Memorial Day Weekend 2014

It's been a busy weekend around here as our unofficial start to summer began.  Unfortunately, Chris worked half of it but we still had a lot of fun with friends and family.  The weather ended up making it feel as though summer has already begun and is making us feel a little bit itchy for the real part of summer to get here! 

 

Colin, Kailey and I started the weekend off with some ice cream at the ice cream store!  Colin had been missing Daddy so much he sort of adopted a different Daddy while we were there and snuggled right in with him.  It was a little bit awkward for me, but the family though it was totally cute.  

 

On Saturday, we met up with our friend Charlee and her Mommy and Daddy at the boardwalk to catch a few rides together.  We had so much fun!

 

Sunday was beautiful all day long and we first hit up the beach where Colin had no problem jumping right in and riding the waves even though the water is still in the low 60s. 

Later that day we had a BBQ with our friend Becker, his Mommy and Daddy and some family.  Unfortunately, Daddy's work day ran longer than it was supposed to so he missed dinner with us. 

Today was another BEAUTIFUL day and it felt just like old times when our friend Mer came to visit us in her lifeguard truck on the beach.  Colin got his first ride of the summer!

It was a fun but exhausting weekend!  Looking forward to many more like it!

We did not forget, however, WHY we were able to celebrate with our family this weekend...we are extremely grateful to our Grammy and Poppy and all of the other veterans who have made many sacrifices so that we could enjoy our time together.  THANK YOU!

The Best of Birthdays

Today was a really good day spent with my family celebrating my 33rd birthday (although I TECHNICALLY don't turn 33 until midnight).  What makes these birthdays fun is not so much the excitement for myself but rather, the excitement that Colin and Kailey have in celebrating it FOR me.  

 

Even better, Colin was able to sing me an entire version of Happy Birthday very clearly and with lots of love.  THAT makes for a really good birthday.

 

To celebrate, we walked down to the restaurant on the river by our house and had dinner out on the patio (which did get interrupted by some rain late in the dinner).  The restaurant has a "Family Funday Monday" with a DJ playing music in one of the rooms and the kids just joined right in.  Our jaws dropped to see Colin and Kailey do THIS without any bit of prompting...

 



"Summer" Fun

Today we decided to break out some of our "summer" toys even though it wasn't AS warm as it could have been.  I had two little tots requesting some water play and I wasn't about to turn them down (clothes and all!).  

 

By the time they were done, they were shaking so hard from being cold we had to run inside for a warm bath!  Looking forward to much warmer weather ahead!

And THIS is the kind of attitude we are dealing with when it comes to Kailey.  And by the way, I NEVER should have posted so soon about her being potty trained.  Oy vey....she is tough to handle!

The Road Less Traveled

Today we had Colin's final IEP meeting with our team to determine his placement for next year.  After many months of doing our own research, listening to the progress updates about Colin, hearing/touring our options, and discussing the recommendation by his team, Chris and I ultimately decided to place Colin in an inclusive setting with an in-class support teacher for math and literacy.  For us, this decision was not taken lightly and even now there are some fears of the unknown in what the future will bring for Colin.  However, we feel confident that we have made the best decision.  

 

We have weighed all of the options and while we know there are clear positives to a special education classroom with smaller class sizes and more individualized attention, there are also many benefits to being in a classroom with his typical peers and having positive peer models.  We DON'T know how Colin will do but we feel that it is something we need to try and give him the chance to show us what he is capable of. 

This has been a very emotional journey for us and we know it is really only just beginning.  When you pick a route that is not the "common" way, there are anxieties to how things will work and how he will do but what we DO know is that we will continue to support and push Colin to make sure he is as successful as he can be.  Worst case scenario?  We reassess and figure out what we need to do as little challenges may pop up. 

We are about to start a new adventure with Colin in the fall and look forward to seeing all of the ways he will shine.  We are so grateful for the foundations that his "team" at school have built for him that allows us to confidently make this decision to take this road.  We will continue to take one step at a time and make sure we do all that we can for Colin to be successful. 

Take Me out to the Ballgame!

We had a really great opportunity on Friday night thanks to my Dad and his company, New Jersey Manufacturer's Insurance Company, to attend a Trenton Thunder baseball game as part of their annual fundraiser for the Special Olympics of NJ.  NJM has become a big sponsor for the Special Olympics through the years, including for the upcoming National Games. 

 

On Friday night, the company sold tickets to attend the game as a group for employees and family members where they would then donate the money raised to the Special Olympics.  Because my Dad has been one of the top fundraisers for our Polar Bear Plunge team CAT Crew for the Special Olympics year after year (and one of the overall top fundraisers for the event) and because he has a grandson who directly benefits from the Special Olympics (whose photo is actually featured on some NJM awards they've received), his company invited my dad and his family to be a part of the check presentation on the field prior to the game actually starting.  We were honored to be a part of such a prestigious group of people on the field presenting a donation to the SONJ. 

 

My dad is over my right shoulder along with the President of SONJ, his son (holding the check) and the CEO of NJM (with other company employees). 

 Another benefit of the evening, was the fact that Colin and Kailey were able to throw out first pitches prior to the game starting. 



 

What was even more fun for Chris was that he used to work for the Trenton Thunder years ago and coincidentally they were celebrating their 20th anniversary where Chris was able to run into some of the staff members he used to work with during that time.  

 

 

As always, we were thankful to be awarded such a great opportunity thanks to Colin and his involvement with the Special Olympics, in addition to the hard work of my dad, his company,  and people like him who raise money for the SONJ.  These funds directly benefit Colin as he participates in many programs the Special Olympics have to offer for him. 

 

 

 

 

Thanks Dad, NJM and the SONJ for another great event!  Also, a special thanks to our friend, Dave Schofield for some great pictures from the night!

Looooooong Time Coming!

I've been waiting a REALLY long time to say this but we have exciting news to share!  Kailey is OFFICIALLY potty trained!!!!!!!  Chris and I have to laugh when Chris mentioned tonight that it usually takes us hitting "rock bottom" for some skill before we finally see the light.  The light just turned on for Kailey the other day when she started going independently without resisting.  We put her in underwear all weekend (except for at night) which she successfully kept dry except for one poop accident each day.  Last night we decided to keep her in underwear which she kept dry until right when she woke up (I kept checking on her).  She stayed dry at school all day and then despite her crying for 2 hours that going poopies would hurt, she finally let it go in the good ole' froggy potty.  

 

 

I cannot even begin to describe my jubilance, excitement, joy, and happiness at the fact I finally have one of them fully potty trained. 

Now we just need to get Colin fully there too!  But woo hoo!!!!!!!!!!!!!

WWE Superstars and the Special Olympics NJ

We were presented a really awesome opportunity this week when Colin was invited to be a part of a special photo/video shoot with the WWE (World Wrestling Entertainment) and the Special Olympics of NJ.  The WWE signed on to be a founding partner of the 2014 USA games for the Special Olympics and will serve as the Official Production Partner of the games which is being hosted in NJ this June.   We were told that there would be a few WWE superstars who would play with the developmental basketball athletes and would then serve as honorary coaches for Team NJ Unified soccer teams as they competed against each other.  

 

 

 

We were honored that Colin was asked to participate and excited at the opportunity (Chris has been a big fan of the WWE since he was a boy).  We found out that the WWE superstars that would be attending would be The Big Show, 

 

 

Diva Natalya, 

 

Stephanie McMahon (which we didn't know until we got there), 

 

and one of the announcers, Renee (pictured at left with Natalya).  

 

 

When we arrived, we were given a run down of the schedule for the day but then were headed with the president of the SONJ to be introduced to someone that was there.  On the way, we passed The Big Show in the hallway and Colin went right up to him and shook his hand and was chatting a bit with him.  We weren't sure what Colin's reaction would be because he is 7'0 and over 400 lbs so we were pleasantly surprised that Colin warmed right up to him.  

 

 

We were then brought to the gym where Colin participated in developmental basketball with the team that was there, Miss Andrea, Coach Greg, and a lot of the other volunteers that were there to help.  

 

 

Colin did REALLY well following directions but started to tire out a little bit more at the end (and everything sort of got a little bit off schedule).  The superstars came in the gym to play with the Young Athletes for a bit before participating in their soccer game.  

 

Colin immediately went right to Renee and gave her a big hug. 

 

For the beginning part, Colin actually did really well playing with some of the superstars.  

 

 

However, they attempted to get a shot of The Big Show lifting Colin up in the air to make a basket.  Unfortunately, Colin got a little nervous during that, kept dropping the ball and then ran off to us saying he was all done.  

After repeated attempts, we had a really hard time getting Colin to get involved again.  It was really cute because The Big Show even kept coming over to me and asking us if he was Ok, concerned that he really scared him.  I thought that was so sweet.  

 

 



 He sort of regrouped a bit at the end and gave some hugs and kisses to the girls again before heading outside. 

Once outside, we watched the presentation of the superstars and the first half of the unified soccer game.  It took Colin awhile to regroup but once he did, he finished out the day pretty strong.  At halftime, they had the Young Athletes out on the field to present the superstars with sweatshirts for the day and then had them participate in penalty kicks with The Big Show as goalie. 

When Colin saw who was in goal, he immediately started looking for us again, but Coach Greg (aka, the Miracle Worker), got Colin to start running to kick the ball and then let him finish on his own. 

 

Colin was so excited that he scored and then much to our surprise, turned around on his own and ran right over to the Big Show and gave him a big hug.  

 

He said his goodbyes and gave out hugs to Renee and Natalya before leaving...

All in all, it was a really awesome and exciting day (despite our disappointment at Colin's difficulties with the one "big shot" that they attempted).  We are even more excited at the fact that these superstars came out to support the Special Olympic athletes today. 

Much thanks to the Special Olympics of NJ, the 2014 USA games, WWE, The Big Show, Natalya, Renee and Stephanie!  We are grateful for all you do to support our Special Olympic athletes!