They're Here!

For MONTHS I've been feeling like we've been  in a foxhole and have just been waiting for reinforcements to help us with Simon's increasingly hard behavior.  There was delay after delay after delay in getting ABA therapy started but it finally happened.  They're here.

The therapists haven't really been actively involved yet, just mostly observing, but just having one extra adult body around with attention for Simon has made a difference.  One therapist comes every morning at 7 am and helps with the godawful morning routine of breakfast/getting dressed/getting to the bus.  This usually results in a tantrum at the beginning and/or end of each activity, but things have been much smoother, if for no other reason than he's got a new source of attention. I suspect next week he'll start to show his true colors more, but the therapists now have a plan in place, so we can step back and let them do their thing.  We get 15 hours a week of ABA therapy (25 hours/week during the summer) and we're trying to line them up for the hardest hours of the week.  So far so good.

We also have also gotten final approval for 30 hours of respite care a month through the Regional Center.  That basically means we get 30 hours of paid childcare a month.  Oh. My. God.  It's the most amazing gift. I feel super guilty about it (like all parents need this/we don't really need this/it's really not that bad) and then I remember that I don't really have any point of reference for what "normal" parenting is like and if the Regional Center thinks we need it, we must need it.

I decided a few weeks ago that we MUST use some of it on Saturday afternoon so that I'm not a seething, exhausted, resentful gremlin by Sunday evening.  The last 2 weekends we have paid our regular babysitters to do 3 hrs each Saturday afternoon and miraculously I have had two of the best weekends I can remember.

Except for 3 weekends ago when I took Laura to Portland, OR (just the two of us) to celebrate her birthday. That was pretty great too. We ate ourselves silly, went to the awesome farmer's market, walked around half of Portland and generally did too much since my type-A booty planned the "vacation".  We will be chilling more next trip. Take a look.

So...they cancelled our flight there and re-routed us and it took 8 hours to get there.  Not the BEST start. 

By the next morning, however, it was all rainbows and roses. 

Getting to see my first cousin, Kelly and her sweet husband Greg

Cousins!

Coffee up!

Old college friends still goofing

Out to brunch with my other cousin Amy (who graciously hosted us!)

 Since we last wrote, we also celebrated Laura's 41st birthday and our 12th anniversary together.

Auntie Dre, looking super cool

Jonah made a BIG funny!

Redheads with paper flowers in their hair

The paper flowers were a hit

Even the frame for the paper flowers were a hit!

Besties :-)

A few more pics

So teary that Simon's school got Mother's Day right. 

Boy is WAY into guns these days, so we got a goofy space blaster to work it out.

Simon sleeping with his brother, Darth.

At Notes and Words, the Children's Hospital Oakland fundraiser we got to go to for free!

Sometimes you need to wear goggles and headphones to do last snack. You just do.