Girls meet grandpa Kevin

Brighton and Berkeley enjoyed meeting "Grandpa Kevin" this week. Sean's dad came to visit from Phoenix, Arizona, for a few days. Unfortunately, Sean's grandma "Meme" (Kevin's mom) had to go to the hospital with pneumonia only minutes after he arrived. She is doing much better, but still in the hospital. Meanwhile, the girls are enjoying a little extra time with him.

Just HAD to put up these pictures. Hat: courtesy of Sandra Popham, Shirt: Courtesy of Tanya Henry

Half Birthday Party

December 19th, 2009, marked the halfway point between age 3 and age 4 for little miss Brighton. She is now officially three and a half. We had a special tea party to celebrate. We wore our finest hats (Brighton - Strawberry Shortcake, Mom - gray elephant)and had our finest drinks (cranberry juice with cream, and even some eggnog!). Brighton has been very sweet lately, possibly exiting the sassy stage that kicked in at the beginning of age 3. I know all you parents of teenagers are laughing at the thought of a child "exiting" the sassy stage...but a mom can dream, right?

Berkeley's First Pigtails!

Berkeley is growing up! This is a picture of her with her first pigtails! The back of her head still barely has hair, but the top has enough to squeeze it into pigtails.
This week I saw some definite use of sign language to tell me she wanted to eat, and that she wanted more. We are so proud of our sweet little girl.
Many people have asked about Berkeley's health. We are happy to say that she has been doing wonderfully! The cardiologist gave her a great report this month - he doesn't foresee any future problems or need for any more surgeries. Praise God for all the wonderful care she has received, and for keeping her healthy!
Thank you to everyone who keeps up with the blog. It means a lot to us to know that so many people care about our little gals.

Say it into the air!

Disturbed that she had forgotten her offering for church, Brighton was making plans for saving up her money to take to church next week. She was very adament about "giving her money to God."
I told her, "That's great! The bible says that God loves a cheerful giver!"
She said, "I love God!" I told her that He loves her, too. Then Brighton asked, "Can God hear the stuff we're saying?"
I said yes.
With that information, she quickly said, "Then I'll just say it into the air...I love you, God!"

Buddy Walk

Our first try at the Buddy Walk was a success! We showed up...we walked...so, I guess we accomplished our goal. :)
It was nice to see so many other kids with Down Syndrome - like a little sneak peak into the future for Berks. On top of all the family fun, the adult Smiths got to get a little exercise. Of course, following the walk with mexican food at Chuy's kind of defeats that purpose...but boy, was it good!

See why we love these girls???

Brighton proclaims her love for the Smith family!

Berkeley's laugh is contagious! Watch out, you might catch it, too!