rudolph

We had a visitor at our house this Christmas season. An elf was sent to us from the North Pole to watch over Brecken and report back to Santa each night how the day went. Then he'd come back before we woke up and hide in the house somewhere.

I didn't order him so much to help with behavior, as we have a pretty well behaved child to begin with. But I knew this elf would hold so much magic, and this year has been the most magical since Brecken has been with us. His eyes widen in wonder and he gets so dang excited about everything- so I knew this elf would be the perfect addition to our Christmas traditions. Brecken would get out of bed every morning so excited to go elf hunting. B would tell him when we left for school to have a good day, and would tell him "Good night! Have a safe trip!" every evening. Rudolph (what Brecken named his elf, though he mainly called him "my buddy") stayed through Christmas Day, even arriving at my mom and dad's house, and then flew back to the North Pole until next December. Brecken is so sad- he misses his little friend.

(you can get more information about the elves here)

bravery

If you know my son, you know this was a big thing for him. I almost cried, I was so proud of him.

letters

Brecken wrote a letter to Santa last week during school. The class then walked down to the post office and put them in the mail box that goes to the North Pole. He was soooo excited that Santa was going to get his letter in the mail! And today, Santa came to school to personally deliver letters back to them!

Dear Santa,

For Christmas I want a train with wheels that drive backwards by itself, a frisbee, and a Mater that you pull back and it moves by itself.

Love, Brecken

Dear Brecken,

Thank you for writing to me this year. I really enjoy getting letters from your school. Your teachers are very nice to help you write your letters to Santa. Did you know Santa has to answer thousands of letters each year? My typing is getting better but sometimes I still make mistakes.

The elves were really excited to read your letter and they have picked out something very special for you this year. I was excited to read your letter too because Mater is one of my favorite toys. I like Lightning McQueen but Mater is the best. I love his cool teeth and I love to hear him talk.

The reindeer are really busy practicing their flying. They will have to fly faster than Lightning McQueen can drive in order for us to make the trip around the world and to get all the presents delivered. We have a very long trip.

Be good and I will see you on Christmas Eve with a very special gift from everyone here at the North Pole.

Love,
Santa

you're never going to believe it!

BRECKEN SAT ON SANTA'S LAP TONIGHT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I had my elementary program tonight. It went really well! Afterwards, Santa came. Brecken came running down the bleachers right to me so we could get in line. I was shocked. He told Josh and I in line that he was just going to say hi to him, not sit on his lap. Because Santa already knew what he wanted, since he wrote him a letter at school. We said that was fine. Well, he got up there, and Santa kind of just picked him up and put him on his lap, and B did NOT freak out!!!!! I was almost too shocked to get a picture!! I was so proud of him! What a change in my little guy from a few weeks ago!

They wrote letters to Santa at school the other day, and today they took a walking field trip to the post office to mail them in the special mailbox. Brecken is so excited that Santa will be getting his letter soon. I love the magic of Christmas. :)

brushing

I picked Brecken up this afternoon and we met his OT at the preschool so she could teach me how to use the Wilbarger Brushing Protocol she has been using on Brecken since his diagnosis. She's seen great results out of it with him, which I was very proud of! I now know how so I can do it at home with Brecken. I'll show Josh too, so that we can both do it. (He couldn't come with me today because of basketball practice.) I'm excited to try it before bedtime to see if bedtime goes better, and definitely before basketball games (which start tomorrow!!) because of all the noise, etc. She told me I could do it as often as every two hours, and I now have a couple of the brushes at home. Here is a little bit more info on it for those who want to read about it!

http://www.thetherapyplace.net/newsletter/3_2.htm

It's hard to explain. We have a brush, it's a surgical brush. (Which is easily replaced at low cost- hooray! Especially if Aunt Kristen can get us some! :)) After it's used for a while, you have to replace it because the bristles will wear down and won't be as effective because they aren't stiff enough.

There's a certain way to brush up and down his arm, using a certain amount of pressure and not letting the brush come up at all. After you get every inch of skin you can, then you go it real fast on his palm, about 3 or so swishes. Then you put the brush down and "hug" his fingers. It's like pushing (lightly, but with pressure) the knuckle toward the hand, on each finger. Then you brace the arm and push his wrist toward his elbow a couple times. Then the elbow toward the shoulder. Then you repeat on the other arm. And then the legs and feet. And "hug" his toes, ankles, knees, and hips. And then you brush his back. Then after his back, you brace his back and push (again lightly, but with pressure) on his head. And push his sternum toward his back.

It's very hard to explain and this is the abbreviated version.

So proud of my little man! We weren't sure he was going to let the teachers touch him- he's very guarded about that stuff- but he now searches for his teacher that does it in the mornings, when he gets there, so he can have his special time with her!!

While we were in the OT office, he was playing with some rubber spikey things and was putting them on his feet, which shocked me. The OT quietly told me that was a new development just this week. So he's growing in that sense! Hooray!!

forward movement

Things are finally moving forward again in the adoption process. The "week to 10 days" it was going to take to review our application turned into over 3 weeks. However, word has been trickling in from our fantastic references that they have been receiving the letters from the Society. And they have a deadline, apparently, to write a letter for us and have it back to the Society. In addition to that, we have received our second packet from them, with MORE questions to answer ("were you able to confide in your mom and dad?" "tell us specific amounts and frequency of how much alcohol you drink", etc) and instructions on how to get fingerprinted.

Wee-haw, here we go! :)

getting organized

We got to spend a weekend at home for once. It seems like we haven't been home for a weekend in a very, very long time. And because of that, our house is a disaster. A huge disaster. And sometime in the future, we are going to have a home study done, so we need to get organized. Fast.

So today was it.

We managed to get a lot done!! We got into the middle bedroom, where we keep all the baby stuff and other things that kind of get thrown in there. It is now all set up. We even set up the crib, finding out that we are missing a couple of the bolts. Hopefully we can order new hardware for it! I'm glad we discovered that now, rather than later when we actually need the crib!

While we were at it, we rearranged the living room. That's the best way to clean because it forces us to move the furniture. Gross! And since we were moving around furniture, we decided to make more space upstairs and move the piano downstairs. Josh had a couple students and one of our friends come over and help him get it down there.

That's the exciting life we had today- but it was so nice to be able to stay home for once!

a fish funeral

I had my very first fish funeral tonight. We came home yesterday to find Fishio was no longer swimming. I didn't know what to tell Brecken, so we waited until this afternoon after school to tell him. My poor baby cried. Hard. He's so broken hearted, it made me cry right along with him. He wanted to bury Fishio in the back yard under the plants, so after Josh came home from practice, we did that. Brecken wondered if we could get Fishio back after he felt better and we wiped the dirt off him from being buried. :( The poor kid got teary-eyed every time he thought of Fishio tonight. Poor baby. :(

grandma peewee

Edna “Peewee” Sandlian
Modified: Friday, Nov 12th, 2010

Edna Sandlian

July 8, 1933 – November 9, 2010

Funeral services for Edna “Peewee” Sandlian, 77, will be held at 1 p.m. Friday, Nov. 12, 2010, at the First Wyoming United Presbyterian Church with the Rev. Steven Seng officiating. Burial will follow in the Valley View Cemetery. Edna died Nov. 9, 2010, at Community Hospital in Torrington. Memorials may be made to the Special Touch Program at Community Hospital, the American Cancer Society, or the donor’s choice. Visitation will be Thursday from 3 p.m. to 7 p.m. at the funeral home and the casket will be open at the church prior to the service. Arrangements are under the direction of the Colyer Funeral Home and friends may send condolences to the family at www.colyerfuneralhome.com.

Edna was born July 8, 1933, at the family home northwest of Yoder, the daughter of Henry and Ella (Prentice) Garrelts. She grew up and received her education in Yoder graduating in 1951. She married Dale Sandlian on July 20, 1952. They farmed near Yoder for a short time before moving to Torrington. She drove school bus and enjoyed driving the sports trips. She started delivering rural mail part and then went to full-time in the mid 1980s. She retired from there.

Edna enjoyed bowling, playing bridge, golfing, and traveling the world with friends. She was a member of the Torrington Country Club, the Wyoming Rural Carriers Association, and the South Goshen Presbyterian Church.

Edna will be dearly missed by Dwayne and Jacquie Sandlian of Torrington, and their family; children, Summer and Eric, Beki and Josh, Daniel and Tiffany, Jessica and Mike, John, Tessa, Steffie, and Beth; grandchildren, Natalie, Anna, Molli, Emma, Caylie, and Caleb; Craig and Lennie Sandlian of Lingle and their family; children Joshua and Kara, Joel and Annie, and Jeffrey and Beth; grandchildren Karlee, Trevor, Hailey, Brecken and Bryell; Bryan and Anne Sandlian of Cheyenne and their family; children Jessica and Mike, and Mark; grandchildren Brayden and Lyla; brother Alvin “Sonny” Garrelts of Yoder; sister Anna Mae McElheny of Torrington; niece, nephews, and many close friends.

She was preceded in death by her parents; her husband; two brothers; one sister; and one great-grandchild Kaylin Sandlian.

chicago

We made the fastest trip ever to Chicago this weekend for my grandma's funeral. It was a really great weekend, even though we were only there for one full day! EVERYONE from my family was able to make it, which I find amazing- we are spread out from FL to WA, to NY to CA, to WY, MN, and IL... and we haven't all been together in years. YEARS. It was so great to see all my family, even if the head lady wasn't there. :(

All of my grandma's great grandchildren together for the first time:
Myself with all my cousins- I think the last time we were together was when I turned 18:

Me and my family. :)

Josh, B, and I:

The whole family:

here we go!

Here it is- our GOOD news. The past month has been filled with nothing but horrible news, it seems, so I'm excited to say that today I have great news.

We're going to adopt!

We got the application packet a few weeks ago. We finally got all the information gathered and our autobiographies written and reference list put together, and pictures ordered and marriage license photocopied, and got it all ready to mail in today, and I did. And as I left the post office, I was a litte bit giddy- that must mean it's the right thing to be doing right now! And when I got back from the post office, I emailed an adoptive mother who has graciously opened her email inbox to us, to let her know it was done. And she wrote back,

"I know what you mean...the giddiness of "expecting" is pure Heaven!"



and I realized that's what it is- we're expecting.



Hip, Hip, Hooray!

trick-or-treat

He wore the costume! (most of it, anyway. and it had to be over his regular clothes, but I'll take it!!)

At my school's Halloween Carnival:
Carving pumpkins:

He drew the nose himself. :)

iep

Had a meeting at preschool on Tuesday afternoon to put Brecken on an IEP. He'll be on it for two things- speech (to fix his K's, hard C's, and G's- letters that use the back of the tongue) and for a sensory processing disorder. It was a super intereting meeting, an hour and a half long (and B did great playing the whole time!) and soooo many things are falling into place and making sense now! (like how he hates socks, hated footed pj's, the pickiness in clothing, etc.)

Basically, he has the texture sensory issue I had already suspected, but he also has an auditory processing disorder. We didn't see that at home because we don't have a lot of chaos and noise going on. But they are noticing at school that when things get crazy, as preschool tends to do, he shuts down and won't do anything. If anything new happens, he shuts down because it's not in his routine. The OT had a heck of a time getting him tested for motor skills because she had to pull him outside and he wouldn't do anything because that's not what was "supposed" to happen. They said he has a hard time getting his work done because he's always looking around at what's happening in the classroom. They were quick to assure us he wasn't doing it to be naughty (and it's NOT ADD), it's just him self-preserving and being extremely guarded- if he knows what's going on, he won't be surprised- that's why he is making sure everything is "ok" while he's supposed to be working. He is always observing to make sure things will be alright and he won't be surprised.

I asked him last night if he likes it when it's noisy in his class and he said, "No. I can't think!!"

They also said that if it gets too crazy at recess, he leaves the kids and plays with the teachers, because he knows the teachers are safe and there won't be noise and anything unexpected. He just gets very overwhelmed with noise and chaos because his body can't process it right. He also has trouble doing anything that might be uncomfortable to him- like new activities, etc. One day they did an experiment with the class on tastes- salty, sour, sweet, etc. He wouldn't let them put anything on his plate because he was afraid of what it was!

So the OT (who is incredible) is going to do some pull-out work with him on how to deal with new situations, how to deal with noise, things he might think are scary, teaching him how to judge if things are safe, ans working on textures. The speech pathologist is going to work with him on letters. Each of those things will happen twice a week.

It really is making sense though. Since the people that moved in across the street have been there, he refuses to be in his room by himself. That's around the time he said he heard something bad outside. They have loud trucks and loud parties, so we think he heard one of those and his brain then told him it's unsafe. He will literally poop in his pull-up at night, from crying so hard when we try to make him sleep in there. It breaks my heart, and he's not doing it on purpose since he doesn't have a clue it happened. So now we know why- he knows mom an dad's bedroom is safe since we are there, and he thinks his isn't.

And why he won't try new food- he's afraid to try new things.

And why when we go to someone else's house, it takes him a long time to warm up- they said it's him making sure it's safe first.

And why he won't wear socks, or anything that e hasn't tried on and has deemed comfortable first.

It's fascinating to me!! Maybe if the OT can get some good results, B will be willing to go into his room. And he'll branch out on food, even though I think he'll always be a small eater. And hopefully he can deal with noises better! (Poor kid, the teachers said sometimes he stops and covers his ears and cries for his mom. :( )

They ALSO said, which is even more fascinating to me, that there have been studies recently linking kids that have sensory disorders to being in the NICU when they were born! The special ed director for the preschool has a grandson that was born at 30 weeks and was in the NICU for a long time, and his auditory sensory disorder has been linked to his NICU stay. So interesting!

They did say he LOVES shaving cream day where they get to play with the shaving cream on the tables. He loves that at home, too. :) And his teacher from last year that still works with him this year said he is the most kind and caring kid she has had, and is one of her favorite kids she's taught. That made my heart swell a little bit. (OK, a lot. :) )

So there you go- I'll keep you updated as things happen!!

internet

I have a whole lot to say, but this weekend our internet went down and we just TODAY got it fixed! We had to get a new modem from the internet company. And with super hectic schedules all around this week, we were just finally able to meet up with him today. *sigh*. The good news is, our internet works again. The bad news is, my email won't work and emails are being bounced back to their senders. I sat on hold for 10 minutes tonight with the company (who knew they'd be so busy at 9 at night?!) and finally gave up. I'll try again tomorrow.

Anyway, lots of news to share regarding a meeting we had with Brecken's preschool last night, but since it's late at night and I 1)forget things at night and 2)type all sorts of typos at night, I'll leave that post for tomorrow. :)

Until then...

grandma

RITA LOUISE GLEASON


Rita Louise Gleason, 92, an active member of the Chicago Community. Member of the Peace Corps and a Red Cross Volunteer her entire adult life. Beloved wife of the late Walter R. Gleason; loving mother of Rita (Dwight) Stiehl, Ginger (Rich) White, Rich (Karen, nee Smith) and the late Walter (Roberta, nee Blackwell) and Patrick (Sandra, nee Hinzman); dear grandmother of 11; and great-grandmother of seven. Memorial Services at a later date. Info: Nelson Funeral Home, 773-561-5147 or http://www.nelsonfunerals.com/.

Published in Chicago Tribune on October 14, 2010

another angel

My grandma passed away today. I'll write more about it later, but wanted to share something a friend told me this evening that made me tear up again.

"I like to think of grandparents as guardian angels. Now you have one more person working to get Brecken a brother or sister."

I think she's right. Gram, pick us out a great one!

aunt dorothy

Dorothy Louise Yorges




January 5, 1942 – October 6, 2010

Funeral services for Dorothy Louise Yorges, 68, will be held at 10 a.m on Monday, Oct. 11, 2010 at the First Wyoming United Presbyterian Church with the Rev. Curtis Hill officiating. Burial will follow in the Valley View Cemetery. Dorothy died Oct. 6, 2010 surrounded by her loving family at home after a long and courageous battle with ALS (Lou Gehrig’s Disease). Memorials may be directed to the South Goshen Presbyterian Church. Visitation will be Sunday from 3 p.m. to 7 p.m. at the funeral home and the casket will be closed at the service. Arrangements are under the direction of the Colyer Funeral Home and friends may send condolences to the family at www.colyerfuneralhome.com.

Dorothy was born Jan. 5, 1942 in Torrington the daughter of Harley and Lydia (Jenkins) Babbitt. She was raised around the LaGrange and Yoder area. She lived a short time in Oregon while she was recovering from severe burns as a child. While she was in high school she met Earl Yorges at a Yoder dance where he danced her off her feet and into his heart. They were married on April 25, 1959 at the Presbyterian Church in Yoder. They lived for five years in the Veteran, Wyoming area and then moved to a farm ten miles west of Yoder where they farmed and ranched until they moved to Torrington in 1986. Dorothy helped run the farm with Earl and they raised four children. She enjoyed raising her family, gardening, sewing, and every aspect of farm and ranch life. She especially loved springtime when all the baby calves were being born, the birds were singing, and the refreshing sight of new life that springtime brings. She also loved late summer when the smell of wheat harvest was in the air and the golden wheat fields were abundant. She devoted her life to God and was active in every aspect of the church and also made it a mission in her life to volunteer at the nursing home until her health denied her that privilege. She filled many pulpits as a lay minister in Wyoming and was a long-time member of the South Goshen Presbyterian Church.

Dorothy is survived by her devoted and loving husband Earl; her children, Marty Yorges, Becky (Richard) Reyes, Lori (Rod) Weyrich, and Vicky (Ed) Stovall; seven grandchildren, Colin (Emily) Yorges and Haley Yorges, Alisa Reyes, Jenna and Shelby Weyrich, and Paige and Bailey Stovall; her brothers Kenneth, Raymond, Leonard, and Harold Babbitt; her sisters Myrtle Brewster and Rosie Dillman; and other family members that loved her very much. She was preceded in death by her parents Harley and Lydia Babbitt; brother Merle Babbitt; an infant brother; and a nephew Jiggs Babbitt.

so i don't forget this conversation...

Brecken to Daddy: Mommy is a princess, so treat her like one.
Daddy: Well tell Mommy that I am the king then.
Brecken: No, I am the king! And Mommy is a princess.
Daddy: So what am I then?
Brecken: The horse. You are the horse.

I had tears, I was laughing so hard!

my 4-year-old

I don't think I've been very good at actually documenting my child as he grows. In talking with my sister-in-law this weekend, I was wondering what size shoe my little guy was wearing when he was my niece's age, and I'm not sure I ever wrote that down! So I stole this from a friend (Thanks, Amy! LOL!) so I can document.


Wearing: 3T. Sometimes the waists are a bit big, but the length is about right. I thought we'd never get into 3T. :) He still wears some 2T shirts that he loves. He is very picky about what he wears- he will only wear sweatpants and basketball shorts (and he has to pick them out) and only has a few certain shirts he will wear. Picky, picky! He wears size 10 shoes, we think- hard to tell when he loves his Crocs so much. :) He's in size 10-11 for those. We are going to need new tennis shoes for this winter.

Eating: Favorite foods are pizza, chips, apples, yogurt, hot dogs, carrots, french fries, goldfish, and pasta. He won't eat meat unless it's a chicken nugget or a hot dog, which let's face it- those two really can't be considered meat. :) He's recently discovered chicken drumsticks though, and those are getting a thumbs up. He loves dipping things in ranch or ketchup. He has always been an eater that eats teeny tiny amounts, but since turning four, his appetite has grown enough to notice. Maybe we're in for a growth spurt??

Speaking of grown spurt: He is currently about 39 inches tall and 31 pounds.

Random Stuff: He loves playing games on the iPad or iPods, and can beat Josh sometimes in Golf on the Wii. He could play real golf every day all day- along with football and basketball. He practices and practices throwing and kicking and gets so excited when he gets better from practicing. He no longer wants to ride in his stroller to the park- he'd much rather get on his bike helmet and ride his bike (with training wheels) instead. *sniff, sniff*, my baby is no longer a baby. :(

Four years old is proving (so far! knock on wood!) to be much easier than three years old. We never had the "Terrible Two's"- it was more like the "Terrible Three's"! Three was rough. So far, however, things have mellowed out a bit since he has turned four. Hopefully it continues. :)

He truly is the love of our lives. I couldn't ask for a better kid.

a vacation

My friend Karin (who I went to visit in July) asked me about 6 weeks ago if she could come visit. I thought she meant just sometime in the future- but she meant right now!! So she booked her tickets and came to see us this past weekend.

What fun we had!

She got here Friday evening. She was more than happy to come with us to the head football coach's house for dinner that night- and she fit right in!! After that, Josh stayed home with Brecken so Karin and I could have girl time in the hot pools under the stars. Girl time is not something I get a lot of, so it was so nice!

Saturday Josh, B and I decided to show Karin the mountains. We stopped at my school first to show her around, and had lunch while we were in town. Then we made our way up to Aspen Alley. I was so excited as we got up there- the trees were absolutely gorgeous and bright yellow. We've never been able to get to Aspen Alley in all it's glory; it's either been green, or the leaves are gone already. So I was pretty sure we were going to hit it at the right time, after seeing all these great trees! However, we got there and the Alley was GREEN! It was still beautiful though, and the weather could not have been any better, so we had a wonderful time walking around.


That afternoon we relaxed, hit a few stores downtown, and played at the park. After a delicious dinner, Karin and I took Brecken swimming.

Sunday, we all went to Cheyenne so Stacey could take B's 4-year old pictures. I'm always amazed at what she gets! I posted the link below. Karin got to see her first oil wells, the smallest town in Wyoming, and the state capitol all in the same trip! :)

Karin, we had a great time with you. Thanks so much for everything you brought. The lamp is burning every night! :) Brecken is in love with you. COME BACK SOON! We miss you already!!

this year's pictures!

Stacey, as always, did a great job! Here is the sneak peek- can't wait to see the rest!


http://staceyjphotog.blogspot.com/2010/09/socks.html

crabapple jelly

I have a million crabapples on my tree out in the front yard. I usually just let them run their course, fall of the tree, let the deer eat them. I felt creative this fall, however, and since one afternoon I found myself home a whole hour early, I decided to make jelly. Brecken helped every step of the way!

Crabapple Jelly:
10 cups prepared crabapples
5 cups water
5 cups crabapple juice extracted from apples
5 cups sugar
1 box pectin

Wash picked apples by placing them in a large bowl of water. Let soak for 10 minutes. Any worms in the apples will float to the top.

Halve the apples. It's easier to pull the stems out after you cut the apple in half.

Put the 10 cups of apples in 5 cups of water and boil for 15 minutes. Stir, but do not mash the apples! After 15 minutes, strain the juice from the apples. You can add 1/2 cup of water if you need it to make the full 5 cups of juice. If you need more than 1/2 cup of water, put the apples back in the pot with as much water as you need to get 5 cups of juice, plus 1 extra cup to account for evaporation. Strain again, until you have your 5 cups.

Add pectin to juice and dissolve. Bring to a hard boil for 3 minutes.

Add all the sugar at one time. Stir to dissolve and bring to a hard boil for 2 minutes.

Remove from heat. Your mixture will be like syrup but should coat the spoon.

Pour mixture into canning jars, 1/4" from the top. Add lids and rings. Put in a big pot of boiling water to seal the jars. I boiled the jars for 20 minutes. Take jars out of boiling water. Let sit for 12-24 hours without moving them. Check jars to make sure they sealed by pushing the little button on the top. Refrigerate and use any unsealed ones within 3 weeks.

dinnertime conversations

Josh to Kara: Got any plans this weekend?
Kara: Nope, you?
Josh: Nope.
Brecken: I DO! We can go to Disney World, ride the rides, and then go shopping at store after store! Then we can come home!

and then later...
Brecken: Mommy, when will I get hair in my armpits?
Me (while trying not to choke): When you're big.
Brecken: But I am! I'm already FOUR!

4 years old

Boy, how time flies. Can't believe my little baby is 4 years old today.

party, party, party!

We spent the weekend in Lingle for Josh's annual golf tournament with his dad. We had a great weekend, even though we didn't get to see much of Josh! Lennie and I spent Saturday morning shopping in Scottsbluff, and the afternoon at Annie's house, playing with the kids.

After the tournament was done for the day, we went out to the club and had dinner with Josh and Craig. After dinner, Josh, B and I went to Pee Wee's to hang out for a while. We left when Brecken announced he was ready for bed and headed to the door. :)

Sunday, Lennie, B, and I went out to lunch with Pee Wee and Aunt Mae. Then we headed over to Pee Wee's for a little while. It was good to be able to spend time with her!

That afternoon, Brecken was really antsy for his birthday party that was Sunday evening. So Lennie and I took him out to a farm to pick some vegetables for us to take home. There's nothing better than fresh sweet corn!!

FINALLY it was time for the birthday party, and he didn't have to ask anymore, "Please, can I just have a teeny tiny peek in one present??" :) We had a great time with our family and friends that were able to come! Brecken got a lot of great presents, including a TAG reading system from Josh and I and lots of books to go with it from other people- he's been reading it ALL DAY today and letting us know how fun it is!! He also got the dolphin pillow pet that he's been begging for for months, from Pee Wee, a TAG interactive U.S. map, a play-doh spaghetti factory, some new shirts and flip flops, a new movie, lots of great stuff!

It was a great weekend!!

shopping spree

My son hates new clothes. He hates picking them out for himself, he hates anything anyone else picks out for him, he just hates new clothes. He was happy as a lark wearing the same clothes this summer as he did last summer. Which would be fine, if he wasn't growing so much... but that didn't bother him. So he wore shirts that were a bit too short and shorts that luckily don't look too short, since they're shorts. His pants on the other hand, are a little bit like capris.

He's also a boy of comfort. Don't try to get him into anything besides basketball shorts and sweatpants. He won't wear them. It's a texture thing for him- he has said that anything else is not soft and it itches his legs. He has to have the right texture on his skin at all times.

He is also the PICKIEST child I've ever met. He has two pair of red basketball shorts, but he won't wear one of them because the INSIDE of the waistband has blue in it. He can't stand that.

So this weekend, we took him to Casper and told him to shop 'til he dropped. Josh and I are desperate for him to have new clothes- clothes that fit a little better. Clothes for when it gets cold (which it will any day now) that will keep him warm and aren't capri-length sweatpants.

We looked at every single shirt in Target and JC Penney. EVERY. SINGLE. SHIRT. At Target, he'd hold up a shirt and say, "HEY! Look at this one!" We'd say, "Do you like it?" "Nope." would always be the answer and back on the rack it would go. The only thing he found was two pairs of new sweatpants. Both grey. Totally identical. They had navy blue, black, and brown sitting there too, but no. He wanted two pairs of exactly the same thing. Grey. I guess that means they'll always match his shirts. :) He tried on the basketball pants that were right next to the sweatpants, but they didn't feel good on his legs. So back they went.

At JC Penney, we did the game again. EVERY. SINGLE. PIECE OF CLOTHING. He found some sweatpants that might look ok, but then he had to put them back after he saw that there were stripes running down the outside of the leg. I really wanted him to get the shirt that said "Daddy knows a lot but Mommy knows everything". He wasn't interested. :) Finally, my mom found some glow-in-the-dark shirts. YES! That excited him!! He picked out two. Yes, two. For him, that's hitting the jackpot. :)

(I should mention that we found some snowpants while there, and B needs new snowpants for this winter. I thought that was going to be a struggle, but it wasn't! He wanted to try them on, so on they went, and he promptly laid down in the middle of the floor in the store, on his back, to make sure they would move enough to make a snow angel. They did, so he was happy and announced that he loved them.)

So we now have two outfits for the fall/winter. Two glowing long sleeved t-shirts that will be worn with the two pair of grey sweatpants. When you see us and wonder, "Didn't he wear that outfit the other day?" The answer will be yes. Yes, he did. Josh and I will be doing a lot of laundry.

But hey- at least they fit. :)

first day of school!

For all of us!! Brecken has talked non-stop about school since we got home. They have a song for snacktime that he learned today, and has sung it to me over and over! It goes like this:

(to the tune of "Where is Thumbkin")

Where is Brecken,
Where is Brecken,
Here I am!
Here I am!
How are you today sir,
Very well I thank you,
Let's eat snack,
Let's eat snack!

It's pretty cute!

I took his obligatory "1st Day Of School" picture this afternoon and I can't belive how much he's changed since the first day last year. WOW. Here's the comparison:

another day, another dollar

Here we go again! Josh and I stared teacher days on Wednesday, meaning Brecken started back to daycare. Never fails- I get tears on that first day of dropping him off. :( He likes Val's house though. He has fun playing and coloring and they even have a basketball hoop in their living room now, so he spends his day shootin' hoops. :)

However, he will not eat!! I don't know why he is afraid to eat Val's food! We told him it's OK to eat her lunch, but he doesn't want to. So Thursday and Friday this week, he brought his own lunch. Hey- whatever works!! It's a little weird to be packing my 3-year-old's lunch though. HA!

Two more days of teacher work days on Monday and Tuesday next week. Kids start school on Wednesday. I originally thought 5 days of in-service was a bit much, and now I'm wishing we had more! My classroom got new carpet this summer, and everything I own (which is a LOT! I have the biggest classroom in the school!!) was just left in the middle of my room. *sigh*. I've been putting things away and haven't gotten any time to plan the first week of school yet. Or print out any of my back-to-school stuff, because our server at school went down this summer and they had to replace it- but none of us have access to our home folders where all of our documents are stored. *another sigh*.

Brecken starts school on Wednesday as well. This year, he will be going from 12:00-3:15 Monday-Thursday. He's pretty excited to go!!

i spy, with my little eye...

I took Brecken to his preschool developmental screening today. He had to do all sorts of stuff this year, as someone turning 4. He had to:

*identify colors (easy)

*identify letters (easy)

*look at a picture of a triangle, a plus sign, a "b", a circle, etc. and draw them himself (he did pretty good!!)

*watch his teacher stack blocks in different ways and then he had to stack his blocks in the same way (he thought that was awesome that he did it right!)

*he had to catch a bean bag from a couple feet away, with both hands and then with just one hand (piece of cake)

*hop on one foot (which last I knew, he couldn't do yet, but he wouldn't try today)

*WRITE HIS NAME! AND HE DID IT!! (only, the K turned out a lot like an H. But heck! Oh well- he has a hard name!)

*take a block and put it beside a big block, under the big block, around the big block, on the big block, etc... (easy)

*identify sounds letters make when shown the letter (which he got most of them...)

*identify pictures of things like a hanger, a clock, a pencil, etc... and then had to tell what each one does (he didn't know it was called thermometer, but when asked which one of the pictures tells how hot it is, he pointed right to it.)

*count

*say his ABC's (he sang the whole song! :) )

*move 3 blocks from one pile to the other side of the table, and then seven... (got the 3, didn't get the 7 for some reason)

*twiddle his thumbs (wouldn't try this one either)

*and then the last thing- play "I Spy". He LOVES this game, but it was hard today! He was shown a picture of a child's bedroom with lots of stuff in it. His teacher said, "I spy something that starts with the b sound." (She actually did the b sound.) He had to find something like a ball or a book. He had to do that with the D sound and the SH sound too. I guess we'll be working on that at home, as he pointed to a chair for the B sound, a ball for the D sound, and my favorite- the roll of tape for the SH sound. HA! Guess we have a homework project to do when we play I Spy now. :)

I'm sure there are other things, but I can't remember right now.

Brecken was sooo excited to see his teachers. I think he'll be glad school is starting again. Can't believe he's about to be 4!!!

winding down

Summer is coming to an end. Football starts tomorrow, and teachers go back to school on Wednesday. *sigh* I LOVE my job, but sometimes I wish we were rich so both Josh and I could stay home all the time and have fun!

We went to some friends' house last night for a BBQ with most of the other coaches from Josh's school. We had so much fun. And I realized just how much Brecken has come out of his shy shell this summer. He was running around with the other kids, paying no attention to Josh and I. He was even picking on one of Josh's fellow football coaches, stealing his bean bag from the game the adults were playing, and saying, "Come get me!" He has NEVER initiated play from another adult before (besides Grandmas and Grandpas) so this was quite new. Josh and I watched in amazement. One of the other basketball coaches told us that he noticed how much more social Brecken is now. It was pretty fun to watch. However, by the time 9:30 hit, I told Brecken we'd probably get ready to go pretty soon and he stopped playing, came right over to me, and said, "I just want to go now, Mom." He was so tired from running with the kids- and man, did he sleep good last night!! :)

minnesota, don'tcha know?

We had a great trip to see my sister last week. The trip started on Sunday, with a drive across South Dakota after spending the night with my parents. Of course, no trip across South Dakota is complete without a stop at Wall Drug:

We stopped in Sioux Falls for the night. Brecken was a SUPER car-rider, but we had all had enough of sitting in the car. We got out at the mall, walked around and got some leg energy out, then went to a hotel for the night. They had a super-cool pool area for Brecken to get the rest of his energy out in!

Monday, we got back in the car and continued on. We got to my sister's house shortly after lunch, so it wasn't too much of a drive. Brecken was so excited to see Ryan and play in his new back yard!!

Tuesday was a great day! We got to see our dear friend Amy and her son Dylan, who is Brecken's best buddy ever! He talks about Dylan ALL.THE.TIME and misses him soooo much. (They moved to MN last October.) Amy's other sons, Harrison and Cooper, came along too. We met at Chuck E. Cheese's and the boys played and played and played, and we got to catch up with Amy. It was SOOO good to see them. I wish they didn't have to move, but it sounds like it was for the best- they are doing great out there! Brecken was so sad when it was time to go, but hopefully we will see them again soon! (In the picture below, Dylan is in the long sleeves- he is about 6 months older than Brecken but you wouldn't know it! The other little boy in red is Cooper. He's two. And huge.)

L-R- Dylan, Brecken, Cooper, Harrison. Harrison was so good at helping the little boys play all the games!

Tuesday night, we went on a dinner cruise on the St. Croix river with my sister and her family. Brecken was sooo excited to eat dinner on a boat! It was a lot of fun. On the way back to the dock, we headed right into a storm. I was ever so thankful we had 4 adults for the 4 children- we each grabbed one and made a run for it in the absolute downpour and lightning to get to the cars. It got a bit scary!

Getting ready to eat:

Outside on the deck:

Brecken and Ryan were pretty sure they saw a whale. In the river. :)

Wednesday, we got to play at the school playground in Kristen's town. And then we headed to the Como Zoo. It was the PERFECT weather to do the zoo- not too muggy, not to hot... worked out great!

Thursday- what a fun, fun day! My niece Brooke turned 2 on this day. We spent the day at the Mall of America (or, Mall of Kamaria as Brecken called it) at the Nickelodeon Universe. WHAT A FUN PLACE!!! They have a ton of rides that are small-child friendly and we got the all day wristbands and let the kids go to town! We got there about 10:45 am and finally had to give the "pick one more ride" at 7:00 that night! The kids could have stayed all night long! We broke for lunch, but otherwise it was go, go, go! They have a Blue's Clues ride, a child-friendly roller coaster, all sorts of fun stuff. Brecken LOVED it. His favorite ride was the bumper cars- he rode it four times. :)

Friday was Brooke's birthday party. We went to The Giggle Factory, an indoor playground, with some of David and Kristen's friends to play in the morning. We all went back to David and Kristen's house for lunch and birthday cake and presents!

Saturday was our last full day in Minnesota. We spent it at Lake Elmo. My son, the fish, loved every single minute of it. He played so hard that he fell asleep in the car when we left. Josh and I took that opportunity to drive around exploring the area while he got some rest. :) We had a great day there and the weather, once again, was perfect! It was even overcast most of the day so we didn't all get sunburned!

Sunday was the day we had to leave. :( It was a LONG trip south through Minnesota and Iowa and into Nebraska. We stopped in Grand Island, NE for the night and got home on Monday afternoon. It was a really long two days, especially since Brecken sported a fever and wasn't feeling the greatest. :(

All in all, it was an awesome trip! We can't wait to go back!

our parrot

Josh: Brecken, go get me your cup, if you want more milk.
Brecken: Fine! For crying out loud!!

Hmmm... Daddy... guess it's time for you to stop using that phrase!!!

Another new one this week: OH. MY. GOSH.

I'm not lost. I'm still here. We went on a fabulous trip to Minnesota and just got back last night, so I'm playing catch-up! A post with pictures from our trip is soon to come!

the art of friendship

About 4 months or so ago, I had an email from a very dear friend of mine. It was inviting me and several other girls to her house to spend a weekend. I was instantly excited and even more so when I decided to go!

That friend, K, is someone I had never met in real life before. She and I are on the same online support group for infertile women. She lives in Connecticut, works in New York City, and desperately wants a baby. (and is one of the most generous women I've ever met in my entire life.) My other friends that were invited are on the same board, all with the diagnosis of infertility.

It's a funny thing, this infertility. It messes with your head in a horrible way. I read an article today that mentioned a sentence that makes a lot of sense- infertiles are mourning the death, may it be, of children you'll never meet. It's a chronic mourning that is a constant reminder of what you are going through. The article I read was all about how women won't talk about what is going on- it's like the silence of breast cancer years ago. (click here to read the article if you want.)

However, on my board, as I call it, we are totally open about our battle. So much so that I could tell you about the uterus of any friend on there. We are constantly analyzing each other's bodies and giving advice and cheerleading, and shoulders to cry on. It's one amazing group of women. I can't even begin to explain to you how close we are, it's just one of those things you have to experience for yourself. Every time we get a new member, the first posts are always, "Welcome!! So sorry you have to be here, but glad you are because this is the best group of women ANYWHERE!" And it's so true. We are sorry we have to have new members because this is something I wouldn't wish on anyone. But if you want to find support, our tight-knit group is definitely the place to go.

That's why, this weekend while meeting everyone, not a single one of us said, "it's so good to meet you!" We realized that halfway through the weekend. Not ONE of us ever said that to another, and it was totally subconsciously. We didn't feel like we were meeting someone- because we've known each other's intricate details of life for so long. It truly felt like we were seeing an old friend again. Which was true- we ARE old friends, just hadn't been able to hug each other yet.

And lots of hugging was done. And talking. And gabbing. And talking about our husbands. (my friend K's husband is from South Africa- sooooo glad I got to meet him- he has an accent to die for, is so charming, and is into photography, too!! I was lucky to see some of his work from when he was a ranger in the South African bush, and my jaw dropped while gasps came out several times- his work is BEAUTIFUL. Have you ever seen a close up photo of an animal ripping up another animal, with blood spraying everywhere and a kidney flying in the air? I have now!) Some of us are lucky enough to be mothers and we talked about our children. Which we were assured by K that it wasn't bothering her- it was actually giving her hope that it was going to happen to her some day. We rubbed the belly of my great friend T who is pregnant for the first time after FIVE YEARS of trying. We ate. And ate. And ate. We shopped 'til we dropped. We did sightseeing in the Big Apple. We walked. We rode trains and taxis. We laughed. I crossed 4 states off my list of states I've never visited before.

And through all of this, I healed a little. It wasn't intentional, it just happened. I no longer feel the mourning as bad as I have lately. Of course, I'm still quite sad that my body isn't giving ME the choice to choose how big our family should be. But I'm OK with that, I think. My friend K put it best when she said that after this weekend, the little pieces in her that were missing are now complete. These are the best friends a girl could ask for. Now I'm just ticked that they all live so far away. :)

I will always be infertile. That part of me will never, ever go away. I will always be sad that my body won't work as it's supposed to. But the gaping hole it has left in my heart is now a tiny bit smaller.

K, T, L, M, G, and S, thank you. Thank you for being my friends. Thank you for helping me heal. Thank you, for being YOU.

my athlete

B is in love with our new back yard. We are finally able to play out there and he takes full advantage of it! We got him an oversized baseball set the other day and now it seems that's all we play! I was playing with him yesterday and when Josh came home, Brecken went running to him and said, "DADDY! You wanna play baseball with me and Mommy? You can be the goalie!" :)

He definitely is a sports nut. The first thing out of his mouth the other morning was "Daddy, can we go golfing right now?" While in Gillette, he couldn't wait to go back to my mom's playground at her school with a basketball so he could shoot hoops. Josh can't even think about going to bball practice (for camps) without Brecken asking if he can come along. He also puts his football in the grass (and it stands up like it's on a tee) and he practices and practices his football kicks. Who knows... perhaps someday, he'll be a pro athlete and can buy his mom and dad a nice house on a tropical island. :)

Some pictures from the 4th of July weekend...