Last Day of Summer Fun – Bay Area Discovery Museum

Last Sunday, we decided to go to the Bay Area Discovery Museum for one last day of fun before both the boys started school. We had never been there before, but since the boys had SO much fun, we will definitely be back!

If you know DJ, you now he LOVES to climb trees. When he found this tree, he couldn’t resist. He spent more time climbing trees than playing in the playground!

Guess who else tried to climb up the tree…but didn’t get it very far…

The boy hanging out in a hut.

Cody even found a friend.

 

Then needed to rest….

 

They had a cool area about Space that had stations set up  like inside of the space shuttle. DJ took the controls and was ready to blast off…

Then stood in the sleeping bag for a quick nap…

 

While Cody found the bathroom… (it is not a clear picture, but it is a funny one)

…and he found some space gloves. He even tried to leave the building with them on.

Monkey boy climbed the lookout tower outside.

 

Then reluctantly posed in front of the Golden Gate Bridge.

 

Just chillin’ on the shipwrecked boat…

And FINALLY a posed picture where he is happy! DJ tries as much as possible for me to not take pictures of him so I am loving this picture of him!

 

Mr. Happy boy!

 

Cody was checking out the view….Actually, he was really yelling “HI!” to the people below and waving at them. ;)

 

If there is a tree to climb DJ will find. If there is an instrument around, Cody will definitely find it…play it…and dance to it!

Daddy and the boys goofing off in front of the bridge.

A rare picture of me and my boys!

First Day of School

This may be the smoothest first day of school so far!

The boys were both asleep by bedtime last night, woke up this morning with plenty of time to get ready and without rushing out the door (like last year) and both boys were successfully dropped off at school without tears (including from mom).

DJ is now a 2nd grader and we are excited that he is now in a 2nd/3rd grade combo class. I really don’t know what that all entails, but I am glad that he will now be more challenged. Hopefully, it will not be too overwhelming for him, but he is excited about being able to do 3rd grade work.

Cody is starting his 3rd year of preschool and is very excited to have his teachers  as well as his best friends from last year.

Of course the first day of school would not be complete without the mammarazzi hounding the kids before school!

DJ proudly displayed his newly-toothless smile. I CANNOT WAIT to have his school pictures taken with missing teeth!

 

This year, DJ asked for a “non-character” backpack. He is growing up. SIGH.

His Uncle/GodFather bought him and his brother these super cool Clone Wars tennis shoes. The velcro part is the eyes and lights up when they walk. DJ has been asking for non-character shoes as well, but he couldn’t resist these!

This awesome mask came with the shoes! DJ decided to put it on while getting ready for school.

Cody still tends to be a lot more cooperative when it comes to getting photographed so I had this adorable face looking at me this morning!

Then he started taking pictures of me with my lens cover.

Then….he was done with pictures. This face says it all!

 

Cody picked out this cool backpack this year. He has not outgrown Yo Gabba Gabba at all, but the Brobie backpack was on its last leg and needed a replacement. When he saw this backpack while Back to School shopping he squealed out “EEEEMO!” I guess that meant he wanted it. 

He was eager to pose with his backpack like big brother.

New Cody-Centric Blog

I have been debating for awhile now and finally decided to.create a blog dedicated to Cody and raising him. The blog will.be Down Syndrome specific and I will share things about our experience from happy to sad to heartbreaking.

If you already follow my photography blog then you have seen some of the "fact Friday" posts about our experiences.

I will be sharing some of those stories and more on the new blog, Down Syndrome Diaries, http://downsyndromediaries.blogspot.com/.

If you have questions, comments or your own story about Down Syndrome to share, I would love to hear it and even maybe share it on the blog.

My hope is that when Cody is able to write he will take over the blog and share life from his perspective.

Cody’s 4th Birthday – Partying Gabba Style

I am WAY behind in posting the pictures, but here are some fun pictures from Cody’s 4th Birthday Party (in MAY!).

Cody has been a Yo Gabba Gabba fanatic for the last 3 years and we finally had a chance to throw a Yo Gabba Gabba party for him!

The birthday boy was so excited about his party and looking as cool as ever! He added the touch of red sunglasses all on his own.

Big Brother DJ rockin’ the Plex shirt!

This was the best shot of the two of them that I could capture. They were too busy eating chips. :) 

The family decked out in Gabba Gear! Yes, DJ is still eating.

Cody with his Uncle and his Uncle’s DJ Lance shirt.

Even the AquaBats made an appearance.

When the jumper showed up, Cody could NOT wait for them to inflate it so he kept a close eye on them through the front door.

 

As soon as it was inflated, he grabbed Papa and headed into the jumper!

 

Gabba friends are present and accounted for! (well, not all. Some were hiding).

 

The birthday boy blowing out his candles.

His least favorite part of the entire event was opening gifts. Odd, right? It took THREE DAYS for him to get through all his gifts. He just wanted the tissue paper and played with the toys through the boxes. :)  He is completely opposite of his brother!

I’m Shy

Cody was going to preschool summer school and because it was a new teacher and new students, he wasn’t quite comfortable for the first few weeks. He wouldn’t eat snacks or play with the other children.

I asked him if it was because he was shy and since then he likes to proclaim he is shy.

Cody's Shy

Happy Birthday To CODY!!!!

It is hard for me to believe (and accept), but my little baby is 4 today!!!! I don’t ever remembering giving him (or DJ!) permission to get older, yet they both continue to grow too fast.

This is our sweet guy Cody! He is an amazing, strong, loving, curious, silly, funny, huggable, full of life little boy.

This is the face that I get when he says “Mom. Hi”

This is the face when he is singing to himself.

This is the face of the chubby cheeks that I love to bite!

This is the face of someone proud to be “POUR”.

Here is a video of the little cutie telling us how old he is!

How Old Are You Cody?