Alison had her 8th birthday party yesterday. EIGHTH. I won't get into that. The party was a success. I think she enjoyed herself more than any previous party she has had. The kids all had a great time and all refused to leave when their parents came for them. They did skull fishing for prizes, played pin the nose on the witch and the mummy game(with toilet paper). And of course a pinata and decorated their own Halloween cupcakes. We finished off the day by taking Alison to her favorite restaurant, Bugaboo Creek. They brought her a birthday cake and sang to her with their puppet moose. The look on her face was hysterical. She talked about it all night long.
(Heather was with my parents until cupcake time, then she wanted to come back!)
Heather had her first "real" dentist appointment yesterday. She did awesome and the dentists loved her. She had no cavities and handled them cleaning her teeth well(I wasn't sure she would with her oral issues.) The dentist pointed out that her teeth change texture halfway down. She said they see this in kids that were sickly in utero or as newborns. She said it doesn't affect anything, but I found it interesting.
After the dentist I took her to her school for the first day. I walked her in and told her I would see her in a few hours. She quickly hugged me and went off to see what there was to play. I hope the next time I take her, she let's me leave as easily!
Well, I am off to take Heather out to play in this unseasonably hot weather.
We are home. The bags are unpacked and the laundry is done. We had a great time and I wish we had been able to stay longer. We had to get home for DH to get back to work.
First we headed to Storyland. It was a long ride, but didn't seem like it because the girls were awesome in the car. They were beyond excited to go.
Alison driving our swan boat
DH & Heather on their swan boat
Dh, Heather & Alison on the Flying Shoe ride
Rock a bye baby tree
Heather sitting on the Bamboo Chutes (Flume ride)
DH & Alison. This picture is taken as the flume heads down the huge hill. I had to buy this one..lol.
We stayed at Storyland until closing and then headed 2 hours to my parent's house in New Hampshire. The girls were equally excited to get there and spend some time being spoiled by my parents.
We spent the entire next day out on the boat. My dad had bought a new raft called a "bomber" and we rotated riding on it. It was a lot of fun. We parked the boat in the center of the massive lake and spent a few hours swimming too. Heather found it fascinating to jump off the boat in the middle of the lake. (No need to panic, she had a life vest and I was right there!) The pictures of me riding the raft along with some other good shots are on my mom's camera, so hopefully she will email them to me this week.
"Dad, are you sure there are no animals in this water?
The next day we left Heather with my parents and the 3 of us headed to Water Country. It was HOT out. It hit record high everyday we were up there. We had a blast at water country though. Alison is a wild child and went on everything. Nothing was too high, fast or scary for that girl.
We took the girls to the beach today. Heather took a few minutes to convince to go in the water. She wasn't impressed with the waves and salty water at first. But once she got in, she wouldn't come out. We had perfect weather and a lot of fun.
Perfect Weather
Wait mom, let me pose!
This Photo courtesy of Heather..lol
Cheetos and the beach, life is good
Heather found a ride just her size
Alison on the carousal (she was smiling until I embarrassed her with a picture..lol)
We took the girls to a family fun fair in our town last night. I brought my camera but left it in my car, and I was too busy lazy, so there are no pictures. Heather decided she would try the moonwalk. She got in, did one little jump and cried for me to rescue her..lol. I was proud of her for trying though. Alison volunteered herself to be dunked in the dunk tank. Her friend Tommy spotted her and rushed over to dunk her. Very amusing. We met up with my friend there and his kids. His daughter is Heather's age and she loves being with her little friend. They spent over an hour together checking out the firetrucks and police car. Too cute.
This morning we headed to the library for a story craft. Alison made a hat to wear to the parade next week. I will definitely get a picture of this hat! Heather told Alison "I will let you share your hat with me." LOL!
Heather has started using "ing" on the end of her words. Now instead of "we are taking a walk." it is "we are walking". But she also uses it on the end of most words now too. It is pretty amusing.
(After blowing bubbles) "that was fun bubbling!"
"Hey Alison, let's go hopscotching."
"we are finished play doh'ing"
Heather decided that her name is no longer Heather. She now insists that you call her "different". I asked her where she got that from and she says she doesn't know. Nothing can convince her to go by Heather. It has been a few days where she won't answer unless you say "different" and she introduces herself as this too. Her imaginary friends are still sticking around too. Jane and Wendy. She says they live in our house and she gets irritated when they randomly vanish mid game. I never claimed my child was normal..lol!
We had our last covered session of Occupational therapy today. Now begins the battle with the insurance company again. Yuck. She will be beginning speech therapy at her current OT place, where they can continue working on oral strength as well as her speech. her vocabulary is amazing. She is definitely the smartest 3 year old I've met. But her articulation isn't great because of the low muscle tone and tongue thrust. Her stutter has also gotten pretty severe. Hopefully the new therapist will be great.
After OT this morning, we sped drove to Alison's school in time to catch the last 15 minutes of her Gymboree Day(field day). Tomorrow is her class walk in the woods(if the rain stops) and next week is her field trip to the farm and portfolio day(I go see her work).
Last but not least, I got my car back yesterday. Apparently fate does not want me driving this car. My alternator went and my vacuum hose broke and both had to be replaced. Luckily the mechanic felt bad for me and charged me only for the alternator with no labor. Let's hope this is it for a very long time.
We had a good Easter. I am glad all of the rushing around is over though. Saturday night after dying eggs, I took Alison to our town's flashlight eater egg hunt. It was 25 degrees out and windy. A dark football field, over 200 kids and each child gets a number and has to find 2 eggs in the field with their number(remember there are hundreds of eggs). No parents allowed to help. Needless to say, it turned out to be not very fun for most of the kids and all of the parents. After a touch of hypothermia Alison found her eggs, turned them in for a bag of candy and we headed to the car where we sat in front of the heaters until our hands regained feeling. Sunday Alison was up before 5:30. I got up with her and she looked through her basket and then we headed to Dunkin Donuts while Bob and Heather slept. Heather woke up and the first thing she did was scream"yay, Easter time." She was so excited when she saw her basket. Then she asked why the Easter bunny didn't stay and play with her..lol. We headed out to my Aunt's house, got a little(a lot) lost on the way. Heather was overwhelmed for a bit but eventually wandered away from me and even went off to play with the kids. She was quite proud of herself after. My Aunt and Uncle had a massive egg hunt for the kids and also hid Easter bags full of goodies for each of them. The kids loved it. We headed home late afternoon and stopped by the in laws house for a while. That is where Heather finally realized she couldn't handle any more stimulation and melted down. Too much for her(and me) in one day. So we headed home and got the kids to bed. Bob headed off and worked the overnight shift, got home at 6 this morning and headed off to his other job from 8-5:30(and working after 6-10). Anyone else think that is a tad too much for anyone??
Dying eggs:
Easter Morning:
Egg Hunt with Cousins:
Heather playing with her cousin Jack
A little Overwhelmed
I am still alive. Life has been hectic and I have avoided the computer because I have had no extra energy or time.
I took the girls to see the Easter Bunny. I am getting ready now to decorate eggs with the girls and there is a flashlight egg hunt tonight for Alison. Heather keeps asking me if the Easter bunny is going to come play with her at her house. She isn't quite understanding it all. I hope you all have a nice Easter.
Today is the first day of spring. Sure, it looked sunny and nice out today. But once you stepped out the door, the arctic winds whipped your hair into a not so fashionable up-do and your hand froze to the metal railing on the porch. Lovely! So when is spring really going to get here?
To answer Tracey's question about the school evaluation- I finally got a call back from the Sped lady and she gave me the address to mail my request letter too. She told me that they will move quickly with it. Alison's Dr. is on top of it and said that if they pull anymore crap(aka trying to talk me out of evaluating her), he is going to call personally and tell them off. Only he didn't say it so nicely..lol! I also mailed in the request for Heather to be evaluated by our town. Hopefully they will step up and offer her some OT.
Totally random, but is it me or is American Idol really bad this season? I can not get into it. At all. Blah.
Heather has gotten quite the little attitude suddenly. Or maybe not so suddenly. She now likes to put her hands on her hips, cock her head slightly, do a long blink and then ask you "why you make me sad?"
My parents took Alison with them yesterday to my grandparent's 50th party. (Heather and me chose to bail out due to an attitude problem. Hers, not mine for once.) Anyhow, Alison was out until almost 11 pm. Came home, had dinner and got into bed close to midnight. What time was she up for the day you ask? 5 am. Are these the joys of motherhood?
Alison has taken up a new hobby the past few weekends. She draws a card Saturday night for our elderly neighbors and leaves it taped to their door. Then Sunday she goes over to make sure they got it and spends some time talking to them. They always call after to tell me how she makes their day. She has a huge heart.
Heather had her 3 year old check up today. It was quite an adventure. To say the least. She decided she wasnt going and refused to get dressed. Are we 3 or 13? I finally convinced(bribed) her to get ready and we left. The nurse told her they wanted to weigh her and get her height first. Heather refused and clung to me for dear life. The nurse being ever so helpful told Heather that if she didn't let her weigh her, that she couldn't go home. Nice. Then Heather went from panicked to terrified and traumatized. The nurse tried 3 times to get her to let her weigh her. No luck. Once she left the room, I got Heather's height and weight. The joys of motherhood. The Dr came in and Heather calmed down. She trusts her Dr, which is nice. Heather willingly let her examin her and talked constantly about how she was now 3..lol. The Dr said she wants Heather back in occupational therapy and is fighting the insurance. She also said that she feels Heather should go back into physical therapy. So we will be looking into that again. She told me Heather should go to the Special Ed preschool here next fall. She thinks Heather needs it and said she sees great things from there. I am crossing my fingers that Heather gets a spot.
Did I mention that Heather is 41 inches tall and 37 pounds? Holy cow. No wonder my back hurts.
My baby went to bed a feisty 2 year old and woke up a feisty 3 year old. First thing out of her mouth was "it's my birthday today!" Second was"can I have cake now?" She can not wait for cake and gifts tonight.
Don't panic, I won't force you to read another birthday post on how amazing she is and how she has overcome so many struggles in her short life. I think you all know what she went through as a baby(and continues through to some extent.) She is an amazing, caring, strong little girl and she has brought so much happiness to our lives.
Today was possibly her last day of OT. Unless our insurance decides not to stink. We are putting it through as oral therapy this time in hopes that they will let her continue. Heather was very sad to say goodbye. Her therapist Lori was equally as sad. She made Heather cupcakes for today and bought her a gift. So thoughtful. Heather loved it. There aren't even enough words to describe what a change Lori has made with Heather and how thankful I am that she came into our lives. She has a place in my heart and I will be always grateful for her help. I did get some pictures, but most turned out awful. My camera was being a booger and wouldn't cooperate.
you can't see Heather, but she is inside! This swing stimulates your vestibular system and works on balance
Hi Mom
Working hard on getting out of the ball pit. When we started therapy, Heather would freak in this, now she lasts up to 10 minutes in it.
Climbing through the obstacle course
Riding on the "scooter"
Just a quick update. Heather saw the Dr the other morning. She had 2 throat swabs and 2 sinus swabs to look for bacteria and infections. She didn't even make a peep through them, she was so sick. They were all negative. Her Dr said her lungs sounded awful and sent us to the hospital. She was so good having her x-rays done that the tech called in the other tech to see her. She could not believe that Heather could stay positioned alone and do what they asked. Heather was scared, but I think she just felt too yucky to complain. :( The Dr said she has something going on in the lower lobe in her lung. She decided we could go home. Her cough is still awful, but she is acting more like herself and her fever is down. So I am watching it carefully and hoping that the medicines get rid of it quickly. I think we will attempt therapy tomorrow, where we missed 2 last week.
So what else could possibly go wrong this week(I know Aimee will slap me for saying that since it always makes even more things go wrong!) But seriously..come on now. I need a break. I have been in this house with 2 sick kids for 48 hours straight now. Without even stepping outside.
Alison stayed home yesterday and was vomiting all day long. She was home again today since she looks like death and was bordering on dehydration. Heather has had the same awful head cold/virus we all did, but hers turned into croup and has progressively gotten worse. I know, most kids get croup and are fine. But this is Heather. Who has a narrow, floppy airway that likes to collapse. Anyone close to Heather remembers the many times she was very sick and the many times I spent in the hospital holding her. We have managed to avoid the hospital for a long time and hopefully it will continue through croup too. She looks awful, feels awful and is just a sick girl. :( I am watching her tonight and hoping we can stay home tonight and see the Dr in the morning.
Have I mentioned that Bob is now working 65 hours a week? Meaning I am a single mom while technically being married? Lovely week for these hours to begin, huh? So cross those fingers that Heather recovers easily and quickly(and hopefully without re-starting steroids.) And I promise to not complain so much in the future. ;O)
It is freezing here. Actually it is even colder than that. The wind was so fierce today that even fully bundled, I had to carry Heather and she had to hide her face in my coat. Her cheeks still got chapped some. Move over Tracey, Austin here we come.
I spoke with Alison's pediatrician today in depth. Have I mentioned how I love this Dr? She is amazing. I am so lucky to have found her. She is honest, caring, great with the girls and listens to my opinions without dismissing them right away like most Dr's. Anyhow.. I had really hoped that she was going to tell me there may be a chance this is a wrong diagnosis. No such luck. She said Tourette's is a very black and white thing. And Alison has it. She was very helpful though with some tips and advice on dealing with the bullying and the school. She slightly disagrees with the psychiatrist though and thinks that we may want to try medication for the tics. She said that if they can control some of them and reduce the pain they cause, then it is worth it. I will bring it up again when we see the psychiatrist in 2 weeks. I hate medication. Hate it. I don't like to take it or give it to my kids unless I am totally convinced it is worth it to them. We will see what he says about it though. I am waiting on a call back from Alison's school to see what they have to say. I am dreading dealing with them.
In other Balducci news, Bob started a second job last week. He decided he would rather work more than stay with the kids nights and weekends while I work.(insert eye roll here...) So now he will see the girls about 2 hours a week. I know we need the money, but I also need a break every now and then. Especially on days like today where we are all sick and I have been with the kids for 12 hours now. 
I don't even know how to start this post or what to write exactly. It has been a long week and a horrible morning. My mother saw the breast specialist yesterday and will be having surgery Friday to remove this lump. I pray to god that it is benign.
This morning we saw a new Dr that our pediatrician referred Alison to because of her anxiety and tics. After filling out the 30 page(no joke) questionnaire and talking to him for almost 2 hours, he feels that our pediatrician was right about Alison. He said he is 99% sure that we are dealing with Tourettes. I can honestly say I was not shocked, this has been in the back of my mind as an option for months. But my heart sank hearing it anyways. We are trying her on a few non-prescription things first to see if that can help her some. He wants her school to set up a 504 plan(Or something like that) to make sure she gets what she needs in school. I am sad and terrified all at once.
I naively thought that Alison didn't notice these tics until last week. I told her I had a tickle in my eye and she looked at me and said,"I get those in my face and I need to do this(mimics a tic). But I tell myself-don't do it, you look stupid. But I can't help it and do it. I didn't tell you because I thought-wow there is something really wrong with me." 
Is it Monday yet??
Oy vey. These girls are exhausting when together. They have been bickering non stop since 7 am today. I blame part of it on cabin fever. But it is just too cold to go out and they are both fighting off a cold. Today is my brother's birthday. I am hoping that I can distract the kids for a bit by having them make him a card. Think it will work? Probably not. Heather is a crayon Nazi and hogs them all.
I leave you with a few recent pictures. Obviously not from today since they aren't fighting.
