Svala

First, it was Bear.  Next came Teddy, followed by Twister.  This time, it was Svala.

Svala is eighteen years old, and quite a bit shorter than Bear, Teddy and Twister.  She is a sweetheart, and The Princess loved every moment of it.  It's a good thing, too, since her guardian angels were here for this session.

On a slightly different note: we made it.  Today is the last day in April, which means her insurance coverage starts over the weekend.  Next week, we're back to speech therapy with Miss Cyndi after horsie time.  Guess that means I should start talkin' with Sakina's place so we can get the princess back into her in-clinic OT sessions...

One thing's for sure...we're never at a loss for things to do around here!

Grow

My sprouts - that is, the ones that didn't kick it when I accidentally left them outside overnight with a frost - are doing wonderfully.  I have moonflower and sweet pea vines searching for something to cling to.  The couple of tomato plants that made it (wouldn't it figure that these would be the ones to go?  How can I be Tomato Lady if I'm killing my tomato sprouts?  Woe is me...) have thickening stems, and are beginning to branch out ever so slightly.  The cosmos and my other veg/herbs are going gangbusters, fighting for space in their teeny-tiny confines.

They all seem to grow a little more each day.  Watching them very closely, sometimes I swear I can see a stem get just a little taller.  I know I'm imagining it, but it's not such a silly thing, really.

The Princess, like all kids, is very much like a sprout.  Each day something changes...sometimes it's immediately apparent; sometimes it's more subtle.  Her hair's a little longer.  She seems taller when I get her out of bed.  All of a sudden, her gym shoes no longer fit her feet.  They were fine two days ago, but yesterday...not so much.

It's not always a visible change in her body, either.  Her behavior is evolving in many ways, and I see her being sculpted into a little person...one careful step at a time.  She looks out the window of the car or the bus, and she sees something that interests her.  She points at it.  She smiles.  She engages me and The Hubbs, her teacher, our friends and family, in social contact...whether that be simple eye contact with a smile or reaching up to be held.

She's started napping again.  Long, uninterrupted stretches of the deepest and most peaceful sleep I've ever witnessed.  I could watch her for hours, and sometimes I do.  And while I'm sitting there, trying with all my might to stay still and silent, I swear I can see her grow.

Weeeeeeeeeeeeeee!

Oh, the stimming.  If she's not jumping on the trampoline, running back and forth, or obsessing over a texture bin, she's reaching up to climbing me.  She wants to swing.  She wants to fly.  She wants to spin until her little heart's content.

But seriously, I'm only one person.  There is a limit to the amount of times I can play helicopter or airplane, and my limit is waaaaay lower than hers.  I'm huffin' and puffin' and fallin' over (I kid you not, people, she can spin until you feel as though you've downed a 30-pack of Ice House in about 12 seconds), and she's rarin' to go.

What's a gal to do?

Well, if you are fortunate enough to have such wonderful people around as we do, you count on help.  For the princess's birthday, The Grumps got her two - count 'em, two - swings, along with the swivel hardware needed to mount them properly.  The swings are interchangeable - they both attach to the same stuff, and they're quite different.

We hung the mounting hardware from one of our maple trees today, though - unfortunately - no one thought to take photos or video of the process.  Let's just say it involved polyester fiber rope, duct tape, killer aim, a tree trimmer, a go-devil, kitchen shears, a candle lighter, a step stool, some hardware, and a little bit of Rube Goldberg (aka Grumma) action thrown in for good measure.   

Here are a couple of shots of her on the new tire swing...more to come later including the hammock-style lycra cuddle swing as well.  And if you're good - and I mean good - there may even be a video in your future.

*****

Hey, Grumma and Grumpa, I've been thinkin' about this swing...

And I gotta say...this sucker ain't half bad!

*****

Thanks for comin' over to help with the setup, Grumma.  We should start a duct-tape-swingin' team...I think we could make nationals if we just apply ourselves and eat lots and lots of 3 Musketeers Mint.  ;)

I Need Your Input

Hey y'all!

Listen, I need you to think about something - really think about it - and let me know where you stand.  Be honest.  It won't take but a minute of your time...comments - positive and negative - would be very helpful.

If there was a comic book/graphic novel available regarding everyday life with someone who has autism, would you buy it?  Would you give it to your friends/family members as an awareness aid?  Do you think enough people would be interested?

Much appreciated,
One Mom

Playing

Through some twist of fate, The Hubbs and I have found ourselves in a winning streak lately.  The most recent score: our new camera.  I've been playing with it incessantly, and I'm pretty convinced I can count the blades of grass in some of the pics I've been snapping.

This was taken from 20+ feet away...and I can read it.  How cool is that?

Same here...20+ feet away.  I can't get over it!

I'm having too much fun with this.  I'm sure y'all don't give a rat's patootie about the quality of the pictures that come out of this thing, but I'm obsessed.  ;)

Okay, I'm stopping now.  For real.  I swear.  And I'm not going directly back to the camera.  Nope, not me.

Guardian Angels

Much has changed in our world since The Princess started school. She's gone for a few hours a day, spending time with people we don't know, but she comes home happy. She's excited to get on that bus in the morning - well, most mornings, anyway - and the notes from her teacher always seem to reflect the princess having a good time.

Though she seems to be coping well with the new way of doing things, we just couldn't bring ourselves to terminate all other services.  Sakina and Bear had been so helpful in The Princess's last few months in the EI program, but we lost the coverage when she turned three.  If you've been around here for a while, you're aware of my fight to get insurance for her through the state, as well as the fact that - though they finally approved it - the application took approximately three times as long as it should have to be processed, leaving The Princess with three weeks between her birthday and the coverage.  Three weeks of no services.  Three weeks to forget the person and the horse who have helped her make such leaps and bounds since Christmas.

Enter our guardian angels: the sweet, wonderful people who want so badly to help, and who always have impeccable timing.  Thanks to them, The Princess has been able to continue attending the sensory portion of her hippotherapy sessions once a week.  She won't forget.  She won't be afraid in May when she goes back, because there won't have been a break.

Since her schedule has changed, Bear doesn't seem to be available for her to ride.  At first, I thought this would be a problem, but she seems to have acclimated nicely.  Last week, we saw Teddy, a beautiful honey-colored sweetheart.

Yesterday, Teddy was reserved for a first-timer, a little girl who was terrified of horses.  The poor sweetie howled and yowled for the first ten to fifteen minutes, and then calmed down.  Teddy was a champ.

It seems as though The Princess is the bounce-around kid these days.  She's dealing with changes, expected and unexpected, better than she ever has before.  Yesterday, her riding partner was Twister:

They got along famously, The Princess telling jokes (okay, not really), Twister laughing heartily (well...):

Now, all we need to worry about is how she'll take to returning to Sakina's center after a few weeks off.  My guess is that we'll walk in, she'll see the slide and the ball pit, and all will be well with the world.

*****

To our guardian angels:

Thank you so much for your help, your compassion, your understanding.  I don't know that there are words to describe how much we appreciate this, how much we appreciate you.  It truly is a blessing to have been touched by such wonderful people as yourselves.

You know who you are, and we're sending lots of big hugs your way.

Swimming!

Twice a month, The Princess's class ventures out on a field trip.  One of those trips is either to the store or to lunch, to help the kiddos get acclimated to places around town, and to help them learn about proper behavior in public.  The other monthly trip is to the special education district building to spend an hour in the therapy pool.

The Princess loves water.  She could live in the bath tub, I kid you not.  Previous attempts at swimming have been met with sensory overload, which - as we all know - can lead quickly to meltdowns.  The water is inevitably too cold, and she's not happy if she can't touch the bottom.  If the bottom is rocky, or in any other way unexpected-feeling, this is a major deal breaker.  There are lots of factors associated with swimming for a sensory-sensitive person...things I never would have thought of in my life before The Princess.

This was her first trip to a therapy pool, which is almost as warm as bath water.  Score one for the pool.  The shallow end is only 2.5 feet deep...score two!  She can see the bottom, and it's even and free of debris...score three!  Eight other children and the echoes that inevitably accompany such a group in an indoor pool: well, nothing's perfect.

Being her first trip, The Hubbs and I wanted to see the facility...and we were dying to see how she'd do in the pool...so her teacher graciously accepted our request to join the group.  Standing in the hallway, meeting all of the wonderful, sweet kids who attend the center, I snapped approximately one hundred and fifty pictures, and tons of video, through the picture window overlooking the pool.  I filled up my 1GB memory card.  No, seriously.  It wouldn't let me take any more pictures.

Sue me...it was kind of a big deal, okay?  After sifting through the videos and playing around with my editing software, I am proud to present SWIMMING...starring The Princess:

And for anyone who was wondering...yes, that is The Hubbs singing on the video.  Pretty awesome...pretty awesome, indeed.

Hello, Lover

At the risk of coming off as shallow and materialistic, I will now admit this: I am in love with these shoes. 

And the bond is made that much deeper by the fact that they were marked down over 50%, and then another 20% off that at the register.  Yeah, that would be a final price of $15.99.  What can I say...I'm a cheap date.  :)

Five

This is a year of fives.  In May, I'll have owned this house for five years.  In October, The Hubbs and I will celebrate our fifth wedding anniversary.

Yesterday, our oldest turned five.  It doesn't seem like it could possibly have been that long, but I guess time really does fly.

In the grand tradition of our little yellow house, the birthday princess was pampered from dawn until dusk.  First item on the agenda: presenting the princess with the Birthday Girl Tiara.

She hated it, as you can see by the fact that the camera couldn't even capture her tail...it was wagging so fast!

This, I believe, would be her portrait to hang in the great hall (if we had one).

Between treats, the princess held court and connected with her loyal subjects...

...Even carving out a chunk of her day to make sure Sook Sook didn't feel left out.

Now, go ahead and try to tell me this ain't a happy girl:

This was the first of two - count 'em, two - Birthday Girl car rides.

And don't you worry...Sookie happily joined in on the fun.  We couldn't very well leave her behind, now, could we?

Ah, the sweet, sweet result of our second car ride...Oberweis!

After such a long day of treats, princess duties, car rides, and lub, the Birthday Princess had had all she could takes, and she couldn't takes no more.

We love you, Bubbles.  It's hard to believe you're five, but looking back through the pictures I guess it really is true.  I can't get over how small you were back then!  Thanks for helping us to start our family by becoming our first kid...we couldn't have asked for anyone better to fill that position.

Thank You, Nana and Grampy!

Whew...what a weekend!

Lots of stuff happened around here over the last couple of days...maybe even enough to keep me in blog fodder for the rest of the week.  Because, as you all know, absolutely nothing happens around here from Monday through Friday!

Anyway, out of everything that has happened since my last post on Friday, I've chosen to share just a couple minutes of The Princess's new favorite thing: her trampoline.

 

It took a long time to pick the music for this..."Jump" by Van Halen was my first choice, followed by "Jump Jump" by KrisKross.  Unfortunately, I don't have either of them in iTunes on my computer (boo!).  The next choice was "Hop Up, Jump In" from Handy Manny, but it was way too short.  After much deliberation, I finally settled on this classic by Joan Jett...for some reason it cracks me the hell up to see her jumping around to this song. 

A big thank-you to Nana and Grampy for the new bestest thing ever.  Y'all sure have a knack for choosing the best loved of all her toys.

The Right Thing

The Hubbs hurt his foot yesterday while romping out in the yard with Bubbles...when it happened, he didn't think it was so bad.  By the time I got home from school last night, he could barely walk.  Poor swatta!

This morning, it was just the princess and me while The Hubbs tried to rest his foot.  She woke up happy, but a little snotty thanks to good ol' allergies.  After getting dressed and having some trail mix for breakfast, she was dragging me out the door and into the driveway.

The bus turned onto our street, and she whipped around to see it.  She grinned and pointed, jumping up and down just a little.  She tried to get up the stairs all by herself, so excited to go to school.

All of my doubts are gone.  This is the right thing.  We're doing the right thing.

Our New Routine

7:30 AM: alarm clock buzzes, I begin rubbing my eyes with my fists...
7:35 AM: The Princess starts singing...
7:37 AM: The Princess on pot...
7:38 AM: Dress The Princess while she tries...
7:40 AM: Breakfast!
7:50 AM: The Princess is gettin' antsy...
7:52 AM: The Princess presents me or The Hubbs with shoes.  Said parent assists the princess with her shoes...
7:54 AM: The Princess presents me or The Hubbs with a jacket of some sort.  Said parent assists the princess with her jacket...
7:56 AM: The Princess bodily drags me and The Hubbs out the front door...someone grabs the backpack...
7:57 AM until bus arrives: Family walk around the driveway.  Fifty-seven times.  Walk, walk, walk.  Drag Momma and Da.  Walk, walk, walk.
Bus arrives: The Princess gets all happy and flappy.  We hand her over to the bus driver.  Happy little girl goes to school.

If this were a video, you'd hear carnival music in the background...just sayin'. :)

A Good Possibility

I've been thinking of covering up my fading tattoo for some time now, but I've had a hard time finding anything that trips my trigger.  I want to do something Princess-related, and would love to work Autism Awareness in there somewhere.

It's been a slow and discouraging search, but I've recently come across an image I can't get out of my head:

I'd like to work in The Princess name, as well as one of the zillions of wonderful awareness mantras.  I'm thinking I'll write her name in the middle of the heart, and wrap this around the outside: "If you think my hands are full, you should see my heart."

There are so many touching sayings out there related to Autism Awareness...any other suggestions?  I don't want to get set on this statement before I hear the ones that touch your hearts. 

Please, share...

Branded For Life

I’m standing at the bathroom sink, brushing my teeth with the door wide open, when my parents walk up the stairs into the main part of the house. They’ve been on vacation for two weeks, and I’ve been holding down the fort and watching the pets for them.

“What the hell is that thing on your back? Please tell me it’ll wash off,” says Pop.

“Sorry, Charlie. This baby’s real, and there ain’t no washin’ it off.”

I am sixteen years old. My boyfriend and I know someone who’s going to tattoo school, whatever that is, and he does really cheap work for friends as practice. Sure, the law says you have to be eighteen to get inked without parental permission, but…no business, no law-abiding business owner. There are ways around everything.

***

That was a long time ago, and I can see now that it wasn’t necessarily my most shining moment. I could have handled it so much better by sitting down with my parents and discussing the possibility of a tattoo. They probably would have said no, but may have softened over time. Would it have killed me to wait until I was eighteen? No. Could I see that at the time? Of course not.

Because of a decision I made when I was sixteen years old, I am branded for life. My hand-drawn butterfly that looked so cool on paper resides on my left shoulder blade, in all its fading glory. It shows over the neckline of some of my shirts, and every time I catch a glimpse of it in a mirror, I am reminded of that decision…that sixteen-year-old “rebel,” who thought it was such a good idea at the time.

Like it or not, this baby is mine…fading ink and all. Even when it’s covered up with something else (which I’m thinking about more and more these days), I’ll still know what’s under there.

I look at my daughter, and I see a sweet, beautiful, intelligent, loving little girl. I see the spittin’ image of her momma. Hell, my folks call her by my name half the time, defending themselves by saying how very much she looks like I did at that age. So I know it’s not just me…there’s a bit of a family resemblance.

Like her momma, The Princess is also branded for life. The difference, though, is that my branding was the result of a choice I made. Hers is the result of who she is, how she's wired. Over time, the ASD brand may fade. It may even be obscured at times by other things. But, like it or not, it will always be there.

Not good, not bad…just there.

We Did It

Mrs. G., one of The Princess's teachers, called me after she had been at school for about forty-five minutes on her very first day ever.  She wanted to let me know that The Princess came in singing, and was adapting very well to her new environment.  She had some Cheez-its, Cheerios and apple juice at snack time, and seemed like she was happy.

I could kiss Mrs. G.

As soon as I got off the phone with her, I felt like a huge weight had been lifted from my shoulders.  For the next couple of hours, I milled around the house, dragging Dirt Pink with me everywhere I went, waiting for her to get home.

Finally, after what seemed like an eternity...

There she was.

She gave me the sweetest smile when I got on the bus to help her off.

This walk to and from the bus was way easier for me than the first one this morning.

Sookie was so excited to greet the princess when she returned home.

I gave her a daffodil from the yard and she gripped it so tight, I think she broke its poor neck.  But, boy oh boy, did I get the hug of a lifetime.

Here's her report from school today.  It tells me that she arrived happy and ate most of her snack.  She had ST and OT.

My baby's home.  We did it.  We made it through the first day.

Not a Typical Day At All

I don't normally post more than once in a day, but these are special circumstances. 

The alarm went off at 7:00 this morning - I didn't want to be late - but it was really unnecessary.  I woke up at about 6:00 and was unable to get back to sleep.  I tried to relax, had some Tums for breakfast, and took a shower.

Before I knew it, it was time to wake The Princess and turn her whole world - and mine - upside down.

I don't know what to say.  But they say a picture is worth a thousand words, so...there ya go. 

When I leaned down to kiss her goodbye after she had been strapped in, she latched on for dear life.  I had to peel her off of me.  I'm crying now at the memory, while I sit here cuddling her blanket and Floyd the Pig...and wondering if I could curl up in that toddler bed of hers without causing it to explode into a million pieces.

I have a feeling this is going to be a really long three hours.

Yeah...not a typical day at all.

It Started With A Song

I was lured out of my slumber by the sounds of singing.  It was going to be a good day.

And then it dawned on me: she's three.  My little girl has started out her third birthday with a song, and we felt the need to reciprocate.

Opening her bedroom door, The Hubbs and I saw her lying on her back in bed, happily singing to herself.  We eased our way into the room, singing "Happy Birthday."  She grinned and launched herself at us, giving us each a great big bear hug and a sloppy kiss.

***

The day before her birthday, The Princess's Uncle D came up for a visit.  It was wonderful to see him, and he came over early enough in the day that the boys had all sorts of time to hang out.

When I came home from school, D was there, and we all decided to head out for some lunch.  At one of our favorite local haunts, we had a great meal.  Our server gave The Princess some crayons and a picture to color, and she did quite a number on it.  It's not on the fridge yet, but it will be.

Around the time we were ordering our last drinks, the waitress popped over to our table and told me that she had overheard us talking about The Princess's birthday.  She wanted to know if it would be okay for the staff to sing to her and bring her a special birthday girl sundae.

Naturally, I was all for it.  I figured the worst case scenario would be asking them to sing a little more quietly than normal, but we tried it without any modifications and it worked out great.  The Princess thought it was hilarious to have a group of singing grown-ups competing for her attention.

When they were done with the song and dance, we were left in relative silence.  I was finishing my lunch, and figured I'd help The Princess with the sundae in a minute.

And then D pointed out the fact that she was eating her sundae.  Alone.  With a spoon.  And using it the right way.

I know, right?  How freakin' cool is that?!

***

Anyway, Uncle D had to leave in the morning, and we hung out with the princess for a while before cleaning up for the family party.  Fortunately, we had done some straightening up the night before, so it wasn't too bad.

Most of the direct Hubbo Family made it up here for the princess's big day: Nana, Grampy, Great Grammie and Great Grampy were all here to join in the fun.  It was a beautiful day, so we all hung out in the yard.  The Princess was ecstatic to have so many grown-ups around to do her bidding.  She must have spent half the day in her wagon, being carted around like a princess.

We had to break in the middle of the fun for some grub, of course.  Great Grampy has been raving about the local place's taco pizza since we all had it for my birthday a few weeks ago, so that was the food of choice again today.  You won't hear any complaints from us on that one!

The presents...good Lord, the presents!  Unfortunately, we didn't have the presence (ha!) of mind to take a pic of the pile before digging in.  The biggest thing about the presents?  The Princess actually removed the paper herself.  For the first time ever.  She sat there through the entire opening process and pulled the paper off of each individual package, sometimes even paying attention to what was inside.

What was inside, you ask?  Mr. Potato Head (with a converter kit to make him Mrs. Potato Head...he's a little confused), a Melissa & Doug "Make Your Own Jewelry" kit with wooden beads and strings, a Fisher Price tea set, a "Very Hungry Caterpillar" Colorform set (which is waaaaaayyyyyy cooler than any Colorform set I ever had growing up.  This sucker is 3-D!), a Melissa & Doug set with two wooden "paper doll" girls and all the clothes they could ever want (it's magnetic.  Coolest.  Idea.  Ever.  I'm so playing with it as soon as I finish this post!), a Magnadoodle, some really cute clothes, a few books, and lots of crumply goodness in the form of wrapping paper.

We do things kind of backwards around here: presents first, cake later.  Nana had picked up an adorable cake at Jewel, which she had customized with The Princess's name and age.  On her way out to the car from the store, she dropped it - I'm talkin' completely upside-down, people - and freaked out.  She squinched her eyes shut, turned it back over, and risked a peek.  It was fine.  Talk about luck!

After digging into the yummy cake, it was back outside to play with bubbles, take a leisurely drive, and walk down to the lake.  Uncle Hambone even showed up!

"Right here, Momma!  Put the bubbles right here!"  This adorable dress, by the way, was a present from her Auntie J and Uncle A.  We missed you guys today! 

"Hey, I'm drivin' here!"

Swingin' at the park, with Uncle Hambone's boat in the background:

A couple of attempts at a family picture...not too bad, right?  Boy, are we pasty.  :)

I think this is where we'll have to do the family pics going forward...I really like the lake in the background.  Thanks, Nana, for taking these for us!

Sometimes a gal just needs to curl up with a good book to relax.

Eventually, the party had to come to an end.  The Hubbo Family grandparents all made their way to the door, and we promptly changed into fat pants.  Nothin' like a leisurely evening of playing with a brand-spankin'-new arsenal of toys, right?

Nana, Grampy, Great Grammie, and Great Grampy...and, of course, Uncles D and Hambone: thank you all so very much for making The Princess's third birthday so special.  We love you all!