Gilbert Christmas E-Letter 2014

Dearest Friends and Family,

Merry Christmas! If this is your first time visiting our family blog, welcome! It's been a great way for me to chronicle our family adventures, and at the same time, keep friends and relatives up to date on our lives.

2014 was a good year for the Gilberts. With no big changes this year -- no new babies, no new jobs, no new schools, no new house (each year in our 9 years of marriage, at least one, if not more, of these big events has occurred) -- we were able to hit a stride and get into a routine as a family. We still have our fair share of chaotic days, exhausted parents, kids who melt down, and overall craziness, but we are blessed to be living this life together.

So, from oldest to youngest, here is what the Gilbert clan is up to:

Myles is nearly 6.5 years old and in his second year of kindergarten. As one of the youngest kindergarteners in his part time class last year, we had planned to have him repeat kindergarten in the full day program this year, and I am so pleased we did. He is making steady academic progress, is very comfortable and independent with the school routine, and has a lot of nice friends at school. One of my favorite things going on with Myles right now is that he is starting to talk! Speech is still hands down his biggest struggle, but he is saying more and more words that we can understand and even combining a few words at a time. He is a smart boy, but his language does not do his intelligence justice. We have a long way to go, but I am thankful for the progress he has made. Myles is a typical 6-year-old boy in many ways; he continues to love Spider-Man, watching movies, climbing up and then jumping off any and all surfaces, and is happiest when our whole family is together. He is a sensitive and compassionate little boy and is the best of friends with his siblings.

Sydney is nearly 4.5 years old and way too grown up for her own good! She attends a pre-k program two days per week and is learning so much in school. At home she is our chattiest one, to the point where sometimes we have to ask her to stop talking for a bit just to have some quiet, but in public she is very timid. We've seen nice progress in this area over the last several months and she is becoming more comfortable in groups and new environments. Sydney is a fantastic helper around home and acts as our 2nd mama to her brothers (which is sometimes necessary to keep those crazy boys safe!). She has been in gymnastics weekly this fall and winter and really enjoys her class. She also likes art projects, helping in the kitchen, reading (and is starting to read some on her own), dressing up, and using her big and active imagination to keep occupied. Sydney is our sweet, dependable one who helps to keep things steady and calm (unless she's being dramatic, then things are the opposite of calm).

Ryker recently turned 2 and is the perfect youngest child for our family. He has thankfully always been laid back and not fussed by too much. He is very verbal and actually listens pretty well for his age. I thought for a bit that with his personality, and all of our, you know, fantastic and seasoned parenting skills, we might actually bypass the "terrible twos," but Ryker is asserting his two-ness on a daily basis and giving us increasing amounts of toddler attitude. Oh, joy. Ryker attends "Jr. Preschool" two days per week and has also learned a lot from his school program. He loves to be active and wild, likes books, dinosaurs, cars, and trucks. Ryker is also a big sports fan and is often heard asking, "Broncos today?" or saying, "I want to watch football!" It's actually influenced Myles to be more interested in watching and playing sports too! I probably kiss Ryker 50 times on a daily basis; he is still my baby even though he's clearly turning into an independent toddler. It's bittersweet for this mama.

As for Gilby and I, when we're not keeping busy with our little ones, folding laundry, washing dishes, and all of the other fun stuff that keeps a family going, we occasionally still have enough energy to do house projects, connect with friends, and once in awhile (gasp) even get out on our own. Gilby is coming up on three years as Program Coordinator with Rocky Mountain Down Syndrome Association, and I am in my sixth year as a (part-time) social worker for Children's Hospital Colorado. Both are amazing organizations that work hard to serve our community. We joined a new church closer to our new home last spring and have really enjoyed making new friends and getting involved there. The little kids and I go to a Mom's Life Group each week and Gilby is preparing to serve as a youth group leader starting in the new year. We feel incredibly grateful for the family we have been given and the amazing kids we have the privilege of raising.

Merry Christmas from our family to yours.

Love,
Jocelyn (and the whole Gilbert crew)

Bones

We've always believed that Myles is really smart, and he is, but one of the struggles of having a child with Down syndrome, especially with limited verbal skills, is that it is hard to know what exactly he knows. I never want anyone to underestimate him, including myself.

I have a few distinct memories of things that Myles has done that have surprised me in the moment only because I didn't yet realize he understood that concept. Like the first time he followed a one step direction when he was really little (going to get a ball when I asked). It wasn't that I had been trying and he wasn't getting it, it was that I had never thought to ask him to do so, but yet the first time I did he fully understood.

Last week Myles surprised me in a similar way. He and I were talking with my dad over speaker phone. As soon as Myles knew my dad was on the phone, he said "arm" and was pointing to his arm. I knew this was his way of asking Grandpa how his arm was feeling. (My dad tripped and fell down his basement stairs two months ago and had a bad shoulder injury that he has since had surgery on.) I wasn't surprised that Myles was asking about Grandpa's arm because he is a very sensitive kid and remembers when people are sick or hurt. My dad talked a bit about his arm and then Myles started asking to see ("dee, dee"). Because we often Skype/Facetime with family, Myles was asking to see my dad and his arm. I told Myles we weren't going to Facetime, and my dad then said that there wasn't anything to see on his arm because the owie part was inside.

The next part is what surprised me.

Myles then said, "bones." It didn't come out fully clear, so I asked him to say it again, and again he said, "bones." I still wasn't 100% sure, so I asked, "Did you say 'bones?'" To which he said, "Yes, bones."

What? We've never talked with Myles about bones being under the skin. It's possible that this was something they've covered in school, but even then, it's hard to know what Myles is absorbing and what is just going over his head. I've never actually even heard Myles say the word, "bones."

This may seem silly to someone who isn't familiar with Myles or kids with Down syndrome or other cognitive delays, but for me it was a really big deal. I wish I could just crawl inside Myles' brain for even a day to see what is going on. I'm sure he knows so much more than we know he knows, but it's so difficult to figure out how to pull it out of him. We'll keep trying and challenging him and trying some more, because this little boy of ours is smart.

Weekend Fun!

Whew! What a busy time of year, and fun, and exhausting...so much so that I am just now taking the time to write about the weekend fun we had two weekends ago already!

It started Friday morning when I had the opportunity to take the two little kids to Disney on Ice. We were offered last minute free tickets and couldn't say no. The kids loved it! And as much as I loved the show myself, it was even sweeter to watch my kids mesmerized by the skaters. The 2 hour program even kept Ryker, at only two years old, focused the entire time. He didn't talk other than to turn to me several times and ask, "Where Goofy go?" (I think Goofy was his favorite!) As for Sydney, she said her favorite was "all of the girls, but not the boys."

Friday afternoon our whole family packed up the car and drove 5 hours southwest of Denver to Montrose, CO to attend the holiday party for the local Down syndrome community on Saturday morning. Gilby was going as the RMDSA representative, so we decided to take everyone along. Although we didn't get to our hotel until 8:30, we still let the kids swim for an hour before bed. They thought that was the best.

Being that Friday was also Gilby's birthday, we stopped for a super fancy dinner at Burger King in Glenwood Springs. 

The party was really fun Saturday morning; the kids ran around, played with new friends, and even got presents from Santa. Gilby and I had a chance to catch up with some of the nicest families. From the party we got back in the car and drove another 3.5 hours to Avon, CO where we happened to have a place to stay for the next two nights. The weather was gorgeous, so we took a slightly longer drive in order to go over McClure Pass, and I am so thankful we did. The mountain views were breathtaking and it was neat to see a new area of this beautiful state we live in.

We took it easy for the next few days in Avon with no real agenda other than to spend time as a family. We took full advantage of the 4 hot tubs and 2 pools at the place we were staying, and spent a lot of time swimming. We went out to eat, walked around town, watched football, a Christmas movie, and the kids kept themselves occupied playing (mostly nicely) together. We even let Myles miss school Monday, and came home Monday afternoon.

Overall, it was great to spend time with just our little family before the busyness of the holidays, but honestly, there are a lot of things about traveling with little kids that can be tough. First, there's the packing, then the actual traveling, the unpacking, the unfamiliar environment, not much sleep, the inevitable meltdown by somebody, etc, so for a homebody like me, I sometimes wonder if these little trips are worth all the energy and work for Gilby and I. But then I remember why we strive to create experiences and memories for our kids - there's the anticipation, the excitement over the littlest things (a hotel! a hotel bed! a hotel elevator! a hotel breakfast! a hotel pool!), the togetherness, and the bonding - watching our kids entertain each other for hours with only a few toys and big imaginations. These are the things that make it more than worth it.

Thanksgiving Weekend

We had a fun filled Thanksgiving weekend with Joe, Jen, Joely, and Kallista visiting us. Although our family welcomes a good road trip and enjoys going back to Iowa for holidays, it was really nice to stay put and have family here. Plus, Colorado pulled through again with weather in the 60s and sunny each day.

Our company arrived Wednesday afternoon and the kids were able to entertain each other all evening. Thursday we spent some time at the park, the kids napped (all five!) and we had a yummy Thanksgiving meal with my parents joining us.

Gilbert cousins.

Thanksgiving dessert.

Friday morning we headed to an open space park just south of us to hike around and get some clear views of the mountains. Afterward, we stopped at a local park where the kids did a "nature scavenger hunt," and played for a good long while on the playground. We all napped after lunch (adults included!) before heading downtown Denver. Friday night turned into a bit of a debacle - we planned on eating out before watching the parade of lights, but Myles threw up twice at dinner and we found out that the parade was actually the following weekend, not that night. Oops! We still had fun spending time together and looking at the Christmas lights downtown.

We took it easy on Saturday, let the kids play, did a little shopping, and watched the girls so Joe and Jen could get out alone for a bit.

The 2-year-olds.

Making pictures for Grandma and Grandpa.

A Thanksgiving weekend spent with family is one of many things we have to be grateful for this holiday season!

Sibling Bonds

One of my favorite things about parenting is watching my kids build relationships with each other. For awhile, it seemed like Myles and Ryker might have a bit of a contentious relationship. Without Sydney around to mediate and direct their play, they would kind of compete with each other about everything, which usually ended in a fight. But, as of the last couple of months, they have grown into the greatest of buddies. They can entertain each other for long periods of time; laughing, building blocks, running, kicking balls, dancing, caring for each other - it's so heartwarming to watch.

Here they are playing in Ryker's crib, where they stayed laughing for at least 45 minutes.

On our way into church last Sunday I was holding Ryker when he said, "Walk with Myles." I put him down and he ran up to Myles and grabbed his hand.

And Sydney, she is still the best with both of her brothers. Here, she and Myles are circling things in a toy catalog that they want for Christmas. For the record, they circled pretty much everything.

I love these kiddos!

Preschool Pictures

Little Cuties

Halloween Festivities

We stretched Halloween out over the course of a week this year with lots of fun activities. This was the first year the kids were all excited about Halloween, which made it really fun for us too!

Spooky Streets

The Friday before Halloween, my mom and I took the kids to Streets of Southglenn for Trick-or-Treating at the stores. The kids were so well behaved, which always makes it more fun!

 

We ran into two of Myles' classmates from last year!

Face Painting

The Saturday before Halloween, my parents watched the kiddos while Gilby and I were at the annual Down syndrome fashion show fundraiser we go to. It was fun to get photos like this sent to us while we were there...

  
Pumpkin Carving

The Sunday before Halloween we carved our pumpkins (which mostly meant Gilby and I carved pumpkins while Sydney watched, Ryker ran around the backyard, and Myles nearly stabbed himself and me with the carving knives...accidentally, of course).

School Parties

Halloween morning I took Sydney and Ryker to their preschool for a Halloween parade and classroom parties.

The afternoon of Halloween I was able to go to Myles' school to also watch his school parade and help during his class party. 

 Myles and his good school buddy, Jasper. The two Spideys.

Trick-or-Treating!
We had a great time this year Trick-or-Treating with some neighbors. All of our kids had so much fun, but I was especially proud of Myles. Last year, he was too scared to come out with us, and this year it seemed like he was going to choose to stay home again. But, on Halloween day he was so excited to meet our neighbor friends that he didn't seem scared at all. He did great for the first hour, had a series of meltdowns for about 10 minutes after he got tired, but was able to pull it together again for the rest of the time.

Trick-or Treat Street
The day after Halloween we had our last event (whew!), and went to a Halloween party put on by Arapahoe High School students for Rocky Mountain Down Syndrome Association. Each group of high school students chose a theme, decorated a classroom, and made up a game or activity for the kids to do. They had a Santa's workshop room, 50's room, superhero room, zoo room, Monsters Inc. room, under the sea room, etc. I was impressed with all of the work they put into it and how enthusiastic the students were to interact with our kids.

Happy Halloween!

Ryker's BirthDAY!

Ryker's birthday landed on a Thursday, which happens to be one of our busiest days as a family, but we were still able to celebrate our newly turned 2-year-old.

Ryker woke up to balloons in his room, and since our kids absolutely love balloons, he pretty much thought this was the best. 

We had been asking Ryker what he wanted for his birthday dinner, and Sydney coaxed him into choosing pizza, but on his own he said, "french fries!" Homemade baked potato french fries are a staple in our house, so Gilby had the idea to make the french fries as a crust with pizza toppings on top. So yummy!  After dinner, he opened presents (with lots of help from his siblings) and we had cake and ice cream.

The birthday celebration continued on Sunday when we had brunch at Grandma and Grandpa's, more presents, and apple pie!
 

Happy birthday sweet boy!