Today while we went to Salt Lake a wonderful family in our neighborhood looked after Wesley. When we came home and I went to pick him up their son said that Wesley was out shopping at KMart with his mom and grandma. So I went home empty-handed (which was fine–more of a break for me!). A little while later they dropped off Wes and, lo and behold, he had new shoes! He’s never worn shoes before, but doesn’t he looked very manly in them?

Wes will turn fifteen months old next week. He likes to walk when we hold onto his hands and help him. It makes him break out in a great big grin every time. And when he’s standing up with our help and we let go, if he doesn’t realize we’re not holding him up anymore, he’ll stand there for a few seconds all by himself. Today for the first time we saw him pull himself to standing and then let go of the object he had been hanging onto and stand for a few seconds. He’s getting braver, I think. The average walking age for kids with Down syndrome is about two years old, and I think Wes will come out ahead in that area. Especially now that he’s got these stylin’ shoes to sport everywhere he goes!

John and I don’t get out on many baby-less dates, so tonight when we did we did it in fine style by attending the Utah Chocolate Show.

Oh. My. Goodness.

Let’s talk about the chocolate. Vendors everywhere are trying to sell you their stuff, which means tons of FREE CHOCOLATE SAMPLES. We purposely ate a light dinner to better enjoy the chocolate goodness. Utah Truffles alone had five different truffles to try. See’s candy had their chocolate mint truffles. Rebecca’s Chocolate had several different kinds to try. A new chocolate company called Chocolot (based in Ogden) was there and when I asked to try their English toffee the owner whipped out a fresh pan of the stuff that she had made earlier that day in a stage demonstration. I was happy to see Amano Chocolate because I’d heard about them but never tried their chocolate. They’re new and based in Orem, and they are fast becoming recognized all over the world. They’ve won a bunch of awards, and at a chocolate show in London this year they were the first American company to ever win an award for chocolate.

Moreover, there was chocolate popcorn, a chocolate fountain (I went back for seconds), and even chocolate coffee. Except it wasn’t coffee; it was cacao beans roasted and brewed like coffee beans and you drink it like coffee with cream and sugar–and it’s the nastiest drink you could imagine. But apparently if you like the taste of coffee it’s pretty good.

John and I splurged and took a class together on hand-dipping chocolates. It was a fun experience, although when John realized he had to get his hands dirty he hesitated momentarily, but got over it. We learned how to temper chocolate. You heat the chocolate up to at least 100 degrees, then cool it to 83-89 degrees, which is the perfect temperature for dipping chocolate. They provided a cool marble slab that they poured warm chocolate onto.

We swirled the chocolate around with our (very clean) hands on the slab until the chocolate was cool enough to dip the fondant centers in. Smearing warm chocolate with your bare hand is the BEST feeling in the world. Like finger painting, only better.

Plus, when we were done we got to lick our hands clean.

The actual dipping part is an art form that takes a lot of practice to perfect, so our chocolates turned out a little more sloppily than the examples the ladies did for us beforehand. Here’s what our chocolates should have looked like (done by the professionals):

In reality, John’s finished chocolates:

And mine:

(Note: Yes, mine turned out slightly better than John’s. And he admits it. I think it was because he was trying to get over the whole having-your-hands-covered-in-chocolate thing. Which, to be honest, most people wouldn’t mind at all. I could probably swim in a vat of chocolate and not mind it one bit.)

We got to bring home six chocolates apiece that we hand-dipped. But we’re waiting until tomorrow to taste them; we are so full of chocolate!

And finally, a photo of the little guy who missed out on the chocolate goodness tonight:

Yesterday Wes attended his first-ever birthday party (thanks Nancy and Preston!). There was an abundance of active two-year-olds, and Wes just sat and stared at the commotion, mouth slightly open. They served birthday cake and mint chocolate chip ice cream. Wes would tolerate the birthday cake when I fed it to him, but not without giving me a clear look that said, “OK, lady, I’ll chew and swallow this, but the next spoonful had better be more of that creamy chocolate mint goodness.” He ate the entire scoop, except for a couple teeny bites I snatched.

I am getting addicted to grapefruit. A guy came around our neighborhood last week selling oranges, apples, and grapefruit. He gave me samples and the fruit was delicious, so I bought 30 lbs of it to store in the cool garage with very good intentions to single-mouthedly eat and enjoy every last piece of it. (John and Wes aren’t really into the fruit scene.) I asked for minimal grapefruit in the mix, but I’m starting to regret that now. I’ve eaten one every day and they are so good! I think they decrease my appetite, too. This morning I was eating one and grapefruit juice squirted me in the eye. I had to laugh because I’d only ever seen that in the movies, and here it happened to me in real life!

Also, box elder bugs are threatening to take over our house. I keep finding them crawling around like they own the place. I have no qualms about killing crawling things in my house (Wes excluded), so hopefully I’ll get a handle on their population soon.

I’m teaching parts of aerobics classes three times this week. It’s pretty much taking up all my spare time, but I’m loving it. I’ll be teaching a Zumba class starting in January through the local recreation program, which should be fun, provided people actually come.

Wes loves loves loves to stand up. He likes to stand and play. He’ll try to pull himself to standing using anything he can as a prop:

His car seat…

His toys…

Even things taller than himself, like this desk.

His therapists have been coming and going and all (he has three) are happy to see he’s doing so well. Yesterday the speech therapist brought a toy that has three skills involved with it. The baby has to put the ball in the top of the toy, push it down, and then retrieve it when it comes out the bottom. After watching the therapist a few times, Wes started putting the ball in the top himself, and after a few more times he figured out how to push the ball down. He was really enthralled by the toy and the therapist was very impressed by how quickly he understood how to work it. My baby’s a smart boy.

Wes is crawling like a maniac and has discovered every nook and cranny of the house. Plus every trash can, every tissue box, every book on the shelves…pretty much everything I don’t want him in.

He’s also really great about climbing the stairs. A little too great. The other day I answered the phone in the kitchen (which is around the corner from the stairs). I was away from Wes maybe a minute and a half before I realized I had left him alone in the living room, and when I rounded the corner, there he was on the stair landing, sitting and looking down at me with a big grin. He doesn’t know how to get himself down the stairs yet (we’re working on it), but once he gets that he’ll be safer on the stairs by himself.

I took Wes to the hospital lab for a blood draw to get his thyroid checked. People with Down syndrome frequently have thyroid problems. The test checks two things: free T4’s and TSH. I don’t exactly know what T4’s are, but apparently they’re something to do with the thyroid that attaches to proteins, and free T4’s are ones that don’t attach to anything. TSH stands for Thyroid Stimulating Hormone. The results: Wesley’s TSH looks fine, but his free T4’s were a little high. But the pediatric endocrinologist said that this is not uncommon for kids around 12 months of age. Wes will have to get another blood draw in 4-6 months and be tested again.

Last week I took Wes for a walk outside. Because it was a chilly day I put him in a blue bear jacket that was a gift to him when he was born. I remember looking at it, and looking at him (barely four pounds), and thinking, “He’s never gonna fit into this.” Well, it took a year, but it fits him now. I think it’s size 6-12 months.

I enjoyed the walk and the scenery, but Wes was sound asleep by the time we got high enough to see a nice view of the valley and mountains.

It is hard to discipline Wes because he doesn’t seem to get that I’m disciplining him. I always tell him “no” when he gets to pulling at the trash can bags, but what do you do when all he does back is smile at you? And then go for the trash bag again?

Wes and the trash can

Wes loves our cats. They encourage him to move.

Wesley’s idea of recreation

Wes can open drawers. And smash his toes in them, too.

Wes discovers the drawer

Wes had a little trouble on the kitchen floor in his sleeper jammies.

Wes slip and slides on linoleum

In other, non-Wes-related news, I taught part of an aerobics class at BYU yesterday and it was so much fun. The teacher was impressed and got my number for her sub list. It was my first time teaching a class, and the class at BYU is huge. Teaching aerobics is one of those things that even though you think you like doing it, actually doing it is the real test. And I’m glad to discover that for me it is 100% fun. Now I know that I will keep doing it and loving it.

Most Mondays I take Wes (plus a two-year-old that I babysit Monday mornings) to the local library for baby sing-and-sign time. This morning I got there early, got a parking place in the parking lot instead of on the street (yes! major accomplishment), got Wes and the two-year-old in and settled, and then found out that the teacher was ill and class was canceled. A lot of moms had turned out with their babies, so the children’s section of the library became an impromptu playgroup.

A friendly lady struck up conversation with me and we chatted for a long while. One of the first things she commented on was Wesley’s Down syndrome. She had a lot of positive things to say about it, which I always appreciate hearing. She thought his smile is so bright and lights up his whole face, and that he’s very loving and good natured.

It surprised me, though, that she knew he has Down syndrome. When others mention the Down syndrome I always wonder, “How can you tell?” I don’t normally tell people he has DS. It’s not the kind of thing you throw into introductions: “Hi, this is Wes, and he has Down syndrome.” Like it’s part of his name or something. But I guess it must be visually obvious and I just don’t realize it. To me, Wes is Wes. I see him everyday, all day, and he looks completely like Wesley. Completely normal.

Yet others can look at him and tag him as having DS (or, as a lot of people say, as being “Downs”). It’s kind of funny that people can look at you and categorize you instantly like that. I guess we do it all the time, to all sorts of people you see everywhere (“he’s angry” “she’s a businesswoman” “she’s pretty” “he’s handicapped”).

I just realized I did a tag of my own the other day when I was at a store and Wes wasn’t with me. I saw a mom, a dad, and their teenage son (who had Down syndrome) in the shoe department. In the first millisecond of spotting them I unconsciously tagged him as having DS, then tagged him as a teenager (he was complaining about how long his parents were taking), and then I tagged his parents as wonderful, loving people whom I admire for raising their son in spite of his challenges.

Judging has a negative connotation, but tagging seems more like “sizing up.” And as long as people mainly associate positive things with Down syndrome, I can’t mind other people noticing it in my own baby.

(Wesley’s Halloween costume)

Saturday I did something super fun and exciting: got certified to teach Zumba!

Zumba is a dance fitness class inspired by Latin and international music. I stumbled upon Zumba totally by accident (ended up in a class I don’t usually go to) and was intrigued. I went to a second class on purpose, and was hooked. Zumba is so different from normal aerobics (which I also love). It’s fast, fun, and doesn’t feel like a workout. You get to the end of class and can’t believe the hour is up. Also–and this is significant for me, who truly can’t dance–anyone can do Zumba and love doing it.

When I heard a certification workshop was coming to Utah I jumped onboard and am so glad I did. The workshop was so much fun, and now I’m prepared to teach basic Zumba classes.

I was already planning to start up an aerobics class at our church in the next month or so with hi/lo (floor aerobics) and cardio kickboxing. Now we can Zumba too!

If you live nearby and want to join in, the classes will be FREE and kid friendly. If the classes are in the mid-morning hours the kids can play together in the back of the gym and hopefully no one will kill each other while we’re working out up front. I might do an early morning class (5:30 or 6 a.m.) for people who have to go to work.

I’ve been an aerobics-monger for 8 years and Zumba is the most exciting thing I’ve done in all that time. Check it out. (Obviously in my class there would be much less of the bikini-clad scene you see in the videos and more of the everything-vital-is-covered-up look.)