Sunday, October 30, 2011

Halloween Fun

Let’s see…what happened this week?  The only excitement on Monday was that Will got to bring his Halloween costume to school and put it on and go trick or treating at the nursing home next door.  It was up in the air as to whether he would actually wear the costume but he came through and is okay with it now.  Stay tuned tomorrow for pictures!

Tuesday the kids had gymnastics and Drew and GrandBob came to watch.  Although Lindy did a lot better during circle time, she still wanders a bit during the circuits so Drew got to see her in action.  GrandBob thought it was the funniest thing ever.  ha ha ha.  We all went back to our house after gymnastics and Aunt Jamie also came over.  Aunt Jamie and GrandBob watched the kids while Drew and I went to Lindy’s IEP meeting.  The kids had a blast while we were gone and when we got back GrandBob treated us to dinner. 

It was one of Lindy’s easiest IEPs yet.  It was a standard annual review.  Her teacher had done some recent testing on her which came back good.  On the PSL-4 she tested like a 4 year 4 month old.  Considering she is 4 years and 3 months we were pleased!  The Bracken basic skills test showed her at 3 years 10 months.  But we were fine with that and proud that she is doing so well.  It’s always nice to hear people ooh and ahh when they hear how well she is doing!  The only changes to her IEP were to reduce two services for her.  She is doing so well in speech that they reduced her from three times a week to two times a week.  Her physical therapist reduced her to just monitoring her one time every quarter because she does so well in both environments.  Both are positive changes for her and prove that she is doing so well!  It was an easy and fairly short IEP meeting for her! 

Wednesday the kids had Halloween parties at school.  Both came home loaded with all kinds of goodies.  They had music class after school as well.  It’s neat to see Lindy singing along to all the songs this year. 

Friday we had the day off of school.  Actually we have tomorrow (the 31st) off as well so we have a four day weekend!  It’s teacher conferences in the school system and their church preschool follows the school system calendar.  We had a most lazy day but it was great!  After a really nice week weather wise, we woke up to it being cold and rainy on Friday.  We slept in and hung out in pajamas all morning.  I had to run to the grocery store during naptime and came home and put my pajama pants back on.  We cozied up inside the rest of the day.

After the kids woke up from their naps we carved our jack-o-lanterns!   I carved Lindy’s and Drew carved Will’s.  We let them pick their shape of eyes and nose and how many teeth they wanted.  Will wanted nothing to do with the pumpkin guts but Lindy delved right in.  I had to keep stopping her from putting them in her mouth.  yuck.  It was a fun family activity for us.  I spent the rest of the night baking Halloween goodies for Saturday evening.

Saturday Drew was gone all day long so the kids and I had another lazy day.  We finally showered and got dressed late morning, just in time for them to take a nap.  After naptime we headed to our friends Kris and Katie’s house for a reunion with friends.  Kris, Drew, and another guy Todd lived together in Durham for three years.  Todd and his wife, Amy, and their twin girls, Atha and Nora, drove over from Raleigh to hang out.  We try to get together at least once a year, more if we can.  Kris and Todd worked with a guy, Ryan, for many years and now Drew has become friends with him.  Ryan and his new fiancee came over as well.  It was a very fun get-together and all the kids had fun together.  Claire, Atha, and Nora played dress-up together while Lindy, Will, and Micah formed an exclusive band.  Funny to see how the get-togethers have changed!

We worked on writing this week with Lindy and she wrote her name on a birthday card.  It was the best and most complete we have ever seen her do it.  DSC_3944She also surprised us by drawing a person!  These are all OT goals we were working on!DSC_3952”Daddy is under my spell”DSC_3956Yes he is!DSC_3957More Halloween shirts arrived in the mail this week. Thanks Mimo!DSC_3960DSC_3961DSC_3963Commencing of the pumpkin carving.DSC_3965DSC_3967The closest Will got to the guts.DSC_3968DSC_3972DSC_3977DSC_3978DSC_3979DSC_3984Finished product.  Oval eyes.  Triangle nose.  7 teeth.DSC_3998Triangle eyes.  Side triangle nose.  5 teeth.DSC_4001DSC_4003DSC_4010Ohhhh, pretty lights!DSC_4014DSC_4020Marshmallow witches I made.DSC_4023Pumpkin and skeleton jello.DSC_4031My pumpkin spice cake.DSC_4035More Halloween shirts.DSC_4038DSC_4040The kids’ table Saturday night.  Atha, Nora, Claire, Micah, Will, and Lindy.DSC_4043The pretty princesses: Claire, Atha, and Nora.DSC_0997The exclusive band.  DSC_1014Another group shot.  Atha, Nora, and Claire are all a year younger than L&W, yet of course they are all bigger.  DSC_4048Kris, Drew, Todd, and RyanDSC_4056Michelle, Amy, me, and Katie.DSC_4062Lindy decided she needed to be one of the girls!DSC_4065SO then we got all the girls!DSC_1033The kids wore Halloween colors to church.  I made Lindy another ‘pillowcase’ dress – this time in orange and black polka dots.  DSC_4072If I do say so myself, the dress and the girl wearing the dress are cute!DSC_4075Not to be forgotten, Will wore his orange too!DSC_4083DSC_4088DSC_4102

Sunday, October 23, 2011

Walking to Cure Diabetes and Pumpkin Patches

We had a normal week and a busy Saturday.   Here goes……

Tuesday we had gymnastics and Lindy is still struggling with the wandering and following directions.  She can talk the talk about listening but once she gets in there she does what she wants.  She lost her tv privileges that day for not listening well.  Today we set up some circuits in the backyard and practiced doing them.  We practiced waiting in line as well.  Maybe it will help this week????

Wednesday was music class. There were only three kids there so it was a small class.  Ms. Beth picked the kids up from school and took them upstairs to the music room so I had an extra 30 minutes that day.

Thursday was a parent session with Lindy and her teacher actually ended up finishing some testing on her that she needs to have done by Tuesday for her IEP meeting.  Lindy did pretty good.  You had to miss 6 in a row to quit and Lindy never would.  She was up in the 5.5 – 6 year old range and she’d get one right every so often so we had to keep going!  I still hate those tests.  They have to ask them in such specific ways that she doesn’t understand.  If you’d phrase it just slightly differently then I swear she’d have gotten more.  Oh well, I think she did good, although I don’t have any numbers.

Friday morning Drew and I did what will hopefully become a monthly tradition.  Friday is one of Drew’s days off so after I dropped the kids at school, we met downtown for brunch!  We ate at a great breakfast place and enjoyed our date morning!  After we ate we walked around downtown.  It was a lovely morning and we hope to try and do it once a month and try out all kinds of different places.  Friday night we made Halloween sugar cookies – you know the prepackaged kind you just put on a cookie sheet?  The kids thought it was great fun but waiting for them to bake was pure torture to them! 

Saturday was one busy day.  We rarely jump from one activity to another but we did on Saturday.  We started the morning off bright and early at our church craft bazaar.  We picked up some goodies and talked with church friends and then we headed out the door to Wake Forest where the Juvenile Diabetes Walk to Cure Diabetes was being held.  We walked in honor of my 8 year old niece, Hayley, who has type 1 diabetes.  It’s hard to believe she has had diabetes for two years now.  They have done such an amazing job with her diagnosis.   Hayley has become so responsible about it as well.  She is a brave little girl who we love with all our heart.  I just know that one day they will find a cure, which is why we Walk to Cure Diabetes.  It was a beautiful morning to go out on a walk around Wake Forest.  We saw the Deacon again and got another picture with him.  We also saw our nephew and some old church members from Lincolnton!

After the walk was finished we headed home for a small break before heading out the door to Mooresville to Patterson Farms for some fun on the farm.  We went to the same place last year (click here to see last year’s trip).   This year we met Mimo, Aunt Anna, and Brian there for a great afternoon of fun.  The kids had a blast.  We got to see a pig race, feed some animals, ride the cow train, ride a wagon out to a bunch of pre-picked pumpkins, and we spent a long time in the playground area.  They had a tiny little corn maze for the kids, a slide the kids had a blast on, and corn pits that the kids could have stayed in all day long.  They had some tomato slingshots that Anna and Brian tried out.  We spent a few hours there and practically shut the joint down.  It was a great family afternoon that ended with a yummy dinner at Cracker Barrel.  We were all pooped when we got home – actually Lindy fell asleep in the car on the way home. 

And now…what you really came for.  The pictures.

Of course they wore lots more Halloween shirts this week!DSC_3581DSC_3584DSC_3600Love this one!DSC_3601How I found Lindy at naptime one day.  She hardly ever sleeps with anything in her bed, let alone in her arm.  DSC_3605It totally reminded me of this picture of Will in the NICU.  Little ducks peaking out of the covers!DSCF1783Lindy has been building a lot of her own cool towers lately.DSC_3611Look at that sassy pose?!!DSC_3618DSC_3620DSC_3622Will practiced writing one day.  He did such a good job!DSC_3623I fish-tailed Lindy’s hair for the first time on Friday.DSC_3628’Making’ cookies Friday night!DSC_3640DSC_3647Ready, Set,DSC_3653Bake!  And stare at the timer on the microwave!DSC_3655Hello again Mr. Demon Deacon!DSC_3670At the Walk to Cure Diabetes Saturday morning.DSC_3672We love cousin Hayley!IMG_0042My beautiful, brave niece, Hayley!IMG_7652I made the kids some neat pumpkin shirts.  I did it back in 2008 too.  DSC_3691DSC_3694Mimo made the sweet pumpkin for her hair!DSC_3700DSC_3699They did grow quite a bit from last year’s pictures!DSC_3712DSC_3714DSC_3717Lindy pretty much dumped all her food down one tube.DSC_3729DSC_3732Will very carefully, and seriously, fed many animals with his food.  DSC_3733The cow train was a big hit!DSC_3743DSC_3749DSC_3754DSC_3783DSC_3785DSC_3788DSC_3802DSC_3812DSC_3819DSC_3824In the corn maze.DSC_3855The kids came out of this slide like a rocket but they thought it was so fun!DSC_3862DSC_3865DSC_3866DSC_3868DSC_3869DSC_3870The corn pit.  DSC_3873DSC_3889DSC_3912Lindy would have played here all day and slept here all night if we had let her!DSC_3914DSC_3931Two cool cats in their protective face shields!DSC_3895Playing the accordion at the Cracker Barrel.  DSC_3934Todays church outfits.  (Will is on his toes.  He’s not that much taller than she is!)DSC_3936