Wednesday, October 30, 2013

Wordless Wednesday

Friday, October 25, 2013

7 Quick Takes - Vol 15



Linking up this week with Cari who is covering for Jen!


So Christopher has speech therapy twice a week, but normally it's a developmental aide (I think that's what they're called) that comes in and then once a month the Speech Language Pathologist (SLP) comes in to see him. Well this week was the week the SLP came and she gave us some idea towards what is causing his issues. She thinks he might have speech apraxia. If you read that link, it is almost everything that Christopher does with regards to his speech. So she gave us some tips to help him out. But, she also caught some things that are red flags, that might lead us to a more serious diagnosis.


If you read Cam's blog, you might know the journey that she is going through with her youngest daughter, Mae. As she was documenting some of the things she noticed about Mae, I also saw some things that Christopher does that are similar. We are going to see a developmental pediatrician who might come back with a diagnosis with Christopher on the autism spectrum. But, it might not. I'm trying really hard not to stress about it because it could just be the speech apraxia and the things we are going to do to help with that developmental issue might take care of everything. I won't lie, I feel stressed and overwhelmed and unbelievably guilty. It is so easy to look at something and say it must be me, or something that I'm doing wrong; but after talking to a few friends I feel better about that. I know that diagnoses like these come to all different families with different parenting techniques.


That being said, there are some things that we don't currently do that we are going to work on implementing. We have maintained a really laid back parenting style with no real routine/schedules. So, we are going to be working on a much stricter schedule as the SLP thinks that this will really help him out. I think it will also help Dominic too, even though he just tends to create his own routine, this might help him feel a little better about things. I'm going to take pictures of things that he regularly eats at our house and create a flip book to help with his communication too. The picture with the word should help a lot. We will also be creating a picture schedule so that he knows what we will be doing throughout the day, but this probably won't make much difference for a while. But I think I will make one for Dominic too so that he can see it and knows what to expect more too. We are putting Christopher back in his high chair for meals and so far that has been helping a lot. He's been eating a lot more and he hasn't cried at all when he's been in there. It just makes me see how much structure this kid needs to function well.
He even ate with a spoon for the first time EVER!!



Whew, that was a lot of deepness...it's time for some frivolity!






The boys and I went for a walk to the library and then the store, but they got tired on the way home and we stopped at the community building to "rest" but the boys found some water. Of course.



I haven't updated much on my weight loss lately, and I plan to do more soon, but for now I just wanted a brief update. I'm kind of stuck in a plateau right now that seems to be around 258.5-262. I'm not sure why, it might be a female/hormonal thing, because it feels like my measurements are always done right in the middle of a cycle; but I might need to pump up my exercising. I hope to figure it out soon. :)


Meanwhile, Jason has been doing the diet with me and he seems to have better luck than I do! He's dropped about 7 pounds already. Impressive since he's been so crazy at work and hasn't done his regular workouts. Of course, he does ride 3+ miles a day on his bike...


I can't think of anything else...so instead here is this video of Dominic. He has been enjoying watching this several times and he giggles at himself the whole time!



Wednesday, October 23, 2013

Wordless Wednesday

Monday, October 21, 2013

Weekend Recap

This weekend was just really relaxing to me for some reason. Saturday, started off a little worrisome as Christopher woke me up at 5AM by puking all over the bed and me. I grabbed a towel to wipe him off, but had to wake up Jason as I don't handle vomit all that well. Then I had to go to work in Las Animas and left Jason to handle any sickness. ;-) He never got sick again, but he seemed whiny all day long. He got a haircut that night too, a bit short thanks to momma.

It's a good thing that he's so cute, it helps even out the short hair.

Sunday we ended up going to Pueblo to look for some pieces for Jason's Halloween costume. The IT department is going to dress up as the people from the IT Crowd.



                                 http://images.fanpop.com/images/image_uploads/Moss--Roy-and-Jen-the-it-crowd-647357_279_320.jpg

Jason is going to be Moss, the guy on the left, and I'm pretty excited to make it happen. We bought an afro wig and we are going to style it. Any suggestions on how to make that happen are appreciated. ;-)

Also, I'm debating getting a perm. Not like, an 80s perm, but something more modern. I'd just really like things to be a bit easier in the morning without looking like a frizz ball. 

Sometimes weekends can feel so rushed and stressful, so it's really nice to have a weekend that is busy-ish but doesn't feel stressful.

Thursday, October 17, 2013

Theme Thursday-Orange

2 posts from me in one day? Unheard of right? It's because I wanted to do 2 link oops but I'm definitely not smart enough to combine them.

So I'm linking up here with Cari. over at the Clan for Theme Thursday.

We still had temps of over 80 last week so we are not getting much leave change yet so I wasn't going to join in yet. But when I took the boys to the park I saw some pretty leaves and even though they're more golden than orange I decided to play a little fast and loose with the rules. I hope Cari doesn't mind!

Small Successes (Vol 1)




Technically this would be a higher number, because I used to do Small Successes posts back when I first started my blog, but then it went away. Now they're bringing it back over at Catholic Mom and I'm so excited! I think it's such a great idea to celebrate our successes, no matter how small they may seem!

1) I've been working on my story; I mentioned earlier this week that I was working on something that has always been a dream of mine. I'm working on my story and there is just so much to it, but I'm loving it. I'm excited to get enough done that I can start reading it to the boys, because that's my inspiration anyway.

2) I cleaned the stove pieces this week! This seems so small, but it was a really big deal because there was so much stuck on my burners that it was causing them to overheat and cook things all wonky. At least, that's what I'm blaming the bad cooking on...

3) Christopher said "Amen" at Mass this week! OK, well, most people wouldn't have caught that, but it definitely sounded like Amen and it was at appropriate times so I'm having seriously high hopes that new sounds/words will be coming soon. He also said the "sh" noise which is new.

Go over to Sarah's blog and check out everyone else's Small Successes!

Monday, October 14, 2013

Dreaming Big

When I think about the things that I've always wanted in my life, I'm thrilled that I can say that I've reached some of those milestones.

I married my best friend; we enjoy spending time together, whether we are riding bikes, playing games, or just hanging out together on our respective electronic devices.

Jason shuffling for his big win at Canasta

I am a mom, and for the double win, I get to stay home with my kids. I get the opportunity to be with them every day and to teach them, eventually homeschooling them.




These are amazing gifts and they were some of my biggest dreams while I was growing up. In fact, if anyone knew me growing up they could tell you that it is all I've ever wanted to be. And I'm there.

I had just one real dream when it came to a job though. I wanted to write. A book, I'm not dreaming about the great American novel or anything, just an enjoyable novel. I've had storylines in my head on numerous occasions, but they've never resulted in anything. But now? Now I have this great story in my head that is prompted primarily by the two little munchkins that I'm blessed to spend my time with. I just want to put something down on paper that I can read to the boys. That involve them, and make them love storytelling.

And so I am. It's slow going, they might be 5 and 6 by the time I finish (I hope not!), but I'm doing it. I love my story idea, and I can't wait to share it with them.

It's funny how one dream can lead to another, how connected all my dreams have been.

Tuesday, October 8, 2013

Let's Talk

So, yesterday we went for another speech appointment to see if Dominic would participate for an evaluation. He was still pretty stubborn not wanting to participate, but the SLP finally found something that would get him to participate. She had an app on her iPad that had a puppet and when she spoke into the mike, the puppet repeated what she said. Dominic thought this was great and he communicated more than he had at all in the past. It's so strange, he is usually so chatty, even with strangers, but with her he hardly expressed his vocabulary at all.

She felt like he is right on target on some areas, that he is a little behind in others, and that there are some things that are just starting to emerge. So, she gave me a bunch of recommendations and suggested I get back with her in a few months just to check in and see how he's doing. Surprisingly, Christopher tried to play with her a bit, and he was doing a puzzle. He did pretty well with it too, he really likes puzzles. He gets speech twice a week and she said that if we wanted him to have more that we can take him there. I don't know that we will, because he's got some rapport with his current developmental aide.

One of the suggestions she gave, and my friend Krista made the same suggestion, was to institute a bit more routine in our lives. I'm trying to do that, but also continue with our laid back approach to parenting. It's a difficult combination, but I think once we get into the swing of things we'll have it down. :)

This morning we went to the store and then I took the boys to the park, we had the place to ourselves and we really had a lot of fun running and chasing eachother and hopping.







Friday, October 4, 2013

7 Quick Takes - Vol 14



I'm still struggling when I hear about people having babies, or getting pregnant.  I'm so happy for new life, of course, and so happy for everyone who is getting blessed. But, I'm struggling because we aren't pregnant yet. In order to work through this a bit more, I'm trying to do something tangible, to show my happiness for others. Because, hey--BABIES! So, our friend that Jason works with just had a baby this week and I chatted with her a bit last night and she's struggling to get her milk in and feeling like she's not feeding her baby. So I baked her some "lactation cookies" today and we're visiting them tonight!

Also, delivering those old fashioned oats because they likely won't get eaten fast enough here. :)


Since my weight and measurements went up and I was feeling so sorry for myself, Jason volunteered to do my diet with me. I'm sure he'll drop 20 pounds in a week and I'll be forced to hate him. ;-)


We took Dominic for his speech evaluation this morning and he wouldn't participate very much. The SLP wants us to come back a few days next week to kind of get him used to hanging out with her and re-try the evaluation at the end of next week. She said that she only understood about 3 of his phrases, and she was a little concerned that he tended to fixate on things. For example, she brought out a jar of bugs (which he called Mr. Krabs and Gary), but when the timer went off after 5 minutes, she seemed to think he should be able to switch to a new task (that did not involve toys) without being upset. That does not seem to be the case with Dominic, and it isn't my experience in general. But, my experience is limited. Is this something your 3yo do? Can they switch to new tasks without getting upset?


Speaking of speech therapy, Christopher seems to be participating less with the lady that comes to work with him, but he also seems to be getting new sounds, and trying to communicate a bit more. Hopefully with time, we'll be getting a lot more words.


As I read those last two takes, I'm still feeling guilt. That maybe it's my fault, that I'm not doing enough to challenge them daily, that maybe I'm not engaging them enough. I know that this is likely not the case, but it's hard to see both of my boys needing some help and not feeling like it must be my fault. 


This weekend we are doing a Color Run in Las Animas. Well, I guess technically we're doing a color walk, because we are doing the 2 mile walk. Then, when we get back, Jason is going to do our local breast cancer fundraising run. I'd list the name, but it bothers me because it seems to be making light of an important issue.


Fridays are so hard for me with my diet because we don't usually eat meat but it's hard to get protein in on Friday if the only fish you like is tuna salad. So generally I eat meat on Friday but it makes me a bit sad. Any suggestions for high protein, low calorie/carb Friday meals I'm all ears!

For more Quick Takes, visit Conversion Diary!

Thursday, October 3, 2013

Theme Thursday-Secret

I'm linking up with Cari again this week.

This week's theme is Secret. I joked with Cari on Twitter that I thought she was talking about the deodorant and she so kindly said I could interpret it any way I wanted. ;-)

This morning I had my measurements with my trainer and I gained weight this month. I'm at 264 up from 262. I also increased in some measurements, I'm holding out hope that it is water weight, but I don't know for sure.

So my secret is this:

These things are where I fail. The candy is Dominic's but I find it so easy to stick "just one" in my mouth. The chocolate chips are Christopher's, he loves to snack on them, and I find that I have chocolate chips in my mouth before I even know it. And the butter...well that's all me. I keep telling myself that I'm just using such a small amount to cook with that it can't possibly be that much worse than using the spray. But, maybe it is. Maybe I need to stop making excuses.

I hope other people's secret posts are much less weighty than mine! ***Ohmygosh, I've never had such a wonderful chance for a pun in my LIFE!!