Oh, yeah, I should update huh?

This weekend was another fun one around here.
The camping trailer has now gone from 22-24 feet to 26-30 feet. We gave up on the class C and the fifth wheel. The trailer, even with having to buy a new SUV, will be cheaper than the other two options. I'm to the point the trailers are all looking the same and what is cheapest is rather ugly. But, we are a few months out from making a final decision and making a purchase (hopefully).
We went to the local fest the weekend. I ate a deep fried twinkie. Which, actually, was a disappointment. Ususally, its battered in the same batter as the fish. The place that had them used funnel cake batter. On top of the spicy hot drunken shrimp (such a waste of Bass Ale), it was not a good food night.
But we did run into a friend of Jimmy's from Early Childhood and her parents. I found out she did get extended school year, but they wanted to put her on a bus longer every day than the program would be. So they declined the offer and found her other things to do this summer.
Also, I am going to have to replace my die cutting machine. I got a Slice right after Christmas last year. I have used it a lot, including creating 30 baby shower invites for Uncle J and Aunt A's shower. Which, remind me NEVER to offer that again.
So, for the invites, they each had 8 die cuts, four baby shapes and four squares. So that makes 8*30=240 cuts with my Slice machine. Did I mention it overheated 5 times while making these invites? So, now when I use the Slice, it makes a horrific noise. James asked if I was cutting tile, it is that LOUD. But, according to the company, this is normal. Normal? I don't think its remotely acceptable. So, I am looking at the Cricut and offloading my Slice on Ebay since the noise would be unacceptable for a crop night. And I don't think people would take too kindly to me wearing my shooting ear protectors (even thought they are purple) at crop night, using the Slice.
And I have to go to a dermotologist for my leg plague. I was happy, it is healing. The midwife (no I AM NOT PREGNANT!) for my favorite yearly exam said that she thinks its MRSA. Oh goody. Now to try and get into a dermotolgist. But the midwife agrees I need to be off the birth control pills (pass the vicodin) and lose 20 lbs gained in 6 months. Sure, I'll get right on that one.
Now if you will excuse me, I need to go freak out about BlogHer. And BowlHer.

Testing, Testing 1,2,3. Anyone Listening?

So, I had yet ANOTHER tuition payment visit with my neuro. We are at 6 months of these wonderful visits. I've learned she likes Diet Coke and has a iPhone with no case in this time with her. Also two kids.
Anyhow, we changed maintenance meds to a new school SSRI and I got a real life pain killer for when I get migraines since the migraine meds don't work. She mentioned that they may be addictive if I take them all the time and I told her I really don't like taking meds every day anyways.
Then she asks me what I take daily. I gave her the list: Allergy, stomach meds, birth control (for horrific cramps, its all Catholic approved for that use).
She then tells me that I need to get off the BC pills because I am considered a stroke risk.

Wait, wait, huh, WHAT?

Yes, the "bugs" I see every day, which I have mentioned for SIX MONTHS NOW at EVERY VISIT because they are so ANNOYING, are now a concern? She went on to say that BC pills and migraines are NOT a good combination. Also, take a daily asprin because she thinks the pressures may be too high in my head. When was the last time I had a eye exam? That was about two months ago when we had all the fun with Topamax.
And see her in three weeks.
Let me tell you, my head is REELING from this. I have told her everything going on with me at each appointment for 6 months. I'm not upset she called me a stroke risk, like someone thought today when I relayed the story. The concern is; is the doc actually LISTENING to me?
I don't like being "ill" with migraines. Its really screwed up the past six months for me. I've lost a lot of time being ill this year and not getting much done around the house is getting me down. I don't have much time off left at work and I have to be really cautious if I take a day off. I go to work on days that I don't think I should and neither do most of my co-workers. But I don't get a choice and I'm not contageous.
So, now I have to talk to my other doc about the fact that I am going to have bad cramps but no strokes. Maybe there is something more permanent they can do since since I am older.
So far, one person said I should ignore her, one person said I need a new neuro and another person said this wasn't such bad advice.
I just wish the migraines would go away and never, ever come back.

Let's review the past week in short bites

Mildred has moved back in. She was NOT WELCOMED. I'd like her to stop messing with my arm and leg.

Also, making fun of people with chronic pain is NOT COOL. For the person who did this to me, I may or may not know a Voodoo Priestest and just remember Karma bites back and its painful.

Painting sucks. Three coats of blue paint on Jimmy's walls. Next time: No Behr paint, need to prime, avoid informercial products. Billy Mays is laughing at me from the great beyond. If Jimmy had wanted a Nemo room, I could have been done after one coat.

Also, thick paint = bad sign. I really understand why guys drink when they paint.

Also, never let seven year old girls pick out paint colors. Bri's last color choices were neon green and Pepto pink. She reconsidered her choices after we painted the samples on her walls.

Hammie is psycho. She got loose last night. Twice. She had cheerios, a M&M and a piece of Cookie Crisp in her cheeks. We took it all away from her when she got back in her cage. That's all I need is a hamster with diabetes.

Rain and Fourth of July do not go together. Also, make sure there is someone at the party around Jimmy's age or prepare to listen to the girls complain all night. Skip the cookies with blue sprinkes also.

Anyone seen my paper flowers for scrapbooking? I found the ribbon and the foam squares, but no flowers. I don't want to order new ones.

Also, Bri has started scrapbooking. She is using her kit from the birthday party. I had to give her one of my tape runners as the glue stick with the kit does not work very well. I also let her use some of my 8x8 papers. Then Jimmy asked to start scrapbooking and went looking for his own album in my supplies. He did not find one so I will get him one tomorrow night when I go to Hobby Lobby with my mom. We'll make it cheap.
I'm doomed.

I am going to have a new doorstop soon. My Epson Artisan 700 is getting on my nerves. If it prints one more dark picture, I am going to scream. I have played with the options and it prints dark and darker. Most people I scrapbook with think I should just use an online service for my prints. I like the whole instant gratification thing. Of course the replacement options are not getting very good reviews. I am pondering selling it for a wide format. I'm sure someone else will have the magic touch with it.

I need to make up my mind soon about the printer. I need to make business cards for BlogHer. Also, Blogher, why am I not getting the Cricut Sweepstakes ad? Just send me a Cricut and we'll call it even (I'm kidding. Sort of).

So that is it. Its off to bed now. Nite.

So, some updates from the land of Toast

We had the evaluation. Yeah, still sensory issues we need to deal with. We will start scheduling therapy appointments in a week and get a report in 2-3 weeks. It cannot come soon enought.
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Saturday, James and I decided to divide and conqure on the errands. So I took Bri out. We ended up at Kohls to get some stuff. What I HATE about the store is that there is usually one register open and has a LOONNGG line. But they have AWESOME SALES!
So I was standing in line with Bri, waiting to buy some shorts for Bri and a new outfit for me.
There were three women in line in front of me. A mom and her two adult daughters were waiting to pay for a cartful of stuff. They saw a display of those vinyl quotes at the endcap for the walls. I have a couple of them around my house and I don't think they are horrible in moderation.
The mom, seeing her daughter had picked up one to look at, grabbed it out of her daughter's hands and goes, oh look, it says if you have this on your wall, you're stupid, and looks at me. Then she goes, it should say if this is on your wall, you're stupid.
I wasn't laughting. She turned away after realizing that I was not cracking up like her daughters.
Seriously, there are things out there for decorating I don't get. I don't get shabby chic or country decor, but hey something for everyone.
Then another register opened and I ran for it.
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I was so dissapointed to see Hobby Lobby had Christmas stuff out, Its bad enought that Target has back to school already.
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I went back to the neuro today. Note to all, its NEVER a good sign when your neuro looks at your leg and goes, "Holy S&%T, what IS THAT? Does it itch? IT LOOKS INFECTED!" I have a weird bug bite/scratch/plague on my leg. I've had it since before Easter, but now its dragged my leg into the fun by making it swell to double the size of the other one. And I don't have time to attempt to get into the general doc. I mean all the neurological symptoms my migraines bring keep me busy going, is it a migraine or a stroke?
So we had our usually scheduled meeting to discuss that I still feel like crap and the meds aren't working.
I get some steroids to try and calm the two week migraine and then, its back on the happy pills. Yes, that is the the one thing that actually helped the migraines. But I don't get the old school ones this time, I think we're going along the lines of new school. Think Zoloft, Prozac, Lexipro. This should be interesting, pass the Ding Dongs.
I wonder is mu-mus are acceptable dress for BlogHer?

Yeah I suck as a mom for saying this, but this is where I'm at right now.

As I sit here, consuming Natural Cheetos (no food dyes! tastes good!), James is with Jimmy at the ped, hopefully getting the script for the OT evaluation tomorrow. At the local center that deals with SPD. Recommended by the woman who sits next to me at scrapbooking who has two kids with SPD and one of them on the spectrum.

We are most likely going back into therapy for Jimmy tomorrow.

This is not what I really want to be writing about now. I'd rather tell you about Bri's Take a Friend to Camp Day adventure, but it is what we are dealing with. We have failed at home with therapy and its time to call in the troops. The reunion was the airhorn in our ears that; No, things are NOT GOING OK! He NEEDS help and the school isn't giving it to him. We NEED some new strategies here!
So, we'll be back to square one again. Oh, and fighting that he is not Autistic I'm sure. But at least the therapist they gave us is well versed in Feingold.
I asked James to pick up all the drink making for Blue Glowtinis so we can do the Sensory Evaluation tonight. I was crying reading it the last time, with all the things he should do like a normal kid. But instead I have to tell them he only eats certain foods, sleeps horribly, hates the dentist, freaks out about his hands getting dirty, also his clothes, but that's a little better.

We got a end of the year album from his Early Childhood class that one of the pics showed them painting with shaving cream. Guess which kid was the only one using a paint brush with a teensy bit of shaving cream on the brush and his picture?

And can we forget his running away from us when he's overstimulated? And sticking his fingers in his ears at the restaurant because its too LOUD, when we thinks its fine and it is not loud?

But he isn't normal. And part of me still mourns over that. Part of me will mourn for a long time. If he was first, he would have been an only child. He is part of the reason we are not having a third. I cannot go throught what we went through with him again. I never want a doctor to call me Muchausens ever again, when all I am is concerned for my child's well being.
So tonight, I will look for the perfect shades of yellow and gray cardstock to work on Jimmy's 4th birthday pages (Wall-E) so maybe I can start a year album FINALLY. Then I'll go to work tomorrow and try to get throught and distract myself until the time we go for the evaluation.
And then I'll either breathe relief someone else sees what I see. Or cry. I'll keep you in the loop.

These are the decisions I hate to make

So this weekend we went to the family reunion. Jimmy did ok in the car. He did ok at meals. We prepared him for what was going to happen. We talked up we were going to the aquarium before the party to see fish, sharks and jellyfish. We talked up that we were going to a party later and meeting lots of family they hadn't met before. We told him what kind of food they would serve. We told him there would be music.
And he still was overloaded.
He tried to charge through the aquarium. He did not want to stay and see any of the fish. He did pet the sharks and stop to look at the penguins.
It was very hard to enjoy myself when Jimmy was flipping out about the smiley fries, the loud music, having to sit still, running out of the room every few minutes and lets not forget the GIANT bowl of M&M's on EVERY table! And the cousin who kept giving them to Jimmy.
(It had a story, and it was sweet, but still I think my kid was the only one on Feingold there)
And then the joy of trying to get him to sleep in a different bed. Bri was LONG asleep by the time we got him to sleep, even with melatonin.
Now I wasn't going to tell everyone about his SPD. If someone had asked if he was ok, I would have told them. But I don't say much unless I really know someone or they ask.
And yes, I should have brought his therapy needs, but didn't think about it since things seem to have gone smooth lately.
So, we made a choice at lunch yesterday. He is going back into Occupational Therapy. We cannot handle it at home by ourselves. He needs help to deal with these situations. I have a call into a therapy center that specializes in SPD. I hope they can help.
I'll keep you updated.

Wait, I'm related to these people?

Sorry, I'm tired from a 6 hour drive and dealing with the kids all weekend. So enjoy some pics and I'll give you the story tomorrow.