The Great Pumpkin ...

Grandpa Stan grew pumpkins for the kids in his garden. Not sure what happened but the pumpkins grew but never turned orange. Everyday Justin would look out the window towards the garden to see if the pumpkins were orange. Yesterday Justin was sad because the pumpkins were still green … he was sure they wouldn’t turn orange before Halloween. Not Grandpa’s pumpkin patch. The great pumpkin fairy must have stopped by last night cuz’ miraculously they turned orange. You should have seen the look on Justin’s face when he looked over at the garden and the pumpkins were orange. Here are the pictures of the kids bringing the pumpkins home!!

~ Justin looking around for the "Great Pumpkin" ~

~ Team Work ~

A Chance of a Lifetime ...

There is one thing I have always admired about my sister Lori … her pure determination! When Lori is determined nothing gets in her way. When it was announced that Sarah Palin would be speaking in Sioux City, Iowa … Lori was determined to meet Sarah.

Last Saturday Lori’s determination paid off. After hearing Sarah speak Lori found her way to the front of the stage and it was Caleb’s shirt that Lori made for him that caught her attention. Lori’s wish came true … not only did she have a chance to speak to her … Sarah asked to hold Caleb … admired his shirt then signed it.
I don’t care what side of the political fence you stand on … trust me I’m in the middle … having a high profile individual stand behind and support an organization that directly affects you is amazing … getting the chance to have them hold your child and compliment you on his advanced development is a chance of a lifetime.

~ My Nephew Caleb with Sarah Palin ~

Did you know ...

Now that I am done vacationing and planning parties I can get back to blogging .. There is only a few days left in October and as promised I will share some interesting facts/statistics/stories about Down syndrome.

Here are 10 United States Statistics borrowed from a few other sites …Remember that these are estimated numbers, there are no statistics that are 100% accurate because of abortion rates.

#1 ….1 /733 babies are born with Down syndrome

#2 …. 5, 000 babies are born every year with Down syndrome

#3 …. 9/10 women that are given a pre-natal diagnosis of Down syndrome chose to have an abortion! HOW SCARY IS THIS!!!

#4 …. It is believed that if there was no abortion at all, the incidence of having a child would be somewhere between 1/150 or 1/100, which is the same as having twins ... By no abortion it means, not only related to Down syndrome, but abortion in general

#5 … Most babies with Down syndrome are born to parents that were NOT given a pre-natal diagnosis

#6 … 80% of babies with Down syndrome are born to women under the age of 35

#7 … Currently there are more than 400,000 people living in the US with Down syndrome

#8 … More than 50% of all miscarriages are caused by a genetic abnormality … we will never know how many of them had downs

#9 … Once a woman has a baby with Down syndrome, her chances of having another child with Down syndrome is 1% … yes, only one percent - the same as having twins, unless it is Translocation Down syndrome

#10 … It was in 1959 that Jerome Lejeune, a French physician, identified Downs Syndrome as a chromosomal variance … Today, Down Syndrome is the most well researched genetic disorder.

Oh What a Night .... Disco Party 08'

Finally ………. Here are some of the photos from the Halloween party. Sorry it took so long but someone forgot to remind me that I’m not 20 and it will take 2 days to recover from a night full of fun. The photos are in NO ORDER and I will add more as I get them uploaded. The party was a BLAST. The best Halloween Party we have had. A special thanks to DJ Steve Russell for providing the great dance music --- my legs are still sore from dancing.

Treatsylvania ...

Yesterday we took the kids to Treatsylvania at Lee Martinez Farm. This has been a Halloween Tradition we have shared with Josh, Julie and Jackson Bigge since the boys were born. Makenna has an adorable Dumbo Costume but refused to put it on. Skittles, her blanket and a ride in the stroller made her happy. It was cold outside so we didn’t argue with her … maybe she will wear it Halloween night. Regardless all the kids had fun … Makenna (Stroller Princess), Justin (Tasmanian Devil), Jackson (Broncos Player), my Great Niece Madalee (Lion) and Carli (Pink Cuddle Bug).

~ Cousins ... Madalee and Justin ~

~ Hay Ride ... Josh, Jackson, Justin, Madalee, Matt & Amanda ~

~ The Boys ... Jackson and Justin ~

Paintbrush Cookies ...

Today Justin and I joined Alisha and Cooper Bigge ... the 4 of us made some Halloween Cookies. The boys had a blast and the cookies turned out darling! We made the dough ahead of time and let the boys cut them out with the cookie cutters and decorated them with the frosting.

What a fun afternoon project. On the way home Justin was talking about when we make Christmas Cookies. I guess that means we will be doing this again in a few months!

Fishing in Branson ...

Dwight, Justin and my dad did lots of fishing this week. From both the boat and on the docks … Dwight’s big fish was caught from the docks. Today for lunch we had a big fish fry with all the fish they kept from the week. It was super yummy and a great way to end our week of fishing!

Star Struck in Branson …

Today we ate lunch at Mel’s Hard Luck Diner … a fun 50s themed diner were the servers sing. Justin was star struck when one of the servers turned out to be last season’s American Idol finalist Jason Yeagar. Jason sure made a little boy on vacation really happy when he posed for a photo with him and signed a CD for Justin to take home. Look at the smile on Justin’s face … PRICELESS!!

Table Rock Lake ...

My postings this week will be out of order but I have a good excuse … we’re on vacation

So far … so good! I can actually say I truly do feel like I am on vacation. Fall is absolutely beautiful around here and the weather is amazing. The place we are staying is a lake front timeshare condo my parents bought years ago here in Branson at The Stillwater Resorts on Table Rock Lake. The condo is a double unit so we have plenty of room for all of us… Dwight, Justin, Makenna and I + my Dad and Bobbye (his girlfriend).

We are only steps away from the boat docks you can see in the photo above. This is the 1st time Dwight and I have been here with the kids so it is a new adventure for all of us ---- Plus this year we brought our boat. Table Rock Lake is HUGE. It has over 850 miles of shore line so there is plenty of fishing spots and lots to explore while on the water.

The boys spent all day on the lake fishing while us girls did some shopping and spent most of the day hanging around the condo. Justin was the BIG MAN of the day and caught the BIG FISH a 17” Large Mouth Bass. He was mighty proud and can’t wait to get back out on the water for some more fishing.

900 miles from home ...

900 miles … 2 and ½ days in the car … but we made it to Branson, Missouri for a week of relaxing, fishing, shopping and sight seeing. We left Thursday after Justin got out of school and drove 4 hours to our 1st stop … Grammie’s house in Bird City, Kansas. Yesterday was a looooooooong day on the road. Makenna started fussing after only an hour in the car and Justin must have asked “are we there yet” a million times but we all survived the day and made it all the way to Nevada, Missouri were we stayed in a hotel. We had a suite and the room was wonderful … 2 rooms – 2 TV’s. Our room was BRAND NEW … we were the very 1st people to stay in it. Nothing feels better than being in a hotel and not having to wonder what took place in the room the night before.

The pool was small but Justin and Makenna didn’t seem to mind. They had a great time swimming. Today we drove the last 150 miles to our condo. We are settled in and plan to spend tomorrow at Silver Dollar City.

Uh Oh Spegettios ...

Little Miss Makenna made quite the mess today while eating lunch. She was mighty proud of herself. Kids love this stuff … it’s just almost impossible to get out of clothes so I was happy that I had a naked baby eating messy Spegettio’s.

A Very Lucky Boy ...

Most of you know that 2 years ago a very special boy entered our lives. My nephew Caleb … born with Down Syndrome. Over the past 2 years I have learned so much about the misconceptions and alarming statistics associated with Down Syndrome.

Did you know … October is National Down Syndrome awareness month? Many bloggers are participating in what is called “31 for 21”. Since this month is super busy for me I’m unable to commit myself to blogging for 31 days straight. But I promise to share with you 31 stories/photos/tidbits related to Down Syndrome over the month of October.

This past weekend my sister Lori and her family participated in “The Buddy Walk” in Sioux Falls, SD. I want to share a story Lori told me…

One of the “big wigs” involved with the Buddy Walk was admiring Caleb’s shirt and asked Lori how old her son was. Caleb was quick to answer with “2” fingers held up and said, “TWO”. Lori was proud as a peacock as the women was taken back by how well Caleb talked and how incredibly smart he is for a 2 year old child with special needs. Lori beamed with pride as she held back the desire to say “he’s not just 2 he is only 27 months”.

God has entrusted Lori with an amazing gift, Caleb. Lori has embraced Caleb and the challenges of raising a child with special needs with all her heart. Caleb’s development in all areas far surpasses the average for most children with Down Syndrome. It is because of Lori’s strong determination and constant strive to provide Caleb every opportunity for growth that she can find that aids in his advanced development. God makes no mistakes. Caleb’s mommy was hand picked.

Exhausted …

The house party was a BLAST. I am completely exhausted from spending the entire day getting ready for the party, enjoying the company and then I stayed up until 1:00am scrapbooking. There was NO WAY I was going to have my livingroom covered with scrapbooking stuff and not complete a few pages. These are the first 3 pages I’ve completed for Makenna’s scrapbook. Oops I’m just a little behind … she’ll be 2 in November.

It’s always fun to scrapbook with others. You get so many creative ideas. I’m inspired now to keep it up. Another goal to add to my life … enjoy my kids, exercise, cook healthier, list 10 ebay auctions a week, blog at least 3 days a week and scrapbook. I’m sure I can make all of this fit into my already crazy life :) LOL

Gone Hunting ~ Lets Scrap ...

Dwight is off for a boy’s weekend chasing antelope across the Colorado plains. He never brings anything home except a bag full of dirty clothes so I’m not too worried about the animal activists stalking us for the next year. Sitting around, drinking beer and hanging out with the boys is what he calls hunting.

That’s ok… every man needs a little time away. If he’s having boys weekend – I’m having a girl’s night. Tonight I’m hosting my Canon Scrapbooking House Party. Just a few more cookies to bake … set up the tables and I’m ready for a night of fun!

Looks like there will be 15 of us. Scrapbooking has been a true passion of mine for years. My two favorite people who I have spent hours scrapbooking with is my sister Sheri and my dearest friend Heidi ho. Sheri is exploring the world and currently vacationing in Peru. Heidi ho lives in Vancouver, Washington. I figured tonight I would be without my 2 favorite scrapbooking partners. But I got a surprise at the beginning of the week. Heidi will be in town and will be a special guest at my party.

9 years ...

Can you believe it’s been 9 years already? Amazing how time flies … 2 fabulous kids and a wonderful husband what more could a girl want? Dwight gave me a sweet card today and promised me a nice night out when our lives settle down and we don't have so much going on. Hopefully our lives settle down soon! I love nights out with just Dwight. Sadly they don't happen very often.

~ 2 of my favorite wedding photo's of just the 2 of us! ~

BOOgie Down 2008 ...