I don't have much time but I at least wanted to update...

Katie's time in the Kindergarten classroom went exceptionally well. I am hoping that will lead to increased time in the classroom for her. Her diet of gluten and dairy free is killing me -- she is so hungry and it hurts me to see her beg for foods she can't have. I am praying for strength to continue with her diet and that God would show me additional foods she might be interested in.

Mary is doing well -- almost 7 years old -- just a few weeks to go. She is loving first grade and reading like crazy.

Work is nuts for me but calming down for Bill. Black Friday was nuts, but it was nice to not be a manager this year. I had to be at work at 3 am for a 4 am opening -- crazy -- but I've survived.

The days have been clicking off faster than I can believe. I am trying to not be neglectful of this blog -- I have just been a little busy. We have so much going on with school and Katie's therapies, scheduling etc. Some days I just don't feel like there is enough of me to go around :) Things with us are good. Bill's work is finally winding down just as mine is getting into full swing.


The girls are good. Katie has started eating in the lunchroom a day or two a week, and this week she was actually able to eat lunch with her sister. Tomorrow she is going to start spending a little time in a Kindergarten classroom. This is so exciting for me. I can't wait to hear how it goes. My expectations are very realistic -- but we are hopeful that this will be a good starting point for her.



I'm tired. Lots of work and little sleep. I'm off tomorrow - and am convinced to spend a little time doing nothing but relaxing. I'm excited to do a little reading and maybe even take a nap. Yee-hah!

As if I don't have enough going on with AUTISM in my world, I received a call from Katie's teacher yesterday that they had done a craft project with cinnamon and my daughters hands had started to swell and were covered in a red rash. It was only 45 minutes from the end of the day and they said there were no other symptoms (like not being able to breathe, etc) so I decided to just wait and pick her up at the normal time.

She seemed fine. We had a babysitter for her as my parents wanted to take us to see The Polar Express in IMAX 3D (which was awesome). When we got home from the movie, Katie was sleeping in Bill's recliner in the front room. Her sleeper was on the couch and she only had on a diaper and was covered with a blanket. The sitter (who is wonderful and we love) said that Katie started throwing herself against the glass sliding window in our dining room once she put the sleeper on her. We pulled the blanket back and she was red all over in this horrible rash. Okay, what kid is allergic to touching cinnamon. She did ingest some through the air, but she didn't eat any. What a nightmare.

She seemed fine this morning. She took a nice soapy bath and the teacher said that they won't do anymore projects with cinnamon! YIKES!

This was our Halloween - Snow White & Scooby Doo -- quite the combination. Halloween was a disaster for Katie. I have determined that Autism and Halloween aren't a very good combination. Mary had a wonderful day. She woke up this morning and said, "Couldn't it be Halloween again today?" I said, "Thank goodness, No." Once was enough for this year.