Whew!

Sorry for the "radio silence" but a whole lot has been happening. Including, but not limited too:
BigGirl spending 12 straight days unable to keep anything down.
Visit to Doctor.
Visit to Emergency Room.
IV Liquids.
No real idea of why.
My doctor visit (which I promised long ago to update upon).
I suspect I am having thyroid issues. Thyroid is notoriously hard for doctors to diagnose, because it mimics many other things but mainly because the range of "normal" is so @!#$%^&* huge (really, a range of 0.5 to 5.5) so what is perfectly "normal" can be seriously out of whack for your body, and they just can't tell!
(By the way--my test results came back *cough* "Normal").

Also--
New Chicks (around 35 or 40--hard to keep track) of various types (more variety than ever before--really fun!).
A visit from 2 really cute baby goats (they stayed at our house for 2 weeks).
Visits from lots of family we love.
Easter, Traditional (very fun) Easter Egg hunt and family dinner (at our house).
Birthday Party (quite a long time after the fact, due to scheduling issues) for LargeBoy. The party was awesome--almost zero work for me (which worked out nicely, since that was the day I was in the ER with BigGirl).
AND my debut party for my new business.


For those of you who have been waiting breathlessly for details:

I am now an official Consultant for Essential Bodywear.
(crickets chirping)
"I am officially a Bra Lady!" Yep. I can measure and do fittings, and I sell great bras (and other "foundation garments"). We had our first "Bra Party" and it was great!

In keeping with my tradition of "having a Mother's Day"--boy have I had one. I dared to try to take a nap, and SmallDaughter got into the shower and poured 3 bottles of shampoo (the Suave [for the family hair], the Bath & Bodyworks [my own personal expensive splurge--big sigh], and the Head & Shoulders [for certain adolescent type people]--[which is also not fun to clean up--trust me]) AND a container of purple cookie frosting (not from the shower--from the deeply forbidden, high up cupboard of doom--er expensive, yummy ingredients) onto the floor. There were also a dozen potatoes and a bottle of windex involved. Yep, "A Mother's Day" indeed.

REAL school

I find it humorous that when I told my dad I was giving up on the (!@#$%^) online school, and he asked "are you going back to real schooling"?--He meant real homeschooling! It is pretty cool to me that in his mind, REAL school is a family, reading a lot of books and sharing information together.

The basic problem with online schools (and this is the third one that I have personal experience with) is that they still expect you to do the stupid, unnecessary busywork, on their schedule, but mom is the bad guy. While this might be the best solution for some people, it is not the best solution for my children.

We are excited for our next phase (it won't really be a "school year" since it will start whenever we want it too). We are using several exciting tools.

Khan Academy--Whee! This is what the internet is perfect for! Unlimited, enjoyable learning at your own pace--for free!

Clickschooling--The best of the internet! Each day they send a link on that day’s subject: Monday: Math, Tuesday: Science, Wednesday: Language Arts, Thursday: Social Sciences, Friday: Virtual Fieldtrip, Saturday: Music, Art and Foreign Languages. PLUS—they have 12+ years of ARCHIVES!

And, for those who have smaller children, they also have Preschool Help!

You could give your child (or yourself for that matter) a dang good--and interesting--education using only this resource!--and it's free!

Instructables--How to do almost anything! (with instructions and step by step pictures). (I'm serious!--a small sampling of headings, just from the LIVING section includes "Art, Beauty, Cake Decorating, Cleaning, Fashion, Furnishing...") and... it's free!

YouTube--besides the cute kitty videos and the funny memes, there are also TONS of instructions on everything from making your own spa products to making pizza. Don't discount the music lessons (and knitting, and spinning, and chemistry, and...) Also free!

Do we see a theme here?


Right at our very fingertips, we have all the learning in the world...for free. Anything you are interested in, or simply want to know more about, it's ALL there (and I LOVE good quality FREE stuff)!

AND NOW, for your edification and enjoyment, I am going to share two of my favorite videos!

First, a humorous look at an all too familiar scene in the life of the parent of a Special Needs Child

This is not true of every school, (for example, I had a great IEP meeting with SmallDaughter's team yesterday), but I have seen it too often, for too many children.


And, one of the most brilliant and mind opening talks I have ever been privileged to hear!


If you haven't had the opportunity to become acquainted with "TED.com", you should!

Well, I'm Back!

I have been gallivanting all over the country! Two weekends ago, I got to attend the Sewing and Quilting Expo with 3 of my favorite aunties! It was AWESOME! I was able to take a bunch of classes and learn so much exciting stuff! I learned how to alter patterns without causing distortions anywhere else. Now, I am sure to most of my readers that does not sound particularly exciting. But, trust me, for me, it is revolutionary and mind blowing! I am SO excited! I also got new tools! (OOH! Shiny!)

And, I figured out a couple of things: 1) I am pretty sure why I am so tired (I will report more on this after the official Dr. visit in a couple of weeks to follow up on my hunch) and 2) What job I can do (with my crazy schedule and family needs). That will be my next post--and trust me, it is NOT what I was expecting!

I also got to spend this last week helping my awesome sister and brother-in-law prepare for and attend a conference, that will (hopefully) get his extraordinary business off the ground. They spent a lot of time in a very small car, while I stayed at their house playing with the adorable nieces. I think I have mentioned before that I have the cutest nieces and nephews in the world (this extends to my cousins children, also, because when you have a family as large and loving as mine, the exact relationships have a tendency to get a bit fuzzy and so easy titles like "cousin" win!)

People might think I am biased, bragging or showing a teensy amount of favoritism, but I have second (and third!) opinions from non-related people, and it is true! They are just DARN CUTE!

Now I have to recover from all the fun I have been having!

S'No Way!

Yesterday, I actually listened to a weather report (which is quite a rare occurrence for me), in which they earnestly reported that we had a chance of rain in the afternoon.
That news bummed me out, because the reason I checked the weather was to continue my long procrastinated (yeah, like 7 YEARS long!) project of transplanting a bunch of bulbs and other perennial flowers from the random places they have ended up (due to the sewer projects, the driveway project, the chicken yard project, etc.) and placing them in actual flower beds. Quite, quite radical.

So, just after I checked that depressing news, it began to snow. Yep. And now we have about 3 inches. SIGH.

I know that it will melt today. I know that we probably have one more snow storm this season. But logic doesn't have a whole lot to do with the bummed-outness of someone who had some actual gardening plans going.

More Shameless Commerce!

Remember how I complained about fundraisers here ? And I said the only one I actually liked was our 4-H club's annual Cheese Sale? Well, it's that time of year again. One week only. Excellent cheese (it will arrive around the 2nd week of April). Let me know if you want more info.

It is just a good thing I love these kids so much! And that they really do get a LOT out of their 4-H experience. Almost enough to make sorting out 500 bazillionty pounds of cheese worth it.

ReThink

Last week I went to a "Shadow Day" for school the program (Fashion) at the University I want to attend--and OH HOW I LOVED IT! It was so exhilarating--the classes were exciting and I could do them--well!

However, the design program, which is what I really want to do, is a "lockstep" program. You have to take the fall classes (which are only offered in the fall) before you can take the spring classes (which are only offered in the spring). Which really limits someone who has to drive 100 miles each way and has a family to take care of, who was really hoping to be able to go half-time!

And, it is a VERY intense course--the students in the class I attended said "They say if you are in Fashion Design you have to choose between eating, sleeping and hygiene--but really you just give up on all three! You can tell who the design students are--they are the ones in sweats and ratty ponytails, with dark rings under their eyes!"

Looking honestly at my life, I don't see how I can possibly do it right now. SmallDaughter requires so much attention, so much work--it would be really difficult to do a half time program, let alone a "time and a half" program.

So, I am rethinking my options.

I still want to go to school. Still don't want to go for nursing or elementary education. Still can't decide what else I want to be. Hmmm--this seems very familiar, like I have been here before! Oh, yes--I have been!

If you have any awesome ideas for what I could be when I grow up, PLEASE let me know.

Midnight Essay

As I prepare to return to college, I am trying to get as many scholarships as possible. One night, I woke up with an entire essay in my head, which had to be written down before I could go to sleep again. I don't know what scholarship will need this particular essay (so far, the essays I have come across have themes like "How would you spread the word about Credit Unions", or "Why is America the Land of Opportunity, and how does Brand X Butter help it stay that way?"). However, I know that someday, my midnight essay will be exactly what I need.

I will share it with you.

Most college students worry about meeting that certain someone, deciding what they want to do with their lives or finding out who they are and how they fit in. I worry about going to school and still being a good wife to my husband and a good mother to my children—but mostly I worry about SmallDaughter.

I worry about how to help her understand and be understood, I agonize about helping her meet her potential, I ponder about ways to help her learn to write her name. I worry about helping her learn her shapes and letters, to brush her teeth by herself and to say her prayers. But most of all I worry about keeping her safe.

Every toddler on earth has a knack for getting into trouble—but most of them outgrow it as they learn about the world around them. SmallDaughter is 10 years old, but because of several neurological conditions, she remains “the world’s tallest and fastest two year old”—functioning at about the same level as an average 2 ½ year old child.

She is a charming, bright, sparkling redhead, with big blue eyes and an infectious smile. Her ready laugh and responsive personality charm everyone who meets her. Yet, with all these gifts she is almost totally non-verbal.

I have never heard her say “mommy”, let alone “I love you”. Yet—she does communicate—surprisingly well. Using ASL signs, word approximations and body language, SmallDaughter expresses opinions, teases and jokes and gives us flashes into her mind.

People wonder how I can cope with the difficulty of living with a permanent two year old. It is certainly a challenge, but it is also a blessing. My older children BigGirl and LargeBoy were not only typical, they were above average. They learned skills so quickly and easily that it was easy to miss how much work was really involved.

SmallDaughter slows that process down. She is like watching childhood in slow motion. Every milestone comes at tremendous cost and effort. She just mastered the skills needed to “jump”—the motion of “bend the knees, then spring upward”. Her therapists (and her family) worked on that skill with her—for six years.

I would not have chosen my life. I would not have signed up to have a ten year old who still wears diapers and has tantrums, who pours milk on the carpet and has no sense of safety. But I would not trade my life for anything. I would never give up the lessons my family has learned— how valuable each moment and each milestone is, or how patient BigGirl and LargeBoy are with not only SmallDaughter, but anyone who is “different”.

Choosing to go back to college as a 39 year old wife, mother of two teenagers and a perpetual toddler (and her Service Dog) is scary. But, SmallDaughter has taught me:
I can do hard things. Giving up is not an option. Laughing makes things better. No one knows what the future holds, but today can be a great adventure. Most of all, I have learned that things (and people) do not have to be perfect or fit some ideal to be wonderful. Life is a sweet gift, and filling it with joy every day is the most important thing we can do.