Summer!

It's been a busy and fun first few weeks of summer!

My brother and his wife gave Simeon this dirt bike as a gift while they were here over Memorial Day Weekend. To say he was excited about it would be the understatement of the year. (Thanks Uncle Jason and Aunt Lisa!)

What I love best about it is how productive it has made him around the house..........

"Mom, can I ride my dirt bike?"........

........"Of course, Simeon, as soon as you fold and put away the laundry, empty the dishwasher, and sweep the kitchen." :)

Our neighbor saw him riding the other day, ran out and asked him what size shoes he wore, then ran back in the house with a free pair of size 10 1/2 riding boots. :) (Yes my 13 year old wears a size 10 1/2 shoe! Yikes.)

Every morning Liesel gets up and takes care of the family pets...the guinea pig who sleeps in her room and squeaks every morning at 3:00, the three chickens in the barn (Luke ate the other seven), the two dogs, the pony (T.C. the horse went back to its previous owner) and the newest addition, Mr. Bean the kitten. I am not worried about any creature around here suffering from lack of food or attention, that is for sure. Jack, a miniature appaloosa pony, has gone from stubborn and mean to sweet and loving, all because "his girl"has worked with him and given him so much love and affection every day. I love watching her interact with the animals; it gives me an idea of what kind of mama she will be, and how secure and loved my grandchildren will be. :)



Jude has had a best friend since he was about two years old. We used to be next door neighbors. I love that they are still great buddies even though we have both moved about 30 miles away from each other. I hope they will always be friends, they will have lots of stories to reminisce about.

What has been keeping me the busiest this summer? Potty training! My goodness! Why did nobody tell me how difficult it was to potty train children with Down Syndrome? I have been dealing with diapers and potty training for the past 13 years, and something tells me there is no end in sight, at least any time soon! Joseph is really really close, thanks to the reward of swimming and motorcycle rides, but Ava has a ways to go, I'm afraid. :(

Here they giving each other knuckles after using the bathroom. haha. So cute.

Hope and Zoya like to have "picnics" of juices and popsicles in the fort in between swimming.

So as you can see, it's been super busy around here, but we are having a great summer! Hope you are too!