Special Times with the Kiddos

All that free time we (well, someone) thought I'd have to accomplish projects once both kids were in school?... yeah, well, that hasn't happened yet.  With Jason on a transitional schedule all month, I have mostly felt like a taxi driver just trying to sneak in some time at the gym a few days a week.  BUT, I have managed to snag a few special days with my kids and that has been fun.

Last Wednesday, I took Jason to the Observation Deck at the airport to watch planes take off.  He loved it!  It reminded me of the days when my dad would take me over to watch the planes near his office while we ate Arby's roast beef sandwiches and curly fries.  I skipped on the Arby's this time, but we did enjoy a granola bar each!

Today, I got to volunteer in Abbie's classroom at preschool for the first time.  It was cooking day, so another parent and I provided the supplies and stayed to help the kids prepare their lunches.  They have been studying the letters of the alphabet this month and reading the book Chicka Chicka Boom Boom.  So, today they made their own coconut trees (from the book): a hotdog wrapped in a crescent roll for the tree trunk, green apple slices for the leaves, letter crackers to climb up the tree, cheese cubes for the ground... or as coconuts in the tree, and banana pudding for dessert.  I had fun helping them put these together and getting to interact with the kids in Abbie's class.

 Abbie's job today was to feed the class pet, which she did right after lunch. 

After helping out in Abbie's class, I picked up Jason and took him to lunch at a nearby park.  No one was there for the first 20 minutes or so, which gave us some time just the two of us.  We ended up sharing an apple while watching a construction crew digging a very large hole behind the park with a digger.  I took Jason over to see up close and he got to "talk" with one of the construction workers. 

It was not only a fun bonding time for us, but also another good time to exercise his speaking skills.  We have been having several dedicated practice sessions per week, plus an hour with a speech therapist each week.  I'm starting to find more and more ways to help Jason practice the skills he needs to finally produce vowel-consonant combinations that will eventually become intelligible speech.  Today was all about the digger going "up" and "down" and getting "more" dirt.  Good times!