Splat Goes Life.

I don't know what things irritate you as a parent- kids asking you to play "Tea Party" with them, or perhaps finding them reading under the covers with a flashlight, etc. For me, it's kids who think a bright idea is going to make them mad amounts of money. Don't get me wrong. I love stories on the news about young kids raising money for (let's say) homeless people. Maybe they're collecting food, new socks, new and unwrapped gifts, etc. There are a lot of kind-hearted kids out there. I don't begrudge them at all. (I do wonder a bit if that was really their own idea, or their parent's? Call me cynical). My kids have never been those to want to give back. My daughter, Savannah, did once sell about $50 worth of pipe cleaner animals she made, but was ultimately only allowed to sell them if she gave the money to the school for the local low-income residents in our city. Kind gesture, though certainly not what she had in mind. My son has had his ...

There are some mornings- some days- where I shake my head and just don't even know what to say. This would be one of those days. Jack is a Freshman this year.So far, the year has gone pretty swimmingly. Grades are A's and B's, there have been no calls home, he's only had one missing assignment (and it was turning in a form for a class about safety). I haven't heard a peep about problems on the bus, either. All in all, it's been good. Then there are these moments that I just can't believe. The PSAT is today, and per the email from the school, Accommodated testing (504 plans and IEPs) may last as long as 5 hours, if your extended time results in 2 days worth of testing you will be notified of your day 2 testing location prior to the close of day 1. Please plan for a sacked lunch if you have accommodated testing. Notice that nowhere in that statement does it say the following: 1.) If you have extended time accommodations, you cannot leave after y...

A week or so ago, the Freshman had a special event at the school football game. My son is not at all into the sport, but because his friends were going, he wanted to go. (This a good thing, obviously. It also gave me and his dad a good few hours alone, for a "date night". Jack was at this event, and Savannah was in the event. I dropped him off at the high school, but walked with him (or, well, separately but on the same path *rolls eyes*) to make sure he was able to find his friends amongst the crowd. One of the mothers there recognized me, and we chatted for a few moments. What I found out was literally jaw dropping. I'm still going "HUH?!" When the kids registered for classes in the Spring, one of their options was for a Robotics course- "Intro", which should have been little-to-no issue, since the kids had pretty much all taken a version of this class for half of the previous school year. After the kids selected their classes, parents of kid...

This blog is meant to chronicle Jack's journey through his school years, as a child taking a number of medications to help him manage his emotions. We've been visiting with a new pediatrician for the last 3 years now, and they really have nothing to do with his diagnosis. We are , however, still seeing the same child psychiatrist that we've been seeing since the start of middle school (if not 4th or 5th grade? Time flies!). Although we only need to visit every few months or so, I'm still quite happy with her. (I still rave to people that she was the one willing to do the GeneSight testing . Had someone thought to do this before then, we might have skipped some of the trauma Jack has experienced). Jack has been on the same cocktail of meds since 6th or 7th grade- Risperidone and Prozac. (I hate typing that word, because it automatically shouts "crazy!". However, I know my son. He's not crazy). He's been on the lowest dose of Prozac since he started ...

The crazy train to high school is officially rolling into town. In less than a week, I will have two highschoolers on my hands! On Tuesday, I picked Savannah up from Marching Band Camp, to register her for school. (I've found it seems less complicated for the high school grades. However, if you need to walk a new student around a huge building, or need to see the guidance counselor, you'll be wishing you were dead). She'll be a Junior this year, and that just kind of freaks my brain out a little bit. Yesterday, I registered Jack. We made a morning out of it. We dropped Savannah off at camp, drove a block down to the local Kroger to buy him shoes for gym class, and then stopped off for breakfast (iced coffee for both!) before heading back to the school for 8:30am registration. It actually went pretty well, despite my needing a pen to fill out some form for Freshman "Make Friends" day. (Okay, I don't recall what it's called. I doubt my kid will be t...

They fly by! Before you know it, you're saying "Goodbye, Summer. Hello 'back-to-school' season". Ugh. (Cue the groan of everyone's favorite Krusty old clown. LOL). My son is on a Level 1 waiver through our county, partly due to a really bad year of school going back to maybe 4th or 5th grade. (It's all a blur at this point, but it's been 3-4 years now). In order to keep the waiver, he has to use it. It's not as easy at it sounds, to do. 1.)You're approved for the waiver. 2.)You must use it by a certain time frame, or you will lose it. 3.)If you lose it, you lose Medicaid. (Regardless of whether or not you have private insurance, you come to see this as a huge help when dealing with the medical field!) 4.)You have to find a camp or some kind of company that provides an aide, or "buddy", or a social skills group, to spend your waiver on. (You can also choose someone willing to get qualified with the County, if they're no...

"To exist is to change, to change is to mature, to mature is to go on creating oneself endlessly". On Monday night, the middle school had an award ceremony. It was for the most part to reward the kids who were able to maintain the Honor Roll for the first 3 quarters of school. Of course there were things for Math Club, the Science Club, and so on. The Intervention Specialist asked Jack a week or so ago if he would be there for Awards Night, and he said he didn't know what she was talking about. So she emailed me to ask if I'd received an invitation. I did not. (She sent me a photo of it, and it was sent out about a month ago, so somebody really dropped the ball there!). I knew Jack had been on the Merit Roll a couple of times, and on the Honor Roll at least once. However, when we arrived for Awards Night, I saw the special program for the evening, and no where on this thing was Jack's name. I was worried, as he stood there in line with the other 8th grade...