Thursday

Yesterday we did ABC's, puzzles, board games, numbers, writing, reading. Alex had PT, Emma had OT.
Today we played outside. We played the EleFun (game) and used it to talk about more/less and count. Alex and Emma both had PT & ST.

Tuesday

This morning we headed to the park to play with the Green girls for about an hour and a half. Mary Grace is in first grade now, so it is just Hannah and Abigail during the day. They had tons of fun and Emma and Abigail spent a great deal of time laying in, rolling in, and picking up dirt. They were filthy. I wish I had had my camera there so I could prove to you how cool I was being by letting them get filthy. Lisa and I got to visit, that is always fun for us moms.
We had no choice but to come home for a bath and clean clothes before going to therapy. So... bath, clean clothes, lunch, and therapy. Emma had PT and ST. Alex has PT, ST, and OT. Alex has been curling her right arm up pretty severely lately. We've tried a wrist weight to cue her to put her arm down, but it didn't work. So today Alissa and Daryl casted her arm. They cut the cast on one side and attached Velcro so we can take it on and off. It require her to straighten her arm and I was surprised to see that when she is forced to keep her arm straight her arm actually swings in natural rhythm... something she has never been able to do. After therapy we called Poppy & Daddy to tell them about her cool cast and then we used Sharpies to decorate it. She thinks it is cool today, but my guess is that she will find it restrictive and will need encouragement to wear it.

Monday

This morning we played several games. I made new ABC cards with index cards and colored glue. We played the game this morning where they match the lower case letter with the upper case letter. Alex is doing great at this! Emma is doing better also. We played with 8-10 letter pairs at a time and Alex can match almost all of them! Not only can she match the upper case with the corresponding lower case, she recognized a new letter today. When I handed her a card she looked and said, "Q is for queen." Yeah!!! I was so excited for her. In addition to matching pairs we traced the letters with our fingers (the point of doing the letters in glue, so that they are raised). It is a great pre-writing technique.
Then we played picture dominoes. This is getting better also. I don't have to point out what picture they can play every time, they just know what to look for and are doing great at taking turns. Emma's favorite part is when she doesn't have the right picture and has to draw from the pile. She picks one up, looks and says, "Nope" and picks another.
This afternoon Alex has PT and Emma had OT.

Thursday

Again, I missed a few days of blogging, but we are still going strong with school. Singing songs, saying nursery rhymes, pretending, playing outside, counting, reading...
Tuesday we played outside for a while after therapy. I remembered an activity I had read in a book so I ran inside for paper and glue. Each of the girls got a piece of paper and we explored the yard for neat things to glue on it. Grass, clovers, leaves of all sizes, sticks, seeds, dirt, etc. The girls had a lot of fun searching for things and gluing them on the paper.
I have learned that the end result isn't really what matters, it is the process and experience of doing it. Regardless, the girls were very proud and here is the final result. We hung them in the kitchen after they dried.

They have both had therapy all week and we've also spent time playing outside in the yard. The favorite right now is giving the dogs treats through the fence when we get home.
Wednesday they both got their hair cut. Emma was a very big girl and volunteered to go first. Alex patiently let her. After big girl hair cuts and suckers for a reward I let Emma pay Kendra and both girls told her thank you for the hair cut.
This afternoon after therapy we came inside for another project. I let them each choose whether they wanted a picture of a dog or a cat. They both chose cat. I drew them a cat and then we cut up a bunch of black and yellow yarn. They used paint brushes to put glue on their picture and stick yarn all over to make their kitty cat furry. Again, they were very proud.

Still going

Drew came home this weekend and the girls were a little under the weather so I haven't blogged on school work in a while, but we have still been doing it. I love how we can sit down and do something for a few hours so do just a little here and there, depending on the day and mood. We've been working on the pledge of allegiance and Alex loves to sing America the Beautiful. Both of the girls are interested in maps so we've been doing some of that. Alex will bring me a globe or map and ask, "Where does Aunt Pat live?" or whoever else she is thinking about at the time. She knows we live in America in the state of Arkansas. She likes to point out that Daddy is in Oklahoma and that Aunt Pat (my grandma's sister that she met a few weeks ago) lives in Oregon. I try to think of things about each state, like people we know that live there or times we visited there, etc. They love that. I'm glad, because I was never much of a geography girl.
They still love the posters in their room and want to go over them at night. Great repetition for letter and number recognition. Alex still likes helping Emma with her colors and shapes on the posters.
We've also spent one evening with the giant sticker book. It is fun because of all the stickers but is great for categories. Ex. Animals with spots, Things in the ocean, etc.
Today when we were driving I tried to point out road signs and their shapes, but Alex wasn't getting it. I think we will plan a walk soon so that we can actually touch the signs and make the connection. I just don't think she realizes what I'm pointing to out the window.

Thursday

This morning Alex decided we should paint, so we did. I didn't have the right paper, so we painted on construction paper. Not as pretty, but still fun. One time Alex put her paint brush in the wrong cup. Emma said, "NO!" and put the brush back in the right color. Maybe she can't name all the colors, but she can match them. So, after messy painting it was bath time. Then quiet time and off to therapy. Alex has ST, OT & PT. Emma had ST & PT. Emma was done an hour before Alex so we went out to the playground and played with Caleigh & Caden. Caleigh & Emma played in the and box for a while and then we went inside the school to play. Alissa's kids are in the after school care since she works there, so it was fun for the kids to play together. We read books, built towers, 'cooked' in the kitchen and played ball. When Alex was done with therapy we went to eat and then came home to unwind. We went over the posters we put up the other day, read books and sang songs. Sang 'America the Beautiful' and the Doxology. Said the pledge of allegiance and the Lord's Prayer. We read some new books about helping, remembering, forgiving and saying thank you. Alex was so sweet. After the helping book we were talking about things she does to help and she said "I help Poppy." I asked her how she helped him and she said, "I help Poppy's feet." She was right. We did help Dad a lot when he had his foot surgery this summer. During prayers she thanked God for her normal people and then said thank you for Poppy's new house. Emma has been praying for her friend Lorelai a lot lately. That was her own contribution, not my doing. I love when they do things like that to show me they understand what we are doing and talking about, not just repeating or imitating me.
So, a great day. Lots of fun stuff and great learning.

Wednesday

Today I took Alex to the dentist for a second opinion on her teeth. We then went to visit Grandma & Grandpa, had lunch and went straight to therapy. Alissa tried putting some wrist weights on her arms to cue her to keep them down. So, Alex had PT and Emma had OT.
Home, dinner, play time, lots of books. Their favorite thing to do right now is point out the things they like and what is their favorite. So when we were looking at the picture encyclopedia of animals we did talk about the names, what animals were alike, etc. The girls would point out which animal they liked best on the page and then Alex would say, "Mommy what your favorite?" I'm trying to say what is my favorite and give a reason why, and encourage them to do the same. "I like this frog because it has red eyes." Etc.