Week Two @ The Dahlhouse

I started week 2 at the Dahlhouse with a little bit of panic.  I had taken all the kiddos to the Dollar Tree for a treat.  They LOVE to find all sorts of treasures.  Man Cub was enthralled by these Valentine's beads.  Watching necklaces swing back and forth is one of his visual stems.  So I grabbed these for him, and he was very happy.  Fast forward an hour, and I am getting him ready for a nap at home.  I notice him trying to itch his arm.  I look down to see that he is covered in hives.  This quickly spread over to his other arm, and then anywhere the beads had touched him, he had hives.  It was slightly scary for a few minutes.  I quickly put him in a baking soda bath and called my good friend who walked me through what to do and even sent over liquid Benadryl.  Thank you!  Within an hour the hives had subsided and he was back to himself.  Bella and Matthew are my allergy kiddos.  They both struggle with environmental allergies.  Bella has her inhalers, and Matthew already has eczema.  So now I am carrying liquid Benadryl with me wherever I go, because I never know what is going to make him break out.  

This girl keeps me hopping and laughing.  Seriously...she loves all things fashion and makeup and this blonde wig was right up her ally.  I needed a good laugh after the hive incident.  

Matthew has kept me busy and tired this week.  He has this fabulous idea that getting up in the middle of the night for a visit is a great idea.  He has also decided that our bed is a lot more fun than his crib.  Him and I are going to have a long talk.   LOL.  He continued with therapy this week.  We are currently waiting for a referral for an occupational evaluation.    

Miss B continues to gain independence.  On Friday she walked herself into school by herself.  I'm both proud and sad.  I enjoy our morning walks into the classroom, and my morning walks back out to the van carrying a screaming toddler who doesn't want to leave first grade.  Hahaha.  She is also my mini me in so many ways.  I caught her "teaching" to her students.  I sure do heart this girl.

Chinese New Year is quickly approaching and I took the opportunity to send some cards, stickers and postcards to five of my regular students I see the most.  I was worried about how much it would cost to send this envelope to China, but much to my surprise it was only about $6 dollars.  The cards had nothing of value in them so I didn't need a customs form.  Hoping the cards make there way to my students.  The big envelope gets sent to the VIPKID office, and then they distribute the cards to the students.   

My latest read is the book pictured above Little Soldiers by Lenora Chu.  I am almost finished with it and the book has been a fascinated read.  It has allowed me to have a glimpse into the Chinese education system, how they are educated, the philosophy and what pressures my students I am teaching are facing.  I have really enjoyed reading this book.  I didn't quite meet my goal of 12 books last year...I was two short.  This year my goal is to read 24 books (2 each month).  As Matthew becomes older, I am able to spend more time reading (which I really, really enjoy).

I saved the best story for last...I am so excited to announce that Luke is going to Washington DC with his 8th grade class!  This handsome guy wanted to go so badly this past fall.  And when Mark and I told him "no" it nearly broke his heart.  We ultimately decided that given Luke's special needs(meds, schedules, organizational skills), either Mark or I would need to go with him.  Mark's work schedule is crazy, and I am parenting a 1 year old that wouldn't understand if I was gone for 9 days.  It was a difficult decision to make.  

Last week we were approached by a staff member that volunteered to be Luke's personal chaperone for the trip.  This person has had a lot of experience with special needs and understands Luke.  They asked us to reconsider.  I was so honored that this staff member would do this for Luke, however the huge hurdle was the cost.  We hadn't been saving for the trip because we had decide he wasn't going. It wasn't even on our radar.  And the money was due...well...now.  The trip is in 6 weeks.  

My heart was really heavy. As a special needs mama you want your children to be able to do and participate in things that "typical" children do.  You want the same experiences and opportunities.  Many times it just doesn't happen. A lot of times the answer is "no".  Sports is one such example.  Luke would love to play baseball and basketball.  He physically can't run very fast and the eye/ball/bat/hit combo is difficult for him with pitches that are thrown over hand and boys that much bigger than him.  He does play baseball in a special league and we've really encouraged golf, which he adores.   I cried a lot of tears over wanting to Luke to have this opportunity to go to DC now that it was an option.  

We decided to get creative...we had enough money for half of the trip ourselves, and the school had a partial scholarship but that left us $600 short.  I have a hard time asking for help, but I decided I could put my pride aside for Luke.  I am willing to do anything for him.  So I set up a go fund me and poured my heart out.  Within ONE day, the entire $600 was funded and we even got a little extra so he has spending money and we can go to Ross and buy a small suitcase for him.  So many people came together to support Luke, and make this a possibility.  The text messages and phone calls and offers blew me away!  Money was given from people I barley knew, and from people that believe in special needs kiddos having opportunities like these.  I felt so incredibly loved.  So in a matter of one week...Luke got his big wish.  I couldn't have done it by myself, and I will forever tuck this victory away, so that I can think back on it during times when I feel discouraged.  In a world where Luke experiences so many "no's"...this one got to be a YES!