Walmart- making dreams come true!?

I guess it has been a while since I have had a moment to write on my blog! Hard to believe it is December and Christmas is only 20 days away! I have not finished my shopping, which is unlike me. The boys are asleep (finally), they have been waiting all day to go play in the snow... finally after school we got a chance and Zach stepped out the door and fell face first into the snow! They both looked like the kid from "A Christmas Story", so cleaning him uo was a task, but the funny part was that Dan's snow pants no longer fit him but I had to still put him in them, so he could not bend his knees or bend over! What a sight... he would try to pick up some snow and fall over. I guess it should'nt be so funny, but I laughed my butt off! Tonight, after they beat each other up for a while (hey- they are 2 boys 12 months apart, it's gonna happen) we were sitting on my bed when Dan looked over at me and said "Mom, did you know that Walmart can make all your dreams come true?". Wwwhhhaaattt? I guess they are watching too much t.v., because he then told me that he heard it on t.v., and I could get all my dreams to come true! So, if anyone out there is in advertising, my son's are listening to you! And as for you, Walmart, I wish to be 2 sizes smaller and win the lottery, I'm waiting... Damn...

ODE TO OUR BORDER PATROL!!!!

Well, it is Monday already, boy how vacation time flies... we are down in Naples, Florida right now, and just got off our cruise ship this morning. The boys are doing great and have been having the time of their lives. They did so well with grandma and grandpa for 3 days while we were gone and everyone down here is amazed and excited about the progress they have made in speech and how physically better they have gotten since last year! When you are with your child all the time you can see a little progress, but you do not realize how much progress they have made. Zachary is swimming all by himself now, and Dan started swimming by himself for little periods at a time. They have been to Sanibel beach, found shells, ran from big man-o-war jellyfish and most importantly... went on their first real deep sea fishing trip. Sadly, we only caught 1 fish, but no one threw up or cried! Yeah for that! As for Jay and my trip to Atlantis... it was amazing and we really had some time to catch up with each other and forget about all the bills, therapy and work. By the way, always put your swim fins on IN the water. We tried to snorkel, and I think I got laughed at by every tourist passing by as I tried to walk down the beach in my snorkel gear! The fishtanks are amazing and the pools...wow! One day we will take the boys there, but no time soon.
Anyways, you are probably wondering about the name of this post. Well, if everyone is sitting at home feeling secure right now, this might make you think, laugh, be frightened, etc, etc. It has occured to me that Jay and I somehow ended up on the 3 minute debarkation cruise! Border patrol is a strange thing. We walked off the ship with our luggage (we only had 2 pieces- yes I actually packed smart, now if I had just packed some long sleeve shirts??), gave in our room keys, showed our passports to customs and walked out of customs and into the streets of America. You may be wondering what is wrong with that? You are so lucky? Well Mr. Border Patrolman, this Bud's for you. Never once during embarkation or debarkation was our luggage ever checked or scanned... never once were we asked a question... never once did I see someone pulled to the side, or a bag looked into. What is wrong with this? EVERYTHING!!! You and I both know that we are not terrorists, but what about the person behind me? What if someone brought something illegal on to the boat? Well, for that blunder, we , as Americans, win the "are we dumbasses?" award. So, thanks for getting me off so fast, so I could sit for 2 hours in a parking lot waiting for my ride, and thanks for not checking my bags, because, hell now I know where my tax money is going, but most of all... thanks for letting in every idiot out there that brought illegal items and fruit with new diseases (keeps our government agents busy) or that little bit off pot they could not live without and lastly, the people who felt that marine life should not stay in the Bahamas! I guess there was one thing about Carnival cruise lines I liked: they enjoy saying "now get the hell off and give me my tip!"
Ok, otherwise, we had agreat time and I highly recomend Atlantis as a place everyone should at least visit once! Happy holidays!

JUST LIKE DAD

I am always amazed with my boys. I know that is a weird way to start, but I really am! It is 9pm at night and we are all laying in mom and dad's room watching scooby doo. Danny has a fascination with Daphny (I think that's how she spells it), he want's her to be captured all the time and he say's she is really pretty. Of course as a mom I say, "but Velma is so much smarter...", that is not working. He still likes Daphny. Zach could really care less about girls, he is more into himself right now! So, we are laying here and Danny starts to ask why boys like girls so much? I think I am saying all the right things: smart, pretty, take care of you and then he replies: is it because they like girls boobies? Uggghhhh. Not my son, not at the age of 5, is he a pig already? Did I raise him wrong? I always think about how well I was brought up and that if I said that to my mom, I would get in trouble. I am having trouble trying not to laugh, but trying to say the right thing, so what do I do? Pass it to Dad! I think this is a DAD area, don't you?
Dad's and son's are a funny thing. Yes, there is some truth to the mother/son bond, but tonight as the boys pretended they were taking their insulin shots, just like dad does, it really hit me how much the kids learn from us. Right now, the big thing is "we are men now, mom"! The two of them think they are just like their dad. Dan want's to go to work like dad, that will make him a man and as for Zach, he told me that he does not want to be a man because he dose'nt want to work. Oh well, there is always one! I have always told them that they never have to leave me, I think Zach is taking that literally. We will see in 20 years! We all wonder what our children will be, and when you have a special needs child you wonder if they will be able to be what they want? I know alot of my friends have that on their mind (the future), but for tonight, they are still our "little men". Good night everyone.

WHEN DID MY CHILD GET SMARTER THAN ME???

Ok, how do I explain what just happened? I guess some background first. My son Zachary woke up sick on friday morning at 2am, he has a barky cough (croup?) and a non-stop runny nose. I sat up with him the rest of the night, but I did send him to school (read past logs and you will know why). He again was up last night sitting on the couch with me watching endless spongebob, which is ok because if you know me well, you know I am a spongebob fanatic... really! Ask me anything, I can answer it. Anyways, I digress. So, of course this morning he is still wide awake and I am crabby from 5 years of no sleep. We decide while dad is out that we will make cookies and then play santa. Playing santa means that I write a long list of toys I want, and they get out all the toys we just cleaned up and put them by the fire place while I pretend to be asleep and then vice-versa. Anyways, the boys decided to start fighting, after untangling kicking legs and punching arms, I tell them to both go sit down on seperate couches. Danny is really good at taking his punishment, except for the fact that he gets the "boo-boo" face and makes you feel like you are taking away his puppy, Zach is another story. He has never once taken a punishment well, there s no punishment that I have found that works on him. So, I hold him down on my lap and somehow he slips though and in the scuddle his arm comes out of his shirt, so I grab the shirt arm and pull on him, which of course makes the shirt pull against his neck. Do you know what he said to me? "if you hurt my neck and I end up in the hospital, I'm gonna tell them you did it." WHAT???? Did he just say what I think he said? I let go of his shirt, he put it back on and I had to walk away. I did not know whether to laugh or be afraid, very, afraid.
When did my 4 year old get so smart? How does that little mind come up with such a statement? Oh, well... if I end up in jail, don't bail me out for a couple days... vacation!
Go Bears.

A 5 YEAR OLD SCHOOL DROPOUT?????

Well, well, well. It is that time of year again, school report cards! If you are a parent of a PDD child, this can be either a fantastic or frustrating time, as I have learned. Dan got his report card last friday. I guess the more I look it over, the better I feel, but it was not what I expected and I even showed it to his old preschool teacher and she was a bit dssapointed too. The grade by numbers, 1 is "can do consistently " all the way to 3 which is "needs a lot of help". I thought we were on top of things and I was expecting 1 and 2's. To my dismay, there were alot of 3's thrown in there. In places I did not expect, letters, self esteem, gym,reading...etc...etc... Yes, I realize that it is better to get them first quarter then fourth, but you almost feel like a failure as a mom, as if you are letting your child down. Do I not read enough to him, am I not working enough with letters? It has taken me since friday to realize that everyone learns at their own pace, and if he does not get straight a's and b's, such is life. My friend put it best: "if my kids writting sucks and they can not do algebra, it is not the end of the world. They will learn to read and write, and not everyone goes to college... it takes all kinds to make this world work!". That helped me alot. So, the moral is moms: Do not put yourself down, you are doing everything you can and we are all making our kids the best they can be. A "c" is average, and there is nothing wrong with averaage!
Now, on to the funny part of his report card! Dan recieved a letter letting us know that he has been absent 7 times, and if he continues on this road of absences, he will end up a school drop out!!! HUH? Is he 5 or 12? I fully understand that some mom's take their kids out for stupid reasons, but he had MRI's and has been having a lot of asthma problems! He does not CUT class. So, the principal and I had a "fun" talk. She understands my side, and tells me she knows I am a responsible parent. Well, I guess not enough? So mom, the moral: Send your child to school sick and then let them send them home, because that does not count as an absence!

This morning, I had the boys in the tub together, as as any mom knows, put 2 kids together in a tight spot and hell will break loose, so after 10 minutes it was so quiet that I walked in wondering what I was going to find? Guess what? Dan was completely bent over the side of the tub, and Zachary was sticking letters on his butt trying to spell his name! Oh, goodness... I put that to an end really quickly! Dan's but looked like an alphabet blackboard, just cleaner! Ok, that was my funny story for the day, sorry I have not written lately. Oh, a note for a special person, and you know who you are... You are strong, you are too good and you will find better! Love ya!

Happy Halloween !

Hi everybody- I am sure that we are all trying to put our "SUGAR BABIES" to sleep right now! Actually, I have one asleep one my shoulder and the other one snoring on my leg. Dan is trying so hard to stop the sleepies, as he calls them, but I think they got the better of him. Zach is like his dad, he can fall asleep within 2 seconds anywhere, anytime. Dan was Spider Man and I think he actually thought he could leap tall buildings in a single bound, oops that is superman. I did not know he could run as fast as he did today- sugar can perform miracles. Zach was a cute Skeleton in a skin tight outfit 2 sizes too small! You could not help but laugh. His outfit made him look like Brian Boitano, it was so tight I think his wedgie had a wedgie! He loved it though, and we ended up going out with our friends, so the boys had a great time. The best part was that they did not cling to me at all this evening. We are very blessed to have friends with boys their age, I am blessed to have made such great friends out here. Believe me, I was ready to move back to Chicago 2 months after we moved here, but things are happy here, and the boys love it.
Dan had a party at school today, so I decided to attend it. In the beginning of the year his teacher asked for volunteers to be "room moms" but I turned her down because I needed Dan to get used to not seeing me. Why was I not thinking about that when I walked through the school doors today? As soon as he saw me the water works began... oh my goodness... not infront of your friends, I thought. Then I thought why the hell did I do this? I know Dan needs to have everything the same, seeing me throws of his normal day. His teacher was very nice though and had him be her special helper and she asked me to stay. He is fine unless his schedule changes and he has always been like that. I was finally asked not to help out in his preschool class last year because he could'nt take it and then he would spend the rest of the day crying. I know things can only get better, and I have noticed that if I make up a schedule every morning (sometimes picture) both boys act alot better and fight less. It is almost as if they need to know that there is an end in sight. Zach really likes being on a schedule also, they do it at school, and he loves to repeat it all morning after I tell it too them. Hey, whatever works. Well, here is a funny little story! Last night we went to Jay's aunt and uncles house, while Jay was off with his uncle, Auntie Lois brought out some games. One was Labryinth, you need to move a marble around a maze, the other, chinese checkers. In case you do not know... I am a chinese checkers champion, well at least against my mother. She and I would play for hours when I was younger, and when I was on bed rest pregnant with Danny, she would bring the gane over everyday and the two of us (sometimes my sister Mary would join) would play until Jay came home. So, the boys and Lois were playing chinese checkers while I played the other game and of course after a while I could not take it anymore and had to stick my nose in to help the boys. We were crushing Auntie Lois when Dan turned torward me and said: " mom, can you help Aunt Lois?" We almost fell over laughing, he was not trying to get rid of my help, but he could not stand how bad she was doing. Out of the mouths of babes! Oh well, they mean well. Just a note to my friends in the Bartlett area, in next weeks examiner they are going to have an article on our support group at Independence. Make sure you waych for it, it should be interesting. Have a great night and happy tummys to all... uugggghhhh... too much cccaaannnndddddyyyyyyyy!

Sick ... and ... Tired

I am trying so hard right now to be understanding, but as a parent, sometimes it gets difficult. Every time I think we have made good progress, something comes up and seems to kick us back a step. Today was one of those days. Danny had his first school birthday party today. It started at 1:00 and was at the karate school down the block. We had everything ready, the gift, the card, the boys... or so I thought. First of all, how do you explain to a younger sibling why he was not invited to the birthday party? Believe me you, I did not sugar coat it, I explained everything to Zachary, but he still got upset, which did not start the party off well. Then, dan decided he wanted to hide behind me and not look or talk to any of the kids, which made the other parents stare. I am so sick of people telling me to just grab him and stick him into a situation he is not comfortable about, especially people who have not delt with a special needs child or one who is afraid of everything including his shadow. Believe me, I tried to get him out by the other kids, I tried to walk away or sit right next to him- nothing worked. All he did was start to cry... then what do you do? You don't want your child crying in front of his peers, you don't want him to be made fun of, you always hope your child will be accepted. In our case, I just never know which personality is going to show up when we are out and about. Are the boys going to be shy and afraid, or are they gonna want to jump around with the other kids. How do you as a parent not get frustrated and how do you keep your cool in front of the other parents with out over-protecting or babying your child? Who ever thinks that they will be dealing with this at the age of 5? Well, we can only wait and see what happens next time. The neurologist told us that Dan is "extremely" over empathetic, how do you change that, or is he always going to be this way? I wish I knew all the answers some times, but then I would'nt be a mom! Have a great weekend!

Ding Dong what?

Oh my goodness! What a week so far... Zachary had his first school fieldtrip on Wednesday and since Dan knew about it, after a lot of tears he ended up skipping school and coming with. We went to sunny acres in West Chicago and I have to give the teachers credit, that was alot to watch over. They both had a great time and then Jay met up with us afterwards, man was it cold by 6pm. Later on that evening we were working on Dan and Zach's homework when the doorbell rang 5 times. I ran downstairs thinking maybe Jay had somehow locked himself out (yes- he does that alot- don't ask) but there was a bag with a note. Of course your first thought is did someone put poop on your front porch, so I did'nt step on it! Instead, it had candy in it and a note. Two minutes later we saw young kids running down the street laughing. We had been "booed". I guess the point is to then do the same thing to three other friends. I think it was from the 5th grader down the street. Dan rides the bus home with him, and 2x's now it has come more than 10 minutes early and left him sitting on the corner waiting for me. This nice boy seems to like Dan alot and will stand with him. It is very cute how the neighborhood kids watch over him! Soooo... tonight we got 6 bags ready and set off to Boo someone. The boys did not actually understand what we were doing, so I made the mistake of telling them we were playing "ding, dong, ditch". Now, I know my kids have speech problems, but I never even thought that "ditch" rhymed with other not so friendly words! We got in the car and they said "lets go play ding, dong, bitch!" I was laughing so hard that they just kept repeating it! They had no idea what they were saying, but when we rang the first doorbell, the mom came out before we could run away and he smiled and said: " Hi- we are playing ding, dong, bitch!" I almost had a heart attack. Why is it that when you want them to be understood, you can't understand a word they are saying, but when it comes to "bad" words (as spongebob would say) they are clear as a bell!
I also got a chance to talk with Dan's teacher today, she told me his writting was fantastic today and she is going to email me with a report of how he is doing in school. She was so positive about him and his progress. I can't wait to get the email. Maybe things are finally looking up for the Juszko family. Well, I can't complain, we have had a great year with alot of progress. Zach is doing wonderful at school. Even though he is a little devil at home and Jay say's statesville has a cell waiting for him one day, he is the total opposite at school. He sits quietly and answers all the questions and NEVER fights. I am thinking about having Zach's teacher over- indefinetly! Zach is just a true boy. He likes karate and scooby doo and beating up his brother until mom's veins are popping out of her head from screaming. He has a smile that almost makes him able to get away with anything- almost- and then he says "sowwyy" (sorry). Acedemically, Zach will be fine, physically- he will be lucky to see the age of 6! Ding, dong, bitch... sorry, I can't stop laughing about that... sure hope their teachers don't ask them what they did last night.
Just a little FYI for any moms: Scholastic puts out kindergarten and higher workbooks- they are terrific. I know alot of mom's that are reading this have kids with disabilities, so if you get a chance, order them, you won't be sorry. Also, if you are in the Bartlett area, we have a great pdd support group on the third wednesday of every month at Independence preschool, stop by and give it a chance, you might learn something new. I always do! Good night

A night out? What's that?

Hi everyone! It is Monday night, 12:38am, so if I misspell... anything, please forgive me. My husband and I have just spent the last two nights at the Bruce Springsteen concerts. This was our first real "adult" night out in a while. If you have kids with disabilities, you somehow seem to find yourself focusing so much on the kids, that you forget about yourself! It really felt good to dress nice and "get out there!" Of course, the only downside is leaving the kids behind. Thus, brings me to my "topic" -o- the evening. My son zach has been having seperation problems with me lately. Not when he goes to school, but when I leave the house. I went to my mothers publishing party the other night and left the boys at my in-laws, my husband got off of work a little later. I recieved a call at 7pm to let me know that Zach had locked himself in the bathroom. My first thought was- "Hell, the three of you have a combined age of 170 years, and a four year old is beating you?" ( wow- my inlaws and husband sure sound old- 170?) Anyways... I told them to unlock the door and take him out! He then decided to throw up all over my inlaws house, so... at 8pm I had to leave my mothers party. Ya know, I would not have a problem if it happened just once, but three times now I have had to come home early because Zach was having a mommy-missing fit! Jay could have bought him a pony and I still think he would have cried for me. Why is that? When do they get past that, or , is it our fault because we are too close to them because of their special needs? Do I ever get a small part of my adult life back? Don't get me wrong- besides my husband, my kids are the best thing that ever happened to me! I love them so much, maybe a little too much. Is it wrong to feel like I need a break once in a while, or is that selfish? I have spoken to many people to get advise on seperation, and maybe someone out there is going through this same problem. What happens in their little minds that decides "change is not good"? I just don't know, but I do know that every mom needs to get away for a while to refuel! As Jenny McCarthy said on Oprah: "We need babysitters... please offer to babysit for a child with special needs- and not for just an hour-we need a night!" I have never been a fan of her's, but all you mom's out there... heed her advise and let's take a mom's nigt out to better ourselves. Have that drink that you have been waiting 4 years for, or catch up on a Spiderman movie (have not seen any of them) or just go somewhere and lay down! I find a park bench works just as good as a hotel- if it is less than 1 hour, and you put away your valuables! In conclusion, and not a second too soon... let the kids cry and if you are living with a special needs child... "you go girl!"

GOOD NEWS!

Hi everyone. Sorry I have'nt been able to write in a couple of days. I don't know how, but it seems like the days are going faster and faster. Well, we got some good news this week... Danny's teacher wrote me a note that said: "Just a note to let you know that danny is doing very well in school, he is eager to learn and works sooo hard". I don't think anyone can understand what an exciting moment that was for us! I called Jay at work and read it to him, he was so happy. I have been trying not be be the pesky mom who emails the teacher all the time, but since Dan is considered delayed, and we are having such a hard time with homework, this came as quite a surprise! I must admit, I was starting to wonder if mainstreaming him was the right idea. Socially, he has really picked up. and in his special-ed preschool he seemed like he was at the top of the class, but that was with 9 other low functioning autistics. Now, he is in a class of 26 kindergarteners, 1 teacher and I think since I went to the school board and fought, 1 aide. The other day, the fifth graders came in to be introduced as big brothers/sisters. The teacher said that if you knew a fifth grader, raise your hand and they can be your big brother. Three kids raised their hands and when the teacher got to Dan, she asked him who he knew... his response..."No one, but I really like her shirt, can she be my big sister?" I guess the 5th graders got a kick out of that. The other mom's in the neighborhood thought it was cute. Dan also has little girlfriend. He gets in trouble on the bus for slapping hands with her. One day when she was sick, an older boy gave Dan her phone number. I am trying to meet her mom first, before he calls her... at the age of 5, he is quite a ladies man. Zachy has had a great week also. He woke up this morning at 6 am and wanted to do homework. He asked for the 1st grade math workbook, and finished a 40 page book by 8am. All of a sudden, he is addicted to math and numbers. He walks around the house all day adding numbers together. A friend of mine emailed me some info on "Aspergers" becauseshe felt that Zach fit into the profile. I have been researching it, and in some ways it fits Zach to a T. We are having such a hard time with potty training though. The other day I went into school to do some work (I am the treasurer for the PTO- I am a gluton for punishment...) and Zach decided to pee all over the copy room. What a mess! The nurse came in and was amazed at how much had come out. Zach will usually only go 1-2x's a day. We put him in big-boy underware, but he just does not seem to want to use the potty. He was going at school for his teacher, but Friday he wet all over the classroom. I need help, or some good advise!
Today, we took the boys to a big train convention... I think Dan had died and gone to heaven! Talk about sensory overload. I was even more surprised to see how excited Zach got. Dan lives and breathes trains, the doc said that it is one of his OCD's, and to let him do it as much as he want's because it is his comfort zone. It is becoming a problem though, because he has chosen to play trains lately, instead of playing at the park with his friends, Dan also talks in his sleep like me and it is always about trains. My neurologist says that we should not worry, but how long will this last? Will he always be ocd? Do kids grow out of it? Well, it is getting late, and my two little guys have now crawled into our bed. I am sure they won't be doing that at the age of 21, or else we have a reeaal problem! He, he. My husband is the lucky one, he gets up and lays in the extra bedroom (with the new matress) and actually gets some sleep, while I get kicked and layed on most of the night. There is a great side to it though... they never look more heavenly then when they are asleep! I could just eat them up. It also makes all of the hard parts of the day melt away.

My Sunshine(s)

What a day! I have spent half my day trying to figure out how to turn on and off "cookies" on my computer and the other half being chased by 2 little monsters on their bikes. My older son Danny decided to use the gasoline funnel for our lawn mower to cover his brother in soaking wet leaves and dirt. By the time I figured out what he was doing, Zachy was covered in wet leaves and his head smelled like a gas station. I had to laugh though, he did look like the tin man with it on his head. After that game, the boys decided to play monsters with some severed heads... it's halloween time and my husband is a decorating fanatic. No wonder they have been having nightmares?! Anyways, the best part of the day actually came at 10:30 pm... I had just come home from playing bunco with a neighborhood group, and found Zachy sound asleep and Dan just laying there awake waiting for me. I laid down next to him and he started singing a song to me- "you are my sunshine". I used to sing that song to the boys when they were infants to help them fall asleep. Now, five years later, out of the blue, Danny starts singing to me: "You are my sunshine, I love my sunshine, when I go walking down the sidewalk, with you by me, you are my sunshine...". Isn't is funny, we are working so hard on homework that he is just not understanding, but a song from five years ago- that I have not sang in five years- he somehow remembers, and remembers well! I will never understand how their little brains work? As I have been told, when you lack at one thing, you are terrific at another. My son Zachy is amazing, it is so hard to understand his speech most of the time, and lately he will repeat the same word four or five times, but he can put together a 500 piece puzzle and the other day he asked me if I knew what 7+8 equals... before I could answer he blurted out 15! He then continued to show me ho well he could add. He just turned four. When you lack at one thing...

The joys of 6am

Amazingly enough, it is 6am and I am on the computer writting my first blog! My name is Jennifer, and I am the mother of 2 boys, 4 and 5, born 1 year and 2 weeks apart. As if having "Irish Twins" was not enough, both of my boys have PDD- Pervasive Developemental Delays. I have been looking for a long time on the internet for a place where mom's of PDD kids could get together and share not just medical questions, but ideas as well as stories of good times and bad times. You do not have to have a low functioning Autistic child to know that any type of disability (Apraxia, Aspergers, speech delays, physical delays etc...) have just as large an effect on you as a mother, and your family and marriage. I consider myself one of the lucky one's, I have a wonderful husband named Jay, and what I consider to be a happy marriage! Hopefully he considers it happy too! I also consider myself lucky because over the past three years- my son Danny (5)has been diagnosed with Autism, Seizure disorder, Asthma, Neurofibromatosis type 1, had a tumor removed, been through special ed. preschool, had his Autism diagnosis reversed, diagnosed with Apraxia (full body-not just verbal) and amazingly enough somehow he has been mainstreamed into a regular Kindergarten. My son Zachary (4), has Verbal Apraxia, the docs think he might have a seizure disorder and my mothers intuition tell's me something else is going on (sensory? maybe?). My husband has type 1 diabetes and has had it since he was a young boy. Last summer he passed out in the shower and after I woke him up he walked up to me and started blowing rasberries at me before passing out face down on the bed! Crazily enough, all I could think of was "I better get some underwear on him before the ambulance gets here, or else he will be soooooo mad!" As all mom's know, your health ends up coming last. I have just had a weird couple years... I have had a breast cancer scare, brain surgery and anything else "strange" you could throw at me. I am a survivor, or just crazy... not sure which one? The biggest lesson I have learned from all this is: take things in stride and try not to complain, it can only get better. By the way... Diapers on the dashboard was my brother Matt's idea. One day at my mom's house I was changing my son Zachy on the front seat of my car, my brother walked up behind me as I had left a poopy diaper on the dashboard. Luckily he reminded me it was there or else we would have had quite a surprise when we all went to left! Well, welcome to my blog and please let me and other mom's know about your adventures in MOTHERHOOD!