Climbing wall

After anxiety about the upcoming three L O N G months that the children will be out of school (ok, with the exception of summer school), my husband FINALLY built them a climbing wall!!
(Don't look at the weeds... I know I need to spray, just putting it off!)

Super easy. Just used what lumber we had on hand. Went to Lowe's and priced the climbing "rocks" or "handles." HOLY COW!! $25 for four of them! But John found some redwood railing, pre-routered and said it would work. I was skeptical. $11 for 10 feet of the railing. Cut it into 5" pieces. Lightly sanded. Wow.

As you can see... totally works. I just put the final coat of stain & polyurethane on it today. Used what we had in our stash. Mixed 30% stain to 70% polyurethane in a pint jar.

Now the decision is: do we make another one and put them on the swing set? Or shall we attach it to the playhouse so Kentston can climb on the roof in a much safer way? I'm voting for playhouse. More to follow!!

Havin' Fun While Daddy Works!!!

While Daddy is away Mommy likes to play! It's got to be the antidepressants talking, ha ha! Sunday night the kids wanted to play with play dough and we had none. Great! So mom decided to make some. It was so easy! I will never buy play dough again! Kentston's favorite color is orange and it was a hit.

Kailey takes after her mommy and wants to make birthday & wedding cakes. Oh no, I want to save her a lot of stress...but I guess she can have fun now.

Spring fever got the best of us today. Mom didn't even make the kids wear jackets. The sunshine felt wonderful!! It was great to soak up the sun and read a magazine while the kids rode their bikes. I can't wait for Spring. I can't wait for camping. I just can't wait!!!

Turning the Dreaded Weekend Into Closer Family Time.

We made it through another weekend! Actually this weekend was a breeze. Usually John & I can't say that because weekends are a mess. Awful to admit, I know. But after talking about it we decided to make this a "can" weekend and it WORKED!! Yahooey! So I am here to toot our horns and sing because we are all here and looking forward to the two days we have left of our four-day weekend that we were truly dreading.

It has taken creativity on our part, but every time Kentston or Kailey has been doing something that is unacceptable we have tried to let them know what they can do and didn't tell them what they were doing was wrong. So we never used the word "no" or "can't" or "stop." Dude, I am here to say it was hard at first, but no one had to raise their voice and we had no fighting! It was awesome!!!!!!!!!! I think we're going to make it. Whew!

P.S. With the exception of Barbie and her house, cruise ship and her car, along with Diego and his house strung all over my living room...I couldn't be happier and more content. Y

Meanies in Third Grade -- Warning I am Venting!!!

Today is Sunday and I am reflecting upon why I am here and why I have this wonderful little family to take care of. The pressures of being a parent are insane at times. I have signed off on surgeries and given permission to complete strangers to take care of my babies and still turn to others to watch over them every day when I send them to school. It is scary the world we live in is in such turmoil. I have comfort and place my trust in the Lord and know that He will guide us through each and every day.

Before I ramble on too long about my random thoughts...I have learned that my little miss Kailey is being teased in school about being different. Man, I knew this day would come. And yes, I know she is different, but so what! Does that give other people's children the right to aim at my little girl? NO! She has fought more battles than they'll ever fight and she hasn't even begun to live yet. Little jerks, I just want to wring some necks...and yes, I know it won't do any good.

And the biggest blessing of it all is that she does not understand or realize what they're doing to her. She doesn't hear the teasing, she thinks when the other children are making fun of her braille that they are talking about the new "fun" language she is learning. She thinks they are interested in her walking cane. I should enroll her in martial arts. Then, even if she can't see, one day she could open a can...

OKAY - I know. Get it under control. I can't vent to John because we all know he is a hot-head and he wants heads on a platter. I try hard to teach the kids to be nice to others and teach them about feelings (even though their little autistic brains don't understand the concept of feelings). If I ever thought of behaving this way when I was in grade school my mom would have killed me. I remember good ol' Amber Hamblin teasing me in third grade still today. I never pulled those hairbows out of her hair like I wanted to, and I didn't say ugly things back...but boy did I want to.

So now what? We pull our family unit close together and rely on the Lord. Pray for his Spirit to guide us and comfort us and most of all protect our children from the pressures of this cruel world. I am eternally grateful for the knowledge and truthfulness of the gospel to provide me direction when I am so frustrated. It calms my soul and clears my mind. Now, let's hope it can work on John...

Hello blogging world!

I swore that I wouldn't ever start blogging, but now I see it is great to stay in touch with friends and share what is going on in life. So I guess hang on, it may be a bumpy ride!!

John is working graveyard shifts at Simplot Phosphates, so this is a nice quiet activity for me to pursue while he is sleeping the daylight away...

Kailey is doing well, she is now 8 years-old and quite the "Miss Priss." Where did she get that? Who knows! She was baptized in July and she never ceases to amaze us. Her health is great so far this winter, but I can't help holding my breath! Her eyes are holding their own, Dr. Hoffman the opthalmologist said the "stable" word at her appointment last month! But Kailey is starting to realize what the braille instruction and her cane is all about. She cries about losing her sight and as a mother, I thought I was ready for whatever the Lord decided. When I see Kailey's desperation at keeping her sight I want to curl up and die. She is doing well in school academically and is a smarty pants. The autism still throws a lot of wrenches in the mix, but we are accustomed to her quirks...

Kentston, on the other hand, is the reason we laugh or if we scream! He has been a true challenge. It seems as if he and Kailey have switched places. He is now our medical nightmare. The seizures seem to come and go and calling the Neurologist is a monthly event to adjust his medications. His autism is more severe than Kailey's, so there are days I would gladly run away and change my name...but I look into those blue eyes and he simply doesn't understand my frustration. That makes two of us! He loves to line up his Matchbox cars and loves to control who can walk over them! He builds towers and draws plans for buildings most of the day...even when he is at school! But the best part of it all is...he goes to school...finally!! I thought preschool was going to kill us all (including his teachers). But now after making him a special book with pictures of a "happy Kentston" getting on the bus & etc., he goes to Kindergarten every day now without a fight. Yahooey!

I am loving being a stay-at-home mommy. Most days are pretty eventful, I jump when the phone rings worried that it is the school calling because Kentston is having a bad day. Lately, the phone calls are not coming from the school. I even went to the temple for a session while the kids were at school and didn't worry...that was the best accomplishment of all. I started a parent support group for families with autistic kids and it is going well. Just knowing that we're not alone with these trials gets me through most days!!