Adios, 2010!

2010 has brought many changes to our family. I'm sure I'm forgetting a lot of important things, but it's late and I can't list every. little. thing. that has happened in our lives this year, or we'll be here all night! 

Adam & I went to Vegas for the Marine Corps Ball. 

It was the first time we had left the kids for a 24 hour period since they had been born! 

I got my first DSLR--Canon, and a few months later 

upgraded and switched to a Nikon D700. 

The twins had their 1st birthday.

M & R started walking! 

We took the kids to the San Diego Zoo and Sea World.

I spent 5 days in Minnesota looking for a house. 

We became homeowners! 

We celebrated our 3rd wedding anniversary! 

Adam was discharged from the Marine Corps. 

We left San Clemente to call Minnesota our home. 

We spent a week in Tulsa on our way to Minnesota--

it was the first time the twins had been there! 

Adam worked for my parents for about 6 weeks and then got a great job at BIC APP.

Spent a few days with my family lounging at the lake. 

I started my photography business, and shot my first wedding! 

Makaylin attended "school" (ECFE) once a week and loved it. 

Ryker started receiving early intervention services through the school 

district and he is responding (slowly, but surely) to the intervention. 

We spent many Sunday's frustrated with the Vikings. :) 

Adam spent a month in Tampa, FL for work. 

We spent a weekend being snowed in by a blizzard! 

Adam has probably spent at least 12 hours shoveling snow this month--

 hence, the reason we just bought a snowblower. :)

We hosted Thanksgiving at our house and got everyone (except my dad) sick...

...and they came back for Christmas Eve!  

We are grateful that 2010 has led us close to family-- this is a time in our life when family and good friends are needed most. For those who don't know, Ryker was moved to the top of the waiting list for evaluation, and we will be taking him in on Wednesday for his autism diagnostic testing. Please keep us in your thoughts! 

I wish for 2011 to bring acceptance, strength, and hope to our family.

Best wishes for a fabulous 2011! 

Christmas Eve

We started off the holiday weekend on the right foot! We had a [very] white Christmas [the only time snow beats the palm trees, beach, and sunshine we lived in the previous 3 years!], and our house was filled with family. That's right-- we hosted Christmas Eve this year. We spent the whole day prepping for my dad's side of the family to come over for dinner and present opening. 

Ryker did well-- he mainly stayed in our back living room where he was far from the chaos and room full of people. He had a good time and was mostly all smiles until it was bed time! 

I took some photos of the decor... but not people. Better luck next year. :)

Earlier in the day, we opened presents from Adam's side of the family. 

The kids got a new wooden table and chairs, and their fav-- new books! 

Cupcake, Please!

During the blizzard on Saturday I was cooking up a storm (haha)! I was making red velvet cupcakes to use for "cupcake jars" and have a few extra. Of course, my family happily obliged when I asked if they wanted to eat the extras, and Makaylin loved her cupcake. She kept saying "cupcake! cupcake!" while she stood on her chair, reached over the table, and stuck her finger in another cupcake....

Pudding!

Makaylin slept much longer than Ryker did, so he got an extra-special snack on Thursday afternoon... pudding! It is actually gluten-free pudding, as I am experimenting with dairy-free and gluten-free products right now. I don't have him on a full blown GF diet right now, I'm just dipping our toes in the water. We will see how that goes-- it is worth a shot, right? 

So anyway, he was having a great time and loved the pudding!

Is there more? 

The Heart of Life is Good

"No, it won't all go the way it should

 But I know the heart of life is good"

This post has been a long time coming. Believe me, this isn't easy for me to write or put out there for everyone to see. But, I know this is a step in the right direction and it will aid me in accepting the current situation my family and I find ourselves in. 


As you may or may not have noticed, in the past few months there hasn't been much activity on this blog. The main reason is because most of our focus has been on our son, Ryker. You see, my little man has had some set backs and we are working on them. Since his 1 year check-up with his Pediatrician in California, we have been spending much of our time trying to figure out how to help him. 


So, about 1 week after we arrived in Minnesota, I contacted the local Early Intervention Program and they started the intake/evaluation process rather quickly. This was the first step in what has become a very long and trying journey. Ryker has significant developmental delays in his speech and fine motor skills. He also has some sensory issues. So, since September he has been receiving Occupational Therapy and Speech Therapy on a weekly basis. We have seen some improvement, but as a mother I was still very concerned. The "A" word [Autism] had been thrown around every now and then since his 1 year check up, and at his 18 month well-check he failed the MCHAT (screening tool used for Autism). The pediatrician strongly recommended we get Ryker formally assessed for Autism, since his MCHAT showed he was very high risk. 


I cannot tell you what a struggle it has been to deal with this news. No one ever wants to hear that their child may have Autism. It is a terrifying word. I was horrified--hell, I still am. I'm scared. I'm angry. I'm sad. But, I'm hopeful. I am now an advocate for my son and have spent endless hours on the phone with Autism Center's and Specialty Centers trying to find the right people to do the diagnosis evaluation. We are on waiting lists for the eval--some of them as long as a year. 


I am also blessed for the amazing support I have found in other mother's of autistic children. They assure me that my feelings are normal and that one day I will find acceptance. I don't feel so alone when I can relate to other mom's who are living what I am living. 


Sometimes I wonder why I was chosen to be Ryker's mom--it is such a challenge and some days I just feel like I can't do it. It's too hard. It's like the lyrics to the song "Breath of Heaven": "Do you wonder as you watch my face/If a wiser one should have had my place?/But I offer all I am/ For the mercy of Your plan/ Help me be strong/Help me be/Help me..." But, then I realize that I am his mom because I love him more than anyone will ever know. I will fight for him harder than anyone else can. He is my little man! 


So, now that I have unveiled Ryker's struggle, I hope you will continue to follow us on this journey and rejoice in the accomplishments that may seem small for a normal child, but are huge for him! 

St. Nick!

As a child, I always loved the tradition of "St. Nick".  Every year on December 6th, we would set our boots outside and wait in anticipation for St. Nick to pound on the front door. Once we heard the loud knock, we would run as fast as we could to try to catch a glimpse of him...although we never had any luck.  What was left outside our door was a jumbo Christmas bag full of crayons, coloring books, candies, small toys, and pickles (just for my brother...boy did he love his pickles!).

As a mother, I am now carrying on the traditon of St. Nick to my children. Last night was big night and although the kids aren't old enough to really understand, Adam and I were excited to see their faces as the look through their bag of little goodies! Unfortunately, they weren't as excited as we had hoped. When "St. Nick" knocked on the door, the dogs went crazy and it turned into chaos. Ryker started crying because of the commotion, so we decided to eat dinner and then let the kids look through their bags.

Until next year...

Daddy & His Clippers

I had been bugging Adam to cut Ryker's hair for the longest time...and last night was finally the night!

Before: with his Albert Einstein hair!

After: Hey... there's my little man!

Cheeeeeese!

The kids were exploring the tree the other morning, so naturally I pulled out my camera. Mak noticed and right away she started swinging out her hips and saying "cheeeeeeeeeeeeeeese"! She had never said this before, and I had no idea how she knew to say "cheese" when the camera was out. 

It was very adorable, and although the photos aren't fabulous technically (forgive me, but I am OCD about my photos!), they sure do melt my heart!