Whew -What a Week

I dont know what the deal is this week-but its been very nerve racking ard here...I dont know if its that Im grumpy because Im not feeling well...., that we havent been getting through school very smoothly, or that everyone is coughing and not in the mood to be messed with......but at any rate Stinger is climbing up the walls this week...ugh...
Messing with Puddin, messing with his siblings, all touchy and bothering everything and everyone, getting into mischief with everything he sees, messing ard at dinner,throwing his food ard...yigh yogh.........yigh..LOLOLOL
I know my throat hurts tonight as I was using it too much today on him. Its just as soon as my back is turned he is making someone or something upset and if he cant get at a person, he is messing with something he shouldnt be messing with,etc....
Basically we have a monkey house going on ard here lately and its really driving me crazy.......
But he does make me smile throughout the day at his comments and reactions to things.....for instance...
I was getting on his case abt messing with Flamingos plate at dinner time telling him he hates it when people mess with his food etc and before I was through he blurts out "Mom-cant I speak before you send me to the slammer-I get some last words dont I-everyone gets last words..." LOLOLOLOL I just looked at him and couldnt help but let out a giggle, then he giggled too-LOLOLOL
Things he says really catch me off guard and they keep me sane I guess you could say. He has come such a long way from not being able to express his feelings that when he does now I cant help but smile-even when I shouldnt...
I forgot to update abt his IOWA testing last week....it went AWESOME!!!!They followed his IEP as it wasstated and had him in a room all to himself with an aide to read each and every question to him. He could take breaks when he wanted to and he came out of the room smiling :) I wansnt sure how he would handle actually having to go through each question as in the past testing he would just fill in bubbles as the online school he had been in wasnt following his IEP. So basically he liked it as he didnt have to think...LOLOLOL, but this time they met him at his level and helped him and he didnt seam to mind at all...even though he had to think this time which REALLY surprised me. Proud Momma moment-eh?
So we are in a dip on the roller coaster yet again this week...but should be on our way up...hopefully soon...Taking it day by day-which is the only way to get through it sometimes ard here...LOLOLOL

Dr Visit and What Not, Etc...

Well we are all slowly getting better-We all still have coughs, but they are getting better.
Funny-but Stinger is the only one in the family who hasn't caught anything...LOLOL
As many of you know he's on the side of compulsively cleaning and will use hand sanitizer every couple of hours whenever he touches anything(Mom-Dad-he NOW believes in it-LOLOL, and uses it religiously-LOLOL), will not sit next to anyone who is coughing-siblings mainly,and wil not tolerate germs of any kind...I use dto think it was a problem-but seeing how he hasnt caught anything-NOTHING-maybee he is on to something here...Hmmmm...LOLOL
But we are all doing a bit better at any rate. 2 weeks ago I did something to my back and as usual I let it it go thinking it would clear up on its own. Im always doing that-hating Dr visits, dentist visits (in particular;)) unless it is REALLY bad I will just get through it...kwim? But my backache would just not go away. Last night it was REALLY bothering me whenever I moved or sat up etc. So I finally decided to get it checked out this morning. Come to find out that I pinched a nerve in my back.But I honestly dont knwo how. If anything I have been a bit slower since Ive been sick and havent been feeling too hot....But I knew the Dr was right when he went to my back and touched it right in the spot-first try- and he said " Yep-Thats what it is>" So he told me he could give me a shot of cortizol(sp)or I could just keep popping pills. I voted for the later...LOLOLOL
Sometimes its not so bad, but when my Ibuprofen starts to fade out I can DEFINETLY tell it still hurts. Its this sharp stabbing pain in my back-its just lovely....sigh...but Im okay on pills.yeah..sigh....
He said it will take awhile to heal...another yeah....LOLOL
So anyway-thats whats been going on with me lately.
Oh!!!! I discovered a FABULOUS Author. And I could hit myself for not realizing it earlier. EVERYONE knows that my ALL TIME FAVORITE movie is THE NOTEBOOK and NO-I dont have it-but WANT it BAD!!!!!so if your ever wondering "Oh what should we get Tammy?"-well THATS it!!!If any of you have not SEEN THIS MOVIE-YOU NEED TO HAVE YOUR HEART EXAMINED-lolol-but did you all know that he wrote other movies we all have seen too-like Walk in the Clouds and Message in a Bottle etc....all REALLY good movies...but they came from one AUTHOR :Nicholas Sparks. Oh!!! I could go on and on abt how his words stir my heart. BEAUTIFUL!!!!But my words would not do his works justice.His works make you cry, they make you laugh, and they make you sigh. Just utterly taking your breath away.......Anyway-I stocked up on 4 of them today from the Book Mobile. So If Im not ard much-please understand, Im fully immersed in my own little world..... reading......LOLOLOLOL

Grami's Visit #2

I found them...LOLOL -More pics of Grami and our fun :)

Grami's Visit :)

Grami send us these pictures-Im still trying to find the ones I took-LOLOL-they are hiding somehwere in our computer...somewhere...LOLOL
Here's some pictures of things we did while she was here: Picnics, kite flying, at the hotel swimming, climbing trees, etc-can you see the kids faces-just beaming with happiness :)

Winter Weather----> Winter Sickies :(

Well with all this crazy up and down weather we are all sick once again. This always seams to happen at this time of year. Sometimes I get lucky and I dont get it, but it usually goes ard the family circle 2 times and I got it this time :(
I'm getting better but dh and Flamingo have whatever it is really bad-a yucky cough etc..Flamingo seams to be getting worse-tonight she is gagging on her coughs:(So she's down here in the den with me until she falls asleep. She is afraid that she will get sick in her bed...So Im guessing that a trip to the Dr is happening tom...
Public School is out for Fall break-today and tom..What a way to spend a holiday-eh? Flamingos' best friend called to invite her over and I said I didnt think it was a good idea-I wanted her to lay low this weekend etc...so she was pouting all day abt it. We gave each other manicures with sparkles which seamed to cheer her up a bit. But it looks like I made a good call on that one, as she is coughing so hard tonight she is gagging. :( Misereable........

Winter is a Comin'....WHOOT!!!

Well this morning this is what we saw out our front window.....:)


Snow on the mountain tops :)It will gradually go father down as winter approaches-slowly making snow here in the valley, but just seeing it up there today made me smile-I LOVE the winter months-Wind stinging your nose-Ahhhh......:)
The beautiful leaves changing colors then slowly falling from the trees. The smell of wood fireplaces in the air-Ahhh...LUV it!!!Snuggling up to a warm cup of cofee and a good book-The BEST!!!!Warm soup-Nana's homemade chicken noodle-My Favorite(and what everyone asks fro here ;))!!!Warm jammies and flannel sheets on the bed-oh!!!!!!
This is my favorite time of year(can ya tell;))-October ---->January 1st :)Okay...So.... Im a day early-but SNOW on the mts!!!!!Excitement is called for! LOLOLOL
WHOOT!!!!!!:)

Flamingo Shines :)

Soccer 2009-Flamingo :)

In Memory of Squeeks.....:(

Well it looks like I am reliving my childhood trauma yet again.....
As a child I had numerous hampsters....they ended up dying all in less than a year from when I bought them. I would choose the smallest of the liters-they were always the cutest-the runts- and they didnt do very well....I remember being heart broken and sobbing to Dad and Mom not knowing what I did or why they had come and left my life so suddenly.
Flamingo is experiancing this same thing It looks like...:(She just recently lost Squeeks her first pet and she is heartbroken, just as I remember being.
We picked out a little bowl and it is all nestled nicely inside and we will be having the funeral this week. Dad and Mom-do you remember all those funerals? You said such nice words and comforted me so well-I hope Flamingo feels comforted by my words as I was with yours.{{HUGS}}
Grami is gone :( Flamingo has taken it the hardest-she misses her so very much.I will post pics soon when I have more time. Grami played outside every day with the kids while she was here. They would have races, play soldiers-I spied on this one and it was tooo funny and cute-you'll get a kick out of the pics when I post them.:) They flew kites, and just played with her. Flamingo had a buddy to play Barbies with :)I think since we basically stayed close to home this visit that they bonded more with her and they all were very sad to see her go as were dh and I:( But the kids were all teary eyed at the airport and on the ride home:(It feels alot quiter here-like someone is missing...
She is planning on coming camping with us next summer-which should be alot of fun. But I know everyone feels that that is too far away....LOLOLOL
But we loved having her here and had a great visit. She kept telling me what a great cook I am-and thats a rare occurance ard here-LOLOLOL But it was very nice to hear-kwim?:)Thanks Grami for all that you do and for the smiles and happiness you bring to our family:)We love U{{HUGS}}

Dear Teachers - Can We Talk?

This took my breath away........

Rich La Belle, Executive Director

Family Network on Disabilities of Florida

This is a request to all of the teachers out there. Whether you think of yourself as teaching students with disabilities or not, I'd like just a couple of minutes of your time. You see, my soul has been troubled of late. I keep thinking about the statements of educational professionals in the O'Neill case in Sarasota. That's the case where the teacher was ordered reinstated by an arbitrator after she was found to have "hit, hurt, and treated students . roughly in ways unrelated to the learning process," engaging in a "pattern of abuse" of the students with disabilities who were assigned to her classroom.

This is what bothers me - one of the grounds that the school district based their firing of her on was the statements that she made to and about her students - statements that were belittling, humiliating, and dehumanizing. She admitted to saying about one of her students in front of another adult present that the student was just "sitting there sucking up oxygen"
What happened to her because of these statements? Nothing. Absolutely nothing. The arbitrator found that these types of statements were "observations" and "humor" and that there was no evidence that they were intended to be understood by the children about whom they were made. I thought, okay, he's an arbitrator, not an educator, maybe it's permissible as a legal technicality - a really, really big maybe. But, I thought, this conduct can't and won't be tolerated by other educational professionals. Right? Wrong.

This is what a speech language pathologist who was called to testify said about Ms. O'Neill's statements: She said that Ms. O'Neill has a sarcastic sense of humor that would be "meaningful to people that are working in that environment" - i.e. teaching kids with disabilities. Despite this, however, she testified that Ms. O'Neill's statements would not have been comprehended by her students, that they didn't affect the way she cared for or taught her students, and that they served as a means of relieving the stress of a stressful job. A physical therapist who worked with Ms. O'Neill, Shirley Taylor Shaw, testified that: "We all have a sense of humor, and sometimes it can be a little dark, but honestly, that's how we cope. When you consider what we have to do day in and day out, the limited amount of progress that we see, how involved the students are, you know, it's - for us, it doesn't seem that off the wall, but I guess by some standards, I guess it just depends on what you know, what you're used to, and what you have to deal with."

Wow.

This is what has my soul troubled. A rogue teacher, maybe burnt out, saying completely unacceptable things, an exception to the rule - I can understand that. What I can't understand is how her actions can be defended by other professionals and excused as necessary to relieve stress because her job was so difficult.

So, here's what I'd like to talk to you about: Do you think this kind of stuff - whether you call it observations, or humor, or - whatever - is okay? That it's acceptable for an educator to say something like this about their students? Whether they can hear/understand it or not? Is this appropriate and condoned professional behavior? For all of those who answer "no", I'd like to say, from the bottom of my heart, thank you very, very much.

For those of you who answered "yes" - that, even if it's not really acceptable, it's understandable, it's justified, you can see easily how it happens, you're okay with teachers and educators who do this getting a free pass - I'd like to continue our conversation. I'd like to ask you a simple question, one you absolutely know the answer to:

Do you have children?

If you do, you also know the answer to my next question with every atom of your being:

How would you feel if someone who is supposed to teach,

nurture, and protect your child treated them like that?

I don't care if your child does or doesn't have disabilities. Let's drop the "disabilities" tag for now. We're talking about children and what is and is not an acceptable way to treat them. Children. Children who we - both of us - as parents have entrusted to our school system to be educated. Period. Can we talk about our kids like that, please? As just kids? Because we're both parents.

I understand that you may have a lot of "buts" coming - "but, they do have disabilities"; "but, they are different"; "but, they are stressful"; "but, a teacher can only take it for so long"; "but, they don't really understand, so what does it matter?"; "but, they don't even feel it"; and a whole lot more. But, please humor me and let's put those to the side for a second. I promise we'll come back to them.

Can you tell me about your child? How did you choose their name? Did you name them after family? What makes them laugh? What's their favorite food? Do they have a favorite toy? I'm really interested - I love kids. My wife and I have four - two girls, two boys. What are your dreams for your child? I'd like to know those, too.

Can I tell you about my child? Not his diagnosis, or his medications, or his behaviors, or his disabilities. I want to tell you about my child - my gift from the Almighty. The repository of my hopes and dreams for the future. Do you think it's odd that I'd talk about my child like that? If you do, just give me a couple of minutes. I want to tell you about my son's favorite toy.

It's a stuffed rabbit. His godparents gave it to him before he had a diagnosis - when he was just a baby, before he had a label. Our family calls the rabbit, with all due respect, "Mr. Bunny". When my son was little, his eyes would light up whenever he saw Mr. Bunny and he would laugh so hard you would just have to laugh with him. His laugh would start in his belly and work its way up and down his body until all of him was shaking with pure joy. Pure, unadulterated, joy. Joy that doesn't know anything about "disabilities".

My son was named after me and both of his grandfathers. Tradition, I guess. Our family is like that. My son has lots of favorite foods - lots. Maybe it's all the spicy food my wife ate when she was pregnant, I don't know. Lack of appetite is not something we've ever had to deal with.

Do you want to ask me what "happened" to my child? Why he has disabilities? Go ahead. I'll answer you straight up. Why? I don't know. I really don't. Was it genetic? Don't know. Environmental? Not sure. Did the fact that his umbilical cord was wrapped around his neck when he was born have anything to do with it? Maybe - we'll never know. But - that word again - here's the kicker: I don't care. Because he's my son. My wonderful, beautiful boy. That's how I see him.

I'll bet that's how you see your child, too.

Wait - we left out dreams. That's easy. I want my son to be happy. Simple, right? Maybe, maybe not. For my son to be happy, people will have to treat him with respect - period. For my son to be happy, he will have to have equal opportunities. For my son to be happy, he will have to be treated equally with his peers. I see your hand up and I hear your question - "but, what's his disability?"

Does it matter?

Whether or not you have kids, why did you become a teacher? I can tell you why my daughter became one - because she has a passion to work with children that can't be satisfied any other way. She's really good at it, too, even if I do say so as her father. It makes my heart leap with joy and pride when I see her with her students. I'm going to go out on a limb here, but I'll bet that you became a teacher for reasons probably pretty close to my daughter's. Because you have a passion to work with kids - to open up the world to them - that can't be satisfied any other way.

When you decided that you wanted to be a teacher (how old were you?), did you ever imagine that you'd ever think it was okay to say that a student was just "sitting there sucking up oxygen"? I'm going to go out on a limb again here and guess that you didn't. I'm going to guess that, at that point, you couldn't imagine anything like that would be acceptable.

So, what "happened"? I'm thinking it wasn't genetic. Was it environmental?

I've heard lately - including from my own daughter, the teacher - that it's difficult to draw the line when it comes to corporal punishment. Are we going to ban even the most innocent contact between teachers and students because parents will sue at the drop of a hat?

I don't do this often, but I'm going to speak on behalf of parents of children with disabilities as a whole. If that's what you're afraid of, let me put you at ease.

If you stroke my son's head and comfort him when he's upset, I'm not going to run to a lawyer's office. I will get down on my knees and whisper prayers and blessings on your head from now until I draw my last breath. It gets pretty lonely sometimes as a parent and my son doesn't get a lot of that from folks outside the family. We'll take it wherever we can find it.

If you take my son's head in your hands and look into his eyes - really look into his eyes - and see the boy beyond the disabilities, you will have no problems from me. That rushing sound that you will hear will be my sigh of relief because someone is willing to treat him with the dignity that he deserves.

If you believe in my son - if you believe in his potential - whether you can see it or not - I will count him and my family as among the blessed for having had you in his life.

Will this help your school make AYP? I have no idea. But I do believe that, if you do this, you will setting up stores for yourself in the heaven that I believe in. The heaven from which I believe my boy came.

So, where do we draw the line? For now - just for now - let's agree that we - all of us - know it when we see it. That may not be precise, but it works.

We know when we see kids being abused. We also know when we see these things - and we don't say or do anything about it. I understand self defense (true self defense to protect yourself, not giving a 52 pound, seven year old a bloody lip or strapping a three year old down to a chair). I don't understand abuse, verbal or physical - and I'm willing to bet you don't, either.

I have to tell you flat out - this has got to change. The attitudes that permit this, condone this - even if only by silence - have got to be eradicated from our schools. And it's you who has got to help change them. It's you who has to help break the cycle.

How, you say? Don't engage in these behaviors and don't stand by silently when you see others doing it. Speak up. Speak out. Even if you can't - or won't - do that, don't ever, EVER, tell yourself that it's okay to hit, slap, shove, pinch, punch, or scratch my child. Don't think it's funny or a stress reliever to call him names, mock him, ridicule him, or humiliate him. Don't think or act as if it's acceptable to slam him into walls. Because it's not. You know it and I know it. It's not okay for either of our children - yours or mine - to be treated this way. By you or anyone else.

If you can't do this - if you don't believe this - please, leave the classroom. Now.

Before we end our discussion, let's go back to the "buts" you had:

But, they do have disabilities and they are different - yes, they do, yes, they are, and yes, they're entitled to equality and a free and appropriate public education under our laws.

But, they are stressful and a teacher can only take so much - then walk away. You are the adult. You don't have to respond inappropriately to your students.

But, they don't really understand, so what does it matter? Here's something I learned when I was very young - grownups don't make fun of little kids. Professionals who do this should not be able to keep their jobs.

But, they don't even feel it - are you sure? How can that make it okay? And -

What if you're wrong?

Believe it or not, I'm sure we want the same things for my child. We want him to learn and to be as independent as possible. Please. Let's move beyond this. We as a society are better than this.

Thanks for your time. I enjoyed our conversation and I have one final request:

Stop hitting our kids. Now.

Grami is Here!! :)

Well Grami is here in Utah-Salt Lake to be exact :)
She is staying in a hotel to attend her insurance conferance then will be down here for the rest of the weekend and early week.
I goggled her hotel to let her know what stores where ard her and to my surprise she is on the outside of down town-so there is NOTHING nearby...Ther eis a gas station on teh corner, but that is it.
So today when the kids get home(early out Wed)we will be braving the Salt Lake traffic....LOLOLOL I get so nervous driving in the big cities now that we live way out here...but it shouldnt be bad as we dont drive downtown at all...
I'll be dropping off some snacks and goodies that she can have for breakfast, etc.
The hotel has a pool so the kids will be bringing their suits to go swimming, and I will be bringing down a pizza for us all to eat for dinner. That way she can keep any leftovers in her fridge to have whenever she gets hungry.
Should be alot of fun-the kids are so excited to see her-they havent seen her in a good while-so it will be fun.
Wish me luck that I dont get lost-which is a sure given...LOLOLOL

Taxes...Can You Say CRAZY......

Tax his land,
Tax his bed,
Tax the table
At which he's fed.

Tax his tractor,
Tax his mule,
Teach him taxes
Are the rule.

Tax his work,
Tax his pay,
He works for peanuts
Anyway!
Tax his cow,
Tax his goat,
Tax his pants,
Tax his coat.
Tax his ties,
Tax his shirt,
Tax his work,
Tax his dirt.

Tax his tobacco,
Tax his drink,
Tax him if he
Tries to think.

Tax his cigars,
Tax his beers,
If he cries
Tax his tears.

Tax all he has
Then let him know
That you won't be done
Till he has no dough.

When he screams and hollers;
Then tax him some more,
Tax him till
He's good and sore.
Then tax his coffin,
Tax his grave,
Tax the sod in
Which he's laid.

Put these words
Upon his tomb,
Taxes drove me
to my doom...'

When he's gone,
Do not relax,
Its time to apply
The inheritance tax.
Accounts Receivable Tax
Building Permit Tax
CDL license Tax
Cigarette Tax
Corporate Income Tax
Dog License Tax
Excise Taxes
Federal Income Tax
Federal Unemployment Tax (FUTA)
Fishing License Tax
Food License Tax
Fuel Permit Tax
Gasoline Tax (currently 44.75 cents per gallon)
Gross Receipts Tax
Hunting License Tax
Inheritance Tax
Inventory Tax
IRS Interest Charges IRS Penalties (tax on top of tax)
Liquor Tax
Luxury Taxes
Marriage License Tax
Medicare Tax
Personal Property Tax
Property Tax
Real Estate Tax
Service Charge T ax
Social Security Tax
Road Usage Tax
Sales Tax
Recreational Vehicle Tax
School Tax
State Income Tax
State Unemployment Tax (SUTA)
Telephone Federal Excise Tax
Telephone Federal Universal Ser vice FeeTax
Telephone Federal, State and Local Surcharge Taxes
Telephone Minimum Usage Surcharge=2 0Tax
Telephone Recurring and Non-recurring Charges Tax
Telephone State and Local Tax
Telephone Usage Charge Tax
Utility Taxes
Vehicle License Registration Tax
Vehicle Sales Tax
Watercraft Registration Tax
Well Permit Tax
Workers Compensation Tax

STILL THINK THIS IS FUNNY? Not one of these taxes existed 100 years ago, and our nation was the most prosperous in the world. We had absolutely no national debt, had the largest middle class in the world, and Mom stayed home to raise the kids.
What in the hell happened? Can you spell 'politicians?'
And I still have to 'press 1' for English!?

11th Anniversary :)

Well today started out so sweet.
Dh surprised me with a heart locket-he didnt tell anyone-not even the kids as thats how you REALLY keep a secret ard here....LOLOL
Its just absolutely beautiful. It reads I love you and I LOVE it!!!!
Ive always wanted one-ever since I was a little girl, but I have never told anyone...how funny is that and he just knew.....hmmm........It touched me-even more so when he said he saw many with #1 Mom, Mothers love etc..but thats not what he wanted-he wanted one that was strictly from him-that showed how HE felt..Awhhh-eh? Soooooo sweet:)
I gave him a cute little teddy dog with some "I love you" chocolate kisses-have you seen those-they are the coolest! Also some new grilling tools to go with his new Weber grill and a car cover that he had said he had wanted...So he was really pleased. :) Get something practical and hes always so happy-LOLOL
We had a nice relaxing afternoon-it actually rained-which is nice...I find since leaving Oregon-I REALLY miss the rain here in Utah :(
Dh used his new grill tonight with his new tools and we had some YUMMMY steaks and real nice kiababsa sausages with potatoes and corn and croussants...
They had this new thing up at Sams-some sausage company originally from Germany-they are SOOOOOO good-they are working on a contract with Sams-so I hope they keep them-as we are so already addicted to them :)You've GOT to get some if you havent already.....
Great dinner though-Im still full! LOLOLOL So is everyone else:)
I cant believe its been 11 years-and my love for him grows each and every year....:) I am truly blessed.

9-11 NEVER FORGET