HAPPY BIRTHDAY CHRISTOPHER!!!

Christopher is 14 today!!!!  Oh my, where does the time go!



Christopher doesn't really like cake, so he asked for a cookie...my mom baked and decorated it for him. 

Kraig however, thought he should have cake too.....

Make a wish....

The birthday boy....

And at 14, he is now the tallest person in the house.

Home Depot

We discovered the coolest activity...Home Depot holds Kid's Workshops the 1st Sat of each month......totally completely FREE.  All we have to do is show up.  Today was Kraig's first one...he got a cool apron, a kit to make the bank, and a tack pin when he finished.  Way way cool.  We really only asked about it because it was a fire house...and anyone that knows Kraig knows how much he LOVES firemen, firetrucks, firehouses.  But this is a monthly thing, so we'll probably keep going.

Assembly...

Hammer....

Glue....

Decorate....

Make it stay....

The proud carpenter!!!

The cool apron....the tack pin has a picture of the firehouse bank he made...apparently they give one each month for the completed item.  A couple of other kids had like 6 pins on their aprons.

And the bank...he has already started putting money in it...saving for the trip to Washington...he plans to pay his own way to go snowboarding!

Marshmallow creations

Kraig spent almost a full hour (maybe a bit more) playing with marshmallows and toothpicks....apparently at school, they made men out of marshmallows...so he asked (begged) me to buy him some marshmallows at the store last night....and this is how he spent Saturday morning. 

Mallorie Dianne Hall...

September 1st was what would have been my niece Mallorie's 8th birthday.  She was born Sept 1, 2001....she would have hopefully been baptized this year.  She died two short months after she was born....



We released balloons for her birthday and watched them float to her in Heaven. 

HAPPY BIRTHDAY SWEET GIRL....until we meet again!

Random

Laying on the bed/futon with Christopher.....

Looking quite comfy......

And then he falls asleep....

Kraig is fascinated with guns....probably in direct proportion to my dislike of toy guns.  So he resorts to creating his own....

Point.....

Aim....

SHOOT!!!

The gun(s) grow each time there is an empty paper towel and/or toilet paper roll. 

And then he falls asleep watching the boomy show (aka Lock and Load).....poor little thing just went until he could go no more!!

My mom is the nursery leader for the youth leaders during the mid week youth meetings...Kraig gets to go with her.  Often he is the only boy....

Looks a little star struck, doesn't he....look at those pretty girls!

Living with Kraig....

A peek into a day in the life of Kraig. 



Early on we noticed some very strong behaviors in Kraig--always wanting things put away, "assigned" seats in the living room and at the dinner table, only Grandma could have the phone or tv remote, etc.  I took him for his annual check up a couple of years ago, and jokingly asked the Dr. if 2 year olds could be tested for OCD (Obsessive Compulsive Disorder).  She asked why, I shared the above behaviors with her, and she NOT jokingly said yes to the testing and gave me a couple of numbers.  Below is an example of the evidence of those behaviors. 

Notice how the tools are lined up?  This was for Daddy's "check up"....last year at school they brought home doctor dress up stuff....and Dr. Kraig(see below)

comes to visit every once in a while. I don't want  any check up that includes a hatchet and a crowbar!

Back to a day with Kraig.....his life is all about order and conistency.  He rides the bus to school....he will hesitate getting on the bus if it is a different bus or if his regular driver and assistant are not there.  We still have assigned seating in the living room and at the table...except when he gets a wild hair and rearranges us.  He seldom (and by seldom I mean the number I can count on one hand) falls asleep on his own....he is very very clingy.  He is not social...he will  not speak to strangers, and it takes a very very long time for him to warm up to others.  It has taken 2 years for him to respond to some of the adults at church, and he sees them every week. 



As for the testing for OCD....he was diagnosed with Pervasive Development Disorder....which is in the autistic spectrum.  From what I've read, it basically is a catch all...he does not exhibit enough behaviors and/or those he does exhibit are not severe enough to be one of the other 4 disorders in the autistic spectrum.   



Aside from the obvious...this is another reason he is spoiled absolutely, positively ROTTEN!



Life with Kraig can be challenging, but he is a total joy to have in our home and I feel truly blessed to have been chosen to be his mom.