Tornado?

No, it wasn't a tornado, but it sure seemed like it at the time. The same storm did spawn a tornado in Connecticut. This damage is just from a down burst with wind speeds around 100 miles per hour. I was just turning into our apartment complex, and the sky suddenly darkened dramatically. The wind hit the car like a bullet. I pulled into the parking lot by the local deli right in the middle away from any trees. I was proud of myself for keeping a clear head. Huge trees fell all around us as the wind roared and the rain flew sideways all around the car. My daughter was in the car with me, and she was screaming and reaching out to be held. I stroked her leg instead, knowing that she would be safer in the car seat. Of course the safest place would have been in a basement somewhere, or laying flat in a ditch, but it came on so fast that there wasn't time to do anything, and thankfully, it wasn't a tornado. It blew through in just a couple of minutes and then the sun came out. As I pulled out of the parking lot and drove down the driveway toward the apartment, I had to drive over the grass as trees had fallen across the road and onto other people's cars. Huge trees were pulled out by the roots and snapped in half. Some trees were sheared at the top. I was grateful that nobody was hurt. Everyone who saw the storm was sure it was a tornado, because that's what it looked and felt like, but according to the National Weather Service, there was no rotation. It was sure scary though. I'm grateful to God for keeping us safe. The down burst occurred at 1:30 pm when my son was safely in school, my husband was safely at work. Thank God!

A Serious Case of the Giggles

With all the toys and other items of amusement my kids have, who would have thought that this shirt hanging on a hanger on the coat closet would be what the kids played with most tonight.

They had a serious case of the giggles. My son was making my daughter laugh until she couldn't breathe by spinning this shirt around the doorknob. She would count to three, and he'd give it a whirl, and oh boy, was that funny. If it spun off the knob and fell on the floor, well, that was just too much. My husband videotaped most of it. The video is all shaky because he was laughing so hard.

It's moments like this I remember when things get difficult. :)

Daddy Was a Very Good Boy

My daughter loves stickers. Since we got to a lot of doctors for my son, she also gets stickers at the end of the appointments for being a good, patient girl while we pay attention to her brother. So, whenever stickers are available, she loves to put them all over us and herself. She just loves my husband, and even has a little "Daddy Dance" that she does when he gets home. I just got one sticker, but Daddy must have been a really good boy because he got lots of stickers. How cute is she? I can't stand it...ohhhh and those curls!!!!!!!!!!

My Son Has the Best Cow Licks

My son has fabulous morning and hat hair. I love it. He has huge cow licks all the time. I don't know what he thinks when I tell him that I don't know how a cow got into his room. LOL

Today when I was brushing his hair, I put in a little spray conditioner first and got it all to stand on end. When I showed him in the mirror, he was hysterical. My son has a wonderful sense of humor.

When he was a newborn, his hair stood straight up too, and I used to brush it straight up on purpose because it was just the cutest thing. Ah, my Boo.

Lunch with Carole at the CIA Part 2

Last Thursday I went out to lunch with my cousin Carole from Carole's Thoughtful Spot, and you can read the first part of my post here, and Carole's posts here and here.

Once we placed our orders and paid for them, we found a table and got a high chair for my daughter. When you place your order, you get little number cards that you place in a little holder on the table so the students know where to bring your food.

A student came first with my Coke, which was in a bottle. I always order soda without ice because it takes me awhile to drink it and it gets watery when there's ice in it, and I think that's yucky. I also like to pour my soda in a glass to get some of the bubbles out. Usually, when you order a drink in a cafe, it comes in a glass, so I thought it was a little odd that the waitress just brought a bottle. Then she asked me a question that I'm so glad she asked. "I dropped the bottle. Do you want to just wait awhile to open it, or should I bring you another one?" I'm glad she asked me so that the soda didn't explode all over me, but why was this even a question?????
"I'd like a new bottle please, and may I also please have a glass?"
"Oh, you want a glass?"
"Yes, please." That's why I asked for it.... hmmmm. LOL

So in the meantime, my cousin and I talked and laughed. I'd tell you what we were laughing at, but I think it was one of those "you had to be there" moments. But we had a good laugh. My daughter was as good as can be and played happily and drank her sippy cup while my cousin and I talked. Finally, my food came. I had to wait awhile to taste it because they took even longer to bring my cousin's meal.

Then, it was time. This is what I got:

Braised Beef Short Ribs
Slow-braised beef short ribs served with sautéed Brussel sprouts, pearl onions and deep-fried potato croquettes.

Except there were baked mashed potatoes instead of the croquettes...which was A-okay!

So, first I took a bit of the mashed potatoes. There was a crunchy crust with a cheesy, mass of decadence beneath. I gave some to my daughter, but she didn't want any. ?! Then I sliced off a piece of the short ribs. I really didn't need a knife. The meat just fell apart. It melted in my mouth, mingled with the flavors of wine, salt, onion, and spices. Delicious. The pearl onions were cooked perfectly, soft but not mushy. The Brussels sprouts were also perfect, tender inside and caramelized with a bit of crunch on the outside.

It was a perfect meal. I couldn't finish the whole thing, so I asked for a to-go box to pack it up in. Since my daughter wasn't interested in anything I was eating, I took out a jar of baby food for her. She was also uninterested in this. So, we went to the default...french fries. This was a hit. She ate while she transferred the fries from their container to my to-go box and back. Unfortunately, at some point, someone took my food away, so I had no leftovers to bring home in my box. Alas.

My cousin said she'd go up and get the desserts and coffee while I stayed at the table with my daughter and watched our bags. It didn't occur to me that this meant that she would be treating me and I didn't think to say anything until she got back! So, Carole very nicely treated me to:

Praline and Caramel Gâteau
Praline mousse layered with almond cake, house-made praline, and coated in dark caramel glaze.

It looks like a little mousy, doesn't it? It's so cute! And those are 24 karat gold leaf "whiskers" on the "nose".

I also had cappuccino with a chocolate biscotti. You can't really tell, but they shape the foam on the cappuccino into an apple.

You can also see in this picture all the layers of the cake. It was very creamy, and I could taste all the different flavors. The praline in the top layer of praline mousse added a nice crunchy texture within the creaminess.

As you also tell from the picture, the dessert aroused my daughter's interest (and one of the cats scratched her hand). She swiped the chocolate curl from my gateau, and enjoyed some herself. She has a sweet tooth like her mother and her great grandfather. Later, unnoticed by me, she also stole my biscotti. Well, she needs it more than me...I'm sure it felt good on her teething gums.

So after a wonderful meal with wonderful company, I was warm and full and happy. Then my daughter began to cry. She was tired. She had been an absolute angel the whole time, and it was time to go. She was out cold almost as soon as I got her into her car seat.

If you're ever in the Hudson Valley, Hyde Park area, I highly recommend visiting the Culinary Institute of America. If you're short on time and funds, breakfast or lunch at the Apple Pie Bakery Cafe is a great choice since you don't need reservations, the food is as good as any of the fancier restaurants, and you can enjoy an entire meal for about $20.

Lunch with Carole at the CIA Part 1

Cool Chandelier at the CIA

Yes, I had lunch at the CIA. I'll bet you never knew they were known for their food. The first time I ever ate at the CIA was with my uncle who took my husband and me there as a thank you gesture...a VERY nice gesture that I have never forgotten and never will. I didn't know what to expect, thinking about eating at the CIA. I figured they must have Top Secret food. I soon found out that CIA stands for the Culinary Institute of America. That's where Bobby Flay and Chef Duff graduated from, in addition to many other famous and not so famous amazing chefs. It's a renown culinary school in Hyde Park, NY. It is absolutely beautiful, and it has several wonderful restaurants both upscale and casual.

As a matter of fact, I met my cousin Carole from Carole's Thoughtful Spot for lunch at the CIA yesterday. She wrote an absolutely wonderful blog entry all about the school and the restaurant where we had lunch with wonderful pictures. As I was carrying two bags and my daughter, I didn't take any pictures until we were inside, so please visit Carole's entry to see beautiful pictures of the CIA, stunning views of the frozen Hudson River, and pictures of the restaurant.

I was so thrilled to be meeting Carole for lunch because we have always had so much fun together, and also because I had been cooped up at home with sick children for weeks.

The last time we met for lunch, we were very health conscious and had Lean Cuisine frozen pizzas with Crystal Light and Weight Watchers ice cream bars for dessert. Yesterday, we did not think about one single calorie. It's a good thing too, because we probably would have needed a good accountant to figure out how many calories we consumed.

The goal of the day was to get out, relax, laugh, eat delicious food, enjoy ourselves, and revitalize. We chose the Apple Pie Bakery both because of the menu and because I could relax and not worry about my daughter making noise or a mess.

I'd been to the Apple Pie Bakery once before. Confronted with the delicacies, delights, and temptations, I ordered an egg white omelet and water. The Apple Pie Bakery really is the worst place to order an egg white omelet and water. There is a plethora of artisan breads, rich meals, and display cases full of artistically prepared desserts of every kind. You can see a slide show of the Apple Pie Bakery as well as the other items they offer here and the cafe menu is available here and the dessert menu is here. Take a look and see what you would order...you just might be taking a ride, sail, or flight over to Hyde Park within the next couple of minutes. Anyway, I wasn't about to make the same mistake twice and felt my arteries begin to harden just thinking about what to choose from the menus.

So as not to spoil Carole's surprise, I will end my post at this point as well and reveal what we had for lunch and dessert and how much fun we had in my next post. You will also get to see more relevant pictures, since the silly picture of the chandelier is the only picture I took (because I was laden with child and bags) that does not reveal what I am not yet ready to reveal.

To be continued...

My Favorite Song Right Now - Magnificent

My cousin thinks that live musical guests on talk shows are horrifically boring...not me! I wish I had seen this one!
This is my current favorite song. I love the music, I love the rhythm, I love the lyrics. I hope you enjoy it too.


Magnificent performed live by U2 on the David Letterman Show.




Magnificent
Oh, oh, magnificent

I was born, I was born
To be with you in this space and time
After that and ever after
I haven't had a clue only to break rhyme
This foolishness can leave a heart black and blue, oh, oh

Only love, only love can leave such a mark
But only love, only love can heal such a scar

I was born, I was born to sing for you
I didn't have a choice but to lift you up
And sing whatever song you wanted me to
I give you back my voice from the womb
My first cry, it was a joyful noise, oh, oh

Only love, only love can leave such a mark
But only love, only love can heal such a scar
Justified, till we die you and I will magnify, oh, oh
Magnificent, magnificent, oh, oh

Only love, only love can leave such a mark
But only love, only love unites our hearts
Justified, till we die you and I will magnify, oh, oh
Magnificent, magnificent, magnificent


© POLYGRAM INT. MUSIC PUBL. B.V.; UNIVERSAL MUSIC CORP.;

these lyrics are submitted by OarSmaN
these lyrics are last corrected by Katja Olsen

Never Get Behind ANY Wheel When You've Been Drinking

There's a local radio commercial that absolutely gets under my skin. It's a lawyer talking about how ANYONE can get charged with DWI and that I should program her number into my phone right now because there are some things worth fighting for. Ugh.

NO, not anyone can get charged with DWI. You have to be driving while intoxicated in order to be charged with DWI. One of her examples is that one of her clients was charged after being pulled over for a license plate lamp that was out. So, therefore, it can happen to anyone. No, it can only happen to someone who is driving with their license plate lamp out and is driving after they've been drinking!

Anyway, my husband and I are not big drinkers at all. We have bottles of alcohol that we have literally had for years...some of them I think we've had more than ten years. When we do drink, we don't drink to get drunk. In fact, we try not to get drunk. Lately, we've been under a little more stress than usual, and last night we decided to break out a game and a bottle of wine that we've had for more than a year. It was a bottle of white zinfandel that was brought to a party last year in honor of my father who passed away in 2008 because it was one of his favorite drinks.

I drank more than my husband...I had three glasses and he had one. Three glasses of wine is more than enough to give me a serious case of the giggles...and since they were three eight ounce glasses, I really had five drinks. That would give most anyone the giggles.

We talked about that horrid lawyer, and I said that even though I was drunk, I knew I was drunk, and I wouldn't get behind the wheel. Then I thought I was just silly and I said I couldn't drive, but that I could certainly position myself behind a wheel. So my husband asked if I wanted to go behind the front wheel or the back wheel of the car. So I asked him if he'd be driving backward or forward. He said backward. So I said the front wheel. Well, wasn't I smart? Then I'd only get run over once, wouldn't I? And we laughed harder than we'd laughed in a very long time.

I think I've proven that one should never get behind ANY wheel when he or she has been drinking.

With Zenni Optical, it IS Possible to Get Quality Eyeglasses for a Low Cost!

This is a paid post, but I give my honest review.

I have been lucky over the past few years to have vision insurance. However, there were a few years when I did not have any, and my husband and son both wear glasses. I can vouch for the fact that glasses are very expensive, and honestly, even with our vision insurance, we can still wind up paying a hundred dollars or more for special frames or lenses. I am glad that Zenni Optical has been brought to my attention.

Although I have not had any experiences with them yet, I would like to try them. I thought paying $100 instead of $300 for a pair of frames and lenses was a good deal...but through Zenni, a complete pair of glasses can cost as little as $8! If you have a toddler who wears glasses, like I do, you know that the glasses get broken and lost on a regular basis. Also, it's important to protect children's eyes from the sun, but I have not spent the money on sunglasses. Now I can! I can get sunglasses for my husband too, who can now keep a pair at home to use when we go out and a pair to keep exclusively in the car for driving.

There are a few drawbacks, as you might imagine, but I wouldn't expect there not to be for such inexpensive glasses. Of course, you can't try the glasses on first. The glasses are produced in China, so it takes quite awhile for them to come in the mail. As a mother, because of the reputation of products from China, I would also perform a lead test on the frames before putting them on my son, but that is cheap and easy to do.

All in all, in this economy, or for anyone looking to save some money, I think this company is well worth a try.

Check it out for yourself at http://www.zennioptical.com/ or here eyeglasses.


Here is a link for a review by someone who has used the service for eight years -and has written what seems to be a fair review with pros and cons. http://www.examiner.com/x-28795-Brooklyn-Liberal-Examiner~y2009m11d13-Cheap-eyeglasses-are-a-reality-Check-out-Erics-review-of-Zenni-Optical.

Myself Belt Giveaway at Autism Learning Felt

When I went to visit a blog I enjoy called Autism Learning Felt, I saw a giveaway for a great product called the Myself Belt...It's a belt that kids who have poor dexterity can open and close...themselves! This would be great for my son with PDD-NOS because he has dyspraxia, which makes planning any muscular movements extremely difficult and is the main reason why he speaks and eats very little and can't ride a tricycle, hop, or blow out his birthday candles. Also, because he can't eat, he's very skinny, and he needs a belt. Some pants have adjustable waistbands, which are nice, but not all pants do, and it would be nice to have a belt he could operate to give him some more confidence and independence.

They even have belts with guitars on them...my son would love that!!!!!

Please check out this giveaway here.

Adults with Autism

This is a long post because I've been trying to learn about autism from people who have grown up with it, and it's brought up a lot of thoughts.

I got a mix of wonderful and insightful personal experiences and information mixed with "celebrate neurodiversity". I was fascinated but a bit put off by the concept of celebrating neurodiversity. It's a fine idea, but when there's a safety issue, my son is pleading for me to help him but can't tell me what's wrong, and he's hitting his head hard into the wall or the floor or my head or someone else's head, I must admit I don't feel much like celebrating.

I have been off the blogging circuit for some time spending most of my time caring for my kids and home and celebrating the holidays with family and friends. I didn't have any set day to start blogging again. Then I got a comment on my blog from an adult with autism, and it was so fascinating to me to get a glimpse into how my son experiences the world not from "experts", people who have done research, education advocates, therapists, etc...people who so far have been unable to give me much useful information at all, but from someone who has grown up looking at the world through a similar pair of eyes.

I started looking into other adult voices on the web and found some very interesting videos on You Tube by adults with autism.

My main goal is to understand my son so that I can help him as much as possible, and so that I can understand what he is trying to communicate to me as much as possible. Life is hard enough. He has so many extra challenges that make life even harder.

After viewing various videos on You Tube and reading http://www.rethinkingautism.com/, I gather that, according to some adults with autism's points of view, they do not want to be cured, they do not want to be viewed as a puzzle piece, they do not want to be molded into the form of everyone else in society. They do not appreciate the Autism Speaks movement because of its focus on biomedical research to detect Autism before birth (I suppose so that you can decide whether or not you want the child), and to develop treatments and cures for Autism.

There are apparently no persons with Autism (or Autistics, as they refer to themselves) involved in Autism Speaks. Autism is a part of who they are, and not something that needs to be fixed. They want to celebrate neurodiversity.

As an audiologist, I spent a lot of time learning about Deaf culture, and it is somewhat reminiscent of this argument...they don't want cochlear implants because they view them as an attempt to eradicate Deaf culture, as well as other medical research and treatments. Of course there is no black and white.

My opinion is that to me, my son is a puzzle because I don't understand why he reacts to things the way he does. If he wasn't hurting himself, and me, and others, it might not be such a big deal, but he is. He can't speak. He can't eat. He has trouble learning expressive language no matter what form it is, spoken, sign, or picture, so he has a brain full of thoughts that he can't convey to me no matter how hard he tries. He screams and cries to me in hysterics, "Mamma help!", but can't tell me what he needs help with. If there were some cure for these things to make his life easier, I would love it. I would imagine he would too. It's scary making decisions for a young person, never knowing if you're making the right decisions. Especially when you can't get their input, no matter how much you may want to.

I think EVERY DAY about how what I do will affect him later on in life and hope he doesn't hate me for the decisions I've made and for all the times I've lost my patience and said things I shouldn't have or raised my voice. I always apologize for this, every time it happens because it is wrong for me to yell or say things that are mean, and I can never expect respect from him if I don't show respect myself. But I hate myself every time I fall again into a lack of patience.

I know he can be destructive, loud, and even violent, and fear visiting other people's homes because something may very well be broken, someone may be hit or kicked, or who knows what else might happen. I feel guilty because I don't want to have someone get hurt or have something of theirs broken. The fact is, although I am proud of my son and love him more than words can say, I can not blame someone else for not wanting someone or something to be hurt or damaged. This is also an issue living in an apartment where many other people can hear everything that goes on, and the maintenance company keeps tabs on everything that needs to be repaired and replaced.

I have been blessed by loving and understanding family and friends who take these things in stride and know that my son is not being "bad" and has no malicious intent. I have not had such good experiences everywhere.

I only want the best for my son, and to show him all the love I possibly can.

Farewell Little Red Car on Volkswagon Rock

Here is a very blurry enlargement of the only picture I have of the car... This is the original picture...you can see the car up in the right hand corner of the picture.

For as long as I can remember, whenever I rode upstate with my family to visit my extended family, part of the fun would be to look for the red car painted on a rock on I-84. Into my adulthood I had continued to enjoy looking for that little car, as has my family. We all had our own little trick to remember where it was. My husband had since fallen in love with the little car too. I always wanted to take a picture of it because I thought it was so cute, but it's really not in a convenient spot to pull over. I tried taking a picture while I was driving, but it didn't come out very well, as you can see. It had even been repainted when the paint had become faded.

Then one day, I was horrified to find that it was gone. Someone painted over it with gray paint. It was a little work of art. The rock it was painted on was shaped like a little VW Bug. It was perfect.

I hope that whoever painted that little car will paint it again!!!!!

Here is something I found online that has a little unofficial history of the car...

Thoughts Too Short for a Whole Blog Post

My husband and I played Senet tonight...it's an ancient Egyptian board game just for two. You can read about it here.

I am so sick of strapless bridal gowns...I'm tired of watching, "Say Yes to the Dress" because all the dresses are starting to look the same.

I hate the commercials for Jared jewelry stores...Oh, he went to Jared...yes, he definitely went to Jared...just for those stupid commercials, I will not be going to Jared.

I also hate commercials where they show people doing ridiculous things to convince you that you need a certain product. Oh no! You cut yourself again (commercial shows a woman hacking at her legs with a razor). You need a hair-be-gone safe-t-raze. Puleez.

I'm also tired of Vampires...First Blood, Twilight, Vampire Diaries...yawn.

I'm also tired of anti-Christian shows on television. Family Guy is one of the worst. I'm sick, sick, sick of our Godless society. Holiday Tree at the White House indeed.

I currently have my Facebook language set to English (pirate)...it's very silly. :)

Dairy Queen has some really dysfunctional advertising..."When I'm sad, I get a Blizzard. When I'm happy, I get two." "I sneak out and get a Blizzard when my husband and kids are asleep." "My wife doesn't know I get a Blizzard on every bike ride." I love Blizzards, but that's just weird.

The Forces of the Universe

May the force be with you...uh, no.

My husband talks about the forces of the universe often. He's not fond of them. He thinks they're all against him. He's convinced that somehow, every person is notified of what road he's on, and everyone flocks there. Sometimes I laugh because it really seems to be true.
Other times I don't laugh because I think maybe they don't like his wife either...those forces of the universe.

Alllll I wanted today was to get to my exercise class. My car is at the mechanic's, so we only have one car. I've been driving my husband back and forth to work so I can have the car during the day. I was hoping to get to my exercise class by 9. We had everyone fed, lunches made, and got everyone out the door by 7. We got to my husband's job in 45 minutes. I got back to the exit for my son's school in half an hour. And then...

The forces of the universe unkindly intervened.

The traffic stopped. Where I live, sometimes there's only one way to get someplace. You can't take a little detour, you can't go around the block, you just have to sit on the road you're on because it's the only road you can take. There was construction ahead, and only one lane open...and it wasn't my turn to use the lane. So, I waited and waited, and almost five minutes later it was finally my turn. I thought I could still drop off my son and get to my class on time.

Ha ha ha...the forces were not done with me yet.

My son's class wasn't in the classroom. I had to look all over the building until I found them in the gym.

But

I could still make it to my class just a little bit late.

I drove down the driveway and of course, I was stopped because it wasn't my turn to go yet. Another six minutes would pass before it was finally my turn to go. By now it was much too late to get to class. Sigh. Again. So, I'll go walking or something.

I like going to the class (well, the one time I actually made it I liked going to the class) because I work out much harder than I would by myself, and it's always nice to talk to people over the age of 4.

Alas, it was not to be...the forces of the universe were against me. ;)

The Office

I have never seen The Office, and it's supposed to be a great show. However, it made me nauseous watching it, and I couldn't get through more than the first couple of minutes. A number of shows have a camera style where the camera is zooming in and out and going in and out of focus and panning and shaking and moving all over the place and putting the picture off-center, and The Office uses this style. It makes me dizzy and sick, and I find it enormously distracting from the show. So, I guess I won't be watching that anymore. That's a shame.
Is there anyone else who feels this way? Am I the only one? If I ever went to the movies and they used that style, I would have to leave.

Frustrated!

Ohhhhh I am so frustrated. I have been trying to get back into the health groove, and it's so difficult. I was all gung ho, and then I got my son's diagnosis, and my mind could focus on nothing else, and I got upset, and I did what I always do...I ate too much. Grrrr. Then I started this great new exercise class, but Friday, I still couldn't move, so I was going to go today, but my car is still not working (it doesn't start unless it's jump-started, so my husband takes it to work where there's always someone around to help him because I've used up my AAA help calls), my son is off from school today, and the double stroller doesn't fit into the Corolla. So, I can not go to the stroller strides class because my son will not just hang out and follow along, he will run away. I will go walking today, at least, and we'll be out at the playground like always, but I'm not expecting any good news at Weight Watchers tomorrow. Well, there's always next week. It's hard not to give up, and when I go through periods like this I feel like I have given up, but I have to drag myself up and keep going...falling down a few stairs is not falling down the whole flight, and anyway, even if you do fall down the whole flight and even keep rolling and wind up down the basement, you've only failed if you've decided not to try again. So, here I go.

Drama!

Well, yesterday afternoon was an eventful one. After my son's nap, I took the kids to the playground with the cars (like I do just about every single day). We were there for less than a half hour when my daughter, who is usually all smiles, got very fussy. I tried to feed her, and she started to cry. I thought maybe she needed to teethe, but she didn't want anything in her mouth. She started crying harder, and I thought maybe she had a gas pain, so I walked her in the "colic position" with her tummy down on my arm and her chin cradled in my hand) and bounced her, and patted her. Soon she was screaming, and I couldn't figure out what was wrong. I couldn't find anything poking her, stinging her, any other boo boos, or figure out why she was crying. So, I decided to take her home to give her some Tylenol and maybe gas drops. After about five minutes in the car, she started screaming like she was in horrific pain like I've never heard her cry before, and still the crying escalated. I thought something must be seriously wrong. I've heard crying from gas, but I've never heard anything like this. It was horrifying. So, I took her to the pediatric emergency room instead, thinking maybe she ate something during a one second interval that I didn't have my eyes on her or she had some sort of something somewhere going on that was horrible. They took us in right away, and looked for all sorts of things like a hair tourniquet (kids get a hair wrapped around a finger or toe and it becomes very painful), stings, mulch splinters, something stuck in her mouth or throat, ear infection, corneal abrasion, fever, and found nothing. After awhile, she just stopped crying. We never did figure out what was wrong. Maybe it was just the mother of all gas pains. We'll probably never know. The doctor agreed that the crying was unusually intense. I'd rather be safe than sorry.

While we were there, my husband met us, and took my son outside to play. While walking down the steps, my son missed one and fell, twisting his foot. He started limping pretty badly. We all went home, and put ice on my son's foot, but he started to limp much worse, and just stand on one foot...so...

We went back to the pediatric emergency room. And guess what? Nothing was wrong. Just a twist and a bruise. Sheesh. A whole lotta drama over nothing.

I got out of cooking dinner anyway. LOL We picked up some excellent Chinese food on the way home.

Later this morning, I'm taking my son to the neurologist. I hope that he will be able to illuminate some way for me to help my son more than I am now.

I'll update my blog after we go to let you know what happened.

McAfee Warning

I was looking through some of my old posts, and when I clicked on a link, I got the following warning:

drmomsspot.blogspot.com may try to steal your information.
Why were you redirected to this page? When we visited this site, we found it may be designed to trick you into submitting your financial or personal information to online scammers. This is a serious security threat which could lead to identity theft, financial losses or other dissemination of personal information.

I can assure you that this is completely unfounded and I have no interest in stealing anyone's information, and my site is by no means a phishing site. I am absolutely appalled by this, and I have written to McAfee to have them investigate what is causing this warning and to have my website status changed. Sheesh!

So feel free to read!

Welcome Autumn! It Was a Great Day!

This is a long post because a great day deserves a longer post than a lousy day.

Today was a great day. A GREAT day. It's so nice to be able to say that today was a great day! My daughter slept all night, so I woke up refreshed and chock full of patience. I haven't been singing to my son to wake him up very often, but I did today, and he loves it. "Good morning, good morning! It's nice to see you smile! Good morning, good morning to you! Good morning, good morning, my Boo!" He always looks so handsome when I dress him for school and put spray conditioner in his hair and brush it nicely. He did slap his father in the face when my husband tried to kiss him goodbye. We're still working on the physical. I know he just doesn't want his father to leave, but we're working on right and wrong ways to express our feelings. It's a project. However, I choose not to allow that to be a blemish.

My daughter slept until 8:45...I had to wake her up. I sang to her too, and she loved it. We played, we read books, I played the flute and guitar for her, I sang some more, we played some more, and then she actually took a nap! It wasn't a long nap, but I had a nice peaceful lunch and took a shower. That's a big deal! Then it was time to get Big Brother off the bus! My daughter is always very excited when Big Brother comes home, and when she sees the bus, her little arms and legs kick and swing, and she squeals.

My son had a great day at school, and his physical therapist said that he'd "grown up" a lot over the summer. How nice to read! Then we went to the bank to deposit money (always a good thing), and I had promised my son I would wait for him because the lady in the window always gives him a blue lollipop. Then we went to our favorite place, the playground with the cars. By the time we got there, my son was properly blue and very happy. It was sunny and in the low 70's. My son behaved beautifully, and even opened up the gate for a mother coming through with a stroller...nobody asked him, he just did it. He got hugs, kisses, a high five, and lots of praise. My daughter scooted all over the mulch portion of the playground on her bottom exploring, and left a little trail where she had dragged her bottom through the mulch and exposed the soil. It was so cute. Then Daddy met us at the park, and we went out to eat at a restaurant near the railroad tracks. My son kept calling the trains saying, "Choo-choo, where are you?" How adorable. My son usually eats ketchup and nothing else. Tonight, he wanted cocktail sauce, convinced we were withholding ketchup. I tried to explain that it was hot and spicy, and not ketchup, but ketchup with horseradish. He still wanted it, so we thought, why not let him try. He put a great big spoonful into his mouth, and screamed. He took a big drink of water and then proceeded to wipe off his tongue with his napkin. My son has a great sense of humor, and laughed along with Mommy, Daddy, and Baby Sister after he had put out the fire. I hated to laugh, but I couldn't help myself, and well, we've all been there at one time or another, haven't we? What better lesson to learn than to be able to laugh at yourself?

Then we went home, and did our usual bedtime routine. My son had no nap, so he was pretty wound up. So, I sang "Beautiful Boy" by John Lennon and gave him tickle rubs. His eyes were rolling back in his head. Daddy read "Goodnight Moon", and he fell asleep right away.

Then we went on to my daughter, and we read "Goodnight Moon" to her as well. She pointed to the "two little kittens" and said, "niiiice". Nice is her word for cats. She also has started saying, "Dada", and loves to call Daddy. She's also pointing out all sorts of things wherever we go, and points to things that she wants as well. It's fantastic to watch her. Now that she's sleeping, I can really enjoy her.

And so, it's 10:45 pm, and I am off to bed with both children asleep. After doing the usual nightly hygiene activities, I will spray my pillow with my Bath and Body Works Black Chamomile aromatherapy relaxation pillow spray, put in my ear plugs (I can't hear my husband snore, but I can still hear the baby...go figure), and slip into crisp sheets next to my husband where I will be joined almost immediately by one of my cats. Then I will read a few pages from "My Life in France" by Julia Child and slip off to dreamland. Heaven.

Romance

I was watching the Barefoot Contessa recently, and she was preparing a dinner for her husband for their anniversary. She commented that people often ask her what makes a happy marriage. She said that she's glad she doesn't have to work at it. She wants to make her husband happy, and he wants to make her happy. It's as simple as that.

I am blessed to have a marriage like that. We are committed to spending time together, but we don't really consider it work...we just love to be together.
Since we have two young children and not a whole lot of money, we keep things low key. But honestly, I don't think I'd want to do anything much differently even if we were in different circumstances. We have carpet picnics and play board games by lantern light in bed. The birthday card he gave me said, "My Wife, My Special Blessing", and inside, one of the many things he wrote is that I help him get through each day with a smile. He is my special blessing too. Sigh.