Week #1 @ The Dahlhouse

Happy 2018!  It is a new year, and with a new year comes new goals and plans.  One of my goals, is to complete a weekly update on the blog.  I started with good intentions last year, but never could keep caught up.  So this year...here I am...making it a goal of mine to complete all 52 weeks.

I have to admit though, the Christmas holiday did not turn out the way I planned or envisioned.  I ended up catching a horrendous stomach bug that lasted for 6 days!  I kid you not!!!  At one point I thought I was going to need to go to the ER for dehydration but eventually was able to keep in Gatorade.  I had all these grand plans to do with the kiddos the week prior to Christmas; however, due to my illness, we literally stayed home in PJ's.  Thankfully I felt much better by the time Christmas rolled around.

Our anniversary was January 2.  We celebrated 19 year of marriage!  How can we have been married that long!  Seriously. In my head I don't feel much older than the day we said, "I do." We celebrated by taking the kiddos to the Oregon Coast.  It was the most beautiful beach day for January.  The kids flew their little kites (even though their was no wind).  Man Cub enjoyed running around in the sand.

The kiddos returned to school January 3 and I have slowly began getting Christmas décor put away for another year.  I think it is almost finished.  Finally. 

I am dealing with the aftermath of a hit and run on our brand new van.  Went into Target to pick up prescriptions....20 minutes later came out to the back drivers side completely scratched up.  I couldn't believe it.  I went back into Target to talk to security.  Unfortunately all those camera signs that they post all over,, don't really mean much unless your vehicle is front and center.  Nothing was caught on camera.  No note left.  No witness.  I've kept a pretty decent attitude about the whole thing, and I was very proud that I didn't say anything I would regret.  My older kids were watching and I am hopeful they were able to learn a valuable lesson about honesty, consequences and people are more important than things.

Man Cub had therapy this week.  He is currently on break from feeding therapy (which has gone very well), and we are awaiting a new evaluation for occupational therapy.  I've had a new awareness of Matthew's (Man Cub's) needs.  He is showing some symptoms/signs of having a spectrum disorder.  You think with my background and education I would have put two and two together sooner, but when it is your own child (and not a student) I think sometimes you just get so caught up in life you don't stop and think.  Currently, Matthew has a language delay, feeding delay, toe walking, he has visual stems he does, lines things up, and sensory issues.  The positives are that he has great eye contact.  I am not borrowing trouble or self diagnosing.  I am only being aware of the symptoms and watching him closely.  I am very thankful that he is in early intervention. I am so glad I trusted my mom gut when I talked to the doctor when Matthew was 9 months old.

Here's to a New Year.  With all the hope, promise and blank pages waiting to be written!

Week #41 @ The Dahlhouse

Week #41 found us attending "Apple Day" in the first grade.  I got to bring a long a little helper.  And help he did!!!  He helped re-arrange of all Miss Moore's books, and pencils and scrap paper.  He helped by climbing under all of the desks and throwing paper on the floor.  He helped by screaming in protest when it was time to leave.  He is such a good helper.  Bella's class had fun making applesauce, graphing their favorite types of apples and making apple noodles.  I really appreciate all the fun hands on learning she does in school. 

I went back out to the Vancouver Pumpkin Patch and had fun picking tomatoes and peppers and came home to make fresh salsa.  I've always wanted to this, and it was good to begin something and see it through to completion. 

This is real life most days...me cleaning and the kids coming right alongside me destroying any of my efforts. 

We had our family pictures taken.  Stay tuned!!!  I can't wait to see them. 

Keeping up with this guy!  He loves being outside and because we have had some unusually warm days we have been able to play more.

My ever growing long lists have helped keep me organized.  I enjoy seeing things get crossed off the list. 

We were excited to have Bella's teacher and her daughter over to our home for a play date.  The girls really enjoy one another's company.  They caught so many frogs in our backyard I lost count. 

We love our bun-buns and so does Matthew!

Dahlhouse Life: Week #41

Week #41 found us attending "Apple Day" in the first grade.  I got to bring a long a little helper.  And help he did!!!  He helped re-arrange of all Miss Moore's books, and pencils and scrap paper.  He helped by climbing under all of the desks and throwing paper on the floor.  He helped by screaming in protest when it was time to leave.  He is such a good helper.  Bella's class had fun making applesauce, graphing their favorite types of apples and making apple noodles.  I really appreciate all the fun hands on learning she does in school. 

I went back out to the Vancouver Pumpkin Patch and had fun picking tomatoes and peppers and came home to make fresh salsa.  I've always wanted to this, and it was good to begin something and see it through to completion. 

This is real life most days...me cleaning and the kids coming right alongside me destroying any of my efforts. 

We had our family pictures taken.  Stay tuned!!!  I can't wait to see them. 

Keeping up with this guy!  He loves being outside and because we have had some unusually warm days we have been able to play more.

My ever growing long lists have helped keep me organized.  I enjoy seeing things get crossed off the list. 

We were excited to have Bella's teacher and her daughter over to our home for a play date.  The girls really enjoy one another's company.  They caught so many frogs in our backyard I lost count. 

We love our bun-buns and so does Matthew!

Dahlhouse Life: Week #39 & #40

Week #39 found this little Man Cub and I at another developmental evaluation.  This time he was evaluated at a feeding clinic by a speech and language pathologist.  I really felt that Matthew would be fine, and the SLP would say he is making slow progress let's check him in six months to reevaluate his progress.  I was not prepared for the therapist to tell me that Matthew was going to need 12 weeks of feeding therapy, and then reevaluate if he needs more.  Matthew has very low oral motor muscle tone.  He doesn't move the food around in mouth the way he supposed to.  He often will use his hands to push food into his mouth instead of using his tongue.  I find all this information faciniating and frustrating all simultaneously.

It's been a very long road to get help for Matthew.  I was first alerted to the fact that Matthew might need help when he choked on a piece of food nearly a year ago. This event led me to begin to think about some of the milestones that he was not meeting. Lots of advocating, met with lots of waiting followed.  Nothing has been quick or efficient.  The sign that hangs in the pediatricians office reads, "Babies Can't Wait."  However...I have found that is all we get to do is "wait".  I have often wondered how many babies get lost in the paperwork and scheduling and waiting.  I am a college graduate/educator who understands how to advocate for kids and this is my experience.  Currently, we are waiting to be scheduled to begin feeding therapy. 

In the meantime, we have our first homework assignment from the feeding therapist.  We had to take Matthew off all sippy cups with spouts.  The cup in the above picture is a 360 degree Munchkin brand cup.  It is pretty amazing how it works.  He can drink from it the way you would normally drink from a cup, promoting his mouth muscles to work properly, but the flow of the liquid is controlled by the design of the cup.  The next thing we had to was take him off all baby food pouches.  This has been oh so tough. I must admit must tougher than I thought.  Pouches are the greatest invention and he loves them.  But...we have gone back to the baby food containers and a spoon.  This allows him to work his mouth muscles again instead of sucking the food into his mouth and swallowing like a straw.  The next step will be to get rid of the bottle.  But...I'm not taking that on right now.  And he really only has a bottle before nap and bed.  

I finally completed a project I had been working on. It was a long project (mainly because I am raising 4 kiddos LOL).  But it was very enjoyable and I love looking at our favorite attractions.  It makes me smile.

The end of September found me celebrating my mom's birthday at the Portland City Grill!  It was a beautiful day and I enjoyed having lunch with just her. 

Uncle D and Auntie Katie came to celebrate my mom's birthday!  It was so much fun.  Man Cub's face sums up how I felt about seeing them too!

Papa and Matthew!

We had a VERY fun adults dinner at the new Ilani casino and the restaurant Line and Lure.   We all even squeezed in our new van so we could all ride together!

It was one of the best dinners out I have ever had!  There was a lot of really yummy food, drinks, laughter and conversation.

TRUTH: I've never been in a casino before.  So it was so funny for everyone to watch me learn how to play the progressive slot machines.  Oh my gosh...I had the best time!

The rest of the weekend was filled with more fun times with Auntie and Uncle.  I always cry when they leave.  Always.

Week #40 was our week of pumpkins.  Bella is so proud of this pumpkin.  She planted the seeds in her kindergarten class in the spring and then planted them in our garden in the summer.  This is the pumpkin she grew!

Then she went through and picked the rest of the pumpkins that she grew.  Amazing this came from one three little pumpkin seeds!

We took the kiddos to the Vancouver Pumpkin  Patch!  This was a very good year for pumpkins!

He loved the baby cow.  In fact he learned how to say "Mooo" at the pumpkin patch!

His latest skill is sitting in baby doll strollers!

The view from the gorge after the fires.  We took a Sunday drive up to the Bonneville fish hatchery.  You could see a lot of damage; however, it was promising to still see a lot of green.

I closed week #40 out feeling very grateful for all the blessings in our life.  I am especially thankful for our home.  This is the view I see when I rock Matthew to sleep each night.  After nearly a decade of rocking babies starring at a fence, I am so blessed to watch the sun dip down behind the trees.