Today is our first day of vacation and it's a wet one! We decided to take the kids to the Jelly Belly Factory in Fairfield as Matt is the only one in our family who has been there. Apparently, every other school in the greater Fairfield area decided to go today also. right. when. we. got. there. So.... A typical 15 minute wait (per the website) was a 90 minute wait for the 40 minute tour. The kids actually held it together very well and really enjoyed the tour, too! Now they have their new jelly belly pens and notebooks and we are heading to lunch. A very late lunch, but so worth it... Mary's Pizza Shack ~ yum!
May 27, 2010
May 25, 2010
I'll have a beer...
Tonight Matt, Ella and I went to Paesanos for dinner. Ella loved it! It was a "special" dinner because it was just the three of us, so she got to order a beer. A root beer in a bottle, that is :). Abe is out of school now (his last day was Monday), however, Matt's and my last day of school isn't until tomorrow. Abe is spending the night with Aunt Kaary and Aunt Kim so we are able to do promotion tomorrow without worrying about the now big 2nd grader, so tonight was one of the VERY few nights we have with just one kid... So we let 'em live it up. With a beer!
May 20, 2010
Pirates and Tightrope Walkers
That's the clientele in our home this morning... Ella's a pirate (just dress up, of course :) and Abe is gearing up for his big performance in the Markofer 1st Grade Circus as a tightrope walker this morning. It's amazing how much more relaxed the morning is when Matt and I aren't rushing to get work ourselves (we both took half days ~ yay!)
May 16, 2010
Strategies
I know I've been gone. For a long time. Sorry. It's what I do. My pattern. There are many reasons why, however, I'm posting from my phone right now so I'm not going into any of them. Abe is starting OT (occupational therapy). He has some "official" diagnoses now, which I'll explain later... Anyway, sensory integration is going to be B-I-G for Abe. We met with Carolyn (his OT & our close friend) last week and the next morning I woke up while Abe was still sleeping and this note was written in his journal on his bottom bunk ~ translation ~ "ask for a bear hug it makes you down". I seriously love this kid. So. Flipping. Much.
February 09, 2010
Fro Yo!
So today after school we went to get some frozen yogurt. Matt's and my tummies have been a little edgy the last couple of days and they say yogurts good for digestion, right?!?! I think this might end up being dinner.
February 08, 2010
did you get my letter?
Ok, so this isn't the best picture but it gets the point across. Saturday morning we went shopping for the kids class Valentines'. This year, it's required for Abe to write each students' name as well as his own to participate in their 'party'. Last year it took an act of God (and a couple grey gooses on the rocks) to get through just writing his name 25 times ~ we did it over the span of 4 days. This year, both kids became very excited when they saw these kitten and puppy valentines that came in an actual MAILBOX!!! I was a bit worried that they would cause more heartache than anything, but we got them anyway. We were gone the rest of Saturday, so they weren't able to open them...
Sunday morning.
7am.
Abe: "Mommy?"
Me: "Are you kidding? Why are you awake?"
Abe: "Can I open my mailbox now?"
Me: begrudgingly, "I'm coming."
So we opened that bad boy up. Abe was AMPED! by 7:40am he had written all of his classmates first names AND signed them...ALL. It is amazing what motivation will do for a kid. Ella on the other hand has written a few "Ella"s and doesn't want any help writing 'friend' on all of them..."I'll just sound it out" she says. We'll see about that.
Now...the mailboxes are hung by doors and the last 36 hours (with the exception of sleeping hours) this place has been a mail room. It is amazing how much mail they are getting. Aunt Kaary was here yesterday and she had to log a few hours of card making herself. Abe is really loving getting mail and is really reading it all! He is even reading Ella's to her ~ quite cute.
February 05, 2010
roller coaster
sometimes in the quiet moments of my mind (of which these are pretty few and far between) i am able to find time to be truly grateful for what i have. mostly, my amazing husband and every confusing children. the range of emotions that i cruise throughout the day, i believe, are much higher and lower than the average person. now, i'll never know if this is true for sure, as i can not ever really know what others feel, but i really believe it is true. for better or worse, i have appeared to pass this on to my children. it is hard to control when you are young and there are some (ok, many!) days that it is still difficult for me to find a balance, or middle ground to rest on. i am sometimes sad and guilt ridden that i have passed on what often seems to be a curse. however, right now, for this moment alone, i am content. i am happy to know that my kids feel deeply. they love without boundaries and can feel despair in the bottom of their souls. i hope that they learn to harness this gift, as i call it right now, and find a way to surf the emotions that come along with it. that they will cry and laugh harder than others, but at the end of the day, find the peace and beauty that comes with it. i hope.
January 30, 2010
anxiety
I've been pretty quiet these days due to the fact that I am just trying to make it through each day. I continue to LOVE my husband and kids and I am grateful each and every day for our health and family cohesiveness. However, we are going through a lot right now. My father-in-law continues to be on hospice and it is a day to day battle for both he and my mother-in-law. None of us know quite how he does it or how Ginny does it either. Caring for someone who is terminally ill 24 hours a day is no small task. Matt is gone from our family 2-4 nights / days a week, which we 100% support, but it is really taking its toll on our kids. Ella has taken to crying pretty inconsolably at night when he isn't here and when he is here she is literally holding on to his leg or his hand and follows him everywhere asking constantly, "You awen't gunna leabe tonight, awe you daddy?" (That's will Ella's accent...). Abe is a whole different story.
On Thursday Abe will be starting a long awaited assessment period with a private educational psychologist, Mary Gwaltney. Abe is quite a puzzle to Matt and I. We come to this parenting gig with a whole set of skills that most parents don't have due to our background in Special Education. Our skill sets are not enough to help this little man. We think he may have an anxiety disorder. He is a ball of worry and tears most of the time. Change in routine sends our worlds a-spin. Recently, especially with Matt being gone, his worry has been turning to rage and dealing with rage fits is an experience I hope no one ever has to discover. It is absolutely heartbreaking to watch your sweet boy turn into an outraged, out of control, hitting, kicking, throwing super powered kid. IT.IS.HORRIBLE. So... we have 3 days of testing set up in the next 2 weeks. Thank goodness Matt and I go off track on Wednesday. This usually makes Abe's life a bit less stressful as we are home and tend to be more relaxed ~ however it does bring on different stresses like us being at and then leaving school, which is usually pretty messy. Anyway, we are hoping by the end of February to have some answers (and I'm sure new questions) about our little boy and how we can make this big thing called life work for him. This has truly been the most heartbreaking and emotionally draining on-going situation I've ever dealt with. Thank god for Matt who assures me daily that it might not be okay today and it might not be okay tomorrow, but it will ultimately be okay. I don't know where this family would be without Matt and his calming force. Probably all in a looney bin at this point!
So, these are a couple of reasons that I've been pretty quiet lately. Things are pretty rough right now, but I know that at some point, it will all calm down and we will feel normal again...if there is such a thing.
October 20, 2009
October 11, 2009
Sand Structures
So here is our sand structure (as Abe calls it). Notice the mote that runs all the way to the tide line and that it's lined with feathers! Abe dug it all up and feather flare is thanks to Matt (I think it's all that Project Runway he's been watching!). Ella and I added the crawdad accents to the top of the castle. All in all it was a great family project! Much more fun than cleaning the house or grocery shopping, which are our usual Sunday tasks.
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