We all have those times in our lives when it feels like the weight of the world is resting squarely on our shoulders and our shoulders alone... this last few weeks have been that way for me. Hence the unexpected and abrupt end to our normally regular SOS Blog posts. I apologize for our absence... but something had to give and for me the last few weeks that was the blog.
One of the biggest keys to being organized is setting routines and limits for yourself and obeying them... it is an essential key of time management. With my son's surgery, the end of school, some great new projects going on in our company, and some family obligations... I set myself some limits in order for all of the pieces to stay in place in my household.
Another key to being organized is that when circumstances change... so does your schedule. My life is now calmer... therefore allowing me to return to blogging.
I am all about practicing what I preach... so take a lesson from me and my family- when you are overwhelmed, find what needs to give and be willing to compromise for a short while. It will save you a great deal of stress and allow you to focus on what is most important at that time.
So without further ado (starting tomorrow)... "we now return you to your regular scheduled postings... "
Showing posts with label Personal Stories. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Personal Stories. Show all posts
Sunday, June 6, 2010
Monday, May 24, 2010
My unexpected weekend...
Well... we took a week's break from blogging last week because we had some BIG things going on. Some things that I am very excited to be sharing with you all in upcoming posts over the next few weeks. However, today I am taking this opportunity to blog about something that every mother is very familiar with- the unexpected.
As a mother you can plan and plan but life with children is always bound to throw you a curve ball or two. I have learned the true test of motherhood is not in how well you plan all the time but how well you can respond to the curve balls that are hurled your way.
As Friday drew to a close at my house, I was anxiously looking forwards to a wonderful weekend that was planned and laying out ahead of us. First up was to put our above ground pool up for the summer. Since the weather was calling for 90's by Sunday I thought it would be a great time to take our first dip of the summer. About 20 min. into the process we could tell that we had a problem. The pool was not filling up normally... after wasting an hour looking for a pinpoint sized hole it was patched and we went on with the set up process. Things were looking good until I got a phone call from a neighbor saying that my backyard was flooded... *sigh*.
I ran to the backyard to discover that one entire side of the pool had caved in at hour three of the fill up process. I had planned to take a dip this weekend in my backyard but not IN MY BACKYARD.
As I was struggling to save the pool my middle son who is six came outside looking very pale. He was complaining of a stomach ache, so I did what most moms would do. Sent him in to use the bathroom and told him I would be right there to check on him. When I got to the bathroom five min. later he was screaming and crying. He was burning up and screaming that he was having horrible pain on the right side of his tummy. Having lived through an appendix issue myself a red flag went up in my mind right away... I quickly had him in the car and the other two kids at my moms as we raced to the emergency room with my son still screaming and crying. My fears were confirmed and he was rushed into surgery Saturday afternoon to remove his offending appendix. This was defiantly not in the plan for this weekend!!! I am happy to report that after spending an extra day in the hospital due to a fever that would not go away we are headed home today to shower and recover in the comforts of our own home.
I share all of this with you for two reasons...
As a mother you can plan and plan but life with children is always bound to throw you a curve ball or two. I have learned the true test of motherhood is not in how well you plan all the time but how well you can respond to the curve balls that are hurled your way.
As Friday drew to a close at my house, I was anxiously looking forwards to a wonderful weekend that was planned and laying out ahead of us. First up was to put our above ground pool up for the summer. Since the weather was calling for 90's by Sunday I thought it would be a great time to take our first dip of the summer. About 20 min. into the process we could tell that we had a problem. The pool was not filling up normally... after wasting an hour looking for a pinpoint sized hole it was patched and we went on with the set up process. Things were looking good until I got a phone call from a neighbor saying that my backyard was flooded... *sigh*.
I ran to the backyard to discover that one entire side of the pool had caved in at hour three of the fill up process. I had planned to take a dip this weekend in my backyard but not IN MY BACKYARD.
As I was struggling to save the pool my middle son who is six came outside looking very pale. He was complaining of a stomach ache, so I did what most moms would do. Sent him in to use the bathroom and told him I would be right there to check on him. When I got to the bathroom five min. later he was screaming and crying. He was burning up and screaming that he was having horrible pain on the right side of his tummy. Having lived through an appendix issue myself a red flag went up in my mind right away... I quickly had him in the car and the other two kids at my moms as we raced to the emergency room with my son still screaming and crying. My fears were confirmed and he was rushed into surgery Saturday afternoon to remove his offending appendix. This was defiantly not in the plan for this weekend!!! I am happy to report that after spending an extra day in the hospital due to a fever that would not go away we are headed home today to shower and recover in the comforts of our own home.
I share all of this with you for two reasons...
- One, I want you to always remember... I too deal with life's nasty curve balls. I too have plans fall through and I too have to scramble to keep it all together at times.
- Two, I was reminded several times this weekend why being organized comes in handy in a time of crisis like ours this weekend. Tomorrow's blog is entitled Lessons Learned from the Hospital Stay... and I hope you come back to read and learn from from my experiences.
For now I am going to log off and pray that my plan of a long hot shower and a home cooked meal for me and my son do not get messed up by any other curve balls today... I think I have played enough baseball for one weekend.
Friday, April 2, 2010
A personal Friday Five
I hope that you will excuse this slight divergence from our normal Friday Five as I share a personal story about today with you.
Today is World Autism Awareness Day and I am wearing light blue. I have always been a big supporter of this important cause but it takes on a new, personal meaning for me this year. Only a few short months ago my 8 year old son was diagnosed with Autism spectrum disorders, specifically Aspergers. I wear blue today for him.
Since he was young I always knew that something was... different. (It's hard to find a term to use there.) His anxiety level was through the roof all the time and he was a very structured child who could not handle any changes that he was not notified ahead of time. Any degree of spontaneity in our lives was washed away to prevent melt downs and panic attacks.
The diagnosis a month ago did not surprise me but it still left me a little numb for a few days. After years of seeing doctor after doctor only to have them say they are not sure what it was... enduring tests, scans, and blood work to rule other things out... a name was a blessing in disguise. A name has given us power over this invisible force that has been in control of much of our lives, it has allowed us to get education, treatment, support, and peace of mind that we had been lacking before.
Today is also an important day in my home because it is Good Friday and the beginning of Easter weekend. As professing Christians we know that it is because of this weekend that we have a hope and a future... it is for this same reason that I know that God has a special and unique plan in mind just for my son and he was PERFECTLY created to fit that plan.
I do not claim to know it all when it comes to this new force in our life. I am learning all I can about Aspergers and the different ways that we can incooperate it into our lives. However, I have learned five things that seem to really help my son cope... and they all involve organization and routine.
1. He wants to know the plan. All kids thrive on structure but I am learning that kids on the spectrum are especially fond of it. I make a point to tell the entire family each morning what our game plan is for the day and I try very hard to stick to that plan.
2. He wants everything to have a home. Homeless items cause clutter and clutter stresses my son out. (He is his mother's son after all). I have seen this be especially true of his belongings, he wants to be able to find what he wants when he wants it, if he can't he gets very anxious and upset. We have created a place for everything in his room.
3. He is very visual. If he can't see something than it does not exist so I use clear tubs to organize his room and he has a table where he is allowed to spread things out.... it is currently full of pieces to a disassemble VCR that he has been taking apart a little at a time. I recognize his organizing style and try to accommodate it versus fight it.
4. He gets anxious when we are in a loud room or a busy place. I have learned to pack him quite activities that will refocus his attention when we have to be in a place like this. I keep this "quiet bag" in the car at all times so I can grasp it anytime he needs it.
5. He struggles with the concept of time. Instead of telling him that he has only five min. to pick up I play two songs on the CD player and let him know that this equals about five min of time. I try to use cues like this often instead of ONLY telling him time amounts so that he is building a realistic view of time instead of a more abstract one.
Today I am celebrating World Autism Awareness day for my son, my nephew, and the millions of other children that are also affected with this condition. These kids are amazing, unique, and unbelievably talented and I am honored to have such a special kid in my house! He challenges me everyday to be a better mom and a better organizer by making me think outside the box on a regular basis.
Today is World Autism Awareness Day and I am wearing light blue. I have always been a big supporter of this important cause but it takes on a new, personal meaning for me this year. Only a few short months ago my 8 year old son was diagnosed with Autism spectrum disorders, specifically Aspergers. I wear blue today for him.
The diagnosis a month ago did not surprise me but it still left me a little numb for a few days. After years of seeing doctor after doctor only to have them say they are not sure what it was... enduring tests, scans, and blood work to rule other things out... a name was a blessing in disguise. A name has given us power over this invisible force that has been in control of much of our lives, it has allowed us to get education, treatment, support, and peace of mind that we had been lacking before.
Today is also an important day in my home because it is Good Friday and the beginning of Easter weekend. As professing Christians we know that it is because of this weekend that we have a hope and a future... it is for this same reason that I know that God has a special and unique plan in mind just for my son and he was PERFECTLY created to fit that plan.
I do not claim to know it all when it comes to this new force in our life. I am learning all I can about Aspergers and the different ways that we can incooperate it into our lives. However, I have learned five things that seem to really help my son cope... and they all involve organization and routine.
1. He wants to know the plan. All kids thrive on structure but I am learning that kids on the spectrum are especially fond of it. I make a point to tell the entire family each morning what our game plan is for the day and I try very hard to stick to that plan.
2. He wants everything to have a home. Homeless items cause clutter and clutter stresses my son out. (He is his mother's son after all). I have seen this be especially true of his belongings, he wants to be able to find what he wants when he wants it, if he can't he gets very anxious and upset. We have created a place for everything in his room.
3. He is very visual. If he can't see something than it does not exist so I use clear tubs to organize his room and he has a table where he is allowed to spread things out.... it is currently full of pieces to a disassemble VCR that he has been taking apart a little at a time. I recognize his organizing style and try to accommodate it versus fight it.
4. He gets anxious when we are in a loud room or a busy place. I have learned to pack him quite activities that will refocus his attention when we have to be in a place like this. I keep this "quiet bag" in the car at all times so I can grasp it anytime he needs it.
5. He struggles with the concept of time. Instead of telling him that he has only five min. to pick up I play two songs on the CD player and let him know that this equals about five min of time. I try to use cues like this often instead of ONLY telling him time amounts so that he is building a realistic view of time instead of a more abstract one.
Today I am celebrating World Autism Awareness day for my son, my nephew, and the millions of other children that are also affected with this condition. These kids are amazing, unique, and unbelievably talented and I am honored to have such a special kid in my house! He challenges me everyday to be a better mom and a better organizer by making me think outside the box on a regular basis.
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