Duck, Duck, Gez

Frog's Word of the day - "Gez"

Go to FROG'S SCHOOL Here

Frog's School - Big Adventure in the Small Pond

We have a new blog just for keeping track of our home school adventures. I started it primarily to keep track of where we've been and to give school therapists an idea of what is going on here. If we decide to home school permanently, it will give a "certified teacher" something to review. But I hope it will also be a source of ideas for others and a memory book for Frog and me.

Check us out here:

Frog's School - Big Adventures in the Small Pond

Back to School Countdown

4. Clean and organize house (especially the front closet aka barbie land).







CHECK



3. Organize home school curriculum and supplies
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2. Gather Diva's supplies: Old back pack, new lunch bag, new water bottle, new and old school supplies, cash for newsletter.

Check



1. Finish Diva's Summer to do list: last item - "learn to ride my bike."



CHECK

We are ready to go!

Bird-Frog on the Pond

Frog has really noticed the ducks and geese flying over our house this year. I'm working on a migration component to our fall home school curriculum. He also has two big black crows who come to visit him regularly in our front yard. They know he will leave treats behind. We went to the waterfront today to take a walk and play in the sand. The ducks were not in the marshy pond and the seagulls seemed to be playing somewhere else. I forgot to put the memory card back in Diva's camera so I guess we wouldn't have gotten a picture anyways -

So I'll just post this nostalgic look an Frog and his first duck



For more "Special Exposure Wedensday" favorite memory photos go to
5 Minutes for Special Needs.

Smart Moves - Why Learning Is Not All In Your Head

Our "Try it Tuesday" is a book recommendation.




Smart Moves - Why Learning Is Not All In Your Head


I'm currently reading this book for a discussion on a developmental therapy support group list-serve. I've read a lot of books that explain the senses and the concept of sensory integration and I've read books with ideas for sensory diet activities. This book does more to explain how sensory input and movement initiate, influence, promote, and re-mediate brain development. It also emphasises the importance emotion plays in the ability to learn and reason. I would highly recommend this book to anyone who is home schooling a child (special needs or neuro-typical), anyone whose child is receiving or would benefit from sensory integration therapy, and anyone who works with school age children.

If you've read this book I'd love to hear your opinions and experiences with it.

For Here for more "Try This Tuesday" posts.

Sunday Drive #3

On the way home from the birthday party -


- J.L. Seagull






- the committee






- Mr. Goose.

So nice of Mr. Goose to pose for us. We'll be using his picture in our fall and winter migration studies at home school on the pond!






- Neighborhood sunset

Neighborhood sunset turned out to be anything but peaceful. Diva noticed a strange truck stop on the road in front of our house. I told her not to worry, and came to the porch to see who it might be. I didn't recognize the truck and couldn't see the occupants. They made no move to acknowledge me. I got my camera and went to the driveway as they pulled away and turned left at our intersection. The truck proceeded to park about 100 feet down the road and again sat, motor off, for five minutes. Truck moved about 100 feet past the next house and stopped. At the end of the road the truck turned back the did the same thing on the other side of the road. I called a neighbor who said they were watching this too and she was on her way out to get the license plate. The truck left and headed down the same road on the opposite side of the intersection. I just finished giving a description of events and showing my oh so blurry picture to a Sheriff's Deputy. We are locking the doors tonight!

For more Sunday Drive pictures go see Up North Mommy

We are still here!

I'm still here. I've taken a break from the blog to work on the fall home school curriculum Frog and I will try to follow. And Frog has been having some late nights or early mornings (we are partying from 12:30 - 4:30 A.M.) - we are feeling a little sleepy around here. So today Frog, Diva and I got out of the house. We made a quick trip to the grocery store where Frog pushed the cart and did a great job staying with us. Then we went downtown to check out the new doughnut shop and took a walk to look at some of the local art about town.











Photos courtesy of Diva.


Frog managed to stay away until just after 7pm tonight - here's hoping for a full nights sleep.

Good Night :0)

Sunday Drive #2

Late summer splender

That Frog Can Dance!

Last week was Diva's annual dance camp. Unlike regular dance class, the dancers meet every single day for a week and the class runs just a little longer than usual. At the end of the week, the dancers get to raid the wardrobe closet and put together their own costumes then put on a short program for the families.

I took Little Frog with me when I went to get Diva on Thursday. We got there a little early and I told Frog he could come into the studio where the girls were dancing if he was quiet. Frog loves to watch dancing on TV, but he had never seen his sister "perform." He got very excited when the music started. He kept referencing me with a big smile and very communicative glances. He began to move with the music. When the dancing started, he needed to jump! I eased him into my lap and he watched with rap attention, vocalizing a little, but trying very hard to be quiet. When the music stopped, Frog would clap and clap - his way of saying "do it again" but in this context it worked perfectly as applause or "encore!" We only had to leave the room once. When we returned, Frog rocked to the music on his knees and never took his eyes off the dance. When class was over, the girls filed passed him and he tried to make eye contact with them as he clapped and clapped. Frog is an excellent audience - and I think there is a dancer inside there :0)

Diva is an amazing ballerina. This week was more about jazz, so it was a little different for her. The girls learned 4 dances for the show. The last one, a jazz combination, was really challenging. The girls all had the combo down, but they and the teacher kept changing the order of the choreography making the dance confusing for the girls. It was also very hot on Friday. By the time they got through the class, they were almost too pooped to put on the show - but the show must go on!

I've spliced it together a little and put it to the song they used for the last Jazz number. Diva is a bit perplexed by the slowed motion of the video, but I like seeing their moves in detail. Diva(if you are new to this blog)is the blond with the ponytail, black leotard, green sequined skirt and no hat. Enjoy!

6 Unspectacular Quirks

Tagged, I'm it. Hellokittiemama at The Bon Bon Gazett has tagged me for the Six Unspectacular Quirks meme. Quirks? Me? Well ok, maybe a few (dozen).

Thems's the rules..
1. Link the person who tagged you.
2. Mention the rules on your blog.
3. Tell about 6 unspectacular quirks you possess.
4. Tag 6 following bloggers by linking them.
5. Leave a comment on each of the tagged blogger’s blogs letting them know they’ve been tagged.

Let's see -

1. I'm a naturally introverted person and I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE Public Speaking. Honestly, give me a room full of people and a microphone and I'll go on for hours. Just don't ask me to come up with witty banter or small talk at a cocktail party - total deer in the headlights!

2. I am told I am "soft spoken" or, according to Hubby, I mumble. I think it must be a sensory thing, because I can hear me just fine - I can hear what is being said in the next room just fine - I can hear what Hubby mumbles under his breath just fine (that one can be a little annoying for both of us). When I am being herd, I FEEL LIKE I'M YELLING - Can you hear me now?

3. 12 years of school, 5 years of college and 3 years of law school and I can't spell. Well, OK, I can spell but I'm prone to numerous and strange mistakes. And not just the letter reversal kind, I get letters into words that have no business being there. I tend to cut and paste 90 percent of my comments to your blogs into a word document and spell check them. Even that doesn't always work!

4. I've been cooking since I was 10. I'm good at it and I love my food cooked my way. But I don't like to make my own salads. There is nothing wrong with the way I make a salad. Everyone else likes my salads. But I only like salads made by other people.

5. I'm a secret dancer. Ballet in the kitchen while I do the dishes, Belly Dancing moves while I brush my teeth, Flamenco in the living room just for fun, but nobody will ever see me dance. On the dance floor, I'm just as awkward as I was as a teenager.

6. I'm drawn to stories of the paranormal. I don't know why - I've never had a paranormal experience, nothing paranormal runs in my family, it creeps out Hubby and Diva. But ever since I was a child, I've been fascinated.

OK, now your all thinking "just back away, back away slowly . . ."

Not so fast - it's time to pass the torch.

Nicole at All 4 My Gals
Krist at My Life for the World to See
Jenny at Special Considerations
Mia's Mama
Born Just Right
Michelle at Big Blueberry Eyes

If you haven't been tagged and want to share, consider yourself next on my list. Leave me a comment so I can add a link to your page :0)

R-E-S-P-E-C-T

I revisited my autism book collection recently as I moved my office / home school into the playroom. Amazon's stock must have gone up when we got Little Frog's diagnosis - the collection is immense. I noticed that certain books came back to me like old friends. When I stopped to consider what they had in common the word Respect immediately jumped out. These books, many of which were written or contributed to by people with autism, gave me a perspective much different than the ABA manuals, diet books, and other "how to fix behavior" books I'd come across or been referred to by educators. These books gave me a glimpse of what it might be like from Frog's perspective. Above all, these books told me that my son is who he is for a reason and it's OK. They showed me how I could be helpful in showing my son the world and teaching him how to get along in it without worrying about changing him. These books allowed me to let go of some of the worry and the frantic search for answers and just enjoy building a relationship with Frog. I still worry about what the future holds, a hostile world, and the pitfalls along the way, but I've learned that my little boy is a very strong and resourceful individual and I know he will find his way - his family will be here to help.

The Child with Special Needs






Engaging Autism






The Soul of Autism






Autism and the God Connection






The Fabric of Autism






Lucy's Story






Autism and the Myth of the Person Alone






The Autism Answer Book

Frog Claims a Condo

OOPS! 5MSN Site and I are not communicating well today. For the September 9, 2008 SEW Post go HERE

This was taken on Christmas day three years ago. Frog was not into presents and a morning full of gift exchanging was almost more than he could take. He especially hated that everyone wanted to watch him open his gifts and wanted him to play with the new toys - toys he had not had a chance to really meet yet. He still did not really play with toys unless they belonged to his sister. Diva got a very large doll house that Christmas. When all the gifts were opened and the paper cleared away, Diva's dad and grandpa put the dollhouse together and placed it in the hall closet (still affectionatly known as "Barbie Land") where it could be shut away when not in use. This was the gift Frog took an interest in -






For more Special Exposure Wednesday pictures and stories go to 5 Minutes for Special Needs

Contact Information

Frog has reached the age where most of his peers are memorizing their address and phone number and learning how to recite them to a trusted adult in an emergency. Frog is non-verbal and while he has ways of communicating with family, he typically avoids strangers. We had been concerned about what would happen if he got separated from us when we were away from home. But a couple of months ago he left our front yard and was found in the middle of the intersection in front of our house, by the assistant superintendent of schools no less. Because he was not able to give any indication of who he was or where he belonged, the police were called. This happened within about 7 minutes of him leaving us at the dinning room table and squeezing through a gap in the fence. We've looked at various tracking devices, but they all seem cumbersome and some are quite technical (would probably not stand up to submersion is a fountain or puddle). We have tried various bracelets in the past, but they were too irritating and distracting for Frog. Our current solution is this temporary tattoo



We ordered it from Safety Tat and had my cell phone number put on it. Fortunately, we haven't had a chance to "use" it yet. But I feel better knowing that Frog can "give" his phone number if the need arises. It is bright and colorful and a little sparkly, but you would have to look really close to read what it says. My hope is that it would appear to be like any temporary tattoo the other kids might be playing with unless someone was looking for a way to identify my child. It washes off with a little soap, warm water and a little scrubbing.

For more Try It Tuesday posts go to 5 Minutes for Special Needs

Also, Check out the Penny Walk at Aspgertopia!

And My Life for the World to see for an Amazon.com Giveaway Congratualtions, Krist, on your 10,000th hit!!!!

Art at the Pond

Inspired by our trip to The Seattle Art Museum Diva and I decided today was a good day for some art. In hopes of coaxing Frog to join us, we choose finger paints outside.

Frog has never been into art projects. He will usually scribble a line or two to humor me, then do everything possible to get out of there. We bought some large rectangular bee's wax crayons - he likes the way they feel when he bites them. He used to bring home lots of fun and creative art projects from school. I suspect we displayed a lot or Para Educator Julie's art on our refrigerator. For our home school projects we try to keep everything very sensory based - playing with colored water, pouring birdseed over peanut buttered pine cones, dropping feather or sand or rocks onto a gluey piece of paper, etc.

Today I taped finger painting paper to our fence and filled our sensory table with small tubs of different colored finger paints and a big bowl of water. Frog was enticed to join us by the big bowl of water. He also enjoyed the squishy paint. With a little hand over hand he agreed to participate putting paint to paper and moving it about. The end result was really something interesting. I took the paints and water back into the house and came back with my camera.





There was not much left to take a picture of but Frog had gone back to the art on his own. When asked if he liked his picture he clapped twice - that's YES in Frog speak

Here is Diva's creation for the day -