Changes ...

As far as Connor is concerned, Daddy is a builder. That's been his job his whole life, and then some. But with three little boys and a wife at home, and the current state of the economy, changes had to happen. Something more certain, preferrably with good health insurance and long-term benefits like retirement, is what our family needed.

A little over a year ago, Josh began the application process for the local fire department. It's been a long process, beginning with written and physical tests, reference checks, interviews and more interviews. After about a year, the recruit class was selected, and Josh was both lucky and talented enough to be one of those twenty-five.

For the past sixteen weeks, Daddy has been at "fire school" as Connor calls it. At class by 7 o'clock in the morning and not home until nearly 5 o'clock every afternoon. Every day consisted of long hours of studying, practicing, drilling, testing and physcial training.

Building was put on hold, because training was a full-time job in and of itself. They even did things like burn down houses (donated for said purpose) to further their training ...

Last week that process ended. The recruit class graduated in a ceremony attended by the local mayor, the upper levels of the fire department, members of city council, and lots of family and friends. The recruits became official firemen (probationary for the first year, but still official)!

Now, every three days, Daddy is a fireman. The other two, he'll still get to be a builder, if he decides he still wants to. Fireman Daddy. Builder Daddy. Connor thinks he has the coolest dad ever!

Adventures of a Big Boy

Long weekends usually mean a fun trip for Connor. This past weekend was no exception. The boys were out of school on Monday for President's Day, which meant Connor had three whole days away from school. Grandma and Grandpa put in a request for him to accompany them to the Smoky Mountains for the long weekend.

Early Friday, Grandma and Grandpa drove up. They were helping me get the twins to and from school and also picking up Connor from school so that I could go to Josh's graduation from the fire academy. It was at 11 o'clock Friday afternoon, right in the middle of the school day.

After school on Friday, Connor loaded up into Grandpa's truck and said "Bye-bye, see you later!"

We were actually worried he might not get to go at all. He had been feeling a bit under the weather since the middle of last week - not actively sick, but not completely well either. He had a little cough that kept getting worse, he wasn't eating much, and he was sleeping a lot. All bad signs. We told him he might have to stay home. We even hinted Sawyer or Xander might like to go.

Not surprisingly, he woke up Friday morning and proclaimed himself well. He was fibbing, of course, because he still had the same basic symptoms. But we let it go. Grandma and Grandpa were not alarmed by them, and decided to go ahead and take him along.

So he spent three days in the mountains with them. They went swimming at the indoor pool at the condo complex. They made the requisite trip to the OshKosh outlet store for clearance items for next year. They picked up Krispy Kreme doughnuts and ate at Connor's favorites like Chick-fil-A and McDonald's. They even ventured on one of the shorter hikes (just a few miles). They spent quite a bit of time at the track - a place with go carts and mini golf and kiddie rides.

Connor slept, a lot. He ate a little. But he had a great time.

It's a rough life, he says, but someone has to live it.

Bling, Bling

Our toy closet is filled with all kinds of toys. Legos, blocks, Hot Wheels, you name it, it's probably in there. We have so many toys that we actually rotate them around, keeping about half out and the other half in the closet, simply so that the whole house is not overrun with toys. It very easily could be.

Did the boys want to play with any of those real, normal toys? No, they pulled out the bin that I refer to as "trinkets and trash," the bin that has the assorted toys and items picked up in fast food kids' meals, school rewards, birthday parties and other random events. Xander was all about the Mardi Gras beads and the fake heart ring. It was appropriate dinner attire, apparently. (You might also remember it as part of Connor's Halloween costume a few years back, when he was Captain Jack Sparrow.)

Ready Or Not ...

Head First, originally uploaded by cheryl.

Today it was warm in our part of the world. I'm talking flip flops and sunroof kind of warm, as in near 70 degrees. That doesn't happen too often in February where we live. So the boys and I enjoyed it as much as we possibly could.

For the first time in months, a warm breeze blew through the truck during car line. The sunroof was open as we drove to and from schools. It was nice.

And when we made it home at the end of the day, we headed outside to the back yard. Well, some of us anyway. Connor jumped on the computer and started playing games. But the twins and I headed out back. They went straight for the swings, Xander requesting "swing" before he even made it through the door. The twins alternated swinging and sliding. Sawyer also had fun chasing Buster and laying on top of him (don't ask, we have no idea). The good news is Buster is a good sport about it. I also found the frisbee and got Xander away from the swings for a while. He loves to toss it up in the air and chase it when you glide it across the yard. We spent quite a while doing that.

Eventually, Connor came outside. He's been kind of pitiful the last few days. Not really sick, but not really himself either. He's not eating hardly anything, though he's drinking tons of juice. And he's laying around and sleeping quite a bit. He decided to grace us with his presence only to mope and whine. We sent him back inside to watch a movie so we could enjoy the warm weather in peace.

We've missed the sun. And the warmth. Though I know it cannot be here to stay - not yet anyway - we're certainly ready for it. When it comes to the weather, I'll skip Spring and take Summer, please.

Around the Corner

It's been a busy weekend.

Friday afternoon, Connor was surprised with an invitation to spend the weekend with Grammy and Pappy. He quickly packed his bags and said see you later. He spent a fun-filled weekend being spoiled with things like an afternoon at the indoor pool and lots of Nerf gun battles with Pappy and Louie at the house.

On Sunday, Connor came back home with Grammy and Pappy, who came over to help celebrate Josh's birthday. We celebrated with Billy's Barbecue and Magee's Carrot Cake (clearly it was not my birthday). We also got to visit with most of Josh's family - Grammy and Pappy, Uncle Luke (on his new motorcycle), Aunt Kelly, and Grandma Jo. Josh's best friend, who the boys know as "Uncle George" also came over to visit. At the end of the night, the twins went home with Grammy and Pappy.

Monday was the big day - registration day for the local school system. We've moved into a new, highly sought-after district. I've heard that you have to register early to be ensured a spot - even though we live in the actual district and are less than a mile from the school. I was there at 9 a.m. on the dot. It took me nearly an hour to fill out three registration packets, but the applications were time and date stamped within the first hour of the first registration window, so surely we will be fine. Surely.

But beyond getting the boys into a good school, it was also a big day because it marks the end of Early Start for the twins. They are going to leave their wonderful teachers and therapists at the end of this school year and start on another journey. It's a big move, and a scary one. I don't think I'm ready for it at all. At least not yet.

There are still have a few months before the transition meeting, where we get together with people from their current team and also invite members from the new school. But it's looming. And it's getting closer. I keep trying not to think about it. Because I simply am not ready.

Next year will be a BIG change. The twins will go from three hours of structured play to eight hours of hard-core school. I know this because Connor is in kindergarten this year. And it exhausts him. He complains about how hard it is and how much work he has to do. And he doesn't have autism, he doesn't have a language delay or sensory issues or any of the other things that come along with autism.

So even though I was happy to go to the boys' new, much-closer neighborhood school to sign them up, even though I am pretty optimistic they will be enrolled, despite the competitive area, it was still a bittersweet moment.

Because I am not ready. Not ready to leave behind the amazing teachers and therapists the boys have come to know the last three years at their school. Not ready to have all three boys at the same school, where their differences will be so much more obvious not only for us but for Connor and the rest of the world. Not ready for the day when Connor tells us that his brothers embarass him in front of his friends. Not ready to watch as the gap between where they are and where they should be continues to widen with each passing school year, despite how hard they are consistently expected to work every single minute of every single day.

No, I am not ready.

Not yet.