Prom, Fantasy Football And A Special Video SammyCalls podcast

21:39

Sam, Jenna and Kevin come up with the best prank ever in honor of the full moon! Sam Balegno has Down Syndrome, lives in Massachusetts and eats a lot of pizza. Jenna Balegno (his older sister) lives in California, has a dog named Norman and eats a lot of pizza. Listen in on their casual and candid phone calls to each other and get a little insight on what it means to have Down Syndrome… and more importantly… what it doesn’t mean. #knowdownsyndrome…

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Episode 12 - On the news!! 19:42

9 years ago19:42

19:42

We were featured on CBS News Channel 8 in San Diego! Listen to us catch up on the segment after it aired! Sam Balegno has Down Syndrome, lives in Massachusetts and eats a lot of pizza. Jenna Balegno (his older sister) lives in California, has a dog named Norman and eats a lot of pizza. Listen in on their casual and candid phone calls to each other and get a little insight on what it means to have Down Syndrome… and more importantly… what it doesn’t mean. #knowdownsyndrome Click here to watch us on CBS News Channel 8!…

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Episode 11 - I have a really important question to ask you... 8:28

9 years ago8:28

8:28

Kevin asks Sammy a very important question: Can I marry your sister? Sam Balegno has Down Syndrome, lives in Massachusetts and eats a lot of pizza. Jenna Balegno (his older sister) lives in California, has a dog named Norman and eats a lot of pizza. Listen in on their casual and candid phone calls to each other and get a little insight on what it means to have Down Syndrome… and more importantly… what it doesn’t mean. #knowdownsyndrome…

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The Fantasy Football Matchup Heard Round the World 28:19

9 years ago28:19

28:19

We've been gone for two weeks because Sam wouldn't talk to Jenna after she BEAT HIM in their first week matchup of Fantasy Football... but we are back folks! Sam Balegno has Down Syndrome, lives in Massachusetts and eats a lot of pizza. Jenna Balegno (his older sister) lives in California, has a dog named Norman and eats a lot of pizza. Listen in on their casual and candid phone calls to each other and get a little insight on what it means to have Down Syndrome… and more importantly… what it doesn’t mean. know #downsyndrome…

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Episode 9 - Reunited! 15:17

9 years ago15:17

15:17

This week Jenna went home for a visit, a Fantasy Football draft and a whole lot more... Sam Balegno has Down Syndrome, lives in Massachusetts and eats a lot of pizza. Jenna Balegno (his older sister) lives in California, has a dog named Norman and eats a lot of pizza. Listen in on their casual and candid phone calls to each other and get a little insight on what it means to have Down Syndrome… and more importantly… what it doesn’t mean. know #downsyndrome…

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Prom, Fantasy Football and a special video 20:59

9 years ago20:59

20:59

Welcome to the SammyCalls podcast! This week, Sammy talks about his recent prom, watches a video from a few really cool fans and tells us his top picks for fantasy football. Sam Balegno has Down Syndrome, lives in Massachusetts and eats a lot of pizza. Jenna Balegno (his older sister) lives in California, has a dog named Norman and eats a lot of pizza. Listen in on their casual and candid phone calls to each other and get a little insight on what it means to have Down Syndrome… and more importantly… what it doesn’t mean. know #downsyndrome Watch the Video!…

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Sammy does Twitter 18:10

9 years ago18:10

18:10

Welcome to the SammyCalls podcast! This week, Sammy updates us on his group home mission and is introduced to Twitter. Sam Balegno has Down Syndrome, lives in Massachusetts and eats a lot of pizza. Jenna Balegno (his older sister) lives in California, has a dog named Norman and eats a lot of pizza. Listen in on their casual and candid phone calls to each other and get a little insight on what it means to have Down Syndrome… and more importantly… what it doesn’t mean. know #downsyndrome…

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A little game of 'Who do you love more?" 16:42

9 years ago16:42

16:42

Sammy starts a game with Jenna and Kevin that gets HEATED! Who do you love more?! The whole episode this week is basically just a back and forth game of “Who/what do you love more?” between Sam, Kevin and I. Sammy cooked this one up himself and the actual conversation went on for over an hour (this is essentially the highlight reel). Sammy’s mind works in mysterious ways. I love when he just goes off the cuff, gets creative and is so interactive like this. This is when his personality shines through and he really is brilliant… and kind of weird (just like me – minus the brilliant part). ___________________ Sam Balegno has Down Syndrome, lives in Massachusetts and eats a lot of pizza. Jenna Balegno (his older sister) lives in California, has a dog named Norman and eats a lot of pizza. Listen in on their casual and candid phone calls to each other and get a little insight on what it means to have Down Syndrome… and more importantly… what it doesn’t mean. Welcome to the SammyCalls podcast!…

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Episode 5 - Sammy has some big news! 27:38

9 years ago27:38

27:38

This week is a special episode... Sammy tells us some pretty big news and we talk to both my mom and my dad about it! We hope you enjoy! Sam Balegno has Down Syndrome, lives in Massachusetts and eats a lot of pizza. Jenna Balegno (his older sister) lives in California, has a dog named Norman and eats a lot of pizza. Listen in on their casual and candid phone calls to each other and get a little insight on what it means to have Down Syndrome… and more importantly… what it doesn’t mean. _________ My relationship with my brother is definitely different. I've known forever that he has Down Syndrome but it seems like every few years of my life I have come to some epiphany about us... When I was in first grade, I thought that I was born with Down Syndrome too. That I grew out of it and Sam would eventually too. My parents had to somehow break it to me that I actually never had Down Syndrome, and that Sam was special. When I moved away to college, I met a whole new group of friends and realized that not everyone knows someone with Down Syndrome... and that some people don't even know what it is at all. It just never crossed my mind that I would have to explain what it was to someone, because I just assumed everyone knew. Then a couple of years ago, when Sam came out to visit me without my parents, I was forced to address the fact that a large portion of my relationship with my brother consists of this very blurry line between being his sibling and being his caretaker. I had been completely unaware of that reality up until that point. So when Sammy told us this week that he was thinking about moving into a group home, I got this wave of emotion that I was not expecting. I felt scared and almost sad about it. Of course, I am fully supportive of him being more independent but I think my inner caretaker kicked in and all of a sudden I was worried for him. This is where Sammy swoops in and demonstrates his incredibly insightful side. He comforted me. He told me that he'd been through what I am going through emotionally. That he had to watch me move away to college in South Carolina, and then the West Coast. That he was worried about me too... but that he had to let go. I don't think anyone could have comforted me more in that moment. He brought me back to being his sister.…

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Episode 4 - SammyPRANKS! 15:09

9 years ago15:09

15:09

This week we have a special SammyPRANKS episode for you!! Listen in on Sammy pranking not one, but TWO people in 15 minutes. The guy is a master pranker. Enjoy! Sam Balegno has Down Syndrome, lives in Massachusetts and eats a lot of pizza. Jenna Balegno (his older sister) lives in California, has a dog named Norman and eats a lot of pizza. Listen in on their casual and candid phone calls to each other and get a little insight on what it means to have Down Syndrome… and more importantly… what it doesn’t mean. _________ If you have listened to the first few episodes of this podcast or have ever met Sam Balegno, you know he has an amazing sense of humor. In the more recent years, Sammy has become obsessed with pranks. He watches hours of them on YouTube and then tries some of them out on my parents or any other innocent bystander who happens to be in his vicinity. He has gotten pretty good at them. I'm almost positive he got my Dad to drink toilet water once. Anyways, this episode, Sammy manages to prank my dad AND Kevin in about a 15 minute time frame and it is hysterical. He was actually wearing a mask for this entire phone call, I wish I thought to take a screenshot so I could share it here. Sam and I hope you get as big a kick out of it as we did... Enjoy!…

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Episode 3 - A bad joke, tattoos and Idaho 18:29

9 years ago18:29

18:29

In this episode Jenna tells a joke that falls flat, Sam is now famous and wants a free tattoo… and so much more! We hope you love it! Sam Balegno has Down Syndrome, lives in Massachusetts and eats a lot of pizza. Jenna Balegno (his older sister) lives in California, has a dog named Norman and eats a lot of pizza. Listen in on their casual and candid phone calls to each other and get a little insight on what it means to have Down Syndrome… and more importantly… what it doesn’t mean. Welcome to the SammyCalls podcast! _________ After the first episode of SammyCalls I wrote about a pamphlet my parents had made when we were younger called "Just Like You" in the show notes . After reading, my dad sent a few copies of the pamphlet to me so I could see the real deal. I actually can't believe how vividly I remembered the details of it but it must have made an impression! I wanted to type out the contents here so you can see what my mom and dad were thinking, as fairly new parents of a child with Down Syndrome in 1992. {Cover} Just Like You What friends want to know about kids with Down Syndrome. {Inside} If you look and listen carefully, you will see... we are not so different, you and me. JUST LIKE YOU. I am a kid with Down Syndrome and I'm just like you. I like running and jumping and playing catch. I like pizza and cheeseburgers, but I don't like brussel sprouts much. I laugh when I'm happy and cry when I'm sad. I dream about spaceships and going to the moon. I like birthday parties, especially mine, and having friends over to play. When I grow up, I want to be a race car driver or a lifeguard , or the person who takes care of animals at the zoo. But most of all, I want to have friends, just like you. EVER WONDER WHAT DOWN SYNDROME IS? Everyone has millions of tiny little cells inside them that you can only see with a microscope. And inside each cell are even tinier things called chromosomes. Your chromosomes decide things like how tall you will be, the color of your hair, and whether you will look more like your mother or your father. Most people have 46 chromosomes in each cell. But kids with Down Syndrome have an extra one. You can't catch Down Syndrome. It is something you're born with. EVER WONDER WHAT IT'S LIKE TO HAVE IT? Having Down Syndrome means I have to try a lot harder than most kids to learn things. Sometimes, learning my school work is like being in a room full of grownups talking about things I don't understand. Has that ever happened to you? Having Down Syndrome also means my muscles don't always work as well as other kids. Have you ever tried to run fast in the water at the beach? The water slows you down and sometimes makes you fall. That's what it's like when I run on the playground. And having Down Syndrome means I can't always speak clearly enough for other kids to understand. When I try to say some words, it's like talking with your mouth full. Sometimes I use sign language instead of talking. Do you know any signs? I can teach you. WHAT'S SO SPECIAL, ANYWAY? Some people treat me special because I have Down Syndrome. I need special teachers to help me keep up with my school work and to help me learn how to speak better. But I don't need to be treated special by my friends. All I need is for you to give me a little more time to think about things, then look and listen carefully when I speak. Besides that, all I want is to be treated just like you. ___ Inspiration by Sam Balegno, Grade K Child's point of view by Jenna Balegno, Grade 3…

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Episode 2 - Bullying and chicken pattaaays 16:15

9 years ago16:15

16:15

This episode Sam and Jenna (and Kevin) talk about bullying... chicken pattaaays... our step families... and so much more! We hope you love it! Sam Balegno has Down Syndrome, lives in Massachusetts and eats a lot of pizza. Jenna Balegno (his older sister) lives in California, has a dog named Norman and eats a lot of pizza. Listen in on their casual and candid phone calls to each other and get a little insight on what it means to have Down Syndrome... and more importantly... what it doesn't mean. Welcome to the SammyCalls podcast! ________ Sam and I were chatting about the podcast a couple of weeks back and I randomly asked him what he wanted to talk about in the first few episodes and without missing a beat he blurted out that he wanted to discuss Bullying. Needless to say, I was surprised... in a good way. I do want to keep the podcast light but at the same time, life isn't always cupcakes and rainbows, am I right? The whole point of SammyCalls is to expose people to something they might know very little about. Or to just give people a perspective that they might not have ever considered... turns out bullying is part of the deal. The best we can do is try to educate ourselves. So sandwiched in between chatter about what was for dinner and who he beat in basketball this week, Sam talks about a time he felt bullied and gives advice to someone in his situation. This instance he describes might not seem like a big deal, but I think the story symbolizes much more. I think it is a translation of all the times he has felt isolated, threatened or berated in some way. So listen up, and maybe let Sammy teach you a thing or two! Some things discussed in this episode: Bart & MaryEllen, Sarah & Mike: Bart and Sarah are our step brother and sister on my Mom's side (Steve's kids). They have 5 amazing kiddos between the two! Ashley, Rachel & Paul: Ashley and Rachel are our step sisters on my Dad's side (Lisa's kids). Paul is Rachel's husband and Sammy LOVES his "Paulie." Community Connections, Inc (CCI) is a program for people with disabilities on the Cape that you will hear Sammy reference quite a bit. He typically goes Wednesday & Thursday but more recently started to go on Monday as well which has worked out well for him. communityconnectionsinc.org…

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Episode 1 - Podcasting, head shaving and prom 17:28

9 years ago17:28