Teacher Appreciation Web Project

Well, the hubs and I are all finished with the site. I think it looks nice. It's simple, but it does what we need it to do. It took us about eight hours from start to finish. I will email a link if anyone wants to see the live site. I just didn't want to post it in a public forum since it's only intended for the parents of the class and has a live form that acts similar to making a reservation with no moderation.

Still have a million other things to do this week and next. We are doing door decorating and kids are going to make pen flowers and a mosaic pot, so I still have to have my creative juices flowing. I am also going to make her a mosaic garden stepping stone as part of her gift.

It was a fun project and best of all I got to work with my darling husband on it. That made it fun :)


Teacher's favorite color is green, so we made the site green. Tree is part of the theme "Branching out in Mrs. Morrison's class for the door decoration.


Mark's form came out really nice. The error messages fade in, if something is not filled out properly. It posts the reservation below like commenting and it sends an email to me and a confirmation to them. It's pretty cool. It also has security features that protect against packet injection and spam bots. Go Mark!

Splashdown

The only way to stay cool in 94 degree weather. Yes, it's actually
hotter here than Las Vegas. Thank goodness we have air!

Husband Appreciation Day!!

I am a newbie when it comes to PHP, so my wonderful husband, who is also just learning PHP, but is a coding extraordinare, offered to code a sign up web app for me. He stayed up until 2AM working on it and got it working! We are going to embed it into the website tonight (after I finish it today). It works similar to a commenting script, but will just have different form variations, as well as a turing test to deter spam bots. It won't be the typical type this nonsensical word garbage that drives everyone nuts.

My husband is a genius and makes all this stuff look easy. He has probably forgotten more stuff about computers (which isn't much), than more people will ever learn over the course of their lifetime! Love you baby, and thanks for all you efforts. Looking forward to learning how you did it tonight. I do love our codefu sessions. Break out the coffee, it's gonna be a late one.

The project I have been working so furiously on is for teacher appreciation week. I am the room parent for my son Javi's classroom. He is in a wonderful program for high-functioning ASD kids at Deer Canyon Elementary (social, verbal and few sensory issues, not to say those with out these skills are low functioning, that is just the term typically used to describe). I have been creating a flyer to go home with the kids in their back packs on Monday (part of it pictured below) that has information about Teacher Appreciation Week and how the parents can get involved. I have also been designing a one page website that will have more info about teacher appreciation, a sign up sheet to volunteer to bring lunch to the teacher, pay pal to donate money for a gift, and some other pretty cool features and info. The link is in the flyer so it needs to be done before Monday, so the pressure is on!! I'll post pics of the site when it's all finished.



The teacher's favorite color is green and her favorite flower is a daisy, so I thought I would incorporate that in to everything.

Teacher Appreciation Week, May 5th-9th

Teacher Appreciation week is just around the corner, May 5th-9th. Don't forget to show your kid's teachers how much you appreciate them. Especially those who work with our special needs children. It takes a special kind of person to do their job everyday. Think of how we feel with our SN kids home on vacation and just think, they deal with 8-12 SN kids in their classroom almost every day!! Also, don't forget their wonderful support staff, the aides, student teachers, volunteers and specialists.

It takes very little to show your appreciation. A homemade card, some homemade cookies, a single flower, a gift card to Starbucks for a coffee, even a McDonald's gift card (You deserve a break today, is one of their slogans).

Just wanted to get the word out there. I hope you take the time and effort to recognize your child's teacher in a special way :)

Arrrggggh!!!

Some days I just feel like running out of the house screaming. Normally I work well under pressure, but sometimes the pressure is to much and I just feel like dropping everything. The week started out pretty good, busy, but still good. It is going down hill fast.

To sum up:

Kaylee, neuro on Monday, outcome was extremely positive, already blogged about it by mobile blogging, yay first time doing that.

Kaylee, PT, things are going well and don't know what I would do with out Summer!! She is great and feels more like a friend than a PT for Kaylee.

Javi, new art class on Monday afternoon, outcome positive, although behaviors lately have been hard to manage

Javi, behavior mod initial meeting to overview treatment on Tuesday, outcome was confusing. Don't feel I really know what the plan is other than to calm his stimming and flapping, and get him to be more compliant, DUH!! That is what I asked for!! Still want to know how they plan to help?? I asked and the answer was dodgy. They have had seven weeks to plan this out and I don't feel like there is an actual plan, combined with the fact that she doesn't have any availability during hours when Javi is actually here at the moment, but she wanted to schedule time anyway. OK, whateva!

Ethan, still fighting the good fight with potty training. Had success at school yesterday, which we celebrated by going to McDonald's. Yay, Ethan!! Still, to anyone that has potty trained a kid on the spectrum. This is a very frustrating process for which you need unlimited patience.

Ethan and Kaylee are still sick, it's going on almost two weeks with the runny noses. Kept Ethan home today. I think I will call the doc to see if we need to be seen. I feel like I live in a Doc's office. We were seen just two weeks ago for all of them being sick. Could go broke off the co-pays for three kids.

Javi, very stimmy and frustrated this week, STAR testing going on and our Wii is broken, so his main motivator for good behavior (the Wii buck token system) has been taken out of action. Wii bucks don't work so well if you can't spend them. Have to send that in this week.

Kaylee, teething, need I saw more? She's been biting, crying, wakeful, etc...

House, in a complete state of disarray. I have been trying to purge, spring clean, finish the flooring in the bathroom, clean up the back yard. They are getting ready to paint and our side yard looks like a dump since I cleaned the garage on Friday. Need to call to have a pick up service to take that cr*p to the dump.

House hunting, well, for now, just staying on top of the market, home prices and what you get for the price. We are not looking to buy til next year, but still need to keep an eye on things. Someone please tell my husband that most people start looking about a year before they buy to get an idea of what they are looking for in a house and what they can get for the money!!!!!!!

Holy moly!! Don't have anything in my schedule today!! Wow!! That will change if I call the doctor.

Tomorrow, we have Ethan's IEP, to which I have scheduled respite care for Kaylee. I still have not had a confirmation call, so I called this AM and they said they would confirm it this evening. Hello?? The appointment is tomorrow and I called on Monday to schedule it. If I need to cancel or find someone else, I need more than the night before to do this!!! They totally ditched out with out calling the last time I called and my husband had to take off work. So, I am calling Regional Center to switch respite care service tomorrow. This is unacceptable.

Let's not forget that I also have to squeeze in laundry, cleaning, blogging, researching for my new client, and finding some time to play with the kids, work on things with Kaylee to help her development, potty train Ethan, do homework with Javi (though minimal during STAR testing), play referee to two fighting boys, cook dinner, clean the damn juicer, shop for all the healthy food in the house (which takes twice as long because you have to read labels and everything has to be made from scratch, washed, makes twice as many dishes and twice as long to prep) feed children, bathe children, get them to bed, schedule appointments, and also finding sometime in there to spend time with my husband. Where does that leave time for me??? Which other than the blogging and taking a shower is the only free time I get.

Can you say ARRRGGGGGHHHHH!!!!!???????

Dr. Neuro

Hooray! We had a great appointment. Kay is doing fine and we won't
have another follow up for six months! Doc thinks she may be able to
come off seizure meds in a year. We will schedule another EEG at that
time. We are very pleased with her progress and could not ask for more.

Shanna
(Sent from my iPhone)

Javi Hawk

Check out PowerJavi's Blog for some pretty funny pics and video.

Being married to a Mac Junkie/Apple Developer

If you ever wondered what it was like to be married, dating or otherwise involved with a coder, watch this clip and it pretty much has Mark to a T. Mark's idea of a romantic gift was bringing me an iPhone already set up, which I am not at all knocking by the way, because it has been one of the most useful gifts ever. It's nice to have all the latest in Mac gadgetry. However, flowers would be nice on occasion or a date planned entirely by him. Hint Hint!!! Anniversary is right around the corner. He subscribes to my blog. I know you are reading this Mark :) I love you!!



For further info on the subject click here.

Bath Time Babies

Splashy Time

There's that look of love they give each other all the time.

Froggy and Duckie, all clean.

Snuggle Bugs

They were so cute this morning. It was a nice thing to wake up to. Ethan slept in my bed, as usual and I had Kaylee in the bed since I did not want to put her back when I fed her at 5AM (we get up at 6). Daddy still sleeps in his office because we never know how much Kaylee is going to wake up and he needs to sleep solid to concentrate at work. He sleeps in our room on the weekends, but Ethan kicks him out at 4AM half the time to come sleep in the bed with us. Poor Daddy :(. Think it's about time to lock the kids out ;) Oh well, kids are little for such a short time. It won't be long before we are missing them coming in at 4AM. I know there are times when I just snuggle up to Javi when he is asleep because he doesn't do that any more. They grow up so fast. You have to appreciate every second. These pics definitely reflect one of those moments you want to freeze in time. Pics are a little grainy because of low light. The iPhone cam doesn't work well in the dark, but I did what I could to adjust them.

You can see the love.

Ethan calls them "Kaylee kisses"

Ethan says "E Hugs" when he hugs.

Snug as a bugs in a rug.

Trinity in Training

That's my girl!!  Mark always says he wants Kay to be like Trinity from the Matrix.  She would have the three C's, Cool, Coder, Chick.  Not to mention beautiful and smart.  She is getting an early start on the Mac (Notice the apple sticker on the back).  It's actually Ethan's "laptop", but he was being a nice big brother and letting her play with it.

Chia Smoothie

Kaylee and I are enjoying our healthy lunch.  Kaylee enjoyed some organic lentil and brown rice baby food, while I enjoyed humus and pita, chia smoothie, and some apple cinnamon granola.

I am posting my smoothie recipe here:

Strawberry-Banana Chia Smoothie

3 fresh strawberries, washed and hulled

1 ripe banana, peeled

1/3 cup vanilla frozen yogurt

1 cup apple juice (I like simply apple, no preservatives or added sugar or water)

1 cup crushed ice

1 scoop of Chia

Salvia hispanica, also known as Chia (pronounced chee’ah), is the richest and only unprocessed, whole food source of pure Omega3. A member of the mint family, Chia is native to Central America and has been used traditionally for over 3000 years.

Ancient Aztec warriors prized Chia as an endurance promoting Superfood, eating it in bread just before battle, and drinking it in water before running long distances on foot. Mixed in lemonade or fruit juice (known as chia fresca) Omega3 Chia seed quickly becomes a refreshing, performance-enhancing energy drink. more...

© Orange Peel Enterprises

Baby Loves Disco

We had such a great time at Baby Loves Disco. What a great idea! It was fun to get out with other parents with kids the same age and have a place where you can dance with your kiddos to good music in a kid friendly environment. Aubergine is a popular night club in downtown San Diego. I used to frequent the club in my much younger, single years. For more info on Baby Loves Disco, visit their website.

We danced to some disco, electronica, old school, and some fun 50's music. Similar to the music you might hear at a wedding. The stuff everyone knows. There was something for everyone. They also had a adult/kid friendly snack bar and juice boxes that was included in the price of the ticket. You also had the option to bring your own, and another great option, to have an adult cocktail. I did partake in one Absolut Mandrin and Seven, while Mark helped himself to the three Martini lunch. We hadn't eaten any solids all day until we hit up the snack bar, so Mark was a little tipsy. Cucumber and apple juice just doesn't pad the stomach enough ;)

It was a three hour event, but our little ones were pooped out after two hours, so we decided to head out. We had parked at Horton Plaza so we could get free parking for three hours and we still had to head in to the mall to buy something for validation. Kaylee finally got a Taggie. That was what I went in to buy to get validated. I had been wanting to buy her one for a while, since she is really in to tags. Her and Ethan are like Jack Sprat and the wife whose fat. Ethan has to have every tag, inside and out, cut off absolutely everything. Kaylee loves tags and that is the main thing she plays with if one of her toys or blankies has one.

Anyway, it was a good time. I think I will sign us up for the next one in June, since it was such a hit. Enjoy the pics!

www.flickr.com alphastatedotnet's Baby Loves Disco photoset

Milestones for Kay

Seeing a post from Danielle about Trev's milestone made me think to post about Kay.

Kaylee started giving high fives yesterday. She also started standing and balancing holding on to something. We have to prop her up, but she will hold on and stand there for a few minutes. She also managed to stay in a crawler position when I stuck her on the floor on Friday. It seems like she is becoming a little girl over night. She's getting so big. I can't believe the time has gone by so fast!! Sometimes I just want to hit the reset button, of course we could do with out the seizures, hospital visits and ACTH. The one good thing about all of it is we have met some really nice people that we would probably never would have met otherwise. Everything happens for a reason, I guess :)

Oooo...spicy!

Making Fire-Roasted Salsa...
Since Mark is really cutting down on his sodium intake, I am trying to get more into making things from scratch. Most jarred and canned items have a lot of sodium since it acts as a preservative. Mark loves my fresh pico, so I thought I would try making some roasted salsa with some of our really ripe produce. The roasted variety tends to last a bit longer in the fridge than the chunky pico. You can also freeze it, although I think it looses a little fire when you freeze.

Here is the recipe:

Fire-Roasted Salsa
1 large onion, peeled and coarsely chopped
3 tbsp minced garlic
2 jalapeno peppers, seeded and diced (I like to use rubber gloves when handling hot peppers.)
2 serrano chilies, seeded and diced
5 vine ripe tomatoes, cored and cut in half
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 red pepper, seeded and cut in half
1/4 cup fresh lime juice
1 small bunch fresh cilantro, finely chopped
1 cup water (I like to add water as needed, so be sure to check consistency and add the water a little at a time.)
Salt and ground black pepper, to taste. (Of course, I used the 1/2 sodium salt, but you can use regular.)

In a large, heavy heatproof pan, spread the onion, garlic, peppers, and tomatoes. Drizzle olive oil over all. Put a little salt on all the vegies, as this will help to draw out some of the water and add flavor. Place pan under the broiler and cook until tomatoes are charred, about 8-10 minutes. Remove and cool to room temperature.
Place mixture in a blender or food processor. Add lime juice, cilantro and water. Process until well combined and slightly chunky, but not completely liquified. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

The Juice Weasel

Here's Mark in 20 years.

The Juice Man

I got Mark a new toy today. I bought him a new juicer. We have been eating well and trying to be more healthy, so I thought it was the next logical thing to have in our health arsenal. Mark is so excited about using it. Whenever he gets a new toy he always researches it to death. He has to know absolutely everything about it. The specs, what it can do, what others have done with it, how to mod it, how much time he can save by this fabulous new device and just about anything else you probably wouldn't even think about, Mark would research it. It's too funny.

Well, we can't wait to try out our new juicer in the morning. We were too full after dinner to try it. By this time tomorrow, we'll be doing one handed push ups and growing scary eye brows!

My Final Resting Place

We had spent two days at the Magic Kingdom. We went to Disneyland on Tuesday and California Adventure on Wednesday. We had a great time. We are all exhausted, so we are taking it easy today. We are taking a vacation from our vacation.

Needless to say, hauling three children on a road trip is never a recipe for rest and relaxation, but seeing the little twinkle in their eyes when they see Mickey Mouse or Cinderella makes it all worth it. I love getting that feeling I used to get when I was a little girl whenever you walk in the park. Seeing it reflected in your children just intensifies it. You get that feeling that dreams really do come true, even if only for a day.

Speaking of rest, Disneyland is my idea of what heaven must be like, where everyone smiles at you, everyone is always happy, and it's always really clean even with a million people a year walking through it (my house never looks that clean and it's just us!). We always joke about spreading some of my ashes there. What better place than somewhere I have always had fond memories as a child and with my own children? Some place where everyone is always happy and at peace. That sounds like my kinda place. Whenever my children or grandchildren come to visit me they will always be happy. Of course, I could never really be spread there, but I just thought the idea of it was nice. Mark asked me if I was going to pick out a nice spot while we were there before we left on Monday morning and I laughed. Hope he isn't planning on bumping me off, I did just get my life insurance squared away ;)

www.flickr.com alphastatedotnet's Disney Resort photoset

Night on the Town

Went downtown last night. My good friend Brian was in town. We go back about 16 years. He'll be moving back to SD in about a month. We went to House of Blues and J Street Bar after. We had a good time. Here are a few pics.

Back to the grind!

Celebrating my new job and new found sanity. Yep, that's right. I am going back to work after 3.5 years of being home with the kiddos. I will start working part time after next week (our spring break). I am really looking forward to it. I will be doing basically the same thing I am doing now, web design and graphic arts, but I will be working and maintaining four-five different sites and doing some project management. It's for a small business owner, that I actually worked for in high school. I am so excited to get back in to a real office and interact with real live adults!!! I love being a mommy, don't get me wrong, but it will be nice to get back to the working world and wear real clothes, not my soccer mom uniform of trackies, hoodies and flip flops. I think I will miss the roll out of bed uniform, but the great part is, I can put it on as soon as I get home.

It will be a tough schedule to get used to at first, but I think we will adjust quickly. I am looking in to a respite caretaker to care for Kay while I am away for a few hours in the AM. We have someone in mind, we are just trying to find out the particulars. Hopefully it will all work out!!