Monday, January 5

We’ve got teeth! Well, tooth. Addison finally got her first tooth last week. And, you know, it’s funny. One tooth doesn’t do much for you. But it sure is cute! And we’re on our way now. Just a couple more, and she’ll be scarfing down ribs and steaks with the best of them.

Addison got to spend last week with Grans and Granddaddy while her parents spent the week in Mexico! It was a much needed break for us, and, although a little less restful, still lots of fun for them. They taught her all kinds of new tricks and managed not to spoil her too badly. We could not be more appreciative.

And then, yesterday when we got home, Addison crawled for the first time! She’s been doing the belly crawl for a while, but this was a real hands-and-knees crawl. She did it three times before we got the video camera out, and then… nothing. We tried for the next half hour to get her to crawl (someone should have been videoing that!) That's okay, we'll get it one of these days when she's least expecting it.

Saturday, December 27

Addison enjoyed her second Christmas much more than her first. It's funny to think that at this time last year her schedule was: sleep, eat, poop, repeat. This year she thoroughly enjoyed the Christmas tree, the lights, the wrapping paper and playing with her cousins.

Matt and Ethan had fun with Addison in Abilene.

Owen and Grant with Addison in Waco.

We are so excited Addison has such great cousins to play with and look up to!

One Year Old!!

Wow! It's hard to believe, but Addison is one year old! What an incredible year it's been! We've learned so much about ourselves, our families, friends, and, of course, Addison. She had a blast on Saturday opening presents and squishing cake between her fingers and in her hair. However, she also had her first sinus infection, so I don't know that she could even taste it. Is there some kind of rule out there that kids have to be sick on their first birthdays? In true Addison form, she had fun in spite of it.

It's amazing to look at how much she's grown over the year. The pictures above are her 12 month and 1 month pictures with the bear.

We are excited to see how Addison grows over the next year. There will be plenty of interesting and fun moments. Hopefully, we will be able to capture most of them on film to share with you. Here's a taste of what's to come...

Monday, Dec 8

This year is clearly a year of firsts for Addison. Thanksgiving was wonderful. She didn't get any turkey, well none that we had anyways. Hers was from a jar. She had a great time hanging out with her cousins and the rest of the family.

Swimming lessons are going well, although Addison is not really learning to swim. I highly doubt she would be able to save her own life if she fell in a pool, but we're having a blast going to the lessons. She's about to graduate from the diaper dolphins to the flippers class, which begs the question, "How does one graduate if one learns nothing?" That's the great American education system, I guess.

On Saturday, we went out into the wilderness and found a great tree and Rach cut it down with her bare hands. Or, we went to 41st and Harvard and bought one from Isaiah who hooked us up with a $25 tree stand too. Either way, Addison loved the experience of getting her first Christmas tree and we all had a great time.

An almost new development is that Addison is almost crawling. We can see the desire to crawl in her eyes, but she gets up on her knees and then plopps right back to her tummy. Sometimes she sort of makes an army crawl looking motion. It takes her a while but she gets to her destination eventually.

Wide Open

I hesitated to post this, because I don’t want sympathy or pity. But I want to be completely honest, so here it is:

Tonight, I sit awake, crying, grieving again the child we expected to have 11 months ago. I don’t know why I grieve. The child we got instead is sweet, funny, adorable, capable, smart, caring, non-discriminating, loving and playful. There never was any other child. She was always going to be who she is. It’s been almost a year, and I finally, maybe for the first time, have seen an upside to Down Syndrome. I’ve noticed lately that a lot of parents of “typical” kids watch their child clip through milestones, without their giving it a second thought. Yet they’re always wishing for the next one, never appreciating what they’ve got. “Yes he/she’s crawling/babbling/teething/feeding himself, but when’s he ever going to…?” I almost feel a relief that I can watch my child and be excited about what she is doing instead of frustrated at what she’s not. Her having a “disability” has given me the permission to throw typical expectations out the window, and enjoy her on Addison-time. Having said that, it can be incredibly frustrating to work and work and work on a given skill for months at a time, seeing no progress whatsoever. Until one day, she decides she’s ready, and takes off. Just in the last few weeks, Addison has learned to get from her tummy to sitting, started babbling, and has figured out if she positions herself just right, she can pull herself up on her crib rail.

So, why do I grieve? Selfishness. Pride. Envy. Empathy. Fear. As much as Addison may be more alike others than different, she will always be different. Though many will be nice to her, some will not, and some only patronizingly. I’m afraid they won’t all see past her flat nose, almond eyes and low-set ears to genuinely appreciate the girl behind them and give her a fair chance. We all have our shortcomings, she just has to wear hers on the outside.

Friday, November 14

Aunt Brittan and Uncle Russ (and Berk-dog) had a long weekend last week, so they decided to get in some Tulsa time. We had a great time tossing pizza crusts, making s'mores and solving all the world's problems. Addison was a bit shy at first, but warmed up quickly and loved spending time with them. We also got to celebrate Russ passing the bar exam! Way to go, Esquire Jumper.

Addison turned 11 months old yesterday! So, of course, it was time for her obligatory bear picture. She is growing up so quickly. It's hard to believe she'll be a year old soon.

Addison's latest development is that she started to babble last week. If I may say, it is the cutest thing ever. Sometimes she seems like she really knows what she's saying, it just comes out, "bablaba, pthhh."

She's also enjoying books lately. Mostly she likes to flip the pages, hit me in the face with it, or try to put it in her mouth, but it's a start. We got her a few new ones today. We thought since she spends her days at face-level with Bear, we'd get something that relates to her world.

Monday, November 3

Yabba Dabba Doo! As some of you know, Addison decided to be Pebbles Flinstone for Halloween. So, in an effort to support her decision, Wes and I dressed- you guessed it- as Fred & Wilma. We actually had a great time. It’s been a long time since I’ve dressed up for Halloween. I’d forgotten how much fun it is to have an excuse to be goofy in public for a night. Plus, it’s way more fun to dress up with someone. It’s also a lot more fun to wear an actual costume instead of whatever we could find around the house an hour before time to go trick-or-treating. I’ll let you in on a little secret- my parents made me a bag-lady like four years in a row. No wonder I haven’t dressed up in a while. (It’s also no wonder I wasn’t the most popular kid around.)

We also had another swimming lesson this weekend, and, while I may be a tad biased, I think Addison is the best student in the class. She loves every minute of it and is not the least bit scared. Next week they’re going to have us put our children’s heads under water. The other parents in the class are a bit nervous. I, on the other hand, have been struggling to keep her head out of the water this whole time.

This, I think, is the best picture we have yet. Addison figured out today how to get from her tummy to sitting, which has made naptime quite challenging. The first two times she sat up in her crib, I went in and laid her back down. When I walked in the second time, Addison looked up at me with the biggest smile on her face and started clapping. It was at that moment that I realized this was becoming a rather entertaining game for her. So, the next time I decided to leave her and see what happened. And this is it. She fell asleep sitting up.