At the Park

Yesterday we got the ladder out of storage and took it over to Mommo and Poppo's place to make some final adjustments to their bamboo shade! Shade is very important in Las Vegas so it was a bit of an occasion. Poppo shared his iced tea and fresh fruit with us, even offered wine, and Powder lavished Ross with attention.

Who would think to put an air pump on a camera tripod? This little mad scientist, that's who!

 

EGADS!

Posing with his new favorite "toy."  

From my little balcony garden:

Ahhh...

Life has been hectic lately but nothing soothes me like going out onto the balcony where my flowers are starting to bloom and my mountain stands there on the horizon as immovable as the day before. Thank you, God for my balcony!

Remy meets Thomas

Last Sunday we drove out to Boulder City to the Nevada Southern Railway Museum for their annual Thomas the Tank Engine event. I wasn't sure if Remy might be too young for this sort of thing but he got right into it. He wasn't so sure about his Thomas tattoo or how to play mini golf but he loved the little toy engine play area and riding on the train. Mommo and Poppo were so much help and really made the day special. We may have to go back for their annual Christmas train ride with Santa!

Fun in the Sun!

Green Valley Ranch was amazing! I told Ross I think we should try to do it every two months or so, lol! A girl can dream!

My favorites:

• The view from our room - we could see the strip out one window and the pool and gardens out the other
• The Tides seafood restaurant. My salmon was delicious and Remy liked the place because it had TVs!
• The Spanish Colonial decor.  It was romantic without being fluffy.  
• The pool! Sand bottomed for a beachy feel and not too crowded with plenty of comfy seating to go around .
• Rose gardens and vineyards. Made for a couple of beautiful walks at dusk. 
• The hotel bathrobe. It was divinely soft and stood in for my fuzzy blanket while we were there.
• Resting!

What's Up

• It's Easter weekend already! I got Remy a Mr. Potato Head for his basket since he is not really a stuffed animal kinda guy. Our neighbor Anita brought over a basket for him as well. He's gonna be a happy little dude. 
• On Sunday we are heading over to Green Valley Ranch for our two night stay. I need to make sure the swim diapers Steph left here last summer will fit Remy! I can't wait to take him in the pool!
• Our pool here is closed. They say it is for "exciting" improvements. So far all I can see is a new rules sign.  
• Ross has the day off. He is probably going to be disappointed when he sees my honey-do-list.  
• Remy is trying out a casein (dairy) free diet. He has been on the gluten free diet for several months and we have seen a lot of great improvements (though it is hard to say what is from the diet and what is from therapy) so I decided to try the casein free as well. We are on day two now. He does not like almond milk. I am going to give it one more day (because they say it only takes three days for his system to clear out) and if I don't see improvements I am going to go back to dairy.  Because gluten free is one thing, but dairy free is almost unimaginable. We would only continue it if it had great benefits. Like Remy starts writing math equations in his coloring book or reciting Shakespeare.  
• My balcony garden is thriving. My favorites so far this year are the rosemary, juniper and rose bush. However, the lady at Home Depot said the rose moss will be blooming by the end of the month or early next month so that might edge its way up into the top three. ;P
• My canvas prints came! (see below) They look great! 
• Reading some good books. I will try to do a post about that soon.  
• Remy starts his  new playgroup next week. Fingers crossed that it is awesome!
• Happy Easter, everyone!

(gratuitous Remy pictures)

Remy Pics

Remy is a balanced dude - he plays hard and he rests well!

World Autism Awareness Day

If you are keeping score, we don't know yet if Remy is autistic. Initial screening has the professionals concerned that he is - one even told me to prepare myself because, from everything she had seen, she believed he would be diagnosed with Autism - but nothing is certain until he goes through the diagnosis process. That is finally scheduled to begin on June 7th and ends on July 2nd. In my mind I have accepted that he is - but even if we were to find out that he is not, and all of this one day is a memory, I know that I will never look at kids with special  needs, and especially autism, the same way I did before. Before all of this, I was scared of the unknown that they represented, put off by what I perceived as a wall between me and them, unsettled by the seeming senselessness or unpredictability of behavior. Now I feel affection because in them I see Remy, I feel empathy because I have a sense now of the frustration and the isolation they can experience, and I feel proud of how hard they work day by day with a body or a mind that doesn't cooperate the way yours or mine does. This afternoon, when Remy wakes up from his nap, we will go out to the front stoop and screw in a special blue light bulb that will shine all night, a signal to the world that our hearts are with all the precious boys and girls, the men and women, who find themselves on the Autism Spectrum.