Happy New Year. The kids and I have been spending some quality time while Joe gets back into the travel grind. We miss him when he is on the road, we have a good routine down. We have been enjoying some beautiful days - going to the parks and playing outside in the neighborhood. It is always amazing to watch my children grow and learn - they surprise me every day. Corey is showing me so much lately. His playful side is coming out more and more and his imaginative play - this is tremendous in the world of autism. The other day in the bathtub, Corey told me he was pretending to be a snake and proceeded to lay down on his side/tummy, wiggle and hiss like a snake. He was having fun with it, and having fun making his mommy laugh. He is also doing great in school, learning by leaps and bounds - we are so proud of him. Our Mia is such a smart little thing and is loving going to her "big girl school" and loves to "teach" me about the stuff she is learning. She is so funny in how she loves to be a princess, but also tells me she is "girl incredible hulk" or a power ranger.

I have also been having some fun reconnecting with old friends recently. Turns out, there are 4 people from my jr. high and high school days now living in the Austin area like me. What are the odds of 5 Glendale kids ending up here? I had a great lunch yesterday with my friend Heidi - hadn't seen her in 20 years. We are so happy to be reconnected and are looking forward to hanging out more now that we are "neighbors" again. Another friend, Robin is planning to set up a "reunion" of sorts for all of us Glendale kids sometime soon. Wonder if there are any others in the area, beyond the 5 of us?