So, have you figured out my New Year’s Resolution? No, it is not to blog more, rather it is to get my document and organize important life relics like pictures and journals.
I guess maybe that could be blogging more.
Actually, I am trying to write more. Whether it is journaling or blogging, I am trying to set aside time to do a little each day. I also have a goal to have my pictures printed, scrapbooked, framed, posted, canvased, passed out to family, put on billboards….you name it, I want it done. I hate that I have so many photos that just rot on the computer. This year they will become real. Real. REAL. It’s like a Disney movie around here!
In November, my sweet mama Miss Ella had a pretty big surgery. Even though I have siblings out the wazu within walking distance of her, I wanted to be there for this surgery to make sure she was okay and to know that my little brother was okay. Ty can be a little Rain Man like in his details. Changing the color of his toothpaste can turn his life upside down, so I knew a big shift like this in the household would create chaos in his life. I wanted to be one constant.
Doug really could not take off work that week, and Kaelan needed to stay in school, so we decided the best route would be for me and The Boy to fly out to El Paso and make the 2 hour trek to the mountains via car. What I did not plan for was the worst flight in aviation history…..TURBULANCE ANYONE????…..and rude people at every turn. Traveling alone with a baby and 4 tons of luggage sucks. Really sucks. But add crappy people into the mix and you have a cocktail of wretchedness. Everyone from the people on the flight who leaned their seats back so hard and with such force into the lap of my baby they bruised him, to the people at the car rental place who gave me the “sucks to be you” look as I made 15 trips back and forth to load my car after the luggage cart rack stole my money and jammed up.
I may or may not have used the only real Spanish words I retained from high school as I drove through the border town. Let’s just say they were not words from the books, but rather words my Spanish speaking friends told me not to say in front of any teachers. Or parents. Or children. Nor to tell anyone they taught me those words.
Once we did get to the mountains, I was so happy the snow held off and I did not have to drive my little 2 wheel drive rental through snow drifts. That would have been the end of my rope.
Mama’s surgery went well, and she returned home from Albuquerque after a few days. My buddy Ty did very well with all the changes. He schooled me on the correct way to cut up his food and to fluff his pillow like mom does more than once, but overall, I think he handled the whole ordeal very well. My little man had a great time visiting family and playing with cousins. He missed his sister something awful, but Ty introduced him to the magic of Mickey Mouse Clubhouse and he soon forgot his sadness.
Here is my boy soaking up some late fall sunshine.
Bath time in the kitchen sink! This was a first for him. He was a little unsure at first, but then the party was on.
Wash your dinner plates and your kid all in one swoop??? How can this be wrong?
Wanna make this boy happy? Put him around anything that is motorized.
Wanna make him insanely happy? Put him behind the wheel of something motorized!
We hit the tracks over the weekend to watch the cousins during a motocross race. This kid loved it. Aunt Lilly took him for a spin in the Polaris, and he nearly fainted with joy. Watching my nephews jumping those bikes makes my heart flitter. Thinking about the fact that will probably be my boy in few years makes me want to pass out.
Hanging out with Maw. Seth just loves her and all her fancy jewelry. Yum!
My poor boy. I kept him in baby jail a great deal of the time.
The wood and tile floors + a heavy baby head were not a good recipe. His first few attempts to cruise or crawl did not end well. He was so happy to get back home and roam free.
Okay, you gotta check this out. There were some really cool looking birds making a nest in the tree right in front of the cabin. Ty would not walk over to look at them with me, so I wondered over and quietly stood back to watch them for a few minutes. There was something about me being over there that made Ty very nervous. Whether it was the rock wall or maybe he saw a critter I did not see, I don’t know. The whole time I tried to stand there quietly as not to disturb the birds, he ranted and carried on for me to come back. I had laid all my stuff on the hood of the car because we had just pulled in, and Ty grabbed my stuff, headed to the house and demanded I hurry up and come on. I think he was kind of taking my stuff hostage. I knew my camera was in the bundle Ty was carrying, and I did not want him to drop it, so I quickly gave into his demands and went inside. It was not until I got home later the next week that I came across this photo taken at that moment.
Only Ty, myself, and Seth were present. In order to get my camera to shoot a timed picture, you have a series of steps to do first, so that was not what happened here.
Hmmmmm…….I can’t help but think Ty took this.
He has full spectrum autism, functions on a about a 3 year old’s level, has a severe seizure disorder, and has faced down every medical obstacle around….and I’ll be darned.
He is a pretty good photographer, too.
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And in case you were wondering what Miss Kaelan was doing on the homefront, I got a text a from dad a few days into my trip telling me all was well and that he and Kaelan were having a splendid time. They had decided to make a day trip to Six Flags. I was so happy to hear all was well at home, and then later that day, I got this picture:
