Weston's "Barns"

I started to notice this summer that Weston tends to walk on the inside of his feet. I also thought it was a little odd that he could walk okay in Crocs that are too big for him, but yet when he wore shoes that actually have support, he would fall all of the time. After consulting with some of my PT friends, I decided to take him to an orthotist for an evaluation. They recommended we try some orthotics to help offset the inward rolling of his feet. This picture is a good example of what Weston's foot "pronation" looks like from the back.

 

Wes got to pick out what pattern he wanted on his orthotics. He is very into barns right now, so as soon as he saw one that had barns on them, his mind was made up! His orthotics came in about 2 weeks ago, and so far he has been doing great with them! He calls them his "barns" and he wears then during all waking hours. The best part is that they really do seem to help. He walks and runs more smoothly, doesn't fall nearly as often, and just seems overall more stable. It's amazing what a flexible, little piece of plastic can do!

Fab 5

Alex started a new preschool this year. He now goes to Shepherd's Flock Preschool and is in the Fabulous 5's class (even though he's not quite 5 yet). He goes Monday, Wednesday, and Friday afternoons, and so far he has loved it. I think he's still adjusting to not having a nap on those days, but he seems to like it there and is very proud to show us his work when he gets home. He has three teachers- Ms. Jodie, Ms. Kay, and Ms. Kerry. He really likes "station time" because the kids get to pick which station to go to. He most often goes to the "game station"- no surprise there!

Wisconsin Trip

We took a 9 day road trip in Wisconsin at the end of August. The boys were really good travelers and we had a lot of fun! We started out in Milwaukee to celebrate my Grandma Millie's 90th birthday. After a long day of driving, I was impressed how well the kids sat through a long dinner. It was fun to see family and celebrate a big birthday.

The next day we decided to go to the Brewer's game. Alex and Wes enjoyed trying cotton candy for the first time.

Monday morning we took off for a leisurely drive up to Green Bay, where we spent the next 4 nights. We had a lot of fun in Green Bay and also ate a lot of good food. I'm not usually one to take pictures of food, but I couldn't resist taking a picture of my burger smothered in melted cheese curds at a brewpub we went to the first night. Only in Wisconsin!

We headed to the main attraction on Tuesday- Packer Training Camp. It was a really hot day, but it was worth sitting outside to get to see the Packers. Alex got to give some of the players a high-five as they rode their kid bikes over to the training field. Weston lasted about an hour before he was done watching, so we spent some time hanging out in the air conditioned Lambeau atrium while Andy and Alex stayed for the rest of practice.

We went to check out a rescue animal safari on Wednesday. It was nice because it wasn't very crowded and you could get up close to see the animals. There were some interesting animals there like a coyote, badger, fox, wolf, bald eagle, and deer.

We spent Thursday morning at the Green Bay children's museum. They had a special Packer's exhibit going on, which we all agreed was the best exhibit ever! The boys (Andy included) had so much fun. Alex and Wes also really enjoyed the fishing exhibit, as well as a fireman exhibit.

 
Our hotel was right next to a bowling alley. We walked over there after nap time on Thursday and played some games in their arcade. We knew Alex would have a great time, but Weston loved it just as much.

After watching other people bowl while we were there on Thursday, the boys wanted to go bowling, so we went back over there Friday morning to play.

After bowling, we hit the road and headed for Merrimac, WI (north of Madison), where we stayed for our final 2 nights. We rented a condo with Andy's family, which worked out great and it was fun to see everyone. Saturday was Mitch's (Andy's cousin) wedding. It was an outdoor ceremony and made for a nice opportunity to get some good family pictures.

After dinner, Alex and Weston danced the night away. They danced by themselves, with each other, with family, and even with complete strangers.

We packed up Sunday morning and headed back home. Our little vacation was a great way to end the summer!