Update Feb 26, 2013

     So much is going on and I've been way too busy to post an update until now.  The kids are all doing well.  Not sure if I posted an update in August but we have housemates; Tiffany and David.  They will be with us until Huck gets back from deployment next year.  They fit in great in our household and David and my boys get along pretty well.
     We've had to make some major changes over the past several weeks.  Huck has been having stomach/intestinal issues for a long time everytime we ate anything with wheat/flour in it and the final straw was when he almost ended up in the hospital.  I did everything I could to help his pain; pepto, mint tea, heating pad to stomach, etc.  Since then we made sure that he didn't eat any gluten and his problems stopped.  Like his mom and sisters, he has celiac disease (self diagnosis because he doesn't want to tell doctor but its genetic).  Huck was not the only one allergic...Elijah had a gluten reaction as well.  I wasn't home to see it but from what I was told he was doubled over and screaming in pain.  He no longer wants to eat bread or pasta that has gluten in it.  We have gone gluten free and it's expensive.  I've discovered gluten free spaghetti, macaroni, muffins, pancakes and more.  It is hard to find items and you have to know where to look for them.  We are slowly replacing milk products with substitutes as well.  We have found almond milk to be great, especially vanilla flavored.
     Over the past couple of months we have been preparing for a one year deployment and my blood pressure has slowly been rising.  It's only been a few days and I'm so stressed out that I don't know if I will have any hair left this time next year.  Today when I came home from school (I have one year left, 2.5 semesters), I decided to lay down because my stomach was hurting and I took a nap.  I woke up with a start from a horrible dream and a sleeping anxiety attack.  I need prayers for my sanity over the next year.  School has been hard for me this semester because of the stress I've been under and the fact that I am also taking 16 credit hours.  I have a heavy courseload unlike any I've had since being at JU.   
     I finally get to see the neurosurgeon tomorrow to see if he can do something about my neck and back pain.  I pray that he can because I can't live like this for the rest of my life.  I need some relief.  If I can remember I will post more updates later.

Adam Lanza...Not the Face of Autism

     The past couple of days I have been assaulted with a barrage of Facebook posts referring to the "somewhat autistic" man who murdered innocent children and adults Friday morning at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Conneticut.  According to the media, there is now a public face to Asperger's Syndrome, a disorder on the autism spectrum. 
     I have seen Facebook posts saying that "medication is not the answer" and that kids with these issues need their "butt's beat."  I have read posts calling children with mental illness or disorders  'disturbed.'  I have also seen it claimed that medication is being crammed down the throats of these children.  These Facebook 'soapboxers' don't seem to be aware that there is no medical/medicinal treatment for Autism.  We are not pumping our Aspies or other children on the spectrum full of pills.  What would be the point, unless they also suffered from another ailment that required medication?
     My 12 year old son has Asperger's, and he is not 'disturbed'.  He is intellegent, creative and loving.  I am very 'disturbed' myself at hearing my own family members speak of autistic people in this manner.  Yes, the 20 year old man that killed those people was probably evil, but it was not because of Autism.  He probably had other severe mental disorders that were left untreated or maybe he was abused.  And spanking a mentally ill person will not help, it will likely make them worse.  Could anything have stopped this tragedy from happening?  Probably not.  But we don't know these answers and we might not ever know why this horrible thing happened.  What we can take a moment to let the world know that Adam Lanza is NOT the face of Autism.
    

Thanksgiving 2012

     This Thanksgiving was spent with my blood family and family that is not blood related.  But blood does not always define what family is.  I was with my husband, children, and one of my best friends and her son.  We had a drama-free Thanksgiving.  Huck fried two turkeys that were delicious!  Tiffany and I worked on the side dishes.
     Before we all ate our dinner (late lunch, early dinner), we tried to have Elijah say blessing for us.  He just stood there...silent...not knowing what to say.  We had Huck say the blessing...a super quick one and we told Elijah he could say it next year.  Everything was super delicious.  We had turkey, mashed potatoes, green bean casserole, sweet potato casserole and delicious sweet tea.  We had the table set but we all ate in the living room...not all...the kids were in the 'man cave' and the adults sat in the living room.  It was a very nice holiday.
     I thought I would not do much school work over the week long break...but I was wrong.  Once I sat down and realized how much I had done this upcoming week I knew that I had to get it done right away.  So the day after Thanksgiving the work started.  I had written my Utopia paper the weekend before Thanksgiving and now I had a paper on women in Postwar Suburbia, a seven page summary/response to the Navy SEAL book No Easy Day, 2000 words written for my memoirs and an Andy Warhol paper, PowerPoint and art project.  I have finished all but the last piece mentioned.  I have started my research for the Warhol piece but have not started writing yet.  I believe I am going to do a zombie Warhol canvas and give it to Christian when my presentation is over.
     School starts back up tomorrow so I will cut this blog short for now.  I am looking forward to my Christmas Break which starts December 14.

Blessings to all.