Happy 12th Birthday, big boy!!!!

Happy 12th Birthday Ashton!!!!

(posted in red since it's Ashton's favorite color)

Ashton - 2 days old

Ashton & Mommy '01

Proud Big Brother - 3yrs old

Christmas brothers - '03

Ashton - halloween '04

Ashton - halloween in '06

Kiss the camel! - June '07

Mommy & Ashton at VA Beach - Spring '07

Feb 2008

Spring 2010

To my sweet, sweet baby boy.... who is no longer, well, a baby but is quickly becoming a young man. You are almost a teenager my sweet boy! A TEENAGER!

You were our "planned" surprise... meaning, we'd planned to have kids, just not quite as soon as we found ourselves becoming parents. You were a gorgeous newborn, absolutely perfect in every way. A head-full of dark hair that was so soft and was probably the cause of all that heartburn I had when I was pregnant with you. (old wives tale..... if you have lots of heartburn when pregnant, than your baby will have lots of hair.... YOU did). You were much smaller than we'd anticipated; you were supposed to be 8+lbs and 22in long.... you came in at a tiny 5lbs 14oz, 17.5in long. You were always so alert and your eyes were the purest windows into your sweet little soul..

As you grew, you were always smiling, always. Such a happy and friendly baby and toddler. You loved to eat, despite the nasty reflux that plagued you for the first two years of your life. Around 18months we began to notice a change; you were no longer that social and happy-go-lucky baby. You would often stare up at ceiling fans for an extremely long time and well, you had to have everything lined up, just so.

At 2 and a half years old we received your official diagnosis; Autism. I was also pregnant at the time and your world was about to be rocked upside down and all the way around. Luckily, you adjusted to your preschool pretty well and the adjustment to becoming a big brother? Well, it went as well as anyone could have expected. I think you thought you had a new toy to play with!

Your little brother was probably the single-best thing we did for you. You had a built-in playmate and he (by nature of his personality) forced you more and more into "OUR" world so that you couldn't retreat into your world as much. Your love for him is so obvious; your joy when he's gone and you see him again "Holden, I'm so glad you're back!" which is followed by hugs, is evidence of your love for him. He's the one person who can push you around and you don't fight it. He is your very best friend and you tolerate from him, what you tolerate from no one else.

Your interests have changed vastly.... whereas you once enjoyed all things dinosaurs, animals and ABCs, you've moved on to bigger and better things! Super heros, comics, and spelling things out takes up your time now (I guess your obsession with the ABCs paid off since it helped you spell). However, two things have never changed.... your love of movies and books! Wow! You could sit and watch movies all day with books in hand, ALL DAY LONG! As a matter of fact, I think you have on a few occasions!

You are now a big huge, 6th grader! You're just an inch shorter than me (though, being that I'm not quite 5foot tall, that doesn't say much), and well, you know how to throw your weight around! Strong, but sweet. Handsome, funny, smart as a whip! While you still have many years ahead of you for learning how to adjust to the world around you, I've got glimpses of who you will be. You will be caring, always happy, quick friend to others, and always, ALWAYS smiling. You adjust to new situations and new people better than any other kid I know; in fact, you thrive on the challenging and new.

We were blessed when we first found out I was pregnant with you, but I don't think we ever imagined just how much. You show us every day, in the face of adversity, just how awesome you are. We love you...... VERY VERY MUCH and I hope you have the very best of birthdays today!!!

Happy Birthday baby boy!

Ciao!

It's a matter of perspective......

Life happens.....

Things happen......


even more importantly.....
things happen in life for a reason ......


I know I've moaned and groaned and complained about this school year. It may seem, that nothing positive has happened, and that would be very wrong to say, because lots of positive things *have* happened.

1. Ashton got to experience a (mostly) once in a lifetime opportunity last August; the joy, magic and healing of Surfers Healing. Ashton has always thoroughly enjoyed the water and has never really been afraid of it, and he took to surfing, well, like a fish! Thanks to Kalani, one of the Surfers Healing surfers, and Surfers Healing for allowing Ashton to have such a wonderful experience.

Ashton & Kalani

Catchin' a wave!

2. Ashton got to experience the fun of snow! Yes, it's snowed here before; nearly almost every year that we've lived down here. But Ashton just never seemed to take much interest in it. However, this year he had a ball (pun intended) throwing snowballs at his brother. Take a look at this winning smile!

BIG SMILE Ashton!

See, snowball in hand! ;)

3. Ok... so while having a trip to the Emergency Room is not necessarily a positive thing, the care Ashton received and how well he did with a totally unexpected trip and new situation/surroundings, was amazing! He had, what the ped. neurologist said was a basilar migraine or a complex paralytic migraine.

Sleeping in the ER

See, he even had to have an IV :( and pulse oximeter and he did awesome!

4. and while school has been the thorn in my side since nearly the beginning..... the fact that we've made it to middle school is amazing! I look at how far he's come since fall of '01 when we got his Autism diagnosis and wow. amazing changes.

First Day of school this year

I remember this day, 12 years ago like it was yesterday.... having been told that because my blood pressure was rising and the fact that we were expecting a largish baby (8+lbs and 22in) that we should induce two weeks early to ensure a healthy delivery for all.......... After having been on bedrest from 29weeks until 37weeks for pre-term labor, we were in for a ride of a lifetime!

The story continues tomorrow.....

Ciao!

Virginia Will Enact Autism Insurance Reform After 11 Years - CNBC

Virginia Will Enact Autism Insurance Reform After 11 Years - CNBC

what absolutely WONDERFUL news for families of young children with Autism in Virginia - It's ABOUT freaking time! I only wish this had happened sooner so that my own family may benefit from it, but my son is now, too old. But this current bill will help many deserving families of young autistic children and I have hopes that in the future, Virginia will adopt bills and legislation that will help older children and adults with Autism as well.

What a good day to be a Virginia resident!

Have a good one everybody!

2011 Academy of Country Music Awards - Darius Rucker - Music from the Heart

what a beautiful song and inspiration to EVERYONE!! What a beautifully written song and an absolutely wonderful performance. Thank you to the Academy of Country Music for allowing these kids a day to shine and perform and do something they love.

and now, to the video.... :)

 Have a good one everybody!

Eye contact is over-rated...

First off, I ran across two, very precious images of Ashton, taken about 4.5years ago... they are soo sweet, and in all his autistic glory, totally him....

looking out through a bubble on

a playground fixture at the park

looking out over the water .... 

BEAUTIFUL pic!

I've come to realize, that some of my very favorite pictures of him, he's not even looking at the camera! Of course, I love seeing his handsome face and gaining awesome eye contact, but sometimes the innocence and wisdom in the eyes is more beautiful and stunning when there's not a posed, smiley picture.

But, I have my favorite pics of him looking directly at the camera too....

and of course, here are some of my recent favorite ones with him not looking....

So see ... you can have an awesome pic, with little to no eye-contact and it could be your favorite one ever! :) Like I said .... it's Sooooo over-rated! :)

Have a good one!

Christmas Card 2010!

What A Year Christmas Card

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View the entire collection of cards.

Our favorite gluten-free and dairy-free products!

(I will link to each company that I post about, but only once so if you see the same company more than once in this post, only the first time is linked. Also GF=gluten free, CF=casein free, DF=dairy free)

Ashton's favorite mac & "cheeze"

Amy's Gluten Free/Non-Dairy rice macaroni w/ non-dairy cheeze

This has been a favorite since we first discovered it. We have tried "them all", quite literally. Ian's GFCF mac & no cheese, our own recipe using teese "cheeze" that recipe can be found here at: GFCF Mac & Cheese, Road's End Chreese penne & cheese, Namaste Foods Say Cheez pasta, and many others. The Amy's GFCF mac & cheese is the one that most closely resembles homemade mac & cheese. It's texture is similar (not gummy like I find some gf pastas to be) and the color of the Daiya cheese makes it looks sooo yummy. Ashton loves it and the few times that I've gotten the cheese sauce on my finger and licked it, I don't snurl my nose up in horror; so it's not all bad :)

Ashton's favorite chicken nuggets

Allergy Free Foods Chicken Breast Nuggets

Again, as with the mac & cheese, we tried many brands. Ian's GFCF chicken nuggets, Applegate Farms GFCF chicken nuggets (which were pretty tasty and we get in a pinch when we can't find the others) and then Allergy Free Foods. What I like about this brand, is the quantity of chicken nuggets you get for the price. You get a lot, and that helps when I want to bake a whole bunch and then refrigerate for future meals, as I did when we went camping earlier this summer. My only peeve with this brand is the breading does sometimes fall off easily, but Ashton doesn't seem to mind. Yes, we do bake these, and not fry them. They might be even better fried, but Ashton doesn't need the extra calories from fried foods; he's quite big enough, thankyouverymuch! :)

Ashton's favorite cheese

Daiya Foods Cheddar & Mozzarella style shreds

Yes, non-dairy cheese that looks like cheese. Non-dairy cheese that melts. Non-dairy cheese that tastes like a real dairy-full cheese. Daiya Foods knew what it was doing when it came out with these two products. It appeals to the vegan, the dairy & soy allergic, and to all those who need to be on both a gluten-free and dairy-free diet. When you can find a cheese substitute that melts like real cheese, you know you've found the holy grail. I've used the cheddar style shreds to make "cheesy" eggs (scrambled eggs w/ cheese) and to make our favorite home-made mac & cheese recipe. I've used the mozzarella style shreds on pizzas, spaghetti, and in a mixture on taco meat for my son. Now if only Daiya would come up with cheese slices, than I would be forever indebted to them. Ashton misses cheese slices on his sandwiches. I know I'm not the only one who wishes this; so get on it Daiya! ;)

Ashton's favorite donuts

Kinnikinnick Cinnamon Sugar donuts

Kinnikinnick (this link takes you to the US site) products are a huge hit in our house! Ashton particularly loves these donuts. They smell wonderful when you nuke them in the microwave "2-5-start" in our household. They taste pretty good too. He used to really love the vanilla glazed and chocolate dipped ones, but somewhere along the way, he's not that into those two varieties anymore. These do look and smell just like regular gluten-containing donuts. So that's a major plus! Ashton also likes the Kinnitoos (both the vanilla and chocolate varieties; they're very similar in taste, texture and appearance to oreos!) as well as S'moreables (graham crackers). He used the s'moreables when we made s'mores this year when we went camping - Yummy!

Ashton's favorite bread

Udi's Whole Grain Bread and White Sandwich Bread

Yes, a gluten-free white sandwich bread that rivals the real thing! We have tried both Udi's varieties and while I prefer the whole grain variety (it's healthier), Ashton enjoyed both. The white sandwich bread really does taste, smell and look like the real thing! It smells wonderful when it's been toasted lightly and well, you can't say anything nicer about a gluten-free bread. It's moist and delicious; two adjectives you hardly ever hear when you describe a gluten-free bread product. We also really like their pizza crusts and muffins.

Favorite store to shop at

Navan Foods Allergy Free Food Shop in Virginia Beach, VA

Navan Foods is a wonderful, local, allergy free food shop owned by Jennifer Elizondo. She has taken the guesswork out of figuring out what foods are safe and healthy for the food-allergic, celiacs, vegans, and specialty dieters of the area. Every product in her store is labeled with a card showing what allergens the product is free of as well as the manufacturing conditions the products are made in. (Some people are so allergic that even products made in the same plant and/or line as their allergen, could be deadly) She's a wonderful person and friend and is very knowledgeable and willing to help anybody. If you're local, I highly suggest you check out the store, IN PERSON. If not, check out her website as she does have some of her products available for purchase online.

Favorite baker of all things delicious

Unfortunately, their products are only available in store,
at Navan Foods in Virginia Beach, VA

Willow Bakery is a wonderful, local, bakery that has bridged the gap for the many tasty treats that the gluten and dairy intolerant/allergic can have. To have fresh, home-made goodies is a rare treat, and to have them taste delicious, even more so! Ashton loves the chocolate chip cookies and brownies and we recently tried the chocolate pumpkin marble cake. Quite delicious but he wasn't as big of a fan of that as I thought he might. If you follow them on Twitter, you can find out when they are bringing fresh products to Navan Foods. Get there in a hurry as the stuff sells out, quickly!

I'm sure there are many other products I could blog about, but I'd be here all day in that case. These though, are our tried and true favorites. I hope they have helped you! :)

Have a good one!

wow - what a change!!!

See the chunks of hair he cut out? See how LONG it was, comparatively?

Ashton's hair after we "fixed" it in Dec '09

this was Ashton, just a few days ago (Oct '10)

November of '09 through March of '10 was a horrible period for us. Sure, lots of good things happened but it's when things with Ashton went, completely haywire. I mean, totally off the wall, odd, strange, weird, psycho behaviors. Strongly believe (well, we know based on what Dr. Dozier explained to us) that it was an allergic behavioral reaction to Paxil. Evil drug, at least for Ashton.

Anyways, during that period, he gave himself several hair cuts (two of which happened at school!) The top picture was after the worst one, and then after we had it "fixed"! Well, he hasn't given himself any haircuts since March. We've kept it short all summer, but then decided to see if he'd let us grow it out to a normal, boy haircut. Well, he's done it! (the last picture)

I've even decided to grow it out longer, and see how long he'll let it grow. I think he looks cute with longer hair; it's just going to depend on how hot it makes him or if he starts complaining. Can't wait to see how he looks with "longer" hair!

Have a good one!

Ashton was in the newspaper (and on TV)!!!

How cool is this?! I had emailed the reporter and she asked some questions and a few weeks later, there he was... in the newspaper! :) He got SUCH a kick out of this!!! (I blacked out our neighborhood name and name of his middle school)...

Then tonight, he was apparently on the local news (WTKR, Channel 3). They were talking about the Noblemen's .....  http://www.wtkr.com/news/takingaction/ ...... if you watch the video, the picture is about 35 seconds in. It's just the picture and doesn't say his name or anything but if you've seen the picture or the below newspaper article, you'd definitely know it was him!

A celebrity in the making!!!! :)

Enjoy!

Have a good one!

Kudos to Taste of Home magazine!

I was thumbing through the most recent issue (Oct-Nov '10) of "Taste of Home" as the delicious looking turkey on the front called my name. I love the excitement I get from looking at a magazine with new recipes; especially when there are holiday cookie recipes..... yummm.


So many yummy looking pictures with easy to follow directions. 

At this point, I'm also realizing that hey, this was my last issue.... (I must renew soon)


Anyways... I'm flipping through the magazine and I happened upon the "Mom's Best" section. I read the tagline to the article/recipes ... "When this teen learned he was gluten- and dairy- sensitive, ......." I immediately had to read and glanced at the pictures and recipes. Of course, as you all know, Ashton is gluten- and dairy-free. Finding unique, but yummy recipes for a gluten- and dairy-free lifestyle is not easy as I'm sure many of you know. Finding recipes with pictures are even harder to come by as many gluten- and dairy-free foods are just not that appetizing, let alone mouth-watering delicious. 

There are four recipes: chocolate-chip-banana belgian waffles, grilled peach bbq chicken wings, spaghetti and meatballs with garlic crumbs and penny's apple-brown sugar coffee cake. Wow.... they all sound so delicious and even the pictures make my mouth water. I might try the coffee cake, as that's what Ashton is most likely going to be willing to eat.

After reading the entire article, I realize that the woman who came up with these recipes, Silvana Nardone, has published a book, called Cooking for Isaiah: Gluten-Free & Dairy-Free Recipes for Easy Delicious Meals. I think I might have to see about getting this, if by the four recipes printed in "Taste of Home" is any indication on how yummy they might be. I then realized, after reading the Amazon page, she also has a blog, Dish Towel Diaries (by the way, I absolutely love the name of her blog), which I started to look around at and realized she has many delicious recipes posted there!  

So - huge kudos to "Taste of Home" for posting not just one, but several specialty recipes that are geared towards the gluten- and dairy-intolerant people of the world. Not just the autistic people, or the celiacs, but to letting others see that specialty foods for dietary needs can be just as to make as recipes they are used to and just as appetizing as well.

Have a good one!