Date Night

Aaron and I don't get the opportunity to go out very often as just the two of us. So when we were invited to the Air Force Ball last night, I of course said yes! I asked Travis and Jaclyn to babysit and they were nice enough to say yes. I was so excited to go and then we found out that they had sold out of tickets. Aaron and his boss Vaughn decided that we should go out for a night on the town instead. They made reservations at a restaurant and bought tickets to a show. The day before our date, we found out that they got four tickets for us to go to the ball. As fun as it would be, we decided to keep our dinner and a show plans.

We went to this amazing restaurant called Craftsteak. It was honestly the best food we have ever had. Every bite was followed with an hummm and a wow. Everything melted in your mouth. Of course food this good comes with a price :). It was one of those once in a lifetime dinners, but was worth every penny. After dinner we went and saw the show Ka. It was one of those acrobatic shows and it was pretty amazing. I'm not usually a fan of these kind of shows, but it was pretty amazing. The stage actually moved and people were flying through the air. It was a really fun date and it was nice to have a night to our selves. Thank you Travis and Jaclyn for watching our babies so we could have such a wonderful evening!

Ashton's First Day at School

In the previous post I talked about the Child Find Program. Well through all the testing we did all summer, Ashton qualified to be in the program for his speech. They decided they wanted to place him in a regular preschool so that he could emulate the other students speech and then he would meet with a speech therapist once a week. We waited for several weeks to find out where he was place and finally we found out it was Bunker Elementary School. He has 4 teachers and is in a class with about 25 other kids. Ashton absolutely LOVES school and can't wait to go every day. He has made a huge improvement on his speech. I'm sure a lot of has to do with the fluid being gone, but none the less I know the program is working. He has amazing teachers and I am very impressed with the program. I feel very blessed that he qualified and that we were able to get this help and diagnose his allergies. I hope he always loves school this much! His teachers really enjoy him and tell me how wonderful he is and how much they enjoy having him. I am happy he is doing so well and has adjusted to his new class, teacher, and classmates.

*P.S. We had a follow up hearing screen and Ashton has impeccable hearing, better than normal!

Saying Good Bye to Tank/Ashton's Allergies

This last month we had to say goodbye to our wonderful dog Tank. A few months ago I told the doctor that I was concerned about Ashton's speech. He told us about the Child Find program which is an early intervention program for any learning delays or disabilities. I took him for the initial screening and she wanted to do a full set of tests called the DIAL assessment. Through this process I was told that Ashton had fluid in both of his ears and since I was concerned about his speech, I should have his hearing checked. Of course I went right away and was told that he had fluid in his ears which was causing hearing loss. I then took him to the pediatrician to see what we could do. We talked for a while and a thought came to mind. I told the doctor he had been sniffing a lot, but I thought it was a nervous tick because there was nothing behind the sniffing. She said that she bet he had allergies. So for a month we put him on allergy medicine and sure enough he got better. Once we realized it was allergies, I had him tested for the most common allergies. It turns out that he was a category 2 allergy to dogs and a category 1 allergy to Bermuda grass and cats. Knowing this information we made the decision to find a new home for Tank. It was really sad letting him go, we loved him and Ashton was crazy about him. I told Ashton that I found him a bigger yard to play in. HE asked me everyday for weeks where his dog Tank was. It was hard, but Ashton's health comes first. Hopefully he will grow out of it someday, but for now we are just dog free.

Just Because

Every once in a while, husbands get great ideas. Aaron loves to surprise me with flowers every once in a while. I LOVE these days! I love being surprised and I love that he is sweet. These flowers are gorgeous and I enjoyed them everyday. Thank you honey, I hope you know I appreciate you and all you do too! Love You.

T-Ball

I have always said that I couldn't wait for Ashton to turn five so that I could sign him up for T-Ball. I started wondering if there was a league that started T-Ball early. I started researching online and emailing around. Finally I found the National Youth Sports (NYS) league. They had a beginner team for ages 3-4. I was so excited that I signed Ashton up right away. I told Krystle about it and she signed Luke up and requested that they be on the same team. So in September we started going to our first practices.


The kids had no idea what was going on, but they loved to hit the ball and run around the bases. Then they all wanted to catch and throw the ball. Our first game was hilarious. I think most the kids just wanted to bat and when they were in the outfield, a lot of them were just playing in the dirt. The coach started working on their in fielding and a few games later, the entire team would be chasing each ball. Needless to say we had lots of collisions, but it was better than everyone playing in the dirt. Each week they are getting better and better. Right now, Ashton goes for every ball so our next lesson is letting other kids have a turn, but I love that he is going for it and having fun. Eventually they will get the idea of the game :).


These pictures are of their first practice and their first game. Ashton and Luke have so much fun together. I can't wait to sign them up for next season and see how they progress.

Soccer

Summer months are always hard in Vegas. There is no school and most of the day it's to hot to play outside, unless your in a pool. So I signed Ashton up for several classes at the Recreation center. One of these classes was soccer. Ashton absolutely LOVED it! It was indoor and the coach was amazing with the kids. They basically ran around for 45 minutes and learned how to run and kick the ball. The hardest part for the kids was not touching the ball with their hands. I just love watching kids learn and play. Ashton has loved every class we have done at the rec center. I figure its a good way for him to try it all and then decide what he wants to do. After the session was up, I went to sign him up again, but the classes filled up within two hours of the registration opening. He still loves playing soccer, but it won't be until next year before I can sign him up again.

*Make sure you watch the little video clip of Ashton scoring a goal, I think he is finally getting the hang of it.

Fun Swimming

Steve and Margie have always had the funnest pool to swim in. This summer we were able to go over with Krystle, Luke, and Dan and go swimming a few times. The boys love to swim and they love going down the slide and jumping off the rocks. I can't believe how fearless they are. Once Ashton saw Luke jump, he wanted to do it, and they just kept jumping over and over again. They would either be going down the slide or jumping. They are so fun to watch. One of our swim days Krystle was watching Kendra. She was so cute,as long as Krystle or I had here, she was happy. Even Kaylynn got into the pool for a little bit. It won't be long before we are watching Kaylynn and Kendra doing the same thing as the boys. It's always fun spending time with our family here and its a blast having kids all the same age.

*You might have to click on the pictures the see the boys, but they are worth viewing, so cute!

Lied Discovery Musuem

Downtown, there is this amazing museum called the Lied Discovery Museum. It's a place that you can take your kids and they are actually allowed to touch and play with everything in the museum. It is filled with activities for them to explore and figure out. It's a fantastic place that Ashton had a blast at.


This particular morning, we got dressed and had planned on going for a train ride with Krystle, Luke, and Dan. We were on the freeway when we were at a stand still in traffic. We knew we wouldn't make it in time so we decided to turn around. Searching for something to do, we decided to go to the Lied Discovery Museum. Not knowing what to expect, we were pleasantly surprised when we got there. The boys had so much running around and playing. We loved it so much, we bought a year pass so that we could go back over and over again. Its such a wonderful place where your children's imaginations can go wild. It doesn't hurt that they are learning at the same time too! :) We haven't made it back yet, but it's definitely over due. Thanks Krystle for the great idea.

Tommy's Wedding

As everyone knows by now, Tommy was married this last August to Caitlyn. Aaron was able to take a few days off of work and so we headed to California for their reception. The reception was at my mom's house and we were happy to help set up and get everything ready. It was absolutely beautiful and a wonderful evening. I love seeing everyone and having a reason to get dressed up. It was a quick and busy trip, but really fun. I'm very happy for Tommy and wish them the best in their new marriage.