Sibling Rivalry

The total lack of posts lately represents the chaos in my household.

Norah, my one year old who came home from Vietnam in December, fights constantly with my son, Will. Will's sensory issues don't make it any easier.

Picture this...a four year old boy with special needs who likes certain toys a certain way and to have his space. Enter in a boisterous one year old who will take anything from anyone and will. let. you. know. in no uncertain terms what she does and does not like. "NO" is by far her favorite word in the English language thus far. Usually yelled rather loudly or whined in the way that only girls can.

Will is totally threatened by having her here. Norah is totally threatened by the attention that Will gets.

I'm barely surviving some days. Most of the time you can find me chanting a mantra, "This too shall pass. This too shall pass."

I only hope it passes before the wine is all gone.

Oh no. She's getting older.

And I'm in trouble.

Caroline (my soon-to-be first grader), and I went school clothes shopping with my mom the other day. Each season, I've been able to buy her clothes and pick what I think is appropriate for a kid her age.

Like I said...until NOW.

She immediately found something she liked and had to pull me over to see.

What did she like, you ask?

These.

Only the kind she picked had words written all over them. Call me old fashioned, but I was thinking...why don't we just invite someone to look at your butt?

Thankfully they were fresh out of her size. I'm totally dreading the fall.

Walking for a Cause

See this cute kid? That's my nephew, Brady.

We're walking with Brady's Bunch in October for Cincinnati Walks for Kids. The money we're raising will benefit the Center for Infants and Children with Special Needs at Cincinnati Children's. It's a pretty amazing center, led by Dr. Levin.

If you're local, join us for the walk. It is one of those things I wouldn't miss, having been a part of so many departments of CCHMC with Will. If you feel inclined to donate, please let me know. I'll email you privately. Brady's Bunch was one of the top teams last year in fundraising, and this team is striving to top those numbers.

Chinese Fortune Cookie

Yeah, it's kind of like that.

Sorry for my absence lately. School is starting soon.

I'm a Hopeful Parent. Are you?

Have you heard of Hopeful Parents?

It's a website dedicated to supporting parents of children with special needs. A group of candid and thought-provoking writers blog daily about their individual experiences as Hopeful Parents.

I will be serving as a co-moderator of the future forum. We're looking for beta testers for its new community site -- forum, groups, chat, etc. If you're interested, let me know by dropping a comment below with your email address. If you don't want to include your email address here, just give me a heads up and we'll make other arrangements.Hope you consider becoming involved this safe, hopeful, constructive community.

Random Thoughts on the past few days...

My first grader got her hair cut to get ready for the start of school. She looks so grown up. (=sad mom, but in a happy sort of way)

I went to Trader Joe's with all three kids and no one acted up or fought! (=happy mom)

The minute we got home, Will beat N over the head with a plastic bowling pin. (=sad mom)

The kids and I ate an extremely healthy lunch. (=happy mom)

After they went down for a nap, I ate two cookies. (=totally guilty feeling mom)

We bought all of the school supplies needed for first grade. (=happy mom)
Just what does one first grader do with 12 jumbo glue sticks anyway?

I got home and found mail from the school with another supply list for art class. (=sad mom)

I left for the night and went out with a group of moms who also happen to have kids with special needs. In a limo, no less! (=happy mom)

My friend's purse got stolen by some jerk. (=sad mom)

At the moment, my kids are all snuggled together watching a movie. (=totally blessed mom)

How about some pictures?

My kids' sleep cycles are still a bit off, hence the lack of posts lately. :) Here are some highlights from our trip.

We had a wonderful time and hope to see our California friends again soon!