Happy New Year

I don't really feel like celebrating anything this year. So I'm going to bed and praying that next year something might go right.

They don't want me.

So for the last year I've been working hard toward one goal.... to finish the prerequisites I needed to get into the UB Nursing program. I pulled off a 4.0 gpa for the last 2 semesters and was one of the first people to submit my application back in July. I have really loved what I'm studying. It is fascinating and surprisingly easy for me. With my miliary leadership experience and customer service experience I thought for sure I'd be a perfect candidate. Alas, I have been rejected. And it really really sucks. I feel like I've wasted an entire year of my life.

Last night during his bath Seth says to me, "Look mom! Shampoo is a compound word!"

HI

So..... hello there. Long time huh. I was actually shocked at how long it has been since I'd posted anything. The past few weeks I've been thinking about writing some more, and have felt more inspired to do so. I'm not so sure I'll be able to catch you up on every event that has happened since June. I don't know that I even have that much time. This weekend is busy. I have two big tests on Tues, a term paper due on Wed, and another minor paper due Tues. Yuck. But hopefully I'll have more time around Thanksgiving.

Down on the Farm

Yesterday I went with Seth's class to a local farm. They had loads of fun on the tractor/hay ride. Got to crack corn, ride a pony, learn how to brush a pony, saw lots of baby pigs, sheep, goats, chicks, bunnies.... etc. , milked a goat, and saw (and prob stepped in) lots and lots of poop.

Meet the newest members of the Robinson family.......

Tom and Bean arrived today to our garden. My husband adopted them for me for my birthday. They're ready to play for you as you arrive to our home. Maybe someday we'll have a complete gnomey band.

Sethman

Sooo, Seth's rockin mohawk haircut lasted only 1 day. He came home from school and asked me to make him bald. When I asked him why (thinking perhaps he was teased or something) he said.... because I've never been bald before. So we cut it off, but I refused to make him completely bald. Since then his hair has grown in, and cut again super short.... but shaped a lot better than this picture.

Seth also started soccer a few weeks ago and really loves it. He had his first game last Thursday against the orange team. He's really sensitive about his personal space and doesn't like to be touched, so he struggles with the swarm of kids around the ball. But when passed the ball he does really well dribbling down the field. His long legs make him one of the tallest in the team.

Throughout this past school year we have discovered that Seth has some auditory functioning difficulties. Seth has struggled with listening comprehension in Kindergarden and has difficulty focusing. While we've known about these symptoms for years, they really started to affect his grades and social maturity in the classroom. At home, he had trouble understanding directions, focusing on any one thing at a time, and carrying on a relavent conversation. I had suspected that, like several of my relatives, he may have ADD.

Together with the help of Seth's teacher we decided to have him evaluated by the Speech Pathologist of the school. Sure enough she was able to pinpoint the problem, and last week I went with him to the University of Buffalo Hearing Clinic for further testing. Auditory Figure Ground is what they found he has. Apparantly the short-term auditory memory area of his brain has smaller "storage" than the average person. So anytime you give a long set of directions, read a long story, or introduce auditory information in the presence of back-ground noise his brain is unable to retain it all. Additionally, when he does have a lot of background noise, he becomes very overstimulated, stressed out and physiologically wants to shut down into his own little world.

The good news is that the Audiologist was blown away with how well the reports from the speech pathologist were done, and the fact that he already has surround sound equipment used in his classroom. She told us not to move out of the district, because most parents have to fight their schools to get the services and equipment their kids need. Also, by working with the speech pathologist during the week, Seth's grades and maturity have improved. He is above where he needs to be in reading and has all the foundations down solid for first grade. Next year he will be expected to work more independently and perform more complicated tasks, so we will see how his therapy and growth will help him as he struggles through it. I am extremely relieved with the findings. At the middle of the school year Dave and I were questioning our decision to put him in Kindergarden this year instead of waiting until next, and were considering holding him back and having him repeat Kindergarden. Now, we are looking forward to First Grade and I am happy that I am not taking classes this summer so I can do some summer homeschooling to give him a head start.

Memorial Day Weekend

We couldn't have asked for better weather at camp this past weekend. It was warm and green and soooo peaceful and quiet. The boys had fun playing on the beach, fishing with Papa, going for walks through the woods, and playing ball in the back yard. Seth, my water boy, did not let the cold water of the lake hold him back. We had to make him get out once his teeth started chattering. John got his first ride on the 4-wheeler thanks to the new junior sized helmet, and I got to celebrate my birthday in my favorite place.

Mother's Day

Seth's Kindergarden class hosted a tea for Mother's Day and provided entertainment. Seth is standing in the back row to the right of the tallest girl in the middle.

Baa Baa

The New "Do"

Seth decided he wanted a Mohawk. How often in your life do you get to have a cool haircut like this and get away with it? Not often.... so I said sure!

He came home after school and asked me to make him bald.

Grandma

As some of you may already know, my Grandma passed away in February after a rapid decline. One of the earliest memories I have with Grandma is going for walks through downtown Carthage. Noreen and I would run around the statue in Monument Park a few times. It seemed like she knew everyone in that town, since we were always stopping to say hello.

Since we were babies, Grandma measured our height on the side of her cupboard in the laundry room. Its fun to compare my height at certain ages with my children and see how much bigger they are!

I remember playing hours of Uno, Rummy, Hearts and Up and Down the River with Grandma. She taught me how to play Casino, a few versions of Solitaire, and Michigan Rummy. But she was the Queen of the cards.

Grandma was always a lady, and she tried to teach me the importance of being one too. She made sure that we didn’t slouch, kept our elbows off the table, chewed with our mouths closed, and didn’t blow bubbles with our gum.

Grandma was green before her time, as she always recycled our paper napkins. If our dinner napkins weren’t too soiled after our meals, she’d write our initials on them so we could reuse it for the next day.

Though I never got to see her perform, I know my Grandmother loved being in the theater. She loved to read books, and took us to the library when we visited. She was fond of wine and champagne, and watching soap operas. In the afternoons, I could always find her sitting in her chair in the kitchen watching As The World Turns or Jeopardy and working on a cross-stitch, crossword puzzle, jigsaw puzzle or a crochet or knitting project. Almost every afghan I own was a gift that she made.

Grandma was not the best cook, but she sure made a fantastic blackberry pie. She and Pop took us often to eat at the Sahara where once again they knew just about everybody in there. When I was in basic training at Fort Jackson, she sent me a big box of snickerdoodle cookies for the entire platoon to share. After weeks of Army chow, it was a wonderful treat that perked us all up.

When I was quite young, I remember asking Grandma how old she was…. for which she always responded with a mathematical equation.

I loved going to visit my Grandma. She always had the softest toilet paper in her bathroom, and she always stocked her cupboard with sugar wafer cookies for my sister and I. It was a simple thing to do, but it made me feel very special.

It's Been Forever

Wow, so I realize it's been a REALLY long time since I posted. I have missed it a lot, and I know I have a lot to update about. But I am a procrastinator, and every time I think of all I need to write about and how little time I have to myself I seem to put it off. I realize that I will never have time to be able to rewind and give full detailed accounts of every event in the last 2-3 months, so I am going to give you an abbreviated version, and then move on from there.


Thanksgiving 2008: We went up to 'Lidge Lake and had Thanksimas with my family. My sister and kids came down, Grandma and Great Cousin Joe were in, along with my parents of course. We knew Christmas would be with Dave's family in WV, so we had an early Christmas celebration a few days after Thanksgiving. There was so much snow! It was truly a Winter Wonderland.


Camp McCrady: I left to report for my mobilization on Dec 7th in Columbus, SC. After just a few days there, it was determined that I was not medically fit for deployment (oh shucks) and would be sent home once the paperwork was done being pushed around. On Dec 18th, to my surprise I was told I would be outprocessing the next day and going home for good on that Saturday.... never to return. John was unaffected by my absence and said "Oh Hi Mommy!" ...like 10 minutes after he saw me. Seth still talks now about how sad he was while I was gone. While at Camp McCrady, I was fortunate to be able to visit with my cousin Ann (who lives in Columbus)and my Aunt Kathy (who was visiting my cousin at the time). They took me out to dinner twice, and to a fabulous dessert and coffee place. Yum!


Christmas 08: We drove down to see Dave's family for Christmas. Time spent there is always great. Very busy with lots of people and a huge feast with more food than anyone can eat (even Dave). The boys got to open their presents from us and Santa in the hotel in the morning, and then had more in the afternoon with the rest of the family. Unfortunately we had to leave early Friday morning to get back home since Dave had to work. But it was nice.



New Years 09: Since the boys were still on Christmas Vacation and I didnt' have to work, I decided to take the boys up to visit my sister and their cousins in Vermont for a few days. It was SOOO cold up there but wonderful to see my sis' new house (well, a few years new I just hadn't seen it).



Spring 09: No not the season silly...the semester! Yes, Plain Old Carolyn has embarked on a new adventure back to college. I am taking 14 credit hours this semester and working on knocking out the prerequisites I need to get into the UB School of Nursing. So this semester I am taking Statistics, Anatomy and the Lab, Human Development, Grief Loss and Coping, and Golf. Woo Hoo!



The kiddos: Seth lost his first two teeth, and has officially banned us from kissing him. He made a friend in the neighborhood and it's nice to now see him have some friends outside of school. John turned 2 a few weeks ago and is playing the part. He wants to be so independent and do everything himself.

ABCs