Merry Christmas...

...and Happy New Year!!

My family and I, wish you and yours a very merry holiday season!

xoxox

bullets

What we've been doing lately, aside from slacking on this poor little 'ole blog, in bullet form:

I am in love with Michael's new kicks!

• Doctor's appointments for the boy - MRIs, x-rays, neurologists, orthotics, physical medicine, pediatrician, neurosurgeon, dentist....you name it, we've probably seen a doctor for it in the last 2 months.  And there's 4-5 more appointments to go before Thanksgiving.
• Insurance...and all the paperwork and headaches that go with them not paying what they should and trying to come up with the money for what they don't cover.
• School and all that goes with it.

We heard Michael sneak out of his room after bedtime and we found him reading a comic book (The Simpson) at the top of the stairs with his partner in crime.

• Conductive Education, a unique therapy-like program from Hungary that Michael has been participating in during the summer and after school.  We're thinking of signing him up for their 5-week/4 hours a day program starting in January...but have to figure out how to get him out of school without penalizing him.  We're also applying for a grant to help fund his therapy.  It's $1,200-$1,700 per session depending on the session type and the hours in that session...and our insurance company doesn't cover this program (nor does any other insurance company in the US).
• Continuing to have Michael self-feed...he's getting better at it, but we have to keep an eye on him because sometimes he'll feed the top of his head or the dog.
• I'm starting a photography business...so I'm testing the waters with my tippy toes by doing some portfolio building.  Getting my business plan and marketing and websites/social media up and running.
• I was able to attend one of my nephew's football games, finally (usually Gary goes to the games and I stay home with Michael, but the last game of the season was free and we thought we'd try it as a family).  Michael would have liked it more without the announcer (not sure what it is about the loudspeaker voices, but they really upset him).  He did great otherwise and loved to cheer and clap.  

That's our nephew with the fumble-recovering-game-winning play, in OT no less!!  Go Dillon!!

• Attempting to keep the house clean...or at least making sure we have food and clean underwear. 
• Michael's name/number came up for our state/county's waiver program that will help with medical bills, so we've started the application process...it takes about 3 months to complete and become officially approved.  We're just starting the 2nd month - hoping for a January start date.
• Volunteer work with the Care Train (an organization that raises money and provides toys and food vouchers for needy local families at Christmas).  I'm on the auction team, so I solicit businesses for donations of goods and services and money.  This year was a record breaker:  we raised over $150,000 for our community....we love our hometown (except for the cold weather!)
• Volunteer work with Brighter Beginnings, where Michael receives Conductive Education.  I helped redesign their website and they've asked me to join their Board of Directors.  It is my hope to help make a difference for Michael and all the kids.
• Halloween was a success for Michael.  He stayed out and watched the kids trick-or-treat for almost an hour - his longest yet.  He cheered for the Buzzes, Woodys, and princesses.  :)  He was dressed as an astronaut.

• Working on cleaning closets, going through clothes & toys, trying to get rid of stuff before we're trapped inside with tons of crap all winter long....and suffocating.
• In between all the craziness, we went to Florida for vacation.  It was nice and we had great weather.  Lots of time for Michael to play in the sand and the water.  It was relaxing, but it took a TON of work to make it happen, if that makes any sense.  You know I'll blog more about this later, with lots of pictures.

Yes, he buried himself in the sand...

...and he had a GREAT time doing it!

Hopefully, I'll be back sooner rather than later to share more stories.  

another sister trip to Seattle - Feb 2010

Okay.  THIS will be the last old post I have to catch up on.  Really.  I think.  Geez Louise, I have been so behind on blogging some of my favorite adventures!  I better just get to it then, huh?

We had some airline credits that we had to use or lose, but only enough to put towards one ticket.  Where to go, where to go...and in February?  After discussing a whole bunch of ideas, Gary decided that I should visit my sister Keni (again-yippee!)...especially since he was going to head to Florida the following month for a fishing tournament with his dad.  Well, what was a girl to do but honor her husband's decision?  :)

So I booked a flight to Seattle, with a connection in Chicago...in February....during winter....the same weekend we had a forecast for 9-16" of snow.  Did I mention that it was a non-refundable flight??  Yeah, I was a little concerned I wasn't even going to make it to the airport, let alone to Seattle.  Oh, and if I did make it to Seattle, I was in for a treat:  rain predicted for my entire trip.

Luckily, I made it out of Columbus on time.  Only to be stuck in Chicago - but only for a couple of extra hours.  The lady I sat next to on the plane was also flying to Seattle to babysit her granddaughter, so we had a lovely dinner together at Harry Caray's restaurant.  It sure did help to pass the time!

Josh picked me up from the airport around 11:00pm their time (2:00am my time), so we didn't stay up too late chatting...I was whipped.

The next morning, I was gently woken up by my cutie-pie niece and I went with Josh to drop her off at preschool.  It stopped raining on the way home, so Josh and I went for a little hike near their house while my sister finished up her work stuff.  Then Keni and I went to get a mani-pedi (they have early morning happy hour discounts - so fun and great marketing on their part!) while we talked about home decorating ideas.  I asked her to stop at Home Depot and I ran in (wearing those cheap-o pedicure flipflops--quite a site, I'm sure) and grabbed a bunch of paint swatches and idea books.

We went back to her house, grabbed Josh and then went to happy hour at The Tides, in Gig Harbor.  We ate a bunch of appetizers and had a few drinks while picking out wall colors, tile colors, countertop colors, etc. etc.  It was very fun for me to help give them ideas, knowing that I wasn't going to do ANY of the work (especially since Gary and I were still working on his parents' house)!!  BTW, Keni and Josh's remodel turned out fabulous!!

That evening, Gabby schooled me in x-box playing Lego Batman.  I totally sucked and she totally rocked.  In fact, she had to put my guy on "hold" a few times because I was keeping her guy from advancing and even told me, "Aunt Val, I think you need more practice".

The next day Josh and Gabby left for an overnight trip with a friend and her dad.  Keni and I took off on a trip to Ocean Shores, WA.  Another trip to the WA coast, but with a beachfront hotel (the Shilo Inn) and no hiking required.

(This is definitely something we don't have in Ohio.)

We got there in time to get settled in our room, pour a glass of wine and head to the beach for sunset.

It rained the entire drive to the coast (almost 3 hrs), but right when we got to the beach the skies seemed to brighten up around us in a giant circle.  So we spent a good hour walking around, taking pictures, drinking wine, being silly, etc.

(taken with my phone)

 Just when the sun went down and we were finished exploring, the skies darkened up again and started to rain.  We had to run back to the hotel, but the heavy rain came just as we made it inside.

We had a few restaurant options for dinner, but we drank so much wine we decided to just order a pizza and have it delivered to our room.  :)  We ate, played games (dirty scrabble) and read books.  We were out cold by 9:00 pm...so sad...but sleep was one thing we were looking forward too.  :)

The next morning, we drove Keni's car out onto the beach (totally legal there...and it was raining again) for another look at the angry, crashing waves.

We had the most delicious and hearty breakfast at the plainest looking dive of a diner (I can't remember the name of the place, but they were trying to sell the place to move closer to their children/grandchildren).  The husband and wife owners were a hilarious comedy team too.  So fun!

We fed our bellies and cruised the beach strip one more time...and did a quick stop at a jetty.

(Get off the rocks!!  It's dangerous!)

(a little blurry, but you get the idea of what happened...you should never, ever stand on a jetty...the dude above was lucky he wasn't knocked INTO the water)

(and these people evidently didn't learn or care that medics were carting someone off after being knocked around on the rocks by the waves)

After the jetty drama, we headed back to Keni's house, stopping at the mall on the way home, and then The Melting Pot for yet another happy hour.

The next day we took a hike across the Tacoma Narrows Bridge (do you remember that bridge from the History Channel and history books?? That was swaying crazily?? Famous for crashing into Puget Sound only 4 months after it was completed??

Yep, this is the same bridge, only brand spanking new).  It was crazy windy, but luckily not raining.  We were on the lookout for the local orca pod, but didn't see them.

this silly little girl makes my heart happy

 Making wishes.

On my last night, Keni and Josh went out to dinner (it was Valentine's Day after all) while I watched Gabby play SuperGirl and packed.

Later, we all hung out in their hottub to chill one last time before heading home...which was quite an adventure because I got stranded in Chicago overnight because the Columbus airport was snowed in.  I took advantage of my extra day of vacation and had one of my favorite Chicago pizza pies delivered to my hotel room (if only the Weber Grill delivered--that would have been heaven!).  I ate pizza while watching some chick flick and slept comfortably in a big 'ol bed....much better than the other option of camping out on a cot at the airport, for sure!  Good call Gary.  :)

I cannot wait to visit with my sister again (I wish we lived closer) - we always have a great time together!

Michael's summer "school"

What we wanted Michael to learn over the summer:

• toilet training
• self-feeding
• more walking
• learning numbers through 100 (or even 150)
• time (like 1 o'clock, 2 o'clock, etc.)

What Michael has actually learned:

• how to be a diaper houdini (he can take his diaper off, but still leave his shorts on)
• how to be "naked boy" (he can take off his diapers AND shorts AND shirt AND socks...and he can almost get his shoes and AFOs off)
• how to open up his bedroom door (to escape a 'time out' or when he doesn't want to go to sleep)
• how to open up the door to the garage and escape to outside (I was mowing the backyard, came down the side yard to the front and found M in the front yard about 15-20 scoots away from the street-yikes!!  He was quite proud and very happy with himself.)
• how to open the fridge and get his sippy cup
• how to open up the basement door, turn on the light, turn on the tv, and watch whatever HE wants to watch
• how to find the computer keyboards, no matter where we hide them, and run off with them (usually to the stairs)
• he knows his numbers 1-36 and the number 100 (because I sometimes tell him that he can be all done on the toilet when I finish counting to 100...so as soon as I start counting, he immediately points to 100 and signs "all done")
• he also knows the numbers 26 and 62 because one number is the weather channel and the other number is the golf channel
• he knows how to stay up late and loves to sleep in late (he's never been a morning person)
• he knows how to feed himself - but only the foods he likes (applesauce and any green veggie, but is expanding on this)
• he is getting better at feeding himself and is not as messy
• he is learning how to wipe his face with a napkin after eating
• he can drink from a 2-handled open cup (with gentle reminders to not let go until the cup is back on the table)
• he knows how to turn and direct his non-swivel wheeled walker on smooth surfaces when there are objects in the way (he pushes my hand off his walker and tells ME to go-hahaha!!)

• he knows how to put his socks on, if we get them started over his toes
• he took 10-15 independent steps over the summer (down from more than 50 steps over the last couple of years, but better than the 5 or so he has been doing---but we learned from a recent MRI why his walking has decreased--he has a tethered spinal cord which will probably be surgically "released" or untethered later this fall)
• he knows when he's doing a task that he doesn't want to do, that if he signals he has to go potty, he'll probably get out of the task (for a little while) to go "play" in the bathroom, because as soon as I sit him on the toilet, he tells me he's all done.....and when I don't take him to the bathroom he usually really has to go (we can't win here)
• he knows how to ask for a movie like Shrek or Toy Story and as soon as we turn our backs, he changes the tv to the golf channel or world series of poker....and when we come back into the room, he changes it back to the movie (pretty slick boy, but we're on to you)

So, he's really acquired a whole bunch of skills over the summer!  Not necessarily the ones we envisioned, but progress none the less.  Here's to a great school year! 

(waiting on the bus....and the only one excited to be up early is the dog)

I might get stuff accomplished during the day now!!  Off to attack my To Do list - go me!

baklava bars

I love baklava.  I mean, I LOVE it!  So rich and sweet.  I never imagined being able to make them myself...just think of all those intricate layers they have going on.  Nope...that would be way too time-consuming.  I was so thrilled to find this recipe and even more excited that they tasted really, really good.  This is a prize-winning 2007 recipe from either Box Tops or Betty Crocker.  Your friends and family will love you even more if you share this with them.  If not, then you could always share with me!

baklava bars


Cookie Base
1 pouch (1 lb 1.5 oz) Betty Crocker sugar cookie mix
1/2 cup butter or margarine, softened
1/2 teaspoon grated lemon peel
1 egg


Filling
1-1/2 cups chopped walnuts
1/3 cup granulated sugar
1/4 cup butter or margarine, softened
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/8 teaspoon salt
8 frozen mini fillo shells (from 2.1-oz package)


Glaze
1/3 cup honey
2 TBSP butter or margarine, softened
1 TBSP packed brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon lemon juice
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon vanilla


Garnish
5 TBSP honey


Directions
Heat oven to 350 degrees.  Spray bottom only of 13x9-inch pan with cooking spray.  In large bowl, stir cookie base ingredients until soft dough forms.  Press dough in bottom of pan.  Bake 15 minutes.

Meanwhile, in medium bowl, stir walnuts, granulated sugar, 1/4 cup butter, 1 teaspoon cinnamon and the salt with fork until mixture is well mixed and crumbly.  Sprinkle nut mixture evenly over partially baked base.  With hands, crumble frozen fillo shells evenly over nut mixture.  Bake 18-20 minutes longer or until golden brown.


Meanwhile, in a small microwavable bowl, microwave 1/3 cup honey, 2 TBSP butter, the brown sugar, lemon juice and 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon uncovered on High 1 minute or until bubbly.  stir in vanilla.  Drizzle honey mixture evenly over fillo.  Cool completely, about 2 hours.  For bars, cut into 6 rows by 4 rows.  Before serving, drizzle 1/2 teaspoon honey over each bar.  Store covered at room temperature.

If you like baklava, this is good stuff.  I promise.


WARNING:  they are also a little messy, slightly sticky and very addicting.

snow skiing....in July

Yes.  I said snow in July.  You see, I'm still trying to catch up on blog posts and I have one more winter post to write about:  Michael snow skiing for the first time.  I'd like to think I saved this cold and snowy and bundled up post on purpose....to be written on a 95 degree hot and humid day in July to make us appreciate the differences between the two seasons.  But I didn't.  I just never got around to posting it.  We were just too darn busy and then days turned into weeks, which turned into months.  And now it's July and I couldn't not share a picture though...even if it is summer now.

I found this organization called TAASC (The Adaptive Adventure Sports Coalition) and they are a wonderful group of skilled volunteers that provide adaptive adventure sport and recreational opportunities for individuals with disabilities.  They teach people how to ski (snow and water), kayak, mountain bike, and play sled hockey...and a whole host of other adventurous things.

We have a lot of snow skiers in our family.  My sister, my b-i-l, G's brother, aunts and uncles and cousins....heck, even my mom did ski patrol for years and she's on a local race team where she consistently brings home 1st, 2nd, and 3rd place individual medals for super fast skiing, as well as skiing in France, Canada and all over the US.  Sooooo, we thought the boy should experience the slopes.

First thing was to get fitted in a bi-ski and get buckled in nice and tight.  Then off to the bunny hill to practice turning.  The volunteer (also named Gary) positioned me and G on either side of the slope and then had Michael practice leaning towards mom and dad to make those turns.  Another volunteer (Brandon) placed baby snowballs in Michael's lap and had M throw them to build up strength and accuracy in his arms, in addition to practicing left and right hand activities (this will help him later when they add the arm skis...which we didn't get to this year).

After a few trips down the bunny hill, Michael was getting a little bored.  Volunteer Gary asked if he could take him on a bigger hill and knowing that Michael loved all things fast, we said yes.

I was a little concerned how he was going to ride the ski lift while fitted in the bi-ski, but they slowed the lift down and they attached the bi-ski to the lift with a carabiner, as well as held on to Michael.  Whew, that was a little scary for me to watch.

The result of the big hill:  he LOVED it!  We could HEAR him "talking" coming down the hill and once he got to the bottom where we were, he signed "more" "go" and "bye" to us.  So funny!!

Michael enjoyed it so much that we took him back probably 5 more times.  I guess that means that Gary and I are going to have to learn how to ski now just to keep up with the boy!!!  So much for our plans to move to warmer climes.

happy father's day

Wishing a happy day for three very special guys.  

My dad.

Gary's dad.

And of course Gary!

Hope your day is a good one.  :)

spring break: a couple days in Michigan

We (G, me and M) were thinking of heading to Florida for Michael's spring break this year, but Gary had training at work that he couldn't miss.  I had a little bit of cabin fever, so I planned a little excursion to Michigan (the Northern Woods, as the locals call it) to visit my great aunt and uncle, Sarah Catherine and Charles (whom she fondly calls "Oppy").  I had not seen them in almost 20 years and they had only seen pictures of Michael.  I planned on taking the boy along thinking he might enjoy the trip, but I couldn't do the trip without help.  My dad has been doing lots of traveling, visiting friends and relatives that he was unable to see while caring for his wife Margi for almost 10 years.  So, I asked my dad to join us and he readily agreed!

We drove the 7 hours on a rare, beautifully sunshiny Wednesday at the end of March.  We got to our hotel, East Bay Lodge on Houghton Lake, around 7pm, ordered a pizza from Buccilli's Pizza (voted people's choice awards for the last 6 years, and it was very GOOD), shopped for breakfast foods that the hotel owner said he'd cook up for us the next day (are you kidding me??  What kind of hotel offers that kind of service with such a LOW room rate [$34/night]?!).

The hotel itself was old and creaky, but it was also a very laid back, comfortable place...perfect for us.  The view was outstanding.

Michael did great during the 7-hour drive, but I was completely surprised that he didn't fall asleep until after midnight.  He was so excited and bouncing on the bed...lots of energy that was bottled up during the car ride.  Oy vey, was I tired the next morning.

We met with Sarah and Oppy in the morning (an hour late because of the sleep issue I just mentioned) and had a lovely visit.  Michael was getting a little fidgety (okay, he was VERY restless), so we left and took him on a hike at a nearby park called, Marguerite Gahagan Nature Preserve.  The parking lot to the preserve was completely empty except for the 4-5 used condoms by the trail entrance.  OMG--eeewww (we didn't have the heart/nerve to tell the Oppy's about it...but other than that, it was a lovely walk)!  We didn't stay there long; only to do a quick loop around the shortest trail.  We drove back to our hotel to eat a quick lunch and to change Michael.  He seemed to do much better once we were on the move again.

We went back to the Oppy's and they had a private dining room set up for dinner.  Their daughter-in-law, (Mary Jo) and her two kids (Rachael and Nathan) joined us for dinner.  Great conversation, lots of reminiscing, and we really enjoyed meeting them.

Lots of talking and storytelling going on...

Took pictures of pictures-which seemed so wrong, but I didn't have a scanner and wanted to capture them somehow.  

After dinner, Mary-Jo had us follow her to Higgins Lake so we could talk some more and Michael could get out and explore.  To heck with the swings at the sandy park, he headed straight to the water...of course.  I was a little worried about how cold the water would be because the last of the lake ice just melted the day before.  Luckily, with the sunshine and the shallow area of the lake we were at, it actually wasn't that bad.  He had a blast playing in the sand and splashing in the water, while us adults had a good time talking.

After we left Higgins Lake, we drove back to our hotel and I was able to capture the sunset on Houghton Lake.  The boys waited in the car patiently.

The boy went to sleep at a decent time the 2nd night, so I was able to relax a bit with my dad and get some shut-eye myself, but I woke up at 1:00 am to some guy chopping wood DIRECTLY outside my open window. Are you kidding me?!?!  Who does that??  Apparently, the owners and all their friends were getting ready for the dog trials/camping that started the next afternoon...but still...at 1:00am?!?!

I made breakfast in their kitchen (the hotel owners left and we were the only ones left at the place...that's how laid back it was), while my dad did his best to entertain Michael.  We then headed back to Sarah and Oppy's to visit one last time before hitting the road. (I wish I had set my f/stop correctly so we could all be in focus, but I'll blame it on being in a hurry and not paying attention.)

On the way home, we stopped by Frankenmuth ("Michigan's Little Bavaria").  I'd heard great things about this little town and couldn't wait to see what it looked like.  It's been described to me as visiting Germany without leaving the country.  Since I was born in Germany but left before I was a year old, I really wanted to check this place out.

My dad had talked and talked about this famous chicken that I just HAD to try.  Well, we get to the restaurant and my dad says he'd rather eat at McDonald's (like he requested for most of the trip - he really likes their coffee).

My guess is that the restaurant was so good because of the great memories he had with Margi (my step-mom) and he decided to keep those memories rather than make new ones.  And that's okay with me.  She was sick for almost half of their 23 year marriage, so he doesn't have a lot of happy memories at the end.....he can keep this good memory for himself.  Plus, it's sometimes a crap shoot eating out with Michael.

This sign says, "Saying hello brings happiness in", or something like that.

The drive back home was pleasant and uneventful, except for the blasted seizure Michael had at a rest stop in Bowling Green.  It was nice to spend some time with my dad and especially cool to watch my dad and Michael together.  My dad loves to make silly faces and crazy sounds...and Michael enjoys it to say the least!

Here is Michael waiting in anticipation for something crazy from grandpa Jimmy....he knows it's gonna be funny.

Michael really, really had fun with him...because my dad is quite a goofy character!  :)  And apparently, being goofy runs in the family.