I want to extend a 'Thank You' to my family in Kentucky for participating in their local March of Dimes' Walk. We appreciate it so much! I can't wait for Davis to be old enough to really understand what a wonderful family he has!

We planted our garden yesterday. This year, we're growing...

Corn

Tomatoes and Cherry Tomatoes

Bell Peppers, Cayenne Peppers, Banana Peppers, and Jalapeno Peppers

Onion

And Cucumber, Squash, and Okra

And, on Earth Day, Davis made his very own Chia Pet! It's growing like a freakin' weed! I've already had to give it a hair cut!

With this beautiful weather dangling over Atlanta, we've been taking Davis on long walks up and down Hunt Road. He LOVES this! He's all about the walker now. I just really hope the therapists are right in assuring me that he won't become dependent on it. He refuses to let you help him scurry out of the way when a car approaches and HAS TO check both of our mailboxes before we start our journey. The kids down the street have dirt bikes and four wheelers. They like to cruise up and down the street and show off for Davis. Remember...'Moe-yiy'?!?

After a 4 week hiatus from Aquatics (thanks to insurance), we finally returned yesterday. He walked all over that pool! All the old folks were so happy to see him again!

Davis' favorite new phrase..."Oh come on!"

Holy Hail Storm!

Our March of Dimes' Walk went really great this morning. We managed, as a team, to raise over $1,000. Over the past three years, we've raised well over $5,000. Thanks to all of Davis' wonderful family members and friends!

This isn't even a fraction of the number of people that walked...

Davis dancing with Uncle Quint (aka 'Chuck')

Davis and Justin were fortunate enough to get invited to the Hawk's Game last night. That's right...my 2 year old has been to an NBA Playoffs Game and his 26 year old mother hasn't...whatever. OMG...I just realized that I'm going to be 27 this year. TWENTY-SEVEN! That's almost 30, people! I wonder when/if my maturity level will ever catch up??? Anyway...I was so happy that Justin decided to take Davis with him. I'm all about the 'making memories' stuff right now. Although, when I called to check in, Justin's exact answer to my, 'How's it going?' question was this, "He's just too young for this. I gotta go. He's throwing a fit on the stairs right now." BUT they got through it.

Davis had his school evaluation this morning. Wow. That was one of the more overwhelming situations I've experienced with my special needs child. I'd compare it to pulling into the parking deck at Scottish Rite for the first time to visit Davis. We were greeted by a group of about 6 women; all of them being therapists (speech, occupational, physical, psychological) and a social worker. They basically grab Davis and head to one section of the room and ask me to sit down for a 'few questions' (a 'few' meant 'two hundred'). For the next hour and a half, I answer questions like 'Would you say that Davis never, sometimes, or usually uses a spoon and fork correctly?' 'Would you say that Davis never, sometimes, or usually verbalizes two or more words at the same time?' 'Would you say that Davis never, sometimes, or usually can dress and undress himself?' And on and on and on and on...Meanwhile, Davis is sitting at another table being asked questions like 'Lucy's hands are dirty. What should she do?' 'What do you drink water out of?' 'Where is the circle?' 'Davis can you sit criss cross applesauce?' 'Davis, how old are you?' And on and on and on and on...There's so much pressure to really answer the questions correctly because if you embellish his intelligence, he may not qualify for the services that he needs, but if you low ball it, they may want to throw him in a padded room. All of my answers were followed by detailed explanations like, 'He follows directions, but only if it's something he wants to do. I know he knows what I'm asking him to do, but it's just a matter of whether or not he's going to listen to me. You understand? So, my answer is usually. No, sometimes. Well...can I use a lifeline?' It was stressful. Plus, I was trying to listen in on Davis' answers and kept translating his words for them...'He's saying purple!' Or 'He wants you to give him the ball with the dog character on it!'

From everything they all gathered during the meeting, they'll develop an IEP (Individualized Education Program), which is basically a Davis handbook with goals, his specific needs, etc. His teachers and therapists at school will all follow this IEP. It's important for them to have a good understanding of Davis' intellectual level because he needs to be placed in the proper environment where he has the most potential to thrive. We'll see what happens. The whole time we were there, I just kept thinking, 'I can't believe this is my life.'

Davis and I were all alone this weekend while Justin went on a fishing trip with some friends. I took him to the Big Shanty Festival in Kennesaw on Sunday. We got to ride around on a miniature train and I managed to stay away from the Elephant Ears! Successful trip to the fair!

Davis is getting confident enough with his balance and taking a couple of steps from one surface to the next. I've noticed that he lunges (toddler reach) forward when he's heading towards the ottoman or other soft surfaces, but takes nice steps when he's going towards the coffee table (because he knows chin to wood contact creates boo-boos.) So, I'm thinking that if I just dangle a ball of fire in front of his path, he'll walk for days! I'll keep you posted...

Davis' new sentence: "I want hold dat Momma."

Well, 3 Easter Egg Hunts, 4 Easter Baskets, 60 pounds of chocolate, and an entire grocery bag full of plastic eggs later and Easter is finally over!

Saturday morning was the Hunt at Davis' Preschool.

He wouldn't touch the finger paints...

So, they got crayons out for him instead...

Then, we headed to Taylorsville for another Hunt with The Nunleys...

Scared of paint on his fingers, but not a tire swing!

Sunday, Justin and I had breakfast at our house with Pa.

Then, headed to GG and Jay's house for lunch...

Harmonica for him...

One of the perks of being married to a business owner is that our family time isn't limited to the weekends...Today, we took Davis to the Southern Civil War and Locomotive Museum in Kennesaw. It's probably a little out of his age range, but Justin and I really enjoyed it.

Playing dress-up

He looks super excited..."Where's my tail?"...

Some quotes I liked...

Some drama with Davis' Aquatic Therapist...We show up at the pool at 2:30 sharp for 'Wimmin' and there's no therapist. Mmmm...weird. 2:40 rolls around (I'm already past the point of being pissed that she's late...that happened at 2:31) and I give her a little ring: "Hey, this is Andrea. It's 2:40 on Monday and we're up here at the pool. I hope everything's ok because I don't recall being told that we weren't meeting today. Please give me a call." Insert communication barrier here because this is what comes back my way, two hours later: A freaking text that reads: 'I'm so sorry. I thought I told you that I wasn't working this week because of Spring Break. I should have followed up. Please forgive me.' A TEXT!!! What a responsible way to conduct business! What's the deal? Does Spring Break translate into Verbal Communication hiatus? Nevermind the hour drive or the time I've wasted. But I had to drag Davis out of there, kicking and screaming, because his maturity level doesn't quite understand 'We gotta go because we got stood up'. FIRED!

This little boy (probably about 7 or 8 years old) approached Davis and I in the Kiddie Room at the gym tonight and asked this, "Is he paralyzed because the kids say he's paralyzed?" Instead of politely explaining to the curious child what paralyzed actually means and that it's just taking Davis a longer time to learn how to walk, I just look at him and say, "No. He's not paralyzed." And continue on my merry way...minus the merry...that kind of hurt. But I'll be better prepared next time. Maybe I should start carrying around CP pamphlets...that wouldn't freak little kids out at all... :)

Davis has a plastic t-ball set that, for some ignorant reason, used to be in the house. Well, it resides in the garage now because of some very lovely dents he's put in the wall. Every now and then you can catch Davis imagining that he's swinging the bat as he does the hand motions. Well, tonight he did it and I could actually see the wheels turning in his brain as he headed for his bedroom. This is what he came back with...

Makeshift balls and bat! He handed me the ducks and said, "Go Momma." So, I threw the duck balls (haha) and he swung the hat bat.

We won our tennis match yesterday!

Now that Davis has gotten so great with his walker, we take it everywhere to allow him to get in as much practice as possible. Because of that, we gets lots of looks from people around us (positive looks, of course). None of that bothers us at all. We feel so proud and lucky to be a part of Davis' life. Justin grows about 10 feel tall when he's walking alongside him.

Davis already got Easter baskets from his Mimi and Great-Grandma Stephanie last night. And I'm sure there's lots more to come...

We played outside for a little while this morning...

And planted a tree in the backyard...

We had Davis' main squeeze, Eva, over last night...

And then we all went to an Easter Egg Hunt this morning...

There were probably a thousand families at this park. So, Davis and I went to the playground area and waited for the hunt to start. Justin ran out there and grabbed a bunch of eggs and we had our own private egg hunt off to the side...just to be sure he wasn't trampled during the stampede.

Davis finally got his hair cut this morning. Justin's not too happy about it, but I guess that's one of the perks of being the Boss...I mean, the Mom...you get to make the final decisions! He, for some crazy reason, wants Davis to have long hair. Boys really can't get away with that look until they're old enough to not get mistaken for girls. I'm not budging.

A fire truck and ambulance were in the parking lot of the gym last night, (blocking us in) so they gave Davis a hat!

"I think I smell a fire. Excuse me while I go put it out."

Before bed, every night, Davis has to say 'Good night' to everyone in the house. "Nigh nigh, Dadda. Nigh nigh, Momma. Nigh nigh Gock. Nigh nigh, Thomas...Gordon...James...(his trains)" And finally, "Nigh nigh, Tray-ya box." Translation: Treasure Box. He's got this little, tiny plastic treasure box that he is obsessed with at the moment. Oh, how I wish that sticker of shiny coins and jewels was real.

We were woken up around 5 a.m. to him crying and screaming, "Dadda! Momma!" Justin ran in there and found his feeding tube wrapped around his body and neck so tight that he was pinned to the side of his crib. I hate that stupid thing!

I took Davis to the pet store this morning (just to kill time). He loves watching the birds chirp and fly around their little cages. One of these days I'm gonna come home with something from there. 'But Justin, Davis reeeeeeeally wanted the guinea pigs...and the kitty...and the school of goldfish. You don't want to make him so sad, do you? Thought so.'

Davis' class had their Spring Party today. I was in charge of a craft and turned to my creative husband for ideas...His suggestion...How about I just go outside, kill a rabbit, and all the kids can skin it? Good idea, Justin. Real good. Don't be jealous, girls. He's mine, all mine.

Here's what we ended up with...

Before craft time, we had an Easter Egg Hunt...

Davis totally understood the whole 'find an egg and put it in the basket' concept, but just couldn't quite get to the eggs fast enough! Poor guy! But his classmates were so sweet and would hand him the egg if they got to it before he could. I was mostly amazed that he wore that duck hat.

Playing with the parachute...

They thought it was sooooo funny that I kept cramming the motorcycle into the handbag. I still don't get it.

I went into Davis' room for my routine check-in last night (just to make sure he hasn't been stolen. Fast forward to 16 years from now and it'll be because I want to catch him sneaking back in through his window, wiping mulch off the sill, and claiming, "Oh, I was just getting some fresh air."...not that I ever did any of that.) And this is what I found...

I caught him red-handed trying to squeeze through his crib slots.