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I am very, very anti-medication for kids.
I think that kids are over-medicated, over-diagnosed and over-babied for the most part.
Welllllllll.......
When we did foster care, I had to medicate kids with ADHD (DHR rules) & I did see the value in it for a few kids. I can think of 4 off the top of my head who NEEDED their medication or all hell would break loose.
Those who know Kaileigh, know she is active - not hyperactive - but VERY, VERY active.... has no focus, cannot follow 2 part instructions.
She. does. not. sleep.
Which means that I do not sleep. (Sidenote - if you see me in my PJs at 2 in the afternoon sometime - just ignore it please - it just means it was a particularly rough night & I have been napping while Kaileigh was at school).
Well, her teacher had not related any issues at school, so I thought we could wait a while & let her mature a little more. Until last week......
She has been less & less focused, more & more easily irritated at home
And then both her classroom teacher & her special ed teacher asked me if we had ever considered having her evaluated.
DANG IT......
Of course we have - both birth parents have ADHD, MR & multiple mental health diagnoses. Of course we have considered it.
But I did not want to do it.
See point 1 - over-diagnosed, over-medicated, etc......
I took her yesterday - yep - definitely ADD - possible other issues. After talking with 1 psychiatrist & 1 psychologist (partners in crime practice), I agreed to try medication - a very, very, very low dose of Strattera.
They told me it would take 2-3 weeks to see any difference at all.
Last night, I gave it to her before bed -
She. actually. slept. 4. solid. hours.
WOO-HOO.
I did not tell her teacher, but I did email her & ask her if Kaileigh was behaving today.
Kaileigh actually finished her seatwork - for the first time ever - without being prodded repeatedly.
I am still not convinced - those things could be flukes. But I am a bit relieved.
We go back in 2 weeks for possible other evaluations - since she has some behaviors and I have some concerns that are unrelated to ADD or ADHD. Both birth parents are bipolar (plus other issues) & after living with David & our former foster daughter N, I have severe PTSD when it comes to mental illnesses..... I just pray that whatever comes of it, we can treat early & treat well so that she does not go down those same roads....
LOL - not really....
He is a boy, but not a baby & I am not sure I have ever seen him bounce.....
My son turned 15 yesterday.
He got his learner's permit and a checking account.
God help us all.
I let him drive around the driving range in Glencoe since there were no other cars out there. He only almost killed us once. Then we swapped places. I am too young to die!
I took him to the bank so he could deposit money in his checking account. He acted like a bank robber. We will NOT be going back to the bank anytime soon. Well, I will - because I work there.
We had lunch at my LEAST favorite restaurant on earth just so he could have the dessert he wanted most......
All in all, it was a good day.
But he is growing up.
He was born on April 27, 1995, at 11:06 pm, weighing 10 pounds 4 ounces & was 22 inches long.
On April 27, 2010, at 9ish pm, he weighed 130ish pounds & was 5 ft 9.5 inches tall.
He wears a size 11.5 men's shoe or a 12 in Converse.
Happy (Belated) Birthday, Hunter Tillman Limbaugh!!!!!
I have changed my mind about coupons somewhat....
I still will not use as many on food items bc most grocery coupons seem to be for processed foods (which I am really, really, really trying to remove from our diet) or for stuff we don't eat a lot of - like cereal. The kids like cereal sometimes, but they only eat a box a month or so maybe so stocking up on cereal does not make a lot of sense for us.
But oh my goodness - when you can get toothpaste, cleaning supplies & deoderant virtually for free...... YAY. I have not seen any super deals on toilet paper or paper towels, but I know they are out there somewhere.....
Here are some highlights from the last couple of weeks:
KMART (Double Coupon Week) - $18.48 after coupons plus got a $5 coupon to use next time. (Also discovered today that I had purchased items for the P&G coupon book rebate - woo-hoo).
2 - 3 pks of Venus disposable razors
1 - 3 pk of Bic Bella disposable razors
1 - 100 ct Aleve
1 - Tide Stain Release
1 - Soft Scrub
Winn Dixie Trip 1 - $5.74 after coupons plus got a $10 off coupon to use next trip
2 - Smart Taste pasta (both free)
2 - Dawn dish detergent
2 - Olive oil
Winn Dixie Trip 2 - $6.79 after coupons plus got another $10 off coupon to use on next trip. The one I had previously gotten would not scan - cashier & I finally figured out that it was dated for the following week - duh!
4 - 1 pound packages Premio Italian sausage (2 patties & 2 links) (all for free)
4 - Smart taste pasta (1 spaghetti, 2 elbow macaroni, 1 penne) (all for free)
4 - Cover girl mineral makeup (total of $1 - for 4 or a quarter each - I can deal with that)
2 - Olive oil (have I mentioned we use a LOT of olive oil?????)
This total actually would have been $3 less if I had paid more attention or if the cashier had - oh well, lesson learned!!!!
Food World $19.52
10 bags of Kraft brand shredded cheese (I still had some from my super deal from WD a couple weeks ago or I would have bought more - the WD deal was a much better deal, but we LOVE cheese!!!!!!).
4 bags of Valley Fresh Steamers
Walgreen's $4.30 plus I got $6.00 in RR to use next time
Walgreen's in RBC is NOT coupon friendly. They were really jerky to me on this particular day AND had to ring the order up about 6 times and call 2 managers - I was accused of stealing and of "cheating the system." I probably will try to go to a different Walgreens store in the future. (** I should add that the cashier was nice enough, but I warned him about a possible issue. The managers were the jerky ones).
2 bags of TGIF snacks
2 Ban deoderant (24 cents each!)
2 individual cups of Velveeta shells & cheese
2 Benadryl ultratabs
1 cheap lollipop as a filler..... and a bribe for Kaileigh to stop griping.
CVS Total OOP $13.18 (3 transactions, rolling ECB)
The cashier was SO, SO over the top friendly & helpful!!! I will shop in CVS a LOT more often if all the cashiers are as awesome as this one!!!!
1 - Dove Shampoo
1 - Green Tag
1 - CVS Paper Towel
1 - Claritin (10 ct, I think)
1 - Glade Sense & Spray starter kit
2 - Glade Sense & Spray refills
So far since I have been using coupons, I have spent a total of $200.14 including tax (not counting my Aldi's trip). I have gotten merchandise valued at $498.97 and saved $298.83, or about 60%. I also can send in for 2 of the P&G $100 coupon books and I have purchased enough of the SC Johnson products to send in for 2 of their $5.00 rebates.
Did I really NEED all of that stuff right now? No - but I will eventually & if I can buy makeup for a quarter instead of $11, that's a good thing!!!
Well, Kaileigh's birth aunt - let's call her "T" - has been talking to me for several months about trying to schedule a visit with Kaileigh & her birth mom. Kaileigh has not had a "real" visit with birth mom since July 2005. We have seen her - at McDonald's, the mall..... but no visit. I last spoke with her last week - she said that this weekend would be best for them. It is Easter weekend & I was not enthused, but I told her to call me this week to confirm the time & place. I gave her my phone number. I sent a note & my phone number to T through her boss (a customer of mine) on Monday. And another one today.
No phone call, so no visit.....
Maybe this is best, but it disappoints me that they cannot be bothered to make ONE phone call to schedule a time to see this precious, sweet child.
Of course, we did schedule a visit with birth grandmother about a year ago & it lasted all of 15 minutes, so I should know that they are not all that interested.
That sounds cruel, but honestly, they do not have the capacity to be truly interested in Kaileigh. They love her in their own way - the way some people love their clothing or their shoes - you know, as a possession - as a symbol of something or other..... But they do not have the capacity to do more. I should remember this - a dear friend who is a social worker once told me "Christy, if K's birth family was able to love and care for her the way you expect them to, she would still be living there."
At least I did not tell Kaileigh about the visit, so she will not be disappointed.
.... would announce LOUDLY during Holy Communion that she was VERY thirsty and just wanted to drink that yummy juice!
Argh.....
