10 years ago today...

Justin and I walked down the isle and said "I Do"!  We have been married for ten years and it has been a fun, sometimes crazy, but amazing journey!  I feel so lucky to have married my best friend who is the sweetest and kindest man I know.  He is always been there to support me, he is a loving husband, and a terrific father.  He loves me for who I am and I am exctied to see what the next ten years has instore for us!

We did our big anniversary celebration this summer with a fun and relaxing trip to San Francisco and Napa. Tonight, Justin had arranged to have someone come and watch the kids and we were going to go out for an anniversary dinner, but unfortuantly I am sick :-( so we are going to try and do it another night.  Justin left for work a little later then usual so I could get a little extra sleep. I was able to get Jack off to school this morning with no major problems (which the way thing have been going this week was a major acomplishment).  Maybe this was Jack's anniversary present to me or maybe he knew I could use the break since I wasn't feeling great, but regardless of the reason... it I'll take it :-)  Now, Peyton and I are enjoying a nice relaxing morning at home.  I am feeling better then I did yesterday, but hopefully by tomorrow I will be feeling even better so we can get out of the house and have a little family fun! 

I hope everyone has a great Friday and a wonderful weekend!

 

back from the Lou...

I wrote last week about us going back to St. Louis but didn't really expand on the reason for the trip.  We went back for a surprise birthday party weekend for Justin's mom.  We had a fun weekend getting to see lots of people who we haven't seen in a long and don't get to see as often as we would like.  We got to St. Louis Friday afternoon and took the kids over to Edwardsville for some pizza at Pantera's.  Justin called his mom and asked if she could run over and meet one of his friends to "pick up" something.  She thought we were coming into town next weekend.  She walked into the restaurant and saw all four of us sitting at a table eating pizza and was completely surprised, it was great!  We got to visit with her for just a little while because we needed to head over the the hotel check in and get ready for the suprise dinner she didn't know was happening.  We had a little time so Justin's friend Parker came over with his daughter Grace and we all went swimming in the hotel pool.   After we got done swimming we got everyone ready and went to the surprise dinner Justin's sister Joyce arranged.  It was a really nice family party at a restaurant in downtown St. Louis and we had a fun night visiting and eating.  The kids lasted way longer then I expected them to but called it a night around 8:30 which was when we headed back to the hotel.  The kids were really tired from traveling so we did our best to calm everyone down and get to bed.  Jack had a fairly major melt down in the hotel room that lasted longer then I would have liked but once I got him calm he fell asleep.

 

Saturday, the kids woke up early (as usual) and we grabbed a quick bite at McDonald's with Joyce, Michael and Justin's parents.  Jack doesn't always like to eat as well as he does at home when we travel, which unfortunately makes him more likely to meltown in situtuations he would rather not be in.  We tried ordering him some pancakes and sausage which are things he would usually eat, but since his usual meal out consists of a cheeseburger he was a little confused and refused anything we tried to give him.  Justin was able to talk with the people at McDonald's and they were nice enough to make him a plain cheeseburger.  He finally settled down and started to pick at it while we were still there, but ended up eating  more of it once we left and were back in the car. 

We then headed over to Ekert's which is a farm located in Belleville IL that has an apple orchard this time of year that you can go take a hay ride and pick your own apples.  Peyton had so much fun and kept wanted to have a "bite" of all the apples.  Jack had fun playing the mini golf with Justin in the play area but isn't a huge fan of apples like he was when he was about 18 months old.  It was a beautiful morning and the weather was great.  I got some fun pictures of Peyton eating apples and looking at the goats.  The kids took a nap in the car on the ride back to the hotel and Justin drove them around while I went to get ready for Surprise Party #2.  This party was a bigger event with more of her friends and family.  They had it at the church, which is also the church Justin and I got married in.  There was lots of space so the kids were able to sit or run around and did really well considering all the new and unfamiliar faces.  The party was a lot of fun and she was successfully surprised for the second time and had no idea that the party she was going to was for her.  Jana and Glenn did and great job organizing this event, and I am glad we were able to come.

After the party was over we took the kids over to Justin's parents house and they got to play around their yard before we took them back over to the hotel.  Peyton started to feel warm to me and in the next few hours she had (what felt like since I didn't have a thermometer) a pretty high temperature.  Justin's parents were coming over to visit one last time so they were nice enough to stop by the store and get her a little Tylenol.  I am not sure if she just got run down with all the traveling or if her body caught a little virus.  She was still running a fever all day yesterday but fortunately she woke up this morning and the fever had broke.  I am going to keep an eye on her and make sure she gets some much needed rest. 

We woke up the next morning and took the 9:15 flight back home.  The plane ride both to and from went really well.  The kids did great!  Jack was a little anxious when we boarded the plane but once we got him seated he started to relax.  He wanted me to sit close to him and hug him tight, but once the plane took off he reached for a magazine in the seat back in front of him, leaned back in his chair and started to read... it was hilarious!  I wish I had thought to take a picture.  Peyton slept on both flights and was only upset when going though security in STL when she had to send her blanket through the x-ray machine.  She started crying and screaming for her "night-night".  People were looking and the TSA agent was so nice she grabbed the bin as it came out and immediately gave her back the blanket. Traveling with kids is always so entertaining, you never know what is going to happen.  

I am very happy to be back home and since I traveled the past two weekends I am looking forward to just being home for a while. I hope everyone had a fun weekend and enjoys the pictures I took from our trip.  Have a great week and I will post again soon.

Viva Las Vegas!

I had a fantastic weekend with my friends Kara and Becky in Las Vegas this past weekend.  Becky has a long time friend who owns a wedding planning business and he was so generous and got us a free room and some pretty awesome perks!  We stayed at the Aria Hotel and Casino which is located very close to the Bellagio.  We were picked up from the airport by a limo and taken to the hotel to find out we were going to be staying in a penthouse suite.  We were so shocked and never dreamed the room we would be staying in would be so amazing.  It had a living room, dinning room, kitchenette, two bedrooms and three bathrooms.  He also set it up and we were given free limo service throughout our stay.  Not bad for three stay at home mom's. lol.  We were only there for two nights, but we really stated to get use to the "celebrity" treatment :-)

We did a lot of walking around and enjoyed seeing all the different casino's.  We watched the Bellagio fountains and also took a ride up in the Eiffel tower which has an amazing view of the Strip and the mountains.  We did a little gambling and had a really fun and late night out Friday.  Saturday night we went out and had a nice steak dinner and then headed over to have drinks at the ice bar called Minus 5.  We had to wear parkas, boots and gloves and the cocktail glasses were also made of ice. 

The weekend of course went by really fast but it was so much fun spending time with two great friends!  I was really happy to get back Sunday night and see Justin, Jack and Peyton.  I think everyone was happy to have me back home... I am not sure which one of them missed me more :-), but I know the kids had a great weekend getting some quality daddy time.  

I am going to start packing again very soon because we are leaving Friday and flying back to St. Louis to visit see our family and friends.  I hope everyone had a great weekend and I will post again next week. 

Happy 18 months!

Today Peyton is 18 months old! She is such a funny, smart, and cute little lady.  She is already starting to talk with purpose asking for things like water and snacks.  She has started to say a few two word phrases, will try to repeat everything we say and has gotten very good at labeling.  She has recently formed a pretty strong attachment to her blanky, which she calls "night-night".  She still loves to watch Jack and continues to enjoy playing with" kitty's".  It is so much fun watching her pretend play.  Her newest toys this week came from our very sweet neighbor Jessica, it is a baby doll play set which includes a stroller, swing/car seat, diaper bag and pack-n-play.  She has been playing doll's non-stop since she brought it over Tuesday morning.  I had to dig out all her dolls just so she had one to put in each toy :-)

Jack has been doing better in school and starting to adjust to his new schedule.  He decided that he wanted to wake up extra early this morning.  I first heard him playing in his room around 4AM, but tried to wait till it was absolutely necessary to get him which was about a quarter to 5.  He was in a terrific mood, which is always helpful with such an early morning wake-up call, but I am hoping to get in a short nap later this morning when Peyton takes hers. 

I do have a few things to get done this morning before I can lay down and relax starting with going back up to the school for a room parent meeting and coffee with the Principal.  I also need to start packing and getting ready for my fun girls weekend to Las Vegas!  My friend Kara is turning 30 next month so me and our friend Becky are going to help her celebrate!  Thank you Justin for giving me the opportunity to go and have a some fun while you stay and have fun with the kids this weekend.   

I am going to sign off for now.  I hope everyone has a great weekend...I know that's my plan ;-)

Fun trip to Target!

This morning Jack saw the cup Justin has on his dresser full of our loose change. He got Justin to get it down for him and they started playing with the coins. Jack was very interested in the money and even started to name the different coins.

He then grabbed the cup and walked Justin to the garage door and said "Walmart" we looked at each other a little surprised. We know he knows a about Target since justin usually takes him shopping there on the weekends, but we didn't know he knew Walmart?!? (not a play we go to very often). So I decided since he asked and we were just enjoying a leisurely morning at home, I would go ahead and take him to the store. We drove to Target (it's closer) and when I parked the car I said "here we are at Target" he started to clap. He walked with me into the store (didn't ask to be carried) and asked him "where to we need to go?". He started off and headed to the toy department were they keep the hot wheels. He picked out a package of cars and immediately headed back to the front of the store. I had to stop him and convince him to take the slightly cheaper package, which he was fine with, and then continued on his way. He walked into a check out isle (which again I had to help him get to the one that was open) and set the car on the checkout counter. The woman took the package, scanned it and handed it back to him and he waited patiently while I paid. He then walked back to the car with me, holding my hand when we got to the parking lot.

I know this doesn't sound like a huge exciting story, but for Jack this is a quite an accomplishment. He doesn't always follow directions and has a tendency to bolt when ever we let him loose. He never attempted to leave me and being able to talk him through the process of shopping was very exciting!
Also him associating taking money to o the store to buy something was exciting.

I just had to share this story with everyone today because it was a really exciting moment for us. We have had a fun weekend with my sister I town and Jack and I are about to go have lunch with her and take her to the airport. Hope everyone has had a great Labor Day weekend!

the first week of school...

Today is Friday and Jack is finishing up his first week of school.  We have had a little bit of a rocky start.  Jack did ok the first day but Tuesday was when he started to have a few issues.  Jack has had a decrease in his outward aggression (trying to hit us when he is upset) and started having more self inflicted aggression.  This started a out a few months back with slapping/hitting his legs, then moved on to his hips and now has graduated to slapping/hitting himself in the face.  When he gets upset in a situation or starts to have a meltdown that is when the hitting will start.  This has been one of the hardest autism behaviors we have had to deal with yet.  Watching our little man get so upset and not be able to tell us why or what is wrong and getting so upset (for sometimes what seems like no reason) is heartbreaking.  We do our best to interrupt/stop this behavior, but the key is to stop him from hitting without drawing to much attention to it at the same time (not the easiest thing in the world to do since the first natural reaction is to say "Jack don't hit yourself") 

The behavior at school has been happening when it's time for the class to go to recess.  I know that playgrounds have never been Jack's favorite activity, but I don't know why he is having such a violent reaction to this particular activity.  I have talked with his teacher and we think it might be that the weather has been really hot and maybe he doesn't like being outside in the heat?  I also found out that recess comes just before lunch so maybe he has been hungry?  I don't know, today I mentioned that when he is hungry he tends to get upset much quicker.  So, I send him more choices for his snack and suggested that they try to make sure he eats well at snack time, or if its possible to feed him before taking him out on the playground.  I am not sure if this will help or not, but its worth trying.  I hope that once he gets more use to the new school routine some of these undesirable behaviors will become less frequent. 

On a much happier note, my sister is going to be coming into town for the weekend!  She is flying in tonight and staying till Monday.  I am very excited to see her and I know she is excited to see the kids.  I have been telling Peyton that Aunt Stacey is coming to visit and showing her Stacey's picture.  She points to her and says "Stayee" its really cute.  She has become quite the little talker and will try and repeat everything she hears.  I can't believe how big she is getting and that she will be 18 months in just about two weeks. 

I am started to hear her wake up from her nap so I will end my post here.  I will be sure and post again soon.  I hope everyone has a great Labor Day weekend!

School Home Visit

We just got home from dropping Justin off at work.  He stayed home this morning because we had our in home visit to meet Jack's teachers for the new school year.  He has the same teacher as last year Mr. Tyler and the two assistant teachers will be Ms. Lynn, who was also there last year, and Ms. Stacey who the new addition.  Jack was very excited to see both Tyler and Lynn this morning and gave them a big smile, but still continued to run around and play outside while we talked.  We discussed what Jack had been up to this summer and some of the new things that have been happening.  I know that Jack will enjoy getting back into his school routine, but that the first few weeks will be an adjustment.  He will have a much bigger work load placed on him this year.  He will have school 5 days a week from 7:45-2:00, Mon. and Wed. he will have one-on-one in home ABA therapy from 3:00-5:00, Thurs. he will attend an ABA social group also from 3:00-5:00, and on Tues. see his OT therapist after school for a 30 minute session.  Fridays will be his one free day without any additional outside therapy :-) 

Since summer has started to come to an end and we have gotten back to a more normal routine after all the summer school and traveling, we have started to see a decline in some of the aggressive behavior he was starting to have back at the end of the school year and the beginning of summer.  He has been doing really well working with Jessi and we have started to hear more spontaneous language from him.  It has been mostly in the form of labeling, but more language is always good.  We are still waiting for that break though moment when he realises if I ask for something I will get it, but change doesn't happen over night.  I look forward to seeing what gains Jack has this school year.  This will be Jack's last year at Lawson and next year will be his big transition to Kindergarten.  I am of course already worried about that transition but I know it is an entire year away so for now I will do my best to keep those feeling in check.

I hope that everyone else who is starting or will be starting school soon, have a great year!  I wish all my fellow teachers back at Gordon Bush Elementary in East St. Louis a great school year and want to let them know I thinking about you.  I will be sure and post again and let you know how Jack's first day goes and hopefully have some cute new pictures to share.

Have a great week!