Fathers & Sons Campout in Pictures

Dinner: burgers, chips, & soda...you know, health food.

"I'm a big boy!"

 Jett learned how to ride a bike without training wheels today! He's tried a few times but today, he hopped on and took off! He first asked just to try out Cruise's old red bike, and once he realized he could ride it without training wheels, he asked Dave to take them off of his blue bike. It took him a few minutes to figure out the proper way to stop, but he sure picked it up quick! Even his little friend Camry helped.

Mom's Day

I had an awesome Mother's Day. The older boys both made stuff at school for me, which is always so much fun! Cruise colored a picture and made a plate for me. The plate has a picture of the house, tree, some flowers, me, Cruise, and a teeny tiny figure next to Cruise. When I asked him who it was, he said it is his toy "Henry". 

At ABA therapy, Cruise's tutor, Jodi, had him fill out a cute card for me and gave me a German chocolate cupcake (my favorite)! Just in case you can't read it, it says:

To My Mom.

When my mom was little she...gave her mom a gift.

My mom looks pretty when she...wears makeup.

My mom is really good at...picking up toys.

My mom is happiest when...I act silly.

My mom gets mad when...she sends me to my room.

My favorite thing to do with my mom is...play with her.

I love you mom because...she loves me!

Love,

Cruise

Jett's teachers had him do a cute handprint page with a poem. 

Sometimes you get discouraged

Because I am so small

And always leave my fingerprints

on furniture and walls.

But everyday I'm growing-

I'll be grown some day

And all those tiny handprints

Will surely fade away.

So here's a little handprint

Just so you can recall

Exactly how my fingers looked

When I was very small.

He also filled out something about his mom:

My Mom is Special

By Jett

Let me tell you about my mom.

She is 4 years old.

My mom is special because..."he's really special."

My mom helps me...clean up.

My mom makes the best...mashed potatoes.

My mom taught me how to...clean up my room.

I help my mom...clean up her room.

Sunday morning, Dave and the boys presented me with a cute wreath they made. Dave had seen one like it while out knocking, so he made one for me and one for his mom as well.

That evening we went to the Ybarras for dinner. Miles got to hang out with his cousin Elizabeth.

Dave had been working on some shutters for the house for me. When we moved in two years ago, one of the shutters was missing and the size was custom, so we couldn't go pick one up from the hardware store. So we ended up just taking them all off. After two years, I finally have shutters again! And they are so cute and match the front door! Dave got some wood from the neighbors who pulled down their fence to put in a vinyl one. Besides the paint, they were virtually free! Dave did such a great job and it's so nice to have custom shutters. He had to rent a ladder from Lowes to put them up today, so I sat on the grass with Jett and Miles and we watched Dave juggle a shutter and drill, while trying not to fall. It was quite entertaining. I am one blessed lady!

8 Years!

This year we celebrated our 8 year anniversary! 3 kids and 6 moves all in 8 years. So much has been packed into so few years, but it sure has gone fast!

Dave surprised me by tying a note to some balloons, attaching them to a kite string, and then left them on the doorstep. He taught Jett how to ding dong ditch, and had him ring the doorbell for me to find the balloons. The note attached to the string said, "Please reel in the string to find your message in the clouds. Love David." It was really windy out, so the balloons were all over the place, but I finally reeled them in to find my next note.

Apart from some other mushy stuff, the note said, "I know you already know what we're doing for our anniversary but never officially asked you out. So here it goes...in celebration of our anniversary, will you do me the great honor of accompanying me to a special Sundance 4 Winds massage treatment, followed by a delicious meal at the foundry grill this Friday?"

Of course I said yes!

So Friday we got a few sitters and drove up Provo Canyon for our AMAZING massages and an INCREDIBLE dinner (everything at Sundance is the best of the best). We shared a Cesar salad and some wonderful mushroom soup to start out with, Dave ordered the pork and I got ribeye. For dessert, Dave got pumpkin cheesecake and I got the creme brulee. Best meal ever. Best husband ever.

By the way...

I still love this guy more than anything.

To The Special Needs Parents:

So I found this in my posts that I hadn't published yet, and I thought I'd finally put it out there although it was written in 2011. So, here it is:

"It's been almost 18 months since our special needs journey began, and to put it bluntly, I'm still clueless. I'm clueless because, let's face it, once we figure out what works and what doesn't, the kiddos change it up on us and we get to start from scratch.

Whether you're a veteran special needs parent or new, you already know that there are days you hate it. And it's okay! You can hate it sometimes! You are allowed to not enjoy the hours of meltdowns, the inevitable digressions, the frustration of it all! It sucks! But you also know that despite how hard it can be, those times where the tornado calms and the sun comes out, are that much brighter.

I've always thought that special needs parents are the luckiest of parents. Now, before you object, just listen: because of all the work we do to get our children to do just one tiny thing, say, make eye contact, when those events occur, we are ecstatic. We have to tell the world! We are grateful for every little sign of development and progress! Every little step is a miracle and because of that, our lives are filled with them. Hence, my claim that we are the luckiest of parents.

Tonight as I was laying in my son's bed after reading books, he said the prayer and gave me a big kiss goodnight. I laid next to him as I waited for him to fall asleep and thought about the past year. Only recently has he started to say his own prayers and it fills me with such joy. He LOVES to say prayers, he LOVES to talk about Jesus, and I can only imagine that he of all people has the most beautiful relationship with our Heavenly Father. As I let my thoughts wander, I wondered to myself when Cruise will say the words, "I love you, Mommy." Every time I tell him I love him, he gives me a big kiss. So until the words come, I know that that kiss means, "I love you, Mommy."

The Rest of April

Jett's Speech
Six months ago, I took Jett to get evaluated for his speech. He has a lisp, speech impediment, and has trouble with a lot of sounds. Six months ago, despite the fact that he was clearly behind, the speech therapist from the district said he was still "too young to tell". So we had to do it all over again a few weeks ago and of course, he made zero progress and FINALLY qualified for services, just in time for school to end. So he won't have any services all summer long. I might just send him to a private therapist so he can make some good progress. Yesterday I went to his IEP with the speech therapist from the nearby school and set up services for next school year, so at least that is taken care of. Oy vey.

Mr. Harris
In March, the other parents and I nominated Cruise's teacher, John Jay Harris, for the Huntsman Award for Excellence in Education. They choose 10 teachers state-wide every year, and the award comes with $10,000. We found out last month that Mr. Harris won! And he was the only special ed teacher to receive it was well. The entire 1st grade, Harris' family, Mrs. Huntsman, and all of us parents surprised him in the library last month to tell him he won and I just absolutely loved his reaction. I am so so grateful for Mr. Harris and all he does, not just for my kid, but all the other kids he's worked with all these years. He is by far one of the best teachers in the state, and now he was the award to prove it.

Here is the recommendation I wrote for him:

I, Emily Ybarra, support the nomination of John Jay Harris for the Huntsman Award for Excellence. My son, Cruise, is currently in Mr. Harris’ autism small group class at Eaglecrest Elementary. From day one I have been beyond impressed with Mr. Harris’ knowledge, talent, and   love for each of his students. He accepts each child as they are but holds high, yet reasonable expectations for each student. One thing I remember him saying at the beginning of the year was that autism is a reason, not an excuse. From this alone I knew that Mr. Harris was going to be an incredible teacher. He continues to update himself on latest research and teaching methods that will benefit his students and classroom. He is incredibly easy to work with and communicates with the parents at least once a week. He goes above and beyond the IEP, taking special interest in each student and their development in all faucets. He gets his students involved and participating in activities that their typically developing peers are doing. Mr. Harris loves each of his students and wants the best for all of them. At Thanksgiving this past year, he sent an e-mail to the parents telling them what he was thankful for about each child. Having a teacher see my child how I see him, is something every special needs parent hopes for. Mr. Harris has the remarkable ability to see each child and know who they are, despite disability. In fact, Mr. Harris doesn’t see disability, he sees ability and room for improvement, and with this positive outlook and perspective, as a parent I am comforted knowing my son is in his classroom  every day. Please consider John Jay Harris for this esteeming award, as I know that he is more than deserving. 

Jett's Swimming Lessons
Last month Jett got to take swimming lessons! He's waited so long!!! He wanted to take them last year while I was pregnant, but Lehi lessons were ALWAYS full and I was always so tired. So I signed him up for lessons at the American Fork pool a few months ago, which always seem to be available. He absolutely loved it and passed the class with flying colors!

Cute Pictures