Pony Walker

Riley FINALLY got approved for his pony walker! We got a letter in the mail yesterday saying that he was approved so it should only be a matter of time before we get it and he can start using it. He has a lot more use in his legs lately so I think that we can get him doing some good things with it. We have waited almost a year and it is finally going to come! Yea Riley!

California

As some of you know we took Riley to California this last week to a therapist there named Anat Baniel. She has developed a method of therapy that is really supposed to help kids with physical as well as mental special needs. The experience was really enlightening. When we first got there Riley was doing some pretty cool stuff. She had him so flexible it was amazing, she had him putting all of his weight on his feet, his feet weren't flexed the whole time we were there which is quite an accomplishment. We also learned a lot about Riley, like the fact that when he is making noise he is trying to tell us something and not just making noise for the heck of it and that he is extremely spoiled! (Ha ha) We were able to learn some new ways to communicate with him which has made a huge difference in his personality. We were going to keep going with it but there is only one girl in this area and she only does it one weekend a month which isn't enough. They also wanted us to take him out of all of his other therapy which Clint and I both didn't get a very good feeling about. The therapists here in Idaho have done wonders with him and we didn't see enough of a result with Riley down there to have that much faith in it. We just don't feel like it is the right time for us to do this but we were very glad that we went.
We did get to go and do some sight seeing while we were there which was fun. We were in San Rafael which is just across the bay from San Francisco. We took the ferry over to San Francisco one day and man those ferry's go fast! We started out really slowly but then all of the sudden we were going like fifty miles an hour. We had to move under because we were getting blown away. Clint and Haley stayed out in the open of course and Haley thought she had died and gone to heaven! She loved that ferry! We went to Pier 39 to see the Sea Lions and we had dinner there which was very good seafood. Clint got ribs and double fries which I am sure that doesn't surprise anyone. We also went to see the Golden Gate Bridge and for some reason we didn't get out and walk on it. Clint was too focused on not dying driving in a big city that we just turned around and drove back over it again. Needless to say him and his parents were a little overwhelmed by how big and busy it was down there. I, on the other hand, thought it was beautiful and wouldn't mind living there. I don't have all of the pictures but I do have a few of the San Francisco trip. And for those of you coming to Idaho for Emily's Baptism we have a little video of Riley that we are going to show of some of his sessions. Enjoy!

Family Pictures with the Rogers

We got pictures with the Rogers side of the family back in December so here they are!

Riley's First Day of School!

Riley had his first day of preschool today! He started in Sunbeams yesterday at church too. Clint and I got up and took him this morning and then we came home and Haley and I spent the morning together just the two of us and then Riley rode the bus home! I didn't get any pictures of him on the bus though but I will. I started to take a cute picture of Haley looking out the window waiting for Riley to come home but the bus pulled up just as I was going to take it. He is going to go to school on Monday, Tuesday and Thursday. We are so excited for this new part of his life!

Christmas at the Kranks (or the Rogers)

These are pictures of the kids opening their presents at Grandma and Grandpa Rogers. Haley got a doll and a stroller. She loves that doll so much. She is constantly giving her kisses and putting her to bed. Riley got a sweatshirt and a little zoo toy which he loves. All of the kids in Clint's family gave his mom and dad family pictures for Christmas. We got those done on the day after Christmas. We also gave them ornaments for the tree with pictures of all of their grandkids on them. It was a fun day!

Christmas!

Christmas this year was so nice and uneventful! Last year we had Riley in the hospital having seizures and it was all crazy and this year we stayed home and had Christmas morning at our own house and we didn't wake up until after eight in the morning and it was just so fun! The kids got lots of fun stuff. Haley got a kitchen and a bunch of stuff to go with it, some letters for the fridge and bathtub and the Tinker Bell movie. Riley got some therapy toys, shapes and numbers cookie jar and Kung Fu Panda movie. And they both got oodles of clothes as did I and Clint. Clint got a Craftsman cordless drill, a game for the Wii, and the Wanted movie. I got lots of lotion from Bath and Body Works, a very pretty bracelet and a few other things. We also got Guitar Hero and there have been many late nights since then that we have been up playing! It is so fun! My brother Damon and his family had us on that side this year and his wife Meghan made Haley and I the cutest matching aprons! We love them, Haley barely takes hers off. But, the first thing they wanted when they got out there in the morning, was the candy!

Christmas Eve PJ's

Every year on Christmas Eve we all get new Pajamas. This has become a family tradition in Clint's whole family now and it is fun to all be together to see the cute pajamas that everyone gets. Riley got some with snowmen on it and the shirt said "Chillin' with my Homies" and Haley's were red with reindeer on them. This year Clint's big sister Vona got her husband some pajamas that the shirt said "99% Naughty, 1% Nice" and the pants said "Jingle my bells". She hadn't realized that the pants had said that until Christmas morning and then it was the joke for the rest of the time that they were here visiting. So funny!