2012 Milestones

Last year at this time I did a recap of the prior year.  I enjoyed it so much I have decided to do it again this year.

The following are my favorite posts of 2012.

In January I wondered What She Can Do? and she answered me.  Haley seemed to be making strides, I don't know if she really was or if I was just noticing her accomplishments because I was focused on them.  I was so proud of her when she said "Dad. Dinner. Ready.", when she stepped off of the bus and told me a Beautiful story and also at the end of the month when the Evolution of a Hug was complete.

In February Haley was Amazing!  and she left me Bustin' with Pride!

In March we got so excited when Haley said "No."  I imagine that most parents don't like to hear the word No from their children, but in our case (there's that word again) it meant that she was Correct!

I was so proud of Haley at the end of March for Taking Care of Business, but by the end of April I learned that Independence Can Backfire!

There were some ups and downs in May, but one of my favorites was Haley's notebook.  Got Words?

In June I only posted twice, but they were very fun.  At the beginning of the month you could read about Our Experiment and at the end of the month she was getting used to the Summer Schedule, with a little surprise!

The surprise was a trip to Disneyland in July!  I chronicled our trip from beginning to end.  It was Incredible and we had a lot of fun.  Apparently it wore me out because I didn't blog at all in August, but we did finally go camping at the Tree Farm.  Haley loved every minute of it. 

In September our summer routine was over, but I don't know if we were Ready for School.

In October I decided to challenge myself and write a blog post a day.  I did the 31 for 21 Blog Challenge for Down Syndrome.  It truly was a challenge for me, sometimes I was blogging late at night when I should have been sleeping.  I did capture some good moments though.  I was really excited to get a note from Haley's Teacher, "B" and the Awesome Greeting I got one day after work.  I hope you liked the post about Haley's favorite steam engine and the fact that along with Haley you got to Feel It.

In November I tried to focus on Gratitude.  It was a very busy month and so was December.  I didn't keep up with this blog like I wanted to, but there were More Thanks.

Here's to 2012!  It was a great year.

~Haley's Mom

Comments

I enjoy reading blogs.  I read blogs by mothers of children with disabilities, blogs by single fathers, blogs by women who write for a living and blogs by women who have made their blogs their livelyhood.

I have noticed something.

People comment on blogs.  Sometimes I feel compelled to comment as well.  It is the way that the blogosphere communicates.

I don't get many comments on this blog.  I don't know why that is.  Maybe I haven't made it easy enough.  I am using blogger's commenting system.  There are others.

Maybe what I say doesn't prompt people to comment.

I actually get quite a few comments through facebook and I am thrilled when someone shares what I have written on facebook.  That is quite a compliment.

I also have several friends that read this blog and tell me in person how much they enjoy it, how much they have learned about Haley and how much they appreciate my sharing her adventures.

But in general, dear readers, you don't comment.

So when I get one it makes my day. 

For the most part the comments I have recieved have been positive.  I haven't gotten any spam that I am aware of, which is great.  I do monitor my comments and I don't publish some of them.  If you commented on this blog and I didn't publish it, it was probably because you mentioned my real name or the name of Haley's sister.  I try to keep personal things off of this blog to protect Haley.  I still appreciated the comment though, so thank you.

I just wanted to share with you how much the comments that you leave mean to me.  I truly do enjoy reading them and I try to respond. 

Thank you.

Find Us On Facebook

When I began this blog about Haley in April of 2010, part of the reason that I decided to write a blog was because my husband thought it would be fun if Haley had a facebook. 

When he suggested it, I just laughed.  I know she uses the Internet, and she uses it well, but of course she wouldn't be able to post, or like or interact the way that other people do on facebook. 

He thought it would be fun to have a web presence for Haley that would feature the things that she likes and I agreed.  That would be fun, but I was not about to sign her up on facebook.

I read several blogs at the time and I had been toying with the idea of writing my own blog.  I thought that people might like to read my unique perspective on life, but I wasn't sure what form my blog would take. 

My husband and I had several discussions about it.  We tossed ideas back and forth.  Then one day it just came to me.  "What if my blog wasn't about me, what if my blog was about Haley?"  Once I had that thought the blog post ideas just started flowing.  I wrote them down.  I filled two pages.  I thought "I can do this!"

So this blog was born on April 27, 2010 and the very first blog post was Money. One. Two. Three.

I posted it to my personal page and people really responded to it.  I have gotten great responses from my friends and my family ever since.  I am happy that people like to read what I write, but I don't fool myself.  I know what people really like are the stories about Haley.

So I have decided that maybe it is time that Haley have a facebook. 

The facebook page for this blog will include blog post updates as well as what Haley's likes and the occasional incident or quote that won't make it into a full post on this blog.  So check it out.

If you are on facebook click on the link at the right of this website to "Like" our facebook page.  If you are not on facebook, what the heck are you waiting for?  Now is your chance.  Sign up and then "Like us!"

If you know me please respect my decision to write this blog in anonymity.  I have done it for the safety of my daughter.  If you refer to me or my husband on our facebook page please stick with Haley's Mom and Haley's Dad.  Thank you.