New Bike

Luke has been keen on having a go on the trike outside with the kids, but has no idea what to do with the pedals. He can stick his feet on them, but the idea of pushing with one foot, then the other is crazy as far as he's concerned. Which means I have to push him. Fun.

So on Upside of Down ( NZ online community for parents of children with special needs, and in particular DS) recently, there has been an ongoing discussion about our kids and bikes, and what is successful and what has not. One mum had seen one of these bikes and raved about how well her daughter did on it, even though she is not yet walking. There are lots of two wheeled runner bikes on the market, but apparently (don't quote me on it!) this is the only one with three wheels, is the lowest to the ground to begin with, and converts into a 2 wheel running bike, as well as having the ability to adjust the seat height by moving turning the bike frame up the other way, as well as moving the seat up and down.

I was a little sceptical at first, as they are quite a lot more expensive than the standard two-wheel type, but seeing as several parents raved about them I took Luke into the shop in Christchurch to have a look. He can ride a ride-on, but has never really steered it properly. He tended to lift the front to steer, and not turn the wheel. So I put him on it in the shop, and he was away! Mum and I told him to turn the handle bars to turn a corner, and I couldn't believe it when he did!

So this is the result. It was going to be for Christmas, but seeing as I have no self-control, plus the weather has been so lovely, he has had it for 3 weeks already, and he absolutely LOVES it. So do the others, but they get kicked off it by me!

Ben

This is Ben with the sculpture he and Neil made for Country Day at school. For those of you who are not familiar with Country Days, Ben goes to a little school in the country where most of the parents are farming, so on Country Day the kids bring in their pet lambs and calves, as well as dogs, cats, goats, ponies and other pets for competitions such as the fastest drinker, leading and calling, and the best pet costume. There are also entries for baking, floral displays, the iconic 'sand-saucer' and 'aqua jars'. Ben and Neil created Dumbledore from milk bottles, as the theme of the day this year was 'Milk'. They won first place. Ben is being Harry Potter, in case you aren't sure!

This week Ben's class were having a spelling test. All was quiet. The teacher called out the next word, 'cemetery'. Children were diligently writing their attempts down, when my son calls out "If you can't spell 'cemetery', can you write 'graveyard'?"
The teacher tells me she was in stitches. That's Ben for you!

My Boys

There are lots of things, some good, some not so good, that you can learn from an older brother.

Spring Holidays and Back to School

We have just finished the first week of the last term of the school year, after two weeks of spring holidays. We had the most amazing, settled, warm weather, which was just lovely and not what we were expecting! We spent lots of time in the garden and around home, and also had a visit from Grandad who lives in Australia, and Uncle David and Aunty Nic, who live in the UK.

Luke has decided to have a growth spurt, as well as getting into a fair bit of mischief around home. As you can see in the video, he has worked out how the hose works, and loves to squirt the dog, his siblings, and his mother, especially in the backside as she tries to turn the tap off ;)

He is pretty pleased with himself!

 Luke also embraces his feminine side when playing with Emily. He's getting good at tucking the baby in for her buggy ride...

...and following his big sister around...

 ...but 'buggy wars' are a purely Luke invention- and I'm not sure Em approves!

 We started swimming lessons this week, as he insists on getting into the bath clothed all the time. Don't worry, the plug is well out of reach. He liked all the bits in the lesson where he didn't have to do as he was told, whinged and complained through all the bits where he did have to follow instructions (and I thought all children with DS were soooo happy!) and was generally stared at by all the other mothers. He also managed to pull the halter neck of my togs undone, luckily I realised before I gave an x-rated swimming performance in the toddlers' pool. I came home feeling a bit deflated, and realised that I find it hard going to new situations- I never remember in time that we are a little different and find it tricky to be stared at. No-one said anything though, and I can't decide if that is better or worse than having people make stupid comments or asking the same old questions. Having a child with DS is just like having a child without it at this point in time, except with the others, no-one stared constantly! But maybe they were just staring at my tog malfunction...

 Here is Luke after another bath. This time with Ben after swimming. He loved the sound his boots made full of water, and proudly squelched around the lawn.

 Then he and Ben stood in dog poo. Ben proceded to wipe it all over the patio, so I took him down to the hose to wash it off. (At this point I didn't realise Luke had it on his shoes.) Then I went to clean the water off the new carpet and found Luke inside with it all over his shoes, and poo prints all round the new lounge carpet. So I was on my hands and knees, with the three kids locked out, crying and banging on the glass, wanting to come in as I scraped poo off the carpet. Fun. And ironic considering it was poo from the same dog whose vomit necessitated the new carpet in the first place. Loving her right now.

 Anyway, here are some of the things I like about spring. This is the first flower on the magnolia I planted last spring.

 And the daffodils and tulips I also planted last spring.

 We also found a nest in our wood shed, which now has 4 large baby birds in it. One of which Ben 'helped' out yesterday, so I had to go and find it and return it to its nest last night, in the dusk.

We had the concrete guys and truck to concrete around our magnolia at the back of the garden, which we have been meaning to get done for the past 21 months we have been living here.

 Luke and Neil mowed the lawn. Neil has a thing about the lawn. Luke does not.

Dad and his helper.

So lovely to think that last summer Luke wasn't walking, and now he's running everywhere and just as capable as other kids his age- once he started there was no stopping him.

Spring has Sprung!

 Last Monday we went on a trip with Playcentre to a local garden which is open for viewing, and for weddings in case any of you are interested ;)

This church was moved here from its original site, which was out in the country near Neil's school. 

 Emily and Luke testing out the pews.



 Luke's new pastime is running...away.

 The main event- the daffodils. I love them!

 Emily was not keen on posing for the camera and Luke refused to get out of the buggy.

 We also got to feed some Highland Cattle, which Luke LOVED.

 He would still be there if he had his way.

He was also pretty keen on the owner's vintage car collection. Again had to be dragged away...

On the medical front, his thyroid and coeliacs retests came back normal, and he does not have the coeliacs gene. I don't know how that changes the risk that seems to increase with DS, but less than 10% of people with coeliacs don't have the gene, so it's definitely in our favour. Not that it's the end of the world if he did have it, just that three kids are difficult to feed sometimes already...

Eyes in the Back of My Head

I was running the bath tonight, and I left the bathroom to get the kids' pjs ready. I lock the door from the outside, so a certain someone doesn't fall into the bath. I came back and unlocked the door, and this is what I found.

On the positives, he now has good wrist rotation- evidenced by his ability to turn the lock, and good finger strength. It's not easy to open the lock from the outside.

SO no more leaving the bathroom while I run the bath.

Poor Ben is not well, with a sore throat and temp since Friday. I think it is tonsillitis, but the Dr did not, and after some pressure from me he took a swab. No results yet, but if he is still unwell tomorrow we will be going back. He was having an iceblock to help soothe his throat.

This little brother copies everything his big brother does. Luke is not keen on cold foods like icecream, and has only occasionally tasted the odd bite, and wouldn't even consider an iceblock until he saw Ben having one last night. Then he was at the freezer opening the door and helping himself! He did really well and ate almost the entire thing.

As you can see, he has the perfect tongue for licking an iceblock!

Please Help Our Friends the Bearsley Family

Our friends the Bearsley family need your help. They are in a competition to win a new kitchen, and need you to vote for them. They are part of the DS community- their third child Jono (3) has DS as well as multiple other medical problems, including heart surgery as a young baby, coeliacs disease, drinking issues, and bouts of pneumonia and bronchialitis.

Their kitchen is plain dangerous especially with 4 young children in it, so please follow this link and vote. They are #8.

Thanks so much.