Recovering Noah

I'm writing twice in one day! It's unheard of, isn't it? Actually, the kids have been quietly playing all day long.  No fighting or squabbling or yelling to be heard. It makes me think that perhaps the world might end tomorrow. Freaky. Being that tomorrow rings in 2012, I thought I'd do what all other folk do this time of year and sit down and write some resolutions. Usually, my resolutions center around a common theme... quit eating chocolate, start exercising, and for the love of Pete, get Noah potty-trained. I have miserably failed on every single one. Every single year. Which could explain my issues with self-worth and inability to trust myself. But this year it's different. This year, potty-training is NOT going on the list. I'm just hoping it spontaneously happens and then I can go, "Wow! Will ya look at that? Noah's potty-trained and I didn't even make it a goal this year. How awesome are we??"  And then I'll take my left ...

I just have to pop on here quickly to say that I AM RIGHT! Our neighbors ARE pot-heads. I told ya. I TOLD YA! Now, if you read my last blog post, you'll remember that I've long subscribed to the theory that our neighbors are pot heads. EVERY SINGLE TIME anyone burns leaves in our neighborhood, I smell pot. And you might recall that Sim has long subscribed to the theory that I am a crazy woman who likes to stir up trouble and who hopes to get on the local news. Well, Sim just raked and burned 20 loads of leaves. And does it smell like pot? No it does not.  And why doesn't it? Because we don't smoke pot. So here's the scenario that just played out in our front yard... Me - Hmmm. Whatcha doin' there, Sim? Sim - What does it look like I'm doing? Me - Looks like you're burning some leaves there... Sim - (Stops what he's doing and looks at me)  Go ahead and say it. Me - Say what? I just came outside because I saw you burning some leaves a...

A few days ago, one of my favorite bloggers did a blog post about some of her quirks. And then about 200 of her blog followers posted their quirks in the comment section. Now, I have quite a few quirks myself, but I wasn’t about to expose myself to a blogger who probably has about 20,000 people reading her blog each day. So, I thought I’d just post them on here where all 8 of you can see it. See. It pays to be unpopular now and then. Therefore, I present to you my top 10 quirks. In no particular order… 1. I fake burp. I can’t stand burping. I don’t why. I just think it’s gross. Even though I’ve been known to mimic a small earthquake after drinking an A&W real fast. But in general, I can’t stand it. Growing up, my dad burped a lot. All. The. Time. (And I’m super sure he’s going to be pleased that I put this on here). And one day, after hearing him burp for the 1,000th time that day, I fake burped  after him. It wasn’t so much of a burp as it was an “eeggghghk...

Today, I asked Noah what he wanted to be when he grows up and he spelled out D-O-C-T-O-R.  I asked him what kind and he spelled out A-U-T-I-S-M. Then he spelled out C-H-I-L-D-R-E-N.   I said, "You want to be a doctor who works with children who have autism?"  and he spelled out Y-E-S.  Then he spelled out I G-O  T-O  C-O-L-L-E-G-E and looked at me as if it were a question. And though my heart was breaking, I said, "Of course you'll go to college! But you'll have to work really hard." And the truth is... I don't know what will happen 8 years from now. Or 18. Or 28. Maybe he WILL go to college one day.  Maybe there will be a cure. Maybe we'll find a way to continue to tap into his potential and he'll be the first nonverbal/autistic college graduate in the world. Maybe he'll talk! I have no doubt that he'll make a mark on this world. But as his mom, I want ALL his dreams to come true. Not just the little ones, but the big ones, too.  An...

Well, the cat's out of the bag. If you read Lori's post about the Coffee Fundraiser, then you know that we're adopting a little boy from Ind*a. And we're naming him Naveen. I still can't give a lot of identifying information... and, boy, do I wish I could post his picture. You'll just want to reach through the computer and squeeze him up. He's adorable!  But I have to wait until we pass court to do any of that.  And right now we don't know when  that'll be. Because of the fundraiser, I had to break my vow of silence and announce Naveen's upcoming adoption on my Facebook page. I was hoping to keep it a secret until right before travel, but things happened which made us need to fundraise... and well, that's why we had to be a bit more open about things. Anyway, I've had a lot of people email me or call me with questions. So I thought I'd answer some of them right here. 1. Why are you adopting from Ind*a again? Well, we actua...

Ok so it's Lori here--not Leslie. I have hijacked her blog to tell you about an awesome fundraiser to help their exceptional family add another wonderful little boy to the mix. Leslie is the type of person who goes above and beyond for everyone else... I mean have you seen her passion for Central America that turned her into an overnight doll maker to raise funds for beds for a poor family in Guatemala? Did you recently participate in the auction for Sarah's Covenant Homes? That was the brain child of Leslie. Those are only two examples of how Leslie goes out of her way for everyone else.  I mean all you have to do is read thru her blog and see the fantastic way she and her husband are working their tails off for their children at home and their little cutie in India. Now it's our turn to love on her family.   India is currently going through some changes in their adoption policies. Along with changes means more money is needed to ...

I posted this on Facebook - sorry for the repeat if you've already seen it..... *********************************************************************** Photo courtesy of Whole Foods Market    Eli is sick today and Nandi doesn't feel well, so I thought I'd better see how Noah was feeling, too... "How are you feeling Noah?" S-I-C-K "You feel sick?" Y-E-S "Where does it hurt?" N-O-S-E "Does anything else hurt?" S-T-O-M-A-C-H "I'm so sorry. Would a pospsicle make it better?" Y-E-S "What flavor?" N-O-T G-R-A-P-E "Okay, orange or cherry?" O-R-A-N-G-E 5 minutes later... "Do you feel better now?" N-O "What would make you feel better?" B-A-N-D-A-D-E "A bandaid would make you feel better?" Y-E-S "But you're not bleeding." N-O "But it'll make you feel better?" Y-E-S "What kind of Bandaid?...

Me - Noah, what do you want to talk about today? Noah -    I-N-O-T-T-A-L-K Me - I know you can't "talk", but you know what I mean. What do you want to talk about? Noah -  I-N-O-T-T-A-L-K Me -  O-kay. What do you want to spell then? Noah -  I-N-O-T-T-A-L-K Me - Hmmm.... so you can't talk, huh? Noah -  N-O Me-  Okay, so tell me one thing that I need to know about you. Just one thing. And I'll leave you alone. Deal? Noah - Y-E-S Me-  So what's the one thing I get to know about you today? Noah-  I-N-O-T-A-D-I-N-O-S-A-U-R Me - Really. You're not a dinosaur? Noah -  N-O. Me - Good to know. Noah - Y-E-S Me-  Are you having a laugh? Noah-  Y-E-S Me - Do you think you're funny? Noah - Y-E-S Me- Yeah, you're pretty funny. =)

Once upon a time there was a monster. He was so nice. On Halloween he didn't scare no one.  Instead, he gave all the kids candy. The End.

Noah's really making me laugh today.  His spelling is still sporadic, but when he's "on" he is on! We were sitting at the table and Nandi & Eli were spouting off math facts and getting them all wrong. "7 + 3 IS nine!!' "No it's not, it's 8!!!" This went on for about 5 minutes and Noah got increasingly upset. Finally, he started rocking back and forth and shrieking while banging his head. I asked him, "Noah, are you mad that they're messing up all the math facts?" (If you'll recall, Noah's favorite thing for me to do is to sing the multiplication tables.) And he spelled out Y-E-S. "Why" "B-E-C-A-U-S-E  I  N-O  E-V-E-R-Y-T-H-I-N-G!" I didn't point out that he obviously doesn't know how to spell "know".  We'll work on that one later. =) We also started on Noah's diet again today. The past month was just awful. My hat is off to any parent who wo...

Things have been so busy around here that I haven't had a chance to actually sit down and write much. Right now, I'm just writing down Noah's conversations so that I won't forget them. Here's his first poem. He wrote it (well, pointed it!) last Friday when were in Austin to work with Soma.  She had him pick two words that rhyme and then she told him to make sentence using those words. I think it adds an extra dimension to his cleverness. =) 1.  The ride was long      I heard a song That was written after we finally arrived at HALO. It took 4 hours to get there because I was stuck behind a mobile home going 40 mph for a good 70 minutes.  I sure hope Noah didn't pick up any the words I was saying along the way.... 2. I heard a noise     I had no choice     It came from running boys     Not from toys This was written after our lunch break. We were headed back and some college kids thought it'd be fun to dart in and o...

I know that if I don't sit down right now and put pen to paper (or finger to keyboard) then I'll forget. And I know that I owe a big explanation on what we're doing with Noah and all that, and I will try to write something soon.  In the meantime, Noah is amazing us lately with his spelling on the letter board. Noah, if you could have any superpower in the world, what would it be? T-A-L-K What's the hardest thing about being 9 (almost 10)?  N-O-T  T-O-I-L-E-T  T-R-A-I-N-E-D What's your favorite song at the moment? S-O-M-E-O-N-E  L-I-K-E  Y-O-U Noah! I change that song every time I hear it. (I'm a bit tired of it).  Do you want me to stop changing it? Y-E-S If you could live anywhere, where would you live? T-E-X-A-S  W-I-T-H   M-O-M If you could invent anything, what would it be? T-O-Y-S  T-H-A-T  D-O-N-T  C-O-S-T When were you the happiest in your life?  M-E-E-T-I-N-G   A-N-O-O-P  (when he met Anoop...

Q&A with Noah (on the letterboard) What’s your favorite color?   G-R-E-E-N What’s your favorite food? R-I-C-E What's your favorite dinosaur? S-T-E-G-A-S-O-R-U-S  What’s your favorite movie? E-L-M-O I-S G-O-O-D Which Elmo movie?  H-A-N-D-S  (Elmo has Two Hands, Feet, and Ears) Who's your favorite singer right now? A-D-E-L (he meant "Adele") What's your favorite holiday? C-H-R-I-S-T-M-A-S What do you want for your birthday? D-R  P-E-P-P-E-R No, Noah. What toy do you want for your birthday? T-R-A-I-N What famous person would you like to meet? M-I-L-E-Y  C-Y-R-U-S  (lol... really??) What’s your favorite book? M-R  G-U-M  (fantastically brilliant, offbeat, slightly offensive British children's series that has a wicked sense of humor and keeps us both in stitches) I'm loving learning more about my sweet Noah!

I'm sorry I haven't responded to my emails or blogged this past week. I fried our computer. Long story. In fact, it'll probably be a blog post later in the week. (And if you've been reading this for a while, then you may remember that I fried our last computer, too!).  Maybe this is a sign that I need to stay away from computers?? Anyway, in my last post about the upcoming auction for Sarah's Covenant Homes , I showed a picture of baby Emma. I'm proud to say that Baby Emma is home! She's now at Sarah's in Ongole and weighs 5.5 lbs. She needs to gain 1 more pound in order to have shunt surgery. Will you pray for her health? You can also read all about Emma on Sarah's new post HERE . And if you would like to participate in the auction, please let us know! Thanks!

Many of you know that in January 2010, I went on a trip to India to volunteer at Sarah's Covenant Homes. It completely changed my life. I fell deeply in love with Sarah's mission to help abandoned children with special needs and I think I left a piece of my heart with every single child there. Last week, Sarah brought home 21 new children from the government orphanage. This means 21 new beds, 21 new sets of clothes, diapers for 21 new kids, medicines and therapies and surgeries for 21 more children... it adds up fast. We have decided to hold an Arts & Crafts auction to help raise money for SCH and their new children.  We've started a blog called Auctions for a Cause and you can find it HERE  . You do NOT have to be crafty or artistic to donate. One lady sells Pampered Chef and is donating a Pampered Chef item. We've had people ask if they can donate gift cards. A friend of mine is donating the cowboy decorations from her son's room.  I have some aprons t...

This may very well go down in history as the most boring blog post ever. It's just occurred to me, though, that I haven't updated in weeks, so I thought I'd sit down really quickly and type out a brief update. And I know I'm not known for my brevity, but I'll try to keep it brief. I chose to write this during the very hectic 30 minutes before school starts, so I have no choice. And who chooses to blog during the morning rush?? Clearly, I need to work on tightening a few loose screws. Okay... 1. I have received some really lovely comments in the past couple of weeks and I am sorry I haven't written back. I'm not trying to be rude. I've just been completely overwhelmed these past few weeks. I really appreciate comments, even though I'm a complete cow when it comes to writing back. I'll try to do better. And Jenna, hi! Nice to meet you. I PROMISE I'll write back. Pinky swear. 2. Noah is doing a new therapy AND diet, which is...