3.

A few glimpses of just some of the things that make children so cool:

This is our sweet little friend Austin shredding the slopes during our last snow.  Apparently they bundled him up, took him out, and he passed out as soon as they started pulling him around.  This makes me want to write a little love letter to winter and apologize for all of the mean things that I’ve been so thoughtlessly saying about it lately; without winter we would miss iconic moments like this one and the word “cozy” would only apply to something you cover your teapot with.  Sorry Winter, next hot chocolate’s on me, ok?

And not to be outdone, here is Asher, the little box head:(Are your knees twitching a little looking at that picture?  Snips, snails and puppydog tails?  I think not.  Little boys are clearly made of playdough.)

And while this is not my child, or one of his friends, here’s another darling picture to share with you:

This is a little lady named Nella, daughter of blogger, photographer, and mother, Kelle Hampton.  It was just about one year ago that Nella was born and revealed that she has what Kelle calls magically enhanced chromosomes, and what the lay person would call Down Syndrome.  I can’t remember how I found Kelle’s blog, Enjoying the Small Things, but I’ve been reading it for about a year now and I am always so moved by her photography, her grit, her zeal, and her desire to turn just about every minute of her life into a celebration.  In honor of Nella’s first birthday, Kelle and her family have set up a fund called Nella’s ONEder Fund to support the National Society for Down Syndrome (NDSS).  What I love about this, is that Kelle has asked everyone to contribute a little, $5 or $10, to help raise awareness and support for the 400,000 people with Down Syndrome.  And folks, it’s working!  Over the last week, through the support of her readers, Kelle has raised over $40,000 mostly through these small donations and I wanted to give you the opportunity to contribute a couple of bucks (the cost of a latte/magazine/3 pm snack) to this incredible cause, and feel the power of being a part of a whole lot of little that adds up to something really big.

As Kelle said, “The mission of the NDSS is to create a culture that fully accepts and includes individuals with Down syndrome.  Let me say that more clearly. The mission of the NDSS is to create a culture that fully accepts and includes our little girl. Our Nella.” Well, that got me.  Read Kelle’s full post here.

Click here if you would like to make a contribution to Nella’s ONEder Fund, and please feel free to share this on Facebook, Tweetytwiterrer, or anywhere else!

And if you have an extra moment and want to read one of the best pieces of no-holds-barred, honest, and inspiring writing about a birth story, click here to read about the day that Nella was born.  If you have ever given birth, I especially recommend reading this.  Just grab some tissues before you head over there.

So that’s all for today.  Aren’t children magical little beings?