1momjustsaying

The Letter

miaarticoli@verizon.net (Mia) — Sat, 27 Jun 2009 20:46:00 +0000

I try very hard to not get on my soap box and spew my political ideologies or religious beliefs on this blog. I respect and adore that we live in a country where we all have the right to our own beliefs. I may not agree with everyone out there and you may not agree with me but that is what makes our country so wonderful. Our freedom to live our lives the way we want to without being persecuted is why there are so many different people from all over the globe who risk their lives and the lives of their families to come to our country to live and enjoy the same freedoms.

But lately I've noticed that the men and women who we have elected to represent us are not really paying attention to us and what we want. They seem to be in some impenetrable bubble with their hands over their ears singing the "la la la la, I don't hear you song" and not focusing on what is best for the country and our futures. It is quite frightening really. What is even more frightening to me is that I feel like the majority of the people, especially those 20-something and younger crowds, really do not care and have lost some of their rationale for what is right and wrong. There has to be accountability or their will be chaos and that is why our Forefathers painstakingly designed our country to be a Republic, because they had the insight to and clarity to know what would happen to us as a country if we failed to understand where things can go very very wrong.

I fear that we have made that turn in the road which is leading us down to the track of things going very very wrong. I'm not putting blame on one man, please understand that. This has been a collective process of sweeping things under the rug and let's just get re-elected at whatever cost by all politicians for several years. But I do need to say that I believe the current batch of folks in Washington have lost all credibility and do not see what destruction they are creating for our children's futures. The folks in Washington do not live the same lives as us. Because we have done away with term limits, they do not take a hiatus from their everyday jobs to work in Washington for a while and then return back to their everyday jobs and live by the same laws and rules that they just passed - as was intended. They live in their bubble, they have their own health care, their own retirement plans, their own schools, they vote on their own pay raises, and are pampered and catered to daily. They do not live the same lives that we do any longer. They preach to us to hate the rich and wealthy, but yet they are all rich and wealthy. History has proven that with power comes greed and with greed comes destruction.

I recently ran across this article on the Glenn Beck website. Now don't get all up in arms and think that it is going to be some right-wing wacko stuff. Just read it. It makes sense. Here is an excerpt from the article:

. . . Take a breath. Listen to the people. Let's just slow down and get some input from some nonpoliticians on the subject. Stop making everything an emergency. Stop speed reading our bills into law. I am not an activist. I am not a community organizer. Nor am I a terrorist, a militant or a violent person. I am a parent and a grandparent. I work. I'm busy. I'm busy. I am busy, and I am tired. I thought we elected competent people to take care of the business of government so that we could work, raise our families, pay our bills, have a little recreation, complain about taxes, endure our hardships, pursue our personal goals, cut our lawn, wash our cars on the weekends and be responsible contributing members of society and teach our children to be the same all while living in the home of the free and land of the brave. . . . .

I have provided you with the link here. Please take a moment and read it. Please let's all become educated on the happenings of our country. Let's not rely on the TV news channels. Let's use our own judgement and find out more information on things from various sources. We the People are who matter most right now. We have the ability to make sure our freedoms are not stripped from us in the middle of the night while we sleep. Please just think and use common sense not political bias. I have never in my life voted for someone just because they were of the same party as mine. I listen to their beliefs and I choose who best fits with what I believe is best for this country. So many people have so much to lose right now, it doesn't matter if you are gay, straight, black, white, latino, asian, etc. We are a great country "together" and we need to make sure that the folks deciding our futures are deciding it with our best interests, not theirs, at heart.

Anyone around me can tell you that my life is extremely stressful right now. Some days I feel like I'm losing the battle, but then I gather the strength and keep going. I have people that depend on me to do the best I can. I'm sure my husband feels the same. We have lost so much in the last 2 years but we haven't lost our family. We have our daily struggles with Boy Child and the ramifications of that takes its toll on all of us, especially Diva, on a daily basis. We have our daily money crisis. We have lost all of our savings and my retirement 401K is at a whopping $14K. My husband has to rebuild his business from the ground up. We are back to renting a house after 12 years of owning. We cannot go on vacations or just head to the mall. Yet, with all of our life's downs we know that we live here, in the United States of America, where everyone's dreams can and do come true. We pray to God for strength and the wisdom we need. We will work hard as we always do and we will have our dreams come true. None of that is done with greed, malice, or one-sidedness. We analyze our situation, research our best approach and act on the best scenario that will help our family to succeed. That is what I'm sure you all do as well. So why don't we expect the folks in Washington to do the same exact thing for our country and for us? Have you ever signed a document that you haven't read? I haven't. I have read and re-read everything I have ever signed. Why don't they take the time to read the documents they are imposing upon us as law? That just doesn't seem rational to me. What is their rush, isn't this their job? I just ask that we all start paying better attention and speaking out to what is going on. Let's not be blindsided, but be prepared.

Whew, okay I'm done. Thanks for hearing me out. Enjoy your day.

Nothing Like Some Splashy Fun

miaarticoli@verizon.net (Mia) — Thu, 25 Jun 2009 00:12:00 +0000

Wow, what fun we had as a family this Father's Day. Instead of traditional backyard barbecues and stuff we decided to head up North a bit and have some "splashy fun" as my Boy Child likes to call it.

It was very nice to not have the distractions of moving preparations, school placement for Boy Child, softball and all that stuff. The first day was the best - very nice. For a little while we were like a 'normal' family of four. We weren't 'that family' with the boy who is mean or out of control, Diva and I actually had some time to spend together, actually talking and playing in the pool without my eyes constantly searching behind her for the location of her brother. I could look into her eyes, those beautiful baby blues. I could see the sadness and loneliness that shouldn't be for a 9 year old but because her brother is the way he is, she feels a bit cast aside. It's hard when you have had mommy and daddy and all your relatives to yourself for 4 years and then here comes a baby brother. Then after 2 years of adjusting to the fact that you have a baby brother you come to find that he is different. She is still adjusting to it all, we forget sometimes that she is 9 and it is extremely hard for her to accept how our lives have been turned upside down due to Boy Child. Heck, it's still hard for us too to accept some days. So it rare that she gets my undivided attention, even if it is brief.

Diva loves going to Splash Lagoon. Boy Child loves it too, but he has some quirks with it as well. One of the things he doesn't like is the noise level. Yeah, it is a bit loud but once you are in it, you get used to it. Even him, but every now and then you would catch him doing this.

The first day we couldn't get Boy Child to partake in any water slide fun. Dad did, however, get him to run to the Tiki Tree House when the horn blows. This is a play area that is topped by a 48 ft. high bucket that every now and then dumps 1,000 gallons of water onto the thrill seekers below. Last year he tried to become one with the wall when the horn blasted and stared trace-like at the bucket while it dumped the water. So this was a huge improvement!

On the second day, we finally got him to ride the Maui Wowie slide. It is the mildest of all the slides and is situated at the Tiki Tree House and beside the small kids pool/play area. He tried several times to go down but chickened out each time. Then I finally got fed up and stood in line with him. He sat down and then fear took over him and clung to the wall of the slide. I looked up at the life guard and asked her if she minded if once I pried him loose could I just shove him down the slide. She thought that was a great idea too. I did exactly that. Guess what - half of the way down you could hear him screaming "This is awesome!" Yep, we couldn't get him to stop riding that slide after that.

Diva, she is another story. Diva loves her some water slides. There are slides there that take you 40 mph and then drop you straight down into 6 feet of water. Yep, I've done it. It is a rush. I like the ones where you can sit two to an inner tube and ride. She wants the extreme rides and the activity pool. Next time we will have to bring her a friend, because Dad's new partial knee and my excess pounds do not do so well with keeping up with a 9 year old running up the stairs from water slide to water slide for hours non-stop.

The kids loved it so much that they want this to be a new family tradition. We'll see, maybe we will.

On the first day, Dad even got into the fun as you can see by this quick video.

A Divalicious Forecast

miaarticoli@verizon.net (Mia) — Thu, 18 Jun 2009 12:44:00 +0000

Since we just had atrotious weather here in the 'burgh I thought that this video is worth A Thousand Words on this Thursday.

During one of our park adventures this week, Diva in her true fashion, put on a small show for me.

She really is a shy girl.

Chores and Memories Don't Mix

miaarticoli@verizon.net (Mia) — Sat, 13 Jun 2009 12:50:00 +0000

There are days where laundry and packing and cleaning and all that other stuff that are constants in our lives need to wait. I don't do that enough. There is always something that I think I need to be doing and I tell my kids to wait or when I'm done or shoo them away.

I need to stop doing that and realize that they need me to form memories and traditions for them. What I do now directly reflects on what they will someday do or not do with their children.

It is a constant battle because we are constantly battle our money situation. There never seems to be enough of it and Husband is always working to meet that next deadline and I'm just brain dead and scattered from all the Boy Child issues that I forget we need and they are craving just some time from us. Diva asked last night if we could have a family movie night this week. I don't remember what the answer was or if we even gave her an answer. She went to bed last night and didn't even come and kiss us goodnight. Okay, yeah we were a bit pre-occupied with a small little thing called THE PENGUINS WINNING THE STANLEY CUP!! but heck she still could have come downstairs and told us she was going to bed.

When we move (in the next 40 days), we will NOT be having a TV in Diva's room. The kids will have a computer in their rooms but no TV. I think that is partly the problem with Diva. She tries to stay away from her brother and she shuts herself up in her room with her TV and music and barbies that she forgets the rest of us. The new house does NOT have a playroom for them, so that will also force them to not retreat to that section of the house. Yeah, it's a downsize but yet we are gaining so much more in the way of a yard. This yard has a pool, swingset, play houses and a sandbox almost the size of my dining room. So I know that we will be outside much more.

These photos are of the 2 hours we spent at the park earlier in the week. We had a lot of fun playing on the playground, riding bikes and playing in the creek. They made friends with some butterflies. One even let them pick it up on a stick.

So much fun, that I think I'm going to sign off now and head on out to the park again this morning. So my advice is to make memories as often as you can, no matter how small. The chores will always be there, children will not, life changes in the time it takes to blink.

There are alot more wonderful pictures over at Melody's site if you'd like to visit.

Tomorrow I WILL Be Bald!

miaarticoli@verizon.net (Mia) — Fri, 12 Jun 2009 19:41:00 +0000

I had a very nice post in my mind today about how much fun I had with the kids at the park the other day, BUT then I realized that this is hockey night! It all rides on tonight for our dear Pittsburgh Penguins. Those boys have played their ever-loving hearts out and they deserve to be in GAME 7 of the Stanley Cup Playoffs!!! How much fun this is for our town. It would be way too cool to have the Super Bowl Champs AND the Stanley Cup Champs in the same year!!

I received that picture in an email today, I got a chuckle from it.

I'll hope to have hair left tomorrow. I find myself running my hands through my hair madly during these games!

Another year older and what do you get?

miaarticoli@verizon.net (Mia) — Tue, 09 Jun 2009 23:17:00 +0000

Yep, another year older today. For the first time, I actually feel another year older. I think that this past year has taken a bit out of me. I'm tired.

The past year was filled with so many wonderful events in my children's lives. Diva has grown so much this year and is such a sweet girl. She is a bit mouthy but I really do blame it on the extra attention given to Boy Child because of his needs. I know at times she feels like she is second fiddle and that can be very hard but there are times when it just cannot be helped because Boy Child can be too out of control. Boy Child has not disappointed us in the chaos he can create. It has been quite a challenging year for him. Thank God we have gotten him accepted to The PACE School and we will be able to give him the academic challenge that a 5 year old with an IQ in the 140's deserves and give him the help he needs with his emotional and sensory issues. Both of them are hysterical and loads of laughs - the stuff that they say just cracks me up sometimes. It is interesting to actually have more meaningful conversations with them both. Diva asks typical girl questions like make-up, hair, nails, puberty. Boy Child asks more indepth questions like how was the wheel invented and can you clone people. Yeah, he doesn't have an imaginary friend - he has his clone. A hoot people, I tell ya, they are a hoot.

I think that I've learned this year that faith, determination and patience coupled with my family's love is really all I need to get through anything. I know that all my puzzle pieces are starting to finally fit together and we will be alright. I'm encouraged now that Husband and I are making the right choices to rebuild the mess that was made last year.

This next year is going to be momentous and full of smiles!! I'm very excited for us. Our new house and new schools will be a nice change and a fresh start.

Maybe, just maybe, the Pittsburgh Penguins will give a wonderful birthday gift tonight - Like kicking some hockey butt and winning the next two games!!!

Not Quite Intervention Time

miaarticoli@verizon.net (Mia) — Thu, 04 Jun 2009 21:52:00 +0000

My daughter's last day of school was Tuesday. Not only was this her last day of school but it was also her last day at that particular school. It is somewhat bittersweet for us. We liked that she was at a Catholic school so that she was gaining a much greater knowledge of our religion of choice (it didn't hurt that we didn't have to cart her butt to CCD classes on the weekends either) but also that she was in smaller class sizes. There were only 160 students in the entire school of K-8 grades.

Now, however, we find that the smaller class size is actually NOT the best idea we've had. If you have a daughter, you will understand this most. There are 12 children in the entire 4th grade at Diva's school. Nine of the 12 are girls. Girls are very fickle. It is not easy to have 9 girls stay friends on a day-to-day basis. There have been issues. Not so much this past year, but wow were there issues last year. So much so that the school district guidance counselor was called in to have a bi-weekly "circle-time" chat with the kids. Let's just say that was a waste and leave it at that, m'kay.

This new school year will be at public school. There will be two 5th grade homerooms. That means there will be more than 9 girls to choose from in the friend aisle. We are excited about this and so is Diva. This is the smallest of the elementary schools in the district but at least it is bigger than the old school. I think it will be a nice stepping stone for her before she hops right over to Jr. High where all the elementary schools will group up.

It is so hard to believe that my baby girl is going to 5th grade in the Fall. It is really true that time flies. You don't really understand that concept until you have children. You cannot "see" time passing you buy until you watch the changes and milestones your kids go through -- then you start to feel older yourself. I notice that I think more about making sure I have all the important paperwork done, labeled and filed where folks can find them -- if I start planning my own funeral soon, someone better initiate an intervention (or at least some margaritas)!

You can feel it in the air

miaarticoli@verizon.net (Mia) — Sat, 30 May 2009 11:29:00 +0000

You can feel it. The tension, the excitement, the hope of the Stanley Cup returning to Pittsburgh.

People are planning parties and buying anything that says Pittsburgh and hockey on it.

'Burghers are extremely fanatical about their Pittsburgh Steelers football and Pittsburgh Penguin hockey (used to be Pittsburgh Pirate baseball too but maybe someday that will turn around - good thing we built them a new stadium, it is sooo pretty). At work on game days everyone - and I do mean everyone has some sort of black 'n gold apparel and on casual Friday's, ohh fagetta'bout it, there are beads and scarves and purses. Even the doctors get in on some sort of sport paraphernalia.

We have a wedding reception to attend tonight so we may not get to hear/see the first game. But tomorrow, oh we will be glued to the TV for sure!

LET'S GO PENS!

Burn Baby Burn

miaarticoli@verizon.net (Mia) — Thu, 28 May 2009 21:58:00 +0000

There was some nice weather on our Memorial Day weekend. Diva decided to do some science experiments with her dad. I remember when I was growing up my brother used the magnifying glass to burn the ants and bugs on our driveway. So I was pleased that she only wanted to see if paper would burn.

See other great photos by clicking the link above.

Taking time to smell the waffles

miaarticoli@verizon.net (Mia) — Sun, 24 May 2009 16:09:00 +0000

Some mornings you just have to sit back, go with the flow and enjoy the homemade waffles. Spending family time together is something we don't get to do enough of so when those days come I try to soak it up. With all the craziness of finding a house and packing, work, the end of school functions - and let us not forget the softball games and practices, I get flustered and out of sorts. I forget to enjoy the goodness and sweetness that is sprinkled into the days too. Here's hoping for a day without frustration and constant reprimanding but rather one filled with enjoyment and relaxing moments together.

I had no idea

miaarticoli@verizon.net (Mia) — Sat, 16 May 2009 18:24:00 +0000

This is the inside of our furnace. Ain't it purrty? Yeah, I had no idea that is what it looked like in there. Apparently, my son used my camera to put the lens into the hole on the side of the furnace and took a picture.

Yes, the door to the laundry room not has a new locking system on it.

Head over to Straight Out of the Camera Saturday for some other great folks shots.

Mine Was Nice, and Yours?

miaarticoli@verizon.net (Mia) — Mon, 11 May 2009 23:40:00 +0000

My Mother's Day was very nice. I received the following items from my children. To say they were very excited to give me these items would be a huge understatement.

I also had a steak dinner made for me and an awesome chocolate cream pie for dessert. Heck with the Weight Watcher's on Mother's Day!

Oh, yeah. I also received one of these from my hubby. I'm very directionally challenged - hence why I've not been to any of the Pittsburgh Blogger's events yet, but once I get the hang of this -- look out Pittsburgh, I'm coming through!

Enjoy your day!

miaarticoli@verizon.net (Mia) — Sun, 10 May 2009 03:31:00 +0000

I'm keeping it light this year. I don't want to think about this being the first Mother's Day I've had without my Mom. I'll think about that another day (or sometimes everyday). Nope, today I want to think about fun and enjoyment.

So Happy Mother's Day to all you Mother's out there!!!

When Size Matters

miaarticoli@verizon.net (Mia) — Fri, 08 May 2009 20:42:00 +0000

Well, now it has been another interesting week at our house. We managed to squeak in some park time on one of the very beautiful days -- most days were rainy. Boys cannot help themselves to throwing rocks when confronted with a rippling creek. Boy Child was exceptionally proud of the splash made by this rock - I guess size does matter. Head on over to Straight Out of the Camera Saturday to see some other fun times.

Wow, Free Stuff!

miaarticoli@verizon.net (Mia) — Wed, 06 May 2009 23:41:00 +0000

National Mom's Nite Out is a chance to toast one another in honor of our challenging and rewarding jobs we do as Moms.

To kick off the celebration, friends at Unilever teamed up with Jennifer Bushman, author of the Kitchen Coach series and sent out Family Fun Packages to a bunch of moms. Their thought is that while you're living it up on May 7th, Dad and the kids will be able to create a fun dining experience for themselves with the products in the Making Life Better Family Fun Packages.

The Family Fun Package arrived today! It was stocked with stuff like coupons for Bertolli Oven Baked Meals, Country Crock coupons, Bertolli Sauce, Hellmann's, I Can't Believe It's Not Butter! coupon, Knorr Sides, Lipton Recipe Secrets, Lipton Tea bags - well see for yourself in the picture below. I also received a copy of a Family Fun Book, jam-packed with kitchen tips and recipes.

Also, it was exciting to see a package for me on my doorstep when I got home. (Yeah, doesn't take much to excite me these days.)

The Massacre

miaarticoli@verizon.net (Mia) — Mon, 04 May 2009 23:30:00 +0000

Have I mentioned lately that laundry really isn't my most favorite of chores? No really, it isn't. Mostly because it is the least appreciated and it never seems to end. I could do laundry every single day of the week (and sometimes I do) and it still doesn't go away.

On one of my many trips to the laundry room this weekend, I happened to stumble across a scene from My Bloody Valentine or perhaps Friday The 13th. I was completely freaked out until I came closer to the scene and realized that it wasn't blood but rather red ink.

I then realized that Boy Child really had been in the upstairs bathroom quite a while and here I thought he was just pooing. So off to check on the child and fetch my camera. Boy Child didn't want me to come into the bathroom but then opened the door. His feet and hands were completely covered in red ink - I don't know how my white (well it is supposed to be white) carpet didn't have a bit of red stain on them. I asked him what happened and he said that he sorta accidentally kinda stepped on the ink pad with his toes. Ummmm, yeah. Into the tub he went.

Oh Too Funny

miaarticoli@verizon.net (Mia) — Sun, 03 May 2009 16:42:00 +0000

My dear husband just shared this with me and I thought it was so good I just had to share.

Splish Splash

miaarticoli@verizon.net (Mia) — Sat, 02 May 2009 11:24:00 +0000

This was last weekend when it was sunny and in the 80's. Boy Child received this little darling for Christmas and has asked to use it each week since then.

I was curious how this play time with Diva was going to progress, as I know how each one usually ends up.

Oh my did they each had their fun on this.

And as you can see I was not disappointed by the outcome, I'm such a visionary.

I haven't participated in Straight Out of the Camera Saturday for a long while. All of my shots are straight out of the camera since my camera is a SD Elph and I do not even own Photo Shop.

Toga, Toga, Toga

miaarticoli@verizon.net (Mia) — Sun, 26 Apr 2009 01:42:00 +0000

When you dream of having children one day you never think about the truly mundane, day-to-day stuff you do with them. You think about the places you want to take them or the special stuff you want to teach them or taking them to Disney World or the school plays, dance recitals or football games. You think about what your parents did or didn't do and how you will not make that mistake or you will keep that ritual going. You think about the many "firsts" you will have with your kids.

No one ever thinks about the homework, school projects due the next day without any warning, the hours of practice or lessons you endure, the many sleepless nights worrying about them in some way, or the puking and pooping. You don't think about the sacrifices you make each and every day for them behind the scenes. Even just simple ones like not taking that last bit of milk in your coffee so they can have enough for their favorite cereal for breakfast.

In so many ways it is the mundane days that I'll remember more. It's the countless times you sat and watched Barney or Dora or Chowder. You remember their smile and laugh at those times. It's game night or pizza night at home. It's the silly knock knock jokes they tell you. It's the conversations at dinner about their day. It's cranking the car radio and singing along. It's the hugs and kisses at bedtime. It's even their crawling into your bed at night.

When I have those oh so many days of mind numbing, emotionally exhausting, physically demanding days with my kids - you know the ones where by the end of they day you are so sick of hearing your own voice because all you've done is reprimand or explain or repeat to no avail - that is when I try to remind myself of the mundane days and when I check on them before I get into bed that night and see their sweet faces and listen to their rhythmic breathing, it's like I'm doing it again for the first time.

I'm reminded again why I had always dreamt of being a mom.

Here's one of the mundane moments I shared with Diva this week. They had their curriculum fair a few days ago and the theme was Greece. Yep, they all had to wear togas. I think that is truly the only thing the kids will remember from this but they had fun.

A hunting we shall go

miaarticoli@verizon.net (Mia) — Sat, 18 Apr 2009 17:16:00 +0000

We are still actively seeking a house to rent. We were served with our eviction notice from the Sheriff Sale that was held in January. We've been looking since the beginning of the last school year.

We knew this day was coming so we have been packing here and there so as not to alarm the kids. We finally told Diva that we were moving and that she wasn't returning to her school next year but rather attending public school. She took it pretty good actually, there was crying but now she is actually looking forward to having more than 12 kids in her entire grade next year. We didn't get into the specifics of everything but rather just that Boy Child needs to have special education and we cannot get that from our current school. It is not a lie, it just isn't the entire reason for moving.

Now that we told her and the school it is easier. We can now pack more openly and thoroughly. She can say her good-byes properly at school.

We haven't had very much luck in the house hunting. We have found some houses but we have to take into consideration Boy Child's issues and a lot of the houses just won't work out for him. For example: He has some safety issues and we cannot live on a main road that would have heavy traffic. He has high energy so we need a home that has some type of yard for him to play in. We need to have a game room so that he (and Diva) have a place to play and watch "their" shows/movies - you know so that mom and dad have an hour to themselves to say watch the Penguins or Steelers. Lastly and the most important is that we want to be in a specific school district other than the one we are currently in for public school.

That being said, we have found houses that are perfect but they want us to pay $2000 or so a month in rent. That is not an option. We have found houses where the house is perfect but there is nothing but a driveway and deck for the backyard. We have found houses that the yard and location is perfect but the house is ridiculously small. We have found houses where the house and yard are perfect but it is on a very busy road.

I have even contacted realtors to see if any of them have clients who have houses that have been sitting for a year or more that might be willing to rent. Craigslist, two local papers, pennysaver, etc. No luck so far.

I'll keep plugging along and hope that we find one that fits us both financially and comfortably soon. Keep your fingers crossed for us and a little prayer wouldn't hurt.

The Not-So-Cozy Coupe

miaarticoli@verizon.net (Mia) — Tue, 14 Apr 2009 22:08:00 +0000

When the Cozy Coupe is not so cozy anymore, you might have outgrown it! He had to tip it over to get himself out of it, poor dear.

There are some great pics at the Wordless Wednesday site - go check 'em out!

My Belief

miaarticoli@verizon.net (Mia) — Sat, 11 Apr 2009 13:40:00 +0000

I try very hard to stay away from preaching my political beliefs and my religious beliefs on my blog as it is the "politically correct" thing to do and I do not want to offend anyone. However, these beliefs are a part of what makes me who I am today and sometimes I feel the need to speak out and share my point of view. One day when I am riddled with Alzheimer's Disease (like my mom) or dead I want my children to re-read these blogs to have a sense of who their mother was and if I never post my thoughts unedited then they would be only holding onto censored memories of their mother.

You may or may not agree with my way of thinking and I respect you for that. Each one of us is unique and our founding fathers helped form this country to allow us the freedoms to be unique individuals without being persecuted, as long as you are not infringing on those same rights of others or causing harm to anyone else.

I am in no way perfect and my life is a series of struggles with sprinkles of happiness. It is not perfect,but it is mine. I love God, my family, my friends, and my Country. I am constantly seeking the Lord's forgiveness and guidance. He is always present in my daily life and is sometimes my crutch on those days that seem impossible. Those are the days that I usually find something genuinely beautiful in my life poking out to make my heart just smile.

I saw this video in a post on 5 Minutes For Mom and just loved it. If you have never seen the movie The Passion of Christ, you really should. I saw this movie in the theater when it came out and just cried the entire time.

This next one is a favorite of mine. I have this saved on my computer. I just love listening to it. The first time I heard it on the radio a few years ago I was pulling into the parking lot of Target, it had just started raining so I sat back in the seat of my car watching the rain hit the windshield and listened. It was very moving for me at that moment.

As it reads on the Glenn Beck website: Glenn tells the story of the crucifixion in a tad more unconventional way than most - set to the music of Pink Floyd. This telling of the death of Jesus was recorded by Glenn several years back and as Glenn says, always generates letters and emails asking him why he focused on the death.

"Because everybody concentrates on Easter, and I know that without Easter, His death was meaningless. I concentrate on Easter every day. Every day, every day that I draw a breath, I know it is because I found my way out of the darkness. Every day that I go home to my children and I see them, it's because of Easter. Everything I have, everything I am is because I don't celebrate Easter on just Easter. I'm grateful for Easter every day" - Glenn Beck FREE AUDIO: Glenn's Easter Essay

I found this one on another blog I was reading. I do not remember which blog as I had gone to several that day. If it is your blog, please let me know and I will ad your link to this blog. But this is an awesome video and another belief I feel strongly about. The moral decay of our society and government.

On this Easter Sunday, may God bless you and your family and may you see the beauty of His gifts.

Hollywood's Shooting Star

miaarticoli@verizon.net (Mia) — Thu, 09 Apr 2009 10:13:00 +0000

Oh to be nine again. The carefree nature. The fun you can have with whatever is lying around on your bedroom floor. Diva has it all together here - she loves to create characters and then act them out.

Look out Hollywood!

For more great shots head on over to

These weeks past.

miaarticoli@verizon.net (Mia) — Mon, 06 Apr 2009 23:28:00 +0000

The past few weeks have been exhausting. Boy Child has been testing his boundaries with us and because of that Diva thinks that she should act up to vie for attention. It becomes emotionally, mentally and physically exhausting for Husband and me. Some nights Husband and I are in bed by 9:30pm just so we can end the day already.

It is becoming more apparent to us that he will not be ready for Kindergarten this Fall. We have tried so many avenues to help him over the last 2 years: behavioral therapy, wrap-around services, child psychologists, occupational therapy, sensory diets, neuro-developmental pediatrician and the school district’s DART program. He continues to have disregard for safety, is defiant, impulsive, taunts us, tantrums, hits, throws, etc. but then on the other end of the spectrum is comical, charismatic, sweet, loving, helping, inquisitive, intellectual, and joyful. You spend the day either wondering what he is doing or destroying or who he is hurting, disciplining, hugging/kissing, or cleaning up/fixing his messes. Yeah, that sounds like any healthy 5 year old, except take all of these to the extreme and add extreme strength and anger to it. Also, mind you we are dealing with a gifted child intellectually. We have to keep explaining to Diva that she really needs to be on board with us, since it will take the entire family practicing the same principles in order for anything we do to make any headway. She is 9, it is not so easy for her to understand that her brother is not normal and that when he hits her or screams at her that she is not to hit or scream back.

We’ve brought back the chore chart / reward system. This past week Diva has received enough stickers to get her reward and allowance (no surprise there – she is a good girl). Boy Child has not (not a surprise either). He had a meltdown when we explained yet again that the week starts over on Monday and the old stickers do not count. It remains to be seen if it will or will not do any good for him.

We are going to advocate for him to be enrolled in The Pace School so we can eliminate the whole notion of a regular classroom. I fear him even being on a regular school bus that will not harness his butt into the seat. I really don’t want to have a repeat of everything we have already been enduring the last 2 years with him in yet another school classroom. We have to make it our mission to get this through to the school district right from the start – they will think that they know best and that they can handle him, but we and a long list of professionals know differently. I’d like to save the school, the parents, the pupils and the teachers a whole lot of work and possible litigation. If any of you are locals and know anything about Pace or anyone who attended it, please leave me a comment or email me. We’ve been told a mixed bag of reviews on the school. All of them from people who either haven’t even stepped foot in the school or know anyone personally that has had dealings with it – other than administrators. We have gone to the school and seen for ourselves what it has to offer and unless you have lived in our world for the last few years, I can see where it may seem over the top. It seemed like a dream come true for us. One person even said to us – “You do know that they have a padded room there, right?” Heck yes we do, and man when Boy Child is in full-blown balls to the wall tantrum mode, you would be begging for a padded room to keep him and you safe too! For us it is most likely our last resort for Boy Child to receive the advanced educational stimulation he will need (he is certainly well above the Kindergarten level) coupled with the emotional support he needs to stay on task and not escape or destroy the school. You see, we are very against medicating his mind at this age. I’ve been following some other sites where they have support groups for kids like Boy Child and it seems that those who are medicated are constantly changing, altering, and adjusting medications. Then adding medications to treat the side-effects of the current medications and then changing, altering, and adjusting those medications as well. Only to still have struggles. So we are not convinced that medicating his still developing mind at this point is the best solution. We need to honestly say that we’ve exhausted every other avenue and therapy out there before we do that. He also is not 24/7 uncontrollable or unable to sit still.

We’ve even thought of home-schooling, but that won’t help him with his social issues. Besides, he is so eager to be around other kids. He really misses the pre-K program he was in before Christmas.

When I look at him, my heart just hurts for him and all the fun 5 year old things he is missing out on.

OMG The Blackmail Possibilities

miaarticoli@verizon.net (Mia) — Fri, 03 Apr 2009 14:09:00 +0000

Diva and Boy Child were goofing around with one of Diva's new training bras. Here he is pretending to be Diva.

Way too funny of stuff going on here. I cannot wait until he is old enough to be so thoroughly embarrassed by these shots. I have such a jump on the blackmail market!