Successful Shopping Trip!

Took both boys shopping today! It was a total success, K.C. listened to the word, "no no" I mean actively listened! He is beginning to learn the word, "stop." I could tell it registered with him today as we walked back to our car. I said, "stop" and he slowed down and I put my hand on the back of his shoulder and said, "stop" and he did! We drive a little further to the market now to avoid sliding doors and it's helped tons! I let K.C. open a frozen food door because he kept looking at a Kids Cuisine Corn Dog dinner thing. He looked and looked so I asked him, "you want to eat this?" He just looked on but I handed it to him and walked him to the cart and told him to, "put in." When we got home I thought he wanted to eat it but it wasn't the food he wanted. It was the small print on the box he was fascinated with. He didn't want the food so Big Brother ate it. I should have known because he is in love with the 20th Century Fox logo and the Playstation Logo. He will stare and stare at these logos for the longest time. It's New Years Eve and Big Brother has asked to watch the Timesquare WebCam. There is a block party in our town but I don't like to take the boys out on New Years, I am totally afraid of drunk drivers. Tomorrow I am going to try to take the boys to the park. I will feel a little safer tomorrow after some of the New Years parties are over. Hope you all have a very safe New Years with your loved ones:)

Have A Great New Year

Happy New Year Bloggers! Wishing you and your family a great New Year.

Big Brother is losing teeth it seems like every couple weeks. The really strange thing is that he already has his big boy teeth growing in behind his baby teeth! It was really weird to see two teeth in one space. His bottom teeth are crooked. I know he'll need braces, oy vay! K.C. had a huge meltdown when we were driving today. I had to put the car in reverse, well you know K.C. and how he totally freaks out if we are going one direction and have to change routes or backup. I stopped the car and pulled into a shopping centre to stop him from thrashing around in the backseat. He did calm down after a bit and I put him back in his booster seat behind me and we headed home. Took Big Brother to eat Pho at Yen Mi restaurant, after that we went shopping at the Chinese store next door for rice. I am amazed at how much sweet rice Big Brother can consume!

K.C. Loves The Foot Massager

A relative bought me a foot massager as a Hanukkah gift. K.C. loves the massager, I put his feet on the thing and he'll sit very content. It's funny cause when his feet are on the massager he'll put his hands on top of his head, don't know why. He's been watching Charlottes Web on the portable DVD player, he really likes it. Big Brother and I have been reading about The Black Death. He is fascinated about this subject. I had to hide the book from him because I told him we would read it together in the evening in case he didn't understand it. No worries there, he understands it completely. He read that within the walls of the city there were people who died of Black Death. The folks in the city decided to build this huge catapult and actually launched the dead bodies over the walls of the city. Big Brother couldn't believe it when he read it. He said, "didn't they know they were sending germs into the air?" Tonight were gonna keep reading and he'll ask a million questions faster than I can (hopefully) answer them. I have already found another book I know Big Brother will find extremely interesting, amoebic dysentery. His Dad has so many books it is unreal. It is about soldiers and dysentery. This morning I took both boys to my Parent's house. Before we went I grabbed a pair of Big Brother's Spider Man socks and a pair of regular white socks. I gave K.C. a choice of which socks he wanted to wear and he picked the regular white socks. I held up the pretty Spider Man socks and said, "oh look Spider Man, pretty socks." He could care less. I put the socks on him anyways. K.C. doesn't realize what is "cool" and never really wants anything. I see kids in the stores wanting candy and practically begging their parents for a toy or candy but K.C. never does this. He could care less, he is happy just looking around, in his own world. He's happy with simple things.

First Christmas Party for Big Brother

Do you remember me blogging about the Christmas Party Big Brother was invited too? His teacher invited him and he has never been or had a Christmas before cause we are Jewish. We have been reading about the holiday to better prepare Big Brother before he went. He was really excited. I had always taught Big Brother that there are different religions, beliefs etc. and that we must always respect each others beliefs. Well I don't know what happened. Big Brother is very stubborn when he believes something to be 'right.' He just won't leave it alone. His teacher said things kinda went downhill when they sat down to eat. They prayed-and when everyone opened their eyes Big Brother stood there, mouth hanging open. It upset him because he said, "they made God seem small, they were praying through someone else!" I understood how this is different than we pray at home. I picked him up a little earlier than expected. His teacher was very understanding as she knows how strong willed Big Brother is. I am proud that he had listened to our prayers over the years and how he has really listened to me when I tell him stories / read from the Torah. I do need to help him to be more understanding and respectful of others religions and folks feelings. I expect it will come with age, as he gets a little older he will understand more. 6 1/2 is young:) K.C. is doing better, he has been watching the cartoon, Charlottes Web. He loves when the rat eats everything he can find at the fair. He'll watch that part over and over again.
Big Brother doesn't look very happy in the photos :(
I hope you all are having a safe holiday and having lots of family fun!

Fog

This is what we seen when we woke up this morning. Fog everywhere! Fog in Arizona. This is just outside our door. Since the temperatures have changed, I got an icky sinus infection. Feels like my head is gonna explode. I stayed in bed as much as I can and somehow I think K.C. knew I was feeling badly because everytime I closed my eyes and opened them K.C. was standing right over me! Just standing there blankly. I couldn't believe it! I thought maybe he wants under the blanket too! I moved over and told him to sit and he did. He sat with me under the blanket! I really believe somehow he knew I was sick. He just wasn't sure what he should do so he stood in front of me. I felt like a million dollars being sick knowing that K.C. was trying to tell me he knew. Have a great holiday Bloggers.

Meltdowns

My kiddo doesn't like change period. After his seizure it seems we have taken two steps back. When College Boy, Big Brother or whoever comes through the door he screams and screams and screams. Walk up the stairs and leave the living room where K.C. was and screaming starts. Bringing groceries in from the car and screaming starts. Not just screaming short term either, this is the kind of long never seeming to end screaming. After an hour he's still screaming- he's been happy upstairs with the door shut to the bedroom. I have to keep the door open because it is upstairs and I have these horrible visions of him taking a flying leap from the bedroom window. There are alarms on the windows but still I keep thinking he can get out somehow. He does come downstairs briefly but then goes back upstairs to watch Pooh Bear. I really should give him space until he's better. It's very hard to calm K.C. talking makes it 100 times worse. Sitting next to him and trying to hug or hold his hand makes him angrier. How do I calm him? I have to be near him when he is in meltdown mood because he hits him head hard and I mean hard on whatever is closest most the times it's the floor. I wonder why headbanging with K.C. is worse after a seizure? Why does he get ticked off so quickly? I am really not liking Autism today period. I love my son with all my heart but don't like the "other" meaning the Autism. Today it is the enemy, something that wreaks havoc on my sons little body. I know he doesn't like feeling the way he does and I just wish there was a way to make him feel better. No kid should have to go through headbanging, screaming and just being unhappy and not being able to communicate. I am angry, very angry at the Autism. I have to vent or I'll explode!! He came down from the bedroom this morning and walked into the kitchen, his eyes searching. I am thinking, "he 's hungry, maybe thirsty? I know that words aren't what he wants to hear today. I take out the PECS photos that ARE NOT WORKING WELL despite or using them consistently each and everyday! I take some photos of food and drinks out and place them on the table. K.C. sees them and screeches and wipes them off the table like a mad man, I direct him back to the mess he made and help him "clean up pictures" and "put on table." We get through this, he starts to head back up the stairs but before he goes he has to fling his self to the floor and try* to pull his hair out (thank God it was cut yesterday) and it only makes him angrier so he flings his head back toward the railing of the stairs and hits his head. We now have a goose egg on the back of his head. I had to hold him until some of the screaming stopped. 20 minutes later he's exhausted. he's sleeping.

Haircuts

Both boys got haircuts today. Big Brother's was long overdue! K.C. has spent most the morning up stairs watching Pooh Bear. He jumps and crashes to the ground so much it sounds like the ceiling is going to cave in. K.C. tends to try to escape Big Brother on the days they are both home together. I think Big Brother has too much energy and it makes him anxious. We have been taking a walk at night because it has cooled down. Finally we can walk without sweating ourselves to death. It is snowing up north and I am so tempted to make the drive there and take the boys to play in the snow!

Lazy Day With K.C. And A Very Good Book!

Today is a lazy day, it is finally cooling off here in AZ. and I swear the cooler weather makes me want to sleep. K.C. has been hanging out with me today as his school is on vacation until January! Big Brother's vacation starts tomorrow. K.C. has been doing a lot of finger twisting (I am not sure if it's called that but it's what it seems to be) The photo below shows his little fingers a bit twisted. Not sure if it means anything? I did manage to get out this morning and made a trip to the bookstore! I have found the best book- it is called, 'Making Peace With Autism.' I got the paperback copy but there is also a hardcover as well. This book is awesome. Susan Senator is the author and an Autism Mommy as well. This link tells all about the book,
http://susansenator.com/makingpeace.html

Have a great day!

Zoo Lights and Hanukkah

The boys got Zoo Lights tickets from their grandparents as a gift. I took both boys to see Zoo Lights last night. K.C. did well, he even waited in line, got anxious but
managed to keep it together bouncing back and forth on his feet. There were many people at the zoo, I was terrified I would lose one of the boys so I had each boy, one to the left, one to the right. K.C. Seemed to really like the lights of the animals. He got very scared when he spotted some folks wearing glow sticks around their necks. Big brother had a hat on his head that flashed but when he turned the flasher on K.C. got scared so Big Brother shut it off. We have been celebrating Hanukkah, Big Brother is a firebug if I don't watch carefully. K.C. will sit at the table if we allow him to stick all the candles in the Menorah (supposed to put one at a time for each day) but K.C. loves putting them in and then taking them out. I let him do it but also tried to show him the proper way. I was just glad that he looked very happy and was participating! Big Brother helped make Latkes and did a great job! Big Brother and I sang songs and even got a big smile from K.C.! Big Brother played Dreidel and I sat in and tried to get K.C. to play as well but he was more interested in snatching the Gelt and lining it up in the living room floor. K.C. is feeling better and I am so relieved!

Update On K.C.

K.C. is o.k. today. He had a seizure the very next day after we noticed eye rolling and long staring spells. Thank God there are some signs with K.C. It is very frightening to see him have a seizure, waiting for the seizure to end seems like forever. The long spacy staring looks are my number 1 signal that a seizure may happen. When K.C. does have a seizure he always loses control of his bowels and always has a messy diaper afterwards. He gets super sleepy afterwards and sleeps a good three hours. I always feel that after a seizure we take two steps back. It takes a toll on his little brain. We have kept the seizures at bay for the longest time. I don't know what we have done differently to trigger this seizure. Maybe it was too much stimulus. We just don't know. K.C. has had EEG in the past which was very, very, hard to complete. Attaching those electrodes on his head was extremely difficult. He kept pulling them off. A nurse came with a pinwheel and we were able to get them attached while he watched the pinwheel. It came back abnormal and showed that he was having small seizures. The small became large. Now we just have to watch for signs of a seizure, give him medication and let his body have the seizure if it happens and not try to hold him still, just keep him safe.
Hanukkah is here. I have been so worried about K.C. I haven't prepared for the boys. I am trying to catch up today. Can you believe I have no candles for the Menorah? Finding them will be another tough thing. My mother came to our house today with Adam (my brother) and brought her story books. I love reading to the boys, Big Brother loves the stories and K.C. listens, just listens in his own way. He always walks around when I read, but he does stick around. I think he listens. K.C. loves to see the Dreidel spin and really likes to watch us light the Menorah. My Parents and little brother will be coming to our house tonight because K.C. hasn't been well. Big Brother is excited and has been singing Maoz Tzur all morning. I am scattered brain today- completely scatterbrained. I am so thankful my Parents are coming to help out with the boys. K.C. usually hides when they come, but once he sees they are staying for awhile he'll come out. Adam will follow me throughout the house tonight, it will be so nice to spend time with him as well. I love reading about Yehudit and the Greeks. If you have a chance, you must read about her. She was a very brave woman.

Magnetix

K.C. used to love playing with Magnets. He used to be quite fond of Magnetix but no more. He gets very frustrated with the darn things. It is hard for him to keep the tiny round silver magnets in his hand. He isn't fast enough to chase them down when they do fall. So, we are putting the things away for now.
K.C. is staying home from school today. Last night I noticed him being very spacy (more than usual) and this morning I seen him rolling his eyes alot. K.C. has seizures but hasn't had one in a long time. Some people believe seizures are unpredictable, they don't know when they will occur. That isn't true with K.C. There are signs with him. He will be very, very. spacy, staring straight ahead every time he has had a seizure he has always eye rolled not even a day or two before they occur. I always try to think of what I have done differently that may bring on a seizure and I have always wondered if it is his diet. Our Doctor say their is a family history, my brother has them and he's Autistic, K.C. has them and is Autistic. The Doctor also said that when some Autistic kids reach puberty they have seizures for the first time. The only thing I can do is keep a very close eye on him. He does take medication for seizures but it doesn't stop him from having them. I have increased his Magnesium too. I am hoping it works.

Good Day / I Got That Covered

Yesterday C.B. asked if we wanted to go to WalMart. Before I answered I had to go through my mental list. I call it my mental list. What is K.C. going to do? What should I bring? Can he handle it? The most important..are there sliding doors? I remembered that there are sliding doors. So I told C.B. "hey there are sliding doors." He said, "not to worry, I got that covered." I am sure he heard my, " hmmmmm." So off we went. C.B. asked me to stop at Mcdonald's before we went into WalMart. He ordered two Grilled Chicken sandwiches, he inhaled those in about 7 minutes I am not joking. Do all College Kids eat like this? I ordered French Fries for K.C. but College Boy said to wait to give them to K.C. So when we got to Walmart we took K.C. out of the car. College Boy ran ahead of both of us standing at the sliding door to keep it open before K.C. noticed. It worked! K.C. didn't get to see the doors slide open even though he was searching with his eyes. So after K.C. and I got through the doors College Boy followed. He then handed K.C. the fries. K.C. walked through the store eating the fires and was quiet. No screaming! C.B. tried on shoes and told K.C. "sit" and he did. ABA has taught K.C. to sit and I mean sit. You can tell K.C. "sit" and he will plop right down instantly, no hesitation at all. It's funny cause C.B. motioned for K.C. to "sit" next to him on the small seat but as soon as K.C. heard "sit" he plopped right down where he stood. Thank you ABA therapists for teaching K.C. to sit. His therapists have been WONDERFUL. I should mention something about the picture above and K.C.'s shoes. I feel it's important. K.C. used to walk on the front of his feet constantly. I could not get him to stop. Our OT (previous OT) recommended shoes with a very firm bottom. We got the shoes pictured above and when he wears these it makes it very hard to walk on the front of his foot. He now walks just like everyone else. K.C. made it through the store and as we waited in line he ran out of fries. He made his noises, screeches and was twisting his fingers around. We got stares so C.B. took a squishy ball from his pocket and handed it to K.C. he quieted down and and held the ball, squeezed and sniffed it. On the way out C.B. ran ahead to open the sliding door before K.C. could see it. I am so proud of K.C. I am going to have to try new things with him, different approaches. I really need to go to this site and order more stress balls. http://www.officeplayground.com/balls.html There is even a rubber band ball kit to make your own rubber band ball. It looks really fun. Thank you C.B. for helping us. You are wonderful with K.C. and we appreciate you very much!

Concert

Last night I took Big Brother to a concert the older children at his school were having. He really wanted to go, so we headed out a little early so that we could get good seats. It was mostly children singing Christmas songs. It was nice. K.C. stayed at home with his Daddy. His Dad sent me a text message saying that K.C. has been screaming every other few minutes and wanted to know what it meant and what he should he do? I told him about the cartoon that does the screaming, I have wrote about it here on this blog. It's under "Imitating" in the previous posts. K.C. was still screaming this morning, every other few minutes. It's loud and it's long. I haven't let Big Brother watch that cartoon when K.C. is near. I am trying to get him to forget about that cartoon because he's screaming alot these days. He still has no words. Not one. I swear I heard him say "ma ma" once but never again. I want to be able to take K.C. with Big Brother and I almost everywhere we go. We are really working hard on taking K.C. places. Places with no sliding doors for now.

Ewwww, it's really weird.

Big Brother said, "Ewwww, it's weird!" That is what he said when he saw the Tickle Me Elmo his Daddy brought back from California. Big Brother insisted I keep the darn thing in the closet last night. Somehow after I put the little Elmo in his closet, "in the very back of the closet" the thing started laughing when Big Brother was trying to go to sleep. He ran out of his room so fast! He looked terrified. Today Elmo is in a different room. K.C. will look at the box (sorta looks unsure and creeped out) but if I dare to take Elmo out he'll scream his head off until I put him back. I think Elmo's kinda cute:)

One Flaw In Women/This is Beautiful.

Women have strengths that amaze men. They bear hardships and they carry burdens, but they hold happiness, love and joy. They smile when they want to scream. They sing when they want to cry. They cry when they are happy


and laugh when they are nervous. They fight for what they believe in. They stand up to injustice. They don't take "no" for an answer when they believe there is a better solution. They go without so their family can have. They go to the doctor with a frightened friend.

They love unconditionally. They cry when their children excel

and cheer when their friends get awards. They are happy when they hear about a birth or a wedding. Their hearts break when a friend dies. They grieve at the loss of a family member, yet they are strong when they think there is no strength left. They know that a hug and a kiss can heal a broken heart. Women come in all shapes, sizes and colors. They'll drive, fly, walk, run or e-mail you to show how much they care about you. The heart of a woman is what makes the world keep turning. They bring joy, hope and love. They have compassion and ideas. They give moral support to their family and friends. Women have vital things to say and everything to give. HOWEVER, IF THERE IS ONE FLAW IN WOMEN, IT IS THAT THEY FORGET THEIR WORTH.

Update On Dentist Visit

(K.C. this morning in the car.)
We made it through the dental visit. K.C. went into the office crying, the crying went on for about a good 35 minutes. He finally stopped. It took about an hour before they took K.C. back. When we did finally take him back the Anesthesiologist asked a lot of health related questions. Was he sick? Does he have heart problems or kidney problems? Has he had anything to eat in the last eight hours? He asked if he had health problems. I stopped to think about this question. Is Autism a health problem? I have never really thought of it that way. He does have many stomach issues so I said "yes." I guess I see Autism as more of an unusual brain thing, I could be wrong. He asked if I had any questions and I said "yes." I asked him if he had all the necessary equipment in the office in case there was an emergency. He said, "yes." It seems that unusual things always happen to K.C. and just when you think, "nah that won't happen to him, it probably will." I am paranoid I guess. So we took his jacket off and they gave him a shot in his arm. The doctor said it would work in about 2-3 minutes. We waited. Three minutes went by, still not asleep. I thought, "this doesn't surprise me cause he won't sleep at home either." Is a shot really going to knock him out? 6 minutes later he was out. I carried him to the dental chair and noticed his eyes wide open. Scared me to death. The nurse said it was normal. I gave him a kiss and another nurse directed me back to the waiting room. It took about 1 hour and 15 minutes to finish and take him to recovery. He woke up crying and crying. His Daddy carried him to the car and put him in his seat. The Dentist took out one tooth, did a baby root canal on another and a porcelain crown over another. The Dentist said the tooth that had the baby root canal done must have really been hurting K.C. I don't know if it did or not. To think he needed a baby root canal and I didn't know his little tooth even hurt. The Dentist also cleaned his teeth. I am so glad it's over. No more Dental visits for 6 months. K.C. has a little fever this evening and is quite fussy but doing o.k. Thank you for your prayers. It means a lot to us:) We are like one big family in the blogosphere and I appreciate each of you!
Big Brother had a busy day today. He has a big test tomorrow and is worried to death over it. His Daddy is helping him prepare.
If you get a chance, please stop by and say "hi" to Lora and Griffin from, My Beautiful Child Griffin & Autism. http://www.griffinblaise.blogspot.com They have made it to the east coast!

Dentist Tomorrow

The Dentist office called today and said there was a cancellation! This means that K.C. can get his teeth worked on tomorrow (Tuesday). His teeth on the bottom are very jagged looking with big spaces between each tooth. He also has two cavities. I know his bottom teeth suffered a lot from his chewing. He used to chew so much when he was smaller that he destroyed the arm of our couch. Chewed through the fabric, clear down to the wood. The Anesthesiologist said to not give him anything to eat 8 hours before we come in to the office. He also said not to brush his teeth because he might swallow water. Our appointment is at 11:00 a.m. It's going to be incredibly hard to keep him from eating or drinking. I am worried about the Anesthesia, he will be knocked out completely. If you can, say an extra little prayer for K.C. tonight:)
Daddy is home! I am so glad I won't be alone at the dentist office with K.C., I would worry myself to death.
We were so busy today with K.C., he had two therapy
sessions almost back to back. He did well!
Big Brother has been looking at books with K.C. a lot! You can see in the photo that K.C. looks very interested. Big Brother noticed that K.C. turns the pages "funny."
It is really cooling off here at night and in the daytime, finally! Now if it would just snow up north we could take both boys. I have been checking the weather forecast each day but no snow yet :(

Doors and KC

I took K.C. to the post office with me today, I needed a book of stamps. Guess what the post office had? Sliding doors. K.C. has been opening/closing, opening closing the bathroom door, cupboards. He opens them very slowly, listening carefully, again and again. The post office just had to have the sliding doors as well. He stopped right at the doors of the post office. I tried to walk him quickly through the doors but he wouldn't budge. He has to see the doors open, close, open, close. He's taking this door thing to the extreme. I want to keep taking him as much as possible because he's making good progress. I did let him watch the doors open and close at the post office today thinking maybe it would get out of his system. I was wrong. He didn't want to leave at all. Fortunately we were still standing outside so I could get him to the car quickly. I didn't get the stamps but did call around to other supermarkets asking them, "hi I would like directions to your market and by the way, does your market have sliding doors in front?" The phone line was quiet, I wonder if they thought I was a prank caller? I could have just explained our situation but sometimes I get tired of explaining and just want an answer. I did finally find a store that has push open doors!! I was determined. So off we went again. No sliding doors at this store! He did o.k.! It's about 15 more minutes from our home but so worth it. K.C. was surprised to find no sliding doors and as batty as they drive him he looked kinda relieved and not so panicked. Big Brother has been carrying a teddy bear around this week. His class went to a build a bear workshop. He loves his little bear and named it "ghost." The Boys daddy is coming home Tomorrow for a week long visit from California. Big Brother has got all of his school work papers out and his room organized. As soon as he finished talking to his Dad, he ran upstairs to clean up his room. His Dad talks to him ALOT about school and his future. Big Brother is such a good boy, he put his shoes outside because no shoes are allowed in the house (I'll admit, I don't follow up on this rule, I should, but I don't) College Boy has been wonderful with the boys, their Dad left College Boy with me to help out. I am not sure how their Dad is going to react knowing that they have been having fun when I know he'll say Big Brother, "should have been studying." He seems strict but he means well. He tells Big Brother stories about when he lived in Refugee camps. He also tells him how he got where he is today because he did study hard. He tells him to always respect his school books and to never leave them on the floor. Since being married to their Daddy I have experienced many things. Being a Jewish woman I have encountered many folks who don't like Jews. Being with the boys daddy, I have felt alot of the pain he endures in everyday life because he's Asian. That is why he tells Big Brother he has to work much harder than other people to be successful in life. I am very happy that he's coming home tomorrow. Come to think of it, I am going to have to brush Big Brother's hair down tomorrow, lol.