Tuesday, October 13, 2009

Ben's Song of Love

A while back I got a form from our Service Coordinator about a foundation called Songs of Love. This foundation is for children facing life threatening illness or lifelong disabilities. They write, record and mail you a song on CD including personalized content made just for your child.
You can go directly to their website by clicking here.

Last week there was a funny little envelope in the mailbox and sure enough, it was Ben's song.
We were so excited. It is just the cutest song. Here is a video of him and his song. John and Noah make an apperance also. Unfortunately it is hard to watch since he dancing in his bouncer. You might want to just listen.



Friday, October 9, 2009

Capital City Buddy Walk



Saturday was the 8th Annual Capital City Buddy Walk. It was a chilly morning, but we all wore lots of layers to keep warm. It was a fun day, and thanks to some pledges we received this week, our team has raised over $900 for the Down syndrome Association for Families of Nebraska. Thank you to everyone who donated to Ben's Brigade!
We had 19 people walk with Ben's Brigade this year. It was a fun morning filled with lots of activities for the kids, food, and games. We all warmed up a bit during the walk. I told the kids we could cut over to the play ground instead of following the trail the last 50 yards and missed out on getting stickers and giant cookies. Sorry that was my fault! We did end up finding the stickers that got us in to the Children's Museum free that day after lunch. Then we all came home and took a much needed nap. Well at least Ben and I did.

Here are a few pictures from the day.

Ben ready to walk.


Most of our group, but where are the Clymer's?


Here they are.


Aunt Shannon, Why are we out in the cold?


Uncle Steve, keep me warm!

Thank you for all your support!

Thursday, October 1, 2009

Down Syndrome Awareness Month

Today starts the beginning of national Down syndrome awareness month. So I thought I would start with a few facts about Down syndrome.
-Down syndrome occurs when an individual has three, rather than two, copies of the 21st chromosome. This additional genetic material alters the course of development and causes the characteristics associated with Down syndrome.
-Down syndrome is the most commonly occurring chromosomal condition. One in every 733 babies is born with Down syndrome.
-There are more than 400,000 people living with Down syndrome in the United States.
Facts from the National Down Syndrome Society.