What have we been up to?  Well, Tyler has been a challenging case.  We aren't sure what to do with him.  He screams quite a bit and doesn't respond to logic or threats or even love.  I pretty much just put in my ear plugs and have Heidi deal with him.  When he's not screaming, he can be quite pleasant.  He is eating a little more and has recently discovered cinnamon toast.  He's still afraid to go to certain places, like church.  He threw a big tantrum this morning but seemed to do fine through all three hours.  

He is afraid to go outside but I was able to coax him into riding Bessie with me.  He enjoyed that.

 Kira has been the most resilient to the stresses we've been having.  She is talking quite a bit and uses way more Spanish words than the boys ever did.  She is obsessed with shoes and enjoys dressing herself.  This week she potty trained herself.  She goes in her little plastic toilet, then picks it up and dumps it in the big toilet.  She is the most independent of the three kids.  She's scared of riding Bessie but likes to wave to her.

 Scott is doing well with piano.  He knows Cuckoo and Honeybee quite well and we are working on Lightly Row.  We play the Suzuki disc every night and he likes to hum along.  It has helped his singing, too, as he couldn't carry much of a tune before but can sing on key more consistently.

One day, Scott and I were working on Bessie.  He said, "How did you make Bessie?"

"Well, instead of playing DS or the iphone, I was out doing my projects.  Look at that, I have Bessie to show.  What do you have to show for playing your DS?"  I thought it would motivate him, but what did he do?  Went inside to play DS.

Tyler was in a good mood on Saturday.  Normally, he wakes up in a sour mood but on Saturday, he was smiling.  

We have much to be grateful for.  It's sometimes hard to count our blessings, though.  My back still hurts and it's hard to stand up straight, but at least I can walk on my own two feet.  Heidi has had to deal with a lot of stressors this year, namely, the condo flood and Tyler's recuperation.  Put that in your pipe and smoke it, Bachelor Ben.  

Yes, Heidi and I watch the bachelor on hulu.  It's amusing to see this "reality" show because the girls break down in tears when he doesn't take them on a date.  Suddenly, our life doesn't seem so hard.  Some people hate their jobs.  Some have no job and want one.  Some hate their spouses.  Some have no spouse but want one.  Heidi and I have each other, three unique kids, I have a job that I like, and we have a nice place to live.  And the van has a subwoofer.  We have a good life.