This blog is my place to vent and share resources with other parents of children of trauma. I try to be open and honest about my feelings in order to help others know they are not alone. Therapeutic parenting of adopted teenagers with RAD and other severe mental illnesses and issues (plus "neurotypical" teens) , is not easy, and there are time when I say what I feel... at the moment. We're all human!

Sunday, November 29, 2009

Lights out!




Every year after Thanksgiving we put up the Christmas tree and decorations. I remembered there being something wrong with the lights last year, but couldn't remember the extent. Apparently we had a power surge or something because all the strands of lights, except for half of two were completely burned out. So will need to go buy some lights before we can hang the ornaments. *sigh*

Did I mention how much I love decorating with children? Bear and Kitty have an excuse (ADD and ADHD), but ALL of the kids had to be drug back every 5 minutes to decorate. They did put up the tree, then opened all the boxes, and took enough stuff out to completely trash the room/hall and make it impassible. Bear decorated himself (pictures soon I promise - he even commented that this picture would be going on my blog as he posed! Goober!), but after that they wandered off. I did manage to get them back to move the boxes out of the walkway.

We watched the movie Up tonight. Very cute. Well, I say "we," but really it was Bob and I who watched the movie. Kitty usually argues for the movie she wants to watch and then watches about 10 minutes before she wanders off. She needs her down time walking in the backyard or talking to herself in her room. Makes Hubby crazy, but I'm kind of glad she's not a TVaholic. Bear spent the whole time on the computer (Hubby was in charge of making sure he stuck to his alloted computer time of 45 minutes, but obviously Hubby let it slide). Bear is not a TV/movie person either. Ponito watched whatever Bear was doing on the computer, with maybe a little bit of attention for the TV. Hubby was reading business plans for a competition he judges every year. Otherwise Ponito would have been watching Hubby play computer games on his laptop.

Only at the end of the movie Up, do you realize the little boy is apparently in foster care. It was actually fairly well handled.

So far this year we don't seem to be having too much holiday drama or issues. So much better than last year (when Kitty ended up in residential treatment). Knock on wood!

2 comments:

stellarparenting.com said...

we didn't think he was in care but just didn't have paretns who were really there for him, our boys were so excited that we bought it. Speaking of movies about kids in care that happened to us with Hotel for Dogs and caused all sorts of fall out... movies should come with warnings!

Anonymous said...

"Oh yea" to J's comment. My husband is a mathematician so we rented "A Beautiful Mind" to watch while my mom was here. She has DID, but I didn't really understand it at the time. She shattered into a kazillion pieces and checked herself into a mental health hospital for 2 weeks.

Oops.