Challenge Air

I was incredibily nervous about today's field trip. We signed Merritt up for a flight with Challenge Air -- a nonprofit organization who has volunteers donate their time and small engine planes to take special needs kids and adults for flights.

What made me so nervous?

Well, for one, I'm not a very good flyer. I usually have prescriptin medication to lessen the anxiety and possibility of puking. It's not fun to fly with me -- just ask Sam.

Secondly, Merritt's an obsessive button pusher. What if he pushed a very important button and we fell from the sky -- this goes back to my irrational fear of flying.

Third, what if we got 30,000 feet in the air and Merritt completely flipped out? How quickly could we get back to the ground?

I found myself hoping for rain; wondering if Merritt's runny nose meant he shouldn't go; anything that might get me out of stepping onto that bird of terror, as I so affectionately call it.

But, there was no rain, no illness, no sign from above that we shouldn't go. So I downed some Dramamine, and off we went! The set up was great -- bounce houses, face painting, gymnastics equipment -- plenty to keep the kids busy while we waited.

Merritt even found a cute blonde volunteer to love on -- the boy loves blondes!

As we piled into the smallest plane at the hanger with puke bag in hand, I couldn't help but be excited for Merritt.

Merritt absolutely loved it. His favorite part was the take-off and every time the plane dropped/bumped a little (it was a windy day), he would crack up laughing. He pointed out every bridge (another obsession) and the Trinity River as we flew over it. I think he could have stayed up there all day.

I wish I could bottle his laughter and smile from today. It was contagious and heartwarming. I am so glad he was able to experience this and so thankful for the amazing people who put this together!

"Snow" Day

Last Wednesday we were "iced in" and school was cancelled. Many were rejoicing all over the city, but all I could think about was, "What am I going to do with three kids all day?"

I decided to make a photo journal of the day for you...

The day started at 6:15. That's right, 6:15. Every other day of the week, my kids will sleep until at least 7. Not today! Madelyn and Mitchell were up early to enjoy every possible moment with Mommy. Merritt knows how to enjoy a day off and he slept until 8:30.

After getting Madelyn and Mitchell dressed and hearing, "I'm hun-gary!" about 120 times, I sat them at the table so I could make breakfast. In the meantime, I hear them cracking up with laughter and go to find this, which looks like an ordinary picture. But oh no, this is no ordinary picture. This is their train... they took turns strapping each other into the "train" seat (safety first!) and taking "rides". I smiled and thought, "At least they will be able to entertain themselves today."

Finally, Merritt woke up and we enjoyed a little time learning Spanish skills from Dora and dancing skills from The Backyardigans. Thank goodness for cartoons!


I then decided to brave the 24 degree temperatures. I bundled them up and thought to myself, "This will be good. It will get them out of the house; they'll like playing in the "snow"." I was partially right. Madelyn and Mitchell were fascinated by it, but Merritt, as you can tell by his face, wanted NO part of it and kept asking to come inside to play on the computer. I tortured him for about 10 minutes of picture taking and then he won. Madelyn and Mitchell grumbled while coming in and continued to grumble as they de-bundled. Now what?




















We spent the rest of the morning (It's not even lunch time yet!) playing games, coloring, and playing on the computer. These were all hits, but coloring was great because they weren't at each other's throats trying to steal what the other had! A few moments of peace and quiet.










Finally, it was lunch and nap time and don't think I didn't take advantage of this. I curled up right next to Madelyn (who now thinks naps are ALWAYS in Mommy and Daddy's bed) and slept. Not just rested, but slept!

When they woke up, the ice was gone so I loaded them up and headed to Grapevine for Merritt's therapy session. We were a bit early so we donned our coats again and played at the park for awhile. After therapy, we met Daddy for dinner and headed home for baths and bedtime.

All in all, it was a successful day. There were a few moments when I thought I would pull my hair out, but overall we had fun!

Princess Madelyn

Last weekend, Madelyn went to a tea party birthday party.

She was definitely in her element... they changed into princess dresses, had their nails painted and makeup done and sat down to tea cakes and individual tea pots. It was really cute. I never thought I'd say that especially since I swore my daughter would never wear pink!

She had a great time with all of her "school" friends! I loved watching her play and interact with the other girls. She definitely knows who she likes and who she doesn't, but she was still polite to everyone, thank goodness! Watching her grow up is amazing!

Inspiration

My inspiration comes on the same day many in this country are inspired by our new president, but today my inspiration actually comes from Madelyn's day care teacher, Ms. Jackie. Ms. Jackie is an amazing woman with an incredible background in succeeding with the hand you're dealt. She manages to get Madelyn to sit, without screaming her head off like she does for me, for hair brushing and french braiding and is constantly telling me to settle down and not worry about what everyone else thinks of Merritt's behavior (he goes with us every day to drop off Madelyn and Mitchell). She's patient, loving, kind, funny, and is always willing to teach the kids how to treat others and be strong for themselves.

On Sunday, I was feeling lost about how to approach Merritt's education, medication, behavior... everything. I'm not often lost. I know what I want for him and if I don't know how to get it, I always find a way. But, I must admit for these past few weeks I didn't know in which direction we were going. So, I prayed and prayed and prayed some more.

It didn't take long before I was once again face to face with Madelyn's teacher and the answer to my prayer. We always talk quite a bit when I pick up or drop off the kids and this time she was talking about a school for special needs kids that she worked for in California. An amazing school who allowed these kids to reach their potential by giving them exactly what they needed.

Of course my "poor me" mind thought, "Why don't we have that here in Arlington? That would be great for Merritt. Everything he needs is so far away."

Then I realized that this was the road I needed to head down. I needed to bring this school to Merritt and all the kids in Arlington.

My first goal is to start a non-profit to raise funds for my dream school, but there is only one problem... I have no idea where to start! Once I figure it out though, I can assure you, I'll be hitting you up for money so keep those checkbooks handy!!

It is definitely a Monday

Last night, I realized that Madelyn didn't have any pants to wear (Merritt's sitter usually does laundry sometime during the week and Madelyn only has about 6 pairs of pants. I need to shop!) So, around 8 I throw on a load of clothes, sit down and start grading the mounds of papers that only an English teacher can collect. At 10 I finally put my gradebook away, walk into the laundry room, and step onto a floor cover in water and muck... that's right muck is the best word I can think of without using foul language.

I don't blame the washer. We've had issues with the plumbing in that room since we moved in because the people before us decided to install a sink but didn't bother to do the plumbing right. So the washer, when emptying, always backs up into the sink and then drains from there.

Last night the sink decided it had had enough and spewed water and gunk from the plumbing line EVERYWHERE. So with soaking clothes and water still standing in the washer and sink, I start cleaning up. Have you ever cleaned behind your washer and dryer? It's DISGUSTING and even more so when its wet! Sam tried to plunge it, but it's still FULL of water this morning. We wrung out the clothes, threw them sopping wet into the dryer and cleaned up as best we could -- three rounds of mopping and it's still dirty.

Got up this morning, turned the dryer on again just to make sure the clothes were dry and started about my day. When I went to get MJ some clothes out of the dryer, I noticed that everything had a blue tint to it! Something had faded and ruined two of her shirts and two pairs of khakis. Now it's really time to go shopping!

I get the kids dressed (in their blue tinted clothes) and we head out the door sans backpacks for MJ and ML because they were on the floor when the sink spewed -- pray that no one has an accident today because they don't have an extra change of clothes at school -- pull into the parking lot at school, get the kids out and Mitchell has on only ONE sock and Madelyn doesn't have on any. How is this possible?

I then take Merritt to school and realize that we don't have his notebook that his teacher and I communicate in. I think he's hidden it from me so he can open and close, open and close, open and close it without me taking it from him. Sneaky little boy!

What a day!!

Breathe

I wish I could write like this woman...
http://spectrumpublications.com/myblog/for-kelly-preston.html

She has a way with words and what she says is true. I've had all these same thoughts and wonder if I will ever be blamed for trying to help Merritt. And, unfortunately, the answer is yes. Someone will question; someone will assume; someone will judge. Ironically, these are all things Merritt's disability has taught me to avoid.

One of my favorite times with Merritt is sleeping next to him simply because I know he's safe. I can hear him breathing and I know that at that moment nothing can hurt him. At that moment, he's not going to run into the street; he's not going to eat something harmful; he's not going to be persuaded by a stranger to leave my side. He's safe and if I could keep him there, I would. Wouldn't we all? But instead, I have faith... faith that God will keep him safe and I pray that no one will judge our family for trying to give him the best life.

The One

The perfect family Christmas picture... in our house, it's as elusive as Bigfoot. I wonder if everyone else goes through 500 pictures before they're able to get the kids to sit, look, and smile at the same time? Maybe it's easier for those families with only one kiddo, but it may not be as fun!

Here's are the ones that didn't make the cut for the "perfect Christmas card picture".

As for "the one" you'll just have to wait for it to come in the mail!