Life lessons- the birthday addition...

This is the first birthday where Aiden has really taken any interest in his birthday cards. Now that he can read a bit he is starting to see the point of them :).

He was sent two cards in the mail from relatives who live far away- one from his grandparents and another from his great Aunt & Uncle.

Both had these odd pieces of paper stuck in them and Aiden couldn't quite figure out what they were for...

Here is daddy explaining what a "check" is...

So Aiden studied the checks...

and here is the moment when he realized that "check" equals MONEY!

Oh the joy!

A letter to my son...

My dearest Aiden

Today you turn 8 years old and I can hardly believe it has been that long since I first held you in my arms. You changed my whole world by your very existence!

You have taught me so much in your 8 years.

That first year of your life you were pretty unhappy- you cried and cried and cried. We went to see a lot of different doctors and they all seemed to think it was "just" colic and that you would grow out of it. Some of them thought that it was my fault that you were so unhappy- they thought I wasn't parenting you properly. They gave me a lot of really bad advice... but when I would try to do what they said we both knew it was all wrong.

We know now that you have all sorts of sensory issues and that was probably what was making you so uncomfortable. The lights were too bright, the clothes were too hard, the food didn't taste right, the sounds were too loud, the stuff around you was all too much. But I didn't know that then. I wish I had.

But we figured it out together- you, your dad and I. I learned that you felt most comfortable being held against my chest... and so that is what we did. A lot. I loved it when you snuggled up close to me because you would stop crying and your whole body would relax and you would be ok again. I learned to breath and let the world around me fade away so I could really focus on what was most important- you!

You taught me to trust my mommy-instincts. I had NO idea how to be a mommy before you came along. There were a lot of times that first year when I felt really overwhelmed. I was so sad that you were so unhappy. I KNEW something was wrong but I just didn't know how to fix it. And so we spent a lot of time crying together that year. 

But I promise you that I have been so thankful for you every single day of your life. I am so glad I am your mom!

Over the years you have grown into such an amazing kid. You astound me. You have so very many challenges to overcome- your Autism & ADHD & sensory issues & Asthma is so much more than I think ANY kid should have to endure. I am so proud of you.

Your dad and I have struggled a lot over the past 8 years trying to learn how to parent you in the right way. I read about a thousand books and tried all the conventional parenting strategies... and you taught me that not every kid is the same. What works for one kid might not work for another kid. Even if something works for MOST of the kids it doesn't mean it will work for ALL of the kids.

I've learned not to care as much what other people think. You taught me that sometimes it is more important to just let someone freak out loudly or to hold them softly when they cry- even if the whole world is standing there looking at you like you are a moron.

You taught me that sleeping through the night is not a necessity... but hearing "I love you mommy" is.

You taught me how to play cars and Lego and how to make vehicle sounds. 

You taught me that God always takes care of us- just not necessarily in the way we expect.

You taught me to laugh even in the midst of chaos.

You taught me that a perfectly clean house is highly overrated.

You taught me to be an advocate, to really stand up for someone when they can't do it for themselves. To be persistent and determined to do what you know is right.

You taught me not to be so judgmental. To accept people for who they are- for who GOD MADE THEM to be, not try to make them into something they are not.

You taught me to love more than I ever thought was possible.

Aiden, I wish I could take all of your struggles away. I wish I could make school and friendships easy for you. I wish I could snap my fingers and make your Autism disappear. I hate it that I passed my Asthma on to you and you have to take so many meds just to keep it under control.

But I can't take that stuff away. It breaks my heart to see how tough life can be for you, to see how frustrated and angry and hurt you get. But just know that no matter what I will ALWAYS love you and think you are super cool.

I love your laugh and your sense of humour. I love your grin and the gleam in your eyes. I love your creativity and intelligence. I love your hugs and how sweet you can be. I love your passion for life.

I love YOU Aiden. Happy birthday honey.

Always,
Mom

You know you're tired when...

all you can do is put on your mittens and lay down on the floor and go to sleep.

This is how I found Olivia late this afternoon... so cute :) .

LikeWear *review*

Thanks to MomSelect I was given the opportunity to review a fabulous hoodie from LikeWear.

Here is a bit of information about LikeWear that I got from their website:

LikeWear® is a modern day fusion of a high quality, casual boutique children’s clothing line and a more traditional party plan direct sales company. We offer a flexible, fun way to have your own clothing “store” without the risk of carrying inventory.

As the first and only direct sales company to focus on selling officially licensed products, we offer merchandise that is completely unique to the party plan business. Yet, unlike other items sold in this channel, our merchandise doesn’t require much demonstration as its designs feature family friendly, super well-known brands like Lucky Charms, Tootsie Roll, Jr. Mints, Dots, Honda motorcycles, the Pillsbury Doughboy and many others. So rather than presenting, our Independent Sales Representatives simply help people shop for “what they like”!

And we’ve got a lot to like! From modern day and vintage package art, to exclusive designs and unique twists on popular culture, we’ve created 100+ images that can be mixed and matched with different garment bodies and colors. This makes for fabulous fun and a unique twist at parties when our reps help their customers design!

LikeWear was founded by mompreneur, Lisa Gold, in April, 2007 when she decided she wanted something a little more fulfilling than coordinating carpools. What started as a keen idea to embellish children’s clothes in her kitchen, has turned into a fast-growing direct sales company that is looking for founding representatives to help it expand nationally. LikeWear is a proud member of the Direct Selling Association (www.dsa.org) and more information can be found at www.likewear.com.

We received this great Tootsie Basketball Hoodie and Owen loves it...

When I asked Owen what he thought of his new hoodie he told me that it is comfortable to wear and "cool because it is black and there is guys playing basketball with candy"!

He has worn it to school and around the house several days since we got it. It washed very well and still looks good!

LikeWear has tons of different graphics to choose from and you can mix and match to create exactly what your kid will love. They also have non-candy related graphics if you were wondering!

My only complaint is that LikeWear is currently a USA-only company... but hopefully they will expand into Canada (where I am!) soon.

Thanks so much to LikeWear and MomSelect for allowing me to participate in this tour!

Sunshine by Karen Skloss *review*

Sunshine

The Changing Face of Families: From 'Unwed Mother' to 'Single Mom' Through One Woman's Personal Story

-information taken from the website

When filmmaker Karen Skloss got pregnant at the age of 23, she decided to have and keep the baby — even when it became clear that her relationship with the baby’s father wouldn’t work out. She had no idea that it would be so easy to alter her life in one stroke.

In SUNSHINE, Skloss explores the meaning of family through a personal journey to understand both the legacy of her own birth and the non-traditional family she created by co-parenting with her ex-boyfriend. Young, pregnant, single, and unprepared, Skloss struggles with the fact that sometimes, the most strenuous efforts to protect the idea of family can actually do the most to pull families apart.

Skloss’s pregnancy was, in a way, a case of history repeating itself. As a pregnant teenager, Skloss’s biological mother, the mayor’s daughter in a small Texas town, hushed herself away in a Catholic home for unwed mothers before giving Skloss up for adoption in 1975. She went on to lead a relatively normal life — finishing college, getting married, and having several other children. Few people, other than her new husband, had any idea what had happened. But that was more than Skloss knew for many, many years.

As she reconnects with her biological mother in SUNSHINE, Skloss also contemplates her relationship with her own daughter, Jasmine. “Though the meaning of family today is stretched ever farther, there is still plenty of struggle and at times, a nagging shame in being a single parent,” Skloss says. “A large part of my difficulty lay in the realization that I’d become one of ‘those’ people, who will never have a ‘normal’ family. My birthmother says she feared the shame that situation would have created for me.”

Woven together from more than 10 years’ worth of home movies, intimate family interviews, shimmering dance sequences, and stylized reenactments, SUNSHINE is a refreshing and compelling self-portrait of an adopted woman driven to search for her pride and identity while reconnecting with her biological mother.

Sunshine on Facebook

Sunshine on Twitter

MY REVIEW

I found Sunshine fascinating. As a child of a single mother I enjoyed this intimate look at single motherhood. How society sees single mothers has certainly changed over the past 50 years and Skloss does an excellent job of showing just how far we've come. I liked the documentary style of the film and the honesty and intimacy was refreshing.  

You can watch Sunshine on the PBS series Indpendent Lens on Tuesday, May 4 at 10 pm. 

Thanks so much to Independent Lens for sending me a review copy of this film. 

My Little Princess

Wordless Wednesday- Naptime

Trident Layers *review*

Our family was sent some samples of Trident Layers gum to review.

My kids are total gum-a-holics (thanks for that Grandma) and so they were pretty excited to try Trident Layers. The gum comes in two flavours- Wild Strawberry + Tangy Citrus and Green Apple + Golden Pineapple.

Trident Layers is sugar free and has less than 5 calories but that isn't what impressed me- I was truly impressed with how long the flavour lasted. I pretty much hate chewing tasteless gum so this was a nice change!

We all thought the "sandwich" effect was pretty cool...

If you are looking for a great gum than give Trident Layers a try!

Alvin and the Chipmunks: the squeakquel *review*

Information from the press release:

The Blockbuster Squeakquel with Over An Hour More of Music, Dancing and Chipmunk Fun With The All New “Squeak-Along” Bonus Content

TORONTO, ON (February 9, 2010) – The box office smash hit Alvin and the Chipmunks: The Squeakquel sings and shakes its way to Blu-ray Disc/DVD Combo Pack, “Squeak-Along” double DVD, and DVD Single Disc March 30^th from Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment.  A follow-up to 2007’s Alvin and the Chipmunks, Chipmunk singing sensations Alvin, Simon and Theodore are back for an encore in this hilarious “squeakquel” packed with over an hour more of music. The Squeak-Along bonus content includes new sing-alongs such as Beyonce’s “Single Ladies,” teaches audiences how to dance like the Chipmunks with the “Shake Your Groove Thing” dance instructional video, games and more nutty fun for the whole family!

When a concert mishap lands Dave in the hospital, the Chipmunks take a break from superstardom and enroll in school to fit in with kids their age.  But they soon face some stiff competition when they meet the Chipettes — a beautiful, talented trio of chipmunks discovered by Ian, the boys’ evil ex-manager!

From director Betty Thomas (Dr. Dolittle), the heartwarming film stars Golden Globe^? nominee* Jason Lee (“My Name Is Earl”), Emmy Award^? winner** David Cross (“Arrested Development”) and Zachary Levi (“Chuck”), and features vocal talent from franchise veterans Justin Long (He’s Just Not That Into You), Matthew Gray Gubler (500 Days of Summer) and actor-pop heartthrob Jesse McCartney (Alvin and the Chipmunks).  Newcomers Christina Applegate (“Samantha Who”), Anna Faris (The House Bunny) and Amy Poehler (“Saturday Night Live”) lend their voices to the musically talented Chipettes as Brittany, Jeanette and Eleanor, respectively.

The hit soundtrack to the Alvin and the Chipmunks: The Squeakquel features The Chipmunks and The Chipettes covering some of today’s top hits and classic tracks as well as original songs including “Single Ladies (Put A Ring On It),” “Hot N Cold,” “Stayin’ Alive,” and “I Gotta Feeling.” The album is certified gold by the RIAA for sales of over 500,000 and has reached #1 on the Billboard Top Soundtrack chart and #6 on the Billboard Top 200 Album chart.

The Alvin and the Chipmunks: The Squeakquel Blu-ray/DVD Combo Pack includes a high definition Blu-ray version of the film, and all hilarious bonus features from the Squeak-Along Bonus Disc including Sing-Alongs, Chipmunk Adventures, Munk Music Machine, Meet the Chipettes, Meet The Rising Stars, Music Mania, Shake Your Groove Thing, Music Videos, a Live Lookup featurette, and much more.  The pack also includes a Digital Copy and a standard DVD, and will be available for the suggested retail price of $49.99 Canada/$39.99 U.S.

Featuring more entertainment for the whole family, the “Squeak-Along” double DVD pack features an all-new bonus disc with over an hour of added Chipmunks Sing-alongs, music videos, featurettes and much more, and will be sold for the suggested retail price of $45.98 Canada/$34.98 U.S.

The Alvin and the Chipmunks: The Squeakquel will also be available in a single disc with two featurettes – Munk Music Machine and Music Mania – for the suggested retail price of $43.48 Canada/ $29.98 U.S.

For more Alvin and the Chipmunks: The Squeakquel fun go to www.MunkYourself.com now to create your own munk!  The website will include many new updates that are sure to make you party like a munk-star, including 2 brand-new games -- "Dance to the Beat" and  "Munk Mic" -- as well as the ability to generate a munked audio-recording of your voice which can be downloaded as a ringtone.

MY REVIEW

My kids absolutely LOVE this movie. Love it. All three of them - ages 3, 6, and almost 8 - have watched it at least 10 times since it arrived. When I asked the kids what they thought of the movie this is what they told me:

Olivia: "they are funny and there is dancing music!"

Owen: "Alvin and the Chipmunks are SO cool! They are famous and they go to school and I really like it when they are funny"

Aiden: "I like the movie way more than the TV show because it is more real. I don't know how they make the chipmunks look so real but I think it is with computers."

This movie is perfect fun family-friendly entertainment.

Thanks so much to Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment for sending me a review copy of this DVD. 

the anatomy of a play-date

Aiden and Owen had friends over to play today and Aiden's Autism was especially noticeable... and I found that especially tough.
Most of the time Aiden is just Aiden and not "Aiden-the-Autistic-kid" in our family. He is just my son and his "issues" are in the backseat. But today the Autism grabbed hold of my heart and squeezed.

April is Autism awareness month and so I am going to try and explain today a bit more in the interest of education.

Here is how having a friend over to play typically goes for Aiden:

1. The friend arrives and Aiden immediately invades his personal space. He jumps and laughs and goes uncontrollably crazy in his giddiness that a friend has actually arrived at our home to play with him. After all that doesn't happen very often.

Personal space and boundaries are very difficult for Autistic kids to understand.

2. The friend feels overwhelmed and starts to back away. Aiden needs help calming down.

Reading another person's facial expressions  (ex. the facial expression that says "yikes, back away") and understanding the emotions behind them is next to impossible for an Autistic kid.

3.  Aiden realizes he wants to show his friend his room. And yes, this happens with every visit.

Autistic kids tend to be very attached to their "stuff".

4. Owen has joined into the fun (it's his room too) and then Aiden feels compelled to fight for the guest's full attention.

Understanding WHY people are doing things in interpersonal relationships is extremely difficult for an Autistic kid. It is easy for them to misunderstand and get their feelings hurt. 

5. Aiden and his friend play well together until the friend wants to play something else. Then Aiden freaks out. Parent intervention is usually required to help Aiden transition to a new game. Sometimes it works and other times Aiden needs time alone to calm down. The friend will often play with Owen at this point which distresses Aiden even more.

Transitions are incredibly hard and can be very confusing for an Autistic kid.  Understanding another person's point of view is not a skill that comes naturally to them.

6. That cycle repeats as long as the friend is at our home. Aiden doesn't understand why everyone doesn't want to play the same game the same way as he does. He struggles to follow another child's lead. He is easily threatened and is easily upset. He pouts when he doesn't get his own way.  If he does something funny and the friend laughs he continues to do the funny thing over and over again until well after it has ceased to be funny. He generally frustrates the heck out of whoever he is trying to play with.

It can be very hard for an Autistic kid to know the difference between someone laughing WITH you and someone laughing AT you. 

7. Play time is over and it is time for the friend to go home. Aiden bursts into sobbing wailing tears begging the friend not to leave. The friend is generally quite uncomfortable with this bizarre display of affection.

Autistic kids tend to do quite a few things that are not always socially acceptable. They don't always know what is appropriate in social situations. 

So there you have it.  Aiden is emotionally spent by the time the "play date" is over because he has had to work so hard to get along with the other kids.

Some days stuff like this doesn't phase me at all. But some days... like today... watching the way my son interacts with his peers makes me so very sad. I just wish it didn't have to be so hard for him.

Playing dress-up...

Alvin & The Chipettes in Cinderella, Cinderella (review)

All three of my kids are big fans of Alvin & the Chipmunks which is funny to me since I totally watched them when I was a kid too! Who knew that my kids would end up watching the same shows I did when I was their age? Anyway, they were pretty excited when this DVD came in the mail...

Here is some information from the press release:

Perfect for the Whole Family, DVD Arrives March 30, 2010 With Over an Hour of Music and Laughter
HOLLYWOOD, Calif. – Prince Charming is on his way with a capital A, along with a whole lot of fun, in the enchanting new DVD ALVIN & THE CHIPMUNKS: Alvin and The Chipettes in Cinderella, Cinderella arriving March 30, 2010 from Bagdasarian Productions and Paramount Home Entertainment.  Three hilarious episodes feature outrageously funny antics and delightful musical performances from the Chipettes—Brittany, Jeanette and Eleanor—and, of course, Alvin, Simon and Theodore. These same six Chipmunks have taken the world by storm with their new motion picture, Alvin & The Chipmunks: The Squeakquel, which generated over $250 million at the worldwide box office in its first 12 days.

 In “Cinderella, Cinderella” Brittany finds herself dreaming of her mean sisters and stepmother in a hilarious retelling of the classic story, complete with a Fairy Godmunk and handsome Prince Charming; “Alvie’s Angels” finds the professional, hair dryer-toting Chipettes on the trail of a notorious jewel thief; and in “The Brunch Club”, the Chipmunks and Chipettes get detention for knocking down a statue at school, but set out to solve the mystery of who really did it, and why. 

The ALVIN & THE CHIPMUNKS: ALVIN & THE CHIPETTES IN CINDERELLA, CINDERELLA DVD is presented in full screen format with Dolby Digital English Stereo and includes the following episodes:

·     Cinderella, Cinderella
·     Alvie’s Angels
·     The Brunch Club

 
My sons enjoyed this DVD but my daughter LOVES it. The Chipettes rendition of Cinderella is cute. Olivia has watched it several times since the DVD arrived. I personally found the Alvie's Angels episode which was a spoof on Charlie's Angels quite entertaining. Of course my kids had no idea that these episodes had any connection to the 1980's but they didn't seem to care.

The DVD is completely family friendly and there is nothing I found even remotely offensive in it. If  you are an Alvin & the Chipmunks fan than you will likely enjoy this DVD. It is also great for a little walk down memory lane for those of us who grew up with these shows!


Thanks so much to Click Communications for sending me a review copy of this DVD.

Dandelions!

I got my very first dandelion bouquet of the season from Owen! I love dandelion bouquets!!

Since when has camping been too expensive?

My beautiful iMac is currently at the Mac-doctor being fixed... I miss it. But on the up side it is being fixed and I will have it back soon! Yay!

In other news my husband and I have been trying to figure out what to do for holidays this summer. There are some absolutely gorgeous provincial parks near us and we had hoped to do some camping at one of them. So I looked up the camping rates and here is what I found...

A - Premium

$ 42.75 Electrical

$ 37.75 Non-electrical

$ 36.25 Non-electrical without showers

B - Middle

$ 39.25 Electrical

$ 34.25 Non-electrical

$ 32.75 Non-electrical without showers

C - Low

$ 34.25 Electrical

$ 29.25 Non-electrical

$ 27.75 Non-electrical without showers

Ya. $42.75 for a nice campsite with electricity and access to showers... $27.75 for the CHEAPEST campsite with no electricity and no showers. And from what I read that means no flush toilets either... just those delightful outhouses. Ick. I also looked at a bunch of private campgrounds in the area and found similar rates.

It is my opinion that $ 30 per night is far too much to spend for camping without even having the option of taking a shower. No thank-you. Especially considering that if I wanted to truly "rough it" while camping I could find some crown land or a friend with lots of land and camp for free.

But since when is camping with 3 children (who are all afraid of the dark incidentally) with no electricity and no place to clean up a vacation? My husband and I went camping like that when we were first married and it was great fun (really!) but having kids has completely changed my idea of what is a necessity on vacation. Showers and toilets that flush are a necessity. And so is electricity for a truly enjoyable time.

So now we don't know what to do. What do you do when even camping costs too much money??

Word Girl: Earth Day Girl review

Earth Day is coming up on Thursday, April 22. We are trying to teach our kids (and ourselves!) to be earth-friendly all year round but Earth Day is an excellent opportunity to drive the point home in a special way. The boys' school is doing a whole bunch of special events this week as well so both Aiden and Owen have been talking about Earth Day a lot.

I was recently sent a copy of Word Girl: Earth Day Girl DVD to review with my kids and though Earth Week would be an excellent time to tell you what we thought of it!

Snyopsis: WordGirl” is a new animated series that follows the every day life and superhero adventures of “WordGirl” as she fights crime and enriches vocabulary usage, all in a day’s work.

WORD GIRL: EARTH DAY will be available on DVD 3/30. In this educational and entertaining PBS series Word Girl fights crime and enriches vocabulary. In this particular DVD set Word Girl takes on Birthday Girl in Earth Day Girl. Word Girl is working at an Earth Day Fair where she comes across Birthday Girl who is polluting and destroying the earth.  It is up to Word Girl to stop the destruction! Kids learn the importance of keeping the earth clean and ways they can help out. Recycle is a featured word in this episode!


Special Features:

• Interactive Games

• Video Shorts

• Coloring Pages
  

We have been watching Word Girl on TV for over a year now, maybe more. Since both of my sons struggled with learning to read I appreciated Word Girl's focus on vocabulary. All three of my kids (ages 3, 6, and almost 8) enjoy Word Girl.

This particular DVD is great because it combines the Earth-friendly theme with it's regular focus on vocabulary. All three of my kids liked this DVD but I think Owen (my 6 year old) was the most impressed. He is in grade one this year and is definitely the most passionate kid in our family about being Earth friendly. He has referenced Earth Day Girl several times in conversations we've had about what we can do as a family to take care of the Earth God gave us! The fact that he remembers this DVD so well just proves to me how much he enjoyed it.

I asked the kids what their favourite part of this DVD was and here is what they said:

Olivia: "Word Girl wears a star and has a monkey and that's funny but her costume isn't pink. She should wear pink. She can fly!"

Owen: "I like Captain Huggy Face and I like the one with a robot and the recycling. Did you know we cleaned up the school outside today? Word Girl cleans up."

Aiden: "I like the games" (referring to the interactive games on the DVD extras)

Word Girl: Earth Day Girl was a hit in our house and I am happy to recommend it.

Thanks so much to Click Communications for sending me a review copy of this DVD.

Olivia's very busy day...

It was a gorgeous day outside today and Olivia had a ton of fun in our yard. I thought she looked super cute in her outfit-of-choice as well. The kid's got personality!

Fast...

Ladies of the House

Ladies of the House

~ Jennifer Andreacola, Joshua Andreacola, and Judith Baldwin (DVD - 2010)

Synopsis:

When three ladies are asked to refurbish a house for their church, they find that they must break down their own self-perceptions in order to build something together. Birdie can't get along with her husband, Rose doesn't want to do anything without her husband and Elizabeth has everything she wants, but nothing to call her own. Filled with heart, humor and hammers, "Ladies of the House" follows three women who find out that their construction project will mend each of their personal lives in ways they never expected.

 

Dove Worldview:

- this is a review by The Dove Foundation

These "Ladies of the House" are on a mission that will change all of their lives forever. Each woman has a different type of life and relationship with her husband. So this project helps them overcome the challenges of refurbishing the house but also their personal lives. Together Birdie, Rose and Elizabeth learn what it takes to work together but they also become great friends who are there for each other when their personal lives are not going well. 

This is an inspirational movie about friendships and personal relationships. Although it is a dramatic film there are some comical scenes when the women try to remodel this house. We award this movie the Dove" Family-Approved" Seal for 12 and older.

 What I thought in a nutshell...


I enjoyed this movie. I liked watching the main characters interact with each other and seeing them grow and change. Overall it is a good story.




Thanks so much to Vivendi Home Entertainment and Bender/Helper Impact for sending me a review copy of this DVD.

In short...

My wonderful computer that I adore is on the fritz... we need to take it in to get repaired but are waiting until we have the money to fix it ... so in the meantime I am stuck using this teeny tiny wal-mart netbook and it is sucking my creativity out of me. Don't get me wrong- I am thankful to have it! But it makes posting pictures really hard and the teeny tiny little screen and keyboard are annoying and it just seems to take me longer to get stuff done. But wow, I would seriously be screwed without it! So three cheers for cheap computers, even if they are slow.

Sometimes I find it hard to believe that 4 years ago all I did on the computer was check my email. And 15 years ago I never used a computer. Ever. My how things change.

All that aside I just wanted to share a couple of especially cool things that happened this weekend...

1. my mom got back from her vacation and my kids are SO excited to have her back! I'm sure she has gotten more hugs and kisses in the last two days than she has in months. She also brought us all presents :). Welcome home Grandma, we missed you!

2. the weather was so beautiful today that I was outside in jeans and a t-shirt for the first time since last fall! Lovely. I love you Spring xox!

3. Tonight when I was putting the boys to bed Owen asked if I would read "Green Eggs and Ham" by Dr. Seuss to him. I was right in the middle of giving Aiden his inhaler so I said "how about you start it for me Owen". So he did! And then he just kept on reading!

Owen read me the entire 62 page book.... it makes me all emotional just thinking about it because I am so darn proud of him He struggled so much to catch up to his class in reading and to see him just pick up a book and read is a beautiful thing.

So ya, it has been a very good weekend.

By the way- it is Autism Awareness month so if anyone has any questions they would like to ask me about Autism or about Aiden specifically or how we do things around here please feel free to ask. I am happy to talk about it!

The Nanny Express

The Nanny Express

~ Dorie Barton, Emayatzy E. Corinealdi, Peter Dobson, and Natalie Dreyfuss (DVD - 2010)

Synopsis:

She's a busy student looking for a job. He's a widowed dad in need of some help. If his unruly kids will give her a chance, this could be the perfect professional relationship...if only their feelings for each other weren't so personal. But with a little time and a lot of faith, these two just may find a way to make things work. Vanessa Marcil and Stacey Keach lead a charming cast in this heartwarming, romantic comedy about unexpected directions that can change a life and the rewards of every little detour. 

Dove Worldview:

-this is a review by The Dove Foundation

Here is one that the girls will love more than the boys. What starts out to be a comedy about two very mean kids who are always making their nannies quit turns into a romantic movie about a nanny falling for her boss. It is a charming story but a fairy-tale for most. It is definitely a film which would be great for the girls' movie night.

Although some of the tactics the kids use to get rid of the nanny are funny, I was disappointed that they never received any reprimand for their terrible actions. At times the young girl is downright rude and plots against the nanny but in return her father buys a car for her 16th birthday. Maybe in their world you can hire a nanny to take care of your children and not correct them when needed but not in mine. One thing that does strike me as a good lesson in this movie, is that we don't always understand the feelings of children when they lose a parent. Due to the commendable themes, we award the Dove "Family-Approved" Seal for all ages.

What I thought in a nutshell...

I think The Nanny Express is a cute chick-flick. There were quite a few funny moments and the acting was good. Overall I enjoyed it!

Thanks so much to Vivendi Entertainment and Bender/Helper Impact for sending me a review copy of this DVD.