Two steps forward one step back

I'm not sure how I feel about the new medication. It's done wonders for her focus. She is there and on task. A little too on task. But mid day we have little melt downs. Not big ones but they are more frequent.

She's taken to creating graphs. I got a circle graph showing how much money was in her piggy bank and this graph for how she feels. I just adore this child - is it obvious?




Today was a good day. I love how under 10% is a frown and anything higher is a smile.

I had a long chat with a coworker about the psychiatrist and how I felt about him. She knew exactly who I was talking about and had actually told me stories about her daughters bad experience with this same doctor and the medication a few weeks back. I had an appointment for the end of January with a different doctor that I hadn't gotten around to canceling. I do think I will be keeping that one.

That it for today's update. Maybe I'll write more later. Maybe I won't.

Goodnight John Boy!


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Day three on Focalin - storm clouds...

Here we are on Day Three. My observations are as follows
1. First couple hours are great - Ms. Dani is focused and sparkly.
2. A couple hours in, the storm clouds settle behind her eyes and she looses her sparkle.
3. She complains of her stomach hurting and looks unhappy
4. Second dose - repeat of pattern.

I'm not sure this is the right medication for her. The outbursts are shorter, but more intense. They are also more frequent.

I have put my faith in modern medicine - I know there has to be something out there that will work for her - that will help her get through the ADHD but not set the Aspergers on fire.

I hate the child psychiatrist we went to see. He has no bedside manner and is very clinical. Why specialize in children if you have all of the tenderness of a seasick crocodile?

I'm going to tough it out a little longer and see but I'm not thinking this is the one for us.

On to something new

Back in October, we put Dani on Adderall to help with her ADHD.  It worked wonders - she was so focused in school and was doing amazing - but it really aggravated her Aspergers.  She went into severe crying fits where she would just shut us all out and curl up into a ball.  We love the benefits - the added focus - the fact that she doesn't wander off when walking from one side of the room to the other - but the  meltdowns were heartbreaking and had to go.

This week we met with a child psychiatrist.  He stated that he doesn't usually recommend stimulants for kids with Apsergers but since she had such positive effects from the Adderall, he was going to have us try Focalin.  Now - my first thought when I hear Focalin is the episode of The Simpsons where Bart is put on Focasin.  He becomes an ideal student and then turns into a conspiracy theorist who steals a tank.  The ending is one of my favorites ever.



Back to Ms. Dani. Day one on Focalin. She's downstairs going through all the toys in her playroom looking for toys to donate to other kids. Usually any talk about culling the overgrown pile of toys results in her breaking down in tears sobbing that she loves all her toys. Today not so much. She has a giant bag filled with toys that need to go to new homes.

Cross your fingers and toes for us.

How to make your nasty UGGs like new

So after two years of faithful service, my poor UGGs were getting really nasty. They looked fine, but the inside was just disgusting.  I searched the web up and down and couldn't find anyone agreeing on the proper washing of the insides of the boots.  Come on web - don't fail me now - I just want to know how to clean the insides of my UGGs

Several sites said to use the washing machine.  Followed by comments that said not to use the washer.  I am not convinced that UGG goes around and tells people not to use the washing machine.  Just to make you buy new boots.  I can see not using the dryer but the washing machine made sense to me.

So I told myself - lets do this - and I tossed the boots in the washing machine on the hand wash setting.  When they were done, I took them out - and loosely stuffed the toes with paper towels.  I then propped the boots upside down on tall bottles on top of an armoire by a heater vent (not directly in front of the vent but by the vent).  After a day - I took the boots down - fluffed the insides of the boots with a towel - to kind of uncrush the fluffy stuff - and then lightly restuffed the toes and put the boots back on their bottles. 

During this entire process my husband is thinking I'm nuts.  I'm sure I am.  But I'm also cheap and can't bear to throw out these boots because they were a couple hundred bucks and they are made from real sheepskin.  I'm not crazy vegetarian like the girl child but if I can get these boots to last a couple more years, I'll be very happy.

The good news is that after two days of drying I put the boots on and they feel like new.  They are getting a run through with the suede conditioner and scotchguard, and we will be good to go.

SO if you are on the fence trying to decide if you are going to toss your boots or wash them - try washing them!

New toys

I got the iPhone for S on Friday. I am still playing with it. I've been trying to figure out how to use Siri. This post is being dictated into Siri it should be interesting to see how it turns out


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Back

I've been neglectful. I know. I'm sorry. Please feel free to flog me. I've been a bad bad blogger.

I don't know if I owe all three of my readers any kind of explanation. Let's just say the last few months have been very eventful. I'll probably break that up into a few posts.

Until then - here's a picture of a cat in a hat.




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Am I nuts?

I think I am. I need to come up with a way to support our newly found pageant habit. What to do? Sell blood? Lol



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Face of the day

Sephora tinted moisturizer. Mac mineral finish. Urban decay eye shadows and black eyeliner. Mac wonder woman red lip gloss - which is where the look failed.



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Yes I am nuts

Girl child is obsessed with Toddlers & Tiaras. Totally obsessed. She is begging to do a pageant. So there is one this weekend - it's a "natural pageant". No fancy dress no fake teeth/hair/tan. I'm seriously considering signing her up. I have to decide today. I think I am nuts but this is something SHE really wants to do... See - I already sound like a pageant mom!


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My kid is nuts

It's 40 degrees out and she's swimming her little heart out in the jacuzzi....



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Today's face

Ack! I left my makeup bag at work. Which meant I had to go with the same basic color scheme from the day before. Good think I like black.



My before looks like a mugshot!

The tools



And after




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Puppy dog eyes

So we got a free "Bazinga" t-shirt with one of the box sets. The shirt has been sitting on my dresser for the last couple months since its to small for the husband and I can't wear mend cut shirts.

Oldest boy child was watching the debate with great interest as the shirt was his size. His eyes got bigger and bigger and I swear he started looking like a puppy dog. The fate of the shirt was decided and it was tossed his way and as he ran off I could have sworn I heard happy yipping coming from his room.


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Tea party lessons learned...

Activities - simple- organza ribbon with beads. I don't have a picture of them making the necklaces but here is one of our beautiful guests in her necklace.



Tables had fruit display in teapots. I tied tulle around the chairs and added the hair clip to the back of the tulle. I was thrilled with how it turned out.






Menu: chicken salad sandwich, cucumber sandwich, mini quiche, cheese and crackers. And the fruit skewers.

Sweets: my interpretation of petit fours and cream puffs. I also made fruit tarts but forgot to put them out.







Dessert was a decorate your own cupcake bar.





And before they left the kids got to enjoy a candy buffet.






Overall it was an amazing day. I just wish I would have remembered to put out the tart and socialize more.
















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Party Planning

The princess tea party is on Saturday! 

I have the tables and chairs rented.  I will be tying tulle and ribbon around the chairs.  I have the recipe for the petit fours and icing.  I will also be dipping strawberries.  I have pinwheel sandwiches and mini quiches.  I will also make cucumber sandwiches on Saturday morning.  I will be cutting up fruit to add to the tables and I will probably also bake princess wand sugar cookies.  OH and the candy buffet is ready to go.

What am I missing????

Reflections...

I spent 9 hours at a baby shower on Saturday catching up with the mother to be.  We've been friends since middle school and we got to catch up on life in general. I was lucky enough to spend some time getting to know her husband who is just perfect for her.  I have more emotions than I can ever begin to work through - I'm so excited for them having their first baby - and I feel SO old since my first baby is in college.  I'm a little jealous - not because I want a baby - but because I miss the anticipation and the first few months of falling in love with the little person. 

Maybe I should just get a cat....

Panic

We eat dinner at my parents house 5x a week. My mom Is great cook, enjoys cooking and is retired so it makes sense. plus she lives 1/2 mile away. This weekend I hit my panic mode when I realized she was going back to Thailand to visit family and I was going to have to feed the tribe on my own. I made my husband sit down and brainstorm meal ideas and we spent the weekend cooking and freezing.




Onions and garlic and peppers oh my! This was the start of the spaghetti sauce and jambalaya.



Shrooms!



This is where the jambalaya base and spaghetti sauce diverged.



And this is about 10 gallons of spaghetti sauce.



Three Costco rotisserie chickens.

Final tally - two meals of jambalaya. 6 meals of spaghetti sauce. 1 chicken casserole. 3 bags of deboned chicken for tacos or whatever in the freezer.

I will be looking for good freezer cooking ideas in the near future because spaghetti will get old fast :)

The food wars

What do you do with a picky eater? I am at the end of my rope with princess and the toddler is starting to pick up her attitude. The other night she refused to eat lasagna because it would "make her poop even harder than it is". Last night she said my chicken Alfredo was "the grossest thing ever".

My mom and dad keep trying to bribe her to eat more by offering food but I just don't want to go that route :(


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I don't wanna go home

In case anyone was wondering. I miss my family but this is paradise...plane leaves in 5 hours. :(



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Reflections

As a navy wife I spend a lot of time NOT thinking about what could happen. I just can't. I know that my husband does things that he just can't talk about it, I just have to keep it out of my head.

Today we went to the USS Arizona memorial and I had to think more than I wanted to.










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More pictures from today.

Amazing beach




Amazing pool




Pupu



Pelican



One for each hand




Why why why???




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Today in pictures

(so far)
























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Making things work for the kids

I used to love my minivan. I'm not sure what happened but I feel like we have drifted apart. My uterus on wheels - it kept my kids safe and secure where ever we would go.

Poor Betsy is getting older. I have to say I haven't felt the love since her transmission went. Honda replaced it and she is supposedly as good as new but it's not the same.

I hate taking her in for service. She has 115,000 miles and they are always trying to sell me stuff. The last big visit ran over $1200. So I avoid taking her in because I am scared it will cost money which probably leads to little issues becoming bigger.

This is changing. I am going to be a good car owner. She will get regular maintenance. I will check the tire pressure (I hate hate hate hate hate doing that). She will be washed and vacuumed regularly. As in a couple times a month not a couple times a year. And she will get a full interior detail as soon as I find a good enough deal :)

She is getting her oil changed right now at a place across the street from my work. I'm hoping this is what it takes to save my relationship. We gotta do it for the sake of the kids...

Operation tea party

It's official -I'm taking back the tea party! Princess is having a garden tea party for her 7th birthday.

So obvious issues.

1 I don't own a tea pot.

2 I don't have garden seating

3. I don't know what I am doing.

More to come.

The ugly truth

I got to work early so I could do my makeup and I decided to take before and after pictures.

Here it is. No makeup. Blotchy skin bags under the eyes. This is me.







So let's start with those bags under the eyes












And we need to even things out a bit












Eyes are next












And then lips






And then we have the final look







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