Dear Donavan & Alex

Dear Donavan,

I saw you at Bridgeway. I saw when she leaned over and viciously spewed hatred in your ear - likely telling you, "Don't look at her, don't acknowledge her, so help me if you do I'll beat you when we get out of here. She's the enemy - she the reason your Dad and I have all of our problems.”

Dear Alex,

I saw you the day you were in the truck. I saw how you were chewing on your fingernails. How you avoided eye contact or even looking over at me. When I called your name to say Hello - you barely lifted your other hand and didn't even look my way. I'm sure that you had been threatened also with not talking to me, because I am the enemy & the sole reason for your Dad and her problems.

My heart aches for you two. I know that life isn’t easy. I know that they think of themselves first & how they look in others eyes before they think about what it is doing to you two.

I want so badly to find someone in authority that can take you two out of that environment. Someday I hope you get rescued from that life. I've tried, and I've failed, which makes me a failure in your eyes. And I guess I am.

Please try to hang in there…………………..or talk to someone in authority if it gets unbearable! I think of you both almost constantly. L My heart aches……

Love Aunt Dawn

Things to make you think......

Stuff.....
.
Life is short, you never know what tomorrow will bring
.
Live, laugh, love
.
Dance like nobody is watching
.
Live like you are dying
.
I hope you dance
.
.
.
Control is an illusion...................

New Chapter starts now....

Thursday started a new chapter in Little Miss Amie's World - she started kindergarten! :(
.
Time flies way too fast!
.
We had to do the obligatory first day of kindergarten pictures......and she was being kind of stoic at first.


But a little "Say Fuzzy Pickles" loosened things up!! This next one is my absolute favorite....but I had to include some of her silly faces too!!

Time to load 'er up and head on over to school!

Here we are at the school.....you can see it's more of a forced smile, not the goofing around smiles from earlier.

Yeah - not a great smile here either!

Still the goofy strained smile.

Oh Baby Girl......I can still see it in your eyes. You are ready.....but not completely!! Guess what - Momma isn't either! :(

So I leave her in the capable hands of her school teachers & go back to work, but at noon there is a parent orientation & family prayer time. So, I got there a little early & peeked through the bushes at the school assembly in the front yard!

.

From my vantage point, I could see Amie squirming around something fierce. What I didn't appreciate until I was looking at the pictures on the computer.....she wasn't the only one!! Two little girls front and center were having a hard time sitting still too!

Heading inside with the K-4 class. We put Amie in the 4 year old class because she really is not ready for the curriculum the 5 year old kindergarten class was working on. Being in a class with 4 year olds (she's 5 1/2) makes her look like a very tall girl!! :)

One of the hardest things for the wee ones to do was to keep working on their coloring when Mom's and Dad's came into the classroom. But I must say - Amie did pretty darn good! I had to reminder her to turn around and stay seated a few times, but some of the other little ones just couldn't handle it and went running to Mom or Dad!!

So - our new chapter begins.........stay tuned for how this proceeds!

In the Garden by Elvis Presley - fits the day.

Mercy Me - I can only Imagine - Beautiful.

Click the above links for a moment of peace, as we reflect on the day and the life of a veteran, husband, father, grandfather & so much more.

John Keithley 1939 - 2010

RIP John Keithley

John Keithley left this earth today in the very early hours of the morning. He spent his last day in this life doing exactly what he loved doing! He played golf & spent time with his beloved family!

.

John is my Uncle - I didn't get to know him as a kid - but he came back into everyone's life 12 years ago. Shortly after rekindling a relationship with her first love & the father of her adult children - my Aunt said, "I don't know how much time he has left, but I want to spend the rest of that time with him." She did just that. And even though neither of them knew that today was going to be the day he left this world - they loved each other and devoted themselves to each other.

.

John - you made a very special lady very happy during the last 12 years. You were the light of her life. You also were a dearly loved father & grandfather!

.

I am sad that you are gone. I am glad that you didn't suffer & I am very glad that things worked out the way they did 12 years ago!

.

Rest in Peace John - you are deeply loved & will be truly missed!

.

P.S. - Picture "borrowed" from facebook - Thanks Dave!

16p11.2 Ribbon

Facebook has been incredible - not only do I have the ability to talk with family that I have spent so little time with in the past.

.

I've also found friends from decades ago!!

.

And an incredible thing - I can meet people that are traveling down similar roads that I would never have met without facebook.

.

Recently I found a group of other families with children that have the 16p11.2 microdeletion. If you don't remember the specific information about it - there is a post in early 2008 about it. But the cliff note version is that these kids have apiece of their 16th chromosome missing. The the "P11.2" is the exact location of the missing information.

.

Because this is such a new syndrome - it doesn't even have a name yet & the geneticists are still trying to find what all it means.

.

The biggest common thread with the kids is some level of autistic spectrum behaviors, which is how it was initially discovered - they were trying to find a cause for autism.

.

I have met families from Australia, Austria, Scotland, England, Kentucky, Connecticut, Indiana, Massachusetts, and several others that I am still trying to get to know!!

.

One of the Mom's has a little girl named Hannah - and her and Hannah's older sister have made the following ribbon for the 16p11.2 - I hope you enjoy it and the explanation below as much as I have!! I am extremely impressed with the work they put in this!! Now she is working on getting it printed for magnets and shirts!! I'm ALL IN with getting some of these ribbons!!

.

♥ the puzzle pieces represents the link that it has to autism (it is the closest genetic link to date) and also represents the struggle to put the pieces together
♥ the outer edge is purple for the children with this deletion that also have epilepsy (the epilepsy awareness ribbon is purple)
♥ the salmon colored puzzle piece is the 16th piece on the ribbon and also the 16th color used. and Hannah's favorite color

You be the judge!

Amie told Chris he looks like Ursala from the Little Mermaid........

I think she's got something there!!