Busy week...

This past week was a busy one for my whole family. Last Sunday we headed over to Bodega Bay to camp for a few days. When I say camping I refer to my version of it.. sleeping in a 5th wheel trailer with bathrooms and showers nearby. In my minds eye there just isn't any other acceptable way. I'm definitely not a roughin' it kinda girl. This was the first time that myself and my immediate family - husband, child, and dog - went on this type of venture without anyone else along. We had a really nice, relaxing time. We stayed there for 2 nights and had a nice campfire the last night. My son loves the texture of sand so he had a wonderful time just hanging out in the sand at the beach.

Here's the boy just chillin' in the chilly ass weather. It didn't get any higher than the mid 60's while we were there...



The big hole my boys dug..






The week started out so nice and peaceful with our little get away. We came back Tuesday afternoon and settled back into the routines we have. Wednesday my son had the first of two assessments with his new in-home therapy company. They'll work with us on teaching him daily living skills that will give him more independence and boost his confidence and will provide more support for Nick as well as the rest of our family. The type of therapy that he'll be receiving, ABA (applied behavior analysis), is the only proven method for tackling the many behavior problems associated with kids on the spectrum. His school addresses them in that setting and the in-home helps build on what's learned at school as well as supporting the parents in helping to keep the methods consistent. The lady who came to work with him was very nice and Nick really seemed to like her. She'll function as the boss of the team that will assigned to Nick and will do some one-on-one with him as well. The amount of hours that they will be working with him will depend on his school schedule. When Nick goes back to school on Monday he'll continue with his present teacher and will then transition into a different school setting that hopefully will allow him to receive the help he needs. I'm very anxious to know more about the new type of class setting. Since it's July and most of the district is still on break I'll have to wait until sometime next week to sit down with the person in charge of supervising the special ed department. She'll give me a better idea of what's in store for Nick. I don't anticipate many hours of the therapy in the home setting, but I know how every little bit helps. That's why I fought to get it for him.

Also on Wednesday my mom had a doctor's appointment. Last year she battled bladder cancer and came through like the fighter she is. She handled chemotherapy and the recovery following her surgery so well it amazed me and gave me a new found respect for her strength. She just recently found another lump and will have to have that biopsied sometime in the next week or so. She admitted to me that she does believe that it is cancer. I so hope she's wrong. She's been through so much already.. it seems cruel to me that she could potentially have to battle it again so soon. Battle it she will, I know that. She's as madly in love with my son as my husband and I are - there's no way she'll give up and lie down and take this. She's determined to stick around to see her boo-boo, as she calls Nick, grow up. She also has a new grandchild coming in February when my brother's wife is scheduled to give birth to their first child.

The best thing that happened this past week was that I finally made some money doing what I've been trying to do for a while. Last October I got my certification to work as a loan officer. I'm dying to try something new and since working with home loans has a great amount of time flexibility as well as the potential ability to make more money than my present job, I decided to try it. The money I made working on this loan means so much to me. Not only do we need it financially, I needed it personally. It gave me a nice sense of accomplishment that's been lacking in me for a long time. I had always worked pretty much full-time since Nick was about a year old. During his first year I stayed home as much as possible, working about as much as I do now. I had to seriously modify my schedule when he first started having therapy in the home. I worked around the therapy as much as I could, but the amount of hours were no where near to what I worked before. Hopefully this will enable me to be able to do both -- be there for my child and contribute.