Peanut Butter and Jam Session

Last weekend, we decided to check out Chatham Baroque's "Peanut Butter and Jam" session. Designed specifically for kids, the sessions feature local musicians playing a variety of instruments. Kids and parents are encouraged to dance, sing and above all else, ask questions about anything they see or hear during the program.

Connor recently started playing the violin, and his instructor thought he would enjoy the young musician in the group who is a talented violin player. Indeed Connor did enjoy seeing what years of hard work and practice can do for a musician playing the same instrument he now aspires to learn.

I highly recommend checking this out if you have kids who like music. You don't have to worry about shushing them the entire time. You don't have to worry about them sitting still. This is truly a musical experience designed to foster a love of music in children of all ages.

It's been a while, hasn't it?

 

It's been well over a year since I updated this blog, and for that, I am truly sorry. Life has gotten the better of me the last 13 or so months and I simply have not had time to share the way I used to. I promise to get back to updating. A lot has happened, so I'll start blogging about some of it soon! Just to give you a preview, I now am the proud owner of a diabetic, geriatric cat that requires daily insulin shots. I also have begun taking kung fu with my son, which has been interesting since I am not the most coordinated person. I have some new and exciting work clients and things are generally going OK right now.

 

Check in and let me know how you all are as well!

 

R.I.P. Auggie

Auggie, my mother-in-law and father-in-law's cat, had to be put to sleep yesterday. He hadn't been acting normal for awhile, and when they took him to the vet, discovered he had a large tumor in his stomach. On the vet's recommendation, they chose to put him to sleep so he wouldn't suffer.

We told Connor about it today, and he was heartbroken. We didn't see Auggie a lot (once or twice a year when we were visiting), but he and Connor were buds -- as I'm sure you can tell from this picture. Auggie isn't *supposed* to be on the bed......but he got away with it when his favorite buddy was visiting. :)

We're going to miss Auggie. He was a good kitty. Rest in peace, pal. I'm sure you're chasing mice in the great kitty afterlife. :)

Digging in the Dirt with Daddy......

Isaak is redoing the front walk and stairs, so he's been busy digging up the old stuff and leveling it off for a few weeks. Today, Connor decided that "playing in the dirt" looked like fun, so he asked to go help daddy. Here are my two boys, digging in the dirt. They're the cutest darn contractors I've ever hired! :)

April is Autism Awareness Month.......

The month of April has been designated as Autism Awareness Month. In an effort to spread awareness, I have been posting a new "fact" about autism daily on my Facebook page. I also wanted to do an awareness post on my blog, so here it is.

Here are some basic facts about autism:

• Autism affects 1 in 99 children;
• Autism is more prevalent in boys than girls, with one in every 70 affected;
• More children are expected to be diagnosed with autism this year than with AIDS, diabetes and cancer combined;
• Autism is the fastest-growing, serious developmental disability in the United States;
• The diagnosis and treatment of autism costs the nation roughly $35 billion per year;
• Autism receives less than 5 percent of research funding of many less prevalent childhood diseases;
• Boys are four times more likely to be diagnosed with autism than girls;

And the most important fact of all is: there currently is no medical detection or cure for autism.

Some of the more common signs of autism in children are:

• No babbling or pointing by age 1;
• No single words by 16 months or two-word phrases by age 2;
• No response to name;
• Loss of language or social skills;
• Poor eye contact;
• Excessive lining up of toys or objects; and
• No smiling or social responsiveness.

A child psychologist I know likes to say that if you've met one child with autism, you've met one child with autism. While there are similar signs and symptoms, every child is different. That is why there is an autism spectrum. Many higher-functioning autistics are extremely intelligent, with IQs that are off the charts. Yet, they often lack the social skills to be successful and accepted by their peers.

Children are not the only ones with autism. Autism is a lifelong disorder. There is no cure. However, with the proper therapy and early intervention, children with autism can learn to cope and fit into society. However, a crucial part of acceptance is education of the general population about autism.

If you suspect autism in a friend or family member, there are places to turn to for help. Following is a list of places in the Greater Pittsburgh Area. If anyone would like places in their area, please let me know, and I will be happy to research it for you.

Autism Resources -- Greater Pittsburgh Area

1. Autism Center of Pittsburgh -- 412-364-1886 -- website: http://www.autismcenterofpittsburgh.com

2. Wesley Spectrum -- 412-831-9390 -- website: http://www.wesleyspectrum.org

3. The Alliance for Infants and Toddlers -- 412-885-6000 -- website: http://www.afit.org

Connor's new bike......

Connor got a new bike today. His other one was two years old and way too small for him. So we went out this afternoon looking to see what we could find. He told me he wanted a green or yellow bike. Well, I'd been in the stores recently, and hadn't seen anything in those colors that would even fit him. So color me surprised when we stopped at Dunhams and found this little green goblin on the shelf. We knew right then and there that this was the one. Luckily, it fit in the trunk of my car. Otherwise, Connor informed me he was prepared to ride it home. :)

We got him to get off of it long enough to adjust the seat and remove the training wheels. He's outside practicing on it with Isaak as I type this. So far, no major falls and boo-boos. Hopefully it'll stay that way.

Look Ma! No training wheels!

Connor has been working on riding without his training wheels for a few days now. I don't have the heart for it (mostly because I'd probably have a heart attack worrying he'll hurt himself!), so Isaak has been teaching him. They had been riding in the neighbor's yard for awhile, in case he fell, so he wouldn't get hurt. Today, they graduated to the road.

Here he is, peddling away on his bike.....no training wheels! I wouldn't have believed it unless I had seen it myself. I couldn't believe how well he was riding.

He was most impressed with his skid marks. Once he realized he could leave them, he left a few. :)

Everybody was Kung Fu Fightin'.....

OK, well not everyone is Kung Fu fighting. I'm not. If I tried, I'd probably hurt myself. But we just watched Kung Fu Panda the other night, and I have that song stuck in my head. So it seemed an appropriate title for this post.

Connor is on his third Kung Fu lesson and is doing really well. In fact, I am totally blown away at how focused he is and how well he listens to his instructor. If only I could get him to listen to ME that well! LOL! I guess if I started speaking only in Kung Fu terms, that might get his attention. :)

Here are some photos from his latest lesson. They are kind of blurry, but my phone isn't the best for photos.

Fun at the Science Center.......

So we went to the Carnegie Science Center on Saturday with my parents. Connor had a blast, but then again, he always does when we're there. His favorite place (as seen above) is the fourth floor, where the water tables and play set area is located. However, mommy can only take about 15 minutes at a time up there because the noise level gives me an utter migraine.

My dad got a kick out of the electricity stations. In the one above, you were supposed to grab the two brass knobs and watch the lightbulb light up. My dad thought it was hilarious.

My darling husband double-dog-dared me to get on the unicycle thingy they have at the SportsWorks building. If you know me, you know I hate heights. I never used to be that way, but all of a sudden, I am prone to vertigo. Riding in the back seat of a car makes me nauseous. But I wasn't going to not do this. I was double-dog-dared! So I did. It actually wasn't as bad as I thought. I didn't look down at all, which was probably the only thing that kept me from getting ill while up there.

My mom, pictured above, was trying her hand at using a computer to stop a nuclear submarine from "melting down" by making the necessary repairs. Needless to say, neither she nor I were able to do it. Sorry hypothetical ocean life in this game. We didn't mean to kill you. :(

And lastly, here is Connor and some random kid playing in the water. Pap was smart in not getting too close. Anyone who knows Connor knows that when he has water, you'd better watch out!

All in all, it was a fun afternoon. Tiring, but fun.

Bedtime stories with Connor and Gabe

Connor has recently started reading bedtime stories to our cat, Gabe. It's cute, because Gabe actually likes it. If he already isn't in Connor's room waiting for us during bath time, he wanders in the minute he hears us in there, plops his portly kitty butt down and waits for story time. Sometimes he even gets into bed with Connor and cuddles a bit afterward. Connor loves it. He's been trying to make nice with Gabe for two years. Tonight's selection was "Goodnight Moon," which Connor happily read to Gabe twice. Gabe gave it two kitty face rubs of approval when he was done. :)

New neighbors.......

It would seem we have some new neighbors. Several times over the last week, I've found these deer hanging out in the only snow-free spot in the next-door neighbors' yard. I have another photo of them (I made it to 12 before they started to run, but I'm pretty sure there were at least 3 more), but it's grainy, so I'm probably not going to put it up. If they come back, I'll get another one. We've always had deer in the yard, but I've never seen more than 5-6 at a time. I guess it's just a sad state of the area that deer have to move into neighborhoods because there are very few wooded areas left for them to inhabit. :(

Whose bed is it anyway?

So not only did I catch Gabe napping on Connor's bed yesterday......but he was snuggling Connor's blanket, too! And he was not amused when I told him to get his furry behind off the blanket and the bed. He made one of those mumbling cat noises at me and proceeded to curl back up. I had to manually remove him from the bed, only to find him up there again less than an hour later. I guess he gets an A for persistence.

A Scotch Tape Christmas......

Yesterday, my mom and dad came up for a visit and to bring Christmas presents in the event the weather gets bad again. Among the gifts was one from my sister, Ann, who said Connor had to open it that day. Once we opened it, we knew why. Connor has been a bit.....obsessed......with Scotch Tape. Now, he uses it correctly most of the time. But still, he goes overboard taping stuff that probably doesn't really need taping. However, we were going through a lot of tape and he was always putting it down and forgetting where it was, driving me crazy with his "mom, where is my tape? Can you find my tape?" insistence every 10 minutes. So Ann got him the wristband tape dispenser. As you can see from the above photo, when he first put it on, he wasn't quite sure what it was.

Even after pulling out a piece of tape, he stared at it, not quite sure yet what to make of it.

Then sure enough, the little light bulb in his head went off, and he figured it out. And that was when the Great Taping Adventure began. Nothing was spared. *sigh* If only I could get him to use his new power for good.

The good news is, I did get him to stop taping long enough to take a picture with gram and pap.

Dear God

This morning, my 5 year old made me cry. Profusely. Not because he did something bad. Not because he stubbed my toe. Not because of anything negative. These were good tears. And I just have to share with you all what it was that evoked such a response from me.


Connor is at the age where he has noticed most of his friends have brothers or sisters (or both). He asks a lot of questions. We don't always have the answers. Only God knows why some kids have siblings and others don't. As part of this conversation, I always tell Connor that there are little boys and girls in the world who don't have mommies or daddies to love them, and God sometimes helps those boys and girls find new parents through something called adoption.


This morning, when he got up, he told me he wanted to type a letter to God. So we got out the laptop and he typed: "Dear God, please give mommies and daddies to the boys and girls who don't have any. Thanks, Connor." After he typed it, we printed it out and he asked me to give it to the mailman so he could deliver it to God.


I am so proud of my child for thinking about others. This time of year, it is so easy to get caught up in the rush of the holidays and spend more time thinking about ourselves than others. Sometimes it takes the wisdom of a 5 year old to get us back on track.

Snow, trees and acrobats.....

It's been awhile since I blogged. I know. I know. But with the new job and other responsibilities, I've just plain been too busy. So I'm going to update you a bit today with some photos. Earlier this week, we had the first snow of the season. It wasn't much more than a dusting, but it was still pretty. I like snow, but after last winter, I'm praying we don't get that much again this winter. Three feet of it in 12 hours is just too much. I like my snow in moderation.

We decided to put the tree up today. We've had our outside stuff up for a week, but waited until today to do the tree. Connor and daddy did most of the work, which was nice.

Here they are putting the final touches on it.

Connor has a little fiber optic tree in his room. He put some decorations on it this year. He's very proud of it.

This has absolutely nothing to do with Christmas.......but Zorro, our formerly feral kitty, has finally discovered the joy that is the heater vents. My other cat, Gabe, practically lives on those things all winter long (to the point he gets dry skin and kitty dandruff). Zorro seemed afraid of them last year, but this year, he has been hanging out near them more and more. The other day, I caught him all-out napping in front of this one in our computer room. It's taken over a year, but I think we've finally assimilated him. :)

And this last photo is a perfect example of why it's a good thing I have a strong heart. I went to the store today and when I got back, discovered daddy and Connor were working on their own version of an acrobatic act. Connor has amazing balance. He definitely doesn't get that from me.

Halloween Parade at Hance

Connor had his Halloween parade at school today. He and daddy worked hard the other day to make the costume using two cardboard boxes and some old heating ducts we had lying around after some renovations last year. All the kids seemed to love his costume. I was told he was a hit every room he visited during their parade this morning. He even did his cute little robot walk. He's excited to go trick or treating on Sunday night with daddy.

Fall fun!

It's a bird......it's a plane........it's.........it's.............

Legs? Coming out of a leaf bag? Did the leaves grow legs?

Nah. It was just Connor......having some fun in the leaf bag. :)

Who needs to go to the woods.......

.......when this is in your own back yard?

Tables and cats

It's been awhile since I blogged -- I know. Been busy. OK, been so busy I don't know what day it is.....but anyway.......


Yesterday, we got a new diningroom table and chairs. They belonged to my mom and dad. They were downsizing, so they offered them to us. They are magnificent! We've had problems with finding a nice table for our diningroom ever since we moved here. This table is not only large enough to fill the space properly, but it has chairs that don't break when we sit down on them! That was a huge issue with our last table set. Thanks mom and dad! We're excited to have this set!


And yesterday afternoon, I found the cats.....snuggling on the dryer. Now, to know why this is funny, you have to understand that my one cat, Zorro (all black in front), is a formerly feral kitty we rescued last year. He's geared to be wild, and as a result, often ends up kerfluffling with Gabriel. Sometimes, he's just playing. But most of the time, he's asserting himself. It often ends with me pulling them apart and giving Zorro a cat time out. LOL. So to find them napping together in such a peaceful way blew my socks off. It definitely was a rare moment.

Homecoming!

My niece Melina and her friend, Dom, went to Homecoming yesterday. My niece was so excited, because this is the first time she's gone to a formal event at the school. She's a homeschooler, but technically a "junior" in high school. It's hard for me when I look at her all grown up, because it seems like just yesterday when she was 4 and following me around everywhere, wanting to "dance" to music.

Earlier this week, she sprained her knee badly in a soccer match. She is supposed to be wearing a knee brace, but the doctor said she could take it off for Homecoming. I told her we could paint it blue to match her dress, but she didn't think that would go over so well. LOL! :)

Hope Melina and Dom had a great time last night!