Autism Camp

For the past year Ryan has been attending RU's speech therapy clinic for autism intervention/communication skills classes.

In the month of June, for 3 weeks, every MWF, we have gone to a summer camp that they have put on.
What a wonderful experience. Of course, Ryan didn't want to attend, but Barry and I made him anyway. He made some wonderful gains in his ability to understand others--how to read body language, and also how to better navigate conversations. He worked on inflection of voice, entering and exiting conversations and how to poise his body when talking to others. He learned so many other things too. I watched him grow in communications skills and have had so much joy watching him talk with friends and interact in normal social situations.
(you know that peaceful kind of joy at seeing a child struggle with something and then see that, at least for a while, he's finding joy in the same things others do.)

There were kids with autism there, kids that were neuro-typical as mentors (Cailin, Delaney, and Liam also participated in this role. Connor didn't join because scout camp conflicted with the schedule.)

There were grad students who were the clinicians, many volunteers, music therapist, dance therapist and the directors/professors of the Speech and Language Clinic.
They worked so well to put together a wonderful camp experience for us all.
Their goal was to create a 'camp' atmosphere that was mindful and accepting of kids with autism and their sometimes quirky behaviors; to provide a place for them to not be criticized if their behavior weren't quite right. Along with this, they also taught skill of communication based on each participants needs. Once they mastered a skill they worked on other skills and 'upped the ante' making things a bit harder or rather more subtle communication details for them to work on.
Greg, a grad student/volunteer, said Ryan was doing so well he'd be the social butterfly of his college classes....Hmmmm that's a wonderful thought.
They made crafts(braided key chains, beaded necklaces etc), danced (Ryan's favorite dance became the Cupid Shuffle--which they did at Youth Conference at his request) , and played different musical instruments--hand drums and other hand type tools (maracas and the such).

(Ryan's clinician, Megan and volunteer Janelle)

(Time with the music therapist Stacey and Brent)

There were kids ages 2 to 16 with autism there so Cailin, Delaney and even Liam were able to join in the 'camp like' fun of the experience, and they did, they all had fun. We look forward to going back--except Ryan, it seems no matter how much fun he has at something he's still rather stay at home and not join the group. No bother, he'll be there again anyway :)

The camp directors also infused reading/literature skill into the camp. The little ones received books to take home and they acted out one of them for parent/ supporters on the last day as a play--"It Takes a Village"

(Lunch time was a time to relax and enjoy talking with friends.)

Clinicians and volunteers in blue--Brandy, Whitney, Janelle, Megan.

Chance, Cailin and Jenny in red.

I was often with Ryan or Liam's group, so I didn't get spend much time with Delaney, but she had fun making new friends, Kylee, Maggie, Marybeth and Jaden.
I was proud to hear that if the girls became quiet and wouldn't talk much with each other the clinicians would ask Delaney for help and get them interacting... she did, she's becoming quite the social butterfly herself.

Playing with the parachute was a favorite for the younger crowds.

With Stacey and Brent for music therapy. I loved to hear all the kids, Ryan included, singing some of the songs they were learning during camp at home.

Liam really took up with Ashley. They were a great team.

Liam's in his 'spot' .

They used rope to travel from building to building, during transitions to keep the kids in check. They would sing 'The wheels on the Bus' over and over, and over....I think I will always think of this camp when I hear this song forever more.

Craft time!

Music Therapy

On the last day of camp they had a carnival type theme to the day, complete with Shriner's clowns and all.

Grandpa and Grandma Come for a Visit!

A visit with Grandma and Grandpa Stumm....the traditions continue:

--Going for a walk and having a 'breakfast picnic'. This is Delaney's favorite.

-A vicious game of Risk--this time an elemental twist--Nuclear Risk-- between Connor, Gramps, and Barry. Barry and Gramps, over tired from a day's work of putting in a new door, gained up on Connor and obliterated him...poor Connor, but he had a good time nonetheless.

--Cailin and Grandma making their ever famous Cinnamon Rolls with cream cheese frosting....oh so light and melt in your mouth delicious.

--Delaney and Grandma, created a new tradition--strawberry shortcake, from scratch.

We always love it when they come for a visit!

Let There Be Light....(and a wall)

When my parents announce that they are planning to visit us, my brain starts to whirl with excitement. Not only am I happy to see my wonderful parents, but I get to employ my abundantly gifted father--one who is good at fixing most everything--with a 'honey dew' list.

This year, he had a few honey dews for my home too. Our side door and back door are completely inefficient at blocking out the elements. The back door had a large gap the let in the cold or heat....whichever the season might be. We solved this by putting up a large blanket during the winter and just dealt with a bit more warmth during the summer in the back room. Cumbersome--but it worked.
In comes my father (and a gift from one of my siblings) and a now have a door that securely shuts and it has a window. Ahhh, light. I'm loving it! So much light in the back room and the front hall--what a difference those windows have made. Our backroom isn't so dreary and the front hall glows with light that infuses into the kitchen too.



It may take a few months for Barry to get to finishes the framing of the doors, but I love them and love the light. Have I mentioned how much I love the outdoor light I get in my home from these doors now?

On my 'honey do' list was to put a wall up in the girls room to separate it from the hall. For the past year they've had a curtain to create the definition of 'their room' from the 'hall'

The girls were ecstatic!!! They loved the whole process. Grandpa said he would do it only if they helped him--when they stopped, he stopped. Not that I think they would have, they were so excited to see the framing go up along with the sheet rock and door too.

Thanks so much Dad--for the doors, gardening help, fixing the sink, replacing the oddly shaped doors (of course, with an old house come old house dimensions, thank goodness for reciprocal saws), fixing my entertainment center door, bathroom vanity drawer.....and everything else to did, whew, I'm tired just typing all you did! Take a vacation at home, you deserve it!

Oh, BTW, I'll post pictures of the painted wall soon!!

Dandylion Bouquets

I love to hear....."Mommy, I have some flowers for you!" and "I love you Mommy, you're the best!"

Liam is so thoughtful, caring and loving lately....and I'm getting some wonderful flower bouquets from him too!

Our Garden.....it's growing.

We added more garden space this year. We move out of the garden boxes and re-purposed some grassy areas. Now the boys have less grass to mow and all the kids have more opportunity to help weed the garden.

Oh Joy!!! Can you hear them crying out in misery?


I was going to move this bench to another area but Ryan complained. He loves this part of the garden. He calls it his peaceful spot. He can see it from his bedroom window and often looks at it. I guess it helps him feel calmness in our otherwise busy, noisy home.

Watering the tomatoes.....it's not work, it fun!

18 Months Old

I'm writing this about 2 months late so I'm afraid I will forget what she was doing then.... but, at age 18 months old:

-She was gaining a vocabulary of sorts. She mimics about 3 words now. "Up, Hi, Down,"

-She will use sign language for "more" occasionally....on her own terms, when she wants too. (Which means most times she just grunts or yells to get what she wants.)

-She is now drinking water from a sippy cup or in a straw. Yeah, no thickener, although she can't tolerate her bottles of milk without thickener yet.

-She gets up from a sitting position on her own. She'll also lay/get down from a sitting position and roll around. A few times she's gotten stuck!

-She loves to sing!!! She will 'direct' our music/ singing time during scripture study or family home evening times. It's so cute to watch.

-She loves to be outside. (But burns easily, much more so than the others were, so I'm extra careful about her sensitive skin)

-Occasionally she babbles--with great purpose and intent. She definately has something grand to say. I can't wait till I can understand it.)

-Okay, so she has quite the temper. When she gets angry and starts to cry, you better be prepared to deal with her crying for a while. She'll cry for at least 15-20 minutes no matter how many comforting hugs, cuddles, or warm bottles you give her. One time, she was so upset she cried for an hour. We've had many late, late, (or very early morning, depending how you look at it) nights outside rocking in the porch swing hoping she'll calm down so we can all go back to sleep.

Welcome Brennen and Logan

We recently traveled to Maryland to see the blessing of Brennen and Logan.

What a wonderful day. Brian and Risa are so excited--and glowing--in their new adventure in parenthood! Congrats to them!
Oh so cute--Baby Logan


Delaney couldn't wait to hold one of her new cousins--Baby Brennen


They were soooo small. Even at a month old they were smaller than any of mine as a newborn.


Here's Connor with Brennen

Harper's Ferry, West Virginia

While traveling north, to visit the newest addition's to the Stumm family, we stopped to see the history sites at Harper's Ferry, West Virginia. We had been in the car for a while and needed a break plus, american history will be our focus this year for school, so we took advantage of the opportunity--we stretched our legs and got a visual preveiw of history lessons to be learned.

We learned that this town not only played a part in the beginnings of the Civil War, but Lewis and Clark stopped here for one month to make last minute preparations before heading west on their famous expedition to the west coast. We greatly missed our very own tour guide and history expert...Daddy! He had to work and couldn't get off for the weekend. :( (Because Ryan loves to be by himself and we needed two seats to bring Grandma and Grandpa back home with us, he made the sacrafice (said with great exaggeration) to stay home and not join us on this trip.)

The kids loved getting on and riding the bus for the short trip to the town of Harper's Ferry.

It was an extremely hot and humid day. Too bad for us, we didn't have our swimming suits as many people were enjoying the Shenandoah River....and we wished we could too.

( hey, we found where Daddy would have worked!)

Connor and Cailin found a great little bookstore....especially because it was air conditioned and they both found neat gifts for their Dad. Our trip was near Father's Day and his birthday. They wanted to get him something special.

Connor found a book about Washington DC and it's orgins. Cailin found a cool tie---with civil war battle scenes on it. With gift's in hand we traveled back to the van via the bus and continued on our way to Maryland.

We had a great time traveling to Maryland, listening to stories on CD--The Shakespeare Secret, eating hamburger's from McDonald's, one mini ice cream break while finding a bathroom stop, all to be topped off with this side trip. It was a wonderfully hot and humid day.

A Walk Along the Lake with Grandpa and Uncle Brian

Just a block or two from Brian and Risa's home is a lake with a wonderful 1.5 mile walk around it. After settling in and cuddling with the baby boys some, we took off for a short walk.

Brian had been saving some stale bread so the kids were able to feed the geese. They liked to see how close they could get to them without scaring them away.

Little legs go tired after a while....thanks to Uncle Brian Liam got a rest.

It was incredibly hot and humid, I had a bottle for Brianne filled with water. It turned into ammunition between Connor and Grandpa.....Water Fight!!