marek and kara beth

It warms my heart to see Marek playing with another child, especially when it isn't his brother and sister. Adalynn better watch out or he might try stealing her best friend Kara. We had friends over last weekend, and I happened upon these two cutie pies playing games on the ipad.

 

pool side

Lazy Sunday pool days are the best days in my book. We love our local pool and take every opportunity to visit. It never gets too crowded, but there definitely needs to be more shade, so we bought our own tent to help us dodge this crazy Texas heat. This was also the grandparents first trip to our pool and they loved it as well.

 

Landon and daddy



Pepaw and Marek

BFFs Kara Beth and Adalynn

Out to lunch

A morning of occupational therapy followed by hitting the gym, then off to the dealership for an oil change. Our final reward...lunch! Yea. "Cheeseburger, cheeseburger!" they chant! One corn dog, cheeseburger, and chicken strips later, we have some happy, full toddlers.

Sweetest baby boy

Sweetest baby boy taking a nap with Mickey Mouse. 

When mamas happy

The saying goes when mamas happy everybody's happy. Mommy saves a lot of money when she went shopping today, so she was super happy. At my favorite store kohl's,  I  bought two hundred dollars worth of stuff but I got everything for 50 bucks. So to celebrate, the kids and I went next-door to sonic for lunch. Sonic is one my favorite fast food chains because I can't get enough of the vanilla diet Dr Pepper and tater tots. The kids definitely share my love for tater tots plus they  had chicken nuggets too. Now it's off to Walmart for groceries. Which I definitely hate. I hate shopping at Walmart. Don't get me started on why I hate shopping at Walmart. However I'm poor this week so I have to shop at Walmart. Grrr

Follow through on your sticker promise

I often give the kids stickers for going pee in the potty; however, I sometimes forget to give them one after they finish. I blame my forgetfulness on them in the first place, but anyhow I told Landon he could have a sticker this morning after going potty. I got sidetracked and didn't follow through on my promise. A little while later I heard weird noises coming from behind the couch. After investigating, I found the sticker bandit  Landon covering his legs in stickers. Stinker. Guess I should have remembered that one sticker to begin with. 

Random life moments

Landon and Adalynn holding hands. 

Daddy and Landon with matching tattoos. 

Landon in timeout. 

On the way to the pool. 

Our first movie theater experience.

The local studio movie Grill theaters and a few select AMC theaters offer a different movie experience for children with autism. For a few showings during the summer, they have movies available that are for kids with sensory issues. The lights are kept up and the sound is turned down to not over stimulate the kids. Plus you are able to move around if you feel the need. I thought this would be perfect for Marek and his first theater experience.  We went and watched monsters university, and it was such a cute movie. The kids  started to get cranky and restless before the movie ended, but I really wanted to see  the ending. I think their favorite was all the popcorn they were able to eat.  I will definitely have to pick and choose which movies they are going to see this summer. I know not all of them will keep them entertained or they may be a little too old for the kids to really enjoy. But I expect to go to the movies maybe two or three more times before the summer ends.

Our first water park-Champions day

There is a local water park that is super awesome, but also pretty expensive. Regularly it would cost me $85 admission to take just myself and the three kids; however, twice a summer they have champion's day. It is a day for special needs kids and their families to visit. The "champion" child gets in free of charge and the family members only pay $5 each. And as a bonus, you get into the park two hours before the general public.  I rounded up my best friend Amber who brought her son Jaxon and step daughter Kara Beth and my good friend Nikki also tagged along to help keep an eye on all the kiddos.

Waiting in line our little mermaids and mermen cant wait to get in.

 

 

Life long BFFs Adalynn and Kara Beth aka Betty and Veronica. Kara is only two months older and I can't wait to see them grow up together.

 

Amber and Jaxon

Wave pool

 

 Landon loved jumping in the waves.

Marek

After a few hours of swimming we headed to lunch. Pasta was just what the belly needed after a long morning of swimming. Let's just say we had very good naps that day.

 

I am beyond happy that Hawaiian Falls water park in Roanoke is kind and considerate enough to think of all the families with special needs children. Caring for them is expensive and we really appreciate the day of fun that we otherwise would not have been able to afford. The park is perfect for children; probably not teenagers, but there are tons of slides, a lazy river, a wave pool, and lounge chairs for sunbathing and picnic tables to snack at.