Busy Spring Days

The weather is beyond gorgeous these days as we are enjoying the very best season in Texas.  The azaleas are already dying off with all the warm weather we are having.  In the midst of all the fun we decided to try a new cookie recipe and for the first time, Justin wanted to lick the spoon!  Travis has always had sole possession of the beaters and the spoons and for the first time, Justin decided he wanted a lick.  So I needed a picture!  Travis wanted to get into the picture too but Justin didn't want anything to do with it.  He pushed Travis away because he thought Travis wanted some of his cookie goodness!

Tasty!

Tidbits

We are really enjoying our routine these days so we haven't had many big events or accomplishments.  We love just plugging along and basking in our spring weather.

• Justin is working on the "b" "p" "m" and "t" sounds in speech.  He does them but we are trying to get them to be meaningful.  So Miss Sarah wants him to do "da" when he is "done" eating.  Doing really great!  We are trying to put together some consonants for the words "out" "up" and "more".  he has some success but still very inconsistent.
• Miss Caroline is raving about Justin!  He did some cutting today and usually he is really rough and tries to rip the paper with the scissors.  But today he was soft and fed the paper through without much help from Caroline.  She gave me the prettiest pieces of yellow construction paper all cut up and not one single tear.  And he is getting really good with holding the spoon with his thumb on the top and scooping beans and keeping it level (so not to spill).  He gives himself thumbs up all the time!
• I have noticed that Justin's walk is very wide, so Miss Penny is working to get him legs under him a little better.  He can walk on their little balance beam really well and she told us to tape a line on the floor at home for him to practice.  And he is getting better at climbing onto things.  He usually leads with his left leg so we are trying to get him to switch and use his right as well.  Miss Penny has accomplished the most noticeable goals in his therapy (sitting up, crawling, and walking).  He still has to master steps but that's not something people notice as much.  Miss Penny still has lots of goals, but I think it will take longer for Justin to meet them.
• Travis and Justin spent the day with our friend, Miss Tina, and her two daughters home for Spring Break.  They ate it up!  The girls had so much fun and the boys loved having the undivided attention.  They loved Justin's "secrets".  He whispered in their ears, they whispered back and then they died laughing.  They played pirate and Travis took them to the dungeon.  They were up and down the stairs all morning long.  So much fun!
• I (heart) spring forward!  Since Travis was born he has always been an early riser.  But when we spring forward he sleeps later for the few days after the change.  Monday he didn't wake up until 7:20!  I am loving it!  I am hoping to get one more late morning out of him.
• My resolution to get to bed earlier hasn't been going very well.  I am sad to report that instead I have become a coffee drinker.  Arg!

Mowing the Dirt

Justin has taken over as the primary lawn mowing assistant of our home.  Ignoring the dirt and dead grass that he is mowing, he does so wonderfully!  It is a great job for him since the ground is so uneven it really works to strengthen his leg muscles.  The weather has been beautiful so we are taking full advantage.  Justin is sporting his new Elmo orthotics and shoes (only 6 stores this time!)  He is also wearing Travis' Lightning McQueen work gloves, which he seeks out when he "works".  And the lawn mower still has the Walmart bag so that it matches Daddy's.  Love the big smile on his face!

Pop Had a Birthday

Pop had a birthday last week and we had dinner and pie with them to celebrate.  (There are less leftovers to tempt!)  Justin enjoyed his hamburger and broccoli and filled himself up to the fullest extent of his belly!

After dinner the boys took a bath and played with some new toys that Pop got for them to enjoy.  I am not sure why the birthday boy was giving presents, but Travis didn't mind.  The goggles that Justin wore came with the chain saw and the ones Travis has are from his tool set.  He had to bring them from home because they both needed goggles to protect their eyes from the chain saw.  Justin didn't like the goggles all that much, but Travis made him wear them whenever he wanted to push the button to run the chain saw.  Safety first!

The gun is from when Randy was little.  Justin loved it but he was slightly dangerous given the length!  We had to watch the lamps.

Justin got ready to play with the chain saw so Travis helped him get on his goggles.  Travis always wants to help Justin.  Sometimes even when it's not wanted!  But he can take off Justin's shoes and orthotics, which is a huge help for me and Justin usually is willing.

He had to take off the goggles to see the button!  It was an intensive effort.  But successful!

It's Rodeo Time in Houston!

The Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo opened this week.  We love going to see the animals and the exhibits.  Oh, and the tractors.  There is always so much more to see than we could possibly fit into one day.  It is great that the boys have a little longer attention span.  Every year we can go a little longer and see a little more.  This year we even managed to watch some of the show events during the day.  We saw the team penning event:  three horses/riders try to pen three cows out of a herd of 30.  The cows are all numbers 0-9 and there are three of each number.  A number is called as they cross a line in the arena and that's the number they have to pen.  It was amazing how fast they can do it and how wily those cows can be!  The boys both loved it. 

But of course, the best part is the tractors.  We learned last year that the school groups arrive early, but if we arrive right when they open we can get about 15 minutes of uncrowded tractor time before they all get there.  But we were foiled in our quest when we learned that they had moved the tractors to a different location.  So instead we checked out the chickens, turkeys, rabbits, cows, longhorns, pigs, and goats before continuing our quest.

This is in the birthing area.  They have pigs, sheep and cows who are due to give birth during the rodeo.  This was a sheep who had given birth to two beautiful black lambs the day before.  Justin thought it was pretty cool!

These are chicks that hatched within the past day or two.

Here is Elsie's calf, Beauregard.  (You know, Borden milk.)  Justin was so sweet petting him.

Neither boy was all that fascinated by the petting zoo.  And with all the "waste" on the ground, I kept running behind Justin to make sure he didn't fall down in anything.  This picture took about 5 minutes to create.  And you notice the thrill on their faces.

This is Miss Moo.  Justin wouldn't have anything to do with her.  Travis reluctantly posed for a picture.

Then we headed outside for the "Fun on the Farm" exhibit.  The boys each got a basket and then they went along a course.  They "fed" chickens and collected a wooden egg, they "milked" a cow and received a small carton of milk, they picked a peach from a tree, and they "planted" and harvested vegetables.  That's what Travis and Justin are doing here.  They were given a plastic seed "vegetable" and then they had to go find the plot that had the vegetable matching their seed.  They dug a hole, put in the seed, watered it, and then harvested a plastic version of their vegetable for their basket.  At the end of the course they "sold" their items to market by sorting them into baskets.  They received a dollar that they could then use to to buy a snack (capri sun, rice krispie treats, crackers, etc.) at the store.  The amazing thing to me was in the sorting section.  Scanning and sorting is one the the big things that Justin works on in OT and so I was kind of excited to see a "real-life" example.  He rocked!  It was tough for him because there was a mad scramble by all the kids to get all their items in the right baskets so Justin had to look between legs and be careful not to get knocked over.  And in spite of the obstacles, he get everything in the right basket without any help.  It was a burst-my-buttons kind of moment for sure.

Justin digging his hole.

Planting the seed

And then it was on to the tractors.  Unfortunately, because the outside stuff opens later than the inside stuff, there was no window of opportunity for extra tractor time.  We did sit in both tractors, but we had to wait in line. 

Justin really got into driving the tractor this year.  (They put flat screens TVs in the front windshield so that it looks like you are driving through a field.) 

It's getting to be a tradition for a picture in the tractor tire.  Either Travis is growing or the tire's shrinking...

Here's last year...

And 2009...

It was Justin's first picture standing up and we weren't sure what he would do, but he just grabbed right on and stood up! 

This was Justin last year...

The boys checked out a few engines and we watched the pig races again.  Since we just did our physicals, we avoided the fried food area (no fried oreos...sniff!)

But we did make one last stop in the "soil" area of Agventure.  The boys dug for earthworms.  Travis was hesitant at first, but then he got into it.

And I had to hold onto Justin with both hands; he was ready to nose dive right in!

It was worth it, he found one!

All in all, a fabulous family outing.  Highly recommended.   We could have stayed much longer, but nap was calling.  Another family event!

Wordless Wednesday

A Trip and a Shower

The end of February brought the long-anticipated baby shower for my sister.  She is having a boy, due at the end of April.  The timing was planned so that my mom could go with us and see my sister, but she was too sick to make the trip so only the boys and I went.  We arrived in near-blizzard conditions, which we were told NEVER happens.  By the end of the trip we did not believe them since it snowed every day we were there!  Travis had a fabulous time playing in the snow and throwing snowballs.  Justin wasn't quite sure what to make of the snow.  He kept trying to shake it off of his gloves.  We do not have snow clothes so we were all cold! 

Mireille and Jerry live right across the driveway from Jerry's parents.  It works out very well for them.  In the picture above you can see Mireille and Jerry's in the background and Travis is standing by the door to his parents'.  We planned to spend the first day with Jerry's parents since Jerry and Mireille had to work.  When the weather got worse, Jerry had to return from his ice cream deliveries.  So we got a fun extra day with Jerry!  That night Jerry's parents made us dinner and the boys had fun burying each other in pillows.

Travis really wanted to play outside in the snow the next day, and since it was getting sunny and warmer I didn't want the snow to disappear before Travis got more play time, I agreed to a little outdoor time.  The snow had made some ice on the deck and Justin slipped all over the place.  This is his gymnastic splits after a slip.  He didn't even get frustrated, he was mostly just confused!  The wind off the water made it way too cold for Justin so he went back inside with Mireille.  Travis and I explored a bit more before it got too cold for us too. 

So we went back inside and Travis colored a picture.

Justin and Mireille read a book.  Justin's attention span is getting much longer and he likes books a lot more.  Elmo books are the best!

The shower was Saturday at Jerry's parents' church.  We had decorated the night before and everything was so beautiful.  I wanted to take lots of pictures so my mom could feel like she was there.  Jerry's mom, Joan,  also took lots of pictures and even had copies printed for me to bring back for mom to see.  My sister married into a wonderful family!  Joan made beautiful decorations.  She even had place mats made with pictures of Mireille and Jerry growing up.  The balloons, centerpieces, favors, and flowers made everything very special.

The baby's name will be Thatcher Arden.  Arden is a family name, Thatcher just because they like it.

Jerry hung out at the shower and played with Travis and Justin.  They were all over the place, rolling on the floor and telling secrets.  Jerry was practicing his daddy moves!

Mireille showed off her baby bump for the ladies!  She is looking so adorable!

Getting ready to open the gifts.  She got some great presents.  She received several quilts and blankets, some adorable outfits, and other handmade items.  Thatcher will be very well-outfitted!  My favorite was a white sweater made by Mommy Sharon and trimmed in red with a Wisconsin Badger on it.  Thatcher also got his first life vest for the lake this summer.  It was a gift from a friend's boat!  They have some great friends!

We had a good visit and as usual, it was much too short.  In less than 2 months we will have a new family member!  And to add to the fun, Mireille and Jerry bought a new house and they plan to close and move before Thatcher arrives!