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!

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.

Buddy Walk October 3rd

The Buddy Walk is less than a week away, and we are all getting very excited. So far our team, Ben's Brigade, has 21 walkers and has raised just over $700 for the Down syndrome Association for Familes of Nebraska. We are so blessed to have such great support from our family and friends.

There is still time to donate and/or register. Go to dsafnebraska.org for more details.

We also paid for a registration for Elmwood Murdock School, so students, teachers and thier families can come walk with us too. We need to have a total count in by September 30th, so if you can join us on October 3rd, please call me or the office at school to get signed up. Don't for get to wear your Knights attire!

We will meet at Antelope Park (near 30th and A) just east of the barrier free playground between 8:00 and 9:30. Look for Ben's stroller with a Ben's Brigade flag flying from it. There will be lots of fun activites for the kids, food, plus a teriffic raffle . The walk starts at 9:30. After the walk you will get a sticker that will get you in to the Children's Museum free for the rest of the day.

So far the it sounds like the weather will cooperate and it will be a beautiful day. We hope you can join us!

Thanks for all your support.

Angie

18 months old!

Ben is 18 months old today. It is hard to believe that time goes so quickly. At first we were worried about Ben being behind and all the things he might not be able to do. But now I don’t worry so much. Ben is learning - just at his own pace. Can he do everything his peers can? Well no. But there are plenty of things he can do. Here are a few.

-Can crawl anywhere he wants to, and crawl fast if you are coming after him.

-Eats like a horse.

-Is drinking soy milk from a cup with a straw and is doing pretty good.

-Loves his thumb.

-Sleeps great.

-Loves to take a bath and play in the water.

-Cruises along the sofa, table and any other surface he can pull up on.

-Likes to pull up on the door or window.

-Loves to horse around with his big brothers.

-Signs all done, bath, more, and out.

-Waves hi and bye.

-Gives kisses (watch out for that tongue!)

-Loves to sway and dance to music.

-Likes to turn on the music on his crib toy, even if it is 4:00 in the morning.

-Communicates very clearly that if you have food you will be sharing some with him.

-Loves to have books read to him.

-Throws them on the floor when you say "the end".

-Can not stand to have his blocks, books or toys put away neatly in their containers.

-Throws his toys over his shoulder when he is done with them.

-Throws his cup and spoon over the edge of the high chair after every drink or bite.

-Sees himself in the mirror and says "Ba".

-Can reach things on the dining room table, that I thought for sure were out of his reach.

-Is very curious about his surroundings and likes to explore.

-Loves to clap for himself and for others.

-Has the most precious little belly laugh.

-Is a total flirt.

-Can melt your heart with his smile.

-Has been an inspiration to our whole family.

Capital City Buddy Walk

This is Ben .
It's time again to raise money for the Down Syndrome Awareness in Lincoln.

How can you help? Many different ways! You can donate on-line by going to Ben's Brigade team page by clicking here. You can donate by check made payable to DSAF of Nebraska and send it to The Willey Family (email me @ awilley1@yahoo.com if you need the address). But the best way to show your support, is to register and come walk with us! Our team name is Ben’s Brigade. My family would love to see you there! To register, click here. Be sure to register by September 20th to get a free T-shirt with your paid registration!

The walk is 1 mile around the Children’s Zoo but there will be so much more than just the walk! I know they have a lot of fun stuff planned for the kids! Click here to see the brochure.

Thanks for reading. Thanks for donating. Thanks for loving me for me!

Love,
Ben
Randy, Angie, John and Noah Willey

Hand, Foot and Mouth

Last week Ben crawled into the bathroom and just as I rounded the corner to get him, he fell into the tub. He did not hit hard, and cried just a little, but soon after I noticed a red spot on his tongue. I figured he bit his tongue, since it is usually sticking out anyway, and did not think much of it after that.

The next day, Alyce and I were laying tile on the kitchen counters, and needed to make an unexpected trip to Lincoln for more supplies. (That is a whole other story, but I will not tell it here.) While at the store I noticed what looked like a small white head in the spot on Ben's tongue where the red mark had been. Along with it were lots more little white heads on the front of his tongue, along with a few more toward the back of his tongue.

Time to call the Dr.

While it was hard to diagnose over the phone, they suggested it must be hand, foot and mouth, or a similar virus. Either way, they don't treat it so we were to just watch it closely and give meds for pain as needed.

At the time he was just slightly whiny and clingy, so I did not worry much.

Boy did that change over the weekend. Those sores in his mouth must have really hurt. He stopped nursing and drinking, did not want to eat anything he had to chew, and just sat and cried for 5 -10 minutes at a time, especially when his pain meds wore off. My happy go lucky baby was gone.

Looking back, it really did not last long and he is now back to his happy self, but I was worried quite a few times that something major was wrong, by the way he carrying on.

Luckily I already had the week off of work for vacation, and we were able to get the counter tops done in spite of the clingy baby. Thank goodness for the backpack carrier.

School started on Monday in our beautifully newly remodeled school. So far I think both older boys are enjoying it.