The Last Six

On the 7th Day of Christmas, my true friend gave to me: Seven dollar meals cookbook.
           This was a cookbook named, "The $7 a Meal Quick & Easy Cookbook". Very cool.
On the 8th Day of Christmas, my true friend gave to me: Eight types of animals.
           This was a package of farm animals that has an adult and baby animal of each kind. The kids got to it                 before I could get a picture.
On the 9th Day of Christmas, my true friend gave to me: Nine pound of tangerines.
           Pretty self-explanatory. :)
On the 10th Day of Christmas, my true friend gave to me: Ten cars a racing.
           The boys were nuts over this one. They each got a five pack of Hot Wheels cars.
On the 11th Day of Christmas, my true friend gave to me: Eleven puzzle pieces.
            I am a huge fan of puzzles. This one was super cute. It has car puzzle pieces and they're magnetic. A little tow truck with a magnet moves the pieces around.
On the 12th Day of Christmas, my true friend gave to me: Twelve Apostles' testimonies.
            This is a DVD from the church called Special Witnesses of Christ. AWESOME DVD. I highly recommend it.

I thought they were going to let us know who they were, but I was wrong. So, whoever you are, thank you so much from the bottom of our hearts. We are so blessed and truly appreciate all the time, money, and sneaky skills that went into serving our family. We love you!

Day 5 & 6 Plus SNOW

5th Day of Christmas:

So, now I'm very confused because not a TON of people know that I must shop at Sunflower Market for the boys' special diets. It was so awesome to get these though! I had been needing to stock up on more Gluten-free and Milk-free foods for the kiddos, but wasn't sure about how I was going to pay for it all this week. So yesterday after seeing these on my front porch, I was so excited and went and got what I needed. It's so sad but I used up all the cards. It's THAT expensive; but it really was awesome to not have to worry about it this week. Whoever you are, I'm ON TO YOU! And you are just WONDERFUL!

6th Day of Christmas:

I wish I would've recorded Cruise's reaction after he opened this one. His eyes lit up and said, "Yay!!! Book!!!" And he sat right down and started "reading" it. The boys LOVE books.

SNOW:

Well, we finally got another batch of snow.

 Cruise is a die hard snow fan. I know because today while sledding, his socks and snow suit were drenched and he still was smiling and wanted more. It was actually Jett's first time sledding and he actually loved it. The expressions on his face in the pictures are more of a "wow, I'm not sure about this, but, I guess I'll go along with it," kind of look. But he really did have a good time. 

So...uh...we're going all the way down there? On a thin piece of plastic?

The boys 

Dad: Here we go!
Cruise: Yay!!!
Jett: I guess I don't have much choice, do I?

Here's a little video. It was after the first run with Jett where all three boys went down. When they got back to the top, Dave put them in the sled and instead of getting in with them (which is what I wanted) Dave slowly pushed them down the hill, looking at me with this priceless face. I don't know if you'll be able to see it very well, but the fact that he sat there staring at me with this unsure smile as he pushed them was pretty much hilarious. Check it out:

Make an on-line slide show at www.OneTrueMedia.com

4th Day of Christmas and Pizza Field Trip

This person must know me pretty well:

Today was another field trip with the Bridges Preschool. Cruise's teacher, Ari, has ties to NYPD Pizzeria in Draper so she arranged it for all the kids to make their own pizza. On top of that, the Pizzeria made it an Autism Awareness Day and if you have the coupon, gives 20% of the total bill to Kids on the Move Bridges Program. Cruise liked making the pizza, but as usual, not eating it. However, it was so much fun and a big surprise when Grandpa walked through the door! So Cruise enjoyed hanging out with his Gampa.

I bought little picture frame ornaments and put Cruise's picture in each one for his teachers. I had Cruise draw pictures on paper last night and wrapped his teachers' presents in them, and then at the pizza party, he handed them out and gave each of his classmates a candy cane (which he secretly wanted to keep from himself).

Cruise and Grandpa

Cruise breaking a candy cane instead of giving it to his friend.

Cruise saying, "cheese" Wallace & Gromit style.

Cruise was obsessed with this little toy the entire time.
So we ended up just letting him play with it until it was time to leave.

First the sauce,

Next the cheese, 

and finally the pepperoni!

Ready for the oven!

Then right before it was time to go, each of the parents got a gift that their kid(s) had made for them. I got an oven mitten with Cruise's footprint on it, and an ornament with a picture of Cruise's face inside; the outside was painted green (by him) and there were sparkles inside. He even made the gift bag! Such fun gifts! Apparently when I left the classroom the day they made them, Cruise was fussing and having a tough time. The teachers took his shoe and sock off, started painting his foot, and instantly he calmed down. Ha ha ha! That's sensory issues for ya! Man, I love this kid.

3rd Day of Christmas Gift and STOCKINGS!!!

I told you all I would update you on our gift today:

I was going to save the balls to give the boys for Christmas but a certain short person found them and pulled them out of the box. But HOW CUTE IS THIS?!

Finally, I finished the boys' stockings. I had wanted to make Cruise one long ago, but never got around to it, so I ended up buying one and not really liking it very much. So this year I finally made the stockings and for someone who doesn't sew, I must say I did a pretty good job. Very "button-y" as Dave commented:

What More Could I Possibly Want?

I think quite possibly this has been the most difficult year for us. But like I always say, the most difficult things are always of the most worth.

This year has been one of countless trials, tears, sleepless nights, and prayers. I never truly got what it meant to always have a prayer in your heart until this year. I think I am constantly praying, even when I don’t realize it.

I came across a progress journal that I started in January for Cruise that I unfortunately didn’t continue, but I read it and realized just how much progress he has made in the past year. This is more for me than you all, but I am going to type it out so I can have it always. So, here it is:

1/19/2010:       -Speech evaluation with April; referred to Occupational Therapist, Angela.

1/24/2010:       -Started using communication cards (PECS). Picked up quickly.

1/25/2010:       -Said, “ball”

1/26/2010:       -OT Evaluation with Angela

                        -Said, “bubbles”

1/27/2010:       -Said, “Thank you”

2/1/2010:         -Said, “go, go, go!”

2/2/2010:         -OT: shown different sensory activities

                        -said, “let’s go!”

                        -said, “bubbles” as he pointed to bubbles in a book

                        -said, “banana” while handing picture card

2/3/2010:         -AM: played with pillows, being squished

                        -listened to favorite music and sang songs

                        -played under blanket

                        -did arm and body compressions: enjoyed and relaxed

                        -talked to Daddy on phone

                        -gave Jett 2 kisses, wanted to hold Jett

                        -used “more” sign using help, to ask for more Rice Krispies

-because we started the day with a lot of sensory activities, he’s been more cooperative and less demanding of my time

                        -ordered Lycra bed sheet and hammock

                        -a lot more “talkative” than usual

-communicated wanted a nap by bringing me his Teddy, “baba” and squinting his eyes as if asleep

                        -said, “uh huh” in answering question

                        -said, “boat” without the “t”

                        -FITS: 2

                        -MELTDOWNS: O!

                        -TIME-OUTS: 0!

                        -I felt like a very good mom today.

2/4/2010:         -playdate with Logan

                        -1^st half of day was happy and cooperative

                        -struggled with therapy

-woke in the middle of night-I did compressions on arms and body; that helped him sleep

                       

2/5/2010:         -slept horribly

                        -had a couple meltdowns

                        -said, “tickle”

                        -rode in bike trailer which relaxed him

                        -visit from Kids on the Move

-I held him during a meltdown then got him to lay on the floor while I did compressions all over his body. Calmed him right down.

                        -May be dehydrated?

                        -used “more” sign with help

2/7/2010:         -we came to church 15 minutes early so Cruise would have time to adjust before sacrament

-we used the car picture before we left for church and the car and home pictures after church

                        -Cruise lasted 25 minutes in sacrament mtg!

                        -did well when congregation sang if he was playing with busy book

-did better during nursery singing time since we told them to start with soft song and to let him use the visual aids

                        -woke from nap and had a major meltdown (more common after naps)

                        -wasn’t too interested in doing therapy

                        -said, “thank you”

                        -“talked” to Dave for about 45 minutes before falling asleep

                        -new pictures for board

                        -M&M chart

2/8/2010:         -Cruise woke at 5AM but slept through the night

-did therapy by using heavy blankets: “Where’s Cruise?” and tickling. Liked the tickling but started to get really upset if I let it go awhile

-took an 1 hr. 45 minute nap but woke up and had another meltdown. Tried to distract him by putting on a show but started to have another meltdown. When I tried to turn it off, he got even more upset. Set the volume low.

-tired to say “more” while using sign

-sang songs and I had Jett doing the actions which Cruise really responded to

-Cruise wanted Jett to lay on top of him as he laid on his tummy. Great way to interact with both boys at the same time!

2/9/2010:         -woke at 1AM then again at 5AM and wouldn’t go back to sleep

                        -played with play dough

                        -took outside to park for 1 hr.

-swings: we talked about the color blue; he looked at the sky and got him to say “ssss”. We then pointed to eyes, nose, mouth, ears, face and head.

-walked around and tried to get him to say “tree” but just said, “truh”

                        -called the dog and made clicking sound like I do

                        -said, “goonigh!” (goodnight)

2/10/2010:       -woke at 1AM again

2/11/2010:       -OT

2/12/2010:       -made a new schedule

                        -used exercise ball to squish

                        -went to park

                        -pushed box with weights

                        -pushed him in lycra hammock

2/14/2010:       -therapy before church

                        -endured 30 minutes of Sacrament Meeting

                        -used earplugs for soloist

                        -did AMAZING in nursery

2/15/2010:       -went to Dino Museum

                        -didn’t get a lot of therapy in morning so had a lot of meltdowns

                        -walked around with weighted backpack

2/16/2010:       -swung in hammock

                        -pushed large broom on sidewalk

                        -raked snow

                        -took a walk

                        -climbed

                        -swung

I remember now that I stopped the journal because he got RSV and then Jett got it which led to Jett being hospitalized and so, I never continued the journal. But as I look back, things were like this for a LONG while, but he always improved and continues to improve each and every day. I am just glad he sleeps through the night now.

The stress has aged me. The stress of having an autistic son, the stress of having an infant, the stress of having no income, the stress of not having enough income, the stress of the unknown, the stress of not sleeping…it’s aged me and has really worn on me this year. I’m not gonna say it’s been my favorite year, but I will say that I do feel very blessed.

Life in general is not easy, especially if you are always trying your best. And when you are trying your best, you never feel like it is good enough. I think that’s a battle we all face. I have my trials and hard times, and so do you; but to be honest, I wouldn’t trade my trials for anyone else’s. Mine are tailored to me, because God knows I can handle them; despite large bald spots on my head and panic attacks, I can keep going, and He knows that I can keep going.

  Despite the stress, I have so much to be thankful for and so much to be happy about. My blessings outweigh my trials ten-fold. It’s the small moments that make my life so full and so blessed. 

It’s when Cruise is polite and says “please” and “thank you”. 

It’s when Jett gets into the peanut butter and gives me a HUGE smile when I catch him. 

It’s when Dave notices that I tried to pick up before he got home. 

It’s when one or both the boys come snuggle their Mom just because. 

It’s when Cruise lets me hold him when he’s sad. 

It’s when Jett puts his head on my shoulder when he’s sick. 

It’s when all I get to do at the end of the day is talk to my best friend. 

It’s when Jett follows me around asking to be read to. 

It’s when Cruise runs and hugs me when he gets off the school bus. 

It’s when we all are dancing to silly songs and just can’t stop because the boys want “more"! 

It's when bubbles are the greatest thing in the world. 

It's when hanging out on the kitchen floor is better than any other hang-out spot. 

It's when everything slows down and you realize life couldn't be more perfect.

Yes, my life is truly blessed and I wouldn’t change anything. Yes, it would be nice to not have to worry about money on a daily basis, but that day will come and that day will bring other trials. I have to remind myself to not wish for what isn’t, because then I’ll spend the rest of my life wishing instead of living; instead of just enjoying what is now. It can be difficult sometimes, but at the end of the day, as the last child quietly falls asleep, I exhale slowly and think, “What more could I possibly want?”

It's the Most Wonderful Time of the Year

However, I'm sure Jett wouldn't agree...but Cruise LOVES Christmas!

Cruise is completely infatuated with Santa Claus aka "Claus" or "Gampa" (because the two are interchangeable). Every time I tell him we are going to Grandma and Grandpa's house, he says, "CLAUS, CLAUS, CLAUS, CLAUS" pretty much the entire way to their house.

These pictures are from our ward Christmas party. There is a couple in the ward who always play Santa and Mrs. Claus because, well, that's who they look like. Luckily they had Santa first, then dinner, and then the program. The kids barely made it through dinner so we snuck out before the program, stealing some dessert on the way out. Don't judge me.

We got our tree up. This is the first year we have a fake one since we are using my in-laws' tree. But as anyone with little children know...the decorations were short-lived.  

We got a wonderful surprise a couple days ago when we notice a giant, 18lb. frozen turkey on our front porch with a note: "On the first day of Christmas my true friend gave to me: a great, big, frozen turkey." And this morning as I was on my way out to take Cruise to preschool, there were two presents wrapped with a note: "On the second day of Christmas my true friend gave to me: two packs of jammies." So the boys got some adorable new jammies today. To whoever has been so sweet and doing the 12 Days of Christmas for us, THANK YOU! YOU ARE THE WORLD'S SWEETEST PERSON! But it's killing me not knowing who is up to all this good ;) 

Stay tuned to see what Day 3 will bring us.

Jett's 1 Year Pictures and Stats

Here are Jett's 1 Year Stats:

Length (Height): 29.1 in. (23rd percentile)

Weight: 20.6 lbs (16th percentile)

Head Circum.: 18.7 in. (78th percentile)

So unlike Cruise, Jett is a little, little guy...but just like Cruise, Jett has a big melon. What can I say, I make large headed babies. But at least they're cute large-headed babies:

I can't help but notice Jett is the spitting image of Dave. You know how you meet someone's adult child and they look just like their parent? Well, Jett is definitely gonna be one of those people. Which is great because he's gonna be pretty darn good-lookin'. 

Lately Jett has been a bit of a stinker. He loves to do what Mommy tells him not to do...and he does it with a great big "I'm gonna pretend you said the opposite" smile. He loves to climb just like his brother, he loves to follow Cruise around and play with him, and he LOVES LOVES LOVES books. He follows us around all day with a book in hand saying, "Book, book" He wants to be read to all the time, so much so that the other day David said, "Why did you have to introduce him to books Emily?!" But it's pretty cute, even if we can't always sit down with him and read. However, when he does get his way, he always has this huge smile of satisfaction on his face.

Jett also has learned the art of whining. Don't get me wrong, he is such a sweet heart, especially right after a nap, but as time passes and naptime approaches, he can be quite the whiner. 

But he also loves to laugh too. He laughs when the dog licks his hand when he tries to sneak her his dinner, he laughs when Cruise does funny things, he laughs when we play peek-a-boo, and laughs when I throw him on the bed, over and over and over. He still is such a happy happy boy. He loves to dance, and sing, and clap (definitely is a big fan of Patty-Cake), and he loves to explore and destroy. I honestly think the movie "Lilo and Stitch" was about a toddler because all toddlers (especially boys) have some kind of programming that turns them into destroy-mode at age 6-9 months. Seriously, I feel like I have 2 Stitches running around the house and they finally poop out at the end of the day when there is nothing left to destroy. Then Mommy and Daddy clean it all up and it starts all over again the next day. If there wasn't anything to destroy, I honestly don't think they'd ever sleep.

Jett caught playing in the peanut butter.

Jett also LOVES kisses. He loves to get and give kisses. It's so fun!  

Finally, Jett has been saying a few words:

-Book

-Mom

-Dadda

-Ball

-Bath (in fact, he loves the bath so much that when we say the word, he walks straight to the bathroom like a robot saying, "bath, bath, bath, bath, bath")

-Dog

-Buh bye

We just LOVE Jett and don't know what our family would do without him. He really makes life so much fun and is truly our little sunshine boy.