On this day of Thanksgiving - I have many things to be thankful for: The Lord and all of His blessings, My wife and her love and support, my son and all the wonderful things he brings into my life, my job and what it provides for us, my family and their love and support, and the troops who everyday whether home or abroad put their lives on the line so that I may be safe and live in such a free country.
We live in some challenging times for our country and the world - yet we all need to take a step back today and really analyze what we are thankful for. I'm sure all the things we can be thankful for far outweigh the negatives or challenges in our life.
Happy Thanksgiving to you and yours.
God Bless
Thursday, November 27, 2008
Sunday, November 16, 2008
First Snow and other Stuff
Wow - they said flurries today - but we probably got a couple inches. Didn't really stick to the cement - but the grass is pretty covered. Hayden has been fighting a cold for the past few weeks - so we didn't go outside and play in it.
Had our first parent-teacher conference last week. Everything seems to be going good - still have alot of work to do on his IEP goals. Hayden has become friends with a little girl in his class who missed a few days - and the teacher said he seemed to be looking for her during the week. It's really good that he's making friends and his social skills are really developing.
We've been pretty lax with the organic diet lately and have noticed a regression in his speech. So we were really dilligent the past week and have seen a noticeable improvement. We both need to be much stronger when it comes to making sure he eats organic. It really seems to help.
Tina and one of her friends in Fragile X of Michigan are having a fundraiser to raise money for the FX Conference in 2010. Take a look at the flyer in the Lia Sophia link in my favorites. Leave a message or send an email for more info. The event is Nov 22nd.
Speaking of fundraisers - we met a guy who owns a bar and does Texas Hold'em Fundraiser tournaments for non-profits. I think I am going to do one for FX - I'll post more info here when I know more - but it looks pretty cool.
Well - it's opening of deer rifle season - and while I didn't go up this weekend - I'll be heading up this Thursday nite. Wish me luck. Venison is for sure as organic as you can get. Know I can really say I'm hunting to feed my family.
Take care - God Bless.
Had our first parent-teacher conference last week. Everything seems to be going good - still have alot of work to do on his IEP goals. Hayden has become friends with a little girl in his class who missed a few days - and the teacher said he seemed to be looking for her during the week. It's really good that he's making friends and his social skills are really developing.
We've been pretty lax with the organic diet lately and have noticed a regression in his speech. So we were really dilligent the past week and have seen a noticeable improvement. We both need to be much stronger when it comes to making sure he eats organic. It really seems to help.
Tina and one of her friends in Fragile X of Michigan are having a fundraiser to raise money for the FX Conference in 2010. Take a look at the flyer in the Lia Sophia link in my favorites. Leave a message or send an email for more info. The event is Nov 22nd.
Speaking of fundraisers - we met a guy who owns a bar and does Texas Hold'em Fundraiser tournaments for non-profits. I think I am going to do one for FX - I'll post more info here when I know more - but it looks pretty cool.
Well - it's opening of deer rifle season - and while I didn't go up this weekend - I'll be heading up this Thursday nite. Wish me luck. Venison is for sure as organic as you can get. Know I can really say I'm hunting to feed my family.
Take care - God Bless.
Sunday, November 2, 2008
November Update (About Time !!)
To all my loyal readers - my apologies. Been a crazy couple months - I can't believe it's already November. I love this time of year. I've been out hunting once already and am looking forward to another weekend spent in the woods for the opening of rifle season. Thanksgiving will soon be here - which starts the Christmas holiday season. Wow - another year is about to pass.
Well alot has gone on since the past update - so I will try to fit it all in and not get too wordy.
School
I think Hayden has suprised us both with how well he has adapted to going to school. But I think the routine of everyday has been really good. We have seen great progress with his social skills and just his attempts to play with children which he didn't really do before. He gets speech throughout the week and also thankfully qualified for OT and PT as well - which he gets once a week each. We haven't seen a whole lot of progress on the speech side - but we know this takes time. You can tell sometimes he really tries. He has a lot of sounds and we know he says some things to us sometimes where he knows what it is - but we have no clue. But with the signs we have taught him and just knowing Hayden and his personality and routines - we can communicate pretty well with him - and that is really great.
Hayden went on his first field trip this year. Early in October the entire pre-school class (regular and special ed) went to an apple orchard. It was a pretty long day - so towards the end Hayden started to fizzle out - but overall I think he had a great time. Here are some pictures
I think he really likes riding the bus. He was also in our cities Homecoming Parade and got to ride the bus with daddy.
So all in all - school is going fairly well. Tina gets some "personal" time each day and I think it's really great for her to have that time. I get to go to work each day - so being a stay-at-home mom - that time is really beneficial.
Soccer
Through some friends of ours we heard about a soccer team in Grosse Pointe for children with special needs. I was a little skeptical at first thinking he was kinda young and probably wouldn't do all that well - but as usual Tina was right - so we signed him up. I don't think he really understood the whole concept - maybe thought we were just out at a park playing - and kicking the ball wasn't something he really wanted to do. But with some bribery (toys and food) he and I would kick the ball for about 20-30 minutes of the time we were there. After the season was over they had a little halloween party and all the kids go trophies. We will definitely do it again next year - it was great to get out like that.
Playhouse Disney
Hayden loves the Disney Channel - The Little Einsteins, Pooh, Mickey Mouse, Handy Manny, The Doodlebops - all that stuff. We saw Playhouse Disney in May when we went to Florida, but a different production of it came to The Palace of Auburn Hills near where we live. I got some tickets for us and also for my niece and her parents. The kids had a great time - and so did the parents. We were in a suite - so it was a really comfortable situation. Not sure how it would have been on the main floor. It was really great to watch the kids faces as the characters came out. I was kind of bummed that all the characters didn't have costumes - for example the Little Einstein's were actual people while Pooh and Mickey were in costumes. I think Hayden would have related better if the LE's were in costumes - but he still really enjoyed it.
Other Stuff
Tina and I are still very involved in the Fragile X Association of Michigan, and thusly that National Fragile X Foundation. We are blessed to have the 12th International Conference in 2010 right here in Michigan. We are now actively in the planning stages of that. I'm hoping to become more involved as time goes on with the foundation and I'm planning on traveling to Washington D.C. in March for advocacy day. There will be more info on these activities as time goes on.
All things considered - things are pretty good. Most of our days are good - but we still get those days here and there that are very challenging. On October 22nd it was 1 year since we got our diagnosis. I think back to that day and how devastated we were. I know personally my thoughts were "he'll never play sports, he'll never ride a bike, he'll never go to school, he'll never....whatever"..........just all kinds of negative thoughts - actually, very selfish thoughts because they were all about things I wanted my child to do that I wouldn't be able to do with him. He played soccer this past year, we've been working on the bike thing, he goes to school, he has friends, he loves his toys.......all kinds of wonderful things I probably would have taken for granted - but because of Hayden, he makes each thing we do, each game we play, each day we wake up better than I ever imagined it could have been.
In two days from this post - we as Americans get to do one of the most precious things in our great democracy - we get to vote. No matter your political affiliation - please, please get out and vote. Much blood has been spilled to defend these freedoms we have - and God Bless all those who protect us and help us protect those rights. Those men and women have a courage I can never realize. So please - get out and vote.
I promise to update more often.
God Bless
Well alot has gone on since the past update - so I will try to fit it all in and not get too wordy.
School
I think Hayden has suprised us both with how well he has adapted to going to school. But I think the routine of everyday has been really good. We have seen great progress with his social skills and just his attempts to play with children which he didn't really do before. He gets speech throughout the week and also thankfully qualified for OT and PT as well - which he gets once a week each. We haven't seen a whole lot of progress on the speech side - but we know this takes time. You can tell sometimes he really tries. He has a lot of sounds and we know he says some things to us sometimes where he knows what it is - but we have no clue. But with the signs we have taught him and just knowing Hayden and his personality and routines - we can communicate pretty well with him - and that is really great.
Hayden went on his first field trip this year. Early in October the entire pre-school class (regular and special ed) went to an apple orchard. It was a pretty long day - so towards the end Hayden started to fizzle out - but overall I think he had a great time. Here are some pictures
I think he really likes riding the bus. He was also in our cities Homecoming Parade and got to ride the bus with daddy.
So all in all - school is going fairly well. Tina gets some "personal" time each day and I think it's really great for her to have that time. I get to go to work each day - so being a stay-at-home mom - that time is really beneficial.
Soccer
Through some friends of ours we heard about a soccer team in Grosse Pointe for children with special needs. I was a little skeptical at first thinking he was kinda young and probably wouldn't do all that well - but as usual Tina was right - so we signed him up. I don't think he really understood the whole concept - maybe thought we were just out at a park playing - and kicking the ball wasn't something he really wanted to do. But with some bribery (toys and food) he and I would kick the ball for about 20-30 minutes of the time we were there. After the season was over they had a little halloween party and all the kids go trophies. We will definitely do it again next year - it was great to get out like that.
Playhouse Disney
Hayden loves the Disney Channel - The Little Einsteins, Pooh, Mickey Mouse, Handy Manny, The Doodlebops - all that stuff. We saw Playhouse Disney in May when we went to Florida, but a different production of it came to The Palace of Auburn Hills near where we live. I got some tickets for us and also for my niece and her parents. The kids had a great time - and so did the parents. We were in a suite - so it was a really comfortable situation. Not sure how it would have been on the main floor. It was really great to watch the kids faces as the characters came out. I was kind of bummed that all the characters didn't have costumes - for example the Little Einstein's were actual people while Pooh and Mickey were in costumes. I think Hayden would have related better if the LE's were in costumes - but he still really enjoyed it.
Other Stuff
Tina and I are still very involved in the Fragile X Association of Michigan, and thusly that National Fragile X Foundation. We are blessed to have the 12th International Conference in 2010 right here in Michigan. We are now actively in the planning stages of that. I'm hoping to become more involved as time goes on with the foundation and I'm planning on traveling to Washington D.C. in March for advocacy day. There will be more info on these activities as time goes on.
All things considered - things are pretty good. Most of our days are good - but we still get those days here and there that are very challenging. On October 22nd it was 1 year since we got our diagnosis. I think back to that day and how devastated we were. I know personally my thoughts were "he'll never play sports, he'll never ride a bike, he'll never go to school, he'll never....whatever"..........just all kinds of negative thoughts - actually, very selfish thoughts because they were all about things I wanted my child to do that I wouldn't be able to do with him. He played soccer this past year, we've been working on the bike thing, he goes to school, he has friends, he loves his toys.......all kinds of wonderful things I probably would have taken for granted - but because of Hayden, he makes each thing we do, each game we play, each day we wake up better than I ever imagined it could have been.
In two days from this post - we as Americans get to do one of the most precious things in our great democracy - we get to vote. No matter your political affiliation - please, please get out and vote. Much blood has been spilled to defend these freedoms we have - and God Bless all those who protect us and help us protect those rights. Those men and women have a courage I can never realize. So please - get out and vote.
I promise to update more often.
God Bless
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