Nana and Papa helping out

My mom and dad were helping us out some today while we took care of the house situation so here are some cute pics. Ivy cleaning her hands at McDonalds and Kyle taking a bath at my moms house. Cute pics. Okay, I have to get back to packing..... :o)

Moving!!!

Oh guys, I am finally moving. I can't tell you how much 2 years of waiting have taught me patience! I am packing in between having bad morning sickness. Yesterday I packed for 12 hours straight. I went to bed around 11pm because I just couldn't bring myself to pack anymore. Today I'm supposed to get my keys so I'm excited. And Charles of course. :o) My sister who is moving up in South Africa to a bigger house, is also moving on Saturday. She has movers though. Lucky! I have a maid though to clean after I move out so yay! Anyhoo, can't wait for my kids to be able to play in the backyard and my poor doggy to have a better yard to poop in. He'll be like, "Whoa! What do we have here? Talk about poop space!" See my little itty bitty family in the backyard? That's how big it is. Yay! As soon as I can, I'm putting sod down.

What's Working for Chaz

Charles and I are so excited that we have found the root cause of Chaz's emotional outbreaks. I got to visit again with Chaz's doctor and we found that there was no change when he was on Ritilin but there was a significant change when Chaz was put on Abilify. I guess Ritilin never worked for my husband either. He had to use a different form for his ADHD. What IS working for Chaz is for people that have some type of Mood Disorder. There are various kinds. Chaz has been excellent in school and has been scoring perfect in his behavior every day for the last few days. Even at home. Usually Chaz fluctuates between being happy, mad, enraged, crying, back to happy again. Usually he causes a lot of stress in the household! But not since last Wednesday since he was started on Abilify. Actually, Abilify is one of the safest ones to use for Mood Disorders. This has been a huge relief for Charles and I and also for Chaz's teacher. She said she can't believe how well behaved he's been in school. We have never seen Chaz so happy since... well, never! We are also watching to see if he is able to focus in his classroom and learn. If he really struggles, then we will find something for his ADHD. For now we of course don't give him things with much sugar in it because we know it aggrivates his ADHD. I really like his doctor and I'm very impressed with him because he is slow and careful with his decisions. I can't tell you how excited Charles and I are about this new step with Chaz. After I have done much study about ADHD and Mood Disorders, I am sad to see that there are actual websites out there that say it's a fraud. Obviously those people have never dealt with it in their personal lives. I also learned that although it is helpful knowing what they are allergic to, eliminating those things does help the issues, but doesn't cure it. So I will be getting some allergy tests done but not eliminating the medication. This has been an unbelievable step up for us. I am so excited!!!

American Flag Comes Down

You will not see this heart-stopping photo on the front page of the NY Times or on the lead story of the major news networks. The protestors put up the Mexican flag over the American flag flying upside down at Montebello High in California.



Theodore Roosevelt's ideas on Immigrants and being an AMERICAN in 1907.

"In the first place, we should insist that if the immigrant who comes here in good faith becomes an American and assimilates himself to us, he shall be treated on an exact equality with everyone else, for it is an outrage to discriminate against any such man because of creed, or birthplace, or origin. But this is predicated upon the person's becoming in every facet an American, and nothing but an American...There can be no divided allegiance here. Any man who says he is an American, but something else also, isn't an American at all. We have room for but one flag, the American flag... We have room for but one language here, and that is the English language... and we have room for but one sole loyalty and that is a loyalty to the American people."

Theodore Roosevelt 1907

March Flashback

Click here to view what happened last year in March 2006! Lots happened between Dan and Jodee's farewell party, our scare with Kyle, fun with my nephews, beginning our search for help for Chaz, and Ivy's cute new swimsuit. Come and See!

My First Apartment

I was just thinking about how much God has blessed my life that I couldn't help of thinking how far I have come. Not because of me but because of God. Without him, my life was so empty before and no matter how much I tried to fill my life with my own rules, I was still lonely deep inside....
I lived there almost 10 years ago.

The other day I was driving and I went down an old street just to see what my first apartment looked like. It's so weird doing that too. It reminds me of how hard I worked to live there. First off, I worked at JCPenney only making $5.75 an hour. My one bedroom apartment cost me around $275 a month. Well, for one, just one of my paychecks was almost exactly that amount so I had to live off my other paycheck. I would pay all my bills and buy about $30 worth of groceries. Since I didn't have a car I would walk home from the grocery store with my back pack as full as I could get it and then bags all up and down my arms. It would be so painful on my back that I would have to stop every 10 steps and rest. I remember only allowing myself $1 a day for lunch at work and that was to buy a Cup O' Noodle from the machine. I had a bird in my apartment above my fridge that I loved. I had an old TV and since I had hardly any visitors I would just kick off my shoes after my bus ride home, make myself dinner, and then fall asleep on the couch watching Fresh Prince of Bell Air. You have to know though that I was so proud of how I was able to manage and care for myself on such a low income. Although it was tough at times, I felt excited that I was making it work and knew it was a good lesson for me. I lived there when I first got to really know Charles. He came by on my birthday once and gave me a CD. I was very grateful for this because I got pretty lonely at times living in that place. He didn't come into my apartment but we spent a few times talking outside on the patio. When I told him that I didn't have a stereo to play the CD's on, he went home and brought back his to give me. I couldn't believe he would do something so generous and from then on I started to pay more attention into getting to know him. I gave my heart back to Christ towards the latter end of me living there and I remember praying on my floor asking God to show me if this was the man for me. I was so very confused. I remember, like a vision, seeing clouds part as if the skies became blue again after so much darkness. Charles was pressed upon my heart. Although I was very scared to start into another relationship, I felt as if I just found my best friend for life. I'll never regret the day I met him.

Ryan's Field Day

Today was Ryan's field day and it was very cute to watch. All the little girls were surrounding Ivy. I promised Ryan I'd be there to watch the competitions but it was hard because I had such bad morning sickness. I knew that the teacher wouldn't be very happy if I lost it right in front of all the kids. Not to mention the fact that Ryan could ask me never to participate again! LOL! Anyhow, after that we ate with Ryan in the cafeteria. Are all cafeteria ladies mean? Because when I went to school they were looking at you like, "I give the food so you'd better worship me!" This lady was meeean! It brought me back to my earlier days in school. It was cute sitting with all the kids. Also, I knew my time was limited with Ryan wanting to hold his mommy's hand in front of all his friends! So, of course I had to come...

Taking Kids Bowling

If you haven't yet taken your kids bowling, now is the time! The younger the better. You know why? It's so cute how they can't yet put there fingers in the hole and how they have to put there all into just getting the ball to at least roll 2 miles per hour. LOL! I think the two older boys are finally getting a handle of putting there fingers in the hole but with much effort. Kyle's the cutest to watch because he tries so hard and his ball takes so long to reach the destination that he actually sits down to watch. It takes awhile! It's definitely a fun family event.

Makutu's Island

This is only one picture. There is so much more to see.

My husband had a couple of days off from work so we always wanted to take the kids to Makutu's Island. It's like an indoor tree house. But huge. It makes Chuck E. Cheese look like a dirt yard in comparison! Not only that, but Charles and I had just as much fun as the kids. There were indoor slides just like McDonalds but much steeper so that you actually go really fast. At McDonalds, you go like 2 miles per hour and then stop before you reach the end. Not at Makutu's! Charles and I went through all the tubes, down all the slides. Charles had to talk me into one of them because I was too scared after the first time. My kids weren't scared at all, they kept going down them and flying out at the end. There was just so much to do there that we stayed 6 hours and had to be kicked out because they closed! The management was so good and incredibly nice. Ryan actually had a small injury while we were there so the management made sure all of our meals were on the house. Believe me, we ate a lot that day....

We Love the Renaissance!

Come View our Renaissance Photos! or see vidoes below.

(Boys posing with some people in costume.)

Ryan's Joust at the Renaissance


Chaz's Joust at the Renaissance


Boy's Knighted by King and Queen





Here are some cute videos I took when we were at the Renaissance (Feb 27th). While I raided virtually ever food stand there was, Charles and the kids were finding which events to go to. They rode lots of rides and had a blast. It is our family tradition to go every year and the kids always look forward to it. So do we! Anyhow, I waited to post because I took an internet break! Good to post again.

Chaz's Update

First off, if you haven't been following our experience with Chaz click here view all my entries with "aspergers" in it.
As I learning to how to work with Chaz and exactly what is going on in that mind of his, I see how fragile he truly is. Times when I thought he was just throwing a fit, I now see as an emotional breakdown. He doesn't know how to bring himself back once he's crossed that line. I know how to calm him down. His teacher doesn't do this very well, but then again, she teaches an "ADHD" class. She is not trained in this area. Although I have to say I love her and she is very good at what she does. My son has learned very well under her teaching. Next year I plan on putting Chaz in a class that is specifically designed for Asperger kids. Aspergers is a social disorder and most people that don't understand or know him, tend to think he's just a mean kid. Chaz definitely is on an emotional roller coaster. One moment he can be happy and the next he can be screaming and throwing chairs at kids. Not a fun thing to deal with. Of course he's better at home because he is comfortable with us. This is a social disorder. Unfortuntately, there are ignorant people that don't even believe in ADHD. Sadly I was one of those until I had Chaz. Then I read James Dobson's book. He said that the reason there is such a negative view on the subject is because people have seen kids who were overdiagnosed just because they were active boys with some energy. But there really is ADHD out there and until that person is helped, it can be a rocky road ahead of them. I am looking into all kinds of things. Studying different avenues of treatment. Not just thowing out ideas because I am ignorant of it. I simply am looking at ever clue I can find. I am trying medicine as well as looking into his diet. Meeting with doctors, allergist. All sorts. For now, his behavior is worsening at school and things are not getting any easier for his teacher. I found a lady who's son also is a high functioning Aspergers and I hope to get some answers from her soon!

*Asperger Syndrome*
Individuals with AS can exhibit a variety of characteristics and the disorder can range from mild to severe. Persons with AS show marked deficiencies in social skills, have difficulties with transitions or changes and prefer sameness. They often have obsessive routines and may be preoccupied with a particular subject of interest. They have a great deal of difficulty reading nonverbal cues (body language) and very often the individual with AS has difficulty determining proper body space. It's important to remember that the person with AS perceives the world very differently. Therefore, many behaviors that seem odd or unusual are due to those neurological differences and not the result of intentional rudeness or bad behavior, and most certainly not the result of "improper parenting".

I'm Baaaaack!!!

Okay, I know I'm one week early but I just have so much to tell you! I can't hold them back any longer. :)