Occupational Therapy

Kimball had his first visit with an occupational therapist last week. It went great! Kimball is the one child I spend the most amount of time on my knees about! I feel like we are finally in the right place to get him help.
His OT is Roxanne. She is so nice. She got on the floor with him and talked to him at his level. That always marks the sign of a good doctor.
We had a two hour evaluation, as our first appointment. We were brought into a small room with a few toys. Here we talked about why Kimball was here and what we wanted to accomplish. Goals are a huge part of Occupational Therapy. I set three goals. The first one is Potty Training. We would like Kimball to be potty trained by the time he starts Kindergarten in the fall. The second one is Anger Management. Part of Kimball’s disorder is how he reacts to situations. Often he will lash out over very small things. This is also to be accomplished by Kindergarten. The third, to be able to function in different settings. As many of you know, Kimball does not do well in busy, loud or crazy social situations. Taking him to the store is a nightmare, birthday parties always end in a tantrum, and at church it takes everything to keep him for shutting down. We will work on this so Kindergarten will not be that hard for him.
While in the small room I also had to fill out a mass amount of questionnaires, starting back from being pregnant with him. Filling out those forms was a big eye opening experience. Kimball was showing signs of this disorder from the time of being a small baby. It was very therapeutic to me to learn this. After filling out the forms Roxanne was able to graph them and show me where Kimball needed the most help. He was very high on the chart. He is defiantly in need of help and she could help him! I just wanted to cry with joy!
After the small from we went to the “fun room” as Kimball called it. It was the Occupational Therapy room. This is the room with all the toys and equipment. It was a fantasy land for Kimball. He loved running up the ramp, jumping up to the swinging bar, swinging and then falling into the ball pit. He never wanted to stop that. There were tunnels, tricycles, swings, balls, and so many other things. She was able to do more test and visual evaluations of him here.
When our two hours came to a close, she said she would work with the insurance company to make sure he gets the help. She also gave us homework. We are going to focus on potty training first. We have to have a “pounding exercise” for him, like jumping on a mini trampoline. This helps strengthen him form the inside out. It also helps he learn sensation in his body. The second thing we have to do is keep a record of his “out put”. Every hour he is awake we have to chart if he is dry, wet or soiled. We also have to put down if he has tried to us the potty. This has been hard for me. It is hard to remember every hour to do his. At first Kimball fought us. He didn’t want us to see. We had to explain and talk and explain. After five days, he is now to the point he will tell us! All I have to do is say, “Kimball it is underwear check time!” He then will pull down his pants, show me his pull up and then tell me if he is dry or wet! This may seem small, but it wonderful progress! Two weeks ago he wouldn’t tell me that. I am also starting to see a pattern in his potty. This is good.
I really feel like this is a light at the end of the tunnel, a glimmer of hope. I feel like this is where he is suppose to be and that my fears about him going into Kindergarten will not be fears, but things we have accomplished.
We will be going to the OT once a week for a few months. I will post after each appointment and post each milestone we reach!

Birthday Presents!

My niece and nephew have their birthdays next month. I thought I would get on top of things and get there presents made and in the mail! I am so organized! I should get a gold star! For my soon to be two year old nephew, who is in love with superheros, I made him a reversible superman/batman cape. I was really thrilled with how it turned out. I followed this tutorial here. I might have to make a few more of these and have them on hand to give out as gifts!

As you might have noticed the fantastic photo of Kimball up on top, I made my soon to be four year old niece a tutu! It was another really fun project to make and super easy! I found the tutorial here.

Phoebe wanted to get a picture with it too. Do I have the cutest kids or what?!

Where to start?

I have been making myself work really hard on my "To Do" list. I didn't allow myself too active in my crafting till I got this huge list of things done. Some of it was fun and other was work. I am happy to say I have finished it all.

I think the biggest thing on my list was to pack up my craft room and get ready for Christy and Kensie. For those of you that don't know, my best friend and her one year old daughter are coming to stay with us for about two months while they are in moving transit. I am thrilled to have them come. She is such a wonderful friend and I can't wait to spend time with little Kensie. But, with them coming means I had to tackle my craft room. I love that room and I loved filling it up with lots of stuff. I have spent hours going through things and packing things up. I have not packed it all up! I don't think I could survive if I did. I have moved my sewing and scrapbooking into my bedroom. It is all moved and I would post a picture but I don't have it set up all pretty yet, so when that gets done, I will. Give me a little more time!

Earlier this month we taught the kids how to grind wheat and make Bella's famous whole wheat bread. Jake had them hand grind it. They had so much fun! It was a great family experience. I hope to do it more with them.

This is the Bosch that my mom bought the year I was born! She used it till she gave it to me. It still works like a champ. I think I should become the poster girl for Bosch.

These two pictures of the kids crack me up. I love the silly faces and the aprons just make it better. You really can't see Jake or I, but we two were wearing aprons!

Phoebe got to go to her best friends birthday party. It was all princess' themed. Everyone was suppose to dress up like a princess. Phoebe borrowed our neighbors Sleeping Beauty outfit. She looked so darling!

Phoebe's best friend also has an American Girl Doll. Oh do they love those dolls! Phoebe asked me to make her friend an outfit that matched on of her doll outfits. Also she wanted them to have friendship quilts. I thought it sounded like a blast to do. I even had Phoebe lay out the quilt pattern. I have to say am quite shocked with how well she did! The apple does not fall from the tree when it come to fabric and this girl!

The top blanket is the one Phoebe wanted to keep. This bottom one is one that Jake helped with it. That one went to her friend.

I made the same dress that I made for Phoebe but I just used purple fabric instead of blue. The girl was thrilled!

Phoebe has also stared learning how to tie shoes. She just sat down one day (with my shoes) and said, "Mommy, teach me." Okay, so we worked on it and she has got it down! We still have to refine her skills but she is on her way!

Jake loves to play the piano. The kids love to play with him!

We have been reading like crazy! Phoebe is wanting to read everything she can get her hands on! We have to take books away that she reading for HOURS after bedtime. She'd stay up all night if we'd let her. Kimball is really improving at his reading. He studies books and words. He also likes to copy books word for word. Warren just likes having anyone read to him. Especially if it is his sister. He adores her!

I finished Phoebe's class Valentines! I made them simple. But they are cute!



I have just about posted everything. I am going to hit the sack! Enjoy a glimpse in my life!

A letter

As I was writing a letter to my sister, who is traveling the world right now, I was thinking, this letter would make an excellent blog. It just sums up everything that is going on. So I am posting parts of the letter I sent to my sister. I hope you enjoy the update on our life.


I started PT today. I know can move my knee that was in a semi permanent bent position to a completely straight. It hurt like the dickens, but I did! I am trying to have a "I'm-going-to-beat-this-once-and-for-all" attitude. I don't ever want to be this laid up again. I had a lot of heat, ice, electric shock and ultrasound done on it. I was barely able to lift my leg two inches off the table. It is so sad how much my leg has regressed. But I am going to beat this. I have been giving my starter exercises. I basically lift my leg for a few minutes every day. It sounds pathetic, but it is hard work. I am also having to start weeing my self off my knee brace. I am still going to wear it when I walk Phoebe to and from school or go out for long periods of time. Just until I get more strength. Around the house I need to start working it more. I had to be off my knee all night and take a narcotic to help the pain. Jake made a fantastic dinner. Chicken, rice and steamed veggies. He also got some more colorful fish and brought me a small bowl of ice cream. He cleaned the house and helped get the kids to bed. I love that man. He also did the light fast stroke on my knee while I vegged on the couch.
Our fish babies are growing like weeds! It is such a wonderful experience to watch them grow. You can look at them in the morning and then come back a few hours later and they look bigger! Our friends are bring over there kids to show them the baby fish. It is fun! Who would have ever though fish could be such a neat thing! Our last black Molly bit the dust today. Those fish are pansies. We are not getting any more. She just got too stressed out. Well, she is in a better place now.
Little Phoebe is learning to tell time. It is so cute to see her staring at the clock trying to figure it all out. I love her love of learning! She is reading all the time now. She gets mad at Kimball and Warren if they make too much noise while she is reading. Do you remember how I use to love the book, "The Doll House Murders"? It is the book that made me fall in love with murder mysteries and dollhouses. I started reading that in the second grade. I was able to find it at Barnes and Noble. Do you think I should let her read it? I think it still a little to old for her, but she is so rapidly out growing the books we have. I have a hard time keeping up. I think I am going to hit up used book stores. What were some of your favorite books you read as a kid? I am talking second and third grade? I know we had so many book growing up, I just can't think of them. Her teacher is having to go to older grade teachers for books for her! She amazes me! The other day she said to me that she is not good a math. I asked her what on earth are you talking about. She simply told me that she was good at reading and that was it. I then had to sit down and explain to her that you can be great at many things. It helps that I have a few sisters that are extremely gifted in many areas!! It also made realize that I need to stop talking about how much I hate math and act like I love it in front of the kids.
Kimball blows my mind everyday. That kid! For what he lacks with his sensory he makes up with smarts! Today he looked at clock and told me it was seven forty! I really was seven forty! Phoebe can't even do time like that. He was looking at a wall clock, not an alarm clock! Also today he wrote each on of our family members names on individual sheets of paper. Then wrote them in a way that he turned them into a person! He added the head, feet and hands but make the letters into a body! With my first reaction he got confused with, I was breathless and he thought I was mad, so I had to explain to him what I was feeling. He was glowing with pride. Oh that kid! I did get an appointment scheduled with an occupational therapist! Insurance covers it too! The OT specializes in SID (Sensory Integration Disorder)!! I feel so blessed! We got in next week too! I am so excited to see how this goes.
Warren is being my little stinker still. And in more ways then one! He is still fighting a cold. It just seems like we are just passing it back and forth to each other!! I can't wait till spring!! I want to fling open my window and play outside!!!! Anyways, he has some pretty stinky poop and a nasty runny nose. But he is still up to mischief! This afternoon while I was taking care of things and all the sudden I realize I don't hear Warren. That immediately raises and alarm. So I start calling out his name and hobbling around the house to find him. That is when I hear a little knocking at the front door. Yes, it was my darling baby! He had slipped on Phoebe's snow boots and was playing with truck in the snow. It is no wonder that he is sick! He also thought it was be so funny to do a belly flop on mommy's belly. (Serves me right for talking on the phone today.) As soon as I do something other than dealing with my kids they find a way to get my attention. His was to run across the room to his innocent mother laying on the floor, talking to my best friend, and he flies in the air and plops right on my belly! I really wish I had it on video! He then gets up and says, "Fun! Again!" Heck no! I put a stop to that!
I am still working on getting ready for Christy and Kensie to come. It is a lot of fun. I am trying to find little ways to make it a special room for them. I can't wait till I get all my stuff packed or put in my room, so I can start decorating. I just might be making so darling crafts to help if feel like a home. Two months is a long time to be without a home. I want to make it as easy on her and Kensie as possible.
So, that is a nice summary of our life.

Phoebe was up most of the night with a pretty high fever. Looks like we get to take her to the doctor. Here's hoping that it isn't strep!

Story

Here is a story for all of ya'll!

About half way through my day I noticed my cell phone was missing. This is nothing new, I often misplace it and find it a little bit later. We had quite a few errands to run and I quickly forgot about my phone.

We finish our day, and get the kids to bed. I am sitting planning my lesson for church tomorrow when Jake's phone ring. As he is getting it it reminds me that I need to find mine. I say out loud, "I really need to find my phone. "

Jake answers the call. It is my mom. Weird, why didn't she call me? Why didn't I hear my phone ring?

Jake says back to my mom, "No, we didn't know the boys have Sariah's phone."

I go running back to the boys room to find two little stinkers huddling under a blanket. When I pull it off, Warren stands up and with so much excitement, exclaims, "I talk to Bella!"

Oh, I laughed so hard. Teaches me to let my phone go missing.

My mom told me the missing half of the story. She called me about THIRTY minutes before then and Kimball answers. She thought nothing of this, because I often let them answer when they see her name. She talked to Kimball and then Warren and then Kimball and then Warren. She started getting a little suspicious when she asked to talk to Phoebe and he said that Phoebe wasn't there. Getting wise, she asked to talk to me and they said no! That is when she asked Warren if Mommy knew they had the phone and Warren told her no. So, she had to call Jake's phone to let us know!

What a hoot! I love my kids. They make me laugh.

Just another day in Motherhood!

So the day I got my good news about not having surgery, my kids got sick. Just your average cold. Nothing too horrible. It is just super exhausting. Now they are getting better and Jake and I have it! Lovely. I know it will only be a few days. Not the end of the world.

I have been working hard on getting my list of projects done. I have a lot of it done and even pictures taken. It is just getting off the couch (and away from my precious roll of toilet paper, for my nose) to get the camera. It is just too much. Maybe in a few days!

Kimball has been learning a lot lately. He has been working on his potty skills. It is going alright. We still have a very long road ahead of us, but the past few days, while he has been sick, he has still peed in the toilet. That is very exciting! He has even tried sitting down on the potty a few time! He has also been learning about colors of skin! He just seemed to wake up one morning and notice that not everyone around him was the same color. We have some great friends that are black. His favorite babysitter is black, his primary leader is black, Phoebes good friends are black. This is nothing new to our life. So I thought! The first thing he noticed was a black man on TV. He yelled to me, "Mom! That man is made out of chocolate!" I held back the laughs and explained to him that he was not made out of chocolate, but was a child of God and the same just like Kimball was. I thought it had sunk in. The next time he saw one of our black friends we was obsessed with touching their skin. He then told our friend, "I am not scared of you because you are black." Our wonderful friend smiled at him and said, "I am not scared of you because you are white." Now I was sure he got it. We were at Costco the other day and he saw a young black man and he shouted at the top of his lungs, "Hey boy! (I could have died at this moment!) Are you on Reading Rainbow? I watch your show!!" I wanted to laugh at the same time crawl into a hole! We have had a lot more talks and so far he hasn't make anymore comments like that. I am teaching him that you don't call men, boys. This is a little hard for him because he still calls everyone a boy. We are trying to teach him girls are she, her, and girl and boys are he, him, his..... But you do not call anyone who is a grown up, a boy. I really hope he learns it. And soon!
I thought I would post pictures of all our fish. It is really hard to take picture of them in our tank so I found some on line. Enjoy!

This is our Beta named Dorothy. Or the closest I can find to him. Kimball picked him out and named him after Elmo's fish. He is a Pansie of a fish. He likes to puff up at every little thing.This is a Black Molly. We had four, but two have died. They got "the spots". The other two are now in the sick tank. We are really hoping they pull through!This is a Chinese Algae Eater, his name is Oscar. He is big, ugly, strange and a bit of a bully. The kids get the biggest kick out of watching him eat off the glass. These are Ottos. They are little sucker fish. The kids so named our two, Suck and Super Suck. They are tiny and really hard to find in a 90 gallon tank.These happen to be my favorite fish in the tank. They are Bala Sharks. We have three. I don't know if they have names. They can grow up to 16 inches long, can jump up to six feet and make a cracking sound when they eat! Plus, they are just pretty.This is Spartacus. He is a Red Tailed Black Shark. He is the biggest in the tank at the moment. He likes to hide in the day and come out more when it is dark. I think he is my second favorite.These two are our Sword Tails. I don't know if they have names. That is about all I know.This is a Zebra striped Danio. We have three of them. They are the craziest little fish. You might think they were on drugs with how they act. The kids so happened to name the Phoebe, Kimball and Warren. I laugh to myself!

A few posts back I talked about how we had fish die on us and we had to explain the Plan of Salvation to the kids and that our fish are now in Heaven. Well, when our most recent fished died Kimball looked and me and asked, "When does Jesus come back?" I was a little confused at the moment. Then it hit me! He was remembering about our talk. I hugged him and told him I didn't know when Jesus would come back, but when he does, we will get our fishes back again. He seemed to take it really well. He went off playing. A few minutes later he comes back with tears in his eyes and said, "I want Jesus to come back now!" I almost started to cry. If I can teach my kids the Gospel through fish, I am so thankful, because Kimball listened. We had another talk and he was better. I wonder if I could use The Gospel with fish in a Young Women's lesson???