Wild, wooley Thursday Night

A big storm blew through here last night. It only lasted about an hour, but it dumped buckets of rain on us. Poor Jackson, who's sick again, just couldn't sleep through all the thunder. I have no idea if Noah slept or not.

Here's the swamp, a.k.a. our backyard. We really need to put in some more french drains.
And the hail in our front yard.
When the storm first hit, I heard sirens. I thought they might be the tornado siren, but Brad was watching the news and said it wasn't a tornado type of storm.

Then, this morning, we found this:




Our driveway stretches to the back of the house where the garage is, and this is a little side porch we have. We never even heard it fall!The good news is the roof doesn't seem damaged. Apparently the tree hit the tree next to the house, breaking off a large branch. That seemed to have soften the fall, so it just ended up resting on the roof instead of crashing into it. Thank God!


Brad is outside with his chainsaw clearing it up right now. Crazy times indeed.

Autism Awareness Month

April is Autism Awareness Month, and I've been doing some reading lately.

I came across an interesting blog entry where a father was trying desperately to get his son to stop riding some hotel elevators and go home. Eventually a security guard came over and asked what was wrong with the kid since they'd been watching them on the security monitor for the past 45 minutes. The father said nothing and finally manage to drag his son away. Later his wife asked him why he didn't tell the guard that his son had autism. The father said he just didn't like the way the guy asked, "What's wrong with him?"

I guess I can relate to this story in two ways. First, I've had to drag my son away kicking and screaming plenty of times. It doesn't help that he always starts yelling, "Help, help!" Second, I've also wondered just when to tell people my son is autistic.

For example, I realize that not all of you, my friends and family, know that Jackson has autism. It's not that I'm ashamed or embarrassed to tell you. It's that I wasn't sure how to mention it. Jackson was diagnosed last spring, but it seemed weird to just send out a mass email. "Guess what!" You get the idea.

But I realize now that I want you all to know what a great kid I have. He has come such a long way. Those who spend time with frequently know that socially he's moved forward with leaps and bounds. Remember when he did nothing but cry and scream in my lap when you tried to talk to him? Remember when, at the age of 3, he hardly said anything at all?

But now, man. He talks! All the time! He orders me around! He begs for cookies, and goes and gets them himself. Even when I tell him he can't have any. He likes to chase his little brother and tickle him. He likes when his older cousins chase and tickle him. He gives hugs and kisses and cuddles all day long. He knows all his colors and numbers...in English and Spanish. He knows all his letters and animals and animals and sounds. He can name every animal in the zoo and begs to go there every week.

Sure there are plenty of challenges. His fits are more impressive than his two year-old brother's. He rarely wants to leave the house. He won't stop fighting with Noah. He's a super picky eater. And I wonder if he's ever going to be potty-trained.

But he's my sweet big boy, and I'm so proud of him. And I want all of you to know it.

Japanese Spring Festival

We headed to the Fort Worth Botanic Gardens recently to soak up the fresh air and sunshine. They hold a nice festival each spring. The Japanese gardens have lots of great little paths and bridges and steps. My kids loved it!
While there we checked out a martial arts demonstration. Since then Noah has been running around the house yelling, "hi-ya!"
You should have seen the gleam in Noah's eyes when he saw this kid with the stick. You could just see his mind working, imagining the possibilities of getting a stick of his own and what he could do with it. I can't wait for Noah to be old enough to sign up with a class.

As you can imagine, the large pond was filled with koi. They also had plenty of ducks with little duck babies!
And waterfalls.
And turtles!
It was a relaxing day.
Brad and I sampled some the sushi and rice bowls they had for sale while the kids watched the animals.



We're so happy spring is finally here!

Par-tay

At the park! Here's Jackson, in his jammies, because, well, it's easier to get him out of the house if we don't have to dress him. He doesn't like to go outside.We were at Red Kane Park in Arlington. It's a fun park with a pond. And ducks. Oh my God, the ducks! Noah loves, loves, loves duckies. And throwing rocks and sticks in the water. Way fun!
The only problem is, neither boys wants to do anything besides play next to the water. I spent most of the party trying to lure them away back to the group. When they finally came for snacks and cake, I had to keep chasing Jackson as he repeatedly ran back to the shore! I was worn out like you wouldn't believe.
Noah did play on the playground, for a bit.
And then he was willing to have some snackies.
Jackson, though, wouldn't come to the table. Noah felt sorry for him and kept him company.
Birthday boy and cake! Mmm, mutant ninja green frosting...
This is what finally lured Jackson away from the water. A big freakin' rock. And see the man who's such a great influence on his sons.
Well, boys love rocks, I suppose.
Birthday boy and lots of Transformers. He was so proud of them!