Grant's Farm - Family Trip

This year, in lieu of taking a family vacation (which we had neither the time nor the money to do), we decided to do a few smaller things as a family in the month of September. One of our first things we did was to go to Grant's Farm in St Louis, where Ulysses S. Grant lived for a time.

The first part of the day when you walk into the park is a 'tram ride'--sort of a tour of the grounds. These swans were on a pond that we passed...I just *love* swans. :)

At the end of the tram ride is the center of the park where the animals are. This is the entrance to that area.

When you walk through here, the first thing you see on your left is the goat feeding area. Oh. My. Goodness. There are sooo many goats!! We decided to do the 'day pass' for each of the boys, where they would get to feed the goats twice, get a snow cone, and ride the carousel. We fed the first of our goat bottles the very first thing, as the boys were so excited about it. Well, when it came time to actually get IN the goat pen, Clayton decided he didn't want to! LOL There were just so many goats and they were just clamoring for the milk. So, Terry put him on his shoulders, but as you can see, that didn't really keep him 'safe'. LOL This goat decided to get up on Terry and drink the milk right at C's 'shoe level', which kinda freaked him out!

Brent had a blast feeding the goats...they were trampling all over him trying to get the milk, but he just had one bottle. One of the goats (below right) just decided to start eating Brent's shorts since he couldn't get the milk! ROFL (Actually, by the look of the goats eyes, he almost looked like he couldn't see very well, so I'm not sure he really knew what he was going after....)



There were these massive turtles (er, tortoises) out in there little area...you can see how big they were compared to the boys...and you can see how close the kids were to the animals.

They stopped to watch this elephant and were just really intrigued by it. (I have NO idea who those other two kids were....)

There was a 'wild bird show' that we went to and they did this little "Rat Race" with these kids. They brought out 2 rats and had the kids stand holding hands, then they let the rats go to race across the kids' arms/shoulders. Well.... Ewww. The rats went INSIDE the shirts of these kids when going across!! I told the boys it was a good thing they didn't get called on cuz we would have BURNT those shirts!!!

This was their carousel ride....why, oh why, does Brent have to make those funny faces when I take his pic??? LOL



At the end of our day, we got their snow cones and sat at the table in the 'vending area'...the boys' tongues and teeth turned the color of their slush, so of course they had to make funny faces while their mouths looked funny anyway. :)



On the other side of the parking lot was the Clydesdale stables, so we toured through there right before we left. It was feeding time for the horses, so we mostly just got rear-end-shots. :( But a very nice lady saw us snapping a couple shots of the boys by the statue and offered to take a family shot. So....just for 'you know who you are'....a family photo of us utterly exhausted LOL :

Bug Trap

One night while I was fixing dinner, Terry came out of the bathroom and said, "You need to go look at the bug trap someone made for you." See, with the cooler evenings we've had the window open and the attic fan on, and we had this hole in the screen of our bedroom window. So, someone decided to 'cover' the hole so that bugs wouldn't get in.

Well, after supper that night, I walked down the hallway and into my room and just started giggling. This is what I saw:



My two Vicks bottles and my Melatonin bottle all stacked on each other with a little fruit cup on top. You can see that he had a water bottle there and that he tried that...there were other bottles and things from my nightstand that he had tried to use.

And if you look at the second image, at the top of the hole, there is a little moth that he caught inside the fruit cup.

Very creative! :)

End of Summer 2009

So much happened at the end of the summer this year! The boys were both in ball (Clayton in T-ball, Brent in coach pitch) and they both had team pictures done. I wasn't able to get Brent's the day they did it, but I got Clayton's. Below is his team with their medals:

In July, they had their tournament for TKD and this is the picture taken in class of the trophies that were won that day:

In August, some friends of ours from church went with us to Salem and we spent some time fishing and driving around the farm. Sooo much fun. Brent, of course, was the best fisherman of the day! He caught something nearly every time he cast his line into the pond. Below is a pic of the first fish he got to keep that day and the three boys with their stringer of fish at the end of the afternoon.

This was the ONLY fish I caught that day. That is NOT my kind of fishing! LOL However, it was made-up-for by the fact that I *did* catch a snapping turtle. :-D We were able to get it out of the pond and Terry and Ron cut it's head off. (Science, anyone??? LOL) The kids were fascinated by the fact that even after its head was removed, the turtle would still continue to walk when turned over onto its feet. :-) Ya gotta love those involuntary muscles and nerves!

Terry made us all clean up brush from around the pond before we were able to fish. LOL If we hadn't, there would have been too much brush to even get to the pond bank in order to fish! So at the end of the day, I had the kids stand in front of their brush pile with their fish so I could get a picture. Then in the back of the truck, Brent wanted a closeup shot of his stringer of fish, since he caught all but 2 of them! LOL

After we got done fishing, we decided to go see the cows. Clayton and T were standing up in the back of the truck looking through the cab out into the field. LOL Just too cute not to take a picture of them! Then later, while we were parked and talking about the cows and feeding them some cubes, I got a shot of the boys sitting side-by-side on the tailgate of the truck.

On Sunday, we left right after lunch and headed back home for Pew Packers/Bible Bowl practice. Obviously, the weekend was a success, cuz Clayton was just *wiped out*, which is evident by how he was sleeping, even after the other three kids had climbed over him to get out and go inside! LOL

Summer Zoo Trip with the Youth Group

Back in July, the youth group at church took a trip to the zoo in St Louis.  What fun!  It was a loooong day, but the kids had a blast!  This was their pose of silliness on the way up there.

When we were almost done with all the walking we were gonna do, we were in the middle of a section of the zoo that only had 'one way' out.  We decided to sit and rest for just a bit and the kids decided to get their maps out and try to figure out 'how to get us out of here'.  LOL  Course, we knew there was only one way to go, but it gave us an excuse to take a break!

At the very end of the day, we were by the gate and they wanted to climb on the seal statue.  I thought a nice pic was in order!  LOL  So here they are....looking exhausted but still having fun.

Quick update...

Well, it's now July and I haven't done ANY new posting in nearly a month! Wow. Just amazing how quickly time flies and how very LITTLE computer time I have for these types of things (blogging, email, etc).

Last month (end of June) brought my birthday (I'm now a whopping 31!!), which ended up lasting 4 or 5 days! Mom and dad came down and took us out for my birthday/Father's Day..went to Lamberts! YUM!

The very last week of June and first two days of July were spent at VBS... a VERY long week, but so very worth it! I got to teach the nursery class and really enjoyed getting to know a couple of our babies there. I'd forgotten how much I truly love to teach the baby class. The boys really enjoyed VBS and came home each night talking about what they learned, and at one point even debating on who's teacher told the story right! LOL

The weekend of the 4th, we went to Salem and spent the weekend...very nice weekend. Brent got to learn how to set off fireworks this year... Eeek! He did a really good job and I just stayed out of the way. Got a couple good pics that I will have to share soon.

Friday the 10th, we went to the zoo with our youth group. Wow...what a trip! There were 40-50 people from church that went to the zoo and while we went our separate ways within the zoo, we all ate lunch together in a little grassy area outside the zoo. We really had fun and the kids were all soooo good! Again, more pictures to come...probably within their own post. I got some REALLY good shots at the zoo!

Then the next morning on the 11th, the boys had a Tae Kwon Do Tournament in Cape. They both did really well... Brent got 2nd in Form and 3rd in Sparring; Clayton got 1st in Form and 1st in Sparring! :) They were both really happy...Clayton especially, as it was difficult to peel him off of my arm when we got there. :s Brent was a little disappointed, cuz he wanted to do better than he did, but we've talked about that and plan on having him talk with his teachers (black belts) to get some ideas on what he can do to improve and also ideas on what he can do when the other person is sparring in a certain way. Hopefully, he will do better next time. :)

This week (and next) Janice is here with us to go to some ball games and to see the TKD stuff. The boys are really enjoying their time with Grandma Niecey and have already played about 100 games of Canasta. (I'm so sick of that game, I'm ready to hide the cards!!)

Therapy continues as normal....Clayton has had some going backwards emotionally, but according to the testing they are doing periodically, he's going in the right direction brain-wise. So we'll just have to see how things continue. Brent should be done with his therapies by the end of this month, while Clayton will continue for a couple weeks after that.

That about covers it for now. Hopefully, I can find some time to do pictures and commenting soon!

A Past-Dated Updated

**NOTE: This post is dated 6-3-09, simply cuz that's when I actually WROTE it, it's just taken me till now (6-18) to get it actually posted! *sigh* Life is busy....
-------

It’s been a while since I’ve been here to truly update….I haven’t had the time to sit and type! I *thought* I would be able to do some of my blogging during the boys’ therapy sessions with Dr Worth, but I’ve had other things to get done during those times. Well, that has changed a bit….

The boys’ therapies have been going well. Things started out a bit rough for Clayton…he was tiring out before they could finish and he wasn’t doing very well when he was doing it. So they decided to give him a ‘break’ in between each section, thinking that just some downtime (and being able to reconnect with me for a moment) would help him, and it did. He was able to complete all of his Interactive Metronome exercises in the hour. However, they dropped off the Brain Play game (where they *think* the play moves instead of having a controller in their hand). This has worked really well for the last couple of weeks and last week, Clayton was able to do 2 of his 3 IM exercises without a break….so PROGRESS! :-) Brent has been doing all of his each time and seems to be doing really well with all parts of it. He takes a ‘drink break’ about half way through and that seems to do it for him. He’s doing both the IM and the Brain Play stuff.

Last week, they got their Hemi-Stim glasses, which are blue-lensed glasses that have LED lights that blink/flash in a certain pattern. They are to wear these for 5 mins, 2-3 times a day…gradually working up to 20-25 minutes a day. We’re told that these are things they will do at home even after the therapy here stops…so this is something that is long-term. (And let me tell you…you do NOT want to have to pay for these glasses! They are EXPENSIVE!) We have a metronome ordered (and on its way to us) right now…that’s another part of their home-work that we’ll be doing each day. I’m not sure yet exactly what that will entail, but I will share when I know.

We had a very busy month of May….with 2 college graduations and 1 wedding. The second graduation we went to, we sorta skipped out on cuz it was SO over-crowded. Plus, Clayton simply wasn’t handling the situation very well….WAY over-stimulating for him. So, we went and walked around UMR campus (where Terry went to college). He showed the boys the different buildings and we found MANY opportunities for good photo shots! :-) It was really a good afternoon that we got to have together as a family….

AND, I learned out to parallel park! LOL I know that sounds silly to some people but I never learned when I was in driver’s ed. And so I was terrified of parallel parking…and would drive around and around blocks to find a spot that was either 2 car-lengths (those I could handle!) or that wasn’t parallel parking. A couple of times in Cape, I would be driving and we’d get in a spot where I’d have to parallel park and I couldn’t, so (rather than get out of the van and do Chinese firedrill), Terry would park for me from the passenger seat! LOL Yeah, I know…not smart, but it’s pretty amazing that he could do that! Anyway, we found a couple of different spots on campus that I could practice on and I was able to parallel park 3 different times. Now, does that mean I can do it in Cape when there are other cars driving past me making me nervous? Not sure. Haven’t tried yet. But at least now I have the idea down. :)

So here are some of the shots we got while on campus that day:

First, we took the boys to Stone Henge and let them play around and learn a bit about it:



They got to running and jumping from each of these surrounding rocks...so I decided to try to capture them mid-air. Kinda fun...



This was just a good shot of Clayton...one of his moments when he was sitting still...

Later, after me learning to parallel park, we walked around through some of the buildings and the 'courtyard' area...

The boys playing on the "Big Clover Leaf" and with their Daddy



For some reason, I was fascinated with 'air shots' that day!

Finally, as we were walking I just found some really good posing areas:

The week after the gradauation, was the first of the two weddings. It was a really nice wedding….if you don’t count the lighting, thunder and rain in the middle of it all! LOL The boys had a blast running through the rain and playing with the umbrellas. But they had even more fun at the reception/dance! They danced with just about everyone….at least Brent did. I think he sought out each lady-person in the family and danced with them…including me! Clayton was happy to dance with someone, dance alone, dance in a group….he didn’t care. As long as he was dancing. But when he got tired, he was DONE. He sat down on the floor and just wouldn’t move again till we told him it was time to go. We have the last of the two weddings (and the last of our weekend running for a while!) this coming Satuday. But the boys are both looking forward to this reception too…more for the dance than anything else. LOL Brent is especially happy, cuz he learned the two-step at the last one and now he wants to practice it more.

Here is a couple of shots of the cakes that Terry's sister did...beautiful!

After the dinner, the dance began...and like I said, the boys had fun!

Clayton kept going back to dance with Maggie (the bride)

But then, he'd dance by (and spin) himself too...

They 'group danced' with their cousins and of course learned the 'Helicopter' from Nathan! LOL

They had their own moves...

But then Brent learned the two-step from ReVay. (and yes, those are droplets of water on my camera lens...leftover from the rain earlier that day.)

And, finally, Janice was able to dance with Cory...so nice. :-)

T-Ball/Baseball is going okay. We’ve had a LOT of rainouts, which has definitely put a damper on Brent’s mood. Out of the last month, he was supposed to have 3 games and 2 practices…..4 out of those 5 were canceled due to rain or muddy fields. He handled the first couple okay, but this last one really got him down. He just couldn’t understand why the rain wanted him to not play! LOL He has another game this Thursday, and we’ll see if he gets to have it or not. For the one game that he did get to play, he scored his first run and also had his first RBI for the season. So he was pretty happy with that one…plus he’s on a ‘yellow’ team, which he’s really proud of cuz he likes yellow so much. The good thing is that when they have a canceled game (or a night when a game isn’t scheduled) they can go to TKD, which is nice cuz they have a tournament coming up for that on July 11. :-)

Last week, I decided to switch our therapy appointments from Monday, Wednesday, and Thursday to Monday, Tuesday, and Thursday. Wednesdays are just WAY too much for me to handle, what with teaching class. I don’t think it was so much the idea of needing to study and get ready for the class as it was the fact of running to STL (75 miles north)and back in the early afternoon, trying to get dinner, refresh for my class, and then driving down to Jackson (25 miles south) for worship. It was just too stressful for me to be able to cope with emotionally and mentally. I know, I’m weird. I was finding myself unable to concentrate or focus by the time I got to class. So I’m hoping that by switching to a different day and having all of Wednesday to be home I won’t feel that type of stress on Wednesdays. I hope. :)

We got part of our garden done this weekend. I say ‘we’…it was really mostly Terry and Brent that did it. They built a contraption to hold our upside-down-hanging tomatoes and cucumbers. It only took them about 3 ½ hours to get the whole thing built and then on Sunday Terry put the plants into the pots (minus 3 of the tomatoes, which I did cuz he said he was mutilating the plant to get it through the whole at the bottom of the pot). So now we’ll see how these work for us. Perhaps I can post pictures of his little contraption...it's really quite creative...

Well, that's it for this update....I'm tired. LOL I have more to tell, since it's now the middle of June...the second wedding and more therapy information. YAY! :) Hopefully it won't be JULY before I get that one done!

Recent Funnies...

Last weekend, we were in Salem for a wedding and while eating breakfast, Terry's mom had put some preserves on the table. Well, Brent was proceeding to put some on his toast and Janice said, "You're not putting enough of it on there! You need more than that!" To which, Brent replied, "No, cuz jelly is sugar and I don't need that much sugar. I can taste it and it's fine." Of course, she had Sugar Free jelly, so she proceeded to tell him that it was okay to eat more cuz it was sugar free. *eyeroll* Brent just did his own thing. No biggie. But we started talking about ingredients (and he LIKES to look at and read the labels on things) and so he started reading the ingredient list to us:

WATER**, STRAWBERRIES+, POLYDEXTROSE**, MALTODEXTRIN**, FRUIT PECTIN, LOCUST BEAN GUM**, NATURAL FLAVOR **, CITRIC ACID, POTASSIUM SORBATE (PRESERVATIVE), SUCRALOSE (NON NUTRITIVE SWEETENER)**, CALCIUM CHLORIDE**, RED 40**.

He got the 'water, strawberries' okay. Polydextrose he sorta fumbled through. Then he got stuck on maltodextrin and just stopped reading and said, "Oh, so this must be where they started writing it in a foreign language." ROFLMBO! We laughed so hard at his little comment, that was made in ALL seriousness. But how true is it???
-----

Last night Terry informs me that due to a miscalculation on the part of someone he works with, there was a truck coming in and no one would be there to meet it. So, of course, he volunteered to meet the truck. At 4 AM!! *sigh* He got the call when the guy was close to Perryville and said he'd meet him there. So he gets up and gets dressed and leaves for the plant. This morning he informs me that thanks to his being out in the middle of the night, we now have a dead mole in our driveway. ???!?!?!?

Apparently, as he was walking down the driveway, something darted out in front of him from the van tire. He just instinctively kicked it and sent it sailing about 5 or 6 feet. LOL Not knowing if it was dead or not, and based on the size thinking it was a field mouse, he went over to stomp on it. (I know...G.R.O.S.S.) Well, apparently, he raised his right foot up so high that he gained momentum on the 'up swing' and it ended up causing his left foot to leave the ground too and when his right foot came down ON the critter, rather than 'smashing' it, it just rolled. And with the momentum he had and the rolling motion of one foot, then both feet went sailing out from underneath him...and yep, he landed on his butt. (Of course, the boys thought the telling of this story was captivating, but when Terry got to this part, I thought the boys were gonna fall off my bed, they were laughing so hard!)

So the boys went out to see the mole...while I did some online looking for information about it. We had a science lesson! LOL We talked about WHY their bodies are so hard (to the point of 'rolling' when someone stomps on them...) and why their hands are SO HUGE. Their hands are almost comical in how disproportionate they are to the rest of the body. We learned quite a bit about moles... Brent measured this one...it was almost 7 inches long, and the average mole is about 5 1/2 inches long. So this was either a monster mole, or an old one.

What's really odd is that we've seen NO mole tracks in our yard. So we're thinking he just was out venturing for food or whatever, but can't find anything that would tell us how far from their homes or normal tunnel area they would travel.

Very strange, but very comical. :)
----


I have much much more to update on from the past month. Hopefully I can work on that while the boys are in therapy this week and then I can just post it all at once! But right now, it's just past 11 PM on a Saturday night and I have to get some sleep!

When life gets busy

A couple weeks ago, the boys were in Oklahoma for a week, spending the week with my sis and her family. They got to fly on an airplane (for the first time) and really really loved it. They had a lot of fun while they were there, but I know they were certainly glad to be home. LOL And I was truly glad to have them home. It’s nice to get away but it’s really nice to get home. We drove out there at the end of the week for a dual purpose. 1) to get the boys, but 2) to go to a college graduation for a nephew.

The night of the graduation, we went to dinner with the family to celebrate (and what a GREAT place…..Bourbon Street Café! YUM!) and as we were leaving, I (stoopidly!) didn’t remember that there was a step to get into the restaurant, meaning I would have to step DOWN to get out of the restaurant. L Naturally, I fell coming out and twisted my ankle in the process. (I can’t feel too bad, Brent fell too….) Well, of course, there were about 5 people walking by at the same time as me falling, and they just looked at me and said, “Ooo, I bet that hurt!” Ya think???? Of course, I laughed it off and said I was fine. Terry was there with me and was making sure I was okay….he tried to help me up (good husband that he is) and I was so embarrassed and in pain that I kinda bit his head off (which I later apologized for!) and just got up on my own. Oooooo, it hurt. I got to J’s and got my shoe off and it was swelling. L But the fact that I had to walk nearly ½ mile to get to the car was probably a huge help for it…. *sigh* Hello. I’m Amanda and I’m a klutz.

Well, due to there being a congregational meeting at church that Sunday, we decided to leave on Saturday evening to drive home…we didn’t leave OKC till 7:12 Saturday night….we made it home at 3:02 AM, with a 30 minute stop in Springfield. Yes, I flew. Hello. I’m Amanda and my nickname is Mario Andretti.

We went to worship the next morning and stayed for potluck and the meeting and then came home and crashed. Literally. We slept and didn’t wake up….well, we missed church that night. But we had gone on very little sleep in the previous 3-4 days, so I know we needed it.

The next day (Monday) started our therapies in St Louis for the boys with Dr Worth’s office. Monday, Wednesday, and Thursday each week now we will be driving to St Louis and the boys will be getting their therapies. So far, we haven’t been given our ‘home work’ to do on the other 3 days of the week, but I’m told that will start soon. They want to get the boys going on the beginning parts of it and then add things slowly. We’re at the office for about an hour (for now) each time we come up. (In fact, I’m sitting in one of the consult rooms as I type this while the boys are doing their thing.)

I’m trying to find the positives in all this…this 3 hours a week of me being able to do nothing but sit in the office. I’m trying to use this time to work on my Ladies class Bible study. Last week, I used part of the time to organize pictures for National Scrapbook Day this past Saturday. I used another day to work on typing in recipes for people on Facebook that have asked for them. (I’ll also post them here.) I will most likely bring up some crocheting this week too, to make the wash cloths I’ve promised as a prize for the American Idol contest I’m a part of each year on PaperbackSwap.com. I can make one wash cloth in about 2-3 hours, so I figure between the next week or so and perhaps weekends, I can get them done with no problem. (Fact is, I’ve procrastinated terribly about this…I promised them as a prize before AI started this season, so it’s my own fault for not having them done yet.) It’s just so hard to spend 2 ½ to 3 hours a day in the van (driving) and not get tired. I decided last week to get a couple books on CD so we could listen to them as we drive. We started one today…I’ll write a review when we’re done with it. Hopefully I can find more that are appropriate for the boys to hear….there just aren’t that many at our library! LOL (So if anyone has any suggestions for some good ones that are free, please let me know!!)

Last Friday was a bit wild for us. Well, for me and the boys at least. We had what I've heard some call a hurricane come through our area! LOL I know it was really a tornadic system, but there've been some reports of the winds being hurricane strength and the fact that the tornado around our area was so large in size and never touched down is making them call this one differently. The boys and I had errands to run on Friday morning, but there were a couple of storms then, so we waited till the radar looked clear. We first went to the library and only spent about 30 minutes there (where Brent decided to do some reading and a report on "gold" so we looked for books on that subject!) and as we were leaving the library, the sirens went off. So we're driving through town and I'm trying to figure out the best place to go, while C is in the back seat saying "I wanna go home...I wanna go home" and B is there saying, "Mom, you gotta find somewhere." "Mom, where you gonna go?" "Mom?" !!!!! I was frantically trying to find my cell phone to call Terry, but no luck there. Then I was going down main street and saw a tree had blown over and then right in front of me, one of those white plastic lawn chairs was spinning in circles about a foot off the ground. I knew then I HAD to find somewhere to go. So we hid out in the eye dr's office! LOL We were there when the electricity went out and stayed about 30 minutes. After we left, we worked our way across town to go home (No one had electricity in the whole town, which is odd in itself, and so no businesses were open. There was no point in staying out in the fray.) and passed many many trees that were down...blown over from the roots up. Large trees. Old trees. Truly astonishing. There were bits of roofs all over the place and our wonderful people in town were standing around taking pictures instead of helping people! Ugh. Ya gotta love po-dunk towns.

Anyway, we got home (after having to take 2 detours cuz of the trees across the roads) and found that we only had one shingle off the house and sticks and debris in our yard. There was grass and leaves literally plastered to the siding of the house, but no other damage. Of course, we didn't have electricity, but that's no big deal. Or so we thought! LOL Our electricity didn't come back on until 9:30 that night! But it did us good to have no light....no TV, no radio, no Wii, nothing. Just us and ourselves. LOL We went out to dinner, of course, and the restaurants were packed. But even that was dealable.

This week, we also have TKD and ball practice for C, and B has his first baseball game on Thursday (actually, it’s the second, but the first one was rained out). Well, this will be our schedule for the next several weeks, but whatever. We’ll get used to it! This weekend, we also have Cory’s college graduation, so we’re traveling to Salem. I’m kinda looking forward to it….we’ve not been in in quite a few weeks, but I know that Clayton isn’t gonna enjoy it as much as he normally would, simply due to the constant traveling and being away from home these last couple of weeks. I’ll just have to really watch him and make sure that he gets some ‘down time’ with me each day to refocus. It will all be well.

I told terry the other night that I feel like a ‘working woman’….I feel like I have a part time job right now. We’re never home and I’m planning my meals out well in advance, plus I’m having to plan my cleaning and laundry as well. I’m just not used to that! LOL I’ve always respected the many working moms/wives, but it’s been so long since I’ve done it that I’ve forgotten how to do it. Plus I don’t think I did that good of a job when I did it before, anyway. LOL It’s just so hard to keep it all clean and be gone all the time…when what we want to do when we’re home is crash and go to bed! LOL Oh well, we’ll adjust!

Time to go….they are done with therapy. Time to get back in the van and drive home so we can continue with this day. Maybe I can get some house cleaning done to get caught up on the mess that was created over the weekend!

Hello. My name is Amanda and I'm exhausted. :-)

Requested Recipies

Recently, I began my 3-month meal planning strategy and posted here about it...also posted about it on Facebook. Well, I had many who requested some of those recipes, and after finally getting them posted over there, I decided to post them here too in case anyone else could benefit from them! ;)

Almond Chicken

2 c rice
½ T Butter
½ chopped onion
Chopped celery
3 c. cooked chopped chicken breast
1 c mayo
1 c cream chicken soup (small can)
½ c. slivered almonds
Crushed cornflakes and butter

Make rice and set aside. Sauté onion and celery. Combine chicken, rice, onion and celery in casserole dish. Stir in mayo and soup, then almonds. Top with cornflake mixture. Bake at 350 for 45 minutes.


Creamy Broccoli Chicken

1 can cream of broccoli soup
1 bag chicken breast (frozen, skinless, boneless)
1 bag frozen broccoli
1 cup milk

Place chicken breasts in crock pot and cover with frozen broccoli and soup. Cook for a few hours. Add milk during the last 30-45 minutes of cooking time. Serve over rice.


Ravioli Lasagna

Frozen Cheese Ravioli (need between 1 and 2 bags)
Spaghetti sauce (either jarred or homemade…)
Hamburger, cooked and drained
Mozzarella cheese

Cook ravioli according to package directions and drain. Add meat to sauce and warm through. Layer meat sauce, ravioli, and small amount of moz cheese in casserole dish. Repeat until dish is full. Top with meat sauce and a layer of cheese. Bake at 400 for 30 minutes until bubbly….let set for about 10 minutes and serve with garlic bread.

**The cheese ravioli takes care of two steps here…the noodles and the ricotta cheese mix. It’s not perfect like regular lasagna, but is a good quick version. Terry says it's not as good as my homemade regular lasagna, but he'll take it when he has to. LOL


Ritzy Chicken

2 sleeves Ritz Crackers
1 can cream chicken soup
1 c sour cream
½ c chicken broth
4-6 cooked and diced chicken breasts
4 oz melted butter

Crumble 1 sleeve crackers and pour in casserole dish. Drizzle with ½ of the melted butter. Combine chicken, soup, sour cream and broth; pour over crackers. Repeat bottom layer on top. Bake for 30-40 minutes at 300 degrees.


Cheesy Chicken

6-7 chicken breasts (about 1 3-lb bag frozen)
Salt, pepper garlic powder
2 cans cream of chicken soup
1 can cheddar cheese soup

Put chicken in crock pot and cover with soup mix. Cook several hours until done.
Serve with rice or noodles.


Chicken Rice w/ Green Beans

3 lb bag frozen chicken breasts
1 can cream chicken soup
1 can cream mushroom soup
2 cans water
1 package dry onion soup mix
Frozen veggies (carrots, peas, corn, beans, etc)

Place veggies in crock pot on bottom. Cover with chicken. Mix liquids and pour over chicken. Cook for several hours, until chicken is done. Serve with rice.


Nacho Cheese Chicken

3 lb bag frozen chicken
1 can diced tomatoes in juice
1 can nacho cheese soup
1 small can green chiles

Place chicken on bottom of crock pot and pour combined ingredients over top. Cook till chicken is done, serve over noodles.


Aroz con Pollo

4 chicken breast halves (or 6-7 skinless boneless chicken breasts; about a 3 lb bag)
1 onion
1 small red pepper
Garlic
Rosemary
1 can crushed tomatoes
1 bag frozen peas

Place chicken in crock pot. Mix all other ingredients but peas and pour over chicken. Cook till chicken is done. About one hour before ready to serve, thaw peas and add to mix. Allow to cook that one hour and serve over rice.


Italian Chicken Spaghetti

1 can tomato sauce
6-7 chicken breasts (1 3 lb bag)
1 sm can tomato paste
3 T water
Garlic
Oregano
4 oz mozzarella cheese

Put chicken in crock pot and cover with sauce mix. After cooked, remove chicken and stir in cheese to melt. Serve chicken and sauce over hot spaghetti noodles.


Chicken Cacciatore

1 lg onion, thinly sliced
3 lb bag chicken breasts
2 cans tomato paste
4 oz sliced mushrooms
Garlic and oregano and celery seed

Place onions in crock pot and cover with chicken. Combine remaining ingredients and pour over chicken. Cook for several hours till chicken is done and serve over hot noodles.


King Ranch Casserole

1 can cream chicken soup
1 can cream celery soup
1 can cheddar cheese soup
1 can Rotel
1 onion, chopped
5-6 (or more) cooked chicken breasts, diced
1 bag Doritos chips

Mix chicken with canned ingredients and pour in casserole dish. Bake for about 20 minutes until bubbly. Crush Doritos and pour over during the last 10 minutes….watch that the Doritos don’t burn, because they will burn quickly! :)

3 Months of Meal Planning

I have taken the time to organize our calendar for the next 3 months and here is a bit of what I have. :)

I have them all written on the calendar, including several that are 'new' to us. I'd be happy to share recipes for anything you'd like! :) I'm listing the meals and basically just know that I am rearranging them each month so that we only have *most* of them one time per month. (I say *most* cuz "Hamburger Helper" is on each month a couple times, simply cuz we LOVE it! LOL There's a particular flavor that my boys really like and it's a pretty cheap meal for us. :))

Each of these meals is written on a 3z5 card that is tucked away in a drawer. When I need to meal-plan, I just pull out this stack and randomly pull meals from the stack and stick them on a calendar. Then when it's time to grocery shop for that week, I look at what's on the menu and pull those cards out and write down what I need from the store for them. That way it serves 2 purposes: 1) I know I will have everything on hand when it's time to cook it and 2) shopping is much easier cuz I've taken the time to make a good list, therefore not as much impulse buying...saving me money! :)

Now, I was asked "what happens when you get to a meal and don't feel like cooking it that night?" No biggie. For me (typically) I will simply bump that night's dinner to another night that week ...and basically swap them. But I still have to cook that original dinner sometime that week. (I say typically, cuz for us right now these will be what HAS to be cooked for those particular nights due to schedule situations. If we're gonna be out all day, I will need a meal that is crock-pot-able. LOL)

Also, if it's a Crock Pot recipe or an item that I will use the Crock Pot for, I'm putting a "CP" by it....

Sloppy Joes
Stroganoff
Beef Pot Pie (homemade)
Turkey breast (CP)
Spaghetti
Foil Packets
Almond Chicken (CP)
Ravioli
Lasagna
Tater Tot Casserole
Creamy Broccoli Casserole
Cheesy Chicken (CP)
Cube Steaks
Ritzy Chicken
Pork Roast (CP)
Chicken Rice with Green Beans (CP)
Burritos
Taco Salad
Nacho Cheese Chicken (CP)
Aroz con pollo (CP)
Chicken Cacciatore (CP)
Italian Chicken Spaghetti (CP)
Beans and Cornbread
Pizza (frozen of course!) LOL
Breakfast

Now, some others that I have on cards that I am not including this time:

King Ranch Casserole
Fried Chicken
Burgers
Lasagna (regular)
Stir Fry
Pork Steaks
Veggie Soup
Chili
Ham
Gumbo

Any questions or thoughts please let me know! :)

The boys are away....

The boys left yesterday to fly out to spend a week with J...mom and dad flew with them. They were SO excited to get to fly...both mom and dad, and the boys! LOL They had a fabulous flight and really enjoyed the taking and landing. So far they are having a lot of fun playing and spending time at the park. Apparently (B called me this afternoon) while playing at the park, he had a couple of mishaps with a stick and another with a slab of concrete. :( He says he's okay and isn't hurting, but Terry and I think he's 'being tough.' :)

We will be going out there at the end of the week for a graduation and also to get the boys...I'm already ready to get them! LOL I've never had trouble like this before when they've gone away, but I know much of it is the distance. But also, I think it has to do with knowing and understanding C at this time. I know that it will all be okay.

I know that many have been reading about the recent 'developments' on Clayton and some we've talked to about it. I've heard all kinds of comments from "he's really not that off" to "I never would have guessed" to "Clayton? On the autism spectrum?? No way." Well, one thing to keep in mind is that just because he has these tendencies of Asperger's or PDD-NOS, doesn't mean he's Rainman (thanks Lee for the analogy! LOL). Asperger's is a high-functioning part of the ASD. Within the ASD there are MANY many variations, and also within Asperger's there are many variations as well. So it's important to keep in mind that even though many of you may not see some of the traits when you're around him, if you will give me a few minutes (if you're interested) I can explain it to you and take you through a step-by-step description of it all. And also, while he has these tendencies, he isn't by any means a most severe case of an Aspie. (It's much like saying, "I have high blood pressure." Okay, well, how high is high?? "Well, mine is 142 over 94." Oh, that's not that big a deal...you can't really tell it. That's nothing...I know someone whose blood pressure is 195 over 115!..... See? Just cuz it's not he worst case scenario doesn't invalidate it. :))

I don't mean this to be a 'smack' on anyone at all. I just think it's important to understand everything and not discount some of it. Ya know??

This week I have many things I want to accomplish. Here's the current list:

• I want to come up with a crock-pot menu for the next 6-8 weeks so that when we're starting therapy and all the driving (along with the baseball practice and games and Tae Kwon Do and weekend traveling for weddings and graduations) I can know from day to day what I'm cooking and what I have to shop for...and not have to even think about it.
  
• I also want to find the disc that has all of our picture files from the old computer on it...so I can get them printed off for National Scrapbook Day (so exciting that I get to go!!!). I'll be working that day on Brent's scrapbook and need to get some pictures printed for it.
• Another project I'd like to get done is to get a few weeks ahead on my Bible class lessons so I won't feel stressed on that front and I will be prepared.
  
• I'm also hoping to clean out my pantry (which desperately needs cleaning out!)...but that one was just added to my list today. I have to contact the State of Alaska and start the process of getting my birth certificate sent to me so I can renew my license this June...ugh, Missouri is a PAIN for making us having to have that when I didn't even have to have that to get married!
• It would be *nice* to get my carpets shampooed while I have no little feet running around when the carpet's wet and needing time to dry. I just don't know if this one is going to get accomplished.
• Not to mention all the cleaning and laundry that needs washed/folded...but that's a never-ending chore, right??
• Another thing that would be nice to accomplish would be to finish painting the kitchen/hallway, but I *really* don't think I will get that one done. LOL
• I also have three appointments this week. And Friendship Sister's on Tuesday, which I do NOT want to miss!

Do you think I could cram anything else in these next 4 1/2 days??? Hehe

Next weekend while we're in OK we'll also be celebrating Brent's birthday with both sides of the family for the very first time! He's VERY excited and I can't wait to post pictures! :)

Learning about Asperger's

Last Saturday when I was blessed to have some time at Barnes & Noble, I did some reading on Asperger's just to have the knowledge. So much of what I read I was sitting there saying, "Have they been in my house watching what we're doing??" LOL It's amazing!

One of the books I read from beginning to end was Asperger Syndrome & Difficult Moments by Brenda Smith Myles & Jack Southwick. Here is an excerpt from it that I copied down, mainly due to its relevance to our situation.
---

The Rage Cycle

Rumbling Stage
~ Signs: Fidgeting, name calling, tensing, increase/decrease of voice volume
~ Intervention: Antiseptic bouncing, touch control, walk & don’t talk, cool zone
a. Antiseptic Bouncing – redirecting actions for a couple of minutes to allow diffusing.
b. Touch Control – touch or being in close proximity can let the child know you’re aware of the situation and allows them time to regain control. Sometimes this can work with just a look across the room.
c. Walk & Don’t Talk – often talking with them isn’t the answer since they can’t express exactly what they are feeling. Just walking with them or holding them for a minute without the expectation to communicate verbally helps them feel secure and reconnected.
d. Cool Zone – create a place in the house or environment that is a safe zone for them to go and focus, cool off, and/or regroup. This give them control of the situation when they often feel no power or control.

Rage Stage
~ Signs: impulsive actions, emotional, explosive, destructive, screaming, hitting, kicking, internalizing
~ **Adult behavior can escalate the crisis – yelling at them, assuming you know what they are thinking or doing, tense body language, sarcasm, nagging, mimicking, insisting the ‘adult is right’.
~ Intervention: remove the audience, get to a cool zone, be flexible (because the child can’t be right now)
~ **Effective Adult Behavior – try to control the ‘fight or flight’ tendency, remember less is more, calm and quiet, deep breaths.

Recovery Stage
~ Signs: sleeping, denial of rage behaviors, apologizing, withdrawal to fantasy world.
~ Interventions: support with structure, don’t continue to reference the rage behavior, give them space, go back to learning slowly (when during school time).
~ **Counter-control is common – if they feel someone trying to be controlling of them they react by being more in control (and often getting themselves in trouble for it).

Teachable moments are at the Rumbling Stage or AFTER the Rage Stage. They can’t learn and understand a teachable moment during the Rage Stage.

NOTE: Aspies don’t enjoy this Rage Cycle. It’s the way their bodies express stress and cope with problems for which they see no other solutions or that they don’t understand.

The best intervention to rage is prevention…through understanding and redirection or restructuring.

Tips for living with an Aspie
~ Parents should have a LASTing word. Many times parents feel they need to have the last word of an argument, but Aspies also have this need to talk even when no one is listening. So instead of making sure you have the last word, make sure your word is a LASTing word. Make sure that what you say is what you mean and follow through with it.
~ Have special 1-on-1 time with the siblings so they can share their feelings and thoughts on the situation. They often have helpful insights for the parent.
~ Have a consistent daily routine.
~ Have a consistent bedtime – this is very important for an Aspie, as their body needs a certain amount to shutting-down-time in order to function properly.

------

As I was reading that, I was just completely humbled at how we (Terry and I) have probably contributed (unknowingly) to some of the meltdowns/outbursts by not realizing how our behavior was escalating his feelings and behavior. And the counter-control? Yeah, all the time. He gets this overly bossy attitude when you back him in a corner and he starts acting all like HE'S the one in control, when if you look close you can see he's really on the edge. *sigh* So much information to take in and absorb!

Last night, I went out with Brent for a little "Mommy Date"...after dinner we went out for ice cream so I could talk to him about all of this. (I am doing the same thing for Clayton tonight.) I explained all of it to him and he asked questions as we went along. One thing that he asked, after we'd been talking about how it's a problem inside the brain that is making things not work right, was "What part of the brain isn't working right?" So I got out a pen and drew on a napkin for him the pictures that Dr. Worth had drawn for us to show him how it all works. It was so interesting how he wanted to know the details so he could understand it. (Such a good big brother!)

One thing that I didn't expect was for him to feel bad. At one point I asked him what he was thinking or feeling about it all and he said sad. I asked him why and he said, "Cuz all this time I've been yelling at him and getting mad at him for doing the stuff he does just to find out that he couldn't help it." Awwww. Of course, I talked with him and let him know that Terry and I did the same things...and that we all do things based on what we think should be happening, but then we find out later that that person had no control over it. It happens and no one is in trouble over it, we just have to be more aware of it from now on and do better. I dearly love that child! He's more grown up for his 8 years of life than some adults!

Tonight (like I said) I'm going out with Clayton and explaining it to him. I won't be able to go into as much detail, but I'm hoping I can explain things to him in a way that helps him to feel better about it all. At this point, I am hoping to give him some ideas on coping skills and ways to deal with himself. We shall see! :)

My surprise on Saturday...

On Saturday morning, I had a baby shower to attend for a girl at church. Such fun! She's having a baby girl and it was just so much fun to get together with all the ladies from church and visit and shower a friend with gifts! Well, when I was leaving, I called the house to let Terry know I was on my way home (like I always do) and B answered. I was told that dad was doing dishes and I was to go 'occupy myself at Barnes and Noble for a couple hours' cuz they weren't done with their errands. Well, okay!! LOL I'm not gonna turn down a chance to hit B&N!

So I went on into Cape and went to the Health Food Store where I found some powdered Vitamin C and also some Essential Oils so I could do some things for Clayton. Then I hit B&N so I could do some research. I got me a frappucino (sp?) and sat at a table for nearly 2 hours reading!! What pleasure! I hit Bath & Body Works too, since I'm NEVER in the mall alone! Oooo, so much fun to go in and smell the new stuff....It's been nearly a year since I've been there. When I left the mall, I called the house and asked if I could come home yet. Terry said they had just gotten home and I could go ahead and make the drive.

I arrive home and the boys met me at the van door and tell me I can't go in yet...they weren't quite ready! So I wait outside and when it's time, I walk in and see the living room is completely clean and the kitchen is clean (minus a few dishes...but come on, I left a TON of dishes that I didn't even expect would have been washed at all, let alone stacked on the counter...so cool!). Plus, there was this on the table:

Along with dinner, which consisted of grilled steak and shrimp kabobs, rice, and veggies. Terry even helped me clean up the dishes after we were finished too! ;) Sweet!

It was truly a blessing to just get to go off by myself for a few hours and decompress and research some things. I had no one asking me questions, no one bugging me, and it was really refreshing!

See, when I least expect it, he really surprises me! LOL

Pics from Sweetheart Banquet in Feb

Back in February, on Valentine's Day, the Junior Youth group held a "Sweetheart" Banquet for the 'grandparents' of our congregation...we asked them to be our sweetheart for the evening. The kids got to sing their Pew Packers songs and visit with several of the members of our congregation.

Above, 2 of the couples that sat at "our" table...the one we decorated... The couple on the right is our new minister, Edd Sterchi, and his wife Julie. (A very DEAR couple, indeed!)

Above left: you can see an overview of how the fellowship room was decorated for the evening.

Above right: a shot of our table with our three couples (before they got fed!!). LOL

Brent volunteered to offer the prayer before the meal...a very proud moment for this mama!! He always prays such heartfelt prayers!

For the dinner (salad, lasagna, bread, and corn) the kids got to do all the serving. They carried glasses (as you can see Clayton is doing) back and forth to the kitchen for filling, they served the bread to each table, and delivered the plates of food to each person at their own respective table. We, as parents, are so proud of these kids!! Remember, this is the junior youth (ages 3 or 4 all the way to 11 or 12, I think) and we were using our best china and crystal for the dishes on the tables. Not one dish or glass was broken throughout the entire evening!! It was fantastic. And as you can see above with Brent, they had plenty of time to visit with the members of their table, which was good too...many times the kids don't take the time to visit with the older members of the church.

Above: during a bit of downtime, we decided to play a game with the attendees. We played Trivia, which is always fun. (Of course, I flubbed it up a bit and had a couple of the answers wrong, but whatever! LOL) While we were doing that and cleaning up the kitchen a bit, the kids came into the classrooms to make a card for the people at their table. And they also got to have a snack...they had been working really hard! :)

Above: when they got done with their projects, they came out and had cake with the attendees. (I don't know what to call them and I don't want to keep calling them 'older folks'...cuz they certainly aren't old!!) It was fun for all....

You can see above the kids got to 'perform' for everyone, doing their Pew Packers songs. If you look at the faces of some of the kids, they are making the goofiest faces when they do the songs that have movements! But they had SO much fun and the parents and grandparents really enjoyed it!

(Except for Clayton that is...He spent his time in the bathroom hiding with what we assumed was stage fright. This last picture above was the only shot with him singing and it was at the very end....)

I think one of the other kids was supposed to do the closing prayer but backed out at the last minute...so Brent gave that prayer as well. And he was oh so humble about it too....rolling his eyes, saying, "Guess I'll have to do this one too." LOL Big goober! He did a good job. They all did. We had SO many compliments about how well the kids did and how fun the adults had.

I think this may actually become an annual thing!!

Our recent Dr. Worth visit

Last Thursday, we went to see Dr. Worth again for the reevaluation and consultation. We knew things were worse with C...and kinda figured B had stayed about the same. (If you need a refresher on it, check here from last year.)

We started out just updating files and Hope took C off to start the testing. Then they took B. While the boys were gone, Dr. Worth came in and talked with us and we just gave him a verbal update on C. We told him about the panic attacks, and when we'd noticed them starting (November). We discussed his bowel issues and how he's on a laxative for 6 months to 'clean him out'...which I explained bothered me some cuz of the unnaturalness of it. (His suggestion was to use powdered Vitamin C...cuz really the only negative effect of too much V-C is diarrhea. So when we reach that point, back off a little. Nice! :)) We talked about how he has lost weight...5 pounds since October. That's just TOO much on a little scrawny thing like Clayton.

Dr. Worth explained that what happens neurologically when you have a panic attack is that it creates havoc and causes the digestive system to shut down. So whether it is the bowels, the stomach, the esophagus, ...it doesn't matter. It makes that part of the body begin to shut down as a preservation. It has to do with that 'fight or flight' issue. So, all these pains in C's chest and constipation issues that he's been fighting for so long are pretty much explained.

We also discussed the night terrors...and the fact that they have decreased in frequency since this started happening in November. He still has them occasionally, but basically they are fewer and farther between. So, I asked Dr. Worth if the night terrors are basically manifesting themselves into the daytime through the panic attacks...and he agreed.

When he went over the testing results with us, it showed that C is even worse in several of the areas than last year. It was one of those tests where the lower the score, the better you are and on C's results his score was already high from last year, but was almost 2 times last years' score. So he's definitely seeing an increase in intensity of the issues at hand, as well as new stuff in the form of the panic attacks and outbursts.

It seems too, that his sensitivity to sound and touch are worsening as well. He seems to have a harder time focusing and 'blocking out' the noises and will even in church hold my hands over his ears during the singing, saying it's too loud and bothers him. And touch: sometimes just the lightest touch on his skin seems to send him down the path of severe irritation..while at other times he's seeking touch in another way.

We're seeing more of (due to the panic attacks) him retreating within himself. It's almost as if he shrivels away and goes into a fetal position and sometimes will cover his head with a blanket. He never wants to be too far away, but he wants to be by himself. And sometimes (when he doesn't have those other things to cover himself with) you can see just this blank look go over him and it's like he's just 'gone away' mentally.

As we were talking, I brought up to Dr. Worth what I had talked with Hope about and our suspicions of C having Asperger's. I told him that I had done some research on it and while he doesn't fit the diagnosis criteria completely he does fit it about 90%. Dr. Worth agreed that C has strong tendencies of having Asperger's or PDD-NOS (Pervasive Developmental Disorder-Not Otherwise Specified). However, one thing he didn't want to do was to officially write the diagnosis in C's chart due to the long-term effects that that labeling can have. He described how he has seen people with ASD (Autism Spectrum Disorder) get an official diagnosis, so that the parents can have insurance 'help' and what happens is that the premiums double due to the added cost of care for the child. And then later in life (adulthood) the child (who's now an adult) has trouble getting his own insurance because of the history and also has trouble getting a job or getting into the military...simply due to a diagnosis being written down in his chart. Especially if the diagnosis is a mild form of ASD or a high-functioning ASD (which Asperger's is)...one that can allow the person great levels of living a normal life once they learn the coping skills needed. Plus, he thinks that with the therapies he's planning, C's will get quite a bit better...to the point that the average person won't think anything is amiss. And he did say that if, at that time, we still have issues and still think that we need an official diagnosis to get some additional help, he'd be more than happy doing that for us.

Well, we've decided to go ahead with the therapies that Dr. Worth has set out for us. One of them is Interactive Metronome which is a type of rhythm connecting treatment that creates pathways in the brain and does this enough that the proteins create a permanent pathway. Another is Hemi-Stem, which we don't know much about yet. With C, Doc thinks he's going to switch some things out and try a different therapy (than we had discussed last year). This one sounds really cool. It basically has a helmet or hat that he'll wear and it has sensors inside it. C will 'play a game' on a TV, but has to think the movements in order to get the computer to do what he wants. He will have to command it mentally to do things. I think it will be cool when he figures it out. But Dr. Worth thinks this one is more appropriate for him now since he's been having the panic attacks. These therapies will require 3 trips to St. Louis to Dr. Worth's office per week for 14-18 weeks and we start the first week of May.

On top of it all, these therapies are not covered by insurance...so please pray that God provides during this time!! LOL We have faith that He will, as He always has, but you know how it gets.... just a little worrisome! :-)

We have great respect for Dr. Worth and great trust as well that he knows what he's talking about. He seems very sincere and it's obvious that he cares about his patients and wants to see them get 'brain healthy' again. It's gonna be a long road, but we'll make it!

A few new things...

Not much new has been happening, but a couple of things have.

After the normal process within the church, Terry (along with 5 other men) is now a deacon at the Jackson church. He and these other men join the existing 'crew' of 8 men doing the work of deacons at our congregation. He's so humble about it all, which is how it should be. It was funny last weekend. We were talking with the boys about how church service was going to go and how it would be different from the normal service... Brent said, "Yeah, I know..daddy gets to become a deacon!" I said, "That's right-" Brent continued as if I hadn't spoken, "I'm so glad he doesn't have to work at TG anymore!" I asked him what he meant and he replied, "Well, being a deacon is gonna take so much time and work that he won't be able to work for TG anymore!" So of course, I discussed this all with him and explained that people who are elders or deacons are like the preachers, in the sense of them being paid for their work. I just thought it was interesting. LOL

But then it dawned on me (in the middle of the service, no less!~) that I'm a deacon's wife now! LOL I don't know why I hadn't thought of that before, but I guess I had just focused on Terry though it. Who knows. Anyway, it's a humbling thing.

The other thing happening is that we are heading to St Louis tomorrow morning to see Dr. Worth again for the boys. Primarily, this is a reevaluation from last year, since we didn't do the therapy that was suggested to us. However, there are also the other symptoms and signs that we're seeing with C that we want to talk about. And it's these symptoms that make us more and more assured that he needs these therapies and so we're going. Hopefully, we'll know more tomorrow night.

March is Gone!

Well, March is now gone and I haven't given any real updates all month long! What a weird and crazy month it was too.

We started the month out with a follow-up appointment for C with the dr regarding his tummy/bowel issues. The Dr. Mark suggested we stay on the laxative for another 3 months to make sure that things are where they need to be. He didn't do an X-ray this time, which kinda bugged me. C's been nearly impacted through all this so far and he said it could take up to 6 months to clear it! So I'm assuming he'll do another x-ray in June when we go back. However, we did ask him about the sick feeling C's been complaining of for some time now. Every time he eats, he says he feels sick and can't eat. So he's been eating less and less, yet when he does eat, we try to get him to eat the right things. *sigh* Mark put him on Zantac pills for 2 weeks. We got a week into them and couldn't do it anymore. They were causing more of an issue to get him to swallow the pills than what it was worth. So for now, we're just waiting and seeing what we can do.

On the 11th of the month, we were preparing to go to Salem for a week (Terry's week off for the quarter). The plan was to leave on Thursday evening and be gone about a week. Well, Brent started running a fever on Wednesday morning. Very low, but fever. Then on Friday, Clayton starts running a fever. Same thing...very low. I finally took Brent to the Dr to have him tested for strep (since we'd been exposed) and they also tested him for the Flu. He was negative for both, thankfully. They just continued to run fever and we kept having to postpone our trip. Well, on Sunday morning, they both woke up without fever so we went to church and then left for Salem.

That Monday, Terry took us all out to the woods so he could cut some logs and do some trimming. It was fun...Clayton found a 'little brown jug' in the woods that was completely in tact. He kept tipping it up and saying he was a pirate! LOL We loaded the truck with wood and went back to the house. A cousin came to play with the boys that evening and I cooked dinner for everyone....fried chicken breast, cabbage, hash brown casserole, etc. Yummy dinner! Then the boys came in and asked us to take a hike with them...so the four of us set out across the field. We walked down across the hay field and back to the house...about a mile. It was pretty much dark by the time we got back, but it felt good to walk outside!

The next morning, I woke up not feeling so great, but figured it was just allergies... My throat was dry and it hurt to swallow. But we went through the day visiting with Janice and just getting things done. That night we went to D's for dinner and had a good visit with her, but as the night went on I just kept feeling worse and worse. I had Terry check my throat...sure enough: WHITE. He said there was more white than pink in my throat. :( So the next morning I started calling around trying to get an appointment to get some meds, and what a chore that was! I really didn't want to go to the ER, as our copay was higher, especially when I knew what was wrong! I finally found an office that would take me and got some meds. Just so happened the Nurse Practitioner I saw was an old buddy of Terry's from high school! :) So while I layed on the table in misery, they got to sit there and catch up on old times. LOL

Well, that was on Wednesday and my fever didn't break until Thursday night. After we got back home. :( So much for a 'spring break', huh?? But boy it felt good to get home...I really wanted to come home on Tuesday, but Terry was making so much progress getting some things done on the farm that I hated to ask him to bring me home. I just sat in the recliner bundled up and watched TV in between naps.

Friday of that week (the 13th) we had a junior youth activity at the church building so that the parents could have a Parents Night Out. We and another couple were chaperone's for the youth group and we ended up turning it into a mini-lock-in for them. It was so much fun...relay races, pizza, games, musical chairs, movie, and the cotton bowl! (This one was really fun...we gave each of them 10 cotton balls and a plastic spoon. Had them divided into two teams and spread them out around a great big bowl. They had to 'flip' their cotton balls into the bowl with their spoon, and continue till all team members' cotton balls were in the bowl. Really quite fun! :))

The next day, Saturday, my cousin came up for a visit and we got to spend the entire day just sitting and visiting. Ahh.... Terry grilled some steaks and we ate and had a great time. We haven't gotten to sit and visit like that in so long....It really was a treat.

Sunday afternoon, the Junior Youth was scheduled to sing at the local Veteran's Home in Cape. They sang some of their Pew Packers songs and did a really great job. The veteran's really enjoyed it.

[Side-note here.... I mentioned before about C saying he felt sick to his stomach. Well, he has also been complaining about his heart beating really fast and it kinda freaks him out. He holds his hand over his heart and just sits there. Well, I've timed his heartbeats and they are within normal range, but it's beating really hard, to the point that it is really pounding in his chest. Terry and I had been toying with the idea that it is almost like panic attacks. So we're at the Veteran's Home and all seems to be well with him...he's chatting with his friends and seems fine. Then it's time to go in and sing....he won't let go of Terry's hand. Terry finally convinces him to hold Brent's hand, but he wouldn't sing and his face was really pale. Well, then they started doing the action songs and Brent let go of C's hand. Clayton quickly put his hand over his heart and just stood there. He was having a panic attack. :( We're really concerned over it all...and just not sure what to do with it. It bugs me though, cuz he's SIX! My 6 yo shouldn't be having panic attacks!]

At the end of the last week of March, we had our home school convention in St. Louis. The boys stayed with mom and dad and had a Lord of the Rings marathon. :) They really enjoyed that! Terry and I enjoyed the convention, but it wasn't as good (for us) as years past. We're thinking that perhaps we don't need to go every year, unless we have a specific need.

The first of April, B had an appointment for his palette expander and we were told NOT to turn it anymore...he gets it off on June 3rd!! ;) Woohoo! Brent is SO happy that he will finally be able to chew gum again! LOL

This past weekend, we had our Gospel Meeting at church with Phil Sanders of Edmond, OK. Phil preaches now at the Edmond Church of Christ and we were so blessed to have him with us. He spoke a couple of different times on post-modernism and it was very eye-opening. Wow.

That brings me up-to-date! Whew... The next few weeks are going to be even busier than these last ones...hopefully I won't get so far behind on blogging. LOL Now, I have to go cook something for dinner cuz Brent has his first baseball practice at 6:30 tonight! :)

We're going again...

PS I have some pictures I hope to post later this week...it will be a post full of pics! :)

What they say and do....

The boys never cease to amuse me when it comes to all the things they say and do. This past week was no exception...they provided again! :)

Wednesday night B overheard me telling someone about our upcoming weekends and how "the boys fly out that day..." His eyes got all big and said, "FLY?" I shushed him and he went to play, but as soon as we got in the van to drive home, he asked me what I was talking about. So I explained that coming up in late April the *plan* is for them (both boys) to fly out to see Aunt J and the family for a week, and then we would come out the next weekend for the activities we have planned, and they would come home with us. Of course, they were ECSTATIC! Well, the next morning, before they ever got out of bed, I could hear them talking, which isn't all that unusual. They occasionally will lay in bed talking for a few minutes before they get up. But they just kept talking and I could hear things being moved around, but they never came out of their room. I figured they were just playing, but it was getting a bit odd, cuz they never wait that long. Soon, here comes B. He walks out, goes straight to the laundry room, gets two bottles of water, and starts to go back to their room. I asked him what he was doing. He said, "We're packing our stuff for the plane trip." I reminded him that the trip wasn't for another 6 weeks. He said, "Yeah, I know...we're just wanting to be ready so it won't take so much time to get ready later on." LOL So I let them....

A few minutes later, C comes out and tells me that he wants to wear a pair of his nights (pull-ups for night time) on the airplane ride. I asked him why and he said so that way if he has to go potty while they're flying, he can just go. I said, "Oh, honey, don't worry...there's a bathroom on the plane so you can go if you need to." He just looked at me funny and said, "So, if I have to go to the bathroom, will they just land the plane so I can get up and go?" :-) Fighting a grin and a laugh, I explained to him that when you're up in the air like that, it's safe to get up and go to the bathroom, but when you're done you need to come back and buckle your seat belt. LOL I love it!

A bit later, they come trucking down the hallway with their stuff in tow: a box and a plastic container of all their stuff that they are packing. They plop it all down by the front door and I had to explain to them that they couldn't actually pack their stuff in THOSE containers cuz they wouldn't be allowed on the airplane...and that we couldn't leave their stuff sitting by the front door for the next 6 weeks! LOL They were sad that they had to unpack their stuff, but they finally did it. Just too cute.....

Then yesterday, we were on our way home from a couple of appointments and B asked me how much slushies cost. I told him and he said, "Okay...then I have enough. When Daddy's off tomorrow, and we're out running errands, I want to buy everyone a slushy." Awwww. :) My baby.... Most times, he can be SO generous and it just warms my heart! :) I love seeing that side of him and he shows it more and more.

Ouch!

Well, we were in Salem this weekend...where 10 inches of snow fell in 8 hours! Wow! It was truly beautiful coming down, but amazed me at it's 'quickness'. The weather for our town had said that the snow would be a dusting or just flurries, so when we left, I didn't bother taking any kind of heavy coats, boots, hats, or gloves for the boys. MISTAKE! Thankfully, it was windy and cold enough that they didn't want to stay out too long in it, but since all they had was tennis shoes, it completely soaked their socks and shoes each time they went out and played in it! The good part was I got to whack all of them with a broom when they were ready to come in so I could 'sweep' off all the snow on their coats and pants! LOL

Another ouch for our economy...another bailout for AIG and now the Dow is down 300+ points to 6700-something. Amazing how we just keep giving money to these companies who have proven (twice now) that they can't responsibly handle themselves and the money we have provided for them.... The definition of insanity is continuing to do the same action and expecting a different result...so is our government insane?? I think so. What's Obama gonna do now?? When's he gonna actually bail-out the American person? That stimulus certainly won't do it!