Learning!

You can learn at any age. Actually I think we all learn something new every day. Maybe something small. Today I learned that if my daughter wants to clothes shop, let her. Ash & I went out on our own today to do a little shopping. When we got to the second store, Target, Ash saw this skirt made by Sonny Munroe. For those of you who do not know who Sonny Munroe is, I will tell you. Sonny is a character on a show on the Disney Channel. The actress who plays her is Demi Lovato. Ash loves this show. She had to have the outfit, which was a cute shirt & skirt. I told Ash it will be her picture day outfit. Ash never wants to do 2 things. 1. Clothes Shop. 2. Try on Clothes. Ash got her backpack for school at Walmart. Weird when I was out with Noah last week, I was going to get her the same backpack, but she said she didn't like Hannah Montana. Well, now she does. Daughters! They are confusing. 1 minute she loves HM then the next she didn't. Now she does. Ash has always loved HM. I think she was being influenced by someone.

Last night I learned Noah is always hungry. Always. I think I heard "I am hungry, mom" 50 times last night. When Noah is a teen, he will eat everything in the house & Ash will come to me & say, "Noah did it again, mom!"

I learned when it comes to Ethan, he loves my recliner. lol. He will climb into it & fight me for it. Ethan is now 18 months & his personality is definitely showing. 1. If he wants a drink or a dink as he calls it, you must be quick. I am slow to try to teach patience. If is funny because Noah & Ash will tell him that he needs to be patient.

2. If he wants something like my recliner, he won't give in. This remembers me of a t-shirt Noah had. If it is in my hands, it is mine. That kind of shirt. He wore it about the age Ethan is now.

3. He adores his big brother, but if he is mad at him, boy, he lets him know!

4. When he is happy, he loves to dance!

5. You can not say 2 words in our home----> Bye & Night Night to him because he thinks he is going somewhere or going to bed. Not good if we are not doing either of those. Tonight I said to Ethan, are you ready for bed? He was half way down the hallway before I got him.

This week I learned that I hate the Wii. I love that the kids get moving with it. I love that I can use the Wii for occupational therapy for Ashleigh for her hands, which I do a lot. What I hate about the Wii is when my husband & Noah are playing it! All I hear is "Wait, let me catch up!", "You killed me!", "Get me out of the bubble! (from Mario Bros.). Any moms with husbands & sons out there, don't get the Mario Brothers Wii game. My mom is/was always complaining about my dad playing the Wii. I can now understand. I only understand this complaint!! (inside joke!) The kids & I do have family night nights on our own or with Shawn. That is fun, but listening to them as Ashleigh said it "annoying!" Actually she said 2 boys + a wii=annoying. What a girl we have!!

The last time I ask this question: Is leg pain a part of HSP? I learned the answer. YES, it is part of HSP. I am learning so much for everyone with this list serv. They are so wonderful, supportive, & understanding. If you want to learn more about HSP, click here. It is a nice chart that has the symptoms of this disease. I printed it out & it is in my purse for when we see Ashleigh's neurologist next month. We have an appointment before that & we will be spending the day at Children's. Oh fun! I also want to get Ash evaluated for CAPD. She has a lot of the symptoms. I learned from a lady in the list serv that this CAPD & HSP are common together. It wouldn't hurt to get her evaluated. It could help with her reading. Anything to help that. Talking about her reading while we were out today at Target I got her 2 new books by Beverly Cleary called "Ramona & Beezus" & "Ramona's World" to help her with her reading. Interesting facts about Beverly Cleary: she is 94, she wrote all of her books long hand, & she wrote books that she couldn't find on the library shelves when she was a kid. Ash & I are going to start reading "Ramona & Beezus" first. I told her if she reads this book then we will go see the movie. Let's see if this works.

I have learned this week not to forget this. I love my life even though I live in pain. I know that each day I will have a new challenge, but with my kids & husband by my side I can do it. I need to be a good role model for Ash. Not sure how to do this yet. My husband, kids, family, my friends, who stuck by me in the darkest of times. Thank you!

So, what have you learned?

Mel