The 4th of July.
We love the 4th of July.
Yesterday we really took time to have fun & celebrate & be out among the community. It has been a long time since we did that on the 4th (not sure what in the heck we have been doing in the past, but this was by far one of the best).
The day began with Chris walking in the Harrisburg parade. Awesome small town with a BIG parade. Simon was all over the fire trucks. He did amazing with lots of walking, lots of people, and a big plate of fresh french fries. After the plate we sat on the grass along the river and Simon danced to the live band. Perfect. And the weather was perfect too.
After our Harrisburg adventure we headed home for naps, followed by a party at our friend's Heather & Kyle's home.
Great to see a bunch of friends that I have missed. It has been way too long since we got together. The challenges of being on the road so much. Simon was pretty much done with people for the day by the time we got over to their house - he did so awesome in the morning. He chose to go up to one of their daughter's room and just play by himself (in the play kitchen of course). He stayed up there for about an hour and then he was ready to come outside. Seems to me he just knows what he needs - a little time on his own to be mellow and just play.
Kyle put on a super fountain show for all the kids before it was dark. Gotta love seeing all the kids - it was probably the first time that the amount of kids almost equaled the amount of adults on hand. Cool to see that...
After Kyle's amazing fountain show we headed back home for our neighbor's block party. This man is ALL ABOUT fireworks. He went all out on the COOL sorts of fireworks that you need to travel to Washington state to pick up. The BIG ones. Awesome show. And one of his friends was playing the electric guitar - full on live show in our neighborhood. There were things going off all over the place - totally a sky full of beauty.
Simon hit his tired point about 9:30pm and we headed inside. Ate some popcorn and then headed up to our bedroom to watch some more out our window. We loved that part just as much as the whole rest of the day.
Chris and I were so proud of Simon. He is really growing up and being able to communicate better all the time. We spent less time chasing him around and more time just enjoying watching him experience all the cool things happening around him. LOVED that. Totally made it a great holiday.
It sounded like you had a wonderful holiday, Miss Ali! The little dude is doing great!
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Yay for Simon... happy 4th!
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Hi Ali - so glad you had a great 4th....and so happy for you with Simon..watching him experience....so very cool. This was the first time Madison hated the fireworks! We got there too early and waited too long for them to start....she got beyond mad waiting and then completely over stimulated...poor thing. And, despite the fact that she was out of control, we didn't just pack up and leave, because too many times Hayden has to give things up for his sister. So we waited it out and she recovered. Whew....
Have a great week.
~Mary
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Sounds like an amazing day! :)
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Sounds like you had the perfect day. Thanks for sharing Ali. I always love reading your blog and check it every day, usually a few times each day if you haven't posted. LOL!!
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Love that first picture of Simon. Look at those lashes! You made a good point about Simon knowing what he needs (when he went to play by himself for awhile before coming outside). I never thought of it that way. Every time Vince goes off by himself, I'm always worried that I should be trying to help him engage with the other kids. I feel bad that I force him to interact but I've always got on the "therapy mode" for him. Thanks for your wonderful insight on this. Next time I will relax and let him just be him. I'm glad you all had a wonderful holdiay weekend. I love your blog and read daily!
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Ali you find such pleasure in the little things....it inspires me to do the same. Thanks for the reminders to sit back and enjoy each little pleasure that we so often take for granted.
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Thanks for sharing your great day with us!
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sounds like an amazing holiday. It must have felt so good to be all together.good for Simon! that's a lot for any little person to take in in a day, heck it's a lot for a big person! Looks like he did wonderfully. I love the photo of him with the peacock feathers :)
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oh Ali...the picture of the boys on the bed...my fave of the bunch!! sounds like you guys had a great holiday!!
and i love how kids seem to know more about what they need than we do...i think that rocks!
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Soooooooo glad Simon made it all day and it sounds like it was such a WONDERFUL day for you all! Happy 4th.
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Ali - thanks for sharing so much about Simon. Knowing that there will come a time when I will spend less time chasing my son around and more time actually watching him enjoy and interact with his surroundings is heartening.
Your pics are awesome too. Just a side note - I finally finished my week in the life from SJ - thanks for designing such a fun album.
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Sounds like the perfect holiday celebration. Simon is so blessed to have you and Chris for parents..for your patience, your insight, and your unconditional love.
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Ali, my heart just melts when i read how well Simon is getting on and how well he did on the 4th...he is an inspiration. A fellow Scrapper friend of mine has a son with autism and when she comes over to scrap on a Thursday I give her an update on Simon's progress and she is soo proud of him.
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oh that pic is devine! what a complement to his long lashes.
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That's so great Ali... Way to go Simon!!
Such a cool little dude you've got there :)
Glad you all had such a great holiday!
~deb~
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Cole has those pjs, too! He's the same way as Simon - prefers to have a little quiet time to play by himself rather than be in big groups all the time.
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So happy for you and your guys!
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SO COOL to hear this about Simon! SO happy for y'all! Glad you had a great 4th. My celebration sounds so deflated compared to yours...ha!
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glad you all had so much fun even in the quiet times.
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that first picture is AMAZING. i dont think i have seen eye contact like that from him in a picture before-not like that. he is so present in that photo. i know you know what i mean. when i get shots like that of mckenna when i know she is PRESENT in the moment i am so happy.
your fourth sounds wonderful. and you are turning a corner with simon for sure. it will just get easier from here on out. keep the faith. :)
love you.
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Happy 4th, Ali - and thanks for sharing the photos - I love how it shows how much Simon is loved, in just little everyday things. You are so fantastically inspiring. Love you.
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Looks like a perfectly wonderful day. I loved ALL the pictures...especially the one with the peacock feathers. I'm so happy to hear that Simon is doing so well. It brought a big smile to my face to read about your fun day. http://jolenegeorge.blogspot.com/
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awesome - thanks for sharing
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Hi Ali,
I cannot wait to see (if you're going to) a scrap page you will make out of Simon's photo with the peacock fur.
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