A Swimming We Will Go....

We had such a great day today!! First, when we woke up this morning it wasn't raining, YEAH!!! And second, Jesse had the day off from Wal-Mart today so we decided to have a family day until he has to go to Dominos.

So what is there to do when the sun is out and Daddy is home? Go to the beach of course!! So we packed all of our bags up and headed over to Kingston Lake (we wanted to go the the ocean but we did have the gas and there is just too much running room at the ocean)!

Aidan was very excited about the ducks and chased them around the beach saying, "Come here ducks, come here duckies, come play with me!!" It was very cute! Unfortunetly the ducks didn't want to play with him...

Apparently Cora felt the need to "water" the lake, maybe she felt it wasn't wet enough!!

Haylee LOVED the sand! Digging, throwing, and yes -- even eating the sand! Eventually she headed over to the lake and plashed around. Everytime I looked over at her she just had a great big smile on her face!!

Jesse was a good sport and had fun with the kids in the water. He even got Aidan to go out all the way up to his neck and helped him float -- it was great to see!

All in all it was a great day! Though I must say that I think it is time to buy some new sunscreen -- even though we all had SPF 50 on we all came home a little pink!! Oh, well -- at least I have aloe in the frid

How dare he!!

Where do some people get off!!! I received an e-mail today and this was the subject line --

"99% of Autism cases are brats who haven't been told to cut the act out. "

This quote was given by a nationally syndicated radio talk show host (you can read all about it at http://mediamatters.org/items/200807170005).

Things like this aggravate me! This gentleman obvious has never had to deal with a family member with Autism, he has never been in a position where he couldn't communicate with his child, he has never seen his child intentionally hurt himself, he has never had to fight for his child to get an education, he has never had to face the realization that there is a chance that his child will never live a normal productive life! HOW DARE HE!!

I take great offense to comments like this because he is talking about my children! If it were as easy as telling the child to stop -- don't you think we would have done that Mr. Savage -- please give us parents some credit! I have and will do anything for my children -- and I do not let my children walk all over me as you propose Mr. Savage!

I have to most incredible children, and even though 2 of them have Autism -- they are some of the most artistic, analytical, and outstanding children! I love my kids with all that I am and they teach me something new almost everyday - can you say that Mr. Savage? My kids rock and my life wouldn't be complete without them -- even with their Autism!!

Eternal Reflection

In Church yesterday the unofficial theme of our Sacrament Meeting was having an Eternal Perspective, which got me thinking --

About things that seem big and troublesome now that don't matter when you think eternally --

-- A broken window

-- A house that is messy for a few days

-- Arguing Kids

-- Autism

-- Homework

-- 2 - 6 more years of college

-- Working 2 jobs

-- Getting a bath while giving 3 little ones a bath

-- A lawn needing mowing

-- Not seeing a brother for 2 years

-- Worrying about a sibling's decisions

-- Yucky humid weather

-- Missing deceased family members

-- Feeling there isn't enough time in the day

-- Not getting enough sleep

-- Only having 1 car

-- A broken computer keyboard

-- Loosing a shoe

-- Dealing with Jury Duty

-- Forcing a screaming child onto a school bus

I know I could go on forever! Yesterday made me realize that our time here is short, an though we may have times that are frustrating and we may not have everything go as we would like -- in an eternal perspective our time here is short! I have a feeling that if I can keep the "eternal perspective" maybe little things won't bother me as much and I can better appreciate the time that I have in the here and now and cherish the time that I have with my family, friends, and especially my 3 little ones!!

I survived...

I have survived my first Microbiology exam!! I should probably explain that this class meets Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday from 6-9:30! Also this class is only 7 weeks long. I knew I was in trouble when the first night of class the teacher stated that she usually teaches this class in 16 weeks and she decided that she was not going to cut out any information -- she is just going to cram it all into the 7 weeks!!! So we had our first exam and I got an 83, which is OK. I am really hard on myself and it has been a long time since I earned a B -- but considering I had 27 typed pages of notes all given in 5 days I think I did pretty well.

Only 3 class exams, 2 lab practicums, 21 lab reports, and 4 1/2 weeks left!

Good News Day!

I have been a little panicky lately as I get closer to starting the nursing program in the fall -- not because the program starts soon, but because the program is costing me a fortune!! Let's see some of the bills I have already paid --

Uniforms (for 2) $175.00

Physical $352.00

Lab Work/Shots $775.00

Sneakers $48.98

Blood Pressure Cuff $50.00

Shade Shirts $48.00

I haven't even received my tuition bill yet and we have been told that books will exceed $800!! YIKES!!!

Well in the mail today I received a letter from NECC stating that I am the recipient of the NECC Leadership Development Scholarship for $500 and the NECC Leaders of Today and Tomorrow for $250. So I was very excited about that! But wait, it gets better.....

A few minutes later I logged into my e-mail and I had an e-mail from the Coca-Cola Scholars Foundation that informed me that I have been awarded their Volunteerism Scholarship for $1000!!!! YEAH!!! These scholarships will cover almost all of my tuition and hopefully the grants I applied for will cover my books!! What an incredible blessing!! It has been a good day!

I've had it, I'm done!

On days like today I wonder why it is I ever had children? Why did I work for so long and pray so hard for children? Why?

I know that my children have "special needs" but I am tired of it. I am tired of the fighting, I am tired of the screaming, I am tired of the throwing, I am tired of things constantly being broken, I am tired of feeling like I am talking to a wall, I am just tired!! It is one of those days where I just want to sit in a corner and cry!!

The fact that they are out of school and they don't have that strict academic schedule, and they don't have their behavioral specialists and their occupational/physical therapist doesn't help the situation. I would love to be able to just bring the kids outside to play -- but I can't because they all go in different directions and I can't keep tabs on them all and it is way to dangerous in our neighborhood! I have used ALL of my things in my little bag of tricks and they don't go back to school for another week!!

So this is what faced me when I tried to put the kids to bed today.....yes it is a broken window! It is the window that is right above Cora's bed. I mean really, was it really necessary for them to break the window? Then I tried to tape it up (you can kind of see it) to make it safer since I have no idea how I am going to fix it, and they pulled the tape off!!! I am so frustrated!

I don't know how much I have left in me to keep dealing with this crap!! I'm tired, I have had enough -- and of course things like this always happen when Jesse is at work -- not that having him here would really change anything since he sleeps most of the time know and I still have to deal with the kids.

Does every mom have these days? Does it pass? Is it just a bad day?

Patience Has Run OUT!!

I usually consider myself to be a patient person -- when it comes to the kids that is. But they have been out of school for a total of 5 days now and they are DRIVING ME CRAZY!!

Why is it that they need to throw every toys they own down the stairs, while dressed in six layers of clothes (none of which are the clothes I dressed them in in the morning), while screaming like a band of wild animals? Why is it that it is necessary to find a full bottle of baby powder (that was on the top shelf of the hall closet) and pour it all over the bathroom so that when I walk into the bathroom I inhale a cloud of powder and then proceed to slipp on the powder on the floor and fall? Why is it that they feel it is necessary to pull the sheets off of all of the beds and draw on the mattresses? Why is it necessary to argue and hit one another non-stop? Oh, did I mention that this is all from this morning?

Usually I am patient and can handle what ever they throw at me, but this morning I felt like just assuming the fetal position and crying myself to sleep!! Thank goodness I had to work today and I have class tonight!!

My only fear is -- what do they have planned for the rest of the week and a half to school starts again!!!!!