Jamie news, and more articles to click and share
Still have to play catch-up with Jamie updates, etc. The most current thing of note is that his schedule has consistently shifted earlier...he's waking up between 7ish and 9ish in the morning, and crashing by 8pm. A slight shift earlier is common enough for him in Autumn and Winter, as his SAD-interacting-with-the-SPD leads his system to strain for all the daylight he can fit into reduced-by-the-drain-of-less-sunlight awake time. All the same, it's never been quite like this before. It's not a bad thing in general, certainly, and will help if we can ever get him involved in any programs. I'm certainly grateful that it's come after he finally accepted the idea of being put to bed and actually sleeping when he's tired, whether or not he thinks he wants to be, or both mommy and daddy are home for his ideal bedtime routine.
The most current thing of slightly less note is that I scored big with Craigslist, yesterday. A woman was giving away size-based lots of clothes, and I got dibs on the 4T lot. We got a pair of those overall-style snow pants along with a pair of Winter boots that should be his size (he's either a 9 or a 10, depending on shoe style and brand...these are a 10, so if they don't work this year, they'll work the next), and conveniently, both will go with the Winter coat, hat and mittens he already has that'll be working for him this year. It's good to avoid used shoes if the bottom or the inner sole show much wear, because it's actually bad for your feet (and, therfore, legs) to walk in things molded to someone else's foot shape and tread -- but when it comes to toddler shoes I've never run into that problem, except with sneakers, because other shoes just aren't worn enough, for long enough, to get seriously impacted before they are outgrown. I rather hope the boots fit this year, because then Jamie will now be totally set for this harsh Winter to come, and we won't have to buy anything else. (Yes, Karin, the coat you got him will still be useful if you end up able to send that package...for something as vital and constantly-used as a good Winter coat, having a spare is a very helpful thing.) Oh, and a surprise bonus was that she added a 5T Winter coat to the expected 4T lot, so Jamie will be set on that account, at least, for next year! In addition to all the Winter/snow gear, there was a miniature suit, as well as a few sweatpants, PJs, and thick shirts. We're in another financial fun spot because of all the recent car stuff, so we've been trying to avoid excess driving, but even with 40 min of driving/gas (round-trip), this was far from a waste. The suit's just a fun bonus, the random clothes are useful though technically get-around-able....the Winter gear was vital and unavoidable, though. I mean, we'd have to have procured it somehow anyway, which unless we were surprised by another surge of targeted generosity, means buying them somehow ourselves. This was probably a good $100 worth of stuff, for free. YEAH! Still a few wardrobe gaps to fill, but a lot fewer big ones, now.
That's it for now...the catch-up will again be saved for later. Honestly, I'm not procrastinating, I'm just trying to get more of my coherent writing opportunities in for the Examiner stuff. It's a rare day when I earn even a dollar from it, which is rather sad, but those are dollars we need, so when I can't be crafting but I can be writing....
Two more articles since the last I posted, btw ~ "Sweet Halloween tricks for special needs children" and "I Can, Can You? -- board book features children with Down Syndrome". That makes 22 articles in all, and I've yet to break $30 in earnings, so....click, please?! I mean, don't go crazy with the refresh button or anything, or they'll think you're a bot and it won't count, but...otherwise, make with lots of the clicky clicky clicky, if you'd be so kind. And as a reminder, if anyone is interested in even trying out writing for Examiner, I will happily act as a reference for hire, which both helps you get hired (and potentially earn a lot more than I do...the friend who referred me sure does), and earns me $50 I get to keep even if you stop working for them after a month or whatever.
The most current thing of slightly less note is that I scored big with Craigslist, yesterday. A woman was giving away size-based lots of clothes, and I got dibs on the 4T lot. We got a pair of those overall-style snow pants along with a pair of Winter boots that should be his size (he's either a 9 or a 10, depending on shoe style and brand...these are a 10, so if they don't work this year, they'll work the next), and conveniently, both will go with the Winter coat, hat and mittens he already has that'll be working for him this year. It's good to avoid used shoes if the bottom or the inner sole show much wear, because it's actually bad for your feet (and, therfore, legs) to walk in things molded to someone else's foot shape and tread -- but when it comes to toddler shoes I've never run into that problem, except with sneakers, because other shoes just aren't worn enough, for long enough, to get seriously impacted before they are outgrown. I rather hope the boots fit this year, because then Jamie will now be totally set for this harsh Winter to come, and we won't have to buy anything else. (Yes, Karin, the coat you got him will still be useful if you end up able to send that package...for something as vital and constantly-used as a good Winter coat, having a spare is a very helpful thing.) Oh, and a surprise bonus was that she added a 5T Winter coat to the expected 4T lot, so Jamie will be set on that account, at least, for next year! In addition to all the Winter/snow gear, there was a miniature suit, as well as a few sweatpants, PJs, and thick shirts. We're in another financial fun spot because of all the recent car stuff, so we've been trying to avoid excess driving, but even with 40 min of driving/gas (round-trip), this was far from a waste. The suit's just a fun bonus, the random clothes are useful though technically get-around-able....the Winter gear was vital and unavoidable, though. I mean, we'd have to have procured it somehow anyway, which unless we were surprised by another surge of targeted generosity, means buying them somehow ourselves. This was probably a good $100 worth of stuff, for free. YEAH! Still a few wardrobe gaps to fill, but a lot fewer big ones, now.
That's it for now...the catch-up will again be saved for later. Honestly, I'm not procrastinating, I'm just trying to get more of my coherent writing opportunities in for the Examiner stuff. It's a rare day when I earn even a dollar from it, which is rather sad, but those are dollars we need, so when I can't be crafting but I can be writing....
Two more articles since the last I posted, btw ~ "Sweet Halloween tricks for special needs children" and "I Can, Can You? -- board book features children with Down Syndrome". That makes 22 articles in all, and I've yet to break $30 in earnings, so....click, please?! I mean, don't go crazy with the refresh button or anything, or they'll think you're a bot and it won't count, but...otherwise, make with lots of the clicky clicky clicky, if you'd be so kind. And as a reminder, if anyone is interested in even trying out writing for Examiner, I will happily act as a reference for hire, which both helps you get hired (and potentially earn a lot more than I do...the friend who referred me sure does), and earns me $50 I get to keep even if you stop working for them after a month or whatever.