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A continuation of my original blog, "Surviving Motherhood". |
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Welcome to my world of middle school, high school, and motherhood. The life of a mom is never easy, especially as children grow, and especially when you have a special needs child. ** Images For Use By Upgraded+ Only ** |
| This holiday has been a nice one indeed. We even found enough money to get Don a couple of gifts, as well as me! That's a first, since...well, since Ryan was a one year old! Gifts are nice, but what I'm so grateful for is the time I get to spend with my family. Don has today off, thanks to his bosses, who deemed it a holiday of sorts, so that they didn't have to go in to work today. I'm very grateful for that, as I get to see him an extra day, without having to send him into work. The week has gone by quickly, with only one more week of break to go. Don goes in Monday and Tuesday, gets out at 2 pm on Wednesday, and then has Thursday off. Back to work on Friday, and then our last weekend of break, before the kids return to school. Just as I predicted, Journey advised us all that this was her best Christmas ever! I'm so excited that we could give that to her. It took some work, but it was well worth it. We had a few Santa helpers this year who also made it possible, especially when things looked bleak when Roz went down. I'm so very grateful for the kindness shown to us, and to all those that helped make it a Merry Christmas for our children. Every wish that Journey made for this Christmas was granted for her. I knew this would be her best Christmas ever, especially when we got her everything she asked for, because this was the first year ever that she took it upon herself to tell us what she found interesting that she wanted. Last year, I had to take her around the toy isles to see if she was interested in anything, hoping she would catch her eye on something she really wanted. She was genial about last year, opening gifts and happy to get them, but she didn't really WANT anything until this year. Only took 8 years to get her to understand the meaning of a Christmas list, but I'm glad we could get her to it, and I'm glad we were able to get her everything. Ryan was pretty easy to get for, and very grateful for everything we got him. Now that he knows about Santa, he feels even more grateful that we got him the things he's interested in. He was thrilled for the Doctor Who posters and the Doctor Who bedding that we got him. I was glad that he was surprised with what we got him. Now that he knows about Santa, I was worried the fun, the surprise was going to be taken out of it, but since he isn't curious till Christmas morning comes, I'm glad to know that we can still surprise him with his gifts. He played along genially for Journey, who was all but ecstatic with everything that was gotten for her. I'm so grateful that he's willing to play along for her sake. We had a delicious dinner of turkey, mashed potatoes and gravy, stuffing and corn yesterday. Since Don and I were up wrapping presents until 2 am, and then we were woken up by the kids at 8 am, I decided to put the turkey in the oven to roast while I took a nap. By the time bedtime rolled around for us last night, I was ready to go! I think it was a beautiful holiday, one that I'm very grateful to share with my family. It may always be only the four of us, but we're happy, whole, and together, and that's what's important! I hope you all had a very Merry Christmas! Now we look forward to New Years, and soon, my birthday! |
I feel terribly guilty that we just could not afford to get gift cards for Journey's teachers this year. I've been able to do it the last few years, with exception to last year and this year. I really wish I had it, but the funds just weren't there. I was putting Journey to bed one night, and we sat and talked for awhile. She tells me things in blurbs; she remembers little bits and pieces of things, and she'll tell me about it. Her brain is wired differently, so when I say something, it might spark her memory for something completely different. Ryan calls it random, but I understand. That night, we were talking about her project to create a brochure on a country. She chose Spain. She was fishing for words, things to tell me, so I helped her out by telling her a few things I knew about Spain, and it helped her open up and remember as well. After talking about it, and a few other subjects, I decided to let her lay down, and turned out her overhead light and told her goodnight. And then it came to me. This HUGE wave. In my mind, I hadn't thought about it in AGES. When your child does well, succeeds, you start to forget what those first few years were like. I'm one of those people that lives in the present, day to day. When I was younger, before I had a family, I used to obsess about the past. Why did my boyfriend dump me? How could my store close? Why did my car die? How will I ever get back to where I used to be? Now that I have kids, I rarely visit the past. Sometimes, when the moment catches me, I'll look at my 11 year old son, and recall how he looked when he was 2 years old, and my heart skips a beat. All in all though, it has to be a moment that catches me. Well that night, I had one of those moments. I pictured how Journey used to be. How conversations didn't come normal to her. How discussing things were hard for her. A simple exchange was not an easy thing for her to do. She didn't have those words. She didn't know how to answer. She couldn't tell me what she so desperately wanted to say, what I so desperately wanted to hear. It was as though we were speaking different languages. When Journey first started pre-k and was evaluated for special ed services, the then speech pathologist evaluated her, and decided that, though speech would be beneficial to her, Journey did not qualify, and any speech necessities that she had would be offered to her through her special ed services. Both her special ed teacher and I were mystified what that meant, and knew that she would not receive what she so desperately needed. I was at a loss; there was nothing more I could say or do to change this woman's mind. We went Journey's entire pre-k year without speech services. Still, Journey struggled to verbalize her needs and wants, and I cried many a night, wishing there was some way that I could talk to her, help her, get her to understand. Questions need more than just a yes or no answer. She didn't understand that. She didn't even understand what we were asking her, she only knew that we were asking her SOMETHING. She tried so so hard. The next year, her kindergarten year, a new speech pathologist came into the school. This time, her special ed teacher requested that we re-visit her speech needs. We signed her up for another evaluation, and this time, the speech pathologist came back with a resounding yes. It was found she needed help with her pragmatic speech. This is something that the former speech pathologist didn't test in Journey. Mrs. P saw it right away, and suggested seeing Journey on a weekly basis, starting immediately. Originally, Journey was sent home with sheets, letting me know how her day went. What she learned, what she did, who she played with, what centers she went to, which special she had...all the things I wanted to ask her so badly, that she could never answer for me. Just this year, we stopped doing the daily communication sheets. Journey can now tell me EVERYTHING that happened in her day. What she had for lunch, who she played with at recess, if she took a test, about the brochure she made for Spain....EVERYTHING. It took me back, with tears in my eyes, to realize just how far my daughter has come since she started speech therapy. So I penned this email to her speech pathologist, "I know usually I get all Journey's teachers cards for Christmas, but I just didn't have the funds this year, and I am very sorry for that. However, I wanted to write you an email to say how very grateful we are to have you in Journey's life. You have made a world of difference for her, and for us. I really believe that if she hadn't gotten speech therapy, she wouldn't be as talkative, as open, as respondent as she is. When she was four, we were extremely worried that we would never get full answers from her. I had to rely on the take home sheet to tell me what she did that day, and it was really hard having to go through that. I wanted nothing more than my little girl to open up and tell me what was going on, what she did, what she saw, who she played with. I feared that wouldn't happen. And then you came, and you helped her realize that she needed to learn what to say, and how to say it. She learned the context of things, and how responding to appropriate questions lead to more information. By the start of this year, she didn't need that sheet anymore, she could tell me everything that happened in her day. I want to tell you how extremely grateful I am that you got her to this point. She's not entirely forthcoming on all situations, but she gives us little blurbs into her world, telling us things that she's learning or doing in class, or who she played with at recess and sat with at lunch. She's interacting with other kids, holding conversations with them. I will never forget the first time I witnessed her holding a conversation with another child, without being prompted. It was one of the greatest gifts I've ever received. I wish there were words stronger than "thank you" for you. It feels inadequate, just those two words, to let you know just how grateful and ecstatic I am to have all of this from her. Just this year, we started holding bedtime conversations. That wouldn't have been possible without all the work you put in to helping her. She is succeeding, and I'm so very proud of her. Thank you, thank you, thank you again, from the bottom of my heart. You truly are an angel, and I appreciate everything you've done to get Journey this far. I'm grateful to work with you, and do whatever I can to help Journey along. Sincerely, Jamie R" I meant every word I put in that email. To know that Mrs. P has put so much time and effort into developing speech for Journey, to get her to the point of being able to hold 20-30 minute conversations with me? A child who could barely verbalize anything, a child who mimicked words, and would cry in frustration? Miracles happen. People like Mrs. P are the reason why. She shot me back an email, which read "Thank you so much for this beautiful note. I could not ask for a better Christmas gift. It is such a good feeling to know that I have made even the slightest difference for the better in anyone's life. More rewarding than working with children, is working with such wonderful parents such as yourselves who have dedicated so much of their time and efforts to helping their child be the best individual she can be. Speech and language therapy really is nothing without the practice and loving support provided by family. Unfortunately not all students have parents as wonderful as you both. Journey has made so much progress because you always believed in her and never gave up hope. You knew she had a spark somewhere deep down inside her even before she became so verbal. She just needed a little more time, sensitivity, and care to help bring it out. She will continue to make progress as her confidence grows. I am so grateful to have had the opportunity to work with Journey for these past years. It has been such a joy to watch her language and social skills grow, and to see her to actually enjoy and seek out interactions with her peers and teachers here at school. Have a very blessed holiday, a wonderful winter break, and a happy New Year! Sincerely, Veronica P" I feel honored that she told me that it was through my help that Journey has made it this far. She's the REAL hero though. She sends home worksheets to help Journey learn what to say, questions to ask, how to inference; she sends home social games, teaching Journey how to interact with other people, what to say and how to say it to them; worksheets to help her think about what someone could mean when they say this, or what an appropriate response would be if someone asked this or a similar question. I merely interact as the worksheets advise, and work with Journey on them. She does the heavy lifting of seeing where Journey has deficits, and fills them with new ideas and hope and words that Journey can use. I have a daughter that can hold a 20 minute conversation with you. I never, in my wildest dreams, thought I would utter that sentence. |
| The days are flying by, quickly as ever. Tomorrow was supposed to be our inspection, but (thankfully) has been pushed back a week. This gives us some more time to clean up a little better than the spot cleaning we've been doing so far. Perhaps I'll get Ryan to make a dent in his room. The week may go by very quickly-we're cleaning up today and tomorrow, Wednesday we have Brownies, Thursday is their last day at school, and then Friday is Don's Christmas party. Journey's been looking forward to it for quite some time. Her list for Santa is going to go with her, so she can give it all to him. I asked Ryan if he was going to see Santa and get a gift bag, he said he wasn't sure yet. I told him either way was fine by me. Don got his customary Christmas turkey from work today, as well as a 2 lb box of chocolates. We're very appreciative of what his work gives us, even if it isn't a true Christmas bonus. I honestly believe the turkey we get from his work is the best quality turkey to have. The one we get from Walmart for Thanksgiving is ALMOST as good. I can't wait to make Christmas dinner! The kids are very excited for it too! The kids are excited for everything going on this week to next. The Christmas party, going to a new event at the county fairgrounds called "The Christmas Village", then heading to Jen's for some cookie baking on Sunday, and then 16 glorious days of being off school. Sleeping in, eating lunch whenever, and just generally getting to hang around each other. That's my favorite part about the holidays, is getting to be with my family. Don's home for a few days, the kids are off for a couple of weeks, it's nice. I never get sick of my husband and kids, and getting to spend all this time with them means a lot to me. That's MY Christmas gift. I shall return again soon. Perhaps I'll have more stories to share later on this week or next! |
| Yesterday was the day we put our service project into action for my Brownie girls. It started a few weeks ago, I read up about a holiday patch that my girls could earn if they did certain holiday things. Well, even before this patch came into play, I made a decision that we would take the earnings from our Fall Product sale and use them to get gifts for less fortunate children at the elementary school. The girls said it was a good idea, and with the patch, I put it into place. The girls and I went to the front office to see the Giving Wreath that was laid out in the elementary school office window, and we picked four gingerbread children off the wreath, a toy for each child. I scheduled December 6th to be the day that we all met up at Target and shopped for the items that we picked off the wreath. Two of my girls were unable to make it, as they had very important swim meets and a funeral to attend. Serious business, so I suggested to their moms that they pull a tag off the tree at church instead, and that would be their offering to the service project. All the rest of my girls showed up yesterday, and helped me shop for the toys that we were giving to the less fortunate children. We picked a 9 year old boy who wanted a Lego building set, an 11 year old girl who wanted arts/craft supplies, and a 5 year old girl who wanted something Frozen, and something with My Little Pony. My girls were SUPERSTARS. They looked at every toy, and they tested things out. They gave me their input on what they thought was the best toy for the job. We debated price points (as we only had $160 to spend), and made the decision equally on what would be the best toy to get. There were many cheers in the toy isle from nine girls chanting "We think this is best!". The Target employees got a kick out of them, and told them they were doing a good job. We placed the toys in a cart, and wandered here and there, looking to see if we could find anything that would top what we already had in the cart. When we got to the check out line, we had a little bit of a wait, as someone in front of us was purchasing an item that had a warranty on it, and that person wanted to purchase that warranty. The cashier noticed how patient my girls and I were, and gave us a $5 off coupon for waiting so patiently when she rang us up. We had her put them all in separate bags, so I would be able to write on the bags and let the school counselor know which toys were for which child. The girls were quick to tell the cashier what we were doing, and she said it was a wonderful thing to do. It was exhilarating to pay for a bunch of toys with one swipe of a card. It's a feeling I've never had before, as we've always had to scrimp and save and squeak by, buying little by little over the months to make Christmas here for the kids. I felt honored that we got to do this, and even more thrilled, hoping the kids we bought for enjoyed our purchases. I know that if it were my kids, they would be extremely thankful. I'd like to think we got some pretty good toys! We got a 3 in 1 building Lego set for the boy, where you could make a tree house, a regular house, and a town home out of one set. We got the 11 year old girl two sets of jewelry makers, one with felt, and one with embroidering floss. We got the 5 year old girl a large Elsa ice skating doll, and a large Pinky Pie pony that you can do all kinds of amazing things with her hair. I do hope they love them! On Wednesday, the girls and I are going to take the bags to the school counselor and drop them off. I can't wait to hand off the gifts! I'm so glad the girls were excited for this project, and helped and enjoyed it as much as I hoped they would. Perhaps we'll do it again next year. I still have time for the girls to pick a name out of a bag and let them buy a gift each for a friend $10 or under....but Journey and I are kind of pressed for money right now. I thought our next check was going to have more funds in it than I thought, and sadly, that's not the case. However, we are getting detergent and quarters for wash, which is much more needed. All bills will be paid, and that will take care of everything for the month of December. On the 19th, we have another free check, which I'll be using to get Don his beanie that he asked for, my pans that I would like, some Pokemon cards for Ryan's stocking, and some Christmas candy for the kids' stockings as well. This weekend is going to be pretty busy, what with Christmas caroling at a local plantation, and a Frozen Fun event, we'll be going and going. Lots of cleaning needs to be done as well, as inspection is coming up on the 16th.I truly look forward to the 19th (hopefully having passed inspection!), where we'll be going to Don's Christmas party, and then heading out to Jen's house for our annual cookie baking! It seems we're getting there rather quickly. Soon, Christmas will be here, then the end of the year, and then we start all over again. The kids are already looking forward to the prospect of another Ocean City vacation in April.... |
| Don likes to tease me, in that, in the last two nights I've put the kids to bed, each one has ended up crying. "What did you do to them?" Don asked, teasing me. To be totally truthful, all I did was have a heart to heart with them. So, let me start from the beginning. Since Ryan was 4, Don and I take turns putting the kids to bed. On the first night, Don puts Ryan to bed, and I put Journey to bed, and then the next night, we switch, and I put Ryan to bed, and he puts Journey to bed. Sometimes, Journey's not a fan of this, and prefers having me put her to bed all the time, but we continue to switch, regardless of what her whims are. We feel this teaches her many things, such as how to cope in the face of adversity, that life doesn't always give you your way, and that time with Dad is important too. She's been much better about letting Don put her to bed in the last year than she has ever been before, so we hope that means that the last 7 years have been enough to get her comfortable with it. Don and I both agree, that putting just that one to bed each night is such a rewarding thing to do. It's like getting bonus time to spend with each kid, helping them get ready for bed and winding down. It's a very special way for us to say goodnight. And now to tell you the story. So, the first night, I was putting Ryan to bed. He was brushed, rinsed, flossed, and ready to put mineral oil in his ears (he has a bad wax build up problem, inherited from Don, and his pediatrician recommends we put mineral oil in his ears every night to soften the wax and hope it falls out.) As he lay down on his pillow with his washcloth under him, we started talking. I don't recall what we were chatting about, but I know it was lighthearted, and was of the utmost interest of Ryan. After we were done with putting oil in his ears, he sat up, and we began to chat a bit more. We paused for a brief moment, and then he said to me "You know I'm not trying to be annoying on purpose, right?". My heart sank. I've been in a very grumpy mood lately, and Don and Ryan's hijinx have pressed my buttons immensely. When we went grocery shopping over the weekend, Ryan was quite literally in the way, getting run over by the cart, and standing in front of things as I was trying to reach for them, just being in places where I needed to be. It drove me nuts, and I snapped at him, telling him to stop being annoying and getting in the way. I looked at him, he looked at me, and he started crying. "I'm really sorry Mom, I don't mean to annoy you." I hugged him tightly to me. "I'm sorry I've been so snappy Ryan, I know I've lost my temper a few times, and I really need to work on that." We hugged and cried for awhile, finally feeling as if we had found a common understanding. "I'm really sorry I yell sometimes Ryan. I guess I just feel like sometimes you're not listening when I'm talking to you." "But I am mom, when I look down at the floor, that's me listening and saying I'm sorry." "I understand that now. I'm sorry. To make it a little easier on me, could you tell me with words though, so I know you heard it, and you're acknowledging me?" "Yes, I'll do that from now on." "Thank you. I know it's hard growing up buddy, I know. It's tough, because as you get older, you're not a kid, yet you are a kid, and you're expected to be more responsible, and more able, and it's tough, because you have to learn these things all at the same time, and it's just really tough. I remember how tough it was growing up for me too. I want to try and make it as simple on you as I can." I promised him that I would try to be a better parent, and not yell anymore, and he promised to try and remember things better, and to be more responsible. I told him I would work on my temper and attempt to stop snapping at him. He was glad to hear that. We hugged for so long, and I told him how he was everything I ever wished for, and I loved him so much, and am very blessed to have him in my life. Don came in, interrupting our moment, and asked "What'd you do to him?" when he saw that Ryan's eyes were wet. "We were having a heart to heart", I told him. To be honest, I treasure my time that I get to put Ryan to bed. Most parents get locked out of their kids world once they hit middle school. Ryan tells me about what's going on still, and I feel honored to have that information. I hope that by controlling my temper and laying off of snapping at him, he will continue to open up his world to me, and let me in. I fear that being snappy and yelling will cause him to close up around me, and make me worry that something is wrong, and I don't want that. So the next night, it was Journey's turn to be put to bed. When she's tired, she gets very weepy, so we were starting off with tears to begin with. I brushed her, flossed her, and got her tucked into her bed. Usually after I tuck her, she asks if we can play Hello Kitty Cafe, but lately, she's been asking me what we can talk about. As of right now, Journey is an open book to me. She tells me EVERYTHING, including things I'd rather not hear about, but I don't tell her that, as it might upset her and make her think that talking to me is a bad idea, so I let her chat me up as long as she likes. We usually get pretty chatty too on the nights that I put her to bed. We started off talking about going to bed, and how it's important to get rest, and how it re-charges her batteries so she's ready for the next day refreshed. She wasn't keen on hearing it, but she nodded her head and told me she understood. She cried and hugged me tight, and I held her also. She brought me to tears when she told me "Mama, I worry about you. When you send me to school every morning, I worry about you, if you're sad, or lonely, or if you eat lunch, if you're okay, if you're sick. I worry about you all day." I started crying, hugging her close. I know both my children take concern of my safety and health, and I hate that it's a very real thing they have to concern themselves with, but to hear this eight year old little girl tell me that every day I send her off to school, she worries about me and thinks about me, that just made my heart swell and made me cry. I told her how I worry about her too, about how she does in reading, and how she did on the math test, and if she ate lunch that day, and if someone played with her at recess. "I think about you and worry about you all the time too," I told her. We hugged and cried some more, and Don came walking up the steps, peeked in at us, and remarked on how this was the second night that I put a child to bed, and we were crying. "What are you doing to these kids?" Don teased. I laughed and told him we were just having a heart to heart. I tucked Journey back in, told her she could stay up until she was tired, and leave her lights on until I came up to bed and said good night again. Later, around 10:40, when Don and I retired upstairs, I checked in on her to tell her goodnight, and she was already asleep, with her mood lights turned out. I truly do not look forward to the days when my kids put themselves to bed, and no longer require a tucking. Ryan is nearing eleven and a half this month. Will twelve be too old for a tucking in? I'm not sure. Journey is a creature of habit, so she just may very well require us to tuck her in until she's 18, I'm not sure. But I know the kids keep growing and getting older, and our time is growing short. I say this every year, but I will miss so badly when they are this age. I try to treasure these times and these ages and stages as best I can in this swirling jumble of moments and events. I hope, with all my heart, that we continue to have more heart to hearts each night. |
| Today's entry is being brought to you by Ryan. I asked him to write a little about what it's like to be Journey's brother, and he obliged me. Although it's short, it's straight to the point and right from the heart. I'm so proud of my kids. Being Journey's brother is just an honor. She's just so sweet and lovable that I wanna hug her every time I see her. I love that I can care for her like a big brother should, I love that I can be there for her, and I also love that I'm one of the only people who can understand her. But sometimes, she can manage to get on my nerves like when she starts to ask me to do or say something over and over. But overall, she's a really good little sister. We play games together, like her Hello Kitty games. I also love when we play video games together, but she usually rage quits. I just love spending time with her, no matter what we do. I love that I can comfort her when she's sad, and then when I'm sad, she tries to comfort me too.I just love that she's my sister. My memory fails me to remember specific events, but i know she's special to me. Being her brother is just, well, awesome. |
| From today till the 29th is going to be a super big busy blur. Today I got a few things more for Christmas, and a few grocery items more for Thanksgiving next week. We have to get a real fast dinner tonight, as Journey and I have a girl scout event to attend. After that's done, we're headed over the bridge to Jen's house so Jen and I can go Christmas shopping together. We're staying the weekend there, and I'm so glad we can. I miss her very much, I haven't seen her since the beginning of last month. Getting to spend this time with her is going to be great! After the weekend is over and we come home, the kids have school for two days, then from Wednesday on, they're off for the holiday break. On Monday, I'm making up all the cookie packets for all the troops in my service unit. By Wednesday, when people show up at my door, I should have the packets ready for them. Thursday is Thanksgiving (my most favorite holiday!), and then Friday Jen will be coming over so we can go to the Christmas Tree lighting in the town square. Hopefully we can get there soon, before it's overcrowded. Saturday is Journey's best friend Bradley's birthday party. And then Sunday, we're on rest. I promised the kids I would make pancakes, sausage and eggs for them that day. It's been forever since I've made pancakes. All in all, very busy, but very enjoyable! Today was filled with a meeting, a trip to the bank, trips to store and to get gas, and then we'll be packing Journey's bag once she gets home, and go get dinner once Don gets home. After he drops us off at LMS for the event, he'll come home and make his own bag, then he'll come pick us up and we'll head out. I'm so excited for all of this!! |
| Journey brought home an interesting little paper today for her to fill out as homework. They're going to use the information they've acquired to do a project at school. Apparently, this project is a timeline, which I think is a very fun thing to do with little kids. It asks some simple questions, such as, what year were you born, and what was your first day of 3rd grade. It also asks when she lost her first tooth, how old she was, and what year that was. I thought that was a cute thing to ask, and thanks to modern technology (AKA blog posts and Facebook pictures), I was able to give her dates and years for all these. It asks that she lists 2-5 more events that she would like to include on her timeline as well, which got us pondering quite a few things. I was curious to see what Journey deemed important enough to put on her timeline. She thought about it really hard, and I helped her as well. "What's important to you, Journey? What do you want to share?" I asked her. She shrugged at first, and then began to think. "How about the day you were officially a Brownie?" I asked. "Oh yes, yes let's put that!" She cried. That was a big day for me as well. That was when I officially became a Brownie troop leader. That was when I officially got my group of girls, whom I love and adore. We wrote the date down. "What else?" she pondered. "What's something important to you?" I asked. "I know!" Journey cried. "What about the day I got my Hello Kitty bike?" I looked up the photo on Facebook, and gave her the date, to which she wrote it down. "What about meeting special people in your life? Do you want to add that?" I asked her. She nodded her head. "How about the day you met (your first special ed teacher)?" I asked her. "Of course!" She answered, "and then we need to write down when I became friends with Bradley and Grace!" She began scribbling down names and dates. Finally, the last line, which she was stumped on. "Do you want to do the last line?" I asked. She nodded. That's Journey, she wants to put it all down, not miss an opportunity. I'm sure the line being blank would haunt her if she turned it in. We thought and thought for awhile about that blank line. Finally, I made the only logical suggestion I could. "What about the day you got Kiki Meow?" I offered. She grinned from ear to ear, asked me the date, and wrote it down. All her lines filled, with the most important of events for her to share. It's funny, because as her mom, I have a different timeline of events for her. When she finally potty trained (4 years). When she started eating the dinners I was making (4 years). When she started getting help from her first special ed teacher (4 years). When she got speech added to her services (5 years). The first two friends she made (5 years). The day she played tea party with me (6 years). The first time she was able to tell me in person how her day went, without a chart (6 years). The first time we went to OT (6 years). The first birthday party she interacted with (7 years). The day she was diagnosed with autism (7 years). The day she graduated OT (7 years). The time she became my Brownie scout (7 years). So many things that go on my timeline of her. Thanks to the magic of blogging and Facebook, I'm able to better piece everything with dates than I was with Ryan. (Poor Ryan!). Both her timeline, and my timeline for her, are very important to me. They are both reminders of how far we have come, how so many things that matter to us have shaped out. It does my heart good to be able to write about it, and save it, so that one day, when she has more timelines to fill out, I can give her those answers. |
| On the next episode of "The Crazy Lady Who Signed up for SU Cookie Manager"... So report cards come tomorrow. Thanks to the wonderfulness that is HAC, I can see their grades right now. Journey has 2 A's and 3 B's, Ryan has 2 A's and 4 B's. Both have earned the prestigious title of "Honor Roll Student". I'm very, very proud of them. Ryan, because he's had to transition to middle school. That is not an easy feat. His math teacher is HARD. She does not take late work, allow re-dos or give second chances. If you forget to bring your homework to class, guess what? You just got a zero. He had to adjust to that. He's never had a teacher like that before. I believe she's teaching him a very valuable lesson, one that may be applied to him over and over again, as he gets older. This is a good lesson to learn, and keep with him. Accountability and responsibility are very important things to teach and learn, and he has done his fair share of growing. He turned a 74% low C into a 87% high B. I am proud beyond words for him. And sure, his grades fell in Language Arts from an A to a B, and the same goes for Science, but a B is still good, and as long as he strives to do his very best, that's all I ask of him. Journey, I am over the moon about. 2nd grade was quite the struggle for her, ESPECIALLY before her medication. The end of the year gave me hope, but I was hoping that it was her pulling herself back up, and not her teachers trying to pass her up to the next grade to keep her moving. When she got to 3rd grade, I was very worried for her. I wasn't sure how the grading system was going to be for her, but I held out the hope that she would at least get C's. I never put any pressure on her to get high grades the way I did with Ryan (because he's super advanced and he's very good at school. I expect great things from him, and he knows this. He shows me he cares by getting A and B report cards), but I asked her to try and do her very best. Not only did she try her very best, she worked really really hard, and came out with not one, but TWO A's, and the rest B's. Everything may not come as naturally to her as it does to Ryan, but she works her tail off to get it. She never says no, she never backs down, and she goes for it with everything she has. I am so damn proud of her, I could literally cry. She EARNED those grades. And yeah, she bombed some tests, and yes, she got 70%'s on some things. But she also studied hard for those spelling tests that she got 93% on. She worked extra hard on that power point presentation she put together for 85%. The medicine has helped her focus and keep everything together so very well this year, and I'm seeing that, they didn't just pass her to pass her after all, the medicine was actually working, and she gets it. When she's not distracted, and unfocused, and having a hard time understanding, she gets it, and she runs with it. Super proud momma here, folks. I will be attending the Honor Roll assembly for Journey on the 10th. I joked how I used to barely keep it together when they announced Ryan on the Honor Roll, but that now that Journey's made it, I'm going to cry unabashed. I'll be sure to have tissues handy, just in case. Saturday is Don's soccer party for his team. We've ordered pizzas and gotten trophies, we'll be getting some drinks and snacks to go along with it, so hopefully the kids eat good and have fun. We're doing it at our local park, so the kids, if they choose to, can run around on the playground and play. They're only 11 and 12, hopefully that's not too old to play on a playground still. The parents all thought it would be a nice thing to do, so we threw it together. Saturday is also Journey's best girl friend Grace's birthday party. Journey and I picked out the perfect gift for Grace: A doll horse. We're hoping she likes it. *fingers crossed*. Her party is at a bead store, and the girls get to craft bracelets, which Journey is beyond thrilled about, as she loves bracelets. (Side story: we started her wearing stretchy bracelets because she had a nervous tic where she would peel at her fingers. She had very bloodied fingers and nails, picking at them all the time. We taught her to instead pick at her bracelet when she felt the need to pick something, which was a suggestion of K's, and ever since, Journey's worn at least one stretchy bracelet, and no longer picks at her fingers.) I know it will be very special to her, as a reminder of her good friend Grace, and the fun they had together at the party. Cookie season is already in swing, which scares the bejeezus out of me. I've had all our SU paperwork delivered to me in 15 and 38 pound boxes, respectively, and just today I had another box of actual cookies sent to me, to hand out to all the troop leaders and let their troops try them, as they are new cookies this year. According to the SU Cookie Bible, I should be holding a training for new TCMs (Troop Cookie Managers) like, NOW, which I find hard to do, because though I remember most of my TCM training last year, I'm not exactly sure what needs to be told to these new TCMs coming in. I set up a meeting at the local library, hopefully people attend it and get their questions answered. I'm dragging this SU Cookie Bible and the TCM Cookie Bible with me, and answer questions out of that. I'm too nervous to try and remember it all, and afraid I'll give out wrong information. I'm attempting to get everyone to email me who their TCM is and their email, but so far I've only gotten something like 6 troops that have done that for me? Yeah. This could be slow going. I've asked my registrar to give me a list of all the troops, so I know how many of what papers to put in each envelope, but haven't gotten that yet. Hopefully, by the SU meeting. Maybe I just have her email address wrong...Whatever, we'll figure it out. I was hoping to have the packets ready to hand out at the training, but since I don't have the information yet, we'll just play it by ear, see how that goes. My insides are in knots. I really hope I do this right. |
| Today is Halloween, and the kids are really looking forward to it. At first, when Roz was having troubles, we thought we might not get to go trick or treating at all. Once Roz got fixed, we were happy to know that we could go after all. We were going to go to Jen's house, but we couldn't get there early enough to go with her family, so we're just going around to the usual outdoor shopping center. The kids don't mind one bit. Don injured himself playing soccer with his kids from his team last night. He sprained his ankle. He's in an air cast and on crutches now, so he's not going to be walking with us as the kids go trick or treating. He'll be waiting in the car, which I'm fine with. We have to swing by the store afterwards, where he'll either wait in the car, or ride around on those little motorized scooters (which will be a hoot!) as we get our groceries. Either way, things will get done. Hopefully he starts feeling better soon. Journey has a Halloween party today at school, which I organized. Lots of people bringing in snacks (no sweets though! They'll get plenty of that tonight!), so they should all have something good to eat. Melissa (my 2nd adult girl scout mom and also co-room mom) has planned out a really cute craft for the kids today. She can't be there, but she told me how to put it together, so hopefully I remember and can help the kids out. Other than that, not much else going on. End of the quarter was the 28th, we'll see how the kids grades look on their report cards. I wonder what constitutes honor roll for Journey? I'll email her teacher and find out. Happy Halloween to all! Ryan and Journey are dressed as Mario and Princess Peach. Journey's costume finally fits her properly. Surprisingly, Ryan's still fits him. Their costumes were so unique and cool, that their pictures got taken for both news outlets in the county. I posted both pictures to my Facebook. They were famous for a day! |
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