Tag: bakri

We Made It…thankful for a new school year!

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Last year was tough. Really, really tough. Our oldest son, who is on the Autism Spectrum, changed schools to be with two of our other children. It was a change to make things easier and smoother for the whole family. But, as you probably know, change can be very difficult for a person with autism. Honestly, change can be difficult for anyone. But, change is difficult for him and it was difficult. 
A new school. In third grade. In a team with three main-subject teachers in three different classrooms. All new (to Bakri) ancillary teachers. And, new kids (to Bakri) who have pretty solid friendships by third grade. That was the hardest part. Bakri had friends at his old school. We loved his old school. We loved the teachers he had. He had great ones. Really great ones. It turns out that the kids and the relationships your children have with them- that’s almost, if not more important than the teachers. I’m speaking, of course, about schools that we’ve gone to, where the teachers are, for the most part- top quality and the best of the best. So, when that is the case, the kids in the classroom and having friendships is the most important part of the school day. 
That was a struggle for Bakri last year. There were some super nice kids in his class. I think some of them really like(d) Bakri. But, when the bullying happened, the nice kids either didn’t see it or hear it, or they were afraid to stand up to the bully(ies). It’s tough. We are trying to teach our other children how to stand up for kids like Bakri. And, it is a tough line. When do they speak out to the bully and when do they tell the teacher? Or, do they always do both? 
After our crazy summer of fun and complete chaotic-24-hours-a-day togetherness, we (especially me!) were looking forward to school beginning. 
Some of us woke up extra early and willingly let our Momma fix our hair with a hairbow (that NEVER HAPPENS!) and even had time to cuddle on the couch, fully dressed with a robe on. That’s miss Kindergarten, Trinity. 
Some of us were pretty tired at breakfast. Leeland on his way to Pre-K 4!

We enjoyed picture time outside. The oldest two, Maddux and Bakri were all smiles. Excited for 2nd and 4th grade. 

How do we get all four to stand and smile at the same time? Who knows!? When it happens, it’s a small miracle. 

And, then Leeland woke up! Ready to go!

Leeland and his chauffeur! 

Big boy at a big school!
I took the other three kids to school to begin kindergarten, second and fourth grades. The first morning was the easiest of the week.
The rest of the week flew by and it was chaotic and exhausting. Mornings were tough. I’m pretty laid back in the summer. So, being at school at 7:30 on school days presents its challenges. Trinity already knew her teacher and seems to be adjusting well and enjoying kindergarten. Maddux has made a couple of new friends and knows most of his classmates. He has great teachers as well. Bakri had an easier transition this year. We met with his team of teachers- just two this year- the week before school began. I think that helped us to set some expectations. They also assured me that this would be an easier year for him in establishing friendships, now that he is in his second year at the school. We sure hope so. Leeland is in a montessori school and has the same lead teacher as last year. He loves her and she loves him. 
So, we’re in it. 2014-2015 school year. Ready to learn, love, and grow. I’m scared and excited and hopeful. How did your first week of school go?
Hope it was great.
love,
El Momma

It’s the little things

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We plan big and most of the time it’s great. We keep our kids busy or they keep us busy, rather. We work, we play, we laugh, we cry, we sing, we dance. Sometimes we forget to slow down. But, when we do slow down, that’s when the magic happens. 
It happened this summer.
Nearly every day. We have taken this summer slowly.
Day
by
day
No theme weeks. (I know. Those were fun and really they weren’t super hard to pull together.)
No stressful activities or over-planned days. 
In fact, we’ve been on vacation twice this summer. The first one was less vacation-y for the adults -me and the hubs because we did a lot of driving and work was part of the trip. We ended up having several day-cations in that one vacation, but the second one- to Florida was definitely a vacation. We stayed in a huge house with my parents, sister, brother, sister-in-law and 8 kids (the 4 els and 4 of their cousins.) 
We cooked. We played. We ran. We swam. We played tag and watched movies. 
We made sandcastles on the beach and swam in the ocean. 
My favorite moments were the little ones. The moments when all 8 kids (4 of ours and 4 of our nephews and niece) sat in the sand building or digging together. 
When we laughed and played in the pool. 
When I had morning coffee and worked on song lyrics sitting in the kitchen by myself before anyone was awake.  (no photo of that!)
So much of what we are made to do is just about being in community. Being together. Enjoying each other and loving one another. I remember precious moments with my cousins when I was growing up. Learning to roller skate in my aunt’s driveway. Singing along as my mom played guitar for all of us. I adore my cousins. They are some of my favorite people in the world who I rarely get to see. But, I love them and cherish them all the same. I believe my sweet Els are growing up feeling the exact same way about their dear cousins. 
I am feeling pretty thankful as we head in to a new year of school. A new year of friends. A new year of memories, challenges, hopes, dreams, tears, love, laughter and promises. This summer has left my heart feeling full and ready for the year ahead. Let’s get out there and dream big. Love your kids and your teachers and enjoy the little things. 
xoxo,
Rebekah

Thank you

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On Wednesday, I was feeling frustrated. Sad. Alone. I went to the computer and opened my blog to write. When I looked at the drafts page, there was one that I had never published entitled “Admitting the Truth.” I opened it. Read it. Wrote a quick intro and hit publish. I walked away and went back to my normal night routine.

The next day, the battle I was in continued. There I was again asking someone to stand up for my son. Asking someone to do what is right. Asking for compassion. I was having to battle for these things. Believe me, I do not want to constantly be in a battle. Thankfully, I’m not. I choose them for the most part and sometimes the battle chooses me. This particular battle chose me. I won’t go into the details of this one. But, I will say, compassion won. Thank God.

Later Thursday, I was spent and preparing for a special rehearsal with our contemporary worship band and our traditional Bell choir- Bel Canto. That night we had an amazing rehearsal preparing beautiful arrangements of contemporary worship music. I loved every second and it was very therapeutic for me after the day I had. By Friday I checked back in with my blog post from Wednesday. I was overwhelmed by the responses. I’ve received so many encouraging comments, emails, texts and messages and Moustapha and I just want to say “thank you” to each and every one of you. 

Being honest is an important step in life. For us, we’re honest about this because we’re in this together and we need the love and support of others to make it work. And, we’re not ashamed. All of us have ‘stuff’ we deal with. Some of it privately, and some of it can be more public if it helps others. We feel like this is one of those areas where, if we’re honest about our experience, it may help others who are just beginning to question whether or not their child is on the spectrum.

I will share more stories about how Bakri was diagnosed, how we came to accept it and how amazing he is doing now in the near future. But, for today we want to simply say THANK YOU!

How to plan an (easy) Kid Birthday Party in the Park

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Our oldest son is turning eight tomorrow. He wanted to celebrate with his entire class. I don’t know about you, but birthday parties can get really expensive. And, with at least four parties a year for our children’s birthdays (one each!) that can get pricey really fast. Birthdays are important. My family always made our birthdays special growing up and my husband and I both feel it’s really important for our children to have this special day each year. Does it have to break the bank? No.

Let’s look at options. 

  • We have tons of kid friendly birthday themed places to choose from in our city- Houston. But, again, price is an issue. Most places charge per child and inviting an entire class full of kids is a lot. We also like to include siblings, mainly because our kids have so many siblings and it’s always nice (but not necessary) when they are included too.
  • How about a party at home? They are fun and the kids always really have a great time. I opted “no” on this option this time, because it is a lot of work for me personally and I kind of have a lot already on my plate at the moment. 
  • So, we thought about the park down the street from our house and our son’s school. We could have a party right after school on a Friday afternoon. We went for this option. 

Here are the details:
Invite all of the class via evite.com or other web service
Our class list is posted for our class only on our own website run by our classroom mom
I just retrieved the emails from there and pasted them into the evite
Party time: immediately after school on a Friday for 1.5 hours
Serve Pizza (kid choices and parent options) – I ordered locally and asked that it be delivered to the park 15 minutes after the party start time
Pick up cupcakes (we purchased ours from Sam’s Club 30 total -15 vanilla and 15 chocolate)

What to bring:

  1. paper towels (in case it is windy, napkins will fly)
  2. one cooler filled with ice, water bottles & juice bags/boxes
  3. lighter
  4. birthday candle
  5. pizza cutter to make the pieces smaller if necessary
  6. wipes
  7. sanitizer
  8. trash bags (I had these, but they weren’t necessary)
FUN! This was a really fun party for the kids and it was super simple for the parents. 
Happy birthday to our very great eight year old boy! We love you!

Seven Year Old, Bakri’s First Song

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Our oldest son, Bakri had an assignment to do a family culture project for his second grade Fall project. He wrote a song about our family. He sang the lyrics. I jotted them down quickly. We made our way to the piano and he continued to sing. He wrote several verses and a really cute chorus. I worked on recording the music and then Bakri sang his part. We recorded it with garageband. Once Bakri’s lead vocals were recorded, the kids and I recorded our parts. Once the song was done, we recorded video for the music video. I am very proud of my Bakri and his brothers and sisters. What a fun project!

Leeland’s Birthday Painting, the Third Painting in the series

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When I began painting the first of what would eventually be three paintings, I had no idea that I would be painting variations of the same painting more than once. The first painting was for our first son, Bakri, when he turned one. We planned  a baseball themed birthday party. I made him a cake shaped like a baseball and decorated like a baseball and I painted a baseball jersey on canvas for his wall in his room. I used the painting as part of the decoration for the party and I made a cake that matched the jersey. That was all for the first birthday of the first child. Little did I know, God would bless us with 2 more little boys with first birthdays! So, this week, I began the fun job of painting Leeland’s first birthday painting to go with the paintings for Bakri  and Maddux. Here’s how it went:

And, here they are all together….Leeland’s is nearly complete. My blue paint was old and didn’t offer much coverage. It was the day of his party when I made this discovery. So, we just went with it. I’ll finish it soon. I promise. As for the significance of these paintings, well they are very important to my babies. I realized that this week when working on Leeland’s. It was so cute to watch the other children light up as his painting became more and more finished. In fact, Bakri (our 6 year old) now wants me to find a way to make real jerseys…hmmm…I’ll have to think about that one for a bit. Maybe when they stick with one size for a while.
Leeland’s painting with a cake ordered from H.E.B. They do a good job with the jersey, don’t they?!
The famous baseball cake by El Momma. I really do enjoy making this cake!
The Happy Birthday side of Leeland’s baseball cake.
Pictures from Leeland’s first birthday party and day to come soon! We had a great time celebrating our little Leeland!

Bakri and Maddux are "DYNAMITE!"

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After taking the older boys- the six and four year old, to see the Newsboys a few weeks ago, their interest in being a “rock band” has intensified. The Newsboys opened the concert with a song by Taio Cruz called “Dynamite.” The boys loved it and immediately got hooked on the song. We found it when we got home and I started teaching them the piano part. Then, I was asked to contribute a song for a concert at our church where the music would be from Musicals or popular music. I asked the boys if they wanted to perform “Dynamite” and they of course wanted to. And, so it began. Here is the video of the boys performing last night. Maddux (four and a half) starts the song off with the piano part. He very cutely shakes his head to tell me he’s not going to sing that part. And, when the song gets going, it is amazing. And, yes, that is their dad excitedly recording and singing along. Way to go “Capital Els!” El momma is so proud of you. We had a great time.

Graduating from Kindergarten, playground or ceremony? Is it all the same?

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In my day, we graduated from kindergarten. Complete with graduation caps and gowns. Our families attended, cheered us on, and it was the only graduation until the completion of high school. I can’t say for sure whether I remember it or whether it sticks with me because of the photos. Either way, it was, and remains an important day to me.

My friends who are raising their children in the same school system we grew up in are getting to experience this as a parent. Their children are graduating from kindergarten. It is a big accomplishment. A lot of changes take place that first year of elementary school. I, for one, am not getting the same child this Summer that started school last Fall. He’s matured and grown so much.

So, why are we not celebrating this accomplishment with a graduation ceremony? Our school graduates students when they complete fifth grade. I think that is fine. But, in my opinion, we’re missing an important milestone by not graduating them from kindergarten. We, instead, are celebrating with all of the kindergarten classes in the neighborhood park with a playday in the sun. It will be fun. But, will it be as memorable and special as a kindergarten graduation would be? I suppose we’ll find out. I’m up for the challenge of trying to make the end of the year and all that he’s accomplished be a big deal to him so that he is motivated to accomplish so much more with his future.

Happy graduation party day, kindergarten class of 2011! We are proud of you and we wish you a bright sunny future!


Bakri, playing Ode to Joy for his first piano recital, age six.

Happiest of Birthdays to our six year old, Bakri!

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Six years ago today, I could never have known how you would change my life.
Before you, I thought knew what it meant to be busy, what it meant to be tired, what it meant to be out of my mind with worry. Before you, I thought I knew what it meant to have a mother’s love, to love more than words could express, to be completely unselfish. Before you, I thought I knew how to cry, how to laugh, how to smile from my heart. But, it turns out that I didn’t know much of anything and I’m still learning every single day. I’m learning how to mother you in the way that you need to be mothered. I’m learning how to love you in the way that you need to be loved the most. I’m learning what an amazing boy you truly are. Your love of music, your love of bugs, your love of the astros, your love of fireworks! I love all of these things too, because I love you! You are more than I could have ever hoped for in a son. I wish the world for you, my sweet sweet Bakri. Happy sixth birthday, love!
Bakri!

With Leeland and Momma and Daddy at Leeland’s Baptism

Bakri, loving his baby brother, Leeland

It’s still hard to believe how it flies

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Time. Isn’t it the craziest thing? Sometimes it seems to move so slowly, when we’re waiting for a big event. But, most of the time, it flies by so quickly that it’s gone before we know it. It’s hard for me to believe that my little baby Bakri, will be six years old tomorrow. Six years!? That’s amazing. In six more years he’ll be 12! That’s seems so far away! But, I know, if history repeats itself, the next six years will fly by even faster than the last six. And, before I know it, my baby boy will be in high school. Happy birthday to our big six year old boy, Bakri. May we celebrate in ways that stay with you always and remind you constantly of how much you are enjoyed and loved.