Public Service Announcement

I LOVE this PSA. Please feel free to copy and paste it for others to see. Paramount has licensed the PSA and it will soon be in in the following places:

The PSA will be on all of the Tropic Thunder DVDs.

The PSA will be shown in Walmart stores nationwide during the month of October, to help promote Down syndrome awareness month.

The PSA will be shown on the jumbotron during football games at a big name college.

The PSA is being shown at disability workshops.

The PSA is being shown in schools.

The PSA is being shown at lots of other events around the United States.

Oh, and the picture under "when you call me beautiful" is my friend's little girl. She is 2 years or so older now, but still just as cute!!

CRASH!!!

Well, this past Sunday the girls experienced their first car accident. We (My sister, two of her boys, me and both Amelia and Mary) were headed to my mother's house. My sister was driving. As we sped down a long two lane highway, a car flew through a stop sign and right into us. My sister did a great job of trying to avoid the car, but the older man seemed to speed up (probably stepping on the gas rather than the break.) He hit her mini-van in the front on the drivers side and then spun around and hit us again in the back on the the same side. We flew up to an adjacent parking lot before the car finally stopped. Mary looked terrified, but did not cry and just kept saying, "kay" (okay) to tell us that she wasn't hurt. Amelia was quiet for a second and then broke down. Although the car was totalled, no one was hurt. I am so grateful that we were being watched over and that everyone was protected. What a scary feeling... the sudden panic that comes over you when you think your babies are hurt. This was my first accident with small children in the car... and hopefully my last.

Back to School!

It's been a long time since I've updated. Sorry. Things have been crazy (as usual.) Mary started school in August. She is going to two different schools, so it has been quite an adjustment. She goes 3 days a week to a private preschool and 2 days to a special needs school. She loves them both and can't wait to leave for school in the mornings. One of her favorite things about going to school is that she gets to take her Dora the Explorer rolling backpack. I love watching her walk to the car and then to her classroom pulling her backpack with her. She looks like such a big girl! Her teachers tell me that she is doing great and really starting to come out of her shell. For those of you who don't know Mary well, she is painfully shy (she gets it from me... I was even worse than her as a child.) She is starting to participate more and is really doing well communicating. I love watching the positive changes in her. Going to school has been undeniably beneficial to her development and the fact that she absolutely loves it makes it even better!!

One Year Old!!

A Look Back... Amelia's First Year!

My Sweet baby girl is One!! I can't believe it!! Her sweet and loving spirit radiates! She loves to cuddle and get kisses! She loves to laugh and play. She loves hair and she hates physical therapy! Mary is her favorite person in the world and she gets excited and laughs whenever she is around. When things get a little too rough while they are playing, which they often do, Amelia is quick to forgive her sister with hugs and giggles. I am so pleased with how much she has accomplished this past year! The first 5 months of her life were filled with sickness and hospital stays, but despite her rocky start, Amelia is thriving and doing wonderfully. At a year old she is just a little peanut weighing 17lbs and only 27 inches tall. Her rolls and chubby thighs make up for what she lacks in height. She can wave, give fives, sign more, nod yes and no, and says, "hi", "mama", and "dada." She can sit like a pro and stand with support, but is still working on crawling and cruising. She can drink from a straw and after struggling with some feeding issues, she is finally starting to eat more solids (like puffs and cheerios.) She has great fine motor skills, which gives me hope that she will one day follow in her mommy's footsteps. She is such a joy and has been a wonderful blessing to our family. We love you, sweet Amelia! Happy 1st Birthday, Big Girl!!

Art Classes...

For those of you who have asked about fall art classes, please visit my online gallery to sign up or learn more. www.jtryongallery.blogspot.com

Big Girl Now!!

Mary has been familiar with the potty for almost a year now and has gone here and there. So this past monday I decided to just go for it! No more diapers. I figured I would give her a week and see if she was ready. After a couple of days of pee all over my floor Mary got it! She picked up on the concept so quickly I was so suprised. By Friday she was running to the potty everytime she had to go and even though she didn't quite make it every time, it was nice to clean up pee from the bathroom tile instead of carpet! For the past two days she has had no accidents! She even managed to stay dry at church on Sunday and go twice on the big potty with the split seat! We went to my moms house and she continued to do great! No accidents today yet, either! I know that we are bound to have accidents here and there, but it is still so exciting!! My little baby is not even 3 1/2 yet and potty trained!!! It is so nice to not have to buy diapers for two kids!!


Mary getting her sticker for her potty chart and wearing her favorite "Woewee" (Zoe) panties.