Samantha: Mom, I never want to leave you.
Mom: I never want you to leave me either.
Samantha: Do you know why? Because, I love you and you are nice to me.
Mom: I love you too, Sweetheart.
Samantha: And if I ever make you sad, I will love you anyway.
???????? Isn't that my job to love HER anyway??????????????
Wednesday, July 29, 2009
Tuesday, July 28, 2009
Love it!!!!
I'm up late listening to a speech given by Carol Castellano at the NFB's National Convention. I've heard so many things that are similar to what she says with my girls and Braille. I'm so excited to find people who agree with Brett and I, and our decision to have the girls learn Braille.
It makes me laugh when I hear the it will be bad for them. How is it bad to learn a different language? Is it bad to teach your kids Spanish, or French? Is it bad to let them take these courses in school? The nice thing with having the connections that we have, is that it has been easy to get the girls set up with the Visually Impaired Teachers.
If you would like to hear this speech click the link below and then toward the bottom of the blog on the right side is FAVORITES. It's listed under there.
Thanks Marla!!!!!!
http://upobc.blogspot.com/2009/07/why-are-you-trying-to-make-that-child.html
It makes me laugh when I hear the it will be bad for them. How is it bad to learn a different language? Is it bad to teach your kids Spanish, or French? Is it bad to let them take these courses in school? The nice thing with having the connections that we have, is that it has been easy to get the girls set up with the Visually Impaired Teachers.
If you would like to hear this speech click the link below and then toward the bottom of the blog on the right side is FAVORITES. It's listed under there.
Thanks Marla!!!!!!
http://upobc.blogspot.com/2009/07/why-are-you-trying-to-make-that-child.html
Jason Update
Jason's friend Paula came to see us today, and she brought a visitor. Jean from Early Intervention came along for the ride. It's assessment time again.
Jason's receptive language is about 18 months, and his expressive language is about 14 months. This is no surprise to Brett or I because we've seen little progress with him in language development over the last 6 months. However, after getting his tubes he is sounding so much better!!!! He's not as nasally as before, and he seems to be using some different sounds in his babbling. I'm very hopeful for him, and seeing some sort of progress. He's not banging his head on things nearly at all anymore. He seems to be taking in a little more then before and has been playing more with kids his own age.
Jean is going to give his evaluation to the Early Intervention Speech Therapist and see if she would like to evaluate him some more. I'm sure she will want to get a more in depth look at my boy but it won't be for a while, and who knows what he will be doing in a month.
Jason's receptive language is about 18 months, and his expressive language is about 14 months. This is no surprise to Brett or I because we've seen little progress with him in language development over the last 6 months. However, after getting his tubes he is sounding so much better!!!! He's not as nasally as before, and he seems to be using some different sounds in his babbling. I'm very hopeful for him, and seeing some sort of progress. He's not banging his head on things nearly at all anymore. He seems to be taking in a little more then before and has been playing more with kids his own age.
Jean is going to give his evaluation to the Early Intervention Speech Therapist and see if she would like to evaluate him some more. I'm sure she will want to get a more in depth look at my boy but it won't be for a while, and who knows what he will be doing in a month.
Sunday, July 26, 2009
Crazy!!
I now have a 10 year old, 9 year old, 6 year old and 22 month old. Tori's Birthday was on Friday, and I took lots of pictures. But, I'm on the laptop and I don't have the pictures on this computer. I'll run those out tomorrow.
A few years ago, everyone just happened to be off on the 24th. We decided to take Tori to the mall and make her feel special, and spoiled. The next year she asked me if we were going to the mall again, and it has continued ever since. This year there was a lot more people there for Tori's birthday. There are a lot more kids this time then there were a few years back. So it was like an outing with the girls, with a couple little boys added in the mix.
Tori is my second child, and she was a bit of a surprise for us. Duncan and Tori are 16 months apart. When I found out I was pregnant again I was immediately excited and overwhelmed at once. We automatically decided that I needed to find a job that I could do at home, and take care of our soon to be 2 kids. She has been such a blessing in our lives. She was such a mellow little thing, and she had such a sweet smile. Tori was such lovey and snuggly, when Duncan wanted to be down running around, Tori would snuggle with me for hours. She was so patient with her older brother that obviously was too little to know how to be a good big brother yet.
She is now my beautiful 9 year old, and is so strong!!! She is so sweet, and loving. She loves Art, Music, Books, Dancing, and Swimming. She is a very spiritual little thing and will share her testimony with anyone! She loves everyone, and everything. She is my little "Tree Hugger" and is constantly reminding us about how to take care of our world. She loves everyone, and has a hard time moving on with things sometimes. She loves her Teachers, and will always love and remember everyone of them. She will do anything for anyone and will take care of everyone as well. I hope for so many things for her, and only want whats best for her, as well as the other 3 kids.
I hope that I can always see what she needs and be able to have her talk to me when she needs me. I hope that I can be the kind of Mom she needs me to be, as well as the other three.
A few years ago, everyone just happened to be off on the 24th. We decided to take Tori to the mall and make her feel special, and spoiled. The next year she asked me if we were going to the mall again, and it has continued ever since. This year there was a lot more people there for Tori's birthday. There are a lot more kids this time then there were a few years back. So it was like an outing with the girls, with a couple little boys added in the mix.
Tori is my second child, and she was a bit of a surprise for us. Duncan and Tori are 16 months apart. When I found out I was pregnant again I was immediately excited and overwhelmed at once. We automatically decided that I needed to find a job that I could do at home, and take care of our soon to be 2 kids. She has been such a blessing in our lives. She was such a mellow little thing, and she had such a sweet smile. Tori was such lovey and snuggly, when Duncan wanted to be down running around, Tori would snuggle with me for hours. She was so patient with her older brother that obviously was too little to know how to be a good big brother yet.
She is now my beautiful 9 year old, and is so strong!!! She is so sweet, and loving. She loves Art, Music, Books, Dancing, and Swimming. She is a very spiritual little thing and will share her testimony with anyone! She loves everyone, and everything. She is my little "Tree Hugger" and is constantly reminding us about how to take care of our world. She loves everyone, and has a hard time moving on with things sometimes. She loves her Teachers, and will always love and remember everyone of them. She will do anything for anyone and will take care of everyone as well. I hope for so many things for her, and only want whats best for her, as well as the other 3 kids.
I hope that I can always see what she needs and be able to have her talk to me when she needs me. I hope that I can be the kind of Mom she needs me to be, as well as the other three.
Wednesday, July 22, 2009
Blessings
With my kids and all they've been through, I'm so grateful for the Priesthood that my hubby holds. My family is one of those that looks at a blessing as a last resort. You hold off with the big guns until there is no other option. Brett and his family has shown me that this doesn't have to be the case. Sadly, we have had a lot of the last resort, hit the floor and pray moments in our lives. But, so far my kids are doing well and we are in the right place with the right doctors.
Brett and my Dad gave Jason a blessing the night before he got his tubes again. I know that this surgery is just a routine thing and it was pretty much an in and out 15 minute procedure, but it's the rest of the stuff that I'm hopeful for.
Brett blessed Jason with the ability and strength for him to overcome the adversity he has been "blessed" with in this life. That is such a comfort to me, with all that the kids have been through it's nice to have something to look forward to.
This also means to me, that not only is my husband's heart and mind in the same place as mine, but he is also encouraged by the tiny minuscule advances that we see in him. For example, he woke up from his nap today, crying as usual. I went in to his room and he wasn't even awake enough to have his eyes open, but he was standing up at the edge of the crib. I said, "Hey", and he jumped sky high. That is a reaction I haven't seen from him, that I can recall. He's also been a little less frustrated this week, I think he is feeling less out of control because he can hear what is going on and isn't surprised when things aren't going exactly how he wants them to. Hopefully his ears continue to stay clear and he continues to improve..
Brett and my Dad gave Jason a blessing the night before he got his tubes again. I know that this surgery is just a routine thing and it was pretty much an in and out 15 minute procedure, but it's the rest of the stuff that I'm hopeful for.
Brett blessed Jason with the ability and strength for him to overcome the adversity he has been "blessed" with in this life. That is such a comfort to me, with all that the kids have been through it's nice to have something to look forward to.
This also means to me, that not only is my husband's heart and mind in the same place as mine, but he is also encouraged by the tiny minuscule advances that we see in him. For example, he woke up from his nap today, crying as usual. I went in to his room and he wasn't even awake enough to have his eyes open, but he was standing up at the edge of the crib. I said, "Hey", and he jumped sky high. That is a reaction I haven't seen from him, that I can recall. He's also been a little less frustrated this week, I think he is feeling less out of control because he can hear what is going on and isn't surprised when things aren't going exactly how he wants them to. Hopefully his ears continue to stay clear and he continues to improve..
Jason Update
Jason had an appointment with Dr. Morales today. He is the doctor that repaired Jason's palate last year. It was quite amazing, the appointment was at 9:45 am and I was in and out so fast I thought something was wrong. LOL!
The nurses assistant came in to the office to double check everything, and then when she walked out Jason waved and said "All Done." Crystal clear. Yay!!!
Dr. Morales came into the office within 5 minutes, yes I know I'm still in shock. He asked how old Jason was, and I advised him he would be 2 in September. He looked again and said, "Wow, he's a big boy isn't he?" I just have to laugh at this. Dr. Morales is so used to seeing kids with feeding problems that weigh 20 lbs at 4 years old. Then there's Jason, who weighs 33 lbs at 22 months.
Dr. Morales just wanted to check that his face was growing properly, that he had no problems with his teeth, and that the repair had healed fully. He also asked about his speech development, which opens a whole can of worms.
I advised him that he has a unilateral hearing loss and that so far he really isn't doing much communication. I told him that most of his sounds are guttural and that we are seeing Paula from the school for the deaf every other week. I let him know that we had tubes placed again, last week and that I'm seeing a pretty good improvement right now. I also told him that the next step will be speech therapy, and that we are waiting on the advise from Paula to pick the right one for our rambunctious whirlwind.
He said that the guttural sounds indicate that his palate is doing well. He says the late speech development is more likely caused from the hearing loss then a problem with his palate. He wants to see him again in a year to do the same routine check, and to see how his speech is developing.
The nurses assistant came in to the office to double check everything, and then when she walked out Jason waved and said "All Done." Crystal clear. Yay!!!
Dr. Morales came into the office within 5 minutes, yes I know I'm still in shock. He asked how old Jason was, and I advised him he would be 2 in September. He looked again and said, "Wow, he's a big boy isn't he?" I just have to laugh at this. Dr. Morales is so used to seeing kids with feeding problems that weigh 20 lbs at 4 years old. Then there's Jason, who weighs 33 lbs at 22 months.
Dr. Morales just wanted to check that his face was growing properly, that he had no problems with his teeth, and that the repair had healed fully. He also asked about his speech development, which opens a whole can of worms.
I advised him that he has a unilateral hearing loss and that so far he really isn't doing much communication. I told him that most of his sounds are guttural and that we are seeing Paula from the school for the deaf every other week. I let him know that we had tubes placed again, last week and that I'm seeing a pretty good improvement right now. I also told him that the next step will be speech therapy, and that we are waiting on the advise from Paula to pick the right one for our rambunctious whirlwind.
He said that the guttural sounds indicate that his palate is doing well. He says the late speech development is more likely caused from the hearing loss then a problem with his palate. He wants to see him again in a year to do the same routine check, and to see how his speech is developing.
Tuesday, July 21, 2009
Summer Rec
This morning was Summer Rec at the park again. The kids had a ball and they played until their cheeks were pink.
Jason played on the park and had so much fun sliding and climbing on the ladders.
Samantha had Dinosaur day at Adventure Camp. She got to find a dinosaur egg in the sand and they did some scratch art ornaments shaped like dinosaurs. She also got to play with her best friend Erika and her twin sister Margot. She even got to go home with them for a few hours. She had a a lot of fun and really didn't want to come home when I went to pick her up.
Tori woke up with a stuffy nose. I was hoping that it was just allergies but I think that it is something more. She wasn't feeling well tonight when she went to bed. We'll have to see if she is doing ok in the morning, or if there is more to worry about this week. She did go and play Softball though. She hit the ball on the 3rd swing and made it to 2nd base. She also got someone out when she was playing third-baseman. She is really enjoying it.
Duncan got up put on shorts and then changed his mind and changed into pants. I asked him about this later and he advised me that he knew he would be sliding into the bases so he didn't want to scratch up his legs. He thinks he's a pro already. He got a hit and eventually made it to home. He's enjoying baseball quite a bit. I'm hoping he sticks with soccer. This is actually something i enjoy watching. LOL!!! But if the boy wants to play baseball, we'll do what we can. He also ended up being invited to go to Cherry Hill with his buddy. It's a lovely little water park not to far away, that is a lot of fun. He enjoyed himself immensely and even wants to camp out there sometime this summer.
I also decided not to post any of the summer rec pictures until it's over. Since you would be bombarded with the same kind of pictures over and over, I'll be nice and just pick the best and post them all at once. I have started having Duncan take Tori's picture's, and Tori take Duncan's. It keeps them busy when there is an hour to kill waiting for the siblings. Duncan seems to be able to use the camera pretty well. Tori isn't quite sure how to use it, so today I had to run over and get a few more picture's of Duncan. I did get a good picture of the grass, the sky and the fence though. =)
Jason played on the park and had so much fun sliding and climbing on the ladders.
Samantha had Dinosaur day at Adventure Camp. She got to find a dinosaur egg in the sand and they did some scratch art ornaments shaped like dinosaurs. She also got to play with her best friend Erika and her twin sister Margot. She even got to go home with them for a few hours. She had a a lot of fun and really didn't want to come home when I went to pick her up.
Tori woke up with a stuffy nose. I was hoping that it was just allergies but I think that it is something more. She wasn't feeling well tonight when she went to bed. We'll have to see if she is doing ok in the morning, or if there is more to worry about this week. She did go and play Softball though. She hit the ball on the 3rd swing and made it to 2nd base. She also got someone out when she was playing third-baseman. She is really enjoying it.
Duncan got up put on shorts and then changed his mind and changed into pants. I asked him about this later and he advised me that he knew he would be sliding into the bases so he didn't want to scratch up his legs. He thinks he's a pro already. He got a hit and eventually made it to home. He's enjoying baseball quite a bit. I'm hoping he sticks with soccer. This is actually something i enjoy watching. LOL!!! But if the boy wants to play baseball, we'll do what we can. He also ended up being invited to go to Cherry Hill with his buddy. It's a lovely little water park not to far away, that is a lot of fun. He enjoyed himself immensely and even wants to camp out there sometime this summer.
I also decided not to post any of the summer rec pictures until it's over. Since you would be bombarded with the same kind of pictures over and over, I'll be nice and just pick the best and post them all at once. I have started having Duncan take Tori's picture's, and Tori take Duncan's. It keeps them busy when there is an hour to kill waiting for the siblings. Duncan seems to be able to use the camera pretty well. Tori isn't quite sure how to use it, so today I had to run over and get a few more picture's of Duncan. I did get a good picture of the grass, the sky and the fence though. =)
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