What a day for a headache…

This morning David is a little out of sorts.  He was playing Batman on VSmile, Daniel was on the couch behind him.  And David was upset because Daniel was holding a toy.  Daniel wasn’t touching David.  His toy wasn’t making noise.  But David was flipping out.  When David walked away from VSmile, all 3 boys ended up sitting on my lap and I played a game.  David was upset because he wanted me all to himself.  I suggested he could play Batman again.  He said that no, he didn’t want to.  About 5 minutes later, without anyone suggesting it, Daniel hopped off my lap and said that HE wanted to play Batman VSmile.  You’ll never guess what happened next: David got upset.  Five minutes later, David was sitting on the bedroom floor surrounded by toys.  I asked if he wanted to play a game on my computer.  He said “Not right now, I’m trying to destroy Daniel’s life so I can have mine back.”

Summer School

Well, David (being Autistic) qualified for Extended School Year (ESY).  It began this past Tuesday.  It will run Mondays through Thursdays for the month of July.  And he’s home by lunch.  This week went rather well.  I thought.  David had to ride the short bus with all the other ESY kiddos, which meant his best friend is on his bus.  And in his classroom.  And they’ll be in the same classroom together next year for first grade.  Last night as we were reading our nighttime story, David looked at me and solemnly said, “Mommy, I have a headache…tomorrow.”

Something remarkable

This sounds amazing, but I never actually saw this video, though I’d heard the story. As I sat, crying, all I could think is, “This is what I want for David.” Something remarkable. Something that makes him feel as wonderful as he is.

Yes, I still exist…

Well, here it is January of 2008.  Wherever does the time go?  I decided to just post a quick update.  The kids are doing well in school.  I had to call Celia’s teacher and tell him that she wants more work.  He said he’d be happy to oblige, and that her only issue in school is her wandering mind.  I empathized.  At home I can tell her to put her shoes in the basket.  She’ll walk to the bathroom, come back, and say, “What did you want me to do?”  And the shoe basket is just inside our door!!!  David is doing well.  He is beginning to read.  He can read books containing sight words and words in the -an and -at families.  His autistic brain predisposes him to excel at sight words.  Daniel doesn’t show what he knows, and I was beginning to worry that he wouldn’t know anything when he began Kindergarten next fall.  Then the other day he sat down, flipped through a book and named all 26 letters.  He has also shown that he knows quite a few of the letter sounds.  He hides his knowledge so well, I wasn’t sure he knew his ABC’s!  What a relief to find out that all this time he has been absorbing what I’ve been teaching.  And Henry, though 2, also has begun recognizing a lot of letters and some sounds.  His speech is a bit delayed, but I have begun more concentrated “therapy” into our day.  He has shown some improvements just in the last few weeks.  As for me, I’ve finished a few knitting projects.  I hope to post some photos soon.  I’ve also begun a college application to a 2-year program.  With 3 of my 4 kiddos in school in Fall of 2008, I think it would be a good time for me to get a degree.  Well, that’s about all for now.  Perhaps I’ll get to write again soon…

I’ve survived!

Well, I put my kiddos on the bus this morning. Amazingly I didn’t even cry. I was proud at David as he breezed past the first seat. The one he was supposed to sit in. And sat with a little boy from our neighborhood whom we don’t know. Celia pouted. She wanted to follow the plan. Sit together in the first seat. It was an issue again in the afternoon. But they survived. David’s book says that he did well. That was from his Learning Support teacher. Nothing from his Kindergarten teacher. Celia was thrilled to announce that there were no tests and her teacher had no reason to yell at her. There was one boy, however, who kept talking. Oh, and at 12:30, I indulged the hyper-vigilant side of me and called the school nurse. David was supposed to get his Risperdal at 12:10, after recess. I got hold of the nurse. She put me on hold for about 5 minutes. When she came back, she apologized and said that it had been a busy day. She also added that David was now on his way to her office. She said that everyone forgot. Once again, being hyper-vigilant has paid off. So in your face, Dr. Collins!

Basset Hound Woes

Some of you may know, I have a Basset Hound.  Yes, four kids and the dog.  And the cat.  And five young frogs.  And a fish.  And as of yesterday, three slugs.  With the recent separation, I thought Scott would be happy to have a dog to keep him company.  He is a dog lover.  But, he said no.  We moved in with my dad who has a dog also.  They play well together.  But my dog will counter top surf and knock over the trash can.  My dog has gone upstairs and pooped on my dad’s floor several times since we moved in.  Since things here are tense and my dad doesn’t actually talk to me much, I decided that I should find a new home for the dog.  It was something I had discussed with Celia already.  Something I’d thought about since before leaving Texas.  My mom thought it was the right decision.  Scott didn’t really say what he thought.  Just that his mom said Daisy could stay there for one month while I made up my mind.  All I heard from my dad was a report from my sister that I didn’t have to get rid of my dog.  That was it.

The same horrible day that I enlisted the kids in public school, I posted the dog on Petfinder.  Since then I’ve received emails from 6 families.  Three of them were previous basset owners.  One of them didn’t actually have internet.  The tech from their vet’s office contacted me.  The gentleman had gone into their office and asked if they knew of any bassets that needed a home.  The tech had just seen my ad the day before.  I waited about a week before calling the couple.  I finally just called today.

They seem like great people.  They’re in their early 60’s.  The husband has macular degeneration and a guide dog.  The wife misses her basset.  She died 4 years ago and is now ready for another dog.  I talked to the husband for quite some time today.  He said he’d be calling me back soon.

When my dad finished with work, I told him that it seemed I found a home for Daisy.  He seemed shocked.  He said that things were going well.  That she plays nicely with his dog.  That he hasn’t had to medicate his dog for her separation anxiety since we moved in.  He said she just lies in front of Daisy’s crate.  He’s begun closing the door upstairs so the dog and cat can’t go up.  He said he’d rather not have the cat on his new furniture either.

And wouldn’t you know that there I am torn up inside and my phone rings.  The wife was calling to find out if they could come up tonight!  It was 7 when they called.  They had to eat dinner and then drive an hour to get here.

I asked my dad what I should do.  His advice was to call them back and tell them the kids were really upset and now I had to talk to them about it more and decide what I want to do.  Then he adds, “Unless you want to get rid of your dog…”

So I did.  I feel horrible.  The poor couple was so excited about the basset they found.  They were so excited about it.  And I called them up and told them my kids were not handling it well.  I needed one more week to think about it and talk it over with them some more.

And it wasn’t truly a lie.  Earlier today Celia told David that we were selling Daisy and he got really mad at her.  I asked her to drop it.  That I would handle it.  She said, “So handle it!”  But we had just pulled into the gas station.  I said I would handle it…later.  While pumping gas, I could hear them fighting again.  When I got in, Celia announced that David was mad at her.  He was sitting there with a stern look on his face.  I sighed, “Celia, I wanted to handle it.  I wanted to talk to him.”  She said, “So talk to him.”  But I couldn’t.  He was so upset that he wasn’t going to hear me.

So, after all of that, I have kept my dog.  I have one week in which to decide if I truly keep her or I can call the couple and adopt her out.  Stay tuned…

Never thought I’d do it

This morning at 9 AM, I met with the principal of the local public elementary school.  Yes, I know.  Gasp.  I was considering public school.

But, a lot has been going on lately.  The move from TX.  Leaving Amanda and her family.  Moving in with my dad.  And my marriage separation.  Things have not been as honky-dory as I wish.  Believe it or not, I am stressed.  My dad and I get along.  Most of the time.  A couple times he stepped over the line with my kids.  He quite clearly disagreed with my rules, and was rude.  We quarreled.  Then of course, while we weren’t talking to each other, he stepped in dog poop.  Yes, my dog pooped in his bathroom.  And it wasn’t the first time.

It didn’t help that I’ve been off my Celexa for far too long.  I was easily upset.  But with everything going on.  Maybe everyone is right.  Maybe homeschooling it just too much.

And when I called PA Cyber, they informed me that open enrollment ended July 31st.  But I was more than welcome to put her on the wait list and see if she was accepted.  Now, does that make much sense?  It takes 10 days for enrollment to be completed.  And this is a CYBER school.  Not an in person school.  Even if they count the first day of school as August 27th, shouldn’t the last day of open enrollment be August 17th?

Anyway…  My choices were to either go and fill out my affidavit and paper work to homeschool the kids, or to enroll them in public school.  With all the things going on at home, the thought of paperwork and reporting on my homeschooling just seemed like too much.  But at least I do have The Weaver Volume 1.  And I figured I could round it out with the second half of A Beka’s Language Arts and Math from last year.  After all we only finished half.  And it was ahead of what they did in the public school.  And I think if I was in Texas I would do it.

But I’m not.

The principal met with David.  She talked with us.  She said that she thinks David would do well in AM Kindergarten, then leave for his services in the special education room.  He would have lunch, recess, phys ed, music, computer lab, and art with the all day Kindergarten kids.  He’ll get library time with an aide with him.  Between you and me, if she had said anything else, I would have left and been completely justified in homeschooling.  But as it is, maybe it’s for the best.  Maybe.  If the little ones benefit, and David does well, and Celia grows and overcomes some fears, then it will be worth it.

Celia remained adamantly against school.  She also wanted NOTHING to do with the bus.  She was still moping when the principal asked how David will handle the bus.  Remember, there are no seatbelts aboard.  She said that the first few rows are reserved for kindergarteners.  She also said that Celia and David will be riding together to and from school.  Celia perked up.  Then the principal asked if I thought Celia would be interested in sitting with David on the bus.  She overheard and jumped up.  Celia informed her that she most definitely wanted to sit with David.

Things were looking up.

From there I took Celia and David to Wal-Mart.  David picked out a Spiderman 3 backpack–trimmed in blue of course.  A blue lunch bag.  A blue sandwich box.  A Spiderman 3 folder.  A Spiderman 3 thermos.  Celia still has a pink backpack in excellent condition.  She picked out a  pink heart lunch bag.  A pink sandwich box.  A hot pink polka-dot folder.  A pink floral thermos.  Since she’s going into second grade, she also got a pink pencil box, and ten floral pencils.  David needed new sneakers.  He tried on a bunch and settled on a nice black and white pair.

Needless to say, they’re officially excited about the start of school.

The Kids Are Doing Well

A pleasant surprise for everyone: my kids are adjusting and behaving rather well.  We have been able to visit my grandparents several times.  Only once did we have to leave because the kids couldn’t behave.  Other than that, at all the family parties and functions, the kids did well.  I’ve received some nice compliments from some very critical family members.  Yes, there were also some ludicrous comments.  I can’t escape that.  Like when my cousin (who is 15 mo old) was screaming (which he does well) and my aunt said, “Your last name is Henry not your first name!”  But David did rather well.  Of course, to be on the safe side, I put David’s “I’m Autistic…” shirt on when it was time for my cousin’s engagement party.  That way, when surrounded by all the people I didn’t know, and all the people–including family–who aren’t used to David, they would know he’s Autistic and I wouldn’t just be making excuses for any unacceptable behavior.

Rachael’s Quote

Rachael is my 12 year old little sister. As we were chatting and joking around yesterday, she said, “Life’s not a garden. Don’t be a ho.”

Slow Progress

Each day is a struggle to wake up, let alone pack.  And each time I leave the kids to pack something, I emerge five minutes later feeling elated that one box has something in it, only to find that David has either: dumped a 1000 piece puzzle, or shredded Styrofoam into tiny balls, or dumped the leeetle Legos, or helped himself to the last few chocolate morsels in the house, or gotten out scented bubble mix and then left it unattended where Henry found it and then tried to blow bubbles but spilled it, or decided to go to the car to get something and since our storm door has no latch the dog let herself out and ran away across the road and across the college campus to a point where I no longer see her…   At which point I feel like I’ve taken 2 steps backward.

Today I left the house at 2 o’clock and didn’t return until 7:20.  First the kids and I went to McDonald’s Playland.  I had hoped Amanda could come, but since they’re moving tomorrow, they were very busy today.  Around 4 we left McDonald’s and went to Wal-Mart.  I was fried from…well, life, so I told the kids well in advance that we were not, under ANY circumstances going to the toy aisle.  And since we’ve had 2 Code Adams in the last couple weeks, I put my “safety belt” on David.  In reality, it is a dog collar meant for a very large dog, reduced to fit David’s or Daniel’s waists, with a 5-foot dog leash attached.  He’s too big for a toddler harness, so I had to get creative.  I used to have one that even had an oval ring that screwed closed keeping the leash on the collar.  David can open a clip.

Wal-Mart went better than expected.  He had only one major melt down.  He had a few tantrums.  He called me “jerk” maybe 5 times, and “idiot” about 3 times.  It was less than at McDonald’s…  I had to put him in the cart during his major melt down, but since Henry was napping at home while Scott packed, it wasn’t too big a deal.  It only took a few minutes till he stopped trying to punch me and call me names till he was making his high pitched “me-me-me-me” sound and reaching out for a hug.  He apologized.  I let him down.  We got our few groceries, looked at a few other things, and then left.  We didn’t look at toys at ALL !

We then ran the groceries home and since Henry was still napping, we continued on without him.  We went to Amanda’s new house.  It was probably 5:30 when I got there.  The kids were LOUD.  There were doors slamming.  Kids hiding in closets.  Kids screaming.  Kids walking toys on walls (that would really just be Daniel).  Kids fighting.  Kids crying over hurt feelings.  And no, they wouldn’t take their playing outside.  No matter how many times we laid down the rules, David and Daniel kept getting carried away and getting everyone in trouble.  And because of stress and exhaustion, Celia and Caedmon are both extra dramatic and moody.

Suddenly it was after 7 and Scott was asking what was for dinner.  Amanda and I both balked at the time and decided Pizza Hut buffet sounded easy as long as the husbands agreed.  They did.  We all raced over.  All 10 of us.   All the parents were tired, and all the kids continued to be loud.  Then, at the end of our meal, a major storm blew in.  The rain was going sideways.  We decided to have a refill and wait till it eased up.  Which just meant more of us telling the kids to stay seated.

And tomorrow I do it all over again.  Because while I was away, Scott got a decent amount of packing done.  Without the kids, it went much more smoothly.  I just don’t know what I’m going to do with them tomorrow!