Potty Training & Kindergarten plans

My goal for the summer is to have Noah Pedro 100% potty trained during the day...we can always work on the night time later. I can't handle both at once. It had been a big fail the first month of him home with us. We just could not be consistent when he wears pull-ups to school & underwear at home. I was constantly dealing with accidents. I had a friend send me a potty training book she used to train her triplets all at the same time. I read it & received some really good tips from it. The main thing was to do it all at once, stay home for at least 3 days & only focus on potty training, & to stay positive. The book said to do day & night all at the same time but I ignored that part. ;) So, Thursday morning we started the process of potty training. Day 1, I would take him every hour (sometimes every 30 mins) to try to go. The key is to catch them BEFORE they have an accident. I know his little cues so knew when he was about to go but I am also busy with 3 other kids so I could not be watching him every minute so I took him quite often to try to avoid accidents. EVERY TIME he used the potty, he got a piece of candy...the kid LOVED it! He only had about 2 accidents the first day. The second day, he had one slight accident. The third day, he had a couple of major accidents & my patience was running thin (my mother had left & I had been stuck at home with the 4 kids for 3 days now!). The 4th day he was accident free!!! Monday was a big test because it was the first time since potty training that we left the house. We took a trip to the grocery store..had to make 2 bathroom trips but no accidents! We even went to the park to play & get snow cones with only 1 bathroom stop & not accidents! Yay! There in no turning back now. He's doing it! Now he only gets candy when he tells me he needs to go & actually goes. Yesterday we went bowling & played some video games while there & he went potty once & never had an accident! I am still in shock how well it's going now. Once I feel safe to say we are 100% potty trained during the day, then we will work on night time training. He has been waking up fairly dry so I'm hopeful it won't be too hard now. I'm so excited he will start kindergarten without pull-ups on. Speaking of kindergarten, we had his ARD meeting right before school was out. He will be going to a different school than Gage & Autumn. :( This makes me sad & I hope he does okay with it, he really loved "eating" lunch with Autumn. The positive is that I can visit Gage & Autumn without having to sneak around the school so Noah does not see me. If he did, he would cling to me & cried when I left. He will be riding the bus to & from school which I hope works out with me taking Gage to school & picking up Madison from school. Not sure of the bus times so I am nervous how that will work out. His PPCD teacher will be at his new school so he will have a familiar face to see in the hallways which I am thankful for. He will be in a FA2 (a special needs class) classroom most of the day but will spend time with the "regular" kindergarten classes each day as well. He will do lunch, recess, specials, & 30 minutes of classroom a day in regular kinder & then do the rest of instructional learning in the FA2 class. He will also continue to receive speech therapy twice a week. He speaks clearly but has issues with concepts. He gets words confused & uses them wrong at times so he can say he's hot when he's actually cold, etc. He speaks like a 2 or 3 year old would when saying some phrases as well. He qualifies for an FA2 class because of his developmental delays & he scored low enough on the testing they did to be considered "intellectually disabled". Which means "mental retardation". I know this label scares many people. I've learned whatever label a child is given, it does not define what that child is all about. Madison is "gifted & talented", Gage is "short-stature, & ADHD", Noah is "intellectually disabled, ADHD, & developmentally delayed", & Autumn has so many different labels that I quit paying attention to them. Even with the broad difference in their skills & talents...I can celebrate accomplishments with each child everyday. Madison with her excellent grades & tests scores, Gage with his A/B honor roll despite having difficulties focusing, Noah being able to write his name, say his letters, or going to the potty, & Autumn pointing to something she wants to communicate to us & working hard daily in therapy. From the high grades from my oldest to the simple task of pointing from Autumn...I have feel the same joy with each child watching them accomplish goals in their lives & overcoming struggles. I cherish each child the way God created them to be. It does not matter if they are the smartest, most athletic, popular, prettiest, or even if they are "healthy". I've learned being "normal" does not matter. Having kids with a wide range of skills/issues really opened my eyes to see just how special & different God makes each & every one of us & how every child has a purpose & makes a difference in our world. Giving my child a "label" just helps me as a parent to know how I can best help them to grow & learn. It changes nothing about the way I love them or feel about them. With all that said, we will retest Noah in 2-3 years to see where his IQ is & if he still will be considered intellectually disabled or if he just needed time to develop more & catch up to his peers because of his delayed start in life. It will also help us prepare him more for his future. The thing I was most excited about in his ARD meeting is that they have done away with a behavioral plan. They said he is a completely different child than his previous school described him to be as far as behavior. He use to flee from the classroom & run from teachers & he would refuse to cooperate & throw fits. His new school said he tried to flee once but once they told him it was not allowed, he never tried again. They said he will withdraw when work gets difficult but they are able to help redirect his frustration without him having a temper tantrum. They were explaining how sometimes it looks like misbehavior but really it is just frustration from not being able to communicate his feelings so acting positively towards it instead of negatively completely changes how a child will react. His teachers have done SO well with him! They also believe it could be that he feels comfortable, safe, & secure in our home that many of his fears are going away. When I would first drop him off at school, he would cry & have to be reassured I'd be there when he would get off the bus. Same as anytime James or I left the house, he would cry & ask if we would be back. He has now learned that we always return so he does not cry anymore during departures from school or home. He is making good progress & still adjusting well.