I originally posted this at Extraordinary Mom's Network 9/8/08
10) They make me laugh. - It’s true, every day. for example. My oldest has a speech delay (among other things). One day out of the blue he started walking around saying “I’m sauced Momma! YEEESS MOMMA!! I’m sauced!!” (we’re teetotalers too!) It took me about 2 weeks to figure out he was repeating me saying “I’m exhausted!” ~~ we still say we’re “sauced” around here!
9) They give me the priviledge to witness miracles. My pregnancies and deliveries were hard and dangerous. I know just how lucky we are to have living, thriving children. Each of these babies is a miracle. How fortunate I am that God has allowed me to watch grow 3 of His Perfect Miracles.
8) I always wanted to be a cheerleader. But never went out for the team. Now I am able to be a cheerleader every day..while wearing the much more comfortable uniform of JAMMIES! The most often repeated phrase in my house is “You can do it! Try again! You can do it!” Maybe I should invest in pompoms!
7) They bring me closer to God, daily. One of the blessings of parenting SNKs (Special Needs Kids) is that you slowly learn that you have no control over their development. You have no control over their potential, we don’t even know what their potential is! I have no plans for my children’s future, as I have no idea what that future may look like. But see, this is how it’s SUPPOSED to be. We’re told NOT to plan for the future, just to trust that God will supply our needs. Learning to let that go is a painful but wonderful blessing.
6) I am never bored! About the time I think “This is alright, I’ve got this down…” something new comes up. A new experience, a new developmental hurdle, a new attitude, a new behavior “issue”, a new topic of conversation to get repeated over and over again….life is an adventure; my adventure is exciting.
5) I’ve learned to rejoice over every little thing. I appreciate each and every milestone that my kids reach, even something as “minor” as saying “ready…set..” and having the kid say “GO!” will bring tears of joy to my eyes. And this carries over into my whole life. The adult surgery patients I take care of think I’m strange when I do a victory dance over their first post-op poop. But to me, now, every triumph deserves a victory dance, take NOTHING for granted!
4) Raising SNKs inspires creativity. I’ve carried weighted backpacks to church because it helped with my middle child’s sensory integration problems, I bought a bounce house to help with my oldest’s low muscle tone, I’ve put tape on the living room floor to make a track for my oldest to work on physical therapy goals while playing “follow the leader” …(Mom was the leader), I created “Mama’s Special Sauce” out of nothing but vegetables, then substituted it for ketchup when the middle kid refused to eat even the most hidden vegetable, (yes, it worked, we used it for almost a year before starting to once again force the veggies). I’ve been told I “think outside of the box”. My response to this is “where’s the box?? Did your kids come in a box??”
3) These kids have given me many opportunities to teach. Because my kids “look normal” most people don’t understand their needs. No, baby girl isn’t saying “mama” at 18 months…nor is she walking. No, middle child can’t tell you his name. No, oldest isn’t going to look you in the eye and answer your question…he’s just gonna repeat your question back to you. But. the boys are both in regular classes in Pre-school. That middle child at 3 1/2 can not only count to 12, and tell you the alphabet, he can identify all the numerals and letters, as well as most shapes. My oldest can remember every word to every video and every song that he’s ever heard. He understands things (like Jesus’ booboos) that have never been told or explained to him. He knows where we’re heading by which streets we take, and if we pass an exit we normally take, he knows where we are and what is down that exit. These are the things I find myself teaching to others. And I teach a lot, so that others will understand and will not jump to conclusions the next time they come across a SNK.
2) My kids have blessed me with muscle tone and endurance. My middle child’s online nickname is Gator-boy, or Alligator. He came by this name when he was about a year old. He didn’t like being held, (sensory integration issues) always wanted to be on the go. When he decided it was time to get down out of Mama’s lap he would squirm until he was laying sideways across my lap….then start rolling around in place to loosen my grip. Have you ever seen the shows about Alligator Wrestlers? or Crocodile Hunters?? That’s exactly what he looks like. Yes, he still tries it…but it doesn’t work– in case you ever need to know, the secret is to pin the shoulders and hips…then they can’t roll over. You do this by putting one arm between their legs and the other across one shoulder, under the head. Then you hold your hands together at their belly and pull the kiddo in to your trunk. one…two…three….YOU WIN!
1) The number 1 reason why I feel blessed to have these children is that they have strengthened my character. Every parent’s worst fear is that “something” will be “wrong” with their child. For most parents this is nothing more than a fear that passes away as the child grows. For those of us with SNKs that fear is a reality. It does something to a person when they face their worst fear, then live through it. Your whole perspective on life changes. I used to be upset by little things, now, it’s much harder to get me discombobulated. I mean. I’m raising (with my wonderful husband) Three Special Needs Kids. All the other upsets in life pale in comparison. I am a better person for knowing these kids, and I am blessed, truly blessed, that God saw fit to name me as their mother. For that blessing, I am eternally grateful.
Showing posts with label Mommy Chronicles. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Mommy Chronicles. Show all posts
Friday, August 4, 2017
Tuesday, December 8, 2015
Our Advent Calendar's daily verses:
I compiled this Advent Calendar a few years ago and we are still using it every year.
I enjoy reteaching the Christmas story as the month of December and the season of Advent unfold.
In the sixth month, the angel Gabriel was sent from God to a town of Galilee called Nazareth
Luke 1:26
To a virgin betrothed to a man named Joseph, of the house of David, and the virgin’s name was Mary
Luke 1:27
And coming to her, he said, “Hail, favored one! The Lord is with you.”
Luke 1:28
Then the angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God.”
Luke 1:30
“Behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall name him Jesus.”
Luke 1: 31
In those days a decree went out from Caesar Augustus that the whole world should be enrolled.
Luke 2:1
And Joseph, too, went to the city of David that is called Bethlehem. To be enrolled with Mary, his betrothed, who was with child.
Luke 2:5
While they were there, the time came for her to have her child,
Luke 2:6
And she gave birth to her firstborn son. She wrapped him in swaddling clothes and laid him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the inn.
Luke 2:7
Now there were shepherds in that region living in the fields and keeping the night watch over their flock.
Luke 2:8
The angel of the Lord appeared to them and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were struck with great fear.
Luke 2:9
The angel said to them, “Do not be afraid; for behold, I proclaim to you good news of great joy that will be for all the people.”
Luke 2:10
“For today in the city of David a savior has been born for you who is Messiah and Lord.”
Luke 2:11
“And this will be a sign for you: you will find an infant wrapped in swaddling clothes and lying in a manger.”
Luke 2:12
And suddenly there was a multitude of the heavenly host with the angel, praising God and saying:
Luke 2:13
“Glory to God in the highest and on earth peace to those on whom his favor rests.”
Luke 2:14
When the angels went away from them to heaven, the shepherds said to one another, “Let us go, then, to Bethlehem to see this thing that has taken place, which the Lord has made known to us.”
Luke 2:15
So they went in haste and found Mary and Joseph, and the infant lying in the manger.
Luke 2:16
When Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea, in the days of King Herod, behold, magi from the east arrived in Jerusalem,
Matthew 2:1
Saying, “Where is the newborn king of the Jews? We saw his star at its rising and have come to do him homage.”
Matthew 2:2
After their audience with the king they set out. And behold, the star that they had seen at its rising preceded them, until it came and stopped over the place where the child was.
Matthew 2:9
They were overjoyed at seeing the star, Matthew 2:10
And on entering the house they saw the child with Mary his mother. They prostrated themselves and did him homage. Then they opened their treasures and offered him gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh.
Matthew 2:11
And having been warned in a dream not to return to Herod, they departed for their country by another way.
Matthew 2:12
I hope each of you have a wonderful Christmas!
I enjoy reteaching the Christmas story as the month of December and the season of Advent unfold.
In the sixth month, the angel Gabriel was sent from God to a town of Galilee called Nazareth
Luke 1:26
To a virgin betrothed to a man named Joseph, of the house of David, and the virgin’s name was Mary
Luke 1:27
And coming to her, he said, “Hail, favored one! The Lord is with you.”
Luke 1:28
Then the angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God.”
Luke 1:30
“Behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall name him Jesus.”
Luke 1: 31
In those days a decree went out from Caesar Augustus that the whole world should be enrolled.
Luke 2:1
And Joseph, too, went to the city of David that is called Bethlehem. To be enrolled with Mary, his betrothed, who was with child.
Luke 2:5
While they were there, the time came for her to have her child,
Luke 2:6
And she gave birth to her firstborn son. She wrapped him in swaddling clothes and laid him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the inn.
Luke 2:7
Now there were shepherds in that region living in the fields and keeping the night watch over their flock.
Luke 2:8
The angel of the Lord appeared to them and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were struck with great fear.
Luke 2:9
The angel said to them, “Do not be afraid; for behold, I proclaim to you good news of great joy that will be for all the people.”
Luke 2:10
“For today in the city of David a savior has been born for you who is Messiah and Lord.”
Luke 2:11
“And this will be a sign for you: you will find an infant wrapped in swaddling clothes and lying in a manger.”
Luke 2:12
And suddenly there was a multitude of the heavenly host with the angel, praising God and saying:
Luke 2:13
“Glory to God in the highest and on earth peace to those on whom his favor rests.”
Luke 2:14
When the angels went away from them to heaven, the shepherds said to one another, “Let us go, then, to Bethlehem to see this thing that has taken place, which the Lord has made known to us.”
Luke 2:15
So they went in haste and found Mary and Joseph, and the infant lying in the manger.
Luke 2:16
When Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea, in the days of King Herod, behold, magi from the east arrived in Jerusalem,
Matthew 2:1
Saying, “Where is the newborn king of the Jews? We saw his star at its rising and have come to do him homage.”
Matthew 2:2
After their audience with the king they set out. And behold, the star that they had seen at its rising preceded them, until it came and stopped over the place where the child was.
Matthew 2:9
They were overjoyed at seeing the star, Matthew 2:10
And on entering the house they saw the child with Mary his mother. They prostrated themselves and did him homage. Then they opened their treasures and offered him gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh.
Matthew 2:11
And having been warned in a dream not to return to Herod, they departed for their country by another way.
Matthew 2:12
I hope each of you have a wonderful Christmas!
Saturday, February 22, 2014
A Different kind of Valentine's Box
So, as we have each year, the kids made Valentine's Boxes for their school parties. In order to do this quickly (because we always excel in procrastination) I empty some Kleenex boxes and cover them in typing paper, then let the kids draw whatever they want on the boxes. This usually produces your typical hearts and flowers type of boxes......
Except that this year my oldest (10 year old) darling was left unsupervised while decorating his box. I walked in to see what he'd decided to put on his box to find this:
I told him, "This is a VALENTINE'S DAY BOX, son. I want to see some HEARTS on it somewhere!" and then I walked out to help someone else get ready for school.....
I come back to him proudly showing me this:
"I put hearts on it Momma! Look! There's (from left to right) A Vampire's Heart, A Zombie's Heart, A Ghost Heart, A Frankenstein's Heart, A Werewolf's Heart, A Mummy's Heart and a Swamp Creature's Heart!"
Well, what could I say?
I freakkkkking LOVE this kid!
Take if from me folks, AUTISM IS FUN!!!!!!!!
Have a great day.
Sunday, February 16, 2014
Catching Up
Hi there, boy it's been awhile since I posted anything here.
Last September we adopted a dog.
She's a rescue that had been on Death Row and was saved with literally hours to spare by a friend of mine who fosters dogs. After 4 months with my friend we decided it was time for us to get a dog and "Mak" came to live
with us. She is a Black Mouth Cur (like Old Yeller) about 2-4 years old and a real sweetheart. She's incredibly patient with the kids and friendly to ALL critters (yes, even skunks!)
She very rarely barks and doesn't drool much either! A 78lb love pup!
The only problem is that she's a dog who L.O.V.E.S. to go outside!! Between me and hubby she gets 2-3 walks a day, each 2-3 miles long, plus time running free up at the baseball/soccer fields near our home. Scheduling her walks has become a major factor
in our day! Especially since we're adding her walks into a one car family with 3 increasingly active kids and me now working outside the house....well, you can only imagine!!
My new job is going very well! I was blessed to get a raise to where I'm making about 1 1/2 times what I was and working almost half the number of hours a week (3 12hr shifts a week instead of the 6 10-12 hour shifts I was working)! I still find myself when I have 3 nights off in a row thinking I've forgotten to go to work! Unfortunately, I haven't managed to do much on my nights off so far other than SLEEP!
Because my new job is in Dallas about 35 miles away from home I've started riding the train to
work. This makes it a 25 min drive and 20 min train ride each direction and makes it possible for hubby to take me in to the train and keep the car so the kids don't have to walk to school the next morning in bad weather. And we've had a LOT of bad weather
since I started in December! WOW! This is not a normal Texas winter for sure! I am sooooo ready for summer! Bring on the long hot days! Give this cold mess back to those up north that are used to it!
3 of us will have birthdays in March. I'll be 39 on March 2, and Sugars will be 7. Then on March 18 Gatorboy will turn 9. How did this happen??? I blinked and they grew up around me! Thinking back over some of my more fun posts from them all being babies just makes me see how fast time flies! I will be reposting some of those here over the next month or so and taking a trip down memory blog-lane. I'm still trying to figure out how I got to be 39, when I don't feel a day over 35!! ;-)
Speaking of my birthday......Just for the record, I've decided that the only thing I want for my birthday is crazy colored/designed socks!!! the softer/warmer/bigger the better! Since I wear a 9.5 WIDE women's shoe it's really hard to find fun socks to fit me. I have to go to the "extended sizes" type and they're usually just plain white. So, if you were thinking of sending me a gift....look for big crazy warm socks!! :-)
The kids are doing well in school this year. Swim lessons start back up this weekend for them all. Sonshine will be training to be an Alter Server starting next month. And we're looking into possibly getting Sugars in Ballet and Gator into gymnastics soon. In addition, we've taken up playing recorders. They start learning the recorder in school in the 3rd grade, but when the recorders came home for the year the boys didn't want to quit. So I got with the music teacher at school who happily sent me all the 3rd, 4th and 5th grade music!! Guess I'm going to learn to play (ahem...teach) the recorder too! LOL. Cuz I don't play enough instruments and really DO NEED to learn a new one!.......
Well, this post has gotten way too long, what can I say, it's been a busy couple months! Enjoy your day folks, stay tuned. Meanwhile, I'm going to enjoy my current favorite pastime:
Goodnight everybody!
Hi there, boy it's been awhile since I posted anything here.
Last September we adopted a dog.
My new job is going very well! I was blessed to get a raise to where I'm making about 1 1/2 times what I was and working almost half the number of hours a week (3 12hr shifts a week instead of the 6 10-12 hour shifts I was working)! I still find myself when I have 3 nights off in a row thinking I've forgotten to go to work! Unfortunately, I haven't managed to do much on my nights off so far other than SLEEP!
3 of us will have birthdays in March. I'll be 39 on March 2, and Sugars will be 7. Then on March 18 Gatorboy will turn 9. How did this happen??? I blinked and they grew up around me! Thinking back over some of my more fun posts from them all being babies just makes me see how fast time flies! I will be reposting some of those here over the next month or so and taking a trip down memory blog-lane. I'm still trying to figure out how I got to be 39, when I don't feel a day over 35!! ;-)
Speaking of my birthday......Just for the record, I've decided that the only thing I want for my birthday is crazy colored/designed socks!!! the softer/warmer/bigger the better! Since I wear a 9.5 WIDE women's shoe it's really hard to find fun socks to fit me. I have to go to the "extended sizes" type and they're usually just plain white. So, if you were thinking of sending me a gift....look for big crazy warm socks!! :-)
The kids are doing well in school this year. Swim lessons start back up this weekend for them all. Sonshine will be training to be an Alter Server starting next month. And we're looking into possibly getting Sugars in Ballet and Gator into gymnastics soon. In addition, we've taken up playing recorders. They start learning the recorder in school in the 3rd grade, but when the recorders came home for the year the boys didn't want to quit. So I got with the music teacher at school who happily sent me all the 3rd, 4th and 5th grade music!! Guess I'm going to learn to play (ahem...teach) the recorder too! LOL. Cuz I don't play enough instruments and really DO NEED to learn a new one!.......
Well, this post has gotten way too long, what can I say, it's been a busy couple months! Enjoy your day folks, stay tuned. Meanwhile, I'm going to enjoy my current favorite pastime:
Goodnight everybody!
Wednesday, December 18, 2013
Christmas Movie Marathon....
Icemageddon hit north Texas last weekend, We were stuck indoors for a total of FOUR days.
Once our power returned (after 12 hours) we decided it was time to start watching our favorite Christmas movies!
As a result, during the last 10 days we have watched the following movies.
Santa Buddies
Curious George, A Very Monkey Christmas
Mickey's Twice Upon a Christmas
Dr. Seuss' How the Grinch Stole Christmas!
The Muppet Christmas Carol
Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer
Frosty the Snowman
Frosty Returns
Santa Claus is Comin' to Town!
The Little Drummer Boy
Mr. Magoo's Christmas Carol
Cricket on the Hearth
Veggie Tales Christmas Sing-Along Songs!
Veggie Tales It's a Meaningful Life
Veggie Tales The Little Drummer Boy
Veggie Tales Saint Nicholas
Veggie Tales The Toy that Saved Christmas
Veggie Tales The Star of Christmas
A Charlie Brown Christmas
It's Christmastime Again, Charlie Brown
A Christmas Carol with George C Scott
Beauty and the Beast The Enchanted Christmas
Thomas and Friends Merry Winter Wish
The Magic Schoolbus Holiday Special
Disney's A Very Merry Christmas Sing a Long Songs
A Christmas Story
The Cat in the Hat Knows a Lot about Christmas
A Christmas Carol with Alastair Sim
Bah Hamduck! A Looney Toones Christmas
The Polar Express
Mickey's Once Upon a Christmas
I want a dog for Christmas, Charlie Brown
The Berenstain Bears' Christmas Tree
A Very Merry Pooh Year
Winnie-the-Pooh Seasons of Giving
How many of these have you seen this year?
Seen any not on this list?
This was a lot of fun. We'll keep watching them for the rest of the year, adding to this list as we find more on either Youtube or Netflix :-)
Once our power returned (after 12 hours) we decided it was time to start watching our favorite Christmas movies!
As a result, during the last 10 days we have watched the following movies.
Santa Buddies
Curious George, A Very Monkey Christmas
Mickey's Twice Upon a Christmas
Dr. Seuss' How the Grinch Stole Christmas!
The Muppet Christmas Carol
Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer
Frosty the Snowman
Frosty Returns
Santa Claus is Comin' to Town!
The Little Drummer Boy
Mr. Magoo's Christmas Carol
Cricket on the Hearth
Veggie Tales Christmas Sing-Along Songs!
Veggie Tales It's a Meaningful Life
Veggie Tales The Little Drummer Boy
Veggie Tales Saint Nicholas
Veggie Tales The Toy that Saved Christmas
Veggie Tales The Star of Christmas
A Charlie Brown Christmas
It's Christmastime Again, Charlie Brown
A Christmas Carol with George C Scott
Beauty and the Beast The Enchanted Christmas
Thomas and Friends Merry Winter Wish
The Magic Schoolbus Holiday Special
Disney's A Very Merry Christmas Sing a Long Songs
A Christmas Story
The Cat in the Hat Knows a Lot about Christmas
A Christmas Carol with Alastair Sim
Bah Hamduck! A Looney Toones Christmas
The Polar Express
Mickey's Once Upon a Christmas
I want a dog for Christmas, Charlie Brown
The Berenstain Bears' Christmas Tree
A Very Merry Pooh Year
Winnie-the-Pooh Seasons of Giving
How many of these have you seen this year?
Seen any not on this list?
This was a lot of fun. We'll keep watching them for the rest of the year, adding to this list as we find more on either Youtube or Netflix :-)
Monday, December 16, 2013
My girl Mak
We got a new dog during my blog silence. She's most likely a Black Mouth Cur named Mikayla or as we call her "Mak"
See her head on MY knee? While she's an excellent family dog and plays with/loves us all, she is most attached to me.
A friend of mine rescued her out of a shelter where she was LITERALLY just a couple hours away from being euthanized. My friend fostered her for 4 months and then when we started looking for a dog in September we adopted our Big Mak. (at 77lbs of SOLID muscle that BIG is no joke!)
So I left the house at 6:30am and returned at 6pm today after my first day of orientation at work. When I got home my dog positively ATTACKED me! I mean it was a Big Mak Attack!! Hubby said, "well, it's the longest you've been away from her since we got her" WOW! I hadn't thought about that!
Hubby was home all day without a car, so she wasn't alone....but still....I guess my sweet girl missed me a bit.
Yeah, I missed her too, especially our Walkies, I won't get to walk her again till I get off this 8-5 orientation schedule. It always amazes me how quickly and easily these 4 legged friends attach themselves to our hearts.
Unplanned Unpaid Vacay
So, after almost 3 years of working more than 64 hours a week, 6-7 nights a week, from home I decided to find another job. I loved answering the after hours calls for Pediatric offices from Arizona to Maine, however, my contract seemed to be in danger of being canceled by my boss about every 3 months or so and that many hours just flat gets old even when you enjoy what you do.
So I found another job, going back to the hospital, back to adults. Doing inpatient Med/Surg Rehab. (helping folks get moving again after knee and hip replacements mostly). It's not my favorite type of work, but it's 36 hours a week with a $20,000/year raise!
The saddest thing is that when I gave my boss of 3 years the standard 2 weeks notice she fired me! Took all 13 shifts I had left away. She even stated "increased absences lately" as her reason for firing me....since I worked 6 or 7 nights a week for over 2 1/2 years and in that ENTIRE time called in less than TEN SHIFTS TOTAL, this is ridiculous.
So I suddenly found myself with an Unplanned Unpaid 2 week Vacation!!
I decided to actually take it as a vacation and focus on spending time with my family before the stress of the new job set in. I have kept track of the fun stuff I'm doing throughout the vacation so that at the end I don't feel like I wasn't PRODUCTIVE.......sometimes God gives us these moments to remember that being PRODUCTIVE doesn't necessarily mean we have "something to show" for how we spent our time.
So, here you go! How I spent my Unplanned Unpaid Vacation, I'll let you readers decide whether or not it was PRODUCTIVE.
Day 1 I taught the family to play Slap Jack. It was a real HIT!
Day 2 my now 10 yr old and I started reading A Christmas Carol together. Best part was when he asked if he could do different voices for the different speakers
Day 3 kids and I put up all indoor decorations but the tree
Day 4 drove to Dallas to get all the HR stuff done for my job.
Day 5 EXERCISE!! Walked 3 miles with our dog Makky, danced, lifted weights! It's been too long.
Day 6 Icepocalypse! 12 hours without power! Taught the kids to play Go Fish! Started our family Christmas puzzle, we worked on it till doing a puzzle by flashlight got too hard!
Day 7 taught kids to play Sorry! Gave the dog a bath....she's a dog of a different color now! Assembled and decorated the Christmas tree. Began the Christmas movie marathon!!!!!! (see the Movie Marathon post for the list of what we saw)
Day 8 Sunday and we're still iced in. Church was closed today and school is closed again tomorrow. We spent the day snuggled in watching movies and playing Sorry! So much fun! I was able to take the doggie for one of her walks today. First time in 4 days! Felt great to stretch my legs, could have done without being pulled by my 77lb dog over the ice though.....wheeeeeeeeee.
Day 9 STILL iced in! praying for school to start back tomorrow! Still watching movies and all the games they've learned this week are being played. Also, having the kids draw and make picture ornaments for our tree and decorations for the house. I now have a Ghost of Christmas Yet to Come ornament and a Scrooge and Marley's Ghost ornament!
Day 10 Started addressing Christmas cards...this is REALLY early for me! Played more go fish and Sorry! with the kids, and rode the DART train for the first time! It's kinda cool. This will be my primary transportation to and from work since it saves the worst part to drive, the last 15 miles (in Dallas) off my trip. I found out that my CPR isn't the right one for the hospital, so I will have to retake a CPR class before the 16th! yikes.
Day 11 The kids and I finished stuffing, addressing and mailed A Hundred and One Christmas cards. seriously! We counted them twice! They had a lot of fun getting the labels and stamps on them...hope no one minds the placement! Ha ha.
Day 12 Today I tried to figure out what I wanted for Christmas. Not an easy thing for me to do, but hubby asked for suggestions so I came up with a few. We also managed to squeeze a couple games of go fish in after homework and before bedtime!
Day 13 Friday! It's be a great and productive day. Hard to believe this vacation is drawing to a close. I was able to get my CPR redone in record time! I was also able to go to Dallas and turn everything in as well as get a Christmas present off in the mail. Now time to relax with the kids in front of yet MORE Christmas movies!!
Day 14 I cut 8 inches off my hair today! wow!! It's still down below my shoulders, it'd started almost waist length. I also made it to Saturday night Mass for the first time in forever! I can't wait to start my new work schedule and am able to rejoin this choir on a regular basis!
Day 15 Decorated OUTSIDE!! yippee! ALL decorating is done! shew. Is it any wonder I wait AWHILE before I take all this stuff down? I mean really, if we just left the lights up yearround there'd be a lot less to do every December......or maybe I'm just a Redneck....
Day 16 Today I staredt hospital orientation and am going to be working daily 8-5 for a couple weeks.
So what do you consider being PRODUCTIVE?
I have to say that I'm very glad I started keeping this record of my vacation activities. I found that if I waited a day or two to log them in I had a hard time remembering what I'd done. Now it's all a blur of activity. But I feel like I enjoyed this vacation MORE than the planned one I had in October, probably because it came without warning and therefore I didn't have time to over plan my time. This was a great break spent with the family. Hmmmm, makes me wonder about God's plan, not only for this unscheduled break from work, but also for His return "like a thief in the night".
Lesson? Sometimes the best things in our lives are surprises and times left unplanned!
(although it would have been nice if it had been paid.....)
:-)
Have a great day folks. I'll be around when I get some time off from work.....
So I found another job, going back to the hospital, back to adults. Doing inpatient Med/Surg Rehab. (helping folks get moving again after knee and hip replacements mostly). It's not my favorite type of work, but it's 36 hours a week with a $20,000/year raise!
The saddest thing is that when I gave my boss of 3 years the standard 2 weeks notice she fired me! Took all 13 shifts I had left away. She even stated "increased absences lately" as her reason for firing me....since I worked 6 or 7 nights a week for over 2 1/2 years and in that ENTIRE time called in less than TEN SHIFTS TOTAL, this is ridiculous.
So I suddenly found myself with an Unplanned Unpaid 2 week Vacation!!
I decided to actually take it as a vacation and focus on spending time with my family before the stress of the new job set in. I have kept track of the fun stuff I'm doing throughout the vacation so that at the end I don't feel like I wasn't PRODUCTIVE.......sometimes God gives us these moments to remember that being PRODUCTIVE doesn't necessarily mean we have "something to show" for how we spent our time.
So, here you go! How I spent my Unplanned Unpaid Vacation, I'll let you readers decide whether or not it was PRODUCTIVE.
Day 1 I taught the family to play Slap Jack. It was a real HIT!
Day 2 my now 10 yr old and I started reading A Christmas Carol together. Best part was when he asked if he could do different voices for the different speakers
Day 3 kids and I put up all indoor decorations but the tree
Day 4 drove to Dallas to get all the HR stuff done for my job.
Day 5 EXERCISE!! Walked 3 miles with our dog Makky, danced, lifted weights! It's been too long.
Day 6 Icepocalypse! 12 hours without power! Taught the kids to play Go Fish! Started our family Christmas puzzle, we worked on it till doing a puzzle by flashlight got too hard!
Day 7 taught kids to play Sorry! Gave the dog a bath....she's a dog of a different color now! Assembled and decorated the Christmas tree. Began the Christmas movie marathon!!!!!! (see the Movie Marathon post for the list of what we saw)
Day 8 Sunday and we're still iced in. Church was closed today and school is closed again tomorrow. We spent the day snuggled in watching movies and playing Sorry! So much fun! I was able to take the doggie for one of her walks today. First time in 4 days! Felt great to stretch my legs, could have done without being pulled by my 77lb dog over the ice though.....wheeeeeeeeee.
Day 9 STILL iced in! praying for school to start back tomorrow! Still watching movies and all the games they've learned this week are being played. Also, having the kids draw and make picture ornaments for our tree and decorations for the house. I now have a Ghost of Christmas Yet to Come ornament and a Scrooge and Marley's Ghost ornament!
Day 10 Started addressing Christmas cards...this is REALLY early for me! Played more go fish and Sorry! with the kids, and rode the DART train for the first time! It's kinda cool. This will be my primary transportation to and from work since it saves the worst part to drive, the last 15 miles (in Dallas) off my trip. I found out that my CPR isn't the right one for the hospital, so I will have to retake a CPR class before the 16th! yikes.
Day 11 The kids and I finished stuffing, addressing and mailed A Hundred and One Christmas cards. seriously! We counted them twice! They had a lot of fun getting the labels and stamps on them...hope no one minds the placement! Ha ha.
Day 12 Today I tried to figure out what I wanted for Christmas. Not an easy thing for me to do, but hubby asked for suggestions so I came up with a few. We also managed to squeeze a couple games of go fish in after homework and before bedtime!
Day 13 Friday! It's be a great and productive day. Hard to believe this vacation is drawing to a close. I was able to get my CPR redone in record time! I was also able to go to Dallas and turn everything in as well as get a Christmas present off in the mail. Now time to relax with the kids in front of yet MORE Christmas movies!!
Day 14 I cut 8 inches off my hair today! wow!! It's still down below my shoulders, it'd started almost waist length. I also made it to Saturday night Mass for the first time in forever! I can't wait to start my new work schedule and am able to rejoin this choir on a regular basis!
Day 15 Decorated OUTSIDE!! yippee! ALL decorating is done! shew. Is it any wonder I wait AWHILE before I take all this stuff down? I mean really, if we just left the lights up yearround there'd be a lot less to do every December......or maybe I'm just a Redneck....
Day 16 Today I staredt hospital orientation and am going to be working daily 8-5 for a couple weeks.
So what do you consider being PRODUCTIVE?
I have to say that I'm very glad I started keeping this record of my vacation activities. I found that if I waited a day or two to log them in I had a hard time remembering what I'd done. Now it's all a blur of activity. But I feel like I enjoyed this vacation MORE than the planned one I had in October, probably because it came without warning and therefore I didn't have time to over plan my time. This was a great break spent with the family. Hmmmm, makes me wonder about God's plan, not only for this unscheduled break from work, but also for His return "like a thief in the night".
Lesson? Sometimes the best things in our lives are surprises and times left unplanned!
(although it would have been nice if it had been paid.....)
:-)
Have a great day folks. I'll be around when I get some time off from work.....
Tuesday, April 30, 2013
Updates on the kids.
Enormous Testing update:
#1 son, Sonshine, is Autistic and ADHD with some other assorted delays thrown in just for fun
#2 son, Gator, is ADHD with Autistic tendencies severe speech delay and other asst fun stuff
Baby Girl up next. This is emotionally exhausting! Just in case you ever wanted to try it for SnGs
But the best thing happened!
Proudest Mommy Moment Ever:
while going over son #1s results Dr says, " its obvious someone has worked very, very hard with him for years to see how well he is doing right now." Hubby points to me.
Now, I've always said my kids are the perfect people God intended them to be. But wow, after allllllll these years it was like DUDE, somebody (who hadn't seen it) noticed!!
She also said she sees a lot of kids where parents get tired and stop working with them after awhile and to see how functional he is with the severe deficits he has was great. That made me kinda sad. And reminded me of this:
"Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up."
Galatians 6:9
#1 son, Sonshine, is Autistic and ADHD with some other assorted delays thrown in just for fun
#2 son, Gator, is ADHD with Autistic tendencies severe speech delay and other asst fun stuff
Baby Girl up next. This is emotionally exhausting! Just in case you ever wanted to try it for SnGs
But the best thing happened!
Proudest Mommy Moment Ever:
while going over son #1s results Dr says, " its obvious someone has worked very, very hard with him for years to see how well he is doing right now." Hubby points to me.
Now, I've always said my kids are the perfect people God intended them to be. But wow, after allllllll these years it was like DUDE, somebody (who hadn't seen it) noticed!!
She also said she sees a lot of kids where parents get tired and stop working with them after awhile and to see how functional he is with the severe deficits he has was great. That made me kinda sad. And reminded me of this:
"Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up."
Galatians 6:9
Saturday, February 2, 2013
So, apparently, when life gets exciting blogging lags. At least it has for me!
So, here are the goals I made almost a month ago:
1) Finish the donation cross for the paralyzed firefighter's raffle **
2) Finish the 5th Joyful Mystery coloring page **
3) Take down the Christmas decorations
4) Print out copies of the kids Santa pic for this (ahem last) year
5) Send out Christmas cards
2) DONE! This is a project I started some months ago for my kids. I printed out coloring pages for each of the mysteries of the Rosary to put in a binder so that they can have a better understanding of what we're talking about as we pray. The "kids coloring pages" turned out to be so detailed and complex it took me FOREVER to finish!!!
3) DONE!
4) DONE! well sorta. After several attempts and a trip back to Santa I ended up without any pictures. Somehow my stick got corrupted or something. So I printed out this fun picture from Christmas Day instead! (see header photo)
5) DONE! yeah, they went out a month late.....but dangit they went out!!!
Have a great day folks!
Wednesday, January 9, 2013
Happy New Year!
A New Year has begun!
***blogger isn't letting me upload pics right now, so you'll just have to imagine a really cute picture of three kids hiding under blankets on the living room floor till blogger fixes itself!**
School has started back, however, as you can see from these sleepyheads it's taking us some time to get adjusted to getting up early again!
Ever get the feeling that things are spinning along without you? I've had so many things on my Todo lists that I have a Todo list listing the other Todo lists that need to be attended to......YIKES!
I used to make weekly goals and share them here on the blog. 5 things I'd like to get done by this time next week. So here's my attempt to reclaim some productivity and GetRDun!!
MM's goals for the next week are:
1) Finish the donation cross for the paralyzed firefighter's raffle **
2) Finish the 5th Joyful Mystery coloring page **
3) Take down the Christmas decorations
4) Print out copies of the kids Santa pic for this (ahem last) year
5) Send out Christmas cards
yeah, as you can see, I'm totally behind and back ass-wards to the wind this season!! Gotta get some forward momentum going here. Next Wednesday I shall check back in and see how much I didor didn't get done.
How has your year begun? Are you ready for the adventure that 2013 brings?
(numbers 1 and 2 warrant their own posts to explain, stay tuned for info on those)
***blogger isn't letting me upload pics right now, so you'll just have to imagine a really cute picture of three kids hiding under blankets on the living room floor till blogger fixes itself!**
School has started back, however, as you can see from these sleepyheads it's taking us some time to get adjusted to getting up early again!
Ever get the feeling that things are spinning along without you? I've had so many things on my Todo lists that I have a Todo list listing the other Todo lists that need to be attended to......YIKES!
I used to make weekly goals and share them here on the blog. 5 things I'd like to get done by this time next week. So here's my attempt to reclaim some productivity and GetRDun!!
MM's goals for the next week are:
1) Finish the donation cross for the paralyzed firefighter's raffle **
2) Finish the 5th Joyful Mystery coloring page **
3) Take down the Christmas decorations
4) Print out copies of the kids Santa pic for this (ahem last) year
5) Send out Christmas cards
yeah, as you can see, I'm totally behind and back ass-wards to the wind this season!! Gotta get some forward momentum going here. Next Wednesday I shall check back in and see how much I did
How has your year begun? Are you ready for the adventure that 2013 brings?
(numbers 1 and 2 warrant their own posts to explain, stay tuned for info on those)
Monday, December 10, 2012
Curing Atheism
Sonshine (9yrs): I don't believe in God any more, just in Ghosts and Goblins.
Me: Ok, but without God there are no Ghosts and Goblins because God made everything.
Sonshine: Well, I just don't believe in God now.
......after a couple minutes of silence.....
Me: You know, if you don't believe in God anymore then I guess you don't believe in Christmas. Because without God there's no need to celebrate the birth of Our Lord. So should I call Santa and tell him you're not gonna have Christmas anymore???
Sonshine: .....deep in thought.....
No, I believe in God!!
There you have it folks. Our BRIEF sojourn into atheism.....
I love this kid!!
Me: Ok, but without God there are no Ghosts and Goblins because God made everything.
Sonshine: Well, I just don't believe in God now.
......after a couple minutes of silence.....
Me: You know, if you don't believe in God anymore then I guess you don't believe in Christmas. Because without God there's no need to celebrate the birth of Our Lord. So should I call Santa and tell him you're not gonna have Christmas anymore???
Sonshine: .....deep in thought.....
No, I believe in God!!
There you have it folks. Our BRIEF sojourn into atheism.....
I love this kid!!
Sunday, October 28, 2012
Don't Steal the Car!!
Being a one car family brings with it some interesting adventures!
Last Friday Subvet had an appointment downtown at the same time that the kids needed to be at school. Since it takes over an hour to get downtown from our house and the school is less than 1/2 mile away, we decided that the kids and I would just walk to school.
We told the kids the night before that Daddy would be taking the car to go to the doctor and they'd be walking to school with me.
We told them again Friday morning.
Daddy said goodbye and drove off for his appointment.
And as we're walking out the front door for school all three kids stop dead in their tracks.
Stare at the empty drive way....
And exclaim:
DADDY STOLE THE CAR!!!!!
In perfect 3-kid echo-harmony.
The entire neighborhood and I then heard ~~throughout the ENTIRE 1/2 mile walk ~~ variations on "We have to WALK to school today because Daddy STOLE our car!!!"
Poor Daddy, he's in trouble and he doesn't even know it!
Last Friday Subvet had an appointment downtown at the same time that the kids needed to be at school. Since it takes over an hour to get downtown from our house and the school is less than 1/2 mile away, we decided that the kids and I would just walk to school.
We told the kids the night before that Daddy would be taking the car to go to the doctor and they'd be walking to school with me.
We told them again Friday morning.
Daddy said goodbye and drove off for his appointment.
And as we're walking out the front door for school all three kids stop dead in their tracks.
Stare at the empty drive way....
And exclaim:
DADDY STOLE THE CAR!!!!!
In perfect 3-kid echo-harmony.
The entire neighborhood and I then heard ~~throughout the ENTIRE 1/2 mile walk ~~ variations on "We have to WALK to school today because Daddy STOLE our car!!!"
Poor Daddy, he's in trouble and he doesn't even know it!
Monday, June 4, 2012
Saturday, June 2, 2012
Bovine Surgery in the AM
This is the cow you couldn't kill.
My sister gave this cow to my kids SEVERAL years ago......I think 4 years?? I'll have to ask her.
Due to space restrictions the cow ended up in Sugars' room. I think it will be her lifelong companion.....I won't be surprised to see it in her dorm room in 15 years!
However, this cow will frequently spring a leak as its seams pull apart. So when we see a fair amount of stryofoam snow on her floor I go into the Bovine OR and stitch him back together. I'm ALMOST to the point where there's more seam that I've sewn than original. :-)
He came through the surgery well, and, as you can see, is fat and happy again. Ride em Cowgirl....
Our other morning activity consisted of Gator-boy's role play. Can you guess who he is??
My sister gave this cow to my kids SEVERAL years ago......I think 4 years?? I'll have to ask her.
Due to space restrictions the cow ended up in Sugars' room. I think it will be her lifelong companion.....I won't be surprised to see it in her dorm room in 15 years!
However, this cow will frequently spring a leak as its seams pull apart. So when we see a fair amount of stryofoam snow on her floor I go into the Bovine OR and stitch him back together. I'm ALMOST to the point where there's more seam that I've sewn than original. :-)
He came through the surgery well, and, as you can see, is fat and happy again. Ride em Cowgirl....
Our other morning activity consisted of Gator-boy's role play. Can you guess who he is??
Thursday, May 31, 2012
Oh would you just look at this!
Well, I missed both boys' awards ceremonies this week, Sonshine got "Most Improved Student" and Gator got "Good Citizen Award". I am sad. But I've been sick sick sick this week. Terrible cough. Here's hoping it goes away SOON!!!
Today is the LAST day of school!! Bring on the SUMMER! I got stuff planned. It's going to be fun. Gonna try to make it to some more of my list of places to go around Dallas too!
Sharkarosa, Ft Worth Zoo, Dallas Arboretum, Planetarium, The Heard Museum I bought a family pass!!, Family Theater Series, the Dallas Aquarium, ride the Tarantula and see the cattle drive at the Ft Worth Stockyards. Plus the fountains to play in the water! Plus I'm planning on reading the Magic Tree House series to the kids this summer :-) And Sonshine starts piano lessons on Monday
WooHoo!! Here We Go!!
Tuesday, May 29, 2012
Exciting Day
I'm very excited to finally be able to start posting items at Made by Mightymom on etsy!!
This rosary is beautiful! Check it out!
In other news our oldest son, who I thought would never talk, read, have friends....and so on and so on....is getting an AWARD AT SCHOOL TODAY!!! He's earned the "Most Improved Student Award" from his 2nd Grade Teacher for the year!
Oh I'm sooo proud!! Of course, the ceremony is at MY equivalent of 2 in the morning! But I told hubby even if he has to prop me in the chair and poke me when it's time I GOTTA BE THERE!!!
:-)
Make it a Great Day folks!
Tuesday, May 22, 2012
A Simple Woman's Daybook
This is a fun weekly meme I've seen around for a long time. Thought I'd join in.
FOR TODAY
FOR TODAY
I am finishing up my work so that I can go to a dentist appointment here in a little bit. Then I shall do so fun stuff for Made by Mightymom, such as open a bank account and establish shipping rates. I must admit I'll be REALLY glad when all the setup stuff is DONE. But I am getting there.
OUTSIDE MY WINDOW
Hubby is weed eating and mowing the backyard. Hooray! This is the last thing he hasn't been able to do since his knee replacement March 6th. So very glad to see him back to normal activities!
I AM THINKING
It's almost 9:00AM....when I finish working.
I AM THANKFUL
For everything. Truthfully, everything!!
IN THE KITCHEN
my daughter is enjoying a late breakfast after sleeping in on her first day of summer.
I AM WEARING
My work clothes....aka...jammies! Gotta go put on real clothes soon, don't think the dentist would be impressed with my pink polka dots......
I AM CREATING
A business! Wow! Who would have thought???? Tedious and exciting.
I AM GOING
to the dentist....very very soon now.
I AM WONDERING
If anyone will actually pay money for these things I make....
I AM READING
Postern of Fate by Agatha Christie. A good one! Of course I say that about all her books!
I AM HOPING
I can teach Gatorboy to read this summer....all prayers gratefully accepted!
I AM LOOKING FORWARD TO
Too many things. Need to live more in the moment.
I AM LEARNING
All about etsy and sales tax and craft fairs OH MY!
A FAVORITE QUOTE FOR TODAY
"If you want to become a millionare, don't ask an average person how to do it, ask a millionare"
Came across it on facebook a week or so ago, can't remember who it was attributed to, but it's stuck in my head.
A PICTURE I'M SHARING
I missed her graduation ceremony but I have it on very good authority (aka Hubby and Grannie) that it was very cute! Auditorium lighting makes for odd looking pics. :-)
Monday, May 14, 2012
First Communion
This has been an exciting weekend for us! Sonshine had his First Communion on Saturday.
We've learned, once again, to watch what we tell the kids. Earlier this week Hubby told Sonshine that the reason he didn't take the wine at Communion is because he "breaks out in spots, like Charleston, Chicago, Los Angeles" (it's an old joke from AA). On our way to the dress rehearsal Sonshine keeps asking me "what color are the spots with those names that Daddy breaks out in?" Since I had NO IDEA what he was talking about I called Hubby to find out and he said "just tell him big red spots". Okay, question answered, no problem.
Saturday at the First Communion Mass, I'm right beside Sonshine to help him stay focused. As he's sitting back down beside me after taking the Host (and wine) Sonshine says to me, "Momma, I don't think I'm breaking out in big red spots!!". He then spends the rest of the Mass pulling his pant legs all the way up and feeling his belly and head to see if any big red spots have shown up yet. While I spent the rest of the Mass busting a gut trying not to laugh out loud!!
Thursday, May 10, 2012
This Is Ser-we-ous!!!!!
Oh my goodness!! Look at this!!
My Sonshine's first suit!
He'll have his 1st Communion on Saturday, and I STILL can't believe he's this big!!
sniff, sniff.....someone please remind me to take tissues........
I got a promise from my hubby today!
Which means I need to get cracking on this new business and sell some STUFF!
cuz you KNOW I'm gonna video that dance for the world to see!!!
:-)
fortunately, I have several ideas......
And I'm going to link to Small Success Thursday as well.
Tuesday, May 1, 2012
yellow belts!
I really hate it when this happens!
I guess my battery needed charging. Here I get what would be a really GOOD picture of all 3 looking at the camera and the dang thing is out of focus!
Anyway, my 3 hooligans have tested and they all made Yellow Belts in Tae Kwon Do! How exciting!!
I'll try to get a better picture on Thursday.
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