Confused ???

A rare tender moments between Aly and Sean.
Saya is teething and likes to chew on anything she finds.

Thursday playdate with Parker!

My goal was to post 10 post each month, but I guess it is not going to happen this month... I've been exhausted everyday with endless things to do, stuff to think about, while my children are turning wilder everyday. I honestly had this urge to research if there is anything contaminating the tap water to make my children hyper and impulsive, but I didn't want to go there. I spent so many hours online trying to find out what is making my Sean, very OCD, very ODD (oppositional defiant disorder) and ADHD! Of course, the younger ones copy what Sean does, so you can imagine how that can be a bad thing...

Looking back the pictures though, I guess we had a good week. I had a meeting with the Bellevue School District coordinator and discussed Noah's Individual Education Plan with her. He is starting his preschool on Feb 14! What a big boy! Sean didn't start school until 3 1/2, so Noah is going to look particularly small, carrying a big boy backpack and perched on the school bus. I still have to figure out the morning schedule as he is going to school only in the afternoon. I am lining up home ABA and some therapies at Lakeside for him in the morning. I have to make sure they don't interfere with Alyson's school schedule, so it's a little tricky.

Saya talks a lot now and she surprises me everyday. She started to scream for fun again and I am trying to combat that with time outs. Her screaming is so loud, it makes Noah cry. Mike and I were having a silly debate over something I don't remember and she said "Daddy? Mommy?" and looked very concerned. She LOVES bath and when I say "Saya-chan chapu chapu (bath in Japanese for little kids)?", she takes her socks, pants and diaper off by herself. She runs upstairs naked before anyone else and it's very cute.

Noah has been wearing a compression vest which helps with sensory dysfunction more often these days. All therapists report that he is more vocal and in tune when he is wearing it. He started to say "itai itai (it hurts in Japanese)" while rubbing his head when he gets hurt. We are very excited about that. He also ate some vitamin gummies and that is a new and big development for him. He didn't want to eat it tonight though...

Alyson has been pretty good with potty and wears underwear when we are at home. Pooping is a little scary for her and she is yet to do it on the toilet. I think she will be fully trained by March. Well, I am going to set it as a goal. I know she is capable of it, so I just have to stick with it myself. She loves her Japanese classes and talks about her friends and sings songs she learned at school all the time.

Apart from being super naughty, Sean's doing fine. His favorite line these days are "you are going to jail". He says it when he is mad at someone or some things. He even says it to shoes if he is having trouble putting them on. At first, his naughtiness was funny. Mike and I looked at each other and since it is out of his character to be this extreme, we laughed about it. But it's starting to get old and not so funny anymore. I made an appointment with a doctor to discuss about his change in behavior, so hopefully she has some ideas and suggestions.

Noah's OT Session with Sommer

Sommer is Noah's Occupational Therapist at Kindering Center. She's been working with Noah since he started the CUBS program there. CUBS programs are designed for autistic children to encourage better communication, social interaction, awareness of the surroundings, regulation and get the kids ready for preschools in a group setting. Noah enjoys the program and the teachers and therapists all say that they've seen improvements since he started and he knows and follows routines very well.

Sommer has been great with Noah. She is gentle and caring, but knows how to challenge his comfort level without overwhelming him. You can see in Noah's face that he completely trusts her and enjoys working with her. I have a lot of respect for a professional like her - who pours their heart to improve the lives of their little clients! There are many heros in this world and I am fortunate to say that I see them everyday when I drop my boys off at their therapies. I will miss all the therapists and teachers we worked with at Kindering Center. I cannot thank them enough for all they've done.

Now that Noah is turning three in February, he is going to graduate from the CUBS program. I feel a little nervous for him to attend the Integrated Preschool, but also excited for him to challenge himself in the more regular classroom setting. He will be attending the same Integrated Preschool as Sean, so they will be riding the same school bus together. We have to buy him a new school backpack and I am sure he'll look adorable!

Playdate and Walk in the "Jungle"

She was just making a funny face because I was taking her picture and she wasn't in pain.
She thought is was cool to have a new black boot on.

Setting off for a walk in the "jungle" as Sean calls it (our neighborhood trail).

Aly was pink and fluffy that day.

The kids were throwing rocks, leaves, sticks and all sorts of stuff they found into the little creek.

They could have done this for a very long time!

My big boy Sean!

Mr. Rion, dressed in Bella outfit! He didn't mind dressed up as princess and he even insisted on wearing the matching globes.

We had a play date with Rion and Ayrie on Sat morning last week. Aly and Rion are in the same class together at the Japanese school. We've known Ayrie since she was five weeks old and I am very proud of her for being such a well mannered big girl! We enjoy having their company as well as her Mom's, so everyone had a good time.

Sean didn't have school on Monday for observing Martin Luther King Jr's birthday. Amy came and helped out in the morning, so I took Aly and Sean for a walk to the near by nature trail. Sean calls it "jungle" but the real name is Weowna Park. It sounds Native American, but it actually was named as it spells, "we own a park". I was a little cheated after finding that out, but it's still a pretty little trail anyway.

They enjoyed throwing sticks and things into the creek and watched them carried away on the stream. We didn't walk around so much since Aly was limping slightly. I didn't think much of it because she wasn't complaining about it so much. Her limping got worse on Tuesday, so I finally took her to the emergency room. It turns out, she has a fracture on the right shin. She seems to be in less pain today and I think she is on the mend. No cast needed as the fracture is small and will heal on its own. I somehow thought my children are unbreakable based on what they've shown me in the past, but they do break! I have to be a little more watchful from now on!

We love Seattle!

We watched the playoff on Sunday morning. Seahawks are out of the playoff, but had a fun season following their games. Until next year!
It was windy at the waterfront, but we enjoyed the view from the pier.
Historic pier 55 - it was built in 1900, but collapsed in a year. They rebuilt it immediately and has gone through several face lifts ever since.

It's a city Mike and I visited when we were in college and a place where my plane landed when it had an engine trouble on the way to Japan. We've never imagined we'd end up living in the Puget Sound area, yet alone raising four children here.

I was five month pregnant when we left sunny but traffic stricken golden state. It was when the housing market had just passed its peak and prices were starting to fall. We were very fortunate to have left then, selling our house in four days at a gain. Everything went smoothly after we arrived to the evergreen state. We found our house on the first day of house hunting, gave birth to a beautiful little boy four month afterwards, blessed with adorable twins in two years, and even was given a surprise present aka "Saya" when the twins were six month old.

I am so glad we moved here! Sure, it's not perfect - it rains heck of a lot and I will never get used to that... But when it's sunny the place shines with energy and life! Not only nature, but people's spirits lift up because we are all happy to see the sunshine during the rainy season. We are yet to explore many parts of the area and the whole state and very excited to get to know more about them.

We took the kids to Elliot Bay on Sunday. I somehow thought that Sunday was Chinese New Year and wanted to get a special occasion food from China town. There weren't much going on there and it's because it wasn't the new year... It's in February according to Amy!

Sean these days are interested in continents, ocean, planet, map... that sort of thing, so he enjoyed looking at the ocean. He asked many questions like where the ships are going, where Japan is, why the waves are high (it was windy) and was in deep thought thinking about the new information he acquired. The younger kids were looking at the waves, ships and the birds flying around.

Extra:

We passed the "Ye Olde Curiosity Shop" in Pier 54 and of course that got me thinking about the famous real mummies that are displayed there. Once my curiosity gets going, there is no stopping! I was researching on the Internet until 1am last night trying to find out who "Sylvester" the mummy was. According to the latest information, "Sylvester" formerly known as "McGinty" was sold to the former owner of the shop by a famous gang boss named Jefferson Smith aka "Soapy Smith" in 1895. He charged 10 cents for admission to see the mummy and pocketed more money by having the customers waiting in line play gambling games. The popular story that goes with this poor petrified man is that he was an outlaw in Arizona who were shot and killed in the desert. Some researchers from University of Washington however did a CT scan and MRI on "McGinty" and found out that the it is very unlikely the man was killed in a desert. They explained that his body would be lighter and drier if it were the case since the sand would soak up any fluid left in the body (McGinty weighs about 130 pounds). They found embalmer in the body and speculate that the body must have belonged to one of the fallen soldiers from the Civil War. It was a standard practice before 1900 that a soldier killed in the war would get an injection of chemical to preserve the condition of the body for him to have a proper funeral. My speculation is that the man was killed in the Civil War, they injected the chemical, no one claimed the body, an officer who were short on cash and dignity sold the body to a criminal, the criminal sold it to Soapy Smith and after doing a tour around Colorado and Washington, it ended up in a glass case next to shrunken heads from Amazon and "stuffed mermaid". Now that I had written it out, I feel a lot better! I feel for the man and would love to know more about him. I may write to the researcher in UW and see if they are interested in doing more research on him!! Anyone interested in further research??

Food Challenges

I finally found a brand of chicken nuggets Noah would eat since he stopped eating the dino shaped nuggets. A small victory for me!

I have to give a credit for Aly for being a relatively good eater.

I love food, but the meal times are not my favorite time of the day. I am busy as a chef in the popular restaurant, but my kids are tough customers. I am usually spinning around in the kitchen pouring three different types of milk in their cups, opening and closing fridge and microwaves, in the mean time making sure they wash their hands. Aly would say that she can't pump the soap out of the dispenser and I quickly run to the sink and help her. I must chase Saya because she loves playing catch me game and she would resist like a wiggly piglet once I catch her and wash her hands. Noah is either clinging to my leg and whining because he is either super hungry, or getting into things in the room he's not supposed to be in because he has slightest interest in eating. I have to hunt him down and help him wash hands before he sits down to his favorite spot of the day for a meal.

Aly and Saya are relatively good in terms of eating their food.

Alyson is getting somewhat pickier these days and leaves some vegetables on her plate. She dislikes carrots and she would not eat even her favorite curry rice if she spots bits of carrots inside. She eats mostly by spoon, but she uses her hands towards the end of the meal - bad habit I must correct but a little difficult to pay attention to.

Saya is my best eater and hope she remains that way. She is starting to leave some veggies on her plate but she is more adventurous than Alyson. Her favorite is miso soup and she is not a fan of any rice dish that has wetter textures like curry rice or wet fried rice. She does well with pasta, though. Both Aly and Saya love fruits and they can both eat an entire naval orange each all by themselves! Her appetite is slowing down though as she is getting older.

And then there is Noah. I say it in a a little somber tone because he is a terrible eater! Many children on autism spectrum are extremely picky eaters and Noah is a classic example. He eats two or three rice pancakes I make in the morning with his vitamin fortified soy milk. He sometimes has soy yogurt with fruit flavored fish oil mixed into it if he has time. For lunch, he eats a bowl of white rice (sometimes mix in some salmon flakes), a certain kind of chicken nuggets about 3 pieces, and a jar of baby food with vegetables. He would not eat veggies any other way than pureed. I tell myself that at least he eats it... but I do worry what is going to happen once he starts attending all day school! For dinner, he has two loaves of bread or a bowl of rice, yogurt with omega3, another set of chicken nuggets, and purred veggies. Other than the food I listed, he eats raisins, multi-grain Cherios (I decided to allow this even though it has oats, barley and wheat due to the lack of variety), bananas, and applesauce occasionally. He likes crunchy textured snacks like crackers also. That is about it. He would not eat anything else.

I used to picture myself making my signature dish for my children and my grateful children would savor every bits of it because they love me and they love my food. In Japan, mother's cooking is like a blanket in the cold night, a token of love, a very thing that bond the family... So far, the reality is far from the picture I had, but maybe someday my kids would even miss my food when they are off to college. If that ever happens, I will be one happy Mom!!

Rain, Trampoline and New Teacher!

The famous trampoline... not so popular anymore between Mike and I.
I must admit... I show more TV these days because of the weather.

Noah's most even tempered kid in the house these days. He's not sick like he usually is and very giggly and happy.

Good thing I didn't announce that I am going to update my blog everyday this year, which did crossed my mind towards the end of last year. So many kids so little time... But I will vow to post more to preserve our joyful chaos forever for the sake of myself, my family and friends!!

After my parents left, there hasn't been much to write about, except for the rain and more rain and Sean being in the terrible mood. We had some days that were 100% rain in the forecast and sure enough, it poured and drizzled all day long. On the days like those, my kiddos seem whinnier, messier and less agreeable compared to on the bright sunny days. They are often cooped up in the house longer, so I don't blame them.

Sean has been having episodes of explosive tantrums at home and seems more anxious than average. We have been putting back some wheat in his diet and I wondered if that is causing him to be unstable, but I now think a number of things are the cause.

1) new teacher - Sean has a new substitute teacher in his PM preschool;

2) recovering from the excitement of the Holiday season;

3) the depressing weather;

4) his best friend Parker came back from Hawaii - another change;

5) new trampoline in the house;

6) inclusion of some wheat in the diet - this is still a possibility however I know he is not that intolerant to gluten peptides according to the urine test.

I talked to Jessica the OT about the trampoline and its affect on children with the sensory integration disorder. Her input was that many children on the autism spectrum get soothed by rhythmic motion in single direction such as being rocked in the swing. They like knowing what to expect and it makes them feel safe. Trampolines do not provide the safe sensation because children jump in different directions and at different pace. It's a sensory overload for children who are sensitive to stimuli input. She explained that a child like Noah, who is under aroused in general benefits more than Sean who is on the opposite end. So, we are abstaining the kids from using the trampoline for a while and see if it helps calm Sean down. I am starting to hate that thing... it's big, ugly, and turning Sean into a little monster!! Does anyone want it?!

Happy New Year!!

My Dad arrived on the new year's day and it was like another Christmas day all over. He brought a suitcase full of toys and presents for everyone and the kids immediately got down to business opening the presents and playing with them. Sean and Daddy went to pick him up at the airport and Sean was a little shy but warmed up to Jiji (my Dad's nickname amongst kids) very quickly.

I hadn't seen my Dad for two years and he looked very well. Both my parents look young for their age and I am hoping I am blessed with the youthful gene, however I am thinking these four tots are going to make my fountain of youth dry up sooner than it should.

It was a blast having my Mom and Dad over the winter break. The house was lively with eight cheerful people, lots of laughter and good food. We ordered the Osechi dish again (the New Year's special food) and it made the meals together even more festive.

We stayed at the Great Wolf Lodge on 1/2 and 1/3 for a family fun. Sean was dying to go there, it was the day he was most anticipating in his little mind. I don't know how many times I used it as a threat ("you can't go to the lodge if you don't sleep now!") and it always worked! The kids had a lot of fun splashing around with grandma and Jiji. The four adults each had an assigned kid and we basically followed them around. Occasionally, we spotted each other and switched kid etc... it worked out really well. Saya was much more adventurous this time and went in and out of the pool freely. Aly and I wandered around trying out different pools. She even went down the bigger slide by herself. Noah was in love with a big beaver statue and didn't want to leave its side for a while. I didn't even see Sean till the end. He was probably trying out more thrilling slides with Daddy.

The night was hard as the kids didn't want to sleep with all the excitement. We sent Aly to grandma and Jiji's room, but she was returned to us after midnight since she started to cry asking for Mommy. Noah didn't stop wandering around the room until past midnight and Sean also was not interested in sleeping until then. You would think they would sleep in considering how late they fell asleep but not my kids! Sean woke up at 5 am and was ready to go swimming!

The highlight of my Dad's visit apart from seeing the kids was shooting some guns at Wade's shooting range in town. Mike took my Dad to spend some manly man time and they had a clean testosterone fun together. Coming from a country that bans guns all together, it was surreal for my Dad to see so many guns on display and for sale. He was pretty happy and I know he'll be bragging about it to his friends back home.

We all had a good start this year. Having my Mom and Dad here was such a treat and now the house feels empty without them. My kids call the guest room downstairs Jiji and grandma's room. I hope they left more assured than worried by seeing how we live everyday. Thank you for coming grandma and Jiji!! We really appreciate all your help and taking time off to see us!

Wooo more presents!

Saya met Jiji for the very first time!

The New Year's dish. It was yummy!


Jiji was carrying Noah and Aly - my Dad said farming is easier than chasing little kids around.

The kids loved the wave pool.


Aly was crying about something...

Jiji trying out Kinect bowling.

I asked my Dad to put Saya's PJ on and he couldn't do it. This girl wiggles out like a fish on a chopping block.