tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37746239908573209102024-02-07T09:51:52.775-08:00MyBopsBlogEddie Lyonshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07061379418203565117noreply@blogger.comBlogger65125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3774623990857320910.post-34607817536557596992023-03-22T19:04:00.003-07:002023-03-22T19:04:46.019-07:00<p> <span style="background-color: white; color: #050505; font-family: system-ui, -apple-system, "system-ui", ".SFNSText-Regular", sans-serif; font-size: 15px; white-space: pre-wrap;">WORLD DOWN SYNDROME DAY 2023</span></p><div dir="auto" style="background-color: white; color: #050505; font-family: system-ui, -apple-system, "system-ui", ".SFNSText-Regular", sans-serif; font-size: 15px; white-space: pre-wrap;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQCc62oDORpON_F0OQhdB2pR1a0Wc492Q-UlBSuAYuGGheUDAKp8GpsEjSmlWa9KiLgU5qmDRFH03gd3Tx3xZ0Hp5jnyd6VYIyJpbKmjzNEMO1PbN2W7sI_26flmq1EG6RoHWj0jTyFAw1cxpUa9Wm8Mlhhm00RDz1b3qi6M8gpOX9F5xWnXeb8J8a7A/s2048/99142DE2-16CB-4EB8-8CF9-13E87D3894B7.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1365" data-original-width="2048" height="332" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQCc62oDORpON_F0OQhdB2pR1a0Wc492Q-UlBSuAYuGGheUDAKp8GpsEjSmlWa9KiLgU5qmDRFH03gd3Tx3xZ0Hp5jnyd6VYIyJpbKmjzNEMO1PbN2W7sI_26flmq1EG6RoHWj0jTyFAw1cxpUa9Wm8Mlhhm00RDz1b3qi6M8gpOX9F5xWnXeb8J8a7A/w499-h332/99142DE2-16CB-4EB8-8CF9-13E87D3894B7.jpeg" width="499" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div>Tomorrow is WORLD DOWN SYNDROME DAY and we celebrate it … because we have been blessed with our son, James! He has the best personality, is witty, fun and just loves life and his family! God has taught us so much through him . He brings more joy to our family than we could ever imagine!</div><div dir="auto" style="background-color: white; color: #050505; font-family: system-ui, -apple-system, "system-ui", ".SFNSText-Regular", sans-serif; font-size: 15px; white-space: pre-wrap;">We did not know 26 years ago, what life would be like with James. I remember asking the Lord “Can you help him to let me know what he needs and can you help me to <span style="font-family: inherit;"><a style="color: #385898; cursor: pointer; font-family: inherit;" tabindex="-1"></a></span>make him happy?” Well, God started answering that prayer in the next few months as we got to know our little guy… His sweet smiles and expressions of joy became so precious to us. </div><div dir="auto" style="background-color: white; color: #050505; font-family: system-ui, -apple-system, "system-ui", ".SFNSText-Regular", sans-serif; font-size: 15px; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></div><div dir="auto" style="background-color: white; color: #050505; font-family: system-ui, -apple-system, "system-ui", ".SFNSText-Regular", sans-serif; font-size: 15px; white-space: pre-wrap;">Even before he had words, he was able to communicate to us what he needed. We learned to celebrate every milestone he gained, because he had to work so hard for them. </div><div dir="auto" style="background-color: white; color: #050505; font-family: system-ui, -apple-system, "system-ui", ".SFNSText-Regular", sans-serif; font-size: 15px; white-space: pre-wrap;">I thought about my prayer this morning… remembering that moment when I was holding him…not sure of what the future would be like for him…when I asked God to help me to make him happy. I believe He answered my prayer above and beyond…but I realize now that even though I do all I can to make him happy (and responsible, respectful and kind as well) …it is God who makes him so happy and full of joy. It is a reflection of who God is. God is happy…full of joy… and enjoys the moments. He celebrates every little thing and He actually sings over us with joy! So, I look back over the years… to those moments early on with our little guy… How afraid we were for his future…how we had so many questions and I am in awe of what God has done.</div><div dir="auto" style="background-color: white; color: #050505; font-family: system-ui, -apple-system, "system-ui", ".SFNSText-Regular", sans-serif; font-size: 15px; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></div><div dir="auto" style="background-color: white; color: #050505; font-family: system-ui, -apple-system, "system-ui", ".SFNSText-Regular", sans-serif; font-size: 15px; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br />James enjoys life! He brings more joy to our home than we could ever have imagined. He loves his family, enjoys his friends, experiences, church, volunteering, art classes, musical theatre classes, working out, playing basketball, WWE, helping at home, dancing and singing, digging in the dirt, and the daily trip to the Dollar Store to get his diet coke and chips more than anyone I know.</div><div dir="auto" style="background-color: white; color: #050505; font-family: system-ui, -apple-system, "system-ui", ".SFNSText-Regular", sans-serif; font-size: 15px; white-space: pre-wrap;">God has been so faithful to us to help us on this journey. We are better because of James. We have learned to slow down and celebrate. We have leaned how to be happy over small things. We have learned how to be better cheerleaders for each other. We have leaned how to be generous with our words of affirmation for each other. James has taught us that. </div><div dir="auto" style="background-color: white; color: #050505; font-family: system-ui, -apple-system, "system-ui", ".SFNSText-Regular", sans-serif; font-size: 15px; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></div><div dir="auto" style="background-color: white; color: #050505; font-family: system-ui, -apple-system, "system-ui", ".SFNSText-Regular", sans-serif; font-size: 15px; white-space: pre-wrap;">*Several years ago, James asked Jesus to come into his heart and several years later he got baptized. It was such a sweet thing to see him respond to the Lord. </div><div dir="auto" style="background-color: white; color: #050505; font-family: system-ui, -apple-system, "system-ui", ".SFNSText-Regular", sans-serif; font-size: 15px; white-space: pre-wrap;">Now, James wants everyone to know the Lord. He volunteers at church and puts all our invite cards together in little bundles and he saves some so he can personally invite people to come to church everywhere he goes. There have been several people that actually go to our church now because he invited them! </div><div dir="auto" style="background-color: white; color: #050505; font-family: system-ui, -apple-system, "system-ui", ".SFNSText-Regular", sans-serif; font-size: 15px; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></div><div dir="auto" style="background-color: white; color: #050505; font-family: system-ui, -apple-system, "system-ui", ".SFNSText-Regular", sans-serif; font-size: 15px; white-space: pre-wrap;">He also loves to pray. Many times, I hear him praying in his room for his family, for his friends and for concerns. I’ve heard him say in his prayer (while listening at the door) “God, It’s me.. James”…He has simple faith and it is so sweet to watch him just talk to God.</div><div dir="auto" style="background-color: white; color: #050505; font-family: system-ui, -apple-system, "system-ui", ".SFNSText-Regular", sans-serif; font-size: 15px; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></div><div dir="auto" style="background-color: white; color: #050505; font-family: system-ui, -apple-system, "system-ui", ".SFNSText-Regular", sans-serif; font-size: 15px; white-space: pre-wrap;">We could never have imagined what this journey with James could have brought us…but it is good and we are grateful. It has been a journey of faith…learning to trust God… that He would give us what we needed to raise our sweet son. It has also given us a more eternal perspective. James will not always have Down Syndrome… He will live many more years in Heaven with a perfect mind and body….but we have seen on this earth God’s display of His glory and this is just the beginning. May God give you a glimpse of joy and purpose on your journey today.</div>Cindy Lyonshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12554484671575663883noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3774623990857320910.post-44627890311493056332019-06-24T09:43:00.000-07:002019-06-24T09:43:17.320-07:00<b>What Will My Child Be Like?</b><br />
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<b>Our son, James is about to have a big birthday! He is turning 23...He calls it his "Michael Jordan" birthday. Every day for many months, he has been looking forward to this. He counts down the months, weeks and days and every day, he asks "You excited my birthday?Almost here! I me exciting! I me happy!" (his own special and endearing sentence structure) Then he goes on to plan every detail that he wants to happen. This is just a glimpse into the life of James. He is excited over small things and big things. He had a burst of joy last night when he found out we were having hot dogs and hamburgers at church...He does a "happy dance" over so many small things that we take for granted. He enjoys life!</b><br />
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<b>I think back to when he was born. We had no idea what he would be like, and I remember asking the Lord "Can you help him to let me know what he needs and can you help me to make him happy?" Well, God started answering that prayer in the next few months as we got to know our little guy... His sweet little smile and expressions of joy became so precious to us. </b><br />
<b>Even before he had words, he was able to communicate to us what he needed.</b><br />
<b>We learned to celebrate every milestone he gained, because he had to work so hard for them. We cheered him on and learned to slow down and enjoy moments with him. </b><br />
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<b>Here we are, 23 years later, and I have to say that James brings more joy to our home than we could have ever imagined. He enjoys life, his family, relationships, experiences, church, volunteering, art classes, musical theatre classes, working out, playing basket ball, WWE, digging in the dirt, the dollar store, chips and a diet coke more than anyone I know. I thought about my prayer this morning...remembering that moment when I was holding him...not sure of what the future would be for him...when I asked God to help me to make him happy. I believe He answered that prayer above and beyond...but I realize now that even though I do all I can to make him happy (and responsible, respectful and kind as well)...<u> it is God who makes him so happy and full of joy.</u> It is a reflection of who God is... God is happy... full of joy...and enjoys the moments. He celebrates every little thing. He actually sings over us with joy! So, I look back over the years... to those moments early on with our little guy. How afraid we were for his future... how we had so many questions.... and how we just wanted him to be happy and I am in awe of what God has done.</b><br />
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<b>God has been so faithful to us to help us in this journey. We are better because of James. We have learned to slow down and celebrate the moments. We have learned how to be happy over small things. We have learned how to be better cheerleaders for each other. We have learned how to be generous with our words of affirmation for each other. James has taught us that. </b><br />
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<b>I never could have imagined what this journey with James could have brought us... but it good and we are grateful. May God give you a glimpse of joy and purpose on your journey today.</b><br />
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<b><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdWFVvy3D265o2XjK0lurUI0aW-5in1RGhMsK7mDAoiDJzGaJX6c_iVXVaYCMrau6ecg2AHA9pULcbZTDLzN9_UrJiuobXVSZkvSGwDWG2UTmi19Seub6PBh5lyo0j-cDmyko8VIhQQGEH/s1600/12439028_1234605779900401_7969860066072665078_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="717" data-original-width="960" height="239" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdWFVvy3D265o2XjK0lurUI0aW-5in1RGhMsK7mDAoiDJzGaJX6c_iVXVaYCMrau6ecg2AHA9pULcbZTDLzN9_UrJiuobXVSZkvSGwDWG2UTmi19Seub6PBh5lyo0j-cDmyko8VIhQQGEH/s320/12439028_1234605779900401_7969860066072665078_n.jpg" width="320" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhoQHnuOLQk9_gxhiMIrLl_6Cs-vUwMyKQRqt-Tb4sOM75wW2SXbdpr4sKQ1urKzX92zMd7_mnWRSpkLZ038D7EEu6vrV2A_9wPxFnakNO4ZThn0ry72k3DAcD-YwSF1sXQdyh_S47NJ4qY/s1600/49344982_10157040600840979_5840632563047071744_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="640" data-original-width="960" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhoQHnuOLQk9_gxhiMIrLl_6Cs-vUwMyKQRqt-Tb4sOM75wW2SXbdpr4sKQ1urKzX92zMd7_mnWRSpkLZ038D7EEu6vrV2A_9wPxFnakNO4ZThn0ry72k3DAcD-YwSF1sXQdyh_S47NJ4qY/s320/49344982_10157040600840979_5840632563047071744_n.jpg" width="320" /><b>.</b></a></b></div>
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<br />Cindy Lyonshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12554484671575663883noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3774623990857320910.post-7276920721559046352019-03-20T08:51:00.001-07:002019-03-20T08:51:13.699-07:00World Down Syndrome Day 2019<span style="background-color: white; color: #1d2129; font-family: system-ui, -apple-system, system-ui, ".SFNSText-Regular", sans-serif; font-size: 14px;">Tomorrow is World Down Syndrome Day! 22 years ago, God gave us our amazing son, James! We have learned so much from our journey with him and he continues to bring such joy to our lives. Several years ago, we started this blog in an effort to encourage other families who had just received a diagnosis. We have not posted lately, but it contains our stories...stories of how God has blessed us through our son. James has made our family better and we are so thankful for him. He is so much fun... he is witty... hard working...loving...and the best dancer! He is now 23 years old, and has graduated from High School. He works out at the gym, goes to classes with an amazing organization called "Art Inspired Academy" here in Springfield, Mo. He volunteers through our church in packing bags of food for "Power Packs" (food we send home on the weekends for kids) and he serves once a month with Ozarks Food Harvest. He has gotten to go the "Night to Shine" Special Needs Prom for the past three years and absolutely loved every minute of it! He enjoys every day and we are so blessed to see him continue to thrive in so many ways! We join in this celebration because we believe that every child is a gift from God and we are so grateful for James! </span><br />
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Cindy Lyonshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12554484671575663883noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3774623990857320910.post-45726795928177531082014-03-16T11:40:00.001-07:002019-11-02T19:47:25.472-07:00King James Video<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , "trebuchet" , "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 21px;">
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , "trebuchet" , "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 21px;">http://vimeo.com/89212193</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , "trebuchet" , "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 21px;"><a href="https://vimeo.com/89212193">https://vimeo.com/89212193</a></span></div>
Cindy Lyonshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12554484671575663883noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3774623990857320910.post-4150716829760056792014-02-22T21:12:00.000-08:002014-02-22T21:12:26.396-08:00<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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King James</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOKoDDuHOvwNwppAg28fWwdqrJKG57Kas7WREPbbGNsv0j6grfNn-qZy2aIBMgG3fN6mIlzRsZ4PzZUGMH5_cQjSzwgxrCpNVvtXsPemtqLqAEcgPCRcTC8DBjwpKB-4e_cl9A2SbvSwaB/s1600/1800410_10152176813805979_1089869193_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOKoDDuHOvwNwppAg28fWwdqrJKG57Kas7WREPbbGNsv0j6grfNn-qZy2aIBMgG3fN6mIlzRsZ4PzZUGMH5_cQjSzwgxrCpNVvtXsPemtqLqAEcgPCRcTC8DBjwpKB-4e_cl9A2SbvSwaB/s1600/1800410_10152176813805979_1089869193_n.jpg" height="400" width="400" /></a></div>
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A few weeks ago, James was crowned LPA King at Hillcrest High School. (Ladies Pay All...a very prestigious honor for a senior boy who is voted for by his peers) Two very sweet girls who tutor James in his special needs class, decided that they would nominate James for LPA King and that they would escort him. He came home telling us about this plan. We checked with his teacher and sure enough...he was nominated. We tried to tell him that he needed to be a good sport even if he did not win. We brought quite the entourage to the assembly on this special day. When they announced that James Lyons won the LPA King, he was thrilled! The gym thundered with applause! Hillcrest High School has been so good to James. The teachers have been so kind and the students have made James feel like a rock star! He has friends everywhere! Every once in a while, some of the coolest things happen to James...and this was one of them! King James is pretty happy!</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9v0vL5D9LsAMcRl_tOOJYG1PdvGnqSvJMmGScnsbVZceQF1NVEfv0jLysY5Y9Qh-MAXH01Qp22IbeqCoFL_z0RED5ZXDaZieK78DkIq5uKjQ462MAZujRtmLuVw_gpmwqS2dJ09n48AN1/s1600/1555402_10151973822396748_1715346723_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="-webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: none; color: black;">P.S. A video of this special event is coming soon!</span></a><br />
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JAMES' FAVORITE SPOT... Summer 2013<br />
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"I wuv summer, Mom... I wuv my cousins...I wuv my birthday...I wuv Dallas...I wuv my "pamily"...I wuv art...Come draw (with) me..." These are words from James this summer. He had a great time...with a whirlwind of cousins from the Philippines, aunts, uncles, baby cousins, a Dallas vacation, a week in Branson, a Happy Happy 17th Birthday, and of course...his favorite spot...his art table. We have a folding table that stays up most of the summer so James can draw, create, and at the same time watch his favorite shows. He is a pretty happy camper...He wakes up asking for his chicken and rice (his favorite) and asking where everyone in the family is. He is love-bug! This summer, I have been amazed at how his vocabulary and his understanding of what is going on has definitely increased. There are certain conversations that we just cannot have in front of him anymore. He has spontaneously started helping to clean up the table after meals, and just seems to have made such gains. He still can't read very well, but I see him growing in so many areas. This blesses this Mom's heart...My best story of the summer was on his birthday. We had several celebrations, but at the family dinner, we had done our big "Surprise" with all the singing, had dinner, and at the close of the meal, he started something I will never forget. He (on his own) went around the table telling us something good that he liked and loved about every one of us. "Mom...you cute and pretty and make chicken...". He affirmed each of us very sincerely and then said "Now...you- tell me!" We have had a special tradition of giving a blessing to our kids when they have a birthday... telling them what we love about them...what we admire about them...how proud we are of them. Everyone says something affirming to the birthday celebrant. James took it a step further. He wanted us to bless him that day... but he started it by blessing us! This was such a special summer to see James so happy and to see him growing in so many ways...Cindy Lyonshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12554484671575663883noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3774623990857320910.post-50082150951306112702013-02-12T20:57:00.000-08:002013-02-13T09:28:43.692-08:00Sharing With Future Special Ed. Teachers<br />
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<b> <span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 18px;">James does not go to school for an education or to follow his IEP...</span></b><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 18px;"><b>He goes to school because he knows his teachers love him, for his friends and for LUNCH! Kids with Down Syndrome don't care about learning how to read as much as they want to please a teacher that they know loves them. Thanks to the wonderful teachers at Hillcrest High School that love James.</b></span><br />
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Eddie and I had the opportunity to share our story with future Special Education teachers at Evangel University and at MSU this week. *The key to a good learning experience is to connect to the child and to their parents. Find out what the child likes, what he loves to do, what his home life is like, what is his favorite food, and what is most important to him? Special children and their families don't have all the experiences and abilities that other typically developing children have...But they have THEIR STORY...they own their story. By the time a family walks through the door of a classroom, they have lived through a lot of adversity... they may have been through surgeries, years of therapy, doctor's appointments, stress, and sickness. They are troopers...they have worked so hard to get to this place. They may also be still dealing with grief. They may have grief over what they thought their child would be like...grief over the death of their dreams for their child. Some are able to go through that valley of grief to a new hope and a new vision for their child. Some are stuck at one of those stages of grief... like depression, anger or denial. When parents walk through the door, they have a lot of fear. </div>
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-They are afraid that their child cannot learn.</div>
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-They are afraid that the teacher won't like their child.</div>
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-They are afraid that their child will be bullied by other kids.</div>
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-They are afraid because they are entering this new world of "Special Education"... the reality that their child is really developmentally delayed.</div>
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Many families have gone through such stress that the marriage didn't survive. The last statistic that I heard was that 85% of the marriages in a family with a special needs child went through divorce. Many mothers have to work full time, and it becomes very stressful trying to get to work and take care of the extra needs of the child.<br />
It is not always easy to deal with our kids when they misbehave. It really helps when we have a teacher that doesn't assume the worst when he doesn't act right. We are in a partnership with the teachers in an effort to teach our special children how to live life and how to behave in an appropriate way. I always ask James' teachers to share with me when he doesn't act right because I want to teach him to be a good boy at home, school and church. I am so appreciative of his teachers who share issues with me with a good perspective. They don't label him as a bad kid... they share the behavior, I deal with it and reinforce our rules for behavior. We hope he learns and gains through it. </div>
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When a teacher understands the family dynamics of the student, and connects to the student and parents... believing in the child, it opens the door to help the child succeed. They really don't come to school to get an education. The teacher that does their job but does not connect to the student and make a relationship with them will spin their wheels. My James is more likely to work hard for the teachers that he knows loves him. </div>
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Teachers and therapists have the opportunity to share hope with these families. Share every small gain...every positive thing that you see in the child with the parents. Sometimes, we can get so discouraged when our child is not learning to read...James is still "an emerging reader" after all these years... You may not be able to give glowing reports about their educational achievements, but you can share about how kind they were that day, how they finished a project, how they followed instructions, or had compassion on a fellow student. Celebrate every gain, every act of kindness or good behavior. Share the funny or cute things they did...anything you appreciate about them. Let the parent know you see the good job they as parents are doing. They need to know they are doing something right. Every time I go to the eye doctor with James, he notices how James is gaining something in his development and tells me that we are doing such a good job. That will keep me going for a long time. Let the parents know how much you like their child...they really need that.</div>
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I am very proud of James. He is confident, compassionate, he is happy, loves his family, church, sports, music and life. I will continue to work hard to help him be everything he can be, but I am at peace...I pray that God will give him everything he needs to fulfill his destiny. I pray that God will give me the wisdom when to push him to do a job and when to take the pressure off, relax and just enjoy my sweet boy.</div>
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*I am so thankful to "Teacher Pow" (his first teacher in the Philippines who absolutely was amazing!), to Mr. LaGarce (his wonderful elementary teacher), Mrs. Weaver and to all his great Hillcrest teachers. They have played a huge role in his life. James told me this week..."Coach McCullough calls me "James-amoney"...I "wuv" that...I "wuv" her."</div>
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Cindy Lyonshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12554484671575663883noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3774623990857320910.post-86714696977643580222013-01-03T10:59:00.001-08:002013-01-03T10:59:52.237-08:00<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Happy New Year! No one has enjoyed the holidays and celebrations like our James! He has been so excited about Christmas, presents, everyone coming over, and for his grandparents being here this time. As we go through the years on our journey with James, I have to say... He enjoys life!<br />
He celebrates each moment with much enthusiasm. From the<br />
gifts that we bought him this year ( the "wrestling dudes", shirts and my personal choice- "Jesus Calling" for kids) to welcoming everyone into our home, showing hospitality, he loved it all! He loved the Christmas trees and decorations, he loved times to sit on the couch with all the Christmas lights and just enjoy the moment. All in all, he loves life. As I look back over this last year, I am grateful for several things. He is becoming easier to reason with.<br />
He is more compassionate. He is showing a desire to be a good man. He prays spontaneously for those who are sick or sad. We believe that he sincerely asked Jesus to come into his life. We were not sure, but we see him wanting to follow God and trust it in God's hands. I am noticing that he just makes his bed without prompting. He wants to help in the kitchen (especially with putting away things in tupperware). He informed me that the precious "Winnie the Pooh" chair that he has had since he was a baby is no longer needed because he is an adult. He is working on not flirting with every cute girl he sees... we want him to be a gentleman. All in all, we see him growing and are happy for that. What does his future hold? We don't know... but we continue to pour into his life everything that we know to do, and trust that he is in God's hands and that is ultimately the best place to be! At 16, James is loving life and can't wait to turn 17!Cindy Lyonshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12554484671575663883noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3774623990857320910.post-35701187848673477542012-11-11T17:32:00.000-08:002012-11-11T17:47:03.341-08:00It's A Family Affair<br />
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">We celebrated National Down Syndrome Month by thanking our family. We are grateful for our precious James and for our wonderful children that have been on this journey with us. Thank you Tiffany for being such a great big sister... you have loved James with us... you have taught James how to play baseball, basketball and have been such a blessing to him and to us all these years. We celebrate James, but we also celebrate his brothers and sisters that have poured into James' life all these years....</span></span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">We are so grateful for Holly who has played such a great part on our journey with James. Holly (James calls her "My Princess") has such a gentle, quiet spirit with him. She calms him down with her gentle nature and they love each other dearly. Holly has taken such good care of him and has had a sense of looking out for him and protecting him. Thank you, Holly for loving and taking care of James all these years...He “wuvs” you! You are amazing!</span></span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Last week, James got to escort one of his friends who was in the Homecoming Court! Robert put together his outfit. We thank Robert who has grown up just loving and being such a great big brother to James. James calls him "Bobert" and looks up to him so much. Rob has included James with in his group of friends and invites him to go with him on so many activities. Thank you, Rob for the way you love James and for all the sweet things you do for him. We are so blessed.</span></span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Lastly, we celebrate Coco's contribution to James life...She was only 4 years old when James was born and was very much a part of his initial health crisis when we had to go back to the States. She came to every therapy session and helped us to do the therapy at home just naturally. James loves to prank her and gets so much satisfaction from joking her! I am so thankful for Coco and her sweet attitude of care and acceptance of James. She has had to share all the attention from us from when she was four and was so sweet about it. I love seeing them just love life together!</span></span></div>
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Cindy Lyonshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12554484671575663883noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3774623990857320910.post-31994272383879766462012-11-11T08:40:00.001-08:002012-11-11T08:55:02.767-08:00Our Life With James...God's Provision in the Early Days<br />
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<span style="font-size: small; letter-spacing: 0.0px;">It has been a while since we shared our stories about James...Eddie had been sharing current stories and I was going back to remember the early days. We do this to remember our journey but also to be an encouragement to others who walk this journey as well...</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small; letter-spacing: 0.0px;">So, back to the early days...We were missionaries in Manila, Philippines when James was born. We received our diagnosis...we went through what everyone else feels when they hear that their child has Down Syndrome. We began processing and dealing with the new reality and our grief over what James could not be. It just killed me to see the Formula or baby powder commercials on TV... it kind of pierced my heart that our little baby was not like them... and he was not healthy or well... he could not suck so he lost weight and went down to 4.8 pounds when he was 6 weeks old. We took him from doctor to doctor to find out what was wrong. They really didn’t know what to do to help him. The director of our Mission Agency was keeping in touch with us as well as our home pastor. They both urged us to come back to the States for help. We carried James back on a pillow because he had lost all strength and was close to death. We almost lost him several times. We begged God to keep him alive... We arrived in Springfield, MO where my mother lived and we took him straight to the hospital. It was amazing what they could do for him. They were so sweet to him and they organized just what he needed. A speech therapist taught him how to eat! They worked with him for days and taught me how to feed our James...He still would have times of not being able to breathe and get choked so easily. I begged God so many times to save our baby’s life. When he started to gain a little weight and to perk up a little... his diagnosis was no longer in the forefront... he was our “Sweet Baby James” and we were so in love with him. I wanted to learn as much as I could to know how to help him be his best.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small; letter-spacing: 0.0px;">We learned about “early intervention” and how it can help all special needs children and their development. We spoke with a developmental specialist and she spent a lot of time with us just educating us and letting us know what we needed to look for when we got back to Manila. We bought books and started on that journey of learning more about this thing we had been afraid of for so long. I never had met anyone with D.S. before we met our baby...so everything was new....We went back to Manila just hoping and praying for what we needed for James. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small; letter-spacing: 0.0px;">When I look back to that time, I am still in awe of the way that God supplied exactly what James needed when it was time. We learned about a new Developmental Specialist who had come back to Manila after her training in London. She was great! She helped us find therapists and would evaluate him every 6 months. Our physical therapist was great, but she could only see him once a month. Our occupational therapist was very good too, but she could only see us every three months, and back then, there was no speech therapist. We asked God to help us with what we needed for James...to our surprise,the people who built the very next house in our subdivision had an adult daughter who was a physical therapist and could see him every Saturday...was this a coincidence? Then when we needed him to see an occupational therapist more often, I got word that there was a new missionary couple coming from Australia... and guess what she was! An occupational therapist! She came to our home every week and James just loved her! Well, we needed a speech therapist (and remember there was none to be found...) and Eddie came home from church one day telling me “Cindy, there is a therapy center going in across from our church... you ought to go check it out” Well, yes... they had a speech therapist! </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small; letter-spacing: 0.0px;">It goes on... When James turned 2 and 1/2, our developmental specialist told us that this was a wonderful window for James to go to school. She told me that there was a little school that would be just perfect for him but it was just so far away. I asked her where is was... and to our surprise, it was in the adjoining subdivision... 3 minutes away! In a city of 17 million people, where there are not a lot of resources for special needs kids, God was providing for our little guy! I will never forget the day I interviewed the teacher “Teacher Pow” (short for Paula). She told me that all her students came to her as non-verbal. She said that she teaches them with everything she had, but she also believed in God’s power and she would lay hands on their heads and pray for God to help them speak...She said all her students were able to speak when they left her. I could barely hold back the tears...of joy...of how God was so supernaturally providing what James needed... Can you imagine...God cared about our little one who almost didn’t make it. He rescued him, brought along doctors, therapists and a whole new set of people in the Philippines to take care of him...I am still in awe over that... This opened up a whole new world for us...a world where many families did not know what to do for their children. We got connected to the Down Syndrome Association in the Philippines and found out that they needed leaders for support groups. So we started a support group for the eastern side of Manila. We loved getting to know these families. We brought in therapists to speak, shared resources and tried to encourage and inspire them. It was so rewarding to see families that seemed so hopeless start to dream for their children again. They all loved their children... they just were stuck in their grief. I love how God helps us with our journey of grief.... I look at it this way. We all have to go through this valley of grief... we visit several stations like shock, anger, being overwhelmed, sadness, disappointment as well as other feelings you feel when you face your new reality. It felt a bit familiar... it reminded me of when I had lost a dear loved one... and yet I got to keep James... my initial dreams for him had died... but his life was certainly worth living... he became such a joy...so precious... I realized as I got to each station in that valley of grief... I would experience it... process it with God ... feel the emotion, but I chose to not camp out at one of them... because I knew that if I authentically went through each one... asking for God’s grace, HE would lead me to a NEW HOPE and a NEW VISION for James.... yes he still had D.S., but he was also a darling little baby that would develop into such a great young man. The grief would be turned into joy. We looked into book of James in the Bible where is says in James 1:3, “Consider it all joy when you ....</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small; letter-spacing: 0.0px;">God was asking me to accept this baby by faith because only He knew what joy James would bring us... we had to believe (and not see) that God had this in His hands... He still could be trusted... He loved this baby and us... He wasn’t punishing us. He was blessing us with this baby... We had no idea... what joy our James would bring...</span></div>
Cindy Lyonshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12554484671575663883noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3774623990857320910.post-61587591161025066412012-02-13T20:25:00.000-08:002012-02-13T20:28:13.245-08:00Our New Reality..<br />
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<span style="font-size: small; letter-spacing: 0px;">Cindy's Post #3 </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: small; letter-spacing: 0px;">Our New Reality.. When Others Don’t Know What To Do or Say</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small; letter-spacing: 0px;">As we made our way through our new reality, we continued to go to doctor’s offices, visit therapists, and find out what we could do to help our baby. We had so much to learn in such a short period of time. We were so grateful to the Regional Center and DCO in Springfield, MO that taught us all about Early Intervention and what therapy to look for. They gave us a list of good books to read, and were so helpful and hopeful as they led us down our new path. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small; letter-spacing: 0px;">Our friends and family were very supportive and kind as they learned to love James. A few acquaintances had some responses to James’ diagnosis that were really made out of ignorance and just not knowing what to do with our new reality. I will never forget the day that we were in a doctor’s office waiting for him to see our little guy... I got up to read something on the bulletin board that gave me some very wise counsel. The article talked about what to do when people don’t know how to respond to the fact that you have a special child. Sometimes when you are out in public, people struggle to know what to do or how to talk to you. I personally think they just have never met anyone with Down Syndrome or whatever disability they are facing. They don’t know what we know. That our child is precious... that he is not primarily identified by his disability... he is James.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small; letter-spacing: 0px;">The author went on to say “Whenever you see that people don’t know what to do or say, YOU model it for them... that you love your child... reach down and give him a hug...or a kiss... and smile... let them know that you are ok with this.... you have grace for the situation and then smile at them.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small; letter-spacing: 0px;">When friends ask about your child or if they say the wrong things, just realize that they just don’t know... they have never had to deal with it. So again, we, as parents need to model for them what to talk about. They may keep saying “I’m so sorry, so sorry you are having to go through this...” When this happens, accept their attempts to talk with you, however, you may need to lead the conversation. Tell them something positive with regard to your child’s development and progress. Providing a positive talking point helps to overcome the awkward moment and gives direction for a conversation. I remember saying “Well, this week, we have been learning all about Early Intervention and the therapists have been so kind and encouraging. He is starting to gain a little weight, so we are very grateful.” Not everyone has the grace or the capacity to know all the details that you are having to deal with... and that is ok. We can show people with our spirit and actions how to deal with the news and the new reality. If we are having a hard time with it that day, be honest with friends and say, “You know, we are having a hard time dealing with ___________, but we just love him so much.”</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small; letter-spacing: 0px;">Ask your friends for prayer. We don’t have to be up all the time, but we can’t expect people to know exactly what to do and say. We need to extend grace to them... they don’t know YET what a great little baby you have...Just think, by seeing you with the special grace that you have for your child... you might have just changed their ideas about families with special needs children.</span></div>Cindy Lyonshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12554484671575663883noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3774623990857320910.post-86236753335905003922012-02-06T19:41:00.000-08:002012-02-06T19:49:58.789-08:00Overwhelmed with the Diagnosis...<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjftZ6LW717HRZ6nzAKburYkTaakktENkNVlq_IlHPRwuArubB1XccmMDPKh-rfohgir-ZU1jR4JNsbd8T-UrZNtgQkx6q1E86gy9wQfwzE8tjqEWqfr_FBjBbd7-9HH9Ei0l4hxCoiHzhY/s1600/58959_461246850978_637125978_6991940_7861419_n.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 226px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjftZ6LW717HRZ6nzAKburYkTaakktENkNVlq_IlHPRwuArubB1XccmMDPKh-rfohgir-ZU1jR4JNsbd8T-UrZNtgQkx6q1E86gy9wQfwzE8tjqEWqfr_FBjBbd7-9HH9Ei0l4hxCoiHzhY/s320/58959_461246850978_637125978_6991940_7861419_n.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5706235732657212898" /></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:180%;"><br /></span><p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:180%;">Cindy's Post number 2</span></p><p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;font-size:180%;" ><br /></span></p><p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;font-size:180%;" >As I think about those early days with our James, I am so grateful for the people who helped us as we started the journey. I can remember the day that the doctor left our room after letting us know about James’ diagnosis. We were shocked and overwhelmed... not knowing what to do... what to think... how to take another breath...here was this precious baby boy...would he grow up to have a blank stare in his eyes? Would he not be able to communicate? Would he ever be able to have fun? What would our family think about him? How would people respond to him... or stay away from us... now that we had a special child. I recall Eddie and I saying “I guess we will never get to go to Disneyland with him.” I’m not sure why we thought that, but somehow, we must have thought the days of family fun were over...</span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;font-size:180%;" >We were somehow trying to absorb this news when I started thinking out loud “It must be my fault... I’m not a good mother... I yell at my children sometimes...I must have done something wrong.” I will never forget my friend Lora, who was with us at that moment taking my face in her hands and saying “Cindy, we’re not going to go there... it is not your fault.” She went on to just “be with us” that day, loving our baby, letting us process our feelings, and sometimes just being quiet. We moved from our initial feelings to concern for his failure to thrive because of his delay in his suck/swallow/breathe issues.</span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;font-size:180%;" >When we went back to the States and made it through the health crisis, a family with an 11 year son with D.S. came to visit us. I will never forget that day. As we got to know them, I listened to their story and took in everything about their son. I asked him which video he wanted to watch with our daughter, Coco. He chose one, sat and watched with her. I offered him some brownies and asked which one he wanted... the ones with m&ms or without. He confidently told me “I’ll take the m&m brownies.” In the next breath, he looked up at the light fixture and said “You got a light out.” I was quite impressed with this boy... my very first person to meet with Down Syndrome. He was pleasant, humorous, able to make choices, enjoyed watching the video, and seemed quite happy. His parents told us their story. I remember the Mom saying “If I knew what my son was going to be like now, I would never have cried...” They were so real with us with their joy and their challenges... At the end of our visit, I told Eddie “You know, this 11 year old boy reminds me of our other son who is about 6. I can live with that.” It really gave me a vision of what James could be like. We will always be grateful to the Pentecost family that helped us that day. It was our turning point. We then had an idea of what James could be like... of what we could look forward to. By the way, we did go to Disneyland with James and the rest of the family after all... he was thrilled to see Pooh and Tigger... a good time was had by all.</span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica; min-height: 14.0px"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:180%;"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"></span><br /></span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica; min-height: 14.0px"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"></span><br /></p>Eddie Lyonshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07061379418203565117noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3774623990857320910.post-67877313416180530442012-01-28T10:34:00.000-08:002012-01-28T10:52:03.224-08:00Early Days With James - By Cindy<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9lLxxpV93hatv0mUrEWRDfoVGORjJboXGdt1mksMAEGE9lofURwR7CeiEXwc5GofP-whQXeSc1bIzbAEihhok7TAXtZD3p5T8MDm58Tvn28EsTFDTAC0ELewlKGwwBeBdtLVt_UkDWoy2/s1600/photo-1.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 239px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9lLxxpV93hatv0mUrEWRDfoVGORjJboXGdt1mksMAEGE9lofURwR7CeiEXwc5GofP-whQXeSc1bIzbAEihhok7TAXtZD3p5T8MDm58Tvn28EsTFDTAC0ELewlKGwwBeBdtLVt_UkDWoy2/s320/photo-1.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5702757203426167346" /></a><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifCIU0g9NClGR6rSxvmuhtrmnx9ImpbD6cGZPjEdhhHXIMP-W7TK5_lU9obKts8xjPIJqJ-OjRNwE2RKL0Mr_epvIcZ0q48MXnZCK39BePwhEcHnjiB_W_PoWMkgtJbwB3qwT9GUMs5D93/s1600/photo-2.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 239px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifCIU0g9NClGR6rSxvmuhtrmnx9ImpbD6cGZPjEdhhHXIMP-W7TK5_lU9obKts8xjPIJqJ-OjRNwE2RKL0Mr_epvIcZ0q48MXnZCK39BePwhEcHnjiB_W_PoWMkgtJbwB3qwT9GUMs5D93/s320/photo-2.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5702757200123932498" /></a><br /><p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:130%;">Thinking back to those early days...</span></span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica; min-height: 14.0px"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:130%;"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"></span><br /></span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:130%;">I got to meet the most precious new Mom and her baby with Down Syndrome this week, and it brought me back to those early days when our James was born... I loved holding this little guy and talking with his Mom as she shared her journey with me. </span></span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:130%;">When James was born 15 years ago, we were just like everyone else...shocked, unprepared, and totally overwhelmed by our son’s diagnosis. </span></span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:130%;">We started on this journey with a feeling of grief... grieving over our hopes and dreams for James...yet at the same time, we were absolutely falling in love with our sweet baby James. I remember those first few days... not knowing what to expect. We had never met a person with D.S.. I remember praying “God please help him to eventually be able to tell me what he needs and what makes him happy.” </span></span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:130%;">We named him James before he was born with lots of hopes and dreams of the contribution he would make to this world. In our days following his birth, we finally turned to the book of James in the Bible... and found that passage that says “Consider it pure joy when you face trials of many kinds...” At that moment, I felt that God was saying “As I give you James, count it all joy now- You have no idea what joy this baby will bring you... trust me... you have followed me for many years... you can trust me on this... by faith...trust that this gift of James will bring much joy... it is part of my plan for you.” I remember feeling such a supernatural peace, grace and joy just flowed all over my soul... and I just settled in to loving and enjoying my baby. After all, he was more than anything- my baby. His D.S. was just part of who he was... he was precious...</span></span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica; min-height: 14.0px"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:130%;"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"></span><br /></span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:130%;">As we were settling into our new reality, we realized that he was having trouble sucking.</span></span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:130%;">We were in the Philippines as missionaries. We had good healthcare, however, we did not know anyone who could help us with James’ delay in his “suck/swallow/breath” issues. We took him home and 6 weeks later, he still couldn’t suck and was starving to death. We took him back to the States and immediately they started working with him at the hospital, teaching our little guy how to suck and swallow. It was a scary time for us in that during this 7 week time, his body was shutting down and he almost died so many times. We are so grateful to our doctor and to the staff at Cox Hospital in Springfield, Mo. who valued our tiny little baby, who did everything they could to save his life, and who understood what we were going through. The speech therapist taught him how to suck, and taught me how to help him. We were amazed at what they could do to help him. After he made it through the initial health crisis, they sent us to the Development Center of the Ozarks where they taught us all about Early Intervention. When James got back up to his birth weight, they let us go back to the Philippines. By this time, we were so in awe of how God had saved his life. The thought that kept coming to me was- “I am so grateful that James made it... I would rather have James with the Down Syndrome and all that means- than to have lost him....” After all, my baby was James first... darling baby boy... very loved...valued...precious... little survivor....and he just happened to have Down Syndrome....We were on a new road... a new journey... we were in a new club...one that no one chooses to join. However, we had no idea what joy our James would bring... By the way, my prayer that James could be able to let me know what he needs and what makes him happy is answered every day....We deal daily with the struggles, frustrations and challenges that come with D.S.. These realities do not take away the good times. James is a pretty happy boy and delights us regularly with his antics! My hope is that with our story, other families will be encouraged and that they would be able to see the joy and precious life that God has entrusted with them. We may have challenges... but we have a lot to look forward to!</span></span></p>Eddie Lyonshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07061379418203565117noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3774623990857320910.post-56248446004224163152010-12-06T14:07:00.000-08:002010-12-09T16:54:00.815-08:00Today's School Project "James Christmas List"<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTxg5sK_lzVXIJaviKQshiBv9TmSQe6fVxIxcI-BkM36z2Lj3l_3zcNB-6MjNXGwHGqm2jq26K-ypm-YNf41LMvwi69Yrs44BiLQdomz8Z6PoEltPwRZCrHqEVLEdQYReUPfztSVREtz75/s1600/photo.JPG"><img style="float: left; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; cursor: pointer; width: 239px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTxg5sK_lzVXIJaviKQshiBv9TmSQe6fVxIxcI-BkM36z2Lj3l_3zcNB-6MjNXGwHGqm2jq26K-ypm-YNf41LMvwi69Yrs44BiLQdomz8Z6PoEltPwRZCrHqEVLEdQYReUPfztSVREtz75/s320/photo.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5547694695949620002" border="0" /></a>Today James brought home his school project. It was his Christmas list made from cut out magazine pictures. He came bouncing in my room with said project in hand ready to tell me all about it. I asked him what was on his Christmas list. He pointed out his name first, "J A M E S". "That's me, James." Then we began to review his photos. So you want a Buzz Light Year. Yep he did. He also wants a lap top and a new car - a mustang. There were other predictable things on his list like a guitar and drums. He has visions of becoming a rock star and we regularly hear him playing, dancing, singing and drumming in his room. He also wanted a pizza, and a hamburger. Both also quite predictable. He loves food. He hates to go shopping unless he is going with his Mom to "buy food". He loves the "popcorn chicken" at Walmart and we can hardly get out of there without at least an emotional appeal for some to take home. All of those things did not surprise me. Two items did surprise me. One was a picture of a dog. James has this kind of love hate relationship with dogs. He thinks they are so fascinating but he is scared of them. That was an interesting addition to a predictable list. But what most surprised me was a picture of a girl. I asked what that was. He said "a girl". My response was, "James you want a girl for Christmas?" To this he confidently replied, "Yep a girl." Times are changing for my 14 year old freshman. His teachers have recently reported that when he helps in the school store he is known to ask the girls "call me". Life is never boring with James. He has already added a new flair to Christmas for us.Eddie Lyonshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07061379418203565117noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3774623990857320910.post-89774077161790418352010-11-13T19:59:00.000-08:002010-11-13T20:17:53.662-08:00Its MismassIt was a Saturday and James and I made our way to the local Walmart to pick up a few things. The moment we got in the door we were confronted with a Christmas tree and the newly placed Christmas decorations. James turned to me and said, "Dad, check it out, Missmass." And from there James began his Christmas list. We first ran into a display with Toy Story 3. He said, "Dad, mobie, Toy Story my Missmass present." And then behind that we saw the toys for the movie. He wanted Woody, Buzz Lightyear, Jessie. All of these he said "my Missmass present". I pulled him away from that and he discovered the trunks in the aisle and had to check them out as well. He told me that would he needed a trunk to put his new presents in. Before we made it to the electronics section he had a couple hundred dollars worth of requests. In the electronics area he picked out a few more movies a Wii and a 52 inch "flat screen for my room". With each new find came the the statement, "My Missmass present". And so thanks to our local store, MISSMASS has began for James.It is easy for us to kind of live life like James shops. We begin to think that life is all about getting everything we want. The truth is that Christmas was all about God giving us what we needed most, a Savior.Eddie Lyonshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07061379418203565117noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3774623990857320910.post-74832637165804303782010-10-28T20:26:00.001-07:002010-10-28T20:30:38.418-07:00Signed Baseball<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjg3O08_Xttj4X6RUGljdhoBZcx85CN_tjkaDr37oKfm87ZfszQS8iDmaUroeHzn7Bj1bXEEynvTpILzmZmb4AGdrMbfTRJ8dmVTeaeOw4yPAx6sqX5cqyi_QFSEoY9ZWpvl5ijb99CAk3K/s1600/photo.JPG"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 239px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjg3O08_Xttj4X6RUGljdhoBZcx85CN_tjkaDr37oKfm87ZfszQS8iDmaUroeHzn7Bj1bXEEynvTpILzmZmb4AGdrMbfTRJ8dmVTeaeOw4yPAx6sqX5cqyi_QFSEoY9ZWpvl5ijb99CAk3K/s320/photo.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5533304914496240258" /></a><br />It was going to be a big day for us. Our youngest child James had been selected to throw out the first pitch to famed baseball player Albert Pujols of the St. Louis Cardinals. He had been selected because Albert was working with the local Down Syndrome Association, and James is a Down Syndrome kid.<br /> We all wondered how he would do, but that day he was in his “play to the crowd” mood. When asked to, he walked off with the Cardinals officials to meet Albert Pujols. We could see him talking up a storm and pointing to his family all standing against the fence. Albert waved to us a couple of times, and then he asked James to “fire away.” <br /> He ran all the way to the pitchers mound, waved to the cheering crowd and then, with great confidence, wound up and threw the ball. The pitch didn’t quite make it to home plate, but Mr. Pujols ran, scooped it up off the grass, and went to congratulate James. He then signed the ball and handed it to James.<br /> Being a good father, I immediately took the signed ball away from James for “safe keeping.” I bought the nice acrylic stand and proudly displayed it in my office at home. One Sunday evening when I came home from church, my other son, Robert, told me James had gone into my office and had taken the signed ball out of its case. Since Albert Pujols had signed the ball, James decided he should add his signature to my prized ball. My reaction was a mixture of anger, frustration and great disappointment. <br /> I had to do some emotional processing. After all, it was James' ball. I had kind of hijacked it. It actually makes perfect sense to a little guy to sign a ball that already had a signature. Then I realized that while this ball may have lost some of its value, signed as it was by one of baseball’s all-time great players, it now told the whole story much better. It no longer would sit on my shelf as a perfect collectible, but in its imperfect state, its value was more personal now. It is the story of the great value of the imperfect.<br /><br /><br /> Cindy and I chose the name James for our baby when he was born fourteen years ago. There is something very classic and dignified about that name. Several American presidents wore the name. In the New Testament, James wrote one of my favorite books, and he was the half brother of Jesus. It is a significant name. As parents, we dream of our sons growing up and doing something of great significance, and we had our name ready.<br /><br />On July 1, James was born. After the anesthesia from her surgery was wearing off, Cindy asked to see our little guy. The nurse brought him in and handed him to me. I held him up for Cindy to see. She stroked his forehead and then asked, “Eddie, is he okay?” <br /> I assured her he was fine. Then she said, “He just doesn't look like the other children.” I felt this dagger go through my heart. She saw something that I had not. Even as I tried to assure her that her fears were unfounded, I knew a mother's intuition is something that is not to be ignored. They took James back to the nursery.<br /> Later that day we had the moment with our doctor all parents pray will never come. The door opened, our pediatrician walked in. Her gait, her tone, her demeanor – all said something was wrong. She said James was doing well, and then came the pause – a pause that lasted forever. “The baby is doing well - - - but there is something we need to talk about. I think your baby has Down Syndrome.”<br /> Our lives changed forever that day. Having a special needs child is a problem without resolution. The news brings a heaviness, a burden, a challenge, a set of life long limitations, a fog of uncertainty that is never going to go away.<br /> What we did not know, that we know now, is that with special challenges also come special joys. Within this world of imperfection and struggle are some very fun times. The baseball with double signatures represents some of these great times. The truth is that God has and continues to teach me so many things through my special James.<br /> I have learned that an infinite God does not just love the smart and perfect. As a father, my love for my children does not increase or decrease with their intelligence or talents. Likewise, God’s love is not contingent on perfection. None of us is perfect, but all of us are deeply valued and loved by God.<br /> I have also learned that you can be both retarded (it took me a long time to accept that word in reference to my son) and smart at the same time. While we are all imperfect, we do have something to offer God and each other.<br /><br />1 Corinthians 1:27-29 says God has chosen the foolish things, the weak things, the base things and the despised things, “that no flesh should glory in His presence.” And so the truth is that imperfect gifts are where God does some of His most amazing things. My son James is a living testament to this truth.Eddie Lyonshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07061379418203565117noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3774623990857320910.post-20052166730813774542010-10-28T20:12:00.000-07:002010-10-28T20:21:52.229-07:00Hundred Dollar BillOne school morning James was dressed and ready for school. I was shooing him out to the front porch before the bus arrived when he peaked his head out of the hall and say, "Dad, money." I answered, James come out here right now the bus is coming and I don't have money. There was a long silent pause and then he bolted down the hall just in time to meet the bus pulling up. I eventually made my way back to my bedroom and noticed that my wallet was open and some of the things inside were scattered beside it on the dresser. I began to put things back together when I decided to look in the back fold to make sure my secret hundred dollar bill was still there. It was gone. My concern was that I might have bought the most expensive can of Sprite out of the high school pop machine. Now I hate to sound cheap but that is a lot of money. I jumped in the car and went to find James. I found James in his classroom busy about his work. I asked if he had taken my money. He nodded yes and patted his pants pocket. I asked him to show me the money. Sure enough he pulled out my hundred dollar bill. He was not so happy when I tried took the bill from him and tried to explain that it as a lot of money. I said, James this is a hundred dollar bill. He looked up at me with a puzzled look and saind "rehundred?"I said yes, one hundred and I can't leave it with you. Don't worry, after taking the money back he had a great week with ice cream money coming much more often than most most weeks.Eddie Lyonshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07061379418203565117noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3774623990857320910.post-84972565830008401302010-10-28T19:57:00.001-07:002010-10-28T20:11:57.999-07:00Waterboy<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdy1KFzMawSoTKteia9fXSxsNo1c-hSUBQNV-ZBc1Y5Wo7NScKtbqCn-ZL40ASu-99ym2Y_KXMl2aJpkPMVoMLStaPi0E_dMud7YcPm4lDrKbxdZndhCm56IWdRuYUUSptJ3vHhDw1I3W6/s1600/36177_1647568393039_1351821801_31779744_5319351_n.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 214px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdy1KFzMawSoTKteia9fXSxsNo1c-hSUBQNV-ZBc1Y5Wo7NScKtbqCn-ZL40ASu-99ym2Y_KXMl2aJpkPMVoMLStaPi0E_dMud7YcPm4lDrKbxdZndhCm56IWdRuYUUSptJ3vHhDw1I3W6/s320/36177_1647568393039_1351821801_31779744_5319351_n.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5533300406459725906" /></a><br />After a long silence I have decided to return to my blog about James. This school year James started at Hillcrest High School as perhaps the most excited freshman student I have ever been around. Throughout the summer he woke up everyday asking if today was the day that he would go to High School. The school year finally began and James was a very happy boy. He is full of hopes and dreams. He wants to drive, go to college, get a job and get married. I pretty much have decided not to discourage his dreaming. Who knows what is ahead. One of his dreams as he entered high school was to be on the football team like his brother Robert. With great confidence he boasted all summer that he would be on the football team. It seemed like this might be one of the first dreams to not be fulfilled. And then one day when I dropped him off at school his teacher asked to talk to me outside of the class. That is always a kind of mixed emotion moment when a teacher needs to talk to you. The teacher's question was "do you think James would want to be a waterboy for the football team?" He would get a football jersey to wear and would in fact be down on the field to help. I told her that he would love it. And he has loved his new role. He has often insisted that he be introduced as James the waterboy. Some of the football players tutor in his class during the week. They are all so kind to him. And so James continues to dream. And we are glad to be along for the ride and rejoice with him each step of the way.Eddie Lyonshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07061379418203565117noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3774623990857320910.post-10580826683072590512009-10-03T12:57:00.000-07:002009-10-03T13:06:05.574-07:00JAMES’ MIDNIGHT EXCURSIONCindy and I were asleep in our beds when an unexpected caller rang the phone at a few minutes to midnight. Unexpected late night calls always have a way of jolting you awake with a curious concern and a kind of searching for why someone would be calling so late. Your mind races through the limited possibilities. The caller was our neighbor’s daughter. She called because our 13 year old son James was at her house. We were shocked. How could that be true? It was a dark and cool fall evening. The doors were locked, the alarm was on, his two sisters were laying down in the living room under blankets watching TV and James had been properly tucked in bed hours before. How could he possibly be at the neighbor’s house. <br /><br />I got up to go get him. His sister went outside to look for evidence of his escape. Sure enough there was one of his small chairs under the flower box that was outside his window. <br /><br />The window had been carefully closed after he left. His bed was made with a strategic lump of pillows in the corner. When I brought him back home I asked what the lump of pillows were doing in the corner of his bed and he enthusiastically said, “It’s James.”<br /><br />James had carefully thought out and executed his plan for a late night excursion to some of his favorite people’s house, the Wilson’s. He had gotten dressed, made his bed, arranged the pillows to fool us that he was still there. He quietly opened the window. Silently lifted his small blue chair through the window and dropped it below the plant box to make his escape easier. He crawled through the window and then carefully pulled down the glass to make the window appear closed and undisturbed. And then off he went barefoot walking into the dark night, through the neighborhood his friend’s house in the middle of the night. <br /><br />Needless to say by the time we had him back in bed Cindy and I were still in shock. We had moved into new territory. Our escape artist has gained new savvy and skill and our efforts to keep tabs on him just got a bit more intense. Thank God for the way He watches out for him. Cindy has often said that he must angels watching over him. I know the name of one angel that night. It was our most wonderful neighbor Ashley. She has always been so kind, patient and generous with James. She was an angel watching over him that night. Thank you Ashley.Eddie Lyonshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07061379418203565117noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3774623990857320910.post-9267219522250107822009-10-03T12:53:00.000-07:002009-10-03T12:56:46.697-07:00Hard at Work<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCIV5djUtA0r2Y4iHzyeTN2L8YuTwFmhRw6RIAj5be7aGiywkpzKgEhjhyWOaqYHH_2GXATox-Y7qvPZzXi4ZkAuH1x8Vwu49H4Dw6LR3HUErIDzYNIbqJeG7EgAf4E5YOzsgMAEhBb59o/s1600-h/photo-3.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCIV5djUtA0r2Y4iHzyeTN2L8YuTwFmhRw6RIAj5be7aGiywkpzKgEhjhyWOaqYHH_2GXATox-Y7qvPZzXi4ZkAuH1x8Vwu49H4Dw6LR3HUErIDzYNIbqJeG7EgAf4E5YOzsgMAEhBb59o/s320/photo-3.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5388465006600444226" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizuLZjTRx1OM2re8ss0VDoHKGQh5WZVNAnCORUrkiX6gCPIEqev5wvCf1byQTv_lkOXQ9u9HuEhCuTnO4JSPTxfjkuu2jnFJNHXZ4oS_tnOF7pLOtCwsouZgobA7pHWNizKcGEOxwqUKnv/s1600-h/photo-2.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizuLZjTRx1OM2re8ss0VDoHKGQh5WZVNAnCORUrkiX6gCPIEqev5wvCf1byQTv_lkOXQ9u9HuEhCuTnO4JSPTxfjkuu2jnFJNHXZ4oS_tnOF7pLOtCwsouZgobA7pHWNizKcGEOxwqUKnv/s320/photo-2.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5388464997133741074" border="0" /></a><br />This summer I lost all of my yard help. All of the kids have jobs and schedules and so the cheap lawn labor has gone. It has fallen back on me. But then there was one more kid in the house who showed some interest. I decided that it might be time for him to try. Now before you look at the pictures and think I have lost my sense of safety, let me assure you I was always a step away from this budding professional. He tired after a few rounds and so I think the yard work is still going to be mine.Eddie Lyonshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07061379418203565117noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3774623990857320910.post-74144587076389367662009-10-03T12:50:00.000-07:002009-10-03T12:53:06.207-07:00Indiana James<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbWCBFtAYqv7krBTS4PD_oFhncp9QfdJ6fPMq-ZfU1lyhB97eFM3qDB4xQMdyVmBZRF1IBSvJc7VGWKlEPZPpGcjn5MXqW6OXASIQQxbDKZZ_T9XamAj0f44u60eRYWBXIhAu8GffGt_vv/s1600-h/photo-6.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbWCBFtAYqv7krBTS4PD_oFhncp9QfdJ6fPMq-ZfU1lyhB97eFM3qDB4xQMdyVmBZRF1IBSvJc7VGWKlEPZPpGcjn5MXqW6OXASIQQxbDKZZ_T9XamAj0f44u60eRYWBXIhAu8GffGt_vv/s320/photo-6.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5388464026216169954" border="0" /></a><br />James is never bored. He always doing something or pretending to be someone. His life ambition is to be a police man. He loves "spy gear", hand cuffs, walkie talkies, guns, swords and nerf guns. Here is one of my favorites moments that I call - Indiana James.Eddie Lyonshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07061379418203565117noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3774623990857320910.post-91614623531675402882009-10-03T12:45:00.000-07:002009-10-03T12:49:12.411-07:00Lake Day with the Wilsons<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg21SVoP3CQRoGOiTM4gI1WRGc3BEPnVyeVnfWl0_nJA4awx2IOEaf3VAk52241B1KjfzMYIkkc4uVafHYsEKBWN7ndNhQ10ActmvF_QeB2KV6e0pCpkhb8WYbVAUUzJWRMLvC36_qnHLVA/s1600-h/IMG_1168.JPG"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg21SVoP3CQRoGOiTM4gI1WRGc3BEPnVyeVnfWl0_nJA4awx2IOEaf3VAk52241B1KjfzMYIkkc4uVafHYsEKBWN7ndNhQ10ActmvF_QeB2KV6e0pCpkhb8WYbVAUUzJWRMLvC36_qnHLVA/s320/IMG_1168.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5388463137663387650" border="0" /></a><br />One of the highlights of summer was going to the lake with our dear friends and neighbors, the Wilson's. I am so amazed that James is fearless when it comes to the lake. He loves the tubing and insisted on jumping in the lake the swim. I did learn that when swimming in the lake with James even I need a life jacket. When he got scared he came holding on to me not realizing that I needed to keep my head above water to breath also.Eddie Lyonshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07061379418203565117noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3774623990857320910.post-78644885521238964132009-10-03T12:38:00.000-07:002009-10-03T12:45:47.971-07:00Dad coherced Summer Walk<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnjnGvK_Imf3RcLumrz6-LCZ4xixz5R_W4_CEnh6nj7oatsZL77Yr9T-pb0TqIyCu9R6VYcWRHNe_slSfCAC713HChHwPAlJedTlTFtDBD7A8BxPF7NGAfiBKJS465_lN4_vFI0qa4hmV_/s1600-h/IMG_0043.JPG"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnjnGvK_Imf3RcLumrz6-LCZ4xixz5R_W4_CEnh6nj7oatsZL77Yr9T-pb0TqIyCu9R6VYcWRHNe_slSfCAC713HChHwPAlJedTlTFtDBD7A8BxPF7NGAfiBKJS465_lN4_vFI0qa4hmV_/s320/IMG_0043.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5388462161297348738" border="0" /></a><br /><br />It was one of the few days that all the kids were together for a summer day in Branson. I decided it was time to put down the computers, phones and turn off the TV and do something together. My plan was a walk. The cries of protest came from every child but I insisted we would enjoy it once we got out there. We began the walk through the up and down hills of the subdivision. James protested constantly. He does not love walking. With my best efforts to inspire I led the group down the hill to look at the golf course and the fountain. After we got down there we realized, we now had a long walk UPHILL back to the house. After making half way, I could take the groans and moans from little James (and his siblings) no more. We sat down on the side of the road and called Mom to come get us.Eddie Lyonshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07061379418203565117noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3774623990857320910.post-42101968877438561542009-10-03T12:36:00.001-07:002009-10-03T12:38:00.984-07:00My Project<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9XedPFqT_CUXIH1uVrpjXiLWR9EI36JEsGrZ3M1u2UQVNmKpHbj3yM0gznfU-q6lqf7tVcSrd-XkIGwJzLggLodmi2T_BedgANYjBmTgYMMDy-5ANT71YpHX_HI_K1VMCTPS5RplA3gDL/s1600-h/IMG_1157.JPG"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9XedPFqT_CUXIH1uVrpjXiLWR9EI36JEsGrZ3M1u2UQVNmKpHbj3yM0gznfU-q6lqf7tVcSrd-XkIGwJzLggLodmi2T_BedgANYjBmTgYMMDy-5ANT71YpHX_HI_K1VMCTPS5RplA3gDL/s320/IMG_1157.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5388460269743685314" border="0" /></a>Eddie Lyonshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07061379418203565117noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3774623990857320910.post-84306636504377747132009-10-03T12:33:00.000-07:002009-10-03T12:36:10.958-07:00Kung Fu Fireman<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCH0Qy5vCF2Kmymp1gGsKtpr6NjqA3FrOeaMyT13r7zpYOAqXX3nVCpIeW3Vr-QE_cBMzQEv6QWQ9cs5vUSRHw1AZwW1TROR0lEgRseC6uG_ngTGAQUYiQjf87J8xHlICGjC1b-fYIOpnt/s1600-h/IMG_0626.JPG"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCH0Qy5vCF2Kmymp1gGsKtpr6NjqA3FrOeaMyT13r7zpYOAqXX3nVCpIeW3Vr-QE_cBMzQEv6QWQ9cs5vUSRHw1AZwW1TROR0lEgRseC6uG_ngTGAQUYiQjf87J8xHlICGjC1b-fYIOpnt/s320/IMG_0626.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5388459774488022690" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5XVGUdvxgErSRndjzYCfwIfl8ewFMaBlJ8lvWhxfpWmiNfRXmlhX_f7xDRU_ioN82cNCt2kb7AMgqxIYMbUwgoCdafeAZi1C1dtcJkvK6gHeGDG3r0tGnVJMONZdOgiM3wQAoMh0huHYQ/s1600-h/IMG_0615.JPG"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5XVGUdvxgErSRndjzYCfwIfl8ewFMaBlJ8lvWhxfpWmiNfRXmlhX_f7xDRU_ioN82cNCt2kb7AMgqxIYMbUwgoCdafeAZi1C1dtcJkvK6gHeGDG3r0tGnVJMONZdOgiM3wQAoMh0huHYQ/s320/IMG_0615.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5388459766097560722" border="0" /></a>Eddie Lyonshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07061379418203565117noreply@blogger.com0