Buddy Walk!!!

BUDDY WALK 2008

Our first try turned out pretty well, methinks...

Before

After

Playing all cute for Sue Paterno

Lili and her medal

Sue (JoePa's wife) kicks off the walk

Lili and mommy cheer for the band

Cheers from the crowd and the Little Lion

Group shot of everyone who was nearby that moment...

During:

Lili rollin' with Grammy and Pappy

Daddy sportin' some extra water for the thirsty ones out there

The forecast was a bit scary, but the weather held out nicely

The volunteers were awesome and everything went as smoothly as we could have imagined, thanks to all the sponsors, walkers, donors, volunteers, guests, bands, etc. etc. and Mike J, who headed up the Buddy Walk committee. Looking forward to next year!

me me meme

I think this is my first time being tagged with a meme - tekeal at Livia the Great got me, I'm it - ooh blogging fun!

What I was doing 10 years ago:

Just beginning my land surveying career in Seattle, making 8 bucks an hour to walk around the woods and people's backyards looking for property corners and such.

5 things on my "to-do" list today: (actually yesterday, I had to go to bed before I finished)

1. Take out the BULK trash - we love bulk trash day here. Buh-bye, nineteen-seventy-something stove!
2. Meet with PA State Senator Jake Corman and let him know the concerns of the Centre County Down Syndrome Society.
3. Meet with the Mid-State Chapter of the Pennsylvania Society of Land Surveyors, and take notes - I somehow got myself into being the new secretary. Time to bone up on Robert's Rules of Order...
4. Stop by work and check on a few things - wait, I took the week off, what the heck am I thinking?!?
5. Enjoy Lili being pretty much back to her normal self two days after having her tonsils & adenoids out - woo hoo!

Bad habits:

Staying up way too late lurking on blogs - procrastinating - not doing something because I don't think it will come out perfectly - procrastinating - did i mention putting stuff off? - being defensive - per. fec. tion. ism. wait a sec, tekeal, did you write my bad habits instead of yours?

5 places I've lived:

Ambler, PA - grew up
Lewisburg, PA - went to college for a while
Seattle, WA - found myself, fell in love
Philadelphia, PA - got my responsibility on
Pine Grove Mills, PA - here I am!

5 jobs that I've had:

That guy that you buy popcorn from at the movie theater - "Theater Attendant"
That guy that stuffs your butt into the ski lift chair - "Lift Operator"
That guy standing out in the middle of the street with the funny looking pole - "Survey Technician"
That guy standing by the side of the road looking through a funny looking 'camera' (no, it's not a camera, and no, I can't take your picture) - "Associate Surveyor"
That guy pestering anyone he can to make sure his daughter has every opportunity to succeed in life - "Dad"

4 people I want to know more about:

Tara Marie at Emma Sage
Emily at Hamula Family
Emily Elizabeth at Lovely and Amazing
Amy at Life According to Emma & Joe

T&A - no, not that kind!

Well, Lili goes in for her 'minor' surgery on Monday. She'll have her tonsils and adenoids removed and her ears cleaned out for good measure. Heck, he's an ear, nose and throat doctor; why not put in a nose ring while he's at it?
So here's a parting shot of a tonsil or two, along with a good shot of the cheesiest of cheesy smiles.

She's been incredibly healthy for the last year or so (knock on wood) so I'm kinda sad to see them go, on that front. That sadness is fully tempered by the thought of her trying to catch her breath at night. We have heard her stop breathing in her sleep for a few seconds, then catch herself. No fun. So hopefully, bye bye sleep apnea along with the lumps of tissue. Hello, popsicles and sorbet!
Keep Lili in your thoughts and prayers if you would...

Happy Mother's Day!!!

Our group has spoken with almost all of our local legislators, but it's even better to have a true advocate on the inside...


Happy Mother's Day to Lili's mom, Lili's Grandma, Lili's Grammie, Lili's Great-Grandma, Lili's Aunts and Great-Aunts, Mrs. McMorris Rodgers, and all you moms out there!

Football and cheesecake

Our little football star...

...practicing hiking the ball

and our little climber...

...letting her toy piece of cheesecake have all the fun.

Crackin' up

Had to grab the camera to capture this laugh fest...

Flame the Band

Flame is a rock band from upstate New York whose members have developmental/physical disabilities, including autism, Down syndrome, and blindness. They rock.
They'll be performing in Lock Haven, PA, April 30 and May 1.

Oldie but goodie

This has been the background image on our computer for a while now - I realized I never posted it! This was taken at the Pittsburgh Zoo in September 2007. I love the determination in her eyes.

Buddy Walk 2008

Well, the Buddy Walk is coming together - May 31, 2008, 11 am registration, 12 pm walk, fun til 4, at Orchard Park in State College, PA, rain or shine. there's a website up ready to accept registrations, donations, etc...Team Lilienna!!! should be online soon. We've got a nice array of local companies helping out, including Pennoni (shameless plug). This is our first try at a Buddy Walk, since the Centre County Down Syndrome Society is less than a year old. Hope to see lots of people there!

Easter was last week?

Yeah, I know, it just takes a while to download the camera sometimes...

Decorating...

Hunting...

and cleaning up!

Dancing for the Trees

Lili woke up one morning in Monterey and wanted to show the trees (and the cute little reflection in the window) some of her dance moves and signs...enjoy!

More California fun

More fun at the beach! Not quite as warm up in Monterey, but still plenty of sand, glorious sand...

Lili being silly with her great-grandmother Conti. I said, 'smile!' and this is the look I get...

More opportunities for chuckin' rocks! Oh yeah!

And finally, the brilliant San Francisco airport and its Kid's Zone - complete with working water-vapor tornado and...tunnels!!!