It’s rollercoastery out there. All the emotions come crashing down on you sometimes and that plate too full thing gets you. Owen slept all night but woke up early, brought his tablet to my bed, and promptly fell back asleep for another thirty minutes. And he woke up cranky. I think that was spelled with a capital C. He was also still very sleepy. These allergies have not been fun for him. I asked him if he wanted to stay home but he said, “school school” so I sent him. When we waited for the bus he seemed happier or at least wasn’t as cranky. He told me he wanted to go to a party tonight with his friends. I told him that we could go to the park or the indoor slides if he wanted to. I’ve been letting him decide if he wanted to wear his glasses. He technically only needs them to see far away but we are trying different approaches with him because of the visual processing and sensory overload. I asked him if he wanted to wear his glasses and he said yes but he wanted to wear his green glasses. I told him his orange glasses were in his backpack but not his green glasses. He decided he didn’t want to wear them. He asked a couple more questions for Siri and then his bus rounded the corner. When he came home from school he seemed a little peppier than he did this morning. He immediately started talking to me about all the hats I wasn’t wearing and what he wanted me to wear. And then he changed his tune to all the places he wanted to go and the people he wanted to go with. I said we could go and then before we could even get in the house he started saying, “mommy change” and that was that. He didn’t want to go anywhere. I didn’t push him. I know we have been going a lot and he was really tired this morning so we stayed home. I asked him a couple of times through the night but he said no. When I changed I did it very quickly and he didn’t come into my room. I was thankful. No screaming and no meltdowns. He spent a lot of time sitting next to me playing on his tablet. He asked for pizza and ate some of it. Then he wanted a sandwich, which he didn’t eat. Nighttime came quickly and he fell asleep slower than most nights. He wanted to go to sleep in my bed but I told him he had to go to his. I don’t want to start that trend because it can quickly become the only thing he wants to do. He told me multiple times he was going to grandma’s tomorrow and that I would need to leave. I told him don’t I always. I’m going to see if he will go bowling with me tomorrow but I’m not going to push that either. One step at a time and a smile in our hearts. I’m thankful for his laughter tonight and even though we didn’t go anywhere I’m glad he was in a better mood. I hope he sleeps all night and is ready for his Saturday with grandma. Dream big and know that you can make a difference in the world. Smiles to all and donut daze!

Happy dance for sleep to the left, happy dance for attitude to the right. Somewhere in between, we do the hokey pokey and we think about it. Owen woke about the same time I did and was happy to go to the bathroom quickly and then he turned off the light I was using to find the coffeepot. I guess technically I don’t need the light since I’m like a homing pigeon when it comes to my first cup of coffee. But there we were in the dark. I’m envisioning sugarplums dancing in my head and a house with rooms set completely apart from each other in a way that will help each of us to have exactly the right lights we need. We talked about Halloween, Thanksgiving, and Christmas while waiting for the bus and everything in between. He wanted me to know that it takes pumpkins to make a jack-o-lantern and you say “boo.” For Thanksgiving, he wants a turkey hat but when I showed him a picture of a turkey hat he said, “no” so I’m thinking I haven’t figured out his vision yet for the perfect turkey hat. He is fully invested in Christmas and he wants Santa the Pirate to bring him gifts. This scenario changes daily as to what Santa’s real role is. Sometimes he’s a pirate that helps with his treasure chest and other times he is at the “pole” still. I often give Owen the mwah kisses on the top of his head. When I kissed him on the cheek he said, “it’s hearts and birds” and pointed to his cheek. It made me smile thinking how visual of a reference that is and what he might have thought about it. It was cool out this morning so I showed him how you could see our breath as we exhaled. He was completely fascinated with it. When I went to pick him up from school he had two things on his mind, blue pants and tractors. He was asking if his therapists would wear blue pants and he wanted to ride a tractor with Goofy. His therapists did not wear blue pants but he did get to sit on several tractors. I called a place near us to see if it was fine if I brought him, letting them know he wanted to sit on the tractors. They said yes and to come anytime we liked. It was such a great experience for Owen even if he did have blue pants on his mind. And the staff was incredible. One of the associates came out immediately to tell us that he could sit on any of them and when Owen said something about needing a seatbelt he told me the one he was sitting on had one. This made Owen even happier. In a little bit, another associate came out to check on us and told us about the big tractor inside. We went in and he got inside it. He didn’t stay in it long. I think it was bigger than what he was thinking because the other one was more like what Goofy rides. Plus he was distracted by not everyone being in blue pants but they were completely understanding about everything. We went back outside and several other associates talked to us and let us know if we needed anything to just ask. He spent a few more minutes on another tractor but he wanted to ride it to the pool so he could see Santa the Pirate and his friend. I told him the pool was closed for the summer but he was ready to go. I think his allergies are still acting up and he was extremely tired tonight. It didn’t take much for him to fall asleep and hopefully tomorrow he will feel a lot better. My emotions are still all over the map but I’m thankful for a great day with Owen even in our rollercoastery moments. My clothes did not get as big of a reaction as yesterday but it was not dismissed either. We’ll see how tomorrow goes but I’m holding on to our victories today and his smiles. Remember that life is full of challenges but you are not alone. Some days feel overwhelming but sit back for a moment and breathe. Give yourself time to enjoy the light of a new dawn. Smiles to all and donut daze!

Some days I can’t process everything. Scratch that. Most days I can’t process everything. Today was one of those beyond-emotional days. My river of tears felt like it would never stop. And it pretty much didn’t until Owen came home. The closer it gets to November the more my heart breaks. Owen slept all night again. He seems like he is feeling much better but still has a little twinge of the stuff left in his system. He mostly listened this morning but the lights had to be off and back to clothes talk almost constantly as we got ready for the bus. When we went outside to wait he knew he was going to one of his therapies when he got home from school. He was very excited. The minute he got off the bus he started talking about his therapist and the doctor. I told him we were going to have a snack first and then go. I played a game with him holding the potato chips up. I held up two different size chips and asked him which was bigger or smaller. Sometimes he would point and sometimes he would say left hand or right hand but he always grabbed the bigger one and ate it even though he had a plate full of chips. I am trying to find exercises that stimulate different portions of his brain working on his visual perception and perspective. His teacher sent me a praise for Owen and I love to hear them. He has a hard time with any of his fine motor skills and it seems like they are getting harder for him but today she told me he was putting forth great effort to cut something. We got ready to go and off we went. I wanted to see if he would mention going bowling tonight when we passed by the bowling alley. About a mile before it he started saying “bowing bowing.” I said do you want to go and he said, “no.” I figured I would let him tell me what he wanted to do. He didn’t mention it again and I want him to understand it’s something we can do when we go to his therapy but it’s not something we have to do and he gets to help make the choice. His nose was running on the way to his session and he asked me to “blow his nose.” I handed him a tissue and he rubbed it. Progress was happening. When we sat waiting for his therapist he wanted to trade his iPad with another little girl’s because hers was bigger. He also wanted to uncross a guy’s legs so I told him that he could uncross his own legs but not someone else’s. I showed him how to cross his legs like the guy was doing and that he could do it himself. He sat with his leg crossed over to his knee for several minutes and then put it down. I asked him if he could do the other leg and he did. I talked to his doctor about more thoughts on his visual responses and he suggested a few exercises we might try and questions to ask the eye specialist. When we got home he wanted me to immediately change and then when I did he couldn’t handle that my clothes are anywhere while I’m changing. He immediately wanted them to be thrown in the trash. Not sure how I’m going to get him to handle this one. It took him an hour to stop having meltdowns because I sat my clothes on my bed while I was changing and he wasn’t even in the room and he was still screaming about it. The emotional rollercoaster strikes again. He fell asleep quickly and I’m praying he will sleep all night again. I’m thankful for his progress. That’s my glue. I see the twinkle in his eyes and the feistiness in his soul. He is making huge strides and I’m proud of every step he takes. Find what makes your happiness inspire your joy. Smiles to all and donut daze!

Owen didn’t sleep all night but he is definitely feeling better. I felt him crawl over me to get in my bed but what really snapped me to it was him laughing at his tablet loudly next to me. I told him to give me his tablet. He refused. I said the magic word and he started repeating it, “school school.” He does not want to miss school. It was like he was almost instantly asleep again as soon as I took his tablet away from him. And when he woke he was in a great mood. He was concerned with what we were wearing more so today than he has been in a while and I wondered if this had to do with him being able to concentrate on it more now that he was feeling better. We stood out waiting for the bus and he talked to me the whole time. He told me that the “fairy” was coming to see him on the farm. He doesn’t call it the tooth fairy but he has been concerned with loosing his tooth and making sure he got coins. This is the first time he’s made this connection and it’s exciting to watch him grow. He wanted me to know that Santa is bringing him a robot and he is going to see the “fish Santa and the reindeers.” He calls the Santa at Cabela’s the fish Santa because of their huge fish tank and right now he is “still at the pole.” He is fully invested in Thanksgiving as well and wants a turkey hat. He told me he was going to breakfast and the park with his grandma but not today he said. When he came home from school he was happy but he was also very focused again on what I was wearing. I went to change and I put my clothes on the bed. He got upset. I didn’t even think about it since I was just changing. Anything and everything I put on my bed are up for debate and a meltdown quickly happens. He was upset because I had changed my sheets and my pillowcase was no longer white. I change his all the time and it hasn’t been a problem so hopefully, this does not continue to be a problem. I let him wear his yellow glasses to school and I told his teacher so she would know it was his request. We are working together to try to help him focus on his visual responses to different scenarios that are put in front of him. He was much calmer after a while but I wasn’t doing anything because it spiraled every time I tried. Some days we don’t rock boats. He’s been eating great again the last few days and I’m glad to see his appetite returning. The bus driver told me they were going to get him a bigger safety belt for the bus. He said they noticed his belt was getting tight on him and wanted to make sure he was comfortable and it fit him properly. I love that they all take such good care of my sweet baby O. He came to me with a towel and said, “blow my nose.” He must have sneezed or just knew he needed help. I was thrilled. He’s never asked me to help him with his nose before and generally hates when I have to wipe it for him. He was watching a video and he said, “it’s in Espanol.” The rollercoaster ride today was rollercoastery. Vent sitting, non-bathroom going, meltdownable moments were centerstage but the shining behavior was when Owen told me I needed a hug and wrapped his arms around me. Our days are not always easy to explain but the love sure is. I’m thankful for his hug and his love. Never give up on the hope for tomorrow. Smiles to all and donut daze!

This morning my little mischievous guy was back. He slept all night and he seemed to be feeling better. He was still snotty but he was very full of himself and trying to do several things he hasn’t done in a week or so. Like when we went outside to wait for the bus he tried to climb the telephone pole. When he saw the bus turn the corner he started jumping up and down and once the bus stopped he took off running to get on it. I had to hold him back he was so excited. He has no fear so he doesn’t understand the ramifications of running out in the street or near a moving vehicle. I love that he enjoys school and it makes me even more thankful for all of the support he has. When he came home from school he was talkative the minute he got off the bus. He first said he needed to go to the dentist and then he had to cover all my clothing choices and the choices of who he saw throughout the day. Once that was clarified he went on to talk about his tooth more and why he needed to go to the dentist. “My tooth my tooth under the pillow,” he said as he was wiggling a not-very-loose tooth. He is super sensitive and I’m sure it is bothering him. He has never talked about putting a tooth under his pillow but he is now talking about taking his tooth to bed. I tried to explain that it was still in his mouth and the dentist wouldn’t pull it out but he wants it under his pillow for coins for his treasure chest and he was really hoping I would change my mind about taking him to the dentist. I told him he would be going again soon and we would have her look at it. He told me to eat an elephant and I wouldn’t be hungry. I wondered if the tooth fairy told him to say this or if it was something he heard on a video. We stood in the kitchen laughing and singing our octopus song. He’s doing excellent with the hand motions so I sang another song and worked on different hand motions with him. His words continued. He asked me for a hamburger for dinner. I cooked him one and then he realized quickly that this was different than the ones he gets when we are out. He ate some of it but I know it was different than what he was expecting. He was watching a Mickey Mouse Clubhouse episode and they told the joke about the play on words with seven ate night. I tried to explain to Owen why this was funny. I wrote out the words for each of the numbers with the spellings of eight and ate. I told him the meaning of each and why it was a joke. I’m not sure that he understood it but he said, “yum yum” and off he ran. He went to his treasure chest and told me he wants a turkey hat for thanksgiving and that Santa is coming for Christmas but he doesn’t need a hat. I said, Halloween is first do you need a pumpkin hat? He said, “no jack o lantern.” So there you have it. I guess he needs new hats from Santa the Pirate. I’m thankful for that gleam in his eyes again. Hopefully another great night of sleep and he will be on the mend again tomorrow. His laughter wakes up my soul with delight. Let the light from the sun brighten your spirit and give you joy in your heart. Smiles to all and donut daze!

Owen slept all night again. He sounded better but still has the yucks. He is all about the tent thing. I thought it was from a Mickey Mouse Clubhouse episode but it turns out it is Blippi and he has a camping video. He showed me the video and then went to his treasure chest and said, “order it take off your shoes to go inside.” He sang all morning. It was mostly a Spider-Man song that sounded like he was mixing several versions together or making up one. He was in a good mood and talkative but everything still felt a little strained. He was sure ready to go to church though. I told him on the way to church we were going to a Halloween party in a few weeks at the church. He asked me if two of the guys would walk with him. I was happy he is getting the concept. He’s never been trick or treating from door to door because it was always too overwhelming for him and costumes were too much for him to see or handle. In the car, he told me every one that he was going to see at church. I told him one of his friends was in another state and he said, “he’s on vacation.” All the connections are coming. When we got to church you could see his face change. It becomes focused on the objective of who “needs to leave” because they don’t have blue pants on or what he wants them to wear. He saw one of our friends that he told her she needed to wear a dress next time. A calmness washed over his face as he saw her in a dress. He needed that visual to be calm. Think about your favorite thing, your absolute favorite thing. And then you were told you could never have it or see it again. Blue pants may not be Owen’s favorite thing but it brings calm into his chaos. I watch his face as he walks into a room. It is all a huge change for him to see so many colors, heights, actions, sounds, smells, textures, and so on. Blue pants are what he can drill into so that he can find peace. After we left church we went to “ride a tractor with Goofy.” They sold his tractor. He wasn’t pleased but he sat on another one. Thankfully they still had plenty of other red ones. Goofy rides on a red tractor so he wants it to be red. He got on the tractor and said, “room up.” I’m not sure why he always says the term when he gets on something but he has said it since he was little. We then moved over to Cabela’s to sit in the tent. He wanted to take off his shoes, get a bed, and a sleeping bag. He then requested a campfire, marshmallows, chicken nuggets, and to go to the swimming pool with his friend. As we were leaving to get his chicken nuggets and cheeseburger he said he was going to lose his tooth so it could go under his pillow and Santa would give him coins. He is always thinking and I have to stay ten steps ahead of him. I went to the bathroom and I hear him running through the house yelling “toon blast.” I come out and he had my phone trying to download it. He was laughing hysterically. I told him that he shouldn’t have my phone and we were not downloading any games on it. He was watching a Halloween video trying to tell me the skeleton was in blue pants. I asked him if he thought the skeleton had on blue pants and he said, “no white shoes.” That about sums up how blue pants go. I’m focusing on the victories from today and not the moments I wanted to cry. I’m praying he is feeling better tomorrow. I know that throws off some of those behaviors like the screaming he did because I was hanging up clothes so he could wear his Spider-Man pajamas to bed. I let him continue to scream at me while I had him help me put his clothes away. I told him if I didn’t do the laundry then he couldn’t wear his Spider-Man pajamas. I think this both helped and hurt the process. His amazing singing and laughter got us through all those hurdles. Remember your dreams are incredible and you can make them come true. Smiles to all and donut daze!

Owen slept until after six. That was glorious. Especially since I couldn’t fall asleep until after three myself. He was still not feeling great but I think he was better than yesterday. He was very talkative this morning and I could see the mischievous twinkle in his eyes very early on. He was all set in motion for numerous repetitive behaviors. He needed to go back over things that happened a year ago, two years ago, and beyond. “Pop a ball,” he said to me, thinking about his ball that he accidentally popped I think about a year ago. He moved on to talking about the woman on the corner which then changed to him talking about the dog on the steps, and the person that didn’t say hi to him. These references were scattered throughout our day. He wanted to go to grandma’s house but I didn’t rush him through the morning. When it was time to go I got his clothes ready and put them on my bed. I asked him to come to my room to change. I need him to understand my bed can have other things on it. He saw his clothes and immediately his foot started hitting the floor and saying, “throw the jeans in the trash” and picked them up. I said that is fine but then you will have nothing to wear to grandma’s so I will sit. It was hard for him to process or move forward. I explained that if he didn’t leave them then he couldn’t get dressed and go. I went on to tell him that had he not walked into my room he wouldn’t have known they were there and that if he quickly put them on they would no longer be on the bed and would be on him instead. He started putting them on. It felt like a big step. I then put my clothes on the bed so he could see I was going to do the same thing. I told him to go get his shoes but it was hard for him to leave. He walked out of my room to get his shoes but he got sidetracked by the drawer in the kitchen. He had to move it in and out and stood in several spots to look at the angle. The good news was he didn’t scream. So again it felt like progress. He finally ran to get his shoes. On the way to grandma’s house, I asked him if he knew what was happening on the 31st. He said, “Halloween.” I then asked him if he knew what else was happening. He said, “eye doctor looks in your eyes new glasses” and told me the doctor’s name. I’ve been trying to prepare him for the fact they will not be wearing blue and it will be different than his regular eye doctor. Plus, I wanted him to understand the tests will be different. He did great at grandma’s house except like at home the darn potty train has left the building. When he is sick it is always harder for him to concentrate on those life skills even when he is reminded several times. He was singing several new songs for him today and who knows if he made them up. His songs always amaze me. He asked me if we were going to a party tonight. I said not tonight but we can go to another party soon. He said he wanted to go to a “goat party.” I said do you mean ghost party and he said, “no goat party on the farm with a tractor.” He went on to say he wanted a tent with marshmallows and a campfire with hotdogs. He’s got his future planned and it looks bright. He was asleep quickly tonight and I’m hoping for another all-nighter. I’m thankful for his laughter and his songs. Find what makes you happy, share your joy, and it will awaken your spirit. Smiles to all and donut daze!

It’s so incredibly hard when my sweet baby O is sick. He woke around two and I knew it because he got his tablet and he turned it up loud. “I don’t want to get out of bed, I don’t want to get out of bed” I kept saying over and over. I got out of bed. He was laughing at something on his tablet. I had yelled out to him several times to come to me but he ignored me. He knew what I was saying but he didn’t want to give up his tablet or the tv and he certainly did not want to go back to bed. I said the semi-magic words that he wouldn’t get to go to school and he brought me his tablet. He at first said he wanted to go to sleep in his bed but once I got back to my bed it wasn’t long until he was in my bed. He came trying to get his tablet from me and I told him to get in bed. He truly takes up more room asleep than he ever does awake. It took him another thirty minutes before he fell back asleep. I know he was feeling miserable. Nighttime is always the hardest time when you are not feeling well. I debated again if I should keep him home from school but he woke up with me. He wanted to go so we got ready. Tons of leaves were all over the yard. We have a tree that has rounder, almost heart-shaped leaves and then my neighbor’s tree has pointier ones. He walked down the sidewalk and started separating the rounder ones from the pointy ones. He would take the round one and then move them under our tree and leave the other ones there in the pile. There were probably at least a hundred or more leaves and he was able to find all the ones that belonged to our tree. I had my keys hanging on me with a clip instead of putting them in my pocket. He noticed and wanted me to take action. He wanted Siri to translate several things and it wasn’t long before his bus came around. His teacher sent me a message after a while asking me about his glasses. I forgot to put them on him because I got distracted when I was giving him his allergy medicine. Technically only needs them for far away and his prescription is minimal but we wanted him to get used to wearing glasses now so he doesn’t have to wear them. I told her if he was asking I would bring them but she just wanted to make sure they weren’t lost. When he came home from school he was in a pretty good mood but I could tell he was tired. The bus driver said he was not wearing his glasses but I asked him to see if he left them in his classroom. He didn’t tell me if Owen answered him but I liked that he asked him and then checked with me about them. He may not have been able to process the question but having people communicate with him in this manner helps him to understand the art of conversation and that someone cares about his words. He was excited to tell me I was in my “pink hat pink stripe shirt pink shoes” skipping over my blue jeans to tell me everything else. He wanted his kiss on top of his head. He makes this lip movement and bends his forehead down in front of me. “Mwah,” I said making the kiss sound really loud on top of his head. I knew he wanted it about ten more times and he smiled. He was happy the rest of the night. That darn bathroom thing keeps tripping us up but I know it’s all a cycle with him. He fell asleep quickly but I can still hear his allergies stirring him. I pray he sleeps all night. There’s a light that shines so bright because of you. I’m thankful that even through his sickness his laughter carried through the house. Find your joy, be settled in the moment, and know that great things will come. Smiles to all and donut daze!

Well, the day didn’t go completely according to plan but sometimes the new plan is what you need, sometimes. I don’t even remember how many times I woke up last night. I kept checking on Owen. I finally slept for a few hours straight and then I heard the beautiful noise of my coffeemaker dripping the wakey-wakey juice I needed to get my day going. I went to the bathroom and then got my coffee. Owen was still sleeping. I had made the decision not to wake him. Either way, he needed the sleep and if he was feeling better I would take him to school if it was later than the bus. As soon as I sat down with my coffee I heard him get his tablet. He had bypassed the bathroom. This is becoming the norm again and it’s like we are going to have to revisit the bathroom skills. I notice that when he is not feeling well all the bathroom rules go flying out the window. It was still about an hour until the bus was supposed to come. I let him go to the bathroom and then I took his temperature. He still was very snotty but I was hopeful because he seemed more energetic. I took his temperature and it was right on the dot so still no fever. I gave him some allergy medicine and I wanted to watch how the next thirty minutes went. He got into bed with me and he was laughing with his tablet. This was good news. He wasn’t trying to lay there which meant he had more energy. I took his temperature several more times because this is how you become the Queen of Overthinking and since it hadn’t changed I asked him “do you want to stay home with mommy or go to school?” There was no hesitation “school school,” he said. If he wasn’t feeling well enough he would have told me he was staying home with mommy. We got ready for the bus and we went outside to wait. He wanted Siri to translate numerous things in all the languages and then along came the bus. I let his teacher know that he wasn’t feeling his best but he wanted to go to school. I also let her know that I would pick him up for therapy. I debated if he might be too tired for therapy and thought about canceling it. Turns out that they had to cancel it. When I went to pick up Owen I told him his therapy was canceled. He quickly ran down the list of things he wanted to do and then said, “mommy change” and kept repeating it which means he wanted to come home and me change to a “dress.” I thought this was probably best. I thought about taking him to the park but with the weather and the way he was feeling it was best to take him home. When we got close to home he said, “windows take you by the windows” saying more of the words I would say than him. I told him we could drive by them. I circled the block three different ways so he could see them before we went home. I thought it would give him some comfort on this non-routine day. He wanted chocolate milk when we got home. I poured it for him and he said, “your chocolate milk is ready.” Again answering the way I would have said it. This is why I have double-sided conversations with him so that he can learn different responses and apply them when he can. All I keep thinking is laundry is hard. I’m trying different strategies with him and hoping they will work. When I gave him a bath I didn’t want him to stick his ears in the water so he immediately stuck his head in the water. Even though it is his allergies with him it can quickly increase. I’m praying he gets another full night of sleep and he is feeling better tomorrow. He’s been biting his lip so I’m hoping that he will stop. It’s such a hard thing when anyone is sick but when I can’t always explain something to Owen it makes it even harder. I’m thankful for today. I’m thankful he was able to go to school. You are stronger than you think you are so today is the day to go after your dreams. Smiles to all and donut daze!

Owen sneezed several times yesterday when he got home. This momma is always on alert when he starts sneezing. It was probably a total of five times by the time he went to bed but it still had me watching his every move. It’s like clockwork. Twice a year when the seasons change it seems like he gets something. He woke up around one or two. At that point the clock was unimportant. I heard him and he went to the bathroom. That’s probably what woke him up. I thought he went back to bed but then I heard laughter. The tv was on and his tablet. I told him to turn them off and to go back to bed. This was not a quick walk in the park. We went back and forth for a while until I convinced him that if he didn’t go to bed he would not go to breakfast in the morning with grandma. My bed finally won. He becomes like twenty feet tall when he lays in my bed. One foot was touching my leg, one foot was on my spine, his head on a pillow that he had moved to the edge of the bed, and somehow he still put a hand on me. He slept late and I wasn’t going to wake him since he didn’t have to go to school and he was up for several hours in the middle of the night. Once he woke up I watched him for an hour before I decided if we should go to breakfast with my parents. He decided he didn’t want to wear his glasses today and I was fine with that. He sounded a little stuffy but there was no fever so we went to breakfast. He wanted pancakes once we were there. This was no surprise to me. He ate almost all of his pancakes. And they were huge. He said, “they are delicious.” He asked if grandma could go to the park with us after we left. I told him we could go for a little while and then we would go home. Even though he still only sounded a little stuffy I wanted to make sure he could take it easy the rest of the day. He did great at the park except he got “stuck on the slide.” He would say “you don’t unstuck you” every time he would try to move his feet in front of him to go down the slide. He has been focusing on how his legs work lately and he is also struggling with pulling up his pants especially putting his left leg in. I am talking with his therapist about more suggestions and it might be why his foot is turning more inward. About an hour after we got home I could tell it was moving to the next level. He still ate and drank all day but I knew he was not feeling his best. He was still very interactive with me and wanted me to help him with his tablet. I made him read what he wanted from it and the night seemed to go fast. Even though I could tell he wasn’t feeling great he was still playing and doing numerous activities. He fell asleep on the couch right when I was telling him it was time to get ready for bed. He was asleep again in seconds. He didn’t even want to take his bath but he wanted his Spider-Man pajamas on. I’m hoping he sleeps great tonight. He laughed and smiled at everything today. His laughter is my joy. Believe in yourself and know that tomorrow is your day to become exactly who you want to be. Smiles to all and donut daze!