Top 6, Bottom 2 and 3 In-between

There's lots that I need to catch up on so I thought I would categorize them on a scale of positiv.ity in my life.

I'm glad that there's more tops than anything else :)

I will start with the bottom though so I might end on a happy note.

Bottom #1

I've switched my antidepressant and for the first few days things were really good.  However, the last several have been down.  I've been so sharp with my kids and extremely emotional.  It's pretty embarrassing when I cry for no real reason in public.  I really need to get this under control.  I'm hoping that the medication just hasn't built up enough in my system.  I'll give it a week or two more.  

Bottom #2

We started our two week trial of the etogenic diet.  Remember this post?  Well, I talked to the dietitian a while later and I told her we wanted to really give it a good shot before we ruled it out as an option...just so we could say we had tried everything.  She said a "good shot" would be a two week trial.  Yikes!

So I looked at our schedule and tried to find the best two weeks in the near future to do it.  We started today.  It actually didn't go too bad.  He ate the solids at breakfast and lunch but wouldn't eat at dinner.  He wouldn't drink all of the cream at any meal though...which he would have to if we did the diet.  I've ordered a chocolate syrup that we could use since it's low calorie/carb.  Until it comes I'm still using the powder that he's used to.  We couldn't do that on the real diet but this is just to see if he will comply with the restrictions.  The syrup should taste pretty similar to the powder.

I also ordered some expensive cheese crackers to try and replace his beloved "fish crackers".  When they arrived I took a taste and they were nasty!  However, when Ben tried them he ate the whole bag.

Anyway, he did ask several times for things he couldn't have but most of the time I was able to distract him with something.  We'll see how tomorrow goes :)

In Between #1

A few of you have asked about Ben's walking.  I'm sorry didn't post sooner.
When I was first planning this post a couple of days ago this ranked as an in between but now it should probably be in my "top" list.  Andy brought him home that night and said there were no visible breaks.  I guess that was good but we still didn't know what was wrong.  Our friend said it could be something as simple as a sprain to something called hip dysplasia.  He said the way he was keeping his leg kind of stiff and swinging it forward made it look more like a hip thing.  He suggested we put him in a walking boot for a couple of days and see if that helped.  We pulled out the tiny little boot that we had for Josh when he broke his leg when he was 2 and that we also used when Matt broke his leg when he was 2.  He looked so pitiful with that and his helmet on.  I tried to get a picture of him but as soon as I put him down he would immediately run toward me crying.  So my attempts look pretty pitiful too.  I didn't leave it on him too long.  The past couple of days things have seemed to improve...he hasn't crawled for a day and a half and his gait looks a little more normal...well, normal for him. 
So, hopefully it just works itself out.  Thank you all for your concern.

In Between #2
Again, this one could probably be moved to my "top" list now but I'll just tell you about it here. 
Ben had his first IEP yesterday.   Having graduated in Special Ed and having worked with a child with Autism for a few years I had attended enough of these to know that they are not always pleasant experiences.  At least with my experiences, it was often "parent against professionals" (with one or two parents in a room with a bunch of other people (we had seven) you can easily feel outnumbered) and with the emotions of a child with special needs thrown in it can make for a negative meeting.  I had already had positive experiences with the professionals that we'll be working with so I had no reason to be worried but you just never know.  Well, it turned out beautifully.  We ended up bringing Ben with us and I was worried that it would make things harder if he was not happy and needing attention but he was a little angel and played happily the whole time.  He charmed everyone there.  Everyone was very kind and the mood was light and we were able to joke around a bit.
The thing I thought was funny though was that the head teacher has made no effort to conceal that fact that she is scared.  She's worried about Ben having a seizure in class.  When we met with her for testing she said something like, 'Aren't you worried that something will happen or we'll do something wrong?  I would be so worried?'  Doesn't exactly inspire confidence, but I can see where she's coming from.  It's always scary when Ben has a seizure but I think for most people, after they've dealt with one or two they are more at ease.  It was really cute too because after she talked about how nervous she was she said that one of her sons was epileptic!  I asked her why she was so nervous then and she explained that he had only ever had one tonic clonic (grand mal) and a few smaller ones and once he was put on medicine he was okay.
She's so cute...I just thought it was so funny.
Anyway, a sigh of relief for a very positive IEP!

They were ready for Ben to start mid June but I told them I thought I would like to keep him home through the summer and have him start in the fall with his siblings.  They offered the possibility of having him come one day a week through the summer to slowly get him (and me) used to the idea.  I thought that sounded reasonable so I agreed.  Then in the fall he will be going Mon-Thurs in the mornings.  (They let me pick if I wanted morning or afternoon.  I thought that was so nice)  I think that will work out very nicely since I'm assuming Matt will be doing Morning Kindergarten and they will get home about the same time.
I don't know what I'll do with my mornings open...well, I take that back, I know exactly what I'll do, but I think it will be hard to get used to :)

Okay, moving on...this is turning into a super long post  :( sorry

In Between #3
My sweet sister and her great husband are moving............................far away...to New Hampshire.
Dan has just finished grad school and has been given a wonderful job opportunity there in Meredith, NH.  It looks super gorgeous and exciting.  What a fun adventure...and I am thrilled for them, but oh how I will miss them.  We will probably see them even less than we have the last two years that they've been in Northern Idaho.  I will just have to be better at emails, skype and of course, snail mail.  Who doesn't love a good old fashioned letter in the mailbox?  I'm not promising much Ang, but I'll do my best.
We love you so much and wish you all the best guys!

Top #1
My oldest child, my Joshy Squashy turned 9!
I can't believe it was nine years ago that we welcomed our first baby into our home.  It was such a learning experience...full of joy, love and long nights. 
Josh is such a blessing to us. 
I love his sense of humor.
I love how smart he is and that he uses big words that amaze me all the time.
I love that he loves to read.
I love his smile.
I love his tenderness.
I think he is such a handsome boy!
What a guy.

Josh was kind and let me do a short run in the morning before we opened up his gifts.

I love the expressions in the next ones.

 

Then it was off to soccer games.

Grandpa and Grandma Bryan came for lunch.  Josh chose Chinese.  He and Andy are the only ones in our family that enjoy that type of thing so I gave the others a pep talk before we went and made them promise they wouldn't complain.  They did well.  They tried some food and even enjoyed the lo mien noodles slightly and then just entertained themselves (with chopsticks) while everyone else ate. 
They came to the house for a little bit afterward.
Ben and Merill had a nice time with the trains...

From one railroad man to another...

I had planned a special cake for Josh.  His absolute favorite treat is root beer floats.  I found a recipe for a root beer float cake.  I couldn't wait to try it out.  I've been saving it for literally months.
At first Josh said he liked it but then after noticing he hadn't taken more than one or two bites I asked him again and he told me he really didn't.  He felt bad and hadn't wanted to hurt my feelings.  Bless his heart.
Abby and I really enjoyed it :)

The next night we celebrated with the Olsens.
This is how Ben arrived at their house...

 

He loves his sunglasses so much that he popped the lenses out of them.  He literally wears them every time we get in the car.

It was a festive evening complete with Josh's choice of meal: meatloaf, rice pilaf, carrots and bread sticks.

For dessert we had real root beer floats. :o)

 

We love you Josh!

Top #2

My mom and I made a quilt for Trina, my good friend.  She, along with many others, has been so helpful and supportive especially since Ben was born.  

Mom really did most of the work on the quilt but I was able to help piece it a little bit and then bind it.

I think it turned out lovely.  

Thank you so much Trina for being such an amazing friend!

This is the picture I know Trina would want me to post...

and then this is the picture I really love :)  Isn't she cute?

okay, you're hangin' in there...the next few will be super short!

Top #3

I am losing weight!  It's happening and I'm so thrilled.  I can see my goal as attainable.  I'm just crossing my fingers that I can keep it up!

Top #4

There is a chance that Andy and I will be going to Minnesota for the fourth biannual Dravet Syndrome Conference.  I really think it would be a positive and beneficial experience for us.  I'm working on Andy since it will probably replace our 10th anniversary trip that he has been looking forward to.  I think we could still make it a fun trip but in his own words he has "no desire to see The Mall of America" :)

We'll see...

Along with that, we just found out last night that Dr. Dravet herself is coming to Utah right before the conference in August.  It sounds like most families that would like to will have an opportunity to meet with her.  What an opportunity!  I'll keep you posted on that.

Top #5

I have a new favorite dessert to make, eat and give away.

Found it on Pinterest...of course...

by the way, this is not my own photo...I stole it from the website

 
Chocolate Chip Cheesecake Bars

Don't they look amazing?

And they do not disappoint!

And they are so simple to make too!

Here's the link to the recipe.

I didn't have any of the peanut butter/chocolate chip swirls so I just made them with plain chocolate chips and they were delish!

Top #6

Okay, finally, my last "top" is that it is lilac season.

again...this is not my picture, although it could be.  we have some exactly like this outside our bedroom window.  I'm just too lazy to go snap a pic right now.

I have always loved lilacs.  Their scent is intoxicating. For a while they were my absolute favorite flower ever, but there are some others that I mentioned at the end of this post that have crept up the rungs of the "favorite floral species ladder" to sit next to the lilac.

image courtesy google images

Today I went into Josh's class to help with reading time.  I was reading a book with a small group and the students were taking turns.  The girl reading read the word "lilacs" and pronounced it "lilocks" as I know many people do.  One little boy in the group interjected and said, "It's lilacks".  Before a real debate ensued I hurriedly assured them that people say it both ways and that they are both fine.

As we moved on, I heard the little boy say quietly, "Lilacs are my favorite flower."

It thought it was so cute :)

After that last picture I had a moment where I thought Blogger must have a limit on how long a post can be because for some reason I couldn't get my cursor to go down any lower on the screen :)

Well, I apologize.  I should have broken this post up into several separate ones but it seemed less daunting this way.

Thanks for reading my ramblings.

p.s. after a post this long there's no way I'm going back to proof read so I'm sorry for any misspellings, improper grammar and the like...deal with them :)