cam update

I've been wanting to write about this for a while, but I honestly didn't want to jinx it. :) Right now we are waiting on our school district to assess Cam in order to decide what services, if any, they want to offer him once he turns 3 (which is when they take over from the county). Right now he attends a speech class, Occupational Therapy, and has a home teacher come out once a week.

To be honest, besides the speech, I wonder if they'll qualify him for much of anything. This is so exciting for me to be able to say. What's even more exciting is what has seemed to happen the past few weeks. We feel like we have turned over a new leaf and have a different little boy.

I've shared several times that Cam has had great difficulties when it came to being around other people. This wasn't all the time, but it happened enough to make us shy away from inviting friends over, pursuing friendships with other couples, etc. But lately Cam has been AMAZING when we have gone over to a friend's house for dinner, when I've taken him to a friend's house for a playdate, when we've taken him to visit his cousins, etc. He has walked right into these places, plopped down, and started playing (even when there are other kids "in his space").

One of the reasons I've hesitated posting this is because I would never want people to think that we didn't enjoy being parents up until this point, because that is no where close to being true. We have adored it. But the stress that we (mainly me) would feel when we would be with others did consume us at times. A friend of mine, who has also had difficulties with her child, put it perfectly. She said, "I can't fully celebrate when she doesn't (freak out) because I'm just waiting for the next time she will." I couldn't have described it better.

Granted, he still has some difficulties with baby noises and still does get overwhelmed sometimes with people. And I know we might regress in this area for whatever reason, but I can honestly say the improvement we have seen is such a blessing and something I want to celebrate.

Sorry this was so long...thanks for sticking it out to the end.

newport beach

pre school

Today Chris took Cam to OT so I could visit some pre schools. We are looking at enrolling Cam this coming fall for a couple mornings a week. This search I'm embarking on wasn't exactly in our plan from the beginning. It isn't that I have anything against pre school, I just had always wanted to keep the kids at home until they started kindergarten. However after several doctors (basically all the professionals we have seen regarding Cam) told me that pre school would really help Cam socially, I finally gave in.

I have visited 6 so far, and have it narrowed down to 2. While I look for the typical things like teacher/kid ratio, location, safety, etc., I think my main issue is whether or not the teachers seem super warm and friendly, or if they are just there for the job. I feel like I can gauge this pretty well. I honestly could care less if the teacher went through training on instructing children to be academically successful (he's only 3!!!)). I want teachers who are the nice, sweet, grandma types, who just adore kids. :)

So while the thought of not having him around two mornings a week isn't the most pleasant for me, I know that he will really benefit from all social interaction and being away from me will probably be a good thing. :)

successful and not so successful

I have oatmeal every morning.  With the oats, I usually mix in a couple spoonfuls of Zoom Cereal, which is 100% whole wheat flakes (it's the consistency of flax seed and has a similar nutty taste).  On the back of the Zoom box, they had a recipe for some cookies using the cereal.  I made them and they are a hit with Cam.  They are super healthy (as far as cookies go) because I made them with whole wheat flour plus an extra 3/4 cup green bean puree.  Obviously they aren't as good as a Mrs. Fields (Chris would even argue as to whether they should be called cookies!), but my goal was for Cam to like them as a semi-healthy snack, which he does. Click here if you want the recipe (I added raisins).

My not so successful attempt in the kitchen happened tonight.  I've seen many recipes which call for Polenta and I've always been curious about it.  I made chicken Parmesan with polenta on the side and I have to say, it was a disappointment.  Despite it being "garlic herb" flavored, in addition to me sauteing it in olive oil and adding a little mozzarella on top, it just did not have much flavor.  I told Chris that it seems like one of those things that is supposed to take on the flavor of whatever you cook it with.  He said, "How could we get it to take on the flavor of New York Steak?"  :)

nothing like a Sunday at Urgent Care!

We had a first aid info talk at my mom's group on Friday. One of the things covered was when to take your child to the ER, and when to just wait it out. Ironic how we were confronted with this very thing this morning. Rather than give you a play by play, I copy/pasted what Chris wrote on his Facebook page.

Cam woke up very upset this morning and grabbing his neck. 2 hours, Xrays, lots of screaming and cheerios later . . . doctor said it was a kink in his neck. Awesome, maybe he can tell me that the sky is blue and that the economy is bad. Thanks Doc. At least it's going to cost us probably $300.

Sidenote: While his comment is obviously sarcastic about the doctor, we both agreed that he was very nice and of course it was not his fault (as we are the ones who brought Cam in!!).   And while we are glad we went in for our own peace of mind (Cam was just too upset for us to simply wait it out), it isn't that fun to think about the fact that we will probably end up paying literally $300 toward our deductible to be told Cam had a kink in his neck. Oh well...such is the life of parent!

Here is a pic of Cam watching TV favoring his good side. He still won't turn his head to the right because it is still painful. Otherwise, he's a happy camper!



p.s. A VERY interesting thing I learned during the talk was that after an earthquake, cell phones are obviously jammed as EVERYONE is trying to use them.  However one of the girls at my group heard on the radio that texting uses a different frequency and you will have a much easier time communicating with loved ones via texting. Good to know!

tacky or not?

Last night we went to some friend's house for dinner. I had offered to bring a salad and dessert. In an email to my sister and mom, I mentioned this and that I had decided to just get a bagged, pre-made salad since salads aren't really my expertise. I was chastised (teasingly of course) by my sister for bringing a store bought item to a friend's house. Here are the emails that transpired. My sister is in blue and I'm in red.

Kelly, make the salad, goof!! It’s not that bad. I have a great recipe for Caesar Salad dressing from Chris’s mom. Very easy. Tonight we had Chicken Caesar Salad for dinner and it was so yummy. But you would just do it without chicken. OR this fabulous pear and bleu cheese one that I posted about. That one is FAST – and you aren’t making the dressing. (Course not for tonight but another time???)

Caesar Salad:
1. Wash lettuce
2. Chop up lettuce
3. Make dressing (dirtying my blender)
4. Put in separate containers (dressing, pears, and salad) so you can assemble it at their house so it doesn't get soggy
5. Assemble at friend's house

Salad Kit:
1. Bring salad bag, bowl, and tongs to friends house
2. Dump contents and eat

hehe :)

Do you feel embarrassed bringing a salad bag to someone’s house?

bagged salad? No. Store bought dessert, I would.

(after thinking it over I sent my last email...) Great, now you have me second guessing my tackiness in bringing a bagged salad you turd.

Here is the dessert I made (Tollhouse Choc. Chip pie). I felt like I put a lot of effort into it and therefore I shouldn't feel badly about the salad (which as we know is NOT the highlight of the meal compared to a dessert!). What do you think? Is homemade always required when you offer to bring something?



p.s. Bonnie, since I know you read my blog, I guess the cat is out of the bag about my salad. :) Hope you enjoyed it anyway!

"so cool"

I just bought some new lotion and as I was putting it on, I realized it reminded me of Sunflowers, a perfume that came out back when I was in Jr. High/High School. I remember thinking I was so cool when I bought this perfume...not sure why. Now you can buy it for $5 at Walmart!

It got me thinking about other things I bought back when I was young that I also felt "ultra cool" buying:

*Body Suits- Yes, these came out when I was in 7th grade and I thought they were SOOO rebellious and cool. I guess I never actually bought one because I don't think I had the guts to wear it. :)

*Dr. Martens: These were probably my first pair of expensive (at least more than I was used to spending) shoes and they were worth every penny as I felt quite awesome in them.

*Skorts: I thought I was awesome because for a skirt, it was shorter than I would have been allowed to wear...but wait mom, they are actually shorts!!

*Minnie Mouse Key Chain: This one is a little weird, I know. Basically I bought this months before I got my drivers license. I kept it securely in a zip lock bag (because heaven forbid it would...umm..mold???) until the day of my 16th birthday, when I finally got my license. I think I felt cool because it was more of a symbol of what was to come. Not sure what I was thinking as Minnie Mouse seems a little childish for a mature 16 year old. :)