Wow.  I can’t believe I haven’t written about this.  Emma’s on a new medication!  It’s kind of big news around here.  Well, you know how she’s swallowing pills now (another milestone that deserved its own post, by the way).  Since she started swallowing pills, we decided to try a medication that we once tried about a year and a half ago.  This medication was wonderful.  It gave her the focus and clarity she lacked( by the way I’m talking about an ADHD med), and it didn’t cause her to act (or feel) drugged or lethargic.  I. Loved. It.  Problem was, she didn’t love it.  This pill came in a capsule form, so back in the day (you know, pre-swallowing-pills), we would empty the capsule and dissolve it with her other pills into Sunny D (which is, by far, the sweetest tasting juice I have found).  This pill was so bitter, she refused to take it.  She wouldn’t swallow the syringe with the dissolved medicine.  Brett and I tried it.  We didn’t blame her.  The stuff was horrid.  The most bitter and metalic tasting medicine you could imagine. Which begs the question, if you’re gonna make a kid’s medicine, please make it palatable.  Am I right?  Whatever.  That’s another story.

Okay, so back to the present.  The girl is swallowing pills!  We thought, “hey, let’s give this old medication another try!”  And we had precious few days before school started to get this medication in her system.  So we tried.  We waited for a few days.  We increased the dosage (yes, this is all under her psychiatrist’s supervision). It started working better.  In the first week of school, we had her taking it in the morning.  She took it in the morning last time, though the doc warned us that this could cause drowsiness.  Duly noted. After getting up every morning last week around 5:30, and falling asleep every chance she got in the car, we decided to switch to a night time dosage.  She slept in longer.  She wasn’t falling asleep in the car.  She didn’t want to watch TV all day.  She’s got more energy.  And….(drumroll please)…she’s got that focus that we’ve been waiting to see.  Hallelujah!!  Now, we’re not holding our breaths here.  She’s still getting acquainted with the school schedule.  Things could change.  But, so far so good!  I only hope this is the beginning of a successful year in 1st grade!!

The Homework Machine

Shel Silverstein

The Homework Machine , oh the Homework Machine,

Most perfect contraption that’s ever been seen.

Just put in your homework, then drop in a dime,

Snap on the switch, and in ten seconds time,

Your homework comes out, quick and clean as can be.

Here is is – “nine plus four?” and the answer is “three”.

Three? Oh me…

I guess it’s not as perfect As I thought it would be.

Did anyone love that poem as much as me?  Did anyone wish that an actual homework machine existed?  I know I did.  I still do.  It’s funny, though, I used to teach middle school.  I loved it and had not a problem doling out homework.  But I did try to be mindful of my students and remember, myself, back in the day when I had lots of homework to do.  Unless it was an emergency, I didn’t give out homework on the weekends…that sort of thing.

Anyway, fast forward to now and I still want that homework machine!  It is such a struggle to get Emma to do her homework.  If we don’t start her homework within the first 5 minutes of getting home, there’s no chance she’ll do it later.  No chance. And if we have ballet that day, forget it.  Speech therapy?  Chances are slim to none.  Fortunately, her teachers are very understanding and accept all accommodations we submit.  They have a reading log to fill in each week.  Emma traces the words of the title that I write.  Along with that, on Mondays it’s writing practice.  Tuesdays is sight words, Wednesdays is math days, and Thursdays are Internet activity days.  So I can adjust all of her homework as needed, and they are happy with what she submits.  They understand her lack of focus.  It’s frustrating, though, as a mom (of course) and former teacher because I want nothing more than to help her with her work.  And it seems like no matter how many workbooks or manipulatives (like counters) I get, it doesn’t do the trick.   So frustrating.

She really loves working on puzzles...this one she completed all by herself!

She LOVES to read to the class!

Emma writes best on a slanted chalk board

How does homework run in your house?  Any tricks up your sleeve that you care to share??  (while on the topic, Mason’s science project was a lima bean that was supposed to sprout.  I think he had more fun squishing it!)

Emma's new favorite game!

Emma and Mason got Candy Land for Christmas. (side note: please don’t call CPS on my for not having this iconic game before now!)  They LOVE this game and play it at school and up at my parents’ cabin…they know the concept.  Kind of.  I’d say Mason has it down more than Emma.  And this is where I become puzzled.  Emma, who is almost 6 and has developmental disabilities, still needs a lot of help with this game.  It’s a great game to practice colors, counting, taking turns, patience….need I go on?  Well, these are all things that Emma needs help with in her every day life.  We still struggle with counting, colors, and many social graces.

So, not 5 minutes into the game she is restless, antsy, and starting to kind of tune out.  She’s not focusing and she would rather play with the game box than the game.  No joke.  At this point, I’m getting restless and antsy…trying to think of different ways to keep her engaged in a game.  What’s a weary mom to do at 8:00 am on a Sunday?  Did I forget to mention the time?  Yeah, it might have something to do with it. (another side note: Emma’s on a daytrana patch that helps with her ADD…takes about an hour to kick in)

Of course I will try, try again.  Does anyone else share this frustration?  Do you have any advice for me?  I’m certain this sounds familiar to some of you out there!

Oh, and HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!