Busy, Busy, Busy.....

We have been busy...even though summer is the time to relax. Meghan went from camp to a mission trip to band camp. She has finished two weeks of all day band camp and is now on to half days until school starts....which is next week!!! I can't believe our summer is just about over. I am sad to lose the ability to sleep in and do pretty much whatever we want, but I also know that we have desperately missed the routine...especially Trey. He alternates days of good with more days of bad (meltdowns over the littlest things). I think he is anxious to start school. While Meghan has been at band camp, we have gone to the pool andTrey and Lily have gone with me to help set up my classroom at my new school. I love it and things are coming together, slowly. I am anxious to be able to get it all complete. I am officially on the school clock as of next Tuesday. :( So long, summer!

Change is good....right?

We had big decisions to make in our family recently. Daniel was presented with the opportunity (I say that with a smirk*) to go on an agricultural mission to Afghanistan. Daniel and I had to decide pretty quickly if this was something I was willing to do. Notice the "I" part. I had a hard time the last time he went overseas. The girls were young and I felt very much alone, especially given where we lived. It was the hardest 13 months I have ever experienced and I REALLY don't want to do it again. Having said that, I realize that I married a military guy. His heart is in the military and it is what makes him him. Knowing that, and knowing that I DID survive and that their are many more resources out there for military families now, I agreed. He wanted to go because this mission was deemed "safe" (how safe can you be in Afghanistan??) and he knew when his unit is slotted to go in 2012/2013, he might be split from his unit b/c they are support. So he wanted to be able to choose. He put his name in the next day. This was statewide, so he was up against anyone else in the entire state that put in for this. We left it in God's hands. About a month later, we got the news. He was not chosen. I can honestly say I wanted to weep with joy. I didn't have to face deployment (yet). He was, however, chosen by his unit to replace a guy who did get picked to go. So starting in July, Daniel is now active duty for a year and a half. This has caused some juggling in our school routine (i.e. him putting the kids on the bus), but I think it is all going to work out. He is happy to be active and I am so so so happy he gets to stay home. God is good.

Four Medal Day

Lily just recently competed in her 3rd Feis a couple of weekends ago. (I know...I am behind on posting this). She had such a great day! She placed 2nd in her Reel, 3rd in her Light Jig, 3rd in her Hornpipe, and 4th in her Treble Jig! What does all this mean, you ask? Well, Lily started out as an advanced beginner (she skipped the whole beginner phase b/c her coaches said she was better than that). She then dances each dance with sometimes up to 20 some girls (and sometimes boys). They dance 2 at a time in front of a judge. In advanced beginner, you must place in the top 3 to advance to the next level. At Lily's first Feis, she placed 3rd in her Light Jig, moving her up to novice in that dance. This Feis was her 3rd one and she is now novice in Light Jig, Hornpipe, and the Reel. Once she is completely novice (2 more dances to go!), she will be able to dance in a solo dress....which is BIG $$$$$. We are having to save up, needless to say. They can run up to $2500...of course, Lily won't be getting one that expensive. Once she is in novice, she must place 1st in her dances to move up to prizewinner. We have a long road, but Lily is an awesome dancer and has the drive!

Lily and her friend, Alison

Happy 4th!

We headed to a nearby small town for their annual 4th of July parade. We love this parade because it is small, fun, has lots of candy, and a fun lawnmower brigade!

Waiting for the parade to start with friends and family.

Attempting to hide from the kids in the parade with super soakers!~

Showing off some of the candy collected during the parade!

Afterwards, we headed back to our downtown for festivities there and walked around a bit. We got some kettle corn for the fireworks that night and even played in the fountain for a bit.

Trey just can't help but get wet!

Lily too!

Hope everyone had a Happy Independence Day!

A Little Insight

I saw this on another blog that I read. I have to say when I read it, all I could think was, "This is me!". I really do see this on a regular basis...so much so that it makes it hard to go out sometimes. You just never know what will trigger the meltdown. Not sure if its more the ADHD or the Sensory Processing Disorder, but whatever it is, I wish it could be fixed with a snap of your fingers.

Good afternoon, and welcome to “ADHD Theater.” Today we will watch a familiar scene entitled, “The ADHD Train Wreck.” Moms of ADHD children everywhere have lived out this scenario countless times. Let’s begin…

SETTING: A playground

CHARACTERS: ADHD Mom, ADHD Kid, Playground Kids, Other Parents

TIME: All too often

ADHD Mom is sitting on a park bench with the Other Parents. The Other Parents are enjoying a beautiful day at the park, watching their children play kickball on the playground. The birds are chirping, the sun is shining, healthy snacks are readily available and everyone is having a pretty good hair day. However, ADHD Mom is unable to relax and enjoy herself. This is because she is intensely watching the kickball game, while pretending to carry on a conversation with the Other Parents. She watches one of the Playground Kids roll the ball to her son, and he kicks the ball out of bounds. She begins to sweat and feel nervous as she watches the scene begin to unfold in front of her.

Playground Kids: Out of bounds! That ball was out of bounds!

ADHD Kid immediately gets upset, begins stomping and shouting on the playing field. The hair on the back of ADHD Mom’s neck stands up, and she finds herself sitting up in her chair. She is thinking, “Oh no. Please don’t do this. Don’t embarrass yourself. Don’t embarrass me. Not now. Not here… Oh crap, here it comes...”

ADHD Kid: NO, IT WASN’T!! IT WASN’T!! IT WASN’T OUT OF BOUNDS! I WANT A DO OVER!!

Playground Kids: The ball was out of bounds, dude! Get over it! Let’s get on with the game.

ADHD Kid: NO IT WASN’T! YOU GUYS ARE CHEATING! I WANT ANOTHER TURN! NOW!!! AAARRRRGGGHHH!!!

ADHD Mom feels the white hot glare of the Other Parents. She thinks, “Should I pretend like I do not know who the yelling kid belongs to? ” She wonders if she should explain to the Other Parents that her son has ADHD and sometimes has trouble calming down. She worries that the Other Parents will just think she is making excuses for her poor parenting and her son’s bad behavior, so she freezes like a deer in the headlights.
After a few minutes of watching in horror, she begins to formulate an exit plan from this “minor social derailment.” She hopes the plan will involve vanishing into thin air or using one of those memory-removal things on the Other Parents (you know, the flashy thing from the movie “Men In Black” when they wanted people to forget the things they’d seen and heard). After a few minutes of watching her son go downhill fast and realizing the Playground Kids were angry and quite tired of listening to him complain, she decides to remove him from the situation to prevent further damage.
With a delicate, kind voice, ADHD Mom lets her son know that it is time to take a break.

ADHD Mom: Son, you seem really upset. I think it’s time to take a break. I will give you two choices, you can either take a break , relax beside me, or we can head home. It’s up to you.

ADHD Kid: NO! I DON’T WANT TO GO! THEY ARE CHEATING AT KICKBALL! I HATE THEM! AAAAARRRRGGGHHHH!!!!

Instead of deflating the situation, the “minor derailment” has escalated into an all-out ADHD Train Wreck, and wouldn’t you know it, the Other Parents and the Playground Kids have a front row seat to watch the action.
Surveying the wreckage in front of her, she feels stuck and confused. Does she grab his arm and drag him off the field? Does she do nothing and let him completely melt down? Which is worse, removing him, or letting him stay? Both choices will probably embarrass both of them even further. As the game of Operation states, “It takes a verrrrry steady hand.”
She decides to get him out of there, even if it involves dragging him out. She has realized that there is no way he can calm down anytime soon. Throwing a fit in the middle of the kickball field will not only be painful for both of them, it will give the Playground Kids and the Other Parents more evidence toward the opinion that they are both screwed-up people who should be avoided.
ADHD Mom and ADHD Kid return home feeling awful. The Playground Kids and the Other Parents resume their lovely afternoon, thankful that the Train Wreck is over.

THE END.


Kara Thompson is a Marriage and Family Therapist in Lenexa, Kansas. You can visit her website at www.karathompson.com, find her on Facebook at www.facebook.com/karatherapy, or follow her on Twitter at www.twitter.com/karagthompson.

Katie and David's Wedding 6/18/11

So here are some pictures that I took at the wedding. Uncle Bill has some better ones, but this gives you an idea of the overall wedding. It was a beautiful place and luckily the rain ended right before the nuptials. Enjoy!

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Lily the Party Animal

Lily had two birthday parties yesterday....needless to say it was a very busy day! She had a friend one at a local pool and then a family one at a nearby park. She had a great day!

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