The Fence That Love Built

On Monday our boy turned 3 years old! He got the best present ever...a new swing set in a new fenced in backyard built by the best hands around!

Before I was about to marry Mark I remember thinking how much I liked the sound of my new name...Raelene Richard...doesn't it roll off the tongue nicely? Well, I tell you, I have never been more proud to wear that name as I have been this past week. These people that I am blessed to call my family are the finest people you will ever meet. They spent more hours than I can count building our little guy this amazing new fence! We started last week when our friend Josh came over to dig the holes with one of his cool machines. A huge thank you to him as well, if we would have had to do that by hand, it would have probably taken a whole day!

Then the building began!

 Pepe and Nana...what a great team... and the heart of the operation:)

Uncle Phil, Uncle Chris and Nana hard at work:)




I was blown away at how quickly it started to come together. It didn't take long before it started to look like a real live fence!

Auntie Robyn and Uncle Phil ( Phil had just stolen the tool belt from Auntie Robyn, but she rocked it when she had it! )

More help arrived when Auntie Jenn came on the scene ....these two were here until dark finishing Porter's new swing set...stay tuned for pics!

Uncle Phil, Cousin Brandon and Uncle Brian taking some important measurements! p.s. Brandon, you blew us away with how hard you worked!




Later, Uncle Josh came back to help us with the gates!

It was huge job, I mean we were building a 250 ft fence! I thought it would be at least a week but not with Richards in charge! They worked around the clock and by Sunday it was done! And it was fantastic!



Now it was time to put his brand new swing set up... Porter's cousin Bailey did a super job sorting the huge amount of parts that came in the box! Then she, Uncle Chris and Auntie Jenn took on the project.

After everyone went home Uncle Chris and Auntie Jenn continued to work into the night until it was done! Their hard work all paid off....it looks awesome!

Did he like it? Does a cow say moo? He LOVED it! He has been having a blast going up and down the slide.

He even let Thomas have a swing:) Later Thomas got to go down the slide too!  It won't be long until Ruby can join in on the fun!



Words cannot express the gratitude we feel towards everyone who helped to bring this wonderful backyard together! Even days later when I step outside I still get overcome with emotion.....thank you! thank you!

thank! you!

You have all changed our lives! Special thanks to Nana who provided lunch for all our hard workers. ( I told you before the woman is a saint!) And thank you to Auntie Carol who helped with the kids and the mess! Love all you guys...you are the best of the best!

:) Rae

Broken Bones and Big Boy School!

Forgive me followers, it has been 12 days since my last confession...

But I promise I have a good reason. Last Sunday Mark broke his leg. He was kiteboarding and something happened which I don't fully understand yet, but basically he fell about 20 feet
( which probably means 35 feet) and landed hard on his board, which unfortunately broke his tibia bone.

 OUCH!

 He fortunately avoided surgery but has to wear a brace on his leg for about 8 weeks, putting NO pressure on his foot for at least 6 weeks. Right now he is unable to bend it but in two weeks when he goes back for a check up, they are going to allow his brace to make a 20 degree angle and slowly increase it from there...

I have been trying REALLY hard to keep this in perspective because I don't even like to think about how much worse this could be. But I tell you, this is not fun, for Mark or any of us for that matter. I had no idea how much I actually depend on him and I have an ever greater respect for single parents who do it all....all of the time. 

Luckily, he is a pretty good patient. Only asks for food and water and the occasional pain pill. I guess we will still keep him:)

On a more positive note, Porter started "school" last week. He was supposed to start last Monday but because he and Ruby had to stay at Nana and Pepe's on Sunday night ( Mark and I were at the QEH waiting to see if he would need surgery or not ) we decided to postpone his first day. Imagine, skipping school on the first day!

I was worried sick about how it would go as I am sure most moms do. But I tell you, he is doing simply amazing! His teacher is actually the same person who works with him 2 days a week on IBI skills. She has been wonderful and I am sure that is why it is going so well! Of course he is having his moments, but in the morning when I say "time to go to school" he runs for the door and hardly notices when I leave.  He already made a friend who helps him put on his shoes and he just loves playing outside at "recess"  AND I got my very first ever Mother's Day Card from my boy! Would you check out that amazing hand "butterfly"!  I am so proud of him, I could burst!

Here is a closer shot of the poem...in case you wanted to read it too:)

Ok, promise to chat soon!

:) Rae

Hope....continued:)

So after I finished my last post, I realized that I had much more to say on the subject of hope. Most importantly, the following story that my new friend Leslie shared with me a few weeks ago. I was so touched that this amazing mom took the time out of her very busy life to reach out to me. She filled me with the most hope I had felt in a very long time. I felt so inspired that I asked her if she minded me sharing it with you...thankfully, she was glad to share her journey about her amazing boy, Jack.

 
"When my five year old son Jack was 22 months old he could only say 'mama', 'dada' and 'water'. In having him as my first child I wasn't exactly sure of how 'normal' this was and asked tons of opinions, many people just said, 'oh all kids develop differently, he'll come around" and so on. Soon after I referred him to speech pathology, and after doing the initial assessment I went home with a sad heart and news to tell my husband that our son had a language development level equivalent to a 9 month old. Following this we took Jack weekly to see his speech and language pathologist. Soon enough came the hardest news I've yet had to receive as a parent. The speech pathologist thought Jack may be autistic. He had very few words, he did not respond to his name, he couldn't follow out simple commands such as 'go put the cup on the counter ', he had fleeting eye contact and he stimmed quite a bit. He was fascinated with light switches, space and airplanes. He threw temper tantrums when he couldn't get his own way (different though from other kids his age), he HATED transitioning from one activity to another and he was the pickiest eater alive. We had huge troubles with potty training and he had more allergies than you could shake a stick at.

The following step was months apon months of waiting, referrals and doctors appointments. When we finally got the diagnosis in October of 2009, we were somewhat relieved. I did,however go home and cry for hours... I felt like my world had crashed. You can say you feel relieved because there is finally a reason your son acts the way he does but you'll never know what it feels like to get news like this until you receive it. The thoughts that now ran through my mind were" will he be able to be in school with all the kids", will he play sports, play with kids, will he talk"? Well I have good news for all you moms and dads out there... With early intervention you can what I believe is "cure" your child. My pediatrician in fact says that Jack wouldn't have enough symptoms today to be "classified " as the traditional autistic child. He can talk in full sentences,( I think he may talk more that me sometimes:) he can play normally, read books at five years old, problem solve, ect.... He is doing above and beyond better than we ever could have hoped for. He doesn't even need a one on one worker in school at time. He is completely mainstreamed into the regular kindergarten class. His teacher told me last week he is actually above average in several areas and she has no social concerns at this point. Jack had two years of IBI, (intensive behavioral therapy) and private tutoring... And lots of prayers. He is also on a dairy free/ as much gluten free as I can do, free diet. He has come SO far and I hope in reading this you can get some real hope because I believe as parents as long as we advocate and utilize the resources out there we can do so much for our autistic children.... They are SO smart and we need to help them develop communication tools that they can use based on their needs."

Her story sounded so familiar to me, I found myself in tears after a few lines. And while I know not every child will rise to that level, some will. It reminded me of an awesome T shirt I came across a little while ago. ( I tried to get the picture, but Ebay won't let me:)

The T shirt said...

 I have Autism, but go ahead, set the bar high.....I can make it!

And that is more of what HOPE is made of. Thank you again Leslie for sharing your story with us.

:) Rae