Posted By Melanie @ 9:19 AM (0) comments |
Tuesday, June 27, 2006
Vacation Countdown
My guess is that I will be a bit too busy to update here again before going on vacation. There is so much to do in the next few days! It's stressful and hectic and very exciting all at once! I can't wait to see my Dad (who I haven't seen in 18 months) and the rest of my family too (its probably been 2 1/2 years). The Jersey shore probably hasn't changed too much since the last time I was there, but I am looking forward to it just the same. We leave Friday morning, June 30th at 4am - hubby likes to hit the road early on these trips - and won't return until Sunday July 9th.
Don't miss me too much while I am gone! :)
Friday, June 23, 2006
My Second Friday Feast
FRIDAY FEAST
Appetizer:
On a scale of 1-10 with 10 being highest, how much do you like your job?
My first and most important job is being a Mom, so I would rate that a 10+ because although the kids can give me a headache at times and make me want to pull my hair out, having them and being there Mom means everything to me and I wouldn't trade it in for anything in the world.
The work I do from home that I get paid for I would rate as a 7 - ONLY because it allows me to stay home with the kids otherwise it would get a 3!
Soup:
When was the last time you think you were lied to?
Last night when I heard Nick get mad at a game he was playing and say "Dammit" and I called him on it - he told me he said "stupid". Yeah, sure he did.....
Salad:
Share some lyrics from one of your favorite songs.
On a dark desert highway
Cool wind in my hair
The warm smell of colitas
Rising up through the air
Up ahead in the distance
I saw a shimmering light
My head grew heavy and my sight grew dim
I had to stop for the night....
Hotel California by The Eagles
Main Course:
What do you do/take when you are in pain?
First I generally wait until it gets pretty bad before I take something - generally Ibuprofen
Dessert Fill in the blanks: My __________ is very __________.
My life is very fulfilled
Free Trip!
Adam won a 3 Day trip to Las Vegas including airfare for 2 and hotel accomodations. We are going to see if we can use it at the end of August for our anniversary.
Speaking of trips... we leave one week from today for our Jersey Shore vacation. Can't wait!
Wednesday, June 21, 2006
Myspace
Well I signed up for MySpace through an invite awhile ago from my friend, Kerry but got annoyed fast trying to figure it out. Today my patience returned after seeing that yet another friend has tried it out so I figured I would jump on the bandwagon....
http://www.myspace.com/queenofadisneycastle
Pillow
Pillow problems....
First let me explain about Jake's Pillow otherwise known as "pa-po". Jake has lots of sensory issues that accompany his Autism. One of the things he does is rock back and forth on his knees and also enjoys lightly bumping his head into his hands. He began doing this really early on when all of his issues started to surface as a release. He had the pillow from his toddler bed that he would bump his head into and rock on. The rocking and bumping was an all day affair....about every 20 minutes or so. This pillow pretty much died after a year but we needed a replacement immediately. I had gotten Nick and Jake these big Scooby Doo Body Pillows from a catalog and Jake immediately decided this huge pillow would be his new favorite pillow. Now this pillow came with us everywhere and I mean everywhere. This large body pillow slung over Jake's shoulder and carried through every type of dirt that you could imagine dragging along the ground. It was hell to wash. The stuffing had separated inside after some time from being carried over Jake's shoulder the way he did. This pillow has been around for about 3 years now. Jake, of course, has worked through some of his sensory needs and only needed to rock on the pillow maybe twice per day now. Well, recently pillow busted its bottom seam and all the remaining stuffing fell out. So we are left with a very tattered pillow case instead which Jake is fine with miraculously. Also it's much easier on Adam and I to transport from place to place and MUCH easier to wash! Jake still drags this pillow with him everywhere. It sits next to him on the floor while he plays, rides in the car with us and is in his grasp while he sleeps.
My problem...Alex all of a sudden decided that he also wants "pa-po" and tries to steal it from Jacob often. Poor Jacob does not understand what is going on and looks as though his best friend has been kidnapped when he realizes pillow is missing from his side. My little Alexander is a bit of a hellion as most of you know from prior posts and seems to rather enjoy Jake's reaction more than the prospect of having pillow all for himself when he steals it away. Giving him an alternative pillow case that we have in the linen closet to save Jake from his little evil pleasure of theft doesn't seem to work, but I am hoping the luster wears off soon. Jacob's immediate heartbreak at the prospect of a lost "pa-po" breaks my heart too. :(
Siblings can be mean.
Sunday, June 18, 2006
Sleep-deprived
Matthew woke up at 3:00am. This is the first time in a few days he has woken up at all between the hours of 11pm and 4:30am. So what happens after he is up to eat and have a diaper change which lasted all of 30 minutes before he was snoozing again???? His goofy mom can't sleep. Load of laundry done....check. Kitchen floor mopped....check. Father's day breakfast items prepped and ready to go....check. Cleaned main bathroom.....check. Now I am online checking out blog friends I do not get a chance to see so regularly anymore.
So a BIG happy Father's Day to those it applies to. Nick made a wonderful card for Adam including all of his favorite things with pictures and lists of things they will do together before Nick is a Dad himself so he can teach the same things to his kids. Very sweet my oldest son is and wise for his years!
We are heading up to my mom's today for a BBQ and swimming. No other Dad's around to visit since mine is out of state and the day belongs to Adam.
I need to attempt to get some sleep so I don't drink all of his special coffee blend for his special breakfast.
What's on your agenda today???
Friday, June 16, 2006
My first Friday Feast
I saw this on Lady Bug Crossing's Blog and thought it was great so I figured I would try it. Check out LBC's site on my Blogroll at the right. She is wonderfully witty and a fabulous fellow blogger!!!
Without further ado....
Friday, June 16, 2006
Feast Number One (for me)
Appetizer:
What is a word that you use that would not be considered common?
I use the word equilibrium alot as well as obtuse
Soup:
What theme of calendar do you have on your wall this year?
Actually I am still using the school calendar we got at the beginning of the school year for the fridge, printed Outlook months for my room and a Thomas Kinkade portable calendar for the pocketbook
Salad:
Name 3 people you speak with by telephone a regular basis.
Adam (hubby), my MIL and my Dad
Main Course:
If you could buy a new outfit for someone you know - who would it be and what would you purchase for them?
Hubby. I would buy him a really nice new suit since he really needs one! If money was not an object then maybe an Armani suit. Woohoo!
Dessert:
What is the last beverage you drank?
Still currently drinking it right now - water bottle with Wild Berry Zingers Water packet
Want to participate in the Feast too??? http://fridaysfeast.blogspot.com/
My little guys
The Fabulous Foursome cuddling on the couch after breakfast enjoying a movie. Notice the baby is the only one dressed for the day so far! Ahh, those summer days...
Saturday, June 10, 2006
Combat Autism!
There is a VERY important piece of legislation in both the Senate and House to be passed to help Autism (S. 843 Combating Autism Act of 2005, H.R. 2421 Combating Autism Act of 2005).As all of you know, this is a cause very near and dear to my heart. If you go to the following website - http://www.combatautism.org - you can find out how to contact your area legislators and ask/beg/plead with them to sign on to Co-sponsor this bill to help make it a law. The website gives you your legislator info as well as generic emails to send if needed.There are currently 36 Senators and 126 Reps co-sponsoring this and the goal is 51 Senators and 225 Reps.
Taking a moment of your time to send an email would mean the world to me and other families like mine. I can't begin to tell you just how much! And if you could pass the word on, that would be even better!
More Info about it from the Combat Autism website:
This legislation will accomplish the following goals in the fight against Autism:
Double NIH spending on autism research.
Empower the Director of the NIH to act as an "autism czar" - developing an annual research budget on autism, based on the best science, and requiring that budget be reported to Congress.
Create a screening program in all 50 states for the early identification of children with autism - short of a cure, early identification leading to early intervention with behavioral services provides the best available outcomes for autistic kids.
Fund the efforts of the Autism Treatment Network to identify the best medical practices in the treatment of autistic kids. Continue funding of the epidemiological and public education programs on autism at the CDC.
Authorize, overall, nearly 1 billion of federal spending on autism over the next 5 years - a multi-front war on autism from public awareness and early diagnosis to basic biomedical research.
Why This Legislation Matters The Combating Autism Act of 2005 builds on the provisions of the Children's Health Act of 2000 and would authorize $860 million in federal funds over five years to combat autism through research, screening, intervention and education. It also reauthorizes the National Institutes of Health Centers of Excellence Program in autism originally created in 2000, doubling the number of authorized centers
__________________
Wednesday, June 07, 2006
Cardiologist
Matthew saw the Cardiologist on Monday. He says after looking at his chest X-rays that the hole seems to be getting smaller. Good news.... But he also said we are not "out of the woods yet". Matthew's heart and lungs are larger than normal due to have to work harder with the hole. But he says Matthew looks good and seems healthy which is a plus! So we will see him again on July 10th, the day after we return from our summer vacation.
Just an update.
Friday, June 02, 2006
A Real Gripe
Medical Insurance companies suck. They LIVE to suck you dry.
I knew Adam's medical benefits at work covered crap even though we pay $800 a month for the insurance and then pay tons more for out of pocket costs. We knew we would have to pay $2000 for Matthew's birth since that was our yearly "family" deductible but it turns out it was our yearly individual deductible and $6000 is our yearly family deductible. Then I find out the tubal surgery I got approved by the insurance company back in September would also not be covered and I would have to pay for that as well - that one I am fighting.
It isn't bad enough that they cover absolutely nothing but preventative care for Jacob since Autism is an an exclusion for coverage services for everything so we need to make sure any developmental concerns we have for him are only addressed at his yearly appointments or they are not covered since he is Autistic. Now Matthew's cardiologist is an OUT of network provider so we are responsible for $4000 of seeing him before they will cover their 20% of the benefits! Good God!!! What the hell is the point of paying for this??? But with 4 kids, how can we not have coverage????
Ugh. I could pull my hair out over all of this. Thanks for listening to me whine ;)
