Tackle It Tuesday: Yard Helpers

This past weekend, as I was struggling to wake up enough to drink my coffee, the kids were pinging off the walls. That's how my daughter wound up making pancake batter from scratch from the first time. It's great that both kids are old enough to learn how to do more things by themselves.

James kept begging me to download yet another Minion App for his iPad.
 - "Not unless you do a chore," I told him. "That app costs money."
 - "Yes!" he cried. "I do a chore! I'm gonna get a Minion app!"

Okey-dokey, time to come up with a chore he can do with minimal supervision ...

I told James he could rake the back lawn, but that he first needed to change out of pjs and into clothes. He took off for his room at warp speed. I took this opportunity to suck down half a cup of coffee.

James' sister, meanwhile, was starting to ask if she could do a chore. She suggested sweeping the back patio and I took her up on her offer, directing her to first change into work clothes.

To make a long story short, we spent over an hour in our backyard, raking, sweeping, and tidying away a whole summer's worth of stuff. During rest periods, we'd drink some water and talk about what we'd tackle next. By 10:30, we'd filled a green garbage bin and learned more about the arts of raking, sweeping, and sorting discarded items among our 3 waste bins.

As the fruit trees' leaves are just starting to turn colour and fall, there will be ample opportunities to become proficient at these tasks.

Do you have a project or accomplishment to share?  Head on over to....

Tackle It Tuesday: Math Managed

This is more a tackle and score for James than for me. A few months back math was his nemesis, bringing more behavioural issues than answers. Touch Math was being offered up, as well as a number line that ran vertically.

Well, long story short. I don't think touch math is The Answer for James. There are too many touch and steps. I questioned the vertical orientation of the number line, which was literally a 90° change from the left-to-right horizontal lines he'd been using for the past 2+ years.

In stepped a new aide with a strong visual and graphic design background (also a deep understanding of dyslexia). She made special math flash cards for him. Now, voila! James did a sheet of 35 addition questions all by himself!

His new aide also discovered a great motivator: a white board ($1 at the Dollar Store). While James knows his addition facts to at least 20, the board motivates him to keep working on his sheet until he's finished all the problems.

Awesome. Unless you've had to watch your child struggle for years, it's hard to grasp how something so simple can seem like a mountain, and conquering it can move you to tears.

How about you? What did you accomplish? Are you looking for inspiration?
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Tackle It Tuesday: Alongside, Awareness, Action

I read this interesting article in a feed from MyAutismTeam.com and it brought up an good topic. The article is titled "What Typically Developing Children Learn Alongside Their Differently Abled Peers" and reminds us that programs like full-inclusion in classrooms and elsewhere in society can result in more typically abled people learning from those with special needs.

To me, this can bring anything from awareness to a desire to become more involved and help others. Also importantly, it begins a change in perception for next generations to be more open to the idea that there is more than one way or pace to live a life. And yes, I've seen it around me. My family's become more aware of what it means to be autistic. People in our community see James on a regular basis and start to see past the stims to his personality. Two of our respite care givers have learned more about special needs and run with it, helping James practice his letter writing, reading, and math.

At the CATS Party; he won a tool set!

There are ordinary people whose lives were touched by special needs and turned what they learned into programs to help others. Lorna Catford's daughter was born with many special needs. What she learned by trusting her observations turned into parental advocacy and a wonderful institution called the CATS (Collaborative Autism training & Support) Program. This program not only helps and support families of kids on the autism spectrum, it also helps train students to work with our kids and prepare them for a variety of new opportunities related to special needs. We've participated in this program 3 times; the support, information, and warmth it provides is truly a gift.

George Lawson saw a baseball program for special needs kids and was so inspired by what he saw that he started a program of his own here in Sonoma County, the Wonder League of Healdsburg. We appreciate it, because I don't know that James would enjoy that Challenger games as much as the Wonder League, let alone a regular Little League team. This will be our 3rd year of hitting baseballs, practicing our throwing, and running bases. James' big sister is an enthusiastic participant. Our guy adores his baseball shirt and cap. George told me of one game where a wheelchair-bound player was celebrating a solid base hit with a thumbs-up, and our son ran to him and gave him a high five. That's a greatest game moment right there.

Just this year we changed class rooms for James. He went from one where he was included, yet not connected to one that had students who swooped him up in class activities and saw him as part of their whole the first week he was there. As a parent, the feedback I got went from "problems and issues" to "doing good and these things need work." Might sound slight, but it's a huge change for the better in our lives.  To me, it's the best about the possibilities of full inclusion in a class that's a mutual good fit.

 So how will our world change, with children being exposed to differently abled peers, and learning alongside us about autism? I hope it's for the better, with less us/them attitudes and more of a we concept. I hope it results in more open minds, sparks of curiosity, and ability to work, live, and love together.

 

I know this is a rather abstract Tackle project, but I'm driven to advocate for acceptance and programs that will help my guy every day. Especially when I see his beautiful happy smile, and feel his joy at being in the world.

Tackle It Tuesday: New Seat

Disclosure: I hate dealing with toilets. Too many have malfunctioned in my past and I view them with extreme trepidation. This explains, in part, why a brand-new toilet seat sat unused in its box for a good 8 months.

However, this recently changed. In a flutter of nervous activity, and extreme embarrassment that our old seat, which, while cushy and resplendent with butterflies on the lid, presented a cracked and scratchy experience to all users, I forged ahead to change out the lid.

Now if I am attempting something for the first time, I dither too much and worry I am not going to do it the PERFECT way and/or destroy that which I am trying to do. This is where Google and self-helpers online save me. I entered "how do I change a toilet lid?" into Google's search field and voila!

Folks, it doesn't get much easier than this.

Here are the simple steps it took to upgrade our bathroom experience:

Pop the screw covers with my fingers and use wrench to start loosening the screws with the raised tabs.
Fare the well, beautiful butterflies!

Screws removed. I used the wrench on top, and then my fingers above and below the head of the screw.
I then removed the toilet and screws.

New lid. different seat/lid combo, or I would have preserved the original butterfly lid.
The tabs on the screw heads were indented, so I used a screwdriver and my fingers (to tighten the washer underneath).

Fini: smooth, yet boring toilet seat & lid.

I was so proud and excited! I did it - I vanquished my fear of toilets and made a good improvement. The kids, however, assured me they liked the other seat better. It went "whoosh" when you dropped onto it, and it was not hard and cold, like the new one.

I told them they were welcome to find and buy a new toilet seat, and I would then install it. They've been more appreciative.

What did you tackle and accomplish? Do you need some encouragement or inspiration to tackle a project? Check out on Tackle It Tuesday over at 5 Minutes for Mom. They have a great post this week about preparing for a garage sale. I am taking notes, as we need to do that too.

Tackling Allergies and Acting Up

It's Spring, and we've had a dry Winter, followed by fits of light rain. It's made for a horrible allergy season. On top of that there are several vineyards and a horse stable in back of us. The grasses, blooms, spraying, plowing, and wind have all combined to wreak havoc on our sinuses, throats, and noses.

Indoor trampoline is still a huge help

James has been shaking his head back and forth, like he has water in his ear. He has been sticking inappropriate items in his mouth and chewing them again. For a bit I wondered if it was related to some of the behavioural issues he's been having recently. While that might still be the case, my own pounding sinuses and watering eyes are giving me new possibilities to entertain.

So I have been giving him a couple of warm, steamy baths a week and used some generic nasal sprays that both clear out his nose and give him some basic allergy relief before he goes to school. I have changed our air intake filter in our home.

Now we are starting on the first week of real rain that we've had in a while. James has also been inside a lot more than usual these past two days. Now he's going stir crazy. He runs about at home, on the playground, and even in the O/T room and hides, runs, and refuses to cooperate with the adults when the time comes to calm down and transition to another task.

While this week is a slight improvement over the one before, it's still more to manage. I am tackling it with verbal/visual warnings (counting to 3 with words and fingers) and using his Activity board.

His Aide has started using a checklist to track behaviours and tasks. If he gets too many sad faces, then he knows he loses time on his iPad. His Aide is getting an Activity board for school tomorrow. I hope it will help.

        

Activity Board for home

School checklist

Strangely, writing spelling words is still a great focusing activity for James. And he is really getting into his own bedtime reading session -- both me to him and him to me.

All this organizing and managing seems quite appropriate to me for a Tackle It Tuesday entry. Be inspired, or share your story.

Tackle It Tuesday: Juggling

I've been not posting these last few days because, well, more stuff fell onto my plate. My Dad's been in a hospital and is now a nursing facility. He'll be there through Thanksgiving, one of the holidays that my folks love to host. This is tough on us all, even though it's temporary. The kids are both off school for the entire week. James is at lose ends, and usually found draped over me. Unless I want him in a certain place, at which time he runs laughing in the other direction. Of course.

With my immediate family, I am juggling schedules for kids, play dates, holidays, extra errand running, and visiting hours. Hey, I even helped troubleshoot fixing an iPhone over my Droid phone (I see some of you shuddering). Yikes. We are doing pretty well, but some things just don't get done as promptly as they used to.

The kitchen calendar and my spiral weekly/monthly planner for the year are getting workouts. I am using up the texting portion of my phone plan. We are using child care at the gym.

This morning we are getting the final ingredients for making some Thanksgiving side dishes to share. Then we are visiting my Dad. The kids really seem to cheer him up. James does well, except for when he loudly announces he wants to go home or bowling. If one of the patients is in pain and crying, that will set him off too.

Ah well. Learning, growing, managing. How are your holiday preparations coming along?

Tackling loves company!

Check out some other challenges this week
and pick up or share some tips at
5 Minute for Moms' Thankful week
in a series of Tackle It Tuesdays.

Tackle It Tuesday: Work Area

This school year, both kids are ramping up in academics (grades 1 & 3). The breakfast table wasn't going to cut it anymore for homework. Only James' sister has a desk in her room, and it's rather snowed under by Squinkies, at present.

Over the summer, I knew some changes were in order. The kids needed a homework center. That meant the toy shelf needed to go. That make me weepy, because that's been our fun center for many years. It's lasted longer because James is a bit behind the developmental curve with toys and we keep inheriting cool new things (like the Disney Potato Head family and a very cool box full of characters from Monsters Inc, as well as the interactive Scare Floor).

Work Area Before:

However, it's been a worthwhile project. Over the summer, I found a used desk for $10 at the Salvation Army. The toy bookcase got moved in September, after we'd started settling into the new school year.

The new work area got set up recently. The kids are very excited to use the Homework Desk. Their calendars that they make in school get posted to the wall. Each of them has a folder for their homework and school notices. The lamp was on sale at WalMart (bulb included) for $9. A folding chair from the dump (about $1) with a pillow makes a great seat.

Markers, crayons, and paper moved out of the kitchen cabinets and into some desk drawers:

Lolli at 5 Minutes for Mom had the same challenge for her Tackle It Tuesday. What challenged you lately? Do you have an idea to share from your own homework center? Hop on over to share and view creativity on Tackle It Tuesday.

Tackle It Tuesday: Environment

Finally, after rain, clouds, grey, snow, and more cold rain, we are getting bursts of warm Spring weather. Back in January I invested in a beautiful pair of loppers are went to work pruning trees, bushes, and vines. These things combined resulted in our going bonzo with new growth. The windstorms mean that leaves and debris are everywhere.

I have been working to clean the yards (front and back) for the kids' playing area, and for our own enjoyment. Yesterday, James came out and "helped" me rake. He gave it a good 5 minutes before heading off to swing in the newly uncovered play area out back.

The "before" pics were unremarkable, so I'll show you some of the our yard as it is now, after several hours, days, and minutes of work. Enjoy!

Part of our outback:


My son, raking for the good of the environment!


Our plum tree was about 3 weeks ahead of it and got blasted by rain, sleet, hail, and overnight freezes; all the blossoms were stripped off PDQ and now only a few branches have leaves ... The cherry tree is blooming at just the right time, and full of snow white blooms. I am dreaming of early summer cherries:


James thinks the few falling petals are snowflakes!


The grape vines are leafing out, which makes it easy for me to spot the ones I missed clipping out of the nearby trees ...


"Say 'cheese,' Mommy!"


Look at how full this bin is! I even smooshed it down a couple of times so more could fit inside:


Thank you, helper James!


What is your mission? Read and be inspired at Tackle It Tuesday on 5 Minutes for Mom. Post your own story to share with other Tacklers.

Tackle It Tuesday: Pulling Funding Out of a Hat

Here in California, news services have been relentlessly passing along the bad news most parents are having to deal with: lack of funds means cuts in services. Class sizes in public schools are increasing again, because the district is cutting teachers (not administrators, but the front line teachers). Special needs kids get even more cuts, because they have more needs. I think this is crazy and short-sighted.


Parents know that sooner or later The System is going to have to deal with their kids with special needs. For years we have been told by professionals that the sooner our son's needs were assessed and addressed, the more progress he would make toward a more mainstream existence and that he would tend to have fewer problems later in life.

Sure the politicians get closer to a less out of-whack-budget by denying services to my son now, as well as hundreds of thousand others. What is their genius plan for dealing with all the needs that balloon out of control because there was no help up front, early on, when these people could have been helped to lead more independent, happy lives? Well, they have no plan, because they'll be out of there and on to greener pastures. Parents and middle-class America (and Californians) will be left holding the bag.

Three years ago I would have sucked it up, given up things I'd treated myself to, like extra social events, new shoes, and eating out -- then used my paycheck to get my son what he needs. I can't do that now because I left my job to coordinate care and services for my son, as well as work with him as much as I can. I've already given up those extras. Our family is down one paycheck and took a few bumps down in healthcare (which, thankfully, we still have). And there are speech and P/T services that are needed by James yet are not covered by medical or school services. Our wonderful North Bay Regional Center's budget has been slashed, and therefore, James is receiving less funding and services.

I can't be the governor or have the budget folks listen to my emails, but I can try help find some funding for local programs that still soldier on, doing it for the kids. This Spring, James and I walked and raised funds for Autism Speaks. Thank you everyone for helping us do that! Next up is raising more funds for the CATS Program. Actually, we've has a successful small fundraiser at Powell's, our local candy store. Now I am looking into working with a local kids' place to have a money-raising play date.

To kick this off, I talked with the owner of said kids' place, who was wonderfully warm and sympathetic. Next, I kicked the idea around with several parents, who liked the idea. Next up I will go back to the kids' place owner and get some possible dates about 3-4 weeks down the road. Another parent is promising to email me a list of other parents who'd like to participate. I'll offer up some dates and see which one gets the best response, then move forward to booking the date and getting the word out there.

A lot of work? You bet. Reason why? The best possible:

This may not be housework, but it's sure part of my: