Monday, May 31, 2010

Memorial Day

"It is foolish and wrong to mourn the men who died. 
Rather we should thank God that such men lived."
---General George S. Patton

"They fell, but o'er their glorious grave 
Floats free the banner of the cause they died to save."
---Francis Marion Crawford

"Better than honor and glory, and History's iron pen,
Was the thought of duty done and the love of his fellow-men."
---Richard Watson Gilder

"Peace to each manly soul that sleepeth;
Rest to each faithful eye that weepeth..."
---Thomas Moore

Thank you!

Happy Birthday!

It's hard to believe my baby girl
(well, she was one 23 years ago)
is 23 years old today!

Here's to an amazing year!

Yippee!

Friday, May 28, 2010

I just had to say...

I'm pleased with how this picture turned out and it deserves it's own post.


My Alska girl.

Britni went on a bike ride to explore Anchorage and this is what she found.

Now that's more like it!

That's my girl!
I think I'd go here almost everyday.
Beautiful.

Wednesday, May 26, 2010

Panning for gold.

I found out yesterday that Davis didn't have class today because of graduation.
Lucky him.
He wanted to go panning for gold and so I said yes and that is exactly where we went.
It was a little overcast and a little cool.
But what's not perfect about going up the canyon and hanging out by a little river.
Davis was hoping to find lots of gold.
He may have found a really small piece but it was so small he couldn't get it out of the pan.


Davis brought his friend and lasted only about an hour.
We drove around a little and went and got lunch.

Lucky to find two heart rocks!

A pretty great day even without the gold!

Done.

i-pod holders or phone holders done.
I made them a little taller.
Done.
Yeah!

Monday, May 24, 2010

Fickle Spring and embroidery done but project not.

Snowflakes today.
Brrr cold.
I finished the embroidery on the bag but I have to buy more felt.
In this case, not 100% wool felt because I couldn't find any.
I am going to make it double thickness because it is really quite thin.
And that just won't do for a cute little bag, like this.
I learned how to make a Bullion knot for this project.
Fun.
I also used a Whipped backstitch for the first time.
I am working to get this done by Wednesday.

Good luck with that.

Friday, May 21, 2010

Flying the nest.

I'm helping this one with another load to move up to Salt Lake City.
This time she will be staying.
This is not her first foray in living away from home.
I'll miss her just as much.

I'm excited for this new chapter of her life.
Her new grand adventure.
Have the time of your life!
 
"Every day is an opportunity to make a new happy ending."

"That it will never come again
Is what makes life so sweet."

"Life moves pretty fast. If you don't stop to 
look around once in a while
you could miss it."

"Every second is of infinite value."

"We're fools whether we dance or not,
so we might as well dance."

"Each day comes bearing its own gifts.
Untie the ribbons."

I love you!





Lilacs a bloom.


We have two lilac bushes in our garden.
Both a little different.
Both just as fragrant as the other.
Both a shade of lavender.
Both breathtakingly beautiful.

Thursday, May 20, 2010

This is such a darling video!



This is SO GREAT!
This will make you smile and just feel happy!

Wednesday, May 19, 2010

Love this book.

I am working on this bag.
It's taking me weeks because I don't have much time to work on it (and I want it done soon).
It's also harder than other projects because I traced the pattern onto tissue paper and pinned it onto the felt and I am embroidering on top of the tissue paper.
I hope that works.
I also want to make three new i-pod holders in the next week.
I also need to work on painting the house.
Yes, I have not completed the job yet.
I really haven't done much (about finishing painting the house, that is, because I am doing plenty about lots of things!).
I did make my third trip this week, up to Salt Lake City to move things into her new apartment and setting things up.
It's looking so cute.
She isn't moving until Friday because the room mates won't be there till Friday and she was anxious to be up there by her self and I didn't want her by herself either!
It's been a great workout with weights (as in lifting furniture and moving furniture).
I'm even stronger than she is (I had to move the tv and do some other dirty work that she didn't want to do).
Really.

Tuesday, May 18, 2010

Would it have made a difference?

It has taken nearly 17 years but today there was finally an official diagnosis of "high functioning Autism".

When he was two his pediatrician said sweetly to me, "have you ever heard of Autism?"
But we never heard anything after that one question.
We have asked so many questions over the years.
When he was four, the pediatricians partner said to me, "every child develops differently and at different paces."
Of course they do. He's the youngest of four. We already knew that.
But something was different.
Last month when I was talking to his doctor about some of his struggles that she has been following for years, she said something about him being Autistic and went on talking...
Dumbfounded, I asked, "Do you think he's Autistic?"

We had paperwork from his previous doctor (who she replaced because the previous doctor retired) sent to her office (she also changed offices).
We had some paperwork from the school sent to her office.
Today she sat with the three of us and went over the reasons for the diagnosis.
He meets 9 out of the 12 criteria.
He only needs to meet 6.

I've always said that we really don't NEED a diagnosis because we have tried to deal with the symptoms and what challenges he faces everyday (he's had multiple generic symptom diagnosis).
But we really could have used this information years ago.

We could have had him in special programs since before kindergarten.
We had to take him out of school twice (for half a year each time) and then have him in half day school (for half the year), twice (he really struggled with hearing voices at the time and struggled with attending regular classes).
And no one told us that there was any help for him until right before he started the 8th grade.
And we asked. 
I know, I should have fought harder to find the right options for school but I really didn't know what to do.

I had the school principal say to me when he was in the fourth grade, "We can't handle kids with problems like this".
With the school psychologist's office right across the hallway.
And he didn't offer me any help even when I asked multiple times, "What help is available for him?"
I did have another school principal make changes so he could attend her school (boundaries had changed even though we lived in the same house). She tried to help him but still she didn't even know of the programs that were offered in the district.
We still had to take him out of that school.
I guess I really did fight for him.
I just didn't know what I was doing but boy did I fight for, work for and love that boy (and all my children for that matter---I know I didn't and still don't do it all perfectly---no one can---no wonder I have struggled so).

Would it have made a difference?
Would we have been able to get him more help?
Would people have been more patient?
More understanding?
To him and to us?

Would it have made a difference if we could have said, "This is what he has" or "this is what's going on".

I could have used more understanding.
Would it have made a difference if other parents, family and friends knew there was something wrong and that it wasn't just a parenting problem or that he wasn't just a troubled child?

Would it have made a difference?

It can make a difference for him in the future.
Even at 16.
He can be eligible for special services and special support that he may need in the future.

He has worked so hard to be a regular kid.
He has struggled with so many things throughout his life which includes pervasive anxiety and episodes of psychosis (the doctor explains that sometimes kids with Autism have a difficult time dealing with reality).
He has struggled with kids not being nice to him.
He has struggled with not being able to handle being in a regular classroom.
He has struggled with so many things.

He may not be regular.
But he really is quite spectacular!



It's a girl!

These cute kids are going to have a baby girl.

I'm so happy about it, I could sing it from the roof tops!
Yippee!

I would have been just as happy if it were a boy.
It just makes me happy!

Monday, May 17, 2010

Moving...

Sheyla and I made two trips up to Salt Lake City today.
The second trip was to move a load up for Family Home Evening.
We made her bed and met a neighbor
who wanted us to feed a cat 
that was left by the previous tenant.

Look what's down the street from her cute new apartment.
I wouldn't choose yellow tile for a bathroom but I love this combination and love the border tile.
There's a cute and tiny kitchen WITH a tiny closet with a
built-in ironing board.

Neat old fashioned door knobs.
A beautiful glass door knob.
There are only two three-pronged plugs in the entire
two bedroom apartment.
There are beautiful old squeaky wood floors throughout the apartment
(except the kitchen and bathroom).
Charming.
She is very excited to move in.
I'm excited for her.


Friday, May 14, 2010

Puppy.

Say cheese!
There you go!

Thursday, May 13, 2010

belie: 1a: to give a false impression of 2a: to show (something) to be false or wrong

I love this tree in our front garden.
It belies the stress I am feeling today.

I don't know what I was thinking when I signed up to be
the Secretary/Treasurer for Daughter's of the Utah Pioneers.

Mother's Day sometimes feels like
a reminder of my shortcomings as a mother
rather than a celebration of being a mother 
(and I'm still being reminded).

I have a child that is obsessing about one thing after the other,
after the other, after the other, after the other
 and I am having a hard time with it.

etc. etc. etc.
I know it could be worse.

I know I'll get over it.

The following is a little how I feel, although I do have plenty of times to rest and relax
(it's the standing on my head thing
that I can relate too,
figuratively not literally):

The man (or woman) who doesn't relax and hoot a few hoots voluntarily, 
now and then, is in great danger of hooting hoots 
and standing on his head
for the edification of the pathologist 
and trained nurse,
a little later on.--Elbert Hubbard

That's me.


Wednesday, May 12, 2010

Alaska girl.



Britni is trying to make the most of Alaska. 
It is a little dreary and a little difficult at the moment.
They don't have a car and she is the office girl on-call all day.
But she is ecstatic to be with Adam.
He is her oasis in the dismal not-yet-spring surroundings.
She bought a cute little bike and added a basket.
She now can ride her bike around town carrying her camera wherever she goes.
She is loving photography and took these cool shots of these cool buildings.
Boy, I miss that girl!

Tuesday, May 11, 2010

Happiness...

There is one thing about following blogs: 
  that you find more blogs to follow.
There are a lot of fascinating and talented people out there!

One blog that I recently found is called 
one woman's view...
She recently wrote an amazing tribute to her mother,
who is loving, tenacious, talented 
and all those things that I would 
love to be.
 Jeanne writes so beautifully
that instantly she brought
her mother to life 
on a page.
For some reason Jeanne found me
and sweetly wrote me a note.
 Today she talked about
Happiness Moments
and mentioned me (among four other people).

What an honor!
One of the great things about having a blog 
is that it does remind me of reasons to be 
happy!

So here is my list of things that make me happy:
(not in order of importance or inclusiveness)

Seeing the beauty of the Earth.
Not just the spectacular places
but I love seeing 
 a flower in the garden,
a deer in the valley below us
or a colorful sunset in the distance.
It really is all spectacular!

Being with Jeff.
It doesn't have to be in a tropical setting (although that makes me happy too),
it can be walking down the street,
going to lunch,
or just holding hands on the couch.
My family.
I love the talking, laughing or even the silence,
when they are around.

The good things about having animals.
They can bring such love and laughter to a home.

Making friends and having friends.
 
Getting an unexpected compliment.

The fact that Jeff will go to the store for me 
and buy anything I ask.
Anything.

Having a project turn out better than expected.

Having something good to look forward to.
Like a trip,
 a lunch out,
a good book,
a fun movie, 
a project
or peace and quiet.

Knowing that I can do better tomorrow
and try again.