I got the Job!

It was pretty sweet.  I was basically hired on the spot.  She asked to pray about it, and talk to my husband first before accepting, but that she was extending the offer to me.  I'm very excited and WILL be taking the position as 2nd and 5th Grade teacher at Holloman's in Yorktown. The picture of me was taken by Terry about 30 mins before the interview.  I was excited, as you can tell.  I wish Terry got my shoes in the pictures... they're such cute ballet flats.

Grady is ecstatic about school, literally.  He talks about going several times a day, everyday.  He'll start August 23rd at the Lutheran school I used to teach at, which is when I start my new job.  Then go back to PEEP September 7, doing after school care at the Lutheran school.

 Things are working out very well.  I'm very excited about teaching again!  The best thing about teaching are the hours and that you get super excited about every holiday which I love.  Seasons are important to me as I age and I really enjoy celebrating and decorating the way only a teacher can. 

From here... there will be lots and lots for our family.  We will be able to pay sooo many school loans and extra debt off in less than 6 months and start saving for a new house.  Our goal is to be out of this house and into a newer larger home in about 2 years.  I wonder where we'll live?  Back to Williamsburg?  Poquoson?  Yorktown?  Who knows??!  It's all so exciting!!!  Our dreams seem in reach now.  Feels very good.  

And I get to teach again!!!!!!!!

Grady Collects Rocks

When we go for walks, Grady collects rocks. He'll keep them in his small hand. He'll admire them.
Eventually, I'll find them. In couches, or puzzle boxes, car seat cup holders, or lined up on the steps to the house.
It's these tiny memories I've been trying capture somehow. It's not easy because it seems like so small a thing. But I know those are the things I will miss the most.

Where, When, Why....

Beach House Window Necklace

Sterling Silver Cuff

Where have I been? What's going on? Why haven't I written?

I haven't wanted to. That's the God's honest truth. As my husband with ages of wisdom says; "Sometimes you need a break, even from the things you love the most."

It's true. I go through droughts when it comes to creating. It also doesn't help that the packages I've been anticipating haven't arrived. Makes me hold out for their presence, I guess.

Also, I've been hanging out. With him:

...a lot.

Not that I don't usually, but it's been different. Ever since the haircut things have been different. I have been different with him.

You see, I've been a bad mother. I've been searching for answers that cannot be found, only to learn that my gut instinct on my own son is more profound, more all-seeing, more revealing about the boy that my son is, than this stupid fucking label he's been given.

He's not developmentally delayed. He's just a late-talker. And since he's been given a label I think I've treated him that way. What a stupid mother.

What a ridiculous way to treat your own child. I'm probably making it sound worse than I've actually been towards him, but I'm damn sure I'm my own worst enemy.

He's smart.
Just in ways that aren't typical for his age. But God forbid your child isn't talking up to the par of other children and he's either, autistic, or delayed.

Well, they don't know him like Terry and I know him. They don't see him putting puzzles together, or counting things, or seeing shapes in ordinary life, or remembering how to get to people's houses, or finishing memory games in under 90 seconds...

So I've just been talking to him. Talking to him and playing with him in a way that's purely care-free. And I've been having so much fun, that my everything else has taken a backseat.

I'm sorry I let his differences become abnormalities in my mind. I'm sorry for being so judgmental of my own son.

But what good has come of it?

I've learned a good lesson.

Hair Unveiling

Before

After

I love it.
Initially I was shocked. My little boy has no hair! But, he liked it immediately. Which made me like it. Immediately. He's a little man.

And I've got to be honest. I feel truly sorry for the girls his age.
He's going to be a heart breaker.
A serious.
Heart.
Breaker.

(So will little Nathan. You just know it.)

Grady, to you, my love. You're my heart at it's best, man. We are so proud of you. So, so freakin proud, of you.

Back Seat

My hobby and shop will have to take a back seat to the one above. My goal is to turn out three pieces a week. But again, that is just a goal.
I had a lovely anxiety attack that sent me to the doctor today. It happens every few months or so, but this one was a doosey. They're annoying mainly because they can decide to pop up out of nowhere. Like my husbands nasty migraines, these attacks spring a life of their own and take off!
I wish I could control them with breathing and time alone, but when it's just you, your 3 1/2 year old and your anxiety attack, well... let's just say "two's company, three's a crowd."
My doctor asked what was going on, and I told him "everything is FINE, I don't know why this is happening..." It wasn't until after I got my medicine and was able to calm down, did clarity of mind come to me.
It's my son. Grady is developmentally delayed, particularly in one area, that being speech. He is about a year behind according to the tests administered by professionals. However he is significantly above his age level in picture similarities and patterns.
Now that summer has officially arrived, I realized that I cannot just wake up and decide "hmmm, what should we do today???" That doesn't work with him. He needs structure, he needs routine, he needs to learn.
So I went proactive. I went to the parent teacher store, and followed his teacher "Mrs. Anna's" lead. There will be a theme every week, and within that theme we will elaborate through reading, playtime, art, and more reading.
This week was space week, just without structure. Next week will be "Jets", the letter A and B, and the numbers 1 and 2. I have 13 weeks to make an impact, or be bored, frustrated, and feel like a lazy parent.

I choose the former.

Peep

Our son Grady, has a speech delay. It was brought to our attention when he was 18 months old, and now that he's a little over 3 years old, he's finally going to get the services he needs to get better. The program is called "PEEP", Program for Educating Exceptional Preschoolers. He'll ride a school bus from our house, see Ms. Anna have fun with other children who are just like he is, and come home on the bus. This all starts on Thursday. I'm ecstatic, scared, happy... the emotions are rather endless.

You could say I'm going through "empty nest" at a very young age. I've had him with me at home since the day he was born and this change will be huge. He'll be going to school every day of the week so improvements can truly be made. I know he can do it.

Today we painted that birdhouse together. It became terribly symbolic after it was all said and done and I rested it on the deck to dry. He's my little bird. It's just that his little wings are impaired and need to be fixed. Soon enough, my little bird will be taking off! I just can't wait to really talk to him. We'll squawk at each other all day!

Beautiful Day Turned Hospital

Grady and I set off today in high spirits! We were going to pick up Aunt Krista, go to Colonial Williamsburg, look at books and eat soup at Barnes and Noble, and then walk around CW to see all the sites!!!

After a fun lunch full of chicken soup and a chocolate cupcake, we headed out! We checked out the first ox, very cool, very big! We even touched his horns!


We headed across the street to see the smaller oxen when... SMACK!

Grady was squealing in pain...I was mortified immediately because his cry wasn't typical. I practically threw my camera at Krista and picked him up. Blood was dripping from his mouth like a leaking sink. I thought it might have just been a "bad fall" until I saw it. His front tooth was pushed back. "Oh, God. Krista, it's bad." Krista immediately said to take him to an urgent care. I ran all the way from Matthew Whaley to the parking garage with Grady in my arms. All the while he was crying so awfully.

We stopped in front of the book store because the blood was so bad I just had to take a second look. Turned out there was a rock lodged in his gum above the front tooth. I took it out. I looked over at Krista and she was crying. People started asking if everything was okay. We decided to take him to the emergency room.

Once we got in the Jeep he started to calm down. Krista held a cold compress to his mouth while I drove us to the hospital. We had to wait about 40 minutes. Finally he was taken back. The doctor said he didn't look that bad and that I would need to take him to a dentist. They gave him penicillin incase of an infection and sent us on our way.

The dentist came in special for us and took a look at his mouth. Thankfully he felt that the tooth wouldn't need to be taken out and that (surprisingly) everything would heal over time.


It's amazing that pretty much nothing was done. His gum is practically split and his front tooth moves with quite a wiggle.
Poor guy. What a way to spend the first beautiful day in months.

We Have A Few Leaves

It's that time of year! And for whatever reason, cleaning up leaves with Grady always manages to be fun. He takes his little push lawn mower and shoves it into the pile of leaves. All the while Daddy is blasting leaves into the pile and onto Grady. More so on Grady than the pile though ; -) I just loved this shot.

A few things about Grady

Grady is 2 years 9 months. Here are a few of his favorites:

Leo Lionni Books.

Especially "Swimmy". The best part is, he picked these books out on his own and didn't want to leave without them. They're wonderful little books with great lessons. Subtle but adorable all at the same time. I've bought ten more Lionni books since these first two.

DVS shoes.

I bought these with Aunt Joanna in Richmond WAY before he could fit into them. (size 10) Well, he fits in them now. I will be sad when he grows out of them. We'll have to get him another pair of skater shoes though. Mommy's slight style sense thrown in there.

The Great Mouse Detective.

My God how many times can we watch this movie! I downloaded it on accident on iTunes and MAN... he can't get enough of it. Literally. LITERALLY. I had never seen or even heard of it before I bought it. Apparently it came out just before or after The Little Mermaid and didn't get as much press. He'll quote phrases in the movie before Basil of Baker Street even says them, like; "The game's up Rattigan!"

Manly Man of a Husband

So what goes on in the evening here at the Reece house? Grady B. and Daddy have the coolest hand shakes. They're so cool to Grady that he can't help but smile and laugh at the same time because sometimes Daddy will give Grady a high-five and won't let go!

When Daddy can find the time, he goes fishing on his kayat-u (that's how Grady pronounces it). A few nights ago he came home with a Flounder, and tonight he came home with a Red Drum. That spot on his tail is the red drum sign. But there's more to him than that... he has very smooth lips and a simple face.

I'm a meat eater, to say the least... but when we do eat meat, we try to get the very best we can. Fresh fish from the water to your plate cannot be beat. All that shipping and freezing and sitting in a show case at your grocery store truly depletes the taste of fish. Fresh fish has absolutely no gaminess to it what so ever.

A good recipe if you ever decide to catch and filet your own red drum at home is to rinse and pat dry your filet, smother it in mayonnaise and dip that into parmesan cheese. Bake for 20 mins at 350 and you've got yourself some of the best fish eating you'll find out there... at your very own table.

I'm also very thankful for his bringing home these fish because it saves us a night of dinner money. We all enjoy these dinners more so than others b/c it's from Daddy's hard work (yeah right!) He loves going out there. One day I'm going to get a kayat-u too! A bright pink one. Oh yes. Pink she will be.

What's going on at the Reece's!??

Well hiya! Figured I would go ahead and post a self-portrait... seems I have to make a face at how silly I feel even when I'm all alone in my living room surrounded by my son's toys. This means I'm either a lazy house-wife OR my son has the coolest toys and I let him play with them where ever he pleases. (I know how my husband would answer ;-) ) I'm also planning on being Rapunzel apparently. That too could be attributed to laziness.

Here you will find the most handsome men... I MEAN UH... my awesome husband and super adorable son! What are cell phones for but to take pictures of random events like dinner at UNO's!

Grady just started his summer school and here is another cell shot of him today at school :) He's in the far upper left. It's so cute to see him sitting with other kids his age and behaving like a good little boy. He really likes school so far! I know he's happier around his buddies than going on errands with Mommy. The stay at home Mommy days are over (to a degree) and Grady B. was ready for this!

Here are some of his artwork pieces! Very summery indeed! Rather than putting them on the fridge, I'm putting them on the kitchen wall... b/c I want to see them all the time and by the end of the school year it will be a Grady exhibit!

Here's my husbands reading for the past month. Yes, I said MONTH... for his English class. As you can probably guess I barely talk to him, hardly see him, and have somewhat forgotten what he looks like. We talked last Thursday for awhile, does that count?!!

My first successful metal-smithing project. 5mm amethyst in sterling silver earrings with post. I'm not quite confident enough to put these on Etsy... that, and they're my first pair so I'll probably keep them for sentimental value. Eventually my "Breeze in the Trees" shop will be filled with all kinds of goodies like these. I have many awesome ideas in store and a few drawings I'm hoping to make into a reality. But for now, I'm very proud of these.

And finally... what are the fat hounds doing other than their usual. Being fat. And lazy. Little do they know, we're taking a day trip to Hatteras on Saturday. So, really, they need their beauty rest so they can be super fat on the beach and strut their stuff for the other dogs. When it comes to chubby beagles... there is no contest.

Messick Point

Today we went to Messick Point which is in Poquoson. The boys went kayaking/fishing. Grady loves going out there. Daddy loves it even more I'm sure.

I took pictures of the weeds. These (to me) are the prettiest weeds one would have to deal with.

I also photographed the wildlife. This osprey below was injured. Believe me, I'm no bird charmer and osprey's aren't know for being charmed by much of anything. He kept his eyes on me that's for sure. I didn't dare go any further than 15ft from him.

The cranes were not injured, and were not happy with my presence either. They honked like angry drunk geese. That's the best way I can describe it.

Then there was this little rainbow tidbit in the sky which I thought was incredible to be occupying such a tiny space in a stratus (yes?) cloud. Very beautiful.

And finally the last two I consider to be what makes Messick Point. Untouched, simple living. You can tell the area is well protected by the people living in Poquoson. The attitude is all about enjoying the littlest things. From the rickety old piers, to the S.S. Dryden.

School approaches

Grady got his first backpack for school starting the end of July. He got his first lunch box too, not pictured. I'm so excited for him! We're watching "Word World" to brush up on our word skills! I think he likes it :)

Because I am so proud

When Grady was two we took him to see a specialist b/c he wasn't talking to a level we felt comfortable with. Now? Well, he's a talkin man! And it may not be as many words as the common child, but I'm just glad he's talking on his own and able to repeat practically any word Terry and I throw at him. The word "love" for example, he's never attempted. I'm just so proud of this little boy. He is my heart.

Grady and the Sharpie

While I stepped away from Grady to do the dishes...  (he seemed content with "Thomas the Tank Engine")  this is what he got into.  His daddy's red sharpie.  I didn't know whether to laugh, or yell at him, or what!  All I said was "oh, my GOD, GRADY!!!!!", proceeded to take the sharpie away from him, look at the damage done to my desk, his daddy's desk, my office chair, his little yellow car...  I immediately put him the bath tub, and took a picture before plopping him in.  I decided not to yell at him b/c the damage had already been done, and quite frankly, I wasn't in there to stop him and tell him it wasn't the best idea he's had.  

This makes me thankful for having older than dirt furniture.  The damage Grady inflicts on our hand me down furniture really doesn't bother me.   And it's comforting to know that as he explores his surroundings, he's not going to feel like Mommy is more concerned about her furniture than her own son making mistakes from time to time.  

Grady has been talking a lot more lately.  He's been trying to say "thank you" but what we get is "guyou you".  He's trying, that's all that matters...  He's also repeating us, which he wasn't doing before hand.  Makes the effort of teaching him words much more fulfilling when you can see that he's interested, gets it, and wants to try himself.  

A Great Sigh of Relief!

It's been a week and a half since Grady's 2nd Birthday, and Terry and I braced ourselves for the truth of Grady's potential "delay".  His evaluation was today and he passed every test.  His expressive speech is slightly behind, he's at about a 21-24 month level, but the speech therapist said she was "not concerned".  I can't express in words how relieved I truly am.  Now just the audiology exam to make sure nothing is going on with his ears, and we're good to go!  

He had a wonderful birthday!  I think he was intimidated by all the people!  He decided to cope with the full house by hanging out in his room and drawing.  It was pretty interesting.  Presents everywhere, cake, family, ... but where's the birthday boy??...  drawing in his room on his bed.

Tori gave him a big hug!  Those two were inseparable!

And finally, he put his fingers in the candles... after mommy showed him where to blow out the candles by putting her finger quickly through them, he followed suit.  Well done Mommy!  IDIOT = ME!!!