Riley is a vibrant, beautiful, 3-year-old little girl who lives in Louisiana with her parents, Christy and Jerry. She also has four other siblings: Haley (11), Hunter (10), Lexie (9), and baby brother Anthony (15 months)! All together, they make one, big, happy family.
While I've never had the pleasure of meeting Riley in real life, her story came to my attention thanks to our friends, Blake and Heather. (They are the rock-star parents to a little guy named Everett that you may all remember.) And when I learned about little Riley, I wanted to share her story with you.
You see, Riley has Phelan-McDermid Syndrome. I know...I had never heard of it either. When I spoke with Riley's Mom, Christy, on Facebook about the disease earlier today, she said this: "It's a very aggressive, autistic-like disease in behavior and mannerisms, but it's not autism by far. It's the deletion of chromosome 22q13.3." When that didn't make me any less confused, she sent me this graphic:
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That's when I started to understand Phelan-McDermid Syndrome a little bit better.
Riley is a 3 year old child in an 11-month-old's body and mind. She suffers from absence seizures, GERD, and she is unable to walk or talk, though she is able to communicate through a special device. She has a high tolerance to pain, she does not sweat, and she can only eat a special kind of baby food because of an allergy to protein. Little Riley has therapy 3 times a week: one day each of speech therapy, physical therapy, and occupational therapy.
As you can imagine, with all the therapy sessions and doctor's visits, it doesn't leave a girl much time to enjoy her Dora the Explorer (Riley's favorite thing, ever.) It also doesn't leave much money in Mom and Dad's bank account. Jerry works hard as a railroad employee to support his family, and Christy stays at home with the kids, since Riley needs so much hands-on attention. When it became obvious to this crafty mom of 5 that cash flow might be an issue, she immediately turned to her hobbies as a way to make a little dough.
Christy creates adorable bibs, dresses and blankets for kids, and sells them on her website, Lil Bandit Bibs. Each item on the site is lovingly handmade, and the design possibilities are endless.
You'll find fabrics ranging from floral patterns, to sports teams, to your child's favorite cartoon characters. The bibs are made with special-needs children in mind--each one is reversible, easy to remove, and soft to the touch. Christy also offers embroidery, which adds that extra-special something to any item you order. So if you're looking for a gift for an upcoming baby shower or birthday party, you've just found the perfect place to shop!
And the best news of all? The proceeds from every sale go to help pay for Riley's medicine and therapy. Even if you don't have a little one in your life who would love to have a soft, cuddly blanket, you could help this family simply by sharing Christy's website. So take a minute out of your busy day to visit Lil' Bandit Bibs. Let's make Riley's life (and her family's life, too!) a little bit easier, one bib at a time!
(You'll notice a new button in the left-hand column of Abby Gabs. It will take you straight to Lil' Bandit Bibs!! Want one for your own website? Let me know and I'll send you the picture!)
