Autie Girl and the Evil Monthly Vistor Has Begun.....

Like I mentioned in our "catching up" post. Abrial just turned 12 in December and mother nature wasted no time letting us know.

I had my suspisions that the time was coming. She sprouted up like a weed, she started having to wear training bras or I should say the cami's with the built in bras, and she was sleeping a lot. Once a month or so she would say her tummy hurt and she slept right when she got home from school up until dinner time. Then one month after turning 12 the flood broke through.

Luckily, I had been talking to her about this little visit for months prior to it happening. That first talk was hilarious. I began by explaining how her body was going through some changes and explained what exactly was about to happen sometime soon. Her exact words were, "Ewww. That's disgusting!"
I just agreed then I had to leave the room because I was about to bust out laughing.

The school also had just showed their growing girls video and her teacher had talked to her about it as well.

So thankfully between me, her teacher, and the video Abrial was pretty well ready for it. Still, nothing prepared me for that change.

January hit and I still have to get the shower ready for Abrial and wash her hair because she just doesn't get it done right. So one night I walked in there and Abrial was getting in the shower and turns to me and says, "Oh yeah. I started."

No big deal. No crying. No freaking out. Just a "Hey mom. I started. Just letting you know." I was floored. Abrial is not good with change at all especially with anything dealing with her body but this was such an easy thing for her to accept. I'm thinking it's because of all the talking and preparing her for it that helped.

I, on the other hand, walked out of the bathroom and bawled like a baby.  As much as I had talked to her about it I wasn't as prepared as I thought I would be. What mom is really? I mean my baby girl is transitioning into a young woman. I didn't like it at all.

The pre-teen years have definitely begun in our house.

If I can offer any advice for moms who are about to be in the same position it's TALK. Talk to your daughter as soon as you suspect the time may be coming. Talk at least once or twice a month about it. Encourage their teachers to do the same that way they aren't freaked out when/if it happens at school. Make sure to pack pads in their backpack as a 'just in case' and make sure they are as prepared as they can possibly be. I'm telling you that has to be why it was so easy for Abrial to accept it because she doesn't accept much that well.

Good luck and thanks for reading!

Long Time, No Post. But I'm Back!

It's been awhile since I've posted. Mainly because a ton has been going on with myself personally as well as with the girls. But I'm hoping to get back into blogging more often on this site.

Within the past year my girls have completely sprouted! Abrial just turned 12 this past December and Maddy just turned 11 in January. They are both about to enter the 6th grade in August and both are doing very well. They both still have speech therapy and Abrial still has an occupational therapist as well. Speech therapy is about to be done for both of them...FINALLY! Abrial received speech therapy at first because she didn't talk much, now she talks all the time! Although up until last year she would still walk up to me and just stand there until I asked her, "What?" Now she'll actually come up to me and ask whatever it is she wants to ask. She still mimics her favorite tv shows almost all the time. She also finds one sentence she likes and repeats it at least 5-10 times before she stops or I tell her that I get it. lol.

Abrial seems to have changed literally over night.  She went from watching non stop kiddie shows to watching only Disney XD with shows like Jessie, Dog with a Blog, and Lab Rats. She does still like Disney movies thank goodness. We had to buy Frozen the day it came out as I'm sure many parents did. lol. She also sits on her bed most of the time with her laptop in her lap, her iPod next to her, and her headphones on listening to music. Interest in toys is almost non-existent. She still likes some dolls but she doesn't really play with them anymore. She has definitely entered the pre-teen stage.

Madyssen is following right behind her although she still likes playing with her toys, but it's mostly dolls. She plays with her American Girl dolls and her Lalaloopsies but that's about it. Otherwise she's on her computer or her phone just playing away.

Madyssen also just started taking gymnastics. It's something to help her run that energy out and gives her more kids her age to hang around with.

Abrial's diet remains the same. She is picky as ever and only eats maybe a handful of things on a regular basis. She'll try something if I bug her enough but that's it. She's not a fan of hamburger meat of any kind. We haven't gone gluten free with her because I don't feel that she needs it. I do try to keep her away from wheat which is kind of hard these days with them trying incorporate it in everything including some of her favorite cereals.

Madyssen is getting a little more picky but she generally will eat whatever.

Maddy is still on ADHD medications and doing very well with them. Her grades have improved greatly and we definitely have no worries in the weight department. Maddy eats all the time and is still considered at the ideal weight for a 11 year old girl.

Our biggest struggle at the moment is SUMMER! Both the girls are going to sleep extremely late and waking up late in the mornings. It's summer so I'm not pressing the issue much but having a 12 year old and a 11 year old up until 1am to me is not normal. Abrial is usually awake by the time I make it home for lunch (11:30am) but Maddy is still sleeping. I think I'm going to start making them turn off their electronics around 11pm and slowly lower it from there the closer it gets to school time. I just know this will be a big problem when school starts back in a month if I don't do something now.

But like I mentioned earlier, both the girls are doing fantastic right now. We just got back from our beach trip which I'll post about at another time.

Thanks for catching up with us!

Autism Awareness Month is HERE!

April is Autism Awareness Month and I don't know about you but this is one of my favorite months of the year.  Why? Because everyone in the Autism community pulls together and unites as one with one goal in mind, to help raise awareness for a disorder that is becoming more and more common.  1 in every 88 children are now diagnosed with Autism which means you probably either have an autistic child, are related someway to an autistic child or at least know an autistic child.  The numbers are growing and as the numbers grow the urgency for awareness becomes more and more great.  We need to find answers, we need to possibly find a cure, we need to find ways of helping our autism brothers and sisters to adapt and grow in this crazy world we live in.  I've said it before and I will say it again knowing the signs of autism will greatly help every new mother and father to notice earlier if their child may or may not have autism.  Early Intervention is KEY!  My daughter Abrial was diagnosed when she was 2 1/2.  She was talking when she was 1 but then suddenly just stopped talking and was getting very upset because we couldn't figure out what she wanted or needed.  She had many melt downs and I was so lost because I didn't understand.  I decided to take her to many many doctors who finally told me she had Autism.  My first reaction was, "What is that?!"  I had no clue what Autism was back then.  This was 8 years ago and it wasn't talked about and everywhere like it is now.  I went home and started researching online.  I'll admit, I had a few melt downs on my own like, "What am I going to do now?"  "How do I help her?"  "I have no clue what I'm doing."  But the more I learned the better I felt.  Finally an ENT doctor told me about how local elementary schools usually have an Early Intervention Program so the second I got home I called the school she would be going to for elementary school and turned out they had that program!  We set an appt and they tested her and before I know it she was accepted!  However this meant that now my little 3 year old baby would be going to school 3 times a week for a whole day.  That made me cry my eyes out because I thought I had another 2 years with her before she would be going to school.  I was worried and scared for her but knew it was the right thing to do.  To this day I am so grateful for everything the schools have done for her.  She changed so much during that first year my head spun.  First they showed her how to tell me what she wanted by pointing at pictures, then a few months later they would have her say the picture and then say please, soon the pictures were gone completely.  She was saying sentences then telling me full paragraphs.  She couldn't write her name and then she was writing pages of things.  She wasn't very social and now she has friends.  My baby girl has come such a long way and it's all thanks to her schools and the Early Intervention Program.  She is now 10 years old and blossoming every day.  She will even look you in the eye when she's talking to you!  The very first picture I got of her actually looking at the camera brought  me into tears.  She will tell me she loves me which I never thought I'd hear.  You never realize just how much those words mean until you think you'll never hear your child say them and then they tell you all the time.  Those words are precious especially from our children, autism or not.  I could go on and on about my little girl but I won't take up all of your time.  I just want to show how important knowing the signs of autism are and how important Early Intervention is.

I'm looking forward to seeing how everyone Lights It Up Blue tomorrow since April 2nd is World Autism Awareness Day.  I will be wearing blue tomorrow along with my autism awareness bracelets and I've also got it on my fb page.  Seeing all these businesses Light It Up Blue blows my mind and the pictures are amazing so I can't wait!

So welcome to Autism Awareness Month and lets all spread awareness together!!

Well Poo

No Chuck E Cheese for us today.  Abrial is sick, (although she says she's not) but she is coughing and stuffy and I know personally as a mom I would be pretty ticked off if another mother brought her child to Chuck E Cheese sick and coughing.  I don't want my children sick just as I'm sure other mothers don't either.  So after talking it over we decided to wait until the next weekend when everyone is feeling back to normal.  I really hate telling them we'll go in the middle of the week and then we can't.  I feel like I'm letting them down.  I did talk to them and they are ok with waiting.  I'm sure they will play on their computers and kindles and their Barbies and have a fine day at home.

It is kind of funny when I go in there and ask Abrial how she is feeling and she goes, "Why? I'm fine." *cough cough*.  I can't help but laugh.  She is definitely a little trooper which makes me believe she probably does feel fine but I would still feel awful taking her to Chuck E Cheese and she's coughing all over everything.  When she doesn't feel fine and she just lays in bed then I worry because it's very unlike her to just lay in bed.  So I'm sure she does feel fine but she doesn't seem like it.

I just know there have been plenty of times when I've taken my children somewhere and there is a kid there coughing and with a snotty nose and I just think to myself, "Great.  Thanks a lot now my kids are going to get sick."  And I know it's not really all that different from sending them to school but what are we to do then?  They have to go to school, that is unless they are running a fever so I just feel like I should do my part to not spread anymore germs as much as I can.  Sanitizer will be our best friend for a few days. lol.

So no Chuck E Cheese for us today. :-(  I'm sure we'll make due though.

The Night Light

Does anyone else's children rely so much on their night light?  My Abrial will not go to bed without her night light on.  Even if her tv is on and the light in the bathroom is on, it has to be her night light.  Last night we all hit the bed pretty early and I always leave their tv on and just hit the sleep button so it goes off an hour or so later which I figure they will both be asleep by then well that was not the case last night.  Madyssen came in our bedroom around 10:30 saying Abrial was crying so I jump up and run down the hall to her room and asked her what was wrong and she said she couldn't see the wall.  I asked again and she said "the night light is off" so then it clicked that I had completely forgotten to turn the switch on the night light.  Usually if I forget she will remember but we both forgot last night and the poor thing had a melt down.  I turned her night light back on and even turned her tv back on so hopefully she could calm down and go to sleep.  She went calm as soon as she saw that night light come on and laid down and within 30 minutes was sleeping like a baby.  I felt awful.  I am usually so good about remembering all her little things that I can't believe I forgot.  It happens to us all I'm sure but I still feel terrible.

I don't know how I could forget after the April tornados last year.  Those tornados came through Alabama and I was lucky enough to call into work and stay home with my girls, well the tornado went right over the house, luckily no harm to the house just our backyard but the power was out and it was out for days.  Well, we packed up the kids and went to Chattanooga, turned out to be one of our best vacations and our first as a family and she did great up there.  I just turned on the bathroom light and she was fine but then again I was sleeping in the bed right next to her.  We came back home after 3 days and still no power.  So we did what we could and just hoped we would only be without power for one night.  Well, I had forgotten about the whole night light thing and she was in panic mode when it was bedtime.  "What about my night light?!"  I tried to explain to her that the power was off and that was why she couldn't use her computer or tv and that is why her night light wouldn't work either.  Of course she was bawling and didn't understand and just in a panic and scared to death to go to bed.  Luckily my wonderful husband thought of something and gave her a little flash light and she kept the flash light on all night.  After that night we went out and bought those night lights that come on when the power goes off and have one in their room and one in the hall.

So I can't believe I forgot last night especially after going through all of that, but it happens I suppose.  We have those things set to come on if the power goes off but there's a switch so you can use it as a night light or have it come if the power goes off so we just switch it on and off and last night we just forgot to flip it on.  I feel so bad.  This morning she says she's fine and is playing as usual on her computer.  I guess she'll be playing on that a lot today since it will be raining most of the day.  But we are taking them to Chuck E Cheese tomorrow so they'll have lots of fun then.

Hopefully I will not forget that night light again.

Great News!

I emailed Abrials teacher today because I've been a little concerned.  Madyssen has had 2 or 3 IEP meetings but I have yet to have one for Abrial so I emailed her teacher.  I didn't even know if she was still in speech and occupational therapy at school so her teacher wrote me back and said that she was still in speech and occupational therapy two days a week and she is doing really well at school.  She hasn't had an IEP meeting in awhile because there have been no concerns or changes for her.  Her teacher said she was doing extremely well and listened and did every bit of work her teacher asked her to do.  And while she may not be on a third grade/forth grade level like her fellow general education peers she is doing well and is on a second grade level but will still be going to 4th grade next year at the new school next door.  She is being very social and very talkative which is another great thing for her.  Her teacher also gave me her schedule so I can know what her days consist of and said how much she loves having her in her classroom.  I'm so very happy for both my girls.  They are both doing great and both will be going to the 4th grade next year.  They both are making amazing progress!  I am one proud mama!! 

Girls Birthday...SUCCESS!

Since both my girls have birthdays so close together I decided to throw them a joint birthday party, although Abrial isn't a big fan of birthday parties it was more for Madyssen but Abrial did have a good time as well.  Mommy and stepdad Richard booked Chuck E Cheese for a big blow out party and they could not have been happier.  We invited their friends and cousins and we were definitely surrounded by kids.  Our guide at Chuck E Cheese was absolutely awesome.  We explained to her that Abrial has autism and she was very understanding and supportive.  She checked with us before we did anything.  All the kids had a screaming contest with all the other kids birthday parties and I sat with Abrial and made sure she was ok.  She just put her hands over her ears and was a real trooper.  And by the way we won that screaming contest. LOL.  Because we won the contest all the kids got extra 20 tokens to play games on top of the 20 they already got.  I was proud of our little group of screamers.  We only had one upset moment from Abrial and it was because she was scared we were going to use candles on the cake.  Luckily once she realized no candles she was good again.  They got the cake they wanted and Chuck E Cheese came over to meet them and even fed cake to Madyssen and got it on her nose.  She thought that was hilarious.  They got a ton of gifts including two lalaloopsy dolls from mommy and stepdad Richard that they have been wanting. :-)  The kids ran off then and played their hearts out.  I started walking off with Abrial because I was a little worried about her going off on her own but she just started putting in tokens and doing everything herself.  She was my little independent girl, I was so proud.  I went back to put up the toys but our guide put everything together for us.  She was definitely awesome.  By the time I went back to get the girls I found Madyssen playing basketball and Abrial was actually playing ski ball with another little kid!  It was awesome!! I am definitely one happy mama!  Now we need to come up with a way to top this one next year. lol.  And next year they will both be two digits!  This year Abrial turned 10 and Madyssen turned 9, I can't imagine them next year!  Time sure does fly!