Discovery Park of America

      We have been working on our new house nonstop since we got the keys, but today the kids and I took a little break to spend the day at the Discovery Park of America with Nonna, Granddaddy, Austin, and Callie.

      It was so much fun. The kids were running from exhibit to exhibit because they were so excited to see everything. I wish I had as much energy as they do, but it was a blast seeing how excited they were.

       They played and explored every single exhibit that they could. It was so great to watch them learn and be excited about learning. Their favorite was this water cyclone that they could throw the balls into and watch them rotate.

      They loved making silly faces in this thermal camera. And the kids were impressed that Rylee could actually play this antique piano.

     Then we headed outside and they bounced in bouncy houses, ate ice cream, and played on the playground. They had an absolute blast. It was definitely a quiet ride back home. When we got back, we brought some dinner to Ryan who was working at the new house and we did a few more things over there before calling it a night. Overall, it was a great day!

4th of July

     We had a wonderful 4th of July weekend! Sunday we went to church. Afterwards, we went to Jackson to buy some paint and other supplies for our new house. The girls' favorite part was our trip to Baskin Robbins before we headed home. I must say, I enjoyed that part, too!

     Monday, we went to see Despicable M3. It was so cute. We all had a good day spending time together. I love family days.

     Today is the 4th! We started our day with some swimming with the Joneses at Nonna and Granddaddy's pool. Then we went home to change and headed to Covington to run a few errands.

     Then we headed over to the Jones residence to spend the evening celebrating the holiday. Brandon made some barbecue...

      The kids swam and played in the sprinkler and on the slip-n-slide...

     It rained for a little bit, and then this beautiful double rainbow appeared...

     And of course, we lit a few fireworks. Rylee Love was obsessed with the sparklers this year! She used to be terrified of them, so this is a big difference.

     Rylee Love stayed over for a sleepover with Kaden, and little Joy was ready to pass out as soon as we got home. It was such a fun day!

Summer Fun

      We have had a fun week enjoying our Summer break. Next week, we get possession of our new home and all the painting and cleaning and hard work will begin, so we made sure to really enjoy this week. Monday, the girls had a dentist appointment and they ran into Bailey while we were there. They love the dentist but they were even more excited to see Bailey! When we got home, we set up Rylee's new ant farm that she got for her birthday. She is in love with her "pet ants".

       Tuesday morning, Liz had a meeting at her school, so Levi and KAde came to play. The girls were thrilled to spend the morning playing with their cousins. And I was thrilled because this is the first time since he was a little baby, that Levi would willingly stay with me without his mama!

       After the boys left, the girls decided to get the slip-n-slide out. They played on it for hours while I cleaned out Ryan's car. They had a blast.

      Wednesday, we went to Atoka to the splash pad. This was the first time Ryan has come with us. Working second shift actually works out better during summer break because he gets to come do fun things with us!

     Yesterday we worked on cleaning and packing up the house some more. And today we have been pretty lazy. I absolutely love summer break!

AG Family Day at a Jackson General's Game

     Last night we went to the Jackson General's baseball game for American Greeting's family day. It was a lot of fun. We started by heading to Jackson a little early to do some furniture shopping for our new home, then we headed over to the ball field to enjoy the company picnic.

     Rylee knew there was going to be a fireworks show at the end of the game and was pretty on edge. She cried a little, whined a lot, and even screamed a few times. She was in a pretty bad mood all around. Her daddy saved the day by letting her play her game in his lap for a little while. After that, she seemed to loosen up little by little, until soon she was back to her happy, goofy, little self.

    The girls loved the music and dancing that went along with the game. Payton was lap-hopping from person to person until she settled in Rylee's lap. These girls are so silly. They keep me smiling. They lasted in the seats for about 4 innings until they wanted to head over to the play area.

     They had an absolute blast in the play area. The jumped, climbed, slid, and ran around to their hearts' content. It definitely helped them get some energy out. Afterwards, I got them some ice cream and we headed back to our seats just in time to watch the final inning and wait for the fireworks show to begin.

I copied my post from facebook about last night below.

     We took a big risk last night and it actually paid off. 
     We went to the Jackson Generals baseball game last night. After the game there was going to be a fireworks show. Both girls are scared of loud noises. Rylee was showing some signs of major anxiety before the game ever started. Her sister was playing off of her anxiety and was pretty anxious herself. (That's the [not so] fun thing about having a child with autism. Even though all signs currently indicate Payton is neuro-typical, she wants to be just like big sister. Therefore when Rylee is anxious or melting down, oftentimes Payton displays similar behaviors. It's truly exhausting.) We told them we could leave before the fireworks started if they were too scared, but we had brought their ear protection just in case they wanted to stay. The night went on and both girls started to loosen up and have lots of fun. When it came time for fireworks, Payton was still pretty anxious (I think she may have been more tired than anything.), but Rylee was pretty calm, so we decided to stay. Once we put their 🎧 on, they were both fine. They watched the entire fireworks show with nothing but sounds of wonder and amazement. At the end both girls said the fireworks were the best part!
      There is no instruction manual to being an autism parent. Sometimes it can be very isolating. People don't understand why your child may scream at them instead of greet them when they say hello. People don't understand why a 7-year-old may still need to be held and carried around. People don't understand that she wants to be out and about with everyone, even though she may not want anyone to look at or talk to her. People don't understand how intense her anxiety can be and how tough it is for her to deal with "fun" activities. Sometimes, it just sucks. But in moments where she faces her anxieties head on and comes out with happy memories to replace the fear, it's all worth it. At this point, I honestly don't care what people think of me and my parenting choices. Rylee Love will always have autism. Our goal is not to "cure" her of autism. Our goal is to teach her how to cope with the symptoms of her autism and embrace things she was once too afraid to like. Last night we accomplished that goal.

Rylee Love is 7!

    Rylee Love is 7-years-old!! Where did my little baby go?! I sure hate how time flies, but she really is growing more gorgeous by the day, so I guess that's a plus. ;)

    Liz had a training to attend on Rylee's birthday, so Kaden spent the day with us. Rylee was so excited to spend her birthday with her BFF. They spent the entire morning playing video games together and having a blast.

     Goodness I love this goofy child! I spent the day trying to make sure she got everything she wanted, starting with her favorite breakfast: cinnamon rolls. I love birthdays, and I love to spoil my baby!

     Kaden and Payton both made Rylee special handmade cards. She was so happy to look at what they made her.

    Kade was so into her opening her presents, you would've thought they were for him. He was so happy for her about each gift. We got her a Rubik's cube, a Zelda themed carrying case for her 3DS, a Zelda Triforce nightlight, a Nintendo EShop giftcard, and Super Mario Sunshine. She was so excited.

    After they opened her gifts an played with them for a while, we headed to Pizza Hut for her birthday lunch. These 3 tore up the pizza buffet, eating 5 pieces of pizza a piece! Where do they put it all?!

    After lunch, we headed back home where they played for a few more hours. Then we headed to Dyersburg for a special  Chik-Fil-A dinner for the birthday girl. We almost had a meltdown when I ordered the wrong drink with her dinner(only autism moms will understand this struggle), but she quickly calmed when I got her the drink she wanted. Luckily, we made it through her entire birthday meltdown free! Yay! After we ate, the kids played in the play area for over an hour. It was the perfect ending to a perfect day for our sweet Rylee Love.

     Rylee Love, you are such an amazing blessing from God. You have taught me so much more than I could ever teach you. You continue to amaze me every single day with how smart and resilient you are. You refuse to let anything hold you back. I wish you could be my little baby forever, but since you can't, I am excited to see what you grow up to become. You have already done so much to teach me and those around you about embracing uniqueness and loving unconditionally. I am so proud to be your mama. Happy Birthday, my little Love-bug!