Hey girl, who needs Jenny McCarthy?

We survived another Weekend of a Thousand Hours sans papa!  Oh thank god.  Although I am now fearing we survived only to be thrown into the zombie apocalypse.  I’ve yet to gather my supplies!  Time to make my way to the Winchester, at least I have a Spotify playlist for that voyage.

This coming Thursday, it’s our first official IEP/ISP/IFSP/meeting for PX to decide on new & extra in-home services.  We’re looking at an extra 2-3 days a week of sessions focused on communication.  PX is picking up signs well, but still being stubborn about using them and needs a prompt to tell us his needs.  It’ll be nice to get some extra focused help for communication skills.  Plus we still have playgroup (yay!) and our usual generalized therapy visit and possibly a new group, a social skills group.  Maybe I should just change his name to Brick. 

My summer goal is to get PX as prepared as possible for pre-school and hopefully, diagnosis pending, he’ll be able to start a day program in the fall and get a good 8 or 9 months in before the battle for ESY.  His early childhood teacher who runs the playgroup thinks he has a good shot, as well as our caseworker, considering PX has begun to use his peers as models for behavior as well as really opening up with his sister.  He even played and shared with a new girl at group, on her very first day!  She took a shine to all of us, too, even Rizzle who has no concept of personal space and sat right in the lap of this poor gal who doesn’t exactly do well with new people and situations.  Only my kids!

So it’s been a good week for the kids.  Apparently, not such a good week on the special needs front in general; all the batshit crazy has come out to play it seems.  Bleach?  Really?!  Fucking batshit crazy, I say!  And it seems #SNRyanGosling agrees across the interwebz & at Adventures in Extreme Parenthood this week.  He even wants to dethrone Ms. McCarthy.

He gets my vote!  1-800-GOS-4ASD

Please Ryan, give us a little skin.  Please?  It IS to raise awareness after all.

It’s ok, just curl up in my lap, we’ll get through this.  ;O

Hey girl, I can replenish your… {The Weekend of a Thousand Hours}

Oh fuckity fuck fuck.

 

Or, might I rephrase, what the fuck are you two fucking fucks, fuck?!

 

Routines were abruptly changed starting last weekend.  Daddy Drax started in on his summer schedule.  Friday was fine, he was a little sad at bathtime but overall okay.  Saturday was nerve-wracking, nail-biting, hair-raising, all that jazz.  But we survived.  And then Sunday came.  The day it all fell apart.  Let me start off by saying it was muggy as hell out.  None of us do well in high humidity.  All Rizzle wanted to do was sit around and watch Elmo, all PX wanted was his old routine back.  The morning was a shitshow, everyone crying and pissed off about food choices and sick of sweating like a pig by lunch time.  I put all my hopey eggs in one basket and decided that after naptime, I would ensure a fun afternoon filled with favorite snacks and activities.  We’d even go to PX’s favorite store, the grocery store, and hopefully it’d be good. 

 

….HAHAHAHAHAHAHA.  Blind optimism at its finest! 

 

We walked PX’s favorite route but, once we got to the store, it was clearly obvious something had completely snapped, a regression was setting in, input was being craved.  He started chewing on the foamy covering to his stroller bar.  He hung over the sides like a rag doll, legs up over the bar, laughing like a lunatic.  He was swiping at objects and cried when we stopped moving.  Rizzle followed his lead.  I tried giving him his favorite snacks, a special treat for being out on an errand.  Sadly, no use.  I decided to high tail it home afterwards, showing him his picture cards for his swing and lovey.  We somehow made it up the stairs alright, but then the reality of being home and still no daddy set in.  And, it was supper time.

 

So the kids got Elmo.  PX was still seeking input everywhere but usually the fluffy muppet gives him what he needs visually and, with a favorite toy and squishy vest, he’s fairly level.  I apparently misjudged how much MORE he was looking for.  The kitchen and living room are conjoined so I can watch them while cooking, the one plus of this shitty apartment.  After not even 5 minutes of starting dinner, PX had dumped out my Vitamin Water all over his lap.  I rushed in to assess the damage, burnt my hand on a burner in the process, and arrived just the second PX shoved his entire hand into his mouth and, well, what’s the color code for total projectile vomit?

 

Himself, his sister, their toys, the couch, the floor.  ON A MUGGY FUCKING DAY IN THE AFTERNOON SUNSHINE.

& my monthly allowance of fucks were used up; not a single one will be given again till June.

 

So I hosed ‘em down, salvaged dinner, and carried on business as usual.  It was still FIVE HOURS till Daddy’s ETA.  So, no time for whining and dreaming of incredibly strong margaritas the size of bath tubs spoon-fed to me by shirtless cabana boys on a beach in Maui.

 

Thankfully, once Daddy returned to PX’s world Monday afternoon, 48 hours since he’d last seen him, PX bounced back fairly quickly.  Who knows what this weekend will be, but as long as it doesn’t involve bodily fluids, it’ll probably be a win.  I hope.  If not, I’ve made sure Ryan Gosling will be on standby for moral support, with a case of Clorox wipes and 5lbs of Wendy’s fries.

 

Double cheezburgers AND RyGos’ abs?  OK!!!

 

I’d elaborate on this *gem* of the week, if it wouldn’t infuriate me.

 

I hear it’s quite an inspiring novel, so let’s get crackin!!

 

Alright time to go link up at Adventures in Extreme Parenthood and load up some of my favorite blogs on Google Reader for later. 

Hey Girl, it’s Been a Whole Week…

It’s Friday…again?!  I knew it’d been a while since I blogged, but didn’t think it’d been THAT long.  I took a mini break to try to get myself to stop being so pessimistic about, well, everything.  To just stop, clear my head for summer, and remember to just enjoy the little things again.  Relish in the positives.
Like the fact it’s been a few weeks since any epic Code Brown incidents.  I feel like PX should be getting some sort of award- the Golden Throne?  Maybe I should go get a (clean!) Pull-Up bronzed.
And he’s clapping again, clapping when he’s happy or along with the audiences on Wheel of Fortune and Jeopardy.  It’s been SO. LONG.  Like, a year?
And social relationships are, to an extent, starting to sink in; more exists in the world than mom, dad, television, and physical objects.  He may not be chasing down the other little boy at playgroup (unlike Rizzle), but he is using him as a model, to obtain some sort of structure to playtime.  Last week the boy didn’t attend, and PX was lost; he spent the majority of the time stimming on everything in the classroom, completely lacked focus. 
At home he’s rediscovered his sister.  I’m so glad she relishes in his goofy games.  Last night he spent almost 15 minutes taking Daddy’s hat on and off her head, giving her eye contact, making her clap because the rest of us were, including her.  And she just hooted and giggled and smiled through the whole interaction.  At bath time he’s helping to wash her hair and rinse out the suds and feed her bubble cakes.  He’s never been completely oblivious to Rizzle, and it’s always been obvious he loves her, but lengthy interactions like this haven’t existed since she was the curiously cross-eyed thing mom and dad brought home from…wherever.
And then there’s Rizzle, who is walking EVERYWHERE, who has taught herself how to use all the remotes in the house and how to change the disc in the blu-ray player.  Staying one step ahead of her?  Impossible.  (I love it.)
So, back to being positive around here!  I’m determined! 
And considering it’s Friday, it’s time for some Ryan Gosling!  I got all excited when I saw the picture for this week’s SNRG over at Adventures in Extreme Parenthood, because I’ve had that shot saved on my hard drive for a bit but, after my initial meme idea from way back, I was distracted at a loss.  Ryan noticed.

Aww lemme go get the weighted blankie.

Thanks Ryan.  Tight pants + the tiniest bit of abdominal flesh = umm, what were we talkin’bout again?  *fans self*

Oh yeah, over the past week I finally saw Crazy, Stupid, Love (that and Blue Valentine are the only RG movies I hadn’t/haven’t seen) and all I can say is OMG TIGHT PANTS.  F’rlzies Ryan?  It’s like you’re Photoshopped!

& with that, happy Friday!

Mother’s Day: Cloudy with a Chance of Gosling.

Is it sunny yet?  No?  What the heck!  My back”yard” is starting to get very sink hole-y/quicksandy.  I will not be surprised if one of these mornings I awake and find a tree has slid into the old barn on the other side of the fence, creating a new escape route for PX.  Eeep. 

All the rain aside, this week has been the hardest week for me since the kids’ evals in February.  And it has nothing to do with the munchkins; they haven’t been overly difficult or had a rough week.  It’s just me, a momism, thanks to Mother’s Day on Sunday.  Oh Mother’s Day, that bittersweet bitch of a holiday.  I will explain.

One of my favorite things as a child, and looking back on my childhood, was making gifts for my family (mainly my mom).  I grew up in a culturally diverse yet heavily Catholic area so there was always something to celebrate.  ALWAYS.  Preschool to middle school, art projects for holidays and festivals were a staple of our curriculum, and I quickly grew to love giving my mom macaroni portraits and hand-drawn cards and tissue paper flower bouquets and Play-Do dishes and allllllllllllll that stuff.  By the time I was 10 I valued our time together spent looking through bags and boxes of my past creations. 

So naturally, when I’d daydream about being a mom to my hoard of children, I began to look forward to getting my own hand-crafted kid gifts.  Of going to work wearing my snazzy elbow macaroni necklace and #1 Mom puffpaint t-shirt.  Of hearing “I love you, mommy.”

But now, on my 3rd Mother’s Day weekend, after weeks of therapies and awaiting evals and special needs playgroups, I don’t know when I’ll ever get that. 

I could *probably* ignore this for one final year, if it all hadn’t been impacted at Tuesday’s playgroup.  The daily project?  A Mother’s Day drawing.  PX was pretty into scribbling and putting on stickers, he even let his teacher put his little thumbprints on it to make a flower.  It was cute, and I was feeling good about his interested level in drawing, and started to tear up.  

And then she told PX “Give it to mom!”  And then I cried. 

Because he couldn’t understand her command.  PX can’t understand how to give someone an object.  14 months of us trying to teach him “give ____ to _____” and he just doesn’t fucking get it.  Every typical kid his age, many younger, I have known can give an object to someone.  But not mine.

So, I cried.  I stopped being positive, and stopped looking for the bright side, and got upset and pissed off and cried.  Because why the hell does everything have to be difficult for my kid, my sweet little booger face?  Why does he have to try extra hard to do things that are supposed to come naturally?  Why can’t PX at least understand how to hand me a picture?  And why does his sister have to struggle, too?  Why?!

Rough week indeed.  Thankfully it’s Friday and that means memes to make me laugh at the linky on Adventures in Extreme Parenthood, especially with this week’s picture.  I’m pretty sure Ryan just wants me to hop in and get dirty, but maybe it’s wishful thinking. ;)

Only for you, Ryan.  Only for you.

For all the mamas & papas in bloggyland dealing with shittastic educators; Ryan gives y’all some Billy Madison rogue justice.

In honor of PX finally getting over his vacuum fear, after 13 months of tearful meltdowns every time it came out of the closet.  Now, it’s his favorite tag partner, just like when he was an infant.

Oh thank god, the kids are heavy into hiding things again lately.  Think they’re playing “squirrel.”  I don’t like that game.

And in honor of it being Mother’s Day on Sunday, Ryan did want all the special needs mamas to know just how wonderful and covered in awesomesauce we are.

I knew Justin and Andy had some help with that tune, mwahahaha.

Oh hellz yes!  *BOOM* Ovaries = gone.

Special Needs Ryan Gosling Day!

I’m way too tired to form coherent sentences (or title) of substance.  I haven’t slept longer than 1 hour at a time this week, and Wednesday night?  Forget it; made the mistake of giving little Rizzle something containing cheese so neither of us slept that night.  We just snuggled up together, miserable and whining.  So much for hoping she didn’t inherit my side’s awful gut issues.

So all I wanna do is sleep.  Please?  It’s rainy and I’m tired and I have no flavored coffee/creamer.  Sad thing is, in the big picture, this has been a decent week, so I should be all bouncy happy.  Maybe I’ll enjoy all the positives on Saturday.

Anyway, here’s Ryan to put some interesting into this post because it’s Friday and we all know what that means.  Be sure to head over to the link-up at Adventures in Extreme Parenthood for more sexy RyRy lolz.

Why isn’t he topless?

Is that an order?  I hope it is!  (lil Zac Brown Band for y’all btw)

True fact, both Ryan and Adam Levine (Maroon 5) have ADHD.  Adam’s fairly vocal about it, in a positive manner too.  {the more you know}  I’ve heard him credit it for some of his success.  Don’t think he credits it for his sexy, though.  I’d Google the article(s) but I’m lazy.

I Just Wanna Meme, with Ryan Gosling!

It’s Friday.  I should be blogging about more serious matters, like sensory seeking squirrels or Pez dispensers as lightsabers, but it’s Friday dammit.  And Rizzle enjoys sitting in my lap, waving at people pictures, and occasionally calling Ryan Gosling “dada”.  Keep dreaming, gurrrl.
Plus, I am so deep into sensory diets and hyposensitivity versus hypersensitivity that I’ve just hit sensory processing disorder overload.  The gears in my head have exploded.
And I’ve got to bake for Rizzle’s little party this weekend, and I’m not even close to getting that started.  If I can make an Elmo head in 2 hours, I’m forcing Cake Boss to give me his business.  Or, at least a job.
So anyway, Ryan is taking over my blog today before it becomes diary of a mad chocoholic mom with sprinkles of insanity.
And Wednesday was my girl’s actual first birthday, so Ryan has a special message for her, too.  Dreamboat!!

Awww!  Such a sweetie.

Jack Johnson, eat your heart out.

Best news ever!  I really had no desire to get out of my PJs today, Ry.  It’s rainy here.

I’ll get some coffee brewing, that kid could be out there ALL. DAY.

Linking up down thurr.  :)

Oh Parenting. You’re like Riding a Roller Coaster…

at a cheapo fair full of carnies; you’re never too sure if, coming down from the highs, you’ll just plummet to the ground thanks to some loose bolts.

This was our first school vacation week as a family enrolled in a state education program.  Or however the hell you wanna put it.  So we had some great days with the G-mas and a few days full of sensory fun/outdoor activities and even a busy morning of our in home services but still PX has wanted more.  More playdough!  More touch tanks!  More outside!  More, more, more!  He is my adorable little hoarder of fun.  Unfortunately when all the available fun has been hoarded, it’s time to cue the meltdowns.  Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh.

Luckily, though, this week we also finally got the date of our first OT consult--- next week.  And the paperwork is in place to get our appointment with the psychologist for PX’s autism eval.  FINALLY.  And we began to discuss if I’d like to add some 2-3 hour long ABA sessions during the week to our schedule for PX.  Don’t get me wrong, I WANT to do this for him and I’m stoked we’ve got these in-home sessions available to us, but I’m nervous.  PX is, to put it bluntly, fucking stubborn so I know the first few (dozen?) sessions will be 90% meltdown.  So my anticipation of this is bittersweet, to say the least. 

Lucky for me, Ryan Gosling’s got my back.  And front.  And everywhere in between.

Thanks babe, I’ll need the support.

Lucky me, indeed!

Alrighty!  I’ll go pack the bags and alert the masses!!

And I couldn’t resist.  I mean, it is like all the talk among the interwebz and such.  Plus, I was a bit drawn to his middle section.  :O

Yeah, totally don’t believe you.  I must inspect.

Time to link up and see how Ryan’s supporting all the other special needs moms and dads out there this week!!

Have You Seen This? Because it’s Amazing.

So it shouldn’t come as a surprise to anyone who’s known me for longer than 5 seconds that I’m in love with Ryan Gosling.
 

Shit.  What were we talking about again? 
Oh yeah.  Ryan Gosling. 
Obviously.
Sorry.

As to be expected, I am also disgustingly obsessed a fan of the “Hey Girl” memes, much like The Gosling himself. 

So when in searching for autism mommy blogs I stumbled across Special Needs Ryan Gosling on Adventures in Extreme Parenthood, I gasped.  Then LOLed.  Then had to pause to get a bib for my intermittent drooling, and LOLed some more.  I knew that Ryan understood the average fangirl and the historian lass and even the geeky gamer chick.  But I had no idea that Ryan Gosling was so supportive and understanding of the special needs mom (and dad, because Ryan is most definitely a feminist and gender stereotyping is definitely out!). 

Oh Ryan, it’s comforting to know you’re on board for alternative therapies!  I think the tots will be so excited for this!  He even knew just what to say when I walked into Hannaford’s and saw that So Delicious was sold out AGAIN, and then discovering Shaw’s doesn’t carry it at all! (Ajerlskfeof.)

Geeze Ryan Gosling must be the most considerate, advocating A-list celebrity besides George Clooney.  *swoon*

I wonder what else Ryan has to say this week about special needs parenting.  I’ll have to link up tomorrow to see.  :)