Balloons, Birthday Bowling and Shady Business

Oooooooh Yeah! (the the voice of The Macho Man Randy Savage)

I have a 4 year old people!  Yes.....you heard that right.  A 4 year old.  SE is FOUR!!  WOO!!

On Saturday I found it totally funny that the TV Land channel had a Golden Girls marathon on and that was what I was watching as I went through 3 days of latent labor with SE back in 2009.  Goodtimes I tell you, goodtimes. LOL.

Last week...a little stressful.  On Monday...both boy's ABA therapists called in sick.  That's one of two things that SUCKS about home therapy.  That kind of stuff doesn't happen at centers because they have subs; socialization opportunities with other kids is the other thing my kids miss out on (we make that up in other places).  BUT with home therapy for us, the 2 cons don't nearly outweigh the benefits.  My kids learn to generalize their skills to home, home therapists can go with us to other locations, such as the Y and stores and it saves me gas! :)

 

  So I put on my teacher "hat" and the boys and I headed into the playroom for some "therapy".  Hahaha.  So a 3 year old that gets bored and sidetracked easily and a 2 year old with little to no instructional control versus one adult who hasn't prepped ANYTHING for a couple hours of homeschool who also happens to be their Mom.  Freaking awesome.  Yeah, it went just how you would expect.  Good for the first 20 minutes then crashed and burned.  I ended up letting one watch a video in our room while I worked with the other one on one.  Not ideal, but hey.....you gotta do what you gotta do right?!?!

 

I ended up doing the same thing on Tuesday morning.  Late notice from SE's therapist meant no time to prep as well so I just had stuff ready to go for C.  Ugh.  Then on Wednesday C's therapist had an emergency and couldn't make it.......so I did a hodge podge of activities for him.  THANK GOD for Pinterest!  Seriously.

 

On a side note....Pinterest doesn't make me feel like I'm an inferior mother, or that I'm not crafty or that I don't come up with good ideas.  Quite the opposite.  I think it's freaking great!  Awesome ideas for just about everything!!!

So on Friday, because I'm an awesome Mama, I took cupcakes (30) to school for SE's birthday celebration there.  SE saw the box and immediately yelled..."CUPCAKES"!!  Ah, he is my son huh?  SE's class (3 kids) was combined with the other special needs class and they enjoyed Elmo cupcakes and goodie bags.  I got enough for SE to take them to the other 2 classes.  When I walked into one of the other classrooms with SE and his teacher, a kid stood up and said..."YES"! and put a little fist pump in there.  I could do nothing but chuckle.  Kids are so funny.

Also on Friday...it was like 83 degrees here!  What?!?!?!  Yeah..it's above 80, so the shorts came out.  I was praying that my shorts from last summer still fit.  Truthfully I wanted to be in a size 6 by now, but through my little sidelines and bumps off the wagon I was just hoping the 8s would fit.

 

Yeah buddy!  They fit!  I'm still planning on buying 6s by June.  It's only about 10lbs or so away.  I think I can do it!  It's getting to be a little hard, but I'm determined to keep plugging away.  145lbs is my goal weight and that will mean 45lbs lost since January 2012!

 

And taking advantage of the crazy nice weather.....I took the boys to the park!

 

SE on the slide! Sidenote: I totally understand now why my Mom used to yell at me to not crawl around on my knees when I was a kid. SE has already torn the right knees of 3 pairs of fairly new jeans!!!  Next thing you know I'll be telling him money doesn't grow on trees.  Man,  I wish it did! :)

 

 

 

Holy Schmoly!  Look at C's hair!!! Super long yes? Super cute? Of course.  I trimmed it up a bit, but no major haircuts.  I like the shaggy messy look on him, it's cute!  And yes, they are dressed alike...on purpose.  Irish shirts for my little Irish boys!

Saturday I woke up early and went to the grocery store to get some donuts (SE's fav breakfast) and balloons.  I was the first person at the store getting donuts.  Freshly baked!  Yum!!  (And I wonder why I'm not in a 6 yet).  I also got some balloons, one had "I'm 4!" printed on it.  SE was in LOVE with the balloons, and when C got up, he was too.

 

 

Then we got real high class and took the boys to Walmart so SE could pick out a toy for his birthday.  And not just any Walmart....the Leavenworth Wally World!  Holla!!!

 

 

Here he is with his new truck.  Um....yeah, he has the SAME truck in GREEN!  Oh well, it was his birthday, not mine and that's what he wanted.  Notice the apparel change?  Yeah, talk about a 30 degree drop in temperature from Friday to Saturday.  Blech!

 

From there we went to the StrikeZone bowling alley on post.  It was SE's first time bowling so we were a little curious to see how he would do.  He thought it was pretty cool!

 

 

He was like a little jumping bean!  So happy and proud of himself while bowling.

 

C had fun too.  Best moment?  When he took off down the lane to our left and I yell, "Get him"!! to the hubs and he gets onto the gutter and runs and grabs him.  C made it a little over 1/4 of the way down the lane before he slipped and fell and Daddy got him.  Who knows how far he would have made it.  Nice that a bunch of the hubs co-workers were there too.  Super not embarrassing at all.  No....really.

 

 

Sunday we went swimming at the Y to the south of us.  It has a lazy river that C thought was the bees knees.  That boy is fearless.  SE tolerated it well, but liked the regular pool better.

 

A lot of crying after we got out of the pool even though both boys' fingers and toes were all pruney and their lips were turning blue.  They are water dogs, but they still need to learn to swim. * Insert registration for spring and summer swim lessons here.*

 

So yes, SE's birthday was a blast.  But here comes the shady biz. 

 

Checking our bank account yesterday I noticed a debit for $634.40!  Here's where I spit my green tea out in astonishment.  So I get on the phone to the bank and tell them fraud had occurred on our account.  They closed out my checkcard and filed a claim.  Also told me the store that the thieves bought the clothes from.  I called the store, told them I didn't make that purchase and they said they would refund it.  They also told me the name and address of the perp. <--That's SO Miami Vice.  Chang Nguyen at 9341 Blanche Ave in Garden Grove CA.  Now, hoping this moron was stupid enough to use his/her real name (unlikely, but I'm hoping), I filed a police report at the local sheriff's station.

 

 

 

  That zapped my entire morning and early afternoon into oblivion.  I didn't get to my laundry I had planned to do and even worse...C needs a new pair of shoes and I don't have a checkcard to buy them with!!  I'll be the person in line that whips out her checkbook and everyone will rolls their eyes and groans.  I guess I'll have to turn to them and scream..."My checkcard is in the mail, cut me a break!!!!"

 

So on the upside, our account should be credited at end of business today and my new card is on it's way.  Thank goodness.

 

Other than that it's the same stuff different day.  Half marathon is coming soon and I only ran 2 miles on the treadmill this morning.  Felt horrid.  I hate the treadmill.  Running outside is the only way to go.  So planning to do 10 miles on Friday or Saturday.  Did 7 miles on Friday last week and it wasn't bad at all...minus the annoying shorts chaffing my thighs.  Sounds like I need a trip to my local Lululemon huh?  Me thinks so.  C'mon tax return.....let's make it happen!!!  I need some Wunder Under capris!!

 



 

love,

Supermama rosie

Busy Busy Bees!!!

Is it just me or did last week fly by???

We were SO busy!

From a new therapist for C, a therapy team meeting for SE, a KU study for C, a summer school eligibility meeting for SE and my test to determine my resting metabolic rate!  Then the weekend.....we were busy busy busy!!!

So to start the week off after doing some research, I've decided to start some homeschoolish workboxes for the boys.  Sue Patrick invented this way of organizing a homeschool program to help her son who has....autism.  The structure of the program plays right into the need for routine for our kiddos.  Interested?  Here's her website: Sue Patrick's workbox system

No, I'm not pulling SE out of preschool or anything.  I do think they both need some additional structured learning at home.  We already have the appropriate space for it (the therapy room) and I bought a nifty little drawer cart for the work.  First time I've been to Kmart in like 8 years. 

I also got sucked into Pinterest for some homeschooling DIY activities.  So after some Amazon shopping, laminating, coloring and gluing...here's a couple of the things I came up with:

Most are focused on color identification and fine motor skills for C and some counting, color sight words and shape identification for SE.

I also picked up some necessary ingredients to make some marbled homemade playdoh.  I'll tackle that tomorrow.

On Tuesday we had SE's monthly therapy meeting, so all 3 of his therapists and his BCBA came that morning and worked on some new goals and things for him.  It's always a little overwhelming for him to have 4 people in the room working with him, so I usually stay in there with him.  But this Tuesday was a bit different, it was the first day C and I met his new therapist.  I really didn't want to have the old one leave, but our schedules weren't lining up anymore and well......that kinda crap happens. Boo.

C's new therapist is pretty cool.  She's a BCBA that owns her own company and has been working with kiddos for a LONG time.  Sweet.  C liked her and she picked up right where our other therapist left off.  Then an hour into that, C's Occupational Therapist came and we had 60 min of therapy.  Then 45 min later, C's Speech Therapist came and we had some more therapy. 

So that meant that I had 7 different therapists in my house that day.  9:30am to 3:00pm.  LOL!  Wow.  I've decided that I'm not going to be too hard on myself for not having the house immaculate when they come over.  Clean yes, immaculate...hell no.

Wednesday...yep, summer school is on tap for SE.  While that only means 2 weeks in our school district....it's something.  Could be nothing, so I'm grateful.  SE's insurance covered therapy (and C's too) will increase in the summer since school will be out.  Even better.

Thursday a BCBA and another therapist came to complete an assessment for a KU study on joint attention.  So far he has met all the eligibility requirements for the study!  WOOO!!  Hopefully our number is chosen to be in the "experimental" group, which would mean an hour of joint attention therapy a week for 36 weeks!  Considering this is an area C needs some work in.....that would ROCK.

 

So on Friday I had my appointment to get my resting metabolic rate calculated.  So basically the amount of calories I would burn if I just sat around all day.  So I took C with me and we went to the Army Wellness Center and I got hooked up to the machine...

 



LUUUUUKKEEE  I AM YOUR FATHER........ 
That thing was so tight on my face!

Here's what C did while I chilled with the mask on:

A little work on the iPad.

Well...they told me I can't really get my full results until I go to the 'Uping your Metabolism' class.  If that's not an indicator I need to get to work, I don't know what it.  The hubs assures me that everyone goes to that class, but it still sucks.  My RMR? 1224.  Shit.

That SUCKS.  I would like to think that the fact that I have hypothyroidism has something to do with my craptastic rate of burning calories, but my levels are only a "little" low.  Not enough for a higher dose of my meds.  So I have some work to do.  And that means, strict calorie counting and building some more muscle so I can lose these 10lbs. 

So while I was meal planning before, this time it will be more structured.  Measuring and being exact with portion sizes.  I sorta started yesterday, just to feel what it would be like to eat 1500 calories.  I was hungry.  But I'll get used to it.  Drink more water, stick to eating every 2-3 hours.  I know I can do this.

Knowledge is power.  Now that I know exactly how many calories I'm burning, I've formulated a plan for success.

I should also mention that while the scale was giving me 25% body fat, by ultrasound it was 22.3% !!  Yeah Buddy!!!!!  Just really 4% more to get rid of!  SCORE!!!  That was the highlight of my day!  I'm just glad she told me that before I got the RMR score. 

So, meal planning and portion control.  Here we go.  The 2 on top are portions for my husband and the others are mine. 

Now, while I will be undoubtedly obsessive compulsive about what I'm eating, at least until this portion control habit is formed; I will STILL have my donut day with my kids.  They enjoy it and of course, so do I!  Can't cut out too much or I'll fail.

Here's the beauty I had today....

Yes, that's a maple iced donut with bacon.  Freaking GOOD!  I'm proud to say that's the only donut I had though!  Power rings, as our friend Vinnie calls them....can be addictive.

Saturday night, was Kids night out at the YMCA, so we dropped the boys off and went bowling.  I won!  WOOT!  The hubs pulled out like a 180 game for the last one though!  Sure, he picks the last game to really start playing!  LOL!

By the way.....am I MANIC or FRANTIC?!?!?!

Freaking weird bowling balls.  I couldn't resist the photo op though.  Had to.

And in other randomness......

Here's the valance I made for the therapy room (blue) and the one for the boy's room (red chevron).

 

 

 

That's it for now.  Going to relax for the rest of the day, hang out with my boys and of course.....

 

 

WALKING DEAD!!!!!!!!

 

love,

 

Supermama rosie

We survived...SNOWMAGEDDON!!!

Okay seriously....that was a crap ton of snow.  And it's STILL here.  Freaking 2 weeks later!

Man do I miss that whole snow one day, sunny the next..snow gone thing Colorado Springs has going on.  Hmph.  The snow is still a good 4 feet high where we shoveled it.

Tommy Turtle got completed covered up with the second snowfall!!  I had planned on making a Stegosaurus over Tommy, but naptime refusal by two little boys made that a little on the impossible side.

So...I want to say at least 50% of my neighbors have snowblowers.  We have arms and a shovel.  I would say they need to come share the wealth, but shoveling burns calories...so I guess we'll just deal with it. 

Lucy had a GREAT time in the snow.  It was awesome to see her romping around.  Too much fun.  What wasn't great.....the wet dog smell after.  ICK.

 

 

So being basically stuck in the house with a dog, an almost 4 year old and a 2 year old.  Not exactly my idea of super fun.  Don't get me wrong....I LOVE my family.  But everyone gets a bit of cabin fever.  On the first day of the second snowstorm the hubs had to leave to for school in Utah.  So while I was dealing with the craziness of the kiddies with no therapy or school and a dog that keeps whining to go outside to play every 5 minutes, hubby was here:

 



Um...what?!?!  Yeah, that's what I thought!  This is the pool at the house he and his classmates rented.  Pretty nice digs!!  I think this may be a great reason for me to go purchase some new Lululemon stuff.  Even things up a bit.  Yeah...me thinks so.

So since the snow has been so bad and I was not able to run outside and I absolutely hate the treadmill, I decided I try some workouts with the TRX system in the basement.  Lord have mercy....it was AWESOME.

I absolutely loved it.  I'm converted for sure.  It's hard work and I LOVE IT. 

Let me tell you....my core was so sore after the first workout and that's a good thing!!  If you want a great workout, check it out.

So now it's a new week.  Snow is melting and trails are semi clear.  The hubs, C and I got 5 miles in this afternoon while SE was at school and I found something out the hard way.
If you don't use it, you lose it.  Running stamina that is.  I was up to 10 miles before snowmageddon.  That 5 miles today almost killed my knees.  Fo sho.  I thought I was going to die.  It sucked.  Gonna have to get back in the saddle though.  My half marathon is only 5 weeks away.

So at the end of this month we're going back 'home' to visit our parents and friends for some much needed rest and relaxation. 
 
And one of the first places I'm going...

 

 

Who's with me?!?!?!?!  Provided there's no snow...I'm afraid of the incline with snow on it. :(

 

 

Then....I'm going to



Because Mama needs her Patsy's caramel corn!!  And since C is all about popcorn nowadays
I do believe he'll LOVE it just like I do.  :D

Later taters!!!

love,

Supermama rosie

Seriously Serious

So here's the post that I've eluded to several times.  I will tell about my journey during the diagnosis of both of my boys.  Here is some forewarning: if you are easily offended by honest reactions by a real person....stop reading.  If you are a religious person that has never had their faith waver or think that those that do don't have faith......stop reading.  And finally, if you don't want to keep an open mind and you want to be all judgey about the journey that many of us (Autism parents) are on....do us all a favor and.....STOP READING.

So here goes..... *deep sigh*

Both of the boys were planned.  Strategically planned.  The only issue that threw a wrench in the spacing of the boys was that pesky little trip to Iraq the hubs had to go on.  So instead of 2 years apart it was either around 18 months OR 2 1/2 years.   We chose the former.

When you see that plus sign or two little lines on a pregnancy test a rush of whole new emotions goes through you.  If you have kids, you know what I mean.  When you hear the heartbeat for the the first time of your child inside your womb your mind races with dreams.  Will my child be a girl or a boy?  Will he/she be an athlete like me?  What will he/she be when they grow up?  And etc.  I for one, prayed daily and sometimes multiple times a day for a happy, healthy baby.

When I type that I'm reminded of a session of pre-marital counseling the hubs and I went through.  The deacon asked if we wanted to have children.  Yes, we answered.  He asked us what we wanted for our children.  We said to be happy and healthy.  He asked us, what does that mean to you?  I didn't think much of it then, but what a loaded question.  Especially now that both of our children have been diagnosed with ASD.  Are they happy?  I would say so...I suppose.  Are they healthy?  Well, ASD is not a terminal illness, but are their brains healthy?  I would say no.

When we were expecting SE....it was well....interesting.  I gained 65 freaking pounds.  I drank slurpees, ate Chicago dogs and pretty much anything else I wanted to.  Oy vey.

 

In this photo I'm like 200+lbs.  Yeah, height gives you some wiggle room not to look like a 18 bedroom house.....but I felt like one!  LOL.

 

And then we were blessed with little SE!

 

 



 

 Instant, powerful, unconditional, pure....LOVE.  I.LOVE.THIS.KID.

So when you have your first kid you read all the books, what milestones they should be hitting etc.  SE was on the mark up until 12 mo.  Never suspected anything.  The only tip off...SE was always content to be left alone.  He could sit in his swing and only cry when he was wet or hungry.  I didn't know any better....hey, maybe he was just a "good baby".

Well, like in our Our Autism Story I realized something was amiss about 2 months later. 

The first emotion was denial.  He's a late bloomer.  Yeah, like WAY late.  No, that's not it.  When I first really came to the conclusion about what was wrong with my baby (yes WRONG..there is nothing right about ASD) I was PISSED.  I'd never felt so let down ever in my life.  Ever.  I prayed over this kid from the day I found out I was pregnant.  Why was this happening to us?  God's idea of a cruel joke? But I still believed with faith things would be okay.  God wouldn't forsake us, this was just a challenge we were going to have to work through.  So the last emotion...acceptance.....sorta.

I told the hubs while he was in Iraq and we moved forward from there.  After all, I was going to have C in a few months.  Well, we got stuff started with therapy for SE, moved (PCS'd) and began life with an ASD kiddie.

When you have a special needs child it's like some kind of prereq that you must read 'Welcome to Holland'.  This poem has become the special needs parent's mantra of sorts.  I don't know one SNP (Special Needs Parent) that hasn't read it.  I was automatically inducted into this "club" that I didn't ever think I would be a part of.  Never in my wildest dreams.  If you'd care to read it, Welcome to Holland. 

Being in the club sucks.  Let's face it.  This is a club NO ONE wants to join.  Seriously.  If you could choose......who would choose that?  There, I said it.  No one wants to be in the SNP club. 

No one wants to lose their child prematurely, watch their child suffer, fear your child getting bullied and teased, fear your child will never move out of the house and lead a productive life.  Think about all the monies that must be spent on therapies, toys specifically bought for therapeutic purposes (seriously...do you think I ever would have bought my 2 boys a freaking dollhouse??) and in my case...give up not only ONE career, but TWO because it's impossible to work due to your children's needs? 

Those two Bachelor's degrees are collecting dust. LOL.

So in the 'Welcome to Holland' scheme I'd like to think I haven't really moved into Holland but I've landed there and I'm navigating my way to the baggage claim.

Then in October 2010.....C entered the world!

 

I didn't think that I could have so much love for another child, but I do.  He is my baby boy or as GiGi calls him 'Baby Baby'.  He's so different from SE, much more like me.  This boy makes me laugh and shake my head EVERYDAY.  I.ADORE.THIS.KID.

Now you KNOW I had to have my boys rep O-State!!!  GO BUCKS!!

C was a completely different baby than SE.  Cried all the time, didn't like to be set down, always wanted to be in someone's arms, preferably Mommy.

So imagine my surprise when he started exhibiting signs and symptoms of ASD. 

So this is where the uber denial set in.  No way, not my other kid.  The therapists that had seen C while visiting SE said they would be surprised if he got a diagnosis.  I heard that from 3 different therapists that work directly with ASD kids.  That was reassuring, but on January 31st, 2012 the diagnosis came down. 

BOTH of my kids have AUTISM. 

There is no cure, they don't know what causes it, and every kid will have a different outcome.  Some will blend right in, some won't.

Imagine my ANGER.  Absolute betrayal from God.  That day, in my mind, God disappeared from my life.  I'm a person that has had faith in Christ from a young age.  And I'd like to think strong faith.  But I was broken.  That was the last straw.  I thought....how can someone who claims to care so much about us let this happen to us?!?!?!  Or do this to us?!?!?!  To my kids.  To my family.  What the hell did we do wrong?!?!?!?!  To stricken my kids down with an incurable disorder that will affect them for the rest of their lives?  I was so mad.  I was done with God.  Threw my bibles away, didn't even remotely think of going to church...ever again.  Only kept my rosary because it was a gift from my mother in law when I converted to Catholicism but that got shoved in the back of a drawer never to be seen again.  It was so bad that if Joel Osteen came on TV I cursed God an changed the channel.  People tried to bring me back, but I wasn't havin' it.

That attitude didn't change overnight and I can't even begin to understand why I've come back to God.  I can only say that His grace has allowed me to trust again.  I truly can't even wrap my head around how God has transformed my heart and mind.  I can't say I've fully accepted my path in life and that of my boys.  I don't think I ever will.  I still have days that I think....'what if my kids didn't have Autism'?  I would probably hear a lot more cries for 'Mommy', more questions why things are the way they are, we'd have more money in our bank account and less baby dolls and dollhouses around.  We'd have an office instead of a therapy room and I wouldn't buy toys based on their ability to be used in therapy.

But I have a new outlook.  God gave me these boys because he trusted me (us) enough to give them everything they need.  To give them the love they deserve and to give them every chance at a productive and happy life.  I look at my personality, my quick temper, my analytical nature and the fierce defense my boys and their rights and I sorta get it.  They need a Mommy like that.  They need a warrior.  They need a defender.  They need me.

And I need them.  The happiness I got when SE called me Mom for the first time back in March of 2012 and how I didn't hear it again until September 2012.  When C was playing at the mall playground and turned around and ran to me, acknowledging I was his Mommy and I was his safety....that only happened last month...for the first time EVER.

I look forward to the day SE will tell me he loves me on his own accord instead of parroting it back to me after I've said it to him. 

And this.....the first time he's ever hugged his brother.....EVER.

 

 

He hugged C on his own!!!  Did you hear that?!?!?!  On.His.Own.  Progress!!!

 

He hugs me all the time.  In fact, he requests hugs regularly, but to hug C?!?!  Wow.

 

Time, intense therapy and intervention will tell how far my boys will go.  I have faith it will be far. :)

 

 

Thanks for reading and understanding a little bit of my journey!

 

 

love,

Supermama rosie



10 miles, Valentine's Day, Yoga and TWITTER!

Hi, my name is Rosie and it's been a week since my last blog entry.  Haha.  Seriously, I probably need to write more often huh?  But this last week was HEC-TIC.

Monday SE was still under the weather so like a good parent, I kept him home from school.  Now, I know that some people have full time jobs and rely on school as childcare....but sending your kid to school when they are sick, so they can get MY kid sick.  Unacceptable.  Fo-real.  Parents need to have some consideration for the other kids in the school/class.  Okay, rant over. SE stayed home, rested and watched several episodes of Team Umizoomi and Thomas the Train.  He did half his therapy session (while laying on the playroom floor) and C completed his full session.

Fat Tuesday.....didn't get a King's cake this year.  And surprise, surprise the local Price Chopper did NOT have any.  Hmmmm.

Ash Wednesday.  Yep, we're Catholic.  So when checking mass times, the local chapel had two.  6:30am and 5:00pm.  Negative on that.  So we went to the chapel on post.  The hubs walked from work and met us there.  Now, SE is pretty well behaved during church as long as he has some stuff to keep him occupied.  C on the other hand......is totally OOC.  Out.Of.Control.  He gabbed loudly for the first half of mass.  The stares of others don't bother me anymore, but to be polite I smile when they're shooting the death rays from their eyes at my little family.  Here's how I feel about kids in church; kids cry, laugh and shout and Jesus loves it all.  They are children (literally) of the most high, so why shush them when they are in the house of the Lord?  Now wailing??  Take 'em out in the hallway son.  So that's what I did.  Took C (who is almost 2 1/2) out into the front hallway where he proceeded to run and laugh.  Now comes the time to receive ashes.  Hubs had C and I had SE.  He was doing great in line, then when we got to the priest, he puts the ashes on my head and then goes to put them on SE.  Let me tell you.....SE was NOT having it.  I was just thinking what he must have been thinking.

1. What is that black stuff you just put on my mom's face?
2.  And now you, a stranger, want to touch me??  On my face??  Um..SPD dude!
3.  AND.......NO.
4.  Kthanksbye.

SE stared at our foreheads for the rest of the mass, but at least he was making AWESOME eye contact!!

 

That night we had our one full meal at our family's Ash Wednesday traditional restaurant.  Captain D's.  Long John Silver's is closer, but when we lived in CO and VA we always went to Captain D's.  And we can't break tradition!!!  As we were walking out after eating, I overheard a lady say, "Why does everyone have spots on their heads"?  Hilarious.  If you're in that boat....of thinking 'What the heck is on her head?'  Please check this link --> Ash Wednesday explained

 

 

 

I also went to yoga on Wednesday.  Jackie (my yoga teacher) decided to do 'heart openers' because it was so close to Valentine's Day.  Cool.  The lesson would end with a full backbend.  Cool.  Or so I thought. 

 

When backbend time came, she points me out...because she thinks I'm strong or something, to do a partner backbend.  Now, when I was in my early years, I could do a backbend with ease.  Heck, into high school I could.  I'm 34.  I thought I could still do a backbend without problems.  I was wrong.  I felt SO dumb in class.  And with that, a challenge had been issued in my mind.  Backbend by June.  I told Jackie I would be able to do one by June.  She chuckled and said, 'Okay'.  What???  Does she not believe I can do it?!?!?!  I WILL.

 

 

I also have another pose I'd like to master by the end of 2013.

 

 

Pincha Mayurasana (Forearm stand)

 

This pose is scary times a million for someone of my height and body proportions.  But I want to be able to do it.  What is life without some challenges to yourself??  I've decided to start with a forearm headstand to be mastered this summer, then move to the forearm stand!  I know all my gymnast friends are like...uh Rosie...EASY.  Yeah, not for someone that hasn't been flipping around their whole life.





Then came Valentine's Day.  I have a love/hate relationship with this "holiday".  I love my family and friends everyday.  I don't need a special day to tell me to show my love.  I bought cards for family, and on a sidenote....when did cards get so freaking expensive?!?!?!  $5 for a card?!?!?  Um yeah, homemade card from now on.  Family, you've been warned.  I don't have a cricut or any of those fancy dancy card making stamp it up stuff....so just be happy you're getting a card, no matter what it looks like.
Mmmmkay??

Valentine's Day is almost as bad as Easter in terms of candy consumption.  For those of us that are confirmed Chocoholics.....it SUCKS.  Temptation at every turn!  I caved.  Had more candies than I needed too.  And I also shared the most fantastic cupcake ever with my little wonders SE and C.  Along with a *gasp* glass of milk!

And it was GOOD.

I got an awesome Valentine from SE that he made at school. 

 

I also got a report from his teacher that said he CHOSE to play with friends instead of having computer time! My kid. Yep, he chose the social interaction instead of time on electronics!!! WOOOOOOOOT!!! 

 

*insert awesome Arsenio Hall-like fist pump here*

Friday was pretty much back to normal...therapy in the morning, SE went to school, C and I ran errands.  We picked up some Melissa and Doug wooden slicing toys.  The boys both go bonkers over these toys and they are a big hit during therapy.  So...it would only make sense to buy them and work on stuff at home.  C has gotten good at cutting and offering me pieces of pizza, bread and apple. 

The next morning I got up and said.....LET'S DO THIS....and ran 10 miles.  Yes TEN miles.
That's DOUBLE DIGITS!!!

It was 19 degrees out....so don't hate on my hat.

I will say that mile 8 to 9...I thought my knees were going to give out.  They were screaming..."Rosie....what the hell are you doing???  I guess you forgot that in the 4 years you played volleyball at Ohio State you jumped like a gazillion times and we took the brunt of that punishment"?!?!?!

So from this.......

 

To this.......

 



SE thought the ice was WAY fun to play with.  I, on the other hand, thought it was damn cold.  And my feet HURT.  But it was worth it, and the half marathon finish will be too!!

 

I wore my Bodybugg during the run and burned 1257 calories for the whole run.  So yeah, I enjoyed my chocolate filled processed food crap sugary donut for Donut Saturday.



 

 

And today, Sunday was a living room yoga kinda day.  I did the same hip opener routine from the Amazon Instant Video rental as last week and then I tried some different poses I found in my Yoga Journal magazine.

 

Here's a plank from my sun salutation series.

 



 

 

Check my triceps!!!  Guess all that hardwork in the weight room is FINALLY paying off!!

I still have a ways to go, but I'm getting there!

 

 

 

And now time for some brotherly love.  My boys don't really interact too much.  UNLESS, one has a toy that the other wants as well.  We're working on this in therapy and in just everyday life.  Ideally I would love to see them play tag and pretend play together.  Of course, that doesn't come easy for either of them and at some point I think we'll have to bring in some peer models to in essence, show them how to play.  Today SE requested the iPad very politely so I gave it to him.  C saw this and wanted to see what SE was doing.  The kitchen table was the scene of the action.  So C took matters into his own hands and got a better view of the iPad on his own.

 



Yep, that's my 2 year old....ON TOP of the kitchen table.  LOL.

And for the TWITTER reference.  So.  I have a twitter account and I can't remember the email address I used for it.  I put in my username and it sends an email to some address I don't remember.  Then I try every password I can think of and get locked out.  BUT, I'm still logged in on my phone and I love my profile. :(  Boo.  So, I'm just going to make a new one I guess.  Look for @supermama_rosie!!!  Follow me!  I'm just now really joining the Twitter world, thanks to a good friend telling me I'm ancient and I need to get on board. Thanks Rod!

Until next time....which WON'T be a week from now..I promise!!

love,

Supermama rosie