Just like Daddy

I've known since I was a little girl that there is something special between fathers and daughters. I remember as child how much I idealized my father, even wanted to change my name to Jamie(my dad's name is James.) Tonight I saw the hero worship in my daughters eyes for my husband(and he wasn't even home. LOL)I must start by saying my husband is an excellent cook and he loves to be in the kitchen creating. He often mixes his own spice rubs and seasonings. This evening while he was at band practice I came out of the bathroom to find this scene: Riley had pulled her vanity stool out of her playroom and into the kitchen, used it to climb onto the counter, opened the cabinet and got down a Tupperware bowl. Then proceeded to mix in said Tupperware bowl, an entire bottle of garlic powder, half a bottle of gumbo file', sea salt, and cavandar's all purpose Greek seasoning. When I walked in I said Riley what are you doing? Are you being daddy? She said proudly, "I cookin". I was laughing so hard and thought it was so cute, it was hard to fuss,so instead I captured the moment with these pictures.

Wordless Wednesday(Ballerina)

Dancing queen.

Here is the cutest thing ever, my prima ballerina in her first recital.

Wordless Wednesday(Riley's artwork)

Sorry I haven't posted in awhile, we've been busy. Here are pictures from a weekend getaway we took. Enjoy. Promise I will blog more soon. Alena

A free photo slideshow by Smilebox

Future Superstar!

Check out my future superstar, jamming out Just like Daddy!

IEP

Thursday, I had Riley's annual IEP meeting. For those of you not familiar, IEP is Individual Education Plan. In this meeting, myself and all three of the therapist that see Riley, as well as her daycare teacher got together,to discuss progress and set goals for the upcoming school year. In her last IEP(May of last year) each therapist(speech, APE, and Academic) set a goal and listed 3-4 objectives. I am so proud to say that she met all 3 goals and accomplished 8 out of 10 objectives. We set goals for the upcoming year to continue to push Riley to be all that she can and help her achieve success in the classroom setting. One test, given by her teacher therapist asked many questions and measured the developmental age based on what the child can answer/perform. In several categories,I was amazed to see that Riley tested at over 5 years old. (She's only 4 1/2!!!) I'm so proud of her and we will continue to read to her, practice what she's working on in school, etc. to ensure she continues on the path to excellence. Every moment can be a learning opportunity. Parents, whether your kids have special needs or not, take the time to invest in their future. They are the world's greatest asset. Try turning off the radio, or dvd player in the car and point out things you see or review what they are learning at school. Driving to and from school is some of my favorite time with Riley, It's a constant reminder that having DS doesn't limit her on what she can learn and achieve.