Happy Thanksgiving!!

This was in our church bulletin last week!

I am thankful for the mess to clean up after a party because it means I have been surrounded by friends.
I am thankful for all of the running around and ““dropping off”” at school, sports, dance, and friends because it means I have my wonderful kids.
I am thankful for the clothes that fit a little too snug because it means I have had enough to eat.
I am thankful for my shadow that watches me work because it means I am out in the sunshine.
I am thankful for a lawn that needs mowing, windows that need cleaning, gutters that need fixing because it means I have a home.
I am thankful for all the complaining I do about the government because it means we have freedom of speech.
I am thankful for the spot I find at the far end of the parking lot because it means I am capable of walking.
I am thankful for the big heating bill because it means I am warm.
I am thankful for the piles of laundry and ironing because it means my loved-ones are nearby.
I am thankful for weariness and aching muscles at the end of the day because it means I have
been productive.
I am thankful for the alarm that goes off early in the morning because it means I am alive.

Take time to appreciate whats around you!

Edaville Festival of Lights!!

We went to the Edaville Festival of Lights this weekend, very fun time had by all!! Since it was the second weekend open in November is wasn't too crowded. We waited for a few minutes for the train ride and it was spectacular! The train was warm, a little too warm for me, (but I tend to overheat easily) and away we went. There were lights everywhere and all kinds of lit up houses, characters and animals. There were some really cool ones that the light moved so it looked like the bear was throwing a basket or the frog was jumping in thr pond. Frankie is at the age where is was all so magical to him and he was SOOO excited.
After the train we did some rides; rocket ship, tilt-a-whirl, carousel, caterpillar, and went in the trains. The line for the ferris wheel was long and since it takes a while to load, we decided to skip that. But the wait for everything else was fine. We enjoyed just walking and seeing all the lights, when we first pulled up there were more than we imagined!
We ended the night with the snacks and hot cocoa. : ) YUM!!
It may be the last Christmas season for Edavilee, I am really happy we made it this year!

New Family Touched by Albinism

We had lunch today with a family with a little girl with albinism. Cute little Hannah is 14 months and has albinism, and we got to meet her and her mom, dad and grandma today! What a fun lunch and such a nice family! Hannah was diagnosed early on, at 5 days I believe. She goes to the same doctors' office as Frankie. And she loves elephants like Lizzy. : )

It was great to finally meet them, as we have been trying to find a good date for months. I can remember back to when Frankie was 1 and still having a lot of questions and anxieties. So it is nice to be able to answer some questions for others!

I was also thinking about how all the families I have met or talked to with albinism have been so kind, friendly and great people to be around!!

I always look forward to out bowl-a-thon in February to get everyone together and love to add new families who will come!!

New Blog

I am helping with Frankie's preschool blog!

It is just up and running, but hopefully a great resource to other preschool parents and parents with special needs children in general!

Skating!

Frankie took his first skating lesson this past week and can't wait to go back! He askes me every day if it is skating lesson day again! He learned to skate when he was 2 1/2, but this was his first formal lesson, and he did great! He recently learned to get back up from the ice when he falls, and he was doing that great too. Most of the other kids hadn't been skating, so he was doing more than them and felt proud of himself.

He keeps mentioning wanting to play hockey, which scares me a bit. Seems hard to see that small puck?? Although it is quite a contrast on the ice. We will see. : )

For now he just loves to skate, and be like Lizzy too. I asked him his favorite part and he said, "the whole thing"!

Happy Birthday Grandma!!

I still miss you every day! But I know that you are peaceful in heaven again this year. Watch over us. We love you!!

Lizzy's Synchro!

Lizzy had her first synchronized skating competition yesterday!! Her team came in 4th place and got medals too, they were very happy for their first competition of the season!
I was impressed with their speed and difficulty of some of the maneuvers. I think they will only get better with time. I could see Lizzy doing very well as part of the team with her strong stroking and attention to detail, as far as foot position, edges, etc. Great Job!

Fun with the CCTV

Today Frankie and I met with his TVI, from the Carroll Center, at the library to use the CCTV there. He had used one at the Perkins low vision clinic once and one other time at a friend's house, but just for a bit. The one at the library today was old, and black and white. I was surprised, but it did the job.

Frankie picked out a Curious George book (that we had not read yet!) and we put it under the magnifier and read the words and discussed the pictures. Frankie's TVI asked him what he thought about black writing on white or vice versa. He said white on black, which has so much less glare! I could see the white words on black better myself. She was asking him about the pictures and he enjoyed it and liked to move the book around. He also liked experimenting with the buttons. : ) At one point he was looking at a helicopter on the CCTV screen, when she took the book out and asked him where the helicopter was, he said he didn't see it.

I felt like it was great for him to get more exposure with various technologies. His TVI said we will continue to experiment and expose him to technologies until we find something that works best for him and will aid him in elementary school. So I feel like it was a good start and he is on his way! We also enjoyed exploring a new library!

Any Regular Readers??

I am finally updating again! I know it has been a while, but are there any regular readers out there?? I put a link to my blog on Facebook and have it on my email, but wasn't sure about posting each post to Facebook?

So just curious, who stops by to read?!

My Favorite Discovery Toys

I have sold Discovery Toys for 8 years now!! I thought I would take a few minutes to review a few of my (and my kids') favorites.

Infant: Super Yummy Teether

Frankie had this one when he was a baby and I love the vanilla smell. "Imagine five teethers in one that encourage sensory exploration while soothing and comforting your teething tot. A light vanilla scent stimulates sense of smell."

Toddler: Castle Marbleworks

This has been around for a while, Lizzy loved it and Frankie too! Children can put together the castle and then roll the balls down to the bottom. It is always a hit in my house with kids of all ages! "Your child will have fun dropping the 3 weighted chime balls down the track of this marble run building system! As balls race, spin and zig-zag, your little one learns to predict the balls’ course."

Preschool: Busy Farm

I had a hard time deciding, but picked Busy Farm. The kids love sorting, counting, matching and just playing with the farm animals. "Moo! Quack! Oink! Greet the Busy Farm friends: 36 colorful soft-molded animals ready to play language-based, reading readiness activities involving colors, sorting, matching, counting, and alphabet awareness. Set includes 12 double-sided Activity Cards."

School Years: Wiz Kidz

We have had this one for a number of years and Lizzy loves it. Frankie has been starting to play now that he is learning letters too. "This family game for all ages reinforces vocabulary, phonics, and word categorizations in record speed. Players pick a card from the alphabet letter stack and a card from the answer stack. Then it's time to think fast to generate as many logical associations as possible."

Joy of learning sets combine favorites from each category into a discounted bundle!

Some great toy ideas for the holidays!

2 Slow Days, Kind of Nice!

Lizzy has been sick with a stomach bug since Monday night, she was sick mostly that night and has been recovering yesterday and today. I hate to see my kids sick, and luckily she is quite healthy! So I felt bad that she was sick, but the slowing down for 2 days was quite nice! Today she was feeling better, (not quite well enough for school), so we have been decorating turkeys, playing games and watching a movie; instead of trying to be 7 different places throughout the day for both kids! I do enjoy the slower pace!

Sometimes I am torn between having the kids do all the activities they want, and just having time to relax, play, etc. We have tried to find that balance, but some days seem especially, busy, like short Wednesdays! So a day or so of staying in does feel nice. : ) I like time to just enjoy my kids and spend time with them. Next Thursday they have off fro Veterans' Day and I am looking forward to going out for the day with them, lunch, playground and a little shopping. : )

Happy Halloween . . .and November!

We had a very busy, fun-filled halloween! There are so many parties, events now, you have to pick which ones to go to, there are just so many! Much more than when I was a kid. : )

Last week Frankie's class walked to the pumpkin patch to pick a pumpkin, listen to stories and have a picnic snack, beautiful day. On Thursday they used the pumpkins to decorate. The parents came in to help and the kids sang songs too! So funny to watch them trying to remember all the words and do hand motions.

Friday Frankie could wear his costume to school and Lizzy had black and orange day. Friday night was Lizzy's school party, complete with haunted hallway!

Saturday we carved our pumpkin, the kids did it all by themselves and made a whole person carving! Then we went to the Let's Motor party at night; games, goodies, fun!

Sunday we got to see all the cousins in costume at Nana's. : ) Then the boo at the Franklin Park zoo, complete with trick or treating, crafts and, of course, animals. We saw the lion up close!

We rested for a bit with pizza before heading out for 2 hours of trick or treating! I stayed home and gave out candy! I get tired just reading about it all! The kids had a ball, definitely a lot to do!

Now on to a great fun filled November, I'm sure!