WHERE DO I BEGIN...

I've been absent. Yeah, I know...but I have a lot on my plate these days. I've wanted to write about what was happening here, really I have, but I just didn't know where to begin.

I want to make one thing clear before I start this....my purpose in sharing our struggles is to give other moms dealing with Autism some shred of hope. Okay?

In January, Rylee's behaviour took a turn for the worse! She was defiant beyond words...screaming her dislike for everything and everyone. She would tell me several times a day that she didn't want to be part of this family and certainly didn't want me to be her mom. She did NOT want to be a girl anymore either. Her tantrums, several times a day, were outrageous and out of control. And before you say, oh all kids go through a few tantrums in their day....uh yeah, witness an Autistic kid's tantrum first hand and then we'll talk! The best way to describe her is primal. In that moment, she is all animal, non-thinking, just reacting! And mean!! She would just strike out at anyone who got in her way. J would try to hug or kiss her to make her feel better and Ry would just kick, push or scratch back! We were beginning to fear for J's safety...it was getting that bad!

By the third week in January, we were in desperation mode....a family in crisis - sleep deprived, upset, hurt. It was time for medication. I called the Paediatrician for help! Her assistant told me that because we hadn't seen the Dr. for 18 months, we'd have to go through our regular Dr. to get another referral...that would take weeks...and frankly, we didn't have weeks! We just couldn't go on like this! I'm afraid I lost it completely on the phone...I was crying and desperate. She took pity on me and scheduled an appt. Finally, some hope.

Well, the appt didn't go as planned. LOL Instead of drugs, the Dr. instructed us to give Ry Melatonin to help her sleep. She also felt that if we gave her a daily laxative, it would alleviate some of her problems. She set another appt for 4 weeks out but I could call at any time if I felt we needed to. I gotta tell you, I was not exactly on board with this so-called solution. We had tried Melatonin before and it just didn't work for her.

Well, wouldn't yah know it...the melatonin did work this time! Yeehaw! And we actually got her moved into her own room to sleep. Baby steps. Her sleep habits improved but her meanness was still in full force. I had to schedule another appt. This time, Ry stayed home so I could really talk with the Dr. She agreed that Rylee had some other issues and was quite the complex little girl. Yes, she had Autism, but she was very high on the ADHD scale. Then there was the whole abandoned/mentally abused part of her past that was always just under the surface. I cried during this appt....sad for us as a family and definitely sad for this 6 year old little girl who was born on the other side of the world, abandoned and left to languish in an orphanage. She would spend endless hours alone in her crib, sick and crying.....but no one came to help. The Dr. said she will probably never get over that!! And I cry some more..... Then she told me something that I will carry with me the rest of my days....she said that I might not be able to mother her and that Rylee needed me to be her therapist first and foremost!

Well, we talked about all of the options in medications that might help her....and all of the side-effects!! Just wild! We agreed on a small dose of Resperidone but first we'd need to do some blood work. So, off I went with a prescription for a powerful drug that should lessen Ry's aggression, a request for blood tests at the lab, and a prescription for Ativan to help Rylee get through the bloodwork. That was Tuesday Feb 9.


On Wednesday February 10, we witnessed a miracle! Big Daddy and I took Ry in for her bloodwork - yes all jacked up on Ativan - and she did great!! She was a totally different little girl for the rest of the day. Just after supper, she was still feeling the effects of that pill, which she shouldn't have. I found her at the top of the stairs dancing with her coat....she was hallucinating and singing to her "partner". It was a little scary. I coaxed her into her pj's in between bouts of falling to the floor in a heap, crying and babbling incoherently. She crawled into her bed by 6:30 and the mean and aggressive Rylee never came back!!

We're still not 100% sure what happened. We have a few theories that I'll share with you later, but in the meantime, our old Ry is back!!! She is happy, healthy and in no need of Resperidone.

BACK TO SCHOOL

It's been quite a week - getting back into the school groove after all that time off! Poor concentration, short temper, lack of enthusiasm....and I won't even mention how bad my students were! hahaha I don't think I'll do that again! Doesn't work for us very well.

It's been a week of sleep issues around here too. You know it's becoming a problem when you lie awake trying to remember all the names of the Dugger children. You know you have "other" issues to deal with when you get super excited that you can remember them all. ~Sigh~

And speaking of the Duggers....doesn't anyone else think it's the least bit strange that out of 19 kids, NOT ONE has something "different" about them? Hmmmm? They're all smart, they can all play an instrument or 4. I mean really, do the math....wouldn't the odds go against them - so many should be autistic, so many diabetic, heart problems, hearing....

I mean not even a pair of glasses on any of them.....just things that come to mind at 3 a.m.

I guess after all the fun and frolic up north, Ry's having a hard time settling at night too. Every little thing wakes her up and sets her off! Gimme a break, it was just a little snoring...not truck-driverish! She's tough enough to handle, but without sleep - that's usually when I start googling Swiss Boarding Schools.

And then THIS arrives at the door:

Ohhhhhh Big Daddy, we're having problems with long and short vowels.....you know....in the English language....and you want me to learn and teach Chinese?!?!

Oh brother....what would Michelle Duggar do?

WHO'S WATCHING?

He looks like just an ordinary guy.
But he does something unthinkable.
He contacts young girls over the internet to meet up with him....you know, just to talk.
How many did he meet?
This time the young girl is really an undercover cop.
Got him!
A handful of years later, he resurfaces.
Should we be worried?
Is someone watching him?
Probably not.
Afterall, he has paid his debt to society, right?
Some jail time = rehabilitation, right?
Isn't that how it works in our society?
And he's married now....with a child.
So he must be harmless, right?
Just moved into a new house too....on the busiest corner for kids walking to school, which he can also see from his house.
How can this happen?
Isn't anyone monitoring his movements?
No one.
Sad isn't it?
That's what we say, when we read about him and those like him.
They're everywhere you know.
In every city, every town, every neighbourhood.
This time it's different.....
He's 5 doors down.

Do you know your neighbours?

PRESENTS, PAST, AND FUTURE

PRESENTS

I hope you all had a wonderful Christmas and a safe but fun New Year. We did things a little differently around here this year. Like OUT with the turkey and IN with the fondue. We had soooo much fun! We headed north and spent a few days with Grandma....eating, playing in the snow, prepping for the next round of foundue....it was great! We came home for Christmas Eve so Santa could find the girls. Yeah, he found them...and us! lol Big Daddy got theme gifts this year, from all of his girls.

You thought I was weird, I mean wired before....well after sitting through 27 episodes of Jericho, my pantry room and preps just aren't going to cut it....I'm ready to build safe rooms, get armed to the teeth...maybe go into hiding! LOL I got the book idea from Selous Scout and I'm glad I ordered it...I just started to read it and can't put it down.

Santa brought me another Barefoot Contessa cookbook, a garden journal and......

I've nicknamed her the Beast! She's a beaut! Big Daddy had to have running boards installed because I couldn't reach the kids' car seats! LOL

PAST

Certain events that took place in December, shaped the look of our Christmas this year. One in particular was a snowstorm that ripped through, shutting down the highway and leaving everyone stranded. Yeah, we were in the middle of that mess with the kids and the dog, driving the van and towing the snowmobiles. There were lots of lessons learned that day!

#1 Being somewhat prepped wasn't good enough

#2 People are going to panic

#3 Tractor trailer drivers aren't who/what they used to be

It just happened that the OPP detoured us into the town where I grew up, and although it had changed, I was familiar enough with the area to make a plan B. Drivers in big 4x4's who knew the area and had driven in wild weather definitely had the advantage. We watched people panic - not knowing where they were or where they might head to wait out the storm. I'm sure most of them didn't have $10 cash on them. I don't know what happened to all the cars stranded on the highway...did everyone have enough gas? Apparently they closed it down for 24 hrs. Unbelievable! We happened to find an unguarded entrance onto the highway and kept moving along. We did just fine! The kids travelled like champs...singing and chatting away. Mama kept a good face on, but I'm telling yah, I prayed like crazy!!

Sooooo now all of our trips look way different....big truck, full gas can in the back, extra preps. No fooling around!

FUTURE

We made a decent driveway and dug the hole for the basement to our new house up at our land 2 months ago. My Dad says it looks like a Walmart is going in. lol It's not THAT big! haha Big Daddy has BIG plans but even now that looks like it could change. We were sledding with the kids in the pitch black on Grandma's hill, snow falling...just a gorgeous night and it hit me....it doesn't matter how much money you make, we'll never get this TIME back! Kids don't care how big their house is....they sure will remember spending time with us having fun though!

Those house plans might just get changed a little and that retirement date might be coming way sooner than originally planned.

All that northern fresh air makes a person think clearly....you know what I mean??

BACK AGAIN

I can't believe how time flies...how long it's been since I last posted.

Mid November, my computer had swine flu or something and was down for some time. The repair guy said he'd never seen such a mess. Oh well.

Baby J turned 3 and made it all the way to 3 feet tall. Can't quite make it to 30 pounds though! She's such a little peanut!

Lao Lao and Papa scurried to Florida for the winter. She delights in sending weather reports to us....on a daily basis!

We've been busy with school and play...lots and lots of play.

Yeah, I know....shut up and show us pictures of the kids...that's why you're here! lol

So without further ado....

J was soooo excited about her crown cake:

Every Princess needs a 6-shooter:

Big Daddy and Ry waiting for the sleigh ride:

Mommy and J - what a cold and windy day:

Merry Christmas:

1, 2, 3

1 GORGEOUS WEEKEND:

2 MORE LOST TEETH:

3 DAYS FROM TURNING 3:

IN THE SCHOOL HOUSE

One month of homeschool under our belts and Ry is doing great!!

We try to work on these areas every day:

Bible

Printing/Reading

Math

French

Science

Geography

Science

Art

Sign Language

When Rylee is having a "good" day, we just fly through the subjects. When she's having a "less than stellar" day....well, we just pick a few and carry on.

All last year, we could NOT get this kid to try reading. I have a feeling that something went wrong at school during reading and she ended up having a sit 'n think. It totally put her "off" reading, spelling and printing. Sooooooo, I've started her right back at square one....mastering letter sounds. I also found the Dolch List and she's zipping through these sight words, twenty at a time. Soooooo very proud of her!!

Making sentences with the Dolch Flash Cards:

We started a little weekly program, called Country of the Week. She gets to choose any country

and we do a unit study on it all week. She quickly got bored with this so it has morphed into Flag of the Moment. lol She loves to locate the chosen country on the globe, draw its flag, study the facial characteristics of the people, learn a few of their words, and listen to their style of music.

Here's her flag board:

I showed her what Continents are so it's easier for her to pinpoint her chosen country:


Math:

She was good at patterns, but she just couldn't get the adding and subtracting thing down, when she was first home. She got it within a couple of days...now we're skip-counting by 5's and 10's to 100. This week she learned how to tell time at the 1/4 hrs. Today she caught on to the 5 minute intervals....amazing!!

Sign Language:

We have a set of DVD's called Signing Time....and I love them!! She's been watching them for a couple of years now, but she still enjoys them.

Science:

We are also reading all the books from the Science of the Week list. They are terrific!! I can't believe how much I've learned already! LOL

From the Series: Let's Read and Find Out Science.

One of the experiments/activities had us roast pumpkin seeds:

French:

So far she's mastered body parts and simple phrases. I'm trying to join French and Sign Language together right now. She "signs" a word, says it in English, then says it in French.

Art:

I'm going to need a "real" teacher for this one pretty soon.....