My daily walk

Guard Rail is in

2009-05-27T11:06:00.001-07:00

The guard rail was finally put in along the road where my dad's truck went off and flipped over. This would not have been done without the hard work of my Uncle John. I know my dad would have done the same thing if one of his family members had passed the same way. Thank you Uncle John for all your work.

Guard rail

2009-05-26T12:56:00.000-07:00

My Nieces and Nephew

A long cold winter in Minnesota

2009-03-01T17:57:00.000-08:00

Sorry I haven't posted in a while. This is the time of year that I hibernate. It has been a very cold winter. Colder than the average winter in Minnesota. The kids can't even play in the snow because it is too cold. Dennis is usually the one that goes outside with them. So I have no pictures of the snow. I tell people that I am allergic to the cold and snow! It is absolute torture to go out to the bus stop with Lexi. Even to do daily errands is torture when it is 10 below zero. When going somewhere with the kids it takes 30 minutes to get everyone dressed with coats, boots, hats, mittens. So by the time I grab my coat, gloves, and bag they are sweating so bad they start pealing their clothes off, and so we start all over again. Well, it is now March 1 8:30pm and the temp is 8 degrees. I am so ready for NOT spring but Summer. Spring in Minnesota is still winter to me. I will try to post some pictures soon when Lexi and Timmy get well. Lexi has strep throat and Timmy has a bad cough. Hope everyone stays warm!

Timmy's surgery

2008-12-27T10:47:00.000-08:00

Timmy had a tonsillectomy and adenoidectomy on Dec. 9th. He had horrible sleep apnea. Every time he would catch a cold his tonsils would get huge. Two weeks before the surgery the sleep apnea was so bad that he was put on oral steroids to try to shrink the tonsils and adenoids a little to make him breath better till he had surgery. The surgery went well. The doctor said he had never seen such bad tonsils in a child. He said they looked like an adults tonsils full of scar tissue like someone who had had many infections. I am thankful that they are finally out.
Here are some pictures of the hospital stay.
Picking out a flavor lip smackers for the mask to put him out.

Getting put out. This was the worst part for me.

In and out of sleep from the anesthesia.

This was the best part for him. After a few days he was sick of Popsicles.

Happy on pain medication.

November 22 Timmy's 5th B-day

2008-12-22T20:03:00.001-08:00

Happy 5th Birthday Timmy!
I planned a small party for Timmy this year. Only three friends came. It was very small but it was a good size for him. I also made a gluten, dairy and egg free cake for him due to his many allergies. He would not even try one bite. Oh well. He just stayed with the dairy free ice cream.

Every time someone would ask him what he wanted for his birthday he would say "Geo Trax". This is a train set that he got for Christmas last year. It has extras that can be bought like more track attachments. This is his absolute favorite(or obsession). He looks at the diagram on the instruction manual of the different ways the track can be assembled and he can spend hours assembling and disassembling.

November 9th 40th Birthday Surprise

2008-12-14T13:20:00.000-08:00

I was really wishing this b-day would just disappear. Turning 40 is hard but the memories of this time of year are harder. One year ago on my birthday was the last time I talked to my Dad. He tragically passed away 4 days later on Nov. 13th. So, Dennis and my sister Karen decided to change the bad memories into good memories. They surprised me with Karen and her kids showing up for my birthday weekend. Dennis planned everything from the babysitter to dinner out at a Japanese Restaurant for Teppanyaki. I knew about the dinner but he also surprised me with a limo. Here are some pictures of the weekend.
Pictures are out of order. I still don't know how to do a slide show.

Get the Kleenex

2008-10-02T11:32:00.000-07:00

OK, I finally finished it. I have been trying for months to get the posts done of the pictures and things said at my parents memorial services. I am not a procrastinator (ask Dennis) but this was something that was very hard to get done. Scroll down to Sept 13 and then to older posts to read about my mom. Also, click on the links of you tube. These are the songs played at their services.
___________________________________________________
Jeremy Camp "There will be a day"
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8TipLsmZgjI&feature=related

Isaiah 25:8.
He will swallow up death for all time, And the Lord GOD will wipe tears away from all faces, And He will remove the reproach of His people from all the earth ; For the LORD has spoken.
Revelation 21
3. And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, "Now the dwelling of God is with men, and he will live with them. They will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God.
4. He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away."
5. He who was seated on the throne said, "I am making everything new!" Then he said, "Write this down, for these words are trustworthy and true."
6. He said to me: "It is done. I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End. To him who is thirsty I will give to drink without cost from the spring of the water of life.

Walk for Autism

2008-10-01T14:22:00.000-07:00

Walk for Autism

2008-09-30T18:56:00.000-07:00

Lexi, Timmy and I did the walk. Dennis was still not able to walk very good after his surgery so he sat and watched us. Dennis and I recieved some shirts from the local christian radio station. On the back it says"I am walking for________". We had to fill in the blank. So Timmy wanted to write "Daddy" in the blank. I assume he was thinking "Daddy needs his name on Daddy's shirt". On the back of Dennis' shirt is written in Timmy's handwriting (which is illegible because of his fine motor skills) Daddy/Timmy.

The walk was on a horse track, which is only a mile. When we first started Lexi and Timmy both asked "are we going to win?" I said "everybody wins". So we were not even a couple of yards into it when Lexi starts in...... I'm tired..... I'm hot...... Can we go over there and rest?...I want to stop....How much longer? All this was said with whinning and attitude. "OH JOY!" I'm thinking.

I look behind me and Timmy is lagging behind hot and tired with no complaints looking down at his shadow. So, half way through Lexi's mood changes when she sees all the people behind us and sees the finish line in front.

When we finally finished. They both asked (can you guess?) Did we win?

Thank you to all who donated!!!! It really means a lot.

Dennis' Surgery

2008-09-18T19:01:00.002-07:00

Dennis had his hernia surgery yesterday. It was a little more involved than they anticipated. Instead of laproscopic they actually had to open him up due to old scar tissue from a previous surgery. So the recovery will be longer. He has been in a lot of pain today, needing to take his percocet every four hours. Please pray for a quick healing. Here is a picture of Timmy and Dennis in the hospital when I came to pick him up. The nurses were so nice to Timmy. They dressed him up, gave him apple juice and finally a ride in a wheelchair like Dad.

Too Cute!

2008-09-18T19:01:00.001-07:00

Lexi's cute outfit

Mom and Dad's Internment

2008-09-13T07:27:00.001-07:00

The Grandchildren:Timmy, Jacob, Emily, Rachel, Lexi
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=doaHIOXIhH0&feature=related

My Mom

2008-09-13T07:25:00.001-07:00

Words spoken at my Dad's Memorial Service

2008-09-13T07:22:00.001-07:00

My Memories

Most of my memories with my dad are going into someones woods to cut trees and get wood.Karen and I would sit in his truck while he pushed it into the woods. Most had no trails and I have no idea how he knew where he was going. I remember we would sit in the truck waiting for him or just walk around. I would be so bored wanting to go home. But now I appreciate those times with him. He loved the peace and serenity of the woods and nature. When I was twelve years old my dad taught me how to drive. We started with the Pontiac Tempest on the driveway. Then moved to the truck on the trails in the woods. One day when Bruce(dad's best friend) was over I got the Tempest stuck in the woods and my dad and Bruce got the truck and a chain and pulled it out. When I started proper driving lessons they only taught with automatic cars and my dad put up a big fight to get them to teach with a stick shift. When I finally got my drivers licence he mad a point of telling me "don't drive on the highway". Maybe he was overprotective or a little fearful. Little did he know then that I would be driving on the California freeways. Once he came to visit me in San Diego he made me drive everywhere saying I drove better on "these" roads. The first car he got for me was a '71 green Chevy Nova which always broke down. He would make me stand outside with him over the car trying to explain to me what was wrong and show me every part in the engine so I could possibly fix it myself. I would like to think he just wanted to spend time with me. There are so many memories that I am so thankful for. I admire his lifetime friendships. I loved the times when these friends would come over and hang out. Every Christmas Eve I would be so excited to see Bruce and Mary. I want to thank you... Bruce, Dick, John, Joe, George for being his friends and accepting him for who he was. You are family to Karen and I. I also want to take this time to thank Janice Ford for inviting Karen and I to church and driving us to Sunday School every Sunday. If it were not for you, Karen and I would not be where we are today and dad would not be where he is today...with the Lord. And, thank you Dad for you. I love you.

In My Eyes

He was rough and lacked etiquette, Society would say

He had no classy attributes, To help him on his way

He was not a fancy dresser, and not so trimmed and neat
With simple clothes and simple shoes, he wore upon his feet

He didn't belong to a club, or drive shiny cars

And if he took vacations, he did not go very far

He didn't dine on fine cuisine, to him fast food was a treat

And he may have used a plastic fork, when it was time to eat

He worked long hours at his jobs to make an average pay

And even when he was tired or sick, he went to work each day

His job was as a handy man, his pay just made ends meet

But a few good friends and family, made his life complete

He was not well versed in poetry, theater or the arts

And wisdom was not something that he had to constantly impart

The wealth that God had given him to treasure and adore

Two loving daughters, who could ask for more

He never had much money and his life was not a show

But he is still the richest man that I will ever know

To others he was a simple man and fame he never had

But he's the greatest man I know, I'm glad to call him dad

Words spoken at Mom's memorial service

2008-09-12T12:18:00.000-07:00

Mom, I can only imagine, are you walking by His side ? What are your eyes seeing? Is your face before Him? I can only imagine.... Surrounded by His Glory... What is your heart feeling? Are you dancing for Jesus or standing still in awe of Him? Are you singing hallelujah or are you able to speak at all? I can only imagine... I can only imagine... Are you forever worshiping Him?

I can only imagine is she forever, forever, worshiping You, Jesus?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2FS5GYvg6uU&feature=related

Mom, You gave me life, nurtured and cared for me, and when you felt the time was right, you set me free. Through the years, never once did you complain or wish for things to be any different. You simply took your life in stride, no questions asked, embracing the happy moments along with the sad, accepting all things for what they were. That was your way.
Now, as a grown-up, I can reflect with such admiration and respect on the wonderful woman and mother you were. You stood with courage to meet the responsibilities that fell upon you, and sacrificed so much for the love of your daughters. What you have accomplished is more than you will ever realize. When I think of all that you have done for us and all the love you have so generously poured from your heart, I feel humbled. There will never be enough gratitude to offer to you. But my heart will always be filled with the joy of knowing your love. It is the most precious gift I have ever received. I love you for being a caring person, a remarkable woman, and an exceptional mother. This love that you have given will forever live within me. Thank you for being my mother.

First day of Preschool

2008-09-09T18:58:00.000-07:00

Today Timmy started "normal" preschool. He is being integrated into a normal classroom. Or should I say a non-special-ed class. When we walked in he went right over to a group of girls playing with some kind of interlocking plastic pieces that can be made into different designs. The kids were taking turns putting pieces on top to make a tower. When he took a turn, he reached for his piece and the corner of it hit the tower and it completely fell over. The look on his face was complete horror. Then all of a sudden the kids burst out laughing and then he joined right in with them. I was shocked. If this had happen at home he would have had a complete melt down. I was very proud of him. I will keep you posted on how he does with "normal kids".

He is still going every afternoon to Fraser day treatment program. He gets Speech Therapy twice a week at Fraser also. I still drive him to a different place for Occupational Therapy.

First day of 1st Grade

2008-09-02T21:15:00.000-07:00

This prayer was read on the christian radio station here
http://ktis.fm/blogs/morning/
Back to School Prayer
Dear Gracious Heavenly Father,
Once again we send our children out into the world. We know it’s a place that won’t love them like we do and won’t always encourage them to love you. But Lord, greater are you in them than what they will face in the world. We ask you to place a hedge around their physical bodies and give them safety and strength. Guard their hearts from doubt, fear and emotional attacks of the enemy. Give them wisdom and minds that always seek you in what they are being told and let them learn to compare the information they receive with your word. Give them victories that they can praise you for. Give them failures that will teach them to be humble but not break their spirits. Give them friends who love you that they can learn to serve you along side of. Give them teachers who follow you. Bless the buildings they will sit in and the people they will be with.Father, if there is any person, adult or child, out there who might intend harm toward these precious kids; stop that plan now in the name of Jesus Christ. Put a barrier in front of that intent of destruction before it can materialize. Expose those individuals that they might be helped and saved from themselves.Finally my Savior, I ask that you would lay a cloak of peace and joy around our children. And do a good work in us as parents that we might become worthy of this great gift you’ve placed in our hands.Thank you God; for kindergartners and high schoolers and college students who will love you with their whole hearts and live lives to your glory.In Jesus name.Amen.

summer comes to end

2008-09-02T21:03:00.001-07:00

End of Summer

2008-09-02T20:35:00.000-07:00

Well, I haven't posted in a while. It has actually been a tough summer with Timmy. He had some major regression. Things we have not seen since before he went gluten/casein free. Examples are: worse tantrums, repetitive speech, stimmimg(hand flapping), repetitive movements and just down right odd behaviors. Well after trying to rule everything out like chlorine in swimming pool, crest toothpaste(we have always used natural with him) and possible gluten exposure. We finally found out what it was. In June after returning home from CT/NY we started to increase his oral chelation. Pfieffer Treatment Center http://www.hriptc.org/ recommended that after being on his zinc cream for about a month to increase his chelation. Well I waited 3 months. I wanted to wait till summer but I totally forgot that the reason for me to wait till summer is that there are side affects that take time to go away. Well, we found out that his zinc level is still too low to increase chelation. Chelation gets rid of normal minerals also, not just the toxic ones. So after about 2 weeks at the old chelation level he has improved. We still deal with tantrums, rigid and odd behaviors but now I am thankful for Timmy. Just when you think you can't go on another day, God gives you a glimpse of how bad things were and could really still be without all the biomedical intervention we have been doing. Here's a picture of him coming out of a time out.

Garage Sale

2008-07-28T10:37:00.001-07:00

So we had a Garage Sale this past weekend to get rid of a lot of our baby and household items. We made $480. It was very exhausting and really not worth the $ we made when we could have gotten a tax deductible receipt for donating the items.
We all ended up getting sick with some virus, cough, cold, weakness.
I was reading to the kids last night before putting them to bed and Lexi asked "mom do you feel any better?". I must have looked pretty bad. So I said I was really tired. Then joking I said "Who is going to take care of me?" Lexi said "Daddy" then I said " who is going to take care of Daddy?" She then topped it off with "God". In my head I'm thinking, "Yeah, God also takes care of me too cause husbands (at least mine) doesn't know how to take of sickness"
Anyway here is a picture of two bouncy chairs that we sold. The first is when Lexi was a couple of months old(kind of hard to see). See how much she's grown. I couldn't find a picture of Timmy when he was a baby sitting in it.

Happy Birthday Dad!

2008-07-13T15:15:00.000-07:00

Today would have been my dad's 67th birthday. If he were still here this is the picture I would have sent him. It is from the 4th at a friends house.

No training wheels!!!

2008-06-03T21:21:00.000-07:00

Timmy's re-eval

2008-06-03T20:47:00.000-07:00

I didn't mean to post the previous post. I am still new at this blog thing.

So, Timmy's diagnosis now is still the same PDD-NOS. They did tell me though, that if he had no speech and launguage delay they would put his dx at Aspergers. The reason for this is that his cognative testing showed above average(smart boy). With an Aspergers dx there has to be no developmental delay. They just fall short in the social area, but tend to be very intelligent. Anyway, I am very pleased with this dx. I believe that prayer, the gluten/dairy free diet along with the biomedical supplements he gets, which includes methl/b-12 injections every 3-4 days(I do those, not Dennis), has been the reason for his continued healing. He still has a long way to go, but we believe he will someday have no dx.

Fraser moved him to a room for the summer that is the last room a child can be in. It is the most social room.

Thanks to all for your prayers. Keep praying!

Timmy's re-eval at Fraser

2008-05-19T18:49:00.000-07:00

Timmy had his re-evaluation at Fraser http://fraser.org/ on May 14th. This is where he attends day treatment program everyday. His first eval was 2 years ago in June. Dennis took him then for the 3 hour eval while I was back East with Lexi attending my Grandmothers memorial service. It was then that I learned over the phone what his diagnosis was--PDD-NOS

Pervasive Developmental Disorder Not Otherwise Specified. This diagnosis is in the Autism Spectrum. Here is where is falls on the spectrum.

Autism --------------------PDD-NOS-------------------- Aspergers

Happy 6th Birthday Lexi

2008-05-13T20:57:00.000-07:00

Timmy's end of year program

2008-05-13T20:47:00.000-07:00

Today was Timmy's end of year program. He has been at this school for two years in the Special Ed program. His teachers would like to integrate him next year into a regular preschool.

Mother's Day Flowers

2008-05-11T15:22:00.000-07:00

Thank You Karen for the Mother's Day flowers!!

Mother's Day

2008-05-11T13:41:00.000-07:00

This mother's day was different for me. I was concerned at how my mood would be. Depressed, lonely, irritated, angry, frustrated. I have only enjoyed mother's day to tell my own mother and Grandmother "Happy Mother's Day" . I have never enjoyed Mother's Day for me. A spotlight put on me as a mother of children with special needs. I do not enjoy motherhood. It is hard, stressful and exhausting. No words can express the love I have for my children. I am doing all I can to get the best services for them. Everyday is 2 steps forward, 2backwards, then 1 step forward. This weekend I feel God's grace covering me like a blanket. In the midst of screaming tantrums it is hard to hear God's voice or feel His presence. But what I do feel today is His Grace. His Word says "For my grace is sufficient for you".

Last night after the kids went to bed, Dennis was still working on the brakes of his car(trying to save some$). I was sitting on the couch realizing that for dinner Timmy ate 1 gluten free chicken nugget, french fries and matchstick carrots. I sat there with such peace that God is answering prayers. Six months ago he would have starved before eating it.(he started a new feeding clinic in Sept 07'). This time he had his usual tantrum, but after talking him through it and telling him "you can do it". He did eat! Even Lexi has been encouraging him saying"come on Timmy I'll eat one with you".

So, Dennis comes in last pm and says"I'm taking the car for a test drive". 20 minutes later he comes home with a Dairy Queen ice cream cake (dad would be proud).
This morning, I asked Timmy what day it is he said "Mother's day, Happy mother's day mommy". Lexi also was excited giving lots of hugs.

To my mom

" Happy Mothers Day"

I love you and miss you

Happy Birthday Aunt Karen

2008-04-26T14:21:00.000-07:00

Just trying this blog thing out

2008-03-30T18:19:00.000-07:00

I have a lot of friends and relatives that do this blog thing. With everything going on in my life they all say "you should have a blog". I say " with everything going on in my life how can I?" It has taken me months to figure some of this out. I still can't tell you how I got the pictures on it. I don't know if I will be able to do it again. Any help from a very patient person is welcomed.
I will keep trying before I make this blog public. (except for Karen of course).

pictures from November

2008-03-30T13:51:00.000-07:00