Vacation Week Begins

(Shudder)

Wel, so far it's not too terrible. Sam and Sofia were awake before 6am, but her took her downstairs to watch TV for a while. Then they came back up and he played on the Nintendo while she played in her room for a while. Micah actually slept until nearly 8am! Wow! He really needed it.

Last night we had my friend R, my friend N and her kids (and her hubby came later), and Laura and baby Lilie all over for Shabbat. It was so much fun. R and N are both awesome friends, and although they have met before, this was the first time they really got a chance to know each other. I love it when my friends like each other! And they live really near each other, so it was good for R to get connected. I just love them both!

Lovely Lilie is getting to be REALLY adorable! What a smile that baby has.




At the day school, the Rimon (Kindergarten) Rock Stars sang "It's the 100th Day of School )although really it was only the 99th day, due to the rain-day on Wednesday).


Rimon Rock Stars 100th day 2/15/08



Here's Sofia with Laura and Lilie - how did my girl get to big?!


Mr. Micah and Lilie:



And Sam made a creative face with his Oreos and Twizzler:



In the morning, Sofia and I visited the preschool! Let me just say that my little girl KNOCKED THEIR SOCKS OFF! Ok, maybe I'm a little biased, but really - how many little kids can walk into a new room filled with strangers, and be so comfortable that within 30 minutes she was organizing the creation of a Choo Choo Train made out of the square plastic chair! At the end, I let her sit with the other kids in the line-up and I pulled the car up to have her "delivered" like all the other kids (the teachers bring them to the cars and buckle them in). She loved it.

I am, however, going to spend the first day there, because I have to do quite a bit of interpreting for the teachers. And they have to get some extra equipment - she's too short for what they have!. They need a Rifkin chair (something that will be tall enough for her to reach the tables, but also have foot support), and they need taller footstools (she can't even reach the sink to wash her hands). So now I have to make sure that stuff gets into her IEP document. I know the school is already aware that they need the stuff, but I always consider the IEP a safeguard in case we should have to pick up and move across the country one day. I want their needs DEFINED well.

Tonight David and I are going to Boston (my parents are coming up to stay with the kids) and going to my friend JH's 40th birthday party. I cannot divulge the location just yet, since she doesn't know where it will be. We are sleeping over at the Boston Taj (formerly the old Ritz!). Yippie!


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Ok, I have to add this. It's about my online friend Pam and her family. Many of my readers already "know" Pam, but many of you don't, so please take a peek. I did not write the next two paragraphs, I pulled them from Beyond Understanding.


In the case of Pam and her family over at Rhett’s Journey, back surgery is only one of the many challenges staring them down. Pam’s husband’s back condition has forced him to stop working; Pam can’t work because their youngest, Rhett, is a two-year-old who requires constant, special care. Rhett was a healthy child with Down Syndrome until an extreme (10-fold!) overdose of painkillers last year after surgery resulted in a series of physical impairments. For details, read a few of Pam’s latest posts. I’m overwhelmed by just the idea of the logistics involved in getting Rhett to all his medical appointments and therapies. Pam’s oldest son also has Asperger Syndrome and requires his own special appointments. (When Pam wrote about Dakota’s recent phenomenal accomplishment of reading and sharing in front of his entire class, I was so happy to hear that at least SOMEthing was going right for them, even for a single day.) Add to all this the stress of worrying constantly about Rhett’s health—including his limited ability to breathe correctly, especially at night—and I know I’d be a complete mess if I were Pam.

But there’s more. Pam and Andy and their four children are very likely going to have to move out of their rented home soon due to a drastic inability to pay their rent. Pam swallowed her pride and installed a “Make a Donation” button to the top corner of her blog. I’m writing now to invite every visitor to this blog to stop by Rhett’s Journey and pitch in any amount. As Pam notes, even $5 will help. Whether or not you choose to donate, if you pray please pray for Pam and Andy and their kids. This new year has been a nightmare for them so far. With our help, maybe it’ll turn around soon. I certainly hope so.