The Gift

I will be your voice when you cannot speak up for yourself
I will be your eyes when you cannot see
I will be your legs when you cannot run
I will be your arms when you cannot reach high
I will be your hands when you cannot write
I will be your fingers when you cannot button a shirt or zip a pant.

I will be your biggest fan when you try something new
I will be your protector from harms way
I will knock down the doors and barriers when you can't
I will try to stop the hate
I will be your mother, advocate, cheerleader, doctor, nurse, mentor, nurturer, & therapist.

And you will be my teacher
You will show me how to appreciate all that I have
and never take anything for granted
You will show me how to enjoy every sunrise, lavish breakfast in bed sundays,
and celebrate pigtail mondays
You will show me how to laugh when I feel like crying
You will show me how much fun it is to dance to Katy Perry before you go to bed each nite
You will  show me that the prettiest color in the rainbow is your favorite color blue
You will show me how to be the best mother, wife, friend, and human being that I can be
You will teach me things I never thought possible
And I will be your forever loving student.

Wishing You Miles of Smiles
~Team Ari



Liebster Award

I graciously accept the Liebster award and feel quite honored to be given this distinction with these other great bloggers!  Thank you for choosing me K, who's blog, Transcending CP: Shattering the limits of a disability is a fantastic read. K is undoubtably an author in the making, so I wouldn't be surprised to see her publish a book down the road!

Here are the rules regarding the Liebster Award, as copied and pasted from K's blog:

1. You must thank the person who gave you this award 
2. You must display the Liebster heart on your blog
3. You should nominate 3-5 up-and-coming blogs (some say 200 is small, others say 3000 is small) 
4. Each person must post 11 things about themselves 
5. Answer the questions given to you by the blogger who nominated you
6. Create 11 questions for those you nominate to answer
7. Notify your nominees and provide a link back to your post. 
8. Don’t give the award back to the blog that gave it to you.

Eleven things about me:

1. I am a runner.
2. I wear crazy socks 
3. I am a peanut butter cup junkie (Trader Joes sells the best milk chocolate peanut butter cups!)
4. I can never find my car keys!!!!
5. I love dancing to Katy Perry music with Ari
6. I have always wanted to learn to play the piano (its on my bucket list!)
7. I am scared to drive over bridges but I love, love, love running over the Golden Gate Bridge
8. I am a technophobe. I just bought my Iphone one year ago
9. I hava pet peeve. I hate rude people!
10. I am a huge New York Yankees Fan! You can't keep fme rom watching a game:)
11. My first car was a white convertible MGB. I still wish I had it!

It has been so difficult to select blogs for this award as so many of them touch my heart and are inspiring!
But here are the bloggers that I have decided to nominate. :-)

Cary at The Small Stuff: Cary is the mother of twin boys with CP and her writings are profound. Love what I read , especially the post "New Dreams":-)

Bron at Big Brother,Little Sister & the Baby. Bron is an athlete too!I love her photographs of all her children. She is amazingly talented.

Michelle at Big Blueberry Eyes: A mother of two children,one with Down Syndrome. Very uplifting and the kids are adorable too!
These are the questions that K had for her nominees, I had fun in answering these thought provoking questions :-)

1. What is your favorite meal? Crab toss salad at my favorite shabby chic downtown restaurant
2. If you could go on vacation anywhere, where would you go? Paris, I love Paris in May!
3. What is one thing that you have learned from special needs? I've learned so many things but if I had to choose one I guess it would be that's "its journey not the destination" that really matters.  
4. Do you have a favorite quote? If so, what is it? A hero is an ordinary individual who finds strength to persevere and endure despite overwelming obstacles ~ Christopher Reeve
5. What is one movie that you could watch over and over again without getting bored? Mean Girls, lol
6. What is one skill that you wish you had? playing the piano
7. When you were a child, what was your favorite toy? Can't say I remember, but I loved riding my bike
8. What is your favorite animal? A bischon
9. What is your favorite candy? Trader Joes Peanut Butter Cups
10. If you could teach the world one lesson, what would it be? To respect individual differences
11. What is your earliest memory? standing in my crib, waking up from a nap and wanting oreo cookies

These are the questions I have created for my nominees:
1. If you could be president for a day what law would you enact?
2. If you could have dinner with a famous person, who would that be?
3. If you could win the lottery, what would you do with all your loot?
4. What is your worst habit?
5. Who is your favorite actress/actor?
6. What was your best friends name in elementary school
7. How old were you when you had your first kiss?
8. What is your favorite fragrance?
9. If you could change your name what would you change it too?
10. What is your favorite charity?
11. What strengths have you aquired since you have had a child with special needs?