Shining Stars Preschool Graduation

Back in May Jack graduated from Shining Stars Preschool. It was a fun event and his Dad, Mom, Papa Barry and AnneMarie got to be there (AnneMarie was home from school that day because she didn't feel well). We really loved Shining Stars, it was an awesome public preschool that was FREE, Jack got a great education and maybe learned some empathy as a peer model there. The school specializes in early intervention for kids who may need extra help in some areas. For example, so many kids in Jack's classroom qualified for speech services that the SLP just came and worked with the entire class instead of pulling them out one at a time. We love Shining Stars!

Jack with his teachers Miss Renae and Miss China. He wanted to give them "stuff to paint their nails" as a gift at the end of the year. I thought a gift certificate for a manicure might fit the bill, but he actually wanted to pick out nail polish (and some accessories) especially for them. He chose green polish for one teacher and yellow for the other!

With sister at his school. So proud!

Red Light Green Light on Spring Break

We went to Red Light, Green Light, a local kids educational play place, back during Spring Break in March. It is a ton of fun! Jack had been there before with playgroup but it was the first visit for AnneMarie.

Everybody loves the ball pit!

Shopping for groceries.

Loved the construction gear! AnneMarie built a huge tower out of foam blocks and is now preparing to demolish it.

Serving up pizza, burgers and ice cream at the diner.

The veterinary area.

The kids LOVED the plush animals and each one carried a cat around pretty much the entire time. Red Light Green Light is a lot of fun but a little pricey for a random visit. It was a great afternoon of entertainment during Spring Break!

Playgroup Zoo Trip

In late May our playgroup went to the Rio Grande Zoo, one of our favorite destinations. Our friend Patrick from the neighborhood came with us, he and Jack got along great. They are both hams for the camera!

Early in the morning turned out to be a great time to see all the big cats! They were moving around much more than usual, the boys enjoyed the tigers and the mountain lions especially.

Sitting on benches to watch the bird show. Jack, Patrick, Luke and Aria. Another Parick, Jacob, and baby Blake were there too.

Buddies!

Miss Aria under her sunbrella.

Jacob seems unsure what to make of this.
This activity was our last with our West Side Playgroup. It was a ton of fun for about 2.5 years, but Jack will be heading to kindergarten soon! We will definitely miss our Friday morning outings, thanks to many friends for making playgroup such a great time.

Poetry Reading

Back on May 18, AnneMarie was in a Poetry Reading at Loma Colorado Library. Her teacher Mrs. Osburn entered her poem in a contest and it was one of three winners for the second grade. Any student in the city of Rio Rancho could enter, some of the other winners were from other elementary schools and some were homeschoolers.

AnneMarie did a great job reading her poem clearly and at a good pace. She remembered (as many other students did not) to introduce herself and her school. I was very proud! Nathan was not feeling well but Jack and I got to attend, along with Papa Barry and Grandma Pam.

The library displayed all the poems entered in the contest on a bulletin board in the children's section.

AnneMarie's winning poem.

Mayo Clinic in Scottsdale, AZ

(A lot of our recent activities will be posted out of order, since I am behind on the blog!)
Nathan went to the Mayo Clinic in June because he is still not recovered from his attack of colitis back in September 2010. The visit went well, the diagnosis of Crohn's Disease was once again confirmed (although there is no difinitive test for this). The GI doctor felt like he is on the right meds now and that he will continue to improve. The migraines are most likely a side effect of medication, those should go away also as the meds leave his system and as he gets off of pain meds. He has a hypersensitivity to pain which is causing him to take longer to feel better. This is good to know as it explains why it has taken so long for past injuries (such as his broken elbow) to heal, and is good to be aware of for things he could encounter in the future. No special diet is required at this point but he shoudl contiue to eat only those things he feels agree with him best. An abdominat CT confirmed that all is healed right now. Nathan was encouraged to hear that his doctors here in Albuquerque have been treating him correctly and there were no hidden surprises. The whole thing felt anti-climactic to me but it was good to hear from a real expert that he is on the right track. I guess Nathan's case is not mysterious enough for Mayo to make a big deal over! That is a good thing.

Standing outside the Mayo clinic.

A super tall cactus on the Mayo campus.

This snake was outside the restaurant at our resort. Our waiter actually went outside and picked it up and carried it further away so it wouldn't upset the guests! He said it was basically harmless, just alarming because it was so long.

Out to eat at The Secret Garden.

At Gluten Free Creations Bakery, which didn't quite live up to the hype.

The place we tried to go to for lunch turned out to be only open for dinner, so we wound up at Cowboy Ciao. Turns out they had the same owners and mostly the same menu. Great lunch.We had a lot of fun in Phoenix even if the Mayo experience was not as exciting as expected. The highlight for me was shopping at Ikea. Nathan got to play 9 holes of golf and could have done a lot more if his head wasn't hurting the whole trip. Thanks to both sets of grandparents for watching the kids during our trip.