Heading into summer break...

Noah and Caleb finished pre-school today. Noah is excited to be a kindergartener next year. Caleb is excited to be one of the "big kids" in pre-school next year and he is looking forward to showing his sisters the ropes.

That brings us to the most recent hurdle in our lives. Alina and Meg have officially entered the school system. Much to our delight, they have entered the ELMWOOD school system, not that of the neighboring district. Most special education kids from our district go to the Farmington district to participate in the early childhood program. Anne and I are firm, very very firm, believers in inclusion. We believe inclusion benefits children academically and socially more than a segregated classroom could (especially the socialization part). We had the girls' IEP (individualized education plan) meeting last week and after some discussion it was decided that our district would provide the services the girls need here. Yeah for us and yeah for the district for educating "their own." Hopefully other families will follow suit.

Summer officially starts for me next Thursday. It will be Daddy Day Care. I'm looking forward to it. First point of business: paint the driveway. Concrete is such a boring color. We need to spice it up a bit. Maybe a whale, Lightning McQueen, hopscotch, whatever. After that will be the Slip and Slide Anne's parents sent. Then we'll play in the dirt and plant flowers. Should be fun. I'm exhausted already.

Trips for the summer include Columbus to see my grandmother and family and to see Anne's brother and sister and their families. We're pretty fired up about that. We'll also get to Pittsburgh (go Penguins!) to see Anne's parents and hopefully Mark's family. Oh yeah, we'll also be seeing Uncle Bob in Chicago and my parents as well.

Things are going very well. Life is busy.

Love,
Todd, Anne, Noah, Caleb, Alina, and Meg