Time flies.

 One year ago today we still had 10 days to go before our due date, and 4 more to go before my next doctor appointment to figure out if we were waiting for not. It was a year ago today that I had my brand new iPhone I had talked Ray into, that Ray and I were laying sod in our backyard, and that I talked to Carly who was at her dad's and assured her her brother was not here yet. I remember Ray and I laying the remainder of the sod today, and then sitting on our deck in the backyard. In fact, I have a picture somewhere. It was after the sod was laid that I then made Ray go on a mile walk with me and the dog.

I honestly thought being a mommy of two would be relatively the same as being a mommy of one. I was very mistaken. So much more comes along with that, and they are two totally different children with two totally different personalities.  Even though a year ago today, Ray and I had biweekly movie nights, we all could pack up and head to the coast with hardly any thought,  my laundry was half what it was now, I love being a mommy of 2. And I wouldn't change it for anything.

At the Mouse's House

Ray and I went to Walt Disney World in Orlando, Florida for a long weekend without the kids. We had an awesome time, but missed the kids so much. Carly goes to her dad's every other weekend, but we had never been away from Wesley. We had such a fun few days, and got to spend time with our friends, Nicole and Mike, but we were ready to come home to the kids. We can't wait to go back early next year, and bring both of the babes with us. Carly is going to love all of the interactive things to do at Epcot, and my little Mickey Mouse fan is going to adore all the characters.

While Ray and I were in line for a ride at Epcot, we were behind a mother, her teenage daughter, and her younger son and daughter. Her little girl caught my eye right away after she asked her mom if she was allowed to scream on the ride. She was about Carly's age, had the same blonde hair, and She was flapping her arms as she asked. I noticed and observed that anytime she talked about or asked an excited question, she got anxious and started flapping her arms. She kept continuously hugging her mother over and over, and was so excited she couldn't hold still. I looked at Ray, and could tell her was thinking what I was thinking: That little girl has many of the Autistic signs that Carly has. In fact, she most of the same mannerisms. After chatting with the family for a few minutes we discovered that the teenage daughter was named Carly, and that the girl and boy were actually twins who were 6. The boy was about 6 inches shorter, so I never would have guessed. I asked the mom, very cautiously, if the little girl always flapped her arms. The mom said yes, and commented on how cute it was. That broke my heart. I wondered over and over while we were standing there about whether or not the little girl was autistic, and about whether or not the mom knew it. I shared a little about my Carly, hoping the mom would inquire more. I don't know if the girl was, and the mom knew it and didn't want to share, or if the girl was and the mom had no idea. Of course, the girl might not at all, which is best case scenario right?

That little girl has been on my mind for days, and I just hope that she is getting all the help she needs.

Our kids are definitely a different kind of awesome, but are amazingly awesome in their own way.
In the meantime, I leave you with a picture of a different kind of awesome-ness!

All about Carly K.

As most of you probably know, Carly is Autistic. She has a form of Autism called Pervasive Developmental Disorder (PDD.) All it really means is that she has a hard time understanding some things the same way most people do, is very anxious about a lot of things, and has a hard time in social situations. She has been in special education since she was four, starting at Pre-Kindergarten. In the state of Nevada, she qualified for special education with no problem, and was struggling with keeping up with her class. She was rated at below average in everything. So, of course I was worried when I saw how hard the course work was here. (National standards are rolling out, and soon all first grade classes will be the same- as will every grade!) So, we've been working with her and working with her. Last week, she scored 100% on her spelling test (!!!) and today we had her special education evaluation. Average scores. You hear that? Let me say it louder:
AVERAGE SCORES!
Average right now just means she is caught up. I know she is a super smart kid and will quickly move into above-average, but for now average brings a huge smile to my face. They were hesitant to put her back in special eduation. Her first grade teacher at the start of the year was so dismissive of her, and treated her like a horrible kid. Her teacher here, Mrs. Rudolph, had nothing but good things to say. She also said that she is not seeing the aggression that we were before, and that she has not been labeled a 'bully' here, like in the past. I am so stinking happy. They still qualified her for special ed, but it's minimal. They won't be pulling her out of the class for the special ed, but rather a teacher will be coming in for 1/2 hour for reading,and 1/2 hour for math a day. The teacher will sit with her as she works, and offer help as she needs it. The only time they will remove her from the class is when they see she is getting frustrated, and then they will offer her a 'break.' Sometimes, if she is having trouble understanding something she gets frustrated. Or if she is in with a crowd. When this happens, the best thing to do is remove her, and that's what they will do for 15 or so minutes to let her cool down.
The meeting went so well, the principal, special ed teacher,and her teacher had nothing but great things to say about her. I love it.
I am so stinking proud of her. So proud. She is such a bright, amazing little girl, and I know she has so much potential.
Just awesome :)

Bit behind..

Yeah, so I slacked a bit. Sorry!

Let's get you up to date!
My dad and Lexie came to see us, and we had a blast! We spent the weekend  at their hotel playing games, and at our house just relaxing. We were sad to see them go, but hope we can see them soon!
Christmas was awesome, the kids were spoiled as usual. They turned our perfectly packed living room into Toys R Us gone wild.

We left Reno December 30th for Vegas. We were supposed to leave the 29th, but the moving company showed up a day late, and made us miss our flights out of Vegas not once, but twice. We drove through Vegas in a blizzard, made it safe at 11 pm, and the next day Mark and Ray dropped me and the kids off at the airport and started the drive. The kids and I arrived in one piece and stayed with Ray's mom and stepfather. Ray and Mark made incredible time, and got there on Jan 2nd. We stayed with Tony and Dawn awhile longer because the moving truck took it's sweet time. New Planet Moving = Fail. DO NOT USE THEM! We were all moved in around the 10th? 12th? Anyhoo, Carly started her new school and loves it.

Fast forward to today- Wesley is still not crawling, but is cruising and trying to take steps without holding on. Carly is doing really well in school, and has already made a ton of friends.We are unpacked completely and enjoying the nice weather (50/60 degrees!) after two months of snow. It's raining today, but it's still so nice outside! Carly is taking ballet and tap, and loves it. She does really well, and has friends in the class. I'm getting ready to enroll her in swimming lessons as well.

That's my speedy update. I'll try to post more often now!

Carly says, 17 days left!

How many times can a kid see Santa, really? Well, for Carly it's at least 3. So far! The cool thing is not only is it the same Santa every time, but he has remembered Carly each time, and things she has told him. How cool is that? Especially considering home many kids he sees each day. Maybe he is the real Santa?!
I'm pretty excited for Christmas day. I know she is going to love her presents, and I know Wesley is going to love his... wrapping paper? Carly wants to make gingerbread cookies this year, and I happened to get a mix at Disneyland, with a cool Mickey Mouse Gingerbread man cookie cutter. She is also gung-ho about making sure Rudolph has something, too.
I think we are done shopping for the kids for Christmas. We had to rearrange a few things after Carly changed her likes, but we did it. I even finished stocking stuffers for both. Of course, that isn't going to prevent me from picking up a little something here and there when I am out!
I should take some pictures of our tree and stockings, they are pretty cute. It's funny how excited for Christmas morning you get- even as an adult!

Tis the Season...

Christmas pictures didn't go as well as I would have liked... Lately, Carly has been a bit of a terror, and today proved no different. Asking her to change out of her Christmas skirt and into some birthday clothes ended up with her in the dressing room for 30 minutes screaming. The portrait place was busy, and it was quite embarrassing. I'm calling her doctor tomorrow... something has to give and his last solution wasn't the solution.
Wesley did pretty good though, but didn't give his big smiles. I think our photographer was annoyed with Carly, and she hurried us along. Oh well, always next time, right? Those pictures can be seen here.We'll be sending off cards soon!
I hope none of the family minds, but Christmas presents are all mainly homemade this year. I'm actually kind of excited/proud of a few of them. I just need to put some finishing touches on them.
Short post, but will update more later!

Turkey, the number 7, and all in between!

Gobble, gobble! It was pretty cute how Carly gobbled, and Wesley giggled. The two are quite a pair! I have the pictures to prove it!

Seriously- adorable, right? Yeah. I agree. Anyways, onward!
Thanksgiving was good. We went to my mom's house where my mother, Jeff, Jordan, and one of my mom's friends were there. The kids wore their matching Turkey shirts I made, and they looked so cute. Wesley, sadly, took a bottle shortly before dinner, and had no interest in any other food. He wouldn't even suck on a bit of turkey, that little turkey! But Carly chowed down. Carly's dad came and got her for his Thanksgiving, and then we traded off the next day.
She's seven. Wow. How did that even happen? I really feel like I blinked and here you are. Ray and I took her to Build A Bear in the mall (On black Friday! We're nuts, yes!!!) But it wasn't too bad. We let her stuff a cute little bear we bought her that reflects her birthstone. Carly was so stoked that they had a Rapunzel outfit, as Rapunzel is her new favorite thing. She has a cute little Rapunzel bear now. We took her to Red Robin for dinner, where mom and Jordan met us. I worked for a few hours Thursday night on a cake for her, and was pretty impressed with myself with how it came out. Carly was beyond spoiled for her birthday, and now is eagerly awaiting Christmas to become more spoiled. Ah, kids!

We think we finally found a place to live in Bowling Green. It sounds like this guy is going to hold the house for us until we get there, and judging by the pictures it's gorgeous! We put our house up for Rent today, and already had some interest. Hopefully we get it rented soon! We are moving a couple of days after Christmas, so that we can spend Christmas with my family this year.
As always, pictures can be seen on Facebook via this link, including ones from Carly's Birthday and Thanksgiving. But until then, I leave you with these!