First and Last Day of Preschool

For some reason, when I post pictures lately, I don't see them on my draft, I see the html version. And since I have no idea where one "picture" ends and the next begins, I will just have them all at the beginning in a big clump. Anyone know how to fix this?

Contrary to what the title of this post suggests, Boo's first and last day of preschool were not on the same day. The pictures from his first day are the ones with his short sleeved shirt. The red sweatshirt is from his last day (yesterday). He was in preschool for a total of three weeks, one of which he was out sick.

Boo loved preschool. I don't know what I am going to do this summer to keep him entertained! He loves structure, and so do I for that matter, but I am not good at providing it. Especially now that I have two children, and CeeCee is entirely unpredictable.

Boo attended preschool (and will attend in the fall also) at our local elementary school in a special needs classroom. It so happens that all the children in his class had genetic syndromes, as he also likely has. Some of the children could walk, some were in wheelchairs. I don't think any of them talked, but they all seemed to have a few signs. Super cute kids. They attended from 12:30-3pm Monday through Thursday. In class, Boo loved to play with two little girls, A and I. They were the two who walked. Boo, of course, walked in his walker or crawled or back-scooted.

On the last day, his teacher threw a little party for family members. We congratulated the graduates (most of the kids in his class were 5 and heading to kindergarten in the fall) and everyone got an award. Boo got the award for "Best Ball Player". He loves balls. Apparently he was never happier for them than when he was in the ball pit. He and the little girls would throw balls at each other and laugh. His teacher also talked about how one day they had a school assembly to watch the dancers from a nearby university. Boo walked all the way to the auditorium, amongst all the other children in the hallway no less. And he paid attention for the entire 45 minute assembly, after which he walked back to his classroom (on the other end of the school). No wonder he gets so excited when I tell him he's going to school!

Admittedly, the pictures are nothing to brag about. It is hard to take pictures with a grabby baby in your arms. Speaking of grabby, CeeCee was not very attentive during the end-of-the-year party slideshow. She kept grabbing a balloon from the girl standing next to us (a little sister of a boy in Boo's class). Then she started grabbing her hair! CeeCee! All the students had to sit in the front row in their special seats for the entire party, which most of them were not thrilled with, since their parents were sitting right behind them and they wanted to sit on laps! Boo did pretty good, but he kept reaching back to me and signing "all done". He did not cry though. CeeCee did that for him. :) Boo did a good job of clapping at appropriate times and then he was very excited to leave at the end of it all. Of course, neither of my children are into snacks, and I am still trying to lose/maintain weight, so we skipped the snacks, thanked the teachers, and were the first ones out of there.

It has been sure wild to send our baby boy to school! I never cried, and neither did he, but we sure missed him at home. He was mainly happy all day every day at school, just like at home. It is especially strange to not see what he is doing and not get much by way of a report at the end of the day. I mean, I would pick him up (all the other kids are bussed, since they live far away) and the teacher would say a few things, but not much. Just "He had a good day. He sure loves balls." - that sort of report. Much different from Early Intervention and private therapy and all the medical reports I get. Oh well. I suppose this is the same for every parent. I mean, I don't remember my mom talking to my teachers at the end of every day. Mainly just Parent-Teacher Conferences I think. It is an interesting transition for us. Now we get the whole summer to have fun - riding horses, swimming lessons (maybe...), and dance class. And some trips and walks and maybe even camping this year, since Boo is off oxygen! And hopefully a little structure in there too, so Boo and I do not go crazy. :)

As Heard From the Mouth of S

"What if I'm in a car crash and I become a vegetarian?"
-said in all seriousness while discussing life insurance/estate planning

Dear Dishwasher

Dear Dishwasher,
I love having you in our family. You make my life easier and allow me to spend valuable time doing other things besides dishes, dishes, dishes. I even appreciate the fact that you are now taking your own initiative in turning yourself on and off and judging for yourself whether the dishes inside of you need the "heated dry" option or not. But the fact of the matter is: you have a thing or two (or six) to learn before you start making those kinds of judgment calls. Let me tell you how it is.
1. Washing the dishes does absolutely no good if there is no soap in the dispenser. No good. Even if you run the cycle four times a day. No good. And who puts the soap in? Me. After I put the soap in, THEN you can run a cycle. Once.
2. The dishes always need to be dried. Always. If not, I am really not saving any valuable time by putting you to use, since I pretty much wash everything before I put it in, and if you do not use "heated dry", then I have to dry everything when I take it out. Do you see how this leaves you as an unnecessary step in the process?
3. I really would have liked a warm shower the other night. Much more than I liked rinsed and re-rinsed dishes. Just sayin'.
4. When I accidentally bump into you (thus closing the door that was intentionally propped open to save the dishes from yet another unwarranted cycle), it is not your cue to spray water all over the dishes again! Please!
5. I know we have hard water, and I hope someday we will have soft water, but I always buy that really expensive Dishwasher Magic and Lemi Shine just for you! And it is wasted when you continually rinse the dishes without drying them. This could mean your demise, you know.
6. Speaking of expense, heating up all that water is not cheap ya know!
In short, if you do not kindly comply with my wishes (as indicated by the buttons I push) rather than doing your own thing, you could be replaced! And soon! At the very least, expect a visit from a local Maytag serviceman in the near future.
Love,
Your Owner

Christmas Thoughts

On Saturday we had a ward (church) Christmas party/breakfast. I got up early, thinking I would get a bunch of stuff done (which I did!), the kids woke up around 7:30 at the same time (like they always do), and S took care of them while I went grocery shopping. When I got back from the grocery store, the party had already been going on for five minutes and S had done only a few of the multitudinous "getting ready" things with the kids. I wasn't too set on going to the party in the first place, especially not late, but since S really wanted to go, we hurried and got the kids and ourselves ready and got there 45 minutes late. (Sheesh!)

We brought Boo's walker along with us, since we have discovered that our home was not designed for kids learning how to walk (too many levels and stairs) and the church is only one level with lots of walking space. When we walked in the door, we put Boo in his walker and he immediately took off. We steered him in the direction of the party, only to discover that we were entering through a door at the front of the party instead of the back (which I had hoped for). The place was packed and we entered right in the middle of a piano performance (Sorry!!!). Needless to say, it was a "grand entrance" that I would never have intended!

Boo didn't notice that anything was amiss. He walked right in in his walker and smiled at everyone he passed. Every now and again I had to steer him away from people's legs and such as he plowed right through the crowd of tables and people sitting at them. Being discreet was not an option at this point. After all, this was a crowd of people who have been fasting and praying for him ever since he was born. Tons of people commented to us about how cute he is in his walker (Agreed!), how good he is at it, how impressed they were at his walking (especially when he had only had the walker for four days), how much it warms their hearts to see him out and especially walking (since we have mainly stayed in the house or the hospital his whole life), etc. Some people teared up when they saw him, and the bishop shared the experience in his testimony today. We had him walk around the church a ton, and he mostly stayed out of everyone's way (except when they were trying to put the tables away when it was over and he kept wanting to close the closet doors for them! Boo and his doors...). He did great and he smiled the whole time.

Later that day, we S and I were talking about comments we had received, and it occurred to me that Boo is kind of like everyone's Tiny Tim. Honestly, I can't think of any dissimilarities except that Tiny Tim talks and eats... :) We happened to watch Muppet Christmas Carol that day as well, coincidentally. At one point in the movie, Mrs. Cratchit asks Bob how Tiny Tim did at church that day. I should probably go look up an exact quote, but I am afraid if I go upstairs to look for it I will wake up Cee-Cee - bad idea at this point! - but essentially he said the following:
Tiny Tim did good at church. He was happy. He said that he hoped that the people at church would see him and that he was happy and that they would remember at Christmas time that the Savior made the blind man see and the lame man walk.

This touched my heart! Boo is our little miracle baby. He is living, breathing proof that God answers prayers, that miracles do happen, that life is good, and so many other things I cannot enumerate. How blessed we are to have him in our family as a constant reminder. How grateful I am for the Savior who DID live, DID heal the sick, make the blind man see, make the lame man walk, and perform many other miracles. How grateful I am for the same Savior, Jesus Christ, who DOES live still, who WILL come again, who LOVES us, and who WILL one day heal us all of all things that ail us, physical as well as emotional. Like Tiny Tim, I hope that people who see Boo will remember the Savior and all that He has done and will do for each of us.

I might post again before Christmas, but I might not. You never know around here just what I am going to get done in any given day. May you all have a Merry Christmas and enjoy the wonderful spirit that accompanies this season!

Boo in his Walker

Five Random Thoughts

1. My key to weight loss: Chewing gum.
2. My new goal to make my house cleaner (In no way should this be construed to mean CLEAN. CleanER.): Do a minimum of one chore per day. That is, above and beyond what is necessary to sustain my sanity.
3. In the past few days, I think I have heard both of my children say "Mama". I know that neither of them is yet cognitively aware enough to derive meaning out of these two sweetest of syllables, but it is still gratifying and exciting and fun and heart-melting to hear them. Of course, I could just be imagining things. But still...
4. You should have seen little Boo in his walker for the first time ever today in Physical Therapy! Holy Run-for-your-lives - Here he comes! He is also starting to kneel without kneeling against anything.
5. A note on my children's relationship: Boo is so funny with Cee-Cee - he always wants to be wherever she is (or wherever I am, depending on his mood - he even follows me all the way up the stairs!). He "gives" her many kisses (aka he puts his head on her head/torso for HER to give HIM a kiss while I make a kissing sound) and he loves to just be near her and touch her clothes and the top of her head. He is very interested in her toys and the things she is interested in. They also both feel a great deal of empathy one towards another, as when one cries the other is quick to join! They are so stinkin cute.

My Babies - The Latest

Boo:

• Laughs so hard at so many things, including CeeCee
• Sleeps like a champ at night (12+ hours)
• Great traveler and shopping partner
• Blows kisses from his eye
• Crawls backwards super fast (and forwards, for that matter)
• Signs "more" and "help", usually in succession
• "Washes his hands" when we use Germ-X
• Comes to visit and climb up on us when he wants to be played with or needs a little attention
• Does tummy time with CeeCee (they face each other)
• Colors pictures and then throws the crayons, all while I sing "Pop Goes the Weasel"
• "Eats" breakfast with Mom (=watches Mom eat while sitting on her lap and unwittingly touching her food)
• Sings songs when he wakes up and throughout the day
• Pounds on his crib happily when he is ready to get out of bed -don't get him out too soon though!
• Carries his toys (including his ride-on car!), balls, and Mom's pans to throw them under the desk, down the stairs, in the garage, outside, etc.
• Closes the doors when asked (and any other time), but cries after he closes the outside doors. He also loves to open and close any kind of door (particularly cupboards), and pound on them with his feet.
• Has many a hiding place for his balls, including under the desk, behind the printer, under our cars, outside, in the cupboards, in the drawer under the oven, under the recliner, and probably more places I haven't discovered yet!
• Is ticklish, especially on his neck
• Has lost 2 hats now, after throwing them out of the stroller, catching Mom unawares (although I am usually NOT unawares, as I have grown used to picking up his hat off the sidewalk....argh!)
• Loves Baby Signing Time and his music class
• Almost always turns the pages correctly when reading books
• Has been letting some other people hold him
• Can sit up just fine, but wishes we wouldn't make him do that!
• Could tell when the carpet got cleaned and didn't want to touch it for awhile
• Loves to watch the cars go by on walks, and finds it particularly amusing to see cars go in reverse
• Sits up and hangs out of his stroller
• Likes the park, mainly the baby swings
• Finds some way to keep the rhythm to any number of songs (ie. clapping, kicking, rolling a ball, coughing, hitting his head or some other object, etc)
• Plays "Peek-a-Boo" by covering his face with his hands or some item of clothing and laughs hysterically while we search high and low for him
• Provides entertainment in the form of his crazy crawling and banging on things during church for all those who might be bored, and rarely gets upset during all three hours!
• Laughs when CeeCee sits on his tummy or when he gets to hold her
• Can push himself backwards on his Lightning McQueen ride-on car
• Goes up and down the stairs frequently and independently (he has only fallen down them 3 times, and that was a long time ago!)
• Is back to doing everything that he did pre-surgery, including pulling himself up to standing against the furniture
• Does not need oxygen during the day or night for about a month now! (Notice the empty space by the couch where the oxygen equipment once resided)
• Loves balls more than any other toy by far, and he will play with them endlessly
• Is starting to enjoy being chased
• Sucks his thumb, but NOTHING else!
• Likes to touch CeeCee's head softly (usually...) and immediately run away, as though she were a hot potato

CeeCee:

• smiles really big when she wakes up
• Loves to be told she is pretty and a "lady" (I call her my Lady of the Morning)
• Coordinates her kicking and arm movements
• Holds her head up and sits up very well, especially on a lap or in her bumbo seat
• Still doesn't like tummy time much, but tolerates it well for a minute or two.
• Loves to be sang to.
• Is not a big eater, but is growing well
• Sleeps like a champ at night (8+ hours)
• Loves to sit on her brother's tummy and be held by him
• Loves her swing and frequently naps in it
• Would be glad to watch TV if Mom would let her
• Loves her toys and keeps a death grip on them, particularly on her activity mat - she has been known to lift the whole thing up if she is holding on to it when we pick her up!
• Likes to be carried while on walks
• Usually has a bow in her hair
• Is called "Fisty" because she eats her fists
• Loves her brother and frequently smiles at him, unsolicited even
• Tries to sit up while laying down and successfully gets her head and shoulders off the ground!
• Sleeps during church
• Mainly just wants to be held on a lap all day long
• Loves to be entertained and most definitely knows when she is not getting the attention she merits!
• Has a shy smile at times
• Is a homebody, and definitely does not prefer shopping in spite of what her onesie might declare...

Could there be anything better than being a mom??? I submit there could not. I just love these two.