After me and my son left school we swung by my brothers to pick up one of his birthday presents. The way there Booger(my son) was talking about Minecraft and things that had to deal with that. On the way home these are the types of questions I am having to answer (Note the first 5 questions and the fact that I am taking an astronomy course that Booger knows about):
1. What would happen if someone let loose an air tank on Mars?
2. Would you just see air escaping but not going anywhere?
3. Are there telescopes that can let you see really up close to the Sun? Not ones in space, but down here. Where you can sit there and look at the lava and stuff coming off the Sun?
4. Are there telescopes in space where you can set them to record and see things really really close up?
5. I wonder if you are a skydiver if you can take a bite out of a cloud.
6. What do you think a cloud tastes like?
7. If you are flying a plane and you get really thirsty and don't have anything to drink do you think you can just take a bite out of a rain cloud and get water?
8. What does it mean when someone says 'wet my whistle'?
9. If you had a jet pack do you think you would drink from a cloud?
10. Ok, even though jet packs can't get you in the clouds what if you had a glider with rockets on it?
11. What do you think a cloud tastes like?
12. Why is it when you open a door to an airplane if you are in the air things get sucked out?
This was just the questions asked in a 10 minute period. I need to start writing down all the other questions I get asked every single freakin day! I must say though. For being just a few days away from 9 years old he has some pretty smart questions!
Tuesday, July 23, 2013
Friday, July 19, 2013
Can money seriously start growing from trees?!
With my sons 9th birthday creeping around the corner it has gotten me thinking about college. I am in college now and am no where near being finished. I am already so far in debt with just student loans it isn't even funny. So I decided I wanted to save money for my sons college fees.
When he was born I always said I wanted to be able to put everything his dad gave for child support into a college fund, but that hasn't been possible so far. Then I got to thinking, with a little help from my mom (yes I will give you partial credit for this), why not take $10 from each weekly payment and put it into my sons savings account? Then when I get a refund check from my school or taxes take a couple hundred and stick it in there as well.
So far, all is well and good. There is a little pocket change in there. So I decided to look up estimated college tuition in the year 2022, when my son should be starting college. That scared the shit out of me!
I would need to be able to put $500 a month into a saving account for my son just to insure that college can even have a possibility of being paid for! I don't have $500 a month to live off of, let alone save up! So I am on the verge of pulling my hair out right now.
Then there are scholarships. Well, sports is inevitably left out because my son is not athletic at all. Unless I can get him into swimming (which takes money) then there might be some hope with that one. My child is a freaking fish and loves to swim.
Minority scholarships are left out too, I don't think they consider being a direct descendant to a Hatfield a minority. They should, but they probably don't lol.
My son is obviously not a woman so that one can't work either.
Unusual scholarships should be left in the running though. I mean they did give a scholarship to a girl just for having the best duct tape prom dress. My son is very unusual as well.
The only ones that might have a major running for my son are community service scholarships or academic scholarships. He got all As and Bs in 3rd grade, maybe if he can get all As for the next 8 years he can try for academic scholarships. He has done community service before, but not much, we can always try and build up on that one.
All in all, I know college isn't cheap. I am living through how not cheap it is right now! But maybe I can insure that he has enough money for college that he won't have to take out loans. My college fund only had $5 in it. I have 8 years left to save up everything I can. Fingers crossed!!
When he was born I always said I wanted to be able to put everything his dad gave for child support into a college fund, but that hasn't been possible so far. Then I got to thinking, with a little help from my mom (yes I will give you partial credit for this), why not take $10 from each weekly payment and put it into my sons savings account? Then when I get a refund check from my school or taxes take a couple hundred and stick it in there as well.
So far, all is well and good. There is a little pocket change in there. So I decided to look up estimated college tuition in the year 2022, when my son should be starting college. That scared the shit out of me!
I would need to be able to put $500 a month into a saving account for my son just to insure that college can even have a possibility of being paid for! I don't have $500 a month to live off of, let alone save up! So I am on the verge of pulling my hair out right now.
Minority scholarships are left out too, I don't think they consider being a direct descendant to a Hatfield a minority. They should, but they probably don't lol.
My son is obviously not a woman so that one can't work either.
Unusual scholarships should be left in the running though. I mean they did give a scholarship to a girl just for having the best duct tape prom dress. My son is very unusual as well.
The only ones that might have a major running for my son are community service scholarships or academic scholarships. He got all As and Bs in 3rd grade, maybe if he can get all As for the next 8 years he can try for academic scholarships. He has done community service before, but not much, we can always try and build up on that one.
All in all, I know college isn't cheap. I am living through how not cheap it is right now! But maybe I can insure that he has enough money for college that he won't have to take out loans. My college fund only had $5 in it. I have 8 years left to save up everything I can. Fingers crossed!!
Tuesday, July 9, 2013
What I have learned so far having an ADHD/ODD child
There are some changes that I have noticed with Booger since he was diagnosed with ADHD/ODD roughly a year ago. I am not a fan of most of the changes even though I know he really has no control over them. I see how hard Booger is working at doing the absolute best he can, but if it was not for his therapy and medication things would still be the nightmare they were 2-3 years ago. I know one day he will be able to handle everything sans medication and that would be a day for major celebration. If you do not have a child that is ADHD or ODD, or even know an ODD child then you will probably think that I am letting my son get away with murder, but until you live with it or know someone living with it you will never truly understand what I go through on a daily basis.
He no longer likes loud noises. In fact he tends to freak out when he hears loud noises. I used to be able to take him to parades when he was younger. Now if I take him to a parade, the second the marching band walks past he starts covering his ears, screaming, crying, and begging to go home. I have not seen a parade in three years. The same goes for fire works. I think last year (2012) was the last year that we were able to sit through an entire showing of fireworks. The year before that we had to go about 2 blocks away and watch them between houses, with Booger sitting in the car with the door closed. I can't even run the vacuum in the same room as him because he will curl into a ball and cry while covering his ears until I turn it off. I have to tell him to leave the room just to vacuum.
His tastes are changing and he hates trying new things. My child used to be a bottomless pit when it came to food. If my dad or my brother ate it, Booger ate it. Now we are down to Booger only eating about 7 things and maybe, just MAYBE, he will try something new. Booger will only try something new if it is his idea. If you ask him to try it he slaps his hand over his mouth and starts backing away from the table. His Occupational Therapist (OT) has even tried to get him to try new foods. They also have to be prepared a certain way or I just wasted the food.
Punishments are more a punishment for me than they are Booger. It used to be when he was younger all I had to do was put his butt in a chair for a few minutes and we were good the rest of the day. Now when he has a melt down (thank God they are not violent anymore) I am the one that ends up getting punished more than him. Booger will scream and cry, while pleading and begging, that he doesn't get grounded so long that I can't get anything done. If I leave him alone in the room the destroys the room and injures himself in the process. Two years ago he actually put a dent in the wall from hitting it so hard with his head. I spent 10 minutes yesterday just trying to pry the Wii remote out of his hands with his screaming "Im sorry" so I could get him to sleep.
I can have him look me in the eyes while I talk, then repeat back exactly what I just said and he will still forget what I said the second he stops repeating it. He has no attention span and unless it has to do with something he has a serious interest in he couldn't give two shits less about retaining the information. If it has to do with World of Warcraft, Minecraft, Skylanders Giants, etc he can tell you every single thing about the games because he will sit and research the hell out of the games. Tell him to turn the light out as he walks past the switch I am repeating myself over and over with him looking at me like I am speaking a foreign language.
I swear its selective, even though I know it really isn't. At school he is fine. With my brother he is fine. When my dad is around he is fine. With me its like there is no filter for his actions if he is off his medication. He will go full force with me. Then when its over and he is back to normal, it is then that he finally knows what he did and feels a horrible amount of remorse. In the past year Booger went from being on the verge of an attack almost daily to only being that way when he is so far beyond tired he should have been asleep yesterday. It has been a roller coaster of emotions and a learning experience, but the biggest thing I have learned is I need to reconsider everything I thought was right when it came to parenting. So Starting to today I am challenging myself to not raise my voice or yell for a whole month. I want to see what difference that makes with not only Booger but with myself as well. We shall see what happens!
He no longer likes loud noises. In fact he tends to freak out when he hears loud noises. I used to be able to take him to parades when he was younger. Now if I take him to a parade, the second the marching band walks past he starts covering his ears, screaming, crying, and begging to go home. I have not seen a parade in three years. The same goes for fire works. I think last year (2012) was the last year that we were able to sit through an entire showing of fireworks. The year before that we had to go about 2 blocks away and watch them between houses, with Booger sitting in the car with the door closed. I can't even run the vacuum in the same room as him because he will curl into a ball and cry while covering his ears until I turn it off. I have to tell him to leave the room just to vacuum.
His tastes are changing and he hates trying new things. My child used to be a bottomless pit when it came to food. If my dad or my brother ate it, Booger ate it. Now we are down to Booger only eating about 7 things and maybe, just MAYBE, he will try something new. Booger will only try something new if it is his idea. If you ask him to try it he slaps his hand over his mouth and starts backing away from the table. His Occupational Therapist (OT) has even tried to get him to try new foods. They also have to be prepared a certain way or I just wasted the food.
Punishments are more a punishment for me than they are Booger. It used to be when he was younger all I had to do was put his butt in a chair for a few minutes and we were good the rest of the day. Now when he has a melt down (thank God they are not violent anymore) I am the one that ends up getting punished more than him. Booger will scream and cry, while pleading and begging, that he doesn't get grounded so long that I can't get anything done. If I leave him alone in the room the destroys the room and injures himself in the process. Two years ago he actually put a dent in the wall from hitting it so hard with his head. I spent 10 minutes yesterday just trying to pry the Wii remote out of his hands with his screaming "Im sorry" so I could get him to sleep.
I can have him look me in the eyes while I talk, then repeat back exactly what I just said and he will still forget what I said the second he stops repeating it. He has no attention span and unless it has to do with something he has a serious interest in he couldn't give two shits less about retaining the information. If it has to do with World of Warcraft, Minecraft, Skylanders Giants, etc he can tell you every single thing about the games because he will sit and research the hell out of the games. Tell him to turn the light out as he walks past the switch I am repeating myself over and over with him looking at me like I am speaking a foreign language.
I swear its selective, even though I know it really isn't. At school he is fine. With my brother he is fine. When my dad is around he is fine. With me its like there is no filter for his actions if he is off his medication. He will go full force with me. Then when its over and he is back to normal, it is then that he finally knows what he did and feels a horrible amount of remorse. In the past year Booger went from being on the verge of an attack almost daily to only being that way when he is so far beyond tired he should have been asleep yesterday. It has been a roller coaster of emotions and a learning experience, but the biggest thing I have learned is I need to reconsider everything I thought was right when it came to parenting. So Starting to today I am challenging myself to not raise my voice or yell for a whole month. I want to see what difference that makes with not only Booger but with myself as well. We shall see what happens!
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