To Brad and Alisha

Look familiar?

Screwball Scramble- the game that requires no social interaction what-so-ever (except to hit brothers if they come to close, right) ;)

Thank you

So, the Sampson crew had a great time at the Southern Oregon Autism Walk-A-Thon.  It was FREEZING, but it feels so good to be with other families that are in the same daily fight as you.  A special thank you to Michael and Katie, who came out to walk with us!  I am so grateful to each and every one of you that sent in your donations to Team Parker.  Because of your generosity, Team Parker came in 3rd place!  The first two places were won by organizations, not families so I am pretty impressed by all of you.

Thank you again.

PS- Parker may be sad in the first pic, but he quickly perked up when he noticed the grass had NUMBERS on it(see third pic).  He was happy as a clam walking the field, and counting the yard lines!;)

Needles, Zoo, and Charlie

We have been so incredibly busy around here, I have had NO time to post.  A few weeks ago was our appointment with Dr. Green in Oregon City.  He is a DAN doctor and we were very excited to have an appointment with him for Parker.  We decided to make a 3 day trip out of it, so we were not running up there and back in 24 hours.  

The actual appointment w/ Dr. Green could not have gone better.  He addressed all of our biomedical concerns and gave us more information and things to try than we ever could have asked for.  We are trying many things over the next few weeks, which include different enzymes, supplements, vitamins, and B-12 injections.  I was really nervous about giving Parker injections every three days, but I did it and we have seen a HUGE difference already!  I give them to him while he is sleeping, and so far he hasn't even woken up!;)

We had a whole BUNCH of test done, including 9 blood tests, 4 stool tests, and one urine test.  We have a phone appointment at the beginning of May to go over the results, and figure out what the plan is.

                                                      Bloodwork is NO FUN for anyone!

    

                                            Hanging with Daddy after the tests are complete
As part of our little trip, we went to the Oregon Zoo in  Portland.  It was cold and sprinkling off and on, but there was hardly anyone there, which was great!  The boys had a great time, and the zoo isn't too huge which was good for everyone!

And last, but not least...our newest addition.  Meet Charlie:


The newest little boy in the Sampson crew.  He is a Cavi-poo, which is half Cavalier King Charles Spaniel and half Poodle.  He was born January 18th 2008, and we brought him home a week ago.  The boys are over the moon to FINALLY have a dog!!  It is true what they say. Having a puppy IS like having another baby, but we thought that it was important to raise a dog from a puppy in this loud house...especially for Parker.  He is so incredibly fun and soft, but I REALLY Can't wait until he sleeps through the night...and potty trains!!

I will update more soon!

P...A...R...

Have we mentioned that he is spelling? Yup. The boy spells. He doesn't say his name, but he can sure spell it!! Monica (2,3,4 as she is lovingly referred to by Parker) was working on a worksheet with Park. They were coloring a duck and she told him she was writing his name on the top of the page, and did so. The next day, they were coloring shapes, and she wrote his name on the top of the paper, without saying anything, and he just watched. The third day she got out a paper, and asked, "Should we write your name on the paper?"
We hear a soft, "Peeeee"
She silently writes a "P" and looks at me.
He is staring at the page.
"A"
She writes it. I am silently FREAKING OUT!!
"R"
I feel like I am going to hyperventilate. Monica is holding it together for the both of us. ;)
She writes an 'R' and looks at Parker.
"What comes next?"
"Kaaaaay"
She writes a 'K'.
"Eeeeeee"
She writes an 'E'.
I pinch myself. This can't really be happening. Our son can spell?!
"what comes next, Parker?"
"R!"
He says this last letter in a sing-song voice. I grab him and pull him into a hug.
"Good Boy, Parker!!!!! You are amazing!!!! You spelled Parker!!!"
He looks at me (his eye contact is improving)
"Peee..."
And it starts again.

There is not much better than these huge sucesses. He doesn't say his name, but he can spell it!!!
The wonderful couple in the nursery at church told me that he spelled "W-E-L-C-O-M-E" to everyone who poked their head in (there is a sign up on one of the walls);)
My silly, amazing boy!

Our family is expanding!!

No, I am not pregnant! (I hear both sighs of relief and moans of disappointment from all over the world right now) ;)
We put a down payment on a newborn cavalier-poodle mix puppy!



The boys are BEYOND excited to be getting a dog, and Matt can't believe that they finally wore us down. We have spent the weekend discussing names. The puppy is a little boy (what else would you expect in this household!), and is a newborn. He will be ready to come home with us around Easter.


This is what he probably will look like :


We have a lot to do before the puppy arrives, but are excited for the challenge...I think!

Help Parker and I by voting!!

http://blogs1.marthastewart.com/martha/?rsc=ts_Homepage_Homepage

Martha Stuart is having a contest on her blog.

THE BIG IDEA IS A COMPANY-WIDE COMPETITION THAT GIVES STAFF MEMBERS THE OPPORTUNITY TO SHARE THEIR OWN IDEAS FOR THE FUTURE OF MARTHA STEWART LIVING OMNIMEDIA. I WAS ABLE TO NARROW THE 40 ENTRIES DOWN TO 7 FINALISTS...BUT I JUST COULDN'T CHOOSE A WINNER...SO I'D LIKE YOU TO HELP ME DECIDE. HERE'S A SUMMARY OF THE PROPOSALS FROM OUR 2008 BIG IDEA FINALISTS!

The entry that I am asking you to vote for is the FOOD ALLERGIES publication. This publication will have a large emphasis on gluten free recipes. While there are gf cookbooks out there to pull recipes from, it is always a risk. An expensive risk. Gluten free cooking and baking is not cheap (to purchase a loaf of gf bread is about $6). In my experience, recipes produced in magazines are a home run (due to the fact that many are tried before they are printed by non-gf eaters). If a gluten-eater gives a stamp of approval on a loaf of bread, it is worth the time and money for me to try to make it.

So far, I have only found one magazine that is dedicated to recipes for those with food allergies. That magazine is Living Without (thank you mommy!) and it is fantastic! Unfortunately, it only comes out 4x/year. Any kind of additional publication would be an amazing help to myself, Parker, and any others out there living with food allergies.

PLEASE, PLEASE vote for FOOD ALLERGIES. http://blogs1.marthastewart.com/martha/?rsc=ts_Homepage_Homepage
You can vote every day until the 7th of February.
So vote, and vote often.
Thank you!

Snow Day!

So, after a week in bed with pneumonia, Andrew was glad to get out with Bren and some friends for a snow day!

The "Fearsome Foursome"

Andrew, Daniel, Brennan, and Amy

Daddy hard at work on the "Snow fort"

Brennan and Amy

Andrew

Inside the snow fort