Memorial Day

We had a barbecue and swim party at Jake's for Memorial Day. It was a ton of fun. The kids all love getting together and playing. It was an absolutely gorgeous day. We swam, ate, had homemade ice cream and Rosie had a pinata for the kids. What a fun day!
Kiley, Hayden and Brooklyn had so much fun all holding hands and jumping in the pool together. They were cute to watch as they would help each other out of the pool.

Brigham is so cute. Although he did fall into the pool and scared all of us to death.

Part of the gang swimming.

Thomas, me and Hayden just chilling in the pool.

Yummy Homemade Ice Cream

With all of the wonderful peaches we picked, what better can you do than make homemade peach ice cream. It was fabulous!!!! We were invited over to Jake & Rosie's for a Memorial Day BBQ and we said we'd bring homemade ice cream. Well, Jake is on a cooking kick and is making everything from scratch. He decided to spice things up and try to make better homemade ice cream than Thomas. He even went and bought real vanilla beans and used 24 egg yokes. Jake's ice cream was more like custard with a wonderful texture but nothing could beat Thomas' homemade peach ice cream. It was amazing! We all loved tasting all of the varieties of ice cream. We had oreos, strawberries, peach, banana, mnm's and chocolate. Talk about making ourselves sick. But, it was delicious and the perfect Memorial Day treat!



The kids favorite part was making their own flavors of ice cream! What a treat!

Picking Peaches

While we were at Schnepf Farms we let Hayden pick apricots and peaches. They were so good. And, we had even more fun eating peaches in the middle of the orchard. I still can't believe how much fun we had picking peaches. Hayden loved it and of all the funny things, I think that was the highlight of our weekend. Who would have known picking peaches could have turned out to be so much fun.

Early Morning at Schnepfs

Saturday morning, we got up early to "beat the rush" at Schnepf Farms. We were there are 7:30am for breakfast, rides and to pick peaches. We were definitely among the first ones there. We ate breakfast and went over to the rides. Hayden was the ONLY child at the rides. He had the place to himself. He thought is was so cool to be the only one of the rides and be able to ride whatever he wanted. We definitely got our money worth out of that wristband. What was I thinking, we were going to Disneyland??? It is Schnepf Farms out in Queen Creek. Oh well, we had a great time! And, unbelievable that over Memorial Day we were wearing sweatshirts. It was beautiful weather and even a little chilly.


He loves the swing ride and I love the expression on his face. He looks so happy.



He loved the carousel, especially riding it all alone.



After riding a horse a couple of months ago, he thought he may be too big for a mere pony ride. But, he loved it once he was on it.

I love the rain!

I absolutely love to sit and watch it rain. I love how rain smells in the desert. I love the sound and seeing it downpour. In Arizona, you don't get to see it all too often. But, I sure enjoy it when I get to. It's no fun being sick and having Hayden sick, but I am grateful for the chance to sit on the couch cuddled in a blanket and watch the rain. It is wonderful!

Hayden's not a Kindergartener anymore...

I am so sad that Hayden has graduated from Kindergarten. He seems so much older now that he will be in 1st grade. What is even worse, is I missed kindergarten graduation. I was so looking forward to going and didn't think anything could keep me from it. But, I was so incredibly sick that I couldn't move. I cannot remember the last time I had the flu this bad. Thank heavens for a great Aunt Suzi that I called at 6:30am and asked if she could take him to school. He absolutely loved having her at his graduation! He was great and came home and sang all the songs for me and pretended to walk across the stage to get his diploma. I can't thank Suzi enough for stepping in and helping him have such a great day! Then last night, Aunt Jodi took Hayden to McDonalds with Brooklyn and Brigham. I am so thankful for wonderful people in my life who are so willing to help out.



Mrs. Poore and Hayden


To my little man, I love you so much! You are the joy of my life! I hope you love first grade as much as you have enjoyed kindergarten. And, I am excited for the fun summer activities that we have planned. I cherish every day that I get to spend with you. I love you, Bugwa!

Splash Pad

On Saturday we went to Desert Breeze Park in Chandler with some of Thomas' cousins. What a fun park. It was huge with a lake, parks and a splash pad. The kids had so much fun playing in the water and getting soaked. I think we will spend a lot of time there this summer. Hayden has loved that Thomas' cousins have moved into our ward. Tanner and Hayden are becoming great buddies and I love that they have two 14 year old babysitters. They are really great kids. I am excited they live close and Hayden can play with them a lot!

Hayden absolutely loved the spraying elephant!


The teenage girls thought they were too big for the water park. Thomas is such a tease and ended up throwing them both in the water. The girls adore him. (Hayden is in love with Taylor, he thinks she looks like Miley Cyrus)


Ariana was not happy about being at the water park until Thomas got her soaked. Then she had a great time!


Hayden, McKayla and Tanner had so much fun playing together. They ran around so fast we could hardly get a picture of them.

Brigham's a crack up!

Jodi, Suzi and I were off this week for Jodi's birthday. Troy calls and asks Jodi is she has any idea where Brigham's shoes are. Jodi responds, "I'm not sure, try the ice maker." What? I asked Jodi why on earth Briggy's shoes would be in the ice maker. She responded, "Who knows, this morning I went to get a cup of ice and Briggy's shoe was in the ice maker." Okay, remind me never to get ice at Jodi's house. Needless to say, Brigham is full of it. But, he is the cutest little guy. I love him to death.

He is over right now and is completely over the cuddling stage. I used to watch Jodi's kiddos and Brooklyn and Hayden would play and Briggy would play with me and Thomas. Not any more. Tonight he told me he didn't want me, he wanted Hayden. How sad! He is growing up so fast! Brigham will be two on Monday. We love him and can't imagine our lives without him. Happy Birthday, Briggy.

Happy Mother's Day

Happy Mother's Day to all the fabulous women in my life. I am so lucky and have been blessed with so many amazing women in my life.

I was blessed with a wonderful mom. She had so many wonderful qualities that I admire and have tried to emmulate in my life. She was one of the most giving people I have ever met. She was a fun mom and was constantly doing fun activities with us and taking us fun places. She taught me values and taught me about my Savior. She knew what was important and focused on those things. I am lucky to have been raised by such a wonderful mother.

I've also been blessed with a wonderful mother-in-law. Joyce is an amazing woman with so many talents. She is willing and has dropped many things to help us out. She is an incredible Grandma to Hayden. We can't believe how much we are missing her and she has only been gone a couple of weeks.

Rilla, is another amazing person in my life. She came along when I so desperately needed her. She has been a wonderful Grandma to Hayden and a great friend to me. She is seriously the most humble, and sweetest person you could ever meet. We love her dearly.

Then, there is Jodi. I don't know what I would do without her. I think the Lord knew our mom wouldn't always be here so he gave us each other. I cannot imagine my life without her. She is always willing to do anything for me, Thomas or Hayden and does a lot. She is the person I turn to for advice, comfort and direction. I am so thankful for such an amazing sister.

Suzi is such a terrific friend and jumps to help us out whenever we need her. She loves being with Hayden and will do anything with him, even gross science experiments. Not only that, she is willing to take Princess and Spanky at a moment's notice. No wonder why we have adopted her as a sister.

There are too many others to name specifics, but each of you wonderful women has influenced my life. Grandma Bonnie for loving Hayden, Julie for being a wonderful mentor and friend, all my wonderful sister-in-laws, and countless others for their friendship. I wish each of you a wonderful mother's day.

Oops!

Hayden had his school science fair last night. All students in the school had to complete a science project, that included even kindergarteners. Hayden picked his experiment. (Have I mentioned that we do science projects all of the time. He wanted all kinds of science experiments for Christmas.) He decided to make blood, have it solidify and make it look like a scab. So, he did the actual science project with Thomas' help and it turned out great!

The kids had to put their hypothesis, results, etc. on a big 3 panelled display board. Hayden is in kindergarten, so Thomas typed up his hypothesis, results, processes, materials, etc. on the computer. The top 3 projects from each class were chosen for the science fair and Hayden was picked. Yeah!

Me, Thomas, Hayden and Brooklyn went into the science fair last night and started looking at the projects and my first reaction was, maybe we shouldn't have tried so hard, Hayden's was looking really good. Then, I realized we were in the 6th grade section. Once I got to the kindergarten section, I knew that we had completely overdone it! In fact, there were several parents and staff congratulating Thomas and me for doing such a wonderful science project and asked us if we had fun. Oops, at least Hayden had fun doing the experiment. Plus, the kids at school all thought he was so cool for having blood in petrie dishes. Oh well, live and learn.

I've been tagged

8 things I am passionate about:
-Hayden
-Thomas
-My family
-Hayden's Toy Drive
-My relationship with Christ
-Finding a cure for Hayden both with his health and with the SPD
-My nieces and nephews
-Vacations!

8 books I have read:
-The Peacegiver
-The Holy Secret
-The Out of Sync Child
-The Book of Mormon
-Mary, Martha and me
-Magic School Bus Series (every night, they are Hayden's favorites)
-Boxcar Children (I can't wait to read these to Hayden and him not fall asleep)
-Strangling your husband is not an option & The Parenting Breakthrough(I was at Time out for Women and loved Merilee Boyack)

8 things I say:
-"Hayden"
-"come here"
-"Stop"
-"No"
-"What"
-"Augh! Frustrating"
-"Well"
-I guess I growl a lot, Hayden has picked it up and does it all the time.

8 qualities of a friend:
-Honest
-Someone to laugh with
-Plays games
-Empathetic
-Non-judgemental
-Fun
-Understanding
-Encourages me to be a better person

8 things I have learned in the past year:
-Patience
-I love blogging.
-I wouldn't survive without my friends.
-I am not in control, the Lord is; when I try not to fight this, my life goes much smoother.
-The Lord gives me what I need, not necessarily what I want.
-Hayden is the biggest joy in life.
-I have a better day and am more patient when I start off my day reading the scriptures.
-I have an amazing husband... I always knew this, just re-affirmed.

8 things I want to do before I die:
-Play with my grandkids
-Serve a mission with Thomas
-Write a book
-See a play on Broadway
-Go on a 7 day Disney cruise (Loved the 3 day and can't wait to go back)
-Pick up Hayden off a mission and visit the people he taught.
-Establish Hayden's charities to provide scholarships for future pediatric heart surgeons, fund heart camps and help fund research for pediatric heart problems.
-Help find a cure or remedies for autism

Sensory Processing Disorder

If you are like me, you have probably never heard of this disorder. Up until a week ago, I had never heard of this nor knew what it meant. Life is funny. One week you don't know a term and a week later, you feel like you have read more on the subject than ever imaginable. This is what has been going on over the past week of my life. I have been absorbed in reading books, searching the internet and talking to all kinds of specialists about sensory processing disorder. I have been frantically searching for answers, occupational and physical therapists and working with Hayden's school.

Hayden is in the process of being diagnosed with this disorder, as well as some other things. I was actually a little relieved with the diagnosis, compared to what it could have been. Hayden has sensory issues. I always knew this. He hates loud noises; don't even try flushing a public toilet when he is around. He is very sensitive to smells, touch, taste and sounds. The more people and noise, the more frazzled he gets. I didn't think it was all that big of deal, because I have never been one for large groups, I've always preferred smaller gatherings. This is more than a preference for Hayden, he simply cannot handle too many sensory inputs at one time. It is all very overwhelming to him.

I always knew Hayden was really smart, who doesn't think that about their kids. Well, now I have IQ tests and all kinds of documentation to prove this. Hayden intellectually is very intelligent but has problem with his motor skills. His brain can't make his hands do what his wants them to. He has been really frustrated in school because he knows the answers but can't always write them. And yes, they do think that all of this stems back to all of his problems at birth with his heart.

We are still searching for answers, searching for occupational therapists and doctors. This will be a process and a long road. Although, I have heard it is possible, it will be a process trying to "re-wire" Hayden's brain to use his hands correctly. We will be spending quite a bit of time in occupational and physical therapy to work with his fine and gross motor skills. And learning how to deal with sensory processing disorder.

Why am I sharing this? This is my life. This is our new road we will be walking down. Hopefully, as I find answers, I will be able to share them with other parents who are going through the same ordeal. This will probably be my way to vent and to get out my frustrations, but also to share in our triumphs and findings.

Hayden is such a great boy! I feel so grateful to be his mother. He is so sensitive and sweet. He has had to overcome some real hardships in his young life but I know that the Lord is preparing him for great things. I am deeply humbled that I was chosen to be his mother.

First Recital

Hayden had his first music recital.






Look at that face, he is so proud of himself.



He is so animated!



Hayden had his Let's Play Music recital tonight. He did such a good job. His class played the bells to "Do Re Mi". They also showed their knowledge of reading the scale. I can't believe he is learning music theory at his age. He absolutely loves it. The teacher even has him loving classical music. Most of all, he has fun and is really developing a love for music. I hope he wants to stick with it.

Real Estate School

I am crazy, and went back to school to get my real estate license. No, it was not my decision. Something crazy that Jake and Josh thought I should do while the market is slow, so I can help my dad out. I was so nervous to go back to school. It has been a really long time and the thought of studying at night and tests, has not been very appealing. Coming from the Simonton family, you are expected to know the real estate industry, at least somewhat. And, believe it or not, a lot of the concepts are interesting and I am beginning to realize how they all fit together in this real estate world that I have grown up in.

I am taking it very slow as there is too much going on in my life to be in school full-time. So, at only a couple of mornings a week, it will take several months to finish. I am glad to say that after two weeks I am still surviving. And, I have probably learned something. Hayden thinks it is hilarious that I have "homework time" with him at night. Although, I do get a lot more accomplished after he is asleep. So, our lives may be a little boring for now while I try to finish up this schooling. I will be glad I have it, once everything is completed.