I’d like to start off by thanking my new readers.  Yesterday’s post must’ve hit a huge nerve.  I didn’t get so many comments, but I got tons of readers.  A lot more than normal.  Thank you!  And welcome.  I wish I could take credit for the beautifully written post.  Phoebe, of Herding Cats, was the author of this beautiful post.  So please, thank her!  If you’re new here, stay for awhile, poke around, and learn about my family, and my daughter Emma, who has special needs.

Emma went back to school on Tuesday. I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t totally looking forward to January 3rd.  This Christmas break was rough for us.  I was a little apprehensive about how Tuesday morning would go, getting her back into the routine.  I had every right to be apprehensive.  She was NOT ready for school.  NOT ready to get up early.  NOT ready to immediately get dressed, let along immediately do anything.  When she gets in these fits of rage, she honestly looks like she’s possessed.  And I really do not say that lightly.  It’s scary.  It’s also exhausting physically and mentally.  On Tuesday we had to physically place her in the school bus and buckle her up.  The bus driver was so nice to call us once she got to school safely to let us know that she had calmed down by the time they turned the corner.  But that tantrum she threw (actually, what’s a stronger word for tantrum?) had taken its toll on Brett and myself.  The effects lasted much longer with us then they did with her.

This morning she had another blow-up.  This time, I actually wondered if this kind of behavior warrants a trip to the psychiatric unit at the hospital.  One of the signs they look for is physical harm to herself or others.  Check.  The girl is 70 pounds (thanks to a nasty side-effect of a summer time medication). Not a lightweight anymore.  One thing I need to do is email her behavior analyst/school psychologist and give him the low down.  Hopefully he has some quick words of advice to offer.  Because this is tough stuff.  I know that this is mostly about her getting back into the routine.  But still.  These tantrums are of the biggest proportions.  I am actually dreading 6:30-7:40 every morning now.

I’ll keep you guys posted on what happens…hopefully this won’t last long.  I’ll tell you what.  It makes me very nervous for spring break, and more importantly, summer break.

In more exciting news, I got the little piece of paper in the mail that said my articles of incorporation for my Jumping Waves entity has been approved!  And while I thought I was officially a non-profit organization, I just need to jump through the 501 c 3 hoop, and then I will be!  But I’m one step closer!  (That hoop, by the way, is 28 pages long.  Eek!)

Here is my business card.  I’m so proud of it!

Right now I am just trying to get the word out.  I need as much exposure as possible, so I can generate interest.  Interest will perhaps get me donations, or perhaps people who feel passionately about my cause and would like to invest in it.  If you like what you’re reading, and my mission, I would love for you to pass along my blog.  That would mean so much!  Don’t forget, I also have my Etsy Store where all of the proceeds from the sales go directly to Jumping Waves.  Easy as that. You can also support me by following me on Twitter and Facebook.

Well, for one of my kids, anyway.  This has proven to be the challenge with 2 kids in different schools.  Their breaks are not the same.  Not even Christmas break!  I’ve put a positive spin on this…quality time with EACH kid, right? Sure!  So idyllic and perfect.  Why shouldn’t that happen?  Well,Emma started first.  Today was her first day off. We went to the gym to work out with Brandon at Premier Fitness Systems.  She likes working out with me, and it’s pretty cute to watch.  We came home, and she went right up to her room and…wait for it…got into her pajamas. Oh, and also trashed her room (I’m using the word “trashed” lightly).  It was fine.  We had a few hours to chill at home, and the girl wanted her space.  I got a bunch of chores done that had run over from Sunday when no one was home all. day. long.  Oops.

Well, 2:30 rolls around and I start talking to Emma about cleaning her room up and getting changed back into her clothes.  It’s gymnastics day, you see.  First go ’round she wouldn’t have any of it.  I tried again.  No luck.  It came to a huge melt-down on her part…and tempers all around.  Not fun.  Not how I envisioned our first day of break.  But Brett reminded me: it was her first day of break.  We broke the routine of school.  She was already thrown for a loop.  It just ended the day on more of a sour note.  I’m hoping the rest of the week runs smoothly.  Tomorrow we have plans to see Chipwrecked with her BFF from school.  Wednesday will bring us lunch with Daddy!  And Thursday will give her special time with Oma.  I’m hoping she’ll mellow out, or I’ll be wishing January 3rd to come quickly!

I’m not the only one who has this issue…I just know it!  This wasn’t the first, of course, and definitely won’t be the last.  And while it was pretty intense, it wasn’t the worst.  Can I get an “Amen”?

Yes, we went to Emma’s school yesterday.  It was an impromptu meet, so I didn’t get any pictures.  But I definitely will on her first day.  Promise.  She was super-excited about being there.  However, when I showed the staff the bathroom “situation”, she got pretty agitated.  She didn’t understand that I wanted to show them how I pick her up and put her on the potty, and that I wasn’t forcing her to go potty.  They just needed to see how I picked her up.  It kind of went downhill from there, especially after seeing the gymnasium.  She just wanted to go run around.  In the end, we left with “you bully, you’re busted, you’re getting a spanking, etc.”  Not the greatest first impression.  Fortunately it’s not like they’ve never seen this behavior before.  But still.

On Wednesday, I will take Mason to his open house and to meet his teacher.  He’s cautiously excited about Kindergarten on Thursday.  However, he wants no part of the bus ride.  I’ve gotten a few suggestions on how to handle the bus situation.  I definitely want him to ride it.  We have the ability, we’re going to use it!  And, plus, it’s fun.  Eventually.  I think what we’ll try come Thursday morning, is to put him on the bus (hopefully not kicking and screaming) and follow him to school.  And we’ll meet him at school to get all the pictures my heart desires.  What would you do in my situation?  Perhaps let him get 2 days of KG under the belt then have him ride the bus Monday?  I’m up for any and all suggestions!  I don’t want him to fear it, but he often goes into new situations very nervous and anxious.  And then he gets there and says “hey, this wasn’t so bad!”  The bus will be the same thing.

Okay, let me have them!  I want your suggestions!

Sorry it’s taken me a few days to update!  We’ve been so incredibly busy with her…when she’s awake.  But when she’s asleep, we are either doing housework or resting ourselves.  It’s almost like having a newborn, except this newborn is potty trained, can feed herself, and can definitely speak her mind.  We got home on Friday, and that was after a long day on Thursday.  She had improved Thursday since her blood transfusion and we were able to get her fever broken that night.  On Thursday, however, we decided to do an MRI to double check that everything looked good in the brain.  It did!  No changes since her last MRI in ’09.  Since it was an MRI, she had to be put under general anesthesia.  And since she had to be put under general anesthesia, she couldn’t eat.  For a girl who a) has her appetite back (was it gone?) and b) is hypo-glycemic, this isn’t a good situation.  And they wanted to do the MRI in the afternoon.  We’ve had issues with PCH MRI “scheduling” before, and so we had to put our foot down and tell them that either they get her in before lunch, or they don’t get her in.  By 10:00am she was getting that MRI.  <dusting of hands>

She recovered nicely from that and had some lunch.  PT came by to show us how to move her and that’s when she got her first wagon ride.  She was so excited for that wagon!  And right after that, transport came to take us for her hip x-ray, something that Dr. K wanted again before we left…just to make sure everything looked great!  He gave us the thumbs up to go home Friday.  Friday rolled around and the girl was ready to get outta there.  Of course she had a lot of people on her “team” that needed to give their input on the discharge papers.  So we actually didn’t roll out until after lunch, which worked out great.  She had a full belly and some new pain meds for the afternoon and we were set.

Needless to say, it’s been a quiet weekend, so to speak.  Emma, right now, is very angry and frustrated that she isn’t mobile.  She is screaming, saying unkind things, hitting and pinching.  It’s very hard to be around and it’s grating.  Of course I know she doesn’t mean any of this, but to listen to it all day is still a tough pill to swallow.  We’re (patiently) waiting for her wheelchair to arrive so we can venture out for small errands.  Of course this is easier said than done.  The hardest part about all of this is the potty issue.  It takes two of us.  One can take her two and from the potty, but the other person needs to clean her off after the first person picks her up from the potty.  It’s a very quick maneuver that creates a little stress in me.  How will I do this on my own?  Where’s the nurse call button when I really need it?  I’m sure I will figure it out.  Out of necessity comes invention, right?  Something like that?

Anyway, we are adjusting to this new life right now.  Thankful that I am not working.  And hoping we settle down to a new normal soon.  Tomorrow I’ll post pictures of her cast and where we sit during the day!

Holy 3 year olds.  I’m not sure what it is.  Summertime boredom?  Lack of a schedule?  Testing his limits?  Testing my limits?  I think it’s the lack of schedule.  It’s thrown me for a loop too.  Mason, recently, has had nasty temper tantrums. His obsession with keys (I can’t believe I haven’t posted about this…note to self) has boiled over.  Every so often Brett will bring home a new key or key fob to add to his collection.  Usually it’s a happy thing and Mason gets very excited.  But recently, unless it’s a Mercedes key fob, he gets very disappointed.  Let me just say that it’s never a Mercedes key fob.  He got one once, lost it, and hasn’t gotten another one. (It should be noted his obsession for all things Mercedes surpasses his obsession with keys) (Yes, I know he has good taste)

Anyway, so Brett gave him another key fob last week.  I want to say it was from a Chrysler.  It wasn’t, however, a Mercedes.  And then he threw the fit.  It wouldn’t have been such a big deal if it wasn’t at his Cousin Cheryl’s dance recital. During intermission. Needless to say, that didn’t fly.  ”Lucky me” I had to leave for kickball anyway, so guess who got to take Mason? Kicking and screaming…literally.  And scratching too…my arm is still recovering, no joke.  I broke out in a sweat just getting him to the car and into the car seat.  And then to buckle him.  And re-buckle him…of course he knows how to unbuckle himself.  And that’s when I had to fib a little to keep him in that seat.  I told him that if he unbuckled himself while I was driving that a cop would see it and he would go to jail.  Let’s face it…at this point he would’ve cared less if they shipped me off to jail!  It worked until he got angry again and unbuckled on the freeway. I freaked out calmly pulled over and buckled him back in and gently reminded him that the cops would take him in.  He screamed the entire way to kickball…30 minutes.  It was just luck that I play kickball at a park that I adoringly referred to as the “Pig Park” in high school.  It’s located right next to a police station.  I pulled up and told him who was in that building and asked him if we should go in there so a police officer could tell him about the dangers of driving unbuckled.  He kindly said no and was an angel the rest of the night.

His keys, all 427 (okay that’s exaggerated but he does have a lot), got put in time out for 4 days.  We don’t mess around. I’m hoping he is getting these temper tantrums out of his system before he turns four?  I’ve heard four is better than 3.  I’m hoping so.  That last one was a doozy.  He’s been better this past week, with only a few threats reminders.

What are some things that help your child (or you) when they’re in meltdown mode?

Mason having a tantrum during bike riding.

I haven’t ever done a Works For Me Wednesday post yet, but it’s a lot of fun and you can get some great ideas from it!  Works For Me Wednesday is sponsored by We Are THAT Family which is a fun little blog that everyone can check out!  Anyway, here’s what works for me!

I’ve been very open and honest with all of the struggles that Emma has, and that we share as a family.  One struggle we can’t move past is her knack for getting over stimulated.  It can happen anywhere at anytime. Usually, though, it’s in a situation that has a lot of stimulus, naturally!  And one of two things can happen.  She can retreat into a little imaginary shell, OR she can pitch a fit.  And I mean a toddler-sized good ol’ fashioned temper tantrum.  She’s queen at this.

I’m not sure when we started this…a few years ago, maybe?  Anyway, whenever she’s having a tough time, we kneel down put our hands on her shoulders, and tell her to “take a deep breath”.  We do this 2 or 3 times, or until she’s suffiiciently calmed down.  I’m telling you, it works 99% of the time.  And we do that with Mason, too, when he starts pitching a fit.

If you haven’t tried this with your kids (issues or not), try it!  And let me know if it works!

What works for you when your kids are having melt-downs??