how do you explain summer vacation to a 3 1/2 year old?! i have no idea… Josh is slowly understanding that it’s a break from school. but i don’t think he understands that he is not going back to his school.

today was his last day and i just about cried when his SEIT teacher Terry gave me a hug. she has been so wonderful with him this year – she has a really loving and quiet way about her that just goes miles with Josh. and then she just about cried when she said goodbye to Josh.

for a first school experience, it’s been a wonderful year. i will never forget the look on his face the first day, when he realized we were going to leave him there for 2 1/2 hours. and then, the second day when he just charged right in and acted like he didn’t even know we were there saying good bye to him!

one year ago we had a child who couldn’t communicate meaningfully much, couldn’t/wouldn’t eat anything other than peanut butter toast, bananas and chicken nuggets, wouldn’t touch sand or dirt of any kind and was not in favor of being potty trained at all. today he is daytime potty trained, loves to dig in his sandbox, and can carry on a conversation that is not only meaningful but at times very insightful! as to the food… well, we’re doing better but i suspect that deep in his heart he will always love “nuggins”, peanut butter toast and bananas.

i always get teary when i think about this whole year and what Josh has accomplished – it was hard work for a kid who wasn’t yet 3 when he started at his program. he was the youngest of all the kids in his class, and the tallest. (hmm, sound like anyone i know? oh yeah, me!) within a few weeks he was on his way to being potty trained, and he had words rolling off his tongue and even complete little sentences. i suppose i could go on and on but then i’ll really end up crying.

of course, there are days when i wish he didn’t talk so much or know so many words. like Memorial Day weekend when he casually announced to a guest at our home that “well, my baby brudder isn’t borned yet, and i don’t know what i will call him”!!! we picked ourselves up off the floor and asked him what he thought he would call this “brudder” – he had a name all picked out! Brendon (after one of his favorite people in the world) is apparently the name of his future sibling. I’m not sure what he’ll do if he ends up with a baby sister down the road.

yes Penny, as you pointed out, summer is about here and it’s well past time for another blog post. we’ve had a lot going on and i just haven’t sat down to blog for a long time!

our departed robin did not come out of his hole, just in case anybody was wondering. and some time in June i’m hoping that particular flower bed will be the home to some new hydrangea plants.

but the really big news around here is Josh (of course!). he has done SO well with his speech therapy work this year that he no longer qualifies to stay in his little preschool program. i have mixed feelings about this – he has some other motor concerns, but is just borderline that he doesn’t qualify for any extra help in those areas. looks like i am going to be doing some further research on my own and working with him this summer in those areas. but back to speech – his speech sample came back at 80% intelligibility, which is above average (average = 75%) for his age. i am so proud of what he has done over this year. when i think back to this time last year… the three of us were frustrated and we were really wondering what was wrong with our son. his speech therapists Sharon and Courtney have helped him immensely. (and for anybody who’s wondering – no, he would not have grown out of this on his own)

so, Josh is on the waiting list for our neighborhood school’s pre K program – we’ve visited the classroom and met the teachers and i think he’d love it there. if he doesn’t get off the waiting list, he’ll be home with me and we’ll be doing it up home school style 🙂

what else is new? well, not much really. we are looking forward to the Northeastern District Conference, which starts next Monday. My parents are coming to help care for Josh while we drive back and forth to the conference, which is about an hour away this year. Later on this summer we’re also looking forward to visits from Grandpa John and Auntie Lindsay, as well as Grammy later in July. I think we should install a revolving door on our guestroom!! it will be great to see our family again, some of whom we have not seen for far too long.

i’m glad the snow is gone and the nice weather is here… and we can open the windows to let in some fresh air in the evenings. oh, and the sun is once again shining in the sky!

further to the robin conversation from the other day…

on Tuesday morning as i was getting ready to go have bloodwork done, Josh and I heard a loud thump on the living room window. it was, unfortunately, a robin. the robin was laying on the ground, clearly dying, and thankfully it died quickly.

we proceeded to have several conversations about death and dying over the past few days. i’ll be honest, i really did NOT want to explain to my son about a robin dying. i don’t know why that is – as a pastor’s kid, Josh has been to more funeral homes in his 3 1/2 years than i ever did up until i married Brian. we always explain that it’s just the person’s body and that they are in heaven.

so when i said that the robin had died, Josh’s logical conclusion was that the robin was in heaven with Jesus. i’ll be honest, i did nothing to discourage him from thinking that. he woke up from his nap on Wednesday (robin burial day) saying “Mommy, i don’t like it when robins die. I want them to fly!” and then he wanted to know if the robin had “come out of his hole yet”.

um, no. and if he does, i’m going to be calling 911!

Me: Hey Josh, look at that big robin over there under the pine tree!
Josh: I think he’s looking for his mommy.
Me: Do you know what robins like to eat?
Josh: No – what?
Me: They eat worms from the ground.
Josh: NO… they eat robin food!

Josh and Brian went out today in the backyard and made this guy. I think he’s cute, but not as good as the drowning head and arms only snowman that Josh and I made earlier this year. (i subscribe wholeheartedly to the Calvin and Hobbes school of snowman construction)

he’s never heard it (yet). i heard it years ago on Jesse and Gene’s morning show in Toronto… it made me snort with laughter back then. little did i know i’d one day have a child whose favorite food is toast.