Ketchup

OK....the long promised catch-up posting is about to commence!

There are so many things that have happened to us since July, it will probably take a few subsequent postings to really flesh things out.

In a (really big, colossal) nutshell:

We moved back from TX to MD, made the trip in TWO DAYS -- in two vehicles (one of which was a small moving van), with two kids and two dogs. Perhaps it was for the best that I didn't have a computer in August; it took me until September to be able to hold a rational line of thinking again! ; )

Z went back to TX; I unpacked the house and got A enrolled in school, got busy with our local church. Our church family helped us unload the truck in a half hour! Plus, some delightful ladies helped us scrub the house out to get the cigarette smoke glaze off our walls, and get some of the unusual odor out. Those lovely acoustic ceiling tiles absorb all sorts of things, not just water from leaky roofs -- but some sprays with hospital grade Odoban did help. **now that we've been heating the house for fall, some smells are coming out again, so we'll have to find a new tactic to deal with it. The church also got our pantry started, the last item of which I used last week! (I love me some Italian cooking, but I can't do 15 boxes of spaghetti all at once -- my thighs need me to space it out some!)

I have been having some weird nerve and muscle issues flaring up in the last year or so, and have been undergoing lots of fun tests while the doctor tries to figure out what in tarnation is going on. Most confusing is the come-and-go nature of the symptoms, a few of which range from extreme fatigue, severe headaches on the left side, electric shocks and numbness, to shaky "Jell-o" muscles that don't want to work. Some days everything's normal, others it's not. They did do an MRI of my ol' noggin back a month and a half ago, proof that I actually do have a brain for those that might wonder, but it was inconclusive other than there is brain matter in the right place. Which is good! That means I likely don't have MS, and I don't have a brain tumor -- which were the two main options that they were looking for.

Z threw what he could into his car and drove up by himself at the beginning of September when the fatigue was at its height. Everything else got chucked into a storage unit in TX. Which we will get some of....at some point. Because Z left so quickly, items that we had intended to sell or give away (shelves, computer desk, etc) wound up being chucked into the storage unit along with my antique theatre seats, our trunk full of games, and the mirror to my dresser. So that will have to be sorted through, whenever we get a chance to get back down there...hopefully in the next couple of years at the rate life keeps happening. I lament, but I realize that it is just "stuff" -- nothing that is essential for life to go on. If we never get it, again, it's just -- STUFF. I might shed a tear over my new winter boots I got for Christmas last year, though -- warmest things my sensitive, formerly frost-bitten toes ever snuggled in.

On the Toilet Bowl drama: K (finally) decided that she's going to be a big girl and just started using the toilet voluntarily one day a little over a couple of weeks ago. I rarely have to prompt her, and she's only had three accidents in as many weeks (two of which were overnight).

And there was great rejoicing in the land.

What makes this the biggest "D'Oh!" moment is why she decided it was time. Z and I have been making all sorts of statements for the last few months to the tune of "you're a big girl now, it's time to start using the toilet like a big girl...diapers are for babies, you're three!" Money is, like it is for most of you right now, a tight commodity for us and we simply can't afford to keep purchasing plastic/vinyl pants to cover her cotton undies as they wear out, nor are disposable ones financially feasible. A couple of weeks ago, we told her again, "you have to start peeing and pooping in the toilet like a big girl." She looked at me for a moment, cocked her head to the side, and said, "OK, mommy!"

And that was it -- she's done it ever since. And stayed dry and clean through 99% of the time. Thrilling, but frustrating all at the same time. Why hadn't that ever worked before? I guess she just had to be ready on her own time to really do it.

*sigh* Stubborn li'l thang. She comes by it honestly, though.

As far as A goes, with prompting he will keep cotton undies dry about 90% of the time now, and that's what he predominantly wears when he's at home. We do still have to put disposables on him when he goes to school or out in public for the protection qualities...A has enough challenges that peeing through his pants in front of the class would really not help things. We're still working on the #2 aspect, so to speak. A has really crappy muscle control (pun intended) and tends to "streak" constantly. Makes for a lot of laundry, but we're getting there....average age for children with autism to be potty-trained is 5 1/2, and A just turned 6 last week, so we're at least close to being on target.

A is having some difficulties in kindergarten this year. Z and I aren't really sure what is going on, because he usually loves school, but he has been severely disruptive and keeps getting yanked out of the classroom. He is smart enough to do the academic work, he is just refusing to do so or take the tests. Frustrating for his teacher, who knows he can do it but is having to fail him for not completing the tests required by the county for assessment purposes, and frustrating for Z and I who don't know how to "light a far" (spelling intended) under the boy's britches. His teacher has made wonderful concessions to the curriculum to match A's IEP (individualized education plan), and I am having some mommy guilt over my son's behavior because Miss M really is going above and beyond the call of duty for our kid.

A is very smart; he taught himself to read (he refused to let me read to him starting about age 2). A can read at least one grade level up if not two. He does love Dr. Seuss, but is also reading Spongebob Squarepants books that are rated for at least 7 years and up. I really don't care what he's reading as long as he enjoys it and is doing so (and as long as the content is appropriate -- no underwear catalogs of course!). Our hope is that he will be able to use the computer to communicate, since he can also spell random words and routinely does so with the refrigerator magnets. (Not just "cat", but things like "dreamworks" and "guitar").

So imagine our frustration when the teacher tells us that he won't read for the test, won't indicate letter sounds or anything else -- until later, when he'll rattle them all off and smile at his teacher. After the testing period is over.

A is having behavioral issues, as I briefly alluded to above. Lots of screaming, tantrums, throwing things, and waving his fist in the air...also a lot of noisy chatter and refusal to quiet down during work time. Z and I are trying to figure out exactly what our options are, because this isn't working right now.

Oh; and our septic system finally died. As in, spilled into our yard, died. More on this later, when we figure out how in the world we're going to get it fixed -- let's just say that what was on the deed to the house ain't what we got in the back yard. And the county health inspectors feel sorry for us. If anyone has an extra, oh, $30K lying around not doing anything useful, feel free to send it my way. We'd appreciate it; I'll even let you use the toilet first after the new system is installed! ; )

On the upside -- (yes, here's the Little Susie Sunshine portion of the post) -- we are tremendously blessed. Blessed to be back "home", blessed to have good friends and good family. And each other. Blessed to look out the front window at the mountains, enjoying the leaves as they changed in all their fall finery. Blessed that we are all fairly healthy, my weirdness aside. Blessed that my daughter still has her creativity and will wear a ballerina dress, a camouflage baseball cap, striped shoes (courtesy of Michele S) and two different colored socks, three necklaces, and a Hello Kitty wristwatch -- to the bus stop, while carrying a stuffed cat. Now, that is self-confidence! I hope she never loses it. Blessed that we have a brick hearth and a 1-yr old black woodstove in perfect condition at a total cost of $230. Blessed that I have a dear friend who convinces me to buy things like pretty shoes (which are killer, both in appearance and wearability).

Photo posts coming soon....as soon as I figure out how to rig the camera to extract them. The door that covers the batteries split in half a couple of months ago, and I have to press it together with a surprising amount of force on that spot to even turn the camera on -- it's affecting the metal contacts on the batteries; it won't work on the dock and we can't remove the memory. So we're getting our MacGyver on. Hopefully we'll have some results soon.

Speaking of MacGyver, if I don't address it soon, remind me to tell you about how my husband attached our video camera to a broomstick with painters tape (yes, that would be the papery, easily torn blue stuff) and shoved it through the wall of the house into the flue of the chimney. I about had a heart attack.

Another idea rattling around the cranium is adding a cooking section to the blog, or creating a new site for that -- I love to cook, if I'm not making family recipes I make up my own for everything from cookies to pasta sauces, and I do most of it from scratch (less preservatives, tastes better, and it's cheaper). I have a friend that wants me to show her how to make some things, too, which might be fun to chronicle. I frequently check out blogs like The Pioneer Woman and Smitten Kitchen and realize that I am nowhere near their leagues -- but still think it might be fun. My only hang-up is I don't know where some of the family recipes came from, and I have no idea what the legal ramifications of posting something like that are. My own stuff is just that, but as for anything else...I want to give credit where credit is due. Lemme know what you think, and if you have any name ideas for such a venture. You guys are every bit as creative (usually more so) than I am.

Ciao!