Tuesday, May 22, 2012

$140

We are $140 away from reaching $2000! Keep spreading the word and let's train Cayleb's dog!

Monday, May 14, 2012

$1700 Reached

National Service Dog

Thank you so much to everyone who's contributed towards Cayleb's dog! Please keep spreading the word and keep watching the blog to find out about our first fund raiser coming up...

Friday, May 11, 2012

Congratulations Chazz

Photo courtesy of National Service Dogs.


Chazz is the NSD that visited us during our eligibility interview. Chazz just graduated from training and has now been placed with a very lucky family!! I'd be lying to say I'm not jelious. Chazz is an amazing, very friendly dog.

Tuesday, May 8, 2012

$1500!!

It with jubilant enthusiasm that I am announcing we have reached $1500!!! I am so grateful for all the amazing people who are showing Cayleb support! Thank you!

Sunday, May 6, 2012

How much is that doggie...

'How much is that doggie in the window? Woof Woof, the one with the waggly tail? How much is that doggie in the window? Woof Woof I do hope that doggie's for sale!' - Cayleb

Every time Cayleb sees a dog or hears one bark; or whenever he recalls his visit from Chazz a NSD, Cayleb sings that song. It always makes me smile to think that the person who wrote that song never would have thought the answer was $30K!

Let's keep spreading the word and get Cayleb that doggie in the window!

Saturday, May 5, 2012

$1,000

Paws for Cayleb has reached the $1,000 mark!!! Thank you so much to everyone who has donated so far! Please keep spreading the word!

Thursday, May 3, 2012

Meet Cayleb


When my husband and I were first married and talked about our future family, we didn’t plan on having a child with special needs. I doubt anyone ever does. But as we watched our son miss milestone after milestone, it became very apparent to us that he was not following the same developmental path as his older brother. He was late to roll over, clap, sit, crawl, walk and late to talk. When he did start talking it was only a matter of time before he would lose the new word he had worked so hard to acquire. We became heartbroken as we watched our baby boy struggle to accomplish what most see as the simplest feats. Our son was diagnosed with Autism spectrum disorder just days after he turned 2. For a while, it was all I could do to see through this giant label that had been placed on my son. I began to focus on what he couldn’t do and started to decide what would never be able to do – that is until he proved me wrong.

I would like you to meet my son, Cayleb. Cayleb is an extremely determined little boy that will never allow this little thing called autism to stand in his way. Since his second birthday, Cayleb has gone from a mere five word vocabulary to several word sentences. For a boy whose only form of play was to spin whatever object he could get his hands on, Cayleb has started to pretend play. Like all 3 year old boys, Cayleb loves to run, jump, climb and wrestle with his brother. Cayleb adores music and it is a rare occasion to find him without a song in his heart, singing at the top of his lungs. He has worked so hard with an amazing team of therapists and has achieved more than I ever could have imagined he would.

But as far as he has come, the first thing everyone notices about Cayleb, is something he wasn’t taught and he didn’t have to ‘work on it’, he was born with it and it’s contagious. Cayleb has the inherent ability to melt the hearts of those who are lucky enough to meet him. No matter how big a challenge is placed before him, Cayleb’s sweet nature and pure joy are never defeated. Not only did Cayleb not have to be taught to love life, he has managed to teach us. I now know that there is nothing Cayleb cannot do, and nothing that he won’t be able to do – because once Cayleb has set his mind to do something, he will figure out a way.

We are absolutely delighted that Cayleb has been chosen to receive a service dog – and on a life path that guarantees many more challenges, are thrilled Cayleb will have a best friend to share in his struggles, joys and in his love of life!