T-Day and Family

Well, we had a good Thanksgiving. Carolyn, Samuel, and Neil, Sam's friend, came for supper and Stephen was here, as well (of course, he lives here). I took pics of Gabriel and Carolyn uploaded pics of Lilly from her camera. We had a great meal (my expert cooking while Claudia rested much of the day). I baked pumpkin pies made with almond milk and Splenda (Carolyn can't have milk and Claudia can't have the sugar), and lemon meringue pies with Splenda. I whipped up some potatoes (Claudia & I cleaned and peeled) and made the gravy with corn starch so Claudia could have some. I made the turkey so juicy throughout that even when we went to put it away it was still full of juices instead of dry.

What a day!! But it was fun having everyone over. Just one person missing--Lilly. She is still in the hospital acting like a premie and trying to figure out how to breathe when she eats. She just wasn't ready to come to dinner yet.

The pics are of Carolyn holding Lilly while in at the hospital and of Stephen and Gabe this evening.

Oh well. Enjoy the pics!!

A Month?! Big Deal! How about several months lag?! Yup! That's Me!

I just realized this post is more than one month behind the last post. Gabe is really blossoming and growing now. He is talking to us all the time and we can understand him some. I am growing more comfortable with addressing him as "Son" like I did Stephen. Gabe has called Claudia and I "Mom" and "Dad" for a long time. He still misuses a lot of words and slurs a bunch of them, just massacring them over and over, but conversations are fairly good and fast moving and he understands a lot more now. He gets a lot of services and he is also in a big growth spurt!! I think he is at least a head taller than when we got him.

He just charms us over and over again daily. He gets lots of hugs and kisses from Dad here. And, yes, he still tries to tackle anyone he can!!

Potty training? Well, that is another subject. He still makes his share of wet and messy pull-ups. At the same time, we are finding ways to help him be more interested in pottying himself.

What can we say more. We just love our little guy. If only he could just sit down for his teachers!

Oh well--all in good (or bad?) time.

Well--What a Blizzard!!

Don't fain anyone--I'm posting again!! Our new granddaughter was born a couple of weeks ago and we are anxious to see her leave the hospital. Her mom says she is out of the isolette now but still on a feeding tube. We have been to see our little Lilly a few times but I have not been able to get Claudia to go with me for a week now, and I feel out-of-place going to see the little one by myself.

I have pics, but they were of the first day and Lilly has all kinds of gadgets attached to her--you really can't see her very well.

Anyway, I do hope we go again soon--or that I can go with someone instead of by myself. Claudia is always too tired in the evening when I can go.

Ohhhh--the blizzard. Sorry--off-topic. Wow!! The TV news crews are calling it the Blizzard of 2010. It was a surprise early snow storm. It actually began over the weekend, but worsened to very bad blizzard conditions over the past two days. All public schools that were scheduled to be in session were cancelled for the week. I didn't have to go to work at all this week.

We got some groceries today and are getting ready for the big feast on Thursday. But all the roads were closed north of Idaho Falls today. Some were closed yesterday already. I have shoveled the driveway twice today, and now it is too cold to go out there and do it again. Temps are supposed to go to single digits or minuses tonight and lasting until 11 am tomorrow.

Brrrr!! But that's Idaho. Winter is without doubt here now!

Finally--Grandparents!!!

When: About 3:45 this afternoon (Saturday, November 6, 2010)
What: A wee little baby girl
Where: Eastern Idaho Regional Medical Center, Idaho Falls, Idaho
Weight: weighing no more than 4 lbs 4 oz.
How Born: Caesarean Section

Currently Carolyn Tigner Shaffer is in good medical condition after the surgery and is resting at the hospital.
Lily Shaffer is in the Newborn Intensive Care Unit (NICU) and will remain there until she grows to term (probably 2 or more weeks) or begins eating healthily and gaining enough weight. Carolyn is expected to be in the hospital for another 3 or more days. Samuel is there with Carolyn and the baby and is a happy father right now.

We are happy new, first-time grandparents.

The story as Claudia and I know it:

Last night Carolyn and Sam came over to the house. They had been worried about the baby because it seemed to have dropped a little over a week ago and Carolyn was not feeling very well. During the day the lay midwife had ordered an ultra sound to examine the condition of the baby and Carolyn. The imaging showed a low level of amniotic fluid--less than half. Carolyn is only 35 weeks along and this was a concern. Visits were scheduled with the midwife and Dr. Isbell (Ob Gyn) on Monday, but no one would see Carolyn until then.

At our house last night I was the only person who had observed a mother in labor. I was concerned and thought they ought to probably contact a doctor right away. To me she looked and acted as though she were in labor. Carolyn was grouchy about the inference. They decided not to contact the doctor. Home they went.

This morning Claudia received a call while I was out reading with a friend's son. Sam and Carolyn were going to the hospital because some "things" had occurred during the night and the midwife had told them they should go there immediately.

They went at about 9:30 am and were there the rest of the day. The hospital was apparently about ready to send them home until about 3 pm, when Carolyn's body started into full labor. A C Section was scheduled for 4 pm. Claudia called me as soon as she found out. I headed home withing about 5 minutes. We arrived at the hospital at 3:50 pm and the baby had already been born and was in the NICU. We were told everything was going to be just fine. We stayed awhile, saw our new granddaughter, retrieved some supper for Sam and us and some flowers for Carolyn's room (Carolyn is on a clear liquid diet until they know she can take in solid food). We then wished them both well and left the hospital for home.

We were both pleasantly surprised to discover that the baby had been born and that both were physically doing well.

What more can we say--she is perfect!!!

Well--Finally Another Post--Wow!!! It's been a month!!!

It is late at night--again. I have a lot of thoughts on my mind and I just discovered where to find your comments. Thanks to those of you who have commented and read my posts!!

Gabe is coming along well. We have just polished off one year of court-ordered guardianship by submitting a status report to the judge.

This evening when I came home I was welcomed by a little boy giving me a big hug and saying (not for the first time, btw) "Dad, I love you so much!!" He always says it several times when he says it.

He is back in preschool and loving it. He has several wonderful grown-ups surrounding him with love and therapies. Life is good.

I am also back in school--teaching instead of counseling. I am loving what I am doing and am having the usual challenges of teaching a new grade. My class is full of 32 wonderful kids!! Each one is unique and beautiful in her/his own way. I am the "low count" class. The other two classes have 34 students each. If any new 5th graders register at our school, guess who gets them. Yup, that would be me.

I also am working my IBI and PSR positions and loving that.

These all keep me very busy and the outside-of-school jobs (both professional positions) have so far kept me from catching up fully at my day job. But I plan to get all caught up this weekend--and perhaps get somewhat ahead in my planning.

The superintendent came by this week, observed, and gave me a helpful comment. The principal came by and observed, as well.

One thing a former principal said  in my presence years ago--"Public education is never boring" still rings true.

I am so blessed to have what I have!! These students are wonderful!! I am getting back into the teaching part of education and enjoying being part of the faculty at Jefferson Elementary!!

Tired, Stressed, Relieved and Currently Happy and Healthy!!!

Finally I am back!!! Having just spent several weeks summarizing previous assessments, observing behaviors, interviewing significant people (including other therapists), summarizing interviews and observations, and postulating in a clinical opinion, I have finally completed a 60 page comprehensive assessment, a new program plan, and a new 18 page implementation plan for a new client. It has all been submitted to the main office and, hopefully, is on its way to gaining approval from the State for services.

Every time I complete a project like this I breathe a little sigh of relief and then go back to stressed. Now that I have a plan, I am responsible to make it work for this child.

On top of all this I now need to be preparing for a new school year at my day job. Only, instead of being the school counselor, I will be teaching 5th grade!!!

After 16 years as a school counselor, the only position I have held in this school district, they have now seen fit to keep the newest counselors in their positions (since they have no other endorsements on their certificates) and put me and another, older counselor, into the classroom. Just think of it--I have not had my own classroom in 19 years!!! Here I am, a 5th grade teacher-to-be and expecting a classroom full of 30 or more students. The last time I taught I had 18 students in 2nd grade. What a change in professions!! What stress on me and my family!!

Oh--as I have previously mentioned--that is not all!! More changes are on the way!! Everyone in our district is taking an enormous pay cut. Mine will be over $4,000!!!

This means I cannot spend all evening at the school prepping for the next day. I used to do that, but I don't think it was of any real value to me professionally. And now I can't afford it!!! I have to keep the money coming in from my second and/or third professional job by continuing to work every evening until at least 6 pm or later at my IBI/PSR jobs. Which positions are coming under increased regulation by state bodies who do not have even a tiny idea of what we do and what our clients need.

In the meantime, the State Bureau of Occupational Licenses has decided that I need to actually physically go to expensive classes rather than just take courses online for my 20 CEU's per year for my professional counselor license renewal.

I won't be trying to digest all of this at once. I am going to live one day at a time and plan ahead for as much as I can accomplish.

For some unknown reason, I am being stretched immensely at this time in my life. I do not know why, but I know my Savior, Jesus Christ, and my Father in Heaven will be there for me all along, just as they always have been. For whenever a door is closed on one part of my life, another is opened and new beginnings are at hand.

I am both concerned and excited about my new challenges and believe I am about to embark on a journey requiring faith in the Lord, Jesus Christ, and service to others.

I would like to say something funny right now--but I am not thinking of anything--I am too fatigued from the events of the past month.

This next paragraph is about as close as I get:

How has it occurred that governments are always wanting more work and stress for less money?! What did someone say we cannot ever escape? Death and taxes? Well, we also cannot escape the alarming combination and default conspiracy of legislative ineptitude and bureaucratic tunnel-mindedness. Throw that in with some people's idea that spending money to assist the developmentally disabled is some type of diagnosable (yet untreatable) disorder and you have a humongous mess coming your way. Look out!!! You may be next!!!

The Lord bless all of you!!

My Love to you!!

Wha...? Those help instructions are old!!

It took me a while this evening to realize that I already have the following function from Google Friends installed. I kept reading the help instructions on Google and and saw no "Layout" tab on my Blogspot page.

There always seems to be an issue with documentation and communication between techs and users. I would wonder more about why that problem exists, but I have a 30 year old son who is a tech and I have had to make him communicate adequately with me. He often gets so exasperated in the process that he has a meltdown.

Stephen will soon be 31 (July 21) and we are still wondering about any interest in getting married. It doesn't seem to be there and it really doesn't matter that much in his case. Stephen is Stephen!! As one of my young IBI (Intensive Behavioral Intervention) clients recently observed to me, "You're not me" is not an unusual response when someone is attempting to assist you with life's challenges.

Well, I am not Stephen. I am me. We can never be the same!! That is so wonderful!! We are all different from every other person on this planet!! If only more of us could realize this and be more sensitive to others needs and unique personal characteristics. We all seem to want to be regarded as not being like anyone else. This is often to our own detriment, for when some of us think this way about ourselves we leave others and their possibly very valuable viewpoints out of our lives. The truth is that regardless of our own assertions of being independent and totally different from anyone else we each actually need the ideas of others in our lives. We need that enriching power--very often the power to change...the power to become....

When will I really learn that? When will any of us really learn that?

Have a great weekend!!!