Funniest (oddest) road rage story EVER!

Today I had the funniest thing happen. When I got home I couldn't believe it really happened so I figure I should write down the memory so I never forget. It was definitely a "Twilight Zone" moment.

I've had a totally crummy day so I was a little down. Anyhow I was out with a friend (who was the one driving) and getting things done. My friend did an aggressive but legal driving maneuver... I didn't hardly notice. I did notice a a few minutes later the car follows my friend's vehicle and cuts him off flipping him off. I just started LAUGHING SO HARD. In my mind I thought it was funny that this lady would be so offended over something so trivial when technically she wasn't even wronged. I guess she saw me laughing because at the light (she is slightly ahead of us now in the lane next to me on the passenger side) she gets out of her car and starts screaming at me in the middle of one our busiest intersections. I roll down my window now desperately trying to hold in my laughter at the sight of this little 5 ft college student, nicely dressed, who weighed probably less than me acting like an American Gladiator. I never say this but if it had come down to a fight I could taken her possibly ;)

I'm successful in keeping the laughter and just pleasantly smile and listen to her profanities in what seemed like the world's longest light. My calmness gets her even more angry b/c and she just stops and looks like she is going to hyperventilate... At this point my friend thinks I'm going to get smacked but she just stands there in the intersection (light is still red)... than she just loudly screams: "You are such a b*tch!!!!!"

Than I really burst into laughter at this point and with my big mouth I couldn't help it and so I replied "have you ever considered anger management? Life isn't that bad... Hakuna Matata!" My friend was mortified and since the light had turned green was driving off as I was speaking leaving her standing in the intersection.

I'm just glad if she stalks us down and destroys a vehicle we were not driving my car. Who ever thought this would happen in my sleepy little city. Glad no one carries guns here!!!

Crashing Vacation Bible School!

So Harm's school year ended mid-May. Unfortunately in the small town we live in there are not a lot of formal Summer programs for Harmon. We found a 3 week Summer Camp at a pre-school called Bright Beginnings. The placed is based in a Methodist Church and run by very nice people. He had 3 wks based on a "Round the World" theme. It ended last week. We were sad...

Than the director said the local Methodist Congregation was doing something called VBS: Vacation Bible School, for one week. I was a little leery because I had never heard of anything like this and while we are Christian we don't belong to their church (I felt like we were crashing the place and I was worried people would be like... "who are you"?).

I shouldn't have worried! They have been so nice and Harmon has had a great time. Harmon wasn't too enthusiastic these last few weeks to go to school but now he is like "School Time!!!" Tomorrow he has his recital and we don't really know what to expect but we are very excited. He is singing songs and doing dances. It has been a really great experience and excited to see him tomorrow in his first ever performance.

I think it is interesting b/c we have done: swim classes, gym classes, pre-k, etc. But VBS is his favorite activity so far... go figure?

Double Trouble!

I have this blog where I talk a lot and than just a photo blog where I post pictures. I uploaded these pictures that just reminded me how unique and special these two are.

It is funny because personality wise they couldn't be two more different humans. Rachel is very cerebral and serious. Callum is easy going and loves his comforts. Nonetheless I rejoice in seeing how close they are. My favorite time is in the morning before I dress them. They trounce around the place as if they own it in their night gowns. They help each other in mischief, they laugh, and they parrot each other. I wish I could write in a way to express what pure joy they are to watch working in sync.


Rachel's room is perfectly decorated and ready for a princess but honestly I don't want her moving in anytime soon. I realize they are not really babies anymore but they are still best buddies. They have never really are been apart since conception, so what would be the hurry now? How many humans can say that in their life they have a best buddy from birth who will always be with them...

CARS Movie and our rude awakening!!!

So last night I told Harmon something very exciting: tomorrow we are taking you to the movies to see the Cars movie. This was beyond exciting because he didn't know Lightning McQueen was in a movie (we just don't watch TV or movies at home really) and he had never been to a movie theater, it sounded like so much fun!


Now fastforward to this morning. Saturday morning is the only day Chris and I can sleep in (we have early church on Sunday); I normally sleep till 9 and he sleeps till 8. For both of us that little bit of extra sleep tides us the rest of the week. Not today though... 6:45-7 Harmon is screaming for attention. He just couldn't hand how excited he was. Chris went to care for him a little but he was so loud he woke the twins and kept me up. I just wanted to cry... I wanted to sleep (and I know Chris felt just like I did!

So at 8:45 we loaded him up, Mater toy in hand and he went to the cinema. Because of his Sensory challenges we never have taken him before but the Sensory Kids group here made a special arrangement with Allen Theaters to rent out a 9 am screening. They made it comfortable for young kids who have special needs (lights are dimmed instead of off, you can bring your own snacks, the sound is turned down, they allow kids making noise, etc.). It was wonderful, he did so well and LOVED the experience. This was quite a milestone today. Callum also attended and did pretty well considering his age. It was a great boys activity (Rachel hates sitting for 5 minutes so I wouldn't have tried taking her).

Rachel and I went shopping to help me prepare for my trip next week. We had a good time but at one point in time I wanted collapse at Kohls. I'm so glad Harmon had a great time... I just hope in the future his youthful excitement lets me sleep a little ;)

How did I end up here???

Tonight I had really fun plans. I was supposed to go see X-Men Orgins with one of my dear friends. Instead Chris gave me no notice late last night when he asked me to attend a Black Tie event for of all things the Republican Party (I'm an Independent so a night of partisan politics is not my idea of fun). The keynote speaker was our new Governor. Neither of us knew that our brother-in-law had set this up. The company had bought a table and we were all expected to attend... I think the whole time everyone worried I would open my mouth and be outspoken as I normally am. Other than a few under my breath jokes to Chris I behaved.

I'll admit I wanted to throw a dinner roll at some of the speakers but Governor Martinez was really neat. I don't agree with everything she stands for (by far) but I could respect who she was. She grew up in El Paso at the same time my mother did. For Hispanic women at that time it was unheard of completely for them to have careers; much less hold some of the highest posts in the nation. She is a good smart strong women and I hope we have more of them holding these types of offices in the future. I hope by the time Rachel is my age we will have broken the final glass ceiling with a great women president.


As for fashion... finding a formal cocktail dress with no notice was a nightmare. I don't think I've been missing my sister more than I did today. Eliza would had the perfect dress, done my hair, done my make up, and lent me some great jewelry. I ran out of time for my hair. I ended up with a sad chignon. Honestly I hate dressing up, using my good posture, and those shoes killed me but it was a was a fun night though and I'm glad we went.

Should I be happy or devasted????

I think I could feel two ways about what happened today.

First I want to be happy, today we got a definitive answer to why I was getting so sick. Well they didn't put in the Paragurd right so it was it was cutting into me and I was having a severe reaction causing really bad bleeding and edema (I've gained 10 lbs in water weight). So today it was taken out. I should be feeling better in a couple of days. Already the swelling is subsiding.

But than I want to cry. I have an annual $5,000 deductible so I try to be very careful whenever I need to go to the doctor because unless I get really sick it will be all out of pocket. When I break down the expenses: $600 for the paragurd, $120 for consultation, $120 for actual insertion, $80 for my general MD b/c we didn't realize the edema was from the paragurd, $120 for new gynecologist to take it out, and probably another $75 for labs which means I pretty much threw a $1000 dollars down the drain. I just keep thinking over and over again what I could have used this money for.

Than I started talking to people and they talked about the same thing happening to them or their loved ones except it wasn't caught early like I caught it. They needed serious surgeries, got pregnant, etc. I realized it could have been worse and I should count my blessings.

So when all was said and done I spent a ton of money, got a lot of cramping, bleeding, swelling, and feeling like crap... only to end up back on birth control pills (I used to be on the ring but he said he doesn't full trust it b/c it can get out of place easily), but it could have been worse!

Singing and dancing the joys of Go Go Squeze!

I don't talk enough about Callum on this blog. He really is amazing little guy and funny as heck. Saturday I talked about his love of Elmo which I find hilarious because he has never once watched Elmo on TV but I think he learned to love Elmo just by this old hand-me-down from Harmon. He is very smart and very observant. He is also very musical! The above picture was taken at his music class where he is the star pupil even though he is one of the youngest. I found this old YouTube video of Cally made about a year ago before his first birthday. Even than he loved dancing.

Now he loves singing and he hums tunes like Twinkle Twinkle but he also makes up his own songs. As his language is emerging he is starting to use his new words in his homemade songs.

My favorite was this Sunday in Church. I gave him a GO GO Squeeze and he got so happy he started squealing "GO GO". Squealing in church is never a good thing but it was so cute I started giggling. Next thing I knew the kid started singing his home-made song that sounded a little like the William Tell Overture at the top of his lungs going "GO GO GO GO GO GO". I would have recorded it but we were in church so whipping out my IPhone wouldn't have been appropriate (also by this point I was cracking up).

One day my son will be a marketing mastermind just like his mom but he will also be writing the jingles :)

All about Daddy...

For anyone who reads this blog you probably notice my husband Chris drives me pretty insane. I love him, don't get me wrong, but somedays I want to put his head in a blender (especially when it comes to politics and the company). With that said there is one area where this man of mine truly just outshines me and everyone I know and that is as a parent.

When we were dating he would ask me so how many kids do you want? I would reply back maybe one or two or a good cat. I would than ask him and he would seriously respond at least 5 or 6 but I'm game for like 10! He came from a family of nine (or as I affectionately refer to it as a herd of 9) and so he always figured he would one up his family. He is learning to slowly accept that our family of 3 kids is done but if I were to ever to change my mind he would be in.

So what made me change my mind about more than 1 or just the cat? Honestly it was all him. Chris is very loving and affectionate. He loves holding babies, playing with babies, etc. When Harmon was born he was the first to give bottles and change diapers (well before I ever gave one or changed one). Night duty he was all about letting me rest and he still is. He really wanted what was best and so he dragged me to breastfeeding classes, bought me a hospital grade pump, and help drip bottle over my breast to try and get Harmon to latch. When I went back to work he understood I was tired too and he always tried to be a co-parent in every way.

That is why I agreed to try for a second (and we ended up with the 2 for 1 deal). When the twins came he went into Super-Dad mode. I remember he would handle Harm's night terrors and the twins premie feedings (every 2 hrs) and still went to work at 7 every morning. He still sits on his big lazy boy feeding the twins their night sippies while Harmon sits at his feet. I laugh because some days when we are so busy and don't have quality time with the kids he says "I hope they wake me up so we can spend some quiet time together".

I truly love my husband more than I did when I married him. I see the love he has for my kids and I know anything for their happiness. Yes, I still want to kill him every now and again but I've learned I won't do it until the kids go away for college because Dad's like this are hard to find, and I need him!

On a funny note for Father's Day Chris didn't want me to cook. He loves my mother's cooking and especially her roast beef (I don't eat a lot of red meat) and that was what he wanted for his special Father's Day meal. So we went over there today and yes he got his beloved roast beef!

All for the love of Elmo...

Today Harmon was acting not so nice and so Chris had to take him out to the parking lot while I finished grocery shopping. Unfortunately he left before he could pick out his new pajamas, so I let the twins do it. I said first how about Cars... no reaction. Than I suggested random dog pajamas... no reaction. Than Cally Jolly saw Elmo and he started going "Elmo Elmo Elmo" so we picked them up for Harmon.

Unfortunately I should have thought this better through because tonight Harmon started putting Elmo on Cally started crying uncontrollably screaming "Elmo!!! Mine!!! Elmo!!! Elmo!!!! Elmo!!!". So we caved and well that is how Cally ended up in Harm's night outfit. He couldn't be sleeping more happily now.

And no, I'm NOT pregnant!!!

When I was very very small my older sister would always read me stories from these silly books and we would watch Tales From the Crypt. Needless not many things in this world scare me... Getting pregnant at this point for me would be probably be top of the small list of things that scare me. Two months ago I got an IUD put in b/c I just didn't want to have to worry at all about this subject. I had been using the Nuva Ring and I kept hearing horror stories. I'm hoping for a nice and easy 8 years before I have to think of birth control again.

That was until I started feeling ill. Likely it is just a side effect from the Paragurd and will just go away in a few weeks. They are doing metabolic tests and some other stuff just to make sure there isn't anything else going on. The nurse also asked me to test just in case. It was negative as I knew it would be. Just buying a test was surreal. Having dealt with infertility all I ever wanted was a positive and it never seemed to come. Today all I wanted was a negative! The guy at Target asked when I was checking out asked me "is this good news"? I just smiled and said nope just starting new medicine. I figured that would be more tasteful that stating, "oh heck no being pregnant would be a nightmare".

It was interesting Chris saw the test and I think freaked out in his own way but was sad in his own way as well when it was negative. Nevertheless once he thought about late nights, puke, and all the other things that come with babies he felt relieved and at peace. So unless you want to give us nightmares please don't ask... "are you pregnant?"

Food Fights :p

I am madly in love with this kid. He is just an all around great little boy. With that said he is driving me completely BAT CRAP CRAZY!!!! He has sensory issues and so I've been understanding. He has certain foods he feels comfortable with and so while I do introduce new foods to him I never force him to eat things he doesn't feel comfortable with.

Now he is pushing boundaries (classic 3 year old behavior) but when you have a kid only comfortable with a handful of foods and suddenly he won't eat you just want to go jump off a cliff somewhere. Every meal these days has been a STRUGGLE. I came home today to see poor Miriam struggling to get Harmon to eat a little macaroni. When I intervened he started trying to kick me so that led to a long series of time outs and loss of his beloved Cars quilt.

Dinner was worse. Instead of going to the park he screamed for 2 and half hours. Finally we turned around to finish folding some laundry and Rachel swooped in ate the second half of his dinner. That led to another long series of screaming. He kept screaming at poor Rachel especially telling her "Rachel I'm hungry give me my food back." So tonight he is going to bed hungry. We are not bending. We can't b/c we can't keep going on like this. He pushes his boundaries but once he knows we won't bend he always gives up. I hope this is what happens!!!

My brother William was teasing me about how now that the "Terrible Two's" are over and we are in the "Torturous Threes" and next year will be the "Frightful Fours", and afterwards "Fearful Fives" and of course the "Satanic Sixes"... He is right, it doesn't get easier.

Update: Last week and this week we are doing much better on not eating out. Last week on Chris' nights he made various breakfast items. We ate an entire package of bacon in only a week.I tried making a meatloaf that Chris said was done just right. That led me to a conclusion that if that is a well made meatloaf, meatloaf is nasty.

This week I made Spaghetti on Monday and on Wednesday pizza. For his days Chris bought a foot long Italian sandwich :p Maybe we are not "there" yet but we are definetly getting better at least by not eating out so much.

The cats in the cradle...

Yesterday I uploaded some pictures with my camera and I realized I forgot to share about Harm's and Chris' experience seeing Thomas the Train live on stage. Harmon is truly obsessed with anything Thomas the Train so for his little 3 year old brain this was a bigger life experience than learning to drive, graduating college, or perhaps becoming president. Anyway, being the over worked busy mom I am when I have down time going to see Thomas Live wasn't on the top of my list so I did what any smart mom would do: dub it Daddy/Son Day and send them away.

It was great. Not only did I not have to sit through a Thomas Musical but it meant so much to Chris. He loved seeing how happy Harmon was and for that it was worth seeing Sir Topham Hat sing an aria about a bridge. He always worries that he will be like that cheesy song: Cat in the Cradle.

My child arrived just the other day

He came to the world in the usual way

But there were planes to catch, and bills to pay

He learned to walk while I was away

And he was talking before I knew it and as he grew

He said, "I’m gonna be like you, Dad,

You know I’m gonna be like you"

And the cats in the cradle and the silver spoon

Little boy blue and the man in the moon

When you comin home, dad, I don’t know when,

But we'll get together then, Son,

You know we'll have a good time then.

By the end of the song the dad is all alone and his grown son has no time for him. I think both of us worry about this to be honest. We both love working and learning and traveling etc. but we are very aware that those things we will have time for in the future. It is these precious moments of our children growing up that we will never get to later. Already they are not really babies anymore. It happened so fast. I know they will be in full time school before I know it and than asking for the car keys.

So for now we are really trying to focus on our children. We take the cheesy pictures and go to the cheesy shows. We play bubbles in the back yard and we spend our Saturdays at a museum.

Earlier that day he had seen one of his best friends in college and he felt weird that he never that he never hangs out with the guys anymore (many of them stay up till 2 am playing games on a Friday night or spend Saturdays doing golf or boating). Later that day they saw Thomas and had a wonderful time. On the way home he heard that song and he asked me later if he thought we would be like the ending.

I’ve long since retired, my son's moved away

I called him up just the other day........

I said "I'd like to see you if you don’t mind"

He said "I'd love to Dad, if I could find the time.

You see my new jobs a hassle, and the kids have the flu.

But It's sure nice talking to you, Dad,

It's been sure nice talking to you........"

And as I hung up the phone it occurred to me

He'd grown up just like me,

My boy was just like me..............

I told him no, b/c he was taking the time now to form that relationship. It is a sacrifice but the reward makes up so much more than the original sacrifice was.

Last Friday Night (+Sat & Sun)

Our story starts on Friday...

This is what Rachel looked like in the morning when Miriam put a new dress on her.

This is what Rachel looked like when I got home and Chris had been feeding them (excuse my editing).

This is what that dress looked like.

This was her accomplice looked like.

Any questions? Needless to say Katy Perry and Rebecca Black have nothing on my kids for crazy Friday nights!

Seriously that is what happens if you turn your back on even one of our critters for a couple of seconds. Chris was sitting Harmon in the "time out" chair and during that time Rachel found my professional food coloring (which ironically has only once or twice been used until that night). Luckily the dye washed out and so all is well that ends well.

The rest of the weekend had such similar antics. Primarily Harmon. He tried to steal a car from Walmart, ran into the back of the train museum display (I think we dodged getting banned), and he tried to jump into the pool with out his floaties (good thing we were watching and daddy is a fast swimmer). Seriously these kids are like the ocean... your turn your back on them they will hit you with a tsunami!

I think I miss the baby stage when they couldn't go anywhere w/o you ;)

Cinderella had a very hard week!

I think right when I know how to help her, things get complicated. This past few weeks I got a large collection of shoes that are all approved. Well than the poor girl ran into the cupboard and a large can fell on her big toe. Tomorrow the doctor wants us to x-ray it and make sure it isn't broken. I don't think it is but bled profusely for a good 12 hrs.

Chris and I suspect it was an excuse not to wear her special shoes with orthotics and get to wear open toed sandals like regular girls her age get to wear. That meant I had to go out and buy the new pair. This is a disaster though b/c she is falling everywhere. She really needs those proper shoes!!! Trying to look on the bright side she has been so proud of her new "sho shoes".

The frustrating thing is that this was sort of the cherry on top on what has been a rough few weeks. We are having a specialist from Albuquerque come down and consult with her early intervention team. I'm excited about that. Hopefully this will lead to more answers and better treatment. I can tell Rachel is frustrated not being able to do what she needs to do.

Our Spring Professional Pictures

It was time again for our latest pictures. We take them quite regularly (now 2x a year but when the kids were younger they were more often even) b/c I really don't take great pictures with my camera (the pictures are blurry, the lighting is bad, etc.) and they will be small only for a short time.

Anyhow this round we went with local professional photographer Allison Gayle. Any women daring enough to take pictures of my kids deserves a medal of honor and she did a great job. The group pictures were a little rough getting the kids to focus but the candid ones of the kids are just really great. Since there were so many pictures taken I will link this to our photo blog.

Here is the link to more family pictures: link.

Here is the link to more kids pictures: link.

Here is the link to more Rachel pictures: link.

Here is the link to more Callum pictures: link.

Here is the link to more Harmon pictures: link.

This morning I hit a wall but this is a good thing...

If you read the blog yesterday you probably laughed b/c I made no sense! I was tired (all I had energy to do was google YouTube videos of Spaghetti Cat). I still am. I might do something I've not done in ages... go to bed before 11 but I'm just tired.

I woke up this morning and I realized my head was killing me! I had totally hit my proverbial wall. We have had a lot of family stuff going on (we are doing fine but trying to help those close to me has been taxing). We also have had a lot of changes in the last month. Miriam was gone for 2 wks, Harm's school ended, he started Summer Camp, Rachel's treatment is more intense, we moved, etc. etc. The final straw is the framing crew next door framing a new home. I'm glad it is sold and our company is doing well but the 6:30 am- 7am wake up call for the last few days is making me postal b/c I work late into the night.

So today I started getting things in order better to simplify our home.

I have a chore board for Harmon and underneath it I have a dry erase board with chores for us adults to do. That way I know for sure the basics are getting done in the house and everything important is cleaned every couple of weeks.

I also have made a renewed effort to keep track of finances. I got a jolt seeing people who are very close to me and I care for; close to retirement and really struggling. So I really want to make sure we are being more careful and be more diligent saving. We are doing fine right now but I was reminded that things can turn around quickly.

Having Chris help me with meals is already a success (see last night's post). Tonight we made French Toast for dinner. Not exactly a Top Chef specialty but it was good and it was fun to do it together. We are going to start making lists and yes menus so that I'm not always going back and forth from the stores.

Finally because my wonderful nanny, Miriam and I were discussing and we want to limit the kid's early intervention and services to one appointment a day. She is right, the kids need time to be kids and we are going crazy balancing everyone's services. My mother who just started summer break wants to come help us out also a little bit. This will be a treat to have an extra set of hands once in a while before she has to go back to work.

Hopefully these changes will give me more time to get important things done: LIKE SLEEP! Also I would love to start having hobbies again and maybe go back to school for a graduate degree eventually. I'm realizing though that if I don't get more organized these things will be more like fleeting dreams and I will continue being so exhausted by the end of the day that watching YouTube videos of Spaghetti Cat is all I have energy for.

Complete random answers to what is stressing me!

It is funny how sometimes the answers that I look for are right in front of me that I sometimes I just don't see it. Sometimes the answers just randomly pop up like the Spaghetti cat:

This weekend Chris and I have been randomly realizing things that hopefully will make our family easier. Like why haven't we been keeping a budget this past year? Seriously it isn't that hard but it is important. Also why did I feel it necessary to book every possible activity for these 3 kids: summer camp, speech camp, swimming, music class, etc. ? So I'm backing off some of this and allowing more time for sprinklers and mud pies.

Finally Chris came up with something smart: I don't like cooking and I don't have time. Chris loves eating and he is a great baker. So starting later this week he is going to start helping prepare meals. I'm cautiously excited but I think it will be good. We split most household jobs and it works for us well. I told him on his night to cook he can't count Taco Bell as cooking ;)

So yes this has been a time for random revelations but hopefully they will lead to a happier home in the long run!

It is really almost over :(

Tonight we got home late from a friend's home and so the kids were all cranky. We got them some milk for our drive home and so when they got home we slipped their pj's on and put them to sleep. Well Harm and Rach went down in a just a second but my precious Cally sensed he was off kilter and moaned for me.

I scooped him in my arms and took him to the living room. I just held him and stroked his head. He still felt like a little baby. He wouldn't close his eyes. He knew if he did I would put him back in his crib. So he just with bleary eyes stared at me. What he didn't know was that I didn't want to put him down. I felt more than ever that this was it for us. Soon he will be a big boy like Harmon and he won't be a baby. I know he is going to be a wonderful big boy but just tonight I wanted one more moment of just holding my little baby.

All my children are wonderful and special in their own way. Callum is sort of the "middle" child I joke but I appreciate every special quiet moment I have with him. I love when he sings to me or laughs his hearty belly laugh. He is a really amazing little man! Tonight I was glad he gave me one more night of being my precious little baby. I don't want any more kids to be quite honest but I also will admit these moments are almost over and yes, I will miss them!

Can I just walk around in a potato sack?

After college when I was still single and childless I loved shopping for clothing. I had money, time, and I lived in great shopping places like Las Vegas and LA. I have a unique body shape to dress so it took time to find good pieces. That is time that I don't have these days at all. Also living in a small town like Las Cruces my options are very limited. So that leaves me in a quandry. I've been living here for a few years now, thus my old nice clothing is starting to bite the dust, and 3 kids later my body has changed a bit. So my choices are either wear unflattering clothing that I quickly bought and now regret, or potato sack. I think I will choose the potato sack!

Seriously when my mom grew up in Puerto Rico and life was so much easier back than. They were poor so they would buy flour in bags. The bags actually had decently nice prints (see above an example) and so my Abuelita would sew my mother dresses out of the flour bags. It amazes me the creativity people had back than. They were not ugly by any means. Well I never have time to sew, don't buy flour very often (haven't bought some in over a year evidence that I really must start cooking more), and they come in little one pound paper bags so I don't think this would be a good option for me either.

So that leaves shopping online at home. 3 years ago I found a boutique called Down East Basics in the Green Valley Mall in Vegas. I bumped into another one of their stores in Phoenix last year when we took the family to go see the Cardinals play. The clothes were flattering and fit right so I've been buying from them. Well I ordered a ton of stuff last week and they have changed their sizing or something. Nothing fit! I was so excited for the above dress to come into the mail. I thought it would be a great Summer dress for vacation. It wasn't. It flatters people with bigger chests and smaller hips. I looked like a pear dressed up in flowers! The shirts were not long enough.

So I'm out of options other than scrounging through the usual store racks. Now I kind of wish I ate more potatoes :( Those sacks could come in handy about now.

Update on how Rachel is doing...

I haven't talked much about Rachel and her Cerebral Palsy in a while. I guess I just didn't know what in the world to talk about. I have been pretty confused about this diagnoses really means in everyday life. She does so well and she is so determined, I didn't get how she was getting affected if that makes sense.

So today I sat and worked alone with the Occupational Therapist she really put together for me how her CP is going to affect her. She explained to me that babies learn processes like walking and talking just like we learn to drive. At first it is very difficult and causes you to really focus on every action you make but in time you just get it and the process becomes sub-concious.

Well the problem for Rachel is that her body and brain don't communicate and these sub-concious processes are much more difficult to make. So when she is doing various different tasks it causes her whole mind to concentrate on that task (lets say walking up a hill) she can't focus on something else (like looking out for obstacles). Also if she loses focus for just a second she will just fall (like today she was sitting on a rocking chair and she saw Cally grab a toy and she slipped off the rocker). Finally she has difficulty figuring out how to do things that come naturally for other kids (like sitting on a chair properly). This need for constant concentration is why her face is often frozen in odd shapes. She is trying to express herself but she doesn't know how.

With this said I'm understanding now why the specialists say that if Rachel were not so hardworking and determined to over-come these issues she would not be doing well at all. It is b/c she is so amazing and determined that she has trained herself into overcoming obstacles and learning these processes. This is why if you meet her you might not understand there was anything off. It gives me complete full hope that anything practically that she wants to do in life she will make sure she achieves it!

So now I understand the long term prognosis and why the specialists all tell me that this will be a life time fight. From the day she was born learning things that should have been automatic has been a fight: i.e. learning to breathe, roll over, etc. have been challenging for her to learn. This means kicking a ball, learning to type, getting a license, etc. will all be major fights (and realistically some things may be beyond her control). It won't go away BUT now I know that as long as she is trying she can learn. On the other hand things like her low muscle tone in her trunk and her high tone in her legs can be improved upon in time and with therapy and hopefully won't carry any serious long term consequences.

We are blessed that this is not worse. Most afflicted with CP don't have such a great outlook! Nevertheless it is sad that everything is so hard for her. We all have to remember that while everything will be more challenging Rachel will do amazing things and this condition will not stop her.