Can I Brag?

I'm sitting here drinking a chilled coffee recipe I got from My Five Men (delicious), listening to my beautiful daughter wake up from her nap singing "Glory, Glory Hallelujah" (that's what she calls "The Battle Hymn of the Republic") in her room. I'm also smiling from head to toe. I've been keeping notes going back and forth with Ian's teacher at ESY. I asked her to try to keep track of his behavior with other kids and let me know if he's hitting, pulling hair, pushing, etc. This was her reply. I'm not making any of it up.

"Not a problem! He's been the best of all our students - been minding quite nicely and keeping hands to self. I teach behaviors during the year as well as the summer - and Ian is actually one of our stars - will let you know if it changes."

I think our Faithful Father knew I needed to hear these kinds of things. She's had nothing but good things to say about him so far. Now, I was a teacher once and I know that sometimes we 'over positive' things, but believe me, I wouldn't add in extra positive statements if they weren't true. I was very pleased after reading how his 1st week went. I really hope he keeps it up.

Did I already blog about my fears after hearing one parent tell me her son did not start self-mutilating behaviors until after he started ESY? I can't remember. Anyway, that about did me in. So, hesitancy set in as to whether this ESY thing was a good idea or not. But, I figure if I just keep in constant contact and go up and visit a few times, I should be able to get a good picture of things.

Our days seem so nicely organized now. He comes home, we eat lunch, he watches a video and plays, and he easily goes down for a nap. Now, if we can think of something nice and structured for evening times, we'll be doing really great! I'm so glad we're putting him in AM PPCD classes this fall.

Avery Cuties

I was watching my daughter today and just giggled at all the really cute things she says. I try to journal most of them, labeling them, "Cute Saying".

A while back, she was in the garage while I was cleaning some stuff out. She started saying, "Mama, there's a crab!" Of course I had no clue what she was talking about or how she even knew what a crab looks like. Well, after further investigation, I discovered it was a spider. So, now when she informs me that there is a crab nearby, I know that it's really a spider.

Another cute thing she says (which I may have posted before) is she calls McDonalds, "Old MacDonalds". We're not a huge fan of feeding them McD's food, but you know.....every once in a while necessity calls. When she sees us pull up, she'll say, "Mama, we at Old McDonals?"

Here's an Ian one: Last night we went to Braums for a "surprise". After finding out Avery wanted "pink" icecream, I asked Ian what flavor he wanted. His quick response was, "Hamburger and french fries." Hmmmm, sounds gross!

He's A Boy!

Remember my good friends I told you about a while back that had had consecutive miscarriages and difficulties getting pregnant? Well, I told you she was pregnant. Now I get to tell you that they're having a boy! I'm so excited for them. They will make wonderful parents. She's about 21 weeks now. She let me go with her to her last sono (a level 2). It was sooooo great seeing that little guy, and seeing him so active. Rian is really starting to shine now, after understandably having a difficult time enjoying this pregnancy. I can't wait for Benjamin to meet his new friend in November. Rian can only hope he's as cute as Benjamin! Hee hee, not biased!

ESY in Progress

Ian's extended year started today. We decided that although we live very close to the school he where he will be going, we would go ahead and let him ride the bus. I started to have huge reservations last night and this morning. I thought I would cry putting him on the bus. I kept thinking, "Oh, I'm letting someone take him away without me, to a strange school, with a strange teacher. How could I!" Well, he did what I figured he'd do. I got right on the bus! Then 3 hours later, he got right off the bus! The note in his folder said he had a good day and that he was a doll. (Hope I get that remark clear til the end!) They even said that if I wanted to let him wear 'big boy underwear' while potty training, they would do that as long as I didn't mind doing the laundry! Got me thinking!

Ian was famished when he got home. That was a good thing, as he told me exactly what he wanted for lunch and he ate it all without a word! No goofing around, no vomiting, no laughing at Avery who was right across the table from him. It was wonderful.

Then, he watched Barney and part of Word World, then didn't argue a bit when I said it was naptime. OMG! As a matter of fact, they all went down without a fuss.

IS THIS DAY REALLY HAPPENING? PINCH ME IF NOT!

Okay, seriously, it has been a very good day.

Brownie Bliss

See these beauties? A friend of ours, who happens also to live in our neighborhood, made and brought these to us a couple days ago (and yes, there's still some left). These mammas are so big, I can barely get my mouth over to bite it. Seriously, they're huge. They are brownies made with marshmallow on top, and on top of that is a mixture of chocolate, peanutbutter, and rice krispies. It's about 11:30pm and I just finished my 3rd one for the day (and a glass of milk, of course). Treadmill means nothing tomorrow! I laugh at the thought of Ian getting hold of one of these. Sugar high for a month! Avery did catch me eating one, so I gave her a bite. She came back for more.

My Precious Joy

I was given this poem at one of our FX meetings. I found it the other day when I had my little "pitty party". You may have already seen it somewhere, but I thought it was too great not to share. Get your tissues!

My Precious Joy

Sweet Father in Heaven whose love is divine,
Thank you so much for the son that is mine.
To others he'd be a burden to bear,
But to me he's a joy wo which none can compare.
I know that hes' different from most girls and boys,
He speaks kind of funny and plays strange with his toys.
For him, change is hard, he can get so upset,
He must seem so odd to those he has met.
Sometimes his anger gets out of control,
And he has a huge meltdown which torments my soul.
Yet as I look into those precious blue eyes,
I know that you Lord gave me this surprise.
For life doesn't always turn out like we hope,
You know what is best, and it's through you I cope.
You help me to see as others do stare
That this is my precious boy, not a burden to bear.
Although he is different than some other kid,
I'm so glad that you did what you did.
When others comment, "I don't know how you do it!"
It feels as arrows in my shoulder they have hit.
How could they not see what I see?
I just can't believe they don't envy me!
And then it occurs as if from above,
You knew that I was the one for this love.
You knew I'd rejoice in his triumphs though small they might be,
And urge him to greatness despite what they see.
I'd find joy and laughter where there could be tears,
I'd see his limits and proceed without fears.
You knew I'd be best for this special boy,
So, thank you, Dear Lord, for my precious joy.

Why Am I Crying?

Okay, moms....it's about 1:00am and I can't stop crying. I got on the FRAXA site to see if I could find a particular Quarterly issue (which I didn't), and there was a You Tube video. I guess after watching it, I realized how alone I really feel in all this. The funny part is, I'm not. But I still feel that way. To see those kids on there so much like Ian...to hear the stories from the parents (particularly about goof-ball pediatricians who kept saying "don't worry about it, he'll catch up" UGH!)...etc. Just tonight, trying to brush his teeth, I wondered if this would ever get better. Well, then they showed an older boy who's dad still had to brush his teeth, and he still didn't like it. A mom who still drives by kids' ball games with sadness....

I need to regroup! I just want to go in and hug and kiss all over my kids! Of course, if I do at this hour, there'll be absolutely no chance of sleep for me.

Dad is away for the night with men from our church, doing 'guy things'. I'm so glad he decided to go. I only wish it was more than just overnight. He starts teaching summer school Monday and he's not looking forward to it. But, better some time than no time. He's such a great husband and dad.

On a better note, we painted Avery's room. It's a light, light purple (like lilac'ish). It looks great with her new furniture. It still didn't do the trick of getting her to want to sleep in her room....the dogs are still there on the other side of the fence and she knows it. She reminded me tonight that she didn't like our neighbor's dogs. But, she's working on it. Jim stopped sleeping on her floor about a week ago. The dog sleeps in there now (partially against his will). The great news is she went to bed tonight very easily. No tears, no manipulation tricks. I think we finally might be getting somewhere!

Ben is standing up against anything he can now. I can tell he really wants to let go and take off, but his little body just can't do it quite yet. One thing I'm excited about is that when Ian was 14 months, he didn't really seem to even have the desire to walk. I think Benajmin watches his brother and sister and wants to join in all the reindeer games!

Gotta go before it's time for the kids to get up. And yes, I did stop crying.

Just Stuff

The night of the day Jim got the mohawk, we put the kids to bed and got out the clippers again in hopes of making his head look somewhat normal. The mission was successful. I've never seen his hair that shaved before, but I must say, I did quite a good job!

After hitting Benjamin's one year since diagnosis mark (June 8), I decided I'm not really in the mood to go through the details of each diagnosis like I thought I wanted to. So, that's that.

A month in our new house (well, new to us) and Avery still hates sleeping in her room. We finally got the carpet in, which we hoped would help....NOPE. Then we got her this ADORABLE handpainted bedroom set, hoping that would really get her excited about sleeping in her room by herself....NOPE. So, tomorrow Jim will paint her room. She picked purple, so purple it is...a much lighter shade. Then I'll work on getting girly stuff on the walls. Yep, all in hopes that it will finally get her excited. We put our foot down tonight and told her that Daddy would not be sleeping in her room tonight. She was not thrilled, but luckily tiredness does win over in the end.

Remember a while back I mentioned a friend of mine who is pregnant after several miscarriages and had just gotten to hear her first hearbeat? Well, I am sooo excited to say that she is at 18 weeks! She goes this week to find out the sex of the baby. I'm hoping to be able to go with her.

That's it for the stuff.

Mohawk Pic

The deed is done! The kids, teachers, parents, principals loved it. Jim wants to work on 'fixing' it a bit tonight. He would like to look a little more professional for his ARDs tomorrow! :) I wanted to write something in his head with the clippers.

Desperate Times, Desperate Measures

Okay, so my husband is a teacher. In this state, the standardized testing is everything....yeah, messed up. The school where my husband teaches is Title 1, and they generally have lower scores. So, Jim tells the 4th graders that if they (meaning the whole 4th grade) get at least 80% passing on all the tests then he will shave his head to a mohawk and color it pink.

YOU GUESSED IT! They did it! And today is the day. I will be packing up the kids and heading up to school this morning. During the 4th grade "graduation", I will be shaving my husband's head to a mohawk and spray painting it pink. I hope our children don't freak out! I'll let ya know how it goes.