7 Quick Takes — Raindances

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7 Quick Takes

After having one of the driest Decembers on record, we’re receiving a few weather systems that should make a dent in our needed rainfall and hopefully add some snow to the Sierras. (Yes, I’m fully aware that “Sierras” is like writing “mountainses”. However, everyone around here pluralizes it.)

— 1 —

If you view my blog as a whole, there’s a sticky post at the top which explains the button on the sidebar. Restating it briefly, I can’t throw my weight behind any of the GOP candidates, so I’m supporting Obama. The political discussion on this blog regarding the 2012 election stops at that point (Twitter is another story) and I’m perfectly OK with anyone who wants to pass over my blog until November 7th. I’m not going to gripe about any of the GOP debates or any candidate — the only complaining I may do is about the number of political ads on TV come autumn.

— 2 —

I think everybody in the pro-life movement needs to read this. Kate is another Quick Takes blogger and she is so perfectly on-the-money with what she has to say. I have friends on both sides of the issue and she brings a lot of grace to the pro-life side of it. (Thank you to Katie @ NFP and Me for re-tweeting it.)

— 3 —

I have parent training this weekend for the autism program that will be working with Daniel. I’d prefer doing it over two Saturdays instead of Saturday/Sunday but the only way we can have this in place before Daniel turns three is for me to do it this weekend. I’ve almost got the care schedule for Sunday morning in place and I’m thankful that the people of Metanoia are so awesome to offer to take care of him while Jon is conducting worship and teaching Sunday school. (For those not in the know, I’m married to a Lutheran pastor.) We get an hour-long break for lunch so I’ll definitely be charging my NOOK so I can curl up with it during lunch. (It also has a pad of paper in the cover so I can take copious notes.)

— 4 —

I just found out that a seminary friend of mine is pregnant again… with triplets. I managed not to remark that she was going to have her hands full — I imagine that there will be plenty of people telling her that in her congregation. I’m hoping for a healthy pregnancy for her — pregnancies of multiples can be tricky by nature. (The hospital where I used to live in Montana refused to deliver twins or higher because there was so much that could go wrong.)

— 5 —

I had lobster for the first time last weekend at the lobster feed put on by the Chamber of Commerce. Honestly, it’s not my first choice for shellfish — it was a little bit too rich. The shrimp from the Low Country Boil on the other hand… I wish I’d taken some of it home with me although at the time, the thought of more food was more than I could handle. It was a fun evening and I’m thankful to one of my parishioners for inviting me to go with her.

— 6 —

I have to admit that I’m somewhat amused at the revelation that Paula Deen has Type II diabetes. There are a number of people crying “HYPOCRITE!!!” at her because she pushed her high-fat comfort food while living with the condition and I don’t doubt she is a bit guilty of hypocrisy; but people also had a choice to follow her recipes and eat that food. She claims to have always preached moderation and that’s something that we Americans have problems in practicing. The normal dinner plate size has increased insanely in the last 30-40 years and having appetizers, an entrée, and dessert at most major restaurant chains will use up your daily allowance of calories in just that meal in addition to all the excess fat and sodium.

— 7 —

I’m getting kind of addicted to the Friday lunch special at the local sushi place. Soup, salad, teryaki chicken or beef, rice, and a roll of choice for under $15. It works. They’re also more than happy to let me just sit and read after I eat.

For more Quick Takes, visit Jen at ConversionDiary.Com.

The Simple Woman’s Daybook: January 16, 2012

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Simple Woman's Daybook

FOR TODAY January 16, 2012

Outside my window… dark now but it was in the low 50’s today.

I am thinking… about the autism training I have this weekend.

I am thankful… for getting to sleep in today.

In the kitchen… next question!

I am wearing… my preeclampsia “survivor” shirt and my penguin pajama bottoms.

I am creating… this entry.

I am going… to hope that I don’t have a sinus infection right now.

I am wondering… what the best deal on a laptop is.

I am reading… Inheritance by Christopher Paolini.

I am hoping… my laptop holds on until i can get another one.

I am looking forward to… my park date with Daniel and his physical therapist.

I am learning more than I wanted to know about autism.

Around the house… next question!

I am pondering… things internally.

A favorite quote for today… “If you read history you will find that the Christians who did most for the present world were precisely those who thought most of the next. It is since Christians have largely ceased to think of the other world that they have become so ineffective in this.” — C.S. Lewis

One of my favorite things… Crystal Light Peach Tea.

A few plans for the rest of the week: PT tomorrow, speech on Wednesday, OT and possibly child development on Thursday, massage on Friday, and training on Saturday.

A peek into my day…

Daniel and his leaves

Hosted by The Simple Woman’s Daybook

7 Quick Takes — Laptop Shopping, The A-Word, and Other Parts of My Week

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7 Quick Takes

Daniel broke the W key off my laptop last night and I can’t get it back on — the key itself has plastic parts broken off. I can type well enough — it just feels weird to hit the little rubber knob for that key. So…

— 1 —

There is probably laptop shopping in my future. I’m looking at Lenovo and HP/Compaq. Jon has a Dell and I feel like my laptop (which truthfully is starting to have problems after three years) has fared better than his. Mine has also been transported a whole lot of places so I think all that transport has added to the normal abuse I put it through. I’ll let y’all know what I end up getting if/when I purchase something.

— 2 —

Daniel’s autism diagnosis was confirmed on Monday. A clinical psychologist administered the ADOS and she concurred with the previous suspicions of the MIND Institute and our Regional Center case worker. It was 4 hours from start to finish and I liked the psychologist doing the testing. She was really kind and you could tell that she cared and that she really viewed her job as a way of helping others. It was, however, mentally intense even though I was able to get into my NOOK during some of the testing. (I’m in the middle of Inheritance by Christopher Paolini and I think I’m going to download the entire series onto my NOOK, mostly to save bookshelf space.) My Regional Center case worker was with me through it which was good — I did need someone else there.

— 3 —

On Wednesday, I met with my local school district to start the transition from the Regional Center to the school district. Per the Lanterman Act, Daniel becomes the responsibility of the local school district at age 3 and will remain that way up to the age of 21 if necessary. (The reason is that at age 3, they transfer the focus from a medical one to an educational one.) As he turns 3 in a matter of months, we needed to get the ball rolling on what has to happen to get him transitioned. They told me about the various options, had me sign something authorizing testing, and set up the date/time for the IEP meeting. I also have specialized ABA (applied behavior analysis) training to go through for an in-home component of Daniel’s autism program next weekend. As I have to do it over Sunday, I’m in the process of putting together a team of people to take care of Daniel during church.

— 4 —

I finally found a copy of “I Want to Walk as a Child of the Light” on iTunes. You can find a Youtube video of it here. (I’d embed the video but WordPress is being cranky.) I love the hymn and we never sing it which saddens me. I’m sure it’s not as theologically brilliant as others but its simplicity is what makes it so appealing to me.

— 5 —

I’m so glad that Pauley Perette got to be one of the presenters for the People’s Choice Awards. I love her character on NCIS and she’s a prolific Twitter user. She’s also socially responsible and a Christian to boot. I also loved Kaley Cuoco hosting the show though I think either she or Tina Fey deserved to win more than the girl from “Glee”. (I’m not a “Gleek”.) Oh yes… the part of the opening with Neil Patrick Harris was awesome. The “Gleehab” pun was perfect.

— 6 —

Amy Wellborn has an interesting rant on “small groups”. It is indeed curious that the search terms leading to her blog recently have involved small groups because they’re kind of a Protestant thing, especially prevalent in megachurches or in chapters of national Christian organizations like Intervarsity. (Intervarsity, by the way, is not exclusively Protestant. My chapter had a sizeable Catholic minority in it, especially during my last year of college.) In those situations, corporate worship services are so incredibly large (both in terms of people and in number of services) that one can get lost in them, purposely or otherwise. The purpose of “small groups” are to have a more intimate gathering for informal worship and Scripture study. Amy has a point — daily Mass is an excellent example of a small group, though I wouldn’t say it’s the original one. It’s a small group of people gathered for worship, the Word, and the Eucharist. I recommend reading her thoughts — they’re excellent and as one who has participated in them, I totally see her point.

— 7 —

You know… I’d totally be OK with some rain about now. It’s a La Nina year so things are going to be dry but it also means that the jet stream has been shifted waaaaaay north and towns like Cordova, Alaska are getting snowed in. I checked Weather.Com and I’m going to have to wait 5 days for rain. So NOT amused by this.

For more Quick Takes, visit Jen at ConversionDiary.Com.

A Conversation Regarding Gun Control

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One of our deacons (who is seriously awesome and whose wife is one of the people I’m close to at Metanoia) was over fixing curtain rods yesterday and the following exchange happened.

D: Deacon
J: Jen!

D: Hopefully, you don’t mind that I’m collecting dust in a shell box (used for shotgun shells). Then again, you’ve lived in Montana so this is probably normal.
J: Yeah… I’m pretty aware that people own and shoot guns.
D: You’re from northern California though, right?
J: Yeah… total granola hippie but I’m not against guns and all that within reason. You don’t need a semi-automatic weapon to shoot Bambi.
D: *proceeds to explain to me the difference between semi-automatic and fully-automatic*

I amended my opinion to now opposing military grade weaponry for hunting purposes. You can take out Bambi (who is an 8-point buck) with one shot. You don’t need to zipper him.

The Simple Woman’s Daybook: January 9, 2012

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Simple Woman's Daybook

FOR TODAY January 9, 2012

Outside my window… dark. It’s 10:40 p.m. It started out cold this morning and ended up fairly warm — the 60’s maybe.

I am thinking… about the ADOS testing today and Daniel’s diagnosis of autism.

I am thankful… for getting through today even if I was completely drained of energy when I got home. I’m also thankful for the guy on the motorcycle who waited until Daniel was in the car and the door was closed so that him starting the motorcycle wouldn’t scare Daniel.

In the kitchen… next question.

I am wearing… black Arabic shirt and black capri sweats.

I am creating… this entry.

I am going… to enjoy having tomorrow as a quiet day.

I am wondering… what the future holds with Daniel’s diagnosis.

I am reading… Inheritance by Christopher Paolini. I think I’m going to download the other three books onto my NOOK so I can read them in order when I’m done with this one.

I am hoping… I sleep well tonight.

I am looking forward to… lobster feed this weekend with one of my amazing church ladies.

I am learning a lot about autism.

Around the house… curtain rods being replaced.

I am pondering… many things that I can’t vocalize.

A favorite quote for today… “A person’s a person no matter how small.” — Dr. Suess

One of my favorite things… Crystal Light Peach Tea

A few plans for the rest of the week: therapies, meeting with the school district regarding Daniel, lobster feed on Saturday night.

A peek into my day… My boy and I at Miwok Park in Elk Grove.

Daniel and I

Hosted by The Simple Woman’s Daybook

7 Quick Takes — The A Word

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7 Quick Takes

We’re almost 6 days into January and already I want a restart on the year. This can’t be good.

— 1 —

It’s looking like Daniel has a diagnosis someplace on the autism spectrum. The appointment on Tuesday morning did not go well as he did not cooperate for the pediatric developmental fellow who was administering a developmental assessment. Everyone came in and talked to me afterwards and explained the reasoning for their suspicions. It makes sense and would explain the language delay, the problems engaging with people, and the obsession with doors and drawers. Their pediatric resident came in afterwards and gave me hugs. She had been the one who coordinated all of Daniel’s care in the PICU in March so I was really happy to see her again and I hope she had gotten to play with Daniel a little bit when he was out of the room and I was giving the pediatric developmental fellow his health history. Jon is happy with the fact that we likely have a diagnosis and some answers. I was truthfully pretty devastated though I managed to make it out to the car before crying.

— 2 —

Please, for the love of [insert deity], do not tell me about your mother’s cousin’s neighbor’s college roommate’s husband who has a child with autism. Seriously, I get that you’re trying to make me feel better but unless you have the kid with the condition, I honestly just wish you would stop talking. The spectrum is pretty big and unless you have the kid, you don’t know really where on the spectrum they are. It’s also a whole lot more helpful for me to hear from someone who is raising a kid or two with said conditions.

— 3 —

It’s actually quite rude and incredibly tactless to butt into a conversation and ask nastily, “Why are you so surprised?” (Yes, this actually happened to me last night and it took every ounce of self-control not to toss the contents of the pot of tea between us across the table at her.) This person had already gotten herself on my spit list in the first five minutes of dinner last night and that comment was really inappropriate. I responded politely because I was flanked by the person’s step-sister and our council president (as this was at our monthly Ladies’ Night Out where all the church women go out to dinner). Otherwise, she would have had hot tea flung at her and I probably would have slapped the living daylights out of her. (I’m seriously trying to avoid foul language on this take because this is a family-friendly blog.)

— 4 —

The diagnosis isn’t the worst thing on the planet but it doesn’t make it any easier. I’m fully aware that Daniel isn’t going to die from being on the autism spectrum and thankfully California has laws in place requiring insurance companies to cover autism therapies. (I love my socialist paradise at times as well as Governor Moonbeam.) It was devastating because I thought we were done with obstacles being thrown in our path and it’s ONE. MORE. OBSTACLE. that we have to tackle. Thankfully, he qualifies for a lot of programs and we’re hooked up with a group at UCD Medical Center who actually does autism specifically. He hasn’t had the ADOS administered yet (that will be Monday) but it’s almost a forgone conclusion that he’s on the spectrum… though you could put anyone on the spectrum on any given day given how broad it is. And yes, I do know about the website Autism Speaks.

— 5 —

In addition to all this, I’m having fibro pain. Last week, I lost a battle with my parents’ ice maker and had a gouge taken out of my hand. Well… said injury is causing hand and finger pain — not a good thing when you’re a blogger and have to use your hands as much as I do. Add in tendonitis in my thumb from a Cipro or Levaquin prescription, and you have a grumpy Jen. Whine whine whine WHINE!!!!

— 6 —

I apparently witnessed part of a high-speed chase last night without knowing it. I was in the parking lot finding a parking space when I saw a low-flying chopper with its searchlight on. I hadn’t seen one of those since I lived in Pomona and we’d get them lighting up the apartment and rattling the walls. I wondered what was going on and saw this story on several news stations when I got home. Duuuuude…

— 7 —

Yesterday, Daniel and I headed to Miwok Park in Elk Grove after doing a Target run. He did really well on the big kids’ playground and conquered the 2-5 year old area as well. The only downside was a really rude little boy who went on the suspension bridge and started jumping up and down to try and knock Daniel off. I told him to cut it out and play nicely. He replied that he didn’t have to listen because I wasn’t his mother. So… I went and found his mom and told her what had happened. Daniel and I headed out and when I looked over my shoulder, his mom was putting him in a time-out. I do appreciate it when parents actually discipline their kids.

For more Quick Takes, visit Jen at ConversionDiary.Com.