Arrgh Matey, we've had a fun October!

Get ready for lots of pictures! I tried to condense them as much as I could. October was such a fun month for the Draney family. We had tons of cousin time and loved every minute of it. We went to the pumpkin patch which is always a hit. They had a witch that was welcoming the kids as we waited, but Trey took one look at her and immediately turned the other way and starting RUNNING back to the car:) After we got to the patch he warmed up as he saw all the cousins finding their pumpkin.

Above are pictures from when we went to the park in our costumes for a picnic. We had fun playing football, playing on the playground and laughing as Jason tried wading in the stream to retrieve the volleyball.


October is Dylan's birthday month and he had fun at his family party. Also I planned Dylan's class Halloween party and went to school for that, you can see Dylan's "This is awesome!" face above as he is painting his pumpkin. We were also trying to get some of Dylan's scouting requirements finished before he turned 10 and got out of Bears so I took the kids to Salt Lake for a day and we went to a really fun art gallery, had a picnic and went to Temple Square. I had such a fun time with my amazing kids! And for the first time since moving to Syracuse we took to boys and went to the pumpkin walk. It was very cool, a little too cold, but my boys loved it. This next year we are going to enter some pumpkins that we carve.
Our picnic in the middle of downtown Salt Lake City.




I went a little crazy with the sewing machine and made pirate costumes for my whole family. I loved watching my pirates having fun!

Love all of the fun family memories:)

Happy Birthday Dylan

On October 19th my sweet boy hit double digits!! Dylan turned 10 years old, I can't believe that I have been blessed to have him in my life for 10 years already. Dylan is simply the sweetest, most loving, most considerate, and most caring boy that I know.

Dylan had so much black hair as a baby, it was so much fun:) He is all Hunsaker genes and has one of those sweet faces that hasn't changed that much since he was a baby.



Dylan was pretty sick as a baby, until he got tubes, but that didn't stop him from smiling all the time. He has always tried to make everyone around him happy, and he always succeeds! Dylan has always had a special little sparkle in his eyes and a powerful spirit about him. I am constantly learning from his amazing example and feel blessed to be the mother of such a strong young man.



Dylan has always looked up to his big sister. He has learned so much from her, and in return, he has been one of Taylor's best teachers. Dylan has always had an ability to look on the bright side. I am often impressed by his naturally happy demeanor and selfless attitude.


(Dylan at Preschool graduation)



(Dylan at a singing performance)





Dylan is what you would call a late bloomer, I remember in Kindergarten he was so sad, because everyone lost a tooth before he did. I told him that I didn't know when he would start to loose his teeth, but only that I knew that he would loose them eventually. He might have been slow to loose his first tooth, but he has always been pretty mature when it comes to coordination. Dylan loves all types of sports and has the ability to take constructive criticism and coaching well, without letting it get him down. He strives for perfection, but takes criticism in stride.




(Above Dylan at his Kindergarten graduation, and below Dylan right
before his baptism) Like I said before, Dylan has a such a special, strong spirit about him. He has learned to really listen to the Spirit and to follow its promptings much earlier than I ever did. Still I struggle to listen as I should, and I learn so much from his great example. I have often been impressed at how he handles hard situations. There was one time when he was in 2nd grade that Dylan was being constantly teased for being so small. One bully in particular began to cross that line and went from verbally bullying him to physically bullying him. Every day I would ask Dylan how his day went, and everyday he found something positive to say until one day he just broke down and started to cry. He told me how he was being pushed down and just didn't want to go to school anymore. When he told me the whole story, I got my mamma bear claws out and wanted to march up to that school and give that little bully a sound spanking.However, my cooler head prevailed and I gave him a hug and told him that I believed in him and new that he could figure this situation out.
About a month later I was checking up on the situation with him and was asking if he was still being bullied by this kid. He said: "Oh no, we are good friends now." I dug a little deeper and found out that this same bully was having to stay in at recess because he needed to get an insulin shot and no one would stay in with him, until Dylan volunteered and got all of his friends to stay in with him too. He showed compassion to someone who hadn't showed compassion to him, and turned an enemy into a friend. I am humbled by his example to me! I know that I would not have been that brave, and still sometimes I am not as brave as him.


Dylan is just like his Dad, in that he loves golf! He is naturally gifted at it, and we need to nourish that a little more than we do. Dylan loves to go golfing with Jason and to be outside. Dylan swing is natural, or so Jason tells me since I wouldn't know what a natural or unnatural swing looked like:) Dylan would be happy just spending the whole day on the course with his Dad and Grandpa Hunsaker.
Dylan shines in many areas, but where he really shines is in his role as big brother. Dylan has two little brothers that think the suns rises and sets with Dylan. Whatever Dylan does, he has two little imitators that follow right behind him. I am a little sister myself, and know how much I always wanted to follow Heidi around. I wanted to dress the same, where the same makeup, go everywhere with her and her friends, and luckily I have a big sister who has been a champion for me still even today. Dylan similarly has taken his role as big brother and has set the bar pretty high for all other big brothers out there. This year, Dylan's friend Fox gave him an invitation for a late night. When Dylan gave me the invitation, he said "Mom, this is an invitation for a late night over at Fox's house, but I already asked him if Devin could come for a while." I almost cried, I told him that I he doesn't have to let Devin go to the late night with his friends. He assured me that it would be o.k., but maybe I could come get him after an hour so he would have the rest of the time with his friends. Dylan always includes Devin and it makes Devin's day every time. What a selfless big brother he is. He also takes such an active role in helping Trey, he has learned sign language so that he can communicate with him, and he is constantly participating in my speech therapy sessions with him.

I love you Dylan so much!!! You are an amazing young man and I feel blessed to be your mother. I thank God each day for your positive spirit in our home, you help everyone around you to look on the bright side and to be better versions of ourselves.

Trey speech progress (Apraxia)

For school I am giving a presentation on Apraxia (the speech disorder that Trey has) and so I have video taped him for the presentation. I have decided that it would be good to chart his progress so that I can better work with the speech and occupational therapists.
Trey will be 4 next month. These clips don't show that his cognitive level is actually pretty high. He knows all of his letters and can identify them using his ipad.
Also he recognizes and can spell his name, and counts from 1 to 10.
Keep in mind that just 2 months ago he was still very silent with little or no sounds being produced. This is the progress that we've made since going on the GFCF diet.
(Trey Signing that he wants a treat!)


Also Trey uses sign language to communicate, but since we are really struggling with getting him to be at all verbal, when we practice speaking, I try to have him use just his words and not his signs.

Follow these links to access the videos of my sweet Trey:)

http://youtu.be/Y_05sljAyLM
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p4kNHnNTSvo
http://youtu.be/IKPCwzKppr8

Trey really has made a ton of progress, even since these video's and learned a speaking part for the primary program. He didn't end up being able to give his part, because of his sensory integration disorder. All the people in the chapel along with the size of the room is really hard for him, but I was so proud of him that he let me take him to the podium and then back to his chair....it's all about baby steps here, and celebrating the little victories!

Up next for Trey is a visit to a Pediatric Neurologist, and then hopefully to some specialized speech therapists and occupational therapists at Primary Children's rehabilitation center in Bountiful.