Aidan's Brain Balance Journey

My little surfer dudes...

2012-09-16T15:48:00.002-04:00

So last Saturday, Surfers For Autism came to Tybee Island. Of course we were there - and this time, both Aidan AND Aeson got to surf! As a bonus, Aidan and I made the local news (which Aidan is pretty sure, now makes us FAMOUS!) Check it out!

Look at how our day began…just beautiful!

I arrived at the beach at 7am to help Sushi unload and set up for the event.

Andy brought the boys down at the start of the event - the monkeys were thrilled that Daddy was with us on the beach!

Aidan was in the very first group to surf, and he was ready to go!

Aidan and his first AWESOME surf team!

Then, it was Aeson's turn to surf! Ace was super excited, but a little hesitant to stand. (It didn't help that the water was very rough that morning!)

When his first session was over, Ace didn't want to get off of the surf board…so his AMAZING surf team picked up the board with Aeson on it, and carried them both up the beach!

When Aeson got to surf a second time, he looked for the same team and asked them to surf with him again. These guys (and gal) were awesome! Positive and fun, and DETERMINED to get Ace to stand up and really SURF!

SUCCESS! Ace was SO proud of himself!

Many thanks to Johnny, Patrick and Shannon - Ace's AWESOME surf team!

The boys surfed ALL day long - every time it was their turn, they were both ready! Aidan got to surf with Dave and Carolyn, and had such a good time, he asked them to surf with Aeson as well. They had some rad rides - Aidan and Dave rode through a small tube that Aidan is STILL talking about! Wish I had a photo of THAT! My camera battery gave out on me, but I did manage to snap a photo of each of the boys with Dave and Carolyn. Thanks y'all - the boys had a blast!

I'm really kicking myself for not taking a group photo - we had an awesome group of folks cheering for the boys. Me, Andy, Ashwin, Mimi, Papa, Mema…and look who came down all the way from Virginia to support the boys…

Paw Paw! Thanks everyone for being part of our special day! We love you ALL!

Fast forward one week…you guessed it - MORE surfing!

Yesterday, Aidan and I headed to Tybee to check out Hot Sushi's 'One Love, One Fin' local surf showdown. We didn't really know what to expect, but I knew we'd have fun. And maybe, Aidan would even get to surf a little too. There was a good turnout of local surfers, and an awesome collection of single-fin vintage surfboards for everyone to use. Sushi was filming the event, but he let Aidan try out one of his boards.

Aidan's first ride on a single-fin vintage surfboard…thanks for the photo, Sushi!

The problem, unfortunately, was that Aidan's mom did not know what she was doing, trying to help give Aidan a push into the waves. He ate it pretty hard a couple of times. Not wanting to drown the kid, we headed to the beach. (I should note here that Aidan was bummed about leaving the water, but he understood it was for safety and he kept his cool. My, how far we have come!) Back on the beach, Aidan quickly caught on that this event was a sort of competition - and he wanted IN! I told him he couldn't compete because he could not yet surf on his own. (When he surfs with Sushi, Sushi sets him up and kind of pushes him into the waves to get started. There is an art to the push off - i don't have it yet, but I'm working on that!) He was REALLY mad with me because he couldn't compete, and he was DYING to surf. He played with some kids, learning to skim board for a while, and watching the other surfers compete.

Here are the finalists, getting ready to surf. Check out those awesome boards!

The surfing was SO much fun to watch! I even managed to get at least one shot of each finalist, shredding the waves! Great job, everyone!

During the competition, Shane (from North Island Surf and Kayak) took pity on Aidan, loaned him a soft top board, and volunteered to help him catch a few waves. (Thanks Shane, you ROCK!) A few minutes later, Aidan thanked Shane and told him he wanted to surf on his own...and he did! For the next hour and a half or so, Aidan paddled out, turned himself around, and caught his OWN waves. First staying very shallow, but getting a little braver (and deeper) with each ride!

It was AWESOME to watch (and photograph!) I stood on the beach, snapping photos and thinking a favorite line from Dr. Seuss' "Oh! The Places You'll Go!"

"And will you succeed? Yes, you will indeed. 98 3/4 percent guaranteed! Kid, you'll move mountains!"

My strong willed and fiercely determined little man - you make your Mama SO very proud of you every day!

And check out this sunset - perfect ending to an AWESOME day!

When I finally dragged him out of the water, he said, "Mama, next competition, I WON'T be sitting on the beach watching!" And I know he's right!

Future mountains had better look out for Aidan Pence!

To all the surfers from the last two Saturdays, a big Mahalo from me and Aidan!

Much love,

Allie

Surfers Healing

2012-09-02T11:48:00.001-04:00

Greetings everyone! I know, it's been a while…AGAIN! We've been caught up in the madness of back to school for the last few weeks. I am EXTREMELY happy to report that the first week of school for the big boys was a SMASHING success! Here they are, on the first day of school (2nd Grade for Aidan, and Pre-K for Aeson)

Aren't my boys handsome? Love those new haircuts too!

And here they are, coming home on the bus, later that same day! (And no, Aidan did NOT fall off the bus!)

Ash starts preschool this week, and we are all very excited! ALL three boys in school, at least for three mornings a week - YAY!

So, I would like to share with everyone Aidan's recent adventure with Surfers Healing, at Folly Beach, SC on August 22, 2012.

Have you heard of Surfers Healing? Here is the history of Surfer's Healing, taken directly from their website:

Surfers Healing was founded by Israel and Danielle Paskowitz. Their son, Isaiah, was diagnosed with autism at age three. Like many autistic children, he often suffered from sensory overload - simple sensations could overwhelm him. The ocean was the one place where he seemed to find respite.

A former competitive surfer, Israel hit upon an idea--with Isaiah on the front of his surfboard, and Izzy steering from the back, the two spent the day surfing together. Surfing had a profound impact on Isaiah. Israel and Danielle decided they wanted to share this unique therapy with other autistic children. They began to host day camps at the beach where autistic children and their families could be exposed to a completely new experience of surfing.

I could sum up our experience with Surfers Healing with this one photo:

Look at that smile - I see SO much in that smile. Freedom, peace, pride, and pure JOY! What you can't see and hear from that photo are the surfers and spectators cheering, clapping, and whistling - not just for Aidan, but for ALL of the little surfers in the water. Somewhere around 200 kids had their BEST DAY EVER on Folly Beach, thanks to the quiet determination and giant hearts of everyone involved with Surfers Healing.

And, of course, I have more pictures!

We found out about Surfers Healing through Aidan's surf instructor, Yamada Atsushi (aka Hot Sushi). Sushi volunteers with Surfers Healing, and was thrilled to watch his student show off his mad skills with the pro surfers. Here's Sushi, watching Aidan like a proud papa!

BEST Buds!

We arrived at Folly Beach about 10am, and things were just getting started. Having never been to a Surfers Healing event, we didn't really know what to expect (and by the end of the day, we were completely amazed!)

The day started out overcast, but soon became absolutely beautiful!

We got Aidan signed in, and he was given a group number for surfing and a gift bag. The gift bag had an event T-shirt and some small toys in it. AWESOME! While we waited for Aidan's group to be called to surf, we hung with my girl Blaze (of The Thinking Moms Revolution) and watched her awesome son P tear it up!

Here is how it works: when your group is called to surf, you head over to the surf station and the Surfers Healing folks take it from there. They fit your surfer with a life vest, and lead them to the water to meet up with their pro surfer. The pro surfers take the kids out in the water, and ride the waves back in to shore. The pros do EVERYTHING possible to give each child the ride of their life - helping them to stand up and surf...

or picking them up…

I even saw a couple of surfers with kids on their shoulders.

AWESOME!

Aidan's pro surfer was Joe, and they headed right out into the water to catch some waves!

After Aidan's session, lunch was ready. I wish I had taken some pictures - what a tremendous spread of food. ALL donated from local restaurants. And ALL free for the surfers and their families. TONS of fruit, veggies, fried chicken, mac and cheese, cole slaw, pasta salad - everything wasn't Gluten Free, of course, but I was pleasantly surprised with the variety of things that WERE GF. And there were plenty of sponsor tents, offering a selection of snacks for everyone (many of them GF as well). LOTS of water and lemonade to drink - surprisingly, I did not see any soda (which I think is GREAT!)

During the lunch break, Aidan and I had the extreme pleasure of meeting the founder of Surfers Healing, Izzy Paskowitz. Izzy has a brand new autobiography that just came out called "Scratching the Horizon: A Surfing Life," which he was kind enough to autograph for Aidan. (I've just begun reading it, and I am thoroughly enjoying it so far! Click the picture and pick up a copy for yourself.)

Izzy took the time to really talk to everyone standing in line to meet him, which was great! Of course, he signed books and posed for photos too.
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Maybe one day, if Aidan's love of surfing becomes his passion, we can send him to surf with Izzy at his family's surf camp. How cool would THAT be??

After lunch, Aidan managed to talk his way into a 2nd surf session with his pro surfer, Joe. This time, Joe helped Aidan surf on his own! You could hear Sushi's whistle all the way down the beach, and Aidan had a BLAST!

After Aidan's 2nd session, it was time to pack up and head back home. What an AMAZING day!

Surfers Healing offers children on the autism spectrum AND their families a stress-free and overwhelmingly positive day of surfing fun at the beach, at absolutely NO COST. Izzy and Danielle Paskowitz work tirelessly to secure permits for their events, sponsors (to provide equipment, food, raffle items, money, and other donations), professional surfers to donate their time, amazing volunteers, and probably about a million other things! Each year, Surfers Healing travels worldwide, up and down both U.S. coasts, Puerto Rico, and Canada, giving literally THOUSANDS of children their BEST DAY EVER! Please click the Surfers Healing logo above, and learn more about this non-profit organization. If you are able, financial donations are always appreciated, in any amount. You can also volunteer your time to help out at an event near you, which is also very much needed and appreciated. I think they are about finished with events for 2012, but the 2013 schedule should be out early next year, I think. If you have a child on the autism spectrum and would like to attend an event, check their website to see what surf camps are near you, and make sure you don't miss the sign up date for that event - the events fill up very quickly.

To Izzy and Danielle Paskowitz, and everyone involved with Surfers Healing, thank you for an amazing day at Folly Beach, SC. Aidan truly had the BEST DAY EVER, and we can't wait to surf with y'all again!

Much love,

Allie

Our BEST Summer EVER!

2012-08-21T18:04:00.002-04:00

Hello out there! I know, it's been a while. Hopefully, this post will explain just why I've been so quiet on the blog. You may remember that we had a Brain Balance check-up back in April with Dr. Pete in Atlanta. Across the board, everything looked GREAT for Aidan. Dr. Pete gave me this advice, regarding Aidan's upcoming summer vacation - keep him busy. Find as many physical camps or groups as you can afford, and let him be a seven year old boy. Message received. It started like this…

I spent days researching camps in the area, finding out which camps and themes interested Aidan and still had availability. We soon realized that we could actually afford very little (summer camp is SERIOUSLY expensive), so we asked our family for some help. (Generous parents and grand-parents are AWESOME and we are so very grateful!) Aidan's top picks were basketball camp, baseball camp, archery camp, and above all else, SURF CAMP. We were able to make ALL of that happen, and then some. Rather than TELLING you all about it, I thought I would SHOW you…here goes!

Our Summer 2012

We began with swimming lessons, for all of the monkeys...

Next came some serious beach time with friends and family...

Followed by Baseball camp…

Papa took Aidan shopping for his baseball gear, and gave the boys a few pointers in the yard…

We officially ended baseball week with a Sand Gnats game, and the boys had a blast!

Next up, archery camp at Camp Villa Marie. I wasn't able to get any pictures at this camp, so here is a photo of the boys having sorbet after camp, with Aidan wearing the Camp Villa Marie shirt that he tie-dyed himself!

More beach time followed, with LOTS of paddle boarding (the new Pence Family Obsession!)

Andy invented the "Ashwin toss" which was quite challenging to photograph! (Don't worry, Ash LOVED it!)

The next summer adventure was the super cool Waterman's Camp - surfing, kayaking and paddle boarding. You can read ALL about this camp (and see ALL the photos) here, but I will re-share a few of my favorites.

Basketball camp followed - again, no camp photos. But check out our new basketball goal, courtesy of Mimi and Papa!

Probably the biggest surprise (in a good way) was the Art Camp that was put on by the City of Savannah Department of Cultural Affairs. Drawing, painting, sculpting, pottery, jewelry making, theater - they did it ALL! Aidan had so much fun the first week that he attended, that he BEGGED for another week! Check out all of the cool art that he made!

More beach time, and I just have to take a moment to really appreciate how lucky we are to call such a beautiful place our home.

Aidan's last grand adventure (certainly, his favorite) was an entire WEEK of surfing with local legend, Hot Sushi! Aidan learned SO much and had a blast each day with Sushi! Between Sushi and myself, we got SO many great photos - here are a few of my favorites...

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By the end of the week, they had one another's expressions down pat!

I think this one is my very favorite (photo by Hot Sushi)

That MUST be it, right?? Not quite…

There were also fireworks…

Family visits…

Putt-Putt…

Spray Ground & Play Ground fun…

Exactly ONE awesome boat ride...

And more awesome Sand Gnats games…

Aeson conquered his fear of Gnate the gnat…

And Aidan caught his first ever pop-fly ball! (He was super proud, and more than a little stunned…;)

Aidan got to ride horses with Horsin' Around, which he loved. We are so grateful that we got to participate in their summer program, and hope to get to ride with them again in the fall!

We learned a thing or two this summer, as well…After Ace's foot found an oyster shell, we learned the importance of water shoes at low tide.

OUCH! It was very awful, and he was very brave…moving along!

We also learned that the bike path at the YMCA is a GREAT way to wear the monkeys out! (And we ALL get our exercise that way, too!)

And finally, I learned how to add text to a photo I took paddle boarding one day, making it my new favorite photo and a perfect motto for our summer!

Whew! So now I hope you understand why my blog posts have been so scarce! We've been just a little bit busy! And just to be a total tease, I will tell you that we have two more super exciting adventures coming up in the very near future. The first of which is tomorrow, and I should REALLY be packing everyone up and getting ready! Stay tuned!

Much love,

Allie

An AweZome Summer Kickoff!

2012-07-28T12:08:00.002-04:00

Hello out there! I think it's time to back up a bit and tell you about some of our adventures earlier this summer. I usually try to keep things chronological, but I got a little caught up in the excitement of Aidan learning to surf, kayak and paddle board. (In my defense, watching Aidan really come into his own on the water IS pretty exciting, at least for this Mama!)

Anyway, we started this summer of RIGHT back in May - with a trip to Atlanta to see our very favorite band. I'm sure by now, everyone knows I'm talking about Zac Brown Band! As a reward for all of his hard work this year in school, Aidan got to tag along with me and Andy! We were all super excited!

Before the show, we joined the Zamily (Best fan club EVER) Tailgate and made TONS of new friends. Check out this crazy group!

Awesome food, friends, and FUN!

Aidan got to hang with his ztick peep. The stick peeps are a Zamily tradition, giving those of us that can't make it to every show a way to be there! The peeps have been everywhere! A fellow Zamily member made Aidan and I peeps a few months ago (thanks Terri), but this was the first time that Aidan saw his peep in "person."

We got to hang with our buddy Shila, whom we met back in February at Sonia Leigh's show at Criminal Records in Atlanta. Awesome!

Aidan bonded instantly with fellow zamily member, Amy. I think it took them about 30 seconds to be best buds!

Aidan and Carole hit it off quickly too!

The amazing Carole brought several hundred glow sticks to pass out to everyone to crack during "Free," and Aidan was all about passing them out to everyone in the parking lot. We gave him a cup for donations to Camp Southern Ground and he and his dad made their way around the parking lot, passing out glow sticks, talking to people about the camp, and collecting donations for CSG.

I think around $150 was raised, and went in the giant CSG dream jar at the show!

Aidan got plenty of play time too! His daddy was awfully proud of this moment…;)

We claimed some prime real estate on the lawn at Lakewood, and got ready for an awesome show! We were joined on the lawn by some fellow Zamily members - Sharon, Jeff, Kathy, Dale, Amy, Susan - thanks for hanging with us! We had such a great time!

Aidan and Alana, enjoying the show!

Aidan and I went exploring between sets and found the Camp Southern Ground booth! Executive Director, Jean Peck, was at the booth, and she was thrilled to finally meet Aidan! We had fun taking pictures - thanks, Jean, for sharing the photos with me!

We are BIG supporters of Camp Southern Ground (see the "paying if forward" tab to read all about our awesome little monkeys!) In fact, we are already planning our next family project to raise money for CSG at the Southern Ground Music and Food Festival in Charleston, SC this October. Stay tuned…

The show, as always, was AMAZING! If you haven't seen Zac Brown Band live yet, you are missing out!

After the show, we got the one and only Coy Bowles to sign a copy of his children's book, "Amy Giggles: Laugh Out Loud" for Aidan. Thanks Coy!

What an AWESOME day! The ride home was rather quiet in the back seat!

So that was our big summer kick off party! We had a great time and made lots of new friends. In fact, do you guys remember our new friend Amy??

Well, she was our Secret Elf for the Zamily Christmas in July gift exchange. She gave us the most perfect and thoughtful gift, and I just had to share.

We are most definitely NOT your average family, and there is NEVER a dull moment! PERFECT! Thanks Amy, we LOVE it!

And finally, I would like to give a huge thank you to Kathy O'Toole, for taking such amazing pictures and allowing me to share them on the blog. Kathy took most of the photos in this blog post, and she did a wonderful job! Thanks again, Kathy!

Much love,

Allie

July…How did THAT happen?

2012-07-15T15:06:00.003-04:00

So I know I owe everyone a catch-up post (Can you believe summer is HALF over??) We've been very busy this summer with lots of camps, lots of beach time, a little family fitness, and tons of F-U-N! This has been an EPIC week for Aidan, and I simply must share it! Get ready for LOTS of photos!

This week, Aidan attended a Waterman's Camp at North Island Surf & Kayak, and it was AWESOME! Surfing, Kayaking, Stand-up Paddle Boarding - he got to do it all! Whatever the conditions were best for that day. And I got to tag along for a couple of their adventures too! Many thanks to Shane and our new friends at North Island Surf & Kayak for a super fun week!

Surf Day at North Beach

Paddle Boarding to Little Tybee

Kayaking to the Lighthouse at Cockspur Island

My partner - Tiny!

The View from the Lighthouse

How do you cap off such an exciting week? With one more adventure, of course! I surprised Aidan with a private surfing lesson o, Saturday with Yamada Atsushi, aka "Hot Sushi" to his students and fellow surfers!

EDIT: There was a GREAT article about Sushi in today's paper here in Savannah. You can check it out here, and please feel free to share the article and like Sushi's page on facebook here.

Aidan had a blast and had an AMAZING first lesson! Look out, Uncle Kyle - somebody is gonna want to be tagging along to surf with the cool kids! Check out my little shredder!

And my favorite photo of all - I only wish it was in focus! Still too cool NOT to share, though! Awesome job, Aidan!

WHEW! What a week! I must mention in this post that ALL of this would not have been possible without Brain Balance. Improvements in coordination, balance, rhythm, timing, confidence, listening skills, following directions, staying on task - these are all by-products of correcting Aidan's hemispheric imbalance. For more information about the Brain Balance Program, please visit their website here.

And finally, check out my new motto:

You all know by now that we are HUGE fans of Zac Brown Band! Their new album, "Uncaged," was released this week and is AWESOME! Hands down, the new favorite album for our entire family! If you don't own it already, do yourselves a favor and get it TODAY! "Uncaged" can be downloaded from iTunes, or purchased from ZBB's website here.

Much love,

Allie

A Brain Balance Review

2012-06-06T23:37:00.001-04:00

Ok, so how is it JUNE already?? The end of the school year is always such a hectic time - and this last week of school for Aidan is FLYING by!

I recently posted a review for the Brain Balance Program on Google, and I thought I would share it here as well. Lately, I have been getting a lot of blog traffic with people searching for Brain Balance Reviews, and I thought it would be helpful to have my thoughts in order for interested parents to find. Here goes…

"This program is simply amazing. We began our journey with Brain Balance in September 2010 with our then-5 year old son, Aidan. Aidan suffered from ADHD and sensory processing disorder, and was really struggling in Kindergarten. He was extremely impulsive, aggressive with peers and teachers, defiant, and in constant motion ALL of the time. We had tried medication on several occasions, with no success. Most were ineffective after a short time, or he could not tolerate the side effects. We had been treating Aidan with various biomedical interventions for almost 2 years at that point - interventions such as GF/CF diet, supplements, Hyperbaric Oxygen Treatment, IV Chelation therapy, Chiropractic Care, Homeopathy and Occupational Therapy. These combined therapies cost us a fortune, and brought some positive changes, but often an illness could all but erase any progress he had made.

After having Aidan assessed at the Suwanee Brain Balance Center, we began using the Brain Balance Home Program with him. Over the next nine months, we saw slow but steady progress in Aidan's behavior - a gradual lessening of the frequency, intensity and duration of the aggressive and impulsive behaviors. As the school year came to an end, we were so encouraged by Aidan's progress with the Brain Balance Home Program that we KNEW we had to move heaven and earth so that he could attend the Brain Balance Program at a center. We split up our family, and my three boys and I relocated to Atlanta for about 5 months (June-October of 2011). Aidan attended 12 weeks of Pre-Brain Balance and then an additional 6 weeks of Brain Balance at the Roswell Center. We followed the program, to the letter. Exercises were done three times a day, every single day, no exceptions. We made the necessary lifestyle and diet changes, and stuck with it. This program requires a tremendous amount of effort, for both the children and the parents, but the results are absolutely worth it. And the Brain Balance staff is extremely supportive, always there to answer questions, and offer guidance and support for the children AND the parents.

We now exercise more as a family, and spend a lot less time watching TV and playing video games. The Brain Balance Program has completely changed Aidan's life, and has had a definite and positive impact on our entire family. Since completing the Brain Balance Program, Aidan has been an honor roll student every quarter, and his behavioral issues have lessened considerably. He is a much happier and more carefree little boy. We are very much looking forward to a summer vacation filled with camp (for the first time ever!), lots of beach time and play dates with his friends." (end of review)

Need some proof?

Let's talk about balance and coordination…less than three months ago, Aidan finally allowed us to take the training wheels off of his bike. Check out his latest accomplishment, first with Uncle Kyle.

And just a few minutes later, all by himself!

Curious about his much-improved social skills? Check him out, splashing with some classmates at the lake last weekend and having a ball!

This was the group of boys shouting, "Aidan, Aidan - come sit with us!" as we arrived at the teachers vs. students basketball game earlier this week!

(I didn't even care that he totally blew me off to sit with his friends, AND I managed not to tear up sitting on the bleachers! GO MOM!)

Academic accomplishments? We've got those too! In fact, just this morning, the family gathered to watch Aidan receive his award for making Honor Roll EVERY quarter!

And in the afternoon, I found out that Aidan's teacher had selected him to be the High Flying Hawk for her class for the month of May. This award is given monthly to the one student in each class who best embodies the character trait for that month. May's character trait? Determination. Mrs. Fruits sent me a photo of Aidan enjoying a treat with the other High Flying Hawks, and the following message:

"Determination - it can be his best friend or worst enemy, but one thing is for sure - Your boy sure is determined! Way to go Aidan - High Flying Hawk!"

LOTS of awards today!

But this last photo is a really powerful one…The bottom folder is Aidan's IEP folder from Kindergarten, and the top one is this year's First Grade IEP Folder. What a difference a year makes, especially if that year includes the Brain Balance Program!

Happy Summer Everyone!

Much love,

Allie

How is it MAY already??

2012-05-07T23:01:00.003-04:00

So can someone please explain to me how it is MAY already?? This spring is FLYING by - and I guess it doesn't help that we've been on the beach almost every weekend since mid-March! What spring?? It already feels like summertime!

So we're gonna back up a couple of weeks, so that I can share with everyone a few exciting things that have been happening for the Pence Clan. First thing's first - right before Spring Break, we got Aidan's 3rd quarter report card…

ALL A's! HIGH HONOR ROLL! His reward? A basketball goal from his Mimi & Papa, and a trip to see Zac Brown Band on 5/12/12 in Atlanta from me and Andy! YAY! We are SO proud!

We spent most of the boys' Spring Break in Atlanta. Aidan and Aeson each had appointments for check-ups with Brain Balance - and we planned to revisit some of our favorite Atlanta places for some FUN!
Our appointments with Brain Balance went very well. Aidan's progress is amazing, across the board. Academically, he is on grade level or above in every single subject. The only area that needs some work is phonics, and we're on it! His math scores are off the charts (3rd grade level!), and his reading comprehension is much improved (and now above 2nd grade level). On the Interactive Metronome, his scores are holding steady - and he scored in the same range as an 'average' teenager! Dr. Pete was thrilled, and so are we!

We have seen SO much improvement in Aidan's coordination, balance, and confidence over the last few months. He has recently learned to ride a scooter, and a bike WITHOUT training wheels. He wants to learn to ride a skateboard, and to surf - I am equally excited and terrified by these new desires! Aidan also wants to learn how to throw a football (which he and Andy have been working on), and to play basketball - REAL basketball, Mom! Team Sports?? YES!

Aidan is still pretty emotional, and can get angry fairly quickly. We are also working through some "growing pains" and typical issues for seven year old boys - being respectful, remembering our manners, LOTS of sassiness. Pretty typical stuff, I would say. Dr. Pete recommended this book to me:

I'm about halfway through it, and I think it is fantastic! I would highly recommend it to ANY parent.

Aeson's turn - we had Aeson assessed in August or September of last year by Dr. Pete. Now Ace was 3 1/2 at the time, and very young for the Brain Balance Program. But we knew that he had a pretty significant speech delay, and was extremely difficult to potty train. Dr. Pete did a partial assessment then, really trying to get a good look at Aeson's primitive reflexes. Primitive Reflexes are your body's first reflexes, and they should all be gone by age 1, replaced by higher level reflexes. If primitive reflexes are still present beyond age 1, they should be viewed as an early sign of problems to come. Back in August, Dr. Pete was able to identify a couple of primitive reflexes still present in Aeson, and we slowly began a few exercises to correct them. This time around, Aeson was much more compliant with Dr. Pete, and he has quite a few primitive reflexes still present. Now we are focusing our time and attention on Aeson, and doing his exercises very diligently, like we have always done with Aidan. Aeson is getting the hang of the new routine, and his movements are becoming more fluid and controlled - GOOD SIGNS! Aeson, by the way, appears to be LEFT brain deficient (where Aidan was RIGHT brain deficient) - I guess my kids just like to keep us on our toes!

Finally, Dr. Pete and I made this video:

This is our entire Brain Balance story, from beginning to present. Please check it out, and feel free to share or repost it!

And now for the FUN! We had such a great time revisiting all of our old "stomping grounds" in Atlanta!
We had ribs at Slope's BBQ…

Spent several afternoons at PLAY Place…

We rode bikes and hung with our cousins, Kelsey and Alana, at the playground…

We visited ALL of our favorite (non-dairy) sweet treat places…
Bruster's…

Rita's Italian Ice…

And our all-time favorite…Yogli Mogli!

We also visited our friends at the Brain Balance Center in Suwanee, where they have the coolest tree EVER on the wall! The leaves of the tree are the handprints of all of the Brain Balance graduates of the Suwanee Center. Our Brain Balance Journey began at the Suwanee Center, with Director Jennifer Williams, and Ms. Jennifer invited Aidan to put his handprints on her tree when he graduated. Aidan was THRILLED!

Ms. Jennifer helped Aidan pick the perfect spot…

Viola! (FYI - Aidan wrote his own name on the wall. He was SO careful, so it would be just perfect!)

Thanks, Ms. Jennifer! We are so proud and so honored to be a part of your tree!

Our final adventure was a trip to Imagine It! Children's Museum of Atlanta on our way out of town, with Gogi, Alana, and Kelsey.

Our whole motley crew…

WHEW! What a week! It was exhausting, but fun! Many thanks to Gogi, Alana, Aunt Kris and Kelsey for making room for all of us and helping with the monkeys.

In closing, I have a favor to ask. If you've followed my blog for more than a minute, you know that I am a HUGE fan of Zac Brown Band and all things Southern Ground. One of my very favorite artists, Sonia Leigh, has a brand new video that just came out, and it features members of ZBB. Please check it out, share, and repost it. Sonia and her band are amazing and you will NOT be disappointed!

Get More: Bar (Barroom Radio Mix), Sonia Leigh, Sonia Leigh Videos

Much Love,

Allie

Our Healing Journey

2012-04-19T12:23:00.008-04:00

WOW! What a day! I spent the morning putting the finishing touches on a Letter to the Editor of the Georgia Music Magazine. They wrote a great article in their last issue about Zac Brown, and I wanted to share with their readers how Zac (along with the other members of ZBB) has positively impacted our family. We learned about the Brain Balance Program at a Zac Brown Band concert, and thus began our amazing journey of healing for Aidan!

A few minutes after I sent the email, I got an email saying that my Parent Testimonial Video for Brain Balance was ready to view and share. Here it is, Our Story! Please feel free to comment, share, or repost. I want the whole world to know how the Brain Balance Program has truly changed Aidan's life!!

And here is the letter that I sent to the Georgia Music Magazine editor. I'm afraid I waited WAY too long to write and send it, but I've got my fingers crossed that somehow it gets printed in the magazine! I'll keep you posted!

To: Lisa Love
Editor, Georgia Music Magazine
Re: A Letter to the Editor

Dear Lisa,

I just finished re-reading (for about the zillionth time) the wonderful article about Zac Brown from your last edition. It is amazing the impact that Zac has had on the Atlanta music scene and the incredibly talented artists on his record label. Zac, along with the rest of the Zac Brown Band, has also had a direct and tremendous impact on my family, and I felt compelled to share that with you.

On August 21, 2010, I attended my very first Zac Brown Band concert in Charlotte, NC. For over 2 ½ hours, they blew my mind – with their awesome musical talents, their infectious energy, their deep appreciation for their fans, and finally, for their promotion of a non-medical program called Brain Balance. Zac spoke to the crowd very passionately about how the Brain Balance Program was helping to recover children with neurological and behavioral disorders (such as Autism, Asperger’s, ADHD, etc.) WITHOUT drugs. I was paying close attention, as this program sounded like something that could help my then-5-year old son, Aidan.

Less than three weeks later, after a VERY rough start to Kindergarten, we were on our way to a Brain Balance Center in Atlanta for Aidan’s evaluation. We worked with the Brain Balance Program from home for the next nine months, and we were so encouraged by Aidan’s progress, that we decided we MUST move heaven and earth to have him complete the program at a Brain Balance Center. My three boys and I relocated to Atlanta from June-October 2011 so that Aidan could attend Brain Balance, and the results of the program have been absolutely life changing for Aidan. My impulsive, aggressive and easily over-stimulated boy who struggled making friends now has much-improved self control, is well liked by his teachers and peers, and recently made the Honor Roll for the first time ever! AMAZING!

We celebrated Aidan’s Brain Balance Graduation at a ZBB concert in Jacksonville, FL last October. It was a truly unforgettable night! We attended a legendary Eat and Greet before the show, where I got to introduce Aidan to each member of Zac Brown Band. Aidan was THRILLED to meet them, and he got lots of high-fives and congratulations from Zac, Jimmy, Coy, Chris, Clay, Hop, and Wyatt. We got to hang with Sonia Leigh and her awesome band, we got to tour “Cookie” with Chef Rusty Hamlin, we got to “Z-Team” before the show, passing out koozies and “working for the band” – an AMAZING night for Aidan that he will NEVER forget, and a perfect way to celebrate his Graduation from Brain Balance!

The musical talent on the Zac’s Southern Ground Record label is absolutely amazing, but each artist shares another quality that seems to be lacking in world today – HEART. ZBB, Sonia Leigh, Nic Cowan, Levi Lowrey – these artists ALL have a deep love and appreciation for their fans, and a desire to really connect with them. Hang out with ZBB before the show at an Eat and Greet, or catch the other artists taking photos and signing autographs after their set at the merchandise booth. The Southern Ground Artists are also committed to giving back. ZBB’s “Letters for Lyrics” campaign has sent hundreds of thousands of letters and CD’s to soldiers serving our country overseas. Coy Bowles has written a beautiful children’s book, “Amy Giggles: Laugh Out Loud,” with a strong anti-bullying message. And Zac is building a camp, right here in Georgia, for both special needs children and their typical peers. Zac has called Camp Southern Ground his “life’s work,” and my family cannot WAIT to be a part of it. (Please check out www.campsouthernground.org to donate and get involved.) HEART

My family will be eternally grateful to Zac Brown Band for spreading the word about the Brain Balance Program. EVERYONE that we have met that is in any way connected to ZBB or Southern Ground Records (artists, band members, fan club or “Zamily” members, crew) has been SO kind and supportive of Aidan. We are very proud supporters of all things Southern Ground, and fortunate to be part of such an amazing Zamily!

Sincerely,

Allie Pence

P.S. You can read all about Aidan’s Journey through the Brain Balance Program and beyond at www.brainbalanceaidan.blogspot.com

Finding Hope...

2012-04-15T12:52:00.001-04:00

So I have a LOT to catch up on - we just spent a week in Atlanta, re-evaluating both Aidan and Aeson with Dr. Pete at Brain Balance. AMAZING progress for Aidan, and a concrete plan to help Aeson. ALL GOOD! And we shot a parent testimonial video about our experiences with the Brain Balance Program - I can't wait to see it and to share it with everyone. This program has truly changed Aidan's life, and has helped our entire family in SO many ways. I hope that sharing Aidan's story will help other families learn about Brain Balance, and find hope for their children.

Today's blog, however, will be very short, and very sweet. Right this minute, Andy and I are thoroughly enjoying our 15th kid free hour! That's right - all THREE boys spent the night with Mimi and Papa last night! We dropped them off last night, fed, bathed, and ready for bed. In fact, Ash was asleep already. Andy and I enjoyed a fantastic dinner at our very favorite spot, the Sundae Cafe. Drinks, appetizers, entrees, dessert (to go) - great conversation, no rushing through a meal, not a coloring book in sight - BLISS! We slept in until 9 am - I honestly can't remember the last time I was still in bed at 9am! I called to check on the boys, and everything was ALL GOOD at Mimi and Papa's house. No drama, no tears, ALL GOOD! Andy and I drank our coffee, chatted some more, and I had last night's cheesecake for breakfast! HEAVEN! Now, we are headed to the beach to play with the boys for the afternoon. Thanks Mimi and Papa - we needed that! Maybe 4 days in Chicago for the Autism One conference next month isn't just a pipe dream for this Mama. I am hopefully optimistic!

Much love,

Allie

Life is GOOD today...

2012-03-12T01:10:00.001-04:00

So I've done quite a bit of work on the blog today. Take a look around, while you're here. I moved a few things around, added a couple of stand-alone pages, nothing major. Housekeeping stuff, really. Anyway, I'm sitting at the kitchen table, thinking to myself that I really SHOULD be working on a new blog post. (Remember that February resolution? Once a week, like it or not...yeah yeah yeah!) So I could fill in the gap from November thru January, and tell you all about the holidays or the dinosaur birthday party back in December. Or I could tell you about our rather frustrating week - wacky weather + POLLEN = one wheezy Tiny One. Very not good. Aidan also had an infection requiring (for the first time in MONTHS) an antibiotic, and his behavior this week has been less than stellar, at home and at school. Then there's the fact that he is a seven year old BOY, and they tend to be more than a little demanding and frequently not-so-respectful, in general. I'm sitting here mulling all of these possibilities over when my husband comes to the door, demanding that I come outside right NOW. "In a minute," I snap right back. "FINE," he says, "but I thought you'd WANT to see your son's first REAL bike ride!" Two point five seconds later, I'm running out the door, iphone in hand. And this is what I saw. For the first time EVER!! Prepare to be AMAZED!

Um, okay crazy lady. Your seven year old is riding a bike...what's the big deal?? Well, I'll tell you - he's riding a bike WITH NO TRAINING WHEELS FOR THE FIRST TIME EVER!! When he was in preschool, they had "water wheel day" at the end of the year, and everyone got to ride their bikes around the parking lot. Now a couple of the bigger kids were zooming around with no training wheels, but everyone else had a bike with training wheels attached. Everyone except Aidan. He zoomed around on his tricycle like a rocket, but would NOT attempt to ride a bike, even with training wheels. WOULD NOT ATTEMPT IT. All through Kindergarten, no bike. Even though we'd bought him a really nice bike for his birthday that year (WITH training wheels attached.) He FINALLY started to ride a little bit with the training wheels this past spring. And all summer, while we were in Atlanta, he would ride his bike. But VERY slowly. As in, his brothers could keep up on their plasma cars. TURTLE SLOW. This worked at the time - three of them, one of me, BIG city. Since we've been home, he has shown interest in his scooter, his skateboard, and now, HIS BIKE!! His coordination has improved SO drastically, and so has his confidence. I know in my heart that we have Brain Balance to thank for that. AMAZING!

GO AIDAN! We are SO proud of you!

Much love,

Allie

Adventures in February...

2012-03-03T23:26:00.005-05:00

February was pretty, well, NORMAL for the Pence clan. Now I don't mean that each member of the Pence family suddenly morphed into some bland and boring human. We are each still our own special blend of kinda kooky, a little spicy, sometimes loud, often sassy, and always crazy fun. However, the things we got to do in February were very normal. Birthday parties, family outings, school activities and awards...totally NORMAL! With our own special spin, of course!

First, Aidan got invited to his first first-grade birthday party! YAY! There were superhero costumes, face painting, a bouncy house, and a piñata. The best part (for me) was hearing, upon our arrival, "Aidan's here - YES! Come play with us!" Music to my ears! My little man had a blast playing with his friends!

Later that same day, we all headed to Tybee to celebrate baby Kayley's first birthday. Kayley thoroughly enjoyed her birthday cupcake! I can't believe our baby girl is growing up SO fast! (You would think that I would be used to this little phenomenon by now, right?)

Now Kayley actually turned one at the end of January, but we waited to celebrate her birthday until everyone's favorite monkey could be here - UNCLE KYLE!!

It's always fun when Uncle Kyle comes to town! ;)

February also brought us a school fund raiser - Jump Rope For Heart. This was Aidan's first time participating in JR4H, and he was SUPER excited. We got him a jump rope, so that he and his Dad could practice. Aidan made a video that we emailed to friends and family, to help him raise money for the American Heart Association. Didn't he do a great job?

When I asked him how much money he thought he could raise, he immediately answered, "At LEAST a thousand dollars, Mom. We just raised more than that for Camp Southern Ground."

(Side note-back in December, we felt we needed to do something BIG as a family, to pay it forward for Brain Balance. We talked it over with the boys, and they decided that in lieu of birthday gifts, they would ask friends and family to make a donation to Camp Southern Ground. Andy and I were in charge of the super fun dinosaur birthday party to celebrate our boys, and it was AWESOME! We are so so SO proud of them! And thanks to the very generous donations of friends and family members, they raised $1090 for CSG!)

Anyway, we set a goal of $100, and Aidan got to work. We had to set a new goal twice for him! All total, he raised $287 for JR4H! GO AIDAN! Finally, THE day arrived - it was time to Jump Rope For Heart at school! Lots of parents and teachers worked hard to make the afternoon fun for everyone! It was structured chaos at its best, and we had a great time.

Even Aeson got in on the fun!

Mema came with us, and she had a great time watching her boys! We were so very happy she could join us!

We made some birthday videos in February, too! This one was for Nanny...

And this one was for Coy Bowles, of Zac Brown Band. Still not sure why they felt the need to scream at poor Coy - they really want to be his backup singers!

You might have read (in an earlier blog post) that Aidan made the HONOR ROLL!!

His very first quarter back in school!! For the first time EVER!! We are over the moon and so very proud of him! GO AIDAN! And a BIG thank you to our friends at Brain Balance Atlanta - we would not be here without their hard work and support! Aidan got a pretty cool (and more than a little "rock star") reward for making the honor roll. If you missed that blog post, you can read all about it here: http://brainbalanceaidan.blogspot.com/2012/02/i-baaaaack.html

And finally, we had one of our most relaxed and most FUN family outings EVER! We took the boys to Fort Pulaski and to see the Lighthouse on Free Museum Sunday, and we all had such a good time! The boys LOVED exploring the Fort!

The weather was perfect, and the view was awesome!

I LOVE this photo of my boys!

These too!

I hope this isn't a sign of things to come...;)

When we finished exploring the Fort, we headed over to the picnic area for lunch. A few minutes later, Mimi, Papa, and Uncle Kyle came to join us! We hauled the tailgating supplies out of the van, and let the games begin!

There was Beanbag toss...(and Ashwin tried to steal the beanbags)

Lawn Darts...(and Ashwin tried to steal the targets)

And bocci ball...(you guessed it, Ashwin tried to steal the white ball)

He's sorry! (NOT really!)

LOTS of fun with people we love - YAY!

And who knew Uncle Kyle could juggle?

Afterwards, Mimi and Papa took the Tiny One back to their house for a rest. Andy and I headed to the Lighthouse with the big boys - we'll have to take them again soon, since we couldn't actually climb the lighthouse that day due to painting. It was still fun, though!

All in all, a pretty awesome February for the Pence Clan, I'd say. And check out the latest progress report on Aidan...my little rock star!

Yep, I'd say February was totally...

comletely...

normal!!

NOT!

But it was definitely awesome!

Much love,

Allie

Join the Revolution!

2012-02-23T22:45:00.002-05:00

There's a revolution happening right now, across this country, across the globe. A group of parents who have banded together for support, encouragement, and all-out dragon slaying. The dragon in question? AUTISM. This group of moms (and one dad) all have a story to tell - a story of injury and illness, of complete exhaustion and absolute perseverance, of recovery and healing, and above all else, a story of HOPE. These parents have been helping each other navigate the slippery slopes of all things autism for quite some time - sharing research, various therapies and biomedical interventions, diets, supplements, books, medical tests, IEP meetings - I'll bet my list doesn't even scratch the surface. And now, they are sharing their countless hours of research, their vast knowledge, and their collective stories with the world.

One of the Thinking Moms is my very dear friend and mentor. She has helped me through every struggle and pitfall along Aidan's journey of recovery, and celebrated every triumph. She has been my sounding board, my constant inspiration, and the Mama Bear I most admire. And she single-handedly molded me into a true force of nature at the IEP table. I am so excited to share this project, and I can't wait to see what amazing thing comes next! Love ya, Blaze!

Click on the picture above and visit their website. 'Like' them on facebook, and share their blog posts on your wall. Maybe you don't have a child with special needs - but I'll bet you know someone who does. Someone who might need a little support, maybe a little encouragement, or a reminder to NEVER give up HOPE. Viva la Revolution!

From their website, www.thinkingmomsrevolution.com

The Thinking Moms’ Revolution

What began as a collective journey

Of stories across the globe

From Autism to recovery, and with whatever happens in between

A tight-knit group of parents were drawn to support each other

Traveling the Autism journey

While learning, identifying, laughing, crying, celebrating – experiencing a full spectrum of life and emotions

Creating a Revolution along the way

Not for the weak

Always with hope in sight

We walk together

And invite you to join us to do the same.

Much love,

Allie

Sonia Leigh and the Honor Roll...

2012-02-19T23:59:00.004-05:00

So it's been a while since I've updated the blog. It was never my intention to stop blogging - somehow, life just takes over, I guess. Forget New Year's Resolutions, my new February Resolution is to blog at least once a week, like it or not. So here goes nothing...

I'm not going to attempt to play catch up in one marathon blog post. Don't worry - I'll fill you in on what we've been up to, sooner or later...;) We're gonna dive right in to the good stuff - no, the GREAT stuff. The AMAZING stuff! Aidan made the Honor Roll. On his very first quarter back at school. AIDAN MADE THE HONOR ROLL!! How awesome is that?? See?

We are SO proud of our little man! He has worked SO hard - at Brain Balance, at home, and especially at school. His progress has been nothing short of a miracle for our whole family! We thought that making the Honor Roll deserved a special reward, and Aidan agreed. Any other kid might ask for a new video game, maybe a trip to Chuck-E-Cheese...but not my little rock star! Without missing a beat, Aidan said, "Mom, what I'd really like to do is go see Sonia Leigh again." Well, that might be tricky. And expensive. (Seriously, though - how cool is my kid??) But wait...I found out through the Fam-O-Leigh (Sonia's awesome fan club) about a free show at Criminal Records in Little Five Points last Sunday afternoon. A-HA! We finagled a babysitter for the little boys (Thanks Mimi and Aunt Cassie) and made our plans. Of course, we had to be there early to get one of the awesome Fam-O-Leigh shirts that Michael Lay had made for the first 30 fan club members at the record store.

We left Savannah at 6:30 am, and made it to Criminal Records around 10:45am. And yes, we each got a shirt! We hung out, street teamed a little, and had lunch with a big group of Fam-O-Leigh! Aidan and the fabulous Miss Susie amused themselves at lunch with coasters, duct tape and a sharpie! Viola! Art!

After lunch, we headed back to the record store for Sonia's performance. Aidan and I were front and center (of course), and there was a great turnout for the show.

Sonia and the band were all smiles as they took the stage. They opened the show with "I Got Loaded," paying homage to blues musician and Sonia's best friend, Sean Costello.

Then came a new song, "Alabama," for a certain Fam-O-Leigh member who has claimed it as his theme song! And Sonia sang the song right to him! Awesome!

And the whole band never stopped smiling, the entire time! They were clearly having SO much fun, taking requests, letting the crowd sing along, and rockin' the house! Everyone on that stage was clearly having a blast, and their vibe was positively infectious! Sonia even played a song for Aidan! He asked her to play "Skeletons," and she responded, "Sure, buddy. I'll play that one for ya!" And it was the very next song - Aidan is STILL bragging about that one!

Sonia and the boys really mixed up the set list, playing new songs from 1978 December like "I won't tell" and "Ain't Dead Yet," and older fan favorites (and sing-alongs) like "Frozen Bed" and "A Poem from the Ocean Floor." Of course, they played Sonia's first single, "My Name is Money," and her newest radio single "Bar." (Everyone, quick - go call your local radio station and request it!) Sonia even pulled local musician, Hannah Thomas, onstage to help sing "Bar," and she did a great job!

Now, I've been to a LOT of shows - everywhere from bars to arenas. This show was without a doubt, one of the coolest, most FUN shows I've been a part of! EVERYONE in Criminal Records was having SO much fun! Sonia and the band, the fans, the record store employees - EVERYONE!

After at least the third time that Sonia said this would be their last song, they played an extremely heartfelt "1978 December" for her parents in the crowd. So much emotion, such a beautiful job.

They closed out the show with a cover of a song called "Valerie," and the jury is still out on who originally performed that song. Shila and I thought it sounded very Sprinsteen-ish - and we all know Sonia LOVES the Boss. Someone in the Fam-O-Leigh suggested it was an Amy Winehouse song. Sonia, if you're reading this, care to weigh in? Just because I really liked the song and I'm curious! ;) AMAZING show! Absolutely worth every second of the long drive from Savannah to Atlanta and back (all in one day, too!)

After the show, Sonia and the band hung around in the record store, signing autographs, taking pictures, and chatting with fans. The fabulous Mike Rizzi hooked Aidan up with drumsticks yet again, and this time, Aidan got the whole band to sign them! (And every single person, except Mike, made a comment about how difficult is was to sign drumsticks! You folks all did an awesome job!)

Now I should mention that later that night, Sonia Leigh and her band opened up for Willie Nelson at the Tabernacle. There was gear to move, and sound checks to do when they got there. But they still made time to connect with the fans. This, to me, is what sets Sonia Leigh and all of the Southern Ground Artists apart - that connection with their fans. I hope that the future holds wild and crazy success for Sonia...but I also hope that she'll always have time for a quick hug and and a high five after the show! And maybe even a photo...like this one, which i LOVE!

Of course, hanging with the Fam-O-Leigh was awesome! Shila, John RTP, CC, Dylan, Hannah - it was great to meet y'all and hang out! Susie and Ginger - ALWAYS a pleasure! We hope to see everyone again very soon, and to meet many more Fam-O-Leigh mambers in the future! Michael Lay, we missed you terribly and we LOVE our awesome shirts! THANK YOU!

And finally, this day would NOT have been possible without Brain Balance. That program has truly changed Aidan's life, and I LOVE all of the things we get to do with Aidan now. Like travel 5 hours each way in a car, with NO movies and only a few minutes of video games. Like having lunch in a crowded restaurant, in a group of 20+ people and not having to leave early or endure a single embarrassing scene. Not ONE! Like standing front and center, jamming along to one of our very favorite artists, watching Aidan having a blast and singing along to every single word! THANK YOU BRAIN BALANCE! And thank you Sonia, Mike, Gregg, Will, Jacob, and David for rockin' our faces off!

Much love,

Allie

The Best Day EVER, thanks to Brain Balance!

2011-12-14T19:09:00.002-05:00

This post is going to be short, sweet, and to the point. Brain Balance has truly changed Aidan's life, and I want the whole world to know it. This was Aidan's daily behavior log today. December 14, 2011 is definitely a day to celebrate!

So far, in first grade, today was Aidan's BEST DAY EVER!! In the middle of the last week before Christmas break (probably the least structured time of year thus far) Aidan had his first OUTSTANDING day!! Remember the chart for Mrs. Fruits' students?

Aidan's day was SO awesome, he is at the TOP of the chart!! Andy and I are SO proud of our little man, and so grateful to Mrs. Fruits (General Ed. teacher), Mrs. Harriott (SpEd teacher), and Ms. Kaimal (para-professional) for all of their hard work and dedication! We are so very fortunate to have such a caring group of people on Aidan's IEP team at May Howard!

So today's fantastic news got me thinking about this time LAST year, and I pulled out my (enormous) IEP folder from Kindergarten. This is what I found for December 14, 2010 - a record bad day for Aidan.

You probably can't read the note that accompanied the behavior chart, so I'll summarize it for you. After a very lengthy assembly that morning, Aidan had great difficulty keeping his hands to himself. When the para-professional tried to put him in time out, he kicked her several times and then threw the time out chair at her. The principal was called, and Aidan spent the remainder of the day in her office. (He subsequently was not allowed to participate in the fun-filled "Polar Express" themed afternoon with the rest of the Kindergarteners.) WORST DAY EVER!

Wow, what a difference from this time last year to today! What's our secret? BRAIN BALANCE!! This program has truly changed Aidan's life, and it is by FAR the best investment we have ever made in his future. Dr. Pete Scire and Jennifer Williams - we are so very grateful for all your compassion and dedication to our entire family, especially Aidan. We could not be more thrilled with Aidan's progress, and excited to share his success with the world! Brain Balance is an AMAZING program, filled with driven, compassionate people with hearts bigger than the world!

Thank you, Ms. Jennifer...

Thank you, Dr. Pete...

THANK YOU, Brain Balance!!

Much love,

Allie

P.S. More to come very soon! Turkey Day in Virginia, a dinosaur birthday bash, and more! :)

The gratitude blog

2011-11-24T02:14:00.001-05:00

As we prepare for Thanksgiving later this week, it occurred to me that I haven't properly acknowledged and thanked everyone who made this amazing Brain Balance journey a reality for our family. To say that the last few weeks have been crazy would be quite an understatement, but that is still no excuse. As I sit in the car, headed to Virginia for the Thanksgiving holiday, this seems like the perfect time to reflect and give thanks for all of the love and support that we have received these last few months. Here goes nothing...

First and foremost, I would like to thank Dr. Pete Scire and Jennifer Williams, the directors of the Brain Balance Centers in Roswell and Suwanee, respectively. Your program is amazing, your staff is hard working and extremely dedicated, your support for parents is like nothing I have ever experienced, and the results achieved with Aidan have completely changed his life, in all the best ways! I have never met a more dedicated and supportive group of people, and it has been my privilege to work with each of you ~ Dr. Pete, Jennifer W., Dr. Ed, Lisa, Susan, Justin, Jennifer, Summer, Susan N., and anyone I may have forgotten ~ thank you, thank you, THANK YOU!

To Dr. Robert Melillo ~ thank you for creating this life-changing program for our kids, and for giving the parents such an active role in helping their children recover. As a parent who was told by more than one doctor that there was "no cause for concern" or that this was "just a phase he would grow out of," I really appreciate the way that your program treats the parents. Your directors LISTEN, they understand that no one knows a child the way that a parent does. In the Brain Balance Program, parents are supported, encouraged, and required to actively participate in helping their children reach their full potential. The Brain Balance Program is truly a team effort, and the results are amazing. Thank you, Dr. Melillo.

To Zac Brown Band ~ thank you for supporting and actively promoting the Brain Balance Program. I will never know if we would have ever heard of this program, if not for your concert in Charlotte, NC last August. We hope y'all keep spreading the word about Brain Balance at your shows ~ people ARE listening, and kids ARE getting help because of it. You guys are changing lives, with your music and your message. Thanks again for giving Aidan a special graduation night that he will NEVER forget! We can't wait to see y'all again on New Year's Eve!

To my grandparents, Mema and Mepa Jones ~ we would be lost without you! Andy and I could NEVER have afforded to relocate to Atlanta without your very generous offer to use the condo in Sandy Springs. You have helped us in SO many ways, most especially with your unwavering love and support, and we are so very grateful. We love you both so very much!

To my Mom and Dad ~ thank you for the love, the financial assistance, and most of all, for raising me to believe in myself and trust my own instincts. I could not have done this for Aidan without your love and support.

To Aunt Gloria, Uncle Bill, Alana, and Aunt Kris ~ thanks for everything this summer and fall! Dinners by the pool, fun trips to Stone Mountain, babysitting, picnics at the park - we have had a blast spending time with y'all! Alana, thanks for all of your help with the little monkeys. I am SO glad we all got to spend this time together! Gogi - I miss our porch time already! Thanks for keeping me sane...;) Let's keep in touch, ok?

To Hannah and Delanie Fancher - you ladies are life savers! Thanks for spending part of your summer monkey-sitting! We had lots of fun, and we miss y'all very much!

Remember our refrigerator in Atlanta?

Well, we had LOTS of people send us cards, pictures, and letters. We even got a couple of packages too. Getting mail was a true highlight for the boys - they wanted to check the mail every single time we passed the mailboxes - and they would get SO excited anytime there was mail for them! And even on the most trying day, a glance at our refrigerator could always make me smile! Knowing that SO many people were thinking about us, loving us, and supporting and encouraging us was just the best feeling for ALL of us. I would like to very sincerely thank anyone and everyone who took the time to mail something to us in Atlanta. Every card meant so much to us, and we have saved them ALL. One day, I hope we will have a truly awesome scrapbook of our Atlanta Adventure to share.

We did have a couple of pen pals that rate a little extra special recognition. We would especially like to thank Nanny and Reta (Buddy and Hudson too), the Screptock/Sheffield clan (Uncle Skip, Aunt Pamela, Colleen, Daniel, and pups), and Mimi and Papa for being such faithful pen pals! We loved all of the cards and letters that y'all sent, and we hope you liked the cards and artwork that we sent in return! Finally, we would like to bestow the MOST FAITHFUL PEN PAL award to...TEAM WALLACE! Molly, Brandon, Lydia (Aidan's girlfriend) and Jude (Ace's bud) ~ thank y'all SO very much for ALL of the letters, pictures and notes that you sent us! Getting mail was always fun, but getting mail from Team Wallace was super exciting! Now that we're back home, we'll have to work on getting that rock band together - you bring the Queen, we'll bring the Bon Jovi! You guys ROCK!

To Aidan's IEP team at May Howard ~ I know it hasn't always been easy, but I appreciate more than I can say the willingness of this team to ensure that Aidan have a successful year in first grade. Thank you all for working with us so diligently while we were in Atlanta, and for working so hard to make sure that Aidan's transition back to school went as smoothly as possible. Mrs. Fruits, Mrs. Harriott, Mrs. Pierce, Ms. Kaimal, Ms. Colwell, Mrs. Colby and Ms. Taylor ~ Thank you very much for ALL of your help and support. I think we are off to a GREAT start, and I look forward to a fantastic year!

To everyone who helped out with Aidan's Brian Balance tuition fund, we appreciate your generosity more than we can say. We could never have done this alone, and we are so fortunate to have so many friends and family members in our corner. From the bottom of our hearts, thank you.

And finally, we would like to thank the two people who made our Brain Balance dream a reality for Aidan - Buddy and Jackie Pence.

Jackie, I hope that you know that your final gift to Aidan has changed his life forever. Our entire family is grateful for your gift of Brain Balance, and we hope that we have all made you proud. We love and miss you every single day. Buddy, we love you so very much. Thank you for loving and supporting us along this incredible journey. We could NOT have done this without your love and support.

Hug everyone a little tighter tomorrow, as you gather around to feast. We hope everyone has a safe and very Happy Thanksgiving!

Much love,

Allie

Aidan's 1st week of school!

2011-11-13T01:19:00.001-05:00

The last couple of weeks have been hectic, to say the least! In the midst of moving back to Savannah and trying to get unpacked, we've had an IEP meeting, Aidan's triumphant return to first grade, Halloween, and a few very important birthdays to celebrate! Sheesh!

On Monday, 10/31/11, I had a great IEP meeting at May Howard for Aidan. His IEP team and his teachers have been WONDERFUL thus far. (Remember the amazing package that we got from Mrs. Fruits and her class during our last week in Atlanta?? AWESOME!)

A LOT of thought and planning went in to Aidan's placement for first grade. It was evident that Aidan having a successful and fun year in first grade was a goal that we all shared. The IEP team was very interested in learning exactly what Aidan had been doing at Brain Balance for the last five months, and very excited to see all the progress that he has made! Aidan's sensory breaks will continue throughout his school day, especially prior to times of instruction. These breaks will pair short bursts of aerobic exercises with either Brain Balance music or specific smells to stimulate his right brain. (The aerobic exercise increases oxygen to the brain, the music and smells provide stimulation, and the combination decreases fatigue and calms behaviors.) I thought the meeting was very positive and productive, and I look forward to a GREAT year for Aidan!

Since it was Halloween, that evening Mom, Andy and I took the boys trick-or-treating. The boys were too cute in their costumes, and everyone had fun!

Aidan - the Zombie

Aeson - the Indian

Ashwin - the Cowboy!

And they're OFF!

We didn't stay out too late trick-or-treating because Aidan had a VERY important day the next day!! His first day of school! How did it go, you ask?? Just like this...

In case you can't read the note, it says, "Aidan had an awesome day! He worked hard, listened and followed directions, and participated in class. He was a good friend by sharing his red crayon and picking up someone's pencil for them. I am SO proud of you!" ~ Mrs. Fruits
P.S. Aidan also wanted to tell you that he colored in 13 boxes today! WOW!

(Each child has a chart on their desk for their Friday treat. Throughout each day, Mrs. Fruits will have the children color in a box or two at a time for doing something good. Sometimes the whole class gets to color in a box, but most times, the box-coloring is done on an individual basis. If you color in enough boxes to get into zone A by Friday afternoon, you get a Friday treat! FYI - 13 boxes is well over half way to a Friday treat - and a LOT for one day!)

Day #2 - "Aidan had another good day. He tested a few boundaries but responded well when redirected. He moved his clip to "Think About It" a few times, but was quick to correct his behavior and was able to move his clip back up both times." ~ Mrs. Fruits

Mrs. Fruits has this super cool behavior chart in her room, and each child has a clip with their name on it. Everyone starts in the middle on green, "Ready to Learn." Students move up or down throughout the day, depending on their behavior. Mrs. Fruits makes it clear to her students that there is always opportunities to turn a bad day around and move back up the behavior chart. Even if you do something really bad that lands you on "Parent Contact," she tells them that she will not write the note to send home until the very end of the day. YOU control what the note says - if you turn your day around, the note will reflect your effort. Mrs. Fruits brought this chart to our IEP meeting and explained it to me, and I was VERY impressed!

Day #3 - Aidan had a great day in class today! He raised his hand to participate and didn't call out much. He pushed a few kids on the playground today, but when we made some rules for the game, he followed the rules and played nicely." ~ Mrs. Fruits

Wow, just WOW! Way to go Aidan! We are so very proud of you!

Now, you may be wondering what all the fuss is about. Well, to really show you how amazing this first week of school was for Aidan, we would first have to rewind to just over a year ago, to the end of Aidan's first week of Kindergarten. Every day that week, I had received notes from Aidan's kindergarten teacher, complete with sad faces and her hopes that he would soon "settle into the routine." On Friday of that first week, I had a parent/teacher conference with both the general education and the special education teachers, and the principal in attendance. After recounting in GREAT detail all of the issues and problems that they were having with Aidan in the classroom and especially on the playground, the general consensus was "We don't know WHAT to do with Aidan, but if something doesn't change very soon, he is going to hurt someone." That week forced us to find another way to help Aidan, and what we found was the Brain Balance Program. Just over a year later, look how far my boy has come, thanks to the Brain Balance Program! And his own hard work and effort! This program is truly amazing!

And if this wasn't enough excitement for you, we also had THREE very special birthdays to celebrate recently! My baby boy, Ashwin, turned TWO! I can't believe how fast my baby is growing up!

In keeping with tradition here in the Pence household, immediately following the second birthday comes...the first haircut! Check out my very handsome, and very grown up big boy!

Ms. Reta, my grandmother, celebrated her 88th birthday and we had a fabulous family dinner in her honor!

And finally, my Mema turned 85 on 11/11/11, and we surprised her with a luncheon to celebrate!

Lots of excitement for the Pence clan!

I recently discovered that my blog is now featured on the Brain Balance Centers website. I would like to thank Brain Balance Centers for sharing Aidan's story, and I hope that our family's journey with Brain Balance can help other parents learn about this life-changing program. Please feel free to share this blog with anyone that you think it may help.

Much love,

Allie

Aidan's Brain Balance Graduation Celebration - a special night for Aidan with Zac Brown Band!

2011-11-04T00:26:00.002-04:00

So it has been one week since we packed up the van and headed home to Savannah for good! It is great to finally be home and have our whole family reunited and under one roof again! We barely had time to unload the van, before Andy, Aidan and I headed to Jacksonville, FL for a VERY special night! It was Aidan's Brain Balance Graduation Celebration and a truly unforgettable night for our family!

Now, if you're familiar with my blog and our story, you know that we have BIG love for Zac Brown Band. Not only are these guys tremendously talented musicians, but they ALL have hearts bigger than the world, with room for all of their fans! ZBB promotes Brain Balance at their concerts, and it was at a Zac Brown Band show last summer (August 21, 2010 in Charlotte, NC to be exact) that I first learned of the Brain Balance Program. Just like this...

Never thought a concert could forever change my life, but that is exactly what happened. A little over a year later, Aidan has made such a tremendous amount of progress - a true miracle for our entire family! So it seemed very fitting that Aidan's Brain Balance Graduation Celebration should take place at a Zac Brown Band concert! He was SO very excited! We got there early - we had signed up to Z-Team before the show (That would be street teaming, Zamily style). We met up with T-Bird, our fearless Zamily leader, and she gave us our instructions. Our job was to greet everyone at the show, and make sure they ALL got a ZBB/Landshark koozie. (Aidan Pence was paying VERY close attention, as you will see later.) Thanks T-Bird!

Our tickets to the show that night were a gift, one that we are extremely grateful for! We were also given an opportunity to meet the entire Zac Brown Band! This was Aidan's reaction to THAT news...

Before the show, we attended a legendary Eat and Greet, with amazing food by Chef Rusty Hamlin and the entire Zac Brown Band in attendance. At the Eat and Greet, we got the opportunity to introduce Aidan to Zac, Jimmy, Chris, Coy, Clay, Hop, and Wyatt - and it was AMAZING! Aidan and I went down the line, receiving big hugs, high fives, and tons of congratulations and kind words from each of the guys in the band. (For the record, I didn't cry this time, but I feel certain I had a big goofy grin plastered on my face!) The food was fantastic! Melt-in-your-mouth pork and beef tenderloins, golden beet salad, a parsnip puree that had Andy raving (he had no idea what a parsnip was, by the way), cole slaw, green beans, and a smack-your-mama good chocolate/peanut butter dessert! AWESOME! After we ate, Aidan and I got to check out "Cookie," Chef Rusty's traveling kitchen! I thought we were going to get a peek inside - we got a full blown TOUR! I've worked in restaurants with smaller kitchens. Cookie was super cool, and both Jessica and Chef Rusty had fun showing Aidan around!

Hangin' with the cool kids on "Cookie!"

Aidan and I were greeted with big hugs by Mike Rizzi - Sonia Leigh's awesome drummer! He even taught Aidan a new secret handshake. Mike called Will Harrison (Sonia's guitarist) and Nic Cowan over for high fives and photos with Aidan! Awesome!
Will, Aidan and Mike

Aidan and Nic

Mike and I

Aidan was looking for Sonia, and as soon as Mike found her, he brought her over! Aidan was THRILLED!

We got a few more photos at the Eat and Greet. Uncle Kyle drove up from Daytona to celebrate with us! Yay!

Aidan wanted a photo with Mr. Jack Daniels (ZBB's new tour sponsor), and I was happy to oblige.

And Andy wanted a photo with Massif, Zac's bodyguard.

Then we headed out front to Z-team, a job that Aidan took VERY seriously. He was SO proud to be "working for the band," and no one was getting past him without a koozie!

Several people wanted their pictures taken with Aidan - too cute!

Z-Teaming was definitely a family affair that night!

Even Uncle Kyle got in on the action!

We missed all of Nic Cowan's set that night, and a chunk of Sonia Leigh's because we couldn't get Aidan to STOP passing out koozies. He was having SO much fun. Andy finally had to pick Aidan up and throw him over his shoulder to carry him to our seats for the show! The show, as always, was AMAZING! Zac Brown Band NEVER disappoints, and we had a blast singing and dancing the entire time!

About halfway through ZBB's set, a lady tapped Andy on the shoulder and asked if we were Aidan's parents. When we said yes, she handed us a set of drumsticks - Mike Rizzi's drumsticks from Sonia Leigh's set that night!! I told Mike at the Eat and Greet what section our seats were in, and he made sure to find us and have the sticks hand delivered to us! How awesome is that?? Look at that grin!

Rizzi, YOU are AWESOME!

After the show, I met up with Wyatt for a big hug and one last treat - Aidan's Brain Balance Graduation photo, signed by Wyatt and the entire Zac Brown Band! What an awesome keepsake for our truly unforgettable night!

To Zac, Jimmy, Chris, Coy, Clay, Hop, T-Bird, Wyatt, Chef Rusty, Massif, Sonia Leigh, Will Harrison, Adam Holliday, Mike Rizzi, and Nic Cowan - Thank you ALL so very much for giving Aidan a truly memorable night to celebrate his Brain Balance Graduation. You guys (and gals) ALWAYS go above and beyond to make your fans feel like a real part of the magic, and it shows in everything that you do. The Pence Family really felt like the red carpet got rolled out for us last Friday night, and we had the BEST time!

I should also thank my Mom and Dad for keeping the little boys so that Andy, Aidan and I could celebrate! And a BIG thank you to my Aunt Gloria and Uncle Bill for the wonderful hotel room in Jacksonville!

And to everyone else out there, if you're not familiar with Zac Brown Band or the artists on Zac's Southern Ground Record Label, treat yourself and download a new cd or two today! Sonia Leigh, Nic Cowan, Levi Lowrey - they're gonna be HUGE! The only thing equal to the talent of the Southern Ground Artists is the heart and love for their fans! You will NOT be disappointed!

Check out the link to the right for Zac Brown's passion project, Camp Southern Ground. Or go to www.zacbrownband.com and click on "letters for lyrics" to write a letter to a soldier stationed overseas. Join the fan club, the Zamily, and spread the Zac Brown Band love. These guys support Brain Balance, because they believe in the program and they know that it works. They support our troops and appreciate their sacrifice. And they are building a summer camp for kids with special needs, to give these kids the same opportunities to play and have fun that other kids have. Amazing talent, great love for their fans, and big ol' hearts of solid gold! The Pence family LOVES Zac Brown Band!

Until next time,

Love, Peace and Chicken Grease

Allie

All caught up....FINALLY!!

2011-10-25T16:26:00.001-04:00

So this is a little out of order, but check out what Aidan and I did on Sunday! We carved the Brain Balance logo into a HUGE pumpkin, as a going away gift for Dr. Pete and the staff at the Roswell Center. How cool is this??

Dr. Pete was thrilled, along with everyone else at the center! It was quite a challenge to carve, but lots of fun too! And I think it turned out great! (Way to flex that art degree, right?)

Ok, so now picking up where I left off...

Friday morning, it was rainy and cold, so the boys made a fort to play in. It was even dark enough to break out the glow in the dark bracelets, for some extra special fun!

The view without the flash...

That afternoon, the little boys played in the Care room at PLAY for the last time, while Aidan had his session at Brain Balance. Everyone at PLAY place was really sweet - they all have been so wonderful to us, and they really love my little monkeys! Ms. Colleen (the director) had special little backpacks for the boys, as a going away treat! If anyone in the Roswell area is looking for a very cool and super fun place to play with their kids, I very highly recommend PLAY! Colleen does a great job - the facility is always neat and clean, the staff is super friendly, they have drop-off care available (which my kids all LOVE), weekly story time, and lots of fun classes available as well.

PLAY Activity Center
10930 Crabapple Road
Roswell, GA 30075
(Hwy 92 and Crabapple Road)
770-650-0122
http://www.playactivitycenter.com/index.html

Check it out - and tell 'em Allie and the Pence boys sent you! ;)

Saturday morning, I packed up the monkeys and most of the little boys' stuff and we headed to Macon to meet Andy. Ace and Ash were heading home to Savannah! Ange and Reta had agreed to help Andy with the little boys during the days while he works, until Aidan and I got home Thursday evening! Thanks everyone! As we drove through Atlanta for the last time, we talked about ALL of the fun stuff we had gotten to do while we were in Atlanta. As we passed the exits, I listed off places we'd been - we really have gotten to do a LOT of cool things! The Georgia Aquarium, The World of Coca-Cola, The Children's Museum, Fernbank Museum of Natural History, A Braves game at Turner Field, The Atlanta Zoo, Stone Mountain, The Tellus North Georgia Science Museum, The Center for Puppetry Arts (ok, that one was kind of a doozy - at least the Muppets were there!) - LOTS of super cool FUN! Many thanks to everyone that came to play with us, and helped to fund our many adventures!

We met up with Andy just east of Macon, near Danville. We met in a church parking lot that had a basketball goal AND basketballs laying around to play with! Everyone got a much needed break from the car and had fun playing basketball - or trying to, at least!

Aeson gets a boost from Daddy for a basket!

I thought this picture of Ash was pretty cool - he was having NO part of looking at the camera!

Saturday evening, Aidan and I visited the local church pumpkin patch, in search of the biggest pumpkin that we could find. We found a whopper! I had a rather challenging project in mind. Later that evening, Aidan carved his first of two pumpkins, while I worked on making the stencil for mine. This was the first time that Aidan flew totally solo on the pumpkin carving.
First, he scooped the guts all by himself (saving the seeds, of course!)...

Then he drew his own design...

And finally, he carved his pumpkin all by himself!

Check out Aidan's handiwork...Didn't he do a great job?

And my sketch...This is gonna be tough!

Sunday, we hung around the house in the morning. Around lunchtime, we headed to Gogi's house to say goodbye. (She was going out of town for the week later that afternoon, and wouldn't return until after we'd gone home to Savannah) We've had a LOT of fun with Gogi, Uncle Bill, Aunt Kris, and Alana this summer - lots of pool time, great dinners, Stone Mountain adventures, babysitting, and even a little much needed grown up time for this Mama! Thanks for everything - we'll miss y'all! Gogi, I will definitely miss our late-evening porch visits! Let's stay in touch, ok??

After we left Gogi's house, Aidan and I ran some errands and did a little shopping. He had a little meltdown in Target, but calmed down quickly. I think we stayed up too late carving pumpkins and hanging out together. He did some exercises and brought it back down, and the rest of the day went on without further incident. That evening, Aidan carved his second pumpkin (for Gogi), and I carved my first! I think we did a mighty fine job, if I do say so myself! Aidan even helped quite a bit with my pumpkin! He is becoming quite a master pumpkin carver! Mad skills, just like his Mama! ;)

All of our pumpkins...

Monday was Aidan's last session at Brain Balance, and he earned not one but TWO awards for the wall! (That would be #29 and #30, if you're counting!!) Way to go, Aidan!

Dr. Pete and his staff were THRILLED with the pumpkin! They found a prominent spot in the office to proudly display it for all to see! And then bragged on facebook about it! Very cool!

Today, Aidan had his sensory motor assessment with Dr. Pete at Brain Balance, which I'm told he rocked! I'll get the official results on Thursday morning, and I know they will be AWESOME! That's all for now!

Much love,

Allie

Catching up....again!

2011-10-25T12:50:00.002-04:00

Once again, I'm WAY behind - over a week behind this time! I'm sitting in the lobby at Brain Balance while Aidan has his sensory motor assessment with Dr. Pete. I can't wait to hear how awesome he is doing! Aidan's progress in the Brain Balance Program has been nothing short of a miracle for our entire family. We are so very proud of him, and so excited to see what the future holds for our little man!

So now, I'm going to attempt to catch you up on our adventures this last week. Taking you back, all the way to LAST Monday for the highlights! Last Monday, everyone got to play at PLAY place...

And Aidan earned another Brain Balance Award!

That night, I made a pot of collard greens - which my big boys LOVE! See?

Happy greens face!

Ash...not so much! I'm sure he'll come around in time!

Tuesday morning, we headed to the library for story time. The theme this week? DINOSAURS! The boys all got cool dinosaur masks...

Ash was having NO part of the masks...but he did like the kooky library lady's stuffed dinosaur!

Everyone got to make a cool dinosaur craft too! Ash made a hat...

And the big boys got to decorate these cool dinosaurs...

Nothing too special happened on Wednesday - Brain Balance, PLAY place, the usual!

But Thursday was EXTRA cool! We started the day in Roswell. Aeson had a recheck with Dr. Pete (he is most definitely LEFT brain deficient - the OPPOSITE of Aidan!), while Ash and Aidan played at PLAY place. (I was pretty nervous about leaving Aidan over there, but he did GREAT!) After that, we had some lunch and went to the chiropractor. While we were there, I saw on facebook where Sonia Leigh's street team captains were looking for folks to pass out flyers for her CD release show that night in Little Five Points. I messaged them that I had three monkeys who were available, and they messaged me right back to bring 'em on down. And so I did. Crazy, right? We made it to Little Five Points, and hooked up with Ginger and Susie (Co-Captians for Team Sonia) to get flyers. I had Aeson on my back, Ashwin in the stroller, and Aidan walking RIGHT beside me the ENTIRE time, passing out flyers. The Half-Pint Street Team in action! Aidan thought he was SO cool, street teaming for Sonia Leigh!

Sonia though so too - after the show, I showed her those pictures, and she signed an event poster for her "tiny little Street Team." The boys LOVED it!

Side note - Before Brain Balance, I would never have even thought about taking all three boys somewhere like Little Five Points. Too crowded, too busy, just NO way! But it was awesome, and the boys had a blast. And Aidan stayed RIGHT NEXT TO ME - not holding my hand, but walking beside me - and never attempted to run off, or even wander off the whole time! It was a LOT of fun for all FOUR of us!

After our Street-Teaming adventure, I had just enough time to get to Roswell and pick up the babysitter, feed everybody, change my clothes, and get out the door with Gogi for the show! We missed the opening act (bummer) but we managed to get pretty darned close to front and center for Sonia! The show was AWESOME! Time to hijack the blog again, for my own selfish purposes!
Sonia Leigh!

Jamming with THE keys man, Adam Holliday...

Some very special guest appearances by...
Sonia's Dad (and her inspiration) Dennis Rolling...

John Driskell Hopkins...

Coy Bowles...

And of course, Zac Brown!

I LOVE me some Sonia Leigh!

After the show, I got a photo with axe man, Will Harrison...

And funny man, and piano slayer, Adam Holliday...

Thanks for the photos, guys. Rizzi, I'll be looking for you in Jacksonville! Yours is the only photo I'm missing!

Sonia's new album, 1978 December, is available on itunes. Please do yourself a favor, and add it to your collection today! You will be very glad that you did!

I'm slightly over on my 600 word goal, so I'm gonna sign off here. More to follow very soon!

Much love,

Allie

Another super fun and totally exhausting weekend in Atlanta...

2011-10-18T00:50:00.002-04:00

So we had a totally exhausting, but extremely FUN weekend! Friday began with a SUPER messy, but really fun art project - Pine Cone Bird Feeders! I wish I had pictures of the process - it was hysterical. Slathering peanut butter on the pine cones, and then rolling them in bird seed. We were ALL covered in peanut butter and bird seed. The boys all had to take a shower afterwards! See what we made?

This is, of course, just a sample. We made about 15-20 of these things. And the neighborhood chipmunks are loving all the birdseed we scattered around! We've spotted several snacking on bird seed this weekend, but so far, the little boogers have been way to fast to photograph!

That afternoon, Aidan had another good session at Brain Balance, and we all played at PLAY place afterwards.

We stopped on the way home for a Red Box movie. Aidan has been dying to see "Spooky Buddies" and it is always rented. That day was no different, so we settled on the movie "Mars Needs Moms." We had a total A-HA! moment during that movie. See, in the movie, the martians from Mars are collecting human mothers to raise the martian babies, while the martian moms work in the colony. The martians overhear Milo, the human kid in the movie, say that "my life would be SO much better if I didn't have a mom!" (He fed his broccoli to the cat, and then lied to his mom about it, so she sent him to bed early.) Milo decides to apologize to his mom, and gets to her room just in time to see her being taken by the martians. Rescuing her is what the rest of the movie is about. Anyway, back to the A-HA! moment. When Milo tells his mom that his life would be so much better without her, she doesn't say a word, but she doesn't have to. The look on her face says it all. Aidan says to me, "Mom, why did you make that face?" I said, "Well, I know how she feels. It really hurts your heart when your child says something mean and ugly to you, even when you know they don't REALLY mean it." Aidan say, "I've done that to you before, haven't I?" "Yes, you have," I said. He grabbed my hand and said, "Mom, I'm really sorry. I get mad sometimes, but I don't ever want to hurt your heart." A-HA! First of all, he picked up on the non-verbal expression on my face, and asked his question. And then, he REALLY understood my answer, and how it related to him and his actions. AMAZING!!

Saturday, we went to Stone Mountain with Gogi, Alana, and Aunt Kris. Gogi scored some Adventure Passes at a fund raiser, and treated us to a fun afternoon - thanks Gogi! We have been to Stone Mountain twice before, but had never gotten to do the fun attractions there. First, we checked out the Pumpkin Festival, and the boys had a blast.

They got to dress up their own scarecrows!

Ash and Ace really liked playing with the hats!

Aidan, not so much. Really, Mom? REALLY?

He thought the hat looked better on his scarecrow.

Next, the big boys played in the kid-sized obstacle course.

We were going to ride the train - Ash would've loved that as he is VERY interested in "too-too tains" these days. But there was a wait, and we decided to ride the cable car up the mountain instead. (I should mention that I am TERRIFIED of heights, and Stone Mountain proved to be a "face your fears" kind of a day for me!) Anyway, the line moved quickly, and we all packed like sardines in the cable car and up the mountain we went. The boys thought it was extra cool!

The view, on the way up.

Their little faces, pressed against the glass!

We made it to the top of the mountain!

The top of the mountain was very cool - and very windy! The big boys loved the binoculars - you could see all the way to Downtown Atlanta!

Group photo, at the top of the mountain!

We clowned around in line for the cable car to take us back down.

Here comes our sardine can!

Our last adventure of the day was probably the most fun for Aidan - it was definitely the most terrifying for me! We climbed the Sky Hike! The Sky Hike is this crazy ropes course that is THREE STORIES high (at the highest point). You've got a harness on while you are climbing through this crazy obstacle course. See?

But still - it was pretty intense for me. Aidan moved through it like a champ - occasionally having to wait for his Mom to catch up! I was amazed at how balanced and agile he was. He only had one fairly intense moment where he got stuck - I was right next to him, but unable to reach him. Some nice girls behind us helped him out, and one of the course workers was right there to help as well.

Aidan had a blast - I was very glad that he and I had gotten to play together for well over an hour, but extremely relieved to have my feet back on the ground! I wanted a merit badge - they let me ring a bell. I guess that'll have to do!

While Aidan and I were climbing the Sky Hike, Gogi and Aunt Kris took the little boys to the 4-D Yogi Bear movie, which got rave reviews from everyone!

After our day of fun, everyone was beat!

Since I'm already WAY over my 600 word goal, I'm just gonna go ahead and finish telling you all about our FUN weekend! Sunday, we picked up Zac and Delanie and headed to Brain Balance Suwanee for their 4th anniversary party! It was great to see Ms. Jennifer and Ms. Lisa, and all of the rest of our friends at the Suwanee Center! And there was TONS of fun stuff for the kids to do!
They painted their own pumpkins...

Got some cool ink...

Bounced in the bouncy house...

Played a little Whack-a-Mole...

Hula-Hooped...

Got scary fang teeth prizes...

And tried to scare Ms. Jennifer with them...

Ate yummy GF cupcakes!

And popcorn...

Ash LOVED the bunny rabbit! They were best buds by the end of the afternoon.

He thought the goat was pretty cool too!

The goat, however, preferred Aidan...

We thought about leaving him in there...but changed our minds at the last minute!

Before we left, Aidan got a big hug from Ms. Jennifer!

And we got a group photo, thanks to Ms. Jennifer's mom...

Ms. Jennifer told Aidan that he could come back and put his handprints on her tree after his Brain Balance graduation! (The Roswell center doesn't have a handprint tree, and it was the very first thing that Aidan noticed when we transferred to Roswell!) How neat is this? Thanks Ms. Jennifer - Aidan is very excited!

Many thanks to Ms. Jennifer, Ms. Lisa, and all of our friends at the Suwanee Center for a wonderful and fun afternoon! Happy 4th Anniversary - here's to many more years of helping kids reach their full potential! Brain Balance is AMAZING!

Much love,

Allie

Under the gun...

2011-10-14T21:12:00.003-04:00

Ok, so I have 38 minutes to myself (the little boys are at PLAY place, and Aidan is at Brain Balance), and my battery is at 21% - so we're gonna see just how good I am under pressure! Picking up where I left off...

Tuesday morning, we went to story time at the Sandy Springs library. The theme was "fire safety" and a few very nice fire fighters were there...with a fire truck! The boys were in heaven!

First, the firemen showed the kids what they look like all suited up - I never realized just how scary fireman look in their full gear.

Everyone got to climb INSIDE the fire truck - very cool!

And of course, everyone got a fire fighter's hat to wear!

After all of the excitement outside, it was very difficult for all three of my monkeys to settle down for the story. Very not good. I rounded them up and we left the room, and we very nearly left the library. But everyone calmed down, and I agreed to one more chance. And then, the kooky library lady played the bubble song, and everyone was happy!

Ash was NOT happy when it was time to go!

After our fun morning, everyone was ready for lunch and a great rest (Mama included!) Aidan woke up first, and did his school work like a champ! His attention and focus have improved GREATLY! He probably worked for at least 45 minutes straight that day - no whining, no complaining, AWESOME! His reading skills are improving every single day too. (He now reads a story to his brothers at least once a day - usually at bedtime, and they LOVE it!)

That evening, we headed to Kroger for some groceries, and everyone was very well behaved. I never thought that the day would come when I didn't dread the thought of taking all three monkeys grocery shopping, but that day has finally arrived! Ash and Ace ride in the buggy, and Aidan walks with me. And he doesn't run off. And he doesn't touch EVERYTHING we pass. And he doesn't throw a fit in the middle of the store when I tell him he can't have something that he wants. It's pretty amazing! We had a few rough moments (just MOMENTS) on Tuesday, but all in all, it was a pretty fun day with my boys!

Wednesday morning, we headed to the park to play after breakfast. My boys SO love the park! And watching Aidan engage appropriately with other kids is yet another little miracle that this Brain Balance journey has brought us. He asks kids their names, invites them to play tag or hide and seek, plays by the rules (the REAL rules of the games, and not the ones he makes up on the spot!) He even helps his brothers play along too! AMAZING!
This is how we do it...

A week or so ago, we were at the park and Aidan was playing with a group of kids that had been there a couple of days in a row. They were having a ball, running around and being silly. I started paying attention to WHAT they were saying - they were role playing, using their imaginations like crazy. The playground equipment was a castle, they were all knights and princesses trying to slay the dragon, and they were all avoiding parts of the grass (because that's where the lava was, of course.) Oh, and they would all run away screaming from the "hairy scary monster" who, by the way, was Ashwin. (Ash LOVED this - that he was scaring the big kids!) Aidan has NEVER played like this before, and it is absolutely how kids his age are SUPPOSED to play. Wow, just WOW!

That afternoon, the little boys went to PLAY place, Aidan had a great session, and I had an AWESOME meeting with Dr. Pete about ALL of the progress that Aidan has made. (That meeting deserves a dedicated blog post, and if I have to stay up all night long, I will post it tonight! Prepare to be AMAZED - I know I was!) We all played for a while at PLAY place after session, and the boys made cute pumpkin crafts that evening. (Again, not flashing here and ruining the surprise - got a mass mailing going out later today!) And we watched a movie before bed - another GREAT day for the brothers Pence!

Thursday morning, we headed to PLAY place for story time! Ms. Colleen (the director) does a super fabulous job, and the kids really enjoy it! The theme this week was "on the farm" and my little singers loved belting out Old Mac Donald and making all the silly animal noises!

And there was crazy dancing, with scarves...

And foot stomping...

And of course, BUBBLES! (Apparently, no story time is complete without bubbles!)

Great lunch and rest afterwards, followed by a pretty easy trip to Whole Foods. (We were out of pepperoni - GASP!)
On the way home, we stopped at a local pumpkin patch, and the boys had a blast. There was a bouncy house, and a TON of pumpkins.

Now I was WAY too cheap to fork over the THIRTY FIVE AMERICAN DOLLARS for a big carving pumpkin (I'm all for supporting a church fund raiser, but really??) But I did fork over $5 for ten little pumpkins for the boys to decorate at home. Let me show you how my monkey math worked out Thursday evening. 10 little pumpkins + 1 box of markers = 25 minutes of something close to peace and quiet for Mama! I'm calling that $5 well spent! Check out their happy pumpkin tower.

For the record, I made it to the pumpkin patch part of the blog before I ran out of time - pretty darned close. WAY over on the 600 word count, though. Sigh. More later - stay tuned!

Much love,

Allie

Our FUN weekend in Savannah! Arrrgh!

2011-10-13T00:57:00.001-04:00

So Thursday was a late (and SUPER fun) night for us, and we were dragging quite a bit on Friday. Aidan and Andy ran a few errands, and the little boys and I did some shopping for cool weather clothes. We hung out at the house, and had a very low key evening. Man, it was good to be HOME! We have thoroughly enjoyed our time in Atlanta, but we are all SO ready to be home for good!

Saturday morning, Aidan and I visited with my grandparents, Mema and Mepa, in the hospital. My grandfather has had such a difficult couple of years, but he is one tough old bird. We brought lots of artwork that the boys had made to brighten up his room! Aidan was exceptionally well behaved at the hospital, and we had a very nice visit.

Later that afternoon, the boys and I headed to Tybee to get our pirate on at the Pirate Fest Parade! Mimi had her pirate supplies ready for us, and she set to work transforming my little monkeys into a fierce band of pirates! Seriously cute pirates, at that! See?

Nanny Ange and Baby Kayley even got in on the fun! Couple of wenches!

Grandma Reta and the little pirates!

The parade was a LOT of fun, especially with Mimi, Papa, and Nanny!

The pirates in the parade were very entertaining!

After the parade, we headed back to Mimi and Papa's house for a visit with baby Kayley and Grandma Reta! Ashwin Michael became a green-eyed monster BIG time when his Reta held baby Kayley!

Aidan and Kayley, sweet cousins!

And here is the sweetest photo EVER - Ace and his Reta!

Sunday, we hung around at home for most of the day. Andy and the boys watched some football, and I got us ready for our return to Atlanta on Monday morning (laundry, packing, organizing Aidan's school work, etc.) You know, the REALLY fun stuff. That evening, Mimi and Papa took Aidan to evening mass at Sacred Heart, and out to dinner with Mema afterwards. (Now I was a little nervous about this plan, but Aidan wanted to go, so we had him ready and waiting when Mimi and Papa arrived.) I hadn't heard anything from Mimi and Papa yet, and then I got this message on my facebook wall! Thanks Donnie!

Donald Bell: I saw a well behaved little man tonight at Sacred Heart!

Allie Sheffield Pence: I LOVE this! I was cautiously optimistic, and he wanted to go. So glad he was good!

Donald Bell: You should be very proud!

WOW! SO proud of my little man! Way to go, Aidan! And THANK YOU BRAIN BALANCE!

Monday morning, we headed back to Atlanta, bright and early. Well, not quite as early as i had hoped, as usual. And the weather was TERRIBLE for most of the trip. But the boys were mostly good in the car, and we made it to Brain Balance exactly on time (WHEW!) It was raining when we left, so PLAY place was more crowded than usual - we took a pass on that for the day and hit the Red Box on the way home for a flick. I made a big pot of homemade chicken noodle soup for dinner, and we watched a movie before bed. The boys were exhausted, so bedtime was fairly smooth.

And now I am officially VERY close to caught up - and also very close to my 600 word count. Tuesday was pretty fun - story time and fire trucks (and lots of cute photos!) And I had a super awesome meeting about Aidan today with Dr. Pete, which I promise to tell you all about tomorrow! Right now, my bed is a-calling my name!

Much love,

Allie

Plugging along - thank goodness I take notes!

2011-10-12T00:52:00.002-04:00

So last Wednesday was a pretty normal day, whatever that means, right? The weather was gross, so we made a giant arts and crafts mess in the morning. We headed to Roswell in the afternoon for Aidan's Brain Balance session, and some (MUCH less dramatic) fun at PLAY place. And we even managed to hit the park that evening after dinner. Hurray for low-key and "normal!" Here are some cute photos, clowning around at PLAY place!

Aidan made a new friend, and was WAY too busy playing with him to pose for any photos - but Aeson was all about the close-up!

Thursday was interesting (morning), LONG (afternoon), and a rockin' good time for Mama (night). We began our day early, with a NAET appointment in Cumming (a few exits north of here). Here is a very brief explanation of NAET treatment, taken directly from their website. "Nambudripad's Allergy Elimination Techniques, also known as NAET®, are a non-invasive, drug free, natural solution to eliminate allergies of all types and intensities using a blend of selective energy balancing, testing and treatment procedures from acupuncture/acupressure, allopathy, chiropractic, nutritional, and kinesiological disciplines of medicine." To learn more about NAET, please visit their website at http://www.naet.com/subscribers/what.html

Anyway, we have been seeing Tom Dill at North Georgia Wellness for a few weeks, and he has been treating all three boys for their many allergies. I was concerned that strep was once again an issue for Aidan, because of the recent and very dramatic changes in behavior that he had been displaying. (Been there, done that, got the dang T-shirt.) Tom uses muscle testing to determine if the patient is sensitive or reacting to a substance, and he found that Aidan was very strongly reacting to two different strains of strep. He cleared Aidan for both strains, and once the body is "cleared" of a substance, it should no longer be an issue. (Side note - while we were home over the weekend, I had Aidan swabbed for strep and no active infection was present. We also did a blood test to check his strep titers, and his number came back lower than it had EVER been - I'm becoming a true believer in NAET, as I very strongly feel that strep was at least a big part of the behavior problem last week.)

We headed to Roswell a little early for Brain Balance, so we went to PLAY place to burn some energy before our long car ride home to Savannah. Everyone played well, and we even got to attend story time at PLAY place that morning, which the boys LOVED! There was lots of singing and dancing, and some pretty cool scarves to play with too!

And apparently, no story time is complete without bubbles...who knew?

Aidan had another great session at Brain Balance, and everyone was (mostly) good on our long car ride home!

Thursday night, Mimi kept the monkeys and Andy and I headed to Live Wire Music Hall to see the fabulous Sonia Leigh, with Coy Bowles (of ZBB) and his super funky band opening the show. It. Was. AWESOME!! And I will now once again hijack Aidan's blog to show you all the fun that I had that night!

Walking in the door, I FINALLY got to meet the very fun co-captains of all things Sonia Leigh - Susie and Ginger. These ladies work tirelessly to support and promote Sonia, and work any show that they can, selling her merchandise and pulling folks off the street to experience her talent. They even got to spend a few days touring with the band, on the tour bus and everything (SUPER jealous, ladies! I have ALWAYS wanted to go "on tour!") Hey Sonia, if Susie and Ginger are ever too busy, I'd be happy to fill in...;)

The show was AMAZING, as always. Coy and his band were on fire - unfortunately, the lights were always strangely red or purple when I reached for my phone, and I couldn't get a decent shot to save my life!) Sonia and her band rocked the house - they are always SO much fun to catch live!

Jam session - there's Coy on the right!

And they ALL could not be any nicer or more gracious in person! See?

Me and "Tube top" Gregg Shapiro - the bad a$$ bass player! Thanks Tube Top and Sonia for the photos!

What a super fun night with my honey! (Thanks Mimi for taking one for the team and monkey-sitting!)

Sonia's album, "1978 December" and Coy's album "Love Takes Flight" are both AMAZING and available on itunes. Do yourself a favor and add them both to your collection - you'll be very happy that you did!

Once again, I'm over my 600 word goal...sheesh, it's harder to be "brief" than I thought it would be. Well, not really. I knew it was gonna be tough, but I'm trying! Until next time...

Much love,

Allie

I will get caught up, I WILL get caught up...

2011-10-11T23:34:00.002-04:00

Well, I hope everyone is enjoying the "new" format - frequent (ok, still need some work there) and brief (I'm staying right at 600 words per post) with LOTS of pictures (ZING!)

Back to business...Last Monday (10/3) began at 6 am (3 days in a row boys, really? REALLY?) Anyway, we did lots of art projects in the morning, and went out in search of more pine cones before lunch. I swear, I have no idea what the recent fascination is with pine cones - and we haven't done a single project with them yet either. But still, we must keep collecting them. (Side note - we have to walk up a fairly steep hill to get to "the spot" and each kid totes a box or a bag, so I call it "exercise." And while they sleep, I chuck a few pine cones a day back over the fence. No harm, no foul.)
After lunch and a very brief rest, we headed to Roswell for Brain Balance. Aidan had a great session, and earned a reward for the wall! GO AIDAN!

While Aidan was at Brain Balance, the little boys and I ran to Trader Joe's. Aeson was immediately drawn to their new display of...(drumroll please)...PUMPKINS! He demanded a photo, so after I got a "please" he got his picture taken!

After Brain Balance, we all headed across the street to PLAY place. Thank goodness we took this cute photo on the way in (we had to have a group photo with THEIR pumpkin display).

Monday was not a fun day at PLAY place for the Pence clan. Aidan was playing too rough with the other kids, running around and barreling into tiny people. Very not good. He would not listen, would NOT come when I called him, and would NOT settle down. I moved us from the gym area to the creative play area, to see if that might help calm him down. Nope, that didn't work. I warned him three times that if he did not settle down, I would give him a "rain check" for his Dollar Store trip that day, and we would leave PLAY place. (FYI - Aidan earns $3-4 to spend at the dollar store every time he gets an award at Brain Balance. But he has to keep it together in order to redeem his reward. If not, he gets a "rain check" to redeem his reward on another day, when his behavior is as it should be. But he never loses a reward that he has earned.) Anyway, he wouldn't settle down, and when the words "rain check" crossed my lips, he lost his little mind. Thank goodness we were the only ones in the creative play area at that time! He had a total meltdown, right there in the middle of the room. Crying, kicking, screaming, throwing toys - it was awful. I finally got him calmed down, but it took several long minutes, and we left. Now I didn't have his behavior chart with me, so I couldn't take each star off during his meltdown - watching the stars come off of the chart one at a time will often snap him back to attention. He does NOT like to lose three stars and fall down a level. Anyway, I made it clear to Aidan that he was NO longer on level three. So there would be no TV for him that evening. And I stuck to my guns, too. After baths, when we usually watch a little SPROUT before bed, I lined them up on the couch and read books until they all passed out. Mom = 3. Monkeys = 0.

Tuesday morning began at SEVEN am - thanks boys, Mama needed THAT one! And Tuesday was a MUCH better day, all around. We went to the chiropractor, redeemed Aidan's reward from Monday at the Dollar Store, and headed to the local library for Story Time. The theme was "stranger danger" and Officer Boyd from the Sandy Springs Police Department and McGruff the crime dog gave a very enthusiastic and entertaining presentation. The boys had a blast, and Aidan kept it together. (i kept his star chart handy ALL day, and most times, a warning was sufficient to bring him back down a notch.)

Ashwin was first in line to say 'hi' to McGruff, with Aidan right behind him. Aeson wasn't having any part of the big scary dog, though! (And poor McGruff really tried!)

Group Photo!

Everyone loves a bubble song!

The boys all took great naps that afternoon, and after dinner, we played at the park for an hour or so. An all-around good day, that got a little bit better that evening. I was thumbing through Aidan's journal, and I stumbled upon his entry from his Brain Balance session the day before. Check out how sweet my little boy feels about his Mama!

Thanks baby boy - Mama needed that one! And now, I'm a little (ok, maybe a little more than a little) over my 600 word goal, so I'm signing out. More to follow soon. I WILL get caught up - and VERY soon!

Much love,

Allie

Am I really over a week behind? Again?

2011-10-11T16:20:00.001-04:00

So I'm still trying to play catch up, in a way that is both frequent and brief, with LOTS of pictures (no problem there - we LOVE to take pictures!)

Friday was a pretty fun day. Alana had a day off from school, and so she went with us Friday morning to the Fernbank Museum of Natural History. We LOVE Fernbank, and they had a new exhibit open the weekend before that we were very excited about - Charles Darwin! Here are the boys with the Father of Evolution and Natural Selection!

The exhibit was full of lots of neat animals - according to Ash, ANY animal with any kind of a shell (like an armadillo) is a turtle.

There were lots of bones, showing how different species evolved over time, which was very interesting.

And several interactive screens and learning centers too, which the boys LOVED!

Fernbank has a very neat play area upstairs for the kids. It is always our last stop at the museum, and we always have a blast!

Later that afternoon, Rock Star Aidan earned not one but TWO rewards during his Brain Balance session. GO AIDAN!

After Brain Balance, we all went to play at PLAY place for a little while. I FINALLY got a good photo of "Mr. It," the monkey that we search for every time we visit. When the kids find Mr. It, they get to choose a little prize. Isn't he cute?

Our Saturday began at 6 am (a trend that would continue through the entire weekend - GRRrrr!) We ran errands in the morning (Whole Foods, Dollar Tree). The boys were super excited to see all the pumpkins out in front of Whole Foods. They immediately wanted me to buy a giant pumpkin ($69.99 - yeah, RIGHT!), and there was a LOT of hot bargaining and begging and pleading. We finally compromised and took a PICTURE with the big pumpkins! WHEW!

Later that afternoon, we rode our bikes/cars down the big hill in the parking lot, and finished our evening with some arts and crafts!

Sunday morning, we were all up by 6 am again (sigh!) and the day did not begin well. Aidan was in a super defiant and very argumentative mood - and it was cold, and the baby had a runny nose, so I wanted to wait a little while before venturing out. A little before 8 am, I tried to get Aidan to do his exercises - which resulted in a meltdown of EPIC proportions. Like I hadn't seen in MONTHS! It was REALLY bad. Needless to say, he lost ALL of his stars and fell to Level One on his behavior chart. It took him a few minutes to calm down, but he got it together, finished his exercises, and moved on to his hour of chores. The little boys helped, and everyone spent the next hour or so cleaning the condo. Afterwards, we headed to Riverside Park for a bike ride before lunch time.

After lunch, we ALL took a great nap. I took the boys on a nature walk around the condo complex, and we found the mother load of perfect pine cones! I have NO idea what we are going to do with all of these pine cones, but I'm sure it will be fun...and probably very messy! We hit the park before dinner, and everyone went to bed on time that night!

More to follow very soon!
Much love,

Allie