15 Days Until Disney World!!!
It’s Spelled Wrong!
By Donna Cooper
A mistake has been made.
The word doctors and neurologists
use to diagnose our children is autism,
but it should be AWEtism.
Just think…
Awe at my son’s progress.
Awe at each accomplishment.
Awe that we’ve been blessed to be
part of a miracle
Awe to see God’s hand at work in my
son’s life.
Awe to meet such wonderful people.
Awe for each little step in the right
direction.
Awe for the love I never knew I had.
It’s not Autism, it’s AWEtism!
Good News & Bad News
The good news is that I don’t need surgery!!! 
The bad news is that I really did hurt myself though. 
The doctor said that when I picked Caleb up that my abdominal muscle snapped like a rubber band (hence the popping sensation) and that it didn’t hurt right away was because I’d sat down, but then when I stood up…it pull the muscle to full extension again (hence the pain). So he said to treat this like a pulled muscle. Nothing severe…but he said that if the pain continues for more than 4 weeks to come back…he’s afraid that if I’m not careful that I will tear my muscle.
So, I’m to do nothing over the next couple weeks. Nothing meaning, no bending, no lifting and no strenuous exercise! He said that after that I can walk…but still no lifting for quite some time and definitely no lifting of children period!
Okay…so now until I leave for vacation I’m to “take it easy” so to speak. I’ll do my best! He said to put moist heat on my tummy as often as I can to help relax the muscle so that it can heal. He also told me that the reason my muscle did this is because, “when you have a c-section it thins out your muscle…and you not only had that but it was followed by severe endometriosis which you had to have radical surgery to correct and then 6 months after that, you had tubal ligation. All of that surgery causes a weakening in the muscle and if you’re not careful it can cause damage.” Hmm…okay, so I was right to be so cautious in everything that I do.
So there ya go! I’m OK!!
I’m just going to be a bit lazy for a while…hehe. 
Other than that…everything is going well. Jason is working his last day today at the middle school as a T.A. (I think it’s bittersweet because he’ll miss the kids). 
But I know that he is looking forward to not having to get up at 5:30 in the morning!! He’s not exactly what I’d call a “morning person”. 
Thank you all for your concern for me…you are wonderful!! 
I keep telling myself that in 16 days we’ll be in Florida, on vacation…just the two of us having a blast!!
I’ve booked our car…made arrangements with Eric to pick us up after we drop the car off (after our little excursion to Georgia for the weekend). And I also informed Eric last that “I’m on vacation…that means it’s your job to entertain me!” 
Yeah…well, THAT went over well! He laughed…so all is well!
In the meantime…Jason and I are going to our first 
game this weekend (they play the Braves). 
I’m really looking forward to sitting at the ballpark drinking a beer, eating a braut and watching the game! Ahhh…the joys of baseball season! 
I thought that I’d actually accomplish some things around the house this weekend…and I did, but I didn’t think that it would come with a price.
I cleaned out our dining room area, which had been overloaded with junk (I removed 2 trash bags full of crap) and unecessary items. I went through all of the kids shoes, coats, hats and gloves and removed all that could no longer be worn. The room looks much better!
However, while I was attempting to do all of this, I had the 3 youngest to tend to as well and none were minding worth a damn. The blonde children (Jonah 5 & Corin 6) were annoying poor Caleb to the point that he was trying to bang his head on the wall…which is something that he never does. I finally had to seperate them all from him and take him downstairs to calm him down. Although, to get him downstairs…due to his major temper tantrum, I had to pick him up and take him. When I did, I felt a popping sensation in my abdomen.
The area of which I felt that later swelled a bit and now has a bump…a big bump….one that has an all too familiar pain.
I’m calling the doctor’s office this morning to see if I can get in…if I can’t, then I’ll go to another physician…if that doesn’t work, I guess there’s always the ER right?
I wish that I could just be normal again.
UPDATE:
I called my doctor…she called me back and then told me to call the surgeon that did my surgery last October. So I did…I go in to see him tomorrow at 1:15pm.
I watched Primetime on ABC last night and they had an in depth story on 3 little boys and their parents who live in Ohio. All three boys were severely autistic, which is rare…and quite frightening to see, to be honest. For a set of parents to have one autistic child is challenging enough, but to have twins following the first one…and for them to be diagnosed as well, that is just terrifying.
As I watched the advertisements for this program prior to it airing (I wasn’t aware it was coming on until right before it aired), I looked at Jason and said, “those boys are autistic”. I was watching their behaviors and listening to the person’s voice playing over the video footage…stating the telltale signs. The tears started to well up as I heard all too familiar statements.
I listened as the parents told their story of how they had their first son and then about a year later had twins. How the boys all seemed to be normal for awhile, then suddenly began regressing in their speech and even worse…in their behavior and motor skill ability. They explained how difficult it was to watch their sons slip away from them and into the darkness that is Autism…and how the boys became shells of what they once were. I cried even harder…
I’m so blessed that Caleb is who he is and that he is so strong…but I do remember the fear of never hearing him speak, or even being able to function at all. I remember watching him just stare at lights and ignoring anything and everything that was occurring around him. I remember thinking, “what did I do to make this happen to him?”.
I also remember (and I’ll never forget) the first time I heard him speak the words, “I love you”…it still makes my heart melt. I cried for hours…and still do at times.
My heart sank last night as I watched these children struggle to stay in reality…and as the parents coped with what they were facing. I’m glad to know that Autism is finally getting some exposure to the American people, they need to be aware of how serious the spread of this disability is. The fact that the true cause of Autism is unknown…and yet it is growing at an alarming rate. They stated on the show last night that as of right now 1 out of every 166 people (including children) has some form of Autism. And did you know that Autism has incresed 900% in America alone since 1990? Doesn’t that frighten you? It should.
I read a statment that rang true to me, it said, “if Autism was any other disease it would be exposed to anyone and everyone as a major epidemic, but due to the fact that the cause of Autism is still unknown it is treated as if it doesn’t exist and yet it’s spreading at an alarming rate”.
So…answer me this, how do you cure something that you have no knowledge as to what the cause is?
Please…take a moment and go to this site and read it…I’m not asking for the world here…but I want you all to be aware of what is happening to our children, our neighbors, our friends. Don’t think for one second with the rates as high as they are that it might not effect you…because it will…especially if you aren’t aware of it at all.
Thank you. 
Here’s some common characteristics associated with Autism.
| Speech Issues | no speech; non-speech sounds; delayed speech; echolalia (mimicing words without any understanding of meaning); pronoun confusion; frustration with lack of speech common |
| Interaction Issues | lack of peer interaction; lack of eye contact; seemingly unaware of other people; treating people as objects; parallel play rather than interactive; lack of imaginative play |
| Behavioral Issues | not interested in being picked up/cuddled; preoccupied by hand movement; flapping hands (especially when excited or over stimulated); spinning; balancing; tiptoe walking; aggressiveness towards others; lack of interest in “normal” toys (often preferring kitchen tools); obsessive toward patterns; repetition in behavior (performing the same act over and over again, such as rewinding one section of a movie on the VCR to watch many times); lining things up; self injury; needing to live with a routine that does not change |
| Sensory Issues | dislike of certain sounds, textures and/or tastes; dislike of being touched; very passive or very active behavior; nervousness; unaware of various physical stimuli such as pain; covering ears at loud noises; “blanking out” in active environments; often seem to be uncomfortable in extreme temperatures |
| Splinter Skills | drawing; musical; math; calendars; memory; computers; mechanical ability such as complex video/audio equipment |
| Biological Markers | MRI scans sometimes abnormal; serotonin levels may be raised; bowel problems; some children afflicted with seizures; sleep disturbances (not requiring as much as other children of the same age); often unusually attractive children with large eyes |
Columbine Remembered
Today marks the 5th anniversary of the Columbine High School Shootings here in Littleton, CO. I will never forget that day or what I was doing when the news broke that children were being gunned down in their high school. My heart sank…I knew some of those kids…some of whom died that day. I will never forget them or the effect that those events have had on our community and the families of those involved.
Since this tragedy I’ve met many of the parents of those who died. Rachel Scott’s grave is just down the street from my house…and that is where the 13 crosses now stand. I met her Mother, Beth Nimmo, a few years ago…along with a few other parents. The overwhelming sense of loss and sadness that came from them was heartbreaking.
If you have a moment, say a prayer for those families and those who were wounded that day. A great deal of healing has occured since 4/20/99, but the memories of that day will last forever to those of us who were here.
15 people were killed, including Eric Harris & Dylan Klebold who took their own lives after killing 13 others
15 original crosses on Rebel Hill in Clements Park next to Columbine High School
13 crosses that remained after the ones for Eric & Dylan were destroyed
Crosses for Dylan Klebold, top, and Eric Harris stand on Rebel Hill near Columbine just days after the shootings. The family of one of the slain students destroyed them, saying it was wrong to honor such evil.
Memorials are being held tonight at Clements Park in remembrance of that day and those who were lost.
Links:
http://columbine.free2host.net/damage.html
Went to the doctor this morning for my “annual review” and to find out if I damaged anything when Dora fell on my abdomen a few weeks back. The pain has subsided, but I get sore if I do anything more than just light activity. The doctor said that it’s just my muscle attempting to strengthen itself again after being abused for so long. I can understand that.
She and I also discussed my under active thyroid and the problems that it’s causing…like weight gain. 
I was on medication for a while and it helped me maintain my weight, but that ran out at the end of January and since then I’ve gained weight even though I’m more active now that I was before. 
So, she’s putting me back on a thyroid medication to help increase the activity and hopefully help in the weight control department. We also talked about different eating strategies. She told me that under no circumstances was I to go on the Atkins diet and that it was not good for people at all. That was a strong statement. I told her that I wouldn’t…but she did suggest the South Beach Diet and said that it was one of the best weight loss programs out there right now and it was written by a cardiologist that is renowned in his field. I said that I’d look into it, she also told me of a nutritionist that she knows that she could always refer me to if necessary. However, she wants to see how the thyroid medication does on helping me first. 
We’ll see about the whole diet thing…after I’ve had a chance to get my thyroid acting the way it should. I would like to be functioning normally before I jump into a weight loss program. However, in the meantime, there’s plenty that I can do to help in that department and I’m quite aware of it.
Right now, I just am looking forward to going on vacation in a few weeks and getting away from the stress for a little while!
I did get a few things accomplished this last weekend. I cleaned out a huge section of the hallway and it now looks wonderful!! 
Jason was quite impressed with my work…and to be honest, so was I!! 
So now I’m back at work…and they finally got the email system working, so it only took me about an hour to get through all of the emails that I’ve not been able to read over the past few days. But hey…at least it’s working right? 
T.G.I.F.
This is literal for today!! 
This week has been exhausting (to say the least). My email at work has been screwed up all week long and now we’re aren’t receiving email at all. 
For some reason our postmaster has received well over 30,000 spam emails and they keep on coming…so it’s bogged down the server. Our tech thinks it may be a virus…
ya think?
Anyway…it’s also made it extremely difficult to get in and out of documents that I need to access…along with programs that I need to access…so, I’ve not been able to accomplish everything that I need to. Not that I can do anything about it…so screw it!
It’s Friday…and that means this week is almost over!!
I tried to call Eric last night…but he was busy and couldn’t really talk…but as soon as I hung up with him I received a call from a mutual friend of ours, Sherry. She and Eric have quite the history and she isn’t exactly happy with him. She and Eric were once romantically involved…and it was while he was still involved with her, that he met his current girlfriend, Kippie. Sherry says that his relationship with Kippie is one of “convenience”…I don’t think that I necessarily agree with that. However, he does become very tight lipped when she’s around…at least while talking to me. I guess that I will have to wait and see how things are while I’m down there.
See…I guess my problem is that with me, what you see is what you get. I don’t change who I am for anyone. I’ve done it in the past and let me tell you, I learned my lesson on that. Since then…I refuse to change to other people’s liking. Either you like me for who I am…or you don’t. Plain and simple!
Eric is quite well aware of this…so is Sherry, but I don’t know if Kippie is. However, she will find out soon enough eh? 
I’m not really too concerned about all of us getting along…she seems to be nice and I can pretty much get along with anyone…at least for a short period of time. I do feel bad for the way that Sherry feels about it all though. I know that she was hurt in regards to the situation…so she has a right to upset with Eric. He didn’t tell her about Kippie for months and he should’ve. I told him too…but I didn’t feel it was my place to tell her about it. They weren’t committed to each other…they had one of those supposed “no strings attached” things…(btw, those never work). However, Sherry did have feelings for him…he did not feel the same. See…this is why it never works. Anyway, he met Kippie and they totally hit it off! However…I think I was the only who knew about it, which put me in a bad position considering I’m friends with both parties. So I urged Eric to tell Sherry that he’d met someone because Sherry did have feelings for him and I knew that he didn’t feel the same way for her and that it would just hurt her more if he waited. He did not yield to my warnings and didn’t tell her…so when he finally did, she was so angry with him for not telling her sooner that they didn’t talk for about a year!
Again, this put me in a bad position because then I was hearing both sides but couldn’t really say anything. So, they finally made up and apologies were given etc. about a month ago.
So…when she called last night and was saying all of these things about a relationship that she knows nothing about…it told me one thing, she’s still hurt. I understand that and I think that’s why I took what she was saying pretty lightheartedly. I will see how things are for myself once I’m there and have had a chance to spend time with them. However, I must say that all that really matters to me is that Eric’s happy…and I haven’t ever seen him this happy…so, I’m glad that he’s found that in Kippie.
Okay…well I’m off like a prom dress!! Have a great weekend!
Kindergarten Prep
Next week I have two meeting for the twins in prepartion for kindergarten registration. They will both be attending the same elementary school, which is convenently located just down the street from the house. However, from what I’ve been told, they will be able to ride the bus…which will be a great help!
I’m excited for them and I know that they are totally psyched about going to “the big school”. This is a whole new world for them and I know they will both perform wonderfully. They love school and learning…and Caleb has come so far from where he was when he first started his treatments.
I wanted to say thank you to you all for your support and kind words of encouragement…and for your concern. I’m feeling a bit better today. I slept with a heating pad on my back last night and that seemed to help quite a bit!
I think it probably has been a combination of being extrememly busy and stressed out…and it being that time of the month! Being a woman is difficult ya know?
Anyway, I’ve been talking to Eric a great deal lately…we are both SO excited about my visit out there next month!! He keeps asking me, “Is it May yet?”. Gotta love him!
Jason has been busy with school work (I know…what else is new eh?)…and working. We haven’t had very much time together lately, especially last weekend even though I’d planned to do so. We did, however, go out to dinner on Friday and on Sunday (considering the kiddos were at their Dad’s for Easter). That was nice, but we didn’t get to go out to a movie and he’s been tired lately as well as trying to get over being ill.
The kids will be home with us for the majority of this coming weekend…except for Corin & Jonah are supposed to go to their grandma’s house for an evening. Outside of that, it will be a normal time around here.
Been busy at work…as usual, lately. I’ve had to straighten up a few things around here. I don’t know if I’d mentioned it or not, but a few weeks ago they dumped Personnel on me on top of all that I already do. I’m telling ya, if I don’t get a raise this year…I’m so out of here! 
So, I’ve been checking up on the latest regulations and laws and making sure that all of our forms are in compliance and are current. I’m almost done with that…thank God. The best part of all of this is, I have now put all of the forms for personnel and for DOT regulations on the server electronically so that I don’t have to distribute them anymore.
Other than that…things have been quite dull.
…isn’t he adorable sleeping with my Eeyore?? 
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