UGH!!!

Princess and Monster's mom was supposed to come over for lunch. She never showed. She finally called around 6pm and said that she would be on her way after her and her new boyfriend dropped off his mom at her house. She lives about half an hour away now (she just moved yesterday). I kindly reminded her that Monster usually goes to bed around 7 and since she wouldn't be here until at least 645 that it wouldn't leave much time for her to visit. I asked her if tomorrow would be better and she agreed. So now the visit is scheduled for tomorrow. Well atleast it is supposed to be, she usually cancels and uses every excuse in the book as to why she can't make it. :(
Other than that we had a great day. My cousin, his girlfriend and their daughter came to visit today. We had a nice lunch and let the kids play in the back yard until the mosquitos started getting too bad. The kids played so nice together and they are supposed to come tomorrow afternoon and then we are going to walk to the park with the kids. It is supposed to be nice out tomorrow so it will make for a nice day.
Next week is going to be physically and mentally draining. Monday and Tuesday are pretty typical (just therapy for Monkey Man and Monster). Wednesday, I have to take Monster to get evaluated for autism. That in itself would be enough for a week but no there is more. Thursday I have to take Itty Bitty to have a his pre surgery physical done. Then on Friday is his surgery. He is having caps put on his 4 front teeth. The enamal didn't form correctly because of his birth mothers drinking when she was pregnant with him. Poor baby is still suffering the after effects of her poor choices. I just worry because I know there are additional risks when children are under the age of 2. He is only 17 months.
I just want next week to be done and over with already. I want to have answers as to whether Monster has autism or not. And I want Itty Bitty's surgery's to be in our past. I am already starting to feel anxious about everything and this week isn't even done yet. I am just trying to stay busy and not dread too much on it all. Wish us luck.

Only for today

Today was crazy busy but the boys had a blast, Princess is with her grandma for the night. We hung out at home this morning while Monkey Man had therapy and then Monster and Itty Bitty went and had fun with their aunt while I took Monkey Man to speech. When we were done we hung out with auntie and they had fun playing outside with their cousin. Then we came home to eat supper, bath time, then off to bed. Monster and Itty Bitty went to bed so easy tonight, I layed them down and haven't heard a peep since then. Monkey Man is about to get ready for bed then I think I will head to bed.
Tomorrow is going to be such a relaxing day compared to most. Monster and Monkey Man have therapy in the morning and then in the afternoon Monster and Princess's mother is going to come visit with them and have lunch. It should be a quiet day, I am hoping, but Monster tends to get very overstimulated when his mom comes to visit so I hope everything goes well tomorrow.

This past month

Its been crazy since Princess and Monster came back to live with us. Monkey Man gets 26 hours of ABA therapy a week and an hour of speech, Itty Bitty gets an hour of occupational therapy a week, and Monster gets an hour of speech and an hour of occupational therapy every week. That's a busy schedule. Add in the issues that the children came with (Princess has issues with trying to be the parent and control the other children, and Monster likes to throw anything and everything) but it is getting better.
We went to an autism meetup group tonight, that is sponsered by my tribe (we are Native American). It was great. Needless to say that only me and another girl showed up but it was the first meeting and what did you expect. I felt so bad for the other girl, her son was diagnosed and that was it. They didn't even point her in the direction to get her son some help. I told her of all the available resources in our wonderful state and hopefully she can start getting some help for her son soon. Poor girl has been trying to do everything on her own and she is pregnant with her second child.
The kids had a blast playing with the workers who kept them busy while we were having our meeting. They each got a stuffed toy from Toy Story. I can't wait until next month when they have another meeting, though I do hope more people show up.
I think it is safe to say that things are finally settling down and the children are getting used to living with each other. Somedays are hard but considering they are still all so young (5,4,2 and 1) things are going really well.

Introducing Itty Bitty

From the time my sister (mother to Princess and Moster) found out she was pregnant with Itty Bitty, she made the decision to adopt him to me. Considering I had custody of her other two children (Princess and Monster) at that point, I was elated but kind of scared of raising 4 children on my own. Of course the minute I saw him, I knew he was mine and the rest of it was just legal jumbo. He came a month early but did remarkably well. He came home on the 5th day. He was a more difficult baby. Early on there were tons of issues. At 1 month old he came down with cold like symptoms, so I took him in and found out he had Group B Strep, luckily antibiotics took care of it. Then at 4 months he was diagnosed with Plagiocephaly (mishappen head) and Torticollis (a muscle in his neck wasn't long enough so he only looked one way). That's when we started occupational therapy with him to help the Torticollis and helmet therapy to help the Plagiocephaly. Then came on the feeding problems (he had a super sensitive gag relex and a horrible suck relfex) so we stayed with the occupational therapist. He is now 1.5 years old and doing so much better. He is finally eating solids and doesn't have to be formula anymore. He is a bundle of energy and they are thinking that he too will be eventually diagnosed with pFAS but will wait until he is 2 to have him evaluated.

Introducing Monster

Monster came to me right from the hospital. He was a big baby and that is how he got his nick name. He is Princess's brother, my nephew. He was an awesome baby. He was content no matter what he was doing. Monster only ever really cried when he was hungry. When he was a couple months old he went back to his mother. He came back into care before he was even a year old. At the age of 1.5 I could tell something was up with him too. Monster was very behind in speech and was very with drawn from the world around him. I decided to give him some more time since he was still very young. He went back to his mother shorly after and I kept a watchful eye on him. I talked to his mother about my concerns last month and she made an appointment for him. Then he came back into care earlier this month so I will be taking him to his appointment that is early next month. I am thinking it may be autism but won't know for sure for another week and a half. He is now 2.5 and only says 10 words, is in his own world alot, doesn't socialize with other children, has sensory issues, etc. But we will see and if it is than we will seek help.

Introducing Princess

Princess is biologically my niece. She came to me when she was 9 months old. My sister is a severe alcoholic and at that point had 3 children. The older two live with my parents and always will. I remember when I got the call from the case worker asking if I was willing to take her in. I don't even think I hesitated before saying yes. At 9 months old she was a little ball of energy, she had the most beautiful blue eyes, and the softest little cry. When she first came, I thought, "Wow, am I ever gonna wake up with her if she starts crying in the middle of the night." But those motherly instincts kicked in and I would wake up everytime she moved.
By the time she was 2, I knew something was going on with her. Princess was extremely hyper so I chalked it up to being ADHD, it runs in our family, and didn't think much of it.
She ended up going back with her mom when she was 2.5 but ended up back with me before she turned 3. When she came back, it was like she never left. Things went back to normal.
Princess was diagnosed with pFAS, partial fetal alcohol syndrome when she was 3.5. It was devistating to hear that she would suffer for the rest of her life because her mother couldn't quit drinking while she was pregnant with her. A couple months after that Princess went back to live with her mom. I hated to see her leave because I knew she would be back in care before the year was up and she shouldn't have to be bounced around like that.
It wasn't until recently that she came back to live with me. And I couldn't be happier. She is 4.5 years old now, a bundle of joy, still has those bright blue eyes, and is a joy for the most part, though she does haver her moments. She may have pFAS but it doesn't have her.

Introducing Monkey Man

I was 20 years old when I found out I was pregnant with Monkey Man. He was born 11 days after my 21st birthday. I had always knew that I would be a mom one day and there he was. He was perfect in every way and I was so glad when I could bring him home. I became a single mommy when he was only a month old, but was content raising him on my own. Even from the beginning I knew he was different. Just his mannerism and his quirks. When he was 2, I had him evaluated for a speech delay and they told me, "Oh, he is a boy, he'll catch up." I let that statement keep me in denial for another year. I knew he was different, from the way he played with toys to the way he acted around other kids. Something just wasn't right. At 3.5 years old he was diagnosed with autism. That is when our whole world changed. After a couple of months I became OK with everything, things were falling into place. Monkey Man was starting speech and occupational therapy, getting screened for special education and was making some progress.
Monkey Man is now 5.5 and is doing remarkably well. He has been in a regular class room (with lots of supports), has been receiving 26 hours of ABA therapy, has graduated from occupational therapy, and still receiving speech therapy. He takes things literally, has some behavioral issues we are still working on, it still quirky, but he lives life to its fullest and has taught me so many things.