Tee Shirt Designs

Exciting news!

Dawn has been bugging me to do something.  She has been wanting to start her own business, so she and I sat down and talked about what it would look like.  In the end, we decided on tee shirts and sweat shirts.

Dawn is super excited, and she is filling a little notebook with ideas she has for future designs.  It's nice to see her so enthusiastic about something she did - especially when you consider how many people believe folks with developmental disabilities cannot do much and don't hesitate to share those beliefs.  However, those people have not encountered my little sister!  She is, quite frankly, a rock star!

If you're interested in adding to your wardrobe... Head over to this place:  https://teespring.com/stores/ddj-designs.  There you'll find several shirts she put together (with a little help from her sister).

If you order a little something for yourself, please come back here and let us know what you think of the design and the product.  We want this feedback to help us decide if we'll do more.

Happy Birthday, Dawn!

Today is my little sister's birthday.  Okay, let's face facts... She isn't "little" anymore.  However, to me, she will always be my little sister.  To you, she is Dawn.  To me, she is Monkey.  To you, I am Jack.  To her, I am Frog. But, I digress...

On this joyous occasion, I would like to share a sampling of the reasons why I am so very grateful for her birthday.  Let's begin...

• When she was born, I didn't just get a new sister - I got a buddy-in-crime.
• She is the funniest person on the planet.  No one makes me laugh so hard my stomach hurts and eyes water until I'm blind.
• Speaking of funny, no one laughs better than she does.  I've received a lot of compliments on my boisterous laugh.  I've been told that when I laugh - people smile.  When my sister laughs - people laugh.  Not because they are laughing at her, but because her laughter is so infectious.
• She has this great ability to not let me slide into being an asshole.  Yes, I said it.  But I have such a high potential for being an asshole, yet I've never stepped over the line.  Why? Because of her.
• No matter how badly I screw up, she is still on my side.
• No matter how amazing I think I am, she believes I'm even more amazing.  But she also tells me when she believes I'm not as amazing as I think I am.
• I have a permanent co-pilot for every adventure I go on.  And, sometimes, she tries to take the controls of our adventure(s).
• Every day she tells me I'm "stuck" with her "forever" and when I ask her if that is a threat or a promise, she tells me "it's both" without missing a beat.
• She will eat all the strawberries I'm allergic to, and I don't have to share my chocolate because she is allergic to chocolate.
• She is someone I can talk to about cameras, movies, and adventures.
• She is always willing to roll up her sleeves and participate in my hair-brained ideas.
• She misses the U.K. as much as I do and is always ready to talk about plans for a return trip.
• She wants a puppy named Lucy to go with the puppy I want to name Ethel (one day!).
• When I said I want to go to Antarctica and photograph the place - she asked what she should pack for the trip.

 And those are just a few of the reasons why her birth was the best thing to happen to the world (and me).

So today we're celebrating her birthday.  I admit, we started a little early.  Here she is with the bouquet of flowers she picked out.  And, chances are, we'll be celebrating her birthday for the rest of the week.  Why not? There is no better reason to have a celebrate!

And here she is with another early present... a little balloon bouquet - complete with Tinkerbell.  One day I'm going to have to get around to taking her to Walt Disney World... she loves Tinkerbell.    That's going on my "to do" list.

Hope you enjoy the day as much as we are going to.

Happy Monday! Happy Labor Day! And, Happy Birthday, Dawn!

Happy Birthday, Little Sister!

Today is this person's birthday... Who is she? Well, if you've been reading this blog on a regular basis you would know who she is but just in case you are new, I'll fill you in on the details.  This is my little sister, Dawn.  She is the Kirk to my Spock, the Watson to my Sherlock, and the Louise to my Thelma.  She is literally the best person I have ever known, and I am quite confident that she is the best person who has ever existed.

There is 11 months between us in age, so for the next 18 days - she and I are the same age.  Of course, when we were younger - I didn't heard the end of it.  Now that we are older... It doesn't necessarily matter.  What does matter is Dawn makes me laugh harder, try harder, and sing louder, so I refuse to go anywhere without her.  Her laugh is infectious; her smile is joyous; and, her adventurous spirit is life affirming.  She always smashes through other people's assumptions and expectations of her, and she never lets anyone get away without trying.

When we were toddlers, I thought she was my doll.  When we were kids, I thought she was a nuisance (because she tagged along EVERYWHERE I went), but when we became older teenagers and beyond, she became my first mate, co-pilot, and partner-in-crime. 

Today is her birthday... Today is the best day of the year because without today, I wouldn't have my Monkey.

She's Telling Me Something...

  

One of the fun things I like to do with Dawn is visit the bookstore.  Once a month, she and I head to the bookstore and she gets to pick out a book or couple of magazines that catch her eye.  While there, we often lay claim on a couple of chairs and talk.  It's more bonding than shopping, and we always walk away with smiles on our face.

Yesterday was our bookstore day, and this time she and I both decided we would look at magazines instead of books.  The magazines above are the ones I picked out.  They're typically magazines that I read, along with a few others.  But these were the magazines I found the most interesting - without hesitation.

Dawn? Well, these were the magazines she picked out.  She had no hesitation, and when I tried to encourage her to get at least one magazine that was different - she insisted on these two.  I think she's telling me something.

Happy Thursday!