Summer Has Started! Updates!!!

Wow...it seems like FOREVER since I have been able to sit down & write! I'm so thankful that Ethan is taking one of his rare naps today! This is giving me a chance to have my 2nd tall tumbler of coffee & catch up on things!

The last several weeks, as I mentioned in an earlier post, have been CRAZY! Pretty much since the week before Mother's Day, I haven't had a quiet moment to myself. But, now that life seems to be settling back down & sickness seems to be leaving our house (shoot! did I just jinx it?!), I can tell you all about the exciting things that are going on, regarding living with autism.

First of all, we got a pool! Not anything spectacular, but it will be great for Ethan. A few months ago, I was contemplating which activities to put him in for the summer. His teachers & therapists all seemed to think that swimming was the best choice out of all of my ideas, so we were planning on signing Ethan up for swimming lessons all summer. Then, we figured up the cost of that as well as actual time in pool, and it was definitely cheaper to buy our own. So...we got one of those Easy Set-Up pools, and Ethan LOVES IT! We were out there every day until we got sick. However, I foresee us spending a lot of time swimming. It is shallow enough for him to walk around & play in the water, but I can also teach him to swim in it. He is already getting really good at kicking his legs! YEAH!

Second, we have started summer preschool at Easter Seals. It's only 2 times a week for 3 hours each time....which I thought was fine to do in the summer. Just enough to keep him moving forward yet still have some lazy summer days at the same time. We both participated in a 3 hour evaluation last week, and by the end of that time, he was done with ANY kind of therapy/teaching. That is a lot for a 3 year old. BUT...when I asked him if he was ready to go, he told me, "No!" He really liked all of the new toys & the new classroom. We will see how he feels about it in a couple of weeks. :0) However, his first day was great, and he seemed to really like it. He was VERY chatty when he got home. So....he either was quiet for 3 hours & let it out when he got home? OR he was excited & was still on a learning "high" when he got home? Either way, it was nice to see a good reaction after his first day.

Last, now that my husband has a break from his college classes, we are hard at work on the basement once again. (I say "we," but I really mean I tell him my ideas & he does the work.) The last couple of weeks, we have really been focusing on getting our house organized. We moved into this house when Ethan was 6 months old, and we have never really been able to set things up how we want them. (You know how house projects get put at the bottom of the list when you have little ones!) So, as of right now, the upstairs has been completely gone through....toys, closets, clothes, etc.....organized & labeled. Corey has started back up on the basement, and we are hoping to move lots of our "DIY Therapy" stuff down there in the next few weeks! YEAH! It will be so nice to have the extra room to do therapy with Ethan without it messing up our dining table or living room! A HUGE shout out to my husband for running with this project even while Ethan & I were sick with strep throat & he was our caretaker after working all day! THANKS COREY!

Well....that's basically it. I am SUPER excited for the start of summer, and I get to have more time with my Ethan. We have LOTS of summer LIVING to do!!!!!