Madi's Last Day of Preschool.... Ladybug Craziness!

We were so preoccupied with surgery and appointments that I forgot to post about Madi's last day of preschool!  Since her last week was the week we were in Boston, her teacher let me go in for some special fun the Friday before we left.  The class was studying insects, so I decided to plan a day of ladybugs.

First we danced to a song and read a poem about bugs together.  Next we read a book about ladybugs and talked about what made a ladybug an insect.  After that we went outside and released ladybugs in to the garden.  I gave the kids magnifying glasses so they could "study" the ladybugs.  After examining the ladybugs we went to the playground and then came in and made ladybug cupcakes.  We used red icing to make them red, then used chocolate chips for spots and a big round chocolate for the head.  There wasn't much time left in the day after that, so that pretty much marked the end of the day.

The school let me bring Conner and Ramya with me so that they could participate as well.  It was a fun day and Madi loved having us all there for her last day.  I'm glad we were able to go out with a bang!  Here are a few pictures from the day....

 

Why I Loved Madi's Preschool

Today I was looking through the album Madi's preschool teacher posted with pictures she took of the kiddos throughout the year.  The one thing that really stuck out to me was how much Madi was included.  Too often you hear parents say they have to fight for accessibility and inclusion, and it really shouldn't be like that.  Stepping Stones is a private preschool that did not have to make any modifications for Madi, but they were excited to have her come to school there, and took it upon themselves to make it a safe and comfortable place for her.  They lowered sinks, poured concrete, and made the play areas accessible.  I think that speaks volumes for how much they care about their children!!  There are also things you can't see in the pictures, like the fact that they would change Madi's pull up and/or clothes for her if she had an accident or her vesicostomy leaked too much.  I had told them I was happy to come change her, because I know it's probably hard to stop teaching to help her, but they never called me once and made sure she had the modifications she needed at preschool.  Here are a few pictures from her past preschool year; I think you will see why I love her preschool so much.

Notice that cupcake?  It's a gluten, dairy, egg-free homemade cupcake they let me bring in for the class, so they could all enjoy a treat Madi could have too.

 



 

Madi was always put down to explore when she wanted.  They made sure she got where she wanted to go and didn't let her wheelchair keep her out of places.

 

Notice the chair behind Madi?  Since she can reach the sand and water table easier from a chair, they helped her transfer.  They always did what made her comfortable.

 

Who doesn't love going down the slide with friends???  Madi's teacher would help her climb up the ramp, giving her just a small amount of support, so that she could do it "all by herself" like all the other kiddos...

 

Down in the snow!

 

I love that her teacher wasn't afraid to pick her up and put her right in the middle of what was going on.

 

 

Notice she's sitting with the other kiddos... not on the sidelines!

 

It's hard to tell from this picture, but this is in a police truck they use during shoot outs and the such.  It's high off the ground and had narrow, tiny stairs.  They made sure Madi was brought up, though, so she could participate.

 



Driving a fire truck....  not stuck watching the other kids doing it

I am sad that this was Madi's last year in preschool, but I am so thankful she got such an amazing experience and was so well taken care of! 

Her First Day of Preschool

This year is Madi's last year of preschool.  She goes to a little private preschool down the street and loves it.  They are amazing with her!  Even though they don't "have" to, they go out of their way to make sure that everything is accessible and that Madi is included to the fullest extent possible.  They also encourage her to try new things and push her to try her best. They have worked with her therapists to see how they can help her at school and have also gotten therapist input on a lot of activities/projects.   I had contemplated not sending Madi this year, as it would be easier on me to just start both girls in Kindergarten for homeschooling this year, but I decided that Madi should go, since you are only little once.  I'm glad that I did because she is just loving it!  Tomorrow I will go in and talk to her class about spina bifida.  It went really well last year, so I'm hoping it goes over well again this year.  Oh, and did I mention there are only 8 kids in her class, with 1 teacher and 2 aides?  Class sizes don't get any better than that!!

 

So Many Updates!

Last week Madi had her first week of preschool and Conner had his first "official" homeschool week.  Both the kids had a blast and are loving learning!  Conner is enjoying some of the "perks" of homeschooling, like wearing pj's to school and finding critters to "study".  We had a slower introductory week and he really loved the activities, as well as some one-on-one time with momma.  Here he is with a little frog we found in our pool....

 

 

Conner on his first day of school...

 



Today Madi and I taught her class about spina bifida (in 3-year-old language ;)).  We read "Right Under My Nose" and when we got to the part about scars, Madi insisted on showing everyone hers, which lead to lots of excitement while the kids attempted to find scars (cuts and bruises mostly ;)) on themselves.  It was chaos, and oh so fun.  We talked about how Madi's wheelchair is kinda like shoes.  It looks cool and helps her go fast, just like our shoes do, but it's not a toy to play with, just like our shoes aren't.  I think they mostly got it ;).  I also let them take rides in the wheelchair we have waiting here for Ramya (that's a whole different story I need to post one day!!).  Madi was so pumped about talking with the class and got really in to it.  I loved how excited she was!  Here is a picture of her today (yup, sorting skittles but holding fake cheese... that's my girl!)

 

 

Here's Madi in a huge mound of dirt she (proudly) climbed:

 



We also have some news about our second court date:

I just heard back from Vathsalya who informed us that your 2^nd court hearing is posted for September 25^th. Fingers crossed, this will go through quickly. I will let you know as soon as I hear back from them on your case. 

 

 

Please pray that the judge is present, everything that needs to get done does, and that we will get our third court date quickly after or, better yet, that they will get it all done in just the two dates.

 

In other news, I'm in my third trimester.  No, I am not pregnant (gotcha!), but if adoption has trimesters, I'm in my third.  I'm anxious and excited and nervous and just a huge ball of emotion.  I am also nesting, big time.  I have this huge urge to get everything done around the house that I need to (which is a crazy big amount so if anyone is bored and wants to come play with my kiddos for a few hours so I can work, I will be forever in your debt!!).  If you come visit my house, I will likely try to send you home with something.  I want this baby de-cluttered!!

 

That's all that's going on in our neck of the woods. I hope to have more updates for you soon!