Posted By Melanie @ 4:53 PM (0) comments |
Sunday, March 01, 2009
It has been ages....
It has been a very long time since I have written here. I miss it so I thought I might be able to get started on it again.
So much has happened in our lives to share. New jobs and adventures, a new house, ups and downs along the way as always, but we are all doing well. Adam has his own business now and works from home with Matt which is working out great. I am still working at the hospital and happy there. Looking to venture out on options to possibly go back to school. Something I would love to do but we have to see where it fits into our schedules and finances. The boys are huge now and doing very well.
Nick is 11 now, and full of my fiesty spirirt which annoys me to death most days and causes us to butt heads continually on the smallest of things from homework assignments to cleaning his room. He is doing well in school, but I wish he would put forth more effort to reach his fullest potential there. Right now he is more concerned with rushing through assignments to complete them and getting on to his free time whether at school or at home to do what he wants. I know this comes with his age, but seeing as he is entering middle school next year I would like to make sure he has a good foundation for the tougher work coming his way. It is a constant back and forth between us which generally ends in me annoying him and vice versa. His interests have not changed much - he still loves all things computer related, video games and hanging out in his room. Still the homebody. It is my mission this year to find something outside of the house he will like to get him to stay involved in.
Jacob is 7 (8 in May), and is just doing awesome! Don't get me wrong, he has a ways to go still in everything but he has made such strides. Every accomplishment is a joy to be a part of. He is facing new things daily and actually trying them!!! You have to see him work the internet. Here is a child who has trouble with simple tasks like tying shoes, etc but can work Google Earth and You Tube like nobody's business. He spends his time looking up Disney on Google Earth including Tokyo Disney and other parks and watching You Tube videos related to the parades there and stage shows. Our family loves Disney, but for Jake it has always been his obesession and the things he has a problem enjoying at the park due to his sensory issues (like the stage shows and fireworks) he now can watch and enjoy at his volume and comfort level at home. His vocabulary is expanding and he is trying to talk so much more than before. We are working on color sight words now and some basic addition. He is a joy to everyone who works with him and such a gem to be around. He has an amazing teacher at school who has tons of experience with autistic children (She worked at Eden and is from NJ - what better combo???) and she is just FANTASTIC. I dread the day he will no longer have her. We had her last year, summer school session and this year. I will gladly keep Jake with her for as long as I am able to. He adores her and so do we! "Pillow" is no more (he used to carry this around....loong story!) but we now take a Pluto dog with us everywhere including the bus ride to school.
Alexander is 5 and in Kindergarten. Alex is something special - Jekell and Hyde...he can be the sweetest little thing, be close to angelic with a beautiful halo or he can be this tumultuous little terror complete with horns and this devlish grin. His favorite pastime is annoying the hell out of Nick. He is a ball of energy which he finds hard to control at times and also gets him in trouble alot, both at home and occasionally in school when he has some problems listening or following the wrong kid. He still has his flair for the dramatic and love of all things pink and "girly" but he loves his rough and tumble little boy action as well. He is still in speech which he is doing great with and making real strides in. We are so proud of how smart he is! He does great with Math and Reading and has kept in the 95-100% range on all grade reports. My concern with Alex is his attention span and handwriting issues, which I am sure will come up at his IEP meeting in the next 2 weeks.
Matthew is 2 and testing every limit he can. He is the youngest of four, so he talks like he is a 5 year old complete with correcting you - "Actually....". He is a doll baby in every way but a two year old terror too! :) He loves cars, trucks, school buses, motorcycles, planes, etc - anything that moves with some sort of motor. He is his father's son in that respect and I knew it when we passed an old muscle car (1960-something Mustang) and my two year old darling said "Sweeeeet" from his car seat behind me! He is so very smart and loves to learn things which is just wonderful at this age. Books and Books and Books...he loves to read and then try to reread the story to you by memory and pictures. He has not had to return to the cardiologist for his heart and won't until May to see how the hole is repairing and discuss where we go next, so nothing new there. He has been lucky to be home with Daddy now that Daddy works from home and probably drives him crazy on occasion but does really well with his new day to day care.
So in a nut shell, that's how they have been doing. We have moved from one side of our town to the other this year after Christmas. We love the new house and are happily settled in now. Poor Dozer Dog misses his fenced in yard, but he enjoys his walks now too.
Hopefully this will be my intro back into blogging as time and life allows it for me! It would be great to *see* old blogging friends again and find some new ones too.
