Chop off his ears...

Conor has another ear infection...after over three weeks of amoxycillion (well interrupted w/ a dose of Zithromax at the beginning due to an ear infection that wouldn't leave). I noticed the other night he started to tug a bit on the right ear and he is being pretty fussy at night. Wanted to take him in yesterday but they were closed so we went this morning and YEAH...ear infection number one million. I swear. I just don't know what to do anymore...he has another month until his surgery. UGggg. So we are off the amox, as it wasn't working anyway and he has another script for Zithromax and a lab sheet for a liver panel since he's looking a bit orange...and they aren't sure if it is his diet or if his liver is pissed at the amount of antibiotics the kid has been on over the last four months. Uggg uggg uggg I feel so terrible. For him and about this.

Aiden starts preschool tomorrow. It's not a full day, but he'll be at school for two hours straight without mommy there! Im sure he's going to have a blast.

I got a ton of books today for a great deal. $13! for 25 books!! We went to a book sale this afternoon at a library in East Providence.

I bought 7 kid books for Aiden (some kid encyclopedias, some classic books like Dr. Seuse and Abiyoyo) and the following for me:
Memoirs of a Geisha
The Poisonwood Bible
The Hours
A Thousand Acres
Snow Falling on Cedars
Almanac of the Dead
Turtle Moon
Daughter of Fortune
The Last Time They Met
Sea Glass
Songs in Ordinary Time
Romola
Summer Sisters
Angels & Demons
The Amateur Marriage
The Memory Keepers Daughter
The Jane Austen Book Club
Cavedweller


I had them in a stack in front of me, trying to choose which one to read when Sam called, he's on his plane on his way back from DC (they haven't taken off yet) and I told him to pick a number 1-15. He picked twelve and the twelfth one in the stack was The Hours...so I guess I'm starting on that one.

That's all for now...

A new Meal...

Trying out a new dish tonight. I'll update w/ how it was:

IT WAS GOOD! Def. will make again, next time I think I'll use a clove or two of garlic, I like a little more of a garlic kick. :)

Artichoke Chicken

INGREDIENTS

* 1 (15 ounce) can artichoke hearts, drained and chopped
* 3/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
* 3/4 cup mayonnaise
* 1 pinch garlic pepper
* 4 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves


DIRECTIONS

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C).
2. In a medium bowl, mix together the artichoke hearts, Parmesan cheese, mayonnaise, and garlic pepper. Place chicken in a greased baking dish, and cover evenly with artichoke mixture.
3. Bake, uncovered, for 30 minutes in the preheated oven, or until chicken is no longer pink in the center and juices run clear.


Right now it is still cooking, thus no update. But as I sit here feeding Conor the kid is fussing and pulling at his ears. ARE YOU SERIOUS? He has been on Amoxycillin every day for almost a month now to PREVENT ear infections until his surgery and he is still going to get them?? Ugggggggg I can't say for sure he has one, but I'm guessing he does, we'll know tomorrow I guess...I'm going to take him to the ped. Ugggh uggggh double uggggg

Aiden had his last day of language group today w/ Ms. Kristina. Since he will be starting school this week he will no longer be going to see her on Monday afternoons. :( It'll be great for him but I know he enjoyed his time with her. His language group will now be on Tuesdays in his classroom and his other therapist (Ms. Tricia) will be coming in. I still haven't completely broken it to him that he's going to be going to school...he'll want to go that second...

Sam took today off so he could work around the house. ;) He started on our garden boxes and they are almost done...we have them cut, drilled and stained for the most part. Then will come the easy part of assembling them and filling them. :)

Well only twelve minutes left on that chicken so I best assemble some more side dishes... :)

Have you seen this???

Seriously! Tramp Stamps for kids. WTF is wrong w/ our society?

How funny...

Today's Church Sermon was about Silence. Discussing how we are never silent and when we are silent, that is when we learn so much, hear so much, are so much, become so much, etc. Funny timing considering my post last night. Anyhow, more later but now I'm going to go prevent Conor from destroying everything in sight....

Noise.

Sam and I have been enjoying John Adams. It's a great story and amazing what the founders of our country (and their wives) accomplished, even at such young ages (John Hancock was in his thirties when he wrote and signed The Declaration of Independence for example). And we were discussing how many things we could probably accomplish if there wasn't so much 'NOISE'. No TV, No Computer, no constant interruptions and thought pollutions. I know for certain I'm pretty addicted to the computer and the TV as well...and I've at least realized that and am trying to make a change. I have started to attend a UU Church and wanted to share this recent article from the Spring Addition of UU World. It touches a bit on my thoughts on the matter...its something I'm going to work on for our family...though I doubt my belly button is ready for a trip to the backyard...just yet.

Establishing connections with self, family, and the earth.
By Louise Nayer And Virgina Lang
Spring 2008 2.15.08

The sun rises, an enormous ball of fire thousands of miles wide, yet we hardly notice. Alarm clocks buzz unmercifully in our dark rooms and, as if on automatic pilot, we do our morning duties, alone or with family, only subliminally aware of the magic that has just occurred. The sun has risen once again and the darkness has vanished, but we have not been a part of it. How can we see the magic in each day and connect with the natural world, our fellow humans, ourselves?

When many people are struggling simply to survive, we are constantly bombarded with hollow materialism; stores stay open seven days a week, beckoning us, and demands of work and family far exceed our ability to respond. In our hearts, we know that something is missing, that we are not fully present in our own lives, that the carousel of busyness and consumerism is spinning faster and faster, placing in jeopardy the very earth on which we live. We have traded lighted candles and soft shadows for the neon glare of computer screens and the bleeps and blips of our technological toys.

We seek a certain numbness to quiet the fears of a post-9/11 world. We live in a time of terrorism, natural disasters, and the fear of global warming. We are understandably overwhelmed, but this is precisely why we need to be especially vigilant about deepening bonds with family and friends and encouraging hope in all our children.

How, then, can we reclaim the very part of us that makes us human? How can we establish a loving pace amid the rush and chaos?

We met twenty years ago at the Blue Danube Café in San Francisco. Our meeting was coincidental. We found out we knew people in common from the East Coast and realized, as we got together more and more often, how much we had in common and how much we both wanted to build a community embracing family and friends, young and old—especially children—in our circle of love.

We are not looking to replace ancient truths or the community and faith that can be found in a place of worship, but we have found useful and heartfelt ways to express ritual and ceremony in lives that embrace blended families and differing backgrounds and lifestyles. We believe that we all have family, however we choose to define it.

We believe our everyday lives deserve celebration. As our world grows more complex, it takes more thought to do less. Through simple ritual and ceremony, we slow down and open our eyes to the beauty and meaning in our lives, awakening to the natural world and the richness of our relationships with others. When we take time to see the sun rise and set, to really see the exploding colors of the universe, we awaken ourselves from cynicism and despair and open our hearts to the mysteries of nature, our bodies, our lives.

Expression night at home

We are all attached
like tiny red and white carnations
whose stems touch
at the bottom of glass.
—Louise Nayer

Growing up in Greenwich Village and later becoming a poet, I have always had a house full of artists and writers. I moved to San Francisco to be part of the poetry community, immersing myself in workshops and readings. Over the past fifteen years, working full-time as an English professor and raising children, I have found myself going to readings less and losing some of that inspired, magical community that gave me so much.

In an attempt to bring more creativity into our lives, my family has started a monthly gathering at our home on Bosworth Street where both seasoned artists and novices can share their work. Everyone is an artist, so no one is turned away! Our art has included sculptures made from lemons and oranges, piano recitals, poetry and prose readings, and a computer calendar art show.

As people become increasingly fatigued from the pressures of work, this regular gathering adds magic to the month. I have been surprised and pleased at how many people ask, “When is the next Bosworth Café Night?” and how excited they get about practicing a piece on the piano or learning a new song to sing.

—L.N.
What you need

*

Invitations with dates for the next six months
*

Food and drink brought by everyone

What you do

Send out flyers marked with dates for the next six months. You can make a Café Night logo or an unusual flyer using your street name.

When people arrive, serve the food and drink. Afterward, sit in a circle in the living room. Ask one guest (a different person each time) to bring a poem, a passage from a book, or a song to begin the evening. It can be something written for the occasion or a favorite song or poem.

Then, begin the sharing time. Keep the performances to ten minutes per person so that people will want to return to the next gathering. Encourage one another, whether the person is a first-time poet or a widely published author. This is a time to remember that the creative spirit lives in all of us. End the gathering by holding hands and passing a squeeze, each person focusing on the beauty of what has been presented that night.

Rite of spring

This morning the green fists of the peonies are getting ready to break my heart . . .
—Mary Oliver

Spring explodes in Pennsylvania. It comes with an urgency and a will that is unstoppable. Ready or not, it spews forth armloads of brilliant forsythia, then scarlet azaleas, lavender rhododendrons, milky-white dogwood, and deep-grape Siberian irises.

In springtime, life pours from the earth without our having to do anything. It is a wonderful time to remember that we are not in control of nature, yet we are part of it. We deserve to be here just as much as the trees and flowers, not dominating the natural world but in a state of conscious participation with it.

—V.L.
What you need

*

A place of privacy outdoors
*

One of your favorite poems about nature

What you do

Find a comfortable spot to lie face down on the ground. Let your body fully relax as it blends with the earth, and simply lie quietly, feeling the dynamic, life-giving power below you. A practice of the Q’ero Indians of Peru includes letting your navel come into direct contact with the ground to meld with the earth, considered the navel of creation. This simple, childlike posture can offer a profound experience of connection and peace. Stay as long as you like and breathe deeply.

Just before bed, read one of your favorite poems about our connection to nature. The words will help you sleep well and savor the magnificent gift that is spring.

PreSchool Here We Come

I had Aiden's Team Meeting yesterday. Previously he was diagnosed w/ a Communicative Disorder. He had reduced auditory comprehension and expressive language vulnerabilities. He has an IEP with the school system and has been receiving outpatient speech services for this since November. One of his speech pathologists, who is also his case worker, pushed to have him further evaluated, due to difficulties they were having and things they 'noticed' (his oddities) while trying to work with him. He had an Educational Assessment which showed he does have vulnerabilities in self-social awareness, direction/position, time/sequence, and most of these vulnerabilities were also evident in the auditory comprehension area. However, his school readiness component he scored in the advanced classification, in the 91st percentile. Quiet the discrepency to go from 91% to 9% and 5% (his other scores). He had an OT assessment as well, that also stated that if she removed the auditory component and just showed him how to do something (instead of showing AND telling) he would do it fine...something about that auditory comprehension just throws him all off. With his OT results there was such a huge discrepancy (over 20 months) between the two tests that they just didn't know what to do with him. His speech pathologist (Kristina, he has two) had herself, Tricia (his other therapist) and myself fill out Children's Communication Checklist 2. Typically they can't score it until the child is over four, so she couldn't use it formally, however if she were able to score, she said it would have shown a serious delay. Because of that, and his other auditory issues, it was discovered that Aiden also has issues
with Pragmatic language. Which is something that his speech therapists can't help. Sooo long story short, he qualifies for the ELC Preschool now and will be starting NEXT WEEK! He will be going T/Wed/Th from 9-11:30 and during the summer will only be going two days a week from 8:30-10:30. They asked if I wanted him to take the bus (eek!) but I declined, I'm SO not ready for him to be on the bus.


Here's a recent pic of the boys.

Green Clean

This morning while Swiffer WetJetting the kitchen floor, Conor thumped by - crawling away and I thought...EEEK! Danger! Chemicals! On the floor! Touching his hands! That go in his mouth!!! And....from there it became a mission for the day to get all natural items to clean my house with, and remove the 'dangerous' ones. I am a SUCKER for cleaning products. So this is going to be really hard for me. Wish me luck! White vinegar, baking soda, corn starch and lemon...here I come!!

Boys are doing well btw, Aiden finished up his testing last week so we'll see what his results have to say for us on Thursday. I think they will be leaning away from the ELC preschool and a 'regular' preschool recommendation. AND my insurance won't cover neurological testing to see 'what else is going on' so it will be $3,500 out of pocket and the waiting list is 13 months...maybe by then they will cover it??!! At least if gives me time to fight it.