Sword Fight!

Bumming Around

My husband just came home and said a friend from Austin called and invited him to come down for the  UT game this weekend. He told me, "That sounded pretty cool, but then I thought..." (and here's where he just started floating in a boat down Shit Creek without a paddle) "...nah, I think I'll just want to be boring bum around the house all weekend like we always do." (and then the boat capsizes)

My response was less than stellar. "Bum around the house like you always do? If you want to go then I'm okay with that, but know that you will be leaving a normal wife and returning to a crazy person. Please don't think I look forward to weekends because I miss having the freaking lawn mowed!"

With Cortland hanging on Alan's back while he's juggling a baby and I'm making supper, "See that? See this thing you're doing right now? That's the 'bumming around' we do!"

"So I don't care if you go. Truly, you deserve some time off, but I better get some acknowledgment that your going will turn me into a crazy person by Sunday, and not just because I got 'bored' 'bumming around!'"

I think jewelry would help.

Poops and Heritage

Much blog fodder in a three minute timeframe.

MOMMY: Who has poops?


CORTLAND: Me! I have poops! Jesus poops.

MOMMY: Well, yes. I imagine Jesus pooped.

A couple seconds later...


MOMMY: Oh Cortland! You have MAN poops. ***gaggaggag***

MOMMY: Your Grandpa Gunn had poops that smelled awful like this. You got this trait from him. You never met him, but boy did his poops stink.... You would have liked him.


CORTLAND: Did he like corn? I have Man Poops!

MOMMY: Yeah. Oh joy.

As a Matter of Written Record:

ADDENDUM
If a day is missed the 30 days DOES NOT start over, the missing day just gets tacked onto the end.

Heh, it's in writing so it can't be changed, Alan. Ha!

My Princess Crown is Tilted

Just so you all know that despite the ever-amazing persona I put forth, sometimes my days are just meant to be gotten through.

Email response just sent to a good friend:

I'm mad at my work mates today, too. Cortland is complaining about everything and is carting - literally carting - stuffed animals to the kitchen while I'm making dinner. And Sticky is s.o.b.b.i.n.g because I yelled "NO!!!!!" at him when his hand grabbed the oven door. Thank god it was the top oven and it was just the cool seal and not metal. 

I got no sleep because Sticky picked up on the crazy llama-drama concerning his his mommy and daddy during trick or treating last night. He was on high alert all night. Holding him, rocking in a chair with his eyes wide open. It was heartbreaking. So now he's exhausted but won't go to sleep for naps.  

Of course this very second both are eating spaghetti and laughing. Sticky is making Cortland laugh by rubbing sauce all over his belly like it's lotion and Cortland is making Sticky laugh by smearing sauce all over his face in an imitation of Sticky. 

And somehow I made up this crazy '30 days of sex challenge' with Alan and I DO NOT WANT TO FOLLOW THROUGH TONIGHT BECAUSE WHAT I REALLY WANT TO DO IS PUT IN EARPLUGS AND SLEEP THIS DAY GONE. Too much information???  

I love you! I feel better already just venting.

So there you have it. It's not the most normal of my days, but it is still one of those days.

Meet Our Newest Member!

INTRODUCING STICKY!!!!!!!!!!!!

I got permission from the powers-that-be to post pics!

Give Mia Kiss!

Binky Detox fail! We're not ready to give it up yet. Sanity in the Christensen house rules again. I finally have a name for myself for Sticky. He calls me Mia. As in I say, "give me a hug!" And there you go. Mia. The name thing has been a struggle for a month. I felt uncomfortable having him call me mama or mommy. I'm not either of those things and as reunification is the plan, I think it would be inappropriate. We tried Mimi for awhile, but that didn't feel right either. Too old sounding. So Mia it is. I like it.

And in other news Cortland is doing great! He turned four last week and talks and talks and talks... And he tested in the average range on the Peabody test for his neurological stuff! Yay Cortland! He has worked so hard and is amazing. He has gotten to drop down to OT once a week and his new goals include pedaling a tricycle and swinging by himself.

Swim lessons were a smashing success. He will now lay on his back in the bathtub to rinse his hair. He thinks if feels neat when the water fills his ears.

Binky Detox

So about the time we get the sleep thing licked I come up with the bright idea to mix it up again.

We are getting off the Binky. I say we because this is a whole family Binky Detox. The baby is making sure that if he has to suffer then we allllll have to suffer! Nights aren't as bad as naps. Once he falls asleep at night he's down until 7:30. Nap time, however, he has decided this whole Binky-less thing sucks and he's having none.of.it!

So for the last two days the poor child has been walking around with red-rimmed eyes and is crabby like a snowcone without a cup. And I didn't think he'd been here long enough to have hidden Binky's all over the house, but I found another one in the chair this morning. He's a smart cookie and I bet he anticipated this whole thing.

And PS - Peapod will now be known forever and always as Sticky. He is the stickiest kiddo I have ever seen and I think he's taken to heart the natural hair conditioning properties of mayonaise and peanut butter. So Sticky it is, and Sticky it stays!

Internets, Meet my Cheeks

Don't you just hate it when you essentially pin a sign to your forehead for all of the internets to see that says, "I'M A MORON AND A COMPLETE NUTBAG?"

We bought Cortland a new Britax Frontier 85 car seat so Peapod can have Cortland's Britax Boulevard since Peapod's now 30" and can't be in his infant seat any longer. (Yay Peapod! What a way to grow!) Alan and I hooked the new seat up with the LATCH system and it wiggled all over the place. It didn't just wiggle - it W~I~G~G~L~E~D. We decided then and there the seat was a big piece of junk and stomped back into the house to start all over again with researching seats and checking if others had this problem. (I stomped, Alan skipped. He's an even-tempered sort of fellow)

All I could find (again) were raves about how great this seat was. Liars.

So instead of thinking, "Hmmmm, could it be me?" I stopped all research and posted a review of the seat on BabiesRus. Yup. Right then and there I decided that this seat was horrible and all of the other millions of peeps who loved this seat must have just fallen off of the turnip truck and didn't love their children and had no idea that they were traipsing all over the kingdom with a w~i~g~g~i~l~y booster seat and oh.my.god what is wrong with them!

And then I found this website HERE.

And then (and this is the biggie) THIS. It's a review of the Frontier 85. Boring to those who didn't just buy one of these POS. Except there's this little sentence toward the bottom that changed my world. It says that LATCH isn't to be used if a kid weighs more than 40 lbs. Whaaaaa?????

So the seat wrestling begins again. And here's where I showed my ass to the internets. I finally picked up that handy book Britax supplied in the box with the seat. I didn't know there was this  little block that flips out from the bottom to stabilize the whole shebang. A sort-of important clue as to why the seat was a tiny big moveable the 1st go-around.

I wrote to BabiesRus begging them to please not post my review, that Car Seat Install Fever is real and it's treatable with the right medication.

Ode to If You Give a Pig a Party by Laura Numeroff

When the Mommy's tummy hurts endless questions make her ears hurt.

And when her ears hurt, it makes her head hurt.

And when her head hurts, it makes her eyes hurt.

And when her eyes hurt, she just wants to lay down and go back to bed.

And when she just wants to go back to bed she remembers that she has to get everyone ready to get out the door in 25 minutes.

And when she remembers that she has to get everyone out the door in 25 minutes it makes her tummy hurt.

Sleep

Our little visitor has had a few sleep issues, but *fingers crossed* things are on the upswing. He just did a little cry, which, three days ago, would have morphed quickly into a BIG cry, but seems to have settled himself back down in a few seconds. Shock! So excited. Maybe I won't have to sleep on the floor next to the crib tonight.

He's such a sweet baby. We're learning sign language and he's doing great with "more." I'm also trying to get him to put his sippy cups back on the table when he's done. Heh, a girl can dream!

ETA: Peapod slept all night! Without me on the floor! Yay Peapod!

Visitor

They are cute so we will continue to feed them in the morning.

We have _____ (no blog name yet) in our house right now because Marla has Strep. _____ (no blog name yet) misses his Mommy (our niece) and his Great Grandma (Alan's Mom.) (Now Marla, don't get in your car and swoop over here. We'll be there at 1, promise!) (And he's eating breakfast right now and talking up a storm, so no lasting harm from missing his girls.)

_____ (no blog name yet) got a pretty good nights sleep as long as I held him in the rocker all night long. I think I slept a little because 7am seemed to come pretty quickly. I forgot how nights with a baby was. Oh, wait, I didn't have nights with a baby. I had nights with Cortland and he was a sleeping champion.

I love this baby. I love his smile and his giggle and yes, even his crying. He's so precious. It's good to have a little one in the house again.

A little heat stroke never hurt anyone

The sky is calling me. The stars, oh how they twinkle. The breeze. The blessed breeze. I am tempted to sleep in a tent in the backyard.

So the stars aren't visible in Dallas and there is no breeze. But at least the air is cooler outside than in. How can that be, you ask? It's midnight and 81°, you say? Well let me just tell you, OUR FRIGGING AIR-CONDITIONER BROKE. DEAD. DIED. GONNOROONI TO THE GREAT A/C CLOUD IN THE SKY.

And to make matters worse, being TX and all and hot like the devil's feet in wool socks, we only have screens on 1/3 of our windows. People don't need screens as they never open windows. Ever. It's still 80º in December for heavens sake. That's cool enough to have the heater on! I would rather boil in my own sweat than let a spider sneaky-sneak into my happy home. Not that opening the windows that are screened has helped, as there is. no. breeze in this God-forsaken desert.

Box fan? What is this you speak of? The last one I saw was pulled from Tanya's attic for us to use when the air went out in Memphis. Jinxed! We're jinxed and I don't mind telling you that I think it runs in the family much like mental illness. (Not that we're all half a dip shy of plumb. Please don't come storm the castle all you crazy Roehl/Anderson peeps)

My Mom hit a donkey at 65 mph last week - the same week our water heater broke. Yeah, you heard me. Cold bathes for 5 days last week (did you see my slip in that my Mom Hit A Donkey? How does that happen? So random!) And this week my Mom's huge, finished basement flooded 2 inches deep because her furnace sprung a leak. Hideously horrible bad luck has befallen the Gunn girls this month.

Off to eat more ice cream. Mom, you with me? What do we want? ICE CREAM. When do we want it? NOW!

(I totally taught that chant to Cortland Monday, but with pancakes)

PS - Yes her furnace sprung a leak. It's some fancy highfalutin water heated machine with the obvious lifespan of 8 years. We know this because that's when her last major flood happened.

PPS - I bet Donkey Heaven is air-conditioned.

PPPS - No, not serious about the tent thing. Please refer to paragraph 3.

Swimming and Knitting

Private swim lessons went great! Cortland kicked his legs and jumped off the side AND he said he's excited to go back next week. Yay!

And The Hungry Caterpillar Blanket is finished.

The Front:

The Back:

Swimming and Berries

Cute thing overheard at lunch today:

Cortland: (looking at Lucas eating blueberries) Those are strawberries!

Lucas: Nuh-uh. They're blue. They're grapeberries.

Cortland: Oh ya, grapeberries!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

In other news, sometimes I'm smacked right between the eyes with the knowledge that my son isn't the same as other kiddos. He has come so far and it's amazing how much he has accomplished in the last year. His motor-planning has increased to almost age appropriate. I forget, I guess, how much work he's done to get this far and how long it's taken to get him to do and try new things. Remember when he wouldn't swing or go down a slide? Yeah, I do too.

He is taking group swim lessons this month. Or I should say he was taking group swim lessons this month. After the second lesson (tonight) I went and talked to the lesson coordinator at the Y about switching him to private lessons. Cortland's instructor was spending 1/2 of the class just trying to get C off the steps and in the water. After he would get him in, Cortland would scream and scream (and scream and scream and scream). It wasn't fair to the other students who, after 1 1/2 classes, were already jumping in off the side and starting to doggie-paddle around.

After class I talked to the teacher and he suggested C take a class for kids with "special needs." (Air quotes and all)

I didn't realize how great it's been this summer not seeing Cortland surrounded by so-called normal kids. We see kids at the occupational therapist and Lucas. Lucas has a special connection with Cortland. He adapts his play so the differences aren't screamingly obvious like they are at the playground or even in C's school videos last year.

I almost forgot what this lump in my throat feels like. Schools starts next week so I guess I'd better get used to it.

ETA: I forgot to tell you that this summer I experienced what Cortland must feel like on uneven surfaces (and possibly in a swimming pools and swings and trampolines and steps.) I went down one of those tube-type water slides and when I popped out at the end I didn't know up from down. Completely disoriented. I didn't like it at all! I even did it a couple more times to see if I could get used to the sensation. Nope. Sucked every time.

So if you get an opportunity to do a water slide - Do. It. Even if that means you have to get into a bathing suit in public.

My How the Mighty Have Fallen

We passed our queen sized bed on to a friend last week and this week Kayla, my niece, and her son are visiting. So yesterday I called Sleep Experts to see if they keep twin mattresses in stock.

The conversation went very much like this:

ME: Hi, please tell me you keep twin beds in stock.

ANDREW: We keep twin beds in stock.

ME: The WHOLE bed. Frame, mattress and that one thingy. You know the square thing on the bottom. Ugh, can't remember what it's called!

ANDREW: Box spring. The whole bed. Right here. In our store.

ME: And that tiny, skinny little bed will be less than $300 for all of it, right? Because really, how can something so little cost that much?

ANDREW: We can work within that price range...

ME: But not a crappy one because how horrible of a hostess would I be if, not only did I make my guest sleep on a balance beam, but a HARD, LUMPY balance beam.

ANDREW: It's a good bed. I promise.

ME: Yay me! You'll still be there in ten minutes when I get there? You? Not someone that I'll have to go through this all over again with? Promise?

ANDREW: I'm here alllllll day...

ME: See you in 10!

(Still wondering if he tried to sneak out the back)

And that's how I became that annoying fool I'm forever rolling my eyes at, tootling down the road with a bed set hanging out of my trunk with the hatch tied down with bailing wire and duct tape.

**************************

And in other news we will have one of these to put together on Friday!


The foster parenting classes are moving right along. We will be finished with training the middle of September and then we'll have a homestudy and (hopefully) licensing.

Itty Bitty Sweater!

I just unlocked the reason I love the movie Coraline, her sweaters are hand knitted. Tiny little clothes knitted by fingers! Big fingers! So cool I almost peed my pants.









  PS - Totally unrelated - The answer is 2 hours.

Gymnastics

After watching the women's gymnastic competition tonight I got to wondering when it got so flippy. I remember watching the 1976 Olympics and deciding then and there that I wanted to be one of those girls. I wanted to be Nadia Comaneci and that was all there was to it.

*I know, who remembers stuff from when they were three? I remember that and so many other things from early, early. I was shocked to learn that many people don't have recollections that far back. Who knew?*

Anyway, so I'm sitting here with Alan and sucking in my breath every time one of the girls jumps or flips or flops and think, "I don't remember it being so scary." I almost broke a needle getting so worked up.

My curiosity led me to this website and a history of the Uneven Bars. If you get a chance take a peek. The video called Uneven Bars Developments (50s - 2010) is cool - if you're into this sort of stuff.

And yeah, did you catch that Alan watched with me? All of those times of sitting quietly through basketball games and it's now PAYBACK!

Essay for Foster to Adopt

I grew up as an only child and loved it. Both of my parents were raised in the age of corporal punishment and made the decision that I would not be raised in that environment. And I wasn't. Spanking and time-outs were foreign concepts to me. That doesn't mean I wasn't removed from a situation when misbehaving - I was. With my parents. We would have to go home and there was no more fun at the park, friends house, toy store, etc. Or, heaven forbid, I would have to sit next to my mom or dad with the grown-ups if I was acting out somewhere. I knew what was expected and the expectations were consistant.

People tell me now how well-behaved my son Cortland, who is three, is and I know it's because I learned from my parents that consistency on the parents part is a must. Ah! I sound so proud of myself, don't I? I'm actually very proud of him. We have our fair share of corrections to behavior, but, for the most part, we we're blessed with an exceptionally easy-to-redirect child.

My memories of childhood are happy. I remember spending fun summers with my grandma, aunt and cousins in Iowa. There were Penny Hunts and birthday parties and always lots of family and friends around. I loved playing board games like Forest Friends, Sorry and Trouble with my parents. When I got older it was card games Skip-Bo, Uno and Gin. It's funny now, but I was always a little annoyed that my teenage friends would rather sit around the kitchen table on a Friday night with my parents and me and play Gin. Now I can only hope that Cortland's friends feel the same when he gets older. I learned early that I wouldn't always win, and that was okay. Learning how to lose graciously has served me well in life.

My teen years were hard. I was an emotional kid and tended to speak my mind. I took to heart injustices to myself and to those around me. I had issues recognizing which "causes" to plant my flag and which to just let go. My parents provided counseling on and off from the time I was 13 - 18 so I could have someone to talk through the daily complexities of being a teenager. They knew I would have things I just couldn't talk to them about and they were okay with that. I know now how hard that was on my mom especially. I'm so glad she didn't try to be my best friend then, and, because of that, she is my best friend now.

The next chapter in my life was quite the learning experience. I was married to my high-school sweetheart at 19. He was an artist and came from a very different family situation than I did. I accept now (after many, many books and lots of counseling) that  you can't "fix" someone. I wanted my marriage to be like my parents marriage. A marriage of partnership, love, trust, kindness and respect. That is not what I got. I tried for 10 years to make that happen and finally had an epiphany that my then husband didn't know how - and wasn't willing to learn - to have a marriage like that.

I have thought hard about whether, if given the chance, I could erase and do over those years between 16 and 30. I wouldn't. I know that those experiences have shaped me to be the person I am today and shaped the choices I have made in the last nine years that have manifested in the life I lead today.

My husband and I were friends before we started dating. He just understood me. He got my personality and my sense of humor. It was (and still is) easy to be with him. He's my best friend. I know everyone says marriage isn't supposed to be easy, it takes work and sometimes struggle - I don't buy that. Been there, done that and it was not fun. Being married to Alan is fun. We disagree and we have struggles in life that we work through together. But our actual marriage? Not a struggle.

Alan and I have had to deal infertility. We have been through two ectopic pregnancies and one failed round of IVF. (Not to mention my poor husband got to deal with an hormonal nut-case for two years. One year while on hormone shots during two rounds of IVF and 35 weeks of pregnancy! That man deserves a medal!) We also held hands during the 5 1/2 week early delivery of our son and the subsequent 10 days he was in NICU. But we did it together and somehow that made it bearable.

My life today is blessed. I still hate doing laundry and dishes (who doesn't!) and, being a stay-at-home-mom, those are part of my job description. I drive my son to his occupational and speech therapy twice a week and he sees a funcional neurologist twice a month for his motor-planning and low-tone issues. I am in charge of making sure that OT is incorporated in his at home play. Which means I make sure Alan knows what's going on with Cortland's therapy and how he can make his playtime beneficial, too. We also have weekly play-dates with friends. And on Friday we do a fun outing - anything from just going out to eat at a sit-down restaurant (to practice table manners) to going to the Dallas Aquarium or the waterpark.

As for me, I love to knit. That is my downtime. I could bore to to pieces with why I love to knit and how enjoyable and calming it is to me. I also work out at the YMCA three(ish) times a week. Every Sunday we spend the day at my in-laws in Arlington. I love having family so close and am especially lucky that I love my in-laws and think of them as friends. Time at their house is relaxing and peaceful. I also read. Right now I'm reading books about fun activities to do in the summer with a sensory kid, but I just finished up the King of Thrones series, so it's not all work-reading.

Alan and I have always wanted another child. We thought long and hard about trying IVF again and about straight adoption. The money issue is the reason we decided not to go that route, but not for the obvious reasons. We can afford either option, but feel that money is better spent on education for Cortland or any other child we would be lucky enough to have. Foster to Adopt is a win-win. I feel like there is so much more I could be doing for the community and loving children is what I excel at. I know that whatever loving foundation I can provide for a child will be paramount to my own emotional ramifications reunification would mean. It's not about me, it's all about the child.

Random Things

Dunk Trucks
La-La is now Cor-yan
Gracie Twinkle (Her real name is Grace Ann Von Twinkle)
Sire (spider) (he's about as found of those as lillards)
Pertily. (Mommy, you pertily."
While petting Grandpa's face, "Oh Grampa, you broken."

Favorite meal - Miso soup and rice. Also fond of chicken nuggets and fries. And peanut butter and white jelly. (White jelly is generic honey with a white label)

He can't pronounce so many words, but he can and does say Mary Irene, his speech therapists name.

The Lillard

The Lizards are working against me.

I love lizards. They eat spiders. I love anything that eats, maims, or otherwise decreases the numbers of spiders in the world. Ladybugs? My best friends.

My son on the other-hand has taken quite a bit of coaxing to accept lizard's as a wonderful creature that deserves parades and the honor of having libraries named after them for there work in spider population control. About the time I have him convinced that lizard's are an animal to be revered, this week happens.

Saturday C was in a bubble bath and all of the sudden leapt straight up out of the water and landed right in my lap on the floor. He was crying hysterically and screaming "LILLARD! LILLARD! LILLARD! In the BUBBLES!!!! IT GONNA GET MEEEEEEEEEE!!!!!"

Alan and I cleaned out the bubbles (one scoop at a time into the sink. Do you KNOW how long a sink fullof bubbles takes to pop? All day.) and found the baby lizard who had made the unfortunate choice of sleeping in Cortland's green Mega Blox. We convinced Cortland this was a one-time thing and that lizards don't usually come inside to play.

Later that evening Cortland found another baby lizard in the corner of our bedroom where he was playing. "THE LILLARD!!!!!!!!!!!!" Notice that lizards have now taken on a title. The Lizard.

Moving right along to this morning about 3AM.

"THELILLARD!!!!!!!!!!THELILLARD!!!!!!!!!!!!!INMEBEDTHELILLARDINMYBED!!!!!!!
IN.MY.BED!!!!!!!!!THE.LIZARD.IN.MY.BEEEEEEDDDDDDDDDDD!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"

We slept the rest of the night in the guest room and The Lizard has now taken on the same power over Cortland that spiders have on me.

Peachy.

I Can Come Back to Life!

Cats. The women in my family are cats. No one will ever be able to convince me otherwise.

My 89 year old Grams had knee surgery today and came through that wonderfully. It was only after she had been in her room a bit that she coded. She stopped breathing and after they brought her back she was unresponsive to pain and wasn't waking up. She coded a second time and poof, she was all of the sudden able to answer questions by blinking and was able to make fists with both hands.

She is still on a ventilator tonight because the doctor said that with the broken ribs from the CPR a ventilator would make it more comfortable to breath. The doctor also said that she would have NEVER thought this would be the outcome. That my Grams is a crazy-strong miracle. (paraphrased)

1st my mom and now my Grams. Cats. I think I'm going to take up skydiving since I know that I will live through anything!

BTW - Alan said he was not worried. "Grams is a tough old bird and nothing can keep her down. A German tank." He loves her!

If you would like to send a card my Grams, Eileen Roehl,  she is at Pratt Regional Medical Center, 200 Commodore, Pratt, KS 67124.

This picture was taken Spring 2012 with Joycelyn and Joy. Joycelyn is the little girl my Grams babysits.

Uncle Butch and Grams 09/11

Interesting

Not a reference to C, just interesting.

Most Unrewarding Career

Being a neurologist has got to be one of the most thankless jobs. No matter how good a job the neurologist does, the patient and family members are almost always dissatisfied with the result.

Now Plastics is the field to be in. Almost everyone is happy with their new boobs and chin implants.

ETA: Cortland is fine. This is in reference to Kiwi. She's now has two tumors and a brain bleed. She's doing great, otherwise. She's starting heavy-duty radiation soon.

Alan

Everybody knows what high regard I hold my husband, from my family all the way to the car salesman this weekend... (oh, my god please for the love of all that is holy please stop talking about your amazing spouse....)

That's all well and good but I don't always get to hear what my husband thinks of me. He's a man of few words, I'm sure most have noticed.

Tonight a guy came to our door asking for a signature on a petition and a donation to whatever cause he was promoting. Alan signed the petition because it was for a good cause, but I told the man we don't give money at the door and I asked him to leave his info and we would check it out. He started to say something else and I just politely repeated that we don't give money at the door. (He was super sweet and not pushy at all.)

After the guy left Alan told me it was because of the way I handle situations like that that when he was filling out some paperwork for the bank last week he listed my employment as Management.

I'm not sure he could have said anything that would have made me more appreciated.

New Videos

On the shuttle bus to ride Thomas the Train


Riding Thomas the Train


This is the 1st time C has ever gotten into a bounce house because he wanted to. Ever. So proud of him.


This ended up not being allergies and is he feels half as bad as I do this week then he deserves a medal for being such a good boy!

Mockingbird

What nimrod came up with the idea that Mockingbirds are sacred creatures? I mean really, what ever happened to natural selection? What is it with the Mockingbird in our tree out back that announces all light long, "Tweet, tweet, tweet, here I am! Come eat me!" But nothing ever does?

Now, I'm not suggesting we make a national past-time out of skeet-shooting the beloved state bird of TX, TN, AR, MS and FL with BB guns. Just gently suggesting that maybe the owls need to step up there game a bit. What do they need, an engraved invitation to come sample the loud little crunchy snack with a sweet, gooey center that sings all night in our tree?

Going to See the Dinos!

We got to tour the Billings Productions warehouse where many of the dinosaurs are created that we see at zoos and museums all over the world. Thank you Nik, Cody and Lauren for this amazing experience!

Nik told us that many of the dinos that come in for repair are missing teeth because people steal them.

This picture is deceptive. Nik and Cortland are actually standing right next to that T-Rex on the left. It's HUGE!

Cody hanging out with the raptor

Heh! 

When finished this unpainted mold will roar and move. Cody said it takes five artists 2-3 days to airbrush the dinosaurs. The attention to detail is amazing. Everything is thought of down to the polished eyeballs.

Evie, Ethan and Cortland with a baby

Oh, the carnage!

I wanted C to put his head in there; or at least look at me from between its jaws, but he would have none of that!

Alan wasn't chicken! 

 

Nik Billings

After the fun

Vestibular Spinning Board

This is what we do a couple of times a day. This is obviously 1st thing in the morning if my hair is any indication.

We spin Cortland on his back counter-clockwise to help with his speech. And the side spin is done with C facing into the spin  and we can go either direction as long as he's going forward. This affects his vestibular system and helps with balance and coordination.

He actually asks to be spun now which leads me to believe that along with the obvious improvements we've seen, the spinning also makes him feel better.

Alan's dad made the board with 1/2 plywood cut to 38"x 24". He purchased a wooden lazy susan from Big Lots and then replaced the spinning part with one purchased from Home Depot that is rated up to 500 lbs. I then cut the corners off and covered with upholstery fabric over several layers of quilt liner.

I've never seen my actual expressions when trying to understand what Cortland is trying to say. Just so you know, I must make those faces a whole freaking lot since lately he's always trying to say something.

Youtube

I've been spending the last few days of free time uploading all of our videos to youtube. Lots of videos. I haven't watched them all so hope no one is picking their nose or yelling at children.

Mean Wolf Pups

Text last week between me and Jaqueline:

JAXs: I'm at the dentist now and should be at your house to pick up Lucas about 5 - is that ok?

ME: Fine and dandy

ME: I feel like I'm in a room with wild dogs. They're playing great now after threatening both with a nap. I'm sitting here making no sudden moves or making eye contact.


JAXs: LOL. They are like little wolf pups

ME: Yup. Mean evil wolf pups who will maul any who show weakness. I'm scared for the day they realize if they work together they could take me.


ME: I thought today was that day until their plan fell apart. Lucas got distracted by Thomas the train on and Cortland got stuck half in and out of his bed...

ME: And I live to see another day.

JAXs: Haha! You crack me up. They are trouble.

So, what do you do?

We went out tonight with Jaqueline and David to an art show that Jax's was a participant in. While there a very handsome artist asked me "So, what do you do?" Hell, I was floored when I couldn't come up with an answer. What do I do? I ferry my kid to lots of therapy. I knit. I write a blog - sometimes. But what else do I do? I feel fulfilled. I feel busy all the time. But what do I do?

For most people the answer is whatever their job is is what they do. David said I should have said I was in textiles since I make fabric. heh. I love him.