Ethan Starts "School"

Ethan started his first day of "school" at VIPS (www.vips.org) two weeks ago. We have been going to the parent and child group at VIPS for over a year now, but Ethan just started going to the 2 year old class for three hours one day a week while I volunteer in another part of the building. He did fine without me there and in fact the only time he cried was when Ms. Margaret (his teacher...whom he loves, by the way) left for just a second. We are looking forward to seeing how more interaction with other children might help in his development.

Visit from Grandpa Veeck

Tim's dad came for a little weekend visit a few weeks ago -- we went to Huber's Farm to pick blueberries and blackberries and celebrated the 4th of July. Tom said that the trip was worth it the minute he got here and Ethan saw him and said, "Grandpa" (or Ethan's version of Grandpa, anyway). Ethan loved picking blueberries, but I have to say that he picked more green ones than blue ones. And most of them ended up in his stroller instead of the bucket. We froze most of the berries for Tim to make ice cream - the only way Ethan will eat them.

Vacation in Asheville

We had a nice, relaxing vacation in Asheville. Ate lots of good food, went swinging at every park in the Asheville area, took Ethan on his first bike ride, read books on the front porch of our cabin, and took a nap every single day.

North Carolina in Bloom

We just got back from a week of vacation in Asheville, NC. One of our favorite vacation activities...taking pictures of all the beautiful flowers in bloom. Here are just a FEW of our favorites from the week. More vacation pictures to come...

Outside Adventures

The past few weekends we have taken advantage of the nice weather and gone on a few outside adventures. On Memorial Day we took Ethan on his first dip in the river - the Blue River in Indiana. As you can see, he loved splashing and throwing rocks on the shore. This weekend we took him on his second trip to the strawberry patch at Hubers Orchard. He REALLY enjoyed the tractor ride and loved throwing the hay and crawling around in the field. Our friend Margaret and her son Kord came with us - we had a nice picnic dinner, fed the ducks and, of course, stopped for ice cream at Berry Twist on the way home.

Pool Time

Meet Captain

About 2 months ago, Ethan started weekly PT and hippotherapy at Green Hill Therapy (www.greenhilltherapy.com). Hippotherapy(which has nothing to do with hippos, by the way) is therapy that works on balance, flexibility, strength and much more while riding on a horse. Ethan has made some great improvements since starting at Green Hill, including the ability to alternate his legs while walking with assistance. Two months ago he did not seem to understand the need to alternate his legs to move across the room. Now, if we hold his hands above his head, he will initiate that movement. The first month was rough - he wasn't too thrilled about the horse and HATED having to wear the riding helmet. In fact, up until the last two weeks, he cried most of 20-30 minute ride. However, the past two times on the horse have been tear-free and he has warmed up to his therapist, Nikki. Here, Ethan is riding Captain who seems to be the best match for Ethan. Captian has smoother movements than some of the other horses and has seemed to help keep Ethan calmer during his rides. We are extremely proud of Ethan and his strength and perseverance in the midst of so many obstacles. He is generous with his love and his joyful spirit is contagious. We are truly blessed!

Visit with Grandma and Aunt Jenny

Tim's mom and sister came for a visit this weekend and Ethan had lots of fun loving on them. He showed them all the new tricks he has learned since Christmas and they were even able to sit in on a hippotherapy session (blog post to come on this later). We had a great time hanging out with you guys - thanks for coming all the way here to see us!

They Say It's Your Birthday

As crazy as it sounds, Ethan turned 2 this past week...I know, it really can't be possible! He had so much fun celebrating throughout the weekend. Lots of friends and family came over for his birthday party on Saturday and he even went to his very first baseball game on Sunday!

But I think his favorite part of the weekend was dinner at Dragon Kings Daughter (Ok, really that was his mother's favorite)...





Or maybe it was playing with all the party balloons in the backseat of the car...





Or it could have been eating the yummy cake with chocolate icing...





Or playing outside with his cousin Cara on her first visit to Kentucky...



Really, he is such a happy boy, it was hard to tell what he liked the most. We are so thankful for the blessing of Ethan in our lives! Happy Birthday big boy! We love you!

SPRING!

Happy Birthday!

Happy One Week Birthday to Cara Elinam Akosua Agbeke! What a beautiful addition to our family! We love you so much!

SNOW DAY!!!

Ethan wasn't too thrilled about playing in the snow today...

It was just too wet and cold...

That is until his father started hitting his mother with snowballs...

He thought that was quite funny...almost as funny as getting hit with one himself...

I guess he likes the snow more than he thought he would!

Do Nothing Weekends

After spending two weeks away at Christmas, we were ready for some down time at home. So, for the past few weekends we have done absolutely nothing and enjoyed every minute of it! No plans. Nothing special to do. Just crawling around the house. Playing with toys. Riding around the house on dad's shoulders...that kind of stuff.

Christmas in a Collage

Ethan with Santa

We took Ethan to the VIPS Christmas party last weekend and he met Santa for the first time. He seemed a little wary (as indicated by the raised eyebrows) and would not take his eyes off him for a second. Santa gave him a little car with shiny wheels and a book about monkeys, both of which are his new favorite toys.

Fingerpainting Fun

There's nothing better than a little Saturday morning fingerpainting fun with our favorite little boy...

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!

Ethan's First Haircut

After all the reminders that it was no longer strawberry season (and hasn't been for quite a while) we knew we had to make a little time today for a blog update. And thanks to our wonderful friend, Susan, who was gracious enough to spend her Saturday morning giving Ethan a haircut, we have some recent pictures to post. Susan did an amazing job with Ethan, who was laughing and having fun playing with all of her hairstyling tools. Thank you, Susan, for using your talents to bless us this morning!

Strawberry Hunting

A few weekends ago the Veecks and Hoffmans went strawberry picking (or strawberry hunting, as Sam called it) at Hubers Farm. Ethan loved being carried around by Maggie and she even showed him how to climb a tree! We had a wonderful time and plan to make it a yearly family tradition. There's nothing like eating a freshly picked strawberry! If you haven't been strawberry picking (or hunting) yet this year, I would highly recommend it.