New Look :)

So I've been terrible about blogging for the last....(gulp) year or so. I wanted to get back to updating on our little family but I needed a new look first. So I asked my super talented sister-in-law Lisa Campbell to give my blog a fresh new look. And didn't she do a fabulous job?! I just love it!

An awful lot has happened since my last post. Like a whole new set of New Year's resolutions, but that's probably the least of it. The biggest thing that has changed for us is our number. We've grown from a family of 4, to a family of 5. That's right, our kids are so amazing that we decided to procreate again. And we were blessed with our little Cora. She was born in September and is an absolute joy! See, here's our newest little nugget of love. Isn't she cute?

Cora eats, sleeps, poops, coos, babbles, and does all that other stuff babies like to do, only better in my eyes since I *am* her mother ;). Turns out she is a miserable sick person though and we're going to have to work on that with her.

Our other kiddos are just doing so great. Noah is in second grade this year and passing everything with flying colors. I'm so grateful he's such a whiz kid and school is easy for him! I hardly ever have to help him with his homework and most of the time only one or two death threats is enough to get him to sit down and do it (kidding!). You can hardly tell he has autism, especially if you stay away from any and all medical subjects, rock discussions, and science :). He's a quirky guy but he is making his way in this world just fine. You should see the amazing origami he can do, in fact, I'm gonna blog about just that one of these days. We sure have been enjoying him lately, especially since it turns out that Isabella may possibly be the spawn of a Tazmanian Devil.

Oh that little Bella, she is pretty stuck on being a stinker these days! Sure she behaves like a perfect, shy, quiet little debutant at any other house. But man, she sure does give Joe and me a run for our money! I have NEVER (and I do mean never) had to do so much bargaining, threatening, cajoling, begging, pleading, crying, or praying as I have to do with that child. Nevertheless, we adore our girl and I know that strong and stubborn spirit that plagues me will serve her very well someday. She can be sugar on a stick one minute and the Tazmanian Devil the next. We just never quite know what we're gonna get from one moment to the next.

Our little blessings have grown and changed a lot these last couple of years and every day they seem more grown up than the last. I finally had to tell Noah how babies are born when I was pregnant with Cora, and the old, "Mommy goes to the hospital and the doctor helps baby come out" answer just wasn't cutting the mustard anymore ("Yes mom, but HOW does the doctor get the baby out?"). His response at hearing the truth? "Cool mom, can I please come watch Cora be born". I decided that was a no, but maybe if we have a 4th kid :). Our Isabella, she wants to wear nail polish, make-up, dresses and sparkles. And she says things like, "When I'm a mom, I'm always going to let my kids eat oreos for breakfast". And she says it real sassy. Like someone else I know might have said those sorts of things when she was little. You'll have to ask my mom who that might be.

So our kids have grown and changed, we've lost loved ones like Grandma Ricks and Grandma Swindler, we've had amazing and wonderful times, we've cried and felt like we can't stand another day of life at times, we've been on top of the world, we've been kicked here and there, we've made friends and lost friends, we've loved our families without fail, seen some of them move away and break our hearts a little (ahem...Jones family), babies have been born, and life has been lived. I have lots of things to blog about and now I'm gonna have to play catch up. But isn't it a marvelous thing to relive life's best moments? I look forward to telling you about them.

It's New Year's Eve, do you know where your resolutions are?

Oh wow, I've been neglecting the blog haven't I? And it's really not because I have better things to do with my fabulous and blessed life :). Really it's because I am LAZY at times, okay for months at a time, when it comes to writing. We have been up to so much this past year, I'm gonna have to post some pictures soon.

So are you thinking about your New Year's resolutions? I haven't made any New Year's resolutions yet and I probably won't because then I for sure won't accomplish the things I need to accomplish in 2011. If I were making a list, it would look something like this:

1. Finish losing weight (Pfffffft! Yeah right, I'll just put the cake down for once...or not)
2. Blog every week, this is your legacy you know (Hahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha!)
3. Be a better listener (Possibly if my tongue is removed)
4. Focus on others and less on yourself (But making everything about me is fun...)
5. Save more and spend less (Errr.....)
6. Cook more often and better (first I would have to acknowledge that corn dogs are not a well balanced or nutritious food)
7. Read literature that makes me a better person (Nope, Twilight and Harry Potter don't count, no matter how many times I read them)
8. Go to bed earlier (Yeah, this one is impossible)

As you can see, that list is already fraught with hurdles and I haven't even officially made it. I think it's best to keep things vague so that nearly any positive effort I make can be spun as me keeping my New Year's resolutions. So here we go, my official resolution:

I will try my very best, most of the time except on Mondays, to not screw up in any way that I am cognizant is an actual screw-up. If I do screw-up, such screw-up shall be acknowledged by making amends with myself, the other person, or thing I've wronged with a promise to try harder the next day.

So that's it, I'm not even adding any fine print. I'm locked in. Happy Resolution making to you and yours.

Courage Reigns

I've decided to enroll the young man in horse back riding lessons for kids with disabilities. There is a place near our house that works exclusively with kids who have to learn to navigate their own disabilities and function the best that they can despite their disabilities. They take all kinds over there; muscular dystrophy, cerebral palsy, brain damage, physical and mental ailments, and autism. I've read many times that the benefits of hippotherapy can be great for these kinds of kids. They learn a new skill, get to do something fun, build self-confidence, better posture, better balance, better gross and fine motor skills, and a whole host of other positive benefits too. So I gathered my courage and I gave the place a call. And the conversation went something like this:

Me: "Hi, I'd like to enquire about enrolling my son in horse back riding lessons with you guys".
Vicki: "Great, tell me about your son"
Me: "Well, he has been expressing a real interest in learning to ride horses and as he has problems with his coordination, I thought this might be a really good fit for him"
Me: (with nervous laughter) "He sort of trips over his own feet and we would like it if he could develop his gross motor skills more"
Vicki: "What is his particular disability?"
Me: "Autism"

And just like that, I dropped the "A" word. I dropped it casually, as if I were simply discussing a type of flower, or the weather. We discussed his condition like we were remarking on the sunny weather. And when I said the word, the dreaded "A" word, I waited for the sting. I waited for the pain that inevitably has come along with that word every.single.time I've said it or thought it since the diagnosis. The sense of injustice, of unfairness and self-pity that have attached themselves to that word as if they really belong there. And you know what? It didn't come. There was no pain, no sting, no self-pity. I felt no shame. Only pride. Pride in a child who is so special, who has come so far, and who I know will do great things with his life. I also felt excitement, almost giddy at the possibilities his young life holds and even those that will be afforded by his condition. There are indeed positive things associated with his autism. I'm starting to notice them. I was so excited for him to start horse back riding lessons and I didn't think once about if he could do it. I know he can do it.

There are so many "increased likelihoods" that attach themselves to a diagnosis of autism. There is an increased likelihood of depression, suicide, loneliness, etc. Just imagine a world where people are cruel to you or exclude you simply because they do not understand you and do not wish to try and you can fill in the blank with the mental conditions that can come along with that kind of rejection. So many of these "likelihoods" have been following me around, scaring me to death about his future, plunging me into my own depression and self-pity, and worst of all, making me feel helpless. It is only recently that I realized I actually have a choice.

I can choose to live in fear, or I can choose to live. I can choose to expect the worst, or I can choose to hope for the best. And you know what? He will be okay. His life will be good. I choose hope. I choose to live.

Lookee who's 3

Well, our "baby" is officially even less of a baby now that she has turned 3. She had a fantastic birthday party with a lot of family and friends. The best part wasn't even the multitude of presents she received (mostly from her Mimi), but the giant pink and purple princess bounce house we rented for the day! It was quite a hit not only with the partygoers but with all the neighborhood children as well :). The princess even got her own pink princess cake complete with an edible tiara and some disney princesses. My friend K made the cake and everything she does is by hand and just fabulous. It was also delicious and I ate far too much of it. Fun was had by all and I'm happy that I don't have to plan another party for the princess for a year :).



P.S. Someone arrived at my blog by googling the phrase " dr weidig the worst doctor hair transplant in the world "....isn't that great. It *almost* beats the time someone came here by googling "what is dog spit used for". Good times :).