Dear Noah...oven on fire and Easter approaching!

Well last Saturday morning we had a fire ...the oven caught on fire while I was trying to make you party mix before you woke up. You had specifically requested I make it before you got up so you could have some for breakfast. TO make a very long story short...the oven malfunctioned and caught fire....I had to actually call the fire department out to put the fire out...and carry the oven outside. Needless to say I got you outside right away...and your party mix was ruined. We are still waiting on our replacement oven...it is supposed to be delivered on Monday. I am so thankful the fire did not get any worse than just the oven and part of the wall behind the oven had a little smoke damage. Otherwise the smoke in the house was thick and smelled really bad..but it also did not leave any damage. We are very fortunate!

You had been working on your tooth that was stuck and jammed that the dentist wanted to do surgery on. You got it OUT the other night..you were so excited about it. I am so thankful! You were more excited to see the next morning what the tooth fairy left you...a Hot Wheels collectors book you had been wanting and a note! We are all happy about these teeth coming out..it will save you a lot trauma going under anesthetic and surgery in the hospital for 3 teeth...2 of which you have since removed on your own. You have always been this way....we just have to give you a little extra time and you end up doing things like this on your own.

Now you are excited about upcoming Easter and seeing your cousin Audrey again. We went to her house on Tuesday evening to follow her over to her school to listen to her play in a recorder concert she was in. I was impressed with how you are growing up and behaved so much better than you would have in the past. You can now sit pretty well for a good 1/2 hour to 1 hour. You did something similar in church on Christmas Eve.

Well..I have lots to do. Grandma C. is letting us borrow a toaster oven and electric skillet or we would not really be able to cook at all!

I LOVE YOU NOAH WESLEY!!!!!!!!!

Mommy
XOXOXOX

p.s...we have discovered you can give excellent POUNDING back massages with your clenched fists. Wow...your hands are just the right size and you can really lay into my back and shoulders. It feels so wonderful..haha

We hope you all have a wonderful and blessed Easter!

some happy thoughts today.......

Sunday I wanted to attend the viewing of my parents' neighbor who had passed away and I had known pretty much my entire life. While this was sad..it did bring me to spend the day with my sister, her daughter, and my mom and dad. It caused me to think back on a lot of old memories of days gone by with my family and all I was thankful for. It made me value time and being alive even more than I have been.

We had a very nice visit. Noah was with me. The weather ended up being much nicer than the forecast had predicted and we got invited to stay for a cookout for supper. We had so much fun....and a very nice visit. The kids and I did some sidewalk chalk......and just being together, remembering memories and creating new ones....besides the fabulous food we ate and the fun doing all the sidewalk chalk art....it all made me incredibly happy.

Noah has lost one of the 3 teeth he needs to...and is working on that one that is really stuck. It is about ready to come out which is great news so he can avoid surgery and being put under anesthetic and having a lot of things done to his mouth that would also be costly and probably not really necessary.

Noah is VERY excited because his cousin Audrey and his aunt Melissa are to come spend the day Sunday with us. Spring break is next week already...state testing is coming up in April...and it wont' be long and school will be out for summer again already! SO hard to believe how fast time is passing by.

We had some incredibly nice days for awhile..but the ice and snow came back last night...not too much but enough to cause the local schools to close. Today will be an easy day of school for us here at home.

I love you Noah! You make me very happy!

Mommy
XOXOXOX

Dear Noah........school on the go......

Yesterday since it was so nice outside and I got my work done on time for a change I decided to load us up in the car, drive to Union City, Indiana and park and work on schoolwork while we waited for trains to come through town. We had some time before your speech therapy appointment and I figured what a better way to sit and do school work, enjoy the outdoors and take you railfanning all at the same time. We got to see 2 trains in less than 30 minutes.....one was really short...the other really long.

Needless to say you were thrilled and of course you are ready to do it all again!

I love you....

Mommy
xoxox




SHORT TRAIN



The REALLY LONG ONE!

Movie clip of those train sets inside luggage....

Dear Noah.........fun at the train show and birthday party....

Sunday morning you and I got up at a decent time...had breakfast from McDonalds and then went to the model train show over at the fairgrounds. This is something we do every year though we missed last year. We had a great time this year and you were specifically looking for a specific train engine to buy and sure enough the last table of trains we looked at...had the train engine you wanted. AND a car to go with it. The man selling them marked them down for us...giving us BOTH for only 25.00. You were thrilled.






I am always on the lookout for something off the norm...unique....new. While there I came across a display of "N" scale train displays where a man from Englewood takes guitar cases and old luggage, guts them out and then puts very elaborate train displays INSIDE the cases! WOW...these were amazing and so unique. They take up a small space, are quick to set up and play with or look at, and are portable! AND use recycled items! I had a long talk with the elderly gentleman about that....and he got out a photo album showing me how he made these sets. A most amazing story. Here are some of his displays. The guitar case one was my favorite...having an old 50s style theme including Jukebox...and the restaurant inside featured dancers inside the restaurant that were actually moving around and dancing to the music. It was just amazing. I asked for his business card...asked if he made any of these for custom orders...but he prefers sticking to this for a hobby. GREAT new innovative idea however, and great money maker and someone doing this would be in business forever!












Here the man I spoke with (noted above) was the PRESIDENT of Dayton N Track, Don Kriegbaum and he has many things he is involved in....here is a link to one of his websites:

Dayton NTRACK

Then we went to pick up grandma C. to take her with us to your other grandma and grandpa's house for a double birthday party..one for your cousin Audrey and one for your aunt Becky. We had a great time there...a very nice visit. I made your aunt a unique gift this year. I had always wanted to make her an 'activity box" as when she was little and then got older she said one of her best gifts was always those activity boxes you would give to kids or rainy day boxes. I figured I could make a unique one for her...and finally decided to do it. I went to Webb's Antique Mall and found an old small overnight antique luggage box...and then decoupaged old photos of Becky and the family and special memories on the outside and inside of the case and then filled it with old kid toys, antiques, and some gifts for her today. I think she liked it...I had fun making it.


THINK this was a forced smile here.....haha








Audrey's Cake





Becky's cookie



Mom slaving away in the kitchen making spaghetti


The TWILIGHT theme for the party






One of the items inside Becky's luggage...this reminded me of the fish you win in those bags at the county fair.





I also made a very special Twilight Diary for Miss Audrey.....where I took a regular lock and key diary and altered it.....adding in pics from the movie Twilight to it..especially Edward Cullen as she loves him.....and I forgot to actually take pics of the actual results. It was pretty cool...nearly every page had photos glued into it...with room left for writing. I also added quotes, trinkets, keys, special items for different holidays and days...leaving room for her to add more. I had fun making it and think I have a couple of others who are interested in getting something similar.



I wish I had a picture of it...or a few...but I forgot to snap some of it for some weird reason. Maybe Audrey and her mom can snap a few. I do have one of her opening it and smiling so big. THAT was what I had hoped for. She loved it and then actually wrote in it before I left that day...locked it and HID it she said. I am happy.....that was the exact reaction I was hoping for.



Anyway....cake and ice cream were good. Becky had a big decorated chocolate chip cookie for her birthday instead of a cake. You just had 2 helpings of strawberry ice cream.

Then we stopped and visited with grandma C. for a bit before coming home. All in all we had a great day. The weather has been super nice too.....sunny and much warmer. We are all getting antsy for spring now.

Today I want to take a drive...it is too nice to stay inside....but you are talking with your dad and aunt Mary on the computer for a bit. SO we will have to go later or another day. I thought we could buzz over to Versailles, OH and catch some trains zipping through town!

I love you lots Noah!

Mommy
XOXOXOX

Noah's review of a Wii game

Dear Noah.........reflecting on the status of things.....

I have realized recently I am not posting here as often as I had been. That is partly due to being a bit busy, but also partly because things are flowing pretty steady with us now at home, doing school at home, and therapies locally, etc.

I find our stress levels have dropped tremendously......all that turmoil and crap basically we used to have to deal with on a DAILY basis via the public school system is gone.

Today I am just very thankful we do continue to homeschool. For so many reasons...but mostly because you are handling things so much better in your life, in general and with school. We eliminated a huge source of troubling issues when we started homeschooling again...and we will continue on with no regrets.

I do have something funny to share. A week or so ago I had you change out of your clothes to put some clean clothes on. Actually I think you had gotten out of your pajamas to get dressed. I said I would bring you some clothes. I got sidetracked and a couple of hours I think had gone by. I finally called you into my office area for something and I looked and there you stood NAKED! When I asked you WHY you were standing there naked you told me, "Mom, you never brought me any clothes!"

This is one of the times I am reminded you have autism.....because that is very typical of something you would never think of coming to say to me on your own...like, "Hey mom I need some clothes!" You were perfectly fine being naked. I asked you, "Didn't you get cold?" and you said no. I felt horrible, but it was also sort of funny to you and me both. We both ended up laughing and I got you some clothes to put on.

There are still times when you cannot distinguish between a man and woman, often calling a female "him" and a male "her" and not recognizing the difference at all...even when it is obvious what their gender is.

At night if I am asleep you will not verbally say anything to wake me or shake me even if you need something.

Those are the kinds of reminders I get now that you still have a few little issues...and still need some prompting and redirecting. Or when you say something in a public place way too loud about someone and they can hear you.

BUT otherwise......we are sailing along...and we are pretty happy...and enjoy our time together.

You are still working on your time machine ideas......and now also love to watch Tom and Jerry cartoons.

You are doing very well in school and math you are ahead of the class...same for reading. So you are making it...you are coming along...and I am very proud of you.

I also love you a lot!

Mommy
XOXOX

Dear Noah.....

I was in your room today and happened to look down and saw these.....



then looked over and saw these.......




I had been hearing this funny sound you had been making for hours on end. I went in your room to find out what you were doing to make that sound and why. You told me you made that sound over and over cause you liked how it sounded and it excited you. I clocked you...you made the sound on average like 37 times in 5 minutes during a video. You like to make the sound when playing PC games or watching videos. So this means on average per hour you make the sound about 444 times. You said if you make the sound too many times it makes your head hurt. I actually thought it sounded sorta cute...but could see where it would probably make your head hurt after awhile. I guess it is like a vocal tic....because you don't really have any control over it....it is just something you have to do...over and over.

Anyway......here is a clip of the sound and us talking about it.

I love you too the moon and back again Noah...forever and ever and ever I will!!

Mommy
XOXOX

we have gotten a lot of snow......with more on the way tomorrow!

I love winter...I love snow....we have been getting a lot lately and more will be following soon! We were on a level 3 snow emergency until yesterday so even if we wanted to go anywhere we would not have been able to. Today we are down to a level 1...just in time to stock up on a few more supplies and run a few errands. Here is some pics of the snow we have now......after shoveling out.

Road Trip........

Make a Smilebox scrapbook

Dear Noah.......stress

I cannot believe it has been this long in between posts. BUT it has. We have had a lot going on around here lately and there will be more to come. Needless to say this has created a bit of stress periodically in the house. Sometimes we both handle it well and sometimes not as well as we'd like.

You are going pretty well ...but do have your moments. A couple of times when you got frustated trying to tell me something....you got very upset and turned pretty red, and put your thumb in your mouth and bit down..hard enough to almost cut through the skin. You were also shaking at this time. AFTERwards we talked about it...how you handled that particular situation...how you could handle it perhaps better the next time round...and the unfortunate consequences of biting down on one's own body parts when angry. I sort of doubt you will do that again. I am thankful you did not come at me when you were angry.

Anyway....we have some loose teeth to get out of your mouth or the dentist will want to do SURGERY putting you under sedation to remove them. I am all for trying to do this ourselves and having you again avoid any surgery and sedation. SO we are working on the teeth.

You are really into Tom and Jerry right now.

Christmas was good and you handled your dentist and cardiology appointments well.

You have enjoyed your Wii so far.

I love you....I am hoping and praying I can keep this job or get an even better one and make your life as stress free and loving as possible.

Mommy
XOXOXOX

Dear Noah....Jan. 4, 2010 - dentist and cardiology day........

Well we made it through the holidays. You had a wonderful Christmas and birthday. You got many nice presents......including a new HO scale train set from Santa and books, movies, gift certificates, and games. You got movies on Twisters and books on space and tornadoes. You got a Magic 8 Ball and Monopoly City, Diamond Scrabble and Yahtzee. You also got enough money on your birthday to order yourself a Wii!! That should be coming this week.

You did so well when it came time for everyone to sing to you on your birthday. IN fact....you have done well overall with all gatherings recently.

Today you had to go back to the dentist for a followup and cleaning. ZERO cavities and they look so nice again! However....you do have one baby tooth that came out partway and got jammed between the new tooth and the gum that we cannot get out. The dentist said it would have to be surgically removed and knowing you..laughing gas would not help you as you would still be awake and get too worked up probably to handle a shot in the gum to numb it. SO....he suggested sending you to the OR (operating room) to be put under and they can do everything to your mouth at one time. I guess there are also 2 upper teeth trying to do the same thing. He thinks and I agree, that those will probably come out on their own with your help. BUT so far we cannot budge that other tooth. SO you may be facing surgery for all that if we cannot get them out ourselves in the next few months. I would like to avoid any surgery for you if possible....so I am going to try to work on that bottom tooth and you are already working on the upper teeth.

Cardiology visit went better than last time as far as you handling the ultrasound of your heart. However, the doctor this time actually HEARD the aortic valve regurgitation and stenosis and is concerned if it continues on without any intervention....your left ventricle will eventually be affected as the back flow of blood goes there..so blood comes out from there but also some leaks back. Your aortic valve has narrowed a bit so she can hear things there now she could not before. Anyway....to make a long story short..the goal is to try to postpone any surgery for you as long as possible. SOME cardiologists do nothing for kids born with a bicuspid aortic valve and even if you develop aortic stenosis and aortic regurgitation if not too bad, they just let it take its course. Some live normal lives and never have problems...most eventually one day face some sort of surgery to try to repair the valve or replace it. SINCE this is all open heart surgery so far to in most cases.....we are trying to postpone this as long as possible.

ONE way (if things slowly worsen) is to place you on an ACE inhibitor to lower the blood pressure (yours is NOT high)....which in turn reduces how hard your heart has to work to make up for the leaky valve....and the rate of pressure your blood is being pumped through the heart. SOMEtimes kids on ACE inhibitors ventricles improve and almost normalize..sometimes it appears it really does nothing. So some docs say to try something like medicine to see if you can HELP postpone the inevitable..some say it makes no difference. We are going to wait another 6 months...have you go back again for another ultrasound of the heart.....and then see how things are at that point. Each time things have changed a bit.....and she hears more or they see more leaking and things on the ultrasound images. She said in 6 months if things have again worsened even a little bit....she would recommend trying some sort of medicine. SO we will see. The problem with putting you on an ACE inhibitor when you don't really need it.....is we would have to monitor your blood pressure really closely until we got it regulated....since you are normal already....we would not want it to drop too low. I also want to do my own research on this and see if it really makes much difference in the inevitable outcome. If not......we may just let nature take its course and only act if things got really bad over time.

Regardless you made it through the day. I took you to Hallmark to buy you the newest Diary of a Wimpy Kid you had seen there before Christmas for a present for being so good today. You are still in your room reading.

I love you Noah. God will help us get through all these things together!

Mommy
XOXOXOX

Merry Christmas! Happy Holidays!

From our house to yours Noah and I wanted to wish you all a very blessed holiday season!

Dear Noah......you have been very emotional lately....

I forgot that this time of year can be really hard on you. There are so many things going on and you get so excited.

We went to get you Domino's Pizza the other night to last you over the holidays and we noticed they have changed their pizza crust, sauce and cheese topping. One pizza was made the old way.....1 was made the new way. I am not sure if this is a new pizza from here on out or if they can still make them the old way. BUT yesterday morning you told me you were crying the night before after I tucked you in...and when I asked "why" you told me because you were afraid this was the way Domino's was going to make all of their pizzas from here on out and you did not care for the garlic crust and the red pepper spicier sauce as both burned your tongue and throat. Oh I do hope and pray this is a temp thing or I can still order one the old way. You cried about it again yesterday while I tried to convince you that trying a pizza from another pizza place might be a good thing for you to try again one day soon! We have a Papa Johns in town AND a Pizza Hut and I reminded you that you used to eat and love both at one time in the past.

You also want a sleep over with your cousin Audrey so badly right now.

You have been thinking a lot about your dad and some of the problems he had a few years back. You had a bad dream about him the other night too. Almost every little thing makes you want to cry...I mean real tears where you are very upset.

You DO snap back out of it quicker which is improvement, but I feel badly for you. Hopefully you will be fine once we get these holidays on the road!

Yesterday I washed all the sheets, and blankets, and afghans in the house and decided we needed to move some of your stuffed animals OFF your bed as they were taking up over HALF of the bed and it looked too cluttered. THIS



is how we rearranged them and I also have stuck some on your bookshelves which you cannot see in this photo. This is much easier and more doable for impromptu sleep overs for greater ease with getting IN the bed without it taking 30-45 minutes prep time removing all the plushies!

Anyway.....we need to send your letter off to Santa today.

I love you so very much Noah.

Mommy
XOXOXO

Dear Noah..........you lost another tooth.........

You have 2 more teeth to hopefully get out of your mouth before your dental visit in January. One I don't think is connected to anything anymore, but it is jammed down and wedged tight to the gum line.

We have been busy getting ready for Christmas and finishing up school for 2009. Time is going by so quickly!

I am going to keep this short. Sorry for lack of entries recently but we are just really busy this time of year. Today we went to see Grandma C. You had a new puzzle book you wanted to work some puzzles with her. We ended up staying for supper.

Love you much!

Mommy
XOXOXOX

Dear Noah..........that might "foil" our plans.......

OUR TREE this year......

We had talked about eating breakfast Monday at Cracker Barrel since we have not been there awhile and then railfanning (going to watch some trains nearby and videotaping them).

When you woke up today I told you starting tomorrow it may snow this coming week off and on...tomorrow's chance of snow was 50%.

You said "oh no....that may foil our plans to go to Cracker Barrel!" You sometimes amuse me with the words you choose to use in a very complete sentence that sounds so very grown up. When I asked you if you knew what FOIL our plans meant you said, "yeah..it means cancel them!" haha

you are something else. I love you......but I doubt it will snow so much it will foil our plans. BUT you never know!