Wicked Cool Shirts!!

One of my "blogging buddies" is trying to bring her daughter, Abby home from India. One of their fundraisers is this wonderful t-shirt! I absolutely love them, and think they are a must for all of us India Moms!! Here's a link to her blog where she makes it super-easy to order!!

http://needhamfamily5.blogspot.com/

Skiing!

Myles is ready to ski!

Max getting ready for his first time down the hill!

Mason goes down with Daddy. He's ready to ski too!

Winter in Maine means skiing for a lot of people. We live in a very tiny community, but one of the major benefits is this ski slope. Spruce is a tiny little slope with tow ropes instead of chairlifts. My grandfather was just telling me how he helped to build the tow ropes and was the first to start up the one on the biggest slope (orchard), when my Uncle was in high school. Apparently my uncle broke is finger pretty badly the first run down!

Skiing is a very expensive sport, and there's no way we could enjoy it as a family if it weren't for Spruce. The bigger mountains are just too expensive, even for one day passes. My whole family grew up on Spruce and it is wonderful to be able to share that with my own children now. I am very grateful that Dan has the teaching gene, because I don't have the patience to teach the kiddos. He is wonderful with them, and it is so fun to hear them all beg to go with Daddy.

Today was gorgeous - a perfect day for all of us to go up. Myles is now able to go up and down on his own, so Dan thought it was a good time to start Max. He actually went out for groceries yesterday and came back with skis for Max! Spruce is the type of community place where Mason and I are able to watch the kids, hang out in the lodge, and catch up with lots of friends. Just a wonderful place.

This year we almost didn't have this wonderful resource. One of the local paper mills shut down which provided the power to run the tow ropes. Fortunately, at the last minute, a deal was made which allowed the mountain to stay open. This Sunday, Spruce filmed a spot to be sent in to Extreme Makeover: Home Edition. We are all keeping our fingers crossed that we are chosen! It would be such a huge loss to the youth, and the community in general, if this place isn't able to stay open in the coming years!

Take a look at all the fun the kids have!

Once again, more time passed than I had intended. We had an eventful week, with my return to work, Mason's first time at daycare, and some appointments.

Work went fine. Mason did wonderful at Holly's house - he even went down for a nap with no one laying with him! I ended up working more hours than planned, and by the end of the week, Mason was definitely showing signs of not liking it. He was clingy and anxious whenever I left the room. Nothing major, and kind of nice to see that the attachment is definitely there!

We had his appointment with the opthamologist who was not terribly concerned about the strabismus. Neither were we - it has resolved so much from those first few pictures that we had of him. The doc agrees that it will probably continue to resolve on its own.

I've been doing a lot of thinking about providers and services. Many of you know that the big concern that I have had from the beginning is the amount of advocacy I know we'll have to do to get Mason what he needs. I'm not an assertive person by nature, I don't like to hurt people's feelings or make things hard for people. We have Early Intervention services in the home right now. He is eligible for those until he turns three in July. In April we will have to meet and review his plan to start the transition into the Special Education track. It sounds like at that point they will push for him to be in a headstart or some other type of group setting to receive services. I know that this is good for a lot of kids, but it is not where I want Mason right now. At all. And the services we are receiving now are fine - we adore the lady that comes to our house, but I feel like it isn't enough. It isn't as much as I expected. With his issues I really expected to have PT OT and Speech at least once a week, and what we get is just PT once a week, and then that provider can call on an OT or ST if she feels the need. So I am seeking to get him in to a private physical therapist with wonderful facilities and a great reputation. The problem with this is the co-pay. $25 for each visit. Doesn't sound like much, but if we go once a week, that's $100 per month. Remember that we're raising four kids on a teacher and social worker salary. So, we've made the decision to apply for Mainecare for Mason. Our insurance will cover what they normally cover, and then Mainecare (Medicaid for out of staters) will pick up the rest. I was initially nervous that this would cut down on our options, but I think it will open more doors for us in the long run.

The other thing with providers I still haven't come to a decision on. For a long time we have been considering changing Primary Care Providers. My dilemma with that is that I LOVE the doc, but the office is very hard to navigate, it's difficult to communicate with them, and it takes forever to get anything to happen. For instance - even though the office had flu vaccinations this year, they didn't have openings for people to get the flu shot. Max has breathing issues, and Mason was just getting home with multiple medical concerns, and I couldn't get them vaccines. I was able to get them the same day I called at the office in town where we would change to. I think this is going to happen, it's just a matter of timing. I'm not sure what happens to referrals that have been made (cardiology) if we change providers. So it's just complicated.

The kids are all doing great! Reports cards came out and Myles' teacher described him as a "model student" and Madeline's described her as "a gem." Dan's question was, "whose children are we sending to school?" Maddie is missing both of her front teeth. She looks goofy and so much older for some reason. Myles can now ski completely independently which makes it much more fun for all involved. Max is getting used to his role as big brother, and we have lots of fun now when it's me and the two little boys in the mornings. Mason is just thriving. His language increases every day, and he's such a social, charming little guy.

I should have my camera back (thank goodness!) next week, and I really want to get his speech and his physical progress on video because it's pretty remarkable. Until then. . .

Some Things We've Neglected

Somehow in the course of travelling, Thanksgiving, Christmas, etc. we missed a few significant events that I need to document here.

The week after we got back, Dan once again served as musical director for the High School's community musical. And, of course, Diva Madeline had to take part. This year it was quite a family event since Auriana and Carter (cousins) also participated. It was wonderful to see them all on stage together.

The 3 of Spades

A very pretty Flower

Madeline, Carter, Auriana

Right after Christmas, Madeline, Mason and I went with my Mom down to Virginia to finally meet my new nephew. He was born as we were boarding our flight home from New Delhi! Both of the kids did extremely well with the long ride down and back. Mason did not like the idea of Mom holding another little person, so I had to wait until he was asleep or really intent on another activity to get my snuggle time in.

Maddie, Fin, Mimi (Jaime)

Mason and Mimi

Maddie reading to Fin

Maddie and Fin

On the way home, we got caught up in a storm and stopped in a motel in MA. Mason had been asleep and we had to wake him up to take him in. His reaction was so very sad. He screamed at the top of his lungs. He grabbed onto me so tightly and would not let go for anything. It took him a long time to settle down, and I literally could not have pried him off of me. It is the only time I've seen him react like that, and although I'm glad he's attached to me, it makes me sad that he was so terrified that I might leave.

I'm going to try to be better at updating here. I just finished formatting the first year of this blog to have it bound into a book for us. I'm horrible about keeping up photo albums, and scrapbooking has never happened at my house, so this is really our way of keeping our family history.

I'm horrible and haven't posted in forever.

We had a wonderful Christmas together. It was nice to not feel like we were waiting for someone, or someone was missing. We definitely feel like a complete family. Mason did great with all of the chaos of the holiday season, and we're glad the whole family has met him now.

The week after Christmas, my Mom, Mason, Madeline and I went down to VA to visit my sister and her new son. I just couldn't wait any longer to meet Fin. It's about a 14 hour drive each way, and I could not have asked for 2 more well behaved kids throughout the whole trip! A very pleasant surprise. Fin is just a doll, and I think Jaime was impressed with how well Mason was doing. Of course, I left my camera in VA, and it's driving me nuts not to have it!

Right now I feel like my life revolves around appointments for Mason. This will die down a bit soon, but we're still trying to make sure we know all we can about him, to make sure we're doing all we can for him. We've seen a neurologist, who answered so many of our questions and really clarified what we are dealing with and why. He was lovely and really took the time to listen to us and answer every question we had. We had him evaluated by the local Early Intervention program, and have referrals out there for opthamology and cardiology. He is also seeing a chiropractor. This is something our family is relatively new to. I went to a presentation by the local office, and one of the things they talked about was how it was helpful to children with CP. I enrolled myself to kind of scope him out and see if it was something I trusted for my child. We've had really great results. I see such a difference in Mason, especially in the way he uses his right side more. And he loves going. We are not using it in lieu of other medical interventions, but to augment the other things.

Mason is becoming quite the social little guy. He loves to "go, go, go" and yells "hey" at anyone passing by so he can flash them his fabulous smile. And Max is really warming up to him now. He reminds me all the time, "I can be a good big brother," to which I whole-heartedly agree. We're all very happy with the new family dynamic, and cannot imagine it any other way!

The video was taken before we went to India, and it's just about the cutest thing ever. I never know where my pics and videos will end up now. I used to be able to move them to wherever I wanted, but I can't do that anymore. Not sure why.

I've been neglecting the blog. It's busy around here, and I don't particularly feel like it's anything exciting to share. So the mundane update. . .

Mason is doing great. He's making progress daily, and has really come out of his shell socially. He's getting more language, which is so fun to witness. We were in love with him from the start, but now I look at him, and just can't imagine my life without him. I'm so thankful that we took that leap of faith and said yes to him. There's no doubt in my mind that he was meant to be a part of our family.

Max Rup, on the other hand, disagrees at the moment. He told me today, "I'm not going to be Mason's brother anymore. I'd rather be a meanie." Ah, jealousy. It's nothing out of the ordinary, nothing we didn't expect, but it is draining. He whines A LOT. I was talking to another mom who's little girl is his age, and who just brought another child home. It seems this is a lovely issue we share. It's nice to know Max isn't alone, and neither am I :)

The only ill effect I'm really suffering from is a sore back. Max likes to be carried around, and Mason has to be. Sometimes I try to play hardball with Max, but really, when the alternative is half an hour of whining, I just pick 'em both up.

Madeline and Myles have both been wonderful with this transition. Maddie is her typical "mother hen" self. Always very proud, and wanting to help in any way she can. Myles is generous with sharing, and very gentle with Mason. He likes to talk to him and bring him things. He makes sure Mason feels included. It makes me smile to watch him.

Happy Holidays to all!

Max Rup is 3!

Blankie on the head

Lots of help opening presents

Frosting on the nose

Nana and Wendy - starting trouble :)

I cannot believe that on Dec. 1, Max Rup turned 3! The end of November / beginning of December is a very busy time for us with 2 Gotcha Days, Max's birthday, Dan's birthday, Thanksgiving - so much to celebrate.

Two years ago on November 27th, we met Max for the first time. We had done our reading, and knew to expect adjustment issues, and anticipated struggles. It was so easy. The minute they put him in my arms, he snuggled down, smiled, and that was it. It was like both of us knew that this is how it was supposed to be. The only issue we had was that he wanted to be held all of the time, which I didn't mind a bit!

We arrived home the day before his birthday. When I look at pictures I notice his chubby little baby face, and his curls. The chubby cheeks and curls are all gone now, and he looks like a little boy. He is so sweet, and such a character. He is our smallest, and by far our loudest!

Max is struggling with the adjustment of having Mason home. He is jealous, and doesn't want to share anything - especially his Nana! Despite the jealousy, he wants very much to be a good big brother.

Some things I love about Max Rup at age 2:

• his "goy goy goy" as he sucks on his fingers.
• his love for all of his blankies, and how he carries then around on his head.
• his big, cheesy grin.
• his immediate need for food in the morning - he wakes us up by saying, "I need some cereal!"
• watching him and Myles play so well together. They are so close, and it just warms my heart.
• his undying devotion to my mother - even though it drives me crazy sometimes :) I love that they are so close.
• his absolute NEED to talk on the phone no matter who is calling.
• watching him and Myles chase the chickens, and carry them around like dolls.

Please share some of your favorite Max Rup memories in the comments section!!