Finally... Speech Therapy

The boys finally started speech therapy Yesterday. What a long process that was! It took 4 months from the time the pediatrician referred them & they got their evaluations until they actually started.

I'm just happy it has started & look forward to the progress it brings. Caden & Kellan have started talking more, still not where they should be but more so then they were. Even Garren is talking more than he was but he didn't qualify for therapy.

The therapist, whom we will refer to as Miss A came for the first time yesterday. I wasn't really sure what to expect of therapy or how the boys would react to her since Caden & Kellan are both pretty shy. Surprisingly Caden took right to her & played right off the bat. She brought a shape sorter out first & they played with the shapes, naming the colors & shapes & placing then in their slots. Kellan wasn't feeling well & just wanted me to hold him. Garren of course was right in the middle of it all! :)

After the shapes she sat on the floor & brought out some flash cards. The cards had objects & animals on them, she would ask things like what it was, what sound it made, what color it was & what it felt like. Kellan again wasn't of interested until the end but Caden & Garren played along well. Lastly she brought out some bubbles & suddenly Kellan came to life! All 3 of the boys LOVE bubbles! They say "bubbles," they sign bubbles, they love blowing bubbles, popping bubbles & chasing bubbles!!! Miss A was finally able to get Kellan talking. By the time she was done all 3 were saying "more," "bubbles," & "please." They didn't say all of it together but would say &/or sign 2 of them together sometimes.

Miss A was also good with telling the boys "no" or to "wait" & "that's not yours," "that is Miss A's," & she also had them helping her "clean up." The boys listened & followed her instructions really well. I was quite happy with that & hope to be able to get them all to start helping put things away when they are done & to leave certain things alone even when it is at their level.

Miss A will be visiting us twice a week which I hope means we will see improvement really fast!

Happy Birthday August & Liam

We had the pleasure of attending our adorable little friends August & Liam's 1st Birthday Party on Saturday.

Liam

The boys had such a good time bouncing in the bounce house, running around the backyard (playing in the dirt) & playing with the other kids in the playroom. They also LOVED the cupcakes, eating them icing first just like their great grandma would.

The boys made a couple of new friends, one that is just as obsessed with Thomas.the.Train as they are & the other a sweet little girl who also has 2 moms.

August :)

Liam and August were the cutest little guests of honor & were so fun to watch eating their little birthday cakes. 

Liam

August

Garren made quite the exit when we were leaving, yelling "bye bye, have a good day" to everyone & then he proceeded to walk around hugging & kissing everyone goodbye, lol! He is such a little nut!

It sure has been fun watching these little guys grow since we met them 8 months ago & we look forward to the adventures the next year has in store for them & their mamas!

Happy Happy 1st Birthday Sweet August & Liam!!!

First Visit to Chuck.E.Cheese

While we were at my parents in Orlando we took the boys to Chuck.E.Cheese for the first time.

The boys absolutely loved it!!! It was quite a bit different than I remember it from my childhood. There was more for little kids than I had expected.

Pizza!

Garren wasn't sure about this ride at first but then he

wouldn't get off of it & rode it 4 times in a row, lol

Caden was ready to ride but Kellan was smitten with Barney :)

Kellan holding Barney's hands

Ridin' the rides!!!

I think Kellan is ready to be a jockey, lol

Garren cruisin' with Chuck E

Caden liked the games :)

A boy after my heart with ski-ball!

Garren did a little dancing...

Actually he did a lot of dancing!

Kellan liked the flying bicycle too!

And so did Caden!

It was a really fun night, a little exhausting chasing the boys around but very much worth it!

Friday morning as we were getting ready to head home Garren started saying "cheese." I thought he was asking for cheese to eat but then he'd do a little dance move & say "dance." I finally figured out he was asking to go to Chuck.E.Cheese & dance. This kid seriously cracks me up!!!

Thank you Grandma & Grandpa for such a fun treat!!!

Another Trip...

On Donna's first day back to work after our long 2 week vacation she got an email informing her she needed to attend a training class in Tampa the very next week. The training class was an entire week long :(

She really wasn't note resting in being away from home or work for another week but her only other choice was to attend the class in Houston the second week in October. Well she really wasn't interested in going to Houston & October would have been a really bad time since my sister's baby is due mid October :-/

Donna was also uncomfortable leaving me home alone with the boys for a week, with no help or family close by. My solution to that was to go to my dad's in Orlando for the week. I have lots of friends there & would have my dad & bonus mom home in the evenings for a little relief. I would also be close enough to take the boys to have dinner with Donna mid week.

So Sunday afternoon the boys & I headed to Orlando, the drive was uneventful.

Kellan with a snack, a drink & watching video on the drive

Playing in the dirt at Grandma & Grandpa's

Caden with his dirt covered face

An outdoor bath to get rid of all that dirt

Kellan snuggling with Grandpa

Monday my dad was off work, so he went with us to get a few groceries. He & Marie (my bonus mom) always keep us well fed & stocked up on snacks & treats when we visit, so this trip I decided I'd cook dinner since they would both be working.

A little pool time with Grandpa

Tuesday I decided the boys & I would hang out at the house, play in the yard, swim & get a good nap. I had big plans for Wednesday!!! :)

Wednesday we headed to Tampa to see our triplet BFFs. 

I've mentioned my good friend Jennifer before, we met online when we were both pregnant, we spent many late nights chatting while feeding 3 hungry babies & we still talk just about everyday while chasing crazy 2 year olds around. :) The kids all get along great & I think Jack likes to have some male bonding time with the boys since he is outnumbered 3 to 1 by girls. It's also nice for Jennifer & I to be able to have a face to face conversation every once in a while. About 2:30 Jennifer had to pick up her oldest daughter, Marley from school. I was going to sit with all 6 kids while she went to get her but my nap dictator, Kellan sounded his nap alarm (screamy sort of cry) just as we were discussing it, so I decided to take the boys for a ride so they'd cat nap while she took her kiddos along to pick up Marley. We met back up for a little more playtime & then I headed to meet up with Donna for dinner.

A bunch of kids with a bunch of gadgets!

Caden checking out what the girls have

Jumping!

Playing outside

Snack time

Their friends wore them out...

& they seem to have worn their friends out too :)

Thursday the boys & I slept late after getting home late Wednesday night. We played at the house again in hopes of another good nap day (they are hot & miss when we are away from home) because grandma & grandpa had a treat for us after work... Post on that to come :)

Kellan discovered the dishwasher & thought

it made a nice step up to the counter

Friday we headed home right after breakfast & as much clean-up as I could do while being chased by 3 2 year olds undoing everything I tried to do, lol... It was another uneventful drive & we are all happy to be sleeping in our own beds again.

Eason enjoying having a seat off the floor