Low cholesterol

Yup you read that right. Gage has low cholesterol! I had our DAN doctor check it after reading a study from Kennedy Kreiger Institute that a statistically significant number of autistic children in their study had low cholesterol. Now the study didn't say how this affected the children. But I do know that cholesterol (other that being hard to spell) is very important for neurological function. It helps make up the lining of the nerve cells and is important in the make up cells themselves.
So I am going to try to have Gage eat more eggs and the doctor is sending me a cholesterol supplement. Then in 6 weeks we have it checked again. Jeez I wonder what his cholesterol would be if he wasn't such a french fry junkie!

When good bread goes bad.

Ok so theres no chance of me quiting my day job! This is a loaf of GFCF bread I attempted to make from a mix. As you can tell it all went horribly wrong! I followed the directions and opened the oven after 50min to put the foil on so it wouldn't get too brown and the damn thing was about taking over my oven!!! And the thing is I'm not even sure its done on the inside!
Yikes I guess I need some more practice and an oven thermometer to make sure my oven is the right temp! Oh well I guess if its done I can cut it down for sandwiches. Its better than the moldy tapioca bread I got from the store!

Ch-ch-ch-changes!

Wow this fall is full of changes for our family!
First Gage. For Gage his preschool is now in the afternoon and the Kids Club is in the morning. So it is completely opposite of last year. He also has a new teacher this year as well.
Makinna is going into 1st grade! I can't believe how big she has gotten and how old she acts sometimes. She is just sprouting up before my eyes.
As for me....well I am going back to work full time (30 hours a week) for the first time since Makinna was born. I'll be working 5- 6 hour days. Its time I guess. I will be able to hold benefits for us. Since Wes got laid off and started his own business we have been buying our own health insurance and let me tell ya, they suck! So Gage and I leave at 7:30 in the morning for our 40 minute drive to the kids club and my neighbor puts Makinna on the bus.
And for Wes, well he is going to take Fridays off to watch Gage. I am excited about this because its about the right time for a little boy to spend more time with his dad.
So far its all been working out. I'm beat at the end of the week. Gage had some growing pains with his new schedule but is better with it now. And Makinna is going with the flow and loving 1st grade.

More Makinnaism

OK Makinna has been on a role for funny comments lately and I'd like to share two of them with you.

#1
Makinna: "So Mom you know Pluto isn't a planet anymore, so what is it, a moon or something?"
Me: "Um I think I heard somewhere that its a sub-planet"
Makinna: " Oh so like if one of the other planets is sick or takes a day off Pluto can substitute for them"


#2
Makinna received a box full of clothes from Grammy. In the box were two bikini bathing suits (Makinna has never had one before)
Makinna holds up the top to one bathing suit
Makinna: "Mommy this looks like the kind of bathing suit you put your boobies in"
Me:"yup that's what it is"
Makinna:" Well I think Grammy must have made a mistake because I don't have any boobies!"

That girl cracks me up!

Stupid things people say

Well I guess we are officially members of the club now. I've heard many other moms tell stories of stupid things people have said to them but have never had it happen. Well today it happened, not to me but to Wes.

We went to my niece's graduation party at my sisters house today, and took the kids of course. Well Wes got to talking to the neighbors about Gage and that he had autism. Well they are both teachers, which in their minds makes them experts in autism (insert eye roll here). As Gage went running off toward the fence Wes started after him and as he was walking away the woman says "Yea I just feel so blessed that both of our girls are so intelligent and beautiful"

Ummmm. OK I guess a kid with autism is ugly and stupid. It's probably good that I wasn't there because I probably would have made her feel very uncomfortable. I can't stand people who act like they know everything but in fact know nothing. It scares me that this woman teaches children. Wes was chasing after Gage and it didn't really register with him what she said until a few minutes later and the moment had passed.

Sigh.... there sure are some stupid idiots out there.... and they're teaching our kids....yikes!

Oh and just for fun I decided to add a picture of my stupid ugly kid. (insert sarcasm)

Taking the Summer Off.

There are 2 things that I have become overly obsessed with....autism and politics. Both subjects evoke strong emotions in me and both subjects have a wide variety of opinions. Over the last two years I have been immersed in both. I listen to talk radio in my car and frequent autism message boards while at home. I thought about both subjects all the time, sometimes getting all tied up in knots because of an view I didn't agree with.
Well fate, or God, or the universe recently intervened. First my ISP was down for 4 days, so no Internet and then we went away for 4 more days and no Internet. So I didn't frequent my message boards. Well I began to feel so much more relaxed. Second the radio in my car quit (thanks to Gage and some coins inserted in the CD player) So no more talk radio. Again I was feeling even more relaxed and less like I had a knot in my stomach.
So when we got back from our trip, I got on the computer and I thought "I don't' even want to go to that message board" So I've decided to take the summer off. I'm not listening to the radio or anything about politics. Now, it is an election year so this is very hard for me. But I already know who I'm going to vote for so any research is just for argument sake anyway. And I'm taking the summer off from autism. Gage will still get his interventions and therapy, but I'm going to concentrate on having fun with my kids, my daughter and my son. Not my daughter and my autistic son, but my daughter and my son.
I feel liberated and happy and content, I'm on summer vacation.

Makinna-isms

Today Makinna and I played hooky. She only had a half day and she had an eye doctors appt so I decided to just keep her home and we would have a "girls day" with no little brother.

Well as a treat we decided to go out to lunch at Applebees. In the restaurant they have framed pictures everywhere and this one is the one right at our table. I didn't notice it right away but when I did I was concerned about what Makinna would think of it, as she is a bit funny about "scary" stuff. After about 10 min I saw her look at and get a funny look on her face. She then looked all around the restaurant at all the other pictures. Then she leaned over to me and said very seriously and very quietly "Mommy...We're at the scary lady table!" I almost fell over I laughed so hard. I told her that they were not ladies but men in a rock band. She looked a little confused and said "well why are they dressed like ladies?" Again I almost lost my lunch!

If you know Makinna you know that she can go on and on about things. She talked all through lunch about the guys in the picture saying things like " I'm sure they are very old now and probably don't sing anymore" and my favorite "they are probably so old that if they tried to dance thier legs would break"

Having a 6yo definitly keeps you entertained.