Wow, Ellen....Really?! July was your last post, girl?! Time to update, I guess...i think because I'm on facebook I forget to update this thing! ;)
Well, other than Sammy having a few days he wasn't feeling well at Christmas time, he thoroughly enjoyed the holidays and his presents and having my sister Annie with us for 11 days from Reno! He got an Ipad2 from all of the aunts and uncles and that is ALL he wants to do now! Fortunately we have found a lot of educational apps...he is such a smarty boy! :)
We are fighting constantly to keep everyone well...this cold season has not been fun...i got sick in Oct. and was sick for almost a month and then Sammy got sick and Luke was home yesterday with some sort of virus, but he seems better today, thank goodness. Sammy is sneezing and has a red throat so we are rocking the Zicam AGAIN... Thank God for that stuff! I think I will buy stock in the company! I cannot wait for this season to be over and the cooties to get out of here.
I am teaching third grade this year after having taught 3 years of 4th and 8 years of 5th before that. I can't say I am really happy with it. It's better than it was in Sept. as the kids are getting a little more mature, but it still isn't quite my cup of tea. I loved 5th and 4th was really my fave..oh well, it's a job in these tough times, anyway. Brian is working in Worcester, MA which is over 2 hours away. The only job that is available right now. It sucks because he is staying over there 2 night a week so he doesn't have to drive as much. He is up at 3:50 am on the days he does have to drive. :( Poor guy! I don't envy him at all! I only have to drive 4 minutes to school!
So, the pets are good for now, too..couldn't leave them out! Toby is cute as ever, such a good dog, we really can't complain. He has his moments when he barks at stupid things and startles Sammy, but we all love him anyway! ;) My cat Mellow that was dx with kidney disease last April is doing great. She had lost a lot of weight, but is eating well now and her numbers back in Sept. were almost back to normal. She will never be cured, but at the moment I will take that she is doing well! :) Love my baby girl...she's 15 now..I've had her longer than Luke! ;)
Sammy is doing well in school. He is redoing the kindergarten regular ed. reading program he did last year, much to my initial fighting it, but he loves the teacher and she is awesome and fun, and they really have no way to accommodate him in the first grade (I know, they'll have to figure it out!) because he can't read out loud or write things down.. so he is loving being in that room. I am going after school with him to her room to do the reading assessments because they can't figure out a good way without me to assess him accurately. I really want them to see how smart I know he is! He is definitely able to read a lot of words and is ok with his math. We are also working on that on the Ipad. We are getting him his own gait trainer at school so we can bring ours back home. We just got him a new tomato chair for home that has more support and a foot rest. It's not perfect, but it's what works right now. We are working on getting him to be more functional with his Tobii eyegaze computer so that he can use it to show them he can write at school. They went without telling me to UCP though (his teacher and therapists) to find him a comm. device for school. I was ripped that they did it without telling me or asking me first. Anyway, they found a "visual mouse" whatever that is. I told the SLP that I want to be at school when the woman from UCP comes to set it up so I can see it. I'm sure the SLP was annoyed that I kept the Tobii at home for such a time to work with him, but they weren't using it functionally at school with him. Just in Speech for stupid uses. I told them if this new thing doesn't work out, we'll buy a desk mount for the Tobii for school. They were complaining about the heavy pole mount it's on now. I swear they're never happy! :( Anyway, at least Sammy likes school. I have lots of issues with things and people there, but as long as he's happy and is eating SOMEwhat better than last year.
Well, I guess that's it for now....here's hoping for a good 2012!
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Followers
God Chooses A Mom for A Disabled Childby Erma Bombeck
Most women become mothers by accident, some by choice, a few by social pressures, and a couple by habit. This year, nearly 100,000 women will become mothers of handicapped children. Did you ever wonder how mothers of handicapped children are chosen? Somehow I visualize God hovering over Earth selecting his instruments for propagation with great care and deliberation. As he observes, he instructs his angels to make notes in a giant ledger.
"Armstrong, Beth; son; patron saint, Matthew.
"Forrest, Marjorie; daughter; patron saint, Cecelia.
"Rudledge, Carrie; twins; patron saint.... give her Gerard. He's used to profanity."
Finally, he passes a name to an angel and smiles, "Give her a handicapped child."
The angel is curious. "Why this one, God? She's so happy."
"Exactly," smiles God. "Could I give a handicapped child a mother who does not know laughter? That would be cruel."
"But has she patience?" asks the angel.
"I don't want her to have too much patience or she will drown in a sea of self-pity and despair. Once the shock and resentment wears off, she'll handle it. I watched her today. She has that feeling of self and independance. She'll have to teach the child to live in her world and that's not going to be easy."
"But, Lord, I don't think she even believes in you."
God smiles. "No matter. I can fix that. This one is perfect. She has just enough selfishness."
The angel gasps, "Selfishness? Is that a virtue?"
God nods. "If she can't seperate herself from the child occasionally, she'll never survive. Yes, there is a woman I will bless with a child less then perfect. She doesn't realize it yet, but she is to be envied. She will never take for granted a 'spoken word.' She will never consider a 'step' ordinary. When her child says 'Momma' for the first time, she will be present at a miracle and know it! When she describes a tree or a sunset to her blind child, she will see it as few people ever see my creations.
"I will permit her to see clearly the things I see --- ignorance, cruelty, prejudice --- and allow her to rise above them. She will never be alone. I will be at her side every minute of every day of her life because she is doing my work as surely as she is here by my side."
"And what about her patron saint?" asks the angel, his pen poised in midair.
God smiles. "A mirror will suffice."
Most women become mothers by accident, some by choice, a few by social pressures, and a couple by habit. This year, nearly 100,000 women will become mothers of handicapped children. Did you ever wonder how mothers of handicapped children are chosen? Somehow I visualize God hovering over Earth selecting his instruments for propagation with great care and deliberation. As he observes, he instructs his angels to make notes in a giant ledger.
"Armstrong, Beth; son; patron saint, Matthew.
"Forrest, Marjorie; daughter; patron saint, Cecelia.
"Rudledge, Carrie; twins; patron saint.... give her Gerard. He's used to profanity."
Finally, he passes a name to an angel and smiles, "Give her a handicapped child."
The angel is curious. "Why this one, God? She's so happy."
"Exactly," smiles God. "Could I give a handicapped child a mother who does not know laughter? That would be cruel."
"But has she patience?" asks the angel.
"I don't want her to have too much patience or she will drown in a sea of self-pity and despair. Once the shock and resentment wears off, she'll handle it. I watched her today. She has that feeling of self and independance. She'll have to teach the child to live in her world and that's not going to be easy."
"But, Lord, I don't think she even believes in you."
God smiles. "No matter. I can fix that. This one is perfect. She has just enough selfishness."
The angel gasps, "Selfishness? Is that a virtue?"
God nods. "If she can't seperate herself from the child occasionally, she'll never survive. Yes, there is a woman I will bless with a child less then perfect. She doesn't realize it yet, but she is to be envied. She will never take for granted a 'spoken word.' She will never consider a 'step' ordinary. When her child says 'Momma' for the first time, she will be present at a miracle and know it! When she describes a tree or a sunset to her blind child, she will see it as few people ever see my creations.
"I will permit her to see clearly the things I see --- ignorance, cruelty, prejudice --- and allow her to rise above them. She will never be alone. I will be at her side every minute of every day of her life because she is doing my work as surely as she is here by my side."
"And what about her patron saint?" asks the angel, his pen poised in midair.
God smiles. "A mirror will suffice."
About Me
- ellen :)
- MA
- I'm a wife of 8 years, a mom of 2 gorgeous boys, one who has CP, and a lover of turtles! :)
6 comments:
Hey Girl! Great to see you back here! I miss your updates! I don't do the FB thing too much. Thanks for the comment on my blog too! Before I forget...we got Malayna's wagon at Walmart.com several years ago and it's held up great! She loves to be pulled around in it!
Glad to hear Sammy enjoyed Christmas and his new iPad! Malayna has one too, although she likes watching movies and AFV more than doing the educational apps! Sounds like Sammy is doing great in school! He is a smarty boy! Malayna is just starting to sight read a few simple words so he's doing better than her. School systems can be annoying though, hah? I would expect them to be better for you since you're a teacher! Jeez!
I hear ya on the cooties too! Malayna was home with a cold today but so far it's been mild...knock on wood! I can't complain since it's the first one she's had since mid-November but she had a few at the start of the year too. Which Zicam do you use with Sammy? Getting anything into Malayna is a challenge but I'd love to have something to fight these colds off with.
Here's to a good 2012 for all!
hey Sheila, Thanks for the response! :) That wagon looks awesome! Brian rigged a seat for a wagon we already had, but it would be nice to have an alternative too! Sammy loves his rides! :)
You would think that the school would make more effort, but i think being a teacher makes it worse in some ways. I think they feel more pressured and have no idea how to assess him correctly (which they openly admitted) so they are happy to just stick with the status quo.
We use the spray form of Zicam since Sammy can't chew anything solid. Plus he hates things that taste different than what he's used to. It's super easy using the spray and it doesn't cause stomach upset like the tabs do. I use it too! It totally kept Sammy from getting the last cold he was fighting off! :)
Yay Ellen is back!! You need to give us more updates more often please. I know I'm bad at that too though.
Sorry the work scene hasn't been so great for you guys but hopefully the kids treat you right. Having a 3rd grader myself I know I'm ready to thrash him most nights, I couldn't imagine having a classroom full of them.
Glad to hear that Sammy is enjoying his iPad. Those are awesome!
I hope you guys have a healthier 2012. It's been rough for you!
Don't be a stranger.
thanks Dawn! The kids are better than they were in Sept., but the littler ones are still not my bag! :(
I will try to be better about updating! :)
Hey Ellen! Glad to see this post. I don't do FB much either. So, I loved this update.
I am glad that Christmas was good for you. Emma loves her iPad, and I think it will be great for Sammy too. I know how smart Sammy is. It has always been obvious to me. Don't get me started on schools. I have a teaching degree, but I homeschool Emma. I guess that says a lot about what I think about our schools here, huh?
Happy 2012! I wish you, your family, and especially Sammy, much happiness, health and progress this year.
thanks Amy! Back at ya! :)
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