26 days till Christmas!!!

Wooohooooooo!!! As you can see I am very excited for the holiday. This is my favorite Christmas movie! I haven't watched it yet, but I am looking forward to it, very soon!

Not that there will be snow, but I can't wait to go to Arizona! I technically have been there before, but I was an infant. Not only will there be some SUN, but also my FAMILY!!! I can't wait to see them. Who can resist good food, fun times, and most of all a vacation!? PLUS, my grandma is coming too! YEAHHHHHHHH!

CALLING ALL COOKS!...

I am OBVIOUSLY feeling better...since I haven't eaten in a few days, I am really hungry for something REALLY GOOD! But, I am in a recipe rut. I need some new things to make. Any suggestions? I also need some new things for the holidays. You know, the things you take to parties and get-togethers. Post away...Thanks!

PS-my family will appreciate it!

24 Hour BUG...

So, I ventured out on Black Friday to seek the deals...and what I got I hadn't bargained for! Put me in the category of crazy, I woke up at 3:30 AM to go shopping and returned home about 1:30pm Pretty much done, except for stockings, but I was exhausted.

So I took a 2 hour nap and awoke to discover I had lost my voice. I not only was still tired, I could no longer complain about it.

Went to dinner at Chili's with our friends and had a good time. Went home, went to bed, and woke at midnight with the flu reeking havoc on my soul...every 30 to 60 minutes. YUCK!

K was really good about taking care of me & the kids on Saturday. I slept the entire day. I slept the entire night. I slept until 9am today.

I woke this morning to find L in his bed with the flu as well. So this evil that has come to kill us lives on. Hopefully we can win the battle. With any luck we will regain our strength before tomorrow when life once again resumes.

So Grateful...

I don't know how much time I will have in the next couple of days to post, so I wanted to quickly write some things I am thankful for...in no particular order...

My Family, My Friends, My Kids, My Husband, Our Health, To have a roof over our head and good things to eat. To be able to share my daily life with others. That I live in a free country. For Soldiers who fight for us. For the families of those soldiers, may they be blessed. For the Gospel. For all of my MANY blessings that I take for granted daily. For all of the support that our friends and family have given us now & always. THANK YOU! We are TRULY GRATEFUL!

Crazy weather we're having...

Its turning cold again. Yesterday and today will be in the 60's. Tomorrow and Turkey day will be raining & a chance of snow! On Turkey night it will get down to 17 degrees!

Call me crazy, but is it so much to ask for some stability in the climate?

We put up our tree!

Ok, so I know its REALLY early to be putting up our tree, but since we are going to be super busy from now on until Christmas, I wanted to be able to enjoy it. Plus, we will be going to Arizona for Christmas and we won't be here for the holidays.

I debated not decorating at all, just cause I don't like to come home to the chore of packin' it all away. But I decided that was a little harsh on the kids. So, I only brought out my favorite things.

I am almost done with my shopping! YEAH! But now the hard part comes...Wrapping it all up.

I can't wait to go to the warm weather of Arizona for the holidays! I haven't seen sun in the winter time for a few years...I know its sad huh?

Gotta run, I think I'm burning Lunch!

L's Home Program...

we have made updates to the basement but don't have a current picture. I will try to update it so you can see! We have taken the tramp out cause we have a full size one in the back yard with our teeter totter too. But basically the basement became the most reinforcing place to be that we could make it!

Ok, sorry, I forgot that some of you don't know what I mean when I talk about "L's staff".

L has Autism. Autism is a disability. So, we qualify for a waiver in Iowa that provides us with people to come into our home 52 hrs. a month, Plus Respite care. So basically we have staff in our home 2 hrs. a day 4 days a week and 4 hrs on Fridays. We are trying to get some help for Sunday as well, but that isn't working out right now. This is time for L to have his home program in progress while the rest of us do what we need to. Our entire basement is set up to facilitate this program. (with the exception of my laundry and food storage.) This program is what makes all the difference...especially during the school breaks.

We are on a balanced calendar school year here. That means we do a regular school year as far as dates go, but we have a 2 week spring break, and a 2 week fall break, in addition to all the other breaks regular calendar schools have. This means we only have a 6 week summer! yeah! There are pro's and con's to this schedule, but we have adapted.

Some of you know that I took a staff member on vacation with us this summer. This is one of the benefits of having this service. L made so much progress during the month of July! It was almost disappointing to not have staff 24/7 when we returned.

Our journey with Autism has made us all stronger, even though we don't always feel strong. I know we live in Iowa for K & L's education. I know it is the place that we NEED to be in...even though I will admit I hate living here. Don't get me wrong, we have made some WONDERFUL friends here and gained so much knowledge of many different things. But there is NOTHING...& I mean NOTHING about this place that would make me trade it for the good old Northwest!

If anyone has any other questions, feel free to ask away!

What a Day...

Happy Tuesday! The weather here today is SO SO WEIRD! It has been above 60 degrees the past 2 days. But tomorrow, it will be more than 10 degrees cooler.

The leaves continue to blanket the ground here. Its really very pretty, until you have to rake them. The squirrels are horrible. They eat everything. I didn't even put out my scarecrow on the front porch. Mostly because last year they ate his face off!

Enough about Iowa. I really wanted to blog about my conversation with N yesterday. So after everyone returned home from school, K needed some help on the computer, creating some documents for his Shooting Club. So, I was up in the office with K for about 20 minutes. L was in his usual spot in the basement with our staff, and N was left in the living room with her toys. I had previously been watching TV, so it was still on.

When I came downstairs N announces "Mom, look I'm watching Oprah!" Now my first thought was -crap, I hope its not something horrible, like a murderer or a unfaithful spouse, or something like that. But then I realized it was Celine Dion singing. Whew, that was a relief. N asked "Who is it mom?" I told her who it was and then she replied "Celdon looks like Rapunzel!" I couldn't resist laughing out loud! Doesn't everything have to do with BARBIE when you are 5?

Went shopping with the girls!

Yesterday I went to Chicago with my friends Louise, Emily, & Suzy. The 4 of us went to Ikea , Costco, & DSW. We do this about every 4 months. (thats when students get "paid")I really enjoyed myself except when we went to DSW (Designer Shoe Warehouse) Everyone EXCEPT me got 2 (not one, but 2)pairs of shoes! I could not find anything that I liked! So I thought, instead of leaving empty handed I would look for K-NOPE, DSW hates women that wear size 10 and men that wear size 11. Now if you have never been to a DSW, let me just tell you there is EVERY kind of shoe you can imagine for men & for women. Heels, dress shoes, casual shoes, sneakers, Boots, snow boots, sandals, thongs (shoes, not underwear.) PLUS, they have socks and handbags and gloves and all kinds of accessories. CAN YOU EVEN IMAGINE COMING OUT EMPTY HANDED????? Well, I did. Call me picky.

But, all in all it was fun! Even when I missed my exit from x-xxx to x-xx! We weren't really lost, just took a little detour. We ended up going home on x-xx instead, which in the long run meant we didn't have to pay tolls! YEAH!

5 Random & Obscure things...Ughhhh.....

OK, so I have been tagged by Chelle, to tell 5 random & obscure things about myself.???

#1 I hate doing stuff like this. It always makes me feel like I am either tooting my own horn or people are gonna judge me.

#2 I like order and MUST have it in some aspects of my life, like when I put clothes in the drawers, everything has a place. BUT, I live pretty much in chaos as far as keeping my house in order and my car cleaned out. Now this is not that I don't TRY, cause I do, I guess I just know it will be there for me when I am ready. ( & who knows when I will be ready? )

#3 I am constantly thinking about L's home & school programs. Not only do I think about the here and now, I think about when we move and where we will go and how & what I am going to have to do to get the services he needs. Am I doing everything that I can to make his life successful? Sometimes I think its just what good moms do, and sometimes it feels like a sickness. Maybe I have a little OCD?! (don't we all?)

#4 I can do PeeWee Herman's laugh... I don't know, don't ask.

#5 I love my immediate and extended families-to death. I don't even know any other family that can spend a whole week in a cabin together and still not want to go home at the end of the week. Now, I am talking my grandparents, parents, siblings, aunts, uncles, their children and their children's children! I used to think everyone had this kind of relationship with their families, but my eyes have been opened and I have come to realize we have something really special.

Ok so there it is-I am not quite sure how random and obscure they are, but thats what I can think of at this moment.

Its Fall...

L & N Photo shoot October 2007

SO COLD.......

And it begins! The cold weather is here again. Our state has started its polar temperatures again. I think last year at this time it was warmer. I remember the kids jumping on the trampoline on Thanksgiving Day! Today it was in the mid 20's when we woke up this morning and the high today will only be 45. I know some of our friends and family in the NW have been experiencing these temps for awhile now, BUT I know you don't have the moisture like the Midwest.

Speaking of Turkey Day, I can't believe how fast it is approaching us. The year has really flown by. Some of you know I am a religious TODAY SHOW watcher and they just said its only 48 days till Christmas! And as my brother-in-law would say "HOLY BALLS!" I am so excited for Christmas this year! I will get to meet my new niece Avarie and visit with my family!

But back to Fall, I am watching the leaves fall as I type this morning. The colors are beautiful. Yellow, Red, Orange, Chartreuse, all the shades of fall! It is my most favorite time of year and I hope that we can all enjoy this season. Freezing or mild. I think all this talk of cold weather has put me in the mood for hot chocolate! Go grab a cup for yourselves, you know you want to!

I'm 29...again!

So, I had my birthday. My family went to school & I went and waxed my eyebrows! I was so overdue. Later I went to my monthly Autism Society meeting, and then came home to bed to wake up and do it all again! I guess this is what AGE is all about? Since it was Thursday, we didn't make any plans. But on Friday we went to Texas Roadhouse for dinner with our friends Chris & Emily. We invited many more, but everyone was busy...I can't imagine what could be more fun than spending my birthday with me, but you know, some people are just weird!

Tonight we are hangin' out with our friends Matt & Kelly at home. Its Matt's Birthday today! So I will take one for the team and be the party house tonight!

I keep wondering, If birthdays after 29 are good, bad, or just ugly? Maybe I will just live in denial FOREVER. Then I don't really have to find out! So next year when you are reading the blog and the title looks familiar, "I'm 29 again" You will know what I have decided!

In the land...

So I don't know how well this will work, but I will give it a try. I know its one more thing I have to do, but it will be so much easier for you all to see us and know whats going on with us since most of you are so far away.

I guess this can serve as a kind of journal as well. I know I know, whatever I need to tell myself!

Alright then, I will explain that the address of our blogspot and first blog title is "In the land". As you know, we are crazy and kind of in our own little world or "land" if you will. So I thought that the comings and goings of this adventure would be interesting for you all to read and at some points I am sure you will get to laugh, either at us or with us.