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     Hello All,   I am pleased to announce the publication of my first book: “From Grief to Celebration, How One Family Learned to Embrace the Gift of Down Syndrome”. This book shares a parent’s perspective of the birth of a child with special needs, and the journey our family has taken together while learning to embrace and celebrate this unexpected event.   This book will help others who are touched by special needs, as well as professionals as they work to advocate for our special community.   Following are some reviews:    

“This is a beautiful way to support others!  I appreciated the commiseration, the encouragement, and the very practical advice in many areas of life.  So very many of the stories shared echo tales of our own firecracker!  This is a resource unlike anything I’ve seen, and I plan to check back with it as we plan forward!  Thank you!!”   Tiffany, proud mama to 8 yr old Elise   “So many gems are generously shared in this heartwarming book about a family’s personal journey of discovering the magic of having a child with Down Syndrome enter your life.  Every person can be enriched by this transformational progression through stages of deepening love and acceptance of a child, from fear and anxiety to discovering that they are perfect exactly as they are. Drink the “magic potion…” and read this book”. Lisa, mother of an 11 year old girl with an extra 21st chromosome

 Please explore this work and share with others who may benefit.   It’s $13.99 and can be purchased at this link.   https://www.paypal.com/cgi-bin/webscr?cmd=_s-xclick&hosted_button_id=Z6YEQ3XXK22BL

Tim’s Succotash

Go to Colorado Inspired Cuisine page for simple one pan dinner that he made us last night! SOOOOO GOOD and healthy! (:

Bet & Skys first date Crested Butte style

The sound of wood crackling in the fire makes me feel at home. To me, there’s nothing like sitting by the fire with Sky, so cozy and warm, when it’s cold and snowy outside. When we first started hanging out with a bunch of friends we would all end up watching movies at his house, and I loved walking inside, taking our shoes off and sitting by the fire while talking to Sky’s parents for a little. Darlene would always make us popcorn, cookies, shakes, hot cocoa…so delicious, so spoiled!

The first time Sky and I ever hung out we went sledding with 8 or 9 other guys. First we went to Teo’s, the best Mexican food place in the world, located on Elk Avenue, the main street of Crested Butte. While we were all eating there, a woman walked in and said “Hey guys, what’s going on!” as she stood by Sky and put her hand on his shoulder. I was the only girl there and the only person she didn’t know. She looked at me with a smile and asked who I was as she introduced herself “I’m Darlene, I’m Sky’s mom”, I shook her hand politely and explained that my name is short for Elisabet, and that I was an international student from Spain for the year and living with the O’Neals. Then she turned to Sky… “Sky you should take her to dinner to the restaurant tonight!” to which he answered “Okay, we’re going sledding first but yeah!”. We spent all afternoon walking up a hill carrying the plastic sleds in our hands and going down it again. It was cold and cloudy out but we were having a blast! Building jumps for the boys to hit, throwing snowballs at each other, eating the snow… all that stuff boys love. When we were over being cold we romped down the pass in Sky’s Jeep and went to his house, where we sat by the fire and happily ate Darlene’s treats. Then Sky went and changed into jeans and a nice black and white plaid flannel, looking so good to take me out on our first date. I didn’t have the chance to go home and change before dinner so I had my first date at the fancy restaurant in my bright colored ski clothes and my hair in a messy braid after being in the snow all afternoon. No makeup either, it was an all-natural one. I have such a clear and sweet memory of our first date; so innocent and nice, relaxed and not awkward, being friendly and making each other laugh, and basically learning more and getting to know each other by the minute. The atmosphere was so adequate too; the soft music, the excellent food, and service from whom I would later adopt as my favorite waiter in town: Paul. That evening I knew I liked Sky, or else I wouldn’t be so comfortable sitting at dinner with him in a romantic booth of his parents’ fancy restaurant.

A month and a half later Christmas came around, the pretty lights were up, the snow kept on coming and we kept on going on dates, hanging out alone for the first times, and liking each other more and more as ours feelings for each other grew. I was almost seventeen when I spent my first Christmas away from home, and was in the winter wonderland of Crested Butte instead.

Christmas is my favorite holiday. I love walking around the busy streets of Barcelona packed with people running their last errands and buying gifts on the last minute. The city gets so festive, with all the lights hanging on the street light poles and the buildings, and the sound of Christmas music comes out of every store when the doors open and someone walks out of it. There is a characteristic feeling in the air. It’s hard to explain. It’s just there every year and when it comes back around it’s the same; a mixture of excitement, jolliness, and something else. Everyone is nicer and smiles more when Christmas is around the corner. And then there are the big, crazy, family reunions around a dinner table with food that could feed an army, wine and champagne for everyone. The adults get drunk at about 10pm and start talking really loud and making jokes and laughing about everything. The kids play with their latest acquisitions from the grandparents. It is also a tradition when you’re little to tell a Christmas poem in front of the whole family, which is pretty embarrassing, and then go around and pick up little coins from the adults as a reward. On my other side of the family, my grandma cooks lunch Christmas day, which always consists of the best soup ever with a stuffed chicken that seems to get more tender every year, yummy! And then there’s my birthday, the day after Christmas, it’s a well rounded, complete holiday.

 As much as I like Christmas at home in Spain, I loved Christmas in the snow. Snow is key to a true, full on Christmas! I watched the white flakes come down and pile up on the ground for a couple months before December; I went skiing, sledding, ice skating, I made snowmen and snow angels, I played in the snow…I did everything I had a chance to do and it was so much fun. By the time Christmas came the snow covered the scene like a fluffy, white, cold blanket. It sat in big banks on the side of the streets, on both sides of every driveway, on top of the houses, on the branches of the firs that cover the mountains, and in lots and lots of powder on the ski runs and the forests.  Icicles are also a sign that it really is winter. They hang off the roof edges and the water they’re made of is so pure you can see through them. My little sister Maria always picked them and licked them just like a Popsicle everyday on the way to school. I remember my other sister Ellie, who is only 5, sitting in the car and singing “Rudolph the red nose reindeer had a very shiny nose!” high pitched and so excited, cutest thing you’ve ever seen.

Bets Christmas present from Sky

A couple days before Christmas, I was at home getting ready and waiting for Sky to pick me up to go hang out at his house. I got a text message from him saying “someone outside wants to see you!” – I thought it meant he was outside ready to pick me up. So I ran upstairs from the basement, where my room was, put my jacket and boots on and stepped out on the snowy alley, but Sky wasn’t there, neither was his car. Instead, all I saw was a huge stuffed teddy bear with a big red and green bow around its neck, sitting on the snow right in front of me. I smiled with great surprise and ran to it and picked it up with a hug, and looked to both ends of the street to see if Sky was hiding somewhere around. I then saw his car’s headlights turn on to my right at the end of the alley and shine on me and the bear; he had parked in the dark. He drove slowly to me with his music playing loud “I love you more than the sun and the stars” by Matthew West; coincidence? Maybe, but I sure melted. He had his window rolled down and looked at me smiling the sweetest smile. I kissed him and ran inside to drop off the bear to the amusement of my sister Taylor and ran back outside, jumped in his car, and left happy and smiling, kissing Sky because I couldn’t understand how he could be so cute.

Sky and I were together a while before Christmas; we were dating, but we had never made it official. So we didn’t call each other boyfriend or girlfriend but that’s pretty much what we were. One day I was on the bus with my best friend Ricky coming down from skiing on the mountain, and Sky and I were texting. He was asking me what we were exactly “a thing, dating, friends?” because he was getting asked everyday and didn’t really know what to say. I was in the same situation. I told him he should ask me that whenever he saw me next, because I didn’t think texting about it was the best way to figure it out. The next day we hung out he didn’t say anything about it. The day after that, December 23^rd, Sky said he didn’t know when he could hang out so he would just let me know whenever. All of a sudden I heard his car rumbling outside, waiting. Great, he hadn’t told me when he was coming and I wasn’t ready! I bounced and got all freaked out, the usual when you know you have to leave your house because someone’s waiting for you and you’re going way too slow when you’re trying to hurry. I was rushing in the basement trying to grab all I needed as I ran past it on my way out. I threw on a coat and went outside. “What are you doing here?!” Sky said “Do you want to go to the Timberline with me for a little?” with a calm, mature voice and those gorgeous eyes. I said “Sure!” even though it was past dinner time and I didn’t think we were going to get dessert, but I was excited just to go anywhere with Sky. “Oh well, adventures!” I thought. We walked in the restaurant through the back door; no one was there anymore except a couple waiters wrapping up. We went upstairs, it was empty too. Sky’s dad and some worker were cleaning up in the kitchen. The restaurant was quiet and comfy. “Hmm…what are we doing here?!” I was so curious and had no idea what was going on! Sky told me not look and wait a second as he turned around and reached for the top shelf of a tall, wooden closet. Next thing I saw was a cake he had made, rectangular, covered in white frosting, and with red and green frosting letters and decorations. It read “Official sugah?” (That’s what we called each other: “sugar”), and it had a Yes and a No, and he had drawn an arrow pointing yes. Around the cake were little swirls and sprinkles of red and green, making it look Christmassy and beautiful. A wave of happiness and joy invaded me from within, I smiled and looked at him, not believing he could be real. Impatient and nervous he said “So, what do you say, are we official?” to which I responded “Of course”. We kissed and hugged, so content and excited! Then he pulled out a small package wrapped in pink gift paper with a little white bow on it – where did that even come from, his pocket? He is a box of surprises! He gave it to me and said I couldn’t open it until my birthday, which was 3 days after. “Really? You’re gonna make me wait? Why can’t you just keep it and give it to me on my birthday? Ahhhh I can’t handle it!” so dramatic. Sky loves building up anticipation on me; that was the very beginning of it. But I managed to somehow not touch it until my birthday and that morning I opened it with enthusiasm. It was a precious necklace: a very thin silver chain with a heart shaped charm hanging on it. And that was the start of our long and beautiful journey of love.