a new sport for Cate?

Ric was a tennis teacher in high school so this summer he bought the girls tennis rackets and took on the challange of starting basics with the girls.  While Lucy was done after about 5 minutes, Cate was hooked.  She stuck with it for quite a while and has been making a pretty good start.   I still want her to be a swimmer but who knows maybe tennis is in her future too!

 

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO THE

BEST DADDY EVER!!!!

Kitchen Renovation completed!

OK - so in reality the kitchen was finished on July 2cd but I've been moving stuff back in and organizing for weeks since.
On Mother's Day our kitchen looked like this - and keep in mind these pic were taken with all the lights on in the middle of the day that is how dark our kitchen was before:

the main kitchen - before

the oven and fridge (soon to be the new pantry)- before



the breakfast area - there ended up being two layers of wallpaper which had been painted at least twice
that light hanging there would end up being the only thing that remaining intact from the old kitchen

The cabinets were solid wood so our original intention was just to have them repainted and replaced counter tops and floor.   We assume the cabinets are from 1979 when the house was build, originally they were stained and then painted white with an oil based paint.  Between the work that would be required to strip them down enough to paint, the doors not fitting straight anymore and the hinges needing to be moved inside - it was just going to cost to much to take on the risk of the paint chipping and peeling in a couple of years.  Our biggest reason for the renovation was because the tile floor was difficult to clean with the large grout lines and very hard because of the tile.  So we finally decided to start from scratch so a few days after mothers day, they demoed the whole place down to the wood beneath.  Which means we lived out of a kitchen on the screened in porch for about 7 weeks.  It actually worked out fine since GA weather cooperated by keep the rain and heat away until we were almost done.  We moved the refrigerator out there and set up a makeshift pantry on the bakers rack and counter top on a 6 foot serving table.

 

In the old kitchen we had a huge antique hutch that said on the wall opposite the bay window (it was already gone when I took the before pictures. It gave us the additional storage and counter space we needed but took up a huge chunk of the open space of the breakfast area. It was totally my mothers idea to not bring the hutch back in and instead have a full wall built-in at the end of the room and a window bench in the bay window. This was a huge factor in making our new kitchen seem so much more open and light, I think. Instead of the table being in the middle of the space with only a small walk way around the hutch to get to the pantry/laundry we ended up with a huge open area that also allowed for great storage and a place to put the TV that was not on the counter.


during - brand new build in and window seat in the breakfast area



The final kitchen product was great beyond our expectations.  Our contractor stayed on schedule, even with some difficulties and changes along the way plus we ended only slightly above budget.  Our new kitchen is inviting, spacious, easily organized, accessible and most surprisingly because I choose gray paint very light!!  I won't bore you with more words - here it is!!



the long view



eating area to new pocket door



new kitchen table all set!



new pantry with deep drawers - LOVE having the food actually in the kitchen!  Plus this new large capacity fridge is heaven.



My mom found the greatest little counter stools for this space - it ended up a little smaller than I had intended but the drawers on the left are exactly what I need - one for each girl for their school stuff.



Love the look of the new farmhouse sink and it is so big.  We took away the over window cabinets and did pendant lights instead - well worth the loss of some hard to reach storage.
I also did the box canvas paintings to give us some color in this area.



Still getting used to the gas stove top but the hood and tile are my favorite surprises from the process.  The hood was a huge pain to buy and install but I love the slightly modern look it adds to the kitchen.  My dad and his friend did the tile and we absolutely love the pattern he came up with for the silver accent pieces. 

My 200 photos of fruit to get these two shots ended up being more than worth it, thanks to my mom steering me towards the 30x30 canvas size - they make the perfect impact in the otherwise gray and white space.

The green fiesta dishes were a little bit of a splurge but I love the way they look in this seeded glass cabinet.



It was great to get the TV off the counter but I'm surprised at how much I love having this display area.  A lot of the items hold special places for me - the dish set in the middle belonged to my grandmother, the green class plate was Ric's grandmothers, the rooster pitcher from Italy was given to me by my sister-in-law, and the tiles the girls did for me.



Close up of the tile Cate did in her 1st grade art class - it is a representation of the blue horse from the Eric Carle's book



the new pocket door into the mud room/laundry room



Laundry

  

 

"Mud Room" built in my dad did for us - the girls are doing great going here first to deposit shoes in their baskets and hanging bags or coats on their hooks - it has already saved me a ton of time searching for shoes

Thanks for hanging with me on my little blogging hiatus!  Cate is off and running in the second grade and Lucy is beginning her Pre-K adventure so I'm sure I'll have more to post this fall after we all get into our new routines.



Blog Hop - 3 on the 21st: One Truth, One Tip, One Pic

OK so I missed the 21st but since I've been out of the blog world for a while so going under the assumption I have a reader or two left,  I'm going to try to coax myself back in with the 3 for 21 blog hop hosted by Rebecca at The Bates Motel Meriah at A Little Moxie (opps sorry!). The 3 for 21 blog hop asks us to list one truth about Ds or my child, one tip about parenting, and a cute picture - so here we go!

One Truth:  My child is iron-willed.  (I'm purposely going to avoid the stereotypical descriptor here given the hot debate on some other Ds mom blogs but none the less I'm sure you get the point.)  I'm not the first or the most eloquent to mention this trait on this blog hop round but it is my overwhelming truth right now so I can't think beyond it to come up with something more original.  I know a lot of people say "kids that age are like that, its not unique to Ds".  Now I don't have any older children so I can't tell you if that is true that most or even many 7 year olds are so strong willed or not but I'd be surprised to find that to be the case.  The depth of Cate's will to do exactly what she wants is almost impossible to break.  It affects her at school when she gets "yellow" (warning) behavior ratings even though she really wants to attended the "prize party" at the end of the week and it affects her at home when she loses screen time for not listening or following directions.   It has caused me much to my embarrassment to yell so loud that I lose my voice and end a homework session holding back my own tears.  I think the root of the issue is she cares about the thing she is doing at that time so deeply, no matter how trivial it seems to us.  So any threats, rewards or punishments don't affect her until after the fight is over.  It isn't a matter of her not understanding the cause and effect but truly a matter of her not caring at that particular moment because she is so invested her own ideas.  Case in point - she HATES homework, when she gets home she wants free time even if the homework is a fun or simple activity.  Two nights ago she was tasked with writing her 11 color spelling words on flashcards to put in her desk at school.  It took over 30 minutes to get her to do the first 6 or 7 (the easiest to write I might add) with me all but screaming at her because in her mind she "needed" to go "be a rock star" (dress up and play her Barbie guitar).  She refused outright and stared at me, then she messed up on purpose, then she dropped her markers, and even tried a quick fake cry that she was too tired.  She finally moved on to a verbal fight where she asked me to "be nice to her", explained to me what she wanted to do and why it was more important, and tried to convenience me the teacher said she didn't have to do her homework tonight.  After this went on for over 30 minutes, she finally gave in and finished up the last 5 cards in less than 5 minutes - and those were the harder, longer words.  In the process of this battle she lost all her TV time as well as her time to play outside (in addition to the ipad time she lost by coming home with a yellow) , which of course made her very sad when it was all over but had zero effect during.  She can tell you why she lost the privileges so it isn't that she doesn't understand.  This is only only tiny example of the hundreds of situations that have caused all of my gray hair.  So my truth is that whether because of the fact she has Ds or because she is 7, she is making her and my life very difficult at times with her  will go to any lengths to get her way. 
Of course on the flip side that same iron-will is instrumental to her learning and existence.  This child didn't just stand up at 10 months and take a step a few days later, then walk within a week like her baby sister did  - Cate did months of PT and aqua therapy to get strong enough to learn to walk at 22 months.   She didn't babble as an infant then say her first words only to move on to phrases within a couple months on her own - Cate started ST at 6 weeks and worked at strengthening her muscles and understanding to start talking at 3 years and not move on to sentences until a year later.  She needs that drive to function in her daily life, to keep up with her peer physically given her orthotics and shorter legs and mentally given her cognitive challenges.  As much as I hate the fights it causes for me, I also am thankful for the same trait that make her push until she succeeds.

A Tip:  As hard as it is for a parent of a baby with Ds to do I know but try to have open mind of what kind of school or class you want your child to attend.  I said from day one that my child would always be in an inclusive environment and that I would fight to make sure she had it.  The problem is every school and every child is different plus the teacher is the most important ingredient in my currently thinking.  I almost missed out on the most important part of Cate's growth to date when I rebelled against putting her in a self contained pre-K.  Fortunately I let myself be persuaded by the system to give it a try because now I completely believe those 2 years of special needs pre-K are the reason she was able to handle a mainstream kindergarten class and what paved the road to get to where she is now in second grade.  So my tip to young parents - listen to the advice but keep an open mind when the time comes because sometimes the best solution is not always the one you intended.

A Photo:  My beautiful girl in a pic that is so sweet you are sure to think my whole "truth" is made up!

 

 

The proof is in the pool

I know I owe my readers a lot of summer posts I didn't quite get too - including the revel of the kitchen renovation that has kept me from blogging this summer.  I have actually taken the photos  and downloaded them but I'm still not caught up at work or at home enough to spend time writing a blog. 

I did get one thing I've been meaning to do finished and that is take new video of Cate swimming.  Cate has improved even more this summer in the pool.  Her endurance is better, her strokes are improving, she swimming underwater like a natural fish, and is learning to dive.  I figure that those of you who don't actually know Cate, might have some of those stereotypes of a person with Down syndrome lingering in the back of your mind.  And I can't blame you - they come back to haunt me for a few seconds every once in a while too when I assume Cate won't be able to do something - that is until she immediately proves me wrong.  I'm sure there are those of you out there that hear me say what a great swimmer Cate is (I know I say it a lot - I am one proud mama who can't help her annoying bragging) and think "how sweet" but at the same time in the back of your mind are thinking she probably dog paddles around and I'm just such a proud mama that I think that is great. 

Well here is the proof that it is not just me thinking Cate is a great swimmer at 7 years old.  I put a couple piece of phone video together without any effects so I apologize for the abrupt transitions.  During the first section when you see Cate hesitate - she is says "Hi I'm Cate, I am swimming..." - she such a ham.  Then in the middle she gives a whole speech that my phone didn't pick up telling she is going to swim backstroke to the other end of the pool unfortunately I stopped that tape of that swim early because Lucy started talking to me and didn't get it taken again.  At the end she is diving for a dive stick, and I say 6 feet in the video but when I went down to set it back up for her I realized it was probably closer to 7 feet because I stood with the hands above my head on the bottom at that spot and still didn't reach the surface (our pool is 10 feet that deep end).   Here you go - check it out!

 

God I love that girl!  Promise to be back to the blogging soon since we have left than 2 weeks left until school starts here in the south.

#7

Nope #7 is not referring to Cate's age in this post.  Last week we spent a day at Children's Hospital for Cate seventh set of ear tubes.  7 - seriously? in a 7 year old little girl - its just crazy.  Want to know something even stranger, Cate has never had an ear infection.  She got her first set of tubes in March of 2007 (1 year 3 months old) after she had failed god knows how many hearing tests.  (I will never forget her first hearing test in the NICU.  She failed just as a nurse had warned me she probably would but the audiologist said "I like to think of them as little human beings".  I choose to think she was referring to babies in general because she really was a gentle and nice if a little flighty person which makes the statement just funny.)  We learned during that first surgery that Cate's ear canals were extremely tiny and crooked.  After that first set of tubes the doctor told us they wouldn't last long because even though she used the tiniest set made, she still have to put them at an angle to get them in.  But it was worth it - we were amazed at the difference in Cate after that first surgery.  We hadn't noticed on a daily basis that she wasn't hearing until we started seeing how much more in tune she was to thing after the surgery.  She paid more attention to people, the TV, life in general.  Sure enough 8 or so months later they fell out and the ENT said we should wait and see what happens.  By the next appointment there was so much fluid in her ears that she was back to not hearing again.  So in April of 2008, we were back for our next set, which is when deja-vu starts because we were back in May 2009, May 2010, June 2011, a quick return in January 2012, then last week.  We visit the ENT every 3-6 six months and the minute we hear the tubes are out we test her hearing. 

The first time Cate has done the "big girl" hearing test - in the booth all by herself, identifying pictures and clapping for sounds!

If we see any decline, which so far has been every time, we push for new tubes.  Maybe that seems premature but I know one thing, my girl can't learn correctly if she can't hear even for a short time.  She may not get ear infections but experience shows that fluid gets trapped in those ear canals that are still using some small tubes and she starts hearing like she is under water.  Maybe when she is a young adult we'll be done with this but I am assuming we'll fight with ear tubes as long as she is a child.  I probably come off as very cavalier regarding ear tube surgery to the people who are around me at the time.  The truth is that I can't sleep well the night before and I can't eat the morning of the surgery.  I don't like sending my baby back to be put to sleep for any reason.  But Cate makes it bearable with her awesome attitude and every time it has gotten a little easier.  This time was a breeze - we got lucky with a 11:15 am appointment (important because she can't eat before) and she was fully occupied with the IPAD or her LeapPad from the time Ric dropped her at my office until they took us back to our room so she only asked for food once or twice and didn't fuss when I told her should couldn't.  She isn't scared of the hospital and knows it is a place where people help you.  She did ask a bunch of times about getting a blood test, because she did not want that.  Our children's hospital is fabulous - I know how lucky we are to have them so close.  This time they had a special gift for Cate that she had a very fun time testing out -

Sorry the picture is so blurry but the girl wouldn't stop twirling in her new tutu!  Before the dancing started, Cate and I played hospital with Daisy (her stuffed dog that was won selling girl scout cookies).  We talked about Daisy putting on the gown then getting a fun ride on the moving bed before the doctor in the white room would do "poof poof" (it is easy for us to relate the anesthesia mask to her nebulizer and inhaler spacer masks that she is very familiar with from a couple years ago), then after the doctor looked in her ear she'd be back in the room with me.  We are fortunate she is not scared by pretty much any of it, once we talk it out.  The days when she had to take an oral "goofy juice" prior to heading back were much harder since it took forever to get her awake and compliant enough to drink the juice required plus she was a very unhappy girl. 

 

Cate and Daisy are ready to go

When the anesthesiologist came to visit us, I told her about calling the mask "poof poof" and Cate asked if Daisy could go first - she said no problem on both accounts.  So a little while later off Cate went with Daisy, just smiling and looking around as she chatted up the nurse pushing the bed.  Fifteen minutes later the doctor stopped by to say all was well and yes there was a lot of fluid behind the ear where the tube had fallen out and the other tube was blocked by "debris" so she replaced both of them.  Ten more minutes and Cate rolled in saying "Mommy, Daisy went first but I did it, I was very brave".  Cate wasn't happy about the IV in her hand with the stabilization board on her arm but at least this time she understood if she drank the juice box then it would come out.  So she drank like a champ and as soon as it was gone started asking the nurse if she could "take this thing off".  Once that was done a couple of signatures later and we were packing up.  I left my office at 8:30am with a child who keep asking to turn everything up and returned home at 1:30pm with a happy child who hears great.  I'll take that round trip anytime - Thank you Children's, hope we don't see you again soon!

 

 

and a little side note to gather some sympathy for not posting last week - this is what my kitchen looked like 4 weeks after demo - see the refriderator that lives on the screen porch in the window?

Now that is not a current picture, a ton of progress was made in the last week so we are still on track for completion the beginning of next week but I'm starting to lose my mind since they took away  my washer/dryer and utility sink on Sunday - "i can do it - it will be so worth it, i can do it - it will be so worth it, i can do it - it will be so worth it" - maybe I can convince myself if I say it enough.



the dentist

My goal of getting at least one post a week up through the chaos that is summer vacation + a complete kitchen renovations (no kitchen for 6 weeks-ugh!) is much harder than I anticipated but I'll keep trying! 

Unfortunately I don't have any good pictures for this post but we had another good dentist appointment for Cate right before school ended.  So for all of you out there with kids who have Ds and HATE the dentist - it is possible for that to change.  One year ago I posted in Look Mom No Cavities about Cate's challenges with the dentist that resulted in her being sedated just to have a cleaning.   Well one year later, we have graduated again!  This visit was still a "special" dentist appointment (meaning she is scheduled with the dentist for the entire visit and they are prepared to do restraints or sedation if necessary) but the dentist was pulled away and Cate managed a whole cleaning with just the hygienist!  So at our next visit in 6 months, we are in a regular old slot with the hygienist and a normal fly-by from the dentist!!!  How exciting - I wouldn't have believed we'd ever get there two years ago.  Cate also let them do a panoramic x-ray which concluded what was already suspected - Cate is missing 3 adult teeth.  I know that sounds awful but in reality its not that bad.  Two of them are molars and with the crowding she already has, chances are we would have had to pull some teeth in that area anyways.  The other is a front side tooth so it will require some work to make her smile look better but since we are looking at orthodontics anyway, again it is not that big of a deal in the scheme of things.  The fact that she let them take the x-ray and stood still as requested by herself is HUGE plus she had no cavities!!!!  She is really growing up! 

a victory dance!

In the midst of the last week of school, a house fighting viruses and dealing with a big remodeling project - Cate is the perfect one to lighten any mood!
I promise the victory dance at the end is worth the 30 seconds of watching the ball roll!