Just a general post

OK - so the amazing thought of posting twice a month didn't quite happen... not like my faithful readers were surprised! =-)

On the home front we had a wonderful Thanksgiving. My parents came over and I did the whole dinner at my house. It turned out very well and we had a nice afternoon together. It actually seemed like a small gathering since we usually find someone who doesn't have a place to go joining our table but I guess there were no strays in our circle this year!

Christmas deco is up and the house is looking quite festive! I keep trying to get gifts bought, wrapped and distributed early but... yeah... still working on that. 'Course I could blame my friends the Owens who had the audacity to buy a new house, renovate and move - effectively tying up my Saturdays for the last three weeks. Then again, I volunteered (building serious brownie points for a future move of my own!) and got to meet their great extended family including Lisa!

AJ is doing well at the moment. She seems to have backed off from the stealing and is actually doing really well with the restrictions at home and school. I'm enjoying the lack of drama but also holding my breath waiting for the next event. Her psych doc is considering new meds for her and they are looking at some scary diagnosis. It's so hard to diagnose kids - is their behavior indicative of PTSD? RAD? FASD? Personality disorder? Bi-polar? Just being a kid? Preteen hormones? Sad as it is, a diagnosis is important to us for two reasons - 1 to get the school to acknowledge and provide the need for services and 2 parenting help! Parenting techniques for a PTSD kid is different than parenting for brain damage with FASD or a lifetime situation like bi-polar. The overall goal is the same - love and attention to help them mature into responsible adults but techniques to use on the way vary greatly!