New Discoveries

We finally had a "warm" day to get out for a hike. We were pleasantly surprised that the ground has firmed up since our last few hikes. No slipping and sliding at all! Towards the end of the hike we paused to give the kids some time to explore at water's edge. I noticed Levi squatted down very intently doing something. As I got closer I noticed that he was rubbing water on rocks. After a bit more observation, it dawned on me that he had noticed that the rocks change color when you "paint" them with water. I was thrilled with this new discovery on his part! I wet my finger and began tracing his name on a rock near me. He stood watching, totally enthralled and with the tiniest hint of a smile on his face before deciding to try his hand at writing the letters of his name also. I felt so blessed to share in this neat moment with my sweet Levi.  

Thank You, Lord, for times like this that make my heart feel so very full. 

Xtramath

I don't know what took me so long to sign Levi up for a free Xtramath account! Afterall, he always ran to the computer to watch his sister when he saw that she was doing her lesson. He routinely jumped excitedly around and cheered for her. Very cute. After a few months of this, I wondered how he'd do if I signed him up as well. I figured it certainly couldn't hurt. And it'd help me gauge his readiness in this area of math. I thought that his first scores would be pretty low and they were. But this little guy of mine is pretty smart and very good at adapting and memorizing things. This picture shows him getting seven smiley faces after getting only one the very first time he tried. It only took him a few days to start sorting it out. This math program is proving to be just the thing we needed! I truly see it as a gift from the Lord and His way of providing for Levi's education.

Making it Personal

I had the perfect idea for a Christmas gift for Levi. The idea was to buy him his very own set of wooden spoons and personalize them with his name. Seemed like a great plan since he loves to cook as much as he does. Unfortunately, I did not find them for him in time for Christmas. Who knew that it could be so hard to find the right spoons? The quality ones I found had extremely bulky handles that I thought would hinder Levi. The ones that had the right kind of handles were too cheaply made and had chips or splintered areas on them. I finally came across the ones I had in mind for him... more than a week after Christmas. I got the wood burning tool out and attempted to burn his simple name on each handle. Boy did my hand wobble! It definitely doesn't look very professional. But he liked them and his smile filled my heart to overflowing. How I love him!

Learning Through Pizza

Who knew that making pizza would be so rich in OT? Levi really had to grasp those tiny, slippery pepperoni. They were cold, which meant that they did not easily peel apart from one another. If you could see his face here, you would see oodles and oodles of concentration. He dotted the entire surface of our lunch just like he'd done it a million times. Another step forward (and a tasty one at that!) in Levi's learning adventure.

Feeding Geese

We made tree-shaped pizza snacks with our guests, which means that we had a lot of bread scraps left over. What better way to use them than to go find some waterfowl to feed! We were cutting it close as far as leftover daylight went, but we were blessed to have just enough time to accomplish what we came for. The geese and a few ducks eagerly greeted us as we approached this local lake. I hoped that Levi would get into this experience, but there really is no telling beforehand. He was not in the least bit afraid of the geese and threw handful after handful of bread to them. It was hard to get a decent shot of him because he was in constant, happy motion! My mother's heart smiles every time I get to do something "normal" like this with my Levi boy.

Cookie Decorator Extraordinaire

We had friends over the week before Christmas for an annual get together where we decorate tree-shaped cut-out cookies. It was very apparent to our guests that Levi has a lot of experience in this department. I set him up in his own "decorating station" with some of his own cookies, a small dish of the glaze, and a bottle of green sprinkles. I asked my oldest son to watch over him, giving instructions that he allow him total freedom to create. He was just there to make sure Levi did not do anything dangerous. I was so proud of my big guy! He handled that tricky glaze beautifully and sprinkled each cookie with flair. He was in his element for sure.

Precious Gifts

Precious gifts. Where do I even start with this post? On a day like this when children just like my Levi were ripped from their parents' lives? Whenever things like today's elementary school shooting happen, people say the same thing: "Hold your children a little closer and hug them a little tighter tonight." And they're absolutely right. These things do cause me to pause and dwell on what a blessing it is to have my children safe with me.

It was with this sort of awareness that I decided to help Levi wrap his Secret Sibling gifts tonight. This is his seventh year of "shopping" for the sibling whose name is on his drawn piece of paper. Up to this point I have done all of his shopping and wrapping myself. While I still shopped for him this time, I decided to see how he'd do with the wrapping portion. I settled us down in the basement with a mixture of nervous excitement, hoping that I wasn't setting myself up for disappointment. There, away from the curious eyes of his sisters, we laid out the wrapping paper, scissors, and tape.

I didn't realize until after we'd begun that gift wrapping could be such a great exercise in fine motor development. Think about it - cutting the paper (which thankfully had dotted lines to follow), folding the ends up (with fumbling fingers), correctly placing the tape on each spot (with the sticky part of the tape facing down.) Would you just look at all of that tape?!!! Putting the tape on was definitely the hardest part for him. It sometimes took him three or four tries before he got the tape in the general area that it was supposed to be in. My little guy amazed me with his determination.

I'm not sure that he even comprehends the whole gift thing yet, but this was a way for us to share in the celebration of it all. The celebration of Christmas... togetherness...  progress... accomplishment... learning... and hope. As news trickles in that the shooter may have been developmentally disabled, my mother's heart is intruded upon by that unwelcome friend, Fear. No parent wants to hear news like we heard today, but it stings a bit more when your own child has special needs. I, for one, have to firmly place my trust once again in the living, loving God I serve. He will never leave me or forsake me. His grace will always be sufficient for me no matter what comes my way. He has my future in His hands. And He is the reason that I, and all of us, can have hope.