The Challenges in Family Picture Taking

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GRACIE FIRED

Christmas 2009

We were anticipating a small family Christmas this year. Then my parents bought a house and moved out here and Diane came to spend

Christmas with all of us. So we were all together. This time in two separate houses and more than enough bathrooms available.

WE STILL MISSED YOU CHRIS, JEN, AND ETHAN!!

We opened gifts in two houses. Ate dinner at my parents. I still fulfilled my goal to wear my pajamas all day. I just didn't have to cook a turkey at the same time. Thanks, Mom.

It wasn't a total my side of the family celebration. Sean's brother Scott spent the day with us, so Sean's family did represent.

The boys were spoiled rotten by everyone

but their parents. Sean and I scaled back this year not only to save on cash, but because we found some things the boys got last year that were never touched!!!!!! We really focused on things they needed this year mingled with a fun item or two.

So there were still DSIs, and a cool

guitar pedal system that would make a 14 year old boy pee his pants, and a lefty bass guitar that left a Jared squealing like a little girl. Thank heaven for Auntie Dianes.

And at the end of the day, what kid wouldn't crash with a bag of candy in his hands.

Time for Snow

It finally snowed for real end of November/early December. I can't remember anymore. We had a cold October and a warm November. It's seemed as though the snow would never come. Probably about 2 feet of snow fell, though it was more like 2 1/2 feet in front of our drive way. We spent the Saturday shoveling not only our driveway, but the road in front of our house too. We could not get out otherwise.

By the evening we were able to get out and buy some groceries just for the fun of it and it's been fine ever since. The snow is still around, but we've hardly had any snowfall since.

We love how Gracie does her best not to actually sit on the cold ground when we tell her to sit. It's more of a squat.

Excuses and Apples

My laptop died. There you have it. Dead. Gonzo. Kaput. Bit the dust.

It was my blogging lifeline. Sixteen months after I bought it, the thing up and fails me. I just couldn't get myself blogging on our desktop computer. I don't know why. It just wasn't working for me.

Then along comes my lovely sister, Diane. She's here for Christmas all the way from Boston and brought a truck load of treats with her. She loves Apple products. I'm pretty sure she buys the latest model of anything Apple as soon as it comes out. She is also a lover of the earth, so recycling has been the theme this Christmas.

Our household has been the recipient of all things ipod and an ibook just for fun. Each of the boys claimed an ipod for their very own, thus replacing the Shuffles they currently use. I am learning how to use the ibook and now can go back to blogging.

My only obstacle seems to be actually getting this thing away from the boys. They've been playing around with Garage Band and making their own music. I'm totally on board with that, but it means I have to share and sometimes sharing means hardly using the thing yourself.

Over the next couple of days I will try to get caught up with December and post some pictures.

A New Blog

Just a note to you that I have started another blog that will be devoted to the experiences we have in this household with Autism Spectrum Disorder.

It's been a huge year for us and it is reflected in my posts. What it obvious is that Jared's challenges and triumphs and their documentation overshadow all the great things the other boys do and I am trying to find more balance in our family blog.

If you want to follow that blog you can find it through my profile or www.ourasdjourney.blogspot.com . If you would like email notifications of new posts on that blog I will add you but not unless you request it.

From time to time Jared's ASD will appear in our family blog. It is a part of our lives and cannot be avoided, but from now on I will focus more on our family life as a whole and give the other boys more "air time".

Trip Review

Ethan is my favorite nephew EVER!!!!! Okay, he's my only nephew, but so what? I had some time off work and I decided it was a great opportunity to ditch the boys and go see this little ball of scrumpdiliciousness.

I love this baby. I almost want another one just being around him. I love how he does all the cute baby things he does....even the crying. I love how his parents adore him like they should.

Of course I did other things besides trying to hide Ethan in my suitcase. My parents are dutifully packing for their move to Lethbridge. We will all soon be living in the same city again. The kids are excited about it. I was happy to see that there were boxes to trip over and a moderate level of chaos going on.

With my parents busy with their packing, it freed up their car so I did not need to rent one. I visited with almost everyone I wanted to. I find I always need an extra day. It was nice to visit again with friends I haven't seen in a year.

Driving the Malahat in the dark and with the rain falling was not something I missed, but learned I could still do. Memorable was parking behind two boys not much older than 12 or 13 smoking pot across the street from my brother and his wife's condo. I really startled the boys which I thought was funny, so I left my headlights shining on them for a while just to make them nervous. Fun for me.

I went to Lululemon and did not buy a thing. I did want to and Mom offered to buy an early Christmas present for me, but I promised Sean I would not buy anything Lulu on this trip and I made good on my work though I may have shed a tear or two on my way out of the store.

I made it home and Gracie was delighted to see me. I didn't know she cared so much. The other boys were happy to greet me except Jordan who thought it would be more fun to go to his friend's house instead. Nice kid, that Jordan. He sits beside me as I write this with a smirk on his face and giggling. He's not out of the will.......yet.

So a nice time overall and plans to return in the summer are underway. It was wonderful to come home and be with my family of stinky boys. I have another week of vacation time with lots to do. I get to do "Mom" stuff without the work stuff getting in the way and I am looking forward to that.

Note to My Guinea Pig

Is there an oldest child that is not damaged in some way? Again James, thanks for not being too wrecked by your Mom and Dad.

Happy 14th Birthday.

Do We Need a Crash Course in All That is Off Color?

Ahhh........the teasing of children. When you have a kid like Jared and you know other kids are learning how to push his buttons or see him as an opportunity to increase their own ego, it takes effort on my part to keep my cool and parent accordingly.

Jared came home yesterday and asked me what a butt crack was. I asked why? Well, he began, some boys at school were laughing at him because he didn't know what that was. By now half the school knows about this and he is sure that he is the laughing stock of the school.

Now the good news. Even though this is an unfortunate experience, the fact that Jared sees that it is is great in a way. So much goes over his head that I wonder what cues he is catching.

So I explained to him what a butt crack was and said it was okay that he didn't know what that was and why should he??? The men in his family don't have those kinds of issues. We know how to wear our pants.

This has me thinking though. Do I need to have a sit down with him and go over some of the rude and off color jokes and situations he may encounter as he gets older in order to save him embarrassment and teasing?

Like Being Hit By A Truck

If there is one thing to say about life in this household it would be that there are always surprises around the corner.

I've been home sick the last couple of days - bronchitis - and home sick with the blessing of my employers no less. I am still coughing something gross periodically through the day, but I am coherent and relatively energetic.

So I am on my way out of the house to work this morning when I receive a call from Jordan's school. This is odd. If I ever get a call it is ALWAYS the elementary school. Jordan had an accident in gym class. He may have hit his head. He passed out for a time. Could I come to the school. He may need to go to the hospital. Ummm........okay, I'll be right down.

I called work on my way to let them know gracing them with my presence would have to wait. I arrived at the school to find a very colorless and blue lipped Jordan so we decided that the hospital was probably the best place to spend our morning.

A very upset gym teacher, who had a class to return to after getting Jordan to the office, phoned and told me everything I needed to pass on to the doctor. Jordan was doing sprints and went chest first into the stage when he couldn't stop in time. He then banged his trachea on the stage, hyper extended his back and she caught him before he hit the floor. He couldn't breath and sounded like he was honking while trying to get air, passed out, and then had a seizure. It was really bad, she said and I could tell by the tone in her voice that she had been absolutely terrified.

Long and short........He's fine. We had chest x rays, an electrocardiogram, and blood work. He's okay, but sore. He's getting stiff and his back hurts and I think tomorrow he's going to feel like he was hit by a truck.

He's resting now. We are going out later to pick up the get well notes the traumatized classmates wrote for him and he's adamant we attend a book fair at the school so he can buy a book since there's a good chance he will miss school tomorrow. So it doesn't look like there is too much serious damage to him.

His gym teacher?...I don't know. We stopped by to see her on the way home from the hospital to let her know he would live. She still looked freaked and she gave him a big hug. He wasn't expecting that. The look on his face was priceless. Loved it!!!!

So I am missing one more day of work and I promised I would return tomorrow, so I am asking my other boys to just play it safe for the next 27 hours. No more hospital visits until 5pm tomorrow....and if I do end up there again, mental note.....when signing hospital documents next time don't write "Mama" under relationship to child.