Changes

I'm writing this post to answer the questions asked in the comment section of the last post.

As most of you know, the twins were almost five when we got them. They were very set in their ways, or more specifically, they were very set in having their own way. They entered kindergarten full force, and no one knew what to do with them. They kicked teachers, threw desks and so on when they didn't get their own ways. 

Well, obviously they outgrew those behaviors, but not the "I can do what I want, and it's not your business" attitude. In fact, I had one tell me last week that it was none of my business what classes she took. So maybe we aren't all the way through it. It was in reference to signing herself up for weightlifting class/team and ordering $150 worth of  uniform, warm up suit and so on without permission. I let her know that since I hadn't given permission, I had no intention of paying for the uniforms or travel fee or anything else.

However, overall, the twins have come a long way. For instance, since the stealing had dwindled off (due to the knowledge that the next offense means 5 days in juvenile detention), I started giving them an allowance. And I let them ride their bikes to Dollar Tree to spend it. If they went on their own without permission, they lost that privilege for a few days.

They were responsible to bike to cross country practice at the school three days a week and track twice. During that time, the Master Sgt in charge of JROTC met them. She said they would do well since they were runners, and so they came home with the enrollment packet.

We went over the rules and they included things about dressing neatly, following class rules, following rules at home, and obeying the law. Any arrests would put them off the team. If you've followed my blog, you know they have two each. Kayla's second one was never followed up on even though I called twice, so I let it go. I think JROTC is motive enough not to steal.

I love it because they hate being told what to do, but JROTC is all about being told what to do. Especially when it comes to wearing the uniform.

The MSgt called once because of something minor that had happened at school. I mentioned that one of the twins had become quite sassy in the past few days, and I don't know what was said, but it ended. The coach also expects good behavior.

Grades have always been a problem in the past. I got tired of it, and I told them I was going to let it fall where it falls, but the academic requirements are higher for JROTC than for sports, plus there are multiple camps they can attend if they have good achievement.

Kaleb is trying to earn money for the December camp, while Kayla has decided not to.

Jasmine started working at Dollar Tree, but has only worked two days so far. I need to get a picture of her with her name tag.

Last spring she signed up for a full schedule at our local college. Then she left for Honduras without asking when tuition was due. When she came back from her trip, she found out it was past due and she'd been dropped from all her classes. All but remedial math and Acting 1 were full. Rather than rework the whole schedule, we decided she'd just take those two as a way to adjust and not be overwhelmed. The math class credits won't count, but she has to have it due to her struggles with math. Unfortunately she is not passing it. Math will always be a struggling. But she is enjoying the acting class.

She tried out for Godspell and made second cuts, but it came down to the fact that the seniors and scholarship students had priority and she was cut. I would have loved for her to have been in it. It's a much better choice than some of them which I do not consider appropriate.

Tyler and I are now Sunday Amazon drivers. There is a lot more to it than I thought! By time I unload my roughly 120 packages, scan them all, reload them in the bin, then take them out and load them in order in the truck, I'm ready for nap!!! Then I spend the next four hours pretty much lost because the scanner's GPS is demon possessed or something.

Ty and I went to San Antonio for a writer's convention, and I'll write more about that later.

Kid Updates part 1

I haven't done an update on all the kids lately, so I will attempt that now. Unfortunately, I have few pictures of the ones who aren't living at home anymore.

Tyler is still at Job Corps. He hates the computer program he's in. He wants to do something hands on. So when he had a chance to do fire training for a week, he jumped on it. To qualify, he had to power walk, not run, 3 miles with 45 pounds on his back in 45 minutes. He made that easily, even in the snow.

So he got to go to another location in KY to train. Due to the snow, they did not get to do the outside hands on training. But he passed the written test with a 99% and did the official pack test (45 pounds/45 minutes), so he has his FFT2 certification. That's for wildfires and such. He's back at his own location now and hoping his crew gets called out for a fire before he ages out this coming summer. He would really like to do something more like that than work with computers. I'm hoping he'll go ahead and push to get his computer certification too before he ages out.

He's gotten to do several trips lately for being in leadership (he is head of recreation) and for winning dorm of the month.

He went to the rodeo, to the Muhammad Ali Museum, to the mall and Amish store and out to eat. Not all on the same day! I posted some rodeo pictures back then, but I don't have any new pictures of him.

Jessica is still going to school part time. She was supposed to graduate last May, but didn't. She had two classes to finish up. She will not be graduating this May either because she hasn't done an internship. They fill up very quickly and she didn't get a spot. She hopes to get one for the summer and to start police academy in the fall.

She got her official wedding photos. (Took long enough, right?)  I'm posting three below.

Jeff is now stationed in Korea. He reported in January 10, and I think it's a year long tour. He is competing on the combative team, which I have no idea what is. I've messaged him, but don't hear back often. No photos of him since the wedding.

Adam shows up for special occasions. He is going to school full time at the community college and is also manager at Church's Chicken, so he doesn't have a lot of free time. He goes to his marine reserve base the first weekend of the month, and may get to go to California for two weeks for reserve training this summer. I would love to share his future plans with you, but they change often :)  He has mentioned going active duty, but he's mentioned other plans too. So time will tell. I'd like to see him doing something more exciting than frying chicken. But he's making very good money for someone his age, and he likes seeing that money in his bank account. And he likes buying expensive name brand clothes and athletic shoes. Both he and Jessica drive new 2014 cars, while I drive a 2001 SUV! But he has a good heart, and I know he'll do well at whatever he does.

Adam is especially close to Jasmine.

To be continued....

Our Week

I really wasn't ready for summer vacation to be over. I do not like getting up at 5. And we have one bus that comes at 5:47 a.m.! That is just crazy. It transfers at another school at 6:20 before going on to the girls' school, so Rick has been dropping them at the 6:20 drop. Their afternoon bus hasn't been getting to the transfer point until 4:00 and that is crazy too!

Kaleb is at a different school, and his morning bus picks up two blocks away at 6:24 and drops off at 2:00, so I have more time with him than the girls.

Here is the difference between cats and dogs. All the dogs meet the kids at the gate, jumping up and down with excitement.

The cats couldn't care less.

Sasha, puppy in top picture, is much smaller than the cat in the above picture, but due to their coloring, I have mistaken the puppy for the cat more than once. The puppy also has silky soft fur like a cat!

Travis has finally decided to play with her. I always thought Travis was so small, but now he looks big in comparison.

Adam is playing soccer on a local church team.  He starts college tomorrow and continues with his Marine Reserve training one weekend a month.

 

I rarely see him without his friend Ishmael, who also starts college tomorrow, and his girlfriend Daja, who is a high school senior.

 Tyler sent pictures of the Job Corps group at a local amusement park.

He is doing well there and has made a lot of friends. Job Corps has been a positive experience for him, although it's not for everyone.

 

So, like it or not, we are into a new school year. Kaleb is continuing with Tumbling and gymnastics, and Kayla with gymnastics. Jasmine will start hip hop and jazz classes after Labor Day and also after school marching band practice one day a week. She may try out for the county Christian choir. We will have to see how it all goes. I don't want her overwhelmed with activities. The girls have way more homework at their school than Kaleb does at his.

Is everyone else into a new school year now?

The Girls

Last post was about the three oldest boys, and this post will be about the three oldest girls.

Jessica is my birth child born in 1991. At the time we were living at Grand Forks AFB, ND. She was born one year, three weeks and a day after Tyler. She was planned but was a first try baby and also arrived three weeks early. Rick left for Saudi right after I got pregnant, so I spent that pregnancy also taking care of Tyler who was just like 4 months old when I got pregnant again, and I was also finishing my master's degree.

Like Tyler, Jessica moved around a lot. We left ND when she was 8 weeks old and moved to Okinawa. We were there 9 months and then went to SD. Then to England, GA and now FL. She also made three trips to Haiti with me while we were in the process of adopting the twins.

  Jessica worked at Carmike theater for fours years then got a job at Applebees because things went downhill in a hurry at the theater.

Jessica and Hunter worked together at the theater for over three years. Things started going downhill when he left. They are getting married next October. As you can see, they've completed their first adoption :)

Jessica is in her senior year at FSU in the criminology program and is doing underwater crime scene investigation. That's kind of like NCIS underwater. I don't have any pictures of her underwater except this one where the class is carving pumpkins.

Jessica has her basic, advanced, science, nitrox, and rescue certifications. She will complete her cavern certification this semester. She is also doing the underwater crime scene investigation diving this semester. She would graduate this May but didn't realize that one class she needs is only offered in the fall. So she has that one final class next fall.

To celebrate her graduation, we are going to New York City in May. So if anyone has any suggestions for us, please leave them in the comment section. We have not been there before. We need to know where most of the stuff we want to see is at, what we should see, where we should stay, what kind of transportation we should use etc.

Jasmine came to us as a foster child. She was supposed to go back to her mother, but her mom didn't follow the case plan at all. She was not making good choices for herself or her children. (Jasmine has three older half siblings). Jasmine had a cleft palate, cleft lip, hole in her skulls, club foot, missing bones in her fingers on her left hand, fused fingers, missing and fused toes, and webbing on her neck. She has true ADHD that may have been caused by her mom's drug use. But she is actually a very amazing child. I refused to believe that she was not able to ever accomplish much. I probably seriously overstimulated her, and she was with me constantly. So she had very good attachment and many, many opportunities to try new things and explore her potential. I feel like I finally got it right with this child! (Tyler and Jessica too, but not so much with Jeff and Adam. Adam during high school yes, but there were a lot of hard years first.)

 Jasmine came to us at a time that Rick and I were going through a rough time and were apart for 3 1/2 years. But it all worked out.

She is smiley in her pictures, and she is generally happy whenever we are together, but school is very stressful and she really, really struggles with math, science and organization. So she's not usually smiling when she first gets home from school.

 In the past she has been in gymnastics and tumbling, but she does not have good flexibility at all, so those didn't work out. She's played soccer, basketball and baseball and likes them, but is just not a natural athlete. And that's okay. She played for fun, but now that the teams are competitive, she's decided not to do more sports. Her thing is music. She is a good percussionist and singer. She is also in jazz and hip hop dance classes this year.

It probably seems like I say the most about her. That is because she is the child who seeks me out the most just to be with me. We don't even have to talk. She will just come sit on my lap or lay beside me if I'm not up yet or am on the couch. She's the one who asks if we can just do something together, or have an adventure together. She can be moody and quirky, but she's also very easy to love. And I probably look out most for her because of all her struggles and surgeries.

She has band competition coming up, and also FCAT. That worries me because we know she won't pass the math one. Not being negative, it's just the way it is. She is never even close to passing. But if she doesn't pass the reading one, she'll lose band and that would be a very bad thing. But it's an elective so it's what would go. But to take the one thing she's really good would stink. She is a good reader, but that doesn't always guarantee a passing score on the FCAT.

Ashley is my step daughter. She lives in Indiana with her husband Mike and two children, Phoenix who will be ten in April and Griffin who turned six last August.

Besides my crew, she has a half sister, Lydia, who lives in Indiana also. Ashley is a beautician, and Mike is a mechanic.

We only see them once a year when we drive up to visit our families in Indiana. She is about 3 1/2 hours from where our families are at.

So that is the three oldest girls. Leave any comments for them or about NYC in the comment section.

Next post I'll talk about the twins!

Answers part 3

Here is the last set of anwers to the questions asked.

Jasmine what do you want to be when you grow up? Anonymous

Has Tyler heard more about his program? What will you do if that doesn't work out? Anonymous

This might be too personal, but I know Tyler has aspergers. I know he had plans to go to job core and the funding got cut for that. What are his job prospects at home? Does his aspergers hold him back from applying for certain jobs? Do you think it is keeping employers from hiring him? If he could be anything what would your dream job be for him? Anon

I put both questions about Tyler together, and since he has a good understanding of his abilities and limitations, I asked him to answer them on video. You'll understand much better the problems with him doing interviews as you listen to him putting together his answers. He has normal intelligence, but not fluency in speech. I was hoping he'd go with his plan for digital design, but he did not pass the college classes needed for that program. But mostly I want him to have a job where he is happy and eventually ready to be on his own. I wish the military didn't block kids with autism and would test them individually. There are many jobs he could do and he'd have the chance to travel which is something he likes to do. His dream destination is Japan.

This video is totally unrehearsed. It's in two parts due to length.

I was going to ask about Jessica's college work because it sounds really interesting and I wonder what she has to do and what she wants to do after college. Middle School Mama

I've always wondered what does Rick do? Anon

I work as a small computer technician, and as a screener at an air terminal when necessary (I just don't make them take off their shoes) :-} Rick

 How often do you guys see his daughter? Anon

 Ashley lives on the IL/IN border, our families live on the IN/MI border and we live in the FL panhandle. She was in cosmetology school the past couple of years and schedules did not work out. Rick went up to help his parents move, but it was a very brief trip and not when she could join him at his parents, which would have needed to happen. 

I wish she was closer to I 65 because we could simply stop by coming and going. The kids and I (Kathy) have stopped several times on our way to see my family in Elkhart, but it's three hours off of I 65 and then back to get up to Elkhart so it adds a lot of time. Last trip we were hoping she could meet us somewhere fun where the twins and her two little ones could play, but it was when she had to do her course hours. 

We hope that we can plan something maybe half way between her house and our families where everyone could have a day out. Otherwise we'll meet in one town or the other depending on her work schedule.

Have a great weekend everyone!

College, Valentine's Day and a 5K

If you didn't post a question on the last post and you have a question, please go back and ask. I told the kids they might get to answer questions so the ones with no questions are a bit disappointed. We will answer all questions next week even if only to say it's a question we can't answer publicly.

Jessica took the camera to college last week for crime scene photos. It looks like she had a little too much fun waiting for class to start.

That looks fun!

Before school on Valentine's Day

Ready to go out to eat. We don't normally go out to eat due to costs, and especially not on  a holiday, but I decided to  take everyone out in place of buying candy and such this year. Adam and Rick met us there separately.

Adam came from track practice.

Valentine's Day is also Jessica's half birthday. She's 21 1/2!  I know they are a little old  for half birthdays now, but you tell them that. I'm not going to be the one to tell them : )

People were coming and going all weekend, so those of us with no life played games.

I caught it mid-fall. It looks kind of fake, but believe me, every piece scattered.

It was cold at the 5K this morning.

Only these three ran today. The races are anywhere from $15-25 each person so that can add up in a hurry , especially if all 6 run. Can't really spend $150 for a race!

Stretching out.

The start line.

Tyler came in at 27:53 and was first in his age group. Some were behind him and some of the faster runners chose to run the 10K or 15K. There were three races going at once.

The twins played on the playground while waiting.

Tyler went back  to run Jessica in. They made it a race, but of course he didn't cross the finish line this time. Her time was 33:23 and she was 3rd in her age group.

Jasmine came in at 37:05 and was 2nd in her age group.

Kaleb had a basketball game today.

Right now Rick, Jessica and Adam are at work. Tyler is outside chasing Jasmine and the twins around the yard. I can hear happy screams. 

Jasmine is happy that she does have Monday off of school for President's Day, which is also her 12th birthday. She's getting her picture taken at Sears, eating at the food court and maybe going to a movie. Jessica found out that her college meets even though the community college doesn't. But she has the option in that class to attend in person or do it online. She goes in person normally because they do the homework together in class, and if you do it online, you have to do the homework yourself. But she's scheduled to work 12:00 noon to 11:00 pm Monday (as well as today and tomorrow).

Hope you all have a good weekend. Anyone doing anything special? We are not traveling because we have some cool trips coming up this summer and we are saving all we can. I'll talk more about those later. Someone actually asked about our trips in the last post so I'll be answering that question next week.