I owe everyone an apology for not keeping this blog updated all summer long! It has been a busy summer, coupled with the fact that we only have dial-up internet (yuck!). Remember, we moved to the country. Needless to say, using the internet at home is not something that happens often. Its more like one of those things we only use in the case of a dire emergency...you know, like that old rechargable flashlight or that box of matches we have tucked away!
I have a big list of blog posts brewing in my head. And, I hope to go back and update the summer's events as best as I can. So, please bear with me as this could be a slow and tedious process. It takes exactly 9 minutes to upload a single picture to this blog, so I am going to be fairly light with the pics and videos.
As I upload posts, they will be underneath this one as I will be going backward in time. So, please be sure to scroll down through the posts so as not to miss anything!
Friday, August 21, 2009
Tuesday, August 18, 2009
First Day of Kindergarten!
Its official....we have a Kindergartner at our house! Its so hard to believe Cole is old enough for school. Seems like I blinked and entire 5 years passed in a flash! But, he was soooooo excited to finally go to Kindergarten and probably even more excited to finally get on the school bus! (He has been asking to ride it since he was 2 years old!)
Anyway, because we live in the country, we knew the bus would be a bit of an issue. Its hard to plan a route when it can vary so much from year to year. Its not like the bus travels the same city blocks over and over, year after year, only varying which house it stops at. Out in the country, the bus route can vary by miles year to year. And, the only thing we knew for sure was what time the bus route started....not really what time it would get to our house! So, for that reason, we drove up to the end of our driveway (instead of walking) so we could sit and wait. Thank goodness we did because we waited nearly an hour for that bus to come!
Chase and Cole waiting in the back of the car for the bus to come!
"Hiding out" with Mom!
I had re-played the scenario in my head over and over for weeks prior to the first day of school. What would his reaction be when the bus came? Would he freak out when he climbed to the top of the steps and was faced with a full bus of students staring at him? Would he cry at the thought of going off to school alone? I just knew something would bound to go wrong... After all, a kid on the autism spectrum couldn't possibly face an unfamiliar experience without a meltdown of some sort. Right?
Boy...was I ever wrong! (thankfully!) When we saw the bus finally turn down our start and start toward out house, Cole couldn't scramble out of the car fast enough! We gave him a hug, told him we loved him, and wished him well for his very first day all while the bus was making its way toward us. And, the doors no sooner opened, when Cole scrambled right up the bus steps, jumped in a seat, and literally NEVER looked back! He looked just like he'd been getting on the bus for years!
One quick pic of Cole flying onto the bus!!!!! (Ignore the ugly trash pile!!!)
And, just like that....he was gone to school....
Anyway, because we live in the country, we knew the bus would be a bit of an issue. Its hard to plan a route when it can vary so much from year to year. Its not like the bus travels the same city blocks over and over, year after year, only varying which house it stops at. Out in the country, the bus route can vary by miles year to year. And, the only thing we knew for sure was what time the bus route started....not really what time it would get to our house! So, for that reason, we drove up to the end of our driveway (instead of walking) so we could sit and wait. Thank goodness we did because we waited nearly an hour for that bus to come!
Chase and Cole waiting in the back of the car for the bus to come!
"Hiding out" with Mom!
I had re-played the scenario in my head over and over for weeks prior to the first day of school. What would his reaction be when the bus came? Would he freak out when he climbed to the top of the steps and was faced with a full bus of students staring at him? Would he cry at the thought of going off to school alone? I just knew something would bound to go wrong... After all, a kid on the autism spectrum couldn't possibly face an unfamiliar experience without a meltdown of some sort. Right?
Boy...was I ever wrong! (thankfully!) When we saw the bus finally turn down our start and start toward out house, Cole couldn't scramble out of the car fast enough! We gave him a hug, told him we loved him, and wished him well for his very first day all while the bus was making its way toward us. And, the doors no sooner opened, when Cole scrambled right up the bus steps, jumped in a seat, and literally NEVER looked back! He looked just like he'd been getting on the bus for years!
One quick pic of Cole flying onto the bus!!!!! (Ignore the ugly trash pile!!!)
And, just like that....he was gone to school....
Monday, August 17, 2009
Goodbye baby crib....
.....Hello big boy bed!
And, as you can clearly see.... He was NOT ready to give up the crib! We tried to really play up the big boy bed and tell him how cribs are for babies. But, he didn't buy a word of it. Not a word. He likes the crib. In fact, the only way we finally got him to settle down was to have Cole lay in the big boy bed with Chase.
Don't let the smile fool you.... Although he did quit crying eventually, he still wasn't really thrilled with the idea of sleeping here! And, if things were up to him, he would toss this big boy bed out the window and bring back the crib!!!!
Saturday, August 15, 2009
Meet the newest tae kwan do white belt....
Over the years, we have asked Cole if he wanted to play sports. We tried Soccer one season. We hoped he would want to play tee ball. We suggested lots of other things...basketball, swimming. Every time, he answered no. He is just not "into" sports.
So, the other night, you can imagine my sheer amazement when he decided he wanted to start tae kwan do!!!! Actually, how it happened was.... He was engrossed in an episode of Spongebob Squarepants. The Sandy character is always doing karate chops and kicks and Cole was trying to imitate her. I told him that if he wanted to really learn how to do karate, there was a new karate school that had just opened right up the street. He said he wanted to go!!! So, I immediately got on the phone to schedule an appointment to look around!
Cole attended a couple of classes and decided he really loved it! So, we joined the school for 1 year, bought the uniform and weapons, and he has been hooked ever since! And, oddly enough, for a kids that isn't "into" sports, I think he found his niche! He is really good!!!!
He has started in the Tiny Tigers class. It is for beginners 2-6 years old. And, since he is one of the older ones in the class, he is naturally a leader. However, the discipline and leadership skills he is learning are beginning to spill over into every day life! And, we couldn't be more proud of him!
Breaking a board.
Mr. Standley tieing on Cole's very first belt!
The whole class giving him a big "Aye-ya!!!" for the belt ceremony.
Cole's official welcome into Revolution Martial Arts.
Thursday, August 13, 2009
The Dreaded Dentist Visit
A couple of years back, we tried to take Cole to the dentist for his first check-up.
Tried.
It didn't go so well. It involved some major fit-throwing. He yelled at everyone who so much as looked like they might make him open his mouth. He kicked and hit Mommy and Daddy. He kicked the wall. He kicked the dentist. And, it all ended with absolutely no teeth being looked at. So, it ended:
Cole-1. Dentist-0.
Since that time, we have mentioned several times that we really needed to get him back to a dentist (full well knowing he was not welcome back at our family dental office!). And, the memory of the last nightmarish dentist visit was just enough to make us put off finding a new one.
But, today was the day. We took him to see Dr. Childers, at the suggestion of Nana. And, yes, it was every bit as bad as the last time. Actually...to give him a little credit....he started off very good! He walked back to the exam room just fine, hopped right up in the chair, and was very pleasant. Until....they tried to take x-rays. They managed to get 3 out of 4 taken (with a huge fight, I might add!). And, then Dr. Childers came in to look at his teeth. Let's just say it wasn't pretty, but he did manage to somehow look at his teeth. He found 4 cavaties!!!!! *ugh*
3 out of the 4 cavaties are in between his molors (upper and lower). And, just to make sure he was seeing all of the erosion, he ordered that 4th x-ray be taken. They asked Mommy to leave the room and it took 3 nurses to hold him down to take that last x-ray. I'm certain the screaming and name-calling could be heard from miles away!
Anyway....to make a long story short....our little dentist visit turned into a 2 hour ordeal. And, we left scheduling a dental procedure at the hospital! Dr. Childers does not want to simply fill the cavaties because (1) they won't last and (2) because Cole is a terrible patient, he wants to avoid doing any future work to his molars. So, he wants to put on 8 stainless crowns (4 upper and 4 lower) and do 2 root procedures because the cavities are deep on 2 teeth. And, Cole will have to go into the hospital (outpatient) to have this done because he won't coorporate enough to have it done in the office.
Needless to say, Mommy left the office in complete shock! I never expected that he would need this amount of dental work. I guess we shouldn't have put off the dentist so long.... Bad parents....
UPDATE: 8/27/09: The dental office called today to inform us that our insurance will not accept the only hospital Dr. Childer's can perform the procedure at. Therefore, we now have to find another dentist. Ugh.
Tried.
It didn't go so well. It involved some major fit-throwing. He yelled at everyone who so much as looked like they might make him open his mouth. He kicked and hit Mommy and Daddy. He kicked the wall. He kicked the dentist. And, it all ended with absolutely no teeth being looked at. So, it ended:
Cole-1. Dentist-0.
Since that time, we have mentioned several times that we really needed to get him back to a dentist (full well knowing he was not welcome back at our family dental office!). And, the memory of the last nightmarish dentist visit was just enough to make us put off finding a new one.
But, today was the day. We took him to see Dr. Childers, at the suggestion of Nana. And, yes, it was every bit as bad as the last time. Actually...to give him a little credit....he started off very good! He walked back to the exam room just fine, hopped right up in the chair, and was very pleasant. Until....they tried to take x-rays. They managed to get 3 out of 4 taken (with a huge fight, I might add!). And, then Dr. Childers came in to look at his teeth. Let's just say it wasn't pretty, but he did manage to somehow look at his teeth. He found 4 cavaties!!!!! *ugh*
3 out of the 4 cavaties are in between his molors (upper and lower). And, just to make sure he was seeing all of the erosion, he ordered that 4th x-ray be taken. They asked Mommy to leave the room and it took 3 nurses to hold him down to take that last x-ray. I'm certain the screaming and name-calling could be heard from miles away!
Anyway....to make a long story short....our little dentist visit turned into a 2 hour ordeal. And, we left scheduling a dental procedure at the hospital! Dr. Childers does not want to simply fill the cavaties because (1) they won't last and (2) because Cole is a terrible patient, he wants to avoid doing any future work to his molars. So, he wants to put on 8 stainless crowns (4 upper and 4 lower) and do 2 root procedures because the cavities are deep on 2 teeth. And, Cole will have to go into the hospital (outpatient) to have this done because he won't coorporate enough to have it done in the office.
Needless to say, Mommy left the office in complete shock! I never expected that he would need this amount of dental work. I guess we shouldn't have put off the dentist so long.... Bad parents....
UPDATE: 8/27/09: The dental office called today to inform us that our insurance will not accept the only hospital Dr. Childer's can perform the procedure at. Therefore, we now have to find another dentist. Ugh.
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