Time to Catch Up!

Wow, it's hard to believe it has been over 18 months since I've updated this Blog! I guess I've been busy... and yes, lots of things have changed. I thought I'd use this post to introduce myself as the creator and writer of this Blog. And, I'll start incorporating the rest of the kiddos as well.

I appreciate that you are taking a moment out of your day to learn a little more about me and why I choose to remain positive, optimistic and especially grateful even in the most trying of times. It just makes sense!

My name is Deborah Caswell, aka Graci's Mommy, and I am a Northwestern girl at heart, as that is where I grew up and have spent most of my life. I lived two years in Dallas, TX and returned to the Northwest in the Spring of Y2K (remember that scare? It sure proved to be profitable for a lot of Technology consultants and gave me a great platform to build a wonderful career. More about that later…) I currently live in San Diego, CA where the weather is great and the views are fantastic. And, it makes for a perfect visit when my family comes to town to spend time with my kiddos.

Speaking of kiddos, I have three – 16yrs, 4yrs and 2yrs. Two girls and the youngest is a boy… and they are just amazing. They have each, in their own way, taught me so much about Life, Love, Generosity and Respect than I could ever have imagined. I am so GRATEFUL for each one of them… they truly are my LIGHT.

When Graci was born with Down Syndrome, or Trisomy 21, in March 2009 it changed my life forever. In the BEST possible way! She has been such a blessing to my entire family and has really changed our lives in the most amazing ways. It’s funny, when you first have a baby with Down Syndrome, you hear that statement over and over again. “She is a blessing and will truly change your lives.” But, it’s hard in the moment to imagine how much things will change. It is magical indeed… watching friends and family as their eyes are opened, minds are changed and spirits lifted just by being a part of Graci’s life.

One thing to consider if one parent gives up a job or career to stay home and care for a child with a disability… or any child for that matter… is that it may be difficult to get back to work when you and your child are ready. Seeking at-home opportunities right away may be a good option for you. I’ve got some ideas on the right hand side of this page.

From International Software Consultant to At Home Entrepreneur

I’ve always been an Entrepreneur really. I can remember the Lemonade Stands as a kid and the Pet Rocks I used to paint and sell to the neighbors. I was eight years old and would knock on doors and show my painted pet rocks. The best part of that story is when I would paint more rocks the next weekend and sell them to the same neighbors over and over again. I can remember how great that felt to sell those rocks and how proud I was to earn that money. Today, I can’t drive past a Lemonade Stand without making a purchase and giving high-5′s to those future entrepreneurs!

In the early 90′s, I was introduced to Personal Development/Motivational books and tapes. The introduction was through a Network Marketing company that I became involved with, but never built the business. Instead, I focused on what I was learning through the books and tapes. My car became my University where I learned so much about how we really do manifest what we think about most. I began focusing on what I wanted with my career, and opportunities to climb the corporate ladder began to open up to me. I attribute my corporate successes to hard work and the BELIEF that I could do any task that was asked of me. Having the correct Mindset is definitely the KEY to success!

I became Self Employed in late 2006 and began working with clients in Europe. At the time, my daughter was 9 and we lived very close to her Dad and step-Mom. When I had to take one or two weeks to travel to Europe, my daughter simply stayed at her Dad’s house. It was a so nice to know she was in good hands while I was away working. And, when I had to spend eight straight weeks there, she was able to spend three of them with me with the help of my Sister who flew over and vacationed with her and my Mom who stayed and flew home with her. What fun we had while she saw all of London with her Aunt and once my Mom got there, the four of us took the Chunnel to Paris! What a great experience for my little girl. I am forever GRATEFUL to my family for helping to make this happen. I’ve learned a lot of very important lessons in my life. One of them is the fact that I took for granted the amount of help my daughter’s Dad and step-Mom were able to give while I flew back and forth to Europe for work. I moved to San Diego in 2008 and lost that support system, which ultimately made keeping up with my clients extremely difficult.

I am a firm believer in that everything happens for a reason and once you get through whatever it is, you are a stronger person for having gone through it. This BELIEF has helped me through so many crazy life events and I am so GRATEFUL for understanding this concept. After struggling for nearly a year to get to Europe each time my clients needed me, I was finally way too pregnant to fly anymore. We were about to have a little girl and were so excited to welcome her into our lives.

As noted above, little Graci was born with Down Syndrome and had a huge hole in her heart which ultimately required surgery to fix. (You can read more about this on the tab called Heart Surgery) When my clients in Europe got the news, they suggested I perform all of my tasks from home and were quite happy to continue working with me. I am still so GRATEFUL for the working relationship I had with the Project Teams. I took a month off and then got back to work on London time. Starting my day at 2:00 am so that I could be available to the project team and still be the main caregiver for Graci during the day. I know it sounds harsh, but now my struggle to get to Europe was gone and I was able to keep working. Life happens and when you choose to see the positive and work through it, it just gets better and better!

Nearly two years after Graci was born, I gave birth to our son. Perfectly happy and healthy and we were overjoyed. But, by this time, my projects in Europe were coming to an end and billable hours were about to go away. It was at this moment I realized I should have been working on a second home-based business to replace my income. I thought there would be a project 4, 5 and 6 to cover several more years of work, but with the state of the economy it just wasn’t in the cards. At this point, Graci was still receiving weekly in-home therapy, where I was learning how to manage her care and our newborn son was needing my full time attention. Finding another client who would allow me to work 100% from home proved impossible. And so began my search for the perfect home-based business.

I have found a Network Marketing businesses and several Affiliate Marketing businesses that I am currently enjoying. One24 is my favorite Network Marketing business as I love what the products have done for me and my family. I will be forever GRATEFUL for the way their flagship SuperFood product changed the course of Graci's life. She had struggled for two years with terrible constipation which led to an eating delay, which ultimately led to a speech delay. It’s funny the things you learn when you have a special needs child. Who knew when a child has an aversion to food it will likely cause a delay in their speech? I sure didn’t. Once Graci started eating a smoothie every day with 30+ SuperFooods – fruits, vegetables and brown rice protein, her stools became normal. Once her stools were normal, she started eating foods other than jar foods. (She was struggling to eat Stage 3 baby food at the time) And, once she was eating well, she started talking more and her speech really picked up! While I used to make a smoothie for both of my little ones each day, I now simply shake a scoop into water and I’ve replaced all juice in my house with this.

I am currently on the Advisory Board with this company and my focus really is to get the product, NatraBurst, into as many children possible before they get to school. What a difference the landscape of the classroom becomes when every child has had six full servings of fruits and vegetables with protein BEFORE they get to school. NatraBurst is a blood/sugar normalizer and since childhood diabetes is on the rise each year, this is a great tasting solution to the problem. I was happy to see the television program, “The Biggest Loser” finally tackle the Childhood Obesity crisis issue in it’s latest run. For more information on this issue and on the NatraBurst product, go to www.BeNatraLEAN.com. I am happy to answer any questions you have.

You Become What You Think About Most

Remember this… ‘Much gathers more and loss leads to greater loss’. Choose to focus on that which you want rather than where your circumstances may be today. Where you are today is not where you’ll be. Allow yourself to be inspired by the good and by the bad things that happen to you. What you learn is to hang on, hang in and have hope. Difficulties will surely become a great life lesson.

The intention of my Blog is to INSPIRE you to think beyond your current circumstances and to visualize yourself in abundance… living the life you have imagined. I saw a motivational picture on Facebook the other day. The caption read, “Frame every so-called disaster with these words: ‘In five years, will this matter?’ “ My answer to the questions is YES! It will matter because of the phenomenal lessons you will have learned because of having gone through it. Life is not the destination… it’s the journey. CHOOSE to enjoy it every step of the way in GRATITUDE and just BE HAPPY!