely thinks she needs. Uhhh, nope. There was only one of me and the electronics department was not even mentally accessible. I avoid any department where people are crammed in there like sardines.

So, Grandma Nise went to another Wal-Mart to see if they still had any. Fortunately they did. And the same time Aiden woke up. So I got Aiden dressed and we made the trek 30 minutes, avoided the mall traffic, didn't hit anyone and got the lap top. Chelsea knows she is getting it, but she will have to suffer until Christmas Day. It did not come home with me, so she will not be able to talk her dad into letting her have it for her birthday, which is next Wednesday.

And Aiden was a good boy while shopping this morning. He picked out his presents from Grandma Nise, except for the Little People NASCAR track - he doesn't know he is getting that.

Happy Thanksgiving

I know, I know.. I haven't been the best bloggy person at all this week. Even Aiden's EI Speech Therapist said so. She has been on maternity leave so she has been reading up on Aiden.

This week has just been busy. Chris is home Monday and Tuesdays. Aiden decided that 5 am is a good time to wake up. Yes, really. Dispite trying to get him to go back to sleep for 30 minutes, we were out of bed at 5:30. Which really was kind of good, I got all of our laundry done, folded and/or hung up. I even got to wash all the sheets and flip the mattress.

Tuesday, Aiden had another runny nose and that resulted in a bad mood. We canceled his weekly speech therapy. Chris wanted a smoked ham for Thanksgiving dinner, so a trip to the store, a trip to Grandma Susan's to drop off said ham, a trip to Chris's work to pick up equipment, and a trip to the salon. We all needed hair cuts. Chris sat down first, he's the quickest. Then Aiden.

Aiden did not want my stylist coming anywhere near his head. He kept putting his arms up to cover his head and yelling 'no' at her. I swear it took 20 minutes to cut his hair. She tried scissors, she tried the clippers. He wasn't having any part of it. However, we finally won the battle and his hair is somewhat shorter than it was going in and not as crazy. Oh, and I think his hair is finally starting to lay down. Bye-bye spikey doo.

The tree is also decorated. This year we went with a black and silver theme. Originally I thought I wanted black and gold. But I didn't like the black and gold decorations. They were ugly.

And Aiden has been relatively good with the tree. RELATIVELY, being the key word. It has fallen victim to Hurricane Aiden only 3 times. Which, as I said, is relatively good. LOL! He's fascinated with the black sparkly balls. Aiden's EI PT was over yesterday and she gave me an idea for a future tree... A Down syndrome tree.. blue and yellow... The wheels are already spinning.

Grandma Nise called last night and had to hint at an early Christmas prestent. Apparently Oprah did her holiday show with favourite holiday music. And the music was available for download on the website. So I went to the Oprah website. Normally I stay away from there. I don't like Oprah.

So I spent less than a minute downloading the 8 songs. Then spent another 30 minutes trying to put them on CD. iTunes apparently didn't like the songs and didn't want to burn them to disc. I had to go through Nero, which I don't ever use. She'll get the disc today so she can listen to it before Christmas.

Coping With a Child Who Has Special Needs

I stole this from another mom on CafeMom. Many of our blogs have newly diagnosed moms searching for answers and stumble upon us, so I encourage you to share this also.

If you or someone you know has a child with Down syndrome we're here to help. Dealing with something of this magnitude can literally change every aspect of someone's life and those around them. It's like a whirlwind of emotions sweeping across you day in and day out. We understand that turning to a friend or family member can sometimes be hard when it has to do with your child. So, we're here to pass along some great information about coping with a child who has Down syndrome.

Dealing with the Emotions

When it comes to an issue like Down syndrome, the best thing to do is seek out experts. They can give you the proper education on what Down syndrome is and what you can do to deal with it. Most importantly, all the myths will be explained. For instance if you've heard about your child possibly having to go to a special school it's not true. Think they'll have to be put in an institution when they get older? Not true. There are many misconceptions related to Down syndrome so be sure to keep an open mind about the situation.

Get Into Support Groups

This is one of the hardest decisions to make for any family dealing with Down syndrome. Why? Well, if your doctor has given you a pre-diagnosis from tests and analysis it's easy to go into denial. We aren't telling you this to upset you in any way, but the realization is that it's very common. When you first go to a support group there is a sense that you are giving in to all the speculation and admitting your child has Down syndrome. However, this is a crucial step for anyone wanting better ways to cope.

Support groups can offer you the opportunity to converse and build relationships with others who understand what you are dealing with on a daily basis. Discussions will revolve around different actions you can take to put your mind at ease. There are also many groups that pass around phone numbers. This way if you are having a tough day you can call someone and explain your situation. They may be able to give you sound advice on what routes to take to make it better.

There are several benefits to being involved with support groups. In the end you will make several new friends built around your children and their future. You never know, your child may grow up having several friends that come from the support groups as well. While things may be different in society for them, having others by their side in the future will be a monumental accomplishment.

Explaining the Situation to Your Family

When it's all said and done family members are the most difficult to tell. While they will want to support you whole heartedly, the lack of knowledge about Down syndrome can be hard for you to explain to them. It's very common for several questions to be thrust your way and all this does is create more stress on you. Answering the same things over and over again becomes overwhelming and it's not good for your current situation.

One of the best ways to handle family members is by telling them you don't want to talk about it. In addition, be sure to tell them why. If they are planning to learn more about Down syndrome to help you then offer them places to go for information. If you're up to it ask them to go along with you to a support group meeting. This way they can get a feel for what others have been dealing with for years.

The Most Important Coping Method

If you take one thing from this article, just remember to have patience. Don't sell you or your child short on all the things that life has to offer. Remember that there are going to be frustrating days ahead, but nothing is impossible. You have a loving child right there to hold, teach, and be a parent to forever. The only difference is you have to take a different route to get there. We wish you the best of luck and hope you pass along this information to anyone that needs it. They'll thank you for it later.

He's Not a 2 Year Old

Aiden is no longer a 2 year old, he is a category 2 hurricane.

Hurricane Aiden.

He can demolish any room in under 3 minutes. The living room must be picked up at least 6 times a day. The contents of my purse are scattered throughout the living room in this picture.

And this is the quiet after the storm:

As you can tell in the first picture, the Christmas tree is up. However we haven't decorated it yet. That task will be done slowly this year. Aiden is fascinated with the tree. He discovered that the tree rotates and he wants to play with it. So I want him to get the fascination out of his system before the decorations go on.

We have also decided that no presents will be going under said tree UNTIL Christmas Eve night. Last year, Aiden unwrapped more than 50% of the gifts - those not belonging to him - early.

Aiden also no longer wants to chase the vacuum around. He runs from it. He can hear it and he doesn't like it. He's fine with it as long as it's not turned on and he wants to push it. But the second that it is turned on, he can't get to his corner fast enough.

Oh, speaking of hearing - Wednesday we went for our follow up with Dr. ENT. They started with a hearing screening. The only thing Aiden didn't respond to was the "white noise". But Aiden hears "white noise" all the time with the fish tank. The tubes are still in his ears and open, so there is no fluid in his tiny little canals. However, Aiden doesn't want anyone coming near his ears PERIOD!. **Insert "low muscle tone - MY FOOT!" here** We now have to do another ABR with his audiologist.

And more good news from the cardiologist. When we were up there, I forgot to ask about scheduling Aiden's cath lab for January. (Yeah, I was just so tickled pink about the holter monitor news that I forgot the cath lab. ) So I called Wednesday. Anyhoo, since Aiden's echos haven't changed in months, Dr. Pediatric Cardiologist said that Aiden will NOT be requiring a cath lab anytime soon. WHOOO HOOOO!!! **Insert Happy Mommy dance here**

And now for cuteness factor.. Aiden in his reindeer antlers: