Family Update

[Guest guest]

Hi everyone,

It has been so long since I have posted anything beyond a remark, but I still

read as much as I can. This is probably why I don't post - seems I can get to

the computer only at night, I read all the emails and anything else on the web,

then I'm too tired to type! Oh, and I eat my cookies and milk too, lol.

My name is Patty, I am married to Andre - this is a shortened version of his

name, my husband is from Poland. He is a math professor at OSU. I have no

paying job, but I have a hard-earned associate RN degree that I received one

day before my now nine year old was born! Who knows, maybe someday I'll use it..

But it did help immensely the first year or so of Olivia's arrival, so I have

gotten some use from it. Before nursing school, I worked retail -my last " real "

job was selling small electronics and cameras, almost 10 years at a big

dept.store.

Andre and I have been married almost 11 years, and together we have three

children.

is our 9 year old, her birthday was December 14. This is gonna

sidetrack me, but I just have to share this - for her birthday this year, we

rented a room at a hotel (a nearby Best Western) she invited just 5 girls (2 are

her cousins, who are 8 and 12, other 3 are classmates), and we had a pool

party. This turned out so great - for the girls to be able to swim, esp this

time of year - here in Ohio we had a freezing, snowy December - it was such a

fun alternative to the usual party. I was the chaperone, and Andre kept

and Olivia at home - I found a friend for to hang out with, so he wasn't

too left out. We had a " tropical " theme, with some fish decorations, and crafts

too - the girls loved it. All but 1 girl stayed the night at the hotel, and it

worked out great.

is in 3rd grade, and school has been a challenge for her,

unfortunately. In kindy, her teacher warned me, that doesn't ask for

help when she needs it - she's very shy and quiet in school - and this has

continued to be a problem for her. Last year, the school psych observed that she

has mild/moderate dyslexia. She has worked hard to compensate for it, but it is

hard for her at times. She loves animals, and knows so much about them (much

thanks to Animal Planet channel!) but the difficulty with these backwards

letters and numbers has made reading and writing much less exciting for her

than it seems it used to be, when she was 4 or 5 years old. This school year has

been hard - the teachers are emphasizing that the kids become more

self-sufficient, and has had trouble with this, her teacher thinks she

has ADD. We are looking into it now. If anyone has any

advice/experience/insight about dyslexia, or this related difficulty I've

described, I would love to hear

about it. Whew - see, is a " subject " ! However, she is such a sweet

daughter, and she has always been such a " lovey " , and asks to help, and knows

when I'm joking, and she is mostly wonderful to Olivia.

is 6.He is doing well in school, and seems to easily make friends, and he

is so funny without knowing it. I think he likes school, I think he even misses

it a little now -the kids go back tomorroow - but he will never admit it. He

can be so charming, but since I am the mom I get to see the temper side of him,

when he is easily frustrated by something, and everything becomes " stupid! " He

sometimes amazes me, how diplomatic he can be with other kids, though -

sharing, speaking to them. I wish he would use it more often with Olivia. Seems

like she is more of a rival, or a pesky little sister.

Olivia is 4, and she is why I joined this list. She is in a special-needs

preschool, this is her 2nd year, with same teacher, and she is doing great. The

school is part of our regular school district, and she will go at least one more

year, but with a new teacher. The classes are 4 days a week, mornings, and there

are 11 kids - 3 are typical, the rest have special needs. There are usually 2

aides, and Olivia also gets OT, PT and Speech. I also take her to private OT and

Speech (the PT just quit, to have her 2nd baby). She is doing really well.

Speech is the biggest concern, but she is surprising us all the time, and saying

new words. She can recognize 4-5 colors, counts to 3, sometimes 4, writes " O "

for her name - this past week she drew a face on her Magna-Doodle! She is also

working on the idea of " you " , " me " , and I have overheard her asking herself,

" Will you? Me? Yeah! " We are trying to potty train, but with not much success

yet.

Andre has 2 older sons from his first marriage, Marcin (28), and Pete (25). Pete

just got accepted into the Columbus Police Academy, so we are very excited and

proud of him. He has tried for years to become a cop, and now he is in - hope he

likes it!

Marcin lives in town with his mom, and we don't see him much. Marcin has some

mental problems, and he seems to be doing ok right now, but there have been

problems in the past with his willingness to take medication, and erratic

behavior - Andre usually takes him out to eat once a week, and brings him over

here on holidays.

is my oldest from my first marriage. He is 21, still lives at home (in

our nice finished basement) and I hope that someday soon he'll have a real job,

and/or go to college.

This April, Andre is attending a conference in the Miami area, and I think the

little kids and I will be going along. Does anyone live in that area? I don't

know what our plans will be, or how flexible, but I'd love to try to meet up

with anyone who is nearby.

I hope everyone had nice holidays - although I don't post much, I feel so

blessed to have so many friends, to listen to your stories, ask your advice, and

having met some of you has been such fun. Maybe someday I'll feel qualified

enough to give others my advice! lol

Thanks for listening,

Patty in Ohio

---------------------------------

DSL Something to write home about. Just $16.99/mo. or less