Insurance Countdown....Take Two!

Well, here we are yet again...this past year has been up and down...mostly down, but by God's grace I should not discount the many blessings He has given! 
Big Daddy has changed jobs again, actually went back to the job from which he came...which is an entirely new Post!  So, we are in the probationary time where we are without insurance again...and we all know what that means...NO MEDS!

This time though, is not quite so rough...why?  Not sure...but giving all the glory to God!  Because Lord knows, I could not tolerate what we endured last year!  The extreme ups and downs and violence!  I truly believe my pleadings are moving the Hand of God...by faith, I truly believe that, because I BELIEVE in the power of prayer! 

School this last year has been yet another difficult challenge to say the least, but I am determined to teach my kids to be productive citizens!  Ha!

I have been following a blog "Amongst Lovely Things"....Sarah is TRULY an inspiration...she would prob be the first to say, "Eeeeewwwww, don't give me ANY credit like that!"  heeheeheeeeee, however, I gain strength with her every blog entry!  Thank you Sarah, and I am praying for your healthy delivery soon to come! 

Well, as for my Aspies...this is a total VEG week!  I ain't doing a thing!  After having commitments constantly for the last 4 months....I'm takng a WEEK off!!!! 

I am hoping to be more committed to this blog in the future, really I do!  Just make it hard when you are the Ringmaster in your very own 3-Ring Circus....ALWAYS!  lol

Insurance Countdown...5 Days to Go!

Well, we have been anxiously awaiting May 1...our new insurance plan begins.  With this change brings forth many other changes, including a change in doctors for the boys!  I am looking most to this, not because I know I am going to have to spend a small fortune in gas money trucking my little dudes around, but because I am determined to find some answers!  I have honestly had a bait of "quick fixes via medicinal cocktails"!  No more band-aids, please!
Truly, our boys couldn't be more different, yet are diagnosed equally.  The youngest's ADHD is more prominent than his Asperger's, but our middle son's Asperger's seems to be literally strangling the life out of him lately.  It genuinely breaks my heart, to hear the only options at this point are to either "call the cops" or "shove him in a "psych ward".  I am convinced that there MUST be other answers!  They may not be easy, but I KNOW they are there...somewhere!  I am even more convinced that somewhere in America there IS a doctor whose sole benefit is for the children & not how much of a "kick-back" he's gonna receive from a drug company. 
So far this week, I have been cursed at, called names, kicked twice, spit on, just to mention a few...and just when I get the mindset to claim a case of the "mulligrubs", I find myself somewhat ashamed.  Yeah, life stinks from time to time, but this is simply a short season in this life.  A brief hardship, perhaps?  Each thing I have encountered this week is just a small portion as to what my Savior, Jesus Christ, endured, on my behalf.  What suffering He undertook, as payment for MY sins!  Yet, in some merciful way, He still loves me, unconditionally, which I MUST do for my boys as well.  I must intercede for them, with prayer & fasting as never before.  Time draweth nigh...and their actions will reap eternal consequences.  I must stand in the gap, as needed...for that is the place in which the Lord has put me.  This is my here.  This is my now.  These are my boys.  I purpose in my heart to NEVER give up on them.  I pray I never lose sight of that small glimmer of  love that twinkles in their eyes from time to time, when there is but a fleeting moment of clarity, and I can for just a moment see into their souls, through their eyes.

Speaking of Ed Thornton, MD...

Speaking of Dr. Ed Thornton...our oldest son, Zachary, will be traveling with him, and his precious wife, Jana, and the rest of their team, on a Medical Missions Trip, to Africa this summer. What an amazing & unique experience this will be! Zack will also have a faithful traveling companion, Walker, to explore this other nation with. What a difference this trip is sure to make in their lives, both of whom are now eyeballing the medical field. Can you imagine anything more amazing for 2 teenagers to be a part of during their summer vacations? Talk about a vacation of a lifetime!!!! They will fly out July 10 and return July 28. I am praying for them all to have a safe & phenominal trip! Perhaps even meeting some African nationals to befriend for life. The group Zack & Walker will be going with are the cream of the crop! I'm not worried in the least for their well-being. I feel this group will only enhance their lives in ways I certainly can not, for which I am tremendously grateful. This trip will not be sponsored by "The Price is Right", but it's worth every dollar that will be spent towards this journey! I am helping the boys with a fundraising presentation to send out to churches and friends & family. I am certain that anyone who helps send these 2 boys on this trip, God will do nothing but abundantly bless! All donations will be tax deductible, as long as they are sent to the boys through our local church, Grifton Free Will Baptist Church, and specified for Zachary or Walker, or shoot, even both! :) The church has a website...feel free to check us out! We are a small & humble congregation of God-fearing folk...no fancy church around here...haha! I will attempt to post a link at least on here, for you to be able to view the final presentation. All donations are appreciated, and will be well applied.

2012...the Year of the Lion!

Well, we are 2 months and 15 days into this new year. Boy, has it been a doozy…but when living with Aspies, isn’t everyday really a doozy?! We are fortunate to have found out in the last few weeks, just how dishonest the Food Lion corporation is…luckily for us, Chris has found greener pastures with Harris Teeter. Training is long & difficult, but well worth it in the end…so we insist on believing! As Aspie moms know, finding time to “blog” is just not normally in the schedule, which is evident by the lapse of time since my last entry…keeping a consistent diary was also never a strong point of mine, growing up, you should probably know. This year, I am making a conscious effort to be more consistent…who knows, I may just be able to offer a glimmer of inspiration to another Aspie mom who may be out there & feel like they, too, are often just treading water, while waiting impatiently for someone to toss her a life-preserver! After years, and I mean YEARS!, of aimlessly floating in the Sea of Gloom & Dispair with Aaron, and his pain issues, his physical therapists determined that he had “reached a plateau”, and would better benefit from Biomedical Feedback Therapy…aka, acupuncture & meds for pain management…which we collectively decided against, since our insurance didn’t cover the procedures! Duh!!! Well, after showing Aaron’s x-rays to the BEST Doctor in the world, Dr. Ed Thornton, from Texas, he determined right off that Aaron has “Scheuermann’s Disease”…like he didn’t already have enough! Furthermore, it is genetic…and runs right thru the main street of our familial DNA! My great-grandfather had it, and Ed does too! (btw, he is my cousin J) So…our family dr, Carrie Smith, PA, here in Grifton is studying up on it, so we can form a plan of attack against all the bad juju Aaron lives with daily! Hooray, we finally have the answer to the 50 Million Dolla Question! Now…to tackle the laziness??? (that’s reserved for another blog entry!)

Medical Update

Well...it has certainly been a while since I have been able to post. Life is so busy, especially with 2 special-needs children...but all 3 of the boys are incredibly special! To summarize our summer...all 3 boys, once again, made the All-Star Baseball Teams. Aaron, however, was pulled from his team after their 1st tourney game by his father. It seems that the words he & Aaron's coach had were not kind, and although the coach acknowledged that Aaron was the best Catcher, he still would be playing the other child instead (even though he stank & was injured!)...we personally feel that the coach was intimidated by the other boy's daddy...he was scary. It broke my heart to see Aaron, just sit there waiting to play the game he had so faithfully been practicing for, not to mention, I was missing Matthew's games. Please let this be a lesson to all...don't "baby" or treat special needs children different because of their diagnosis, but treat them fair, because of their uniqueness & awesome talents they have! The boys' tourneys went well....then to Fall Baseball. Aaron had one of the 2 BEST coaches in the world! And get this...the boys on the team actually learned some fundamental basics! Yippee!! Chris was Matthew's coach, after being done very dirty by a "friend", but it ended up being the most amazing Fall season we have ever had! Super team, parents, coaches & players!!! (Especially the Scorekeeper...me! LOL) Zack found out this Fall that he can PITCH & CATCH! So now, he truly is a "Utility Player"...and is able to play any position his coach needs him to...although he prefers to NOT play 'sitting on the bench'. Almost forgot...Zack & Aaron went to Camp @ The WILDS in Brevard, NC...and had a wonderful time. Aaron went this year un-medicated! We tried to give him & Matthew's bodies a break from meds this summer. Their EOG test results were by far the most impressive yet, so this homeschool thing must be making some progress! LOL...Zack & Matthew both scored well, in the 90%s, and Aaron made the highest possible score the IOWA Standardized Test can issue! Thank God for their intelligence! Moving right along to the present... It is now November. For the past 6-8 weeks, Aaron has become more and more reclusive, yet more aggressive, violent, & volcanic, to say the least. The sad thing is, he no longer cares to whom he lashes out at. His violent tendencies are becoming not only more increasing, but sometimes seem to be constant some days. He calls us names & curses, using words that I was an adult before I even knew what they meant. He throws objects, hits, punches, kicks, pinches...and would make the Tasmanian Devil look like Tinkerbell! His obsession with weapons is at an all-time high, thus leaving us with no other choice, but to remove them from the house, until we can afford a sizable safe with a combo lock. Weekly, we have to stop him from trying to jump out of the 2nd story window, or climbing onto the roof. We have to search under his mattress and remove razors, knives, matches, lighters, & anything else he turns into a weapon of mass destruction, as we refer to them. We have had to remove the baseballs & bats from inside, so he doesn't bash anyone's head in...it is a daily struggle that has taken it's toll the past couple of months. And school?! No such luck! I work about once a week with him, usually one-on-one, to get him caught up, but he is just not interested...even in the fun things! I know he is bored & I try to skip things that he truly knows, but can't skip 5th Grade, until I know he has what he needs to advance. Matthew, too, is struggling with school, but mainly because of distractions within the harmony of our home. He is super smart & really is more independent with his studies than I give him credit for. I just love teaching him new things...what can I say? However, nothing ever strikes him as "new"...he just somehow already knows what I am talking about. Great student! Zack's school is going well...9th Grade homeschool is not as intimidating as it sounds! He is an excellent, independent learner, as well. A little lazy, but aren't we all, from time to time?! He adores Marine Biology & Oceanic Studies...and I am fostering that...just in case the MLB makes an unwise decision by not signing him as soon as they can! Back to Aaron--yesterday, we went to his psychiatric counselor, who is like one of our family now. She is as deeply concerned about him as we are, in fact, she reminded him that she prays for him every night...but Aaron didn't seem to find any comfort in that, at least not outwardly. She is leaning toward him having Schizophrenia, by the recent decline in his mental health. There is only 1 person in Pitt Co. that does these kinds of health assessments, and it is extremely costly...but my God shall supply all my needs, according to what my Bible says. We are also fortunate that she was able to get Aaron in with the other doctor @ her practice on Monday! Talk about a miracle! She got out "insurance issues" straightened out as well! Needless to say...she not only on the Christmas card list...but on our Gift list, too! LOL So...that is where we are...idle until Monday afternoon @ 4pm...Lord willing, Aaron will not do anyone any bodily harm until then. He did shut himself in the dryer this morning...but we have a smart appliance that will not start with an unusually heavy load inside. Thank God for another blessing! So...will try to update as quickly as I can, once we return from the doctor Monday...and more often, as we venture into a new realm of psychiatric adventures. Please keep our family in your prayers, that we might be used of God, to be witnesses for Him in all we do, for His glory, not our own.

Spring Wind Up

Well, Aaron & Matthew's Spring (regular) baseball season is over...now we await the announcements for the All-Star teams...I pray they make it this year. Poor guys were handed a lemon of a coach, whom I suppose I will assume the responsibility of firing. He was and remains such a loud-mouthed, "know-it-all" jerk, whom is easily manipulated by every breeze of desention that whips his way...don't you just LOVE people like that? God handled that situation, though, thankfully... School is almost over...working on our last 6weeks, then EOGs in July... Aaron still struggles daily & Matthew fights against his Asperger's, as well, however, by God's grace, we are still managing to excel...and I say this because of the observations that I make with other homeschoolers, both near and far. Sometimes, I believe I may "expect" too much from them, but can a good, Godly education really hurt? Seriously, can one truly know too much? All I can do is be willing to listen & follow God's path for our education & not base our standards upon others. Our pharmaceudical journey continues, with what seems to be a change every month now, but to no avail...Chris & I are stuck in the deep abyss of "do we or don't we medicate our kids"... We are praying that God will interveine & heal our lands, so to speak. We believe that God will touch our little boys & heal their little minds one day, but until then, we can only ask him for wisdom & discernment to get through our days. We are currently in search of a new homestead, somewhere we can settle down in & plant our roots... We're no longer going to be relocationg, unless God directs us to. The bad thing about trying to find properties... #1: There are homes that we can afford. #2: There are homes that we adore. Now if we can only combine those 2, we'll have a perfect match! Will post as soon as I know about our All-Stars & if/when we find a house to buy...until then, just keep praying for us.

Spring Fever!

Well, Spring is here & our baseball season is in full swing, if you'll excuse the pun. We are busier than ever this spring because of We LUV Marriage... This is a grass roots conservative group that I am Co-Executive Director of & we are hosting a rally Sat. May 9, so super busy planning & preparing for it! School is well...meds are changed...and we still want a calm life without any scripts! Will update with some pictures from our Easter & Spring Break & Baseball soon. You can check out We LUV Marriage's website at www.weluvmarriage.com

Last Day of our Break...

Just sitting around enjoying our last day of our "block break" before we begin our 5th 6 weeks tomorrow. Been raining for so many days in a row now! Still dreary & cold, but let the boys play outside anyway. They were getting cabin fever! I suppose we have a few "sick days" built up, just in case! They can't wait for Spring...and for school to be out for a while! Happy St. Patrick's Day!