I've been pretty focused on my other blog:
fit&fabulous4timemom.blogspot.com
but I've been neglectful of that one too.
I'm super excited! We bought a 5th wheel trailer! I'm hoping it will solve our (my) allergy to camping. It will give us a consistent, hopefully comfortable place to rest our heads while enjoying the great outdoors. Living in Washington, it's a real shame that I'm so allergic to camping since there's so much awesome stuff to see here.
We're picking it up in two weeks. I'm planning to turn it into a "glamper" with hardwood floors and a light, pretty design for the walls and cabinets. No 'wood grain' and brass for us!
I'm hoping to post pics as we go through the remodel process.
Wednesday, July 15, 2015
Monday, January 26, 2015
It's been a while...
It's been a while, like years. I have another fitnfabulous4timemom blog, but this one is devoted to my family.
I think where we last left of my family was living in Normandy Park. Parker was diagnosed with autism. Since then, we have moved to the West Hill of Kent (because we like the drama of higher crime rates, and because our awesome, huge house was affordable). All four of my kids were diagnosed with a genetic anomoly. Apollo was diagnosed with autism. Parker and Apollo have two genetic anomolies, and Bryce and Halea only have 1. It was sort of a blow to our family, and I've spent the last year trying to wrap my mind around what this means. In some ways it's great to know what causes all of the symptoms I see in my kids. We have an answer as to why Parker jumps and squeals while he's watching TV and why Apollo has such emotional outbursts causing everyone around him to pay when he doesn't get his way ~ as well as why they talk over each other to get their point across. That's autism. In their own worlds, they only hear themselves, unaware that they have three siblings trying to relay what's happening in their own world.
Since moving, Bryce has really grown up. He's doing really well in school, he's managed to keep himself out of trouble, and he's a really fun person to be around. He's lighthearted and really funny. I see the transition of becoming more of a friend than a mom to him. He seeks Ryan's and my guidance on issues and he trusts that he can come to us with anything. It was so hard with him between 9-14. He'll be turning 16 in June and I feel so blessed to have the strong relationship that I do with him.
Parker is awesome! He has always been awesome. He's always had his own ideas about how things should be. He's phasing away from legos and that makes me sad. He has always loved the idea of blowing things up and causing mass destruction. He seems to be getting away from that a bit these days ~ Yay!!! He's in a special ed program at school. It's been a hard transition. I notice that he is less normal since being in this program as he doesn't have the peer modeling component of normal kids to emulate. He notices that other kids don't love him like they used to and that's hard for him. At his old school everyone knew him and adored him in all his weird ways. He's going to be 10 this year and there's something about preteen walking around in his undies that is less cute than a 5 year old doing the same thing. Thanks to Murray Goldberg on The Goldbergs, Parker learned to "park his pants at the door" and he remains that way any time he's at home. He aspires to have an RV that he parks in our driveway as an adult.
Apollo is my little love ... an no one else's. I call him my sweet treat. He's a bit of a jerk to other people. He just says whatever is on his mind not really acknowledging that it might be hurtful to that person. He's very literal, too. He likes to pretend that he's a puppy and wags his bottom if he's happy. He's in a general ed class where he really doesn't fit in, but after what I've seen happen with Parker once those peer mentors have been lacking, I'm reluctant to put Apollo into a similar setting. Which is why I'm considering homeschooling the three youngest kids.
I'm terrified to homeschool my kids. I've finally gotten to a point where I have my days free from 8:30 until 2. Most days, though, I'm called to pick someone up for various reasons. The little ones hate school. It's a battle to get them on the bus most days. It's difficult for them to articulate why they hate school so much (there's the autism again), but they do.
Halea is a beaming, beautiful butterfly, just like her name. She is perfectly girly, but has a stubborn streak that I think will help her as an adult. She wants things her way and will fight for what she wants. She never stops talking. Seriously. I love what she says, though. She has friends at school. Everyone adores her. They call her princess or butterfly ~ both perfectly fitting. She says she wants to be where her brothers are, so if they homeschool, she wants to, too. She's doing so well that it would be sad for me to have her miss out on the social part of her school experience. She and Apollo will be starting gymnastics in a couple weeks, so perhaps there will be some social connections made there.
Ryan graduated from nursing school and worked at a mental hospital in West Seattle for two years. Then he got on with the VA last September. It's been a hard transition for him as the vets at the VA are much less crazy than what he's used to dealing with. The VA has many opportunities all over the country for work, so we've considered taking 6 month stints of work in other places to see our beautiful country a bit more. Homeschooling would make that transition much easier.
I've been busy! When we moved I quit my job with the Highline School District to focus on being home with the kids. I miss my job, but I'm busy with the kids and the Y keeps me busy. I was able to get ACE certified as a Health Coach, so I'm doing that now. I still teach fitness classes, but my love is health coaching. I help people set small goals to get them moving in the right direction toward a bigger goal (weight loss, better health, etc). I love impacting people's lives. I can spot someone who will be successful with in the first 20 minutes of a conversation with them. It's pretty cool to hone that skill. I spent the first 8 months in our house remodeling it. It was incredibly taxing and I feel like I aged ten years in those 8 months. I've gained 20 lbs while living in this house. I don't love that, but I'm ok with it. I've run a marathon, several 1/2 marathons, and last October I did a Srint Triathlon where I placed in the top 5 against teams. I'm not sure if I placed 1st or 2nd as an individual. Pretty cool. So those extra 20 lbs aren't holding me back from doing the things I want to do. Right now I'm training to walk the Rock N Roll marathon in June (walking rather than running due to a hip injury). I'm looking forward to it. Two weeks later Ryan and I will go to Vegas to celebrate his 40th birthday, and three weeks after that we will do the Wipeout run. It's going to be a great summer!
I think where we last left of my family was living in Normandy Park. Parker was diagnosed with autism. Since then, we have moved to the West Hill of Kent (because we like the drama of higher crime rates, and because our awesome, huge house was affordable). All four of my kids were diagnosed with a genetic anomoly. Apollo was diagnosed with autism. Parker and Apollo have two genetic anomolies, and Bryce and Halea only have 1. It was sort of a blow to our family, and I've spent the last year trying to wrap my mind around what this means. In some ways it's great to know what causes all of the symptoms I see in my kids. We have an answer as to why Parker jumps and squeals while he's watching TV and why Apollo has such emotional outbursts causing everyone around him to pay when he doesn't get his way ~ as well as why they talk over each other to get their point across. That's autism. In their own worlds, they only hear themselves, unaware that they have three siblings trying to relay what's happening in their own world.
Since moving, Bryce has really grown up. He's doing really well in school, he's managed to keep himself out of trouble, and he's a really fun person to be around. He's lighthearted and really funny. I see the transition of becoming more of a friend than a mom to him. He seeks Ryan's and my guidance on issues and he trusts that he can come to us with anything. It was so hard with him between 9-14. He'll be turning 16 in June and I feel so blessed to have the strong relationship that I do with him.
Parker is awesome! He has always been awesome. He's always had his own ideas about how things should be. He's phasing away from legos and that makes me sad. He has always loved the idea of blowing things up and causing mass destruction. He seems to be getting away from that a bit these days ~ Yay!!! He's in a special ed program at school. It's been a hard transition. I notice that he is less normal since being in this program as he doesn't have the peer modeling component of normal kids to emulate. He notices that other kids don't love him like they used to and that's hard for him. At his old school everyone knew him and adored him in all his weird ways. He's going to be 10 this year and there's something about preteen walking around in his undies that is less cute than a 5 year old doing the same thing. Thanks to Murray Goldberg on The Goldbergs, Parker learned to "park his pants at the door" and he remains that way any time he's at home. He aspires to have an RV that he parks in our driveway as an adult.
Apollo is my little love ... an no one else's. I call him my sweet treat. He's a bit of a jerk to other people. He just says whatever is on his mind not really acknowledging that it might be hurtful to that person. He's very literal, too. He likes to pretend that he's a puppy and wags his bottom if he's happy. He's in a general ed class where he really doesn't fit in, but after what I've seen happen with Parker once those peer mentors have been lacking, I'm reluctant to put Apollo into a similar setting. Which is why I'm considering homeschooling the three youngest kids.
I'm terrified to homeschool my kids. I've finally gotten to a point where I have my days free from 8:30 until 2. Most days, though, I'm called to pick someone up for various reasons. The little ones hate school. It's a battle to get them on the bus most days. It's difficult for them to articulate why they hate school so much (there's the autism again), but they do.
Halea is a beaming, beautiful butterfly, just like her name. She is perfectly girly, but has a stubborn streak that I think will help her as an adult. She wants things her way and will fight for what she wants. She never stops talking. Seriously. I love what she says, though. She has friends at school. Everyone adores her. They call her princess or butterfly ~ both perfectly fitting. She says she wants to be where her brothers are, so if they homeschool, she wants to, too. She's doing so well that it would be sad for me to have her miss out on the social part of her school experience. She and Apollo will be starting gymnastics in a couple weeks, so perhaps there will be some social connections made there.
Ryan graduated from nursing school and worked at a mental hospital in West Seattle for two years. Then he got on with the VA last September. It's been a hard transition for him as the vets at the VA are much less crazy than what he's used to dealing with. The VA has many opportunities all over the country for work, so we've considered taking 6 month stints of work in other places to see our beautiful country a bit more. Homeschooling would make that transition much easier.
I've been busy! When we moved I quit my job with the Highline School District to focus on being home with the kids. I miss my job, but I'm busy with the kids and the Y keeps me busy. I was able to get ACE certified as a Health Coach, so I'm doing that now. I still teach fitness classes, but my love is health coaching. I help people set small goals to get them moving in the right direction toward a bigger goal (weight loss, better health, etc). I love impacting people's lives. I can spot someone who will be successful with in the first 20 minutes of a conversation with them. It's pretty cool to hone that skill. I spent the first 8 months in our house remodeling it. It was incredibly taxing and I feel like I aged ten years in those 8 months. I've gained 20 lbs while living in this house. I don't love that, but I'm ok with it. I've run a marathon, several 1/2 marathons, and last October I did a Srint Triathlon where I placed in the top 5 against teams. I'm not sure if I placed 1st or 2nd as an individual. Pretty cool. So those extra 20 lbs aren't holding me back from doing the things I want to do. Right now I'm training to walk the Rock N Roll marathon in June (walking rather than running due to a hip injury). I'm looking forward to it. Two weeks later Ryan and I will go to Vegas to celebrate his 40th birthday, and three weeks after that we will do the Wipeout run. It's going to be a great summer!
Thursday, July 19, 2012
Summer Days
We went to the annual Kelly Family Reunion. It's been about three years since I've attended, so it was really nice to see everyone. My sisters and I got together the night before and had some sister time. I don't think there's anything better!
Summer is my favorite time of year. I definitely appreciate having the time off from work to spend with my family.
Wednesday, April 18, 2012
Oh these kids...
Today when I went to get Apollo and Halea off of their bus, I noticed that Halea had fallen asleep on the bus. Normally she's wide awake on the bus ride home sitting next to some strange kid. Today the bus driver had put her next to Apollo and I think she felt so comfortable next to him, she fell asleep.
Bryce went on a field trip to Chinatown in Seattle today with his class. Ryan gave him a little bit of spending money. I figured he would come home with some little trinkets or something. Nope. He came home with two grocery bags full of foods from the Chinese market. Fortune cookies galore!
Parker had his birthday last Saturday. He had decided that he was turning 58 so that he could then be older than his teacher and be her boss.
I love all my babies so much!!!
Wednesday, March 28, 2012
Mama in the Making
I read this wonderful story a long time ago about the miracle that mothers are. It takes somewhere in the neighborhood of 20-30 years to see the miracle unfold, so a lot of people miss it. After reading that, I have recognized the miracle that it is when a girl becomes a woman and then a mother.
This morning I was getting ready for work. Halea was sleeping in my bed. She had fallen alseep there with her dollies last night, and I didn't have the heart to move her. So, while I was doing my hair, I heard my daughter's sweet, breathy voice say in a hushed tone, "It's ok baby, mama's got you", something I have said to her when she has been upset. I looked around the corner and there she was wrapping her dolls in my workout sweat towel and rocking them. Miracle in the making!
This morning I was getting ready for work. Halea was sleeping in my bed. She had fallen alseep there with her dollies last night, and I didn't have the heart to move her. So, while I was doing my hair, I heard my daughter's sweet, breathy voice say in a hushed tone, "It's ok baby, mama's got you", something I have said to her when she has been upset. I looked around the corner and there she was wrapping her dolls in my workout sweat towel and rocking them. Miracle in the making!
Saturday, March 17, 2012
Poor, Neglected Blog
This whole working mom thing is harder than I thought it would be. I haven't really cooked since getting the job. Ryan has been awesome to take my role while I have been working. He just got a job at a mental health facility, so things are about to change, AGAIN! We won't see much of each other working opposite shifts, but the kids won't have to be in daycare at all. Halea and Apollo are going to start afternoon preschool so the small hiccup when Ryan leaves for work and I get home, the kids will be taken care of. I feel so blessed that everything is working out well ~ better than I could have imagined.
I took on another bootcamp class. Going a month without teaching was killing me! It's one thing I'm really good at ~ fitness is my passion and I love sharing that with people. So, I feel blessed to have this awesome class to teach. They're not my Friday am mommy friends, but they'll do. And I'm sure they will become friends soon.
Summer is 11 weeks away ~ that's when I'm done working for the 2011/2012 school year. I can't wait to have long lazy summer days with the kids.
I took on another bootcamp class. Going a month without teaching was killing me! It's one thing I'm really good at ~ fitness is my passion and I love sharing that with people. So, I feel blessed to have this awesome class to teach. They're not my Friday am mommy friends, but they'll do. And I'm sure they will become friends soon.
Summer is 11 weeks away ~ that's when I'm done working for the 2011/2012 school year. I can't wait to have long lazy summer days with the kids.
Wednesday, February 22, 2012
Working and Working Out
I had Monday and Tuesday off this week and I had a little awakening on Sunday after a conversation with my mom (check monicasweighdown) that had me back on my treadmill early Monday morning. I love my job ~ the kids are great (who doesn't love little sickies and fakers), the paperwork is fun (because it's still new) and it's nice to have other adults around to talk to. But I don't want to allow the fulfillment of my job replace my need to keep myself in shape ~ to keep my body a priority. It's hard. I'm having to sleep in my workout clothes, wake up at 5 am and get my butt on the treadmill by 5:05 to make sure I have enough time to run, shower, dress, and eat before I get to work at 7:30. Today I did just that AND dressed Apollo so Ryan could take him out to the bus. It all worked out! Let's hope I can keep it up.
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