Friday, May 05, 2006
Illness of the Week: looks like it's a cold bug with a bit of stomach upset mixed in. So it looks like we'll miss yet another week of church. The last time we went to church as a family was in February. Jacob missed 2 days of school with it. Joshua and Abby are are their way to being miserable. Nothing much new around here..
I had a nasty tension headache from Monday through Thursday. During the midst of it, I took Jacob to Denton Cnty MHMR (mental health & mental retardation). We were supposed to be eligible for a $2500 grant for treatment for Jacob, but it looks like we'll be receiving less than $1400, if we're lucky. Yes, it's still money, but yes, I also wanted to yell at the caseworker for 1) leading us to believe we were eligible for more 2) insisting she wanted to meet Jacob, so I had to pick him up early from school and drive 40 mins to Denton, only to have her ask "does he always act this badly?" 3) handing me back some of the paperwork, saying she didn't need it, then leaving a message on my phone after the meeting saying I must have mistakenly taken it, and she needs it asap. Now I need to drag the kiddos to the post office with me to get it all mailed. grrhhh..
The next day, Wednesday, I attended an ARD meeting for Joshua, throbbing head and all. But I felt kinda bad for his teacher. There have been 3 different teachers in his classroom this past year, and with all the changes Joshua has made little progress, and negative progress with signing/communication. So the teacher is in her very first ARD meeting with a parent asking "what are you planning to do about this?!" So I left the meeting feeling like my head was going to explode.
Deren talked to his boss on Thursday to see if he could stay home because I was feeling so bad. He told his manager that I was pregnant and couldn't take migraine meds. The boss basically said "no problem, and congratulations on #3" (Deren had mentioned the boys to him before he was hired). Deren corrected him on the #, and his manager said "EXCUSE ME!!" (in a funny way - don't get all tense on me). After Deren told him the ages of the kiddos, the guy commented on how busy we will be come October!
So I went in to the doctor while Deren was home. She gave me a script for pain meds, and I heard the baby for the first time! (the baby's heartbeat on the doppler). It was soooo neat! I guess it perked me up, because I haven't had to take any of the meds - woohoo!
Deren went back to work this morning. I think you can still see the skid marks where he peeled out in the driveway! I was hoping to ease back into everything, but instead I had a kitchen to clean, breakfast to cook, laundry to do, etc, etc. So after that I figured 'what the hey' and loaded Abby in the car and ran some errands. Full speed ahead.
Next week is teacher's appreciation week at the schools. We have 3 teachers and 3 aides to buy for. The boys aides, especially, are the ones who do most the hands on work with them, so I can't skimp on them. The school sends home a list of gifts to send each day (eg, candy, crunchy foods, mints, notepads). I'm trying to refrain from pouncing on the candy. We'll see if it survives the weekend. Last weekend we ran out of chocolate and Deren was walking around griping "where's the chocolate?!"
Abby Chronicles. The nutritionist was by the house on Monday. She is 18 lbs 5 oz!! She gained over a lb in the past month. Go Abby! She is also tearing up the house - both figuratively and literally. In one picture Abby is on the couch - look through the other pics and see if you can guess how she got up there (hint: she didn't get any help from us). We've taken all the toilet paper off the holders - she yanks it down and shreds it like a cat. She can open drawers, and likes to empty everyone's clothes onto the floor. She's a wild woman! - Joshie's little sister!
I had a nasty tension headache from Monday through Thursday. During the midst of it, I took Jacob to Denton Cnty MHMR (mental health & mental retardation). We were supposed to be eligible for a $2500 grant for treatment for Jacob, but it looks like we'll be receiving less than $1400, if we're lucky. Yes, it's still money, but yes, I also wanted to yell at the caseworker for 1) leading us to believe we were eligible for more 2) insisting she wanted to meet Jacob, so I had to pick him up early from school and drive 40 mins to Denton, only to have her ask "does he always act this badly?" 3) handing me back some of the paperwork, saying she didn't need it, then leaving a message on my phone after the meeting saying I must have mistakenly taken it, and she needs it asap. Now I need to drag the kiddos to the post office with me to get it all mailed. grrhhh..
The next day, Wednesday, I attended an ARD meeting for Joshua, throbbing head and all. But I felt kinda bad for his teacher. There have been 3 different teachers in his classroom this past year, and with all the changes Joshua has made little progress, and negative progress with signing/communication. So the teacher is in her very first ARD meeting with a parent asking "what are you planning to do about this?!" So I left the meeting feeling like my head was going to explode.
Deren talked to his boss on Thursday to see if he could stay home because I was feeling so bad. He told his manager that I was pregnant and couldn't take migraine meds. The boss basically said "no problem, and congratulations on #3" (Deren had mentioned the boys to him before he was hired). Deren corrected him on the #, and his manager said "EXCUSE ME!!" (in a funny way - don't get all tense on me). After Deren told him the ages of the kiddos, the guy commented on how busy we will be come October!
So I went in to the doctor while Deren was home. She gave me a script for pain meds, and I heard the baby for the first time! (the baby's heartbeat on the doppler). It was soooo neat! I guess it perked me up, because I haven't had to take any of the meds - woohoo!
Deren went back to work this morning. I think you can still see the skid marks where he peeled out in the driveway! I was hoping to ease back into everything, but instead I had a kitchen to clean, breakfast to cook, laundry to do, etc, etc. So after that I figured 'what the hey' and loaded Abby in the car and ran some errands. Full speed ahead.
Next week is teacher's appreciation week at the schools. We have 3 teachers and 3 aides to buy for. The boys aides, especially, are the ones who do most the hands on work with them, so I can't skimp on them. The school sends home a list of gifts to send each day (eg, candy, crunchy foods, mints, notepads). I'm trying to refrain from pouncing on the candy. We'll see if it survives the weekend. Last weekend we ran out of chocolate and Deren was walking around griping "where's the chocolate?!"
Abby Chronicles. The nutritionist was by the house on Monday. She is 18 lbs 5 oz!! She gained over a lb in the past month. Go Abby! She is also tearing up the house - both figuratively and literally. In one picture Abby is on the couch - look through the other pics and see if you can guess how she got up there (hint: she didn't get any help from us). We've taken all the toilet paper off the holders - she yanks it down and shreds it like a cat. She can open drawers, and likes to empty everyone's clothes onto the floor. She's a wild woman! - Joshie's little sister!
Friday, April 28, 2006
More from the Abby chronicles. After posting last night, I remembered a couple cute things that Abby is doing now. First, it is no secret around this house that Rachael does not like to go down for naps. She has fought naptime since she was put in her crib at 4 mos. Everyday we go through the same thing - "no naptime", then running away and trying to hide, then screaming after she is taken to her bedroom. I keep Rachael's door cracked because she makes enough of a scene already.
Well lately, Abby has taken to coming to her big sister's rescue. As soon as she hears Rachael crying, she scoots to Rachael's bedroom as fast as she can, shoves open the door, and keeps big sister company. They will play with the dollhouse, or unload all the contents of a drawer and drape the clothes over themselves. I always find them happy and giggling. When I put Rachael down for her nap yesterday afternoon, she started crying "Abby, come here!"
Besides rescuing big sister, another of Abby's pasttimes is emptying the laundry basket. She especially likes the clean socks. You will see Abby scooting across the house with socks in hand.
Today at lunch, Abby figured out that a sure way to get my attention was to stick her fingers down her throat. I would yell "no Abby!" and she cackled and did it again and again. What a character!
Well lately, Abby has taken to coming to her big sister's rescue. As soon as she hears Rachael crying, she scoots to Rachael's bedroom as fast as she can, shoves open the door, and keeps big sister company. They will play with the dollhouse, or unload all the contents of a drawer and drape the clothes over themselves. I always find them happy and giggling. When I put Rachael down for her nap yesterday afternoon, she started crying "Abby, come here!"
Besides rescuing big sister, another of Abby's pasttimes is emptying the laundry basket. She especially likes the clean socks. You will see Abby scooting across the house with socks in hand.
Today at lunch, Abby figured out that a sure way to get my attention was to stick her fingers down her throat. I would yell "no Abby!" and she cackled and did it again and again. What a character!
Thursday, April 27, 2006
So our baby boy turned six this past Tuesday! It's hard to believe. I still call him "Baby Jacob" all the time. We baked him a GFCF chocolate cake over the weekend. He enjoyed it. Rachael liked it, also. Joshua enjoyed the icing once he was over the stomach bug (last week's illness-of-choice), and we didn't let Abby have any because she was was still in the throes of the bug. Rachael asked for a piece of "chocolate birthday cake."
Speaking of Rachael, she is really enjoying her PPCD class. I picked her up from school today, and she was really put out. She usually rides the bus to and from school, and loves it. Her teacher said her favorite activity is circle time, and she loves the days when she gets to be the 'special helper' during circle time, passing out and collecting materials from the other kiddos. They have different stations in the classroom w/different themes. Rachael enjoys the dress-up station, and likes to put on a pink dress w/fringe over her clothes. Rachael also enjoys the kitchen station, and likes to serve her classmates pretend meals. One thing Rachael does not enjoy too much (at school or at home) is potty training. The teacher advised waiting until August to really focus on it, since the school year is almost done. That is a little too close to October for me, so I'll see what I can do over the summer. We beg, we plead, we bribe, we scold.. nothing works with our stubborn little 3 yr old princess!
As for Abby, she is moving around more and more. She pulls herself up on a lot of different things now, but cries because she doesn't know how to get back down. Her hips are gaining strength from all the standing time she is doing. She is starting to taking steps while she is holding on to things. The OT from ECI was here today, and was very impressed with the progress Abby's made in the past week alone. Her weight isn't budging much, though. I think she gained about an ounce this past month. The pediatrician's office has been calling to ask when we want to re-do Abby's labs. I'm waiting to get our new insurance cards in the mail.
Deren is doing fine at his new job. He has to take a shuttle van to a remote parking lot, do to lack of parking, and that adds up to 1/2 hour to his commute.
Speaking of Rachael, she is really enjoying her PPCD class. I picked her up from school today, and she was really put out. She usually rides the bus to and from school, and loves it. Her teacher said her favorite activity is circle time, and she loves the days when she gets to be the 'special helper' during circle time, passing out and collecting materials from the other kiddos. They have different stations in the classroom w/different themes. Rachael enjoys the dress-up station, and likes to put on a pink dress w/fringe over her clothes. Rachael also enjoys the kitchen station, and likes to serve her classmates pretend meals. One thing Rachael does not enjoy too much (at school or at home) is potty training. The teacher advised waiting until August to really focus on it, since the school year is almost done. That is a little too close to October for me, so I'll see what I can do over the summer. We beg, we plead, we bribe, we scold.. nothing works with our stubborn little 3 yr old princess!
As for Abby, she is moving around more and more. She pulls herself up on a lot of different things now, but cries because she doesn't know how to get back down. Her hips are gaining strength from all the standing time she is doing. She is starting to taking steps while she is holding on to things. The OT from ECI was here today, and was very impressed with the progress Abby's made in the past week alone. Her weight isn't budging much, though. I think she gained about an ounce this past month. The pediatrician's office has been calling to ask when we want to re-do Abby's labs. I'm waiting to get our new insurance cards in the mail.
Deren is doing fine at his new job. He has to take a shuttle van to a remote parking lot, do to lack of parking, and that adds up to 1/2 hour to his commute.
I see I'm running a little bit behind on my postings. Finally got some late April pics posted, including a picture of pumpkin baby. As of today, I am officially in my 2nd trimester. Woohoo! I am allowed to start exercising again, taking it easy. We went for a 1/2 hr walk in the beautiful weather last night.
The sickness of the week is... wanna guess?.. the strep. Joshua was fussy at school on Monday, so I picked him up mid-morning. He wasn't running a fever, and once he got home he seemed fine. Fussed a bit at lunch and at his usual naptime (he sleeps on the bus ride home from school). So we sent him back on Tuesday - yes, Tuesday, April 25th, aka JACOB'S BIRTHDAY!! Got an email from Joshua's teacher in the a.m., saying he had a rash on his neck, back, and stomach that he was scratching, but he wasn't running a temp and they thought maybe contact dermatitis. By the time he got home the rash was all over his body. I took all the kids with me to the pediatrician. Joshua's temp was 97.1, but he had a bad strep infection - rash included. The other kids tested negative. Joshua got a shot at the office. Jacob got.. well, we'll see what he ends up with... Mr Jacob is a wild man at dr's offices. He particularly likes the wooden tongue depressors (am I getting the word right?). He dives into trash cans after them, got some other 'fresh' ones, but was dipping them into the water at the bottom of the sink in the exam room and licking them. Then he took a cup marked for the dirty caps on the ear gadget thingy, filled it with water, and took a swig.
..and here I was thinking we might make it through the week without at trip to the doctor, because Deren's health insurance doesn't start until May 1st.
We got home from the dr's office and had hamburgers that Deren picked up. Jacob was happy with his birthday meal.
..that's all for now. For some reason Joshua has become obessessed with waking up Abby every time she goes down for a nap. Seeing her door closed apparently offends his sensibilities. So I have a crying Abby to tend to for now.
The sickness of the week is... wanna guess?.. the strep. Joshua was fussy at school on Monday, so I picked him up mid-morning. He wasn't running a fever, and once he got home he seemed fine. Fussed a bit at lunch and at his usual naptime (he sleeps on the bus ride home from school). So we sent him back on Tuesday - yes, Tuesday, April 25th, aka JACOB'S BIRTHDAY!! Got an email from Joshua's teacher in the a.m., saying he had a rash on his neck, back, and stomach that he was scratching, but he wasn't running a temp and they thought maybe contact dermatitis. By the time he got home the rash was all over his body. I took all the kids with me to the pediatrician. Joshua's temp was 97.1, but he had a bad strep infection - rash included. The other kids tested negative. Joshua got a shot at the office. Jacob got.. well, we'll see what he ends up with... Mr Jacob is a wild man at dr's offices. He particularly likes the wooden tongue depressors (am I getting the word right?). He dives into trash cans after them, got some other 'fresh' ones, but was dipping them into the water at the bottom of the sink in the exam room and licking them. Then he took a cup marked for the dirty caps on the ear gadget thingy, filled it with water, and took a swig.
..and here I was thinking we might make it through the week without at trip to the doctor, because Deren's health insurance doesn't start until May 1st.
We got home from the dr's office and had hamburgers that Deren picked up. Jacob was happy with his birthday meal.
..that's all for now. For some reason Joshua has become obessessed with waking up Abby every time she goes down for a nap. Seeing her door closed apparently offends his sensibilities. So I have a crying Abby to tend to for now.
I see I'm running a little bit behind on my postings. Finally got some late April pics posted, including a picture of pumpkin baby. As of today, I am officially in my 2nd trimester. Woohoo! I am allowed to start exercising again, taking it easy. We went for a 1/2 hr walk in the beautiful weather last night.
The sickness of the week is... wanna guess?.. the strep. Joshua was fussy at school on Monday, so I picked him up mid-morning. He wasn't running a fever, and once he got home he seemed fine. Fussed a bit at lunch and at his usual naptime (he sleeps on the bus ride home from school). So we sent him back on Tuesday - yes, Tuesday, April 25th, aka JACOB'S BIRTHDAY!! Got an email from Joshua's teacher in the a.m., saying he had a rash on his neck, back, and stomach that he was scratching, but he wasn't running a temp and they thought maybe contact dermatitis. By the time he got home the rash was all over his body. I took all the kids with me to the pediatrician. Joshua's temp was 97.1, but he had a bad strep infection - rash included. The other kids tested negative. Joshua got a shot at the office. Jacob got.. well, we'll see what he ends up with... Mr Jacob is a wild man at dr's offices. He particularly likes the wooden tongue depressors (am I getting the word right?). He dives into trash cans after them, got some other 'fresh' ones, but was dipping them into the water at the bottom of the sink in the exam room and licking them. Then he took a cup marked for the dirty caps on the ear gadget thingy, filled it with water, and took a swig.
..and here I was thinking we might make it through the week without at trip to the doctor, because Deren's health insurance doesn't start until May 1st.
We got home from the dr's office and had hamburgers that Deren picked up. Jacob was happy with his birthday meal.
..that's all for now. For some reason Joshua has become obessessed with waking up Abby every time she goes down for a nap. Seeing her door closed apparently offends his sensibilities. So I have a crying Abby to tend to for now.
The sickness of the week is... wanna guess?.. the strep. Joshua was fussy at school on Monday, so I picked him up mid-morning. He wasn't running a fever, and once he got home he seemed fine. Fussed a bit at lunch and at his usual naptime (he sleeps on the bus ride home from school). So we sent him back on Tuesday - yes, Tuesday, April 25th, aka JACOB'S BIRTHDAY!! Got an email from Joshua's teacher in the a.m., saying he had a rash on his neck, back, and stomach that he was scratching, but he wasn't running a temp and they thought maybe contact dermatitis. By the time he got home the rash was all over his body. I took all the kids with me to the pediatrician. Joshua's temp was 97.1, but he had a bad strep infection - rash included. The other kids tested negative. Joshua got a shot at the office. Jacob got.. well, we'll see what he ends up with... Mr Jacob is a wild man at dr's offices. He particularly likes the wooden tongue depressors (am I getting the word right?). He dives into trash cans after them, got some other 'fresh' ones, but was dipping them into the water at the bottom of the sink in the exam room and licking them. Then he took a cup marked for the dirty caps on the ear gadget thingy, filled it with water, and took a swig.
..and here I was thinking we might make it through the week without at trip to the doctor, because Deren's health insurance doesn't start until May 1st.
We got home from the dr's office and had hamburgers that Deren picked up. Jacob was happy with his birthday meal.
..that's all for now. For some reason Joshua has become obessessed with waking up Abby every time she goes down for a nap. Seeing her door closed apparently offends his sensibilities. So I have a crying Abby to tend to for now.
Friday, April 14, 2006
The photo software isn't working, so I can't post the pics of the week yet. We have some good pictures, too. Abby's birthday was on Monday (April 10th). We made her a birthday cake. She didn't like it, though - she thought the frosting was pretty gross. I have a picture of her poking a finger at the cake, with a look of disgust on her face. Her big brother Joshua must be so proud. We've seen that very same look on his face so many times..
Last Thursday Abby pulled herself to standing for the first time! Since then, she's been pulling herself up on all kinds of things. Her favorite is the bath tub. She had a time playing with bubbles while Joshua took a bath the other night. Whenever Abby hears a door open or the bath water running she comes scooting just as fast as she can. Yes, she's still scooting. She can crawl, but she has very weak hips, so it's hard and slow-going. She will often start off crawling, then revert to scooting - it looks like a frog hopping, actually. Jacob and Rachael (especially Rachael) like to imitate her frog-hopping.
Abby was sick with a cold on her birthday. Rachael soon followed. She missed school Tues & Wed. Then Joshua and Jacob followed, missing Thurs - they would have missed today, also, but school was out.
I had another doctor's appt on Thursday. For those who have not heard, I'm pregnant! Baby #5 - aka baby pumpkin, is due Oct 26th. The baby looks good, and is measuring on target. I've spotted twice in the past couple weeks, and have had to cut down on my activity. So the house isn't looking to great, to say the least. I really miss taking walks, especially with the nice weather we've been having. But it's been worth it. From the exams I've had everything looks fine.
As for Easter, it looks like we will be celebrating in our tradition - aka at home with sick kids. Happy Easter, and I'll post the pics as soon as the software is working again :-)
Last Thursday Abby pulled herself to standing for the first time! Since then, she's been pulling herself up on all kinds of things. Her favorite is the bath tub. She had a time playing with bubbles while Joshua took a bath the other night. Whenever Abby hears a door open or the bath water running she comes scooting just as fast as she can. Yes, she's still scooting. She can crawl, but she has very weak hips, so it's hard and slow-going. She will often start off crawling, then revert to scooting - it looks like a frog hopping, actually. Jacob and Rachael (especially Rachael) like to imitate her frog-hopping.
Abby was sick with a cold on her birthday. Rachael soon followed. She missed school Tues & Wed. Then Joshua and Jacob followed, missing Thurs - they would have missed today, also, but school was out.
I had another doctor's appt on Thursday. For those who have not heard, I'm pregnant! Baby #5 - aka baby pumpkin, is due Oct 26th. The baby looks good, and is measuring on target. I've spotted twice in the past couple weeks, and have had to cut down on my activity. So the house isn't looking to great, to say the least. I really miss taking walks, especially with the nice weather we've been having. But it's been worth it. From the exams I've had everything looks fine.
As for Easter, it looks like we will be celebrating in our tradition - aka at home with sick kids. Happy Easter, and I'll post the pics as soon as the software is working again :-)
Thursday, April 06, 2006
To go back a couple of days, last Sunday Joshua was feeling better, so we took the kids to A Day Out with Thomas (the Train). It was in a neighboring city, Grapevine. There is usually a vintage train that travels from Grapevine to Fort Worth, but for the Thomas event they hooked a real Thomas up to the front of the train and gave 20-30 min train rides. There were several booths for different activities. Rachael and Jacob liked the small battery-powered Thomas the Train sets. Rachael also liked coloring at one booth. All of the train ride tickets were sold out by the time we got there. Jacob apparently remembered when he last rode the train in Oct 2003, because he started fussing when he couldn't get on the train.
Deren checked in with the ticket counter, and waited in line for stand-by tickets. I took Jacob and Rachael over by the train. They got Thomas tatoos while we waited. Deren got 3 tickets for the train! I took Jacob & Rachael. Jacob sat by the window and watched. Rachael sat between us, bopped around and sang to the Thomas music playing over the speakers.
Joshua and Abby stayed with Deren. Joshua had already climbed back in his stroller - he didn't really care for the whole thing. Abby had a great old time just being outdoors and munching on cereal. It was really neat to be able to take the two who most wanted to go on the train.
..Fast forward to the present.. The kids received Easter cards and books from Grandma and Grandpa. Rachael liked her card with stickers (below is a picture of her sticker collage on her shirt). Rachael is having an Easter egg hunt at school next Monday. Abby & I went out this morning and bought plastics eggs and candy to fill them. The girls have been having a great old time playing with the eggs - luckily I bought some spares that I've hid. Abby has already thrown a couple by the toilet and in the bathtub!
Abby had her weekly appointment with the OT from ECI this afternoon. She has been really persistent about refusing to crawl, but scoots on her bum instead. The OT saw a nylon tunnel in the corner of the living room and had me get it out. Abby proceeded to crawl back and forth across the tunnel. She crawled until her hips (which are weak) wouldn't carry her anymore! She was a real trooper. Abby's birthday is on Monday. I hadn't thought about presents yet. The OT strongly suggested a walker (the mobile kind - not the stationary). She said if we put it down on the lowest setting, Abby will bear weight on her feet more and strengthen her hips with all the upright time. So Abby's getting a walker! Hopefully we'll be healthier than we were at Miss Rachael's birthday, and we'll bake a cake and take some pictures. Matter of fact, I think we're going to tell Rachael it's her birthday, too, and celebrate them togeter - along with Grandpa, who is going to be in town with Grandma this weekend. Time to get baking, Deren! (I once again tried making GFCF pancakes this past Monday. Deren doesn't think I should try my hands at baking ever again. He was in the room with me the whole time - I still messed it up!).
Deren checked in with the ticket counter, and waited in line for stand-by tickets. I took Jacob and Rachael over by the train. They got Thomas tatoos while we waited. Deren got 3 tickets for the train! I took Jacob & Rachael. Jacob sat by the window and watched. Rachael sat between us, bopped around and sang to the Thomas music playing over the speakers.
Joshua and Abby stayed with Deren. Joshua had already climbed back in his stroller - he didn't really care for the whole thing. Abby had a great old time just being outdoors and munching on cereal. It was really neat to be able to take the two who most wanted to go on the train.
..Fast forward to the present.. The kids received Easter cards and books from Grandma and Grandpa. Rachael liked her card with stickers (below is a picture of her sticker collage on her shirt). Rachael is having an Easter egg hunt at school next Monday. Abby & I went out this morning and bought plastics eggs and candy to fill them. The girls have been having a great old time playing with the eggs - luckily I bought some spares that I've hid. Abby has already thrown a couple by the toilet and in the bathtub!
Abby had her weekly appointment with the OT from ECI this afternoon. She has been really persistent about refusing to crawl, but scoots on her bum instead. The OT saw a nylon tunnel in the corner of the living room and had me get it out. Abby proceeded to crawl back and forth across the tunnel. She crawled until her hips (which are weak) wouldn't carry her anymore! She was a real trooper. Abby's birthday is on Monday. I hadn't thought about presents yet. The OT strongly suggested a walker (the mobile kind - not the stationary). She said if we put it down on the lowest setting, Abby will bear weight on her feet more and strengthen her hips with all the upright time. So Abby's getting a walker! Hopefully we'll be healthier than we were at Miss Rachael's birthday, and we'll bake a cake and take some pictures. Matter of fact, I think we're going to tell Rachael it's her birthday, too, and celebrate them togeter - along with Grandpa, who is going to be in town with Grandma this weekend. Time to get baking, Deren! (I once again tried making GFCF pancakes this past Monday. Deren doesn't think I should try my hands at baking ever again. He was in the room with me the whole time - I still messed it up!).
Saturday, April 01, 2006
Deren took Jacob and Rachael to the movies today. We received an invitation in the mail from a movie theater/grill. In the next 2 mos they are hosting 4 movie days especially for families w/special needs kids. They saw Ice Age 2. The movie was over lunch time, so they all watched the movies and had burgers for lunch. I just talked to Deren on the phone. He said the movie was so-so, but the kids did great - well, until it was time to leave. Miss Rachael decided she was too big to hold hands in the parking lot, and the fight was on. When I talked to Deren, she was in the background screaming "mommy, mommy!" -- honey, be thankful mommy was at home, and not the one dealing with you.
Grapevine, a nearby city, is hosting "A Day Out with Thomas (the Train)" this weekend. We went in 2003, when it was last in town. It was really cute. I think the kids would enjoy it even more now, but the weather is iffy this weekend - raining off and on. And more importantly, Joshua woke up this morning, came to cuddle with me in bed, and I noticed he was damp all over - he had thrown up all over himself sometime last night. Didn't cry or get out of bed, but his appetite is still off. Sooooo not sure if we'll hit Thomas this weekend. Abby was not feeling well yesterday - stomache problems, too. When will this sick season ever end?!
Grapevine, a nearby city, is hosting "A Day Out with Thomas (the Train)" this weekend. We went in 2003, when it was last in town. It was really cute. I think the kids would enjoy it even more now, but the weather is iffy this weekend - raining off and on. And more importantly, Joshua woke up this morning, came to cuddle with me in bed, and I noticed he was damp all over - he had thrown up all over himself sometime last night. Didn't cry or get out of bed, but his appetite is still off. Sooooo not sure if we'll hit Thomas this weekend. Abby was not feeling well yesterday - stomache problems, too. When will this sick season ever end?!
Monday, March 27, 2006
Deren started his new job at Countrywide today. Unfortunately, he woke up with the stomach bug that Rachael brought home from school last week, and he had to go to work anyway. Didn't figure it would make a good impression calling in sick the first day. Poor Deren. Once again, poor Deren.
Rachael went back to school today. She missed Thurs and Fri. She had a good time. Her language seems to be really picking up at home. Still a delay, but she's saying much more than she was. She especially likes to boss us all around now. "Shoosh Jacob. Go to your room. Calm Down!" "I want juice. The cup is Right There!" "Abby, Be Quiet!" ..the list goes on. Jacob's teacher was at the house last Wednesday and commented on Rachael's, uhh, direct manner.
It warmed up over the weekend. The kids loved being outside. I say this again and again - Abby takes after Josh so much. She is in heaven outdoors. One of her favorite things (besides being pushed in her swing) is to pick pansies with sissy in the front yard. The season for pansies is about over, so I will have to be sure to plant some summer annuals so there will continue to be flowers to pick.
I started walking again. I had been on a hiatus since the flu - close to 4 wks with no exercise. Needless to say, I'm out of shape.
Abby is doing better, but still wakes up at night coughing pretty bad. She's "only" 2 wks into the flu, so she may not be better for another couple weeks. I haven't been going to bible study or the mom's group at church - I can't imagine a worse place for her to be right now that the church nursery. I tell you what - the military needs to look no further than a room full of preschoolers to develop an effect bio-warfare program.
Rachael went back to school today. She missed Thurs and Fri. She had a good time. Her language seems to be really picking up at home. Still a delay, but she's saying much more than she was. She especially likes to boss us all around now. "Shoosh Jacob. Go to your room. Calm Down!" "I want juice. The cup is Right There!" "Abby, Be Quiet!" ..the list goes on. Jacob's teacher was at the house last Wednesday and commented on Rachael's, uhh, direct manner.
It warmed up over the weekend. The kids loved being outside. I say this again and again - Abby takes after Josh so much. She is in heaven outdoors. One of her favorite things (besides being pushed in her swing) is to pick pansies with sissy in the front yard. The season for pansies is about over, so I will have to be sure to plant some summer annuals so there will continue to be flowers to pick.
I started walking again. I had been on a hiatus since the flu - close to 4 wks with no exercise. Needless to say, I'm out of shape.
Abby is doing better, but still wakes up at night coughing pretty bad. She's "only" 2 wks into the flu, so she may not be better for another couple weeks. I haven't been going to bible study or the mom's group at church - I can't imagine a worse place for her to be right now that the church nursery. I tell you what - the military needs to look no further than a room full of preschoolers to develop an effect bio-warfare program.
Wednesday, March 22, 2006
We are finally emerging from the disaster we will call influenza B. Goodness, I don't think I've ever been so sick in my life, and that's keeping drama to a minimum. Rachael came down with it on the 1st - 5 days before her birthday. She was so sick over the weekend that we postponed making ladybug and butterfly cupcakes. Jacob got off the bus that Thursday, coughing and with a fever. Deren and I were sick a couple days later. Abby got sick later that week. Joshua miraculously made it through school that week when the rest of us were sick, only to bring home & pass around a stomach bug during the week of the 13th.
Meanwhile, the rest of us had several days of fever, nausea, fatigue, joint pains, bad coughing and chest congestion - it was so awlful. I tell you what - I was so ugly. My attitude was so bad that week. It was not uncommon to find me shaking my fists in the air, saying "God why are you doing this to us!"
Deren called his father and pleaded with him to come and help while we were all sick. David babysat, ran errands, kept us fed, and held barf buckets for the kids. He left us sick, though I'm hoping his flu shot protected him from the full-blown flu. Sorry, David! We gave him the stomach bug for New Year's, the flu bug for spring. I bet he's just itching to return for the next round the week before Easter! I wonder what the Easter Bunny will bring. Each time I think, 'well, this is the sickest I've ever seen the kids, it's got to get better from here on out.' Well, the scary thing is that the bugs are getting worse. I don't even want to think what is going to come along to top this influenza B.
During the week of sick I attended an ARD meeting with the school district for Rachael. She started a 3 hr/day PPCD class this past Monday (the 20th). On Sunday night I told her that she was going to school like bubbers (brothers) . She had Deren put on her shoes and socks, asked for her coat, and asked Mommy to take her bye bye in the car. She was ready to go to school! The next morning we woke her up about 6:20 and told her it was time to go to school. She bolted out of bed! Deren took her to school on Monday, and got to sit in the classroom and watch her. He said Rachael was very shy at first, but warmed up during circle time. She waved her hands and clapped and sang. When I picked her up at 11 the teacher said she did really well - she liked singing and played with the other kids. On Tuesday Rachael rode the bus to and from school for the first time. She was a real trooper. She is too small to climb up the steps on the bus on her own. Deren carries her. There is one other girl in Rachael's classroom. The driver said Rachael and the little girl laughed and chattered across the aisle at each other on Tuesday.
So.. so far so good. School is going well. They are sending a team into Rachael's classroom in a couple weeks to rule out autism. On her evaluation her skills were really scattered - she can count to 10, but can't tell you how old she is. She didn't make much eye contact - I attribute that to her being so shy. But I was pretty floored with her evaluation results in general - she scored really low on speech and cognitive. I need to look up the boys' evaluations. If Rachael scored in the 5th percentile, I'm thinking they weren't anywhere near the graph then. We see her do so much that the boys never did.
Abby update - she had "only" been sick for 1 1/2 weeks, so she is still having problems. I started to feel human again at 3 weeks, by comparison. She has lost 1/2 lb so far - I've been too skittish to way her again - it can't be that good. She's not able to eat or drink much. Pray for peanut, please.
Meanwhile, the rest of us had several days of fever, nausea, fatigue, joint pains, bad coughing and chest congestion - it was so awlful. I tell you what - I was so ugly. My attitude was so bad that week. It was not uncommon to find me shaking my fists in the air, saying "God why are you doing this to us!"
Deren called his father and pleaded with him to come and help while we were all sick. David babysat, ran errands, kept us fed, and held barf buckets for the kids. He left us sick, though I'm hoping his flu shot protected him from the full-blown flu. Sorry, David! We gave him the stomach bug for New Year's, the flu bug for spring. I bet he's just itching to return for the next round the week before Easter! I wonder what the Easter Bunny will bring. Each time I think, 'well, this is the sickest I've ever seen the kids, it's got to get better from here on out.' Well, the scary thing is that the bugs are getting worse. I don't even want to think what is going to come along to top this influenza B.
During the week of sick I attended an ARD meeting with the school district for Rachael. She started a 3 hr/day PPCD class this past Monday (the 20th). On Sunday night I told her that she was going to school like bubbers (brothers) . She had Deren put on her shoes and socks, asked for her coat, and asked Mommy to take her bye bye in the car. She was ready to go to school! The next morning we woke her up about 6:20 and told her it was time to go to school. She bolted out of bed! Deren took her to school on Monday, and got to sit in the classroom and watch her. He said Rachael was very shy at first, but warmed up during circle time. She waved her hands and clapped and sang. When I picked her up at 11 the teacher said she did really well - she liked singing and played with the other kids. On Tuesday Rachael rode the bus to and from school for the first time. She was a real trooper. She is too small to climb up the steps on the bus on her own. Deren carries her. There is one other girl in Rachael's classroom. The driver said Rachael and the little girl laughed and chattered across the aisle at each other on Tuesday.
So.. so far so good. School is going well. They are sending a team into Rachael's classroom in a couple weeks to rule out autism. On her evaluation her skills were really scattered - she can count to 10, but can't tell you how old she is. She didn't make much eye contact - I attribute that to her being so shy. But I was pretty floored with her evaluation results in general - she scored really low on speech and cognitive. I need to look up the boys' evaluations. If Rachael scored in the 5th percentile, I'm thinking they weren't anywhere near the graph then. We see her do so much that the boys never did.
Abby update - she had "only" been sick for 1 1/2 weeks, so she is still having problems. I started to feel human again at 3 weeks, by comparison. She has lost 1/2 lb so far - I've been too skittish to way her again - it can't be that good. She's not able to eat or drink much. Pray for peanut, please.
Thursday, March 02, 2006
Rachael had her evaluation with the school district this morning. She scored w/speech and cognitive delays, and they recommended PPCD (public preschool for children w/disabilities) placement. She will go to a school that is about 20 mins away, Mon-Fri from 8-11. To be honest, I'm upset. I remember crying and crying about sending Jacob to all-day school when he was 3, thinking about how little he was. But I was ready for Joshua. I knew what to expect, Joshua was in the process of systematically destroying the house. I was upset because they recommended 8-11 for Joshua. I was at the ARD meeting griping "he needs to be in school all day!" To put this in context, so everyone reading doesn't think I'm Attila the Hun, let me explain that the experts in the field of early autism treatment recommend extensive hours of therapy each week. Less than 3 hrs/day for Joshua was really ridiculous for his needs. And last year proved it. He lost most the skills he had gained at home, before starting PPCD. Today I was sitting there thinking how much more advanced Rachael is than Joshua, and how they justified warehousing him PPCD for a year..
My pride has also taken a big clip today. I was convinced that Rachael would be our first one not needing special services. I called Deren and told him about the evaluation. He sounded bummed on the phone, too. But on the positive side - Rachael will be going to a classroom that will focus entirely on her deficits, with trained teachers. And I'm kind of thinking this is her chance to catch up with other kids her age before kindergarten. I know one thing I won't do is send her to a kindergarten class where she will be ignored by a teacher who is too busy to help out Rachael, and be picked on by all the other kids. Can you say "homeschool?"
But back to sending Rachael off to school 5 days/week. She seems so little still, and I am having a hard time picturing mornings without her. I'm just feeling sorry for myself today, ya'll! Having been up since 4:30 might have a part in it. We have been passing around a cold/flu bug that hangs out in your chest. I am so finished with coughing up nasty stuff. Rachael has been running a low-grade fever off and on since yesterday, and is lethargic. I'm hoping Deren can come home and watch the kiddos so I can take her to the doctor later this afternoon. There's no way I'm going out with all 4 and little sleep!
In closing, I've been repeating Psalm 94:19 to myself since yesterday evening: "In the multitude of my anxieties within me, Your comforts delight my soul."
My pride has also taken a big clip today. I was convinced that Rachael would be our first one not needing special services. I called Deren and told him about the evaluation. He sounded bummed on the phone, too. But on the positive side - Rachael will be going to a classroom that will focus entirely on her deficits, with trained teachers. And I'm kind of thinking this is her chance to catch up with other kids her age before kindergarten. I know one thing I won't do is send her to a kindergarten class where she will be ignored by a teacher who is too busy to help out Rachael, and be picked on by all the other kids. Can you say "homeschool?"
But back to sending Rachael off to school 5 days/week. She seems so little still, and I am having a hard time picturing mornings without her. I'm just feeling sorry for myself today, ya'll! Having been up since 4:30 might have a part in it. We have been passing around a cold/flu bug that hangs out in your chest. I am so finished with coughing up nasty stuff. Rachael has been running a low-grade fever off and on since yesterday, and is lethargic. I'm hoping Deren can come home and watch the kiddos so I can take her to the doctor later this afternoon. There's no way I'm going out with all 4 and little sleep!
In closing, I've been repeating Psalm 94:19 to myself since yesterday evening: "In the multitude of my anxieties within me, Your comforts delight my soul."
Friday, February 24, 2006
The weekly update. Just didn't get around to posting sooner. Good news.. Abby's latest round of test results came back. I spoke with the doctor on Tuesday morning. The doctor went over Abby's labs with a pediatric endocrinologist. The specialist thinks that the most likely explanation for Abby's high alkaline phosphatase is a transient condition, usually preceeded by a stomach bug. For some reason - not sure why, this enzyme, and nothing else, is very elevated. After 2-4 mos the levels drop. The labs showed most the alkaline phosphatase coming from Abby's bones, although her liver results were also abnormal. So please pray, pray, pray that in April when Abby is re-tested her results are normal. Otherwise, she will be referred to the endocrinologist and also need a bone scan to rule out various not-so-good problems. BUT I am clinging to the most likely explanation - that the rotavirus from mid-January did her in for awhile, but she is okay. When the doctor told me the news it was like the Lord was in the room smiling at me!
Next bit of good news.. I've been praying about our finances (or lack of). Deren's parents graciously sent a check to help us out with medical bills, formula, and all that good stuff.
Next bit of good news..(yes, there's more!). Our insurance company, United, has been giving me the royal run-around about paying for the boys' private speech therapy. We switched plans last August, and they were supposed to start paying. I got a bee-in-my-bonnet and called again yesterday. One part of me is thinking, "It's your birthday. Are you just trying to be in a bad mood?" I spoke with the first lady, who was really rude. First she said there were no claims on file, then said they were all still denied because of diagnosis code, then hung up on me when I asked to speak with a supervisor. I called back, ready to lash out at the next person. Instead, I started crying and saying, "Listen, we're poor. Do you know how awful it is to go to the clinic and watch everyone pay their co-pays while we're paying the full amount on everything, when our policy says the visits are supposed to be paid for (at least 1/2)?" The next item on my to-do list was to call and cancel speech therapy, because we had no money for it anymore. This lady on the phone was really nice, and asked me to wait while she looked into the claims. Turns out, they had entered the diagnosis code incorrectly - according to their error the boys were receiving speech therapy for strep throat. No one else prior to this checked to make sure all was correct. Thank God for this one lady who wanted to help (psst - don't spread the word to United - they'd probably fire her)!. Soooooo we are supposed to start getting some money from them within the month, and will be able to resume speech therapy. Hooray!
Next bit of good news.. I've been praying about our finances (or lack of). Deren's parents graciously sent a check to help us out with medical bills, formula, and all that good stuff.
Next bit of good news..(yes, there's more!). Our insurance company, United, has been giving me the royal run-around about paying for the boys' private speech therapy. We switched plans last August, and they were supposed to start paying. I got a bee-in-my-bonnet and called again yesterday. One part of me is thinking, "It's your birthday. Are you just trying to be in a bad mood?" I spoke with the first lady, who was really rude. First she said there were no claims on file, then said they were all still denied because of diagnosis code, then hung up on me when I asked to speak with a supervisor. I called back, ready to lash out at the next person. Instead, I started crying and saying, "Listen, we're poor. Do you know how awful it is to go to the clinic and watch everyone pay their co-pays while we're paying the full amount on everything, when our policy says the visits are supposed to be paid for (at least 1/2)?" The next item on my to-do list was to call and cancel speech therapy, because we had no money for it anymore. This lady on the phone was really nice, and asked me to wait while she looked into the claims. Turns out, they had entered the diagnosis code incorrectly - according to their error the boys were receiving speech therapy for strep throat. No one else prior to this checked to make sure all was correct. Thank God for this one lady who wanted to help (psst - don't spread the word to United - they'd probably fire her)!. Soooooo we are supposed to start getting some money from them within the month, and will be able to resume speech therapy. Hooray!
Monday, February 20, 2006
Sunday, February 19, 2006
In case you missed the gleam in her eyes, let me just say that our little Abby is becoming a wild child. Both her and Joshua have particularly expressive faces - especially when they are making mischief.
It's very cold again today. I didn't go to church - we've been having freezing drizzle off and on during the day. The weather is supposed to get up to the low 50's tomorrow. I hope so, because we are out of groceries.
It's very cold again today. I didn't go to church - we've been having freezing drizzle off and on during the day. The weather is supposed to get up to the low 50's tomorrow. I hope so, because we are out of groceries.
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