Here's Caden getting some air as he dunks with his new basketball set. After discovering that our son was a basketball, if not athletic, prodigy (see this post) we had to run right out and buy this for him. I don't want to brag but I can't stop myself....he rocks some basketball, y'all!
This was Caden's ID from going to work with The Tank last week on Take Your Sons/Daughters to Work Day. He did not want to hold still for this photo. He was too busy tearing down all the hallways and exploring the cubicles. The Tank got no work done the entire time Caden was there. But he was still proud to have Caden there and introduced him to nearly everyone in the building. And there were many more smiles and laughing after Caden arrived than before so his job there was done.
My friend, Stephanie (Aiden's mommy) , tagged me to share 6 little known facts about myself. So, here are the rules:
1. Link back to the person that tagged you.
2. Post these rules on your blog.
3. Share six unimportant things about yourself.
4. Tag six people at the end of your entry.
So here goes...
1. I microwave my ice cream.
2. I have gone streaking down an airport runway.
3. I just bought my first pair of reading glasses.
4. I prefer mountains to beaches.
5. One of my sisters designed my sole tattoo.
6. I can ask for a toilet in Quechua, Mandarin, Nepali and Swahili.
Now I tag the following people:
1. Tara Marie
2. Jess
3. Erin
4. Stephanie
5. Sara
6. Christi
The deadline for submitting a story for Gifts Volume II has been extended to Sept. 1, 2008. Because most of the stories in the first volume of Gifts are mothers' accounts of adjusting to their young child's diagnosis, Gifts Volume II will include stories that offer other perspectives and experiences. We are especially interested in stories about school-age children, adolescents, and adults. While mothers' stories in these categories will be considered for inclusion, the collection will emphasize stories written by other family members, friends, and professionals. For submission guidelines, please visit the Gifts website here.
Yes, NASCAR is a secret indulgence of mine. I've followed it since I was 18 and at one time, was even co-host of a NASCAR radio show. My favorite driver all these years had been Mark Martin driving the number 6 car for Roush racing. Then he retired and I just wasn't into any of the other drivers to be my new favorite. Mark has since come out of retirement but he's not racing for the full season so it's hard to cheer him on knowing that as far as the Cup trophy is concerned, he's not in it to win it. Then I saw this piece on David Ragan, hired as Martin's replacement by Roush to run the number 6 car. His older brother and greatest inspiration, Adam, has Down syndrome and was featured in this interview with David. Could it be any more perfect for me? Hands "Down", Ragan is my new favorite driver!
Watch the interview here
And props to Ragan's team mate Carl Edwards. He won a Gibson guitar as his trophy at the 2007 Nashville race, then promply gave it to Adam Ragan. He even pulled Adam into the Winner's Circle with him. Adam is obviously inspiring more than just his brother.
How do you like the new look? I am thrilled with the new layout of the blog, courtesy of the very talented Miss Rebecca. She did an amazing job and now the challenge will be to create some posts worthy of this new bling-bling. Thanks, Rebecca!
The Tank and I are participating in a speech therapy class called the Hanen Program. It's pretty intense for 7 weeks but I've already seen a difference in how we communicate with Caden and how he responds. It seems to be more of a behavior modification for the parents than an actual therapeutic method for the child. Last night, for instance, we went to the instructor's office and she videotaped us interacting with Caden. Then we reviewed the tape and were given suggestions to enhance our communicating styles. A little intimidating but definitely worthwhile.
However the most important part of the visit for us had nothing to do with speech but rather basketball. There was a small basketball net mounted high on one wall and Caden was pointing to it. There were tons of other toys to play with but he kept coming back to the net. At one point he indicated that he wanted us to open a clear Tupperware bin filled with toys and he immediately pulled out the one item that he desired: a soft orange basketball. As far as I know, Caden has never seen a basketball game much less a net or the ball to know they go together. I was going to consider it a coincidence until he started signing "up" because he wanted us to lift him so he could toss the ball into the net. I was floored. How could he know to do that? Is this something inherent in the male DNA? Seriously. What is up with that? The only thing I'm coming up with is that my child is obviously an athletic prodigy. The Tank couldn't wait to get home and call up family and friends to declare that Caden could be the next Larry Bird. So much for the Hanen Program.
Caden has produced his first sentence! He signed it rather than verbalize it but it was still a sentence. In his preschool there is a large ark painted on one wall filled with dozens of animals. He loves to look at it and sign all the animals he sees or make sounds like them. There is an elephant with the tip of its trunk resting on the head of a rabbit and apparently Caden was really fascinated by it. His speech therapist asked him what he was looking at and he signed back "elephant eat bunny". So there you have it, Caden's first sentence is: The elephant is eating the bunny. I might have preferred "I love you Mommy" or even "I want more cookies" but hey, it's all progress which is all good.
So The Tank has been totally stoked to take Caden out for a little father-son bonding while flying kites. He got the kite up, had Caden hold it and was ready to film the excitement when Caden realized there was a playground nearby. So much for the bonding time! This is classic.
