weekend recap...

more GREAT weather & another GREAT weekend!

the wild roses in our backyard are in full bloom
the kiddos & i attended kelly & chris' wedding (curtis was working) - very cool, unconventional wedding - the bride is from my hometown & the groom, from new zealand....the ceremony was in our church, the entire bridal party was barefoot (including the adorable flower girl & ring bearer), the bridesmaids sang the couples' song a cappella, the bride's brother played a song on his guitar that he wrote for his big sis, both sets of parents read scripture....it was so sweet!

me & the kiddos waiting for the ceremony to begin
at the reception - in the bride's parent's back yard
jaden took this pic of me :0)
chris & kelly cutting the cake - they loved it!
after the wedding, we went by nana & grandpa's to try out yet another new toy! since the last go-kart he just bought was too big for the girls (and my nephew who's also corinn's age), grandpa went and bought another one - even smaller & this one seats 2! boy, he sure knows how to spoil his grand babies!
playing dress up with the new cheerleader outfit she bought with her own money!
sunday morning coffee & a game of Guess Who? i LOVED this game as a kid...it's so much fun teaching my kids to play! btw - the girls' "coffee" is really just coffee flavored, sweetened milk....they LOVE taking sips of my coffee & i've convinced them that this diluted version is just as good! ~lol~
more go-kart riding at nana & grandpa's after church
and eating fresh asparagus out of their garden....corinn is my veggie nut!more chalk fun at home that evening
this says "VASS" - gabrielle has circled & labeled the potted plant as a 'vase' - it was my mother's day gift from her, but she still insists on caring for it & taking it outside regularly for fresh air & sunshine :0) soon, we'll transplant it (and the ones that corinn & jaden gave me) into our flower bed!
here she wrote "NOASILD" - which is supposed to say 'no ants allowed'
i LOVE it! not only that my 5 year old, pre-k student is sounding out words & trying to create sentences....but that she's letting the ants in our backyard know to stay away from her drawing area! ~lol~
a pose on Memorial Day in front of the roses
the view on our drive back to west virginia to spend the day at my aunt's house for a cook-out
gosh, i love living in the mountains! (those dots in the field are sheep)
curtis did all the grilling while the other men watched (chicken, burgers, dogs - yummy!), the kids (i think there were 11 total there) played outside with water guns & us ladies had some cocktails & tried to stay cool (and forgot to take pics ~lol~)....can u believe how hot it got yesterday?! in the high 80s here!
the girls with autumn - a friend of the family
we stopped by mindy & mark's on our way home to visit the new baby....molly kate is 3 weeks old today & still so tiny!
mindy doesn't like her pic taken - this was the best i could do ;0)

we're all back to work/school/daycare today, after the long, lovely weekend....in the car this morning, jaden & gabrielle asked me how many more days of school are left! since when do 1st graders & pre-schoolers count down till summer time?!

btw - only 8 more days to go! ;0)

weekend cakes...

another simple weekend for cakes....had one cake truffle request, one birthday cake cancellation & one simple wedding...i am starting to attribute these cancellations to the economy....everyone i know is stepping back & reassessing their expenses before splurging on say...one of my fabulous cakes! ~lol~ and i can't at all blame them - we've been doing the same thing in our family....and honestly, i've enjoyed the break - the weather has had us outdoors about 90% of day on the weekends....and i'm not at all upset that i haven't pulled an all-nighter since this wedding cake! ;0)


i did NOT make the cupcakes around the wedding cake - those were made by some ladies at our church....the wedding cake is all my most popular birthday cake flavor, fudge chip - my kinda bride! ;0) all iced in my homemade butter cream....the gerber daisies are real

bunk beds

the girls are sooo excited - they now have bunk beds!

my parents gave us the bunk bed frame (sans mattresses) a while back, but the girls were still too little for them, so we stored them in the attic.....well, we were starting to go through all the STUFF in their bedrooms this past weekend - sorting out what they actually play with/want to keep from what we want to pass down to willow & matthew, and what we'll sell at our very first yard sale this summer

they have separate rooms, each with it's own doorway....but they also have a door that joins their rooms together.....both were still sleeping in toddler beds in their own room, & had their own dressers, tiny table & chairs, toy boxes, etc in each room.....i thought this would be a good time to go ahead and combine their rooms.....putting the bunk beds & dressers, books, games, quiet activities in one room.....and all the toys, play sets, their table & chairs, movies, etc in the other room.....so essentially having a bedroom AND toy room - connected

they LOVED this idea, and so we began.....we're getting mattresses this weekend, but went ahead and set everything up.....we've got queen size mattress pads (folded in half) on their beds right now - with their new lavender sheets & Princess Genevieve comforters (who by the way is a ballerina, just like my girls!) on top.....curtis also took off one of the guards from the old toddler beds, and attached it to the top bunk.....as well as secured the beds to the wall with brackets - safety first! ;0)


they both slept just as soundly as ever in their new beds last night.....their room, on the other hand, is still a DISASTER! u wouldn't believe how much STUFF they have! i'm hoping we'll get it all sorted & re-organized over this long weekend....curtis works & we haven't really made any memorial day plans.....it'll probably just be a chill weekend - and i'm totally cool with that! :0)

btw - this totally upset jaden....he now wants a bunk bed set sooooo bad - just to sleep on the top! he was very angry that the girls got these new digs & he is left with his same old boring room.....i think we've calmed the situation - i've been saving 3 paper lanterns (similar to this) & a dragon decoration that i ordered on clearance from oriental trading for him a while back.....and we recently got 2 huge maps for him - one of the US & one of the entire world - that still need to be hung up in his room (encouraging his interest in geography - namely new york, hawaii, alaska, and of course china...for the dragons, duh!).....so i told him that we would (maybe not this weekend, but soon) clean out his room, re-organize & hang up his new stuff.....he agreed to this (after also getting some play time with the girls on their new beds) & went to sleep in his same old boring bed without another word about it....whew! crisis diverted yet again! ~lol~

20 Ways To Maintain A Healthy Level Of Insanity

1. At Lunch Time, Sit In Your Parked Car With Sunglasses on and point a Hair Dryer At Passing Cars. See If They Slow Down.

2. Page Yourself Over The Intercom. Don't Disguise Your Voice.

3. Every Time Someone Asks You To Do Something, ask If They Want Fries with that.

4. Put Your Garbage Can On Your Desk And Label it "In".

5. Put Decaf In The Coffee Maker For 3 Weeks Once Everyone has Gotten Over Their Caffeine Addictions, Switch to Espresso.

6. In The Memo Field Of All Your Checks, Write " For Smuggling Diamonds".

7. Finish All Your sentences with "In Accordance With The Prophecy".

8. Don't use any punctuation.

9. As Often As Possible, Skip Rather Than Walk.

10. Order a Diet Water whenever you go out to eat, with a serious face.

11. Specify That Your Drive-through Order Is "To Go".

12. Sing Along At The Opera.

13. Go To A Poetry Recital. And Ask Why The Poems Don't Rhyme?

14. Put Mosquito Netting Around Your Work Area and Play tropical Sounds All Day.

15. Five Days In Advance, Tell Your Friends You Can't Attend Their Party Because You're Not In the Mood.

16. Have Your Co-workers Address You By Your Wrestling Name, Rock Bottom.

17. When The Money Comes Out The ATM, Scream "I Won! I Won!"

18. When Leaving The Zoo, Start Running Towards The Parking lot, Yelling "Run For Your Lives! They're Loose!"

19. Tell Your Children Over Dinner, "Due To The Economy, We Are Going To Have To Let One Of You Go."

20. And The Final Way To Keep A Health y Level Of Insanity ..

Send This To Someone To Make Them Smile. It’s Called....therapy.

Atlantic Beach, HERE WE COME!!!

i just got confirmation on our beach villa for next month!

we go through Curtis' work - he is the electrician for a set of condos on Massanutten mountain.....we get a SUPER deal through their management company & get to stay at any of the resorts that they manage in the USA, for a whole week, for only $150!!! this is our 3rd year using this great benefit & we LOVE it! the first year, we tried out Barrier Island Station in Kitty Hawk, NC - it was great but we wanted to head a little farther south last year....we tried out Atlantic Beach, NC (on Emerald Isle) and stayed at the Peppertree Atlantic Resort (their site isn't working any more) - this spot was AMAZING! i'd never been to a nicer beach - soft sand, great shells to find, fish to catch, dolphins to watch, family oriented, calm water for the kids to play in - FABULOUS! and the resort was just as great...private boardwalk & beach, tons of activities, huge villas with all the amenities, wonderful staff, indoor & outdoor pools, playgrounds, the list goes on & on

the only downside to this yearly deal that we get, is that you submit your top choices waaay early and just wait.....you have to wait to see if any of the timeshare owners cancel out of their reservation or if there's available units....as you get closer to your requested vacation date, they'll give you other options if your top choices still aren't available.....well, just 2 weeks ago, we were offered a spot at a not as nice resort - actually it looked more like a hotel on the beach, rather than a family resort....we turned it down & prayed that something better would come through....yesterday marked exactly one month until we're scheduled to head out & we were starting to get nervous that we'd end up with a not so nice condo this year.....then today, curtis calls me literally screaming with excitement - we got our top choice - the same spot as last year!!!

here's what the villas look like - view from the private board walk as you're coming off the beach

and here's the kids on the beach our last night there last year....i had already taken like 300 pics by then, so left my camera in the room - took this one with my cell (the family pics to the right of my blog were taken at Atlantic Beach as well)

OMG - we can't wait!!!

movie date...

no, not for curtis & i.....but for curtis & jaden


yesterday, curtis picked jaden up from school....and while the girls & i went to their dance classes, jaden & dad went to see the chronicles of narnia: prince caspian.....curtis let jaden pick their seat in the theater....and of course, jaden chose the VERY back row, directly under the projector.....curtis said that the movie started out kind of slow & jaden was more interested in trying to look into the little room that housed the projector than the move at first....he was totally fascinated by the beam of light, carrying the picture to the screen and watched it more than the movie....but eventually, the story got going, and jaden got into it

when they got home, i heard all about it from jaden....of course, i couldn't follow most of it, but i was thrilled that they had a good time....and he said he only got a little scared at one part

it isn't often that the boys get to go do things alone - usually the girls are begging to go too....but since there's so much dance hoopla going on right now with the girls & their upcoming recital....practices, costumes, pics, tech & dress rehearsals, etc.....we thought that it would be cool for curtis to take just jaden to see this one - he's only been waiting forever since seeing that first trailer for the movie.....the only thing is, now i'm jealous....guess i have to wait for it to come out on dvd ;0)

Jaden's IEP summary

i apologize in advance - this is going to get long....but i know i have readers that will be interested in this info (hi there fam!)


today was jaden's yearly IEP meeting - where we (his regular classroom teacher, resource teacher & speech therapist, the principal & me) assess the past year, determine if he's progressing & meeting the goals set at last year's meeting, decide if he still qualifies for special education services, and set new goals for the upcoming year.....this meeting actually followed jaden's recent evaluation by the county schools that's done every 3 years - to evaluate his special education classification & make any necessary changes

the biggest thing was having his label/classification changed from "developmentally delayed & speech and language impairment" to "autistic - asperger's syndrome" since he was officially diagnosed last fall.....he's met or exceeded his goals set from last year (the school is great about having us set realistic goals) & he's met all of his benchmarks for 1st grade (including passing the PALS testing - 1st grade version of SOLS)....so moving on to 2nd grade is a go (duh, i already knew that)! ;0) it was mentioned that they'd considered the possibility of him attending another elementary school in the area that has an autism program, but they feel he's too high functioning and that it wouldn't be beneficial - i agree! he's done so well where he's at and we really love our school & teachers!

jaden currently spends 72% of his day in a regular classroom & we all think it's best to keep things as is....of course, new goals were set & he'll always receive special accommodations in class (seated in the front, having directions repeated to him by the teacher, quiet time to cool down if needed, etc.), and for test taking (taken in a small group, can have instructions repeated, the teacher can even fill in the bubbles on those kind of tests since jaden might be more interested in filling in a pattern, rather than filling in the correct answers, etc.)

he was assessed with the Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children, a Developmental Test of Visual-Motor Integration & the Gilliam Asperger's Disorder Scale.....here are some of the findings (assessments done by county psychologist)....

"Jaden's intellectual ability was assessed with the Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children. Consistent with previous findings, his nonverbal reasoning abilities are much better developed than his verbal reasoning abilities. Processing complex visual information without using words is a strength for Jaden, while making sense of complex verbal information & using verbal abilities to solve novel problems are a significant weakness for him. Jaden's Verbal Comprehension Index of 65 is in the extremely low range for a child his age, while is perceptual reasoning index of 102 is well within the average range for a student his age.

Jaden's visual-motor integration skills are quite well-developed for a student his age. His performance on the Developmental Test of Visual-Motor Integration, a paper/pencil copying task, places him in the superior range, at the 96th percentile, compared with other students his age.

Jaden's skills in working memory are low average for a student his age. His ability to sustain attention, concentrate & exert mental control is at the 21st percentile, compared with age mates. Jaden's skills in processing speed are poor, within lower limits of the borderline range, for his age. This composite measures his ability to quickly and accurately process routine visual material. This weakness is the speed of processing routine information may make the task of comprehending novel information more time-consuming & difficult for Jaden.

Jaden's general and special education teachers completed Gilliam Asperger's Disorder Scales to assess his behaviors & characteristics in relation to a diagnosis of asperger's. All 3 raters endorsed items which resulted in quotient scores of 95 & above, indicating a high probability of asperger's. They all indicated that he has difficulties in social interactions & he demonstrates eccentric forms of behavior and preoccupation with specific subjects. He also has difficulty with pragmatic skills, such as understanding slang expressions & identifying when someone is teasing."

one other evaluation (my favorite) that was done was a classroom observation by the principal....i found out he actually sat in on jaden's class when they were working on this science project....here's what the principal had to say....

"Jaden alternately laid his head down on his arms during the review, but did appear to be paying attention. When questioned several times during the science review, he answered correctly & added to the discussion. He was able to identify specific animals that fit into each category (he did seem to be fixated on bats, however). Jaden demonstrated a VAST knowledge of each animal group (characteristics and animals in each group). He was able to describe what an exoskeleton is! He also worked intently on the written assignment."

his speech therapy hasn't really been about helping him speak for quite a while....as his therapist said to me today, he's a very eloquent speaker & has a wide vocabulary now....but she'll continue to work with him on appropriate social interaction, and verbal comprehension in how it relates to conversation.....here's a excerpt from her evaluation....

"Jaden demonstrates numerous language strengths. He speaks using grammatically correct complete sentences & has a wide vocabulary. He can direct attention, make predictions, make comments on what he has seen/heard, and ask for assistance. With effort, Jaden will initiate & maintain eye contact with a listener, yet it appears that this skill is not natural for him. Jaden has difficulty answering questions, whether the question requires a 'yes/no' response or an explanation. He struggles to organize his thoughts to present information in an orderly manner & has difficulty explaining things in a logical sequential style. This is especially evident when he attempts to respond to 'how/why' questions. Jaden tends to perseverate on a particular topic of interest to him and at times, will interject items concerning this topic into conversations when it has no relevance."

in summary, his resource teacher said...

"Jaden displays average abilities overall, but has extreme difficulties in areas that involve listening, spoken language, and verbal comprehension."

it is always great getting to not only catch up on jaden's progress with everyone at once, but to also hear stories about jaden & his life at school....his resource teacher is pregnant, expecting a boy....she said yesterday, jaden said, "you still have that baby in your belly" then he started tapping the side of his head with his index finger & said, "hmmmm, so what should we name him?".....his speech therapist said that the other day, jaden came up to her on the playground & said, "i've got good news & i've got bad news. first, for the good news..." then he went on to tell her something about dragons.....then he said, "next, the bad news...." and again, he went on to tell her something about dragons - only something totally different than "the good news" - so it had to be bad, right? ~lol~

even though they're not recommending he attend, we've enrolled jaden in summer school (as we do every year)....he'll be in a regular class only (no special ed accommodations) - it's only for a half day, and just for a few weeks....and it's right before school starts back up in the fall....hey, it can't hurt - and who couldn't use a refresher course right before getting back into full swing again?

i know this post is already long enough....but in thinking about my precious son today, i realized i never shared his sweet mother's day card with you....

the little colored pictures are magnets

♥ he & i ♥

his note to me....the gingabaminga is my dragon - at least that's what he tells me....he says we all have our own, and mine is called gingabaminga - pronounced just like it's spelled!
the flower blanket that he's referring to is what he calls the flower bed that we just planted (get it? bed/blanket ~lol~)....he & i started tilling up the soil by ourselves the evening before the whole fam helped complete it....he must have thought that was some special bonding for us - i did too ;0)

rainy tuesday...

i'm actually enjoying the rain this morning....it's nice to wake up to a cool, crisp morning, with just a slight drizzle coming down outside....everything all washed & new after an all night rain

[peonies in our backyard - thx nana for clearing that one up ~lol~]

jaden finally got trimmed up last night - his mohawk was starting to disappear into his unshaven sides....i tell ya, it's so hard to get it even, with all those curls! they lay in every which direction & make it very hard to shave a straight line....i guess that's why i'm not always on top of giving him a trim....but i got it last night - and he loves it....he says "it's getting taller now ma!"


jaden did have one special request this time....he asked that i add his "dragon star" on the side.....apparently, the star is some sort of button - when he pushes it, he turns into a dragon! ;0) i hesitated, not wanting it to look like we've carved some sort of gang sign into our son's head....but then i figured, what the hay?! it's just a star - not a swastika.....and no, it's not my best work - i'm no barber....but he's happy with it - and isn't that all that matters? [ps. i do set limitations....he also asked for a diamond on the other side & an Eragon "E" on his forehead (the dragon rider symbol - not sure how i'd pull that one off anyway)....but i told him he had to pick just ONE & he chose the dragon star]


oh! and i totally forgot to tell u guys....we didn't win the lottery on friday - i know, i know, u're all shocked! ~lol~ no, gabby's numbers didn't will us the $196 million dollar jackpot....we got 2 of the winning numbers right, but not the mega ball - and apparently, that's key ~lol~....but hey, that's okay - we're still very rich!!!


Psalms 112: 1 Praise the Lord. 2 His children will be mighty in the land; the generation of the upright will be blessed. 3 Wealth and riches are in his house, and his righteousness endures forever. 4 Even in darkness light dawns for the upright, for the gracious and compassionate and righteous man. 5 Good will come to him who is generous and lends freely, who conducts his affairs with justice. 6 Surely he will never be shaken; a righteous man will be remembered forever. 7 He will have no fear of bad news; his heart is steadfast, trusting in the Lord. 8 His heart is secure, he will have no fear; in the end he will look in triumph on his foes. 9 He has scattered abroad his gifts to the poor, his righteousness endures forever; his horn will be lifted high in honor. 10 The wicked man will see and be vexed, he will gnash his teeth and waste away; the longings of the wicked will come to nothing.

weekend recap...

saturday morning soup & backyard fun (while mommy & daddy do yard work)

saturday afternoon boxing & play-doh (while the girls nap)

saturday afternoon kite flying & scooters at the park - the wind was insane that day

jaden got this dragon kite from santa last christmas - it's so cool!

saturday evening grilling (with friends) & campfire (with s'mores)


a chill sunday with family...digging worms for socks


boxing with dad


helping daddy fix mommy's brake light


for me?


♥ carving our family name in the maple tree in our backyard ♥