BOAT RIDE VIDEO:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E9eB3hI8FHU&list=UUPidCBg9jDknIsedb8GXEow&index=1&feature=plcp
Cole is absolutely pumped that spring is here! He has been spending hours outside- riding his new bike, mowing the lawn, watching the neighbors mow the lawn, taking trips down to Grandpa's to (you guessed it...) mow the lawn and he's already had a few rides on our boat. Cole is 100% an outdoor kid. He's happiest when he's outside, no matter what the weather and no matter what he's doing. It's been fun to see him greeting the neighbors as they walk by and seeing the gigantic smile on his face when Pat takes him for scooter rides. Cole has also become our personal weatherman. We've had our share of storms this spring and Cole is the first one to make us aware. He's come a long way. He used to be so afraid of storms. Now he has a little anxiety but he's more concerned about getting to the basement and finding candles, just in case.
As I said, Pat has taken Cole out on the boat a few times already. Pat took some video of Cole driving the boat- you have to see it. Pat has also been excited that Cole seems to be enjoying fishing. Just last week they went to Coon Lake and Cole himself caught 3 sunnies and a crappie! For those of you who know Pat, it had to be the highlight of the month for him. Another son who loves fishing! Now we just need the water to warm up a bit so we can start tubing and swimming in the lake.
Earlier this month, Cole had his spring concert at The MAC School. Each grade (4-7) sang a song and then they all sang one together. Cole's class sang "Bare Necessities". We thought Cole might do pretty well, since he requested we put the song on his iTouch so he could practice. Cole did fantastic!!! He even wore a shirt with a collar and buttons! I'll put up a link to the video on youtube so you can check it out. It's amazing to see how great these kids do, especially when you consider they all have some form of Autism. I was so proud of Cole. In the past, he's been more concerned about the microphone and even goes up and starts making sounds into it. This time, he did exactly what he was supposed to do and he looked so darn handsome. It's moments like this when we know, without a doubt, that he is in the right school.
SPRING CONCERT VIDEO:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZJfWVux2gBY&list=UUPidCBg9jDknIsedb8GXEow&index=1&feature=plcp
Cole was so excited for his Uncle Brendan and Aunt Brittany to move to their new home in Plymouth. I took Cole over to visit a few weeks ago. He looked inside for about a nano-second and immediately asked if he could mow. Lucky for him the grass was long and he got right to task. He loved having lunch at their new house and talks all the time about having a sleepover. He told me he's going to sleep downstairs with Connor and go to Skyzone... we'll see! Speaking of Skyzone (indoor trampline park), I took Cole to Zero Gravity yesterday. It was so rewarding to see he and Connor having a great time. Cole behaved so well. He fit right in and had a really fun time. He jumped and ran around, even asked me to video tape him. When he was tired, he would come snuggle me and tell me he loved me, then he was off to jump again. This was a true reminder of the dramatic progress he's made. The simple things that are easy for most families and finally becoming possible for us, and it's really exciting!
Another fun thing we did with Cole was the light rail. Pat took Cole this weekend on the light rail, down to the Mall of America. Cole loves both of those things. He knows the way around the MOA like the palm of his hand. The highlight from this trip was getting his picture taken with a few characters from Spongebob!
As for the rest of us, things have been going well. Pat's job is going great and he's slowly not having to travel quite as much. The boys are really good for me when Pat's gone, but Cole of coarse prefers to have daddy at home with him. Pat has been having fun being an assistant coach on Connor's baseball team and teaching Connor how to pitch!
Connor has started baseball. His team is 3-1 and he's loving the challenges that 10U bring. The kids pitch, you can steal bases and the kids are hitting the ball harder. He's still doing gymnastics. This summer he will train for level 6, another step up from where he competed this past year. He had another great gymnastics season, placing 3rd in the state and 18th in the region, during his first year at level 5. He won state in both parallel bars and pommel horse. At regions, he was third overall in p bars!!! Not bad when over 120 kids competed! We love that he participates in something unique from many of his peers. And the sport provides him with so many great skills and personal development, discipline and work ethic. Connor had track and field a few weeks ago. It was a really warm day- over 90 degrees! It was so much fun to watch. I love the tug of war. Connor was jazzed. He wore his baseball gloves and if you look at the picture on here, you can see the intensity in his face.
I've been doing well too. I feel like I'm cramming to get tons of projects done before Connor is home for the summer. I can't wait for "100 Mommy and Connor Days". We have all kinds of grand plans and love having the summer to spend so much quality time together.
I have some exciting news. I made the decision a few months ago to become certified as a Group Fitness Instructor!! It's been something I've wanted to do for several years and like I told myself, "I'm not getting any younger". Just this past weekend, I completed both my Turbo Kick (kickboxing) and Hip Hop Hustle (cardio dance) training. It was rigorous and tough to do the trainings (9a - 5p) for two days straight. But I made it and I passed both! I applied at the Andover YMCA this week and hope to get the ball rolling soon. Now it's time to practice, practice and practice some more. Wish me luck!
Hope you've enjoyed the highlights of our spring. It's been great so far and we only hope the summer brings many wonderful memories.
