extended family:)

today we visited my cousin rachel at her new house, we had to get a picture of her son carter (is 7 weeks younger then max:), lilly and max together. it was really cute to see them sitting next to eachother. its going to be great when they get a little older... i think max and him are going to be great friends. then we went to see the land my other cousin erin is building on, and after that we went to see my cousin matts new house(a very busy day of seeing houses!!). then my uncle kurts band (homemade brew) was playing in the same town so we stopped by to watch him play. over all a great day with the extended family.

max, lilly, and carter

aunt joy with max


my uncle kurt with his band... he is the second from the right.

i need some advice.

i was hoping some of you would have some advice to share. for a while now i've been wondering how to bring up the use of the "R" word. i know that the people using that word around us don't mean any harm by it. but to me it's really offensive. every time i hear it i think do they think max will do something like that, or do they think he's not going be capable. i just feel that max, like any other typical child is going to be teased, there is no way around it, the fact is he will more then likely be called that word.... dose he really need to hear the people that are close to him using that word as well. i really don't like confrontation, but for the sake of my child i feel i need to say something. so here are my questions... what do i say? how do i bring it up(without making them feel bad)? how do i really make others understand,... those words really do hurt?

"i did it " -shirt-

i wish i posted this back when i had max in his "i did it" shirt, i was just so excited to post him sitting i didn't say where the shirt came from,
http://trisacharm.blogspot.com/
check out Sunday, August 2, 2009
i felt it was a great idea, and such a sweet touching story behind it. oh and i was really excited about it seeing my little max in it when he hit the big sitting milestone! so sorry about the late post, but better late then never:)

weekend of fun:)

over the weekend we stayed at blue harbor with the whole pingel family, we had so much fun:)

all of the pingel kids hanging out with max on the blanket:)

wilson, jake, jacqui, lilly and max.
lilly, wilson and jacqui giving their biggest smiles:)

max giving his:)

i couldn't believe how big this place was and this isn't even half of it.

family picture on the beach.

max loved the sand.

if you wondering why i have lilly with so much hair in her face it's because her pony broke, but it made a supper cute picture.

running on the beach.

cute.

what a big helper she was.

hot chocolate for a cool day.

fun at the water park, max and lilly had such a good time.

max playing in the water:)

lilly and jacqui

just smelling flowers:)

the last day at the beach was so much warmer.

cute.

kids digging a pool in the sand?... they must not see the lake behind them:)

our story

today my baby max turns nine months, i was recently ask by a new friend my story about max, my pregnancy and birth with him... so i thought i would share it with all of you as well.


our story.... its a long one.
i guess it really starts back with my first baby, nick and i had a miscarriage with our first baby. so that pregnancy was short but still very difficult.
then my pregnancy with lilly we saw a specialist for her because they said she had two cyst on her umbilical cord, which can be the cause for many major health defects... Down syndrome being one of the good ones. so for over a month of lillys pregnancy i really was just scared for her life. when lilly was born the only health problem was two dislocated hips (at that time seemed like such a big deal.. only if i knew then what i know now.)


now onto max... i had bleeding in the beginning, and i thought that i was going to loose him too(like our first baby). they started me on some type of med to make it a "better environment" for him to live in. the bleeding stopped and i felt for a month or so that everything was going to be okay. we went for his 3 month ultrasound and they said he was measuring small. i didn't know what that meant...i felt like i was doing something wrong maybe his "environment" still wasn't good. we saw a specialist for that and we continued to see him every two weeks till max was born, with the test that he did, he didn't see any other physical characteristics of a baby with Down syndrome. besides the small size. i didn't see the point in having an amino test done due to the higher risk of miscarrying, nick and i both felt that either way this was our baby.. i could never abort my child, disability or not. the dr. also started my on a high cal. diet:( that's seems to still be with me today. when i was around 35 1/2 weeks i was having trouble feeling max move and my dr. was getting concerned due to his small size that their would be a higher risk for a still birth. just thinking that could have happened makes my stomach turn. well i had to stay in the hospital on bed rest for 2 1/2 weeks. it was really difficult since nick and lilly we're home and i would only see them once a day for a hour or so. we took a tour of the nicu because this whole time we thought max was going to be this little itty bitty baby. we were scheduled for a c-section on friday morning but max being max he came thursday morning 1:20 am Nov. 20th 2008. big surprise to my husband when i called to have come to the hospital "we're having a baby" in the middle of the night. it was all very exciting and scary at the same time. max was 20" -- 6 lb. 11 oz.

when max was born i was so sick form the pain medication i didn't get to have that instant loving connection that i had with lilly until 2 or so in the afternoon, i still feel really bad about that.

a pediatrician came in that morning and told us that they were going to be testing max for down syndrome, i was still so sick that it didn't really hit me what she was saying, after she left nick was holding him and started to cry (that was the only time i saw him cry for max) i could just say if max has Down syndrome, then that is who he is and there is nothing that could ever be wrong with that. the medications made me have no emotions, it didn't sink in till the they wore off in the afternoon... it hurt.

for the whole 3 weeks i lived at the hospital i only had one bad experience with a nurse, she came in the day after max was born and said oh i saw that you had your baby,(i was holding him) i said yes isn't he a beautiful baby boy! she responded "oh they told me that he has Down syndrome." i didn't know what to say..... i just said "yes.. but that doesn't mean he is not a beautiful baby." all i could think.., is that the way the world is going to treat my baby? (now,.. i know i was wrong to think that, over all the world is kind.)

we didn't find out about the test results till that wednesday, the day before thanksgiving. finding out was heartbreaking, i was sad for the dreams i had for my little boy and i felt bad for that, i felt i shouldn't be feeling that way, i should feel like what i told nick at the hospital. and its taken me till now to truly be okay with it, not that i don't cry every once in awhile because i would be lying if i said that. but i love him and lilly with all my heart, and i just want them both to be happy and health. and we really are blessed with that, besides a low white blood cell count for max, my children are happy and health. i know how lucky we are, i don't take that lightly.

life has for me as a mother changed the day max was born, i feel like i have become a much more compassionate person. less judgemental of things i do not know or understand. i am able to see some of the things i feared at first for max was just due to being uneducated on Down syndrome.

i thank max for my life now, without him i would not be the person i am today. i would not know or have met the families i have come so very close to.

so that is our story.

baby max one day old.

happy nine months max:)

wordless wednesday

daddy's all mine.

this past weekend i had a girls night (and max) at my friend laura's house, it was a lot of fun... its been a long time since i stayed up past 2 just talking.

it was well needed... thanks again laura:)

lilly was very upset that max was leaving her for the night... but then she realized daddy was all hers, so she kissed max good bye.


my friend laura with big boy max.

the second we walk in the door max got a big squeeze for his sister... max loving every minute.. ...ha

aw.

busy week.

we have had a very busy week,.. here a just a few snap shots.

the boys just hanging out

my lilly :)... wait for someone to play with her

max and his big cousin jack

showing the love:)

great. lilly found aiden to play with:)

lilly with her new cheesy smile.... i thought its cute how her and max hold hands in the car.

and max showing off for the camera :)
cute.

" i did it! "

today max sat by himself for over 2 minutes :) i thought that deserved a picture with his "i did it" t-shirt. we are so proud.

i think the best thing about sitting is he is able to play with his toys in a whole different way.

way to go max!!!

now that's a silly face



and down he goes,

you could tell at the end of those 2 minutes he was pooped.... but very proud of himself.