Hello All,
I'm so sorry everyone (but especially to the grandparents) that this is late but I must confess it completely slipped my mind. I have news about things like that though which I'll write about later. Not an excuse but it is interesting to know.
Anyways, things here are busy. Very busy actually which is overwhelming to me at times. I have continued to date Tyson and he and I see each other almost day. He is a wonderful person and treats me so well. He would like to have been at family gatherings but he is very busy on weekends with dog activities so I promise you all haven't scared him off. :) I'm sure he'll be at one soon.
ORL decided earlier in 2016 that they wanted to look at getting a professional therapy dog to work in The Early Learning Center they are opening in June and also for various duties around the church. They hired me to help them find a dog and then train the dog and handlers. Orginally, it was going to be an adult dog but I happened to find a puppy that needed a home and had a wonderful temperament. I'm a bit ashamed to say it's a goldendoodle as I swore I would never work willingly with a goldendoodle (doodles are known for being extremely air-headed and a failed breeding experiment) but Barnabas is an exception. He's level headed, very smart and loves people - especially children.
Barnabas was supposed to go to a home in the church (primary caregiver) and then I would train him at set times but so far no one in the church has stepped up to do that. It is beginning to appear like he will remain with me. This was not in my plans and honestly I would much prefer that Barnabas goes to a different home but it appears like this will not be happening. There will be people though that take him for times during the week and maybe on weekends. I think if he was an adult people would be clamoring to have him but no one wants a puppy even a very well behaved one. At a year old people may take him but if I live through the puppy stage I am going to reap the rewards of a well behaved adult dog and he will have to stay with me. I will have grown attached by then.
I also adopted Clifford in November (I can't remember if I've written about him). He is a black lab that came from a prison program meaning that he came with some basic obedience already. Sadly, a few weeks ago Cliff had a seizure which terrified me and of course made me think of Benny. They think the seizure was due to anxiety and so far he has not had another but I am anxious about that and quite honestly very sad. I'm not sure I'm ready to have another epileptic dog. It may very well be that he never has another one but we just won't know. Besides that Cliff is a wonderful dog who loves to snuggle and enjoys looking out the window.
Now as I mentioned above we have recently found out why I struggle so much with my memory, basic household chores, being on time and things like that. We knew it involved executive functioning and someone at some point had mentioned autism but we have come to think this was very unlikely. A few weeks ago I had my brain mapped. What this means is that I was hooked up to an EKG and I did a few simple tasks that tracked my brain waves. They compared the results to a "normal" brain (this was determined from many clinical studies) and could see where my brain deviated from a clinically healthy brain. Of course it showed I had anxiety. It showed that my anti-depressionants aren't working which I had begun to suspect. It also showed that I have a lot of negative self-talk (which is very true) but it also shows that I have ADHD.
This makes a lot of sense and if you read about adult ADHD I have all of the symptoms (it appears differently in adults than children) and explains the executive functioning symptoms much better than autism. ADHD is also a common co-morbid with eating disorders.
The good news is that through Neurofeedback my ADHD can be virtually corrected. My anxiety can also be significantly lessened. How this works (as best as I can understand it) is that my brain waves are basically reprogrammed. I have gone twice now and what I do is watch a movie I pick out (they have mostly pixer films. Currently I am watching Inside Out) and when my brain does something that is undesirable (such as my attention wonders or my anxiety climbs) stars start to flow up from the bottom of the screen and block out the picture. My brain learns that I can correct this by focusing back on the movie, lessening my anxiety etc. The brain automatically wants to see the picture so your brain is being "trained" while I watch the movie. All I do is sit there hooked up to a computer and watch the movie. They said I should see a difference in my anxiety in about 10 sessions. We'll see. I don't know yet if it will work but I'm hopeful.
Anyways, sorry for the long blog post. I hope everyone is doing well. If you'd like to see pictures of Barnabas you can find him on Facebook at Barnabas The Church Dog. I apologize again for the late post.
Love,
Kate and the Pack
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1.19.2017
1.08.2017
Happy New Year!
Happy New Year:
We are returning to the routine of school and work. We had a great Christmas with everyone home. I have pictures of Christmas morning but I would not be around long if I posted them. I really don't think anyone looks that bad!:)
Some other happenings; We finished painting the living room and dining room and the bathroom update.
We are returning to the routine of school and work. We had a great Christmas with everyone home. I have pictures of Christmas morning but I would not be around long if I posted them. I really don't think anyone looks that bad!:)
Some other happenings; We finished painting the living room and dining room and the bathroom update.
Vicki attended Advent by Candelight at the church. Ladies sign up to host a table. Then they decorate it really pretty and serve a dessert. There is also a devotion, entertainment, and carol singing.
Tim's mom's car was totaled in November. We now have a Mazda CX5. Tim drives it to Winfied and its his favorite color- red. Currently, his favorite feature is the seat warmer:)
Samuel continues to play with his band. And occasionally plays with another band. He helps friends move and brings home discards from them. Last week this included two fish, named Big and Smalls. He is going to think of something more creative. The filter had been turned off so they were a little hard to see - but it is clearing up - we will see if they survive.
Vicki's phone died the first part of December. And it appears that the new phone is not tied to the blog so hopefully I will have more pictures next time.
Happy New Year!
What a fun sock exchange in 2016. For those who would like to know who had who........
What a fun sock exchange in 2016. For those who would like to know who had who........
| Tim G | Cassi |
| Auntie | Kinley |
| Kate | Ava |
| Chris | Sarah |
| Theresa | Dan |
| Pamey | Auroroa |
| Randy | Emily |
| Sarah | Kate |
| Dan | Tim G |
| Olivia | Charles |
| Kinley | Grandma |
| Emily | Nate |
| Kurtis | Chris |
| Mary | Auntie |
| Auroroa | Olivia |
| Charles | Tim S |
| Nate | Vicki |
| Dave | Erik |
| Cassi | Theresa |
| Adelynn | Pamey |
| Ava | Randy |
| Oliver | Grandpa |
| Tim S | Mary |
| Vicki | Dave |
| Erik | Kurtis |
| Grandpa | Oliver |
| Grandma | Adelynn |
| PETS | |
| River Pets | Molly |
| Charles | Tim G |
| Shooks | Charles |
| Rutherford | Shooks |
| Kate | Rutherfords |
| Auntie | Rivers |
| Cassi | Kate |
| Grandma | Cassi |
12.26.2016
The Rivers Ripple
Time flies when you are having fun!
The Rivers had a full fall.
Olivia has been enjoying Kindergarten. She's learning something new every day! (although when asked, some days she did "nothing" at Kindergarten) Her right ankle has continued to heal through the fall and Olivia was able to start gymnastics back again in November. She does occassionally still roll it and we baby it for a few days. Both girls took swim lessons in October and November. Olivia got her first lap pool experience during this time and can swim 25 yards of front crawl and back crawl. She tried basketball last weekend, with a camp through the Maize South Girls Team. Most days you'll find Olivia completing her homework, creating something (art, game, etc), playing with Kinley, playing Animal Crossing, watching Wild Kratts, or playing outside.
Kinley has been attending preschool and enjoys it once she is there and in class. Kinley prefers to move slowly in the morning and have the opportunity to wake up and leisurely prepare for her day. She has been doing Starlets (parent/child preschool) with Sarah and Emily this fall on Mondays too. Wednesdays for Kinley include something new to us--dance. Kinley genuinely enjoys it and has asked to dance again in January (thankfully these classes are month to month and the instructor doesn't mind that Kinley prefers no tights and her hair down). Kinley loves to play Lalaloopsy's or whatever happens to be the theme of the day with Olivia. She also loves to color pictures. Kinley saw an allergist this fall and has been diagnosed with a milk allergy. She has done very well with the removal of all dairy from her diet (no more ice cream, cheese, butter, chocolate). Thankfully there are some alternatives to her favorites from the dairy list. Our most recent discovery was a hot chocolate recipe (vanilla almond milk and Enjoy Life Chocolate Chips--yum!).
Emily has made some nice gains this fall--sitting up is probably the most noticeable. She is also exploring her toys more, engaging in songs with movement, and etc. She had a sedated MRI on Nov 17, which went well. We were very nervous to have her sedated, but needed to check her ventricles in her brain. They are stable, but still measuring large so at this point we just watch and wait. She recently had some virus, but that was really the first time she's been sick--she's just had a couple of colds. Emily does therapy 2x/month, PAT once a month, and swimming 2x/month (if it works in our schedule). She's a cuddle bug, and still continues to be easy going. Hard to believe the next time we post, she will have celebrated her 1st birthday!
Sarah drives the Rivers Taxi Service van 5 days a week getting small children to their various schools and activities. She's been squeezing in a work out at the YMCA 2x/week with her friend. We've tried cycle, pilates, PiYo, and Barre classes. Bunco 1x/month was added this fall as a night out--the neighbor gals, along with others play Bunco. So far, she's been the biggest loser once (and came home with money)! She still participates in MOPS 2 nights a month and also helps out with Special Needs Support Group 1x/month. And that is plenty for now!
Dan has settled into working from home and we enjoy having him around during the day. We often see him around lunch time. Dan usually escapes the man cave to the Y over his lunch break. He's been playing with church band and working with another band in town that hopes to be playing some gigs in the new year. Dan ran the Say Grace 5K and also the Prairie Fire 1/2 Marathon this fall.
Brisco turned 10 years old in November and continues to be a spoiled dog. Since Dan has been home, if he is left completely alone there will be vengeance usually in the form of eaten small pieces, shredded toilet paper, or once a small scarf.
We hope you all had a wonderful Christmas celebration and wish you a great start to 2017!
The Rivers had a full fall.
Olivia has been enjoying Kindergarten. She's learning something new every day! (although when asked, some days she did "nothing" at Kindergarten) Her right ankle has continued to heal through the fall and Olivia was able to start gymnastics back again in November. She does occassionally still roll it and we baby it for a few days. Both girls took swim lessons in October and November. Olivia got her first lap pool experience during this time and can swim 25 yards of front crawl and back crawl. She tried basketball last weekend, with a camp through the Maize South Girls Team. Most days you'll find Olivia completing her homework, creating something (art, game, etc), playing with Kinley, playing Animal Crossing, watching Wild Kratts, or playing outside.
Kinley has been attending preschool and enjoys it once she is there and in class. Kinley prefers to move slowly in the morning and have the opportunity to wake up and leisurely prepare for her day. She has been doing Starlets (parent/child preschool) with Sarah and Emily this fall on Mondays too. Wednesdays for Kinley include something new to us--dance. Kinley genuinely enjoys it and has asked to dance again in January (thankfully these classes are month to month and the instructor doesn't mind that Kinley prefers no tights and her hair down). Kinley loves to play Lalaloopsy's or whatever happens to be the theme of the day with Olivia. She also loves to color pictures. Kinley saw an allergist this fall and has been diagnosed with a milk allergy. She has done very well with the removal of all dairy from her diet (no more ice cream, cheese, butter, chocolate). Thankfully there are some alternatives to her favorites from the dairy list. Our most recent discovery was a hot chocolate recipe (vanilla almond milk and Enjoy Life Chocolate Chips--yum!).
Emily has made some nice gains this fall--sitting up is probably the most noticeable. She is also exploring her toys more, engaging in songs with movement, and etc. She had a sedated MRI on Nov 17, which went well. We were very nervous to have her sedated, but needed to check her ventricles in her brain. They are stable, but still measuring large so at this point we just watch and wait. She recently had some virus, but that was really the first time she's been sick--she's just had a couple of colds. Emily does therapy 2x/month, PAT once a month, and swimming 2x/month (if it works in our schedule). She's a cuddle bug, and still continues to be easy going. Hard to believe the next time we post, she will have celebrated her 1st birthday!
Sarah drives the Rivers Taxi Service van 5 days a week getting small children to their various schools and activities. She's been squeezing in a work out at the YMCA 2x/week with her friend. We've tried cycle, pilates, PiYo, and Barre classes. Bunco 1x/month was added this fall as a night out--the neighbor gals, along with others play Bunco. So far, she's been the biggest loser once (and came home with money)! She still participates in MOPS 2 nights a month and also helps out with Special Needs Support Group 1x/month. And that is plenty for now!
Dan has settled into working from home and we enjoy having him around during the day. We often see him around lunch time. Dan usually escapes the man cave to the Y over his lunch break. He's been playing with church band and working with another band in town that hopes to be playing some gigs in the new year. Dan ran the Say Grace 5K and also the Prairie Fire 1/2 Marathon this fall.
Brisco turned 10 years old in November and continues to be a spoiled dog. Since Dan has been home, if he is left completely alone there will be vengeance usually in the form of eaten small pieces, shredded toilet paper, or once a small scarf.
We hope you all had a wonderful Christmas celebration and wish you a great start to 2017!
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| Kinley on Dec 17--Shopkins Birthday! |
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| Dec 17 was also snowy and COLD. |
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| Emily's first visit to Santa. |
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| As one of my friends said, Emily was not pleased to share her Santa time with her sisters. |
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| Emily's First Christmas |
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| My attempt at a group photo in their Christmas Eve dress clothing. |
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| Emily on Christmas morning. |
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| Kinley playing with her new Doc Toy Hospital. |
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| Olivia enjoys taking pictures--here's Em and I on Christmas Eve. |
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| Olivia on Christmas Morning. |
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| Emily in the sleigh at Great Grandma and Grandpa's. |
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