Here is what is on my Vegan Thanksgiving menu:
Tofurkey
Stuffing (A bag of herbed stuffing prepared with chopped peppers, onion and celery along with vegetable broth and a bit of water.)
Mashed potatoes and gravy (I mash potatoes with a vegan margarine and some Adobo. Then I use this vegan brown gravy
Vegan potato salad (Made with potatoes, Vegenaise, Celery Salt, pepper, a dash of Italian dressing, onion, and of course pickles lol.)
Vegan baked mac & cheese (Mix flour, 1 packet of Goya Sazon, a block of melted Daiya Cheddar Wedge and a bag of Galaxy Mozzarella Soy Shreds. Bake at 350 until cheese is all melted and it's a bit crusty on top.)
Collard Greens (Boiled with olive oil, Goya Adobo, vinegar and 1/2 onion)
Corn made easy (A couple cans of corn, topped with salt, pepper and Earth's Balance Buttery Spread thrown in the microwave for about 3 minutes)
Biscuits (I found these at the local grocery store and they were accidentally Vegan)
Pies! (Sweet potato, pumpkin, peach and banana pudding) {For the peach pie, I am using peaches that my mother has frozen from my father's peach tree. I'll just be using this recipe for crust and putting just a touch of raw sugar, cinnamon and nutmeg on top. I like the fruit pies to taste fruity and not sugary.} {For the banana pudding pie, I plan on using a graham cracker crust I found that is accidentally Vegan. I'll prepare the banana pudding as directed using almond milk instead of regular milk. Then I'll put a layer of sliced bananas on the crust, a layer of pudding and more bananas on top.}
So that's what our big dinner will look like. I actually have to cook more than that because I have to add in a turkey for the meat eaters, regular baked mac & cheese and regular potato salad with eggs and real mayo. My son and I are the only Vegans in the family. We also have to feed DH, the girls, my mother and brother. One of my sisters will be coming later in the day for desert. I like to make enough on Thanksgiving so I don't have to cook again for a few days. Well... at least not make anything major. I plan on having plain leftovers on Friday. Then we'll make things like tofurkey (And turkey for the meat eaters) pot pie, stir fry, chilli, empanadas, tacos, etc. This is the 3rd Vegan Thanksgiving, but my 1st one trying a Tofurkey. In previous years my son and I just ate the sides. I'm curious how it will come out, if it will pass his smell test and if he'll like it. I think I will because I love Tofurkey slices that are used to make sandwiches. I have read the key is to slice the Tofurkey thin. We shall see lol...
Monday, November 19, 2012
Extra Time and Jealousy...
So over the weekend I heard from Honeybunches teacher. She sent me an
email saying that she spoke with his old teacher (Who works in the
behavior room) for an hour after school on Friday discussing
Honeybunches. They looked at a copy of his Safety Plan and are going to
sit down together with the school psychologist and counselor "To tweak
it so that something like what happened on Thursday will not happen
again." I am thankful that they took the time to do that. They could have easily said "The day is done... We are leaving."
Honeybunches weekend went mostly well, until yesterday evening. We had dinner with my mother and brother. He made me giggle a bit. I was downstairs visiting with my mother for a while after we ate. He told me that I had 5 more minutes then I needed to go upstairs. He called down for me even, saying that he gave me 5 extra minutes. I guess he thinks I belong upstairs in our apartment lol. After dinner and visiting I played Yatzee with Princess. She needed Mommy time too. That went okay. A couple hours later I went into the bedroom to watch television with DH for a few minutes. (He has not been feeling too well... has a really bad cold or flu.) Honeybunches came in to ask what I was doing. I said that I was just watching television for a couple minutes with Daddy. About not even 5 minutes later Princess comes into the room telling us that Honeybunches hit her on the head with a dog toy. We told him to go to his room. Then another minute later she comes back screaming. Honeybunches hit her on the head with a metal can of computer cleaning spray. We put him back in his room. I comforted her giving her ice for it. She held that on for a while. I was wondering all night what caused him to get aggressive with her. I could not find a reason and that was really bothering me. He has not had unprovoked aggression since before he went to the phosp in 2009. I knew there just had to be a reason. This morning I was mentioning to DH how I was wondering what caused Honeybunches to do what he did. DH said something that made me realize that Honeybunches was jealous about Princess getting time. That's probably why he did that to her. I plan on playing a game with him after school today. He gets so much of our time for so many reasons. Princess needed some too, but when he gets like that it causes it to be harder to give it to her. We will go back to being 1:1 with him again for a while. I don't plan on going into the room for a breather anymore while he's awake. Tomorrow is Honeybunches last appointment with his counselor. I am sure that is affecting him emotionally too.
Honeybunches weekend went mostly well, until yesterday evening. We had dinner with my mother and brother. He made me giggle a bit. I was downstairs visiting with my mother for a while after we ate. He told me that I had 5 more minutes then I needed to go upstairs. He called down for me even, saying that he gave me 5 extra minutes. I guess he thinks I belong upstairs in our apartment lol. After dinner and visiting I played Yatzee with Princess. She needed Mommy time too. That went okay. A couple hours later I went into the bedroom to watch television with DH for a few minutes. (He has not been feeling too well... has a really bad cold or flu.) Honeybunches came in to ask what I was doing. I said that I was just watching television for a couple minutes with Daddy. About not even 5 minutes later Princess comes into the room telling us that Honeybunches hit her on the head with a dog toy. We told him to go to his room. Then another minute later she comes back screaming. Honeybunches hit her on the head with a metal can of computer cleaning spray. We put him back in his room. I comforted her giving her ice for it. She held that on for a while. I was wondering all night what caused him to get aggressive with her. I could not find a reason and that was really bothering me. He has not had unprovoked aggression since before he went to the phosp in 2009. I knew there just had to be a reason. This morning I was mentioning to DH how I was wondering what caused Honeybunches to do what he did. DH said something that made me realize that Honeybunches was jealous about Princess getting time. That's probably why he did that to her. I plan on playing a game with him after school today. He gets so much of our time for so many reasons. Princess needed some too, but when he gets like that it causes it to be harder to give it to her. We will go back to being 1:1 with him again for a while. I don't plan on going into the room for a breather anymore while he's awake. Tomorrow is Honeybunches last appointment with his counselor. I am sure that is affecting him emotionally too.
Friday, November 16, 2012
Complaint # 1 Of This Year....
On Wednesday there was an issue at school that concerned me. Honeybunches new aide wrote in his book how he got a "... check for PE for knocking over stacking cups and refusing to pick them up. Good recess but had a hard time after word of the day when he got only 1 extra word of the day instead of a whole page. I told him he could earn one but continued to disrupt. Kids left for library. "Honeybunches" and two of us stayed behind with him. Tried talking for a few minutes. After thinking Officer S (School Resource Officer) may stop by he settled right down and went on with his day..."
I asked what made him think Officer S might stop by. She stated:
"He was having a minor meltdown and it was escalating so another teacher made a pretend phone call to Officer S and he stopped shoving his desk immediately..."
Believe me I wrote to his teacher about this one!!! I sent her an email and a letter in his bag this morning. I figured I'd give her the benefit of the doubt because she was not there. She's been so wonderful with Honeybunches that I didn't feel it would be right to just step over her head. So I sent the letter which stated word for word what was written in his book plus...
"Neither my husband nor I approve of calling or pretending to call Officer S on "Honeybunches" as a means of getting him to cooperate or behave. I believe the people working with him should find more effective ways to discipline him. Things should remain consistent between staff. I don't believe that threatening him will work effectively if continued nor do I approve of it. One of these times he might ask them to make Officer S come. Then how will they deal with it? One day he might decide he wants to see the police to check out their handcuffs or gear. Besides being inappropriate for many reasons, I feel that might shatter his dream. He often plays police and I don't want him to have a negative image of them or see them as threatening. Part of the reason I don't approve of this is because police often don't know how to handle children with mental health diagnoses or other special needs like Autism. I don't want him seen as a "Bad kid" which is how the police might view him without knowing more about his diagnoses. I do not believe that empty threats are appropriate or threats in general. I don't agree with getting the police involved with him, especially because of his age. While I understand how things can be in the heat of the moment, it sounds like staff working with Honeybunches need a better, more appropriate plan in place. Also, I believe that pretending to call the police will never get to the root of what caused the behavioral issue in the beginning. While it may stop behavior immediately in it's tracks, It will do nothing to prevent future episodes and may cause him to shut down." I trust that you will resolve this issue before I feel the need to contact (Sped director) and (Superintendent) to write a complaint. I haven't had any issues in the way you have dealt with "Honeybunches". In fact, you have been one of the people I trust most with him. I have no concerns when he is with you. Please talk to the other staff who work with him on days and times you are not there about better ways to deal with him. I look forward to hearing from you soon. Also I would like to see his updated Safety Plan if it is completed. I am wondering if a Behavioral Intervention Plan would be appropriate for times when you are not there so that there could be more consistency in how he is dealt with? What are your thoughts on that? I just believe things need to be dealt with in a more appropriate manner."
Today I went to the PAC meeting at the school. There was a great turn out. Besides me, there were 3 other parents! That was a big crowd lol. In the past sometimes it was only me, the lady who runs them and the SPED director. It was great to have company.
Anyways, when I was on the way there DH called to tell me the school psychologist called me about the letter I wrote to Mrs Understanding. After the meeting I decided to stop by Honeybunches' school to see if the school psych was available. She was so I went into her office for about 20 minutes. She told me that she didn't approve of how the situation was handled the other day. She reassured me it will not happen again. Mrs Understanding came in for about half of the time I was there. We sat down together and discussed things including why it was wrong, my concerns and what they plan on doing about it. The aide was already spoken to about how it was not okay to deal with him the way she did. I voiced my concerns about how although the new aide is restraint trained, I don't believe she is comfortable doing it or comfortable dealing with him when things get heated. I suggested that she call for help from the school psychologist, a certain male aide who knows Honeybunches, his old behavioral room teacher, or the school principal for help and suggestions when needed. They reassured me that they are coming up with an updated Safety Plan and Behavioral Intervention Plan which I'll get copies of when they are ready. The new aide is also going to go to a 38 hour whole week session on Restraint Training and De-Escalation in January. She recently completed a couple hour course, but the one the Superintendent is sending her to is more intense. Hopefully that will make her more comfortable. Anyways, I feel better since we had that meeting. I still am not too sure if this new aide is a good fit for Honeybunches. She does do some things which he loves like making tons of crafts. IDK if I have faith that she'll be able to handle him next year on her own at a new school where nobody knows him. That might not be a good situation. I guess we'll see how the rest of this year goes. They found a new reward for Honeybunches at the end of the day. Yesterday they gave him a special job of helping the janitor with the garbage. He loves helping with that lol. It's also "Heavy Work" which is part of his Sensory Diet and calming for him. That was a hit and something they plan on using as part of his reward system. Speaking of his reward system at school, that's complicated too. He's very reward driven, but things have to be changed up every so often because they lose effectiveness. New rewards that he's interested in help. Finding things he's interested in is not always easy.
I asked what made him think Officer S might stop by. She stated:
"He was having a minor meltdown and it was escalating so another teacher made a pretend phone call to Officer S and he stopped shoving his desk immediately..."
Believe me I wrote to his teacher about this one!!! I sent her an email and a letter in his bag this morning. I figured I'd give her the benefit of the doubt because she was not there. She's been so wonderful with Honeybunches that I didn't feel it would be right to just step over her head. So I sent the letter which stated word for word what was written in his book plus...
"Neither my husband nor I approve of calling or pretending to call Officer S on "Honeybunches" as a means of getting him to cooperate or behave. I believe the people working with him should find more effective ways to discipline him. Things should remain consistent between staff. I don't believe that threatening him will work effectively if continued nor do I approve of it. One of these times he might ask them to make Officer S come. Then how will they deal with it? One day he might decide he wants to see the police to check out their handcuffs or gear. Besides being inappropriate for many reasons, I feel that might shatter his dream. He often plays police and I don't want him to have a negative image of them or see them as threatening. Part of the reason I don't approve of this is because police often don't know how to handle children with mental health diagnoses or other special needs like Autism. I don't want him seen as a "Bad kid" which is how the police might view him without knowing more about his diagnoses. I do not believe that empty threats are appropriate or threats in general. I don't agree with getting the police involved with him, especially because of his age. While I understand how things can be in the heat of the moment, it sounds like staff working with Honeybunches need a better, more appropriate plan in place. Also, I believe that pretending to call the police will never get to the root of what caused the behavioral issue in the beginning. While it may stop behavior immediately in it's tracks, It will do nothing to prevent future episodes and may cause him to shut down." I trust that you will resolve this issue before I feel the need to contact (Sped director) and (Superintendent) to write a complaint. I haven't had any issues in the way you have dealt with "Honeybunches". In fact, you have been one of the people I trust most with him. I have no concerns when he is with you. Please talk to the other staff who work with him on days and times you are not there about better ways to deal with him. I look forward to hearing from you soon. Also I would like to see his updated Safety Plan if it is completed. I am wondering if a Behavioral Intervention Plan would be appropriate for times when you are not there so that there could be more consistency in how he is dealt with? What are your thoughts on that? I just believe things need to be dealt with in a more appropriate manner."
Today I went to the PAC meeting at the school. There was a great turn out. Besides me, there were 3 other parents! That was a big crowd lol. In the past sometimes it was only me, the lady who runs them and the SPED director. It was great to have company.
Anyways, when I was on the way there DH called to tell me the school psychologist called me about the letter I wrote to Mrs Understanding. After the meeting I decided to stop by Honeybunches' school to see if the school psych was available. She was so I went into her office for about 20 minutes. She told me that she didn't approve of how the situation was handled the other day. She reassured me it will not happen again. Mrs Understanding came in for about half of the time I was there. We sat down together and discussed things including why it was wrong, my concerns and what they plan on doing about it. The aide was already spoken to about how it was not okay to deal with him the way she did. I voiced my concerns about how although the new aide is restraint trained, I don't believe she is comfortable doing it or comfortable dealing with him when things get heated. I suggested that she call for help from the school psychologist, a certain male aide who knows Honeybunches, his old behavioral room teacher, or the school principal for help and suggestions when needed. They reassured me that they are coming up with an updated Safety Plan and Behavioral Intervention Plan which I'll get copies of when they are ready. The new aide is also going to go to a 38 hour whole week session on Restraint Training and De-Escalation in January. She recently completed a couple hour course, but the one the Superintendent is sending her to is more intense. Hopefully that will make her more comfortable. Anyways, I feel better since we had that meeting. I still am not too sure if this new aide is a good fit for Honeybunches. She does do some things which he loves like making tons of crafts. IDK if I have faith that she'll be able to handle him next year on her own at a new school where nobody knows him. That might not be a good situation. I guess we'll see how the rest of this year goes. They found a new reward for Honeybunches at the end of the day. Yesterday they gave him a special job of helping the janitor with the garbage. He loves helping with that lol. It's also "Heavy Work" which is part of his Sensory Diet and calming for him. That was a hit and something they plan on using as part of his reward system. Speaking of his reward system at school, that's complicated too. He's very reward driven, but things have to be changed up every so often because they lose effectiveness. New rewards that he's interested in help. Finding things he's interested in is not always easy.
Saturday, November 10, 2012
Concerns about Shnooks and What I Learned
Shnooks turned 18 in March. You can read about his history here . He's reconnected with his birth mother, his half brother and maternal Gramma since last year. Actually DCF helped him reconnect, which is something I'll never understand. Especially after how we got custody from them because his half brother sexually abused him and with the stories he made clear of his Gramma's abuse. It's obvious they brainwashed him some more. His mother's family has him thinking they sent him a bunch of money that we never gave him, which never happened. They did send him $20 a couple times per year if that much and that often. We used the $$ to buy him things he needed at the time instead of giving him the cash to waste on his drug habits. He said that he has receipts for the money that never came. He said DCF helped him track down money orders and they were all cashed. That's a bunch of BS.
Anyways, on Monday I read this on his Facebook page:
"IM ABOUT TO BLOW UP DONT LET ME FIND YOU DAD PRAY I DONT FIND YOU CAUSE I WILL END YOU U WILL FEEL MY PAIN IM GANA FIND YOU DAD AND U WILL PAY FOR WAT U DID"
(He knows where we are so IDK what he meant by that... don't let him find him alone maybe? IDK...)
and his next status was:
"i guess im feeling better naa not realy i want blood and revenge and i will get it"
Those are copy and pasted so you can see how he wrote them. Yup, the 1st one was obviously yelling on Facebook.
Shnooks sent me a message on Saturday, that I didn't find until Wednesday. It also was concerning, full of swears, a pic of his mother with him saying that's his mother and I never was, and contained this song...
It's a nasty song that talks about how "Mankind lies in Blood", cracking heads, getting "Stuck up in the gutter with ya neck and your body ready to share that blood", "I want your blood", raising an axe "Throwing it while you are running away and when it hits your brain will splat", "Rape wives and laugh at husbands", "Being shot with darts til it stops your heart and chopped apart and thrown up in a shopping cart", "Pushed off a cliff", "You're gonna suffer the consiquence", "Hit em in the spine until you paralyze him and fill him with lighter fluid and go ahead and spark him up", "Hit your cranium with the back of a hammer".... Yup very concerning.
Thursday morning, I went to the police station to report what he did on Facebook. I have printed out everything and showed the officer. I learned that you can threaten to kill somebody all you want on Facebook. You can even give all the gory details of how you are going to do it. As long as the person doesn't threaten you three times and you report all three. Then it's only harassment. Got to love this state!!!! We can't spank our children, but you can threaten to kill somebody online as long as you don't do it three times. I really do love some things about here, but others I really hate. There are so many loopholes in our laws. Oh well, at least it's documented in case Shnooks does come around here to start some mess and DH has to protect us.
DH is not doing too good with all this. I feel it is causing him to become unstable again, at least a little bit. He's been isolating and is grouchy. That's not a good sign.
Anyways, on Monday I read this on his Facebook page:
"IM ABOUT TO BLOW UP DONT LET ME FIND YOU DAD PRAY I DONT FIND YOU CAUSE I WILL END YOU U WILL FEEL MY PAIN IM GANA FIND YOU DAD AND U WILL PAY FOR WAT U DID"
(He knows where we are so IDK what he meant by that... don't let him find him alone maybe? IDK...)
and his next status was:
"i guess im feeling better naa not realy i want blood and revenge and i will get it"
Those are copy and pasted so you can see how he wrote them. Yup, the 1st one was obviously yelling on Facebook.
Shnooks sent me a message on Saturday, that I didn't find until Wednesday. It also was concerning, full of swears, a pic of his mother with him saying that's his mother and I never was, and contained this song...
It's a nasty song that talks about how "Mankind lies in Blood", cracking heads, getting "Stuck up in the gutter with ya neck and your body ready to share that blood", "I want your blood", raising an axe "Throwing it while you are running away and when it hits your brain will splat", "Rape wives and laugh at husbands", "Being shot with darts til it stops your heart and chopped apart and thrown up in a shopping cart", "Pushed off a cliff", "You're gonna suffer the consiquence", "Hit em in the spine until you paralyze him and fill him with lighter fluid and go ahead and spark him up", "Hit your cranium with the back of a hammer".... Yup very concerning.
Thursday morning, I went to the police station to report what he did on Facebook. I have printed out everything and showed the officer. I learned that you can threaten to kill somebody all you want on Facebook. You can even give all the gory details of how you are going to do it. As long as the person doesn't threaten you three times and you report all three. Then it's only harassment. Got to love this state!!!! We can't spank our children, but you can threaten to kill somebody online as long as you don't do it three times. I really do love some things about here, but others I really hate. There are so many loopholes in our laws. Oh well, at least it's documented in case Shnooks does come around here to start some mess and DH has to protect us.
DH is not doing too good with all this. I feel it is causing him to become unstable again, at least a little bit. He's been isolating and is grouchy. That's not a good sign.
IEP Classifications and the Word "Maybe"
My state's SPED Regulations state:
Disability shall mean one or more of the following impairments:
Intellectual Impairment - The permanent capacity for performing cognitive tasks, functions, or problem solving is significantly limited or impaired and is exhibited by more than one of the following: a slower rate of learning; disorganized patterns of learning; difficulty with adaptive behavior; and/or difficulty understanding abstract concepts. Such term shall include students with mental retardation.
Emotional Impairment - As defined under federal law at 34 CFR §300.8(c)(4), the student exhibits one or more of the following characteristics over a long period of time and to a marked degree that adversely affects educational performance: an inability to learn that cannot be explained by intellectual, sensory, or health factors; an inability to build or maintain satisfactory interpersonal relationships with peers and teachers; inappropriate types of behavior or feelings under normal circumstances; a general pervasive mood of unhappiness or depression; or a tendency to develop physical symptoms or fears associated with personal or school problems. The determination of disability shall not be made solely because the student's behavior violates the school's discipline code, because the student is involved with a state court or social service agency, or because the student is socially maladjusted, unless the Team determines that the student has a serious emotional disturbance.
Honeybunches has met those IEP classifications for IDK how many years now. When I was looking over his most current IEP that came in the mail yesterday, the words "Intellectual Disability" stood out to me. IDK why, but my eyes could not come off them and those words won't leave my brain now.
His IEP was very well written. I was impressed actually, that I don't have anything for them to change. They included everything I wanted them to, including a quote about how they will try to maintain consistency with his aide as he transfers to the new school next year, how he'll ride the bus next year and how Summer Tutoring will be provided. The objectives they wrote are very measurable. He is delayed in most areas, but made "Remarkable progress" over the past year in all areas. His FSIQ is "Borderline" (73). Although "He's made tremendous gains in the classroom" he is still delayed. For example, he is reading at a 2nd grade level.
Although I am nervous about how the DSM-5 changes will affect him based on his Autism and Bipolar, I found this about Intellectual Development Disorder which IDK how I feel about. It's not based on an IQ anymore it seems, or at least has a 5 point + or - leeway from what I am reading.
DH and I were mentioning to each other a couple days ago, how as he's getting older his delays are becoming more noticeable (Especially his social ones).
The word "Maybe" has been causing a ton of issues in my house lately with Honeybunches. The other day DH told him "Maybe" they'd go to the railroad tracks after school. Then they didn't go. He became very upset and told his teacher he was mad at Daddy for lying to him. Yesterday my brother told him "Maybe" this morning they'd go to yard sales. Today came and they didn't go. Honeybunches was heartbroken about that. His brain doesn't seem to understand "Maybe".
This time change has tricked his belly still. I wonder if that will ever get on schedule again. By 3:30 he acts like he's a starving child who will never eat again. Dinner is at 4 pm. Today I let him eat at 3:50 because he was getting irritable about being hungry.
We went to do a couple errands tonight. DH, Princess, Honeybunches and I went to the grocery store 1st. He did awesome in there. Then we went to the pharmacy while DH put the groceries in the car and waited there for us. Honeybunches was okay in there. He wanted a toy that costed more money then he had. I could not afford it so he was okay. We looked around their little dollar section. He didn't see anything so asked to go look in Family Dollar real quick. This dollar store does NOT have everything for a dollar as some do. He was looking around for about 5 minutes. Then he decided he wanted something for $5 when all he had was $1.50. Because we had to spend $720 to get our vehicle's exhaust, muffler and gas lines fixed along with getting it inspected this month I literally don't have more than $25 to my name right now. I couldn't spend it. He got frustrated. He said "Sometimes you let me". I tried explaining that I didn't have it. He just didn't seem to understand. He said "Fine I'll go home and go Hmmmt then and put my head under my pillow". I said "Okay let's go home and go Hmmt. Come on. We are leaving." I escorted him as I walked behind him with my hands on the edge of his shoulders in case he decided he wanted to see the items on the shelves go fly as he does sometimes when he is frustrated. He asked me to let him go, but I thought it would be best to get him out of the store 1st. I said "I will". Being proactive worked. He was going "Hmmmt" all the way through the store until we got to the front. There were about 5+ people at the check out who all seemed to be staring at us. I just focused on Honeybunches and escorted him out the front door. Once outside I let his arms go. He kept on with his "Hmmmt" until we got close to the car but things didn't progress any further. He did a great job turning that one around, because once in the car he was fine. When we got home he was fine too, until bath time which he gave a little fuss about but did comply with. Well sort of. He didn't want to at first and actually was falling asleep in bed while fussing about how he didn't want one tonight. DH verbally cued him to get in. He fussed but complied. Honeybunches listens to him better. I think it's the tone of his voice. He needed assistance because he was so sleepy. The hesitation with bath-time seems to happen about 75% of the time lately.
Disability shall mean one or more of the following impairments:
Intellectual Impairment - The permanent capacity for performing cognitive tasks, functions, or problem solving is significantly limited or impaired and is exhibited by more than one of the following: a slower rate of learning; disorganized patterns of learning; difficulty with adaptive behavior; and/or difficulty understanding abstract concepts. Such term shall include students with mental retardation.
Emotional Impairment - As defined under federal law at 34 CFR §300.8(c)(4), the student exhibits one or more of the following characteristics over a long period of time and to a marked degree that adversely affects educational performance: an inability to learn that cannot be explained by intellectual, sensory, or health factors; an inability to build or maintain satisfactory interpersonal relationships with peers and teachers; inappropriate types of behavior or feelings under normal circumstances; a general pervasive mood of unhappiness or depression; or a tendency to develop physical symptoms or fears associated with personal or school problems. The determination of disability shall not be made solely because the student's behavior violates the school's discipline code, because the student is involved with a state court or social service agency, or because the student is socially maladjusted, unless the Team determines that the student has a serious emotional disturbance.
Honeybunches has met those IEP classifications for IDK how many years now. When I was looking over his most current IEP that came in the mail yesterday, the words "Intellectual Disability" stood out to me. IDK why, but my eyes could not come off them and those words won't leave my brain now.
His IEP was very well written. I was impressed actually, that I don't have anything for them to change. They included everything I wanted them to, including a quote about how they will try to maintain consistency with his aide as he transfers to the new school next year, how he'll ride the bus next year and how Summer Tutoring will be provided. The objectives they wrote are very measurable. He is delayed in most areas, but made "Remarkable progress" over the past year in all areas. His FSIQ is "Borderline" (73). Although "He's made tremendous gains in the classroom" he is still delayed. For example, he is reading at a 2nd grade level.
Although I am nervous about how the DSM-5 changes will affect him based on his Autism and Bipolar, I found this about Intellectual Development Disorder which IDK how I feel about. It's not based on an IQ anymore it seems, or at least has a 5 point + or - leeway from what I am reading.
DH and I were mentioning to each other a couple days ago, how as he's getting older his delays are becoming more noticeable (Especially his social ones).
The word "Maybe" has been causing a ton of issues in my house lately with Honeybunches. The other day DH told him "Maybe" they'd go to the railroad tracks after school. Then they didn't go. He became very upset and told his teacher he was mad at Daddy for lying to him. Yesterday my brother told him "Maybe" this morning they'd go to yard sales. Today came and they didn't go. Honeybunches was heartbroken about that. His brain doesn't seem to understand "Maybe".
This time change has tricked his belly still. I wonder if that will ever get on schedule again. By 3:30 he acts like he's a starving child who will never eat again. Dinner is at 4 pm. Today I let him eat at 3:50 because he was getting irritable about being hungry.
We went to do a couple errands tonight. DH, Princess, Honeybunches and I went to the grocery store 1st. He did awesome in there. Then we went to the pharmacy while DH put the groceries in the car and waited there for us. Honeybunches was okay in there. He wanted a toy that costed more money then he had. I could not afford it so he was okay. We looked around their little dollar section. He didn't see anything so asked to go look in Family Dollar real quick. This dollar store does NOT have everything for a dollar as some do. He was looking around for about 5 minutes. Then he decided he wanted something for $5 when all he had was $1.50. Because we had to spend $720 to get our vehicle's exhaust, muffler and gas lines fixed along with getting it inspected this month I literally don't have more than $25 to my name right now. I couldn't spend it. He got frustrated. He said "Sometimes you let me". I tried explaining that I didn't have it. He just didn't seem to understand. He said "Fine I'll go home and go Hmmmt then and put my head under my pillow". I said "Okay let's go home and go Hmmt. Come on. We are leaving." I escorted him as I walked behind him with my hands on the edge of his shoulders in case he decided he wanted to see the items on the shelves go fly as he does sometimes when he is frustrated. He asked me to let him go, but I thought it would be best to get him out of the store 1st. I said "I will". Being proactive worked. He was going "Hmmmt" all the way through the store until we got to the front. There were about 5+ people at the check out who all seemed to be staring at us. I just focused on Honeybunches and escorted him out the front door. Once outside I let his arms go. He kept on with his "Hmmmt" until we got close to the car but things didn't progress any further. He did a great job turning that one around, because once in the car he was fine. When we got home he was fine too, until bath time which he gave a little fuss about but did comply with. Well sort of. He didn't want to at first and actually was falling asleep in bed while fussing about how he didn't want one tonight. DH verbally cued him to get in. He fussed but complied. Honeybunches listens to him better. I think it's the tone of his voice. He needed assistance because he was so sleepy. The hesitation with bath-time seems to happen about 75% of the time lately.
Wednesday, November 7, 2012
Vegan Stuffed Peppers
VEGAN STUFFED PEPPERS:
Today I made Stuffed Peppers for the meat-eaters in the family. Along with that, I decided to make myself a couple Vegan Stuffed Peppers. Theirs was made with ground beef, onions and rice mix while mine was made with a rice, bean, celery, onion, and crushed red pepper mixture.
To begin, I cooked a pot of Jasmine rice. In planning to feed all 6 of us (DH, Myself, our three children plus one friend that always eats with us) I made 4 cups of Jasmine rice mixed with 4 1/4 cups of water, 2 packages of the orange "Sazon con Culantro Y Achiote" (Coriandor and Annato), a good shake of Adobo which was probably 1 tablespoon, a dash of Cumin and a dash of Tumeric. I ended up with a lot more rice. I found the rice at Ocean State Job Lot. The bag said 3 cups of rice would make 4 servings. This made a ton of rice, which is okay because we'll have leftover rice mixture for another meal creation. When the rice was done cooking, I separated it to make theirs and mine.
To make mine I mixed in 1 can of Goya Black Beans which I drained, 1/2 large onion cut up, 1 celery stalk chopped finely, 1/4 can pureed tomatoes, 1/3 can spaghetti sauce, chilli powder, and about 2 tbsp of the jarred diced hot chilli peppers. I mixed that all up well and stuffed the peppers. I cooked on 350 degrees for 1 hour. Here is how they came out:
The lighting in the room was not good because the sun has set and there is a storm coming. I hope the next pictures I take come out better. That was my 1st attempt at taking pics of food lol. They were yummy. I loved it. Honeybunches had the Spanish rice that was what the base of the peppers was, along with some Morningstar Farms Corn Dogs. (He's on a mostly Vegan, but Vegetarian diet. For example, I don't give him milk, eggs, or meat products but do allow him to eat limited products such as Morningstar Farms brand food which he loves and Ranch Dip that are not technically Vegan.)
Today I made Stuffed Peppers for the meat-eaters in the family. Along with that, I decided to make myself a couple Vegan Stuffed Peppers. Theirs was made with ground beef, onions and rice mix while mine was made with a rice, bean, celery, onion, and crushed red pepper mixture.
To begin, I cooked a pot of Jasmine rice. In planning to feed all 6 of us (DH, Myself, our three children plus one friend that always eats with us) I made 4 cups of Jasmine rice mixed with 4 1/4 cups of water, 2 packages of the orange "Sazon con Culantro Y Achiote" (Coriandor and Annato), a good shake of Adobo which was probably 1 tablespoon, a dash of Cumin and a dash of Tumeric. I ended up with a lot more rice. I found the rice at Ocean State Job Lot. The bag said 3 cups of rice would make 4 servings. This made a ton of rice, which is okay because we'll have leftover rice mixture for another meal creation. When the rice was done cooking, I separated it to make theirs and mine.
To make mine I mixed in 1 can of Goya Black Beans which I drained, 1/2 large onion cut up, 1 celery stalk chopped finely, 1/4 can pureed tomatoes, 1/3 can spaghetti sauce, chilli powder, and about 2 tbsp of the jarred diced hot chilli peppers. I mixed that all up well and stuffed the peppers. I cooked on 350 degrees for 1 hour. Here is how they came out:
Tuesday, November 6, 2012
More Changes...
Yesterday Honeybunches had an appointment with his Developmental Behavioral Pediatrician in Boston. That is a 2+ hour ride from where we live. He had great behavioral all the way there, while waiting for his appointment, during his appointment and on the way home. He actually slept about 1 hour on the way there and a little more than half way home. That made the ride more pleasant lol. Yes, he slept well last night too.
The Developmental Behavioral Pedi was concerned with his weight. According to her scale he's 119. For that, she suggested I consider talking with his pdoc about lowering his Abilify which she believes to be the cause. I don't believe now is the correct time to make med changes, with all the other changes happening in his life.
I asked her if she thought he'd still meet the criteria for Autism when the DSM-5 comes out. She said it's usually the parents of children who are really high functioning that are concerned. In other words, it sounded to me like in her opinion he is not and I should have nothing to worry about. That was bitter sweet news. My brain was thinking, I'm glad I don't have to worry, but it made it clear she doesn't consider him high functioning. He's not low functioning IMO either, so he must be in the middle? For some reason my silly brain was thinking he was high functioning. I guess because I don't have any examples. He's the only child I know, whom I know has Autism, so I have nobody to compare him too. I used to work with one child long ago, but it was obvious he had Autism. He was nonverbal. Honeybunches can talk, so I thought that made him high I guess. Another part of me realizes he has his delays and struggles. I guess it was just hearing her opinion of him not being high that was a bit heartbreaking, although part of me knew it. To hear the words spoken just made it all so more real. I think as he gets older his delays, especially his social ones, are becoming more prevalent.
More changes are coming for Honeybunches. He's been seeing the same counselor whom I will call L since he was 4 years old. He's 10 now, so it's been 6+ years that he's seen her. She told us at his appointment tonight that she is finally retiring. She's 67 years old. His next visit in two weeks with her will be the last. He wrote on her white board "I feel sad" and drew a sad face. He had some of her stuffed animals say they will miss her. She gave him two beanie babies today and said he can have the rest of her stash of them at his next visit. I asked if I had to do another intake to get him a new counselor. She told me "No". She's writing up a bio about him and will find who she thinks will be the best fit for him in the office. It's a large agency with many counselors. She did have one 20-something year old man in mind. She introduced Honeybunches to him. Honeybunches made me so proud. He initiated a handshake while he said "Hi. My name is ____. Nice to meet you." That was the first time I've seen him introduce himself so professionally. He sure is growing up!!!! I told the counselor that Honeybunches will need somebody who is determined and will stick around for a bit. She said she'll talk to this man to see if he is taking new patients and to see if he would be a good fit for Honeybunches as she thinks he will. We'll know more at his next visit in two weeks.
With losing his aide at the beginning of the month and now losing his counselor whom he's seen for so long I wonder how stable he'll remain. It is all a lot for him to deal with.
Honeybunches has been a bit irritable since the time change. His new aide underwent restraint training late last week. I think Honeybunches must have been surprised when she restrained him yesterday. IDK the whole details of what happened. All I know is that he was really testy. They tried ignoring his behavior at 1st, then things escalated. He was escorted to the time out space. He was restrained for a few seconds and then began to cry. He said he was mad at Daddy for not taking him to the railroad tracks. IDK what that was all about. DH said he told Honeybunches "Maybe" they'd go to the tracks. Honeybunches never understands maybe. In his brain either things are or they are not. Today he had a better day at school.
The Developmental Behavioral Pedi was concerned with his weight. According to her scale he's 119. For that, she suggested I consider talking with his pdoc about lowering his Abilify which she believes to be the cause. I don't believe now is the correct time to make med changes, with all the other changes happening in his life.
I asked her if she thought he'd still meet the criteria for Autism when the DSM-5 comes out. She said it's usually the parents of children who are really high functioning that are concerned. In other words, it sounded to me like in her opinion he is not and I should have nothing to worry about. That was bitter sweet news. My brain was thinking, I'm glad I don't have to worry, but it made it clear she doesn't consider him high functioning. He's not low functioning IMO either, so he must be in the middle? For some reason my silly brain was thinking he was high functioning. I guess because I don't have any examples. He's the only child I know, whom I know has Autism, so I have nobody to compare him too. I used to work with one child long ago, but it was obvious he had Autism. He was nonverbal. Honeybunches can talk, so I thought that made him high I guess. Another part of me realizes he has his delays and struggles. I guess it was just hearing her opinion of him not being high that was a bit heartbreaking, although part of me knew it. To hear the words spoken just made it all so more real. I think as he gets older his delays, especially his social ones, are becoming more prevalent.
More changes are coming for Honeybunches. He's been seeing the same counselor whom I will call L since he was 4 years old. He's 10 now, so it's been 6+ years that he's seen her. She told us at his appointment tonight that she is finally retiring. She's 67 years old. His next visit in two weeks with her will be the last. He wrote on her white board "I feel sad" and drew a sad face. He had some of her stuffed animals say they will miss her. She gave him two beanie babies today and said he can have the rest of her stash of them at his next visit. I asked if I had to do another intake to get him a new counselor. She told me "No". She's writing up a bio about him and will find who she thinks will be the best fit for him in the office. It's a large agency with many counselors. She did have one 20-something year old man in mind. She introduced Honeybunches to him. Honeybunches made me so proud. He initiated a handshake while he said "Hi. My name is ____. Nice to meet you." That was the first time I've seen him introduce himself so professionally. He sure is growing up!!!! I told the counselor that Honeybunches will need somebody who is determined and will stick around for a bit. She said she'll talk to this man to see if he is taking new patients and to see if he would be a good fit for Honeybunches as she thinks he will. We'll know more at his next visit in two weeks.
With losing his aide at the beginning of the month and now losing his counselor whom he's seen for so long I wonder how stable he'll remain. It is all a lot for him to deal with.
Honeybunches has been a bit irritable since the time change. His new aide underwent restraint training late last week. I think Honeybunches must have been surprised when she restrained him yesterday. IDK the whole details of what happened. All I know is that he was really testy. They tried ignoring his behavior at 1st, then things escalated. He was escorted to the time out space. He was restrained for a few seconds and then began to cry. He said he was mad at Daddy for not taking him to the railroad tracks. IDK what that was all about. DH said he told Honeybunches "Maybe" they'd go to the tracks. Honeybunches never understands maybe. In his brain either things are or they are not. Today he had a better day at school.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)