Final Days of Summer

Last weekend we had visitors. Our dear neighbors from Seattle. I was really happy the kids got to spend time with them before the summer was over.

They always play so creatively together. Evie had it all planned out and luckily our overnight guest agreed on her choice of play.

They would put on another Pokemon show. This time it would not be a contest so thankfully, no tears for the losers. They came up with the whole idea, costumes, props and choreography.

 Ainsley especially enjoyed the show. 

During the day while they prepared for the show Ainsley benefited from their scheming by playing with bubbles.

   

    

It was so much fun to sit on the grass and photograph her having such a blast. By the end she was covered in soap!

Steve is still working on fixing the swingset area.

He put in a drain to deal with the standing water in the area. We'll be working on it again this weekend. Covering the area with landscape fabric and bringing in new woodchips next week (I hope.). We are rotating the swing set so we can use the end to mount the tire swing. It will be great for her to be able to swing with her brother and sister. It's good vestibular stimulation. Did you know that? Swinging counts as therapy.

I always thought it was just fun.

Little missy has been asserting her will in unexpected ways.... 

..and communicating more complex ideas and desires. For example the day this week she got mad that I took the pulse-ox off and she asked me to put it back on so she could take it off by herself. She wants to communicate more. It's very cool to see these changes. I pulled out her communication device and she is definitely better able to navigate the menus. I'll be excited to finally get her new communication device when she gets back to school.

I've had a nasty cough, that I picked up from the kids. So Thursday when our nurse was here I took part of the day to just relax on the patio. It didn't help the coughing but it was good for the spirit. I so seldom take time to just sit. Evie was happy to have my undivided attention to watch her dance. 

Adrian ran the sound and played with the "Darth Vader" effect on the tape player.

She loves to make up dances. I did the same thing when I was a girl.

To be fair, then I watched Adrian work on his soccer skills.

It is great to slow down. This boy has some killer eyelashes.

I spent a lot of time torturing my children with my camera. Worth it, I think.

I gave Evie and Adrian boxes of Artist Trading Cards. They loved them and spent a whole day drawing pictures on their cards. I'm impressed with their artistic abilities and it sure beats playing Wii or PlayStation for the umpteenth day.

Ainsley had a blast "painting." All you do is brush the picture with water to reveal the paint. This is a fantastic activity for special needs kids. She can work on brushing without making a giant mess. Spilling water doesn't count, right?

The kids have been having a lot of fun together these last days of summer. When they built a fort under the table I almost wanted to be a kid again.