Getty Owl Foundation

Thank You for Picking Me!

From Kate:

Getty I wanted to write this to you on what will be the 2nd Mother’s Day, a day I get to celebrate being your mommy.

Getty when you were born I was over the moon in love with you. The moment the nurse brought me to you, I knew you were something special. I was so excited to become a mom and more importantly, your mom. I’ll be honest I wasn’t sure what it meant to be a mom. Your Grammy had set the bar so high, that I didn’t know if I could do as good of a job.

In hindsight I think I read too much, I conjured up all kinds of things in my head of what I should already know about how to care for you that I think I really stressed myself out. I took classes, researched and one word I kept hearing was the word should. “You should breastfeed, you child should walk at a year old, teething should happen by 5 months.” And you know what Getty, I listened to all of it because I just wanted to do right by you. You deserved anything and everything.

Never in my wildest dreams could I every have imagined that something so devastating could shake our family foundation to the core like SMA did. I remember distinctly in between the pediatrician and neurology appointment looking at you and telling you, “Getty you can’t leave me.” I had no idea what fate was going to serve us, but there was something telling my heart that something wasn’t right. We had only known each other for a few months and for you to leave me was out of the question. Incomprehensible to think a diagnosis could be so grim.

My eyes were focused on your little body as he said, “two years”. I didn’t cry, I didn’t feel, I just froze.

Since that day your Daddy and I have done everything in or power to make sure that every day is filled with love and happiness.

Getty you are my constant teacher. You teach me to be patient, unconditional, resilient and strong. You continue to teach me humility and compassion. You are so forgiving of my “mommy moments”. I think what you continue to teach me and that I can’t thank you enough is if I follow my heart then anything is possible.

Getty you are my buddy. I look forward to sleeping by your side and waking up in your presence. I enjoy spending time with you during the day. You are so curious and mischievous. I enjoy watching you when you experience new things. Your caterpillars will be hatching soon and I look forward to experiencing that with you. The zoo is calling your name and I cannot wait to see you see live animals bigger than your kitties and puppy.

You have given me so many incredible memories in the last 13 months and I look forward to making more with you and daddy.

Getty I love you with all of my being and I want to thank you for letting me be your mommy, thank you for picking me. You are the best gift I could have ever asked for.

River Cats Tickets Giveaway!

From Kate:

So I had every intention to talk about three more Team Getty Runners last night, but maybe you can guess why I postponed………….yep, Getty was so snuggly and we were really enjoying our time together.

Tonight’s topic still has a sports theme but it is all about baseball. River Cats Baseball to be specific. May 24th will be Non-Profit Night at the ballpark and the Getty Owl Foundation was invited to be one of the organizations. People come from all over the Sacramento region to come see the River Cats play and we were so excited about getting even more SMA awareness out into the region. I always think that if one person knows about SMA they are bound to tell another and then another and then another. We will have a table at the game to pass out info on SMA and to help promote all of our upcoming events.

The outpouring of support to buy tickets was simply awesome. We were only asked to sell about 50 tickets and we sold over 130 instead. Thank you all for supporting us and purchasing tickets, looking forward to seeing you all there. I haven’t heard yet, but if we sold the most tickets out of all the non-profits that night, we would be able to throw out the first pitch. So I told Mark to work on his throwing form just in case. 🙂

That night will also be very special for our family. Getty will hopefully, (cross all fingers and toes) will be coming to the game. We need to do a couple of outings before hand to just be comfortable, but our goal is to go as a family. She just got a special hat in the mail today. I think she is ready, what do you think?

So since this is going to be a fantastic night and a memorable game for our family  and foundation we wanted to celebrate by doing a giveaway for 4 lawn seats. Another great aspect of this giveaway is that this game in on a Tuesday night which means Kids Eat Free and the tickets are transferable, so if you can’t make the game you can go to another.

So here is how you win, very simple indeed, just comment to this post and tell us your favorite baseball team.

For a 2nd entry option, include your favorite baseball memory. So for example, my favorite team is the San Fransisco Giants and my favorite baseball memory is when I got hit in the eye with a ball as a kid which left a wicked black eye. Another favorite memory is when the New York Mets won the pendant in 86′. Mookie Wilson hit that crazy ball along the 1st base line. Can’t wait to hear your favorite memory.

We will announce the winner of the 4 tickets next Tuesday, May 10th at 7pm.  Good luck to everyone!

Hair Combing 101

From Kate:

Let me start by saying that Getty loves her pink comb. I bought a package of them a few months ago and she picked the pink comb for her usual hair brushing. She enjoys when we brush her hair. She loves clips, she loves head bands, and frilly bows. Is this really my daughter? 🙂 So today she was holding her comb as usual, while watching The Big Brag, by Dr. Seuss in her stroller.

For the entire duration of the story I heard the “plunk” of a plastic comb and then a cry. I got up from the couch to find Getty had dropped her comb and was telling me to pick it up for her. This happened about 7 times and each time I laid it back in her hand and she gave me a big smile. “Here you go Miss Getty”, I said. Went back to the couch only to wait for another “plunk”.

Then I got smart. “I’ll just tie the comb to her hand and then she won’t be able to drop it.” And that is what I did. I used an arm sling to hold the comb in place.

I had taken my eyes off of Getty for a minute to write an email and then my eyes were distracted by a moving pink object.  I ran to get the camera. Man, I wish I could have gotten more footage, but here you go. She was combing her hair for a good two minutes.

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cfBx5Xx9xb4]

I have the girliest of girls and I couldn’t be more proud.

Breaking News, GETty Crafty is Back!

From Kate:

Our fabulous friend and fellow board member, Stacey is at it again! Planning, plotting, and orchestrating another amazing day in the park. With almost 70 vendors already signed up, we know it is going to be great day for a great cause. We hope to see you there!

Oh and a little secret……..we are giving out swag bags of stuff for the first 100 people. 🙂 Don’t miss out!

If you would like to sign up to be a vendor, email Stacey at staceyball@gmail.com. $30 for a 10×10 booth space.

If you would like up to date info on the craft fair, follow GETty Crafty on facebook.

Team Getty Runners: Shiloh, Linsey & Megan

From Kate:

It is Wednesday, you know the drill. More and more runners stepping up to be a part of this challenge, experience, and journey. Every time I write this post I am always so impressed and in awe of what all of these runners have signed up to do. Raising money for research to help find a cure for SMA, raising awareness about the #1 genetic killer of infants, and raising the bar for our community. All of you commitment is very humbling, thank you all. Tonight I introduce you to Shiloh, Linsey, and Megan.

Shiloh Harrison
Age: 28
Birthday: Oct 22
Favorite Colors: Baby poop green
Hobbies: Refurbishing Antique Furniture, Acrylic Painting, Interior Design, Writing
Interesting fact about yourself: I have traveled to 14 countries, seven of which were in Africa (my favorite continent).
Have you ever ran a marathon: Nope
Had you ever heard of SMA? I had never heard of it before Morgan Saunders taught me about it.

Bio: I am currently an Admissions Counselor at William Jessup University. Prior to this I was a Youth Pastor and was living in Manhattan while attending Graduate School at New York University. I love to read, paint, journal, mentor, play basketball, and be with friends. I am excited about challenging myself to do something like this and hopefully help Getty find full healing and health!

Linsey Pearson
Age: 18
DOB: 8-5-92
Favorite Colors: Green
Hobbies: Babysitting & Riding my bike 🙂
Interesting fact about yourself: I am the youngest of five kids, but I feel like the oldest.
Have you ever ran a marathon: I have not but I would love to!
Had you ever heard of SMA? I have from my cuzzy Morgie

Bio: I come from a family of 5 kids, which landed me with 3 older sisters and 1 older brother. I love my family to pieces. I look forward to running the relay with my sisters. I think that it is cool to help Getty by running a marathon. I am glad to be a part of this cause.

Megan Frederick
Age: 23
DOB: 6-11-87
Favorite Colors:
Hobbies: Black n White:)
Interesting fact about yourself; I love people!
Have you ever ran a marathon: nope, never.
Had you ever heard of SMA?
At a photoshoot my husband did he met a beautiful little girl with the biggest, prettiest blue eyes. Unfortunately Little Getty was diagnosed with SMA, but ever since we found out about her and SMA we have been helping to fight♥

Bio: I am a wife of 2 years to a fellow runner Tyler Frederick, and have been blessed with a now 14 month old son and a baby girl due June 10th. Words can not express the love I have for my babies and God has truly amazed me with Zykahs love in return.  We are glad to partner to help this beautiful baby out. Go Team Getty! Let’s help find a cure!