A year ago this month....I still wouldn't change a thing!!

A year ago this month we found out that our sweet Noah has Asperger Syndrome.  I think back to this time 

last year and remember feeling a "spectrum" of emotions.  This has been an awesome year and we have learned so much!  Noah is still Noah and I still wouldn't change a thing!   We started talking to Noah about Aspergers and Autism several months ago.  He had a lot of questions and we walked him through it.  We talked about how his brain just processes information a little different than other people.  It might also be hard for others to understand things about him.  He was anxious to get on the computer and "research" Aspergers.  He found a huge list of people who are believed to have an Autism Spectrum Disorder.  "Mom, did you now that Albert Einstein had Aspergers?"  We found a lot of others.  Mozart, Henry Ford,  Bill Gates, Ben Franklin, Abraham Lincoln, Charles Dickens, and the list goes on.  "Look at all the wonderful things these people have contributed to this world, I told Noah!"   Noah asked, "Mom what do think I will do"?  I said "anything you want baby"!  Autism is a difference not a disability!  Noah knows more about airplanes than I will EVER know.  He amazes us everyday with all kinds of information.  Medical topics have made it to the top of his interests lately.  Maybe he will be a doctor!  He is absolutely AMAZING!  Noah asks from time to time if he can tell people he has Aspergers and I tell him it's totally his choice. He believes that Aspergers is a wonderful thing, and it is!  If he can help others understand and be aware, acceptance can happen.  All I've ever wanted for Noah was acceptance!  If you think about it so much comes from acceptance: love, friendships,ability to teach and learn, kindness and everything else that makes us who we are.  Aspergers is a part of who Noah is.  I feel so special that God thought I could handle this!  Yes, it can be overwhelming at times.  Trying to make difficult decisions for your child can be painstaking!  We all do it though, whether we have a special needs child or not.  I know that with the wonderful support we have Noah will do great things.  I can't wait to see what amazing things he will continue to do!!

Something Special!!!

Abby has enjoyed playing basketball for Woodstock Middle School these past two years.  It has been a great experience for her and all of the girls.  She has had a great Coach who she really looks up to!  You can tell that he loves what he does and truly cares about all of them!  

They have not won a lot of their games and were in 6th place(out of 9) at the end of their regular season games.

They went into the county tournament in 6th place.  I know I said that previously but I was in total awe over the next few games!  Their first game was against Mill Creek(3rd or 4th place team).  They had beat them once before and Mill Creek had won one against them as well.  The Lady Wolves won this time!!  It was absolutely amazing and we were so happy for our girls!!

The next game they played was against Dean Rusk(2nd place team)  We were a little nervous as we had never won against them and truly we thought this would be their last game.  They played their hearts out!   We WON!!!  The hairs on my arms were sticking up and I have never experienced anything like it before(during a basketball game)! The excitement was overwhelming!  I don't think I slept at all that night knowing the championship game was the next night!

The next night we played Creekland (the 1st place team)!  We had never won against them.  We came so close in a regular season game.  We went into overtime and they ended up winning by 2 points.  We all believed in the girls and knew that it would be a close game!

Abby shared a story with us at the end of the game that her coach had told them in the locker room before the game!  He had a vision at the beginning of the season that the girls were in the championship game playing against Creekland.  They were wearing purple uniforms and Jessica tipped off they ball!  (he got the girls new purple uniforms this year!

He told them that he believed in them and regardless of the outcome of the game they were champions already.  He had taught them all year to believe in themselves and never give up.  He told them that they were part of something special and not many people get to be a part of something like this!

He told them that they had changed his life and he hoped that he had impacted their lives.

Abby and Ashlee were chosen to be captain's for the game! 

Jessica tipped the ball and the game began. 

They played so hard and fought till the end.  They didn't win.  They lost by 10 points.  It was a hard loss and there were many tears shed (including the parents).  I'm so proud of our girls!!  Coming from 6 th place to 2nd is a huge accomplishment!  The girls should be so proud of themselves!

Abby cried for awhile and my heart was broken for her.  I realized that this was her last game with Coach McKinney and most of the tears were because a chapter had ended in her life! She agreed that this was why she was crying!  Growing up is hard!  Moving on and changing are things that never end.  I cried with her!  

I'm so glad that Abby got to be part of "Something Special!!

The last thirty something birthday!!

This is the last year James will be in his thirties (and me too for that matter)!  I have to say I don't feel like I'm one year away from being 40!  We had family over and celebrated James and Sara's birthday!  Sara is 47!  Now that is old!!  Love you Sara!

I can enjoy being younger than James until March 24th!  Believe me I will enjoy it!!

More Snow!!!

We have had more snow this year than we have had in I can remember!  The kids got to go back to school for a  week after Christmas and then got another week off because of snow.  Needless to say they were happy!!  I have to admit it was pretty fun!  I had just had knee surgery so I didn't venture out to play!  James and kids had fun!

It was fun while it lasted!!

Extreme makeover....Hamster edition!

Emma and Noah decided to put their money together and buy another cage for their new hamsters.  They shopped until they found just the right one.  It has a slide!!  What hamster doesn't love a slide? Really?  They also had hamster sweaters at the pet store!  They didn't have enough to buy the sweaters, thank goodness!

One of Noah's favorite shows is Extreme Makeover Home Edition.  He decided that we should surprise Marshmallow and Houdini and yell "Move that Bus"!   He even mad a sign that said Extreme Makeover!  The hamsters love their new cage and hamsters really can slide!

"I'm Dreaming of a White Christmas"

It's that magic morning!  The kids always get up early and hurry down to enjoy unwrapping presents.  This year was no exception!  I think Noah was the first one up and hurried to wake everyone else up!  We always make them wait at the top of the steps so we can turn on the lights and the Christmas tree!

Emma and Noah had asked Santa for Hamsters and they were thrilled when they saw their new pets!

Marshmallow and Houdini!  Houdini was the perfect name for Noah's hamster!  Santa said he escaped in the house while he was getting everything set up.  He had a really hard time finding him!  Thanks goodness he did!

Abby was not ready to have her picture taken yet!

Emma was so excited when James unwrapped his present that she had picked out and paid for herself.  A Superdad bobble head!

Everyone had fun unwrapping their gifts!  We each take turns so that everyone gets to see what they got.

Even Murphy got some new toys!

After presents it looked like a tornado had gone through our living room!

 

While we were eating breakfast it started to snow!! 

The snow was so fun to have on Christmas day!

We headed off to the Fenn's to celebrate with my side of the family.

Another great day of making lasting memories!

Traditions!!

We just love getting together with family, especially at Christmas!  Every year we have a present swap game that we play and sing our favorite Christmas songs.  It is something we really look forward to!  This year we were able to get together a week or so before Christmas.  It was a nice early celebration!

Singing Christmas songs is a family tradition that everyone looks forward to, especially the Twelve Day of Christmas.  We break up into groups and each sing two verses!  It's fun to watch everyone see if they remember their verses and when to sing.

After singing it's time for the gift swap game!  It is fun to steal and stratagize to get the perfect gift!  I usually buy some kid friendly gifts for the younger kids.  This year though some other people did too. So, it got interesting!

 Even the big boys got to play with the Beyeblades!  Abby was a great big sister and gave her Beyeblades to Noah!  He was so excited!

It was a fun day and we shared food, fun, and fellowship. Christmas memories!!