New Camera Lens

During my first trimester I not only stopped blogging but I also stopped taking photos. (I was exhausted! I did manage to watch a lot of Doc Martin.) Anyway, when I recently dug my camera gear back out I noticed that my 50mm f/1.8 wasn't performing well at all and on further inspection it appears that the autofocus feature on that lens has broken. It's only a $100 lens, made of plastic, and out of warranty, so sending it in for repair didn't make sense. Instead I did a little online shopping and found that the 40mm f/2.8 is a popular alternative. It's $50 more but has a sturdier construction, and because it shoots a little wider (sorry, I don't know the correct lingo) you don't feel so cramped using it indoors. This is big draw for me because I was having the hardest time fitting more than one person into the frame with my 50mm. I would back up and back up and then bang into a kitchen counte. So the 40mm arrived on Friday and I am loving it so far. Here is what it looks like and here are some of my first pictures with it (my camera is the Canon T3.)

It's small but much heavier than the 50mm f/1.8. I ordered mine from Amazon.

Newest Park in the Neighborhood

We have wonderful parks in the neighborhood and Saturday we checked out the newest one. Wide, grassy areas to run and play, more than enough picnic pavilions, courts aplenty for the grown-ups, and a great playground for the kids. Add to that the gorgeous views of Lone Mountain and the Spring Mountains and this could be our new family favorite.

Family Involvement Day: Gymboree

Once a  month Remy's class has a "Family Involvement Day" when class is canceled but a one hour activity is set up for the whole family. This month they invited Gymboree to come and give a taste of what their classes are like for the kids.  One of the regular-ed classes joined us for the first half of the event but after that we had the instructor (and all the parachute!) to ourselves.

It was fun to see Remy with his classmates. The boys didn't really talk to each other, but they were sweet with one another and had a great time running around together.  I was surprised at how often Remy separated from the group and had to be led back into the activities. He is definitely not shy at home, but with so many new faces you could tell that he wanted to enjoy things from a little further back.  I was really impressed (once again) with his teacher, Miss Vicky. She was so affectionate and tuned in with the kids, definitely the kind of person you can feel awesome about leaving your child with for 6.5 hours of the day!

Red Rock Canyon

October and November are two of my favorite months in Las Vegas. The temperatures are in the 70s and 80s in the day time so you can really get out and enjoy nature. Yesterday, after a late lunch at Lucille's, we decided it was too nice a day to go home so we drove out to Red Rock Canyon. Remy napped in the car most of the time while we did the loop through the park and we got out at a couple of place we don't usually stop so that we could see the views from a different perspective. It was great, hopefully we will get to back next month when Steph is in town!

Halloween 2013

Remy was Darth Vader this year. His interest in Star Wars comes more from the Angry Birds game than the movies but they don't make Angry Birds Star Wars costumes. ;)

Baby on Board

I couldn't believe it when I came here to the blog and saw that I hadn't updated since July! I think that may be a record for me. I have a good excuse though, I got pregnant in August and have been laying low while I waited out the morning sickness and 1st trimester exhaustion. Fortunately, I am 15 weeks pregnant now and feeling so much better. Here is an ultrasound image from week 12:

 

Isn't that a beautiful baby? I can hardly believe it. This is my 6th pregnancy and only the second one to make it this far so I am beyond grateful. At 35 years old I am considered of "advanced maternal age," so they have been carefully monitoring this pregnancy and so far it has been smooth sailing. Now that I am feeling so much better I will try to update more often.

July Sketches

Remy Listening to OneRepublic, Then and Now

Remy a month or two after his first birthday, enjoying his favorite album.


A much more mobile Remy enjoying the same bit of music two years later, aged 3.
 

Remy Reading

There was a time, not so long ago, when I thought everything Remy learned would have to be painstakingly broken down and taught to him with great deliberateness and care. I worried quite a bit about what his communication difficulties and his developmental delays would mean for his future. Then he goes and teaches himself how to read. This child is teaching me so much about possibilities, assumptions, hope, and perseverance.



I am guessing he can read 100 words, but it could be a lot more than that.

Green Valley Ranch Stay-cation

I think we may have a real family tradition going here! In May we had our third stay at Green Valley Ranch Resort and Casino just 30 minutes from home. The beautiful "backyard" area makes it a much more restful and family friendly destination than you usually think of when you think Las Vegas. It was our best vacation experience with Remy by far. We started preparing him for it a couple of weeks in advance; showing him pictures, explaining to him that he would be sleeping at the hotel, reminding him how to act at a restaurant, etc. It paid off. He slept well all three nights, he was (mostly) a champ at the restaurants, he loved the pool, and he is already talking about going back!

My favorite parts:

• Sharing Ross's Gumbo (if it wasn't Gumbo it was a lot like it!) and a glass of Riesling at the Oyster Bar.
• Breakfast with Mommo and Poppo at Grand Cafe - excellent pancakes and coffee!
• Snagging some good deals on school clothes for Remy at the Gymboree in the cute little shopping area next to the hotel.
• The view from our window! Mountains, city lights, and the highway curving gracefully to the West.
• Having nothing to do but lounge by the pool with a good book while Ross played with Remy (and every other kid in the pool.) 
• That we were there during on off week and never felt crowded (except the five minutes we spent in line for the buffet, we said screw this and went to the deli instead.) 
• The smell of the GVR shower gel - citrusy and herby. I think they make it onsite at the spa and it brings back memories of our previous stays. 
• Seeing Remy down a giant slice of cheese pizza by himself. He's eating like a big boy these days.
• The fact that Mommo and Poppo were there to enjoy it with us. The more generations the merrier!  

Remy is Three!

Remy turned three on Sunday, which was also Mothers Day. How perfect is that? It was Remy's first real birthday party - small but much bigger than the little visit to the park with Mommo and Poppo that we did the first two years. It went so well; he was just over the moon the entire time. He got terrific presents from everyone including a five pack of Ferrari Hot Wheels, a remote control Lightning McQueen, a balance bike, and a hand crafted Angry Bird. He has been asking for presents every day since!

It's early days, I know, but I think I am already getting a taste of what summer is going to be like with a three year old and buckle your seatbelts folks cause it's going to be all go!

What's Up

Spring is here and exciting things are in the air!

• We had a big meeting with the school district to figure out the best way to help Remy now that he has graduated out of the Early Intervention program. We decided that Remy will continue with 7.5 hours of ABA a week over the summer and then in the fall he will start preschool full time in the special program for kids on the autism spectrum. It sounds like a wonderful program where ABA methods are heavily incorporated and 2-3 neurotypical kids are in the classroom to model age appropriate socialization and behavior to the ASD kiddos. Everyone involved was so professional and so focused on the best outcomes for Remy that we left the meeting without any doubts that we had made the right choice. How often does that happen? 
• Being an owner of a sophisticated (euphemism for overly complicated and difficult to understand) heated inground pool/spa combo with waterfall feature is not something that you get good at overnight. It's like this giant (lovely) petri dish with lots of plumbing and moving parts, half of which are currently busted. Buying a Kreepy Krauly (like a mechanical bottom feeder) to do the daily scrubbing for us has been a great move. The pool looks good and at last check the chemical balance is pretty good too. Now if we can just get the heater working!  
• The neighbors Jasmine is in bloom and the smell is intoxicating. I love sitting out in the backyard around sunset and breathing in the romantic scent as the clouds turn pink and lavender. 
• I have a new niece! Noah and Lauren welcomed their second child, Lucy, into the world a couple of weeks ago. She's a peach! Mom and Dad are going back to IL on Tuesday to meet her.  
• Remy's third birthday is on Sunday. We're doing a thing but I am hesitant to call it a birthday party. When the neighbor kids across the street had a birthday party it involved loads of guests and renting a jump house. I can't compete with that.  What I can do is cake, balloons, chips, beer, and some gifts for birthday boy.  Take it or leave it.  
• I am super ready for a vacation. Our last vacation was three nights at the GVR with the Stangers last fall and it was awesome but not very long as far as vacations go. I am ready to get out of the house and do something different for a week or so. The question is how far can you go and how much can you alter the familiar before it becomes overwhelming for Remy and thus much more work than it is worth for his mama!  I am sure we'll figure it out.  
• Hope everyone is having a wonderful spring and looking forward to a long hot summer!