30 Ways To Make A Mom Smile January 30, 2012

There’s a Trending Topic floating around in the online world 30 Ways To Make A Girl Smile, but I think 30 Ways To Make A Mom Smile would be way more amusing…so here we go, in no particular order:

1. Your kids actually eating what you’ve made for dinner
2. Your kids not complaining, while they are eating, about what you’ve made for dinner
3. Everyone in the house remembering where the hamper is
4. ….and how to use it
5. Getting to sleep in, even just 15 minutes
6. Your spouse making kiddo breakfast
7. Your spouse making any kiddo meal
8. ….and cleaning up the dishes after
9. The kids throwing their trash in the trash can instead of hiding it under/in the couch
10. Curling up on the couch watching Saturday morning cartoons or movies with the kiddos
11. Little boys remembering to flush
12. Little boys remembering to put the lid down BEFORE flushing
13. Caffeine IV’s
14. Mommy Juice – Yes it’s real…it’s that special juice mommies drink at the end of a long day to avoid ripping someone’s head off during evening shenanagins
15. Someone inventing a washer/dryer combo, no more mildewey smelling stuff because I forget to switch the laundry for a days
16. A laundry fairy *Calling the Laundry Fairy…can you hear me???*
17. Good notes from the teacher saying how spectacularly awesome your kids are doing
18. A full night’s sleep
19. Homemade gifts from the children
20. Family Vacations
21. Free Family Vacations – Are you listening Disney & SeaWorld?? If you want to spend a special needs family of 5 to your park, all expenses paid, I’d be HAPPY to volunteer my family for the job ;p
22. Grocery shopping when the store is nearly empty
23. A kid free dinner out every now and then
24. People learning not to stare….loud stimmy kids are NOT the same as loud unbehaved kids
25. Diamonds, flowers, chocolates…really anything that sparkles, smells delish, or tastes sugary good
26. Someone in the house taking a second to say ‘Hey we really do appreciate all you do’, you’d be amazed at how far a few simple words can go to make ones day
27. The kids waking up the first time you wake them in the morning….or even the second….but by the fifth time it starts to get a little ridiculous lol
28. A winning lottery ticket….okay this one isn’t just for moms but it’s be nice either way!
29. Someone else taking the trash out…before the trash man runs
30. Plastic Surgery – I know some of you may disagree but I say there’s nothing wrong with a little nip and tuck every now and then…kids can do a number on your body…oh can I add *FREE* to this one too? ;p

What’s on your list?

Wait…You mean you want more?? How about a few pics to make a mom smile 🙂

Proper ways NOT to handle a baby

And finally an old ad from a magazine to make us feel just that much about our parenting….

Disclaimer****All of these pics were pics I ran across on various sites like FB and across the web. None were taken by me, but I’ve had them so long I can’t be positive where they all originally came from.*****

Breakfast for Dinner…Sort of… August 27, 2011

It’s all about picking your battles…a great rule for life in general, but ESPECIALLY when it comes to raising your kids! In our house we don’t pick many, the few we do pick we stick too, but other than that as you know I’m pretty much the definition of a slacker mom. After a long, but good, first week of getting back to school and getting settled into the routine it was Friday night. I think last night was the first night I cooked more than a grilled cheese or Ramens all week. Roasted chicken and fried potatoes….Yum-O!! Well, I enjoyed it at least.

There are a few dinner rules in our house (That we TRY our best to stick too)

• You eat what’s been made for you unless, you scavenge make something for yourself
• I am NOT a short order cook (however if you ask before I start cooking, I’ll make whatever you want)
• If you don’t want to eat, that’s cool, but you will sit with us while we eat
• Don’t hit your brothers, throw things, and all that good stuff

Last night when my roasted chicken was on the table and we were all sitting down to eat, Ryan runs to the fridge and gets the cookie dough (not what I mean when I say scavenge  make your own dinner…think PB&J, Chips & Cheese, eggs…). As much as I wanted to pitch a fit, and I’m sure some of you moms are already shaking your head at me, I thought to hell with it. He had a busy first week of school, he wasn’t going to eat the chicken anyways, and for the most part my kids eat relatively well…plus I’m a big believer in the power of a gummie vitamin 😉 If Ryan wants cookie dough for dinner I’ll loan him my dieting logic for ONE evening…Cookie dough with a glass of milk, is no worse than cookies and milk, which can’t be worse than the stuffed french toast he’d be eating if we had breakfast for dinner. Also, cookies are in the same family as danishes, donuts, pastries, muffins (which we all know are just cupcakes in disguise), and therefore cookies and milk can easily be called breakfast for dinner….and if you want to really throw in some Sara logic…cookies are made from eggs (protein), milk (dairy), chocolate (antioxidants), flour (whole grains), wow just reading this I’m patting myself on the back already for providing such a well-balanced meal lol!  So for last night, and last night only (or not again for a few weeks at least), my little man picked his own dinner and I didn’t say a word.

PICK YOUR BATTLES – Best parenting tip I’ve EVER received!

Everyone Else's Dinner

Yes, He’s eating it straight from the

tube..I’ts his cookie dough (dont’ judge)

Ryan's Dinner

Thursday Throwbacks August 11, 2011

My anniversary was last weekend…7 years!! So where was I at this time 7 years ago?? In St. Augustine, FL on my honeymoon. This is one of the last days we spent there, we left just as a tropical storm was heading in.

Looking down from the sky

I really wanted to go para sailing, the water was choppy that day, and something was swimming in circles below us (I don’t care what the company that took us out on the boat said, I KNOW they were sharks not dolphins!!). All in all the honeymoon was fantastic, not only was it a chance to celebrate our marriage, but a break from being mom and dad to two beautiful, exhausting, 3 month old, twin cuties. It also made me realize how much I actually missed the little monsters!!

The boat below

What’s your Thursday Throwback?? Take a second to think back and make yourself smile with great memories!

Sanity Savers August 3, 2011

Sanity Savers…

We all have them, what are yours?? Some of mine you may laugh at, or think is this woman mad, but enjoy…and comment below your sanity savers…I’d love to hear them all!

• Chocolate – A good piece of chocolate can, maybe not fix, but mask a lot of frustrations
  

  Sanity Saving Munchies

• Music – I’m famous for my one eared parenting. One ear on the kids, one ear with an ear bud blasting something awesome. This one’s great for the car too, when all you can think is, ‘If I have to listen to this Barney DVD one more time I’ll pull my own ears off’.
• The boys iPods – You’d be amazed at how peaceful my house can become when the iPods have been distributed and everyone’s You-Tubing away. Plus, they have actually learned a ton from their YouTube addiction (for those interested in this sanity saving method check out KidsTv123 on YouTube).
• My iPod – Escaping into a game, the news, or a social media site can be just the break my brain needs.
• A Drive – On a day filled with whining and fighting sometimes loading everyone up and saying lets go is just what we need. Whether it’s a trip to Happy Hour at Sonic, or Fries and Pies at Mc’D’s, a $5.00 Hot & Ready at Little Caesars, or just a drive thru the old part of town to see something we have never noticed all these years. Staying home gets boring for us and for them, we never get out of the car just drive slow and soak in the scenery.
• A quick phone call- Step into your room, even if the kids are screaming in the background, those that love you and know your stresses will tolerate your crazy screaming kids to give you a 5 min sanity check, I promise. Call your spouse just to say ‘Hi’, call your mom, sibling, or grandparent, a friend. You don’t have to whine about your problems, just say Hey. Talk about something/anything that’s kid free…clear your mind…distract yourself.
• Lose yourself in a project – You’d be amazed at how much more motivating cleaning a bathroom can be if you know that if you’re not cleaning you’re refereeing.
• The TV – I don’t care what the ‘experts’ say…the ‘experts’ don’t have 3 kids with special needs, hell most probably don’t even have 1 kid. No, TV shouldn’t raise you child, but I belive it’s 100% okay to throw a movie on so you can do dishes, take a shower, play with one of your other kids, or just prop your feet up for a few minutes
• Fresh Air- I know it’s hot, especially in this part of summer, but send the kids out early in the morning or late at night. Let them run in the back yard, splash in the sprinkler, drink from the hose, fill a kiddie pool…you know all that stuff we did as kids that now they say is bad for them 😉
• A craft – As much as dread the thought of cleaning up after painting or baking with the kids, once we get started, even though it never goes as I planned, we all have a blast. Cover the table or floor with a big piece of butcher paper, or an old sheet, and let them go wild. Then hose them off in the backyard for easy clean-up, and I’m pretty sure, while it’s still summer, being hosed off counts as a ghetto bath (Lazy Mom Win!!!)
• 

  My Mom Hide Out

  Hide – Yes, I said it; Yes, I do it. No, I don’t lock myself in a room and ignore my kids. But from time to time, on a particularly stressful day I’ve been known to put a movie on and sneak off into my room (door open) and hide out for a few minutes of quiet to unwind before I get busted by the monsters.

• Laugh – If I didn’t laugh every time I came around the corner to find a child covered head to toe in pancake syrup, peanut butter, dish soap, butter, the list goes on…, I’d lose my mine. I used to stress about the messes, but they don’t matter. Just laugh at the memory your making, have the monster attempt to help with clean up, and hide whatever helped to cause the disaster.
  

  I'm Glad He Enjoyed The Cake

• Mommy Juice – there’s nothing wrong with a little spiked OJ or a pina colada every now and then…just remember, “A man’s gotta know his limitations” [Good advice, not only when it comes to drinking, but to life in general…that Clint Eastwood is one wise old man 😉 ]
• Remember ‘They’re only young once” – Make memories, take pictures, focus on the postitives…and on a crap day pull out the pictures and flashback to all the wonderful memories, then go out and make more. They grow up way to fast. I don’t care how overused that saying is, it couldn’t be more true.
• Take a break to remember all you have- I posted this the other day, but it’s worth repeating, a quote from an old Yaga tee, ‘Too Blessed To Be Stressed”. Even when we feel we are at our wits end we all have something to be grateful for, even if it’s as simple as the air we breathe.
• Pray

Van Wilder said it best “Worrying’s like a rocking chair, it gives you something to do, but it won’t get you anywhere”

And a final thought on those days where you feel you want to snap and you can’t get a ‘me time’ break, remember my motto, “No matter how much shit the throws at you, it will keep going…so I will keep going…knee deep in dookie and kicking ass the whole way”

–>A quick disclaimer – All the fast food establishments listed above, as well as You Tube, iPod, and KidsTV123 have no idea I’m even writing about them, and everything here is just my two cents. It may or may not work for your family 😉

Fake Cough Disease – It’s Spreading Like Crazy! July 31, 2011

It’s catching!! A severe case of ‘Fake Cough Disease’ is running rampant thru my house these days. What is this mysterious contagious illness and why am I happy my kids have come down with it??

It’s probably something most parents deal with daily, faking for attention. So, you ask, why am I happy my kids have developed a condition that has me asking ‘Are you okay?’ all day? Simple answer, autism.

No, I’m not blaming autism for anything…but my kids have never shown a whole lot of interest in how their brothers were doing, and lately anytime someone gets a little too much water in the pool, or the Kool-aid goes down the wrong way, I have a whole army of coughing kiddos not just one. Everyone waiting to told ‘You’re okay, you’re doing awesome’. Then, they flash you that huge smile and go about their shenenegins.

It’s a huge development. To most parents it’s just a copying a sibling, to me it’s imitation, something we’ve been working on for years in therapy. Why is it so important to me, because without imitation teaching can be rather difficult.

Example- Imagine trying to teach someone to tie their shoes when they won’t even imitate picking up the shoe lace. Try teaching you child Itsy Bitsy Spider, when instead of coping the hand motions they just stare and you like you’re a ding dong. In some situations hand over hand can only go so far. I realize theres more to teaching than imitation, however, I feel, it does play a role in many aspects of learning.

So, I welcome the highly contagious ‘Fake Cough Disease’ into my home, and with that say YAY to learning, wether it’s thru hours of drills at the therapy table, or the simple act of copying your brother to get extra attention.

~~And if the ‘Fake Cough Disease’ gets too serious I’m sure just bringing out a bottle of cough syrup would clear it up for everyone;)

–> *Disclaimer–None of products listed above are actually for the treatment or cure of ‘Fake Cough Disease’, nor do the manufacturers recommend their products for this usage- only actually use medicine under the supervision of a medical professional 😉

Stepping Up July 22, 2011

Don’t tell me you can’t….It drives me mad! To quote my great grandmother, “Can’t never could do nothing”

These young girls say I can’t handle a kid…you should have thought about that before you got pregnant…that being said…People make mistakes, but a child isn’t one, live up to your responsibilities.

Someone reading this is saying what do I know…right? I know one of you has to be thinking it… I was that girl. Not the one that couldn’t do it, but the one that made an irresponsible decision and did what they needed to.

My story– Tony & I had met and been dating 3 months, I was 18, I’d just moved into my first apartment. 1 month into living on my own, on my 19th birthday, I found out I was pregnant. I was scared shitless. I called Tony and told him over the phone. He drove over, it was about a 1/2 hour drive between our places. As I sat and painted my toenails, because that’s the only logical thing to do when you get tough news…right?, a million things flowed thru my semi numb head.

–I’d know Tony such a short time, what would he do? How would he react?

–Did I even want to have a child? I didn’t even have an opinion on abortion at the time, it wasn’t a topic that had ever seriously crossed my mind.

–How would I raise a child, on my own or with Tony..I felt I needed a plan

–My parents??!!!!!??

–My friends, college, my apartment, my future, and the list goes on…

I finally got used to the idea of having a child, and Tony and I both agreed it took two of us to do this, we were in it together. And I found out I was having twins.

Now I’m a new mom to twins, FF 4 months and I’m pregnant again…I know what your thinking…hasn’t she figured out what causes this??

Let’s FF again…the twins are 15 months, Ryan’s a baby, and the Dr and ECI start to talk about autism. [there’s a post a few months back about that so I’ll skip ahead…]

Over the next few years we find out all 3 boys have autism, 2 have testotoxicosis {sp?}, and one has major tummy troubles and epilepsy, no one sleeps more than 2 hours without meds, all my babies are nonverbal, and guess what, I wouldn’t trade it for the world!

I made these little guys, Tony made these little guys, we’re in it together, and there’s no ‘I can’t handle it’, that’s not even an option, there’s suck it up and be a good parent to someone who depends on you.

I know everyone’s different and every situations different, but manning up and taking responsibility for actions should be expected in any situation.

1 child, 5 children, married, separated, doing it on your own, 15 or 50 years old, special needs or not, whatever it is just suck it up and do it….Just my two cents….

Gift Idea – Showing You Care July 18, 2011

The boys and I made this for their dad a few birthdays back. It’s one of my favorite gifts. I used my hands because the boys were wiggly but if the kids will make the letters have them do it.

We made each letter with my hands and arms, and each picture is it’s own letter. Then I glued the pics to a piece of black poster board and surrounded it with pics of the whole family, framed it and voila! An awesome (inexpensive) homemade gift that shows how much you care 🙂

How I Do It July 11, 2011

People always ask me ‘How do you do it?’ You know, have 3 kids with special needs….Well the simple answer is I just do.

I love my kids, they never asked to be brought into this world, and I would and will do anything for them. Wether it’s making ch milk at 2 am like any other mom with a child that can’t sleep or whether it’s changing pull-ups when I’m 75 years old. This is my job, they are my babies, and I will do everything I can to not only to help teach them to be everything they can be, but to care for any needs they cannot, and to let them them know I love them more than life itself and they are perfect just the way they are.

For some reason people have it in their head that raising children with different abilities is super challenging and while some days I admit I want to pull my own hair out, that’s any mom of 3 wild happy, hyper, boys. A lady told me the other day she was amazed at my husband and myself because she had friends with just 1 special needs child that sent the child away because it was too much. I am not judging, I would hate to be in a position I felt it was necessary to send my child for someone else to care for.

That being said,  It’s not so much that special needs kids are more difficult, it’s just that they learn differently than maybe you or I did. I don’t deal with many of the issues parents of ‘normal’ kids face, and I don’t how well I’d do if I had to honestly. My son is 6 and I am just now having to watch what I say because he’s picking up on it. Most parents have to be on their toes about things like from the time their kids are little.

So what’s the point of my ramblings…That every parent who gives it their all, special needs or not, Is a super parent! We all face different challenges with each of our children and the most important things to remember are

-Love them like CRAZY!!!

-Take it one day at a time

-Our parents really were just as clueless as we are

-Your kiddo is perfect just the way they are!!