Today’s fact: Research indicates that language comprehension skills in people with Down syndrome are almost always better than their language production.

Well, last night was costumed-event number 3: Trick-or-Treat Street. This is one put on by the school my mom teaches at, which is pretty much why we go. It’s fun, each room set up has a game or activity and then the kids get candy. Anyway, Kalena decided to change it up with the costumes for last night, so we had a superhero theme going on.

Spider-Man and Wonder-Woman ready to go.

We met up with a friend there, who made her son the awesomest Mater costume ever.

This room was Will’s favorite. The kids had to crawl under string “webs” to get through, and Will took it very seriously and did lots of “Spider-Man moves” (it was awesome.) He probably would have stayed in there all night being Spider-Man if we had let him.

Good times were had by all. Except maybe Daniel who kept looking at me like, You’re keeping me up for this?!

Today’s fact: Down syndrome occurs evenly among boys and girls.

I helped out at Kalena’s preschool party today. Daniel found the whole thing hugely thrilling. See?

I have no pictures from the actual party (besides that one of Daniel) because I was running the bingo station. Hopefully someone else took some!

About halfway through the party Kalena’s teacher informed me that Will was pigging out at the treat table. I apologized, but she assured me it was fine, she just wanted to warn me in case he was all sugar high later. Fortunately he ate lunch despite his indulgence and then both kids crashed for naps.

I have a really great picture of Will eating grapes (with a fork!) but wordpress is not cooperating with iphoto (or maybe the other way around) so you don’t get to see it.

Today’s fact: 1 in 5 children with Down syndrome play a musical instrument.

Kalena dressed up in a homemade dinosaur costume for her first Halloween (2008.)

Will in his dragon costume at his first Halloween (2010.)

And Daniel in his own (new!) dragon costume this year.

Maybe WE’RE the reason our kids are obsessed with giant reptiles?

Today’s fact: People with Down syndrome have a base metabolic rate that is about 15% lower than the average population.

After getting home last night and getting the kids put to bed, I heard my mom say, “Oh no!” Then she came in and said, “These are the shoes Kalena came home in.” and held up these two shoes:

That’s two left shoes, one size nine (hers) one size ten and a half (obviously not hers.) Same brand, same style. There was a bump-n-jump at the party which is where the mix-up must have occurred. I feel a lot worse about the fact that we ended up with someone else’s shoe than the fact that Kalena is missing one. The sizes are close enough that I can see how she might not have noticed the difference, but I was a little surprised that she didn’t notice that she had two left shoes.

What’s funny is that at some point after she had put those shoes on I saw her and told her that her shoes were on the wrong feet. If I’d paid a little more attention I would have seen that I was only half right! Whoops.

Today’s fact: Brushfield spots (white spots around the iris (which Daniel has, btw)) are more common in blue eyes. They don’t affect eyesight.

Daniel now gets solids twice a day, but apparently that’s not enough. He still feels the need to eat his pajamas.

And Kalena’s teddy bear.

He’ll happily give those up when it’s dinner time though!