County fairs and End of Year School Party

If any of you are familiar with Boz, you might know the episode where Boz goes to the fair and has Cherry Pie and Lemonade. Well he actually doesn't get to go to the fair because he helps Grandma, but that's besides the point for this entry. So since Princess was probably 3 years old, she has enjoyed this Boz episode and associates cherry pie and lemonade with every visible carousel. Needless to say, fairs have definitely changed a bit. There is no cherry pie, you have to pay just to enter, rides cost anywhere from $4 - $6 per child per ride, there are plenty of lemonade stands for $8 a glass and it includes about a cup of sugar per glass and you can't win your child a stuffed animal without laying down at least $10 no matter how good you are at darts. Well at least that's how our county fairs are, maybe some mid-westerners have more of the experience I remember growing up as a kid? Anyone? Regardless of these changes, we did go to the fair last weekend as Princess has been asking since last August, and had a great time. Little man rode a few rides as well. He was a little uncertain, but it definitely was a better experience than previous times.

This was our first ride and it was one of those mini-roller coasters. Princess wanted to ride it herself. We were so impressed, she did great. I am a roller coaster nut, thanks to my mom, so this was a milestone for me too!

This might have been a bit risky on mom and dad's part, but the "big" swing ride was Jimmo's first ride. He was a bit hesitant at first, and then he enjoyed himself. It didn't help that Momma hit his head with the bar when trying to strap him in - ugh.

This ride was rated 2nd favorite for princess

As much as I love rides, I cannot stomach the pirate ship, so Daddy conquered this one for the team.

This was the preferred ride of the fair - she had a blast!

Friday was Jimmo's end of year school party. Miss Terrific Teacher planned a water day for the parents to come and enjoy. We started in the classroom eating popsicles and then went outside to the pool and water table. Jimmo loves the water, so this was a big treat to do this at school. Not all the kids felt the same about baby pools, so I unfortunately couldn't get a group shot but here are a couple.

Here is the Little Man with one of his buddies. (code name - Dora). Dora is a great asset to the class and especially Jimmo because she is verbal and has been helpful for Jimmo with peer play. Jimmo is often paired up with her for activities.

Here he's starting to get too excited. But he certainly did have a great time.

Husband and I realized this year, that only by a few hours, does Jimmo make the cut off for 3 years of preschool rather than only two. Our states cut off is September 30th and he was born on the morning of October 1st. It's always amazing to see how God was working in your life when you had no idea. Even the smallest things have such a big impact. The day Little Man was born, the house we picked when I was pregnant with him, the street we live on, the school we're assigned to - all things we prayed about and we had no idea how great His answers were.

Our school ends this Wednesday and then Jimmo will participate in summer school for 7 weeks starting on July 7th for four hours a day, five days a week. Because he's in the PAC classroom (Preschool Autism Class) they have most success with having less breaks for Autistic children and more of a routine. Although breaks don't necessarily effect Jimmo just yet, we're glad to have more ABA therapy this summer and school lets out at noon which is perfect to go right to the pool! Ahhhh summertime - finally!

National Fragile X Foundation 25th Anniversary and some

I am not prooving myself as a dedicated "blogette" as I continue to play catch-up. One day folks I'll be better at this......stay with me.

Princess is in a spring soccer league. She played last spring which was a good start as she learned the basics and fundamentals of soccer. They basically played one on one for very short intervals and then did drills with a parent. The winter league she participated in was WAY over her skill level, and Husband and I walked out of each game with this blank stare - maybe we should try art? Princess, living up to her blog name, was much more interested in trying to get the other girls (co-ed team) to hold her hand as they ran up and down the field. We, and that means 99% husband, wanted to try again. Not only did he sign her up, but Husband is now coach of the team. At the age of 5, coaching soccer is a little bit like being a cat herder extraordinaire (to quote a fellow blogette). The beginning of the season started off a little like our winter soccer league. Below is Princess (in the red) before the game started as the other kiddos, way down the field, are warming up. She is picking dandelions for her Momma. Can anyone relate with this?

However we have finally had much improvement as we have practiced some drills in the backyard. "Coach" says we're about up to speed. We're both kind of in shock and thought this day would never come. We only have 2 games left and I hope to take some action shots this weekend. Stay tuned!

Husband and I have volunteered ourselves to be the parent contacts of our area of the state for the Fragile X Foundation. We decided to host a spring picnic in order for some local families to get acquainted and hopefully begin a network amongst us. We invited 21 families and 11 came. We were thrilled since it was Memorial Day Weekend. We had a great time and families came from as far 4 hours away. For us, it was great to see some of the teenagers with Fragile X. Such amazing kids and their parents. Here is a picture of most of the families from the party. We missed a few that had to leave early including Jimmo's Miss Terrific Teacher. We were so excited that she could make it.

Today is the 25th Anniversary of the Fragile X Foundation. As I mentioned above, we are parent contacts and Husband also serves on the Public Policy Board for the Foundation. This is the group that hosts the Conference that we went to last summer in St. Louis and the one next summer in Detroit. We've learned so much from them and are so glad we have the Foundation as a resource. Today they launched a 10 minute video featuring the founder who is also one of the Top Doctors and her husband who leads in research. (Don't forget to pause the music off - bottom of the page before watching) You can also view it here...http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KMMY8WYuIMY

And finally, here is a picture of our little guy who I busted climbing onto the water table and drinking some of it (yuck). This might sound odd to those of you with busy little toddler boys, but I actually find pure joy in Jimmo getting into mischief. He doesn't do it much and on these seldom occurences, it makes us laugh. Who knows how much rain water he drank on this occassion but the fact that he got dirty and messy...just makes a momma proud!