chicago | Lessons from my daughter

I love reading about tiny houses and minimalist living… Sometimes I wish we could do it but than we turn around and buy something else we probably (most certainly) could do without.

A couple of weeks ago, my little brother was visiting with his family. We looked into kayaking which reminded me that we have a waterproof digital camera. I located the camera fairly easily and to our surprise, we found pictures…

This prompted us to locate other cameras and find more treasures and many selfies of Emily and even more pictures of Bratz dolls, American girl dolls and Chipmunks.

Some pictures go as far back as 2008…

Leave it to us, the consumers of too many things and always the newest gadget, we almost lost some precious pictures.

Here are some of my favorites:

Meeting my godson. I loved him instantly and he is now 5!

Our godson’s christening! My girl looking super lovely for the occasion!

Tiny Maple… not so tiny anymore. She’s a big 15lbs and the vet says she should lost 5 of those pounds…

Christmas morning

Bermuda! We stayed at both the Fairmont Hamilton and Fairmont Southampton Princess.

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First time putting her toes in the sand. The video is quite funny…!

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We even got Emily to play in the water! The custom guy didn’t believe we would be in the water in November. We are Canadians, this was summer weather for us and the water was fabulous.

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A trip to Dallas. The girls were so little. We miss our traveling buddies! Bestie, we need to do this again! Well… maybe not Dallas but I am sure we can find somewhere to go with our girls!

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Those crazy “Canadians” again, in the outdoor pool at the Fairmont Dallas in winter… Let’s be honest, winter in Dallas is slightly colder than our summer so this was actually lovely!

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Discovering Krispy Kreme donuts. To this day, this is still the only time I have had those donuts and they were delicious!

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Attending a NHL game. Dallas-Chicago

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My nephews are growing up. That’s our godson standing on the trampoline!

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And holding a drill 🙂

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Road trip to Chicoutimi for one of my dear friend’s wedding. Small stop at Fairmont Le Manoir Richelieu on the way there 🙂

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All dolled-up for the wedding

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There was hundreds of pictures, some I had been wondering where they were, others, I had forgotten…

We are such consumers of the new gadget on the market that we almost lost those priceless pictures.

Sometimes I wonder, if we could just eliminate some of our stuff… not enough to move in a tiny house but enough to know what we have…

In our daily life, at home, there is not another person with cri du chat syndrome.

I am so happy for Facebook and the community I have found on-line of families who all have a loved one with cri du chat syndrome.

So today, we talk with Bonita.

Let’s meet Rachel!

1. Can you tell me about your family?

Rachel has an older brother almost 42, a sister who is almost 38 and another sister, Haleigh, almost 23 years old. Rachel lives at home with her dad and I, Haleigh, and our dog, Tally Ho.

2. Tell me about your loved one with cri du chat syndrome.

Our daughter, Rachel was born 10 weeks premature weighing 2 pounds 11ounces. She is a healthy young lady turning 22 in August and is about to graduate from a Transition program that she has enjoyed very much.

3. Tell me about doctor appointment, therapies or school.

She was diagnosed with Cri-du-Chat Syndrome about 2 months after she was born and still in the hospital. She started therapy and early intervention programs soon after she came home. Of course she was delayed and used a walker, wore braces on both feet for several years, but she is doing fine now.

4. What else would you like the world to know?

Rachel is doing well in her reading program in her class and is very outgoing. She loves music, singing, she has a large vocabulary, loves animals and sports.

The Chicago Blackhawks, Bulls and Cubs are her favorite teams.

She was crowned Homecoming Queen at her Transition program dance and also participates in Special Olympics Bowling.

She also loves going to church each week and everyone there treats her so sweetly.

When the doctors first told us her diagnosis they gave us a very bleak sounding future and said we should put her in an institution. It’s amazing how far she has come and how many lives she has touched.

There are times she makes us crazy of course, but all in all, she has far surpassed our expectations, never dampening our hopes.

5. What’s next?

Soon Rachel will become our traveling companion as she exits her program and my husband gets ready to retire from his job. We will all continue our adventures together as long as we are able! We’re blessed to have our older children and their families close by so Rachel is able to spend a lot of time with her nieces and nephews, her grandmother and aunts, uncles and cousins.

She has a great circle of loved ones around her which is a comfort to us. Rachel continues to grow in her knowledge and ability and we believe that as long as we expose her to new experiences she will continue to excel.