Pack Rat

I am a huge pack rat. It wasn't until the last few months that I really realized my bad habit. The first wave happened when we were packing to move I found stuff I didn't even know existed. After being questioned repeatedly by J as to if I REALLY needed it I did get rid of some of it. Then a month later I decided to go through all of the tubs in our garage and get rid of stuff. Oh my goodness. First of all let me tell you this little fact about myself I will find things way back in a corner of my kitchen or where ever else it is and I will think I haven't used this in years and then I will start thinking of all of the things I could do w/it and so I keep it. Okay so back to the garage as I am cleaning out the tubs I find all sorts of stuff. Here are some of the things I found: Barbies (every single one I have ever owend), Barbie accessories, every Cabbage Patch doll I have ever owned, doll clothes, stuffed animals from when I was little, toys that I played w/when I was like less than 7 years old, McDonald's toys from like the early 90's late 80's, all of my costumes I ever had while I took dancing (about 9 years worth) and a whole tub of clothes I wore in High School. I couldn't believe all of this stuff and I am sure there is more I am forgetting about. Oh I also have records that were my cousins from like the 70's. So what did I do w/all of this stuff you might ask?? I kept it! :) And why did I keep all of this stuff? Well that is an easy answer I may need it one day!!

Frustrating

Here we go again.Yesterday when I picked E up from school his teacher told me that he had had a great day. He had absolutely no problems today. He did everything he was supposed to and participated in everything. I hope finally maybe he is going to start having better days. Well I spoke to soon. So I went to pick up E from school today and his teacher told me that she had to pretend to call me today b/c E wasn't doing what he was supposed to be doing. This time he didn't want his shoes and socks on and didn't want to stand up to say the pledge and all of that. His teacher has even called his teacher of the preschool he was at last year (the special education preschool) to see if he had any suggestions. Bascially all he told her was stuff she had already tried. Then to make matters worse he kicked his other teacher today! I guess not to long after he did it he said he was sorry. But still that can't happen. Which is actually surprising b/c he is always so loving and hugging everyone especially his teachers. I just can't believe it. So I asked her did he kick her or kick at her? And she said he kicked at her but he did make contact. Not that that lightens it at all but I just couldn't imagine my sweet little boy just standing right in front of someone and kicking them. So it made me feel a little better but still that is unacceptable! So right now I am just a little frustrated more b/c I don't know what to tell them that will help! Plus I don't want him to be disrupting class all of the time! It gets upsetting in a way b/c all of the teachers up there know his name and I am like do they know his name b/c he is always in trouble or do they just know all of the kids names! Last year at MDO a lot of the teachers knew his name b/c of the fact that he was always in trouble. What's interesting is just last night J and I were talking about at times we aren't sure if he should get in trouble or not b/c he really may not understand some things. I mean of course he gets in trouble but like on the school issues could something or someone be bothering him and he just can't tell us and that is why he acts like that. Or a noise that happens in the classroom that bothers him and here we are getting on to him when really he can't help it. Like today I told him you have to make good choices. And he says I am and I am like well today you didn't make good choices and he says I did or I am. I try to explain what bad choices he made and he still says I am making good choices. So I have no idea how to explain it to him I mean it's really like he doesn't get it. On the other hand I don't want to be dismissing things that I assume he doesn't understand and really he does.

Pizza

Last night we asked E what he wanted for dinner. He said pizza. We told him that we had just had pizza recently and to pick something else. So he thought a minute and said pizza bites (bagel bites). We laughed and said nice try.

Other kids

Only once and a while are we around kids who are described as "typical" or sometimes "A typical" kids to a point where we spend time w/them and get to observe how they act. However today was one of the days. Today was our turn to watch the kids during church. The kids are all about the age of E. E wasn't there today b/c he stayed the weekend w/his grandparents so today was a really good getting to observe other kids. I say all of this to say this b/c we are not around other kids we I guess you would say forget how other kids are and just assume that E behaves and talks and acts like a "typical" child. Then we go to church or where ever else it may be and sometimes it feels like such a slap in the face. It gets hard at times watching how other kids talk and tell you about everything and describe things and how they play. J and I discussed that after church how we wish E could talk to us like that. I know he will get there eventually the question is when?

New Language

Yesterday Ethan started singing the alphabet in Spanish or French not sure which one. Then later that day he started counting to 20 in Spanish! Once again Baby Einstein has taught our little guy more things. Then today he started saying what I think was the alphabet again although I don't know which language it was. The video he watches has Spanish, French, Russian and I think German. There may also be some other ones. So whatever he was saying it in it wasn't Spanish or French this time it was another one. He has learned so much from these videos.

Rough Start

Today was E's first day back after only getting to go to school last Monday and then being off b/c of the pnuemonia. So he was all excited to go and actually asked me everyday this weekend if he could go to school. So anyway I take him to school this morning and everything is going just like normal he is in a good mood and everything. I get him there and am talking to his teacher and she is like he seems so happy to be back and I said we'll see if it lasts. B/c in the past going back to school after a break is always hard for him. Well sure enough about an hour after I dropped him off his teacher calls and says that they have been going round and round for about 20 minutes or so. She said he had been growling and doing his version of talking back (which she had written everything down so I would know what all he said). So he doesn't want to talk to me on the phone so I decide maybe I need to go up there so I do and apparently that is the redirecting he needed b/c after talking to him for like a minute he was fine. So let me explain about redirecting w/Ethan and other kids w/AS at times it is necessary to redirect or get their attention on something else. For instance if he is overstimulated by someething or in a grunting episode sometimes you can change the subject or activity or whatever you are doing and he will snap out of it. Although w/redirecting sometimes what works one day may not work the next day. You just have to figure it out and sometimes that can be pretty hard, like for her today. She was trying everything she could think of. So I get him back to class and then am talking to his teacher and we figured out what more than likely the problem was is that he had had a change in his routine the first change was the fact that he hadn't been to school but one time last week and the second change is for some reason the director of the 4 year old program he is in decided to rearrange his teachers classroom over the weekend. So two changes combined plus whatever else may have been bothering him all mixed together made for a rough start. However after taking him back to class he was just fine for the rest of the day. Hopefully tomorrow he will have a better day!!

Pocachoo

Yesterday I brought E home a little red I called it a rhino but he says it's not and from the mooing noises he keeps doing he thinks it is a cow. So anyway I give it to him and he sat it on the table at lunch yesterday and I ask him what is your new friends name and he says Pocachoo. I was so impressed w/his answer b/c I know most kids and even myself when I was little would have thought of something simple or basic like fluffy or snowball or bob or at least there favorite character from something. So then I thought well maybe he just made it up and won't remember it so we asked him throughout the day and he still says the same thing. He will even correct you if you mispronounce it. I figure he has heard this somewhere but I don't know where.