First Day of School...

I have been super excited to start school - counting the days. I've met my kindergarten teacher, Mrs. Taylor, a couple times already and she is awesome. Here are some photos of me before and after school. I was a little nervous just because there were so many people around but once I was inside and settled I had no issues with Mom, Dad, and Sister leaving. (Sister, however, was a little distraught to leave me behind.)

I did pick out my outfit - it's not new clothes. However, my back pack is totally new and should last as many years as I want it to. Mom had one that lasted her through most of college and graduate school of the same brand.

The first thing I said when I told Dad about my day was, "I didn't go to the principle's office!" We went over school rules last night and Mom and Dad explained if I was not good I would end up with them in conference in the principle's office - it really stuck in my brain. We read a book, had 15 minutes of recess where I made a new friend and played tag (there are only 5 boys in my class of 24 students). Then we had a milk break, colored a picture, had my photo taken with my special stuffed toy I brought to school (Yellow Monster which is a Despicable Me minion), and then it was time to go home.

It was a grand, short first day. I am already looking forward to tomorrow, although, I was happy to take a nap today after getting up early. Oh, and Sister survived without me. Mom said she asked many times for me but she clung to her blankie and seemed to be fine when they picked Dad and me up. Mom kept her busy running errands. Then we went to lunch to celebrate my successful first day.

The two videos at the bottom are fairly short - one is of me running out of school and the other was an interview Dad did with me about my first day.

More of Swimming...

I have been loving swimming this summer. We are so fortunate to have friends who let us go swimming all the time in their super nice pool. Plus, my lessons twice a week with Coach Nick have been awesome. I started a new session this past week with him and as it turns out there were no other students signed up for our class so I am getting private lessons. Lil Sister's class is also during my class but she has a different teacher.

We did go to the swim shop this week and have me fitted for goggles. I cannot see really great without my glasses but at least I can open my eyes under water which has significantly helped my body positioning. My skills continue to explode with his encouragement and lots of practice. 

We've been practicing jumping off the diving board at class as well as deep diving. Coach will put a long pole in the water and I will use it to pull myself to the very deep end of the pool. I also have unrestricted privileges at the YMCA in that I can get into any pool without adult assistance. It's awesome. Although, Mom and Dad still insist they be on stand by even if there are life guards every where.

Oh, and somehow jumping into the pool is so much more fun if it is accompanied by a yell of some sort. Even Coach Nick agrees and he does the same thing.

Enjoy the video from our recent swim outing at Ms. Suzanne's place.

Diving...

I've really been enjoying swimming this summer and have really learned a lot, especially since I get frequent practice and starting lessons. 
Here are some photos from me "diving" but really it's just jumping into the deep end of the pool. I am told it is about 8 feet deep on the diving end. Mom and Dad still insist someone stand by in case I need assistance but mostly I do it myself.

Here are some photos of me diving from our recent family pool outing...

Cap at My Eye Appointment

I had my eye appointment last week. I did fine and was happy no eye drops were involved in this visit. However, after this appointment the specialist said I might possibly need surgery on my dominant eye to loosen one of the muscles (external oblique). She was hoping at our last appointment we could avoid surgery but this time she was not so sure. So, we'll take a wait and see approach over the next 6-12 months and see what happens. 

For now, we were happy to get a recommendation on a jeweler that could repair one of my pairs of glasses. My glasses run $400-$500 a pair so if we can avoid getting a new pair, it saves us quite a lot. Mom and Dad have paid for three pairs this year. Especially helpful has been my new sports glasses - perfect for t ball, gymnastics, and swimming. (Yes, we have insurance but for glasses it only covers $100 toward a pair every other year - not too helpful for someone like me.)

Here I am enjoying my super cool new Captain America shirt Mom found me. I absolutely love that it has a built in hood with the signature wings and "A". Here is also a rare photo of me minus my glasses. As you can see the eye crossing is getting better but still not resolved completely and may not ever be. With time and technology that could change.

T-Ball Wrap Up

It was a very busy season with about 26 games within a two month period. I actually only missed one game due to illness. Otherwise, I always made it and about 90% of the time was super focused.

Mom and Dad said their goals for me for t-ball were to have fun, learn to listen to a coach, stand in line quietly, and focus. They said I accomplished all my goals. I was actually quite sad when the season was over. Mom and Dad also say I was definitely the most improved player on the team. I consistently made my hits and playing catcher was by far my favorite position. One thing that dramatically improved for me was my throwing. Once I learned to step and throw I was able to play 1st base without problem, although, tagging first I sometimes forgot to do.

Actually, Mom had a couple coaches from some of the other teams ask how they taught me my catcher skills - mostly my ball stopping and my ability to see out of the catcher's mask. Nothing special she told them just that I am used to having no depth perception or peripheral vision so wearing the mask was no big deal. Because I'm used to having some vision impairment, I've learned to use other senses to overcome which put me at a significant advantage. The ball stopping, I learned on my own. Still, I liked being catcher because I got to wear the super cool battle armor like Aragorn. Oh, my new sports glasses made a huge difference, too.

I also loved wearing a helmet to bat, too. Toward the end of the season I developed a bad habit of throwing my bat after hitting. Coach talked with me several times and I just kept forgetting. Mom and Dad had me practice my batting with my foam bat for a while and that solved the issue. Then I brought my foam bat to use during games and it became the most popular bat for our games. We all got a good laugh at that. 

Overall, Mom and Dad were very happy with the season. The coaches were all wonderful, both on our team as well as the other teams. All the parents were great. No one complained or anything. Totally positive experience for all of us. Even Sister made some new friends and had a great time hanging out with the other siblings during the games. No score was kept. No outs given.

I chose number 3 which was surprising to Dad because that is his favorite number, which I did not know.

Mom's work sponsored my team, the Indians, too. 

I was also known for giving a thumbs up to Mom, Dad, and Sister every time I ran to 1st base. 

Here are some photos mixed in with a few videos, too.

Very first game, first time at bat.

 

First time playing catcher - at first I was scared. Then it was my favorite position.

My new throwing skills.

From my last game. I did not actually get to play catcher in the last game. I did get to play first base. I was on deck to be catcher the very next inning if we had had one. However, I insisted on putting on the gear one last time before the season officially ended.

T-Ball Photos

The same week as kindergarten registration I also started T-ball. We had several weeks of practice before we had our first game. Mom and Dad have some video of my first time at bat but we will show it at a later time. For now, here are some photos of me in my jersey for the first time. Mom's boss offered to sponsor my team so we have her company logo on the back of my jerseys. I thought that was pretty awesome.

We rotate playing positions so there is also a photo of me in my catcher's attire. I really liked playing catcher even if I could not see out of the helmet - I pretended I was Aragorn from Lord of the Rings wearing my battle armor. Mom and Dad said I did a great job showing effort. I always make my hits and thus far have only missed one ball that has come my way. Most of the time I am extremely focused.

It was really me who pushed hard to play T-ball. I really wanted to play and had Mom and Dad pursue it, even though it is way outside their comfort level. We are all learning together and with some extra pointers from my cousin I am having a great time and doing good things. 

Go Indians!!!

Kindergarten Registration

A few weeks ago, Mom and Dad took me to the school to register for kindergarten. I was really excited - a little bummed though to be awakened from my nap but once I saw the basketball hoops in the gym I was sold.

I met lots of other kids, most of which were girls. In fact, I only saw about 3-4 other boys total. All the other students were girls. Sounds like I'll be making lots of girl friends.

The first person I met on my tour was the principal. She was very nice and signed a book for me. Systematically I moved from station to station meeting my teachers, counselor, nurse, and lots of other interesting people. I just kept saying, "I am so excited to learn." (No, Mom and Dad did not coach me to say that - I really am genuinely excited. They just keep telling me to remember that on days I don't want to get up for school.)

I did have to take a placement test which I totally rocked. Mom and Dad could not be present when I had my placement test but they stood at a distance and took photos. They could tell I must have done okay because they captured a photo of me cheering. When I showed them my results they were SO excited. I scored 99 out of 100. I was a bit bummed that I missed one letter - "q" - but as I explained to Mom she taught me to make that letter with a tail and the one on the paper did not have a tail so I kept insisting it was a "g". Still, they were SO excited for my success and I definitely felt proud.

Mom and Dad love the school and commented how organized everything was. School is less than a mile from the house so I do not get to ride the bus but I was reassured there would be plenty of opportunities for me to ride the bus during the school year. Yes, we're going with public school.

For now, the teachers just want me practicing my writing skills. I can write my name pretty good but now we just need to work on fine tuning for the fall. I anticipate great fun in the forthcoming years.