It was a big milestone for Logan to start school this past October. It was tough, on both of us. I wasn’t ready to send my child to school at 3 years old, on a bus, by himself. He took a few months to get used to the newness of it all – new routine, new people, new place. But by December, Logan started asking for the school bus on weekends. He loves going to school, and on the breaks we have had he has begged us to go to school – we are a little worried about the summer and what he will do without it for a while.

One of his favorite things at school is learning through music and dance. His teachers tell us that is the time he most enjoys, often dancing and singing with them during circle time. He’ll come home singing a new song, sometimes with words and sometimes only humming a melody – but eventually we figure out what he is singing and he’ll do a whole performance for us. Singing and dancing is a way that Logan connects, relaxes, has fun. That’s why when we got the flyer for his first spring concert? We couldn’t wait to see our little boy doing what he loves!

And even though the loudness of the music, and confusion as to why we were there and all these people were looking at him got the best of him at his concert – you can still see a smile and peeks of enjoying it all. Yes, he got stage fright, but it’s the cutest stage fright of all, and we couldn’t be more proud of him. Here is a video of the cuteness! (He’s the one in the yellow shirt and tie, 3rd one from the right)

Afterwards he found us in the audience and gave us all hugs. Him doing this new thing just reminded me of how far he has come, everything new he has been through this year, and how lucky we are to have so much support and love surrounding him. Happy first concert my sweet, sweet boy!

Photo Credit: Michigan.org

I admit it, I have never been to the Children’s Museum. In fact, I had no idea where it was, but when Logan’s class took a field trip there a few months ago I couldn’t wait to check it out with him and bring Maddie along too. I am always looking to rediscover our city and state, and when you have kids you have the chance to see them through different eyes! When we drove up, we were greeted by it’s child friendly exterior – reminiscent of a fairytale castle!

It was during the day on a Wednesday, so parking was ample. There is a side parking lot and a lot directly behind. I have heard that on the weekends it can get a little busy, but it doesn’t look like parking would be a problem.

Logan was coming with his class on the bus, so we waited on the inside and let Maddie explore. She was excited to walk around in the huge space and look at all of the fun things to do! As families of other classmates began to arrive, she got even more excited. Little Maddie is a friendly toddler, but she especially likes children. There is a huge Wooly Willy that you can practically stand on in the room, and she loved helping the other children with their hair style creations.

Logan checking out the traffic signs with Daddy

As soon as the class got there, we saw Logan in his teachers arms, frightened by the change of routine. He had no idea why he was on the bus already, or where they were walking into. But that changed as soon as he saw us! I have never seen Logan so happy to see us. With stretched out arms and a smile, he went into Daddy’s arms. Then, as soon as he saw me, he put his little hand in the air and said “Surprise!!!” and reached out to give me a hug. Then, as soon as he knew he was safe and everything was alright, he set off to explore the museum.

The best part of the museum is it’s playground type atmosphere. I didn’t feel like I had to hover over him or her all of the time. There wasn’t a ton of people there, just his classmates and teachers, so we all pitched in watching everyone, but Maddie wanted to play with me the whole time so that made it easier too!

It was nice to play with my kids on everything they had to offer – Logan’s favorite being the Firetruck and Maddie LOVED the mock grocery store complete with every rubber fruit and vegetable you can imagine.

Other activities are available at the museum to explore:

1. There were other vehicles there besides the firetruck; a car and a helicopter, all ready to drive into your child’s imagination.
2. If your child is theatrical, they can dress up and put on a play on a miniature stage and be able see them selves on television via a camera set up to capture the performances.
3. Science experiments are set up, ready to engage with and run.
4. A bicycle that shows how legs work, and a rock wall are all there to tire your active child out on.

I didn’t get many pictures because I was busy having fun with all the kids and mingling with the adults and teachers there, but I am sure I will get another chance in the future! The museum has a little something for every child — and parent to enjoy! I personally loved the giant play house complete with flower boxes on the outside!

It is a lot of fun rediscovering all our local area and Michigan have to offer for families. This summer, I plan on getting us out of the house and showcasing as many as time allows.

But some days, I do feel like a pretty good mom…

Especially when I see my daughter do this:

Blowing bubbles at 16 months old!?

And my son doing this:

He likes for me to write numbers and letters out so he can trace them, and even does workbook exercises tracing letters and numbers! Oh, and the far left of the days of the week? I steadied his hand, but he wrote all of them except Monday! (I credit his teachers for this, I just help him practice when he gets home!)

So on days where I feel like I am not doing a good job teaching them new things or when I feel like a bad mom – again parenting self esteem issues – I remember all the things I taught them to do, and all of the natural talents I try to encourage. Because that’s the best I can do!

How has your child amazed you lately?

I am writing kind of an informal post to let you all know that I am back to blogging, and committed to updating every Monday and Thursday. I used to do every day, but life changes ya know? I have missed it a lot though. I stepped back from MaM for almost a year! But I never once had a day where I didn’t think about it. Blogging is definitely a lifestyle. Our community is so so great, and I have been following along I promise!

I had been blogging about our ASD diagnosis all year though, just to document it. I moved them over to this blog a few months ago, wanna read them?

Do you have a blog? I love reading and discovering other bloggers! Please comment below with your URL so I can stop by!

Did you know that I am Facebook? I have been updating there all year. I am also on Twitter quite a bit. Follow me there too, let’s chat!

You can see where else I am online by clicking on the icons at the top of the sidebar. I’m everywhere. My non-mom life is online, and even though to some that is sad, I’m completely fine with it =D

I do hope you stop by every Monday and Thursday! I missed ya. Group Hug!

Then I had a little girl.

I am ashamed to say – I have a lot to learn.

I’ll just do it MOM!

I love those headbands with the bows you put on them when they are little babies. My sister makes them, so we are never in short supply…But now her hair is longer in the front – I just don’t know what to do with it!

As it gets longer I am thinking it’s time for a little girl hair boot camp.

When I was a little girl, my mom would spend hours braiding intricate designs into my hair. For Valentines Day, I would have a heart with ribbon pulled through it. But other days, when my dad was in charge, I would just have it pulled back into a ponytail. My hair didn’t hold curls very well (still doesn’t) but there were times I was in curlers at night for a big day the next day.

Maddie has no problem with curls right now – in fact, she has her very own! I guess her daddy’s hair was naturally curly when he had hair. So I may be dealing with naturally curly hair as well!

Here is my first attempt at a pebbles ponytail:

Her curls:

Curls – blurry, she was movin’!

Do you have any tips on hairstyles for little girls??

Ready to put a new spin on a soft taco recipe? These are delicious, and I might add a little decadent! I added this recipe to our rotation a year ago, when we were getting sick and tired of the same ol’ same ol’. To be honest, when I first made them, I thought they might turn out a bit too greasy, and would be just oily crescent rolls. Nope. These are easy to throw together, make the house smell amazing when baking and are fun to top.

Crescent Roll Taco Pockets

1 Pound ground Turkey*
1 bag of shredded cheddar cheese
1 red onion, chopped
Taco Seasoning
2 cans Pillsbury Crescent Rolls

Toppings:**
Sour Cream
Tomatoes
Green Onions
Salsa

Directions:

• Preheat oven according to crescent roll directions.
• Saute red onion until translucent. Add and brown the Turkey meat, making sure to carmelize for more flavor.
• Take pan off the stove burner and add half the bag of shredded cheese into the meat and stir until melted.
• Open crescent rolls, and instead of triangles, perferate to make squares.
• Put 2 tablespoons of mixture into the middle of the square. Top with a little bit of shredded cheese.
• To make the pocket, pinch together opposite corners of the pastry square.
• Bake 15-20 minutes until golden brown and delicious. Top and Enjoy!

*We aren’t really red meat eaters around here, so we use ground turkey, but feel free to substitute if you want to!
**Have fun and make them your own!

Let me rephrase that:

I am lucky that I have a husband who doesn’t call spending time with his kids “Babysitting” When I discussed the trip, his immediate response was “Go! I got this.”

So the day came, and I left my kids and went to Disney World without them. Did I feel guilty? Yep. In the months leading up to the trip I fought with myself back and forth. What kind of mom does this? Boy, I do deserve some time away though. The last 5 years have been spent with a child inside me or on me. I haven’t sat down and had a quiet slow meal in years. This is the only time I will be able to take a trip away from them without hearing about it later from them…

Needless to say – I won, and I am so glad I did! We spent 8 days visiting Animal Kingdom, Epcot, Downtown Disney, and the Magical Kingdom. I can’t wait to go back again with my family in tow!

Now – Pictures!

When my baby boy was first diagnosed with Autism, and those words came out of the doctor’s mouth, I cried. Though, it was something we suspected for a year or so, those words made it final, and a wave of scary washed over me. Why us? Why my kid?

I had about a week where I felt bad. I thought it was my fault, some how. I thought if maybe I took care of myself better when I was pregnant (I.E. Not eaten so many cheeseburgers) then he would have been fine. If I hadn’t induced labor he would have been okay. If I didn’t have post partum depression, he would have been healthy.

Fine. Okay. Healthy….

Fine. Okay. Healthy..

Then I snapped out of it.

I was thinking about this diagnosis the wrong way. I already thought my kid was fine. I already thought he was okay. I kept him healthy everyday. I was taking care of my son. What needed to change was our approach – not my kid.

I don’t spend time looking for a cure. I don’t spend time blaming environmental factors or doctors. You know what I spend time on?

Meeting my kid half way.

We have learned how he communicates. I think of it much like learning someone else’s language, if I were wanting to have a meaningful conversation with someone who speaks french, wouldn’t I spend my time learning french instead of teaching them english? Yes. Would they want to learn english too, to have a meaningful conversation with me? Sure, but I would want them to learn the way they learn. I wouldn’t expect them to learn english if I weren’t learning french too.

We have learned how he learns. We all don’t learn the same way, we aren’t all robots. For example, I am terrible at numbers and math. I had to learn it a different way than my peers. But I excel at reading and comprehension. I was able to learn that the way everyone else does. My child could read at 2.5. But he still has trouble playing with other children. We are teaching him how via reading and pictures.

We never think of this as a disability. Yes, some things are harder and we have accomodate his needs. But never do I think of my kid as disabled. Never do I wish for a cure. I can’t wait to see what my Autistic child does next, and I will help him succeed. He’s fine just the way he is, and I wouldn’t want him any other way!

I love you buddy!

They both dressed up in their Easter finest. They both did an easter egg hunt. They both had a great time.

It’s the first year that they can could both be doing the same thing and the same time as Maddie is such a toddler now! She follows in her brother’s footsteps and always wants to be doing what he is doing. It warms my heart, and I always try to make sure and step back to just relish these moments. They are so little, but growing so fast.

Yellow was the theme this year for the outfits – My Dad picked out and bought Maddie this beautiful yellow dress, and I had found the perfect suit with a yellow shirt for Logan, but, he’s so skinny that 3T pants don’t fit him! He’s 3T on top, but 2T on the bottom. *giggle* So he had his own style, and wore jeans. (I of course didn’t notice this until we went to get dressed for the day, ha!).

Fast-forward 3 months – my mother got sick. She had been diagnosed with a terminal disease, and kept getting worse. It was very sudden. She retired from nursing for almost 40 years, her health was failing, and I had never seen the castle with my mother. I was never going to get to see it. It was a very sad time. I wasn’t much of a prayer, but while this was happening I made up for it in spades. “I just want to see that castle with my mother.” I would pray.
“I just want to see a smile on her face again. I want my mommy back.”

A year and a half later, we found out that my mother had been being treated for something she didn’t have. Miraculously, her disease waned, and she found out that the treatments were actually making her sicker than she really was. They lowered her doses, took her off some meds and onto some other ones – and within 6 months, my mother looked hopeful again, could laugh again, could argue with me again. I had Maddie 6 months later, and while she was holding my little girl, I couldn’t help but feel gratitude to whoever or whatever helped her. When I had told her I was pregnant, she thought she wouldn’t be able to see this moment, and to tell you the truth neither did I. But two miracles were happening at once that day, and I was very grateful.

When my mother started to live again, she began talking about that trip to Disney. Before her life changed. Though she is still not feeling 100%, she had decided after the second diagnosis that she wasn’t going to wait around to die any more. That she was going to live her life and enjoy her family and be happier. This included a second trip to Disney. A second glimpse at that castle. And you can bet your life that I wasn’t missing it again.

My children are small. Though Logan is 3.5, he is mentally only 18 months and Maddie is 15 months old. The crowds would be too much for him, I thought, and Maddie – well, she would hate to be stuck in a stroller all day. I didn’t want to miss it. But I also didn’t want it to be too stressful on my children…then my family and my husband suggested that perhaps it was time to take a mommy only trip. They would be getting older soon, and every trip thereafter would be a family affair. Take this time just for you. Scope it out for Logan so you can prepare him for his first trip to Disney. Take this trip you have always wanted to take, and relax.

I immediately thought of the constant knot in my stomach from the past 5 years. Relax? What does that feel like? Could the babies really live a whole 8 days with just their dad? I guess it was time to find out.