First Day of School!!!!

Well, it finally came! The boys went back to school and a consistent routine and schedule reappeared! I have come to realize that I probably need routine more than the boys do. It really does wonders for me in so many ways.

August is a magical time where back-to-school sales abound and the school supply section is the most heavenly place on earth for three weeks. This year, however, I did all the boys school clothes and shoe shopping on-line. Because I can. And as I was shopping, I asked Cruise what color shirts he wanted this year and he said, "You know Mom, I think I want to wear other colors. Like blue or something." I was doing a mental happy dance! I cannot tell you how thrilled I was that the era of Green Shirts Only had finally come to an end! He still needs activewear, but now it can be in pretty much any color! AND, he is wearing one with a graphic on it! He never would let me buy him shirts with graphics, so this was a HUGE deal! Jett luckily didn't need any new school clothes, but I got him a few just because it's nice to have some new clothes to wear to school. Both the boys' feet grew an entire size over the summer, so I ended up having to buy them brand new kicks again. Luckily their old ones are in great condition still, so those can be passed along.

Cruise started 4th grade in Mr. Middleton's class and Jett started 1st grade with Mrs. Hiatt both at Eaglecrest Elementary. Miles also thought he was going to school, but alas it was not so and the poor little prince had to return home despite his protesting and screaming. It actually was my fault, really. The boys were getting ready and I did their hair, so Miles wanted his hair done too. Then I got their backpacks, and of course Miles wanted one as well. Finally, I had them go outside for pictures and obviously Miles had to be included. But through all of this, not once did I think, "Oh, maybe I should remind Miles that he's not actually going to school," so when I dropped the boys off in front of their school, Miles had the ultimate breakdown. Poor kid. But he got over it quickly and he had a lovely day playing and helping Mom and Dad around the house.

Their version of "Hear no evil, see no evil, speak no evil".

Cruise hasn't had to deal with a lot of change since he has the same teacher as last year and pretty much the same classmates. He has, however, been struggling with anxiety, irritability, and negativity more than usual. The first week was super hard and it kept me up night after night crying and researching. The first week of every school year is a hard adjustment, but this year was something else. He was almost out of control and so of course that put me on a mission to figure out how to help him. Summer was a watered-down version of all these behaviors and emotions, but with school starting, it amped up and I realized I needed to find him a therapist and try to figure out solutions for all the negativity and meltdowns. Appointments are set up, but what do I do for the next few weeks? So I looked into something I always made fun of: essential oils. Or, as Dave calls them, Snake Oil. Ha ha! But really, I am desperate. So I asked the LDS Autism Parents group on Facebook if any of them had tried essential oils, and one lady told me about a great company that doesn't cost too much. Apparently she does oils with her child and it helps his anxiety quite a bit. So I bought a few different things, ordered a $17 diffuser off of Amazon, and got started! We've only been using them for about 3 days, but I can already see a difference in his moods, his ability to fall asleep, and even my anxiety levels. I've been using the anxiety roll-on oil quite a bit myself and I am shocked at how well they work. And they smell amazing! I went into it very skeptical, but now I see why so many people sing their praises.

Jett has been doing great in his new class. When I picked him up after school the first day, Jett jumped into the van with a big smile on his face and exclaimed, "I made new friends!" He couldn't remember their names, of course, but he was already happy about school, his classmates, and his super nice teacher. I think he's going to have a great year. Luckily his teacher this year doesn't give out homework but only requires he read 20 minutes a day. That was a relief because he had so much homework last year it was ridiculous! So both boys don't have a lot of homework and that is great news for me (and them. But mostly me.).

Cruise's Birthday Party

Cruise had a great birthday party! This year he wanted to go to the Living Planet Aquarium in Draper. I looked up their birthday packages and I just couldn't justify paying that much on a party. So I had all the kids meet at the house first where we had cake & presents, and then we drove them all to the aquarium. It worked out fantastically and everyone had fun!

Cruise decided he wanted to have a Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle cake this year. As much as I wanted to go crazy with the fondant and modeling chocolate, I remembered my agreement with Dave that I wouldn't go nuts. Plus, Cruise hates fondant, so I had to do something with just frosting. So I bought a topper from Amazon and did the rest in buttercream frosting. The cake was vanilla and I made chocolate mousse to go in between the three layers. It turned out great and tasted amazing!

Cruise had Claire, Sam (from his church class), and Aiden show up. Aiden didn't come for the first hour and a half, so his mom dropped him off at the aquarium. Abby, Casey and baby Liev joined us as well.

Cruise got some great gifts! Grams sent him a check for $15, Grandma & Papa Greer sent him another obnoxious card and a gift card to Target (he loved it), Grandma & Grandpa Ybarra sent him a Miposaur robot, Abby & Casey got him an iTunes gift card, Jett got him walkie-talkies, Claire got him a Moon in My Room (he used to have one when he was a toddler, but it broke), Sam got him Legos, and Dave & I got him an iPod shuffle. He loved all of his gifts and was so happy to get them! Thank you everyone for thinking of him!

After presents, we packed it up and headed over to the aquarium!

The kids had a lot of fun and eventually Aiden showed up. Although, he started fighting with Claire so we had to split them up. But other than that, things went smoothly and Cruise said those words I always wait to hear every birthday: "That was the best birthday ever!" Success!

Oh, and Aiden got him Moon Shoes