Mainely Musings

Moon Dough!

2010-08-22T11:33:00.004-04:00

I need to update my Gluten-Free Art/School Supply list, but as a smidget of an update Moon Dough, which is made by the same company as Moon Sand (SpinDirect/SpinMaster), is gluten-free and I found it at Target! It is so nice to actually be able to buy some gluten-free dough in a somewhat local place. And it comes in a set just like Play-Doh, so it has that kid appeal as well. One can get molds and such without having to get Play-Doh and toss the dough! I am happy to have found this as I bought some more expensive scented dough for home, but wanted something a bit cheaper to send to school with Thane.

Check it out at http://www.moondough.com/

I will update more about school soon. Maybe later today. We will see!

Puppies

2010-08-22T10:55:00.003-04:00

There is a long, convoluted story about this, but we are now the proud owners of two labradoodle puppies. They are 11 weeks old now, so we've had them for two weeks. The one that is higher and on the left is Lavender, a girl, who was Braeden's puppy choice. The other is Blue, a boy, that Thane chose. I just happen to think this is one of the cutest pictures I have captured with my cell phone.

Both boys have been asking for puppies for awhile. Thane really wanted a white puppy. I really wanted to go with low allergen dogs because I wanted it to be a safer mix for everyone in the house. Thane actually is NOT allergic to dogs, while he appears to be allergic to about half the universe. Braeden, on the other hand, is very mildly allergic. I guess there are 7-8 proteins that dogs give out so it explains why he reacts more strongly to some dogs than others. These two he should be unlikely to react to, plus he will get used to them. He had made a lot of promises about taking care of them, which I really am not seeing. At any rate, they are much lower allergen than our 85-pound husky mutt.

Here are all the guys and dogs in the picture above. Braeden (left) is holding his Lavender (Lavi for short) and Thane (middle) is holding Blue (Blueberry or Blue Bear . . . he rather looks like the bear in "Bear in the Big Blue House".) Dave is trying to convince 14-year-old Mist to stay in such close proximity to squirmy puppies. She seems to like Blue better, but he doesn't challenge her the way Lavender sometimes does.

This one is me with Blue on the left and Lavender on the right posing a bit better. I am down a bit more than 120 pounds in the 7 months since my gastric bypass, a few pounds shy of 200 total for weight loss. I still have a long way to go to be a "normal" weight. I feel like I am just getting down to where most people start when they have the surgery. It has been a good choice for me, but it feels very slow even though I know it is isn't.

Things that Make a Mom go WOW!

2010-07-15T11:39:00.003-04:00

Thane has some definite anxiety issues, and one of the things that was a really stressful for him was trying to write or draw. A year ago we turned the task over to hippotherapy and the therapist there got him to write while riding a horse. Now he actually does it for fun! Isn't this picture cute? The writing is his as well.

Asperger's Syndrome Cards

2010-07-15T10:23:00.005-04:00

These will probably be a little hard to read here, but after looking around at a bunch of different autism and Asperger's Syndrome information business cards online, I decided I would be better off making my own. Thane's play therapist suggested that it may be easier on Braeden, age 12, to have a card explaining his brother a little bit so he doesn't feel embarrassed when Thane acts in a socially unexpected manner. I know a lot of adults use them too, so I made two versions . . . one for little brother and one for son. Otherwise they are identical.

Cute Giggle

2010-07-14T20:41:00.003-04:00

Thane went horseback riding today and the giggle is precious.

4th of July, 2010

2010-07-07T14:40:00.003-04:00

Following are some photographs of the family at the 4th of July celebration in Damariscotta. We actually went to the fireworks in Thomaston on the 3rd sans camera, but were so impressed with how Thane did that we decided to go to Damariscotta on the 4th. It seems that $8 Remmington ear protectors from Wal-Mart make a big difference in his ability to handle all the big booms. I wish I had some too! He was entertained while waiting by taking pictures, and took some during the fireworks as well. Thane is the little one, Braeden is my 12-tear-old, then there is a picture of me and a picture of my husband, Dave, and I (celebrated our 23rd anniversary a couple of weeks ago).

Thane's Kindergarten Graduation

2010-06-07T16:15:00.005-04:00

Happy Memorial Day

2010-05-31T20:49:00.003-04:00

While I actually don't have friends or family in the military, I have always really appreciated the individuals who choose to protect and serve in that way. We did a lot of shopping and such over the long Memorial Day weekend. This is a photo of Thane in Reny's . . . he found the perfect accessory for himself, star antennae!

Little Updates

2010-05-11T11:15:00.004-04:00

Thane saw the photograph of the Tooth Fairy sitting on his teddy bear (which is technically Dave's, but Thane is taking care of it). His reaction was, “huh?” I loved that!

The other update is on me . . . I'll be 16 weeks out from surgery this week and haven't weighed in for this week, but last I checked I was down 150 pounds, so I am more than halfway to my goal. Keep your fingers crossed that I can get rid of another 130 before the magic wears off! I now closely resemble a shriveled apple person!

I would like to plug a blog that Dori turned me on to: The World According To Eggface . . . Shelly, who writes the blog, had the same surgery I had and has a lot of healthy recipes that are also bariatric friendly. I have to adjust a lot of them to be gluten free, egg free or dairy free, but many of them work really nicely for me.

The Tooth Fairy Returns

2010-05-10T12:05:00.003-04:00

Thane lost his second lower front baby tooth on Mother's Day. This time there was no drama whatsoever! He just handed it to Daddy and said, “Look Daddy, my toof came out.” And that was that!

He wasn’t even anxious about writing a note to the Tooth Fairy this time, he was calm and happy to do it. I guess he now trusts that he will get to keep his little teeth as they fall out.

Below is a picture of the note to the Tooth Fairy because it is pretty cute, and then a picture of the Tooth Fairy checking to make sure he is good and asleep before going under his pillow. You can click on them to see them larger, which might work better than the size the blog automatically makes them.

Mother's Day 2010

2010-05-09T12:25:00.005-04:00

My boys are both rather cute!

Thane was all upset on Friday as he didn't even want me to see the wrapping on his school-made gift for me. His teacher had to put it in the back of my car for me! He said it had to be a kept a secret. Then Saturday night he was talking about it with Daddy so I had to cover my ears so I wouldn't hear. I did hear the word “pie” which left me a bit confused because I thought he did something with plaster of Paris.

The next morning, with a detail no one probably wants to know but makes it all the more memorable to me, I woke up after sleeping in and went into the bathroom. He had to come in and give me my gift. While I was trying to open the box, he told me it was a “dirt pie.” Dave said something to him about the secret, so he turned and said, “It’s okay Daddy, I kept the secret until Mudders Day and then I told her!” He’s right, he kept the secret until Mother’s Day!!!

He also gave me a plant where he painted hearts and stars on the box holding it. And then a couple of cards – I guess he probably did one in Life Skills and one in Kindergarten. Braeden gave me a sweet card. Pictures are below, other than the flowers because I am too lazy right now to get that.

Dirt Pie

Inside of Braeden's card. Too sweet!

Braeden is 12!

2010-05-03T12:59:00.000-04:00

Here are some photos from Braeden's paintball birthday.

Random Gibberish

2010-05-02T13:07:00.002-04:00

Wow! Braeden is 12. He will officially be a teenager next year, and only three years before he can get a learner’s permit for driving, unless rules change before then (dare I hope on that one?). It is such a difficult age for boys, but he is doing pretty well, I think, hope, etc. Dave took him and five of his friends to play paintball in Vassalboro. I’m home with Thane and crossing my fingers that everyone has fun and behaves.

Yesterday Dave and I took Thane to the playground in Wiscasset. He went with school on Wednesday and he really wanted to go back. It was a little hard to figure out what he was thinking . . . he seems to like having the other children around, but he is almost aggressively friendly at first. When Braeden and I took him to the playground in Warren on our way home Thursday, he was walking up to people and saying “Who are you?” He meant to be introducing himself, but it didn’t fully work. So we coached him some and suggested he say, “Hi, I’m Thane. What’s your name?” What neither of us parents were really counting on his how many children won’t answer that question. Luckily Thane doesn’t really care.

It’s nice to be able to do some of this little stuff again without so much pain breathing. I am not sure I am ready to do it fully on my own because my knees still lock at bad times, but at least I am participating more in things outside of the house. A friend of mine reminded me just a little while ago about the sticks of butter comparison . . . I am down 588 sticks of butter so far. That’s pretty hard to fathom because it definitely doesn’t look like that much, and I would still like to get rid of almost the same amount again. I am just slithering past the half-way point, but I am only 3½ months post-op, so it should help me for another 3-9 months, perhaps longer.

Riley had its school auction this weekend. I proxy bid on a couple of things and won two of them. I have to figure out how/when to retrieve them. One is a painting that I just thought was pretty and wanted to go for close to its genuine value. The other is a schooner ride that I thought Braeden and Dave would enjoy.

Case Management

2010-04-28T16:50:00.000-04:00

Now that we have finally been approved for MaineCare under the Katie Beckett waiver, I went ahead and got Thane a case manager. It is someone I have known for a couple of years through the soon to be much larger Knox County Child Development Service (the state is going from 16 sites to 9 on July 1 – I hope it works, but I worry about the kids and access).

This person has been helpful along the way, so I am sure it will be a good thing, but it is a weird feeling for me. I am not used to taking handouts, and this feels like more of one than getting services through CDS when Thane was younger. Sometimes my friends make me feel like I don’t have the right perspective, that I am entitled to all sorts of help, but I still have trouble with the idea. It seems weird for the state to pay for respite for us just because Thane has Asperger’s.

Our yard does need to be fenced in again because we had storm damage and some is being held up by wire ties, but I feel that is our expense as homeowners. Yet I don’t mind the idea of getting a pool alarm. I guess part of that is that Dave and I don’t really agree on that, and I wonder how many times a bird will set it off, but I would feel safer having one.

Mostly I want an advocate when we go in to chat with the school. I do think the school is trying to work with Thane, but I think some of the action has been slow. I also need help finding some services, such as therapist who might be able to help reduce his anxiety level. I really want to work on that before he gets older because life does indeed get more stressful.

Dandelion Wishes

2010-04-28T16:43:00.004-04:00

This is one of those grainy photos taken with a cell phone, but it is still just too cute not to post. I wish I had a real camera at the time as I caught the moment perfectly. Thane has taken to picking the dandelions as he is trying to save them from the lawnmower.

Lost Tooth

2010-04-24T14:25:00.004-04:00

Thane lost his first tooth today at 6 years, 4 months, and one week old. I have been dreading this for a long time as he doesn't handle change well. It was indeed traumatic, but we seem to have solved the problem within about 10 minutes. We made a note asking the Tooth Fairy to return the tooth so he can put it in his keepsake box. Otherwise he says he will miss it. He hasn't eaten since he lost it, though, so we'll have to see how that goes.

Thane's Spring School Portrait

2010-04-24T14:20:00.003-04:00

I think Thane's spring school portrait came out pretty cute . . . just like him!

I’m the Distraction

2010-03-20T18:18:00.000-04:00

So why haven’t I been posting as much as I used to? Well, I have been hyper-focusing for several months – on myself. I finally hit rock bottom as far as my own health goes last year, so starting in June of last year I was bouncing from doctor to doctor to get myself thoroughly checked out . . . and cleared to have gastric bypass surgery. All the medications and such weren’t even making me comfortable, so it seemed like a real necessity. I felt Thane was finally old enough to handle my being away and needing to be treated gently (he used to love to head-butt me in the belly).

I don’t want to go into huge amounts of detail, but basically it seems like it was a good choice. I had the surgery on January 20th, so just two months ago now. I have lost 46 pounds since surgery, and had managed to lose 75 prior to going under the knife. Unfortunately, I would still like to lose about half my body weight from here, and even then I wouldn’t be skinny, but . . . I can breathe a lot better with the weight I have lost so far, and that was my main motivation. Not being able to breathe is awful!

Part of the reason for the hyper-focusing is that there is really only a short window in which to get this weight off my body – the bypass helps for a finite, but not precisely known, amount of time. So basically I really need to try to see how much I can get rid of within the first 6-12 months. Some of it would be humorous if it wasn’t kind of sad – trying to exercise and not get hopeless tangled in the oxygen tubing and my various wires and gismos. Half the battle is trying to get the aerobic exercise in so that I can perhaps not need oxygen for exertion anymore.

So wish me luck and please excuse me if I am not around as much.

Update on the Boys

2010-03-20T18:08:00.003-04:00

I guess I have really fallen down on the job here. I guess Facebook really dampens the blogging, at least for me.

The boys are doing pretty well. Thane isn’t having the best of times in Kindergarten. He is ahead academically, but socially he is having some issues. I also think he is learning some lousy habits and we’re not having much luck getting them corrected.

For some unknown reason, MSAD 40 is the only one in the area that doesn’t using Discovering Kids for behavioral therapy. They use Woodford’s Family Services. Unfortunately I was told confidentially by a teacher I trusted that Woodford’s was a bad fit for Thane as they use aversives and I am totally against using negative stimulus for a child like Thane. I have always been all about positive discipline.

Thane’s main problem in school is all the transitions. It has taken a long time for the staff to realize they needed to reduce the number of changes he has in his day, and that seemed to help for a short time. But basically he keeps hitting, pushing or getting in people’s faces. They are calling it “aggressive behaviors” at school, but it is really the wrong word. He isn’t doing it out of anger or to be mean, he really does not understand why he can’t shove someone out of his path.

Dare I say that this might be a typical manifestation of Asperger’s Syndrome where he simply doesn’t really see other people as people. And it is very normal for a child with ASD to decide the shortest distance between A and B is a straight line, no matter what is in between. I want the staff to prepare him for success better than they do.

I really like the ed tech who spends the most time with Thane, but I am really unconvinced that the staff, as a whole tries to be consistent with him. I have tried to explain that it adds to his security, but I think there is also a belief that he needs to learn to adjust. I look at him and I think he is still just so little. It is too much to expect of him. Keep him happy. Happy matters. Don’t suck the joy out of my little smiley boy.

So far most of what he seems to be getting is that people don’t want him to push or hit. So far that isn’t quite enough. But I guess we will just keep plugging along. I have been using some of the social stories at http://www.sandbox-learning.com – you can customize them, which is perfect for Thane. I recommend checking them out for anyone who uses social stories with their child.

Braeden has been having a fairly typical school year – nothing is really out of the ordinary for him. That, though, is a great step forward from last winter. He keeps himself busy and as he is getting older is he finding that he doesn’t want to be quite as busy . . . but he still wants to keep his theater projects up. He just appeared in “Willy Wonka” at The Waldo, and is now working on “A Hairy Tale” there as well. He also is dong “A Twist of the Tongue” at Riley, and then some as yet unannounced Shakespeare play. Then he has 2-3 weeks off in June before he goes to the intensive drama camp with Heartwood. I think all he plans for the summer is three weeks with Heartwood and then a week at Boy Scout camp. I can’t believe he is almost 12!

Braeden as Smiling Slade

2009-11-30T17:18:00.003-05:00

I actually didn't take my own photos of this show, but I got a couple from the former photography teacher and the current one, so I thought I would post. We didn't really realize that Braeden was in a lead role in this play, bowing last and by himself, but he was amazing. It is so much fun to see him, and a lot of the other kids, as they grow up on stage.

Some of the kids are really fabulous, especially for being so young and in front of an audience. There was one girl that really knocked my socks off, not that I ever actually wear socks, because she has just grown so much on stage and her voice was wonderful. Another of the older girls just always looks like she is having so much fun, you can't help but smile whenever she is on stage. Anyway, Westward Whoa! was wonderful and here are some pictures of Braeden, age 11, as Smiling Slade Claggett.

Swine Flu

2009-11-29T15:54:00.002-05:00

Poor Thane was the unlucky family member who got H1N1 . . . he was diagnosed 10 days ago. I remember that specifically because I am just about to take my final dose of Tamiflu.

None of us are vaccinated against it. I was going to get it because I have lung issues and asthma, but apparently I am not high risk enough yet. I am still supposed to get it whenever it becomes available to folks like me around here – which is probably in the next week or so.

It was pretty miserable for little Thaney. He ran a fever of 102-104 even with medication to bring it down. He didn’t eat or drink much for days – we really had to push him to get any fluid in. He didn’t nap much the first few days, but he did next to nothing. He watched a lot of television. Then Monday and Tuesday it must have caught up with him more as he napped for 5 hours on Monday and 3-4 on Tuesday, and he has taken naps most days since. I think he can go back to school tomorrow, but I am concerned that a full day may be too much. He also still has quite a cough.

Mostly I have been worried about secondary infection. Between his celiac and his immune deficiency, it is always a little extra scary when he gets sick. I thought he might have pneumonia on Wednesday, but then on Thanksgiving he was more himself and has been showing steady improvement.

Now Braeden is a bit feverish, so I am not sure where that will lead. I hope that if he was going to have swine flu it would have started by now. I guess Dave and I are in one of the age groups that is less likely to be impacted, but the doctor said I really needed to take the Tamiflu. I have to say it is miserable stuff and I don’t really recommend it. At least I have taken my last pill!

Halloween 2009

2009-11-29T13:47:00.005-05:00

I have been meaning to post these photographs for about a month. I am partial to the first one and the last one! The extra child is a good friend of Braeden's who spend part of Halloween with us and is a frequent visitor at our house.

The only disappointment on Halloween was that the Waldoboro Fire Department went all out and decorated the old middle school as a haunted house . . . but we never got in because the lines were too long. Thane really thought he wanted to go, but it was probably just as well.

This year Thane really understood Halloween much better, kept his costume on (he was a witch, while Braeden was a necormancer), and visited quite a few houses. It was even easy to switch candy with him so he only got items that were gluten free and egg free. I have to say it was considerably more successful all the way around than it has been in several years.

Thane's Kindergarten Portrait

2009-10-31T16:20:00.000-04:00

PixOs are Gluten Free

2009-10-02T16:36:00.002-04:00

Thane decided the other day that he really wanted to work with PixOs which is wonderful for his fine motor skills . . . but we were concerned that whatever sticks them together might contain gluten. I emailed the company and got confirmation that they are gluten free. Yay! Another thing Thaney can play with.

Horseback Riding

2009-10-01T16:24:00.003-04:00

This is a little video of Thane really working hard at Freedom Riders, a therapeutic horseback riding program. It is the second year he has worked at Freedom Riders and I find it sad when the season ends. I wonder if I might miss it more than he does!?! It's just so nice to see him doing these tasks.

The biggest benefit this year has been with fine motor skills. Strange as it may sound, he was able to write his name without stress while on a horse. It seems to have carried over to his day reasonably well, so the therapist moved on to more strengthening skills. Thane is clearly having difficulty with the task, but enjoying it and really trying hard.

If the embedded video doesn't show up, follow the link.

Thane's First Day of Kindergarten

2009-09-08T14:37:00.009-04:00

Thane started Kindergarten on September 8th. He had been worried about switching schools because somehow he thought it would mean everything would change, even his family. Dave went to two activities at school with him the week before he started, so he was comfortable with someone coming and staying, but I was worried that our leaving would stress him out so I made him a schedule of his day that he could refer to. It showed that I was going to pick him up, and had a photo of him and I smiling. It seemed to help, he referred to it for a little while, and then was thrilled when I picked him up at noon.

Taking his waffle on the road to finish on the way to school, and checking out his schedule for the day.

Being greeted in front of school by the resource room teacher. She greets him every day and guides him to his classroom.

Posing closer to the door.

Showing his schedule to the teacher.

Heading inside for his first day of Kindergarten.

At the end of the day, he was rewarded with this certificate.

"The Full Monty"

2009-08-02T15:43:00.005-04:00

I should have posted this sooner since the last show is being performed while I type this, but I am not really keeping up with anything these days.

Braeden and Dave have both been appearing in "The Full Monty" and The Waldo Theatre. Braeden is the one child actor in it, playing the son of the lead character. He's gotten some nice press from reviews. This is his 25th unique show, which is also pretty good for a child of only eleven years.

An excerpt from The Lincoln County News:

An equally big hand goes to young Braeden Waddell who plays Lukowski's son, Nathan, and who also gave a fine and solid performance.

And from Village Soup:

Jerry and his ex have their differences, but they both love their son. Braeden Waddell is really good and at ease as young Nathan, a straight shooter of a kid who excels in nonchalant affectionate sparring with his dad and, when the story demands it, turns on some believable tears. Too bad his buddies can't come to see him on stage.

The connection between Waddell and Coombs is believable too, and bedside song "Breeze on the River" is particularly effective. We believe Jerry wants to do the right thing; we also believe that, in general, that's the path less taken for this guy.

I'm proud of Braeden. This one has been more work and less fun for him in many ways as he is the only child in the production, but he did a great a job!

Free GF Mix from Bette Crocker

2009-08-02T15:39:00.002-04:00

A couple of my friends have mentioned calling Bette Crocker for a free coupon for their new gluten free mixes. Call 1-800-446-1898 and select option 4 and talk with a live operator, answer a few questions, and get a coupon in the mail.

I will call and get it, but I wonder about shared lines, other ingredients, etc., but it is worth a try. I wonder if it might be less expensive than some of the Gluten Free brands?

Home Graduation Portraits

2009-06-19T15:42:00.000-04:00

I convinced Thane that he loves me enough to put his cap and gown back on for some pictures. He tried the judge approach and wasn't wearing anything under the robe! He was trying to figure out if there was a way to peel the diploma open, but his thoughtful looks are just as cute as his smiles.

Thane's Preschool Graduation

2009-06-19T15:17:00.004-04:00

Thane graduated from Coastal Kids Preschool this morning. He was cheerful, but overwhelmed. I felt kind of bad for him since he was really excited and proud, but lots of people, lots of noise, lots of flashes going off. He needed support, but he did pretty well considering . . . and he looked cute!

Walking in . . .

Getting nervous, starting to hide behind sleeve.

Needing support from Miss Laurie.

Off with his hat and trying to be calm.

Getting his diploma from Miss Priscilla.

The diploma made him look proud!

And happy!

It's hard to capture in a still image, but he was waving it around and then doing visual stims with his diploma.

Here's the diploma!

Braeden as Milo

2009-06-19T14:47:00.004-04:00

Photos of Braeden and friends on stage at The Waldo Theatre in "The Phantom Tollbooth." Braeden played Milo and is below in the red shirt and jeans.

Asperger's

2009-06-19T13:36:00.005-04:00

I am trying to upload photos, but satellite internet is not cooperating (for the record, HughesNet is awful). So since I am trying to update my blog a bit, probably the biggest news around here is that Thane's place on the autism spectrum has been refined to Asperger's Syndrome.

It's nice to have a more targeted diagnosis than PDD-NOS, and Asperger's is something we've wondered about for awhile now. When he was 2 years and 8 months, he was moderately speech delayed and that generally rules out an Aspie diagnosis. When re-evaluated at 5 years and 5 months, his language is no longer delayed other than as it relates to social speech. He continues to be very concrete, and will still say, "No, I'm Thaney," if you refer to him by anything other than Thane, Thaney, or if I call him Lovey.

The team suggested that he attend public school. He does require extra support, which generally isn't available in private schools nearby, unless the school is specifically for special needs children. The problem with a special needs school is the lack of typical peers.

One of the reason's I haven't posted here in awhile is that I couldn't think of much positive to say about the thought of transitioning Thane to Kindergarten. I don't think Child Development Services nor the school district prepare parents well (though, in fairness, it is more the job of a case manager, which we don't have because we don't have MaineCare and can't get one without it. This is something I find really stupid because it means I have to accept subsidizing in order to get services, rather than allowing me to pay out of pocket.)

Thane visited the school where Braeden goes and that was a bad fit. I really should have known beforehand that it was a bad idea, but the thought of both children in the same place was so appealing. It was a bad experience for Thane, and one that has left me feeling guilty and questioning whether he was even safe there. Obviously he survived, but I want more for my little guy.

So it looks like as much as I dislike public school and it's factory mentality, our district seems to be offering the right things. He'll have a one-on-one, he'll be allowed to arrive late after the crowds. A one-on-one will meet us out front to walk him in from the car. He'll get speech and occupational therapy. We will keep our fingers crossed and hope for the best. It has taken a long time to reach this decision because there are so many pros and cons related to the various schools around here. I just hope we've made the right choice!

Catching Up - 1st the Award

2009-06-19T13:16:00.003-04:00

I was given this award by a friend who is also one of Thane's former teachers. She has a son with an autism spectrum disorder as well and I like reading her blog when I am not spending my life in my car. I have found I can read email and check Facebook from my Blackberry, but blogs are harder to do.

In turn, I will pass this award along to my friends . . .

Alicia, Jettison Junk
Ginger, Adventures in Autism
Kimberly, Altering Life by Holding It Still
Michelle, Welcome to O-Ville
Liz, One Silly Mama

Happy St. Patrick's Day

2009-03-17T11:59:00.003-04:00

It may sound silly, but I am very proud of Braeden today . . . he went to school today dressed like this. It takes a very fun-loving person to be confident enough to pull this off. He's made me smile a bunch of times today while he isn't even home.

It was cute, he got out of the car at school and put on his stove-pipe hat. There is always a teacher outside at the driveway at school as a greeter. Today it was Sarah, someone who thoroughly enjoys Braeden's humor. She totally lit up when she saw him, so it was fun to see that.

I think he is adorable. He tells me I am not supposed to say that anymore!

Happy St. Patrick's Day! Especially from Braeden!

10-10-10

2009-03-10T11:57:00.002-04:00

Ten years, 10 months, and 10 days . . . that's how long I have been a mom. It is hard to believe that Braeden will be eleven soon, and that Thane is the same age Braeden was when we told him there was going to going to a baby brother. I really worried about the age difference between them, but they are pretty close and genuinely love each other, and even like each other too.

I think I should have stepped up to the plate and moved away from carpooling to school awhile ago. It is so much better for Braeden, and when things are better for him they are generally better for me as well. He is just so much more relaxed and upbeat. He often sleeps in the car, but he has always been like that. It just seems like there is much less time until he is relaxed and ready to go about the things he needs to do to help out around here.

I laughed this morning because there are some frost heaves from which it really feel like the minivan is going to take flight.

Braeden said, “That was fun! Let’s do it again!”

Thane had a different response yesterday to the same frost heave,“¡Cuidado, Mama! ¡CUIDADO! That means WATCH OUT!” he went on to tell me that he would keep an eye out and yell “¡Cuidado!” when he saw heaves coming. He did it for about 10 minutes, then relaxed and fell asleep in the car. I picked up Braeden, who also went to sleep in the car, and we had a very quiet ride home (where I fell asleep in a recliner!).

More Snow

2009-02-24T17:45:00.003-05:00

I am adding two more photos from today. The first one I took off the side of our turnaround thinking it might show the depth of the snow better. The stonewall is the edge of an old foundation. It looks like there is 3 feet of snow there, and it is someplace where I would expect some of the snow to drift from, not to.

This image was taken at Dave's request. After all the plowing, climbing on the roof, etc., he wondered if the tree was telling the sky something. Forgive me for this one, but it is kind of humorous!

Got Snow?

2009-02-24T12:51:00.003-05:00

Posing

2009-02-24T12:39:00.002-05:00

I just think this is cute. I gave Thane a photo book with family pictures in it. When the book was bound, the last page was left blank. He didn't like that, so he asked Dave to take his picture so he could add it to his photo albook (that's what he calls them).

Manners

2009-02-22T12:29:00.000-05:00

School vacation week is drawing to a close . . . and once again I am not really looking forward to the children going back to school. The only bright side is that Braeden likes to do some online gaming and our only high-speed access here in the Styx is Hughes.Net. We have exceeded fair access (they limit downloading to 425MB) twice in the past 10 days and have been watching like hawks since and we teeter pretty close on a regular basis).

I found myself frustrated and making calls again for other options. It seems that Facebook is a very download-intensive website, but it has been positive for Braeden to be able to chat with friends that way. His friends are spread out, and some of the phone calls are long-distance depending on a family’s calling plan. I also see him chatting with friends online that he might not think of calling, so it seems positive so far. He’s needed a few manners checks – like don’t name the friend you’re glad has gone home because someone might tell him what you said!

Manners have been a big topic here this week. I’m starting to wonder if carpooling might be worse than riding the bus – not that a bus is an option in our case. Putting up to 6 boys between 9 and 12 in a tin can for 45 minutes just seems like more than they can tolerate. Friday was a bad one. We also have a situation where one child’s family tends to think the kid’s behavior is worse than it is, while another family feels their beautiful specimen of perfection can do no wrong. The latter child is the one dealing out words like “racist” or “Christians are dumb” or maybe it was “Christians are bad.” So I have been talking to people until I am blue in the face about these things because manners do matter, and powerful words should be understood but rarely, if ever, spoken.

I got Braeden a book on manners which is supposed to be geared toward the 9-12 crowd. In reality, it seems a bit too young for him, but some of the other titles discussed topics like who should bring the condom on a date and that seemed a bit beyond where he is (or where I want him to be!). Amazon had the book on its 4-for-3 promotion and I was so tempted to buy a copy for all the boys in the carpool!

Dressing Funny

2009-02-10T11:39:00.001-05:00

Anyone who reads this blog probably realizes that I find Thane rather charming. Last night I decided to change into my nightgown, but decided I was too cold to remove my pants after I made the upper half switch. I figured it was no big deal. I walked into the living room where Thane was playing on his Nintendo DS and he looks at me and says “Something’s not right! You’re wearing pants, but that’s not a shirt!” I had to agree with him.

You know what is really wonderful? He can make a statement like that, laugh about how silly I am, and not let it really rock his world the way it might have in the past. A year ago I bet I would have given in about the pants and grabbed a blanket instead because he would cry and tantrum because what I was doing was “wrong.” Now he is starting to just laugh at my silliness and enjoy the fact that Mama’s goofy.

Facebook Eggs

2009-02-04T11:05:00.001-05:00

I have to say that I find myself strangely intrigued by hunting for eggs on Facebook. I think it reduces my online window shopping (and buying) so it can't be that bad, right? I am posting this just to get some extra egg shells, though, which does seem silly, but . . .

Baby Tooth #9

2009-01-29T17:36:00.003-05:00

Braeden lost his ninth baby tooth today. It's been awhile since he lost one, so I have been stalling about going to orthodontist . . . but I guess this means it is time to go back.

I also have to hand it to Braeden for being a wonderful big brother. He immediately turned his tooth loss into a teaching opportunity with Thaney. Thaney is terrified of losing his teeth because he likes them. One of the girls in his class has lost two this year. Thane was bothered by it and still adament about not losing his. But he is 5, so we are certainly approaching the time for them to start coming out. Somehow he took Braeden's news much easier, and was even celebrating this right of childhood with Braeden. I have to hand it to them for giving so many bright spots to my days.

Deep Thoughts

2009-01-27T09:54:00.000-05:00

I find myself quoting Thane more than Braeden just because what he tends to say things that are kind of little-boy cute or a bit wonky. I’m sure I would have quoted Braeden much more if I was blogging when he was younger. Monday on the drive to school, though, I got one of those “Deep Thoughts” . . . or maybe not . . .

Braeden said that he was thinking about a bunch of different things and could only imagine how much more complicated it will be when he is an adult and has that much more to think about. Braeden is a grand planner – whether it is the movie he’d like to film in Harrington complete with replica Viking ships, or his plans to start a boffer group. Then he came up with this – and yes, I did smile wide, but stopped short of laughing until after I dropped him off and I got to repeat it:

“My mind is like a maze with many different paths, all of which lead to dead ends.”

Chauvinism?

2009-01-24T14:13:00.002-05:00

Thane tells me, “Mama, you’re not a toy.”

“You’re right! I’m a Mama. I’m a person,” I said.

“You’re not a person! You’re a girl!” he tells me.

The peanut gallery, known around here as Dave, added, “Thane harkens back to the old way of thinking.”

Further discussion indicated that boys are people, but girls are girls.

Hating Waiting Rooms

2009-01-22T19:33:00.002-05:00

Last night I decided to do a little blog reading . . . I checked out Heather’s blog – she’s one of Thane’s former teachers and she has a little boy with autism who is about a half year younger than Thane. In her blog, she wrote about things she doesn’t like:

* waiting rooms- no matter what the response I get from the other people in the room towards Brian I don't think I can be happy- "every child develops at their own rate", "nothing seems wrong with him to me", and of course the staring and rolling their eyes---- okay, sometimes I have had good conversations in waiting rooms but today i'm feeling bugged by this

This one jumped out at me because I feel so much the same way. No matter what someone says about Thane, I tend to feel irritated inside. If I explain that he is on the autism spectrum, I will get comments similar comments to the ones Heather mentions, or sometimes be met with sadness and pity which bugs the heck out of me because my son is wonderful!

One of my worst experiences in a waiting room was a time when there was only one other gentleman in a large waiting room with us. He was trying to be nice to Thane, who was crying because he hates the sight, smell, look, long wait, etc., of a doctor’s office. He can be okay in the exam room, though he often goes and hides in the cabinets under the sink or some space where only a little person can get into. On this particular day, Thane was wearing a pair of appliquéd overalls with a pirate design on them. When the gentleman couldn’t get my then pretty much non-verbal child to reply, he decided that Thane must be a “bad pirate.” The tone was one that was mixed with an effort to sound funny with air of “what a brat you have there.” I looked at him with my eyes burning and said, “No, he’s a scared a little boy!”

Once at horseback riding this summer, I got a comment from an older woman that Thane just wasn’t what autism looked like, especially when she was younger. No, he isn’t what autism looks like. He is what Thane looks like, and Thane happens to have an autism spectrum disorder. Are there some children who are more profoundly disabled by their autism? Yes, definitely. Are there some who have it easier than Thane? Probably, yes. But you know what? It doesn’t matter! It isn’t about comparing this kid with that kid or anything like that. It’s about Thane being the best, happiest, healthiest little boy he can be – for him. He deserves that.

I get so many comments about how hard it must be to drag him from therapy to therapy, to live with him, etc., and then all the comments to the opposite about how silly to do all this to him (note the use of to, not for him). It’s a tightrope that any parent has to walk . . . how much do you push? Where do you push? Why do you push? Some therapies or suggestions aren’t ones I consider important for Thane, while others are. I’m willing to bet that where each family sways on that tightrope varies – and that is okay and as it should be. Trust me to do what it is right for my own child – believe it or not, I actually know him and will do my very best to support him. When I’m pissed off and preoccupied with being judged, I’m not as available as I should be. I need to, as my friend Alicia says, “Be a duck. Just let it roll off.”

Isabella Needs a New Liver

2009-01-19T16:28:00.005-05:00

My friend Chasity has twin babies who were born very early and have both faced a lot of challenges. Landon has CP, heart issues, pacemaker, and developmental delays. Isabella's primary disability is her liver. She was diagnosed with cancer just before the holidays in 2007, and was found to have cancer again right around last Thanksgiving. Now her family is looking toward transplant. Chasity has set up a fund through the Children's Organ Transplant Association. If you can help, click on the link in the picture below.

Beauty Rest

2009-01-18T22:38:00.000-05:00

Dave is sick today. He cleared some toys off the corner of the couch and sat down. Thane started shoving him off the couch telling him, “Get off! I need my beauty rest!” It is a good thing he is cute.

Quotes from Thane

2009-01-15T23:26:00.003-05:00

“Mama, your voice sounds funny,” Thane told me this morning.

I started to reply, “Yes, my nose is . . . ”

He cut me off and said, “No Mama, it’s your mouth. Your mouth sounds funny. You’re so silly, Mama!”

I smiled and agreed with him. It is my nasal congestion making my mouth and voice sound funny. My nose doesn't have sound coming out of it (usually).

He’s quite literal.

Another cute one . . . On “Barney,” the purple dinosaur and his friends sing about “Please and Thank You” being the magic words. Thane asked Braeden for something, but didn’t include please to be polite.

Braeden asked, “What is the magic word.”

Thane replied, “Abracadabra!”

I love it!

Yeah, Mama

2009-01-09T00:04:00.001-05:00

"Calm down, Mama. I'm just a person." -- Thane

Choked Up Over Grilled Cheese

2009-01-04T20:12:00.003-05:00

I actually got all choked-up and teary yesterday over a grilled cheese sandwich. I know that seems weird, but it was Thane who was eating it . . . his very first grilled cheese sandwich that he has actually eaten any of, and some of it on his own.

I wonder if he thinks his family is totally off the wall when we celebrate things like that? We all were so proud of him, especially when he asked for another bite. And he ate more than half, probably close to three-quarters.

He does have a new trick up his sleeve for when he is asked to eat new foods, though. He pushes his belly out to make it look bloated, and then announces that he can't eat it because it will make him sick.

Art from School

2009-01-04T20:04:00.004-05:00

Braeden has never gone to a school where they do these kind of formal little art projects. I didn't miss them when he was younger, but I do find I am enjoying the ones that come home with Thane. I suppose part of it is that Thane still isn't drawing or coloring, so without some of this stuff I wouldn't have anything!

Happy New Year

2009-01-01T23:59:00.001-05:00

Happy New Year . . .

I am enjoying some of Thane's new art. He calls this one "Pile of Cars."

Christmas Pictures

2008-12-30T23:38:00.005-05:00

It is always hard to pick a few photos to post. I got the video up fast figuring it was timely, but took a few days to decide what to post for stills. These are some of my favorites. I loved Braeden's expressions and I felt like I caught a moment with Thane's Handy Manny radio (he played with it half the day, too) as his happiness was clearly visible. It was a good day, even if we were all too tired.

I guess I should mention that the night before Christmas we all headed upstairs to watch Rudolf. Thaney couldn't sleep until about 1:30 a.m. It is the first year he really has a solid grasp of Christmas, so every tree branch brushing the roof had him asking if Santa was here yet, or if the reindeer were on the roof. It was cute, but I was worried he would go down and open everything all by himself.

Then after he was safely asleep, Braeden woke up . . . and noticed Dad wasn't upstairs. So we talked and talked about things, including the mystery of Santa. Dave came up and explained that the ice backup was making rain come into the sunroom again, so he was downstairs sopping up water and drying furniture, plus he went out to rake the roof. It was after 4 by the time Braeden was asleep. We woke them up at around 10 or 10:30 a.m. and they were both pretty sleepy. Dave and I were doing better, but Dave ended up sleeping a bit in the afternoon. That seems like a holiday tradition!

Thane spots Rocket right away!
Braeden checks out his new kicksled.
Thane hides in protest to something said.
I love the eyes!
Thane examines a gift.
A smile emerges as he figures out what it is.
Complete glee down to his toes!
Braeden hunting behind the tree.

Feliz Navidad!

2008-12-25T21:43:00.001-05:00

Please check this out . . . it's a very cute!

Let it Snow!

2008-12-21T18:01:00.006-05:00

Happy Hanukkah! Happy Winter Solstice! It is snowing here, and seems like it will be snowing off an on through Christmas.

Thane's 5th Birthday

2008-12-19T23:21:00.003-05:00

One of Thane's big requests for his birthday was balloons.

Every time he got one, he wanted one more!

He took to jumping on the couch

We went for a small gluten-free Rocket cake.

I like this picture of him peeking through a box.

He had fun with the piñata!

Thane flying a shuttle around.

In the end, it probably was for the best to just have a party at home with the four of us and Misty -- she got a treat bag with jerky in it, so she was pretty happy. It still feels somehow off to me, but he got what he wanted and seemed very pleased. It was certainly easier than having a big shindig, and he didn't meltdown once.

I've had some of those wistful moments thinking that he is already five. My baby is FIVE! I think back to the baby who was born earlier than I planned, didn't want to grow, slept and fussed . . . all the puke, the rashes, constant running nose, and never having a solid poop until he was gluten-free. The temper tantrums where he would throw himself backward and smash his head.

The toddler who would learn a new word and then lose another, and how it angered him so much when we tried to push him to speak. Now he speaks pretty well and even sings louder than his classmates. I love his little stories and his little voice. Every child deserves a voice and I am so glad he found his. He has made me laugh and smile so many times. I remember worrying he'd never really speak, and now I can't imagine what it would be like if he didn't.

The boy who never blew raspberries, never gave kisses, never said mama until he was almost three, and now he can do all of those things . . . and even chooses to do them. He is such a little lovey. He greets his teachers with hugs and he is just so sweet. I still worry some about his future, but for the most part I am so impressed with him and how far he has come. He is so determined and strong for such a small little guy. A lot of these things haven't come easily to him, but he's made it happen. He's such a treasure.

Happy 5th Birthday, Thane! My little lovey!

King for a Day

2008-12-19T22:17:00.004-05:00

Thane got to be King for a Day on Wednesday as he celebrated turning 5 years old. It is so hard to believe he is five already!

One of their traditions is to make a crown and the child can help decorate it with one of the teachers. Above is a picture the teachers sent me from school. He was very happy with his birthday celebration at school, and from one of the other pictures it looked like all the kids enjoyed their gluten-free cupcakes.

I had Thaney pose at home with crown too. I call this one King in a Swing.

Santa at Preschool

2008-12-19T17:55:00.005-05:00

It has been crazy busy around here – probably everyone else, too!

Let me start my catching up by showing Thane’s visit with Santa today. Santa Claus visited his preschool today. The children sang for him and Thane was too cute. He sings at the top of his lungs. It’s charming in a goofy kind of way, and it makes everyone smile. He was in the front row too, which was a bit of a surprise to me.

I wasn’t sure if I should go as I haven’t been feeling well this week and I knew I couldn’t stand through kids singing and visiting Santa. Dave was kind of enough to talk to teachers and make sure they reserved a chair for me.

Both of the older classes were in the studio for the party, so it looked like 20 kids, perhaps more. Thane was the second one to go see Santa. He cheerfully sat on Santa’s lap. He said he has been good this year and asked for a ball (and people think I am kidding when I say just about any boy is happy to get a ball, or several, as a gift). He was given a present there, a book. All the kids brought in a wrapped book to be handed out as presents for the kids – I thought that was a great idea.

As soon as Thane looked up, he saw me. He had to point me out to Santa, who waved and Thane was entranced by the bells on his wrist.

He got his book, ran to hug me, unwrap it, and immediately ask if he could go home. That’s Thane – when he’s done his part, he’s done with it all. I suggested he sit, so he sat down and read his book through. Then he went up in between kids to thank Santa, which I think Santa thought was cute.

But then Thane came back and again asked to go home. I was starting to feel two things – the seat of the old chair underneath my big butt starting to crack, probably because I had to perch on it in a strange way, and that Thane was behaving differently from other kids. The other children would go back and rejoin their group, but Thane was really feeling that I was there and it was time to go. Thane went to talk to Santa a third time and I heard him suggest in a very jovial way that Thane should allow other children a turn.

I looked at the treat table and realized there was nothing there he could have if I dared stay perched on that chair, and he asked four times to go home. He looked disheveled and very tired, and it sounded as if he was cranky in the classroom before the party. I asked if it was okay to just take him, and was told it was.

One of the teachers was very sweet – they all are, really, but this one really goes out of her way for me without making me feel like the problem I feel like I am. She got Thaney’s bag from the other building and brought them to the car. I told her that I broke the chair she reserved for me and she didn’t miss a beat, she was very sweet about it. I asked if she could please remove it before someone actually got hurt on it. Sigh. Preschool’s just don’t tend to have furniture built for very large people. I’m just glad I got to tell her and that she was nice about it.

So I have some mixed feelings about the day and the visit to school. It is clear to me that Thane thinks of me as his ticket home, so he doesn’t really want me to be there for another reason. I was really stressed about going because I just haven’t been well this week, but I didn’t want to miss him seeing Santa. In a weird way, I feel like I handled it okay, even if it was one of those events that I dread. A friend of mine actually shattered a chair recently and I was so impressed with her for just thinking it was hilarious. He was thrilled to see me there and to share his book with me, but I feel like I cut his party short. He did come home and have an upset tummy, though, so I am sure it is better that he didn’t stay in the same room with all those cookies and such.

I made up cards for the teachers and gave them each a beaded bookmark as Thane likes to help me with those. It feels like rather little in comparison to what these teachers do for and with Thane, but there were also seven of them to give gifts to today!

Explaining Birthdays

2008-11-21T13:01:00.003-05:00

One of our challenges has been trying to figure out how to explain birthdays and age to Thane – how does one explain this kind of thing to a child with autism?

I know I have posted before that Thane decided over the summer that he was “just one” because there was only one of him. Of course, people like to ask little people like Thane how old they are and the look on their faces when he said he was “just one” was priceless.

I thought perhaps the Montessori Method of marking birthdays – the child carries a globe around a candle that represents the sun – might be a way to do it. Time and years don’t really make sense to a child Thane’s age regardless of their development, so certainly taking a child who thinks a bit differently and explaining age and years is a challenge.

Thane’s speech therapist suggested we make him a birthday book – like a social story – showing him as he has gotten older. I have been reluctant to do it because I had to sift through the “failure to thrive” photographs before he started eating a gluten-free diet in 2006 and sprouted up 8 inches and gained about 10 pounds over the next year. I also knew it would start us on the path of him wanting a birthday party and a birthday cake.

To teach Thane his name – and to answer the often-asked “What is your name?” – I wrote him a little book with pictures and named off a bunch of people he knew. It took a long time, 5-6 months, but it ended with a priceless moment of me calling him peanut and him saying, “No, I Thaney!” that I caught on video.

Anyway, last night I decided that with less than a month left until he turns five – gasp! – I really should get the book done. I spent a few hours putting something together, being repetitive in my text as suggested, and printed it out. Braeden wanted to read it to Thane, which was fine with me . . . though Thane wanted to just grab it and read it himself. Thane was happily looking through the pictures of him as a baby, and some of Braeden when he was younger too, but he has decided that on his birthday he will be nine. He doesn’t want five. He wants nine! He gave the book back, probably in hopes I would fix it and make him nine . . . but pretty much after all that effort he ran away screaming.

Picture Day

2008-11-21T12:12:00.007-05:00

Today is Picture Day at Thane's school. He'll get his individual portrait done, and then pictures taken with the class. I ordered a medium-sized set of prints so I hope they come out well.

Braeden's pictures were done at school yesterday. I think the photography teacher, who does the pictures at his school, saw that he had his hair cut and figured it was as good a time as any.

We had Amy Wilton, the photography teacher at Riley and a professional photographer, do family pictures a couple of weeks ago. I will just post a couple of my favorites here.

Busy, Busy, Busy

2008-11-21T12:10:00.002-05:00

People can blog from their telephones and all such, but it would be really nice if you could just be waiting to fall asleep in bed and think “I should add this to my blog” and somehow it would magically appear without having to reconstruct at a keyboard later! There certainly would be more posted here that way.

Life is a little crazy around here, but as my friend Melissa pointed out, it is all positive. Dave is taking a stage combat class and he his friend are having fun with that. It is just one evening a week, which is why I signed them up for it (they were thinking about it, then I got an email about a couple of spots left and I just went ahead and registered both of them!). Dave is also doing a bell choir and appearing with Braeden in the Waldo’s “Believe.” Add to it that this week Braeden has two performances of “Going, Going, Gone with the Breeze” at school and then both Dave and Braeden are appearing in something on Saturday night too . . . it’s a lot of things at once.

We had vaguely considered driving to Rhode Island for Thanksgiving, but it would be so hard on Thane. We figure it would be best for him to do a day trip – so get up early and drive down, stay for awhile, and then go home. Then we decided it might be better to try something like that on a day less travelled – it just seems safer. One thing I can't really figure out is how much trouble to go through for Thanksgiving.

Do we make it all gluten free and egg free so that Thane can eat whatever he wants, or do we buy a couple of pies and things like that realizing chances are slim that he'll want to try any of it?

Braeden Then and Now

2008-11-02T15:06:00.002-05:00

The black and white pictures are some of Braeden's school portraits that gave me quite the chuckle in 2007. The color shots are ones I took while sitting in the backyard a couple of weeks ago. He looks a lot different, in my opinion, but there is a sameness in the images nevertheless.

Trick-or-Treat

2008-10-31T23:32:00.003-04:00

Photographs from Trick-or-Treating for Halloween:

Unfortunately, I have to say that this was one of my least favorite Halloweens ever. Thane was so contrary and out of sorts, and Braeden was pretty ambivalent about it all. Braeden was cheerful, don’t get me wrong, but he just didn’t seem that interested in hooking up with friends from school, his old school, or even the kid who seems like his closest friend. Instead he chose to be with us and with Thane, and then to meet up with friends for a hayride at the local Baptist church. He stayed with them and went home with them for a while before coming home at 9 p.m.

The day was pretty mellow before Braeden and I went to pick up Thane at school. I sent Braeden in to get him, but got out of the car when I heard Thane crying and screaming. He wasn’t hurt; he just didn’t want to leave with us. The hard thing is that it really had nothing to do with me or with Braeden, but it sure felt like it. I wanted to cry because I felt really hated at that moment. I felt like his teachers must think we take him home and beat him and then stuff him in the closet with duct tape over his mouth.

The teacher who was trying to help him transition ended up being knocked off balance by Thane as he tried to hide behind her. There were also a couple of parents going through to get their kids too, so I felt rather on display (though the moms were perfectly nice and supportive, it is still so uncomfortable when your child is yelling that you don’t love him).

In some respects, we were lucky. Thane went to knock on a door and the lady opened it before he got there. He was about to fall apart, so she quickly closed the door and let him knock. It’s nice to run into someone who is both insightful and accommodating. Dave said he did need to explain to some people that his autism made some of this difficult – he wanted to do it, but he didn’t necessarily want to accept candy from everyone. I do wonder if it was worth it or not. Just as I wonder if it is worth even trying to go on the Polar Express. When Braeden was younger we did anything and everything to make his holidays special and fun. With Thane, sometimes it feels like our efforts to have him even participate in holiday activities is a form of torturing him. I think the hardest part is that one can’t always predict when he will have fun and love the effort, or be miserable and totally stressed. And am I totally dumb that I can’t figure yet when to push and when to just stay home and let him do his thing.

At the end of the night, Thane ended up having one of the cameras we took with us fall and hit him in the cheek as he was being difficult about getting out of the car – so now he has a big bruise that might look like it confirms how evil I am. Dave’s reaction – toward the camera – was frightening to me, so at that point I finally broke down in tears and declared it the worst Halloween.

I suppose I should end on a good note . . . The church did a really nice job with their festival – Braeden had fun. I also have to give kudos to the local fire department and the King Solomon’s Lodge. They had a nice set up in town where they gave out bags of treats, light up necklaces, maze pens, and allowed the children to enter a contest to get a ride to school on the fire truck. Braeden took down his carved pumpkin from Cub Scouts and it was lit and placed on the fire truck – which I have to say looked really cool! I doubt either boy would actually get a ride to school on a fire truck since neither goes to school in town, but it was nice to see such a nice community effort. Definitely a bright spot in an otherwise lousy Halloween.

Talking Too Much

2008-10-29T14:27:00.006-04:00

Yes, this is too many posts in one day, but I am more awake than usual. The last couple of nights Braeden has been reading to Thane again. What's different is that Thane has been listening and even participating. As a mom, it is so cute to see them in a recliner together. Thane still likes footie pajamas, so he was sitting there in a bright red sleeper which gives him that last bit of baby look. Braeden was looking like a mini-teenager that you wouldn't expect to be reading to his little brother and enjoying it. Not only did Thane listen and "baaaa" in the right part in one of those song books, but he listened to three books in a row. We're moving beyond books that only have a sentence on a page too, which is really cool.

I also had those "I remember when" memories because I used to read Braeden as many as 20 books in a day, and now he is reading some of those old favorites to his brother.

Difficult Time

2008-10-29T10:09:00.006-04:00

I wasn’t feeling well yesterday, so Braeden was trying to be the one to help Thane out of the car. Braeden and I both said I was having a difficult time and Thane replied in a very angry voice, “NO! I am having a difficult time . . . . . . . . FOREVER!”

He won. I helped him out of the car.

Happy Halloween

2008-10-29T10:09:00.005-04:00

We only did a Thane-based Halloween card this year as Braeden is getting a little old to dress up and pose for me . . . though he would have if I asked because he is such a sweet kid. (Click on the pic if you want to see it larger)

Diet Blues

2008-10-29T10:06:00.001-04:00

Yesterday was the first time in awhile that Thane’s diet restrictions bothered me. I guess it started on Monday when one of his teachers offered him candy corn. I’m glad he refused because it was a triangle because it had an allergen warning on it for both wheat and eggs. The problem is that he decided later on that he wanted a candy corn and we simply couldn’t find any that was safe for him.

I saw these nice looking new gluten-free crackers and I really wanted to get some for him to try. The reviews were all wonderful, so it sounded so promising. I had searched them first on Amazon, but Amazon has stopped listing full ingredients. I had to check one of the gluten-free sites and found that it contained eggs. I told Dave it really made me want to try Thane on eggs again because avoiding gluten and eggs is harder than gluten alone, but the last time he had egg he was in so much pain. Plus now isn’t the time . . . the child hasn’t had a solid bowel movement in awhile. I know that is too much information for some, but anyone who has a child on a special diet, a child with stomach trouble, celiac disease, or anything like that can understand that this becomes worrisome.

He still seems to be growing fine – he is moving into size 5 just before turning 5 years old, so that seems pretty typical (especially in a family where mom is only 5’1”!). But we did buy the slimmest looking “regular” jeans we could find, and still need to crank down the adjustable waist by 6-8 button holes . . . and they still are loose. I am trying to decide whether we should try slims, but he just doesn’t really look like a slim build to me. I’m probably being silly.

Backwards Day

2008-10-27T18:29:00.000-04:00

I’d like to that we’re continuing the fabulous skill development that we saw over the summer with Thane, but while we’ve seen some progress in areas, we’re also seeing some steps back. The most noticeable is how stressed he has been getting about things. I am seeing him stim (self-stimulating behaviors) a bit more – like rocking his head back and forth against the headrest in his car seat, some more obsessive behaviors (“I know I am not supposed to peel the labels of crayons, but I have to, really I do. In fact, I will sit here for hours and peel crayons. And since I know I am not supposed to, I will either apologize with puppy-dog eyes or sit in a corner doing it and try to hide. If there is a crayon anywhere, it needs to be peeled!”), and he is definitely being defiant and a bit more backward than usual.

I’ve been trying for awhile to get Thane to say what he means. Often he will say “I don’t want to play [insert game name here]” but what he really means is that he does. Or he says he can’t when he means he wants to. I noticed my pushing was stressing him a bit, but he does need some shoves in this manner because otherwise he won’t be understood by the vast majority of people he encounters.

Today he has been a bit more backward about other things – not just negatives. For example, he told someone to stop leaning on him when he was the one leaning.

As usual, I find myself grabbing the humor where I can . . . I hope that doesn’t make me a bad person! He was offered candy corn at school. Luckily he didn’t take it because it was a cross contamination risk with wheat, gluten, and eggs. The humor part is that his reason for refusing it was “I don’t like triangles.” That’s right, no triangle food for Thane.

Braeden got the mail out of the mailbox and came back and told Thane he had two letters. Thane said he didn’t want a letter. Actually, he told us three or four times that he didn’t want a letter while I was backing up the driveway. I told him it was okay, he didn’t need to have a letter, but he still repeated he didn’t want one. Then as we’re getting out of the car, he looks at Braeden and says “I want a you.” Huh? This is where repeating comes in handy as he added something: “I want a letter u.” Brae is much quicker than I am and replied, “That’s good, because you got a U – I just unbuckled you and unbuckled starts with U!” And yes, that worked and Thane was perfectly content.

Halloween at the Stable

2008-10-27T18:05:00.002-04:00

We had no power on Sunday so we decided we might as well go out. In the next town over to the south, there was a Halloween event at a stable that someone suggested we consider as a place to get riding lessons for Thane over the winter. It was a good excuse to check the place out. It was pretty impressive and Thane had fun (Braeden did too, but it was definitely the type of thing that is geared toward the younger kids). Braeden played photographer. The first is part of the horse costume parade. The second one is Dave and Thane on the hayride.

Getting Portraits

2008-10-23T20:18:00.000-04:00

I guess the best reason to hire a photographer is to get good portraits . . . we haven't done it in years! These are some that I took as a practice run. Thane was mostly uncooperative and I am totally unskilled at dealing with the light. Hopefully the photographer images are better!

I made Dave a collage of pictures of mostly Braeden (I had already done Thane a week ago).

Below is what Thane really wanted to be doing . . . walking in circles around the base of the tower on top of Mount Battie.

Halloween at WW&F Railway

2008-10-21T13:08:00.001-04:00

Horse Show Pictures

2008-10-13T21:35:00.006-04:00

The ride begins.
Smiling at Dad.
Concentrating on a job . . .
Displaying the smiley face he made.
Another ring (and some help).
Placing a ring on a post.
Thane takes the reins.
The joy of trotting!
After dismounting, Thane pets Frost.
Thane feeds Frost some apples.
Marcie presents Thane with a ribbon.
Doesn't he look proud?

Monster in My Closet

2008-10-13T21:08:00.005-04:00

Braeden just finished a 5-show run of "There's a Monster in My Closet" at The Waldo. We tried to convince Thane to go see the show, but he was against it and we didn't want him to ruin it for anyone. He tried to see a production of Braeden's over the summer and it was really too over-stimulating for him. The whole idea of lights going down, noise he can't control, and all of that is a lot for him to handle.

Braeden had fun, though. He gets the jitters, but seems to get over it pretty well when it is time to go on. I'm not sure what is next for him, but he may audition for a chorus to do some holiday singing, and there may be another youth theater production in the winter. At school he is working on "Going, Going, Gone with the Breeze."

Blue Ribbon

2008-10-11T23:42:00.004-04:00

I'm really wiped out, but I didn't want to go to bed without sharing a picture of Thane and the ribbon he got for participating in the horse show today (everyone gets a ribbon just like it). He was thrilled by it, and Braeden made sure it was placed on the mantel next to his and Dave's trophies (from Cub Scouts).

Another First

2008-10-10T19:59:00.003-04:00

Today was the first . . . the first time Thane, only two months shy of his fifth birthday, decided to talk with his father on the telephone and have a real conversation – a real back and forth discussion!

It started with a very happy, smiley Thane asking if it was Daddy on the phone. I said it was, and asked if he wanted to speak to him. He replied with a joyful, breathy, “Jes!”

During the conversation, he was able to tell his father he went to library story hour with preschool today and “watched stories.” Dave told him he bought him a book today and Thane asked about it and was very excited to have Daddy come home later and read it to him. It was really sweet.

Both of them were so happy afterward. Another special first!

Braeden caught this image of Thane napping this afternoon. I love that he is asleep with the remote control!

Portrait in Glass

2008-10-10T19:37:00.004-04:00

While doing my usual relaxation peruse of eBay checking out artisan lampwork beads, I found one that I found totally entertaining and completely unexpected.

While I don't think it would have ever occurred to me to create a glass bead that looks like Vice-Presidential candidate and Alaskan Govenor Sarah Palin, I'm impressed with it. It can't be easy to make a hot glass portrait of someone!

Rosie the Horse

2008-10-10T17:39:00.003-04:00

Thane had his last horseback riding session until spring. He is in a little show tomorrow so that he can demonstrate what he has learned, giving Daddy and Braeden a chance to see how far he has come. Neither has seen him ride since May! He's in a saddle, learning to direct the horse, and even getting to trot . . . the trotting is something he totally loves, but between the dark barn and the movement, I didn't capture a single decent image of that.

I am going to post two pictures from this week, just because I haven't featured Rosie yet. Thane has switched horses a lot during the past two months. He has handled it well, but he seems to have developed a preference for Othello, or Fello as Thane calls him. He's been paired with Lucy, Manchester, Othello, and Rosie, hopefully I am not forgetting anyone in there.

In the first picture, he's brushing Rosie. In the second one, he is carefully counting out six apple pieces to give to her.

Gourdo Gets Dressed Up

2008-10-04T16:57:00.003-04:00

With Halloween coming and all, I couldn't resist this gorgeous owl bead. I made it into a pendant and rather than wearing it myself, I put it on my friend Gourdo.

Gourdo stands guard over my LAN and modem wires, but he really isn't doing a great job of concealing them!

The Power of Wind

2008-10-04T16:52:00.002-04:00

Thane has decided that since the wind blows leaves off the trees, it also is responsible for the leaves changing colors.

September Roundup

2008-09-30T21:44:00.005-04:00

I've done a pitiful job of updating my blog this month, so I will end the month with a roundup post.

Braeden's show at The Waldo opens this weekend, so it is a very busy time in his theater life. He is also working on a play at school. I'm not sure if he is fully done sailing for fall, but here is a picture of the last time he went. If you have good eyes, he is in a black hoodie and a red life vest.

He got to meet gold-medal winner Anna Goodale, in women's eight, at school last Tuesday. She graduated from Riley and her younger sisters still go to school there. Braeden was pretty excited about touching a gold medal!

Thane gets a chance to be in a show too . . . a horse show! It's an exhibition at the end of the season so riders can show friends and family what they learned. I wish Thane would have a bit more of an audience, but it will probably be when Kim is working. I'm just glad Braeden's show is in the evening so he can go!

Thane had his IEP last Friday and all went well. We lost our social worker, who has been a wonderful support to us over the years, but we're in such a good place with Thaney that hopefully someone else will find themselves happy to find her support. He is doing really well in so many areas. We are seeing some renewed signs of stress and anxiety with him, though, so we'll focus on that for a bit.

Dave accompanied Thane on a school field trip to the apple orchard. Thane had a great time and took a bite out of ever single apple he picked within 24 hours of bringing them home. He was too cute to stop and one can use the rest for other things.

Dave's job is usually pretty dull, but there was a protest outside his office building yesterday that ended with a big show of police officers and finally four arrests. They were protesting a development in the Moosehead Lake region. I can't say I disagree with the protesters, but in most states big business wins. Environmental protection in Maine is a bit of a joke.

As for me, I actually won something. I had purchased something at Karen Thomas Designs and then posted to the nice group on Lampwork, etc. and ended up winning a $25 gift certificate. It was actually more than $25 because I also got free shipping. It was the kind of shopping experience I adore . . . I got to pick stuff that I could have fun playing with, and not have to pay a thing. Perfection!

Drawing

2008-09-05T16:43:00.004-04:00

I was rather excited to see this picture in Thane's cubby today. I asked if he drew it and was told he did -- though it was very difficult. The ability to hold and control a pen, pencil, crayon, marker, paintbrush, etc., continues to be a big challenge for Thane . . . so this is fabulous!

A Classic Family Portait

2008-09-01T21:15:00.003-04:00

I must have mellowed a lot over the years. Instead of feeling frustrated, I find this kind of cute.

Before Dave showed up, I had the brother's pose together more successfully.

Hummingbird

2008-09-01T21:11:00.003-04:00

Here it is September 1 and it is the first time I have actually seen a hummingbird at our backyard feeder. It's a lousy photo with a pocket camera, but I'll post it anyway.

Union & Windsor Fair Pictures

2008-08-31T21:43:00.002-04:00

How do Girls . . .

2008-08-31T01:07:00.000-04:00

I headed out of my office, through the living room, and I guess I must have been walking funny . . .

Thane asked, “What’s wrong, Mama?”

I replied, “Nothing’s wrong, I just need to pee.”

“You can’t pee, Mama! You don’t have a penis!”

At the time, since it was within the crucial three hours after taking a diuretic, I really wished it was that simple . . . and laughing really didn’t help my predicament any!

I did have to explain that girls still do pee, regardless of the fact that we have “nothing.”

Certificate of Success

2008-08-27T23:20:00.003-04:00

We had fun at Freedom Riders again today. I found myself feeling a bit sad that we have a week off and then we'll do a shorter fall session of only five weeks. At the end, on October 11, there will be a show where all of the riders can show friends and family what they have learned. The teacher very nicely gave the boys certificates and their choice of Ty Beanie Babies. Thane chose a fawn. It struck me as an odd choice and I thought maybe he just grabbed one, but he was quite taken with his little baby deer and snuggled her all the way home.

I need to spend a bit of time catching things up a little on this blog, but I have been playing with beads more than typing lately. I have posted a lot of pictures of my stuff on Flickr because it is easier to chat with friends about what I am up to if they can take a look.

I have all sorts of pictures of the boys at the Union Fair, a Medieval War that Dave went to with a friend, and Braeden's recent interest in stop-motion videos . . . I just need to sort, choose, and post somewhere.

I also sold my website after 12 years. I wasn't keeping it up well and the fertility issues seem more distant. There is just so much else I need to learn and be up-to-date on now.

Braeden and Fall

2008-08-17T00:51:00.004-04:00

This week's big news is that Braeden got a a big role in an upcoming community youth theater production of There's Something in My Closet. This will be a lot of work, and some solo singing, so it should be interesting. He's excited and we have all his lines highlighted and ready to practice.

One of the other mother's of a child at Braeden's school called and started asking about fall carpool. The same day, a month before school starts, I got an email from another family in our carpool. We got a tentative schedule worked out, but I have to admit that fall is starting to scare me. I'll have Thane going to school 14 miles south of home while Braeden is 22 miles north. I have to drive Thane both ways each day, and it looks like I will be doing Monday and Friday afternoons.

Tuesday and Thursday I will still have to make my way north to get Braeden at 5 as he will be doing fall afterschool sailing. Then he has theater on Monday, Wednesday and Saturday. Good thing he rarely has homework! Thane will still be horseback riding through October. He has come so far and it so nice to see him doing more and looking forward to the ride.

I feel kind of like I just settled into summer's version of routine, and there are only two weeks left! Next week is chaos of some variety as I am driving two other kids to sailing camp, and asked one of the other moms to pick up on Wednesday and entertain Braeden for an hour and drop him at the theater where I will get him after horseback riding. Thursday I will pick up her child and bring him home for the night. Dave will take the two older boys to the Union Fair. He's going to take Thane alone another night as he just thinks it would be better for the kids to do it that way.

I already know Thane's teacher for the fall. I am hoping Braeden gets one of two teachers for his reflections group, and that he is happy with his schedule. He is beginning his transition into upper school with one class.

Olympics

2008-08-17T00:36:00.002-04:00

The theme at Thane’s school this week was sports and Olympics. Not only did he surprise everyone by trying on football gear – I didn’t even recognize him at first! He won a gold medal and was totally thrilled. One of the cutest things is that he wore that little gold paper medal all day, long after he left his undies and shorts behind in the bathroom.

That, of course, takes me to another penis story.

“I’m shy,” Thane said. “I’m shy.”

Dave asked, “Are you shy, Thane?”

“No! Penis is shy.”

Later on he came running to me buck naked and holding on, so I asked “Is penis shy?”

“No! He’s happy!” he reported as he ran away.

As he continues to work on gender identification, he told Braeden. “I am a boy. I have a penis. Mamas have boobies.”

Special Diets and School

2008-08-12T16:57:00.001-04:00

I got a comment today on my Gluten-Free School Supplies post from Thomas, who writes for The Gluten-Free Casein-Free Experience. He compiled a piece with suggestions on How to Have a GFCF School Year, a 3-part series. Check it out starting here.

We have what may be some different circumstances. My son, despite diet changes, is still not a well-rounded eater. Because of that, it really helps to have him eat in a group setting and have similar items. Sometimes the school provides these, but his teachers clear most things with me first, or simply buy identical items to what I have provided in the past.

My son is still in preschool, so I am going to provide some information with preschool-age kids in mind. I think might extend well to those just starting Kindergarten and grade school as well.

I label everything. We aren’t casein free anymore, but we are egg free and we have a bunch of other allergies to contend with. One big problem is that if you take the gluten and the egg out, you often get stuck with date paste, which we can’t have either.

I bought a bunch of gluten-free, egg-free and casein-free (we did that too until Thane’s gut healed) stickers and patches at Jeeto! . . . we also had a t-shirt, but Thane outgrew it and now he won’t wear anything without Rocket from the Little Einsteins. I have labels on his lunch box, on his backpack, and I laminated little GF-EF cards and attached them with split rings to the zipper on his lunch and to the front patch on his backpack. I did the backpack part because one very nice mother of another child at my son’s first preschool put a bag of treats in my son’s bag, which meant I had to take it home and wash it! I figure it is okay to hit people over the head with the fact that he has a special diet as long as it means he stays healthy.

So there are my suggestions to add to the article linked in the first paragraph.

Halloween Cowboy in August

2008-08-09T21:13:00.003-04:00

A certain young boy was trick-or-treating at my house today . . . and his big brother was adorable too. Thane decided he wants to be a cowboy for Halloween, so Braeden went hunting through his old costume stuff and got Thane all set up. I couldn't resist the teaching opportunity, so we played trick-or-treat for awhile. The smiles were worth every second, including the sharing of chocolates and dum-dum lollipops!

Misty & China

2008-08-09T17:50:00.002-04:00

You have to love little children – they are so inquisitive and adorable.

This past week, Thane’s new speech therapist sent a note home suggesting we work on “he/she” with Thane, and on having him use more precise descriptive language – not letting him get away with “I want something” while we try to guess what, but have him say, “I want the apple juice.”

I laughed about the he/she stuff and told his teacher we have been doing that for ages. That is when she told me the girls have nothing story below.

So a little while ago he came running in to check if I have lips (which automatically makes me think of Larry Boy from Veggie Tales). We confirmed I have lips, he has lips, and Dave has lips. He decided Misty, the dog, didn’t. I said she did, but hers are black. So he leaned down and corrected himself, saying “Yes, He has lips.”

Being the parent who tries to do the things therapists ask, I corrected him and said “Misty is a girl.”

“No, he’s dawg!” (For some reason Thane says “dog” with a Brooklyn accent. We joke it must be inbred, even though I don’t have one even though I was born in Kings County Hospital where they let people in the psych waiting room die on the floor and leave them there for an hour.)

“Yes, she is a dog, but she is a girl dog,” I replied.

“No, he’s a brother.”

“She’s a sister dog,” I said, but then the light bulb went off inside my mind and I added, “She doesn’t have a penis, she’s a girl.”

Well, I was right that it would make a different for him.

“Oh, she has a . . . a . . . poopie . . . a . . . what?” I had to laugh a bit because he has always been bothered by the fact that she has black skin at her anus, though her fur is bright white back there.

I said, “She has a vagina. She’s a girl.”

“That’s right! She has a China! I have to go tell Daddy that Misty is a girl so she has a China!”

We have a long house. He had to go through the foyer, through the living room, all the way through the disaster we call a kitchen, past the bathroom, and to the sunroom.

“Daddy, Misty’s from China! She has to go there to visit her family.”

I was expecting Dave to come out laughing about Misty having a China, but I waited a few minutes and nothing. I called him on the intercom and asked him if he thought it was funny that Mist had a China. He explained that the story he got was that she was from China, so she needed to go visit her family there.

I love the way the story was adapted on his way through the house!

Happy Birthday to Mist!

2008-08-06T21:44:00.005-04:00

She's just one again, according to Thane. Actually, today she turns 12, which is pretty old for a 80-pound Siberian muttsky. She was not amused that we asked her to wear a hat! She did enjoy her gifts, though. I actually took the boys to a pet store this afternoon and let them pick some treats for her. They chose a stuffed bone with a squeaker, a stuffed pink person, a fancy birthday dog biscuit, and gluten-free, grain free dog treats. These ones actually look totally safe for Thane to touch.

Thane is the one who wanted a birthday party and insisted the cake needed to be shaped like a dog bone. We used an allergan free yellow cake mix and once again we were underwhelmed . . . even Mist snubbed that, so good thing Braeden got her the fancy dog biscuit!

Othello

2008-08-06T21:33:00.003-04:00

I forgot my camera last week, but after a rough week the week before last, we had a surprisingly easy transition to yet another horse. I was smart and put a bunch of different horse images in his social story about riding, but Othello wasn't one of them!

Othello is yet another beautiful horse and he is very sweet. He's also half Percheron, which makes him even bigger than Manchester. The woman leading the horse is over 6 feet tall. Last week Manchester was tired. I'm not sure why we had Othello again this week, but Thane was thrilled and they seem like a good match even if Thane looks totally tiny riding such a big horse. He had some new experiences today including trotting, riding the horse without his side walkers holding onto him, and then doing a slide puzzle. I have a picture of that on the bottom because it is just cute to see his concentration.

We spoke with our social worker today and told her that ours should be the feel-good appointment of the day because we are both so thrilled with how Thaney is doing. He's playing with other kids, he's loving school, he's just doing fantastic.

Thane Humor

2008-08-05T20:15:00.001-04:00

Thane and I were doing a Lazy Town maze last night when I explained that we had to stay away from character Robbie Rotten. I said he was a “stinker” so Thane decided I meant he smelled bad. You have to kind of picture him flapping excitedly and talking about Robbie Rotten being stinky to get the full effect.

Anyway, all the stinky talk led to me saying “P-U!”

Thane stopped flapping, opened his eyes really wide, and said with perfect intonation for a question, “He peed on me?” . . . followed by looking down to check himself out (and grabbing his package because he really likes that thing).

When I got to school today to get Thane, one of his teachers said that Thane told her he had to go to the bathroom so they went inside so he could pee.

When he was done, he said, “I have a penis.”
She agreed.
He said, “You're a girl so you don't have a penis . . . you've got NOTHING!”

So there you have it. From a boy’s point of view, if you don’t have a penis, you have nothing!

Doesn't He Look Cute?

2008-08-04T15:52:00.004-04:00

It seems as if Thaney is all tuckered out this afternoon. He gave me a nice big hug when I picked him up at school, we got some ice cream, picked up a friend of Braeden’s, and came home.

While the older two boys played together, Thane I played catch. How the game works is that Thane runs back and forth from the sunroom to the living room – through the kitchen – and I try to catch him. It is so hot and humid, and the sky opens up every once in and while and unloads buckets of water, that I had no idea how he could keep it up.

Braeden and his friend reported an injury to a stuffed horse – “Grandma Horse.” I had to give Grandma Horse stitches while a very, very impatient Thane asked if I was done yet. When I was finished, he placed a giant bandage over the wound. But then Baby Horse needed a Band Aid too – with Big Bird on it. And then Mr. Lizard needed an Elmo bandage. I thought we might go through a ton of bandages, but I went to the bathroom and when I came out, I found this:

Could anything be cuter than a little boy sleeping in his swing with Curious George and Wilbur the Pig (a gift from his grandparents because he wanted a stuffed pig last year)? Of course I needed a photo, but I didn’t use a flash because I wanted him to get some sleep. What a cutie! And no, I am not remotely biased!

Wacky Wednesday

2008-08-01T17:44:00.002-04:00

Above is a newspaper clipping with Braeden on the lower left. The coach in the middle, dressed as an "Old Maid" is wearing a dress of mine (bought from the store I was snickering about below, which adds some extra humor to me).

Snickering

2008-08-01T16:06:00.002-04:00

I saw the owner of this store – which I happen to like as it has a nice selection of clothing for plus-size women – putting up this sale sign earlier this week. I think the wording is unintentionally humorous . . . and somewhat unfortunate as I am not sure it will really lure people in. I have been laughing at all week because my shirts do indeed resemble tents.

Alien Sighting

2008-08-01T15:52:00.005-04:00

I actually think the fact that Thane is at home and still wearing clothing is more alien than the SigningTime stickers he's added to his ensemble.

Birthday Number One

2008-07-30T10:21:00.005-04:00

Sometimes the biggest joys come from the littlest things.

Last week, Braeden was at soccer camp. This camp has a Wacky Wednesday where the players dress up, and they get to dress the coaches as well. I probably should have gone to see the coach that was wearing my plus-size dress!

One of the items Braeden brought down to dress in was a little purple wizard hat. I’m not really sure how it landed in the costume box, but it was actually from a dog Halloween outfit. It was worn by the late Typhoon, back when Braeden was four. We called him “The Great Whizzer.” He wasn’t amused, but we humans were.
Braeden decided it was really too small to be comfortable – though he was correct that it was funny looking on him. Since Braeden can never be bothered to put anything fully away, the hat landed on the floor in the foyer at some point.

There the hat was discovered by Thane. He deemed it a party hat. Right size, makes sense. Thaney was just thrilled with his find and put it right on.

All of this has lead to discussions of birthdays. Misty has a birthday next week. She’ll be twelve. Yikes! She’s our we’re never going to have a baby, let’s get another puppy (we had three other dogs when we got her). Thane took great glee in planning and will go shopping with one of us for party goods. We’re going to throw a party for her complete with yellow cake (so I ordered 5 different kinds of gluten free cake from The Gluten Free Mall last night) as I need to make cupcakes to freeze for school anyway. He’s undecided at the moment as to whether Mist’s cake should be a square or a dog bone shape.

Trying on the party hat.

Happy as can be!

Cheese!

Can I make a silly face?

Trying unsuccessfully to make a sad face.

Could he look any happier?

He’s still one, and he will only be “the number one” on his next birthday too. We asked him who he’d invite to a birthday party.

“I like Mama!”
“I like Daddy!”
“I like Braeden!”
“I like Misty!”

He started walking away from us, Dave and I, adding, “And I like the Wiggles!”

That sure made us laugh! It was so simple, so honest, and totally cute!

Four or One

2008-07-28T16:55:00.000-04:00

I love having a 10-year-old – he’s outside playing with his brother and I get to stay with the air-conditioning!

I overheard a friend of Braeden’s say that Thane is really weird. It irritated me at the time, but I think part of it may have been that Thane kept calling him by the name of a different friend of Braeden’s, one who is here much more often, and it happens to be the name of the other boy’s little brother. So it was probably annoying him to be called by his brother’s name!

Anyway, some of the issues boil down to Thane being four. Most of what he was doing is pretty typical for a 4-year-old. A couple of online friends pointed out that I could have probably just explained it as “Thane’s four. He’s just being four.” That actually brings up one interesting thing about Thane. I find it charming, but people don’t get it. He says he is “One, just one” and he will often point to himself to indicate the fact that he is indeed just one boy. But he is four years old . . . and that means absolutely nothing to him. When you think about it, years don’t mean much to kids and when they say how old they are they are just following a script. Thane doesn’t want this particular script, so for now he’ll be one, until he decides he is more than one.
I love having a 10-year-old – he’s outside playing with his brother and I get to stay with the air-conditioning!

I overheard a friend of Braeden’s say that Thane is really weird. It irritated me at the time, but I think part of it may have been that Thane kept calling him by the name of a different friend of Braeden’s, one who is here much more often, and it happens to be the name of the other boy’s little brother. So it was probably annoying him to be called by his brother’s name!

Anyway, some of the issues boil down to Thane being four. Most of what he was doing is pretty typical for a 4-year-old. A couple of online friends pointed out that I could have probably just explained it as “Thane’s four. He’s just being four.” That actually brings up one interesting thing about Thane. I find it charming, but people don’t get it. He says he is “One, just one” and he will often point to himself to indicate the fact that he is indeed just one boy. But he is four years old . . . and that means absolutely nothing to him. When you think about it, years don’t mean much to kids and when they say how old they are they are just following a script. Thane doesn’t want this particular script, so for now he’ll be one, until he decides he is more than one.