Holiday Wrap-Up, Part 1

One of these months, I'm going to try and actually keep up with the blog on a timely basis, rather than just writing posts like I'm writing letters during Civil War times, when loved ones got the "news" weeks later.

Nonetheless, here is the update on our holiday season. It's been a busy one. This past week, however, has been very slow. After a big Hanukkah celebration with Noah's family and a quick Christmas morning with my mom, it was just the four of us to finish out the holidays. Noah has had a few days off from work, so we've been really staying close to home, putting together some of Calvin's Lego gifts, watching lots of movies, having impromptu light saber wars (more on this later), and rocking out on Wii RockBand. In other words, it's been blissful

Until Noah and I both got sick two days ago. Then we traded off childcare duty so we could each take turns with naps. We are on the mend now. But we canceled New Year's plans to stay at home, had champagne with our leftovers for dinner, and are now curled up with our kiddos by the fire, making s'mores. Not too shabby.

I think as this year wraps up, we can safely consider 2010 the year Calvin discovered Star Wars. And so our holidays have had a new flavor, starting with the Star Wars cookie shapes that accompanied the usual traditional holiday stars and trees:





Grammy because a whiz at the detail work for the Yoda heads and stormtrooper faces:





The finished products:





Calvin had two things on his Christmas list for Santa this year, both of them Lego Star Wars sets. I did not know this until about a month ago, but apparently Lego has been doing a whole Star Wars thing for 10+ years, issuing a couple of sets each year that come together into some particular Star Wars ship or location or something. They come with characters and weapons and specific Lego shapes like the moss to hang on Yoda's hut.

Oh yes, I have learned a lot about Star Wars Legos this last month, much of it coming from the Lego Star Wars dictionary, which, during a moment of weakness, I agreed Calvin could buy at his school's book fair in November. (I feared it was just a big advertisement for Legos, and I was right, but we were desperate to get out of that place.)

Since then, that book has been tucked safely under Calvin's arm during many of his waking hours. Seriously, he has studied that thing cover to cover and now knows WAY more about Star Wars than I ever will.

So when he said he wanted two certain Lego Star Wars sets for Christmas, I thought, "No problem. I know where the Lego store is." Then I read more about the sets and realized they were released in 2004 and have now reached the collector status, meaning they aren't sold in stores anymore (although you could find them from some Amazon specialty sellers for upwards of $175--ouch!).

So we broke the news gently to Calvin. We told him there was no guarantee he would get exactly what was on his Christmas list, that those were just suggestions, and that were sure he would lots of fun things, but maybe not those exact Star Wars sets. He wanted to know why. So we told him that those particular sets were older ones and might not be in the stores, or might be too expensive. He shrugged, looked at us, and said, simply: "But Santa can just make them. He's magic."

Oh yeah, ri-ight. Santa's magic. We forgot about that.

But luckily, Santa came through. (Thank you, eBay!) And Calvin did wake up on Christmas morning to find the coveted Lego Star Wars X-Wing Fighter set #4502 waiting for him under the tree. Thankfully, he was happy with just the one, because he reasoned, "Santa knew this was the one I wanted the most." Phew!

Here he is inspecting the goods:



As if this wasn't enough, more to come soon...

Giving thanks for pie... and lots of other things!

Thanksgiving was great! And then we took a little family trip to Hershey, PA, to see the sights and buy lots of chocolate. (More on this later.) Then we came home and all got sick, so we spent most of this week cooped up at home wiping noses, some our own, some our kids'.

So this weekend, I am thankful that we have all mostly recovered from the first bad cold of the season. I am also thankful that while we had to spend most of this last week in our house, we at least had a nice big stash of chocolate to keep us company!

But last week, on the actual Thanksgiving, I was grateful (and still am) for many things: my little family, my bigger family, friends, the awesome vacations we had this year, a house, food, coffee, my new coat I got on sale at Target. All the things I probably take for granted most days. I could do without Rett syndrome, but I am grateful there is a community of people supporting us and working for anything to help my girl. And I am very thankful that while there are many things Violet can't do, she is one great snuggler.

So on the actual Thanksgiving day, I was very grateful to spend most of the day in my jammies, cuddling with V on the sofa while the boys spent many hours making pie. They even made a cherry one for me, because I don't like the traditional pecan. Pretty lucky, huh?

Check them out:






I forgot to take pictures of the actual pies. We were too busy eating them (after rushing to make it to dinner on time.) But they were delicious. Trust me.

School Girl

Just had to take a minute to post Violet's first-ever school photo. And I know I am a little biased here, but I think it is one of the best school photos I have ever seen (and I have seen some good and bad, many of them my own).

I have to admit, I was a little nervous about how this would turn out when I sent her into school that day. Part of me wanted to stick around that day just to see how everything went down. I think school photos must be a tricky feat at any traditional school, let alone one for kids with special needs, many of them preschoolers.

Don't get me wrong. Violet is usually pretty photogenic: sweet and smiley and flirty. But her nonstop Rett-related hand movements mean that she often has one hand hand in her mouth and another tugging at her ear. And if anything is off--like she's tired or hungry or has to go #2 (sorry, but poop is a hot topic in our house)--then she can quickly turn into a fidgety, crying, flailing handful.

I tried to stay positive, though. When I dropped her at school, her curls were neatly combed, she was wearing a cute top and had a bow to match (and had a whole backup stylish outfit in her backpack). I asked her aides to give her hair a once-over before she went in for the photo, wipe the slobber from her chin, and try to hide her armband (which she wears to limit the repetitive hand movements) so it wouldn't be too visible in the picture and mess up her whole look. And then they told me that photos weren't until the end of the day, and I really just gave up hope that anything I had planned for a cute photo would hold out until then.

They are pros at this though and waved me off. And they did not disappoint. What you cannot see in the photo is that one of her aides was crouched behind her, holding her on the stool so she wouldn't fall. And the other aide ducked down in front, holding her hands so she wouldn't block her own face. And voila! Perfection! Have I mentioned how amazing and hard-working her teacher and aides are? Well, they are!

And I have to give Violet full credit for the sweet smile and overall cuteness. I would say she worked hard for that, too, but it just comes naturally to her.

Surviving Halloween

I meant to post right after Halloween to show the kids in their costumes. But to be honest, I needed a few days to recover. My visit to Violet's school for her Halloween party was not quite as empowering as my fun outing with her class for their farm field trip. The truth is, no matter how hard I try to find the positives at her school (and to be sure, there are many), having to send your kid to a special-needs school just, well, sucks. And even though the staff there are just amazing and infinitely kind and patient with the kids, and there is much about the school that gives you warm feelings, sometimes, it is just sad to be there.

Like on Halloween. You have all these preconceived images of kids dressed in their costumes, flitting from one classroom to the next, happily trick-or-treating while gathering candy. And while that was true for some of the kids (especially in the higher functioning preschool classes), many of them don't walk, let alone flit. And it's really hard to come up with good costumes that work in a wheelchair or a walker. Many of the kids don't talk, so it's not unusual to see them with buttons or switches they press for an automated voice that says "Trick or Treat." Even when they get the candy, some of the kids can't eat it because they have difficulty chewing or are fed by tubes.

So it's kind of a tough scene on Halloween. At least it was for me. But I'm still a newbie to this. I'm hoping I can catch up with some of the staff, who do an incredible job of carrying on and creating a fun atmosphere, regardless the circumstances.

Violet had fun. She was adorable in her Minnie Mouse costume. And she was mostly smiles while we cruised the hallways:

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And she enjoyed some of the class games:

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She was pretty exhausted by story time:

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And this is how she looked after the party. (I should have dressed her in a Sleeping Beauty costume.)

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Later, I got to Calvin's school just in time to see this smiling police officer marching in the parade:

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Notice the box of Dunkin' Donuts in his hand? He wasn't allowed to bring anything "resembling a weapon" to school, which is pretty much all of the equipment that goes with a cop costume. So we needed another prop. His dad made the run for emergency munchkins, and they really made the costume. (Plus they were really yummy later.)

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But Halloween wasn't over yet. Later that weekend, we decorated pumpkins:

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And later, we did a little more family trick-or-treating. And the smiles from this duo made me love Halloween again:

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Fall Fun, Part 2

There are some years that seasons or holidays pass us by before we get a chance to revel in all of the traditions, or we do them last minute, like we drag out the decorations and the family recipes and the lists on that last weekend, trying to condense the fun into one big, fat festive day.

This year, however, I feel like I am getting the full fall experience. Last week, Violet and I took a second trip to the pumpkin patch, this time as part of a field trip with her new school. (I still need to get the photos up from her first day of school, and I will, but let me just summarize that post by saying this: Violet started school. Yay!)

It was my first time going on a field trip with special-needs kids, so I have to admit, I was a little anxious. For a lot of reasons, I guess. How do you maneuver a bunch of kids, many of whom don't walk (or don't walk well), through bumpy farmland and corn mazes and patches of pumpkins? Will people stare? Will I give them the evil eye right back? Will folks be nicer or meaner or just shocked by us in general?

In reality, these are all things I am learning to deal with on a daily basis anyway. At least this time, I had a sort of posse there to back me up.

I didn't have too much time to worry anyway. As soon as we got there, I was distracted by the fact that the place was a zoo. And I don't just mean the petting-zoo part. Seriously, this is the quaint, country road into Sharp's Farm in Brookeville:

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The great thing is that once we were in and I was reminded of how difficult it is to shepherd any group of preschoolers, whether they have special needs or not, I felt a little more relaxed. Like when I saw teachers trying to guide their students around piles of cow poop, or instructing them not to eat the corn off the ground. Or the dad trying to convince his young daughter not to throw her pumpkin at one very friendly goat. Field trips aren't easy for anyone, at least not the adults.

And then, my posse showed up:

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The other part of our group was delayed in the traffic, so we started right in, admiring the animals:

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The pigs had their own sort of alternative communication device that I hadn't seen before:

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Later, there was something I like to call the Hayride from Hell. Twenty minutes spent sitting on a hay bale with a few dozen kids, holding Violet, while we bumped along muddy roads and through a few feet of water. Actually, it was kinda fun, in a scary sort of way. If I hadn't been worried that we might lose a bag or a camera or (much worse) a kid over the side, I would have really enjoyed it. And most of the kids really did.

Like this little cutie, who also goes to Violet's school, and spent the ride laughing and smiling on her mom's lap:

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I was telling a friend that I should just start going everywhere with an entourage of special ed teachers and therapists, because they are endlessly patient and helpful and really know how to speak up when you need a little help lifting a kid or two onto a hayride, or a special place to park your stroller, or to just generally make way for some kids that need a little extra room or space. They know how to make things happen for some complicated little people.

So they were always offering to help hold Violet or push the stroller or carry my purse or take a picture. And they are so sweet with my V.

Here's Violet with her new teacher:

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And with one of her aides:

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Feeling corn in the corn maze:

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Violet picks her pumpkin:

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And this is what constitutes handicapped parking at a farm. Actually, this was a sweet spot, because most of the buses were sent to the back of field used as a parking lot. It's hard to tell from this picture, but we were right up front by the little shop that sold apples and jams and flavored honey. And check out the pastoral view behind! A little bit of peace, a little bit of proximity. What more can you ask for?

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Pumpkin Pickin'

We had planned to spend a leisurely sunny Sunday at some local fall festival this weekend. But Noah got called in to work (yuck), so we had to alter our plans a bit, moving it up to the morning and condensing the half-day-long outing to 90 minutes.

We went to Homestead Farm, mainly because it's the closest and fairly small, so we could get the full fall experience in less square footage. The parking lot was already filling up when we got there, so we headed straight to the booth to buy our tickets for the hayride. Needless to say, it's pretty difficult to rush when you're on a hayride, so we got to just sit back and enjoy the ride:



It was very sunny that morning:



Our driver remained plugged in to the modern world at all times though:



(Can you see the cell phone in this picture? I think he was phoning the barn to tell them about the giant pond we had to drive through to get to the pumpkin patch. We were one of the first hayrides out that morning, and the tractor almost got stuck in the mud. So I think the driver used his cell to call the other drivers and tell them to use a different route, just like they did in the old days.)

Searching for just the right one:



A pair of Converse meets a pair of pumpkins:



Time for a couple of poses on pumpkins, of course. Again, the sun made this tricky (and Violet hates the sun in her eyes), so we had to try a couple of different angles:





When I was a kid, we used to go this farm to get pumpkins and then trees at Christmas time, and they always had flavored sticks for the kids at the end. I don't know, maybe every pumpkin/tree farm has these. But the memories were too good, so I couldn't resist when I saw they had this for Calvin. So here he is with his "mystery"-flavored one:



On the way to checkout, our wagon got a flat:



But we carried on and headed back to the car. Notice the stream of people going in? So many that they were out of carts by the time we left, and some guy followed us out to get ours, even with the flat. We were glad we went when we did.

Swinging and Spooky Stuff

October has been a busy month for us, which I guess is why I haven't been on the blog much. We are having a more mellow weekend though, so maybe there is hope I will catch up?

In the meantime, we've had some down time for stuff like swinging! Violet got a new swing for her third birthday (more on that later) and she loves it. Here she is swinging with her big brother:



Calvin has recently learned to pump his legs while he swings and that he can get pretty high that way on his own, so he no longer begs us to constantly push him. Hooray! He also makes the funniest, super-intense faces while he swings. They are hard to capture on camera, but here is a sampling:







Also, there was no school on Friday, which I kind of look forward to now because it is so hectic to get two kids up and ready in the mornings and to two different schools that are in two very different directions (more on this later, too). But I was a little worried because I really had nothing planned for us to do. Luckily, Calvin had picked out this decorative Halloween kit for a spooky mansion a few days before. I thought it was a little expensive at the time, but I caved. On Friday, he spent at least half the day working on it, painstakingly punching out and then taping the ghosts and spiders and pumpkins all over. He even thought to use some twisty-ties to add a hanging witch and spider, and transformed some of the cotton packing material into cobwebs. He worked so hard. And in the end, I thought it was a fine scary masterpiece. And so worth the $22.

Back to School!

We were all pretty excited that school started this past week, after a long, hot summer. Calvin loves his new teacher and knows a few kids in his class, so he was feeling positive after the Open House the Friday before school started. He was a little anxious about the new routine when the first morning rolled around, like where he would sit on the bus and how he would find his line-up. But he was ready, nonetheless.

Here he is all geared for FIRST GRADE!

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Pushing his little sis to the bus stop:

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He was a little underwhelmed after school was done, though. He asked me when he got home: "Mommy, did you notice there aren't that many places to play in my classroom?" I didn't really admit it then, but he's kinda right. His kindergarten class had a play kitchen and a block-building area. But for fun, this class has a book nook and a listening station. Not exactly the same thing. Noah asked if I told him to get used to it, and that this is how it would be for the next 10+ years of schooling. Uh, nope, I didn't mention that. But I did feel a little sad for the guy, and even sadder that he noticed the shift.

Here he is, admiring his special afterschool snack: green (his favorite color) cookies with sprinkles! I think he may have been more excited about these than he was about school. Sigh.

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Violet was back in her routine, too. Here she is working with OT Lucinda:

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She's learning to match up photos of some of her favorite cartoon characters and hit a switch that says, "Yes, same" when they match. She's getting really good at it, too. And you can see she is having lots of fun:

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