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Showing posts with label memories. Show all posts
Showing posts with label memories. Show all posts
Saturday, December 31, 2011
Monday, November 21, 2011
Autism and Chit-Chat
The following conversation took place between Cody and me this evening...
Cody- Do you remember that squeaky ride at the Lane County Fair?
Me- No. There were a lot of rides at the fair. I don't remember a squeaky one though.
Cody- I wish your memory was as good as mine.
Me- Me too, but sometimes I'm glad it isn't.
Cody- How come?
Me- Because there are things that I'd rather forget, like times you were in the hospital and stuff.
...long pause
Cody- I just as soon forget taking temperatures in my butt.
I suppose that shows his age. When did they stop using rectal thermometers? The late '80's?
Cody- Do you remember that squeaky ride at the Lane County Fair?
Me- No. There were a lot of rides at the fair. I don't remember a squeaky one though.
Cody- I wish your memory was as good as mine.
Me- Me too, but sometimes I'm glad it isn't.
Cody- How come?
Me- Because there are things that I'd rather forget, like times you were in the hospital and stuff.
...long pause
Cody- I just as soon forget taking temperatures in my butt.
I suppose that shows his age. When did they stop using rectal thermometers? The late '80's?
Friday, October 21, 2011
What Do Cody and Chris Farley Have in Common?
Like many individuals with autism, Cody has an amazing memory. Not only can Cody remember people, but he remembers places and circumstances from as far back as infancy.
Recently Cody said to me, "Remember playing with Phyllis? She did Eency Weency Spider and Hickory Dickory Dock. Then she made me crawl." Phyllis was an employee from the school for the blind who made weekly visits to our home after Cody was born. Her job was to teach me how to teach Cody important things that a typical baby learns by sight; such as eating, crawling, and even how to play. Phyllis worked with Cody and me until Cody was four years old, then our family moved to another state. We haven't seen her since, but Cody recalls things about Phyllis as if we just saw her yesterday. It's mind boggling really.
Not only does Cody have an amazing memory, but he remembers in great detail. For instance, he can tell you exactly where he was and what he was doing during specific occasions.
Multiple times a day, Cody will ask, "Remember...?" And, if you don't remember (heaven forbid), he will say, "How come your memory is not as good as mine?" or "Mannn, I wish your memory was as good as mine."
Cody's trips down memory lane often make me think of the Chris Farley Show on SNL. As Cody would say, "Remember him?"
Recently Cody said to me, "Remember playing with Phyllis? She did Eency Weency Spider and Hickory Dickory Dock. Then she made me crawl." Phyllis was an employee from the school for the blind who made weekly visits to our home after Cody was born. Her job was to teach me how to teach Cody important things that a typical baby learns by sight; such as eating, crawling, and even how to play. Phyllis worked with Cody and me until Cody was four years old, then our family moved to another state. We haven't seen her since, but Cody recalls things about Phyllis as if we just saw her yesterday. It's mind boggling really.
Not only does Cody have an amazing memory, but he remembers in great detail. For instance, he can tell you exactly where he was and what he was doing during specific occasions.
Multiple times a day, Cody will ask, "Remember...?" And, if you don't remember (heaven forbid), he will say, "How come your memory is not as good as mine?" or "Mannn, I wish your memory was as good as mine."
Cody's trips down memory lane often make me think of the Chris Farley Show on SNL. As Cody would say, "Remember him?"
Tuesday, May 3, 2011
Chase Trimmed His Beard and I Didn't Think He Looked Gay Enough, So I Made Him Wear a Cowboy Outfit
(Not really. Those were Chase's words, but they made me laugh.)
We had family photo's taken May 1st. Here's a recap for those of you who are not regular readers of my blog...
The last time our family had pictures professionally taken was about twenty-five years ago. We were a family of four then; Cody was around five years old and Chase was a baby. Don and I have two more children, Casey (twenty-one) and Katelyn (nineteen), who have never been part of a professional family picture. You may be thinking "How horrible! What kind of mother doesn't want pictures taken of her family?" Well...look at the following snapshot of my kids and I think you'll understand.
Anyway...an hour before our appointment, Chase and Casey decided to complain (a lot) about the clothing Katelyn and I chose for them to wear.
AND...about twenty minutes before we were suppose to leave the house, Cody fell asleep in the recliner!
Once we were on location, however, things went fairly well. Despite dealing with my boy's negative attitudes, gusty winds, Cody's hatred of the great outdoors, and cold temperatures, I have high hopes that our family photographs will be great. And, even if they aren't, I will cherish them forever, because I will NOT go through this again!...at least until one of them gets married :)
We had family photo's taken May 1st. Here's a recap for those of you who are not regular readers of my blog...
The last time our family had pictures professionally taken was about twenty-five years ago. We were a family of four then; Cody was around five years old and Chase was a baby. Don and I have two more children, Casey (twenty-one) and Katelyn (nineteen), who have never been part of a professional family picture. You may be thinking "How horrible! What kind of mother doesn't want pictures taken of her family?" Well...look at the following snapshot of my kids and I think you'll understand.
Anyway...an hour before our appointment, Chase and Casey decided to complain (a lot) about the clothing Katelyn and I chose for them to wear.
 |
| Before dressing, Chase made himself (and everyone else) laugh by putting on one of Cody's "wife beaters". |
Once we were on location, however, things went fairly well. Despite dealing with my boy's negative attitudes, gusty winds, Cody's hatred of the great outdoors, and cold temperatures, I have high hopes that our family photographs will be great. And, even if they aren't, I will cherish them forever, because I will NOT go through this again!...at least until one of them gets married :)
Saturday, March 26, 2011
5 Songs That Bring Back Memories for Cody
After cartoons this morning, I changed the channel to Sirius Satellite Radio, so Cody could listen to his favorite 80's music while I cleaned the house. Periodically, he would get my attention and say, "This song reminds me of _______". I tried to get him to tell me why and give me details, but without much luck. Here are five of the songs, along with what limited amount of information Cody chose to share:
1) Life in a Northern Town by Dream Academy/ "Ford"
2) When the Going Gets Tough by Billy Ocean/ "Dunkin Donuts"
3) How Will I Know by Whitney Houston/ "rubbing your head hard, like rubbing a noogie"
4) King For A Day by Thompson Twins/ "a puppet show"
5) It's Still Rock and Roll to Me by Billy Joel/ "grandma's keyboard"
The only one that I can make any sense of is number five.
1) Life in a Northern Town by Dream Academy/ "Ford"
2) When the Going Gets Tough by Billy Ocean/ "Dunkin Donuts"
3) How Will I Know by Whitney Houston/ "rubbing your head hard, like rubbing a noogie"
4) King For A Day by Thompson Twins/ "a puppet show"
5) It's Still Rock and Roll to Me by Billy Joel/ "grandma's keyboard"
The only one that I can make any sense of is number five.
Thursday, February 24, 2011
Penny Candy Nostalgia
Penny Candy Store by John Collias
The picture above reminds me of Bill's Market, a small store in the community where I grew up. I have fond memories of my mother taking me and my younger sister, Teresa, there to get penny candy. The candy was kept behind the clerk's counter which made it impossible for children to see ( I'm sure that was the whole idea). I remember my mom lifting Teresa and me, so we could look at the candy over the counter and tell the clerk exactly what we wanted. He would then place the penny candy in little brown sacks, one for my sister and one for me. Here are a few of the sugary treats I'd choose...
Bazooka Bubble Gum
Sixlets
Tiny Wax Bottles. The liquid inside was pretty much tastless.
Jolly Ranchers
Tootsie Rolls
Smarties. For some reason, we liked to dissolve these in water.
Licorice. My sister liked black licorice. I hated it and stuck with red.
Candy Necklaces...loved these, but couldn't figure out why our necks got so sticky.
To see more of John Collias's artwork, visit his website at http://www.johncollias.com/ .
Tuesday, February 8, 2011
A Picture is Worth a Thousand Words
Chase wanted me to find a picture that I have of him wearing MC Hammer pants. Apparently, he is trying to prove to one of his friends that he actually owned a pair. Why? Who knows with that kid; I didn't even ask. Anyway, as I was digging through the box of pictures, I came across this priceless moment in time...
and I remembered EXACTLY why I don't have family photos taken!
Casey is cheesing. Chase just looks sad. I am not sure what Katelyn is doing, but definitely giving us attitude, and Cody is turned the wrong way! You'd think he was blind or something. ;-)
Casey is cheesing. Chase just looks sad. I am not sure what Katelyn is doing, but definitely giving us attitude, and Cody is turned the wrong way! You'd think he was blind or something. ;-)
Thursday, January 27, 2011
Embarrassing Things Kids Say
Katelyn, her friend Kaitlen and I were having a conversation today and the following memory came to mind as we were reminiscing:
Close to ten years ago, one of Cody's respite workers took Cody on an outing. She had a couple of Japanese exchange students living with her at the time, so they went along. That evening, after she brought Cody back home, I asked him, "Did you have fun Cody? What did you do?" He replied, "We went to the park with the Japs."
(Cody's autistic and loves to shorten words. He had no clue that what he said would be considered racist and socially inappropriate.)
I know you have embarrassing stories to share regarding your children. Please, do tell!
Close to ten years ago, one of Cody's respite workers took Cody on an outing. She had a couple of Japanese exchange students living with her at the time, so they went along. That evening, after she brought Cody back home, I asked him, "Did you have fun Cody? What did you do?" He replied, "We went to the park with the Japs."
(Cody's autistic and loves to shorten words. He had no clue that what he said would be considered racist and socially inappropriate.)
I know you have embarrassing stories to share regarding your children. Please, do tell!
Friday, January 21, 2011
If You Weren't a Child in the 1970's, Look What You Missed Out On...
Groovy patches to sew on your jeans...
Candy smokes...
Nice, sturdy CorningWare (My mom had this exact set.)...
Rotory phones with cords that kept you confined...
Sleek and stylish camp trailers...
Extremely high slides. Who cared about safety? (Parents were more chill back then.)
Crunch Cones. Loved them!!
Drive-In's. There's nothing like watching a movie, in a car, wearing your pajamas.
Portable 8 Track Tape Players. It was no big deal that the tape would switch tracks mid-song...
Happy Days. They were sooo coool.
Table-top Juke Boxes in diners. Who cared if the booth right beside you was listening to something else?!
________________________________________________
You Know You're a Child from the 70's when...
1) "All skaters, change directions" means something to you.
2) There was nothing strange about Bert and Ernie living together.
3) You remember wanting to stay up to see Mr. Bill on Saturday Night Live.
4) Schoolhouse Rock played a HUGE part in how you learned things like grammar, math and history. (A big hint here is if the only way you can recite the Preamble to the Constitution is by singing it.)
5) You learned to swim at about the same time "Jaws" came out... and still carry the emotional scars to prove it.
6) You recall when Love's Baby Soft was in every girl's Christmas stocking.
7) Most of the fillings in your mouth are directly related to Bazooka or Bubble Yum.
8) You know who shot J.R.
9) This rings a bell: "My name is Charlie, and they work for me."
and my personal favorite...
10) You remember the days when "safe sex" meant "my parents are going out of town".
Sunday, January 9, 2011
Bittersweet
The month of January brings mixed emotions to me, fond memories because it is the month that I met my husband (1982) and bad memories because it is the month Cody came close to death and pretty much lived in the Pediatric Intensive Care Unit.
I want to share the story about how I met my husband another time, but today I'm going to tell you about an experience we had with Cody while in PICU.
That January, in 1994, Cody had major shunt complications and surgeons had to externalize it. For those of you who may not know what this surgery entails, it meant drilling holes in Cody's skull and having two or three tubes come out of his head. When it came time to put his shunt back in, the Neurologist phoned Carol, Cody's nurse, and told her to get him prepped for surgery. Carol had to wash Cody's hair, which was a nerve racking task since Cody wasn't suppose to sit up or move his head. Carol stood at the top of Cody's bed with a small tub of warm water and antibacterial soap and gently began washing Cody's hair. As soon as she began, Cody started singing, in tune I might add, Whitney Houston's 'The Greatest Love of All'. He sang the song from start to finish and Carol literally had tears streaming down her cheeks as Cody sang.
I don't think Carol, Cody, Don or I will ever forget that day. There was a spirit in the room that was indescribable. It's definitely a bittersweet memory.
I want to share the story about how I met my husband another time, but today I'm going to tell you about an experience we had with Cody while in PICU.
That January, in 1994, Cody had major shunt complications and surgeons had to externalize it. For those of you who may not know what this surgery entails, it meant drilling holes in Cody's skull and having two or three tubes come out of his head. When it came time to put his shunt back in, the Neurologist phoned Carol, Cody's nurse, and told her to get him prepped for surgery. Carol had to wash Cody's hair, which was a nerve racking task since Cody wasn't suppose to sit up or move his head. Carol stood at the top of Cody's bed with a small tub of warm water and antibacterial soap and gently began washing Cody's hair. As soon as she began, Cody started singing, in tune I might add, Whitney Houston's 'The Greatest Love of All'. He sang the song from start to finish and Carol literally had tears streaming down her cheeks as Cody sang.
I don't think Carol, Cody, Don or I will ever forget that day. There was a spirit in the room that was indescribable. It's definitely a bittersweet memory.
Thursday, December 30, 2010
Thursday, December 9, 2010
How the Cat Stole Christmas
Jill is my best friend. You may be thinking "What? Her best friend isn't her husband?" Well, let me explain. He's just not the same kind of best friend. More than likely, only those of you with life-long best friends can understand. Jill and I were inseparable growing up. Even though we have lived in different states, miles and miles apart for many years, when we do get together there is no "warming up" or getting "re-acquainted". It's as if nothing at all has changed.
I tell you this because I was pondering December blog topics, trying to remember if I had any bad Christmas memories. I couldn't think of any, other than occasionally being sick with the flu and whatnot. However, I remembered my friend having one very sad Christmas growing up. Jill came from a large family and all she asked for that particular year was a bird. When Christmas day came, Jill called me on the telephone and tried her best not to cry as she told me Santa had indeed brought her a bird. BUT...her cat ate it that morning! At first I thought she was joking, but she was dead serious (no pun intended).
I tell you this because I was pondering December blog topics, trying to remember if I had any bad Christmas memories. I couldn't think of any, other than occasionally being sick with the flu and whatnot. However, I remembered my friend having one very sad Christmas growing up. Jill came from a large family and all she asked for that particular year was a bird. When Christmas day came, Jill called me on the telephone and tried her best not to cry as she told me Santa had indeed brought her a bird. BUT...her cat ate it that morning! At first I thought she was joking, but she was dead serious (no pun intended).
I wonder if she has ever shared that memory with her children? If she hasn't, she should :)
Photo Credit- dreamstime.com
Friday, July 2, 2010
The Wizard of Freakin' Oz
In the 1970's, when I was a child, there were movies that would only come on television once a year; 'The Wizard of Oz' being one of them. Terrified does not begin to describe how I felt every time the Wicked Witch of the West came on the screen. My younger sister and I would be so afraid, that she would sit on my mother's lap and I would be right beside them. And, might I add, the little evil, flying monkeys DID NOT help!
Between The Wizard of Oz and H.R. Pufnstuf ,a '70's television program that I actually LOVED, I had re-occurring dreams that my sister and I were locked in a witch's cave. We were always waiting for someone in the family to come and rescue us from the evil witch.
To this day, I can not enjoy that movie! The witch doesn't scare me anymore, but she certainly gives me a sick feeling in my gut.
I never did let my children watch 'The Wizard of Oz' because I wanted to save them from "trauma". Eventually they all had a chance to see the movie at Grandma's house (go figure). They laughed and said "It's not a scary movie mom". Regardless, I still think I did the right thing by depriving them of watching the evil movie when they were really young. After all, when my daughter was little, she wouldn't watch the Disney movie 'Snow White' because of the "scary witch" and to this day my 26 year old son has a fear that E.T is going to be in his closet! :)
Between The Wizard of Oz and H.R. Pufnstuf ,a '70's television program that I actually LOVED, I had re-occurring dreams that my sister and I were locked in a witch's cave. We were always waiting for someone in the family to come and rescue us from the evil witch.
To this day, I can not enjoy that movie! The witch doesn't scare me anymore, but she certainly gives me a sick feeling in my gut.
I never did let my children watch 'The Wizard of Oz' because I wanted to save them from "trauma". Eventually they all had a chance to see the movie at Grandma's house (go figure). They laughed and said "It's not a scary movie mom". Regardless, I still think I did the right thing by depriving them of watching the evil movie when they were really young. After all, when my daughter was little, she wouldn't watch the Disney movie 'Snow White' because of the "scary witch" and to this day my 26 year old son has a fear that E.T is going to be in his closet! :)
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