Life with the Boys

Up and Down

2011-02-01T12:23:00.000-08:00

I feel like I am on an emotional roller coaster lately. I just want to take Pnut somewhere and have them "fix" the problem. I know there is no such miracle cure for Autism, but it seems to be getting worse instead of better. When we got the diagnosis three years ago I thought I was dealing with it pretty well and ready to do everything possible to help my little man. The Psychologist gave us great hope that with the right intervention by the time he was 6 or 7 he would blend and most likely no one would ever know any difference. We went through the school, even ended up getting advice from a lawyer to get more services. We have never got everything we asked, not even close, but I was still hopeful. We continued outside therapy to assist with his progress. Three and a half years later, he is almost 7 and we have gone backwards. After meeting with the same Psychologist she confirmed he has regressed instead of progressing. It is so disheartening, but I knew this was the case which is why I scheduled the appointment. I have always felt, due in part to the response of others, that I make more of his issues than they really are. Not anymore, I now that it's not in my head there are real issues it just takes someone to stop judging and look at the whole picture. I just feel I sat idle too long and now we have a long road ahead of us to correct the issues. I fought off the medication for as long as I could and finally caved and began going through the motions with the Psychiatrist. I feel yet again I have failed him but I know he needs extra help to be able to slow down enough to let the behavioral therapies help him learn coping mechanisms. I go through these phases where I read an article and I try this or that but I really have not stuck with anything long enough to make any kind of difference. I really need someone to keep me on target, which is really not saying a lot for my perseverance. It's not that I don't want to help him, Lord knows I want to make things right for him. It is not about making it easier on me it is about getting him what he needs. I go through these pity phases and pretty much curl up in a ball. I can't let myself do that anymore! I really need to kick myself in the behind and keep kicking!! Consider this my kick!

Trying something New

2010-07-08T10:36:00.000-07:00

Ok, Summer is a VERY TRYING time of year. I knew Pnut would have some issues adjusting from the school schedule to the less scheduled summer, but I really didn't think it would be like this. I am at a loss for ways to help him.

He has become obsessed with anything electronic. Comupters, gaming systems, calculators....you get the picture. I know everyone says their kids are addicted and obsessed with games, even typical kids. I know they are trying to make light of it and make it seem "normal". I just can not get them to understand the extent of his obsession. He can talk of nothing else. He wakes up asking to play a game, and all day long that is all he can talk about. If you tell him no he can't play a game he goes crazy, screaming, hitting and kicking. He just totally looses it, We make him earn game time at home, but when his time is up he looses it. Throwing anything in sight, including chairs, and comes out hitting and kicking. I have expressed concern with his therapists and they feel we are looking at OCD. We have an appointment with the psychiatrist, but it is two months away. I am not a big fan of medicating my child and have thus far stuck to behavioral therapies. We recently started delving into some vitamin suppliments. Omega 3 is supposed to help with behavior in children with ADD and ADHD, which most kids on the spectrum also have, so we started that. No change as of yet.

Our newest adventure will begin in a week and a half. We are meeting with a Chairopractor. I know what you are thinking, but we are exploring all options. A friend usese her and she reccomended we talk to her from a nutrition standpoint. I have talked with her and got a little better understanding of what she does. I am intrugued about the information she can gather from the hair analysis she does. If I can help him come back to the real world and eliminate his anger without chemicals I am going to explore it.

I am sure everyone I talk to is sick of hearing about Autism, behavior issues, suppliments and such. I am so sorry my mind has been on one track this summer. This is the worst I have seen him and it frankly scares the crap out of me. I feel like I am loosing my child. He is typically such a sweet loving child and I want him back!

Long time....gone by way too fast!

2010-01-19T11:39:00.000-08:00

I know it's been a REALLY long time since I have posted anything at all on here. So much so that my header is not coming up. Is it that I haven't had much to say? Life getting in the way? Both! Things are crazy now, Peanut is in Elemetary school and Sweet Pea started 3K so I thought I would have lots of time to get things done. Not so much. I feel like the days are all blending together. Whoever hit the fast forward button needs to stop.

A much needed girls trip is scheduled in less than a week and a half so maybe I can catch my breath. The trip is going to be awesome, I just can't get myself to stop thinking about the mess I will come home to. My hubby is wonderful with the boys when it is just them, he just forgets to do the stuff around the house. Maybe he will surprise me with a clean house when I get back. Dare I dream?

AWESOME GIVEAWAY!

2009-11-09T11:48:00.000-08:00

So I really want to win this and I will be posting and entering as many times as I can. I know my chances are slim since there are so many of us TWIHARDS, but I still got to try!!!!!

http://www.birminghammommy.com/2009/11/twerds-tweeks-its-time-for-new-moon.html

Just getting it off my chest

2009-02-13T12:55:00.000-08:00

I can't stand LIARS!!! If there is one thing in this world that ticks me off it is for someone to blatantly lie to me! You know who you are so I'm not naming names, feel the burn when you read this because you know you are WRONG! Not only did you lie to me, but you lied about me! I tried to be your friend but you make that impossible. We invited you to hang out with us and you always had an excuse, but when we don't invite you you get upset. WTH!! I listened to you constantly talk about "the other group" and worry about what they were doing and tried to help you feel you were part of a group also and it's ok for them to do things together because we all did. Little did I know your obsession with that group was because you so desperately wanted to be in that group and our group of friends wasn't good enough for you. I'm done, you create your own karma and just remember what you do comes back to you three fold. No that is not a threat, it is just the way the universe works. And don't forget those people you are reaching out to now, they will catch on too!

I'm good with me. I feel I have done everything possible to reach out to you and be a friend. I hope one day you find what you are looking for.

Political Bull

2008-11-08T06:05:00.000-08:00

I was in a conversation last night and it really made me think about a lot that has been said in the last few months during this election. I do not pretend to know everything nor do I think I am always right, but I am entitled to my opinion and my vote. I am neither a Republican nor a Democrat, I do not believe in settling with a party that agrees with some of my views so I do not call myself either. Truth be known I have taken quizzes in the past and I align with the Libertarians, but we know that there are really only two parties here that control everything so I will focus on that. There are a few things that really disturbed me so I am asking you to shed some light on these issues if you can.

1. What is with straight party ballot voting? Do you research all the candidates? Do you know what they stand for. In my opinion a vote should be based on the issues and if the candidate will do the job. There were some races I didn't like either candidate so I didn't vote because I couldn't decide who was the "lesser evil" Why would you want to put someone in a position if you are unsure of the job they will do. I have heard the phrase "My views typically align with ________ party so I just always vote ________" Well what if in that election the person who is running does not align with your views and you missed that fact because you just blankly voted, I know this sounds harsh and you will probably think it's rude but you will hear it more than once from me, but voting strictly by party affiliation and not the issues is irresponsible. (just my opinion)

2. I did not grow up in the south and I was not raised to look at people based on their color, authenticity or religion so maybe that is why I don't get this. How is it ok for a black person to vote for Obama just because he is black, but not for someone to not vote for him because he is black. Both are forms of racism in my opinion. Again people it is about the issues here, NOT COLOR! Again irresponsible voting.

3. Why do you base your vote on something that personally does not affect you, or is not really going to affect the person in the office that term. Case in point the hot button issue of abortion. Now let me just state, I am pro-choice but not pro-abortion. I do not feel it should be a government issue. Now partial birth abortions is another thing, to me that is just murder. Truthfully, think about it would you ever have an abortion? If not then it really does not affect you life so it should be a non issue in this case. In all honesty it is not the President who decides on RoevWade it is the Supreme Court. Yes the President appoints the members of the court, and you can correct me if I'm wrong, but there is no one about to retire or die in the next four years so again their views on abortion are a non issue in this election.

I won't get into some of the other issues, these are the few that I think are non partisan so I can get slammed by both parties equally for my opinions.

One of those stories

2008-11-03T18:48:00.000-08:00

This is one of those stories that is so cute you have to share it with the world. Peanut has not napped in some time and I never get anything done around the house, so today I told him if he wasn't going to nap he was going to help clean. To my surprise he was eager to help. He grabbed the broom and attempted to sweep the floor, then took the duster and dusted a few things. It came time to empty the dishwasher and apparently the dishes were still a little warm. He immediately went to the drawer and grabbed some oven mits and began unloading the dishes. How smart is this kid! I had to run and grab the camera, this was most definitely a Kodak moment.

Pretend play

2008-10-19T13:26:00.000-07:00

This may seem a little silly, but I just had to post this video! I had to get the hubby to film it because he already saw me with the camera and started posing. What is the big deal? Well he is now pretend playing, all his speech in this video is spontaneous, and no dialogueing!!!! Huge step!! Over the last two weeks I have seen this really emerge and I am just busting at the seams with happiness. He finally knows what to do with his toys and that they are not just objects to throw or kick around.

School is here

2008-09-04T12:52:00.000-07:00

Yea! School has finally started. Hubby are I were hoping the structure would settle Peanut down since he does so well with structure. So far, no such luck. His teacher said he is impulsive, she has trouble keeping him to task and he gets up and wanders. HMMM, those were the things we kept trying to get the school board last year to recognize and they said we were nuts and he didn't do any of those things. I commented to his teacher that they kept telling us last year that he had no such issues and she said maybe it was because 3K is a lot more relaxed and they geat more play time.

Good news though we have a new speech therapist and new case manager this year. They came before school started to the house and worked with him here so they get a sense of how he is outside of school.

I just hope that the ABA therapist is able to shed some light for us. This week has been HELL! Every day he comes home he is so wired and MEAN! We have two more weeks before she comes to observe him, I hope she goes to the school before then.

This may be a long year for us, I was so hoping for the best and that he would be able to be mainstream next year. The way things are right now I just don't see it happening. Why did they not listen??!!!

A boy and his fish - Wordless Wednesday

2008-08-20T12:13:00.000-07:00

Hanging out and having fun

2008-07-28T20:08:00.001-07:00

Blue Momma left Punkin over at our house the other day and the boys all had a ball

We danced and sang until they were all worn out and wanted to rest.

How cute are they!?

How Does yours fit?

2008-07-10T19:22:00.001-07:00

So late last night I was doing my Sudoku puzzle and look up to see hubby is watching a program on bbc about large breasts. (I know he is such a perv!) I'm half listening and the one girl (only 19) was getting fitted for a bra, and was told that the one she had was all wrong. Did you know that most women don't buy bras that are the right fit? Most women get a size and stick with it through out their whole life. This intrigued me, so I put down the puzzle and listened. The girl went in there thinking she was a 32EE and come to find out she is actually a 30G. Huge, I know! The lady explained that the bra should come around the back in a straight line and if it raises up it is too small. She also said that you should feel the underwire on your ribs and there should be no gap in the front.

I was actually "measured" at Victoria Secret once and told that the size thought I wore was wrong, I just thought the little girl was inexperienced. I did buy the size she said thinking this would never fit , but to my surprise it fit much more comfortably than my other ones.

So this leads to my question....How does yours fit and have you been measured before? Am I the only dork that waited until I was in my 30's before I got a proper fitting bra.

The switch has been flipped

2008-06-25T11:19:00.000-07:00

No it is not a bad switch either! I read so many books on Autism that said sometimes a switch just flips and they begin to talk, well I think Peanuts switch has been flipped!

Last Sunday I told him after therapy Monday we were going to the Zoo. (which he recently developed a love for) I have a friend in town and she knows the Hospital Manager there so we got a "special tour". All the way to therapy he was in the back seat just jabbering away about snakes and seals. My friend said "does he ever stop talking" I told her he has NEVER done this before. He did fairly well at therapy they said they could tell he was excited, but he did good.

Well the conversation went on and on with him, yes I said conversation. He actually had a conversation with me. I asked a few questions and he actually answered, then he asked a few questions!

HOW AWESOME IS THAT!

The talking has continued since then. We had VBS this week and I would ask "what did you do today" and HE ANSWERED! Now it wasn't in detail, but this is a kid who just a few weeks ago would to say "Yea what you do" when asked that question. I was told "I sing songs" and "I play games".

AWESOME I TELL YOU!

Monday he woke up and didn't feel good. He told me "Momma I reawwy sick". I tucked him in with a blanket and let him watch tv. (usually not time for tv in the morning) Next he told me "Momma ears hurt". This in hand I called the Doctor and made an appointment, he has an ear infection.

HOW AWESOME IS IT THAT HE WAS ABLE TO COMMUNICATE THIS TO ME!

I was told the excitement could be heard in my voice as I called EVERYONE I knew and told them of his progress. Who wouldn't be busting at the seams with this happening!

It has been an INCREDIBLE WEEK!

Six Random Things

2008-06-05T19:52:00.001-07:00

Lets see what is on my mind now

1. I have a slight case of OCD and have found this very difficult to deal with when you have children who have no concept of time or picking things up

2. I LOVE to cook, I am not so much of a baker because it takes too long but I love to try a new recipe

3. I can be a real BITCH if I get really mad. It takes a lot to get me to that point but once I am there...........it's on. Long story but just ask my old room mate

4. My absolute favorite sound in the world is hearing the boys laugh and play, my least favorite is to hear them scream

5. I am a middle child

6. I am older than my hubby

The balloon fiasco

2008-05-05T13:17:00.000-07:00

I know everyone likes to brag on their kids, but this is a really cute story and I just have to share!

We were given balloons at therapy today because Children's Theater was there and Peanut totally had a fit about taking the balloons. I couldn't understand why he didn't want the balloons. On the way out to the car I realized why he didn't want them when he kept telling me "Hold on balloons Momma, hold on" and he kept watching them very closely. It finally clicked that he was scared that we were going to loose the balloons like we did after a birthday party in December. (Talk about memory, WOW!) He was ok once we got the balloons in the car. Well Sweet Pea let go of one as we were getting out of the car at home and it was gone. Peanut lost it and began to scream and yell for the balloon. He even took the other balloon himself into the house and hid it safely in his closet so it wouldn't fly off. As he is screaming I told him it was ok for the balloon to fly up in the sky and that we were giving it to Jesus. He seemed ok with that answer and when his brother said "balloon" he responded with " It ok, Sweet Pea we give it to Jesus"

Is your heart melting or what?! How cool is that!
I guess I've done something right if he wants to give his balloon to Jesus

What the!!??!!

2008-05-01T12:49:00.001-07:00

How can a person who spends one hour with my child once a week possibly think they know more about my child than I do? Preview into our big meeting in two weeks, it is not going to be a friendly meeting.

This Speech Therapist thinks that she knows more than a multi-diciplinary group about Autism and Autism Spectrum Disorders? She told me today that they have his diagnosis all wrong and he has OCD and ADD. HMMM where is your PHD? I'm sorry but I am more inclined to believe the people who are trying to help my child than those who are trying to get out of it.

And get this she said his teacher sees ABSOLUTELY NO difference in him and the rest of the kids in his class and she has a note to prove it. I'm sorry but ARE YOU KIDDDING me you honestly see no difference in the language??!! The kid can't tell you what he did today but that is normal for a 4 year old? Um I don't think so. I am so glad next year he will have a liscenced teacher and not just someone's mom that needed to get out of the house!

Who needs to talk

2008-04-11T20:22:00.000-07:00

Well as most of you know, Peanut is not so good with communication. He is a man of little words. Obviously talking is not important when you are as goodlooking as he is. I went to pick him up from school yesterday and what did I see but a harem of girls surrounding him and two were holding his hands. He walked out of the gate to get me and these little girls were climbing on the fence yelling "Bye Peanut". His father would have been so proud to see that moment.

Who can blame them, look at those big blue eyes and the blonde hair, I mean the boy has got it going on. Then you add the killer smile.....

No girl stands a chance.

We ran into his teacher at the store today and she informed me that he has a little "girlfriend" at school. They always eat lunch together and yesterday he helped her clean up her lunch because she got in trouble for not doing it. What a little man.

We had a little conversation tonight

Us: Peanut do you have a girlfriend
Peanut: Yes
Us: really, who is your girlfriend
Peanut: Book (well that is how he pronounces it so...)

Well "Book" is not the girl from school she is another girl friend so we asked if he had anymore girlfreinds and he said yes....."Little Red", still not the girl from school. So I guess he has MANY "girlfriends".

Is it just me or are they starting younger these days?

I'm Sorry

2008-03-31T09:53:00.000-07:00

I'm sorry to all you mothers of "Perfect" children because mine are definitely not

I'm sorry to all you mothers who do not understand that a child with an Autism Spectrum Disorder does not behave like your perfect little angels

I'm sorry that you are so narrow minded that you feel that only you know how to parent

I'm sorry but your "If you put enough fear in them they will listen" does not work with children with Autism, they only retreat further if you scare them

I'm sorry that you don't understand that a younger sibling ALWAYS looks to the older for how to act and when that sibling has Autism they may pick up some bad behaviors

I'm sorry you feel that it is your right to judge me, I thought that God was to be the only one to pass judgement

I'm sorry thzt you are so perfect yourself that you can't understand that shit happens

I am so very sorry that you will never fully understand what a blessing this child is

I'm sorry if you are reading this and came for entertainment and only got my ranting

OK, I am DONE apologizing

I am NOT sorry that God entrusted me with this perfect little angel

I am NOT sorry that he had so much faith in me that he thought I would be able to love and nurture a child with a disability

I am NOT sorry that I choose not to SCARE my children into submission

I am NOT sorry for the choices I make

Amazing art`

2008-03-29T19:07:00.000-07:00

Peanut had a birthday party to attend today for a little girl in his class. According to her he is her favorite person even grandma and grandpa were checking him out because she talks so much about him. How cute is that! I have a little stud muffin on my hands here. Apparently two other little girls in his class say the same thing. Hmmm, what really goes on in preschool.

One of the gifts the little girl got was a hand painted canvas with her name and the meaning of it. It was so beautiful. It was done by one of the other moms in his class. This woman does some amazing artwork! For Christmas she hand painted an ornament for each child that had them on it, and the detail on these were phenomenal! So I overhear her talking to another mom, this one I didn't know, and she is now making them to sell. You have to go check out her site.

http://busybelleart.blogspot.com/2008/03/blog-post.html

I am getting the canvas with the boys names on it. If you tell her the style you want and colors she can do it to your specifications.

Quiet time

2008-03-27T21:26:00.000-07:00

I do so enjoy the quiet time I so rarely get. I used to hate silence and always had the television or radio on for "background" noise. Crazy what motherhood does to you. I am sitting her in complete silence, well other than the tapping of the keyboard. Sheer BLISS!

Hhhhmmmm

2008-03-26T21:19:00.000-07:00

The name of the lawyer gets thrown out there and all of the sudden the school board is interested in what I have to say and how I feel Peanut's progress is. And they are looking into other areas that they can work with him on. Interesting , Very interesting. I haven't even had a paid session with the lawyer yet.......

In Loving Memory of Sadie

2008-03-23T11:07:00.000-07:00

10/03/2000 - 03/23/2008

Snarky looks

2008-03-20T18:06:00.001-07:00

I am so sick of the snarky looks I get when I am out with the boys. I feel like I have to defend myself and my children to everyone. I am always explainig that Peanut has a form of Autism and there are things he just doesn't understand. Well maybe understand is not the right word to use here. I think if he actually heard what was said he would understand, but when he sees something that catches his attention or if he is in his "dialogue zone" he is in his own world and I think he has no clue what is going on around him.

I do discipline the boys and I do not let them run wild. Hello do you not see me trying to get him to settle down! So lady at the vet that kept giving me dirty looks today piss off! I think my Vet said it best today when he made the comment that it must be really hard with the oldest having Autism and the youngest looking to him as a role model. Now it's not like this didn't run through my head a few hundred times, but I just keep trying to stay consistent with the discipline and hope that Sweet Pea will begin to catch on to what he should be doing.

I may just be oversensitive, but I always feel like people look at me like I am a nut case. I know there have been times when I saw an intereaction between parent and child (now you know this was pre children) and thought that they needed to get a grip on things.

Note to all, NEVER look at another parent and make a quick judgement on their parenting skill. You have absolutely no idea what their situation in life is or what they have been through prior to you coming into the picture.

Talk, Talk, Talk

2008-03-18T13:18:00.001-07:00

This has been an incredible week! Peanut has been talking so much and actually telling us things.

New sentences:

"Momma, I go playground"
"Momma, I want drink"
"Momma, I don't want it"
"I go pee outside" (long story, I won't get into it)
"I want little table"
"I want write"
"I don't want wake up, I tired"
"You got a be nice to papa"

So I know there are a lot of wants, but thats the kicker he never really told us what he wanted in an actually sentence it was always "milk" or "water" and always in a very whiney voice. It is awesome to hear him say "momma, I want...."

Progress

2008-03-13T19:23:00.000-07:00

This may not seem like a big deal to many, but my little man told me what he did today. Now it was not an eloquent conversation and it took a few times asking, but HE ANSWERED MY QUESTION!

He has also started telling me "momma I hungry" HUGE STEP!!!!

I am just giddy with joy!

Comfort...

2008-03-13T19:10:00.001-07:00

My silly little girl has found a bed for herself. She can get comfortable ANYWHERE!

Don't ask how that could be comfortable, but obviously she thinks it is

Why even bother

2008-02-25T18:33:00.000-08:00

My husband says he is going to help "clean" the house and he will start by cleaning the bathrooms upstairs to make things easier this week for me. So I'm upstairs bathing the boys and I look at the toilet and it is still dirty. I know he "swished the bowl" but that does not make for a clean toilet. The whole thing needs to be wiped down from top to bottom, hello we have two little boys peeing in there and they don't really have good aim at this age. Next we are brushing teeth and I get a look at the mirror, yep you guessed it he did not wipe that down either. So according to him all you need to do to clean the bathroom is wipe the tub, counters and inside of the toilet bowl. Yes hunny you made it so much easier for me. I still have to clean the bathrooms myself!

What was I thinking

2008-02-24T21:07:00.000-08:00

So you know we have a new puppy. Well in telling my mom about the puppy I told her about these Basset Hound puppies that a lady had at the vet the same time. She immediately exclamed "Oh, I would love a Basset puppy". The parents have been considering another dog for a while now so I asked if she was serious and if she was I would get it for her for her birthday, which is this week.

Why didn't someone slap me? I offered to hang on to the pup until she gets here in two weeks! That makes 4 dogs in my house right now. The little bastard has peed on my floor so many times I am about to kill him. I don't know how he does it. He walks around the entire yard peeing and then comes in and five minutes later he is peeing on the floor again! He peed on the floor more times in the first 4 hours we had him then our sweet Bela has the entire week. (Bela by the way whines at the door to go out, how cool is that we have a pretty smart cookie here)

Ok, so what the biggest problem is, he is SO DAMN CUTE I can't stay mad at him! NO FAIR!

I blame it on Peanut, he picked him out!

What's your Name

2008-02-24T21:04:00.000-08:00

I know this may not seem like a lot to most people, but those of you who know us know that Peanut doesn't have very good communication skills. Imagine my surprise and joy when the little girl behind us in church asked Peanut his name and he immediately without prompting replied "Peanut". I got tears in my eyes I was so proud!!!!! What a great DAY!

Look Momma!

2008-02-24T21:01:00.000-08:00

Ah, little boys are great! Here is a transcript of a thrilling event today

Peanut: I got to poot
Momma: Well go then
Peanut: (calling from the bathroom) Look momma green poot
Momma: what?
Peanut: Green and brown poot
(flush)
Peanut: Bye Bye Green poot

Just as a side note, he doesn't normally have green "poot" but we had his birthday party yesterday and he ate a LOT of icing.

Bela

2008-02-20T18:54:00.000-08:00

6 lbs 3 oz and fuzzy to boot!

We really didn't need to add to our clan, but when I saw this little angel my heart melted.

Your heart melted too didn't it?!

Just look at that cute little face. People kept saying she looks big, but the few people who have seen her in person say she isn't as big as she looks.

Here is a decent picture of the whole crew. The other (non-human) kids are adjusting to her. Although if you judge by Sadie's look she could care less. She just wanted a treat for sitting for a picture.

Peanut is the most fun to watch with her. He absolutely LOVES her. He keeps carrying her around and telling her "Come on Vewa sit by Peanut". Sweet Pea, who is not much of a dog person, even loves her. He actually let her climb on him. He is always telling the other dogs to go away.

Yes, as my friend so kindly told me I am a NUT for adding to the Chaos in my home, but she is cute!

There is a light!

2008-02-12T20:09:00.000-08:00

There is a light at the end of that L-O-N-G dark tunnel the school board has you walking through, it just takes a Lawyer to finally enable you to see it. They put so much crap in front of you and cloud the way, Lawyer lady is a Superhero who comes in and clears the path. Ok, so it may take some time but the outlook is good.

Not to all parents dealing with ASD's get a Lawyer, the school board is screwing you out of services you are entitled to by law!

99.999% reliability?????

2008-01-31T13:05:00.000-08:00

Unless there is bad weather. I am seriously sick of the power going out! I am tired of resetting everything!

Say what you will

2008-01-31T12:59:00.000-08:00

Poodlehead has made a few comments about "the Kangaroo on Cocaine" so since the boys are still sleeping(YEA!!!)I thought I would throw my comments out there. I love this class! It kicks my butt during the class and I feel like I have got the wind knocked out of me at times, but the after affect is AWESOME. This is only the second time we took the class, but I do have to say that both days I took the class I have had serious energy boosts! Maybe it's not the exercising at all, just the sheer joy that I made it through alive but I am hooked......it's my new drug.

SHHHH.....

2008-01-31T12:12:00.000-08:00

Ah, silence in the afternoon is golden! My two little boys decided to cut their tired old mom a break and sleep this afternoon. Now I can catch up on the latest gossip I have been dying to read!

Here goes Random mommy

2008-01-23T14:31:00.000-08:00

This may be a little boring, but here goes

Why do you blog? I really don't have an answer for this one, I guess because everyone else I know does. (Lame I know.) But I have found it is a great way to vent at times

What was the first blog you ever read? I'm a mom, honestly before that I am embarrased to say I did not know exactly what a blog was. (Yes I am technologically challenged.)

What was the first blog that had you hooked? I'm a mom and Random mommy (and unlike poodlehead I thought you were fun before reading your posts). I love the wit and brutal honesty in their posts.

Which blogger friend would you most like to meet in real person? I don't have any blogger friends that I haven't already met in real person. Remember I am the follower.

Which blog do you admire the most, why? I can't pick one, I really like I'm a mom and Random mommy for the reasons stated above, but I also like to check our Blue momma's because she gives some insight into who she is there

How different are you in real life than in your blog?I'm not , I'm pretty boring in both arenas.

How many blogs do you keep up with on a daily basis? I don't know if I get to them daily, but I visit all in my daily intake as often as possible ( I'm nosey and I want to know what's going on in other people's lives)

Link to your 123rd post. Or your 3rd, if you don't have back to the technologically challenged, I am having trouble with this one..........

All doped up

2008-01-22T18:15:00.000-08:00

All I can say is I will NEVER give Peanut this Rx again! I swear he was literally climbing the walls. I couldn't even hold him still. Sad to say he has to suffer with his symptoms until this cold passes because I can't handle another day like this.

Little Apple Thief

2008-01-22T18:11:00.000-08:00

I never thought I would say I'm proud of my child being a theif, but today I am. Sweet Pea doesn't usually have a good appetite so to watch him calmly walk over and take Peanut's apple slices one at a time was priceless. Peanut was so involved in the movie on the television, he didn't notice until they were all gone. How bad am I to sit and watch it all happen......

The snowman

2008-01-19T12:31:00.000-08:00

First snow experience

2008-01-19T12:02:00.000-08:00

Yippeee! It actually snowed! We lived in KY for a year and a half and didn't get as much as we did today here. The boys had so much fun. I just wish I got Poppa out of bed early enough to get out their when it was still snowing. It had stopped by the time we finally got outside. I did get some cute pics

The first glimps into our little winter wonderland

Snowball fight!

Our first snowman. (So he is a little small what do you expect!)

It's so sad the snow is all gone already.......

Bathroom boredom

2008-01-18T22:02:00.001-08:00

This is what happens when a three year old (well almost four year old) is left to go potty by himself.

Yes that was a brand new roll of toilet paper!

Is there a switch that gets flipped?.....

2007-12-18T13:45:00.000-08:00

I swear there must be some kind of switch that automatically flips when a child turns two! My little Sweet Pea has always been such a complacent child and easy to put down for naps and at night. Not anymore! He spent two hours crying and scraming before he finally went to sleep. (no I didn't leave him to cry all that time I went to check on him in between) It's not just the sleep thing either, he has become defiant! I tell him no touch and what does he do....goes right back over and touches it all the while looking straight at me as if to say "what are you going to do". UUUGGGHHH!

I WANT MY BABY BACK!!!!!!

Look at that sweet little face....looks like an angel doesn't he?!............

Clean up your toys

2007-12-04T19:31:00.000-08:00

Well at least they made it into the closet and aren't all over the family room anymore. I guess we will take this one step at a time and eventually they will end up IN the toybox.

A Piece of Cake??!!!

2007-11-25T20:21:00.000-08:00

Get ready to hear a tale, a sad tale, a frustrating tale.................

We had Sweet Pea's birthday party a couple of weeks ago and ordered his cake from A Piece of Cake. We were having a "Little Einstein" party and I wanted a cake shaped like rocket. I had found a website that had instructions how to make the cake, but I am not very crafty, so I called them because I had heard they were good (you bad people telling me lies!!!!) anyway I called and gave the lady on the phone the website and after looking it up she said they could do that and it would look even better than it did in the picture. I was so excited. You see since there aren't any party plates or things for Little Einstein everything was so plain so I wanted the cake to be exceptional.

Hubby went to get the cake (big mistake, ladies never let a man pick up a cake, they don't know what they are looking at) and brought it in and I immediately knew the cake was not like the picture I had given them. I was very disappointed with the cake.

This is what I got

This is what I asked for

The cake in the second picture was not done by a professional, it was done by a man who tinkered with cake decorating. So when the lady on the phone told me she could do the cake even better I honestly believed her. Well as you can tell the cake looked AWFUL!!! Total disappointment.

So we cut the cake and serve it and YUCK!!!! It tasted awful! There was so much red dye that the icing was bitter! So the entire cake, minus what a couple of kids ate went straight to the trash. Now I paid $70 for this cake and it was not edible.

A little later that day Pumpkin starts with a bad case of diarrhea. Surprise it is the color of the icing! This continues for THREE DAYS along with vomiting!!!! The poor little guy kept crying because his belly hurt. Then I find out that one of the other little one's had the same thing happen to her, only she threw up first.

So I decided to call Monday morning to A Piece of Cake and tell them what had happened. The lady (Karen) who identified herself as the owner listened to what I had to say and all she could offer was a discount on my next cake. Well I pondered this and I did not think that was sufficient. I mean two children got sick and I had to throw the whole cake away because it was awful. So I emailed her told her I wanted at least a portion of my money back to make up for everything. She did not respond so I called her late the next day. I spoke with her again and she informed me that the person who took my order said I asked for changes. WHAT!!!!!!! No I did not I gave her the website giving step by step instructions on how to do the cake! How can you screw that up. And as far as the vomiting, well she felt that it was more plausable that two children that had not been around each other for three weeks had contracted the exact same virus at the exact same time than the cake made them sick. Now I had told her I thought it was the amount of dye in the icing that made them sick, not the cake. She said anytime you tint icing red you get a change in flavor. She was so defensive and started yelling at me. I asked her point blank if she was at all worried that two children got very ill after eating her cake and she said "No, not during cold and flu season" She would not even acknowledge any responsiblility. So after getting nowhere with her several friends suggested the Health Department, because the children getting sick. The lady I spoke to at the Health department was so nice and after giving her every little detail including the time when the cake was eaten and when the symptoms started, she too felt that there was something there. I forwarded her the email I sent to Karen and she said she could tell just looking at the picture that there was a lot of dye in the icing. She called Karen and talked to her and Karen calls me and says she still doesn't believe the cake had anything to do with it but I can come and get a Thanksgiving cake for free. ARE YOU CRAZY!!!!! My child was sick for three days from your cake do you think I would subject him to that again??!!! She also tried to tell me that the order taker told me about that in advance and offered airbrushing, NOT!!!! Now what kind of nut would say "Ok, you can make my icing inedible for the color" Especially when the icing is the only thing little ones eat!

The mother of the other child called her to get the dye used to get more information about it since it made her daughter sick. She was RUDE to her and even tried to lie and say she wasn't there too bad she talks too loud because she heard her say she wasn't there and called the employee on it when she told her she wasn't there. So minutes later the other owner (Kathy) calls and threatens me that if anyone else calls about this cake she is going to file harassment charges on me. HUH?! I have not harassed her I called twice about a product and the other mother had every right to call and ask about the dye that made her child sick!

So in summary ( I know this is a really long post but I want this information out there!) DO NOT EVER ORDER FROM A PIECE OF CAKE in PELHAM, ALABAMA!!! You may not get what you want and you may get more than you bargained for the next couple of days.

Oh on a side note the manufacturer of the dye was contacted and he said used properly there should be no tase, evidently that is the selling point. Maybe they should call the decorators at A Piece of Cake and let them know that.

Hubby is in the doghouse!

2007-11-11T20:15:00.000-08:00

Just look what he did to my baby!@#@#$!

I know he has been out of town for a while, but he knows I don't cut his hair like that! I had to cancel his pictures and won't reschedule until it grows out. It isn't even straight! I should have known when he didn't want me to go in something was up!

Now isn't this one much better

I get so upset every time I look at him. It is just too grown up! UUUGGHHHHH!
I was a little worried when we got his hair cut the last time (the second picture was taken that day) because we went from the Buster Brown cut to the bowl cut because I felt it was too short and made him look older. Needless to say I have informed him he is NEVER going to take him to get his hair cut again. That is my last baby damnit don't make him grow up so fast!

What's with Law Enforcement in Alabama

2007-11-08T19:59:00.000-08:00

Let me just preface this by saying in my former life I worked as a Crime Scene Technician, so you know where I am coming from when I make my remarks.

My husbands car was recently broken into at work, in the parking lot in the broad daylight. His GPS and golf clubs were the only things taken of real value. When he contacted the police to make a report they did not even ask for any detailed information about the stuff stolen. They just wanted the generic GPS and golf clubs, no brands, serial numbers or anything else. I know Bham has A LOT of crime and this may be unimportant in the grand scheme of their day, but come on. Retrieving stolen property is something they can hire a civilian for. Point is as we were taught in school you have to go all out at EVERY scene because you don't know what you may find. It has also been proven that many criminals start off with stealing property and eventually graduate to more heinous crimes. What about the point system, or is that not here either. (Each crime is so many point and after a certain amount your punishment gets more severe)

After being irate about this the hubby tells me a guy at work got his home broken into and LOTS of expensive stuff stolen and they did nothing but write a report. WHAT??!!?? I know I hated going to Residential Burglaries, but come on are we just letting the crooks take peoples stuff that they worked so hard to attain?

Bye-Bye baby

2007-11-04T11:17:00.001-08:00

It is time I say bye-bye to those days of ease when putting sweet pea down for night-night. He has crawled out of his crib every now and then, but we were putting off the transition into a toddler bed. This week that all has changed, he climbed out every time we put him in, so in the interest of safety we have transformed his bed into a toddler bed. Last night was the first night and let's just say he LOVES his new found freedom. He finally did fall asleep, in his bed, somewhere between 10 and 10:30 last night. At least that is when we stopped hearing the toys. And I can hear him right now playing with his toys, while he is supposed to be napping. This is about the time when Peanut and I began our regular "fights" about sleep. Peanut was never good about going to bed, but once he was in a toddler bed he got even worse. Sweet Pea has always been so good about going to sleep and now I fear that is all gone.

My little guy is growing up.

I still can't believe he will be two in two weeks.

School Board SUCKS!!!!!

2007-11-01T20:07:00.000-07:00

I guess I shouldn't be surprised that I am having so many problems getting Peanut into the preschool program. Absolutely EVERYONE I have met that has dealt with them, in different states even, has said the same thing; "You have to FIGHT to get you child what they need." Now I don't mind fighting and I will continue to fight them until he gets the services he needs, however I think it is awful that he is missing out on help that he needs in the meantime. Why do they stonewall you? Why to they try to push you off and give you the least possible help and make you wait weeks and weeks before you can make another meeting to discuss the situation. Fist I was told the program was full and not accepting any other children. When I said that I thought if there was a need they had to find a spot, the tune changed. It took a month to get that first meeting. I brought with me all the paper work from the initial speech evaluation and the evaluation from Mitchel's Place (who by the way are awesome to work with). They took the report and looked at the diagnosis page and I think the woman said three or four times "There is no diagnosis, did you hear there is no diagnosis". That was our first clue this was not going to go as we wanted. After talking with them for an hour they decided they needed to do some "Testing" of their own. Although I didn't know what else they could test, I said ok. Three weeks later we go in and they do their tests. The same one's he already had done at Mitchel's! Which I have been told standardized test completed within a year of the test are not valid, but whatever. So they decide to work with him in his "Natural Environment", which in this case they considered a preschool that he had attended one day as his natural environment. (If you are following this we started the process in the beginning of July and as you can see by this time it was September)
We decided to go with it and see how things went. In mid October we went for a follow up with the psychologist and he was then diagnosed with PDD-NOS. The diagnosis was given after another evaluation session with the psychologist and a review with the therapist that he had been seeing since the beginning of August. We were told that he needs to be in a classroom with teachers who are trained to handle children with Autism Spectrum Disorders. So back to the School Board we go.
We meet again and they pretty much told me they will not put him in the preschool period! They feel he is making progress with the people they are sending into his preschool for a half hour two days a week. These women who have each seen Peanut four times for a half hour each feel that they have a better grasp of where he is and what is best for him than either me or the therapist who have been interacting with him since July. Now if you ask me I think there is something wrong there! The notes they send home say that he does all kinds of things that neither I nor his REAL therapist have seen him do. Makes you wonder if they are fudging a little. Case in point the one lady said he told her about his Halloween costume, funny I have been prepping him for two or three weeks and I still can't get him to tell me he has a costume on. When I called her on it in the meeting she said that he said he had a pirate costume on "well at least I hope it was a pirate, because that's what I said it was". HELLO! You just said it right there you told him it was a pirate and we know he has issues with echolalia! It's like they never read the report that was given to them! I precede to tell them I think it stinks that we are supposed to consider what's best for the child and I just don't feel that is a factor here. Oh, that one lady was sooooo smug and kept telling me they have to follow the law, which they are as she says! Problem is the law is written so broad that it is open to interpretation! To this she tells me to write my congressman if I want it changed. B*TCH!!!!!! Now I have given the reigns to our Psychologist and she is going to see what she can do. Next step is to go to a lawyer.

Why do they have to make this so hard, aren't we already dealing with enough sress to add this to it! As and old friend would say "Rat Bastards"!

God is Crazy..?!......

2007-10-20T07:28:00.001-07:00

Peanut has been saying grace for the family for a while now. We have always said the "Bless us oh Lord" prayer, however he has learned a new prayer at preschool and insists on saying that one also.

Check out what they are teaching him....

Peanut's Prayer

God is Crazy
God is Good
(Inaudible sounds)
Ah-men

It's official!

2007-10-16T12:21:00.001-07:00

We went for Peanut's evaluation today. After testing and meetings with his therapist the psychologist feels that the diagnosis of PDD-NOS is appropriate for him. I was prepped for that though, I kind of felt like she was leaning that way after our visit last week. The good news is it is not severe.

That's all I got for today! I promise I will not focus on this every day!

A little more info on PDD-NOS

2007-10-15T12:56:00.000-07:00

I have had a lot of questions posed to me about what PDD-NOS is exactly and what is the difference between that and Autism. To tell the truth I really did not do much research earlier (like I said before I was just to scared of what I might see) but since Thursday I have sat down a few times and did some research and this is what I found that may help to explain a little better.

How do professionals tell the difference between autism and PDD-NOS?

Primarily by the pattern and degree or number of characteristics observed or reported. However, there are difficulties associated with this differential diagnosis, and it often takes a clinician with extensive experience with both disorders to make the call. Problems may occur when a child's developmental level is quite low, so that assessing the areas of concern would be quite difficult at a similar age equivalent.

A second problem occurs with children who are toddlers and young preschool-age children. Many of the behaviors that are considered crucial for diagnosis are still very variable in typically developing young children in this age range. Some children may receive a diagnosis of PDD-NOS as a toddler because they did not have any communicative behavior; later they may qualify for a diagnosis of autism as their communication develops and it becomes more evident that a qualitative difference exists in that area. For parents and educators, the important thing to focus on is not the specific label a child receives, but what can be done to help the child develop skills in the areas of concern.

What is the long-term prognosis for children diagnosed with Autism/PDD-NOS?

Autism/PPD-NOS is a life-long disability, and individuals with Autism live a full lifetime. There are no cures, and even those individuals who proclaim themselves "recovered" continue to have difficulties with subtle social processes. However, with advances in education, early intervention, and research, today individuals with Autism/PDD have a greatly expanded range of outcomes as adults. In the past, the majority of individuals with Autism lived in institutional care as adults. Current trends, based on increased knowledge of how to educate children with Autism and the importance of early education, emphasize building skills and abilities in order to prepare young adults with Autism/PDD to work, to live in the community, and in some cases, to pursue higher education. Outcome appears to depend on both degree of overall impairment and intensity of educational/treatment effort. Prognosis is markedly better for individuals who develop verbal language before the age of 5 years

I found these two quesion/answers to outline everything pretty clearly. There is also a link to a great article that give a more indepth explanation about PDD-NOS if you are so inclined to read it.

Wow this must be the most boring blog to read right now, sorry but my focus is limited.

PDD - NOS

2007-10-11T16:07:00.000-07:00

Not a good day for us today. We went for our follow up appointment with the child psychologist this afternoon and we are being re evaluated next week. Some issues have come out in his therapy that did not present themselves as strongly when we did the initial evaluation back in July. She had told us then that he had autistic tendencies, but she did not feel that a diagnosis at that time was appropriate. She now feels that he will fall into the PDD-NOS diagnosis and wants to verify with another test. I guess I should be happy that she said she really doesn't feel that he has full autism, but it is still in the spectrum. I did a little research before we went in for the initial evaluation, but stopped because quite frankly it scared the Shit out of me!

I just keep asking myself, what if it was something that I could have prevented? I know a lot of people blame vaccines, but like the psychologist said, the research just doesn't show a correlation. What about TV? Did I let him watch to much TV at a young age? What about all my cleaning stuff? (I have gone "green" recently) There are so many questions that I am going crazy.

Oh, wait I have already gone there...........
I'm just having a pity party!

New Car

2007-09-26T10:55:00.000-07:00

Not for me, but for the boys.

Although my hubby doesn't think they need it, one of the items I wanted to get them for Christmas was a ride on. We have a little one seater that we got for Peanut when he turned two, but both boys can't fit in it and they fight over it. Imagine my delight when I was just browsing by the ride on vehicles and noticed the Cadillac Escalade on sale for $169! Now I have been pricing these for a while, because I think the boys would love it (and I think they are cool and wish I had one for myself, but that's a whole other story), and they are usually closer to $300. I snatched that thing up quickly, well at least as quickly as I could at a Wal Mart where NOBODY is ever working. We didn't get to pick it up until Monday, because the assembly guy was backed up, so I didn't get to really check it out until today after the boys went down. (YES! Peanut finally took a nap! YEHAW!)

This thing is awesome!

It has a working radio, kid style cd player and cd to play, cup holder, working doors and seat belts. I want to drive it!

Now I just have to be patient because we have another three months before they get it. We don't have a good place to store it as you can see it is "hidden" in our garage for now. We really need to figure something out it is only a matter of time before Peanut decides he wants to see what's under the sheet.

I would never survive as a Single mom

2007-09-25T18:14:00.000-07:00

I really don't know how anyone does this on their own. With the hubby out of town frequently I have had my "single mom" stints and can I just say I don't like it. I feel so drained at the end of the day I just want to get the kids in bed and cry. I love my boys, but they can be a handful. I absolutely HATE to yell, but that is the only way I seem to get their attention when they are doing something that they shouldn't. I feel like I spend all day yelling. Then I feel guilty for loosing it. Tonight when we sat down after bath they both cuddled up to me and I felt like the worst mother in the world because not even a half hour earlier I was yelling at them to stop jumping on the couch. At least when the hubby is home I get a few minutes break while I'm doing the dishes. It is like they know he is not here and they let it all loose. I just don't understand, I spend the most time with them ergo I do most of the disciplining, so why is it that they are much better behaved for him?

So to all you single moms out there I give you kudos because I definitely could not do it on my own, you are much stronger women than I.

Autism and Vaccines

2007-09-22T14:03:00.000-07:00

So my sister recently sent me a link to an article about Jenny McCarthy. It talks a little about her book about her experiences with Autism. I am not beating up on the book or her segment, what I have issue with is some of the comments that I read. I get so unnerved that people think that just because they read it on the internet it must be true. Here is a comment that I have (although I could not get it posted I thought I would share with you)

Everyone is talking about the Hg levels in vaccines, if your child was born in 2001 or after the vaccine formulas were changed and the Thimerasol was removed. I have researched this on many websites, becaus I too have a child that is developentally delayed and has been tested for Autism. The problem with the internet is you don't know who it is that is writing this stuff. You can find a website validating anythig, the key is you must read EVERYTHING before jumping to conclusions. Here is an exerpt from a reputable site. "By mid-2000, thimerosal-free vaccines against hepatitis B and bacterial meningitis were widely available. A combination vaccine for diphtheria, pertussis, and tetanus is also available today without thimerosal. Measles/mumps/rubella (MMR), chickenpox, inactivated polio, and pneumococcal conjugate vaccines have never contained thimerosal. Thus, except for some influenza vaccine, none of the vaccines now used to protect preschool children against 12 infectious diseases contain thimerosal as a preservative. Certain flu vaccines and tetanus-diphtheria vaccines (Td) given to children age 7 and older still contain thimerosal as a preservative." There has to be more to it than just blaming the vaccines. I really do not feel that the people that have sworn an oath to heal would put our children in harms way. More money for research must be alocated. There are also studies that could convince you that any amount of television your child watches could cause Autism. Let's all throw out our televisions they are evil......

Ok, off my soapbox

OH NO HE DIDN'T

2007-09-19T13:53:00.000-07:00

I'm sitting in my living room playing with Peanut and look out the window to see a little boy peeing in my front yard! How rude is that! What nerve he has, I mean we live on the corner it is broad daylight and the bus is coming any minute, which is why he was out there in the first place.

Yes the bus stop is right in front of my house for three different buses! UUUGGGGGHHHHHH!

Sadie's Battle

2007-09-14T11:44:00.000-07:00

As some of you know my beagle has been battling lymphoma. She went through Chemo last year and she completed her treatments just before Christmas. It was a great Christmas present to know that she was clear of all the cancer. I did not realize that it could come back! Last month while I was loving on her I noticed her lymph nodes were enlarged again. It has been a battle with the hubby to have her go through the treatments again. His first response when he found out it was cancer again was "I'm not spending thousands more dollars on that dog!", which naturally didn't go over well with me. You see Sadie was my first baby. She sleeps with me like a teddy bear and snuggles with me on the couch. Well after hearing how upset I was he said we would try it for a month and see where we were and if she was responding this time around as the vet recommended. After a month the vet evaluated her and said she is doing great and is responding well to the treatment. I relayed this to hubby and he never responded so I thought that meant we were going to finish all the treatments. When I reminded him to take her in today, he balked and said she was done with treatments and he only agreed to one month. Not at all what I got out of the conversation, but then again he is not a great communicator at times. Now he says we can do one more month and that's it. That will only be half of the treatments. Will this do anything for her? I guess my problem is that she doesn't act like she is sick. She still gets excited and is her normal self. I just have trouble not helping her when there is something we can do for her. I understand he feels it is a lot of money to spend and the money could be spent elsewhere, but my conscious tells me that I can't just sit back and do nothing. Am I being selfish. I know she is a dog, but I still love her. How do I let go?

Am I prolonging the inevitable, probably.

So proud!

2007-09-13T18:47:00.000-07:00

We had to make another visit to the doc today and Sweet pea has yet another ear infection. As bad as that is I came out feeling so happy. First the doc makes comments about how cute my boys are and how their big blue eyes are beautiful, the Sweet pea decided to show his intelligence conversation goes....

Sweet Pea: Pibe, semen, eight, niii, te, eweben, tweb, tirtee......

Doc: Is he counting?

Mom: Yes, he does pretty good but skips 4 and 6 quite often

Doc: Really?? He is way ahead of the game. He is talking so well and to be counting at his age, wow.

Yes I am beaming with pride. My little einstein!

Next step Harvard Law............lol

Vacation

2007-09-10T13:02:00.000-07:00

Just got back from our fall vacation. I am wondering if you can call it a vacation with a toddler and preschooler in tow. Don't get me wrong we had a great time. I love watching the boys explore and see new things. The look of wonder just gives me warm fuzzies.

Sweet pea, that's my little one, is not a very good sleeper away from home. I don't know if it is his age or just how he is going to be. We had such a fight to get him to nap or go down at night that it was exhausting. My little Peanut, however went straight to bed every night without a fight quite contrary to home.

We learned a few things that are not really toddler friendly on this trip. The boys are always hitting golf balls around the back yard so we decided to take them miniature golfing, BIG mistake. It took Peanut a few holes before he got the idea and Sweet pea only wanted to hit everyone with the club and throw the balls. It was a LOOOONG 18 holes, but we made it through and I think Peanut enjoyed it.

We did get some quiet time on the balcony listening to the waves crash in, ahhhh it was nice. Now back to the real world and a crazy week.

2007-08-30T17:29:00.000-07:00

Knock Knock

2007-08-30T11:41:00.000-07:00

Just had to share a funny today!

Move over Tiger....

2007-08-22T11:49:00.001-07:00

Look at my little man. Doesn't he look like a pro

Look at the concentration as he gets ready to send the ball sailing

Ok, so he missed the ball, but he has good form

Housing market

2007-08-21T12:42:00.001-07:00

Ok, here is one of those opinionated posts that may make a few mad, but you were warned that I am very opinionated.

I'm reading the news and run across the article about how the rate of foreclosures has increased yata yata yata, I'm sure you've all read the same. Now there are some government officials who want to take tax dollars and throw it at this situation to "make it better". Here comes my problem with this. There are legitimate home buyers who have had extenuating circumstances that need help and I do not fault them for that. However, during all this "housing boom" there are many, and I feel the majority of those in trouble now fall into this category, that simply are trying to live beyond their means and I don't feel our tax dollars should help them. If someone went out and bought a home as a statement of what they have and did not consider a safe debt to credit ratio when doing so, I don't feel sorry for them. I do not feel that our tax dollars should bail them out. There is a lot of ramped needless spending here!

Come on people if you aren't smart enough to read the papers of do the math it's not our responsibility to bail you out! Be responsible for yourself. We won't go into the subject of responsibility because I could go on for hours about how no one wants to take blame for their own actions, but that is better left to another day.

I am just dumbfonded by it all......................

Intro to my blog

2007-08-20T11:57:00.001-07:00

Well, here we are. I have finally decided to jump on the band wagon and keep a blog. I am new at this and very technologically challenged, but I will do my best to keep this up.

I thought I would give you an insight to what you have in store if you so choose to read this blog regularly. First I must tell you I am not much of a writer and my grammar is horrible so please don't judge. Subject matter will include tales of our daily lives and updates on my angels as well as my rantings about various topics.

Warning:
I have some strong opinions on very controversial issues and need to vent at times and this will be my outlet.

Should we feel bad

2007-08-13T14:32:00.000-07:00

Should we feel bad if other children we know get fancier toys or have better birthday parties than our child. This question was posed to me yesterday and I just don't know the right way to respond. I feel I should say it doesn't matter what others have, and that is what I said, but I know deep down I would probably feel bad for my child if they saw others getting more and better things than them. Now I'm not one to try to play keep up with the Jones' but this is my seet child, and I want to make him happpy. I know it doesn't matter right now, because the boys are so small, but what about later in life??? Should we strive to pamper and spoil or children with material things?

I just keep going back and forth on this one