Innocence in It's Purest Form

David Aldous & Angie

David has been in love with Angie since they met in junior high school. When they were in high school and old enough to date, we did a triple date with them and David's parents, John & Susan Aldous. We went to Applebee's because that is Angie's favorite place.

David turned to me out of the clear blue sky and said, "Heavenly Father made Angie just for me. We can't be married in this life, but I know we will be together in the next life." He caught me off guard. All I could say was a sheepish, "Oh?"

He has managed to keep in touch even though we moved away from Draper. On August 23, 2008, David and his parents came to visit for the weekend. We went to dinner at Golden Corral and played games afterward. Saturday morning the guys took a walk up Half-way Wash. We then enjoyed a brunch at the house and more games. In the afternoon Susan and I and David and Angie went shopping for a few games for David to take back to his group home. Duane and I were busy in the evening, but David and his parents took Angie to a movie and for an ice cream. I think she really enjoyed her weekend with her special friend and his parents.

David has Prader-Willi Syndrome. He has some reasoning difficulties and problems with handling his frustrations, but his biggest challenge is food. I can't imagine what a living hell he must be experiencing because his body is always hungry. He has never known the feeling of being satisfied. As a result of his penchant for eating, he gets himself into a little trouble with his caregivers.

But he is a sweet young man. His intentions are always pure and he wants so desperately to do the right thing, especially when it comes to Angie.

I really don't know how Angie feels about David. She doesn't really talk about him much, but she is always excited to see him.

I think it will be wonderful in the next life when these special children of our Heavenly Father are no longer restricted by their imperfect human bodies and minds . . .

Angela Joy -- Our "Angel of Joy"

Anyone who knows us knows we have a very special daughter who has Down Syndrome. Keep in mind that she is not "a Downs." She is Angie who happens to have Down Syndrome. Down Syndrome is not a person. It is a condition that occurred at the moment of conception. I always marvel that an extra chromosome should cause so much trouble. If anything, it should result in the individual being gifted.

Angie has been a complete joy in our lives. (Thus the middle name "Joy." We named her that in faith because at the time we had no clue.) The world was a very dark and scary place when we were told of her condition right after she was born. Our minds wandered in so many horrible directions. Our world -- and that of her siblings -- was changed forever. We were so fortunate to have supportive doctors and family to buoy us up during that first year. People who understood and loved us -- and her -- unconditionally.


Infancy and childhood weren't too difficult once we got past the acceptance stage. There were some health issues. A good deal of time was spent in doctors' offices and hospitals dealing with challenges like a partial ASD (a whole in her heart), atresia (blockages) in both ears, leg perthes (a joint condition in the hip), loose neck muscles (a result of poor muscle tone) which resulted in the fusion of her first two vertebrae and a condition in which one leg was growing faster than the other. (Thank goodness these things didn't hit us all at once!) Other than that, there were the usual colds, flus, ear infections, tonsilitis. And believe it or not, we were grateful!

Angie was blessed with teachers all through her school days who loved her enough to insist that she learn and progress wherever possible. They didn't sit back and make excuses just because she was "handicapped." And they (among others) shared some priceless advice which has helped guide us in guiding her.

Angie began her education at the age of two. She attended Jordan Valley School (for special needs children). We mainstreamed her into the "normal" population when she was in the third grade. All through her public school education she attended classes where she could interact with others and learn certain skills, but her academics were taught in either resource or special education classes. After graduating from high school, she went on to "college" at South Valley School, another school for special education students where job training and social skills were greatly emphasized.

Upon graduating from "college," she worked in the kitchen at Draper Elementary School as an assistant. She helped prepare the lunches and assisted in serving. It was her job to fill the fruit cups, prepare the silverware, etc. The lunch ladies were so good to her and she loved her job, even though it remained a volunteer position.

We moved to St. George in December of 2005. Her adjustment went better than ours did. Even though she did not find work right away and she no longer had "Angel" Mutual, she didn't seem to struggle; maybe it's because her grandparents (Mom and Pop McCloud) live only ten minutes away now and her sisters (Jaime and Lisa) are in Las Vegas, which is only an hour and forty minutes from door to door. Angie has a gift: she can adjust to being anywhere as long as she is loved and has time to watch a few movies in peace and quiet.

In 2007 we attempted to find Angie a real job, one that would pay her. But the job market was so poor, even for "normal" people, that we decided to let her continue volunteering at our neighborhood school , Coral Cliffs Elementary (in St. George). She is happy there and loves the ladies she works with. Besides, nearly every dime she might make would be deducted from her social security. It's not worth the paperwork.

She is now 25 years old; and as I look back, I can see that most of the challenges we had with her were only bumps in the road, not major roadblocks even though they may have seemed such at the time. She truly is a gift from our Father in Heaven. She is very close to the Spirit and is a constant reminder that we are all children of a loving Heavenly Father and he most assuredly has a plan for all of us, including her.

Disneyland & A Quarter Century

Jaime had been wanting to go to Disneyland for a long time and she had been dreaming about taking Angie. So on April 26, 2008 that trip to Disneyland became a reality. The occasion (not that one was needed) was Angie's 25th birthday. Jaime and Rob were kind enough to include me.

It was a wonderful, carefree vacation. Rob made it his responsibility to take care of all of us and make sure we were comfortable and had plenty of liquids -- and ice cream.

Angie was such a great sport! She had very specific ideas about what she wanted to ride after she caught on to the whole experience. We rode nearly all the rides in the Magic Kingdom and the funnest ones in California Adventure. We had to coax her a little at times when the lines went up and over, but she braved through it and was willing to "go again." I'll never understand how she can be afraid of heights and yet love the roller coasters . . .


We surprised her with a Princess Luncheon where she met Ariel, Belle, Cinderella, Princess Aurora (Sleeping Beauty), and most importantly Snow White. A couple of the hightlights at the luncheon were her stealing Rob's napkin in a panic to wipe her mouth and her popping out of her chair and leading the entire restaurant as they sang happy birthday to her.

We found ourselves wearing out in the afternoons, so we went back to the hotel for a nap and had a leisurely dinner before returning for evening adventures.

Some of our favorite quotes from Angie were "Urry, Mommy. Snow White waiting," (this said as we were packing for the trip) "go again," "BORING!"

Thanks again to Jaime and Rob for including me in this once in a lifetime vacation.