It's a Girl!

Meet Millie.

She is the newest GoldenDoodle addition to our family.  She arrived on Mother's Day, bright and early and hasn't left my side since.  

It has been a challenge with the potty training, but realistically, it's only been four days.  I think we've done okay considering the time.  Tom may tell you differently, he is the cleaner-up'er since I'm the taker-out'er.  Thanks, Tom...huge help.

Today, Miss Millie had a bath.  She didn't care for it all that much, but didn't seem to mind it, either.  Frankly, I'm shocked she didn't frolic around in the tub, she's been eyeing the pond for days.

Even though ice not had a full nights sleep since last weekend, it's pretty cool.  She follows Tom around, trying to get his attention.  She plays with Little Man since he is more her size, and with Big Boy, well, they were meant to be together.

Forever.

{HIS moments}

Extraordinary moments, captured by Little Man on his very own camera.  This boy may very well have "the eye" for photography.

Yo Betty!

I took the boys, plus one, to Yo Betty tonight.  They were upset that the owners replaced the colorful chairs with standard chairs - so they sat at the window tonight.

As we were walking through the parking lot past the corner grocery mart, an older lady was gingerly putting her groceries in her car.  She was smiling at my pack of boys.  As we got closer, I was thinking she needed help with her gallon of water, but instead, she said, "Oh my, are those all yours?"

"No, two are."

"Is that little one yours?  He is handsome.  Aren't you a good looking boy!"

"(blank stare)" from Little Man.

"Oh, you two aren't bad looking either."

I giggled to myself.

Then enjoyed my New York Cheesecake Frozen yogurt with fresh blueberries and strawberries.  YUM.

{this moment}

{this moment} - A Friday ritual. A single photo - no words - capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savor and remember.

If you're inspired to do the same, leave a link to your 'moment' in the comments for all to find and see.

Let's Talk Lunch

I'm in a mood that isn't conducive to writing anything meaningful.  It's been a rough week.

I tried a little experiment with Big Boy this past week.

I've been an advocate of the gluten free diet.  I agree that artificial food dyes cause hyperactivity and aggression in children.  Not to be a hypocrite, I put Big Boy on a gluten free diet this week, in addition to his no artificial food dyes (which has been working for over a year).

I knew it had to be more fun.  I couldn't expect him to be okay without his really good bread and all the same accouterments.  So, I took a page from the traditional Bento Box lunch and found a divided container with a freezer pack lid.

Packing these lunches are much more fun for me, than the traditional "throw stuff in a baggie" lunch bag.  I saved four snack sized baggies that I normally would have used in this lunch.  Also eliminated the packaging on the Luna Protein Bar and the Baby Bell Light Cheese.

And the results?  He loved the presentation.  Liked most of the foods.  Everything but the bread.

That's how it is with gluten free.  Everything but the bread.  Now, I will contend that the bread used in his lunches was pretty good, it's not gluten bread.  There isn't a match for pre-made gluten free bread as of this day.  They are close, but not quite.  For me, I don't care.  I like my rolls and I always warm them, so I don't have an issue with cold, hard, stiff bread.

And most importantly...did removing the gluten benefit Big Boy's demeanor?

No.  Not at all.

In fact, this has been a pretty horrible week.  Anger, defiance, talking back, repetitions.  It's been a rough one.

So, tomorrow, it's back to real bread for the boy.  Maybe he'll cheer up.

{this moment}

 

{this moment} - A Friday ritual. A single photo - no words - capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savor and remember.

If you're inspired to do the same, leave a link to your 'moment' in the comments for all to find and see.

The Trip that Launched Tears

It started out okay.  Not great, but okay.

We had the typical, Are we there yet? and How much longer? but the boys were watching movies, so it wasn't too bad.

I'm not going to tell you it was the best trip ever.  Because, although what we did was fun and the family we stayed with was fantastic, the behavior was less than enjoyable.  We drove from Buffalo to Maryland.  Maryland to Philadelphia.  Philadelphia to New Jersey.  New Jersey to NYC.  NYC to New Jersey.  New Jersey to Buffalo.  I should have expected it was too much.

I knew we would have bouts of anger and frustration. 

I just didn't think they would be as common place as a tourist in DC.

I made changes in diet and timing and 'free play' each day after the day before didn't work in attempt to make those bouts of anger diminish.

 Sometimes the anger was short, single phrases.  The type of talk that my mom would say, "Don't smart mouth me" - which is something I can't say to my Asperger Boy because literally he will comment about how a mouth can be smart.

Sometimes the anger lasted a long time.  I struggled with what to do.  I couldn't send him to his room.  I couldn't deny him the opportunity because it would take that same opportunity away from his brother, our family and me.  It was a challenge.

I learned a lot last week.





On day four, I broke down.  My patience was depleted.  My drive was halted.

I cried.

Big Boy noticed.

He cried and said, "All I wanted was a hug."

We hugged.

And we cried.

And we were okay.

Until the next day when it began again.

 

 

{this moment}

{look hard, there is a flying object}

My Neil

This little guy.

This is the 2013 version of Neil Armstrong.

Little Man accepted the award for Famous Astronaut in the Famous Americans Play in school today.

No nerves.  Just smiles.

I love this kid.

We found the costume online for cheaper than I could make one.  Little Man, against all comments of "you can wear that for Halloween", has informed me, "We don't wear bought costumes for Halloween, we MAKE them."

I've taught him well.

Perhaps too well.

Neil appears at the 31 second mark, unfortunately this presenter is very hard to hear.

My Bracket

If you know anything about me, you know how I've never been a basketball fan. Neither professional, nor collegiate. I think it may be a Buffalo thing. We are more of a cold weather town with hockey and football being the sports of choice. It obviously has much to do with our lack of big name college basketball teams in the area and no major league basketball team in the area.

If basketball was the only thing on TV, the TV would turn off.

This all changed last year. At the office, we did a NCAA Basketball bracket on CBS Sports.

I was hooked. This year, without an "office", I made my own bracket and invited family to join.

It is now 11:24 pm on Sunday night and I'm SO tired, but I have to watch this game! After a disappointing Illinois loss to Miami, my hopes for a Duke win are high.

Frankly, I feel a bit ridiculous. Perhaps I will just go to bed.

Duke is ahead.

Sleep is important.

My bracket is too.

Sleep.

Basketball.

Slumber.

What happened to me?

Only a couple more minutes.

Open Book

 

One thing that bugs me about blogs is when life is perfect for the blogger.

Life is never perfect. As a reader, I want the joys and the heartache.

Today, I'm here to tell you about both of mine these past couple weeks.

Big Boy said it was okay for me to write about this today. He doesn't feel any different, so not even sure of my question.

In February, as a result of BB's IEP preparation, we met with a Nueropyschologist to work with Sam for nearly six hours over two days. She tested, talked, questioned, and became confused and charmed by our boy.

Two weeks ago, we got a diagnosis of Asperger's Syndrome for our son.

This is not shocking to me, as I often questioned the ADHD diagnosis that was made by a doctor that believed everything that came from BB's mouth was honest. I still cringe at the mention of his name.

The joy I share with you today is immense. We have so much more support with an Autism diagnosis than we did with an ADHD diagnosis. I am joyful that when BB behaves undesirably, I am a bit more patient and understanding. I am very grateful for my patience. It's come in handy the weeks following the diagnosis, so many left messages and emails, so much waiting.

And this of course holds a bit of heartbreak as well. I wanted the best for my boy. I didn't want him to have to struggle. I wanted him to always fit in and be the "cool" kid. I wanted him to be willing to try anything.

Don't get me wrong, I know he can do many things. With the additional services he is now receiving, he will show me that all my dreams for him will not only come true, but I will be astounded with what he will accomplish.

Stitching Away

I must write more here. I definitely miss the routine of sharing little parts of my life here.

With every stitch on this Alphabet Sampler, I think of my great grandmother, Ghee. She was always stitching something. I've talked about her often in this blog. She was so talented and resourceful. My Mom tells me stories of Ghee tearing old wool coats in strips to make her hooked rugs.

I guess you could say she was recycling before it was cool.

A special Happy Birthday to my Mom today. I love you!

{this moment}