Dear tooth fairy...

Millie was so excited about losing her first teeth that she left the tooth fairy a letter...

With a letter this cute, How could the tooth fairy not honor her request?

A tale of two teeth...

On Sunday, during a routine wiggly tooth check, I noticed Millie had a permanent tooth growing in WAY behind her baby tooth. Her baby tooth wasn't even the slightest bit wiggly. It's pretty common but of course it freaked me out!

Look closely you can see it growing there!

So, today we were off to the dentist to see what to do about it. They took a few x-rays and decided it needed to come out.


Here she is being all brave. The Dentist thought it would be better to take both them out so we weren't back in his office in a few weeks! Once he got them out and saw how LONG the roots were he said there was no way these two were coming out on their own.


Here is her new smile! Well, she really isn't smiling because she's still pretty numb! Looks like the tooth fairy will be visiting us tonight!

What's winter without sledding?

Here are some pictures from our sledding trip. We always go over to Evergreen park. There are some steeper hills and then some that even Owen went down by himself.

Happy Birthday Ian!

Ian was born January 4, 2000. He was due on the 11th and because of my history with Matthais, they wanted to induce me 10 days early. They decided to do it January 2nd but because all the hype about the millennium and computers not recognizing the 00 the hospital wasn't accepting any unnecessary inductions that weekend. So, January 4th it was. I was feeling anxious because Shannon (Adam's Sister), who was due a week after me, had already had her baby. They broke my water at 12:30 and told me to wait. Not too much after that Ian's heart rate started dropping with every contraction. The nurse started me on some oxygen and was going to start massaging the baby's head to see if they could keep the heart rate up. She discovered I was complete so they hurried and called the doctor who was in American Fork (we were in Orem). They tipped my bed back to help keep the baby in. The nurses were worried the baby was coming and they didn't want to deliver him because they were worried that the cord was around his neck and that is why his heart rate kept dropping. When the Doctor arrived he asked if he had time to change and they both answered "NO". They sat my bed up and the nurses began explaining to me how I needed to push. The Dr. laughed and said "she doesn't need to push...the baby is just sliding out!" I laughed and there he was. Not a single push, not a single stitch. It was incredible!

Ian's life has not always been as simple as his arrival. I noticed a distinct change when he was one. My lovable smiling boy wasn't smiling as much. Later, around two, I realized he wasn't talking very much. People told me not to worry, kids talk at different ages. Matthais was talking in full sentences at 18 months. I was a little worried. But, it wasn't until he was 3 that I fully trusted my instincts. I had him tested initially by the school district. They told me he was developmentally delayed and started him in pre-school. DD is a temporary diagnosis they give to qualify for services but then it's up to you to find out what is really wrong. I took him to primary children's where they diagnosed him with PDD-NOS which is basically saying he has signs of Autism but he's not fully autistic. Basically, he was on the spectrum. At a follow up appointment in June 2003 his diagnosis was officially changed to Autism. I finally broke down and cried. I was relieved to have a diagnosis but I watched my hopes and dreams fly out the window.


After the initial sadness I was fine. I've never hid the fact that Ian has Autism. In fact, I love to tell people about it. There is such a stigma with autism but I'm not afraid anymore. Ian is who he is. And...There is so much more to him! He defies the typical stereotype of autism. He does make eye contact. He is very affectionate. Even at 9, he still climbs on my lap for cuddles. He laughs, he plays and He is so love able! And then, there is the other side. He has a hard time learning, talking, expressing himself. He stims, he tantrums, he gets over stimulated. And then there is the seizures. There is no way to know for sure if they are linked in Ian's case but about 1/3 of kids with Autism also have seizures. It's just another bump in the road for us!

Ian loves his little brother Owen and his friend Preston. He is constantly talking and asking about the two of them. He loves school and he loves to play outside.


He is happiest when he is helping his dad. He also likes to talk. A LOT! and he loves to sing. Give him some music and he'll be entertained for HOURS!

I am so thankful for Ian. I can't help think he was sent here for me; to help ME learn and grow. Happy Birthday Ian! We love you!

Girls night out- a night of rule breaking

The day after Christmas left me feeling overwhelmed and stressed. I needed to get away. I called a few friends who couldn't escape and then decided I would just go with out with my girl.

We decided to head down to Mimi's cafe because Millie has earned a free dinner for being student of the month. Then we would head over to Build-a-bear to use the gift card she got from Christmas. On our way down one of Millie's friends called and wanted a sleepover. We decided to pick her up and take her with us.

The girls friend had some money and I made a deal with them so they could both get an animal at Build-a-bear. They both chose the same little puppy.



Meet Belle and spot.

Afterwards we started talking about getting Millie's ears pierced. The rule has been that she needed to wait until she was 8 but after a few text's with her dad we had the ok so we headed down to Claires.

Initially she was so excited but her little friend kept telling her how bad it would hurt and the more she thought about it the more scared she got.

At one point she said "nevermind, I don't want to do it!" We continued...

...and she cried! But, it was only for about 30 seconds. By time we paid and left she was giggling with her little friend again!

Why McDonalds and Autism don't mix

Adam went fishing and my lunch date cancelled (get better Jen!) so I decided to spend the day with the kids. They each got an arch card and some money for Christmas so I decided to take them to McDonald's and a movie. It's been a really long time since I've taken the kids to McDonald's. Taking Ian to playlands is a disaster waiting to happen. He gets over-stimulated very easy and I hate the stares I get when he does. I thought that I would go at breakfast and avoid the crowds. I also thought we'd go to the Lehi McDonald's since it was closer to the movie theater. Big mistake. That has to be the absolute slowest and most unorganized McDonald's I have ever been to! I waited 20 minutes for my food. I would have waited longer but I finally complained. While waiting for the food I left the kids to play in the playland. We got there about 9:30 and it was relatively empty. About ten minutes into my wait I hear Ian wailing in the play room. He had climbed up the tube onto a platform surrounded by nets and he wanted "out of Jail". He was upset and crying and wasn't coming down on his own so I sent Matthais up. After much crying and after Matthais had to physically get him down he was finally rescued. Unfortunately it was too late to escape the stares. One little boy told me "I told him he just needed to come down!" I responded "I know, but he doesn't understand, he has autism" even though I knew the little boy probably had no idea what that meant. I made sure I said it loud enough that his parents heard and maybe they could explain. We finally got our food, quickly ate and left. I should have known to just head home but no...I decide to go to a movie. The incident at the playland left him in sensory overload and he wasn't going to sit through a movie. Once the previews started he immediately covered his ears and started crying. I pulled him into my lap which eventually calmed him down but it was really uncomfortable for me and left the terrible two-year old to escape. Oh boy. I put Ian into his own chair and chased after Owen who has stopped and started to strip. He had spilled his drink on him and didn't want to be wet. Sigh. This is why I can't go anywhere alone... And why I'm certifiably insane.

Happy New Year!

There is something so exciting about a new year! It's easy to reflect on the past and plan for the future! I have lots of plans...yes, I'm a resolution maker. I don't care if most of them are discarded. I like to set goals for myself and I do it all year.




Adam and I snuck out for dinner with some friends and then spent the rest of the night home with the kids. Are you a bad mom if you let your two-year-old stay up until midnight???


All the kids made it to midnight except for Ian. I guess America's funniest home videos just wasn't funny enough for him!