Prom

This last week Scott asked me to the prom! He and some other guys in our neighborhood thought an 80's prom night would be a fun group date. Word is that they pulled it all together in about a week. In the end we ended up with 16 or 17 couples who came. We began our night at Olive Garden for dinner. And yes, almost all of the couples were there. Next came a game of Laser tag at Trafalga. And later a dance at the church that lasted about an hour. Let's face it, we are getting too old to dance all night long. We had a great time!

 Here we are at the Olive Garden. You can't see the awesome pattern of my shirt in this picture, but you sure can see my wonderful 80s makeup (thanks to my sister-in-law Emily)! The best part about my makeup is that our neighbor Adam couldn't stop laughing every time he saw me! Apparently I don't wear makeup often enough and so when I go all out, it's a little hard to believe.

 And at the dance, the guys were even able to get a photographer there to take couples pictures. Gotta love Scott's puke green shirt!

And a group picture of everyone at the end! Thanks for the prom night, Scott! It was fun!

Some firsts...

We've had our share of firsts in the last couple of weeks.

 First, was the kids first baseball game. It was an Orem Owlz game that we got into for free with Kids on the Move. It was great because: 1. It was free! (Who doesn't love free?) 2. It was super family friendly with a giant playground that the kids loved and Indie actually played on for more than 5 minutes. 3. We could leave when the kids were done, and we didn't feel obligated to stay, because it was free!

 The mascot was great with Indie and totally put up with his pushing and dancing around him.

 Next, Park's first soccer practice...

 And his first game! He was a trooper running around with the other kids even though he only got to kick the ball once.

And...the grande finale...Annicka's first day of first grade today! She had a great day going to school all day and she can't wait for tomorrow! We are so proud of her!

Happy Anniversary to us!

That's right, today makes 9 years for Scott and I. Where did the time go?

Oh, dear! Look how young I am! And Scott actually has some hair!

WARNING: If you don't want to gag, stop reading riiiiight...NOW!

Scott, I love you! More now than ever. We've been through a lot together and we have grown closer because of the hard times and the good ones. Though neither of us are perfect I feel like we are perfect for each other. You are an amazing husband and father for our kids. They are so blessed to have you, and so am I. Happy Anniversary to my favorite husband! (Cause, you know, I have a lot husbands... :)  You're the best....a-round!

*SIGH*

I found Indie in the midst of this with the box of cornflakes. Well, I've been putting off cleaning our room for too long. Looks like it'll finally get done today. Sometimes all you can do is sigh.

Proud Mama!

Annicka came home with this from church today. I must say I got a little teary-eyed. Oh, the faith of child.

Here is a translation for those of you who don't know how to read six-year-old-ese.

I know that I will live with him.

I know that he loves me.

I know he made the earth.

I know he did [it] for me.

I know he made the animals.

We must be doing something right, right?

Feeling Grateful

The past few weeks have been a bit crazy around here. It started when our water heater went out two weeks ago. Then Park and Annicka both got strep, and I didn't know it until last Tuesday afternoon, AFTER Indie's OT and speech therapist had come in the morning (I had to call them and let them know to watch out for it). Then I started having some pregnancy related issues that are causing me a lot of pain (I promise you don't want to know, TMI [too much info] if you know what I mean). Despite all of that I'm feeling very grateful today. Grateful for a home teacher/friend who knows how to put in a water heater, saving us nearly $400 in labor. We had his family over for dinner and the moms got to chat while the kiddos played and the dads put in the new heater. Thanks again, Jonny! Grateful for modern medicine! How much suffering would my kids have had to go through if it weren't for something so simple as penicillin? Grateful to get into the doctor TODAY instead of in a week-and-half to take care of this pain now! It'll still be a few days before I'm 100% again, but that's okay! I had an appointment set for Aug 10th, and I was feeling really stressed about having to deal with the pain for at least that much longer. Thankfully someone cancelled this morning and they were able to move me in! Grateful for storms that come at the right time. Today just before I had to go to my appointment we had a flash flood that started filling up one of the window wells in our basement and though it was stressful bailing water for a good 30 minutes, it happened before I had to go, and not while I was gone. Otherwise we would have had some walls and carpet to replace. Grateful to be pregnant. I have several friends who struggle with infertility, it even takes Scott and I awhile to get pregnant, and I am grateful to be a mom. Pregnancy isn't always easy (as this week has been a good reminder of) but I am so grateful that I can be and am! Most of all I am grateful for a Heavenly Father who loves me and watches out for me and sends the little blessings (and even the big ones) that make the hard times a little easier to handle.

Indie update

This is our crazy boy jumping off the bed getting some sensory input! (Ignore the messy room, I was in the middle of packing for our trip to Zion's.) Over the last month or so Indie has been making progress like crazy! He has picked up several new words and is using the words he does have a lot more. His eye contact has improved ten fold and I am feeling good about the direction we are headed with him. I have set aside a time everyday that I play with him and our giant exercise ball and try to help him get the input he needs. His OT (Occupational Therapist) has given me a weighted vest for him that he doesn't like at home but he wears it when we go out and it helps slow him down a little. Scott gets home and plays with him or takes him on walks around the neighborhood.

What I feel the best about is that I'm not the only one who is noticing these improvements! His OT said that Indie had the biggest improvement he has ever seen in just the couple weeks between his assessment and his first visit. His interaction with him was way better and they played hard together. And just today I talked to one of his nursery teachers to let her know what is going on. She has two autistic children and so she knows exactly what a sensory processing disorder is. 90% of Autistic children have it though it is not unique to autism. I think that is partly the reason I wondered if he had autism, he was displaying some of the behaviors that autistic children with sensory issues display. She told me she had noticed that Indie was a little different and wondered if he might have autism, but she didn't want to say anything. She said that she has noticed a big improvement over the last few weeks, that his eye contact is getting much better and that he is sitting still better for snack and their lesson. Hallelujah! I think he is still going to have a language delay for a while, but hopefully he continues to improve at such a rapid pace. In a few months the school district will come out to re-assess him to see if he qualifies for their services after he turns three.