Sunny Day

I Want Cookie

2011-06-17T09:07:00.000-04:00

Update on the previous post.

We're working on him using a sentence to express his needs. "I want...."

It's not that he's never put three words together, but other word combinations are him repeating things from stories or repeating phrases the boys use. For example, "We'll be back, right after these messages." Now granted, someone other than a family member might have no idea what he's saying, so I don't know if it counts.

He's had success a few times in the last couple of days with his "I want..." sentence. The first one he said WITHOUT prompting: He came up to me in the kitchen and said with no hesitation between the want and the object, "I want cookie." And of course, he got a cookie...and lots of hugs and praise for using words!

Another one he said unprompted two nights ago: "I want pie." And the one last night: "I want cake." Notice a theme?

The pie one I was quite impressed with. He had helped me make a strawberry banana cream pie last week (for our anniversary...22 years!), so he did have that for a snack two nights in a row, but when he used that sentence, it was already gone.

And the cake, John's birthday was recently; it's not like we have pie and cake all the time at our house! ;)

Still working on making it consistent. He gets anxious when he knows he "on the spot."

Good stuff

Communication

2011-06-14T15:58:00.004-04:00

One of Evan's first form of communicating that he wanted something, such as juice, a snack, to watch a favorite commercial again, etc., was signing "more." It worked for so much. For something on tv, it's still what he'll sometimes do. For juice, he moved on to saying "juice," or sometimes just "please" when it's obvious what he wants, or just handing me the cup! He still tries the "just handing me the cup" trick, but he's not getting away with it so easily.

We're working on making a sentence.

I want juice.

Yes, having the please on the end would be great, but we're not there yet. We're still working on the three words. How it's been working is he'll come up to me, hand me the cup, I'll say "what do you want?" or "what would you like", and he gets all nervous with a huge smile while giggling.

Then I say, "Say, 'I want juice.'" More giggling, but eventually, he'll say, "I want." And then I say, "What do you want." And then he'll say, "juice."

Yesterday, he did come up to me without prompting and said the "I want" part. This morning after being prompted, he said, "I want," and before I could ask the question, he said, "What do you want?" ...understood by a trained ear. :)

We'll soon have those three words said together to make a sentence.

He's a Reader

2011-06-08T09:24:00.011-04:00

Before Evan was born, I had decided that no matter what that X chromosome looked liked (we didn't know until a year old), this child would be a reader. I wanted him to want to read.

Some of the "tools" we've used to help accomplish this:

This has been a favorite toy for a few years. When he went through what seemed like a never ending stage of waking up at night, he had access to this--the letters light up. Sometimes he used it, sometimes he didn't. It's a great one!

image from amazon.com

Here's another good one; it's at grandma's house right now. He likes the first one a little better (and so do I), but it's still a good one.

These letters were VERY popular with him for a while. We started with him only having access to a few at a time at first, because if not, it was overwhelming and they would all get thrown on the floor. Now that we have two, he'll put matching letters in at the same time to hear the jingle simultaneously. Or sometimes, he staggers the placement of the same letters...it sounds pretty cool, too.

And I can't leave out Starfall.com.

I think we started using that when he was two? Maybe sooner. He would sit on my lap, and I would click on the letters. He soon started pointing to what he wanted to hear. And then as he was able to start verbalizing letters, he would say the letter. It would be me who would have to say, "All done," because I'm not sure how long we would be on the computer if I had waited for him to say it.

And now there's the iPad. We have several stories on there. With many of them, the words highlight as they're being read. He can also touch the word and have it repeated as many times as he wants, which he loves to do.

BUT,

this all started with the best reading program out there:

A book.

I started reading to him the day I brought him home from the hospital.

I read to him, a lot. Some days, especially on weekends and in the summer, it probably adds up to hours of reading. When my mom watched him, I asked her to read to him. He's always had full access to books. Granted, giving full access to books meant he often had books...all over the floor in his bedroom. And yes, he went through a stage of tearing the pages, sometimes one, sometimes multiple, sometimes on purpose, sometimes not. This behavior most certainly wasn't encouraged; he would get a stern talking to when this would happen.

And then if it was salvageable, I would get out the clear packing tape. This tape was also used for the corners of the pages. He had/has this thing about gently biting his thumb while having a corner of the page in/near his mouth while reading. I found that this tape came in handy for preventative measures, too, for some of his favorites; I just taped the edges of every page! Some of the favorites, like the animal babies series I got for him when he was 6 months old, ended up having to be replaced.

Amazon.com

We have books...everywhere. He brings books with him when we go places. When we read, I point to the words. We point to the pictures and talk about them. I ask questions about the book. Does he answer? Sometimes, sometimes no. But is he thinking about the questions? Yes. Is he learning to think about what he's reading? Yes.

And now at five years old, I'm starting to see the results. He has many words memorized. Animal ones were the first, but now he's also started to recognize other words, like "but;" he knows the word "but." He knows the word "the." I haven't quizzed him on what words he does and doesn't know; they're are others. Those two just stand out at this moment.

He's started to attend to the first letter. I'll sometimes stop and ask him what the word is. He'll sometimes get the first sound or even say (or attempt to say) a word that starts with that sound. Yesterday, we were looking at one of his animal books...encyclopedia type...and there was a picture of some colorful, different kind of vulture. He looked at the paragraph next to it, and he found a word a couple of sentences in, "perfect." He pointed to it and said "parrot."

He points to the words when he "reads." When I read to him, he often asks me to point to the words--if I start reading and I'm not pointing, he'll start running his finger under the words and look at me.

And I'm loving this!

So I'm off to read some books, because the answer to the question, "Do you want Mommy to read to you?" is almost never "no."

His grandpa would be proud!

2011-05-28T08:31:00.004-04:00

Evan on his 5th birthday. He's recently got to the point of being able to swing without me standing right there in preparation of him letting go. Yeah, he did fall a couple of times in the process. Now we're working on kicking those feet.

A Thomas Fan

2011-05-27T20:14:00.003-04:00

Kyle has always been a Thomas train fan. Evan has too, but at first, he couldn't play with them because he couldn't handle the excitement. Kyle would have trains going in his room, and Evan would purposely go to his room to see them, only to stand there and cry.

Gradually, he got to a point where he could play with them for a while before getting upset. Then, he went to not wanting anything to do with them again. Well, he's back to being a fan, and this time I don't think there's any going back.

But that's not really what this post is about.

Evan ASKED for something!!!! For a while now, he's been asking for things like juice, milk, cookies, blankies, etc. by saying "Juice?, Milk?" etc. But this was the first time he's asked for a toy he wants from the store!

He recently got a new train for his birthday, and whenever you buy a train, you get one of those inserts showing other trains. Kyle used to carry them around all the time so he could constantly let us know who he needed next.

Tonight, Evan came up to me with the insert, pointed to one of the trains, and said, "Want Percy?...Cow?" (it's Percy pulling a cow in an open car--two of his favorites together, a train and an animal)

YAY!!!!

So obviously, guess what he's getting as soon as I find it???

Spots

2011-05-14T15:10:00.001-04:00

A little over a week after our trip, by airplane, this is how Evan woke up one morning. Face, back, stomach--covered-- and a few on the arms and legs. I brought him to the doctor, and because of his other symptoms, he thought possibly measles. So we went for blood work, and a couple of days later, we find out (after a couple of phone calls)...that it's inconclusive based on that test. This is because he's had his first round of mmr, so he would have certain levels of what they're looking at. I think, from the last I heard from the doctor, he'll be having another test on Monday.

At this point, although I'm curious as to what caused these spots, I'm just thankful that he's feeling much, much better now.

Airplane/I'm Kind of Tired

2011-05-02T10:06:00.007-04:00

We got back yesterday from my Mother-in-laws memorial service; she passed away from cancer in January. Sometimes it's still hard to believe all the losses we've suffered in the last year and a half. We miss her...

Because it was going to be a quick out of state trip, we decided to fly by plane. John, Chelsey, and I do our share of traveling by plane, but when it's with the boys, we pack up the mini-van. This was the first flight for Evan, and the first time for the older two since they were around 3 and 1 (AWFUL experience).

So naturally, I spent several days preparing and worrying (just a bit) about how this was all going to go down. This is what I had planned for: Matt was going to have an terrible time going through security, Matt probably wasn't going to be too happy about the plane, Kyle would go along with everything fairly easily, and Evan, oh Evan, was going to be a handful. So I spent time with Matt the day before talking about what was going to happen at the security check. I spent time telling Evan all about getting on a plane and going up in the air. And Kyle, well, he knew the general plan.

And this is what happened: Oops, forgot to tell Evan about the shuttle ride from parking lot to airport, although, really, I don't think it would have made a difference. He wasn't happy. And I thought, 'Here we go.' But once we got in the airport, he stopped screaming. And then, he discovered moving walkways, and I think that set the tone for the rest of his trip.

Security: We gave them a heads up, and the first guy, a 74 year old man (he told us), the one we gave our ID's to, was the kindest, gentlest, sweetest man. He told us how proud we should be proud of our family. Sometimes people don't realize how much of an impact their words can have--the positive kind of impact. Then it was time to take off our shoes and go through the detector. And as predicted, Matt's anxiety started up as soon as the shoes started coming off. And on his way through the detector, he slammed both sides of it with his fists. The high point, kudos to the security people; they were VERY understanding. Even though our kids can be so good at blending in at times, this was one time when it was so important to make sure all were aware of the situation, just in case. To sum up Matt's story, he was great the rest of the trip. He LOVES flying. He especially liked that they came around with snacks and beverages. He did much better going through security on the way home--no incident.

Kyle: He was good, he was cooperative, but.....

Okay, so I thought he would be fine on the plane. And for the most part, although he didn't like it, he was "fine." Except the moment the wheels left the runway on that very first flight.

He let out a scream unlike no other.

And you know, although I couldn't see too many of the other passengers reactions, I didn't feel like people reacted. I'm guessing they did, I mean, everyone heard it, but I didn't even notice the ones near us turn around. My reaction? I laughed. He was sitting behind me, so he didn't see me laughing, but really, what he did is what I have felt like doing on some flights. And then there's the landing. "We're all going to die!!" Once again, maybe not all, but many people probably heard this.

So for the next flight of that day, we rapid-fire quizzed him heavily on NASCAR drivers, their car numbers, crew chief, and sponsors as plane was going down runway. It helped greatly to keep his mind occupied on something else. The flights home went smoothly, although he clearly wanted to go home, and his topic of conversation all through those flights was finding my caravan (parked at the airport).

Then there's Evan. He surprised me in the best way. He likes flying. He did so well, of course, that's being said in a relative manner. For our first flight, we had to sit on our plane for almost an hour while they waited for an available gate. Thank you iPad and books. By the time we got on our second flight, which was delayed, he was tired. After we got up in the air, he kept himself entertained by buckling and unbuckling his seat belt. He's always had a thing for buckles and latches. Yeah, things were going good until...

the flight attendant who wasn't on duty, she was sitting behind us, apparently got annoyed with the "clicking" noise of the seat belt. (Oh yeah, when we were doing rapid fire questioning with Kyle, I could see her shaking her head). SO, she gets out of her seat and says to me, "You realize that's not a toy, right? You're going to need to make him stop playing with it." I think what bothers me most is the way it was said. I mean really, I know it's not a toy. I just gave an awkward smile; she caught me off guard. So, I made him stop playing with it. And although I felt badly about how upset he was for at least the next half hour, and I felt badly for the rest of the passengers, I just couldn't help thinking, "There, you like this better?" He ended up falling asleep near the end of the flight. His return trip went well, loved the Detroit airport and all its moving walkways, escalators, fountain, and elevated tram. Oh, yeah, and he had a fever that morning...Friday, too. Thankful for tylenol and motrin, and he's off to the doctor in about an hour.

(Hmm, should probably read things a little closer before hitting "publish post." I don't know how what I know I typed disappeared.) At the first airport of yesterday's trip, we sat besides a woman who was looking at Evan and me while I read to him. One might say she was "staring," but I didn't think it was in a negative way. She asked how old he was. I think that's a common way for someone to say, "Hey, I noticed something is perhaps a bit different about your child, but I'm not sure what, and I'm not going to ask, so I'll ask how old he is, hoping you'll tell me more." Because really, is there a way to ask about the behaviors of someone's child? Before I even said the words Fragile X...I had only got to the part about him having delays... she said she was a teacher and was wondering if he was on the spectrum. And you could tell she kind of was hesitant about what she had just said. I told her the very, very basics of Fragile X and gave her the web address for the foundation, because like so many, she had never heard of it.

So yeah, overall, good trip, but I must add that I was in bed by 8 last night. I never go to bed that early.

Maybe I'm Over-Thinking It

2011-04-17T17:38:00.003-04:00

I tend to like to think things through, probably to an extreme extent in some cases. But some things do deserve that thought time, such as Evan's transition to kindergarten next year.

Yes, my little boy is going to kindergarten. I know, it's the cry of most parents, but I still have to say it, How did he get so old so fast!?

We had the conference last week, and I thought I knew what I wanted heading in. We have two elementary schools in town; I work at one of them, and he goes to preschool at the other. The one I work at is the one that he should attend for kindergarten based on where we live. But, the other school has more special ed. options. So, a couple of weeks ago, I visited the classroom at the other school that I was fairly certain was the one for Evan. I observed for about an hour, and my eyes watered up as I sat there thinking, yep, this is the right place for my son. Low number of students, mainstreaming, swing in classroom, sweet sweet teacher, etc. Yep, the right place.

Day of conference, I'm sitting around a table with the people I work with now and people I've worked with in the past. I'm really not sure if that is better or worse; I'm thinking it's just different.

Lots of positive things said about Evan's recent progress which we're seeing at home as well...good stuff.

So in a nutshell, there were 3 choices presented. The most restricted class was eliminated from the get-go; we all agreed that wouldn't be the appropriate place (although I LOVE that teacher!!!). So it was a choice of the classroom I visited at the other school and the developmental kindergarten class at our school. And there seemed to be some leaning towards the latter.

Whoa.

I hadn't given that second option much consideration before the conference. Hmm. Maybe not such a bad idea. When it was talked about, I started to believe that maybe it could work...an aide, small group, a great male teacher. Then the mother in me started thinking about, well, maybe it will work this year, but what about next? And maybe there won't be enough support. And maybe it's not such a good idea for him to be in the same building as me. And and and.

So, as of today, I haven't signed yet, but I'm 99% sure that's the direction we're heading. Yeah, 99.1% sure.

What's holding me back? Among other things, I think the biggy is my desire to protect him...have him in an environment where he is a little more sheltered. Have him somewhere where I don't see everything.

Ugh ugh ugh.

Yes, 99.2% sure.

I Hope You Get This

2011-04-01T20:07:00.017-04:00

Dear Costumer at Local Restaurant,

Where do I begin? How about a little background. My 3 boys, 19, 17, and 4 have Fragile X Syndrome. Never heard of it, huh? Well, I understand; we hadn't heard of it either until our oldest son got his diagnosis 16 years ago.

Yes, raising ANY child is challenging. I totally agree! Like you said, we all have our problems.

You see, I think the reason I so quickly got within inches of your face to explain our situation after you offered your "advice" is because it's been building up inside me for 16 years! Crazy, right? I also had to get kind of close because it was loud in there. How ironic that I say that, isn't it, because yeah, my son was greatly contributing to the volume in the there.

Let me try to explain. Our 4 year old son sometimes has trouble diverting from the routines he is used to. We had to wait for our table, and he was a bit confused by that. Just going into a restaurant is very difficult for him right now (the noise, the odors, the people, etc); having to wait for our table was more than he could handle tonight. Like I told you, he was adjusting. You probably noticed he was doing much better after we got a table. (I'm sure you noticed; we had such a great view of each other.)

Back to the "building up inside me for 16 years." You see, you're not the first person to offer "advice" that's been clear enough for me to hear.

You are the second.

Yep, 16 years, and you're only the second person that has given "advice" to our family. Have others said things over the years? I'm going to guess, yes, but they made the decision to give their "advice" under their breathe, or maybe they just kept it in their head, so that I couldn't hear it. I respect that, but would appreciate it even more if people could find more constructive things to do with their time than to judge the situations of others.

And, believe it or not, we've had people give us compliments about our kids.

I know, you're in awe.

That first piece of "advice" I overheard? I was in line at large store, the kids were approximately 5, 3, and 1 (we also have a daughter, she was the 5 year old). As we were going through the check-out, both of the boys were in the throws of a complete meltdown. How I even heard the "advice" the woman behind me in the check-out said to the other woman, I'll never know; my kids were so loud! I'm guessing she wanted me to hear it, so she said it in a manner that would put her voice over that of my boys. Her words have stuck with me all these years:

"I hope she doesn't have any more kids; she can't handle the ones she has!"

Yes, I remember it verbatim. And I think the reason for that is that back then, I was weak.

And I agreed with her.

Well, not really...at least not always, but in that moment I did. So instead of saying anything to her, I brought my screaming kids to the van and cried along with them.

And to this day, I wish I could chat with that woman, face to face...

Ok, so tonight. Yes, he was loud. I agree. Yes, I needed to bring him "out those doors." I was planning on heading that way. Having to chat with you ending up delaying that happening.

Oh hey, guess what, Ms. Customer!?

It's Autism Awareness Month. Many children with Fragile X have autistic characteristics. Some have autism.

Consider yourself a little more aware about hidden disabilities now than you were before you walked into that restaurant.

You're Welcome!

The Snowy Day

2011-02-25T13:00:00.020-05:00

Another snow day we'll have to make up, but I'm okay with that. Today has been a GREAT day so far!

This winter, we've had a fair amount of snow, but Evan hasn't wanted to participate in any snowy outdoor activities. We had attempted outdoor adventures a couple of times, but he only lasted a few minutes each time, before he would let me know that he was done.

Ironically, his favorite book right now is The Snowy Day, by Ezra Jack Keats. He, my daughter, and I all have it memorized. It made me kind of sad that he loved the book so much, but how could he fully connect to it, when he hadn't experienced those basic winter activities?

So today, when we were fortunate to have this snow day from school, I decided early on that we were going to live that book today.

Because he slept in this morning, when he woke up, it was already light out. I went into his room to greet him, and after our "Good Morning!" I carried him to the window and started reciting the first page of the story when the little boy is waking up and looking out his window and seeing the snow, only I inserted Evan's name. Big smile on his face.

Midway through the morning, I excitedly explained to him how we were going to go outside, including the different events from the story. He respectfully disagreed, well, okay, he whined a bit, but I kept the enthusiasm up.

And here's the rest of our story...

Evan and his mom headed out the door into freshly fallen snow in the backyard.

Crunch, crunch, crunch!

His boots sank into the snow.

In the distance, Evan spotted something...

It was a stick, poking out through the snow. He understood the endless possibilities of what he could do with this stick.

He first decided to drag the stick in the snow to make a track.

He then ran to the tree with the stick raised high in the air.

Smack, smack, smack!

To his delight, the bright, white snow fell softly onto his coat.

With his mother's help, Evan made the best snowman he had ever seen! He helped scoop up the snow and pack it on to the small ball of snow to make it bigger and bigger and bigger.

Scoop, scoop, scoop!

Pack, pack, pack!

After pushing the arms into place, they stood back and looked with amazement at their new friend, Mr. Snowman.

Evan thought about going inside, but soon discovered that there was more fun to be had.

He turned around to see the silliness of his mother while she lay in the snow waving her arms and legs. To his delighted surprise, when she stood up, there was a snow angel on the ground!

Before heading inside to the warmth of the house, Evan looked all around the yard at the beauty of the snow.

He knew that one day, he would happily venture out into the snow again.

Crunch, crunch, crunch

A New Skill

2011-01-03T19:06:00.004-05:00

Today, Evan demonstrated that he understands an important childhood skill: he went in the computer room and closed the door so that I couldn't see what he was doing. Yay!

We got the kids a portable dvd player for Christmas; it's been several years since they've had a portable. The main user of it, so far, has been our movie man, Kyle. Evan loves observing his brothers, and apparently, he's been observing what this new, blue, plastic thing is, although I never noticed him doing this.

But today, he showed us that he knew how to use it. He put in one of his new dvd's, Animal Planet. He can't get enough of watching or "reading" about animals.

So I was proud of him for figuring this out, but cautioned him about the need to find somewhere to sit while viewing the movie. He wasn't too fond of staying in one place with it, after all, it's portable! He also figured out how to see his favorite part--the first 5 minutes--over and over.

Basically, he had enough of my suggestions, so he went in the computer room and shut the door. The only other time he's ever shut this door is when I'm vacuuming in the other rooms.

After having a good laugh with Chelsey about how cute this was, I went in to check on him. And after I left the room, the door shut again.

I'm so proud of this new understanding...at least for today.

Home Movies

2010-12-22T23:25:00.005-05:00

A couple of weeks ago, John came back from his parents' house in Florida with their car and a few boxes. His mom, battling cancer, is now living with his sister in CT. One of the things he brought back was a VHS that I had sent to them...around 20 years ago! So of course, I had to pop it in the vcr; the only one we have is on the little tv in Chelsey's room.

Over the years, I've taken a lot of video, but besides maybe looking at it right then, I don't go back to look at them. So, this was quite a treat. It was Chelsey, back in the day when the world revolved around her. Wow, watching her talk and interact, at what seemed like such a young age...it was like we were watching a genius! :) We kind of forget what other kids can do. Right now, I'm so impressed with Evan's progress. It's not that "I forget" that he's not where a 4 year old should be; I guess I just don't think about it too much. Hey, that's a good thing! :)

Yesterday, day 2 of a nasty stomach bug, and I'm still taking it easy, I started watching videos on our 8 mm that I haven't used in a couple of years. This time, it was mainly Kyle and Matt, 10 and 8. Another, wow. First, hearing their voices at first was so strange; it was like I didn't remember them ever sounding like that. And then, of course, I noticed just how cute they were. :)

The really funny thing was, was that I heard them each say a phrase they both sometimes still say. They were playing with a castle, and Matt said, "You're under arrest!" He still says that at times, although it's progressed to "Get on the ground!" (he likes to use these phrases on our animals...in a good way.) Yeah, he likes the show COPS.

Kyle phrase was "I sure wish the gang could see this." The gang, of course, is the Scooby Doo Detective Agency. Yeah, that gang, for years he's been wanting to head out to Coolsville to see them. :)

I only watched about 20 minutes yesterday, and then a little more today. Evan watched it with me today...on the small screen of the video camera. He liked the part where Kyle was playing with trains, but then when it went to another part, he started tapping the screen and sliding his finger on the screen. The modern child. He's so used to watching videos on our phones and being able to stop, start, and go back to videos. He was getting a little frustrated that he wasn't getting the same results with this.

Best Buds and Evy J

2010-12-17T17:51:00.003-05:00

The boys are out for their Christmas get together with their Best Buddies. And I'll say it again, I LOVE THAT PROGRAM! They are partnered up with amazing high school girls. For Kyle, this is his 4th Best Buddy, and she's definitely a keeper! For Matt, this is his third year with the same girl...a completely awesome person who plans on getting a degree in special ed. For these girls, it's not like they signed up so it looks good on their transcripts; they're genuinely wonderful young women. So thankful!

Evan...what to say about Evan!? Well, our nights are better!!! Finally! It only took four years, but I can say with confidence that he is now a good sleeper. He still may not sleep as many hours as many his age, but when he falls asleep, HE STAYS ASLEEP! Yay! Sleep makes such a difference in my life; it feels so good.

Words, we're hearing new words all the time, and it's music to my ears. His latest--new this week--is "yeah." Before when we would ask him if he wanted something, he would respond with "peas," so polite of him. But his "yeah" is so darn cute. He says it almost as a question; it makes me laugh every time! Another recent, and quite appropriate this time of year, "Ho ho ho, Merry Kismas," and the word that every mother waits to hear started this past summer, "Mommy!" He says that...a lot now! He's getting really good at being able to repeat words when we ask him to. It's beautiful, simply beautiful.

Potty trained, completely during the day. We somewhat had it summer of 2009 when he was 3, but then the school year happened, and it slid down on the list of priorities. As soon as summer break of 2010 started, we went straight to underwear. And within a week or two, he joined the ranks of the potty trained. I was concerned about what would happen once school started, but it's been fine. Only one accident, and it was when they had a fire drill. Night time hasn't happened yet, but right now, it's not even a concern. I'm just so excited about how well he does during the day!

And you know what? I'm thoroughly enjoying life with Evan now. Hopefully, that doesn't sound "awful," because of course, I've always loved him more than life, loved being with him, had many wonderful mommy moment with him. It's just, I guess, taking care of him isn't as emotionally exhausting anymore. Having number 4 after the other 3 were considerably older was a bit of a shock to the system. He entered our family when our family dynamics were different. The biggest change, I was no longer a stay a home mom. That definitely contributed to me feeling drained for so long. He doesn't have playmates around the house. Before, not only did I have our 3, but I also took care of a couple of others.

And yeah, getting the positive diagnosis for fx took it's toll on me, even if I was "prepared." Maybe more than any of the other reasons I listed.

Hello, Blog

2010-12-10T06:56:00.007-05:00

It's been a few months, and what am I blogging about? Illness, well, kind of.

Evan is staying home with me today because he's throwing up...again. He had a stomach bug a couple of weeks before Thanksgiving, and then on Monday and Tuesday of this week, he had a mild stomach bug. But this isn't about how many times he's been sick, because actually, I think he's quite the healthy little boy!

This is just some frustration being let out that he can't tell people that he's not feeling well.

His note from school yesterday said he had a "rough day." He missed playtime because he wasn't cooperating for activities. It just makes me kind of sad to think about the frustration he must feel, not only in that situation, but for so many times in life when he's frustrated, can't control the situation, and can't verbalize his feelings about it. He's had other "rough days" at school, and most of them have preceded being sick (I think it's almost safe to say all of them), whether it's his stomach or the start of a new cold.

So that's it.

I'm staying home today. MAYBE, I'll get back on here so I can update all the progress he's made! This really is the only place where I keep track of milestones, besides the occasional facebook status. ;)

It's Just Different

2010-08-09T20:28:00.013-04:00

I'm taking care of an almost 5 year old and a 7 year old this evening for a few hours. Even though I'm with kids all day during the school year, it's different having them in my house. I mean, different in the fact that I'm not used to hearing conversation in my house from young children. Different because the one who is almost five (9 months older than Evan) has asked me over 2000 questions in a 2 hour period (at least it feels like that many). Different because they are running around the house playing good guy/ bad guy. Different because they use the phrase, "I'm bored." Different because they aren't content to sit and look at a book for long periods of time...or at all (at least not while they're at our house where everything is "new" to them). Different because the WANT me to play games with them (we just finished BINGO).

Just kind of funny. Evan can be such a handful, but I'm reminded tonight that "other" kids....they're kind of tiring, lol. I mean, I knew that already.

It's just different.

A Fish Tale

2010-08-03T13:16:00.008-04:00

He's the smallest fish in the fish tank.

Like the rest of the fish, I don't have a name for "him," in fact, until recently, I never really took note of him.

A couple of days ago, though, he got my attention...he was in the bubble tube. I got really nervous, because he looked like he was distressed...fighting his way down through the bubbles, panicking because because he didn't know how to get out. I called John in from outside because he's the fish tank supervisor; I had no idea had to get the fish out.

John opened a few things, pulled out the air bubbler thingy, and then fish gradually swam to the top of the tube and with only about a 1/4 in of water clearance, made his way out. Phew. Crisis averted.

...until about an hour later. The little fish did it again. Apparently, there's a little plastic piece that broke off of the top of the tube thingy, and he's so little, that he's the only fish we have that could fit through this new opening. Once again, I felt a little panicked, but not as much as before. Once again, John got him out. And once again, okay, several more times over a two day period, this fish ended up in the tube. Each time, I felt I had to rescue him (I paid attention to the rescue operation John had performed so that I now could perform it.)

So I wasn't at all surprised today to see the fish in the tube, only as I started to take things apart, he showed me that maybe I was rescuing someone that didn't want or need to be rescued. He quickly swam to the top of the tube and made his way out the tiny space that he had entered through before I had a chance to take things apart. Hmmm....maybe he's not so helpless after all....

But now there's a new dilemma, or at least I perceive it as being one. As the kids and I stood there watching him (it is entertaining), he kept struggling more and more going against the bubbles, trying to reach the bottom, which in hindsight, is what I think he's been working towards the whole time. And reach the bottom he did...and more. He "disappeared." He went "under" the tank.

Once again, panic set in.

Chelsey got her phone (also known as an emergency flashlight) and opened the doors to the cabinet.

And there he was.

He was below the plastic bottom that is below the gravel. Now, in this underneath world, there's very little room for movement. There's pockets of water among "ick" and rocks that have slid under there . He can't freely swim or turn around. I thought I was going to have to somehow disassemble the flooring to free him.

He proved me wrong again.

He wiggled, scooted backwards, and made his way back into the tube. I thought for sure, he was now as panicked as I had been and wanted out. So I again removed the air tube to assist him in getting out, which he did slowly, and I wasn't sure if this was a sign of how tired he was or if it was a sign of his reluctance to come out.

Phew, he won't do that again! Wrong again. After a 10 minute break, he went right back in, and forced his way to the underneath world.

Now, here's the thing. The piece where he's entering should be replaced. But, yet, I'm so "proud" of his perseverance...I've never seen such a purposeful action from a fish. He's having an adventure, although this adventure could end his life.

Fix it, and he goes back to his hum-drum life of swimming in the water. Leave it be, and he continues his dangerous, thrill-seeking ways.....

Qualifying for the Brickyard

2010-07-27T13:53:00.010-04:00

First of all, I just put all the pictures from my phone onto the computer, and my brain was flooded with the images of the past year as they quickly downloaded. "Only" a year, but already, they're memories. At least one of those memories will make it to my blog...

The Brickyard!

We went to this race 2 days ago. It was the first race for the boys and for us. Yeah, John and I aren't what you would call NASCAR fans, but because of the boys' extreme interest in this sport, I guess we kind of are. I mean, I do have two favorite drivers...Jimmie Johnson and Juan Pablo Montoya. How did I pick them? Not sure about Jimmie (maybe just because he's good), but with Montoya, I just like the way his name sounded, lol. Really, though, that's why I picked him. So imagine my excitement and the bragging rights I had the day before the race when we found out that they were starting in the first and second position...one of them was going to win, right? Hmmm....

Let's back up, way back, like 9, 10 years ago. I'm not sure exactly when, but sometime around this time, Kyle, master of the remote control even at a young age, was flipping through channels.

And he made one of his greatest discoveries, NASCAR. Immediately, both of the boys were fascinated by these cars that were whizzing around the track. Really, before this time, I'm not sure if John or I could have named more than 2 drivers. Kyle quickly changed all that for us. So what would be the logical thing to do? Bring them to a race, of course...not. There is no way that they would have been able to handle the crowds, noise, duration, etc. So we started out slow and brought them to a practice.

I think the year was 2001, Kyle would have been almost 10, Matt, almost 8...I think. Oh how I wished I journaled back then, because I don't remember a lot of details. My biggest memory is that Chelsey was in a non-talkative mood and sat away from us, lol...yeah, she would have been almost 12. I also remember that it was a fairly quick visit.

I don't think that we brought them the following year, and maybe not even the year after that. But the past few years, they have gone. After last year, I was kind of regretting that we didn't go to the actual race...they were ready!

So this year, it was a "must." We were all going to go (minus Evan), but I waited till the week before to ask my mom to watch Evan; she couldn't. We don't have babysitters for Evan. We thought of a few that could possibly watch him, but Chelsey, who isn't all that into racing, graciously offered to watch him. I felt really badly about this, but she insisted it was ok. sigh

We asked a boy in Kyle and Matt's class if he wanted to go with us. He's someone who Matt likes to joke around with, and I was fairly certain he was into NASCAR. It was also his first trip to a race.

Summed up, it was GREAT! They had a really good time. Our seats were in the shade (YES!), we had backs to our seats (YES! although my back still screamed), and we had a good view...across from the pits but with a good view of one of the turns. This isn't to say that there weren't times when I wanted to take I nap, or that I wasn't very annoyed by the 3 smokers in front of us, but THEY loved it!

Oh, my drivers? For whatever reason, when they introduced Juan Pablo Montoya, we were surrounded by BOOS! What!? Did they not appreciate how cool his name sounds? Jimmie had a mixed review from the crowd. Matt was loving this part, because he's all about razzing.

And then when Montoya crashed, pretty much all by himself with only 14 or so laps to go, after having the lead for a huge portion of the race, they cheered.

The nerve.

Now that it's over, Kyle's choice of conversation...The Poconos this weekend. We won't be making that day-long drive.

Flavors

2010-07-24T16:47:00.006-04:00

Today, we went with the all the kids to Flavors Coffee place. John and I often go there on Saturday, but without all the kids. We tried once this past winter bringing them...didn't go so well for Evan. The noise of the blender had set him off, and he wanted very little to do with the place.

But, time has passed, and he's improving with dealing with noises. For example, we don't have to take him outside when we vacuum anymore! I just tell him that I'm going to vacuum the floor, his eyes get really big, and then he heads to the computer room and shuts the door until I'm done. Much improvement.

So, we head into Flavors, not too many people in there, and we order our food. Chelsey and I got a blender drink even though I knew it could mean trouble. To play it safe, Evan and I went into the bathroom where it could barely be heard while the drinks were made. He didn't exactly like hanging out in the bathroom, but he was ok.

We went back to the table, and we were able to stay there enjoying our breakfast for quite a while, actually, longer than the amount of time John and I spend when it's just the two of us.

AND, someone ordered a blender drink halfway through our visit. He got a little upset, but quickly composed himself when they finished making the drink.

Yay!

I'm Going to Try, Again

2010-07-20T16:09:00.005-04:00

I don't know why I let so much time go these days between getting on here...

Evan's potty training is going GREAT! Last summer, we were doing well, but I knew that sending him to school and to my mom's was going to be tricky...and it was. So potty training throughout the year was hit and miss; BIG miss at school.

But this summer, it's been wonderful, and he will be going back to school without a diaper!

His vocab is still very limited, but luckily, it's not to difficult for him to say, "pee," which he says for both, very convenient.

Other vocab? "No Deal!" Yes, he's been watching game shows with his brother this summer, plus Matt has that game on his DSi. Other than that, he still really isn't putting words together. His biggest vocabulary comes when we're identifying animals....still. Yep, loves his animals. I know more about wildlife from watching Animal Planet than I ever have in my life!

The older boys are doing well. Tonight, they are going to an Indianapolis Indians baseball game with Matt's Best Buddies. I adore Matt's BB, she goes above and beyond...a true friend with a huge heart.

That's it...I just really want to get back into this...I know I've said that before! lol

Trip To California

2010-04-25T10:34:00.011-04:00

Recently, my Mom, Chelsey, and I spent a long weekend in California for my niece's wedding. The wedding was in Berkeley, we stayed in Oakland, and we visited San Francisco.

The last time I was in CA (Monterey for 6 months), was a little over 20 years ago! I don't think I appreciated the beauty of it then.

We arrived in SF late Friday afternoon. The first adventure was finding the car rental place at the airport...I wasn't expecting it to be so far away!

Next came the driving. The van was in my name, so I was the only driver. And what was one of the first things I had to do?? Cross a very long bridge! I've never been a fan of going over bridges, but I do much better when I'm the driver. And after going over a few very long bridges several times, I kind of like them now! I was actually sort of fascinated by them. Yeah, sounds kind of corny, but let's remember, I've lived in the middle of the corn fields for 18 years now!

After a quick stop at the hotel, Chelsey and I went to Sarah, Zachary, and Quinn's

house...which was only minutes from our hotel! And to top that off, we were met there by Vicki, Joel, and Holly!

Unfortunately, due to how long it took to make our way out of the airport, the visit was kind of late, so the kids were a bit tired...one more than the other. ;-)

But wow, how awesome it was to meet them! I started this blog because my daughter had one...that was it. I had never thought I would get the opportunity to meet some incredible people who happen to have a flaw in a gene in common with our family.

Anyway, the visit was great, yummy pizza and wonderful people to visit with! It was a long day, with the Dramamine making it a little longer for me (even the less drowsy version knocks me out a bit).

On Saturday, we hung out with my brother (father of the bride), saw some sites, and just enjoyed being there.

That evening was the wedding....so beautiful. The reception was unlike no other I've seen; I loved the change.

Sunday was more sight seeing, SF and Berkeley. The weather was a bit uncooperative (rainy and chilly), but it was still a good time.

Of course, how could we go to SF without seeing the Golden Gate Bridge!?

This bridge is so long! And there were cars above us; that's a bit freaky for one who has a little fear of bridges....

Yeah, we don't have hills like that in Indiana...didn't take much to entertain me.

My brother and Chelsey

Great time, would love to go back!

Recent Stuff

2010-04-17T18:09:00.009-04:00

I really want to get my blog going again because I want to print this stuff out for a "journal"...here's another attempt at it!

So I guess I'll start with Evan updates. Last weekend, I went to California with Chelsey and my Mom for a four day weekend (for a wedding--that can be another post!). Before I left, his version of his name was "E--en" or "E--e" (short "e" sound).

John and the boys picked us up from the airport, and on the ride home, I asked him what his name was--just because he loves to say it and he's so cute when he does. To my surprise, when he answered, he said "Evan".......VERY CLEARLY! Yay!

Sleep: he's been doing much better with sleep the past couple of months. He's usually sleeping through, isn't taking as long to fall asleep...an hour maybe, sometimes less...and he's getting better at keeping the jammies and diaper on! He is also becoming more aware when his brothers go to bed (9), and will ask (in his way) to go too....much better than 10 or so.

Interests: Still loving his alphabet toys and animal books. He can't get enough of his animal pictures! They have to be real pictures of animals, with a preference for safari type animals, whales, sharks, and dolphins. Some of them he can say fairly clearly: cheetah, whale, shark, "jraff" (giraffe), eagle, wolf, seal, deer, zebra, roar (lion ;-), and even elephant is sounding pretty good, while others are getting there. :-)

And just as he's getting to the age where I really shouldn't be carrying him anymore, he can say "Care-cue" (carry you), melts my heart and often gets him in my arms.

A couple of days before I left for California, Evan had a fall at school. Yeah, fell off a platform on the playground and ended up with a good old bump on his head with a bit of a cut. I brought him home and he immediately fell asleep on my lap. Didn't like that. So, I brought him to the hospital to have him checked out. I'm usually not one to rush to the doctor's office with my kids, but this one made me nervous. SO, after 3 HOURS in the ER (probably worse than the fall for him), I got the reassurance from the CT scan that everything was alright. The black and blue is starting to fade, and he has a small scab.

On the topic of playgrounds, he's been loving the playground recently! He no longer sits on a platform to watch the kids run around him; he's all over the place! It's hard keeping up with him, ya know, to make sure he doesn't fall off the platform (he kind of loses awareness of where he is in space when he gets all excited), but it's worth it! I get a good workout, and he has a great time.

As I type, John is outside putting up a swing set we just bought today. I was out there helping, drill and all, until Evan woke up from his nap. Evan and I are on our way out to check the progress. :-)

Trains

2010-01-22T20:05:00.004-05:00

Kyle has always been a fan of trains...especially Thomas the Tank Engine. He started off with the die-cast ones, then the wooden ones, and finally, the battery operated plastic ones. Over the past 18 YEARS, we've gained many trains (and tracks) and have gotten rid of, basically, none. That's a lot of trains!

So when Evan came along, I thought for sure his love of trains would start from the very beginning. For his first birthday, I got him the Thomas Train and he could sit on and "drive" or push. It has the buttons that play the little jingles....how great. Well, he's played with it a little, but it was never a huge hit.

At our old house, Kyle's room was upstairs, and Evan's was down. This prevented Evan from having very much exposure to the trains set up in Kyle's room. At our current house (a year and a half), both of their rooms are upstairs, and Evan also has mastered the stairs enough where he has freedom to go up and down as he pleases. This summer when Kyle was home, he had a constant track with the battery operated plastic trains set up in his room. Evan did NOT like them! He would scream, cry, etc. It was awful. This stage lasted for a month or so. THEN, he went through a stage of still crying, screaming, etc., but yet, he insisted on standing in Kyle's room to watch them! Of course, Kyle didn't care to have his little brother in there screaming while he was conducting the Island of Sodor. But, Kyle, having the big heart that he does, put up with it quite well. Gradually, he was able to spend time watching the trains for several minutes before the overload and the screaming/crying would start. This often happened before bedtime...not a good way to ease into a good sleep.

Now, after several months, I can proudly say, Evan is a true Thomas the Tank Engine fan. For Christmas, we got a track set for him (to Kyle's relief), and he is becoming quite the little conductor of trains.

I can hear the trains going now. :-)

Peep peep!

Losing Our Dads

2010-01-03T09:33:00.011-05:00

Wow, Oct. 3rd...it's been a while. Before I can start writing about the everyday stuff that happens around here, I need to write this post.
John's Dad passed away on Nov. 11th, and my Dad passed away on Nov. 19. Sometimes it still doesn't seem real.
John's mom and dad were just here in July, and he seemed like a healthy, energetic 74 year old. Then, in September, he started a "cough." At first, they were treating him for bronchitis...that wasn't going away. It got progressively worse. A couple of weeks before he died, they said it was possibly pulmonary fibrosis. He started on a oxygen tank at home on Nov. 6th. On Sunday, Nov. 8th, he went to the hospital because he was having such a difficult time breathing. I think it was Tues. that he was told he had full-blown lung cancer. John had a flight scheduled to go to Florida on Thursday morning; unfortunately, his dad passed away Wed. afternoon.

Cigarettes suck.
He was such a larger than life person. He's greatly missed by out family!

My dad went to the hospital on Monday, Nov. 9th...the day after John's dad had entered the hospital. He was having great difficulty breathing...fluid in his lungs. He was 87, had bladder cancer, and had suffered a stroke two and a half years ago. At this point, he was very weak. He had the health conditions, and he hadn't been eating much. At the hospital, they gave him something to help relieve the fluid on his lungs, an antibiotic, and blood (his blood count was low...he was losing blood through his bladder). He came home on Friday with the hospital bed was set up in my parents living room; Hospice was helping out. He went downhill rapidly. I'm thankful that I was able to be with him during this time--I took off work---but it was also so difficult seeing the process of death. Tuesday morning till around noon was the last time his eyes were open, and he could attempt to say something. Wednesday morning, his eyebrows moved slightly when I tried talking to him. Thursday morning, his breathing was slowing down, and he passed away around 9:30.

I know he was 87--that's considered a long life--but it just didn't seem long enough for me.

I feel like there aren't many people who know our boys...really know them. It's not only hard losing as our Dads, but these men were also Grandpas who loved and accepted our boys for who they were.

Meet "Mo"

2009-10-03T21:18:00.006-04:00

Look who joined our family today!

We went to the Humane Society today...it really wasn't in our plans of the day, although we have talked about getting another dog. A picture of a Pomeranian that was in the paper a couple of days ago inspired us to go. That dog was no longer there, but there was another Pomeranian...along with this Terrier mix who came in together three days ago. The Pom. was pretty, but this other dog was, well, cute!

He's 2 years old, and his name was Buddy. After much discussion in the family, his name is now "Mo" or "Maurice." John wanted Gordon, Matt wanted Elvis, and Kyle suggested Henry. We were calling him Gordon for a couple of hours (although I didn't think it fit him). Mo was my choice, and John liked it...he just liked Gordon even more. But, after talking to Chelsey (who liked the name Mo much better), John agreed to it.

He's adjusted quite well so far. He's very fond of Evan, and I think Evan likes him, too! Tonight when I brought Evan to bed, he followed us up to his room; Evan was laughing. But then, the dog didn't want to go back down with me. When I made him come out of the room with me, Evan expressed his disapproval.

Side Note----Evan and bedtime: He's had great nights the past couple of weeks!

Evan also was riding (with help) his tricycle this evening that he got for his birthday---5 months ago. All summer he wanted nothing to do with it; tonight, he couldn't get enough of it. As I pushed Evan around the house (while my back was screaming), Mo followed us the entire time!

Gigi and Mo in the "getting to know you" stage.

AND, the BEST part (so far), he seems completely house trained (although he will be in a cage at night and while we're gone), AND, he doesn't chew on things---two big pluses!

iHeartFaces: "Blue"

2009-09-28T19:06:00.006-04:00

I haven't put in a picture for iHeartFaces in quite a while! This week, the theme is "Blue." This is a picture from when we went to the Dunes. John was throwing sand Evan's way--they both thought it was rather humorous!

~~~Check out the other photos at iHeartFaces~~~

Blankie

2009-09-26T15:10:00.006-04:00

From very early on, Evan has found security in his blankie. It started out very innocently...he would keep it close to his neck when he slept. It was just an ordinary receiving blanket, a bit over-sized. I had picked out the snoopy material before he was born, and my mom had sewn the edges of it.

For the longest time, blankie was only used during sleeping...but gradually, that changed.

Blankie started coming downstairs with him, blankie tagged along in the van, and blankie was getting more and more hugs.

Then there was change---not a good change---blankie was getting chewed on. Of course, it started out rather gradually, but over a period of time, the chewing increased. I would cut small lose ends for fear that he might choke on them. Blankie got smaller and smaller.

After he would fall asleep, I would usually go into his room and remove it from around his neck because, well, it was usually very wet from being chewed on...gross...
It would smell---badly---and it would get washed...a lot.

It didn't take long until blankie no longer looked like a blankie.

Then one day a few weeks ago--it was a Saturday--I just couldn't give it to him before his nap. It was this ever so small wad of ick. I would post a picture, but.....no......

I hated the thought of him not having it. It had comforted him for so long.

I put him down for his nap, explained to him that he wasn't going to get blankie, and to my complete surprise, he went to sleep with not complaints.

Could it really be this easy??

That night, same thing. He went to bed, and he was fine.

Yeah!

Well, almost.

On Sunday, he started making it clear that he needed his blankie. I think if he could talk, he would have said, "Mom, this is the longest you've ever taken blankie away to clean it. Obviously, it's clean now. Give it back to me...now."

For the next couple of days and nights, there was crying with the occasional call for "key." I felt so badly. At one point when he was in his room crying, I went to the kitchen and reached up to the top of the fridge to retrieve it.

Only, when I put it up there, it had been wet....it was now a crusty, hard ball of ick. There went that idea.

Although he had another receiving blanket, a yellow one--material bought the same day as the snoopy material---he was never attached to it. At some point, I went to the closet where our blankets are. In there, was a receiving blanket we had from when Chelsey was a baby--I had never given it to Evan, not sure why. It has baby Disney characters and a few letters on it, was still in excellent condition, and I thought maybe he would like it because of the letters on it (he really likes letters).

When I gave it to him, he immediately smiled and started pointing to the letters....yes!

Over a period of a couple of days, it appeared that this might be the new blankie. The adoration started slowly....then, it was clear...this was the new blankie.

And there appeared to be a bonus...he wasn't chewing on it! And if I had written this within the first 2 weeks of his adoption of the new blankie, I would be saying that as if it were set in stone! Yeah, that didn't last....but we are keeping a closer eye on this behavior and greatly discouraging it.

I wonder how long this one will last....

20.....20!

2009-09-21T20:21:00.003-04:00

Beautiful baby....

....gorgeous young lady!

Chelsey, you're an amazing young woman with a heart of gold. I'm glad you're my daughter...keep filling the world with your sunshine! Happy Birthday!

"She's a butterfly, pretty as the crimson sky

Nothing's ever gonna bring her down

And everywhere she goes

Everybody knows she's so glad to be alive

She's a butterfly

Like the purest light in a darkened world

So much hope inside such a lovely girl

You should see her fly, it's almost magical

It makes you wanna cry, she's so beautiful

God bless the butterfly,

give her the strength to fly

Never let her wings touch the ground

God bless the butterfly,

give her strength to fly

Never let her wings touch the ground"

~~~Martina Mcbride~~~

16.....16!

2009-09-20T21:28:00.005-04:00

An adorable little boy....

....a handsome young man!

Matt is 16 today!

Matt, you're an amazing son.

I love being your mom!

18......18!!!

2009-09-19T19:51:00.007-04:00

So cute then...

....and so good-looking now!

Kyle is 18! Happy Birthday to my baby...okay, okay, my adult son! :)
You've come a long way...I love being your mom...I'm so proud to have you as my son!

Playground Update

2009-09-13T21:26:00.005-04:00

Since we've been back in school, my desire to be on the computer has dwindled significantly. There are a few things I want to blog about, but I'll stick to just one topic tonight...maybe get the others in sometime this week...?

About a month ago, I had this post about the "battle" to get Evan to play on the playground.

....there's been a complete turn-around!

It happened last week when we went for our usual long walk, ending at the playground. Only this time, he pointed towards the playground equipment, I asked him if he wanted to play, and he gave me a "es." As we got closer, he was tyring to climb out of the seat belt of the stroller!

Of course, this was maybe the second time this summer where we've gone for a walk, and not only was he not wearing his sandals, I didn't have them in the stroller either. I just really didn't anticipate needing them.

He got out and immediately started playing...not just sitting on his favorite platform but going throughout different pieces of equipment, following kids, and laughing. It was great!

Why the change? My guess...preschool. For three years now it has bothered me greatly that he hasn't had much exposure to other kids---I strongly believe that is the greatest therapy of all.

We went back to the playground today, and again, he couldn't wait to get out of the stroller. He (we) even went down a really big curly slide...again, and again, and again, etc. He had never ventured that far before.

Yea!

He Told Me

2009-08-30T22:16:00.003-04:00

This evening, Evan told me that he needed to use the bathroom! It was so exciting that I can't remember exactly what the word was he said. I think it was a cross between "potty" and "poopy"---"poppy"...but I'm not sure! I just know that whatever he said, I said back to him, "You need to go potty?" and his fist went on the top of his head (his version of signing "yes"), and he said "es." We went to the bathroom, and within seconds, HE WENT POOP!!!! Yea!

A couple of days ago, he didn't have anything on the bottom half, and he came to me with a diaper and said, "diaper." I brought him to the bathroom, and he went. I'm so happy that he's finding ways to communicate this need. (I really need to get on the ball with making the picture cards for this...it's not that difficult.)

For the first half of the summer, potty training was intense, and we had good results. For the second half, we eased up a bit because he was started to get a bit defiant about sitting on the potty. At first I thought that all that work was for nothing. BUT, easing up has had really good results. He sometimes wears underwear and sometimes a diaper, but now when I ask him, he seems more relaxed about it and isn't refusing like he had started to do before we eased up. Sometimes he will go in his diaper, but he's quick to take it off when he does.

It Wasn't Even His Birthday!

2009-08-29T22:34:00.010-04:00

I was on the computer earlier today transferring pictures off of my camera. John and Matt had just gotten back from the store so they were somewhere in the house, Chelsey was in the kitchen making lunch, and Kyle was in this room where the computer is (front side of house) watching tv. Yep, that's not very interesting.

Well, while on the computer, I had my ears open for sounds of Evan, but I probably was a little too comfortable because I knew that the rest of the family was throughout the house. But the mother in me told me to get up and go check on Evan when I heard that sound that makes mothers nervous.....

the sound of silence.

I got up, and for whatever reason, I glanced to the right out the door as I passed by it....the glance turned into a frozen stare. There, up the street, walked Evan....alone. He was right by my parents house (100 yards, maybe)--he wouldn't have stopped there---my first reaction was to call my mom so she could get him--he was right there. I picked up the phone (I could still see him out a window), and before even dialing numbers, I was thinking, 'put down the phone and just go get him!' Just then, I saw that the neighbor across from my parents was in the street with him, trying to coral him. I dropped the phone and ran as fast as I have in years towards my baby. As I got close to him, he started laughing....not funny. I thanked the neighbor; she, her husband, and teenage son had just come out of their house to get groceries out of the car. Fortunately, we live on the end of a cul de sac that has 8 houses....not a busy street, but still.....

He was not too happy with me as I carried him back home.

How did this happen? We have a sunroom that is completely unclosed with sliding glass doors--7 of them. It provides a great view, and on a day like today (70 degrees), having some of those doors open is quite nice. Yeah, but the thing is, although Evan can't open the sliders, he can open the screens. Apparently, John had forgotten that fact....he had opened a couple and then went into the living room to watch tv. So, Evan got out, went across to the side of the yard so he could go around the privacy fence (it doesn't enclose the yard), made his was through the front yard, and up the street.
It's awful when I think about the "what ifs." One thing I'm certain of is that he wouldn't have turned around to come back home.

Okay, I almost hate putting this part in because really, this event is not funny. BUT, there's a detail I left out....

Evan was wearing absolutely....nothing.

I'm definitely out of the running for the mother of the year award.

Just What A Mother Does

2009-08-22T21:29:00.005-04:00

Evan has been a little iffy on his naps lately. About a week ago, I put him in his room for his nap, and like he often does, he whined a bit and was at his door turning the nob. We have one of those safety things on his door due to the fact that his room is on the second floor, so he wasn't going to open it, although he gave a good effort.

After a few minutes, I went up to put him back in bed.

Only, I couldn't get the door open.

It was locked.

We've lived in this house for a year now, and we've never given thought to the locks on the inside doors. Now some inside doors have those locks that just push in. With these, you have to push in and turn to lock it. He can't get to the lock because of the safety plastic thing on his door knob, but I guess with him messing with it so much, it became locked?? I don't know, but I do know that my baby was quite upset because there I was on the other side of the door, and I wasn't opening it.

I tried hangers and paper clips--didn't work. I called John; he suggested kicking in the door...yeah, right. I went outside to get the heavy duty ladder--John had just been trimming the trees the day before--but even with Matt's help, I couldn't get the ladder propped up against the house--it came falling down on me (which I'm guessing is where the huge bruise on my arm came from; I didn't notice it until the next day). I have very little upper body strength.

By this time, I'm crying because he's crying and doesn't understand why I'm not getting him. I called John again, and he suggested going over to ask our neighbors for help. So I went over there, tears in my eyes, and explained the situation. He smiled, said his boys used to do that (they have grown children), and that his wife had something she used to open doors. He goes inside, tells her about it, and she comes out with a very small screwdriver. Basically, she couldn't get it open either.

So, it had been probably 45 minutes, and he's still crying. I call her husband, and he comes over with a few more tools---still, nothing.

I tell him that if he could get the ladder up against the house, I'll go through the window. I knew it wasn't locked, because I had just closed it before Evan's nap.

We go out, he gets the ladder up, and then I start the climb. Not a big fan of heights, but, this wasn't too bad. BUT, he had put the ladder to the left of the window, and when I got close to the top---as far as I thought necessary---he gently told me I would have to go two steps higher. That's when I really started to feel a bit uncertain about being up there. I slowly made my way up those two steps and cut the screen.

The next step was to remove one leg from the ladder and put it through the window.

Evan grabbed that leg. As I'm in the air with one leg halfway through the window, my neighbor tells me that I'm going to have to take my other leg off the ladder. Oh, yeah....Okay, at this point fear sets in a bit, but I knew I had to do it--I had to get to my baby! So I get my leg off the ladder, and there I am, straddling the window sill. The window isn't that big; I had to wiggle my way in...it felt like I was stranded there with one leg in and one leg out a long time, but I'm guessing it really happened in seconds.

I know, going up a ladder isn't that big of a deal! But it was!!! I used to climb tall trees when I was younger; I'm not sure when my fear of heights set in.

Yeah, John took the lock out of his doorknob that night.

The Dunes...A Much Needed, Quick Gettaway

2009-08-15T10:29:00.007-04:00

AFV

2009-08-12T22:28:00.005-04:00

Evan has recently discovered America's Funniest Home Videos. Like his brothers, he truly appreciates slap-stick comedy!

Walks and Playgrounds

2009-08-06T09:15:00.005-04:00

There are so many differences in how the older kids were raised compared to Evan. One of those differences: the very long walks that we take. He likes to go... and keep going! Usually, he's in the stroller, but even when he's not, he can go far before I carry him.

Life is good if we stick to the usual route. If we don't, well, he's not a happy camper. There is a small exception to that rule. The kid has an amazing sense of direction...something I lack severely. If I make I turn that takes us farther away from home, it's ok. But if he senses the turn is somehow heading back in the direction of home, he protests. There was one day a when I turned left because I saw a dog in the middle of the street of our usual path. Left turn=good because it's a the direction away from home. That was weeks ago. But now, when we get to that street, his arm stretches out and points in that direction as he let's out some shouts that mean "We should go that way!" There are several left turns on that road, but he remembers it was "that one." So, to give him a thrill, we actually went "that way" on another occasion. It's a great workout!

The end of our walk brings us to the playground which is right by our house. His latest thing: HE HATES THE PLAYGROUND! He used to LIKE it; I have no idea what happened. At first, I thought it might be because he didn't want to stop the walk. So I've tried taking him in the van. Still protests. I've taken him when there are lots of kids, nobody there, morning, noon, and night. Doesn't matter. A few days ago, there was only one woman---probably the grandma---with a child of about 8 or 9. I thought this would be a good time to really push the issue.

Sometimes you see a child having a tantrum while leaving the playground. It's not very often you see it when a child is being brought to the playground. So I end up carrying him like a log because of his squirming, he's screaming, kicking off his shoes, and making the motion like he's going to bite me...although I think he knows that's not a good thing. I take him to the baby swings because he LIKES to swing. He lasted a few minutes...a few smiles coupled with the whining. After several minutes, I put him in the middle of a piece of equipment that has a couple of slides. He whined a little, took the shoes off again, but then we made a game out of his shoes being able to go down the slide. He thought that was kind of funny. He ended up going down the slides a few times, sending the shoes first each time. After about 15 minutes, he was done.

But of course, in the trips after that, when I ask him if he wants to go to the playground, he gives his usual, "No........no........no." (His "no," has a bit of an accent to it..very staccato. It's not the usual long o sound).

So yes, having my son play on the playground is a skill we have to work on.

???

iHeartFaces--Beach Week!

2009-07-27T20:45:00.013-04:00

It's Beach Week at iHeartFaces.

We live next to a cornfield---not a beach. Yes, we've been to different beaches over the years, so I do have some fairly recent photos, but this one is one of my favorites! It's Chelsey, 21 months old....she'll be 20 in a few weeks. Yep, it's an oldie, but I love it!

It was taken when we lived in CT on the shoreline.

NASCAR At The Brickyard

2009-07-27T08:47:00.009-04:00

John and I took the boys to the Brickyard practice on Friday...this is the 3rd year they have gone. We haven't done the actually race yet due to concern that they weren't "ready" yet...I think they would have enjoyed it this year...NEXT YEAR, WE'RE THERE!

During the first practice session (we were there for two), Kyle announced the name and number of each driver when their car was just barely in sight.

My guy, Jimmie Johnson---WON the race yesterday! And it just so happens that my other favorite driver, Juan Pablo Montoya also did quite well!

John and I knew NOTHING about NASCAR until the boys introduced it to us. They are experts! It cracks me up with Kyle...he knows every driver, their number, and the make and main sponsor of each car. It's so interesting how much he can learn about something he has a passion for.

This was right before we left, and I had the nerve to request a few photographs...they weren't too into that...as you can see.

Potty Training Continues

2009-07-22T21:51:00.008-04:00

Potty training is going exceptionally well---I'm impressed with him! We had a little bit of a setback when he was sick for a week and the in-laws were here, but he's back on track.

In the beginning of this, he would often pee just for the sake of peeing. Now, he is able to hold it for usually a couple of hours. We've even made a couple of trips to the store with underwear instead of a diaper. We also go on our long walks without a diaper.

One thing that has changed recently is that he's not as willing to go whenever I say, "Do you need to go potty?" It's like he realizes he doesn't need to go all the time! So some of the times when he gives me his "No....no....no," I've honored his request even though it's been a couple of hours. Sometimes this results in him doing just a little in his thick underwear, and then he proceeds to take them off. When I see him getting undressed, I always check the underwear, and if damp, we head to the potty where he does the rest! Now, him taking off his clothes doesn't necessarily mean he's wet them...he prefers the "no clothes" look. We're working on that.

As far as poop, we win some, we lose some!

What happened today was UNBELIEVABLE!

He was wearing underwear and a onesie...the easiest way to ensure that some clothes are on. He hadn't been in a while. I was in the kitchen, and I heard him go into the bathroom. By the time I got there, there he was.

Sitting on the toilet.

Without his Elmo potty seat.

Hands on the toilet seat and bottom in the water!

Amazingly, he wasn't too upset about it, but I think it startled him a bit. While trying not to laugh, I gave him lots of praise and took off the wet stuff. Then, after sitting on the Elmo potty seat, he went! I have a feeling he had already went a little, but not all of it. :)

Not sure how he got on the toilet. His stool was by the sink.

What I need to do--should have done already--is to take picture of the toilet. We haven't used any pictures for communication, but I think we need it in this case. Signing bathroom doesn't seem to be working--yet, and he doesn't have any word for it. A couple of times, he has come to me and I could tell from his body language that he needed to go, but it's subtle--very subtle. I'm not sure what's going to happen when he starts school in a few weeks, but I want to have some sort of system that they can work with that he's already familiar with.

Yeah, he starts school in a few weeks....

NATIONAL FRAGILE X AWARENESS DAY :-)

2009-07-22T08:55:00.002-04:00

I am a carrier of the Fragile x gene. I didn't know this until Kyle was diagnosed...I had never heard of the gene before that time.

Fragile X syndrome is the most common known single gene cause of autism.

Approximately 1 in 260 (maybe ever 1 in 130) women and 1 in 800 men carry this gene.

Fragile X is the most common cause of inherited mental impairment. This impairment can range from learning disabilities to more severe cognitive or intellectual disabilities.

Visit Fragilex.org...

iHeartFaces Week 28-------FEET!!!

2009-07-21T14:33:00.010-04:00

It's weeK 28 at iHeartFaces, and it's all about feet! I've taken quite a few pictures of Evan's feet; it was hard choosing just one. I've always been quite fond of my babies' feet--I'm not sure at what age it is that the cuteness starts to fade...

If Evan's outside, his two favorite things to do are 1. go for a walk, and 2. SWING!

Check out all the cute feet---probably over 1000 FEET so far--at:

The Fair

2009-07-16T10:39:00.005-04:00

On Tuesday evening, we brought the boys to the fair. For the older two, there's nothing there that interest them anymore. ):

The house that we lived in before moving here (1 year ago, July 3rd) was RIGHT ACROSS the street from the fairgrounds. The part directly across from us was the track, so that was a bit of a buffer from where the rides were. During the fair we could watch the harness raising, and throughout the rest of the year, we could see them practicing...very cool. The location we're in now has some advantages--newer house, bigger yard, PRIVACY--to name a few, but I do miss the other house at times. From their bedroom window, and the downstairs window also, the kids could see the fair being put together and taken apart. They could see the quieter times, and watch it as the noise increased. Their window air conditioner helped with blocking out the noise at night.

Matt wasn't really into the rides when he was younger. We got him to go on the train and the motorcycle/car merry-go-round ride, but not much else. Kyle was our "brave" one. His FAVORITE ride was the Alligator Coaster; he loved the way it whipped him around. His laughter and smile on that thing were priceless. He would talk about it for weeks after and weeks before. The most awful fair moment for him (and me!) was the year that, as usual, he was so excited, but when we got up to the front of the line, the guy said without the slightest hint of compassion, "You're too tall!" and turned him away! My little boy's heart broke, and so did mine. The fair was never the same again for him. I know, all kids grow up, but he wasn't ready to "grow up" from that coaster. But he did.

There were a couple of years when they liked to play the games, but this year, they had no interest. They also liked the NASCAR ride for a couple of years (big enough for adults), but not this year. So, they dutifully followed us around.

On to Evan's story. Okay, back to the boys for a minute...a key to their success at the fair when they were younger was Chelsey. It was convenient for us to say, "Go on with Chelsey," and they would feel some sense of security. We don't have that luxury now with Evan.

So Tuesday night, we venture out, with my expectations being realistic. As we approached the area where the rides were, he was calm. He pointed to the merry-go-round. I quickly bought some tickets.

As we got on, he immediately let me know that just because he was pointing at them, it didn't mean he actually wanted to go on them! I told John to start taking some pictures before we ever started moving. I think I got him smiling by talking about juice and his blankie. ;)

He wanted nothing to do with sitting on a horse, so we sat on the bench. Basically, he survived with whining, a little screaming, but I talked to him about other things to try to even out his mood....it helped...a little.

So we get off, he's fine, and then....we hear an awful roar. I hadn't made the connection that Tuesday night was tractor pull night, and that meant noise!!!! It was sooo loud! I don't know if we would have been able to get him on anything else anyway, but that definitely ensured he wouldn't. We went to see the animals; it was 'a little' farther from the tractors, but not much. He whined most of the time, but he got better when the tractors took a break. We headed back to the rides, and yes, the tractors decided they were done with their break. So we got a lemon shake-up--he liked that--and headed home.

While John and Evan hung out in the living room, I went outside to stroll around the yard and remind myself that it was no big deal...

as I heard the roar of the tractors 2 miles away...

Oldie But Goody

2009-07-14T11:12:00.009-04:00

This picture makes me smile every time I come across it. It's more than just the picture that causes the smile; it's also a poem that John had written to me that I think about when I see this...

First, notes about the picture. They're both left-handed...notice how Matt not only is eating with his right hand (while spoon remains in the bowl), he has his left hand conveniently tucked behind his back! Kyle at least has the spoon in his left hand, and, in his defense, he might just be pushing food that was escaping back into his mouth...this time. Yes, those were the days, the days of constant

"Use Your Spoon/Fork."

John has a great sense of humor, and occasionally likes to use his humor in a poetic way. One Mother's Day--around the time-period of this picture, or maybe a little before, John went out for an early morning golf match. No big deal; I know, it was Mother's Day, but he left before I even woke up and was home within a few hours.

When I woke up, I found the poem he had left for me. It was about 2 pages long--skipped lines :)--and for the most part, very sweet. But, it was the end that made me laugh and still does (I still have it somewhere...not sure where at the moment). I think it was because the poem was sweet--telling me what a great mother I was and such, not one of his humorous ones, that made the ending so funny. The last line went something like this,

"I love you my darling

and I'll be home soon

Don't forget to tell the boys

to eat with their spoon!"

Laughter keeps us sane...

Doctor Appointment

2009-07-08T10:35:00.010-04:00

Evan's doctor's appointment last week confirmed the obvious--he's underweight. Kyle was too when he was younger, but with Evan, it just seems different.

The appointment, of course, was quite the experience. He started letting out the screams as soon as we pulled into the parking lot. They increased as we entered the building, and didn't improve any while we waited in the waited room. Then, when they called us back to the small, confining room...you get the picture.

After a few attempts at weighing him, I offered to weigh myself with and without him. Through this method, we found that he weighs 26 pounds, which is actually one of the numbers we got while trying to weigh him by himself. When combined with the fact that he is between the 50th and 60th percentile in height, he's very far below on the "chart."

When the doctor came in, we first discussed his week-long diarrhea and vomiting, which I'm guessing knocked a pound or two off of him. We then went on to discuss his poop in general (see previous posts).

When I say "discuss," I probably should be saying, "We had to talk loudly and clearly and use good listening skills to be heard and understood above Evan."

The plan is to check his bowel movements for a variety of "things," and then look into intolerance of gluten. Collecting poop for five containers isn't much fun. Even less fun is bringing Evan with me to the lab to drop of containers.

Not a happy camper.

He survived the first waiting area (check in) by me hanging him upside down. An older woman observing found it to be humorous. But when we went back to second waiting area, hanging upside down wasn't going to cut it anymore. So, we walked the hallway outside of the area--very open area--he still wasn't happy, but he did take a few breaks in expressing his displeasure.

I couldn't help but feel that some of those "eyes" inside the waiting room were thinking, "Obviously, that mother is clueless; what a bratty child."

Oh well.

While walking the hallway, we briefly talked with someone I know--she works in the office area of the hospital. She knows the family history, but I've never officially announced to her that Evan had FX, too. As she was talking to Evan, she said, "I know Monica." Monica was his speech therapist...yay, somebody in the hospital new he wasn't just a bratty child. Soon after she said that, though, he bit me in the shoulder! He's only done that a few times in his life. He did wave and say good-bye to her. He likes to say good-bye to people when we are somewhere he doesn't want to be. Only, this time, we weren't the ones that were leaving the area...she was.

When we got back to the van, I gave the I'm disappointed in your behavior speech. We don't scream when we go somewhere. When we got home, he got the same speech...then I cried, he felt badly, we hugged.

I don't know why I cried; well, part of it is that I cry easily. Part of it is the memory of giving the boys that same speech when they were younger; part of it is the realization that I'm doing it all over again...

My pitty-party only lasted 3 minutes, tops. All better!!!

He's Sick

2009-06-29T11:27:00.002-04:00

Evan vomited a couple of times last night and once this morning. He also has a slight fever. This is the first time he has had a stomach virus that has included throwing up...hopefully, it's a quick one.

Poop and More

2009-06-28T22:06:00.005-04:00

We went out to eat on Saturday night with the in-laws...somewhere that Evan has never been. He gave the usually few screams as we pulled into the parking lot and fussed all the way to the table. It was fairly crowded, but luckily, we found some tables in the corner that we pushed together.

Soon after we sat down, he got really upset--with tears. It was rather noisy, but his reaction still seemed a bit extreme. It didn't take long to figure out that it was the noise of the ice being dumped into the ice bin that bothered him. Really, though, it's not like we were right next to this ice bin! I carried him around for a while to get food (a buffet style restaurant), and he was content while we did that--not happy, but content. He wouldn't eat much, only applesauce and a few meatballs. He was right next to the window, so he frequently pointed outside while saying (whispering) "bye bye."

On to today: He had diarrhea six times today!!! Amazingly, 4 out of the 6 times was on the toilet; the other 2 were in a diaper. Although this time it "may" be a bit of an illness, there is something not right with this kid's bowel movements. Friday and Saturday he only went once on both of the days--on the toilet :)--, but both times it was pure diarrhea! He has NEVER been constipated a day in his life. That's sound like a good thing, but unfortunately, he is quite the opposite. I've tried narrowing it down, but I don't think it's as simple as that; there just seems to be so many foods that give him icky, runny poop! Example: Cheerios or any other cereal that I can get him to eat! That one I'm 99.9 percent sure about. Sometimes, when was take a food out of his diet, there seems to be a change for the better, and we think, "Oh, that was it." But then after a week or so, it's back to icky. He has slight ridges in his nails, and from what I've read on-line, that can be a sign of malnutrition/malabsorption. He has a doctor's appointment on Friday. I'm wondering about an allergy to gluten, but I want to get the doctor's input on all of this before I make any drastic changes. It could be something completely different.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

In other Evan news, he recently walked down our stairs with just holding onto the railing with one hand and the other hand against that same wall. I was standing at the bottom of the stairs while he was doing this, with my heart going thump thump very loudly.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The number of shows on TV he can watch without getting upset is getting smaller and smaller. These shows, in order, are now out: Super Why (that was the first to go), Dora the Explorer, Little Einsteins, Mickey Mouse Club House, Winnie the Pooh, and, this one, which he just got into not too long ago, is still touch and go: Blue's Clues. He also recently started watching Veggie Tales, but there are scenes that make him really upset. A new one for him is Sesame Street, so far, so good; he's in love with Elmo, but I can be fairly certain that relationship is going to deteriorate quickly. The one that he likes that seems to cause the fewest problems for him: Tom and Jerry. Really, though, he doesn't watch much TV with "his shows. " He takes note of the games shows his brothers watch, NASCAR, and most recently, Monster Trucks. Matt and I watch that together in the mornings at 7. It's actually quite entertaining...for now.

Lemon Pound Cake

2009-06-26T22:34:00.006-04:00

On a recent quick stop at my parents' house, I was offered a piece of cake; mom likes to bake--I'm often offered something good! :) This time, it was Lemon Pound Cake. It didn't look too particularly appetizing, but oh my, it's good! So moist! One would never guess that there were white chocolate chips in it. I made one this afternoon.

Lemon Pound Cake

Cake:
1 cup butter, room temperature
1 ½ cup sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla
3 eggs
Zest of 2 lemons
1 cup white chocolate chips, melted
(melt chips in microwave for 1 minute on 70% power; stir well)
2 ½ cups flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 1/3 cup buttermilk

Glaze:
3 tablespoons lemon juice
1 cup confectioners sugar

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. In large mixing bowl, cream together butter and sugar. Add vanilla and eggs. Stir in lemon zest and melted white chocolate. Add dry ingredients, alternating with buttermilk.
3. Butter and flour a Bundt pan; pour cake mixture inside. Bake at 350 degrees for 50 to 55 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. While cake is still in pan and warm, mix together lemon juice and confectioners sugar to make glaze. Brush half the glaze on exposed surface of warm cake. Invert cake onto plate and glaze top of cake.
4. When cake is cool, slice and serve fresh berries.

Success!

2009-06-23T08:22:00.005-04:00

Maybe it was something in the air yesterday...just like Ian, Evan had a major accomplishment yesterday!

Evan went poop in the toilet yesterday!

I have to say, the day definitely didn't look like it was going to head in that direction. He had diarrhea--3 times before noon--and, well, I won't write the details on that. But, because of that, I thought we were going to take a day off of potty training.

In the evening, though, because it had been a while since the diarrhea, I put the training underwear back on. Although he's been doing fairly well with keeping them dry, he wet in them. So, I brought him to the bathroom to get him out of the wet stuff, and I put him on the toilet and asked him if he needed to do more...often when he does go in the underwear, it's not a lot. I put him on the toilet, and he started pushing! And out it came...he pushed some more...and out more came...and again!!! I was sooooo proud of him!

The potty training is going better than I expected. I'm thankful that I'm home this summer to be able to work on this...it is a full time job!

What's Playing at the Movies

2009-06-22T09:35:00.005-04:00

Chelsey has taken Kyle to the movies a couple of times recently---Night at the Museum, and Monsters and Aliens. A couple of weeks ago, this is what Chelsey found on her calender.

As you can see--in case you weren't aware--Transformers starts on the 24th.

Father's Day Golf!

2009-06-21T08:42:00.006-04:00

Kyle and John are going to a Father's Day golf tournament today!!!!!! Yes, that deserves all those explanation marks!

John called me a few days ago from work to tell me about this tournament. Chelsey has commitments at church today, so she's not available. She can golf, but I wouldn't say it's "her thing." John asked me to see if one of the boys would go. If anything, I thought Matt might say yes. He's gone with John and John's friend a few times; he doesn't play, but he likes to drive the cart. Kyle, though, was the one that said, "Sure, I'll go." We asked both of them several times during the past few days, thinking that Matt would change his answer to "yes," and Kyle would give us a big "nah." But it never happened!

I don't think Kyle has ever gone on 18 with John.

Rewind: Golf is John's thing. When the kids were little, we bought the little plastic golf sets for them. With help, they messed with them a little. We also tried miniature golf. Yes, family fun time...it's amazing how something that is supposed to be enjoyable can turn so stressful! ;) We don't do it often, but they now enjoy mini-golf. Now for actually swinging a club, their cooperation level is a bit low, their coordination is also lacking, and their patience...hmm. I know John would love to have them as golf partners; I think we'll get there!

So, I'm guessing Kyle won't be swinging the club today--maybe a couple of swings-- but he'll probably be doing some putting and some driving of the cart. John explained the situation to the ones running the event, so their scores aren't going to be an issue.

I'm just so happy that he wanted to go!!!!!!

Kyle has a way of making me laugh. This morning he exclaimed, "Well, today's the big day!" And I smiled, thinking that he realizes how wonderful it is that he's hanging out with his father, on Father's Day, at the golf course. I should have known better because he says that expression often...EVERY TIME there's a NASCAR race on! So, yeah, when I asked him why, he said, "The NASCAR race starts at 5!" :)

Evan's Discovery

2009-06-18T21:10:00.004-04:00

Evan discovered today that his mattress on his toddler bed (formerly his crib) isn't attached to any part of the bed...it can come completely off! How cool is that! AND, if he tries hard enough, he can get his leg stuck between the mattress and the frame (several times) so that I go running to his room to check why he is screaming so loudly! (Although, honestly, I figured it out after the second time.)

Ugh...

Its Gonna Take Time

2009-06-16T15:41:00.005-04:00

Day 4 potty training: Actually, a better name would be "getting accustomed to the fact that someday he will be using the toilet on a regular basis." But I guess potty training is much shorter and easier to say.

He's doing fairly well with it. I've decided to use the underwear instead of the pull-ups so that he notices a difference. Of course, diapers/pull-ups are used for sleeping and out of the house trips. I'll also use them for days when we may need to take a break. This isn't anything that I'm thinking has to be accomplished soon; I'll realize

Its gonna take time

A whole lot of precious time

Its gonna take patience and time

(anybody recognize the lyrics? I've been singing them quite frequently throughout this process).

In the beginning, I was met with some resistance to the idea, but now he seems to be starting to "get it." When I ask him if he needs to go, I either get, "No!" or his hand on his stomach as he says,

"Peaz" while trotting towards the bathroom.

Sometimes, if it's been a while and he doesn't respond with either, I make the decision that it's time.

The biggest reward for him is being able to put toilet paper into the toilet---little pieces at a time. He has been accompanying me to the restroom for at least a year now--he's quite insistent on it--I sometimes have to sneak in so he doesn't know I'm in there. During the trips when he is with me, he feels it necessary to get the toilet paper for me. Thanks, but it's usually--okay, never--enough.

Anyway, when he's on the toilet, I let him get a couple of pieces to put in the toilet, and then he's not allowed to have more until he goes. Also, while he's sitting there, I use the power of suggestion. I point and say, "Wow, look, here comes the pee-pee!" He then looks, and makes it come out! And now that I'm doing that, I DO remember saying that with the boys when they were going through potty training.

Now, the number 2's, I don't know how we're going to get that accomplished...his are so loose.

I Think He Can, I Think He Can...

2009-06-13T13:50:00.011-04:00

My first day of summer vacation was yesterday! Hooray! I thought I'd feel so wonderful when that day came, but really, I felt completely exhausted all day yesterday--not a way to start vacation. I think it was a combination of just plain winding down, and the fact that the day before when I was cleaning my classroom, the overhead abruptly slid from my hands (I had grabbed it by a compartment that opens--oops) and hit me in the temple...ouch. Really, ouch. There was a little swelling right away, but that went away with some ice, and the bruise/red mark left is very small.

I feel so much better today and ready for the break. Sooo, I decided that today would be the day to start potty training. What!!?? Yeah, we'll see how it goes. I think I've typed these words before---I DON'T REMEMBER POTTY TRAINING THE BOYS. It's so bizarre, because I DO remember potty training Chel--it was right before she turned two. I remember the little potty chair, setting it in the kitchen, and giving her M&M's for rewards. I know the boys were potty trained when they were 3, and that once Matt was trained during the day, he never had an accident during the night, and that when Kyle was around 6 or 7, I told him he wasn't going to wear diapers to bed anymore (even though they were wet every morning), and from that night on, he never wet the bed. But that's it. I'm guessing it wasn't easy, but maybe like childbirth, I've forgotten just how "painful" it was. lol

Day one with Evan:

I put the thick, big boy underwear on him this morning after he woke up around 7:30.

Around 8:30, I started taking him to the bathroom every half an hour. He protested, but the Elmo potty seat helped distract him a bit.

I poured the warm water.

Nothing...until 11:00....he clapped, smiled; I clapped, smiled. And I thought to myself, "Look how long he can stay dry-- 3 and a half hours!" Well, no. First, he didn't drink very much in the morning.

To sum up the next hour, he went pee 3 or 4 times---the first unscheduled time he had taken off the underwear, and I saw him looking down there. As soon as I saw a single drop, I said "no" and rushed him to the toilet. He went a little. He then went a couple more times--a little each time--in big boy underwear. Sigh.

We'll see how it goes. I definitely don't want this summer to become a stressful time. I'm thinking I'll buy some pull-ups to take some of the pressure off of following him around, although I'm fairly certain he won't want to keep those on.

Besides the fact that I'm on summer vacation,

part of my reasoning for doing this is that he doesn't like to keep a diaper on...especially when he goes to bed. I have to put the diaper on, a pair of underwear over that, and then a onesie to keep him from taking it off. And during the day, he'll often take it off right after he wets in it, or like the other day, poops in it.

~~~~~~

It's been absolutely lovely having Chelsey home for the past month. In just a short time, she has taught Evan where his hair, ears, nose, teeth, eyes, belly button, elbows, fingers, knees, toes, and "tooshy" are! After we ask him where they are, he'll point to them and then say them fairly clearly.

His favorite is his tooshy.

He gets on his hands and feet, sticks his tooshy up in the air, and says "tooshy." So funny. Sometimes when we ask, he starts to point to the wrong body part, but then catches himself and corrects himself. Funny again. Yesterday, I grabbed the camera to try to record this, but he had been doing it a while, so his "performance" was a bit week. I'll try again when he's refreshed.

The Magic of Trains

2009-06-01T20:50:00.003-04:00

What is it about trains?

When Evan and I went for our walk yesterday, we heard the train coming so we diverted off our usual path to go and see it. He doesn't like loud noises (that's an understatement), but, of course, this was a train--exceptions are made for them!

Evan is 3!

2009-05-29T21:27:00.006-04:00

My baby turned 3 last weekend!

One of the many things that I've learned from the older boys is that birthdays are better when they are kept simple!

He DID enjoy the candle...

...and digging into the cake!

We gave him a couple of his presents on his birthday (Saturday), but we didn't have the sand table set up until Monday. I was sure he was just going to love it!

And by looking at the pictures, one might get the impression that he actually did like it. The day we set it up, it was windy and in the 60's, so I didn't add the water...I thought the sand would be enough to start with.

With lots of help from us, he stayed at the table for just a few minutes.

I tried again the next day--this time with water.

He stayed with it a little longer. He thought that maybe if he got in it, it would be a little more fun. I convinced him otherwise.

Trying to wipe off the sand!

Got To Watch Those Homophones

2009-05-22T21:36:00.005-04:00

Kyle and Matt's teacher once again invited her students to a sporting event at the high school; this time it was baseball (what a great teacher!). To get to the high school, we travel in the same direction that we would go if we were going shopping at the usual place. Evan was with us, and when we made a turn that wasn't in route with going to the store, he let out a few screams. The boys didn't say much, but of course, they noticed this. I thought I would help them understand why he was doing this--you know, give them a little insight. So I explained that Evan was feeling a little frustrated and nervous because we weren't heading towards the store anymore, and that's where he wants to go. I went on by comparing how he felt to the way they feel when they are somewhere they don't want to be. I don't remember what their response was to that, but basically, they understood.

But then, I may have pushed the whole "insight" thing a bit over the top. I slowly said to myself, yet out loud, "Because---he---has---the---same---genes---as you guys do."

The quick response to this was,

"No, we have shorts on!"

I Heart Faces

2009-05-12T21:12:00.010-04:00

Here's my entry for this week's I Heart Faces contest: Laughter.

Evan enjoying an afternoon of kite flying.

Check out some of the other pictures at I Heart Faces by clicking here.

Mother's Day

2009-05-10T22:21:00.001-04:00

Acts Strangely

2009-05-08T20:07:00.006-04:00

Evan had his very first experience in his adventure into the school system...sigh. He and I went to the preschool on Wednesday so that they could do some casual observation.

As expected, when we pulled into the parking lot, he let out some screams; he doesn't like going to places that he is not familiar with. We made it into the building, and they brought us into a big room that had a few toys. They started to ask me a few questions, but Evan still wasn't too fond of being there. I asked if they had any books with animals or letters; they quickly provided him with some which improved his mood. They also brought in the Leap Frog Alphabet Fridge Magnets, and because that is one of his favorite toys at home, that went over fairly well.

Another activity he enjoyed there was the Play Tent/Ball Pit; that kept him content for quite a while. He did, though, also "enjoy" going to the door and saying, "Ba" (bye) as he lifted his arm gesturing to me that it was time to go. The trampoline--definitely a hit.

Before leaving, we tried to peak into the classrooms, but he didn't think that was a very good idea.

It was a fairly quick visit. It's hard to believe he'll be 3 this month. It makes life so much easier when people ask how old he is now: 2...just 2...no extras such as, "He's almost 3." I don't get as many puzzled looks as I will when I respond with "3." Oh well.

They sent some paperwork home with us for me to fill out. There were two different forms; one was mainly concerning ability, and the other was focused more on his emotional state...kind of tricky. My "favorite" was: Acts strangely....what??? That's a fairly broad statement. What's their definition of "strangely"? Out of the hundred or so answers I circled, that is the one I left blank.

OH!!! I almost forgot...sleeping. Now that Chelsey is home, he has been staying with her during the day. The first 4 nights of her first 4 days home were awful (he wanted to make sure we were aware that his routine had been changed), but then, there was a sudden change, a very wonderful, sudden change; he starting sleeping through. He did this for A WHOLE WEEK! Yeah, the appointment on Wednesday cured him of that silliness...

yawn...

Rain

2009-05-01T08:51:00.005-04:00

Home today! Here's why: Lots of water! Our house is completely fine; I can see some puddles in the field behind us, but that's about it. So, we have a 3 day weekend, but really, that's not such a great thing. First, if we're going to have an unexpected day off, Friday would be my last choice of days. Second, we've used all our built in snow days; this one gets tacked on to the end of the year. We're already going to school later than normal because we started later due the construction of the new school not being completed on time. AND, this coming year, we're starting at the regular early mid-August time which equals: a short summer break. I had voted for a later start, not so much because I wanted a longer summer, but more because even before I was a teacher, I disliked having to send the kids back when summer was still going strong! Oh well, I've been given a day off...time to go

enjoy it!

I Heart Faces - Reflections

2009-04-28T19:13:00.008-04:00

My first entry at I ♥ Faces. The theme this week is reflection.

~Evan enjoying some time at the zoo's aquarium~

The Green Grass Grows all Around and Around...

2009-04-25T22:13:00.012-04:00

What a magnificent day outside today! Part of the day including planting flowers...lots of flowers. John has often commented that we should just plant ones that come back every year, but I would miss the process. Although John is definitely into landscaping, up until about two years ago, it was just me would put the flowers into the ground. Now it's a team effort! And I finally found my favorites today--my Salvias. Yes, those aren't difficult to find, but for whatever reason the Bonfire ones are a little harder to find around here. I adore those--they get to be approximately 2 feet tall; some of the other ones are only around 8 inches or so. Last year, I planted ones from the seeds I saved from the year before, but this year, I didn't get seeds started soon enough, so I bought the plants.

John also planted 4

Forsythia bushes.

(wish I had a picture of the one we had growing up--I need to ask the siblings about that)
We had one when I was growing up, and I remember the comfort of going inside the one we had--not sure how old I was, definitely young, and not sure if it was for just one season or more than one. I do know, from what mom says, it had gotten a bit out of control--but hey, that was perfect for hiding, although I'm not sure how hidden I was. But I remember liking it, and bringing all the items from nature that I collected in it with me. So, I convinced John that we needed to have some of those...problem is that that are planted in an area that is considered part of the front yard, and there is NO WAY John will let them get out of control. Oh well. Maybe, just maybe, I'll plant one somewhere in the backyard that will be

all

mine!

I miss the yard I grew up in--in CT...it was just about perfect for a child. There were 3 hills (Side note: thanks to the glaciers over 700,000 years ago, I live in flat country now) for sledding, although one of them went off a 4 or 5 foot wall onto the street. I think we only did that one a few times, and somebody was on car watch duty while the other person would go...hurt a little, but it was fun! No, mom and dad weren't aware. There were also a couple of flat areas--one often used for badminton, the other sometimes for crochet. A huge garden area, a bushy area with berries, and a wooded area perfect for climbing trees and being alone, and the best part---a steep hill that led down to a creek. We had paths on that hill, but several years after leaving home and the house no longer ours, I looked at the hill and didn't see any those supposed "paths." Oh, how fortunate I was to have parents that didn't hover over us. It was a world of "danger" and discovery.

Yards, I'm not into the whole chemically induced green grass thing. For years, I wouldn't let John use chemicals in our yard. Several years ago, I gave in, because the yard was looking a bit pathetic, so we had it "treated" for about a year. Yep, great looking yard. Yep, huge increase in the number of seizures our dog had. So we (I) stopped that.

But now, we're in this new yard (1 year in July), and with it, comes new weeds. The neighbors to the left and right of us "take care of their yards." John feels the pressure to do the same. I have a HUGE opinion about this...not happening, at least not with the standard treatments that are readily available with a quick phone call. I've started searching for environmentally friendly ways to take care of a lawn. Tips are welcome.

This is a photo of our lawn in the backyard before the first mowing of the season...I think those are pretty! But, yeah, I purposely didn't include any dandelions in the range of the camera's lens. Not a fan of those.

Randoms

2009-04-19T21:45:00.004-04:00

I went to see Chelsey today! She, her roommate, and I went out to eat at Fazoli's, then we stopped at Lowe's (bought some Forsythia's--warm memories from childhood), and then it was off to Wally World (yuk). It was a last minute plan to go see her--I really need to plan these trips better so that I can spend more time with her and do more than go shopping. BUT, she's coming home soon for the summer--yeah!--so I don't need to worry about that planning until next year. Her roommate, who was carrying my camera, got a "great" picture of me lugging Chelsey's fridge across the parking lot--don't think I need to post that. That thing was heavy, and although Chelsey is stronger than me (really), I have longer arms which I think maybe made carrying it a little easier...at least that's the theory we came up with.

Last week, Kyle and Matt went over to Kyle's Best Buddie's house for a game night (Matt's buddy also went). The boys brought along their Star Wars Battleship and Trouble...they seemed to have a great time! Once again, love the Best Buddies program!

Several weeks ago, Matt and Kyle were in the variety program at school. It was similar to what Kyle did last year--they sang with some of the members of the choir. Last year, the song (that was written at the school) was "Everyday Heroes." This year, it was "Count On Me." Matt made it ever so clear that he didn't want to do it, but like so many things, we basically said, "Tough, you're doing it anyway!" We do this, well, because in most circumstances, he ends up enjoying whatever it is that we're trying to get him to do. And this was no exception. They had 3 practices, and after the first, he was fine with it. He seemed very happy and pleased with himself after each of the 2 performances. I even think I saw his lips moving during the song! :)

And Evan, let's see...he's been jumping--a lot-- recently. His behavior in stores has also deteriorated recently. He used to thoroughly enjoy grocery shopping; the last few times, he has not been content--a little screaming, gets mad if I go a direction that he doesn't want to go, etc--maybe the "terrible twos" hitting a bit late. I'm looking forward to this summer where I will have so much one on one time with him.

Time for bed...need to get there soon because I'm predicting Evan will be up in about 4 hours...maybe crying, maybe jumping, maybe "reading"....or just maybe, he might sleep through tonight....

Cooking with Chef Matt

2009-04-04T19:17:00.005-04:00

Matt and I watched "Healthy Appetite with Ellie Krieger" this morning on the Food Network (his favorite channel). Today's episode included a white chili that looked easy, healthy, and yummy! So, the boys and I made a trip to the store to get the ingredients, and tonight, Master Chef Matt and I put it all together. It's a chili with a mild flavor, and it's good!

We left off the yogurt at the end, and I forgot to buy the cilantro :( , so walked up to mom's and borrowed some frozen cilantro. We also didn't get any limes, but I think next time, we'll add that at the end.

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/ellie-krieger/white-chili-recipe/index.html

...now I know my ABC's...

2009-04-03T22:16:00.006-04:00

Evan's vocabulary, of course, doesn't follow the standard pattern. He has said words once, maybe even for a week, and then we don't hear them anymore. There have been some words that have "stuck." One word (phrase) that has lasted the longest is "Wazsat" (what's that?)--at least a year. Kind of an odd choice due to the fact that he doesn't even say mommy or daddy. The latest word that seems to be sticking is "peaz" (please). It's cute when he says it because I had tried to teach him the sign in the beginning, and he quickly adapted his own version of it by just bringing both hands to his stomach while saying "peaz." And, he does it with such a sweet look on his face! Yeah, it works almost every time...it's usually good for for something to drink or a cracker.

Now a bit of an obsession of his--letters. He verbalizes several letters of the alphabet: A B C D E G I O P Z are clear, and for L M S, it's more like the sound of the letter. He used to watch Super Why on a regular basis; now he can't handle the stimulation and will get upset. But he still loves his Leap Frog fridge magnets and his books. Recently during a short stay in a waiting room, I didn't have anything for him, and he wasn't too happy, so I grabbed a magazine. He was content to go through this magazine with me as he took my finger to make it point at various letters as I would say them. His newest toy is a VTech alphabet toy...a favorite. And starfall.com? I don't know how long he would go on that because I'm the one who has to say "all done." He's fascinated by it. He points to the letter he wants me to click on, and then I do all the clicking....he adores it. This is where he really demonstrates his ability to recognize letters. When he points to the screen to show me which letter he wants next, he usually will say the letter. Crazy kid!

Zoo

2009-03-29T14:12:00.008-04:00

Today is the last day of spring break, and it's cold, rainy/snowy/yucky outside.

John, the boys, and I went to the zoo on Friday. We went fairly early, and it turned out to be a decent day to go. Many schools were on spring break, so there were only 3 buses there, and the forecast for a "chance of rain" in the afternoon I think kept people away. It was overcast, but actually kind of comfortable...50ish when we got there, almost 60 when we left.

This is the second time that Evan has been there; he was much younger the first time. He adores his books with animals...giraffes and elephants seem to be his favorites. He also loves water and things that splash in water. One of the first animals we saw was the polar bear---huge smile on Evan's face! He was absolutely amazed by the dolphin show; when the dolphins did an out-in-the-air trick, he would sign more and say "mo." The 15 minutes of keeping him happy while waiting for it to start was quite a workout for me (a lot of hanging him upside down), but it was well worth it.

His look on his face when he saw the giraffes was one of amazement---he didn't want to leave them---same thing when he saw the elephants.

We went on the train ride that goes around the zoo. He wasn't too happy about that. About half way through, he settled down, but it wasn't worth the effort. One doesn't see animals on this ride; it goes around the "outside"---we saw many buildings, a gas station, and his favorite, a busy road which is what actually got him to settle down.

His FAVORITE part of the zoo was seeing the dog sharks! First, he got to put his hands into the water; that was a plus....then he got to touch a "fish"--definite plus. We went there twice, and when we tried to leave, I put him down, and he ran back to it--very cute. :)

trying to get in with them

We were only there for a few hours which was enough time for him. He looked exhausted when we left. He pointed to the dvd screen in the van, so I thought, sure, watching a movie will keep him awake for the almost hour ride home. Then, he can take a nice, long nap when we get home. Well, it seemed to be working; he watched Blue's Clues, but then about 15 minutes before we got home, he started to get really dozy. I tickled the legs, put on Little Einsteins for a change in movie (which worked for a minute or two), but those eyes were so heavy! He never really fell asleep, so I thought we were good when we got home. Oh how wrong I was! He needed to "unwind," and that he did! For the first hour in his room, he was fairly quiet, but I could hear that he wasn't asleep. Then he started "calling" me, and I went in and changed a dirty diaper. I thought he was good to go. Nope, for the next hour, he was a little more active in his room; I could hear a lot of jumping. I took him into our room; he likes to put all our pillows on top of himself. He's never fallen asleep in there, but I thought it was worth a try. But no, that didn't work either. So, I brought him downstairs....around 5, and within 5 minutes, he was asleep on the floor! We let him sleep for about an hour, and thankfully, it really didn't affect his bedtime.

Kyle and Matt's day at the zoo----Kyle was the official announcer of what time it was (every 10 minutes or so); Matt seemed to enjoy it.

This was taken at the end of our trip there...I guess I was the only one who had the energy to look at the camera.

When he sleeps, he keeps his blankie around his neck...has done this since, I don't know, around 5 months.

***Yes, I gave him a haircut recently, and yes, it was an awful experience.***

Thomas the Tank Engine on YouTube

2009-03-07T21:52:00.003-05:00

Kyle has been on Thomas fan for, well, his entire life. One activity that he enjoys is telling stories as I typed them out for him. He'll take characters from a variety of shows (trains play big roles), and combine them into his own story. For several years, he has been asking for "Bill and Ben go into the Spooky Forrest." As far as I know, there is no such video.

Another thing he likes to do on the computer is search for train videos for purchase. He was doing this the other day, and somehow, he stumbled upon YouTube. And what did he find there? Homemade Thomas videos! Some of them are quite simple...people video tape their Thomas trains going around the track in their living room. Some of them, are a bit more advanced. I've been keeping a close eye making sure everything stays appropriate.

One of the first ones I saw him watching had the freight trains pushing Thomas off a cliff, and then Harold dropped a bomb on him! Kyle thought it was hilarious. One of the ones he was watching today (8 minutes long) was a romance...it was quite cute, and it reminded me so much of the type of story Kyle would write. I will definitely have to keep a close watch on this, but so far, it's exactly what he's been hoping for; he's even asked if we could "buy the dvd" for some of them. Thanks to the people taking the time to make these new episodes!

On the subject of shows, a show he's been watching lately is Popeye. Recently, I brought home some spinach in a bag (for our salads and sandwiches). As he was helping me put away groceries, he said, "Mm, spinach, I'll take some." Okay, this boy doesn't even eat salads. I gave him one leaf and expected him to chew it and make a weird face. No, he ate it and asked for more--he ended up having a whole bowl of it! The next day, he had a bowl of chips and spinach mixed together. Funny kid.

Big Boy Bed!

2009-03-03T21:30:00.003-05:00

We did it! This weekend, Evan's time in a crib came to an end. Even though he is no older than if he was still in a crib, he seems like such a big boy.

After his nap on Sunday, John made the transformation happen while Evan was downstairs. That evening, I told him that we had something exciting to show him in his room. He climbed up the stairs as we followed behind. I was a bit concerned that he wouldn't be too happy with what had happened. Nope. He walked into his room, looked at his "big boy bed" for a couple of seconds, and then turned to us with the biggest grin on his face! I know he was thinking, "This is sooo cool!" He then practiced getting in and out of bed several times.

It's gone well so far; really no different than it had been for the past couple of weeks with him climbing out of his crib. At least this way, he can get back in bed much easier than he could the crib. So even if he does get out to play (and he usually goes for his musical toy--not really hiding the fact that he's out of bed), he can get right back in on his own, or when I go in and say, "Get back into bed!"

Accomplished Crib Climber

2009-02-26T08:48:00.003-05:00

A few months ago, Evan fell out of his crib and hit the floor hard! He didn't attempt that again for quite a while. Quite a while is over. He now can get in and out of his crib with speed and accuracy. Last night for about an hour, he did the old "keep getting out of the crib no matter how many times they put me back in." He was so proud of himself (so was I!). John finally laid down the law (very stern voice--meany), Evan cried for a minute, but, he stayed put in his crib!

It's hard sometimes for me to be strict in situations like this; it's nice to see him accomplishing something! Yes, he's way overdue for the transition from crib to toddler bed --this weekend. I think we may need to pull out the instructions on how to change the crib to a bed.

Crash

2009-01-29T20:55:00.000-05:00

Kyle and Matt's bus was rear-ended this morning...again! This happened about a year ago, although at that time, it was only Kyle on because Matt was in middle school.

I had backed my van out of the garage so that it could warm up. When I got out, I heard sirens, and, me, being the paranoid person that I am, did think that it could possibly be their bus--really, I did.

A few minutes after I came inside, I got a call from the secretary at the school where I work. She told me about the situation and said that they would cover my class while I went to the hospital. It's the rule here: if the special ed. bus gets into an accident, the children must be checked out at the hospital.

I arrived at the hospital before they did, and was relieved to see that they brought the students (5, I think) on a bus. In the last accident, they had Kyle strapped into an ambulance when I arrived at the scene.

The boys strolled in, nervous, but okay. The people working with them did an outstanding job of keeping them calm. We went to a room, along with 2 other students and their two teachers. There, they took vitals. Well, first, they asked if the boys would put on the wrist bans...somebody gave them a little background about the boys...maybe the school's police liaison, he knows about them. As I was saying Matt would not want that on, he spoke up and made it quite clear that he was not going to wear that! So I got to hold his, and they put Kyle's on him. He was concerned about it interfering with his watch, but other than that he was good with it. :)

They took Kyle's vitals first...blood pressure: 120 over 60. Kyle is so much like John. I don't know how often the words Fragile X and "laid back" are used together, but that describes Kyle. It's interesting, because yes, he still gets quite anxious when confronted with uncomfortable situations, but since he has gotten older, he does everything he can to "deal with it." When John was in an accident about 5 years ago (the other driver passed away...accident wasn't John's fault), they asked me in the hospital if he was always that calm. I think they thought he might be in shock, but I assured them that that was just him! Then there's Matt. When they went to put the cuff on his arm, he pulled his hat over his face and was extremely frustrated. His blood pressure: 182 over 112!! I don't think I could make mine go that high if I tried. They then moved us to another room so he could relax. The doctor came in to do a quick check. He was very friendly and interacted really well with the boys. They check Matt's blood pressure again, and she said it was better, although she didn't say what the numbers were.

The teachers and the superintendent asked if the boys were going to go to school or stay home. It was already a 2 hour delay, and the teacher assured me that they wouldn't be missing much. I asked the boys, and they thought that staying home was a mighty fine idea. Well, actually, they stayed at Grandma and Grandpa's.

Although this is bus accident number 2, I'm very thankful that both were so minor.

Snow Day

2009-01-28T13:45:00.005-05:00

Another snow day

Going for a walk seemed like such a good idea-- we have all this snow, the sun is shining, and it's not windy out. Should I have taken into consideration the fact that it was so close to his nap time, and he was already a bit cranky? Maybe.

So, I took the sled out so that I could pull him; he wanted nothing to do with that. Plan B: I let him walk. All was going well. We walked up our street with the intention of stopping near the top, and then turning around to walk back down, stopping at my parents to pick up some yummy, homemade soup, and return home to eat it! At least, those were my intentions--not Evan's. When we got to the "turn around point," he made it quite clear that turning around was not a good idea. As a matter of fact, he believed it to be a very bad idea.

I should have known; he never wants to turn around when we walk in nice weather, so why did I think today would be any different? So, I carried/dragged him down the street, briefly stopping at my parents' house to pick up the soup (definitely not happy about stopping), and returned home. I gave him the opportunity to "play" outside at home, but he only wanted to go for a walk...which wasn't going to happen.
Soon after this shot, I put him down for his nap. He thought that was a good idea... and so did I.

This and That

2009-01-10T15:16:00.007-05:00

Not knowing about the boys' diagnosis until Kyle was almost three had its benefits...I didn't analyze every little thing that they did.

With Evan, I frequently try to compare him to the older two, but it's kind of tricky, because I really didn't keep track of their development--I know the major milestones, but it's all the "other things" that I wonder about.

Here's one thing that I don't remember the boys doing: While humming, Evan will turn his head quickly side to side as if he were watching a fly going back and forth in front of him. This is definitely a "zoned out" time. Kyle used to hum and very infrequently still does, but we didn't get the rapid head turning to go along with it.

Hand-flapping--right now, I think the only time he does it is while watching TV, and he gets some air under those feet while doing it. I wonder if, or should I say, when, he will flap about other things? I wonder what would happen if we never watched anymore TV? Kyle still flaps occasionally; Matt has always been a wrist-twister, but once again, it's just about always when they are watching TV, although Kyle used to do it for anything that made him nervous or excited.

And crib jumping? I don't know what happened, but for the past 3 weeks, there has been, like, none. We went from 45 minutes before bed, 45 minutes during the night (at least), to suddenly none. We'll see if that last. I really think the fact that I was home for 2 weeks contributed to the sudden halt--he stopped on day 3 of vacation--but we'll see.

Oh yes, it's a cloudy, cold, dreary day. My mind is wandering. Speaking of the weather--the title of my blog: Sunny Day. Where did that come from? What is the deep meaning behind it? Drum roll-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.----The sun was shining the day I started my blog, and while racking my brain trying to come up with a title, the fact that the sun was hitting the floor by the computer caught my eye. I didn't start the whole blog thing with the intention of "meeting" other people. I started because I have a teen-aged daughter who was always on the computer! At the time, she frequently blogged (now Facebook is more "her thing"--so I'm there now, too!), and I wanted to join her world--or just bug her a little--I really didn't intend on doing much with it (hence, the 6 months between my first post and the second). It was when I was doing an FX search and stumbled upon Fragilemom's blog that I thought, "Wow, cool, there are people out there that I can relate to!"

Sunny Day--sometimes I think I'll change the title, but really, I do like sunny days, and yes, my kids are my "little sunshines"--for years, I sang "You Are My Sunshine" to Kyle at bedtime-- so I don't know. Maybe on another day when my mind is wandering again I'll change it.

(Yes, the other kids had their songs, too. Matt's was the "I Love You" song from Barney, Chelsey's was "Somewhere Over the Rainbow," and Evan, well, I have a song that I made up, but it's not a nightly thing...how sad).

Okay, just a little more. Back to "You Are My Sunshine." I sang that song to Kyle for YEARS. I remember when he got older, and he got some creativity going, he would change the words. I would stop during the song so that he would say the word that went next. To spice things up, he would put a completely different word in (I think because he knew it would make me laugh). My favorite was when I would sing "When skies are..." and he would say quite dramatically, "Vanished!" or "Vanished, Out of Here!" Oh, how I wish I had blogged back then (or at least kept a journal).

Going Out To Eat

2009-01-04T14:00:00.003-05:00

Recently, we haven't been doing much eating out as a family--I can't remember the last time, probably a month or two ago. Before Evan was born, it was a frequent event, usually to the same two places.

Early yesterday evening, we went out to kind of put a closing on the end of our vacation ): We went to Texas Roadhouse--the boys had never been there before. When we got there, it was packed! We waited at least 20 minutes in an area where there were probably 20 other people, and the place was L-O-U-D. As I sat there keeping Evan entertained, I couldn't help but feel so proud of the boys. They were just hanging out, like everyone else, not a single complaint, and nothing that made them stand out from anyone else. It truly was a beautiful moment. It's not that it matters when they do stand out from others, it's just nice to have those moments sometimes when we fit in with the crowd.

It just got better as the evening went on. Evan sometimes gets impatient when sitting in a restaurant, although, like I said, it's been a while. Last night, though, he was "perfect."

Ah, what a great night.

A New Football Fan

2009-01-04T13:33:00.006-05:00

Last night, the Colts lost. Usually, in this situation, I would have been a bit down. But last night, I was laughing so hard, I had tears in my eyes!

Rewind:

Last week, Kyle was announcing for a couple of days that the Chargers were playing against the Broncos. Funny thing is, he doesn't even watch football; he just likes to look ahead on the TV schedule to see what's on, and this caught his eye. All day before the game, he was declaring that the Broncos were going to win. Matt, being Mr. Opposite, announced that it was the Chargers who were going to win. Again, he wasn't a football watcher either, but like Kyle, he said he was going to watch the game--a night game. Watching this game would require that they stay up beyond their usually 9:00.

Like expected, around 9:00, Kyle said, "Well, good-night." Matt, though, made it clear that he would be watching the game. Kyle wasn't too pleased with his decision, but he went to bed anyway.

The game was pretty much a blow-out with the Chargers winning, and Matt watched the whole game. It wasn't over until around 11:30. He was very happy, and when he went to bed, he made sure he woke up Kyle to tell him the "good news."

Part Two:

Last night, it was the Chargers against the Colts. Staying true to form, Matt was rooting for the Chargers all week, even though we live in Colts land. Yesterday, every other sentence was about how the Chargers were going to beat the Colts. Midway through the day, he brought down this small wooden box from his bedroom ("he" made it at school), and in this box was his 20 dollar bill from Christmas. He went around to family members and asked them how much they wanted to bet!! Now, this sort of thing isn't something that we've promoted--I don't know where that came from, but it was kind of humorous. We played along. I threw in some quarters, I gave Kyle a one to throw in, and John added his money. Chelsey, on principle, didn't participate. Good girl, Chelsey.

Game time:

He was so excited for most of the game. Granted, he didn't understand much of it, because I don't think he's ever watch an entire game on TV--he did go to a high school game once. But I made sure I made it clear when I was disappointed with events--such as when a call was against the Colts, that way, he knew that he could be excited! He of course understood obvious things like a good run, a good pass, being tackled, field goals, and touch-downs.

In overtime, the Colts lost (or should I say, they gave the game to the Chargers). What a heart breaker. But there was Matt, arms raised in the air, shouting his words of victory, and just as quickly, scooping up his box and heading upstairs. Poor Kyle, Matt just had to fill him in. He went on, and on, and on (it was quite humorous; John and I were cracking up), until we finally went in to tell him to get to sleep.

He's already picked a team for today's game--go Eagles!

And boy, I sure hope those Chargers win it all!

Happy New Year!

2008-12-31T19:20:00.011-05:00

It's New Year's Eve, and here we are at home, which is where we always are for this occasion. Well, everyone is here except Chelsey; she's staying at a friend's house tonight.

John and Matt are playing golf on the PS2, and Evan is loving it. Kyle is watching TV--we're getting ready for Shrek 2 in a little bit. He of course has that on DVD, but it's a little more special when it's on TV (**quick edit--yes, we're watching Shrek--along with 3 or 4 other shows!). Right now, he's chatting about his trains and Scooby Doo characters. I love the way he combines characters from different shows to create his own episode of a unique show. And the voices are usually right on--his version of Daphne's voice is quite humorous.

I'm, obviously, on the computer, but I plan to head to the kitchen soon to clean up the mess we created. Chelsey and I created a quick dessert for her evening, and then I attempted to make tonight's dinner a little different for our "celebration," so we had a variety of items, which means a variety of a mess.

It's hard to believe there are only 4 more days left of vacation. Actually, that's how many days before I "have" to go back to school, but in reality, I have sooo much to do before then (grade an enormous amount of papers (procrastination) and prepare for next week). Next year, I'll definitely remember to not do something the final week before vacation that will leave me with a lot to grade.

We've been playing the Stars Wars Battleship game quite a bit--the boys like it. There are 4 different missions. The first 3 are similar to basic Battleship, except one doesn't sink ships; they're neutralized and destroyed! We've been playing the 1st mission which is identical to the Battleship we all know. I'm not sure we'll ever make it to the 4th level--advanced. There are extra buttons and blue pieces that go along with that level. The first time we played, it was John and Matt against Kyle and me. Since then, Kyle and Matt have been battling each other, and I serve as a neutral coach. My job is to help them enter the coordinates after they set up their fleets and ensure that they are entering the correct coordinates throughout the game--Matt seems to have trouble seeing some of them; they are hard to see (don't know why they have to make them transparent), but it makes me wonder if his prescription for his glasses needs to be changed a bit. I'm thinking of putting stickers with the coordinates on top of the plastic. I also will occasionally point out things like how there is no way a ship can be hiding in a spot that is surrounded by 4 white pegs! Overall, they do fairly well with it; they'll be ready to play independently very soon. It's a lengthy game for us--I watched the clock today--it took a little more than an hour, and they do quite well with it, but it's a long time for the coach!

Forget the kitchen; Shrek is on!

Christmas pictures

2008-12-26T17:00:00.000-05:00

The Christmas card picture

Evan's favorite gift

Evan adores giraffes, but like other stuffed animals, he wouldn't touch this one. He did, though, give it many kisses.

Kyle has been wanting Electronic Battleship for a few years. This is Star Wars Electronic Battleship! We haven't played yet; the directions are rather lengthy.

Matt and Kyle checking out Kyle's new digital watch. Digital watches for the boys are sort of a Christmas tradition.

Matt likes to post signs on his door. This DO NOT ENTER sign flashes.

Evan seems to like the barn so far, although he doesn't care for it when we turn the sound on...we'll give him some time before we try that again.

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Chelsey, Kyle, and I went to Lafayette today so that Chelsey could exchange something. Kyle's mission was to try and find a PlayStation 2 game that he has been wanting for quite a while. I didn't get it for him for Christmas, because I couldn't find it. So today we first checked at Meijer, then Target, then K-Mart, then Best Buy, then Game Stop in the mall, and finally, a Game Stop next to Wal-Mart; except for the last stop, all these places required getting back in the van. Both of the Game Stops were packed, but at the second one, someone actually asked us if we needed help. I told him that we were looking for Lego Star Wars: The Complete Saga for PS2. He kindly went and checked on the computer and came back and told us it didn't look like it had been made for PS2!!! After all that searching! Needless to say, Kyle, who had been demonstrating extreme patience, was disappointed. We went to Wal-Mart and bought Shark Tale. Amazingly, he didn't have that movie yet, and it was relatively inexpensive.

Evan Watching Blake's Video

2008-12-24T13:05:00.010-05:00

Evan and I watched the video that Kristie posted of Blake (go to her site and check it out--very cute). After watching it, oh, I don't know, 25 times, I decided to video Evan watching it; he appreciated the entertainment! His favorite part is when Blake says "train."

Thanks for the free entertainment, Blake!

The Christmas Picture

2008-12-21T20:41:00.004-05:00

Nothing like waiting to the last minute! Every year, I take a picture of the kids for our Christmas cards. Before digital cameras, I would buy a role of film and use the entire role trying to get one good shot. In the past, it was kind of tricky getting both Kyle and Matt smiling and looking at the camera at the SAME TIME. Chelsley has always been really good at just holding her smile throughout the entire photo session.

Matt has gotten much better, but Kyle, he still needs to work on it. He tries so hard, he really does, but that's part of the problem--he tries too hard. Tell him to smile, and he'll usually give some cheesy smile and his eyes will be closed tightly. Tell him to open his eyes and as he's straining to open them, his mouth also opens. He concentrates too much on what his face is supposed to be doing. It works best if we just try to make him laugh.

Because of Chelsey being away at college, getting a picture this year hasn't been very easy. When she is home, she sleeps in fairly late, and by the time she's up and "ready," it's just about time for Evan's nap.

So I decided that it had to be done today. Due to the fact that it was 2 degrees out today with a windchill of around -20, the picture had to be taken inside. Not a big fan of indoor pictures.

Evan did a good job...John just kept saying the latest expressions that Evan thinks are hilarious--"You did great!" "You did fantastic!" and "You did wonderful!" Even with that, he still was a bit squirmy.

After about 30 takes, I think we got something, but I'm not thrilled with it. The boys were willing to keep trying, but Chelsey thought that the ones we had were "fine" and decided that she was no longer going to participate. Hmm.

I then uploaded the pictures to Wally World for one hour development. Just as I was getting ready to head out the door to pick them up, I get a call from them saying that their machine wasn't working, and it would probably be sometime tomorrow afternoon before the pictures would be developed! I told them to cancel the order (I might try to squeeze in another session tomorrow)! Our cards will not be reaching their destinations by Christmas. Oh well. It's nice to make it last a little longer!

Big Boy Toy

2008-12-14T20:14:00.003-05:00

Hanging with Ky

2008-12-12T22:21:00.002-05:00

When I got home today, Kyle came up to me with a question that he and John had rehearsed; it was asked in a very formal manner, but basically, he wanted to know if I would go to the basketball game with him. The thought of heading out in this freezing weather wasn't very appealing, but I do like going to games. It cracks me up that he now enjoys doing things like that. When he was younger, that was pure torture for him...and us.

After Chelsey graduated, I thought that my game days were pretty much over. It's not that I went to a lot--she didn't play high school sports--except soccer her sophomore year. She did, though, play in the pep band, was on the dance team her senior year, and sang the National Anthem a couple of times. In elem. and middle school, she played v-ball. She decided not to play in high school...ouch.

I'm very competitive---it hurts to lose. I played b-ball in Jr high through my sophomore year and v-ball all four years in high school. In v-ball...we were good. We lost the state championship our JR year, but won our SR year. The year that we lost, oh, the pain on the bus ride home. We listened to the song "Yesterday" by the Beatles on the long trip home as we shed our tears...how pathetic.

Back to the game--it was great! We led the entire game--that is until the final buzzer. With 2 seconds left, the score tied, the other team brought in the ball from under our basket, a kid threw the ball from around the foul line all the way down to the other end of the court, and it was one of those golden moments. It's just too bad it wasn't for us. I think I saw the mother of the kid who made the shot...some woman had her hand over her mouth, another woman was hugging her...I was happy for her.

Kyle looked tired and was yawning during the 4Th quarter. It was, after all, after 8:30! He was fairly quiet during the game, just kind of taking it in. At one point, when the score was low, he was relating the score numbers to different levels on his Star Wars PlayStation game. There's a girls game tomorrow night, but I'm not sure if he'll be up to going 2 nights in a row.

Oh no, not the Play-Doh!

2008-11-24T20:58:00.006-05:00

Last week, my mom told me that Evan was gagging when the therapist took out the Play-Doh. I wasn't sure if it was a coincidence or not, because it's been several months since I've given him any (and wasn't interested at the time).

Tonight, his other therapist was here, and all was merry until she opened the Play-Doh container. He immediately started to gag. She tried to get him to touch it, but quickly put it away when she learned that he wasn't going to stop gagging.

Funny kid. He reminded me of a boy who had Cerebral Palsy who I worked with last year in the Lifeskills class. He reacted that way to Play-Doh and shaving cream.

He ALSO reminded me of Kyle, although I don't think Play-Doh was ever an issue for him. For Kyle, the first gag item was broccoli. I was very insistent that the boys ate a variety of foods, which they do, but broccoli is one thing that I quickly gave up on with Kyle. When he was around 3, I put his lunch in front of him (which included broccoli), and within seconds, he vomited all over his plate. When he was in elementary school, they had to careful on the days that they were serving it. That one has gotten better, although he still doesn't eat it, but one food item that has stuck is pickles. Kind of ironic, because Matt loves pickles. He'll eat them on anything. Ex.: He mixes them into cottage cheese.

When Kyle is at the grocery store with me, we inevitably have to pass by the aisle with the pickles, and they start at the end of the aisle. Gagging, eyes watering, face turning red is what one will usually see. We try to make it by there quickly, but once he starts, he's never quite the same during that trip--on edge. He doesn't go to the store too often with me, but it helps if we don't go down that aisle and pass it on the opposite end.

When we get fast food, I often don't bother ordering his burgers without the pickle, I guess partly because I think it's better if he learns to "deal with it," (on gentle terms). So, when I take his burger out of bag, he knows to turn around while I take the pickle off.

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When Evan's therapist left this evening, he did his usually floppy arm wave good-bye. BUT, he also said, "bye." That was a first. When he was much younger, at least a year ago, he would sometimes say something like "buh."

Before his therapist arrived tonight, he was looking at the title of his snowman book and said, "Waszat?" while pointing to the letter 'm.' He them made the 'm' sound!

Might As Well Jump!

2008-11-18T22:10:00.005-05:00

Jumping, that's what Evan is doing right now in his crib. It's what he almost always does before going to sleep. It can last up to 45 minutes! A while back, I posted about the sleeping habits of the older two. There was a KEY sentence in that post---"I'll talk about Kyle and Matt's...Evan's is a little different."

A little different...first, he took 10-20 minute naps when he was an infant. But, at a few months old, he was sleeping through the night. Ah yes, right on schedule. Then, when he was 6 months old, we went to Florida for a week. The first 2 nights, he slept through the night. After that, life hasn't been the same.

I've tried the technique of letting him cry...it worked for the other three, but it's doesn't have a very big impact on Evan. Part of the problem may be that because I'm working, I feel a little guilty and give in a little easier. And then sometimes I think that he's just getting back at me for working, because over the summer when I was home for about a month, his sleeping habits improved.

It does seem, though, to help a little after I let him cry it out. Usually the next night is a little better. Actually, the past couple of weeks haven't been too bad. I think he slept through the past 2 nights. A couple of months ago, he was getting up 2 or 3 times during the night...usually right after I fell back asleep.

The funny thing is that recently (with the exception of the last 2 nights), he's been waking up around 3 and happily jumping in his crib! A part of me says I should go in and tell him to stop, but the other part says, ' Well, at least he's happy.' I don't know what's going to happen when we put him in a bed.

But, you know, I really think we might be on a roll now with those 2 nights in a row...hmmm...I'm off to bed...

Wordle

2008-11-15T19:38:00.005-05:00

Click on the picture

www.wordle.net

B-ball and New Words

2008-11-08T21:23:00.009-05:00

The boys are growing up! Tonight, they went to a Pacers game with their Best Buddies! I've never even been to a Pacer game.

One of the buddies called earlier in the week and said that the B. B. program had been given 4 tickets to the game, and I'm not sure how it was decided who would get the tickets, but somehow, they ended up with Kyle and Matt and their buddies.

I was a little apprehensive at first; the thought of them in a car with a teenager driver, all the way to Indy (45 minutes), yikes. One of the buddies just called and said that they were leaving now...the Pacers won.

I gave the boys each a disposable camera. They have almost no experience with cameras, so the outcomes should be interesting. Matt was very excited about the camera; he started taking pictures right away--like when the girls pulled in.

It's just so incredible. Ten years ago (or even less), I never would have imagined that they would be doing something like this. Two kids who did not do well in crowded places with us...now EXCITED about going to a NBA game with peers. Wow.

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Evan has been on a role with vocabulary recently. Although he has been saying words since around 11 months, nothing ever "stuck," and it was completely unpredictable when we would get to hear a word. But now, he's saying things and then repeating them kind of "on command!" Examples that I can think of right now: affe (giraffe), owl (how random is that one), pig, Gigi (our dog), ball, ish (fish), leaf, keys, bus, dog, wazsat (what's that), bee, and (eep) sleep. The "sleep" is funny. He saves it for Grandma's and Grandpa's house. When I drop him off, he immediately says to my dad, "eep," and then laughs. They make a big game out of it. Along with those words, he's also making much more effort with sounds in general. Whenever he sees a swimming pool or any other large body of water on tv, he says with enthusiasm something that sounds like "bath," kind of like "wath," but really, he's saying "splash!" His signing of "all done" and "more" have been very consistent, also.

He also seems more content recently. Chelsey was home today, and she decided to make a cake (a very, um, sad looking cake---you know it, Chel). He didn't cry when she had the beaters on! That's highly unusual. Also, when I went shopping today, I asked him if he wanted to go with me (he always does), but today, he just watched me leave, and DIDN'T COMPLAIN!

What a day! My boys seem like they are making huge gains all in one day!

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****UPDATE****

Kyle and Matt are home, and they had a good time! The buddies did, though, comment that they seemed to be getting a bit tired near the end. They really like their nine o'clock bedtime!

The buddies also told me that some woman was rude to Kyle! Both Kyle and Matt took a lot of pictures---they used up all 27 on their roles. I guess after Kyle was finished taking pictures, he was playing with the rewind thing. The girls both said that they didn't even notice that he was doing it. A woman who was sitting two rows in front of them came back and rudely told him to stop (according to the girls). The buddy tried to explain that "he didn't mean anything by it" (interpreted--he didn't mean to be rude, unlike the woman).

Ugh. Some people.

I Was Wrong!

2008-11-02T15:06:00.009-05:00

In the previous post, I predetermined that trick-or-treating with Evan would not be successful....I was wrong.

First of all, I think part of the success of the evening was due to the fact that I didn't have high expectations; I wasn't even sure that I was going to put a costume on him.

It all began in the late afternoon. For whatever reason, it hadn't even crossed my mind that we still "needed" to carve our pumpkins; I think Matt mentioned it. So, we brought them in and cut into them. Kyle willingly participated---it's never been a favorite activity of his; Matt has ALWAYS been into it. The picture pretty much explains their pumpkin gutting techniques.

True to form, Kyle chose for his pumpkin to have a happy face.

We turned on our porch light, lit the pumpkins, and waited with lots of candy. Unfortunately, our street doesn't attract a big crowd; okay, it doesn't attract any type of crowd. Our only visitors of the evening were relatives. When spiderman showed up, Evan immediately touched his costume; I think he liked the fabric. I then started thinking, 'Oh man, why didn't I get him all dressed up? Why didn't we go downtown? He would have loved seeing all the costumes!' Within seconds, he was crying big tears because of the hooded mask--that made me feel a little less guilty!

After that, I decided to go ahead and put the clown outfit leftover from when Matt was little. It something I had made---odd choice of material, but Matt was my 'little porkchop,' because he was porkier than the other two! Evan accepted the outfit with ease. I then decided that I might as well give it a try! With pumpkin basket in hand, we walked up to my parents house. Because it wasn't 7 in the morning, Evan balked a bit. But, we made it in the door and got a cookie---he liked that. After a few minutes there, we headed out the door. There was one house (not including ours) that had a porch light on. Should I? Hey, why not! We headed over to the house, and 5 feet from the door, he started pulling away. Luckily, the people could see us, and the man brought the candy basket out to us. Evan, to my surprise, acted like an old pro! Due to the fact that we have little to no business on this street, the man encouraged Evan to keep on taking more---which he happily did! Yay!

I was then a bit disappointed that more lights weren't on, but probably, it was for the best. I went home feeling so happy!

After we walked through the door, Evan plopped down in the entrance, and proceeded to take out each piece of candy. He then put each piece back in the bucket. This went on for a while. I tried to get him to take a bite of the chocolate, but he didn't want anything to do with it. He did, though, eat a few of the Smarties.

Chelsey then taught him a fun game called, "Shake, shake, shake!" How to play? One takes a package of candy, such as Skittles or Dots, and shakes package while saying "shake, shake, shake!" He was quite amused.

Soon after, he went into the living room, and I took off his costume. John then taught him another Halloween game called "Toss the candy in the basket." Rules of game: Evan removes a piece of candy from basket, brings it to daddy, and daddy tries to throw it in the basket. Although a made basket is acceptable, it is much more entertaining when daddy misses and says, "Missed!"

(clothes wet from lemonade)

Happy Halloween!

2008-10-31T15:52:00.007-04:00

This year, it doesn't look like any of the kids will be dressing up, so I've put on photos from years past. First, a little of our history of Halloween. In one word--"torture." When the boys were younger, I wanted so badly to have an enjoyable time trick-or-treating with my kids. No. Until the year of the Pirates, they would end up in tears or would just plain "lose it" by the end. I don't know, maybe one of the years of the Ghosts (we did that one 2 years in a row) may have gone alright. It just wasn't there thing. And it took me a few years to accept that. Actually, after they got too old to go out, they expressed a little interest in dressing up; well, at least Kyle did. Matt, no. He does, though, thoroughly enjoy having people come to our house, but unfortunately, with our "trick-or-treating on the square" (area around the courthouse), we usually don't have too many people come to the house.

Last year, Kyle went to a Halloween party with Best Buddies----and LOVED it! He was "salt." I know I have that picture somewhere around here, but I'm not sure where at the moment.

I may put a leftover clown costume on Evan tonight just to get a picture, but it would be very pointless to take him out. A.---He doesn't know what candy is. B.---I kind of want to be here for the trick-or-treaters. C.----The most important reason.....he wouldn't like it one bit. Why torture him so that he can get of bagful of stuff that he wouldn't be eating? Maybe next year.

I kind of wish that I made something for the boys just to wear around here, but time got away. Next year.

These are pictures of pictures...the scanner isn't hooked up at the moment...hasn't been since we moved here!

Best Buddies

2008-10-17T21:49:00.006-04:00

Kyle and Matt went out to eat with their Best Buddies. I was going to drop them off to meet their buddies, buy Kyle insisted that his buddy pick him up (which she had already offered to do). So, I drove Matt and his buddy (the other buddy brought her to our house when she picked Kyle up). Matt, who made it quite clear that he didn't want to go, was a chatter-box all the way there. They both seemed to have a really good time. I'm very thankful for the program!