Archives for August 2015

And Then There Was One

August 28, 2015 By Kelle

I have vivid childhood memories of being home alone with my mom while my brother and sister went to school. The thing I remember most? Arranging Memory game cards across the blue shag carpet of our family room and playing game after game, my mom fully attentive and ever-patient. I won nine times out of ten because, I now realize, short term memory in your thirties turns crap. I should also note that this was the original Memory game with easily discernible matches–simple images like apples and ice cream cones and goldfish, a far cry from today’s character-themed Memory games which are nothing more than a maddening tease. I recently played the Strawberry Shortcake version with Lainey and got all excited every time I made a match, only to be informed by Lainey that they weren’t really matches because Strawberry’s apron was a different color on one card or her left eye was winking. I got so mixed up and defeated flipping through one hundred different cards of what looked like the exact same picture of Strawberry Shortcake, looking for a match, that I finally quit and banned the game from our home. But original Memory is categorized in the archives of my childhood as nothing short of perfection. It has little to do with fun and everything to do with spending time with my mom.

I am the baby of the family, so I know all the ins and outs of this job. There are perks–one-on-one time with mom while the big kids are off doing big kid things and looser rule enforcement because everyone is too damn tired to follow through–as well as downfalls–shortest baby book, less enthusiastic cheers for first steps, hand-me-down everything. Dash no doubt fits the bill for everything they say about birth order, joining his mother for–among other things–the family risk-taking role. Let’s paint that wall a crazy color, what’s the worst that can happen–repaint? Let’s climb that bookshelf to the very top, what’s the worst that can happen–a cool ambulance ride?

He keeps us on our toes, but with that comes humor and entertainment and an enviable mix of tough/tender, the magic sword he’ll wield and win with in a harsh world.

We’re in a nice window right now–new preschool adventures two mornings a week for him…

(First day)

photo print 6_zps8rppns2l.jpg

…and the others, quiet mornings at home, just the two of us.

We have a few years of this now–time that will quickly slip by, I remind myself.

We’ll fill it up as good as we can. Cars and blueberry muffins today, Memory tomorrow…the original, of course.

A few photos of our mornings:

Happy Weekending, Friends!

Changing the Face of Beauty

August 25, 2015 By Kelle

A friend told me to watch this short Eunice Shriver documentary right after it aired during Special Olympics, and I finally got around to it today thanks to arriving in school car line 30 minutes early. I’d like to recommend this video for the following people:

1. People who ever dreamed of making a difference.
2. People who love someone with special needs.
3. People who need a kick in the pants to get something done.
4. People who need to be reminded how important it feels to belong.
5. People.

That’s all of you, so come on, click-click.

One of the great follow-up blessings to having a child with Down syndrome is meeting amazing people within this community. I’ll be honest, I didn’t want to meet them at first. Nope, we’re good. We have all the friends we need, thank you. I don’t do clubs, move along.

But then I realized these people don’t do clubs either. I was the one who pigeon-holed them there. Their amazingness is not confined to the special needs community. No, they’re just world changers who happen to have a kid with special needs. What they want is the same thing I want–the same thing we all want, so let’s move this train together, shall we?

Friday, I told you about what Ruby’s Rainbow has been doing (did you see it?)–a mission that started with the idea that we could ask people for money to support a dream that was unheard of 20 years ago–people with Down syndrome, going to college. It happened, and it’s happening.

And then I spent the entire weekend with my friend Katie, a woman whose passion and drive is so palpable, it possesses its own magnetic field. We talked a lot this weekend about the future of our kids, about the world we want them to live in.

Katie started Changing the Face of Beauty shortly after her daughter Grace was born in efforts to encourage advertisers to include people with disabilities, one of the largest minority groups in the world yet underrepresented in the media. Here’s the deal. We know what beauty means, and we tell ourselves and our children that magazines and billboards and clothing advertisements should not be used as standards in measuring our worth. But it’s hard to convince a teenager of that. And in a media-saturated world, we need more imagery that shouts “We See You! You Belong!” to the 13% of school children who have a disability.

So you know what Katie does? She asks for what she wants. On phone calls, in e-mails, in tweets and texts. Daily reaching out to corporations, marketing firms, P.R. teams, brand reps, anyone who will listen. Include our kids. Represent them all.

(Katie introducing the Changing the Face of Beauty mission at the Gap Kids Ed by Ellen launch on Lincoln Rd. in Miami)

And they’re listening!

I couldn’t help but think of Katie, watching the Eunice Shriver film, hearing that President Kennedy assigned an entire team to deal with Eunice’s big ideas. “When Eunice called, (President Kennedy) would say ‘Give her what she wants because otherwise, we’ll never hear the end of it.'”

I learned so much this weekend about asking for what you want, about launching ideas into the world, about fearlessly going after a dream. I’m so often far too afraid of the word “no.” I tell my kids no all the time, and they don’t seem to care. Time to take a lesson!

Loretta Claiborne said of Eunice: “Here’s this woman–anger and fire. But she was fearless.”

And all the people said…Amen.

A little more from the launch party for GapKids’ new line with Ellen, a collaboration event with Changing the Face of Beauty.

You should have seen these kids’ faces–all of them. So proud. One group, all the same. Someday, this will be no big deal. But to several moms there, this was so much more. A “We see you!” hug and a growing promise of a more inclusive tomorrow. After one little girl walked beside new friends, smiling and waving through the cheering crowd, I hugged her mom. Through tears, she whispered, “This was one of the best moments of my entire life.”

We are thrilled with the initiative Gap took and the Lincold Rd. Gap Kids staff who sent an important message that was seen by so many families. It benefits everyone! We love Gap and are looking forward to their continued support in representing the many faces of beauty. (Pssst, Gap…big print ads, please! Storefront signs! Oh, how beautiful that would be!)

A short video of the event (check out Miss Kayla at the end who worked the crowd!):

We have big dreams for this one.

The same dream for all of them…to contribute to this world in ways that make it better.

“Let me win. But if I cannot win, let me brave in the attempt.” ~Eunice Shriver

Now if you forgot to watch that short film at the top, scroll back up. You’ll be glad you did.

Sending Our Kids Off to College

August 20, 2015 By Kelle

I’ve talked to several parents, some in our own family, who are sending their kids off to college next week. In fact as I type this, I have a cousin crying in Michigan, saying her last goodbyes to her baby before Empty Nest officially begins. Of course it means opportunity, celebration and the beginning of a whole new world of independence–one we plan for and work toward from the moment we buckle babies in car seats on the ride home from the hospital. But the Kleenex! We still need the Kleenex!

There are some students packing their suitcases and plotting their dorm layout right now that I want you know about today. I want you to know about them because you helped get them here.

In March, we asked you to help us raise money for 21 scholarships for Ruby’s Rainbow, and a great big wave of love and support followed. Ruby’s Rainbow sent out 32 scholarships this year and is continuing to grow and expand their vision as more people see what can happen when you believe in a dream and work hard.

I told you I’d keep you updated, so here we are.

We’re sending these kids off to college–it takes a village, after all. Many of these students’ parents were told they’d never be able to read. But these parents believed in their kids, believed in opportunity. And these kids worked hard, showed up and held on to the truth that their dreams were just as valid as those of their friends.

They are.
…and we’re proving it.

I picked Nella up from preschool today, her first project this year–a collage of her and her daddy–tucked in her bag. I know she needed a little extra help making it and it took her longer to finish, but she did it with help from someone who believes in her.

And then I came home and finished sifting through the recipient videos Liz sent me, and I thought..this is it.

Thank you for believing. Look what you did!

If you’re not cleaning out your wallet to pay tuition or decorate a dorm or set up a meal plan for your own child this year, you can take this opportunity to support Ruby’s Rainbow–maybe the cost of a mini fridge ($40) or a comforter set ($50) or a stack of new notebooks ($15).

Let’s make more goodbye hugs, put more U-Hauls on the road, pack more suitcases, fill more lecture halls, fulfill more dreams.

I’ve watched this 12 times…cry every time.

Thank you, thank you.

Now hit the road, kids! The world awaits you. It needs you.