BOWLING ADVENTURES WITH AUTISTIC TEENS...FUN TIMES

The weather was terrible but the company was great and the time was terrific. I always do NOT look forward to teen activity nights, but I always have such a great time. I think that autistic kids are the most fun. The Autism Team, of which I am a member, go figure, is supposed to be having a "TEEN ACTIVITY NIGHT" one time a month during the school year. We have had TWO...but each one was more fun than the last one. Unless you have attended, and not many of the team did this past one...arrggh..you have no idea what you are missing.



We bowled at Casey Lanes in La Porte..Becky Jeffers and I, and of course my partner in crime, Bob handled all the kids who came to bowl...all 11 og them...Yeah, I think they all decided to come and have a good time with us.. WE were missing a few of "our regulars" but picked up some new kiddos and we had FUN.







Not everyone had the same style but it didnt matter, no made fun of anyone else, no one even cared. It is amazing how many you points you can get bowling through you legs...



One of the boys didn't want to bowl at all, because he would have to put on someone else's shoes..WHAT??? Is he autistic or something?? I guess every once in awhile we need to be reminded, so he sat and talked Bob's ear off (pardon the idiom)


Many of the boys, yes it was all boys, ended up
developing great form and racking up the points with strikes and spares. Way to go guys.















Everyone had a good time and some of the kids actually stayed longer with their parents after
everyone else went home. During the time we were there, several of the boys learned how to do
many thing related to bowling: keeping score, waiting turns, skipping players (when someone had to go to the bathroom or couldn't wait to get some FOOD..Guess who that was?? He is in eighth grade..and his initials are T.J. for those of you reading this who know my kids...) , even bowling without bumpers as some of the kids had...

Yes, the kids had fun, learned alot, and didn't want to go home..I on the other hand, who has never bowled, learned alot and was anxios to go home...7 am to 8 pm is a very long day..BUT well worth it. The kids want to go bowling again next time and I think we will..They deserve to have nights out too. I LOVE MY KIDS...(surprise!!!)

GOODBYE BENNY, WE LOVE AND MISS YOU

Benny was put to sleep this afternoon and it is a sad sad day for Bob and me, and for everyone that knew Benny.. You just had to love him if you met him. We will miss him very much, but the vet seemed to think he was seripusly ill and though he would have done anythign we wanted to try to save him, we could tell that he would only suffer. We did not know today that it would be his last or I would have taken pictures of him, but I did have a snow day today and I actually spent alot of time with him. He seemed better today than he had in about 10 days...maybe he knew it would be his last day. He had not eaten in about 3 0r 4 days, and was keeping him self alive with water. We took him off all his meds yesterday and today he was pretty good and seemed alert. He wagged his tail once today but refused to eat anything I gave him to try...salmon, canned chicken,broth..he would just smell it and turn his face away. He didn't cough all day though and his drooling was better and he stayed with us the whole day.. I will miss him very much..Benny I love you.

FRIDAYS ARE FUN

I know that everyone looks for ward to Fridays..end of the week, start of the weekend, payday, and just knowing that the weekend is coming is reason enough to love Friday. I look forward to Friday for all these reasons, and also because it is a day that I get to get work done in my office...BUT most of all, because I get to spend a morning with some of my kids with autism.


On Friday mornings, I join the Community based program from Boston Middle School in the community. Ann Dames and Tricia Rosenbaum are the teachers and we go to various places, Krogers, Buck Stop, KMart, Walmart, Bowling and concerts at the La Porte Hospital (which I don't like so much and I never go...)Last Friday we took the kids to Krogers...









Yep we went "KROGERING".. Since I had my camera, I took pictures and had such a good time with them. In the pictures, you will see the kids and teachers and some people we dont know at all, because I let the kids use the camera...What a fun time we all had, especially me.. I dont think the teachers actually know how much I like to do this, but I think when they see this blog, they will find out..













I




I love my kids with autism...they give me so much enjoyment...

THAT IS WHY IT IS CALLED AN ACCIDENT...ARRRGGGH

It was a pretty calm time last weekend. Zane

and Lauren were meeting Misty and Beau at the Wisconsin Dells, for Valentines Day..Zane said that the boarding place was full and asked if I would watch their dog Spadey (baby). I am pretty sure that the kennel was NOT full, and that Zane just would feel better if Spade was with us...And I would feel better if Spade pooped outside instead of MY BATHROOM. But he is the cutest little thing and is not a problem really any more..other than the pooping..LOL

The kids had fun and we had fun with Spade too. Zane and Lauren picked him up late afternoon on Sunday and it was snowing pretty hard..They wanted to get home before the weather got too bad. ( it was snowing AGAIN)

The next thing I know, Lauren calls and says that they have been in an accident...SHIT. She said she thought she was okay, but Zane was pinned in the car and they couldnt get him out. It was terrible for her, but I was glad to hear that he was screaming in pain.. AT least he was alive...His thigh was broken and it was just unbearable to think about him being in that much pain.

It had been icey by the time they got to Johnson Road and a a pick up slipped into their lane and hit them head on..OH NO...that caused them to slide off the road down the embankment. They did not flip over and they finally got Zane out without having to use the the Jaws of Life..We met them at the hospital and someone brought Spade to us at the ER. The nurses and everyone were so kind to us and let us keep him there, and even got him some food.. Not for us, jus thte dog..LOL

Skee and Jack came and brought Bob's medicine about 10 PM (six hours after the accident) and they took Spade to our house and we waited in Zanes hospital room while he had surgery..They put in a titanium rod and the two hour surgery stretched to 4 hours and we were all exhausted...It was wonderful to see him back in his room, and not in so much pain as he was in the ER..(of course he was all doped up now...) but nonetheless, he was a site. Chelsea made me send her a picture to show he was okay, since she had been up all night and not able to sleep..Here is the picture I sent at 4:00 AM...she texted back...."THERE HE IS...THANK YOU :-)" It made us all feel better..Lauren had burns (from the seatbelt and airbag chemicals) and swollen legs, but she was treated and fine...just sore...thank God.. Oh by the way..Zane didnt have any seatbelt burns...because HE DID NOT HAVE A SEATBELT ON.....ARRRRRGGGHHH.

He is out of the hospital now and recooperating at their house in Michigan City. The doctors think he might be able to go to work(school) on monday, but we will see. He whas physical therapy and still needs to see his regular doctor...

But I do know that they had a very special angel with them that afternoon and I am so thankful for that...I love you Zane and Lauren..(and all my other kids too)..MUAH

ON A HAPPY NOTE

Look at all this snow..That is a happy thing because, first of all, it is beautiful and second of all, it is February and spring is just round the corner. Today it was like 55 degrees and I went shopping with just my hoodie and it was hot in the store. I spent $350 ..wow, but I haven't been shopping in a couple of weeks and Bob and I eat healthier food that costs more. Our pantry is full, Zane and Lauren in case you want to stop over..Turkey dinner Monday night. Back to the snow, I have to tell you the story of my trip to Indy on Tuesday and my return Tuesday night in to the snow capital of the state.

At 5:30 AM I got into the car with a friend of mine to travel to Indy to attend her son's case conference at Damar School. And, although that is a odd time for me to be awake, unless I am just heading to bed, it was the sanest and calmest thing that happened all day. To make a very long story shorter...we never got to the conference. It started at 9 LP time and and it started to snow lightly as we left home, but nothing to speak of though. In Lafayette, it got heavier and there was an accident on I65 outside Lebanon. WE sat perfectly still, not a inch did we move for 2 hours, and 22 minutes. Yes, I counted the time because you see, her son was in the car and being a young man (16) and autistic, fairly nonverbal, he was not int he mood to sit for that long, especially with no food, and nothing to do. My friend got upset for a variety of reasons, mostly because she felt sorry for her son and she started to cry. They wanted to hold the conference on her cell phone, but she couldn't stop crying long enough to do it. Little did I realize that this part of the trip was not the worst part. yikes















We got to the school in Indy finally, and they re-did the paperwork for the conference with us. We toured the school and I wish I had my camera with, because it was really nice--like a college campus. (with lots of snow by now) When we left, we stopped to get something to eat and the weather was fine, nothing like northwest Indiana weather. I bought something for the baby..yeah I am practicing this gramma thing...and we were fine until we got off I65 onto 421. The farther we got the worse it got..There were times that we could not see anything at all it was a complete white out. Around Francisville, we started seeing cars in the ditches. We kept going..we even passed people. By the time we got to La Crosse, we had already seen over 30 cars or trucks off the road. People were actually just stopping their cars on the highway and getting out and leaving. It was impossible to see and it took us over an hour to get from Wanatah to highway 6, which usually takes about 10 minutes. We saw an additional 10 cars or more and waited for an accident with two jack knifed semis. When we turned onto 6, the snow was so deep I could hear it hitting the bottom or our car..an H3, by the way.

Four miles from home, we could actually walk if we had to. When we got to our house, the drive way which my brother had plowed was blown totally shut. There was at least 18 inches. It came down all night, and all day on Wednesday. Of course we had a snow day. But my friend called after she dropped me off and said that not even a mile east from my house, there was less than an inch..WHAT????

Most of the area was off on wednesday and it was good to see my nephew Jackson, come over and visit. He is the ninja in the pictures below...I just love that kid, I will be so bored when he goes to college in the fall...BOOHOO














ninja preparing----- looking for transportation------ Ninja leaving..boohoo



ON a fun note, Valentines Day is coming, and though I am not expecting flowers, or candy for sure not, I do like giving things to little kids. I bought Zane and Lauren stuffed valentines to share with their kids at school..Zane's are sport ball valentines and Laurens are pink and red caterpillars. I also sent Chelsea some things for her and Peg's classroom kids..
I got hem some stuffed mice, some valentine powdered sticks and an art project the kids can do this week. She is always excited when she gets a package anyway..It makes me happy..


These are Zane and Lauren's I don't have a picture of Chelsea's..maybe she will post one when she gets them..








I guess that is about it for today, I just didn't want to leave my last sad blog up any longer. Things are so much better and Bob and I are pretty much hanging in there. I like to be able to tell good things about my life because it could always be so much worse. I am totally glad to be alive and live in a warm house in the winter and a cool house in the summer. I have kids that I adore, with a granddaughter soon to be born. Bob and I love each other and we are as healthy as God will allow right now..and we have a BOAT...yeah I love our boat. Is it summer yet? And believe this or not, I really find autistic kids utterly amazing and unique. I love each and every one of them very much...yeah, I guess things could be better but they are not and I am fine with that. I hope that all my kids find the happiness that I have in my life and know that I love each and everyone of them very much..How sappy is that??Till next time, enjoy the last bit of winter, it will be gone soon.






This is my serious look, Jack took this picture while I was trying to tell him ...NO