Dear Lily,

I love you, I really do.  You are such a sweet kitty, so good with the kids, so friendly and affectionate.  But if you don't stop causing such commotion in the middle of the night, you are going to find yourself spending your nights alone in the basement.  And that's if you're lucky.  If I get really irate one night, I'll introduce you to your new bedroom -- the basement bathroom with its cold, hard tile floor.

You see, when you jump up on my nightstand at 2:30 AM and chew on my glasses earpiece, bat around the bottle of Tums, and knock my books onto the floor, you not only keep me awake, you risk waking the whole household. 

This morning when you leapt off my nightstand with my watch in your teeth and tore out of the room and down the hall, the only reason I didn't race after you with murderous intent is plantar's fasciitis. 

You can thank your lucky stars for that.  My foot pain is the only reason you still live.

The children like you (well, mostly), and I think it's good for them to experience life with a pet. So please don't make me take you out in the middle of the night. Stop waking me up. That's what my kids are for.

As Much As We Love Monkeys....

some of them are just creepy.

During a recent trip to Target with all three kids, we saw a huge toy monkey.  It was on an endcap in a display case with a space left open so kids could come by, push the button, see and hear the monkey do its thing, and then beg their parents to buy it.  Target is so smart that way.

The boys were sitting together in a cart at the time, so I pulled up next to it and Aliza reached in and pushed the button.  The boys looked on curiously.

The monkey started swinging his big monkey arms up and down and emitted a squeaky, loud screeching noise.  Pretty realistic, actually, and about as pleasant as you'd imagine a real monkey screech might be.  What are toymakers thinking, by the way?

The boys looked startled, and then started trying to escape from the cart to get away from the weird thing. 

AJ, with tears beginning to form:  "No?  No?  No?  No?  No?  No?" (AJ always says no? with a vocal upturn at the end, like it's a question.  That's just his way.)

Zack, with a look of panic: "buh-bye!  buh-bye! buh-bye!  buh-bye!"  (Zack uses this extremely high falsetto voice to say buh-bye.)

Aliza and I tried not to giggle as I drove the cart away as quick as I could.  They were upset, but their reaction was just so unexpected.

Lesson learned:  Boots the Monkey, good.  Other strange monkeys making sounds, very very very bad.

not much

So ~ tired ~ mentally ~ and ~ physically ~ from  ~ yesterday.

And the day before.  So much for the September blog-a-thon.

Not only was it a busy couple of days, but it turns out I don't have enough material for every day, really.  Not unless I want to be boring, kind of like right now.

Here are a few shots from the sale.  Nobody takes any during the sale, we are too busy.  Nobody takes any afterward, we are too wiped.

If you have been to our sale, thanks for coming and supporting our club!  If you haven't and you live within an hour's drive of Eagan, it's totally worth it.  Please come next time, March 26, 2011.

The kids loved the goodies I found for them; Zack wore his new snowboots all over the house this morning.  Aliza looked at her new Space Encyclopedia while wearing her new winter coat.  AJ perched himself on top of a stack of toy bins and looked through his new Diego book.  The cat sat in the plush American Girl chair I found for $2.50 (did I mention great deals are found at this sale and it's totally worth driving to?).

I have pictures of none of this because the house is a cluttered nightmare and I'm not in any condition to run around with a camera right now.

Okay I'm ready for some football.  Bring on Sunday.

Don't Forget the Meds

Yesterday we got to see what it's like when we forget Zack's afternoon medication.  It's so easy to forget just how hyper and unfocused he was before we figured out a medicinal combination and schedule to help him settle down.

I usually give Zack a half a seroquel and his Zoloft early in the afternoon, and sometimes if the day is particularly chaotic, it ends up being late afternoon.  Yesterday I forgot them altogether.  By evening, he literally bounced off the walls.  I wish I had it on video.  He giggled a lot, but it was a manic giggle, not a happy one.  He was just not in control of his body.  His nervous system was going haywire.

Then when we were getting ready to get into the tub, he reached down to tug at the skin on his chest, and bent down and bit himself.  On the chest.  I didn't know a person could even bend that way.  I know I couldn't.  But biting himself is one way he shows extreme hyperarousal.

When the boys were babies and we hadn't tried any medications yet, I had a hard time understanding how they would work.  The Fragile X email group was full of parents saying different medications had had amazing and profound affects on their children.  Calming, increased ability to focus, increased speech, less aggression.

It seemed like there were so many positive outcomes from medications, so many kids were helped by them, I wondered a little bit why we were still talking so much about lack of speech, inability to focus, hyperactivity, and aggression.  If these meds were so great, why do we still have these problems?

I get it now.  It's because there's a big difference between it helps and it works.  It works means, it's a cure.  No more problems.  We are up to par.  It helps means, it's better.  There's still trouble focusing, there's still more hyperactivity than you'd see in a typical child, there's still some speech delays.  But the child is focusing better.  Less hyper.  Talking more.

We are watching the news reports of the treatments and cures currently in clinical trials (here's a great one) with cautious optimism.  Because we'd love to be able to say it works.

The Girl in the Bubble

Would it be unreasonable for me to wrap my kid up in bubble wrap?  Bundle her up so tight that she's like that kid in "A Christmas Story" hollering "I can't put my arms down!"

Forgive me if I'm just a little protective.  She's my only little girl.

It seems like a lot of her friends, classmates, and the neighbor kids have practically limitless freedom.

The other night, a little neighbor kid came over and asked if Aliza could go with a few kids to the park.  It's about 8-10 blocks away.  My little social butterfly very much wanted to go.

And we were going to let her until we found out that no adult was going along.  One of the 5th grade boys was going to bring a walkie talkie so he could stay in touch with his dad while they were gone.  So it was going to be two 5th graders and two 2nd graders, on their bikes.  And a walkie talkie.

Yeah, maybe I'm crazy cautious, but I didn't like it.  Mark and I weren't able to go right then, and I wasn't comfortable letting Aliza take off with these kids, sans anyone over 5 feet tall.  I'm not generally all that dramatic, but for a split second I pictured the kidnappers and murderers who might be lurking at said park. 

Naturally, she was devastated.

Many of the neighborhood kids walk home from school.  It's only about 7 blocks.  Aliza's been begging to be allowed to walk with them, and I keep finding ways to put it off.  Last fall I said we'd talk about it when she was 7.  She turned 7 in January, and that spring when the begging began again, I said we'd talk about it when she was a 2nd grader.

So far this fall I've been putting her off with "I don't know" and "We'll talk about it later," but it's only a matter of time before she corners me.

Part of me wonders if I'm overprotective because she's my only "typical" child.  In some ways I feel like I still have only one child.

I only have one kid who has sleepovers.  I only have one kid who wants to walk home from school and go to the park with her friends.  Just one argues with me about her clothes.

So pardon me while I get her fitted for her own portable bubble suit.

The Apple Orchard in Pictures

Yesterday at the apple orchard...

I'm a proud and active member of a great club called the Minnesota Valley Mothers of Multiples and I try to participate with the boys as much as they are able. There's several events I wouldn't even attempt with them, including the Halloween and Christmas parties. Loud, crowded rooms are pretty difficut for kids with sensitive sensory processing issues.

The apple orchard outing in the fall, however, is just about perfect for them.

Of course I took some photos, but they are going to have to wait one more day before I'll have time to look at them. In the meantime, I thought I'd take a little poll.

Yesterday we tried something new at the apple orchard; we took the boys on the hayride. Its pretty low key - a tractor pulls a cart with people sitting on haybales in a circle, all around the orchard. Takes around 15 minutes.

One of the boys loved it. The other one hated it. Can you guess which one ran away from it, and which one wanted to go for another spin?

Today, it's really more like The Aliza Files

Aliza had a big week, this second week of school.  Her dance class started on Monday.  She dances in an enormous dance studio with an itty bitty window for all the moms to look through.

And last night, her parents finally relented and allowed her to get her ears pierced!  She picked a lovely pair of sparkly flowers to wear for the next 6 weeks. 

The sign announcing that ear piercing is FREE is huge.  The price of the sparkly flowered earrings is very, very tiny.....but, well, this is kind of a rite of passage, right?  You only get your ears pierced once in your life.  Unless you let them grow shut, like I did.

75 Random Things About Me, More or Less; 53-75

The final installment!  (Kim A., we'll see if you still think we are a lot alike after this one!)

53. I don't like to travel very much. I'm constantly worried I forgot something I'll really need.
54. I still manage to get around a little bit. I have attended the past two Fragile X Conferences, in St. Louis and Detroit. And have been to Texas a few dozen times.
55. I don't like balloons.
56. Amusement park entry fees are a total waste on me, unless you want someone to sit with the kids while you go on the big roller coaster. I'm not a ride person. I like my feet on solid ground.
57. No balloons, no scary rides, not much for travel -- yep I'm real party girl. At least I have a good sense of sarcasm.
58. I like comedies. I always say, my own life is enough of a drama, I just want to see, hear, and read funny things.
59. My favorite season is fall. The kids go back to school, the weather becomes more bearable, vegetables are ripe, the trees all turn beautiful colors, all is right with the world. My world, anyway.
60. I'm currently serving my third year on the board of the Minnesota Valley Mothers of Multiples; I was newsletter editor for two years, and this year I'm publicity coordinator. I love this group.
61. I've had a ton of pets in my lifetime; cats, a dog, parakeets, a cockatiel, hamsters, guinea pigs, and millions of fish.
62. I guess it's not as impressive a list as I thought it would be. Reptiles would have livened it up.
63. I've had a total of 11 roommates in my life.
64. I'm still friends with 7 of them.
65. I think about and wonder what is going on with two of the others. The other two I could take or leave.
66. I love Little People toys, more than my kids do. I get them out once in awhile and we all play.
67. I have to fight the urge to buy more Little People sets when I see them, because I know I'm the one I'm buying them for.
68. If the Wii had existed 15 or 20 years ago, I would have wasted so much time on it.
69. I used to be amazing at Tetris. I could complete level 9 height 5 without batting an eye.
70. Thank you very much -- if you know what level 9 height 5 means.
71. Sometimes when I'm in the car by myself, I listen to the Wiggles and sing along.
72. Sometimes I turn it off and just listen to the quiet.
73. I am a Scorpio.
74. My husband and three children are all Aquariuses. Yes, we are all water signs.
75. I have no idea what that signifies, if anything.

2nd Grade Math

Aliza needs help with her homework!  Subtraction, 2nd grade.  The problem is

11 - 7 =

It's too hard!  She wails, groans, throws her head down onto the table with all the drama a 2nd grader can muster.  I ask "Will it be easier if I make up a story?"

"yeah....."she grunts into the table.

"Okay, you have 7 dollars in your purse.  We are shopping at Once Upon A Child and you find an awesome, authentic American Girl outfit for sale, for 11 dollars.  That's kind of a lot for a used outfit, but you want it bad.  You have 7 dollars.  How much do I have to spot you, in order for you to have enough for that expensive outfit?"

She raises her head and looks interested.  She looks at the ceiling, and appears to be counting to herself.  She taps her pencil on the table.

The she squeals with glee.

"oooooo, I know!  It comes with boots!"

75 Random Things About Me, More or Less; 26-52

{Had to include up through #52 because 50, 51 and 52 kind of go together.}

26. I'm a Packer fan living in Minnesota, and I'm a little tired of being defensive about it, so let's just all give it a rest.  Deal?
27. I've worn glasses/contacts since 3rd grade.
28. Mark and I got married in January of 2002 and had our reception at the Minnesota Zoo in Discovery Bay.
29. We honeymooned at the Moon Palace in Cancun.
30. I grew up in New Ulm where Schell's beer is brewed, and learned growing up that Schell's beer sucks.
31. Then I graduated from high school and went out in to the world, where I learned that Schell's is a "microbrew", meaning that it is very special and very good. I thought that was kind of funny.
32. I have seen the musical "Cats" and I don't get it.
33. I'm never bored. There are always a bunch of things I wish I had more time to do.
34. The first time I heard the words Fragile X Syndrome (I'm pretty sure it was the first time, although I guess there's always that chance that I heard it somewhere before and wasn't paying attention) was around 2:30 PM on Wednesday, April 12, 2006.
35. The first time I went to the National Fragile X Foundation website and saw the words mental retardation in conjunction with Fragile X Syndrome was about 5 minutes later.
36. The boys were 14 months old at the time but were still getting up every night and needing bottles.  I remember feeding them in the middle of the night, that first night we knew, and looking down at their sweet little baby faces, and bawling.
37. I have a tattoo on my big toe, left foot, of a little vine. I planned on getting a tiny ladybug on one of the leaves at a later time but it was a lot more painful than I thought it would be, so I'm calling it complete as is.
38. I would rather be too cold than too hot.
39. The greatest thing about getting older is that you don't give a rip anymore about all the stuff that you were obsessed about when you were younger. Well, most stuff.
40. Sometimes when I see a super-skinny woman with little kids (in other words, someone who looks like she might possibly live a lifestyle similar to mine), I have an urge to go up to her and ask "do you find the time to exercise a lot, or do you just never eat? Or both?"
41. I've never been a waitress but I've had enough friends and roommates who were, so I'm a pretty good tipper.
42. My dad taught my brother and I how to drive by example. He'd do somewhat dangerous things while driving and then say "Did you see what I just did? Don't you EVER do that." (Sorry dad, that's how I remember it.)
43. I'm an oldest child.
44. I don't think I have a lot of stereotypical oldest child tendencies. I don't think my brother has many youngest child tendencies, either. I should ask his wife if she agrees with that, one of these days.
45. My husband is a middle child, who does have a lot of middle child tendencies. Only the good ones, though.
46. All three of my children (this is slightly less impressive when you take into account that two of them were born on the same day) were born on Mondays that were holidays. So was my brother's little girl. Aliza was born on Martin Luther King Day (the third Monday in January). The twins were born on Valentine's Day which happened to fall on a Monday that year. And my niece was born on Memorial Day.
47. I once won a Halloween costume contest dressed as Monica Lewinsky. Yes, I had a Bill Clinton with me.
48. I didn't love Barbies as a kid. I preferred dolls that could be my babies.
49. My favorite scents are cinnamon and vanilla, followed closely by orange.
50. I cringe when otherwise intelligent and respectable people spell it "definately" or "seperate."
51. I cringe again when someone says "I could have cared less" when what they really mean is "I couldn't have cared less."
52. But I really hate it the most when I find grammar and spelling errors in my own work.

They Did Not Love a Parade

... But they tolerated it.

Burnsville has a little local celebration called the Fire Muster early fall every year, with bands, junk food, beer, smoothies, rides, games, contests, and stuff you can buy -- Pampered Chef, Tastfully Simple, Abdullah Chocolates, and the like.  It's held about 5 blocks from our house so we (and by "we", I mean Aliza and either mom or dad) manage to get there every year.  And anytime we're not there, we're reminded how great it is because we can hear the music and fireworks from our house.

There are two parades -- the firetruck parade, and the one with all the local businesses and community groups and churches and politicians.  The one where all the parade-ers throw candy.

You don't have to be a genius to recognize the boys would hate the firetruck parade.  All those sirens and horns blasting throughout the parade route .. you get the idea.  I might as well just take them to the state fair.

The second parade though, is a little more tame, and we thought we'd try it.  The parade route is right at the end of our street, so we can walk to it -- making it ideal for attempting it with the boys.  If they were having a hard time and needed to leave early, one of us could just walk them home.

So Aliza and I went out there early and staked out our spot with a blanket and a lawn chair.  The sun was awfully bright already.

And we waited.  The waiting wasn't too torturous because all the neighbor kids were there, and waiting is always more fun with a gaggle of kids.

Shortly before the official police car start of the parade (no, it was not started by 76 Trombones, thank God.  But I can't talk about a parade without that song going through my head.), Mark arrived with the boys in the stroller.  We had made our plan beforehand, that the boys would be happier a few feet behind the sidewalk, rather than right there on the curb.  (This isn't our first rodeo.)

They did try to escape back home, but after a few minutes they managed to settle down and watch a little bit of the parade.

I had a fantasy where AJ decided he really wanted to be up at the curb with the other kids, catching candy. 

Maybe next year.